“Is Aunt Ji having her wedding in Peng City?”

While Zhen Wenxiu was beaming with joy, Ning Xue immediately caught the key point.

Could it be that Ji Ya had changed her marriage partner? If she was marrying George, the wedding should be held in the capital – after all, the Ji family had been settled there for decades!

Zhen Wenxiu didn’t seem concerned, “What’s strange about having it in Peng City? George’s main business development is there now, and they might want to invite some of his business associates to the wedding.”

Put that way, it made some sense. Ning Xue didn’t spend much energy on these interpersonal relationships and didn’t dwell on them further.

Zhen Wenxiu was very excited and wanted Ning Xue to join her in attending Ji Ya’s wedding in Peng City.

Ning Xue was curious about Xia Xiaolan’s activities in Peng City anyway, so she agreed to her mother’s request. Zhen Wenxiu looked her daughter up and down: “You dress too plainly usually. For your Aunt Ji’s wedding, you should wear something more festive and pretty.”

“Alright, I’ll find time to buy some new clothes.”

What to eat or wear wasn’t important to Ning Xue. She’d rather spend her free time studying more. There were no born geniuses in this world – knowledge was accumulated bit by bit. If there was any difference, it was that people with high intelligence like Ning Xue could remember more knowledge in the same amount of time and understand things faster.

Most of Ning Xue’s clothes were in dark colors, requiring no effort to match and being more durable.

But her mother had a point. It was Aunt Ji’s wedding after all. Though Ning Xue’s impression of Ji Ya wasn’t as good as before, the Ning and Ji families were old friends, and basic courtesy should be maintained.

Zhen Wenxiu raised her eyebrows, “You’re going to choose clothes yourself? You’ll just buy plain things again. Let Mother take you shopping – and let’s not wait, we’ll go now.”

Left to herself, Ning Xue, who barely even liked shopping, had probably only voluntarily visited the ‘Blue Phoenix’ clothing store.

Thinking about how Ning Xue was going to help with Xia Xiaolan’s business made Zhen Wenxiu very irritated.

She took Ning Xue directly to Ji Ya’s studio in Wangfujing.

Ji Ya had invested heavily in this studio, and although she had been away for the past two or three months, the studio was still developing steadily.

Ji Ya set the overall direction and delegated the specific work to others, seeing nothing wrong with this approach – she paid their salaries, so naturally, they should work. Besides the foreign designers and assistants she had recruited, Ji Ya had also hired three clothing designers domestically, all poached from Yang City and Hu City. Though Ji Ya considered their skills insufficient, she could only rely on them for basic work.

The studio warmly welcomed Zhen Wenxiu and Ning Xue, knowing that Zhen Wenxiu was Ji Ya’s good friend. While Ji Ya was away from the capital, Zhen Wenxiu often brought clients to the studio.

“Miss Ning has an excellent figure; anything would look good on her.”

This wasn’t mere flattery.

Ning Xue’s appearance wasn’t sweet at all – she had ear-length short hair and was very tall, which was her most remarkable feature.

Ning Xue and Xia Xiaolan’s generation was born in the 1960s. Even though people could eat their fill in that era, nutrition couldn’t compare to later times. Therefore, young women like Ning Xue and Xiaolan, who were nearly 170cm tall, were quite rare, more common in the north but truly unusual in the south.

Being tall without being bulky, without hunching or craning her neck – with such natural advantages, she could wear almost anything and look decent.

The designer’s words pleased Zhen Wenxiu, who modestly replied:

“If only this girl didn’t run around outside so much if her skin were whiter, we wouldn’t need to worry about choosing clothing colors.”

Zhen Wenxiu suddenly thought of Xia Xiaolan, whose skin was very white and glowing, quite alluring – no wonder she had men falling head over heels. Pah! What was Xia Xiaolan anyway? How could she compare to her Xue?

Her Xue didn’t need to rely on appearances; her daughter was excellent in her own right.

Zhen Wenxiu smiled contentedly while Ning Xue patiently waited for the designer to record her measurements:

“Mom, I have afternoon classes, so I should head back to school now.”

Zhen Wenxiu was helpless with Ning Xue, “Go then. Getting you to dress up is just awkward for you anyway.”

After Ning Xue left, Zhen Wenxiu still discussed with the designer, “We need to choose colors that suit her.”

Even if Ji Jiangyuan had conflicts with Ji Ya, how could he not attend his birth mother’s wedding? Zhen Wenxiu still wanted to match Ning Xue with Ji Jiangyuan. Before, she thought it would be convenient when Ning Xue went abroad, and now her thoughts haven’t changed.

They say young girls naturally experience their first love, developing feelings for someone of the opposite sex when they reach a certain age. Zhen Wenxiu had observed for a long time that Ning Xue focused solely on her studies, paying little attention to anyone around her.

The only exception might be Ji Jiangyuan.

The Ning family knew Ji Jiangyuan’s background well – he not only had a birth father who was a mayor but also a stepfather whose career was flourishing. If Ning Xue got together with Ji Jiangyuan, she could rely on both connections.

Rather than letting Ning Xue be deceived by some poor boy at school who might not succeed for years, Zhen Wenxiu had her sights set on Ji Jiangyuan.

The designer flattered her, “Miss Ning’s skin tone is perfect. Caucasians don’t like being too white; they deliberately tan themselves to achieve a wheat complexion. A wheat complexion indicates someone who enjoys outdoor activities and must often vacation – something only possible with money and leisure time.”

This person was repeating what they’d learned from the foreign designers in the studio, but the flattery greatly satisfied Zhen Wenxiu.

Ning Xue fit foreign beauty standards perfectly, and since Ji Jiangyuan grew up abroad, his aesthetic preferences would naturally align with foreigners’.

…

Ning Xue found it strange that Ji Ya was holding her wedding in Peng City.

The Ji family shared the same concern.

Most of the Ji family’s acquaintances were in the capital.

Ji Ya’s affair with Tang Hongen had become quite a joke in their social circle, with many privately saying Ji Ya lacked foresight – if she had been willing to endure a few years of hardship with Tang Hongen back then, she would have been a mayor’s wife now.

Even with Old Ji’s passing, if the Ji family had Mayor Tang as a son-in-law, they wouldn’t have declined so sharply.

Life was unpredictable – they divorced anyway, and Ji Ya showed no intention of remarrying. Recently, Ji Lin had even seen Tang Hongen dining with Liu Fen at Quanjude restaurant, so reconciliation seemed impossible.

Given this situation, Ji Lin thought Ji Ya’s marriage to George wasn’t bad.

Especially after the Wilson family invested over a hundred million US dollars in Peng City, the Ji family finally witnessed the Wilson family’s financial power.

One needed either power or wealth.

A woman finding such a marriage partner couldn’t be too bad.

Rather than reconciling with Tang Hongen, Ji Lin wanted to show everyone that his sister’s new husband was no worse!

This wedding should be held in the capital, allowing the Ji family to invite guests broadly and letting Ji Lin vent his frustrations.

However, Ji Ya insisted on holding it in Peng City, and George completely followed Ji Ya’s wishes, giving Ji Lin a massive headache.

Ji Lin’s wife spoke even more bluntly:

“What exactly is your sister trying to do? Why can’t she just have a proper remarriage instead of rushing to Peng City? In such a short time, she’s already forgotten the troubles the Ji family encountered… Just thinking about Ji Ya makes me anxious, I can’t sleep well at night. Look what Ji Ya has done to me this past year!”