As soon as the emcee finished speaking, Ye Qianqian saw the groom eagerly slip the ring onto the bride’s finger, his face beaming with happiness as he held out her hand.
Especially when she saw her glamorous mother arm in arm with her steady, reserved, and charismatic father, both standing beside Ye Qingyan with radiant smiles.
And the Song parents, who had been endlessly grateful to her over the past three years, were now standing beside the groom with cheerful smiles as well.
Her three older brothers stood below the stage, their eyes glued to Ye Qingyan. Since she had entered, they hadn’t glanced at her once.
Were they so certain that she, the would-be bride, wouldn’t disrupt Song Yuntao and Ye Qingyan’s wedding? Had they made foolproof preparations to ensure she couldn’t stir up trouble?
Ye Qianqian felt as if her whole body had been filled with lead, unable to move, only her eyes able to roll upward.
She looked at the stage, where the bride and groom stood surrounded by the emcee and both sets of parents.
They were so in love, and so—perfectly matched.
The three Ye brothers smiled triumphantly, and all the guests raised their glasses with joyful smiles to offer blessings.
If she rashly rushed up and shattered this festive and harmonious atmosphere, and her own brothers labeled her as mentally ill, no one would likely doubt it.
How could she accept this? How could she bear it?
Just as she was trembling with anger, the large hand around her waist tightened its grip, and she heard the deep voice of the Living Yama.
“Congratulations to you as well. My wife doesn’t drink, so please don’t mind. When we hold our wedding, we’ll be sure to invite all of you.”
Today, Third Master Lu was unusually amiable. Whenever someone raised a glass to him, he patiently clinked glasses with them.
Ye Qianqian only heard the guests offering congratulations with their glasses, unaware that they were congratulating her and Third Master Lu.
Lu Jingchen’s voice was deep, his tone calm yet carrying the authority of someone in power.
He was only a few years older than Ye Ruixuan and Song Yuntao, yet he moved in entirely different circles.
At such a young age, he was already managing the entire Lu family. Even the most influential figures in Rongcheng had to lower their heads and address him as “Third Master Lu.”
In front of him, heirs and eldest grandsons of prominent families like Ye Ruixuan and Song Yuntao, who had yet to take control of their own clans, were nothing but small fry.
Lu Jingchen could crush them as easily as stepping on ants. They usually avoided even hearing his name, fearing that a single misstep might provoke him and bring disaster upon their entire families.
Ye Qianqian was no exception—she usually feared him too. Yet today, she had the fortune of being held by him.
In the blink of an eye, Ye Qianqian and Lu Jingchen were surrounded by people, blocking her view of the stage. She couldn’t see that the bride hadn’t helped the groom put on the ring and was instead frowning as she stared at her.
All she saw were Bullet Chats drifting past like snowflakes:
【Huh! Why isn’t the female lead helping the male lead put on the ring?】
【Oh no! The female lead doesn’t think Boss Lu likes her, does she? What a huge misunderstanding!】
【Sigh! It’s all Brother Zhuo’s fault for causing misunderstandings. At the female supporting character’s coming-of-age ceremony, he went to give a grand gift but ended up giving one to our female lead too.】
【The same thing happened on her twentieth birthday. Our female lead is so charming—who would have thought the big boss had a crush on the female supporting character?】
【Female lead, stop looking! The male lead is your true destiny. The big boss definitely won’t like you!】
【Exactly, all the male supporting characters are deeply in love with the female lead. Only Brother Zhuo lives, dies, and smashes his head against walls for the female supporting character.】
Ye Qianqian’s resentment was washed away by the flood of Bullet Chats. She looked up and whispered softly, “Third Master, drink less. It’s not good for your health.”
Her voice was crisp yet gentle, each word coated with a unique tenderness.
“Alright, I’ll listen to my wife,” Lu Jingchen’s voice was deep, his slightly pale eyes now less sharp and less cold.
Upon closer inspection, they held a hidden depth of affection, but unfortunately, no one dared to look.
The bride on stage not only didn’t help the groom put on the ring, she didn’t even glance at him—she was just staring obsessively at Third Master Lu.
Song Yuntao asked softly, full of anticipation, “Yanyan, why are you so distracted? Don’t you want to marry me?”
“Ah? How could that be! Brother Yuntao, look—Third Master Lu is holding my sister?” Ye Qingyan asked, appearing very concerned.
In truth, she was almost exploding with anger inside, because everyone in Rongcheng knew that Third Master Lu had a cleanliness obsession and hated being touched by others.
Any woman who deliberately got close to him would either have her hands or legs broken.
Yet such a cruel man was now holding Ye Qianqian and clinking glasses with others, his gaze fixed on her as if she were some treasure of his.
Ye Qingyan was jealous, her anger reaching its peak. She wished she could rush off the stage right then and tear Ye Qianqian apart—how could she possibly be in the mood to put on a ring?
“Yanyan, we agreed that as long as Qianqian doesn’t make a scene, we won’t care who she’s with,” Song Yuntao said patiently.
He was in an especially good mood today. After being forced into an engagement with someone he didn’t love, he could still have a wedding with the person he had loved for years.
He was truly overjoyed.
“How do you know she isn’t here to cause trouble? Look, she’s even holding onto Third Master Lu to crash our wedding!” Ye Qingyan’s voice turned shrill.
“Yanyan, our wedding is just one step away from being perfectly completed, and Qianqian hasn’t—”
Before Song Yuntao could finish, Ye Qingyan interrupted him, “Qianqian, Qianqian—you care so much about her, why aren’t you worried she might get her legs broken by Third Master?”
Ye Qingyan almost shouted: You call her so intimately, why don’t you just marry her instead?
But she had always been good at pretending, so the words twisted in her mouth and came out as concern for her sister.
“Yanyan, what’s wrong with you? We got her drunk and sent her off with someone last night—why worry about her now?” Song Yuntao looked at his bride, puzzled.
“……” Ye Qingyan was left speechless by the question.
Seeing the bride and groom whispering continuously, the emcee spoke up again, “Please, the bride will now help the groom put on the ring.”
At that moment, most of the guests in the banquet hall had no time to watch the bride and groom. Upon learning that the person being surrounded was the Lu family’s Third Master, they were all focused on finding an opportunity to strike up a conversation.
On stage, Song Yuntao’s parents, Ye Qingyan’s parents, were also watching Third Master Lu, wondering why such a big shot had come to attend their son’s (daughter’s) wedding today.
As for Ye Qianqian beside Lu Jingchen—sorry! They truly hadn’t noticed her.
Only when they heard the emcee’s slightly displeased voice did they all turn their attention to the bride and groom.
“Yanyan, why aren’t you helping Yuntao put on the ring?”
“Yanyan, what are you looking at?” Song’s mother and Ye’s mother asked in unison.
“Mom~ look, my sister is standing next to Third Master Lu. I’m so worried about her~” Ye Qingyan said in a sweet, coquettish tone.
“Yanyan, don’t mind her. Hurry and help your husband put on the ring. If she dares to cause trouble, Mom will have your brothers deal with her,” Ye’s mother gently reassured her adopted daughter.
“Mom, Brother Yuntao, I still think I should go check. You know Third Master Lu’s temper—what if he breaks my sister’s legs…”
Ye Qingyan’s words were cut off by Song’s father before she could finish, “Does Miss Ye regret marrying my son?”
“Hurry and put the ring on your husband, Yan Yan. With Dad here, don’t worry.” Ye’s father said, supporting Ye Qingyan’s shoulder.
Only then did Song Yuntao belatedly follow his beloved’s gaze, and in an instant, he was utterly captivated.