Time rewinds to just after Lin Yu left home.
As the saying goes, the more you try to endure, the more suffocated you feel; the more you give in, the more wronged you become.
Don’t be fooled by Lin Mowei’s gentle, clingy big sister act in front of Lin Yu—when others see her, their gaze holds not only respect, but also a trace of fear.
Sitting on the sofa, biting her nails, Lin Mowei was definitely not someone who would admit defeat so easily.
After all the trouble to make sure her little brother didn’t want to attend Dome Academy—finally able to keep him away from those women—there was no way she’d give up without a fight.
But this was a decision from the higher-ups, and she understood that she herself had been too impulsive before. This was also a way to protect her.
But she didn’t need this kind of protection now! And why Dome Academy? Wouldn’t it be enough to change the place?!
A swirl of complicated emotions fermented in her heart.
Though she felt somewhat reluctant, she decided to seek help from her “enemy”—an enemy she considered one-sidedly.
“Hoo…”
Arriving at the door next door, she let out a long breath, adjusted her mood, and put on a smile.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
The door opened quickly, but the person who answered it left her a bit surprised.
“Yanran? Why are you at home? And your complexion…”
The usually bright and smiling girl now had dark circles around her eyes and little color in her lips.
Seeing who it was, Xia Yanran smiled faintly and spoke, “Sister Lin, come on in. I couldn’t sleep last night, that’s all. And what do you mean, why am I at home? Can’t I be at home?”
Lin Mowei paused in the doorway, suddenly recalling that her brother had just said Xia Yanran had invited him to go shopping.
The moment she realized her brother had lied to her, her already tangled emotions became even more chaotic.
“No, it’s nothing, I… I’ll come back later.”
In her heart, nothing was more important than her brother.
“Eh? Sister Lin?” Xia Yanran lifted her hand, bewildered.
Back at home, as Xia Yanran closed the door and walked in, Qin Wuyue—who was doing her makeup—asked, “Was that your Sister Lin just now? Why didn’t she come in?”
Naturally, she’d noticed her daughter’s dark circles that morning, but didn’t know how to comfort her. Anything she said felt like she was covering up, so she just pretended not to notice.
Listlessly, Xia Yanran glanced at her mother. “I don’t know. She seemed surprised I was at home, then just left after thinking of something.”
“Oh.”
Qin Wuyue glanced at her daughter’s forlorn reflection in the mirror, her hand pausing as she applied lipstick.
“Yanran, hmm… why don’t you come with me?”
Without even lifting her head, Xia Yanran shook it. “No, I don’t feel like moving. I’m going back to my room. Have fun, Mom.”
“I… mm.” Qin Wuyue turned and looked at her daughter’s back, sighing helplessly in her heart. She silently marked Lin Yu down for this too.
You little brat, this is all because of you—just you wait!
She picked up the invitation letter from the table, the black paper edged with patterns of gilded flowers.
Delicate handwriting on top read: “Dear Ms. Qin Wuyue, you are cordially invited to attend the centennial celebration of Nest City No. 1.”
At the bottom was a line found on no other invitation: “Your old friend, Lan Lan.”
Seeing this name, Qin Wuyue narrowed her eyes, a complex emotion flickering within them.
“Irresponsible woman, hmph…”
She grumbled and went on with her makeup.
On Lin Mowei’s side, after realizing her brother had lied to her, she felt both suspicious and faintly worried.
Her brother had never lied to her before—even in their previous life, he’d never lied to her for the sake of those women.
Why? Could it be that he ran away from home because he didn’t want to go to Dome Academy?
That was the worst possible outcome she could imagine.
No… it can’t be…
Xiaoyu wouldn’t leave me, and I won’t let him leave either!
With her skills, she quickly found Lin Yu, who hadn’t gone far from home. Relieved, she didn’t go up and ask why he’d lied.
That would make her seem too distrustful, and might make him feel she was too controlling.
Instead, she simply followed him quietly, trailing him all the way to that park.
Watching from the shadows for a while, she realized her brother just wanted to clear his mind—he wasn’t planning on running away at all.
Her worries eased, she turned back to look for Qin Wuyue, never noticing the appearance of Night Spirit a few minutes later.
That woman she saw as the greatest threat.
But that brief delay caused her and Qin Wuyue to miss each other, so she only learned from Xia Yanran that her mother had been invited to the centennial celebration at Nest City No. 1.
Upon hearing this news, Lin Mowei thought it was quite a coincidence. She had been planning to visit that place with her brother anyway; now it seemed… there was all the more reason to go.
As for inviting Xia Yanran along, perhaps she would have done so before, but now, heh… you’d better stay far away from my Xiaoyu!
Leaving Qin Wuyue’s home, she didn’t go back to watching Lin Yu.
She knew her brother was just feeling down and wanted some quiet alone time. There was no need to disturb him—if he found out, that would be bad.
Sitting on her own sofa, waiting for her brother to return, Lin Mowei praised herself.
“I really am such a considerate big sister. If Xiaoyu knew, would he like me even more~”
Time is always such a mysterious thing; it can change many things, including your mood from one moment to the next.
Approaching noon, the considerate big sister who’d just been patting herself on the back couldn’t help it anymore.
“Why, why hasn’t Xiaoyu come home yet? He’s been out for three hours and fifty minutes. Even if he just wanted to clear his mind, that’s long enough.”
Suddenly her expression changed. “Could he have run into someone? Has he been targeted by those indecent women? No way! Xiaoyu’s so cute—if those bad women abduct him, who knows what he’ll suffer! I have to find him!”
Anxious because Lin Yu wasn’t home, Lin Mowei had just opened the door when she saw Lin Yu standing outside with his keys.
“Jie, where are you going?”
Seeing her little brother safe and sound in front of her, a wave of joy from losing and regaining something dear instantly flooded Lin Mowei’s heart.
She suppressed the urge to pull her brother into a hug, and said as calmly as possible, “Mm… I wasn’t going anywhere. By the way, Xiaoyu, you’re back so early today. Did Yanran let you go so soon?”
She tried to change the subject.
Lin Yu, caught off guard by the question, instinctively glanced toward the house next door.
“Oh, um, yeah. She said she wasn’t feeling well, so I came back.”
“Alright then. What do you want to eat? Jie will make it for you.”
Lin Mowei didn’t ask what was wrong, and of course, Lin Yu couldn’t come up with an excuse either.
Brother and sister, each with secrets in their hearts, tacitly used this shield and then tossed it away.
Only poor Xia Yanran next door was still lying in bed, half-awake and tangled up in what happened last night.
“Jie, do I really have to go to Dome Academy?”
At the dining table, Lin Yu hesitated as he asked, sounding completely different from before when it seemed like he was demanding an answer.
He’d run into Night Spirit, and even told her he was a freshman too.
What he was reluctant to admit, even to himself, was that by asking, wasn’t he hoping his sister would make this decision for him?
Lin Mowei seemed to sense the shift in her brother’s tone. Though she didn’t know what had changed, it was certainly a good thing.
But she didn’t give him an answer right away. “Xiaoyu, how about we talk about it after we get back from Nest City No. 1?”
Lin Yu was a little surprised. “Nest City No. 1? We… we’re still going?”
Lin Mowei smiled. “Of course. There’s no rush to make this decision. Don’t let this affect our mood for the trip.”
“You’re right, then… okay.”