Chapter 22: The Smile of Affection

“Miss Lu, you flatter me,” the servant coughed lightly, masking her unease with a smile. “I’m just an ordinary worker, nothing as extraordinary as you say.”

“Honestly, among everyone in the old manor, you have the most grace.”

“If you say any more, I might just believe you.”

“Every word is true.”

The servant didn’t dare continue the conversation, hastily excusing herself with a quick, “I have things to attend to,” before making her escape.

Lu Yao watched the servant flee in such a rush, suspicion flickering in her mind.

In the shadows, the servant pulled out her phone and swiftly composed a text. Once it showed as sent, she immediately deleted everything.

...

In the main building, Qiao Wan’er was sitting beside Yang Lan, discussing the seating arrangement for the main table guests. Yang Lan had only reserved three seats for the Qiao family, less than a third of the total, far below their expectations.

Qiao Wan’er couldn’t embarrass Yang Lan directly, so she looked to Ye Zehong for help.

Just then, Ye Zehong’s phone rang.

He quickly opened the message.

[Unknown Number: The matter is taken care of!]

Attached was a candid photo—Lu Yao.JPG.

Ye Zehong gazed at the picture, at Lu Yao’s dazed, foolish expression, a subtle smile curling at his lips. His eyes lingered on the photo, zooming in and out, staring for a long while before finally putting his phone away.

From Qiao Wan’er’s seat, she could only vaguely see Ye Zehong was looking at a woman’s photo.

But the smile on his face was unmistakably clear to her.

That smile, so evident, was the smile of a mature man showing affection for a woman who had caught his interest.

She had pined for Ye Zehong for years, yet never received such a smile.

Pain stabbed through her heart; her fingers dug sharply into her palm.

From childhood, whenever a woman deliberately approached Ye Zehong, she would secretly find that woman and warn her not to come near him. All these years, she had never seen Ye Zehong show interest in anyone, nor entangle himself with any woman.

Over time, she even began to wonder if Ye Zehong’s preferences leaned toward men.

But her intuition told her that smile just now meant...

Ye Zehong was in love.

Her gaze turned venomous in an instant, her five fingers clenched so tightly that her nails threatened to pierce her flesh.

She had to find out which woman dared to touch her man.

She would destroy that woman!

Ye Zehong sensed Qiao Wan’er’s stare and frowned, “Is there something you need?”

Qiao Wan’er was momentarily stunned, then quickly replaced her expression with a gentle and charming smile. She moved over to sit beside Ye Zehong, affectionately linking her arm with his, and said, “Before coming to the old manor, my father told me to make sure Uncle Ye arranged proper seats for Uncle Qin and his party of five, so we wouldn’t offend them. But now I’ve realized there aren’t enough seats. I don’t know how I’ll explain this to my father when I return.”

The “Uncle Qin” she referred to was Qin Fei and his colleagues, all prominent figures in high positions.

Yang Lan’s expression shifted instantly, surprised that Qiao Wan’er would play such a trick.

Ye Zehong’s face remained impassive. Without a word, he gently removed her hand from his arm and replied coolly, “Just replace the others who aren’t important. Problem solved.”

“The other guests aren’t easy to move. Apart from the Ye family elders who must sit at the main table, the rest are all Ye mother’s...” She deliberately left out the words “family,” sighing as if she were at a loss.

Yang Lan glanced at Qiao Wan’er’s pretentious expression and said calmly, “If there aren’t enough seats, just add a few more. A little crowding doesn’t matter. After all, the focus that day is on you all. Young people can handle things as they go—no need to worry about being laughed at.”

Qiao Wan’er’s smile froze.

Wasn’t this just setting up the Qiao family to be embarrassed?