As the saying goes, even an ugly bride has to meet her parents-in-law.
Qian Xiaoke was not ugly, but he felt he was not ready.
Mainly, his figure was not ready.
Speaking of which, this was all Jiang Tongyan’s fault. Before the two of them got together, Qian Xiaoke had been a slender, beautiful boy… Of course, the word ‘boy’ was entirely his own opinion. Jiang Tongyan had reminded him before that at twenty-seven, he counted as a young adult.
But that was not the point. The point was that after getting together with Jiang Tongyan, Qian Xiaoke had been raised far too well. Jiang Tongyan practically wanted to order a whole table of nourishing chicken soup for Qian Xiaoke every time they finished doing those shameful things, to replenish the energy he had lost.
And, by the way, to replenish himself as well.
They had not even been together that long, and the two of them had both gained weight happily.
Jiang Tongyan said, “You’re the only one who thinks we’re fat. I think our figures are pretty good.”
As he spoke, he pinched Qian Xiaoke’s face, which had grown rounder and even cuter.
“So cute.” Jiang Tongyan said this from the bottom of his heart. He genuinely felt that Qian Xiaoke was cute, cuter than the expensive plush toys in shopping mall display windows.
The kind you wanted to hold to your chest and knead and squeeze.
Qian Xiaoke strongly disagreed with this assessment and retorted, “People say that you only call someone cute when you want to praise them but can’t find any other good qualities.”
Jiang Tongyan sneered. “Who taught you that crooked logic?”
“That’s just how it is.”
“‘Just how it is,’ my ass,” Jiang Tongyan said. “Cute is the highest level of praise for a person. What do you know?”
Qian Xiaoke, who supposedly ‘didn’t know anything’, still felt a little pleased inside when he heard Jiang Tongyan say that.
“Besides,” Jiang Tongyan went on, “how many kilos have you gained?”
“Compared to when we first got together, 3 kilos,” Qian Xiaoke said pitifully.
A peerless beauty bottom was not allowed to get fat!
Three kilos were already too much!
Jiang Tongyan rolled his eyes. Seeing him make such a fuss about losing weight every day, he had thought Qian Xiaoke had gained thirty kilos.
“Three kilos doesn’t count as fat. You can even keep going.”
“How does it not count as fat?” Qian Xiaoke covered his face in sorrow. “Three kilos of flesh. I suspect it all went to my face.”
Qian Xiaoke was just that kind of unlucky person. Other people gained weight quietly and could hide the flesh, but as soon as he gained weight, his face was the first to show it.
Jiang Tongyan thought this was pretty good to look at.
“Very well-fed-looking. My parents will like it,” Jiang Tongyan said, and to further ‘comfort’ Qian Xiaoke, he added, “Just like the chubby New Year poster dolls they used to paste on the walls when they were kids.”
And then Qian Xiaoke really almost fainted.
In any case, no matter what, Qian Xiaoke had not managed to lose his ‘fat’, and his parents-in-law had already arrived. Whether he wanted to meet them now or not, he had to.
Jiang Tongyan pulled Qian Xiaoke along to change clothes and go downstairs to pick them up. To highlight Qian Xiaoke’s cuteness, he deliberately put that hat with bunny ears on his head.
Qian Xiaoke said, “Hey, I’m not wearing that!”
Jiang Tongyan did not understand. “Isn’t this your true form? You wear it every day. What’s wrong today?”
“I want to be more mature today,” Qian Xiaoke urged him to hurry up. “I’m already twenty-seven. I can’t be like a kid.”
Jiang Tongyan held the hat in his hand and followed him out the door. “Aren’t you a twenty-year-old beautiful boy?”
“I’m a sexy young adult!” Today, Qian Xiaoke refused to be cute. He felt that parents would definitely want their son to find a boyfriend who looked mature, steady, and reliable, like Boss Shen’s flight-attendant boyfriend.
For someone like him, who bought a knitted hat with a pair of bunny ears attached, it looked like an immature kid at a glance. Parents would not feel at ease.
For the sake of meeting the parents, Qian Xiaoke had worried himself sick.
However, in the elevator, Jiang Tongyan still put the hat on him.
Jiang Tongyan said, “Why are you so nervous?”
“How could I not be nervous? This is meeting your parents,” Qian Xiaoke said. “But come to think of it, thank goodness I clean the place diligently every day. Otherwise, with underwear and condoms flying around everywhere, they would probably faint when they came in.”
Jiang Tongyan put an arm around him and laughed. “I’ll clean up in the future.”
“Better not,” Qian Xiaoke muttered. “If you clean, you’ll just hire a cleaning service. That would be really embarrassing.”
As the elevator reached the first floor, Qian Xiaoke’s little heart was pounding wildly.
“Husband, I’m nervous.”
“Don’t be nervous.” Jiang Tongyan took his hand and kissed it. “I’ve told them about you. They’ve also seen photos of the two of us.”
“Photos? Like, photos of us together?” Qian Xiaoke’s delicate body jolted, his eyes widening round. “Bed photos of us?”
“What kind of things are you thinking about?” Jiang Tongyan raised his hand and flicked him on the forehead. “Be normal.”
“I’m just livening up the atmosphere.” Qian Xiaoke took a deep breath. Of course he knew Jiang Tongyan would never send their bed photos to his parents. That would mean he had completely lost his mind.
“When you see them later, you don’t need to be nervous.” Jiang Tongyan squeezed his shoulder. “You don’t need to force yourself to act like anything in particular. Just be the real Qian Xiaoke, and they’ll like you like crazy.”
“You’re just sweet-talking.” Qian Xiaoke did not believe him at all.
“I’m serious,” Jiang Tongyan said. “I know my parents. They like kids just like you the most.”
“…I’m not a kid!”
Jiang Tongyan laughed and flicked the bunny ears on Qian Xiaoke’s hat, then casually tugged at his ears as they walked, tugging the whole way. It was extremely childish and extremely unlike a proper domineering CEO.
When the two of them walked out, Jiang Tongyan’s parents were happily chatting with the neighbourhood security guard.
Jiang Tongyan had considered opening the outer gate for them earlier, but worried they might wander around the complex and not find the building, which would be even more troublesome. It was better for the two of them to come down and get them directly.
Speaking of which, Jiang Tongyan’s parents were quite talkative people. In just a few minutes, they were already itching to introduce girlfriends to the single, handsome security guard.
If a girlfriend was not suitable, then a boyfriend was not entirely out of the question either.
“Dad, Mom.” Jiang Tongyan called out to them, making Qian Xiaoke’s heart tremble.
Qian Xiaoke timidly followed behind Jiang Tongyan, exactly like the little book attendant who used to trail after a rich young master in ancient times.
Hearing their son’s voice, Jiang Tongyan’s parents immediately turned around in delight. Mother Jiang went straight over and gave her son a warm hug.
The three of them had not seen each other for a while, and they truly missed one another.
After the hug, Mother Jiang tilted her head and looked at the cute little boy standing slightly behind Jiang Tongyan. “You must be Xiaoke, right?”
Although Jiang Tongyan had repeatedly emphasised to his mother that Qian Xiaoke would be twenty-eight next month, she still felt he was just a little boy. He was not tall, and he was cute-looking. How did he look anything like twenty-eight? Eighteen would have been more believable.
Being suddenly called out, Qian Xiaoke jolted, his foot slipping as he nearly made a fool of himself.
Fortunately, he steadied himself in time and did not leave his future parents-in-law with the first impression of ‘this one’s an idiot’.
Qian Xiaoke obediently greeted her. “Hello, Auntie.”
After that, he turned to Jiang Tongyan’s father. “Hello, Uncle.”
Everyone in Jiang Tongyan’s family was tall. Not to mention the two men, even Jiang Tongyan’s mother was 175 centimetres tall. In high heels, she was taller than Qian Xiaoke.
The four of them together, Xiaoke was the shortest.
As they walked home, Qian Xiaoke felt as if he had arrived in the land of giants. The pressure was immense.
Mother Jiang leaned close to her son and whispered, “Xiaoke is even cuter than in the photos!”
Qian Xiaoke walked to the other side and could not hear what they were saying, but after seeing the two of them whispering, he grew so nervous that his palms started sweating in the dead of winter.
What were they saying?
Were they talking about how short he was?
Being short was one thing, but he was also fat!
And being fat aside, he was also dumb!
Qian Xiaoke pouted.
If they disliked him for being dumb, he could read more books and newspapers. If they disliked him for being fat, he could eat fewer snacks and sleep more. But if they disliked him for being short, there was really nothing he could do. At his age, he was basically not going to grow any taller.
Should he go buy some height-increasing insoles in bulk?
Qian Xiaoke’s head was full of wild thoughts, so many that his little brain was about to explode.
Jiang Tongyan’s father probably felt that his son and wife were neglecting this young man, so he deliberately moved over and walked beside Qian Xiaoke.
He meant well and wanted to keep the ‘boy’ company, but he had no idea that his actions only made the already-not-relaxed ‘boy’ feel even worse.
Qian Xiaoke stiffened his back and started walking with his arms and legs moving on the same side.
Seeing Qian Xiaoke’s strange gait, Jiang Tongyan’s father suddenly grew worried.
The four of them finally arrived home. When they stepped out of the elevator, Jiang Tongyan introduced, “This side is Xiaoke’s place. Next door is mine.”
“Why are they separated?” Jiang Tongyan’s mother asked, her question coming from the depths of her soul.
“It’s a rented apartment,” Jiang Tongyan said. “We’ve been looking at houses recently and are planning to buy one after the New Year.”
Qian Xiaoke’s delicate body jolted again. He thought, since when have we been looking at houses? Jiang Tongyan, don’t spout nonsense!
What Jiang Tongyan said was half true and half false.
Recently, he really had been asking Cheng Sen to help inquire about ready-to-move-in units that were bigger, better renovated, and more conveniently located. He just had not told Qian Xiaoke yet, because he had not found anything he liked so far.
Qian Xiaoke briskly stepped forward to open the door. When he inserted the key, his hand was shaking.
This was really too pathetic.
He was always saying that Jiang Tongyan had not seen the world, but what about himself?
Just meeting his parents-in-law, and he was scared like this.
Mother Jiang kept smiling as she sized Qian Xiaoke up, finding this child truly interesting.
The interesting child Qian Xiaoke opened the door and, like a doorman, ushered them inside, helped them take out the slippers, and attended to everything with great thoughtfulness and politeness.
Jiang Tongyan said, “You two rest for a bit. Xiaoke and I will cook.”
They had not eaten since getting off work, and it was the perfect time to eat together as four.
“I’ll do it,” Jiang Tongyan’s father said, putting his things down. “What ingredients do you have at home?”
“No need. You sit with Mom,” Jiang Tongyan said, wrapping an arm around Qian Xiaoke as they headed for the kitchen. “The two of us have made huge progress in our cooking lately. Let us show you what a real chef looks like.”
As he spoke, the two of them went into the kitchen and even closed the door behind them.
Jiang Tongyan’s parents both looked toward the kitchen. Jiang’s mother said, “Cooking is just cooking. Why did they close the door?”
Of course, it was because they wanted to be affectionate.
The useless Qian Xiaoke curled up in his husband’s arms and muttered, “I was scared to death, scared to death. What did Mom say to you?”
“Oh?” Jiang Tongyan teased. “You’re already calling her Mom?”
Qian Xiaoke’s face flushed red. “Don’t mess with me!”
Seeing that he was genuinely nervous, Jiang Tongyan raised his hand and ruffled Qian Xiaoke’s hair hard, laughing as he said, “My mom said you’re cute and even wants you to be her godson.”
“Really?” Qian Xiaoke’s eyes lit up.
“Really, but I turned her down.”
“Why?” Qian Xiaoke felt wronged.
“If you became her godson, then I would be your older brother,” Jiang Tongyan said. “An incestuous romance does sound exciting, but from a moral standpoint, it’s not exactly encouraged.”
Jiang Tongyan kissed Qian Xiaoke’s warm lips. “You’d better just honestly be my wife and my mom’s daughter-in-law.”
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