Jiang Ling clapped her hands and laughed, "Wonderful! When a new bride enters the family, she must serve tea to the elders. If you are willing to drink the tea I serve, it means you agree to my marriage to Jian Zhou and accept me as the daughter-in-law of the Jian family."
As she spoke, she looked at Jian Zhou with a shy expression, playfully chiding, "No wonder you were so sweet-talking yesterday, saying you were going to give me a surprise here. You actually want to marry me, rushing like this. Aren't you afraid the elders will laugh at us? Oh, you're making me so shy!"
Jiang Ling's words were always shocking, and she ended with a deliberately coquettish pout.
Jian Zhou: "..."
Jiang Ling grabbed Jian Zhou's hand and said urgently, "Since the elders have agreed, what are we waiting for? Let's go to the Civil Affairs Bureau! We don't even need to check the almanac, today is a good day to get our marriage certificate!"
With such a maneuver, Jian Zhou was too stunned to react and froze.
Jiang Ling nudged Jian Zhou in the ribs with her elbow and chided, "Hurry up, the staff at the Civil Affairs Bureau will be off work soon!"
"Alright, we'll go right now!"
Jian Zhou came to his senses, tightly grasped Jiang Ling's hand, and turned to head for the Civil Affairs Bureau.
Jiang Fan, her elder brother, who had been acting as a backdrop, also jumped in to join the play, laughing, "Why the rush? The elders have agreed, so it's not like we're short on time. Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the Civil Affairs Bureau is closed for the holiday. Let's serve the daughter-in-law tea first, and we can get the certificate tomorrow. It's not too late!"
"Right, serve tea first, then get the certificate. Look how flustered I am, my mind is spinning!" Jiang Ling laughed and patted her forehead.
With the three of them playing along, Jian Mama and the rest of the unpleasant relatives were utterly bewildered.
Jian Mama was even more confused.
When had she ever agreed to Jian Zhou and Jiang Ling's marriage?
And now they wanted to rush to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get a marriage certificate, as if they couldn't wait for her to meet Yama sooner?
This woman was always good at seizing opportunities.
Give her a bit of sun and she'll bask in it; give her three parts color and she'll want to paint the town red.
Cousin Jian, with a grim expression, said to Jiang Ling, "Miss Jiang, you must have misunderstood. Who said that serving tea to the elders means they agree to you becoming a daughter-in-law of the Jian family?"
Jiang Ling smiled and said, "Does this even need to be said? When a new bride enters the family, she serves tea to her in-laws. Anyone with a brain would understand this principle."
Her implication was that those who didn't understand were brainless.
No need to look, I'm not targeting anyone specifically. You few who intended to target your grandmother are all brainless idiots.
Jiang Ling insulted them without using any vulgar language, and with a light sentence, she shamed the entire group of troublesome relatives.
"You—"
Cousin Jian's chest heaved with anger, her face turning green!
Jian Mama glared at Cousin Jian, secretly cursing her uselessness. Usually, she was so eloquent, but today she couldn't even deal with a mere girl. What a waste.
Taking a deep breath, Jian Mama forced a smile and said, "Miss Jiang, I think you've truly misunderstood. The Jian family has a large household and strict rules. You can't just join just by serving tea."
Hearing this, Jiang Ling immediately rolled her eyes and said, "If you don't agree to me entering the family, why would you ask me to kneel and serve tea? Even in the entertainment industry, when a sugar daddy finds a female actress for... that kind of broadcast gymnastics late at night, they still have to arrange one or two resources afterwards. If you ask me to serve tea, but refuse to acknowledge my relationship with Jian Zhou, aren't you even..."
She didn't finish the last sentence, but Jiang Ling looked at Jian Mama and the relatives with an expression that clearly stated they were worse than even a patron.
Jian Mama was furious beyond measure.