Three luxury cars stopped by the roadside, and half a dozen men alighted from them.
“Who are they?” Zhou Chunchun, who was standing behind Bai Yinning, asked.
Bai Yinning shook his head. He, too, had no idea who those men were.
They then saw the group of men take out multiple briefcases and boxes from the car. One of the briefcases had a tough metallic casing with number locks.
One by one, they carried the briefcases and boxes toward the villa.
“Let’s follow them,” Zhou Chunchun suggested.
Bai Yinning nodded. He was also curious to know what the group of men was up to. The two of them followed the group from behind into the main house of the villa. The leader of the group rang the doorbell.
Aunt Yu was the one who came to answer the door instead of Lin Xinyan. Lin Xinyan was already fast asleep upstairs because she had not been able to rest well – though she could guess what Zong Jinghao was doing for the past few days based on the news, she was still worried about him and had been waiting for his return since the night before.
Zong Qifeng and Zong Yanchen were busy playing chess in the living room, while Qin Ya and Cheng Yuwen were playing poker with Zong Yanxi.
The family had a habit of having fruits half an hour after lunch, so Aunt Wang was washing fruits in the kitchen.
Everyone in the living room looked up when the doorbell rang. They were anticipating the arrival of Zong Jinghao, who had not returned home in days.
Aunt Yu was thinking the same as she went to get the door. However, she was met by a group of men holding briefcases and boxes.
“Who are you?” Aunt Yu asked warily.
“We’re workers from the insurance company.” The leader of the group donned a black suit and wore white gloves. With a rather professional-looking stature and aura around him, he said, “We have been appointed by Mr. Zong to deliver some parcels over.”
“Insurance company?” Aunt Yu was a little confused.
“We work for a company called LEO,” said the other four men from the group.
Upon hearing that, Qin Ya immediately figured out what the group of men were there for. Lin Xinyan had talked about having a wedding with Zong Jinghao, and those men were probably there to deliver some of the items needed.
Wow. Did Zong Jinghao buy a tailor-made bridal gown from LEO for Lin Xinyan?
She dropped the poker cards in her hands and turned to Zong Yanxi. “Go call Mommy upstairs, okay?”
Zong Yanxi was an obedient girl. She quickly made her way to the staircase.
“Be careful!” Qin Ya added, worried that she would fall.
Along with the group of eight men, Bai Yinning and Zhou Chunchun entered the villa. Fortunately, the living room was sufficiently spacious to fit all of them in.
“When did you come over?” Bai Yinning asked upon seeing Cheng Yuwen.
“Of course I had to come. It’s Jinghao’s wedding, after all,” she replied.
Bai Yinning raised his eyebrows. He could finally wrap his head around what was going on and why those people had come to the villa.
“And why did you come?” Cheng Yuwen asked in return.
Bai Yinning was still immersed in his thoughts. Zhou Chunchun tapped on his hand “What?” He looked up, snapping back to reality.
Cheng Yuwen squinted her eyes as she stared at Bai Yinning. “I said, why did you come?”
“I’m just tagging along with Chunchun. We are going back to Baicheng soon, so she’s coming to say goodbye to Ya- Ms. Lin,” Bai Yinning replied.
He was about to call her Yan but quickly corrected himself.
Zong Yanchen and Zong Qifeng, who were seated in the other corner of the room, decided to pause their chess game to check the boxes that had been brought in.
Meanwhile, Lin Xinyan and Zong Yanxi finally came downstairs, only to see a living room full of people.
Zong Yanxi was really surprised to see that Zhou Chunchun had also come to the villa. “Hi, Aunt Chun,” she greeted her excitedly.
Noticing Bai Yinning and Zhou Chunchun, Lin Xinyan called out to them, “Hey, you guys came too.”
Bai Yinning looked toward the staircase. Lin Xinyan was walking down step by step, holding onto the railing cautiously. The bulge on her belly was apparent from the dress she wore.
Though she looked a little disoriented, as of a person who just woke up, Bai Yinning could tell that the woman was genuinely happy as her face was filled with warmth and love.
Perhaps Zhou Chunchun is right. Watching someone you love live a happy life really can make you feel happy too.
“Chunchun and I came over to bid farewell. We initially planned on returning to Baicheng, but then we heard about your wedding, so we’ll probably postpone it. We will be receiving an invitation letter, won’t we?” Bai Yinning joked.
“Yes, yes. You’re my friend, after all.” Lin Xinyan smiled as she walked over and asked, “What are all these?”
“Gifts for you, of course,” said Qin Ya.
“For me?” Lin Xinyan remarked in disbelief.
“Hi, are you Lin Xinyan?” The man in the group who held onto the briefcase with number locks asked, walking towards her.
Lin Xinyan nodded. “Yes.”
“Alright, open them up!” The group of people lined up in a row and opened all the briefcases and boxes. They then arranged them before Lin Xinyan.
The contents of the boxes shocked everyone.
Only Zong Qifeng remained relatively calm.
Within the briefcase safeguarded by number locks, a glistening tiara sat on a velvet cushion.
Qin Ya pointed at it shakily. “Are, are those diamonds on there?”
How luxurious!
“Of course, of course. I bought that tiara from an auction in Country Y more than twenty years ago,” Zong Qifeng said.
It was a tiara that had originally been created in celebration of the royal wedding between a twenty-one-year-old Farah and the crown prince, Charles Palafea back in 1959. Having taken a grand total of six months to complete, the tiara weighed 1600 grams, with 1469 diamonds and 36 gems on it. The most prominent jewel on the tiara was carved out from a 150-carat raw diamond.
That said tiara was sold to an auction house in Country Y in 1983. It was said to have been auctioned off to an anonymous buyer for two million in the 90s. When word of that got around, the public flew into a frenzy – everyone wanted to know who had bought it.
However, the information on the mysterious buyer was rather limited – all that people knew was that the buyer was from China. Some even guessed that the buyer was some wealthy Chinese woman.
Truth was that Zong Qifeng had bought the tiara, intending to gift it to Cheng Yuxiu. They were a married couple but he had never expressed his love for her before.
That was the greatest regret in his life.
For many years, he kept the tiara safe and secure in an overseas insurance company. It was only upon hearing about Zong Jinghao and Lin Xinyan’s wedding that he arranged for the tiara to be sent back.
As for the necklace and earrings that went as a set with the tiara, Zong Jinghao made use of his connections to find and purchase them. At first, the owner was unwilling to sell them, but Zong Jinghao still managed to obtain them in the end.
Qin Ya could not help but purse her lips.
“I like them too.” Zong Yanxi’s eyes gleamed with fascination.
Zong Qifeng patted her head. “Your mother shall pass it down to you when you grow up. You’ll be able to wear it for your wedding too.”
“Yay! I can’t wait!” Zong Yanxi exclaimed.
The tiara looked truly marvelous.
The necklace and earrings were kept in the other briefcases, while the bridal gown and dresses were kept in the boxes from the LEO staff.
Knowing that LEO was where Lin Xinyan fulfilled her potential and grew as a person, Zong Jinghao made a special request for Mrs. William to design her bridal gown.
Of course, Mrs. William was more than willing to do the job.
During the exhibition, Zong Jinghao was swept away by the traditional Chinese bridal gowns, but he felt that white was a more fitting color for someone pure and elegant like Lin Xinyan. The red elements of the Chinese bridal gowns were also too overpowering for her quiet personality.
There were a total of four sets of clothes – Zong Jinghao’s suit, Lin Xinyan’s bridal gown, and two other dresses for the bride.
Furthermore, the gowns were designed to be flattering on Lin Xinyan’s pregnant body.
“For the past two weeks, thirty of our dressmakers have been pouring their hearts and souls into making these dresses,” one of the LEO employees told Lin Xinyan.
Since he knew about her, his tone was very endearing.
“Mrs. William also attached a letter for you.”
