A Flurry of Confusion

Caught off guard by such an abrupt question, the four of us standing there were completely bewildered. After a long pause, we heard Yang Laoer stammer, “Um… little sister Xiao Qi… if I may ask, are your elder sister and elder brother humans, demons, or…”

He couldn’t finish before I, standing beside him, stomped hard on his foot. He yelped in pain, forgot what he was about to say, and started grumbling about why I had stepped on him.

The so-called “Four Things Never to Do”: calling a monk bald to his face; admiring a beauty in front of one’s wife; showing affection in front of a single friend; and calling a gender-swapped crossdresser a hermaphrodite.

But Yang Laoer’s question was rather off-key, yet little Fox Xiao Qi answered with complete seriousness.

“Elder sister is a fox, same as me. But she’s already very good at transformation. Unless she deliberately shows her true form, no one would know she’s a demon. Brother is human… a human just like you all,” she said with utter gravity, then paused mid-sentence before continuing, “Mm, I heard elder sister say that brother is male.”

Ah, I recall a zero-score provincial exam essay that once parodied a famous author: “I have two elder brothers. One is male. The other is also male.”

…

“So, Xiao Qi, who exactly are your brother and sister?” Seeing that the other three still didn’t know how to respond, I sighed and asked softly.

“Awoo, but elder sister is elder sister, and brother is brother,” the little girl in the bedding repeated stubbornly.

“Mm, but what do they look like? If you don’t describe them, just saying brother and sister, even if we’ve met them, we might not recognize them,” I patiently refined the question.

“Awoo, appearance… Elder sister’s fur is exactly the same as mine—pure white. Her paws are a bit bigger than mine, and her tail tip is pointed, not round like mine. Awoo, and also, elder sister and I both… awoo,” the little fox girl finally seemed to catch on a bit, replying in detail.

But her description left the four of us completely baffled. Eventually, I had to step in to stop her.

“Uh, Xiao Qi, those features you mentioned might not be obvious to us. Just saying she’s also a fox, a white-furred fox… But didn’t you say she can use transformation? What does she look like as a human? And your brother, what does he look like?” I asked gently, turning to Old Guo’s shop.

“Awoo, after elder sister transforms, she should be about the same as me—female. But elder sister probably doesn’t have fox ears or a tail. That’s about it?” she described further.

At this, the four of us could only exchange bitter smiles. Our country is vast with a huge population. Females without fox ears or tails number at least six or seven hundred million. Even at Tianwu University, where female students are scarce, there are at least five thousand, not counting those beyond the category of female students, like dorm matrons.

“And your brother?” Linghu Ruoxu suddenly added, unwilling to give up.

“Awoo, brother… brother… he feels very much like him,” this time Xiao Qi under the blanket answered crisply, then extended a slender, fair arm from under the covers and pointed her delicate finger unhesitatingly at Guo Hao.

Instantly, everyone’s gaze shifted to Brother Guo Hao, making him somewhat embarrassed.

“Er, I… Xiao Qi, you mean I resemble him?” Brother Guo asked flusteredly.

“Right, Xiao Qi, does your brother also have thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a burly build?” Yang Laoer chimed in inopportunely, earning a glare from Guo Hao.

“Awoo, not in appearance, but in feeling. I feel he’s very much like brother. Awoo, so that’s it… Because I feel you’re like brother, I let you hold me. Awoo, I remember now…” Little Fox Xiao Qi under the blanket started answering Yang Laoer and Guo Hao, then began murmuring to herself, her clever eyes fixed on Guo Hao. Suddenly, the small figure leaped from the bed and pounced directly into Guo Hao’s arms.

“Awoo, could it be that you really are brother? Brother, I’ve missed you so much,” the naked fox girl nestled in his arms, exclaiming joyfully.

Guo Hao, afraid she might fall and get hurt, had no choice but to open his arms and catch her. As his hands touched her smooth, bare skin, his dark face immediately flushed bright red. He averted his eyes, terrified of seeing something inappropriate.

The other two were even worse, especially Yang Laoer, who was completely dumbstruck.

Seeing her exposed like that, even though her fluffy tail partially covered her, it couldn’t hide everything—rather, it made things more tantalizing.

Thinking that regardless of whether she was human or demon, I couldn’t let those two bastards “eye-r*pe” her, I dashed over, raised my hands, and covered the eyes of Yang Laoer and Linghu Ruoxu with my fingers. Then I turned back and called out anxiously to Guo Hao, “Brother, at least let her put on some clothes! This is indecent!”

My shout finally snapped Guo Hao out of it. He said hurriedly, “Right, Fourth Brother is right. Xiao Qi… mm, let’s set aside whether I’m your brother or not first. I need to find you some clothes to wear, okay? A girl like this is too improper!”

Without waiting for her consent, he carried the warm, delicate body to his wardrobe and fumbled out some clothes with one hand.

Meanwhile, Yang Laoer was still yelling, “Fourth Brother, what the hell are you covering my eyes for!” Linghu Ruoxu remained silent, but his cheeks were flushed under my hand.

It was truly a chaotic mess.