Chapter 849 — Family Reunion Dinner

"Mom, do you really think I'm that kind of person?" Chen Shutang was caught between laughter and tears. "I treat Chen Mengxi like a sister, but she insists on calling herself Yang Juehuan's slave—what am I supposed to do about that...?"

Chen Shutang had already accepted Victoria and tacitly acknowledged her presence in her life. And since Yang's mother had already taken Victoria as her daughter-in-law, there was even less reason for Chen Shutang to play the villain.

"All right, Victoria. From now on you're not a slave anymore. Spend more time with Mengyan and the others—don't be so standoffish!" Seeing his mother's gaze on him, Yang Ce had no choice but to speak to Victoria. Truthfully, Yang Minlan's feelings for Victoria were not deep—at most, affection that had grown over time. But since he had accepted her, he could no longer treat her as a slave.

"Okay!" Victoria obeyed Yang Juehuan in everything and nodded at once.

Finally, Yang Juehuan's gaze fell on Liu Huamei. The others were easy enough for Yang Ce to explain, but Liu Huamei—how was he supposed to introduce her?

Yang Ce's feelings for Liu Huamei were not yet as deep as those for Shen Yuxi, yet Liu Huamei had nonetheless attended his family banquet!

This was Liu Huamei's stance—a firm and unmistakable stance! The very fact that she had come was proof enough of her choice!

Moreover, Yang Ce had already spoken of many of his secrets in front of her. It would be unreasonable to refuse her now...

"Aji, let me introduce myself..." Seeing Yang Ce's gaze on her, Liu Huamei stepped forward on her own initiative. "My name is Liu Huamei. I'm not Yang Juehuan's wife—not yet, anyway. I suppose you could say I'm his prospective woman! At first, I agreed to be Yang Juehuan's woman because I wanted Yang Ce to do me a favor. I'm not one to break my word, so... I must honor my promise..."

"Child, if there's nothing between you and Yan, then I'll make the call—there's no need for this. You can leave whenever you want; no one can force you!" After hearing Liu Huamei out, Yang's mother said again and again, "As for Daming doing you a favor, that was just him being kind. How could that be used as a condition?"

"Ayi... you've misunderstood..." Liu Huamei smiled bitterly at Yang's mother's words. "At first, I really did approach him out of gratitude. But now—I suppose I'm his pursuer and his admirer! As I spent more time with Yan, and as I heard more and more about Yang Ce's deeds over this past while, I fell for him beyond any hope of pulling myself out! I think that if I left him, I would surely regret it, and I would never find such an outstanding man again! So why should I give up? That's why I came along today, shameless as it is. Auntie, please help me persuade Yang Ce—ask him to take me in as well..."

"Huh..." Yang's mother's eyes went wide. Hearing Liu Huamei's words and seeing her determined expression, she was at a loss for what to say. Was her son really that wonderful? He already had so many women, and here was another one throwing herself into the flames, begging to be let in!

Still, this was not something Yang's mother could decide. She was, after all, an elder, and whether to accept Liu Huamei still came down to Yang Juehuan's wishes—she could hardly force her son, could she? So Yang's mother turned to Yang Ce and asked, "Daming, I think this girl is quite nice—pretty, generous, and rarest of all, true to her word. She dares to love and dares to hate. What do you say?"

Though Yang's mother had not explicitly agreed to Liu Huamei's request, her words were filled with praise for the girl, plainly hoping Yang Ce would accept her! And how could Yang Ce miss his mother's meaning? Half amused, half exasperated, he said, "Mom, the fact that I let her come here, and that I spoke of our family's secrets in front of her, means I've already accepted her... Heh heh, actually, I do have some fondness for her. Who doesn't like a beauty? Feelings can grow with time. Most importantly, Mengyan doesn't object, so what do I have to object to? Besides, Liu Huamei has a real knack for business. Our family lacks nothing except people to manage our enterprises. Once we get to X Island, Sun Jie and Xiao Bo and the others alone won't be able to handle the management. Having Liu Huamei join us won't hurt!"

Hearing Yang Ce admit with his own lips that he accepted her, Liu Huamei felt her heart ease. But his words suggested he did not much like her, which left her a little disheartened. What gave him the right—she had already fallen for him, and he still hadn't fallen for her?

Then again, she thought, this was a challenge worth relishing. Making Yang Ce fall in love with her would be quite an enjoyable pursuit! She was fairly close to Jing Xiaobo, so she knew the ins and outs of Xiao Bo and Yan's love story perfectly well.

Jing Xiaobo had gone from someone Yang Ce disliked to someone Yang Ce loved—how arduous that journey must have been, Liu Huamei knew all too well. And her starting point was far better than Jing Xiaoyou's had been. She refused to believe that what Jing Xiaobo could do, she, Liu Huamei, could not!

"All right, introductions are done—let's eat!" Chen Shutang called out. "Dad, Mom, Godfather, Godmother, Brother Tianqi, Sister-in-law Xiaojing—everyone to the table! Today our family is truly having a full family feast!"

Liu Yan, Chu Huifang, Liu Yan, and Chen Xiaojing were all family too, so there was no need for formality—and at this moment, the superiority of Yang Ce's enormous dining table became apparent.

Shortly after Yang Ce left, Chen Shutang had had Sun Jie custom-order this table. With so many women in the house, the old table could no longer seat everyone, and once Yang Ce returned, along with Yang Juehuan's parents and the rest, a bigger table would be an absolute necessity.

So the table had been designed as a modular combination table capable of seating thirty diners with ease! When there were fewer people, fewer sections were combined; when there were more, more were added. The villa had plenty of space anyway—it could be set up anywhere in the living room without a problem.

And so, once the whole family was seated, they began their reunion dinner. Everyone present was family, so there was no need for excessive formality or ceremony, and no need to stand on courtesy with one another.

The meal lasted three or four hours, and at the table, Yang's mother got well acquainted with all of Yan's women!

Of course, this was partly because Yang Juehuan's women deliberately set out to please her—and besides, everyone had changed how they addressed her. They now called Yang Juehuan's parents "Dad" and "Mom," and called Liu Yan and Chu Huifang "Godfather" and "Godmother"! Even Liu Huamei and the usually taciturn Victoria were no exception!

Even Victoria knew to curry favor with Yang's mother, which surprised all the women—so Victoria wasn't so dull after all!

By the time the meal was nearly over, Yang Shuoxuan had something very important to tell everyone!

True, they had only just been reunited today, and saying such things now might dampen everyone's spirits—but Yang Jiyan had to say it, because Yang Cenbin had little time to remain at home this visit.