Chương 34: The wedding banquet ends, and the journey to school begins.

Although the wedding banquet was booked at a hotel, relatives would usually go to Zhao Rui's house first to sit for a while, and then head to the hotel together when it was almost time for dinner.

Xue Wenhui had prepared several plates of fruit early in the morning and arranged them neatly on the coffee table.

The house was cleaned inside and out, even more thoroughly than the pre-Chinese New Year cleaning.

Around 8 o'clock, almost all of Zhao Rui's maternal grandparents' relatives arrived at the same time, including his uncle's family, his aunt's family, and even his maternal grandparents who lived in his hometown.

My maternal grandparents' family consists of ordinary people; no one has any talent for martial arts. My uncles and aunts are also from average families and are mostly office workers.

My aunt's husband works in a township government office, which is considered a respectable job.

Once everyone entered the house, there was naturally a flurry of pleasantries after a long separation and praise for Zhao Rui.

His younger cousins admired their cousin, who had a talent for martial arts, so much that every time they met, they would pester him to tell them stories about learning martial arts.

Compared to their paternal grandparents' side, Zhao Rui and his brother are clearly more familiar and closer to their maternal grandparents' side of the family.

We often have opportunities to get together. Since everyone's circumstances are similar, there's no question of anyone being superior to anyone else or anyone relying on anyone else.

Almost an hour after the relatives from the maternal grandmother's side arrived, there was another knock on Zhao Rui's door.

Hearing the sound, Zhao Rui walked to the door, opened it, and saw that it was his third uncle's family. He quickly smiled and prepared to greet his third uncle and aunt.

Before he could even open his mouth to greet him, a gust of wind swept towards him.

Zhao Rui extended his palm to parry, then stepped back, but to his surprise, his opponent showed no sign of stopping. One punch missed, and the other stopped.

Zhao Rui countered each move with skillful application of Wing Chun, a martial art that excels at maneuvering and fighting in confined spaces, and exchanged five or six blows with the newcomer in an instant.

"Hey, Wing Chun? You little rascal! No wonder you've improved so much."

The newcomer launched two fierce attacks, but seeing Zhao Rui's tight defense and mature moves, he withdrew his fists and laughed loudly.

"Third Uncle, this is unethical of you!"

The person who made the move was naturally Zhao Rui's third uncle, Zhao Jinze.

"If we don't do this, how will we know my nephew is so accomplished now, reaching level five, right?"

Zhao Jinze asked, somewhat surprised.

"Yeah, but I only advanced to that level after the college entrance exam!"

Zhao Rui smiled and welcomed his third uncle's family into the house.

"After the college entrance exam? Does Dongqi University's Martial Arts Academy no longer require skill levels?"

"I applied to other colleges!"

"oh!"

Zhao Jinze paused slightly, a flash of disappointment crossing his eyes, but he still smiled and encouraged him:

"Accumulate knowledge and experience gradually, and don't slack off!"

After saying that, he turned and walked towards the living room, bowing and apologizing to the relatives from Zhao Rui's maternal grandmother's family who had stood up to greet him.

"Sorry for being so abrupt, so abrupt! I just had an itch to play!"

"Don't mention it, we're all relatives, come and sit down!"

What could Zhao Rui's uncles and aunts say besides envy and awe?

Those few blows were terrifying to watch. Luckily, it was a relative; otherwise, they would have thought some thugs had come to their door.

The relatives on both sides were familiar with each other, and after some polite exchanges, they sat down on the sofa and began to chat.

"Little brother, you've grown taller again!"

Only then did Zhao Rui have time to examine his cousin Zhao Xin, the martial arts genius from his third uncle's family.

"You're now worthy of my full effort in a fight!"

"..."

That arrogant look of his is just asking for a beating!

Zhao Rui smiled and ignored him. Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw his younger cousins peeking out of the bedroom door, looking over with excited expressions.

He then said to Zhao Xin, "Sit down for a while! Have some fruit."

Then he walked towards the bedroom and said to the group, "Did you enjoy the show?"

His younger siblings immediately exclaimed excitedly, "Brother, you're amazing! You're so cool!"

"I wish I could be as amazing as my brother!"

"Haha, I'll call you another day and show you. Come inside and play!"

Zhao Rui smiled and patted the heads of the children before leading them into the bedroom.

The oldest of these younger siblings is only in the second year of junior high school. They are at an age where they love excitement, so naturally everything they see is interesting.

The people in the living room were chatting noisily when the doorbell rang again.

Zhao Rui went to open the door as usual, and this time it was his uncle's family who came.

My uncle was wearing a high-quality black short-sleeved T-shirt, paired with beige trousers, and a gold watch on his wrist.

A typical image of a successful man.

He actually looks much younger than Zhao Jincheng.

My aunt is also very fashionable, and her skin is very well-maintained; you can't tell at all that she's over forty.

Behind them were their cousin Zhao Yurong, who has already graduated from university and works for a multinational company, and their younger cousin Doubao, who is in his third year of junior high school and is also a martial arts student.

"RuiRui, congratulations on passing the exam with flying colors! This is a gift I bought for you."

The eldest aunt spoke first, handing Zhao Rui a beautifully packaged box.

Zhao Rui picked it up and saw that it was the latest Youwei mobile phone, which was quite expensive.

I was slightly surprised; I never expected my usually stingy aunt to be so generous.

"Thank you, Auntie! Thank you, Uncle!"

Zhao Rui quickly thanked him and led everyone in.

The house is so lively because we have to go back more than ten years, to when my younger brother Zhao Ke was born.

After all, if there are family matters, they usually won't come to Zhao Rui's house for a gathering.

With all the relatives arriving, it quickly came to eleven o'clock, and Zhao Jincheng invited everyone to have dinner at the hotel.

"Jincheng, which hotel did you book? Xiaorui is so happy, don't make it too undignified! If you don't have enough money, just tell me."

As they were leaving, Uncle Zhao Jinguo frowned and said to Zhao Jincheng.

"No need, the restaurant is pretty good, just go there, brother! I'll send the address to the group chat."

Zhao Jincheng was most annoyed by this about his older brother: "If you want to give me money, just transfer it to my account. Why all the nonsense?"

"Um!"

Zhao Jinguo responded and sat expressionlessly into the Mercedes-Benz van he had driven.

Most of my relatives have cars, and those who don't share a car with others, so getting around isn't too difficult.

Soon everyone drove to the reserved five-star hotel.

Upon arrival, Zhao Jinguo got out of the car, glanced at the restaurant, and nodded slightly, indicating his satisfaction with the restaurant his second brother had chosen.

The group hurried towards the hotel.

At this time, Zhao Ke had arrived at the hotel early in the morning. He didn't want to stay at home and listen to his relatives' false praise.

It's better to come over here, and the hotel can keep an eye on the private rooms and entertain the early arrivals.

Zhao Rui followed his father around, busying himself with entertaining relatives and friends, while also putting on a shy act to accept the praise and encouragement from the guests.

Although it was a bit boring and childish, he enjoyed it.

This is truly a case of: Life offers few moments of joy, and passing the imperial examination is the perfect time to be victorious!

However, Zhao Rui wasn't the happiest person; the happiest person was his father, Zhao Jincheng.

My son was admitted to one of the top-ranked key universities in the province, which is a remarkable achievement in his otherwise ordinary life.

It was also something that made him proud.

Throughout the entire wedding banquet, his smile never faded; he was already smiling at everyone he met before he even spoke.

Although his son didn't attend a martial arts academy, the prestige of attending a top-tier university was enough to make him happy.

At graduation celebrations, people come to show their support and exchange gifts. Some offer genuine blessings, but most are just going through the motions, eating, drinking, and offering a few compliments.

Having seen too much of the world and human nature in his previous life, Zhao Rui doesn't want to think too much about it in this life. If you're good to me, I'll be good to you too.

If you treat me badly, I'm sorry, but I'm also skilled in some martial arts and I'm best at subduing people with force.

In addition to his own relatives and friends, Zhao Rui's teacher and people from the martial arts school were also present at the wedding banquet.

As Zhao Rui's martial arts mentor, Li Cunxin was naturally the first person invited.

Li Cunxin took attending his apprentice's graduation banquet very seriously. He dressed himself up neatly early in the morning and even wore a traditional Chinese long gown. With his flowing white beard, he looked quite like a celestial being.

Zhao Jincheng specially arranged for his eldest brother, third brother, and others to accompany him, showing the utmost importance he attached to the occasion.

The wedding banquet didn't last long. By around 1: 30 p. m., most of the guests, except for close relatives, including Zhao Jincheng and his wife's friends, colleagues, and distant relatives, had already received their gift bags and left the hotel.

Li Da Nao, supported by several of his disciples, staggered back to the martial arts school.

As for the remaining close relatives, they helped pack up the leftover drinks, beverages, and gift bags and put them in the car.

Then, after Zhao Jincheng paid the final payment at the front desk, they returned to Zhao Rui's house together.

After all, it's a rare opportunity to get together, and it would be a waste not to stay a little longer and chat.

After everyone returned to Zhao Rui's house, there was naturally another round of casual chatter about everyday matters.

Zhao Rui led the younger members of each family to squeeze into the bedroom, where they played video games with great enthusiasm to pass the time.

He was thinking that he hadn't had a rest in a long time, so he wanted to take advantage of the time he had today to relax as much as possible.

Although I attended classes throughout the holiday, I was also busy working as a practice partner and tutor.

Zhao Xin looked at his cousin, who was engrossed in playing games with his younger cousins, and couldn't help but shake his head.

On the path of martial arts, one either progresses or regresses. What level is he at? He has no talent, and he's even addicted to games.

They're hopeless cases.

Did he think that once he got into university, everything would be fine?

childish!

Zhao Xin was constantly bombarded with a lot of profound principles by his father, and coupled with his own talent and diligence, he naturally couldn't stand Zhao Rui's addiction to games.

As for his other cousin, Zhao Ke, he was even less of a concern.

He frowned and endured it for a moment, then got up and left the bedroom, walking to the living room. He said to his father, "Let's go, I need to go back to practice!"

"Okay, sure!"

Zhao Jinze was very accommodating to his son's demands regarding martial arts training. With such a talented and hardworking son, who wouldn't be proud?

"Oh my, is this Xin Xin? He's grown so much in the blink of an eye, and even more handsome now!"

"Are you in your first year of high school now? What level are you in martial arts?"

Several relatives praised it from the side.

Zhao Xin listened expressionlessly, showing no intention of responding.

Zhao Jinze smiled and said, "This child is a bit shy when practicing martial arts. You two sit for a while longer, we'll head back now!"

After saying that, he got up with his wife, said goodbye to Zhao Jincheng and his wife and other relatives, and left Zhao Rui's house first.

Seeing Zhao Jinze leave, Zhao Jinguo's family, who were already not quite used to the place, also took the opportunity to say goodbye.

Once those two families left, only Zhao Rui's maternal grandmother's relatives remained in the living room, and the atmosphere suddenly became casual and lively.

Because both maternal grandparents and uncles were there, the uncles, aunts, and other relatives waited until after dinner and chatted until eight or nine o'clock before leaving Zhao Rui's house.

After everyone left, Zhao Jincheng stretched and said, "Finally finished! Son, take these next few days to prepare. Pack all your school supplies. Didn't you want a laptop the most? Buy it!"

Zhao Jincheng waved his hand and said with great enthusiasm.

"Dad, no need. I earned money during my summer job; I can buy it myself!"

Zhao Rui quickly refused.

"You earned that yourself, but your parents bought it for you. Dad's rich! Xiao Ke, when you get into university, Dad will buy you something too!"

After finishing his speech, Zhao Jincheng didn't forget to take the opportunity to encourage his second son, Zhao Ke.

"You drank some cat pee and now you don't even know your own name! Go to sleep."

Seeing her husband drunk and talking nonsense, she couldn't help but glare at him from the side of the living room.

"I'm not drunk, I'm happy today! Happy!"

As he spoke, Zhao Jincheng staggered toward the bedroom!

The cool summer night breeze gently blew into the living room from the balcony, carrying away the sweltering smell of alcohol outdoors.

The previous excitement has now returned to calm.

"Brother, congratulations!"

Just as Zhao Rui was walking towards his bedroom and about to open the door, he heard his younger brother Zhao Ke's voice behind him.

"Okay, thanks, bro!"

Zhao Rui stopped, turned around, and smiled at Zhao Ke.

"Let's go to sleep! It's getting late!"

"Um!"

……

Time flies like an arrow, and life is fleeting!

Before we knew it, it was August 31st.

At Lincheng High-Speed Railway Station, Zhao Rui, carrying a backpack and a large suitcase, boarded the high-speed train alone bound for Jizhou, the provincial capital.

He didn't let his parents take him, firstly because the journey was long and driving was inconvenient, and secondly because his younger brother still had to go to school and his parents had to go to work.

If I go now, I won't stay long.

It would be better to wait until the holidays, when Zhao Rui is more familiar with the school, and then the whole family can visit Jeju.

Once on the high-speed train, Zhao Rui checked the carriage and seat numbers on his ticket and followed the flow of people into the carriage.

After walking a few steps, he arrived at his seat. Zhao Rui casually picked up his suitcase and placed it on the luggage rack.

Just as I was about to sit down, I heard a sweet, coquettish voice next to me: "Handsome, could you help me put my suitcase up?"

Zhao Rui turned his head and his gaze froze. The girl who had spoken also looked astonished.

"It's you!"

The two of them exclaimed in surprise at the same time.

Zhao Rui's cheek twitched slightly. He glanced at the small suitcase next to the girl and sat down in his seat without saying a word.

They showed absolutely no intention of helping her carry her luggage.

The girl blushed slightly, picked up her suitcase with one hand, lifted it gently, and placed it on the luggage rack.

The two were seated very close together, with only one person between them.

A moment later, the man arrived as well.

He was dressed like a young student.

It was peak school season, and most of those going to Jeju were university students.

The person who arrived wore black-rimmed glasses, had a slender build, and a refined and cultured appearance.

He was overjoyed to see a beautiful girl beside him.

On a boring journey, it's always a good thing to have a beautiful woman to chat with.

(End of this chapter)