Mrs. Fu immediately recognized Rosalie—the "tea master" from yesterday?
Her smile vanished. "Mrs. Song, is this the friend you mentioned?"
"Yes," Mrs. Song replied enthusiastically. "Rosalie, come say hello to Mrs. Fu. And didn't you prepare a special gift?"
Li Lan, unaware of the awkward atmosphere, looked at Rosalie expectantly. "Come on, Rosalie, go ahead."
Rosalie's face paled. She hesitantly took out the sachet, held it out with both hands, and stammered, "Mrs. Fu… this is a handmade sachet I sewed myself. Just a small token—please don't mind its imperfections."
Sachet?
Mrs. Fu looked down at the gift with a frosty gaze. "Since you already know it's ugly, why bother offering it? Quickly put it away."
Rosalie froze. "…"
Mrs. Song and Li Lan were dumbfounded. What was going on?
Rosalie tried to salvage the situation. "Mrs. Fu, yesterday you—"
But Mrs. Fu cut her off bluntly, "It's rude to interrupt. I was going to say that to you."
Rosalie: "…"
Mrs. Song and Li Lan: "…"
At that moment, Mrs. Fu spotted Celia standing quietly behind them. Her entire demeanor changed as she waved warmly, "Celia, sweetheart! Why are you standing out there? Come in already!"
Sweetheart?
Li Lan's eyes widened in shock, as if she were seeing a ghost.
Celia stepped forward casually. Since Rosalie and Li Lan were still blocking the doorway, she smiled politely and said, "Excuse me, ladies. You're in my way. Would you kindly move aside?"
The two instinctively stepped back to make way.
As Celia approached, Mrs. Fu immediately took her hand and rubbed it with concern. "Your hand's freezing, darling. Let's get inside quickly."
Mrs. Song looked visibly confused. Realizing something was wrong, she hurriedly said, "Mrs. Fu, what about Rosalie and Madam Su…"
Mrs. Fu gave Rosalie a sidelong glance and snorted, "Mrs. Song, please take them back with you. Anyone who bullies my dear Celia is not welcome in my home."
She continued, "Also, shouldn't one ask before giving a gift? I already have a sachet—hand-sewn by my baby Celia. I treasure it and wear it every day."
With a final look, she added firmly, "And Mrs. Song, I'm not sure how you became friends with people like this. But let me give you a piece of advice: not everyone is worth befriending. You really should be more discerning."
Without another word, Mrs. Fu turned and led Celia inside, then gave the housemaid a sharp order:
"Close the door!"
Li Lan, still standing outside, was stunned. She hadn't expected all her careful planning to backfire so thoroughly.
Seeing Celia about to disappear through the door, she called out in a hurry, "Celia—"
Mrs. Fu stopped and looked back. "Celia, do you know this woman?"
Celia turned and glanced at Li Lan. The woman's face was now full of forced friendliness, silently pleading to be let in.
Celia smiled faintly. "Didn't Madam Su just say we don't know each other?"
"Oh? In that case—shut the door."
Bang.
The heavy front door of the Fu family estate closed firmly—right in Li Lan's face.
Li Lan: "…"
Staring at the closed door, Li Lan was completely dazed. Everything she had schemed and arranged had crumbled in an instant.
She turned to Rosalie. "What just happened? Why did Mrs. Fu treat you like that? And why is she so affectionate toward Su—no, Celia?"
Mrs. Song looked at Rosalie with a subtle frown. "Rosalie… have you met Mrs. Fu before? She's always warm and gracious, especially to younger people. I've never seen her so cold. What did you do to offend her?"