Chapter 127 – Extra 2: Que Jiang Meets His Mother-in-Law
Ma Rui and Que Jiang have been officially living together for about a year. When Ma Rui went home last year, he was once again forced to go on a blind date by his Saintly Empress Dowager of a mother, Ms. Yang Pinglu. The old lady had a strong desire for him to start a family.
Ma Rui initially went with the intention of just going through the motions, but as fate would have it, Que Jiang called. And as fate would have it, the girl across from him asked him what he wanted to drink. Oh boy. When he got home, he was met with the silent treatment for a week. Que Jiang, who already had a natural refrigerator effect, made Ma Rui’s days so cold that even his teeth ached when he ate. After repeatedly promising that he would never go on blind dates to appease his parents again, a certain someone let out a cold snort, and it took another two weeks for the person to warm up.
Unknowingly, another year passed. Ma Rui looked at the relapsing Que Jiang with trepidation and said in a loud, brave voice, “Don’t be so dramatic with me. You’re coming home with me this year. If you have time to scheme against me with your petty little mind, you might as well think about how to please your mother-in-law!”
Que Jiang’s expression immediately changed. He looked at Ma Rui with a mixture of nervousness and suspicion. “Are you serious?”
Ma Rui snorted through his nose and, in the most cool (and cowardly) manner, took out his phone and quickly dialed a number.
“Hello, Ms. Yang, it’s me!” Ma Rui said with great confidence.
Three seconds later,
“Yes, yes, Mom. Yes, that’s right, it’s your grandson.”
Ma Rui successfully received a look of contempt from Que Jiang.
Ma Rui was not convinced. To be so embarrassed in front of this guy, his just-weakened momentum surged back.
“I’ll be honest with you, I’m not going on any blind dates when I come home this year! Why? I’ve found you a son-in-law. That’s right, I’m bringing him back for the New Year. Huh? When have I, Ma Rui, ever lied?!” Ma Rui’s series of actions were as fierce as a tiger, not losing an ounce of masculinity.
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. The queen slowly spoke, “Ma Rui, you just wait!”
The line on the other end was mercilessly disconnected.
Afterward, Ma Rui stood as if in a cold wind, shivering.
Que Jiang, however, was very happy. He hugged Ma Rui and said confidently, “Don’t worry, I’ll behave well and make your mother-in-law accept me.”
Ma Rui’s mind was a jumble, but he still heard the words “mother-in-law.” “Don’t get your status mixed up. You should be calling her ‘mother-in-law’ (as in, his mother).”
Que Jiang sized up the small man, then flicked his forehead, his tone a mixture of doting and mockery. “Don’t be silly.”
I’ll silly you, you little biscuit!!! (ˋ＾ˊ〉-#
Compared to Xiao Fang’s mother’s, er, husband’s family’s open attitude, Ms. Yang’s attitude was completely different. She had always felt that her husband was weak and frail, spending all his time on literary pursuits. The most he would do for a walk was practice Tai Chi with his old colleagues. He wouldn’t participate in any other strenuous exercise, showing absolutely no masculinity. So, from a young age, she had trained her son not to lose out in terms of presence. He had drunk milk until he was eighteen, but cruelly, his height was still stuck at 1.7 meters, which was the greatest pain of her life.
Since she couldn’t save him in height, she could only save him in marriage. Find a gentle and weak girl, and her son’s masculine temperament would surely explode! But as it turned out…
Ma Rui’s home was in Small Cheng Town. During the New Year, firecrackers were set off everywhere, everything was red, and red lanterns hung overhead. Compared to the big city, it was indescribably festive. Que Jiang and Ma Rui wore matching knee-length padded jackets, and their handsome looks became a striking sight on the street.
“Ma Shorty, you’re back!” Just as they were about to reach home, a brightly dressed girl rushed out from a corner. She looked to be about the same height as Ma Rui, with rather heavy makeup on her face. However, she didn’t linger on Ma Rui for long before she was immediately attracted to Que Jiang.
He was nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a handsome, abstinent-looking face that was popular these days. His pair of eyes seemed to be able to see into one’s soul.
“Holy crap, you, did you bring a colleague back?” The girl instantly changed from her previous boisterousness to a demure little bird.
Ma Rui looked speechlessly at the infatuated girl. How many years had it been, and she still called him by that shameful nickname without any guilt? Ma Rui put on a sour face and held up their intertwined hands. “Look carefully, don’t go fawning over someone else’s partner, Ding Yanxi.”
The young girl’s face immediately fell. She was about to say something more, but Ma Rui immediately pulled Que Jiang away.
After walking a good distance, Que Jiang finally said slowly, “Jealous?”
Ma Rui didn’t deny it this time. “That girl, she loves to snatch my things. When we were kids, whenever she came to my house and saw a toy she liked, my mom would force me to give it to her. She even thought that crazy girl had personality. If you had let her look at you any longer—”
Que Jiang found this jealous Ma Rui quite interesting. He didn’t tease him anymore and just said, “Don’t worry, she’s definitely not my type.”
Ma Rui smiled smugly. “I know, I’m your standard, right?”
“Pfft.”
“What are you laughing at?”
“I was just using a random interjection.”
“Do normal people use random interjections?”
“Look, aren’t I using one right now?”
Ma Rui: …
The two of them bickered in their usual way all the way to the front door.
Ma Rui took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.
“Coming, coming,” his mother’s voice came from inside. In less than three seconds, she came to open the door. A middle-aged woman with beautifully styled hair opened the door with a smile. When she saw her son and a man who was a dozen centimeters taller than him, her face instantly darkened.
A daughter-in-law? Was this a daughter-in-law? Your mother isn’t that blind!
The mother, who had been holding onto a sliver of hope, instantly lost all her expectations. Out of sight, out of mind!
“Mom, Mom, Mom!” Ma Rui desperately grabbed the door just as Ms. Yang was about to close it. But it looked like he couldn’t hold on for long. After all, the combat power of the father and son in the family was not on the same level as Ms. Yang’s.
Que Jiang switched the gifts in his hand to the other and also put his right hand on the door, smiling and calling out, “Hello, Auntie.”
As the saying goes, you don’t hit a smiling face. Beyond that, Ms. Yang found that she couldn’t control the door at all. In the face of Que Jiang’s strength, she was just a rookie.
Sighing, for the sake of her last bit of face, Ms. Yang let go. “Come in.”
Ma Rui secretly gave Que Jiang a thumbs-up. Well done!
His mother was a typical case of someone who responds to force but not to persuasion. Unfortunately, no one in the family could beat her, which led to the father and son living a life of sweetness and hardship for decades.
After changing his shoes, Que Jiang placed the expensive gifts on the table.
There was a high-grade wolf-hair brush he personally introduced, and an ink bamboo painting that the boss’s wife had given him, painted by her grandfather. These were for Mr. Ma. As for Ms. Yang, besides some rare supplements, Ma Rui said that his mother liked to collect all sorts of strange “artifacts.”
For example, a one-second apple slicer, a noodle extruder, and instant-sleep foot patches, etc. Que Jiang, after comparing their effectiveness, had gathered a small box of them to please his mother-in-law.
“Honey, is our little Ma home?” a man walked out of the study. He wore black-rimmed glasses, was retired from a desk job, and was now cultivating his character at home by writing articles and occasionally going fishing with old friends.
Ms. Yang snorted coldly, giving her husband a “you-figure-it-out” look.
Mr. Ma saw the two children sitting neatly together. No matter how he looked at it, his son wasn’t the one on top. But he was quite open-minded about it. Children have their own fortunes. As parents, as long as their children didn’t go down the wrong path, it was fine.
“Why bring gifts when you come home? Your name is Que Jiang, right? Little Jiang, there aren’t so many rules in our house. It’s almost eleven, time for lunch. You probably didn’t eat on the way, right? I’ll go make you some lunch.” Mr. Ma was completely different from Ms. Yang, as friendly as could be.
“Ahem, ahem!” Ms. Yang gave her husband a warning look. Remember your mission.
Mr. Ma scratched his head. “Well, it’s like this. As a father, I still want to ask a few more questions about you two being together. It’s normal for parents to worry about their children.”
“Please ask, Uncle.” Que Jiang replied very politely, his face open and honest.
The familiar parental interrogation session began again. Ms. Yang and Mr. Ma both sat down. Before the interrogation, Ms. Yang thoughtfully poured a cup of hot tea for the two children.
“Where does Que Jiang work? Is it close to Little Ma’s workplace?” Mr. Ma asked with a smile, without any hint of an interrogation.
“I work at Fei Corporation. As for my position, I’m the head of the human resources department.”
Ma Rui had a question mark on his face. Head of the human resources department? Why not just say you’re the captain of the bodyguard team? Any kind of protection could be called a bodyguard.
When the two old folks heard “Fei Corporation,” their eyes lit up. It was a big company even they had heard of. Did their silly son hit the jackpot? But because of this, they became even more worried. They heard that rich people liked to play around.
Que Jiang saw what his uncle and aunt were worried about at a glance. “Uncle, Auntie, please rest assured. As long as you agree, after we get married, I will transfer my property to Ma Rui’s name. I am an orphan. Ma Rui will be my closest and only relative.”
Both parents deceased, has a car and a house. Isn’t this the ultimate standard? Besides, their silly son had nothing to his name. No one should be targeting him.
“Que Jiang, you don’t need to promise anything to Uncle. As long as you two live a good life, that’s enough. Ma Rui has a stubborn personality, so please be more tolerant of him. Mmph.” Before Mr. Ma could finish his sentence, Ms. Yang stepped on his foot. Just a few sentences and he was already selling out his son?
Mr. Ma looked helplessly at his wife. This child was really quite good. Besides looking a bit more imposing than his son, what else was there to complain about?
Ms. Yang couldn’t find any fault, which made her unhappy. But she couldn’t just explode on the spot, so she said angrily, “I’m going to prepare lunch!”
The father and son exchanged a look. It seemed she would be hard to please.
Just as Ma Rui was about to get up, Que Jiang pressed him down. “I’ll go.”
Ma Rui looked at Que Jiang. Weren’t you nervous before you came? How come you seem so at ease now that you’re here? Thinking this, Ma Rui looked at Que Jiang’s back and noticed that his hand was trembling slightly.
Weren’t you quite nervous? And you still had to pretend to be a big shot. Thinking this, Ma Rui’s heart still felt sweet.
“Dad, Que Jiang brought you a painting by Elder Zhuo.” Ma Rui was in the living room, helping his dad unwrap the gift.
“A painting by Elder Zhuo? You mean, that Elder Zhuo?” Dad’s glasses almost fell off. He touched the scroll with great excitement. The father and son’s conversation immediately went off-topic.
***
“Auntie, do you need help?” Que Jiang walked in and elegantly rolled up his sleeves.
“No need. You’ve been on the road for so long. Go rest for a while.” Ms. Yang couldn’t say anything harsh to Que Jiang, but she also didn’t want him standing in front of her, being an eyesore.
Que Jiang knew that if he really left now, he would have no chance at all. He took the vegetables that Auntie had washed and prepared to chop them.
“You child, you first—” Ms. Yang was about to say a few words of dissuasion, but his exquisite knife skills successfully shut her up. Very good, he wasn’t just a pretty face. He had a strong work ability, a strong appearance, and his cooking seemed very smooth. How did such a good child fall for their son?
“I’ve heard Ma Rui talk about you,” Que Jiang started the conversation.
Ms. Yang snorted coldly. “He must have said his old mom is fierce.”
“No, he said you are the most badass mom in the world. When he was bullied by his classmates in elementary school, two of those kids knocked out his tooth. The parents kept insisting it was Ma Rui’s fault. You chased the parents for three streets with a broom, and made the two bratty kids and their parents come over to apologize to Ma Rui. He said, at that time, you were like the most powerful hero.”
Ms. Yang’s eyes couldn’t help but soften, but her mouth was still stubborn. “He’s just a coward. Otherwise, how could he have been bullied by those two little rascals? He’s a disgrace to me. He drank milk since he was a child and still didn’t grow.”
“But he’s very responsible in his work. He was thinking of getting you two a round-the-world trip when his salary increased this year. He said Auntie has always wanted to go to Paris, but you’ve been taking care of him and never had the time. When you got older, you didn’t want to move around anymore. He wanted to book you the most luxurious tour group, going by boat, with a personal masseuse in the evening, so you definitely wouldn’t feel tired.” Que Jiang kept praising Ma Rui.
Ms. Yang’s heart felt a little sour listening to this. She had mentioned Paris when Ma Rui was in his first year of university. She hadn’t expected the silly boy to remember it until now.
“Don’t listen to his nonsense. I think it’s great here. He should just do his own work well.”
“I’m afraid that won’t do. I’ve already booked a tour for you and Uncle this year. You can go after the New Year. A tour guide will take you, and there will be bodyguards. You can freely decide your own route.” This was actually a last-minute decision by Que Jiang, but to win his mother-in-law’s heart, spending a little money was not a problem. Anyway, he didn’t have many places to spend money. The money was just sitting there, so it was better to spend it.
“This, you guys, Little Jiang, Auntie—” Ms. Yang didn’t know how to express herself.
Que Jiang took the washed cucumber from Ms. Yang’s hand and said understandingly, “I know what Auntie is thinking, but I truly like Ma Rui. He’s careless, and although he’s very kind, he’s also very clumsy and often makes mistakes with good intentions. With his personality, I wouldn’t be at ease if he were with someone else. I have enough confidence to take good care of him and protect him from being bullied. If anyone bullies him, I will definitely follow Auntie’s standards and double it.”
The confusion in Ms. Yang’s eyes gradually dissipated.
“That silly boy really has nothing worth—”
“He’s worth it. Only he is worth it. He has also done a lot for me. It’s not a one-sided effort. Only when two people help each other can they get to where they are today. Auntie, if you agree, you will have two sons. That little coward can’t do it, so I’ll help Auntie.”
Que Jiang had never been so patient in persuading someone, but he was willing to do it for Ma Rui.
In fact, Ms. Yang was almost persuaded. Same-sex marriage was already common in this society. Her own brother was married to a man, and weren’t they living happily now? At the end, hearing the last sentence, Ms. Yang instantly felt like she had gained something.
“Old Liu’s son across the street is a gym coach. Can you beat him?”
“It shouldn’t be a problem. My kickboxing is quite good.” Que Jiang’s heart finally began to calm down. This should be settled now, right?
***
The fact that Ms. Yang had gained another son was known throughout the neighborhood the next day. The day before, Ms. Yang had dragged her new son to arm-wrestle with Old Liu’s son, breaking the neighborhood record with a ten-game winning streak. Que Jiang’s status instantly skyrocketed, surpassing Ma Rui in the short New Year holiday. When the couple embarked on their global tour, both the father-in-law and mother-in-law held Que Jiang’s hands, reluctant to let go. Ma Rui suddenly felt that he hadn’t gained from this trip home, but had lost. If he had known it would be this easy, he could have dragged it on for a few more years. At least he wouldn’t have had his parents’ love snatched away so soon.
Ma Rui sighed and looked up at the sky. What a miscalculation!