Chapter 220 - Twins Birthday (7)

The first thing Old Madam Du said when she arrived was, "XiAn, why didn't you spent some time with Qiao Qiao today? I have been watching and you kept running around."

DX's friends greeted her before leaving them alone to talk.

"Mother, I'm the host and with so many children around, I have to keep moving to make sure that everything is fine..."

When he glanced at Song Qiao, the woman shrugged apologetically and mouthed, "I'm sorry."

DX nodded. He knew that his mother could be quite difficult to handle so he did not blame Song Qiao for it. As he looked back at his mother, he asked, "Is there anything else?"

"Yes, but first of all..."

Old Madam Du looked at the boy on her son's arms and frowned, "This is?"

"Caleb." He tapped the boy's shoulder to get his attention and when Caleb turned around, he said slowly so that the boy could understand, "Say Hi."

Caleb turned to Old Madam Du. He was a little afraid of the old woman who was frowning at him but he still obeyed DX's instructions.

He forgot that he was on DX's arms and gave a deep bow. Thankfully, DX anticipated that and caught him before he fell off.

Old Madam Du's frown was replaced with a smile and shook Caleb's hand while asking her son, "He is quite cute. Whose child is this?"

"One of my special guests. If there's nothing else, then please excuse me while I send him back to the other children."

"Hold on!" Old Madam Du called out before her son left. She signaled for a server to come over and said, "Pass the boy to him. I need to talk to you about something."

The person she called for was Jiang Cheng who was helping out in order to earn more money. He knew that Alyssa's biggest worry was about money and he wanted to help her out so that she could quit her job.

He went over and gave a courteous bow before asking, "Do you need any help, Old Madam Du?"

"Take this boy back to his friends."

Jiang Cheng nodded but when he tried to take Caleb away, the latter hugged onto DX's neck tightly before yelling, "NO!"

"It's alright, it's alright..." said DX as he patted the boy's back. He understood that this place was scary for him. Lyle and Jack behaved similarly during their first formal event.

After all, Caleb's 'Mama Zhen' was still hiding somewhere. DX turned to Jiang Cheng and dismissed him, "I'll call you if I need you."

"XiAn, you are spoiling the child too much. He is not your son."

"I'll do whatever I want, mother. If there's nothing else-"

"I'm not done with you," said Old Madam Du with a sigh. She took Song Qiao's hand and made her hooked it into the crook of DX's arms before saying, "Since you have got no dates, then take Qiao Qiao and make her your partner for tonight."

At that moment, they heard a loud buzz followed by an announcement made by Old Mo,

"TO ALL THE ESTEEMED GUESTS OF DU FAMILY, WE WOULD BE SINGING HAPPY BIRTHDAY SONG TO OUR BELOVED YOUNG MASTER LYLE AND YOUNG MASTER JACK. EVERYONE, PLEASE MOVE TO THE EAST WING FOR THE CAKE CUTTING CEREMONY. NANNIES AND GUARDS, PLEASE ENSURE THE SAFETY OF YOUR CHILDREN DURING THE MOVE. THE DU FAMILY'S SERVANTS WILL HELP YOU OUT WITH THE MOVE..."

"Mother..." sighed DX as he gently removed Song Qiao's hand.

He changed the position of Caleb to the other arm before saying to his mother, "Please stop this. I don't want to keep doing this with you."

Old Madam Du glared at her son, "Why are you being so stubborn?"

"I'm not, Mother. You are the one who is being stubborn about this," said DX before he walked off.

...

Kai Xin and Lyle were talking to each other when they heard the announcement.

"I have to go down...Are you coming with me, Mummy?" asked Lyle while he looked at her with anticipation of what she was going to say.

He was afraid that she might be gone if he stopped looking at her.

Kai Xin put her mask back on before saying, "I'd come down shortly. Your father has no clue about what I'm wearing so I want to give him a surprise as well."

Even though he was reluctant, Lyle nodded, "I'll see you shortly..."

Before he left the room, he turned around and after some hesitation, he asked, "You won't disappear again when I'm not watching, right?"

She got up and went over to him. Kissing him on his forehead, she smiled and said softly, "Don't worry...I'm here to stay."

...

The entire East Wing was packed with overly excited kids and adults. All the gifts were brought out and stacked in the middle of the East Wing.

"Wow...It's like a giant Christmas tree! Man, I wish I get as many gifts as the twins during my birthday, " murmured one of the children as he looked at the stack of gifts.

Another kid laughed as she said, "Who the heck do you think you are? As if you are at the twins level...."

Most of the children present belonged to the top 10% of the wealthiest and most influential family in the country.

However, none of them ever received a party as extravagant as the twins.

"They must be the luckiest illegitimate children ever..." said the boy from earlier as he looked wistfully at the presents.

The girl sneered, "What's the point of being so rich? My mummy says their positions are fragile. You actually have it better."

"What do you mean?" asked another kid who was standing nearby.

The girl stood akimbo as she pointed out, "They are only heirs of the Du Family because there's no competition. Once President Du marries someone, the legitimate children of the main wife would take over."

They were speaking so loudly that their words were heard by the adults who were standing near them.

The adults then started to discuss the possibility of a Madam President Du.

"But, President Du...Isn't he...gay?"

"Gay man can have a wife! After all, someone at his position has a responsibility to ensure that the line continues."

Unknown to them, their less than discreet conversations were heard by Jack, Quinn and Tian Le.

Since their masks were on, no one could recognize them and thus they did not show any restraint.

Jack and Quinn seemed not to be affected at all but Tian Le was getting angrier by the second.

Unable to hold it any longer, he was about to rush out and defend his new-found friends when someone pulled him back.

He whipped his head around and saw Quinn shaking her head at him.

"How could you just stand there and let them talk freely?" asked Tian Le angrily.

"The higher you stand, the stronger you have to be..." said Quinn as a matter of fact.

Tian Le looked at Jack and exclaimed, "Jack!"

Jack smiled and said, "Quinn is right. If I get angry because of what ignorant people say, I would spend the rest of my life being angry."

"But how could you stay still?" asked Tian Le. He felt frustrated by their calmness.

"They are not wrong. Lyle and I are illegitimate children. And in our world, the positions of illegitimate children are indeed quite precarious. After all, we don't have the backing of our maternal family."

Quinn took Tian Le's hand and reassured him by saying, "You don't have to worry about them. As part of their training, Godfather probably talked to them previously about all of this."

Jack nodded to confirm, "Not just us, even Quinn has to deal with gossips because of her mothers. Having anticipated this, Aunt Layla and her partner moved overseas to avoid it but no matter where they moved to, there would still be people who talk about her."

Quinn shrugged, "There are many who would like to watch the fall of our families."

Tian Le shook his head as he listened to them.

He thought that the children of the rich and famous were lucky enough to have everything. However, after listening, he felt as if their status came with quite a heavy baggage

"What are you guys talking about?" asked Lyle. The moment he spotted them, he rushed over to meet up with them.

"Nothing. Let's go up the stage before they sent a search order for us," said Jack.

With that being said, the twins went up the makeshift stage where Old Mo and DX were waiting while Tian Le and Quinn went over to Layla.

"Well, now that the birthday boys have joined us, should we begin the song?" asked Old Mo.

When the audience cheered, he signaled the staff to on the music.

"Happy Birthday to you...."

When the song was over, DX leaned over and whispered to Lyle, "Do you like the gift in your room?"

With a soft blush, he nodded, "Thanks, Dad. It's the best gift ever."

Seeing the smile on Lyle's face, DX felt relieved that at least one secret was out. He glanced around to look for Kai Xin but most of the adults there were wearing masks and he did not know what she was wearing.

"Where is she?" asked DX.

"She said she would be here shortly," replied Lyle with a grin. He then added, "Aren't you tired? Have you been carrying Caleb the entire time?"

DX's arms were indeed starting to ache. For some reason, he was even clingier ever since DX's mother tried to get someone to take him away. Since he was important to Kai Xin, naturally DX felt protective over him as well.

"I'm fine," replied DX.

Once they cut the cake, Old Madam Du went up the stage and said,

"Thank you for coming to my grandsons birthday party as well as the generous gifts. I'm sure the twins would love everything that you brought them. Since today is such a festive day, I would like to take this chance to say something..."

Feeling that something was about to go wrong, DX hissed, "What are you doing, Mother?"

"Taking control! I'm not about to let you throw your future away for a man!" Old Madam Du hissed back at her son before turning to Song Qiao and beckoned for her to get on the stage.

She knew that in front of an audience, DX would not openly fight with her. If she wanted to get something done, this would be the best time to do it.

Once Song Qiao was on the stage, Old Madam Du turned to the audience and declared, "I'm extremely happy today because it is a double joyous occasion. First, my beloved grandsons turned 11...Second, I am about to have a daughter. I believe that many of you have speculated about this for a while, but Ms. Song has finally agreed to marry my son, Du XiAn!"

When the guests heard the news, there was a moment of silence before they started to clap madly while discussing the Du-Song alliance.

Even though the Song family was not as established as the Du Family, it was a well-known fact that the former was one of the Top 5 family in the country when it comes to riches.

As the only daughter of the Song Family's patriarch, the alliance would solidify the Du Family's position as the top dog of the country.

"Mother!" snapped DX as he glared at her angrily. He knew her tactic but she did not know how crazy he was towards Kai Xin.

He was not going to hold back for anyone who dared to threaten his relationship with her and that included his mother!

Stepping out from the background, he was about to say something when someone shouted, "I DISAGREE!"