At six in the evening, when An Yin returned to Wanyuan Estate, she saw Lu Muqian sitting on the living room sofa, handling work on his tablet.
Hearing the sound from the doorway, the man turned his gaze and saw An Yin looking right at him.
While changing her shoes, she beamed with a sweet smile and asked, “Why are you back so early today?”
“There wasn’t much going on at the company, so I came back.”
Lu Muqian beckoned to her, “Yinyin, come here.”
An Yin quickly changed her shoes and dashed over, throwing herself into the man’s arms.
“What’s up?”
“How about I take you to a private gathering tonight?”
“A private gathering? Who’s going to be there?”
“Your brother will be there, and I’ll introduce you to the others when we arrive.”
“Where is it being held?”
“Lost Shore Bar!”
“A bar? Can I have a drink then?” An Yin was well aware of her low alcohol tolerance, yet she always got excited at the sight of alcohol—truly a case of being all talk and no game.
“You can have juice, Yinyin.”
“No, that’s no fun.” She pouted and added, “How about this: you let me drink, and I’ll let you see how I act when I’m drunk, okay?” Not everyone had the chance to see An Yin drunk, but she wanted Lu Muqian to witness it.
“That depends on the situation.”
…………
At 7:30 p.m., Qiao Yi came to pick up Lu Muqian and An Yin.
Lu Muqian was actually bringing An Yin to a gathering with his brothers, mainly to welcome someone back.
That person had just returned from abroad, and one of the brothers suggested throwing a welcome party. It was also a good opportunity for the brothers to catch up.
Lu Muqian arrived late, bringing An Yin along. The private room was filled with the men’s laughter until the door opened, and the noise abruptly stopped. Everyone stood up simultaneously, turning their attention to the entrance.
“Yinyin, you’re here too!” a woman suddenly called out to An Yin from behind the crowd.
“A Yue, you’re here as well.” Jiang Mengyue had come with her brother.
“Big Brother, you’re finally here. We’ve been waiting for ages,” said a handsome young man who stepped forward to greet Lu Muqian first.
“Sorry, I had some matters to attend to, so I’m a bit late.”
In truth, Lu Muqian had been worried that An Yin might get hungry at the gathering or insist on drinking despite his efforts to stop her, so he made sure she had dinner at home before coming.
“Hey, no worries. We were just afraid you wouldn’t show up.”
“Big Brother, is this Little Sister-in-law beside you? Finally letting us meet her?”
“An Yin, the love of my life, Lu Muqian!”
Lu Muqian held An Yin’s hand and positioned her in front of him, introducing her to everyone. He then gently coaxed her, “Yinyin, say hello.”
“Hello, everyone. I’m An Yin, Lu Muqian’s wife and also An Chen’s sister.”
An Chen was among the brothers, and An Yin spotted him right away. He narrowed his eyes slightly, smiling at her. Not only did she confidently acknowledge being Lu Muqian’s wife, but she also introduced her family background.
“Hello, Little Sister-in-law. I’m Ye Yunjing, the youngest among the brothers. You can call me Little Five.” This was the same person who had greeted Lu Muqian first.
The young man wore a brown overcoat, his thick black hair as soft as a puppy’s fur. With refined, three-dimensional features, handsome brows, and a touch of youthful innocence on his face, he seemed slightly younger than An Yin.
“Little Sister-in-law, I’m Ran Yu. We’ve met at the hospital—just call me by my name.”
Ran Yu, the fourth among five brothers, appeared to be the same age as An Yin but was actually older than her. His family came from a long line of medical practitioners, and in Rongcheng, nearly half of the healthcare industry was monopolized by the Ran family.
“Does your brother even need an introduction?”
“Hee hee hee~, no, no, you don’t, bro.”
An Chen teased his little sister, wondering whether An Yin would continue calling him “brother” or if he’d end up addressing her as “Little Sister-in-law” in the future. Ha ha ha ha ha.
“Jiang Peiyan, ranked third, is also A Yue’s brother. He just returned to the country today. It’s our first meeting, Little Sister-in-law—please take good care of me.”
Jiang Peiyan, the eldest son of the Jiang family and the brother of her close friend Jiang Mengyue, had a handsome face that felt like a gentle breeze. His clear eyes and straight nose bridge gave him just the right touch of cool elegance.
An Yin had some impression of all of them, though not because of Lu Muqian, but because of her own brother, An Chen.
In her previous life, she had refused to learn anything about Lu Muqian, so naturally, she hadn’t known he was the big brother to so many influential, well-known figures in Jiangcheng.
What was supposed to be a welcome-back dinner for Jiang Peiyan had turned into a “meet the sister-in-law” session. Once everyone was seated, Jiang Mengyue insisted on sitting next to An Yin, forcing Lu Muqian to go discuss business matters with An Chen and the others.
“Hey, Yinyin, I didn’t think you’d come tonight, so I didn’t even ask you.”
Jiang Mengyue pulled An Yin close, and the two sat casually while whispering to each other.
“My husband asked me to, so of course I had to come.”
Before, Lu Muqian rarely made requests of her because he knew they would be rejected—and he might even get a glare or a scolding from An Yin.
But now things were different. An Yin patiently guided him into her world, helping him regain his confidence around her.
“Not bad—now you’re calling him ‘husband’ all the time. Didn’t you used to call him by his full name?”
“Heh heh heh, I only say it in front of you. In front of my husband, I still use his full name.” Because even An Yin had her shy moments.
“Ha ha ha ha, Miss An, I never knew you could be so timid!” Jiang Mengyue laughed loudly, not holding back at all. An Yin quickly covered her friend’s mouth.
“Keep it down! I’m just afraid of scaring him off. What do you, a forever-single, know about it? Don’t laugh so loudly at me!”
“Alright, alright, I’ll stop. Come on, sis will take you to try some fine wine.”
“No, my husband won’t let me drink. He said I should have juice.”
“Hey, are you that henpecked? ‘My husband won’t let me’—since when? I know exactly what you’re like!” With just one little gesture from An Yin, Jiang Mengyue could tell whether she was genuinely holding back or just pretending.
“Don’t tell me you agreed to come here not because there’s alcohol?”
She covered her mouth, unable to hold back her laughter, and leaned in close to An Yin’s ear.
“Besides, don’t you want your husband to see how you act when you’re drunk? You get so clingy.”
Clearly, Jiang Mengyue had seen it before—back at their university graduation party. An Yin had declared she would properly say goodbye to her classmates, but her alcohol tolerance didn’t cooperate. After just two glasses of fruit wine, her face turned completely red, and she was totally drunk.
She couldn’t even recognize anyone, hugging her classmates one after another, insisting on cuddling. In the end, Jiang Mengyue had to peel her off her classmates and take her home. She even secretly recorded a video, just in case An Yin denied it the next day.
“I told him, and he said he’d let me have a drink depending on the situation.” An Yin wanted to as well, but her husband said it depended on the circumstances.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take you for a drink.”
Jiang Mengyue immediately pulled An Yin up and walked toward the men who were conversing,
“President Lu, brother, I’m taking Yinyin out for some fresh air.”
Jiang Peiyan replied, “Alright, be careful.”
“Can I go with A Yue?”
An Yin blinked, nervously looking at Lu Muqian, afraid he wouldn’t agree. Unexpectedly, the man simply nodded at her.
Following behind Jiang Mengyue, An Yin quietly curled the corners of her lips into a smile, unaware that this small gesture had just been caught by the man. The latter, infected by her, also revealed a meaningful smile.
He knew exactly what Yinyin was thinking, but he only wanted to indulge her.