Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack

Chapter 239: Chapter 222: The Two Brothers Who Missed by 5 Minutes and 5 Years

”Qianqian, did I hear you wrote a pledge?” Pei Yuhao looked at Luo Qianqian, who had finally come to school after Luo Shufan, not trusting her out of sight, had insisted she stay at home for a week.

”Xiao Yu told you, right?” Luo Qianqian lay on the table, exasperated. ”Thanks to that, I’ll have to go straight home after school from now on.”

”What? You’re not staying to do homework at school anymore?” Pei Yutian was stunned. ”You can’t just abandon us like that.”

”Get out of here, I’m the one being abandoned. You guys don’t want to see me sent to a boarding school, do you?” Luo Qianqian said with a face full of listless anger.

”It’s okay, I’ve made plans for the weekend and Xiao Yu said she could help us ask Qianqian’s brother.” Li Qi, holding his phone, said proudly.

”To make an appointment, I need to report all your contact details, your parents’ contact numbers and so on,” Luo Qianqian said with a smile. ”Just so you know, I can’t go to a classmate’s house. I can only go to public places or my own home.” That’s what was written in version two of the pledge.

”Such strict private tutoring...” Pei Yutian shook his head. ”My family’s also talking about hiring a tutor. My grades are so erratic it’s almost like I’m cheating.”

”My position’s a bit better during monthly exams because they only cover what we’re currently learning. Midterms and finals include everything we’ve studied.” Luo Qianqian agreed deeply, although the class rankings didn’t really show much. ”So I actually really admire Ah Ci, having to study both painting and music and still managing to have such great grades.”

”Ah, Chu Ci, indeed, and she’s pretty to boot,” Pei Yuhao agreed deeply.

”Speaking of which, our little group seems to be getting smaller,” Pei Yutian said with a sigh, looking at Luo Qianqian. ”I have no idea what’s become of Shen Yan and Han Lei.”

”Yeah, and speaking of odd feelings, I always feel like you and Xia Qi are at odds,” Li Qi sat next to Luo Qianqian. ”I can’t quite pinpoint when I started feeling this way.”

Luo Qianqian shook her head. ”Not at all, I just think maybe Xia Qi has matured?”

Luo Qianqian was too disdainful to reveal the secrets others kept hidden. She clearly saw Xia Qi in front of her breathe a sigh of relief.

”I’ll tell you a secret. That couple in our class was called in for a talk by the teacher, but the teacher didn’t say whether they had to split up or what. It’s said that they were honestly told to work hard and get into a good college and university so that their families would approve,” Pei Yuhao said mysteriously, pointing at the two earnest students who stood out in class.

”It’s always nice to dream,” Luo Qianqian smiled and nodded. ”I need to study hard too, to be worthy of the person I’ll be with in the future.”

”Even if it’s Gu Yanzhi, you’d be worthy of him, and yet here you are working so hard. Should we just give up?” Pei Yutian said with an air of emotion, holding his workbook. ”First, help me understand these problems.”

”Gu Yanzhi is great, but he doesn’t meet my standards yet,” Luo Qianqian said with a smirk as she drew assistance lines with her pen. The one she wanted didn’t need to have love-at-first-sight looks but had to be comfortable to look at. In this regard, Gu Yanzhi could pass, at least for now; being together felt easy and harmonious, without any sense of aversion.

”With standards like that, who could meet them?” Pei Yuhao curled his lip. ”If there really is such a person, I’d contend with you and marry them no matter what!”

”So you’re planning to be the one on top of that kind of person?” Luo Qianqian covered her mouth and snickered.

”Oh right, they’re all guys; forget I said anything. I’ll go home and encourage my mom to try for a sister,” Pei Yuhao belatedly realized his blunder, waving his hand with a new plan in mind.

”Bro, you can leave the family legacy to me. Go ahead and pursue your true love,” Pei Yutian patted Pei Yuhao’s shoulder.

Luo Qianqian curved her lips in a smile. ”If you fall for someone, I’ll definitely back off. After all, only male love is true love,” she joked.

”What a great sisterhood, Pei Yuhao. I’m beaten by your friendship with Qianqian...” Li Qi said with a rueful expression. ”I don’t have the nerve to compete for someone Xiao Qianqian fancies.”

Pei Yuhao was momentarily speechless, looking at Li Qi with a wry smile. ”So in just a few words I’ve changed gender?”

”Don’t worry, you have me at home,” Pei Yutian said with an understanding look.

”I’ll bless you guys, and when I find someone like that, I’ll definitely tell you so you can try first,” Luo Qianqian declared heroically. ”I won’t let a man ruin our years of sisterhood.”

”I’ll take pictures for you guys to commemorate it,” Li Qi said, taking out her phone. ”Exclusive coverage of your love progress.”

”Scram! I like girls,” Pei Yuhao said with a face covered in dark lines. How had he gotten the reputation among his friends for the kind of guy who would steal a friend’s love interest? But if it was the kind Qianqian described, teasing a bit wouldn’t be bad, a wicked smile spreading across his face.

”He’s definitely thinking about the not-suitable-for-children part now,” Pei Yutian didn’t hesitate to expose his brother’s base thoughts.

”Tsk, tsk,” Li Qi shook her head and turned to discuss the questions with Luo Qianqian.

”We really are growing up, huh,” Luo Qianqian said meaningfully, smiling and then turning to talk about the questions.

”Qianqian, you must be planning to go to Experimental High School, right?” Li Qi asked suddenly after closing her test booklet.

”Unless something unexpected happens.” Who knows if there’d be surprises? After all, her brother would graduate next year, and the uncertainties were too big. For all she knew, he might want her to go to a boarding school or something.

”No matter where you go, you’ll do well. Unlike us, my mom is even asking if I should just go to a junior college, like the kind where you study for five years and then graduate, and you can even do a top-up degree,” Li Qi sighed lightly.

”My mom says if I don’t get admitted then I’ll just study abroad, since I have to take over the family business anyway. A degree is just a symbol,” Pei Yuhao said earnestly.

”It’s different for me; my mom says it’s up to my own wishes,” Luo Qianqian spread her hands, her face filled with uncertainty about the future. ”But it still depends on what my brother thinks, not entirely my own decision.”

”Having a reliable brother is so important,” Pei Yutian sighed, looking at the ceiling.

”What’s that supposed to mean?” Pei Yuhao looked at his brother with an angry face. ”Am I not reliable?”

”Compare Qianqian’s brother to you,” Li Qi also didn’t hesitate to strike.

”What about me? I’m also a brother. Qianqian’s brother is five years older than Qianqian, and I’m only five minutes older than you,” Pei Yuhao counted on his fingers. ”That’s 70 times!!!”

”How did you calculate that?” Luo Qianqian was amazed. ”Shouldn’t five minutes and five years be like over half a million times?”

”Five minutes, fifty minutes, five hours, five days, five weeks, five months, five years...” Pei Yuhao counted on his fingers. ”How could it be that many?”

”Even if your conversion was right, it should be a million! Where did you get seventy???? With that kind of conversion, you can still be good at math...” Pei Yutian was full of emotion.

”This is the peak of your life, seventy times five minutes, three hundred and fifty minutes, not even six hours...” Li Qi was also full of lament.

”Do you know why one plus fifty-nine equals one? Do you know why one plus twenty-three equals one? Do you know why one plus six equals one? Do you know why one plus three hundred and sixty-four equals one?” Pei Yutian continued to strike.

”...Go away, I need to do some English exercises to calm down,” Pei Yuhao said, face flushed with embarrassment, as he picked up a pen. How had he been so foolish, confusing five years with five minutes...

”My brother...perhaps because he’s always protected me, he thinks of me before making decisions. Yuhao, you and your brother have always sailed smoothly, so it’s normal not to consider everything. But you guys are real brothers; there’s nothing you can’t get over,” Luo Qianqian said to Pei Yutian with a gentle smile. ”Brothers are the most wonderful creatures in the world.”

Pei Yuhao blushed, while Pei Yutian looked at his brother. Wonderful? He’s not seeing it.