Chapter 208: A Strategic Stronghold
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Su Tang did not reply to him. After following Young Master for so many years, she was well aware of his temperament. Once he made a decision, it was difficult to change his mind.
However, she was not content. How could he easily let the small star called Ye Xingling enter his family’s headquarters? There was no doubt that the Li family was a large clan, but Old Master Li did not really care much about status when it came to marriage. He also doted on Li Lei, and as long as Li Lei genuinely wanted to be together with Ye Xingling, Old Master Li would most likely not oppose their relationship.
Su Tang frowned. No way, she thought. After waiting on the Young Master for so long, how could I let another get ahead of me?
She was filled with thoughts as she bid farewell to Li Lei.
Recently, Xia Ling ended her activities in the Nebula Music Festival and was almost finished with all her other jobs. With Li Feng monitoring her every move, she decided to live in the seclusion of her own home and spent every day practicing her singing, basking in the sun, and entertaining Er Mao.
On this day, she was drinking tea in the living room, and Er Mao was lying at her feet lazily.
Li Lei walked in and looked at Xia Ling who was wearing a home-knit sweater with an elegant demeanor. He smiled and said, “Xiao Ling, do you want to come home with me during the New Year to visit my grandfather?”
Xia Ling was shocked and tilted her head. “Visit your grandfather?”
“Yes,” Li Lei said. “Since we have already made our relationship public, how about we visit my family’s headquarters to see my grandfather and let him see how wonderful my girlfriend is?”
“But…” She remembered that he had suggested visiting his elders in the past, but she had rejected him then. This request was being made very soon after her rejection, and she was not mentally prepared. “Aren’t we progressing too quickly?”
“Not at all.” He smiled gleefully. “Just think of it as an ordinary visit. You see, it is almost the Spring Festival, which is very important to the elders. I have not visited my family for a year. If I don’t go back this Spring Festival, it will be very disrespectful. Among all of his grandsons, my grandfather dotes on me the most. After knowing that I have a girlfriend, he was delighted and kept asking me to bring you to visit him.” He evaded the crucial point and did not mention the detail regarding the threat of Li Feng and the difficulty of entering his family’s headquarters. He only hoped for Xiao Ling to agree to it happily.
Xia Ling was still a little nervous.
She remembered that many years ago when Pei Ziheng first brought her to meet his family, his conceited family members gave her condescending, shocked, and disgusted looks… Until now, she could not forget them. She did not like those so-called influential clans and did not want to experience that sort of humiliation again.
Li Lei continued to persuade her. “Are you worried about your parents? We can stay a few days at my grandfather’s house and visit your parents on the third day. What do you think?”
Xia Ling shook her head. Her parents? Ever since she was reborn, she only saw them a total of two times, and they plotted against her twice. If she could, she really hoped never to see them again.
Li Lei said, “I will be with you wherever you choose to spend the Spring Festival.” Li Feng had his eye on her, and Li Lei was worried about letting her leave his sight. However, he continued, “I really miss my grandfather and really want to see him…”
Xia Ling felt sorry seeing that he was in a difficult situation.
“Let me think about it,” she said.
How far would you go for someone you love? Xia Ling held her teacup as she debated for two days. Li Lei’s radiant and enchanting smile never once left her mind. In her frustration, she realized the guilt she felt for not wanting to face an influential clan. He had done so many things for her, but it seemed that she never really did anything for him.
Forget it, I will go , she thought.
Besides, the looks from an influential and wealthy family could not kill her.
With a feeling of self-execution, she agreed to Li Lei’s invitation.
“I…” She self-consciously said to Li Lei. “What should I prepare? I mean things related to new year gifts for grandfather and your other family members…” The way she said “grandfather” by accident made Li Lei burst with joy.
Li Lei replied, “I will prepare them. You don’t have to worry about anything.”
However, Xia Ling could not help but worry. She was a visitor and no matter what, she had to show her sincerity. After asking Li Lei what his grandfather and his family members liked, Li Lei told her that his grandfather was usually overseas but really liked items of traditional Chinese culture such as antiques and toys. Xia Ling almost wanted to cry. Antiques? She did not know if she had enough money to afford them.
She counted her pathetic savings and frowned.
Li Lei reassured her. “I already said that I will prepare the gifts. Just give it to grandfather in your name. It’s the same.”
“No!” Xia Ling gritted her teeth. “Do you think he is stupid? Do you think they won’t be able to tell who bought the gifts when they are obviously beyond my budget?” In this life, she was quite miserable. No matter what she bought, she was burdened with debt. Sometimes, she even missed the times in her past life when she was able to swipe her credit card freely without looking at the price tag.
Li Lei fell silent. It was frustrating that his girlfriend refused to spend his money so much.
He questioned the heavens silently and stared blankly at his black gold card before sighing. “What’s your budget?”
Xia Ling reported a number with tears in her eyes.
Li Lei could not bear to look at her directly and started to consider raising the wages of the Skyart Entertainment’s employees next year…
He sighed and gave her advice. “I know a store that specializes in China’s four treasures. They are all authentic. You can buy a high-quality ink slab made in Duanxi. He will like it.” Although the ink slab was expensive, its price was not as absurd as the other antiques.
Xia Ling was back on track full of life again and went straight to the store.
Li Lei shamelessly accompanied her by expressing his concern in nice-sounding phrases.
The store was decorated elegantly, and the carved wooden screen had a sort of olden alluring charm. There were not many guests, and there was a hint of sandalwood in the air. Xia Ling explained the purpose of her visit and the clerk brought over a few ink slabs for her to see.
“This is one of our high-quality goods. The color is very sharp, and the carving is very well done.”
“This one is green and made of bamboo. It is most suitable for scholars.”
“This one has a carving on the top. You see this pit, it makes this knocking sound…”
The clerk took a long time to introduce her to the different types of ink slabs courteously.
Xia Ling was in a daze from looking at all the different ink slabs. She did not understand anything about them, and could not differentiate between the good and poor quality ones. She also did not know what Old Master Li liked and only looked at Li Lei for help. Li Lei was particularly impressed with the effectiveness of her innocent look. Haha, Xiao Ling, he thought. Even if you don’t need my money, you still need to rely on your man to buy something.
Li Lei was in an upbeat mood as he taught her confidently. “This old ink slab with the dragon carving is not bad. The grayish-purple with blue hues, strong color tones, and carving pattern is very beautiful. The sound it makes is also heavy, so it is sure to be a top grade product. Grandfather will definitely like it.”
The clerk looked at Li Lei with amazement. “This gentleman is really informed.”
Of course, he was informed. When he was a child, he was very good at wasting things. Old Master Li’s collection of antiques were frequently wasted by him. A Qing Dynasty kiln which was made of blue and white porcelain was used by him to drink water, and a colorful Tang Dynasty vase was used as a vase. Old Master Li’s pain was one-sided as Second Young Master Li continued his frivolous use of his antiques. Old Master Li did not allow anyone to touch his valuable items, but Li Lei could get away with using them as he wanted.
He was a second young master who was truly brought up with wealth.
However, due to that, Li Lei knew what his grandfather had, lacked, and liked better than anyone else.