Chapter Forty-Nine: The Defense Is Broken

Page 1 of 3

As soon as Qin Lin’er thought about her older brother still being tormented by Liu Ruoxi, she couldn’t help but want to rush over and rescue him—ah! But she couldn’t! She’d never win against Ruoxi…

Meanwhile, in Qin Xuan’s room, Liu Ruoxi was in a state Qin Lin’er could never have imagined. She nestled in Qin Xuan’s arms like a shy bride. Ever since they confirmed their relationship, Qin Xuan felt that Liu Ruoxi had become even more clingy, with all her teasing little gestures that left him constantly holding himself back!

“Qin Xuan?” Liu Ruoxi rubbed her cheek against his chest, suddenly noticing his distraction. How dare he space out while with her?

“Hm? What’s wrong?” Qin Xuan came to his senses, catching Liu Ruoxi’s slightly annoyed look in his arms.

“Hmph! What are your plans for winter break?” Liu Ruoxi didn’t press further, seeing he was present again.

Qin Xuan wiped a little sweat from his brow. “Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself? It’s only New Year’s Day.”

Liu Ruoxi gave him a playful punch. “So what? It’s almost the end of the semester. There’s less than a month left.”

“We’ll see. Maybe I’ll spend the whole winter break playing games at home?” Qin Xuan sounded hopeful.

“What do you think!” Liu Ruoxi raised her fist at him. Scoundrel! Now that you have a girlfriend, you’re still thinking about video games!

“Ah?” Qin Xuan was slightly disappointed. “Then I’ll keep you company.”

“Liar!” Liu Ruoxi pouted, but couldn’t help the smile creeping onto her face.

Before they knew it, the two drifted off to sleep.

...

The next time they awoke, it was to the blaring of an alarm clock.

Qin Xuan lay in bed for a while before finally getting up. As for Liu Ruoxi, she sprawled out, refusing to move—her morning mood was terrible.

There was nothing Qin Xuan could do but go make breakfast himself.

All the students knew that after New Year’s, the thing to look forward to most was the vacation, but the final exams beforehand were a nightmare! Especially in university. If you failed a class, you could say goodbye to a good break.

So for a while, the three of them often went to the library together, racking up enough study hours. Sometimes they’d run into Nan Zhiyi, which made things awkward for Qin Xuan.

Ever since Qin Xuan had cleared things up with Nan Zhiyi, she hadn’t done anything out of line again, but Qin Xuan still felt like she was plotting something big.

A week before finals, on a Friday, the three finished classes and returned home.

“Qin Xuan~” Liu Ruoxi flopped onto the sofa, waving him over.

“What is it?” Qin Xuan said casually as he changed his shoes.

Liu Ruoxi shook her head in mock disappointment. “You’ve changed. You used to call me ‘little darling.’”

“When did I ever call you that!” Qin Xuan nearly threw his shoe at her.

“Don’t you remember? Last time you needed my help?” she teased.

Qin Xuan: I never did! Don’t make things up! That’s slander!

Page 2 of 3

Liu Ruoxi grinned mischievously, looking every bit the devil in Qin Xuan’s eyes.

“What are you two talking about?” Qin Lin’er walked out in fresh clothes, puzzled by their exchange. I’m still just a kid!

“Never mind, kiddo!” Liu Ruoxi ruffled Qin Lin’er’s hair as she sat beside her.

“Stop it! You’ll make it greasy!” Qin Lin’er shook her head, trying to escape her grasp.

Liu Ruoxi instinctively checked her hand, looking disgusted.

“Let’s go out tomorrow! It’s been ages since we’ve done anything fun!” Liu Ruoxi couldn’t suppress her restless energy.

“Do what?” Qin Lin’er asked.

“How about a haunted house?” Liu Ruoxi had heard the amusement park’s new haunted house was all the rage.

“H-haunted house?” Qin Lin’er stammered.

Seeing her reaction, Liu Ruoxi laughed. “What? Scared?”

“As if! Why would I be afraid of a haunted house? It’s not even real!” Qin Lin’er was putting on a brave face.

But Qin Xuan knew better—she was terrified of ghosts. Back in high school, after watching horror movies, she’d be too scared to sleep and would run to his bed for comfort.

“It’s settled, then,” Liu Ruoxi confirmed with a grin. Face your fears, young lady!

Seeing Qin Lin’er’s sulky face, Qin Xuan comforted her, “I’ll cook something delicious for you both tomorrow.”

Her spirits lifted instantly at the mention of food.

The next day…

Qin Lin’er stood before the haunted house entrance, trembling. If her brother hadn’t been holding her hand, she might have bolted.

Liu Ruoxi latched onto her other arm, and the two dragged her inside.

Qin Lin’er clung to Qin Xuan, eyes squeezed shut, while Liu Ruoxi poked around excitedly, probably trying to figure out where the ghosts were hiding.

In the monitoring room, the staff watched her antics in disbelief: Lady, this is a haunted house, not a game of hide-and-seek!

By the time the three emerged, Qin Lin’er was practically hanging on Qin Xuan, her legs too weak to walk.

Liu Ruoxi, meanwhile, was still pondering if she’d missed any scares.

Seeing Lin’er still draped over Qin Xuan, Liu Ruoxi tried to pry her off. “Qin Lin’er! Stop clinging to my boyfriend! Enough already!”

“My legs gave out, I can’t help it~” Qin Lin’er was quite content to hang on her brother.

Qin Xuan gave her a light smack. “Alright, down you go.”

Lin’er shuddered at the swat but tightened her grip around his neck even more.

Page 3 of 3

Seeing this, Liu Ruoxi couldn’t resist giving Lin’er a smack as well. This time, Lin’er just felt pain—it was nothing like when her brother did it!

Perhaps feeling awkward, Lin’er let go after a moment and slid off Qin Xuan, glancing at him shyly.

“Ahem!” Qin Xuan quickly looked away; those dewy eyes were almost too much to bear.

“Come on, let’s go grocery shopping,” he said.

“Yes! I want shrimp!” Qin Lin’er latched onto his arm again, grinning.

“Alright, I’ll make it for you,” Qin Xuan pinched her cheek—it was so soft and smooth!

Watching their closeness, Liu Ruoxi thought, So I’m the outsider here?

But Qin Lin’er was unfazed and bought a mountain of seafood—enough to last until the end of finals!

...

Watching Qin Xuan busy in the kitchen, Liu Ruoxi smiled and turned to Lin’er. “Lin’er, isn’t Qin Xuan amazing? He’s my boyfriend!”

Qin Lin’er: What’s with the bragging? He’s still my brother!

“He’s my brother, you know!” Lin’er retorted.

“Well, I get to sleep next to him every night. It’s heaven,” Liu Ruoxi fanned the flames.

“So what?” Lin’er shot her a disdainful look. “Do you even know where his birthmark is?”

“?” Liu Ruoxi genuinely didn’t, but she wasn’t about to lose. “I’ll just strip him naked tonight and find out!”

Qin Xuan, in the midst of cooking, overheard. Is it finally happening?

Furious, Qin Lin’er jabbed a finger at Liu Ruoxi. “You! You shameless woman!”

“How am I shameless for looking at my own boyfriend? At least I’m not pining after my own brother!”

Lin’er instantly deflated, dragging herself back to her room and locking the door behind her.

“What happened?” Qin Xuan came out with the dishes, surprised to see only Liu Ruoxi left.

“I… I think I upset her,” Liu Ruoxi said, baffled. They used to joke like this all the time—why was she so sensitive today?