Chapter 287 My Sister-In-Law Is My Surrogate 46
Han Tao frowned and different expressions settled of the faces of everyone. The Han Madam closed her eyes. "Meili girl-"
"Grandmother please listen to me first," Chen Meili softly cut in. "I know we all ended on bad terms with Xu Lifen but we have to think of the twins. Not minding whatever was written on a piece of paper, in the end, the twins have Han blood flowing in them."
She could confidently say this because she knew that there was no way the twins could return to the Han family as long as Xu Lifen was alive. Even if Xu Lifen saw how great her own life was going and decided to bring the boys back to the Han home, there was no longer a place for Xu Lifen in the Han home.
Besides, she, Chen Meili, was confident that the inheritance of the Hans would end up in the hands of her own sons. They were Brother Tao's children so they deserved everything their father could offer.
Also, she was currently backed by every single Han family member. When was it the place of Xu Lifen's twins to show their own faces?
The more she thought, the more smug Chen Meili felt and the more demure her expression became. She looked to the Han madam with pleading eyes. "Grandmother, It's not like I'm asking Xu Lifen to love back in. It's just that..."
Her breath hitched. "I carried the twins for nine months afterall and I still think about them everyday. I just want to know if they're doing okay..."
The expressions of everyone slowly lightened at that. Even Han Yuanjun turned to Chen Meili with a rare warm smile. Chen Meili might have her bad points but the fact that she remembered the twins at this point showed that she wasn't all that bad. Deep inside, he too wanted to know how the boys were faring.
The Han Madam rubbed the head of her walking stick slowly. "This- It is not a bad idea." The twins might not be needed desperately at this point but... maintaining a good relationship could come in handy in the future.
After that, she looked to her grandson with a nod.
Han Tao wanted to vehemently refuse. There were tons of reasons why this could be a bad idea. Xu Lifen was nothing but trouble, heartache and pure disgust but when he took in the yearning in his wife's eyes, he couldn't bear to say no to her.
She had indeed carried and given birth to the twins. If all the children she'd given birth to were present in one banquet, how happy that would make her.
With a doting sigh, Han Tao conceded.
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The very next day, He Yuan recieved an invite to the birthday banquet via Xu Lifen's email. Looking down at the exquisite graphic design, he chuckled breathlessly.
He had been looking for an opportunity and the Hans decided to dump one right on his lap. Who was he to refuse?
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On the day of the banquet, the Han mansion was full to the brim. Although this was a birthday banquet for the triplets, it was also an elite banquet so most elites arrived in couples and there was not a single child in sight.
At the entrance of the mansion were Min Yanyu and Fu Lan, who were in charge of welcoming guests. The other Hans were distributed around the mansion with the exception of Han Tao, Chen Meili and their triplets who were all up in their bedroom.
The banquet was to begin at 4:00pm and by 3:45, the Chens arrived.
Father Chen and Mother Chen walked hand in hand with happy smiles on their faces whilst a servant was pushing Chen Bai's wheelchair ahead of them.
Min Yanyu and Fu Lan exchanged looks of surprise. Chen Bai hadn't left the Chen mansion since his accident and even when the triplets were born, he hadn't bothered to attend.
When the family of three and their servant finally got to the door, Min Yanyu happily reached out to hug Mother Chen. "Welcome!"
Mother Chen laughed heartily. "Thank you. Pardon our tardiness." She eyed Chen Bai sadly. It had taken a lot of time to convince and coax him to attend the banquet.
Father Chen nodded at the two women. "We'll go see Meili now." And then he led his wife and a frowning Chen Bai into the mansion.
After the Chens left, Min Yanyu looked down at her watch. 3:52pm. She scoffed. The banquet was starting by 4:00pm and even at this time, Xu Lifen wasn't here yet. What did the woman take the Hans for? Did she think she was so important?
Knowing the cause of Min Yanyu's annoyance, Fu Lan smiled placatingly. "Let's just wait a while more. Maybe her flight was delayed."
Min Yanyu sneered. "That's no excuse. A wise person would have gotten into the City one day before the banquet!"
Fu Lan smiled dryly and said nothing.
10 minutes later, Han Rong stepped out. She looked from Min Yanyu to Fu Lan incredulously before saying, "What's going on? The banquet has begun, why are you both still out here?"
Min Yanyu immediately eyed Fu Lan and the woman smiled at Han Rong. "We're waiting to see if Xu Lifen would attend."
"Ha!" Han Rong held her stomach and laughed. To think that the women before her had the notion that Xu Lifen was going to honour their invitation. Ha. She giggled. "Xu Lifen had talked big when she was leaving and now that she is definitely suffering wherever she is, of course she wouldn't dare show her face!"
Min Yanyu frowned. She did not like Xu Lifen one bit but... "Doesn't that mean that the twins are also suffering?"
Han Rong raised a brow. "And so? What does that have to do with you? You have to remember that Han Tao has already cut all ties with the twins so no matter what anybody says, they have absolutely nothing to do with us Hans.
-Rather than dwell on them, why not go inside and celebrate the beautiful ones that Han Tao and Chen Meili have given us, hm?"
In the end Min Yanyu and Fu Lan were thoroughly convinced by that and closed the doors.
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30 minutes later, He Yuan elegantly waltzed into the Han estate, wearing a beautiful blue dress. He didn't want to stress over an outfit but he also didn't want to make Xu Lifen appear lacking so he wore the dress anyways.
Secondly, allthough the invite had specified bringing the twins, he saw absolutely no reason to do so -especially when he considered what he was about to do at the banquet.
As he walked down to the mansion, he admired the decorations set up. It was not bad. Also, the garage was most likely full because the entire area was full of parked expensive cars.
He Yuan smiled. A full garage meant more people, more people meant more audience. A large audience was every performer's paradise.
When he arrived at the mansion, he took a detour and entered through the garden door. Since the banquet was just begining, this section was much quieter.
Stealthily, He Yuan weaved through the mansion until he got to the second floor. He needed to take the camera he'd kept in Chen Meili's room before it was discovered. He'd realized a while ago that he hadn't worn gloves when he placed it there. Big mistake.
If it was discovered, it would be very easy to trace it back to Xu Lifen. Recording people without their permission was a crime punishable by law and he couldn't have that on a leaser's head.
In under 10 minutes, He Yuan snuck in and out of Han Jinhai's wing and slipped away just a second before Han Tao, Chen Meili and the Chens stepped out of Han Tao's wing with the triplets.
Chen Meili was dressed like a literal goddess in a silver fishtail dress designed with sequins. Her hair was let down in a wavy style and her make up was minimal. Pure perfection.
Right next to her and holding two of the triplets, Han Tao was dressed in a pure black suit to contrast his wife's dress. His hair was sleeved back and he had a smile on his face as he stared at his wife.
Mother Chen looked between her daughter and Han Tao and couldn't help but smile warmly. "The two of you look so good and-" She placed a hand on her chest and cooed at the triplets dressed up in their little suits. "Look how formal they look. Our little big men."
Chen Meili laughed softly but as she looked away from her mother, she locked eyes with an indifferent Chen Bai. Her mood dampened. Before they continued, she handed her last triplet over to her mother and said, "Why don't you guys go ahead, me and elder brother will catch up."
Han Tao eyed Chen Bai wearily but after a reassuring smile from Chen Meili, he kissed her cheek and walked away with the Chen parents.
Once they were gone, Chen Bai narrowed his eyes at his younger sister. "What is this about?"
Chen Meili took a deep breath and clenched her fists at her sides with a pained look in her eyes. "Elder brother, when I have birth to the triplets... you didn't show up. All these months... You never should up.
-Now that you finally showed up, I thought you would at least be happy for me, but your demeanor on this happy day is still so depressing. Do you not care about my feelings?"
Chen Bai grit his teeth. "You know my state but did you care to ask about me?"
Chen Meili's lips trembled. Her brother was trying to use his one accident as an excuse for his horrible treatment of her? How could he be so... Her chest heaved as she pointed out, "Aren't you fine now?"
Pure shock tore through Chen Bai's heart and he did a double take. It was as if he was seeing his sister for the very first time. The period when he got out of the hospital, he'd had frequent bouts of seizures and lengthy brain lags.
That time, all Chen Meili did was call and even when she visited, she claimed that the atmosphere made her depressed and that it wasn't good for her babies.
When she finally she finally gave birth to the babies, not once did she step into the Chen home and yet, she had the guts to accuse him of being selfish? Right from the moment he had the accident, Chen Meili had never treated him the same again and he was the selfish one?!
Chen Bai was so angry that his head began twitching.
Chen Meili's eyes widened and she looked around. When she spotted the servant in charge of him standing at the side, she quickly beckoned her over. "Quick do something!"
The servant calmly cleared her throat. "It's a lag. It'll pass."
Chen Meili froze. "Okay then." Her eyes trailed to the stairs. She must have spent a good amount of time here and everyone was probably waiting. She turned back Chen Bai. It was over 2 minutes.
That time at the hospital, the nurse had said the lags was for a minute or 2.
And yet Chen Bai was still twitching. He couldn't be doing it delibrately in order to delay her... right? She bit her lips disappointedly and looked to the servant. "I'll leave him in your care."
And then she was gone.
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In the banquet hall, there was a large curtain at the one end. Behind this curtain, was a gigantic screen where the Hans planned to play a 10 minute long video of the triplets to show off their growth over the past twelve months.
At this time, He Yuan was behind that curtain, switching out the flash drive the Hans had inserted with the one he'd specially prepared for them.
Once he was done, he snuck out of the mansion through the garden door once more and walked over to the front to make a proper entrance.