A Guide to Capturing the Gentle Older Sister - Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Love springs up from nowhere, yet it runs deep.

The late-night chat from that evening was like the stars of that night, fading away the instant dawn arrived, only occasionally resurfacing in Yu Weiwei’s mind.

The 603 dorm room still maintained its 1:3 ratio of single-to-taken status. You could say it was a form of cosmic balance.

Yu Weiwei wasn’t exactly single since birth. Back in high school, she had hidden from her parents and secretly accepted a male classmate’s pursuit. It was just that her mom’s eyes and ears were everywhere, both inside and outside the school. Under that dense grid of parental infrared lasers, even holding hands had to be done on the sly, so they quickly admitted defeat.

Come on, they were just chasing a little bit of youthful flutter, not trying to play guerrilla warfare with their teachers.

And university was barely worth mentioning. Everyone knew the male-to-female ratio in the English department. Plus, once Yu Weiwei left her parents, she met this bunch of like-minded weirdos in 603. She was like a fish in water, so happy she forgot all about home—how could she find the spare focus to date?

It was just that the experiences of Mi Shushu and Kuang Yao couldn’t help but make her wonder: what exactly is love?

Some people don’t change for years. Even when they clearly know there are hardships and obstacles ahead, they never turn back. Others walk together for a long time, yet still inevitably drift apart.

So, what is it that people are seeking?

“Ah, I’m at the library. Yeah, yeah, I’m really studying. It’s going pretty well, not too difficult. Go abroad?”

Under a large tree by the library entrance, Yu Weiwei was on the phone with her mom.

Her mom’s last sentence gave her quite a shock.

“Why did you suddenly think of having me go abroad? Are you two really willing to not see your precious daughter even twice a year?”

On the other end, Ms. Wu was grading students’ homework while talking on the phone. “If you don’t want to take the postgraduate entrance exam, and you don’t want to work yet either, then start preparing to go abroad early. Your older cousin signed a job contract over there, so she can look after you. Your dad and I are still young too; without you around, we’ll actually have some peace of mind.”

“Huh? Cousin Shanshan isn’t coming back?” Yu Weiwei was a bit shocked. Yu Shan was the most outstanding child on her father’s side of the family, always independent from a young age. After graduating from a top-two university, she went abroad to study. Before this, she had even mentioned she’d be returning to China soon and would take Yu Weiwei out to dinner right away.

“Other people have their own plans. As for you, you’ve had no independent mind since you were little, only knowing how to make your dad and me worry. Anyway, make a decision early and prepare early. Don’t drag your feet.” Ms. Wu’s words were crisp and efficient.

Yu Weiwei: “…”

Even though you say I’ve had no independent mind since I was little! But would you two please look at exactly why that is!

Thinking back to the past, a soft and adorable Yu Weiwei, carrying a massive drawing board, had tilted her head up and tugged at her mom’s sleeve: “Mom, when I grow up, I want to go to the Academy of Fine Arts.”

Her parents, who were busy wrapping dumplings, spared a hand to pat Yu Weiwei’s little head: “Sure thing, our baby can study whatever she wants when she grows up.”

Later, in high school, a slacking Yu Weiwei pushed her books out in front of her: “Mom, let me take the art exam instead. I still want to study art.”

Ms. Wu’s rolling pin almost swung right into her head: “Study art? Do you want to study it just to go live off the wind? Go memorize your texts properly.”

Other similar instances were best left unmentioned.

“Oh, I already said I’ll take the postgraduate exam first. I’ll definitely finish that exam first. I won’t get used to living abroad anyway.”

“I won’t chat with you anymore, I’m going back to memorizing my texts. You and Dad take care of yourselves, bye~”

She hung up the phone rapidly.

Yu Weiwei stood under the tree, kicking at pebbles for fun.

She felt like her delayed adolescence was only hitting her just now. To use Mi Shushu’s words:

“Right now, you just lack a sense of purpose.”

“After all, from childhood to adulthood, your goal was extremely clear—study, go to school. That was your only main quest, and nothing else mattered. Now it’s time to choose a side quest, and you can’t reload your save file. It’s uncertain what kind of ending you’ll get, and you can’t even copy someone else’s walkthrough. It’s totally normal to panic.” When saying this, Mi Shushu was meticulously putting on her makeup. The death of a scumbag ex-boyfriend had caused zero impact on her life.

Yu Weiwei had rushed forward: “Master, save me!”

Mi Shushu ruthlessly pushed her head away, continuing to blend her eyeshadow with a certain tone of conviction.

“Easy. Take the postgraduate exam first.”

“How so?”

“If you get in, you keep studying. The side quest gets delayed until three years later to choose.” She gave a sly smile. “That way, you happily reach a consensus with your parents. As for what the situation will look like three years from now, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

It was a sudden illumination.

Yu Weiwei gave her a thumbs-up: “In just a few sentences, you’ve cured my mental fatigue.”

And so, Yu Weiwei began staking out the library to study seriously. Granted, she had only chosen this major because she was abnormally obsessed with Sherlock in high school, but after three years of study, she didn’t particularly dislike it either.

Yu Weiwei had also shared Mi Shushu’s philosophy with Jiang Wu. Her relationship with Jiang Wu was currently progressing by leaps and bounds; they had truly become friends.

“When you don’t know what to do, just study first.” Jiang Wu had said the exact same thing. Coming from her mouth, the identical words somehow gained a few extra ounces of credibility.

Thinking of Jiang Wu’s words, Jiang Wu’s smiling face surfaced in her mind. Yu Weiwei stopped kicking the pebbles, turning around to head back into the library to keep reading.

Once she finished studying this chapter, she would go grab a portion of that delicious osmanthus stuffed rice cake, then head over in the evening to continue tutoring little Jiang Zhexuan.

What a fulfilling and perfect day!

Yu Weiwei was instantly revived with full energy.

Unfortunately, the perfect day was completely drowned out by a sudden downpour.

Not even two minutes after stepping out of the subway exit, it was as if the heavens had accidentally had too much to drink, let out a “blegh,” and threw up.

Yu Weiwei, drenched from head to toe: ?

Uh, no, heavens, let’s be reasonable here.

Yu Weiwei wanted to bolt toward Jiang Wu’s neighborhood, but after running a couple of steps, she realized that she couldn’t give a lesson looking like a drowned rat. She should run back to the subway station instead and hurry home to change.

Before she could finish debating with herself, a familiar car pulled up beside her.

Yu Weiwei, her hair dripping wet, glanced over.

A figure carrying warmth walked over under an umbrella:

“Quick, come here. How did you get so soaked?”

“Good girl.”

The large umbrella descended over her head, instantly shutting out the curtain of rain.

“He appeared again,” Yu Weiwei murmured.

“Hmm?” Jiang Wu asked softly.

“The soft-hearted God.”

There was a hint of confusion in Jiang Wu’s eyes, which quickly melted into a soft chuckle, her laughter dissolving into the rainy mist.

“Good girl.”

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