Jing Yi had thought Shen Huaichu would return it to her, but he pulled his hand back.
He curled his thin lips slightly, "I thought this was a gift from Miss Jing." Beside him, Shen Xi's eyes widened in shock as she stared at Jing Yi.
Had their relationship already progressed to the gift-giving stage?
Jing Yi glared angrily at Shen Huaichu. He was doing this on purpose, wasn't he?!
She laughed bitterly, standing up. Gu Lin was curious about what she planned to do, while Shen Xi had already instinctively moved her stool back a bit.
They watched as Jing Yi walked over to Shen Huaichu's side, suddenly bending down and leaning in close to him.
Shen Huaichu gazed at Jing Yi's smiling eyes, curved like crescent moons. He could even catch a whiff of the faint citrusy scent on her, delicate and sweet.
Shen Xi covered her mouth as she watched the 'intense' scene unfolding before her, while Gu Lin was also intently watching the drama play out.
A few seconds later, when Shen Huaichu came to his senses, Jing Yi had already snatched the mask from his hand.
Jing Yi's lips curled upward as she leaned close to Shen Huaichu's ear, whispering, "Mr. Shen, it seems I can tease you too." She waved the mask at him triumphantly.
"Well then, Mr. Shen, Mr. Gu, I'll be taking my leave." Jing Yi looked at Shen Huaichu one last time, raising an eyebrow slightly. "Xi Xi, let's go."
With that, Jing Yi turned and left. Shen Xi hurriedly said goodbye to the two older men and followed in Jing Yi's footsteps.
Shen Huaichu stared at Jing Yi's retreating figure, a smile playing on his lips, but the aura around him grew increasingly cold and dangerous.
Gu Lin remained silent, not daring to speak, but he made a mental note about Jing Yi's character.
Meanwhile, Shen Xi had lost all interest in handsome guys and was pulling Jing Yi aside to ask about her relationship with Shen Huaichu.
"Spill it! When did you meet my uncle without telling me?!"
Jing Yi still couldn't get used to Shen Xi calling Shen Huaichu her uncle. It always felt strange to her...
"It was the day your car got hit. My GPS led me astray, and I ran into a situation where he was being surrounded..." Shen Xi excitedly interjected, "And then it was a hero saving the damsel in distress?"
Jing Yi gave her a sidelong glance, quickly pouring cold water on her fantasy, "You're imagining things. I was completely caught up in an undeserved disaster, and on top of that, I was suspected of being a spy sent by someone, by that arrogant guy!"
The excitement in Shen Xi's eyes faded, replaced by a look of disappointment. "I thought it was a love at first sight scenario..." Love at first sight indeed, she almost got detained, Jing Yi thought sarcastically.
Shen Xi wasn't surprised that Shen Huaichu had been surrounded. After all, she had heard about the revenge plots against him through various channels.
"I should be the one asking you! Why didn't you tell me Shen Huaichu was your uncle?"
Shen Xi was confused, insisting she had mentioned their family relationship before.
That's not the same at all!
"Forget it, just know that there's nothing between Shen Huaichu and me. If there is anything, it's that he's someone I dislike!"
Seeing Jing Yi speak so decisively, Shen Xi didn't dare to argue, though she still imagined a scenario in her mind where the male and female leads come together due to an unexpected encounter!
"Enough about me, weren't you going to meet that 'vampire' guy? How did it go?" Jing Yi changed the subject.
At the mention of him, Shen Xi seemed less enthusiastic. Before they talked, his vampire costume had looked pretty cool, but after chatting, she found him rather ordinary.
Jing Yi was curious, "Why? Did he say something?"
"I had barely said a few words before he was trying to ask me out for dinner tomorrow! Isn't that a bit too forward?"
"......" Whatever makes you happy.
On the other side, Gu Lin curled his lips into a smile, leaning back in a lounge chair with a glass of champagne.
"Brother, it seems there's some misunderstanding between you and Miss Jing."
Although he didn't know exactly what misunderstanding there was between the two, it was clear that Jing Yi didn't think much of Shen Huaichu, and Shen Huaichu's attitude also struck him as odd.
Shen Huaichu's fingers lightly traced the edge of his glass, his chiseled face devoid of expression, his deep-set eyes unfathomable.
"Misunderstanding? There isn't any."
Shen Huaichu was certain there was no misunderstanding between them; Jing Yi simply didn't like him, that's all.
"Is that so?"
Gu Lin withdrew his curious gaze. His brother's mood didn't seem great at the moment, so he'd better be tactful.
"What was that about a livestream earlier?"
Gu Lin looked up blankly, momentarily unable to recall what livestream Shen Huaichu was referring to, before remembering the 'family livestream' he had mentioned to Jing Yi.
His brother's attitude toward Jing Yi was definitely unusual!
"Oh, the other daughter of the Jing family is a celebrity, right? They're filming a family reality show recently." Shen Huaichu then recalled the cameras he had encountered last time.
So that's what she meant that day.
Shen Huaichu drained the wine in his glass in one gulp, set the glass back on the table, and stood up.
"I've accompanied you to the gathering as requested. Remember to tell Aunt about it."
With that, Shen Huaichu left. Gu Lin swirled his wine glass, watching his brother's retreating figure with a playful look in his eyes.
...
At the Gu residence, a middle-aged woman sat on the sofa, scrolling through videos on her phone. Jing Yi's voice could be heard from the video exclaiming, "Four fours!"
Gu Lin knew immediately that she was watching Jing Yi's videos again.
Hearing Gu Lin open the door, Shen Tu looked up at her son briefly before quickly lowering her head back to the video.
"You're back? Did your brother go with you?"
This gathering was at Shen Tu's insistence that Shen Huaichu attend, otherwise he would only move between his company and home.
"He did, and stayed for quite a while."
Although Shen Huaichu had spent most of the time alone, Gu Lin couldn't betray his brother.
Gu Lin leaned in, "Mom, you're watching Jing Yi's videos again? Don't you ever get tired of them?"
"What can I do? The Jing family's recording doesn't start for another two days, so I can only watch these videos. You don't know how adorable Yi Yi is."
She's already calling her 'Yi Yi'? If I told you your nephew might be interested in that 'Yi Yi', you probably wouldn't have the heart to watch these videos anymore.
But Gu Lin wasn't about to 'court death'. If his brother found out, he'd have plenty of ways to deal with him!
Shen Tu had only heard about the Jing family participating in a reality show by chance. She was surprised, given the Jing family's status, she really couldn't understand why they would participate in a reality show.
Who knew that after watching the livestream, she'd become completely hooked.
After finishing all the videos, Shen Tu finally put down her phone and asked Gu Lin about the gathering today.
After her eldest brother and sister-in-law passed away, her nephew had completely changed, until he started planning to take back the Huarui Group and the Shen family.
At that time, Shen Huaichu was only nineteen, but it had been ten years since his parents' death.
When Shen Tu heard about his plan, her whole body trembled. So the car accident back then really was her second brother's doing.
Unfortunately, the only witness had perished along with that car accident years ago.
"Aren't you afraid I'll tell him? He is my second brother."
