Return of the Celestial King

”Oh, that’s strange. Qin Tuo, why is your face so red?”

Chen Man Ni asked with feigned surprise, leaving Qin Tuo utterly speechless.

”HAHAHA...”

Chen Man Ni burst into triumphant laughter.

Gaining the upper hand in her back-and-forth with Qin Tuo gave her an immense sense of accomplishment.

”By the way, Miss Chen, you should stay and have dinner with us before you go!”

Qin Tuo said warmly.

’She brought all these maids and housekeepers over, after all. I have to repay this favor.’

But Chen Man Ni just continued to tease him.

”Oh my, asking me to stay for dinner? Is this the official ’meeting the parents’ moment?”

Seeing Qin Tuo’s dumbfounded expression again, Chen Man Ni laughed even more triumphantly.

Qin Tuo didn’t respond, so Chen Man Ni deliberately put on a look of great disappointment and sighed.

”Alas, Qin Tuo, do you think I’m not good enough for you?”

Qin Tuo’s heart tightened. He quickly waved his hands and laughed awkwardly.

”No, that’s not what I meant, Miss Chen. Please don’t misunderstand!”

”If that’s not what you meant, then what did you mean?”

Chen Man Ni pressed her advantage, and Qin Tuo could feel his palms starting to sweat.

Seeing Qin Tuo looking so flustered brought Chen Man Ni immense joy.

”So, Mr. Qin, you have this side to you too! Haha, it’s actually quite cute!”

Chen Man Ni covered her mouth, stifling a giggle.

Qin Tuo cleared his throat and said,

”I’m going to make dinner. Miss Chen, why don’t you stay here and chat with my parents?”

With that, he made the proper introductions between Chen Man Ni and his parents.

Then, Qin Tuo immediately dove into the kitchen, not even daring to look Chen Man Ni in the eye.

”Uncle, Auntie, these are some gifts I brought for you.”

Chen Man Ni, making herself right at home, started presenting the various bags she had brought.

”Oh, Miss Chen, you’re too kind! For our Qin Tuo to have a good friend like you... he must have been blessed in three lifetimes!”

Luo Xianglan beamed at Chen Man Ni, her expression as gentle as if she were looking at her own daughter-in-law.

From the kitchen, Qin Tuo heard peals of laughter from the living room from time to time, and he couldn’t help but be secretly amazed.

’What kind of magic does this Chen Man Ni have? How is she so good at winning over my parents?’

”Come, Auntie, this is a top-tier therapist I invited especially for you. Why don’t you experience their massage techniques?”

Eager to please, Chen Man Ni called over a top-tier therapist to give Luo Xianglan a shoulder and neck massage.

”Oh, wonderful, wonderful! Thank you, Miss Chen!”

The smile never left Luo Xianglan’s face. Her eyes were filled with nothing but satisfaction as she looked at Chen Man Ni.

Qin Hongguo, on the other hand, was a little restless.

There was a significant gap between Chen Man Ni’s status and that of people like them, and the simple, honest Qin Hongguo couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

The top-tier therapist came over and began the shoulder and neck massage for Luo Xianglan.

Luo Xianglan immediately closed her eyes in comfort, a look of pure bliss on her face.

By now, Qin Tuo was nearly finished in the kitchen as delicious dishes emerged one after another.

”Wow, that smells amazing! Qin Tuo, I had no idea your cooking was this incredible. You really are a perfect and outstanding man!”

Chen Man Ni exclaimed in amazement.

Qin Hongguo and Luo Xianglan immediately beamed with pride.

Luo Xianglan decided to strike while the iron was hot.

”Miss Chen, our Qin Tuo is a really great guy. He’s honest, doesn’t have a bad bone in his body, and most importantly, he’d be wonderful to his wife.”

”Mom, stop...”

Qin Tuo, standing nearby, was instantly embarrassed.

”Yes, Auntie is right. Qin Tuo is indeed a perfect man!”

She intentionally stressed the word ”perfect.”

”By the way, Auntie, you can just call me Manni from now on. No need to be so formal!”

Striking while the iron was hot again, Chen Man Ni closed the distance between herself and Qin Tuo’s parents even more.

”Alright! Manni, then we’ll be bold and call you that.”

Luo Xianglan smiled and nodded.

Although the two elders were not worldly, they could tell that Chen Man Ni was like a goddess, countless times better than Xu Min.

Most importantly, she was willing to set aside her status to show respect for her elders, and she spoke with grace and generosity.

Suddenly, their quiet family of three seemed to have gained a new member.

As they ate, Qin Hongguo and Luo Xianglan would occasionally ask Chen Man Ni about her life.

Meanwhile, Qin Tuo, sitting to the side, seemed to have something on his mind.

After dinner, Chen Man Ni even proactively started clearing the table.

When Qin Tuo saw this, he immediately stopped her.

”Miss Chen, you’ve already helped me so much. How could I let you do this? Put that down, I’ll take care of it!”

Chen Man Ni shook her head and smiled.

”What’s the big deal? I’m a woman. These chores will be my responsibility in the future anyway, so shouldn’t I get familiar with them ahead of time?”

Seeing Qin Tuo’s once-again speechless and embarrassed expression, Chen Man Ni had to try very hard to hold back her laughter.

”Miss Chen, you’re not just here to mess with me today, are you?”

Qin Tuo and Chen Man Ni chatted quietly in the kitchen.

”Not at all, Mr. Qin. How would I dare mess with you? But you know what they say, the bride has to meet the in-laws eventually. You must be pretty satisfied with my performance today, right?”

”Pretty... pretty satisfied...”

Qin Tuo gave a dry laugh. After he said it, he suddenly realized something was off, and his face turned red again.

After finishing the dishes, Chen Man Ni saw that it was still early, so she went back to the living room and started chatting with Luo Xianglan.

”Manni, our Qin Tuo is a good kid in every way, but he’s as stubborn as a mule. He got more than a few spankings from us when he was little. In the future, if he ever bullies you, you just tell us, and we’ll stick up for you!”

As Luo Xianglan spoke, she brought up many of Qin Tuo’s embarrassing childhood stories, making Chen Man Ni burst into laughter from time to time.

Qin Tuo, sitting in the corner of the living room, was completely mortified but couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

Just then, his father, Qin Hongguo, called him aside.

”Dad, what’s up?”

Qin Tuo was puzzled.

Qin Hongguo had a peculiar look on his face. He couldn’t help but ask,

”Son, be honest with me. How far have things gone with this Miss Chen?”

Qin Tuo gave a wry smile and shook his head.

”Dad, we’re just ordinary friends. It’s not what you’re thinking.”

He was about to explain further, but Qin Hongguo just waved his hand dismissively.

”Son, do you think I, your old man, don’t know what you’re like?”

’Great, now there’s no explaining it at all.’

Qin Tuo decided to just shut his mouth and let them think whatever they wanted.

Qin Hongguo then patted Qin Tuo’s shoulder earnestly and said,

”Son, if you like someone, you have to go after them. Don’t let her get away. Besides, you’re almost thirty. You don’t want to be single for the rest of your life, do you?”

”Dad, we really don’t have that kind of relationship!”

Qin Tuo’s denial sounded feeble and weak.

”Alright, alright. Go and keep her company. You should focus more of your time on her from now on. We can take care of ourselves.”