Bai Xin Yue enjoyed the juice while watching her grandfather and father argue.
Her grandfather insisted that Heero was a good man, while her father was still suspicious of Heero's background.
"Darling, if you want to marry him to protect our family, then you don't need to marry him. I am alone enough!" Bai Tian Ming knew that he could not convince his father, so he turned to his daughter.
Bai Xin Yue shook her head as she put the straw into her delicate mouth. She shook her head, meaning that this was not her reason.
"I know! I admit, he is a little..." Bai Tian Ming motioned with his finger, "Just a little, he's a little stronger than me. With or without him, there's no difference!"
*Giggle*
"I know this will hurt your pride, Father! But I can tell you..." Bai Xin Yue moved closer to her father and whispered, "He is not only a little stronger than you but much stronger.
"I was his apprentice before his wife, so I can tell you..." A mischievous smile crept out, "He is much stronger than you,"
Then she leaned back in her seat and added, "And I am not marrying him because I want to use him to protect our family. I want to marry him because he is him, not for any other reason!"
"As for our family, I will protect it with my own hands!" Bai Xin Yue said firmly as she clenched her fist.
'Even though these people have to confront your husband now, they would not spare a glance at us...' Bai Xian Ming thought to himself.
Seeing that his daughter was truly marrying the man because she loved him, Bai Tian Ming let out a defeated sigh. Just like his father said, he saw his shadow in his daughter.
Just as he was about to say something, there were three knocks on the door.
Dok! Dok! Dok!
The door opened to reveal Heero and the guests.
*** ***
The conversation between the two old men went smoothly in his presence. Somehow, they agreed on the terms and would make it official two days later.
To sum up the meeting, the Hero League would hire the Purple Mountain People. They would hunt the ghosts inside and outside the city.
The Hero League would pay them with money, but the two old men had not yet agreed on the compensation. For example, how much the Purple Mountain Tribe would get per head of specter?
The Purple Mountain Tribe used the old Dramonia level standard to measure the power of the specters, while the Hero League still had no idea about that.
Therefore, they could not seal the deal until they came to an agreement with this. Therefore, they scheduled another meeting in two days.
The meeting went unexpectedly smoothly, but not with the in-laws. Heero could feel the intense gaze and atmosphere directed at him.
Two middle-aged men were staring at him with an intense look, Bai Tian Ming and Kang Yun-Soo.
Heero sat in the middle between Kang Seo-Yeon and Bai Xin Yue. He understood the reason behind Bai Tian Ming's actions, but not Kang Yun-Soo.
He was only Kang Seo-Yeon's uncle. Why should he take care of his niece as if she were his daughter?
"Don't tell me he..." Heero blurted out in a low voice.
His writer's imagination was sparked by the clichéd yet ironic plot of a novel. The kind of setting that was used as the antagonist's backstory.
That Kang Seo-Yeon was the daughter of Kang Yun-Soo. The result of an affair between the sister-in-law and the brother-in-law. The uncle would use the daughter to take the throne of the Kang family.
"What's wrong?" Kang Seo-Yeon asked when she heard him. Bai Xin Yue also turned her head to him.
Then Heero told them his wild guess about what he was thinking about. Of course, it was meant as a joke.
Sure enough, it made the girls laugh. They both laughed at his theory.
"It's because my uncle only has sons. He has no daughter, so he spoiled us so much, me and Myung-hee" she said.
"Unfortunately, he became busy with his business and often traveled out of town, spending less time with us. That's why Myung-Hee ran away from home" Kang Seo-Yeon explained.
The two families, the Bai's and the Kang's, were having a friendly chat until out of the blue Kang Yun-Soo turned his attention to the main character of the dinner.
"You are Xing Heero?"
"Correct!" Heero straightened his back and answered confidently.
The first good impression was important at the first meeting with in-laws. That was what his gentle wife, Han Ying, had told him about meeting in-laws. He followed his wife's advice.
"I heard that you already have two wives!"
"Indeed, one beautiful and the other gentle!" He nodded his head.
"Divorce them and then we will approve your marriage with our Seo-Yeon!" Kang Yun-Soo's eyes turned sharp when he said these words.
But Heero just smiled at the middle-aged man who was testing him.
"Hoho... I will choose the second option! Marry the fiery goddess and keep my two wives by my side! I mean, I have my mother-in-law's approval, right, Mother Sang-Hee?"
Heero winked at Kang Sang-Hee, who winked back at him.
Kang Sang-hee had been in Xing District for a few months. In fact, he had hired her as the manager of the district. They were already very close.
"Besides, my father-in-law has no objection, and neither does Grandpa Kang!"
Kang Myung-Chul and Kang Yun-Cheol nodded their heads with smiles. They were obviously happy with the marriage as well.
This left Kang Yun-Soo speechless and frustrated, thinking, 'Can you see me testing him? Why don't you play along!'
The middle-aged man leaned back as if he had been defeated in a war.
"Then what about me? I haven't given my consent yet!" This time, it was Bai Tian Ming's turn. He came with a strong and intimidating aura.
"Oh, really? Then could you lie to me, dear?" Heero turned to Bai Xin Yue, causing her to panic a bit.
"Of course not, dear. He was just testing you," an immediate reply escaped her mouth.
"Oh, it was just a test... I see..." Heero turned to his father-in-law with a victorious grin.
'Oh my God... She has fallen in love with him... You can't let that happen, oh my sister! Otherwise, you will not be able to control him!'
Bai Shuang'er said to herself.
"Ah, my master is really good at everything," Sun Zhou Yi, who was sitting next to Bai Shuang'er, commented admiringly.
"Indeed! Your master is truly good at everything, but you are not bad either, honey~," she praised her boyfriend.
The dinner continued with Heero controlling the flow and making a good impression on his father-in-law and uncle-in-law. He somehow managed to please both by the end of the dinner.
*** ***
On the other side
Xu Lingxun sneaked into the core region alone. He wore all black, which blended in perfectly with the dark night.
It had become his routine to sneak into the core region. Part of his training for his plan of revenge.
But tonight he did not come for his training, but for another purpose. To gather evidence for his next target.
"Kim Han-Pyo, 48, and Master Instructor! Every Thursday night, he stayed at his private residence in the core region!"
Xu Lingxun muttered as his eyes fixed on the luxurious residence.
"Let's see what you have inside!"
Heero said that the purge was two weeks later, but he had started the investigation tonight. Master Instructor Kim Han-Pyo was the first target, the man who had crossed a path when Heero started his first day of work at the Hero League.