Chapter 289: Engagement Ceremony (2)
Because it was an engagement ceremony, the whole process was much simpler than a wedding. After the two grooms came to the stage, the master of ceremonies invited the elders of both sides to come on stage, briefly introduced the two grooms, and then it was time for the elders of both sides to speak.
As the head of the Li family, even though he had retired now, Grandpa Li still stood up without hesitation. He spent nearly ten minutes expressing to all the guests the excitement of the Li family members that Li Xiaoheng was finally able to marry himself off before the age of 30, and his satisfaction with Tao Mu, his new grandson-in-law. Finally, he blessed the newly engaged couple to grow old together and cross a river in the same boat (TN: idiom meaning to share common interests and help each other towards common goals). And as elders they would try their best to be the strongest backing for the two.
Since it was Grandpa Li who spoke on behalf of the Li family, the spokesperson for the Tao family was naturally old Mr. Song. Compared with the blood relationship of the Li family, although Tao Mu's family members were not related by blood, their relationship with each other was equally deep. Especially for old Mr. Song, who had experienced family ruin and death, the existence of Tao Mu was equivalent to making up for the vacancy of old Mr. Song's son who had died early. Now watching Tao Mu grow up and start a family of his own, it was as if old Mr. Song saw his son grow up and start a family in another time and space, and was very emotional for a while. Finally, of course, he wished the newly engaged couple a happy union for a hundred years.
The next step was the soup drinking. During the traditional wedding ceremony, the newlyweds would drink a formal exchange of cups of wine, but now it was an engagement ceremony, so they replaced this link with the newly engaged couple drinking the "century-old happiness soup" together——in fact, according to the ancestral traditions of the Song family, this bowl of soup should be made by the descendants of the Song family, and personally fed to their newlywed wife. But Li Xiaoheng was not a girl after all and marriage was the union of two families. Old Mr. Song also didn't want to embarrass the Li family by adhering to the Song family ancestor's precepts so rigidly.
So this link became the newly engaged couple drinking the soup together in front of all the guests at the banquet. It must be said that Tao Mu's craftsmanship was really good, and the ingredients of the "century-old happiness soup" were really fresh. The effect of beautifying and nourishing the skin was even more immediate——after the l newly engaged couple who hadn't slept all night drank the bowl of soup, their complexions suddenly became rosy, their eyes clear and bright, and even their skin seemed to be more radiant.
For a while, the atmosphere in the audience became more and more excited. Represented by the juniors of the Li family, many young people whistled and clapped. There were also people asking loudly below whether the soup was good or not.
Li Xiaoheng put down the soup bowl very calmly, and responded in a calm manner: "It's delicious."
Instantly——
The sound of screaming and clapping in the audience became louder and more lively. No one thought that Li Xiaoheng, who was always serious and dull, could be such a good sport and actually responded to everyone's jokes.
Some guests recorded this scene with their mobile phones, and unable to restrain their eager fingers, they directly uploaded the short video to FlyNews. The Ceramics who had been waiting for the news on the Internet instantly exploded. After watching the short twenty second video, they squealed, liked and shared it, and within half an hour, the related video became a trending search.
Unaware of the uproar on the Internet, the engagement ceremony had already reached the stage where Tao Mu would be singing for Li Xiaoheng. In the Chinese-style ceremony with antique decorations, playing and singing on a piano was actually quite out of place. But this kind of thing was actually not important, what was important was the hearts of the two people involved——Tao Mu himself wrote the lyrics and composed the song for Li Xiaoheng. With the two playing on the piano together at the engagement ceremony, it represented a perfect and harmonious union.
So this video of less than five minutes was also uploaded to FlyNews.com from various angles by the guests present. During the summer vacation, the number of real-name registered users of FlyNews.com had risen to more than 199.9 million, and it was about to break through the 200 million mark. At this time the song that Tao Mu had promised to everyone a long time ago was actually released in advance! Netizens all over the country were so excited that they quickly shared and liked it, and the registered users of FlyNews.com also broke the 200 million mark that night.
It could be said to be two simultaneous happy events occurring in the family.
"Cheers!"
After the ceremonial part of the engagement ceremony was over, the banquet officially began. Old Mr. Song personally taught the apprentices of Song Ji to prepare the wedding banquet. Needless to say, the look and taste of the banquet was first class, and even the peach blossom wine made from the Song family's secret recipe was met with lots of praise.
Tao Mu and Li Xiaoheng followed behind the two families' elders, toasting table after table. After listening to many blessings and drinking a lot of wine, the two were already quite tipsy.
After drinking for three rounds, the guests who were still somewhat restrained also let loose. The two groups of relatives and friends who originally sat distinct from each other began to mingle, some wanted autographs and group photos, and some took advantage of their uninhibited state to talk about cooperation and endorsement. Fortunately, everyone still maintained some sense, and they have not forgotten that this was the engagement ceremony of Tao Mu and Li Xiaoheng. In the end, there was no stealing the show and turning this ceremony into a business conference or a celebrity meeting.
Grandpa Li, Father Li and Mother Li had already drunk a little too much. Pulling on Li Xiaoheng's sleeve, they sobbed with snot and tears, expressing that their grandson/son had finally grown up and found a wife. From now on, they no longer had to worry that no one would want him and he would be a bachelor for the rest of his life.
"…..You have to treat Xiao Mu well!"
Mother Li put her arms around Tao Mu's shoulders with tears in her eyes: "Thank you for not disliking our family's Xiao Heng for being old. Let me tell you that an older partner has its benefits, they know how to dote on their beloved!"
Tao Mu supported Mother Li who was already staggering, and gave Li Xiaoheng a helpless look: "Auntie, don't worry. Xiao Heng is very good, we will grow old together and support each other for the rest of our lives."
"Call me Mom!" Mother Li continued to hug Tao Mu without letting go, and said half drunk and half pretending: "Although you two are only engaged now, not married yet. But I especially hope that you can call me Mom. I had looked forward to you, my son-in-law, for thirty years."
Li Xiaoheng: "….." I'm not yet thirty years old!
Father Li's ears twitched and he looked at Tao Mu with burning eyes. Immediately afterwards, the rest of the Li family also looked over. The atmosphere suddenly quietened. Even the other guests who were drinking and chatting with each other slowly noticed the atmosphere over here and gradually quieted down.
Being watched by so many people, Tao Mu looked at Li Xiaoheng a bit uncomfortably. Li Xiaoheng also looked at him with gentle eyes. His eyes were full of anticipation and tenderness.
Tao Mu pursed his lips nervously, and called out in a low voice, "Mom."
Mother Li's eyes lit up, and she responded quickly: "Ai!"
Then she took out the red envelope she prepared in advance from her exquisite small handbag, and directly stuffed it into Tao Mu's hand: "From now on, we will be a family. I will treat you as my own son. Treat you better than Xiao Heng."
Before these words even fell, Father Li also asked eagerly: "Then what about me?"
Tao Mu had already called out "Mom", although his face was burning hot, so he gave up the fight and called "Dad" as well. Immediately afterwards, Grandpa Li and other immediate family members also came over.
Seeing this, Li Xiaoheng took the initiative to call old Mr. Song and Liu Yao and Meng Qi "Grandpa" and "Dad" before they could even speak up.
Because of this wave of changing family titles in advance, everyone in the Li family was particularly excited and toasted another round of wine towards the newly engaged couple. By the time the engagement ceremony was over, even Tao Mu, who had always been a good drinker, and Li Xiaoheng, who had never gotten drunk before, were also staggering drunk. The two families worked together and sent them back to their new house.
At that time, the two were already fast asleep. Even so, their two hands were tightly held together, and couldn't be separated no matter what.
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