Chapter 22: Can't Laugh Anymore

The two were eating when Bao Sihan saw the invitation Gu Wenyan handed over and those clear, expectant eyes, and the corner of his mouth lifted uncontrollably: "Why wouldn't I go?"

Taking one of the invitations, Bao Sihan's fingertip accidentally brushed Gu Wenyan's hand; the fleeting touch, the searing heat of skin, made Gu Wenyan instinctively pull her hand back, feeling as if an electric current had passed through her, something wild rushing through her blood.

Gu Wenyan's cheeks flushed faintly, her eyes lowered as she said softly: "Then let's go together on the weekend."

She looked a little like a startled fawn at that moment—pitiable, yet stirring certain more complicated thoughts in one's heart…

A desire to bully her thoroughly.

Bao Sihan's gaze darkened: "I'll pick you up on the weekend."

"Mm, got it."

"I heard Gu Yeting is back?" Bao Sihan asked.

"Yes, he came back and apologized to me."

Gu Wenyan told him the whole story, and the corner of Bao Sihan's mouth curved into a smile: "Everyone says the Gu Family thinks the Third Young Master has always been unruly—when he does nothing wrong, fine, but when he does wrong he's still domineering and brazen; very few people can make him apologize."

Bao Sihan's fingers tapped lightly on the table: "Yan Yan, you make me look at you in a new light."

Gu Wenyan raised her eyes to look at him: "Why?"

"I used to always think your personality was too soft, too easy to bully, but now… I can rest a little easier."

"Is that so?"

Gu Wenyan bit her lip: "So in your eyes before, I was just someone who could be bullied by anyone?"

"You were before, but not anymore."

Bao Sihan murmured softly: "It seems like since the day of the wedding, you've become a little different."

His pitch-black eyes seemed able to pierce through everything and land on her face, making Gu Wenyan's heart pound uncontrollably.

His observation was terrifyingly sharp?!

Compared to before, Gu Wenyan had indeed undergone a tremendous change, and clearly, she had not had much positive contact with Bao Sihan before, yet Bao Sihan could still judge, from their limited interactions, what kind of difference had come over her.

Gu Wenyan tried to calm her heartbeat, and said casually: "Maybe it's because that day made me realize how absurdly wrong my previous thinking was. Besides… if I were still the way I was before…"

Her slender fingers propped up her chin, and she laughed softly: "Wouldn't I still just hope to get farther and farther away from you? Would you want to see that version of me?"

Bao Sihan's gaze darkened, his lips pressed together, his expression turning cold and rather frightening.

But such emotion vanished in an instant, and he said in a deep voice, emphasizing: "You won't. You promised, so I believe you."

Gu Wenyan could only lower her head again, pretending to eat seriously.

Only this way could she conceal her surging heartbeat and faintly flushed cheeks.

But Gu Wenyan overlooked that the tips of her ears had also taken on a peach-blossom pink, betraying all her thoughts.

A certain someone's dark gaze lingered on the tip of Gu Wenyan's ear, a half-smile playing on his lips, like a beast that had long since fixed its sights on its prey, at ease and unhurried.

Before the weekend, Gu Wenyan ran into Gu Yeting at the Gu Family home, and Gu Yeting treated her as if she were invisible.

Either putting on that languid air and saying a few cutting remarks.

Gu Wenyan couldn't be bothered with him either; every time she looked straight ahead, leaving Gu Yeting with nowhere to vent his anger, making him increasingly irritable.

On the day of the auction, Gu Mianmian was very interested, and knowing the auction was her third brother's, she asked to go to the venue with him.

These past few days there had been plenty of discussion outside about the Gu Family and the Bo Family, but without seeing the parties involved, no one could say for sure.

Besides, after being slapped that day, Gu Mianmian found it embarrassing and could only keep as low a profile as possible, waiting for everyone's memory to fade before reappearing.

Today's auction was a perfect opportunity; she was following the Gu Family's Third Young Master, and the Second Young Master would also personally attend the venue to bid.

Everyone would see how these two young masters of the Gu Family doted on her and cherished her!

As for Gu Wenyan, she wasn't even within their scope of concern…

So what if she was the real Gu Family Daughter? She could still only be trampled underfoot by her…

Gu Wenyan had left early that morning, so Gu Mianmian didn't see her. Gu Mianmian guessed she would definitely be going today, so she picked up a pale-yellow princess dress she had reserved long ago from the brand and put it on.

Gu Mianmian also wore a crown, dressing herself up extraordinarily grandly; paired with her relatively well-behaved face, she looked quite elegant.

At least outsiders would find it hard to tell the difference between her and the Gu Family's real daughter.

That was what Gu Mianmian thought; as for what the reality actually was…

Gu Yefeng wore a white suit, and paired with his aloof temperament, that artist's melancholic coolness was especially captivating.

Gu Yeting, on the other hand, wore a black suit, but with a patterned shirt underneath, no tie, the collar casually unbuttoned a few buttons, giving him an overall roguish and heartlessly charming air.

Gu Mianmian walked between them, one arm linked with each brother; upon entering the venue, she basked in the gaze of thousands, chin held high, utterly triumphant.

Gu Mianmian was even looking around everywhere for Gu Wenyan's figure, desperate for Gu Wenyan to appear before her.

Come out! Gu Mianmian cheered in her heart, Gu Wenyan, once you appear, I'll finally get to see your defeated, pitiful look!

Only I am the Gu Family's daughter, and you—so what if you're the biological one? You're still not worth a single finger of mine!

"Miss Gu looks beautiful today!"

"Yes, like a princess—truly worthy of being the Gu Family's daughter!"

"And the two Gu Family young masters are simply breathtaking; the Gu Family's genes are really too good!"

"I'm almost envious of Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu!"

Because today's Ink Wash Landscape Painting was extremely precious, all the prominent figures in the city had come. Amid these flattering voices, Gu Mianmian's vanity swelled to the extreme, and she nearly floated into the air.

Just then, someone said: "The other Gu Family daughter is here?!"

Gu Mianmian whipped her head around and saw the woman appearing at the main entrance.

Gu Wenyan wore a simple black floor-length gown, the cinched-waist cut exceptionally clean and crisp, her long hair all pinned up and tied with a black satin ribbon.

When Gu Wenyan appeared before everyone, her expression was gentle and serene; that naturally beautiful face had features that were unforgettable—delicate brows, thin lips, and a pair of slightly upturned eyes with a classical charm.

Beyond her face, Gu Wenyan's figure was outrageously good, her shoulder and neck lines especially outstanding; standing there without doing anything, she already possessed the noble bearing of a true lady from a prominent family.

A version of her like this… was the true meaning of being born into a distinguished house!

Gu Mianmian looked at Gu Wenyan like this, and suddenly couldn't laugh anymore.