His expressions at home were always as stiff as a rock, as cold as an iceberg, and as lifeless as the Dead Sea. However, with Zhao Lifei's presence, she dared to say there was a hue of tenderness in his eyes.

"Mommy, Feifei was the one who hired a hacker to look into the previous assassination attempt a while back.

" Yang Ruqin knew Zhao Lifei was too humble to bring up her good deeds and therefore, rambled about it in her place. She was always known to be a talkative little thing and this babbling mouth of hers was a frequent thing in the household.

Yang Qianlu paused at his daughter's words. He recounted a while back, he and his wife were panicking as they tried to seek after the bastard that dared to take a hit at their son's life and god forbid, nearly succeeded in doing so.

"Is that so.

" He pleasantly responded, not dwelling on the information any longer.

"Also, she donated a lot of blood for Feng-ge! It was so much, she nearly passed out!

"

Fan Jielan brightened at the news. This girl not only looked into his assassin but also donated blood to save her son! It seemed this woman was not that bad after all…

"Hm, that's good.

" Yang Qianlu nodded.

Yang Ruqin thought his reaction was too bland and was about to speak up until she saw the approval in her father's eyes. It was barely there, but it was better than nothing.

Fan Jielan sighed at her husband's behavior, he was always like this to strangers, even though Zhao Lifei should not be considered as one. Given her extremely influential background, she should've been welcomed into the house by him, but because she was not his first choice in the marriage arrangement, he was behaving like this.

Fan Jielan was different. Regardless of Zhao Lifei's tainted reputation, she made up her mind to support this woman. It was the first time her son ever brought home a woman so willingly, furthermore, he also seemed smitten by her. Ever since he entered this house, his eyes were trained on her and no one else. It seemed like the entire world was a blur to him when she was present.

Additionally, Zhao Lifei seemed very caring of her son. Her reputation might be bad, but it's something that could easily be changed!

All five of them sat down for dinner and all the dishes were served, but Zhao Lifei did not pick up her chopsticks until Yang Qianlu, the eldest at the table, had his first bite. Yang Qianlu was extremely impressed by this courteous behavior of hers as it showed that she was well-raised and in a traditional manner too.

Fan Jielan was attentively watching Zhao Lifei as well, scrutinizing everything from the way she sat to the way she ate.

Fan Jielan decided it would be a good time to start firing questions while they ate in hopes of getting to know her behavior better. In the past, she was painted to be a very irrational woman who let her temper get the best of her. She wondered if that ill-temper of hers still existed.

"I heard you graduated from Harvard at the top of your classes. What are you currently doing with your business degree?

" It was a genuine question, but Yang Qianlu paid more attention to it than his wife.

Zhao Lifei paused at the question, carefully thinking her response through before replying.

"I used to be a consultant for one of the top five companies.

" She deliberately left out the names and the fact that she was still doing it for her grandfather. If word got out that she was his consultant, there would be too many people attempting to poach her.

"You're unemployed now?

" Fan Jielan was eager to know the answer to this question. She preferred her daughters-in-law to not have a job and instead, stay at home to become a housewife who would cater to her husband's parents.

She blinked.

"I suppose so—

"

"What do you think about having kids in the future?

"

At this, Zhao Lifei stiffened. Her brain blanked out, buzzing slightly, her heart beating faster than usual. She suddenly lost her appetite, but did not dare to say anything.

Yang Feng answered instead,

"A daughter.

" Was his curt response, but Fan Jielan took it as a sign that they were planning on having one in the future.

"A daughter would be good, but it would be better to have a son first.

"

Zhao Lifei felt her throat run dry, tongue-tied and unable to properly respond. She could only slowly nod her head while averting her eyes.

Yang Feng saw her hesitation clear as day. He was disappointed to see she was this scared of having kids, especially when he wanted an entire football team of daughters that would be the spitting image of her…

Zhao Lifei could practically sense his unhappiness and decided to do something about it. She deboned the steamed fish and placed it onto his plate. Just then, the entire table went quiet.

Fan Jielan frowned the slightest bit. So this girl did not know her son well enough… How could she not know, he hated it when people placed food onto his plate with used chopsticks?

The last time one of the socialites she invited over was foolish enough to do such a thing, they faced his wrath. He had abruptly stopped eating, pushed his food away in disgust and had a butler burn it to ashes before storming out of the door, an infuriated expression on his face.

She sighed. This woman would not last long in his life, even with her current relationship with Yang Ruqin. She had hoped the child would apply some knowledge from her childhood to the way she treated Yang Feng now…

Yang Qianlu was also disappointed by her behavior, seeing her unfit for the position as Yang Feng's' wife. It was basic knowledge that his son does not like it when others place food into his bowl—

Yang Feng ate the food.

He did not hesitate or look bothered by her behavior. As a matter of fact, he looked… happy.

Fan Jielan and Yang Qianlu blinked once, both of them taken back, a stunned expression on their faces. How...How could this be? It was the first time they had seen him so compliant and placid at the gesture. They rarely saw him smile, much less see a good expression on his face. It was painful for them to admit this, but they did not know what could make their son happy.

If there was one thing Fan Jielan regretted in her entire life, it would be allowing her father-in-law, Yang Feng's grandfather, to take care of her son. She was not the Yang family's first choice either and thought at the very least, she could secure her son as the favorite of the elders.

She knew his grandfather was a cruel man by nature, often described to be heartless, but she thought he would treat his oldest grandson differently. She thought he would treasure her oldest son, for it was known in most families, the elder always preferred the eldest son, but who would've known the man would work her son to the ground?

Mountains of assignments, endless arrays of training classes, and unexplained frequent visits to the Underworld, Yang Feng was returned to her the shell of the boy he used to be. Before meeting his grandfather at the young age of three, the boy was actually quite energetic with an easygoing attitude like Yang Yulong, but all of that changed after being influenced by his grandfather.

"The shrimp.

" Yang Feng muttered to her, waiting for her to pay attention to him again. She pressed her lips together, the shrimp would dirty her fingers and she would not look the most elegant while peeling it.

"You've had enough shrimp for the week, have some bitter melon, it's more beneficial to your body.

" She instructed him, placing his least favorite food into his rice bowl.

Fan Jielan and Yang Qianlu held their breaths, curious to see their son's reaction. They expected him to throw a fit, or worse, leave the dinner table, repulsed by her ignorance.

Yang Feng eyed the ugly piece of melon on his rice bowl, poking it with unhappiness written all over his face. He looked like a child picking at his vegetables.

"Come now, don't be stubborn.

" She chided him, nudging for him to eat.

"It's not going to poison you.

" She added on when he glared at it, reluctant to eat.

"Feifei, Feng-ge does not like bitter melons—

"

Yang Feng ate it.

Fan Jielan felt her eyes bulge in utter shock. Yang Qianlu was at a loss for words, blown away like his wife.

Yang Feng actually ate it.

This...this woman, was she a miracle worker?! Was this how smitten their son was for her? To the point of where he would pardon his biggest taboo and even eat his most-hated food in the world?

Their eyes snapped to their son who was glumly chewing the melon and with reluctance, swallowed it.

"How was it?

" She asked him, her face morphing into a tiny smile, her eyes, so wide and large, shining with ambitions for receiving a good response.

Yang Feng could not bring himself to let her down by saying it tasted vile, the worst thing his tongue has ever touched. The more he stared into those eyes of hers, the more he found himself sucked into the swirling pool of molten copper, mesmerized by her ardent expression. He felt something tug at his heart with each passing second.

"It's good.

" He finally responded, his answer blowing everyone, except for Zhao Lifei, away.