I wonder what everyone's past experiences at wedding banquets have been like? Witnessing a couple's union is indeed a joyful occasion, but for me, the joy comes from the food, as I usually don't go out to eat. However, at weddings, all the dishes I want to eat are available. But not every experience is joyful; we usually choose to eat at restaurants we know, so if the wedding is at a place we think doesn't serve good food, it can be a bit disappointing. However, attending a wedding is not just about the food; the most important part is witnessing the couple's union and reconnecting with relatives.

Recently, my cousin got married. This cousin is the daughter of my aunt, and we are quite distant, only seeing each other during the New Year unless there are special occasions. Sometimes it's quite amusing; my aunt and this youngest aunt are only a few months apart in age, but I have to call her "aunt," which is sometimes quite funny. Originally, we were quite close, usually only invited to weddings, but since they live not far from me, they invited us to dinner the night before. I don't know how to describe it; they call it "opening the kitchen," which usually means inviting the closest relatives and friends to eat together.

The "opening the kitchen" event wasn't very elaborate; it was just a regular meal. I went to my aunt's house afterward, where many aunts had come from Guangxi. The older generation in the mountainous areas of Guangxi often wants to have more children. I have five aunts, and my mom has three siblings. So every time I return to my hometown, I see many children from the neighbors. Therefore, the way we address each other in Guangxi can sometimes be quite amusing. Several aunts have always lived in Guangxi, so I can't understand their "local dialect" at all and can only communicate with the help of my mom as a translator.

On the wedding day, there was food for both lunch and dinner. For lunch, we went to the restaurant from the night before, but the bride and bridesmaids had to stay at the bride's home since they were not used to wearing wedding dresses. My cousin directly packed up all the dishes from the table and took them back to the bride's home for them to eat, so there were many more people for lunch. After everyone finished eating, we went to the bride's home to sit and wait for the groom's family to come for the marriage ceremony. Sometimes I wonder what the groom's side is like? Around two in the afternoon, the groom's side arrived in a grand procession, with the first car being a new BMW 7 Series.

Following behind were many cars, and it was my first time meeting my "uncle by marriage" because my cousin had to change her title to "aunt," but she is only five or six years older than me, which feels like a different generation. She also finds it quite helpless, haha. My uncle by marriage is from Shunde, and my cousin is also from Shunde, which has the advantage of being convenient for visiting her family. My older cousin also married someone from Shunde, so after having children, my grandfather can see them often. My cousin said they are colleagues, and there was an embarrassing incident because many relatives were introducing partners to my cousin, who is quite introverted and only told her parents about dating six months before the wedding.

Just at that time, I had to go to work for half a day; otherwise, I could have driven to send the bride off. After work, my dad and I took an electric bike to the restaurant. Tonight's dinner was at a restaurant called Shunde Fishing Village in Beijiao, Shunde. At first, I didn't know its reputation, but when I arrived, I felt a sense of awe because it was enormous. How big was it? When I walked in, I saw other newlyweds taking photos, but they weren't my cousin. To my surprise, there were actually three pairs of newlyweds at the same time; I couldn't imagine how big it was, and there were many staff members.

Before the meal started, I took a photo with my aunt and uncle by marriage, and the pictures could be printed immediately. Basically, we were all waiting for the meal to start. I looked at the menu, and there wasn't anything particularly special, except for the abalone sauce red kidney beans with abalone, which was quite unique, but almost every banquet has similar dishes. However, the restaurant was beautifully decorated, and I instinctively felt it was quite upscale, focusing more on decoration and service rather than just the dishes. Sure enough, when the dishes came out, each plate was quite large; I mean the plate itself, and the food was only in the middle, so it felt like if everyone at the table took a piece, it would be gone.

After finishing the soup, someone came to collect the soup bowls, and there were people walking around with white wine or red wine, asking if anyone needed some. After the meal started, there were dedicated staff to serve rice, deliver drinks, and collect leftovers. It felt like the waitstaff always had something to do, and there were many of them. I wondered how they could have so many staff members? It turned out that this restaurant has many branches, so it was simple to just allocate staff from there. To be honest, I rarely see a restaurant of such scale; no wonder the lobby was filled with trophies and awards.

This wedding banquet had the best service I've ever experienced. Of course, good service comes with a good price. Can you guess how much this table of dishes cost? I thought it would be around two thousand, but it turned out to be two thousand eight hundred and eighty-eight, which shocked me. The dishes weren't particularly delicious; much of the cost went into decoration and service. However, in such an established restaurant, spending this much still gives a sense of strength. I looked around, and including the costs of the other two meals, it must have added up to quite a bit, at least over a hundred thousand, right? Could this be one of the reasons why young people today are reluctant to get married?

After this meal at my cousin's wedding, it wasn't long before my other cousin got married. After attending so many wedding banquets, I finally get to sit at the host's table, which I was quite looking forward to, but there were still many things to prepare. A few days ago, my dad helped my uncle run around delivering wedding cakes and invitations. Speaking of wedding cakes, eating one is like being full for a day; it's like mooncakes, just one bite feels very greasy, let alone eating a whole one. For my sister's wedding, I have to welcome friends and relatives at the door, so I need to take it seriously. It's time to bring out my best suit; I hope I can still fit into it despite gaining weight.