Chapter 112: If Your Life Isn

Su Yanhua was bombarded with rapid rebuttals and questions by him, left speechless, their face turning red then white, wishing they could slip into a crack in the ground.

Su Yanhua never expected that this man not only didn't believe them, but also defended Jiang Jiaojiao so much, and saw through their thoughts at a glance!

At that moment, Jiang Jiaojiao returned from the restroom.

She saw Su Yanhua sitting in her seat, was startled at first, then, seeing the man's stern expression and Su Yanhua's embarrassed demeanor, immediately understood something, her eyebrows arched.

"Su Yanhua! What are you doing here?!"

Jiang Jiaojiao's voice carried unabashed anger.

When the man saw Jiang Jiaojiao, his expression instantly softened, he stood up and said gently, "Jiaojiao, you're back."

"That lady just came over and told me some… not very nice things about you and your family."

Jiang Jiaojiao exploded, pointing at Su Yanhua's nose and scolding, "Su Yanhua! Are you sick? Did I invite you? Why are you here spouting nonsense?"

"Your own life is going poorly, so you can't stand others being happy, right? Get out now! Stop disgusting people here!"

The other diners in the breakfast shop turned their gazes toward Su Yanhua, pointing and whispering.

Su Yanhua, both embarrassed and ashamed, could no longer stay, sprang up, slunk out with their head down, practically fleeing the breakfast shop without daring to look back.

Watching their disheveled back, Jiang Jiaojiao still felt her chest rise with anger.

The man gently patted her back, soothing, "Don't be angry about this, it's not worth it. Sit down, the soy milk is getting cold."

Jiang Jiaojiao sat down, still somewhat indignant: "She definitely didn't say anything good! It makes me so angry!"

The man pushed the warm soy milk to her, smiled, but his eyes held a hint of depth: "She said you're a tigress, that your brother is a playboy, and that your sister‑in‑law is unreliable."

"What?!" Jiang Jiaojiao nearly jumped up.

"Don't be hasty," the man held her hand, calmly, "I told her that the Jiang Jiaojiao I know is genuinely enthusiastic, which is a virtue."

"Jiang Ran and his spouse are down‑to‑earth and capable, very talented. I even asked her what motive she had for stirring up trouble."

He looked at Jiang Jiaojiao, his gaze gentle yet firm: "Jiaojiao, whatever kind of person you are, whatever kind of family you have, I will judge with my own eyes and heart, and will not believe any outsider's provocation."

"Moreover, it's someone whose heart is obviously scheming."

Jiang Jiaojiao, seeing his unwavering defense and trust, felt her anger instantly replaced by a huge warm current, her nose even tinged with sourness.

She lowered her head, muttering softly, "…Who asked you to judge."

Yet the slight upward curve of her mouth revealed her true feelings at that moment.

The man looked at her slightly reddened earlobes, smiled, said nothing more, and nudged the pan‑fried bun toward her again: "Eat quickly."

After this little incident, the atmosphere between the two seemed to have drawn a step closer.

That intangible barrier, after jointly facing external malice and receiving unconditional trust, quietly melted away a lot.

Meanwhile, the Su Yanhua who failed to steal a chicken and ended up losing rice fled the breakfast shop and hid at the Alley entrance.

She watched the couple inside the shop continuing their warm meal, her jealousy and resentment like poisonous flames, burning her internal organs with pain.

She won't just let it be!

On what grounds can they be so happy?

She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging deep into her palms.

Su Yanhua, in one breath, ran back to the cramped room of the Liu family, their chest heaving violently from anger and running.

Mother Liu, the mother‑in‑law, was sitting in the living room picking vegetables; seeing their like that, she habitually began to scold, "Where did you go early this morning? Took so long to buy breakfast, come back empty‑handed? You want to starve…"

"I don't feel well!"

Su Yanhua abruptly cut them off, voice sharp and laced with reckless fury, glared fiercely at Mother Liu, rushed straight back to their room, and slammed the door with a "Bang".

Mother Liu, startled by their gaze and attitude, then flared even more, pointing at the door and cursing, "How audacious! Still dare to turn your face away! Carrying a child and acting like an empress? A hen that doesn't lay eggs…"

The vulgar curses behind the door were blocked out; Su Yanhua leaned against the door panel, slid onto the floor, tears uncontrollably streaming.

Not because of Mother Liu's insults, but because of the humiliation they suffered earlier at the breakfast shop.

They bit their lip hard, refusing to let themselves cry out, with a single thought screaming wildly in their mind: They must not let them have it easy! Absolutely not!

Meanwhile, in the breakfast shop, the atmosphere had already returned to warmth.

Yan Shen looked at Jiang Jiaojiao across from him, still angry but clearly in a better mood thanks to his recent defense, a subtle smile in his eyes.

He picked up the communal chopsticks and served her a translucent shrimp dumpling.

"Don't think about it; letting that kind of person affect your enjoyment of food isn't worth it."

His voice returned to its previous gentleness, "Try this, their shrimp dumplings are quite good."

Jiang Jiaojiao picked up the shrimp dumpling, bit it, the fresh sweet juice burst in her mouth, and her mood indeed improved a lot.

She looked up at Yan Shen, hesitated, then asked, "You… you really don't mind at all what she said?"

"My temper isn't great, and my brother was indeed quite reckless before…"

Yan Shen set down his chopsticks, looked at her, his gaze sincere and serious: "Jiaojiao, people do grow."

"Your brother now has a successful career and a happy family, which speaks for his present. As for you…"

He paused, the corner of his mouth slightly lifted: "I think genuine temperament is far cuter than pretentiousness."

"Besides, I trust what I see and feel, not what others say."

This statement was candid and sincere, Jiang Jiaojiao's cheeks quietly flushed with a hint of red, and the unease in her heart caused by her family's background being exposed instantly dissipated by more than half.

She lowered her head, sipping soy milk in small sips, yet the corner of her mouth couldn't help but curve.

"By the way."

Yan Shen seemed to suddenly recall something, took a neatly packaged rectangular box from his briefcase and placed it before Jiang Jiaojiao.

"Last time I heard you mention you like symphonies; coincidentally a friend gave me two tickets for next Saturday's concert hall, it's the Berlin Philharmonic's tour. I wonder if you'd be interested in going together?"

Jiang Jiaojiao's eyes lit up instantly!

Berlin Philharmonic!

That's a world‑class orchestra!

She had only heard it before on the radio and on the few records!

She forced herself to hold back the impulse to agree at once, pretended to be coy, glanced at the ticket, then nodded: "Hmm… I should be free that day."

Gu Yanshen watched her, clearly excited yet still trying to act calm, and his smile deepened: "Alright then, I'll pick you up Saturday night."