HBWMA -Chapter 156 Am I Pretty

Several madams exchanged glances before waving over their own daughters.

“This is the Shen family’s new younger sister. From now on, you should take her out to play more.”

With introductions from the Gu and Guan families’ madams personally, the young ladies at the banquet immediately surged forward.

Shen Jiao smiled and gently pushed Jiang Huashan forward.

“Go on. These little girls are all here for the first time. Help Mom take them around. Didn’t you say you wanted to play games? Go over there and have fun.”

Yu Sheng looked at Madam Shen with slight surprise. Jiang Huashan was still young and might not understand, but that casual sentence from Shen Jiao had actually controlled the entire room—elevating Jiang Huashan’s status while firmly backing her up.

Yu Sheng quietly glanced at Fu Sui’er. Even her own mother was favoring someone else—anyone would feel uncomfortable about that, right?

Fu Sui’er grinned and leaned forward.

“Take me too. Huashan, you can’t leave me out.”

“……”

Yu Sheng silently withdrew her gaze.

Hard to judge—she liked her even more than her own mother did.

Hearing there would be games, the young ladies became interested at once and chattered as they surrounded Jiang Huashan.

“What game is it? Is it fun?”

“Oh! I know you—you’re the girl who used a loudspeaker at school to ‘recruit allies’!”

Shen Jiao gently patted Yu Sheng’s hand.

“Go and play with them too. The customs here are a bit different from your hometown of Yu Yang. If you have any questions, come find me anytime.”

Yu Sheng nodded and walked toward the noisy crowd.

Fu Sui’er grabbed Yu Sheng and pulled her into the group.

“This is Sister Yu. She just transferred to Yucai as a freshman.”

In social circles, people tend to stick with their age group. So the ones crowding around Jiang Huashan were mostly middle school girls. Yu Sheng, a well-developed high school girl, stood among them like a crane among chickens.

“Huh? This sister is so pretty—she’s even prettier than Cousin Xiao Lan!”

“Seriously! Haha, Xiao Lanlan is definitely going to be mad. She always steals the spotlight at banquets.”

Yu Sheng became a little embarrassed from the praise.

“What’s this? Why is the banquet hall so noisy? Did a flock of little sparrows come in?”

Xiao Lanlan wore wavy curls and a pink pearlescent gown. By age count, she was already 17. In terms of beauty and temperament, no girl present could compare to her. That natural superiority gave her an air of arrogance, as if beauty itself was a weapon.

“Lanlan, is this the ill-mannered little cousin you were talking about?”

The girls surrounding Xiao Lanlan were all her peers, mostly from established wealthy families.

Xiao Lanlan smiled faintly and glanced at Jiang Huashan in the crowd. She frowned slightly—earlier in the main hall, the girl had felt different, but now Jiang Huashan looked soft and harmless, like a freshly sprouted green shoot with no threat at all. Instead, Yu Sheng beside her stood out—radiant and unforgettable.

A flicker of hostility appeared in Xiao Lanlan’s eyes.

“Who are you?”

People who could appear in the main hall were not ordinary. Xiao Lanlan judged how much trouble someone deserved based on their background.

Yu Sheng saw through her intent at a glance and stepped forward to shake hands.

“Hello, I’m Yu Sheng, a transfer student from Yucai.”

“Transfer student from Yucai?” A girl in a bright red dress covered her mouth and laughed, leaning toward Xiao Lanlan.

“I heard the young heir of the Shen family handed out invitations all over school. Anyone could get one. Could she be a classmate or friend brought in by the young heir?”

Xiao Lanlan considered this. If she was really Shen Lanxi’s classmate, she should still show some respect—but earlier that afternoon, she clearly saw this girl getting close to an illegitimate son.

Just as the confrontation was hanging in the air, a commotion suddenly rose near the hall entrance.

Along with a few exaggerated gasps, Shen Lanxi entered the crowd with Gao Zhi.

In situations like this, the male lead always had an aura. Shen Lanxi wore a fitted black suit, black shirt, black tie. His eyes were dark like ink, his skin pale and refined, with only a striking red string bracelet on his wrist.

For a moment, time seemed to stop. Everyone’s gaze followed him, but he looked at no one, walking straight through the crowd toward Elder Shen.

“Grandfather.”

The cold voice landed, and the crowd snapped back to attention. The banquet instantly rose to a new peak of excitement.

“So this is the legendary young heir of the Shen family—truly refined and outstanding.”

Most of the young ladies in the crowd blushed shyly, stealing glances.

“He’s real? He’s so handsome…”

Elder Shen smiled and patted Shen Lanxi’s shoulder, introducing him to the elders at the table.

Zhou Yanheng sat in the central circle with Zhou Guochao. As soon as Shen Lanxi approached, he immediately stood up, extending a graceful hand.

“Lanxi, welcome home.”

Shen Lanxi glanced at his hand, hesitated for a moment, then lightly touched his fingertips in a half-handshake.

“Thank you.”

A trace of dimness flickered in Zhou Yanheng’s eyes as he smiled and sat back down.

It wasn’t just young girls in the throes of first love— even the married ladies present couldn’t help but be moved when they saw someone like him.

Which family didn’t have a daughter? Who wouldn’t want a son-in-law like that?

But the madams could only sigh inwardly. Everyone understood tacitly—those who could sit at that table were top-tier capital players in Country A. Shen Lanxi’s status alone placed him far beyond reach, like the moon high in the sky—untouchable.

Su Miao and Zhou Qishan were also in the crowd. From afar, Zhou Qishan looked at Shen Lanxi, who was surrounded by attention, and couldn’t help saying, “That face of his is probably what they mean by ‘Nuwa showing off her craftsmanship.’ My brother must be so angry he could spit blood right now.”

Su Miao had no interest in Shen Lanxi at all. She stood on tiptoe, scanning the crowd.

“This? You clearly haven’t seen someone truly good-looking.”

Zhou Qishan didn’t believe it. “There’s someone more handsome than Shen Lanxi? Must be a demon or something.”

As soon as she finished speaking, someone stepped into the crowd—light seemed to fall across his shoulders as he entered the center of everyone’s gaze.

Su Miao’s eyes went unfocused for a moment.

“…It really is a demon.”

A heart-stealing one at that.

Shen Guiling followed behind Shen Qian, but it felt as if the world had given him a spotlight of his own.

Dressed in a sharp black suit like Shen Lanxi, he wore a white shirt instead. There was no clear boundary between man and youth in him—he was simply himself. Standing there alone was enough to reclaim every bit of attention that had just been taken away by Shen Lanxi.

“Who is that?”

Whispers began spreading through the crowd.

“The one following Mr. Shen… could it be—?”

Yao Ge had been chatting and laughing with the madams while holding a wine glass. But the moment she saw Shen Qian personally lead Shen Guiling in, her smile slowly twisted into something almost feral. The red wine in her glass trembled uncontrollably, spilling over the rim and splashing onto the floor.

Jiang Huashan watched everything like a detached observer, quietly noting everyone’s reactions.

“Shen Guiling.”

From within the crowd, Yu Sheng saw the boy walking in with light around him. Her heart filled with joy as she waved at him openly and enthusiastically.

Shen Qian glanced at her and smiled, lowering his head slightly.

“Go on.”

Shen Guiling looked up at the girl waving at him with pure excitement, but the light in his eyes sank instantly.

Fu Sui’er leaned over to Jiang Huashan and whispered, “Sister Yu Sheng seems… really different when it comes to Brother A-Ling.”

Jiang Huashan smiled faintly.

Of course she was different. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have betrayed even her own father just for Shen Guiling.

But then again, how many women willing to betray their families for him were there, really?

Shen Guiling lifted his gaze, hesitated for a moment, then started walking over.

The girls immediately let out suppressed squeals.

“Ahhh! Oh my god! He’s really coming over here!”

Yu Sheng was also overwhelmed with joy, running toward him in full view of everyone, the moment feeling almost dreamlike.

Jiang Huashan lazily yawned.

Just hurry up and do your drama already, or who knows how long it’ll take before the banquet actually starts.

Shen Guiling walked straight through the crowd without even looking aside. When he was only one step away from Yu Sheng, he lowered his gaze slightly—and without the slightest pause, he passed right by her.

Before the girls could even react, he pushed through the crowd and bent down, leaning in so close it was almost oppressive, his breath brushing against Jiang Huashan’s ear.

“Been watching the show since this afternoon. Am I Pretty?”

Jiang Huashan’s yawn froze halfway. She slowly turned her head.

She had never been this close to Shen Guiling before—so close she could clearly see the depth in his eyes.

【Ding——】

【Important character deviation detected. Generating updated chapter.】

【Generation complete——】

【Current plot loaded into story world: Chapter — “Am I Pretty?”】

Jiang Huashan: “……”