Rebirth: Start to Save the Treasure Girl

The third day of the Lunar New Year.

As the first rays of morning sunlight illuminated the room, Lin Ruoxi suddenly opened her eyes. She tiptoed to draw the curtains, and after returning to bed, she stared blankly at her phone screen.

The screen displays her chat history with Gu Muxue:

【Ruoxi, remember to tell his elders tomorrow.】

Lin Ruoxi: [Okay.]

After returning to Xue Rui's house yesterday, she discussed the arrangements for the next few days with Gu Muxue.

To avoid a time conflict, she has to leave Xue Rui's house this afternoon.

If we calculate it now, there are less than ten hours left.

With the light coming through the gap in the curtains, Lin Ruoxi could barely make out Xue Rui's outline.

She leaned in and kissed him, then pulled Xue Rui into her arms with satisfaction, rubbing her cheek against his face repeatedly.

Lin Ruoxi felt this was the happiest time of the day, with her favorite scent in the blankets and the person she loved in her arms.

Because she is a man of few words, she doesn't need to find topics to talk about when facing the sleeping Xue Rui. She can stay by Xue Rui's side without worry and even secretly do some small things without Xue Rui noticing.

Lin Ruoxi pinched Xue Rui's nose, and when Xue Rui moved, she hurriedly buried her head in Xue Rui's arms, pretending that she hadn't woken up either.

In fact, Lin Ruoxi knew that Xue Rui wouldn't be woken up by her pranks, and even if he did wake up, she wouldn't scold him...

To put it bluntly, Lin Ruoxi was just scaring herself for fun.

After an unknown amount of time, the light coming through the gap in the curtains grew stronger, and the faint sounds of conversation could be heard downstairs. Lin Ruoxi suddenly perked up her ears because Xue Rui's name was mentioned in the conversation.

The courtyard on the first floor.

"Auntie, I've brought some fish. Is Xue Rui up yet?"

Qiu Mengze handed the plastic bag to Ren Qunfang, who was sweeping the floor.

"You're here, why bring anything?"

Despite saying that, Ren Qunfang still happily took the two fish: "Go ahead, go up and call him."

"Okay." Qiu Mengze was about to enter when someone suddenly grabbed his arm.

Qiu Mengze looked puzzled, wondering whether he should go up or not.
Ren Qunfang frowned: "You can stand downstairs and shout. I don't know if his girlfriend is up or not."

Qiu Mengze felt a dull pain in his chest. How could he have been stabbed so early in the morning?

But he was also curious: who was the "girlfriend"?
Lin Ruoxi? Or Gu Muxue?
Could it be that both of them are here?

Never mind, let's just shout first.

"Xue Rui!"

Qiu Mengze shouted at the tightly closed curtains on the second floor.

“Xiao Rui is sleeping soundly, call his girlfriend,” Ren Qunfang said.

Qiu Mengze's gaze was unfocused, and many images flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.

Xue Rui didn't tell him who he was bringing home for the New Year. If he called the wrong person, how would he face Xue Rui's parents in the future?
Did you know but not report it? Did you just stand by and watch Xue Rui do something wrong?
Tolerating it is also a crime!
In an instant, Qiu Mengze understood many things.

Why did Xue Rui complain to his parents?

It's not that Xue Rui is foul-mouthed, nor that he's unrighteous.

Xue Rui is building up his public image!
In front of his parents, cultivate an image of "doing what's best for him".

Otherwise, sooner or later, Xue Rui will be labeled as a "bad friend" by his parents.

After Qiu Mengze figured it out, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. He didn't want to be a "bad friend" either.

Then, with a regretful expression, he said:
"Auntie, there's something I've been keeping to myself for a long time, Xue Rui, he..."

Suddenly, the curtains upstairs were drawn back, and Lin Ruoxi's soft voice came through: "Qiu Mengze, don't rush, I'm dressing him."

"Xiao Rui, you're such a grown man, why do you still need to be waited on? Xi Xi, let him dress himself!"

Ren Qunfang cursed harshly, then turned around with a smile and asked, "Mengze, what were you going to say to Auntie just now?"

Qiu Mengze's lips twitched. He thought to himself that Xue Rui's mother's change of expression was too fast, and he was caught off guard.

"Um...it's nothing, Auntie, I'll go back and have some food first, and I'll be right back."

Qiu Mengze didn't continue speaking, afraid that Lin Ruoxi upstairs would hear.

……

In the room on the second floor, Xue Rui sat on the edge of the bed with a blank expression. He was scolded as soon as he opened his eyes, which made his head spin.

The body has woken up, but the mind is not yet fully awake.

Suddenly, everything went black before his eyes.

Lin Ruoxi put the sweater over Xue Rui's head and said softly, "Hmm, raise your arm a little."

Xue Rui obediently raised his arm and joked, "Xi Xi, didn't you hear what my mom said?"

"I...I heard you, but I just wanted to put it on you."

As Lin Ruoxi spoke, she squatted down and put the socks on Xue Rui's feet.

Being helped to get dressed sounds enjoyable, but it's not actually like that.

Not only is it inefficient, but the person being served also has to constantly adjust their posture to cooperate, which is far less comfortable than dressing oneself.

But Xue Rui never told Lin Ruoxi about it, because he was afraid of hurting her feelings.

"Never mind, let her be," Xue Rui thought to himself.

The little girl is very stubborn; once she's made up her mind, it's hard to change it. She'll admit her mistakes, but she'll never correct them.

As the last shoe was tied with a pretty bow, Lin Ruoxi rested her chin on Xue Rui's knee, her big eyes blinking as she looked at him.

Xue Rui knew exactly what he should do. He smiled, patted the back of Lin Ruoxi's head, and softly praised her, "Xixi is great."

"Hehe~" Lin Ruoxi smiled sweetly, closing her eyes to enjoy Xue Rui's caresses.

"Let's go, let's have dinner at Grandpa's house today."

"Ok!"

……

At the old man's home.

Lin Ruoxi was still in charge of serving the dishes, while Xue Rui plopped down on the sofa, watching Xue Zhuangdong run around with a strange expression.

Xue Zhuangzhuang wanted to take the vegetables from Lin Ruoxi, but Lin Ruoxi refused.

He turned around, wanting to help his aunt move a chair.

My aunt said impatiently, "Get out of the way, you're blocking the road."

Xue Zhuang was looking for work everywhere, appearing very busy, but he didn't help anyone and was just busy doing nothing.

"Brother Zhuangzhuang, please sit down, you're making me dizzy."

Xue Rui patted the sofa and said.

Xue Zhuang gave an awkward laugh and sat down next to Xue Rui.

Strangely enough, I felt less anxious when I sat with Xue Rui.

Perhaps it's because of Xue Rui's lazy temperament.

Just as all the dishes were about to be served, Grandma brought in a large pot of hot soup. Xue Rui hurriedly got up and took it from the old woman without saying a word.

"No need, I can carry it," Grandma said as she went inside.

"No way, how can I let you carry something so heavy? There are so many men in the house, aren't they meant to do chores?" Xue Rui said firmly.

"Xiao Rui is so sensible," Grandma praised happily.

"Zhuangzhuang, learn from Xiaorui, you have no sense of propriety at all," Xue Zhuang's father said irritably.

Xue Zhuang sighed inwardly and nodded helplessly, "Okay."

After Xue Rui returned, Xue Zhuang hesitated for a long time before finally asking the question that had been bothering him:

"Xue Rui, I have something I'd like to ask you..." It's always like this during the Spring Festival. To ease the awkwardness, he tries to find something to do, but the more he does, the more anxious he becomes.

It seems that Xue Rui only needs to do one thing to become a good child in his father's eyes.

Xue Zhuang didn't understand at all, and he felt it was necessary to learn from Xue Rui.

Xue Rui shook his head and smiled bitterly. He didn't know how many more losses his cousin would suffer in the future.

"You have to work in front of others, otherwise it's the same as not doing anything at all," Xue Rui explained.

Xue Rui wanted to make sure everyone knew he had done something, so as to leave a deeper impression.

Xue Zhuang, on the other hand, was the type to work silently, just to have peace of mind.

This is also related to Xue Zhuang's personality.

Many children don't like to express their inner thoughts, and they won't say anything even if they feel wronged.

This kind of person is too common. It's like the student who cleans the classroom the most diligently during a big cleaning in school, but isn't the one who is the most diligent in the teacher's eyes.

People who like to show off usually don't do too badly.

Although it's unreasonable, this is how life is all the time. People don't have that much time to pay attention to a person; they only look at your outward appearance and whether you can leave a deep impression on them.

"I understand."

Xue Zhuang suddenly understood, and many things in his life were answered.

"But... I don't think I can do it."

"Sigh~ then there's nothing I can do." Xue Rui patted Xue Zhuang's shoulder helplessly.

Many people know this principle, but only a few can actually put it into practice.

Xue Zhuang looked up at Lin Ruoxi's back, but quickly looked away when Lin Ruoxi turned around.

Xue Rui chuckled, blinked, and asked, "Isn't it beautiful?"

"Yes, it's very beautiful," Xue Zhuang nodded.

"If you want to watch, then watch openly. Don't act like you're doing something wrong." Xue Rui patted Xue Zhuang on the shoulder.

"That's not what I meant. I know she's your girlfriend..." Xue Zhuang hurriedly explained.

Xue Rui's lips twitched. Of course he knew that Xue Zhuang didn't mean anything by it; it was just simple appreciation. But such an explanation was too easy for people to gossip about.

No wonder honest people are easily bullied; isn't this just handing their weaknesses over to others?

“I think that’s what you mean,” Xue Rui said with a stern face.

"I really don't."

"Alright, I was just kidding. What did you want to say?" Xue Rui said, suppressing a laugh.

Xue Zhuang breathed a sigh of relief: "I just felt that your girlfriend is also very quiet and tends to keep to herself. I was wondering if she would be overlooked like me."

Xue Rui chuckled: "You're overthinking it. Her looks are destined to be noticed. As long as people aren't blind, someone will eventually see her efforts."

Xue Zhuang felt a sudden pang in his heart; he felt as if he had been insulted, but he had no evidence.

After breakfast, the crowd spontaneously formed several small circles.

Xue Jianfeng chatted loudly with a group of men, praising his own children from time to time.

Ren Qunfang, on the other hand, found three or five friends to play mahjong.

As for Xue Rui, he continued to dangle Lin Ruoxi around.

However, the plans changed today, and Qiu Mengze also came to their village.

Back at his doorstep, Xue Rui spotted Qiu Mengze by the roadside. He gestured for Lin Ruoxi to be quiet and tiptoed up behind Qiu Mengze.

At this moment, Qiu Mengze was squatting by the roadside playing on his phone.

Xue Rui took a closer look and saw that the Xiaomi 2S he had given Qiu Mengze had a noticeable crack on the screen, making it look rather shabby.

Qiu Mengze: [Good morning.]

Honey: [I just had breakfast. It's so cold today. Are you cold?]

Qiu Mengze's lips curled up, and he unconsciously grinned foolishly. He typed a line:

[I've eaten, now I'm going to find Xue Rui to play.]

"What are you laughing about?" Xue Rui asked with a smile.

"Holy crap! You scared me!" Qiu Mengze was so startled that he threw his phone away, which flew through the air for a while before being caught by Xue Rui.

Xue Rui held his phone and read the message the girl had sent him: "It's so cold today, are you cold?"

"not cold."

Qiu Mengze said with a dark face.

Xue Rui said sarcastically, "That's not right. We're both concerned about you, so why are you treating me like this?"

"Are you sick?" Qiu Mengze snatched the phone away and continued typing on the screen.

Xue Rui grinned and said disdainfully, "You've got a sweet tongue after just two sentences."

"Pouty lips?"

Qiu Mengze muttered something to himself. His family sold fish, and he quickly realized that Xue Rui was scolding him for being too easy to catch.

But Lin Ruoxi was frowning, and Qiu Mengze swallowed back the words he was about to say. He took out a red envelope from his pocket and handed it to Lin Ruoxi:

"Lin Ruoxi, Xue Rui gave me a cell phone before, saying it was one you didn't want, but I think I should still give you the money. Let's keep things separate."

Lin Ruoxi pointed to herself in confusion, then looked at Xue Rui with a questioning gaze.

Qiu Mengze's arm froze in mid-air. He understood what Lin Ruoxi meant: Can I take it back?

Just one glance filled Qiu Mengze with immense envy.

Similarly, he cursed in his heart: You bastard, how could you be so willing to have your cake and eat it too?

"Take it," Xue Rui said.

After receiving permission, Lin Ruoxi obediently put the money into her pocket.

Qiu Mengze opened his mouth, but when he saw Lin Ruoxi eyeing Xue Rui's arm, he swallowed his words.

Before meeting Xue Rui, he had a lot to say to him, but now that Lin Ruoxi was present, he had to carefully consider every word he said.

Xue Rui noticed Qiu Mengze's concerns and patted Lin Ruoxi's hand: "Xixi, go back and play games with Yaoyao for a while. I'll chat with Mengze for a bit."

Lin Ruoxi pouted. She was leaving this afternoon and wanted to spend more time with Xue Rui.

But she didn't dare to disobey Xue Rui's wishes, so she could only obediently walk towards her front door.

After walking a few steps, Lin Ruoxi suddenly felt that she should express her dissatisfaction, just like Gu Muxue did, so that Xue Rui could finish the conversation quickly and come back to play with her sooner.

"Humph~"

A soft humming sound rang out.

"Hiss~" Xue Rui looked in the direction Lin Ruoxi disappeared and asked Qiu Mengze, "Mengze, did you hear that? Did she just 'humph'?"

Xue Rui wondered if he had misheard. Could it be that Lin Ruoxi could also throw a tantrum?
"Really?" Qiu Mengze asked with a suspicious look.

Regardless of whether it is true or not, in Qiu Mengze's view, Xue Rui is obviously "afraid" of Lin Ruoxi. He is so careful even with a soft hum. Isn't this a blatant case of being "henpecked"?

Not as good as him!
Thinking about this, Qiu Mengze felt much better.

"You brought Lin Ruoxi back, does that mean you chose Lin Ruoxi?" Qiu Mengze asked with a gossipy look.

"Mu Xue is coming to my house tomorrow," Xue Rui said with a smile.

Qiu Mengze was stunned for a long time, unable to calm down.

This is too bold!

"You wait, I'll tell Mu Xue on this tomorrow," Qiu Mengze threatened with a smile.

In any case, he can't be a "bad friend".

"Go ahead and sue, it was Mu Xue who arranged it." (End of Chapter)