Xiao Yu stared at Ye Yanxi. His dark eyes, like a deep, cold pool, emitted a faint glow as he gazed intently and affectionately at the person in front of him.
"Darling, it seems your courage has been growing lately!"
This was the first time Xiao Yu had called Ye Yanxi "darling." However, his voice carried a strong undertone of threat, and his dark eyes seemed to be sucking her in.
Ye Yanxi looked up innocently. "No, I haven't, hubby. I just went to the back seat to get the gifts. We're already at Grandpa's doorstep, but we've been lingering. It doesn't seem right, does it?"
The servant smiled and walked over. "Young master, young mistress, the old master knew you were coming today and has been waiting in the living room for a while. Why aren't you going in?"
Ye Yanxi raised her eyebrows but said nothing. Xiao Yu glared at her before turning his cold gaze to the servant. "Xiao Xi felt a bit dizzy right after getting out of the car. We'll go in later."
"Is the young mistress all right? Did she upset the fetus?" the servant asked worriedly, looking at Ye Yanxi. "Are you okay, young mistress?"
Ye Yanxi glared at Xiao Yu discontentedly.
Since Xiao Yu had said so, it would seem unreasonable if she pushed him away. Moreover, it might even make Xiao Yu look bad. After some thought, Ye Yanxi had no choice but to pretend to be weak and dizzy.
"I'm fine!" Ye Yanxi pretended to be dizzy and rubbed her forehead. "Maybe I sat in the car for too long. I'm just not used to it right after getting out. I'll be okay in a while."
"That's good. I'll go and report to the old master now," the servant said and then returned the way he came.
When everyone around had left, Ye Yanxi quickly pushed Xiao Yu away. By now, he had regained his calm.
"This is Grandpa's place. I'm already embarrassed even if you're not. Can't you just be a bit more restrained?" Ye Yanxi's eyes inadvertently glanced at a certain part of Xiao Yu as she said angrily.
A faint smile played on Xiao Yu's lips, and his handsome face softened a lot. "Since I met you, there's no such thing as restraint for it."
Ye Yanxi rolled her eyes skyward speechlessly.
Now Xiao Yu was becoming more and more bold in his words. The once cold and unapproachable aura seemed to have disappeared without a trace.
Finally, after a certain part of Xiao Yu had calmed down, Ye Yanxi pushed him away, picked up the gifts, and entered Xiao Garden.
Ye Yanxi and Xiao Yu had thought that only the old master of the Xiao family would be waiting in the living room. But when they entered, they found some unexpected guests.
It was the families of Xiao Zhenwei and Xiao Zhenqu.
As soon as she entered the door, Ye Yanxi saw Chen Yuanyuan, Xiao Zhenqu's wife, with a gossiping look on her face. Of course, when the latter saw Ye Yanxi, there was a hint of hostility in her eyes.
Ye Yanxi had a premonition that something was going to happen with Chen Yuanyuan here today.
Just as she had this premonition, she heard Chen Yuanyuan's shrill voice raised an octave.
"Hey, look who's here! It's Xiao Yu and his wife. You two look so in love. Newlyweds are really sweet!"
Chen Yuanyuan's voice was quite loud. Naturally, everyone's attention was drawn to them. Chen Yuanyuan also gave Huo Lin a disdainful look, and the latter didn't look happy at all.
Ye Yanxi instinctively felt that Chen Yuanyuan was up to no good.
Xiao Yu ignored Chen Yuanyuan and asked in a deep voice, "Where's Grandpa?"
Judging from his tone, it seemed that Xiao Yu hadn't expected so many people to be at Xiao Garden today either.
"Grandpa is still taking a nap," replied Xiao Weiyuan, the eldest son of the Xiao Zhenqu family.
As soon as he entered, Xiao Yu didn't even look at Huo Lin and Xiao Zhenwei. After hearing this, he directly took Ye Yanxi's hand and headed towards the old master's room.
Seeing that Xiao Yu had completely ignored her, Huo Lin suddenly stood up, angry and about to say something. But Xiao Zhenwei quickly grabbed her. "What are you doing?"
Huo Lin said angrily, "Look at them! Do they still have me, their mother, in their eyes? I can forgive Xiao Yu since he's my son, but Ye Yanxi doesn't put me in her eyes at all. I'm going to teach her some manners."
"Just stay here quietly!" Xiao Zhenwei scolded sternly. "Are you not ashamed enough for our family?"
Although Huo Lin was usually a bit willful and hot-tempered, she still listened to Xiao Zhenwei to some extent.
Seeing that Xiao Zhenwei was angry, Huo Lin muttered something in her heart and gave up.
Xiao Yu and Ye Yanxi went to the old master's room. After a while, they came out with the old master. Everyone knew that the old master had a bad temper when woken up, but now he was smiling, looking in a good mood.
However, as soon as he saw the people sitting in the living room, the smile on his face disappeared, and his expression turned gloomy. It was like going from a clear, sunny sky to a dark, stormy one in an instant.
Everyone stood up and greeted the old master.
The old master still looked gloomy and just snorted without saying a word. It was only when the two children from Xiao Weiyuan's family ran up to him chirping that his expression softened a bit.
Everyone presented the gifts they had brought, showing them to the old master. But he wasn't very interested in the gifts and just told the servants to take them all away.
There were so many gifts that the servants were busy carrying them.
Although the old master didn't look happy with everyone, he was actually tough on the outside and soft on the inside. During this time, he even went to the kitchen in person to tell the servants to prepare a sumptuous meal. He also rambled on about everyone's food preferences and taboos. For the pregnant Ye Yanxi, he specifically told them not to put any seasonings that pregnant women should avoid in her favorite dishes.
Just as the old master was giving these instructions, Ye Yanxi, who had gotten lost on her way back from the bathroom, happened to overhear him.
Although the old master usually looked imposing and seemed distant, he was actually just a lonely old man who longed for his family to visit him.
But he had been in a high position all his life and was used to being domineering. So he put on an unconcerned attitude, afraid that others would see his inner loneliness.
He just couldn't bring himself to face his descendants.
Ye Yanxi stood at the door thoughtfully and was just seen by the old master when he turned around. At the moment their eyes met, the old master's face showed a hint of embarrassment.
"Why are you here?" he asked in his still imposing and domineering tone, scowling at her.
Ye Yanxi smiled. "I got lost on my way out and just happened to come here by mistake."
She was telling the truth and didn't hide anything.
The old master's face was still a bit embarrassed. He coughed slightly to cover his emotions. "You're such an adult and still get lost. I'll take you there."
With that, he walked out of the kitchen and led the way. Ye Yanxi was happy to follow him. The old master still couldn't bring himself to be too friendly and scolded her a few times. "Remember the way well in the future. Don't get lost again. It's okay that you're at home. If you get lost outside, no one will take you back."
Ye Yanxi agreed to everything, looking extremely obedient.
"Got it, old master."
The old master was now in his eighties. Although he had a good physical foundation from his military career, his health had declined due to his age.
As the old master was walking in front, he suddenly seemed to twist his ankle. Ye Yanxi quickly rushed forward and caught him in time.
But when the old master's body tilted to one side, he still knocked into a vase beside him. The vase was quite large.
If such a big vase fell and hit the old master's foot, it would surely be painful.
At this moment, Ye Yanxi almost instinctively stretched out her foot, gently hooked the vase, and then threw it up forcefully. Then she caught it firmly with her hand and put it back in place.
All these actions were done in one smooth motion due to her quick reaction.
The old master looked surprised and asked, "Can you do martial arts?"
Ye Yanxi answered truthfully, sounding a bit modest. "I only know a little Taekwondo."
"What belt level? Yellow belt?"
"I've just reached the fourth-degree black belt."
Now the old master was even more shocked and carefully sized Ye Yanxi up. He didn't expect that such a petite and seemingly frail girl could be a fourth-degree black belt in Taekwondo, which was considered a high-level skill.
"Fourth-degree black belt? Can you break bricks?"
Facing the old master's somewhat skeptical look, Ye Yanxi rolled her eyes and then scratched her head shyly. "Actually, when I first met Xiao Yu, I kicked the window glass of his car to pieces."
The car Xiao Yu drove was a Cayenne, and the glass was specially made bulletproof. Yet Ye Yanxi had kicked it to pieces with one foot. One could imagine the explosive power of her body.
He had thought she was just a weak little girl, but now she really impressed him.
Suddenly, the old master got to know her anew. "No wonder Xiao Yu was attracted to you from the start, and no wonder my great-grandson is so tenacious."
The two walked into the living room chatting and laughing, looking very happy together. Everyone in the living room was shocked when they saw them.
At first, the old master had come out of his room happily because he had seen Xiao Yu. But now he was getting along so well with Ye Yanxi.
While everyone was still in shock and doubt, they heard the old master say with a beaming smile, "Of course I have real guns. I'll show them to you after dinner. They were the ones I used during the War of Resistance. They're quite old."
"Okay, thank you, Grandpa," Ye Yanxi said sweetly with a smile. "By the way, I've never seen what military training is like."
"That's easy. Come and find Grandpa some other day, and I'll take you to see it," the old master said with a big smile, readily agreeing.
Xiao Weiyuan looked at the old master jealously and said, "Grandpa, I've never even had the chance to see the guns you used during the war."
The old master immediately frowned and said in a disdainful tone, "What do you want to see for? Just focus on your studies."
"..." Xiao Weiyuan was depressed. "Grandpa, I've already graduated. Look, your great-grandchildren are already this big."
With that, Xiao Weiyuan pointed at the two little kids beside him, looking dejected.
But the old master was so happy talking to Ye Yanxi that he ignored him.
Huo Lin immediately became dissatisfied and whispered in Xiao Zhenwei's ear, "A penniless college student who doesn't have anything. She's really good at seducing men."
Just then, the servant came in to report. "Old master, the Jiang family heard that Miss Ye is here for the festival and has specially sent someone to bring a congratulatory gift."