Chapter 48: Nan Zhiyi’s Attacks Are All Dodged

By the time Qin Xuan finished dragging his nearly broken leg through their shopping trip, it was almost six o’clock.

“Zhiyi, come have dinner at our place,” Liu Ruoxi invited, holding onto Nan Zhiyi’s arm.

“I’d better not disturb you,” Nan Zhiyi replied quietly.

“It’s fine, come on!” Faced with Liu Ruoxi’s warmth, Nan Zhiyi could only cry inwardly: This isn’t what I wanted!

Soon, Nan Zhiyi found herself eating at a table laden with dishes, savoring every bite until her mouth shone with oil...

After the meal, Nan Zhiyi didn’t linger. She rested for a moment, then prepared to leave.

“Zhiyi, let me take you home. You’ve got so much stuff.”

Nan Zhiyi glanced at the two bags in her hands, falling into silent contemplation. Brother, can’t you come up with a better excuse?

But Qin Xuan shamelessly took Nan Zhiyi’s things anyway—clearly influenced by Liu Ruoxi.

Nan Zhiyi remained silent on the walk, feeling as if the short distance stretched endlessly. She knew Qin Xuan must have something on his mind.

As soon as they entered her home, Qin Xuan hadn’t even set down the bags when Nan Zhiyi pressed him against the door. Their similar heights brought them face to face.

Staring at the dewy face before him, Qin Xuan couldn’t help but say, “Could you step aside? Your breath reeks of scallions…”

Nan Zhiyi thought: Damn it! Isn’t that thanks to your delicious fried dumplings?

She took the bags from Qin Xuan’s hands, tossed them onto the sofa, then opened the fridge and handed him a bottle of cola.

“Go on, what’s up?”

Qin Xuan opened the cola and took a couple of gulps before finally speaking.

“I already have a girlfriend.”

“I know. And?” Nan Zhiyi leaned on the sofa, smiling sweetly at him.

“I mean you... should stop doing those things!”

“What things? Come on, say it.” Qin Xuan knew Nan Zhiyi was teasing him again.

“Nan Zhiyi! With your great qualities and all those admirers, could you stop messing with me? I’d like to live a few more days!”

Nan Zhiyi only smiled brighter at his words, saying nothing, her gaze fixed on him.

Seeing her expression, Qin Xuan understood her meaning and calmed himself.

“Why do you like me? I really feel undeserving…”

Nan Zhiyi finally spoke softly, “Do you remember when we got lost as kids?”

He nodded, and she continued, “I only knew how to cry back then, but you kept comforting me.”

“Really? Did that happen?” Qin Xuan looked confused.

“Back then, I didn’t know what it meant to like someone. But from that moment, I started dressing up.” Nan Zhiyi felt a bit embarrassed—she’d been such a mischievous child, always playing in the mud. Who would have guessed that the gentle, graceful girl of today was once so wild?

Qin Xuan thought: So the way you are now is somehow because of me?

“So when I realized you were Aunt Wang’s son, do you know how happy I was?” Nan Zhiyi recalled.

Qin Xuan sighed, “Even so, I still can’t accept it. Let’s just leave it at that, or we won’t even be friends.”

He finished speaking and, without a backward glance at Nan Zhiyi’s pitiful expression, pushed open the door and left. Nan Zhiyi stared at his retreating figure, unsure what to say.

That jerk! Not even a chance to sneak into his heart?

Furious, Nan Zhiyi slammed the sofa. Just wait, Qin Xuan! I refuse to believe this!

Unbeknownst to her, Qin Xuan left feeling conflicted. Do I really have this kind of charm? He pulled out his phone and showed off to the screen—looks like he’s still pretty handsome!

When Qin Xuan returned home, he was instantly pinned to the sofa by Liu Ruoxi and Qin Lin’er.

“Speak! Where did you go?” Liu Ruoxi pressed her bare foot to his chest, poking him.

“I just delivered her stuff, look,” Qin Xuan waved the cola in his hand, “I haven’t even finished it.”

“Oh…” Liu Ruoxi signaled Qin Lin’er to release him. “I’ll trust you this once, but don’t go eyeing the pot when you’ve got food in your bowl! If I find out, I’ll kill you!”

“Yeah, kill you!” Qin Lin’er chimed in.

“Don’t start, weren’t you just swearing that your brother must’ve gone off to do something shady?” Liu Ruoxi turned to Qin Lin’er, who suddenly felt guilty.

Watching Qin Lin’er being dragged away, Qin Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. He dreaded Liu Ruoxi pursuing the matter—though he’d lied to her, it wasn’t out of malice.

Thinking about it, Qin Xuan returned to his room and sat in front of the computer, unconsciously starting up a game.

It wasn’t until the door was pushed open that he looked back. Liu Ruoxi, munching on an apple, ambled over, saw him gaming again, and sighed.

“Why are boys so obsessed with games?”

Qin Xuan turned, replying, “Just like girls love cosmetics, it’s in our nature!”

“But I don’t like makeup. So could you stop playing games?”

“Sorry, not possible.”

“Pfft, lousy and still so obsessed!” Liu Ruoxi mocked, glancing at Qin Xuan’s grayscale screen.

“You don’t get it! That’s just a mistake. Besides, if I don’t play games, what else is there?”

He shrugged helplessly.

“You could play… with me!” Liu Ruoxi’s words made Qin Xuan freeze.

“Come off it, can’t you be serious for once?”

“Nope! Why should I act proper in front of my boyfriend?” Liu Ruoxi answered matter-of-factly.

Well, there’s no response to that!

“Are you done playing? Time to sleep. We have class tomorrow—so annoying!” Liu Ruoxi, already sneaking onto the bed, left only her head poking out when Qin Xuan turned around.

Good grief, at that, Qin Xuan couldn’t even find his mouse—forget the game, he logged out 0–8 in record time!

After a quick wash, he jumped onto the bed, his arm instinctively reaching out to pull Liu Ruoxi into his embrace. He must have grown used to it.

The two chatted away, with Qin Xuan occasionally pulling little tricks that made Liu Ruoxi’s cheeks flush rosy red.

Somehow, their conversation drifted to Qin Lin’er.

“So, what do you think of Lin’er?” Liu Ruoxi played with Qin Xuan’s hand, suddenly asking.

“Lin’er? She’s my little sister,” Qin Xuan was puzzled by the question.

“Can’t you see that Lin’er likes you? And your relationship isn’t exactly…”

Qin Xuan’s heart skipped a beat. “Don’t say that. She probably just sees me as her brother—don’t joke about such things!”

Liu Ruoxi shot him a look. “Come on, Lin’er’s told me herself, I’m just testing your reaction!”

“What the hell? No way, I can’t accept that!” Qin Xuan exclaimed, touching Liu Ruoxi’s cheek. “Having you is enough.”

“Liar!” Liu Ruoxi scolded, “You’d better stay clear-headed. I feel Lin’er’s obsession with you is getting out of hand!”

“Mm,” Qin Xuan drifted off, mind elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Qin Lin’er was flipping through photos of Qin Xuan on her phone. The more she looked, the more she liked him.

After learning she wasn’t Qin Xuan’s biological sister, besides disbelief, something forbidden began to stir inside her. According to her mother, she’d been adopted from an orphanage because her father always wanted a daughter. Watching his wife give birth was so taxing, he refused to let her go through it again, so Qin Lin’er entered their lives.

Qin Lin’er felt fine about it, never thought to find her biological parents—not because she was cold-hearted, but the orphanage said her parents had passed away, and relatives refused to raise her, leaving her at the orphanage door.

So, to Qin Lin’er, Wang Manshu and Qin Jianguo were her parents. But her brother—was not.