A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

She was his little girl, which made her the Miss of the eldest branch of the Pei family.

She should be the girl with the most respectable status in the entire household.

Pei Ziheng felt the little hand in his grip shift a little and held it more firmly to offer strength. The little hand stopped fidgeting uncertainly as if it felt safe and secure now and was relying on him.

As much as she was unwilling to, Pei Jingyu had no choice but to speak to Xia Ling nicely. “Nice to meet you, I’m Pei Jingyu. You’re welcome to come and play with me next time.”

Xia Ling mustered up the courage to give her a friendly smile.

Pei Jingyu was fuming on the inside, but it wasn’t in her place to show her temper. She kept telling herself: Act mature, act mature… and finally managed to suppress that anger temporarily. She dared not offend Big Cousin since Grandpa had repeatedly told her that they couldn’t bear with the consequences of having him be angry at them. Grandpa even said that she had to forge a close bond with Big Cousin as he was the youngest and most powerful head of the Pei family in all of their history and that being in his good books was more than favorable.

Pei Jingyu had always remembered Grandpa’s words.

And she did like this Big Cousin. Of all the men in the Pei family, he was the most outstanding.

In any case, she could settle all these grievances with Xia Ling the little beggar privately. Pei Jingyu was convinced she’d do just that.

She handed the tea box to Pei Ziheng once again. “Big Cousin, hurry and open it up. Grandpa says this sort of white tea is great, it cleanses and nourishes the body. There are only two boxes produced this year, and he’s keeping one for himself and giving the other to you; even my dad doesn’t get one.”

Pei Ziheng received the tea. “Thank Granduncle on my behalf.”

Pei Jingyu smiled. “We’re family, what’s with the civilities? Big Cousin, have you had lunch while you were out? There’s a newly opened wagyu beef restaurant in the east of the city. I heard it’s pretty good, shall we go try it together?”

Pei Ziheng passed the tea box to the housemaid and said, “There’s no need. I’ll be busy settling some things, let me get the chauffeur to send you back.”

Pei Jingyu’s expression darkened as she swept another glance at Xia Ling. What could he be busy with? Since he’d just brought this little beggar home, it’d probably be about her?

What a party pooper.

She acted a little peeved. “Big Cousin doesn’t love me anymore.”

Pei Ziheng smiled warmly. “You’re my cousin, I’ll naturally love you.”

He then turned around and told the housemaid, “Send Miss Jingyu home.”

He was always like this—he spoke calmly and casually, but his stance was strong and unchallenged.

Unhappy as she was, Pei Jingyu couldn’t do anything but to follow the housemaid. As she walked out, she started thinking. Just how should I punish that little beggar?

Xia Ling felt unsettled as she watched Pei Jingyu leave. She could feel that that rich girl disliked her from the beginning. Her little face could barely mask her emotions as worry was written all over it. That was when she realized that Pei Ziheng was looking down at her.

“What are you thinking?” He asked.

She paused for a while before saying, “Did I make Miss Jingyu angry?”

Pei Ziheng held her hand and took her upstairs. “Before you, she isn’t any Miss. Xiao Ling, you remember this, there’s no girl in the Pei family whose status is more respectable than yours. You’re brought home by me.”

She nodded her head half in understanding.

His words were strangely reassuring and managed to calm her.

Pei Ziheng took her to the room that had been tidied up and prepared for her. It was clean and spacious, and a large bed lined with duvet covers was set in the center. Thin curtains were put up across the full-length window panes and an abundance of sunlight spilled across the room floor. A mild fragrance of iris flowers filled the room.

He told her, “This is your room.”

“So beautiful.” Her eyes sparkled; she loved this place. She’d never lived in such a spacious and beautiful room. Back in the orphanage, a few children had to squeeze into one small room full of bunk beds and miscellaneous hoarded objects. There was no room to even turn around in one’s sleep.

Unlike here, where it was so big she could dance around.

“Do you like it?” He asked.

“I love it!” She nodded vehemently and let go of his hand to explore the new room. She fiddled with the little things in the room and unconsciously broke into a bright smile, momentarily forgetting all the unhappiness with Pei Jingyu earlier. She did a little spin in the room and said to Pei Ziheng, “Thank you.”

Pei Ziheng smiled back at her. He didn’t know why, but seeing her happy lifted his spirits as well. This was unprecedented with anyone in his life.

His eyes glimmered. “Tell Nanny Zhou if you need anything, she’ll help you with it.”

“Anything at all?” She looked up at him.

“Anything at all.” He responded warmly.

She tilted her head in thought and a sparkle came into her eyes. “I want to visit Xiao Yu and show her this room. I’ll let her know that I’m doing well so she won’t have to worry about me.”

After the adoption, the sisters parted ways.

She followed Pei Ziheng home, while Xia Yu was sent to the best hospital in City S for treatment.

Pei Ziheng did not expect such a request. Wouldn’t most girls just enjoy and indulge in what they had if they were given such luxury after years of deprivation? She was different, the first thing she thought about was her sister. But maybe this was exactly why he liked her from the beginning…

She was so pure, so kind.

Pei Ziheng said, “I’ll take you to buy some clothes tomorrow morning, then we’ll head to the hospital in the afternoon.”

She was still dressed in the horrid old clothes from the orphanage. How could such cheap stuff be fit for a girl he liked?

She nodded happily.

She turned around and saw a vase of iris flowers. “Such flowers are planted nearby too?”

He said, “No, not anywhere near. I got someone to bring this vase over from the orphanage.”

When he left the orphanage, Chu Chen had told him that the people there mentioned how much she loved these flowers. They even talked about the trick to rearing kittens—when you gave a little kitten a new home, you should bring along things that it was familiar with. This would reduce their anxiety levels, helping it to adapt to the new environment and be more receptive to its new owner.

He guessed that it was the same with people.

Indeed, she looked at him with gratitude. With eyes that shone like the radiance of dawn, she said, “You’re great.”