To Liu Xie’s surprise, she seemed to be adapting to her new identity better than expected.
If there were a mirror in front of her right now, she would’ve seen that unique blend of slyness and cuteness exclusive to young girls.
Liu Anran’s expression flickered for a moment.
“Then I won’t say things like that anymore,” he said.
Now it was Liu Xie’s turn to be taken aback.
Ever since her dear little brother Liu Anran had matured enough to handle things on his own, he’d made it a habit to pop out from some random corner just to hurl a few harsh words at her.
Logically speaking, she should’ve been annoyed.
But somehow, she could never truly get angry at this scruffy little boy she’d picked up all those years ago.
So it usually went like this: one would constantly snipe with sarcastic jabs, the other would lie there like a dead pig unbothered by boiling water.
Even in front of their parents, this dynamic never changed—and had lasted for years.
And now, Liu Anran suddenly said he wouldn’t speak to her like that anymore…
“What, you’re planning to start throwing punches now that I can’t hit back?” Liu Xie took two exaggerated steps backward in mock shock.
“Do you have some kind of brain damage?” Liu Anran raised a brow at her.
“Ah, that’s the tone I’m used to.”
“You…” The boy took a deep breath.
“Anyway, I’ll try not to talk to you the way I used to.”
Liu Xie’s face was full of confusion.
Was her foul-mouthed little brother really vanishing?
Unable to stop herself, the golden-haired girl blurted out, “Why?”
“No reason. You’re like a pig that’s immune to boiling water—no matter what I say, it doesn’t work on you. Just take it as me getting tired of wasting my breath,” Liu Anran said in his usual vague, roundabout way.
“You’d make a great cryptic NPC in a game,” Liu Xie finally muttered.
They wandered through the grand hall, and as the stars of the banquet, their presence naturally drew attention.
Just then, two well-dressed guests began walking over with polite smiles on their faces.
Liu Anran called out to Liu Xie, who had also come to a halt.
“Go hang out with your dorm mates. I’ll handle this.”
He took two steps forward and stood in front of her, neatly blocking the approaching guests’ view of her.
Liu Xie was slightly stunned.
Strictly speaking, her brother hadn’t changed the way he treated her at all after she became a girl.
Because Liu Anran had always been like this—standing in front of her despite being younger, shielding her from all the things she wasn’t good at.
Though, the old Liu Anran would never have said something as awkwardly sincere as that.
He used to block people from approaching Liu Xie while muttering, “Get lost, don’t embarrass the family.”
But the behavior and result were always the same.
Liu Xie didn’t bother holding back either—she raised a middle finger behind her brother’s back where he wouldn’t notice, then followed her gut and made her way toward where Zhu Niao and Ye Qingchang were likely hanging out.
Just in time to hear the two of them deep in discussion—about what counted as expensive.
“This little cake doesn’t look any different from the 9.9 yuan tiramisu they sell outside the school gate,” Zhu Niao said, lips still smudged with cream.
Ye Qingchang chimed in, even more animated, “Be bold—it’s probably stocked from the same vendor at our school gate.”
“Guess that street stall made it into high society, then.”
“So if we’re eating here now, does that mean we’ve entered high society?” Ye Qingchang asked.
“Nope. We don’t count. We’re too low-class,” Zhu Niao declared with absolute certainty.
“Fair enough.”
Liu Xie, overhearing from behind, felt her eyelid twitch.
“Can you two talk about something with actual substance for once?”
All she got in return were surprised greetings.
“Eh? You’re back already?” Zhu Niao set down her plate.
“Your parents accepted it that easily?”
“It’s already a done deal. Even if they didn’t accept it, they wouldn’t have a choice. Honestly, they probably knew what happened not long after it happened.”
A trace of concern appeared on Ye Qingchang’s face.
“Wait, so now that you’ve become a girl, are they going to marry you off to some powerful family? Rich people are always pulling that kind of crap.”
“Ugh…” Liu Xie waved her hand in disgust.
“I don’t know about other families, but mine definitely wouldn’t do that. And neither would I. I’ll only ever stay with my own family—I’m not marrying into someone else’s just to suffer.”
“Well, that’s good,” Ye Qingchang said, visibly relieved.
“No, that’s not good,” Zhu Niao frowned.
“That means I won’t ever get to go to your wedding banquet.”
“Is it physically impossible for you to say something nice for once?” Liu Xie raised a fist and knocked Zhu Niao on the top of the head, leveraging her height advantage.
Ye Qingchang reached out to mediate and handed Liu Xie a plate and utensils while she was at it.
Zhu Niao went right back to eating.
This whole banquet felt like a free buffet, and every bite she took was seasoned with the thrill of scoring a free meal.
“That guy standing at the door earlier—was that your brother?” she asked mid-chew.
“Yeah,” Liu Xie replied, still eating.
“Were you not beaten enough as a kid? Why does he act so cocky?” Ye Qingchang frowned, clearly upset about Liu Anran’s earlier rudeness.
“Sheesh, I picked him up from a trash heap when he was little. Life was already tough—who had the heart to hit him?”
“Damn,” Zhu Niao whistled.
“A child of misfortune, huh.”
“Even so, that’s no excuse to talk to family like that,” Ye Qingchang still frowned in disapproval.
Of the four in their dorm, Liu Xie was the only one who wasn’t an only child.
Ye Qingchang couldn’t relate, but if she had a brother like that, she was sure she’d have dropped dead from anger on the spot.
“It’s not what you think. The kid’s all bark—he only mouths off to me, never done anything truly hurtful,” Liu Xie defended Liu Anran… at least a little.
Then suddenly, she paused, picked up a piece of the dessert she’d just been eating, and dropped it onto Zhu Niao’s plate.
“Did it fall on the floor?” Zhu Niao guessed logically.
“No. Just try it. It’s really good,” Liu Xie said with a straight face.
As Zhu Niao popped it into her mouth, the smug expression she’d been wearing instantly vanished.
She too stiffened her expression, then exchanged a knowing look with Liu Xie.
They both gave a silent nod.
“Hey, Third Sis, why haven’t I seen you playing with your digital pet lately?” Zhu Niao asked casually.
Ye Qingchang thought for a second.
“He’s been pretty busy now that the semester’s started. I’ve been busy too, so I’ve just kind of ignored it.”
“What if he found out you’re actually a guy? What would he do then?”
“Come on. What’s he gonna do, crawl through the internet cables and strangle me? Besides, I never led him on romantically or asked for money. Even if he tracked me down, what—he’s gonna beat me up?”
Ye Qingchang replied a bit too fast, like she’d been hit by a sudden panic reflex, or touched on something she didn’t want to think about.
“It’s just companionship. We both got what we needed.”
“I dunno… that guy seemed pretty into you,” Liu Xie cut in smoothly.
“Well, then he was into a fictional character I made up,” Ye Qingchang replied sharply.
“Not so sure about that now,” Zhu Niao said, giving Ye Qingchang a once-over.
“Right now, you’re the real deal—an honest-to-goodness pretty girl.”
At that moment, Liu Xie calmly picked up another piece of dessert and dropped it onto Ye Qingchang’s plate.
Zhu Niao, still holding a grudge from earlier, gave a thumbs-up. “It’s good.”
Ye Qingchang, brain too overloaded to process, ate it without thinking.
Her sudden shift in expression told the story—it was clearly that kind of dessert.
“I’m gonna hide both of your moms,” she muttered.
Just then, the lights dimmed.
In the center spotlight stood a teenage boy, wearing a laid-back smile.
“Thank you all for coming to my bro—sister Liu Xie’s start-of-term banquet. Hope you all have a great time.”
Then, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he began walking straight toward Liu Xie.