Chapter 367: What Lady of the Xiao Family
Lin Chuxing's arrival also attracted quite a few stares.
After all, she had been incredibly ostentatious before, as if she wanted to have the title 'Lady of the Xiao Family' tattooed on her forehead!
No one expected her to fall out of favor so quickly.
The high-society ladies whom Lin Chuxing had looked down on, both openly and subtly, gathered together, whispering amongst themselves.
"Isn't that Lin Chuxing?"
"I thought Patriarch Xiao only brought another woman because she wasn't coming. Turns out, she's just fallen out of favor!"
"Lin Chuxing always carried herself as if she were the Lady of the Xiao Family. Why is she attending the banquet all by herself now?"
"Lady of the Xiao Family? Please. Look, Patriarch Xiao dared to bring another woman to the banquet right in front of her. She'll never get that position!"
Lin Chuxing overheard their discussion and clenched her jaw, grinding her teeth.
She glared daggers at Jin Mingzhu, making no effort to hide the expression on her face.
Seeing her behave this way, many people's assessment of her character dropped even lower.
'This is a formal banquet. If she can't even control her expression, she should just go home!'
Xiao Ye and Jin Mingzhu finished a round of greetings and could finally have a moment of peace.
Suddenly, his gaze froze, fixing on a spot not far from the entrance.
Lin Chuyue was standing there, a picture of delicate beauty. Her gown wasn't from any major designer brand, but on her, it looked as if she were a goddess descended from the heavens.
Beautiful and pure, so much so that it made people feel unworthy of approaching her.
Jin Mingzhu noticed his gaze and followed it.
Her heart sank instantly. Of course, she knew of Lin Chuyue's existence.
She had just assumed Lin Chuyue was a thing of the past, but she never imagined she could still capture Xiao Ye's attention.
She said with a smile, "Well, look who's here."
Xiao Ye snapped back to his senses and immediately averted his gaze, but his heart had already sunk to the depths.
'How could Lin Chuyue be here?'
'A minor family like the Lin Family would never have been on Linton's guest list.'
'It seems this really is a trap.'
'And Lin Chuyue... she's their trump card!'
'The only way to protect her is to ignore her completely! To act as if she doesn't exist!'
Lin Chuxing noticed Lin Chuyue as well. She was already seething with anger, and seeing Xiao Ye's ex-fiancée gave her the perfect outlet for all her frustrations.
Her heels went CLICK-CLACK-CLICK on the floor as she stomped over to Lin Chuyue. "Who let you in! This is Mr. Linton's banquet! You have no right to be here!"
"I..." Lin Chuyue had actually been happy to see her at first. After all, they were sisters.
Even though their parents and grandfather had chosen to stay by her side, she had never held any resentment toward Lin Chuxing.
But she never expected her sister to march over and immediately unleash a torrent of insults.
"I only came because I was invited. As for why I was invited, I'm not sure."
"It must be because of Xiao Ye! Without Xiao Ye, what are you?!" The more Lin Chuxing looked at Lin Chuyue, the more dissatisfied she felt.
'We're supposed to be sisters, so why is she so beautiful? Why does Xiao Ye still spare her a glance?'
'Meanwhile, he hasn't looked at me once from start to finish!'
Lin Chuxing's voice was loud, already drawing the gazes of the people around them.
This made Lin Chuyue extremely embarrassed. "Sister, please stop. Can we talk about this later?"
"Hah, you think you have the right to talk to me? Let me tell you, I am the future Lady of the Xiao Family! And what are you?!"
"If you hadn't stolen what was mine, do you think you would have ever met Xiao Ye? Everything you have today, you stole from me!"
Lin Chuxing's recent spate of banquet attendance did have its benefits.
Just then, a few young ladies from prominent families walked over.
They were experts at reading the situation and quickly surrounded Lin Chuyue.
"Chuxing, did she upset you?"
Seeing that she had people on her side, Lin Chuxing became even more arrogant. "Yes, she did!"
"A country bumpkin like her has no right to attend this kind of banquet. Xiao Ye must have pulled some strings to get her in."
"She stole my fiancé, so how dare she show her face and try to seduce him again?"
The others chimed in to agree. "Exactly! You two have already broken up, so stop bothering him. Or what, Lin Chuyue, can't you live without a man?"
"Look at that vixen face of hers. She was born to be a man-stealing slut!"
The color drained from Lin Chuyue's pretty face. She didn't understand what she had done wrong.
On the other side of the room, Xiao Ye's eyes were ice-cold.
He glanced at Zhu Chen, who understood immediately and started walking toward Lin Chuyue.
"Miss Lin, long time no see."
Lin Chuxing thought Zhu Chen was speaking to her and became even more smug. "It hasn't been that long. Didn't we just see each other recently?"
"By the way, I really like the gown you bought for me."
Zhu Chen had never met such a foolish woman. He cleared his throat. "Miss Lin, that was compensation."
After saying that, he turned to Lin Chuyue. "Miss Lin, long time no see."
He said the same thing a second time, making it obvious his first words were also meant for Lin Chuyue!
At this realization, Lin Chuxing's expression turned ugly.
"Zhu Chen, she's not Xiao Ye's fiancée anymore! I am!"
Zhu Chen gave a faint nod. "I know. But my relationship with Miss Lin will not be affected by this matter."
"You!" Lin Chuxing was furious. "If you continue to be friendly with her, you'll be offending me!"
"And so what?" Zhu Chen was already growing impatient. 'How can a woman be this stupid?' "If Miss Lin is going to make an enemy of me over something so trivial..."
"...then I have nothing more to say!"
After speaking, Zhu Chen turned back to Lin Chuyue. "Miss Lin, shall we move over there? It's a bit unpleasant here. Don't let other people ruin your good mood for the banquet."
Lin Chuyue wanted to say something, but when she saw the loathing and resentment in Lin Chuxing's eyes, she turned away in resignation.
'I know I owe Lin Chuxing, but... haven't I been paying her back?'
'I even gave up the man I love most. What more does she want from me?'
'Does she want me to die before she's satisfied?'
Lin Chuyue suppressed the ache in her heart and walked to another part of the room.
Xiao Ye, who had been watching the situation closely, breathed a small sigh of relief when he saw Zhu Chen protecting her.
'I can't go over there myself. It would make her a target.'
Lin Chuyue found a quiet spot to sit down and smiled apologetically. "Mr. Zhuxian, I'm so sorry to have troubled you."
"Don't mention it. It's what I should do." 'If I didn't, Xiao Ye would be furious.'
Lin Chuyue felt bad for troubling him further. "Mr. Zhuxian, you should go attend to your business. Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself."
Zhu Chen nodded. After all, he also needed to network at an event like this.
Lin Chuyue glanced up and inadvertently caught sight of Xiao Ye, but she immediately looked away.
'I can't look. The more I look, the more my heart aches.'
It was as if someone were taking a knife and slowly carving up her heart.