Chapter 41: It was just the same old routine from the QQ Hotel; he knew it like the back of his hand.

"Are you folks not from around here? Are you visiting Su City?"

The man approached Chen Mengting with a confident air, while his female companion made no effort to hide the look of disgust on her face.

"Oppa, why are you talking to these hillbillies?"

"Hey, we're all out having fun; it’s only right to help each other out."

Chen Mengting rolled her eyes. As expected, no matter where you go, the way men try to pick up women never changes. First, they show off their own status—in school, it’s being the basketball captain or student council president; in the professional world, it’s naturally wealth and social standing.

For the next few minutes, the man vividly described how he had gone from a small-time contractor to owning his own "small" renovation company. The process was so arduous that it would move listeners to tears. And this year, after the project payments came through, he had bought himself the latest BMW 5 Series.

Chen Mengting didn't know much about cars, but she understood the price tag of "over 500,000 yuan on the road." As for his female companion, she played the part of the hype woman, praising him until the man’s head was almost in the clouds.

Chen Mengting had originally intended to ignore them, but her father, Old Chen, was a genuine social butterfly; within two sentences, he was chatting with the man quite happily. *Dad, please, have some sense! He’s trying to hit on your daughter right now!*

"Speak of the devil, my ride is here."

Old Chen looked in the direction the man pointed. "Is that the black SUV?"

The man’s mouth twitched, and he gave a sheepish laugh. "Hahaha, you really think highly of me, old brother! That’s a Cullinan; I couldn't afford it even if I sold myself. It’s the Jetta behind the Cullinan."

Company cars couldn't be too expensive; the main goal was for them to be functional.

"Oh," Old Chen immediately lost interest. After all that bragging, he only drove an old Jetta? Was he really a boss?

Old Chen’s skeptical gaze stung the man’s fragile ego. Just as he was about to explain, he saw the Cullinan pull up right in front of Old Chen. A woman, so beautiful that even the celebrities on television paled in comparison, stepped out of the passenger seat. Her first sentence completely fried the man's brain: "Mom, Dad, I’m here to pick you up."

Old Chen ignored the man and turned with a smile to greet his daughter-in-law. Chen Fan also stepped out to help put the luggage into the trunk. The Chens had brought quite a lot of things; if they hadn't come in the Cullinan, it might not have even fit.

The man stared blankly as this family happily climbed into the Cullinan. Even when his own ride pulled up and the driver called out to him, he didn't snap out of his daze. His companion stopped talking too, keeping her head down like an ostrich.

...

Peng Jiaxin was pulled into the backseat by the enthusiastic Mother Chen and Chen Mengting. She sat timidly between them, though with Chen Mengting there, Chen Fan didn't worry about the conversation drying up.

"Dad, what were you talking to that guy about just now?"

Old Chen was in the front passenger seat, touching this and that. "Oh, he was telling me about his rise to success. It was... very inspirational."

"Really?"

"You bet."

Up front, father and son chatted idly. Chen Mengting, sitting behind the passenger seat, couldn't help but roll her eyes when she heard Old Chen.

"Sister-in-law, that guy was just hitting on me. He already had his girlfriend in his arms and was still trying to flirt with me. What a scumbag!" Chen Mengting whispered into Peng Jiaxin's ear. "He was in the middle of bragging when he saw your Cullinan, and he just went silent. His expression changed eight times in a second; it was hilarious!"

Peng Jiaxin covered her mouth and giggled. "Is that so?"

"Yeah! Sister-in-law, how much did this car cost?"

"About six or seven million, I think?"

Peng Jiaxin took out a bottle of water and handed it to Mother Chen. Upon hearing this astronomical figure, Mother Chen almost dropped the water. Chen Mengting’s body stiffened, and she pulled her curious hands back to her lap. The mother and daughter moved in perfect unison, their posture shifting from relaxed to bolt-upright, sitting on the edge of their seats.

Peng Jiaxin didn't know what to do and looked to Chen Fan for help. Chen Fan was caught between laughter and tears.

"Mom, Sis, what are you doing?"

"Exactly," Old Chen said, leaning back in the passenger seat and closing his eyes comfortably. "Our son finally made something of himself and brought home such a wonderful daughter-in-law. If you don't enjoy it, you’re just trampling on his hard work!"

Chen Fan: "..." *Only you, Old Chen, could justify mooching off your daughter-in-law so righteously.*

"Hmm? Why is everyone quiet? Did I say something wrong?"

"No," Wang Juan said, rubbing her forehead with a sigh. "But please, just stop talking."

"Oh..." Old Chen realized his wife was a bit annoyed and wisely shut his mouth.

"I’m sorry, Jiaxin. My old man doesn't know how to talk."

"It's fine." Peng Jiaxin took the opportunity to pull Mother Chen back into a comfortable position, affectionately linking her arm. "Mom, since I'm married to Chen Fan, I'm practically half your daughter now. If you act like this, you're just treating me like an outsider."

Mother Chen looked at Peng Jiaxin with a beaming smile. "It's Mom who was wrong. Sorry, Jiaxin."

"Hehe~"

Chen Fan realized that Peng Jiaxin really had a way with the older generation. He secretly gave her a thumbs-up. Peng Jiaxin had no time to look away, as she was busy keeping Mother Chen happy and laughing. Chen Mengting was stunned; she had never seen her mother laugh so happily in all her life, so she quietly took out her phone and started taking notes.

...

The Xinhua Hotel was the only five-star hotel in Su City, built entirely by the Xiang Group. It was hundreds of meters tall with over a hundred floors. The Cloud Restaurant, located on the 108th floor, was touted as giving guests the literal experience of dining in the clouds. It was incredibly posh.

Peng Guojun had booked the spot a few days ago. He had wanted to book the best for his in-laws, but he had been lectured by Bai Meilan. Though he might not have meant it that way, to others, it would look like he was flaunting his status and trying to intimidate them.

"Then what do you suggest, dear?" Peng Guojun’s greatest strength was that he listened to advice—especially his wife’s.

"A regular private room is fine."

They couldn't be too flashy, but there was no need to suffer unnecessarily either. The fact that their family was wealthy couldn't be changed; if the in-laws could accept it, fine. If they were too sensitive and couldn't, then it was better to part ways amicably.

"Got it."

The older generation didn't like to keep guests waiting, so at Grandmother Peng’s urging, Peng Guojun and his family arrived at the hotel first. Peng Guojun had specifically requested that they avoid any grand displays as the elders preferred peace and quiet, so only the manager was there to greet them.

She led them to the reserved private room. Even the most ordinary room was luxuriously decorated and spacious enough to comfortably accommodate over twenty people.

"Because there are elderly guests, we have taken the liberty of making the windows opaque. Mr. Peng, you can control the visibility of the windows on this panel."

Currently, looking out from the room, one couldn't see the scenery; all the floor-to-ceiling windows looked as if they had been covered with a layer of mosaic, blurry and indistinct.

The manager took out a tablet and placed it by Peng Guojun’s hand. "If you press this button, you can cancel the opacity. You can choose to cancel it for a single pane or all of them. It is entirely up to you."

Peng Guojun understood immediately. It was just like the high-end hotel tech; he knew the drill.