Ji Rong replied, "There's nothing we can do. This girl has always had a small appetite since she was little, and all sorts of supplements haven't helped her eat more."
Lin Zhipeng said with a smile, "Auntie, that's just my constitution."
Sister Qing nodded, looked Lin Zhipei up and down, and said, "I must say, this girl looks quite like you. They look like mother and daughter."
Lin Zhipei smiled.
Ji Rong grinned and replied, "We are mother and daughter, very close."
Sister Qing nodded: "Alright, I saw Mrs. Zhang. I'll go find her first, and we'll talk later."
After seeing Sister Qing off, Lin Zhipei's smile vanished instantly.
Her father and Ji Rong remarried more than ten years ago, and over the years, people outside have almost regarded her as Ji Rong's biological daughter.
Even more so, because Lin Leyao concealed her identity, Ji Rong often kept her by her side, and now all the nouveau riche outside thought she was Ji Rong's biological daughter.
Ji Rong was actually very good to her, but over the years she has never felt a sense of belonging to her current family.
Her biological mother treated her very well before she got sick, and no one could compare to the importance of her biological mother to her.
While Lin Zhipei was in a daze, Lin Leyao finally arrived.
When Ji Rong saw Lin Leyao appear, her eyes lit up and a smile appeared on her face.
Ji Rong was unhappy that Lin Leyao was a star and that she didn't go to business school to inherit the family business. She had argued with this daughter countless times before, but it couldn't be said that she didn't like her daughter.
Anyone would be happy to see their beautiful and charming daughter come to celebrate their birthday, and Ji Rong was especially happy to see Lin Leyao appear.
Lin Leyao handed a gift box to Ji Rong.
The mother and daughter hugged, and Lin Leyao whispered in a voice that no one else could hear, "Happy birthday, Mom."
Ji Rong nodded, touched Lin Leyao's arm, and asked, "Have you had dinner yet? If not, go to the snack area to have something to eat."
"good."
After a brief exchange, Lin Leyao went to sit on the sofa in the snack area.
Next to Lin Leyao came Xin Ying.
Ji Rong was prepared, and when she saw Xin Ying appear, her eyes crinkled with a smile.
Near the entrance, a group of ladies who had just entered gathered together and chatted. When they saw Xin Ying come in, some of them who didn't recognize her immediately asked whose daughter she was.
Soon, some of the young people brought by their mothers said, "Isn't this Xin Ying, the president of Huanning Group?"
"The youngest daughter of the Xin family?"
"So this is the youngest daughter of the Xin family!"
"I recognize it, I recognize it."
Several wealthy women gathered together, gossiping about Xin Ying and marveling at how she would actually attend Ji Rong's birthday party.
If it were Ji Hongchen's birthday, everyone could understand Xin Ying showing up, but Ji Rong doesn't care about the company's affairs and is just a lazy person who only spends her family's money, so it's surprising that her birthday would attract Xin Ying to come.
Very few wealthy businessmen attended the birthday banquet, and even fewer were involved in collaborations with Huanning Group. Everyone was whispering about the relationship between Ji Rong and Xin Ying.
It's unclear whether Lin Leyao's marriage and departure from the Ji family made Ji Rong feel a sense of emptiness, as her daughter belonged to someone else's family. Ji Rong's attitude has changed a lot recently.
When he was with Lin Leyao, he no longer had the controlling nature he used to have, and the two rarely argued.
Ji Rong and Lin Leyao got along well, so naturally Xin Ying also got along well with her.
After entering the banquet hall, Xin Ying, like Lin Leyao, hugged Ji Rong and gave her the gift she had brought.
Ji Rong smiled and patted her shoulder, saying, "Yao Yao is in the dessert section."
Xin Ying nodded: "Okay, thank you, Mom."
The older, wealthy wives were now discussing Xin Ying, with stories about her parents and siblings, as well as her own life, generating considerable buzz and sparking a lively discussion.
However, the younger girls and boys all had their eyes on Lin Leyao.
Kids this age love interacting with celebrities.
Lin Leyao was the only celebrity invited to Ji Rong's birthday party, which surprised everyone. Some people were curious about the relationship between Lin Leyao and Ji Rong.
Some of the older, wealthy wives looked at Lin Leyao, who had just entered and was sitting on the sofa in the snack area, engrossed in playing on her phone, and seemed to be deep in thought.
Lin Leyao was alone, which was the perfect time to strike up a conversation.
A girl of about thirteen or fourteen stood next to a lady and said with a pained expression, "Mom, I want to go to the pastry section."
"What are you doing over there!"
"I want to take a picture with Lin Leyao, please let me through!"
"You just stay by my side and don't go anywhere! What's so interesting about celebrities!"
The little girl twisted her body, crying, "No, no, I want to go!"
"Do you know that this celebrity isn't a good person? How old are you? What if you get corrupted by liking a celebrity like that?"
"Those scandals about celebrities online are deliberately released by their rivals!"
"What do you mean, 'rival's' or 'mine'? You're not allowed to go there!"
After being rejected multiple times, the little girl pouted and tears immediately fell.
Someone came over and asked, "Mrs. Li, what's wrong? Why is the little girl crying?"
Mrs. Li glared at her daughter and said coldly, "This girl insists on going to see that celebrity, but I won't let her go."
"Who is it? Oh, it's Lin Leyao."
"Auntie will take you there. Do you want to go, baby?"
The little girl silently wiped away her tears.
Seeing her daughter like this, Mrs. Li gritted her teeth in anger: "I knew I shouldn't have brought you out, you shameful thing!"
"Hey, hey, hey, little girl, don't speak so harshly."
Li Tai said angrily, "We won't allow her to take the photos. Haven't you heard about Lin Leyao's affair? She's been hooking up with a rich businessman behind his back. What's the point of taking photos with a celebrity like that? This girl is young and easily blindly follows the crowd. Don't let her lead her astray!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Mrs. Li felt a chill run through her body.
She immediately turned her head and looked around, and saw a woman with shoulder-length short hair walk past her.
The woman's gaze fell upon her, and for some reason, Mrs. Li felt as if that gaze were a knife chilled to the bone, piercing her fiercely.
Mrs. Li quickly looked away, glanced at her daughter who was still secretly wiping away tears, sighed helplessly, and asked, "Don't cry, I'll take you to play with your older brother and sister."
Xin Ying walked through the crowd, past the stares of those around her, and reached the snack area.
"Are you full?"
Xin Ying stood in front of Lin Leyao and asked.
Lin Leyao was playing on her phone when she heard the voice and looked up abruptly. She saw Xin Ying standing in front of the table, smiling and looking at her.
Lin Leyao pointed to the half-eaten snack on the table and said, "It tastes alright, you should try some too."
Xin Ying sat down next to Lin Leyao, and Lin Leyao placed the pastries she had just eaten and thought tasted good in front of Xin Ying.
The two sat together without going out to greet others. Many people stood at a distance, secretly observing them, while others secretly recorded them with their phones.
Lin Leyao glanced at the people taking pictures of her with their phones, then quickly looked away without stopping them.
The two seemed like people living in seclusion deep in the mountains and forests, creating a barrier between themselves and others in the noisy banquet hall, immersing themselves in their own world.
Ji Rong came to find Lin Leyao, wanting to introduce her to some elders, but Lin Leyao refused, not wanting to reveal her identity.
Knowing her daughter's thoughts, Ji Rong didn't force her, and instead chatted with Lin Zhipei and her friends' wives.
Not long after, Ji Rong, who had left, came back and asked Xin Ying if she could talk to her friend about business matters.
Xin Ying was quickly called away by Ji Rong, leaving Lin Leyao alone in the sofa area.
After Xin Ying left, Lin Leyao started playing on her phone by herself.
Many young people came over to chat with Lin Leyao and take photos with her. Lin Leyao was always gentle and took photos with everyone.
Suddenly, a loud "bang" came from not far away.
Lin Leyao's gaze was immediately drawn to the source of the sound.
An elegantly dressed lady accidentally tripped and fell, knocking over a champagne car parked nearby.
This unexpected event stunned everyone.
"Mrs. Li, are you alright?"
"Mrs. Li, are you hurt?"
Lin Leyao looked away, no longer paying attention to the unexpected incident, and continued playing with her phone.
Suddenly, darkness fell in front of her as the light in front of her was blocked.
She looked up and saw a young man with a refined and cultured demeanor, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, standing in front of her with a gentle smile on his face.
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Author's Note:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 18:19:33 on April 30, 2022 and 23:59:27 on May 1, 2022!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: 55157345 (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 97
"Hello."
The man greeted Lin Leyao with a gentle smile.
Lin Leyao nodded to him and replied, "Hello."
Have we met before?
The man chuckled to himself after saying that, and quickly explained, "I didn't mean to hit on you. You do look like one of my junior high school classmates."