"The bride price is 500,000 yuan, not a penny less."
"You also need to buy an apartment in downtown Shanghai, and it can only be registered in my name, as a premarital guarantee for me."
"Xiaojun is getting married soon. As his brother-in-law, you should at least give something in return. A million yuan as a bride price isn't too much, is it?"
At the home of his fiancée, Zhao Lili.
Hearing Zhao Lili's demands, Lin Yuan's heart sank to the bottom.
I've been genuinely good to her for over three years.
It's not easy to get to the point of discussing marriage.
The conditions offered now are truly disheartening.
A dowry of 500,000 yuan is one thing, but an apartment in downtown Shanghai would cost at least 6 million yuan, plus 1 million yuan to support the brother-in-law.
Getting a wife would cost eight million in miscellaneous expenses. He couldn't afford it; he simply couldn't afford it!
Was all that affection over the years just a facade?
At this moment, Lin Yuan still clung to a sliver of hope.
Zhao Lili must be joking with me.
Lin Yuan forced a smile.
"Lili, your request is a bit too much."
"Too much?"
Zhao Lili crossed her legs and clasped her hands in front of her.
Sitting on the sofa, she frowned slightly and said slowly, "This is clearly just a normal dowry requirement."
After she finished speaking, she counted on her fingers.
"First, the 500,000 yuan bride price is for my parents. They raised me for 24 years, so giving them 500,000 yuan isn't excessive, is it?"
"Second, where will we live after we get married if we don't have a house? We can't just rent, I can't afford to lose face like that. A house is also a form of security for me. What if you do something to betray me someday? I can't just leave with nothing, can I?"
"Third, Xiaojun is at the point of discussing marriage. As the eldest sister in the family, it is reasonable for her to prepare one million for her younger brother."
Three fingers were broken off, making Lin Yuan so angry he almost vomited blood.
Reasonable?
Reasonable my foot!
The two met during their university years and have been dating for three years.
Lin Yuan also developed genuine feelings for Zhao Lili.
If it weren't for his hard work and dedication these past few years...
They provided living expenses and gifts, and never gave up on each other, which is why they have come this far.
It hasn't been easy for them all, and they're about to get married.
Perhaps, the bride price wasn't Lili's original intention...
Holding onto a sliver of hope, Lin Yuan turned to look at his mother-in-law, Liu Xiaofang.
“Auntie, you know my situation. I really can’t come up with that much money. How about this, I’ll give you 500,000 yuan as a bride price first. We can postpone the house purchase until I’ve worked for a few years and saved up enough money. Is that alright?”
Don't even think about it.
Hearing this, Liu Xiaofang picked up some sunflower seeds and rolled her eyes.
"Don't I know what you men are thinking?"
"You're just trying to make empty promises and get my daughter to marry you and live a miserable life? No way!"
"I'm telling you, you must meet all three of these requirements, or don't even think about marrying my daughter."
She never gave Lin Yuan a kind look.
He always thought his daughter was the school beauty.
In the future, I will at least marry a big boss who is worth over 100 million.
Lin Yuan was just a poor boy.
Marrying one's own daughter is like having one's ancestors' graves emitting auspicious smoke.
Zhao Lili continued to put pressure on Lin Yuan from the side.
"Lin Yuan, you keep saying you love me, but now you're not even willing to spend millions for me?"
Actually, she wasn't flustered at all about this.
There are 30 million more men than women; that's the size of the population base.
She's a rare resource; she's not worried about finding someone.
For the past three years, Lin Yuan has been completely obedient to her, revealing his true nature as a sycophant.
She simply couldn't believe that Lin Yuan would choose not to marry her for a mere few million.
Seeing the mother and daughter on the sofa chatting away for a while, Lin Yuan didn't give them a definite answer.
Zhao Xiaojun was getting impatient.
"Brother-in-law, stop dawdling. Just give me a straight answer. I'm in a hurry to go out and have some fun."
Zhao Zhenguo, who was sitting at a coffee table reading a newspaper, did not look up and seemed indifferent to the matter.
Lin Yuan figured it out.
This family had already planned in advance to use the opportunity of the bride price to extort a large sum of money from him.
Looking at Zhao Lili's still beautiful face, Lin Yuan felt a sense of unfamiliarity.
How come he never realized before that Zhao Lili was such a brother-supporting demon?
Eight million!
Getting a wife costs eight million!
Is it really true that once you marry a wife, you don't have to live a normal life anymore?
If you're only thinking about protecting the woman's family's interests, what about us? How can we protect them?
Seeing the family's confident demeanor, Lin Yuan suddenly smiled.
"Hahaha, you guys, you think you've got me cornered?"
Zhao Lili's eyebrows furrowed.
"Lin Yuan, what are you saying!"
"It's not about the money at all; what I want is your attitude."
Her spoiled and domineering attitude hadn't subsided, and she continued to press him, intending to force him to give in.
"You'd better agree to these three requests right now! Aren't you afraid I'll regret it?"
Lin Yuan's voice turned deep.
"I can afford the bride price of 500,000."
“An apartment in downtown Shanghai costs at least five or six million yuan, which I can’t afford right now. I can promise you that I’ll buy one once I’ve earned enough money.”
"As for the third request, why should I give your brother a million to get married?"
Zhao Lili's expression changed.
"Do you know how much the bride price is these days? Xiaojun is my brother, how can I not help him?"
"Besides, it's just a million, it's not like you don't have it."
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