On the day of the banquet.

Qin Xian returned early to make preparations.

In the room specially reserved for the whole family to get ready, Qin Xian saw Ji Fei after she had finished her makeup and styling.

Today's Ji Fei was particularly different. In the past, she liked heavy makeup and would adorn herself with all sorts of glamorous accessories, as striking as the most eye-catching rose in a garden, as if she wouldn't be satisfied until she saw amazement in his eyes.

But today, Ji Fei was simple and elegant, wearing a light and graceful pale yellow long dress with a pearl necklace. Her waterfall-like long hair was styled with just a slight curl, the overall look light and lively.

Seeing him approach, she lifted her dress and quickly walked over.

"Mom just instructed us to go out together to greet the guests."

Qin Xian nodded, noticing Ji Fei looking him up and down, about to question her.

[Hmm, he's already very handsome, probably doesn't need any styling.]

Qin Xian's expression became slightly unnatural. He never intended to do any styling anyway, unlike his third brother.

Qin Xian concealed his embarrassment and said, "Let's go."

As they were about to leave, they encountered Qin Yan bringing Qin Xi in for styling.

Both Qin Yan and Qin Xi were amazed by Ji Fei's appearance.

Qin Yan smiled, "Look how beautiful your second aunt is."

Qin Xi obediently nodded, "Mm, beautiful."

Ji Fei felt a bit embarrassed being praised, and to avoid awkwardness, she decided to shift the focus. Looking down at Qin Xi, she asked, "Am I more beautiful, or is your mom more beautiful?"

Qin Xi indeed blushed, "Mom is the most beautiful."

Qin Yan was touched and stroked her son's head. Perhaps due to their blood relation, the distance between mother and son had quickly decreased in recent days, and they were now as close as if the previous nine years of separation had never happened.

As for Li Zhi and Qiao Meng, it was their fault for giving too little love, so Qin Xi had accepted the change quickly and now only occasionally thought of them.

"By the way, Rong Rong's sketching trip is a rare opportunity, so she definitely can't come back," Qin Yan said helplessly. "She apologized to me via video call earlier and sent a gift for Xiao Xi."

Qin Rong, the fourth daughter of the family, is currently in university and is now sketching on the other side of the world.

Qin Xian indicated that he understood.

Then Qin Xian led Ji Fei to the main entrance to wait for guests.

As guests arrived successively, Ji Fei noticed that many gazes lingered on her, with more malice than goodwill.

Most were scrutinizing, examining, and hostile looks.

After all, the previous incident with Qin Corporation had caused quite a stir. Not only did they hold a large meeting to officially clarify matters, but they also dismissed a batch of employees, especially Ji Fei's agent who was directly blacklisted and asked for compensation.

This was seen as Qin Xian fully supporting his wife, with whom he had a seemingly loveless marriage.

At the time, many observers thought they would surely divorce, and quite a few young ladies from wealthy families were waiting to marry this generation's most excellent and promising heir, even if it meant being his second wife.

Various marriage alliance plans were probably in these guests' minds.

[Too bad the queen hasn't abdicated, your plans have come to nothing, haha!]

Qin Xian's eyebrows twitched slightly as he listened to Ji Fei's gloating and arrogant inner thoughts while outwardly maintaining his composure as he greeted and entertained guests.

Soon, the Chu family arrived.

However, instead of the expected four people, only three showed up.

Behind the middle-aged couple was a woman with a plain expression. While others arrived with a hint of a smile, she seemed uninterested in her surroundings, exuding an out-of-place cold aura.

Her dress was primarily black, with straight long black hair. She wore no accessories at all, completely unadorned, not at all like a young lady from a wealthy family.

"Ah, Qin Xian, long time no see. You've become even more outstanding," Mr. Chu stepped forward and warmly greeted Qin Xian.

Mrs. Chu also smiled and chimed in, like many snobbish ladies, focusing their enthusiasm solely on Qin Xian while completely ignoring Ji Fei.

Ji Fei didn't mind and curiously observed them.

After facial recognition, it became easier to gossip.

Her gaze swept to the woman behind them. The woman met her gaze and nodded politely.

"Are you Chu Xinyue or Chu Xueqi?" Ji Fei asked straightforwardly.

Although she remembered seeing this face before in her memories, she wasn't familiar enough to distinguish between them.

After all... they were twin sisters.

Perhaps it was the first time someone had asked so directly without any pretense. Chu Xinyue was taken aback, and Mr. and Mrs. Chu beside her also looked over in surprise.

"I'm Chu Xinyue."

"Oh, the Chu family's eldest daughter. Where's the second daughter? Didn't she come with you?" Ji Fei asked curiously.

A hint of gloom flashed in Chu Xinyue's eyes, and her voice lowered, "Someone is bringing her."

Mr. and Mrs. Chu seemed to notice something off in Chu Xinyue's tone and immediately gave her a displeased glance. Then they smiled, as if showing off, "Our Xueqi is filming. She definitely wouldn't have made it if she came with us, so..."

Before they could finish, a sports car drove in.

The guests' cars were all parked outside; only the Qin family's own cars were allowed to drive in.

As the car door opened, a pair of long legs stepped out, followed by a fashionably dressed man who looked like he was walking on a runway.

Taking off his sunglasses, he revealed a face that was about 60-70% similar to Qin Xian's, with a bit less dignity and more arrogance.

Probably to look good on camera, his figure was slimmer than Qin Xian's, but he was still a perfect clothes hanger. It could only be said that the Qin family had good genes.

Due to the charm of a top celebrity, many young guests gathered around gossiping.

"Wow! It's Qin Zhao. I just finished watching his drama. He's so handsome!"

"I've become his fan. I'll ask for a photo with him later."

"Too bad he's taken, otherwise..."

"Sigh, I just heard that the one who came with her parents is Qin Zhao's nominal fiancée, Chu Xinyue. So, who do you think is in the passenger seat..."

There was no need to guess further, as Qin Zhao had already gentlemanly opened the passenger door. Not only that, but he also bent down into the car to help a woman out.

The woman also had long black hair and a face identical to Chu Xinyue's, but she was wearing a pure white long dress, with a delicate and gentle expression.

"Thank you, Brother Chao."

"Be careful, I've got you."

There were quite a few guests coming and going, and in high society, there were hardly any secrets. So everyone started whispering with a look of anticipation for drama.

The Chu couple immediately noticed that their younger daughter seemed unwell and rushed over worriedly, treating her like their precious treasure.

"Darling, what's wrong? Are you hurt?" Mrs. Chu asked concernedly.

"It's nothing, I just twisted my ankle a bit while filming. It's not serious, really. Brother Chao is just being overly cautious," Chu Xueqi explained shyly.

"Oh my, I told you not to work too hard on set. What if you really got hurt? Let me help..." Before Mr. Chu could finish, Mrs. Chu elbowed him.

Qin Zhao didn't notice and continued supporting Chu Xueqi, saying, "Let's go inside first. Xueqi can't stand for long."

Then the group escorted Chu Xueqi over.

Meanwhile, Chu Xinyue was left standing there like an invisible person, neither going forward to show concern for her sister nor looking at her fiancé's overly intimate behavior with her sister.

She seemed to be used to it.

Ji Fei looked back and forth curiously until the group came over.

The Chu couple's faces flashed with a hint of discomfort when they finally noticed Chu Xinyue.

Qin Zhao frowned, and suddenly the woman he was supporting seemed to be frightened and tried to push away his support.

"Sister, you're here. Please don't misunderstand. Brother Chao only picked me up because I was injured. There's nothing else going on. Please... please... don't be angry." As she spoke, she shrank back, seemingly very afraid of Chu Xinyue.

This changed everyone's perception. They had heard rumors that Chu Xinyue often bullied her sister, and now it seemed to be true, judging by how scared Chu Xueqi appeared.

Qin Zhao held onto Chu Xueqi's arm, not letting her retreat, as if deliberately showing his stance in front of Chu Xinyue. He warned in a low voice, "Don't scare her. This is the Qin family's house. If you dare to bully Xueqi, I won't show you any courtesy."

Chu Xinyue didn't even look at Qin Zhao, only a bitter, mocking smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"Xinyue, your sister is injured, and you don't even care to show concern. Who are you putting on that cold face for?" Mrs. Chu said disapprovingly.

"Alright, stop making a scene at someone else's home. It's embarrassing. Let's all go in," Mr. Chu said in a deep voice.

Qin Zhao stopped paying attention to Chu Xinyue, nodded to his second brother, and was about to lead everyone inside. He didn't notice his second brother's disapproving expression.

Just as he was about to step forward, he heard a distinctive voice that stood out from the rest. Judging by the tone, it seemed to be his second sister-in-law, whom he didn't particularly like.

That Ji Fei who had tricked his second brother.

[Oh crap, did I just go temporarily blind? It happened right in front of me, but how come I didn't see anything?]

[Angry, scary, cold face, throwing a tantrum? Are they talking about Chu Xinyue? It seems Chu Xinyue didn't even exchange a single glance with them from start to finish, did she?]

[Are they just slapping labels on her without reason?]

[Little one, do you have a lot of question marks?]

Qin Zhao: ...No, I have a lot of question marks!

Is this Ji Fei talking?!

How come I didn't see her mouth move?!

And what nonsense is she spouting?!