Little Bodyguard(GL) 13

Chapter 13

Zhuo Zhi had been to the Li family mansion once before. At that time, she couldn’t even hide her shock, and the housekeeper had led her in with amusement.

This time, she was much more experienced. Zhuo Zhi got out of the car, holding the gift box in her hands, her back straight, her expression serious, looking like a professional bodyguard.

The housekeeper was still the same housekeeper, his smile forming kind wrinkles on his face. He said to Li Qinyue, “Old Master Li is waiting for you in the warm pavilion.”

Li Qinyue smiled back at him, “It’s drafty there, why does Grandpa insist on staying there?”

“The master said the air circulation is good, it’s fresh, and it’s good for his health.” The housekeeper looked at Zhuo Zhi and nodded, “You’re here too.”

“Hello,” Zhuo Zhi nodded maturely, stating her identity, “I’m President Li’s bodyguard.”

“I know, I know. After you came last time, the master praised you for a long time…” The housekeeper led them through the corridor, talking just the right amount, the atmosphere relaxed and pleasant.

The Li family’s ancient-style architecture was very exquisite. The scenery in the courtyard was carefully designed according to the four seasons. Therefore, although most of the trees in Nanhai City had lost their leaves in winter, there were still red and green plants in the Li family courtyard, beautiful and artistic.

Zhuo Zhi followed half a step behind Li Qinyue, her eyes focused, her steps steady.

However, as they turned a corner, Li Qinyue suddenly grabbed her arm and pointed, “Look.”

Look at what? Zhuo Zhi became alert and followed her finger, but she didn’t see anything unusual.

“Did you see it?” Li Qinyue asked her.

Zhuo Zhi shook her head honestly.

Li Qinyue slapped the back of her head, “Can’t you see it? That big rock!”

“I see it.” They were still moving forward, and Zhuo Zhi had to turn her head to look at the big rock.

“There are words on the rock,” Li Qinyue said impatiently.

“Hmm,” Zhuo Zhi read out, “Surrounded by Snow.”

Li Qinyue waited for two seconds, her voice turning cold, “Don’t you have anything else to say?”

Zhuo Zhi was confused.

The housekeeper smiled and said, “Miss Li’s calligraphy is very beautiful. It’s been there for fifteen years. The master likes it very much. The surrounding area has been renovated several times, but this calligraphy hasn’t moved an inch.”

Zhuo Zhi immediately said, “Wow, yes, it’s so beautiful! If you hadn’t told me, I would have thought it was written by a famous calligrapher!”

“Hypocrite,” Li Qinyue slapped Zhuo Zhi’s head again.

Zhuo Zhi chuckled twice, not daring to say anything more, afraid of making things worse.

The three of them arrived at the warm pavilion. It was indeed an excellent location. It was high up with a good view, warm and well-ventilated, with flowing curtains. Old Master Li was sitting at the table making tea, looking like a figure in a traditional Chinese painting.

The housekeeper retreated. Old Master Li gestured to Li Qinyue, “Try my tea.”

“It smells good.” Li Qinyue went straight over and sat cross-legged beside him, downing a cup of tea like it was water, “But Grandpa, you know my tongue is too rough to appreciate the taste.”

“As long as it tastes good.” The old man looked at Zhuo Zhi, nodded for her to sit down, and with a smile that crinkled his eyes like swimming fish, he asked her directly, “How are you two getting along?”

“Very well,” Zhuo Zhi quickly said, “President Li and I get along well.”

Li Qinyue leaned back, her hands resting on the warm cushion, “The way you two are talking, anyone would think you found me a blind date, Grandpa.”

The old man patted her shoulder and glared, “Nonsense!”

“How is it nonsense? Think about it,” Li Qinyue looked at him, sounding righteous, “You chose someone, brought her to me out of the blue, and said she was a birthday present. Feudal society is over, everyone has human rights, you can’t just throw someone at me like that.”

“I got Little Zhuo Zhi’s consent, how is that violating her human rights?” The old man looked at Zhuo Zhi, “Isn’t that right?”

“Yes,” Zhuo Zhi nodded naturally.

Li Qinyue was unconvinced, “You didn’t get my consent.”

The old man became serious, “This is for your safety. Little Zhuo Zhi has a good personality, and you two are getting along well now. Isn’t it good to have another companion to play with?”

“You’re still saying it’s not like finding me a partner,” Li Qinyue smirked.

“We might as well find you a partner while we’re at it,” the old man also laughed, “I heard that the Zhang boy is back in the country. Haven’t you two met up in private?”

Li Qinyue glanced at Zhuo Zhi, a little shocked.

The second son of the Zhang family had gone straight to a brothel upon returning home and was caught in an anti-prostitution raid. This was the hottest gossip in their circle right now. Even if the old man didn’t pay attention to outside matters, Zhuo Zhi, the little spy, should have reported it by now.

She had some suspicions before, but she didn’t dare to jump to conclusions. Now, looking at the old man’s genuinely clueless expression, Li Qinyue felt a storm brewing inside her. She couldn’t believe that her beautiful guess might actually be true.

Li Qinyue looked at Zhuo Zhi, who was blinking her big eyes and asking what was wrong. Li Qinyue looked away, suddenly feeling very happy.

Although she had been happy all day, she was even happier now.

This kind of happiness was indescribable, like a blocked river about to burst its banks, suddenly being cleared by a thunderbolt.

Crash, crash, crash, the floodwaters rushed out, flowing smoothly towards the sea, refreshing and invigorating.

“Heh, why would I meet him?” Li Qinyue sat up straight, her whole demeanor becoming much more positive, “Your granddaughter should be the kind of grand princess that people have to beg to see. It would be so embarrassing for our Li family if I went to see him as soon as he came back.”

The old man thought for a moment, taking a sip of tea, “You’re not wrong.”

“Of course, I heard he’s quite busy lately,” Li Qinyue refilled his teacup, smiling brightly, “Very busy, the kind of busy where he’s running around like a headless chicken.”

“Busy with what?” the old man asked.

“I wouldn’t know,” Li Qinyue’s lying expression was very exaggerated, “I don’t get involved in those things, you’ll have to ask my dad.”

“I’ll ask him when I have time.” The old man took the bait quickly.

Li Qinyue thought to herself, “Go ahead and ask, ask clearly, and then you and my grumpy old man can see what kind of person you found for your daughter.”

But of course, she wouldn’t say that out loud. She reached out to Zhuo Zhi and said, “Where’s the thing?”

Zhuo Zhi hurriedly handed over the gift box.

Li Qinyue took it and opened it in front of the old man, “Look, what good stuff I brought you.”

“Good ginseng.” The old man looked at the beautiful wild ginseng in the red velvet box. A gift from his granddaughter was indeed different. He looked at each ginseng root, each one unique and rare.

Zhuo Zhi glanced up slightly. The old man picked up the box and showed it to her proudly, “Good stuff, right?”

This time, Zhuo Zhi’s praise was absolutely sincere, “Very good.”

The old man asked Li Qinyue, “You really dug this up yourself? You have such skills?”

“Of course, I tied a red string and a copper coin to it, and brushed each root carefully, afraid it would run away.”

“Hahaha…” The old man laughed happily, whether he believed it or not, “Did you get anything for your father?”

“Yes, of course,” Li Qinyue paused, “I found him two good bottles of wine.”

“He can’t drink anymore!” the old man said angrily.

Li Qinyue chatted with Old Master Li for a long time. Zhuo Zhi couldn’t join in the conversation, nor did she intend to. In this warm family scene, it was best for her to be a quiet observer, soaking in the warmth.

However, Old Master Li would ask her a few questions from time to time, and Li Qinyue would deliberately tease her, making Zhuo Zhi blush several times.

No matter how confident she was in her abilities, no matter how grand her dreams were, Zhuo Zhi knew that in front of the Li family elders, she was just a little ant.

Of course, although Li Qinyue was much older than her, because of her childish mindset, she didn’t count as an elder.

When it was time for lunch, they went back inside and started eating.

The feast Li Qinyue had promised was indeed a feast. The ingredients were expensive, the taste was excellent. There were probably only a few restaurants in the entire Nanhai City that could cook to this standard.

Zhuo Zhi didn’t understand, but her taste buds were honest. She kept exclaiming how delicious it was throughout the meal.

Old Master Li liked to see her eat with gusto and repeatedly nudged Li Qinyue, telling her to learn from her. He said young people should eat well to grow well.

Li Qinyue was very helpless. She was long past the age of growing, but in her grandfather’s eyes, she would always be a child.

After lunch, Old Master Li took his usual nap. Li Qinyue didn’t stay any longer and left the Li family mansion with Zhuo Zhi.

She had two goals for coming back today: one was to visit her grandfather, the other was to test Zhuo Zhi.

Her family had arranged for Zhuo Zhi to be by her side. What kind of person was she? Where did her loyalty lie? How much was it biased? After all the commotion in the past two days, coming back to see the direction of the wind was the best way to judge.

This was the third plan Li Qinyue had roughly formulated before.

It was going even more smoothly than she had imagined.

And it was even more successful than she had imagined.

Everything was turning out for the best, so good that Li Qinyue even wanted to check if she was going through a lucky streak.

The two of them arrived at the garage. Zhuo Zhi obediently got into the passenger seat. Li Qinyue got in the car, closed the door, and paused while putting on her seatbelt. She suddenly wanted to have a frank conversation with Zhuo Zhi.

Seeing her look over, Zhuo Zhi asked astutely, “What’s wrong, Sister?”

She transitioned to that address quite naturally. Li Qinyue turned to her and said with a smile, “From now on, you must answer every question I ask you truthfully.”

Zhuo Zhi also smiled, joking, “Will it be used as evidence in court?”

“Yes,” Li Qinyue nodded, her expression becoming serious, “Was it my father or my grandfather who asked you to be my bodyguard?”

“Neither of them asked me,” Zhuo Zhi said, “After my eighteenth birthday, I wanted to go down the mountain and experience the world. I begged my master for a month, and she spent two months searching before finding this job.”

“Logically speaking, with all the great security companies in Nanhai City, this kind of job wouldn’t usually fall on your shoulders, right?” Li Qinyue looked at her.

“Right,” Zhuo Zhi hesitated for a moment, but eventually admitted honestly, “My master pulled some strings, she has connections.”

“What kind of connections?” Li Qinyue asked.

“I’m not sure about that,” Zhuo Zhi said, “The day I came down the mountain, someone picked me up and took me straight to Old Master Li.”

“What did my grandfather say to you?”

“He told me some things about you,” Zhuo Zhi smiled shyly, “He even showed me your photos.”

Li Qinyue’s brows furrowed, “The photo of me with a shaved head when I was little?”

“How did you know?!” Zhuo Zhi’s eyes widened in surprise, “And the photo of you falling down at the finish line during the school sports meet in junior high.”

“Heh,” Li Qinyue pursed her lips, “He should be glad he doesn’t know how to use WeChat, otherwise he would post them on his Moments every now and then, as if the whole world doesn’t know.”

“That’s because he loves you and thinks you’re cute,” Zhuo Zhi defended Old Master Li.

Li Qinyue pursed her lips again.

Zhuo Zhi leaned closer to her and said anxiously, “Really, after he showed me the photos, he said that you are his treasure, the Li family’s treasure, so I must protect you well.”

“Damn…” Li Qinyue lowered her head, a little touched by these cheesy words.

Perhaps more than a little touched. She took a few deep breaths to suppress the sudden urge to cry, cleared her throat, and said, “He didn’t ask you to spy on me? Didn’t ask you to tell him everything I do?”

“No, he only asked me to protect you,” Zhuo Zhi paused, “He also said he hoped we could become friends.”

“Hmm,” Li Qinyue responded, took a deep breath, and started the car, “But he’s also forcing me to get married now.”

The car drove out of the garage. The sunlight outside was dazzling, making Li Qinyue squint, “Marry that trash.”

Zhuo Zhi looked at her for a while, then called her, “Sister Qinyue.”

“Hmm?” Li Qinyue glanced at her.

“I think this matter…”

“Are you going to try to persuade me?” Li Qinyue interrupted her, “Saying things like family always wants what’s best for you?”

“No,” Zhuo Zhi said, “Family does want what’s best for you, but they can’t live your life for you.”

“Where did you get that chicken soup quote?” Li Qinyue chuckled.

“A girl came to the neighboring nunnery last year, she was quite pretty, and she stayed for half a year before going down the mountain,” Zhuo Zhi said slowly, “She liked to run around the forest taking pictures of insects. I ran into her many times and chatted with her.”

“She said she wasn’t there to become a vegetarian, lose weight, or listen to Buddhist teachings to cleanse her soul. She was there to escape marriage.”

“She said she was being very unreasonable. Her family had pressured her to go on a blind date, pressured her to date the guy, and then she got engaged in a daze. In the end, when it was time to get their marriage license, she realized she didn’t want to get married at all.”

“So she ran away, leaving a letter and all her savings behind, without her phone, and went up the mountain.”

“She said she could run away from the marriage, but not from her family. Her body escaped, but her heart was still filled with guilt. Every moment, she would think about how much this incident had hurt her family, the man, and his family.”

“But she never regretted it. She had never been so clear about how she wanted to live her life. It was a predetermined path, and no one could go against their own will.”

“She was only sad that she hadn’t realized it sooner. If she had been clear and firm from the beginning, she wouldn’t be so ashamed to face her family now.”

Zhuo Zhi looked at Li Qinyue, “I think she was right. Sticking to the path you want to take from the beginning, being your true self, is the best way to minimize the harm to your family.”

“Conflicts always exist, it’s important to cut your losses in time,” Zhuo Zhi touched Li Qinyue’s arm, “So you’re right.”

After this long speech, Li Qinyue laughed, her silent smile turning into a chuckle. She finally ruffled Zhuo Zhi’s hair and asked, “Have you ever been to school?”

“Of course I have!” Zhuo Zhi immediately said, “I even took the college entrance exam! I even got into a 211/985 university*!”

“Then shouldn’t you be a freshman in college now? Why are you talking about going up and down the mountain all the time?”

“Going down the mountain is the coming-of-age ceremony,” Zhuo Zhi frowned, looking serious, “You exam-oriented kids wouldn’t understand.”

“Childish,” Li Qinyue concluded.

You’re the one who’s childish, Zhuo Zhi wanted to retort, but she held back, “Hmph.”

The car drove on in silence for a while. Li Qinyue suddenly asked her, “That girl didn’t want to get married, was it because she liked girls?”

“Huh?” Zhuo Zhi was stunned, “I don’t think so, I didn’t hear her say she was gay, and she didn’t seem like it.”

“Then do I seem like it?” Li Qinyue looked at her.

“Huh?” Zhuo Zhi was even more stunned, and didn’t answer for a while.

“Do I seem like it?” Li Qinyue asked her again.

“I don’t know,” Zhuo Zhi searched her memory, “President Li, you said you weren’t interested in girls.”

Li Qinyue grinned, looking mischievous, “From today onwards, I am.”

“Huh???” Zhuo Zhi became a broken record.

“I, Li Qinyue, am a lesbian from today onwards!!!” Li Qinyue slapped the steering wheel, looking delighted. After saying that, she suddenly reached out and pinched Zhuo Zhi’s palm, “Little naive one, what do you think?”

***

T/N:

Well, it’s confirmed that the MC’s master is a woman, at least according to the line mentioned in this chapter. Previously, the master was only referred to in a neutral way, without any indication of their gender.

***

In China, universities are ranked and categorized into different tiers. The “211” and “985” refer to two prestigious university projects initiated by the Chinese government.

• “211” refers to the “211 Project”, which was launched in 1995 to promote the development of about 100 top universities in China. These universities are considered to be among the best in the country and receive significant funding and support from the government.
• “985” refers to the “985 Project”, which was launched in 1998 to further promote the development of a smaller group of elite universities in China. These universities are considered to be among the very best in the country and receive even more funding and support than the 211 universities.

So,  “I even got into a 211/985 university!”, means that the protagonist was accepted into a university that is considered to be among the top universities in China.