Capítulo 12: Chapter 12 Family Feast_1
He made arrangements for her as if he were assigning tasks to a subordinate, with no room for discussion.
This, of course, Yin Ci refused. "I've already completed my mission. I'm going back. I still have to prepare some living supplies for the apartment."
Lu Jianshen nodded, went to fetch the car keys from the cabinet, and said, "Then let's go, I'll take you home."
"I can take a taxi, there's no need to bother you."
Yin Ci picked up the document from the shelf, only to have it slip from her grasp and scatter on the floor.
She hurried to bend down to retrieve it, but Lu Jianshen got there first, swept through the scattered documents, a flicker of admiration flashing in his eyes.
Lu Jianshen handed the documents back to Yin Ci, saying, "Be careful."
No sooner had Yin Ci left, Lu Jianshen called his assistant to ask about the jewelry competition.
The assistant also delivered his observation of Yin Ci's performance at the company today.
Lu Jianshen chuckled lightly.
He hadn't seen it coming, Yin Ci was quite wild.
Before he could ponder further, another call came in on his phone, this one from the old mansion.
The moment the call connected, his grandfather's aged voice came across, "Jian Shen, have you gone to bed yet?"
Old Sir Lu hadn't even finished his sentence, and Lu Jianshen already knew what was coming.
"Not yet, Grandfather, why are you still up so late?"
"Come home tomorrow, and bring Yin Ci with you. What on earth is this that the Yin Family is doing? I have to question that girl myself." From the way Old Sir Lu spoke, it was clear he already knew about Yin Ci's dismissal. He was visibly upset.
Before Lu Jianshen could reply, Old Sir Lu goes on: "Whose idea was this divorce? What do they take the Lu family for? They're shoving anyone and everyone into the Lu family."
Indeed, not just anyone could marry into a distinguished family like the Lu Family.
The commercial marriage was agreed upon because Yin Ci once saved Old Sir Lu, who fainted by the side of the road. Old Sir Lu genuinely liked the young lady, and he was willing to give the Yin Family support.
Now they say they want to change the agreement and Old Sir Lu is the first to disagree.
Lu Jianshen had no choice but to obey, "I will notify her. If she can't make time tomorrow, I'll have to arrange it another day."
"What do you mean by 'if'? You must bring her tomorrow."
Having laid down the law, Old Sir Lu was finally satisfied and ended the call.
Lu Jianshen can't help but give a wry smile.
An incoming message from his assistant:
"President Lu, we found that woman from the night before. It's Li Xinxin."
The assistant had come to a conclusion after cross-referencing the hotel's surveillance and registration records.
The woman President Lu had been with that night was Li Xinxin.
The hairpin on Li Xinxin's head was exactly the same as the one in the surveillance video.
As Lu Jianshen read the message, for a moment, he lost focus.
Was it really Li Xinxin?
…
Early the next day, Yin Ci received a call from Lu Jianshen.
"You need to accompany me to the old mansion for a family dinner today."
Yin Ci: "???"
"What's the Lu family dinner got to do with me, an outsider?" she asked with indifference.
"Grandfather has something to ask you." Lu Jianshen started to explain.
So Old Sir Lu wanted to see her.
It became clear to Yin Ci.
Old Sir Lu must be dissatisfied with the Yin family's actions and wanted to help her.
"Of course, to compensate you, you can make a request of me. Let's call it a trade."
Upon hearing the word "trade," Yin Ci perked up immediately.
"When? What preparations do I need to make?"
"I've taken care of everything. All you need to do is show up."
"Send me your location in a bit, I'll come and pick you up."
After a moment's thought, Yin Ci decided to prepare a gift before going. It wouldn't do to show up empty-handed.
Lu Jianshen was prompt in his arrival. By the time Yin Ci had her gift wrapped, his car had arrived outside the building.
The two of them hardly talked on the trip. Yin Ci mindlessly scrolled through some design documents.
Yin Ci had only applied lotion before leaving in the morning. As they approached the old mansion, she pulled out a tube of lipstick from her purse and touched up.
The color wasn't ostentatious, but it livened up her complexion a bit.
The car stopped in front of the mansion, and the maid, recognizing the license plate, hustled over to greet them.
Lu Jianshen tossed the car keys to the maid, and led Yin Ci to the dining room.
The dining table was already filled with people, chatting amongst themselves as they awaited the meal.
Upon seeing Yin Ci, Old Sir Lu beckoned her to take a seat.
"Ci, come sit here."
Old Sir Lu invited Yin Ci to sit next to him.
This was the spot reserved for the prospective mistress of the Lu Family.
Yin Ci wasn't well-versed in the familial customs of the Lu family.
However, after she took her seat and was greeted with some unfriendly glances, she understood that this was not going to be a pleasant family dinner.
As an outsider, and considering that she had broken off the engagement with Lu Jianshen, her place at Old Sir Lu's side was met with criticism as expected.
Just as she was mentally preparing herself, a shrill voice spoke.
"If I didn't know better, I'd think otherwise. How rude to not greet everyone upon entering with so many elders present."
After her retort, she added a few sarcastic "tsks."
The others chimed in: "Indeed, the Lu family does not raise children with such poor manners. Only the lower classes could lack such upbringing."
At their poor attempts at sarcasm, Yin Ci felt secondhand embarrassment for them.
However, as the center of attention, Yin Ci gave them a polite smile, inquiring with no hint of malice, "And you are...?"
Her clear and innocent eyes bore an expression harmless to humans and animals alike.
The woman who had led the sarcasm just now was Lu Jianshen's second aunt. At this moment, she clenched her teeth in anger, wishing she could dismember Yin Ci there and then.
But Yin Ci's demeanor was so non-aggressive, it was like punching cotton.
"I'm Lu Jianshen's second aunt."
So, this was the infamous second aunt who was not fit to be seen in public and had notoriously terrible taste.
Surprised, Yin Ci remarked, "So you're an elder. I thought I had walked into a farmer's market."
She was insinuating that she, the second aunt, was a market hawker.
Both the second and third aunt's faces turned very unsavory.
"You..." The second aunt was about to reprimand Yin Ci.
A false rich girl who was kicked out of the house, what was she being arrogant about?
"Are we going to have dinner or not?"
Old Sir Lu lightly tapped the table with his knuckles, with a small but intimidating movement. Everyone immediately settled down, including the second aunt. She sat back down reluctantly, her face betraying her humiliation.
Yin Ci gave a polite smile.
The color of the second aunt's face deepened.
The atmosphere in the dining room suddenly cooled down. After a few seconds of silence, the third uncle stood up with a set of teaware in his hand, saying, "Dad, this is a tea set I bought specifically for you, wishing you good health, and longevity like the winter plums."
He handed over the tea set to the maid and added something rather meaningful, "Dad, whenever I am away, I worry about you constantly. Unlike some people, who even can't make it to a family dinner."
He was obviously implying Lu Jianshen, who had missed the previous family dinners due to business trips abroad.
Old Sir Lu's gaze shut the third uncle up immediately.
Unwilling to let it go, the third uncle gestured at his wife.
Immediately understanding his intentions, she questioned, "Yin Ci, did you come to see Old Sir Lu empty-handed?"
Out of the blue, Yin Ci was questioned, and she was at a loss for words.
A family dinner, fraught with calculations and schemes, these people from the Lu family, couldn't they speak with some decency?
However, they' d hit the nail on the head with their question.
She had prepared a gift specifically for Old Sir Lu.
An effortless smile hung on Yin Ci's lips, as calm and dismissive as ever.
"How fortunate, I did bring a humble gift."
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