When the two came back to the ballroom, Li Chuntao noticed that Mu Jianyu and Lin Meirong were nowhere to be found. Shen Zichen led her to a corner where Zheng Yue was seated, conversing with other guests. Li Chuntao gave her aunt a peck on her cheek and greeted the other guests with a smile while her hand was being held by Shen Zichen.
Zheng Yue and some of the guests were wondering what was happening. Didn"t she just agree to give Mu Jianyu a chance earlier? Then why was Young Master Shen stuck beside her, his eyes never leaving her face?
They weren"t fools. They could sense something had happened between the two, making Shen Zichen overly protective of her.
"Auntie, I"m tired. Is it okay if I leave with Brother Zichen now?" Li Chuntao asked her aunt.
It was the producer who answered for Zheng Yue.
"Oh, Lady Li. It"s alright. Don"t worry about us. We can handle this. We know you"re still recovering, so please don"t push yourself too hard for our sake."
Zheng Yue held Li Chuntao"s hand and nodded. She was also worried that Li Chuntao might be pus.h.i.+ng herself too hard pretending to be Ying. It"s hard to fool so many people at once, although Zheng Yue had to admit that her niece was doing a great job posing as her twin sister.
"Of course, Darling. You can go home and take a good rest. Auntie will be fine." She then turned to Shen Zichen. "Young Master Shen, I trust that you"ll take care of my niece. "
It was a harmless but meaningful request by Zheng Yue but Shen Zichen understood the hidden meaning and this time he would make sure not to break his promise. He learned his lesson the hard way and he wouldn"t let the same mistake happen this time around.
"Rest a.s.sured, Madam Li. I won"t let any harm befall upon her."
Zheng Yue was pleased with his answer. She wouldn"t have to worry about Chuntao now. She could only hope that these two would come clean with each other and profess what they truly feel before it"s too late.
In fact, the older woman believed that it was time for Li Chuntao to prioritize and seek her own happiness this time but she knew it wouldn"t be easy given Li Chuntao"s pride and self-control. Now, that Ying was out of the picture, she wondered how long Chuntao would take to realize that she didn"t need to put Ying"s happiness as her top priority anymore.
"That"s great." She nodded at Shen Zichen, "Ying, don"t forget our family dinner tomorrow night, okay? You can bring Zichen with you if you want to."
The other guests around them s.h.i.+fted their gaze from Zheng Yue and Shen Zichen. Ah, but wasn"t Mu Jianyu, Lady Li"s husband? Did this mean that the Li family were rooting for Shen Zichen to win Li Xiuying"s heart?
They couldn"t blame the Li family, not with the rumors, about Mu Jianyu having an affair behind Li Xiuying"s back, had been floating even before her accident. Who knew if he was simply taking advantage of her memory loss to gain her favor?
It was possible. Mu Jianyu might be pretending to regain Ying"s trust. They couldn"t help but sympathize with her. Who would want a cheater back when there"s a Shen Zichen who"d been waiting patiently for her all this time?
Ah, wasn"t this story more interesting than the film they"d just finish? A woman had lost her memories in a tragic accident, and now her childhood friend and her estranged husband are fighting to win her heart. How interesting! Too bad they wouldn"t be able to follow it closely.
"Then excuse me. I"ll have to bid goodbye to the other guests." Li Chuntao excused themselves and left, intending to find the cheating couple.
As they walked around the ballroom, Li Chuntao greeted the other guests politely before turning to the man who was holding her hand.
"Brother Zichen, do you plan to hold my hand like a lost child in the crowd? Careful, not unless you want another rumor to start about us." She teased him.
Ever since their second kiss earlier, Shen Zichen wouldn"t leave her alone and was watching her like a hawk.
Was there something wrong with her face? Was she reminding him of her sister Ying when he looked at her? Li Chuntao wasn"t sure, she didn"t want to think about it but she couldn"t help it. She must be fooling herself to believe that he was looking at her, not her dead sister.
How could she not know about his feelings for Ying? It was impossible not to think that he was thinking about Ying when he looks at her like this.
"I didn"t think you started to care about how people perceive you. They can speak all they want. It"s not their f.u.c.king business to stick their noses on someone else"s business." Shen Zichen scoffed, refusing to release her hand.
"Ah, still as fiery as ever Brother Zichen. Is this a common trait of the Shens?"
Remembering how Shen Lingqing dealt with Lin Meirong back at Flair Apparel"s boutique, Li Chuntao wondered if it also applies to the whole family.
Shen Zichen hummed and followed behind her shortly as they stepped out of the ballroom to find the cheating couple whom Li Chuntao was sure were having a confrontation somewhere.
"Hm, people know not to mess with any of the Shen family members. Because we tend to give back what they"ve thrown to us a hundredfold."
Compared to his mother and Shen Lingqing, he couldn"t hold a candle against their viciousness. While his twin sister has a mischievousness streak of her own, Shen Lingqing was one who doesn"t know how to hold back her poisonous tongue.
It was almost midnight and while the party was still ongoing, the rest of the rented mansion was covered with darkness and silence. The guards were only posted within the perimeter where they could see guests and wouldn"t bother the VIP guests like Shen Zichen and Li Chuntao if they wanted to roam around the mansion.
"Where could they be? Did you chase him out, Brother Zichen?" Li Chuntao asked, pertaining to the confrontation she was sure he had with Mu Jianyu earlier. She"d left the two alone and wasn"t sure how Mu Jianyu would react to what he"d seen between them.
"I didn"t do such a thing," His jaws hardened at the thought of letting Mu Jianyu hold Li Chuntao. While he knew that she wouldn"t let Mu Jianyu make a move on her, Shen Zichen was skeptical to leave her alone with that b.a.s.t.a.r.d. "But since that woman is also missing, he"s probably with her."
Wasn"t it obvious? After hearing Lin Meirong spout nonsense in front of "Li Xiuying", how could Mu Jianyu not react to her silly attempt to taint his image in front of his wife? Since he decided to return to his wife, it wouldn"t be surprising that Lin Meirong would turn her anger towards him.
It didn"t take them too long to find the couple they were looking for. As expected, Mu Jianyu and Lin Meirong were quite busy in a heated argument.