Moving into the Prince's Mansion

At that moment, Xue Ke, who was hugging Xue Qinghe, slowly curled her lips into a smile.

Although Xue Ke had been neglecting her studies for the past two months, letting everything the palace tutors taught go in one ear and out the other, she was not stupid. After all, even slacking off had its limits. If she wanted to live safely in this world, she had to learn a few skills to protect herself.

There was a saying from her previous life that was absolutely right: boys—and girls—had to protect themselves when they went out.

So, Xue Ke had proactively asked the palace tutors to find her books such as An Actor's Self-Cultivation and Expression Management. She studied them diligently and practiced acting in front of the mirror in her spare time.

Xue Ke's acting might not have matched the national-level actors from her previous life, but it was still far better than that of certain idol stars. Thinking of this, Xue Ke narcissistically praised herself. Her talent for acting was truly maxed out.

Xue Ke released Xue Qinghe from her embrace, raised her head, and looked at him with teary eyes, pitiful and delicate. "Brother, can I stay at your mansion for a few days? Just think of it as keeping me company."

Xue Ke's act of playing the victim successfully stirred Qian Renxue's protective instincts as a woman. After all, how many people could refuse a little girl tearfully begging for protection right in front of them?

"Fine, but only for three days. Otherwise, Father Emperor will blame me for spoiling you too much," Xue Qinghe said helplessly.

"I knew Brother loved me the most!" Their height difference was simply too great. Even after officially becoming a Spirit Master, six-year-old Xue Ke was only a little over 1.4 meters tall, still some distance from 1.5 meters.

Unable to kiss Xue Qinghe's cheek, she settled for the next best thing. Hugging the back of his hand, she planted a fierce kiss on it with her cherry lips, letting Xue Qinghe fully feel his little sister's "burning" love.

"Alright, you've been tired all day too. Go bathe and rest," Xue Qinghe said, affectionately patting Xue Ke's head.

Led by the many maidservants of the Prince's Mansion, Xue Ke enjoyed a lovely hot bath, then asked a maid to arrange for her to stay in the room next to the prince's bedchamber.

Now that I'm in, I should think carefully about the next part of my plan. Xue Ke sat at the table, propping up her little head with her left hand as she pondered.

Xue Ke racked her brains, desperately searching through the book knowledge and life experience she had gained in her previous life.

"First, and most importantly, I need to make Qian Renxue believe that I'm someone with no great ambitions. I have neither the lofty aspiration to soar through the heavens nor any desire to fight for fame and profit. After all, a person's ambitions determine the peak of their life." At that thought, Xue Ke froze.

"What are my ambitions in this life?" Xue Ke shook her head and set those thoughts aside for now.

"Second, I need to let Qian Renxue feel what it is like to be relied on and needed, while giving her loving care at the right moments so that she can't leave me, her little sister. I can start with the little things in daily life."

Xue Ke recalled the silent maternal love her mother had shown her in her previous life:

Whenever the weather turned cold, her mother would always worry that she was not dressed warmly enough. Every weekend when she came home from school, her mother would go out at dawn to buy the dishes she loved, then cook a whole table of delicious food, afraid that she had not been eating well at school. Whenever she returned to school, her backpack would always be stuffed with all kinds of food she liked that was also healthy...

Only now did she realize how ordinary those moments had seemed at the time.

Xue Ke could not help but burst into tears, wiping them away.

Knock, knock, knock!

"Come in," Xue Qinghe said as he reviewed memorials.

Xue Ke entered the Study carrying a cup of hot tea and carefully placed it to Xue Qinghe's left.

"Brother, why are you still awake so late? You need to take care of your health," Xue Ke said worriedly.

"So it's Xiao Ke! I only have a few memorials left. It's already so late. Hurry and go to sleep." Xue Qinghe lifted the cup and took a sip of hot tea.

"Since I can't sleep anyway, I'll stay with Brother tonight until you finish reviewing the memorials." Xue Ke took a stool from nearby, placed it beside Xue Qinghe, and sat down without waiting for permission.

"Father Emperor really is something else, making you stay up every day to read so many memorials. Isn't he afraid of exhausting you?"

Watching Xue Qinghe write furiously, Xue Ke could not help thinking of herself in her previous life, grinding through advanced mathematics exercise books until two in the morning before suddenly dropping dead. She immediately felt a deep sense of empathy.

Seeing that the ink in the inkstone beside Xue Qinghe was almost gone, Xue Ke consciously went over to grind more ink for him.

"Xiao Ke has grown up. You've learned to care for others," Xue Qinghe praised generously at the sight.

Xue Ke gave Xue Qinghe a sweet smile, her happy eyes narrowing into crescents. She clearly relished the praise.

Half an hour later, Xue Qinghe finally finished today's "homework." Exhausted, he could not help stretching lazily. Seeing this, Xue Ke moved behind his chair and gently kneaded his shoulders with her small hands.

Xue Qinghe turned around and gazed deeply at Xue Ke, thinking, It's been so long... truly so long since anyone cared about me like this. Before, other than Grandfather and Father, no one truly cared about me.

Heh, that woman... she never gave me even the slightest bit of love. From childhood to adulthood, all she ever gave me were looks of disgust and disdain, along with that resounding slap. Is this... is this what it feels like to be loved? It's been so long since I last felt this way.

Remembering her lonely and painful childhood, Xue Qinghe—Qian Renxue—narrowed her eyes and fell into confusion.

"Brother, get some rest soon." Xue Ke's crisp, sweet child's voice came from beside her ear, interrupting Xue Qinghe's thoughts.

Xue Qinghe slowly rose to her feet and gently took Xue Ke's little hand, first escorting Xue Ke back to her room to rest.

"Good night, Brother!" Xue Ke smiled sweetly.

"Good night, Xiao Ke!" Xue Qinghe bent down, kissed Xue Ke's little left cheek, patted her head, and left under Xue Ke's reluctant gaze.

"Fuck! Qian... Qian Renxue just kissed me! She just kissed me! Ah—" Xue Ke lay on the bed, rolling around in excitement and messing up the sheets completely.

In her previous life, she had been a single young person for twenty years straight. Before college, strict parental and school supervision had firmly stamped out any chance of puppy love. After college, though the world was wide open, she had spent every day slacking in her dormitory and had even fewer opportunities for any meaningful interaction with women. This was the first time in all her years, past and present, that a woman other than her mother had gotten this close to her face.

Xue Ke stared at the ceiling as Xue Qinghe's face slowly appeared before her. Though not particularly handsome, it still had a few pleasing features. She recalled the scene from the anime in her previous life, where Qian Renxue launched Little Magic Fairy Transformation during the Heaven Dou Palace Coup and, amid everyone's stunned gazes, transformed into a breathtaking beauty in an instant. Xue Qinghe's face gradually merged with Qian Renxue's image from the anime.

"Qian Renxue, you won't escape the palm of my hand! Just watch how I handle you next!" Xue Ke gave a Sinister Smile, raised her right hand, and slowly clenched it into a fist toward the ceiling.