The Bai estate glittered under chandeliers that bathed the great hall in golden light. Limousines rolled up like a parade of power, each guest stepping out adorned in designer gowns and tailored suits.
This wasn't just any banquet.
This was a declaration.
The Bai family's long-lost daughter—hidden, discarded, now reborn—was returning to claim her throne.
Bai Lianhua stood at the top of the grand staircase. Her dress was a vision in white and gold, cinched at the waist with jade embroidery symbolizing purity and power. The stylist had done her hair in elegant waves, her makeup soft but stunning. A necklace with the Bai family crest gleamed on her collarbone.
Every eye turned toward her. Whispers rose.
"She's the real daughter?"
"So beautiful… and that aura… She doesn't seem like someone who lived in the shadows."
"Wasn't Bai Rouxue the heiress?"
Lianhua took a single step down the stairs.
Silence fell.
And then—
Applause.
Bai Ziyu waited at the bottom, dressed in a black tux, expression unreadable. As she reached him, he extended a hand.
"You'll be the star tonight," he said under his breath. "Be ready."
"I was born ready," she replied.
Across the Room
Bai Rouxue stood stiffly, dressed in crimson, trying not to crush her champagne flute with her grip.
Everyone's staring at her. They're forgetting me…
"Smile, Rouxue," Madam Xu whispered. "You're still part of this family."
But even as she said it, her eyes betrayed panic.
Because tonight… everything was slipping through their fingers.
Rou Xue forced a smile and moved to intercept Lianhua.
Mid-Banquet – The Sabotage
As guests danced and mingled, a waiter approached Lianhua with a glass of wine.
Only Lianhua's senses had been sharpened by betrayal.
She didn't take the drink.
Instead, she turned to the waiter. "Tell Madam Xu," she said, her voice silken and dangerous, "if she wants to drug someone, she should be more discreet."
The waiter froze. Then bolted.
Gasps rippled through the hall.
"Drug?"
"Who would dare—"
Bai Hengyuan stood, slamming his cane once.
"Find him," he ordered the guards. "And arrest whoever gave the order."
Bai Rouxue paled.
Lianhua turned toward her, lips curved in a delicate smile. "Careful, sister. Spilling wine at a banquet is one thing. Spilling your own secrets? That's harder to clean up."
Rou Xue's face twisted, her nails biting into her palm.
"You think you've won?" she hissed. "You think because the old man accepted you, you'll get everything?"
"I don't think," Lianhua said coldly. "I remember. I remember how you watched me bleed."
And Then… Mo Chen Walked In
The entire hall turned again—this time toward the entrance.
Tall. Imposing. Black suit. Silver cufflinks. A quiet storm.
Mo Chen.
CEO of Mo International. The man with enough power to bankrupt half the guests in the room—and beauty sharp enough to make hearts stop.
His eyes scanned the crowd.
And found her.
Bai Lianhua.
He walked toward her like the world didn't exist.
Bai Rouxue stepped in his path, heart pounding. "President Mo—"
He didn't even glance at her.
He stopped in front of Lianhua.
"You're more beautiful than I remember," he said, voice low.
She raised an eyebrow. "You remember me?"
Mo Chen paused, just enough to let the moment stretch.
"I never forgot."
Gasps echoed again.
Bai Ziyu's hand twitched beside his wine glass.
Rou Xue's face drained of color.
Mo Chen extended his hand. "May I have this dance?"
Lianhua hesitated. Then smiled—and placed her hand in his.
The Final Blow – A Dance and a Fall
They moved to the center of the ballroom. The music swelled. Lianhua flowed across the floor like she belonged there—because she did.
People whispered her name now with reverence.
She was no longer a shadow.
She was a flame.
Suddenly—
A scream.
All heads turned.
Bai Rouxue had slipped—no, been tripped—into the dessert table. A tray of mousse and wine toppled with her.
A ruined gown. A ruined night.
A ruined image.
People laughed. Quietly. Pityingly.
Lianhua looked over, her expression unreadable.
Poetic justice.
This time, she was the one shining under the chandeliers… and Rouxue was the one humiliated under a thousand eyes.