Chapter 46: The Shocked Father-in-Law

"Nan Jianlong, who let you in? Get out of here right now."

Zhao Na slammed her chopsticks onto the table, glaring coldly at Nan Jianlong as she shouted.

Nan Jianlong felt a slight jolt in his heart. Ever since their divorce following his infidelity, facing Zhao Na always triggered a deeply ingrained, instinctive urge to shrink away in dread.

"Why shouldn't I be allowed to come? This is my daughter's home too. I missed Huanhuan and Chaoshen, so is it a crime to come and see them?"

"Grandpa! Grandpa!"

It had been a long time since Huanhuan and Chaoshen had seen Nan Jianlong, and they ran over happily. Nan Jianlong squatted down, pulling his grandson and granddaughter into an embrace, beaming with delight.

Zhou Chen walked over and said to Zhao Na, "Mom, it's not that I wanted to let Dad in. He was simply impossible to stop."

"If we relied on you two, what could ever get accomplished?"

Zhao Na shot Zhou Chen a fierce glare before turning her tirade back on Nan Jianlong. "Nan Jianlong, do you people have something wrong with your brains? You always love showing up right when people are in the middle of a meal. That old mistress of yours did the exact same thing last time, and now you're doing it too. Are you doing this on purpose just to ruin everyone's appetite?"

Nan Jianlong stood up and stared at Zhao Na. "Listen to the kind of language coming out of your mouth. Do you have any semblance of refinement or culture left?"

"What does that have to do with you? Nan Jianlong, why did you come here? Spit out whatever nonsense you have to say, and then get lost."

Nan Jianlong pointed at Zhao Na, then turned to Nan Li and said, "Li Li, look at your mother. Just look at what she's turned into."

Naturally, Nan Li sided with her own mother and had no intention of scolding Zhao Na. Instead, she asked Nan Jianlong, "Dad, why did you come at this hour? Have you eaten yet?"

"I've eaten. You guys go ahead and eat first, we can talk after you're done."

"With you standing right there, who has any appetite left?"

Zhao Na pushed her bowl and chopsticks away, walked straight over to the sofa, and sat down.

Unfazed, Nan Jianlong walked over to the seat Zhao Na had just vacated. "Li Li, go ahead and eat. I have some matters to discuss, so we can talk once you've finished."

Zhou Chen sat down, glanced at the food on the table, and then looked at Nan Jianlong, feeling a wave of depression. *How on earth is anyone supposed to eat this now?*

His mother-in-law was right. This father-in-law and that Cai Juying really knew how to pick their timing—they always chose to show up right when people were eating.

"Dad, we're pretty much done anyway. Only Huanhuan and Chaoshen are still eating, but they can finish on their own. If you have something to say, just tell us directly."

"Yes, Dad, couldn't you have just made a phone call if you had something to discuss? There was no need to make such a long trip all the way over here."

Nan Jianlong chuckled. "It's nothing, it's nothing. Now that I'm old, I need to walk around more. Just consider it exercise to keep the body fit."

As he spoke, his gaze suddenly shifted to Zhou Chen, and he asked with dissatisfied, questioning tone, "Xia Junshan, I heard from people at the institute that you're planning to resign?"

"That's right. I submitted my resignation letter a while ago. The official notice hasn't come down yet, but there shouldn't be any issues," Zhou Chen replied.

"What do you mean 'there shouldn't be any issues'?"

Nan Jianlong raised his hand, intending to slap it down hard on the table, but suddenly remembering that Huanhuan and Chaoshen were still present, he slowly lowered his hand instead.

"Your career was going so well, why on earth would you want to resign? And why didn't you even give me a heads-up?"

Zhou Chen forced a dry laugh. "Come on, Dad, this is my own personal affair. Besides, it's a decision I discussed thoroughly with Li Li; surely there was no need to bother you with a special notification."

Nan Jianlong angrily reprimanded, "Xia Junshan, you've really grown quite bold lately! Don't forget, it was I who got you that job in the first place. Do you have any idea how much effort I expended back then to secure that placement for you? And now you're just going to quit without a word to me? Do you still hold any respect for me at all, huh?"

He then turned his ire toward his daughter. "And you too, Li Li! With a matter as major as resignation, you actually went along with him and enabled this? Have both of you lost your minds? The design institute offers a stable, respectable job with decent pay. Things were going fine, so why throw it all away to resign?"

Zhou Chen explained, "Dad, it really isn't what you think. The only people who don't find the work at the design institute exhausting are the leaders. I'm just a regular designer; during busy periods, I'm stuck doing overtime day and night just drafting blueprints. Sure, it sounds respectable on paper, but the salary is genuinely low. With the current cost of living and the economic climate, if it weren't for commissions, what I make in a year wouldn't even cover the kids' expenses."

"That's right, Dad. Xia Junshan talked to me about resigning long ago. Besides, their boss was always giving him a hard time, and working there had become quite miserable."

Nan Jianlong let out a cold snort. "What kind of job isn't exhausting? If you find it tiring or unpleasant, you might as well just lie down at home and do nothing. Tell me, you two, once Xia Junshan quits, what are you going to eat and drink? Relying solely on your single salary, Li Li, do you honestly think you can support an entire family?"

Nan Li countered, "Dad, it's true that Xia Junshan has resigned, but who said he isn't going to make any money? He's currently writing novels at home, and he's planning to start his own business in the near future. Dad, you really don't need to worry yourself about this."

"Writing novels? You mean those tacky things that don't even belong on a proper stage? Starting a business? Xia Junshan is nothing more than an architectural designer, what does he know about running a business? He'll end up losing every penny of our savings."

Nan Jianlong looked thoroughly disdainful. Xia Junshan had been his student, and he knew his capabilities inside and out. He was fine for doing some drafting and design work, but running a business? They would lose their entire family fortune.

"Nan Jianlong, you have no real capability yourself, so don't assume everyone else is as incompetent as you. Xia Junshan is far more capable than you'll ever be."

Zhao Na, sitting on the sofa, suddenly chimed in, launching a sharp retort at Nan Jianlong.

Nan Jianlong turned his head to look at Zhao Na and demanded, "So you knew he was resigning too? Why didn't you stop him? Do you want to work our daughter to death?"

In his eyes, Zhou Chen quitting his job was tantamount to becoming a freeloader living off his wife, waiting for Nan Li to provide for him—a reality he simply could not accept.

To his surprise, Zhao Na looked at him with utter contempt. "Of course I knew. I care far more about our daughter's affairs than you ever do. That 'tacky' novel writing you look down upon? Xia Junshan makes over a million a month doing it! How much do you even make in a whole year? And yet you have the nerve to look down on Xia Junshan. If you aren't ashamed of yourself, I'm ashamed for you."

"Over a million? Writing those third-rate things can pull in a million a month?" Nan Jianlong wore an expression of sheer disbelief.

"Look at that gaping, jaw-dropped look on your face. Tsk! Nan Jianlong, from now on, you don't need to meddle in our daughter's life. If you have nothing else to do here, hurry up and get lost. Go back and cozy up with that old mistress of yours at home, and stop wandering around making a fool of yourself."

Before long, Zhao Na was back to making sarcastic cutting remarks, leaving Nan Jianlong deeply humiliated yet too cowardly to talk back.

"Li Li, is it true that Xia Junshan can really make over a million a month writing novels?"

Nan Li nodded. "Pretty much. Xia Junshan said that if he can maintain this momentum, even if it might not hit a million every single month, pulling in a few hundred thousand or at least over a hundred thousand shouldn't be a problem."

Nan Jianlong was left speechless. Originally, he had come here with the intention of forcing Zhou Chen to go back to work, but now, the words simply wouldn't come out of his mouth.

No matter how good a job at the design institute was, it paid at most tens of thousands a month. Yet Xia Junshan was now making hundreds of thousands, or even a million, monthly just by writing novels.

He desperately wanted to point out that novel writing was an unstable profession, but...

"Li Li, you mentioned doing business earlier? Have you two discussed what kind of business you're planning to run?"

"Mm-hmm, we have the idea, but we haven't finalized the specifics yet."

"Oh."

Nan Jianlong nodded. If it were a matter regarding traditional employment, he could offer some guidance, but he knew nothing about running a business and felt it best not to comment.

"The reason I came over today, aside from this matter, is actually because of something else."

"Did you know that last night, Lanlan and Yan Peng ended up at the police station?"

"What?!"

Zhou Chen and Nan Li both cried out in shock.