Chapter 23 A Few Words to Regret
Luo Xincheng often feels like she is a crow reincarnated, and she likes to collect all kinds of sparkly ornaments in her spare time.
Knowing her preferences, her family, perhaps to save trouble or out of fear that she wouldn't like other gifts, gave her jewelry eight out of ten gifts on various holidays.
This resulted in her having a large and varied collection of jewelry, many of which she would wear once or twice before losing track of where she put them.
Plus, she's the type of person who only has a short attention span. Once she gets her hands on something, even if she likes it at the time, after using it a few times, her attention will quickly be drawn to something new, prettier, or more interesting...
So the ring he gave her was most likely something she only wore occasionally in her room for a few days after she received it, just for fun.
She definitely couldn't wear it in public, since rings still hold a certain special meaning in the public eye, especially since it was a gift from him and it's meant to be worn on the ring finger. If she wore it out, who knows how many people would ask her all sorts of questions...
Her grandparents would get annoyed because she never wore the gifts she received in front of them, saying that you can at least hear a sound when you throw something in water, but you can't even hear a sound when you give it to her.
So, what would he think if he saw that her ring finger was always bare during their many subsequent dates?
She made endless guesses, holding the ring up to the light source for a long time.
After feeling the diffracted light stinging my eyes, I inexplicably took off the ring on my ring finger and put on the opal ring instead.
Then she raised her hand, which was adorned with a full load of jewelry that made her look exceptionally wealthy, and looked at it from left to right.
She wore a 12.54ct padparadscha sapphire ring on her middle finger and an 18.09ct natural fancy brown-green-yellow diamond ring on her little finger, making the opal sandwiched between them look dull in comparison.
When the jewelry maintenance company comes to inspect and maintain it, they'll probably be completely baffled when they see this opal ring among a sea of dazzling gemstone rings.
After all, what Fu Zhiheng gave her was neither the most exquisite and beautiful among her existing jewelry, nor the most valuable. As for its special meaning... it did have some, but she didn't think it was much.
Did she really like him that much back then?
Forgive her for subconsciously avoiding the word 'love,' after all, they were so young back then, talking about love would be heavy and cheesy.
But she also subconsciously wanted to deny this affection, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why. It was as if admitting that she had once had such intense feelings for him would mean losing...
Perhaps it was just something I casually, by chance, or accidentally put into the safe.
After all, if she hadn't found this ring by chance today, she would have long forgotten that he had given her such a special gift in the past.
but……
It's really unbelievable. The moment she saw the ring again, her memory was pulled back to that summer.
Under the lush shade of the trees, amidst the incessant chirping of cicadas, the boy, his ears flushed red, carefully held her hand and slipped a ring onto her finger.
He planted a timid kiss on her cheek.
...
Early November.
The day before her grandfather's birthday, Luo Xincheng and her father returned to the old house at the same time, just as they had planned.
On such an occasion, his second wife could not be absent, and his adopted son also came along.
It's no exaggeration to say that when Luo Xincheng saw Wang Chenyi for the first time after getting out of the car, her vision went black instantly.
After getting out of the car, her father and stepmother went straight into the central villa. Luo Xincheng didn't want to go in and see all sorts of relatives so early, so she made an excuse that she was a little carsick and needed to get some fresh air outside.
Who knew that Wang Chenyi would use a similar excuse to say he would accompany her.
That sucks.
After everyone left, she glanced at him and asked, "Why are you here too?"
Are you deliberately trying to walk right into her line of fire?
Then don't blame her for being scathing with her words.
Wang Chengyi, seemingly oblivious to the eye roll she had just made, smiled and said, "I also came to Grandpa's birthday celebration two years ago, but my sister didn't come back to China, so she didn't know."
Perhaps to make a good impression on the elderly, he dyed his hair black a couple of days ago, which, combined with his worthless smile, made him look rather well-behaved.
"Really?" She glanced him up and down, then suddenly chuckled as if she'd discovered something amazing. "Why do you look so much darker? Have you been mining coal these past few days?"
The last time I saw him at the hospital, he was so white he was practically glowing. Now, all I can see are his teeth, which are so white they're practically reflecting light.
So maybe he dyed his hair black because his previous blonde hair made his hair look too dark?
That's so cunning.
Wang Chenyi shrugged, his tone helpless, "It's from the sun. I've been shooting outdoors for the past few days, and I have to film for a long time under the sun every day."
Luo Xincheng walked towards the garden. "So dedicated! But even so, you can't neglect facial care."
She spoke softly and calmly, but the content of her words sounded sarcastic and unsettling.
"He had absolutely no talent to begin with, and his only redeeming quality was his face. Now that he's so tanned, how is he supposed to attract fans or make money in the entertainment industry?"
Wang Chenyi blinked, his smile remaining flawless.
"It's not only fair skin that's considered beautiful; honey-colored skin also has a large appeal. Sister, your aesthetic sense is really narrow."
“Fair skin covers a hundred flaws.” Luo Xincheng gave him a critical look and said without backing down, “If your face is handsome, then of course it looks good no matter what skin color it is. The key question is, are your features really that good-looking?”
At this point, she sighed deeply, as if genuinely worried for him, "Oh dear, you're so dark-skinned, when you smile, everyone will only be looking at your teeth, who will even look at your face?"
"Why not shoot a toothpaste commercial? Now's the perfect time. Don't waste this great opportunity."
Wang Chenyi was about to lose his smile.
Just then, a cream-colored puppy came along happily, its tongue lolling out.
Luo Xincheng took a quick look and recognized it as her niece's Yorkshire Terrier, named Cookie.
She bent down, scooped up the puppy that happened to be passing by, and held it in her arms.
The puppy instinctively began to struggle.
Luo Xincheng adjusted its position, patted its head and scratched its chin, and quickly calmed it down.
Wang Chenyi breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this, finally managing to shift his attention away from him.
Did you wear perfume today?
He immediately went on high alert, his mind racing.
But after thinking it over and over, he still couldn't figure out what she was up to, so he had no choice but to answer truthfully, "I didn't wear perfume."
The old man couldn't stand men with a feminine scent, so every time he came here, he was always plain-looking and dressed simply, and naturally, he didn't wear perfume.
"Really?" She looked thoughtful. "Then why do I smell a fruity scent on you?"
She sniffed hard, as if trying to discern the scent. "It smells like a green apple, with a hint of banana sweetness?"
Upon hearing this, he suddenly realized and said, "Oh, you're smelling my shampoo, aren't you?"
He touched his hair and smiled broadly, "The shampoo I use has a long-lasting fragrance. I didn't expect you to have such a keen sense of smell, sister, that you could smell it."
She seemed not to understand his implied meaning, raised her eyebrows slightly, lowered her head to sniff the puppy's head, and after a moment exclaimed in surprise.
"You're using the same shampoo, aren't you?"
Wang Chenyi's face immediately darkened.
Luo Xincheng, seemingly oblivious, bounced Cookie in her arms, glanced at the dog, then at him, and smiled meaningfully.
"But no matter how you look at it, Cookie's fur is much smoother and shinier than yours. What's going on, Wang Chenyi? It's one thing if you don't take good care of your face, but your hair is worse than a dog's. How are you even surviving in the entertainment industry?"
Wang Chenyi's face was ashen, and his voice was icy, "I only walked this short distance with you, did I do anything to offend you? Is it necessary to be so sarcastic?"
Luo Xincheng opened her eyes wide, feigning surprise, "What sarcasm? Don't put it so harshly."
As she spoke, she gave him a dazzling smile.
"It was just a joke, don't take it seriously. You used to joke with me all the time."
She teased the dog with her finger and chuckled casually, "Saying your mom is pregnant with my little brother or something... tsk, you can't be the only one allowed to joke with me, but I can't joke with you, right? Don't be so hypocritical."
Cookie started struggling to get down from her arms again, but this time Luo Xincheng didn't force it and let it go.
She followed Cookie's route, hands in her pockets, and finally said something.
"If you don't want me to make fun of you, then don't follow me, you idiot."
Wang Chenyi stared intently at her departing figure, his handsome face contorted with jealousy for a fleeting moment.
Luo Xincheng strode forward without looking back, unaware of how ugly the faces of those behind her had become because of her, but even if she had known, she wouldn't have cared.
Her mind is now filled with thoughts of her grandfather's birthday banquet and all the relatives she will meet later.
Her grandparents were old-fashioned and deeply influenced by the idea that having many children and grandchildren brings good fortune, so the two of them had five children.
Her father was the third child, stuck in the middle, neither here nor there.
By the time it came to Luo Xincheng's generation, there were eleven children in total, including her cousins. She was the sixth child, which put her in the middle, neither too high nor too low.
In typical families with multiple children, the middle child is usually the one most easily overlooked.
Luo Xincheng's father had probably had enough of this suffering and insisted that she was his only child. Every time he took her back to the old house, he would argue with everyone, and no matter what her grandparents said, he was unwilling to have another child.
It is precisely because of this that Luo Xincheng stands out among his grandchildren and is constantly mentioned by his grandparents...
Although she probably didn't want to receive such special treatment.
She knew many people in Beijing's high society, but very few she could truly connect with.
Among these casual acquaintances, most are shills, a small number are cheap goods, a very small number are idiots, and a very rare few are normal people.
Luo Xincheng's cousins are all a mixture of the first three types; even after careful selection, not a single one is even remotely normal.
Including herself.
Therefore, she still has many tough battles to fight ahead.
Wang Chenyi is nothing more than an appetizer.
Consider it a practice run for the tongue.
Author's Note: All skin tones look good, fair or dark, it's all fine as long as you're happy with it. The female lead in the story only said that to deliberately nitpick... Even though not many people read this, I still wanted to explain. [emoji]
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