novelbin Chapter 189: Bandit Chief
Chapter 189: Bandit Chief
Riley Perry walked over and opened the top box. Inside was a pair of palm-sized, milky-white Jade Ruyis. They felt warm to the touch—they were made of Warm Jade.
The second box held a set of imperial green jade jewelry of the finest, glass-like quality. It included a pair of jade hairpins, another pair of jade hairpins, earrings, a bracelet, a ring, and a beaded necklace.
The third box contained a Ruby headpiece set. The set consisted of six pieces, all inlaid with enormous red gems that were clearly priceless.
The last box held a Gold headdress set inlaid with gemstones. She counted carefully and found it comprised twenty-seven pieces: a full, traditional arrangement of hairpins, combs, and ornaments. The motif on every piece was the peony flower, and each one was exquisitely beautiful.
Putting everything else aside, this twenty-seven-piece headdress set alone would fetch a sky-high price at auction.
"These are all for me?"
At this, Iris Weldon’s eyes lit up. "Yes, they’re all yours! Your grandmother left them for you."
"My grandmother... she must have come from a prominent family, right?"
Iris Weldon broke into a smile. "For generations, your grandmother’s ancestors were all righteous heroes."
Riley Perry looked at Iris Weldon, confused.
"They specialized in robbing from the rich to give to the poor. In other words, they were bandit chiefs."
Riley’s jaw dropped. ’Holy cow!’
One look at the jewelry on the table was enough to tell just how big her grandmother’s family "business" had been.
"When your grandmother’s father inherited the family business, his perspective began to change. War had broken out, and the entire country was in chaos. He married seven concubines but only managed to have a single daughter—your grandmother. People like him were very superstitious. He believed his ancestors’ misdeeds had left him cursed to have no sons, so he decided to join the army to become a good man.
He took most of the family fortune, which had been amassed over generations in the mountains, and used it to fund the war effort. He left less than twenty percent for your grandmother’s dowry.
After your grandmother married your grandfather, they had three children. Her dowry was split into three portions, and each child received their share when they got married."
Unfortunately, your grandparents weren’t in good health and passed away young, so you never had the chance to meet them.
Then, as if remembering something, Iris Weldon pulled her daughter down to sit on the sofa.
"Let me explain something. Your sister, Dawn, is our adopted daughter. She’s the child of one of your father’s comrades. They were brothers-in-arms, closer than real brothers. Her father’s wife cheated on him, so they divorced. Then he was severely injured during a mission and entrusted his daughter to us before he died. So, our family adopted her.
Your sister was only six when she came to live with us. This was before you were born, and we raised her as our own.
She’s a very devoted daughter. Your father and brother are usually away with the military, so for all these years, I’ve been so grateful to have her here keeping me company.
And about the company—the family only gave her some seed money. She built the company up all on her own. But she gave the family sixty percent of the shares and kept thirty for herself. After the company went public, the family held twenty-six percent, and she held twenty-five. And today, she gave you five percent. She’s a genuinely good person."
Riley Perry nodded. ’She does seem very nice. Looking at her, she doesn’t seem like the deceitful type. And it feels like there’s more to my new sister than meets the eye.’ "I’ll be sure to get along with her," she said.
Iris Weldon patted her arm, satisfied. "That’s good, that’s good! Your father and I won’t be around forever. You three siblings need to get along so you can look out for each other in the future.
Oh, and your younger brother, too. You have to get along well with him."
In Iris Weldon’s eyes, her daughter had just come home, and she wanted nothing more than to cherish her and spoil her rotten. By extension, her opinion of the Perry Family, who had raised Riley, shot up dramatically. Take Shane Perry, for example. Even though she hadn’t met him yet, she already thought of him as one of her family’s own dear juniors.
They chatted for a while longer until it was time for lunch. The table was laden with over a dozen dishes, two of which Iris Weldon had cooked herself for her daughter.
At the table, the family relentlessly piled food into Riley Perry’s bowl. Anyone who had seen her TV show knew she had a bigger appetite than most, and they were worried she’d be too shy to eat her fill on her first day back home.
Riley Perry accepted everything they offered. The Valentine family’s chef was exceptional—every single dish was delicious. She ate with such gusto that the rest of the Valentines were inspired to eat an extra half-bowl of rice themselves.
In the afternoon, the family sat in the living room, watching TV and chatting idly. Ronald Valentine had barely had a chance to savor the warmth of the family reunion when he was called away by a phone call.
After he left, the conversation between the mother and her daughters became even more relaxed.
Iris Weldon could chat about anything and everything. Riley stayed at the Valentine estate until four in the afternoon, at which point she said she needed to head home.
"Why are you going back? Can’t you stay here at home?" Iris Weldon asked urgently, not wanting her daughter to leave.
Riley explained, "I have an audition tomorrow. I want to look over the script again tonight."
Dawn York thought for a moment, then realization dawned. "Is it for Director Chenning’s *Female Police Officer*? Which role are you auditioning for?"
"The female lead."
Dawn York nodded knowingly. "Director Chenning must have been impressed by your action scenes. Are you confident you’ll get it?"
"A lot of people will be auditioning for one of Director Chenning’s films. I’m not really confident, but I’ll give it my best shot and leave the rest to luck."
This time, Iris Weldon didn’t object. ’Ah, so she wasn’t just making an excuse. She really does have something to do.’ "In that case, have your older brother take you home," she said. "Didn’t he buy you a new car? You can drive it back."
The car, of course, was still at the dealership. Warren Valentine had planned on taking his sister to pick it up anyway; he just hadn’t expected her to be leaving so soon.
Riley Perry didn’t refuse. She hadn’t driven here, having arrived in Warren Valentine’s car.
"Then I’ll have to trouble my brother."
Warren Valentine insisted it was no trouble at all. ’She’s my little sister. How could anything for her be a ’trouble’?’
’It’s what I’m supposed to do!’
And so, an hour later, Riley Perry was driving her new car back to The Elysian Gardens, with Warren Valentine following behind her in his own vehicle.
A car worth over forty million was truly something else. The interior was exquisite down to the last detail, and with its full carbon-fiber body, even the feel of driving it was on another level.
’This family reunion was really worth it,’ she thought. ’This custom Koenigsegg alone is worth over forty million, and all the things the Valentines gave me must add up to several hundred million. And that’s not even counting the Stellux shares.’ She was practically bubbling with happiness.
Everyone has a different definition of happiness, but no matter the kind, a solid financial foundation is absolutely essential.
After pulling into the garage, she remembered she’d asked Rocco to pick up a Lincoln for her today. It seemed she was running out of parking spaces.
Fortunately, parking wasn’t too tight in this complex. The original owner had purchased two spots, so she just needed to buy one more to have enough.
Warren Valentine watched his sister park the car with a steady hand and breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He helped her carry everything from the trunk upstairs, placing it all on the coffee table for her to sort through later. He glanced around the living room, then asked cautiously, "Do you mind if I look around your place?"
"Of course. Go right ahead."