Chapter 193 - Redeem Herself
Li Juekai had been unwell ever since the traffic accident. Also, he was slightly depressed for failing to achieve his ambitions. So despite his flawless features, he gave off a gloomy aura and felt a lot older than he actually was. And since he was sitting in a wheelchair, he looked a lot shorter than average and seemed unprepossessing.
No one would have guessed that he was the mighty heir of the Li family and a celebrated award-winning actor.
Gu Qingqing was busy taking care of Li Juekai. Even though she was an elegant woman, no one remembered she used to be the respectable and well-loved eldest daughter from the Gu family.
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They were wearing unlabeled handmade garments. s.h.i.+ Xuexin had worn the same ones when she lived in the Li residence. No one was able to identify their brands and prices, but in reality, they were shockingly expensive.
Despite the family"s decline, some habits from back in the day when they were elites stayed around, but they simply kept a low profile.
Since everyone at the banquet was well dressed, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing came off looking unremarkable. They genuinely resembled ordinary people from the countryside only with slightly better appearances.
s.h.i.+ Xuexin smiled and greeted them, "Hi, Uncle Juekai and Auntie Qingqing."
Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing nodded in acknowledgment. They had learned that s.h.i.+ Xuexin treated s.h.i.+ Jin poorly and kept making things hard for her.
In the past, they used to treat s.h.i.+ Xuexin like their biological daughter, but they gradually grew distant over time.
If s.h.i.+ Jin did not insist on attending s.h.i.+ Qing"s birthday, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing would not have come.
The moment s.h.i.+ Xuexin greeted them, everyone turned to look their way. They acted nonchalantly when they saw Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing. However, they were surprised to see s.h.i.+ Jin.
"Isn"t that s.h.i.+ Jin?"
"Is it really her?"
Everyone kept asking.
Although everyone had already seen her on the television, it was different to see her in person.
Also, it was common knowledge that makeup artists and hairstylists were capable of doing wonders to an artist. With the right skills and tools, they were able to change a woman"s face completely.
However, s.h.i.+ Jin looked exactly like she did on television. At a close look, people realized she was not wearing makeup and her skin was as flawless as that of a newborn.
Didn"t she use to be meek? Was she not in the habit of wearing thick makeup? Now they were unable to find even the slightest flaw on her face.
The more they looked at her, the more she seemed vastly different from her biological parents. People could not help wondering if the Li family had picked her up from the roadside or something.
s.h.i.+ Xuexin clenched her fists slightly when everyone was blown away by s.h.i.+ Jin"s appearance.
s.h.i.+ Xuexin had started to get ready for the party at 5:00 am so as not to be outdone by s.h.i.+ Jin, but s.h.i.+ Jin ended up winning. Everyone kept singing praises for s.h.i.+ Xuexin"s achievements, but no one commended her for being pretty.
Also, the scar on s.h.i.+ Jin"s face had completely disappeared. How did she pull this off? It was such a serious scar. How did she remove it?
s.h.i.+ Xuexin bit her lip slightly when she noticed the look of awe in Chu Ling"s eyes when s.h.i.+ Jin showed up.
Yu Xiuhua quickly caught on to her daughter"s concerns and smiled courteously as she said, "s.h.i.+ Jin, have you brought your parents here? Make yourself comfortable."
The moment the other guests realized s.h.i.+ Jin had brought her biological parents along, everyone secretly rolled their eyes at them. Her biological parents were terrible for dumping her at the s.h.i.+ family all these years to begin with. How could they have the cheek to show up and rub shoulders with them? Had they no shame?
"s.h.i.+ Jin, why don"t you sit at the main table with your parents?" asked Yu Xiuhua.
s.h.i.+ Jin confidently led her parents to the main table and sat down. It was perfect since she had something to say today.
Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were accustomed to sitting at the best tables everywhere they went in the past. Even though they were at the main table, they remained completely calm and unfl.u.s.tered.
Someone secretly thought, "They must just be pretending to be calm. Deep down inside, I am sure they are terribly nervous."
The Chus simply glanced at them briefly before veering their eyes.
Chu Ling found Li Juekai particularly familiar. Since Chu Ling could not put his finger on it, he did not go on thinking about it.
"Since everyone is here, let"s start the banquet." s.h.i.+ Xuexin played a good host. "Dad, why don"t you say a few words since it"s your birthday?"
s.h.i.+ Qing did not object and calmly made a small speech.
Everyone came over with their gifts for him.
Since the Chu and s.h.i.+ families were bonded by marriage, they were the first to present their gift.
s.h.i.+ Qing happily accepted the gift and opened it in front of the guests.
It was a jade coral tree.
Even though it was called a coral tree, it was in fact carved out of jade entirely. It had a translucent quality to it and it was clearly top-grade jade.
s.h.i.+ Xuexin quickly said, "In comparison to gold and silver, jade has far more character. It"s easy for gold and silver to be come by, but high-quality jade is much rarer. If I am not mistaken, this looks like warm jade. It is warm to the touch even in winter and long-term use is really good for health. Mr and Mrs Chu and Ling, you were so thoughtful with your gift."
Everyone said nice things about the gift. s.h.i.+ Qing and Yu Xiuhua were pleased by how seriously the Chu family treated them.
Mr and Mrs Chu liked s.h.i.+ Xuexin even more when they saw her poise and learned how knowledgeable she was.
Since s.h.i.+ Xuexin had embarra.s.sed herself at the school anniversary celebrations, she was eager to show off and redeem herself.
She took out a Chinese brush painting and gave it to s.h.i.+ Qing. "Dad, I drew this for you. I hope you will stay young forever."
She opened the painting to reveal a pine Chinese brush painting. The brushstrokes were exquisite and had a lot of character. It was clear that she was well-versed in the art.
Chu Ling promptly said, "Xuexin, all your practice has paid off. I can see that your painting has become even better. No wonder Master Liu keeps saying such nice things about your work."
Everyone naturally praised s.h.i.+ Xuexin.
"It is so impressive that Master Liu likes your work."
"Xuexin is a talented and diligent young woman, so she deserves this success."
"I"m so envious of Mr s.h.i.+."
s.h.i.+ Xuexin smiled graciously.
In reality, she had prepared a solo performance for her father"s birthday. It was the perfect way to show off her talent.
However, since s.h.i.+ Jin had outdone s.h.i.+ Xuexin at the school anniversary celebrations, a solo performance would only serve to remind people of her little setback with s.h.i.+ Jin.
What if people asked s.h.i.+ Jin to perform as well? It would become such a nightmare!
s.h.i.+ Xuexin decided to play it safe and chose to give her father a Chinese painting.