A reborn mother longs for her daughter's happiness.

Chapter 25 A Bizarre Wedding Journey

At a friend's gathering, Wang Qiang met a young woman surnamed Liu. She was beautiful and had a cheerful and outgoing personality; Wang Qiang was instantly smitten. Although they had only known each other for a month, their relationship quickly blossomed into passionate love.

Wang Qiang felt the time was right, so he took Miss Liu home to meet his mother. His mother was delighted with the girl's cleverness and intelligence, and they immediately began discussing marriage arrangements. To demonstrate his sincerity and to impress his ex-wife, Li Yuan, Wang Qiang decided to hold a grand and spectacular wedding.

So, the two families quickly arranged a meeting. On the day of the meeting, Wang Qiang was dressed in a suit and tie, while Miss Liu nestled affectionately against his arm. Wang's mother was all smiles, exchanging pleasantries with Miss Liu's parents. Once everyone was seated, the conversation quickly turned to the bride price.

Wang Qiang spoke first: "Uncle and Aunt, Xiao Liu and I are in love, and I sincerely want to marry her. As for the bride price, please feel free to make any requests, and I will do my best to meet them."

After a moment's thought, Mr. Liu said, "We're not the kind of family that's greedy for money; we just hope to provide our daughter with a stable life. According to our local custom, the bride price is 188,000 yuan, a lucky number. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Wang's mother felt a slight pang in her heart, but still maintained a smile on her face: "188,000! That's indeed a good number. However, we've spent a lot preparing the wedding room and decorating it. Could we perhaps discuss it a little and give you 128,000? We certainly won't shortchange Xiao Liu in any other way."

Upon hearing this, Liu's mother was somewhat displeased: "The bride price cannot be too low. Our daughter, whom we have raised with great care, is marrying off like this. The bride price is a token of our affection and respect. Moreover, Xiao Liu's dowry will not be small either. We are even planning to give her a car."

Seeing this, Wang Qiang quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mom, what Uncle and Aunt said makes sense. I'll figure out the bride price, 188,000 it is. The most important thing is to have a good wedding."

Although the mother was somewhat reluctant, she had no choice but to nod when she saw her son's resolute attitude.

Then, they discussed the wedding date.

Mr. Liu said, "Next month is an auspicious month for marriage, so let's set it for next month. It's a bit tight, but it will allow the two children to get married sooner."

The mother nodded in agreement: "Alright, next month it is. Let's get everything ready as soon as possible, we can't let Xiao Liu suffer."

Wang Qiang grinned from ear to ear, saying, "That's wonderful! I can marry Xiao Liu next month. I'll definitely invite lots of relatives and friends to witness our happiness." He was secretly pleased with himself, wondering what his ex-wife, Li Yuan, would think if she knew he was remarrying so soon and at such a grand wedding. He could almost see the disappointed and jealous look on Li Yuan's face, which made him even more excited for the wedding.

Finally, the day before the wedding, Wang Qiang sent Li Yuan a text message: "I'm getting married tomorrow. If you're free, you can come and visit."

After receiving the text message, Li Yuan felt a mix of emotions. Looking at her daughter beside her, she secretly resolved that no matter what, she must be strong and not let Wang Qiang laugh at her.

On the wedding day, Wang Qiang stood at the hotel entrance, beaming as he greeted the guests. His eyes frequently scanned the crowd, hoping for Li Yuan's arrival. Li Yuan, after some thought, finally brought her daughter to the wedding. She wore a simple dress, exuding elegance. Li Shiqing, on the other hand, looked around with curiosity.

When he saw Li Yuan and Li Shiqing, he said with a forced smile, "Oh, you've come."

Li Yuan rolled her eyes at him and didn't say anything.

Wang Qiang then turned his gaze to Li Shiqing, bent down and said, "Shiqing, I am your father, and your blood comes from the Wang family."

Li Shiqing looked him up and down, then said in a serious tone, "So you're the one who abandoned me and my mother? I thought you were some mysterious person from outer space, but you're just an ordinary middle-aged man."

Wang Qiang was so choked up that his face turned red, and he stammered, "You... how can you talk like that, child?"

Li Shiqing crossed her arms and, mimicking an adult, said, "How am I supposed to talk? You've never cared about me, and now you suddenly appear claiming to be my father. I'm not going to accept that so easily. Who do you think you are? Superman? Someone who can disappear and reappear at any time?"

The surrounding guests couldn't help but chuckle when they heard this conversation.

Wang Qiang felt a little embarrassed, so he tried to take Li Shiqing's hand and say, "Baby, Daddy will treat you well from now on."

Li Shiqing dodged his hand as if it were a plague, saying, "Don't touch me. I don't know what you're up to. Are you trying to show off by suddenly holding a wedding banquet? Too bad, my mother and I don't think it's anything special."

Li Yuan watched her daughter argue with Wang Qiang, secretly delighted, but outwardly she pretended to be serious and said, "Shi Qing, don't be so rude."

Li Shiqing snorted and said, "Mom, I'm just telling the truth. If he were really good, would he have left us?"

Wang Qiang stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to say.

At this moment, the bride, Xiao Liu, walked over and, seeing the awkward atmosphere, asked, "What's wrong?"

Wang Qiang quickly said, "It's alright, honey, these are my ex-wife and daughter."

The bride, Xiao Liu, glanced at Li Yuan and Li Shiqing, her eyes filled with a hint of wariness.

Li Shiqing looked at the bride and said with a smile, "Auntie, you are really brave to marry my strange ex-father."

The bride, Xiao Liu, turned deathly pale and didn't know how to respond.

The wedding banquet began, and everyone took their seats.

Li Shiqing whispered to Li Yuan, "Mom, is this food even edible? The air around me feels weird."

Li Yuan said with a smile, "Honey, let's just treat this as a free performance."

During the meal, Wang Qiang tried to get closer to Li Shiqing again. He put a piece of meat on Li Shiqing's plate and said, "Shiqing, eat more."

Li Shiqing put the meat back into his bowl and said, "I'm afraid this meat is poisoned, so you can eat it yourself."

Wang Qiang's face turned ugly. He lowered his voice and said, "How can you be so insensible, kid?"

Li Shiqing retorted loudly, "I'm ignorant? Why didn't you think of treating me well when you abandoned us? What are you pretending to be now, playing the loving father?"

People around him cast strange glances at him, and Wang Qiang wished he could disappear into the ground.

Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, Li Yuan pulled Li Shiqing and said, "Baby, let's go."

Li Shiqing nodded, stood up and said to Wang Qiang, "Congratulations on your marriage, but I will never acknowledge you as my father." After saying that, she and Li Yuan left the wedding banquet in a carefree manner.

Once outside, Li Shiqing took a deep breath and said, "Mom, now I know why you don't mention Dad to me. He's just too unreliable."

Li Yuan stroked her daughter's head and said, "Baby, from now on, Mommy's here, we don't need to pay attention to him." The mother and daughter walked hand in hand towards home, leaving Wang Qiang alone and embarrassed at the wedding banquet.