The old man of the Chi family grumbled, "They always say daughters-in-law cause trouble outside the home. You’re a man—how can you have no sense of proportion? Is this something you can negotiate?"

Old Mrs. Chi snorted, "Hmph, forgetting your mother after marrying a wife. That's nothing new."

Chi Yong was caught between two fires, wishing he could drag Chi Wu over and give him another beating. What kind of mess was this? He clearly knew Yingzi wanted Ao, so why did he have to cling stubbornly to one path?

What a terrible thing to do—forcing Yingzi into this entanglement.

And then making him clean up this mess? It was utterly unforgivable.

Chi Yong pleaded, "Dad, isn't Xiao Ye your grandson too? Can't Xiao Ye amount to anything?"

The old man of the Chi family cut him off, "No need to say more. I'm not someone who cares much about these things, but if even a child as young as Yingzi knows the importance of continuing her own ancestral line, I can't help but think deeply. Her father's line has no successor; can my son, Wu Zi's father, simply conjure another line of descent?"

Old Mrs. Chi stated plainly, "Let them think of something else. We will compensate whatever we can. Since both children must carry on the lineage, let them each go their separate ways."

This was what Old Mrs. Chi wanted most.

The old man looked at his wife disapprovingly. Where could you find such a good granddaughter-in-law to just let go of so easily?

Besides, the fact that his grandson wasn't close to him wasn't a recent development.

His wife's words were practically shoving the child into the other family's embrace.

If they truly angered Chi Wu, he might never come back—what would they have left to fight for? It was incredibly unwise.

Compared to their old in-laws, his own wife seemed a little short-sighted.

There was a clear difference between having a man in the house holding things together and not having one.

The old man of the Chi family wasn't angry; his wife's behavior was a result of him spoiling her, his own sense of responsibility having made her complacent.

Their old in-laws, being so reasonable, were tempered by life—they had broadened their shoulders through hardship, bit by bit.

In a way, his wife was a fortunate woman, indirectly proving his competence as a man.

However, it would be even better if she were slightly more reasonable. "What are you talking about? Can something like this be compensated so easily? What kind of family are we? Could we do something so irresponsible? The engagement between the two children is certain. Chi Yong, you set the date. As for the matter of taking a son-in-law into the house, the children are still young; we can consider that slowly, no rush. A reasonable solution can always be found."

Chi Yong looked at his father, thinking this was a tactic to bully them, a soft blade grinding the flesh. This plan was to make Cheng Ying a member of their family first, and then what about taking in a son-in-law? It could just fizzle out. Women always bore the greater sacrifice in family matters.

Chi Yong glanced at his own father; he was thinking too simply. He didn't consider what kind of people that old woman and the young woman were—could they be manipulated by such shallow tactics? If it were his own wife, she would certainly fall for it.

His daughter? Hmph, that trick wouldn't work on her. Moreover, Chi Yong knew something others didn't: that girl was their own kin, achieved through careful planning.

Their own unfortunate child was eagerly rushing to be adopted into the other family.

The old man hadn't grasped the crucial point: if you have an internal traitor, why would you try to hoard treasures? Isn't that just inviting trouble?

If the internal structure isn't unified, how can one fight external threats?

Old Mrs. Chi walked away, clearly displeased. Accepting a granddaughter-in-law like that was agonizing for her, deep down.

Cheng Ying, from the inside out, made Old Mrs. Chi feel revulsion.

There wasn't a single place where she felt they connected. How could fate be so strange as to entangle the Chi family and the Cheng family so inextricably?

For Old Mrs. Chi’s level of literary appreciation, this was the crudest interpretation.

Of course, if Old Mrs. Chi knew that this entanglement was caused by her own grandson's scheming, she would be even more nauseated.

Chi Yong emerged from the compound looking like a vegetable frosted by the autumn chill.

This matter was difficult.

Cheng Ying, despite being very busy, granted an audience to Chi Yong, who came to visit her.

Chi Yong asked, "Yingzi, how have you been lately?"

Cheng Ying replied, "Quite well. Do you need something?" She showed no awareness of an impending engagement, let alone shyness.

Chi Yong felt his son was making things difficult for him, insisting on gnawing on such a foul and hard bone.

A single sentence rendered the entire night's worth of carefully constructed arguments he had planned completely stillborn. "It's nothing, just came to see you. I thought someone about to be engaged might be shy and feel awkward seeing me."

If it weren't for the incident where Cheng Ying had climbed onto the other person, this line would sound like a father-in-law teasing his future daughter-in-law.

But given that incident, it sounded like Chi Yong was deliberately coming to mock Cheng Ying.

Cheng Ying looked up, finally directing her attention to Chi Yong. "Why are you only coming now, after so many days, to speak up for Wu Zi? Are you planning to vent his anger for him?"

Cheng Ying didn't mind that her reputation was known; such things truly couldn't wound her.

We are modern women, after all. Gossip is just increasing visibility.

Of course, that's looking at it optimistically. Some people, however, can't handle it and might try to smash their heads against a wall.

Chi Yong forgot about his unlucky son's current predicament. "What are you talking about? If anything, it's Uncle who should go find Chi Wu and discipline that brat to vent your anger."

Cheng Ying responded, "Oh, Uncle is good to me. But your reaction time is quite slow, isn't it? Several days have passed. Isn't that a bit late?"

Chi Yong closed his eyes. Talking to his child felt like arguing with himself. Why was she so sharp-tongued? He reorganized his thoughts and started fresh. "Yingzi, let's put that aside for a moment. Even if Wu Zi and you are genuinely in love, what sort of betrothal gifts are you planning to ask for? Uncle raised Chi Wu for so many years. From now on, you'll be both my daughter and my daughter-in-law; I must prepare something nice for you, mustn't I?"

Cheng Ying looked at Chi Yong, realizing he was cornered. "If you have the ability, try to maneuver around it." "No need, Uncle. Speaking of which, shouldn't I be sending a matchmaker to your house to make a formal call? Wu Zi came to my home, after all, and I haven't even asked what Wu Zi wants. Uncle, do you think it's appropriate for me to ask directly? Otherwise, I could find a highly respected matchmaker to propose marriage at Grandpa Wu Zi's house and inquire about things at the same time. What do you think?"

Pretend, I'll show you pretending. I'm much better at it than you, and I'm crueler too.

Chi Yong closed his eyes, a vein throbbing on his forehead. This was too much; it would surely make his own mother and father sick with anger.

How could this girl be so malicious? In these times, it is the man's side that offers the bride price. If Cheng Ying sent a matchmaker to their door, their family would become a laughingstock.

Seeing the girl beside him continuing with whatever she was doing, not even paying him any mind, Chi Yong knew she was perfectly clear-headed. "Yingzi, is there no other way? He is dead; why must you be so fixated on that? Aren't the living more important than the dead? We need to look forward."

Cheng Ying said lightly, showing no sincerity in solving the problem, "In that case, why don't you let Wu Zi marry into my family?"

Chi Yong snapped, "Be serious! You two are causing all this fuss, and your mother and I are in such a difficult position in the middle. Don't you have any consideration? Do you just enjoy watching your mother and me get so anxious we can't eat?"

Cheng Ying felt uncomfortable. She didn't know if Chi Yong was distressed, but she knew his mother certainly was caught in the middle.

However, if this matter isn't addressed, is there any solution? One can break one's word in conversation.

But words spoken in front of someone's tombstone absolutely cannot be retracted, or Cheng Ying feared having nightmares. She wasn't their real daughter; if they became truly annoyed, they might keep finding fault with her, and she wouldn't have any goodwill to fall back on.

Cheng Ying pursed her lips. "Uncle, your mouth is slick with oil."

Chi Yong subconsciously wiped his mouth, then realized he had fallen into her trap.

Why was this girl so hard to handle? "Yingzi, forget about Uncle for a moment; your mother truly can't eat."

Cheng Ying replied, "Uncle, what you say to me is useless. I said it when I was little: I would find a son-in-law to marry into my home to inherit my father's line. The fact that you could bring my mother out of Shanghe Village back then was because I made that statement."

Chi Yong fell silent; he understood this matter perfectly well.

Cheng Ying continued, "Uncle, you should go talk to your elders. If it really doesn't work, there is one last option: you can find a way to sabotage this engagement. Then I can find someone else to marry into my family, and this matter will essentially be settled happily."

Chi Yong nearly choked; this girl’s mind was far-reaching. Could this matter really be smoothed over like that?

Of course, he knew the two children were innocent. But the key was that his son couldn't let go.

He knew how painfully he had beaten his son; Chi Wu hadn't uttered a sound while enduring it.

Chi Yong took a deep breath. If his son heard this, wouldn't his eyes turn red from holding back tears?

He looked at Yingzi. She didn't even seem keen on becoming his daughter-in-law. "What are you saying? Is Chi Wu such an irresponsible person?"

Cheng Ying pouted. "Uncle, Wu Zi is still young; his horizons will broaden greatly in the future. Are you willing to limit him now? Once this matter is spoken about openly, it’s not a huge deal. We two were just fooling around too much. After some time, we will naturally forget, and perhaps when we are old, we can laugh about it as a joke, maybe after we start university."

Chi Yong quickly cut off Cheng Ying's words. "Don't even think about that. Let me tell you, there's no one like that in our family. You just wait for the engagement. By the way, Chi Wu has already handed out wedding candy in the village, just waiting to set the date for the banquet. If you don't want your grandmother to be unable to return to the village for the rest of her life, you had better wait for the engagement."

Cheng Ying was finally silenced by Chi Yong. "He's crazy!"

Chi Yong thought to himself, if he isn't crazy, you'll drive him mad. Of course, he needed to call Chi Wu immediately about the wedding candy. That’s how it would be. The situation was already like this; any further changes would only complicate things. Both families couldn't afford to lose face.

Chi Yong felt that for the sake of family harmony and the mental and physical well-being of his relatives, he absolutely had to nip this notion in the bud right here. If things had reached this point and another unexpected development occurred, Chi Wu going berserk was certain, and his own mother losing her temper was even more certain. His own face turning green was also guaranteed.

Why was everything so frustrating? How difficult it was to be a man, and how difficult it was to be a stepfather!

He looked earnestly at Yingzi and stated firmly, "Isn't it just about continuing your father's line? A small matter. Relax and wait for the engagement. Do you need to worry about this? Uncle is here."