Chapter 88: I Only Have One Little Sister
On the way home, Shanshan’s little head hung low as she replayed what her teacher had said in class that day.
"You’re all growing up now, so you need to learn to be independent. Boys and girls especially should live in separate rooms."
The moment she walked through the door, she mustered up her courage and shouted at the housekeeper who was wiping a table in the living room.
"Move all my things back to my room! I want to live by myself!"
"What’s all this about?"
Ling Anxun frowned.
"What’s wrong? Why the sudden decision to move rooms today? Whose idea was this?"
Shanshan stood up straight, her expression serious as she lifted her little face.
"Teacher said we’re all grown up now and can’t sleep in the same room as the opposite sex. I’m a girl, and you’re a boy, so we can’t sleep together anymore."
Ling Anxun was stunned for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"Your teacher is right, and you’re right. In that case, Daddy will help you move."
He silently crouched down and carefully placed Shanshan’s toys into a small box one by one.
At dinner, the family sat around the dining table.
Ling Anxun put down his chopsticks and, with a solemn expression, made an announcement in front of the whole family.
"Shanshan is an elementary school student now, a big girl. Starting today, she’ll sleep in her own room. She needs to develop the good habit of being independent."
"That’s right! I’m a big girl, I have to sleep by myself!"
Shanshan puffed out her little chest.
But by midnight, Ling Anxun was tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
The space under the covers felt cold and empty. Without that little ball of warmth, it just felt like something was missing.
Not even five minutes after he turned off the lights, there was a soft knock at the door.
He sprang out of bed and rushed barefoot to pull the door open.
There stood Shanshan, barefoot, hugging her favorite little bear pillow.
"Daddy... I’m scared. It’s dark outside. Can I sleep with you?"
Ling Anxun’s heart melted, and he almost laughed out loud.
He managed to hide it, simply crouching down, lowering his head gently, and scooping her up into his arms.
"Alright, you can sleep with Daddy tonight."
"Tomorrow, you can go back to being a little grown-up, okay?"
Shanshan nodded in his embrace.
But Ling Anxun remained awake for a long time, sighing softly as he gazed at the moonlight outside the window.
At school, ever since she had started wearing designer clothes, Cao Jiajia’s posture had become ramrod straight.
She brought back the same haughty demeanor she used to have in the family residential quarters, holding her head high and scanning the crowds with a disdainful gaze.
Seeing how well-dressed she was, many people mistakenly assumed her father was some kind of official and flocked to strike up conversations with her.
She was finally starting to make a name for herself in class.
With this group of people around her, she immediately regained that old feeling of superiority.
When she saw Shanshan now, she no longer felt insecure. She even dared to secretly pick fights with her.
"Hmph, a country bumpkin is still a country bumpkin. You really think you’re the only one who can make friends? So can I!"
After hearing this, Shanshan gave her a slow, deliberate look, scanning her from head to toe.
Cao Jiajia took this as a sign of retreat and cowardice, and she immediately became smug.
’I’ll have to make sure to show off in front of my new friends later,’ she schemed.
But just as she turned around, she saw Ling Zhiwei walking toward Shanshan.
"Fourth Brother, why are you the one picking me up today?"
A smile immediately blossomed on Shanshan’s face the moment she saw him.
"Your dad had a last-minute meeting and will be late. I came to get you first."
Ling Zhiwei replied.
As he spoke, his gaze quietly fell on the person behind Shanshan.
"That girl, is she a new friend of yours?"
"Who?"
Shanshan turned around, and her gaze landed right on Cao Jiajia.
"Oh, her?"
Shanshan instantly rolled her eyes.
"She’s the new daughter my bad dad picked up. She has nothing to do with me. Let’s not talk about her."
With that, she grabbed Ling Zhiwei’s hand and turned to leave.
But Cao Jiajia suddenly ran after them.
"Cao Xueshan, wait!"
She reached out to grab the hem of Shanshan’s clothes.
"Excuse me, you’ve got the wrong name,"
Ling Zhiwei suddenly spoke up.
"Her name is Ling Xueshan now. Her surname is Ling. Don’t get it wrong again."
"S-sorry, Brother..."
Cao Jiajia hadn’t processed what was happening and called him "Brother."
Realizing her slip of the tongue, her face instantly turned red.
"I won’t get it wrong again..."
she added in a low voice, her head bowed.
Shanshan instantly blew up, whipping her head around to glare at Cao Jiajia.
"Who are you calling Brother? He’s my brother! Not yours! If you dare call him that again, believe me, I’ll get physical!"
"Waaah... Shanshan, I’m sorry, I really won’t do it again..."
Cao Jiajia’s eyes turned red, and she immediately lowered her head, starting to cry with hitching sobs.
She secretly glanced at Ling Zhiwei, thinking,
’If he’s a softy, I can use this chance to talk to him more and get closer.’
But Ling Zhiwei wasn’t falling for it at all.
He found crying children to be the most annoying thing.
"Shanshan is right."
He took her hand.
"I only have one little sister. Come on, let’s go home and eat. Grandma made your favorite braised pork ribs and sticky rice balls today. The smell has already drifted out into the courtyard. If you keep dawdling, there’ll be nothing left but the sauce."
The two of them walked off hand in hand, without a single glance back.
Cao Jiajia stood frozen in place, her eyes glued to Ling Zhiwei’s departing back.
"Oh my god... he’s so handsome, isn’t he?"
she muttered to herself.
"Those eyes, that profile... he looks like he walked right out of a painting. If I had a brother like that, I’d wake up smiling from my dreams every day. My pillow would be soaked when I woke up."
She didn’t know his name, but her curiosity drove her to ask around.
She only had to ask casually once, and the news spread throughout the class.
Ling Zhiwei, the eldest grandson of the Ling family, Shanshan’s paternal cousin.
His parents were both high-ranking officials, and his family was prominent.
He attended the same affiliated high school, where his grades were consistently in the top ten of his year. He was what the teachers called a "Qingbei prospect."
Not only that, but he was also exceptionally handsome, a widely acknowledged school hunk.
Cao Jiajia’s hands tightened on the hem of her skirt.
She looked down at her own school uniform skirt, faded from countless washings.
’Having a brother like that... it really makes you jealous.’
’I want a brother like that, too. One who would pick me up from school, pat my shoulder when I do poorly on a test, and call me ’little sister’ with a smile.’
’Yeah... who wouldn’t want a brother like that?’
Once the thought surfaced, she couldn’t suppress it anymore.
Every day she hoped he would come to pick up Shanshan again, just so she could catch another glimpse of him.
「Finally, that day came.」
The moment the final bell rang, Cao Jiajia rushed to the school gate.
From a distance, she spotted that tall, slender figure standing quietly in the shade of a tree.
Shanshan wasn’t even out of her classroom yet. Without even grabbing her backpack, Cao Jiajia broke into a run.
"Are you here to pick up Shanshan? She’ll be out soon!"
she said, running up to him.
"You? Cao Jiajia?"
Ling Zhiwei, who had been looking down at his phone, glanced up at the sound of her voice.
Cao Jiajia froze.
’He actually remembers my name?’
"Yes, yes, yes! It’s me! Brother, you can just call me Jiajia! I—I’ve always thought..."
"I’m not your brother," he interrupted her.
"Don’t call me that. Stay away from me from now on, and don’t hang around the school gate like this."
As soon as he finished speaking, he turned his head and went back to his phone without giving her so much as another glance.
Cao Jiajia’s face instantly went pale.
She stood rooted to the spot, unable to move, as a tear splashed onto the ground.