Much to Ji Chunsheng's reluctance, he and Shi Ruan were followed by a group of people.
Even Zuo Hengyi, who had just proposed to leave, pretended to say, "My father just texted me saying there's something at home, and I can't go back right now. I have nowhere else to go, so I'll just stay with you all."
Ji Chunsheng didn't know that on the same day, he would experience the same frustration his brother-in-law had felt that morning.
Ji Chunsheng didn't have much impression of Zuo Hengyi, but it didn't matter anymore. They already had several unavoidable third wheels, so one more wouldn't make a difference.
When Eldest Uncle Shi learned that Shi Ruan wouldn't be having dinner at home and would be going out with Ji Chunsheng instead, he became very dissatisfied with this unofficial son-in-law. They weren't even married yet, and he was already thinking about taking his daughter away on New Year's Day.
When Shi Ruan proposed going out to play tonight instead of eating at home.
Eldest Uncle Shi asked sarcastically, "Should we leave the door unlocked for you tonight?"
Shi Ruan almost collapsed at her father's words. No matter how bold she usually was, she wouldn't dare stay out overnight during the New Year.
This was clearly a loaded question, and Ji Chunsheng quickly explained, "After we watch the fireworks, I'll make sure to bring Ruan Ruan and Shi Li home safely, please don't worry."
Eldest Uncle Shi snorted coldly, ignoring him.
Eldest Aunt smoothed things over with a smile, "There will probably be many people at the event, and accidents can happen easily. Please take good care of Ruan Ruan and make sure to bring both sisters home safely."
Second Young Master Fu was like one of their own children in Eldest Aunt's eyes.
"Don't worry, Auntie, I'm here too. Nothing will happen."
Eldest Aunt smiled, "Of course, with you there, I'm definitely at ease."
Though Eldest Aunt said this, what she really thought was: it's precisely because you're there that I'm not at ease.
Eldest Aunt was well aware of Second Young Master Fu's destructive power. For the safety of their two daughters, she felt she couldn't put all the responsibility on Ji Chunsheng.
If he was reliable, that would be fine, but what if something happened and he abandoned their two children?
Through this, they might discover that Ji Chunsheng was unreliable and couldn't be trusted with their daughter.
Eldest Aunt didn't mention her concerns about Second Young Master Fu's competence or Ji Chunsheng's character.
She only said, "Right, you mentioned earlier that you're taking a group of children out to play. In that case, it's better to have bodyguards go with you to help watch the children, to prevent situations like what happened with the Gu family."
"Alright, we'll do as you say."
Ji Chunsheng had to maintain his image as an obedient son-in-law in front of his future parents-in-law, but he was very dissatisfied with Second Young Master Fu's eager helpfulness.
What did it have to do with him? Why did he need to show off his presence here?
Just before they were about to leave, Shi's Grandmother became worried that the children might get hungry if they went out without having dinner. "Have dinner at home first before going out."
"At the very least, take some food with you."
Before Shi Ruan could say it wasn't necessary.
The grandmother's good son-in-law repeatedly thanked her, saying how thoughtful she was.
The elderly lady liked obedient youngsters, and her face immediately lit up with joy as she asked the housekeeper to pack some food for them.
Without the bodyguards, there were six people in total, and two cars would be just right.
Although Fu Zhanyang's flashy sports car only had two seats, Ji Chunsheng's car could easily accommodate four people.
The Fu cousins naturally sat in Second Young Master Fu's sports car.
Shi Li, who didn't like Ji Chunsheng, would definitely not have ridden in the same car with him if there had been seats available in Second Young Master Fu's car.
When they arrived at their destination, a group of children wearing red jackets were already waiting.
Everyone couldn't help but laugh when Second Young Master Fu got out of the car, as he was wearing the same outfit as these little dumplings.
The same bright red, almost identical style.
The Shi sisters were also wearing red today, though their outfits had less red in them, looking festive but not overwhelming.
Ji Chunsheng was very satisfied, thinking he should give bonuses to the procurement department staff for buying such nice clothes for the children.
Second Young Master Fu hadn't realized at all that he was being unilaterally considered a love rival, and naturally had no awareness of looking foolish in front of his love interest and rival.
Rather than being embarrassed about matching outfits with the children, he found it quite amusing and considered it an interesting coincidence.
Shi Li knew the staff members who brought the children - they were Ji Chunsheng's good friends, Elder Brother Xiao and his wife.
Xiao Feiyu was the sole sponsor of this event, so she came along with her brother and sister-in-law.
Her dislike for her sister-in-law had never diminished; the way she looked at her sister-in-law was similar to how Shi Li looked at Ji Chunsheng.
So whenever she saw her brother and sister-in-law showing affection, Xiao Feiyu felt as disgusted as if she had swallowed hundreds of flies.
If possible, she wouldn't want to appear together with them.
But as the sponsor, she had to monitor whether every penny she spent was being used properly.
She was willing to spend money on these little kids, but Xiao Feiyu didn't want her saved allowance to fatten up certain shameless employees in her brother's company.
She was on winter break, so it wasn't a problem to join in and play along.
However, she hadn't expected her sister-in-law to insist on coming along.
But no matter how unwilling she was, she couldn't prevent her from joining.
So the Xiao Feiyu that Shi Li saw was completely different from her usual self, wearing a stern expression and listlessly holding the hand of a little child.
They were all quite familiar with each other, and Shi Li and Zuo Hengyi greeted her with smiles.
She was very surprised to see Shi Li, feeling that she wasn't the type of person who would appear in such a place.
But when her gaze fell on Shi Ruan and Ji Chunsheng in the distance, she could understand yet not quite understand Shi Li's presence.
Shi Li felt that Xiao Feiyu was looking at her with sympathetic and pitying eyes - was it just her imagination?
It must be her imagination, Shi Li didn't think she had anything that needed sympathy.
Of course it wasn't imagination. Xiao Feiyu thought of herself and then looked at Shi Li, feeling that she was quite pitiful too.
Shi Li's cousin was dating Ji Chunsheng, and she wondered what kind of feelings Shi Li had about that.
She felt the same way.
Xiao Feiyu and Zuo Hengyi had been classmates before being split into different classes, so they were more familiar with each other compared to the others.
To break the awkward atmosphere, Xiao Feiyu actively asked him, "How did you end up coming along?"
If she remembered correctly, he didn't have any special relationship with Shi Li either.
