Carlton Hotel

Although not exactly a top-tier hotel in Jiangzhou, it's still not a place most ordinary families would consider hosting a wedding banquet.

To put it simply, it's not cost-effective.

Sure, it's a bit upscale, but hosting a wedding here with 30 or so tables would easily cost upwards of 200,000 to 300,000 yuan.

That the Chen family chose this venue for the wedding was undoubtedly at the insistence of the bride's Wang family.

Because of this, Chen Yihao borrowed money from everywhere he could and stretched every resource to its limit.

His plan? Use the monetary gifts from the wedding guests to plug the financial hole.

For the sake of appearances, Wang Qian, who insisted on hosting the wedding at Carlton Hotel, also agreed to this arrangement.

And so, Carlton Hotel it was.

When Ye Chen arrived at the hotel, he was a bit behind the bridal party.

The wedding convoy had already reached the hotel entrance.

However, the scene was chaotic.

Chen Jianguo and Liu Xueqin, initially full of energy and pride in their new attire, were now utterly panicked.

Close relatives nearby looked increasingly uncomfortable.

"Mother-in-law, please, let Xiao Qian get out of the car, alright?" Liu Xueqin pleaded humbly. "All the relatives and friends are already inside waiting. Let's not do this here, okay? If we keep dragging it out, we'll miss the auspicious hour!"

"Don't call me 'mother-in-law' just yet," Wang Qian's mother sneered. "If Xiao Qian hasn't stepped out of the car, she isn't part of the Chen family. I raised her with blood, sweat, and tears. If you can't even provide a proper bride's exit fee, how can I trust you with my daughter?"

"The 16,800 yuan for the exit fee is right here!" Liu Xueqin pleaded desperately.

"16,800 yuan? You think that's acceptable?" Wang Qian's mother scoffed.

"But we agreed on this amount in the first place! How can you change it at the last minute?" Liu Xueqin stammered anxiously.

"Yes, we initially agreed on 16,800," Wang Qian's mother retorted. "But yesterday, a friend's daughter got married. She's nowhere near as pretty as Xiao Qian, but their exit fee was 88,800 yuan. I'm not asking for that much-just 66,000. Is that unreasonable? Even at 66,000, I'm afraid people will laugh at us. Don't even mention 16,800-it'd make my daughter look cheap!"

Wang Qian's mother crossed her arms, adamant. "Over the years, plenty of wealthy suitors have chased after Xiao Qian, but she chose your son Yihao. The least you can do is offer 66,000 yuan as the exit fee. That's hardly asking too much."

"Mother-in-law," Chen Jianguo pleaded, his voice trembling, "we've emptied our savings for this wedding-18,000 yuan for the betrothal gift, the down payment for a house, and even a Mercedes. We're out of money. If we had the funds, we'd give 660,000, let alone 66,000. Please, let Xiao Qian out of the car. Don't let this become a joke. We'll figure out the money later. Please!"

Chen Jianguo's plea was filled with helplessness.

Nearby, Chen Yinuo clenched her fists in frustration but ultimately held back.

If necessary, she could easily take out 6.6 million yuan, but this was Yihao's issue to resolve.

"How could the Chen family act like this?" Wang Qian's mother scoffed. "An exit fee isn't something you delay. Ask around-who does this? If you want Xiao Qian to step into your house, pay 66,000. I'm already being generous!"

Chen Jianguo and Liu Xueqin grew increasingly desperate.

At this moment, the phrase "evil meets its match" seemed perfectly fitting.

But no matter how hard they tried, 66,000 yuan was beyond their reach.

As the auspicious hour approached, Liu Xueqin turned to the bride still sitting in the car.

"Xiao Qian, please talk to your mom. Let's settle the wedding first, and I swear we'll find a way to make up the 66,000 yuan later. Please!"

But Wang Qian shook her head after a brief internal struggle. "I'll listen to my mom."

She had only learned about the increased exit fee from her mother before leaving the house.

Her mother's stance was firm, and Wang Qian wouldn't undermine her.

Besides, her mother's argument made sense.

Given her qualities, the Chen family was lucky to have her.

Eighteen thousand yuan for the betrothal gift? That wasn't much.

Asking for 66,000 yuan now wasn't unreasonable either, Wang Qian thought.

At this moment, Ye Chen arrived at the scene, holding the hand of his adorable niece, Ye Youyou.

"Aunt Yinuo, what's going on?" he asked.

"Wang Qian refuses to get out of the car. Her mother's demanding an exit fee," Chen Yinuo replied quietly, her brows furrowed.

"An exit fee? Wasn't this agreed upon in advance?" Ye Chen was puzzled.

"It was set at 16,800 yuan, but now they've raised it to 66,000," Chen Yinuo explained.

"66,000?" Ye Chen frowned. "That's excessive."

Meanwhile, Chen Yihao, who had been holding back his emotions, finally snapped.

Even a saint has their limits.

He admitted he had lost himself countless times for Wang Qian.

To satisfy her, he had abandoned his pride, obeyed her every whim, and never raised his voice at her.

He endured her unreasonable wedding demands, even stealing the 300,000 yuan his mother had taken from Ye Chen and depleting his parents' savings.

But now, raising the pre-agreed exit fee to 66,000 was the final straw.

When a person's mental state collapses, no one knows what they might do next.

At this moment, Chen Yihao had reached his breaking point.