Chapter 124: Rival in Love... Her Mother?

Unlike Mrs. Gu, the netizens were in an entirely different mood.

“Ah! I love how generous Mr. Wen is with his wife!”
“Mr. Wen must really like Song Wanning—a man doesn’t keep giving gifts for no reason! If you tell me there’s nothing between these two, I’ll never believe it.”
“Exactly! Just now, when that awful woman was talking about Song Wanning, Mr. Wen even spoke up for her!”
“If Mr. Wen can spot a fake, he’s already proven himself a fantastic partner!”

One after another, the netizens squealed with delight, more excited than anyone.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Gu spoke up again, “Xiao Jing, if you ask me, you really shouldn’t treat girls too well. Otherwise, they’ll get carried away.”

With these words, she managed to offend just about every woman on the internet. She kept addressing Wen Jingxing as “Xiao Jing,” completely taking the tone of an elder lecturing a junior.

“What’s wrong with this woman?”
“We’re all women here—why make things hard for each other?”

As Song Wanning watched this woman spout nonsense, she suddenly found her familiar. Could this be the mother of a love rival? Someone so familiar with Wen Jingxing, who watched him grow up, and whose surname was Gu—there could only be the Gu family, owners of the textile business. Mrs. Gu had only one daughter, Gu Yan.

When Gu Yan was born, her mother had a difficult labor and nearly died, after which she could no longer have children. Consequently, Mrs. Gu doted on her daughter extravagantly, giving her anything she wanted.

In the novel’s plot, Gu Yan was a major supporting character. She had adored Wen Jingxing since childhood, but she could never win his affection. Her obsession with him grew so intense that she began to harm herself. In hopes of quelling her infatuation, her family sent her abroad, but as soon as she heard Wen Jingxing was engaged—to the infamous, universally disliked original heroine—she couldn’t stay away. She rushed back, hurled insults at Wen Jingxing for choosing a “worthless” woman over her, yet kept desperately chasing after him.

She had met the original heroine a few times, and each encounter left a terrible impression, but she had crossed paths with Jian An’an much more often—back when the engagement was still intact.

Jian An’an worked tirelessly to ruin the original heroine’s reputation while singing her own praises to the Wen family. Gu Yan, too, was relentless, visiting the Wen family even more frequently than Jian An’an. Every meeting between the two women was a battlefield, filled with sharp words and endless comparisons.

Yet in the end, Gu Yan lost to Jian An’an, and the Wen patriarch once again designated Jian An’an as Wen Jingxing’s fiancée. Devastated, Gu Yan finally let go of her pursuit, choosing to free herself as well. In the novel’s conclusion, Gu Yan never married, even into her forties, instead adopting a boy to be the future heir of her family.

Realizing she had unconsciously categorized Gu Yan as a rival for Wen Jingxing, Song Wanning was startled—how had she become so invested in her role as his fiancée?

Wen Jingxing, meanwhile, no longer spoke to Mrs. Gu. He simply took Song Wanning’s hand and prepared to leave. “Mrs. Gu, we’ll talk another time. I have something to take care of right now.”

His form of address had shifted from the familiar “Aunt Gu” to the more distant “Mrs. Gu.” He didn’t like anyone speaking ill of Song Wanning. To him, Wanning was wonderful.

Mrs. Gu immediately jumped up. “Oh, Xiao Jing, really! Can’t I say a few words to you? I’m only trying to give you good advice—how do you expect me to save face if you leave like this?”

Watching her, Song Wanning suddenly understood why Gu Yan had lost to Jian An’an. The Wen family probably wanted to avoid being entangled with such a domineering in-law.

The guests, sensing drama, watched the situation unfold with keen interest.

Mrs. Gu made as if to stop Wen Jingxing, but he merely fixed her with a cold stare. The relationship between the Wen and Gu families was no longer as close as it had been in the previous generation. When they were children, they lived in the same neighborhood, which was why they’d grown close. Later, Mrs. Gu discovered that the Gu family’s ancestors had once saved a member of the Wen family by sharing food with them, and she never tired of reminding everyone of this old favor.

But so much time had passed, and the Gu family’s current business success was almost entirely due to the Wen family’s support over the years. In truth, the Wen family had more than repaid any debt. As Mrs. Gu kept bringing up the past, people grew weary of it, but out of respect for that old “life-saving favor,” they merely distanced themselves rather than confronting her directly.

The three of them stood there, the eyes of the guests surreptitiously following their every move. Even the viewers in the livestream began to discuss the scene.

“Why does Mrs. Gu sound so spiteful? She’s really unpleasant to listen to.”
“If she can’t speak kindly, why shouldn’t people just walk away? She’s so overbearing and unreasonable.”
“Wait, I remember now—isn’t she the wife of the head of Tengjing Textiles? I heard the two families used to be close.”
“Even so, friends don’t get to act this way!”

Just as the atmosphere grew tense, a commotion erupted at the entrance to the hall. The heavy doors were flung open with a dramatic flourish, and two figures—one tall, one short, seemingly a man and a woman—darted inside, scanning the room as if searching for someone.

After the pair entered, the doors swung shut with a loud bang, drawing everyone’s attention. The newcomers, Song Zijiang and Song Xin, were frantically searching for Song Wanning and didn’t notice that all eyes were now on them.

Frustrated at not finding her, Song Zijiang cursed under his breath, “Damn it, how can a living, breathing person just disappear?”

Yet Song Wanning stood boldly in the center aisle, directly in their line of sight. For some reason, Song Zijiang didn’t recognize her at once, and continued scanning the room.

It was only when Song Xin caught sight of Song Wanning’s face that she hesitantly tugged her father’s sleeve, whispering, “Dad… I think that’s my sister. How has she changed so much?”

The original heroine had always looked rather sickly, and even the most beautiful features are diminished by poor health. But after joining the film crew, Li Weiwei had ensured the guests ate well. While the food had not been luxurious, it had been nutritious and filling. In just over two weeks, Song Wanning’s health had visibly improved.

Today, with a touch of makeup and a lovely dress, Song Wanning looked so transformed that even if she stood before Song Zijiang claiming to be his daughter, he might not believe her—and might even suspect she was an impostor.