Page 37 of He Is My Bride
Anne was quiet for a second, eyeing the outfit critically. “It’s fine. Just act your age and it’ll just come off as a bit flirty.”
Li Ying tucked out his tongue, winked, and raised his foot. Hanjun had been walking past the bedroom just then and stopped to stare.
“Big Brother Wu!” Li Ying called in his highest nasal voice, still acting cutesy, making Hanjun turn on his heels and flee into his study with bright red cheeks. He all but slammed the door behind him.
“And that’s exactly hownotto act today!” Anne slapped Li Ying’s legs with a brush.
—
Hanjun had another car delivered to him until his precious Bentley would make it across the ocean. He drove himself, Li Ying, and Anne to the Peninsula hotel, just a twenty-minute ride away in the Bund waterfront.
Anne got off at a smaller café near the hotel. She would be on-call with an ‘emergency kit’: extra breast tape, underwear, makeup, anything they might need in a major disaster. Hanjun may have had his bodyguards but Li Ying had Anne, so he felt reassured. He was still as nervous as could be expected.
Hanjun handed his car keys to a valet and walked side by side with Li Ying into the hotel lobby. Next to the lobby was a salon where tea was being served: the Art Deco chandeliers, marbled floors, and grand pillars gave the space a sophisticated air, which Li Ying was already getting numb to when everywhere he was taken was so opulent. There was live piano music playing and people talking, silver spoons and china clinking.
Hanjun walked to the receptionist and gave his family name, and they were promptly shown to their table. And there they were:
“It’s good to see you, Hanjun,” spoke a man who seemed to be in his sixties, having well preserved his handsomeness—except for his brow, which bore many furrows. He had a neatly trimmed, short mustache, silvery-gray hairs on his head here and there, and he wore a light gray suit which wasn’t lavish in design but spoke of wealth by its quality of materials and perfect tailoring.
Li Ying didn’t know what he’d expected, but he was relieved to see the uncle was indeed a man and not a dragon.
“Good to see you, Uncle Yiheng,” Hanjun greeted, his voice and speech formal, considering these were his closest family members.
“Hanjun, have you eaten yet?” a thin, elderly gentlewoman asked Hanjun, beaming at him with a perfect row of blinding white dentures.
Her silver hair was cut short, and she was wearing an emerald green dress and a shawl, and gold jewelry. Li Ying thought she was the best-dressed grandmother he ever did see.
Hanjun gave her his trademark almost-there smile. “Not since lunch, have you eaten?” he greeted his grandmother back in the same manner.
“It’s nice to see you again, Miss Li.”Hanrong smiled at Li Ying.
“Hi, Wu Hanrong!” Li Ying smiled back, holding his arms in front of himself in a demure manner because he didn’t know what else to do with them.
“Uncle, grandmother,” Hanjun spoke with emphasis, “this is Li Ying, my girlfriend. Li Ying, my uncle Wu Yiheng, my grandmother Wang Linming.”
“Hello, nice to meet you!” Li Ying greeted and shook the hands of Wu Yiheng and Grandmother Linming, who was indeed the daughter of great-grandfather Wang—the ancestor of the Wang cousins.
“My Cousin Hanrong you met yesterday,” Hanjun said.
“Yes. Wu Hanrong was so kind to pick us up from the airport.” Li Ying gave the Wu cousin faceiii.
“It was no problem.” Hanrong smiled. “Shall we order?”
Hanrong seemed to be socially the most adaptable one in the group in terms of his status, age and personality, Li Ying noted, and he kept the conversation moving in a favorable direction for the benefit of the group. Li Ying thought he could bounce off easily with Hanrong to maximize his own face. But first, gifts:
“I brought a small souvenir for each of you from my hometown,” Li Ying said, and gave each Wu a gift pack of eight cookies froma famous bakery in New York. A good old chocolate chip cookie was a very good, all-American gift and a safe choice.
The gifts were politely received and everyone seated.
“So, Miss Li,” Hanrong led the conversation, “Hanjun has mentioned that you are studying to become a doctor?”
“Yes, I’m studying for the third year at New York University Grossman School of Medicine.”This is where the interviewing starts, huh?
“Impressive,” Hanrong went on, “I have heard American medical schools are very difficult to get into.”
Thank you, Wu Hanrong, I love you!“It’s true. My school has an acceptance rate of only two-point-one percent, but I worked hard and luckily got in on my first try.”
“Ooh, Miss Limust be very intelligent,” Grandmother Linming said.
