Rebirth: CEO's Sweetheart Reaches the Life Pinnacle!-Chapter 47 - 45: Yao Meiling’s Encounter

Li Si let out a soft breath. How did she become like this? Could it be the trials of the university of life that transformed her character? Was this still the pure and gentle Zhou Rou in her memories?

"Li Si, let’s continue with what we were talking about! I want you to be my girlfriend, okay?" Yin Xian grabbed her hand that was resting on the table, speaking with deep affection and sincerity.

"I... can I think about it? This is too sudden!" Li Si forcefully pulled her hand back and placed it on her lap, feeling incredibly flustered inside. She couldn’t clearly explain her feelings toward him, but turning him down outright felt equally hard to say.

"Alright, I’ll give you time! But don’t make me wait too long. I’ll be waiting for your answer!" Yin Xian gazed deeply at the downcast Li Si, confident in his own charm as a man.

After the meal, Yin Xian took her home.

It was already late January now. On the way back earlier, she noticed the streets were already filled with the lively atmosphere of the upcoming New Year. Both sides of the street were adorned with festive decorations, red lanterns, and colorful neon lights wrapped around small pine trees, twinkling beautifully.

The New Year—it was the first one since her rebirth. No matter what, Li Si planned to go to her grandmother’s house in the countryside for the reunion dinner. Regardless of how her second uncle’s family thought or acted, buying some things for her grandmother and showing some filial piety on her father’s behalf was still the right thing to do.

The next day, she gave Bai Shasha a call and arranged to go shopping together to buy clothes for the elderly.

"Li Si, you finally remembered me, you little heartless thing!" Bai Shasha complained as soon as she saw her.

"Don’t you know the life of rich and busy people is very hectic? If I don’t stay busy, how can I earn lots of money? And if there’s no money, how can I buy stuff for you, huh?" Li Si happily looped her arm through Bai Shasha’s, dramatically shaking her head as she spoke playfully.

"Oh, give me a break! You’re talking as if we’re family or something. Now tell me—how’s it going with that Yin Xian?" Bai Shasha’s eyes sparkled with gossipy excitement.

The two of them went to a café, picked a corner to sit in, and continued chatting.

"Today’s supposed to be a day for shopping. If you keep talking about this, I’m going home!" A faint blush appeared on Li Si’s face. After Yin Xian dropped her off at home, the two had exchanged a lot of texts—there was indeed a little hint of flirtation between them now.

"Don’t! Fine, I won’t say another word about it, okay?" Bai Shasha grabbed hold of Li Si, who was pretending to leave, looked around to make sure no one was nearby, and then whispered, "I’ve got big news! Want to hear it?"

"Of course, tell me. What’s the big news?"

Li Si knew Bai Shasha too well—her talent for gossip was astonishing, and somehow she always managed to get hold of all kinds of insider information!

"It’s about your dormmate Yao Meiling. A while back, something happened to her... you know, that kind of thing. I heard it was done by someone she knew from middle school. And now, they’re saying they’re going to get married! The whole thing caused quite the stir. I bet she won’t even show up when school starts again!"

"Who told you that? That can’t be true, right?" Li Si found it hard to believe. Before New Year’s, in the ski resort, Yao Meiling had been so overbearing, even stomping around and trying to pick fights with her classmates. How could such a drastic change have happened in less than a month?

"It’s absolutely insider information—rock-solid news. A lot of people at our school already know about it!" North City wasn’t very big to begin with; when something happened, it often spread like wildfire.

"There’s something I haven’t told you before." Li Si suddenly remembered the incident with the fight.

"What is it? You actually kept something from me? Huh!" Bai Shasha mock-threatened her, raising a fist.

"Before New Year’s, didn’t I go skiing with some people? In the women’s locker room, I ran into Yao Meiling and her friends, who said it was a middle school reunion!" Li Si sighed inwardly, silently apologizing to Bai Shasha—there were more secrets she hadn’t confessed to her.

"Well, that lines up. And then what?" Bai Shasha’s eyes lit up again, filled not just with curiosity but with something deeper.

"Then... she arrogantly told me to convince Li Fei to stop pestering Meng Zijun." Thinking back on it, Li Si still found it incomprehensible. What could have caused such a drastic shift?

"Is she out of her mind? How is that something you could possibly advise on?" Both of them had witnessed the intensity of the confession in the woods back then. Li Fei was the type to keep pressing forward no matter the obstacles! Asking Li Si to intervene—especially given their strained relationship—was totally ridiculous.

Li Si gave a sarcastic smile. Who knew?

"Then I found out later she just wanted to pick a fight, planning to gang up with a few of her middle school girlfriends to beat me up. So I fought back and kicked one of them down. Then I just walked away!" Li Si thought to herself—deep down, she was a bit of a fighter as well, though she’d never really had the chance to show it before.

"Oh my gosh! Si, when did you become so fierce? How come I didn’t know? I’m guessing she was just showing off! Do you know why she was acting so arrogantly?" Bai Shasha couldn’t resist playing the suspenseful storyteller, raising her eyebrows proudly.

"I was confused too! She wasn’t like this before..." Li Si remembered how things had been in her past life—none of this had ever happened. Could it be the ripple effect of her rebirth?

Bai Shasha leaned in conspiratorially and whispered, "She got involved with some bigshot and let it get to her head. And now she’s ruined everything for herself. Turns out it was that very person who did it to her. Now, even if she cries, there’s nowhere for her to cry to!"

The two of them sighed deeply in unison. After all, they were still classmates. For a girl to go through something like this was to have her entire life destroyed. And to think she had to marry that person—could she ever have a good life? It was almost too horrifying to imagine.

At Beijing Jinyuan, Leng Mochen, following Li Si’s instructions, drank a glass of spring water every other day. Four days later, after taking a shower, he stood in front of the luxuriously renovated bathroom mirror, leaning closer in disbelief to scrutinize his face again.

The person in the mirror looked back at him. His skin was no longer pale and sickly. His face, smooth and fair, now carried sharp and defined features tinged with a striking coldness; his deep, jet-black eyes shimmered with an enchanting glow; his thick brows, high nose bridge, and perfectly shaped lips all showcased his breathtakingly handsome appearance!

Was this still the same person he had faced in the mirror every day for the past six months? Or rather, was this even the same Leng Mochen from before?

Leng Mochen furrowed his brows tightly. Over the past few days, he had stopped taking medication and only drank the spring water. There was definitely something unusual here. Could that little girl have stumbled upon some kind of miraculous secret?

And didn’t that girl know the principle of "an innocent man gets into trouble for harboring a treasure"? Li Si was truly a foolish girl! If it weren’t for him, if it had been anyone else, her undisguised generosity would have put her in danger at any moment!

Such a heaven-defying existence—if certain people found out, who knows what kind of storm it could stir up!

No, he decided—he needed to make a trip to North City and give her a few more warnings!

"North City, huh?" Leng Mochen muttered the words under his breath, a cold smile appearing on his face as his gaze turned sharp.

Li Si had been busy with the private kitchen these past few days.

As the Lunar New Year approached, and with the restaurant’s growing reputation, mealtimes were nearly always packed. On some days, a single table turned over three times. Many customers had already started reserving tables for the holiday period.

Cui Hao and Li Si didn’t want to miss out on the holiday rush, though they also understood that many of the out-of-town employees wanted to go home for the New Year—it was only natural. They planned to distribute paychecks and bonuses to everyone on the 27th of the twelfth lunar month.

For those staying to work during the holiday, they offered triple wages and red envelopes as incentives, while also hiring a few short-term workers at high rates.