As guests continuously arrived at the Marquis Residence, murmurs kept drifting through the air—almost all of them mocking Shen Zhiyi.
Shen Jingxuan had long since had enough of these idle rumors. But because people were only whispering among themselves, he couldn’t very well rush over and confront every single one of them.
He had been bottling up his anger with nowhere to release it.
Now, this group of spoiled young nobles had finally stepped right into his line of fire.
The moment Shen Jingxuan appeared, the surrounding chatter instantly died down. The atmosphere turned completely silent.
“Hahaha! Brother Zimo, someone’s saying you’re about to be divorced! That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard in my life—hahaha…”
But the laughter abruptly stopped when he met Shen Jingxuan’s furious expression.
The young man standing at the center of the group—Wang Zimo—instantly went pale.
He had never imagined he would find himself in such an embarrassing situation.
“What nonsense are you talking about? This is all groundless rumor! My engagement with Shen Zhiyi is perfectly intact—how could there possibly be a divorce!”
In his panic, before even recognizing who had arrived, Wang Zimo blurted it out.
But when he finally realized that the “main character” himself was standing there, Shen Jingxuan let out a cold laugh.
“Wang Zimo, so you’re here too. Tell me—don’t you spend your days idling around with this group of useless nobles? How come you don’t even know you’re about to be dumped?”
“Oh right, how else would you still have the nerve to come to our residence?”
Among the young nobles of the capital, Shen Jingxuan usually tried to keep the peace. But when conflict arose, he never backed down.
He had finally found a chance to vent his anger for his little sister—and now, fueled by frustration, he struck without mercy, every word like a blade.
On one side was the Marquis’ son; on the other, the fiancé in question.
The surrounding crowd immediately perked up their ears. They had come to the banquet expecting to watch the “true daughter’s” drama—but instead, they had stumbled upon a massive scandal.
Everyone was thrilled.
The group of playboy nobles didn’t dare speak. One of them, who had been the loudest earlier, tugged at Wang Zimo’s sleeve in disbelief.
“Brother Zimo… didn’t you go to break off the engagement? How could Shen Zhiyi possibly be the one dumping you?”
Wang Zimo felt countless gazes falling on him—some open, some hidden, all of them carrying ridicule or contempt.
The entire world seemed silent, yet he could almost hear whispers everywhere, tearing at his dignity.
His face was being stripped away piece by piece and trampled underfoot.
He shoved the person beside him away and forced himself forward, stopping in front of Shen Jingxuan.
Lowering his voice, he said, “Shen Jingxuan, nothing has been settled yet. Let’s discuss this privately between our families.”
Then he raised his voice and laughed awkwardly:
“Jingxuan, I know you like joking around, but our families are about to be in-laws. Don’t say things like this—it’ll cause misunderstandings. Hahaha…”
Many influential families from the capital were present at the banquet—dozens of them within earshot.
The Wang family’s reputation now rested entirely on him. Under normal circumstances, he would have already broken things off—but now, even if he was furious, he couldn’t afford to fully sever ties.
Shen Jingxuan rolled his eyes and stepped back as if he didn’t want to stand near something filthy.
He raised his voice even louder.
“I’m not joking. I’m stating facts.”
Wang Zimo, do you actually not know—or are you pretending not to know? Ever since you stormed into our residence causing a scene over ten days ago, haven’t our families already made things clear?”
“And now you’re pretending to be confused?”
“If you think the engagement still stands, then why didn’t you stop your so-called friends just now when they were spreading rumors about my sister?”
“My Zhiyi is beautiful, gentle, intelligent, and kind—the best girl in the entire world. Someone like you doesn’t even deserve to stand beside her!”
Wang Zimo’s blood surged violently. He swayed on his feet, almost unable to stand.
He had always thought the earlier incident was just the Marquis’ wife speaking in anger. Since ancient times, how could there be a case where the woman breaks off the engagement first?
Even his parents believed he had merely offended the Marquis’ household and that there was still room for reconciliation.
He never expected that the Marquis Residence truly intended to break the engagement—and that Shen Jingxuan would be so ruthless.
If the annulment became reality…
He would become the laughingstock of the entire capital.
And he absolutely could not allow that.
His eyes turned red with rage.
Since the Shen family insisted on humiliating him, he had nothing left to restrain himself with.
He told himself to stay calm. Once the banquet began, he would find an opportunity to strike first—he would ruin Shen Zhiyi’s reputation in front of everyone and ensure she could never show her face in the capital again.
The crowd buzzed with whispers.
From what they had just witnessed, they quickly began to piece together the truth.
Wang Zimo’s behavior was inconsistent. Despite being engaged, he allowed rumors to spread without interference—far from gentlemanly conduct.
And now he had been completely shut down by Shen Jingxuan.
But hearing how highly Shen Jingxuan spoke of Shen Zhiyi—so different from the rumors—they were even more curious.
The banquet was about to begin.
They wondered: how would this long-lost daughter of the Marquis Residence compare to the famed Shen Ruoyue?
Early summer greenery filled the air, flowers blooming in abundance.
Nobles, young ladies, and wives of prominent families were already seated.
Shen Ruoyue sat surrounded by a cluster of young men. Her face looked slightly pale and fragile.
The richly dressed young nobles had all softened their usual arrogance. Their eyes were filled with admiration and pity as they surrounded her attentively.
“Miss Ruoyue, have you not been resting well lately?”
“If you have any difficulties, please tell us—we will help you resolve them.”
“Even with poor complexion, Miss Ruoyue still shines like a pearl…”
Shen Ruoyue gave a gentle smile.
After several days of setbacks in the Marquis Residence, this was the first time she felt the comfort of being admired again.
Covering her mouth, she coughed softly.
“My sister has returned to the household, and I am truly happy. I’ve been praying for her in the Buddhist hall these past days, perhaps I simply caught a chill from staying up too late.”
She lightly touched her knee as if by accident, immediately drawing attention.
“Miss Ruoyue is truly kind-hearted.”
“How could Shen Zhiyi treat you like this, and yet you still pray for her?”
“Has the Marquis Residence called a physician for you?”
Shen Ruoyue waved her hand weakly.
“Thank you for your concern… but please don’t misunderstand. My sister has never bullied me. It was simply that I made a mistake and accidentally had a small misunderstanding with her. We’ve already reconciled.”
Though her words were soft and gentle, her expression suggested grievance and restraint, making everyone believe she was the one suffering injustice.
“The Shen Zhiyi is truly too much!”
“If I ever meet her, I’ll teach her a lesson for you!”
Shen Ruoyue quickly stopped them, insisting it was all a misunderstanding and that they had already reconciled.
But no one believed her.
Seeing everyone firmly on her side, Shen Ruoyue felt reassured.
She glanced toward the distant ceremonial altar. Incense curled from a bronze burner, and a small Buddha statue sat upon the table.
That was her mother’s “gift” prepared for Shen Zhiyi.
Shen Ruoyue smiled faintly.
Then her gaze shifted—and unexpectedly collided with Shen Zhiyi’s.
The moment their eyes met, Shen Zhiyi immediately sensed Shen Ruoyue’s undisguised provocation and excitement.
Her “gossip radar” instantly went off.
Today’s banquet had too many guests; she was overwhelmed with gossip already.
Most of it wasn’t worth digging into—nothing compared to her own household’s drama.
But Shen Ruoyue’s expression clearly signaled something big.
Shen Zhiyi followed her gaze toward the ceremonial setup.
Something felt… familiar.
It looked very formal.
And when she checked—
Oh no.
【Damn it—someone’s trying to scheme against me again!】