Chapter 542 - It's Not Easy Being a Son-In-Law

and other cousins' children, we won't elaborate on them here. Each mega aristocratic family has some outstanding offspring but also some good-for-nothing wastrels; this is a rule.Su Manman was still...Chapter 542: It's Not Easy to Be a Son-in-Law

Every time he went to visit his mother-in-law’s home, Ning Yuan felt very depressed. However, there was nothing he could do about it; with such an unreasonable mother-in-law, he had no choice but to be extra careful and serve her well. Every time he visited their house, he would sweep the floor and clean up after meals, yet his mother-in-law never gave him a kind look.

Ning Yuan's family was not wealthy; his father worked in an office that didn't offer any financial benefits. Ning Yuan himself was just a low-level civil servant with a monthly income of only over three thousand yuan, and there were no additional welfare benefits to speak of. With such limited household income, they struggled for a long time before finally buying a small apartment, without even having the money to decorate it.

The last time Wang Zheng lent Ning Jia ten thousand yuan, Ning Yuan was able to do some basic renovations on their home. The remaining few tens of thousands of yuan were spent on household appliances.

Ning Yuan knew that this money had been borrowed from his sister; for a family like theirs, borrowing ten thousand yuan was quite a heavy burden. Even if he stopped eating and drinking to save every penny, Ning Yuan would still need two or three years to repay the loan, not to mention the mortgage on their house, which weighed heavily on him.

To please his mother-in-law, Ning Yuan only put Tian Jing's name on the property deed.

Therefore, whenever his mother-in-law spoke up, Ning Yuan would feel a chill run through him. This was not a good situation; this mother-in-law was simply too hard to please. If it were anyone else, they would have long given up and walked away, but because of how deeply he cared for Tian Jing, Ning Yuan had persevered until now. It seemed that today Tian Jing wasn't in a good mood again, most likely due to his mother-in-law's complaints behind the scenes.

"My dad and mom felt envious today when they saw the neighbor's daughter get married. The groom has a car, a house, and no loans, which made them feel unbalanced," Tian Jing sighed. She was helpless towards such materialistic parents, but despite their shallowness, they still cared deeply for her; ultimately, they just wanted her to have a good marriage so she could live a better life. Their intentions were not wrong, though they had fallen into a competitive mindset.

When Ning Yuan heard this, he remained silent. Indeed, on such topics, he found it impossible to respond confidently in a society that openly values money. Any person with a car and a house could easily outshine him; his prestigious university diploma was meaningless in comparison.

Ning Yuan sighed deeply, completely oblivious to the pork belly in the oven turning almost burnt.

He recalled his college admission back then, as the top student in his high school. Although he made a mistake with his university application and ended up at a rank twenty-something institution, it was still quite impressive at the time. Neighbors congratulated them, and his parents beamed with joy. Back then, Ning Yuan was their pride.

Yes, back then, Ning Yuan believed he had a bright future ahead of him. He never considered classmates who didn't attend college or only got into second- or third-tier universities as rivals.

Reality, however, was harsh. Reality slapped him in the face when he graduated and found that many classmates with mediocre grades were already driving nice cars, married, and some even had children.

Though Ning Yuan's starting point was high, it couldn't be denied that his career began several years later than others. The higher one’s education level, the narrower their job options; for someone like Ning Yuan from a prestigious university, asking him to sell street goods or work as a deliveryman was unimaginable. So, he followed his father's advice and joined the ranks of civil servants.

Fortunately, Ning Yuan passed the exam on his first try, but he had to start from the lowest level as a clerk in the township government. Because of the lack of connections at home, after several years, he was still just an officer. With such fierce competition and no money to grease palms, it seemed almost impossible for him to be promoted to deputy section chief anytime soon.

Tian Jing sighed softly and said, "My parents mentioned today that since you've bought the house and finished decorating it, in theory we should get married now. But there's still one thing missing: a car. They feel this would make them lose face."

"A car," Ning Yuan sighed. "How can I afford that I even borrowed money for the renovation."

"My mom said it shouldn't be you who buys it, but your family should provide one," Tian Jing whispered.

Ning Yuan's voice was filled with helplessness and a hint of anger. Anyone would feel unhappy dealing with such an insatiable mother-in-law-to-be. Comparisons know no bounds; always aspiring for more is futile, people ought to be content with what they have.

This was the first time Ning Xia heard her brother's conversation with his wife. Her pretty face clouded over in gloom when she saw how difficult things were for him and felt a twinge of sadness in her heart as well; her eyes were already red-rimmed.

"My dad also said that if we can't afford the car, then getting promoted to deputy section chief would be acceptable too. That way they won't lose face when talking about it," Tian Jing whispered again. "In front of me, they always talk about how well off my sisters-in-law are, and compare...

Tian Jing has three sisters, and each of them is married well - though "well" here simply means that their husbands' families are wealthy. One of her sister's husband is a former junior high school classmate of Ning Yuan. This guy didn't step into any educational institution after finishing junior high; he's been struggling in society for all these years, and has surprisingly become the owner of one of the biggest restaurants in Pei Zhou City, driving cars worth hundreds of thousands of yuan like Audi A6L.

Upon hearing this, Ning Yuan helplessly said, "If I want to be promoted to a deputy section chief position, at least another three years."

Tian Jing used her chopsticks to push around the grilled meat on the grill plate and said, "You need to convince them."

Ning Yuan put down his chopsticks and looked at Tian Jing, saying earnestly, "Not only do I have to talk about it, you communicating this would be more effective."

"I won't go. I just convey your intention, if there's any communication needed, you should be the one going," Tian Jing said unhappily.

"My strength alone isn’t enough; at least you need to accompany me." Ning Yuan was really puzzled why Tian Jing always failed to understand this issue. Every time when it came to communicating with her parents, he had to take on the task himself. Did she not know that difficulties needed both people to tackle them together

Na Jia, who was eavesdropping nearby, also sighed softly and whispered to Wang Zheng, "I truly don’t understand what’s so good about this Tian Jing; how can she be worthy of my brother."r, which is unprecedented in China. Are you worried about that" Miss Secretary Xia shot her subordinate an irritated glance.In the interrogation room,Just as Zhao Pinghai was about to kick Wang Zheng,...