Everyone turned around to see Lu Wanmian walking over. She looked at the servant with a face full of anger: “This clueless servant actually dared to bump into Sister Manyin. Just firing her is too lenient—I think she should be severely punished.”
The servant’s face changed instantly, and she immediately cried out in defense: “I didn’t bump into her! She bumped into me herself. I’m not at fault. Young Miss, please let me off the hook.”
Lu Wanmian, of course, knew it wasn’t the servant’s fault. She was doing this simply to stop Yun Manyin from using her tricks to victimize an innocent servant just to gain attention.
She coldly scolded the servant: “Oh, you dare to talk back? Sister Manyin is so kind—why would she deliberately bump into you? This is outright slander.”
She looked at Lu Siyuan and suggested, “Brother, why not have Uncle Yang pull up the surveillance footage from the banquet hall so everyone can see it? Let this servant realize her mistake, so she won’t keep falsely accusing Sister Manyin out of thin air.”
Lu Siyuan nodded in agreement: “Alright.”
Yun Manyin grew anxious and tried to dissuade them: “There’s no need to pull up the surveillance, is there? It’s just a small matter. I believe this servant didn’t bump into me on purpose. Let’s just let it go.”
Lu Wanmian wasn’t about to let her gloss over it. She defended her with righteous indignation: “Sister Manyin, this isn’t your fault—how can we just let it go? With so many people watching, I can’t let this servant wrong you. We must pull up the surveillance footage.”
The surrounding guests chimed in with agreement, and Yun Manyin found herself stuck in a dilemma—she wanted to stop it, but no one was listening to her anymore.
Before long, Uncle Yang, the steward, retrieved the surveillance footage. He held up a tablet and played it for everyone to see.
Everyone looked at the video, and in it, Yun Manyin was the one who had deliberately walked over and bumped into the servant.
The crowd was stunned.
The servant shouted urgently: “You all saw the surveillance video! Miss Yun bumped into me on purpose. I’m not at fault!”
Everyone turned to look at Yun Manyin in unison. She was so embarrassed she wished she could crawl into a crack in the ground.
Her face flushed red as she awkwardly explained: “That… I was walking too quickly and didn’t see her. I bumped into her by accident.”
Lu Siyuan looked at Yun Manyin with a hint of disappointment in his eyes. In his heart, she had always been upright and kind—he never expected her to falsely accuse a servant in public.
Lu Wanmian pretended to look shocked: “Oh! So it was Sister Manyin who bumped into the servant. What a misunderstanding. Since it wasn’t the servant’s fault, Brother, do we still need to fire her?”
Lu Siyuan was embarrassed for a moment before replying, “Then there’s no need to fire her.”
Yun Manyin nodded repeatedly: “Right, no need to fire her. This time, it was my fault.”
To salvage her dignity, she immediately apologized to the servant and offered her ten thousand yuan as compensation, which the servant accepted.
Lu Wanmian curled her lips into a smile and deliberately praised her: “Sister Manyin, you corrected your mistake and even compensated her. You’re such a good person.”
Hearing her praise, Yun Manyin’s mouth twitched.
If it hadn’t been for Lu Wanmian insisting on pulling up the surveillance footage, she wouldn’t have lost all her face. She seemed to be defending her, but in reality, she was sabotaging her—what a brainless fool.
She felt another wave of disdain and contempt toward Lu Wanmian.
After this whole scene, everyone now knew that Yun Manyin was a green tea who falsely accused a servant and played the victim. The looks they gave her turned contemptuous.
Yun Manyin could no longer bear to stay. She tugged at Lu Siyuan’s sleeve and said to him, “A Yuan, my leg hurts a bit, and my evening gown is wet too. Could you take me downstairs to rest for a while?”
Although Lu Siyuan was somewhat disappointed in her, he glanced at her calf and the evening gown stained by the spilled drink, then nodded. “Alright, there’s medicine and spare evening gowns at home. I’ll take you to apply the medicine, then get you a new gown to change into.”
He scooped her up in a princess carry and quickly strode out of the banquet hall.
His action set the guests whispering among themselves.
“Master Lu really treats Miss Yun differently, doesn’t he?”
“Of course—after all, Miss Yun is the one in Master Lu’s heart. I’d say the two of them will probably go public soon.”
“I heard Miss Yun is quite close with that young master of the Pei family, all ambiguous and unclear. As for who she’ll actually go public with, that’s still up in the air.”
“Tsk tsk, so it’s a love triangle after all. This Miss Yun really is both a schemer and a flirt—actually playing two men at once.”
“She’s just a manipulative green tea, twisting men right around her finger.”
Hearing the guests’ contemptuous whispers, Lu Wanmian raised her slender brows. Yun Manyin’s reputation in aristocratic circles was thoroughly ruined now.
Standing across from her and watching the show, Lu Ruoruo sneered, “My dear eldest cousin is usually so clever, but in front of Yun Manyin, he’s twisted right around her finger. What a fool.”
As for Lu Wanmian, her brother was a fool, and as long as Yun Manyin was around, she could only be sidelined.
Pei Jiayou, standing beside her, chimed in, “Exactly. Lu Siyuan is just a stupid lovesick fool.”
Lu Ruoruo scoffed disdainfully. “And Yun Manyin is just pretty on the surface. Her family background is so poor, and she reeks of that green tea vibe. My dear eldest cousin is utterly devoted to her—he must have something wrong with his head.”
After that jab, Lu Ruoruo looked at Lu Wanmian across the room, a sinister glint flashing in her eyes. With Lu Siyuan absent, it was even more convenient for them to deal with that fool Lu Wanmian.
“Jiayou, this morning’s basketball game had Lu Wanmian humiliate you in public. Why not make her humiliate herself in public at tonight’s banquet too? Consider it payback.”
Pei Jiayou had been thinking the same thing. “I’m game, but I haven’t figured out how to get back at her yet.”
Lu Ruoruo had an idea. She stood on her tiptoes and whispered a few words into his ear.
After hearing it, Pei Jiayou’s eyes lit up. “That’s a good plan.”
Lu Ruoruo smiled maliciously. “As long as we make Lu Wanmian suffer public embarrassment in front of all the guests this time, her reputation in the wealthy circles will be ruined. Let’s see how she manages to get by after that.”
She looked at Pei Jiayou with eager expectation. “Jiayou, it’s all up to you now.”
Pei Jiayou nodded with full confidence. “Don’t worry, I won’t let you down.”
The banquet soon moved into the dance segment. Melodious music began to play, and the guests stepped onto the dance floor, swaying gracefully.
Pei Jiayou approached Lu Wanmian and said politely, “Classmate Lu, this morning on the basketball court was all a misunderstanding. I hope you won’t hold it against me. Could we be friends?”
A smile curled at the corner of Lu Wanmian’s lips. “That’s all in the past now. I’ve already let it go. Since you sincerely want to be friends with me, then I accept.”
Seeing how agreeable she was, Pei Jiayou was delighted and immediately extended an invitation. “Then would I have the honor of asking you for a dance?”
His plan with Lu Ruoruo was to invite Lu Wanmian to dance. Since her adoptive family was poor, she likely had little opportunity to learn dancing, and even if she could dance, she wouldn’t be good at it. He would make her look ridiculous in front of everyone during the dance, turning her into a laughingstock.
Lu Wanmian saw through Pei Jiayou’s little scheme at a glance. She blinked her bright, clear eyes and pretended to look flustered. “But I’m not very good at dancing.”
Pei Jiayou put on a gentlemanly air. “If you don’t know how, I can teach you.”
Lu Wanmian reluctantly agreed. “Alright, but don’t regret it.”