Chapter Twenty-Four: They Have Arrived!

When she arrived at the ancestral home of the Xu family, everyone else was already there.

Xu Zhongshan and Xu Chengyang both let out cold snorts when they saw Xu Qingran, clearly still upset about the partnership with Hongyu Entertainment.

“Xu Qingran, today is Grandmother’s birthday. On such an important day, shouldn’t you at least dress with some sense of occasion? How could you show up to her birthday in these rags?” At that moment, a mocking voice rang out from nearby.

A woman approached Xu Qingran, dressed in a bright red gown, resplendent and glamorous. She was Qiao Hui, the daughter of Aunt Xu Qian.

She tugged disdainfully at Xu Qingran’s top. “This kind of cheap market stuff, the whole outfit must cost less than two thousand. Do you really think it’s appropriate to wear this today? It’s not just our family here—some of our business partners will be attending as well.”

“If they see a Xu family daughter, the CEO of Allure Cosmetics, dressed like this, who knows what they’ll think of our family?”

“You’re not just embarrassing yourself—you’re embarrassing the entire Xu family.” Qiao Hui’s tone was didactic.

Xu Qingran’s face paled, and she said nothing.

Just then, a few other women, dressed even more flamboyantly, strolled over, laughing. “Huihui, you can’t really blame Qingran for this. It’s not her fault her father died and she ended up with a useless husband, is it?”

“With her meager salary, she has to support her family and fund that deadbeat Xiao Chen’s spending. How could her life be as comfortable as ours?”

“If we see a dress or a piece of jewelry we like, we just buy it.” As they spoke, they all cast Xu Qingran a contemptuous glance.

Xu Qingran bit her lip, forcing back her humiliation.

Sun Ling and Xu Qianran, along with the others, seethed with anger, but none dared lash out at Qiao Hui and her crowd. Instead, they shot Xiao Chen a venomous glare.

If it were Jiang Yichen, would he have let them look down on her like this?

Qiao Hui, seeing Xu Qingran’s discomfort, felt a little better about the humiliation she’d suffered at Hongyu Entertainment.

But the others clearly had no intention of letting Xu Qingran off so easily.

One of them, Xu Dongdong—the second uncle’s daughter—admired Qiao Hui’s gown with envy. “Huihui, your dress is so beautiful. It must have cost a fortune?”

Qiao Hui glanced at Xu Qingran, feigning modesty. “It’s nothing, only one hundred and eighty thousand. After all, you only ever wear a gown once, never a second time, so I don’t bother with anything too expensive.”

Everyone agreed in chorus, making Xu Qingran’s face turn even paler.

Then someone else pointed at the necklace around Qiao Hui’s neck, her voice tinged with envy. “Huihui, that necklace is gorgeous—isn’t it a Cartier limited edition?”

“I’ve had my eye on it for ages, but I just couldn’t bring myself to buy it. I can’t believe you actually got it.”

The others all looked at Qiao Hui with undisguised envy.

Qiao Hui glanced at Xu Qingran’s bare neck and smiled even more radiantly. “Yes, it’s the latest Cartier limited edition. Only two thousand in the world, and it cost six hundred and eighty thousand.”

“But I didn’t buy it myself—it was a gift from my boyfriend,” she said, turning to Xu Qingran with a show of embarrassment. “Oh, Xu Qingran, I didn’t even notice you weren’t wearing any jewelry. I really didn’t mean to show off in front of you.”

“I forgot—you married a useless man. There’s no one who could buy you such an expensive necklace.”

A burst of laughter erupted all around.

Sun Ling and the others were nearly beside themselves with indignation.

Xu Qingran bit her lip so hard it bled.

She had thought that, after three years of this, she would be numb. But having her wounds exposed so publicly—she realized it still hurt.

Just then, a voice called out from the distance, “Who says there’s no one to buy a necklace for Qingran?”

The voice was warm and mellow—it was Jiang Yichen.

“Yichen!”

“Brother Yichen!”

At the sight of him, Sun Ling and Xu Qianran lit up with delight.

Xu Qianran hurried over, taking his arm and leading him forward.

“And who are you?” Seeing someone dare to speak up for Xu Qingran, Qiao Hui and her friends snorted coldly, turning to look him over.

Before Jiang Yichen could speak, Sun Ling announced proudly, “This is Jiang Yichen, Qingran’s suitor. He’s worth over a hundred million. Yesterday he took us to dinner at the Skysea Restaurant and spent three million on a single meal—how about that?”

Earlier, when Qiao Hui had been mocking Xu Qingran to her face, Sun Ling and the others had felt humiliated. Now that someone had finally arrived to stand up for them, she made sure to boast.

“Qingran’s suitor?” Qiao Hui and the others were taken aback—a Jiang Yichen appearing out of nowhere, and Sun Ling had just said he was worth over a hundred million.

Young, rich, and successful—how could he possibly fall for someone like Xu Qingran?

A ripple of envy, jealousy, and resentment spread among the onlookers.

At the mention of the expensive dinner, Jiang Yichen’s mouth twitched; the pain of spending that much money still stung.

But he’d already spent three million—if he didn’t work harder to win over Xu Qingran, it would be a total loss.

Jiang Yichen produced a box, and when he opened it, inside was a dazzling necklace—the very same as Qiao Hui’s.

“Qingran, may I put it on for you?” Jiang Yichen asked tenderly.

Xu Qingran was moved. She hadn’t expected Jiang Yichen to appear here, or to give her such an extravagant gift.

But to her, the necklace itself wasn’t the most important thing. What mattered was that Jiang Yichen had shown up when she needed someone to stand by her.

“Qingran, what are you waiting for? Say yes!” Sun Ling urged.

Xu Qianran echoed, “Sister, look how good Yichen is to you. If you refuse, he’ll be heartbroken.”

Xu Qianran was moved, but as a married woman, she hesitated. She glanced at Xiao Chen beside her, only to find him utterly indifferent, which filled her with sadness and disappointment.

At her sister’s most vulnerable moment, it was an outsider, Jiang Yichen, who stepped up to protect her. Yet her own husband, after witnessing Qiao Hui’s ridicule, remained completely unmoved?

How laughable.

A flash of determination crossed Xu Qianran’s eyes. Gritting her teeth, she was about to agree.

But just then, a commotion arose in the distance. Eight cars, flanking a central vehicle, were driving over.

From the eight cars, dozens of well-trained bodyguards emerged, respectfully escorting a distinguished lady from the central car.

She swept her gaze around and called out, “Excuse me, is Ms. Xu Qingran here?”

At the sight, a faint smile played at the corners of Xiao Chen’s mouth. At last, she had arrived.