Chapter 346 Contradiction

Chapter 346 Contradiction

"You want me to meet your future in-laws?" As soon as Kevin spoke, Penny already felt guilty.

She nodded.

Kevin slowly shrugged off his coat and set his briefcase down before turning to Penny. "Penny," he said, his voice level, "sit down."
Penny sat up straight.

Kevin sat down with deliberate slowness, his eyes fixed on her. "Are you absolutely certain," he asked, "that you want me to meet them?"

Penny said quietly, "They said they want to go back to their hometown, so they want to meet you."

Kevin fixed his eyes on her and asked, "Before we go any further, I need to know—have you already made up your mind to get married?"

"No," Penny answered without thinking.

Marriage was too scary, she didn't want that.

Kevin asked bluntly, "Then what's the point of me meeting them?"

"I..." Penny started, her voice trailing off into a pitiful whisper. "They just said they wanted to meet you. I think they expect me to be acting all high and mighty—they've been saying I'm spoiled and things like that."

Kevin said, "You're in the middle of a fight with Bernard. You've been staying at home these past few days. If you bring your parents into this now, doesn't that mean you're giving in to them? If I actually go, they'll think my daughter can't get married and we're begging them to marry her."

Penny looked at her father. She hadn't thought that far ahead. She just liked Bernard and didn't want everyone to keep being at odds like this,after all, problems needed to be solved eventually.

Now that her father had brought it up, the memory came flooding back to her.

Right, if they really arranged for both sets of parents to meet, it wouldn't just be a problem between the two of them anymore,it would involve both families.

Penny faltered, her voice trembling slightly. "Then... then I'll just turn them down. I'll tell them you guys are too busy right now."

After Penny returned to her room, she sent Mr. Lewis a message: [I'm sorry, my dad and mom can't meet you for now. My dad has to go on a business trip soon.]

After sending the message and receiving no immediate reply, Penny turned her attention back to her own work.

...

In the master bedroom, Kevin watched Jasmine applying toner at her vanity table.

He loved watching her do her skincare routine—first toner, then lotion, then night cream, and finally eye cream. She moved through each step with such care, as if performing a sacred and solemn ritual.
While patting her face, Jasmine asked, "Are we really not going to meet Bernard's parents?"

Kevin said, "Do you think it's necessary?"

"If we don't meet them, will they think we're too proud?" Jasmine had this concern.

"They aren't serious about her, and it's clear they aren't ready to welcome her into the family," he said firmly. "Meeting now would only invite more trouble down the road."

Jasmine sighed, "If Penny really marries into that family, I'm afraid she won't be happy. From her description, her future in-laws will definitely move in after they get married. Once she has kids, Penny will be trapped, and then she'll be at their mercy."

"It depends on whether she's determined to be with Bernard for life. If she's not afraid of anything, we'll back her up and make sure she has confidence in her in-laws' home."

"That silly girl Penny will only end up coming home in tears," she sighed. "She’s never had to face a day of hardship in her life. Once reality sets in, she’s definitely going to regret this marriage."

Punchy: "We have to stay out of it, " he cautioned. "If we show even the slightest bit of opposition, she might just rebel and dig her heels in further."

"Yeah, sigh."

"..."

At Bernard's home.

After Mr. Lewis received Penny's message, he didn't say a word all evening.

Later, when Bernard returned home, he didn't even wait for him to sit down before he started scolding him. "Take a look at this 'great' girl you found! She’s doing nothing but using her status to act all high and mighty. I said I wanted to meet her parents, and she's a local, but she says they don't have time. Dad doesn't have time, but surely Mom could come? If Mom doesn't have time, surely other relatives could meet us? She just brushed us off with 'no time.' If they really get married, won't she still be looking down on us?"

Seeing his parents looking so modest was the final straw. Between their unassuming presence and the ongoing cold war with Penny, his frustration finally boiled over into true anger.
His father had come all this way, and Penny was indeed acting like a princess, not wanting to do anything. Now she didn't even respect his father and looked down on his family.

What would it be like if they really got married?

Bernard was willing to endure any hardship himself, but he couldn't stand the thought of his parents having to walk on eggshells and watch everyone's expressions for approval.

Mr. Lewis was still scolding: "Your mom and I are going back to our hometown tomorrow. I'm never coming here again!"

Mr. Lewis was resolute. That night, he had Mrs. Lewis pack their bags and instructed Bernard to buy the tickets; by early the next morning, they were already on the bus heading home.

After they left, the small apartment naturally became quiet all at once.

In truth, Bernard had been secretly hoping his parents would decide to leave over the last few days. After growing up, people generally don't like living with their parents and listening to their constant nagging.

But after they left, he felt reluctant.

His mind kept drifting back through the years, retracing the path of his own growth. He remembered how his parents had poured everything into him when he was young, always sacrificing to ensure he had the very best they could give. At a young age, they got him a phone and computer, and always bought him the best nutritional supplements.

That's why he could grow so tall and strong.

When it came time for college applications, his parents held onto the quiet hope that he would choose a university nearby, wanting to keep him within reach, but he insisted on going against them and chose a university in Cloud Town. Now that his parents were old, he realized he had too few opportunities to take care of them.

The weight of his guilt felt heavy, and it drained any remaining desire he had to reach out to Penny.

Whenever he thought of Penny, he felt conflicted.

...

Penny had been staying at home for quite some time, but the reconciliation she expected never happened—Bernard didn't show up to make things right.

For a few moments, she regretted being willful. She should have been like most good wives and mothers, dutiful to her in-laws and taking care of all the housework. After all, After all, these were things she would have to do after marriage anyway, so what difference did it make whether she did them sooner or later?

She realized she still held a deep affection for Bernard. He was the first person she had ever truly been drawn to, and they had finally reached the milestone of renting an apartment together.

But then she reconsidered; she knew that if she yielded just once, it would set a precedent. One step back would inevitably lead to a second, then a third, until she had no ground left to stand on.

So she kept holding back from reaching out to Bernard first.

On this day, they ran into each other at the hospital.

She was racing a patient to the lab just as he finished his shift, seemingly without a care as he chatted and laughed with another doctor.

Their eyes met, but neither greeted the other.

Penny's heart ached at that moment.

Saving the patient took priority, leaving her with no time to spare for a conversation with him.

By the time Penny finished, it was night again.

Under normal circumstances, Bernard would have reached out by now to check her schedule—or he might have simply shown up at the hospital gates to drive her home.

She wasn't the demanding type—why bother him to make the trip when a cab was just as easy?
Now, there were no messages, no greetings.

They seemed to have become strangers.

Penny just felt heartbroken.

She decided to go back to the apartment to check.