Lin Haoyu looked at the butler who had appeared suddenly. "Grandfather?"
The butler nodded gracefully. "Yes, Sixth Miss. The Master wishes to see you now."
Lin Haoyu immediately turned to look at Sun Shuhui.
Sun Shuhui gently patted Lin Haoyu's hand and asked the butler, "May I accompany Sixth Sister?"
The butler bowed his head slightly. "Fourth Madam, the Master has requested to see Sixth Miss specifically. The Old Madam is also present."
"Go with the butler, dear. Your grandmother is there—your grandfather probably just wants to see how your health is recovering." Sun Shuhui let out a relieved breath, her gaze soft as she encouraged her daughter.
Lin Haoyu said softly, "Mm."
"Don't be scared, Mommy's here." Sun Shuhui couldn't help but soothe her daughter, then glanced at the butler.
Lin Haoyu smiled. "Mommy, I'm not scared. I'm just going to see Grandmother and Grandfather."
Sun Shuhui was afraid of Lin Zhenhua, so she couldn't help but worry that Lin Haoyu, who had barely interacted with Lin Zhenhua, would also be frightened. Sigh—how many people in the entire Lin family weren't afraid of Lin Zhenhua?
Lin Haoyu followed the butler to see Lin Zhenhua with curiosity and slight confusion. She knew what Lin Zhenhua looked like—there were photos of him in the house—but she had no real sense of connection to Lin Zhenhua as her grandfather. The original owner of this body had barely seen him a few times a year, and she herself hadn't seen him even once since transmigrating.
Scared?
Lin Haoyu wasn't scared. There was nothing to be afraid of. Lin Zhenhua was, after all, her biological grandfather.
"Grandmother." Lin Haoyu greeted Lin Lizhen first, then shifted her gaze slightly to the man sitting beside her. Lin Zhenhua, past sixty, showed no signs of aging. He was vigorous and spirited, his eyes constantly flashing with sharpness. No beer belly—his body remained sturdy and upright, his hair thick and jet black. Lin Haoyu knew it was dyed, combed meticulously into a slicked-back style. He didn't look like a man in his sixties; one might even say he looked fifty.
An old man who remained remarkably charming even in his later years.
Lin Zhenhua's gaze seemed to pierce right through her. Lin Haoyu felt like whatever she was thinking would be seen through by him, so she simply stopped thinking altogether and greeted him obediently and respectfully. "Grandfather."
Lin Zhenhua's eyes swept over this granddaughter he had long overlooked, scrutinizing her like bolts of lightning. After a long moment, he raised his hand to point at the sofa across from him. "Sit."
Lin Haoyu, who had been standing through the "interrogation," plopped herself down without ceremony. Whatever this grandfather wanted to do, no one was going to steal her position as the number one slacker in the Lin family.
Lin Zhenhua's brow lifted almost imperceptibly. This youngest granddaughter was different. In the past, the younger generation had been like mice before a cat when they saw him—even his most valued eldest grandson, Lin Kangzong, was somewhat stiff and formal in his presence.
Lin Lizhen smoothly stepped in to smooth things over. "I recall you went to the Guan family's boutique today to pick up your dress, Little Six. Did you like the custom-made gown?"
Lin Haoyu replied, "Yes, Grandmother. I loved it. The dress is beautiful."
"Then I look forward to seeing you wear it—you'll look stunning." Lin Lizhen said kindly, then brought up the charity auction a few days away.
Lin Haoyu was good at summarizing her role: she just needed to dress herself up beautifully and follow Lin Lizhen out the door. No worries about anything else. Perfect—she liked it. She'd treat it as a day out to have fun.
Lin Lizhen kept chatting with Lin Haoyu while Lin Zhenhua sat to the side, silent and still, as if intently listening to their conversation. Lin Haoyu simply put him out of her mind.
Until Lin Zhenhua spoke up with a question. "Little Six is almost eighteen?"
Lin Haoyu paused for a moment before responding. "Mm."
Lin Lizhen said with a smile, "Come November, Little Six turns eighteen. We could hold a birthday banquet for her then. Also, I've asked her tutor—Little Six has been catching up with her studies recently. The tutor says she's smart, and nothing about her studies is too difficult for her. Getting into a top university next year won't be a problem."
Lin Zhenhua revealed a satisfied smile. "Good. Study hard. Members of the Lin family must attend the best universities."
Lin Haoyu looked at the two of them, feeling inexplicably strange, as if something was off. But Lin Zhenhua and Lin Lizhen said nothing more. Lin Lizhen reminded her to study hard while not neglecting her health—that her health came first—and then let her leave.
So Lin Zhenhua had just had a sudden whim to see her?
"Zhenhua, do you have plans for Little Six?" Lin Lizhen was also puzzled by this meeting. Only after seeing Lin Haoyu off did she seize the chance to ask.
Lin Zhenhua leaned back against the sofa, idly turning the jade thumb ring on his left hand. Lost in thought, he spoke slowly. "I just had an idea come to me. Nothing is decided yet, so I can't say. As for Little Six's health—can it be completely cured?"
"Dr. Xue has confirmed it. Little Six's body is now not much different from a normal person's. Just to be safe, she still needs to take medicine to nourish her health. I've discussed it with Dr. Xue—we'll arrange for several authoritative physicians to take her pulse together, and we'll also send her to the hospital for a full-body examination." Lin Lizhen shared her arrangements.
Lin Zhenhua said, "Lizhen, you've arranged things well. Little Six is worth the Lin family's investment. This child seems promising—she has guts."
Lin Lizhen smiled: "Little Six is indeed not a timid child. She has a steady temperament and is quite clever." She went on to mention Celestial Master Zhang's physiognomy reading of Lin Haoyu. "This child is blessed. If she weren't, how could her health have gradually improved?"
Moreover, Lin Haoyu possessed a naturally stunning face. While wealthy families didn't judge solely on looks, beauty was still a resource—who didn't like attractive people? And Lin Haoyu wasn't just ordinarily pretty; given time, she would surely grow into a breathtaking beauty.
Lin Lizhen mused that her youngest son marrying Sun Shuhui wasn't without its benefits—at least Little Six and Little Seven had looks that were unmatched by anyone else in the family.
"Did he only say that? Nothing else?" Sun Shuhui asked Lin Haoyu to recount word for word everything she had told Lin Lizhen and Lin Zhenhua.
Lin Haoyu: "No, Grandfather really just wanted to see me."
Sun Shuhui couldn't figure it out and could only say: "Maybe that really is all it was."
"Mommy, what did you think Grandfather would talk to me about? Giving me a gift?" Lin Haoyu joked.
Sun Shuhui shook her head: "No, when your grandfather wants to give you children gifts, it's always your grandmother who prepares them. Never mind. As long as you're fine, that's what matters."
Lin Haoyu decisively stopped thinking about Lin Zhenhua. That grandfather wasn't so scary after all. If he'd given her a welcome gift, he'd be a kind and respectable grandfather, haha.
"Did Grandfather ask about me when he saw you?" Lin Kangrui ran over to Lin Haoyu, his face pale.
Lin Haoyu: "Huh? What did you say?"
"No?" Lin Kangrui let out a sigh of relief, then his face slowly flushed red as he said angrily, "Grandfather and Grandmother don't care at all about what I do!"
Lin Haoyu was dumbfounded. She understood—adolescent angst made one the center of the world. Lin Kangrui had realized he wasn't the center, so getting angry or sulky was normal. She sympathetically patted her angsty younger brother: "No one's bothering you—shouldn't you be happy? If Grandfather really did care about you, you'd be the one crying."
Lin Kangrui's temper came and went quickly, and he immediately cheered up: "That's right!" He was actually a little hurt, but not much.
"You just got back from outside and you already knew Grandfather saw me?" Lin Haoyu glanced at the clock. At this hour, Lin Kangrui would normally still be out roaming and not home yet.
"I ran into Lin Kangyao on the way, and he told me Grandfather was looking for you. I thought Grandfather was asking about me, so I rushed home. Hmph, Lin Kangyao." Lin Kangrui grabbed at his hair, belatedly realizing he'd been played by Lin Kangyao.
Lin Haoyu: "So it was Lin Kangyao."
Lin Kangyao was no pushover either.
Lin Haoyu was prepared, but when Lin Haoxin and Lin Haofei came one after another to probe her, she felt a bit numb. Family, can't we have a little more sincerity?
Sincerity was out of the question—everyone was fighting for their own interests.
Lin Haoyu could only sigh. Lin Zhenhua truly lived up to being the head of the Lin family. He merely moved his lips, and the whole family stirred into commotion. She had become like a hot commodity, with everyone wanting to crowd in for a bite.