The Unavoidable Confrontation

Even if I wasn’t willing, I still had to face the matter.

My relationship with Xiao Yu did need a resolution—something unavoidable.

After several days of thinking it over, I still hadn’t figured out what Chen Si Yi was really up to, but I had a rough idea of what she wanted to do.

It seemed like she’d been planning this ever since she turned me into a loli.

Ah, what can I say? My sister, who always talks tough but has a soft heart, actually cares quite a bit about her big brother.

Still, I really didn’t want her to meddle. After all, it was already awkward enough for me to be alone with Xiao Yu. Adding Chen Si Yi, who only stirs up trouble, just thinking about the situation gave me a headache!

“Lin Yan, shut up! Don’t interrupt when I’m talking to Sister Xiao Yu!”

“Lin Yan, please don’t speak for now. Si Yi and I still have things to finish.”

Just imagining Chen Si Yi and Su Xiao Yu bickering at the dinner table, with me trying to mediate only to become their punching bag, gave me goosebumps.

The key thing was, those two sisters were strange. If I took Chen Si Yi’s side, she would blame me for not considering Xiao Yu’s feelings; if I took Su Xiao Yu’s side, she would also accuse me of favoritism.

Tell me, what was I supposed to do in a situation where I couldn’t please either side? I really couldn’t handle it!

At seven in the evening, wisps of white smoke carried the aroma of rice into the living room. As the sunset glow filled the room, there was a gentle knock on the door.

Today, the temperature had dropped for once, as cool as early spring. So Xiao Yu had on a thin gray cardigan over her white tank top. Her black pleated skirt and black lace socks that just passed her ankles accentuated her already good figure into perfect curves.

She seemed to be wearing a little makeup, her fair skin a bit more dewy than usual. But the light powder couldn’t fully conceal her dark circles. She must have tossed and turned all night like me, unable to sleep.

“Eh, is Sister Xiao Yu here?”

Hearing the commotion in the living room, Chen Si Yi, still wearing an apron, came out of the kitchen to greet her. She held a spatula in her hand, and there were a few spots of oil on her face. Combined with the braids draped over her shoulders, she somehow looked… well… like a housewife?

“Eh? Si Yi, are you cooking?” Seeing my younger sister in her kitchen outfit, Su Xiao Yu covered her mouth with a surprised voice. “I heard the sizzling in the kitchen and thought Lin Yan was cooking…”

Her voice trailed off when she said my name. Perhaps sensing the awkwardness, she turned and redirected the topic toward me.

“Oh, little sister, you’re here too! Long time no see—you’ve gotten even cuter!”

Unaware of the little sister’s true identity, Su Xiao Yu gave me a bear hug, roughly pressing my face into her soft mounds for a face-wash treatment. I felt like my head was stuffed into cotton wool, struggling but unable to break free, tightly bound by the silky threads.

Finally, after amusing herself with me and successfully changing the subject, Su Xiao Yu’s smile faded as she released me back to the floor. Then, after Chen Si Yi introduced her to Serena, she sat alone on the sofa, silently staring at her phone.

But I knew—though it seemed Xiao Yu’s gaze was fixed on her phone, if you watched closely, you’d see her wandering eyes scanning the room. Needless to say, the target of her search was me—the missing Lin Yan.

Probably thinking I was still hiding from her, Su Xiao Yu sat at the dinner table after the meal was ready, a faint smile on her lips. But anyone with sharp eyes could tell it was purely fake.

After all, bitterness was hard to hide.

Having taken off her apron, Chen Si Yi sat shoulder to shoulder with Su Xiao Yu at the table. Occasionally, she would pick up her chopsticks and eagerly place a few slices of her signature Lizhuang White Meat into Su Xiao Yu’s bowl.

Yes, after teaching Chen Si Yi to cook for several days this week, the girl had finally gotten the hang of it.

“Hmm, I guess I’m really not cut out for stir-frying.”

After saying that, Chen Si Yi pestered me to teach her cold dishes instead.

With the intention of showing off to Sister Xiao Yu on the weekend, after a week of special training, my younger sister—finally—could make Lizhuang White Meat. And the burnt smell from her stir-frying wasn’t too strong anymore. Thank goodness. It seemed I did have the potential to be an honorary professor at the New Oriental Chef Academy.

“Sister Xiao Yu, try this. I made it all by myself!”

Su Xiao Yu couldn’t refuse Chen Si Yi’s kindness. Her cherry lips parted as if to say something, but she was stopped by a slightly burnt slice of meat Chen Si Yi placed in her mouth.

Thanks to Chen Si Yi’s sudden change in attitude, the whole dinner went smoothly, without the conflicts or disagreements I had feared.

But good times didn’t last. Just as the food on the table was almost cleared, with only a little remaining, those words finally slipped out of Xiao Yu’s mouth…

…

“Si Yi, can you tell me where Lin Yan is…”

When Su Xiao Yu asked this tremblingly, the noisy living room instantly fell silent.

“I… I know I did something awful to Lin Yan, but… at least I… I want to apologize to him in person.”

“I don’t want him to hide from me. I don’t want to lose him as a good friend…”

As she spoke, Su Xiao Yu’s voice choked up. At the corners of her moist eyes, tears formed streams that slid past her delicate nose.

If Pan Yao’s assault had made her cry out of fear, then this time it was because of extreme worry and grief.

“Xiao Yu, actually I…”

Seeing Xiao Yu’s emotional breakdown, I couldn’t stay calm inside. Just as I was about to explain the truth, Chen Si Yi cut me off sharply.

“Lin Ruoxi, shut up!”

After yelling angrily, Chen Si Yi’s face flushed red. She bit her lip tightly, her fine brows furrowed.

“Good friend? Sister Xiao Yu, what are you talking about!”

I had never seen Chen Si Yi so angry. She grabbed Su Xiao Yu’s collar with both hands, a hint of tears in her voice.

“That guy, that idiot likes you so much. He even got into a fight at school for you and almost got expelled. And you only see him as a good friend?”

“What are you really thinking? Why? Why won’t you say it? Why did you reject him!”