Every two years, the Bai family hosted a grand banquet for the elite families of Donghai City. It was more than a tradition, it was a statement of Standard. A reminder of the Bai family's power, their prestige, and their place near the top of the social ladder.
The estate glowed under the soft lights of a hundred lanterns. Servants bustled about in crisp uniforms, adjusting floral arrangements and polishing crystal glasses.
This year, however, there was an added spectacle: the return of the Bai family's long-lost biological daughter Bai Meilin.
The invitations had gone out with bold headlines:
"The True Miss Bai Has Returned."
They didn't waste any time in making the announcement.
Bai Zhi stood before her wardrobe, staring at rows of dresses. Her fingers hovered over a delicate white cheongsam embroidered with phoenix feathers in silver thread.
It was the same dress she had worn in her past life, when she had stood beside Meilin at this very banquet, smiling through humiliation.
But this time, she would rewrite the night.
She picked a different dress, a bold crimson one with a high collar, sweeping sleeves, and gold embroidery that wrapped around her waist like flames. No more meek, soft elegance. No more pretending.
She would walk into that ballroom like the firestorm that she was.
Downstairs, Bai Meilin was being fitted into a soft pink gown that shimmered under the light.
"Meilin, you look like a fairy," Madam Bai cooed, adjusting her pearl necklace. "So gentle, so refined. Just like your birth mother."
Meilin smiled demurely, but in her eyes, malice flickered.
That wench dares wear red? she thought as she glanced at Bai Zhi walking down the stairs.
"You look… different tonight," Meilin said sweetly.
Bai Zhi descended the stairs with grace, each step echoing through the grand hall. Her red dress trailed behind her like flowing lava. Her makeup was bold but precise, scarlet lips, fierce black eyeliner, and a glint of defiance in her gaze.
"I suppose I do," Bai Zhi replied calmly. "Growth looks good on me."
"Oh, but you'll always be our Zhi'er," Meilin said with a fake smile. "Even if…well, you know."
Bai Zhi tilted her head. "Even if what?"
Meilin faltered for a moment. "Even if things are changing."
Bai Zhi's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Only fools fear change."
By 7 PM, the estate was alive with music and chatter. Men in tailored suits and women in glittering gowns filled the ballroom, sipping wine and exchanging pleasantries.
The young elites of the city were gathered in groups, whispering gossip behind fans and champagne flutes.
"That must be the real daughter, Bai Meilin…"
"She's lovely, but have you seen the adopted one tonight? Bai Zhi looks... dangerous."
"I heard the engagement between her and Young Master Chen is still on?"
"No way. I heard the Chen family is considering switching alliances now that the real heiress is back."
From the shadows, Bai Zhi observed everything with cool detachment. She was no longer the clueless girl from her past life who tried to please everyone and gain their approval and acceptance.
She didn't need approval. She wanted power and revenge.
The crowd parted as Master Bai stepped forward to raise a toast.
"Thank you all for coming to celebrate this joyous reunion. Tonight, we formally welcome back our blood daughter Bai Meilin."
Applause followed.
Meilin stepped up to the platform, her pink gown glowing under the chandelier's light. She curtsied gently.
"I'm grateful to have returned to my rightful place," she said with teary eyes. "And even more grateful to the one who raised me like a sister."
Her eyes fell on Bai Zhi with that innocent, sugary smile that Bai Zhi now knew hid poison.
"I may be the Bai family's daughter by blood," Meilin continued, "but Bai Zhi will always be my sister by heart."
The crowd cooed at the sentiment. A few even shed tears.
Bai Zhi took a sip of wine. She remembered these words, word for word from her past life. And she remembered how, after this banquet, Meilin's first steps to erase her began.
But not this time.
She won't allow that.
After the speeches, guests mingled more freely.
Madam Chen approached Bai Zhi with a polite smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Zhi'er, you look radiant tonight. But… red? Isn't that a bit much for a quiet girl like you?"
Bai Zhi smiled. "Quiet girls burn the brightest when you least expect it."
Madam Chen blinked, clearly taken aback.
Chen Yuxuan, standing beside his mother, chuckled awkwardly. "You've changed, Zhi'er."
She turned to him slowly. "No. I've always been like this. You're just now noticing."
He opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Meilin slipping in between them like a silk scarf.
"Zhi'er, I hope you're not upset," Meilin said in a soft voice only she could hear. "I didn't know they would announce me so formally. I tried to stop them."
Bai Zhi sipped her drink calmly. "No need to apologize. If I cared about public announcements, I'd worry about the ones I'll be making soon."
Meilin's smile faltered.
Bai Zhi leaned in slightly, her voice like velvet. "You thought I'd sit quietly while you took center stage again? Meilin… you don't know this version of me."
Later that night, Bai Zhi stepped out into the cold garden for a breath of air. The music inside faded into the background.
Under the cherry blossom tree, she met eyes with a man in a dark suit, Li Jiannan, heir of the Li family, known for his cold demeanor and razor-sharp mind.
In her past life, he had barely acknowledged her. But this time, he watched her with interest.
"You're not who I expected," he said.
Bai Zhi raised a brow. "And who did you expect?"
"A docile bird in a cage," he replied.
She smirked. "Then it's a good thing I was never a bird. I've always been the storm."
He stared at her for a long moment. "I'll be watching you, Miss Bai."
"Good," she said, turning away. "Watch carefully."
She plan to control power within his league so he just might need to watch and be at alert.
Back in the ballroom, Bai Meilin stood near the dessert table, her fingers gripping a glass so tightly her knuckles turned white.
"Something's different," she whispered.
Her return was supposed to shatter Bai Zhi. Make her small. Forgettable.
But tonight, Bai Zhi wasn't bowing. She was shining.
And that meant trouble for her.