Chapter 274: Chapter 266: Attending the Banquet
Sisi was attending such an elite society banquet for the first time in both her past and current life, and it was also her first time wearing formal attire. Mu Xiulan had chosen for her a light purple gown, draped with a white fox fur shawl. Although the dress seemed a bit rustic in her eyes, her natural beauty made her look charming and captivating once she wore it.
Mu Xiulan also wore a cheongsam of the same color series, with a silvery-gray cloak. She was dressed just like the photograph from their last meeting, wearing a long string of pearl necklace the size of small fingers around her neck, which looked lavish yet elegant. Standing next to Sisi, they looked less like mother and daughter, and more like a pair of sister flowers.
"Xiulian, you’ve come just a tad late!" greeted a lady in her thirties, a mixed-race beauty, with a charming smile, who seemed very familiar with Mu Xiulan.
"Mingzhu, I arrived just in time, not too early nor too late!" Mu Xiulan also smiled like a blooming flower, joking around with the lady.
"Oh my, who is this beautiful young lady? Xiulian, is she your younger sister?" the lady named Mingzhu exclaimed in awe upon seeing Sisi standing next to Mu Xiulan.
Mu Xiulan, beaming with joy, coyly responded, "Mingzhu, you really have a way with words. This is my daughter, He Sisi. Sisi, this is Aunt Zhen, the hostess of today’s banquet!"
"Hello, Aunt Zhen!"
Sisi politely greeted, using Cantonese, which she learned from He Xuewen. He had lived in Guangzhou for several years and was very fluent in Cantonese. Seeing Sisi’s language talent, he taught her several dialects, including Cantonese, Minnan dialect, and Miao language.
Mu Xiulan was not surprised to hear that Sisi could speak many languages, believing that her daughter had inherited this talent from the He Family, where most could speak several languages. For example, He Xuewen could speak English, Japanese, and French, which made it easier for Sisi to learn languages.
"Xiulian, you’ve finally found your daughter, congratulations are indeed in order!"
Zhen Mingzhu was somewhat surprised by Sisi’s fluent Cantonese but did not inquire further, demonstrating good upbringing. She seemed to understand Mu Xiulan’s situation well and was genuinely happy for her friend. Zhen Mingzhu then took off a translucent jade bracelet from her wrist and handed it to Sisi.
"Sisi, I didn’t know you were coming today and didn’t prepare a gift for you. This bracelet isn’t anything fancy, just take it for fun!"
Sisi was startled as the ice jade bracelet was handed over for her to ’play with’ - weren’t they afraid she might break it? She simply couldn’t grasp the ways of the wealthy. Just as she hesitated whether to accept the bracelet, Mu Xiulan spoke up.
"Sisi, it’s a kind gesture from Aunt Zhen, just accept it!"
"Thank you, Aunt Zhen!"
With her mother’s approval, Sisi graciously accepted the jade bracelet and immediately put it on her wrist, even raising her hand to show it off to Zhen Mingzhu and Mu Xiulan, both of whom complimented how nice it looked on her.
Later, Sisi met countless affluent ladies and received numerous gifts, mostly jewelry. Sisi thought that if Mu Xiulan took her to a few more banquets, she might as well open her own jewelry store someday.
Of course, Sisi was well aware of whose face these noble ladies were trying to honor. She hadn’t expected Old Mrs. Qiao’s influence in Hong Kong to be so significant – truly a powerful backing!
Sisi’s face was sour from all the smiling, and her feet were starting to hurt too. She hadn’t worn high heels for over a decade, and suddenly wearing them was quite uncomfortable. After mentioning this to Mu Xiulan, she went to the resting area to relax.
The resting area was filled with a variety of delicious foods, both Chinese and Western. Sisi filled a plate and enjoyed her meal immensely. Not bad, the He Family’s chefs were pretty good; the snacks were quite tasty.
While eating, Sisi watched people dancing gracefully in the hall. The star of today’s event, Miss He Shishi, was dancing with a handsome young man named Li Zhaoji, a member of another top-tier Hong Kong family, the Li Family. The families of He and Li had always had a good relationship. It was rumored that He Shishi and Li Zhaoji were betrothed to each other since they were children.
Zhen Mingzhu herself was a mixed-race beauty, and her daughter He Shishi was naturally beautiful—perhaps even more so than her mother. Besides her beauty, He Shishi was also known for her good fortune.
The reason He Shishi stood out among He Mingli’s many children, although partly due to her mother’s favor, was mainly that she brought good fortune to He Mingli. It was said that He Mingli’s career soared after the birth of He Shishi, always running smoothly.
Later, a famous master read her fortune when she was three years old, claiming that He Shishi would bring prosperity to her father and husband. She was deemed the perfect wife and was thus ranked as Hong Kong’s top choice for a daughter-in-law from the age of three, with no close second!
Sisi heard these rumors from Mu Xiulan and couldn’t help but chuckle. She knew this He Shishi from her previous life; she loved following celebrity gossip, and Miss He Shishi was a darling of such news. Her fashion, love life, and marriages were always making headlines.
In short, Miss He Shishi was a rich, beautiful but airheaded heiress, married five times and divorced five times, with each marriage seemingly poorer than the last. Just before this event, Sisi had seen a headline about Miss He; despite being fifty, He Shishi took a twenty-five-year-old toy boy, continuously flaunting their love in front of the media.
If Mr. He Mingli knew that this blessed daughter of his, who was supposed to bring prosperity, ended up with such a fate, Sisi wondered how he would feel.
"Hey, Mainland Girl, get up, we want to sit here." A very impolite voice interrupted Sisi’s observation of the hall guests.
Sisi looked up and saw a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl in a short yellow dress, looking rather youthful and charming. However, yellow is a challenging color to pull off. This girl’s darker skin tone made the yellow dress look unsightly, and the designer dress appeared quite cheap on her.
Behind the girl in the yellow dress were five or six girls of similar age, all giggling and enjoying the scene clearly. It was evident that the girl in yellow was pushed forward as their leader. Alas, Jianghu is everywhere, and such mindless fools always seem to find opportunities to embarrass themselves!
Sisi ignored her and continued to enjoy her dessert. Annoyed, the girl in the yellow dress blurted out, "Mainland Girl, I’m talking to you. Are you deaf?"
"Who are you talking to? My name is not Mainland Girl." Sisi put down her plate, and spoke leisurely in Mandarin, on purpose since, after all, they were calling her Mainland Girl. Let them hear what Mandarin sounds like.
"You’re just a Mainland Girl from that wretched place in Mainland, who are you trying to fool? Humph, Mainland Girl, no matter how fancy your clothes, you’re still just a bumpkin."
The girl in the yellow dress jealously eyed the dress Sisi was wearing. She had also liked this particular dress but when she went to buy it, the shopkeeper told her it had been reserved. And now, it was on this Mainland Girl!