Thanks to all their children''s hard work and filial piety, Reina and Domingo Chua, managed to build a beautiful mansion in an exclusive area of prime real estate. It wasn''t thergest or the most expensivepared to the average mansion in the area, but it was enough for their family.


    Reina and Domingo weed Iris Long as she arrived at their home for the first time.


    "I''m so d you''re finally here, Xin," Reina said while hugging Iris. "Wee to the Philippines!"


    "Thank you, Auntie Reina." Iris smiled. The sincerity of her words was visible in her eyes. "I''m so happy to be here."


    Marjorie was also there with her husband, Paul, and their two children.


    Linda was, of course, present as well. She was the one who picked up Iris and her team from the airport.


    The Chua family also weed Jiang Ying Yue and Lin Yehan.


    Everyone was familiar with each other, so there were no awkward moments between them.


    Dom sniffed the air and rubbed his t stomach which gave a loud growl. "I''m so hungry! I can smell my favourite!"


    Reina yfully hit her son''s back. "All you think about is eat, eat, and eat!"


    "Ehehehe. That''s because you cook the best, Ma! Love ya~"


    She rolled her eyes and shook her head while chuckling before leading Iris to the open-concept kitchen sh dining area.


    Her husband, Domingo, also led Lin Yehan and Jiang Ying Yue to their seats at the table.


    Iris'' m team, bodyguards, and her entourage members were also weed. As there was no space on the table and kitchen counter avable, the others all found various ces in the living area and even by the staircase.


    Dinner was buffet style, so everyone was free to get food as much as they wanted.


    Reina and Domingo personally cooked the main dishes. Marjorie also helped by making the local rice cakes for dessert.


    Iris, Jiang Ying Yue, Lin Yehan, and the others weren''t unfamiliar with the Filipino dishes prepared tonight. They would often taste these foods because the Jins'' chefs learned how to cook them. Dom would also often request some Filipino dishes whenever he craved them.


    "These taste delicious, Auntie Reina, Uncle Domingo," Iris said.


    "Try the rice cakes I made," Marjorie said next. Her eyes were shining. She looked forward to hearing what Iris and the others thought about her cooking.


    Iris and the others tasted the different kinds of rice cakes. Unlike the Filipino dishes that they were familiar with, some of these Filipino desserts were something that they had never tasted before.


    "This is so good!" Iris eximed.


    Jiang Ying Yue and Lin Yehan both nodded.


    Marjorie grinned. "If you want, I''ll give the recipe to Dom so that he can give it to your chefs."


    "Will that be alright?" Iris asked.


    "Of course. This is the least I can do for all the help you and your husband have given to our whole family."


    Iris smiled.


    After dinner, everyone chatted with one another. Iris handed the presents she prepared for Marjorie''s two children. They had grown up a lot. The children adored their Auntie Xin and immediately hugged her after receiving their presents.


    Marjorieughed. "You and Liam spoil my kids too much."


    "Not at all," Iris said, shaking her head with a smile on her face. "Your kids are always so sweet. Always respectful to my husband and me."


    Paul didn''t say anything but there was clear paternal pride in his eyes. Then he paid attention to the conversation on his other side between his father-inw and Lin Yehan.


    "Tomorrow, I''ll introduce you to a cousin of mine from the main family," Domingo said before giving Lin Yehan a brief summary of his family''s situation with the wealthy main Chua family. "Unfortunately, my own family''s connections are not as extensive as the main family''s. They''re the ones who are well-connected to the elites in this country. They''re better at helping to introduce you to the most reputable and reliable agricultural tradingpanies in the Philippines."


    "I understand," Lin Yehan said, his tone gentle. "Thank you very much." He paused before saying, "If there is anything I can help you with in the future, please don''t hesitate to let me know."


    Domingo smiled, not really agreeing or disagreeing.


    "I might still need your help even after you connect me with your cousin," Lin Yehan added.


    Domingo raised his eyebrows, a silent question in his expression.


    "I''m familiar with you," Lin Yehan said. "Third Brother and Third Sister Xin also trust you and your family, so I feel assured about your character. I can''t say the same thing about someone who I''ll be meeting for the first time tomorrow. Whatever happens tomorrow, I might still need to consult you to make sure that I''m making the right moves in this country."


    Domingo nodded. "Sure. Just let me know how I can assist you. No problem at all."


    The two raised their sses of local brandy. Paul joined them while not interrupting their business talk. He only joined the conversation when the topic shifted to his property developmentpany.


    Iris and the others were having fun catching up with the Chua family.


    She and Jiang Ying Yue excused themselves to call Long Jinjing and ask about their children.


    "Don''t worry, you two," Long Jinjing reassured them while showing all the children sleeping in a row with the cats and dogs via video call. "The kids yed all afternoon. Then they ate a lot. Zihao and I washed them one by one and put them in their pyjamas. It was Zihao''s idea to ce three mattresses on the floor. We''re all sleeping here together. Little Mochi and my Little Misha were naughty as usual, but Little Jun did a great job as the big brother and told them to behave. They actually listened. How adorable!"


    Both Long Jinjing and Iris praised Little Jun for being a responsible big brother to his little cousins. Jiang Ying Yue smiled, feeling proud of her son.


    Jiang Ying Yue continued updating them, "At first, they couldn''t sleep but Zihao yed a recorded track of Xin singing a Russian luby, and they began falling asleep one after another. I didn''t know that it was so effective! Can I use the track to lull your nephews to sleep next time?"


    "Of course," Iris agreed without hesitation. "I''ll record other lubies for my nephews so that they won''t get tired of listening to the same thing over and over."


    "Thank you, little sister," Long Jinjing said.


    "I want it, too, for Little Jun," Jiang Ying Yue said next.


    "No problem," Iris told her.


    The friends began chatting about other things. Then Dom arrived, his mouth chewing nonstop, his left hand holding a te filled with a mountain of food, and his right hand holding a spoon to shovel food into his bottomless stomach.


    "You''re still eating?" Long Jinjing asked.


    "I missed my parent''s cooking," he said before shovelling another mouthful of food into his mouth.


    "It would have been perfect if Chen Fei and Clover could join us on this call," Long Jinjing said, sighing. "Neither of them are answering their phones."


    "Sis Fei should be with Prince Lin Lin right now," Dom said. "Maybe they''re busy doing, you know, shy-shy things."


    "Oh, Dom, stop it!" Long Jinjing''s face turned red.


    Irisughed with Dom. Jiang Ying Yue remained quiet but there was an amused smile on her lips.


    "As for my sister, Clover is in an important business meeting with that Dubai Princess, I think."


    "Oh, right." Long Jinjing nodded. "There''s that."


    "Sheikha Amira," Iris said. "I already assigned Clover to handle the cooperation with her."


    Since Liberté is technically under Orchidia, Long Jinjing was also aware of Iris'' agreement to cooperate with Sheikha Amira. Clover was now in charge of the project.


    Long Jinjing nced at the time. "It''s gettingte. You should rest soon. I know that you all have a busy schedule starting tomorrow morn—Ice Cream? What is it, honey?"


    The fat, grey cat must have woken up after hearing her mommy''s familiar voice.


    "Hi, baby," Iris cooed. Then she frowned as she watched her cat daughter crawl slowly until she reached Long Jinjing''sp.


    "Meow. Meow, meow, meow, MEOW!!!!"


    Iris and the other might not understand catnguage, but it was clear to them that Ice Cream wasining to her mommy. The fat, grey cat pitifully widened her eyes and whined.


    "What''s wrong, baby?" Iris asked.


    "Meow, meow, meow—MREOW!!!"


    The video changed focus. Then a handsome but scarred face appeared on Iris'' phone screen.


    "I had a couple of my subordinates take your cats for exercise," a devilish voice said.


    Iris couldn''t see her cat daughter but she could hear Ice Cream hissing at the man.


    "Exercise?" she asked. "What kind of exercise?"


    "Boot camp for fat pussies," Lu Zihao replied.


    He promptly received a hit from his wife.


    "Don''t talk like that," Long Jinjing said. "What if the kids wake up and hear you talking like that?"


    "What''s wrong with the word ''pussy''? It''s true that these are pussycats."


    "Pft!" Dom tried his best to cover his mouth, but a few grains of rice still escaped from his mouth when he identallyughed.


    "Ew, Uncle Dom," his niece, Marjorie''s daughter, said behind him. "So gross!"<fn0a5f> ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ???? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? fι?dnοvel</fn0a5f>


    "Yucky Uncle Dom!" Dom''s nephew said next,ughing at him.


    "Go get your favourite uncle a ss of orange juice," he said.


    "My favourite is Uncle Liam!" the girl protested. "He gives the best presents!"


    "Fine, I''m your favourite second uncle then!"


    The niece shook her head. "My second favourite uncle is Uncle Lin Lin! He''s a superstar! So cool!"


    Dom sighed. "I get it, okay? Can you PLEASE just give me something to drink? Anything!"