Transmigrating into the Genius Cannon Fodder’s Aunt

Chapter 121 – I’m Playing With My Boyfriend, Everyone Else Can Step Aside!

When He Wei looked over, Xia Mian casually shifted her gaze away, pretending not to see them.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed He Wei freeze for a moment, seemingly surprised to see her in a place like this. After all, in his eyes, the Xia family was just an ordinary household.

But he would probably confirm her identity soon enough, so before figuring out the truth about him and Mao Huimei, she couldn’t let him know she had seen him.

Xia Mian shifted her gaze elsewhere and unexpectedly spotted Fan Xiaowan, who was looking at her with an unmistakable air of hostility.

Now she was a little curious. “Why is Fan Xiaowan here? Didn’t she go abroad?”

“What? Fan Xiaowan’s here too?” Rong Xin seemed unaware of this and thought for a moment before saying, “She’s probably here to look for a husband.”

He sneered, “She’s twenty already, gotta find someone fast. After all, in the Fan family’s eyes, the older a girl gets, the less she’s worth.”

The Fan family was well-known in their social circle as a “marriage alliance clan.” Her cousins included, there were seven girls in Fan Xiuzhi’s generation, all of whom were married off to powerful families in various industries for maximum benefit.

So when the Huo family collapsed, Fan Xiuzhi got arrested, and the Ning family took a major hit, the Fan family remained largely unaffected. They simply sent Fan Xiaowan, who was closest to Fan Xiuzhi, abroad. Now that she had reached the right age, she was called back to find a suitable match.

“Then you’d better watch out,” Xia Mian teased Rong Xin. “You’d make a pretty ideal candidate!”

“Spare me,” Rong Xin replied. “I’d rather marry that surname Tang.”

Ning Shaobai chuckled. “Sounds like it’s settled, then?”

Rong Xin shot a resentful glance at both him and Xia Mian, then sighed sorrowfully, “Now that you’re here, I guess it is settled.”

Clearly, there was some kind of agreement between father and son. So when Ning Shaobai and Xia Mian finished presenting their gift to Old Master Rong, Rong Xin’s parents looked particularly pleased with the two of them.

“Good, good,” said Mr. Rong, who was slightly chubby and looked especially kind when he smiled. “Shaobai has a girlfriend now. When are you two planning to get married?”

Old Master Rong chimed in cheerfully, “Shaobai’s not young anymore—get married this year, and next year or the year after you’ll be holding a chubby little baby!”

Xia Mian: “…”

Just how much pressure had Rong Xin put on his elders?! His parents and grandparents were pushing marriage on everyone they saw. And not just marriage—pressuring them to have kids, too!

Rong Xin cried out, “Xia Mian’s still in school! It’s not gonna happen that fast!”

Mr. Rong chuckled, “No rush. You’ll catch up soon enough. Remember our deal? Once Shaobai found himself a girlfriend, it’d be your turn to get married.”

Then he turned to Old Master Rong and said, “We’ve already talked to the Tang family. Dad, just wait until you hold your great-grandchild!”

Rong Xin was just about to protest when Mr. Rong added, “This is your surprise gift for Grandpa’s 70th birthday!”

Old Master Rong immediately beamed, “Good, good! This is the best birthday present Grandpa’s gotten today!”

Rong Xin was left utterly speechless.

Xia Mian looked at his red, frustrated face and tightly gripped Ning Shaobai’s hand to hold back her laughter.

Ning Shaobai glanced down at her and used his other hand to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Just as Rong Xin was about to drag them away from this dangerous place, a group of people came bustling through the door. Most of them were Old Master Rong’s grandchildren, though some were invited guests, such as Fan Xiaowan.

Xia Mian barely gave the girl a glance before ignoring her completely. For someone like Fan Xiaowan, being ignored was the greatest insult.

“Grandpa!” The most lively granddaughter, Liang Mi, ran over and hugged her grandfather tightly. “Wishing you happiness as vast as the Eastern Sea, and a life as long as the Southern Mountain!”

Old Master Rong broke into a wide smile. “Where did you all run off to, huh?”

“Hehe, we were off preparing a surprise for you!”

Looking at this group of vibrant young people, the old man’s joy was plain to see.

When Gao Qiongying and another young woman entered, the old master looked even more delighted.

“Miaomiao and Qiongying are here!”

Xia Mian’s gaze fell on the girl called Miaomiao, and Ning Shaobai leaned down to whisper in her ear, “That’s Miss Tang.”

Xia Mian began to understand why Rong Xin seemed to be afraid of her. She really was stunning, but with a chilly, aloof demeanor, which was different from Ning Shaobai’s cold indifference.

Ning Shaobai gave off a “don’t bother me if you don’t have to” vibe, while this Miss Tang’s aura was straight-up “don’t come near me.” Her presence was overwhelming enough that even Gao Qiongying, walking beside her, seemed to fade into the background.

Rong Xin’s elders were clearly very pleased with this potential (grand)daughter-in-law. Old Master Rong even held her hand warmly and asked after her well-being, then called his grandson over and instructed, “Your job today is to take good care of Miaomiao, understand?”

Rong Xin nodded stiffly, while Miss Tang’s expression remained cool and polite.

Gao Qiongying smiled, “Looks like Young Master Rong is close to sealing the deal,” and handed over a timely gift. Rong Xin’s grandfather and parents laughed again, clearly pleased with her comment.

Just then, Liang Mi, who was clinging to her grandfather’s arm, suddenly remembered something. “Sister Qiongying, we’re planning to perform for Grandpa during the banquet to celebrate his birthday. I remember you’re amazing at piano—want to join?”

Xia Mian immediately perked up, thinking: Here it comes! Here it comes! The classic “talent show domination plan”!

Old Master Rong chuckled, “So this is the surprise you’ve been planning for Grandpa?”

Liang Mi said proudly, “We’ve been planning it for ages. Just wait and enjoy the show, Grandpa!”

She turned to Gao Qiongying and pouted playfully, “Come on, Sister Qiongying, join us.”

As expected, Gao Qiongying graciously replied, “Of course I will.” Then turned to Ning Shaobai and added, “Speaking of which, Shaobai’s violin skills are outstanding.”

“How about we perform a duet for Grandpa Rong together?”

Liang Mi clapped excitedly. “Wow, a piano and violin duet—sounds amazing!”

Xia Mian looked at Ning Shaobai, her eyes sparkling. “Dr. Ning, you can play the violin?”

Ning Shaobai couldn’t help but laugh at her deliberately exaggerated reaction.

This was all pretty much expected. Gao Qiongying was a forceful and domineering person who clearly looked down on Xia Mian. She probably didn’t even bother with underhanded tactics.

To make Xia Mian feel inferior, aside from relying on the disdain of the social circle, crushing her with ability was key. And a talent performance was the most direct and effective method.

In this era, kids from poor families were lucky just to have an education. Who had spare money for learning the arts?

So, once Xia Mian learned that Ning Shaobai could play the violin, she immediately began preparing a program. She’d been pulling him to practice whenever she had free time these past few days, swearing to steal the spotlight when the time came.

Now here she was, pretending she knew nothing.

Sure enough, disdain flashed in Gao Qiongying’s eyes, though she kept smiling and said, “You didn’t know, Xia Mian? Shaobai is an excellent violinist.”

Liang Mi chimed in, “And Sister Qiongying is amazing at piano. You two should do the finale together!”

Rong Xin frowned. “Liang Mi, stop messing around!”

Liang Mi looked confused. “What’s wrong?”

Gao Qiongying glanced at Ning Shaobai with a slight frown. “Is it inconvenient?” Then her gaze finally landed on Xia Mian, and she smiled generously. “It’s just a birthday duet for Grandpa Rong—no need to be so petty, right?”

All eyes turned to Xia Mian, some with curiosity, others clearly looking forward to a drama. But Xia Mian showed no sign of hesitation. She smiled straightforwardly and said, “It’s not about being petty.”

She grabbed Ning Shaobai’s hand and grinned. “Dr. Ning, if you can play the violin, let’s do a duet!”

Having a formal relationship gave her every right to be bold: I’m playing with my boyfriend, everyone else can step aside!

Liang Mi said, “Sister Qiongying is a level ten pianist. What level are you? Don’t end up dragging Young Master Ning down.”

Xia Mian waved her hand dismissively. “We’re celebrating a birthday here, not taking a professional exam. As long as we’re having fun, that’s what matters. Besides, who said I’m playing the piano?”

“I’m going to do something different,” she smiled at Old Master Rong. “I promise it’ll liven things up!”

Old Master Rong loved her vibrant energy. “Then I’ll be looking forward to it!”

Fan Xiaowan spoke up, “How’s a violin performance supposed to be lively? You’d better be prepared. Don’t talk big only to leave Young Master Ning to carry the whole thing alone.”

Xia Mian didn’t get upset. She just grinned and asked Liang Mi, “Do you have the program list? Let me take a look so we don’t end up picking the same piece as someone else.”

Rong Xin chimed in, “That makes sense,” and went to get the program list from Liang Mi.

After glancing through it, Xia Mian frowned slightly. “Huh? Why are there only piano and violin?”

These days, with everyone idolizing the West, wealthy families feel like their kids are lacking class if they didn’t learn a few Western instruments, with piano and violin being the most common.

Her comment made everyone’s talents seem kind of basic.

“Good thing I’m playing with you!” She turned to Ning Shaobai with a grin. “Our performance will definitely be the most exciting one.”

Liang Mi asked, “Miss Xia, what are you planning to perform?”

“Drums!” Xia Mian looked excited and turned to Rong Xin. “Brother Rong, do you have a drum set? I want to play the drums!”

Ning Shaobai feigned shock. “You can play the drums?!”

Xia Mian lifted her chin proudly. “I can do a lot of things!”

“Aren’t drums something you’d find in a nightclub?” Fan Xiaowan said cautiously. “Playing drums here might not be appropriate… what, are you expecting everyone to start dancing disco or something?”

The crowd burst into laughter.

Xia Mian just grinned and said, “They say music knows no borders or social class—so why should it be limited by venue? Nightclubs have piano and violin too, and people still love those.”

Rong Xin gave a thumbs-up. “Well said. Didn’t think someone your age would have such a broad perspective.”

Xia Mian smiled modestly.

Fan Xiaowan’s expression turned sour. If that line got around, wouldn’t it make her sound narrow-minded?

Liang Mi scoffed, “Drums are definitely lively, but paired with a violin? Are you sure? Don’t ruin our performance!”

Gao Qiongying added with a smile, “This is Grandpa Rong’s birthday banquet, and it’s rare to hear Shaobai play violin. Maybe your drums could be a separate act, just to be safe?”

“Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it won’t be amazing,” Xia Mian said confidently. “Don’t worry, it’ll be fine. And if it’s really not…”

She was just thinking about what kind of stakes to offer when Ning Shaobai gently patted her head and smiled, “Then I’ll give Rong Xin a Ferrari as a wedding gift.”

Everyone gasped, and Rong Xin screamed with excitement, “Seriously?!”

Mr. Rong was stunned for a second before recovering and laughing, “He said it’s a wedding gift!”

Rong Xin didn’t care. A Ferrari was insanely expensive, and he’d been dreaming of one for ages. He was willing to sell himself for that car!

Old Master Rong added another jab, “He said it’s if the performance doesn’t go well.”

Mr. Rong laughed, “Then you’d better watch out for Rong Xin sabotaging the performance.”

Rong Xin said, “Yeah, Xia Mian, just bang around randomly!”

Xia Mian scrunched her nose. “No way.” She turned to Ning Shaobai, her eyes sparkling. “Dr. Ning, you trust me that much?”

Ning Shaobai patted her head again with an indulgent smile and asked Rong Xin, “Can you find us a drum set?”

Rong Xin gave an “OK” gesture. “We’ll get it no matter what.”

No one dared say anything else. They knew even their own parents wouldn’t go to such lengths for them, so none of them wanted to make fools of themselves any further.

Gao Qiongying’s expression faltered for just a moment. She had spent three years hoping just to be allowed to stay by Ning Shaobai’s side, and yet Xia Mian, relying on nothing more than the so-called life-saving debt, had effortlessly won such overwhelming affection from him…

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