Everyone Else Welcomed All Comers; He Rejected Them All

Three thousand crystals hung from the villa's domed ceiling, forming a chandelier. Patches of light drifted across the Italian Carrara marble floor like scattered stardust.

The gilded mirrors embedded in the four walls replicated the guests' figures endlessly, their reflections and real bodies forming an interwoven maze of illusion and reality.

The entire eastern wall had been transformed into a cascading champagne tower. Servers weaved through the crowd carrying champagne, and the amber liquid made a crisp sound like clinking gold coins as it poured into tall glasses.

A twenty-piece orchestra played behind the spiral staircase, the tremor of the cellos subtly resonating with the sway of the crystal chandelier.

Ruan Mingyi looked around. The people discussing business were all on the right, while the socialites, young ladies, and young masters drank and danced on the left.

Ruan Mingyi took Shen Qingling to the right side.

A strikingly handsome unfamiliar face like Shen Qingling's immediately drew discussion from the group of socialites.

"Whose son is that? I don't think I've seen him before. Do you know him, Qian Xuan?"

"No. Xia Xia said there would be quite a few guests from Beicheng this time. Maybe he's a newly risen figure from Beicheng?"

"He's so handsome. I thought the Sheng Family had invited a celebrity."

"What celebrity could possibly have that kind of presence? You can tell at a glance that his background isn't ordinary. The woman beside him does look a little familiar, though."

"Hey, isn't that Ruan Mingyi? Where did she meet someone like him... Come on, let's go find out."

Three women holding champagne glasses suddenly approached them.

Ruan Mingyi recognized them at once. They were old acquaintances.

Sheng Xia's little sisterhood—her most hated group of women.

One curly-haired woman asked with a smile, "Mingyi, is this the marriage alliance match your father arranged for you? Aren't you going to introduce him to us?"

Ruan Mingyi knew exactly what they meant. They had probably taken Shen Qingling for some wealthy young master and were dying of jealousy inside.

She deliberately smiled. "That's right."

Lu Qianxuan smiled gently at Shen Qingling, raised her brows, and held out her hand to him. "Hello. May I ask how I should address you?"

Ruan Mingyi stepped in front of Shen Qingling and leaned toward Lu Qianxuan. "Isn't your male companion over there? Sorry, we have things to do. Please excuse us."

Ruan Mingyi linked her arm through Shen Qingling's and walked away. There was no need for her to give those women any face.

Lu Qianxuan's hand hung awkwardly in midair. After Ruan Mingyi left, she gave a cold laugh. "What is she so proud of? He's just a little handsome. Once Xia Xia arrives with Gu Yijin, she'll be choking on her words."

"But I think he's much more handsome than Gu Yijin. I just don't know whether his family background can compare to the Gu Family's."

"That's hard to say. He doesn't look like he comes from an ordinary family."

"How could Ruan Mingyi be so lucky? With that temper of hers, can that man really put up with her?"

"If she finds someone that outstanding, she'll get dumped sooner or later. I bet she doesn't have what it takes to keep a man like that."

Ruan Mingyi and Shen Qingling went to the side to get drinks. Shen Qingling asked curiously, "You seem to really dislike those people."

Ruan Mingyi gripped her glass and gritted her teeth. "More than dislike. We curse each other out every time we meet."

"That serious?"

"They're Sheng Xia's little sisterhood. One's a Green Tea Sister, one's scheming, and one's arrogant. They mocked me for not having a mother when we were kids. Now, every time we attend a banquet, they mock whichever male companion I bring."

"No wonder. They really did go too far. But I'm a little curious too—why would you bring... that kind of man to an occasion like this?"

"Partly because a lot of people are close to Sheng Xia's circle, so I can't possibly stay with them. The other reason is that this mouth of mine has offended quite a few men. Whenever they see me, they take a detour. How could they possibly be my male companion?"

Ruan Mingyi was rather "famous." Even when it came to marriage alliances, no one considered her.

In the words of those young masters, Ruan Mingyi was "a terrifying creature that looks like a rose with thorns but is actually a man-eating flower."

Shen Qingling found that rather amusing. "Have you never thought about changing?"

Ruan Mingyi blinked. "Why should I change? I just like telling the truth. They're too fragile. If they can't accept the truth and get defensive, that isn't my fault."

Thinking of Ruan Mingyi's sheer attacking power, Shen Qingling instantly regarded her with newfound respect.

She smiled, her eyes curving. "See? The moment I brought you here today, they had nothing to mock me for. You outclassed all their male companions, and with your presence, they didn't dare open their mouths and ridicule you casually."

"Is that all you compare?"

"What else would we compare? Everyone here can afford jewelry and accessories."

"As for beauty, they can get plastic surgery. After they do, there aren't many ugly ones left. Though it's true that I'm prettier than them, they don't dare compare themselves to me. They even spread rumors that my whole body has been altered."

"So they can only use men to attack me. It's all because Sheng Xia has an outstanding fiancé, and she can't wait to hang him around her neck and show him off every day."

Shen Qingling lowered his eyes. Sheng Xia should already know that her fiancé was going to be changed, right?

In the Original Work, she had fiercely resisted the matter and refused to accept it no matter what. This time would probably be the same.

Ye Qiao arrived just then, bringing her boyfriend over to Ruan Mingyi.

"Mingyi, you're so early today. You're usually fashionably late—how rare for you to be on time."

"Today it's my turn to annoy them. How could I not come early? You have no idea what their faces looked like just now—jealous, but too afraid to offend me. It was hilarious."

"Lu Qianxuan and the others?"

"Yeah. They thought Shen Qingling was my marriage alliance match."

Ye Qiao laughed as well, then introduced her boyfriend, Wei Qihe, to Shen Qingling.

When Ye Qiao saw Shen Qingling today, she too froze for a moment, a flash of amazement passing through her eyes.

Ye Qiao smiled and praised him, "As expected of the campus heartthrob."

Wei Qihe immediately became wary. Using the excuse of chatting with Shen Qingling, he separated Shen Qingling from Ye Qiao.

He couldn't let this man steal his young lady away.

Shen Qingling was far too dangerous. Having met so many men, Wei Qihe naturally knew just how popular a man like Shen Qingling was with women.

Wei Qihe was a textbook kept man, but he was a kept man with a proper sense of boundaries.

Wei Qihe had once been a male model, but after meeting Ye Qiao, he got out of that line of work.

Ye Qiao gave him two million a month for spending money, bought him a villa and luxury cars, and even worried about his career enough to open a car rental business for him.

To Wei Qihe, this was like a pie falling from the sky. So his daily task was to serve Ye Qiao, this young lady, well and make her happy.

They had been together for half a year, and their relationship was sweet as honey.

Ye Qiao didn't mind his past either. She took him to banquets and told anyone who asked that he had been introduced by her family. No one knew about his history.

Wei Qihe had heard Ye Qiao mention Shen Qingling before, but he had not taken it seriously at first. Ruan Mingyi had never been serious about anyone; after a few days, she would toss them aside.

But after seeing Shen Qingling today, Wei Qihe knew he had been wrong.

Ruan Mingyi was one thing. It would already be bad enough if he lured away his Qiao Qiao.

The eyes of so many women in the venue were practically glued to Shen Qingling.

Some came up to strike up conversations, but Shen Qingling reacted coldly every time, politely yet distantly turning them down.

Yet the more he acted this way, the more women came one after another to speak with him.

Wei Qihe had seen all the men Ruan Mingyi had brought before. Whenever a young lady came over to flirt with them, they would hand over business cards and add them on WeChat.

After all, doing business with Ruan Mingyi alone was business, and doing business with other young ladies was business too.

Besides, Ruan Mingyi had a terrible temper and a sharp tongue. They really couldn't stand her.

But Shen Qingling was different from those men. He was aloof. Others welcomed all comers; he rejected them all.

When Wei Qihe told Ruan Mingyi this, she curled her lips into a smile. "That's Shen Qingling for you."

077: Ruan Mingyi's affection value increased by 5.

Shen Qingling said, "It seems she's quite satisfied with my performance today."

But something was still missing.

The main character who was supposed to appear had not arrived yet. It was a little boring.

After a while, a commotion broke out. Shen Qingling followed everyone's gazes and looked over.

—The Gu Family had finally arrived.