"Yes, because that's the truth."

"Why?!  Why did you do something without consulting me first?  It concerns with Linyun, too.  I need to interfere!"

"You, you… You should have told me so that we can somehow remedy this situation.  That's a daughter!  Don't you want one?"

"Biyu!" Chen Lingfang's scolding thunderous voice erupted.

Mother Chen jerked with the impact of his voice and was put to a standstill.

"How long will you plan to keep the truth from our son?  He's so confused right now.  He's a smart child, he will figure out that there's something unusual here." Chen Lingfang bellowed.  Looks of concern flowed on his countenance as he scrunched his face and reb.u.t.ted.

"With him, I cannot act rashly because you had pleaded me not to do anything without our mutual consent, but with the girl?  It's a completely different story, Biyu.  I have to end it before it can even start.  I don't want the girl to expect or to believe in anything far from the truth."

"These children have their own lives, Biyu.  You cannot own them just because you want to."

"You know my stand on this all along.  If it's just me, I would have told Chen Linyun the truth a long time ago."

"He's already an adult.  He will understand."

Mother Chen pressed her lips in a tight line.

At this point, Chen Linyun entered the house through the opened sliding door at the side.  His purpose was to call on all the guests for their big announcement.  It was almost four in the afternoon.  Xue Jinxu had been doing the same with the other guests at the other end of the property, near the pond.

"So, what's the truth, Father, Mother?" As he inquired, he pulled up his dark-rimmed eyegla.s.ses through its nose bridge.  Its gla.s.s surface flickered with the sunset glow.  Although on the exterior he looked reserved, he could hear his heart drumming violently.

Mother Chen was caught off-guard.  She swore she would kill this ex-husband of hers for blabbering too much with such unrestrained, loud voice.

"Why don't you tell him, Biyu?  If you don't, I will."

The air was stifling but the three stood unmoving in a stalemate.  The Chen family of three stood there waiting for one another.  Father Chen instilled bearable pressure on Mother Chen and waited patiently and respectfully for her decision.  Mother Chen remained stubborn in her stance not to speak a word of the truth, while Chen Linyun, eyes filled with fervor and a strong yearning for the truth pleaded silently for his parents' partic.i.p.ation.

At the other end of the Chen house, the grandfather clock struck four o'clock. 

Xue Jinxu rejoined the three inside the house.  She gingerly approached, sensing the taut atmosphere.  The wife gently rubbed her husband's arm and said, "Is everything alright here?"

She looked alternatingly at Chen Lingfang, Jiang Biyu, and at her husband.

"I don't know." Chen Linyun answered without tearing his pleading eyes at his parents."

As if woken up from a spell, Jiang Biyu shrugged off the heavy atmosphere. "Of course, everything's alright!  We're just having a little argument, that's all."  She retorted quietly, meekly.

Chen Lingfang remained silent.

Xue Jinxu seized the moment after hearing her mother-in-law's rea.s.suring words.   "It's time, darling.  Let's go?"

With his eyes still glued on his parents, he responded to his wife, "En.  We'll follow shortly.  You go there first."

"Okay."

When Xue Jinxu left, Chen Linyun gave in temporarily.  "Mother, Father, I will give you more time to construct in your head how you would tell me the truth.  But, for sure you have to tell me today.  We will talk again later.  For now, let's go, Jinxu and I have something to share with everyone here."

He exited through the same sliding door without waiting for his parents' response.

At the front of the table setup, Xue Jinxu was already smiling.  All the guests were successfully convened in that area.  Some who wandered farther on the gra.s.sland were called in as well.  Chen Linyun joined his wife at the front and clanked his champagne gla.s.s with a clean fork.

"Attention, please, everyone!" Chen Linyun started with a grin that stretched ear-to-ear.  Xue Jinxu stuck by his side in a half hug.  He caught her waist with his left arm while partially raised his right arm which was carrying his champagne refreshment.

At the corner of his eyes, he saw Zhu Li Qiang quietly standing at the back.  'So he came.  At least he took the effort to clean himself up and shave.'

Almost all of their family members and important friends were present.  There they were, standing in front of them again.  The last time was probably during their wedding ceremony.  It was a joyous celebration, and today was another happy moment to celebrate with cherished ones.

Pity, the Xue master and his 'partner' were not able to grace the event.  At the back of Xue Jinxu's mind, she had hoped to see him again and see him take part in this momentous epoch of her life.

Oh well, they had a schedule to follow.

"First off, I would want to thank everyone for coming to this celebration for my second life.  Thank G.o.d I was saved or else I wouldn't be standing here today in front of you.  As you might have heard, I have experienced such an unfortunate twist of fate during my last trip - a fate which no one would ask for.  To this day, I am still awed by the miraculous ending of that incident."

"I will be forever grateful to my savior - a strong, intelligent man well-equipped with great sense and navigational skills - very capable - who rescued me in the middle of the sea."

"But, even when I was saved, it still took a long time for me to regain consciousness.  At this point on, I want to share with the world how lucky I am for having such a wonderful, loving wife, Xue Jinxu.  She not only stayed by my side in misery and took care of me without any certainty of the future, but she also stepped up and took care of all the people and things that are important to me - my family and the corporation.  She's truly a strong commendable woman who's so worthy of praise, everyone."

The audience applauded the couple and Xue Jinxu.

The lady so bashfully kept her head humbly down, her face glowing its usual lovely pink.  Once in a while, she glanced at the crowd and coyly revealed her angelic smile.

"But."

Chen Linyun continued.  The guests thought that his speech would come to an end.

"As if the heavens want to make it up to us, just recently we discovered another reason to celebrate and enjoy life."

"Family and friends…"

Chen Linyun and Xue Jinxu looked at each other, enveloped with the br.i.m.m.i.n.g love for their family.  At this point, each landed their respective hands onto Xue Jinxu's almost unnoticeable b.u.mp.

"Family and friends… We are expecting."