Liu Renzhi’s grip on the wheelchair tightened.
Lin Wanyi could feel his tension. She could also tell that this Meng Xi had come with hostile intentions.
Liu Siyue was the first to lose her patience. She turned to Meng Xi and said:
“Meng Xi, if my brother wants to date someone, that’s none of your business.
“What right do you have to interrogate him?”
Meng Xi smiled sweetly, not the least bit offended:
“Siyue, you’re overthinking it. I’m not interrogating your brother at all.
“I’m just as curious as everyone else—why would the president of the Liu Corporation, a diamond bachelor worth who knows how much, fall for a thirty-year-old woman who’s divorced and has a kid?
“Genuinely curious, that’s all.”
She deliberately emphasized the words “divorced, has a kid, and thirty years old.”
Even those who hadn’t heard before were now listening closely.
The murmurs grew louder.
Someone chimed in:
“Yeah, Mr. Liu, tell us—what’s so special about Miss Lin here that caught your eye?”
“That’s right, Mr. Liu, satisfy our curiosity. Does Miss Lin have some secret identity we don’t know about?”
All eyes were on Lin Wanyi.
But she didn’t avoid any of them. She looked straight ahead.
Before they came out, Liu Renzhi had prepared her.
He had told Lin Wanyi:
“People will definitely make a big deal out of your background, but it doesn’t matter.
“Just ignore them. I’ll handle everything.”
So now, she sat calmly in her wheelchair.
She listened as Liu Renzhi spoke slowly:
“Everyone, between Wanyi and me, it’s simply a matter of mutual affection.
“She doesn’t have a distinguished family background, perfect education, or any hidden identity.
“Yes, she really is divorced and has a child.
“But I knew all of that from the start. I don’t mind, and neither does my family.
“To me, she is suitable—perfectly suitable.
“That’s all there is to it.
“So please remember this: from now on, I, Liu Renzhi, will have only this one girlfriend, and only this one wife.
“Today is my mother’s birthday, and this is the best birthday gift I could give her.”
After Liu Renzhi finished, the murmurs did die down somewhat.
But Meng Xi was still unhappy.
What did he mean by that? Just because she was suitable?
What counted as suitable? Wasn’t she—Meng Xi—more suitable?
If they got together, both families’ businesses would reach new heights. Together, they could dominate this city.
She was still thinking when suddenly she noticed Li Suhua walking in, holding Wang Keke’s hand.
Comparing the girl with the photo Zhou Chenyu had given her, she smirked. Pointing at Wang Keke, she said:
“Miss Lin, is this your daughter?”
Everyone’s attention shifted to Wang Keke.
“Oh, so that’s Miss Lin’s daughter? So she really does have a daughter, and this old?”
“So Mr. Liu is basically becoming a stepfather just like that? Haha, Mr. Liu sure has unusual taste.”
“Yeah, big boss does what he wants, likes to play things differently.”
Amidst the chorus of doubts, a man made a crude joke:
“You don’t get it, do you? Looks like Mr. Liu is playing the long game—this little girl is about to grow up.
“Then it’ll be mother and daughter… Haha, you guys just don’t understand, do you?
“Isn’t that right, Mr. Liu? Living it up…”
Before he could finish, Lin Jiajun, who had just arrived, threw a punch at his face.
Holding his bleeding mouth, the man howled:
"Who the hell are you? Do you even know who I am? I'm going to sue you, I'll sue you to death."
"Sue me?"
Liu Renzhi loosened his tie:
"If you're going to sue, then sue me too."
Along with those words came a sharp pain to the man's head.
Liu Renzhi's fist had slammed into him.
After hitting him, he shook his hand:
"Listen carefully. Lin Wanyi will be my wife in the future, and Keke is my daughter.
"If I ever hear any of you gossiping again, this will be the result.
"Get lost! From now on, Liu Corporation will never work with you."
The man cursed and stumbled away.
Liu Renzhi led Wang Keke back to Lin Wanyi's side before addressing everyone else:
"I'm thirty-five this year. My girlfriend is thirty, and my daughter is eight. That's perfectly reasonable, isn't it?"
Finally, no one dared to say another word.
Su Jing saw the situation and quickly stepped in to ease the tension:
"Come on, everyone. Now that you've met my daughter-in-law from the Liu family, let's eat something and keep enjoying ourselves."
The crowd scattered in small groups, but Meng Xi remained standing still.
Liu Renzhi frowned:
"Miss Meng, I believe I've made myself very clear."
Meng Xi, however, wasn't looking at Liu Renzhi. Instead, she looked at Lin Wanyi, walked over slowly, bent down, and extended her hand:
"Hello, my name is Meng Xi."
Out of politeness, Lin Wanyi also reached out:
"Hello, Lin Wanyi."
After she withdrew her hand, Meng Xi finally turned to Liu Renzhi:
"Don't worry, Mr. Liu. I'm not going to do anything to your girlfriend.
"I just noticed how calm and unfazed she was earlier. Honestly, I kind of admire her.
"Let's add each other on social media. Stay in touch."
Liu Renzhi relaxed:
"That's up to her."
Meng Xi opened her phone and showed her QR code:
"Miss Lin, want to be friends?"
Lin Wanyi didn't hesitate and generously added Meng Xi.
As soon as the friend request was accepted, Lin Wanyi received a message from Meng Xi:
[Actually, I'm also 29. I'll turn 30 in a month.
[I don't judge you for your age. Mr. Liu is a great man. I wish you both happiness.]
Lin Wanyi handed her phone to Liu Renzhi to see.
The two exchanged a knowing smile.
Liu Siyue and Chen Hui took Wang Keke around to find all the good food.
Wang Keke ran around joyfully.
Li Suhua reminded Chen Hui:
"Let her have less sweets. Her teeth will rot."
Chen Hui waved her hand:
"Mom, usually we can limit her, but not today. There's so much delicious stuff we never get to eat."
Li Suhua couldn't argue with her, so she let it go.
One indulgence once in a while wasn't a big deal.
After they left, Li Suhua found Su Jing.
She sounded a bit apologetic:
"Mrs. Liu, I'm so sorry about today. I didn't mean to make you, the birthday girl, call me yourself.
"I really wasn't trying to put on airs. I just, I just..."
Su Jing handed her a glass of juice:
"I understand, Suhua. Now that our children are together, there's no need for you to be so formal and call me 'Mrs. Liu.'
"Just call me Su Jing.
"I invited you here so you could see the sincerity of our Liu family.
"Honestly, at my age, I never want to hold a birthday party. Every birthday just makes me feel a year older."
Hearing that, Li Suhua nodded vigorously:
"Exactly, exactly! I don't even like to mention my birthday anymore. Especially after my husband passed, I want to avoid it even more.
"Each birthday means one less year left."
Su Jing looked at the guests in the courtyard and said:
“This party is just an excuse using my birthday as the occasion. I simply wanted to properly introduce Wanyi to everyone.
“I wanted to let everyone know that I, Su Jing, now have a daughter-in-law.
“Haha, you just saw how Renzhi and Wanyi handled those gossiping remarks.
“We don’t need to worry at all, especially you.
“You can rest assured. Since I’ve accepted Wanyi, I will certainly accept Keke too.
“I won’t separate them. You have to trust me.”
