Contract Marriage: The Tycoon's Pampered Wife-Chapter 133 - 125: Misunderstanding 2 (1 update)_2

Ning Guiwan did indeed have a history. It was possible that upon encountering Li Annan’s son outside, she had wanted to intimidate him out of anger but inadvertently triggered his asthma attack. This was not an impossible scenario.

Chi Xiangyu felt conflicted. It was her family’s engagement party. Defending Ning Guiwan seemed unfair to the victim. What would the executives think if they witnessed this? Yet, if she didn’t defend her... Ning Guiwan was a guest from the bride’s side. If a guest from the bride’s side caused such a scene at the engagement party, how would the groom’s family view her Qiaoqiao?

She vaguely regretted agreeing to her father’s request.

This was indeed a little troublemaker...

She glanced at her older brother, Chi Jiaming, hoping he would step forward to resolve the situation.

But Chi Jiaming remained seated, aloof, as if this matter did not concern him. Years of political maneuvering had taught him to remain composed.

His wife, seeing that he had no intention of intervening, lowered her head to drink her juice. Her niece by marriage, removed by two degrees of relation, truly didn’t warrant her getting involved. It would be thankless and might even tarnish her own reputation.

Chi Zhengjun watched the drama unfold with a smile, glancing between the woman standing alone and helpless at the hall entrance and Quan Yu. He remarked to Quan Yu, "My great-niece sure knows how to stir up trouble."

After saying this, he turned to see his friend’s reaction.

Only to find that the seat next to him was empty.

「...」

From the moment Ning Guiwan returned to the hall holding An’an until now, only three to five minutes had passed, but these minutes seemed endlessly long.

Zhang Shenglan was still sobbing uncontrollably, her mind consumed with worry for her son, seemingly oblivious to the fact that her words had put Ning Guiwan in a difficult position.

An’an gradually calmed down under the influence of the medicine. Chi Xiangyu came forward to smooth things over, speaking tactfully. The groom’s mother—Mrs. Lu—also smiled and said a few words. The general idea was that she hoped this incident wouldn’t spoil everyone’s good spirits.

Upon seeing her great-grandson stabilize, the elderly Mrs. Li heaved a sigh of relief. Her gaze towards Ning Guiwan turned harsh. "Fortunately, my An’an is alright. Today is the engagement party of the Zhai and Lu families, and I don’t intend to pursue this matter further. You owe An’an an apology and must promise to never harm him again. If you agree, we can let this go."

Ning Guiwan looked at Mrs. Li calmly. "I did not harm An’an."

"Not harm An’an? Then how did my An’an have an attack?" Seeing Ning Guiwan trying to argue, Mrs. Li’s eyes blazed. "How could it be that you just happened to run into him? A coincidence? That’s far too coincidental!"

The atmosphere suddenly became extremely tense.

Chi Xiangyu and Mrs. Lu wanted to say something to ease the tension—

Mrs. Li raised her hand, stopping them from speaking, fixing her gaze only on Ning Guiwan. "I’m not unreasonable. As long as she apologizes and makes a promise, we can put this behind us. But look at her, she shows no remorse. It seems she deliberately wants to be at odds with my Li family!"

Mrs. Lu frowned. A perfectly fine engagement party had been made so unpleasant, and she was deeply displeased.

Yet, she still smiled, maintaining a polite demeanor, and turned to Ning Guiwan. "Miss Ning, how about you offer an apology and we can move past this? What do you say?"

Since the Li family had already made a concession, if Ning Guiwan didn’t know when to back down, she would be considered ungrateful.

Ning Guiwan observed Mrs. Lu and then looked around the room.

The mood was quiet, as if everyone thought she should apologize.

Recalling what happened four years ago—

When Ning Rongyue’s face was scalded by hot water, everyone blamed her, demanding remorse. Now, four years later, the scene was repeating, and she was still the one not trusted.

Over these years, she had reflected, wondering if she was such a failure as a person, not worthy of anyone’s trust?

But at that moment, a restrained male voice broke the eerie silence. "Why should she apologize when she has done nothing wrong?"

Under everyone’s gaze, Quan Yu walked to Ning Guiwan’s side, extended his hand, took her wrist, and pulled her to his side. His suit jacket was open, revealing a black shirt and a dark silver tie underneath.

His expression was calm and composed, and his subdued aura silently spread.

He was clearly taking a protective stance.

Murmurs rippled through the crowd below. Expressions varied, but surprise was the most common.

Quan Yu was known in the business world for his ruthlessness. He had never been seen offering mercy to anyone, much less publicly defending someone. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Not done wrong? My An’an..."

Mrs. Li wanted to persist, but Li Annan interrupted her. "An’an is alright now, Grandmother. Please don’t blame Xiaowan. I don’t think Xiaowan did it intentionally."

Li Annan looked at Ning Guiwan, a hidden warmth in his eyes.

Ning Guiwan had apparently vented her frustration on An’an because of him. Li Annan found that, besides feeling distressed for An’an, he also felt a surprising trace of joy.