Chapter 64 Part 3

She fought to steady her faintly trembling shoulders, waiting anxiously and on edge for Nan Qi’s answer.

She sensed this little sister wasn’t so simple.

The intuition left her uneasy, her heart pounding.

Nan Qi glanced calmly at the writing, recalling that night at the arcade when Tang Lian had been surrounded by an admiring crowd amid waves of gasps and cheers. Her expression had remained impassive as she masterfully operated the machine—a ruthless doll-catcher—before spotting Nan Qi and starting to brag with smug pride. Nan Qi’s heart had softened a touch.

Even though dolls weren’t her thing, she had to admit it was a nice gift once she accepted it.

But as her gaze shifted to Bo Ranying’s face—twisted in grievance or jealousy—any faint warmth faded. Nan Qi felt no guilt facing such a reproach.

Her tone was utterly casual. “Tang Lian.”

As for why she called her Big Sister, that was easy enough to understand.

“She’s younger than me. Calling me Big Sister is perfectly normal, right?”

“Where’s the normal in that?”

Bo Ranying couldn’t fathom it. She was convinced Tang Lian had ulterior motives, plotting step by step—starting with the affectionate title to win Nan Qi over. Nan Qi was being duped.

Her voice rose, edged with shrillness. Unwilling to let Nan Qi slip away so easily, she stepped closer, locking eyes with her, stubborn and earnest. “You have a name. Why go out of her way to call you Big Sister? She could just use your name.”

She blocked Nan Qi’s path, determined to convince her, to make Tang Lian drop the intimate nickname.

Bo Ranying’s logic momentarily swayed Nan Qi, making her wonder if Tang Lian’s “Big Sister” carried some unusual weight.

But then she reconsidered. Tang Lian already liked her and wanted something more intimate. A bit of scheming was only natural!

With her mind made up, Nan Qi’s expression turned solemn, as if taking Bo Ranying’s words to heart.

“Yeah, I do have a name. Tang Lian’s got impure intentions.”

“Exactly.” Bo Ranying nodded vigorously, her eyes lighting up as she gazed at Nan Qi with relief.

Nan Qi got it now—she wouldn’t let Tang Lian call her Big Sister anymore.

Bo Ranying’s thoughts drifted to scrubbing that “Big Sister” off the doll tag too.

“But then why does Little Ran call me Baby when no one’s around?”

Nan Qi abruptly changed tack. Bo Ranying froze, caught off guard by the question. Her spark of joy vanished as she scrambled for an excuse, stammering, “I… I’m different from her.”

“How are you different?” Nan Qi pressed smoothly.

Now Nan Qi was the one asking the questions.

Bo Ranying blurted it out. “I like Little Qi. You’re so cute, so it just came naturally as a nickname.”

Hearing those near-confessional words, Nan Qi’s heart skipped, then quickly steadied.

“Tang Lian’s the same,” Nan Qi started, then cut herself off and corrected. “No, wrong. Not the same.”

“She likes me, while you only like me as a friend. That’s a fundamental difference.”

“And what does Tang Lian’s scheming have to do with Little Ran anyway?”

“I…”

“Don’t forget, you were the one who pushed Tang Lian’s WeChat on me in the first place.”

Even if Nan Qi hadn’t added her then, Bo Ranying’s attitude back then had been genuine.

She had truly wanted to shove her toward someone else.

Nan Qi’s words drained all color from Bo Ranying’s arguments. She murmured soundlessly, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably, her fingers trembling too weak to hold the plush dolls.

She felt no weight at all. In that instant, sensation fled her hands, and the dolls slipped from her grasp, plummeting toward the floor.

Nan Qi swiftly reached out, catching both dolls midair. Without a thought for Bo Ranying’s feelings, she carried them back to the sofa and set them in their original spot.

As she placed the dolls down, Bo Ranying remained rooted in place. Her vacant gaze drifted around the room, pupils unfocused, like a soulless statue radiating sorrow.

Nan Xi walked into the living room carrying a freshly washed plate of fruit. Passing Bo Ranying, he offered her a cluster of black grapes. “Big Sister Ranying, want some?”

Zhou Ru had specially picked Bo Ranying’s favorite variety at the fruit shop. The moment they got home, she had Nan Xi wash them right away—doing what he could to help out his sisters.

So he had no idea what had transpired between Bo Ranying and Nan Qi while he and his mom prepped the fruit in the kitchen.

Bo Ranying didn’t react to Nan Xi’s question at all, as if she hadn’t noticed the person standing right in front of her.

Puzzled and confused, Nan Xi set the fruit plate on the coffee table. He called out to Nan Qi to grab a bite and pad her stomach, then asked, “Sis, what’s up with Big Sister Ranying? She totally ignored me just now.”

Nan Qi plucked a grape and popped it in her mouth, mumbling around it. “She’s spacing out. Didn’t notice you.”

Bo Ranying, spacing out? She walks in the door and just zones out without doing anything?

Nan Xi swallowed a whole grape with effort, unconvinced by Nan Qi’s explanation—it didn’t match Bo Ranying at all.

Nan Qi instinctively overlooked how much Nan Xi had grown up, still picturing him as the little kid who used to cling to her leg, refusing to let her go off with the aliens. She brushed him off casually.

Only when she met his wide-eyed stare of utter skepticism did she realize.

Oh, right—Nan Xi was that big now, facing middle school entrance exams next year. He wasn’t the easily fooled little kid anymore.

Under those clear eyes, Nan Qi felt a rare twinge of guilt.

She invoked her big-sister authority, smacking the top of his head with a firm palm to make him forget the whole thing.

Thud thud—

A sudden knock echoed from the door, interrupting the moment.

Nan Xi listened closely, confirming it was at his sister’s door. With quick awareness, he got up to answer it.

Nan Qi didn’t need to guess. She knew exactly who it was.

After all, since moving in, the only person who came to visit was Tang Lian.

It was at that moment that she remembered: Tang Lian’s visit today had been something they’d planned long ago.

Ever since their last outing to the arcade, Nan Qi had reignited her passion for gaming. She’d dug out the Nintendo Switch she’d bought and only played a few times. She could find the console itself, but the game controller was nowhere to be seen, buried in some forgotten box of odds and ends.

Conveniently, Tang Lian had mentioned she had an extra controller and offered to bring both over so they could play together.

Nan Qi had been busy lately and hadn’t had much time for games. Only now, with the weekend here and her hectic work schedule easing up, had she been able to schedule their gaming session for today.

But today had been a whirlwind of chaos. Ever since the afternoon, she’d been rushing around to make arrangements for her family. When things finally calmed down, she’d nearly forgotten her plans with Tang Lian.

Once it hit her, she hurried to her feet and made her way to the entryway.

Nan Xi opened the door and found himself face-to-face with the beautiful woman standing there. They stared at each other in silence for several long seconds.

Both of them had the same question bubbling up inside.

Who is she? And why is she at Nan Qi’s place?

Nan Xi’s face filled with confusion. Besides me, her brother, does Big Sis have other little sisters out there?

Bo Ranying snapped out of her daze in an instant. It was almost comical, really. Thanks to Nan Qi, she had already grown intimately familiar with Tang Lian’s voice.

She was facing away from the door.

Just from the sound, she knew it was Tang Lian.

Not to mention that perfectly natural “Big Sister”—the very term that tugged so hard at her heart.

Tang Lian had shown up out of nowhere, without even checking if anyone else was home. Clearly, she dropped by often.

Her thoughts spiraled uncontrollably, twisting her stomach into knots.

She schooled her expression, tugged at her stiff lips until they formed a slight smile, then turned and strode quickly to the entryway.

Nan Qi was in the middle of introductions for Nan Xi and Tang Lian.

“This is Tang Lian, a friend of mine. You can call her Little Tang Sister.”

“My little brother, Nan Xi.”

“He’s taken special leave from Mom to come stay with me in Linxi for a while.”

She explained it simply.

Once Nan Xi understood their relationship, he went along with it smoothly. “Little Tang Sister.”

Tang Lian beamed, perfectly at ease. “Then I’ll go with what your sister calls you—Nan Xi it is.”

“Sure.”

Her friendly demeanor let her blend right into the atmosphere, building a quick rapport with Nan Xi in no time.

Tang Lian picked up her things again and headed toward the living room, where she ran into Bo Ranying in the hallway.

Bo Ranying spoke first. “Miss Tang, long time no see.”

Her smile was faint and elegant, but that “Miss Tang” rang with polite distance, as if they were barely acquaintances—and she wasn’t all that fond of Tang Lian.

Her eyes went straight to the slippers on Tang Lian’s feet. Sure enough, they were the exact pair she’d spotted in the shoe cabinet earlier.

They already carried the scent of their owner.

Her suspicions confirmed, Bo Ranying felt no joy—only the urge to toss those slippers in the trash and never see them again.

The uglier her inner thoughts grew, the more flawless her smile became.

Bo Ranying couldn’t even remember when she’d mastered this skill.

Tang Lian, meanwhile, wasn’t remotely surprised to find Bo Ranying at Nan Qi’s place. In her mind, it was only a matter of time.

She’d already tested the waters before: Bo Ranying wouldn’t let go of this relationship easily.

But that didn’t matter.

In most relationships, the one who gives up first is usually the most resolute.

The one left behind rarely gets a second chance.

The odds of winning them back were practically zero.

Because the person who chooses to leave has accumulated enough disappointment to make up their mind—it’s not some fleeting whim.

Tang Lian kept her composure, unfazed by Bo Ranying’s veiled challenge. She met it head-on with a warm smile. “Bo Ranying, it seems like you’re not exactly thrilled to see me.”