Chapter 27: The Adopted Daughter of a Wealthy Family Leaks Telepathy 27 New Story Started “Mom…

Chapter 27: Heiress Revelations: The Adopted Daughter's Confession 27 (New Story "Mom..." Now Available)

Xu Ziyan didn’t go to greet Ding Yao when she went downstairs. Instead, she approached a few society girls who loved to gossip. "Why aren’t you mingling with everyone? What's keeping you tucked away here?"

The group laughed. "It's been ages since we caught up. You haven’t been out much either, have you? Heard you joined the company to work with your eldest brother?"

Xu Ziyan nodded. "Yeah, just an internship after graduation. Big brother’s showing me the ropes. I also invested in an entertainment company—partnered with Ding Yao."

Everyone in their circle knew the Fu and Ding families were longtime rivals. Hearing her mention their collaboration threw them for a loop. They awkwardly replied, "Ding Yao’s here. Aren’t you going to say hello?"

Xu Ziyan hesitated. "Later, maybe. Ah, he’s fallen out with his father now, disowned by the Dings. I wonder if his funds are enough—hope it doesn’t affect my investment."

Seeing her apparent dissatisfaction with Ding Yao and eager to indulge in the tea, they lowered their voices and snickered.

"Ding Yao’s too impulsive. If it were me, I’d deal with Song Jie and Ding Jie first. Why leave on his own?"

"Exactly, is he out of his mind? He’s completely burned bridges with his dad. Without a way back, isn’t he just handing the Ding family to Ding Jie?"

"Ziyan, you should cut ties with him too. Find another partner. Ding Yao’s probably a lost cause—he’s always been a trust fund baby. What does he know about running a company?"

"Right? To put it bluntly, he’s basically a nobody now. Once Ding Jie takes power, he’ll be worse off. Might as well take the money and live abroad."

"I even doubt Ding Yao has the brains for this. Having a meltdown at his dad? Publicly declaring the company’s doomed in front of everyone? What kind of idiot heir does that?"

Xu Ziyan thought, "Brutal! Keep it coming!"

Ding Yao, overhearing her inner monologue, clenched his wine glass, resisting the urge to glance her way. Knowing she was advancing his plotline, he felt tense but played along, deliberately putting on a show of being down on his luck as he and Yang Anni lingered at the edge of the room, appearing isolated and powerless.

Sure enough, the onlookers’ remarks grew even more vicious. Finally, the system announced: "Congratulations, host! Mission accomplished: Assist the male lead in targeting Ding Yao, damaging his reputation. Rewards as usual."

Xu Ziyan smiled and spoke up, "Actually, after working with Ding Yao, I’ve found him quite loyal, reliable, and responsible. The whole Ding family situation—they pushed him too far. Would you just take that lying down? He was raised spoiled, but even a saint has limits."

Her sudden defense of Ding Yao left the group speechless. They exchanged glances before mumbling half-hearted agreements.

Xu Ziyan clinked glasses with them. "Our company will soon be recruiting investors for films, dramas, and variety shows. If you’re interested, feel free to join. Let’s have fun together—I’ll reach out later."

"Uh, sure," they replied with noncommittal nods, figuring they’d deal with it when the time came.

After bonding with them, Xu Ziyan went to greet Ding Yao and Yang Anni, then took her dashing plus-one to help entertain guests.

As the Fu family’s adopted daughter, Xu Ziyan had always been one to elbow her way into the spotlight—a trait the sharp-eyed elite easily noticed. This time, however, everyone was surprised to see her standing harmoniously beside Fu Yazhen, the two sisters chatting and laughing like the closest of siblings.

Rumors said Fu Yazhen had divorced and moved back home. How had she and Xu Ziyan suddenly grown so close? Li Yunhui, too, kept introducing her "two daughters" to others, praising Xu Ziyan’s intelligence and diligence at work, her pride evident.

No one knew what had happened in the Fu family, but it was clear they genuinely cherished their adopted daughter as one of their own. Families looking to make alliances immediately took note—the Fu family now had two unmarried sons and two daughters, all worthy of consideration.

When Ding Jie arrived with Bai Qingqing, he zeroed in on the stunning Xu Ziyan—and the tall, handsome man beside her. Who was that?

Bai Qingqing had pleaded to be shown around high society, and he’d reluctantly brought her, already dreading how to explain it to Xu Ziyan. Now, all he could think about was that mysterious escort. He strode over and greeted Xu Ziyan, asking, "And this is...?"

Xu Ziyan linked arms with her companion, beaming. "Let me introduce Yuan Bin, an artist from my company. He’s our rising star—hope you’ll support him!"

Her tone was perfectly professional—a boss promoting her talent. Yet Ding Jie couldn’t shake the feeling they were too close. The sight of Xu Ziyan clinging to Yuan Bin’s arm irritated him, and Yuan Bin’s tender gaze at her made it worse. But he had no right to object. At such events, rivals couldn’t possibly attend together—hadn’t he brought Bai Qingqing as his own date?

Spotting a big-shot producer, Xu Ziyan led Yuan Bin over to network, leaving Ding Jie without a second glance—let alone acknowledging Bai Qingqing.

Shame washed over Bai Qingqing. She’d spent days preparing, dressing meticulously to finally wipe that smug look off Xu Ziyan’s face and avenge her flower shop humiliation. Yet Xu Ziyan ignored her entirely, as if she were some random nobody—more insulting than last time.

Gripping Ding Jie’s sleeve, she whispered tearfully, "Did my presence upset Miss Xu? Will it ruin your plans? Maybe... I should leave."

Ding Jie collected himself and said casually, "It's fine, don't read too much into it."

Though he said so, he couldn't help wondering—was Xu Ziyan deliberately provoking him? Normally, she would have been jealous and questioned why he was still in contact with Bai Qingqing. But now, she didn’t ask a single word and instead kept pushing her male companion. She must be trying to make him jealous, right?

Most of the guests had arrived by then, and Ding’s father arrived with an air of importance. Ding Jie didn’t have time to dwell on it and hurried over to stand beside his father. On such occasions, if they appeared together, others would assume his father favored him.

His father recognized his ploy but didn’t expose him. Instead, he wanted to use this to provoke Ding Yao, hoping he would return home and apologize. He only had two sons, and since neither had performed well, he decided to give them both another chance—whoever proved themselves the winner would inherit the Ding family.

Still, Ding’s father gave Ding Jie a few pointed words. Thinking his father might send him away, Ding Jie quickly leaned in to outline his scheme for the night.

His father was taken aback, studying him carefully before saying nothing. If it was Fu Dongfeng’s ex making a move, success or failure would only reflect on Fu Dongfeng’s romantic affairs. As long as hush money was paid, no one would connect it to the Ding family. He had no objections—in fact, he found Ding Jie’s cunning quite similar to his own. He, too, had used many tactics against the Fu family in the past.

Glancing at Ding Yao, his father frowned when he saw him lounging carelessly without even coming to greet him. Ding Yao was infuriating—nothing like him at all.

Ding Yao, noticing their stares, merely rolled his eyes and stayed by Yang Anni’s side, formally introducing her to the circle to show he was serious about this relationship.

These were minor incidents, unnoticed by anyone except those involved. Instead, everyone was more concerned about whether Ding’s father would stir trouble at the banquet and embarrass Fu Dongfeng.

Lately plagued by bad luck, Ding’s father had no intention of causing a scene. Now that he knew Ding Jie had a plan, he simply waited for the show, chatting amiably with Fu Dongfeng to put everyone at ease.

Xu Ziyan watched Qin Yuexiang, admiring how well the woman had aged. She couldn’t help but think with amusement, "001, Dad has great taste—his ex is still a beauty."

Fu Dongfeng quickly caught her eye and gave her a reassuring smile, hoping his wife wouldn’t mind. He had no thoughts in that direction.

Li Yunhui was chatting with a few other ladies, who joked, "Out of all of us, you two are the most devoted couple, aren’t you? Decades together, still so loving, no messy affairs—truly enviable."

Li Yunhui smiled. "Oh, not at all. Old Fu only cares about business. Back when he was busy, I barely saw him."

Everyone knew she was being polite and praised Fu Dongfeng for always sending her gifts even at his busiest—already a model husband.

Xu Ziyan noticed Qin Yuexiang secretly spiking a drink and repeatedly trying to get Fu Dongfeng alone—though she hadn’t succeeded yet. Her mental note instantly alerted Fu Dongfeng, Li Yunhui, and Ding Yao to Qin Yuexiang’s movements, had them watching carefully.

But Fu Dongfeng had a plan. Soon, the crowd dispersed again to mingle. He happened to bump into Qin Yuexiang, accepted the drink from her, and agreed to meet her in a small parlor later. The moment he was out of sight, he placed the glass on a waiter’s tray and slipped into the restroom.

Xu Ziyan thought, "Dad’s on the ball," then moved to observe Qin Yuexiang from a distance. Not long after, someone else entered the room, and she nearly laughed out loud.

Ding Jie approached Xu Ziyan and asked quietly, "Did you help create a chance for them to be alone?"

Xu Ziyan showed him a short clip of surveillance footage. "They went off on their own—I didn’t even have time to intervene. Why? What’s your plan?"

Ding Jie smiled in satisfaction. "Don’t worry about the rest. Madam Qin knows what she’s doing."

Soon, it was time for the birthday speech, but Fu Dongfeng was nowhere to be found. Someone inquired, and Li Yunhui, with feigned surprise, stood up with a smile. "He might have had a bit too much to drink and went to sober up. I’ll go find him—please wait a moment."

Ding Jie realized that if Li Yunhui went alone, even if she discovered something, she’d cover it up rather than make a scene. Then there’d be no show tonight. Worse, he’d already told his father about this—if nothing happened, his father would be disappointed.

He glanced at Xu Ziyan, hoping she’d say something, but she was too busy laughing and eating with her companion to notice. Frowning in irritation, he saw Li Yunhui already heading upstairs and had no choice but to speak up himself. "I think I saw Uncle Fu go that way earlier… with a lady."

The nearby crowd went quiet. Seeing Fu Dongfeng go somewhere was fine—but why mention a lady? Surely it couldn’t mean what they were thinking?