Chapter 4 Blue Diamond Ring

Yuan Xi helplessly said, "My brother, Chu Lin, and Gu Hanchen grew up as close as brothers, so taking you to meet my parents is essentially the same as telling Gu Hanchen about our marriage."

Huo Shiyuan was slightly surprised by Yuan Xi's background, "Then, how long do you plan to keep it from Gu Hanchen?"

"After Mi Chen's IPO," she replied.

Yuan Xi said, "I have to go now."

Huo Shiyuan stopped Yuan Xi, "Wait."

Huo Shiyuan took a brocade box out of the car, opened it, and inside was a teardrop-shaped deep blue diamond, approximately twelve carats, as deep blue as the ocean depths, the main diamond surrounded by a halo of smaller diamonds.

Huo Shiyuan placed the blue diamond ring on Yuan Xi's ring finger; it fit just right.

Yuan Xi looked up at Huo Shiyuan and said, "You..."

Huo Shiyuan smiled softly, "When I saw this diamond, I felt it was very suitable for you."

Yuan Xi looked at the deep blue on her hand; she remembered this blue diamond, named Charlotte Blue Diamond. It had been trending on social media, just auctioned off a month ago for 339 million yuan.

Yuan Xi knew so much about it because it was initially intended by Bo Fan, a good friend of Gu Hanchen, as an engagement diamond ring for Chu Yan, but unfortunately, it was out of Bo Fan's budget when it reached 300 million yuan.

At that time, several junior secretaries in the secretary office had even talked about whose hand could wear this blue diamond, worth as much as an old Western-style house in A City.

Yuan Xi looked at Huo Shiyuan; a month ago, he bid for this blue diamond—was it to make up for that night of drunken confusion?

Huo Shiyuan escorted Yuan Xi to the car and fastened her seat belt for her.

Yuan Xi looked at the close-up Huo Shiyuan, feeling her cheeks warm.

Huo Shiyuan said softly, "Give me a call when you leave the Chu Family, and I'll have the driver pick you up."

"I can drive on my own."

Huo Shiyuan said, "It takes forty minutes from the Chu Family to Ruohu Mansion on the elevated road; it's better to have the driver pick you up."

Yuan Xi looked at Huo Shiyuan, he was insistent on her staying at Ruohu Mansion...

Now that they were already legally married and even had a child, Yuan Xi couldn't find a reason not to go to Ruohu Mansion. She smiled at Huo Shiyuan, "Okay, I'll give you a call after leaving the Chu Family."

Yuan Xi drove all the way to the Chu Family. Having been Gu Hanchen's secretary for five years, it was not her first time at the Chu Family; she had accompanied Gu Hanchen there several times over the years as his partner.

Recently, the engagement ceremony between Chu Yan and Bo Fan was held at the Chu Family, and Yuan Xi had attended the engagement banquet as Gu Hanchen's partner.

Chu Yan was radiant at the engagement banquet, the envy of all the high society ladies in Jiang City. At that time, Yuan Xi couldn't imagine that she was the real heiress of the Chu Family.

As the car entered the grounds of the Chu Family, the main mansion was fully styled in European architecture, complete with a fountain in front.

As Yuan Xi's car circled past, the water from the fountain seemed to scatter rainbow light under the sun.

Yuan Xi got out of the car and saw Chu Lin at the door.

As soon as she got out, Chu Lin approached, "What wind blew Secretary Yuan here? Did Hanchen send you to find me?"

Yuan Xi looked at Chu Lin, "Didn't mom and dad tell you?"

Chu Lin puzzled, "What?"

Yang Ying came out from inside the house, saw Yuan Xi, and said with a smile, "Xinxin, you're back."

Hearing Yang Ying's words, Chu Lin was startled, "Xinxin? What Xinxin? Mom, she's Gu Hanchen's secretary, Yuan Xi."

Yang Ying said, "It's too sunny outside; let's go inside and talk."

Yuan Xi followed Yang Ying into the Chu Family's living room, which was lavishly decorated in European style.

Yang Ying asked the housemaid, Nanny Zhang, to call Chu Yan downstairs.

Chu Yan descended the stairs and upon seeing Yuan Xi sitting beside Yang Ying, she slightly furrowed her brows, "Yuan Xi, how did you come to my house?"

Chu Yan looked down on Yuan Xi, knowing well that despite Gu Hanchen having a fiancée, Yuan Xi still repeatedly accompanied Gu Hanchen as his female partner to banquet occasions, such women who wanted to climb to the top in one step were too many in their circle.

Yang Ying spoke up, "Yanyan, this is also Xinxin's home, and Xinxin is indeed Yuan Xi, my daughter."

Chu Yan, stunned by Yang Ying's words, stood frozen in place, "Mom, what are you saying?"

Yang Ying reached out, took Chu Yan's hand, and had her sit beside her, "Yanyan, you are actually a child adopted by our family."

"At that time, our Xinxin went missing, and after searching for her for a very long time without success, we adopted a baby girl from the orphanage who was about the same age as Xinxin, which is you."

"Yanyan, over the years, Dad and Mom have always treated you as our biological child, and in the future, you will still be the daughter of the Chu family, that will not change."

Yuan Xi, sitting on a sofa to the side, maintained the faint, polite smile she had grown accustomed to in the workplace upon hearing Yang Ying's words.

Meanwhile, Chu Yan was so shocked she could not utter a word; she clenched her hands so tightly that her diamond-adorned nails dug painfully into her palms.

This is not a dream!

Chu Lin incredulously asked, "Mom, do you mean that Yuan Xi is my biological sister?"

"Yes, Yuan Xi is Xinxin, Chu Xinyan."

Chu Lin began to scrutinize Yuan Xi's face closely, "So, Secretary Yuan Xi is actually my biological sister!"

Chu Yan looked at Yuan Xi, struck as if by a bolt from the blue. Yuan Xi's long straight black hair was tied into a ponytail. Without makeup, Yuan Xi was not the type that would be considered a beauty at first glance, but she was definitely pleasing to look at, wearing a light blue business suit dress that suited her professional demeanor.

Chu Yan then glanced at the blue diamond on Yuan Xi's hand, shimmering brilliantly. Compared to that diamond, which seemed to be over ten carats, the five-carat engagement diamond ring on her own hand suddenly seemed much less impressive.

Chu Yan remembered the warning she had given Yuan Xi in the underground car park today; she had said the ugly duckling turned into a swan because it was a swan all along...

At this moment, Chu Yan felt she was the biggest joke of all, having lived the life of a wealthy heiress for twenty-six years, only to be told today it was all a lie!

Was she just an adopted child?

Yang Ying patted Yuan Xi's hand and said, "Xiao Lin, now that Xinxin is back, don't call her Yuan Xi anymore."

Yuan Xi, touching the blue diamond that Chu Yan had been staring at, lightly smiled and said, "Mom, keep calling me Yuan Xi; I've grown accustomed to this name."

Yang Ying slightly frowned and said, "Now that you're back, how can you still use the surname of the buyers? Your dad and I investigated, and your foster parents did not treat you well at all. You should go back to your original name, Chu Xinyan."

Yuan Xi replied, "All my identification now bears the name Yuan Xi; changing it would be too troublesome."

Yang Ying, not just any rich lady living off her husband but also the vice president of the Chu Group, was known for her firm decisions. "Xinxin, you are called Yuan Xi because your foster parents bought you. If not for them buying you, maybe your dad and I would have found you sooner. Are you sure you want to keep the name given by the buyers, which saddens us?"

Yuan Xi said, "Mom, what if I said I want Chu Yan out of the Chu family, would you agree?"

Chu Yan gripped her white dress tightly.

Yang Ying said, "We adopted Chu Yan when she was one year old, and it's been twenty-five years—a lot of deep feelings are involved."

"My foster parents raised me for eighteen years, giving me all their love, even losing their lives at work to provide me with a better living condition," Yuan Xi spoke softly, "So I'm sorry... I can't let go of the name Yuan Xi."

Chu Lin, trying to ease the tension, said, "Mom, Yuan Xi is also a nice name, everyone is used to it, and it would be troublesome for Xinxin to change it now."

Yang Ying frowned, and because Yuan Xi had just returned, she did not force the name change.

Chu Yan sharply eyed the blue diamond ring on Yuan Xi's hand, "Yuan Xi, wearing a fake diamond is not good for one's health, dyed stones can cause skin erosion, and wearing a fake diamond ring in our family is quite... improper."

Yang Ying looked at the diamond ring on Yuan Xi's hand, "It looks pretty real."

Chu Lin also took a glance, "Isn't that the Charlotte Blue Diamond? I wonder who won it at the auction; the person on the phone during the bidding didn't hesitate at all."

Chu Yan pursed her lips, "Brother, the Charlotte Blue Diamond was auctioned off not long ago, how could it have been made into a ring so quickly?"

Chu Yan looked kindly towards Yuan Xi, "If you like diamonds, you can pick anything you like from my walk-in closet. The wealthy circle in Jiang City is very small, and it looks bad for you to wear a fake diamond..."