"Tyrannosaurus Rex, come back." The childish voice reached everyone's ears, and the German Shepherd that had been lying to the side immediately ran over after hearing the command.
"Good boy." Tang Li patted the Tyrannosaurus Rex sitting next to him, wagging its tail wildly, with a smile on his face, showing no remorse for scaring him.
The man and the dog started playing together, completely oblivious to the stares of others.
"Butler Chen, take the dog away." Tang Qi appeared behind Tang Li without anyone noticing and gave the order in a cold voice. Although Tang Li was unhappy, he could only obediently hand the leash to Butler Chen.
The dog was taken away, and the banquet was eerily quiet. Lan Xing, huddled in a corner, laughed so hard her eyes were almost closed, and sent out the recorded video. After thinking for a moment, she 'accidentally' posted the video to the class group chat, then deleted it within the allotted time.
The class group was silent, but Lan Xing knew that she had achieved her goal.
"I didn't realize you were so wicked." Su Ping's words carried a hint of teasing.
"They're evenly matched," Lan Xing retorted.
Su Ping raised an eyebrow and stopped talking, after all, she was also unhappy with Tang Zhiyi's sudden appearance.
On the day she returned, Su Yao took her to the Su family to meet her relatives. She was very attentive to her cousins and always knew how to act cute in front of the elders. However, she intentionally or unintentionally used her cousins to highlight her pitiful state.
Su Ping was known for her patience, while others weren't, and in the end, Tang Zhiyi benefited from it. Why would she stop someone from embarrassing Tang Zhiyi?
"Where are you going?" Su Ping asked as Lan Xing put away her phone to leave.
"The excitement's over, so of course I'm leaving. See you tomorrow." With that, he waved and departed.
Looking at Lan Xing's carefree demeanor, Su Ping felt a pang of envy for no reason. The main reason she was cooperating with Meng Wan was that they were in the same situation. They were just pawns of the Su and Tang families. Even if they tried, they would not get anything. Therefore, if they wanted to escape this luxurious cage, they had to constantly strengthen themselves.
She looked towards the stage, where Su Yao had already led Tang Zhiyi away without her noticing.
Tang Sheng had just picked up the microphone when Tang Qi, who had walked over, took it from him. But he didn't rush to speak; instead, he gave a gentlemanly bow. His thin lips were slightly curved, his nonchalant demeanor exuding composure and elegance, like a British gentleman from the last century.
"I'm sorry, my younger brother is ignorant and has frightened you all. To express my apologies, Tang Qi has prepared some small gifts for you all. I hope you uncles and elders will give me some face and I will definitely pay you a visit later."
With a single sentence, Tang Qi brought the situation back under control, and the crowd echoed his sentiments, gradually reviving the previously tense atmosphere. Seeing this, a hint of a smile finally appeared in Tang Sheng's eyes.
After stepping off the stage, the two began chatting with others, their conversation revolving around Tang Qi's early success and his experiences abroad. They chatted animatedly until the banquet ended, without anyone mentioning Tang Zhiyi, or even forgetting about Tang Li, who had caused the trouble.
As soon as the banquet ended, Tang Sheng's expression changed immediately. He looked around and realized that Tang Qi, who was beside him, had left at some point.
"Butler Chen!"
"Sir." Upon hearing the voice, Butler Chen immediately ran over, clasped his hands together, and bowed slightly.
"Where are Tang Qi and Tang Li?"
"The eldest young master just left, and the young master... after he slipped out of the banquet, we... we haven't been able to find him."
"Find him! Once you find him, bring him to the study."
"Yes." Only after Tang Sheng turned and left did Butler Chen dare to raise his head. Not daring to delay any longer, he gathered his men, assigned them to different areas, and then went to the monitoring room to check the surveillance footage.
With a loud 'bang,' the locker room door slammed shut, startling Tang Zhiyi. Su Yao stood by the window, noticing Tang Sheng's expressionless face. Instead, Tang Sheng was curled up on the sofa, rubbing his temples wearily.
Tang Zhiyi stood up shakily, her hair disheveled, her once exquisite makeup smeared with tears, looking utterly pathetic.
"Dad." Tang Zhiyi's voice was still choked with sobs, but instead of the expected concern, she was met with a resounding slap.
"A disgraceful piece of trash."
Tang Zhiyi's head was turned to one side by the slap. She covered her face, her eyes filled with disbelief. She had been pampered and spoiled since she was a child. The Meng couple had never hit her, let alone spoken a harsh word to her. And now, she had been slapped by her own father!
She's clearly the victim! She's the one who should be angry and upset!
She covered her face, afraid to speak or look up, her body trembling more and more violently.
"If I had known you would be such a disgrace, I shouldn't have acknowledged you back!"
Tang Zhiyi suddenly looked up at him, her eyes filled with grievance, "Dad, it was an accident, I was scared too!"
"You're scared like this by just one beast? What can you possibly do? Tang Wan isn't scared at all! Look at you, how are you any different from those shrewish women in the slums? You've completely disgraced me, Tang Sheng!"
"Tang Wan! It's Tang Wan again!" Tang Zhiyi clenched her fists, burying all her hatred in her heart.
With tears in her eyes, she said, "Dad, I'm sorry, I was wrong. I promise I'll never do it again. I... I was chased by a dog before, I'm scared... I promise I'll never do it again."
"If there's a next time, get back to where you came from!" Tang Sheng's biggest regret now is that he thought Tang Zhiyi was obedient and easy to manipulate, so he took her back. She looks shrewd, but she's actually stupid and wicked!
No matter how stubborn Tang Wan is, how far can she go?
The more Tang Sheng looked at Tang Zhiyi, the more irritated he became, so he turned and left.
The door slammed shut again, and Tang Zhiyi was startled once more. She was filled with dread; if she lost Tang Sheng's trust, her carefully orchestrated scheme of the heiress's return would be utterly ruined!
The thought of that dilapidated, sour-smelling residential building intensified Tang Zhiyi's panic.
No! No! You absolutely cannot go back!
Her mind raced, the sound of high heels piercing her ears. Tang Zhiyi clutched at her last straw, her eyes filled with pleading and fervor.
"Mom." The voice was shrill and mournful.
Su Yao stopped and took her hand. Tang Zhiyi's smile was about to bloom when Su Yao looked at her coldly, then pried her hand away and tossed it aside.
Tang Zhiyi lost her balance and fell to the ground, her smile still frozen on her face.
"mom?"
"I, Su Yao, don't need a daughter who will embarrass me anymore. Remember that." Su Yao's voice was like a sharp blade pressing on her heart, and like the last straw that broke the camel's back.
The door opened and closed again, but this time Tang Zhiyi wasn't frightened. She knelt on the ground, her expression frantic.
She gave a cold laugh, then burst into uncontrollable laughter, laughing until tears streamed down her face and she was breathless before finally stopping.
So what if the family reunion banquet failed? As long as she performs well and regains Tang Sheng and the others' trust, that's enough. As for what happened today, who will remember it after a while?
She's the eldest daughter of the Tang family! That alone guarantees her a life of wealth and luxury; nothing else matters! As long as she has money, she doesn't need anything else!
So what if Tang Wan is good? She no longer bears the surname Tang. Everyone knows that she is Tang Zhiyi, the true heiress of the Tang family!
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