"After meeting your parents, they'll definitely ask us when we're getting engaged, when we're getting married, so how should I answer them?"

"That's not my problem. You come up with an excuse, I can't help you." Zhou Mengdie dodged.

"Really? What if I just tell your parents the truth, that I can't marry you." Yi Anguo said with a bitter smile.

"Sure, if you say that, my parents will immediately set me up on blind dates and marry me off, as long as you're okay with me marrying another man." Zhou Mengdie threatened.

"That's not acceptable! You promised me before, that even if I can't marry you in this lifetime, you'll be my woman forever. You can't go back on your word." Yi Anguo said anxiously.

"Why are you intentionally provoking me? You know you can't tell my parents the truth, yet you said that on purpose. Are you trying to make me angry?" Zhou Mengdie said, fuming.

"I'm just nervous, that's all. I'm a bit scared to meet your parents." Yi Anguo explained.

"Well, you can't avoid meeting them. Let's just meet them first and see how it goes. Let's delay as much as we can." Zhou Mengdie said.

"What if we can't delay it? What then?" Yi Anguo asked again.

"Don't worry! There's nothing we can't delay. I'll help you handle it when the time comes." Zhou Mengdie said helplessly.

"Haha! That's more like it." Yi Anguo said, feeling reassured.

The two of them decided on a time to go to Zhou Mengdie's home. Her parents were already waiting at home, knowing she was bringing her boyfriend over.

Yi Anguo was always low-key, and neither his children nor his women had ever publicly disclosed their relationships with him, so outsiders weren't aware that he had several women and children.

Although Zhou Mengdie's parents knew that her boyfriend had other women before and several children, their daughter had already told them about it.

But she also assured them that he had never been married, so her parents could reluctantly accept it.

It's not even about whether he's been married before; even if he had and was divorced, it wouldn't be a big issue.

They're not conservative thinkers, after all. As long as he truly loves their daughter, and she's fond of him, they have to accept it.

They also knew that their daughter's boyfriend was wealthy, being the owner of the Anguo Group. Zhou Mengdie had been given significant responsibilities, so in reality, it was more of their daughter marrying up.

Despite this, they believed that their daughter was with Yi Anguo because of love, not money.

The same went for them. Although their family wasn't ultra-wealthy, they were quite well-off, never having to worry about basic needs. They owned twenty properties, collecting rent that amounted to seven to eight hundred thousand yuan a year.

"Anguo! Since you both like each other and are already together, when are you planning to get engaged? Or just get married directly?"

After some pleasant conversations, Zhou Mengdie's father, very satisfied with Yi Anguo's performance as a future son-in-law, asked directly.

The question Yi Anguo dreaded the most came up, and he didn't know how to answer it. Zhou Mengdie smiled and said to her father,

"Dad! Anguo's very busy every day now, and my work isn't easy either. Once we're free, we'll just go abroad for a wedding trip. Getting engaged is too much hassle!"

"There's no issue with getting married during a trip abroad, as you'll need a honeymoon anyway. But even if you do, you'll need a wedding feast when you're back in the country." Zhou Mengdie's dad said.

"Such a big event like a wedding, you can't not invite friends and family to your wedding!"

"Otherwise, your grandparents, uncles, aunts, and other relatives won't agree either."

"We'll just let them know then, get everyone together for a meal. We don't need to make it a big deal. Apart from immediate family, there's no need to invite others." Zhou Mengdie said plainly.

Yi Anguo felt things were getting a bit out of control. Why were they directly discussing marriage?

But given the situation, he couldn't oppose it outright and had to wait to privately ask Zhou Mengdie what she meant.

Once the meeting ended, Zhou Mengdie saw Yi Anguo off, and as soon as they got in the car, he asked her what was going on, why she agreed with her parents that they're preparing to get married.

Zhou Mengdie said helplessly: "What else should I do if I don't agree? Should I tell them that we can't get married?"

"Let's just agree for now and deal with it later. Eventually, we'll find a way, everything will sort itself out!"

"But we can't delay forever! They'll find out sooner or later." Yi Anguo said.

"We'll see when they find out! If it really doesn't work, we can have a fake marriage. As long as we can fool my parents." Zhou Mengdie said.

"A fake marriage? If your parents find out, won't it be more trouble?" Yi Anguo frowned.

"Then what do you suggest? Anyway, it'll be troublesome no matter what." Zhou Mengdie said.

"It's all your fault for being such a player, why did you get involved with so many women if you can't take responsibility?"

Yi Anguo: "..."

Is this my fault? Wasn't it you who insisted on being with me?

I clearly told you that I have a few women and a few children, you knew all of this.

But you wouldn't listen, you threw yourself into it, and now you're blaming me.

All Yi Anguo could do was think to himself, without actually saying it aloud, so as not to hurt Zhou Mengdie's feelings.

A young and beautiful girl followed him without hesitation, and for him to say such cold words would be heartless.

Besides, as a man, he should have the ability to solve problems when they arise, not push all the responsibility onto a woman.

"If worst comes to worst, you can have a child first, then we'll pretend to have relationship issues. Your parents can't force us to get married, right?" Yi Anguo thought and suggested.

"They won't force us to marry, but can't they force me to go on dates and marry someone else?" Zhou Mengdie retorted.

"Then just refuse when the time comes." Yi Anguo said.

"If it really doesn't work, we'll pretend our relationship is back on track."

"Then when they push us to get married, we'll pretend to have issues again."

"Alright! It's so annoying, we'll figure it out later! What's the use of talking so much now?" Zhou Mengdie said.

Yi Anguo knew it was pointless, so he didn't say more.

When he returned home, Hu Jing was sitting on the sofa in the living room, watching the news on CCTV, occasionally wiping away tears.

"What's going on? Why are you crying while watching TV?" Yi Anguo sat down next to Hu Jing and put his arm around her.

"It's just so hard for the kids in those places to go to school, so young and they have to use a zip line to cross the river to get to school, one wrong move and they could fall into the river and die."

Hu Jing watched the news footage of children using the zip line dangerously and said, unknowingly feeling anxious.

"I really want to help them, donate some money to build a bridge so they don't have to cross the river dangerously."

"And, these kids' families are so poor. Look at the shoes they wear in winter, their toes are exposed."

"Their clothes are so worn out, full of patches, and they don't eat well, all malnourished, thin and haggard."

"I want to help them, at least ensure they have a full meal, wear warm new shoes in winter, and have a set of warm new clothes."

"If you want to help, then help! Building a bridge should cost a few million, building a hope primary school, buying shoes and clothes for the students shouldn't cost much either?" Yi Anguo said.

"However, if you donate, how much of the money actually reaches those in need is uncertain."

"Doing it yourself would take a lot of time and effort."

"And if you want to build a bridge or a school, you'd need support from local authorities, you can't build them just because you want to."

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