Su Chen and Jiang Xiaoxiao's wedding was in May, the most comfortable season of the year.
Neither too hot nor too cold, wearing a heavy wedding dress wouldn't be particularly tiring.
On the eve of the wedding, she brought Su Chen back to her hometown.
Although she particularly disliked returning to that suffocating place, Su Chen was going to marry their daughter, so he at least had to give an explanation. Moreover, Jiang Xiaoxiao's household registration had never been moved out. To register, she first needed to get her household registration book.
"Remember, we met at the company, you're my superior, a small supervisor in the company, from an ordinary family, no car, no house..." Before going home, Jiang Xiaoxiao repeatedly instructed, not wanting her family to know his true identity.
That family had been trying to set her up with someone recently, wanting her to go back for blind dates. The blind date, it was said, was a divorced man in his forties who owned a factory and had some money.
In the end, they just wanted to exchange her for money, to squeeze out the last bit of her residual value.
Before they could finish speaking, Jiang Xiaoxiao said she already had someone to marry and hung up the phone. One could imagine how enraged the people on the other end were.
Jiang Xiaoxiao couldn't be bothered with them and blocked all their numbers.
She came back this time for the household registration, and secondly, to make things clear with them. She had already repaid her parents' nurturing grace. From now on, apart from the two thousand yuan monthly living expenses and necessary medical fees, she wouldn't pay another cent.
Two thousand yuan might not seem like much to others, but in their county town, it was enough for an ordinary person's monthly salary. Besides, apart from Jiang Xiaoxiao, her other siblings had never given them a single cent.
Jiang Xiaoxiao's willingness to provide living expenses was already the utmost benevolence.
Seeing her angry expression, Su Chen couldn't help but laugh. "Making me out to be so ordinary, aren't you afraid your relatives will find it shabby?"
"That's because you don't know them! These people are like leeches in a paddy field. Once they latch onto you, they'll taste blood and want to suck you dry!" Jiang Xiaoxiao had never told him about her family, feeling ashamed and not wanting him to have too much contact with them.
If those people really got their hooks into them, they would surely have no good days ahead.
Su Chen smiled and agreed. "Okay, whatever you say."
They drove back, but at Jiang Xiaoxiao's strong insistence, after getting off the highway, they parked the car near the bus station, casually bought some gifts at a roadside store, and took a taxi back.
The Jiang family knew Jiang Xiaoxiao was bringing her boyfriend back, and had already notified relatives to wait at home.
"She's really grown up! She didn't even discuss a big event like marriage with the family. It's outrageous!" Jiang's father was still angry and started scolding again in front of the relatives.
Jiang's mother was concerned about her reputation. With so many people watching, she pinched his arm hard. "It's rare for us to gather, say less!"
"Am I wrong? After raising her for so many years, spending so much energy and heart, she's just run off with someone without a word!"
"Do you know how expensive university tuition is? I told her not to go, but she insisted!"
Jiang Xiaoxiao's aunt, seeing him getting more and more out of line, couldn't stand it. "Uncle, you're speaking against your conscience! If Xiaoxiao hadn't gone to university, could she have worked in a big city? Could she send you money every month? Besides, she paid for her university herself through part-time jobs; she didn't spend a penny of yours!"
"That's right! After Xiaoxiao graduated, most of the money she earned was sent to you. What more are you not satisfied with?"
"The clothes you're wearing, weren't they bought with Xiaoxiao's money?"
After being lectured by the relatives, Jiang's father's arrogance subsided. "I, I'm her father. Isn't it right for her to be filial to me?"
"Nurturing is one thing, but don't keep squeezing her dry! When there's good food at home, Xiaoxiao gets none, but when you need money, you only think of her!"
"If you talk about filial piety, among her three siblings, Xiaoxiao ranks first!"
Jiang's father turned red and stammered for a long time without a word.
Jiang's mother was a shrew, but the relatives' words were reasonable, and she couldn't refute them.
As the atmosphere became awkward, a taxi slowly drove into the village.
"Hey, look, isn't that Xiaoxiao?"
"That tall guy must be her boyfriend, right?"
"He's quite handsome, and his clothes are quite tasteful!"
"I wonder where he's from, and what his family background is like..."
In an instant, everyone's attention was drawn to the couple at the door.
Many aunts and uncles had arrived. Jiang Xiaoxiao, carrying gifts, was immediately surrounded.
The last time she saw Jiang's father and mother was in the hospital. Two years had passed, and the coldness of their demeanor was still vivid. Jiang Xiaoxiao was indifferent, unable to smile at all.
Jiang's mother was good at putting on a show, especially in front of relatives. She pulled Jiang Xiaoxiao close, asking about her well-being with such affection.
Jiang Xiaoxiao subtly withdrew her hand and got straight to the point, "Where is the household registration book?"
"You child... We haven't even gotten to know him properly yet. How can we entrust you to someone else!" Jiang's mother pouted and said.
Jiang Xiaoxiao's aunt was just like her, her eyes darting to Su Chen from time to time. "Exactly, Xiaoxiao, you're too thoughtless! You've come back after so long, and instead of greeting your relatives, you immediately ask for the household registration book. What kind of behavior is that!"
Jiang Xiaoxiao couldn't be bothered to argue with her. She pulled Su Chen over and introduced him, "This is my boyfriend, Su Chen. We work in the same company. We've been dating for two years, our relationship is stable, and we're both aiming for marriage."
"So you're colleagues. How much is your monthly salary?"
"Are you from B City? Who are your family members?"
"Do you have a house? How big is it?"
"Do your parents have pensions?"
After Jiang Xiaoxiao introduced him, the relatives started asking a barrage of questions.
Su Chen had seen all sorts of scenes. He handled them with ease. However, he didn't act according to the persona Jiang Xiaoxiao had set up for him beforehand.
"I am from B City, and I am Xiaoxiao's boss."
"I am 31 years old, I have a car and a house, and my annual income is several hundred million."
"My parents are alive, but we don't live together. I have two younger sisters and one younger brother, all of whom have their own careers."
After hearing his words, the relatives all gasped.
Astonished!
They never imagined that Jiang Xiaoxiao would have hooked up with such a wealthy boss!
However, after the initial shock, many began to doubt.
If he were really a big boss, why would he be so low-key, not even driving a car, and taking a taxi? Also, an annual income of several hundred million, wasn't that bragging too much?
At his age, could he have achieved that? Wasn't he just pretending to inflate his own worth?