CHAPTER 151: CHAPTER 151: THE HONGMEN BANQUET

"Lin Banxia? I’m Mrs. Huo, Yan Ting’s grandmother. I want to invite you to have lunch with me this afternoon." The person straightforwardly stated her name, instantly frightening Lin Banxia, whose face turned pale.

"Hello, Grandma. Lunch this afternoon? Sure, I’ll let Yan Ting know soon..."

"No need to tell Yan Ting. I’m inviting you specifically. Come directly to the Emperor Hotel..." Mrs. Huo’s tone was assertive, and after finishing her sentence, she immediately hung up the phone.

Lin Banxia stared anxiously at her abruptly disconnected phone. It’s over. The matriarch has come looking for trouble.

What should she do? Should she tell Huo Yanting?

If she told him, would Huo Yanting let her go meet the matriarch alone? If she didn’t tell him, and Mrs. Huo chose to make things difficult for her, that wouldn’t be a joke either.

Lin Banxia knew very well what kind of temperament Mrs. Huo had. In her previous life, she’d served her for three years; Mrs. Huo was absolutely not the easy-going or affable type.

Sitting in the car, Lin Banxia agonized for quite a while before finally making up her mind.

Since she had already decided to be with Huo Yanting, this hurdle with the matriarch was inevitable, and she needed to mentally prepare herself to face it.

If she wanted to avoid being ruthlessly targeted by Mrs. Huo, she’d better not inform Huo Yanting about the lunch appointment. Otherwise, if it angered Mrs. Huo, she’d likely suffer even worse consequences.

No matter what, regardless of whether this was a "Hongmen Banquet," Lin Banxia resolved to go and assess the situation—and if things went wrong, she’d make her escape.

Looking at the time, it was already close to ten o’clock. Lin Banxia had no choice but to call Huo Yanting to ask for a leave.

Huo Yanting didn’t question her at all and promptly approved her leave.

An employer this accommodating was truly rare.

Lin Banxia took a taxi to the restaurant where Mrs. Huo was waiting.

This was a well-known buffet restaurant in a wealthy district, combining leisure and entertainment. Upon entering, she saw wealthy madams adorned with gold and diamonds and graceful heiresses with a refined air.

They were all dressed in the latest seasonal international brand clothing, holding newly-released handbags, and the air was filled with intoxicating perfume scents.

Watching the women around her walking by, each holding handbags worth tens or hundreds of thousands, an instinctive sense of inferiority arose within Lin Banxia, prompting her to subconsciously try to hide her own bag behind her.

A bag worth over a hundred yuan had once seemed quite decent to her.

Lin Banxia wandered around for a while but couldn’t spot Old Mrs. Feng. Puzzled, she reluctantly gathered her nerves to call her.

A door to a private booth opened, and the middle-aged caretaker beside Mrs. Huo stepped out.

Seeing her, Lin Banxia immediately brightened her smile and walked over respectfully to greet her, "Hello, Auntie..."

"Who are you calling Auntie?" The middle-aged woman, like a proud peacock, raised her chin and looked at her coldly.

Lin Banxia’s expression froze awkwardly, and she sheepishly chose not to say anything further.

If it weren’t for the pear garden’s importance, she wouldn’t have wanted to deal with these people at all.

While she could treat Luo Mei as if she were invisible, she had no choice but to make every effort to appease Old Mrs. Feng.

Her stature within the Feng Family was comparable to that of the Old Buddha. No matter how much affection or protection Huo Yanting showed her, no matter how untouchable he seemed, he was still a grandson of the Huo Family, and he absolutely had to honor the matriarch’s dignity.

Lin Banxia’s heart was bitter, but she had no other choice.

Mrs. Huo undoubtedly disliked her. Last time, on the matriarch’s birthday, she gave her a heating pad—a gift that utterly embarrassed the elder.

Not to mention, afterward, she had gone to tell Huo Anya off, which had only added insult to injury.

"Come in!" The caretaker said with disdain in her tone.