Chapter Forty-Eight: The Snobbish Relatives (Part Two)

My Legend of Rebirth – No pop-up ads

Seeing that my mother still wanted to say something, refusing to give up, I gently patted her shoulder and smiled toward my two aunts at the dining table. “Hehe, Auntie, you don’t need to feel so troubled. My mom was just joking with you. I’ve already prepared my tuition fees. I invited you here today so you could help my mom see if the necklace I bought for her last time is suitable.”

As soon as I finished speaking, everyone at the table was dumbfounded. My mother stared at me blankly, not knowing what sort of play I was acting out, and immediately scolded, “Qiangqiang, what nonsense are you talking about? When adults are talking, children shouldn’t interrupt!” After speaking, she hurriedly turned to her two sisters and forced a smile. “Don’t listen to Qiangqiang’s nonsense, big sister, third sister, let me explain. This time, I really have no other way…”

Before she could finish, I tugged hard on her sleeve. She turned to glare at me, clearly displeased. Ignoring her, I said, “Auntie, please wait a moment. I’ll go to my room and bring out the necklace for you to see.” With that, I got up and walked into my room.

My parents were now truly baffled, watching me disappear into the room, exchanging confused and puzzled glances. But it didn’t matter; once I came back out, they would soon know what game I was playing. So, the four adults fell silent and lowered their heads, eating.

Less than a minute later, I emerged from the room, holding a high-end jewelry box in my hand. I walked to the table, smiled at my two aunts, and opened the box. Instantly, a dazzling brilliance, refracted by the light, burst forth, causing everyone to cover their mouths in astonishment!

“Big sister, isn’t this… isn’t this the necklace we saw while shopping last time? Blue Romance!” My younger aunt, utterly shocked, tugged at the elder aunt’s sleeve, her eyes filled with disbelief.

“Hmm? That necklace? Ah, yes! Isn’t this the crystal necklace? If I remember correctly, the price tag was eighty-three thousand… My goodness, second sister, you bought this necklace? It’s so beautiful…” The elder aunt was completely stunned. The second sister, who had always struggled financially, was able to buy such an expensive piece of jewelry—it felt as unbelievable as the sun rising in the west.

“Hehe, Auntie, I told you, I bought this necklace as a gift for my mom. But she always refused, saying it was too cheap…” I shook my head, looking pitifully at my mother, who was still in shock, and smiled wryly. “Mom, look, Auntie and Third Aunt both say it’s beautiful. Please accept it—it’s your son’s heartfelt gift. Since both aunts are here, let me put it on you.” With that, I took out the Blue Romance necklace and fastened it around my mother’s neck. Her clothes were plain, but with the sapphire crystal necklace as an accent, she suddenly became radiant, looking years younger, and my two relatives beside her were full of envy.

“This… Qiangqiang, this necklace…” My mother’s face was filled with worry. The shine and brilliance of the necklace obviously didn’t look like a fake. I knew she was worried I might have done something illegal, so I quickly smiled at my astonished aunts and said, “Auntie, you don’t know yet—my software was spotted by a foreign company, and they bought it for one million. I’ve already signed a contract, and all my future software can be sold for money.”

“What?! One… one million?!” My words were like a bomb exploding at the dining table. My parents’ eyes were filled with disbelief, and my aunts’ faces showed both envy and embarrassment. I quietly sneered to myself, thinking, Let’s see if you dare to look down on our family now. Let’s see if you still judge my mother with prejudice!

My parents fell silent, but my aunts suddenly changed, endlessly praising me for being so sensible at a young age, calling me a child prodigy. They even started arguing about who had taken care of me when I was little. I was speechless. This was the face of the opportunist—when you have money, people look at you differently; when you don’t, they treat you coldly. Although I don’t believe that money is everything, seeing the scene before me made me happy, because at least I had helped my parents regain their dignity in front of our relatives!

It was just a shame that the necklace was originally meant for Su Xin. Looks like I’ll have to buy another one…

*********

Zhang Jing had been truly busy lately, so much so that she barely had a moment to spare. But she was happy—genuinely happy. The revival of her father’s Tianlai Group, the four hundred million in capital pouring in like spring water into a dried-up river, restoring its luster—these made every hardship and exhaustion worthwhile.

In just four days, with the help of four hundred million in funds, not only did all Tianlai Group’s projects resume construction, but even the banks had withdrawn their demands for repayment and solemnly promised not to make things difficult for her again. And all of this was thanks to a seventeen-year-old boy—the one who had seen her body and shared a series of ambiguous moments with her. Because of him, she no longer had to endure others’ disdain. Because of him, she discovered her true business talent and gained confidence to run the company. Sunshine Group was officially established, with bank loans and those four hundred million in liquidity forming a powerful shell for the conglomerate. Though the parent company only had Tianlai, a single real estate business under its banner, the nearly three hundred million in registered capital that boy had casually invested was enough to secure a place for the group in City C! The boy bought the three-story house where her father once lived and moved in as the owner, and she herself stayed on as a worker in his employ. Because of his presence, this home seemed to have taken on a special meaning…

“A home…” Zhang Jing gazed at the lazy sunlight outside the president’s office window, her pretty face tinged with a blush and a hint of shyness in her cheeks. Ever since that night, when that scoundrel Zhou Zisheng drugged her and forced her into that shameful act, the image of that young man seemed to have rooted itself in her heart. Thinking of this, she trembled slightly and sighed, “What am I thinking? Xiao Qiang only helped me because he pitied me. He treats me as a friend… He already has a girl he loves…” Though she muttered to herself, trying to comfort her heart, there was a clear sense of loss in her voice. Did Zhang Jing really not understand her own feelings? That day, when she cried in his arms, his warmth nearly intoxicated her. She knew that with her personality, if she didn’t care about him, how could she have let him touch her, how could she have fallen into his embrace?

“Xiao Qiang… Xiao Qiang…” She gazed out the window, murmuring, “What kind of man are you… Why did you appear in my life and give me hope… Why did you help me, making it impossible for me not to think about you…”

Why? Of course, I had no idea what Zhang Jing was thinking. As I watched my parents see my aunts off, their faces serious, I could only hand my father a bankbook with a million deposited. After showing my mother the contract for my mobile system software with Baoyiang Company, they finally believed me, praising themselves for having such a good son. I couldn’t help but secretly wipe away a cold sweat—luckily, the contract was all in English. I suppose they couldn’t tell whether it was ten million dollars or one million yuan. If my parents knew their son already owned assets worth hundreds of millions, the consequences would be unimaginable…