"Silence yourselves, those who speak first in defense of your idol! Is the lesson your idol taught to simply take seats at will? Using a bus seat analogy? How about I compare it to your wife?" Her voice rang out, unhurried, stunning the surrounding people into silence, and the young man froze for a beat before exploding in rage, "What nonsense are you spouting!" Some of the male fans around who had been sympathetic to Gu Yingxi were about to ** when Ning Yunhuan sharply cut in again, "Quiet! Please remain silent until I have finished speaking!"

Her sharp command managed to quell the murmuring crowd. By now, the venue's cameras and a swarm of reporters had all fixed their lenses on her. Ning Yunhuan, however, showed no sign of intimidation. Having lived through several lifetimes had gifted her with not only composure but also steadfast calm. She smiled now, but her words were far from polite: "Everyone knows that entering this venue requires a ticket. We have purchased all of these seats reserved for Lan Ning. What right do you have to come and sit here? Using a bus analogy—does that imply that in your heart, you feel your wife, once married, is only bound by that certificate, and anyone who desires her can use her, just like your bus analogy?"

Li Panpan and the others, having been quickly briefed by Ning Yunhuan the moment she pulled Gu Yingxi aside, were now flushed with excitement. Seeing her vent their anger on their behalf, Li Panpan couldn't help moving closer to her. Conversely, the young man beside them had a face flushed crimson. Some voices of dissent rose up, "How is that the same as marrying a wife?"

"How is it different? The seats I bought are only for people from Lan Ning. I paid the money, why should you sit here as you please? Tell us about the bus, we've never ridden one, so what if we haven't?" Ning Yunhuan rebutted the young man's words without reservation. After hearing how these people had spoken to Li Panpan and the others, Ning Yunhuan felt genuinely angered. In the eyes of these people, the wealthy seemed deserving of death. Being rich and powerful shouldn't be a reason for them to mock Li Panpan, especially since even some of the second generation weren't born into their status; they earned it through real effort.

"If I had as much time as you wasted hating the rich, I’d rather move a few more bricks and earn more money than spend time mocking others for being wealthy. What’s wrong with owning a private car? If you have the ability, don't stand here just flapping your gums. Capable people don't mock others for not riding the bus; only incompetent people turn such humiliation into honor. To all of you who laughed just now, I can only repay you with my laughter!"

Ning Yunhuan's words made many faces instantly burn with shame, plunging the venue into a deathly silence. Lan Lingyan watched Ning Yunhuan with a gentle smile playing on her lips. Suddenly, applause erupted from the seating area reserved for various luxury brands in the distance. Then, as if spreading, clapping began from all directions.

Li Panpan and the others, their faces alight with excitement and adoration, joined in the applause. Only then did Ning Yunhuan glance at the young man whose face was still beet red. With a cold snort, she tossed the microphone back to the staff member and, adjusting her dress, prepared to return to her seat.

"Brother Jiu..." As Lan Jiu was about to follow his wife, Gu Yingxi called out to him dazedly, "Brother Jiu..." Seeing that Lan Jiu completely ignored her, Gu Yingxi suddenly found a hidden strength and shrieked, "Brother Jiu, do you know how vicious the woman beside you is? She—she—she sent people to smash up my home! I’ve been enduring it without telling you, so why do you still like her?"

Ning Yunhuan had been ready to leave, but she couldn't help pausing when she unexpectedly heard Gu Yingxi's outburst. She raised an eyebrow and turned back, "Miss Gu, one can eat whatever one wants, but one cannot speak carelessly."

However, Lan Lingyan’s indifferent demeanor stung the heartbroken and desperate Gu Yingxi. Hearing Ning Yunhuan’s voice now, she couldn't help erupting. Ning Yunhuan had ruined her home. The landlord was demanding compensation from Gu Xian. For the sake of the Gu family, she had signed with Huayu and exposed herself as an actress! Now that she was famous, she felt little joy. But Gu Yingxi couldn't understand how she entered the entertainment industry—didn't Ning Yunhuan know? Who was she doing all this for? If it weren't for the household belongings that Ning Yunhuan had people smash up for the Gu family, why would she be doing all this to earn money?

Lan Lingyan narrowed his eyes dangerously and was about to speak, but Ning Yunhuan put her arm around his, declaring loudly, "Miss Gu, if you don't have concrete evidence, and you continue to speak falsehoods, don't blame me for being impolite."

For the first time, Gu Yingxi found the seemingly arrogant Ning Yunhuan possessing an intensity that made her unable to look directly at her, even more so than before. Startled by Ning Yunhuan's sharp tone, and fueled by her anger, she resolutely demanded the microphone Ning Yunhuan had just used from a staff member. Such equipment wasn't given out freely; Ning Yunhuan had access because she had come down from the stage—which fool didn't know you couldn't afford to offend those on stage? But now a minor celebrity dared to ask. The staff member glanced at Ning Yunhuan.

"Give it to her. She's asking for public humiliation; she can’t blame anyone else."

Hearing this, Gu Yingxi felt even more insulted. With a cold snort, her lips trembled, and her gentle, jade-like eyes stood out even more on her deathly pale face. She took a deep breath, straightened her spine, took the microphone with hands that seemed too weak to hold it properly—she held it with both hands—and whispered shakily:

"Miss Ning sent people to smash up my house. The house I rented... the landlord came looking for me. I had no choice but to enter the entertainment industry, unlike wealthy people like Miss Ning. I didn't want to say anything, but... but even a cornered rabbit has to bite..."

Her pitiable tone instantly garnered sympathy from many people. Those who had been momentarily silenced by Ning Yunhuan’s earlier words were already feeling resentful and now seemed to have found an opportunity to strike back. Before Ning Yunhuan could speak, someone in the audience not far away stood up and began waving frantically toward this area. Lan Jiu's people spotted her, and silently led her over. She stared hatefully at Gu Yingxi, snatching the microphone from Gu Yingxi’s hand, her eyes burning with such hatred that it seemed she could bore a hole through Gu Yingxi’s body.

This woman appeared to be in her early thirties, wearing a tight, short, wine-red dress that exuded an air of brazen seductiveness. Many were outraged when they saw her dare to snatch something from Gu Yingxi, whom they considered their idol, and they shouted in unison:

"Get out! Get out! Get out!"

Ning Yunhuan narrowed her eyes. Upon recognizing who the woman was, she suddenly laughed, "Be quiet!" She shouted once more. The frenzied fans in the venue were momentarily stunned, and just as they were about to curse back, the woman sensually tossed her long, wavy hair: "I am not a good person. As for who I am, perhaps many of you don't know, but I believe you all certainly know my boyfriend."

The woman paused here: "The internationally renowned emerging painter, Ouyang Zhentian. Is there anyone who doesn't know him? He is young and handsome; one of his paintings now sells for over a million US dollars. Do you all know him?"

The woman paused again. Some who were confused shook their heads, but others brightened upon hearing Ouyang Zhentian's name.

The reporters instantly caught the scent of something amiss and rushed over.

"My boyfriend and I have been together for nearly fifteen years; we’ve known each other since childhood. Everyone knows that painting is an expensive endeavor. Ouyang’s family was very poor and couldn't afford to send him to art school, but his childhood dream was to become a painter whose work everyone knew," this unfamiliar woman in the red dress said, a slight sneer twisting her lips. On stage, Father Lan snapped his fingers, and somehow, her face appeared above the main screen, her voice echoing throughout the venue.

"When we were very young, we established our relationship. Our families didn't approve, but I didn't care that his family was poor. To support his studies, I gave up my own education and secretly took money from home to pay for his tuition. To provide him with living expenses, I desperately worked four or five jobs, sleeping only two or three hours a day."

Hearing this, the crowd began to vaguely grasp the situation.

"But he wasn't satisfied. He told me his dream was to go to Paris, to the Louvre, to Italy—to any place rich with artistic atmosphere to broaden his horizons. He wanted to study abroad!" At this, the woman smiled faintly, a mocking look on her face.

"To fulfill his wish, he begged me repeatedly. He knew a man admired my beauty and asked me to agree to accompany that man for half a year. In exchange, the man would handle his departure procedures abroad and pay his tuition for a year. I agreed." As these words left her mouth, the crowd let out a sudden gasp. In the seating area where the woman had been, a man wearing sunglasses stiffened completely.

"From then on, to realize his dream, I navigated between one man after another. He told me that once he achieved fame, he would marry me. I believed him. But while I was sacrificing for him, this Miss Gu seduced him—not only seducing my boyfriend but also tricking him into writing her a fifty-thousand-dollar check." The woman took a deep breath and sneered coldly, "One plants the tree, and you come to enjoy the shade and pick the fruit. Miss Gu, tell me, does such a good deal exist in this world? Ouyang Zhentian, you wouldn't have forgotten, would you? Your Gu family took five hundred thousand from him—have you forgotten? After spending all his money, did you perhaps try to contact him again? I'll tell you: my surname is Lin, and I was the one who sent people to smash your house! I cannot swallow this injustice. Why should I sell myself out to raise a man, only for you to whimper a couple of times and get so much? Your house was smashed by me. And now you dare try to frame others?"