Volume 1 Chapter 42 Grand Birthday (2)

  After Fang Jianxin moved abroad, he kept in close contact with his only sister Fang Jianlan. At this time, he was chatting enthusiastically with his brother-in-law Berg, and Feng Yannan, who had always been high-minded, stood on the side nodding and smiling, but Fang Jianlin and the others seemed like outsiders.

  Berg is an American banker, nearing forty yet still handsome and even more exuding a mature man's steady temperament, attracting the female guests to frequently turn their heads, but Berg however remains oblivious, his eyes occasionally glancing at Fang Jianlan and the pair of children with unmistakable doting.

  Standing beside her parents, Fang Ziqian couldn't help but feel a pang of envy towards her aunt's good fortune. A lifelong partnership between two people was every girl's dream and desire, but how many girls were as lucky as they were? Her aunt had also been married off to Bo Ge through an arranged marriage for business purposes, yet she still managed to reap a perfect romance.

  She thought of the unjust humiliation she suffered a few years ago, and her eyes were filled with tears again. Since then, although she still yearned for a perfect love affair, she unconsciously developed a fearful and disgusted heart towards men, and as a person, she became more melancholic and introverted, and her character also developed in the direction of Lin Daiyu's self-pity and self-reproach.

  Little did she know that her delicate and weak appearance, like Lin Daiyu's, evoked even more frenzy among the young masters present. Compared to the beautiful and proud Fang Ziyang, Fang Zijun was obviously better at arousing their protective instincts as men. And when they recalled how she had been humiliated by the three young masters of the Yan family in the past, each of them felt a surge of righteous indignation.

  Compared to these two outstanding sisters, Fang Zixuan became inconspicuous, despite Zhang Yun's efforts to dress her up and show her off around the circle, proclaiming her academic excellence. But what do these aristocratic families really care about? Even if she were a high school champion, it would only sound good on paper; let alone being just an ordinary middle school champion with low gold content. With such a serious face, looking somewhat stiff and rigid, no one wanted to get close to her, and they all just gave some faint praise on the surface.

  Although it was just a courtesy, Fang Jianlin and Zhang Yun were quite satisfied. Fang Jianlin, although favored by Old Lady Fang, also understood that he wasn't well-received in the circle, especially among those cunning nobles who looked at him with undisguised mockery, their words laced with endless sarcasm, while his good brothers stood by, smiling and watching with folded arms, occasionally adding fuel to the fire. So, although he was a fun-loving person, he loathed this kind of grand banquet, whereas Zhang Yun loved such gatherings, and although the praise was insincere, for Zhang Yun, who had suffered many slights over the years, it was already a triumph.

  Fang Zixuan stood in the corner, with a loneliness that was out of place in the grand hall filled with fragrance and shadows. At least in other people's eyes, this Fang Wu Miss wasn't someone easy to get along with. The kind of aura that warned strangers to keep their distance naturally carved out a quiet space for her.

  She herself didn't feel lonely, still hadn't figured out the meaning of this dinner party, just thought it was boring and a waste of time, so she picked up a book to read, anyway no one would notice her in this lively banquet hall.

  "Wow, I'm so tired!" A girl sat down beside her and let out a long sigh. Despite the commotion she made, Fang Zixuan didn't even lift an eyebrow.

  "What are you reading?" The girl obviously wasn't afraid of awkwardness and took the initiative to talk to her.

  "Exercise book." Confirming she was talking to herself, Fang Zixuan slowly raised her head and looked straight at her.

  The girl looked about twenty years old, with a sweet and lovely face, wearing a white puffy skirt, like an innocent little princess in a fairy tale.

  "Wow, you're so impressive," said the lively girl. "I'm really bad at studying, I just barely passed every subject, my dad hired several tutors for me, but none of them worked out, in the end I could only attend a pretty bad university, I guess I'm just stupid."

  The girl touched her hair shyly, with no attempt to conceal the admiration in her eyes.

  "If you choose liberal arts, IQ is not a big concern, as long as you really work hard, it's basically impossible to get too bad grades." Fang Zixuan said from her own perspective, seemingly fair and square, but her words made the girl blush.

  Shouldn't you be comforting her with words like "You're not stupid at all"? The girl smiled awkwardly, and in her heart, she added a few more points of fear towards the future little daughter-in-law of this family. However, the present Fang Zixuan who was stiff and couldn't speak was still better than Fang Ziyin who ridiculed her as soon as they met and Fang Zicai who was too proud to even glance at her.

  "Hello, I'm Su Ying Shui." The girl smiled and stretched out her hand.

  "Hello, Fang Zixuan." She also politely extended her hand and shook hands back.

  "Ah! You're Fang Zixuan!" Su Ying Shui feigned surprise, "You're that little champion, I know you! So amazing! First in the whole city!"

  Fang Zixuan remained silent. She had heard such words countless times during this period, but she didn't think that such a private matter was worth mentioning.

  Su Ying didn't expect her to be unwilling to chat, and the conversation fell into an awkward silence again. "Uh, well, I'm a few years older than you, why don't you call me Sister Ying? And I'll call you Little Xuan."

  "Just call me Fang Zi Xuan." Fang Zi Xuan had no intention of being referred to as a sister by this inexplicably appearing girl.

  "You're being too arrogant, Zi Xuan!" Su Ying Shui pouted and said.

  "My parents also call me Zi Xuan." Fang Zi Xuan's eyebrows didn't move at all.

  I'm so fed up! Why are all the girls in the Fang family so difficult to get along with? Su Ying was almost in tears, if she didn't like Brother Zi Cheng so much, she wouldn't have married into the Fang family.

  "Zi Xuan, I used to be in Class 1 too, which makes you my junior. " Su Ying Shui forced a smile on his face, but it was already somewhat strained, and even his tone of voice had a hint of panic.

  She was just about to get up and leave, but happened to catch Fang Ziyin's mocking gaze. Watching her walk step by step towards here, this troublesome young lady had never cared about giving others face, but she was Fang Zichen's younger sister. Even if she made things difficult for her in such a situation, she could only endure it. Su Ying Shui, who had suffered several losses throughout the evening, feared Fang Ziyin the most.

  So she had to sit here pretending to be having a great conversation with Fang Zixuan, waiting for the opportunity to hide behind Fang Zixuan and let the extremely jealous Fang Ziyang and Fang Zixuan fight each other.

  "Oh, Ziying is also your junior, since she's here, I won't disturb you two." Fang Zixuan stood up, leaving Su Yingwu sitting in stunned silence.