Jiang Xiao had already prepared himself for all her possible reactions.
Then, he saw her panic and hurriedly think for a moment.
She lowered her eyes for a glance, her eyes widening, mouth opening slightly.
“Rever…”
She looked at where her thighs were positioned, and in the next instant, she sprang up like a startled hedgehog.
Seeing this, Jiang Xiao promptly released the small hand he’d been holding all night.
“Uh, I…”
Song Qiuyu scrambled for an excuse to handle the situation.
No matter how you looked at this scene, it was her problem!
Save me!
She’d clearly gone to sleep properly, back to Jiang Xiao, so why had she ended up hugging him while asleep?
“Mm, I know.”
…”
“You don’t have to explain, I already know.”
“What do you know?”
“Because Xi’er really likes me, so even in her sleep she wants to hug me tight or something like that?”
Song Qiuyu froze for a moment, unsure if Jiang Xiao was being deliberate or just joking, but she did find a suitable excuse in his words.
“Ahem ahem!”
Song Qiuyu clenched her fist, coughing twice.
“That’s right, exactly! It’s all part of my girlfriend plan, you know. Actually, I was awake the whole time.”
She raised two fingers in a scissors pose, showing a sweet and playful smile, sticking out her little tongue.
“So I was pretending the whole time. Bet you didn’t expect that, huh?”
She acted as if she had no memory at all of what she’d done last night, puffing out her youthful chest that had just broken free of restraint.
What was moving here?
It was Jiang Xiao’s self-control!
He didn’t dare look at her directly.
As for her last few sentences, he chose not to cooperate: “No, I already guessed.”
“Oh.”
Song Qiuyu guiltily looked elsewhere, scratching her neck, then suddenly flung off the blanket, ready to jump off the bed.
But as soon as she moved her legs, soreness exploded all over her thighs and calves, making her freeze.
“Looks like you wore those height-increasing shoes too long. Miscalculation. I should have given your legs a massage last night before letting you sleep,” Jiang Xiao said, frowning in thought.
“No, no, it’s just a little soreness!”
Song Qiuyu couldn’t stand it, hurriedly put on her slippers, and went to try the door.
“Wait!”
“Hmm?”
“Your…”
Jiang Xiao found it hard to speak, so he just pointed at his own chest.
Seeing this, Song Qiuyu stared blankly for a moment before realization dawned. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned her back to him.
How did she only remember to take her hand out but forget the most crucial thing!!
She couldn’t go out like this!
Panicking, she hurried to straighten her clothes.
Jiang Xiao also wanted to get up, but as he tried to move, he realized, belatedly, that his whole body—especially the arm he’d used to prop up his head—was completely numb.
Well, after all, he’d kept the same posture the whole night without moving.
He kept quiet, trying his best not to let her notice anything strange as he got out of bed by himself. But the girl who had been eager to get out a moment ago now turned back, reached out a hand to help him up, leaving Jiang Xiao feeling a bit dizzy.
This dizziness was a tingling that left his head spinning.
“Sorry, I’ll try to sleep better next time!” Song Qiuyu apologized with deep guilt, helping Jiang Xiao out of bed.
From her words, Jiang Xiao caught a subtle point, and couldn’t help but feel a flutter in his heart.
So, there would be a next time.
Their bedroom door opened easily, of course.
Coming into the living room, Song Qiuyu saw Jiang Li dozing on the sofa and could already imagine what had happened last night.
This little girl probably blocked the door all night, standing guard over them.
With such willpower and determination, she’d succeed at anything she tried.
Thinking of this, Song Qiuyu sighed inwardly.
She was really just like Jiang Xiao—no wonder they were family.
“Brother, Qiuyu ge….”
Jiang Li noticed them and woke up, getting up from the sofa.
Before she could finish her greeting, her sharp eyes caught the marks on her brother’s neck—and also on Qiuyu ge’s neck—her expression changed slightly.
She didn’t know much about relationships between men and women; everything she knew came from school, from those couples who secretly dated in defiance of the rules.
Those couples also liked to leave marks like that on each other’s necks!
So, did that mean her brother and Qiuyu ge were together?
Jiang Li’s eyes lit up at once.
“Jiang Li, let’s not make a fuss about last night’s events, but next time, you can’t do this again!” Song Qiuyu said with a deliberately stern tone.
“Mm, I’m sorry.”
Jiang Li apologized obediently, but she couldn’t wipe the smile from the corners of her mouth.
“Go back to your room and get some sleep,” Jiang Xiao said to his little sister.
“Okay, brother.”
Jiang Li nodded and walked toward the bedroom in a cheerful mood.
But when she got to the door, she slowed down, turning to glance at the two figures heading to wash up. She frowned slightly at Song Qiuyu’s strange gait.
As expected, Qiuyu ge was on the bottom.
Creak—the bedroom door opened, Jiang Li slipped inside, glanced at Jiang Yu, who was still fast asleep, and closed the door, picking up her phone.
She and Jiang Yu would be leaving after today, but Shen Xi could show up to find their brother at any time.
She needed someone to help keep watch.
She already had a candidate in mind.
So, while Xie Zhuran was still asleep, he received a new QQ message:
“Zhuran ge, can I ask you a favor?”
Jiang Yu woke up needing to pee.
He saw his sister busy messaging someone, greeted her, then jumped out of bed and opened the bedroom door.
After stepping out, he closed the door and saw his brother helping Song Qiuyu out of the bathroom, slowing to a stop.
“Brother, and big brother, good morning!”
Jiang Yu greeted them politely.
“Morning.”
Jiang Xiao and Song Qiuyu responded in unison.
Jiang Yu tilted his head, pointing at his own neck in confusion, “Brother, big brother, why do you have red marks on your necks?”
“Heh…”
Song Qiuyu instinctively covered her neck.
But there was no way she could hide all the marks Jiang Xiao left with just one hand!
Why did Jiang Yu have to wake up now? They’d planned to let only Jiang Li see, then go back and change into turtlenecks to cover up!
“Were you bitten by bugs?”
Jiang Yu looked at them with wide-eyed concern.
Hearing this, Song Qiuyu glanced at this newly minted middle-schooler, who somewhat resembled the Jiang Xiao she’d met years ago, and her lips twitched.
She seemed to understand her younger self a bit more now.
Like magnetic poles, mischievous bad students are sometimes drawn to very proper good students; sometimes out of boredom, wanting to find amusement in those rule-followers, and sometimes they just enjoyed turning orderly people into the unruly.
After all, rules are made to be broken. A by-the-book life is just too dull!
Most boys that age were like this—full of teenage angst and drama.
Of course, Jiang Yu just looked like Jiang Xiao, but was really nothing like him.
Because no matter how you looked at it, Jiang Yu was way cuter than his brother Ha Ji Xiao!
“Yeah.”
Jiang Xiao had no idea what Song Qiuyu was thinking, but he sensed her gaze shift and immediately switched tactics.
“It was a bug—a really cute bug!”
“?”
Song Qiuyu was stunned. It was her first time seeing someone insult themselves as a bug, and shamelessly call themselves cute, too.
He even mimicked how little kids spoke, repeating words! Reduplicatives—so annoying!
Though she was one of the bugs who bit him, too.
Thinking of this, she suddenly felt shy and a bit speechless.
She only bit once, but Jiang Xiao left her whole neck covered in marks!
With Jiang Yu’s main question answered, more questions popped up one after another—like bamboo shoots after a rain.
What kind of bug bit you? Was it big? Was it poisonous? Why does big brother walk so funny—did he hurt his waist? Why is big brother’s face so red…?
To all this, Song Qiuyu parried every question, finally shutting Jiang Yu down with, “Why did you come out here, anyway?”
“Is your brother a walking ‘Ten Thousand Whys’?”
When Jiang Yu went into the bathroom, she couldn’t help but complain.
“How did you know? At home he’s always like this, super curious,” Jiang Xiao looked at her in surprise.
Song Qiuyu fell silent. The Jiang family really wasn’t easy to handle.
Afterward, they had a rather sumptuous breakfast, then tidied up and headed to the largest supermarket.
Since Jiang Li and Jiang Yu would be leaving tomorrow, Song Qiuyu and Jiang Xiao wanted to cook them a nice meal.
The two kids were still growing, so the most important thing was getting enough protein, which meant lots of meat, plus vegetables.
They pushed their cart, picking vegetables as they went.
If they saw something they could get cheaper at the local market, they didn’t bother, unless—there was a huge discount.
“Brother, I want spicy beef!” Jiang Yu pointed toward an area further ahead.
“Jiang Xiao, you two go get the beef. I’ll take Jiang Li to check out other things. We’ll split up to save time,” Song Qiuyu said, then pushed the cart and took Jiang Li in another direction.
Watching their backs as they left, Jiang Xiao squinted.
Such harmony—so much so that they felt like a real family. He felt sure the rest of the family would also like Xi’er.
This feeling wasn’t bad at all.
Only, there were still some things that had to be resolved first.
A short while later, Song Qiuyu and Jiang Li pushed the cart toward the spicy beef section, now accompanied by another person.
It was Sang Tian.
“Song classmate, are you sure it’s okay if I come eat with you guys?”
There was an odd worry on Sang Tian’s face, as if she wanted to say something but kept hesitating.
“Of course!”
Song Qiuyu beamed, “I think Jiang Xiao and his brother will be glad you’re coming. Oh right, Xie Zhuran and the others should be on their way too. We still have a ton of Christmas Eve apples left—need your help finishing them!”
Jiang Li listened quietly, keeping a polite smile on her face and saying nothing.
“Hmm…” Sang Tian pondered, “Alright, thank you! I’ll do my best to eat apples.”
“Come on, let’s go find Jiang Xiao and the others!”
Song Qiuyu definitely noticed Sang Tian seemed a bit odd, but this clearly wasn’t the time to ask, so she decided to wait until they got back.
She chatted and joked with the girls as they walked ahead, but what caught her eye next was a scene that made her pause—a trio of pretty young girls, faces alight with excitement, crowding around Jiang Xiao and chattering away.
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