I suggest you investigate; this person doesn't seem to be a first-time reborn individual.

After leaving the bank, Li Futing looked nervous, frequently touching the backpack behind her to make sure it was still there.

Inside was 15 yuan in cash that Lin Ran had just withdrawn; she had never seen so much money in her life.

"Relax, are you afraid people won't know you have valuables in your bag?"

Lin Ran found Li Futing's nervous appearance somewhat amusing.

Today, Li Futing wore a sky-blue T-shirt and a pure white skirt, revealing a small section of her white, reflective calves. She also wore a pair of canvas shoes, looking very youthful and lively.

Now, she needs to pay attention to the road conditions at all times when pushing Lin Ran.

However, this actually made her straighten her back, and her gaze unconsciously turned to the front and her surroundings.

Lin Ran noticed all of Li Futing's changes.

However, he knew that it would probably not be possible to completely change her overnight.

On August 1, the two arrived at a high-end hotel in the city.

Three hours later, the two came out of the hotel.

Lin Ran showed the hotel manager his proposed group purchase plan for the graduation banquet, paid a deposit of 10 yuan, and successfully obtained the group purchase agreement price from the hotel.

In the afternoon, Lin Ran hired more than a dozen college students who were on vacation to hand out flyers at post offices and school gates throughout the city.

Damn, college students are really cheap.

The group-buying price for high-end hotels is only slightly higher than that of ordinary hotels. Most people had never considered high-end hotels before and thought that holding a graduation banquet there would be extremely expensive. They didn't expect it to be so cheap.

The price-performance ratio is far superior to those mid-to-low-end hotels, and Lin Ran's phone was ringing off the hook in just one day.

Damn, college students are not only cheap, but also easy to use.

On August 3, despite Li Futing's quiet objections, Lin Ran insisted on registering her for the "Searching for Memories of the Old Town in the East" art competition and personally selected several paintings for her.

What Lin Ran found somewhat strange was that there wasn't a single portrait in Li Futing's art book.

That evening, the two of them each took an acceptance letter and went home separately.

One is Jiangning University, and the other is also...

Li Futing applied to Jiangning University to study fine arts, while Lin Ran applied to study economics.

In this life, he did not heed Lin Feng's advice to "go to Shanghai to study at university and broaden his horizons," and insisted on staying in his home province.

The reasons given are also quite compelling: Jiangdong Province boasts the most favorable entrepreneurial policies in the country.

While this is true, only Lin Ran himself knows whether there are other reasons.

August 15th has arrived in the blink of an eye, with only one week left before the start of university.

Lin Ran arrived at the design company where Li Futing was currently working part-time, carrying an envelope and a bright red certificate.

More than a week ago, Li Futing had already resigned from her job, saying that Lin Ran had recovered from her illness and no longer needed her care.

They only accept the salary for the period before Lin Ran was discharged from the hospital; they are unwilling to accept anything more.

Well, she didn't earn a single extra penny of salary, and she even lost a wheelchair. Lin Ran was worried that Li Futing wouldn't be able to save up for college tuition.

Lin Ran couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he had to agree. However, through Lin Feng's connections, he found a design company to work with and got Li Futing a job as a scanner.

Quiet and independent, wearing a dust-proof mask can avoid a lot of social interaction.

Most importantly, she has access to all sorts of hand-drawn design sketches and creative drafts, which provides her with an excellent visual resource library.

Congratulations, Teacher Lanlan!

Lin Ran handed the item to Li Futing and smiled at her: "First prize, five thousand yuan."

"So many!"

Li Futing took it from Lin Ran. Although the mask covered most of her face, her beautiful eyes still revealed her excitement.

This was the first time she had experienced the real practical value that her profession brought.

"Lanlan, I can't come over for the next couple of days."

Li Futing was taken aback: "What happened?"

"It's okay, I'm going to stay at my grandma's house in the countryside for a few days."

Lin Ran casually wiped the dust from her temples. "But I'll be back before school starts, and then we'll go to school together."

"Mmm." Li Futing nodded obediently, her fingertips tightly gripping the certificate.

-----------------

In the afternoon, at my maternal grandmother's house.

Besides Lin Ran's family, his uncle's family was also there.

Grandma deftly plucked the green beans from the vines and tossed them into a bamboo basket. Uncle and Lin Feng silently carried the full basket, while Aunt and Wang Meiling squatted by the well to wash them. My two younger cousins ​​stood on tiptoe to pick the green beans from the bottom.

"Ouch!"

Suddenly, a cry of surprise rang out. My cousin, Wang Ruoqing, slipped and landed hard on her bottom, the two green beans she had just picked flying far away.

Sitting on a small stool, holding a palm-leaf fan, Lin Ran, who was supervising the work from the side, couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Although he immediately managed to hold it in, his shoulders were still suspiciously trembling.

Wang Ruoqing was fine at first, but her cousin's smile made her feel a little wronged.

She scrambled to her feet and ran to her grandmother's side, pointing at Lin Ran and pouting as she complained:

"Grandma, my second brother is making fun of me because he doesn't do any work!"

"Your second brother's leg is injured, don't let him come over, it would be bad if it got wet," Grandma said without turning her head.

"Lin Er!"

Wang Meiling's eyes precisely locked onto the perpetrator: "Leg injured, hand injured too? Go sit over there and pick the green beans!"

Lin Ran touched his nose, slowly moved to the empty bamboo stool by the well, and joined the bean sorting at the very end of the assembly line.

My cousin, Wang Ruosong, quietly crept over and squatted down next to him for a while.

He suddenly whispered, "Second brother, you've already broken four or five of them in such a short time."

Lin Ran glanced down at his failed attempt, then said without changing his expression, "It's okay, I'll feed the chickens in a bit."

"Chickens don't eat green beans..."

After the family finished processing the green beans, the uncle called Lin Ran to the back of the house.

He looked around to make sure no one was there, then pulled five red banknotes out of his pocket.

"Here you go." He stuffed it directly into Lin Ran's hand. "You're going to university soon, so keep some pocket money on hand."

Lin Ran was taken aback: "Uncle, I don't need to..."

"Just take it!"

His uncle interrupted him, his tone leaving no room for argument, "It's expensive in the city. Your mother raised you two brothers all by herself; it wasn't easy for her."

He glanced warily in the direction of the house again: "Don't tell your aunt, put it away quickly."

After saying that, he didn't give Lin Ran another chance to refuse. He patted Lin Ran on the shoulder, turned around and left: "Let's go back and eat."

A large table was set for lunch, with homegrown vegetables, beer from Jingshui Town, Grandma's signature braised pork, and freshly caught river fish from that morning. The family sat around the table, the bowls and chopsticks clattering.

Halfway through the meal, Auntie suddenly put down her chopsticks, her gaze shifting between Uncle and Lin Ran, and said with a smile:

"Ah Ran, did your uncle... give you money?"

The table fell silent instantly.

Lin Ran was chewing rice when he subconsciously glanced at his uncle, who froze for a moment as he ate his rice.

Wang Meiling was a little confused: "What money? No need..."

"I gave it to him." Lin Ran swallowed his food and confessed honestly.

My aunt's smile deepened: "How much did you give?"

The uncle stopped completely, coughed awkwardly, and everyone's eyes immediately turned to him.

He slowly put down the bowl, and under the watchful eyes of his family, reached into another pocket and pulled out a few more red banknotes.

"Oh dear... your uncle forgot a few when he gave them to you earlier."

With a natural expression, he pushed five hundred-yuan bills in front of Lin Ran, "Here, take it."

His aunt stared at him, her face expressionless.

My uncle lowered his head and ate his rice with gusto, trying to appear calm.

No one in the family said a word.

Suddenly, my aunt spoke softly to my uncle, like a devil's whisper: "Too little."

My uncle's fingers trembled, and his old face turned red. He suddenly got up and walked to the kitchen. When he came out, he had a tin biscuit box in his hand.

In front of everyone, he opened the box, counted out ten more bills, put them together with the previous stack, and pushed them all in front of Lin Ran.

Lin Ran stared wide-eyed at his honest and unassuming uncle, whom he remembered as a simple and honest man.

Your aunt gave you two thousand, and you embezzled one thousand five hundred from me?!

"Pfft—" Wang Ruoqing was the first to burst out laughing.

Next was Wang Ruosong, then his aunt, and even Wang Meiling couldn't help but shake her head with a smile.

Grandma pointed at Uncle and laughed, "You even dared to cut back on the money you give your nephew! You'd hide money like it was sewn into your crotch, now you've confessed everything, haven't you?"

The uncle remained silent, focusing only on eating his rice.