An Adoptive Older Sister Cannot Become a Wife - Chapter 28

“Has your friend ever considered another possibility? That the person feels the exact same way as your friend?”

Lin Xiao left Nianshu with those words and patted her on the shoulder. “Think about it, kid. Tell your ‘friend’ to think hard.”

With that, she got up to continue her pursuit of Xi Muyao.

Nianshu sat there, her eyelashes trembling. She muttered under her breath, “How could that be possible?”

Qi Shu was Qi Shu. Calm, rational, perfect Qi Shu. How could she possibly like Nianshu like that? Lin Xiao hadn’t even successfully wooed Xi Muyao yet; she had to be talking nonsense.

A distance away, standing next to Muyao, Lin Xiao let out a sneeze and rubbed her nose.

Muyao turned to her. “Are you feeling okay? You’ve been coughing since earlier.”

Lin Xiao immediately leaned into it, acting weak. “A little.”

Muyao reached out to touch Lin Xiao’s forehead. Lin Xiao obligingly lowered her head.

“You don’t have a fever,” Muyao murmured, thinking. “Maybe you caught a cold since the temperature dropped?”

Lin Xiao sniffled. “Maybe.”

Muyao frowned. “The 800-meter race is soon. Should I find someone to replace you?”

A smirk played on Lin Xiao’s lips. “No need. Don’t you know my body best? Even with a cold, I can finish this race with my eyes closed.”

Muyao’s face turned scarlet. She turned away, refusing to look at her. “Suit yourself.”

The Year 3 Stands

The stands were mostly empty, save for a few girls chatting under sun umbrellas. Lin Xiao was busy “harassing” Muyao, and Zhang Ruomeng had wandered off with the camera. Bored and clutching the pile of snacks others had forced on her, Nianshu decided to head over to the Year 3 stands to find Qi Shu.

However, Qi Shu’s seat was empty. Nianshu searched the area but couldn’t find her.

A student from Year 3, Class 1 noticed her and beckoned her over. “Hey, Qi Shu’s sister! Looking for her? A teacher called her away. She should be back soon.”

Nianshu gave a small “oh” and sat down obediently in Qi Shu’s spot.

A girl with glasses sitting nearby offered her a bag of millet crust snacks. “Want some?”

Nianshu’s arms were already full, so she shook her head regretfully. “Thanks, senior, but I have plenty.” She paused, then picked out a snack from her own pile and offered it back. “Do you want this?”

The girl laughed at Nianshu’s earnest expression. “No wonder Qi Shu likes you so much. If I had a sister like you, I’d want to hide you away so no one else could see you, either.”

Nianshu suddenly remembered Lin Xiao’s words. She blinked and asked, “Does… Sister like me?”

The senior was taken aback by the question. “Of course! Everyone can see how good she is to you.”

“You aren’t in her class, so you don’t know,” the girl continued. “Usually, she’s like an ice queen—the ‘High Mountain Flower’ type. No one can get near her. You’re the only person she ever smiles for.”

Nianshu only ever saw Qi Shu at the end of the day; she never visited her class for fear of being a distraction. She was curious about what Qi Shu was like at school. She picked out a bottle of yogurt and handed it to the girl. “Senior, can you tell me more about what my sister is like in class?”

The girl was completely charmed by Nianshu’s cuteness. “What do you want to know?”

Nianshu checked her surroundings to make sure Qi Shu wasn’t nearby, then mustered up the courage to whisper, “Does she have… any close friends in class?”

“If you want to know, why don’t you ask me yourself?”

Nianshu went rigid. She nearly dropped her snacks. She slowly looked up to see Qi Shu standing on the steps below, looking at her with a half-smile.

“Si-Sister… you’re back,” Nianshu stammered.

The girl with glasses tactfully stood up. “I’ll go watch the race. You two talk!” She fled quickly, giving Nianshu a helpless shrug in response to her silent plea for rescue.

Special

The stands grew quiet as Qi Shu walked up the steps and sat beside her. “Rested up?”

Nianshu nodded guiltily. Remembering why she came, she shoved a handful of snacks toward Qi Shu.

Qi Shu arched an eyebrow. “Where did these come from?” She didn’t remember Nianshu bringing snacks today.

Nianshu puffed out her chest with a bit of pride. “Reward for second place in my heat.”

Qi Shu let out a soft laugh and rubbed Nianshu’s head. “Keep them for yourself.”

“I wouldn’t have done it without you, Sister,” Nianshu insisted. “So this is our shared reward.”

Qi Shu didn’t argue further. She reached into the pile, picked out a lollipop, and popped it into her mouth. “So, what question was so important you had to ask others behind my back?”

Nianshu: “Can we move past that?”

Qi Shu just looked at her, silent. Nianshu’s confidence withered instantly. “I was just asking casually.”

“Casually asking if I have any close friends?”

Nianshu stared at the tips of her shoes. “I was just curious. It’s always me talking to you; I never really hear you talk about your life in class.”

“I don’t,” Qi Shu said calmly.

Nianshu blinked, realizing Qi Shu was answering the question she’d asked the senior.

“No close friends. I just listen to lectures, do practice problems, and finish exam papers,” Qi Shu said. “That’s it. There’s nothing to tell.”

“Oh.” Nianshu blurted out without thinking, “That sounds so boring.”

Qi Shu nodded. “Mm. Very boring.”

To her, the knowledge she had already mastered was boring. The gossip her classmates discussed was boring. The world was just a collection of fixed logic, operating according to set rules. Nothing was worth much of her attention.

Only occasionally, when she looked through the window and saw Nianshu dozing off in class or laughing with her friends in the building across the way, did the world feel vivid and lovely.

Looking at her, Nianshu felt a pang of sadness. Thinking about how she’d been distancing herself lately made her feel even more guilty. She scooted closer to Qi Shu. “Then I’ll come find you more often. It won’t be boring then.” She immediately shook her head. “No, wait. I can’t distract you from your studies.”

“If it’s you,” Qi Shu said evenly, “it won’t be a distraction.”

Nianshu’s eyelashes fluttered. Lin Xiao’s words echoed in her mind again. She looked into Qi Shu’s eyes and asked, “Am I… a special person to you, Sister?”

In the stadium, a roar of cheers erupted as someone won a race. In the middle of the noise, Qi Shu looked into her eyes. The lollipop was still in the corner of her mouth as she spoke.

Her voice was soft, like a feather landing on a still lake, but Nianshu heard it clearly.

She said, “Yes.”

Nianshu mustered her courage to press further. “More special than Mom and Dad?”

Qi Shu took the lollipop stick out of her mouth and twirled it between her fingers. She reached out and ruffled Nianshu’s hair with incredible tenderness, her voice carrying a trace of unconscious indulgence.

“Mm. More special than anyone.”

Nianshu’s heart rate spiraled out of control. Dazed, she asked, “Sister, what flavor was that lollipop?”

Qi Shu paused and looked down to find the wrapper. Before she could, Nianshu spoke again: “It must be very sweet. Otherwise, why would your words sound so good?”

Qi Shu stopped searching. She looked at the girl beside her. Nianshu didn’t realize how red her face was; combined with the pink makeup her mother had applied, she looked both silly and sweet, her heart written clearly in her eyes.

As the next round of races began, the noise faded. Qi Shu looked at her, a hint of playfulness in her voice. “Want to taste it?”

The Trick

The ambiguity of that question was overwhelming. Nianshu’s mind went to places it shouldn’t have; her face turned a violent shade of red, and she waved her hands frantically. “No—no thanks!”

Qi Shu watched her darting eyes, the smile in her own eyes deepening. She unwrapped a second lollipop of the same flavor. Instead of handing it over, she held it gently against Nianshu’s lips.

“Open up.”

Qi Shu’s voice was soft, almost hypnotic.

Nianshu, realizing she had overthought things, guiltily looked away and opened her mouth to take the candy.

The next second, a massive wave of sourness exploded in her mouth.

Nianshu’s entire face scrunched up. There was no sweetness—only a sourness that shot straight to her brain. She wanted to spit it out, but then she remembered Qi Shu had fed it to her, and she couldn’t bear to.

Fortunately, the sourness was only a coating. Once the surface melted, a delayed sweetness began to wash away the tartness.

Nianshu glared at Qi Shu, accusing her slurringly, “Sister, you’re mean!”

She thought she looked like a fierce beast, but to Qi Shu, she looked entirely different. Her eyes were watery from the sour shock, making the pink makeup around them look even softer. She looked like a pouting, bullied kitten.

Qi Shu laughed. “Didn’t you say you wanted to taste it?”

Nianshu’s romantic mood had vanished. Seeing two identical wrappers in Qi Shu’s hand, she asked in disbelief, “Was the one you just ate really that sour too?”

Qi Shu nodded calmly.

Nianshu’s anger deflated. “Your luck is terrible. You picked the sourest one on the first try.”

Qi Shu twirled the empty lollipop stick and smiled faintly. “It was okay.”

Then Nianshu realized something was wrong. “Wait! If it was that sour, why didn’t you have a reaction?!”

Qi Shu just smiled, saying nothing.

Nianshu’s eyes widened as the realization hit. She bristled. “You did it on purpose!”

Qi Shu finally let out a full laugh and nodded. “Mm. On purpose.”

Nianshu’s jaw was still tingling from the sourness. She crunched the candy loudly in protest.

A honey trap! This was definitely a honey trap!

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