Chapter 871: Chapter 872: Kidnap the Bride?
"Iâm telling you, Xiaoqiang, youâd better just confess that youâre really out of money. With your wife, itâs best to be a bit more prudent," Li Gang offered a piece of advice.
Wang Xiaoqiang said, "Itâs our wedding, itâs only right to make sure everyone is satisfied. She canât help it either."
"Alright then, oneâs willing to punch, the otherâs willing to take it. I wonât say more," Li Gang remarked.
Only then did Wang Xiaoqiang answer the phone, with an inevitable hint of nervousness in his tone, "Wife, whatâs the matter now?"
"Husband... I really didnât want to tell you, I... Iâm too embarrassed to say it. Right now, about my uncle... sigh."
Hearing the helpless and aggrieved voice of his wife, Wang Xiaoqiang quickly said, "Wife, donât be anxious. Just tell me, what do they need now? I will find a way to satisfy the request."
Li Gang rolled his eyes so much they almost reached the back of his ears, and Song Xiaodong was somewhat speechless, but he could only make a gesture to Li Gang, indicating him not to talk too much.
"Husband...youâre really good to me."
Wang Xiaoqiang thumped his chest, brimming with manly bravado, "I am your husband after all. If Iâm going to marry you, I have to make sure youâre brought home with honor. How could I allow you to marry me with grievances? Go ahead and tell me."
"Mmm, itâs like this. My uncleâs family isnât well-off and they want to attend my wedding but canât afford to come. Originally, our family should help with that. But I misspoke and said since my uncle is attending our wedding, we should be responsible. We will cover the expenses. But as you know, I donât have any money, so... Iâm hoping you can help cover the cost of the flight tickets for my uncleâs family, so they can fly over here tonight."
"I see... Okay, how much would that be?"
"Itâs fifteen thousand yuan."
"What?" Wang Xiaoqiang suddenly cried out, "Are plane tickets that expensive now?"
"Economy class would definitely be cheaper, but there are no seats left in economy, so we can only buy business class, thatâs why itâs expensive. I know itâs tough for you. If itâs too much trouble, then forget it, we donât have to invite... them over." There was a hint of grievance in the tone of Wang Xiaoqiangâs wife.
"No, no, that wouldnât be good. Since youâve agreed, it would be wrong not to let them come. Alright then, Iâll transfer the money to you right away, and you can book the tickets."
"Ah, husband, you... youâre really too good to me. I... Iâm missing you already."
"Heh heh, youâll have your chance to perform tomorrow." Wang Xiaoqiang was thoroughly flattered by his wifeâs cajoling.
"Mm-hm, I will definitely put on a good show tomorrow night to satisfy you."
Her voice was so coy it turned Wang Xiaoqiangâs bones to jelly.
"Such a sly one!" Li Gang couldnât help but blurt out.
"Hey, Gangzi, who are you calling sly?" Wang Xiaoqiang rolled his eyes.
"Of course, Iâm calling you sly," Li Gang retorted irritably, but in his heart, he was cursing the woman. Mocking Wang Xiaoqiang was okay; after all, they had been brothers for years and he wouldnât get angry. But cursing someoneâs wife, that would definitely be a no-go.
After Wang Xiaoqiang transferred the money, thankfully his wife didnât make any more demands. But with all this fuss, of the one hundred thousand yuan Song Xiaodong gave, there probably wasnât much left.
Wang Xiaoqiang said, "Dongzi, Gangzi, you guys need to help me with the wedding procession tomorrow morning."
Song Xiaodong said with a smile, "If you didnât let me go, Iâd be the unhappy one."
"Heh heh, good, good. You guys should also get some rest early tonight."
After Wang Xiaoqiang left, Song Xiaodong and Li Gang chatted for a while before going to bed early and getting up at 5 in the morning to accompany Wang Xiaoqiang, the groom, to fetch the bride.
Wang Xiaoqiangâs wifeâs home was in a regular neighborhood and was on the first floor. Wang Xiaoqiang started knocking on the door.
"Want to come in? Hand out the red envelopes quickly."
"Thatâs right, without red envelopes, donât even think about entering."
Sounds of young men jeering came from inside.
This was entirely normal. Wang Xiaoqiang hurriedly handed out several red envelopes and passed the first challenge.
After entering, they began the wedding ceremony rituals. Wang Xiaoqiang presented the bridesâ side with the red envelope containing eighteen thousand eight hundred and eighty-eight yuan, as agreed upon the day before. Then he went to knock on the brideâs door, where he was once again extorted for red envelopes.
Fortunately, Wang Xiaoqiang had prepared plenty of red envelopes this time, or else he really would have been in a tough spot.
Song Xiaodong had seen the bride in a photo the day before. Of course, one couldnât tell much from wedding photos, and now with her heavy makeup, her true appearance was still not discernible. However, Song Xiaodong felt that the womanâs gaze was somewhat cold; the way she looked at Wang Xiaoqiang lacked the joy and excitement of getting married.
After another series of rituals, they finally took the bride and her family to the hotel, and everything seemed to be going smoothly.
Of course, Wang Xiaoqiang also handed out the promised red envelope of twenty thousand yuan.
The wedding ceremony began, and Song Xiaodong watched with great interest. Although it was just an ordinary wedding, seeing Wang Xiaoqiang getting married made him genuinely happy for him.
But just when the wedding was halfway through, a man suddenly strode onto the stage, snatched the microphone from the hostâs hands, and shouted, "Lili, I donât agree with you marrying him, come with me now."
"Gasp!" Everyone was stunned all at once.
Song Xiaodong was even more gobsmacked, wondering what was going on. Was this a wedding crash? Having crashed weddings twice himself, could it be that he was witnessing karma on his friend?
"Ah! Shen Long!" The bride, Ma Lili, immediately let out an exclamation of surprise and delight shone in her eyes.
This caused Song Xiaodongâs face to darken, while the expression on Wang Xiaoqiangâs face on stage had become indescribably ugly.
"Shen Long, what are you doing here?" Ma Lili asked, stuttering.
Wang Shenlong looked at Ma Lili and said, "Lili, forgive me for dumping you before, but I regret it now. I canât bear to see you marry someone else, it would crush me. I know you donât love him; come with me instead."
Seeing that Ma Lili appeared somewhat moved, Wang Xiaoqiang quickly grabbed her and then glared at Wang Shenlong, saying, "Lili is now my wife, please leave now or Iâll call the police."
Wang Shenlong glanced at Wang Xiaoqiang and said with disdain, "Who do you think you are to deserve Lili? Listen, Lili, if you come with me, Iâll give you an apartment of a hundred square meters and a car worth three hundred thousand yuan. You donât have to stay with such a poor wretch."
Wang Xiaoqiang angrily retorted, "Donât insult Lili with your dirty money."
Wang Shenlong sneered, then turned to look at Ma Liliâs parents sitting below the stage, saying, "Uncle and Auntie, not only will I give Lili an apartment, I will buy you one as well. Tell me, would you rather marry Lili off to him or to me?"
"Really?" Ma Liliâs mother stood up abruptly, her face full of delight.
The relatives and friends on Wang Xiaoqiangâs side burst into an uproar, all looking at Ma Liliâs mother with astonishment. This woman actually asked such a questionâcould it be that she was truly considering letting Ma Lili be with Wang Shenlong?