In the memories of Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying, Song Xinya was tacky, fat, and round.
Standing at one meter seventy, she weighed nearly two hundred pounds.
She always wore cheap clothing.
Her head was forever lowered in a timid and weak manner.
Her eyes never dared to look directly into anyone else's.
She was like a piece of bristlegrass by the roadside, inconspicuous, unloved, ignored, unpresentable, and completely out of place in elegant settings.
She forever lived in the periphery of people's vision, standing in dim, lightless corners. She never occupied the center of the picture, only existing cautiously on the fringes, while frequently facing others' mockery of her figure.
"Hey, hey, hey, look, there's a huge fatty."
"Her thighs are thicker than my waist."
"Eating herself so fat, is she getting ready for the slaughterhouse?"
"If I were as fat as her, I wouldn't even have the face to live in this world. I would have bashed my head in long ago."
A fat, bloated Song Xinya who did not deserve to stand in the spotlight, who did not deserve to be liked.
That was the Song Xinya they knew!
Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying stared at the woman on the spiral staircase. She was slender, graceful, confident, and radiant. Wearing a stunning haute couture red dress, she was dazzlingly beautiful. Every movement she made exuded poise and elegance, capturing everyone's attention the moment she appeared.
Standing beside the noble Crown Prince of the Beijing elite circle, Qin Yuhe, she intimately linked her arm through his, becoming the absolute leading lady of this banquet.
Everyone was looking at her, praising her beauty, marveling at her looks, and envying her exquisite, curvy figure.
Standing beneath the bright, dazzling crystal chandelier, she made everyone else pale in comparison. She alone was eye-catching and brilliant.
Such a woman!
Such a thin woman!
Such a beautiful woman!
Such an aristocratic woman!
Such a woman with an overpowering presence!
How could she possibly be the Song Xinya they knew!
Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying stood frozen in place, staring at the woman on the spiral staircase. Their bodies were stiff, as if struck by a paralyzing spell, their eyes filled with utter disbelief.
It had only been a year. In just one short year, even with weight loss, it was impossible for Song Xinya to drop from nearly two hundred pounds to being this thin!
Therefore, the Song Xinya before them could not possibly be the Song Xinya they knew.
The two of them merely shared the same first and last name.
The three of them, Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying, convinced themselves of this fact.
But at the same time, a deep sense of unease still filled their hearts.
On the spiral staircase, Song Xinya followed Qin Yuhe's footsteps down the final step.
Instantly, the guests scrambled to surround them.
These guests were all of noble and wealthy status, big shots completely out of reach for ordinary people, who normally would not even have the chance to meet them once.
At this moment, they stood around Qin Yuhe and Song Xinya, their faces bearing cautious and flattering smiles.
Across the spacious hall, Zhang Yingying stood in a corner, gazing from afar at Song Xinya, who was surrounded by everyone in the center.
Time had changed, statuses had reversed, and at this moment, Zhang Yingying had become the inconspicuous bristlegrass by the roadside.
Some people possessed this kind of mentality:
They would rather believe a stranger than someone they knew.
They would rather lose to a stranger than to someone they knew.
Zhang Yingying would rather the woman before her be a noble daughter from some prestigious family than the Song Xinya they knew.
She did not want to lose to the Song Xinya she knew.
Song Xinya had been secretly fed hormones by her and her mother for so many years, causing her to be fat for so long. As everyone knew, hormone-induced obesity was the hardest to lose. To drop from nearly two hundred pounds to a little over a hundred pounds in a year, ordinary people simply did not have that kind of willpower.
The vitamins Song Xinya took had been swapped out for hormones by them. As long as Song Xinya kept taking the hormones, she would stay fat and would never be able to lose weight.
Zhang Yingying stared at the woman standing in the center of the crowd and told herself that she definitely was not the Song Xinya they knew.
Definitely, that had to be it.
Li Cuirou said, "Everyone else has gone to offer a toast, so we should go too. We can take the opportunity to find out exactly what background this woman named Song Xinya has."
Song Xuanli said, "I birthed my own daughter, how could I not recognize her? This woman named Song Xinya before us is definitely not my worthless, rebellious daughter."
Zhang Yingying said, "Right, let's go right now. We are going to prove that she is not the Song Xinya we know."
The three of them held up their champagne and walked toward the center of the crowd.
Suddenly, a lean and upright figure cut in front of them, walking straight toward Song Xinya.
Li Cuirou gasped, "Song Tingye!"
Song Xuanli said, "Mooching food and drinks, and having the audacity to parade right in front of the banquet hosts! He is going to completely humiliate our Song family!"
Zhang Yingying sneered, "People cannot be taught by words, but they learn quickly through hard lessons. Once he gets kicked out by the Qin family, he will know what embarrassment feels like."
Immediately after, they saw Song Tingye walk up to the woman in the red dress and call out affectionately and loudly, "Sister!"
Boom! A bolt from the blue struck down, hitting Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying right on the head!
The hearts of the three felt as if they were being ruthlessly squeezed, leaving them breathless!
That woman!
That woman really was the Song Xinya they knew!
They could no longer deceive themselves!
The three of them stared blankly at Song Xinya, momentarily unable to recover from the intense shock.
Ahead, Song Xinya lifted her eyes and looked toward them. Her gaze was cool and devoid of warmth, completely placid, yet it carried such a powerful aura that it inspired fear and deep reverence.
Her light gaze swept across their three faces without pausing for even a fraction of a second. Looking at them was like looking at thin air.
The three of them had done too many guilty deeds. In an instant, their feet felt welded to the floor, not daring to take another step forward.
Then, they saw Old Master Qin and Old Madam Qin, who had completely ignored them earlier when they presented their gifts, walk over to Song Xinya with warm initiative.
Old Madam Qin affectionately held Song Xinya's hand, her face beaming with a smile, and said caringly to her, "My good granddaughter-in-law, Grandma has been waiting for you for a long time."
Granddaughter-in-law!
Like a sudden clap of thunder on level ground, massive waves of shock surged in everyone's hearts.
This woman was the granddaughter-in-law of the Qin family!
The wife of the Beijing circle's Crown Prince, Qin Yuhe!
The young madam of the most powerful family in the Beijing circle!
The crowd of guests suddenly understood. No wonder the Qin family had hosted such a massive banquet, sending out invitations to every named family in the Beijing circle.
The Qin family had called them all here to grandly introduce the young madam of the Qin family.
Amidst the warm and quiet atmosphere, a loud crash rang out highly inappropriately throughout the entire hall.
The glass in Zhang Yingying's hand dropped to the floor, shattering into pieces and spilling champagne everywhere.
Shattered along with it was her dream of marrying Qin Yuhe to become the leading lady of a wealthy family.
Everyone in the hall looked toward the door, their gazes sweeping back and forth over the faces of Zhang Yingying, Li Cuirou, and Song Xuanli.
Because of such an improper act, the three of them felt a strong sense of being treated like monkeys in a zoo.
Song Xuanli had always cared deeply about his reputation. He turned his head and scolded Zhang Yingying, "How old are you, yet you can't even hold a cup steadily? Have you forgotten all the etiquette and rules I taught you at home? You've ruined everyone's mood. Hurry up and apologize to everyone!"
Li Cuirou intervened, "Everyone slips up sometimes. It's only human to make mistakes. Breaking a glass brings peace and safety."
Song Xuanli retorted, "What peace and safety? A mistake is a mistake. A doting mother spoils her child. It is exactly because she has a mother like you, who blindly favors her own child, that she is so unruly."
With these words, he not only put on a public show of self-righteousness but also completely washed his hands of the matter.
Zhang Yingying breaking the cup had nothing to do with him; it was entirely Li Cuirou's failure in raising her daughter.
Zhang Yingying lowered her head and mumbled an apology to the crowd, completely losing face.
After this brief interlude, everyone's attention returned to the protagonist of today's event, Song Xinya.
Standing to Song Xinya's left were Qin Yuhe and Qin Hanxiao, and to her right were Old Madam Qin and Old Master Qin.
In this banquet hosted by the Qin family, she firmly held the center position.
In an instant, Song Xinya's name spread throughout the entire capital's high society.
All the prominent figures in the capital circles now knew that Song Xinya was Qin Yuhe's wife.
Amidst the clinking of glasses, everyone raised their cups, carefully and respectfully offering toasts to Song Xinya.
Song Xinya was a straightforward person. She raised her glass, tilted her head back, and prepared to drink.
A pale, slender hand flashed in front of her as Qin Yuhe took the wine glass from her grasp.
His tall, handsome, and uninhibited figure stood beside her as he raised the glass to the crowd.
"My wife cannot handle her liquor well. As her husband, I will drink on her behalf."
He tilted his head back, stretching his pale neck into a beautiful curve. His jade-like Adam's apple rolled up and down with his swallowing.
His posture was composed, and his drinking motion was crisp and clean. He downed the glass of wine in one gulp.
Throughout the banquet, whenever someone toasted Song Xinya, Qin Yuhe intercepted and drank for her.
Worried that Qin Yuhe would get drunk from the crowd's relentless toasting, Song Xinya pulled him away to leave early as the banquet neared its end.
In the side hall, separated from the main hall by a single wall, Qin Yuhe leaned back on the sofa. The corners of his eyes were flushed with a tipsy red. With red lips and white teeth, his lips were slightly parted.
His already handsome and stunning face looked even more alluring and captivating at this moment.
Song Xinya walked over with a glass of water, sat beside him, and placed the cup into his hand.
"Why did you refuse no one today, drinking whatever anyone offered?"
With his noble status, he could have easily declined.
Qin Yuhe held the water glass and drank half of it in one breath. His dark eyes rippled with a charming smile as he looked at her and said,
"I was so happy to marry such a wonderful wife like you, so I drank a little more."
Song Xinya's face flushed, and her heart raced.
She pursed her lips, unable to hold back her smile.
Qin Yuhe's palm cupped her face, his thumb gently stroking back and forth across her rosy, shy cheeks.
Song Xinya held the hand that was caressing her cheek with both of hers, rubbing against his palm affectionately and submissively.
She asked him, "You were drinking this whole time and haven't eaten anything yet. What do you want to eat? I'll go get it for you."
Qin Yuhe raised his other hand, grasped the back of her neck, and pulled her down with force.
Song Xinya fell into his embrace, pressing against his body.
His eyes darkened as he gazed at her. "I want to eat you."
