Chapter 42: It All Depends on You...

Just when Hao Ren was struggling to answer, the sound of the doorknob being twisted interrupted him - it was Zhao Guang bringing Zhao Yanzi back.

They didn't get wet at all since they were in the car. Although Zhao Guang seemed like a stern father, he showed how much he loved his daughter by going in person to pick her up from school on such a rainy day when he was a busy man.

Zhao Hongyu walked over after her husband entered. "Since there's a storm today, I think Ren should stay over instead of going back in the rain," she said.

"Ok, it should be Elder Sun's rain so it will probably last all night. It will be difficult even to drive him back. It's best for him to stay here," Zhao Guang nodded without hesitation.

Hao Ren was too shy to express his opinion after both of them told him to stay. He wouldn't want to insist on leaving as they were both persistent in keeping him there. Zhao Guang would for sure give him a ride back if he insisted. However, Hao Ren didn't want to cause him so much trouble on a stormy night like this.

Zhao Hongyu smiled pleasantly as she saw no objections from Hao Ren. "Alright, let's have dinner first since it is ready. Zhao Guang, grab some dry clothes for Ren. He got all soaked on the way here to tutor Zi. And go wash your hands, Zi!" she said.

"Ok." Zhao Guang nodded calmly and went upstairs to get some clothes.

Zhao Yanzi stared at Hao Ren grudgingly from where she was standing as if she wasn't happy about her own turf being invaded. She still hadn't gotten used to the fact that her parents were treating Hao Ren as a part of the family. She could still endure it when they took him on the family trip, but now keeping him for the night? Who would know what was going to happen next time?

Little girls were pretty territorial at this age as they even drew lines across the shared desks at school to mark their territories.

Hao Ren completely ignored her stare. He never regarded her as his fiancée. On the other hand, he only hoped for her English grade to pick up; if that happened, he wouldn't disappoint her parents who had been treating him so nicely.

Soon, Zhao Guang walked downstairs with a set of grey plaid pajamas and handed it over to Hao Ren. "Go get out of your wet jacket first," he said.

"Thank you!" Hao Ren took the pajamas and put it on after taking off his own jacket.

It was a bit large for Hao Ren, but it somehow fit.

The four of them washed their hands and sat down for dinner. Hao Ren forgot about all the unpleasantness when he saw the delicious dishes on the table. Thinking back, it had been several days since Hao Ren enjoyed Zhao Hongyu's cooking.

"How lucky is Zhao Yanzi to have such a wonderful mother who was loving, caring, intelligent, and beautiful," he thought.

"Ren, has Zi shown any improvements in her English tests lately?" Zhao Hongyu suddenly asked about Zhao Yanzi's school work while they were having dinner.

Zhao Yanzi looked up at Hao Ren nervously when she heard the question.

"There are some improvements. It seems like she is doing better than before," Hao Ren didn't answer directly. As a matter of fact, only Zhao Yanzi herself knew how bad her English was.

"Um...take it slow. Has she been doing well in school?" Zhao Hongyu continued to ask.

Hao Ren was stunned for a moment as he thought she was asking about the time when Zhao Yanzi skipped class. He tried to think of a reasonable response but didn't know how to answer.

Zhao Yanzi was trying her best to send him signals. She held onto her chopsticks tightly and curled her lips, giving him a threatening look.

"Oh, what I mean is, do you think she is putting more effort into studying English?" Zhao Hongyu added.

Hao Ren looked at Zhao Hongyu as he realized they didn't know about her skipping class yet. He was relieved and said, "Um, the knowledge points have been enhanced. She has probably been paying more attention in class."

"Um, that's good," Zhao Hongyu nodded with a smile.

Zhao Yanzi secretly breath out as she thought Hao Ren would tell on her. However, Zhao Guang caught all of her expressions. He kept on eating without getting involved in their conversation.

"Not only her English, but her other subjects also aren't that good," Zhao Hongyu said after a moment, "Midterms are in a few days. I hope her grades get better by then. So, if it is not too much to ask, can you tutor her on other subjects too?"

Hao Ren certainly couldn't reject the "mother-in-law's" request. He nodded and said, "Ok, I will try my best."

"English is her weakest subject. You don't need to tutor her specifically on other subjects. Is it ok if she comes to you with questions she can't do?" Zhao Hongyu asked softly.

"No problem." Hao Ren said. Although he was stuck with an annoying little fiancée, he couldn't complain about having such an understanding "mother-in-law".

"We love everything about Zi. It is only her attitude towards studying that bothers us. Her grades have always been one of the worst in her class, and we are always embarrassed when we attend the parent-teacher meeting," she said.

"So that is why...Zhao Hongyu doesn't want to be embarrassed as a parent. Even for the charming Zhao Hongyu, it was hard for her to be proud of her daughter when Zi has such bad grades," Hao Ren thought, "Hehe, even the Dragon Tribe suffers just like any other parents in the world."

Zi's little face blushed. Her lips pouted as she tried to defend herself, but she came up with nothing. Except for her excellent PE grades, she was amongst the worst students in all other subjects.

"Sorry for the trouble," Zhao Hongyu apologized softly when she realized that she had been asking a lot of him.

"That's ok," Hao Ren laughed. He would do his best to tutor Zhao Yanzi just for the sake of Zhao Hongyu.

Relaxing classical music was being played in the room, and even the heavy rain couldn't disturb the cozy atmosphere. Zhao Guang had always been a man of few words as the head of the household. Zhao Hongyu, on the other hand, had a charming smile on her face as if she was satisfied with where life was headed.

Zhao Yanzi frowned and pouted. She was probably coming up with ways to deal with Hao Ren's "invasion" into her life.

Time passed by quickly as dinner reached an end.

"You can go help Zi with her school work in my studio after dinner. I'll go make the bed in her room so that you can rest well tonight," Zhao Hongyu said gently to Hao Ren.

"Phew...!" Hao Ren immediately spat out a mouthful of soup.