Chapter 104: Murong Yan

Murong Yan truly lived up to her reputation as a top-tier superstar. With her immaculate styling and makeup, she looked like a celestial being descended to earth, her presence ethereal and detached from the ordinary world, instantly becoming the center of everyone’s attention.

Many starry-eyed fans wanted to rush forward for autographs, but Murong Yan’s manager stopped them.

She carried herself with all the pomp and ceremony of a Cannes red carpet appearance.

Unfortunately, the effect was a little too much, with an air of trying to outshine the host.

Fortunately, Murong Yan was the eldest young lady of the Murong family. If it had been anyone else, they might already have been driven out by the Jiang family and blacklisted.

“Hmph, putting on airs!”

Xu Wanwan had nearly written jealousy and envy across her entire face, yet she still forced a look of disdain. “What’s so great about her? Without the Murong family, could she possibly be so glorious?”

Afraid someone might overhear, Shen Ying hurriedly told Xu Wanwan to keep her voice down.

Everyone knew the truth, but it still could not be said so bluntly!

The people nearby all gave Xu Wanwan looks of pure idiocy. Yet Xu Wanwan remained oblivious, believing that by speaking the truth she had won everyone’s admiration.

Xu An’an entered the banquet hall slowly along with the other guests.

Tonight’s banquet was even more grand and extravagant than the last matchmaking dinner, making one feel as though they had stepped into a dreamlike, fantastical scene.

It made every unmarried girl imagine that she might be chosen by a prince and become the one and only princess.

As always, Xu An’an simply found a corner and sat down.

She received a call from Jiang Yu.

“What is it?”

“Xu An’an, what’s wrong with you, exactly? Is it because I haven’t looked for you lately? Stop throwing a tantrum, will you? Do you even know how busy I’ve been these days…”

“If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up.”

“Where are you?” Jiang Yu was growing impatient. If his grandfather had not insisted that he bring Xu An’an here, he would never have made this call.

Xu An’an should have been the one to come looking for him.

“So what if I tell you where I am?”

She had already spotted Jiang Yu, but deliberately acted as if she had not, until he stormed over in frustration.

Xu An’an calmly ended the call, not even lifting her eyes.

Time had been tight, so she had not dressed up specially. Today she wore a dark green, Morandi-toned slip dress, and her flowing long hair was simply tied back with a dark green ribbon. A few soft, wavy strands fell over her delicate little face.

Her makeup was not much changed, though she had chosen a sheer tomato-red lipstick with a hint of orange.

It made her entire being come alive.

Even Jiang Yu, who had been ready to flare up, could not help but freeze for a moment.

He suddenly realized that Xu An’an seemed to be getting prettier and more womanly by the day, like a rose nourished after rain, so lovely that one could not help wanting to pluck it.

“Didn’t you say you had something to do?”

Being stared at so blatantly by Jiang Yu made Xu An’an deeply uncomfortable. She even had the urge to gouge his eyes out. A scumbag like him had no right to admire her beauty!

Jiang Yu came back to his senses and told Xu An’an to take his arm, his tone magnanimous, as though granting her a great favor.

“I’ll take you to meet my great-grandmother, who just returned to the country.”

Tonight, countless people had wanted to meet the old matriarch, but not everyone had that qualification. In Jiang Yu’s view, Xu An’an should be approaching this with gratitude and reverence.

If Xu An’an could hear the thoughts in Jiang Yu’s head, she would definitely have slapped him without hesitation.

What nonsense was this? Did he think he was some imperial dowager empress?

After a moment’s hesitation, Xu An’an still looped her arm through Jiang Yu’s, though there remained a small gap between them.

She simply wanted to see how Jiang Li was getting along with the Murong family’s eldest daughter.

She was curious whether this Murong family heiress, a triple-crown Best Actress and a full sweep of major awards, could rein in the famous Second Master Jiang.

By rights, the two of them were a perfect match in both appearance and family background.

If the two families could join by marriage, it would indeed become a fine story.

A powerful alliance.

Seeing Xu An’an lost in thought, Jiang Yu assumed she was nervous and said, “Once we go in later, just follow me. After you’re used to seeing scenes like this, you won’t be nervous anymore.”

“And if you really make a mistake later, I can plead on your behalf.”

“But you should still be careful.”

Xu An’an was speechless.

Anyone listening would think they were going to meet the president.

She did not respond, simply letting Jiang Yu talk to himself.

After all, men with absurdly inflated confidence were always like this. As long as they were standing upright on the ground, they already felt invincible.

The upstairs area was different from downstairs.

Only core members of the Jiang family were allowed upstairs.

As the eldest grandson of the Jiang family, Jiang Yu naturally had that right.

“Grandmother, Xiaoyu is here.” Madam Jiang noticed Jiang Yu and Xu An’an’s arrival at once and deliberately announced it.

The old matriarch’s face lit up immediately. She motioned for Jiang Yu to come forward. “Oh my, my Xiaoyu is getting more and more handsome, and taller too. Do you have a girlfriend yet?”

Hearing this, Madam Jiang quickly called Xu An’an over. “Grandmother, this is Xiaoyu’s fiancée, An’an.”

Xu An’an stepped forward. “Great-grandmother.”

After all, she was still engaged to Jiang Yu.

Surrounded by the crowd, the old matriarch looked to be in excellent spirits. She studied Xu An’an carefully, her expression faint and unreadable, making it impossible to tell whether she liked her or not.

She gave a somewhat perfunctory hum.

But when she looked at Murong Yan, she smiled warmly.

Anyone with a normal mind could see immediately whom the old matriarch valued more, and the rest of them were all shrewd opportunists, so naturally no one took Xu An’an seriously.

Xu An’an did not mind. She quietly stepped back to one side.

She did not see Jiang Li, nor did she see the old master Jiang.

“How long are those two still going to talk? Hurry up and send someone to urge them.” The old matriarch said to Madam Jiang, displeased.

Madam Jiang immediately went herself to invite them, not daring to delegate the task to anyone else.

If one had to name the person in the entire Jiang family who least wanted the old matriarch to return, it would undoubtedly be Madam Jiang. Once the old matriarch came back, Madam Jiang would have to keep her tail tucked between her legs and behave.

After all, the old master Jiang never took care of anything. The Jiang family was left to Madam Jiang to manage, and her days had been extremely comfortable.

But in the end, the empress could not defeat the dowager empress.

After a while, Jiang Li finally emerged beside the old master Jiang. He cast a casual glance at Xu An’an standing off to the side, then looked toward the old matriarch.

“Grandmother.”

“Oh, Ah-Li, you were already so handsome before, and now you’re even more so. But you’re still missing a wife. Grandmother specially came back from abroad to arrange one for you, and I’ll definitely find you a beautiful, capable wife.” The old matriarch waved him over.

She had already reserved a seat beside her for Jiang Li.

Jiang Li sat down and did not spare Murong Yan a second glance.

That made Murong Yan’s smile stiffen slightly.

Yet her gaze could not tear itself away from Jiang Li’s face. She could not deny that in all her years in the entertainment industry, after seeing so many movie stars, supermodels, and idol heartthrobs, no one’s looks had ever surpassed Jiang Li’s.

That unruly, carefree elegance seemed to flow from his very bones, like dazzling sunlight that made people unable to resist drawing closer, and then closer still...

Murong Yan did not know that her unguarded stare at Jiang Li had already fallen into everyone’s eyes.