Continuing to smile, she calmly shook his hand off her arm.
But just as she turned her back on him to walk through the door, he grabbed the back of her collar, pulling her toward him hard.
His voice, cold and brimming with rage, rang out behind her.
"So the young miss of the Zuo family couldn't even wait a whole day to go out and have fun after breaking off the engagement! That's why you've come back at this hour, isn't it? Hmm?"
"Zuo Aiai, didn't you used to be pure and chaste? I didn't know you were such a sl*t!" Chen Ziyi taunted her.
"Ziyi! You b*stard, what are you talking about?" Chen Zhenhua, who'd heard Ziyi's voice outside, cursed at him angrily from inside the house.
Zuo Aiai brushed his hand away again, straightening her collar hastily. "Oh my God, Zuo Aiai, what happened to you last night?" a frantic voice rang out. "Where were you? And why didn't you come home? We were all so worried!"
The voice belonged to Zuo Aiai's aunt, Lin Huiyue, who rushed forward breathlessly to put a protective arm around her. But Zuo Aiai quickly stepped back, avoiding her aunt's touch.
"No need, Aunty Lin, I'm fine."
She lowered her head in a courteous bow.
Annoyance flashed briefly across her aunt's face, but she quickly recovered her usual smile.
"Come in quickly, child. Your mother has been waiting up for you all night. Why didn't you call?''
The moment Zuo Aiai stepped through the door, Lin Huiyue said loudly and to no one in particular in a tone of mock surprise, "What's wrong with this child? Why is her body all red and purple? Did she get in a fight last night?"
Instantly, everyone's eyes fell on Zuo Aiai's exposed skin. They looked embarrassed.
Chen Ziyi, for once, remained silent.
"Oh my God, mom...are those...?" Zuo Yunyun appeared just at that moment, and her feigned shock made it even more obvious to everyone that Zuo Aiai was covered in bruises.
"Zuo Aiai, you vile creature! Where did you go last night?" Zuo Tianhao's face was livid. His reputation with the Chen family had already been on thin ice, but this scene, he knew, would be the last straw.
"You shameless...you...you...!"
"Brother Tianhao, calm down. They are just children. Why are you so angry? It's just a small matter...let the children settle it among themselves. There's no need for us to interrupt," Chen Zhenhua said as he stepped forward.
Without batting an eye, he reached out and placed a firm hand on Zuo Tianhao's shoulder, stopping him from getting any closer to Zuo Aiai.
"Ziyi was in the wrong in this matter, Tianhao, everyone knows it. Don't be too harsh on Zuo Aiai," he continued on soothingly. He didn't want Zuo Tianhao making such a scene with Chen Jihong present.
His words seemed to suggest that there was hope yet for a marriage between Chen Ziyi and Zuo Aiai.
After all, the Chen family had hoped for a long time that Zuo Aiai would be their daughter-in-law. Zuo Yunyun was an illegitimate child that could not be seen in the same light as her sister. The idea of the Chen family's eldest son and heir marrying such a child had seemed laughable at the time.
But now, the circumstances had changed.
Zuo Aiai hadn't come home last night, the fact couldn't be ignored. Her actions would surely cause a scandal.
Zuo Yunyun had become the more suitable choice for Chen Ziyi.
"Let's just let it drop, Tianhao, it doesn't matter. Let's plan Yunyun and Ziyi's engagement instead," said Chen Zhenhua.
At that, excitement flashed across Lin Huiyue's face. Zuo Yunyun's face glowed with pleasure. She looked as though she was barely holding herself back from cheering aloud.
Chen Ziyi peered questioningly at Zuo Aiai's face, but even now, she just stood there quietly and was careful not to betray any hint of emotion.
This only served to make him angrier. "Zuo Aiai, come and talk to me now!" he snarled.