Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack

Chapter 584: Chapter 564: The Stance of the Luo Family (Part 5)

Luo Xihan dropped off Yue Tingyu and Luo Qianqian at their home, and Ye Qianying also stayed behind, giving Luo Xihan, who had been eagerly waiting all day, some private couple’s time.

Once Luo Qianqian returned home, she obediently cleaned up and went to bed, truly exhausted from the day’s activities.

At the beauty salon, the beautician had already removed her bandages, and fortunately, each person had their own booth, so it wasn’t noticed; the beautician even recommended some anti-swelling products and gave Luo Qianqian a good massage.

That evening, Luo Qianqian came home without her bandages, and it wasn’t noticed by the few people at home, but under bright light, it was clearly visible.

It’s just that the lighting in the beauty salon was dim, and because it was already dark outside, nobody paid any attention to it.

Returning to her room, Yue Tingyu was surprised to find Old Master Luo holding a book and sitting on the bed, showing no inclination to sleep. Teasing him, she said, ”You’ve been reading all day, haven’t you had enough yet?”

Old Master Luo, with a helpless expression, put down the book, ”Isn’t it because I’m waiting for you?”

”Waiting for me? Don’t tell me you’ve also prepared a gift; we’re an old couple now,” she said, though Yue Tingyu’s face clearly showed anticipation.

”We’re an old couple and can’t celebrate anymore? Who made that rule?” Old Master Luo, who knew his partner better than anyone else after half a lifetime together, pulled out a box, ”I’ve had it ready for a while now, see if you like it.”

He opened the box, revealing a necklace inside with a heart-shaped ruby pendant, ”Doesn’t it match perfectly with your outfit for tomorrow?”

Yue Tingyu glanced at it, then joyfully accepted it with a smile, looking seriously at Old Master Luo, ”Alright, out with it—what’s the matter? Giving a gift doesn’t warrant waiting up all night.”

Old Master Luo was silent for a moment before he said, ”Which dress did Qianqian choose?”

Upon hearing this, Yue Tingyu’s brows furrowed immediately. Why had the topic changed to a dress?

”Won’t you find out tomorrow? Why ask about that?” Yue Tingyu didn’t believe the old man stayed up late just to ask this.

Old Master Luo looked distressed, but he didn’t press the issue; instead, he sighed, closed his eyes, and laid down.

But Yue Tingyu couldn’t sleep no matter what, ”What on earth is going on, Luo Guohui? You’re hiding something from me!”

Old Master Luo opened his eyes, looking resigned, ”You’ll find out tomorrow; go to sleep now, there’s plenty to do tomorrow.”

The family celebration was at noon tomorrow, with the evening reserved for the party.

”Hmph,” Yue Tingyu snorted coldly but didn’t pry further, she’d been with Luo Guohui for half a lifetime and knew he was utterly trustworthy in matters of principle.

The next morning, Luo Qianqian finally remembered the gift she had bought, taking it out with a silly smile. Although it wasn’t particularly valuable, what made it precious was that it had caught her eye at first glance and it wasn’t a grand gesture from a wealthy family.

But as she unfolded the calligraphy, she noticed something odd—the pages were stitched together, yes, but why did each page feel so thick? It didn’t feel like just two sheets of paper.

Luo Qianqian poked at the pages’ seam but couldn’t find anything amiss; furrowing her brow, she braced herself and cut open the stitching with scissors, gently prying apart the calligraphy, thinking she might be able to restore it later, only to find the edges of the paper were glued together, but the middle appeared not to be. With a frown and a wallpaper knife in hand, she carefully slit open the last page with the least writing.

Then, stunned, she discovered why two sheets of paper had another sheet sandwiched between them—a sheet with no writing at all???

Thin and supple, Luo Qianqian suddenly felt as if she had been struck by lightning, her hand trembling as she held the papers. Could this be one of the three treasures of the Southern Tang, the Chengxin Tang paper???

Luo Qianqian couldn’t be sure. She took the jade stone out of her backpack with a conflicted expression on her face.

However, after thinking it over, she decided to take out all of the paper. There were twenty-seven sheets in total, each roughly eight-tenths the size of a calligraphy practice paper.

Luo Qianqian thought it over and decided to find a box to store the papers, planning to consult Old Master Jimo when she had time before giving them to her grandfather. If that didn’t work out, she would use the Jade Pillow she had intended to give to her grandfather instead.

After thinking for a bit, she restored the calligraphy practice papers to their place on top of the thin sheets, then carelessly wrapped the Jade Pillow and placed it in another box.

”Qianqian,” Luo Yanran came to wake Luo Qianqian up. His voice alone indicated he must have had a great date yesterday and seemed to be in a good mood, but when he opened the door, he appeared embarrassed, rubbing his behind.

”What’s wrong?” Luo Qianqian, frowning, let him into the room, sensing he wasn’t just there to wake her up.

Luo Yanran struggled to find the right words and could only sigh, rubbing Luo Qianqian’s head: ”Qianqian, thank you. Your brother hopes you will be happy in the future.”

Luo Qianqian looked at Luo Yanran, puzzled. Luo Yanran simply patted her shoulder and then left the room. As she stared blankly at his retreating figure, he stopped, turned back, and said loudly to Luo Qianqian, ”Never debase yourself.”

Then he ran away.

Luo Qianqian was even more baffled but obediently changed clothes. She put on a cute pink plaid dress and went downstairs.

”Qianqian,” Yue Tingyu nodded approvingly upon seeing Luo Qianqian in the dress. She thought her granddaughter looked so lovely and sweet in such attire.

”Grandpa, happy birthday.” Luo Qianqian, upon seeing Old Master Luo, threw herself at him: ”Qianqian wishes Grandpa blessings as endless as the eastern, western, southern, and northern seas, as vast as the four great oceans; may Grandpa live as long as Mount Nanshan, Emei, Taishan, Changbai, and Mount Bu Zhou!”

”I was beginning to think you were going to report on seas and mountains instead of telling us what you learned these past few days,” Luo Yanran said with a mix of laughter and tears. Was his little sister really this quirky?

”If you want, I won’t stop,” Luo Qianqian retorted, lifting her little chin: ”Grandpa, Grandpa, Qianqian hopes that in ten years, twenty years, thirty years, and many, many years to come, you can still chase the Fourth Brother around the yard, beating him in front of his sons and daughters, beating him thoroughly!”

The typically stern face of Old Master Luo finally couldn’t hold back any longer. Who says things like that?

The serious atmosphere was immediately lightened by Luo Qianqian’s antics, relieving Luo Yanran as well. The previous atmosphere had been quite oppressive. Jumping at the opportunity, he said, ”Luo Qianqian, don’t think Grandpa won’t spank you just because—,” but he was silenced by a glare from Old Master Luo, quickly changing his tune: ”Right, he shouldn’t spank you, but spank me instead. I’m tough, I can take it.”

Luo Qianqian looked at Old Master Luo gleefully: ”Grandpa’s eyes are big enough already, but with that glare—how’s Fourth Brother with his small eyes supposed to feel? You should consider Fourth Brother’s pride a little, after all, he makes his living with his face.”

Luo Yanran pointed at himself in disbelief. Him, with the small eyes?

He made his living with his face?

He was a man of substance, okay?

Just as he was about to speak, he was silenced by another stare from Old Master Luo.

Instantly, he kept quiet, feeling that today, somehow, everything was going Luo Qianqian’s way.