Cling to Him

Yao Ran looked at the flustered couple, Yang Ming’s words from earlier swirling inside her head. He had said that they regretted letting Yao Tang go. They liked Yao Tang better than Yao Ran.

Yao Ran couldn’t help but feel a pang of pain at the thought. Despite knowing that the Yao couple only treated her as a tool to further their ambitions, she still developed some affection for them over the years.

However, those sentiments were only one-sided. They didn’t care about her at all!

When Yao Ran still said nothing, Qin Man reached out to pinch Yao Ran’s arm, no longer caring that they were in public.

“You wretched girl, I’m asking you a question! Have you gone or deaf?”

Yao Ran grabbed the woman’s outstretched hand before it even made contact, and pushed Qin Man away. She sneered at the couple.

“Why are you bothering me like this? Didn’t you say so yourself that I can’t compare to Yao Tang? Since you like her so much, just go and beg her to come back. She’s close to the Qin siblings, anyway, so you can probably get her to marry into their family. I’m sure you would be over the moon with pride once the news breaks out.”

“How dare you talk to us that way?!” Yao Yuan roared at her, his expression thunderous. He pulled back his arm and was about to land a slap on Yao Ran’s face.

The other guests had already noticed the commotion since the couple descended on Yao Ran, and the curious eyes only multiplied by the minute.

It caught Yang Ming’s attention as well, and he strode over to stop Yao Yuan.

“What seems to be the matter, Uncle Yao? Why are you so angry?”

Yao Yuan turned to glare at the young man. He had half a mind to lay it onto Yang Ming, but he knew he couldn’t afford the consequences. He settled for a derisive snort.

Of course, Yang Ming was already well aware of Yao Yuan’s thoughts.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Yao. The position you want is still yours, no one will take it from you. The cooperation between your family and mine will also continue.”

Yang Ming flashed a smile at Yao Tang, silently telling her that he wouldn’t be bothering with this greedy couple if it weren’t for the data she withheld from him.

As soon as he finished speaking, Yao Yuan and Qin Man’s expressions shifted dramatically. Yao Yuan had even started fawning over Yang Ming again.

“Oh my, I knew that President Yang wasn’t the type to go back on his word!”

“Yes, our Ranran is very lucky to call you her brother, indeed.”

“Let’s go and have a toast!” The couple took him by each arm and whisked him away.

Yao Ran’s lips curled in disgust as she watched them go. Unfortunately for her, she was just every bit as greedy as the Yao couple, and it was for that very reason that she could not leave them.

“I see now, so if the goal to become a wife gets shattered, the next step is to become a sister!” came Meng Ling’s mocking voice.

Meng Ling had never liked Yao Ran. Now, she finally had her chance to ridicule her worst enemy.

“Oh, that’s right. She’s just a thieving cripple from some small, insignificant family. How can she even hope to marry into the Yang family in the first place?”

Not to be outdone, Yao Ran whipped around and retorted, “That’s still so much better than a mindless idiot like you, who can’t even watch over her own things properly!”

“You bitch!” Meng Ling was livid. She opened her mouth to berate the other girl, only for her to remember her purpose in coming. She was here to put Yao Ran in her place, not cause a scene with her in front of other people.

Meng Ling took a deep breath and composed herself. “Do you know why Brother Ming refused to marry you?” She held out her hand and revealed a stunning diamond ring sitting on her palm.

Yao Ran narrowed her eyes.

“It’s because he’s getting engaged to me in three days. You’re just a plaything to him.” Meng Ling looked Yao Ran up and down with disdain.

Yao Ran’s face had gone from ashen to flushed. Meng Ling’s taunts had gotten under her skin, but she refused to bite at the provocation.

Instead, she clenched her fists until her nails cut her skin. The stinging pain calmed her down, if only a little.

“So what, do you think that’s going to stop me? I’ll stay by his side even if he gets engaged to you, hell, even if you actually get married! I’m better looking than you, anyway, not to mention that I have the best figure. Do you honestly think that he would prefer you over me?”

Yao Ran then turned on her heel and walked away without a backward glance, leaving Meng Ling to stamp her foot in frustration.

Yao Ran grabbed a bottle of wine and looked for an empty corner to drink alone.

Yao Yuan, Qin Man, and Yang Ming—they were all backstabbing snakes, yet she had to rely on them to get everything she wanted.

She was too powerless to do anything by herself.

She couldn’t go on like this. She needed to have her own strength, her own power. Yao Ran took another swig from the bottle. She was already a little drunk, but her eyes burned with ambition.

Those three, and Meng Ling and Yao Tang, too… Sooner or later, Yao Ran would trample them all.

The most important thing at the moment was that she didn’t lose the only man of power on her side, Yang Ming. She needed to cling to him for as long as she could.

Yao Ran thought back to his promise to seek her out tonight. Sure enough, being intimate with him was the surest, fastest way to gain his favor.

She gulped down another mouthful of wine. As her face grew more and more flushed, her mind grew clearer.

By the time Yang Ming found her, Yao Ran was all ruddy-faced, and her eyes were glazed. She didn’t make a fuss as he took her to his room, which pleased him immensely.