Return to before death

Her gaze was sharp as she carefully examined the woman before her. She wore a classic black off-the-shoulder midi dress with no extra accessories, except for a simple white precious necklace around her neck. She had delicate features and a faint smile, exuding an aura that set her apart from everyone else present.

They carried not a trace of worldly dust, but rather an indifferent air.

A natural indifference in bustling places.

Business dealings are all about lively exchanges of interests; this woman is cold at heart...

She silently gave Yan Ran a negative score in her mind, but still smiled and asked without changing her expression, "And this young lady is?"

"This is my sister-in-law. Today is Chairman Sheng's birthday. My sister-in-law has always admired Chairman Sheng, so she came here to pay her a special visit."

Sheng Liuli didn't expose Zong Zhengjing's lie. Instead, she smiled and said, "After dinner, Dad will display his treasured paintings to the guests to pass the time. If Mrs. Zong has time, why don't you join us?"

Yan Ran rarely attended banquets and couldn't distinguish between genuine and fake words. She smiled and agreed. Sheng Liuli's smile deepened, and she couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "She really is a cold and aloof novice."

"Liuli." With a few giggles, a stunningly beautiful woman gracefully arrived. "Liuli, I've been looking for you for so long! What were you two talking about?"

“Xinyin, you’ve come at the right time. Let me introduce you. This is…” Sheng Liuli had only spoken halfway when, with a loud thud, Liu Xinyin’s Dior handbag suddenly fell to the ground. She looked at Yan Ran with a hint of panic in her expression.

Yan Ran was also puzzled. She shook her head at Zong Zhengjing's questioning gaze, indicating that she and this Miss Liu had never met before and did not know each other at all.

"Xinyin, do you know Mrs. Zong?" Sheng Liuli asked in confusion.

"Ah, oh, oh." Liu Xinyin breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that Mrs. Zong and the other two were there.

She gestured for the waiter to pick up her bag from the floor, her expression returning to normal. "At first glance, Mrs. Zong really looks like someone I know. I was startled. Please don't mind, Mrs. Zong."

Although this ambiguous reason sounded ridiculous and no one present believed it, everyone tacitly smoothed things over.

"You're here. Where's Xiaoling?"

"I'm going to keep Uncle Sheng company."

Upon hearing the news about Sheng Xuanling, Yan Ran's eyebrows twitched, followed by a hint of disappointment. With so many people at the banquet, she wondered if she would be able to speak with Sheng Xuanling later.

According to the information she found, Sheng Xuanling was always surrounded by no fewer than ten women.

This encirclement is so tight...

After a while, Sheng Xuanling pushed Sheng Huayan, who was sitting in a wheelchair, in front of everyone. He was full of vigor and handsome. Sheng Xuankang, as the second son, accompanied him behind with a gloomy expression.

Yan Ran rubbed her temples. Had she seen things wrong? She thought she saw Sheng Liuli raise an eyebrow dismissively when Sheng Xuan came out to reward her.

After silently marveling at the gossip surrounding the wealthy, Yan Ran waited quietly for Sheng Huayan to finish his speech, for everyone to take their seats, and then gazed at Sheng Xuanling from afar.

Aside from relatives, most of the people around the Sheng family's table were large upstream and downstream partners or industry leaders with huge scale. In the eyes of the Sheng family, the Zong family was a "small family". Being able to speak with them meant that they were "well-educated and reasonable". When it came to real status, they were ranked far below the 18th tier.

As Yan Ran chewed on her ribs, she mentally complained about this seating arrangement based on "seniority," and sighed that it was really difficult to see Sheng Xuanling.

"Don't worry," Zong Zhengjing comforted softly. "There are many activities after lunch. Sheng Xuanling loves beautiful women the most, so you'll definitely see him by the pool."

Sure enough, after the meal, some played cards, some had fun, some discussed business, and some admired paintings... Meanwhile, Sheng Xuanling appeared precisely around the pool, frolicking and playing with countless hot ladies.

Yan Ran looked down at her waist, which had been damaged by childbirth, and then at the A4 waists of many others, and decided to go out in a formal dress.

Fortunately, apart from two or three beautiful women, Sheng Xuanling wasn't surrounded by the "surroundings" she had imagined.