The Lin siblings and Li Ting sorted out the details for their trip, had lunch outside, then watched a movie, strolled around, and bought a heap of stuff to wear, use, and eat. By the time they returned to the apartment building, it was nearly 5 PM.
After parking the car in the underground garage of the apartment building, each of them carrying two or three shopping bags, they were laughing and chatting as they walked towards the elevator and happened to meet Ye Hongqing who was heading out!
Ye Hongqing flashed a friendly smile, like Buddha's, and warmly said, "Little Lin brother, once you finalize the date for the celebration banquet, be sure to let me know. I'll definitely be there, and I'll give a big congratulatory red envelope!"
"You're too kind, Boss Ye. We definitely won't forget you!"
Once Ye Hongqing got in his eye-catching Mercedes G6 and left the underground parking, Lin Jie seemed a bit confused and said, "Miaomiao, Tingting, should we be organizing a celebration banquet?"
Lin Miao was also a bit puzzled: "Um, brother, I'm not sure either. Didn't we have a big feast at the First-class Hall last night?"
Li Ting said somewhat uncertainly, "I think we should hold one. When I got into Binhai University, my parents booked a hotel and invited several tables of guests. We received quite a few red envelopes too!"
This is one disadvantage of not having elders at home — there's no one to guide us in social interactions and such.
Moreover, a few months ago, it was already good enough for Lin Jie and Lin Miao to care for themselves. They had neither the energy nor the mind to deal with anything else, making them quite slow in this regard!
Lin Jie vaguely felt they should organize this celebration banquet!
He thought about it and decided, "Miaomiao, we weren't capable before and could only accept help from others."
"Now that our conditions are better, why not take this opportunity to thank the neighbors who helped us and invite all our friends?"
Lin Miao nodded and said, "That's a great idea, brother. I support you!"
"Let's go; let's go home and make a guest list first!"
Back at the apartment, the three sat on the couch in the living room, snacking while discussing the guest list.
Lin Jie opened his laptop, started a document, and said as he typed, "First are the neighbors, Miaomiao, let's think together and not miss anyone!"
"Sister Xiaoxiao, the Kong Mingqing couple, Qin the worker, brother Xiaoyu, Uncle Qian..."
This task of entering names was quickly taken over by Li Ting,
while Lin Jie and Lin Miao focused on recalling the kind-hearted neighbors who had helped them.
The list grew longer and soon surpassed fifty names, finally settling at seventy-six people!
Next were Lin Jie's friends, mainly people he'd met in Zhujia Port, including the An family father and daughter, Chen Shi, Yang Jinglong, Chen Lan, and Ling Mengjiao, as well as Ye Hongqing, Li Haoxiang, and Xu Xingye from Xiangtai Apartment.
As for Lu Kaicheng, he was leaving for the United States the day after tomorrow and probably wouldn't make it to this celebration and thanksgiving banquet.
Lin Miao's friends were mainly the masters and brothers from the blind massage shop, along with some new friends from the Li Hong Studio.
Li Ting's friends, she suggested inviting just three: her dormmate Chen Lili, Niu Yilan, and her cousin Zhou Ke.
Gradually, the list reached 135 people!
"Brother, should we invite those expert judges who assessed you and Principal Pan as well?" Lin Miao suddenly asked.
Lin Jie pondered for a moment, shook his head slowly, and said, "We're not familiar with them at all, and they're considered elders and are busy with work. Let's skip them!"
Faced with the list of 135 people, the three racked their brains, thought it over, and finally confirmed a total of 146 people.
Once the list was settled, Lin Jie laughed and said, "Next is to determine the date of the banquet, book a hotel, write the invitations, and send them out!"
"As for the date, let's do it next Saturday at noon. If we set it at night, it would be inconvenient for people from Zhujia Port to get back home!"
"For the hotel... to be a bit upscale, let's look for a five-star hotel!"
Neither Lin Miao nor Li Ting had any objections to Lin Jie's two decisions!
So, the three of them searched online for contact numbers of seven suitably located five-star hotels and directly called them to inquire about banquet halls for 150 guests.
However, after contacting these seven hotels, the results were disappointing.
At the end of the year, a peak time for companies and organizations to host annual meetings and celebrations, plus weddings, birthday parties, etc., the banquet halls at these hotels had long been fully booked.
Lin Miao suggested, "Brother, why don't we directly contact some famous, well-established restaurants and diners?"
Lin Jie could only resign to saying, "We have no other choice; let's search online for some options and contact them one by one!"
Two hours passed, yet the three were still empty-handed.
This was giving Lin Jie quite a headache!
They were right at the busiest time for restaurants and hotels, and because he had so many guests to invite, finding a suitable place was really challenging.
Lin Miao suggested again, "How about asking Sister Kexin for help? She knows a lot of people and might have connections to book a suitable restaurant!"
Lin Jie hesitated silently at this suggestion!
He felt that since this was a thanksgiving banquet, it should be done sincerely, and the arrangements should preferably be made by himself.
Moreover, An Kexin had already helped him tremendously, and if he asked her to manage this too, it would defeat the purpose of thanking her in the first place unless he thanked her separately afterward?
Li Ting, due to a woman's sixth sense, wasn't too keen on Lin Jie having too much contact with An Kexin.
But now that Lin Jie had close ties with the An family and they were co-building a hospital, she couldn't stop it even if she wanted to, and she had no better solution for finding a suitable venue!
Seeing Lin Jie's indecision, Li Ting also advised, "Lin Jie, having a wide network and connections is Sister Kexin's strength, just like medicine is yours."
"Maybe what we're having a hard time sorting out, she could solve with just one phone call?"
Lin Jie considered it again, and still couldn't think of any good ideas. He thought that if he needed to ask others for help, he might as well turn to An Kexin and owe favors to just one person rather than spreading it around!
So he accepted both Lin Miao's and Li Ting's persuasion, stopped hesitating, and dialed An Kexin's number.
The call was answered quickly, and Lin Jie briefly explained the idea of the thanksgiving-cum-celebration banquet and the issues he was encountering.
An Kexin's gentle laughter came through the phone, "Lin Jie, I'm quite surprised to get such an early call from you. I was planning to remind you in two or three days if you hadn't thought of it by then!"
Lin Jie sheepishly laughed, "Honestly, if I hadn't bumped into Ye Hongqing and he brought it up, I probably wouldn't have remembered. Kexin, I've been on the phone for two or three hours with Miaomiao and Tingting, and we haven't found a suitable place yet. Do you have any leads or solutions?"
An Kexin's confident voice came through, "Leave this to me. I'll make sure to find a high-class venue for your banquet. But Lin Jie, the 150 invited guests you mentioned is too few; it should be at least 200."
"Two hundred?"
Lin Jie quickly explained, "Kexin, this list of nearly 150 guests, we've already overestimated. Many people might not come that day due to other commitments."
"Booking for 200 is definitely too many. It would be such a waste to have empty tables!"
An Kexin chuckled softly and said, "Lin Jie, you might not have a clear understanding of your current influence. Let me put it this way: if my uncle were to host a banquet, he could easily attract three to four hundred people."
"You're a world-class medical expert, and even though to outsiders you might still be considered a 'future' one, that doesn't stop many people from wanting to establish a good relationship with you beforehand."
"Lin Jie, shall we make a bet?"
An Kexin said in a lively tone, "For your celebration and thanksgiving banquet, there will likely be a lot of uninvited guests. The two hundred I'm talking about is a conservative estimate."
"Do I really have that much influence now?" Lin Jie couldn't quite believe it.
"Never underestimate yourself!"
"In the mindset of our people, even though many are dissatisfied with doctors' actions, nobody would miss a chance to associate with a renowned doctor."
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