Are you two hiding something from me?
Xu Jin's eyes widened, and he vehemently denied it. "No."
Xu Chun narrowed his eyes, smiled meaningfully, and remained silent.
Seeing his expression, Xu Jin quickly tried to change the subject. In his haste, a brilliant idea flashed into his mind, and he Xie Jianyuan, "Brother Yuan, would you like to see photos of my brother when he was a child?"
Xu Chun was slightly taken aback, her attention indeed drawn to the scene.
"Xu Jin!" He was somewhat anxious and tried to stop Xu Jin from continuing.
Xie Jianyuan seemed intrigued, sitting up slightly, a slight smile playing on his lips as he said, "Of course."
Xu Jin quickly stood up and went to the bedroom, saying, "I'll go find it for you."
Xu Chun was furious with him, and when she looked at Xie Jianyuan, who had a half-smile on his face, she felt a little uncomfortable, and her tone became somewhat sour.
"I don't even know if I'm his brother or you're his brother."
Xie Jianyuan smiled and said, "Of course you're his older brother."
"Then why does he listen to you and not you?" Xu Chun frowned slightly, as if seriously considering the question.
Xie Jianyuan's eyes held a hint of doting and indulgence as he said slowly, "He wouldn't dare disobey you."
Xu Chun forced a smile, taking it as an acceptance of the explanation.
Not long after, Xu Jin came out of the bedroom, carrying several photo albums and a few CDs.
Xu Chun, with her sharp eyes, noticed one of the discs and couldn't help but raise the volume.
Why did you take this out?
Xu Jin grinned and opened the photo album to Xie Jianyuan. Xu Chun saw that it was too late to stop him and covered her face in despair.
Xie Jianyuan, however, showed great interest, flipping through the photo album with a serious expression.
"This one?"
Xie Jianyuan pointed to one of the photos, his smile deepening.
The photo he pointed to showed a fair-skinned child wearing a princess dress, whose shoulder-length black hair made him look even more adorable.
However, the child's face still showed traces of Xu Chun.
"Don't look." Upon seeing this, Xu Chun quickly tried to cover the photo with her hand, her face flushed slightly.
"Brother Chun," Xie Jianyuan called him softly, a half-smile on his face, "I want to see."
"No... there's nothing to see," Xu Chun stammered.
Xie Jianyuan raised his chin, his dark eyes fixed on Xu Chun without blinking.
"I think it's very beautiful."
Xu Chun awkwardly withdrew her hand.
Xie Jianyuan's fingers traced the cheek of Little Xu Chun in the photo, his smile deepening.
"This is my brother when he was six years old, at the kindergarten's talent show. My brother played the princess because he was prettier than all the girls in his class."
Xie Jianyuan's finger slowly moved upwards. "What about this one?"
Xu Chun glanced at it and then spoke up, "This was taken on my birthday. I was probably eleven or twelve years old then."
Xie Jianyuan's gaze fell on the girl next to Little Xu Xuchun in the photo, and he chuckled softly.
Who is this?
"Oh, her." Xu Chun peeked out and said, "She's the daughter of an aunt I knew back then. She moved away when I was in the third year of junior high."
"I didn't realize you had such a good memory." Xie Jianyuan gave a cool, indifferent smile.
Xu Chun took it as a compliment and smiled somewhat shyly, "It's alright, nothing special."
Xie Jianyuan looked at the girl in the photo who was holding Little Xu Xuchun's arm, lowered his eyelashes slightly, and smiled.
"I remember this girl used to like my brother. When she moved out, she cried and looked for him, asking him to wait for her."
Xu Chun waved her hand awkwardly, blushing, and said, "Don't talk nonsense."
"When did I make things up?" Xu Jin muttered in dissatisfaction. "You even hugged that girl back then, completely moved, but as soon as she left, you were completely forgotten about her."
Xie Jianyuan glanced at Xu Chun with a half-smile, "Is that so?"
Xu Chun just wanted to shut his brother up, pretending not to see Xie Jianyuan's gaze, and awkwardly avoided his eyes.
"Oh, right, and this too." Xu Jin picked up a disc and put it in.
Xu Chun had given up struggling and closed her eyes, her heart filled with despair.
As soon as a lively and cheerful children's song started playing, Little Xu Chun appeared on the TV, obediently holding a can of milk powder, and saying the advertising slogan to the camera in a childish voice.
Xie Jianyuan seemed to be immediately captivated, staring intently at the child on the screen.
It was unclear how much time had passed; every second felt like an eternity to Xu Chun. When the music finally stopped, Xu Chun's expression had completely calmed down.
Xie Jianyuan reluctantly looked away from the television, deliberately drawing out his words with a smile, "So this is what Brother Chun was like when he was little."
The Little Xu Chun in the picture was indeed much more lively than she is now.
Xu Chun forced a smile, "You flatter me."
Xie Jianyuan, however, seemed not to have picked up on his tone, and looked at him with a smile without answering.
After a while, Xu's parents also came out of the kitchen. Xie Jianyuan took the initiative to serve the dishes, while Xu Chun and his brother were responsible for setting the bowls and chopsticks.
At the dinner table, Mr. and Mrs. Xu showed great fondness for Xie Jianyuan, frequently serving him food. Mrs. Xu even remarked with a deeply moved expression, "This is the first time Xu Chun has brought a friend home to play."
Xie Jianyuan was slightly taken aback, glanced at Xu Chun who was clearly embarrassed, and then smiled and said, "Really?"
"Of course," Mrs. Xu sighed. "Xu Chun is just too sensible. She was always overthinking things back then, worried that bringing her friends home would bother us."
From the moment they adopted Xu Chun, she and Xu's father treated Xu Chun as their own child. Although they later had Xu Jin, they treated him no differently than before, and in fact, Xu Jin was not treated as well as Xu Jin.