The sickly one in F4 was the group's darling.

Zhang Yun's mind went blank, and he asked in bewilderment, "W-what do you mean?"

"The person you were about to hit was the young master of the Bai family, and also someone that the third young master of the Bai family publicly acknowledged. Mrs. Zhou, your ability to pick people to cause trouble is truly unique."

After Mrs. Zhao finished speaking, she turned her head and nodded to Bai Jiheng, "Third Young Master."

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

Those guests who were originally just watching the spectacle could no longer maintain their composure and began whispering among themselves.

"When did the Bai family acquire a young master?"

"I'd heard the Bai family had a young son, but I didn't remember him. It's true! No wonder Zhou Yan brought him in."

"Mrs. Zhao herself confirmed it; it's someone the Third Young Master recognized, so his identity is beyond doubt!"

"The Xu family was driven out before, they must have offended this person. We need to find out about this young master as soon as we get back, lest we accidentally offend him without even realizing it."

"This Mrs. Zhou is probably completely finished. The eldest son of the Bai family is here tonight, and that woman from the Shen family was standing next to the young master just now. She has offended both the Bai and Shen families at once. Will she still have a place in Yunliu City in the future?"

"I wonder who this Mrs. Zhou is; she looks a bit unfamiliar!"

The murmurs surged in like a tide, layer upon layer, making it hard for Zhang Yun to breathe.

Zhang Yun trembled uncontrollably, his lips quivering: "No, it's impossible... He was dressed in rags this afternoon, he walked up the mountain, he didn't even have a car."

Bai Jiheng glanced at him coldly and said mockingly, "You really think Shen Ye can protect you?"

He glanced at Shen Tinglan beside him, the implication of which was self-evident.

Shen Tinglan spoke calmly, instructing her accompanying secretary, "Call Shen Ye."

The secretary acted swiftly, immediately taking out her phone, dialing, and turning on speakerphone.

The ringing of the bell was like a drumbeat urging him to die, and Zhang Yun's face visibly turned pale inch by inch.

The call connected, and Shen Ye's voice came through the speakerphone, tinged with unexpected eagerness: "Uncle? What made you think of calling me? I heard you're also attending the Bai family banquet? Are you asking me to come over?"

Shen Tinglan's voice was calm, yet carried an intimidating pressure: "Shen Ye, there's a woman named Zhang Yun who claims to be your girlfriend's mother. At the Bai family banquet, she publicly slandered members of the Bai family and even attempted to assault them. After being stopped by Bai Sanshao, she's now calling you to ask you to come and back her up."

There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone. When Shen Ye spoke again, his tone had turned cold.

"Zhang Yun? Which Zhang Yun?"

"Ask her yourself."

Shen Tinglan gestured to her secretary to hand the phone to Zhang Yun.

Zhang Yun trembled all over, stammering, and finally managed to squeeze out a sentence in a shaky voice: "Young Master Shen... it's me, it's Auntie, it's Qianqian and me..."

"Who is Qianqian?" Shen Ye's voice was devoid of any warmth. "I don't know any Qianqian, and don't try to get on my good side. Let me tell you, no matter who you are, if you dare to use my name to swindle people again, I will make sure your Zhou family is completely wiped out of Yunliu City."

The dial tone echoed in the corridor. Zhang Yun collapsed to the floor, her hand still gripping the phone, but the secretary had already taken it away. Her fingers froze in mid-air, her whole body like a plaster statue whose soul had been emptied.

Her last supporter didn't even give her a second glance, discarding her like trash.

At the other end of the corridor, Zhou Jianguo stumbled and rushed over.

He noticed the strange atmosphere from afar in the lounge, and his heart was already pounding with anxiety.

When he squeezed through the crowd and saw his wife lying on the ground in a mess, Zhou Jianguo felt a chill run through his body, as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

He turned his head following his wife's gaze and saw Bai Ci, as well as the two people beside him. With just one glance, his legs went weak.

"Isn't this Zhou Jianguo? So it was his wife who was about to hit the young master of the Bai family."

"They're incredibly audacious to run wild on the Bai family's territory."

Whispers came from all directions. Zhou Jianguo approached step by step, staggering and nearly stepping on sharp shards of glass.

"What exactly did you do?" He suppressed his raging anger, his voice hoarse and low.

He bent down to help Zhang Yun, but stopped abruptly halfway through his outstretched hand.

Looking at his wife, covered in alcohol stains and with disheveled hair, who had been with him for over twenty years, he felt both angry and cold inside.

Just now, he was still humbly apologizing and trying to appease Bai Ci for his previous rudeness on the mountain path.

In just a short while, she had caused such a huge mess.

"I humbled myself and apologized to everyone outside, all for you!" Zhou Jianguo's temples bulged with veins. "Do you even know who he is? How many kind words did I have to barely calm things down? And you just had to keep going against him!"

Zhang Yun suddenly looked up, his eyes showing no remorse, only the madness of being driven to a dead end, and began to shirk responsibility.

"Why are you blaming me? Zhou Jianguo! You knew he was from the Bai family all along, and you apologized to him long ago, didn't you? You knew perfectly well, so why didn't you tell me a single word!"

"You—" Zhou Jianguo raised his hand, paused in mid-air for two seconds, then slammed it down hard. "Fine, fine."

When Zhou Jianguo uttered "Okay," it seemed as if all his strength had been drained. He stopped looking at Zhang Yun, who was lying on the ground, and turned around to squeeze out of the crowd.

His back was hunched, and his steps were unsteady. He was a completely different person from the middle-aged man who had stood tall and was all smiles as he handed out business cards when he first entered the banquet hall that evening.

The crowd automatically made way for him, and no one tried to stop him. Their silent, disdainful avoidance was as if they were avoiding an uninvited guest who had gone bankrupt and been completely expelled from the public eye.

Everyone watched Zhou Jianguo leave dejectedly, their eyes cold. Having offended the Bai family, they would sever all ties with them after tonight.

Zhang Yun then realized that all the assets she had been so proud of all night—Shen Ye, Qianqian, and high society circles—were just illusions she had woven herself from the beginning.

Bai Jiheng glanced at the waiter beside him and coldly ordered, "Seal off this section of the corridor. Replace all the paintings that have been stained with wine. Collect the broken pieces of the flower vase, have them appraised, and make the Zhou family compensate for the loss."

"In addition, all items that Mrs. Zhou has touched should be replaced."

"If my Bai family's things are dirty, then we can't keep them."

He glanced at Zhang Yun and said indifferently, "Take him out to sober up."

Two security guards immediately stepped forward and grabbed Zhang Yun's arms, one on each side. Her legs were already weak and she was too exhausted to struggle. She slumped against the guards and let them drag her out.

She turned around and glanced at Bai Ci, who was standing beside Shen Tinglan, looking lost and dejected. The young man simply looked at her calmly.

Security escorted her through the crowd, drawing stares and whispers from the guests outside.

"Who is this person?"

"You didn't know? I heard there was trouble and a fight broke out at the banquet."

"I heard she came with Shen Ye. Shen Ye said on the phone that he didn't know her. I guess she was just trying to force a connection and got exposed in public."

"Didn't you hear what Mrs. Zhao said just now? She insulted the young master of the Bai family. Isn't that courting death?"

"She's finished. She's offended the Bai family and trampled on Mrs. Zhao's reputation. Who in the circle will dare to associate with her in the future?"

"It's not just over, she almost slapped Young Master Bai across the face just now, and now she's offended the entire Bai family and the Shen family."

The clamor and whispers surged in like a tide, but were eventually shut out completely by the heavy doors.

The moment Zhang Yun was carried out of the gate, the night wind blew down from the mountaintop, making her shiver.

She slumped on the porch steps, her dress soaked in the remaining champagne, her hair still splattered with shards of glass, looking like a drowned rat that had been drenched in a downpour and kicked.

She pulled out her phone, her hands trembling so much she could barely hold it. The screen lit up and dimmed repeatedly, with Lao Zhou's unread messages still at the top.

She stared at those words for a long time, and finally tears mixed with champagne streamed down her face.

"That kid is from the Bai family!!! Don't mess with him!!!"

Zhang Yun cried, her voice growing softer and softer until it finally became a murmur, almost a soliloquy: "I really don't know who he is..."