Chapter 80

As Xia Hou Zhongying and Kim Tae-yeon entered the door, they immediately caught the attention of all the women in the yard. All the women curiously poked their heads out to size up this so-called foreign son-in-law and student film director.

"Let me see, let me see. Oh, it’s really him. He’s a good match for Tae-yeon, a talented man and a beautiful woman. He looks very polite too." After entering the gate, Kim Tae-yeon bowed and greeted the elders, and Xia Hou Zhongying followed suit, bowing and greeting them as well. Tae-yeon addressed him the same way she addressed the elders, making them look like a young couple visiting their elders.

Most of the Kim family had heard that Kim Tae-yeon had brought a boy home. When they saw Xia Hou Zhongying bowing and greeting them, they couldn’t help but curiously size him up, nodding and smiling in return.

Xia Hou Zhongying’s forehead was slightly sweaty, and he felt bitter inside. He hadn’t expected the Kim family’s ancestral worship to involve the entire extended family, with so many elders. He had to bow to each one, almost breaking his back. What made it even worse was that sometimes he had to bow to a baby and call him "uncle." There was no way around it; even though the baby had just been born and couldn’t even speak, he was still an elder in terms of seniority.

Korea has a very strict system of seniority. When meeting an elder, one must bow and greet them, regardless of their age. Normally, it’s not so bad, but during the Spring Festival ancestral worship, one can’t be careless. Elders are always elders, so it’s common for an elder to bow to a child.

After the baby uncle, things got even more exaggerated. There was a four-year-old boy who was Tae-yeon’s great-uncle. He was dressed in a traditional Korean robe and wore a high hat, looking like a scholar from the Joseon Dynasty. When Tae-yeon bowed to him, he put on a serious adult face and asked, "Niece Tae-yeon, is this the nephew-in-law that the other nieces were talking about? Hmm, he looks quite good, a fine young man."

Xia Hou Zhongying almost spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling like he was about to cry. What kind of situation was this?

Kim Tae-yeon’s face turned red with embarrassment, unsure whether to deny it or not.

Xia Hou Zhongying really didn’t want to call this much younger boy his great-uncle and bow to him. It felt so humiliating. But since he had come with Tae-yeon, he couldn’t afford to be impolite. Even if the Kim family’s elders thought he was Tae-yeon’s fiancé, he couldn’t immediately deny it and explain. If he did, it would make Tae-yeon’s family lose face in the entire Kim family, becoming a laughingstock.

Seeing the pleading look in Tae-yeon’s eyes, Xia Hou Zhongying sighed inwardly and had to bow to the boy, calling him "great-uncle," feeling very awkward.

"Hello, Aunt, hello, Uncle." A young man bowed to Tae-yeon and Xia Hou Zhongying. He was clearly older than both of them, and it turned out he was Tae-yeon’s nephew.

Tae-yeon smiled and said to the young man, "Yuhao, you’re studying in Seoul and haven’t visited me. I’ve been busy lately and haven’t had time to see you either. If you have time after the New Year, you can come visit me in Seoul."

"Yes, Aunt." The young man named Kim Yuhao curiously glanced at Xia Hou Zhongying, smiled, and walked away.

No matter where they went, Xia Hou Zhongying felt like a national treasure, the giant panda, being curiously surrounded by the Kim family. If it was an elder, he had to bow and greet them.

When the two of them passed by where the women were gathered, it was even worse. A group of women surrounded Xia Hou Zhongying, marveling and asking questions, calling him "foreign son-in-law" non-stop. It was so cold, with snow still on the ground, but he was sweating profusely, unable to wipe it away, the sweat trickling down his face and neck.

Just as Xia Hou Zhongying was about to break down, Kim’s mother stepped in to help, finally allowing him and Tae-yeon to escape the women’s circle. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and silently vowed never to come to the Kim family during the New Year again.

"Tae-yeon, your family has so many elders." Xia Hou Zhongying wiped the sweat and couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. He had never experienced such a torturous day in his life.

"Sorry, Zhongying, for the misunderstanding by the elders." Tae-yeon lowered her head, her neck turning red with embarrassment.

"It’s okay, it’s not easy to explain right away. We’ll talk about it later." Xia Hou Zhongying smiled bitterly.

"Okay." Tae-yeon responded softly.

"Big sister, big brother, come over here, we’re over here." At that moment, Kim Tae-hyeon’s voice came from not far away. Xia Hou Zhongying looked up and saw a small figure among a group of girls, waving her hand to them. Hwang Mi-yeong was standing next to her, smiling at them.

Seeing that almost all the people there were girls, with only three boys mixed in, and not seeing Kim Ji-yong, Xia Hou Zhongying’s heart started to race. He hesitated for a moment but still followed Tae-yeon over.

Before Tae-yeon even got close, a flurry of calls like "Tae-yeon," "Aunt," and "Sister" rang out. The girls then curiously watched Xia Hou Zhongying. Tae-yeon walked into the group of girls and smiled, greeting everyone.

Xia Hou Zhongying didn’t know how to respond, awkwardly nodding and greeting everyone, saying "Happy New Year" and "Happy New Year" repeatedly. He then looked at the three boys, seeing them smirking at him, which made him even more depressed.

"Yongho, come over and meet Aunt Tae-yeon and Uncle." A girl named Hyo-young waved to a boy.

The boy named Yongho, who was about twenty, immediately turned from a smiling face to a bitter one, awkwardly walking over.

"Aunt Tae-yeon, this is my fiancé, Choi Yongho." The older niece, Kim Hyo-young, introduced her fiancé to Tae-yeon and Xia Hou Zhongying with a smile.

"Aunt, Happy New Year." Choi Yongho bowed to Tae-yeon.

Tae-yeon smiled and nodded, "Happy New Year."

"Uncle, Happy New Year." Choi Yongho, with a bitter face, bowed to Xia Hou Zhongying, who was younger than him.

"Nephew-in-law, Happy New Year." Seeing Choi Yongho’s bitter face, Xia Hou Zhongying almost burst out laughing, using the term "nephew-in-law" to tease him, payback for his earlier smirking.

The other two boys were also the fiancés of two Kim family girls, Kim Ji-yeon and Kim Eun-yeon. Kim Ji-yeon’s fiancé was named Ko Hoon-woo, and the other was named Guo Dabo. The names were quite formidable. When Xia Hou Zhongying heard Guo Dabo’s name, he couldn’t help but twitch his lips.

Their fiancées were of the same generation as Tae-yeon, so they avoided the same miserable fate as Choi Yongho. Since they were older than Tae-yeon and Xia Hou Zhongying, the two boys had to bow and greet them first, calling them "brother."

The girls chatted in a group, and the topics naturally revolved around gossip about the sisters. Xia Hou Zhongying and the other three boys were also the subjects of the girls’ gossip, making the four of them very awkward.

"By the way, have you heard? Aunt Bae-yeon also brought a boyfriend back from America for the New Year." Kim Hyo-young gossiped.

"Not only have I heard, but I’ve also seen him." Kim Ji-yeon seemed a bit disdainful, saying, "He acts all high and mighty, boasting about his American citizenship everywhere."

"Right, right, I’ve seen him too." Kim Eun-yeon nodded, "He keeps bragging about his boyfriend being the runner-up in some martial arts competition, as if it’s a big deal."

"That guy isn’t a good person either." A girl named Kim Hyo-shan said angrily, "He keeps looking at women and holding their hands, not letting go, always taking advantage of them."

Xia Hou Zhongying couldn’t help but laugh inwardly. The girl named Kim Hyo-shan was quite pretty, and she probably felt taken advantage of by the boyfriend of Aunt Bae-yeon, feeling very annoyed.

"Right, he also looks down on Koreans." Another girl chimed in, "He keeps saying how great America is and how free it is, and how bad our Korea is, as if he’s not a Korean. Just because his family has some money and bought him a green card, he thinks he’s American."

As more and more girls joined in the criticism of Kim Bae-yeon, Xia Hou Zhongying couldn’t help but feel that Bae-yeon and her boyfriend were not very popular.