Chapter 145: The Gaze Part 5

Qin Jiashu’s heart hammered against her ribs. She had hesitated for so long, and now, true regret set in.

She had thought she could simply bring her “Little Rose” along, quietly enjoying her beauty while smugly watching her rivals suffer because they couldn’t have her.

She hadn’t realized that the girl was no longer the disguised, dull creature she once was—the kind whose colors had to be painstakingly unearthed, a treasure known only to those who had tasted her sweetness.

There were too many hungry eyes…

Qin Jiashu took a half-step forward, shielding the girl from part of the crowd’s view. She moved quickly to lead her to the Qin family’s table.

Fortunately, she had discussed this with her parents beforehand, and two seats had been reserved.

Xu Yinian, meanwhile, was scared out of her wits. Having spotted both Shen Ruoshuang and Shen Yi, she was far too terrified to notice her own precarious situation.

Even after being settled into her seat, she only vaguely realized how quiet it had become. She didn’t dare look up. She sat there, rigid, though the moonlight gauze ribbons trailing from her braided hair couldn’t help but sway slightly. They brushed softly against her porcelain shoulders and delicate shoulder blades, a sight that teased the heartstrings of everyone watching.

Recalling the earlier threat, Ji Yan forced herself not to look too long in front of Xiao Lin.

In the distance, she took a deep breath, suppressing the surge of violent rage that followed her momentary breathlessness.

How did Qin Jiashu dare to bring her here?! Did she not know that Xu Yinian was a siren even when she wasn’t wearing a drop of makeup?

Looking up, Ji Yan noticed Lu Zhou’s gaze was fixed on her own elder sister, Lu Yuan. It was a strange look.

The two girls exchanged a glance, and Ji Yan immediately understood.

Lu Yuan wasn’t even bothering to hide her stare. Her eyes followed Xu Yinian, filled with blatant interest.

Ji Yan suddenly spoke, her voice carrying its usual tone of cold, biting mockery. “…I wondered who it was. Just Qin Jiashu’s girlfriend, apparently.”

If it weren’t to kill Lu Yuan’s interest, Ji Yan would never in her life have admitted that Xu Yinian was someone else’s girlfriend.

Lu Zhou’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. These words had to come from Ji Yan; if she had mentioned it herself, Lu Yuan would only have become more intrigued.

“The Qin family?” Lu Yuan let out a soft laugh.

To her, they were just a minor house that had clawed their way up through social climbing and forced smiles.

Still, there was no need for blunt force or abduction just yet. She recalled Liu Qiao, whom Shen Yi had inexplicably let go, and her gaze cooled slightly.

Both Ji Yan and Lu Zhou’s gazes were heavy with unspoken intent, though they dared not reveal a hint of it in front of the “old foxes” and power-holders at the table.

On the other side of the room, Liu Qiao sat with her companions in a remote corner.

Without a powerful backer yet, she didn’t have the status to sit at the tables reserved for the true aristocracy.

In these social circles, the arrival of a true beauty usually triggered a defensive instinct—a subtle fear of being outshone.

Yet, as they faced Xu Yinian, that malicious competitive spark vanished as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by an inexplicable awe.

A strange silence hung over the hall for a long moment before guests began to whisper, their hushed tones suggesting that even discussing her felt like a form of desecration.

No one noticed that Liu Qiao’s face had turned deathly pale.

She didn’t even have the luxury of worrying about her own predicament—of being a fake favorite caught in front of the real one. Instead, her mind raced with a single, terrifying thought: Xu Yinian had appeared as someone else’s companion, acting intimately right under Shen Yi’s nose!

In a relationship with Shen Yi, the consequences of having complications or being entangled with others were unimaginable.

Moreover, given Shen Yi’s unprecedented and singular favoritism toward Xu Yinian, her possessiveness would only be far more terrifying than it had been back when she was cold and indifferent.

Liu Qiao felt as though she were going to lose her life today on Xu Yinian’s behalf.

Trembling, she looked up toward Shen Yi on the second-floor balcony.

The atmospheric pressure had visibly plummeted to a freezing point. Shen Yi’s already sharp features were now clouded with a dark, ruthless gloom.

Under that crushing weight, who would dare to look “that woman” in the eye?

Liu Qiao wasn’t the only one who noticed; others began to murmur amongst themselves.

Has the latecomer’s intrusion offended Shen Yi?

Even such delicate beauty didn’t seem to earn a shred of “tender pity” from the CEO. As expected of Shen Yi, a woman renowned for her cold, uncompromising severity.

Some in the crowd silently hoped the innocent “Little Jasmine” would emerge unscathed from CEO Shen’s displeasure, while others harbored darker thoughts, wanting to see the girl tremble in distress.

Jiang Ke’s face also went white, fine beads of sweat breaking out on her forehead.

It wasn’t just because of Xu Yinian’s abrupt appearance at the banquet, but because… she was sitting directly across from Qin Jiayan!

Even Qin Jiayan, who usually remained indifferent to everything, was actually observing her!

At the moment, the opening speeches for the Bai and Shen families’ collaboration had just begun.

It was impossible for Jiang Ke to leave her seat and pull Yinian away. She could only manage to surreptitiously type a quick message on her phone.

[Qin Jiashu brought Xu Yinian!]

On the other end, Bai Ran received the message instantly. Her expression showed no surprise.

She had intentionally leaked the news that she wouldn’t be attending the banquet, hoping that Qin Jiashu wouldn’t let her down—hoping that Jiashu would be arrogant and stupid enough to bring Xu Yinian along.

Jiashu had no idea that while she didn’t have to fear Bai Ran’s presence, there was another existence here who crushed everyone else combined.

Ever since she heard the news that Liu Qiao had been easily let off the hook by Shen Yi, Bai Ran had found the answer to the question she had been harboring.

…Shen Yi’s indulgence and tolerance for Xu Yinian had reached a frightening level.

To avoid leaving a “cruel and cold-blooded” impression on Xu Yinian, Shen Yi had actually spared someone who had once betrayed and defied her?

If no one disrupted the status quo, Shen Yi would only fall deeper and deeper.

Bai Ran was confident she could hide Xu Yinian from any other suitors, but she couldn’t hide her from “that woman.”