Chà Chà Novel

Shang Jianli called Chu Wan back from her thoughts.

“Chu Wan”

“General” She set those thoughts aside and returned to the matter at hand, still somewhat confused. “Were you with Mr. Ji just now?”

“I followed him”

Shang Jianli fastened his shirt buttons, his icy composure returning.

Chu Wan fell silent.

Was “followed him” really something he could admit so casually?!

Back in the hall, Ji Shileng was surprised to find Ji Shifeng standing beside his seat with a thunderous expression.

“Wasn’t your seat in the front row? What are you doing here?”

“I was afraid someone had bullied you. I came to back you up”

Neither the Ji family’s recently surfaced third child nor the Imperial general’s nephew was someone an ordinary guest could afford to offend.

The spectators had therefore put their talents to work elsewhere, embellishing the incident into a sensational tale.

Ji Shifeng had caught a few remarks and guessed that something had happened farther back.

But when he arrived, both parties were gone. All that remained was a freshly mopped floor so clean it almost shone.

Ji Shileng blinked and replied calmly, “Everything’s fine”

In reality, he had been the one doing the bullying.

Ji Shifeng inspected his brother from head to toe and frowned.

“Why did you change your shirt? Did he do something to you?”

Since Ji Shileng’s return, their mother, Wen Qin, had taken charge of buying all his clothes.

She commissioned them from private designers. His name, rendered in uppercase pinyin, was usually embroidered at the collar in silver thread.

“Huh? Change my shirt?”

Ji Shileng tried to bluff his way through.

“This is what I put on this morning. Are you remembering wrong?”

Ji Shifeng said nothing.

Something was fishy. He would question him properly when they got back.

Having learned about the incident, the person responsible for the seating arrangements hurried over. He stopped before Ji Shifeng and wiped the fine sweat from his forehead.

“Hello,” Ji Shifeng said coldly. “I believe I emailed beforehand, asking that the Federation and Imperial delegates not be seated together”

“I even specified that the Ji and Shang families, in particular, must not be placed beside each other”

The coordinator laughed nervously and rushed to apologize.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Ji. We did take that into account, but Joker Studio’s seat was a last-minute addition…”

The attendance list had gone through several rounds of confirmation well before the conference.

Then, the night before it began, Qin Si and Ji Shifeng had contacted him to request an additional seat.

Ji Shifeng clicked his tongue, unwilling to let it pass.

“Even so, I distinctly remember emphasizing that he was not to be seated beside anyone from the Shang family”

Sweat soaked the hair at the coordinator’s temples and trickled down his cheeks.

He bowed deeply, bending at ninety degrees.

“I’m truly, truly sorry”

Ji Shifeng’s presence was so intimidating that he dared not offer further excuses.

“It’s all right. It wasn’t anything serious,” Ji Shileng said, feeling a little guilty. “No one bullied me. Don’t worry”

He knew his brother feared he would be mistreated. But today… he had been the one giving Shang Shengge a thoroughly hard time.

Ji Shifeng gave a soft snort. Since his brother had spoken, he did not pursue the matter.

The coordinator was immensely grateful to Ji Shileng.

“We’ll separate the seats immediately”

Quick to read the situation, a volunteer behind him picked up Shang Shengge’s nameplate.

“It’s fine. There’s no need to move anyone”

The Imperial guests were all seated in this area. Rearranging them at short notice would make things far too difficult for the volunteers.

If the new arrangement displeased someone, they would be scolded again.

Ji Shifeng gave his brother a disapproving look.

“Keep your distance from the Imperial delegation”

Especially anyone named Shang.

“Yes, I know,” Ji Shileng replied obediently. “But I was the one who bullied Shang Shengge just now”

He was still waiting for Shang Shengge to return so he could ask how the experience had felt.

He had loved finding fault with Ji Shileng before. Now the tables had turned, and it was finally time to collect a few “debts.”

Speak of the devil.

Shang Shengge appeared, his blond hair still wet. He had probably done little more than give it a cursory rub with a towel.

He trailed timidly behind Shang Jianli. Peeking out and spotting Ji Shileng, he recoiled as though he had seen a ghost and promptly hid behind his uncle again.

Ji Shifeng and Shang Jianli met each other’s gaze. Tension instantly crackled through the air.

“What’s this? Gone running to the grown-ups?”

Ji Shifeng glanced at Shang Shengge with a thin smile.

Shang Shengge’s chest heaved. He had barely opened his mouth when a cutting look from his uncle made him shut it again.

He could not afford to provoke them. Not a single person here.

Especially the one beside Ji Shifeng. Shang Shengge wished he could teleport straight back to the Empire.

He could not bear to imagine what would happen if Ji Shileng told his uncle everything, repeating his earlier remarks word for word.

Given how much his uncle currently cared about Ji Shileng, evidence or no evidence, he would surely send Shang Shengge straight into his next life.

Shang Jianli accepted Ji Shifeng’s sarcasm and replied evenly, “I brought him to apologize to Mr. Ji”

Ji Shifeng raised an eyebrow, sounding thoroughly astonished.

“Oh? I’d heard General Shang spoiled his nephew above all else. Apparently, you do possess some sense of right and wrong”

Disregarding their surroundings, Ji Shileng’s eyes kept curving with amusement.

Having someone in his corner really did make him feel fearless.

Shang Jianli accepted the full force of Ji Shifeng’s barbs.

Pulling Shang Shengge out from behind him, he lowered his gaze, his eyes icy.

“Shang Shengge. Apologize”

Shang Shengge lowered his head and bowed at ninety degrees, expressing his remorse with utmost sincerity.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Ji. I fully recognize my mistake. Please forgive me”

He had even adopted the most respectful form of address. He was genuinely afraid of his remarks coming to light and being sent off to reincarnate.

“You recognize your mistake?”

Ji Shileng clasped his hands behind his back.

“I thought you’d keep denying it to the bitter end”

Shang Shengge offered a placating smile.

“There’s no greater virtue than recognizing your faults and correcting them. Please don’t hold the behavior of a spoiled wastrel like me against me, Mr. Ji”

Ji Shileng clearly had no intention of letting him off.

“Lately, a lot of people have said I resemble your former sister-in-law. Out of curiosity, I looked him up online”

He paused halfway through, leaving Shang Shengge’s heart suspended in anxious uncertainty.

“You bullied him on so many occasions. Did you ever apologize to him?”

“In other words, are you only apologizing to me today because I belong to the Ji family? Because you can’t overpower me with your influence, so you’ve been forced to apologize?”

Every word struck home.

The guests around them appeared to be looking elsewhere, but in reality, they had long since pricked up their ears, wholly absorbed in the gossip.

Scandal involving prominent families.

It was not something they got to hear every day.