An Adoptive Older Sister Cannot Become a Wife - Chapter 25

Question: Is there any moment in existence more awkward than this one?

Qi Nianshu: No! It is physically impossible for anyone in the world to be more humiliated than she is right now.

Nianshu remained crouched in the fitting room, her face buried in her knees.

She and Qi Shu weren’t exactly young when they first met, and she had never, ever dressed so provocatively in front of her sister. The skin on her back felt as if it still held the phantom sensation of Qi Shu’s fingertips. That initial coolness had morphed into an intense itch that traveled straight to the tips of her ears, leaving her feeling like she was about to go up in smoke.

This is so pathetic.

How could she be so clumsy as to tangle her hair and the ribbons together? And why did she have to ask Qi Shu of all people to come to the rescue?

Worse yet, she was deathly sensitive to Qi Shu’s touch.

Did she notice anything? I should have acted more composed.

Nianshu was drowning in regret. She shouldn’t have let the beauty of the dress distract her from the fact that she clearly lacked the motor skills to wear it.

After squatting on the floor for a good while to let the embarrassment subside, she slowly peeled off the “troublemaker” dress and changed back into her own clothes. Taking a deep breath, she finally pulled open the fitting room door.

Qi Shu was leaning against a rack nearby, holding several shopping bags. When she saw Nianshu emerge, her gaze naturally settled on the girl’s face. “Ready?”

“Mm.” Nianshu didn’t dare look up.

She held the dress in her hands like it was a hot coal, unsure whether to put it back or hold onto it. She stood there, utterly at a loss.

Qi Shu naturally reached out, took the dress, and handed it to the clerk. “Pack this one too, please.”

“No… wait, you don’t have to!” Nianshu waved her hands frantically. “It’s way too much trouble to put on.”

Qi Shu efficiently scanned the QR code to pay. “It’s very pretty. It suits you.”

Nianshu: “I haven’t even really worn it yet.”

The clerk beamed. “You two have such a wonderful relationship.”

Qi Shu offered a small smile, took the bags, and looked at Nianshu. “Do you want to keep looking?”

Nianshu wouldn’t have dared to stay a second longer. “No, no! One of the ones I tried earlier was perfect.”

Qi Shu nodded. “Alright.”

Home and Rewards

Back home, Xu Zhiyu looked at the five or six bags in Qi Shu’s hands. “You bought so much! Do you still have enough allowance? I can give you more.”

“I’m fine,” Qi Shu replied as she handed the bags to Nianshu.

As the “representative” of No. 1 High, Qi Shu’s scholarships and competition prizes were more than enough. Combined with her low material desires and the family’s policy of letting the girls manage their own New Year’s money, she had built up quite a savings.

Xu Zhiyu didn’t press further but checked the price tags and transferred the money to both of them via her phone. “Mom’s reimbursing the clothes today. Niannian is bringing honor to our family, after all.”

Nianshu felt awkward again. “But Sister paid for everything.” She hadn’t meant for that to happen, but Qi Shu had settled the bill before she even realized what was going on.

Xu Zhiyu patted her head. “Then consider it a sports meet reward. A celebration of Niannian’s first-ever event.”

Dazzled by her mother’s praise, Nianshu finally accepted it. It worked out well, as she had been looking for a way to save up for Qi Shu’s upcoming birthday present.

Back in her room, she organized her new clothes. The shopping bags were shoved under the bed, but that particular dress stood out amongst the pile. Eventually, she couldn’t resist trying it on one more time.

Qi Shu was right—it was stunning.

The black fabric made her collarbones look delicate, and the red ribbons traced the smooth lines of her spine. As she spun in front of the mirror, the layers of the skirt flared out, revealing faint silver patterns that looked like a dark, flowing river. It was a style she rarely attempted; she looked like a pure, innocent, yet soul-snatching little witch.

But as she looked at the ribbons in the mirror, her mind drifted back to the fitting room. She sighed, carefully took it off, and tucked it away in the back of her closet.

The Dream

For the rest of the afternoon and evening, Nianshu didn’t leave her room. She stayed inside under the guise of “studying hard to catch up to Qi Shu,” but in reality, she just didn’t know how to face her.

Qi Shu, remembering Nianshu’s beet-red face from that morning, didn’t push her.

Nianshu eventually learned why Qi Shu liked reading Stendhal’s The Red and the Black when she couldn’t sleep, it was incredibly effective at making one drowsy.

“I am like a weary wanderer; except for her, I have found nothing in this world, and I should draw closer to my soul.”

By the time she reached that sentence, Nianshu was too tired to keep her eyes open. She tossed the book onto her nightstand, hugged her teddy bear, and drifted off.

But the events of the day were too vivid; they followed her straight into her dreams.

In her sleep, the memory of the fitting room fermented, turning into a kaleidoscope of dizzying fantasies.

In the dream, she was wearing that complicated dress again. This time, the ribbons were even more stubborn, they seemed to move on their own, wrapping around her body in a way that felt stifling. She was trapped in that tiny, sweltering space.

What do I do? I can’t move it hurts.

“Niannian.”

A blurred, husky voice came from behind her, sounding both far away and incredibly close. Then came a subtle itch on her back. Fingertips with a slightly cool temperature brushed against the back of her neck.

Wrapped in that familiar scent, Nianshu felt like she had found a lifeline. She heard her own voice, thick with tears, pleading for help: “Sister… I can’t undo it. Help me.”

There was no verbal response. Instead, the fingers moved more boldly, sliding down the line of her spine. They hooked into the ribbons that bound her, but rather than untying them, they lingered there with a playful, teasing pressure.

“Don’t…” she wanted to say Stop touching and just undo it, but her voice was weak and utterly unconvincing. It sounded more like an invitation.

The owner of the fingers seemed to let out a light laugh. Hot breath brushed against the side of her bare neck, causing a violent shiver. The fingers moved past the ribbons and began to trace the small of her back. Finding something “interesting,” the person wickedly grazed her skin with a fingernail.

“Ah!”

Nianshu arched her back, letting out a sharp gasp. She instinctively jerked backward, crashing into a warm embrace.

The dream jumped.

She was now sinking into a soft bed. It was dark. Her wrists were pinned to the pillow. The grip wasn’t heavy, yet she couldn’t break free. She looked up and saw a familiar, though slightly blurred, face: Qi Shu.

She could feel the other’s gaze traveling over her face, her neck… Nianshu didn’t dare make eye contact and squeezed her eyes shut.

But with her sight gone, her other senses were magnified a thousandfold. She felt Qi Shu lean down. Warm breath hovered over her lips; their breaths mingled. It was the scent of Qi Shu—clear, crisp, and filled with an undeniable sense of aggression.

One hand let go of her wrist and traveled up the inside of her arm to her waist. Through the thin fabric of her pajamas, the palm pressed against her skin. The thumb rubbed her waist, slow and rhythmic.

“Niannian,” Qi Shu whispered into her ear. It was a husky, breathy sound that felt like aged wine. “You’re shaking.”

Nianshu opened her mouth, but no words came out. She wasn’t just shaking; she was about to turn into a puddle of water.

“Hm?” When no answer came, the hand at her waist stopped. “Didn’t you ask me to help you?”

“Sis” she managed to choke out, her voice breaking like falling snow.

“I’m here,” Qi Shu’s voice was even closer, practically touching her ear. “What is it?”

Nianshu felt like she was being consumed by fire. It felt as if ten thousand ants were gnawing at her heart. Her voice took on an urgent, tearful quality as she managed only one phrase: “Please.”

The person laughed. The hand on her waist moved up, burning hot, and pressed against her lower lip, rubbing it. “Please what?”

A thumb applied light pressure, prying open her lips which were pressed tight with nerves.

Under that touch, Nianshu’s sanity crumbled. Her vision was a blur. “I want you, Sister.”

Qi Shu’s eyes darkened, like a bottomless vortex. “You want me… to do what?”

She pressed for an answer, her voice a seductive lure. Her thumb moved even more wickedly, grazing the tip of Nianshu’s tongue.

The final line of defense collapsed. A massive wave of shame and longing swallowed her. Her thick lashes were wet with tears, trembling as they stuck together. Her voice was as faint as a sleep-talker’s:

“I want… to kiss you, Sister.”

The moment the words left her mouth, the tangled, ambiguous vision vanished.

Nianshu snapped her eyes open and bolted upright in bed. Her thin pajamas were soaked with cold sweat, the fabric clinging uncomfortably to her skin.

“Sister, you look so kissable.” “I want to kiss you, Sister.” “Sister, kiss me… just once.”

What is this?

Nianshu stared blankly at the teddy bear in her arms. Her own voice—sweet, clingy, and thick with longing, echoed in her ears.

Suddenly, a flood of memories rushed into her brain.

She saw herself being held by Qi Shu. She saw her own hand reaching out to touch Qi Shu’s lip. She remembered Qi Shu carrying her into the room and putting her on the bed. She remembered acting like a brat, refusing to let go, clinging tighter and then… and then…

“I want to kiss you, Sister…” “Then kiss me once, okay?”

She could even hear the long, whining, “sticky” tone of her own voice as she acted spoiled.

Nianshu raised a hand and touched the center of her forehead.

BOOM.

It felt like a thunderclap inside her skull. She looked at her hands in disbelief.

What are these memories? They’re dreams, right? Just dreams. They have to be dreams.

Reality and fantasy were woven together so tightly her head felt like it would explode. The “dream” was too clear, every detail, every word, the look in Qi Shu’s eyes, her tone and that haunting question: “Aren’t you afraid you’ll regret this tomorrow?”

And then, that feather-light kiss on her forehead.

It all felt as if it had actually happened.

Nianshu slowly, painfully recalled the other dream she just had, the one where Qi Shu was touching her.

Wait… if that one was a dream… then what about the one where I was begging Qi Shu for a kiss?

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