The middle-aged man and woman were carefully examining the son-in-law who had suddenly appeared before them; the fact that Meng Hongchen was already in a relationship had truly startled them.
The middle-aged man was named Yue Hongchen. He did not hold a prominent position in the Hongchen Family. Although he was Meng Hongchen's father, he did not have any outstanding talent as a Soul Engineer.
He opened a small restaurant in town and worked there with his wife, Liu Yuemei.
His daughter's grandfather Jing Hongchen, often said that he was a disgrace to the Hongchen Family and that he was a good-for-nothing. Of course, after being scolded by his father so many times, he didn't think much of it anymore, since he was used to being scolded.
As Meng Hongchen's parents, they were extremely conflicted at this moment. After all, their precious daughter had been taken by someone else's "pig" (a derogatory term for a woman who is very close to the emperor). How could they not feel good?
Yue Hongchen's face was dark, but it eased slightly when he saw Cao Yu bringing the wine. He thought to himself, "This kid seems pretty slippery; he's not an honest man."
He glanced at the bottle in his hand and suddenly an idea popped into his head: he'd get this kid drunk that night and punish him properly.
Who told him to steal away his precious daughter whom he had raised with such care for decades? Now he's brazenly coming to our house to freeload. This guy really has no fear of anything!
Compared to his attitude, Liu Yuemei seemed to be in a better mood, and she began to scrutinize her son-in-law.
"He was tall and big, and quite handsome."
Finally, the smile on her face became even more genuine, just like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law, the more she looked, the more satisfied she became.
Upon seeing this, Cao Yu knew the matter was settled. As for his father-in-law?
Once everyone's drunk that night, they'll quickly become brothers, and then everyone can talk about their own things.
So he specially bought several bottles of strong liquor this time, just to get his father-in-law drunk that night.
Yue Hongchen and Cao Yu both had their own plans in mind, determined to get the other drunk at the dinner table, and an unseen battle between men was escalating.
Liu Yuemei didn't care about anything else. With a broad smile, she called out to everyone, "What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and go inside to eat, or the food will get cold."
She said affectionately to Cao Yu, "From now on, I'll call you Little Yu."
Cao Yu immediately replied, "Okay, Mom."
Upon hearing his words, Liu Yuemei smiled even more happily, and she became increasingly satisfied with Cao Yu as her son-in-law.
" Little Yu, don't be shy here, make yourself at home."
Nodding, Cao Yu followed them into the courtyard. The furnishings inside the rooms were simple yet beautiful, which gave him a pleasant surprise.
The delicious food on the round table was steaming hot. At that moment, Liu Yuemei ladled out a bowl of rice and handed it to Cao Yu, who accepted it with both hands.
Then she said kindly, " Little Yu, eat more, don't be shy."
"Okay, Mom."
"Come on, Little Yu, I won't say anything more to you. We two old men should drink. If you don't get drunk tonight, I'll agree to you being with Meng." Yue Hongchen stood up and placed a bottle of wine in front of Cao Yu.
Seeing this, Meng Hongchen quickly stopped him, saying, "Dad, you can hold your liquor so well, don't bully him."
But he didn't care about all that, and said to Cao Yu in a slightly serious tone, "Are you any good, kid? Give me a straight answer."
Meng Hongchen shook her head at Cao Yu, signaling him not to agree. Cao Yu gave her a reassuring look, and just as he was about to agree, his mother-in-law suddenly spoke up.
"You're such a grown-up, why are you still acting like this? Hurry up and eat your food before it gets cold."
" Little Yu, ignore him and hurry up and eat."
Meng Hongchen placed some meat into Cao Yu's bowl, but shook her hand and said coquettishly, "Mom, I want some too."
Okay, I'll get it for you now.
The atmosphere seemed to ease somewhat, and Yue Hongchen swallowed the words she wanted to say, then sulked there.
It seems my father-in-law is quite afraid of his wife.
Moreover, it seems his family status is somewhat weak, but that's easy to deal with. As long as he pleases his mother-in-law, his status as a son-in-law is guaranteed.
Cao Yu silently sympathized with his father-in-law for a few seconds, then opened his mouth wide and ate his food heartily.
Seeing how much he enjoyed his meal, Meng Hongchen's eyes filled with laughter, and she couldn't help but say, "How about it? I told you my parents' cooking is especially delicious, now you believe me, right?"
"Mmm, it tastes amazing! Mom and Dad, your cooking is fantastic!"
Liu Yuemei beamed with joy at her son-in-law's praise, saying, "If it's delicious, then eat more. I'll make you some other delicious food tomorrow."
Yue Hongchen, standing to the side, said irritably, "You're really getting off easy, kid! Humph!"
About ten minutes later, everyone had finished eating and drinking. Liu Yuemei was preparing to clear the dishes and take them to wash when Cao Yu wanted to go up and help, but she stopped him.
" Little Yu, just sit there and chat with Meng. These tasks aren't your responsibility; you'll only make things worse."
Cao Yu had no choice but to follow Meng Hongchen to the living room. His father-in-law, who was already sitting on the sofa, glanced at him after hearing the noise, then turned away and ignored him.
Cao Yu, of course, didn't want to make a fool of himself. It was obvious that his father-in-law was angry and needed time to calm down.
Then the two of them started chatting intimately in front of Yue Hongchen.
Of course, they didn't dare to kiss; they could only secretly hold hands and chat and joke around.
Even so, Yue Hongchen was still very unhappy. After all, in the past, his daughter would always talk to him when she came back, but now this opportunity had been snatched away by a brat.
This infuriated Yue Hongchen to the point of grinding his teeth.
Just as the two were chatting happily, the father-in-law's voice suddenly came from beside them. "How... how old are you?"
It seemed he finally couldn't hold back any longer. Cao Yu smiled smugly to himself, then said, "Seventeen, a year older than Meng."
"Well... that's good." This was a sentence he forced out, and Yue Hongchen's expression seemed somewhat reluctant.
"It's quite good."
This was an awkward conversation between two men, and Cao Yu could only respond passively. Meng Hongchen, on the other hand, listened very attentively, her face half-covered, seemingly chuckling to herself.
And they were even looking at Cao Yu with a hint of schadenfreude.
Looks like this girlfriend is a bit mischievous.
The two continued chatting, and when Yue Hongchen learned that Cao Yu was Soul Emperor and Level 6 Soul Engineer, a look of surprise finally appeared on his face.
Furthermore, he gleaned a startling piece of information from Cao Yu's words: Yue Hongchen's father, Jing Hongchen, was also supporting their cause.
It seems that it was my dad who brought this on.
At this moment, he seemed to have resigned himself to his fate; after all, there was nothing he could do to change what his father had already decided.
Moreover, this son-in-law is quite outstanding, but for some reason, he just feels angry. This is probably a father's reluctance to part with his daughter. Perhaps he will calm down and feel better. This is the only way Yue Hongchen can comfort himself.
(End of this chapter)