Chapter 215: Chapter 215: The Tidal Wave
Jin Ling had never practiced dance before, and attempting the splits made her feel like she was on the brink of losing her life, her face quickly alternating between red and white.
"Pfft."
Someone in the crowd couldn’t hold back a laugh, and once one started, others soon followed, as there’s safety in numbers.
"Shut up, all of you shut up!" Jin Ling, her face flushed with embarrassment, shouted loudly, trying to endure the pain from her torn ligaments.
But no one at the scene heeded her, and people continued to laugh amongst themselves.
"Ahhhh! I won’t let any of you off the hook, I’ll make you all pay, pay the price." Jin Ling screamed at the top of her lungs with the sharpest voice possible.
Seeing Jin Ling suffer the consequences of her actions, Xu Ke lost interest in continuing any form of revenge, but he still glanced at Lin Mengyao, for it was Mengyao who was about to be sneak-attacked. Even though they were married, he had no right to decide on her behalf whether or not to let it slide.
"Do you want to get back at her? Whatever you want, I can make it happen, don’t worry about her status," Xu Ke whispered in Lin Mengyao’s ear.
"To be honest, I was quite startled just now." Lin Mengyao cleared her throat, placing her slightly warm hand over Xu Ke’s arm that was holding her, and continued in a low voice, "But she’s already suffered, so I don’t want to pursue it further. However, I don’t want to continue attending this dance either, let’s go home." Lin Mengyao looked at Xu Ke with a slightly weary yet pleading gaze.
Xu Ke felt his heart melting into a puddle.
"Alright, let’s do as you say. Let’s go home now." Xu Ke agreed without hesitation, turning around with Lin Mengyao to leave.
"Mr. Xu, please wait." Jin Yuyan, seeing Xu Ke about to leave, instinctively called out to stop him.
"What is it?" Faced with any woman other than Lin Mengyao, all the warmth in Xu Ke’s smile and eyes disappeared. He even felt a bit of resentment towards Jin Yuyan because of what Jin Ling had just said. Although he had no feelings for Jin Yuyan, she apparently had some interest in him, but such feelings shouldn’t exist and needed to be nipped in the bud.
Xu Ke’s expression turned even colder.
Jin Yuyan understood all too well from Xu Ke’s reaction at that moment.
She felt her mouth turn bitter all of a sudden, as if she had just chewed on ten bitter gourds, and her eyes began to water, but in front of so many people, she could only hold back her tears.
"The dance hasn’t yet reached the halfway point, so I hope Mr. Xu and Mrs. Xu can stay a bit longer. What just happened was merely an accident, and the Jin family will give you an explanation," Jin Yuyan said in as steady a voice as possible, enduring the pain from her hand.
Old Master Jin, who had been firmly gripping Jin Yuyan’s hand, finally let go after she spoke, and her wrist started to swell noticeably.
"There’s no need. I’m not feeling well and would like to go home to rest, so we’ll take our leave now. I hope it won’t spoil your fun," Lin Mengyao said, pressing down on Xu Ke’s hand and pulling herself closer into his embrace, silently declaring her claim.
"Alright then, health is important. We’ll bring gifts to apologize another day," Jin Yuyan said, her voice slightly tense.
This time, Lin Mengyao didn’t refuse, nodding slightly with a somewhat cold expression, as she pulled Xu Ke to leave the dance first.
In the dance hall, seeing Xu Ke and Lin Mengyao leaving without any difficulty, Jin Ling was almost driven mad. She had lost all her face and decided to go for broke, pointing her plump finger at Old Master Jin and Jin Yuyan, and shouted loudly, "Is the Jin family going to ruin itself? Letting them stomp all over my head like this, I will definitely report this to my grandfather, let him see how his good brother is taking care of his precious granddaughter and grandson. I want to see how you will explain this to my grandfather then."
"Hmph, I will also ask your grandfather if you were sent here to become my enemies?" Xu Ke and Lin Mengyao had already left, but thinking about the coldness in their eyes when they left, Old Master Jin knew the relationship between the two families had developed a crack. The happiness he felt when he saw Jin Ling and Jin Long, the brother and sister, moments ago had vanished completely, leaving only disgust in his eyes.
"You two, take her to her room. Don’t allow her to come out without my permission, and have the maids pack up their luggage. Book two tickets to Bai City for them immediately, and let them get as far away as possible by tomorrow morning." The veins on Old Master Jin’s neck bulged out, and his gaze at Jin Ling was filled with cold hostility.
The servants who received the order went directly to Jin Ling’s side, disregarded her struggles, and dragged her from the floor up to a room upstairs.
Old Master Jin’s series of thundering actions left bystanders both satisfied with the spectacle and curious about what kind of influence Lin Mengyao and Xu Ke had, that the Jin family would rather tear apart familial ties with their blood relatives to protect them.
The guests at the dance were all sharp individuals, none of whom were simple. The only difference was their speed of reaction. Some onlookers had already gleaned insights from the day’s events and decided to privately strengthen their connections with Lin Mengyao and Xu Ke.
Some, thinking one step further, resolved to use their networks to dig into Xu Ke’s past before he arrived in Luo City. After all, they had noticed that Old Master Jin’s attitude toward Xu Ke was notably warmer than it was toward Lin Mengyao.
On that day, the Luo City’s upper class experienced another wave of intrigue, while at the center of it, Xu Ke and Lin Mengyao were sitting in their car on the way home.
"Why have you seemed so distant since we left the dance, still upset over that brother and sister?" Xu Ke took one of Lin Mengyao’s hands in his, asking gently.
"It’s not about them." Lin Mengyao replied, obviously in a low mood.
"Then what is it that’s making you unhappy?" Xu Ke asked, frowning slightly.
Lin Mengyao looked up at Xu Ke, her eyes reflecting tiny fragments of light. After a long time, just when Xu Ke thought he wouldn’t get an answer, Lin Mengyao finally spoke softly, "You and Jin Yuyan, you two..." Lin Mengyao bit her lower lip, her expression torn, with a hint of sorrow she herself hadn’t noticed.
"Forget it, don’t say anything. As long as I’m the one you like now, it’s enough." Lin Mengyao said, the end of her previous sentence barely falling before the next one hurriedly came out.