The slender wrist of the girl bore a noticeable red mark. Her overly pale skin made the redness stand out even more glaringly.
Su Banxia was now his wife, and Shang Jingyao’s disrespect towards her was akin to a slap in Shang Lu’s face.
Shang Lu’s dark eyes coldly fixed on Shang Jingyao. His half-brother, only three years younger, was distinctly different from him. Shang Lu faintly remembered their mother’s heart-wrenching cries from when he was very young.
Unlike him, Shang Jingyao had always been the apple of their father’s eye and held a higher status in the family. He harbored little respect for Shang Lu as his elder brother.
With a detached look in his eyes, Shang Lu commanded, “Shang Jingyao, apologize to Su Banxia.”
Shang Jingyao, who had just felt the unyielding grip of Shang Lu’s personal bodyguard, glanced at him with disdain. His wrist still throbbed from the encounter.
With a smoldering anger, he scoffed, “Big brother, you want me to apologize to this woman?”
Su Banxia, standing confidently beside Shang Lu, reminded, “What do you mean ‘this woman’? I am now your elder brother’s wife. You should address me as your sister-in-law.”
Shang Jingyao, holding back his frustration, retorted disrespectfully, “You think you’re worthy of that title?”
“Big brother, are you aware of how she used to pester me?” he mocked coldly. “Do you really not know what her intentions are in marrying you?”
“What she intends is none of your concern,” Shang Lu replied icily, repeating his demand, “Apologize.”
Shang Jingyao’s face turned sour. Despite his reluctance, Su Banxia’s status as his sister-in-law was a fact. Seeing Shang Lu firmly taking her side, he grudgingly muttered an apology and stormed off.
Shang Lu, with a stern face, began to wheel away. Su Banxia quickly followed him, saying, “You heard what I said earlier, right? It was him who kept bothering me, not the other way around.”
Shang Lu’s expression remained impassive. He hadn’t heard much of Su Banxia and Shang Jingyao’s argument in the hallway, but Su Banxia’s demeanor made it clear she genuinely disliked Shang Jingyao.
However, he still felt uneasy, as if something that belonged to him had been tampered with.
“I didn’t hear it,” he responded coldly.
His words held a certain heaviness, suggesting annoyance.
He then warned, “Have you forgotten what I said yesterday? Your identity is now my wife. Keep your distance from Shang Jingyao in the future. I don’t want to hear any unsavory rumors.”
Su Banxia felt a twinge of apprehension at his apparent anger.
She didn’t need Shang Lu’s reminder to stay away from the male lead; she didn’t want to get involved in any trouble.
“I will,” she assured.
After eating breakfast together downstairs, Su Banxia saw the male assistant she had met in the hospital that day appear. After reporting the problem, he confirmed his schedule.
“Mr. Shang, there’s a banquet at the Zhu family’s place tonight. Will you be attending?”
Something flashed through Su Banxia’s mind. Although she had forgotten a lot of the original story, the system had refreshed her memory, and now she remembered clearly.
It seemed that Shang Lu attended the Zhu family’s banquet, and at this event, someone maliciously targeted him, causing the brakes of his wheelchair to fail, resulting in him falling into the swimming pool. The consequences for a person with a disability in both legs falling into a pool were, needless to say, disastrous.
Although Shang Lu was eventually rescued, the incident led to him being re-admitted to the hospital. His leg condition worsened due to the immersion, and he was in excruciating pain.
Su Banxia shuddered at the thought and realized she must prevent it.
Shang Lu was now the source of her fortune, and she couldn’t let anything happen to him.
Su Banxia turned around and walked back to them. “What kind of banquet?” she inquired.
Shang Lu and his assistant, Zhou, looked at her.
Su Banxia looked eagerly at Shang Lu and said, “I’m so bored at home. Can you take me with you?”
If she couldn’t stop Shang Lu from attending the banquet, she would accompany him. That way, she could keep an eye out for anyone trying to harm her little deer.
As long as she stayed close to Shang Lu, she could quickly intervene if someone tried to harm him, preventing any injury.
Zhou, the responsible assistant, spoke up, “Mr. Shang, do we need to book a stylist and gown for the lady?”
Shang Lu pursed his lips. Now that he was a married man, and considering the occasion was the Zhu couple’s golden wedding anniversary, it made sense to bring her along.
After asking, Su Banxia stared at Shang Lu, hoping he wouldn’t refuse.
Shang Lu didn’t like people getting close to him, and even with her new status as his wife, it didn’t necessarily mean he would open up even a little bit to accept her.
…
Su Banxia didn’t expect that attending the banquet would be so troublesome, requiring several hours of styling and continuously trying and selecting gowns.
“Why doesn’t Shang Lu need to wear makeup?” Su Banxia thought as she looked through the mirror at the man sitting in the wheelchair. He seemed sculpted by the gods, flawlessly perfect.
The stylist, working on her look, frowned heavily, holding the tools as if unsure how to proceed.
Normally, stylists are very flattering, praising one’s skin, features, and beauty, even without makeup. But for her, all they said was, “Miss Su, your skin is really white.”
Su Banxia knew that having all her fortune taken away was like having one’s vital essence drained. It made her constitution weak, and her skin poor, almost like she was on drugs.
She watched the makeup artist continuously apply concealer around her eyes and quickly intervened, “No need, no need, let it be like this.”
No amount of concealer could hide the dark circles under her eyes. In fact, it only made her appearance more ghastly and terrifying.
Lost in her thoughts, Su Banxia suddenly remembered if Shang Lu and she shared a bed, and he woke up in the middle of the night to see her ghostly face, he might kick her out of the bed.
She chuckled at the thought, then looked sorrowfully at Shang Lu. No wonder he didn’t allow her to sleep in the bed last night.
Shang Lu accidentally met her gaze, puzzled by her sudden laughter and then her woeful expression.
“Unsatisfied?” he assumed she was unhappy with the styling.
The makeup artist looked tense, “Miss Su, what are you unsatisfied with?”
“It’s nothing,” Su Banxia blinked, “It’s not your fault, please continue.”
Because she had cut her long hair, it was challenging for the stylist to work with her short hair. The stylist was sweating, “Miss Su, about your hair…”
“What about it?” Su Banxia asked.
The stylist awkwardly replied, “It’s quite thick.”
Su Banxia paused for a moment. The original owner of the body had long, thick hair, naturally abundant and of good quality. After her fortune was stripped away, the quality of her hair deteriorated significantly.
Stylists usually compliment people on their good skin and hair, but it must have been a first for them to encounter a rich heiress with skin and hair as poor as Su Banxia’s. They were at a loss for words on how to flatter her.
Su Banxia touched her hair and said quietly, “Just do a simple hairstyle.”
The stylist praised her thick hair but struggled to work with it. The makeup was time-consuming, and styling her hair took even longer.
Bored, Su Banxia half-dozed off until she was gently awakened. Looking in the mirror, she was astounded by her transformation. It’s no wonder makeup is considered one of the four great arts of deception; even someone as unattractive as her could turn into a swan with the right styling.
Standing up, Su Banxia approached the mirror and disliked the color of the lipstick applied by the stylist – a shade of orange-red that didn’t suit her pale skin.
Noticing her dissatisfaction, the makeup artist asked, “Miss Su, would you like to change the lipstick color?”
Su Banxia declined help and said, “I’ll do it myself.” She wiped off the lipstick with a wet tissue and chose a classic red shade, applying it while looking in the mirror.
Under the bright lights of the makeup mirror, her exquisitely made-up face glowed. She looked like a movie star as she applied her lipstick, creating an atmospheric scene.
The stylist and assistant were mesmerized by her transformation. Indeed, with enough money, anyone can look stunningly beautiful.
Zhou, the assistant, nudged the bodyguard, Xiang Lei, commenting on how beautiful Su Banxia looked with makeup, even more so than Mu Ruxue, whom Shang Lu’s younger brother was pursuing.
“Who?” Xiang Lei asked.
Zhou explained it was Su Banxia’s sister, the adopted daughter of the Su family, Mu Ruxue. Xiang Lei thought about it and admitted that Su Banxia, with her alluring charm and beauty, was far more stunning than the pure and innocent-looking Mu Ruxue.
Agreeing, he said, “Miss Su is more beautiful.”
Hearing their conversation, Shang Lu glanced at Su Banxia, who was discussing which dress to wear with the stylist.
“Zhou,” Shang Lu said coolly, “find out how much longer it will take.”
“Understood, Mr. Shang.”
…….
Before leaving for the Zhu family’s event, Su Banxia called out to Shang Lu, “Wait a few more minutes.”
Shang Lu frowned slightly, “Wait for what?”
They would be late for the banquet if they didn’t leave soon. He wondered what she was up to.
Su Banxia made a phone call, “Xiong Da, why haven’t you arrived yet?”
“Almost there, Miss,” a voice replied from the other end.
Shortly after, a cold-looking bodyguard in black attire arrived, carrying several small boxes. Su Banxia, holding up her dress, hurried over, “Why did it take so long?”
“Sorry, Miss, there was a traffic jam,” Xiong Da explained.
“Okay, okay, hurry up and get the car ready,” Su Banxia said, returning to Shang Lu with the boxes. “Let’s go now.”
In the low-key but luxurious car, Su Banxia and Shang Lu sat on opposite sides, as if separated by a river. She glanced at his profile.
The dim light in the car cast his handsome face in shadows, his exquisite features maintaining a detached coolness that made it hard to breathe loudly around him.
Su Banxia opened the box to reveal delicate pastries and asked, “Do you want some?”
Shang Lu turned to look at her.
Su Banxia bit into a pastry, “At the banquet, we’ll have to drink a lot. You should eat something to fill your stomach.”
Holding a new piece to his lips, she insisted, “This bakery makes delicious pastries, just try a bite. Drinking on an empty stomach is bad, please eat something.”
“I don’t want it,” Shang Lu said, his thin lips pressed together as he glanced at the pastry. Su Banxia persisted, “Just taste it. It’s really good, and it’ll help with the alcohol.”
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