The Slacker Stepmother and the Non-Domineering CEO
Chapter 66

"Boss Gu, are you free tomorrow?" Nian Suian asked, her tone ingratiating.

"What is it?" Gu Junxing didn't even need to ask. Just from hearing her voice, he knew something was up. Previously, he thought Nian Suian wore all her thoughts on her face, but even after he promoted her, it was clear that he could guess what she was thinking without even having to see her.

"You have to go into the county town tomorrow, right? If you have time, could you help me with some shopping?" Nian Suian, while on the phone, was petting a kitten that Gu Zhijing had brought home.

"What do you need? I should have time." His inspection of the factory site shouldn't take very long, and he'd already turned down an invitation to dinner from the local administrator.

Once Nian Suian heard him say that, she knew things were settled. When Gu Junxing said 'maybe', it meant he had the time.

"It's a task for us, we need..." Nian Suian thought Gu Junxing wouldn't watch their TV show, so she started to explain.

Gu Junxing cut her off, “I know, I watched it. Is it to buy supplies for the wedding feast?”

"You watched!" Nian Suian exclaimed in surprise, retracted the hand that was stroking the cat. "I thought you only watched economic programs?"

"Meow~" The kitten protested at the sudden absence of Nian Suian's hand.

Nian Suian hurriedly returned her hand.

"I wanted to see if my son looks bad on camera." Gu Junxing casually shifted the topic. "Where did the cat come from? Don't mess around with street cats that haven't been vaccinated."

Educating people in this manner... Nian Suian couldn’t help complaining inwardly. “Your son is quite popular, people are praising his good looks.” Nian Suian decided to brag about Gu Zhijing first before explaining. "It's not a street cat, your son picked it up. When you come you'll have to take it back with you."

"Did I agree to this?"

"If you agreed or not, it doesn’t matter, your son thinks of the cat as his little brother, so it's also your son, your younger son." Seeing the conversation wandering off-topic, Nian Suian quickly brought it back to the point. "The bride's room needs some decorations. But there aren't any good ones in town, can you buy some from the county?"

"Alright, what kind of decorations should I buy?"

"You decide, I trust your taste," Nian Suian said charmingly, complements slipping in with ease.

Gu Junxing lightly laughed, "Alright, I understand. I'll come to the village tomorrow afternoon."

"Great! Bye."

"Mm, see you tomorrow."

…

After she ended the call and was out the room in no time, Qiao Peipei and the others were waiting in the yard.

"How did it go? Did your husband agree?"

Nian Suian just went along with the misnaming. "Mm, he agreed. He said he'll be in the village tomorrow afternoon."

"That's great! You have to reward your husband later," Qiao Peipei said, winking at Nian Suian.

Nian Suian couldn’t resist rolling her eyes. “Can we please do some serious work?”

"The others haven't returned yet... Ah, speak of the devil." The ones who went to the groom's family had returned as well.

"How did your investigation go?"

"Weddings are so complicated! I'm all dizzy just hearing about it." They had spent the day listening to the townsfolk tell them about wedding customs that it gave them a headache.

“I feel the same,” Yue Qingchi replied instinctively, but after catching a glimpse of Ren Man bringing over water, he quickly added, “But marriage is a big deal, it’s only right to make a fuss. It’s not trouble, it’s paying attention.”

“So, what do we need to prepare, what do we need to do?” Ren Man asked as she poured water for each of them.

“It’s all here.” Qiao Yan opened his laptop and pulled up a spreadsheet listing everything that needed to be done and the items required. “Tell me what you need to do on your end, I’ll add it here, and then we can divide the tasks and each complete them according to the list.”

“The bride’s family has almost everything ready on our side, just need to decorate a room, which I’ve asked Gu Junxing to handle. Then there’s the banquet, we need to check the menu.”

“Alright, I’ve even called in some external help,” Qiao Yan muttered as he added 'confirm banquet menu' to the spreadsheet.

“So now, our main tasks are: setting up the wedding venue, confirming the wedding ceremony process, the drum band, the sedan chair, the banquet, the host, and the alcohol and sweets needed for the day. Everything needed is already prepared by the family, what we need to do is set up the venue and check for any oversights. I’ve spoken to someone from the village about the drum band and the sedan chair; we don’t know them, they’ll replace people themselves.”

As soon as Qiao Yan finished speaking, Qiao Peipei raised her hand, “Let me handle the banquet dishes, let me do it. This is the bride’s request; she has appointed me as the head of the imperial kitchen.”

The audience in the live stream was also amused by Qiao Peipei.

〈Hahaha, Peipei, what’s your real motive? I don’t even want to expose you〉

〈A big eater as the head of the imperial kitchen, will there be anything left on the wedding day? The head will ‘guard and steal’ right?〉

〈Changing the subject, Qiao Yan is so charming! As someone who suffers from procrastination and indecision, I need someone like him! Can Qiao Yan be my boyfriend?〉

〈Damn thief, you stole my husband, I recognized him at first sight, Qiao Yan is my husband〉

Qiao Yan gave his sister a speechless look, then added Qiao Peipei’s name behind the banquet section.

“Anyone else want to volunteer?”

Yue Qingchi was still nursing a headache, volunteering was out of the question, “Just arrange it, Qiao Yan.”

Pei Sheng nodded in agreement for Qiao Yan to make the arrangements, and Xiao Mo didn’t object.

“Alright, Pei Sheng, after dinner tonight, go to the village and replace 10 people, have them come help set up the venue tomorrow.”

“Ah? Okay.”

“It needs to be set up by tomorrow afternoon, replace both men and women. You’re good-looking, hmm… take Gu Zhijing with you, the two of you together, appealing to all ages, you’ll definitely get volunteers.”

Suddenly being praised so directly made Pei Sheng blush, all he could do was nod dumbly.

“Yue Qingchi, you confirm the wedding banquet process and the script with the host, it should feel intimate since it’s spoken through a microphone.”

“Okay.” Although Yue Qingchi wanted to say, singing and hosting aren’t really the same thing.

"Xiao Mo, you'll be in charge of sorting out the food and beverages needed for the wedding banquet. Also, once they've finalized the menu, you should go with the villagers to get everything. You're the most popular; if you go, chances are they'll give you a good deal." That was right. Qiao Yan did this on purpose, sending Xiao Mo on this tedious, pre-dawn shopping venture. If not Xiao Mo, then who?

"Auntie Fang, you and Peipei will handle the food. You cook well, lend us your expertise."

The one who was the happiest about this was Fang Min, she immediately promised: "No problem! When I was young, I was a head chef!"

"The rest of you will handle the miscellaneous matters for the bride's family. We can discuss it at any time, that's all."

A wedding banquet that made Qiao Yan as grandiose as a shareholders' meeting.

〈The director sure knows how to stir up trouble, getting busier and ignoring the craziness〉

〈Surely not, there's no time to fight anymore〉

〈They surprisingly are serious about working. I wonder how much was the penalty fee for breaching their contract?〉