Mother-in-Law Refuses to Regress! (7 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 33
“What?”
“He’s handsome, smart, and born into a good family. He’s quite the catch.”
William stared blankly, as if hearing something utterly absurd, then snorted with laughter.
“Now that you say it, I guess it’s true.”
“Of course it is. If he’s that great, then he’s great, right?”
“Alright.”
Larisa spoke carelessly, as if she’d been worrying over something utterly trivial. William kept chuckling softly to himself, finding his own reaction amusing.
But William couldn’t laugh anymore once Larisa spoke again.
“Hey… apparently my mom has some kind of past.”
“Huh?”
“A lady I used to know well from the back alleys told me. She said it sounded like my mom ran away because of something.”
“……”
“I wonder what it could be?”
Larisa carefully pulled out the locket she always wore around her neck and held it as she spoke. William, unaware that Larisa had been carrying such serious worries, felt a bit awkward.
‘Seems I’ve been the childish one here.’
“I’m curious about my mom. Will you help me, William?”
“How?”
“I’m not sure either. Maybe I should meet that lady again and ask her?”
William thought for a moment.
“Can I take a look at that locket for a bit?”
Larisa stretched her neck forward. William undid the locket and examined it closely from front to back.
“Noble families usually engrave their crest on these, but this one has no emblem… so she probably wasn’t from nobility. We should look into merchant circles instead.”
“Do you think we can find anything?”
“What would you do if we did?”
“If my mom has other family… I’d want to let them know she’s passed away.”
Larisa’s expression grew somber. William gently patted her cotton-candy-pink hair.
“You’re really not childish at all.”
“I hear that a lot.”
“If you feel like crying, go ahead.”
“I don’t really want to cry, though.”
“Well, now I’ve got nothing else to say.”
Larisa gave a soft, bashful smile. William smiled along with her.
The next day, having accepted Larisa’s request, William agreed to go out with her. The servants preparing the children for their outing soon passed the news along to the butler and Hedel.
“You’re going out by yourselves?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not running away again, are you?”
“No.”
Hedel looked at William suspiciously. William replied with a confident expression.
“We told you we have business to attend to.”
“I’ll accompany you.”
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
“Then I’ll follow you discreetly.”
Flabbergasted by Hedel’s boldness, William hopped on one foot and said,
“…Hey, mister.”
“Why ‘mister’…?!”
Before Hedel could even react indignantly to William’s remark, Larisa clung to his leg.
“Mister Hedel!”
“Well, I am a mister—but why, Miss Lara?”
“You’re busy, aren’t you? William and I will be fine going alone.”
“You two clearly don’t know how bad the slums’ security is.”
“I lived there all the time!”
“That was then. Now, Miss Larisa’s worth is different from back then. In any case, I can’t let two children go by themselves.”
Seeing Hedel’s firm stance, William frowned.
“You never stopped me when I went out alone before…”
“That was before Miss Larisa was here, and you weren’t visiting the slums either. If you went alone now, I wouldn’t stop you.”
William nearly blurted out an accusation of favoritism—but held back.
‘Well, maybe a little favoritism is okay. Larisa is delicate, after all.’
Hedel, watching William’s expression, quietly added,
“If you’d insisted on going out alone when you were seven, I would’ve followed you then too.”
“What?”
“At fourteen, you’re still young, but I trust you enough now because I believe you can protect yourself. So don’t look like that. Children naturally need adult protection.”
“……”
Thus, Hedel ended up joining them after all.
“But where exactly are you going?”
“We want to talk to the lady we met yesterday…”
After hearing Larisa’s concern, Hedel examined the locket. Inside the plain, unadorned locket hung the portrait of a young girl—one who strikingly resembled someone.
“She looks a lot like Her Majesty the Empress.”
“Right?”
Larisa said proudly,
“My mom also looked incredibly like the Empress. She was really beautiful.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. When I first saw Her Majesty, I was really surprised. But the girl in this portrait probably isn’t my mom—her hair and eye colors are clearly different from Mom’s.”
“What did your mother look like?”
“Her hair was as white as snow, and her eyes were red like mine.”
“That’s an unusual coloring…”
Larisa herself possessed rare crimson eyes. Hedel gazed at her lovely face—the very one that likely charmed the Empress into adopting her—and thought,
‘Ah, this doesn’t feel like an ordinary story.’
Thick pink hair, sparkling ruby-red eyes, and a doll-like delicate appearance—she would surely grow into a great beauty.
‘Let’s hope this isn’t somehow entangled with the Empress…’
Hedel stared intently at the girl in the locket: golden hair flowing like honey, green eyes, a face as radiant as one might imagine the Empress’s childhood to be.
“Maybe she’s related to the Empress somehow…”
At Hedel’s suspicion, Larisa burst out laughing.
“Oh, come on, no way!”
“A hidden younger sister, perhaps…”
“Oh dear, Mister Hedel, you’ve got quite the imagination!”
“Well, it’s impossible anyway. If she were the Empress’s relative, she’d belong to one of the most politically powerful families—not hiding out in the slums.”
Unless, of course, she had a reason serious enough to hide.
*
The three of them rode a carriage toward the slums. On the way, Larisa suddenly looked troubled.
“What’s wrong?”
“Hmm? Now that I think about it… dressed like this, everyone will think we’re here to hand out money…”
“Hand out money?”
“Nobles sometimes come to the slums to give out money.”
Hedel frowned. Having grown up an orphan himself, he understood exactly what Larisa meant.
Nobles often took their children on tours of slums or orphanages as part of their education—showing them poverty to instill caution. But for those forced to display their hardship, being treated as a spectacle was far from welcome.
“Can’t we just ignore them?”
William, unfamiliar with such matters, asked casually. Larisa briefly looked bitter. She didn’t want to raise false hopes in the slum children only to disappoint them.
She’d lived a life where every penny mattered. William, though, clearly failed to grasp that feeling.
“Oh—no, let’s just give some out, then. Let’s stop by the bank first.”
They went to the bank and exchanged money for a large pouch of coins—of course, all William’s.
“I’m sorry, William. I’ll pay you back later.”
“It’s fine. It’s not much.”
To William, it truly was a small amount; to Larisa, it was a huge sum.
“But…”
“If it really bothers you, just pay me back when you get your allowance.”
“Allowance?”
“…Does your mother not give you allowance?”
Hedel, sitting nearby, scratched his cheek awkwardly. Guinevere wasn’t the type to handle such trivial details personally.
“I’ll speak to Master about it.”
“Oh, really?”
William also scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He felt he ought to say thanks, but it was too awkward. Larisa, however, was straightforward.
“Thank you, Mister Hedel!”
“It’s nothing. Master’s just very busy—that’s all. It’s not that she doesn’t care.”
Hedel instinctively raised his usual shield in Guinevere’s defense—it was practically routine for him to justify her actions everywhere he went.
“I know. But I’m not sure if I even deserve allowance.”
Larisa spoke hesitantly. Hedel thought he understood how she felt.
“You do deserve it. Master is your guardian now. I received allowance right after becoming her student too.”
“Really?”
“I asked for it when she didn’t offer.”
“Wow!”
Larisa’s eyes widened in admiration.
“You’re really cool.”
Hedel couldn’t help but swell with pride and added something unnecessary.
“Actually, I was the one who mentioned William’s allowance too… Oops.”
Realizing his slip-up, Hedel clamped his mouth shut. William stared at him with wide eyes.
Caught in the awkward silence, Larisa glanced between them and smiled.
“Mister Hedel, you’re a good older brother.”
“What?”
“Huh?”
But Larisa just kept smiling brightly. Despite their bickering, their relationship clearly wasn’t strained—just like ordinary siblings.
Moreover, even now, Hedel seemed worried William might be hurt—though he himself hadn’t even noticed that feeling. But Larisa’s intuition was spot-on.
After all, sharp observation was essential for both beggars and pickpockets.
“Ah, we’re here! Over there!”
Pretending to know nothing, Larisa pointed toward a spot. At the slum’s entrance—a narrow alley too tight for the carriage—the three sent it back.
Grubby children immediately approached the trio in fine clothing.
Larisa, carrying a basket full of coins, began handing them out. Most faces were familiar, yet neither the children nor Larisa acknowledged each other.
The children feared reprimand if they acted like they knew the now-prominent Larisa, and Larisa understood their caution perfectly.
Walking silently while distributing coins, Larisa finally stopped deep within the slums. William sighed.
“Someone’s already living here…”
Larisa murmured regretfully. The house where she’d lived with Marina was already occupied.
‘It’s a rental, so there’s nothing to be done… Maybe once I earn enough money, I can get our house back?’
Larisa forced herself to let go of that longing and walked onward—then knocked firmly on someone’s door.
“Auntie Linda! It’s me—Larisa!”
Male lead Asks for a Divorce Every Day
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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