"This relative is terrifyingly strong!"
After his shadow was restored, Meng Ge’s uncle howled in agony—gone was his earlier arrogance and bluster.
His eyes, now looking toward Li Ran, were filled with fear and cowardice.
When Li Ran raised his right hand again, controlling the ghostly hand to exert more pressure, Meng Ge’s uncle’s pupils shrank as he frantically shook his head and begged for mercy, no longer caring about appearances.
“Relative, relative! Please let me down! Let’s sit and talk, sit and talk!”
Meng Ge’s uncle dared not struggle anymore—Li Ran’s attack had scared the wits out of him, and now he could only plead miserably.
Li Ran showed no sign of relenting. His claw-like hand reached forward, and the ghost hand dragged Meng Ge’s uncle right in front of him.
"You people—how are your actions any different from bandits?"
“Relative, this is all a misunderstanding. We were too reckless!” Meng Ge’s uncle hurriedly apologized.
Li Ran pressed on: “What if I came to your house to snatch your daughter—how would you feel?”
“You can do as you see fit... no—no, that’s not what I meant. Everything should be done by the proper rules!” Meng Ge’s uncle was so terrified that he nodded and shook his head simultaneously.
Li Ran’s hand clenched suddenly—ghost hand contracted with terrifying strength, almost shattering every bone in Meng Ge’s uncle’s body.
Demonic shadows surged around him as Li Ran stood there like a devil god, his eyes flashing with murderous fury. He bellowed: “If you had harmed my wife or child just now, I’d have obliterated you—body and soul!”
Li Ran dispersed the demonic shadow from his body and flung Meng Ge’s uncle to the ground. He then sat calmly on the sofa, poured himself a cup of tea, and fixed his sharp gaze on Meng Ge’s uncle, looking at him as if he were nothing more than a bug.
“The 399,999 yuan groom price is just a number. But your behavior—like bandits—has truly chilled my heart. I originally intended to reduce it to 100,000. Hmph! Now? Not a single cent less!”
“Go back and tell your family elders—there can’t be a single coin missing from the list!”
“Get out!”
Meng Ge’s uncle didn’t even dare lift his head. Trembling, he scrambled off the ground, ignoring both the matchmaker and Meng Ge, and fled with his tail between his legs.
Li Ran’s cold gaze swept across the matchmaker and Meng Ge.
The matchmaker had hosted countless marriages, forged many matches, and every family she visited would greet her with fine tea, fine wine, and red envelopes. But this time, she had received nothing, and her reputation was in tatters. Under the gaze of that man across from her, she felt a chill in her spine and her legs quivering.
The neighbors outside had recorded everything on their phones. Before long, her reputation in Happiness Garden would be completely ruined.
Even Meng Ge’s uncle had been thoroughly defeated by Li Ran, reduced to a kneeling, begging wreck who fled like a stray dog. And she—a mere matchmaker—no longer had the guts to challenge or resist him, especially with no one left to back her. All her confidence had vanished in an instant.
“Relative, could we perhaps ask Zhaohui’s opinion on this matter? If…” The matchmaker, realizing the groom price couldn’t be negotiated, tried to shift the focus to the groom’s consent. But before she could finish, Li Ran cut her off.
“No ifs. In this household—I make the decisions!” Li Ran’s cold voice bore down on the matchmaker.
Under his glare, the matchmaker felt every hair on her body stand on end, her heart filled with dread.
But she had already promised Meng Ge’s mother that this marriage would go through. Things spiraling to this extent was not what she had wanted. And if she returned now with empty hands, Meng Ge’s mother wouldn’t let her off easily either—her terrifying nature was no less than that of this young man.
“Relative, how about this—today we didn’t bring enough money. We only have twenty thousand on hand. Let me take the groom home first, and we’ll bring the rest later, after the wedding is done. Would that be acceptable?” As she spoke, the matchmaker took out the twenty thousand yuan Meng Ge’s mother had prepared and placed it on the table.
This method wasn’t uncommon in marriages—sometimes the groom’s side didn’t have enough funds and would leave IOUs, promising to settle the remaining bride price after the wedding. Some families would make good on it later. Others would gradually renege.
The aim was simple: finalize the marriage first. Once the rice was cooked, the in-laws couldn’t object anymore.
The matchmaker was using exactly this tactic. Most families would accept it—after all, no one liked to ruin a joyful day. As for whether Meng Ge’s family would actually pay up later—that wasn’t her concern. Her task would be done, and her reputation saved.
Li Ran reached out and took the two bundles of cash, a faint smile curling on his lips. “If that’s the case…”
The matchmaker and Meng Ge immediately brightened with hope, feeling that things were turning in their favor. But Li Ran’s next words froze their faces in an instant.
“If that’s the case—then once you’ve paid in full, we can talk about the wedding.”
Li Ran pocketed the twenty thousand yuan. When the matchmaker tried to take it back, he gave her a fierce glare that made her freeze.
“This twenty thousand is now a deposit. Once you’ve paid the rest, it’ll be deducted accordingly. Now—get out!”
The matchmaker was too frightened to say another word. She scrambled to her feet and rushed out the door.
Li Ran had no intention of wasting another word. His gaze swept over the bridal escort group still in the room, and he said coldly:
“Out. All of you.”
Everyone in the escort group felt their hairs stand on end. Without a word, they scrambled out of the house, utterly humiliated.
They’d been terrified just tagging along to pick up the groom. Now, they’d also completely lost face.
“Now that is a true head of the household!”
A man standing at the front of the crowd outside muttered, clearly awestruck by Li Ran’s overwhelming aura.
Li Ran’s mere presence had cowed an entire room.
“This Li Ran really doesn’t put any of those monsters in his eyes.”
Watching Li Ran sip tea leisurely, Zhao Yingzhi couldn’t help feeling shaken as she recalled the earlier image of him cloaked in demonic shadows like a wrathful deity.
Meng Ge’s uncle, the matchmaker, the bridal escort group—if things had gone badly, they would’ve been dealing with a mob of demonized lunatics. With only a few people on their side, they’d have been overrun instantly.
Yet Li Ran, by himself, had cowed them all.
His strength was terrifying indeed. No wonder he showed no fear when facing that horde from Meng Ge’s family.
“When Meng Ge’s uncle tried to shove his wife earlier… it looked like he really intended to kill.” Zhao Yingzhi glanced toward Su Bingyao, who was now staring at Li Ran like a fangirl, her eyes filled with admiration. Zhao Yingzhi thought to herself:
“Li Ran’s killing intent… it was for the family members from this world?”
Her heart was filled with astonishment.
“Alright, alright—everyone, go home now. Nothing more to see here.”
Su Bingyao stepped out to disperse the gawking crowd and closed the door.
She then turned to Meng Ge—who was the only one not chased out—with a worried expression and said:
“The matchmaker will definitely go back and complain, and her uncle surely won’t take this lying down. I’m afraid they’ll cause more trouble.”
In response to Zhao Yingzhi’s warning, Li Ran said calmly:
“No need to worry. Everything we’ve done is well within reason. If they dare tear off all pretense and come at us… I’ll make sure they never return!”
Spoken casually—but his words radiated absolute confidence.
Just then, a timid voice chimed in.
“Brother, it really was my family that acted rashly. To treat something as serious as marriage like this…” Meng Ge stepped back, then dropped to her knees and bowed deeply. Her face was full of remorse as she said:
“On behalf of my family and myself—I sincerely apologize to all of you.”
(End of Chapter)