Chapter 024: The Mother-in-law's Combat Prowess... Truly Terrifying (Please Keep Reading)

Women really do keep their word!

Cheng Xuemin had originally thought that with Feng Jiayou’s impatient nature, if she didn’t rush off to deliver the revised manuscript to her mother that very night, she would certainly do so by the next morning.

But to his surprise, Feng Jiayou actually managed to drag it out until the morning of the third day. Just as her mother was about to leave, she mentioned in passing:

“If you can’t revise that manuscript, then just leave it. We’ve already finalized the selections for this issue!”

It was meant to put an end to this little debtor’s persistence. Any further effort might even affect the child she was carrying.

But unexpectedly, the little debtor gave her this response: “I finished revising it! The manuscript was done two days ago!”

“Finished? Why didn’t you let me see it? Go get it now!” Mother Feng was momentarily stunned. She had only brought it up on a whim, meaning that if it wasn’t revised, then just let it go.

But when she asked, it turned out the revisions had long been finished!

And not showing her the revised manuscript—this was completely unlike the little debtor’s usual behavior!

The problem was the little debtor was always too eager to get published, and with that wild man showing up at her door, she never had the peace of mind to revise properly. The more she changed, the less readable it became—a clear case of seeking quick results and failing.

But now, having finished the revision two or three days ago, she was able to stay so calm and quiet!

“I submitted it to Yanjing Literature,” Feng Jiayou said casually as she stirred her thin porridge.

In an instant!

Cheng Xuemin could feel the already chilly room plunge as if the temperature had dropped below freezing.

Her elder brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Feng Jiazhao and Ke Yumei, couldn’t help but rise from the table and quietly retreated to their own room.

Father Feng, sitting at the head of the table, wore the same bewildered expression as he looked at Feng Jiayou, then silently stood up and went to fetch his briefcase from his room.

This…

Cheng Xuemin looked at Feng Jiayou in astonishment, thinking: Is this really necessary? For goodness’ sake, couldn’t either of you—mother or daughter—just rein it in a little? Must you both be so proud and stubborn?

And as if she hadn’t pushed things far enough, Feng Jiayou, whose manuscript was sitting right there on her writing desk waiting for her mother to ask so she could show it off, suddenly brought up Yanjing Literature. Was she deliberately provoking her mother?

With the tension in the room, Cheng Xuemin couldn’t stay any longer. He stood up to follow suit, but unlike the others, his room was only accessible by passing through the main hall’s front door—right where his mother-in-law was standing, poised to leave!

It wasn’t exactly appropriate for Cheng Xuemin to slip past his mother-in-law and duck back into his room, was it?

He could only retreat awkwardly to stand by his sister-in-law’s door—she had already left for school, so her room was empty at this hour.

“You submitted to Yanjing Literature!?” Mother Feng, still frozen in place with her hand outstretched, was left dumbfounded by her daughter’s words. Her expression quickly darkened as she struggled to control herself, feigning indifference as she asked, “Did it get accepted?”

Six times!

She had guided Feng Jiayou through six rounds of revisions on that manuscript—from the opening idea to the final touch of profundity—almost rewriting it herself.

And now, after all that, her daughter finished revising, didn’t say a word, and turned around to submit it to Yanjing Literature?

The little debtor knew perfectly well that ‘October’ had just resumed publication and was in urgent need of quality submissions. Admittedly, the piece wasn’t good at first, but they hadn’t given up on it!

After all that effort, with the manuscript nearly ready to pass, her daughter lost focus, making it worse with every change. The plan was to let it rest until her daughter’s bad mood passed, so she could revise it properly and finally publish it.

But now? The manuscript had long since been finished, yet she stayed silent and submitted it to Yanjing Literature?

This was obviously deliberate revenge, meant to drive her mad!

If Yanjing Literature published it, and her editor-in-chief and colleagues saw, what would they say? After all, many of them—including the editor-in-chief—had read and offered feedback on that very manuscript!

To submit it elsewhere now—wasn’t that just underhanded?

“It should be accepted… Ma, Ma, no, I didn’t submit it—I was just teasing you!” Feng Jiayou, seeing her mother’s face darken to the point of eruption, quickly put on her most ingratiating smile and said, “It’s all done, all revised exactly as you wanted. I guarantee you won’t find a single flaw!”

“I’ll go get it!”

Seizing the chance, Cheng Xuemin volunteered to dash out of the hall and fetch the manuscript for her. He’d really been frightened just now—his mother-in-law’s aura was so intimidating…

And she hadn’t even exploded yet! Cheng Xuemin shuddered to imagine what it would be like if she did. Only Feng Jiayou would dare push her this far, hovering on the edge of her mother’s temper.

Honestly, why couldn’t she just bring out the revised manuscript quietly, instead of provoking her like this?

Moreover, Cheng Xuemin suddenly recalled his own piece, “The Horseman,” which he’d submitted to Yanjing Literature.

If his mother-in-law found out he was the author, and he hadn’t submitted it to her recently revived “October,” what would happen then? He didn’t even want to imagine. Like Feng Jiayou said, he would never let her know the truth—it would never leave his lips.

“Ma, Jiayou stayed up two nights to revise this. Please take a look for her!” Cheng Xuemin hurried back, handing the neatly copied manuscript to her mother.

“Go ahead and drive me mad!” If it hadn’t been Cheng Xuemin handing over the manuscript, Mother Feng wouldn’t even have bothered to accept it. She didn’t care where her daughter submitted anymore. She shoved the manuscript into her briefcase without even glancing at it, and as she left, tossed back, “If it’s no good, submit it wherever you like!”

“Ma, at least read it before you go! Can’t you give me a straight answer?!” Watching her mother leave without a backward glance, it was now Feng Jiayou’s turn to be anxious and uncertain.

“You deserve it. If it were me, I’d have thrown that manuscript in the trash long ago!” At this moment, Father Feng emerged with his briefcase, shaking his head at Feng Jiayou.

“Hehe, Dad, just so you know, I’ve just written an English manuscript—should I submit it to your Foreign Language Bureau?” Feng Jiayou grinned.

“No, please! I want to live a few more years—don’t bring disaster to our bureau!” Father Feng was genuinely alarmed, fleeing in haste at the thought of his daughter submitting anything to his workplace.

“Brother, I heard writing scripts is very lucrative. Can you teach me how?” Feng Jiayou pounced as soon as she saw her elder brother sneak out.

“Ah? We’re running late! Yumei, hurry up, I’ll give you a ride to work!” Not daring to get involved, her brother, Feng Jiazhao, pretended not to hear and pushed his bicycle out the gate without waiting for his wife, Ke Yumei.

“Where is he? Where’s your brother?” When Ke Yumei came out and saw the yard empty of her husband, she asked.

“He just left,” Cheng Xuemin pointed to the door.

In a flash, the whole family had scattered, leaving only Cheng Xuemin and Feng Jiayou behind.

Oh!

And, of course, the two little ones, whom they’d be responsible for dropping off at school in a moment.

…