Chapter 594 Humiliation At six in the evening, the New Yearâs Eve dinner at Commoner Residence began. Nan Zhengde was exceptionally happy and insisted both children sit by his side.
After being mired in sickness for a while, Erbao was invigorated by the lively atmosphere and chatted non-stop. Ning Ran didnât stop her, for all that mattered during the Lunar New Year was that she enjoyed herself.
âCome, letâs have a toast to wish everyone a happy new year and a wonderful year ahead!â Nan Zhengde raised his glass. âHappy new year, Grandpa. May you be in the best of health!â
âHappy new year, Grandma!â When Erbao saw everyone had a season greeting each, she didnât want to feel left out and raised her glass of orange juice to join in. âI have something to wish everyone too!â
âAll right then, letâs give Erbao a chance to bless us with her words. Since she embodies happiness, her blessings will definitely bring us good tidings!â Feng Wan proposed.
âYes, yes! However, Mommy canât scold me if I make a mistake.â Erbao stuck out her tongue.
âWith me backing you up today, no one will dare say a word. So, go ahead now,â Feng Wan declared her support.
âIt that case, Iâll start with Great-grandma, ermâ¦â
As Erbao held up her glass of fruit juice and began to rack her brains, everyone held their breath in anticipation of her performance.
âI have it. I wishââ
âYou had better start with Great-grandpa first since he is the most senior member of the family. Or I might be accused of stealing his thunder,â Feng Wan joked.
âOkay,â the girl acknowledged.
After that, she turned toward Nan Zhengde, âGreat-grandpa, may you be blessed with eternal happiness and a healthy life.â
Everyone was tickled. Despite being a good greeting, it was usually reserved for birthdays.
âErbao, thatâs what people say on birthdays. Is that the only greeting you know?â Zheng Lunlun teased her.
âI think thatâs the only one she knows too,â Nan Xing added.
Obviously, the whole point was for Erbao to cheer everyone up with her adorable actions.
She smacked her lips. âDonât look down on me. I still know many more.â
âIn that case, make a different greeting. That one doesnât count, as itâs for birthdays,â Nan Xing suggested with a grin.
âMm-hmm, let me think.â
âLetâs start eating to give her time to think.â Feng Wan was also amused.
âI have it! Great-grandpa, I wish you a Happy Lunar New Year and great health always!â Erbao exclaimed.
Feng Wan led the applause. âThatâs a good one!â
Nan Zhengde gestured to Mdm. Hu, one of the servants. âBring the red packets here. Itâs time to give them out as blessings.â
Usually, the red packets were given out after dinner. Since Erbao had already made the season greetings, Nan Zhengde had to present them earlier as dictated by custom.
âYes, Old Master.â
After Mdm. Hu handed the red packet to Nan Zhengde, he declared, âI wish my great-granddaughter an abundance of happiness and health!â
Erbaoâs eyes lit up the moment she saw the red packet. âThank you, Great-grandpa.â
However, it felt light to her. She was slightly disappointed and couldnât resist dipping her hand into it to check.
Instead of finding money inside, she pulled out a bank card. Its surface was embossed with the Zodiac animal of that year, together with Erbaoâs picture. Evidently, it was a custom-made card.
âThereâs a million inside which is my blessing to you this year. Youâre free to spend the money however you want,â Nan Zhengde explained in delight.
âWow, Grandpa is biased! The red packets we received last time only contained a thousand. But now, heâs giving out a million!â Nan Xing exclaimed.
âExactly. The most I received last time was three thousand. In fact, I never even saw ten thousand before. And now, someone is getting a million!â Zheng Lunlun cried out.
Even Ning Ran was shocked because she had never expected such a big amount.
It was common knowledge that the money the children received would be managed by their parents.
As CEO of a huge company, Nan Chen naturally didnât need the money. By extension, the true beneficiary of the million was actually Ning Ran.
It symbolized Nan Zhengdeâs attempt at making up for all that she suffered when she raised the children. Even though it wasnât a meaningful sum to him, it was a massive amount to the Ning Ran who grew up poor.
âThank you, Great-grandpa. I can buy tons of ice cream with this money!â Erbao giggled joyfully.
âI have to make it clear that I, too, have a share in the gift. Both your great-grandpa and I prepared it together. In fact, I was the one who came up with the design,â Feng Wan quickly asserted.
âThank you, Great-grandma. I wish you boundless health and eternal beauty!â Erbao cried out.
âHaha, I like the idea of eternal beauty! You truly know me best. But isnât calling me beautiful at my age pushing it a little? Hahaâ¦â Feng Wan was utterly amused.
âNot at all, Grandma. You have always been beautiful.â Nan Xing began to ingratiate himself.
Feng Wan couldnât be happier. âBring the red packet over.â
This time, she gave out another that also contained a card. It was Dabaoâs photo emblazoned on the card.
âThere is also one million here from me and your great-grandpa.â
âThank you, Great-grandpa. Thank you, Great-grandma. I wish both of you a Happy Lunar New Year and to be in the pink of health always. When Erbao and I grow up, we will also give you red packets in return!â
Although Dabao seldom spoke, it didnât mean that he wasnât eloquent at all.
Both Nan Zhengde and Feng Wan were touched by how beautiful his response was.
âOh my, another million! What about us?â Nan Xing cried out.
âThereâs no place for you here!â Feng Wan snapped.
âUncle Xing, you should hurry and have children. Once you have seven to eight of them, you will be able to collect up to ten million. This is how you strike it rich. Donât say that I never told you so!â Zheng Lunlun suggested with a cheeky smile.
âHaha, you have a point. However, having children depends on fate. Until now, I still havenât met the one,â Nan Xing replied.
âStop your nonsense before you pollute the minds of my great-grandchildren,â Feng Wan admonished them.
âGrandma, youâre so biased that it makes Lunlun and me sad. All we can do is comfort each other,â
Nan Xing replied.
âUncle Xing, arenât you giving out red packets, too?â Erbao put him in a spot suddenly.
âExactly! As an uncle, are you going to let the matter slide just like that?â Feng Wan got on his case.
âGrandma, Iâm still a child. You canât treat me this way,â Nan Xing defended himself.
âUncle Xing, only we qualify as children, while you have long become an adult.â Erbao focused her attention on Nan Xing.
âI have prepared your red packets, so donât worry, you greedy kids. However, unlike Grandpa and Grandmaâs generosity, Iâm but a poor man. Therefore, please donât resent me for giving you less,â Nan Xing answered with a grin.
âIn that case, how much are you giving? Donât tell me itâs just a hundred?â Feng Wan pressed on.
âDonât worry, Iâm not that stingy. Since I do not have any cash, I prepared a custom-built computer for Dabao. It has a massive memory capacity with the most advanced CPU chip. Together with its other components, it cost me about a hundred thousand and will soon be delivered here. I also got Erbao a high-end custom-made piano that also costs about a hundred thousand. Iâm sure these presents are a good testament to my sincerity, arenât they?â Nan Xing gloated.
âNot bad. I didnât expect you to put in so much effort.â Nan Zhengde nodded.
As everyone made merry, no one asked Nan Zhiyuan and his wife whether they prepared any presents for the children.
This caused Bai Hua to feel disheartened. After all, she was the childrenâs grandmother.
When no one bothered to ask her, it was evident that they didnât see her as someone important.
Even though Ning Ran sensed the disappointment in Bai Hua, she didnât dare get Erbao to greet the latter. In the event Bai Hua didnât prepare anything, she would end up in an awkward spot instead.
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