The Fake Heiress's Inner Thoughts Were Heard by Her Entire Family

Chapter 14

As night fell, the main event of the banquet began in earnest.

Jing Zejun descended the stairs arm-in-arm with Lin Ruiqing, while Jing Beicheng stepped forward to greet them.

Jing Zejun wore a black butterfly-bow fishtail gown for the evening, her smooth ebony hair cascading over her fair shoulders.

'Is this the long-lost Jing family heiress?'

'She looks quite the part.'

'That girl seems familiar. Haven't we seen her somewhere before?'

The guests' minds raced with thoughts, though their faces maintained polite and cheerful expressions.

Jing Zejun, maintaining her smile, placed her hand in Jing Beicheng's outstretched palm and stood center stage in the banquet hall.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend this banquet. Today, there is no Hengjing chairman here; my wife and I are simply ordinary parents wanting to share our joy with you all."

Jing Beicheng glanced sideways at Jing Zejun, who noticed her father's slightly reddened eyes.

"Three months ago, the Jing family found our daughter who had been missing for over twenty years..."

Jing Beicheng, typically known for his dignified and steady demeanor, rarely showed such emotion.

"Today, we simply want to introduce her to everyone, to let you all know that the Jing family's eldest daughter has returned."

Jing Zeqian had been watching Jing Zejun from below, feeling happy for his sister, parents, brother, and himself.

His gaze held a touch of emotion as he stood to the side, applauding with everyone else. His eyes swept across the room, landing on Jing Yi not far away.

Jing Zeqian paused, suddenly realizing Jing Yi's current situation...

While Jing Zeqian was indeed pleased by Jing Beicheng's words—after all, he didn't want anyone to take what belonged to Jing Zejun, even the title of Jing family heiress—he now felt a twinge of concern.

Jing Zeqian's brow furrowed slightly as his gaze pierced through the crowd, finding Jing Yi. She was applauding enthusiastically, even more energetically than the guests around her.

There were too many people for him to hear Jing Yi's thoughts, but judging by her demeanor, she probably hadn't considered the implications as deeply as he had.

Jing Zeqian's lips curled into a smile, his slender eyes flashing with amusement as he turned his head to join the guests in applauding.

Meanwhile, Jing Beicheng had finished introducing Jing Zejun and glanced at Jing Yi standing nearby.

"Yi Yi, come up here too."

Jing Yi, who had been caught up in the excitement, suddenly heard her name called. Her expression was surprised and bewildered.

Was he calling her to come up?

The guests' gazes followed Jing Beicheng's line of sight towards her.

Shen Xi quickly tugged at her, urging her to go on stage. These stares were too intense!

Jing Yi reluctantly walked up, the curve of her smile somewhat stiff.

"This is our youngest child, who grew up abroad with her grandmother. She's also recently returned to the country..."

The longer Jing Beicheng spoke, the more uncomfortable Jing Yi became, unsure why this additional segment had been added.

Finally, Jing Beicheng finished speaking, and Jing Yi hurriedly pulled Jing Zejun off the stage, leaving Jing Beicheng and Lin Ruiqing to continue socializing with the guests.

"How did I end up involved in this?" Jing Yi brought Jing Zejun over to Shen Xi's side, finally relaxing and looking quite relieved.

Jing Zejun's eyes sparkled with amusement, her gentle aura becoming even more pronounced. "So you get nervous too? And you were laughing at me yesterday."

Jing Yi was momentarily stumped, opening and closing her mouth without finding a retort, her eyes wide and watery as she stared at Jing Zejun.

Seeing her like this, Jing Zejun decided not to tease her further and turned to look at the quiet Shen Xi standing beside them.

"And who might this be?"

"My friend, Shen Xi."

Shen Xi looked a bit nervous, stumbling over her words, "Jiu Sheng, no, I mean—Miss Jing, hello, I'm Shen Xi." In her nervousness, she had called Jing Zejun by her character name from the drama.

Jiu Sheng, the name of her character in "Jun Lin."

Realizing it was her analysis, Jing Zejun's smile turned gentle, her voice soft. "Hello, Miss Shen. I'm Jing Zejun, Jing Yi's sister."

Jing Yi felt a bit exasperated; after all, she and Jing Zejun were only a month apart in age.

"She's your fan. She's a bit nervous meeting you."

Knowing how passionate Shen Xi was about that drama, Jing Yi helped express this to Jing Zejun.

"Thank you. Would you like a signed photo or a personalized autograph?"

Shen Xi's eyes lit up, her nervousness disappearing as she looked at Jing Zejun with delight. "Is that okay?"

Jing Zejun's lips curved upward, her expression gentle. "Of course. I didn't bring any with me today, but I'll have Yi Yi bring it to you later."

"Great!"

Before they could chat further, a group of socialites approached, holding wine glasses.

"Miss Jing!"

Jing Zejun turned, politely greeting the group, though she didn't recognize any of them.

"I'm Lulu!"

"I'm Lucy!"

"I'm Lucinda!"

Jing Zejun grew increasingly confused as she listened. Were these three from the same family? Or were they related? Was this an English listening comprehension test?

If it weren't so impolite, she would have asked outright if the three were sisters.

As Jing Zejun stood there perplexed, Jing Yi struggled to suppress her laughter, her whole body trembling slightly.

No wonder this scene had seemed familiar—these were the 'plastic sisters' who had followed the original Jing Yi around, throwing their weight about in the novel.

The first time she had read their names in the novel, she had laughed uncontrollably.

"Hello to you all."

"Miss Jing, congratulations! We're so happy you've found your family!"

The socialite on the right stepped forward, her face full of sincerity, as if she were truly happy for Jing Zejun.

Was she the one called Lucinda?

This was the only thought in Jing Zejun's mind.

"Thank you."

Then the one called Lulu approached, beaming, "Miss Jing, I'm Lulu."

"Hello, hello."

Afterward, the group continued with more small talk, but from start to finish, they never greeted Jing Yi, even though Jing Beicheng had just introduced her.

Even Shen Xi noticed this, let alone Jing Zejun, whose eyes flashed with displeasure.

Jing Zejun didn't mind people trying to curry favor with her because of her status as the Jing family heiress. She had anticipated such scenes from the moment she entered the Jing family.

However, Jing Zejun strongly disliked their attitude towards Jing Yi. She let out a soft laugh and linked arms with Jing Yi.

"Thank you for your congratulations. I'm indeed very happy to have found my family and gained a beautiful sister."

The three sisters before them seemed a bit awkward. They had deliberately ignored Jing Yi's presence, as rumors about the true and false heiresses were still circulating in their social circles. They had assumed Jing Zejun would dislike Jing Yi, the supposed false heiress.

The three hurriedly greeted Jing Yi.

Jing Yi responded politely, though she didn't actually care about the sisters' attitude. It saved her a lot of energy this way.

But it didn't prevent Jing Yi from realizing that the Jing family was standing up for her.