After listening to Zhang Tianyi's words, Li Yan felt a bit ashamed. He initially thought he saw things clearly, that his father-in-law was senile, but it turned out he understood everything perfectly. No one knows a child better than their parent, and Zhang Tianyi was actually more aware of Yurong's weaknesses in her character. He still chose to entrust his daughter to Li Yan, partly to repay a debt of gratitude to Li Yan's father and partly because he thought his own brother was good, believing that his son would also be loyal and devoted.

Li Yan gave a bitter smile, "Dad, you have blind faith in genes and heredity!"

Zhang Tianyi was taken aback, then quickly laughed, "Dragons give birth to dragons, phoenixes to phoenixes. My Yurong is as beautiful as her mother and has the same interest in business as I do. And you, you're bound to be like your father!"

"There's also the skip generation inheritance. Maybe I'm not like my father at all, and it'll be my son who takes after him."

"Alright, I've explained the matters of the past to you briefly, and you know you can't tell Yurong about this. Now it's your turn to continue the conversation. You feel it's unfair to Yurong, and that I'm too selfish. Do you have any better suggestions?" Zhang Tianyi returned to the original topic.

Li Yan gave a wry smile, "You've already said so much, what more can I say? Actually, I originally... also had a bit of exaggerated intentions, wanting to make you understand that the happiness imposed on children might not truly be what they want. Because of your relationship, Yurong married me without really knowing me, and it's been a difficult adjustment for her. And now that she's doing really well in her career, you keep urging her to have kids, which is very hard for her. Also, you should know she's a filial person, and in the end, when it comes to her wishes versus her parents', she'll ultimately choose to follow what you want."

"So you're saying your mom and I are too selfish?" Zhang Tianyi laughed.

Li Yan nodded, having already expressed what he meant without needing to make it too severe.

"Li Yan, me and your mother, we're also doing this for your own good."

"I know..."

"You know nothing!" Before Li Yan could finish, Zhang Tianyi interrupted with a smile and a curse, "You two weren't genuinely in love when you got together. It was because we made the decision, forcing the match when I was seriously ill, marrying first and loving later. Although you seem very affectionate after marriage, we who've been through it all can tell real affection from fake. How can it not be obvious?"

Li Yan was a bit surprised. He thought their weekly displays of affection, the best act and cooperation between them, were the most familiar and habitual scenes, but they were still able to see through it. Old ginger is spicier indeed! However, they were quite adept at pretending not to know either.

Zhang Tianyi continued, "We know you're doing it out of filial piety, not wanting us to worry, especially fearing that I might not be able to take it physically. So every time you come home, you pretend to be very in love to make us happy. We truly are happy, but your real situation isn't as good as it seems, which makes us vaguely worried. I heard from Sister Liu that you still often sleep in separate rooms?"

This was something they had prepared an excuse for in advance. Hearing the question, Li Yan nodded to admit, "Yeah, Yurong is often busy with work, so I avoid disturbing her work, and she avoids disrupting my rest, so we still often sleep in separate rooms."

"Exactly, Yurong cares too much about her work, putting all her energy into it. Although she doesn't need to take care of your daily life, it also affects your relationship. You're both still young and should spend as much time together as possible. The reason we let you move out and only come home once a week was to create more opportunities for you. Otherwise, how could we bear it? Yurong's mother always wanted you both to live at home.

You respect Yurong, so you listen to her no matter what she says. It's tough on you too. But we can't stand by and watch you compromise for Yurong all the time. Living like this requires mutual compromise. As you said, Yurong is very filial, marrying you based on my arrangement for her life, and essentially taking over my work. We're reluctant to say much more to her. To enhance your relationship, as the older generation, what other tactics do we have? Having a child is a way to strengthen your bond."

Hearing what he said, Li Yan realized it was exactly as he thought, and it did have these considerations, making him feel he was a bit excessive in initially calling the old man selfish.

Although they were both men, the relationship was that of father-in-law and son-in-law, so Zhang Tianyi couldn't speak too frankly, only hinting at this level. Letting Li Yan understand that affection between husband and wife also requires more intimacy. If you sleep in separate rooms because of work or other reasons, plus there's no emotional foundation, problems will arise over time. A family with just two people can only be considered living together; only with a child can it be considered a complete family.

"Alright, Dad. I understand your intentions, but this matter can't be rushed. If you push too hard, the pressure on her will be too much. She already has a lot on her plate at work and is thinking about how to mentor me. If there's more pressure from life, she might not be able to handle it. Yurong is thin-skinned. It's better to leave this issue to me!"

"Of course, it's up to you. We can only help set things up. Whether you can be happy depends on how you manage things yourselves!"

As they were talking, the study door opened, and Yurong came in with her mother, Yang Yun. As soon as they entered, they were hit by the smell of smoke filling the room, and immediately frowned.

Neither of the two men had a cigarette in their hands, so Zhang Tianyi wasn't caught red-handed. He quickly started lecturing, "Li Yan, you should smoke less in the future. In just this short time, you kept smoking, and even I, an old man, can't stand it. Cough, cough..."

Li Yan couldn't argue against being framed. If someone were to track the source of the cigarettes now, it would only be on him. Faced with the looks from his wife and mother-in-law, he could only awkwardly smile and took the blame for his father-in-law.

...

Originally, after dinner and some chitchat, it was about time for the two to head back. Tonight, Li Yan had already arranged to drink with Xu Ping, Sun Hui, and the others. He had already flaked on dinner, and if he skipped the outing too, they would definitely look down on him. But as a son-in-law, it wasn't appropriate for him to openly say so, so he had to hint for Zhang Yurong to say their goodbyes.

But Zhang Yurong and her cousin Jiang Xueyin were chatting enthusiastically, no one seemed ready to leave, making Li Yan discreetly switch his phone to vibrate mode. He couldn't let it ring in front of his father and mother-in-law, urging him to go drinking, which would surely be seen as hanging out with the wrong crowd.

After his phone vibrated in his pocket several times, Zhang Yurong could tell he wanted to leave, so she said their farewells, "It's getting late, Mom and Dad. You should rest, and we'll head back first. Xueyin, are you coming with us?"

"Oh, cousin, I still want to chat with you some more. Originally, I was thinking of going to your place. But you never seem to welcome visitors, so why not stay at Auntie's tonight? You and your brother-in-law can head back tomorrow, no problem!"

Hearing Jiang Xueyin's invitation, Li Yan felt tempted but also hesitant. If they stayed overnight, since they were married, they would of course share a room, giving him a chance to get closer to Yurong. But with her cousin there, if Yurong used the excuse of not seeing her cousin for a long time and they ended up chatting deeply into the night, then they might sleep in the same room, leaving him alone again!

He wondered whether Jiang Xueyin had been prompted by Yurong's mother, because as soon as she finished speaking, Yang Yun quickly smiled and said, "That's right, Yurong. Every time you come home, you just have dinner and then leave in a hurry. You never stay overnight. Let me have someone tidy up, and tonight you and Li Yan can stay home. Xueyin too can stay, and your dad and I will go to bed early. You young folks can stay up a bit later."

Women always have a special attachment to their parental home. At this moment, Zhang Yurong felt very conflicted. After getting married and moving out, she rarely had the chance to stay at her parents' place. When she did, it was usually alone, like when Li Yan went to Beihai Country, it was better; otherwise, her parents always thought they had quarreled.

Therefore, hearing what her cousin and mother said, she really wanted to agree immediately and stay at her parents' house tonight. But she had her difficulties too. If she stayed overnight, she wouldn't have a reason to sleep in separate rooms, and would have to sleep with Li Yan.

She looked at Li Yan with a hesitant gaze, wanting him to make the decision. If he said to stay, they would stay; if he insisted on leaving, they would go.

Seeing her look, Li Yan already knew she wanted to stay. He could understand this feeling, although his phone was still vibrating in his pocket. But he had already flaked, doing it once more didn't matter. They were all men and wouldn't mind much; he could make it up later. Right now, his wife was more important!

"Yes, we rarely stay at home. Let's not go back tonight. Yurong, you shouldn't always immerse yourself in work. You should take a break on weekends."

Hearing Li Yan say this, Zhang Yurong felt reassured. Although how they would sleep tonight was still a problem, at least she could stay in a familiar home, and that made her very happy. "Hmm..."

Yang Yun quickly instructed the maid to tidy up. Although they weren't far away and could visit anytime, even if they stayed, they wouldn't chat too late. But some things are just like that. It's about the meaning! Like dropping by for a while is different from staying for dinner, and staying for dinner is different from spending the night.

Jiang Xueyin pulled Yurong into another chat, while Li Yan excused himself to the bathroom to text Xu Ping, Sun Hui, and the others, saying something came up and he couldn't make it tonight, suggesting they find another time to hang out. He also sent a message to Yue Yao, telling her he wouldn't be back tonight and she should rest on her own. — Vote for Monthly Pass

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