A wave of bitterness welled up in Chen Nan's heart upon hearing this.
He had promised Xia Youwei that once he established himself in Tongcheng, he would return to Pingyang Town and marry her with a grand procession.
Who would have thought that after their parting that day, their identities would have undergone such a significant transformation upon their reunion?
Since he was already here, he might as well face it head-on.
With this thought, he turned to face Xia Youwei.
The instant their eyes met, Chen Nan's heart was filled with a myriad of emotions.
The last time they met, they were still entangled in each other's arms.
And now...
She was about to become his mother-in-law.
Fate indeed played cruel tricks!
However,
He keenly noticed that Xia Youwei's eyes held only curiosity when she looked at him.
It was as if she were appraising a stranger.
As if they had never known each other.
This was perhaps for the best.
It saved him from any awkwardness.
With this in mind, he bowed to Xia Youwei, "Your humble son-in-law, Chen Nan, pays his respects to Mother-in-law."
Xia Youwei nodded slightly, acknowledging his greeting. Then, her pleasant voice chimed, "I had heard before that the Leng family had a talented and virtuous son-in-law. Seeing you today, you are indeed young and promising."
"I will trouble our son-in-law to take care of our wedding tomorrow."
Chen Nan replied humbly, "This is merely my duty as a junior."
"My dear, quickly come and try the grapes I had prepared for you," Leng Xuemin interjected, changing the subject. "These are from Changgou, a specialty of our Tongcheng."
"I love grapes the most," Xia Youwei said with a smile, sitting down beside him. She picked up a grape from the table and ate it with obvious enjoyment.
Leng Xuemin looked at Chen Nan, "Son-in-law, I have also arranged for some grapes to be sent to your place later."
"Thank you, Father-in-law. If there is nothing else, this humble son-in-law will take his leave." Chen Nan said politely and then withdrew from the front hall.
However,
A huge question arose in his mind.
He had spent five years with Xia Youwei.
In his memory, Xia Youwei did not eat grapes.
No.
To be precise, she was allergic to grapes.
Eating grapes would cause her diarrhea and a full body rash.
But Xia Youwei had just eaten grapes with gusto.
This was very strange.
As a doctor, he knew this was an issue of allergens,
A seemingly incurable condition.
Also,
Did she truly not recognize him?
Or was she pretending not to?
If he hadn't handled Zhang Mingquan's case earlier, he wouldn't have thought much of it.
But at this moment,
He had a premonition.
The Xia Youwei before him might not be the woman who clung to him day in and day out as he remembered.
Thinking this,
He turned his gaze towards the woman nestled in Leng Xuemin's embrace in the living room.
A faint yellow demonic energy appeared in his eyes.
His heart skipped a beat.
An ominous premonition surged through him.
He knew.
The real Xia Youwei had likely met with misfortune.
The person before him was a demon in disguise.
Although she looked exactly like Xia Youwei,
She did not possess Xia Youwei's memories.
Nor did she know Xia Youwei's personality or preferences.
Honestly,
If Leng Xuemin had found a demon who had transformed into a human, he wouldn't have dwelled on it.
After all, true love could transcend species.
As long as the other party was devoted to Leng Xuemin, that would be enough.
But now...
It was clear.
This demon was not benevolent.
If she were benevolent, why would she have disguised herself as Xia Youwei?
'Why did this woman infiltrate the Leng family?'
'Did she simply want to use the Leng family to gain wealth and then cultivate?'
With a demon suddenly in the house,
Chen Nan felt as though he were walking on thorns.
Although he wanted to tell Leng Qingmei about this,
He knew that even if he did, Leng Qingmei would not believe him.
Given the circumstances,
He could only take it one step at a time.
His first priority was to understand 'Xia Youwei's' intentions for infiltrating the Leng family.
If her intentions were malicious, then he would have to find a way to eliminate her.
Before that,
He had to improve his cultivation.
Reach the Yin Gathering realm as soon as possible.
Only then could he contend with her.
Only then could he avenge Xia Youwei!
------
The next day.
Leng Xuemin's wedding proceeded as planned.
As he had already reached the age of sixty.
The Leng family's wedding was not a lavish affair.
Only a few tables were set for relatives, providing an opportunity for reunion and merriment.
Although the other five major families sent people to present gifts,
Except for the portion from the Chen family, the gifts from the other four families were all returned by the Leng family.
Chen Nan busied himself, and after two days, he was more exhausted than the groom.
Fortunately, the wedding was successfully held.
After the feast,
Chen Nan returned to the backyard.
He continued with his medicinal baths.
However,
This time, the dosage was increased by tenfold.
After the medicinal bath,
He lay on his bed and slept soundly.
He was only woken up the next morning by Song Ziwei.
"Young master, the butler just came and asked you to come to the front for breakfast."
The Leng family had just welcomed a new bride.
It was fitting for the family to gather for breakfast.
He changed into a clean brocade robe and then proceeded to the Leng family's dining room.
It was ironic,
This was his first time eating in the dining room since coming to the Leng family.
"You worked very hard yesterday, my son-in-law," Xia Youwei said, wearing a red wedding gown, her tone full of politeness. A captivating gleam flickered in her eyes.
"This is merely my duty as your son-in-law." Chen Nan was panicking internally.
Did this demon have designs on him?
Chen Nan was a little scared.
Let alone her being a demon,
Even if she were the real Xia Youwei, he wouldn't fool around with her.
After all, their identities had changed.
As a son-in-law, how could he fool around with his mother-in-law?
That would invite divine retribution.
This matter.
Leng Xuemin, his face haggard but his spirit seemingly invigorated, walked over.
Chen Nan quickly paid his respects.
But a sense of foreboding washed over him.
Leng Xuemin was already in his sixties, and now marrying a beautiful young wife, he was surely going to be overwhelmed physically.
If this continued, his body would be drained in no time.
"Son-in-law, I have decided to give you a fabric shop to manage," Leng Xuemin suddenly said during breakfast.
The Leng family's main business was in fabrics.
Frankly speaking, the Leng family had a near monopoly on the fabric business in Tongcheng.
In addition to this, they owned two large dyeing factories.
Before Chen Nan became a constable,
He had also proposed working in the fabric business, contributing in his own way.
Not for any other reason, but to hold his head up high.
However, he was ruthlessly rejected by Leng Xuemin: You're just an illegitimate child, what do you know about business?
And now,
He was proactively suggesting handing over a fabric shop for Chen Nan to manage.
This person's heart is truly as deep as the sea.
It cannot be pondered too deeply!
He said with a look of apology, "Thank you for your kind offer, Father-in-law. As I am now a public servant, I probably won't have much energy to invest in the fabric business."
"To avoid affecting the fabric business, I implore Father-in-law to retract your command."
Leng Xuemin said dismissively, "It's just a fabric shop. Even if it loses money, how much can it lose?"
At this moment,
A Leng family guard ran over quickly. He greeted Leng Xuemin and then looked at Chen Nan, "Young Master-in-law, there's a constable named Song Yunfei outside asking for you. He said it's a matter of life and death."