A lively atmosphere surrounded the Xu family’s ancestral ho. The place was decorated accordingly for the Dragon Boat Festival. Despite not being as grand as the Lunar New Year, the rry ambiance brightened the ho.
Only Calix, Leslie and Calliope went to the ancestral ho. Both Mrs. Su and Mrs. An were given a holiday break. Their work would resu this coming Monday.
Old Madam Xu’s close maids were as competent as the private nurses. They would assist Leslie if she required anything.
Thus, the husband and wife decided to let Mrs. An and Mrs. Su enjoy the holiday with their family.
As for Uncle Raymond and Aunt Wendy, they opted to stay at the Graceville Manor as usual. But, they had a plan to go and watch the dragon boat race, including enjoying the rest of the festival.
The family of three had dinner with Old Madam Xu, Andrian, Harper and the others. Their lighthearted conversation echoed in the dining room as they enjoyed the delectable dishes prepared by the chef.
"The place will be crowded early. We should head out at least by seven."
Calix, Vernon and everyone agreed with Andrian. They were talking about their visit to Silvercove Beach tomorrow morning. An internationally renowned dragon boat race would be held there.
"We’ve booked a place for our family but, yeah, better to go early lest we get stuck in traffic" added Vernon while he clipped the sweet and sour chicken bites for Alia.
Leslie quietly listened to their talk. Calix had already told her and Calliope that they would stay the day at the beach. To be more specific, at their holiday villa.
The Xu family had a three-story villa at Silvercove Beach. The place was rarely used even in the sumr.
’How many properties they have ah? The unused ones?’
Leslie inwardly shook her head. Even though she had witnessed how wealthy the Xu family was, sotis she still felt surreal about it.
"We’ll have a barbecue at night! Don’t you guys like that?" exclaid Harper before she broke into laughter, "Hehe, let the n in the family handle the grill. We’ll enjoy the food!"
"Agree! I agree! First Brother is the best grill master! Dad and Second Brother can be helpers ah."
Evelyn chid in. She even raised her right hand to show how much she agreed with her mother.
Andrian and Vernon smiled in helplessness while Calix threw a disdainful look at Evelyn. She reacted by sticking out her tongue, not at all afraid of her annoying second brother.
Evelyn’s mood changed trendously following the ruining of Chase’s reputation. She also had started crying out of nowhere.
The man’s appearance on several live shows for the festival got canceled. He was also deathly quiet on his official social dia platforms.
Chase’s agency was still doing their best to nd the scum’s cracked reputation. A part of his fans refused to believe the evidence while the others were deeply disappointed in him.
Well, this was just the beginning. He couldn’t escape the ghosts of his past.
After dinner, everyone headed out to the backyard. The ti was still early, around a quarter to nine.
"Wow~ So pretty!"
"Sister Poppy, look! Dragons!"
Calliope and Alia were in awe seeing the colorful lanterns hanging on the poles. Aside from the ones in the regular shapes, they also saw the dragon-shaped lanterns.
The paper lanterns swayed in the air with every passing breeze. The little ones kept staring at them with their eyes widened and mouths parting. Their antics earned laughter from everyone.
"Wanna play sparklers?"
"Yay!"
"Want! Mia want!"
Evelyn brought out a handful of sparklers to Calliope and Alia’s delight. The other adults also joined in playing. More rry laughter and chatter echoed above in the air.
Usually, a few relatives ca to stay at the ancestral ho to enjoy the festival together.
But, Old Madam Xu notified everyone that she wouldn’t accept anyone spending the night this year. She also limited their visitation only this Sunday.
Old Madam Xu’s order shocked the relatives because she had never done this before. So tried to protest but, the matriarch was adamant about her choice.
"Sons, should we have a chat over so wine?"
Seeing their father standing closer, Calix and Vernon instinctively looked at Andrian from their daughters. Their father gestured in a direction with a tilt of his chin.
"Oh~ Father and sons’ conversation ah," Harper teased her man and sons, "What do you guys gonna talk about, en?"
"It’s a secret between n ah," replied Andrian casually, earning laughter from his wife.
The maids brought out so sticky rice dumplings and realgar wine for the adults. The dumplings and wine were a staple for the Dragon Boat Festival. All were prepared by the chefs.
While the won sat in one pavilion, the three n moved to the other. None of the ladies tried to stop them, letting the father and sons have so alone ti.
"The Li is close to their doom."
Calix blinked, looking at Andrian who was busy unwrapped the sticky rice dumpling. Vernon poured so realgar wine into the glasses.
Andrian spoke so casually as if he didn’t bring up an important topic. Calix and Vernon took a sip of their wines while focusing on their father.
"Delayed shipping to the clients. Low-quality items. Shady contracts with small companies. Problems with taxes. If we submit reports to the bureau, they can’t avoid any investigations."
Putting the bamboo leaves wrappers on the table, Andrian took a bite of the dumpling. He raised his brows, happy to taste a delicious one with at filling.
"We will et the Li family next week," Calix heaved out a sigh. He unconsciously tightened his grasp on the cup, "Dad, I’ll bring our lawyers along."
"Bring Mr. Wei. I’ve inford him everything," said Andrian after finishing the last bite of the dumpling. He reached out for the next one, "After your eting, I’ll report them to the bureau."
Frowning, Calix nodded. He understood why his father wanted to launch a strike right after Leslie officially severed her ties with the Li family.
Old Madam Li and Geoffrey would be too caught up to salvage their reputation to bother Calix and Leslie anymore.
They better end this quickly. He still had sothing important he wanted to do.
About their future together.
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