Before the banquet began, the younger generations came forward one by one to present gifts and celebrate the birthday.
The three brothers Shen Guanghui, Shen Mingli and Shen Ji'an each brought their loved ones to wish the old lady a happy birthday.
Then came the grandchildren.
As the eldest daughter of the Shen family, when Chen He brought Mu Tingyun to celebrate the birthday, she naturally attracted the attention of everyone in the audience.
She wore a slim-fitting, off-the-shoulder mermaid dress, and her steps were graceful. Her cat-eyes, painted with a hint of makeup, held a startling glimmer, and her stunning appearance sparked heated discussion among the guests.
Standing next to the third son of the Mu family, she didn't lose a bit of aura.
Chen He had already given the gift. She said a few festive birthday words, and then it was Mu Tingyun's turn to present the gift.
Mu Tingyun held the gift box and turned to Shen Guanghui who was sitting at the table and said, "Uncle Shen, please do me a favor."
Shen Guanghui stood up with a smile on his face and cooperated with Mu Tingyun to unfold the embroidery work.
As the work was unfolded, a pair of longevity cranes standing on a pine tree appeared before the guests. The guests were delighted when they saw this embroidery.
They gathered around and enthusiastically praised the embroidery, saying that it was lifelike and every stitch was so vivid, and it must have been made by a famous artist.
But as soon as Ms. Zhong saw the white crane on the embroidery, she felt a sense of familiarity.
The smile on her face suddenly faded.
Mu Tingyun smiled slightly and said gracefully, "Grandma Zhong, this is the 'Longevity White Crane Painting' that I got from the representative master of Suzhou embroidery, Teacher Zhang Jingyu."
"I dedicate this embroidery to Grandma Zhong. May you be healthy and live a long life."
Upon hearing this, the guests sighed with emotion——
"I was saying this crane is so lifelike, it's not something an ordinary embroiderer could create. Turns out it's the work of Master Zhang Jingyu!"
"Mr. Mu is really thoughtful."
Hearing the guests' compliments, Mu Tingyun's eyes revealed a hint of arrogance.
But the Shen family members who knew the inside story all changed their expressions slightly when they heard the three words "Zhang Jingyu".
Shen Guanghui looked at the old lady with even more fear.
Seeing Ms. Zhong's sinister eyes, Shen Guanghui angrily questioned Mu Tingyun: "Tingyun, what's wrong with you! Why give this woman something when you can give her something else!"
"unlucky!"
Mu Tingyun frowned immediately and asked Shen Guanghui: “Uncle Shen, what do you mean by this?”
He said puzzledly, "Teacher Zhang Jingyu is a recognized representative master of Suzhou embroidery. I heard from Uncle Shen that Grandma Zhong has a hobby of collecting embroidered porcelain, so I came to find her specially."
“Where did I go wrong? Please tell me, Uncle Shen.”
Hearing the conversation, Ms. Zhong cast a scrutinizing look at Shen Guanghui.
Seeing this, Shen Guanghui was so anxious that he wanted to stamp his feet. He gritted his teeth and said, "I did say that my mother has a hobby of collecting porcelain and embroidery, but I didn't say that she likes Zhang Jingyu's embroidery!"
"But Uncle Shen didn't say it couldn't be Teacher Zhang Jingyu's embroidery." Mu Tingyun's eyes suddenly became sharp and cold. He asked Shen Guanghui: "Uncle Shen, are you blaming me for doing something wrong?"
It was Shen Guanghui who wanted to attend the birthday party himself and give him a big gift to make him look good. Now it is Shen Guanghui who is disgusted with him for doing something wrong.
This Shen Guanghui...
Mu Tingyun’s eyes suddenly turned cold when he looked at Shen Guanghui.
Shen Guanghui was also a little afraid of Mu Tingyun in his heart, and seeing that Mu Tingyun was angry, he didn’t dare to say anything.
Looking up at Ms. Zhong's scrutinizing gaze from above, Shen Guanghui secretly thought it was bad luck.
If he had known this would happen, he would not have called Mu Tingyun in the first place.
He quickly explained to Ms. Zhong: "Mom, this is all a misunderstanding..."
Ms. Zhong sneered, interrupted Shen Guanghui, and said in a tone that was neither light nor heavy: “Guanghui, although you are not my biological son, you have grown up with me since you were a child.”
"I have been very kind to you over the years, and I don't think I have ever treated you harshly or wronged you." Ms. Zhong's eyes turned cold as she stared at Zhang Jingyu's stamp on the corner of the embroidery.
In front of the guests, she openly questioned Shen Guanghui: "Many years ago, your father cheated on me during my late pregnancy. The woman he had an affair with was Zhang Jingyu!"
"This is a family scandal. Outsiders don't know about it. Don't you know about it too?"
"Today is my 70th birthday. You gave me such a generous gift. Are you hoping for a long and healthy life? Or are you hoping for my early death?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience was in an uproar!
"What! Shen Zhenkun's affair with Zhang Jingyu back then is actually true?"
"Isn't the eldest son of the Shen family Ms. Zhong and Shen Zhenkun's biological son? I always thought Ms. Zhong was the eldest son's biological mother."
After hearing the guests' discussion, Mu Tingyun realized that Shen Guanghui was not Ms. Zhong's biological son.
He was quite surprised. He didn't expect that Ms. Zhong could hide the scandal so well.
Ms. Zhong had not announced this matter before, and she must have wanted to give Shen Guanghui a decent face.
But now...
At the wedding banquet for his stepmother's 70th birthday, the stepson and his future son-in-law, who came from a good family, jointly gave his mistress's embroidery as a birthday gift.
Anyone would be furious if this happened, so it's no wonder Ms. Zhong made such a fuss.
Mu Tingyun couldn't embarrass his future father-in-law in front of everyone, so he took the blame and said, "I'm sorry, Grandma Zhong, I didn't handle this well."
Mu Tingyun rolled up the embroidery into a ball and pretended to throw it into the trash can.
"Don't throw it away." Ms. Zhong said to Shen Guanghui, "Mr. Mu San must have spent a lot of money on this painting. Guanghui, put this embroidery away and burn it for your father when you have time. This is the work of his old lover, he will definitely like this gift."
After that, Ms. Zhong laughed mockingly and said sarcastically, "If your father were still alive, he would surely be pleased with your filial piety."
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