“Miss Shen, matters of the heart can’t be forced. Since Young Master Zhou no longer loves you, why keep clinging to him?”
“Oh my, so Miss Shen was the one who got dumped?”
“Some people just don’t know their place. If your family background isn’t good enough, what’s the point of being beautiful? You still can’t keep a man.”
“If you ask me, some people have no self-awareness. She was publicly dumped at her own engagement banquet, yet she still has the nerve to show her face.”
“Miss Jiang is a true lady from a prestigious family. Unlike certain people who think they can climb the social ladder just because they’re pretty.”
…
One after another, they spoke in voices that were neither too loud nor too soft—just loud enough for everyone nearby to hear every word.
Shen Shuhe stood where she was, lightly rubbing the stem of her champagne flute. Her expression remained calm, but the warmth in her eyes gradually faded into icy indifference.
Just then, a commotion arose from outside the crowd.
Zhou Jiayan appeared in a tailored suit, his handsome features making him stand out wherever he went.
The moment he arrived, countless socialites turned their attention toward him.
He strode over quickly, but the instant his eyes landed on Shen Shuhe, they flickered slightly.
He quickly looked away and turned to Jiang Wanqing instead.
“Wanqing, what’s wrong?” he asked gently.
Jiang Wanqing’s eyes instantly reddened. Large tears shimmered on the verge of falling as she replied in a pitiful voice,
“N-Nothing…”
Zhou Jiayan immediately frowned at Shen Shuhe, his tone full of reproach.
“Shen Shuhe, don’t go too far. I already told you—what happened between us has nothing to do with Wanqing. We simply weren’t meant to be…”
The memory of yesterday’s engagement banquet made him frown even harder.
Who could have imagined that Shen Shuhe would openly accuse him of being infertile, turning the Zhou family into the laughingstock of the banquet?
No matter how many times he insisted that he wasn’t infertile, people still looked at him strangely.
He was deeply disappointed in Shen Shuhe.
He had never expected her to be so unreasonable.
All he’d done was refuse to marry her, yet she’d retaliated by slandering him.
Then he looked at Jiang Wanqing’s innocent, doe-like eyes, so pure they seemed untouched by the world.
Compared to her, Shen Shuhe looked like a vicious woman.
He glared at Shen Shuhe, curling his lips into a mocking sneer.
“Look at yourself, Shen Shuhe. Do you still resemble a proper young lady from a respectable family?”
He deliberately raised his voice so everyone around them could hear.
“I must have been blind to ever agree to marry you. Besides that pretty face of yours, what do you even have? The Shen Group is nothing but an empty shell now. I bet you can’t even pay your employees’ salaries anymore.”
Shen Shuhe listened quietly.
Her fingertip lightly tapped the rim of her champagne glass, producing a soft, crisp ding.
Finally, she lifted her gaze and looked calmly at Zhou Jiayan.
A faint smile curved her lips.
“Zhou Jiayan, you’re right.”
“We truly weren’t meant for each other.”
Her voice wasn’t loud, but every person nearby heard her clearly.
“After all…”
She paused, her eyes briefly sweeping over Jiang Wanqing before drifting meaningfully toward a certain part of Zhou Jiayan’s body.
“…a man who can’t even control what’s below his waist isn’t worthy of me.”
Her words carried a double meaning.
She was condemning both his infidelity and mocking his supposed infertility.
Zhou Jiayan’s expression changed dramatically.
“Shen Shuhe! What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Seeing everyone staring at them, Jiang Wanqing also became flustered. She hurriedly grabbed Zhou Jiayan’s arm.
“Jiayan… don’t argue with her…”
Shen Shuhe let out a soft laugh, her eyes falling on Jiang Wanqing’s hand wrapped around Zhou Jiayan’s arm.
“Miss Jiang, are you sure you want to touch him?”
“Yesterday he called off his engagement to me. Today he’s already embracing you…”
She raised an eyebrow.
“Don’t you think he’s dirty?”
Jiang Wanqing’s face instantly turned pale.
She reflexively let go of his arm.
Having been humiliated in public, veins bulged at Zhou Jiayan’s temples as he growled through gritted teeth,
“Shen Shuhe! Don’t push your luck! You know perfectly well what state the Shen Group is in. If you offend me, your entire family can just wait to go bankrupt!”
A cold glint flashed across Shen Shuhe’s eyes, yet her smile remained perfectly composed.
“Zhou Jiayan, besides threatening me with the Shen Group, what else can you do?”
She stepped half a pace closer, lowering her voice so only the three of them could hear.
“Or is it that… you’re actually incapable, so the only way you can preserve what’s left of your pathetic self-esteem is by threatening women?”
Zhou Jiayan’s pupils contracted sharply.
He raised his hand to slap her.
But Shen Shuhe had been prepared.
She caught his wrist in midair and said coldly,
“Zhou Jiayan, if you dare lay a finger on me, by tomorrow everyone in Beijing will know that the young master of the Zhou family is not only infertile but also abuses his former fiancée.”
His hand froze in the air.
His face darkened with fury.
Seeing the situation escalating, Jiang Wanqing hurried forward to “mediate,” tears filling her eyes.
“Miss Shen, how can you slander Jiayan like this? He’s such a wonderful man…”
She turned to Zhou Jiayan, her voice trembling with emotion.
“Jiayan… let’s go. There’s no point arguing with her…”
Taking a deep breath, Zhou Jiayan shook Shen Shuhe’s hand off and wrapped an arm around Jiang Wanqing’s waist.
“Wanqing, let’s go.”
Before leaving, he shot Shen Shuhe one last venomous glare.
“Shen Shuhe… you’ll regret this.”
Standing where she was, Shen Shuhe watched their retreating figures.
She gently swirled the champagne in her glass and murmured softly,
“Yes… I do regret it.”
She raised her eyes, now filled with icy resolve.
“I regret not seeing your true colors sooner.”
The surrounding socialites exchanged bewildered glances.
No one had expected things to escalate this far.
“Shen Shuhe is incredibly bold. She actually dared to speak to Zhou Jiayan like that…”
“But what she said wasn’t entirely wrong. He called off the engagement yesterday, and today he’s already all over Jiang Wanqing. That does seem a bit…”
“What’s she acting so proud for? The Shen family is practically bankrupt, yet she still dares to provoke the Zhou family. She’s asking for trouble.”
“If the Zhou family really wanted to crush the Shen family, it wouldn’t even take three months. Three weeks would be enough to drive them completely out of Beijing.”
Shen Shuhe ignored every word of the gossip.
She simply walked toward the refreshment table and picked up another glass of champagne.
Her back remained perfectly straight, her steps graceful and elegant, as though the confrontation moments earlier had never happened.