Chapter 26: The Scumbag Appears, Brimming with Confidence

“…Let’s go.”

If she refused, wouldn’t that make her look guilty?

Yun Manxia tried to ignore the uneasiness in her heart.

The Bai family’s banquet was being held to celebrate the sixtieth birthday of an Old Madam—not Bai Hedu’s grandmother, but Bai Jiangong’s mother.

This woman had merely been the mistress of Bai Hedu’s eldest uncle. Given Bai Hedu’s status, agreeing to attend the banquet was practically beneath him.

That made his decision to accept the invitation all the more unusual.

On the day of the banquet, Yun Manxia was separated from Bai Hedu as soon as she stepped out of the car.

Bai Jiangong personally greeted him with endless bows and flattering smiles before leading him away. Apparently, Bai Hedu had business of his own to handle.

The moment Yun Manxia entered the banquet hall, someone hurried toward her.

“Manxia!”

It was Yun Yiyi.

Her gaze swept over Yun Manxia’s outfit, and jealousy flashed uncontrollably in her eyes.

Yun Manxia had not dressed particularly grandly today. However, with her stunning features and natural elegance, she could look breathtaking in almost anything—as long as she stayed away from the outrageous emo style she used to favor.

“Come with me!”

Yun Yiyi grabbed her arm.

Caught off guard, Yun Manxia was dragged all the way to the back garden.

“What are you doing?”

She pulled her arm free in displeasure.

Yun Yiyi stared at her in surprise. “This is the Bai residence! Don’t you want to find Young Master Bai?”

“Why would I want to find him?”

Yun Manxia raised her delicate brows, looking even more surprised than Yun Yiyi.

Yun Yiyi became anxious.

“Manxia, I know you didn’t dare leave Yujing Garden before because you were afraid Ninth Master would get angry.”

“But things are different now. You don’t have to worry so much. All you need to do is apologize properly to Young Master Bai, ask him not to be angry with you, and make up with him.”

“Then you can tell Ninth Master that the two of you were already together. Surely Ninth Master wouldn’t steal his nephew’s woman, would he?”

Apologize?

Yun Manxia’s eyelid twitched.

“Apologize for what?”

“For marrying into Yujing Garden, of course!” Yun Yiyi answered as though it were obvious. “You betrayed him. Shouldn’t you apologize?”

“I betrayed him?”

Yun Manxia scoffed.

“I was never even in a relationship with him. How exactly did I betray him?”

“But you agreed to run away together! You left him waiting for so long, then married into Yujing Garden without saying a word. Don’t you owe him an apology for that?”

Yun Manxia smiled.

“You’re right. Someone really should apologize.”

Yun Yiyi was just beginning to relax when Yun Manxia continued.

“I was already engaged to Ninth Master, yet Bai Chengxuan tried to persuade another man’s fiancée to elope with him. He certainly owes Ninth Master an apology!”

She tilted her head innocently.

“What kind of death do you think Ninth Master would arrange for him?”

Yun Yiyi froze.

“No, Manxia, you—”

“Manxia!”

A man’s voice suddenly called out.

Hearing that familiar voice after so long, Yun Manxia’s gaze instantly turned cold.

She lifted her head and saw a handsome man walking toward them.

Her fingers dug sharply into her palms as darkness gathered beneath her lowered lashes.

Bai Chengxuan!

This man had never loved her.

From the very beginning, he had approached her only to steal the things she possessed.

How ridiculous that in her previous life, she had allowed him to deceive her for so many years—and had ultimately lost her life because of him.

When Yun Manxia raised her eyes again, they were calm and unfathomably cold.

It did not matter.

Since heaven had given her a second life, neither of these two would escape her revenge.

“You two should talk!”

Yun Yiyi breathed a sigh of relief and secretly exchanged a look with Bai Chengxuan.

He responded with an intimate, tender glance. Yun Yiyi immediately blushed, lowered her eyes shyly, and hurried away.

Yun Manxia saw the entire exchange, and her eyes became glacial.

So they were already fooling around at this point?

They were being this blatant right in front of her. Did they think she was stupid or blind?

“Manxia.”

Bai Chengxuan approached and immediately demanded, “Why haven’t you been answering my calls?”

Yun Manxia curled her lips, feeling slightly nauseated.

“I blocked you. Do you not understand what that means?”

Bai Chengxuan stared at her in disbelief.

Anger flashed across his face, but he quickly forced it down.

“Are you afraid I’ll blame you? Yiyi should have told you already. As long as you apologize sincerely, I’m willing to forgive you.”

As he spoke, he moved closer and planted one hand against the pillar beside her head in an intimate pose.

From a distance, they looked incredibly close—as though they might kiss at any moment.

“Stay away from me. I have a husband!”

“A husband?”

Bai Chengxuan sneered with contempt.

“I heard you married an old man—and a cripple at that. How could someone like that compare to me?”

“Even if he has money, could he possibly be richer than my family?”

“Manxia, I’m giving you one chance. Stop throwing a tantrum. As long as you admit your mistake and apologize, I’ll forgive you.”

Not far away, Bai Hedu’s wheelchair stood silently beneath the shadows.

Behind him, Lin Shen barely dared to breathe.

Bai Chengxuan’s voice was so loud that they could vaguely hear every word.

“I’m an old man and a cripple. It’s true that I can’t compare to him.”

Bai Hedu’s deep voice revealed neither anger nor amusement.

“Then tell me—why did she marry me?”

How could Lin Shen possibly dare to answer that?

“Are they close?” Bai Hedu asked again, watching the pair who appeared so intimate from where he sat.

Lin Shen lowered his head. He answered cautiously, unwilling to speak yet unable to remain silent.

“When the Yun family’s second daughter visited Yujing Garden, she said Madam was in love with someone. If I’m not mistaken…she was probably referring to Young Master Bai.”

Bai Hedu’s hand tightened around the armrest without him realizing it.

A deathly silence descended.

After a moment, he said, “Let’s go.”

Lin Shen did not dare investigate what Bai Hedu might be feeling. He immediately pushed the wheelchair away without making a sound.

Yun Manxia had no idea that someone had quietly arrived and then quietly left.

She stared at the arrogant, inexplicably confident man before her and wondered how blind she must have been in her previous life to fall for someone like him.

When she remained silent, Bai Chengxuan dropped a pointed hint.

“You should make sure your apology gift satisfies me. I heard you took back the company shares your stepmother was holding for you?”

After speaking, he waited confidently for Yun Manxia to present him with his “apology gift.”

He understood this girl perfectly.

She was naive, foolish, and completely sheltered. It had taken him almost no effort to make her fall desperately in love with him.

Until now, she had never refused any of his requests.

The only exception was the medical notebook her mother had left behind. She remained wary and refused to hand it over, but she had given him practically everything else he asked for.

Yun Manxia understood his implication and nearly laughed.

“You want those shares?”

“I don’t want them,” Bai Chengxuan corrected righteously. “You’re supposed to give them to me as an apology—”

“Why are you daydreaming in broad daylight?”

Yun Manxia interrupted him without the slightest courtesy. Her beautiful eyes overflowed with blatant mockery.

The shares as an apology gift?

Why didn’t he ask for the moon while he was at it?

Bai Chengxuan stared at her in disbelief.

He had thought the matter was already settled. He never expected such an answer!

“Yun Manxia, you—”

“Could you stay away from me?”

Yun Manxia leaned her head back in disgust and fanned the air in front of her nose.

“Your breath stinks.”

Bai Chengxuan’s face shifted between red and green as fury surged through him.

“Yun Manxia…!”

Seeing that he still refused to take her warning seriously, Yun Manxia smiled coldly.

Then she raised her leg and drove her foot straight into his groin.

“Ah!”

The polished, dignified man immediately doubled over in agony.

“Did you think I was joking?”

Yun Manxia folded her arms and looked down at him.

“You came demanding things from me. Who gave you that kind of confidence?”

“I’m a generous person. I might even give away my shares—but I’d give them to my husband. What does any of that have to do with trash like you?”

“Stay away from me from now on. Understand?”

“Otherwise, don’t blame me for what happens next!”

She turned to leave.

Despite the excruciating pain, Bai Chengxuan hurriedly grabbed her arm. Cold sweat covered his forehead as he gritted his teeth.

“Yun Manxia, there’s a limit to how far you can take this tantrum! Don’t expect me to coax you. You’d better—”