An Adoptive Older Sister Cannot Become a Wife - Chapter 18

Nianshu refused to believe her luck was that bad.

She initially wanted to search on Baidu but worried about spoilers. After a moment of thought, she pulled out her phone and messaged Zhang Ruomeng, sending the names of the two films: [Which one of these should I pick?]

Zhang Ruomeng replied instantly: [The second one, obviously.]

Nianshu breathed a sigh of relief. It must have been her imagination; perhaps the abandoned mental asylum was just the backdrop for a moving love story spanning past and present lives. Her choice was definitely fine.

A second later, another message from Zhang Ruomeng popped up: [It’s a total cult classic horror film. The plot is incredibly brilliant, twisted, and bizarre.]

Nianshu read the message word by word. She blinked, her head turning toward Qi Shu in slow, frame-by-frame increments. “Sister… is this a horror movie?”

Qi Shu nodded with absolute composure. “Mm.”

Nianshu felt her blood turn to ice. She stared at the calm, relaxed girl beside her, her voice trembling. “You… you knew all along?”

In the darkness, a flicker of mischievous amusement flashed in Qi Shu’s eyes. She spoke unhurriedly. “I’d heard rumors.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me!” Nianshu whispered, her voice tight with a mix of anger and annoyance.

Qi Shu looked perfectly innocent. “You chose it with such certainty. I thought you knew.”

“How could I!” Nianshu started to argue, but a nearby audience member shushed them. After a hurried apology, Nianshu slumped into her seat, her heart feeling like ash.

Her first “date” with Qi Shu, at least in her own mind and she had picked the one genre she feared most: horror. Nianshu felt like curling up and dying.

Seeing that she was truly terrified, Qi Shu stopped teasing her. “If you’re scared, we don’t have to watch.”

Nianshu really wanted to leave. But like any good student of the “Four-Character Wisdom,” she lived by the mantra: Lái dōu láile “We’re already here.”

She bit her lower lip, agonizing over it for a long time before squeezing out a voice as quiet as a mosquito: “N-no… let’s stay. We’re already inside. Anyway, it’s not real.”

Worst case scenario, she’d just cover her eyes during the “high-energy” scenes.

To be fair, the movie had a high rating for a reason. Even Nianshu, whose courage was smaller than a mouse’s, gradually found herself drawn into the story.

As the plot reached its climax and the protagonists began to uncover the truth hidden within the asylum, Nianshu watched through a tiny slit between her fingers, her heart hammering.

Suddenly, Qi Shu’s voice drifted into her ear: “Niannian.”

Thinking she needed something, Nianshu quickly moved her hands and turned to look at her. Then, Qi Shu extended a single finger and pointed toward the screen.

Nianshu instinctively followed the direction of her finger.

The next second, on the massive screen, a pale, withered hand lunged from a gap in the asylum door. Accompanied by a blood-curdling shriek, the camera cut to a jump-scare of a mangled, bloody face.

Nianshu was scared speechless. The hair on her arms stood up instantly, and her mind went blank.

Qi Shu is the meanest sister in the entire world!

For the rest of the movie, Nianshu didn’t acknowledge Qi Shu once. She stared at the screen with laser-like focus, sitting perfectly upright and unyielding.

So what if it’s a horror movie? What’s there to be afraid of! It’s just a villain. Can a villain be meaner than Qi Shu?

Nianshu thought vengefully. She hugged the popcorn bucket and shoved a handful into her mouth, determined not to leave a single kernel for Qi Shu.

When the movie ended, Nianshu followed the flow of the crowd, pretending not to see the person walking right beside her.

So mean. Truly, truly mean. I’m not talking to meanies.

Fuming silently, Nianshu wasn’t paying attention to her feet. She missed a step on the stairs and stumbled forward. A familiar, sharp sting shot through her ankle, making her hiss in pain.

Just as she was about to hit the ground, a hand caught her firmly by the waist. The grip was steady, carrying a familiar warmth that pulled her back to safety.

“Walking without looking where you’re going?” Qi Shu’s voice sounded in her ear, tinged with a hint of helplessness.

Nianshu kept her neck stiff, refusing to look back. She just muttered under her breath, “Mind your own business.”

Despite her words, her body honestly leaned a little closer to Qi Shu.

Qi Shu let out a low chuckle. She didn’t argue; instead, she practically carried Nianshu to the lounge area to sit. “Does the foot hurt? Let me see.”

“No,” Nianshu said, looking down.

She had spent the last two days feeling miserable and conflicted over her feelings for Qi Shu, yet Qi Shu acted like nothing was wrong and even went out of her way to scare her. It was too much.

Ignoring her protest, Qi Shu knelt before her and checked her ankle. Seeing that it was fine, she finally relaxed. She let out a sigh and looked up at the brooding Nianshu. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have scared you on purpose. Forgive me, okay?”

Nianshu turned her head away, remaining silent.

She knew deep down that this was a trivial matter. She often played pranks on Qi Shu, and Qi Shu always indulged her. Besides, the moment Qi Shu apologized, her anger vanished instantly.

She was just thinking about her “perfect” date, the blunder of picking the movie, and the embarrassment of being teased. It made everything feel like a pathetic one-woman show. In the end, even her anger felt melodramatic.

“I’m not mad at you,” Nianshu whispered. She took a deep breath, looked at Qi Shu, and asked, “Are you happy today?”

Qi Shu arched an eyebrow. “Why would you think I’m not?”

Nianshu avoided her eyes. “Because you’ve just been accompanying me the whole time. Picking gifts, eating the food I burned, watching a horror movie I picked by mistake, and getting snapped at for no reason”

When she thought about it, it was always like this. Qi Shu was always being dragged along to do things with her. Nianshu had never stopped to think if Qi Shu actually liked any of it.

“It feels like you’re always the one accommodating me,” Nianshu concluded.

Qi Shu hadn’t expected her to be worrying about this. She suddenly laughed.

Nianshu felt her face burn with embarrassment. “What are you laughing at?”

“I just find your question a bit… cute.” Qi Shu thought for a moment, choosing a gentler word. “It’s like asking if an elephant or an ant weighs more.”

Nianshu felt like her IQ was being insulted.

“Or do you really think I’m the type of person who would suffer in silence just to accommodate someone else?”

Nianshu thought about it and shook her head. Qi Shu never settled for things she didn’t want.

“So,” Qi Shu smiled, “I’m very happy.”

“I was happy when you said you’d pay for everything today. I was happy when you said you’d grill meat for me” She added calmly as Nianshu watched her, “And I was very happy when I scared you just now.”

Thinking of how she’d looked like a fool, Nianshu huffed. “You’re so bad.”

Qi Shu looked up. “And I’m happy when you lose your temper at me, too.”

Nianshu was confused. “You’re happy even when I snap at you?”

Qi Shu thought of the way Nianshu had ignored her earlier, like a bristling little hedgehog, looking fierce but possessing zero actual threat. It was clearly just a form of acting spoiled.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Qi Shu asked.

Nianshu couldn’t wrap her head around it. “You’re so weird.” Who gets happy being snapped at?

The corners of Qi Shu’s mouth curled into a charming smile. “Then do you want to walk home with a weird person?”

Nianshu blinked. “To where?”

“To go coax you and make you happy.”

And so, at the end of her “date,” Nianshu received a freshly made mango pancake.

The mall wasn’t far from home. Nianshu didn’t want the day to end just yet, so she decided on the final stage of a date: the walk home.

The night breeze was slightly cool, and the plane trees rustled along the road. Many residents from the nearby neighborhoods were out for a post-dinner stroll. Nianshu kept her hands in her pockets, playing a game of hopping on the colored tiles of the sidewalk.

Qi Shu followed her at a short distance, watching her hop from tile to tile on one foot. Because Nianshu didn’t dare put weight on her injured foot, her movements were clumsily adorable.

Whenever Nianshu looked back, she could always see Qi Shu within a few paces. That gaze was fixed on her, steady and unwavering, making Nianshu feel immensely safe.

They spent twenty minutes slowly covering the short distance. As they neared the house, Nianshu looked up at the glowing windows, knowing that Xu Zhiyu and Qi Yan were waiting for them.

She stopped and turned to face Qi Shu. The streetlights were filtered through the layered leaves, creating dancing, dappled shadows. Qi Shu stood in the darkness, her expression hidden.

But Nianshu knew. She knew Qi Shu was looking at her.

She spoke softly, calling her name: “Sister.”

Qi Shu’s footsteps stopped a meter away. She looked at her. “What is it?”

A smile blossomed on Nianshu’s face, her eyes curving into crescents. “I like you so much.”

As she said it, her eyes seemed to hold the entire starlit sky, shining brilliantly.

“I like you so much.”

Nianshu had said this to Qi Shu countless times. She’d say it while hiding in Qi Shu’s arms during a thunderstorm; she’d say it when Qi Shu cooked her a delicious meal…

So many times, she had said it naturally and without reservation. And every time, Qi Shu would give a faint “Mm” in response, with an air of expected indulgence. Because a younger sister liking her older sister was the most natural thing in the world.

So, today was just another ordinary day. Nianshu kept her hands behind her back, speaking the words fluently and naturally, just like always. The soft halo of the streetlight draped over her, the curve of her smile perfectly in place.

The night breeze blew, and the leaves rustled. Qi Shu’s gaze was calm, like a deep pool under the moonlight, reflecting Nianshu’s honest, smiling face.

Then, Qi Shu’s lips curled into a very slight smile—the familiar, gentle expression she only showed to her family.

“Mm,” Qi Shu’s voice was as steady as ever. “I know.”

She stepped forward and reached out to ruffle Nianshu’s hair. “Come on. Let’s go home.”

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