Chapter 174 - Mother-in-law's Consent

Shen Feng's family is not rich but they are known to be educated people, if they would be compared to an ancient family they would be family of scholars.

Though their living conditions are not as good as that of overly rich people, they could still be considered as a family above average. They could eat well and have enough to buy a little bit of their luxuries so they are not poor.

When he was young, Shen Feng really didn't bother with this obvious division in the society but then again as if the world is playing with him, he fell in love with a daughter of a rich family. That was a situation he never imagined himself into.

To cut the long story short, he eventually fell in love with Xi Wei who was an heiress of one of the Nine Noble Families in the country and obviously, she is beyond his reach.

With the difference in their social standing, it is normal to think that he would not be accepted by Xi Wei's family and he already prepared himself for the worst but surprisingly, they did not experience the scenarios from dramas and novels where the parent of the rich woman, would pay the man with money just to drive him away, there was no such thing in their relationship.

His father-in-law readily accepted him before and he is really good to him which eventually put Shen Feng at ease. But, there was one problem, the Xi Famil has no direct heir to carry the famil name.

Xi Wei's mother died when she was still young but his father-in-law never remarried after the death of his wife and they only had Xi Wei has their child. This is also one of the reasons why he was accepted easily, because for his father-in-law as long as Xi Wei is happy everything is fine.

When they were already engaged, his father-in-law talked to him that if ever they had a son he would adopt his eldest grandson in name just to have him carry the family name but the child would of course still be their son and there would be no difference with that but Shen Feng refused.

Shen Feng didn't agree because he felt that it might have an impact on the child when he grew up, that is why he suggested that he is willing to marry 'into' the Xi Family instead. This type of marriage is usually known as ruzhui marriage. In this day and age, a ruzhui marriage might be something unusual but Shen Feng really didn't care.

People might think that there was no difference with the previous suggestion of his father-in-law but there is a big difference. If he agreed, in paper they would not be his son's parents anymore and he would instead be a sister to his mother but with his suggestion, they are still the parents of their children be it in real life or in paper.

It is not like he didn't believe that it is the man's right to have his surname carried by his children but he loved Xi Wei so much that he is more than willing to give up this right to have a harmonious life with her. For him, this matter is really not a big deal because the fact that they will be married and they have the right to look forward to a bright future together remains a fact.

He was not forced to do it so there was no hard feelings on his part.

Furthermore, he still has his brothers to carry their family name so for him it was not a problem whether his children would have his surname or their mother's, as long as they are living happily as a family then there is no problem at all.

"Did Father, even once, regret that decision?" Shen Feng obviously know what Lim Yi Sheng meant so he smiled warmly as he answered without any second thoughts.

"Not once." in his entire life, he never felt that his decision was wrong and if he were to repeat his life, he would still come up with the same suggestion as he did before because he would not love anyone more tha he loved Xi Wei.

Lim Yi Sheng could see that the expression on his father-in-law's face shows no trace nor hint of regret, in fact there was an undisguised contentment on it. Ruzhui marriage is something that not all men could easily accept that is why Lim Yi Sheng really respects his father-in-law for taking the initiative to suggest it.

"Ana and Xiao Chen are both blessed to have a father like you." this is not simply a word of mouth because he really meant it and he was also glad to have known his father-in-law better.

This conversation really deepened the relationship between the two which is not a bad thing at all.

"Since we are already talking about things that happened in the past, there is something you might find really interesting. I don't know if you still remember it but you've met Ana's mother once."

This short sentence dispelled the melancholic atmosphere that lingered a while ago.

"I already met mother-in-law before?" he wouldn't even be surprised if he looks really puzzled right now because he does not have any recollection of that thing happening.

Is it possible that they've really met before?

"It's not surprising that you might not remember it anymore because you were only three years old back then. That time, there was a high ranking official that sent out invitations because his mother is celebrating her centennial birthday. It was a glamourous and luxurious banquet that almost all the important figures in City A attended and even the wealthiest families has family members attend to be their representatives."

It is not a surprise that events like this is already existing before because this is what people se to gather connections even in the earliest of times.

On the other hand, Lim Yi Sheng tried to recall that moment but all he can remember was the banquet not encountering Xi Wei. That banquet was deeply engraved in his mind because that was the first official banquet he had attended and his family has put great importance on it. As for the specific things that happened back then, he really can't remember much of it.

Shen Feng continued his story, "You were there with your mother as the representatives of the Lim Family while Wei'er and I attended as the representatives of the Xi Family. At the banquet, we sat on the same table and Wei'er immediately thought you were cute with your short legs and chubby cheeks."

Being described as such made Lim Yi Sheng redden in embarrassment. He is already a healthy, grown up man who is happily married to a beautiful wife, such descriptions even if it was his three years old self it is still embarrassing to hear it at this age! But of course, he would not dare say that at all in front of his own father-in-law.

"The two of you got along really well and I remembered that even though you are only three years old, you are already good at speaking and have good manners at the same time that's why Wei'er was really fond of you the entire time."

Shen Feng paused from speaking and a smile escaped from his mouth. This genuine smile was seen by Lim Yi Sheng and he can't help but follow suit. "That time, Wei'er is still pregnant with Ana and you know what she said to you before we parted with you and your mother?"

As he was saying those words, it is as if he was looking at a distant place."Her words were, 'if you became an ȧduŀt, you have to promise auntie that you would marry the baby in auntie's wȯmb okay?' I don't know if you truly understand it before but you actually agreed which made Wei'er delighted until we got home from the banquet."

Hearing this story, Lim Yi Sheng also feel secretly delighted to have such a connection with Xi Ana even though he can't exactly remember that moment, he is still happy that when he was still a kid he already obtained the consent of his mother-in-law in marrying his wife now.

That is actually one of the regrets he has in life, that he was not able to ask for his wife's hand from her parents like how a man should do. Even though those were merely words to a child and not necessarily carries weight, he is still happy.

"The me that time would have already realized that I would indeed marry Ana in the future."

Meeting Xi Ana and marrying her was never in his plan but it eventually happened.

From the moment he learnt of the existence of light novels, he never believed in their cliches but now that he's personally experiecing it he realized that these cliches could actually brighten up someone's mood.