Seeing that the siblings were about to leave, Chen Xiwan couldn't help speaking up:
"Hey, Xiaoxiao, aren't you taking the vodka you wanted?" She looked concerned, but a hint of disapproval crept into her voice. "Actually, girls should drink less, especially hard liquor like this. Even if you do want a drink, make sure you're somewhere safe."
Chen Xiwan's words carried a subtle insinuation, as though Lu Xiaoxiao often went somewhere unsafe.
"Uh..."
In truth, Lu Xiaoxiao had nearly forgotten about it after waking up. She glanced at the vodka, then at her eldest brother, feeling inexplicably guilty.
Help, I just made up that whole wanting-vodka thing! The strongest alcohol I've ever had in my life was watered-down baijiu!
"She isn't taking it." Lu Xunli frowned. "I don't want my sister drinking that kind of liquor."
His tone was a little stern. Chen Xiwan froze for a moment before lowering her eyes and saying quietly, "Okay... Are you too tired today? Go home and get some rest."
Seeing Chen Xiwan's dejected expression, Lu Xunli couldn't quite bring himself to be heartless. After a moment's hesitation, he softened his voice and added:
"Thanks for putting up with her antics today. Send me any jewelry you want when you get home, and I'll buy it for you."
Lu Xiaoxiao quietly rolled her eyes, utterly speechless.
Why is he still falling over himself to be a sucker? I wish the country would assign me a boyfriend this lovesick, too.
Sensing his sister's disdain, Lu Xunli coughed to cover his embarrassment and immediately quickened his pace toward the door.
As the two of them walked farther away, Chen Xiwan's expression gradually darkened behind them.
She had an ominous feeling that something wasn't quite right.
Could it be... that Lu Xunli already knew something?
No, impossible. She had been very discreet, and her family would all cover for her. There was no way she could be exposed so easily.
Still, to be safe, she would have to keep a lower profile for a while and do a better job of keeping Lu Xunli happy.
As she thought, Chen Xiwan opened her contacts. Her fingertip hovered over a number for a long moment before she finally pressed it.
"Hello? That stuff you mentioned last time-get some ready for me after all."
The car remained silent on the way home.
As far as Lu Xunli could remember, it had been a long time since he and Lu Xiaoxiao had spent this much time alone together, not since she had reached adulthood.
The girl in his memories still seemed to be her younger self. Back then, Lu Xiaoxiao had been lively and cheerful, always eager to grow close to everyone in the family.
Perhaps because she had been adopted, she had never felt very secure and often showed an obvious eagerness to please.
When exactly had Lu Xiaoxiao begun growing quieter and quieter, communicating with them less and less?
Perhaps it had started after one of Lu Yubai's more excessive pranks, or perhaps after she heard that they had found a lead on the Lu Family's biological daughter.
Well, he honestly couldn't remember exactly when.
Only after discovering that he could hear Lu Xiaoxiao's thoughts had Lu Xunli suddenly realized that his sister had already become someone he didn't really understand long before that.
If this miraculous ability hadn't suddenly appeared, he had no idea when he might have realized it.
It seemed that Lu Xunli hadn't paid attention to this sister who wasn't related to him by blood in a very long time.
At that thought, he suddenly wanted to talk to Lu Xiaoxiao, but he had no idea how to start a conversation.
After thinking for quite a while, Lu Xunli abruptly blurted out a word of thanks. "Xiaoxiao, thank you for making that trip for me today."
Lu Xiaoxiao turned toward him and waved a hand dismissively. "You're being too polite. I was just dropping something off. It wasn't any trouble."
Lu Xunli fell silent for a few seconds, then thought of a topic that might lead to more conversation. "How have you and Lu Yubai been getting along lately? Is he still bullying you?"
Him? He couldn't bully me if he tried. He should be grateful I'm not bullying him.
Despite those thoughts, Lu Xiaoxiao still played the victim aloud. "Same as always. Yubai gives me such a nasty look every time he sees me!"
"I see. Then I'll have a word with him for you next time." Lu Xunli couldn't help chuckling, then asked, "Do you know much about what's going on with him?"
"To be honest, I've heard a few things about him at school lately. Apparently, he's had some trouble with his classmates, but I don't know whether it's true."
"You know how Lu Yubai always treats me like an elder. He's just as guarded around me as he is around Dad, and he never tells me anything. I thought you might have heard something."
Lu Xiaoxiao paused and began recalling the original novel's plot.
She didn't remember this part very clearly. She only vaguely recalled that a rather withdrawn, eccentric classmate of Lu Yubai's had ruined his confession to the prettiest girl in class. Afterward, Lu Yubai and the clique that revolved around him had constantly ostracized that classmate.
It wasn't really fair to say he had done anything particularly outrageous to that classmate. Rather, Lu Yubai had underestimated his own influence and unwittingly pushed the classmate into an abyss.
With his family's wealth and power, Lu Yubai was extremely popular in class, always the center of attention.
Precisely because of that, whenever Lu Yubai showed even the slightest dislike for someone, people eager to please him would launch a "righteous crusade" against that person.
Some weren't even doing it simply to curry favor. They just wanted someone they could bully to vent the malice in their hearts.
"We're bullying him because he's a terrible person. He even upset young master Lu before!"
Look at that-such a convenient, reasonable excuse!
After considering it for a few seconds, Lu Xiaoxiao decided to give Lu Xunli a direction to look in.
"Yubai hates me, so he wouldn't tell me about anything at school," she said. "But I think I've heard that he has some friends who like forming cliques. Maybe they've had a bit of an influence on him."
It's way more than forming cliques. That kid's practically become the school tyrant. A whole bunch of people are bullying classmates in his name, and the idiot still thinks they're being loyal friends.
Honestly, he's hopelessly stupid. One day, someone will sell him out, and he'll probably still be grinning as he helps them count the money!
After hearing Lu Xiaoxiao's thoughts, Lu Xunli's expression grew somewhat grave.
He had only heard those few remarks, but it sounded as though the actual situation might be even more serious than he had imagined.
Lu Xunli decided to make time for a conversation with Lu Yubai's homeroom teacher. He couldn't stand by and watch his younger brother go down the wrong path.
After that, Lu Xunli asked after Lu Xiaoxiao's recent life, and the two chatted on and off until they soon arrived back at the Lu Family home.
As soon as they walked in, they saw that Song Zhilan's eyes were a little red, as though she had been crying.
Not understanding what had happened, Lu Xiaoxiao asked, "Mom? What's wrong?"
Before you continue