A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

The guest room was spacious.

There wasn’t a lot in it, just a set of couches, a table, and some art pieces on the wall done by the children.

The Head pointed at one of the art pieces and introduced them to it. “Xia Ling drew this one.”

Li Lei went forward and took a closer look. Done in crayon, it was a drawing of a flower field in spring. “It’s pretty well done.” He commended. “Very talented for a child.”

Xia Ling side-eyed him. Realizing that he genuinely liked the art piece, she smiled a little. The art piece wasn’t extraordinary. The orphanage couldn’t afford to hire an art teacher for them and surely did not expect any of these children, who could barely secure three square meals a day, to be able to excel in art. Spending money on it would simply be a waste of resources.

There was nothing very commendable about the art piece.

But Li Lei wasn’t commending her artistic skills. “She chose bright colors as she liked, and the way she put them together seems so carefree and abstract. It reminds me of Xia Ling’s unique voice. I liked it the moment I saw it.”

“She was a good girl.” The Head said kindly with a tinge of nostalgia in his voice.

A good girl who often created trouble, fought with others, and snatched candies for her sister? Xia Ling remembered herself as a problem child, someone who did not get along with the other children. She often argued with the Head when she asked him for money to treat her sister’s illness. Some teachers even said that disciplining her was tougher than disciplining three other boys.

The thought of these memories moved her.

The Deputy Head and discipline master said, “Mr. Li, Miss Ye, welcome. Please take a seat and have some tea that we’ve brewed with homegrown tea leaves. We hope you can bear with the simplicity of this place and our hospitality.”

Xia Ling remembered the tea shrub. When she was younger, the discipline master treasured it and took care of it as his precious. He kept saying that the orphanage could not afford to buy high-quality tea leaves, and could only grow their own to serve their honored guests. He also warned the children not to touch the shrub or damage it, because the funding they’d receive from others depended on this shrub.

As Xia Ling took a sip of the tea, she tasted a little sweetness and bitterness.

Li Lei took a sip as well and quickly said with a smile, “40-odd-year-old Longjing leaves? It’s not bad at all.”

“Mr. Li is knowledgeable.” The discipline master smiled. “Just about right. It’s 45 years.”

The atmosphere was getting better as the conversations came along, and soon, they began discussing the agenda for the day. Li Lei was here today with a long term plan, which was to provide funding for the children, as well as regular medical checkups, vaccinations, and distribution of study materials. More importantly, he set up a foundation that was set aside for the treatment of major illnesses, such that children who needed it could receive medical help.

The Head and the teachers at the orphanage were extremely grateful for their contribution.

The photographers filmed the entire process and took a few group photos of them.

In the photos, Xia Ling was in a simple dress and stood right in the center, alongside the Head. They held up the confirmation document for the donation and various contributions with wide smiles, showing the success and fruition of this process. On her other side was Li Lei, whose physique made her appear like a dainty little angel.

He deliberately let her have the limelight.

This way, when news went out, everybody would remember that it was Xia Ling who held up the document. They’d say that the celebrity Ye Xingling was a kind-hearted person.

That was all he hoped for.

After the donation had been made, Xia Ling asked to walk around in the orphanage. The Head was about to appoint somebody to guide them, but Xia Ling said, “It’s alright, Li Lei and I will just take a look around on our own. The assistants and photographers don’t have to come along with us. The teachers can also go about their own matters, we’ll be fine on our own.”

Typically, the orphanage did not allow visitors to roam around in the premises without a teacher.

But this time, the Head agreed to it. He had a very good impression of them since it was rare for any donor to consider the children’s interests this thoroughly. Every year, there would be a number of organizations who would make their way down to donate funds or goods, but they usually did it for publicity purposes. They’d often get the children to witness the process and expect the children to thank them profusely.

The children were all so young, it wasn’t their fault that they were poor.

Letting the children feel as if they were living off others would hurt their dignity over time.

Xia Ling and Li Lei had taken this into consideration and did not want to call the children out to witness this. In fact, they even declined the Head’s proposal of having some children welcome them with flowers at the entrance. “Let’s not trouble them,” Xia Ling had told Li Lei. “I was one of those who had to do that. I know the feeling.”

Li Lei respected her wishes.

At this point, the Head returned them the favor. “The both of you can take your time and walk around. Oh right, the 15th unit on the second floor was where little Xia Ling lived. The unit diagonally across, the 9th, was the medical ward that little Xia Yu occupied. Both areas have since been preserved for exhibition purposes, so you can take a look if you’re interested.”

Xia Ling thanked the Head and went ahead with Li Lei.

Actually, Xia Ling would have taken Li Lei to look at where she lived even if the Head did not mention this. That was where she grew up. It was simple and minimalistic, but also a place of innocence.

“Back then…” She showed Li Lei around and pointed places out to him. “I’d wake up every morning and rush to the canteen to snatch for a bun. There were limited numbers of meat buns, and if we went late, there’d only be vegetable buns left.”

Li Lei laughed. “Greedy little one.”

A few children were playing on the corridor and ran past both of them.

Shadows of the iris flowers were cast on the ground.

Xia Ling said, “It was for Xia Yu. She used to be very fussy, and would only eat that little bit of meat filling in the buns every morning. So, I’d always snatch two buns and let her have the meat filling in both, while I ate the dough on the outside.” In fact, Xia Ling never liked buns, what she liked was the tea leaf eggs they served in the canteen. But every child was only entitled to one food item for breakfast, hence, she’d always take the meat bun so that Xia Yu would get to eat more meat. In all those years, she never had the chance to have the eggs at all.

Li Lei’s heart ached for her. “In that case, I’ll make meat buns for you every day.”

Xia Ling laughed. “Ginseng buns.”

“Alright, ginseng buns.” Li Lei ruffled her hair.

Xia Ling held onto his hand. She took a few steps with her head down before saying, “Actually, Xiao Yu doesn’t like eating buns, either.”

“What?”

She took a few more steps forward to compose her emotions. It took a while before she went on. “Back then, I was only about seven years old, and I was a girl. The meat buns in the canteen were always snatched by the bigger boys. Even if the smaller children, or girls, managed to get it, they’d often be made to hand it over.

“I was hit countless times because of the buns I took.

“Each time I got a meat bun, I’d speed to the dorm and lock the door hurriedly, only then was I safe. But I was often stopped midway when they caught up, and they’d hit me and snatch it from me… I’d be bruised and injured from trying to protect that bun…”