Qin Xuanye recoiled in fright, shaking his head vigorously.
"No, don't involve me! Liu Yue will misunderstand!"
The man chuckled. "I thought you'd found some powerful backer. Turns out they don't want anything to do with you. You'd better think about how to pay me back."
Tao Ruanruan was caught in a dilemma.
She couldn't believe Qin Xuanye could be so heartless.
At that moment, Chen Liuyue noticed the commotion not far away. She leaned slightly and whispered something to Wei Miao.
Wei Miao nodded.
Just as Tao Ruanruan was arguing with the man, the sound of wheelchair wheels rolling came from nearby.
Everyone looked towards the source.
It was Chen Haotian, the older brother of the banquet's hostess, Chen Liuyue.
The guests made way for the Chen family's eldest young master. Some more familiar guests cast glances at Tao Ruanruan, their eyes tinged with a sense of schadenfreude.
Wasn't that the former foster daughter of the Chen family?
"Brother!" Tao Ruanruan looked at the newcomer with intense emotion, as if a deity had descended from heaven.
Chen Haotian stared quietly at the young woman before him. He had previously confined Ruanruan at the Chen residence, only to watch the disgust in her eyes for him grow day by day.
She had even been desperate to escape.
Now that he had let Tao Ruanruan go, the way she looked at him was as if he were her savior.
It was somewhat ironic.
Seeing that Chen Haotian ignored her, Tao Ruanruan grew anxious.
She took quick, small steps forward, pointed at herself, and said, "Brother, it's me, Ruanruan."
Chen Haotian nodded, his expression gloomy.
"I know."
The portly guest, attending such a banquet for the first time as a minor supplier to the Wei family, didn't recognize the man before him. He smirked,
"Well, aren't you something. Just hooked up with one guy, and now here's another cripple coming to your rescue."
Tao Ruanruan retorted angrily, "That's not true! He's my real brother."
At the same time, Chen Haotian spoke in unison, "No, I'm not."
The man was stunned, looking them up and down. "Looks more like a lover to me."
Tao Ruanruan was filled with vexation.
She wanted Qin Xuanye to help explain, but when she turned her head, he had already run quite a distance towards Chen Liuyue's direction.
Tao Ruanruan could only look at Chen Haotian, a hint of a whine inadvertently creeping into her tone.
"Brother, I know you're angry with me. I'm sorry."
"I've been too willful these past few days. Could you lend me some money? I accidentally spilled wine on this man's suit, and he's using it to harass me."
The portly man snorted coldly. "Exactly! Pay up now. This suit of mine cost tens of thousands."
Tao Ruanruan was sure Chen Haotian would help her.
She waited confidently for his response.
Suddenly, she heard Chen Haotian ask, "On what grounds?"
Tao Ruanruan answered instinctively, "You're my brother."
Chen Haotian shook his head.
"No, we're not. There's no blood relation between us. You are not my sister."
"Ruanruan, do you know? I was actually the first to discover the truth, before anyone else. It was in your final year of high school when you got injured in a competition. I carried you to the hospital; you needed a minor surgery."
"That's when I found out your blood type didn't match any of our family's." (Let's just overlook the logical inconsistencies here and roll with it.)
"From that moment, I knew you weren't my sister."
It was also from that moment that his feelings for her began to gradually change.
Tao Ruanruan took a deep breath.
How did she not know about this?
And if Brother knew the truth back in her final year of high school, why didn't he find his real sister and bring her back? Why did he keep her in the family?
Chen Haotian lowered his head, his voice low, "Because I couldn't bear to let you leave, Ruanruan."
"Since you refuse to accept my feelings for you, then between us there is neither blood nor love. Why should I help you?"
The man had been listening to this dramatic soap opera, looking from one to the other.
After a long pause, he exclaimed, "Oh, my heavens! This is too much of a melodrama!"
He then spread his hands.
"Story's dramatic and all, but you still have to pay for the suit."
Tao Ruanruan took another deep breath.
"Brother, consider it a loan from you, okay?"
Chen Haotian replied in an icy tone, "You're a university student with no income. How will you repay me?"
Making as if to leave, he began to turn his wheelchair.
"Wait!"
Tao Ruanruan quickly grabbed him. "Brother, aren't you injured and need care? I can be your caregiver. It's just a part-time job anyway. Five hundred a day, how about that?"
Chen Haotian looked up at the man and asked, "How much for the suit?"
"Fifty-five thousand. Oh, no, plus three thousand for dry cleaning."
"Fine. I'll transfer you sixty thousand total. Leave now." Chen Haotian transferred the money expressionlessly.
He then looked at Tao Ruanruan. "Sixty thousand, at five hundred a day. You'll need to take care of me for one hundred and twenty days."
That was roughly four months.
Tao Ruanruan asked cautiously, "Okay. Can I... move back into the Chen residence then?"
Chen Haotian shook his head.
"Father is preparing to hand the company over to Liuyue. It wouldn't be suitable for you to go back."
"Besides, I've already moved to an apartment in the city and hired a housekeeper and a cook. If you have nowhere to stay, you can move in there."
He paused, then added,
"Or you could consider commuting daily from your university to the apartment. The round trip by subway should take about an hour and a half."
Tao Ruanruan agreed immediately.
"I'll live at your place!"
A fleeting, triumphant smile flashed in Chen Haotian's eyes.
...
Watching this scene from a distance, Wei Miao couldn't help but say, "Don't you think this punishment is too light?"
Chen Liuyue curled the corner of her lip.
"What punishment? You think this is a punishment I arranged for Tao Ruanruan? You think too poorly of me."
"I gave her a choice. I offered help."
"I let her leave the Chen family, freeing her from Chen Haotian's control. I thought she would forge a different life for herself."
"But a flower from a greenhouse, protected too well, can't withstand the storms outside."
"So now, she's choosing to return to the cage herself."
As she said this, Chen Liuyue's expression was detached.
No pity, no disgust, her tone as calm as if discussing a stranger.
Qin Xuanye had also arrived by her side by then. Lowering his voice, he tattled,
"Liuyue, should we get someone to teach your brother a lesson? He knew back in high school that Tao Ruanruan wasn't his real sister, yet he never tried to find you."
Chen Liuyue curved her lips into a faint smile.
"That's just how people are. Selfish."
"On one side, a 'sister' he grew up with, day in and day out, for whom he developed improper feelings. On the other, a completely strange real sister who would come back and potentially challenge his inheritance rights."
"Tell me, what would a normal person choose?"
"But if Chen Haotian thinks this is the end, he's being naive."
"Giving up inheritance rights is nothing. I want the ten percent of Chen Corporation shares he holds to become worthless paper."
