Xia Xiaolan’s gaze fell lightly upon her.

Xia Ziyu tried to maintain her composure. “I just wanted to…”

“Be good, I’ll accompany you after the banquet,” Du Chengrong’s tone wasn’t harsh, but it carried an unmistakable firmness.

Xia Ziyu dared not act coquettish anymore.

Du Chengrong’s friend tried to mediate: “Mr. Du, it’s natural for newlyweds, and the Fifth Lady is young, it’s normal to be clingy.”

Du Chengrong smiled, “Yes, she’s still young and there are many things I need to teach her personally. I apologize for the embarrassment.”

“Mr. Du, we all envy your romantic fortune.”

“Haha…”

Given how the conversation had turned, if Xia Ziyu hadn’t left now, she would have lost what little face she had left.

She gently pinched Du Chengrong’s arm, as if she had merely been playfully flirting earlier, then walked away in her high heels to sit at another table.

Fortunately, the event’s host was perceptive enough to pull out a chair for the Fifth Lady, helping Xia Ziyu save some face.

Liu Keying could barely hold her cup steady as she laughed at Xia Ziyu’s embarrassment.

“Little Fifth, you’re new here and don’t understand the rules. Some attention is acceptable – appearing in newspapers today, receiving gifts tomorrow – which of us who came before you haven’t enjoyed such glory? But when Mr. Du is discussing business, we must know our place. Second Sister and Third Sister are here, and even I, who came before you, would never presume to help Mr. Du entertain guests!”

What right did she have to go to that table?

If Du Chengrong had truly let Xia Ziyu accompany guests at another table today, even the invisible Third Lady wouldn’t have been pleased.

These were the rules Du Chengrong had established over the years.

They could socialize with other wealthy ladies, but they could never entertain Du Chengrong’s business associates!

Mocked by Liu Keying, Xia Ziyu felt a dull pain in her stomach.

She placed her hand on her belly, trying to calm her emotions. She knew that in the first trimester, the pregnancy was unstable, and she couldn’t afford emotional upheavals.

The protective charm in her belly couldn’t come to harm!

Seeing Xia Ziyu compose herself, the Second Lady glanced at her stomach.

Du Chengrong and Xia Ziyu hadn’t announced the news yet, but everyone in the Du household knew about her pregnancy.

Pregnant women were delicate, so nobody objected to Mr. Du bringing Xia Ziyu to enter together today.

Though Xia Ziyu had received such special treatment and felt somewhat elated, she shouldn’t have lost all sense of propriety. Her earlier impropriety was probably because she saw her cousin Xia Xiaolan, right?

The second Lady understood the situation, but Liu Keying didn’t.

That didn’t stop Liu Keying from verbally needling Xia Ziyu.

Liu Keying hoped the flesh in Xia Ziyu’s belly would be lost through anger.

Second Lady took a sip of wine and added fuel to the fire:

“That Miss Xia Xiaolan isn’t Zhaohui’s companion today. Mr. Du admires her abilities, which is why he arranged for her to be seated at the adjacent table.”

Xia Ziyu didn’t immediately react.

“What abilities does he admire?”

Du Chengrong liked to play with women, and her face had been deliberately modeled after Xia Xiaolan’s temperament. If she were to carefully imitate the makeup as well, they would look quite similar. Could it be that Du Chengrong had taken an interest in Xia Xiaolan… No, impossible. Liu Fen had remarried the Mayor of Pengcheng, and with Xia Xiaolan’s family background now, even if Du Chengrong wanted to play with women, he couldn’t touch Xia Xiaolan!

As Xia Ziyu’s heart raced, Liu Keying carefully studied her face and then looked at Xia Xiaolan.

“Oh, I thought Zhaohui’s Miss Xia looked familiar. Haven’t you noticed? Little Fifth and Miss Xia look somewhat alike.”

Indeed they did.

One was a carefully crafted imitation, the other the original.

Liu Keying and Liu Tianquan exchanged glances.

What a coincidence!

They usually called Fifth Lady Vivi, forgetting she was also surnamed Xia.

What was her given name again?

Xia Ziyu ignored Liu Keying’s probing.

If Du Chengrong protected her, no one could expose her identity.

Even if Liu Keying knew, so what? This matter couldn’t threaten her.

Since Xia Xiaolan hadn’t said anything earlier, Xia Ziyu still felt confident.

…

After Du Chengrong dismissed Xia Ziyu with a few words, Xia Xiaolan slowly began to understand Xia Ziyu’s mindset.

Earlier, had Xia Ziyu wanted to play hostess to her, showing off her status as Mrs. Du?

That wouldn’t do at all.

The pregnant Fifth Lady was getting carried away, lacking a clear sense of her position.

Du Chengrong’s affection for Xia Ziyu was like that for a pet cat or dog. Today’s Spring Banquet was meant to promote his two sons, not for Xia Ziyu to steal the spotlight.

Xia Xiaolan had no intention of socializing with Xia Ziyu because Du Chengrong’s seating arrangement made his attitude clear!

She wasn’t seated here as Du Zhaohui’s companion but as a guest of the Chengrong Group.

For Du Chengrong to express admiration for her and invite her to work at Chengrong Group while sending his newly married Fifth Lady to entertain her… wouldn’t such behavior be schizophrenic?

If Du Chengrong didn’t know Xia Ziyu’s background, making such arrangements would be slapping his face.

If Du Chengrong did know Xia Ziyu’s background, he would be even less likely to let Xia Ziyu accompany her.

Either way, it would seem like trying to create enmity with her, so why place her in a seat of honor?

Xia Ziyu couldn’t understand because she didn’t know her well enough, which wasn’t surprising – Xia Xiaolan had always found Xia Ziyu’s intelligence to be inconsistent.

Knowing that Xia Ziyu was still the same as before, having fixed her appearance but not her mind, made Xia Xiaolan feel more at ease.

Just as she sorted this out, while everyone had been teasing Du Chengrong, the lady who had chatted with Xia Xiaolan earlier suddenly smiled and said:

“Mr. Du, we can’t blame Fifth Lady for the misunderstanding. Even we mistook Miss Xia for Zhaohui’s companion. You arranged for her to sit at this table but didn’t introduce Miss Xia’s background to us – that wasn’t very considerate of you!”

“Yes, I wanted to chat with Miss Xia earlier but didn’t know where to begin.”

“Mr. Du, stop keeping us in suspense!”

Du Chengrong laughed heartily:

“You’re all too impatient! I simply hadn’t found the opportunity to introduce her. Don’t underestimate Miss Xia because of her youth. She’s very capable, especially gifted in real estate. At such a young age, she’s already the owner of a real estate company in Pengcheng. Unlike Zhaohui and the others who rely on family support for their small achievements, Miss Xia is self-made… Seeing her reminds me of my younger days when I came to Hong Island as a nobody and built Chengrong Group step by step. I was in my thirties when I made some money, but Miss Xia is only in her early twenties. Truly, the new waves of the Yangtze River push forward the old ones. I have no choice but to accept that I’m aging and must eventually make way for the younger generation.”