24, I Came First

Under the strange gaze of Xiao Xun'er, whose sibling affection had long since soured, Xiao Han slowly finished the food in the box.

"Brother Xiao Han, have a drink."

Seeing Xiao Han's throat dry after eating, Xun'er immediately handed him the bamboo drink bottle in her hand.

"Thanks."

Xiao Han gulped down the bamboo drink in one go, a satisfied expression spreading across his face.

After eating and drinking his fill, it was time to get down to business.

He absolutely had to figure out what was going on with Xiao Xun'er's change.

"Xun'er? How have I treated you all these years?"

Xiao Han sighed, looking seriously into Xiao Xun'er's eyes as he asked.

"What?"

Xiao Xun'er was taken aback, blurting out: "Brother Xiao Han has naturally been very good to me all these years, just like a real brother."

"Is that how you see it?"

Xiao Han gave a helpless smile: "And what about that brat Xiao Yan?"

"Brother Xiao Yan?"

Though Xiao Xun'er didn't know why Xiao Han had brought up Xiao Yan, she simply stated her thoughts: "Brother Xiao Yan has naturally been very good to me too. Even though he also looks after me like a real brother, I still like Brother Xiao Han more."

"If you had to choose one of us to be your real brother, which would you pick?"

"Brother Xiao Han, what kind of weird question is that?"

At just thirteen years old, Xiao Xun'er was completely baffled. She really couldn't understand why Xiao Han was acting so strangely today, asking one offbeat question after another.

"Hmph! Brother Xiao Han always asks me boring questions. Of course I'd pick Brother Xiao Yan as my real brother!"

"No way? For the past two years, when that brat Xiao Yan was wallowing in self-pity and ignoring you, it was your Han-ge who was taking care of you the whole time. Why pick Xiao Yan over me?"

"Hmph! It's just not happening!"

Xiao Xun'er turned away in a huff, a shy expression appearing on her face again: "I don't want you as my real brother. No matter how close real siblings are, they're still just siblings. It's not like they can cross that line..."

"..."

Xiao Han felt this conversation couldn't continue. If it did, this book would get 404'd.

"Uh, Xun'er, your big brother has some things to take care of. Mind cleaning up the food box..."

So he whistled, packed up the food box, handed it to Xiao Xun'er, and fled the separate courtyard like he was escaping.

"Brother Xiao Han, don't run so fast!"

Biting her red lips with her pearl teeth, Xiao Xun'er watched Xiao Han's panicked retreat and stomped her foot in annoyance. Even when angry, her delicate features made her look utterly endearing.

"Wuu—Brother Xiao Han, you big idiot!"

Just as Xiao Xun'er was fuming over Xiao Han's escape, a petite green figure walked up from behind her.

"Big Sister Xun'er... I saw everything just now." Qinglin looked at the young girl not much older than herself, then at the direction Xiao Han had gone, and let out a helpless sigh.

"If Qinglin's not mistaken, Big Sister Xun'er just scared the Young Master off."

"Brother Xiao Han was scared by me?"

Xiao Xun'er felt wronged and hurt. She wasn't some monster or beast; she had only revealed the feelings for Xiao Han that she'd been suppressing all along.

Not only did Xiao Han not appreciate it, he'd run away outright.

"Little Sister Qinglin, you're Brother Xiao Han's personal maid. Do you know what just happened?"

Taking Qinglin's hand and sitting down at the stone table, Xiao Xun'er—though envious that this little loli often got to be held in Xiao Han's arms—was not unreasonable.

Even if every time Ling Ying reported that Qinglin had been hugged by Xiao Han while he whispered sweet nothings, her heart soured like she'd bitten into a lemon.

Still, she knew how important Qinglin was to Xiao Han. If Xiao Han had to choose between Qinglin and herself for a wife, he'd pick Qinglin without hesitation.

As for Xiao Xun'er? She was just a little sister.

A sister-type character needed to know her place and not think about moving up. This wasn't a siscon novel.

"If I'm not mistaken, Young Master Xiao Han has always seen Big Sister Xun'er as just a little sister, right? Big Sister Xun'er, think back—over all these years, has the Young Master ever done anything that crossed the line of sibling affection?"

Crossed the line of sibling affection?

Don't even mention it. Since Xiao Han had transmigrated at age ten, Xiao Xun'er had been nine. After catching her attention with a bunch of Earth knowledge, he'd often told jokes to make her laugh and made handmade toys for her to play with.

After all, Xiao Han's ten-year-old body housed an adult soul. He wasn't a lolicon!

How could he be like the Xiao Yan from the original work, sneaking into a young girl's room in the dead of night to touch her body?

How could he lust after a nine-year-old loli's slender body?

How could he get aroused by a little loli whose mind hadn't fully developed?

Aside from tickling Xiao Xun'er, pinching her chubby cheeks, and lifting her up high, Xiao Han had truly never made any move with lewd intent.

As for Qinglin, forget it. Before this, Xiao Han had never allowed Qinglin to make any skin-to-skin contact with him. If it hadn't been for that chance opportunity where Qinglin seized the moment, she'd still think she was a personal maid Xiao Han didn't care about.

So Xiao Han was purely approaching Xiao Xun'er with the mindset of teasing a little sister, and it was this genuine feeling that unknowingly moved Xiao Xun'er.

Moreover, after Xiao Xun'er started developing at age eleven, Xiao Han actively kept his distance, never even touching her body, at most holding hands.

And now, as Xiao Xun'er gradually began to reveal that ethereal, lotus-like beauty from the original work, Xiao Han was merely stunned by it, with no other feelings.

As the saying goes, a rabbit doesn't eat the grass near its own nest—when you've watched a girl grow up from childhood, no matter how beautiful she becomes, it's hard to feel desire for her, right?

Take the famous sibling anime Yosuga no Sora—Qiong Mei and You Ge were separated for a long time before reuniting and being drawn to each other, like golden wind and jade dew meeting, leading to the touching story of You Ge getting his legs broken and sent to Germany for orthopedic treatment.

Xiao Han had watched Xiao Xun'er grow up from childhood to adulthood!

And although Xiao Yan had been good to Xiao Xun'er when they were young, over the past two and a half years, Xiao Yan had been wearing a sour face at everyone around him, sometimes even venting his anger and accidentally affecting Xiao Xun'er, which stood in stark contrast to Xiao Han's image as a big brother who took meticulous care of her.

Xiao Xun'er lowered her head, pondering and recalling—from childhood to now, Xiao Han Gege had truly only treated her as a little sister, and in recent years, he had even deliberately kept his distance, rarely even holding hands.

Rumble!

Damn it! I don't want this!

As if struck by a thunderbolt, Xiao Xun'er looked pitifully at Qinglin beside her: "Qinglin Meimei, what should I do?"

"This... I don't know either."

Letting out an awkward dry laugh, Qinglin spread her hands: "After all, besides me, Young Master Xiao Han rarely does anything too intimate with other girls."

Xiao Xun'er: "..."

Are you showing off? You're definitely showing off, aren't you?

Looking at Qinglin, who seemed to be shyly saying "Besides me, Xiao Han rarely falls for other girls," the veins on Xiao Xun'er's forehead twitched almost imperceptibly.

From childhood to now, Xiao Xun'er had always seen Xiao Han as a good big brother, and the feelings she had accumulated bit by bit over the years, she mistook for sibling affection.

Even back when Xiao Han brought Qinglin home, seeing that Xiao Han had gained a personal maid, Xiao Xun'er didn't think much of it.

It wasn't until Ling Ying reported earlier that Xiao Han was holding Qinglin, this newcomer, and whispering sweet nothings intimately, that Xiao Xun'er realized her heart was unbearably sour.

I'm so jealous!

This is clearly my big brother... How dare you do this to my brother... (｀へ′)

Only then did Xiao Xun'er understand that her feelings for Xiao Han were not sibling love, but romantic affection between a man and a woman.

Unable to accept it, Xiao Xun'er chose to get close to Qinglin, thinking that knowing oneself and the enemy leads to a hundred victories without defeat. But under Qinglin's pure and kind influence, Xiao Xun'er found herself gradually starting to like this cute little sister too, unable to bring herself to speak harshly to her.

But still...

It was me, it was me first—whether as a sister, a childhood playmate, or a childhood sweetheart, it was all me first—

Why does Xiao Han only see her as a sister? Is it because she wasn't proactive enough?

But fortunately, it's not too late; there's still a chance to mend the fence after losing the sheep!

Xiao Xun'er took a deep breath, a charming smile blooming on her face: "Come, Qinglin Meimei, let's have a good talk about Xiao Han Gege."

Feeling as if this beautiful girl like a green lotus was radiating a terrifying aura, Qinglin trembled and nodded.

"Waa—why did I run out just now—Young Master Xiao Han, save me QAQ—"

Xiao Han, who had fled to Xiao Yan's separate courtyard and was discussing combat skills: Ah-choo!

Which beauty is thinking of me?