Ye Zhao looked up at Shen Du's sharply defined jawline and tried to pull her hand away uncomfortably, but Shen Du didn't let go and still had his arm around her shoulder.

Shu Yang saw Chen Du and stood up, saying, "Du, they're just playing around. Don't scare them."

Ye Zhao frowned and looked over, then retorted without any politeness, "You want to throw a wine glass at people for fun? Then stand still and I'll throw one at you too?"

As she spoke, she reached for her wine glass, but Shen Du put his arm around her shoulder to stop her. He looked at Meng Shishi, Kong Yingying, and the others with a deep expression and said, "Is it because my Shen family has failed to provide adequate hospitality that you are dissatisfied to the point of resorting to violence against my guests?"

Shu Yang's gaze fell on Ye Zhao, his expression somewhat subtle.

Wang Shuo frowned and glanced at Wang Qi, who had her head down, and said, "Brother Du, it's just a little joke with Ye Zhao since we haven't seen each other in a while, it's not that serious..."

The others chimed in, "Yeah, Du-ge, we're just kidding."

"They're young and don't know their limits when joking, Brother Du, please don't take it to heart."

"That's right, they're all acquaintances, it was just a joke."

The other people in the private room seemed to come alive at this moment, and they all spoke up to help Meng Shishi and the others out of the predicament.

Ye Zhao rolled her eyes in exasperation, about to explode, when she heard Shen Du say in a slightly deep voice, "Are they mute and unable to speak?"

Wang Shuo met Shen Du's slightly angry gaze, then pursed his lips and gave Wang Qi a look that said "good luck."

Under the gaze of everyone, Meng Shishi looked extremely embarrassed. She took a step forward and said in a soft tone, "We were just joking with Ye Zhao. The joke went a little too far. President Shen, please don't hold it against us."

Wang Qi also spoke up, sounding aggrieved: "That's right, we were just joking around. We accidentally went too far, so please don't be angry, Brother Du."

Among his peers, Chen Du has always been serious and unsmiling, and when he gets angry, he leaves those people somewhat at a loss.

Kong Yingying looked at him with a wronged expression and said, "We were just joking, but Ye Zhao said such awful things..."

Ye Zhao understood; the implication was that she deserved it.

At this moment, Yan Xu, who was behind Shen Du, stepped out and stared at the group with a half-smile, saying, "I didn't know that you young girls could be so vicious when you joke around..."

"Yan Xu?"

Why is he here?

"Didn't he go to City B?"

Upon hearing this, Meng Shishi and the others' expressions gradually darkened. He Jie, who was standing to the side, looked at their deep and angry faces and said, "It's not a big deal, Qiqi. Just apologize to Ye Zhao and that's it."

Upon hearing this, Wang Qi looked at him with a wronged expression and kept her mouth shut without saying a word.

Seeing this, Fang Yizhou also advised, "Qiqi, you've gone too far with your jokes. It's only right that you apologize to Ye Zhao."

Shu Yang sat in the chair and said, seemingly trying to ease tensions, "Let's apologize to each other. It's not a big deal. Qi Qi and the others were wrong, and Ye Zhao's words were also harsh."

Ye Zhao looked at her expressionlessly and said, "I also find your words unpleasant. Why don't you apologize to me?"

Ye Zhao didn't believe in that nonsense about taking a step back and finding a better future. Putting aside the repeated humiliations these people had inflicted on her, they were probably responsible for the false rumors about her. And what about today's incident? They had brought her here with malicious intent, just to embarrass her. They were only angry because they hadn't achieved their goal and had been made to lose face. Why should she apologize?

Shu Yang frowned upon hearing this and looked at Ye Zhao, saying, "I just wanted to ease the tension, you don't have to target me like this."

Hearing Ye Zhao criticize Shu Yang like that, Shen Jiayi was also unhappy and said to Ye Zhao, "That's right, Sister Shu Yang didn't offend you, why is she saying such nasty things?"

Shu Yang? Ye Zhao glanced at her thoughtfully.

Wang Shuo glanced at Chen Du's expression, then stood up and walked to Wang Qi's side, saying with a grin, "You girls are really too tactless. Quickly apologize to Ye Zhao, it's not a big deal..."

Wang Qi glanced at her brother, who was making funny faces, and then at Chen Du, whose expression remained serious, before reluctantly saying, "I'm sorry, Ye Zhao, we went too far with our jokes."

Ye Zhao, who was speaking in a low voice, almost didn't hear it. Meng Shishi and Kong Yingying exchanged a grim-looking glance and reluctantly apologized as well.

Shen Du released his arm from Ye Zhao's before speaking, "Everyone here is a guest of the Shen family. On this day, with many media outlets outside, please take care of yourselves and don't let trivial matters make you look bad."

Shu Yang looked at him disapprovingly and said, "Adu, they've already apologized, so don't be so serious."

Shen Du nodded almost imperceptibly, looked at Ye Zhao, and asked in a low voice, "What are you doing here? Aren't you going to rest?"

Once Chen Du relented, the atmosphere in the private room finally eased a bit. Some people gathered around Meng Shishi and the others to offer quiet comfort, while others continued chatting idly.

Ye Zhao glanced at Meng Shishi and the others with a half-smile: "They asked me to come over, so I just came to join in the fun!"

Upon hearing this, Shen Du frowned. Before he could say anything, Wang Shuo and He Jie and the others surrounded him.

When did you get back?

Why didn't you say you were coming back?

Yan Xu saw the group and smiled slightly, saying, "I came back because I have something to take care of."

Ye Zhao noticed Yan Xu's gaze on her, and turned to slip away, but Yan Xu grabbed her collar.

Yan Xu gently tugged at Ye Zhao's collar with two fingers and asked without any emotion, "Where are you going?"

Ye Zhao gently pulled her hand away from his and smiled, "I'm going to take a rest."

Yan Xu glanced at her and said, "Wait, I'm leaving soon."

"Oh," Ye Zhao replied, then obediently stood still without moving.

As He Jie and Yan Xu exchanged pleasantries, Wang Shuo's gaze seemed to fall on Ye Zhao, while Ye Zhao was also subtly observing Shu Yang, who was talking to Shen Du. Just as her thoughts were racing, a voice suddenly came from beside her.

"Ye Zhao?" A cool voice came from behind, and Ye Zhao turned around to look.

Was it him? That deep look in his eyes just now.

Ye Zhao looked at him with a puzzled expression, wondering which of the original owner's old acquaintances this was? He was quite handsome, with exquisite eyebrows and deep, long eyes, fair skin, and wore a pair of half-rimmed glasses. He looked refined and handsome, which was the kind of appearance Ye Zhao liked.

Jiang Che looked at her questioning eyes and said in a low voice, "Jiang Ze asked me to give you my regards."

"Huh?" Ye Zhao was genuinely puzzled. Who was this Jiang Ze?

However, Jiang Che didn't explain to her. After saying that, he turned around and left. Shen Jiayi, who was not far away, saw this scene and her face became even more unpleasant.