Yan Mo took leave and returned to Nancheng, not even attending her company's annual meeting, all to wait for her ex-boyfriend Zhang Zheng to seek reconciliation.
On October 1st, the two of them returned to Nancheng together and arranged to meet both sets of parents to discuss their marriage plans for the end of the year.
Yan Mo's parents thought that since their daughter and Zhang Zheng had been together for seven years, it was high time to discuss marriage. As long as the other side provided a reasonable betrothal gift and the scene was handled properly, they could hold the wedding by the end of the year.
In any case, the Yan family did not want the betrothal gift for themselves; they would provide a corresponding dowry for their daughter to take to her husband's family on the day of the wedding.
However, halfway through the meal, Zhang Zheng's parents still had not brought up the topic of the betrothal gift.
It was obvious that the other side lacked sincerity, and Yan Zhiyuan's expression began to slip out of his control. Mother Yan, Su Yunxiu, could no longer hold back and finally asked, "In-laws, about the betrothal gift..."
Su Yunxiu and Yan Zhiyuan ran a small business in Nancheng and owned four or five houses. While they were not the most prominent family in Nancheng, their family background was quite substantial.
The Yan family was not lacking the 100,000 or so in betrothal gifts; rather, their daughter's marriage could not be delayed any longer, and the betrothal gift was merely a formality.
Seeing the Yan family take the initiative, Zhang Zheng's parents exchanged glances, feeling that things were going exactly as they had planned.
They had intentionally avoided bringing it up. Yan Mo had been with their son for seven years, and they had been living together since graduating from university—five years in total. Besides their son, who else would want Yan Mo?
Therefore, they would not bring up the betrothal gift voluntarily, intending to let the woman's side mention it first when they met. Whoever brought it up first would be at a disadvantage, and now they could take the upper hand.
Sure enough, the mother-in-law couldn't wait and brought it up herself; wasn't she just desperate to marry her daughter into their family?
Zhang's mother, Guo Wenying, had a scheme in mind and deliberately pushed the question back: "Oh my, in-law, the matter of the betrothal gift depends on how much you, the bride's side, want!"
The way she said that made it seem as if the bride's side was very greedy for money.
In marriage, it is customary for the woman to marry "with her head held high" and the man to "lower his head" to take a wife. For Guo Wenying to manipulate the bride's side like this, it was clear she didn't hold this future daughter-in-law in any regard, knowing she had already been sleeping with her son for seven years.
If she could stay with her son for seven years, it just showed her son had charm. Was there even a need to discuss the betrothal gift? Being able to marry her was already giving her enough face.
Yan Zhiyuan sensed the dismissive attitude of the in-laws across the table and could hardly sit still. Just as he was about to lose his temper, Su Yunxiu pressed his arm, signaling him with her gaze to stay calm.
Yan Mo sat next to Zhang Zheng and tugged on his clothes under the table, signaling him to smooth things over. Zhang Zheng held Yan Mo's hand under the table and gave her a look that said, "The elders are talking, we juniors shouldn't interrupt."
What Guo Wenying said was technically reasonable; the bride's side usually sets the amount for the betrothal gift. But what made Su Yunxiu uncomfortable was that even if the bride's side set it, the groom's side should have shown sincerity by bringing up the topic first, rather than not saying a word about it even halfway through the meal. And then, after the bride's side brought it up, they just lightly tossed it back with, "It depends on how much you want."
However, their daughter was already twenty-eight this year; if she didn't get married soon, she would be approaching thirty.
It was only natural for Su Yunxiu to be anxious.
There was no helping it; her daughter had been living with Zhang Zheng for seven years, and her concern had clouded her judgment, leading to this passive situation.
Composing herself, Su Yunxiu exhaled the bit of displeasure in her heart, curled her lips, and forced a smile: "In-law, the betrothal gift is just a gesture, a sign of your family's sincerity. We don't want the money anyway; we'll have our Momo take it back with her as a formality. We aren't asking for much, just based on the current market rate in Nancheng. Momo's older female cousin just got married last year, and her betrothal gift was 188,000. You can follow that standard!"
"What? 188,000?"
Guo Wenying exclaimed, completely losing her composure.
Su Yunxiu wasn't annoyed, just slightly startled by Guo Wenying's sudden outburst. But she quickly regained her composure and said calmly, "In-law, didn't you ask me to suggest it? I am just following the current wedding market rates in Nancheng."
"No, are you selling your daughter? 188,000? Why don't you go rob someone? Yan Mo has been living with our Zheng Zheng for seven years already. It's already giving your family enough face that we are willing to marry her, so why are you still asking for a betrothal gift?"
This thought crossed Guo Wenying's mind, but she didn't dare say it out loud. If they burned bridges, there would be no way to talk. However, her face clearly showed her dislike and reluctance.
What she actually said was: "In-law, you are asking for too much. Look, Momo and our Zheng Zheng are university classmates and from the same hometown. They've been together for seven years; surely their feelings can't be measured by money?"
Zhang Jianli saw that the situation was not good and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Yes, yes, the two children have been in a long-distance relationship for seven years; it hasn't been easy. We can't let them fail to get married because of the betrothal gift."
Su Yunxiu was also losing her patience: "In-law, you asked me to name a figure, and now that I have, you think it's too much? Then how much are you offering?"
Zhang Jianli and Guo Wenying exchanged glances. They had discussed it before coming: they wouldn't pay a cent for the betrothal gift and would just hold a wedding. The Yan family had money, so they might even provide more dowry for their precious daughter.
Seeing that the in-laws didn't want to pay that much, Yan Zhiyuan didn't want his daughter to have an unhappy marriage because of the betrothal gift. So, he decided to take a step back: "How about this! Forget the 188,000; let's make it 88,000. Just as a gesture to keep up appearances."
88,000 wasn't much, but Guo Wenying just didn't want to pay anything. Even though the in-laws had taken a step back, she remained stubborn.
Yan Mo breathed a sigh of relief; 88,000 wasn't too much, so the betrothal gift matter should be settled.
But the next second, she heard Guo Wenying say: "In-law, look, I feel that since the two children have been together for so many years, let's not talk about money or betrothal gifts. For the sake of the children, let's just hold a lively wedding for them. If your family wants to provide a house or a car as a dowry, that's fine too. The two children living a good life is better than anything, isn't it?"
"That's nonsense!"
Yan Zhiyuan couldn't hold it in anymore. He stood up and slammed the table. "We didn't ask you to buy a house in Haicheng where they work, and now you don't want to pay a single cent for the betrothal gift? Since you have no sincerity, then let's just call off the marriage."
After saying this, he left the private room with his hands behind his back, and Su Yunxiu followed her husband out in a panic.
Yan Mo had remained silent the whole time, thinking that since the elders were discussing the marriage, as Zhang Zheng had said, they as juniors should just listen.
But now she couldn't take it anymore, blaming Zhang Zheng for coming without communicating properly with his parents.
"Zhang Zheng, what do you mean by this? We agreed to come back to discuss the marriage, is this how your family talks?" Yan Mo stood up, feeling cold inside. "We have seven years of feelings; are they not even worth 88,000?"
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