A dinner full of malicious intent

The current position of the Risheng Group in the business world is like the sun at its zenith, and it is at its most prosperous stage.

Especially after Xia Tianhan's shares in Yueshi fell into the hands of the leaders of Risheng, Yueshi was no longer the only one at the top of the business world. Risheng firmly reached the top, and Yueshi barely avoided falling from the top.

Zhuang Jia is the highest-ranking leader of Risheng. Even a casual birthday party for Second Miss Zhuang attracted wealthy businessmen, celebrities, and politicians from around the world to express their friendship! This clearly shows that Zhuang Jia's status and influence in the business world is no less than that of the Ye family.

Zhuang Yulin held up his wine glass and socialized with various stakeholders. He was very satisfied with his achievements today and had no regrets about his life.

But when his eyes fell on his wife who was showing off her jewelry to a group of noble ladies, he couldn't help but feel a little regretful, regretting that his wife was not what he wanted after all!

He would marry her solely for financial gain, otherwise he wouldn't even look at a woman as sarcastic and difficult to get along with as her.

He likes gentle and virtuous types, just like her, and she has been rooted in his heart for many years!

When his eyes swept across the two figures coming in from the gate, he couldn't help but stop in surprise. It would be more accurate to say that he was surprised rather than surprised.

It was her! He just remembered her and she appeared!

Yue Lanhuan was pulled into the banquet hall by Zhuang Gaoya. When she reached the door, she suddenly found that she was a little uncomfortable with such an occasion of drinking and socializing.

She also didn't like the dress she was wearing. Although it was beautiful, she felt it was too flashy and she didn't want to attract too much attention.

But even without the dress, Yue Lanhuan's appearance is still a beautiful sight.

Although she is over fifty, the saying that time cannot defeat beauty is well reflected in her.

If Zhuang Gaoya wasn't young, Yue Lanhuan would have monopolized all the glory!

Her gentle and lovable temperament attracted many men of similar age. They stared at her intently and walked towards her uncontrollably.

"Hello, is this Madam Xia? It's been a while since we last met, and you've lost quite a bit of weight! I'm deeply sorry about Brother Tianhan's situation, Madam, please take care of yourself! If there's anything I can help you with, please let me know, and I'll do my best!"

"Thank you." Yue Lanhuan was surprised, but still expressed her gratitude. She had some impression of this man, and he had a good relationship with Tianhan, but he didn't show up at Tianhan's funeral. Yue Lanhuan didn't mean to blame him. After all, it's human nature to seek benefits and avoid harm.

The men who came over to greet her, though with different personalities, said essentially the same thing: they were all expressing their concern! I hadn't expected to hear words like those at Tianhan's funeral, but I didn't expect to hear them at someone else's birthday party.

Zhuang Gaoya, who was accompanying her, was at a loss for words. Today was clearly her birthday, but why were all she heard saying "take care" and "I'm sorry" next to her ears, even though they weren't directed at her.

Humph! These old perverts! She could see their true intentions clearly. There was no sorrow or regret for the deceased in their eyes; all they had was a lust for Yue Lanhuan's beauty!

But Yue Lanhuan is indeed beautiful. She is beautiful without makeup, and even more stunning with makeup. There are very few women who can still maintain their beauty at this age. Looking at the entire banquet, none of the women of her age can be considered beautiful. Almost all of them look very old!

Now the group of old women were glaring at Yue Lanhuan with jealousy and anger, in stark contrast to the gentle and courteous attitude of the men.

Looking at those pairs of vicious eyes, Zhuang Gaoya couldn't help but shudder.

At this time, the housekeeper came to her side and said respectfully, "Second Miss has a large package for you, and you need to inspect it in person."

"I understand. Sorry, auntie, I have to leave you for a while. I'll be back soon!" Zhuang Gaoya said to Yue Lanhuan apologetically.

"It's okay, go ahead and do what you need." Yue Lanhuan had an understanding smile on her face.

After Zhuang Gaoya left, men came to greet her one after another. Yue Lanhuan was able to get away by making an excuse to go to the bathroom. When she turned around, she let out a sigh of relief.

On Zhuang Gaoya's side, many people gathered around a two-meter-high and half-meter-wide package, talking, speculating, and expressing their curiosity.

"You'll definitely like it?" Zhuang Gaoya read these words doubtfully under the sender's signature on the list, then chuckled, "Are you sure I'll like it?"

"Hurry up and open it! We are all very curious. What exactly do you like?" Zhuang Gaoya's friends were even more impatient than she was.

Zhuang Gaoya herself was uninterested. She only liked Yue Lanxiu now! She would only like Yue Lanxiu if it was inside. She gestured to the servant beside her to open it.

After unpacking the outer cardboard box, they found a wooden box inside. When they slightly opened the box, the maid suddenly screamed, "Ah—it's a person! A person is lying inside!"

Her screams attracted more people to watch, and her words made people afraid to get too close.

The housekeeper was the most rational and calm person at the scene. He told the maid to shut up and stop creating panic!

The butler opened the wooden box again, and with a calm and serious look, he slowly looked from one end to the other. His increasingly nervous expression faded when he saw that it was just a dummy, a doll. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and reassured everyone, "Don't panic, everyone. It's just an overly realistic doll!"

"A puppet?" Zhuang Gaoya frowned as he stepped forward. Inside the wooden box lay a male puppet, dressed in a suit and tie, at least 180cm tall! The workmanship was so lifelike, at first glance, you could almost mistake it for a person!

"Oh my God! Isn't this an inflatable doll?" Zhuang Gaoya's friends also gathered around, and one of them screamed with wide eyes.

"Oh my God! Gao Ya, you actually like this kind of thing?" someone laughed.

"How is this possible!" Zhuang Gaoya roared angrily. Seeing the people around him all looking secretly delighted, he became so angry that his lungs were about to explode.

Someone touched the male doll out of curiosity, and the doll immediately opened his eyes and uttered a magnetic and seductive male voice, "Hello, my name is Johnny. I'm so happy to see you. Are you happy to see me too? Are you satisfied? Please, beautiful lady, don't just check my appearance, check underneath my clothes too! I'm looking forward to your hands undressing me and touching me... Since this is a personal item, please do not try it on. Once used, it cannot be returned or exchanged, so the size issue..." Zhuang Gaoya kicked the male doll hard in the mouth to stop it from saying these dirty words.

She ordered the stunned housekeeper, "Throw this damn thing out immediately! And then find out who sent it! I want him to be in trouble!" The man obviously wanted to make her look bad in public!

"Yes!" The housekeeper quickly packed up and threw the thing away, but it was still talking. "Oh, dear, you are so rude, but I'm glad you like it... Why did you ask who sent it? Didn't you order it yourself? Didn't you say you were too empty and lonely..."

"What are you still hesitating about! Throw this damn thing out right now!" Zhuang Gaoya was almost mad with rage. Regardless of his usual elegant image, he yelled with his face red and neck thick.

The people around her wanted to laugh but didn't dare to, it was obvious that they were all laughing at her!

Zhuang Gaoya was extremely embarrassed. Who was behind this? If she found out, she would return the humiliation she had suffered today to him a hundredfold!

Seeing her father coming towards her with a cold face, she shuddered and just wanted to find a place to hide.

By the time Yue Lanhuan came out of the bathroom, the episode was over.

"Is that Huanhuan?" someone suddenly called her.

Yue Lanhuan turned around and saw that they were her good friends, but they had not been in touch for a long time. They had not been in touch since the incident with the Xia family.

"Long time no see!"

"You seem to be doing well. I thought you would look much more haggard. After all, your husband just passed away. It is difficult for ordinary people to cheer up in a short time!" The lady with the unicorn arms had a sympathetic look on her face, but her words were full of thorns.

Yue Lanhuan was stung. Perhaps she shouldn't have come. Her husband had passed away not long ago, so it really wasn't appropriate for her to attend such an occasion. No wonder others disliked her!

"I have a friend whose husband died, and she almost died with him! Five years have passed now, and she still looks heartbroken all day long! She is unkempt and has no time to put on makeup and dress up!" A lady with bags under her eyes almost reaching her cheeks said to Qilin Arm, implying that Yue Lanhuan was already attending the banquet not long after her husband's death.

How could Yue Lanhuan not hear the obvious sarcasm? She ignored it and said, "Sorry, excuse me..." Before she could finish the word "excuse me", a lady with a mean face suddenly came forward and touched the jewel necklace around her neck.

"These jewels are not cheap, are they? It seems that even though your husband is dead, he must have left you a substantial inheritance."

Why did they speak so harshly? They were once friends. Even if the Xia family's glory was gone, there was no need to criticize her like that. Yue Lanhuan held back her tears and tried to explain that the jewelry was a gift from Zhuang Gaoya, but these people didn't give her a chance to speak.

"How is that possible? Her husband is a criminal and all his assets have long been stripped away. Unless she is incredibly capable and can charm the people at the Ministry of Justice into showing some mercy!"

"My husband is not a criminal! He was wrongly accused!" Yue Lanhuan was enraged, her eyes red as she argued. It didn't matter how they slandered her, but they were not allowed to speak ill of her husband.

"I hope your husband can be cleared of the charges against him in his lifetime!" A sharp voice sounded from behind.

Yue Lanhuan turned around and saw a face that she recognized at a glance even though she had only seen it once. That face left a shadow in her heart, and the expression on that face was still full of hostility and disgust towards her.

Yue Lanhuan never had much ill will towards her, even though she had criticized her son for no reason before, and even though her words just now were full of sarcasm.

"Of course I will! And soon!" Yue Lanhuan responded to her with a firm look.

She simply curled her lips in disdain. Because of the discord between her own son Xiao Qi and Yue Lanxiu, she also extremely disliked this mother and son.

Yue Lanhuan didn't want to have too much involvement with her, and his eyes were attracted by the lady next to her who was dressed in the most luxurious and dazzling way here.

The lady forced a smile that was not very funny and took the initiative to say, "Hello, today is my daughter's birthday. You are welcome to come and join us."

"Hello, thank you for your hospitality." It turned out to be Zhuang Gaoya's mother. No wonder she acted like a hostess. No, no, a queen would be more accurate.

"But I don't think I invited you. How did you come?"

This "Queen" clearly didn't like her very much either! Yue Lanhuan suppressed her grievances and maintained a smile as she said, "Gao Ya brought me here. I'm sorry to spoil your fun, but I'll be leaving soon!"

"You say that as if we're going to chase you away."

"Don't leave so quickly! If you leave, at least half of the men will be disappointed and reluctant to leave. They still want to talk to you!"

"I saw you were having a pretty good time chatting with them just now. Tell me who you like so I can introduce you to someone!"

"No, no! You misunderstood! I didn't mean that!" Yue Lanhuan couldn't stay any longer and wanted to leave but was surrounded by them.

"Don't be embarrassed. You're dressed up so gorgeously, are you trying to seduce us?"

Yue Lanhuan's face turned pale. She couldn't bear their sharp words and almost fainted.

"What's wrong? This lady seems to be in a very bad mood. Is she feeling unwell?" A deep and powerful male voice suddenly joined them and rescued Yue Lanhuan in time.

When they saw that it was Zhuang Yulin, the male owner of the banker's family, the ladies immediately put away their harsh expressions and dared not to embarrass Yue Lanhuan anymore.

"I'm fine, I want to go to the bathroom. Excuse me." Yue Lanhuan rushed to the bathroom without even raising her head, not wanting anyone to see her crying!

Her back looked so weak and vulnerable that Zhuang Yulin couldn't help but follow her gaze, not noticing that his wife's expression had become extremely ugly.

The ladies sensed that the atmosphere was not right and wisely dispersed.

"She is very pitiful, isn't she? But no matter how pitiful she is, as a married man, haven't you seen too much of her?" Mrs. Zhuang's face turned pale and the words almost came out from between her teeth.

Zhuang Yulin waited until Yue Lanhuan's back disappeared from his sight before he reluctantly turned his gaze to his wife. His suddenly stern and cold eyes scared his wife so much that she forgot her anger.

"Instead of spending time teaching a lesson to people who have nothing to do with you, you might as well discipline your own daughter! Look at what she has done, she has made me lose face!" He was still speaking coldly, but suddenly a smile appeared on his face, and he greeted the guest who had just walked in.

After saying this, he went forward to entertain the guests.

"What trouble has this damn little girl caused me again!" Mrs. Zhuang looked around angrily, looking for Zhuang Gaoya.

In a corner of the hall, a woman was holding a wine glass in her hand, leaning against a stone pillar, watching the whole scene of Yue Lanhuan being bullied.

She drained the wine from her glass, placed her empty glass on a tray carried by a servant, and walked toward the back door.

Walk out the back door and step into the back garden.

The back garden was also dimly lit and many people gathered.

Fortunately, the back garden was big enough, so she tried to walk to a place where there were no people.

Walk through the corridor, pass the fish pond, the rockery, and then there is another corridor. This corridor is very long and the end is far away from the crowd.

The woman took out her cell phone and called her friend.

Asahirou had just returned home and was using her key to open the door when her good friend April Sakura suddenly called.

Asahirou answered the phone immediately. They had already agreed not to contact each other unless it was something important, so she must have called because it was something important.

"One that makes you laugh so hard, and one that makes you want to hit someone, which one would you listen to first?"

Zhao Rirou leaned against the door and began to analyze. "I remember you said you would attend Zhuang Gaoya's birthday dinner tonight because one of your important clients invited you to be his female companion. So these two things should have happened at the party! The one that makes people laugh is, is it the story about Zhuang Gaoya receiving the inflatable doll?"

"How did you know?" April Sakura was surprised for a second, then suddenly realized, "Could it be you who gave it to me?"

"She's so good to my husband, so naturally I have to give her a big gift to show my gratitude!"

"That makes sense! She's really good to your husband, so good to him that she loves him too."

Asahirou frowned, "What do you mean?"

"You didn't know that Zhuang Gaoya invited Yue Lanhuan, right? You didn't see her when she was with Yue Lanhuan. If you didn't know, you would have thought she was Yue Lanhuan's new daughter-in-law!"

Asahirou closed her eyes and covered her forehead, "Is this what you meant by making people want to hit someone?"

"No, no, no, at least she's trying to please your mother-in-law."

Zhao Rirou opened her eyes, which were as cold as a pond, and asked, "You mean, someone is bullying Yue Lanhuan?"

Si Yueying told her about Yue Lanhuan's experience. "Well, do you feel like hitting someone after hearing that? Don't blame me for standing by and watching. It was you who told me to try not to have too much contact with you or anyone related to you, so that others won't see that we have a special relationship!"

"Address." Chao Rirou said coldly, walked to the side of the road and stopped a taxi.

After April Sakura told Asahirou the dealer's address, she noticed someone approaching and ended the call.

A man and a woman walked over, and the woman looked familiar at first glance.

I wanted to see more clearly, but I found that there was something wrong with the behavior of the man and woman.

The man and woman thought they had found a deserted place and were eagerly enjoying the pleasure of love.

April Sakura had no interest in watching this kind of outdoor battle, so she left. But that face kept lingering in her mind, and she tried hard to remember where she had seen it before.

As she reached the fish pond, April Sakura glanced back curiously, feeling constantly watched, but she couldn't see anyone suspicious. Although several men kept flirting with her, they didn't shy away when she looked at them; instead, they openly expressed their interest in her.

But now, she clearly felt that someone was looking at her, but she couldn't find that person!

Maybe she was overthinking it and didn't take it to heart.

However, the truth was, she wasn't suspicious. There had indeed been a pair of eyes that had been quietly following her since she appeared in the hall. It could be said that wherever she went, that pair of eyes followed her greedily!

It's not that she was too careless to notice, but that the followers didn't want to be discovered by her. As long as he doesn't want to be discovered, few people can discover him!

Looking at her going away, he took out a cigarette, leaned against a tree and puffed out smoke, his pair of slender and handsome eyes filled with helpless sadness.

Suddenly, a crow cawed beside my ears. "Vice President Hua! So you're here! It was so hard to find you! The chairman wants to see you and introduce you to someone. What are you doing in such a secluded place?"

The person who spoke was his secretary, and his eyes were searching around as if he suspected that he was hiding a woman.

"I'm feeling a bit unwell, so I'm going to rest here for a while." Even if the gods came looking for him, he would have to wait a while. April Sakura's appearance made him lose interest in other things.

"Unlike you, I'm really resting, not having a tryst with a woman." Hua Chuyu glanced at the woman next to the secretary and said with his usual lukewarm attitude.

"Hehe!" The secretary scratched his head, looking very embarrassed.

Hua Chuyu waved her hand, signaling him to go away and stop showing off in front of him! It was uncomfortable to watch!

He was really uncomfortable. His beloved woman was right in front of him, but he could only look at her secretly, let alone hug her or kiss her!

However, if he approached her in his current status, it would only bring danger to her, so he had to endure it no matter how painful it was!

Asahirou arrived at the Zhuang family's mansion very quickly. She glanced at the security guard at the door who looked very difficult to deal with. Asahirou felt that it would be much easier to climb over the wall!

After successfully entering the hall, April Ying told her that Yue Lanhuan had not come out since entering the toilet.

I guess he would rather face feces than those mean and sarcastic women in the hall!

Zhao Rirou had no choice but to go to the restroom to look for her. Her casual attire made her look out of place in this place, constantly drawing sidelong glances from others. Although it didn't matter, she still hoped to avoid running into Zhuang Gaoya and the others.

But that's how her life is. The more she hates something, the more it comes to her!

"Is that Yatang? Why are you here?"

The voice sounded very familiar. It must be Li Shuqing. Without waiting for her to respond, the person stood in front of her, blocking her way.

"Gaoya, did you invite her?" Li Shuqing said this to Zhuang Gaoya behind her. She called him Gaoya, so it seemed like Li Shuqing was very good at flattering him!

Zhuang Gaoya was also surprised to see her.

There are many women of similar age around Zhuang Gaoya, and they are obviously birds of a feather.

"Did you climb over the wall to get in?" Zhuang Gaoya's delicate face was full of sarcasm.

As soon as the words were spoken, sounds of ridicule and mockery rang out one after another.

"You sneaked in from among the maids. Not to mention, you still look like a maid even without your maid uniform!" Ever since her conspiracy was exposed in public by Asahirou at the detective agency last time, Zhuang Gaoya has been holding a grudge and waiting for an opportunity to take revenge. This time, she even dared to break into her territory. Let's see how she will deal with her!

"She was born a maid!" Li Shuqing introduced her to the people around her.

Asahirou felt it was a shame to talk to them and left immediately.

Zhuang Gaoya was furious at Zhao Rirou's arrogant demeanor. He sneered, "Without an invitation, you're trespassing. I can sue you for trespassing!"

Li Shuqing chimed in, "Everyone, check to see if anything is missing!"

Zhao Rirou smiled at Zhuang Gaoya and said, "My mother was taken away by someone who likes to be sentimental. I came to take her home to prevent her from being pestered."

The words self-indulgent, wishful thinking, and persistent made Zhuang Gaoya's face suddenly freeze.

"Who is your mother?" someone asked behind Zhuang Gaoya.

"Her mother is Yue Lanhuan." Zhao Rirou felt that there was no need to explain too much to a stranger, but Li Shuqing was happy to answer for her.

"Does Yue Lanhuan have another daughter?"

"No, it's Yue Lanxiu's second wife!" When Li Shuqing said this, a woman not far away couldn't help but stop and look back at them.

"Oh my God! Yue Lanxiu got married again?"

"Oh my god! Is Yue Lanxiu crazy? Marrying such an ugly thing home?!"

"And a lowly servant!"

"Yue Lanxiu is not stupid, he just drank too much and let someone with ulterior motives take advantage of the opportunity to climb into bed with him!" Li Shuqing always looked as if she was afraid that she would have an easy time.

She and Yatang don't have any deep hatred, but after all, Yatang is the person Zhuang Gaoya hates!

Since Zhuang Gaoya will be happy if Yatang is not having a good time, then she has no choice but to make Yatang sad!

"Oh! Low-class people love to do low-class things!"

"Ugly people are really the worst!"

"If I were Yue Lanxiu, I would not marry her!"

"If I were Yue Lanxiu, I would definitely break her arms and legs. I'll see how she'll ever get into bed again!"

Contemptuous looks and vicious words kept attacking Asahiro, and he almost spit at her.

Zhao Rirou smiled, then suddenly raised her face to Li Shuqing, walked towards her and said, "You remind me of a phrase: judging others by your own standards! You all don't seem to understand what it means, so let me explain. It means using your own mind to speculate about others. In other words, when you talk about others, you are actually projecting yourself! Think carefully about your past actions, Li Shuqing. It seems that you have indeed done such things!"

Chao Rirou stood in front of Li Shuqing. Although Li Shuqing was a head taller than her, she was far inferior in terms of momentum.

Her eyes were intimidating without being angry. Li Shuqing couldn't help but take a step back and said stubbornly, "Don't slander me!"

Zhao Rirou leaned closer to her and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Thinking back then, I don't know who drugged Yue Lanjing just to get into her bed! It's a pity that person was so stupid that he got into the wrong bed!"

This sentence successfully made Li Shuqing shut up. She stepped aside and didn't dare to look at Zhao Rirou again, for fear that the scandal that she had finally settled would be brought up again.

Just as Zhao Rirou was about to leave, Zhuang Gaoya grabbed her wrist, pulled her aside, and angrily said, "What can you bring to him? Did you see that? Everyone is laughing at him because of you! You've made him look down upon!"

Asahirou shook her hand away and said, "Then what can you bring to him? Before this, do you know what he needs?"

Zhuang Gaoya was stunned. She thought that a successful career was what men cared about most. But she wasn't sure if Yue Lanxiu thought the same. But she was certain of one thing, "At least it's not you. If he doesn't love you, what would he need from you?" Zhuang Gaoya pointed at her nose.

Asahirou slapped her hand away and said, "Whether he loves me or not is not something you can say from your mouth."

"He told me that we talked about you and your marriage when we were having dinner before, and neither of them is what he wants!" Zhuang Gaoya looked down at her condescendingly, with a rampant smile gradually appearing in his eyes.

Zhao Rirou, however, did not take it as an offense. Instead, she smiled and said, "Given your past history of lying, I don't believe a single word you say! And please don't slander Yue Lanxiu. He's not the type to gossip about his wife in public!"

"You!" Zhuang Gaoya was speechless. She had never expected this woman to be so strong-willed that she wouldn't fall for it!

Asahiro shook her head, gave her a hopeless look, and turned away, no longer wanting to accompany her.

But when she turned around, someone suddenly bumped into her! Asahiro felt that this person had bumped into her on purpose.

Her bag fell to the ground. Asahirou bent down to pick it up, but the man had already picked it up for her and said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to! Are you Yue Lanxiu's wife?"

This voice made a lasting impression, and it wasn't a good one! When the man looked up, Chao Rirou was stunned.

The man handed her the bag, and the phone in the bag suddenly made a sound. It was the sound of a text message, which made her quickly come back to her senses.

Asahirou took the bag and nodded, then took out her phone and glanced at the message on it. It was from Xiaoying. Xiaoying said she had just seen a familiar face and finally remembered who it was. It was Tang Qianjiao! Luosha's eighth apprentice!

Zhao Rirou raised her eyebrows. Well, she had already seen it. Tang Qianjiao was right in front of her, greeting her!