Song Ziwen got out of the car and was just opening the trunk to retrieve the things Yang Jing had brought. When he turned around, he found Wang Qiqi had already walked off with his girlfriend, showing no intention of helping him with the luggage. "I say you two are too much! You’re just going to leave me here." Honestly, his own sweetheart had been led astray by Wang Qiqi; his girlfriend wasn't like this before.

Yang Jing heard Song Ziwen's exasperated voice. "Why don't I go help your brother with the things?" Though the items weren't heavy, their bulk made them cumbersome for one person to carry.

Wang Qiqi sensed Yang Jing’s impulse to turn back and immediately hooked her arm, preventing her from retreating. Are you kidding? Letting her go back now would only let Song Ziwen feel smug. "It’s fine. Making the men do some work won't kill them. My brother is just being melodramatic." Wang Qiqi emphasized the last word deliberately.

Hearing Wang Qiqi say that, Song Ziwen nearly stumbled. What did that brat mean by that? "I'm melodramatic? I'm not some woman!" He was a man; how could a man be melodramatic? This was a clear insult from Wang Qiqi. Song Ziwen suddenly worried that under Wang Qiqi's influence, Song Yao might also start favoring Yang Jing. Then... then... Song Ziwen instantly felt an intense chill, despite the fact that his older sister getting along well with Qiqi and Yang Jing should have been a happy thing. Why did he feel like his future days would be miserable, that he would be driven out by these women, leaving him utterly alone again?

Wang Qiqi laughed, ignoring the person stamping his feet behind them, and ushered the other person into the house. Wang Qiqi saw Gong Peixing in the courtyard holding Tao Tao and looking at a tree. She walked over, picked up Tao Tao in a swift movement, and said, "Brother-in-law, my brother is outside getting things."

Gong Peixing grunted an acknowledgment, greeted Yang Jing, and then went out to help his brother-in-law. He wondered if his brother-in-law had managed to offend this formidable lady on the way; otherwise, Wang Qiqi wouldn't be acting this way.

Song Ziwen carried a huge pile of things, which gave him a headache just looking at it; he didn't know what to do. When he saw Gong Peixing's silhouette, he called out, "Brother-in-law, quick, come help!" Thank goodness for his brother-in-law; he was the only one who was actually nice to him. Everyone else was not treating him well at all.

Gong Peixing looked at the things in the trunk and was speechless. "My goodness, you are truly useless. You need help for just this little bit of stuff."

Song Ziwen felt his day had been utterly disastrous. Being scorned by Wang Qiqi was one thing, but even his usually easygoing brother-in-law was acting this way. Song Ziwen felt a desperate urge to jump into the river. "Brother-in-law, please spare me. Wang Qiqi has already finished despising me today, and even my own girlfriend abandoned me."

Gong Peixing felt no sympathy for Song Ziwen's words. When he first got together with Song Yao, Song Ziwen hadn't stopped bullying him. So, Gong Peixing had always looked forward to the day Song Ziwen got a girlfriend, thinking, Hmph, let’s see how I treat him then. Unfortunately, he had never found the right opportunity, but he hadn't expected Wang Qiqi to be so unrestrained. "That just means you said or did something wrong. Qiqi is such a good kid."

Seeing the smirk on his brother-in-law's face, Song Ziwen sighed. "Brother-in-law, are you taking revenge for what I did to you in the past?" Song Ziwen knew he hadn't stopped tripping his brother-in-law up before, but wasn't Gong Peixing taking it a bit too far now?

"What do you mean by that?" Gong Peixing countered with a smile, then picked up two relatively light bags and started back.

Song Ziwen watched his brother-in-law take only those few things and felt utterly contemptuous, but he dared not say anything. If he provoked his brother-in-law, Gong Peixing would definitely put the luggage back down.

Wang Rui had learned from Wang Dagui's questioning that Yang Jing was Song Ziwen’s girlfriend. It wasn't a surprise that she would be the future cousin-in-law, with the wedding date already set for May Day. Wang Rui knew her cousin and cousin's wife were close to Wang Qiqi, but the thought that Wang Qiqi already knew who the future sister-in-law was while she knew nothing made Wang Rui extremely angry.

Wang Rui thought that if Jiaozi had acted faster, she definitely could have established a good relationship with the future sister-in-law before Wang Qiqi did. After all, Song Ziwen was the heir to the Song family. If she could just get on good terms with Song Ziwen's wife, Yang Jing, how could she worry about not getting benefits later? Wang Rui knew getting into university wouldn't be an issue, but how comfortable she would be there, or how respectable her future marriage would be—she couldn't count on Wang Qiqi. The only people who might help her were Wang Damei's family, but now such a good opportunity...

When Wang Rui saw Wang Qiqi walk in affectionately holding a scholarly-looking girl, she knew that must be the future cousin-in-law. She scanned Yang Jing from head to toe and slightly pursed her lips. She had assumed that since Song Ziwen’s family was wealthy now, his taste in women would be much higher, and he would choose at least a beautiful girl. But alas, to put it kindly, she had 'temperament'; to put it bluntly, she wasn't pretty.

Wang Rui thought no one had seen her pursed lips because Yang Jing was currently greeting the elders. However, she didn't realize that although she was standing in the corner, the way her eyes had been assessing Yang Jing since she entered the door had already made Yang Jing feel very strange. Thus, even while greeting the elders, Yang Jing allocated some attention to observe Wang Rui. As a result, Yang Jing was quite displeased by Wang Rui's action. She thought, Why is this girl reacting this way?

When Yang Jing finished greeting the elders, Wang Rui’s smile appeared remarkably sincere. She hurried over to Yang Jing, hooked her arm, and said sweetly, "Sister-in-law, hello! I'm Ziwen Gege's cousin, Wang Rui." Wang Rui blinked at Yang Jing, assuming Song Ziwen must have mentioned her.

Wang Rui was quite confident, but she didn't know how much Song Ziwen detested her. Whenever he mentioned Wang Rui, he always made a face of disgust. Although he didn't mention Wang Rui often, those instances had already left a seed of doubt in Yang Jing's mind. Coupled with Wang Rui’s behavior just now, Yang Jing truly felt the girl wasn't very nice. Although Yang Jing resisted Wang Rui's deliberate attempt at friendliness, she couldn't publicly embarrass the niece in front of her future mother-in-law. "Hello." However, the tone of Yang Jing's voice clearly indicated her unhappiness.

Wang Rui heard the hint of coolness in the reply, a stark contrast to how happily she had been chatting with Wang Qiqi just upon entering. She silently grumbled that if she had gone out to greet Yang Jing earlier, Yang Jing would surely be much more familiar with her now. "Ziwen Gege often mentioned you, saying how wonderful Sister-in-law is. I’m glad to finally meet the real person." Wang Rui continued to project an air of closeness with Song Ziwen.

Song Yao, hearing Wang Rui’s presumptuous familiarity, pretended to take her son from Wang Qiqi's arms. "My goodness, how thick-skinned! I, his actual older sister, have only known about this for a few days, yet you claim you often heard Ziwen Gege mention it." The disdain in her words was impossible to conceal. "Hey, Qiqi, you only found out a couple of days ago too, right? So this little brat has been keeping things from us, chatting away with others! Unacceptable. I need to have a serious talk with Song Ziwen about this later."

Wang Qiqi thought that Song Yao’s fighting spirit had certainly not diminished after having a baby. She was trying to whisper to Wang Qiqi, but someone managed to catch just a tiny bit, making sure everyone present knew, and even pulling in the absent Song Ziwen. Wang Qiqi knew if Song Ziwen really heard Wang Rui saying that, he would jump up. He could be close to anyone, but he absolutely could not be said to be close to Wang Rui.

Wang Rui hadn't expected that after just trying to show off a little to her future cousin-in-law, she would be thoroughly mocked by Song Yao. She felt terribly wronged, looking at them with an expression of utter innocence. In reality, what she was thinking was that she was surprised Song Ziwen's sister had only just learned about his girlfriend. This implied Song Ziwen hadn't kept the secret for long. But the thought that Song Yao might expose her pretense of closeness to Song Ziwen later made her feel immense pressure. Song Ziwen definitely wouldn't be polite to her with Yang Jing present, and since Yang Jing was Song Ziwen’s girlfriend, she would naturally side with him. Thinking this, the wronged look on Wang Rui’s face grew even stronger.

Song Yao looked at Wang Rui’s expression and said softly, "That’s the look—that completely innocent expression." It was annoying just to see it. Usually, she was cheerful, but she frequently adopted this expression. Those unfamiliar with her might think that the rest of them were bullying her. Did she think Yang Jing, meeting her for the first time, wouldn't know her? Just judging by the disgust in Yang Jing's eyes, it was clear she wasn't impressed. Go on, fuss all you want. The more you make a scene, the less impressed Yang Jing beside you will be. It’s a pity this child isn't seasoned enough.

Wang Damei noticed the flicker of displeasure in her daughter-in-law's eyes, and then looked at her niece's performance; she was also quite displeased. Today, her daughter-in-law was officially joining the circle of close relatives, yet Wang Rui was still pulling stunts like this. Didn't she think things were already troublesome enough?

Wang Damei shot Song Yao a glare. She clearly didn't understand the current situation. Family conflicts were internal matters; why bring them out in front of Yang Jing? Although Yang Jing would find out about these things after marrying into the family, for the image-conscious Wang Damei, the later she revealed these issues to Yang Jing, the better. She truly wanted to maintain the facade of a good family. "Yaoyao, it’s a bit cold here. Take Yang Jing up to the living room upstairs."

Song Yao pouted. I’m the master of this move, it solves nothing. "I know. Qiqi, Yang Jing, let's go upstairs. We can chat there."

Just as Song Yao was about to tell Wang Rui, who was trying to follow them, not to come up, she caught the fierce look Wang Damei shot her. Song Yao was forced to swallow the words of refusal. "Wang Rui, when you get upstairs, be quiet and behave yourself." Although Wang Rui was allowed to go up, Song Yao still issued a warning, showing Wang Rui absolutely no face, completely disregarding how embarrassed Wang Dagui looked standing nearby.