Classmate Li Zhuangsheng doesn’t want to be reborn

"You, what are you doing here?" Hu Mengdie asked instinctively.

"Mengdie, what are you saying? We've invited you two home for dinner today!" Hu's mother came out and gave Hu Mengdie a reproachful look, then smiled at Li Zhuangsheng and said, "Please sit for a while, it will be ready soon!"

Li Zhuangsheng sat respectfully, his hands always on his thighs, not daring to pick up his phone, and just gave Hu Mengdie an awkward smile.

He knew, of course, that Hu Mengdie didn't want him to come, but there was nothing he could do; it wasn't his own choice to come either.

Li Xiuyu, on the other hand, seemed completely unconcerned, sitting next to Li Zhuangsheng and playing on her phone. Li Zhuangsheng glanced at her, secretly admiring Li Xiuyu's thick skin.

The Hu family hadn't invited Li Xiuyu, so the somewhat socially awkward Li Zhuangsheng was still struggling with how to explain things to the Hu family parents on the way. But Li Xiuyu was confident; after dropping Li Zhuangsheng off at the Hu family home, she had the following conversation with Hu's mother:
Mother Hu: [Haha, did my sister bring her here?]

Li Xiuyu: [Hmm.]

Mother Hu: [Why don't you come in and have something to eat with us?]

Li Xiuyu: [Okay.]

Mother Hu: [...]

Even Li Zhuangsheng could tell that Hu's mother was just being polite, but Li Xiuyu agreed so openly.

However, thanks to her thick skin, Li Zhuangsheng didn't have to explain himself.

Hu Mengdie stared at Li Zhuangsheng in disbelief, while Li Zhuangsheng could only manage an awkward laugh. At that moment, his initial anticipation vanished, replaced by a wave of betrayal.

She bit her lip, ignored Li Zhuangsheng, turned around and went back to her room, slamming the door shut.

"What's going on? Why did you go straight to your room as soon as you got back?"

Mr. Hu, who was sitting on the sofa watching TV, was instantly angered upon seeing this and immediately stood up.

"It's alright, it's alright, Uncle, let's watch TV, let's watch TV!" Li Zhuangsheng quickly grabbed Hu's father's arm, his face full of smiles.

"Oh no, please, don't start a fight right away!" Li Zhuangsheng exclaimed, sweat beading on his forehead. The worst thing about visiting someone's home is when they start arguing first.

Pulled back by Li Zhuangsheng, Hu's father wasn't angry. He sat down again, sighed, and said, "You've spoiled her rotten!"

Li Zhuangsheng didn't know what to say, but seeing that Hu's father didn't seem to have any intention of arguing with Hu Mengdie, he breathed a sigh of relief and smiled broadly.

"Zhuang Sheng, don't be nervous, this is your own home." Seeing how nervous Li Zhuang Sheng was, Hu's father smiled and said, "We don't have any other children in our family, they will all be yours in the future."

"Ah, no need, no need..." Li Zhuangsheng subconsciously waved his hand, feeling guilty.

Upon hearing this, Mr. Hu simply laughed: "Hahaha, you, you're exactly the same."

Li Zhuangsheng laughed awkwardly: "What do you mean, exactly the same?"

"Just like when you first came, you were just as nervous back then," Mr. Hu said with a smile, recalling Li Zhuangsheng's first visit.

Was I very nervous at that time?

“You were even more nervous than you are now. Back then, you didn’t dare to breathe. Your mother and I were secretly laughing at you! Oh, right, you were sitting in this very spot back then!” Li Zhuangsheng’s expression was inscrutable. The “mother” the other person was referring to was naturally Hu’s mother.

He could clearly see that Mr. and Mrs. Hu treated him very well and highly approved of him as their son-in-law, which made him feel somewhat heavy-hearted and increasingly guilty towards his in-laws. He was truly restless.

Not only did he plan to divorce their eldest daughter, but he also slept with their youngest daughter. He's worse than an animal!
Li Zhuangsheng could guess that the reason they invited him and Hu Mengdie home for dinner today was probably because they hoped the two of them could nurture their relationship more. But what could he do now that things had come to this?
Fortunately, this time Li Zhuangsheng felt he was on the side of justice.

Li Zhuangsheng tilted his buttocks to one side, thinking to himself that he had sat here not long ago. What was he thinking back then, or rather, what was he thinking in the future?

Did he know everything? Why did he make that choice?

Did he regret it at all?

"You can watch TV for now. I'm going to talk to Mengdie about something." Hu's father stood up and, seeing that Li Zhuangsheng looked a little nervous, patted Li Zhuangsheng on the shoulder. "Don't be afraid, I'm not going to argue with her."

Li Zhuangsheng sat down again, watching with some worry as Hu's father walked into Hu Mengdie's room, but there was nothing he could do at the moment.

"Don't panic, what are you afraid of? Your status in their family is much higher than your wife's sister-in-law!" Li Xiuyu sneered lightly.

"Don't talk nonsense..." Li Zhuangsheng took out his phone and glanced at it. There was no one else in the living room, so he finally dared to take it out.

"I'm not making this up, little emperor. Do you know that you're the little emperor of this family? Don't you see that your in-laws listen to you?"

Li Zhuangsheng rolled his eyes at her: "Have you been here before?"

Li Xiuyu said calmly, "You came once for your wedding, but today is the first time you've officially come as a guest."

"You're not even familiar with them, so what nonsense are you spouting?"

“They favor sons over daughters, but they don’t have a son. In their hearts, you are their son. Do you understand the feeling of having a child late in life? So theoretically, you can be lawless in this family, and they might even happily agree to take Hu Mengdie and Hu Mengke as their own.”

Li Zhuangsheng quickly covered Li Xiuyu's mouth: "Keep your voice down, don't talk nonsense, or someone will hear you!"

He didn't quite believe the Hu family's claim of favoring boys over girls, because even he knew that Hu Mengdie had attended dance classes since she was little, so she had a background in dance. If they favored boys, would they send their child to dance classes? Besides, Li Zhuangsheng also knew that Hu Mengdie always went to and from school in a private car; he had seen it many times. If the family didn't value girls, why would they drive her around in a car?
Li Xiuyu pried Li Zhuangsheng's hand away and smiled inexplicably: "Believe it or not, it's up to you. Anyway, I only heard about it from others."

"Who did you listen to?"

"I overheard your father-in-law and dad talking, and some friends also told me."

Ever since Li Xiuyu learned of Li Zhuangsheng and Hu Mengdie's relationship, she had been gathering information about the Hu family. Li Xiuyu didn't have many "friends," but her "friends'" friends had many friends.

She also learned that the Hu family had no son, which had always been a regret for the couple.

"I thought you heard it from me personally..." Li Zhuangsheng scoffed, thinking that Li Xiuyu must have just heard it from others.

"How could you tell me this? After all these years, I only just found out you've been hiding this all along!" Li Xiuyu gritted her teeth. "You were deliberately keeping it from me when you were with Hu Mengdie, and only told me after you'd been talking for days! If you had told me earlier so I could oversee things, would things be like this today?"

What a convincing actor! I actually believed your lies, met Hu Mengdie, and was willing to get married and happily paid the bride price! You've fooled yourself and even deceived me!

Li Zhuangsheng was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself, "What's the use of your oversight... This isn't about whether you oversee it or not!" (End of Chapter)