Castle Tryst, 03:30;

"Quite an excellent performance from the rightfully remarkable music band Zeal, everyone.", Zhi Wei climbed up on the stage as the crowd below him broke into applause, a wide smile across his mouth, "Now, after indulging our adorable Bride and Groom into games like Jenga, Ring Toss, the Wheel of Fun, and the Shoe Game; I'd like to trouble them but once more! What do you say, Sister-in-law?"

Rong Xinghe laughed, bringing the mic in her hands to her lips, "I would never say no to my Little Panda.", she said sweetly.

The young man chuckled, eyeing Xi Yuan, expecting his approval next. "Go ahead.", the man responded moments later.

"Alrighty then.", Xi Wei clapped his hands thrice, exhilarated, "Well... this is a simple game of Q&A. And for each question answered wrongly, the two of you would have to drink up. Understood?" Earning a nod from the couple then, the man looked at the question cards he'd been holding all night long, waiting for the wave of awws around him to fade down, "So... Who is your celebrity crush? Both of you."

"Shawn Mendes.", Rong Xinghe answered, "The American Pop Prince."

"Rong Xinghe.", Xi Yuan said for himself, leaning back in his chair leisurely. Astounded by the man's answer, the crowd gazed at the huge screen zooming onto Rong Xinghe staring at her darling, in admiration. How lovey-dovey!

"Why her?", the host in his Teal three-piece suit asked.

"She is my favorite singer. Artist, too. And poetess and dancer.", the man replied with a smile, looking straight into the woman's eyes, "Xinghe is so much more than the Military Chief to Country X. It's a shame she doesn't perform anymore, for others. But as selfish as it sounds, I'd prefer things this way myself. Because like that, I get to be the only fan who gets to watch her from up close."

As the heat rose up to her cheeks, the girl looked away from the man, the couple's families laughing at their winsome interactions. How shameless, she thought, to torture people across the world with his PDA.

"You're killing us unmarried ones, Brother!", Xi Wei complained, instantly moving onto the next question, "Okay. What is her favorite beverage?"

"Indian tea.", Xi Yuan said within seconds.

"Correct! Sister-in-law, next one's for you?", the young man smiled, "What do you find most attractive about him?"

"His passion for whatever he does.", Rong Xinghe answered, "Also, the tremendous amount of patience he owns."

"Right answer.", Xi Wei went on, "What is the one thing that you do that annoys her the most, Brother?"

"When I apologize to her without giving her the opportunity to fight.", the man answered, eliciting a round of laughter from their guests, "She often gets irked due to that, as she always comes with a whole speech prepared for me."

Taking about half a minute to calm himself, Xi Wei then looked at the girl, "Growing up, what was your first dream?"

"To open a bakery of my own."

"And yours?", the man asked his brother.

"To be a Military man."

"Okay...", the man aimed at Xi Yuan again, "Onto the serious ones now. Would you be willing to stay at home with the kids while she works?"

"Absolutely.", the man answered, not a pinch of contemplation in his tone.

"Sister-in-law, how do you think my brother would feel if you were to make more money than him?", Xi Wei asked the woman, his eyes focussed upon the cards in his hands.

"He'd be proud of me.", the girl smiled at her darling, "He'd be mature enough to not let our egos taint the home, which we'd rather decorate with peace and love."

"Lord, none of you had to drink once all this while!", the man gasped in surprise. They really knew each other too well, didn't they?

"Fine, then. Last, but not least, and I think I speak for both your families here when I ask this; when do you two plan to have babies of your own?", Xi Wei smiled devilishly, "As in, how many months later.

"Rest assured, I don't know the answer to this one myself.", he concluded.

Xi Yuan looked at Rong Xinghe, only to realize she'd already turned to him, uncertain. None of them had a thought-through reply to this question, obviously. But since the media was covering the entire event, they couldn't be blunt about their answer, for it'd only create unnecessary drama for them later. So, after a minute, as pressing silence spread through the regal space, hundreds of eyes fixed onto them, Xi Yuan cleared his throat.

"Although we'd like to give it two years or so, roughly, any unsought surprises in our way, would be welcomed heartily too.", he said, smiling at the girl. Assuringly so.

His response was as vague as it could get, suggesting that the couple, even though open to the idea of a baby in the family, did not intend to try for a few years. Country X was a traditional country, laced with thousands of years of cultures and beliefs. It was a sin, to even think of abortion, therein. The public, and even the Xi family elders, would never accept the idea of that.

But it didn't matter to Xinguan, for, in the end, they'd be the ones making the decisions, taking Rong Xinghe's health and carrier into consideration, of course. Even so, they couldn't let it get to the public, as they were well aware of how much damage that could do to their reputations. To her's, more than his, speaking frankly. After all, the world had a tendency to blame it all on the woman eventually, didn't it?

"Please let there be a surprise within this year, Brother.", Xi Wei mumbled, rubbing his chest, his voice more of a plea, "I want to be an Uncle." And as he said so, the stiffness throughout the rooms dispersed into chuckles and smiles, lightening everyone's mood in an instant. No wonder the man was known to be Country X's unparalleled Party Whizard.

__________________

Khalij Wedding Hall, Afghanistan;

04:30;

"Aftaab Ali is going somewhere, Sir.", Asad Rehman reported to the two Hybrids sitting in the surveillance van roughly 50 meters from where he was, "I will follow him."

"Is he now?", Abram Orlov smiled, "Okay. Go ahead, boy. Be careful, alright?"

"Yeah, and no matter what happens, do not show yourself.", Jackson Marshal instructed, his voice stern, "Even if you come across Ahmed Ali Fadhil, don't. The bastard's too dangerous to be dealt with, alone."

"Understood.", the young boy nodded, following behind Ali, his footsteps soft, and unheard. Only after a minute had passed did the Hybrids realize that Aftaab Ali was walking towards the washrooms, the only place in the building they hadn't bothered to plant a bug into. Damn it!