Chapter 24: So Angry I Could Stomp a Hole in the Floor

“Xiao Li, come with me to the market later.”

“Getting older, my hands and feet aren’t as nimble anymore.”

“You can help me carry things, no problem, right?”

Hearing this, Li Beichen, who had just withdrawn his gaze, nodded seriously. “No problem, Uncle. Just wait a moment.”

“I’ll be quick!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he headed toward the room where Shen Junkai had disappeared.

Not long after, he came out with a neatly folded set of clothes and went into the bathroom.

In just fifteen minutes, when he reappeared, his entire image had completely changed.

Besides the improvement in his overall demeanor, his outfit—a loose T-shirt and dad jeans—was also quite flattering.

Noticing the flash of admiration in someone’s eyes, the corners of his lips unconsciously lifted slightly as he greeted Shen Guozhong. “Uncle, I’m ready. Let’s go.”

“Since we’re going to the market, should we bring a shopping basket?”

Hearing this, Shen Guozhong, who had been momentarily dazzled, composed himself and pointed toward the kitchen.

“There’s one behind the kitchen door. Go get it.”

“Take the biggest one. The smaller ones can’t hold much.”

Li Beichen gave an “Mm” in response and followed the aroma of chicken soup to the kitchen.

After the future father-in-law and son-in-law left the house one after the other, Shen Junkai, who had been lying lifelessly on the sofa, suddenly sat bolt upright.

“Little sister, your taste is surprisingly good.”

“On the way here, Dad and I took turns testing him, but he passed all our challenges with ease.”

“But why am I still so unwilling to accept it?”

Hearing this, Deng Yaxin was the first to respond with a smile.

“You and your dad were just too impatient.”

“Comrade Xiao Li hadn’t even said anything yet, and the two of you couldn’t help but jump out.”

“What if he came to our house not to talk about things with your little sister?”

“Impossible!” Shen Junkai shook his head in strong disagreement.

“If he didn’t come for that, why would he bring so many expensive gifts?”

“Leaving aside everything else, just the cigarettes and alcohol on the table aren’t something ordinary people can buy even if they want to.”

Deng Yaxin wasn’t familiar with such things, so hearing her son say this piqued her interest.

“What’s so special about cigarettes and alcohol?”

“Isn’t it just a matter of price?”

Knowing his mother usually didn’t pay attention to such things, Shen Junkai patiently explained.

“Mom, you don’t understand.”

“The cigarettes and alcohol sold on the market aren’t anything special. Ordinary people can save up their pocket money to buy them.”

“But what your ‘Comrade Xiao Li’ brought are all specially supplied cigarettes and alcohol.”

“Not to mention someone at Dad’s level, even their factory director might not have access to them.”

As he stated this conclusion, he pointed upward with his finger.

It took Deng Yaxin a while to process this before she understood the meaning behind her son’s words.

This meant that Comrade Xiao Li had quite a background!

After all, those were specially supplied cigarettes and alcohol. Just the word “specially supplied” already placed them far above the rest.

Once she figured this out, Deng Yaxin pulled Shen Yi’an to sit on the sofa.

“Sweetie, what is Comrade Xiao Li’s background?”

“Mom doesn’t need to know all the details. I’m mainly worried about you.”

“What if his family has some powerful elders? I’m afraid you might suffer if you marry into such a family.”

Meeting her mother’s worried gaze and noticing her fourth brother’s unconsciously curled fingers, Shen Yi’an knew some things had to be clarified.

If her family remained unaware, she would lose the initiative when communicating with Li Beichen later.

With this thought, she briefly explained what she knew.

After hearing her account, Deng Yaxin and Shen Junkai were momentarily speechless.

Good heavens—what an illustrious family background!

His grandfather was a founding father of the nation!

Both parents served in the military, and from the sound of it, held high-ranking positions!

His three older brothers were respectively in business, the military, and politics!

Even he himself was an Air Force pilot!

But with such a family background, how did their little girl (younger sister) ever get to know him?

They belonged to completely different social strata—no matter how hard they racked their brains, they couldn’t fathom how their paths could have crossed.

“Younger sister, ahem!”

Perhaps startled by what he’d heard, Shen Junkai’s voice initially sounded unsteady.

“Well… how did you come to know someone like that?”

“Even if Fourth Brother scratched his head bald, he couldn’t figure out how you two might have met.”

“You’re in school, he’s in the military—by all logic, there should be zero chance for your paths to cross!”

By the end, his tone carried clear frustration.

If their younger sister married into such a family and ever faced mistreatment, their own family likely wouldn’t even be able to enter the military compound to stand up for her.

Not just Shen Junkai—even Deng Yaxin, having collected herself, felt utterly speechless.

If the prospective son-in-law were an ordinary person, even from a slightly more prominent family, they as the bride’s family could still hold their ground.

But when the family status far exceeded their wildest imagination, the considerations multiplied.

Hearing Shen Junkai’s bewilderment, she nodded in firm agreement.

“Darling, your Fourth Brother is right.”

“Comrade Li’s family background is simply too exceptional. How exactly did you two meet?”

“We need to understand the situation so we can communicate confidently during dinner tonight.”

Faced with her mother and fourth brother’s shared confusion, Shen Yi’an didn’t want to trouble them with her conflicts involving Yin Qingqing.

After some thought, she crafted an alternative explanation: “Mom, Fourth Brother, actually… this was my fault.”

“Before returning home, our class had a farewell gathering. I drank about half a glass of beer.”

“Unexpectedly, it went to my head. On my way back from the restroom, I entered the wrong private room and accidentally… tackled someone…”

Her voice grew progressively softer, dwindling to a mosquito-like buzz by the end.

But both Deng Yaxin and Shen Junkai were worldly people, and neither was hard of hearing—they caught every word, even the barely audible ones.

The summary was:

Their daughter (younger sister) had behaved inappropriately while intoxicated and essentially assaulted Comrade Li.

To protect their daughter’s (younger sister’s) reputation, Comrade Li not only didn’t get angry but openly acknowledged their engagement in front of numerous witnesses.

His visit home with her served both as an introduction to her family and to convey his own family’s stance:

Their elders should arrange a suitable meeting to discuss marriage arrangements.

Realizing the situation, Shen Junkai flicked Shen Yi’an’s forehead with his knuckle.

“You little rascal, since when did Fourth Brother fail to notice your audacity?”

“Mom always scolds us brothers and Dad for getting arrogant after ‘drinking horse piss’.”

“But in my opinion, letting you drink is what truly invites unpredictable dangers.”

After finishing her rambling, she couldn’t resist adding a summary: “I even thought they had ill intentions, so I racked my brains coming up with ideas to make things difficult for them during dinner.”

“Now it seems your fourth brother misjudged the situation.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Deng Yaxin’s voice emerged, caught between laughter and exasperation.

“You silly girl, don’t you know your own constitution?”

“Someone whose face flushes for half a day after just a sip of soda actually had the nerve to drink beer.”

“If your father finds out, he’ll stomp a hole right through our floorboards.”

Seeing them angry yet not daring to scold her loudly, Shen Yi’an shrunk her neck sheepishly. “Mom, Fourth Brother, I really know I was wrong!”

“If I’d known I’d have such a strong reaction after getting drunk, I wouldn’t have dared drink beer even if you beat me to death.”

“Could you please keep this from Dad?”

“I’m really afraid it’ll be just like you said, Mom – that Dad would get so angry he’d stomp a hole through the floorboards.”