Chapter 213: Mu Tangfeng’s Parents Appear
Shi Lan’s heart lurched. ’This is bad,’ she thought. The rose in her hand suddenly felt like a hot potato.
Just then, Jiang Xia, who had been with his mother, rushed over. With a look of clear displeasure, he snatched the flower from her hand and tossed it back to the male who had given it to her.
He took Shi Lan’s hand in a clear display of ownership and glared menacingly at the man. "Sorry, but this is my female. Get lost."
"GASP..."
Before the male could even react, Jiang Yan, standing behind them, couldn’t help but gasp.
Her eyes were practically sparkling with a thirst for gossip as she stared intently at Shi Lan.
’What is going on? How is Jiang Xia involved in this too?’
Shi Lan, uncomfortable, avoided her gaze, looking down in embarrassment.
’I was going to tell her next time, but now there’s no hiding it.’ What made her feel even more flustered was the realization that Mu Tangfeng would also be at this banquet.
Jiang Xia had mercilessly shooed the other male away in front of everyone. Seeing their tightly clasped hands and Shi Lan’s lack of resistance, the male could only take a deep breath, clutch the rose tightly, and retreat back into the crowd.
Shi Lan could feel even more eyes on them now. She glanced at Jiang Xia, who was looking uncharacteristically dapper in a suit today, and gently tugged his sleeve. "Let’s go over to the side."
Jiang Xia calmed down a bit, but the memory of what just happened left his lips pursed in an unhappy line. Still, his feet moved to follow Shi Lan’s lead, and they walked to the side.
Du Yi and Jiang Hua watched their precious son forget all about his parents the moment he got a female. They cleared their throats in resignation. Only then did Jiang Xia remember them, and he excitedly introduced Shi Lan. "Mom, Dad, this is Lanlan. You’ve met her before."
Shi Lan looked up, feeling a fresh wave of embarrassment at the thought that Jiang Xia’s parents had witnessed that whole scene. Still, she forced herself to remain composed and offered a gracious smile. "Hello, Auntie, Uncle. My name is Shi Lan."
The moment Shi Lan said her name, the murmuring among the males in the crowd grew louder.
As the top institution in the Empire, the Imperial Capital School was attended by nearly all the children of the nobility and the Imperial Family. Consequently, many of the males at Ye Ming’s birthday party were students there.
Shi Lan looked so stunning all dressed up, especially with the luxurious pink gemstone necklace she wore, that at first, they had simply mistaken her for the daughter of some wealthy family and hadn’t recognized her.
Only now, when she introduced herself, did it finally click for everyone.
However, a recent scandal at the Capital School was still fresh in their minds: Teacher Yan had flown into a rage for a beauty, delivering a harsh lesson to all the males who had mocked Shi Lan and refused to apologize. He had been absolutely merciless in class, so now, none of them dared to say much. The fervent light in their eyes simply dimmed.
But some of the males who knew Jiang Xia’s identity found the whole situation unbelievable.
’It’s one thing for Teacher Yan to lose his head over a useless female, but Young Master Jiang of the Four Great Families, too?’
’He’s a male with 2S Spirit Power! How could he lower himself like this??’
’But surely his family has more sense, right? For the sake of his lineage, a 2S male should at least be considering a female with a Fertility Value, not a useless female like Shi Lan, whose Fertility Value is zero.’
Jiang Xia couldn’t care less what anyone around them thought. The only thing that mattered to him was Shi Lan’s opinion. Most of the time, not even his parents could control him.
Now, Du Yi and Jiang Hua were taking a moment too long to respond, and Jiang Xia couldn’t help but shoot them a look, silently urging them on.
Du Yi felt her son’s insistent stare and exchanged a glance with her husband, her eyes filled with resignation. They had no intention of making things difficult for Shi Lan, however. Putting aside the fact that she was a useless female, they actually quite liked her.
"Hello, Lanlan," she said. "We hear Xiaxia talk about you all the time. You should come over for dinner sometime when you’re free."
Shi Lan nodded.
"Well, we’ll let you young people talk. We won’t disturb you any longer."
Du Yi and Jiang Hua didn’t linger, leaving after just a few brief words.
The surrounding males who were in the know looked on with unconcealed disappointment, their expressions baffled. They had clearly been hoping for some drama.
’How could the Jiang Family stand for this?’
’Are they actually going to accept a useless female?’
But that wasn’t the only thing that would leave them dumbfounded. Moments after Jiang Xia’s display, Mu Tangfeng, the young master of the Mu Family—who was publicly known to despise females—appeared at the banquet, made a beeline for Shi Lan, and familiarly took her other hand.
Jiang Yan hadn’t even had a chance to corner Shi Lan and ask about Jiang Xia, and now Mu Tangfeng had shown up too.
She felt like her world was ending. ’What kind of people has my friend gotten involved with? Every single one of them is not only powerful, but they all seem to have terrible tempers, don’t they? Can she really put up with them?’
Jiang Yan even started imagining scenarios where Shi Lan was being coerced by the two of them. But a single glance in their direction dispelled that notion. Both Jiang Xia and Mu Tangfeng were sticking to Shi Lan’s side, and if she so much as glanced at a pastry, one of them would dotingly place it at her lips.
However, Mu Tangfeng’s parents were not nearly as easygoing as Jiang Xia’s. There was no way they would let their only son marry a useless female.
’How is this going to work?’
Mu Tangfeng had arrived about ten minutes before his parents, and he was already peeling grapes for Shi Lan.
Shi Lan had actually told him he didn’t have to, but when she looked up, Mu Tangfeng was staring at her with a sullen, displeased pout. ’He’s probably still upset about Yan Huoshui feeding me grapes earlier,’ she thought, so she had no choice but to open her mouth and accept it.
Only then did a smile spread across his face, making the corners of his eyes crinkle with delight.
Just then, a worried Jiang Yan came over. She hadn’t wanted to interrupt them, but she had just seen Mu Tangfeng’s parents approaching. She came over specifically to act as backup, to make sure her friend wasn’t bullied.
Mu Tangfeng was a known troublemaker. And while the Mu Family doted on their only son, the Eldest Prince’s birthday was no place for his antics.
So, the moment they arrived, their first order of business was to find their son.
Soon enough, Mr. Mu spotted the group sitting on the sofa.
His brow furrowed. Seeing his son personally peeling grapes and feeding them to a female, he couldn’t help but give Shi Lan a second, longer look.
’Could this be the female my son has been talking so much about lately?’
He reminded his wife, "Feng’er is over there."
Following his gaze, Mrs. Mu looked over. She was better informed than Mr. Mu, so the moment she saw the girl, Shi Lan’s name immediately came to mind.
However, thinking about the results of their recent investigation, a flicker of worry appeared in her eyes.
The pair walked over to where the group was seated.
Jiang Yan was the first to speak. "Aunt Mu, Uncle Liu, you’re here!"
"Yanyan, you’re here as well."
Mrs. Mu was good friends with Jiang Yan’s mother, and her expression softened instantly upon seeing the girl.
Hearing Jiang Yan’s greeting, Shi Lan immediately realized who the couple was.
She awkwardly straightened up. Mu Tangfeng, who was still peeling a grape, quickly tore off the last bit of skin and stood up as well. His eyes, however, were fixed only on Shi Lan. "Lanlan, open up."
Shi Lan frantically shook her head, giving him a pointed look.
Mu Tangfeng followed her gaze and saw that his parents had arrived. He reflexively popped the grape into his own mouth, straightened his spine, and announced, "I’m not causing any trouble."