Sold immediately after wearing it? I took my family and fled the famine.

Chen Sumei's voice drew everyone's attention to her. Her heart tightened; she absolutely couldn't let them report to the authorities, or her plans would be ruined.

"Report to the authorities? Report to what authorities! Xiaoxiao fell into the water, and if we go to the yamen, what will become of her reputation? Today, with so many people in the garden, you, you held her in your arms in front of so many people, and now you want to report to the authorities? Do you want her reputation to be ruined even faster?" She spoke faster and faster, her chest heaving.

Xu Yun panicked and hurriedly said, "The situation was urgent at the time. I heard someone shout that Miss Chen had fallen into the water, and I saw that the color of the clothes in the water was the same as the one you were wearing. I thought it was you who had fallen into the water, so I jumped in. When I got ashore, I couldn't see the person clearly at all. Later... I found out it was Xiaoxiao." His voice became a little weak as he spoke, probably realizing that his words would not pass muster with Chen Sumei.

Sure enough, Chen Sumei immediately stood in front of Xu Yun, her face still showing anger, but her tone had turned cold: "Didn't you see who it was? Xu Yun, are you saying that as long as it was me who fell into the water, you can hug me in front of so many people?" She stared straight at him, her gaze cold and sharp, completely different from the gentle and delicate Chen Sumei of the past.

Xu Yun opened his mouth, his face flushing red: "That's not what I meant! I... I thought..."

"What do you think? You think it's because of me, that you feel justified in holding her like that?" Chen Sumei pressed him, not giving him a chance to finish speaking. "Let me tell you, Xu Yun, Xiaoxiao was the one who suffered today. The water was so cold, and she's an unmarried girl, being held in your arms with so many people watching. How is she supposed to face anyone after this? You're her future brother-in-law, do you know how humiliating this is?"

Hearing this, Chen Xiaoxiao's face turned incredibly pale. She lowered her head, her nails digging into her palms, and her body began to tremble again.

Chen Sumei wouldn't stop, her voice softening slightly, yet even more poignant: "I'm not blaming you, I just feel sorry for Xiaoxiao. How old is she? She's not even engaged yet. If word gets out because of this, who will dare to propose marriage in the future? What will she do?"

Xu Yun was speechless, frozen in place. He knew, of course, that the situation was inappropriate, but in that moment, he had acted impulsively and jumped down.

Now, as Chen Sumei continued to berate him, he felt both ashamed and confused, and could only repeat, "It was my recklessness, it was my lack of consideration. But I had absolutely no ulterior motives, I truly believed..."

"Stop talking." Chen Sumei interrupted him, raising her hand to wipe away imaginary tears. "The more you explain, the more upset I get."

"If you're worried about your reputation, you should have Young Master Xu personally go to the Chen family's residence to explain things clearly. That would be better than this argument. Saving someone is ultimately a good deed; how can it be portrayed so negatively?"

Chen Sumei slowly turned her face to look at Xu Wanning, her eyes cold as if she were looking at a meddlesome stranger.

She spoke slowly, "Miss Xu, you weren't there. It's easy for you to speak so casually. Let me ask you, if you were the one who fell into the water today, and Mr. Xu held you in his arms in front of so many people, could you also pat your chest and say it's okay? If your future husband were like that, could you be so magnanimous and not care about anything?"

Xu Wanning was speechless, choked by this barrage of retorts. Her expression changed slightly, and she opened her mouth, but ultimately remained silent.

Seeing that she couldn't answer, Chen Sumei said softly, "It's not that I want to cause trouble. It's just that my sister was the one who was rescued today, so I've been holding back and haven't said anything harsh. If it were someone else, who knows how much trouble they would have caused." After she finished speaking, she turned her face away, as if she had suffered a great injustice.

Su Yan stood to the side, his brows furrowing deeper as he listened to her words. He hadn't wanted to get involved, but seeing his cousin rendered speechless by such a woman in public, he could no longer suppress his displeasure.

He stepped forward, shielding Xu Wanning behind him, his voice low but extremely cold: "I understand Miss Chen's meaning. Today's events were due to Brother Xu's inappropriate actions. But since you feel that our presence as outsiders has only added to the trouble, then we need not linger any longer."

He turned to the side and gestured for them to leave, showing no courtesy whatsoever: "It's getting late, please go back. I apologize for my poor hospitality today, and for keeping our distinguished guests waiting. Goodbye."

These words were spoken politely, but every single one sounded like an invitation to leave. Upon hearing this, Chen Sumei's face turned pale and then flushed.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but when she met Su Yan's cold eyes, she couldn't say anything. Xu Wanning stood behind Su Yan, turning her face away, clearly unwilling to waste any more words with Chen Sumei.

Xu Yun came to his senses, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Su Yan, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Brother Su, I'm sorry about today." Su Yan didn't reply, but simply nodded.

Xu Yun glanced at Chen Sumei, then at Chen Xiaoxiao huddled to the side, and finally said in a low voice, "Let's go, the car is already outside."

Chen Sumei looked at Su Yan, the person she had gone to great lengths to get a few steps closer to, who was now standing right in front of her, yet speaking to her in such a cold tone, "Goodbye and don't bother seeing me off."

She suddenly felt that the room was extremely cold, so cold that she felt as if her breath was frozen.

She took Chen Xiaoxiao's hand and said, "Xiaoxiao, let's go." Chen Xiaoxiao stood up with the help of her, her legs were still a little weak, but she was steadily supported by her.

The two sisters walked out the door one after the other, neither of them looking back. Xu Yun followed behind, cupped his hands in greeting to Su Yan and Xu Wanning, and then left the house as well.

Xu Wanning walked over and said softly, "That Miss Chen is really..." Su Yan shook his head, indicating that she didn't need to say anything more.