Chapter 290 - 288: Just a Niece?

Chapter 290: Chapter 288: Just a Niece?

The two exchanged a smile.

Lin Qiao immediately reverted to her true self, chattering away to Gu Nuan Nuan. "Nuannuan, you have no idea. That stuff I said earlier—about how lots of people have their families pick them up just so they won’t be looked down on? That wasn’t really what I think. It’s just what a bunch of kids in our class say behind people’s backs."

She sighed. "Sometimes I think the people who say that are just being sour grapes, but other times, I feel like they have a point. It’s just... I can’t stand them. They only dare to say that stuff in private. The moment they meet someone from a richer family, they’re all over them faster than anyone. But when they meet someone like me, who isn’t as well-off, they just try to step all over you. Ugh, they’re so materialistic. I bet if they’d known you’re the young lady of the Zhang Group, there wouldn’t have been any room for me by your side."

"If you know what kind of people they are, why do you care what they think?" Gu Nuan Nuan gave her an amused look.

"I wish I didn’t care! It’s easier said than done. I just can’t help it, what am I supposed to do?" Lin Qiao sounded even more exasperated. "I’m not like you. I’m only just realizing that you acted like such a maverick at school because you had the confidence to back it up. Good thing I was dumb enough to mistake that confidence for insecurity. Otherwise, even if I’d had ten times the courage, I probably wouldn’t have dared to get close to you. Hahaha—"

Seeing Lin Qiao laughing so hard she lost all her composure, Gu Nuan Nuan rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Are you seriously bragging about your poor judgment?"

Lin Qiao finally reigned it in, though she was still snickering. "I’m just relieved." Then she looked at Gu Nuan Nuan curiously. "Does your family have a car?"

"We do." Gu Nuan Nuan shot her a look, then shook her head with a helpless sigh. "But just one. Usually, either my uncle or my dad is driving it. It’s used to take my aunt and my mom to and from work, and on top of that, it’s also for picking up and dropping off company clients. Plus, my school schedule doesn’t line up with their work hours, so I figured there was no need to cause them any unnecessary trouble."

"Oh, so that’s how it is. Looks like we’re both the sensible, well-behaved types," Lin Qiao said, realization dawning on her. She started to laugh, but her smile turned a little complicated. "But being too sensible isn’t always a good thing. Sometimes I really envy my two little sisters for being so carefree. But, ugh, what can I do? I’m the oldest, and I’m growing up. My mom says the eldest has to be a role model for the younger ones... She was the eldest, too, and had a really tough childhood, so she’s always telling me how easy I have it. Still... I hope that when I grow up, I can make sure my own eldest child has a more comfortable life." She smacked her lips, as if savoring the thought.

Gu Nuan Nuan looked at the talkative Lin Qiao and couldn’t help but feel a mix of sympathy and amusement. She comforted her, "You will. When you’re older, with a mom who has already ’endured all the hardships,’ your eldest will definitely have a much happier life." She put heavy emphasis on the words "endured all the hardships."

"Yeah, I think so too," Lin Qiao replied, seemingly oblivious to the teasing, her smile as bright as ever.

Gu Nuan Nuan watched her with a mischievous grin for a moment before asking, "Lin Qiao, since we’ve just decided on a whim to invite two extra guests to your house, shouldn’t we head back and give your parents a heads-up?"

"Go back now?" Lin Qiao asked, taken aback.

"Is something wrong?" Gu Nuan Nuan raised an eyebrow.

"But... but I brought you out to see the Welcoming of the Gods festival, and we haven’t really seen anything yet."

Lin Qiao hesitated. No matter how casual she had acted in front of Gu Nuan Nuan, she didn’t actually feel so casual about her. In fact, she felt a greater sense of responsibility. Although she was anxious to go home and tell her parents, she felt that being a good host to Gu Nuan Nuan was more important right now.

"Even if we weren’t close enough to see everything clearly, we can still say we saw it. It’s too loud, and I don’t really want to stay much longer. What about you? Do you still want to watch? If not, let’s just head back," Gu Nuan Nuan said with a smile. ’How could a crowd possibly block my view of the spectacle? I saw everything worth seeing as soon as we got here. A quick look is enough for me; I’m not a big fan of huge, noisy events anyway.’

"If you say so, let’s go back then. I see this every year, so I’m actually kind of sick of it. I was just worried you hadn’t seen enough." Lin Qiao didn’t overthink it. She took Gu Nuan Nuan’s hand, turned around, and started walking toward her house. "To be honest, I don’t like huge crowds either. They’re just noisy. But my two little sisters love it, for some reason. I don’t get what’s so exciting. We see it every year. After a while, doesn’t it all just look the same?"

Heh...

Gu Nuan Nuan laughed. ’It takes all sorts to make a world.’ People with different personalities rarely see eye to eye. So, hearing Lin Qiao’s words, she simply smiled and said nothing.

--

「At Eldest Ye’s home.」

In the master bedroom, which belonged to the parents of the Ye brothers, all four sons were gathered. Their parents were there too, along with their four daughters-in-law, who had stayed behind to help instead of running off to watch the festivities.

Ye Laoer looked impatiently at Ye Laosan, the one who had summoned them all. "Third, don’t you know I invited my boss over today? What could possibly be so important that you had to drag all of us back here in such a rush?"

The others murmured in agreement with Ye Laoer’s words. Mrs. Ye nodded as well. "Exactly. We have so many guests today. Even though we hired a master chef from the next village and have plenty of help, there are still a lot of things we need to oversee ourselves. This is the busiest time of day. Couldn’t this have waited until tonight, after all the guests have gone home?"

"Mom, Second Brother, calm down. Of course I know everyone’s busy. Why would I call you all here if it wasn’t important?" Ye Laosan said with a mysterious smile. "If we wait until the guests have left tonight, it’ll be too late."

"Just spit it out already. Stop keeping us in suspense," Ye Laosan’s wife urged, giving him a light pat on the arm.

"Hehe, you’ll never guess who I’ve invited to our house tonight," Ye Laosan said, his eyes sparkling.

"Who is it?" Mrs. Ye pressed, her patience wearing thin. The others also looked on with a mixture of curiosity and impatience.

"It’s the niece of our company’s big boss, General Manager Zhang! The daughter of his sister, Manager Zhang..." Before Ye Laosan could finish, the wife of the Fourth brother interrupted him, pursing her lips disdainfully. "It’s just a niece, so what?"