Chapter 8

Honestly, there was no reason at all Meng Qichuan should have shown up at Langde’s school gate right now.
In his eyes, he’d long ago cut all family ties.
His mother died when he was five. A year later, his father remarried.
To his dad and stepmother, he was always the odd one out.
Not long after Stepmother moved in, Meng Mingzhu was already cuddling up to her, calling her “Mom”; Meng Qichuan, though, never once called her anything of the sort.
Over time, the looks his father and stepmother gave him grew colder and colder.
Even now, Meng Qichuan could remember overhearing their conversation once.
His father, exasperation clear in his voice: “Qichuan and Mingzhu are both Wanzhi’s kids, but why is Mingzhu sweet and lively, while Qichuan is so withdrawn and sullen?”
Once his father and stepmother’s son was born, Meng Qichuan truly became the family’s extra piece.
And then… that happened.
After that, twelve-year-old Meng Qichuan was packed off to North America for school.
His first few years overseas, it was just the occasional check-in from an aunt, and a once-a-year New Year’s call from his dad. That was it.
At seventeen, he got accepted into a world top-5 university. Suddenly, his dad was all warm and fuzzy with him over the phone.
But it was already far, far too late. Whatever hope Meng Qichuan had left for “family” was gone; their newfound warmth left him cold.
For those ten years, from twelve to twenty-two, Meng Qichuan never once set foot in the Meng house.
When he heard his biological sister was someone else entirely, he decided to fly home, meet her once, and dip back to his PhD program in North America.
Because there was nothing left between him and his so-called family, no connection, and no expectations.
But after seeing Meng Xin for the first time, he had two dreams that night.
In the first dream, he watched his real sister, Meng Xin, fall madly in love with someone, so wildly she lost nearly everything but her “love.”
The second dream was their mother’s disappointed face as she asked why he’d failed to look after his only sister.
At the end of it all, he promised his tearful mother he’d take care of his sibling this time.
The dreams felt so real that after waking, Meng Qichuan spent an entire day thinking about them and finally emailed his advisor.
This was his final shot at “family”, one last time, he’d try. Maybe this sister, bound to him by blood, really needed him now.
…
Yu Linghuan sensed that the man Meng Xin called “brother” was scrutinizing her.
She met his gaze, refusing to back down.
Annoyingly, even though Yu Linghuan was tall for a girl her age, she still had to slightly tilt her head back to look him in the eye.
He must be at least six-foot-one. Maybe taller.
Yu Linghuan hated looking up at people. Two seconds later, she broke the silence. “Why are you staring at me?”
There was the barest twitch of Meng Qichuan’s brows.
“You’re the one who started staring.” He stated it flatly.
With that, the mood dropped straight to arctic levels.
Stuck between them, Meng Xin looked downright miserable.
Truth was, Meng Xin herself had only met this biological brother for the first time two days ago.
Before that, all she knew was what her dad had mentioned: that her brother had been studying abroad for years, never coming home.
When they’d finally met, Meng Qichuan had been so cold that Meng Xin figured he just didn’t care about her at all.
Which was why him showing up to pick her up after school today had been such a shock.
But in the end, he was her real brother, their blood ran the same. That bond tugged at her, no matter what.
She really didn’t want her best friend and her big brother to be at each other’s throats like this.
After a moment’s hesitation, Meng Xin bravely made the introductions: “Huanhuan, this is my brother.”
Yu Linghuan glanced over at Meng Xin.
The girl’s wide Bambi eyes trembled just a little, clearly pleading: Help me out here.
Two seconds passed. Yu Linghuan looked at Meng Qichuan, gave her own name: “Yu Linghuan.”
The man gave a short nod. “Meng Qichuan.”
Silence, again.
Feeling a little helpless, Meng Xin waited until Meng Qichuan finally spoke: “Since you already have plans with your friend, go ahead. We can talk later.”
His voice caught Yu Linghuan off guard. Even if her first impression wasn’t great, she had to admit: the guy’s voice was gorgeous.
Not thick and booming, but cool and slightly magnetic, like a jade stone chilled by ice.
Yu Linghuan could tell Meng Qichuan was making a real effort to sound gentle, well, gentler than usual, at least, for Meng Xin’s sake.
Which, for this nearly-background-character brother from the novel, made her warm to him… just a tiny bit.
At the very least, he knew how to treat his own sister a little better than,
most people.
But only just a little.
Overall, Yu Linghuan’s impression of him was still absolutely in the red.
After giving Meng Xin a polite little nod in farewell, Meng Qichuan didn’t linger, he headed straight back to the car.
The dark green Bentley rolled slowly away from the school gates. Meng Xin watched it until the car disappeared around the corner.
Yu Linghuan watched her instead.
Meng Xin’s eyes shimmered somewhere between confusion and being genuinely moved. Clearly, her brother coming to pick her up meant a lot.
In the book, Meng Qichuan’s coldness to Meng Xin was, from an outsider’s point of view, understandable.
He’d lived a whole decade overseas. He was practically estranged from his entire family. He didn’t even care about Meng Mingzhu, who’d grown up with him, let alone a sister who’d suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Compared to all the Meng family members who blatantly favored Meng Mingzhu, at least Meng Qichuan treated both sisters equally.
But Yu Linghuan wasn’t just an outsider; she was Meng Xin’s best friend.
She couldn’t help but think: If only Meng Xin’s brother actually had her back, maybe Meng Xin wouldn’t have gotten bullied so badly, or ruined her life over some random guy.
No matter what his reasons were, Meng Qichuan hadn’t acted like any kind of real brother. That was just a fact.
So it was hard for Yu Linghuan to feel any real fondness for him, maybe she hated him a little less than the rest of the Meng clan, but not by much.
That’s just how she was: unapologetically biased when it came to people she cared about.
“Weren’t we going to Tianyue Mall?” Yu Linghuan patted Meng Xin’s shoulder, trying to redirect her. “Let’s get going?”
Meng Xin snapped out of it and smiled. “Yeah, let’s go.”
Ten minutes trudging in the humid heat, and they finally reached the mall.
The sweet rush of AC washed over them. Yu Linghuan let out a grateful sigh, automatically heading for the escalator.
The first floor was all luxury boutiques, but Yu Linghuan almost never bought anything here; she preferred the basement level.
That’s where the quirky little shops were, with prices that didn’t make her wince.
She was just about to drag Meng Xin down the escalator out of habit when she felt a gentle tug on her arm.
Surprised, she followed Meng Xin’s gaze,
She was looking at the jewelry counter of some luxury brand.
Only then did Yu Linghuan remember: Meng Xin’s life had changed. She could actually afford this stuff now.
It would be a lie to say she wasn’t a tiny bit thrown. It was a lot to take in, seeing her best friend’s whole world shift overnight.
Still, Yu Linghuan quickly shook it off, ready to ask what Meng Xin wanted, it wasn’t like she couldn’t help pick something out.
But Meng Xin spoke first. “Huanhuan, is there any jewelry you want?”
Yu Linghuan blinked.
For a second, she just stared. “Wait… Are you saying this mall trip is to buy me a gift?”
She’d honestly thought Meng Xin just wanted to go shopping and dragged her along for company.
Meng Xin nodded, a bit sheepish. “Before, I never knew what kind of present you’d actually like, so I just picked out a watch as a just-in-case. This time, I want you to pick your own gifts. I want to get you something you actually want.”
Yu Linghuan: "..."
She had the ridiculous urge to wonder how Li Hongwen would react if he heard Meng Xin call the expensive watch “just-in-case.” Probably steam-pouring-from-ears levels of mad.
Meng Xin mistook her silence for disapproval of the shop.
So she jumped in, “It’s fine, if you’re not into this one, we can try another store.”
She was about to pull Yu Linghuan away.
Yu Linghuan quickly stopped her. “No, that’s not it! I just… I really don’t need this stuff. You don’t have to splurge on my account.”
Meng Xin’s lashes fluttered.
“Huanhuan,” she suddenly said, “remember freshman year, when my grandma got sick, and all my scholarship money went to her surgery? I didn’t even have enough for meals and had to eat plain buns and pickled veggies every day.”
Yu Linghuan didn’t know why Meng Xin was bringing this up, but she nodded. “I remember.”
Meng Xin continued, “Back then, you stuffed all your saved-up money into my hand. I didn’t want to take it, and you said, ‘If you don’t accept it, I’ll go on a hunger strike with you.’”
Yu Linghuan burst out laughing.
Thinking back now, she’d been so childish, threatening a hunger strike just to force her friend to take help.
But she was starting to see where Meng Xin was going with this.
Sure enough, Meng Xin smiled. “That time, you took care of me. Now, I want you to let me return the favor.”
…
After that, there was no way Yu Linghuan could say no and break Meng Xin’s heart.
She nodded, and under Meng Xin’s delighted gaze, followed her into the jewelry shop.
The sales assistant saw it was two girls in school uniforms and gave them a token greeting, not really paying attention, just doing her job.
That is, until Yu Linghuan picked out a crystal hairpin costing over ten thousand yuan, and Meng Xin whipped out her card and paid for it in a heartbeat.
Only then did the salesgirl realize she’d just landed whale clients.
Her pitch instantly grew about ten times more enthusiastic: “Ladies! We’ve got tons of other hot picks, honestly, just check Xiaomobook, everyone’s raving about our bestsellers! And we’re running a double-points promo right now. Want to try anything else?”
Yu Linghuan considered it, then shook her head. “Nah, I think we’re good for now.”
Langde High’s dress code was chill. Plenty of students wore jewelry to school.
Especially in the International Class, most of the girls had immaculate makeup and swapped out accessories every day. Quite a few of the guys wore necklaces or rings, too.
Yu Linghuan didn’t hate cute jewelry, but she honestly found it a hassle to wear at school.
Like, wearing stuff on her hands slowed her down on exams, and P.E. or outdoor breaks were such a pain with accessories on.
Meng Xin nodded. “Let’s try some other shops, then.”
The salesgirl saw her commission flying away and practically chased them to the door, regretting not being friendlier from the start, a couple of soft-hearted schoolgirls probably would’ve let her talk them into more if she’d turned on the charm earlier.
They’d barely gotten a few steps from the jewelry shop when someone clapped Yu Linghuan hard on the shoulder from behind.
“Yu Linghuan!” Zhao Wenxing thundered, “I knew I’d find you here!”
The two girls spun around at the sound.
Yu Linghuan scowled. “Do you have to yell? You scared the hell out of me.”
“Come on.” Zhao Wenxing grinned. “I just think it’s fate, running into you and Meng Xin right here.”
Truth was, Zhao Wenxing was still itching for that lunchtime rematch with Yu Linghuan, he wanted to try out his latest gaming moves.
So as soon as school ended, he’d spammed her inbox, begging her to game with him.
But she never answered, so he eventually gave up and headed here to buy a new phone case, since he’d just trashed his old one.
Who’d have guessed he’d bump into Yu Linghuan here?
“You still haven’t answered me,” Zhao Wenxing prompted. “Why didn’t you text me back?”
Yu Linghuan shook her shopping bag at him. “Can’t you see? I’m out shopping with Meng Xin.”
Meng Xin added softly, “I’m buying gifts for Huanhuan.”
She knew Yu Linghuan’s constant jabs at Zhao Wenxing were just their dynamic, so she figured she’d be nice and explain.
“Oh… so what’d you buy?” Zhao Wenxing asked, casually peeking into Yu Linghuan’s shopping bag.
The moment Zhao Wenxing spotted the logo on the shopping bag, his eyes went wide. "Did you guys just buy this?"
Yu Linghuan gave a casual "mm," and shot Zhao Wenxing a puzzled look.
Sure, his family wasn't quite on the Mengs' level, but he was still a rich kid. Would a mere logo really shock him that much?
Not to mention, he was wearing those limited-edition sneakers, just the price tag alone was five figures.
But in the next second, Zhao Wenxing’s logic somehow managed to blow her mind all over again.
He stared at her and blurted out, "When it was your birthday, I tried to give you a two-thousand-yuan necklace and you wouldn’t even take it, kept saying it was too expensive. But now you’ll happily accept an even pricier present from Meng Xin?"
Yu Linghuan: "…"
"Meng Xin is different." She replied.
"How is she different?" Zhao Wenxing shot back, totally unconvinced. "I know she’s your ride-or-die bestie, hell, you’re practically joined at the hip! But I mean, out of all the guys, aren’t I the one you’re closest with?"
Yu Linghuan was speechless. Where did his competitive streak even come from?
She barely had any guy friends, and the ones she did know weren’t especially close.
"Yeah, I guess." She hedged.
"Well, then it’s settled!" Zhao Wenxing looked more and more annoyed the longer he stewed on it. "Nope, not happening, I’m giving you a make-up present too! And this time, ‘it’s too expensive’ is not gonna cut it!"