Test

"What do you mean, Old Tang? How am I supposed to test him?"

Tang Wulin widened her eyes, wanting to see what brilliant idea this guy in front of her had.

"The principle is simple. Hint at it or say it outright—tell him you want a relationship with him beyond that of siblings."

"Then, based on his answer, you'll be able to tell what he really thinks of you."

At some point, Old Tang had dragged out a blackboard from somewhere and was writing out the plan in detail with a marker.

"Step one: whenever he has time, ask him to meet up and chat with him now and then. Probe indirectly to see what he thinks of you."

"Step two: ask him out when you have time. See whether he's merely indulging you or whether he genuinely enjoys spending time with you."

"Step three is the final step of the test I just mentioned. Once the atmosphere is right, confirm it with him. Then you'll have your answer."

Watching Old Tang's orderly analysis, Tang Wulin nodded seriously as well.

"Alright, I'll go get ready right away!"

Tang Wulin waved her little fists, seemingly cheering herself on.

Old Tang looked at her and felt nothing but heartache.

"Could the original body's love-struck nature be hereditary? And inherited this strongly?"

But he did not want to think about that now. Everything depended on the results of this test.

The next day, Tang Wulin asked Mang Tian for leave. Ever since Tang Wulin had mastered Thousand Forging, Mang Tian had been extremely satisfied with this disciple of his.

Naturally, he agreed without hesitation.

Tang Wulin also found Luo Qing, who was on break.

Seeing a figure suddenly appear outside his window, Luo Qing opened it.

"Wu Lin, why didn't you use the front door?"

Tang Wulin looked a little embarrassed.

"Big Brother, isn't there something important I need to tell you in private? Besides, my whereabouts must remain secret."

Luo Qing chuckled, assuming that this girl's chuunibyou syndrome had flared up again.

Though he had no idea why someone elementary-school age would have chuunibyou syndrome.

"Then just say it. If it's something I can help with, feel free to ask."

Tang Wulin tried several times to speak, but the words would not come out.

In the end, she patted her cheeks and mustered her courage.

"Big Brother, I want to go out and have fun with you."

Luo Qing froze and looked at the girl in front of him, whose little face had turned bright red.

He even reached out to touch Tang Wulin's forehead.

"Oh no, did this kid get a fever so bad she went stupid?"

Perhaps Tang Wulin's excessive embarrassment had caused her temperature to rise sharply.

Luo Qing hurriedly rummaged through the room behind him, searching for fever medicine.

Seeing this, Tang Wulin immediately realized that her big brother had misunderstood again.

"No, I don't have a fever."

Perhaps that little interruption had broken her embarrassment, and her body temperature gradually returned to normal.

Luo Qing checked her temperature twice and found that it was indeed normal. Then he looked at her somewhat reproachfully.

"You really are still so careless."

"Didn't I give you a soul communication device before? If you wanted to ask me out, you could've just sent me a message."

Only then did Tang Wulin realize she had acted foolishly again.

"I... I just forgot!"

"Don't worry about such details, Big Brother. Come have fun with me already!"

"Honestly, I can never say no to you."

After Tang Wulin packed her things, Luo Qing followed her out.

The bustling streets were packed with people.

Perhaps because it was a holiday, there were many young people on the streets.

Luo Qing bought a skewer of fried squid from a snack stall nearby.

He handed it to Tang Wulin, who was walking beside him.

"Try it. I come here often."

Tang Wulin took a bite. The squid and spices were paired just right, and it was indeed delicious.

She could not help eating several more skewers.

At that moment, Old Tang in her spiritual sea could no longer sit still.

"Wu Lin, stop eating. Think—think about what your goal is!"

Only then did Tang Wulin realize that she had nearly ruined everything again.

So she led Luo Qing to take a walk along the beach.

Perhaps because this stretch of beach had not yet been developed, few people came here.

That gave Tang Wulin room to put her plan into action.

She began following the three-step plan and searching for topics to discuss.

From favorite foods to beloved comics.

She talked about many things, but when she came back to herself, she realized something.

Luo Qing had kept the same expression all along—a faint smile carrying a trace of indulgence.

He watched her calmly. Though he was quiet, he was earnestly listening as she shared her happiness.

"Looks like you've really been doing well lately. Keeping a good mood truly has a major effect on improving your strength."

Luo Qing reached out and rubbed her black hair. Feeling the warmth atop her head, Tang Wulin narrowed her eyes in comfort.

"By the way, Big Brother, what do you think of me lately?"

Luo Qing found Tang Wulin's sudden question a little strange.

"You've been doing great. Seeing you so happy is much better than how you used to always look worried."

"That's not what I mean! I mean something deeper, like... what kind of person do you think I am?"

Luo Qing understood. Was this little girl starting to care about how others evaluated her?

Luo Qing recalled the moments they had spent together: her silly manner, her obsession with food, and the way she clung to him from time to time.

After carefully choosing his words so as not to hurt the girl before him, Luo Qing spoke.

"I think you're pure-hearted, with an exceptionally sincere and innocent heart. You treat others kindly, and you have an incredibly sharp sense of smell and great strength."

"In short, you have a heart of gold."

Luo Qing had already softened and polished his words as much as possible.

But Old Tang heard the hidden meaning.

"So from his perspective, his daughter was a simple-minded, big eater with no sense of caution, and apart from being strong, the only thing worth mentioning was that she was innocent."

Tang Wulin was moved by Luo Qing's emotionally intelligent answer.

She fell silent for quite a while as the two walked peacefully along the beach.

A few shells lay scattered across the sand. Several fiddler crabs moved through cracks between the rocks. Wave after wave slowly washed onto the shore, scattering fine droplets of spray.

Several seagulls swept through the air, curiously watching the two people walking below.

The salty sea breeze blew toward them, tossing Tang Wulin's black hair about.

Luo Qing took a hairpin from his pocket and helped smooth her slightly disheveled hair.

"You're a girl, after all. Pay at least a little attention to your appearance..."

It was then that Tang Wulin seemed to finally make up her mind. She looked seriously at Luo Qing before her.

"Big Brother, I don't want to just be siblings with you anymore!"

Luo Qing's expression darkened upon hearing that.

"Wu Lin, have I ever treated you poorly?"

Tang Wulin instinctively shook her head.

"No, Big Brother has always been good to me!"

"Then why do you want to sever our sibling bond and become enemies with me?"

The moment he said that, not only Tang Wulin, but even Old Tang in her spiritual sea froze.

Was that right?