Chapter 136 : It Was Supposed to Be Me First!
"I'm sorry, the number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later. Sorry..."
Li Qian hung up with an expressionless face. Even her sister's phone was unreachable now. She was certain that her sister was behind all of this.
The day she had been eagerly waiting for... ahem, their shopping trip, had been completely sabotaged by her own sister. There was no way she could let this go. She had to find her sister and let Ling Ning know who the real Li Qian was.
Even though she had decided to find her sister, Li Qian had no real leads. So she aimlessly walked down the busy streets, knowing that the chances of finding her were slim. Still, she couldn't just give up.
While passing a breakfast shop, she spotted a familiar small figure sitting inside, enjoying a meal.
Yes, that small figure was none other than Ling Ye.
After being woken up by her mom, Ling Ye couldn't fall back asleep. Hungry, but unwilling to go have breakfast alone, she had tried to wake Qin Sirou, who was still sound asleep.
However, after spending so much time with Ling Ye, Qin Sirou knew all her tricks. She locked her bedroom door before sleeping, and Ling Ye's little noises weren't enough to wake her.
Eventually, with no other option, Ling Ye went to have breakfast by herself.
"Ye Ye, having breakfast?" Li Qian approached Ling Ye with a bright smile.
"Eh~ Sister Qian, weren't you supposed to go out with Mom today?" Ling Ye tilted her head, curiosity evident in her voice.
Li Qian gave an awkward laugh and asked, "Well... do you know where Ling Ning went?" Li Ning had already explained the "Mom" title to her, so she wasn't surprised by it anymore.
Ling Ye lowered her head in thought, then slowly said, "I just know that Mom said she was going to the shopping plaza to buy me clothes or something."
"The shopping plaza, huh?" Li Qian repeated, then turned and left, paying Ling Ye's breakfast bill on her way out.
Watching Li Qian's departing back, Ling Ye mumbled to herself, "Why doesn't Sister Qian just call Mom? Even if the phone's out of battery or she forgot it, she could just borrow someone else's—like mine. She even called Mom with it just now."
"Is Sister Qian an idiot..." Ling Ye thought absentmindedly.
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After getting her target, Li Qian headed straight for the shopping plaza.
The shopping plaza wasn't enormous, but it wasn't exactly small either. Finding someone in it could take quite a while—possibly until sundown. But Li Qian remembered Ling Ye mentioning that Ling Ning was buying clothes for her. There were only a dozen or so shops catering to someone Ling Ye's age, even in a place like this.
Perhaps it was Li Qian's lucky day. She finally found a lead after checking just the fifth store.
"Miss, you're back again?"
The shop assistant looked at Li Qian curiously. Wasn't this beauty here just a little while ago, wearing a different outfit? Well, it wasn't any of her business; she just hoped the pretty lady would buy more stuff.
Li Qian raised an eyebrow and asked, "Did you just see my sister? Was there a tall, beautiful girl with long hair with her? Which way did they go?"
The shop assistant paused at the barrage of questions. After collecting her thoughts, she said, "So that beauty was your sister? Yes, there was a tall, beautiful girl with her. I think they went..." She thought for a moment before pointing in a direction.
"Thank you." Li Qian followed the direction given by the shop assistant, and soon, she spotted her sister and Ling Ning holding each other closely. It looked like something was about to happen.
"Hey! What are you two doing in broad daylight!?"
Hearing Li Qian's voice, Ling Ning turned around, almost jumping out of her skin. Why were there suddenly two Li Qians? Did Li Qian know how to clone herself? Or did she have some kind of superpower?
Ling Ning, stunned for a moment, forgot that she was supporting Li Meng. Without Ling Ning's hold, Li Meng instinctively tried to balance herself on her right foot.
And then... disaster struck.
When a person is about to fall, it's only natural to grab onto whatever's nearby. Li Meng did exactly that, and Ling Ning ended up pulled into the chaos.
Fortunately, Li Meng was right in front of a bench. She dragged Ling Ning down onto it, and due to inertia—and a fateful twist—their lips ended up pressing together.
Silence. An utter and complete silence descended upon the area.
Li Qian stared blankly at the scene before her. It was supposed to be her. She was supposed to be the one falling, the one kissing, the one... ahem!
Ling Ning, suddenly realizing what had happened, scrambled off Li Meng and looked at the two identical Li Qians in bewilderment, unsure what to do.
Li Meng, meanwhile, sat frozen on the bench. Her first kiss... was gone. Taken by a girl, no less. But for some reason, she didn't feel regret.
"Aren't you going to explain yourselves?" Unable to stand the awkward silence any longer, Ling Ning spoke up.
"The one you just kissed is my sister, Li Meng!"
For some reason, hearing Li Qian say that gave Ling Ning a sour feeling.
Li Meng looked at her sister. She hadn't expected her to persist and find her. Since her identity had been exposed, there was no point pretending anymore. Smiling faintly at Ling Ning, she said, "That's right~ I'm her sister, Li Meng. Dream, as in dreams."
"Then... why did you..." Ling Ning trailed off, unsure how to phrase her question. Li Qian was the one who had asked her out, so why had it ended up being Li Meng instead?
Just as Li Qian was about to say something, Li Meng cut her off. "It's a long story. How about we grab lunch somewhere and talk it over?"
"...Alright."
Ling Ning thought for a moment. It was already lunchtime, and weekends at the shopping plaza were always crowded. If they didn't hurry, they'd end up waiting in line.
Considering Li Meng's twisted ankle, Ling Ning agreed to her suggestion. Besides, the growing crowd of curious onlookers wasn't helping.
Seeing that Ling Ning had no objections, Li Qian nodded as well. After searching all morning, she hadn't even had breakfast yet. She was so hungry she felt she could eat anything—even a dried salted fish.
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Author's Note:
The salted fish me ended up spending more, but finally, the Master appeared. I'm so happy!