The peaceful house of Wu Jiaheng was weirdly in an organized disarray. As she walked on the hallways of her loving abode, maids would hurriedly bow before they pass their grandmaster.  She gave no damn however. As Jiaheng reached her usual destination, with her two faithful nanguanjia a few steps behind, she heard her daughter-in-law laugh merrily in her still broken Chinese accent. Or so she thinks is broken Chinese.

    “Bofan is coming back, Boxian! This time, he invited all of your relatives. Yes, yes, that means all of them—yeah, all your relatives from China, Taiwan, Canada will be back. You really have to come home! Your Nai Nai would expect your visit.”

    Her daughter-in-law paused—listening to the other line. Her lips formed a rectangle smile, and Jiaheng suddenly remembered how Boxian would smile as he showed his Nai Nai the new drawing he made. She remembered complimenting Boxian, and the little boy proclaimed that he would become a famous fashion designer.

    Her reverie was cut-off as she heard her daughter-in-law ending the call with, “yes, baby I will call your Ba Ba. Love you, stay safe.”

    Jiaheng made her presence known by knocking on the pristine wooden door. It had been almost 70 years, and yet the quality of the cherry wood was still at its best. She sat on her usual place. The frame of the chair was designed with an intricate pattern of varied species of wild flowers that captured the personality of Wu Jiaheng. As she gets comfortable on her sit, she asks her two nanguanjia to bring her usual Chamomile tea. She waves to signal that they were dismissed, and the two bowed at their master before they flee.

    Silence ensued.

    The old lady traced the patterns on her chair while she gazed upon the golden sunrise that reflected on their pond. She lets her sight follow the gardeners feeding the koi fishes before turning to her daughter-in-law, Kim Sojee. The nervous stance of Sojee did not escape her hooded eyes.

    Ah, after all these years she’s still wary of me.

    After a few minutes of silence, she started the conversation by uttering, “So I’ve heard Boxian is going back home.”

    “Yes, Po Po.(1)”

    Jiaheng smiled unconciously. While she may had not utter anything, her favorite grandson had always been Boxian. After all, he was the only one who pleaded to stay with his Nai Nai even if they all had their own houses. He was also her ray of sunshine; Boxian always made her experience happiness that can be found in simple things.

    But after a few seconds her smile turned into a scowl. Sojee wonders what could her mother-in-law be thinking.

    “What about Bofan, when is he arriving? He better tell us some good news if he requested for such a big event in this household.” Jiaheng said in a light tone while having a straight face.

    Sojee smiled, her pearly teeth showing. She finally released a big sigh. She did not know she was holding much of her breathe up until this point.    

    “Po Po, as much I tried to ask Bofan about what it could be, all he uttered was secret. Aish, that boy.” She sighed. “He just wanted everyone to come home. I assume that his news is something big since he invited the Wu and Zhang family clan.”

    Jiaheng was about to say something when a knock on the door interrupted her. It was Jiaheng’s two nanguanjia. They carried a tray that contained the Chamomile tea and huangqiao shaobing. There was an additional black coffee for Sojee, of course.

    The two spent the morning by having a small business talk, a few guesses of what Bofan’s announcement could be, and of course their precious Boxian. There was never a day that Boxian was left out in Wu Jiaheng’s conversation.

    “Speaking of Boxian, did he announce that he’s going to bring someone?”

    Kim Sojee wondered why her mother-in-law would ask such question. Whenever someone holds a family reunion, it is a given that only the people in the family clan would be attending. No lovers were included unless they were married. The three family clan, while included in the highest family clan in China, always wanted to be somehow hidden in the society. That was to protect the clan’s safety and to stray away from gold diggers.

    But the way her mother-in-law asked her, perhaps Wu Jiaheng knew something that Kim Sojee did not.

    “Ah… I was not able to ask. Forgive me.” Sojee answered truthfully. She lowered her gaze, unaware of the tiny smirk on Jiaheng’s face.

    “Mei, Shancai, prepare Boxian’s room and Bofan’s room. Make sure the two rooms are enough for two people.” As Jiaheng finished her sentence, Sojee was aghast.

    “Po Po, w-what do you mean by ‘enough for two people’? Are you perhaps assuming my two sons are bringing their lovers? That’s against the clan’s traditions… My sons know better, Po Po.”

    Jiaheng only smiled before leaving Sojee with confusion evident on her face.

    “Yeollie, Yeollieeeee,” Baekhyun pouted, eyeing the one-of-a-kind Gucci shoes, but Chanyeol’s eyebrows could only scrunch. It was obvious that his boyfriend wanted that hideous looking shoes, but as a model, Chanyeol had his own standards and he could not bear to see his beautiful boyfriend wearing something so… ugly. 

    God, who created that ugly looking shoes? This is like some… Crocs… but leather… and with a ing faux fur. This is so hideous. Ugly. Ugly. Oh god, how ugly.

    “Baekhyun, baby, w-what about this jacket? Oh, this sneakers instead? They’re more… sparkly. They are more lively to look at, rather than that brown thing.” Chanyeol emphasized on his last word. He tried to divert his boyfriend’s attention on that particular shoes, but Baekhyun seemed to not understand his hint. He really liked that shoes.

    “Noooo, Yeollie, everyone has that kind of shoes. I want to stand out.” Baekhyun said. However, as he saw the jacket on Chanyeol’s hands, he grabbed it.

    “I like this jacket. And this shoes. I’ll take it.”

    Chanyeol wanted to cry on the spot. No, he did not mind spending hundreds and thousands just for Baekhyun, but he did not want that shoes within his proximity. It was really ugly. He knew Baekhyun was just as fashionable as him, lavishly spending on luxurious high-end brands, but he never thought that his small lover would be blinded by the ugliness of the shoe.

    Baekhyun was about to grab the shoes when another hand appeared and swiftly took the shoes. Baekhyun stoo