A Surprising Revelation

“Why… why are you interested in that Lin Yan guy?”

My sister’s tone was already a bit panicked. I wasn’t sure if she was afraid my identity would be exposed or if there was another reason, but her face was clearly written with the words ‘resistance.’ She obviously found Park Yeon’s request to stay overnight quite troublesome.

“Well, it’s not like I’m really that interested.”

Park Yeon propped her head on one hand, her expression full of amusement.

“It’s just that someone keeps talking about her brother all day at school, saying how handsome and kind he is, or how he cooks delicious meals. And when someone confesses to her, she uses her brother as an excuse to refuse, saying something like, ‘My brother won’t let me date.’ Otherwise, I wouldn’t be so interested.”

Handsome, kind, and a good cook?

While I knew these heartfelt words were undoubtedly about me, the subject of the praise was a bit shocking.

Did my sister have such a good impression of me? I had no idea. And she talks about me so much in school? It’s like she’s a completely different person from how she is at home!

You see, in the year before I turned into a girl, whenever I appeared in Chen Si Yi’s line of sight or got too close, she would quickly cross her arms and give me a disdainful huff, then hurry to put some distance between us.

So, hearing Chen Si Yi’s story, I couldn’t help but be surprised.

Especially using me as an excuse to reject confessions—my sister is just too clever!

I never said that, and she’s already using me as a shield without my permission. No doubt, my sister is incredibly intelligent.

But even so, I didn’t feel upset. In fact, I felt a little pleased.

How should I put it? Chen Si Yi using me as a shield to refuse other guys aligns perfectly with my thoughts.

Right, my sister is just starting high school, only sixteen, and she doesn’t know anything about the world yet. She’s still just a little girl! How could I possibly trust her to someone else’s care?

If I had to set a deadline, well… maybe after I get married and have kids, we can discuss getting her married off.

That might be thinking too far ahead. I came back to reality and scratched my head, smiling wryly.

“Oh, right, there’s something else. You were saying something about your brother… Hmm…?”

Park Yeon tried to say more, but her words were cut short as Chen Si Yi’s hand covered her lips. After struggling in vain, she could only let out muffled sounds through her fingers.

“Alright, alright, you must be thirsty after talking so much, Park Yeon. Here, have some water; I’ll feed it to you myself.”

Chen Si Yi took a small bottle of orange juice from the coffee table and, without caring if Park Yeon could lick it clean, poured it directly down her throat.

“Pfft—mmm, mmm, I… I surrender, Si Yi, I… I can’t breathe!”

Park Yeon, being smaller, couldn’t escape Chen Si Yi’s grip and could only wave her hands in surrender.

“Ha, I bet you won’t talk so much now.”

Chen Si Yi pulled the bottle away from Park Yeon’s mouth, a victorious smile on her face.

“No, no, I won’t, I promise I won’t.”

Park Yeon, with juice and saliva still on her lips, patted her chest in relief and quickly moved away from Chen Si Yi.

But she didn’t give up. After shuffling closer to me, she leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Hey, Ruoxi, tell me the truth. Where’s your Lin Yan brother?”

I hesitated for a moment, knowing I couldn’t tell her the truth.

“Oh, you’re asking about Lin Yan?”

I shrugged helplessly, not wanting to get into it, and simply said, “He’s dead.”

****