Zhao Mingzhu and the Liu Family met victoriously in the storeroom.
At that moment, Liu Qing was making a big fuss.
Seeing Zhao Mingzhu, Mrs. Liu hastily said, "Mingzhu, please think of a way to get us out of here. Your brother is cold and hungry; don’t let him freeze."
Mr. Liu also said, "Hurry up and take us out. I still want to go inside and enjoy good food."
Gao Nana gave the three members of the Liu Family a smirk and said, "You wish. If you want to get out, you’ll have to wait."
She didn’t care what would happen to Zhao Mingzhu; she simply pushed her inside, shut the door with a swing, and snapped the lock shut.
Zhao Mingzhu pulled at the door vigorously only to find it was securely locked.
She ignored the three from the Liu Family and instead stood in the middle of the room, first observing her surroundings.
She noticed that the room had no air vents or windows, just a storeroom with walls all around, and she felt a bit of despair.
There was no way she could escape from this place.
Thinking of Anning, who was in the banquet hall, meeting so many people alongside Zhao Han and his wife, the connections of the Zhao Family would become hers in the future, and Zhao Mingzhu couldn’t help but rage inside.
And yet, at such a moment, Liu Qing was still causing a ruckus.
"I don’t care, I must get out. I’ve never been to such a nice hotel, and I can’t miss out on it. I’m still planning to tell my classmates about it. Also, I want to eat, I want good food..."
Zhao Mingzhu felt a wave of irritation.
She couldn’t help but snap, "Shut up."
Liu Qing got angry, stood up, and threw a punch at Zhao Mingzhu.
Zhao Mingzhu barely dodged the punch.
She glared at Mr. and Mrs. Liu: "What kind of manners have you instilled in him, allowing him to be this uneducated all the time?"
Mr. Liu didn’t speak yet, but Mrs. Liu was already furious.
With one hand on her hip and the other pointing at Zhao Mingzhu, she scolded, "What’s wrong with our Qingqing? I think he’s just fine. And you, how dare you talk to us like that? We are your biological parents, your own, understand? You point fingers and blame us, where are your manners?"
Mr. Liu nodded, "Right, we didn’t care about what happened to you before we recognized you, but now that we’ve met, we can’t ignore you. Let me tell you, you have to find a way to amass money at the Zhao Family, and later you have to buy a house in the Capital for your brother. Also, you must find a way to get the Zhao Family’s fortune into your hands. Our family’s future depends on you now."
Zhao Mingzhu covered the anger in her eyes and looked at Mr. Liu a few times; she said nothing and just sat down, hugging her knees.
It was at this moment that she became even more determined never to return to the Liu Family.
If she went back to the Liu Family, she would become an ATM for them, and Mr. and Mrs. Liu would surely exploit her to the fullest.
They would try every means to turn her into a sister-in-law obsessed with helping her brother.
Looking at Liu Qing’s chubby and deformed face, Zhao Mingzhu felt a wave of disgust and, at the same time, a wave of sorrow.
Why did Anning have such a good family background, such wonderful parents, and a brother?
Where was she inferior to Anning, and why did she have relatives like the Liu Family?
Zhao Mingzhu closed her eyes, tormented with annoyance.
She had invited the Liu Family today to ruin Anning’s birthday banquet.
She wanted all the relatives and friends of the Zhao Family to know the kind of people Anning grew up with, making them doubt Anning’s character and upbringing.
Also, she wanted to make Anning embarrassed.
With the Liu Family here, they would definitely cause a big scene. By then, Anning wouldn’t be able to save face, and the Zhao Family would look bad too.
Unfortunately, after all of Zhao Mingzhu’s lengthy planning and preparation, it collapsed at the last minute today.
Anning knew she was right when she saw Xiao Yuan and Gao Nana coming in with a few others.
Although she never asked An Xin, based on Anning’s understanding of Zhao Mingzhu and what Zhao Mingzhu had done recently, she guessed that Zhao Mingzhu would give her a "surprise" at today’s birthday banquet.
To prevent the banquet from being disrupted, and not wanting Zhao Han and Song Ruyi to be upset, Anning had already made arrangements with Xiao Yuan and a few classmates early on to bring security to help, making sure that irrelevant people couldn’t get in.
The classmates from Class 12 were really loyal.
Despite the cold and freezing day, everyone agreed to help, and they kept meticulous watch over each entrance.
Anning was genuinely grateful to everyone.
After telling Song Ruyi, she took some food and went to find Xiao Yuan and the others.
Anning walked to a corner, where Gao Nana and a few girls approached her first.
Gao Nana went over and said, "Anning, how did you guess so accurately? Zhao Mingzhu really has bad intentions. She tried to sneak in through the back door; who knows what kind of sinister plan she has."
Xiao Yuan came over with a drink in hand: "I know, she brought those three from the Liu Family, trying to embarrass Anning and make her lose face."
"Damn it," Gao Nana cursed, "Her heart is so vicious."
Gao Nana knew that Anning had some psychological issues and couldn’t stand the Liu Family members. If Zhao Mingzhu brought those scumbags from the Liu Family, Anning might become really unhinged.
Who knows, the kid might get so scared that she’d hide under a table, which would be truly embarrassing.
You have to remember, the people attending today are all respectable individuals. If Anning showed signs of trembling in fear in front of so many people and did something unacceptable, her reputation would be destroyed.
Song Ruyi meticulously prepared this birthday banquet to raise Anning’s status.
If Anning’s reputation was ruined, Song Ruyi would probably be disappointed too.
In any case, Zhao Mingzhu’s intentions were extremely malicious.
Dong Xue gulped down some fruit juice: "We would at most beat up someone we dislike, but Zhao Mingzhu wants to completely destroy someone."
Anning smiled, raised her fruit juice, and clinked glasses with Gao Nana and the others: "Anyway, I still have to thank you guys. Without your help, I wouldn’t know what to do today."
After thinking for a moment, Anning added: "You can’t really enjoy food at a place . After the birthday banquet is over, if anyone is free, come back to my house with me. I’ll cook something delicious for you myself."
She further added, "I’ve learned quite a few dishes from Aunt Zhang recently, and you know I pick up things quickly. Anyway, everyone says the food I make is delicious."
At a banquet , no one really indulges in eating. The food displayed here is actually mostly just for show, not really satisfying.
And everyone had been busy for a while, naturally feeling both tired and hungry.
When Anning mentioned cooking something delicious for everyone, all were almost ready to cheer.
Xiao Yuan especially, holding his stomach, was nearly drooling.
Zhang Ke took another gulp of juice: "When will this boring banquet end?"
Anning chatted with everyone for a bit longer before being called away by Zhao Mingrui.
Several of Zhao Mingrui’s good friends also came today, and Zhao Mingrui wanted to introduce Anning to them.
As Anning approached, Zhao Mingrui was sitting with a few other boys and girls around his age on the sofas, chatting animatedly about something.
Zhao Mingrui put his arm around Anning’s shoulder: "Guys, let me introduce you, this is my sister, Zhao Anning."
Zhao Mingrui then told Anning, "Hurry up and greet them as brother and sister. You can turn to them for help in the future."
Anning smiled and greeted: "Hello, brothers and sisters, I’ll be counting on your care in the future."
Those individuals seemed to have a strong bond with Zhao Mingrui, greeting Anning warmly and also presenting her with birthday gifts.
Anning stayed there for a while, then went back to talk with the students from Class 12.
The birthday banquet didn’t end until after eleven o’clock.
Anning asked the Class 12 students to wait, then she went to find Zhao Han and Zhao Mingrui to talk about Zhao Mingzhu bringing the Liu Family over.