Chapter 13: Meeting the Father-in-law

Lin Ruoxi was startled by Yang Chen's sudden appearance and jumped up from the sofa in alarm. She quickly turned around, breaking free from Yang Chen's grasp, and stared at him, her beautiful eyes wide with surprise. "Don't touch me!" she warned.

"Hey, no need to overreact," Yang Chen chuckled, raising his hands in surrender. "Just teasing you. If I really wanted to kiss you, I might end up getting a midnight surprise visit from you with a chainsaw."

Lin Ruoxi ignored Yang Chen, pressing a button on the remote control to turn off the TV. She felt a bit embarrassed that Yang Chen had discovered her fondness for romantic dramas. With a slight blush on her cheeks, she shot Yang Chen a fierce glare. "I heard from Aunt Wang that you're packing up your stuff. Just make sure you don't bring your smelly things to my place."

"Don't worry, it's just a few clothes," Yang Chen reassured her, nodding towards the small bundle at the foot of the stairs. "But what's bothering me is, now that we're living here, how am I going to run my lamb skewer stall?"

"You still want to sell lamb skewers?!" Lin Ruoxi looked at Yang Chen as if he were a strange creature. She couldn't understand why he was so fond of selling lamb skewers, and he sounded genuinely regretful about it.

Yang Chen blinked innocently. "What's wrong? The marriage agreement doesn't seem to say I can't sell lamb skewers, does it?"

Lin Ruoxi gritted her teeth. "Anyway, you're not allowed to sell lamb skewers. Starting tomorrow, you'll go out and find a job. It must be a clean job, preferably in an office building!"

Yang Chen scratched his head in distress. Honestly, he wasn't incapable of finding that kind of job. With the diploma he casually obtained while having tea at Harvard University, he could easily get into most top companies. But Yang Chen wasn't comfortable sitting in an air-conditioned office. To him, those refined jobs were far less enjoyable than selling lamb skewers on the street and chatting with vendors.

"You don't need to come up with excuses. You must change your job."

Seeing Lin Ruoxi's expression, which seemed to say "You're in big trouble if you don't comply," Yang Chen shivered. He was afraid his fiery-tempered wife might resort to drastic measures again. He quickly nodded. "Okay, okay, I'll listen to you. I'll go find a job tomorrow."

Lin Ruoxi finally nodded in satisfaction. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she picked up her purse, took out a brand-new touchscreen phone, and handed it to Yang Chen. "Here, take this phone. So you won't be unreachable when I need you to show up."

Yang Chen accepted it with a grin. It seemed like the marriage was indeed a good deal. A mansion, a sports car, and now a free phone. Even though his wife was a bit cold, at least she was easy on the eyes.

Seeing Yang Chen's smug expression, Lin Ruoxi's eyes flashed with disdain once again. She yawned, stretched lazily, and struck a seductive pose. "Alright, I'm going to bed for some beauty sleep. You get ready for finding a job tomorrow."

Lin Ruoxi was about to head upstairs when the doorbell rang.

Aunt Wang, who had been busy in the kitchen, hurried out. She wiped her wet hands on her apron before opening the door. "Master? You're here..."

Upon hearing Aunt Wang address the visitor as "Master," Lin Ruoxi's pretty face turned pale. She turned slightly melancholic as she faced the middle-aged man who walked in.

He was a mature man dressed in a dark blue shirt, neat and dignified. Only a few wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and a few strands of white hair hinted at his age. His appearance bore some resemblance to Lin Ruoxi, indicating that he was indeed her father.

Lin Kun walked in with an unpleasant expression on his face. His sharp gaze fixed on Lin Ruoxi, then cast a fierce glance at Yang Chen standing nearby.

"Dad..." Lin Ruoxi called out weakly, devoid of any surprise at her father's arrival. She showed no emotion, treating him like a stranger.

"Dad?" Lin Kun sneered. "Haha, do you still see me as your father?! Marrying a stranger without a word, do you even acknowledge me as your father?!" His roar echoed through the room.

Even Aunt Wang, sensing the ominous atmosphere, was stunned. She never imagined that the master of the house wouldn't know about his daughter's marriage to Yang Chen.

Tears welled up in Lin Ruoxi's eyes, but she held them back, revealing her inherent stubbornness. "I told you, I make my own decisions about marriage. So what if he's a stranger? I've married this man, and I'll never marry Xu Zhihong!"

"You... Is this how you talk to your own father?!" Lin Kun grinned maliciously. "Fine! I've raised you for nothing! Just because your grandmother handed over the company to you, you think I, as your father, have no authority over you! Don't forget, I still own thirty percent of the company's shares! I'm still the major shareholder of the company! I'm your biological father!"

"Biological father? Hmph! From childhood to now, it's only been me, Mom, and Grandma by my side. I never see you around. And I don't like Xu Zhihong anyway, so you don't have to bother," Lin Ruoxi said, lifting her head defiantly, her cherry lips tightly pursed as she spoke with a choked voice.

Lin Kun, furious yet sneering, retorted, "Don't like him? So what? Xu family's young master, the future CEO of Donghua Technology. What's wrong with marrying him?! Besides, do you really like this wild man?!" He pointed his finger towards Yang Chen, who stood silently nearby.

From the moment Lin Kun entered until this conversation unfolded, Yang Chen had pieced together the situation. It seemed that Lin Ruoxi chose to marry him under pressure from her father's bad temper. Of course, their accidental intimate encounter also played a significant role.

Being repeatedly referred to as a "wild man" by Lin Kun made Yang Chen uncomfortable. Even if he were made of mud, it would irk him. Yang Chen, lacking the demeanor of a son-in-law, furrowed his brows and warned, "Uncle, I suggest you move your finger away, or it might be dangerous."

Lin Kun sneered, "You animal, do you think you're worthy of talking to me? Don't think I don't know. I've already had you investigated. You're just a vendor selling lamb skewers at the market. Although I don't know what you did to make my daughter marry you, in my eyes, you're not even worth a piece of shit... Argh! What are you doing?!"

In the blink of an eye, Lin Kun, who had just been arrogant, suddenly withdrew his finger, clutching his hand in pain as he collapsed onto the carpet. Beads of sweat the size of beans formed on his forehead.

"Yang Chen... You..." Lin Ruoxi watched closely. In that split second just now, Yang Chen's hand had squeezed Lin Kun's pointed finger, then quickly retreated as if nothing had happened.

Yang Chen calmly smiled at Lin Ruoxi, showing his teeth. "Nothing much. I just don't like being pointed at and cursed at, especially after I've warned him it's dangerous... His finger is broken. It'll probably take ten days to two weeks to heal." In fact, if it were his past self, he wouldn't have just squeezed that finger. He would have shattered the man's skull with one strike.

Lin Kun gritted his teeth against the pain, roaring hoarsely, "Just you wait! You beast! I curse you! I'll find someone to deal with you... oh..."

"Dad... please don't say anymore... How's your hand..." Lin Ruoxi, though resentful towards her father, couldn't shake the familial concern. Seeing Lin Kun in such agony, she softened and crouched down, reaching out to assist him.

"You little wench! Don't touch me!" Lin Kun forcefully shoved Lin Ruoxi away, causing her to tumble to the ground.

"Dad! You..." Lin Ruoxi's face was pale with grievance. Being called a "little wench" by her own father was unbearable. She felt her vision blur and nearly fainted.

Meanwhile, Wang Mama, standing nearby, was already in tears, but as a servant, she hesitated to intervene. Seeing Lin Ruoxi on the ground, tearfully distressed, she hurried over to console her.

Struggling to stand, Lin Kun faced the indifferent expression of Yang Chen and said, "You remember this, punk! If you dare touch me, I'll make you regret it, even in death!"

Witnessing Lin Kun shove Lin Ruoxi to the ground, a surge of anger twisted within Yang Chen. Despite the woman's coldness, she was, in name at least, his legal wife. An uncontrollable hostility bubbled up inside him.

Yang Chen's face remained eerily calm, but a hint of disdain curved his lips. "I'll say this once. I rarely cause trouble... I don't know what's between you and my wife, and frankly, I don't care. But I have a principle. I detest being threatened..."

Before Lin Kun could react, a hand swiftly slapped across his left cheek with a crack!

"Smack!"

After the crisp sound, the living room fell into silence. Lin Kun, who had been standing moments before, was now truly knocked unconscious by the slap, lying sprawled on the ground.

"Mister... this..." Wang Mama was dumbfounded, not bothering to contemplate why Yang Chen's slap had such force. "What should we do now? Look at this mess..."

As for Lin Ruoxi, she had already lost consciousness, her eyes dull and unresponsive as she slumped in Wang Mama's arms, indifferent to everything happening around her.

Yang Chen chuckled nonchalantly. "Wang Mama, take care of Ruoxi. I'll deal with this foolish pig."

With that, Yang Chen effortlessly lifted Lin Kun from the ground and strolled out of the door as if taking a leisurely walk. After walking a distance, he reached the communal garbage bin, unceremoniously dumping Lin Kun's body inside and casually closing the lid.