chapter 10 My father-in-law is useless

Noah Jiang returned to Theo Ye's ward with a medical box. Aside from the nanny Gracie Chen, his mother-in-law and those uncles had already left.
It was better this way, so they wouldn't be in the way.
"Young master is here."
Gracie Chen, in her fifties, was the dedicated nanny for the old master's household. She quickly went to greet Noah Jiang upon seeing him enter.
"Auntie Chen, I'm here to check on grandpa."
Noah Jiang nodded politely at Gracie Chen and sat down next to the old man. However, Theo Ye was asleep. Noah Jiang began to check his pulse.
Gracie Chen was stunned. Wasn't it said that the young master's medical skills were mediocre? Why was he checking the old man's pulse?
But Cindy Ye, who entered after, signaled her to be silent. Looking at Noah Jiang who was currently checking the old master's pulse, she realized that the person who saved the old master in the morning was undoubtedly him.
Still, Cindy Ye was very curious. How did Noah Jiang's medical skills suddenly improve?
"Grandpa's condition has stabilized. However, his legs are severely affected. He will need to be properly taken care of in the future. I'll prescribe some medicine for him now." After checking the old man's pulse, Noah Jiang took out a pen and paper from the medical box and began writing a prescription. He then explained to Auntie Chen the details of how to prepare the medicine.
Cindy Ye remained silent, watching the whole time. When Gracie Chen received the prescription, she looked at Cindy Ye for confirmation. Cindy nodded, or else Gracie Chen wouldn't dare to prepare the medicine according to the prescription.
At this moment, the secretary, Cece Deng, called. She mentioned that the collaboration plan with Li Enterprises Real Estate Group was ready and asked Cindy to make the final decision.
So, Cindy Ye instructed Gracie Chen and then said to Noah Jiang, "If you have nothing to do, please stay here and accompany grandpa."
"Okay, you go ahead with your work," Noah Jiang replied with a nod and a smile.
Cindy Ye looked at him coldly and then left to return to her company.
Even though she was unsure why his medical skills had suddenly improved, she still looked down on Noah Jiang!
How could Noah Jiang not see what was in Cindy Ye's heart? He remembered seeing her years ago with a handsome, elegant, and talented man. Yet, in the end, that man dumped her.
Otherwise, Cindy Ye wouldn't have agreed to marry him.
In the afternoon, Noah Jiang stayed with the old master in the hospital. By around 4 PM, the old master still hadn't awakened.
When Uncle Oliver Ye and others arrived, they naturally asked Noah Jiang to leave.
He had wanted to wait for the old master to wake up and chat, but seeing them, he could only leave the hospital with his medical box and take a taxi back to Jiang Clinic on Traditional Chinese Medicine Street.
The old master's condition had stabilized, and he felt relieved.
When he returned to Jiang Clinic, it was already past 5 PM. Noah Jiang put back his medical box and then rode a small electric bike to prepare dinner for his in-laws.
Previously, his father-in-law used to cook, but ever since Noah Jiang married into the family, he naturally took over the task.
Soon after buying the groceries, Noah Jiang returned to the villa. He parked his electric bike in the corridor for charging and then carried the groceries inside.
However, just as he was about to enter the kitchen, he heard shouting from the second floor. His mother-in-law, Junko Ye, yelled, "Useless! It's always so short! Just as I was getting into it, you lost steam. Are you even a man?"
"I'm old and weak," Leo Zhang replied helplessly.
"I don't care. Go to the hospital tomorrow. If you can't last for five minutes next time, I'll cut off your thing."
As Junko Ye continued yelling, she came downstairs holding a brown Teddy dog. With her plump figure, she glared at Noah Jiang downstairs and snapped, "What are you looking at? You good-for-nothing! What time is it now? You just came back to cook. Are you trying to starve us to death?"
Looking at her rosy face, resembling a shrew, Noah Jiang appeared indifferent. He had long gotten used to his mother-in-law who always berated him as a good-for-nothing. Without a word, he turned and went back to the kitchen.
"Why didn't you buy the beef for Sade that I asked you to get this morning? Did you get it?" Junko Ye raised her voice, shouting at Noah in the kitchen.
"I forgot to buy it,"
Noah, wearing a cooking apron, replied nonchalantly.
As expected, Junko Ye began her tirade, berating Noah at the kitchen entrance for a full ten minutes.
Had it not been for her husband pulling her away, she would have kept scolding Noah until the end of time.
Half an hour later, Leo Zhang walked in and said to Noah, who was cooking, with a smile: "Noah, I'm sorry you have to endure this. Your mother has a short temper, but she means no harm. Don't take it to heart."
Noah looked at Leo Zhang, shook his head, and smiled, "It's fine, Dad. I'm used to it."
"Sigh, I understand. After all, I've been through the same," Leo patted Noah's shoulder and gave a wistful smile.
While cooking, Noah curiously asked, "Dad, why did you choose to become the Ye Family's son-in-law?"
Leo shook his head with a bitter smile, "Our family was poor. I had no other choice. Your mother used to have a better temper when she was younger. I don't know if it's menopause, but her temper seems to be getting worse."
Noah nodded and glanced at Leo, "Do you guys have issues in the bedroom?"
Leo's face went red, clearly embarrassed, and he coughed twice, "You heard?"
Noah nodded, "I'll prescribe some medicine for you later."
"No need, no need. I'm fine. It's just that I'm getting older, and my energy isn't what it used to be," Leo felt awkward having his son-in-law offer him medicine.
Noah gave him a discerning look and seriously said, "Dad, it's not about age. It's primarily because your body is deficient in kidney energy. You've been experiencing insomnia, vivid dreams, and frequent wake-ups. This is due to a deficit in your kidney energy and the rise of 'empty fire.' Excessive intimacy has led to this, and as you get older, naturally, you're more fatigued."
Leo looked at Noah in surprise. He hadn't expected his son-in-law to diagnose his recent symptoms so accurately.
At Junko's age, her desires were strong, and she demanded intimacy every night. It was becoming too much for Leo, but he couldn't refuse her.
He had secretly bought some health supplements, but they hadn't helped much. He just wanted a bit of psychological comfort.
So, every time they were intimate, Leo would rush things, which led to Junko's complaints and verbal abuse.
As a man, his dignity naturally took a hit.
"Noah, you diagnosed me at a glance. You're not as bad as they say," Leo looked at Noah, sensing something different about him today.
Noah Jiang smiled, serving the cooked dish, "Let's eat, Dad."
Leo nodded and joined Noah. The dining table already had four dishes and a soup. Junko Ye also sat down and began to eat.
Although Noah might be a bit spineless, his culinary skills surpassed even those of the hired housekeepers they had before.
"It's almost eight o'clock. Why hasn't Cindy gotten off work yet? Noah Jiang, hurry up and call her to see if she's finished work," Junko Ye said as she ate, noticing that Cindy Ye hadn't returned home from work. On regular days, she always came home to eat dinner promptly at 7:30.
"Alright."
Noah got up to get his phone. Just as he did, it rang. It was a call from Cindy Ye's secretary, Cece Deng. As he answered, he heard her anxious voice, "Mr. Jiang, come quickly to the Garden Hotel. Something might have happened to Ms. Ye."
"What happened?" Noah asked, his eyebrows furrowing.
"Ms. Ye went into the hotel with Mr. Li and has been out of contact for half an hour. I've tried calling her, but she doesn't answer. I'm worried something happened to her," Cece exclaimed anxiously.
"Okay, I'm on my way."
Hearing that something might have happened to Cindy, Noah's heart tightened.
"Noah, what happened?" Leo Zhang asked as he saw Noah leave.
"Nothing serious. Cindy had some drinks at a dinner party and asked me to pick her up. Dad, I'll take your car," Noah lied, not wanting to worry Leo Zhang and Junko Ye about the situation.
"Alright, go ahead," Leo Zhang said, handing over the keys to his BMW to Noah.
"And remember, on your way back, buy a piece of beef for my dog, Sade."
Junko still didn't forget about her dog. Noah sighed inwardly, took the car keys, and drove his father-in-law's car to the Garden Hotel.
Ten minutes later, Noah arrived at the Garden Hotel entrance. He saw Cece Deng run over anxiously. As he got out of the car, he asked, "Still no contact?"
"No, her phone is now switched off. Mr. Jiang, what should we do now? They won't even let me in,"
Cece said, her face filled with fear. "Mr. Li has a bad reputation. Everyone says he's very lecherous. Our PR colleagues have been harassed by him before. When he asked Cindy to come to the Garden Hotel tonight, I was worried. Cindy said she could handle him, but now her phone is off. Mr. Jiang, do you think she..."
Noah frowned slightly. He'd heard about Luca Li from Li Enterprises Real Estate Group. Last year, there was a scandal about him having an affair, which was known throughout Yulin City. He's known to be lecherous and acts arrogantly. Rumors say he has strong backing, hence his bold behavior.
Now, knowing that Cindy bravely met with such a man alone, Noah didn't know whether to call her overconfident or foolish. Even though his relationship with Cindy was distant, she was still his wife. Noah couldn't just stand by.
"We need to go in and find her."
With that, Noah and Cece quickly ran into the hotel.