"I've got to say," a woman remarked, "a woman from a humble background like her just can't cut it in high society."
"She doesn't understand the rules of our circle at all, nor does she ever think about you..."
"Oh, I don't mean to say she's bad. It's just that I feel she might, well, not be the right fit for you."
As she spoke, she subtly winked at a childhood friend sitting beside her.
Caught between the intimidating young lady and the unpredictable Yan Qiubai, the friend could only reluctantly chime in.
"Yeah, Qiubai, Xinyin is just looking out for you. Miss Meng was a bit... "
He didn't dare to finish his sentence.
Emboldened by the support, Shen Xinyin grew even more self - assured and delivered her final verdict.
"She disrespected you so openly today. It shows she doesn't value you at all in her heart."
"Women like her are only after money. She..."
"Bang!"
A sudden, deafening noise interrupted Shen Xinyin.
Yan Qiubai slammed the wine glass in his hand onto the table with such force.
The glass shattered instantly, sending shards and the amber - colored wine spraying everywhere. The people nearby shrieked in fear.
Yan Qiubai slowly raised his head.
His usually lazy and smiling peach - blossom eyes were now filled with chilling coldness and violence.
He turned his head, his gaze as sharp as a poisoned blade, piercing straight through Shen Xinyin, who was now pale with fright.
"Shen Xinyin."
His voice was deep, hoarse, and dripping with undisguised annoyance and warning.
"Have I been too nice to you? Huh? How dare you keep bad - mouthing my girlfriend here?"
Shen Xinyin was completely stunned. Her face turned deathly pale as she stared at Yan Qiubai in disbelief.
Had she heard him wrong?
Brother Qiubai had never spoken to her in such a tone before.
Even when she was being willful, at most he'd just be impatient.
He had never looked at her like she was trash.
Now, he was publicly scolding her for that low - class woman he'd only known for a short time?
Without showing any mercy?
The overwhelming sense of humiliation and the huge gap between the past and now crashed over her.
She was arrogant and extremely vain, especially in front of so many childhood friends.
"Did... did I say something wrong?"
Shen Xinyin stubbornly held her head high, trying to maintain her bravado, but her voice was tinged with sobs and anger.
"Yan Qiubai, if you can't control your girlfriend and she embarrasses you, why are you taking it out on me?!"
"I'm just stating the facts. If she cared about you, would she treat you like this?!"
"You never... you never protected me like this before?!"
The last words were almost a scream, filled with intense unwillingness and grievance.
As Yan Qiubai's first love, she had endured the sarcasm of many of his admirers.
But Yan Qiubai always treated it as a joke and just told her to ignore them.
Now, Meng Ruochao had just stormed off, making him so angry, yet he still defended her so fiercely.
Yan Qiubai looked at her hysterical state, the coldness in his eyes deepening, even tinged with a hint of mockery.
He slowly got up and looked down at her from above, enunciating each word clearly.
"I never protected you because from start to finish, the only woman I've ever loved is Meng Ruochao."
Shen Xinyin's eyes widened in shock, as if she couldn't believe her ears.
How was that possible?
There had never been anyone named Meng Ruochao in their circle before.
Based on her past understanding of Yan Qiubai, if there had been such a woman around him, she would have known.
Yan Qiubai flashed a cold smile.
"If I hadn't made a mistake and thought it was you, Shen Xinyin, who saved me when I was a kid and whom I've always been longing for."
"How could I have been with you for that one month?"
He looked Shen Xinyin up and down with a harsh gaze, his tone cruel.
"Come to think of it, you should be grateful that your side profile bears a slight resemblance to her."
"Too bad..." he scoffed, "you're just a cheap imitation. You can't even hold a candle to her."
Looking at Shen Xinyin's blood - drained face, he felt no pity.
Regardless of the others present, he issued his final ultimatum.
"From now on, don't ever show up in front of me again, and don't let me catch you bothering Meng Ruochao."
"Otherwise, don't blame me for disregarding the friendship between our two families."
With that, he didn't even spare a glance at Shen Xinyin, who was now slumped in her chair, looking like a soulless puppet.
Nor did he bother with the room full of childhood friends who were too scared to make a sound.
He stood up, pushed the chair aside, and strode out of the private room.
The door slammed shut with a loud noise.
The private room fell into complete silence.
It took Shen Xinyin dozens of seconds to finally snap out of the shock and humiliation.
She angrily swept all the tableware on the table to the ground.
Then, she buried her head on the table and let out heart - rending sobs, a mixture of seething anger and broken - heartedness.
She never could have imagined.
The "white - moonlight" status she had been so obsessed with for years.
All her confidence and sense of superiority.
In Yan Qiubai's eyes, it was all just a ridiculous "misunderstanding".
Just because of that pitiful "slight resemblance" to another woman.
And that woman was Meng Ruochao, the one she had belittled and looked down on so much today!
It was a great humiliation! An absolute disgrace!
Anger, sadness, jealousy, and unwillingness...
All these emotions burned like a poisonous fire in her mind.
She would never let this go!
Yan Qiubai was supposed to be hers.
Even if she couldn't have him, she would never let Meng Ruochao have him either!
The supermarket was quite crowded in the evening. Many families were out shopping together, filling the place with a sense of everyday life.
Meng Ruochao pushed a shopping cart and first picked out some simple ready - to - eat food and fruits with a clear purpose.
Then, she changed direction and headed straight for the liquor section.
Pei Jiangmu followed behind her.
Seeing her put two bottles of red wine and several cans of craft beer into the shopping cart without hesitation, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows slightly.
This didn't seem like just a casual amount of alcohol.
Just as Meng Ruochao reached for a bottle of whiskey on the high shelf, her sleeve slid down a bit, revealing a section of her fair wrist.
Pei Jiangmu's eyes instantly fixed on it -
A red mark that hadn't completely faded was prominently printed on her slender wrist.
His heart clenched tightly, and his face darkened immediately.
Almost instinctively, he grabbed her wrist.
His movement was so fast that it even carried a hint of urgency and nervousness that he didn't even notice.
But his grip was gentle, making sure not to hurt her.
"What happened to your hand?"
His voice was tense, and his eyes were sharply fixed on the red mark.
"Who did this?"
The mark was clearly left by someone squeezing tightly.
Was it that scumbag Yan Qiubai or Shen Xinyin and her group?
Meng Ruochao was startled by his sudden action and harsh tone.
She instinctively struggled a little.
Pei Jiangmu realized he had overreacted and quickly let go of her hand.
But his eyes still locked onto her, waiting for an answer.