Chapter 363 The Engagement Party


    James and Emma had not shown up yet at the banquet hall. James'' parents, Daniel and Ang,


    weed all their friends and guests. They did not sit down until Emma''s parents arrived. They


    looked very harmonious from afar.


    Wearing an elegant long dress, Vivian walked through the crowd with a smile. She asked one of the


    waiters where the bathroom was.


    There were two bathrooms in total, one for the guests and one for the staff.


    Vivian went into the guests'' bathroom first, walked around, and then went into the staff''s.


    The staff''s bathroom was a certain distance from the banquet hall. To get there, she needed to


    cross a small garden full of lovely, blooming roses.


    In the bathroom, Vivian stood in front of the wash basin, put her handbag aside, and turned on the


    tap. She washed her hands and checked her makeup in the mirror.


    The staff was busy at the moment, so the bathroom was empty and quiet.


    Vivian listened to the sound of flowing water for nearly two minutes. Then, she heard footsteps


    approaching. She turned off the tap, took out a lipstick from her bag, and applied some on her lips.


    "Miss Ye." A waiter came in and greeted Vivian while turning on the tap next to hers.


    Vivian nodded slightly and asked, "How is it going?"


    The waiter squeezed out some liquid soap from the ornate bottle on the sink and unhurriedly


    lathered his hands. He didn''t cast a nce at Vivian.


    The two did not make eye contact their entire conversation and pretended to be strangers.


    "A special person was assigned to oversee Mr. Shi''s red wine, but I made sure he called in sick


    tonight. I filled in for him. The red wine will be tested before being sent to Mr. Shi. We can''t drug it


    then."


    Vivian paused and looked at herself in the mirror. "Don''t worry. Before you give Mr. Shi his red wine


    later, you should walk past Jessica. I will be with her."


    As soon as she finished speaking, Vivian stuffed her lipstick back into her bag and walked out of the


    bathroom as if nothing happened.


    The waiter did not leave until three minutester.


    When Vivian passed by the garden, she took out a hand cream from her bag and applied it on her


    hands.


    She lifted her hands to her face and smelled that sweet, jasmine fragrance that Jessica liked.


    She returned to the banquet hall and looked for Jessica. She saw her sitting with her family. John


    and Nina were also there.


    Vivian approached quietly and made sure that none of them spotted her. She stood by close


    enough to hear the Shi family''s conversation.


    Sam was holding a walking stick. He was smiling, but he was obviously growing weaker by the day.


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    "Honey, is Dad all right?" Nina gently pulled on John''s sleeve and looked at Sam worriedly.


    "He''s fine. That''s how it is when people get old. The doctor said he would be okay as long as he''s


    not stressed out." Although John looked calm, his eyes were filled with sadness.


    Nina twined her fingers with John''s,forting him silently.


    Emma''s father and Daniel were weing guests elsewhere while Emma''s mother and Ang


    were chatting about their children.


    "We have been spoiling Emma since she was a child. She''s not good at doing housework or taking


    care of people. I hope you don''t take that against her." Emma''s mother was still a little anxious. She


    still had not wrapped her head around the fact that her daughter was about to marry into a rich


    family.


    Emma''s family was not of equal social rank as the Shi family.


    Before, Emma''s parents did not want to wed their daughter to someone from an elite family. James


    had been standing at their door for a few days, hoping to get their blessing. Seeing that Emma also


    loved James the way he loved her, they decided to let her be with him.


    Emma''s mother had already epted James as her future son-inw, but seeing the celebrities


    gathering at the engagement party, she could not help feeling uneasy again.


    Noticing the difort in Emma''s mother''s eyes, Ang took her hand in hers and said with a


    smile, "Of course not. Emma is going to be my son''s wife, not his nanny. She doesn''t need to do


    housework. It''s a man''s business to take care of his wife. I''m just afraid that my son wouldn''t be able


    to take good care of your daughter and would disappoint you."


    Emma''s mother opened her mouth but did not know what to say next. Thousands of words were


    stuck in her heart.


    As a mother, all she wanted was for her daughter to find true happiness.


    Ang patted her hand again and said, "If my son does anything wrong, you have my permission to


    punish him."


    Emma''s mother raised her teary eyes but still did not know what to say.


    She was stunned by what Ang just said.


    Nina and Dora giggled. "Now James doesn''t have a choice but to be nice to Emma."


    "James has always been nice to Emma." A trace of envy shed through Nina''s eyes.


    John squeezed Nina''s hand and asked, "Am I not nice to you?"


    "Honey, don''t take it wrong." Nina smiled at her husband and squeezed his hand back. A knowing


    grin slowly spread across John''s face.


    Ang still saw the uneasiness in Emma''s mother''s eyes, so she quickly changed the subject and


    said, "James is actually in a hurry to marry Emma. After proposing to her, he arranged this


    engagement party. We haven''t even met before. Let me introduce my daughter to you. This is Dora,


    James'' younger sister."


    Dora smiled and greeted, "Hello, Auntie."


    "Hello," Emma''s mother replied with a smile. Unlike other girls her age, Dora was not skinny. She


    had baby fat in all the right ces, making her look adorable when she smiled. Emma''s mother


    always thought that her daughter was a little thin, and hoped that her daughter would put on the


    right amount of weight to make her look livelier and lovelier.


    When Emma''s mother looked at Dora, she really liked her. She praised her with a smile, "You''re so


    cute."


    "Oh, thank you. Emma also told me that. She likes me very much. She said I''m loved by everyone."


    The smile on Dora''s face widened, revealing her white teeth. Looking at her made Emma''s mother


    warm in her heart.


    Seeing that James'' family really liked her daughter, Emma''s mother finally felt relieved.


    As long as James'' parents and sister did not make things difficult for her, Emma would do just fine.


    Ang also introduced Nelson''s family to Emma''s mother and then Jessica, John, and Nina. Atst,


    they exchanged a few words with Sam.


    "Emma is a good girl. My son-inw, Jason, is a professor at L University. Not long ago, I told him


    about Emma. He had nothing but good words for her. He also praised her brilliant dissertation.


    Maybe she can be James'' tutor in the future. Let''s see if he''ll study well and hard this time under his


    wife''s tutge."


    Sam spoke with a hint of disappointment in his eyes, which amused everyone.


    Hearing her father mention her ex-husband''s name, Jessica felt as if a big invisible hand reached


    for her throat and squeezed it.


    "Dad, my..." Jessica wanted to address Jason as her husband, but then she realized he was not her


    husband anymore. "Do you often contact Jason?" she asked.


    "Of course." Every time Sam mentioned Jason, he looked happy and proud. "He calls me every


    week and asks how I''m doing. He even ys chess with me online sometimes."


    "I see." Swallowing the bitter lump in her throat and shielding her now misty eyes, Jessica stood up


    and excused herself. "I have to go to the bathroom. Excuse me."


    Then, Jessica turned around and left.


    That was Vivian''s cue to leave her spot and follow Jessica.