Worthy of being the boss’s biological father. Even after being contradicted by his son directly, he maintained his composure.

Ning Renjie scrutinized me from head to toe with a complicated expression.

He didn’t speak further. He turned to chase after Aunt Lin, leaving Ning Yiheng standing in place.

Ning Xiaoyu seemed to have turned a blind eye to this scene and comforted me, “Sister-in-law, it’s okay. Even if the old man doesn’t agree, he can’t make the decisions.”

As Ning Xiaoyu spoke, his hand stealthily pressed down on the back of my hand again while elegantly holding a glass of red wine, and taking a sip.

“With me around, I can also have a say in this family—”

Ning Yiheng’s palm swiftly landed on the back of Ning Xiaoyu’s head, causing him to almost spit out the wine. He immediately withdrew his hand from mine, tremblingly placing the wine glass back and awkwardly wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Ning Yiheng’s finger pushed against the leg of Ning Xiaoyu’s sunglasses, giving it a flick. Just before the sunglasses fell, in an attempt to save face, Ning Xiaoyu abruptly covered the lenses, readjusting the glasses onto his face.

Ning Xiaoyu withered again.

Ning Yiheng withdrew his hand and his arm fell gently on my shoulder.

–

We only stayed with Ning’s family for a day; tomorrow is Monday, and both Ning Yiheng and I have to go back to work.

My boss won’t give me a raise just because I’m dating him, and I don’t want to rely on others financially.

If you want to earn money, you have to work.

After the wedding reception ended and the guests left, only the family members of the newlyweds remained.

Even though there were fewer people than during the reception, Ning Yiheng became busier. He not only had to introduce me to various relatives but also engage in necessary socializing and small talk—Since he rarely visited home, bringing a male partner attracted a lot of attention and scrutiny.

Of course, today’s protagonist was Ning Yiheng’s meimei. I didn’t have to socialize extensively with Ning Yiheng’s relatives, but as the brother of the bride, Ning Yiheng found it challenging to relax on such an occasion.

Fortunately, Ning Yiheng’s family members were quite open-minded, and they even teased us about when we would get married.

Only Ning Renjie remained silent and wore a stern expression—But since Aunt Lin had given her approval, no one else had objections, and Ning Renjie’s opinion was disregarded.

I had thought I would have a chance to enjoy some rich family drama as depicted in novels, such as Ning Renjie offering millions to make me leave Ning Yiheng or the sudden appearance of Ning Yiheng’s long-lost fiancée in a strategic business alliance…

As a result, everything went unusually smoothly; neither my family nor Ning Yiheng’s family opposed it. Aunt Lin even made an appointment to meet with my parents.

It all felt like a dream.

The Ning family didn’t follow the custom of disturbing the privacy of the bridal room. Instead, in the evening, a few of the closest family members gathered at home for dinner.

Aunt Lin personally took charge of the kitchen. Although I couldn’t cook, to leave a good impression on my mother-in-law, I went to the kitchen to help.

Ning Yiheng was helping Ning Renjie host the dinner, and Ning Xiaoyu volunteered to assist his mother in cooking. To my surprise, Ning Xiaoyu was quite skilled in cooking. Instead of merely helping out, many dishes were actually prepared by him.

Ning Xiaoyu looked rather decent when he was focused on cooking. I thought to myself, that as long as he didn’t speak with a playful tone, he was still quite handsome.

After Aunt Lin finished preparing the soup, she suddenly brought a chair over and sat beside me, quietly observing as I washed the vegetables.

Since I wasn’t particularly familiar with the kitchen, being observed by Aunt Lin made me even more at a loss. I clumsily separated the leaves from the packaging and cleaned the dirt trapped in the crevices, inadvertently shaking off several shredded leaves.

Oh, I’m so stupid. I had to pick up each leaf that fell.

Aunt Lin just watched me fussing over the cabbage.

She suddenly asked, “Xiu Xiu, how did you and Nian Nian get together?”

That caught me off guard.

Before dating Ning Yiheng, it seemed like I was always making a fool of myself in front of him…

Before I could even figure things out for myself, we ended up together in a hazy and confused state.

And until now, I still don’t know why Ning Yiheng likes me.

Before I could gather my thoughts for an explanation, Aunt Lin continued, “Nian Nian is quite like his father. He’s not very good at expressing his thoughts. No matter what happens, he won’t discuss it with those around him. He’ll just try to figure it out by himself. When it comes to interacting with people, he prefers to show kindness in his own way without discussing it properly.”

“Xiu Xiu, if you’re not proactive enough, it can be tiring to be with him. Sometimes, being a bit more assertive might work better oh.”

“Only when he’s pushed to the limit will he reveal his true thoughts.”

Aunt Lin’s words made something click inside me—though I wasn’t sure exactly what I’d understood, I felt somehow closer to Ning Yiheng.

Aunt Lin continued, “Even though I’m not his biological mother, I’ve watched him grow up. In our family, when any of these kids sneeze, I know exactly what they’re thinking.”

Ning Xiaoyu added, “My ge is a mensao.1Chinese term used to describe someone who appears quiet or introverted on the outside but actually has a deeper, more complex personality or inner thoughts. If you don’t open up to him about something, he could ponder it on his own for the rest of his life.”

Aunt Lin turned to look at Ning Xiaoyu and changed the subject, saying, “Never mind your ge for now. When will you bring a partner home?”

Ning Xiaoyu: …

Aunt Lin said, “Stop fooling around with random people while you’re young. When you meet the right person, settle down. I don’t care whether it’s a man or a woman; you need a companion…”

“And you, with this dawdling, looking ugly. Why do you always wear it?”

Ning Xiaoyu: …

Me: …

If Ning Xiaoyu didn’t wear sunglasses, Aunt Lin would probably be so scared by his dark circles that she would faint.

Sure enough, all mothers in the world are the same. In an instant, I saw myself being urged to get married reflected in Ning Xiaoyu.

Ning Xiaoyu’s forehead began to sweat.

Ning Xiaoyu said, “Didn’t we agree to criticize my ge?”

“Who agreed with you?” Aunt Lin said with a smile. “Your ge makes people worry less. There’s nothing to criticize.”

Just then, my WeChat chimed with a sound, and a voice message from Li Xiaoming popped up.

I shook the drops of water from my hand and directly clicked play.

Li Xiaoming: “I made some food for Mimi. It scratched the toilet paper. Remember to replace it when you get back.”

… I could already imagine a scene of scattered toilet paper all over the floor.

Today, Ning Yiheng and I were going to be out all day, so I gave the keys to Li Xiaoming and asked him to check on Mimi when he had the time.

Although Mimi was quite active, it enjoyed tearing up toilet paper and Ning Yiheng’s underwear every day, but it still had a tendency to become a pig. It needed controlled feeding to prevent overeating throughout the day; it couldn’t have a self-eating feeder all day.

Ning Xiaoyu’s back tensed up and looked away.

Aunt Lin looked at Ning Xiaoyu and then at my phone.

Aunt Lin said, “Xiu Xiu ya, was that your friend who just spoke?”

I said, “Yes, I asked him to help take care of our cat at home.”

“Auntie has a small request.” Aunt Lin winked and curved her lips, “Can you show me his photo?”