Before they knew it, the next day had arrived.
Lin Yi arrived early at the girls' dormitory building, waiting patiently for Han Xuewei to arrive.
The two had already made plans to have morning tea with Lin Yi's parents.
After a phone call, he learned that Han Xuewei was still getting dressed up. It was her first time meeting the parents, so it was understandable.
Just then, Lin Yi's ex-girlfriend—Li Jingwen—appeared at the foot of the girls' dormitory building. It didn't look like she was passing by; instead, she seemed to have come looking for Lin Yi.
"Lin Yi, don't think you're something special just because you've latched onto Han Xuewei. A down-and-out rich second generation, what's so great about that? I really want to see what you have to offer to be with Han Xuewei," Li Jingwen said disdainfully as she quickly approached upon seeing Lin Yi, her nose turned up in the air.
Lin Yi sneered internally and replied composedly, "A down-and-out rich second generation? Who told you that my dad was going bankrupt?"
"Lin Yi!"
At that moment, they heard Han Xuewei's voice from behind them.
Lin Yi turned around, quickly walked up to Han Xuewei, and reached out his hand to her.
With a shy smile, Han Xuewei placed her small hand into Lin Yi's. Upon seeing Li Jingwen, she stepped forward with a smile and extended her right hand, saying politely, "Hello, I'm Han Xuewei, Lin Yi's girlfriend."
Li Jingwen snorted coldly, her expression souring as she glared at Han Xuewei and said impatiently, "Hmph! I really want to see how far you two can go!"
After speaking, she briskly brushed off Han Xuewei's hand and stormed off.
The onlookers began to murmur amongst themselves.
They unanimously agreed that Li Jingwen was being unreasonable. She and Lin Yi had already broken up, and now she was coming back to get angrily involved, which was completely unjustifiable.
The relationship between Lin Yi and Han Xuewei, after one night, had become public knowledge. With one being the beauty of the department and the other the belle of the campus, anyone with a little gossiping tendency couldn't help but comment.
"Xue Mei, you must believe me, Li Jingwen is my ex-girlfriend, but I'm clear of any wrongdoings with her, nothing ever happened between us."
Lin Yi quickly explained to Han Xuewei.
As for a woman like Li Jingwen, Lin Yi felt no nostalgia. She jumped into someone else's arms and left the scene the second they broke up.
Such a woman, Lin Yi didn't care for.
Han Xuewei nodded, revealing a sweet smile, "I know, don't worry. I don't care about your past, only about your future."
"Let's hurry, we shouldn't keep uncle and auntie waiting; that would be really impolite."
Witnessing the lovely charm of Han Xuewei, Lin Yi's heart softened naturally, and he took her small hand, a trembling sensation passing through his heart.
Soon, the two arrived at the hotel where Lin Yi's parents were waiting.
As for those discussions in the background, they were completely ignored by the couple, believing in walking their own path and letting others say what they will.
Lin Yi's parents had some anxiety in their hearts, fearing that the two of them were rushing into marriage because of an unexpected pregnancy, which could make the marriage short-lived.
That would be a considerable loss for both the young man and the woman.
When the two appeared hand in hand in front of Lin Yi's parents, the elders exchanged a glance, understanding one another, and their worries subsided.
As long as it wasn't a moment of impulse, emotional issues could be slowly nurtured.
Han Xuewei subtly let go of Lin Yi's hand upon meeting his parents and put on a sweet smile, politely saying, "Hello Uncle and Auntie, sorry to have kept you waiting!"
Lin's father's tense nerves instantly relaxed, feeling overwhelmingly affectionate and immediately started to fuss over Han Xuewei.
Seeing Han Xuewei's well-behaved demeanor, Lin's mother felt extremely joyous. Without consideration for anything else, she quickly stepped forward, took Han Xuewei's hands, and said with delight, "So you are Xue Mei! Such a good child!"
Lin's mother and Han Xuewei hit it off right away, and in no time at all, they found common ground, chatting away happily.
The father and son beside them, of course, were pleased to see this.
The four of them sat together, eating breakfast and chatting about everyday family matters. Through their conversation, they each learned a lot about the others.
Han Xuewei's family was financially well-off; her mother was a civil servant, and her father owned his own company. Her family's conditions were excellent, and she had received a good education from a young age.
Lin Yi's parents became even more satisfied with Han Xuewei.
As for the marriage arrangements, they would still need to wait for Han Xuewei's parents to arrive before they could discuss the specifics.
After breakfast, just as Han Xuewei was about to put down her bowl, her parents called.
"Vivi, where are you now? At school or out somewhere? Immediately send us your location, we've already arrived at Xiangcheng," Han Xuewei's mother said with an urgent tone.
"Mom, how did you get here so fast? I'm not at school, I'm having breakfast with Lin Yi's mom and dad. Where are you right now?"
Han Xuewei was quite surprised, not expecting her parents to arrive so promptly.
Her family lived in the county town, which would typically require three to four hours to reach Xiangcheng. They had searched yesterday, but the high-speed train tickets were long sold out, and they had planned on coming by bus.
"Cut the chit-chat. We've just gotten off the highway. Quickly send the location, and we'll come directly to you," came the voice of Han Xuewei's mother again.
Her mother's voice once again came through the phone.
"Mom, I'm sending the location right now. We'll wait for you here. I just didn't expect you to arrive so early; I thought it would be in the afternoon, but you're already here just after 11 o'clock," Han Xuewei said with a smile on her face, a bit of nervousness in her heart as she worked on her phone.
"My child, after hearing about your situation, how could your father and I just sit around? So, we got up early. Unable to wait for the bus, we simply took a fast car here," her mother explained.
"We've received the location. Don't move from there, just wait for us," Han's mother said before quickly hanging up.
Clutching her phone, Han Xuewei felt extremely nervous. She looked at Lin Yi and briefly explained the situation regarding her parents' arrival.
Upon hearing this, Lin Yi's parents were grinning from ear to ear. They called the waiter over and decided to stay in their current private dining room to host a banquet in honor of Han Xuewei's parents.
It wasn't long before Han Xuewei's parents arrived.
Both families were exceedingly polite, exchanging warm greetings, and taking their seats with humility.
"In-laws, you've come from so far; it must have been tiring, and we should have been the ones visiting you. Have you had breakfast yet? Shall we order some food?" Lin's mother asked warmly and generously.
The leftovers from their earlier meal had been quickly cleared away by the staff. It would have been incredibly rude to greet the in-laws with remnants of a meal still on the table.
The attentive waiter, upon hearing Lin's mother's words, promptly placed the menu in front of Han's mother and then stood quietly to the side, waiting.
Han's mother, not standing on ceremony, glanced at the menu and said directly, "Let's have these few signature dishes. Anything else you'd like to add?"