Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack

”Lu Simiao, what’s wrong?” Luo Qianqian couldn’t free herself from Cao Yingying’s grasp and had to answer the phone under such awkward circumstances.

The voice of Lu Simiao on the other end of the line was choked with tears, ”Sister, can you lend me three hundred thousand? I promise I’ll pay you back later.”

Three hundred thousand? Why is it always three hundred thousand? Luo Qianqian frowned, ”What do you want to do?”

Lu Simiao spoke intermittently, ”The grandson of the old lady to whom Pei Chenhao gave money is critically ill, he’ll die without surgery... sob sob.”

As Lu Simiao wept, Luo Qianqian felt a surge of irritability, ”Where is Pei Chenhao?”

”I’m here, Sister Qhianqhian, please, when my parents come back, I’ll have them repay you,” Pei Chenhao’s voice also conveyed his tears.

Luo Qianqian sighed, ”Where are you?”

The hospital’s address was given, and Luo Qianqian hung up the phone, looking at Cao Yingying, ”If I’m not mistaken, your brother is at XX hospital, right?”

Cao Yingying halted her crying instantaneously, a look of shock on her face, ”How did you know?”

Luo Qianqian withdrew her hand and spread it towards Qin Nuan, rubbing her wrist which had turned red, ”We need to go there, Lu Simiao and the others are also there.”

Qin Nuan’s eyes widened, ”Really? What a coincidence?”

Luo Qianqian nodded, hailed a cab, and then looked at Cao Yingying still dazedly standing there, calling out, ”Aren’t you getting in, what are you doing?”

Cao Yingying, startled, quickly got into the cab, and they soon arrived at the hospital.

Cao Yingying led the way, and at the entrance to the ICU, they saw a tearful Lu Simiao, Pei Chenhao, and an old lady trembling and crying at the side.

Upon hearing footsteps, the old lady looked up and brightened when she saw Cao Yingying, ”How did it go, did you get the tuition returned?”

Cao Yingying shook her head, tears falling.

The old lady collapsed to the ground like she was falling apart, ”My dear grandson...”

”You two, come over here.” Luo Qianqian watched Lu Simiao and behaved as if he was a family member, sobbing and gasping for breath, which was kind of amusing to her, ”What are you crying for? You’re all right, aren’t you?”

Lu Simiao and Pei Chenhao obediently came over, still crying and gasping for breath, but obediently called out ”Sister.”

”Tell me what happened.” Luo Qianqian rubbed her temples, looking at the plump boy with a gentle gaze. She hadn’t expected the plump boy to be so kind.

”We had originally come today with some jelly and a four-wheel drive car to visit him. He said last time that he wanted to taste jelly again, as it had been a long time. But then, he just lay there with his eyes closed. Grandma said that he might never wake up again, and never be able to enjoy good food again...” Pei Chenhao didn’t hide anything, as the money he was using now was from Luo Qianqian, and it wasn’t necessary to hide the reason for buying gifts.

”What’s his illness?” Luo Qianqian turned to Lu Simiao.

”Congenital heart disease,” Lu Simiao enunciated slowly, ”Sister, I know this money might be wasted, but shouldn’t we give hope a chance? That’s what Sister taught me.”

”Who said it’d be wasted?” Seeing that Lu Simiao clearly understood that even having the surgery he might not survive, she let out a sigh of relief, ”Her sister borrowed money from me, one percent interest annually. Cao Yingying, write an IOU.”

Luo Qianqian was very calm as she called out to Cao Yingying.

Cao Yingying couldn’t believe her eyes, her eyes wide, ”You’re willing to...?”

”One percent annual interest, do you accept?” Luo Qianqian said without any hesitation.

Cao Yinging immediately went to the nurse’s station to get paper and pen. Instead of the one percent Luo Qianqian mentioned, she wrote five percent, not missing a fingerprint or ID card. After writing, she handed it to Luo Qianqian, ”Thank you.”

Luo Qianqian calmly took the payment receipt downstairs to make the payment, while Qin Nuan just chuckled along side her.

Upon returning with the payment receipt, the old lady immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Luo Qianqian, who, startled, jumped onto the windowsill nearby, her face filled with horror, ”Grandma Cao, don’t cut my life short, Cao Yingying wrote an IOU, so it’s not like this money won’t be returned.”

Yet, Cao Yinging just smiled, feeling relieved. How could she not understand that the IOU was merely something Luo Qianqian provided for her peace of mind. She would definitely repay the money! Even if it meant nothing to Luo Qianqian.

Luo Qianqian really wanted to say that she had never seen so much money in her past life.

After paying, the surgery was quickly scheduled.

Luo Qianqian asked Lu Simiao and Pei Chenhao to buy lunch for Cao Yingying and Grandma Cao. Through the glass, she saw the pale cheeks of that young boy, still immature, yet looking as if he had seen through life and death, indifferent to joy or sorrow.

”You must live up to your sister’s sacrifice.” Luo Qianqian smiled.

Cao Yingying looked at her, then looked at Qin Nuan, and took the two to the stairwell, bowing deeply, ”Thank you.”

Qin Nuan raised an eyebrow, ”Thank me for what?”

Cao Yingying smiled, ”Thank you for bringing Luo Qianqian to our dormitory, and thank you for the resilience in your relationship, which made me feel ashamed and also helped me realize how worthless I was.”

Luo Qianqian laughed scornfully, ”If a person’s worth could be proved just by saying so, then I might as well claim I am a treasure as priceless as the Heart of the Ocean. A person’s value isn’t measured by money; character, how one treats others, their worldviews, and even their attitude towards life all play a part.” She paused and added, ”I won’t comment on your past since it was for your brother, but your future is in your own hands. As long as you don’t continue to degrade yourself, who can say you’re a bad girl? Judgments about a person can change, they aren’t static.”

”I always feel like you see right through me,” Cao Yingying said with a wry smile, ”sometimes I think there are old monsters living inside you.”

”Experience makes one mature,” Qin Nuan smiled, ”Go take care of your grandma. We’re leaving for now, call if you need anything.”

Cao Yingying nodded and watched the two disappear down the stairs before turning around.

”The future, is it really in my hands?” Cao Yingying’s gaze shifted subtly. She could continue her education and seek higher opportunities, and her brother would eventually recover. The future couldn’t be worse than the present.

”I didn’t expect you to lend her money,” Qin Nuan slowly began after they left the hospital, ”I thought you would make her go to that middle-aged man with the pot belly.”

”I considered it,” Luo Qianqian tugged at the corner of her mouth, ”but I wanted Lu Simiao to see the good side of human nature.”

”She must have tried already,” Qin Nuan spoke to herself, ”The swelling on her face just now didn’t look like it was from crying.” After hearing Luo Qianqian’s response, she laughed again, ”How lucky is Lu Simiao to have found such a sister picked up from the street?”

”You’re lucky too,” Luo Qianqian laughed, looking up at the sun. The afternoon sun was the hottest, clearly not winter, but as she watched the sun, she felt warmth instead of scorching heat.

”Yes, meeting you was my luck,” Qin Nuan’s voice came through, ”but you are luckier, because we are of the same kind.”