Xia Ruya and Lin Yingxin were seated together beneath the porch by the lake, with a platter of fruits and snacks on the stone table in front of them. The porch was large and contained a corner where one could practice the four arts or brew some tea. It added a touch of grace to the place.
The porch was located in the middle of Boya Pavilion and when seated on it, one would be able to see a century-old cinnamon tree. It was fall in October where the cinnamon was fragrant and the golden yellow leaves covered the branches. The flowers smelled sweet and refreshing as well.
Lin Yingxin looked at Xia Ruya and said, “This must be your first time here at Boya Pavilion. Why don’t you take a stroll around the place with the other heiresses? You must understand that Boya Pavilion is not always accessible and you’d have to wait three years to see it again if you miss it this time.”
Lin Yingxin shifted her gaze onto the groups of heiresses in the garden who were strolling around the compound and chatting excitedly and boisterously, perhaps because they were very interested in Boya Xuan.
Since it was their first time there, they ought to do something.
Xia Ruya looked down and picked up the cup of jasmine tea in front of her before taking a sip slowly. “Those heiresses probably don’t know that you can enjoy a picturesque view of the Man Garden when seated in the porch.”
The view of Boya Pavilion’s courtyard was exquisite, but one would easily grow sick of it after looking at it for a few times.
Lin Yingxin could not help but take a look at Xia Ruya, whom she felt was behaving bizarrely after she brought up the topic about Boya Pavilion. However, she could not find a reason.
Xia Ruya raised her head slowly and held Xia Ruya’s gaze. She smiled and said, “There’ll be plenty of chances for me to take a stroll around the garden later.”
Lin Yingxin looked away and exclaimed, “Yeah!”
The two of them were just friends on the surface. Hence, a strange and awkward silence filled the air after they stopped talking.
At this moment, Xia Ruya abruptly exclaimed, “Look over there!”
Lin Yingxin looked in the direction of Xia Ruya’s gaze and exclaimed, “It’s Ye Feiyu. What is she doing here!?!”
She had never heard any news of Ye Feiyu joining the Heiress’ Gala. To her knowledge, Ye Feiyu did not receive an invitation at all. Besides, Ye Feiyu was not the kind to be interested in attending the Heiress’ Gala. In that case, what was she doing here?
Xia Ruya smirked and said, “I heard that Ye Feiyu is close friends with Wen Xinya! The Ye Family is a renowned family of scholars in Capital city and they enjoy a good reputation. It’d be a piece of cake for them to get an invitation.”
The women of the Ye Family were known to be talented and Ye Feiyu was no exception. Although Ye Feiyu did not like the idea of the Heiress’ Gala, she could not stop Wen Xinya from attending. Having had experienced Lin Yingxin’s scheming tricks before, she was undoubtedly well aware of what Lin Yingxin was like. She knew that Lin Yingxin had an ulterior motive for inviting Wen Xinya to the Heiress’ Gala. Hence, she decided to attend because she was worried about her friend.
Lin Yingxin had a sullen expression on her face. Although Xia Ruya did not voice her opinions openly, she knew what exactly she was driving at. “I didn’t think of this. Feiyu is my cousin and I’ve always known her to be willful and ill-tempered. Even my uncle can’t tolerate her temper. I wonder what Wen Xinya fed her with to convince her to attend the Heiress’ Gala.”
She was just trying to say that Ye Feiyu was ignorant and had allowed herself to let Wen Xinya make use of her.
Xia Ruya was an expert at pulling tricks and hence, did not think much of her words. “Since Ye Feiyu is here, Wen Xinya will definitely show up.”
It was already 9:50 AM and all of the heiresses, except Wen Xinya, were present. Although she was certain that Wen Xinya would show up, she was still a little worried because Wen Xinya had always been unpredictable. Hence, they were worried that she would be getting up to some tricks.
Lin Yingxin heaved a sigh of relief and said, “As long as Wen Xinya shows up, our plan will proceed smoothly.”
Xia Ruya put down her teacup and remained silent, smiling.
The temperatures were much cooler in October and hence, Lin Yingxin was freezing because of how revealing her clothes were. Although she had attached a heat pad to her abdomen, she still felt chilly. “By the way, where is Yan Menglu? I remember you told me to invite her to the gala.”
She was not interested in Yan Menglu at all. Although she liked making friends with girls from prestigious families, she felt that Yan Menglu would be of no help to her since her family was only powerful in Harbor City.
She was only concerned with the fact that Yan Menglu wanted to deal with Wen Xinya, just like them.
The mention of Yan Menglu made an icy cold gaze form in Xia Ruya’s eyes. She smiled and said, “She’s feeling unwell, so she won’t be showing up today.”
Ever since she got into a conflict with Wen Xinya in school previously, Yan Menglu seemed to have become a completely different person. She was no longer as haughty or arrogant as she used to be, and instead became much more humble.
Xia Ruya found out that Yan Menglu had been secretly investigating on the Wen Family and Old Mr. Mo.
She only found out what Yan Menglu was thinking from then on. Yan Menglu indeed did not have a strong feud with Wen Xinya, and she only provoked Wen Xinya time and time again because she was jealous that Ji Shihan wanted to take Wen Xinya as her apprentice. Besides, Yan Menglu was a spoiled brat who would not be able to tolerate having anyone disrespect her.
However, she understood that Old Mr. Mo was not to be trifled with and hence, was much more conscientious and decided not to go against Wen Xinya. After all, the Yan Family had plenty of descendants, all of whom were dying to win the favor of their elders. Hence, Yan Menglu decided not to bring trouble for her family since her family would be implicated.
Lin Yingxin smirked and glanced at her. “That’s such a pity. She actually missed such a grand event.”
Both of them knew the reason for Yan Menglu’s absence. Since Xia Ruya decided to make Lin Yingxin feel uncomfortable, she decided to do the same to her.
As the successor of the Li Family, Xia Ruya obviously wouldn’t let the cheap and lowly Lin Yingxin outargue her. Hence, she retorted sarcastically. “Menglu is the princess of her family in Harbor City and she’s the apple of the elders’ eyes. She’s been to all sorts of lavish events. Perhaps, she’s not interested in the Heiress’ Gala. That’s why she decided not to come.”
She was just trying to mock Lin Yingxin for being shallow and superficial. She was also trying to say that Lin Yingxin regarded the Heiress’ Gala highly only because she was lowly and wanted to use the Heiress’ Gala to gain more reputation.
Turing as pale as a sheet, the infuriated Lin Yingxin guffawed and said, “Miss Yan really has high standards. However, the Heiress’ Gala is unique in its own way. You ought to talk her around. After all, Miss Yan has only arrived in Capital city a while ago and doesn’t know much about the city.”
She was indirectly saying, Yan Menglu may be too arrogant to take the Heiress’ Gala seriously but Xia Ruya, you’re also from a wealthy and prestigious family. Yet, you’re still here at the Heiress’ Gala, aren’t you?
