Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Chen Wan Stakes Her Claim Ruan Chutang slept until she naturally woke up, and when she opened her eyes, it was already ten o'clock in the morning. "Ah—" She stretched lazily. "There's nothing quite like not having to go to work." Ruan Chutang got out of bed, washed up, and went downstairs to eat breakfast. Aunt Zhang, the housekeeper, had made breakfast for two. Ruan Chutang glanced at the empty seat across from her but said nothing. Seeing Ruan Chutang come down, Aunt Zhang asked with confusion, "Miss Ruan, is the young master not coming down for breakfast today?" Ruan Chutang took a sip of the preserved egg and lean pork congee and replied, "He didn't come home last night, so he probably won't be eating." "Oh." Aunt Zhang realized she had been too nosy and didn't ask further, turning back into the kitchen. After finishing breakfast, Ruan Chutang received a message from Jiang Shixu. [Tangtang, do you want a custom-made engagement dress or a brand's latest seasonal collection?] Would there even be enough time for a custom-made one? It seemed she still didn't know when the engagement would be. She asked: [What date is the engagement?] Jiang Shixu: [Not confirmed yet. How about we decide once you're done with things over there and back in Jiangcheng?] Ruan Chutang: [Okay, I'll be done here in nine more days.] Jiang Shixu: [Alright.] Ruan Chutang was worried a custom-made dress wouldn't be ready in time, so she replied: [Let's go with the brand's latest seasonal collection. I'll go pick one out.] Jiang Shixu: [Okay, let me know once you've chosen.] Ruan Chutang was about to exit WeChat when she suddenly noticed a red dot on Gu Zechuan's chat window. She tapped in and took a look—it was a video. In a dimly lit private booth, a drunken Gu Zechuan leaned against Chen Wan, murmuring, "Wanwan, you're finally back. I... I knew you'd come back... I've waited five years for you..." The background noise was filled with raucous cheering, and Ruan Chutang could vaguely make out several voices—Gu Zechuan's brothers and Su Qiuyi. All people she knew. In the video, Chen Wan held Gu Zechuan and smiled softly, saying, "Zechuan, you're drunk." Gu Zechuan nuzzled against Chen Wan, his words coming out in fragments, "I... I'm not drunk... I'm perfectly sober... You're Chen Wan, the person I love most—am I right? See? I'm sober..." A voice in the background asked, "Zechuan, if Chen Wan is the person you love most, then what about Ruan Chutang?" Gu Zechuan: "Who's Ruan Chutang? I... I only love Wanwan..." "Sister-in-law, Brother Zechuan is absolutely devoted to you," Su Qiuyi's voice chimed in. "Look how he clings to you when he's drunk—his heart and eyes are only on you." Hearing this, a flicker of mockery passed through Ruan Chutang's eyes. The title "sister-in-law"—in the three years she'd been by Gu Zechuan's side, she'd never once heard it. That wasn't surprising. That group of people had never truly regarded her as Gu Zechuan's girlfriend. "Ruan Chutang is so thick-skinned. Chen Wan is back, and she's still hanging around refusing to leave. She has no sense of propriety at all," said Su Qiuyi's best friend—the same girl who had claimed the necklace Ruan Chutang gave was fake that day. This girl had never spared Ruan Chutang a kind look. Su Qiuyi's voice followed immediately: "A girl like her, an ordinary girl, wouldn't easily let go of a rich second-generation heir like Brother Zechuan once she got her hands on him." Ruan Chutang lowered her eyes, a smile devoid of warmth curving at her lips. Su Qiuyi would never say such things to her face. Chutang could now be certain that the disdain she'd seen in Su Qiuyi's eyes on her birthday hadn't been her imagination. Su Qiuyi acted close to her on the surface, friendly and warm, but in reality, she was no different from that crowd—she looked down on Ruan Chutang from the bottom of her heart. "Sister Chen Wan, don't worry, we're all on your side." "That's right, that's right. None of us like that Ruan Chutang. She should take a look at herself—what status does she have, trying to squeeze into our circle?" "I think that Ruan Chutang has read too many 'CEO falls in love with me' romance novels. Her head is full of marrying into a wealthy family. It's hilarious—she probably doesn't even know that in our eyes, she's just a clown." "Exactly. She's not even from the same class as us. Brother Zechuan was just playing around with her. Now that Sister Chen Wan is back, Ruan Chutang should pack her bags and get lost." Ruan Chutang's heart remained as still as water. She knew that Chen Wan had sent this video partly to stake her claim and partly to humiliate her thoroughly, to force her to face reality and leave Gu Zechuan sooner rather than later. And indeed, that was exactly what Chen Wan had in mind. After sending the video, she imagined Ruan Chutang seeing it, crying in heartbreak, then breaking up with Gu Zechuan and slinking away with her things back to her hometown. What she could never have imagined was that the words those people said in the video held no power over Ruan Chutang whatsoever. In the video, Gu Zechuan was still clinging to Chen Wan, whispering sweet nothings. Ruan Chutang found it disgusting and exited without watching further. Her fingers danced across her phone screen as she typed out a message. [You're right, I'm not from the same class as you all.] Chen Wan saw the message and curled her lips into a smile, quickly replying through Gu Zechuan's WeChat. [At least you have some self-awareness.] Ruan Chutang saw the message and let out a light scoff. The Gu Corporation's little business wasn't even worth a fraction of one of her family's subsidiary companies. The profits Gu Group made each year weren't even worth the pocket change Ruan Shaodong casually threw into a single investment. The Ruan family had been in business for four generations, and by her generation, they were already one of the top ten wealthy clans in the country. She and Gu Zechuan, who was just an ordinary rich second-generation heir, truly weren't in the same social class. Those people could never have dreamed that Ruan Chutang's "Ruan" was the same "Ruan" as Ruan Shaodong's "Ruan." This little episode didn't affect Ruan Chutang's mood in the slightest. It was a rare day off, and she hadn't gone anywhere today. She'd stayed in bed scrolling through the official websites of various major brands all day, picking out dresses for her engagement ceremony. After going back and forth, Ruan Chutang finally settled on three gowns, and suddenly found herself suffering from a bout of choice paralysis. The first gown was in a new Chinese-style cheongsam design, with a champagne base color, light pink embroidered flowers accented with tiny diamonds, and three decorative chains of small pearls running diagonally from the collar across the upper arms and continuing down to the back. Overall, the gown looked dazzling and radiant, with a sweet style that suited a young woman perfectly. The second was a moonlight-white strapless solid-color gown, with a circle of rose designs at the chest, cinched at the waist and hips, and a mermaid-style skirt that trailed along the floor. Its style was mature and elegant. The third was a cream-colored one-shoulder princess tulle gown, with a thin layer of white gauze on the outermost layer and a scattering of water-red rose petals adorning the skirt. Its style was romantic and graceful. She posted pictures of the three gowns on her Moments with the caption, "Having trouble choosing! Everyone help me pick which one looks the best?" Within just over ten minutes of posting, she'd already received a flood of likes and comments. Jiang Shixu: 【They're all beautiful. If you like them, just buy them all and rotate through them.】 Her best friend since childhood, Zhou Xueluo, also liked and commented. Xueluo: 【Wow, Tangtang has such great taste! All three suit you perfectly. Have your Shixu-gege buy them all for you—it's not like you're short on cash anyway.】 Her other best friend, Chen Yuanyuan, commented: 【Buy buy buy! Princess Tangtang looks good in everything!】 Xiao Xiao: 【Wow wow wow, something's going on! Sis, why are you picking out gowns? Are you getting married?】 Ruan Chutang scrolled through the comments, and amid the likes and well-wishes from family and friends, a few comments stood out as particularly jarring. Su Qiuyi: 【……】 Jiang Yuzhou: 【Chutang, are you posting this because...?】 Lin Chenan: 【Wait, sis, you actually dare to think that big? Hahaha, I'm dying laughing.】 Coworker A: 【These are all new-season pieces from major brands. Before you post them to show off, maybe check the prices first... Forget buying them, you couldn't even afford to rent them.】 Coworker B: 【So rich. Your life is my dream.】 Gu Zechuan: 【?】 Seeing this, Ruan Chutang raised an eyebrow. So Gu Zechuan had sobered up, huh. Just as she was thinking that, she received a message from Gu Zechuan. 【Delete that post from your Moments!】 Ruan Chutang: 【No.】 Gu Zechuan: 【You're openly forcing a marriage proposal? Did you not take in a single word I said to you before?】 Ruan Chutang: 【Oh.】 Gu Zechuan: 【Ruan Chutang, know when to stop.】 Ruan Chutang didn't bother replying.