Qing Yan had just arrived at the company when someone knocked on the office door.
"Come in," she said.
"President Qing." It was Jin Panpan who entered, holding a bag and smiling. "These are the buns my mom made early in the morning. She insisted that I bring them to you..."
Buns?
"You've helped us so much, and we feel indebted," Jin Panpan said, handing over the bag with a crescent-shaped smile. "I know you don't like spicy food but enjoy meat, so my mom put extra meat in them for you."
"Please thank your mom for me." Qing Yan had already had breakfast, but she still opened the bag and found a container and a thermos inside.
Qing Yan was puzzled. What was in the thermos?
"Freshly ground soy milk!" Jin Panpan said with a smile. "My mom ground it early in the morning. I'm not exaggerating, but it really tastes good!"
Qing Yan took a bite of the panda bun. "It's delicious."
Jin Panpan unscrewed the thermos for her. "Take your time to eat. I won't disturb your work."
Not long after she left, He Ning caught a whiff of the aroma and came in.
"President Qing..."
Rubbing his belly, the smell of breakfast was too tempting. He had overslept and hadn't had breakfast yet. He was famished.
"Do you want to eat?" Qing Yan raised an eyebrow.
"Yes!" He Ning looked at her expectantly, hoping she would offer him some.
"Come and get it." Qing Yan was generous enough.
He Ning happily took two buns. Well, one bite, and they were really delicious!
Just then, Qing Yan's phone vibrated. She checked and saw that it was a call from the piano association.
"President Qing, I won't disturb you," He Ning said, knowing she had important matters to attend to, and left on his own accord.
Qing Yan answered the call. "What's the matter?"
"Senior! In two days, there will be a piano award ceremony at the Melodious Grand Theater. I was wondering if you could grace us with your presence and present an award to the younger generation?" The voice on the phone was filled with flattery and caution. "Mainly, we want to encourage and inspire the younger participants. Otherwise, it has been three years since we had a heavyweight figure in this competition."
Mr. Long would never present awards to winners of such small competitions...
Even the organizers of international competitions had invited Mr. Long countless times, but he couldn't be bothered to go!
Although the chances of Qing Yan, a big-shot figure, appearing were extremely low...
But the other party still held onto a glimmer of hope. "Senior, please don't refuse, okay? Just consider it? If the younger generation knows that you're coming, they will definitely go further on the path of piano! It would be like mentoring them. Your presence would mean a lot to them!"
National Piano Competition?
Qing Yan remembered. The first place was Li Yusha, and the second place was Lu Muyao...
She wasn't too keen on being in the limelight.
"Let's talk about it later."
Seeing that she didn't outright refuse, there was still hope. The other party was overjoyed. "Alright then, I'll await your good news. I'll wait for your message, senior..."
At noon.
Qing Yan didn't go out for lunch with Si Yechen. After work, she went straight to the hospital.
"Qing Yan, you finally came!" Tang Yiyang was eating a boxed lunch in his office. When he saw her, he hurriedly asked if she had eaten.
Learning that she hadn't eaten, Tang Yiyang put down his chopsticks and went to the cafeteria to pack a meal for her.
Qing Yan initially declined because she wanted to see Grandma Lu first and then have a meal in the company cafeteria to see what dishes were available recently.
But Tang Yiyang was afraid she would go hungry, so he quickly went downstairs to pack the food.
Qing Yan arrived at the hospital and immediately noticed Grandma Lu holding a slender bracelet in her hand.
It was the bracelet she bought for the old lady with her first earned money...
Every time the old lady woke up, she would look for this thing. Once she found it, she would tightly hold it in her palm.
Qing Yan sat on the chair beside the hospital bed and gently took the bracelet from her hand. Unexpectedly, the old woman on the bed seemed to sense something and slowly opened her eyes.
"Yan Yan, you're here?" Li Yue'e's hair was white, and her appearance was kind. When she saw Qing Yan, her voice was filled with weak excitement. "You finally came..."
"Grandma."
As soon as Qing Yan spoke, tears welled up in the old woman's eyes. "Oh, oh, after sleeping for so many days, I finally hear the voice of my precious granddaughter..."
"Your health hasn't fully recovered yet, you mustn't get too excited." Qing Yan wiped away her tears, adjusted the head of the bed slowly, and poured her a glass of water. "Moisten your throat first."
"Oh, alright..." Li Yue'e took the water she handed over and obediently drank it. Then she held the soft hand of the girl. "Xu Aiqin and the others bullied you, didn't they?"
Qing Yan smiled gently, "No."
"A few days ago, when I woke up in a daze, I heard her saying she was going to send you back to your birth family..." Li Yue'e became angered at the thought of this, nearly losing her breath.
Qing Yan hurriedly patted her back and said, "Grandma, don't get excited. My biological parents are actually very good to me..."
"Really?"
"Yes." Qing Yan smiled gently. "Do I look like someone who has been mistreated in any way?"
Having lived a privileged life for many years, Li Yue'e could naturally tell that Qing Yan was wearing high-quality custom-made clothes, although she couldn't determine the brand, the fabric and style were top-notch...
Even her neck adorned a beautiful crown necklace.
Li Yue'e was taken aback. Why did that necklace look so familiar? It seemed like she had seen it somewhere...
But after searching her mind several times, she couldn't recall any impressions, so she decided to let it go.
Then she noticed a lovely butterfly bracelet on Qing Yan's wrist, made of many high-quality diamonds.
Her biological family should be well-off!
However...
The thought of such a well-behaved and lovely child not being her own granddaughter made Li Yue'e's heart ache, especially that heartless Xu Aiqin, who drove away such an outstanding child without any consideration for family ties!
"Grandma, if you see me getting so excited, I won't dare to come again in the future."
Hearing Qing Yan's joking remark, Li Yue'e smiled through her tears and hurriedly wiped them away. "No, if you have time, come visit Grandma... Otherwise, Grandma will miss you so much and won't know where to find you."
Qing Yan smiled softly. "Don't worry, I'll come to see you whenever I have time."
"Although you don't have the Lu family blood running in your veins, over the years, Grandma has already regarded you as her own granddaughter. Grandma even hopes to see you married!"
Qing Yan smiled and replied, "I'm afraid you'll have to wait a long time for that."
"Grandma doesn't mind waiting as long as you meet a good man who truly treats you well... Then Grandma will have no worries in this lifetime!" Li Yue'e patted her hand and said, "If your biological family treats you poorly, don't keep it a secret."
Qing Yan: ??
"When Grandma gets better, you come back to this home! Grandma will buy a new house and we'll live together, separate from them..."
Qing Yan knew that she could never go back to the Lu family in this lifetime, but she still spoke gently, "I will spend more time with you in the future."