Chapter 112: What

Grandfather and grandson had a nice catch‑up, and Wen Ling also gave Qin Lao a little tea‑art performance.

Just like Zhou Yinhe, Qin Lao winced whenever he saw his granddaughter gripping the hot cup, hissing nonstop as if he himself were the one being scalded.

Wen Ling laughed and said, "Don't worry, Grandpa, I'm not afraid of getting burned."

"Such delicate skin—how can you treat it like that? Did your grandfather teach you this? In a moment I'll call him and give him a good scolding." Qin Lao frowned, his reproachful words making Wen Ling giggle nonstop.

Qin Lao had already notified everyone in the Qin Family yesterday that they must return at noon regardless of anything; Qin Yuchen was the first to come back, and he even brought the woman Wen Ling had met once.

The woman stepped forward and introduced herself to Wen Ling, "Hello, I'm Liushutong."

Wen Ling blinked and said softly, "I know, you're my future sister‑in‑law."

Only then did Liushutong recall that Zhou Yinhe had been with Wen Ling that day, and she smiled, asking, "Was it the Fifth Young Master of the Zhou Family who told you?"

Wen Ling nodded, but Qin Lao asked, "Are you together with the Zhou Family's Xiao Wu?"

His expression wasn't pleasant, yet Wen Ling openly admitted, "We've been together for a while."

"Hmph, what's good about that brat?" Qin Lao turned away, like a child throwing a tantrum.

"Grandpa, who do you think is better in your eyes?" Wen Ling linked her arm with his, smiling as she asked, "Tell me, and if there's truly someone better than him, I'll switch."

Qin Yuchen stood aside and said indifferently, "Anyone you're with is no good in Grandfather's eyes."

Wen Ling laughed and coquettishly pressed Qin Lao: "Really, Grandpa?"

"You still dare to tease me, you little brat—just got home and you're already learning these tricks from your cousin." Qin Lao, flushed with anger, poked Wen Ling's nose and glared at Qin Yuchen.

Qin Yuchen shrugged, grabbed Liushutong's hand to sit down, but Liushutong slipped free and sat beside Wen Ling instead.

"……" Qin Yuchen frowned, but after Liushutong gave him a glance, he had no choice but to stay silent.

Listening to the two of them chatting with Qin Lao, Qin Yuchen couldn't get a word in edgewise; not until noon approached did Qin Lao remember to ask the steward, "Has Qin Yuyang been fetched back?"

The steward replied, "The driver went to pick him up; he should be here soon."

Qin Lao hummed, gently patting Wen Ling's hand: "When he comes back, let him apologize properly to you, and don't rush to forgive him—pick on him a few times first."

Wen Ling gasped, and Liushutong took over: "Exactly, Qin Yuyang is that sort of person—if you don't bully him into submission, he won't sincerely apologize."

"Right, follow your sister‑in‑law's lead and study the scriptures—figure out a suitable way to pick on him." Qin Lao nodded.

"Bullying a ten‑year‑old?" Wen Ling thought it was actually quite amusing.

Qin Yuyang returned not long after, bursting through the door shouting, "Grandpa, I'm back! Is there something going on?"

But the moment he saw Wen Ling, his excitement vanished, and he froze in place, afraid to step forward.

Liushutong waved at him and said calmly, "Come over, come to us."

Qin Yuyang didn't want to go, but his subconscious fear of his future sister‑in‑law made him shuffle over to the group anyway.

Wen Ling remained silent, quietly staring at Qin Yuyang, while Qin Lao said, "Apologize properly to your cousin."

Qin Yuyang opened his mouth to refuse, but seeing the cold, stern gazes of the three others besides Wen Ling, he lowered his head and mumbled, "Sorry."

Wen Ling blinked and asked doubtfully, "What did you say? I didn't hear that."

"You're teasing me! Sorry, sorry, is that enough?" Qin Yuyang shouted, turned and ran upstairs; Wen Ling stared blankly at his retreating back, gasped, and drawled, "I really didn't hear you…"

Too bad Qin Yuyang thought Wen Ling was deliberately teasing him, so during the meal he kept sneaking glances and glaring at her.

After Wen Ling caught him doing that several times, she felt that she really ought to give him a proper teasing.

After finishing the meal, Qin Yuyang ran off to play in the back garden; Wen Ling glanced at the somewhat overcast sky—not too hot—so she told Qin Lao and then went to find Qin Yuyang.

Upon seeing her, Qin Yuyang let out a loud hum, about to leave, but as he stepped beside Wen Ling he tripped and fell to the ground.

"Ah, little cousin, are you okay?" Wen Ling worriedly reached to help him up.

"You tripped me on purpose!" Qin Yuyang demanded.

"No, you just fell by accident."

"It was you who tripped me—this is flat ground, how could I just fall for no reason?"

"Even so, did you lower your head to check and make sure it's level ground?"

Upon hearing that, Qin Yuyang glanced at the ground—and there, a pebble was sticking up!

He sprang up, glared at Wen Ling, turned and headed straight for the steward to complain, demanding that the garden's pebbles be replaced with a flat surface.

Wen Ling, however, remained crouched where she was, lowered her head to look at the pebble, and smiled: "Thanks for taking the fall for me."

She rose and strolled leisurely into the villa; sure enough, Qin Yuyang's loud complaint to the steward reached Qin Yuchen and Liushutong, who were playing on their phones in the living room, making both frown.

Seeing Wen Ling enter, Qin Yuyang shut his mouth, forced himself to say, "Sorry, I misunderstood you—I thought you were the one who tripped me."

Wen Ling returned a gentle smile: "It's fine."

Qin Yuyang unexpectedly felt a twinge of guilt—something that had never happened before; a child spoiled from childhood, who had never bullied anyone nor apologized, let alone felt remorse deep down—this notion left his mind a bit tangled.

He pursed his lips, ran back to his room to cool down, leaving Wen Ling and Liushutong to exchange a glance and then burst out laughing.

Wen Ling had never dealt with a child like this before; now she felt energized, even developing a competitive drive, thinking that taming such a kid would be something to be proud of.

But she wasn't in a hurry; she sat on the sofa and chatted with Liushutong, having just added each other on WeChat, and they were now examining each other's makeup, sending over whatever they found curious or liked.

Qin Yuchen sat aside, his head full of fog from listening, but he knew that when women talk about these things, a man must not interject, or he'll be interrogated by a deathly spirit.

He never expected that, despite not saying a word, the problem would already be thrown at him.

"Brother, do you know what shade of lipstick your sister‑in‑law usually uses?"

Qin Yuchen looked up and saw the familiar mischievous glint in Wen Ling's eyes.

Exactly like Zhou Yinhe! He now began to agree with what Qin Lao had said before the meal.

"What's good about that brat!" Wen Ling used never to act this way; surely she'd picked it up from hanging out with Zhou Yinhe.

Liushutong glanced over and smiled faintly, "You know?"

Qin Yuchen clearly saw the threat in Liushutong's eyes and opened his mouth.