"Where are they?" Li Ping asked.
"They refuse to come in!" the servant said helplessly. "They said you and Jiang Yi must personally go out to greet them, and that it's the rule."
Hearing this, Li Ping sneered.
"I kindly invited them to be my guests, and they have the audacity to put on airs in front of me!" Li Ping said calmly to the servant, "Go tell them that if they don't wish to be guests in our home, then so be it. We won't beg them. Tell them to leave!"
"Yes!" The servant responded and turned to leave the hall.
Jiang Yi guessed that Liu Hong definitely hadn't arrived, otherwise, Liu Hong wouldn't allow these members of the Dongfang family to cause such a commotion. Jiang Yi surmised that Liu Hong intended for these Dongfang family members to suffer a bit before slowly making their way over.
Dongfang Mei, standing beside them, seemed to have already anticipated this, not saying a word and wearing a gloating expression.
"Why are you using my mother to teach your Dongfang family a lesson?" Jiang Yi asked, feeling somewhat speechless.
"They are too arrogant. My mother has long wanted to teach them a lesson, and this is a good opportunity!" Dongfang Mei said with a smile.
Jiang Yi was left speechless by her words.
Meanwhile, at the villa entrance.
Dongfang Teng, Dongfang Xun, and other members of the Dongfang family stood at the entrance, their faces filled with smug satisfaction.
"If Li Ping and Jiang Yi don't personally come out to greet us, we'll stand here at the entrance. This is our first meeting, and we must show them some authority!" Dongfang Teng declared.
"Exactly!" Dongfang Xun chimed in. "Our Dongfang family is one of the top families in the capital. Our status and position are far above theirs. We are distinguished guests; how dare they neglect us!"
The other Dongfang family members also chimed in. Their faces were all filled with pride! From the very beginning, they hadn't taken Li Ping and Jiang Yi seriously, otherwise, they wouldn't be acting so presumptuously.
Just then, the servant walked out from the courtyard. Seeing that Li Ping and Jiang Yi were not with him, everyone's expression darkened.
"Where is Li Ping?" Dongfang Teng frowned and asked the servant.
"Our madam is very busy and has no time to welcome you!" the servant said calmly. "Our madam said that she kindly invited you to her home as guests, but you are putting on airs. If you don't wish to be guests, please leave immediately!"
Dongfang Teng and the others were stunned by this statement! They hadn't expected Li Ping to completely disregard them. This was entirely outside of their predictions.
"What should we do now?" one of the Dongfang family members asked.
"I don't know either!" Dongfang Teng took a deep breath. "We can't just barge in shamelessly. We already said that if Li Ping and Jiang Yi didn't personally come to greet us, we wouldn't enter. But we can't just leave like this either. If the patriarch finds out about this, he definitely won't spare us."
Now, they were in a dilemma. They had intended to give Li Ping a difficult time, but instead, they had ended up shooting themselves in the foot and creating a difficult situation for themselves. Entering was not an option, and not entering was also not an option.
"I didn't expect Li Ping to be this formidable!" Dongfang Teng said. "I don't know what to do now! You all decide for yourselves!" The plan had originally been Dongfang Teng's, but seeing that it had failed, he intended to pass the buck to the others.
"Perhaps we should just go in," one of the clan members suggested.
"No!" Dongfang Xun declared. "If we go in now, won't that be like admitting defeat to Li Ping and Jiang Yi? Won't we be ridiculed if this gets out!"
"Then what should we do? Going in is not an option, and not going in is also not an option. Are we going to stand at the door forever?" another clan member asked helplessly.
"What else can we do?" Dongfang Teng took a deep breath. "We can only wait for the patriarch to arrive and then decide!"
Upon hearing this, everyone looked resigned. They were all suffering for the sake of dignity. If they had just gone in, it would have been fine. But for the sake of face, they could only stand at the main entrance. Little did they know that by staying at the entrance, they were actually losing even more face.
Just then, a car drove towards them.
Seeing Jiang Yi arrive, the Dongfang family members felt a sense of relief; they finally had a way to save face. However, to their surprise, Jiang Yi gave them no chance to recover, directly stating, "Don't misunderstand, I'm not here to greet you."
As soon as Jiang Yi finished speaking, Chen Kun, accompanied by several servants, emerged from the villa. Each servant was carrying a stool.
"What do you want?" Dongfang Teng asked, frowning.
"You are members of the Dongfang family, how can we neglect you? I have prepared a stool for each of you. If you don't want to come inside, then sit by the door!" Jiang Yi said with a slight smile. "We are very hospitable. Even if you want to guard the main entrance, we must entertain you properly!"
"You're spouting nonsense!" Dongfang Teng cursed. "You want us to stand at the door and guard it for you? Do you think we're dogs? And you shamelessly claim to be hospitable!"
"You are an elder, you shouldn't use foul language!" Jiang Yi grinned. "We haven't forced you. You willingly chose to stay by the door; no one is forcing you. If you feel it's beneath your dignity, then you can leave!"
The crowd's lips twitched with anger. Dongfang Teng almost swore aloud. This was the most demeaning situation he had ever encountered.
"Just having stools isn't enough!" Jiang Yi said to the servants. "Go prepare some tea and other refreshments for our distinguished guests. It's so sunny, how can our honored guests stand it!" After saying this, Jiang Yi scanned the crowd. He saw everyone sweating profusely, looking like dried meat under the scorching sun! The arrogance they had displayed earlier was replaced by downcast expressions. They had intended to make an impression but ended up looking like fools!
"Jiang Yi, you're toying with us like fools! This matter is not over with you today!" Dongfang Teng stared at Jiang Yi, his face filled with fury.
Hearing this, Jiang Yi grinned.
"Are you threatening me?" Jiang Yi's smile vanished, and his gaze instantly turned sharp. The pressure emanating from him made a sense of fear well up within the crowd.
Dongfang Teng's brow furrowed slightly. "Let's not cause any more trouble and just go in quickly. If the patriarch arrives and sees us making a scene here, we'll all be in trouble!" Dongfang Teng said. Now, Dongfang Teng felt that face wasn't as important anymore. Many people began to nod in agreement.
Just then, a car drove towards them.