Yu He saw him staring blankly and not speaking, she impatiently said, "If you have something to say, spit it out. It's nothing. A good dog doesn't block the way."
Gu Ze snapped back to reality. She actually called him a dog!
As expected, she came from some remote village, vulgar and uncouth. What a waste of such a beautiful face.
"I'm warning you, don't you dare bully Su Su again! And I advise you not to have any ulterior motives towards me!" he warned.
Yu He raised an eyebrow. "What ulterior motives?"
Gu Ze saw that she still wouldn't admit it and thought, she's truly thick-skinned.
"I know you like me and want to change the planned marriage between our two families to one between you and me. I'm telling you now, don't even dream about it! Only the true daughter of the Ye family, Ye Zisu, is worthy of me. You, a... adopted daughter, are not!"
He emphasized the last four words deliberately.
Yu He chuckled softly. "Who gave you that confidence?"
"You!" Gu Ze was choked by her words. This reaction was not what he had expected.
But then he thought, Yu He must be embarrassed that her secret crush was exposed in public, so she couldn't admit it.
He continued, "I won't even mention the things you've done to Su Su. You cheated on the Kaiwei entrance exam, didn't you just want to be closer to me?
"And the outfit you're wearing now, imitating Su Su's style, isn't it just to get my attention? Don't waste your effort. Even if you were wearing the genuine article, I wouldn't fall for you. My heart belongs only to Su Su..."
Su Su, Su Su, Su Su. Yu He was annoyed by the constant mention of the name.
Is Ye Zisu trying to disgust her by finding such a sycophant?
"Heaven gave me this appearance, am I proud? Get lost, don't be an eyesore," Yu He said.
Handsome, sassy, and refreshing!
This demeanor won over the surrounding young ladies who were watching the scene.
At someone else's banquet, telling the guest of honor to get lost!
In all of North City, perhaps only Yu He dared to do such a thing.
Gu Ze was completely choked.
What a sharp tongue! No wonder Su Su was bullied so badly.
She clearly likes me but won't admit it, saying one thing and meaning another, playing hard to get!
Her only goal is to get my attention.
Heh, women!
"Yu He! What are you doing?!"
Ye Jianming and Gu Tianlei's couple came out of the study after finishing their discussion. Seeing a crowd surrounding Yu He and the others, their first reaction was that Yu He must have caused trouble. Their smiles immediately turned grim.
"Welcome everyone to my son's celebration banquet. Please eat and enjoy yourselves."
Gu family patriarch, Gu Tianlei, was more composed than Ye Jianming. He saw the situation at a glance, his face unchanged. With a hearty laugh, he greeted everyone and, with a few words, led Ye Jianming to smooth over this minor incident.
As the onlookers dispersed, Madam Gu, Qin Meimei, glanced at Ye Zisu's dress, her face darkening by another three points.
Last time it was a scandal, this time she wore fakes. Her good impression of Ye Zisu had completely plummeted to rock bottom. However, in front of so many people, she still said to Gu Ze:
"Xiao Ze, take her to change her clothes."
Ye Zisu was both shocked and delighted to see that this matter had alerted Qin Meimei. She was shocked because she was quite afraid of Qin Meimei; she was delighted because Yu He was now finished, having offended Qin Meimei.
After Gu Ze took Ye Zisu upstairs, Qin Meimei finally turned her gaze to Yu He. Their eyes met.
Yu He wore a white, ethereal dress, like an inviolable celestial being; Qin Meimei wore a silk slim-fit dress with a fur stole, adorned with pearls and jewels, radiating elegance and wealth.
Their bodies exuded different auras, silently competing in the air.
"What do you think you are!"
The celebration banquet meticulously prepared for her son had encountered a problem, and Qin Meimei's mood was far from pleasant.
She was a perfectionist and could not tolerate any flaws.
"I'm here to cause you displeasure," Yu He said coldly.
"Such a bold statement! Just because you are the Ye family's adopted daughter?!"
In all of North City, who didn't know that Madam Gu, Qin Meimei, was a woman of fierce temper and strong competitiveness?
Yu He's words were undoubtedly a provocation to her.
"Someone, throw this wild girl out!"
Qin Meimei called for the servants. Ye Jianming rushed over upon hearing this, "Sister-in-law, please calm down. I'll take her away now."
He didn't want to see Yu He being kicked out of the Gu family in front of so many dignitaries, as it would tarnish the Ye family's reputation.
"You've really got guts! Who told you to come?" Ye Jianming forcibly dragged Yu He to the backyard.
He knew Yu He loved causing trouble, so he never intended to bring her from the start.
Yet, she still showed up.
Before Yu He could answer, he pointed to a path, "There's a back door here, get out immediately!"
With that, he turned and went back to the banquet hall.
Yu He chuckled, her peach blossom eyes clear. She hadn't even done anything yet, and they were already angry?
Actually, this wasn't the first time she had met Qin Meimei.
When she was still in the Qin family, she had seen Qin Meimei once during a family banquet.
At that time, Qin Meimei accidentally bumped into her mother, breaking the pot of medicinal soup her mother had stewed for the elderly Mr. Qin overnight. Not only did she not apologize, but she also dirtied her mother's dress, causing her mother to be blamed by the elderly gentleman...
"Hum hum."
At this moment, two pig grunts came from a flower bed.
Yu He came to her senses and saw a small pig's head peeking out from the greenery. It grunted at her twice more, then with a slither, it disappeared back into the bushes.
Yu He followed the flower bed, tracking the little pet pig for a distance.
The Gu family was indeed richer than the Ye family. The backyard was a large garden, and at the end of the garden was a small patch of woods, planted with valuable trees.
Through the trees, a small gray house could be vaguely seen.
"Hum hum." The little pet pig dug into the ground covered with fallen leaves, then dug out something.
Yu He picked it up. It was a rabbit hairpin with one ear broken.
It was the one Luo Xiaoyao had always worn on her head before.
Luo Xiaoyao's disappearance was indeed related to the Gu family.
"Good boy." She patted the little pig's head, got up, and walked towards the cottage in the woods.
---
Ye Zisu changed into a new outfit and came down. She scanned the surroundings and didn't see Yu He's figure.
It seemed she had already been kicked out by Qin Meimei.
A victorious smile curved her lips as she gracefully walked towards Qin Meimei, preparing to apologize for her mistake tonight.
She knew Qin Meimei was a perfectionist and couldn't tolerate any flaws. Qin Meimei must be angry that she was exposed for wearing fakes in public tonight. She had to apologize quickly.
However, before she could approach Qin Meimei, she was stopped by the butler.
"Miss Ye, I'm sorry, the Madam does not wish to see you at the moment."
Ye Zisu's face turned pale. Looking at Qin Meimei chatting and laughing with guests from afar, she didn't even spare her a glance.
Qin Meimei had actually disagreed with her being with Gu Ze. But Gu Ze liked her so much that she reluctantly agreed.
With what happened tonight, even if she married into the Gu family, her life would not be easy.
"Su Su, are you alright? You look a little unwell?" Lan Jiaojiao walked over with a glass of red wine.
"I'm fine, I just feel a bit stuffy and need some fresh air."
Afraid that Lan Jiaojiao would notice Qin Meimei's attitude towards her, Ye Zisu quickly left after speaking.
As soon as she walked out of the courtyard, she bumped into a servant leading an old lady with white hair, dressed in a plain cheongsam.
Ye Zisu was greatly alarmed upon seeing the old lady.
How could Old Madam Yu be here?!
Did Yu He deliberately bring her here to acknowledge her kinship in public?!
If the Gu family found out she wasn't the true daughter of the Ye family, her marriage to Gu Ze would be over!
Thinking of this, Ye Zisu broke out in a cold sweat.