Chapter 194 - A Centipede Doesn't Topple Over Even When Dead
The next day, Ning Shuqian was on the headlines of the papers and magazines, as expected: “Wealthy Lady Threw In 8.1 million Yuan, Ostentation Shocking Everyone, In the Running for Charity Ambassador of the Year!!!”
Accompanied by a huge photo of Ning Shuqian with a twisted expression, gritting her teeth—a stark contrast to the moving headlines.
The papers illustrated, with words and pictures, Ning Shuqian’s background, experience, and feelings of her journey to become Madam Wen, before diving into the main topic, and described what had happened that night.
The article also contained the following: “Some lady had previously openly followed her husband to attend all sorts of events in the circle, telling everyone she met about the hardship of being a stepmother, completely presenting her gentleness and graciousness. However, the real image completely did not tally with the said lady’s performance that night.”
The last sentence was filled with skepticism and thought-provoking. Could a mistress really be a fine, gentle, and gracious lady? Could a liar who had once lied through her teeth to mislead the media really be a highly-praised, virtuous wife and mother?
Upon reading the article, Wen Xinya couldn’t help but praise the said editor as a genius!
These filled people’s minds with much imagination. If the mistress were really gentle and gracious, she wouldn’t have become someone’s mistress. Furthermore, the society had always criticized mistresses—in the minds of most people, a mistress was a vixen who knew how to seduce people—how could such a person be a virtuous wife and mother?
Ning Shuqian had exhausted her means to ruin her reputation, only to eventually shoot herself in the foot.
Wonder how Wen Haowen would feel after reading this article.
At this moment, Zhou Tianyu called.
Zhou Tianyu’s voice was filled with intense excitement. “Xinya, have you seen this morning’s papers and magazines—do you feel astonished?”
Flipping through the morning’s magazines, Wen Xinya sneered. “Hmm, just nice, I’m looking at them now—how can I miss such astonishing news.”
Her voice was filled with coldness. Recalling the men from the underworld the previous night, her face froze—no matter how astonishing the news was, it couldn’t expel the coldness in her heart.
She then thought of Si Yiyan, still feeling vexed about her own unrestrained emotions the day before. However, she did not realize that her own lips were gradually curving upwards into a light-hearted smile, like cherry blossoms floating in the air.
Zhou Tianyu’s tone turned whiny. “Damn! If I knew there was going to be something fun to watch, I’d have agreed to attend the dinner with my mother. What a pity to miss Ning Shuqian’s embarrassing moment.”
Wen Xinya’s coldness slowly melted away and she laughed uncontrollably. “You didn’t miss much. The event last night was quite boring. If it wasn’t my first time officially attending this charity dinner as the eldest daughter of the Wen Family, I might have left halfway.”
Zhou Tianyu said feebly, “I know you’re trying to make me feel better! I was also just saying for fun—I won’t even care to exchange a glance with a person like Ning Shuqian. Wonder how she’s feeling after seeing the papers and magazines today—see if she still dares to tarnish your reputation in the circle moving forward.”
Wen Xinya smiled. “Ning Shuqian has been totally embarrassed, thus should stay low profile for a period of time. When the news blow over, she’ll be out and about again—such minor news can’t defeat her yet.”
In the capital city, all sorts of fresh things happened every day. Very soon, this incident would be forgotten by everyone—previously, the news of Ning Shuqian and Wen Haowen had also swept the city by storm, and Ning Shuqian was still alive and kicking.
A person like Ning Shuqian was like a centipede which didn’t topple over even when dead.
“Your father has such a great relationship with Ning Shuqian. This time, Ning Shuqian was so embarrassed, implicating your father’s reputation as well—do you think your father will be angry at Ning Shuqian?” Zhou Tianyu had always doubted Wen Haowen’s feelings towards Ning Shuqian—after all, given that Wen Haowen could be so heartless towards his first wife and legitimate child, how devoted could he be to Ning Shuqian.
“He will—my father is most concerned about his reputation. Because of Ning Shuqian, he became the laughing stock of the high society—this time Ning Shuqian is predicted to get hit real hard.” Wen Xinya understood Wen Haowen very well—he was selfish and egotistical. Ning Shuqian had been safe by Wen Haowen’s side merely because Ning Shuqian did not threaten him in any way, and Ning Shuqian was accustomed to sucking up to him.
Zhou Tianyu only felt disgusted. “I thought they were truly so loving, but that’s it.”
As the discussion involved Wen Haowen, Wen Xinya was not in the position to comment much. “My father has never been someone who valued relationships. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have treated my mother as such then, and my mother wouldn’t have died of dystocia.”
The topic became solemn, and Zhou Tianyu was speechless momentarily, as she felt slightly sorry for triggering Wen Xinya’s painful memories. “Xinya, you…”
Hearing her slightly guilty voice, Wen Xinya guessed her thoughts and changed the topic, laughing. “Oh yes, I have yet to thank you for yesterday—the astonishing news today wouldn’t have been possible without your help.”
Heaving a sigh of relief, Zhou Tianyu hurriedly replied, “Don’t mention it—it’s just a small thing. Moreover, Madam Shen is quite a nice person—I’m quite fond of her. Ning Shuqian had embarrassed her at your homecoming party, so I also wished to help her regain her ground.”
With the mention of Madam Shen, Wen Xinya couldn’t help but laugh. “Yup, Madam Shen is really an interesting character. You didn’t see the way Madam Shen made Ning Shuqian so angry that she gritted her teeth—it really cheered people greatly.”
Aunt Zhou and Madam Shen were on good terms, and last night Aunt Zhou had introduced Madam Shen to her. She was fond of Madam Shen’s forthcoming and direct personality and felt a tinge of guilt in her heart for plotting against her.
“Although Aunt Shen is shrewish, she’s a great person. Although she’s not as widely-known as Aunt Zhou, her contributions towards charity are comparable to that of Aunt Zhou.”
Wen Xinya felt enlightened. “No wonder she’s on such great terms with Aunt Zhou.”
Zhou Tianyu added, “Oh yes, regarding my suggestion for you to come and study at the Lan Feng Institute at the last gathering—have you decided on it already? School’s starting in a few days.”
Wen Xinya answered, “I’ve been busy with my studies lately and almost forgot about this. I’ve yet to inform my Grandpa and Grampy, but I doubt there’ll be any issues.”
Zhou Tianyu said happily, “That’s great, then! We can study at the same school.” Then, she lamented. “Such a pity that Xu-er is going to the Northwest Military Camp, Han Mofeng is also going to a military school, and Ling Qingxuan is at the Ching Hua High School—when school starts we won’t be able to gather frequently anymore.”
Mentioning this, Wen Xinya also felt slightly saddened. Xu-er’s departure to the Northwest Military Camp still bothered her—she wished for Xu-er to have his own life, to accept his family’s arrangements to go to a military camp, but not to such a far away and dangerous place such as the Northwest. However, since Xu-er had insisted, there was nothing much she could say.