Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack

Chapter 271: Chapter 253: What Grudge, What Grievance

”Second Brother...” Luo Qianqian was punished by herself, all because she spoke out of turn, and to make matters worse, everyone else had already left, leaving her to stand at attention all alone: ”Is this how you treat your cute little sister whom you haven’t seen for days?”

”Stand properly, hands touching the seam of your trousers.” Luo Yanhai was dead serious, then after making two rounds to ensure no one was paying attention, he quickly leaned in close to Luo Qianqian: ”Were you not incredibly surprised and totally taken aback to see me?”

Luo Qianqian had a face full of disbelief—sure, there was surprise, but where was the joy? The surprise was definitely there—who would have thought that you could run into an acquaintance during military training? And in such a way, too.

She merely nodded without saying a word, who knew what Luo Yanhai was up to this time—she wouldn’t be surprised if talking got her another fifteen minutes of punishment.

”I’ve brought you something tasty. Wait for me downstairs after dinner tonight.” Luo Yanhai sighed looking at his sister who refused to make eye contact with him and generously gave the order: ”You can go back.”

Luo Qianqian saluted sharply with a loud ”Yes,” and then took off at a hundred-meter dash pace.

Luo Yanhai touched his nose: ”Am I that scary?” Then he turned and walked towards the dormitory, figuring that after the fuss he’d made with his sister, they must have been caught and would need to explain.

”Qianqian, are you okay?” Chu Ci stuck out her tongue—the moment Luo Yanhai ordered them back with a stern face, they had all returned, after all, it was Qianqian’s brother, who might have had something to say? But who would have thought it would mean both of them standing under the sun for fifteen minutes.

”When I get home, I’m definitely calling Second Aunt to complain, how he bullies me.” Luo Qianqian sniffled, pulling out sunscreen: ”But the sun’s really strong, I probably didn’t apply enough this morning, I’ll put on some more.”

”You’re already so tanned...” He Wenyu pouted, then upon seeing Luo Qianqian’s foreboding gaze, hurriedly corrected herself: ”But it’s essential to protect yourself to recover.” Her eyes, however, were hiding a smile—probably amused by her own skin that never tanned no matter how much sun it got? Seems like someone’s grown up and become beauty-conscious, He Wenyu pondered deeply.

Li Qi rolled her eyes and quickly handed over a bottle of water. Luo Qianqian thanked her and chugged down most of the bottle, shocking the others in the dorm.

Luo Qianqian wiped her mouth grandly, lamenting: ”No wonder my brother said to keep buying water. Let’s go carry a box back after we finish lunch, shall we?”

”Buying water by the box??” He Wenyu was taken aback too, but seeing none of the others objected, she took it as a given.

”Speaking of which, did you bring lunch boxes?” Fu Mingxue looked enviously at the group sitting together—they came from different backgrounds, and she had come to this school alone, without the friends from her elementary school. But she also felt a secret relief.

”Yes.” Luo Qianqian nodded, digging a lunch box out of the side of her backpack, then faced He Wenyu’s pitiful look and her mouth twitched: ”Don’t tell me you forgot yours again?”

”You guessed it...” He Wenyu nodded, then looked at Luo Qianqian’s two-tiered lunch box and hugged Luo Qianqian with a woeful face: ”Lend me half, I’ll help you wash it.”

”You win.” Luo Qianqian gave in resignedly, turning to the others: ”Did you bring yours?”

”We still remember to bring our brains.” Li Qi laughed at He Wenyu’s shameless smile: ”Not everyone forgets their brain at home with the cake.”

----

”That’s my little sister. If it weren’t for her, who would bother taking a break from leave to come here and play with kids?” Luo Yanhai rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed as he faced the military training base commander.

”Xiao Hai, isn’t it good to catch up after so long?” The commander was all smiles as he invited Luo Yanhai to sit: ”How’s your grandpa doing?”

”How long has it been since I took a leave? Based on the last time we met, you might as well call my sister over and ask her,” Luo Yanhai replied without any courtesy, sitting upright and not relaxing in the slightest.

----

Luo Qianqian was blissfully unaware that Luo Yanhai’s actions had already caused trouble for himself, as she was lost in the joy of sharing food with her dormmates.

After messaging her brother to inform him of Second Brother coming here as her instructor, she also complained about the harshness of the sun, saying she would definitely tan to a crisp.

Shufan got off the plane and saw his little sister’s message, his heart breaking almost to the point of tears. The memory of his sister tanned and peeling from a holiday at the beach, crying and fussing at home, was still vivid in his mind. Now, seeing her message, he was so upset he almost wanted to buy a plane ticket to go back and give his sister some shade—at least he was taller and could provide some protection from the sun.

”Just by looking at you, I can tell that was a message from Qianqian.” Wearing sunglasses to pick them up, Luo Yanran pushed the younger brother in front of him, ”Hurry up, Grandpa and Grandma are waiting at home.”

”Fourth Brother, did you know Second Brother has gone to Qianqian’s military training base to be an instructor?” Luo Shufan thought for a moment, feeling that his sister would definitely tattle after the training was over. Based on that pitiful message alone, it was certain, so it was better to give a heads-up in advance.

Underneath the sunglasses, Luo Yanran’s eyes widened in shock, then his lips curved into a smile, ”My brother said he was going to see a girl, so Grandpa agreed to let him go. I didn’t expect it was really about a girl.”

At the military training base, Luo Yanhai felt a chill down his spine, sensing someone scheming against him. He racked his brains but couldn’t figure it out. Given the numerous people he had recently offended, he eventually gave up thinking about it. After all, when soldiers come, use a general to block, and when water comes, use earth to cover.

Meanwhile, Luo Qianqian was marching to the cafeteria with the large troop. Having been brought up at Grandpa’s military camp, she was used to this routine and didn’t complain. The other girls, however, thought differently, especially the girl from Class One who slept in the bunk above Fu Mingxue. Looking at the queue to get into the cafeteria and having to wait for the previous group to finish before the next could enter, she couldn’t help complaining, ”What are we queuing for? Exquisite delicacies? Even Wanhai Tower doesn’t treat people this way.”

Upon hearing ”Wanhai Tower,” both Luo Qianqian and He Wenyu were taken aback. It had been a long time since they last saw Bai Yixian. Even when Bai Yizhu’s exam results came out and the acceptance letter arrived, it was just a phone call and a bank transfer. They indeed hadn’t seen each other for ages. Not even during the New Year. Bai Yizhu had visited twice, but neither visit lasted over two days before he was sent back.

Upon hearing that, Fu Mingxue laughed, ”There are other restaurants around Wanhai Tower. If you don’t want to eat at this one, you can choose another. But here, we only have the cafeteria. If you don’t want to eat here, your only option is to buy instant noodles.”

”You’re right, I can still buy instant noodles.” The girl nodded, but seeing no one leave the queue, she didn’t dare to act rashly and stood in line obediently, ”Let me see what they actually serve in there first.”

”Zhao Shiyu, don’t be too fussy. This place isn’t like home where you can have whatever you want,” said the plump, round-faced girl standing next to Zhao Shiyu, who seemed to know her.

”Luo Qianqian, doesn’t He Wenyu have some food? When we get back, ask her to share some with me,” Zhao Shiyu said to Luo Qianqian without even looking at the girl beside her. It sounded like an order, just like how a young mistress in a drama series would speak to her maid.

Luo Qianqian laughed, ”You should ask her yourself. I can eat anything, and I can always eat my fill.” If Zhao Shiyu had asked nicely, Luo Qianqian might have inquired on her behalf, especially since He Wenyu wouldn’t be able to finish her pack of cakes anyway. But with that attitude, wanting Luo Qianqian to speak up just so Zhao could benefit? Not a chance. Luo Qianqian was no easily manipulated pushover.

Chu Ci tried hard to suppress a laugh. Luo Qianqian, able to eat anything? When going out, the one who was the pickiest about food was Luo Qianqian herself. However, Chu Ci also disliked Zhao Shiyu’s behavior—clearly trying to take advantage, did she think everyone else was a fool?

”Speaking of which, Qianqian, later have Xiao Yu leave a piece for me. I’ll save it for a midnight snack,” Chu Ci said softly, though it was also a reminder to Zhao Shiyu not to take advantage of others.

”Would Xiao Yu charge for it?” Luo Qianqian sneered, ”Just tell her directly if you want some. What’s our relationship? Besides, there’s nowhere to spend money in a place like this.”

Chu Ci smiled and remained silent.

Realizing what the two were implying, Zhao Shiyu got the message: What’s our relationship? You just want to take advantage?

”Tsk, just like Xiaoyu said, you two really have something going on.” Hearing Zhao Shiyu’s mention of Xiaoyu, both were startled. Wasn’t Xiaoyu her own name?

Chu Ci was the first to react, indicating to Luo Qianqian the spot a few places ahead of them, ”Chu Yu.”

Luo Qianqian understood; she wasn’t without friends after all. She was lucky enough to find a friend from her own dormitory—Chu Yu had such good luck, she might as well buy a lottery ticket.

Luo Qianqian quickly took out her phone, informed Li Qi and He Wenyu about the situation, and then pulled Chu Ci and Fu Mingxue away from Zhao Shiyu.

She typed a few lines on her phone for the two of them to see, and their expressions differed radically.

After Chu Ci’s initial stupefied look, her face was full of emotion, while Fu Mingxue had a mischievous grin, ”Luo Qianqian, I’m definitely making friends with you.”

”I thought we were already friends,” Luo Qianqian said with a smile, her lips lifting, ”Let’s just leave the matter of the dorm leader to Li Qi. Xiao Yu and I are young and honestly a bit lazy. Xiao Ci and Xiao Xue are the soft girl type, not suited for such management, especially with people like that around. We’ll have the majority of votes on our side. Even if she pulls those two from Xiao Yu’s class, we’ll still win easily. It’s good to have connections.” Luo Qianqian didn’t try to keep her voice down while saying this, letting Zhao Shiyu overhear. Fu Mingxue’s eyes twinkled after hearing Luo Qianqian’s words, but she remained silent.

Zhao Shiyu was seething with rage on the side, her eyes flickering with scheming.

Chu Ci, who was ahead, also paid attention to the commotion. After hearing Luo Qianqian’s words, she gave a cold snort and then ignored it.