"How is this flattery? In Rongcheng, who dares to provoke you, Jing Qing? Even if you go to other regions or foreign countries, who would dare touch a hair on your head when they know you’re from the Jing Family? Granddad would skin them alive. Besides, your beauty and temperament are unmatched by any of us combined, let alone others."
Jing Qing felt especially pleased by Qin Mingzhu’s words and couldn’t help but take a few more glances at her.
The other ladies were also beauties in their own right, and all had some status in the fashion circle. Naturally, none of them were truly convinced by these words but didn’t refute them because of the mention of granddad skinning someone alive.
"However, speaking of which, since whoever is running this show can pull it off, they must not be an ordinary person. Setting aside Jing Qing’s incident, think about all the gowns she has made for celebrities, those that have been used in concerts; everyone has seen them."
Another lady with some prestige in the fashion circle stirred her sweet soup with a spoon and spoke calmly, her eyes quietly fixed on the soup bowl.
"This is something only you outsiders believe. Have you forgotten about her remarkable master? Have you forgotten about the news on Weibo from a while back? It’s probably ’done by her master’ to please her and make her happy,"
Qin Mingzhu emphasized the last few words with a louder voice.
"This designer indeed has an unusual relationship with her master. Her master stayed in Rongcheng for a long time not long ago, always accompanying her in her studio, often seen together all day in the office."
Jing Qing, afraid they wouldn’t believe her, spoke in a suppressed voice, gradually elaborating.
A few of the women exchanged glances, one of them a fashion expert and the editor-in-chief of a fashion magazine. Upon hearing this, she involuntarily lowered her gaze, and her mouth twitched slightly, seemingly disapproving of such remarks.
"I hear Qin Mu is the mayor’s eldest daughter of Qin City. That makes you sisters, right?"
Suddenly, the editor-in-chief, who had been silent in her white coat, spoke up, her question striking at the heart of the matter.
Qin Mingzhu was suddenly stunned, having entirely forgotten that someone might know about this; now she only regretted her eagerness to discredit Qin Mu without thinking about how to handle such tricky questions.
When everyone looked at Qin Mingzhu, Jing Qing’s lashes fluttered subtly, and then she looked up at them with a smile, saying, "What sisters? Qin Mu was long ago driven out of the Qin Family. Only Qin Mingzhu is the daughter of the Qin Family."
The women were hardly able to believe it, but indeed they had dug up Qin Mu’s past. Qin Mu did go abroad when she was eight and had just returned this year.
They were unclear about Qin Mu’s situation with JY, but they were very aware that Qin Mu and Mu Yichen had a three-year-old daughter.
"It’s said that Mr. Yichen and Miss Qin Mu have a three-year-old daughter, and that Miss Qin moved in with Mr. Yichen as soon as she returned. Mr. Yichen, being such a smart man, surely wouldn’t choose a girl with bad conduct, would he?" asked Ms. Wang, a socialite.
"Don’t even mention it; Mr. Yichen has been temporarily bewitched by that vixen, so it’s indeed possible he’s been fooled temporarily and can’t distinguish good from bad,"
Hearing this, Jing Qing instinctively pondered for a moment, and everyone turned their attention to her.
Each of these beauties was sharp and astute, how could they not guess what was happening by now.
As for Jing Qing, she felt even more that things were going awry. Originally, she had come with full confidence, knowing everyone and having granddad’s support. But not even having finished her tea, she realized that none of these women were on her side. She thought it was time for her to speak up personally.
Qin Mu arrived at AM at 10:30 a.m., because several well-known domestic and international fashion magazine editors were there, along with some acquaintances, including the queen editor-in-chief of Beijing’s fashion magazine—the same one having tea with Jing Qing. She made a special trip to visit beforehand.
Unexpectedly, when she inquired about the editor-in-chief, the staff said she was having tea with Jing Qing. Qin Mu had a bad feeling about this; Jing Qing inviting these people for tea could only mean one thing—slandering Qin Mu’s image.
It could even sabotage her show tonight, so how could Qin Mu let Jing Qing succeed?
The hotel’s management found her downstairs and immediately came over to take orders.
"Miss Qin! The boss has called ahead, today I’m at your disposal,"
Qin Mu took an extra look at the executive unconsciously and politely nodded her thanks. The two went upstairs together, the executive asking in a soft voice, "I haven’t seen Xiaomei, the assistant, for a while."