Chapter 500 - 499: A Melodramatic Plot Becomes Reality

Sheng Tian, one could say, had single-handedly lowered the Sheng Family’s standing in Yun Zijin’s eyes.

"We are aware of what just happened. As members of the Sheng Family, we came here today specifically to offer you an apology.

We are truly sorry. We never expected the Sheng Family to produce someone so arrogant and domineering.

We had already sent her abroad, but we never imagined she would return to the country on her own, much less attend the Situ family’s welcome banquet."

Regardless of how Sheng Tian got into the banquet hall, this incident was ultimately a result of the Sheng Family’s failure to discipline her properly.

Even though Sheng Tian was not their daughter, as long as she still carried the Sheng surname, they had to clean up her messes.

However, this would be the last time. After today, they planned to hold a press conference and announce to the entire country, and perhaps even the world, that Sheng Tian was no longer part of the Sheng Family.

Sheng Tian only knew that her status as a member of the Sheng Family allowed her to do as she pleased. Before causing all that stupid trouble, she never considered how her actions would affect the family.

Since she had been so callous, she couldn’t blame them for being ruthless in return.

Strictly speaking, Sheng Tian was the daughter of a cousin of Sheng Zhenjiang’s father. They were already distant relatives, so there would be no problem even if they disowned her.

They hadn’t denied Sheng Tian’s connection to the Sheng Family before only out of respect for old ties; after all, their grandfathers had been brothers.

Unfortunately, Sheng Tian didn’t know her place and coveted things that didn’t belong to her. In that case, she couldn’t blame them for what was to come.

"A verbal apology alone isn’t quite sincere enough."

As her boyfriend, Lu Yunque was very proactive in securing benefits for Yun Zijin.

’Since this is an apology, there has to be some compensation. Otherwise, people will think Yun Zijin is a pushover, and everyone will try to take advantage of her in the future.’

"Of course. I heard Zijin enjoys collecting rent. As it happens, I have a few offices in my name in the Hengyu Building. We can transfer the deeds on Monday!"

Yun Zijin: ???

’Wait, what? Why are they suddenly giving me offices?’

’Hengyu Building... Isn’t that the building right next to my Dingsi Building?’

"That’s not necess—"

"You’re too kind, Uncle Sheng. We’ll see you at the land registry office on Monday."

And just like that, without lifting a finger, Yun Zijin got several offices for free. What’s more, they were already occupied by tenants, guaranteeing her rental income every quarter.

’Has my reputation as Dijing’s little landlady already become so widespread?’

"Um... I have classes on Monday. Is it possible for my assistant to go in my place?"

Yun Zijin felt the compensation was a bit much, but since they were insisting, she had no choice but to accept.

’If they ever need investment for a project in the future, I can return the favor. It’s the least I can do.’

After apologizing to Yun Zijin, the Sheng Family didn’t stay long before leaving.

Even though they had no part in the trouble Sheng Tian had caused, they were truly embarrassed by it.

With practically all of Dijing’s high society present at the banquet, they felt uncomfortable lingering.

Because of the incident with Sheng Tian, Lu Yunque was worried about leaving Yun Zijin by herself, so he stuck close to her for the rest of the evening.

But no matter where he stood, Lu Yunque was a man who couldn’t help but stand out in a crowd.

While Lu Yunque was by Yun Zijin’s side, people would still approach him from time to time to strike up a conversation.

Eventually, Yun Zijin got fed up and shooed Lu Yunque away, heading off elsewhere with Su Mengyao and Tu Tutu, while pushing Lu Yunzhou’s wheelchair.

The Situ Family had clearly spared no expense for this banquet. The main hall was massive, and it opened up to a small garden and a swimming pool.

"This place... Based on my years of experience reading novels, this is a prime location for classic misunderstanding plotlines."

Tu Tutu voiced her thoughts the moment they stepped into the small garden.

Hearing Tu Tutu’s words, Lu Yunzhou couldn’t help but glance at her. ’This girl is pretty interesting,’ he thought.

"You aren’t talking about that classic trope where the female lead and the villainess fall into the pool, are you?"

Tu Tutu had recommended quite a few of her novels to Su Mengyao. Often, when reading about the wealthy families and the tangled misunderstandings between the male lead, female lead, and villainess, Su Mengyao felt that you’d need a decade-long cerebral thrombosis to come up with plots so insane.

’The male lead is a genuine idiot, and he’s selectively blind to boot.’

’Then, just as the female lead is about to leave him, poof! The male lead’s brain is suddenly cured.’

’Suddenly, he can see through the scheming women, he can think for himself, and when something happens, he knows to check the security footage and investigate the truth before jumping to conclusions.’

’It’s practically the eighth wonder of the medical world!’

Thinking about those plots that were aneurysm-inducing, Su Mengyao really wished she could swap her brain for one untainted by such bizarre storylines.

"Heh heh, but you have to admit, you were hooked when you were reading them, weren’t you?"

’The tropes are melodramatic and old, but what can you do? We readers are simple creatures who eat this stuff up!’

Su Mengyao fell silent.

’Alright, she had to admit, she did get hooked while reading. But it was purely to see just how much of an idiot in love the female lead could be.’

’The male lead sweet-talks her a little, and she just forgives him. The synopsis promised a ’grovel-till-you-burn’ redemption arc, but it was over in less than two Chapters. It’s just...’

’In the end, Su Mengyao could only come to one conclusion: This world is one giant madhouse, and the world of fiction is no exception.’

"Oh, come on, that’s just stuff from novels. It’s just the few of us here now. Do you really think something as ridiculous as falling into a pool is going to happen between us?"

’Su Mengyao thought Tu Tutu had really read too many novels; she could spin a hundred-thousand-word epic in her head out of anything.’

"Someone’s coming over there," Lu Yunzhou suddenly said.

Lu Yunzhou spoke up suddenly, and Yun Zijin and the other two subconsciously followed his gaze.

"Oh, someone really is coming..."

Su Mengyao murmured, not expecting that a second later, a girl would seem to twist her ankle and suddenly fall toward the swimming pool.

Another girl, a panicked look on her face, reached out to grab her, only to be pulled into the pool as well by the girl who had supposedly twisted her ankle.

Just then, a man came running from around a corner, rushing toward the two girls. However, he only shouted one of their names.

"Qianqian!"

Yun Zijin and her friends looked at each other. ’Is a trashy drama plot playing out in real life?’

Yun Zijin and the others simply stood where they were without a sound, curious to see how the situation would unfold.

They watched as the man dove swiftly into the water and swam unhesitatingly toward the girl who had just twisted her ankle.

The other girl, who had been dragged into the pool with her, was flailing helplessly, but the man didn’t spare her so much as a glance.

The three women, Yun Zijin included, were all in evening gowns and couldn’t easily jump in to help. Lu Yunzhou, with his impaired mobility, was even less capable of staging a rescue.

But they couldn’t just stand by and watch someone flounder in the water, turning a blind eye.

Tu Tutu ran into the banquet hall and grabbed a waiter. "Someone fell in the water over there! I don’t think they can swim. Please, you have to save them!"

As Tu Tutu dragged the waiter over, Yun Zijin took the tray of drinks from his hands. "Go save them."