Bizarre Engagement Banquet

On National Day, my boyfriend of four years and I decided to get engaged.

My family handled everything, including the banquet, invitations, and even the bridal chamber.

At the last minute, my boyfriend, who claimed to be an orphan, suddenly produced a pair of parents.

His mother, counting the gift money while licking her lips, criticized my family, "Your relatives' gifts are really stingy, probably not even adding up to ten thousand. My precious son is going to suffer."

His father, with one foot on a stool and holding a wine glass, shouted, "Welcome everyone to my son's engagement banquet. Eat and drink well, don't be polite with us!"

Then a group of aunts and uncles, each carrying several plastic bags, swept the food off the table.

As they packed, they complained to me, "Crystal, the hotel you chose isn't good. The abalone is so small, and the shrimp aren't fresh. It's clear you're not good at managing things. When you marry into our family, you'll have to learn from your mother-in-law.

I was stunned. When they turned their claws towards my mother, I couldn't hold back any longer.

I walked up and gave each of them a slap, "Shut up, all of you!"

***

My mother had compared my and David Jones' birth charts multiple times, confirming that we were a perfect match. She specially consulted a master to pick an auspicious date, coinciding with National Day.

Friends and family had received the news long ago, and by eleven, the banquet hall was packed.

I had my makeup done before dawn and was greeting guests in the hall, but David, one of the hosts, was nowhere to be seen.

I took out my phone and called him several times, but it was always busy.

This had never happened before.

For some reason, I felt uneasy.

Thankfully, at eleven, I finally saw David at the door.

Just as I felt relieved, I tensed up again.

Behind him were a middle-aged man and woman. The woman, with a cloth of indeterminate color tied around her head, looked around the hall.

When she saw me, her eyes lit up, and she rushed over.

"Ah! This must be Crystal. You are such a lovely girl, just look at those eyes. You and David are meant to be together."

She grabbed my hand, her calloused palm hurting me. I forced a smile, "Auntie..."

At this moment, David, his handsome face darkened with displeasure, scolded me, "Crystal, what are you calling her? This is my mother!"

I was scolded and said hesitantly, "Mom."

"Yes!" Her face blossomed into a smile. "Here, this is our family heirloom bracelet, blessed by a great monk, invaluable!"

After saying that, she grabbed my hand and forced the bracelet onto my wrist.

Looking at it, I could tell even as a layman that it was fake, likely from a street stall, three for ten dollars.

I rubbed the bracelet, giving David a pleading look.

To my surprise, he frowned and, in front of everyone, said, "Crystal Brown, why are you making faces? My mom gave you our family heirloom bracelet as a sign of accepting you as her daughter-in-law, and you're being ungrateful!"

In an instant, everyone's eyes were focused on me. I endured it for a long time, and just as I was about to speak, my mother stopped me.

My mother intervened, trying to ease the tension, "Dear in-laws, it's getting late. Let's take our seats and let the young ones catch up!"

"Yes, yes, let's take our seats!"

His father gestured, and suddenly a crowd of people, young and old, male and female, emerged from nowhere, chattering as they approached.

I pinched his thigh hard, whispering angrily, "What's going on? You said your parents died when you were young, so where did these people come from?"

David, back to his gentlemanly self, whispered apologetically, "Crystal, for my sake, don't hold it against my parents and aunts. It's just one day. Please bear with it. I'll explain everything tonight when we get home."

Glaring at him, I kept quiet.

For his sake, I would endure.

"I knew my Crystal was the most tolerant."

Before we could say much more, his relatives were approaching.

Their gazes made me very uncomfortable. They stared at me like I was a fat sheep.

One woman, with two large braids, looked at me with malice.

Taking a deep breath, I prepared to greet them.

David introduced them and I probably knew his second aunt, eldest aunt, little uncle, second uncle, second aunt-in-law, eldest aunt-in-law, and more.

The younger ones were their children.

Their gift money was pitifully small, the highest not exceeding one hundred dollars. One even brought tea eggs.

She is David's eldest aunt.

"Crystal, after today, you will be the daughter-in-law of our Jones family. This egg was laid by the best laying chicken among all the chickens of mine. It laid ten eggs in one morning!"

"Look, I brought these ten today. Don't let me down."

They expected me to bear children, comparing me to a hen before we even registered the marriage.

I stiffly accepted, unable to express my anger.

It was just that the noise of putting the eggs on the table was a little louder.

As David introduced them, he seemed full of energy, beaming in a way I had never seen.

I studied him, feeling he had become a stranger.

"Crystal, are you listening? What's wrong with you today!"

He waved a hand in front of me.

"This is my eldest uncle's daughter, Cindy White. Just call her Cindy."

It was the braided woman from before. Her malicious gaze was undisguised, and she gave me a disdainful look before turning away.

I couldn't understand and didn't bother to.

Finally done greeting guests, I was about to sit down when a shout startled me to my feet.

"Oh my god!"

It turned out David's mother had somehow crawled under the gift table, where all the gift money was kept.

Realizing she had shouted too loudly, she covered her mouth, but her eyes were still greedy.

I was about to go over when she glared at me.

I thought something must have happened. Still not officially married, so we couldn't be considered a real mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship. So I asked David to check.

Unexpectedly, before he could, his mother emerged, holding a stack of red envelopes.

Licking her blackened finger, she started opening the envelopes and counting the money loudly.

"Nina, four hundred. Ema, six hundred. Ella, eight hundred..."

After hearing this, I wished the ground would swallow me up!

Who would open a red envelope on the spot and read it out loud like this?

Seeing my relatives' disapproving looks, I broke free from David's hand, ran over, and snatched the envelopes, putting them back in the box.

Holding back my anger, I spoke softly.

"Mom, please don't count the money now. We'll do it later in private. Everyone is watching."

She rolled her eyes, clutching the box. "Crystal, I'm not criticizing you, but listen to the amounts. So many people, all dressed up, and not one envelope over a thousand!"

"I think your relatives' gifts are really stingy. I guess they don't even add up to ten thousand. My precious son is going to suffer."

My face twitched with anger. If the gifts were so bad, why was she holding onto the box? Why not show what her relatives brought?

Misinterpreting my expression, she let go of the box and grabbed my hand.

"Don't feel inferior. David told me, although you're not a top university graduate, you're still a college student, and your family is well-off. You deserve my son. Even if some of your relatives are poor, I accept this marriage."

After saying that, she patted my hand reassuringly.

Her hand, still wet from licking, felt sticky.

I yanked my hand away, wiped it with tissues repeatedly.

David's mother was furious, pointing at me and spitting, "Hey, you little brat! I was talking nicely, and you act disgusted. Not even married, and you're already arrogant. Today, I must teach you our Jones family's rules!"

What made me even angrier was that David sided with her, his earlier apology forgotten.

Patting his mother's back, he glared at me.

"Crystal, disrespecting my mom is disrespecting me. My parents and relatives came from far away, and you didn't even offer them water. You called them reluctantly. Now, my mom is just counting the money, and you act like this. What will happen after you're married?"

His mother nodded vigorously. "Yes! My son supports me. I didn't spoil him for nothing. Your wife has made me angry today. After taking our family heirloom bracelet, she is making a fuss over counting money."

"That bracelet is worth more than all these gifts combined!"

"In my opinion, if you kneel down, kowtow, and hand over the box to me with both hands, this matter can be put to rest. Otherwise, don't think you will marry into our family!"

Such a loving mother and son!

I laughed angrily, staring at David.

But he didn't even look at me and turned to talk to Cindy.

Cindy was in contrast to her unfriendly attitude in front of me. I don't know what David said, but she clenched her fists, pretending to hit him, acting coy.

In my opinion, they looked more like a couple than relatives.