Chapter 17: The daughter-in-law was not soft at all.

“Are you sure?” Alix asked Liwu.

Liwu nodded. “I am a grown woman, right? I cannot have my mommy fighting all of my battles. I will deal with Shen Biao and all the others.”

Alix nodded. Pride swelled in her chest; her daughter was as courageous as ever. An unstoppable force of bad luck.

Liwu leaned closer and whispered to her mother, “Register me secretly, I am now a system host.”

Alix’s dragon form shrunk, returning to a human. She grabbed Liwu by the shoulders, eyes wide in shock. “What do…?.”

Liwu covered her mother’s mouth. “Don’t say it, I don’t want the whole world to know. It’s bad luck.”

Alix’s eyes widened again. Bad luck! A bad luck System! Did it mean Liwu had been chosen by a system host since childhood? Was this the cause of her misfortunes all these years? The system had been gathering energy to awaken! “Fruit!” she whispered.

Her husband was never going to believe this. She turned around and soared to the skies in dragon form, eager to share the news with Caishen.

Liwu turned and walked toward her husband, the bouquet in her hand’s half scorched. Her steps had a happy spring as she hurried forward to start her new life.

****

It surprised Liwu that her husband was willing to share a car with her, with all of his suspicions. The curiosity was so much that she blurted the question out.

“Aren’t you afraid that my bad luck will cause the car to crush?”

The car passed a bump, hitting it harder than necessary. Weijun’s head hit the roof. He spared no moment to glare at her.

Liwu pouted and turned her head to look out of the window. Seeing One city in person was like her first experience at the zoo. The city was a marvel–gleaming towers of glass, and steel like a modern metropolis. Neon lights humming against the bright sunlight. It reminded her of the hidden city, the Bureau’s underground home for system hosts where she had lived for two years.

In the mix of the sparkling buildings and technology were ordinary traits: bicycles rattling down alleys, noodle stalls steaming on corners, laundry flapping from balconies. Old architecture seen in the forbidden city. It was a futuristic city stitched together with threads of tradition.

When they arrived at the Shen manor, the family had already gathered like spectators waiting to watch a scandal. Three brothers stood in line, in order of their ages. Similarly, the sisters were also standing in order of their age. There were a few children, scattered around and one, sitting in the seat that obviously belonged to the patriarch or matriarch of the family.

The introductions started and Liwu learned that the little girl in the matriarch’s seat was the grand aunt of the family. And somehow, she outranked everyone in seniority!

The father-in-law, Shen Deng was polite and kind. Information about him claimed he was soft spoken. And this was proven by his voice which was barely above a murmur. The mother-in-law, Xu Zhiyi, was another matter entirely. Her gaze alone was sharp enough to cut steel.

“Welcome,” she said to Liwu, her tone dripping suspicion. “You are not the bride we expected.”

“Yes,” Liwu smiled sweetly, “fate has excellent taste. Don’t you think so?”

Some of the sisters laughed before their mother warned them to stop with a single glance. The brothers on the other hand, traded confused glances. Information about Tai Liwu claimed she was brooding and dark, instead, she was all smiles and spark!

“You are funny.” Madam Xu said sarcastically. “I wonder if this is how you laugh when things go wrong as soon as you step into a room. We have all heard about your…. misfortunes.”

Liwu tilted her head. “Oh, you mean the dog at the wedding, the bunny, the fire. Yes, I have a talent for entertaining people wherever I go. My great grandfather loves that the most about me. I am sure you will come to appreciate it.”

The room froze. Weijun shifted uncomfortably. His mother often won the battle of words against everyone. Tai Liwu seemed to be managing just fine. She had even drawn first blood, if he could say so.

He made another discovery about his wife. She had a sharp tongue. She was nothing like the docile, frightened, nervous woman he had met yesterday. Then again, she was a police officer. How could she take down criminals if she was soft?

“Let’s have breakfast.” Grand aunt Shen Yuening declared. “Or brunch, like my nieces call it.” She looked at the three Shen sisters.

Everyone made their way to the long futuristic table which doubled as a shared data screen. The cutlery was high end and fancy, but the dishes were very traditional. Abalone dumplings, porcelain bowls of porridge, bamboo baskets with steaming buns, soy milk in delicate porcelain cups, century eggs, mixed fruits and fruit juices.

Grand aunt Yuening, who was trying her best to act mature sipped on pu’er tea and occasionally scolded the other young children for dipping dough sticks into soy milk. It was not just unthinkable, but they were dripping milk on the silk table mats.

Madam Xu watched Liwu like a hawk. “Tell me, Tai Liwu, do you plan to bring your chaos and accidents into my household?”

Mr. Shen sighed. All he wanted was a quiet breakfast. Why did his wife have to stir the pot?

“Mom….” Weijun started.”

“If the household deserves it.” Liwu replied calmly.

The Shen sisters laughed. One of the brothers choked on a bun.

“Tomorrow, we should have sweet tofu.” Yuening suggested in a desperate attempt to create a more positive atmosphere.

Madam Xu looked at Liwu. “Yes, grand aunt. I am sure our new daughter-in-law won’t mind waking up early to prepare some breakfast dishes. We should add savory noodles, egg pancakes, sweet corn,….” she stopped, but only because she was forced to.

“I can’t cook.” Liwu announced, then placed a spoon of porridge at her lips. The small rise in her lips which formed a smile was a sign of the pleasure she was either getting from the delicacies or her response.

Madam Xu’s mouth fell so wide open that a fly could have flown in. The new daughter-in-law had not been in the house for an hour, and she was already defying her! “I knew that you had been sent here to make our lives difficult. How dare….”

Liwu looked at the Shen sisters, Lianhua, Yulan and Qiaoling. “Mother must have raised my sisters well, they must be great cooks. Tomorrow, one or the three of them will cook breakfast. My husband cancelled the honeymoon, and he insists that we live here for two weeks. But I don’t think it’s fair. I took off two weeks from work to enjoy a honeymoon.

Why should I spend them slaving away in the kitchen? I am here to relax and smile for pictures. In addition to what will be cooked tomorrow, add some pancakes. Strawberry pancakes, to be specific and more options for buns. These ones are all plain and flavorless. Mother, add more honey to the porridge next time, why skimp so much?”

Weijun blinked.

Madam Xu’s lip twitched.

Grand aunt Yuening burst into laughter.

The rest of the people at the table were stunned.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep