Free Web NovelChapter 1215: Chapter 1217
Renee was really at her wits’ end; she honestly didn’t get it—having a meal and chatting nicely in a restaurant would’ve been perfectly fine.
How did it suddenly turn into a last‑minute change of plans.
"You say change and we just change, huh? Couldn’t you have said so earlier."
Renee sniffed the medicinal powder on her body. They’d said not to dress up specially, but even if you weren’t doing anything, you still had to take a bath and put on a face mask.
The more they say ’don’t dress up too formally, just keep it simple,’ the more it’s actually about checking what your natural skin condition is like when you show up.
Renee did have good skin, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t put out. She hadn’t expected that after finishing all the prep work, those old masters would suddenly toss out a demand like this.
If she didn’t know these people were hard to mess with, Renee really would’ve lost her temper.
Gong Ruwen was also a bit angry. "And they didn’t tell us in advance."
"Do they really think we’re all just sitting around with nothing to do?" Even though the other party’s tone on the phone had been polite, the way they spoke still put Rui Wen on edge.
Weren’t they basically treating us like we’re idle nobodies, assuming we should be falling over ourselves to curry favor with them? Renee kept ranting in her head, but she couldn’t say any of it out loud.
Couldn’t she see her own big brother was already halfway to blowing a gasket? If she jumped out at this moment and said something unpleasant, her brother really might just explode.
"No matter what, since they’ve said it this way, we can’t not make preparations." Rui Wen was angry, but the necessary work still had to get done. If they really just left everything hanging, what would the guests think?
It was fine for them to swallow a bit of grievance, but they absolutely couldn’t let people think the Gong Family behaved out of line.
Renee was putting up with this purely for the Gong Family’s sake; otherwise she would’ve stormed off to Chu Ling long ago to file a little complaint.
Renee and the others hadn’t planned on tattling, but around noon, Chu Ling came rushing over in a hurry.
"Sorry, sorry." Chu Ling’s face was full of displeasure.
What was going on? Why was Chu Ling here—did Gong Ruzhi or Wan Yihui go snitching or something?
"It wasn’t Xiao Zhi and the others; it was Wang Jindong who told me." Chu Ling, still huffing, went to wash her hands, then sat down to help handle the ingredients.
Wang Jindong... The name sounded a bit familiar to Renee, but with a courtyard child like Chu Ling around, the odds of hearing names of high‑level leaders’ kids went up by several dozen times.
As long as it had nothing to do with her family, people and matters alike, Renee usually didn’t pay much attention. It wasn’t that she refused to; it was that there were simply too many things she actually had to keep track of. She didn’t even have time to finish her daily notes.
Besides, she didn’t even know what the guy looked like. Even if he stood right in front of her, she wouldn’t recognize him.
What if she happened to be talking smack about someone and that person suddenly popped up out of nowhere?
Renee only felt the name was familiar; Rui Wen, on the other hand, found it thunderously so. "Is he from that Wang Family?"
Chu Ling wasn’t surprised that Rui Wen would know which family Wang Jindong was from. "He’s Wang Haidong’s cousin. They’ve been close since they were kids."
And now another Wang Haidong popped up. Renee’s head was spinning. Why did they always talk about people she couldn’t follow?
"Got it." Rui Wen understood now. "I’d thought he looked a bit familiar at the time—so it was him. He wants to avenge his younger cousin."
"He thinks I stole his cousin’s fiancée?" Rui Wen truly didn’t get it. The Chu and Wang families had never put anything on the table openly, so why the constant hostility toward him?
If he had actually stolen Wang Jindong’s girlfriend, then however the Wang Family chose to make trouble would’ve been on him. But he hadn’t.
Now Renee understood: so it was the love rival’s cousin stepping in for the fight. But this guy was really kind of useless—his own wife got ’stolen’ and he had to send his cousin out to handle it.
"My grandpa just thinks their family’s not that great. Even if they’re not the same line as the Guangdong Wang Family, the way they do things is pretty similar in many respects."
"It’s just that Wang Haidong himself is pretty aggressive, and his dad’s doing quite well too. Among the Wang Family’s second generation, he’s considered the best."
My god, so that’s another complicated family. Of course Old Sir Chu wasn’t going to let Chu Ling marry into that kind of household.
Not to brag, but even though the Gong Family didn’t have much in the way of power, what they did have was family unity. Even with three different surnames in the same family, they managed to cooperate perfectly happily, not a bit worse than a single big clan.
"He’s partly angry on Wang Jindong’s behalf, and partly because you’ve caught the Dai Family’s eye." Even though Chu Ling was the one who’d originally introduced Rui Wen and Dai Liren.
But Dai Liren’s status in the Dai Family wasn’t all that great, and later he got so obsessed with research that he just patted his butt and ran off to the United States. That made his family take him even less seriously.
No one had expected that the Dai Family’s eldest grandson would call back several times, insisting the Dai Family mustn’t miss out on such a promising seedling.
In the past, Chu Ling would’ve taken note of this but never told Rui Wen, worried it would make him arrogant. But after a few years of being around him, she’d seen that while he could be proud, he always knew where he stood and never got carried away.
That let Chu Ling breathe easier. She’d seen plenty of people who, once they got noticed by some powerful family, did a complete personality flip and made fools of themselves in all sorts of ways.
Luckily, Rui Wen hadn’t. More importantly, to reach where he was now, his family hadn’t given him any real support at all, yet he’d still fought his way into his own patch of sky.
She couldn’t help but recall her grandpa’s early assessment: if Rui Wen had chosen to develop his career in the army, his prospects probably would’ve been even better.
Oh no. Rui Wen had always assumed his relationship with the Dai Family wasn’t anything special; for him to get the Dai Family crown prince’s appreciation, it had to mean they were satisfied with Zhao Xuran.
Rui Wen started regretting things. He really shouldn’t have treated Zhao Xuran that way, especially after all the help Xuran had given.
"All I did was chat with him a bit. But for him to value you this much, he definitely thinks highly of you." Zhao Xuran didn’t believe the guy would elevate his opinion of Rui Wen just because he’d had a pleasant conversation with him.
If that were the case, the Dai Family would’ve been eaten alive long ago.
That made sense. Rui Wen gave an awkward laugh. "I just couldn’t figure out the reason."
"If you can’t figure it out, then stop trying. Do your work properly and don’t overthink it."
"Even if the Dai Family does give you a lot of help, don’t go putting them on some sacred pedestal." Chu Ling was worried Rui Wen would go all ’a warrior dies for the one who understands him,’ and end up getting himself completely screwed.
"I’m not stupid." No matter how much the Dai Family valued him, if their interests ever clashed with his, they’d absolutely sell him out without hesitation. Rui Wen understood that much.
Even as the Chu Family’s grandson‑in‑law, if his interests conflicted with theirs, they’d strike just as ruthlessly—unless he could prove his worth, prove he had value they could make use of. Otherwise, nothing was up for discussion.
As long as her man could stay clear‑headed, that was enough. "Alright, let’s prep the ingredients. It’s Dai Liren’s younger brother coming over. His reputation outside isn’t that great, but he’s actually a decent person."
"He’s someone who just wants to do business." Thinking of the Dai brothers, Chu Ling couldn’t help but smile. It also proved how smart the two of them were.
On the surface it looked like they’d given up on advancement, but after they stepped back, the help they gave the Dai Family only grew, and the higher‑ups were watching. You think their future benefits would be small?
The funny thing was, some people still couldn’t see through it.
