Yu Zi walked in. There were not too many people inside, and the members of the Yue and Yu families sat around the vast round table.
This was because only Yue Jingchen’s parents stayed in B City. All of his other relatives did not live here, and naturally, they would not come all the way just for the engagement. Yue Jingchen’s parents had mentioned it before too, saying that they would invite all their relatives over when the two of them, got married. After all, the trip was quite costly, and they would have to factor in their hotel accommodation too. Nobody would come so far for a mere meal. It seemed like Yue Jingchen’s relatives were not especially well to do, so they had to be careful with their expenditure.
That was why it was not appropriate for the Yu Family to invite Yu Zi’s uncles either. In the end, only Yu Zi’s parents and older brother attended.
As soon as Yu Zi entered the room, she hurriedly apologized. “Sorry I’m late.”
She was not actually late, per se, since it was not time for lunch yet. Still, she was the heroine of the night, so it was not right for her to keep them waiting.
Yue Jingchen’s mother, Pan Yunfeng drank a sip of water. When Yu Zi took her seat, Pan Yunfeng said, “You sure are busy, Xiao Yu. They say that doctors are the busiest, but I don’t think our Jingchen is as busy as you are. You’ve only been a lawyer for two years, right? That’s not good. If you become an advocate later, would you be too busy to even go home?”
Yu Zi’s smile stiffened and her expression turned awkward. When she snuck a peek at her parents and brother, she saw that they looked far from happy.
She knew that her parents and brother were not very satisfied with this marriage.
It was not because of the groom’s family status, but because of Yue Jingchen’s parents.
No matter how good a catch Yue Jingchen was, that did not cancel out the fact that his parents were nasty pieces of work.
Growing up, Yu Zi was given everything she could ever want, and her parents never limited her in any way. Although theirs was a family of lawyers, they had never insisted that she take up law as well. It was just that Yu Zi had grown up surrounded by law, and she liked it, so she chose it for herself.
They were equally respectful of her choice. She knew that her parents and brother did not like them, and she also knew that they only accepted Yue Jingchen and his family for her sake. For her, they tolerated Yue Jingchen’s parents’ rudeness and ridiculous demands. They simply did not want to break her heart, but she was putting them through all sorts of trials.
Yu Zi’s smile faded, and she said less enthusiastically, “It’s precisely because I’m just a junior lawyer that I’m so busy. I have to learn and do more if I want to make it out on my own.”
“Mom, I’m usually as busy as she is. Yu Zi is the one putting up with me. There are plenty of nights when I can’t go home, you know that,” said Yue Jingchen from the side, giving Yu Zi’s parents and brother an apologetic look.
However, they did not react in any way.
Pan Yunfeng, on the other hand, did not take that so well. To her, Yue Jingchen’s words were accusing her of not being considerate of Yu Zi, right?
They were not even married yet, only engaged, and her son was already siding with the outsider. What about later in the future, then?
Ignoring Yue Jingchen’s protests, she continued, “So you’re saying that once you make it out on your own, you’ll be able to care for the family, right?”
Yu Zi was just about to reply when the waiter knocked on the door and then entered, bringing the appetizer.
It turned out that it was already 11:58, and the banquet had officially begun.
After the waiter left, Yu Zi’s older brother, Yu Han said coldly, “A capable woman can balance both her work and her family. I believe that my younger sister is more than capable of that. After all, the bar exam was extremely difficult, but she still managed to separate her studies from her usual life, striking a good work-life balance. Besides, a capable man wouldn’t leave the entire burden of caring for a family on his wife’s shoulders. Being busy with work doesn’t mean you can’t care for the family. If my sister had nothing going for her in terms of her career, if she stayed at home as a housewife, would you think that she was living the high life by leeching off Yue Jingchen? Wouldn’t you think she was taking advantage of your family, aunty?”
“What do you mean by that?!” Pan Yunfeng said angrily. Her expression and piercing shriek made her all the more shrew-like.
“I don’t mean anything by that. Our entire family supports my sister in her career. My mother’s busy with work too, but she could still care for the family, for my father and for us children. My father is considerate of my mother’s career, and he does what he can to help her. The wife shouldn’t be the only one sacrificing for a family. Both the husband and wife must play their parts, and that’s what makes a family, right?”
“You’re looking down on our family, aren’t you?” Pan Yunfeng screeched. She wanted to slam her hand on the table, but she seemed to think twice about it. Her hand was already raised, but she pulled it back.
“Mom, Brother Han never said that,” Yue Jingchen said. “It’s true that both sides have to work for the family, and I can’t burden Yu Zi with everything. Besides, Yu Zi’s already doing a great job of balancing her work and life. On the other hand, I’m the one who’s always messing up, and Yu Zi’s always been considerate and supportive of me.”
The more Yue Jingchen defended Yu Zi, however, the angrier Pan Yunfeng grew.
Pan Yunfeng was very traditionally misogynistic. She believed that women should serve their husbands and raise their sons, so Yu Zi should obey her son on everything. Yu Zi should live off her son and serve his parents with filial piety. Once she married into the Yue Family, she belonged to the Yue Family and no longer had anything to do with the Yu Family. In fact, she should distance herself from her own family as much as possible. As a member of the Yue Family, she should obey them. When a woman became too capable, she would become disobedient, and that was a bad thing.
It did not matter how wealthy Yu Zi’s family was or how capable she was. Once she married into the Yue Family, she would be Pan Yunfeng’s daughter-in-law, and all of her other identities would cease to matter.
“Let’s just eat for now, okay?” Yue Jingchen said.
“Eat what, pray tell? They’re all cold appetizers!” said Yue Jingchen’s father, Yue Xingan crossly as he tossed his chopsticks onto the table.
“Since they’re getting engaged today, why don’t we start planning for the children’s wedding today? You’re always so busy, in-laws, and you don’t even have the time to come out for a gathering. The kids have been dating for so many years, but this is only our second time meeting you. It mustn’t have been easy for you to find the time to attend their engagement. I wonder if we’ll even be able to invite you out after this,” Yue Xingan said darkly, every sentence a thorn in the listener’s side.
Yu Zi had always been holding back her anger, but when she saw her parents holding their tongue and their tempers, she began to wonder if she was doing the right thing.
Yue Jingchen was a very good man. He was gentle and sensible, kind and reliable. However, perhaps it was because he was just too gentle that he could not even begin to keep a lid on his parents when they got unreasonable. Just like before, he would put in a word or two, but once his parents retorted, he would resort to staying silent and looking at them apologetically.
It was true that he was helpless, but they simply could not sympathize with him for it. Instead, that helplessness only made them all the angrier.
Yu Zi’s father, Yu Gesheng did not touch his chopsticks either. He took a deep breath, as though suppressing his anger, and then said in a deep voice, “Alright, so what do you think?”
He was not even going to call them his in-laws.
“You guys know what our family is like financially,” Pan Yunfeng said without a single trace of shame. “Both of us earn working-class wages. Yes, we haven’t retired yet, but our monthly salaries added up wouldn’t even reach a tenth of how much you earn with one of your cases. It wasn’t easy for us to send our son to med school, and that practically ate up all of our savings. Our Jingchen is still doing his housemanship now so he doesn’t get a salary, and he’s still relying on us for his daily expenses.”
No one from the Yu Family said anything. They could not be bothered to waste their breath anymore, though they were curious to hear just what Pan Yunfeng would say.
On the other hand, Yue Jingchen’s expression changed. He did not know about the things she was saying, and he did not know what his parents were planning.
He assumed that the engagement lunch today just meant that the two families would sit down for a chat, but contrary to his expectations, his parents seemed to have other plans.
The two of them had been very blunt and rude from the start. In truth, Pan Yunfeng had been complaining incessantly even before Yu Zi arrived, sneering things like, “I can’t believe she’s still thinking of her work on a day as important as today. Does Yu Zi actually think that work is more important than family? She can’t be like that if she wants to be our daughter-in-law. No matter what, family must come first. After all, why should a woman have such a high-flying career? The most important thing is that she must take good care of the family and be filial to her in-laws, so that her husband can work without worries. Otherwise, others might think that her husband is being funded by his wife. Just imagine!”
Yue Jingchen noticed that her words were getting more unbearable by the minute, so he hurriedly interrupted her and was too ashamed to look at Yu Zi’s parents.
By now, Yue Jingchen had figured that Pan Yunfeng was not going to say anything half-decent, so he hastily said, “Mom, if there’s anything you want to say, you can discuss it with me when we get back, and I can talk it over with Yu Zi.”
“But now’s exactly the best time. The parents from both sides are here, so we should just discuss it directly now. Why do we have to make it so complicated?” Pan Yunfeng shook Yue Jingchen’s hand away.
Yue Jingchen was really panicking now, and he wanted to try and stop her again, but then Yu Zi said calmly, “Go ahead, aunty.”
She did not even look at Yue Jingchen.
Yue Jingchen’s heart sank, little by little, and he suddenly realized that the engagement today was probably not going to happen.
Upset, he looked at his mother. Why must his parents be like this?
Did they not want to see him happy?
Depressed, he stopped trying to interrupt them. Pan Yunfeng did not seem to notice Yue Jingchen’s low spirits at all. Instead, she was very satisfied with Yu Zi’s response, and she even had a rare smile on her face. It was full of triumph.
“It’s true that the groom’s side usually handles the wedding, but our family’s finances are the way they are, and we can’t afford a fancy wedding. That’s why I have two packages here, and you lot can see which one you prefer,” Pan Yunfeng said, and she actually took a small booklet out of her bag.
She brought her fingertip to her tongue and opened the notebook, reading it as she said, “One of the options is based on what we can afford. We were thinking of just having the wedding banquet at a Sichuan restaurant next to our house. It’s called Sichuan Mama, not sure if you’ve heard of it. The restaurant has two floors, and that should be enough.”
Yu Zi walked in. There were not too many people inside, and the members of the Yue and Yu families sat around the vast round table.
This was because only Yue Jingchen’s parents stayed in B City. All of his other relatives did not live here, and naturally, they would not come all the way just for the engagement. Yue Jingchen’s parents had mentioned it before too, saying that they would invite all their relatives over when the two of them, got married. After all, the trip was quite costly, and they would have to factor in their hotel accommodation too. Nobody would come so far for a mere meal. It seemed like Yue Jingchen’s relatives were not especially well to do, so they had to be careful with their expenditure.
That was why it was not appropriate for the Yu Family to invite Yu Zi’s uncles either. In the end, only Yu Zi’s parents and older brother attended.
As soon as Yu Zi entered the room, she hurriedly apologized. “Sorry I’m late.”
She was not actually late, per se, since it was not time for lunch yet. Still, she was the heroine of the night, so it was not right for her to keep them waiting.
Yue Jingchen’s mother, Pan Yunfeng drank a sip of water. When Yu Zi took her seat, Pan Yunfeng said, “You sure are busy, Xiao Yu. They say that doctors are the busiest, but I don’t think our Jingchen is as busy as you are. You’ve only been a lawyer for two years, right? That’s not good. If you become an advocate later, would you be too busy to even go home?”
Yu Zi’s smile stiffened and her expression turned awkward. When she snuck a peek at her parents and brother, she saw that they looked far from happy.
She knew that her parents and brother were not very satisfied with this marriage.
It was not because of the groom’s family status, but because of Yue Jingchen’s parents.
No matter how good a catch Yue Jingchen was, that did not cancel out the fact that his parents were nasty pieces of work.
Growing up, Yu Zi was given everything she could ever want, and her parents never limited her in any way. Although theirs was a family of lawyers, they had never insisted that she take up law as well. It was just that Yu Zi had grown up surrounded by law, and she liked it, so she chose it for herself.
They were equally respectful of her choice. She knew that her parents and brother did not like them, and she also knew that they only accepted Yue Jingchen and his family for her sake. For her, they tolerated Yue Jingchen’s parents’ rudeness and ridiculous demands. They simply did not want to break her heart, but she was putting them through all sorts of trials.
Yu Zi’s smile faded, and she said less enthusiastically, “It’s precisely because I’m just a junior lawyer that I’m so busy. I have to learn and do more if I want to make it out on my own.”
“Mom, I’m usually as busy as she is. Yu Zi is the one putting up with me. There are plenty of nights when I can’t go home, you know that,” said Yue Jingchen from the side, giving Yu Zi’s parents and brother an apologetic look.
However, they did not react in any way.
Pan Yunfeng, on the other hand, did not take that so well. To her, Yue Jingchen’s words were accusing her of not being considerate of Yu Zi, right?
They were not even married yet, only engaged, and her son was already siding with the outsider. What about later in the future, then?
Ignoring Yue Jingchen’s protests, she continued, “So you’re saying that once you make it out on your own, you’ll be able to care for the family, right?”
Yu Zi was just about to reply when the waiter knocked on the door and then entered, bringing the appetizer.
It turned out that it was already 11:58, and the banquet had officially begun.
After the waiter left, Yu Zi’s older brother, Yu Han said coldly, “A capable woman can balance both her work and her family. I believe that my younger sister is more than capable of that. After all, the bar exam was extremely difficult, but she still managed to separate her studies from her usual life, striking a good work-life balance. Besides, a capable man wouldn’t leave the entire burden of caring for a family on his wife’s shoulders. Being busy with work doesn’t mean you can’t care for the family. If my sister had nothing going for her in terms of her career, if she stayed at home as a housewife, would you think that she was living the high life by leeching off Yue Jingchen? Wouldn’t you think she was taking advantage of your family, aunty?”
“What do you mean by that?!” Pan Yunfeng said angrily. Her expression and piercing shriek made her all the more shrew-like.
“I don’t mean anything by that. Our entire family supports my sister in her career. My mother’s busy with work too, but she could still care for the family, for my father and for us children. My father is considerate of my mother’s career, and he does what he can to help her. The wife shouldn’t be the only one sacrificing for a family. Both the husband and wife must play their parts, and that’s what makes a family, right?”
“You’re looking down on our family, aren’t you?” Pan Yunfeng screeched. She wanted to slam her hand on the table, but she seemed to think twice about it. Her hand was already raised, but she pulled it back.
“Mom, Brother Han never said that,” Yue Jingchen said. “It’s true that both sides have to work for the family, and I can’t burden Yu Zi with everything. Besides, Yu Zi’s already doing a great job of balancing her work and life. On the other hand, I’m the one who’s always messing up, and Yu Zi’s always been considerate and supportive of me.”
The more Yue Jingchen defended Yu Zi, however, the angrier Pan Yunfeng grew.
Pan Yunfeng was very traditionally misogynistic. She believed that women should serve their husbands and raise their sons, so Yu Zi should obey her son on everything. Yu Zi should live off her son and serve his parents with filial piety. Once she married into the Yue Family, she belonged to the Yue Family and no longer had anything to do with the Yu Family. In fact, she should distance herself from her own family as much as possible. As a member of the Yue Family, she should obey them. When a woman became too capable, she would become disobedient, and that was a bad thing.
It did not matter how wealthy Yu Zi’s family was or how capable she was. Once she married into the Yue Family, she would be Pan Yunfeng’s daughter-in-law, and all of her other identities would cease to matter.
“Let’s just eat for now, okay?” Yue Jingchen said.
“Eat what, pray tell? They’re all cold appetizers!” said Yue Jingchen’s father, Yue Xingan crossly as he tossed his chopsticks onto the table.
“Since they’re getting engaged today, why don’t we start planning for the children’s wedding today? You’re always so busy, in-laws, and you don’t even have the time to come out for a gathering. The kids have been dating for so many years, but this is only our second time meeting you. It mustn’t have been easy for you to find the time to attend their engagement. I wonder if we’ll even be able to invite you out after this,” Yue Xingan said darkly, every sentence a thorn in the listener’s side.
Yu Zi had always been holding back her anger, but when she saw her parents holding their tongue and their tempers, she began to wonder if she was doing the right thing.
Yue Jingchen was a very good man. He was gentle and sensible, kind and reliable. However, perhaps it was because he was just too gentle that he could not even begin to keep a lid on his parents when they got unreasonable. Just like before, he would put in a word or two, but once his parents retorted, he would resort to staying silent and looking at them apologetically.
It was true that he was helpless, but they simply could not sympathize with him for it. Instead, that helplessness only made them all the angrier.
Yu Zi’s father, Yu Gesheng did not touch his chopsticks either. He took a deep breath, as though suppressing his anger, and then said in a deep voice, “Alright, so what do you think?”
He was not even going to call them his in-laws.
“You guys know what our family is like financially,” Pan Yunfeng said without a single trace of shame. “Both of us earn working-class wages. Yes, we haven’t retired yet, but our monthly salaries added up wouldn’t even reach a tenth of how much you earn with one of your cases. It wasn’t easy for us to send our son to med school, and that practically ate up all of our savings. Our Jingchen is still doing his housemanship now so he doesn’t get a salary, and he’s still relying on us for his daily expenses.”
No one from the Yu Family said anything. They could not be bothered to waste their breath anymore, though they were curious to hear just what Pan Yunfeng would say.
On the other hand, Yue Jingchen’s expression changed. He did not know about the things she was saying, and he did not know what his parents were planning.
He assumed that the engagement lunch today just meant that the two families would sit down for a chat, but contrary to his expectations, his parents seemed to have other plans.
The two of them had been very blunt and rude from the start. In truth, Pan Yunfeng had been complaining incessantly even before Yu Zi arrived, sneering things like, “I can’t believe she’s still thinking of her work on a day as important as today. Does Yu Zi actually think that work is more important than family? She can’t be like that if she wants to be our daughter-in-law. No matter what, family must come first. After all, why should a woman have such a high-flying career? The most important thing is that she must take good care of the family and be filial to her in-laws, so that her husband can work without worries. Otherwise, others might think that her husband is being funded by his wife. Just imagine!”
Yue Jingchen noticed that her words were getting more unbearable by the minute, so he hurriedly interrupted her and was too ashamed to look at Yu Zi’s parents.
By now, Yue Jingchen had figured that Pan Yunfeng was not going to say anything half-decent, so he hastily said, “Mom, if there’s anything you want to say, you can discuss it with me when we get back, and I can talk it over with Yu Zi.”
“But now’s exactly the best time. The parents from both sides are here, so we should just discuss it directly now. Why do we have to make it so complicated?” Pan Yunfeng shook Yue Jingchen’s hand away.
Yue Jingchen was really panicking now, and he wanted to try and stop her again, but then Yu Zi said calmly, “Go ahead, aunty.”
She did not even look at Yue Jingchen.
Yue Jingchen’s heart sank, little by little, and he suddenly realized that the engagement today was probably not going to happen.
Upset, he looked at his mother. Why must his parents be like this?
Did they not want to see him happy?
Depressed, he stopped trying to interrupt them. Pan Yunfeng did not seem to notice Yue Jingchen’s low spirits at all. Instead, she was very satisfied with Yu Zi’s response, and she even had a rare smile on her face. It was full of triumph.
“It’s true that the groom’s side usually handles the wedding, but our family’s finances are the way they are, and we can’t afford a fancy wedding. That’s why I have two packages here, and you lot can see which one you prefer,” Pan Yunfeng said, and she actually took a small booklet out of her bag.
She brought her fingertip to her tongue and opened the notebook, reading it as she said, “One of the options is based on what we can afford. We were thinking of just having the wedding banquet at a Sichuan restaurant next to our house. It’s called Sichuan Mama, not sure if you’ve heard of it. The restaurant has two floors, and that should be enough.”
