Fell In Love With My Older Sister’s Friend - Chapter 4

And at that time, the sky was just beginning to lighten. Lin Qingyue’s eyelashes fluttered, and after a moment, she slowly raised her eyes. What came into view was an unfamiliar pure white color.

Only then did she realize she wasn’t in her rental apartment, but in a hotel in Lincheng.

Her head ached slightly, perhaps from drinking too much and sleeping too late. She could only vaguely recall fragments of what happened yesterday.

She only remembered that she had acted on a sudden impulse, seeking help from Xu Luwei who she wasn’t close with but whom everyone praised and was subsequently brought to an unfamiliar city by her.

Lin Qingyue’s peach blossom eyes curved into a smile. She stepped barefoot onto the floor and slowly raised her hand to draw back the curtains.

Below the wide, bright floor to ceiling window was Lincheng’s bustling and noisy city center, with traffic and hurried pedestrians just like in Weicheng.

Her reflection was cast in the floor to ceiling window she was only loosely wrapped in a large white shirt, which had slipped down slightly, leaving her round, fair shoulder frankly exposed, with a single black strap tangling upward, loosely clinging.

The shirt was too short, only barely covering her hips, leaving her jade like long legs, slender and graceful, casually crossed. She didn’t feel cold at all, even with her bare feet on the carpet.

Lin Qingyue tilted her head and scrutinized her appearance in the window for a long time. She was very satisfied with this look, especially pleased with a hint of lace subtly visible beneath the hem of the shirt, misty and enchanting in an indescribable way.

It was sunrise. The summer sunlight early shone through the floor to ceiling window, openly dancing upon her shoulder. Her skin, which was already like white satin, looked even more translucent and dazzling, making it impossible to look away.

Lin Qingyue smiled faintly, tucking a falling strand of dark hair behind her ear. Her pure black fingernails gleamed, contrasting beautifully with her crimson lips.

It didn’t make much difference to her where she was. For a drifting, rootless person like her, being a wanderer was just her nature.

Humming a couple of tunes casually, Lin Qingyue picked up her phone and turned it on. After a moment, a message notification popped up.

It was from Xu Luwei, sent in the middle of the night yesterday: “It’s my sister’s birthday tomorrow. Come over and join us.”

Lin Qingyue lowered her head to reply. The vintage tattoo on the back of her neck was faintly visible: “I’m an outsider. Why should I come?”

Her speech was always so blunt. She could joke around freely, but when serious, she was startlingly cold.

Xu Luwei’s reply was fast, as if she had been waiting for her: “It’s a birthday party. Many people will be there.”

Lin Qingyue narrowed her eyes and thought about it. She did recall that Xu Luwei had a biological younger sister, reportedly still in high school and raised spoiled at home.

In other words, wasn’t she just a replica of Xu Luwei?

Moreover, she was still young, probably underage. Why bother attending a child’s birthday party?

Furthermore… she wasn’t very close with Xu Luwei, let alone her family? Lin Qingyue was the most impatient when it came to getting tangled up in a relationship.

She patiently replied to Xu Luwei: “I won’t go. I didn’t prepare a gift either.”

With such a cold and indifferent tone, given Xu Luwei’s personality, she probably would retreat gracefully. At most, she’d bring her a slice of cake after the party, just to be polite.

Lin Qingyue carelessly tossed the phone aside, directly ignoring a pile of messages, calls, and texts expressing concern. She had finally managed to switch cities for a few days; she deserved some peace and quiet alone.

However, when she returned after washing up, she found her phone still vibrating relentlessly. Xu Luwei had sent another message: “My sister really wants you to come. She’ll throw a fit if you don’t.”

Lin Qingyue applied sunscreen, finding this novel.

No matter who you asked, Xu Luwei was the epitome of elegance and composure. True to her name, she was like a rose beautiful and fragrant but she never competed or fought, let alone threw a tantrum over trifles.

Was her sister, then, a spoiled little girl who cried and fussed over small things?

It was a common scenario, though if the older sister was quiet, the younger sister would naturally be naughtier. Still, this level of willfulness was somewhat unexpected.

Lin Qingyue suddenly became interested and wanted to personally meet Xu Luwei’s little sister who “really wanted her to come.”

Since the child heard her sister brought a friend and wanted to see a fresh face, she couldn’t disappoint this small wish.

Otherwise, wouldn’t it be a sin if she caused chaos in the Xu family?

Lin Qingyue curved her lips and sent a message: “Fine, I’ll go.”

She couldn’t go to a birthday party without a gift. She had left in a hurry and hadn’t brought many things with her, let alone anything suitable for a child.

After rummaging through her large bag for a long time, Lin Qingyue finally picked out a lipstick. She unscrewed it, looked at it with some reluctance, and ultimately slipped it into her pocket.

Xu Luwei replied almost instantly, sounding very happy: “Great, I’ll come to pick you up in a bit.”

After sending the message, Xu Luwei sighed, displaying it with some helplessness to the little imp beside her: “Okay, she’ll be here soon. Why don’t you go have breakfast first?”

Xu Luzhi nodded obediently, her voice sweeter than honey and jam: “Okay Sis is the best. I love Sis the most!”

“Alright, hurry up and eat breakfast. You still need to get ready later.” Xu Luwei’s expression was gentle as she stroked her sister’s still messy head.

After watching Xu Luzhi skip away, Xu Luwei sighed with a wry smile.

Having an eccentric little sister was truly not easy. She rarely returned home, and bringing a friend back was treated as a huge, important event. She was relentlessly pestered to talk about her for a long time and was even forced to demand that the pretty older sister come.

Xu Luwei had warned her early on that someone with Lin Qingyue’s personality wouldn’t come. She hated attending these unnecessary gatherings, let alone the birthday of an unfamiliar friend’s sister, which was completely irrelevant.

But as soon as Xu Luzhi woke up, she ran to her room, subtly hinting with every word, with only one core request: to send a few more messages and absolutely make Lin Qingyue come.

She showed the message records of the two previous rejections, thinking she could finally have peace. However, Xu Luzhi wouldn’t give up. She personally typed, even going so far as to portray herself as a willful child.

It actually worked somewhat, successfully making the cool and aloof Lin Qingyue agree to come, but the effort involved…

Xu Luwei rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Xu Luzhi, this child, had always been like this. She’d go to great lengths to get anything she was interested in. Now that she was older, she hadn’t changed, and she kept many little secrets to herself.

When asked, she would argue confidently that it was because their parents were hospitable and wanted more people to attend her birthday party.

Xu Luwei couldn’t control her. As the older sister, there wasn’t much she could give ZhiZhi, so she could only try her best to fulfill her little sister’s small wishes.

Xu Luzhi woke up early. Upon hearing the news that the pretty older sister agreed to come, she felt an indescribable joy, feeling as if her whole body was filled with energy, making her feel light enough to fly.

Speaking of which, she still didn’t know what the person looked like, only knowing from her sister that the pretty older sister was named Lin Qingyue.

Lin Qingyue, what a beautiful name. Xu Luzhi sat in front of the large mirror, watching the stylist work on her hair, repeating the three words over and over. Occasionally, her thoughts drifted to an absurd dream, and she quickly forced herself to stop thinking about it.

The specially hired makeup artist gave her a light makeup look. If you didn’t look closely, you couldn’t tell she was wearing makeup, but her features were noticeably much more refined. The best part was that it wasn’t heavy; it looked clean and fresh, with the pure innocence of a high school girl.

Xu Luzhi wasn’t quite sure what mysterious technique the stylist used. When she snapped out of her daze, she was surprised to find that her student haircut, which barely covered her neck, had been successfully tied into two narrow braids, sitting obediently at the back of her head, making her look gentle and lovely.

Paired with the custom-made princess dress, Xu Luzhi carefully zipped up the side zipper and examined herself back and forth in the mirror, unable to believe the person in the mirror was herself.

She excitedly lifted her arm and sniffed, smelling the sweet gardenia scent on her body. It was acquired by pre-fuming the dress in a pile of fresh gardenias for seven days and nights, making it smell better than ordinary perfume.

“Our ZhiZhi has grown up, she’s so beautiful.” It wasn’t until her mother’s praise came from behind that Xu Luzhi suddenly realized that all of this was real.

Today was her birthday; she was the most beautiful.

“Mom!” Xu Luzhi cheered, rushing over to hug her mother. It wasn’t until she was about to touch her that she suddenly remembered she was wearing a princess dress. She had to forcefully stop short and, in a proper manner, performed a small curtsy.

She looked up and smiled crisply: “Mom, do I look good?”

“My ZhiZhi darling, of course, you look the best!” Mother Xu gently wrapped her arm around her shoulder. A soft smile appeared on her still-young face. The two faces, one large and one small, side-by-side, immediately made them recognizable as mother and daughter.

“Then…” Xu Luzhi blinked, motioning for Mother Xu to lean in, and quietly asked, “Am I as pretty as Sis?”

Mother Xu was amused by her childish question. She tapped Xu Luzhi’s nose: “Today is ZhiZhi’s birthday, ZhiZhi is the most beautiful!”

“Then I won’t be beautiful tomorrow?” Xu Luzhi was an expert at flirting, clinging to her mother’s arm.

“You’ll be the most beautiful tomorrow, too!” Mother Xu affirmed.

After a moment of laughter, Xu Luzhi saw Aunt Lin come up the stairs, her expression beaming.

She quickly called out: “Aunt Lin, do I look good?”

“Of course, our ZhiZhi is the most beautiful! Let Aunt Lin take a look. Tsk, tsk, tsk, who is this pretty little girl?” Aunt Lin was older and knew how to flatter best. Her words made Xu Luzhi blush, and she laughed nonstop while leaning into her mother’s embrace.

“By the way, little birthday star, your friends and classmates have mostly arrived. Do you want to go arrange things?” Aunt Lin came up precisely to talk about this. The birthday party this year was large. Dozens of friends and classmates were invited, and after much thought, it was deemed safest for Xu Luzhi to handle the greetings herself.

“Okay, Aunt Lin, I’ll go right away. Please ask the kitchen to bring them some drinks and snacks first!” Xu Luzhi replied cheerfully. Cautiously treading in her slightly-heeled leather shoes, she couldn’t wait to go downstairs.

The thought that Lin Qingyue would also appear at her important event made her mood even better unconsciously. She smiled without reservation, practically jogging down the stairs.

However, the first person Xu Luzhi saw at the stairwell was not the person she wanted to see, but a male classmate whose face was somewhat unfamiliar.