Chapter 182: Mother-in-Law Looking at the Son-in-Law

Su Jinru was also in the hotel, hearing people say her daughter had brought a boy over; she was flipping through the purchase list, her finger pinching the paper paused, and at first she couldn't react: "Which daughter?"

She had three daughters; if it was the eldest, there was nothing surprising, the boy surely referred to her husband Zhou Hongsheng.

The subordinate replied: "It's Xi Xi."

Su Jinru was so surprised she accidentally tore a corner off the list.

The messenger, also skilled in speaking, didn't blurt it out all at once but proceeded step by step: "Xi Xi had the staff call that boy 'son-in-law'; he must be her boyfriend."

Su Jinru lost her composure and jumped up.

She was muddled—how could it be the eldest? Xia Yue wasn't at the hotel today, Xia Xuan wasn't either, so it could only be Xia Xi.

Hurrying down in the elevator, Su Jinru saw the boy beside Xia Xi; he was tall, stood well beside her, and as she drew closer and saw his face, his looks surpassed her imagination.

Leaving other things aside, just his appearance alone made him a one-in-ten-thousand catch.

As the saying goes, a mother-in-law grows fonder of her son-in-law the more she looks, indicating initial dislike; but with Su Jinru, she broke the pattern—she was very pleased at first sight.

However, that boy seemed familiar somehow.

Earlier, Xia Xi had told her on the phone that she was dating; trusting her daughter, Su Jinru hadn't probed further and didn't know the boyfriend's name or appearance.

Secondly, she thought most university romances were unstable, hard to last, and likely they'd break up before meeting parents.

Xia Xi chatted with Aunt Lin, then turned and unintentionally glimpsed Su Jinru; she stiffened, naturally lowered her arms to her sides, behaved quite properly, and secretly brushed Xu Yanfeng's hand as a reminder: "My mom…"

Before she could finish, Su Jinru walked over.

Xu Yanfeng hadn't expected this; he never imagined being led in by Xia Xi to meet elders, so he was unprepared. On his first visit, he came empty-handed, without a gift, which would seem rude.

In a flash, Xu Yanfeng extricated himself from the awkwardness and greeted: "Auntie, hello, I'm Xu Yanfeng, Xia Xi's… boyfriend."

He was someone who had seen all kinds of scenes; even if his thoughts were chaotic inside, his face showed nothing but composure, warmth, and courtesy.

"Hello."

Su Jinru looked him over repeatedly, her expression suddenly tightening; finally she realized why he looked so familiar—she had indeed seen that face in Xia Xi's phone!

Su Jinru gave Xu Yanfeng a gentle smile, then looked at Xia Xi with a strange expression, hesitated a few seconds, pulled her aside, and whispered: "Is this your boyfriend?"

"Ah, what's the problem?" Xia Xi couldn't fathom why her mother was being so mysterious.

Could it be she doesn't approve of Xu Yanfeng? Impossible.

No matter how high her standards, they couldn't exceed Xu Yanfeng's—she swore she was objective, certainly not seeing him through lover's eyes.

"Are you treating me as an old woman with failing memory? Isn't this boy just someone you brought to fool your aunts and uncles?" Su Jinru drew a breath and continued slowly, "You told me and your grandmother to your face that you weren't dating, that he was just a shield you'd found. There aren't any aunts and uncles here—what are you up to?"

Xia Xi's face lit up with sudden understanding; she finally grasped why her mother reacted that way, and explained earnestly: "Back then we really weren't together, I didn't lie to you. I had a one-sided crush and worked hard to win him over."

Su Jinru: "……"

She hadn't expected this; hearing Xia Xi mention it for the first time, her expression was like she'd choked on food.

Su Jinru took a moment to digest this, her expression gradually returning to normal; she glanced at Xu Yanfeng, not blaming her daughter for taking the initiative—the young man really was impressive.

"Is he from Nancheng?"

"Mm." Xia Xi nodded, smiled with pursed lips, "He came especially to see me."

It wouldn't do to keep him waiting, lest he think she disliked him; Su Jinru put on a full smile, took Xia Xi back to Xu Yanfeng, and said, "Sorry, I just checked things out with Xi Xi, took a bit of time."

Xu Yanfeng remained calm, didn't mind, and smiled lightly: "It was my fault for barging in unannounced."

"No trouble, no trouble." Su Jinru smiled from the heart, "It's just lunchtime; let Xi Xi take you out for something to eat. Later her grandmother will come over, I need to look after the elderly, so I won't join you."

Xia Xi: "Grandma's coming?"

"The old lady has made plans to meet a few old sisters."

"Then you're busy; I'll take our son-in-law to an upstairs private room." Xia Xi blinked playfully, "Is room 402 vacant after a guest checked out but not yet rebooked? I want that one. Please, dear Mom, tell the front desk so nobody snatches it."

Recently the hotel has been full to bursting, with no spare private rooms; she didn't want Xu Yanfeng crammed into the noisy lobby.

What? Our son-in-law? They aren't even married yet…

Su Jinru practically blushed for Xia Xi, smacked her butt and said, "Come on, come on, hurry up." She also arranged for her: "You don't have to work at the hotel this afternoon; just entertain Xiao Xu well, take him around the area—people don't come by easily."

Even if Su Jinru didn't say so, Xia Xi had no intention of staying at the hotel in the afternoon.

What a joke—Xu Yanfeng came to see her; how could she bear to leave him?

"Sure thing."

Xia Xi skipped happily, tugging Xu Yanfeng's hand as they strode to the elevator; Xu Yanfeng, dragged two steps, then remembered to say to Su Jinru, "Thank you, Auntie."

Su Jinru waved, her face full of smiles.

Inside the elevator, Xia Xi lifted her chin to rest on his shoulder, then, belatedly grasping the point of her mother's words, she said to Xu Yanfeng, "My mom called you Xiao Xu—do you know what that means?"

Xu Yanfeng: "What does it mean?"

Xia Xi teased his slow wit: "Naturally it means she accepts you as her son-in-law."

Xu Yanfeng turned his face aside, pretending to study the ad poster on the elevator wall; his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly, a restrained yet sincere smile, genuine pleasure.

Xia Xi had long seen through his act; she reached out, lifted his chin, turned his face toward her, and asked, "Are you laughing?"

Xu Yanfeng pressed his lips together, his expression so serious you couldn't tell anything was off: "Really?"

The elevator arrived; Xia Xi led him into a private room. Not long after, a waiter came, saw Xia Xi, first blinked, then gave a warm smile: "Xi Xi and this… uh, son-in-law? What would you like to eat?"

Xu Yanfeng couldn't stay calm about that title; the usually stoic man flashed a hint of discomfort across his face, clenched his fist to his mouth and gave a dry cough.

Xia Xi, meanwhile, was completely at ease; she didn't need the menu, rattling off the hotel's best-selling signature dishes by heart: "Golden broth fish maw chicken, winter melon triple-delight pot, soy sauce duck, morel steamed meatballs, stir-fried black fish slices…"

The auntie with notebook and pen noted everything down; looking up, she saw the handsome young man press down on Xia Xi's hand, stopping her from listing dishes: "Just the two of us, we can't eat all that."

Xia Xi hadn't considered waste; she only knew it was his first visit and wanted him to try more dishes: "If I can't finish, I'll pack the leftovers to take home for Xiao Xuan. Oh, Xiao Xuan is my sister."

Good thing Xia Xuan wasn't here, otherwise she'd be jumping up and down, scolding her sister for being inhuman.

Xia Xi told the auntie, "Then add a plate of stir-fried seasonal vegetables. And don't forget the five-blessing dumplings—they're our specialty."

"Ah, got it all down." The auntie smiled, eyes crinkling, picked up her notebook, left the private room, and went to the kitchen to file the order.

Xia Xi personally poured tea for Xu Yanfeng, then suddenly remembered she'd missed something; she pushed the cup toward him, turned her head, and kissed him on the cheek.

Baby, wait for me a moment, I'm going out to handle some things; I'll be back soon!