Why did Li Qingqing have such a strong impression of Sheng Yuxiao's cousin? It was actually because of Li Xiaoya.
Sheng Yuxiao's cousin, Xu Ruying, shared the same birthday as Li Xiaoya.
The Sheng family celebrated Li Xiaoya's birthday, which led to Xu Ruying feeling neglected. This incident even became a hot topic in entertainment news.
Since these two were destined to be at odds, why not add fuel to the fire in advance?
Li Qingqing threw off her blanket and got out of bed. She walked to the door, holding onto it with one hand, and timidly poked her head out. Addressing the slender figure not far away, she said, "Hello, sister..."
Xu Ruying's gaze fell on her, and she asked in surprise, "Who's this?"
"Miss Xu just returned from abroad and doesn't know yet," the servant hurriedly explained from the side.
After hearing the whole story, Xu Ruying exclaimed in shock, "What? Sheng Yuxiao was sent to a small village? What was Aunt thinking? No, I must go see Aunt!"
Xu Ruying left in a whirlwind, as quick as she came.
Li Qingqing stood there dumbfounded. How did this... She hadn't even gotten to speak yet!
*
As a new day dawned, Li Xiaoya emerged from Sheng Yuxiao's oversized down jacket. Ning Heng heard the movement and struggled to open his eyes, "Awake already?"
"Ah, you guys wake up so early. If I were at home, I'd just be getting back from clubbing and lying down now," Ning Heng complained softly, but still got up with them.
Li Xiaoya, crouching nearby, spoke first: "Sheng Yuxiao is gone."
"Oh, he went into town today to deal with contracts," Ning Heng smiled. "He temporarily entrusted you to me."
Li Xiaoya didn't comment on this statement, but instead asked, "What's clubbing?"
Ning Heng's expression changed dramatically, realizing he had said something he shouldn't have. Thankfully, Sheng wasn't here.
"It's nothing, kids shouldn't ask about that," Ning Heng brushed it off, standing up and putting on his shoes. "Come on, let's wash up."
Li Xiaoya's face cloth had been used by Ning Heng to wipe his face earlier, so Sheng Yuxiao had cut his own in half for Li Xiaoya to use.
Ning Heng found that half-piece of cloth and dipped it in cold water, shivering from the chill.
"Aren't we going to boil hot water?" Ning Heng asked.
"We're out of firewood. We need to go collect more."
"Alright then."
Ning Heng wrung out the cloth and turned to wipe Li Xiaoya's face.
"I can do it myself..." Li Xiaoya said softly.
"No can do. Sheng entrusted you to me, and I can't let him down by not following through," Ning Heng replied.
"Oh," Li Xiaoya responded, obediently closing her eyes to let him wipe her face.
Ning Heng put the cloth to her face and asked, "Is it cold?"
"No, it's not cold."
Ning Heng's hands were slightly pale from the cold, but Li Xiaoya didn't even flinch.
She closed her eyes, and her wiped cheeks took on a porcelain-like whiteness.
"You don't look like a Barbie doll," Ning Heng suddenly said.
Li Xiaoya's eyelashes fluttered, and she opened her eyes, revealing a puzzled expression.
Ning Heng said seriously, "You look like a porcelain doll, like a work of art."
Li Xiaoya tilted her head, looking at him.
"You know, the kind of beautiful, pristine, and fragile porcelain," Ning Heng continued, feeling his creative inspiration being sparked.
He was an art student, having studied everything from sketching to Chinese painting, from sculpture to ceramics... If his family hadn't held him back, he would have gone overseas long ago to live the life of a wandering artist in search of inspiration.
At this moment, Li Xiaoya slowly shook her head and said, "Then I don't want to be porcelain."
"What do you want to be then?"
"Are there dolls made of iron? I want to be made of iron, unbreakable even when beaten."
Ning Heng's breath caught, and he looked at her in astonishment. After a moment, that astonishment turned into a kind of delight, a delight that flowed through his blood, becoming an irrepressible excitement.
"You really... you're really amazing! Wow!" Ning Heng was truly inspired with a new creative idea now, itching to rush back to his studio.
"If I win an award, I'll split it with you," Ning Heng suddenly tossed the cloth aside and picked up Li Xiaoya, giving her a quick kiss.
Li Xiaoya was even more confused.
What award? What was he talking about?
The danmu (on-screen comments) simultaneously filled with exclamation marks.
[Ning Heng! You're done for! Your Sheng-ge might beat you up when he gets back!]
[You threw Li Xiaoya's face cloth on the ground, and you dare to kiss her!]
Ning Heng also realized what he'd done and quickly picked up the cloth, rinsing it in water again.
"I'll pour you some water so you can brush your teeth," Ning Heng said, turning away guiltily to find the thermos.
This thermos was something Ning Heng had brought himself. It still had some drinking water in it, which was now being used for Li Xiaoya to brush her teeth.
Li Xiaoya crouched there, gurgling and spitting water, while Ning Heng stood behind her, combing her hair.
[...This hairstyle finally doesn't look like she's been through a disaster]
[Compared to this, what on earth was Sheng Yuxiao doing when he combed her hair before? Haha]
After they finished getting ready, Ning Heng accompanied Li Xiaoya to school.
Unlike Sheng Yuxiao and Qin Sui, Ning Heng was quite talkative. As they walked, he chatted with Li Xiaoya: "It's almost winter, how are there still mosquitoes? I'm covered in bites."
Hearing this, Li Xiaoya said, "Wait a moment."
She then rolled up her pants, walked through the grass and field ridges, and came back with a handful of herbs. Using her scarred fingertips, she crushed the herbs and applied the juice to Ning Heng's mosquito bites.
"Does it feel better?" Li Xiaoya asked.
Ning Heng stared at her for a while, then sighed and muttered, "I can see why Sheng-ge likes you."
Ning Heng took the remaining herbs from Li Xiaoya's hand, crushed them himself, and continued to apply the juice to his body as they walked.
Before they knew it, they had arrived at the school.
As soon as Li Xiaoya entered, wow, it was quite a scene. She immediately attracted countless gazes.
The students stared at Ning Heng in amazement.
Ning Heng had tied up his long hair, revealing clean-cut facial features. He had a tall, straight figure and an unrestrained aura. His almond-shaped eyes gave people the illusion of gentleness even when he looked at them sideways.
"Li Xiaoya..." someone stuttered, "how do you have another new brother?"
"Li Xiaoya is so cool," someone whispered enviously.
"Will this new brother buy her an Ultraman lunchbox too?" Their envy grew as they spoke.
Unlike Sheng Yuxiao, who acted high and mighty, or Qin Sui, who was gloomy and didn't like to deal with "foolish" people, Ning Heng was different.
Hearing the children's low discussions, Ning Heng raised an eyebrow and said, "You don't know? Li Xiaoya can do magic."
"What kind of magic?" A group of childish faces looked up, showing curious expressions.
"Whoever bullies her, she just closes her eyes and makes a wish. See, just like this," Ning Heng's lips curled into a mischievous smile. "Whoosh! And I appear out of thin air. She can conjure up several of us at once! Those who bully her will be in for some bad luck."
The children instantly turned pale with fright.
Especially Wang Xiaozhi, who had been picked up by Sheng Yuxiao earlier. His throat suddenly burst out with a shriek, "Ah! I didn't bully Li Xiaoya! Don't come after me, please don't come after me!"
Ning Heng scoffed, "What a bunch of scaredy-cats."
Then he helped Li Xiaoya put on her backpack. "Off to class now."
As he turned around, he came face to face with several school teachers, their expressions frozen in disbelief.
"Hello, hello," Ning Heng went over and shook hands with each of them. "I'm currently Li Xiaoya's temporary guardian. If you have any concerns, feel free to contact me!"
The teachers were momentarily dazed as they stared at the obviously expensive designer clothes the young man was wearing.
What was the name of that TV show they had filmed? "Exchange Lives," right? Wasn't it supposed to be about the village chief's granddaughter from Li Village being exchanged to live in the city? Why had it turned out like this in the end?
Rich kids coming one after another... What? Were rich kids so cheap now that they were sold by the pound?