Chapter 28

Mother Bai noticed that her youngest daughter had been gloomy and listless these past couple of days. She showed no interest in anything, not even her usual favorite, Haagen-Dazs, she'd just take a couple of scoops and push it aside. When asked what was wrong, she'd clam up like a mute.
Worried sick, Mother Bai took the opportunity when her eldest son and second daughter came home for dinner to quietly share her concerns with them.
All her children were Mother Bai's pride and joy. The eldest and second had promising careers, but the third was still young, still studying, so naturally, she required more attention.
Bai Muqing sat on the sofa playing with her phone, listening to her mother fret over Bai Muyu with visible impatience. She said, "She's old enough, why are you still worrying so much about her?"
The eldest, Bai Mutian, frowned beside her and added, "Third Sister has been spoiled rotten. Look at her now, who in this family does she even listen to?"
Bai Mutian had worked at Li Corporation for many years and had recently been promoted to department manager, achieving some success in his career. He had his own family, but his wife didn't get along with Mother Bai, so most of the time, he attended the Bai family gatherings alone.
Seeing their dismissive attitudes, Mother Bai was displeased and turned to go into the kitchen.
Bai Mutian glanced at Bai Muqing beside him and asked, "What's going on between you and that Shen Xiao?"
Bai Muqing put away her phone, shifted her posture, and flicked her hair as she said, "Nothing much. I'm endorsing his family's products, and we got to know each other through that."
Bai Mutian frowned disapprovingly and said, "Shen Xiao doesn’t have a good reputation in the business circle. His actions are unpredictable, his temperament is erratic, and his character isn’t upright. If you keep getting entangled with him, I’m afraid you’ll end up at a disadvantage."
Bai Muqing shook her head and replied, "It’s not as exaggerated as you say. I actually find him quite easy to get along with."
Bai Mutian curled his lips, feeling he had done his part in advising her. "The Shen family must be having a tough time lately. A deal that was almost certain to go through now has competition from the Situ and Li families." After saying this, he shook his head with a smile, looking as if he was anticipating some drama.
Upon hearing this, Bai Muqing asked, "Is that true? Tell me more about it."
The two of them continued discussing the topic until their mother called them for dinner, finally putting an end to the conversation.
Bai Muyu came out of her room and, upon seeing Bai Muqing, shot her an annoyed glare.
Bai Muqing, baffled by the glare, asked irritably, "What’s wrong with you?"
Bai Muyu kept a cold expression and ignored her.
After dinner, she stormed back to her room angrily, leaving everyone bewildered.
Eventually, Bai Muqing was pushed into Bai Muyu’s room by their mother, who urged her to act as a mediator and comfort her younger sister.
With no one else around to disturb them, Bai Muyu finally told Bai Muqing about how Shen Xiao had intimidated her at school.
"He’s a lunatic! He even bullies girls and smashed my phone in front of so many people!" Bai Muyu, who had been pampered since childhood, had never experienced such humiliation before. With reddened eyes, she said, "Someone like that isn’t worth your time associating with."
Bai Muqing sneered inwardly, thinking that even if that psycho wanted to associate with her, she couldn’t even manage to arrange a meeting with him.
"What did you do to provoke him into smashing your phone?"
Bai Muyu avoided her gaze for a moment before briefly explaining how she had previously bullied Shen Yu. It was precisely because she knew she was in the wrong that she hadn’t dared to make a fuss after Shen Xiao smashed her phone.
Bai Muqing listened quietly, her expression turning cold and disdainful by the end. "You’re really foolish. Even if you didn’t know before, I clearly told you later that her brother is Shen Xiao. Why did you still go looking for trouble with her?"
"I just couldn’t swallow my anger," Bai Muyu said stubbornly. Having lived a smooth and privileged life, she never expected to stumble over Shen Yu.
"Sis, you don’t understand. She used to secretly look at Situ Yi’s photos and even carried them around with her. It’s so disgusting! He’s my idol, how is she even worthy of being his fan?"
Bai Muqing said incredulously, "Is that all? That’s why you’ve been targeting her everywhere?"
"Isn’t that disgusting enough?!"
Bai Muqing felt her younger sister was being unreasonable and said, "Even if Situ Yi hadn’t retired from the industry, it’s perfectly normal for anyone to be his fan."
"She just isn't good enough!" Bai Muyu said sharply.
Bai Muqing: ...
Feeling utterly defeated by her younger sister, she softened her tone and said, "I don’t care what grudges you had before, but from now on, you’re not allowed to cause her any more trouble. I’m already trying my best to win her over, don’t you dare ruin it!"
Bai Muyu: ...
Seeing her sister’s sullen expression, Bai Muqing added, "I know you’re upset. How about this, I’ll transfer you some money so you can buy a new phone and some pretty clothes."
Bai Muyu was still sulking but didn’t say anything more.

On Friday, Shen Yu woke up early and immediately felt something was off. She widened her eyes and scanned the room, only to realize two of the SD dolls on her bedside table were missing!
One was a doll in a cheongsam, and the other was dressed in Lolita fashion.
Ever since Shen Xiao had given her these ten dolls, she had grown more and more fond of them and even planned to make clothes for them herself.
Usually, she kept seven of the dolls on a wall shelf, while the remaining three sat on her bedside table.
But this morning, when she woke up, two of the three dolls on the table were gone!
Shen Yu quickly rolled out of bed, threw on a thick coat, and without even bothering to fix her messy hair, rushed out the door.
Hurrying to the staircase, she suddenly remembered the bandages wrapped around her feet and slowed down, descending the stairs cautiously.
She still had to maintain her "sick patient" persona in front of Shen Xiao!
When she reached the living room, she found Shen Xiao playing with a toy ball and teasing the husky. She immediately asked, "Brother, did you take my dolls? Two are missing!"
Shen Xiao glanced at her and pointed toward the husky’s dog bed.
Following his gesture, Shen Yu’s eyes widened in horror. The two dolls had been dragged into the husky’s bed, and not only that, their clothes and hair were completely ruined from being chewed on!
"Ahhhhhhhh…" Shen Yu dashed over, scooped up the dolls, and wailed, "Wuwuwu, my poor daughters…"
Shen Xiao straightened up, crossed his arms, and gave her a scrutinizing look. "You just ran very fast."
Shen Yu was still mourning her dolls, but his words froze her in place.
Crap… In her excitement, she had completely forgotten to act like an invalid!
Her cover was blown!
What should she do? Shen Xiao had been fooled for two days, would he kill her on the spot?!
Blinking rapidly, she quickly switched to a delighted expression and exclaimed, "Brother, I ran just now, and my feet don’t hurt at all! My feet are healed!"
Shen Xiao shot her a disgusted glare.
Seeing that he didn’t seem too angry, Shen Yu quickly changed the subject. "Why did the husky take my dolls? They’re all ruined!"
Shen Xiao tossed the ball again, and the husky happily bounded after it, wagging its tail and panting.
Before Shen Xiao could even settle, the husky trotted back with the ball. When Shen Xiao ignored it, the dog rubbed against his legs, whining playfully. Shen Xiao frowned in annoyance and said, "He probably wants a female companion."
Shen Yu hugged the dolls and glared. "Nonsense! The husky is still young!"
Shen Xiao nudged the husky away with his foot and added, "Then he probably wants a childhood friend."
Shen Yu: “…”
"Otherwise, why would he drag the dolls into his bed? He just wants a companion," he declared matter-of-factly.
Shen Yu was left dumbfounded by his words, feeling that it made a lot of sense. Er Gouzi was still young, and being the only dog, it must be lonely. It would be nice for it to have a companion.
Thinking this way, she no longer blamed Er Gouzi and said, "Then I'll leave these two dolls here to keep it company."
Shen Xiao shook his head, walked over to her, picked up the doll by its hair, and said disdainfully, "This doll will be destroyed in two days if Er Gouzi plays with it. It's useless."
"Then what should we do?" Shen Yu asked.
"Buy it a live female dog. Not only can they play together, but when they grow up, they can have puppies." Shen Xiao spoke with the shrewd tone of a businessman, calculating every detail.
By now, Shen Yu was completely convinced by his words and quickly nodded, saying, "That's a great idea. Not only will Er Gouzi have a companion, but the house will also be livelier."
Shen Xiao nodded with a smile, "Exactly."
Shen Yu was a woman of action. With Shen Xiao's support, she happily went to find Uncle Li, intending to ask him to buy a female Husky that afternoon.
But when she excitedly found Uncle Li, he said apologetically, "I'm going out with my card-playing friends today and don't have time to go to the pet store. Let's wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow is Saturday, and I'll take you to buy one."
"No, I have plans tomorrow. I need to go out." Shen Yu said. She had previously arranged to meet Yuan Yue tomorrow.
Shen Xiao, who had been listening nearby, leisurely spoke up, "I'll go buy it."
Shen Yu gave him a strange look. This person was usually so lazy, why was he suddenly volunteering for tasks today?
"No need, we can buy it another day. No need to trouble you, Brother." She instinctively refused.
Shen Xiao chuckled, in a very good mood, and said, "It's no trouble at all. It's settled then."
And just like that, he made the decision. But Shen Yu couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Why was Shen Xiao suddenly so enthusiastic?
When it was time to leave for school, she still couldn't help but remind him, "Brother, you must buy a female one! Don't buy a male!"
Shen Xiao frowned impatiently, opened the car door, and urged her, "Are you done yet? Hurry up and get in." Ever since Shen Yu injured her foot, Shen Xiao had insisted on driving her to and from school, even though he always complained about her being a hassle.
Seeing them about to leave, Er Gouzi excitedly jumped and bounced around the yard, trying to squeeze into the car, but Uncle Li stopped it.
Shen Yu turned back and said to it, "Er Gouzi, be good and stay at home. This afternoon, we'll bring back a childhood sweetheart for you."
On the way, Shen Yu suddenly remembered something important and reminded Shen Xiao, "Brother, not only do you have to buy a female, but you can't buy a dog of another breed either! Otherwise, Er Gouzi will cry!"
Shen Xiao frowned, "Got it! So naggy!"
The whole day, Shen Yu felt restless and unsettled. Finally, when school ended, she quickly packed her things and headed to the small playground to meet Shen Xiao.
But in the end, it was Secretary Du who came to pick her up.
"The boss went to the pet store. He asked me to take you home."
Shen Yu quickly thanked him.
Along the way, she kept imagining two huskies, childhood sweethearts, playing together in the yard. But...
When she got home, she saw that the husky did indeed have a new playmate, but it was... a cat!!
Shen Xiao said with a righteous tone, "You said you wanted a female, and no other breed of dog. That’s correct."
Shen Yu: “…”
She felt like crying.
But that silly husky was now chasing the new cat around the house with immense happiness, seemingly very satisfied with its new playmate...
Silly dog, wake up! This is a cat, you and it can never have a romantic relationship!
Having a brother who’s a total weirdo is truly exhausting!
The next day, Shen Yu pulled herself together and went out to meet Yuan Yue.