Chapter 59

Chapter 59: Madam Ji

“Qing Yan, how did you…” Xu Shu Jing’s soft cry cut through the noise.

Wearing an expensive formal gown, she stepped into view as if she belonged there by right. She hurried over to Su Luo Yu, her expression full of apology.

“Miss Su, I’m sorry.” Her voice dropped, as if confiding. “Qing Yan might have been set up. She must’ve wandered in here by mistake.”

Xu Shu Jing bowed her head slightly. “We’ve caused you trouble. I’m truly sorry.”

With Su Luo Yu and Xu Shu Jing framing it that way, it sounded like confirmation.

The invitation in Qiao Qing Yan’s hand must be fake.

The disgust in the crowd sharpened.

Pretty face, so what? She came here to fish for a rich man. Who knew how much of that face was real—and how much was manufactured.

Pa.

A black-gold card slipped free and fell to the floor.

It spun twice, catching the light, and landed at everyone’s feet.

The moment they saw the emblem stamped onto it, the room sucked in a collective breath.

“Hiss…”

“That is…”

“That’s Mr. Ji’s Black-Gold Business Card.”

Ji Chang An had only made two of them. Years ago, when the Ji Group was in crisis, he gave one away.

The other had always been kept by Mr. Ji himself.

Anyone who held the black-gold card would receive distinguished treatment across all of the Ji Group’s industries.

This wasn’t a secret. Ji Chang An had publicly released this information after he became Yan Jing’s richest man.

Now, not only the onlookers—Su Luo Yu, too, froze in disbelief.

Others might not understand what it meant.

She did.

Back then, she’d tried every way she could to charm her way into the Ji family’s favor and still couldn’t get it.

Yet now, here it was.

“Senior Qiao…” Su Luo Yu’s voice trembled, outrage sharpening it. “You—you even forged this? Do you know what kind of consequences you’ll cause by doing that?”

As if her words snapped the crowd awake, whispers surged again.

“So it’s fake.”

“I knew it. How could it be real?”

“Thank God the Su family’s young lady noticed, or we’d all have been fooled.”

The hotel manager’s emotions lurched wildly, then settled hard on the invitation in Qiao Qing Yan’s hand.

In their minds, it was already decided.

The invitation was forged.

The Black-Gold Business Card was forged.

All of it was fake.

Faced with their certainty, Qiao Qing Yan let out a soft, almost amused sound. “Oh.”

“So it’s fake.”

She bent, picked up the card, and smiled faintly.

“Then let’s destroy it.”

Su Luo Yu’s pupils shrank. Reflexively, she clenched her skirt.

Just as the black-gold card was about to snap, a clear, bright voice rang out.

“Stop.”

A dignified, elegant woman walked toward them through the crowd.

She wore a light purple evening gown and a pure white shawl. Warmth and noble grace seemed carved into her bones, impossible to imitate.

“Madam Ji.”

“Aunt…”

Madam Ji’s gaze swept over Su Luo Yu without pause, then landed on Qiao Qing Yan.

She had already heard what happened at the entrance.

She had to admit—the way this woman looked in a qipao made her eyes light up. A plain qipao paired with a grandmother-green necklace wasn’t something an ordinary person could pull off.

“Miss Qiao,” Madam Ji said, voice steady, “I’m sorry. The invitation and the Black-Gold Business Card were both personally given by my husband. Naturally, they’re real.”