The Heiress's Game

Pei Yan arrived five minutes earlier than the agreed time.

When Gu Yunjin arrived at the restaurant, he was already sitting by the window. He wasn't playing on his phone or impatiently checking his watch; he was simply looking at the sea view in the distance.

The first impression was much better than Gu Yunjin had expected. Not just better, it was—unexpected.

She had seen too many second-generation rich kids at various social events in Dahai City before. Some wanted to convert their family fortune into clothes to wear, some couldn't stop talking about "my dad" every three sentences, and some pretended to be low-key but exuded a sense of superiority from every pore.

Pei Yan was very tall, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, and he wore a dark gray linen shirt.

His looks are the kind that don't need any embellishment—his silhouette against the light standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window does bear a resemblance to Takeshi Kaneshiro in his younger days.

Gu Yunjin mentally added the information "handsome" to Pei Yan's personal file and then categorized it as an "irrelevant variable"—good looks are a plus, but not a basis for decision-making.

Gu Yunjin took a fraction of a second to process this unexpected event, and then quickly returned to her social state.

"Mr. Pei, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

The first fifteen minutes were the standard procedure, with self-introductions. The two then discussed many investment topics, ranging from real estate to technology investment, from the commercialization path of artificial intelligence to the governance structure issues of family businesses in intergenerational succession.

Gu Yunjin discovered that Pei Yan had a trait she really liked—he wouldn't be swayed by other people's opinions, but he also wouldn't rush to refute them.

He would listen first, and then say, "I hadn't thought of that angle before," or "I have a different perspective, would you like to hear it?"

"You're not quite what I expected," Pei Yan said before the dessert arrived.

"What did you envision beforehand?"

Pei Yan thought for a moment and said frankly, "The second young lady of the Gu family hasn't stayed in Dahai City for eleven years. To put it nicely, she's low-key and mysterious; to put it bluntly—she has almost no presence in the industry."

"So you thought I was some timid, obedient girl fresh out of university?"

"Pretty much. Maybe the type who's eager to prove themselves and wants to demonstrate their abilities in every word they say."

Pei Yan looked at her, a faint smile appearing in his eyes.

"It turns out you're neither of those. You have your own perspective on the market, you know what you're doing, and you know what others are doing. That's great. It's been a long time since I've met someone I can have such a pleasant conversation with."

Gu Yunjin scooped out a small piece of tiramisu with a dessert spoon but didn't reply.

She mentally raised Pei Yan's rating from "safe" to "up one level".

He seemed to really just come here to have a meal, chat, and get to know someone.

When the meal ended, Pei Yan paid the bill. The two walked out of the restaurant, and the sea breeze hit them, carrying a hint of saltiness and dampness.

Pei Yan stood at the doorway for a moment, then turned to her and asked, "Did you drive here?"

"Yes, I drove it myself." Gu Yunjin took out her car keys from her bag, pressed a button, and the white Porsche parked on the side of the road flashed its lights twice.

Pei Yan nodded: "Then I won't see you off. Take care on the road."

"Okay. I had a great chat today, thank you for dinner."

"Me too, let's chat again next time."

On the drive back to Suiyuan, Gu Yunjin reviewed the entire dinner party from beginning to end.

Pei Yan, at least from what I've seen so far, isn't unpleasant. He's not pretentious, not stupid, and not self-centered.

Of course, she wouldn't draw conclusions about anyone based on just one meal.

She knew all too well how deceptive first impressions could be—she herself was a master at manipulating first impressions, able to make anyone believe she was a docile and obedient rich girl in the time it takes to eat a meal.

However, if Wang Manyun arranges another meeting, she probably won't refuse.

Over the next few days, Gu Yunjin's schedule was packed with various social occasions—today was a flower arrangement tea party hosted by a certain lady, and tomorrow was a small thank-you banquet for a charity foundation.

Every single event was personally arranged by Wang Manyun, and Madam Pei was present at every single one.

Gu Yunjin wasn't bothered at all. He sat in the executive lounge of the Four Seasons Hotel listening to the ladies chat about whose son had a new internet celebrity girlfriend.

Whose daughter's dowry is missing a zero, whose overseas trust fund is being targeted by the tax authorities—these things may seem trivial, but occasionally a few useful pieces of information can peek out from the cracks.

For example, at the tea party the day before yesterday afternoon, she heard Mrs. Zhao at the next table whisper to her companion, "My husband won't let me touch that Daheng project, saying the leverage ratio is too high."

That one sentence made her mentally lower Daheng Group's credit rating in the industry by one level.

For example, at yesterday's luncheon, someone mentioned that "Gu Mingcheng has been getting particularly close to He Daheng lately," with a meaningful pause in their voice.

So she doesn't dislike it.

She simply wore a docile and obedient mask, sitting among a group of noblewomen drinking tea and eating snacks, silently gathering the information that leaked out between the cups and saucers.

Gu Yunjin had already clearly sensed Madam Pei's affection for her.

It wasn't the kind of heartfelt appreciation and affection for a younger generation, but something more precise—satisfaction with the title "Second Miss of the Gu Family."

Madam Pei was drawn to everything that came with the identity of "Gu Zhenxing's daughter".

As for Gu Yunjin's personality, preferences, and values, Madam Pei didn't seem to care much about these things.

On Friday afternoon, Wang Manyun arranged to go shopping at Landmark Plaza with Madam Pei, and Gu Yunjin accompanied her as usual.

She wore a milk tea-colored knitted cardigan paired with beige wide-leg pants, following half a step behind the two elegant ladies, maintaining a just-right distance.

—She was close enough that she wouldn't seem like an outsider, yet far enough that she wouldn't prevent the two ladies from having private conversations.

Madam Pei picked up a Hermès Birkin bag, compared it to herself in the mirror, and turned to ask Wang Manyun:

"Don't you think this color is too youthful? I'm over fifty, won't people say I'm trying to look young if I wear this?"

"Your skin is fair, this color suits you perfectly," Wang Manyun said with a smile, then, as if suddenly remembering something, she turned to look at Gu Yunjin.

"Yun Jin, what do you think?"

Gu Yunjin took a step forward, tilted her head slightly to examine the bag, and then gave a sweet smile:

"Aunt Pei has a great temperament; she looks good in anything. But I think the elephant gray one next door suits your skin tone better and is more versatile."

Upon hearing this, Madam Pei first glanced at the elephant-gray bag, then turned to Wang Manyun and smiled:

"This child has excellent taste; he's certainly worldly-wise."

"She spent so many years abroad, she may not have learned anything else, but she certainly developed a refined taste," Wang Manyun replied succinctly.

"Yun Jin is so considerate; she accompanied us for an entire afternoon without complaining of being tired." Madam Pei picked up her teacup.

"How many young people these days are willing to go shopping with their elders? My sons act like it's their life whenever they have to go shopping with me."

Especially Ah Yan, who ran faster than anyone else as soon as she heard we were going shopping.

"Yun Jin is too quiet. I wish she were more lively."

After Wang Manyun finished speaking, she turned to look at Gu Yunjin, her tone filled with just the right amount of affection, "Are you tired? Do you want to go back and rest?"

"I'm not tired, Mom. I'm very happy to go shopping with you and Aunt Pei."

Madam Pei looked at her, becoming more and more satisfied.

In Madam Pei's eyes, this girl almost met all her criteria for a daughter-in-law—matching family background, beautiful education, dignified appearance, gentle personality, and no messy social news.

More importantly, she is the daughter of the second branch of the Gu family, not the heir, and has no complicated family responsibilities. After marrying into the Pei family, she is a member of the Pei family and will not always want to go back to her parents' home to ask for help or fight for a say.

This type of daughter-in-law is the most popular among wealthy wives.

As for what the girl herself thinks, whether she is willing, and whether she has someone she likes—these questions will certainly be asked, but under the premise of being well-matched in terms of social status, they are all secondary.

Gu Yunjin's phone vibrated in her pocket. She took it out discreetly and glanced at it. It was a message from Li Chunjing:

"The initial cut of the trailer for 'Walking with Brilliance' has been released."