A Common Hen Would Always Be a Common Hen

Jiang Nan's smile froze, and a flicker of disbelief crossed her eyes.

"Is that Qiao Hua? What's she doing here?" Gu Jinman's expression changed abruptly, jealousy twisting her features as her voice took on a teeth-gritting edge.

Jiang Nan quickly composed herself and said with the same smile, "Maybe she heard your brother was here and came looking for him."

That successfully provoked Gu Jinman's scorn. "That shameless woman! My brother didn't even invite her, yet she still showed up uninvited, all dressed up like that. Who is she trying to seduce?"

Gu Jinman already held a grudge against Qiao Hua over what had happened outside the company last time. Now that she finally had a chance to vent, she dragged Jiang Nan over to confront her.

"Hey, what are you doing here?"

An extremely rude demand suddenly came from behind her. Qiao Hua turned around and saw Gu Jinman and Jiang Nan standing there.

The former wore a look of disdain, while the latter was still smiling.

Qiao Hua raised her eyebrows slightly.

What were these two doing here?

On second thought, though, there was nothing strange about Gu Jinman and Jiang Nan attending a business banquet.

But surely he hadn't come too?

Up close, the two women were even more struck by Qiao Hua's beauty. Her alluring, elongated eyes curved upward into half-moons, as though they could captivate anyone. The seductive smile had yet to fade completely from her lips, making it impossible not to linger on her.

Even Jiang Nan, who had made a special effort to dress up tonight, paled beside her.

Gu Jinman grew even more jealous. Since she could find no flaw in Qiao Hua's face, she could only attack her clothes.

She looked over Qiao Hua's mermaid gown and sneered. "Where did you rent that knockoff? It really does look cheap."

At that, someone nearby scoffed. "Who is she? Is she completely clueless? Doesn't she even recognize Chanel?"

"She calls a new release that money alone can't buy cheap? Her standards must be sky-high."

"She's probably some nobody. Otherwise, she wouldn't say something like that."

"Maybe she wears knockoffs herself, so she assumes everyone else does too."

Gu Jinman's face flushed, then darkened. She raised her voice at the group. "Who are you calling a knockoff wearer? Who knows how she managed to buy such an expensive dress? Maybe she earned the money by selling her body!"

Feeling embarrassed, Jiang Nan discreetly tugged at Gu Jinman's sleeve. "Jinman, stop. There are so many people watching. This doesn't look good."

Gu Jinman glanced around. Sure enough, the guests were all watching them. Though unwilling to back down, she knew this wasn't an occasion where she could cause a scene, so she angrily changed the subject. "How did you get in here? Don't you know you need an invitation?"

Qiao Hua's lips curved slightly. "I do."

"And you still dared to come." Gu Jinman snorted. "My brother never invited you. Jiang Nan is the one he invited tonight!"

Qiao Hua's gaze swept from Gu Jinman's face to Jiang Nan. "Oh."

Her indifferent attitude infuriated Gu Jinman. "What do you mean, 'oh'? Now that you know, get out!"

Qiao Hua swirled the wine in her glass. "Why should I?"

"Don't you understand plain English?" Enraged by her dismissiveness, Gu Jinman snapped, "I said you're not welcome here. Get out right now!"

Qiao Hua's smile faded a little. She walked gracefully up to Gu Jinman and looked down at her. "Did you organize this business banquet? If you did, I'll leave right now."

Seeing that Gu Jinman was about to lash out again, Jiang Nan stepped in front of her. "Miss Qiao, you've misunderstood," she said gently.

She lightly patted Gu Jinman's hand, signaling her not to act rashly, then turned to Qiao Hua. "Jinman was only worried you'd wandered in without an invitation, so she was trying to advise you out of kindness. If you really did come uninvited, you should leave now. It would be embarrassing if security noticed and threw you out later."

Qiao Hua smiled. "You needn't concern yourself with that."

Gu Jinman snorted. "Keep putting on a brave face. We'll see who's embarrassed when security comes."

The more she spoke, the more worked up she became. "Some people really have no shame. Isn't my brother's refusal to bring her clear enough? He thinks she's not fit to be seen in public, which is why he invited Jiang Nan instead."

"Only Jiang Nan deserves my brother. Some common hens will always be common hens. They'll never become phoenixes."

Jiang Nan maintained her gracious smile. "Jinman, don't say that. Qiao Hua has never attended an event like this before. Wenze probably didn't bring her because he was worried she'd feel out of her depth."

"Hmph. If a woman like her hadn't latched onto the Gu Family, she probably would never have qualified to attend a gathering like this in her life."

The two traded remarks as though they had already established that Qiao Hua had sneaked in.

Qiao Hua thought they could form a comedy duo someday, one delivering the jokes and the other playing the straight woman. They would certainly make a name for themselves.

Just then, a pair of hands settled on Qiao Hua's shoulders from behind, and Yan Yu's handsome face came into view. "What's going on?"

He had heard the commotion and come over to take a look.

At the sight of the unfamiliar man, surprise flashed in Jiang Nan's eyes, and she exchanged a glance with Gu Jinman.

Qiao Hua shrugged. "These two champions of justice think I don't have an invitation, so they want to throw me out."

Yan Yu's gaze cooled slightly. He turned to Jiang Nan and Gu Jinman and said flatly, "I invited Qiao Hua to be my date tonight. Is there a problem?"

Those words landed like a heavy slap across Gu Jinman's face, painful and humiliating.

"What did you say? You invited Qiao Hua?" Gu Jinman blurted out in agitation. "How is that possible? Didn't she follow my brother here?"

Jiang Nan curled her fingers tightly. "Sir, may I ask what your relationship with Qiao Hua is?"

Yan Yu remained cold. "I don't believe I owe you an explanation."

Jiang Nan froze. She clearly hadn't expected that response, and her expression immediately soured.

Ignoring the two women, Yan Yu turned to Qiao Hua and said warmly, "Let's go."

Qiao Hua didn't want to stay there either, so she left that part of the venue with Yan Yu.

"If I remember correctly, that was your sister-in-law who spoke to you outside the company yesterday, right?" Yan Yu glanced back at Jiang Nan and Gu Jinman as they walked away. "Who's the other woman?"

"Oh, she's my husband's unforgettable first love."

Yan Yu's steps faltered. Looking at Qiao Hua's unconcerned expression, he felt a pang of guilt. "I'm sorry. Should I not have asked you to come to the banquet with me tonight?"

Qiao Hua didn't take it to heart. "It's fine. I'd run into them even if I didn't come."

They continued walking as they talked. The next moment, they came face-to-face with Gu Wenze, who was mingling with the guests.

The instant he saw Qiao Hua and Yan Yu, Gu Wenze's expression turned icy.