Chapter 55
Chapter 55
Meng Qingqing sat frozen.
After a long while, she tried to argue in a small voice. “That’s not how it is.”
“Then how is it?”
Zhu Yin asked her, “Can you clear up those three points for me?”
Meng Qingqing thought back over them, then closed her mouth.
She could not.
It seemed this was the first time the young woman had considered the relationship among Li Nanfeng, his idealized love, and Liu Ruyan from this angle.
After sorting through it all, she sat dazed on the sofa and stared into space.
Barbara suddenly cried, “Host, we’re doomed!”
Zhu Yin said, “What’s doomed?”
Barbara said anxiously, “This Meng Qingqing is one of the less prominent vicious supporting female characters. Her main job is to embarrass the female lead at public events. She’s supposed to pick a fight with the female lead at this banquet.”
But judging from her absent expression now, she was clearly no longer dependable.
Zhu Yin was not worried in the slightest. “Relax. It isn’t important.”
She had read the plot too. Calling Meng Qingqing a vicious supporting female character made her sound more important than she was. In truth, she had even fewer scenes than Zhu Yin’s doctor character. At most, she was disposable cannon fodder.
Her job was to pop up now and then, trample on the female lead, and demonstrate just how pitiful the female lead was.
Zhu Yin said, “Wanwan will be here soon. She’s the focus of this banquet. Whether Meng Qingqing performs her part or not doesn’t matter much.”
For example, if the events of this world were a novel, readers would probably either skip Meng Qingqing’s few appearances or forget them as soon as they finished reading.
.
At that moment, Liu Ruyan could be said to be thoroughly pleased with herself.
Ever since the operation, Li Nanfeng had treated her much more tenderly. He had also promised to send his idealized love away and never see her again.
Recently, Li Nanfeng came home every day and showed concern for her health. Their relationship had advanced by leaps and bounds.
This was the married life she had once dreamed of.
Sometimes, she even stroked the faint scar on her abdomen and felt glad that she had agreed to the operation.
“Mr. Li, Madam, you are truly a devoted couple. A toast to you both.” Another stranger came over to offer a toast. Liu Ruyan answered with a smile, lifting her glass for a small sip.
Her gaze swept across the room. Everyone whose eyes met hers offered a friendly smile.
Among them were plenty of people who had once made barbed remarks to her.
Now, everyone greeted her with a smiling face.
Nanfeng’s heart belonged to her as well.
Liu Ruyan had no regrets left–
No. There was still one.
Her gaze wandered over the assembled guests. She searched for a long time but did not see the people she wanted to see.
This banquet mattered greatly to her, and she had contacted her family well in advance.
But she could not get through to either of her parents. She assumed they were still angry with her and refused to answer her calls.
The previous week, she had deliberately made time to visit home. She discovered that the locks had been changed, and no one answered when she knocked.
Liu Ruyan had smiled bitterly then, knowing her parents were truly furious this time.
She had been very busy lately, accompanying Li Nanfeng to all sorts of banquets and social functions while also arranging this third-anniversary celebration.
She decided that once these busy days were over, she would return home and give her parents a proper apology.
Yesterday, she had called her younger sister, who was still at university, to ask when she could come.
Her sister had hemmed and hawed, and her attitude had seemed strange. She said she had just found a good part-time job and truly could not get away.
Not one member of her family was attending such an important occasion. A faint sense of regret welled in Liu Ruyan’s heart.
Suddenly, a commotion broke out in the hall.
Many people turned toward the entrance, and murmurs rose without end.
Liu Ruyan looked toward the sound–
Zhu Yin was watching the excitement too.
She knew the instant Wanwan entered the hotel.
No matter how “magnanimous” Liu Ruyan might be, she could not possibly have invited Wanwan today.
Then had Wanwan come on her own?
Zhu Yin watched from a distance and could not help laughing.
She did not conceal the sound. Fortunately, the corner she had chosen was remote enough, and no one else was nearby. The only person who heard was Meng Qingqing, whose entire moral framework was being rebuilt as she sat deep in thought.
Not understanding what was happening, Meng Qingqing followed Zhu Yin’s gaze. Once she saw who had arrived, a conflicted look appeared on her face.
It was Wanwan.
By coincidence, she was also wearing a blue gown.
Unlike Liu Ruyan’s ocean-blue dress, hers was a deeper, starry-sky blue, with a dazzling, enchanting gradient. Countless tiny diamonds adorned the skirt, their brilliance flowing with each step as if ten thousand stars were sparkling.
Two women who looked somewhat alike stood in gowns from the same color family.
The gazes of many guests turned meaningful.
Many of them knew the rumors about Li Nanfeng and his idealized love.
On such an important day for Mr. Li and his wife, what did it mean for the woman rumored to be involved with him to arrive dressed so exquisitely?
Meng Qingqing’s expression was complicated too.
Without Zhu Yin’s earlier barrage, she might not have noticed any of this. By now, she would already have gone happily to welcome Wanwan.
But after remembering what Zhu Yin had said only moments ago, the sight of Wanwan now felt very different.
They were all respectable people. On an occasion like this, Mr. Li and Liu Ruyan were today’s hosts and the absolute center of attention.
There were no secrets in their circle. Even Meng Qingqing had known in advance what gown Liu Ruyan would wear today. When choosing her own, she would have avoided the same color and style.
Avoiding a matching outfit spared everyone embarrassment and showed respect to the Li family.
Then what was Wanwan trying to say with that dress?
Meng Qingqing looked instinctively toward Zhu Yin. For some reason, despite having just been mocked by her, she felt no resentment at all. Instead, the mysterious beauty somehow struck her as extremely reliable.
Zhu Yin had no time for her little glances. At some point, a cup of ice cream had appeared in her hand, and she was eating as she watched the drama with keen interest.
As Meng Qingqing watched, understanding suddenly dawned.
That’s right. She did not get along with Liu Ruyan, but she was not particularly close to Wanwan either.
Why was she agonizing over it? She could just enjoy the show with Zhu Yin!
After a moment’s thought, she quietly edged closer. “Miss, where did you get the ice cream? I want one too.”