The CEO’s Substitute Wife Is A Genius

Chapter 27: Chapter 27: She Dares to Touch a Painting Worth Hundreds of Millions? Chapter 27: Chapter 27: She Dares to Touch a Painting Worth Hundreds of Millions? “Little sister-in-law… this isn’t the place to show off…” Wen Jingya continued with her ‘kind reminder’.

Old Master Song looked toward Jiang Man, initially stunned.

“It’s you, young lady!” he quickly exclaimed as he leaped from his armchair, excitedly stepping forward, “I just knew that Heaven would grant us a chance to meet again!”

Everyone was taken aback, expressing confusion at this scene of familial recognition.

Only Lu Xingzhou raised his eyebrows, understanding everything.

So Jiang Man was the bad girl hooking up with Old Master Song that Song Xiao talked about?

“Oh dear, that good-for-nothing grandson of mine has run off to fool around outside again!” lamented Old Master Song, slapping his thigh and momentarily forgetting the pressing matters at hand, his heart set on setting up Jiang Man with his eldest grandson.

Jiang Man smiled gently, glancing sideways, “Grandfather, about this painting…”

It was then that Old Master Song remembered, with surprise in his eyes, “You can restore ancient paintings too?”

“A little,” Jiang Man modestly replied, but it was far from ‘a little.’ The esteemed Shui You Master they had been crazily flattering just a moment ago was her!

“Manman, this isn’t the place to assert your presence. This painting is Old Master Song’s treasure, not a toy. It’s already damaged, so don’t make things worse!” Aunt Lu Xuemei said impatiently, pulling Jiang Man away while speaking.

The trouble was caused by her own husband, so even though second aunt Meng Lian also disliked Jiang Man’s boastful airs without a hint of modesty, she restrained herself and said nothing.

Instead, she walked over to her husband, tugging at him and signaling him to behave and not cause any more trouble.

“Old Master, please rest assured; we will cover the cost of the painting’s restoration. We are truly sorry,” Meng Lian said while bowing apologetically to Old Master Song.

Old Master Song rolled his eyes and huffed, his face showing disdain.

He turned his gaze to Jiang Man, speaking tenderly, “Young lady, this painting is no ordinary one. Apart from Master Shui You, no one else could restore it.”

“Grandfather, trust me, I can restore it,” Jiang Man declared with conviction to the old man, her gaze burning with an immovable force.

“Little sister-in-law… can we not make a fuss, please?” Wen Jingya wanted to roll her eyes.

Her godfather already caused enough trouble, and now there was Jiang Man to deal with!

What on earth did grandma see in this wild girl?

“Brother Zhou… could you please reason with little sister-in-law?” Wen Jingya sighed in exasperation, giving Lu Xingzhou a look that begged for help.

Lu Xingzhou’s eyebrows knitted tightly, his expression serious, “Jiang Man, this isn’t play-acting. Stand behind me and stay out of this.”

“Trust me, when the tea stain completely dries, no matter whether it’s water or fire, even if the Emperor of Heaven himself came, it can’t be restored,” Jiang Man said coldly, her eyes filled with irritation.

Every antique was precious to her.

This painting that had been destroyed was an original work by Tang Yin!

In this world, there’s no more Tang Bohu; only his paintings live on through the ages.

Such masterpieces, once damaged, are irreplaceable; losing one means one less in existence!

Jiang Man exuded an undeniable aura of ferocity, determined to save the painting; no one could stand in her way!

Lu Xingzhou was stunned by her determination, his mouth agape in surprise.

Where did she get this confidence from?

Could it be she truly had the skill?

How could that be?

Everyone said that apart from Old Qin and Shui You, no one could restore the painting properly.

The country’s prominent restoration masters could be counted on one hand, Jiang Man was unheard of, and none knew her true abilities or if she was just bluffing.

“Grandfather Song, trust me,” Jiang Man said, pushing past the obstructing Wen Jingya to approach Old Master Song.

Old Master Song hesitated for a moment.

He knew the girl wouldn’t mess around. He vividly recalled the scene of her outwitting the swindler at the night market.

“Then give it a try.”

“Mm.”

Jiang Man responded firmly, her face stern, “I need some tools, please have someone prepare them for me, grandfather.”

“Alright, just tell me what you need,” Old Master Song said.

When they realized that the old Mr. Song actually intended to let a naive girl restore the original work of Tang Bohu, everyone immediately erupted into an uproar.

The Song Family’s old butler didn’t have high hopes for Jiang Man and rushed to a corner to immediately call Song Xiao: “Young Master, you need to come home at once, there’s trouble!”

“Why does the old man trust Jiang Man so much?”

“I really don’t know where that girl gets her confidence from, she’s so ignorant of the world! Wait until she ruins the painting, then let’s see how she explains it to the old man!”

“It would be bad if this causes conflict between the Lu and Song families.”

“Don’t blame your sister-in-law, she just wants to do her best for her godfather, her intentions are good,” Wen Jingya interjected.

The people from the Lu Family immediately became agitated.

“Who knows what her real motives are? I heard she swapped her marriage partners on purpose—she’s got plenty of tricks up her sleeve!”

“Isn’t that the truth? Zhou’er was originally supposed to marry Jiang Man, not this one!”

“I just can’t stand her, isn’t she the one who only attended school for three years? She probably can’t even recognize all the characters, let alone restore a painting. Frankly, I think fixing cars would suit her better.”

The whispers of the Lu Family members grew nastier.

Lu Xingzhou couldn’t stand it anymore. Although the aunties were speaking in low voices, he still heard some of it.

“Quiet! Anyone who continues to make noise can get out! The old man did not allow you to come to his house and cause a commotion!”

His stern reprimand was effective, and the study fell silent immediately.

Jiang Man was not affected in the least; when she concentrated on something, even if someone held a knife to her throat, she could remain calm without blinking an eye.

“Miss, everything you requested is right here,”
Soon, a servant brought over a tray.

In the tray were distilled water, brushes, a large wooden comb, rice paper, and a dozen other items.

“Grandpa Song, if anyone makes noise again, you just kick them out. I need absolute quiet while I restore the painting,” Jiang Man said to the old master before starting.

Seeing this, the Lu third aunts and sixth aunts were scornful inside, thinking that she was just putting on airs.

They were eager to see, if the painting got ruined, how this wild girl Jiang Man would handle the aftermath.

Wouldn’t it be fun if the heirloom that had just come into her hands was snatched back by the old lady!

“Godfather, godmother, please take a seat,” Wen Jingya helped Uncle Lu and Aunt Lu to one side.

Meng Lian sighed, feeling it was such a pity.

She really couldn’t understand what Xingzhou was thinking, preferring to marry a wild girl with no real talent, but who loved to show off, instead of a sensible, well-behaved Jingya.

Just look how great a girl Jingya is.

And then look at Jiang Man, who is nothing but trouble!

“Godfather, godmother, actually, it’s a good thing if the sister-in-law wants to show off. If she ruins the painting later, she’ll have to take on greater responsibility. At that time, godfather, your own responsibility will be lessened. If Old Mr. Song turns against you, we’ll just push all the responsibility onto the sister-in-law.”

“You’re so smart, Jingya!” Uncle Lu patted Wen Jingya’s shoulder, very comforted.

Although he was the one who had caused trouble, Jiang Man was helping him out, but he felt no gratitude and took a puff from his e-cigarette from his pocket, waiting to watch Jiang Man take the blame for him.

Jiang Man, holding her tools, bent over meticulously restoring the painting.

The onlookers could only see her silhouette, and her hands that kept moving up and down.

Undeniably, Jiang Man at this moment was very different from her usual self.

She was wearing a traditional cheongsam, and every movement seemed to harmonize with the outfit she was wearing.

Lu Xingzhou had a moment of daze, feeling that she possessed an indescribable classical beauty.

The sunlight filtered through the glass window, casting brilliant light across the room, and she, facing the light, shimmered gloriously.

“It’s done!” After an unknown amount of time, the elegantly dressed woman in the cheongsam stood up straight, took off her rubber gloves with a stylish flair, and tossed them accurately into the trash can.

Slap—
The decisive sound shocked everyone back to reality….