Yes, the son is so well-behaved, he doesn't seem like Chao Xiong. Maybe it really was just an accident?
As it approached dinnertime, the family went out.
Mo Cheng and Jiang Rongmei arrived shortly afterward.
"Honey, I prepared the menu in advance when I made the order. Take a look and see if there's anything you want to add?" Mo Youyou said, pushing the menu towards Liu Dekai.
Zhang Cuihua, holding her child, kept looking around the restaurant.
"Oh my, this restaurant is really grand. This meal must have cost a lot of money!" Zhang Cuihua's stingy manner reappeared.
"How many dishes have you ordered? Let's not order too much, we're all family, no need to be extravagant..."
Don't waste your money!
Zhang Cuihua kept nagging, which annoyed Jiang Rongmei, but she kept quiet out of pride. Mo Cheng, as a man, also couldn't afford to break ties with his mother-in-law.
Not wanting to upset his father-in-law, Liu Dekai quickly said to Zhang Cuihua, "Mom, we're celebrating today, so let's all be happy. Don't bring up money. I got promoted thanks to Dad's help. I'll have to toast him later, so don't spoil the fun..."
Zhang Cuihua pouted; although she didn't refute, her expression clearly showed that she disagreed.
"I booked the restaurant, I paid for it. You can eat if you want, or you can go home if you don't," Mo Youyou said. She felt that Zhang Cuihua was really embarrassing her. Luckily, her parents were sitting there; if it were anyone else, she would have lost all face!
“I’m just worried about the money…” Zhang Cuihua argued.
"It's my money, you don't need to worry about it!" Mo Youyou snatched the menu from Liu Dekai, her dissatisfaction with him evident, and handed it to her parents. "Mom and Dad, take a look, what else would you like to add?"
The more reluctant Zhang Cuihua was to part with it, the more Mo Youyou wanted it.
The atmosphere finally eased a bit after the food was served, but Zhang Cuihua started a new round of performance, recounting her eldest son's various glorious deeds!
"I knew our Dekai could do it! It's only a matter of time before he gets promoted to battalion commander, and in two more years, he'll definitely be promoted to regimental commander! And what's next?"
"Dekai has always been a very promising child. In our village, while other children are playing in the mud, Dekai is different; he never plays with mud!"
“We are an orphan and a widow, it’s not easy for us… Dekai’s father, that heartless bastard, ran away with that bitch, and I raised him all by myself from childhood with great difficulty. Fortunately, our Dekai is a good man!”
"Seeing how successful Dekai is now, I feel at ease!"
"Father-in-law and mother-in-law, it's truly a blessing for Youyou to marry into our Dekai family!"
Mo Cheng and Jiang Rongmei: "...???"
The two couldn't believe what they had heard. Mo Youyou found it even more absurd. What did she mean by "blessing"?
In the words of the Mo family, Mo Youyou is clearly marrying down!
How dare this old woman say such a thing! Does she really think that her son's promotion to battalion commander is her own ability and that she's so great?
If it weren't for the fact that Liu Dekai was somewhat handsome and doted on her, she really wouldn't have insisted on marrying him. And yet, this is considered her good fortune.
Especially those sordid things that she only discovered after marriage—if divorce weren't such a terrible thing to hear, would Mo Youyou have been able to put up with it until now?
"You really dare to say that!" Mo Youyou retorted coldly, glaring at Zhang Cuihua.
She spent a lot of money and energy organizing this event today to celebrate Liu Dekai's promotion to battalion commander. She really didn't want to argue with Zhang Cuihua, so she was relatively restrained.
Zhang Cuihua was about to retort immediately. In her eyes, her son was the best and most capable. How many battalion commanders were this young? Was she wrong?
But Liu Dekai grabbed her arm and pulled her back. He quickly gave Zhang Cuihua a look, signaling her to stop talking.
Liu Dekai was fairly aware of his own situation. He felt more embarrassed than anything else, after being praised by Zhang Cuihua and having her bring up those old, trivial things from his childhood.
Especially since this happened in front of his father-in-law...
Everyone present, including Liu Dekai himself, knew perfectly well what level Liu Dekai was at and why he was promoted.
But except for Zhang Cuihua!
Zhang Cuihua believed her son's success was due to his own abilities, the merits he accumulated by diligently completing missions in the army, but in reality—
"How dare he say that? If it weren't for you, would Liu Dekai have risen so quickly?" Jiang Rongmei couldn't stand it anymore and complained to her husband in a low voice.
After all, Mo Youyou had asked her father for help at home quite a bit regarding Liu Dekai's affairs.
To say that Liu Dekai didn't put in any effort at all?
That's not necessarily true.
But is there a lack of hardworking people in the military?
There are many people who work harder and more diligently than Liu Dekai, but the reason why they haven't become battalion commanders is not because they are inferior to Liu Dekai, but simply because they don't have a father-in-law like Mo Cheng like Liu Dekai.
"Hmph!" Mo Cheng sneered, also feeling some dissatisfaction with Liu Dekai, thinking that he was too clueless.
Upon noticing his father-in-law's displeasure, Liu Dekai was nearly scared to death. He kept glaring at Zhang Cuihua, forbidding her from talking nonsense, while he picked up his wine glass and apologized to Mo Cheng with a slightly ingratiating tone, expressing his gratitude.
"Dad! I'd like to toast you!" Liu Dekai filled his glass to the brim, held it up with both hands, making sure the rim of his glass was much lower than Mo Cheng's, and said respectfully, "I was able to get promoted this time thanks to Dad's help in campaigning and lobbying. This toast is for you, and I will never forget your support!"
With that, Liu Dekai tilted his head back and downed the entire glass of wine.
"Dad, just take a sip, drink less, and take care of yourself, or Youyou will get mad at me!"
It has to be said that Liu Dekai really has a talent for putting on a good show and coaxing people; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to win Mo Youyou's heart so completely.
His actions immediately made the three members of the Mo family feel much better.
Zhang Cuihua, however, felt a little uncomfortable looking at her son's respectful attitude, thinking that Mo Youyou's family was too fond of making a show of things.
Once her son surpasses Mo Cheng in rank... Hmph, at that time, will the Mo family still dare to face them with such an attitude?
"I'll drink half a glass. Today's a good day for your promotion, we should celebrate!" Mo Cheng didn't put on airs, drinking half a glass himself. "Keep working hard, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future..."
"Yes!" Upon hearing Mo Cheng say there was still a chance, Liu Dekai was instantly energized, his whole body brimming with enthusiasm. "Dad, I will definitely listen to you, work hard, and earn a bright future for myself, for Youyou, and for Xiaorui!"
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