To be honest, Gou Yu had considered messing with the obviously-his-sister delivery order.
Like maybe just leaving it at the door and bailing.
Or better yet, eating the whole damn thing himself and never delivering it.
But the problem was: if the food didn’t show up, his sister would definitely call.
And the second she heard his voice on the other end; his identity would be instantly exposed.
And leaving it at the door wasn’t an option either—because the moment he arrived, he saw her.
That red-brown-haired girl squatting pitifully at the shop entrance like a hungry stray.
Their eyes met.
And the instant he saw the hunger glinting in her eyes; she clearly saw him too.
So, he paused his order-taking for a moment.
“Hey, bro!”
The red-haired girl stood up and waved enthusiastically, then rushed over and snatched her takeaway right out of Gou Yu’s hands.
“You didn’t sneak a bite, did you?”
The moment she saw his outfit, the well-behaved little sister instantly understood her dear brother was the one delivering her meal.
“Already finished it.” Gou Yu let out a full-bellied burp.
He had clearly come prepared.
The feather-light takeaway box made the red-haired girl roll her eyes, and she tossed it straight into a nearby trash can.
“You knew this was mine, and you still made me wait this long?”
Gou Yu’s hand was tugged as his chatty little sister dragged him back inside the shop.
It had been a long time since they’d seen each other.
“When I’m out delivering, I usually have a bunch of orders at once. I dropped off the others first and then—” Gou Yu paused.
“You’re right. I was late. It was already cold when I ate it.”
The girl didn’t get angry.
She just stared at her brother in his bright yellow delivery uniform, eyes unblinking.
Her brother had grown more mature.
And she herself had grown up too.
So now, she didn’t cling to him and beg him to come home—even though, deep down, she did just want one nice family dinner.
“Bro, I introduced a really pretty girl to you. Totally your type. Did you add her?”
As he was rummaging around behind the register, Gou Yu paused.
“No.”
“Why not? She’s such a sweet girl. Do you know what I went through to set that up? I practically sold myself for that chance!”
Gou Yu had no words.
His little sister really was trying to help him.
“Don’t do stuff like that for me anymore,” he sighed.
“Then at least try hanging out with her once. Give it a shot.”
The girl’s eyes sparkled with nothing but hope.
“I’ll check her out when I have time,” Gou Yu said vaguely, still planning to drag things out.
His sister had grown a lot—she didn’t press the issue, just stared silently at the stark tan lines on his arms.
“How’ve you been lately? You never send a single message home.”
“I’m eating well, sleeping well. Got a roommate too.”
Gou Yu thought for a moment and decided to be honest.
But the shop owner’s focus was laser-sharp: “Roommate? Guy or girl?”
Seeing her lean in with curiosity, Gou Yu instinctively replied, “A guy.”
Then he immediately felt something was off—Zhu Niao technically counted as a girl now.
His good little sister backed off with a look of dull disappointment.
Gou Yu didn’t bother correcting himself. It’d be too much hassle to explain everything later anyway.
It’s not like his sister could find his place.
And it’s not like she’d ever run into Zhu Niao anywhere that wasn’t work-related.
“If only you already had a live-in girlfriend…” the young shopkeeper sighed dramatically, patting her chest.
“Don’t worry about me—I’m not picky about my future sister-in-law.”
“Pretty sure your opinion doesn’t matter,” Gou Yu muttered.
There wasn’t any cash behind the counter worth grabbing.
As he frowned in frustration, a small stack of change appeared in front of his face.
“It’s all I’ve got on me.”
His sister knew that if she handed her dear brother enough money to actually live comfortably for a while, he’d never take it.
He might even stop talking to her altogether for a few weeks.
So this little handful of change—this was the maximum help she could give.
“Alright, I’ll take it.”
Gou Yu pocketed the coins, treating it as fair compensation for the time he’d wasted.
With this, he could buy two bags of spicy strips on the way home.
Wouldn’t that dazzle the ever-groggy Niao?
“Okay, I’m off. Don’t order from this place again—it’s filthy,” he said, letting out another burp as he waved her off and turned to leave.
The shopkeeper seemed to have a lot more she wanted to say, but the words got caught in her throat.
“Don’t forget to go meet that girl.”
She had a stubborn father and an equally stubborn brother.
Neither of them had technically done anything wrong, yet a minor spat had dragged on into a full-blown cold war, simply because neither of them was willing to back down.
“Sigh—”
Silence returned to the shop as the young owner sighed helplessly.
One of these days, once she found out where her dear brother lived, she was going to have a nice long chat with his mysterious roommate.
Start with the people around him—maybe that would work.
Of course, Gou Yu—riding his e-bike with two bags of spicy strips in hand—had no idea what his sister was planning.
He just zoomed all the way home, coolly pulled off his helmet, and opened the front door.
The living room was empty.
The sound of the door creaking open felt unnervingly loud.
He had no idea where the little bird who should’ve been home from work had disappeared to.
Gou Yu tore open the packet of spicy strips and gave the plastic bag a shake.
“What are you eating over there?”
A voice called out before its owner even appeared.
“Give me a bite.”
Then Zhu Niao walked out, following the scent—fresh from a shower, her long hair still damp, dressed in a white camisole nightdress.
The faint scent of lavender followed her in, but what caught the eye even more was the hem of her dress barely covering her thighs, and the glimpse of skin peeking from the loose strap just below her collarbone.
But this was his bro.
“You could at least dry your hair before coming out,” Gou Yu said, taking a deep breath to compose himself.
“If I dried my hair first, would there even be any spicy strips left?”
Completely oblivious, Zhu Niao snatched the packet from his hands.
The only one suffering was Gou Yu, whose hormone-fuelled thoughts kept drifting places they shouldn’t.
“Hey, did you add that sugar mama your bro recommended?”
“Nope.”
Zhu Niao’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“You little punk, don’t you know a good thing when you see it? I was trying to get us both out of poverty! Even if you don’t want it, can’t you at least consider your brother?”
“It’s complicated. I can’t explain it to you,” Gou Yu waved it off, not in the mood for long explanations.
“Alright, I get it,” said Zhu Niao, adjusting imaginary glasses with a serious face.
Then she tapped a finger to Gou Yu’s forehead.
“You didn’t even let her get a proper look at you, did you?”
If only she knew how accurate that guess was.
But Gou Yu, frozen on the spot, was staring at the shoulder strap that had slipped down during her exaggerated gesture—revealing the soft pink curve of something half-covered.
A young man’s imagination is nothing if not vivid.
Gou Yu couldn’t stop his mind from flashing back to that dream he’d had about Zhu Niao.
The second he noticed a very real physical reaction starting, he bolted to the bathroom so fast that Zhu Niao didn’t even realize anything was off.
“Damn it, Old Dog, don’t scare me like that! Can I still eat this spicy strip or what?”
Inside the bathroom, chanting calming mantras under his breath, Gou Yu finally managed to reply, “If I say no, are you really going to stop?”
“Five-cent spicy strip? I’d still praise it for having kick even if I ate it on the toilet.”
Zhu Niao muttered back through the door.
“You still in there, Old Dog? I gotta tell you something.”
“Spit it out.”
“Old Second’s family is throwing a back-to-school party. It’s tomorrow night. I gotta go, so you’re on your own for food.”
Gou Yu raised an eyebrow.
“Didn’t you say it wasn’t for a while?”
“Dunno seems like it got moved up. Just don’t starve while I’m out.”
“I won’t. Just get lost already.”
Honestly, more than anything else, Gou Yu just wanted her to put some distance between them.
“What’s your problem?” Zhu Niao grumbled, licking spicy oil off her fingers.
“Can’t eat with someone nearby? Want me to add some toilet cleaner for extra flavour?”
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