Ji Fei's surprised internal reaction was so strong that it made the Qin family members shudder.
The Luo couple finally noticed something unusual about the Qin family's frequent strange reactions and asked, "Is there something wrong?"
The Qin family members could no longer resist asking about the gossip.
"We just saw a girl who seemed very close to your son Luo Zhou. Is she his girlfriend?" Mrs. Qin inquired with a smile.
"Oh, that's our eldest daughter-in-law's cousin. She quite likes Zhou, and we thought it would be nice if we could strengthen our family ties, so we're just letting the kids interact freely," Mrs. Luo explained.
While they were strict with their eldest son, they were more lenient with their second son, as long as he didn't bring home anyone questionable.
However, as soon as she finished speaking, she noticed the Qin family members' expressions had completely changed.
Mrs. Luo's heart skipped a beat as a bold guess crossed her mind, and she couldn't help but glance at the Qin family's youngest daughter, Qin Rong.
Seeing Qin Rong's shocked expression, she quickly added, "But our Zhou hasn't shown any interest yet. By the way, does Rong have a boyfriend?"
This shocked the Qin family members even more.
They were just there to observe the drama, not to have garbage thrown their way!
Qin Rong's face turned green when she realized what was happening.
Mrs. Qin hurriedly said, "Our Rong is still young and plans to study abroad. Haha. We had heard that your Zhou had a girlfriend for quite a while, and we thought it might be her. Now that she's here, we thought perhaps wedding bells were in the air and wanted to ask when the marriage would be."
Mrs. Luo's face turned red with embarrassment. She hadn't meant to push for a connection with the Qin family, and since that wasn't their intention, she quickly changed the subject to avoid making her guests uncomfortable.
"Oh, you've heard about that? Actually, we're not very clear about it either. Zhou said he would bring her home to meet us, but she didn't come today. Judging by Zhou's behavior, they must have broken up. He's not as stable as your Qin Xian in that regard," Mrs. Luo explained with a smile.
Meanwhile, Ji Fei had learned all the information and was rendered speechless.
More and more people at the gathering were becoming aware of Xuan Yi's past relationship with Luo Zhou.
So when Qi Li revealed the girl's identity, everyone was surprised, though not as much as Ji Fei and Qin Xian, who knew more about Xuan Yi's role in all this.
[Xuan Yi... really needs to see a psychiatrist. What is she doing? She's trying to set up her cousin with Luo Zhou? Ah, I get it - it's because she knows Luo Zhou hates girls like her cousin. If they get married, they won't be happy together, and this way she can keep controlling Luo Zhou's love without worrying about other women stealing his heart.]
Qin Xian was bewildered by Xuan Yi's thoughts. He just wanted to ask what grudge she had against her own cousin.
"You and Xuan Yi are both okay with this?" Luo Fei found it abnormal. "What about your girlfriend?"
"Don't talk nonsense. That girl has a one-sided crush on me, it has nothing to do with me. My family won't force me into an arranged marriage, so stop bothering me about it." Luo Zhou stopped entertaining the guests, slammed his phone on the table, gave it a harsh look, then grabbed his drink and started drinking heavily.
"I wanted to mention earlier that your mood seems unusually bad today," Jing Yan commented.
"Could it be related to why your girlfriend didn't come today?" Yu Yue asked gossip-hungry, having heard about Luo Zhou's plans to introduce his girlfriend to his family.
"Heh." Luo Zhou sneered.
That single sound suggested others had wronged him terribly, making Ji Fei want to smack him on the head.
Qi Li, who got along best with Luo Zhou and knew the most gossip, teased, "He's waiting for that woman to come confess and apologize to him because he discovered she knew his identity all along and was just putting on an act. Even after all this, you still won't break up with her? You're done for, Luo Zhou."
"What?! Really? You were both acting?" Bai Xiaoxi exclaimed in surprise.
Cen Ting looked at Luo Zhou wordlessly, refusing to comment.
Han Ziyu, who had been secretly glancing at Ji Fei, couldn't help but think sarcastically that everyone was acting – only her idol's relationship was real!
"Maybe she's waiting for you to be honest?" Luo Fei couldn't help suggesting.
Luo Zhou sneered, "She asked me for money."
Everyone at the table's expression changed.
"Could there be a misunderstanding?" Although Jing Yan didn't want to comment on this relationship, something felt off.
"She made up lies to get 500,000 yuan from me. If she didn't know my identity, how would she ask for money from someone who was supposedly penniless? She must have found out recently and gotten greedy, now trying different ways to get money from me. And I still..." Luo Zhou put down his glass angrily, his eyes reddening.
Just then, they heard a contemptuous "Heh."
The sound was distinctly unfriendly, and Luo Zhou looked up sharply – it was Ji Fei again.
"What are you laughing at?" Luo Zhou could tell Ji Fei wasn't mocking anything else but him specifically.
"Fun fact: people sometimes laugh involuntarily when they're extremely exasperated," Ji Fei said with a face that showed she couldn't care less if she offended anyone. "That's what just happened to me."
The whole table started watching the show – how did these two end up at odds again?
"Are you saying you find me exasperating? She's the one who deceived me for money..."
"Aren't you also deceiving her for money? How come you're acting like the victim?" Ji Fei shot back immediately.
Luo Zhou choked for a moment before quickly responding, "I did it for the sake of having a more pure love between us, unlike her..."
"Deception is deception regardless of the reason. You're really good at putting filters on yourself. Heh, let me ask you something – you've been dating for two years, how much money has she scammed from you, and how much have you scammed from her?" Ji Fei asked with a smile.
Luo Zhou choked again, "She... she hasn't started yet..."
Seeing his refusal to reflect on his actions, Ji Fei was thoroughly exasperated. "I only know that if you've wronged her, if she really needs money right now and you're refusing to help despite having the means..."
Ji Fei's cool gaze swept over him, suddenly making Luo Zhou break out in a cold sweat and feel anxious.
"Then you're totally screwed." Ji Fei's tone was full of schadenfreude, as she really wanted to see little Tang dump him and see what face he would make then.
Luo Zhou's face darkened, and he immediately said, "No, impossible. She just found out about my identity and started becoming materialistic..."
"What's wrong with being materialistic?" Ji Fei suddenly asked.
"What did you say?" Luo Zhou asked incredulously.
Others also looked at Ji Fei in surprise, as this wasn't exactly a complimentary term.
"It would be better if she were materialistic – it would prove she's smart and ambitious. Otherwise, I really don't understand what your girlfriend likes about you. Isn't your biggest advantage being born into a wealthy family and having money? If she doesn't love your biggest advantage, does she love your bad personality, your lack of gentleness, your mooching, your deceptiveness? Your girlfriend must be quite masochistic."
This speech made everyone at the table laugh.
Only Luo Zhou wasn't laughing, staring at Ji Fei in shock.
Ji Fei continued with a sincere expression, "Oh, I might be biased. Maybe you have other admirable qualities beyond your wealth. Why don't you tell us what they are?"
Everyone at the table was about to die laughing.
Come to think of it, he must have some good qualities, but when it came to his most obvious advantage... for Luo Zhou, who hadn't achieved any particularly impressive career accomplishments, it really was just 'being rich.'
So if someone fell in love with him for his most prominent quality, it seemed somewhat reasonable.
Probably suffering from a psychological and moral shock, Luo Zhou remained speechless.
"Can't think of any? Let's look at it from another angle – if she's not materialistic, you're in trouble. After all, while your wealth might increase, your looks, age, physical strength, and energy will all decline. How do you plan to keep her love?"
"You... what kind of twisted logic is this? According to you, being materialistic is actually a good thing?" Luo Zhou couldn't possibly accept this strange reasoning, especially since his deception with little Tang began because of a failed relationship with someone who was materialistic.
As Ji Fei was about to retort, she heard Qin Xian seriously say, "Your brother wouldn't think Xuan Yi chose to marry him because she was materialistic, because he could afford it."
Suddenly, a single sentence silenced the entire table.
Everyone pondered the words for a moment, and they could see Luo Zhou's face turning pale.
It was absolutely devastating, cutting straight to the heart.
Indeed, when men want to show off their success to others, in most cases, how much money they make proves how capable they are. When their women spend their money, they only feel more accomplished, never thinking their women are materialistic or vain.
Only when they can't afford it do they become angry and embarrassed, thinking the other person is being materialistic.
If a capable man's beloved likes money, just give it to her. Why keep obsessing over questions like 'If I don't have money, will you stop loving me? Will you love someone richer?'
Why not try focusing on the question 'How can I keep making money and keep her loving me?'
Is it better to force others to compromise rather than making an effort yourself? This seemingly sincere questioning actually contains a certain cunning probe.
[Hahaha, Qin Xian is so right! How does he know exactly what to say? I absolutely love it.]
Qin Xian was startled, turning to see Ji Fei looking at him with stars in her eyes. His heart immediately started racing, and he coughed slightly, feeling pleased. As for his brother's predicament...
Actually, Luo Zhou was just unfortunate. He had been misled by Xuan Yi. None of the other men present, not even Qi Li, shared Luo Zhou's theory about materialism.
They were all wealthy, so they didn't care.
But Luo Zhou had personally experienced being abandoned because he wasn't as rich as his older brother, because Xuan Yi preferred his more powerful and influential brother. This made him sensitive and suspicious, leading to this twisted situation.
He wanted to find proof that there were people who would choose him even after meeting his older brother.
He did find such a person, but he ruined it with his behavior.
"You all!" Luo Zhou was furious, whether he had learned anything or not.
Just then, Luo Zhou's eyes suddenly widened as he looked into the distance.
Everyone followed his gaze, but only Ji Fei and Qin Xian showed any reaction.
[Strange, why did Tang come down? I thought she wasn't planning to come down based on how she looked earlier. Is a dramatic confrontation about to unfold?]
