At this moment, the three most outstanding ladies finally removed their masks of hypocrisy and revealed their true colors. Although they were still poised and graceful like nobilities, there was a strong tension between them.

Although Xia Ruya and Lin Yingxin were actually at odds with each other deep down, they chose to put aside their differences temporarily and deal with their common enemy the instant Wen Xinya appeared and Ye Feiyu defended her.

Hence, they were now just planning to ruin Wen Xinya’s confidence and outshine her by verbally attacking her, in a bid to salvage their image.

As the renowned talented beauty of Capital city and the judge of the gala, Lin Yingxin did not plan to swallow her pride and let Wen Xinya steal her limelight.

On the other hand, Xia Ruya detested Wen Xinya to the core and was planning to make Wen Xinya embarrass herself. Hence, she obviously wouldn’t let Wen Xinya stand out from the rest.

“What are you guys talking about? It seems like an interesting topic?” a voice asked abruptly, suddenly breaking the tension between them.

Wen Xinya glanced at Du Ruoxin, who showed up out of the blue, and could not help but take a few more glances at her.

Du Ruoxin’s appearance was absolutely stunning and she was just like a vibrant, blooming peony. However, her beauty also seemed a little like an eyesore, for she looked rather threatening and standoffish. Her red and rosy lips were excessively thin, making her look cold and unapproachable.

She stood beside Xia Ruya, clad in a red dress and white cardigan, which was a complete opposite of Xia Ruya’s outfit. No one expected them to be dressed in the same colors.

However, Du Ruoxin was much calmer than Xia Ruya, who appeared shocked and awkward. She did not even bother taking a look at Xia Ruya.

Wen Xinya suddenly found Du Ruoxin to be rather amazing. She smiled and said, “We were just having a casual conversation.”

Du Ruoxin looked ravishing and gorgeous and her fiery red dress made her look even more exquisite and sultry. All of a sudden, Xia Ruya seemed rather dull.

Xia Ruya forced a smile and hid her awkwardness. “Oh, it’s you, Miss Du. I’ve long heard about your impeccable grace and beauty. You really live up to my expectations.”

To Xia Ruya, showing up in the same outfit as someone else was undoubtedly a traumatic experience. The time when she had an outfit clash with an R-rated actress during the Wen Corporation annual gala still remained fresh in her memory and a thorn in her flesh, for it had caused her reputation to be ruined. She even got mocked and humiliated by everyone.

Hence, Xia Ruya hated being dressed in a similar outfit as someone else.

She was utterly disgusted and agonized.

However, she could not conceal her emotions regardless of how hard she tried. Hence, she immediately lost to Du Ruoxin in terms of composure.

Du Ruo seemed to have finally noticed Xia Ruya. Glancing at Xia Ruya nonchalantly with menacing eyes, she gibed. “Who are you? I’ve never heard of your name before. Neither have I ever heard of you being one of the prestigious heiresses of intellectual families in Capital city.”

Du Ruoxin’s words were absolutely shrewd and toxic. Xia Ruya was rather famous in Capital city, where almost everyone knew her. However, she indeed did not belong to an intellectual family and the Li Family was only powerful in Harbor City. Hence, Du Ruoxin was obviously insulting her.

Wen Xinya took a few more glances at Du Ruoxin, surprised to find out that she was actually a wicked woman.

Xia Ruya immediately turned pale and gaped in shock. Her eyes were filled with innocence and it was as if she could not recover from the shock.

However, that was the only reaction Xia Ruya could give at this point.

Since they were allies, after all, Lin Yingxin obviously had to defend her a little. Hence, she smiled and said, “This is Miss Xia Ruya, the successor of the Li Family from Harbor City. Miss Xia has extraordinary tea-brewing skills, especially floral tea which originated in the Song Dynasty. It would be a pity if her special skill goes unnoticed, so I decided to invite her to the gala. She will be brewing floral tea for her performance later.”

Lin Yingxin’s explanation was reasonable and convincing.

Xia Ruya felt much less awkward and astonished.

However, Du Ruoxin refused to budge. She quipped. “So it’s Miss Xia! However, I don’t get it. If you’re the successor of the Li Family, why is your last name ‘Xia’? I’ve heard of the mediocre Xia Family having an illegitimate daughter named Xia Ruya. Oh! I mean, a disowned daughter. Surely that can’t be you, Miss Xia!”

Du Ruoxin’s words had struck a sour note within Xia Ruya as she managed to expose Xia Ruya’s disgraceful past effortlessly.

Xia Ruya may have become the successor of the Li Family, but she could never change the fact that she used to be the Xia Family’s illegitimate daughter whom they later disowned. Hence, her past could not be overwritten by her current status of successor of the Li Family…

Several people around them burst into laughter and even blatantly began gossiping amongst themselves, clearly disregarding Xia Ruya.

“Miss Du, what do you mean?” Xia Ruya questioned pitifully, feeling extremely awkward. Her face quivered as if she had been treated unfairly.

She had thought about the possible problems that she would face during the gala, though she felt safe because she thought that Lin Yingxin would be able to defend her and she would also be able to save herself some face by showcasing her talent in brewing floral tea.

However, she did not expect to face Du Ruoxin.

Appearing a little taken aback, Du Ruoxin said, “So it turns out you’re that Xia Ruya that I’ve head of. I’m really sorry, I thought you just shared the same name as her.”

Xia Ruya was speechless. How is this an apology? It’s clearly an insult. Since when have I offended Du Ruoxin?

Lin Yingxin had no idea how she should give Xia Ruya an out.

Wen Xinya could not help but take her hat off to Du Ruoxin’s bold words. She was clearly not to be trifled with.

Although the Du Family was no longer as reputable as they used to be, a starving camel was still bigger than a horse. Besides, plenty of people in Capital city had heard of Du Ruoxin, though no one expected her to be so feisty.

She stabbed Xia Ruya and humiliated her even before the banquet began.

Xia Ruya was suddenly extremely embarrassed. She quickly changed the topic by saying, “It’s already past ten. Why hasn’t the gala begun yet?”

Xia Ruya’s words seemed to have snapped everyone back to reality as they hurriedly took a look at the time, only to see that it was 10:10 AM, ten minutes past the supposed time of commencement.

Why was there a delay in the start of the gala?

chapter-1211
  • 14
  • 16
  • 18
  • 20
  • 22
  • 24
  • 26
  • 28
Select Lang
Tap the screen to use reading tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.