Recovering from her initial fright, Yinian found the courage to steal a couple of glances at the woman on stage.
She saw Shen Yi’s gaze, which had been scanning the crowd with typical indifference, suddenly lock onto her. From that elevated position, the cold pressure of the woman’s gaze felt overwhelming, devoid of any warmth.
Yinian immediately bowed her head and fell silent, not daring to say another word to Qin Jiashu or the others.
Her slender neck and shoulders trembled in sync with the ribbon in her hair. Below her butterfly bones, the suggestive, tightening corset ties of her dress made her look like a gift waiting to be unwrapped.
Her skin was a blinding, porcelain white.
The girl was completely unaware that in her “Disaster” level of beauty, every ounce of weakness and trepidation was an unconscious, addictive poison. It did nothing to extinguish the fire; it only fanned the flames of desire.
Shen Yi took a deep breath. She could see it, and she knew everyone else could too. Suppressing her possessive urge to lash out, she hurried the proceedings along.
The ceremony ended quickly, signaling the start of the cocktail party where the elite of the Capital began their schemes.
On each empty plate was a gilded menu from the winery. Guests could choose to be served immediately or wait for the formal dinner at eight. However, no matter how exquisite the dishes were, no one had come here just to eat. Instead, the selection of the 2014 Mouton and the 2017 Chevalier-Montrachet was drawing more attention.
In moments, the ballroom became a sea of movement and noise, filled with the sounds of social climbing and clinking glasses. As the hosts, the members of the Shen and Bai families took flutes from waiters and began to mingle with the VIPs.
Just as Jiang Ke stood up, she saw someone beat her to her cousin’s table. It was Jiang Rui and his wife.
One look at the fawning way they stared at the Qin family members made their intentions obvious. They were actually planning to use Niannian to get close to the Qins.
Jiang Ke, who had been anxious to move, paused and sat back down. All of Xu Yinian’s “admirers” were in this room. Any one of them could crush a small ant like Jiang Rui with ease, let alone that woman…
At that thought, Jiang Ke looked up with lingering fear and saw Shen Yi’s footsteps falter.
Maybe this is my chance to ascend…
Jiang Ke suppressed her anxiety and waited.
Xu Yinian was already the center of attention, with countless eyes watching her in secret. The sight of a man whose aura was completely out of place at a high-society gala intentionally approaching her was revolting, and it naturally drew a great deal of scrutiny.
“CEO Shen, over there…” Secretary Zhou reminded her boss carefully.
She knew her superior’s gaze hadn’t truly left the Little Ancestor for a single second. Zhou, ever the sharp assistant, used the excuse of someone “disrupting the order of the banquet” to direct their attention there.
As Shen Yi stopped in her tracks, Shen Ruoshuang also looked over, though she quickly retracted her gaze without a word.
“What? Is your history as roommates not enough of a reason to go and help her?” Shen Yi mocked.
When had that cold, apathetic woman ever cared about the lives of others? This sarcastic remark was clearly another test.
“You said it yourself,” Shen Ruoshuang replied coldly.
She turned and began walking toward the Qin family’s table.
Shen Yi’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she let out a cold huff. She raised her glass to a group of VIPs who had just stood up to greet her. “Excuse me.”
The Qin family’s table was far away; it had been arranged that way because no one expected the hosts to visit them. Given the Qin family’s standing, even approaching the Bai or Shen families for a toast was considered “climbing the social ladder.”
The VIPs looked at each other in confusion, and even the Bai couple’s eyes followed her silently. They couldn’t understand why Shen Yi would lower herself to personally seek someone out at that table.
Ji Yan and Lu Zhou had also seen the lout harassing Xu Yinian. However, they weren’t supposed to show any concern, much less rush to her defense in front of their own families. They could only resentfully leave it to Qin Jiashu to handle, planning to deal with the man privately once the banquet was over.
If the useless Qin family couldn’t even handle a fly like that, they had no business staying in the Capital.
At that moment, Shen Ruoshuang’s cold, arrogant figure suddenly moving was incredibly conspicuous. Ji Yan and Lu Zhou both paled.
What is she doing? Going to Xu Yinian right under Shen Yi’s nose? Does she want Xu Yinian to be killed by Shen Yi?
But then they saw Shen Yi following behind her, and her expression didn’t look like she was in the dark.
Are they insane?
Lu Yuan, however, let out a rare smirk.
As she thought, she knew Shen Yi would be interested. But to not even hide her true nature in front of her daughter—what a cold-blooded tyrant.
When Lu Zhou saw Lu Yuan stand up, her heart skipped a beat. Did her sister think Shen Yi had her sights set on Xu Yinian and was going over to compete for her?
“A-Yan, look, it’s Shen Ruoshuang. Why don’t you go over and see?”
Those words made Xiao Lin, who was sitting next to Ji Yan, look as pale as thin paper. She pleaded in a low voice, “A-Yan, I haven’t been in front of cameras for so long. Having the media watch my every move makes me nervous… can you stay with me until the end?”
“What a coincidence. The media just left.”
Ji Yan’s eyes mockingly flicked toward the now-empty press section at the back. Aside from the entrance and the partnership announcement, the rest of today was a private dinner.
The others were already used to Ji Yan’s “mad dog” personality and her blatant disrespect. Xiao Lin, who had never been treated this way, became even more desperate when she saw Ji Yan standing up. In a fit of agitation, she gripped Ji Yan’s wrist tightly.
Her manicured nails dug into the flesh, nearly breaking—the same frantic state she fell into during her episodes.
It was a sharp contrast to the way that other person would only ever tug on her sleeve and call her “A-Yan” in a tiny, timid voice.
Even in the days before her illness took hold when Ji Yan was six, Xiao Lin had been hopelessly selfish.
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