Chapter 69: Do I really look silly?
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
After Old Master Xu read the newspaper, he then placed it on the tea table, turned over to Xu Wenfeng who was sitting beside him, and said, “This granddaughter from the Wen Family who has led a wandering life on the streets for the past 15 years is a tough character!”
Xu Wenfeng nodded in agreement. “Previously, when her scandal was at its hype, she did not clarify herself publicly. This allowed the media to go overboard and the matter to get out of control. When she finally took action against them, she achieved results that surprised everyone. Her ability to strategize and remain calm during turbulent times has shown her tough character indeed,” he said.
Old Master Xu’s eyes gleamed with admiration. “There’s wisdom in the saying — The newest waves of the Changjiang River are stronger than the earlier waves. It means that the new generation excels the previous one. She has led a wandering life for the past 15 years and has just returned to the Wen Family recently. Those within the circle will naturally expect her behavior to be below expectation. She managed to make use of this incident to turn things around. Apart from teaching the media a lesson, she also established a firm position and her status in the circle. I believe no one will dare look down on her ever again.”
Xu Wenfeng sighed and added, “Zhenyu has also changed a lot for the better because of her. Now I have less worry for him getting into trouble outside.”
Old Master Xu nodded. “Yes, that’s right. I heard from Mofeng that Zhenyu likes her a lot. I’ve also seen Zhenyu acting more mature than before when dealing with her matters. I’ll have a nice chat with him another day.”
“Thank you, Father. Zhenyu is a stubborn child, and he only listens to you. If you can talk to him, that’ll be good,” said Xu Wenfeng with appreciation.
In the evening, Wen Xinya booked a VIP room at Ninth Heaven for the gathering with Xu Zhenyu and their friends.
“Everyone, please go ahead and order your favorite food and drinks. Tonight is on me.” Wen Xinya announced. At the same time, she ordered the most expensive dishes on the menu, and then pa.s.sed the menu to Zhou Tianyu.
“That’s great. I’ll comply with your request. I intentionally skipped lunch to prepare for the sumptuous meal tonight,” said Gu Junlin. Then, he proceeded to order a few famous dishes on the menu.
“Let’s enjoy ourselves tonight and not worry about helping Xinya save money. She has won the verdict today and will be compensated with a huge sum of money. Just a dinner like this is considered the tip of the iceberg.” Han Mofeng added, and then he ordered a few cartons of expensive red wine together with some Chinese alcohols.
Xu Zhenyu saw that everyone was in high spirits and was worried that they would go over the limit. “That’s enough. You guys ordered so much food that, if we can’t finish and have to throw them away, it’ll be so wasteful!”
Zhou Tianyu winked at Wen Xinya and replied, “Aiyo, you’re not the one footing the bill tonight. Why are you feeling the pinch? When you paid in the past, it didn’t seem like you were concerned with being wasteful. Why have you changed… Are you trying to save now?”
Zhou Tianyu’s words caused a burst of laughter in the room. Xu Zhenyu stood firm and replied, “What’s wrong with saving? This is one of the best habits one could cultivate in our country. All of you should be re-educated by your parents on how to cultivate better saving habits.”
Everyone was amused at Second Young Master Xu’s reaction. Ling Qingxuan even pointed at Xu Zhenyu and reprimanded him with a smile. “Are you telling us to be thrifty? You’re humiliating the meaning of the word.”
“Xu-er is asking all of you to be thrifty because he feels the pinch for Xinya if she spends too much. He is just beating around the bush to help her save some money. It isn’t easy on him, so let’s stop laughing at him,” said Mo Hanfeng in a serious tone.
“Are you courting death, Han Mofeng!” Xu Zhenyu raised his leg and gave Han Mofeng a kick.
Zhou Tianyu showed Wen Xinya a blog post. “This is Xu-er’s work.”
Wen Xinya took a look and noticed it was one of the popular and most-visited blog posts badmouthing Ning Shuqian and Wen Yuya. “Oh? Is this the video clip of the previous commenter above?”
Zhou Tianyu was surprised too. “It was probably taken by a pa.s.serby during one of your confrontations with them. The commoners have always been interested in the fights between the wealthy families.”
Wen Xinya laughed. “Xu-er is really talented. Though he did not manage to get Ning Shuqian to show her true colors in the public eyes, these posts have already given her a bad name. She must be troubled over these comments, and I guess she’ll slowly start to lose her position in the circle.”
Zhou Tianyu continued, “The people in the circle despise third parties like Ning Shuqian who seduce married men. Though some of the affluent families in the circle have dealings with Ning Shuqian on the surface, their Madams have never been close to her.”
Right at this moment, Wen Xinya suddenly understood the real reason for Ning Shuqian’s deep hatred towards her mother. Though she was married into the Wen Family, she could never give up the t.i.tle of being a third party and would not be wholly accepted by others in the circle. This had tortured her and caused her great pain; even more than that of death. Because of this, she deeply resented Wen Xinya’s mother and avenged it on her. That was why Wen Xinya got into a sorry state in her previous life.
While everyone was happily chatting and enjoying themselves, the food and alcohol were served.
Wen Xinya poured some wine into everyone’s gla.s.ses and filled her own. After that, she raised her gla.s.s high and said, “I got a victory this time because of you. Thank you for all your help. This is a toast to all of you. Cheers!”
Soon after she finished talking, she drank and finished the wine in one go.
Han Mofeng clapped and cheered. “Great! Well done!”
Gu Junlin smiled. “We didn’t help much. The biggest credit goes to Qingxuan. You should really give him another toast.”
Ling Qingxuan quickly replied, “In this era, every artiste in the entertainment industry is affected by scandals and fabricated news reports made up by some unethical reporters. These artistes hate the reporters for using unscrupulous methods. We have just aired a few video clips of some artistes who were willing to speak up on your behalf. It is none of my credit.”
Lingyun Media and Entertainment Company belonged to the Ling Family, and they were the leader of the industry in the country. In recent years, the industry of movies and television entertainment was thriving, and the Ling Family had focused on growing their businesses with the trend.
“Regardless, I’m still grateful for your help.” Wen Xinya raised her gla.s.s and gave him a toast.
Wen Xinya toasted every one of them, including Gu Junlin and Han Mofeng. After a few gla.s.ses of wine, though she was not feeling tipsy yet, her face was warm.
When she was about to give a toast to Zhou Tianyu, Zhou Tianyu held her hand down. “If you really wish to thank me, please request your Grampy to write me a piece of Chinese calligraphy on my behalf! Your Grampy’s Yan-Style calligraphy strokes are thick and powerful, aggressive yet orderly, thin but dominant, a.s.sertive and with principle and ambition. His calligraphy skills are incomparable. It was all because of Old Master Mo that I got inspired to learn the Yan-Style calligraphy strokes during my younger days.”
Gu Junlin burst into laughter. “She is your Grampy’s super silly fan-girl.”
Zhou Tianyu gave Gu Junlin a kick. “Go to h.e.l.l. Who did you call silly? Old Master Mo is a well-respected teacher. Only those who are intelligent are worthy to be his fans. Otherwise, it’ll be an insult to Old Master Mo.”
Wen Xinya burst into laughter as well. “Haha. Are you praising my Grampy, or are you actually giving compliments to yourself for being intelligent?”
Zhou Tianyu pointed at herself and asked, “Do I really look silly?”
Gu Junlin leaned forward and looked at her face closely. “Oh? When did you start having these acnes?”