Chapter 206

"Nuan Nuan, come on, come on!"

On stage, Old Xia smiled and waved at his daughter.

Around Qin Tian and the others, the sounds of guests egging her on rang out one after another, encouraging Xia Nuannuan to go up and speak.

"Old Xia!"

Xia Nuannuan blushed with annoyance, then subconsciously looked at Qin Tian beside her with a look of seeking help.

Over this period, she had become completely accustomed to relying on Qin Tian.

"Go ahead, just say a few words!"

Qin Tian said with a gentle smile.

"I can't, I, I'm nervous!"

Xia Nuannuan showed a weak, pitiful, and helpless expression, and her speech was even a bit stuttered.

Compared to the chubby girl from a few months ago, although she was much more confident and poised now, she hadn't had the experience of going on stage to speak under the attention of so many people for a long time.

She vaguely remembered the last time was when she had just started middle school, and the teacher made them go on stage one by one to introduce themselves.

"Nuan Nuan, don't be nervous, you can do it!"

Class Monitor Mu Nan said with a smile.

The other girls also spoke up one after another to cheer her on.

Xia Nuannuan's nervous expression eased a lot, but she still didn't have the courage to get up.

Qin Tian reached out both hands, held one of her delicate, boneless-feeling hands, patted the back of her hand gently, and comforted her, "Go on, there's nothing to be afraid of, I'm right here!"

Amidst the surprised gazes around them, Xia Nuannuan nodded with a blushing face and stood up to walk toward the stage.

"Who is that boy?"

"I don't know, could he be little Xia's boyfriend?"

"Really? Old Xia is such a daughter-slave, he doesn't object?"

"They're already holding hands, what do you think?"

"Nuan Nuan just graduated from high school, and she already has a boyfriend?"

"Don't say that, this young man is actually quite handsome, he must be a classmate from her class, right?"

"..."

The surrounding guests discussed among themselves, their curious gazes sizing up Qin Tian.

"Brother Tian, you dare to do this in a place like this? You've got some real guts!"

Zhang Peng said with a look of admiration.

Qin Tian glanced at him sideways and said calmly, "I didn't do anything, what are you making such a fuss about?"

"Exactly, you think everyone is like you!"

Tian Jiajia suddenly mocked him.

"You..."

Zhang Peng subconsciously wanted to retort, but remembering the favor Tian Jiajia had done for him earlier, he chose to endure it this time.

Su Yan glanced at her good friend beside her, then looked at Zhang Peng, a playful smile appearing on her face.

Li Xueping looked at this group of students with a gratified expression, picked up his glass, and sipped his wine to himself.

After Xia Nuannuan reached the stage, she glared at Old Xia, who had caused her trouble, with annoyance.

"Nuan Nuan, come, come, here's the microphone for you!"

Xia Zhengping smiled and handed the microphone to his daughter.

Xia Nuannuan rolled her eyes, took the microphone, held it with both hands, and nervously scanned the familiar and unfamiliar faces below.

"Haha... Nuan Nuan, just say a few words, that's fine!"

At the head table of a dining table below, the Xia family patriarch said with a hearty laugh.

Xia Nuannuan looked at her grandfather, smiled and nodded, and then began her speech.

"Um... thank you all for coming to my celebration banquet. I... I am very happy today. Dad has already said everything that needed to be said, so I won't say much more. Also, I want to thank my teacher and my classmates!"

Having said this, Xia Nuannuan's grateful gaze fell in the direction of Qin Tian and the others.

Inside the banquet hall, the gazes of many guests also followed and focused on them.

"Teacher Li is the most responsible homeroom teacher I have ever met. Although he is very strict, he really cares about every one of us students. He is the teacher I respect the most."

Xia Nuannuan said slowly.

Li Xueping hurriedly put down his chopsticks, a rare smile appearing on his face, and he nodded to greet the guests around him who were looking at him.

By the time Xia Nuannuan said this, most of her nervousness had faded, and she began to name them one by one with a sincere tone.

"Class Monitor Mu Nan is our class monitor. She is the most popular person in our class. Both boys and girls listen to her. She has always been someone I envy and admire."

Hearing Xia Nuannuan's words on stage, Mu Nan smiled a bit embarrassedly.

"Liao Juan is our English class representative, and besides the class monitor, she is my second good friend in class."

"And Cui Ying and Qiu Man, although we had some misunderstandings and conflicts at the beginning, that didn't stop us from becoming very good friends."

"Su Yan and Tian Jiajia are not in our class, but they later joined our little group. Su Yan is the school beauty of our school; she has always been so beautiful and has such a good temperament. I also envy Jiajia's lively and generous personality."

"Zhang Peng is the mood-maker of our little group. With him around, there is never a lack of laughter. I actually really want to have this ability too!"

"Hahaha..."

Hearing this, several girls couldn't help but laugh.

"Uh..."

Zhang Peng touched his nose awkwardly.

"I am really grateful to everyone. A few months ago, I thought my high school life would just be like that, and I had already given up struggling. It was you all who allowed me to have friends worth cherishing and made up for the regrets of my high school life. Really, thank you all very much!"

When Xia Nuannuan said this, her voice already clearly carried a hint of a sob.

At the dining table, several of the more emotional girls also couldn't help but have red eyes.

At a table in front, Su Xia had a bright smile on her face, but her eyes were also a little moist.

Xia Nuannuan raised her hand to wipe the corner of her eye, her gaze fixed on that tall figure, and a sweet smile bloomed on her pretty face.

This figure was the first ray of light that illuminated her dim high school life!

Zhang Peng and the others, as well as many guests around, all had their gazes fall on Qin Tian.

Even the guests who didn't know Qin Tian yet guessed that this handsome boy, who hadn't been mentioned yet, was clearly the final act.

After Xia Nuannuan took a deep breath to calm her emotions, she spoke slowly again.

"Last but not least, the person I want to thank the most is my boyfriend, Qin Tian!"

As her voice fell, the large banquet hall became eerily quiet.

The guests present all widened their eyes in disbelief.

Even though many people had already guessed the identity of this boy, hearing Xia Nuannuan say the term "boyfriend" so directly on stage was still a bit too shocking.

You have to know that almost all of the Xia family's relatives and friends were present now.

In this situation, publicly announcing this relationship required great courage and trust—trust that this relationship would not be easily broken.

Su Xia and Xia Nuannuan's grandparents all had bright smiles on their faces.

Xia Zhengping, who had already walked off the stage and sat next to his wife, was stunned for a long time before he gave a helpless, bitter smile.

It seemed he had lifted a rock only to drop it on his own feet again.

Now, he had no choice but to acknowledge this future son-in-law.

But strangely, he no longer had any thoughts of opposition in his heart; all that remained was blessing and a hint of loss.

From now on, there would be one more most important man in his precious daughter's life.