Faced with her parents' questioning, Shen Liuli chose to remain silent.
Shen Liuli knew that the accident back then had been a setup by Dongfang Zijin, and she also knew that Chen Qingdi had tacitly allowed Dongfang Zijin's actions. Because of this, every word Chen Qingdi said now sounded utterly hypocritical to her.
However, none of that mattered anymore. After today, everything would be over.
Elder Shen, Shen Yin, offered a bitter smile and said apologetically, "Brother Zhenghe, I am truly sorry. We won't be able to become in-laws after all—what a misfortune for our family!"
Chen Zhenghe remained completely calm. "I watched the girl Liuli grow up, and I know her character inside and out," he said. "There is definitely a hidden story behind this matter!"
With a trace of suppressed anger, Chen Zhenghe demanded, "Qingdi, tell me, what on earth is going on here?"
Chen Qingdi had already made up his mind to take all the blame upon himself, partly to salvage Shen Liuli's reputation, but even more to protect Dongfang Zijin.
Before Chen Qingdi could speak, however, Shen Liuli walked straight up to Chen Zhenghe, bowed deeply three times, and said, "I'm sorry, Grandpa Chen. I've let you down."
She then walked over to Chen Changsheng and his wife, bowed three times, and said, "I'm sorry, Uncle, Auntie!"
Chen Changsheng and his wife wanted to say something, but stopped themselves, ultimately shaking their heads and sighing.
They had always been fond of Shen Liuli; it was simply a pity that Chen Qingdi was such a good-for-nothing who lacked any real affinity with her!
Shen Liuli bowed three times once more—to her parents, her grandfather, and the guests in attendance—and then calmly walked toward the exit, not offering a single word of defense for herself from beginning to end.
A murmur of regret and sighs rippled through the guests!
"Liuli! Liuli! Where are you going?" Xu Manyu cried out as she watched Shen Liuli walk further and further away.
Shen Liuli showed no intention of stopping, but a moment later, her steps ground to a halt.
The main doors slowly swung open. A group of young scions holding fresh flowers marched in along both sides of the red carpet, led on one side by Meng Liang and on the other by Luo Yu, filing in from outside until the last of them reached the front of the stage.
Several elders spotted their own grandsons among the group and stood up, ready to go over and teach them a lesson. What kind of nonsense was this, showing off so blatantly at someone else's wedding? But they were held back by elders at the same table. "Wait and see what happens first!"
Immediately afterward, Jun Chen walked slowly into the wedding hall, dressed in a black suit.
With a smile, Jun Chen asked, "The ceremony isn't finished yet, and the wedding hasn't even been called off—why is the great beauty Shen trying to leave?"
Shen Liuli looked surprised. "What are you doing here?"
Jun Chen narrowed his eyes with a smile. "What do you think? You're the mother of my child, so what do you suppose I'm here for? To crash the wedding, of course. Did you really think I'd let my child call someone else Dad?"
A slight smile played at the corners of Jun Chen's mouth as he stepped forward, took Shen Liuli's delicate hand in his, and said, "Let's go. Let's finish what we started."
Amid the stunned gazes of the guests, Shen Liuli was unceremoniously dragged back to the stage by Jun Chen.
Jun Chen looked at the dazed Chen Qingdi and said domineeringly, "Hey buddy, do me a favor and step aside. Stop hogging the latrine if you're not going to do any business! If you don't appreciate her, there are plenty of people who do."
"Father, let's continue! We can skip those questions about whether she's willing; Shen Liuli is carrying my child, so willing or not, she has no choice."
Shen Yin and Chen Zhenghe exchanged puzzled glances, extremely curious about Jun Chen's identity.
Shen Huaiqiu was incandescent with rage. "So you're the brat who bullied Liuli, is that it? And you actually have the nerve to show up here in broad daylight..."
He started to step forward to take action.
Meng Liang and Luo Yu quickly stepped in to block him. "Calm down, Uncle Shen! You can't do that!"
Shen Huaiqiu snapped, "Both of you, stop blocking me. I'm going to teach this punk a lesson."
Discarding all tedious formalities, Jun Chen pulled a wedding ring straight out of his pocket and slid it onto Shen Liuli's finger before she even realized what was happening.
Then, pulling Shen Liuli with him, he walked up to Elder Shen, bowed three times, and said, "Elder, my family name is Jun, and my given name is Chen! I'm from Kyoto. My father, Jun Lingchen, is a man of leisure, and my mother, Ye Qingcheng, runs a small business."
"I am marrying Liuli! You shouldn't have any objections, right?"
Shen Yin and Chen Zhenghe stared at each other in shock. So he really was the son of *those* two! Ye Qingcheng—the undisputed titan of Huaxia Country's business world. If even *she* was considered to be running merely a "small business," what on earth did that make the rest of them?
Shen Yin gave a bitter smile. "Would my opinion even matter to you?"
Jun Chen flashed a cheeky grin. "No matter what, you're Liuli's grandfather and an elder, so respect for one's elders is only right, isn't it?"
From the moment Jun Chen appeared until now, the look of astonishment on Shen Liuli's face had never faded! It all felt utterly surreal. She had somehow managed to get married in a daze, and inexplicably become the daughter-in-law of her idol, Ye Qingcheng. No, she was losing her mind; she needed a moment to process this and calm down!
Shen Liuli yanked her hand out of Jun Chen's grasp, walked off to the side, picked up a glass of wine from a table, and made to drink it to steady her nerves.
Jun Chen hurriedly stepped forward to stop her. "You're pregnant, remember? You can't drink alcohol!"
Shen Liuli looked as aggrieved as a child caught doing something wrong.
Jun Chen hurried over to a nearby table and brought back a glass of fresh fruit juice. "Drink juice instead."
After handing the juice to Shen Liuli, Jun Chen turned to face Shen Huaiqiu and his wife. "Father-in-law, Mother-in-law!"
By this time, learning of Jun Chen's identity had extinguished much of Shen Huaiqiu's fury. The Shen Family certainly couldn't compare to the Jun Family—it was a match well above their station—but he still couldn't muster a warm expression for Jun Chen.
Xu Manyu, on the other hand, was quite pleased with Jun Chen. She didn't care about his background; as long as he treated her daughter well, that was enough.
With a teasing smile, Xu Manyu remarked, "Well, what do you know? Your left eyelid twitching really *was* an accurate omen."
Shen Huaiqiu was left completely speechless.
Right now, the most embarrassed people present were undoubtedly the Chen Family—though, of course, this entire situation was entirely of Chen Qingdi's own making.
Dongfang Zijin approached Chen Qingdi, attempting to comfort him, but Chen Qingdi shook his head with a faint smile. "I'm fine, don't worry!"
At that moment, several police officers walked in, flashed an arrest warrant, and announced, "We have a case that requires Miss Dongfang Zijin to return with us for questioning. This is the warrant."
"Miss Dongfang Zijin, please come with us."
Panic washed over Dongfang Zijin's face, leaving her entirely at a loss!
Dongfang Wenxuan stood up and demanded, "Officers, there must be some mistake here, right? Our Zijin has been timid since she was a child; how could she possibly have anything to do with your case?"
An officer replied, "Whether she's involved or not isn't something you can decide with just a few words. When we handle a case, we rely on evidence."
"Take her away!"
Dongfang Zijin's forcible removal sent shockwaves through the hall, and the guests immediately erupted into renewed whispers and murmurs.
One of the guests boldly guessed, "Do you suppose it was Dongfang Zijin who orchestrated the whole thing back then, trying to ruin Miss Shen's reputation so she could end up with the young master of the Chen Family?"
Another immediately chimed in, "That's entirely possible!"
Dongfang Wenxuan sprang to his feet, shouting in protest, "Don't you dare talk nonsense and ruin my daughter's reputation!"
Someone instantly retorted, "Then explain this: why is your daughter being taken away by the police?"
Dongfang Wenxuan was left utterly powerless to refute the claim.
With Dongfang Zijin hauled away, Chen Qingdi was consumed by burning anxiety.