Since it was a wealthy family, there was bound to be open and covert struggles.
Tonight, the Pei family’s plan was to arrange a blind date for the eldest son, Pei Yuexuan, but Mrs. Pei was unwilling to let her own son be neglected.
She pulled Pei Yuhuan around to socialize, introducing him to various wealthy young ladies.
Xia Zhi watched from the side, feeling a subtle unease.
She and Pei Yuhuan were dating, something everyone knew, yet Mrs. Pei acted as if she were unaware.
Looking back, Mrs. Pei had treated Xia Zhi quite well before, showing her great care and attention.
But ever since Xia Zhi agreed to Pei Yuhuan’s pursuit and publicly announced their relationship, Mrs. Pei’s attitude toward her changed drastically, turning cold in an instant.
Recalling the later developments in her dream…
Xia Zhi guessed that perhaps her father’s background was no secret among the older generation.
Mrs. Pei knew Xia Zhi was the daughter of an adopted son and looked down on her as a potential daughter-in-law.
This suspicion was thoroughly confirmed when the formal banquet began.
Tonight’s banquet hall was decorated like a wedding venue.
At such occasions, no one was really there to eat, so a Western-style cold buffet was more appropriate.
A table over ten meters long was covered with a pure white tablecloth, topped with a golden-patterned table runner.
It was adorned with flowers, crystal candlesticks, and other decorations, complete with a full set of H-brand tableware and polished silver and tortoiseshell knives and forks, exuding elegance and grandeur.
The unmarried younger generation was arranged to sit at one table—a glorious tradition in China.
Each seat had a name card in front of it, and guests simply had to find their assigned seats.
Xia Zhi arrived with Bai Jiyue and was surprised to find that her seat had been placed… at the very end of the table.
Meanwhile, sitting next to Pei Yuhuan was her own cousin, Xia Qiwu.
At that moment, Mrs. Pei came over with a smile to greet everyone. Seeing Xia Zhi standing, she asked,
“Rere, why aren’t you sitting?”
She glanced at the seating arrangement, then turned and scolded the butler in a low voice,
“How did you arrange this? The seat next to Huanhuan is for the young lady of the Xia family. I made it very clear.”
The butler bowed in apology, “I’m sorry, Madam, we made a mistake…”
Only then did Pei Yuhuan realize that his girlfriend had no seat.
He immediately stood up, intending to offer his own seat to Xia Zhi.
“You stay seated~”
Mrs. Pei chided him gently, then turned and took Xia Zhi’s hand, smiling affectionately,
“It’s just a seat. It would look awkward to keep switching around. Rere isn’t an outsider, after all…”
“That’s right~”
Xia Qiwu also cooed at Xia Zhi, “Cousin, I’m already seated. Are you going to make me get up?”
Xia Zhi blinked, feeling a bit confused.
Why did it seem like… she was the one being unreasonable?
If she hadn’t had the dream and didn’t know what would happen years later, Xia Zhi, with her gentle and compliant nature, would have prioritized harmony.
Even if she felt uncomfortable, she would likely have obediently followed the arrangements.
But now, she knew everything.
She had already decided to break up with Pei Yuhuan, so there was no reason to endure such humiliation.
Since Mrs. Pei clearly looked down on her, and in the dream, Pei Yuhuan had indeed become engaged to Xia Qiwu,
she might as well step aside gracefully.
It wasn’t like he was anything special.
“Alright then~”
Xia Zhi smiled gracefully, “Auntie and Cousin didn’t even give me a chance to speak. When did I say I wanted to switch seats?”
She turned away gracefully and walked elegantly toward the entrance in her high heels.
As she passed the seat arranged for her, Xia Zhi didn’t stop but continued walking toward the lobby.
“Rere…”
Pei Yuhuan finally sensed something was off and sprang up from his seat.
He immediately wanted to chase after her.
Of course, Mrs. Pei stopped him once again.
“You’re the star of the night—what are you making a fuss about?”
Mrs. Pei glared at him, lowering her voice to scold,
“The reporters will be coming in soon to take photos. You stay right where you are!”
Pei Yuhuan glanced in Xia Zhi’s direction, hesitated for a moment…
And in the end… obediently sat back down.
As Xia Zhi walked toward the hall entrance, she ran straight into Pei Yuexuan.
The eldest son of the Pei family was surrounded by a group of talented young men as he entered, and he spotted her at once.
The man gave her a careful, discreet glance.
The proud little rose held her chin high and her back straight, looking as if she were throwing a tantrum, but her eyes were filled with grievance.
With just one look, Pei Yuexuan felt his heart break.
He shifted his gaze, sweeping it coldly toward the direction Xia Zhi had come from.
Pei Yuexuan’s eyes instantly turned icy.
“Rere,”
Pei Yuexuan waved off his companions and walked toward Xia Zhi.
He very naturally took her diamond clutch and placed her hand on his arm.
In an instant, Xia Zhi found herself holding onto the man’s arm, and before she knew it, he was leading her in another direction.
“Brother Yuexuan, I don’t have an appetite…”
“You’ve just been ill. You should eat a little.”
Pei Yuexuan looked down at Xia Zhi with a reassuring smile and led her directly to the main table.
At the main table, aside from the hosts of the banquet, were mostly uncles and elder figures of high standing.
Pei Yuexuan brought Xia Zhi over, pulled out his own chair, and seated her.
A nearby waiter, quick on the uptake, immediately added another chair beside it.
Pei Yuexuan nodded in thanks to the waiter and sat down next to Xia Zhi.
His movements were smooth and natural, without a hint of awkwardness.
Two minutes later, Pei Zelin arrived with three or four middle-aged men.
As he prepared to take his seat, he looked down and noticed a delicate young girl sitting there.
“Rere?”
He smiled warmly, glancing at his eldest son.
Pei Yuexuan’s expression remained calm as he explained matter-of-factly,
“That spot was right in the draft. I brought Rere over here so she wouldn’t catch a chill.”
Pei Zelin glanced at the table on the right and understood perfectly—it was his narrow-minded wife meddling again.
As an elder, he genuinely liked Xia Zhi.
But given the formal occasion tonight, he couldn’t openly undermine his wife.
Worried that Xia Zhi might feel wronged, Mr. Pei softened his tone to comfort her,
“It’s perfect for Rere to sit here. We can’t have you catching a chill, or your father would fly over from Hangzhou overnight to give me a beating!”
Xia Zhi responded with a faint smile, gracefully accepting the gesture.
…
Formal dinners like this were rather dull—all the speeches, all the toasts…
Sitting at the main table made it even more tedious.
Pei Yuexuan sat close by, but after the banquet began, he didn’t exchange a single word with Xia Zhi, appearing quite distant.
He simply quietly passed her water or, whenever a waiter refilled drinks or someone passed behind them, immediately shielded Xia Zhi within his arm.
Xia Zhi picked at her food for a few bites before setting down her knife and fork, lowering her head to play with her phone.
A WeChat message from Bai Jiyue popped up:
【Rere, don’t you think my cousin is wearing matching outfits with you?】
Matching outfits?
Xia Zhi turned to look at Pei Yuexuan, dressed in black and white.
She replied, 【No…】
Bai Jiyue: 【Look at his suit pocket.】
Xia Zhi turned to look again.
Tucked inside the man’s black suit was a pale yellow pocket square.
The fabric and color were exactly the same as the gown she was wearing.
A little bit leaked out, as if secretly declaring something, yet also as if not.
Shortly after, Bai Jiyue sent another photo.
Through the wine glass and fresh flowers, she secretly captured a picture of Xia Zhi and Pei Yuexuan together.
In the photo, Xia Zhi was looking at the scented roses in the vase, while Pei Yuexuan beside her was secretly watching her.
The man was handsome and elegant, the woman delicate and sweet, sitting together, making everyone around them fade into the background.
【Aren’t they a perfect match?】 Bai Jiyue asked.
They really did look well-matched.
But Xia Zhi was shy and replied,
【Nonsense.】
After enduring for an hour, the banquet finally reached its conclusion.
Pei Zelin raised his glass and stood up, inviting the guests to finish their drinks.
Xia Zhi picked up a glass of champagne, took a sip, and immediately frowned—
it was white wine.
With a look of distaste, she pushed the glass aside and left the table with Bai Jiyue.
After Xia Zhi had walked away, the other guests at the table also left, chatting and laughing.
Pei Yuexuan remained seated in his place, his body, which had been tense from sitting next to Xia Zhi, finally relaxing slowly.
The man picked up a napkin and dabbed the corner of his mouth, even though he hadn’t eaten anything.
He then picked up the half-finished glass of wine that Xia Zhi had left behind.
And drank it all in one go.
…
This scene was caught by Bai Jiyue, who happened to look back just then.
From that day on, Bai Jiyue secretly changed the nickname for her own cousin in her contacts:
【Secretly Thrilled Brother】
…