Chapter One Hundred: The Shen Family’s Annual Banquet

When Jiang Yunzhu went to the hospital to visit Madam Shen, she found Shen Ruizhang arriving in haste. Her brows furrowed in immediate displeasure. “Uncle, why are you only coming now?”

Shen Ruizhang looked at Jiang Yunzhu with a cold, expressionless face. Thinking of the unborn child that had been lost, he harbored resentment toward her.

“Since when did you gain the right to dictate when I arrive?”

Jiang Yunzhu’s expression stiffened as she watched Shen Ruizhang pass her by, his demeanor frigid and indifferent, leaving her puzzled. What’s wrong with him? Why does it seem like he’s angry?

Madam Shen, upon seeing her son, felt a weight lift from her heart.

“Come here, let me take a look at you.”

Gazing at his mother lying in the hospital bed, Shen Ruizhang was overcome with remorse. He had been the cause of her worry.

“Mother, I’m home.”

Madam Shen’s eyes instantly reddened. “It’s good you’re home, that’s all that matters. You nearly scared me to death—I thought I’d have to send my own child to the grave.”

Shen Ruizhang smiled faintly. “Mother, you’re exaggerating. It was only some discrepancies in the company accounts. As soon as they were settled, I was released.”

At these words, Madam Shen turned her gaze to Jiang Yunzhu.

Smiling, Jiang Yunzhu called out, “Grandmother.”

Madam Shen looked back at Shen Ruizhang. “It’s your own fault for not paying attention to what was happening underneath you, letting so much money be embezzled. If it weren’t for Yunzhu running around for you these past days, who else could have managed to balance those accounts for you?”

Shen Ruizhang paused, casting a sidelong glance at Jiang Yunzhu.

He replied with a curt, indifferent hum.

Madam Shen, too, noticed his coldness and her face darkened.

“Shen Ruizhang, treat Yunzhu well!”

“I know.”

Madam Shen wanted to say more, but Shen Ruizhang changed the subject so swiftly she had no chance to continue.

The atmosphere in the hospital room became even more stifling.

Jiang Yunzhu did not force herself to endure it. She quietly took a seat on the bench outside.

It was only when Shen Ruizhang came out that Jiang Yunzhu prepared to return inside.

“Let’s talk.”

Jiang Yunzhu paused, looking at him in confusion. “You’ve only just gotten out of prison. Why not rest a few days before talking to me?”

Shen Ruizhang’s face was grim as he reached out and seized her wrist.

Jiang Yunzhu felt pain shoot through her arm and frowned deeply. “Let go! Uncle, you’re hurting me!”

Shen Ruizhang paid no heed, pulling her into a stairwell before releasing her.

“Jiang Yunzhu, just how far do you need to go before you’re satisfied?”

She rubbed her wrist, raising her brows. “What do you mean? I don’t understand.”

“The child in Zhou Qingfei’s belly is gone—was it your doing? When did you become so cruel that you can’t even tolerate an innocent child?”

Jiang Yunzhu was stunned by Shen Ruizhang’s accusation. She hadn’t expected Zhou Qingfei to lose the child. After all, that baby was her lifeline—how could it be gone just like that? How suspicious.

“Uncle, are you accusing me of doing something to Miss Zhou?”

“Who else could it be?”

Jiang Yunzhu let out a cold laugh, unsurprised by his reaction. As long as something happened to Zhou Qingfei, she would always be the one blamed.

“She’s under police watch now. How could I have possibly gotten in to harm her?”

She could not be bothered to argue further. “I still have something to discuss with Grandmother, so I won’t waste any more time with you.”

Her indifference only stung Shen Ruizhang further.

“Yunzhu! She’s lost her child—can’t that atone for what she’s done?”

Jiang Yunzhu, having walked a few steps away, stopped and looked back coldly at Shen Ruizhang, who was still pleading for Zhou Qingfei.

“If not for the debts I owe, I wouldn’t have bothered to help settle your accounts. Uncle, what right do you have to ask me to forgive her? Do you really think you and she are any different?”

With a cold sneer, Jiang Yunzhu turned and left.

Her words left Shen Ruizhang rooted to the spot, staring rigidly at her departing figure.

Back in the hospital room, Madam Shen asked about what had happened.

Jiang Yunzhu, looking bewildered, replied, “I’m not sure, perhaps he’s in a bad mood after being inside for so long. He’ll be fine in a few days.”

Madam Shen sighed. “That child can be unreliable at times. Yunzhu, in a few days it’s the Shen family’s annual gathering at the main residence. You’re Shen Ruizhang’s wife now—you must attend.”

Jiang Yunzhu’s eyes flickered. “I understand. I’ll be there.”

“At that time, you’ll attend together with Shen Ruizhang. If anyone gives you trouble, be sure to tell him.”

Jiang Yunzhu’s lips lifted in a smile. “Grandmother, who would dare bully the new bride?”

Madam Shen looked at her kindly. “The people at the main house hold themselves in high regard; it’s only natural some may try to cause trouble. You mustn’t get into any conflict with them.”

Jiang Yunzhu nodded, and after Madam Shen finished her instructions, she fell into an exhausted sleep.

As for the Shen family’s annual banquet, Shen Tingxiao had already mentioned it to her in advance. She knew she must prepare.

On the day of the annual banquet, Jiang Yunzhu called Shen Ruizhang several times, but no one answered. Her face darkened.

“Miss Jiang, do you wish to keep waiting?”

She hadn’t expected Shen Ruizhang to disappear at such a crucial moment, and anger tightened her grip on her phone.

As time for the banquet grew short, she dared not delay any longer.

She had to give face to the main family, lest they use it as an excuse to find fault.

“No need to wait. Let’s go.”

Jiang Yunzhu sent a message to Shen Tingxiao and then closed her eyes to rest.

Upon arrival, Jiang Yunzhu attended the banquet at the main house alone.

As she entered, all eyes in the hall turned to her, as if she were some rare specimen under scrutiny.

The attention made her distinctly uncomfortable.

“So you’re Shen Ruizhang’s new wife, aren’t you?” A middle-aged man smiled at her, his tone gentle. “But I’ve heard you were raised by that boy Shen Ruizhang, and you’re his niece. How does a niece end up marrying her uncle? That’s against all sense of propriety.”

Jiang Yunzhu’s hand tightened, but she replied gracefully, “I did grow up in the Shen family, but I share no blood relation with them. There’s nothing improper about it. If I recall correctly, only blood relations would make it so, wouldn’t it?”

The man was unfazed, his voice still instructive. “Sharp-tongued, aren’t you? Still, you grew up together, called him uncle for so many years, and now you do something as disgraceful as this?”

Jiang Yunzhu’s expression shifted. She knew this man was deliberately making things difficult for her, and none of the onlookers stepped in to help.

Some even whispered to their neighbors, criticizing her for being shameless.