That night.
At the Gu family dining table.
For the first time in a long while, Gu Tianming and Su Murong returned home early.
The table was filled to the brim—land and sea delicacies, abalone, lobster, all laid out like a banquet.
Gu Yan's mouth twitched as he looked at the spread.
"Dad, Mom… what day is it today?"
"Why are there so many dishes?"
Then he added, turning toward the kitchen,
"Sister Wang, you can make the soup lighter."
"Yes, Madam," came the reply.
Gu Tianming and Su Murong exchanged a look.
Their eyes clearly said:
You say it.
No, you say it.
In the end, under Su Murong's dangerous gaze, Gu Tianming surrendered.
He sighed and looked at Gu Yan.
"Xiao Yan… I know you're disappointed, but it's fine."
"There are plenty of daughters from wealthy families in Jianghai City."
"As long as you don't go back to looking for Shen Wan'er, anything else is negotiable."
Seeing her husband speak, Su Murong immediately picked up a piece of braised pork and placed it in Gu Yan's bowl.
"That's right, Yanyan."
"As your father said—why obsess over one flower when the whole field is blooming?"
"Mom will find you someone better."
"The Bai family, the Tang family, the Zhuge family…"
"Your dad can handle it."
Gu Tianming's eyelids twitched.
"H-hey… how can I handle all that—ah!!"
Su Murong calmly withdrew the fingers pinching his thigh, then turned back to Gu Yan with a gentle smile.
"As long as Yanyan likes her, your dad can propose on your behalf."
"At worst—"
"If he doesn't help, Mom will."
She wasn't exaggerating.
The Su family was one of Beijing's top families.
Su Murong marrying Gu Tianming had been a case of marrying down.
The more Gu Yan listened, the more absurd it sounded.
He hurriedly waved his hands.
"Dad, Mom—what are you talking about?"
"I already proposed to Qingqiu."
"We're basically husband and wife. How could I look for someone else?"
Gu Tianming and Su Murong froze.
"Yes, Yanyan… it's because Leng Qingqiu is blind that you felt discouraged and retreated—"
"…Retreated…"
"…Proposed marriage?"
Both of them stopped mid-sentence.
"Wait."
"Proposed… marriage?!"
"Future… couple?!"
Su Murong's vision went dark. She nearly fainted.
Gu Tianming stared at Gu Yan, mouth wide open.
"Y-you… didn't you go to cancel the engagement with the Leng family?!"
At this point, Gu Yan finally understood.
So this was what his parents had assumed.
They thought he'd see that Leng Qingqiu was blind—and immediately back out.
Gu Yan looked at them, speechless.
"No."
"Qingqiu and I got along perfectly."
"I fell in love with her at first sight!"
"I barely had time to take care of her—why would I cancel the engagement?"
"Dad, Mom."
"Please don't randomly match me with other women."
Gu Yan picked up his chopsticks and said casually while eating,
"I'll pick an auspicious day and publicly announce that I've proposed to Leng Qingqiu of the Leng family."
Boom.
Su Murong felt like lightning struck her head.
My son just lost Shen Wan'er…
And now he's engaged to a blind girl?!
You—
You're really trying to kill me—
Her gaze instantly sharpened as she glared at Gu Tianming.
[This is all because you went to propose marriage!!]
Gu Tianming immediately understood and replied with grievance in his eyes.
[Didn't you tell me to go?!]
[You said Yanyan would definitely cancel the engagement!]
[How would I know his personality suddenly changed?!]
[You're not sleeping in bed tonight!]
[Huh?!]
Gu Tianming was defeated and ate his rice silently.
Su Murong also ate in silence—angrily.
Gu Yan looked at his parents and smiled helplessly.
Just then—
[Gu Yan, are you there?]
[Gu Yan, are you there?]
[Gu Yan, are you there?]
A special ringtone rang out at the dining table.
Gu Yan froze.
"…What kind of ringtone is that?"
It sounded familiar.
He reached into his pocket, took out his phone—and immediately remembered.
Oh.
Right.
Shen Wan'er had once sent him a voice message.
Back then, he'd happily set it as her exclusive ringtone.
Gu Tianming and Su Murong instantly leaned forward.
Their eyes locked onto the phone screen.
Caller ID: [The Person I Like]
Gulp.
The couple exchanged a nervous look and held their breath.
They stared at Gu Yan anxiously.
Although he said he'd let go of Shen Wan'er—
What if this was just temporary?
After all, Shen Wan'er was calling first.
"Don't look at me like that."
"I'm really not interested in Shen Wan'er anymore."
In front of their stunned gazes—
Gu Yan calmly pressed Reject.
Then—
Blocked.
Deleted.
One-stop service.
Complete.
The dining table fell silent.
"…Son."
Gu Tianming stared at him in disbelief.
"Are you… serious?"
He had thought Gu Yan was just going through a phase.
That he'd soon crawl back to Shen Wan'er like before.
But now—
This was real.
"Of course I'm serious."
"Dad, Mom."
"I really changed this time."
"I want to live properly with Qingqiu."
Then he added seriously,
"I hope you won't look down on her just because she's blind."
"She's a very good girl."
His tone was calm. Earnest.
Completely different from the childish, impulsive Gu Yan who'd chased Shen Wan'er.
After a long silence—
Gu Tianming suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha! Fine, fine!"
"It's just one more pair of chopsticks at home!"
Su Murong sighed, then nodded reluctantly.
"Since you've already proposed…"
"Then so be it."
Deep down, she still hoped her son would find someone well-matched.
Even if not perfect—
At least… normal.
Gu Yan knew his mother needed time.
But he would never give up on Leng Qingqiu.
"Thank you, Mom."
Su Murong froze.
"…Thank you?"
Her son… actually thanked her?
A warm feeling surged in her chest.
Then Gu Yan looked at Gu Tianming and smiled.
"Thank you too, Dad."
"I was ignorant before. I caused you a lot of trouble."
Gu Tianming coughed and looked away.
"Ahem… it's good that you've changed."
What kind of immortal daughter-in-law is this?
She turned my son into this?
For that alone—
Gu Tianming silently approved of this unseen daughter-in-law.
---
Meanwhile, at the restaurant—
"Ladies," the manager said politely, bill in hand,
"You've been seated for over an hour."
"May I ask when you'll be settling the bill?"
Inside, he was full of disdain.
They'd ordered extravagantly, took photos nonstop—
And now claimed they didn't have enough money.
Fake influencers.
"Wan'er…"
Xie Baiwei swallowed.
"Did Gu… Gu Yan hang up on you?"
"Maybe… maybe he's busy…"
Shen Wan'er stared at the disconnected call, her expression ugly.
Then she looked up hesitantly.
"Weiwei… Lili…"
"Did you really not bring any money?"
When ordering, Shen Wan'er had warned them it was too much.
But both had insisted it was fine—just for photos.
Now the bill read 133,000 yuan.
And for atmosphere, Xie Baiwei had opened a 100,000 yuan bottle of red wine.
They couldn't possibly afford it.
That was why they'd pushed Shen Wan'er to call Gu Yan.
They expected him to pay.
They never imagined—
He'd dare hang up.