The Foolish Wife Turned Scheming After Her Recovery - Chapter 20

Chapter 20: “I’m Sorry, I Didn’t Mean To Become Stupid…”

The loud noise from the restroom startled Chu Jiayan, who had been waiting in the hallway. He immediately rushed in, afraid something had happened to Yu Yao and Lu Zhili.

As soon as he entered, he saw Yu Yao standing by the bathroom door, her face dark as thunder, her eyes like poisoned blades locked fiercely on the two men near the sinks.

Chu Jiayan didn’t know what had happened, but instinctively stood by Yu Yao’s side.
“Yu Yao, what’s wrong?”

Yu Yao didn’t respond, but the two men by the sinks finally reacted and looked over while cursing.
“Damn! Scared the hell out of me. What the hell’s your problem?!”

One of them recognized Yu Yao immediately and tugged at his companion’s sleeve, lowering his voice.
“Chen Shao, that’s the one who’s always with Miss Lu.”

She was also the one they had just been talking about.

The man felt like luck wasn’t on his side—he had just made a few offhanded comments, only to be caught by the person herself.

But the one called Chen Shao didn’t feel he’d done anything wrong. He didn’t even use any explicit insults. Even if he said the Lu family’s eldest daughter was stupid, wasn’t that just the truth? He thought he was totally in the right.

“This young lady, we don’t even know each other. Why are you insulting us right off the bat?” Chen Shao feigned innocence and tried to turn the tables.

Yu Yao sneered, “Heh, I guess there’s a flaw in Aunt Fu’s birthday party after all—any random mangy dog can sneak in.”

Chen Shao prided himself on being a well-known second-generation heir in Beijing. His family was famous in the entertainment industry, and their models had worked with Fu Shuang’s brand before, which was how he even got the invitation. Yet in Yu Yao’s mouth, he was just a stray dog who had snuck in.

Relying on his physical advantage, he stepped forward threateningly.
“What the hell did you just say?!”

Chu Jiayan couldn’t let anyone bully Yu Yao, so he stepped forward as well, expression dark and defensive. But before anything else could happen, Chen Shao felt a force slam into his shoulder and stumbled backward.

Lu Zhili had rushed out of the restroom and, upon seeing the threatening expression and movements, instinctively charged forward and shoved Chen Shao away.

Frowning, she looked like a small, furious beast as she warned him, “Stay away from her!”

Chen Shao’s companion barely caught him in time to stop a fall. When he saw Lu Zhili’s face, he turned ghostly pale.
“Chen Shao, that’s… that’s Miss Lu…”

Chen Shao had always been a useless trust fund brat. He could suppress his temper when calm, but that shove made him completely lose control.
“You fucking dared to push me?! What did I say wrong?! You really are a goddamn idiot! What, we can’t say the truth now? You think your mom’s the emperor and can shut everyone up?! Everyone’s laughing at you being a stu—”

“Slap—”

Yu Yao didn’t hesitate for a second. She stepped forward and slapped him across the face, then grabbed his tie, yanking him down with vicious force.

“An idiot? Who’s the real idiot here? You better think hard about her last name, where we are right now, and whose lead every major family in Beijing follows. Whether she’s stupid or not, the garbage you just spewed is enough to get your whole family kicked out of this city!”

Her threat clearly hit a nerve. Chen Shao’s face turned visibly pale, and the fear in his eyes revealed that his rationality had finally returned.

He may have thought what he said was “truth,” but he had made one fatal mistake—Fu Shuang didn’t need to be an emperor to shut everyone up. As long as someone wanted to keep doing business with Sheng Tian Group or the Lu family, they’d better watch their mouths.

“And one more thing—Lu Zhili is not stupid. I hope you all remember that fact.”
Yu Yao let go of his tie in disgust, as if touching him for another second would dirty her hands.

Chen Shao’s friend immediately helped him up and began bowing repeatedly toward Lu Zhili.
“Miss Lu, I’m so sorry. We had too much to drink and said things we shouldn’t have. Please don’t take it to heart, I beg you.”

Then he yanked Chen Shao’s sleeve and gritted his teeth, “Apologize! Or do you really want the Lu family to throw us out of Beijing?!”

Just then, a voice rang out from the hallway.
“My, the restroom’s quite lively.”

Everyone turned to see Xie Yanqing walking toward them gracefully, a deep blue shawl draped over her arm. Beside her stood the late-arriving Qin Yue.

The moment Chen Shao saw Xie Yanqing, the last bit of color drained from his face. If he still had any hope when dealing with Lu Zhili and the unknown Yu Yao, then Xie Yanqing’s appearance shattered it completely.

He turned quickly and bowed to Lu Zhili over and over again.
“Miss Lu, I’m sorry, I really am. I was drunk, I didn’t mean any of it. Please forgive me!”

Xie Yanqing’s background wasn’t a secret. She was Lu Zhili’s cousin, the daughter of high-ranking government officials—an influential figure in Beijing. Lu Zhili might let things go because of her mental state, but Xie Yanqing? She wasn’t one to play nice.

“Miss Xie, my friend and I really just had too much to drink and said something inappropriate. We’re truly sorry, please forgive us.”

But Xie Yanqing didn’t even look at him. She simply stepped forward and draped the shawl over her cousin’s shoulders.
Then she asked softly, “Sis, did those two bully you?”

Though the handprint on Chen Shao’s face was obvious, she chose to ignore it.

Lu Zhili pursed her lips and said nothing, just tugging the shawl tighter.

Xie Yanqing was hot-tempered and not easy to deal with. Judging by Lu Zhili’s face, she could guess what had happened.
Hmph. Why can’t people just learn to shut their mouths?

Clearly ready to escalate, she was stopped when Qin Yue tugged her wrist and gently said, “If Zhili doesn’t want to make a scene, don’t stir things up now. It’s not like they’re anyone important. You can handle them later. Today is Aunt Fu’s birthday. Let’s not upset her.”

Just a few words from Qin Yue were like a calm autumn execution.

Xie Yanqing thought her cousin made a good point. With a few cold remarks, she dismissed the two offenders—not just from the second floor, but from the entire event.
No matter who brought them, they were all told to leave.

As for what kind of punishment awaited them afterward—that wasn’t her concern.

Soon, only the five of them remained in the restroom. Yu Yao held Lu Zhili’s wrist and tried to comfort her in a low voice. But no matter what she said, Lu Zhili just stood there, lips pressed tightly together, refusing to speak.

Yu Yao was getting exhausted. She had tried every way to coax her, but it still wasn’t working. She rubbed her aching temples, feeling a flicker of impatience.

Maybe I’m just not cut out for comforting children.

“I’m sorry…” Lu Zhili muttered, head bowed, fingers nervously clutching the fabric of the shawl. Her knuckles were white from the pressure.

Yu Yao blinked.
“…What?”

Lu Zhili finally looked up. Her amber eyes were brimming with guilt and tears. The watery glow made them look even more pure and flawless.

“I’m sorry. It’s all because you were playing with me that they said those awful things about you. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to… I didn’t mean to be stupid… I’m sorry, Yu Yao…”

Her words were broken and scattered, but the four others heard every word loud and clear.
Even though becoming “stupid” wasn’t her fault—she was the victim—she still apologized for it.

Xie Yanqing and Qin Yue, the two people who understood Lu Zhili best, knew she had never truly seen herself as stupid. She just hated hearing strangers call her that. She had never been so hurt by the word before.

She thought she had brought misfortune to Yu Yao.

Chu Jiayan had been standing off to the side watching the whole thing.
It finally dawned on his not-so-sharp brain that, in other people’s eyes, Lu Zhili seemed… a little different.

But… he really didn’t see it.
In his eyes, Lu Zhili was just like him—a little childish, that’s all.

Chu Jiayan asked, “Wait, where exactly is Lu Zhili supposed to be stupid?”

She runs home when it rains, eats when she’s hungry, and jumps in to protect her friend when someone’s bullying them. How is that stupid at all?!

The moment he said that, Lu Zhili’s eyes filled with tears again. Hearing the word “stupid” was just too much.
The tears she had held back spilled over like pearls on a broken string.

“Waaaahhhh—”
She was heartbroken. She felt so guilty toward Yu Yao and was convinced Yu Yao would dump her as a friend any second.
“I’m sorry… Yu Yao… I’m so sorry…”

Chu Jiayan: “…”

Alright. Now he believed she might be a little different from most people.

Yu Yao had been a little impatient, but once Lu Zhili burst into tears again, all that irritation melted away. She couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

She stepped forward and pulled her into a hug, patting her back gently over and over again.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry. This isn’t your fault. You’re just sick—you didn’t choose to be. I’m not blaming you, alright? Please don’t cry.”

Yu Yao’s voice really did seem to have the magic of Princess Ariel. Lu Zhili felt all that bitterness and shame in her heart float away like bubbles, replaced by warmth and affection for Yu Yao.

She opened her mouth to say something—but before she could, everything went black.

She collapsed against Yu Yao’s shoulder.

“Miss Lu? Miss Lu?! Lu Zhili—!”

“Zhili-jie!”

The bathroom was thrown into chaos once again.