Chapter 52 The Wicked Mother-in-Law Makes a Dazzling Appearance, Her First Move to Show Her Power!

Two days later, a dark green jeep with a Beijing Military Region license plate slowly drove into the family compound amidst much anticipation.

The car stopped at the entrance of Qin Lie's courtyard.

Almost all the military spouses in the entire residential compound peeked out of their windows, craning their necks to secretly observe.

They all knew that Commander Qin's mother, who was a high-ranking official in Beijing, had arrived.

The car door opened, and the first person to get out was a young guard in military uniform.

He jogged around to the other side and opened the back door.

A small, gleaming black leather shoe peeked out first.

Immediately afterwards, a tall, sharp-looking woman stepped out of the car.

She was around fifty years old, but she was very well-maintained, with almost no wrinkles on her face.

A tailor-made dark blue executive suit accentuated her slender and capable figure.

Her hair was neatly styled into a bun at the back of her head, without a single stray hair.

He wore frameless glasses, and the eyes behind the lenses were as sharp as a scalpel, as if they could see right through people's hearts.

She simply stood there quietly, and the aura of authority and aloofness emanating from her caused the military wives who were watching the spectacle to unconsciously shrink back.

This old lady looks like someone you shouldn't mess with!

This person is Qin Lie's mother, Zhong Tinglan.

Qin Lie and Jiang Wu were already waiting at the door.

"mom."

Qin Lie steeled himself, stepped forward, and took the luggage from the guard's hands.

Zhong Tinglan didn't look at him; her gaze, like a searchlight, fell directly on Jiang Wu behind Qin Lie.

He looked her over carefully from head to toe.

That gaze was devoid of warmth, filled with scrutiny and criticism.

It's like picking out an item at a farmers' market.

Jiang Wu was dressed very simply as usual today.

A pale yellow cotton shirt, dark blue trousers, and white cloth shoes.

Her hair was braided into a single plait and hung down in front of her chest.

Her face was clean and free of makeup.

She looked like a female student who hadn't graduated yet—pure and innocent—but compared to Zhong Tinglan, who was adorned with jewels, she did indeed appear somewhat...shabby.

"You're Jiang Wu?"

Zhong Tinglan finally spoke, her voice as cold and aloof as it was on the phone, with a hint of condescension.

"Hello, Mom. I'm Jiang Wu."

Jiang Wu stepped forward, a polite smile on her face, and spoke neither humbly nor arrogantly.

“Just call me Dean Zhong,” Zhong Tinglan corrected calmly. “I’m not worthy of being called ‘Mom’.”

The air seemed to freeze the moment those words were spoken.

Qin Lie's face immediately darkened.

"Mom! What are you saying!" he said, suppressing his anger.

This is not a show of force at all.

This is practically a public falling out, leaving Jiang Wu with absolutely no face at all!

Zhong Tinglan ignored him completely, walked past him, and went straight into the courtyard.

She looked around the clean and tidy courtyard, but her brows furrowed even more.

In the courtyard, there are several rose bushes and a grapevine in the corner.

Although simple, it is full of life.

But in Zhong Tinglan's eyes, all of this reeked of "petty-mindedness".

"Qin Lie, is this where you live?" Her tone was full of disdain. "It's a mess, what kind of place is this! You've completely disgraced the Qin family!"

Qin Lie was so angry that his temples throbbed.

"Mom, this is the military family compound, everyone lives here! If you're not used to it, I'll take you to the guesthouse!"

"What? I, as a mother, can't even stay in my son's house?" Zhong Tinglan glanced at him coldly.

"You go in first and put my things away. I have a few words to say to Comrade Jiang Wu."

She deliberately emphasized the word "comrade".

The implication was clear: she didn't consider Jiang Wu her daughter-in-law at all.

Qin Lie was worried and wanted to say something, but Jiang Wu stopped him with a look.

Jiang Wu gave him a reassuring smile and gestured for him to go inside first.

Looking into her calm eyes, Qin Lie felt both angry and frustrated. In the end, he could only glare at his mother resentfully, pick up his luggage, and walk into the house.

Only Jiang Wu and Zhong Tinglan remained in the courtyard.

For the first time, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had a formal confrontation.

“Comrade Jiang Wu.” Zhong Tinglan crossed her arms and walked up to Jiang Wu.

She was a bit taller than Jiang Wu, and at that moment, she was looking down at her.

"I don't care what methods you used to make Qin Lie so devoted to you. But I'm here today to tell you something."

“Our Qin family is not a place where just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can enter.”

"Qin Lie's future is bright. His future wife must be someone who can help his career, from a prestigious family, or at the very least, from a scholarly family."

"Instead of a country woman who is good for nothing except playing a couple of songs."

Her words were like poisoned knives, each one piercing the heart.

Any girl with a sensitive skin would probably have burst into tears after being humiliated like that by her future mother-in-law.

But Jiang Wu still had a smile on her face.

That smile was polite and proper, yet it carried a hint of aloofness that was hard to decipher.

"Dean Zhong, are you finished speaking?" she asked softly.

Zhong Tinglan was taken aback.

She hadn't expected Jiang Wu's reaction to be so calm.

This was completely different from the scene she had imagined—a scene of crying and wailing, or fierce rebuttal.

It was like punching cotton.

"Judging from your expression, you're not convinced?" Zhong Tinglan sneered.

"I wouldn't dare," Jiang Wu shook her head. "I just think you might have some misunderstandings about me."

"Misunderstanding?" Zhong Tinglan seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. "I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. What misunderstanding could there be? A woman who is not content to stay at home and take care of her husband and children, but instead shows her face in public every day, engaging in those second-rate artistic performances, isn't that the truth?"

She paused, her gaze becoming even more disdainful.

"Alright, I don't want to waste my breath on you."

"Now that you've entered the Qin family, you must abide by our family rules."

"In our family, we don't support idlers."

She pointed to a large basin piled up in the corner, containing Qin Lie's training clothes that he had just changed out of and that still smelled of sweat.

"Go and wash those clothes for me."

"Wash by hand, no laundry detergent, use soap. The collar and cuffs must be scrubbed clean with a brush."

"After washing up, I'll cook. I'm a picky eater; I don't eat spicy food or fatty meat, and I can't put too much oil and salt in the dishes."

"I want to have four dishes and a soup for lunch today."

She issued command after command, like a queen.

This was the first warning she gave Jiang Wu.

She wanted to use this most direct and brutal method to wear down Jiang Wu's arrogance.

She wanted Jiang Wu to understand that in this family, she, Zhong Tinglan, was the absolute ruler.

Aren't you a genius? Aren't you an artist?

When you come to my place, you'll have to be like a maid from the old society, doing my laundry and cooking!

She waited to see Jiang Wu's reaction.

Is it anger? Is it humiliation? Or is it resistance?

However, Jiang Wu's reaction once again surprised her.

Jiang Wu glanced at the basin of dirty clothes, then at Zhong Tinglan's harsh face.

She was neither angry nor did she say anything.

Suddenly, she reached out and gently covered her chest.

Her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

His face turned pale at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Her body swayed slightly, as if she were about to collapse at any moment.

"Ouch……"

A soft, painful groan escaped from her lips.

The sound was neither too loud nor too soft, but just enough for Qin Lie inside the room to hear clearly.

"Honey! What's wrong?!"

The next second, Qin Lie burst out of the house like a cannonball.

He immediately noticed Jiang Wu's pale face and the way she was clutching her chest.

Qin Lie's eyes instantly turned red.

"Mom! What did you do to her?!"

He roared at Zhong Tinglan, for the first time in his life, a roar that was truly filled with anger and questioning.