A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

Was there?

After thinking for a while, Xia Ling found that there was one thing, in fact. He told everyone that they were together and took her home to meet his grandfather — that was something Pei Ziheng had never done in their ten years together.

But what happened in the end?

It was still a breakup.

She mocked herself. “Maybe I just don’t have the life of marrying into a wealthy family, so why bother trying? Li Lei tried to put me in the spotlight with him so we could work together, and I’m grateful for that, but that’s as far as he went. Whatever Pei Ziheng did not do, neither did he. Sure, he did put in the effort for me, but just because he did, and just because he claims to like me doesn’t give him the right to hurt me, right? He…”

Xia Ling stopped there.

On the island with the Li family, she had been pinned under him and violated, causing her intense pain…

Did liking her give him the right to have his way with her?

“This is not the kind of love I want.” She mumbled.

“Then tell him what you want.” Feng Kun said.

“Why should I be the one to tell him?” She was being petty now.

Feng Kun smiled. “Are you sure you don’t like him?”

Xia Ling sipped her tea in order to conceal her expression. She was at a loss now and could not bring herself to deny that statement.

Feng Kun had the answer. “Remember the Jade Buddha Temple on the outskirts of the city? I heard it gives accurate readings. If you don’t like him, then follow me to the temple later. You can ask the deities to tell you about your fate with him, then you’ll know the answer.”

Xia Ling kept silent.

Feng Kun kept silent with her while offering her a hand for support. “Xiao Ling, if you can’t bear to part with him, then you should go back and have a good talk with him. He’s a young master of a wealthy family, the fact that he could do this much for you says a lot. If this wasn’t your second life, and if you didn’t have memories of your past, would you dare say you wouldn’t be moved?”

“I…” She bit her lip. “But I do remember my past. Li Lei and Pei Ziheng are very similar, they like to control me according to their wishes. I’m afraid that he’ll become another Pei Ziheng someday.”

“He doesn’t know your past.” Li Lei spoke warmly. “Neither does he know your difficulties. He’s simply treating you like he would a typical girl. If he knew what you’d been through, he might treat you differently.”

Xia Ling was quiet for a while.

“He’s different from Pei Ziheng.” Feng Kun went on. “Even if you don’t believe in my judgment, you can see for yourself… Imperial and Skyart are completely different in style — Li Lei isn’t a dictator like Pei Ziheng. Go for it, maybe this time your love will blossom. Xiao Ling, how would you know if you haven’t tried? Don’t let Pei Ziheng ruin you for two lifetimes.”

Don’t let Pei Ziheng ruin you for two lifetimes…

Xia Ling wanted to block this out. No, she would not let that devil of a man have such an impact on her. She would try her best to shake those fears off and pursue her happiness. With the cup in hand, she told herself she would look for Li Lei once again for a good talk.

Time always flew when she spoke with Feng Kun. He was like a caring big brother, patiently giving her advice every step of the way.

Xia Ling felt more assured now and thanked Feng Kun for coming out to meet her before realizing they had not got to the main point. She completely forgot about asking him for an apology idea!

On the ride back, Xia Ling was almost desperate from her lack of ideas.

Back in the apartment.

Li Lei was conflicted as well. Why was Xia Ling not back yet after a whole day? Had he been too fierce to her the previous day when he said she was insincere with her apology, which eventually drove her away! If he knew this would be the outcome, he would have accepted her apology and reconciled immediately.

Li Lei was full of regret now.

As Li Lei paced about in his room anxiously, Er Mao found him a bother and decided to abandon him for the kitten.

Although the damsel-in-distress incident had occurred just the previous day and the kitten had come to realize that Er Mao was merely a gentle giant, it could not help but stiffen in fear whenever Er Mao came close to it.

Er Mao found it fun to see the kitten’s reaction.

Xia Ling opened the door and saw that Er Mao was bullying the kitten again. The kitten ran towards her while meowing, crying for help.

Xia Ling sighed. She had enough on her plate now and decided to take the kitten to her bedroom. Once the kitten was settled, she started thinking once again about how she should give Li Lei a sincere apology. Right then, the doorbell rang.

She opened the door.

Standing by the door was Big Boss Li in a t-shirt and long pants, seeming not very pleased to see her.

She had a fright, not ready to face him just yet. Stammering, Xia Ling asked, “W-What are you doing here?”

“What, so I can’t be here?” He shot her a question but changed his tone when he saw her flustered expression. “I’m waiting for an apology!”

He raised his chin slightly as if he was entitled to that apology.

Xia Ling was speechless.

How nice of him to appear right at her door before she had even thought of a good way to salvage the situation. She dared not tell him that she had nothing prepared for a sincere apology and decided to force a smile and invite him in first.

Li Lei looked at her expectantly.

Xia Ling felt even more guilty and went straight for the kitchen. “Take a seat first, I’ll show you my sincerity!” She had no better idea now; all she remembered was that hungry people were angry people and that her main goal was to make him less angry. Only then could she prevent their relationship from deteriorating, so they could have a chance to have a proper chat like Feng Kun advised.

She opened the refrigerator.

At that moment, she could almost feel a tear rolling down her cheek.

The refrigerator was practically empty other than a few pathetic servings of vegetables and corn. How could she forget that the kitchen was never her best friend?

After searching through the cabinets and drawers, she finally found a bottle of olive oil and two eggs.

What dish could she prepare?

To be entirely honest, her culinary skills were sub-par. She used not to be able to cook at all, and only learned a little from Li Lei in the past year.

She could envision her death already, just by looking at the ingredients. But she went on and filled a pot with water, and then added in the vegetables and corn.

After some effort, the food had finally come to a boil.

Xia Ling opened the lid and realized that the vegetable leaves had turned soggy, and the egg yolks and whites had hardened into lumps. Upon tasting them, she found out that she had also added too much salt, and the corn was barely cooked…

Xia Ling was on the verge of giving up. If she served this, would Li Lei kill her? What now!

She was still trying to figure something out when Li Lei called out. “What’s up? You’re taking a long time.”

“Almost done! I…” She responded frantically. While she was still busy looking at the inharmonious pot of “soup,” Li Lei had already walked into the kitchen.

“Ah, don’t come in!” She hurriedly shielded the pot.

But Li Lei had already seen it. “Is that…”