"Brother, I’ll go find my friend first, and come over later."
Lu Jinxiao nodded and continued talking with the people around him.
Lu Qianwen went downstairs and walked directly toward Gu Qimiao.
At this moment, Gu Qimiao was eating the dessert that Shen Yanchen had just taken a bite of with his spoon, secretly pleased about their indirect kiss.
"Hi." Gu Qimiao looked up and saw a woman in a red dress sitting opposite her. She immediately recognized her as the woman who had entered with Shen Yanchen earlier.
She smiled graciously and said to Gu Qimiao, "You must be my almost-sister-in-law, right? Your name is... Gu Qimiao?"
Gu Qimiao was stunned, unable to figure out the relationship implied in the words, so she just nodded.
"I’m Lu Jinxiao’s sister, Lu Qianwen."
Upon hearing this, Gu Qimiao widened her eyes, and her first instinct was to get up and leave.
Seeing her panicked look, Lu Qianwen smiled and reached out to grab her hand, "Don’t worry, my brother didn’t see you, and I won’t tell him. I just wanted to come over and make friends with you. After all, you were almost my sister-in-law."
Gu Qimiao looked at her warily. The idea of becoming friends with the sister of the man whose engagement she ran away from seemed inappropriate.
Lu Qianwen patted her head, "Don’t be so nervous! I’m not on my brother’s side." She acted like an elder sister, slowly relaxing Gu Qimiao, who couldn’t help but smile awkwardly.
"If it were me, I would also run away from marrying someone I didn’t know. It’s my brother who handled things poorly."
Lu Qianwen deliberately glanced at the coat on Gu Qimiao, asking, "This coat..."
Gu Qimiao suddenly realized that Lu Qianwen was Shen Yanchen’s companion and might not know how close they really were.
Feeling like she was caught red-handed, she nervously grabbed the coat but didn’t know what to do with it. Retracting her hand seemed too obvious, making her feel even more guilty.
"This... Brother Yan Chen asked me to hold it for him..."
Lu Qianwen raised her eyebrows, "Brother Yan Chen? Is he a friend or a relative?" Her probing didn’t seem to have any hidden intention, just an open inquiry.
Lu Qianwen observed her, certain that even if they were friends, they weren’t just ordinary friends. From Shen Yanchen’s attentiveness to her, she could tell that this girl was important to him.
Lu Qianwen didn’t ask any further questions. She stood up and took Gu Qimiao’s hand, "It’s rare to come out to a party. How can you just sit here? Come, let me show you around."
Gu Qimiao hesitated, looking around nervously, knowing that Lu Jinxiao was there. How could she dare to wander around?
Lu Qianwen saw through her thoughts and forcibly pulled her up, "Come on, I’ll cover you!"
Gu Qimiao held Shen Yanchen’s coat in her hand. Lu Qianwen grabbed it and casually threw it onto the sofa, pulling Gu Qimiao towards the crowd, "Isn’t it a shame to hide such a pretty girl?"
Lu Qianwen brought her to a group of her female friends, all of whom looked like spoiled rich girls.
"Wenwen, you’re not keeping Shen Shao company but have time to bother with us?" one girl said sourly.
Lu Qianwen smiled, her red lips curling up as she pulled Gu Qimiao in front of her, "Everyone, let me introduce you. This is a friend of Yanchen’s and from now on, our friend too."
Gu Qimiao wasn’t the type to get along easily with strangers and only managed an awkward smile under their scrutinizing gazes.
"Whose family is she from? Never seen her before."
"Looks like she’s still a student. Is this her first time at a party, being so nervous?"
Lu Qianwen made Gu Qimiao sit down on the sofa, kindly breaking the tension, "Oh, she’s just shy. Don’t stare at her so much!"
They chatted about upper-class topics, such as branded clothing and limited-edition bags. Gu Qimiao couldn’t join in the conversation and just sat there, uneasy.
After a while, Lu Qianwen rubbed her bare arms with her palms, "It’s a little cold. Miaomiao, didn’t you have a coat just now? Could you get it for me?"