Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack

Chapter 418: Chapter 399: Nothing Left

Early in the morning, Luo Qianqian headed out. Luo Yanran returned home with Jia Ning, and Qin Nuan also went back to the Qin Family. She then took a cab alone to the hotel. Upon arrival, however, she saw that the young man was already waiting downstairs, holding breakfast and looking in her direction with a tender smile. For a moment, she wasn’t quite sure what to say; despite being just a boy, he seemed so mature to her.

”Have you been waiting long?” Luo Qianqian asked, grinning, as she stood next to Xu Tianyi.

”Not at all, the breakfast is still warm,” the boy said with a smile. ”Have you eaten?”

Luo Qianqian nodded. ”Grandma doesn’t let me out without eating,” she said, patting her backpack. Surprised, she looked at Xu Tianyi, who besides the breakfast, appeared to have brought nothing at all. ”You didn’t bring anything?”

Amused, Xu Tianyi looked at her and toyed with the car keys in his hand.

Realizing the situation, Luo Qianqian said, ”You’re the clever one.”

Then the two of them walked to Lu Simiao’s room. After knocking, Lu Simiao opened the door, rubbing his eyes, and stared in surprise, eyes wide, at the two well-prepared figures before him. ”Sis? Brother-in-law?”

”Why does that sound so awkward?” Luo Qianqian mumbled under her breath, touching her neck.

Xu Tianyi gave the small figure beside him an amused look and handed the breakfast to Lu Simiao. ”We’re going out to have fun today. Get up quickly,” he said.

To their surprise, Lu Simiao accepted the breakfast with some hesitation and mumbled hesitantly to Luo Qianqian, ”Sis, can I not go?”

Luo Qianqian looked at Lu Simiao in bewilderment, wondering what he intended to do in this unfamiliar place.

”I just want to play video games here. I played too late yesterday, and I’ve only just slept for a bit...” Lu Simiao explained. He didn’t want to be the third wheel, and the games were genuinely entertaining.

Luo Qianqian peeked into the room and frowned. ”But we’re not going for just a day or two, we’re going for three days before we come back.”

Lu Simiao nodded and said, ”I’ll just stay here in the room, it’s convenient to order food from the restaurant.”

Xu Tianyi raised an eyebrow. ”What game are you playing?”

Luo Qianqian speechless—was that the point? Then she watched as the two of them started chatting and, wordlessly, went downstairs to extend the room payment.

When she returned, Lu Simiao was already excitedly starting his game. Scowling, she said, ”You’ve played all night, go to sleep.” She then took out some banknotes from her wallet and placed them on the computer desk. ”Call me if you run out of money.”

Lu Simiao nodded, reluctantly shut down the computer, and crawled into bed. ”Brother-in-law, take good care of my sister.”

Xu Tianyi solemnly made the promise.

Luo Qianqian resisted the urge to roll her eyes and, after helping Lu Simiao close the door, she asked, once they were outside, ”You still play games?”

”I’ve watched others play, but...” Xu Tianyi laughed as he pinned Luo Qianqian against the elevator doors. ”What’s this three-day thing about?”

Luo Qianqian, her face flushed, pushed Xu Tianyi away. ”It’s a secret.” She then looked away. ”I should call Nuannuan, why isn’t she here yet?” As she spoke, she made the call.

Xu Tianyi sighed. Now that Lu Simiao was not following them, they again had to deal with two even brighter light bulbs, each more keen than the other to stick close to Luo Qianqian.

”My brother and Nuannuan are at the supermarket getting food. Let’s wait for them at the supermarket entrance,” Luo Qianqian suggested, holding her phone and chuckling, just as the elevator arrived. The two of them got off the elevator, and it was only then that Luo Qianqian realized belatedly, ”Isn’t Lu Simiao’s breakfast going to get cold if he just sleeps like that?”

Xu Tianyi didn’t know what to make of Luo Qianqian’s train of thought and sighed.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, Luo Qianqian’s eyes widened and she was about to speak, but Xu Tianyi interrupted, ”Don’t worry, I’ve brought everything we need, and we can buy anything else on the way. Don’t stress over it here, or you’ll age quickly from thinking too much.”

Luo Qianqian gave him a look of martyrdom. How old was she to be aging quickly? Thus, she kept quiet and obediently got in the car. It stopped in front of the supermarket, and soon she saw two people coming out with huge bags—yes, one was in a flowing long skirt radiating an ethereal aura, and the other was decked out in long clothes, a hat, sunglasses, and even a face mask, looking every bit the villain. But Luo Qianqian recognized him as Luo Yanran without a doubt.

When they spotted the familiar car, Luo Yanran immediately dashed over and effortlessly entered, stripping off his gear and fanning himself.

Qin Nuan took the seat next to him and looked at Luo Qianqian with a cheerful smile. ”Let’s go, you’re quite early today, aren’t you?”

Luo Qianqian ignored the teasing in her friend’s tone and turned to Luo Yanran. ”Are you planning on robbing a bank or something?”

Qin Nuan couldn’t suppress her laughter and looked away.

Luo Yanran glared fiercely at his sister and said to Xu Tianyi, ”Turn the air conditioning up to the max.”

Xu Tianyi glanced at Luo Qianqian and replied, ”You guys drive, having it so high isn’t good for your health. You go sit in the front and enjoy the breeze.”

At that moment, Luo Qianqian also snapped out of her daze and nodded, ”Xu Tianyi is underage and doesn’t have a driver’s license yet, brother, you drive.”

Luo Yanran was speechless. Had it taken them this long to remember? But he still nodded, as the equipment he was wearing was indeed too hot.

Luo Qianqian happily moved to the back seat, but Qin Nuan remained motionless, sitting quietly, ”I’m also a girl, I shouldn’t be exposed to the wind too much.” With one sentence, she sent a resentful Xu Tianyi to the passenger seat. The two in front were disgustingly glaring at each other, while Luo Qianqian and Qin Nuan sat eating snacks and chatting merrily in the back.

Every now and then, Luo Qianqian would feed the two in front, but Qin Nuan pretended not to see, after all, she was not an underage kid and had to maintain her composure.

Xu Tianyi, through the rearview mirror, saw the two enjoying their snacks and simply smiled without saying anything.

The car quickly reached the foot of the temple mountain, rumored to be exceedingly efficacious. With the increasing flow of international tourists in Capital City, the security checks had been tightened, making the roads leading out smooth, while the roads into Capital City were congested into twists.

Upon getting out of the car, Luo Yanran continued to gear up, not forgetting to fan himself with a big, flowered cat fan that Qin Nuan had casually bought for Luo Qianqian.

From the bottom of the mountain to the top, from being full of energy to drenched in sweat, from skipping up the path to climbing on hands and knees, Luo Qianqian was secretly relieved for nearly a month’s worth of hardship. Looking at the almost collapsed Qin Nuan and Luo Yanran, who had given up on his image and had removed his hat, mask, and sunglasses, Luo Qianqian smirked and slumped onto the stairway.

Xu Tianyi looked much better than the other three, but he was also gasping for air. Seeing they were close to their destination, he let out a sigh of relief.

Fearing that Luo Qianqian might falter midway, all the snacks and even the bags she should carry were with him, and he kept an eye on Luo Qianqi to prevent her from stumbling and falling backwards.

Thankfully, they were nearly there. With that thought, a touch of tenderness flickered in Xu Tianyi’s eyes.

Luo Yanran collapsed on the ground, ”I can’t do this anymore, I can’t go on.” Saying this, he took out a bottle of water from his bag, drank a couple of sips, and poured the rest over his head. The mineral water mixed with sweat, streaming down his cheeks and dropping to the ground. The water stains quickly dried up, showing that the fierce summer sun was no joke.

Watching the people coming up the mountain below, Qin Nuan hurriedly equipped Luo Yanran with his gear. Luo Yanran was about to speak but stopped when he saw the newcomer below, swallowing his words. He just wanted to ask, did Qin Nuan really need to cloak herself so secretively while out with him? Was being with him that embarrassing?

Xu Tianyi and Luo Qianqian arrived first to see a young monk standing at the entrance, bowing to Luo Qianqian, ”Master Liao Wu has been waiting for a long time, please follow me.”

”Me?”

”Indeed, lady benefactor.”

Luo Qianqian was stunned for a while but then nodded and followed. She looked around and noticed that Xu Tianyi wasn’t following, so she turned her head towards him, ”You go ahead, I’ll wait for them here.” Xu Tianyi smiled tenderly, his eyes filled with encouragement.

Luo Qianqian followed the young monk to the side hall, which was devoid of people. She saw an old monk with a white beard sitting in a pavilion facing a chessboard, holding a cup of tea in his hand, a scene with quite some flavor.

”Have you arrived?” he asked.

”We have,” the young monk answered.

Then the young monk left, and Luo Qianqian entered the pavilion at the old monk’s invitation. Not knowing much about Buddhist etiquette, Luo Qianqian could only bow with her hands clasped together in an imitation of respect, ”Greetings, Master.”

”Little benefactor, I figured it was about time you arrived,” the old monk said. ”I am known as Master Liao Wu.”

”Master Liao Wu.” Luo Qianqian greeted him respectfully.

”It’s just a title, after all. You have been back for eight years now, haven’t you? Have you any doubts?” Master Liao Wu smiled, picking up a white piece and placing it on the board.

”Eight years...” Luo Qianqian repeated it and then her eyes widened in realization. He was indeed talking about rebirth, ”I don’t understand how Master could know about it?”

”All things in this world have cause and effect. Being born human, one must bear this karma,” Master Liao Wu said, picking up a black piece and placing it on the board. ”Rest assured, besides this old man who is half a step into the cycle of rebirth, there is no fourth person who knows.”

”No fourth person? So, there’s...” Luo Qianqian suddenly comprehended and thought of Qin Nuan. ”Then she...”

”She has her mission, and you have your task. You both have returned to correct the original trajectory of your lives, haven’t you? That’s destiny and also a burden. The more you know, the greater the responsibility on your shoulders,” Master Liao Wu smiled. ”A single wrong move can lose the entire game. Think carefully before you act.”

After speaking a few more profound and difficult to understand words to Luo Qianqian, Master Liao Wu fell silent. She then left the pavilion and the side hall, only to see Qin Nuan with a puzzled expression coming out from another courtyard. They exchanged glances, both filled with bewilderment.