As soon as Chen Xiwan left, Lu Xiaoxiao sprawled ungracefully across the lounge sofa and started binge-watching dramas.
Perhaps because she had stayed up too late gaming the previous night, drowsiness crept over her not long after she began watching. Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.
When she woke again, Lu Xiaoxiao heard muffled voices in her groggy state. Squinting slightly, she saw Chen Xiwan speaking in a hushed tone on the phone.
"I've told you many times—you've always been in my heart. Isn't everything I'm doing now for our future?"
Lu Xiaoxiao: "…?"
The sheer weight of that statement jolted her awake. Though her eyes remained closed, her ears perked up instinctively.
"Lu Xunli respects me and is easy to handle. Don't worry, nothing will happen between us."
Hearing this, Lu Xiaoxiao could hardly contain herself, tilting her head slightly to the side.
The original story hadn't detailed much about Chen Xiwan's actions, nor did Lu Xiaoxiao know everything she had done.
But judging by her tone, it seemed Chen Xiwan had a secret boyfriend on the side!
Lu Xiaoxiao had thought her elder brother's situation was bad enough, but now it appeared his misery knew no bounds—he had been wearing a "green hat" from the very start.
Noticing Lu Xiaoxiao's movement, Chen Xiwan grew concerned she might wake and lowered her voice further.
"Alright, I have to go now. He'll be out of his meeting soon. I'm hanging up."
Shortly after she ended the call, Lu Xunli pushed the door open.
The man looked weary, massaging his right temple as he entered.
Curious whether Chen Xiwan would speak ill of her, Lu Xiaoxiao continued feigning sleep.
Chen Xiwan swiftly deleted the call history from her phone, stood up with a natural smile, and approached Lu Xunli to straighten his tie. Softly, she said,
"You must be tired from the meeting, Xunli. I just bought the vodka, but your sister has already fallen asleep."
Lu Xunli, who hadn't noticed what drinks were on the table, paused and glanced over. Frowning, he asked,
"Vodka? Who asked for this? And they made you go buy it? You must have had to go quite a distance."
[Tsk tsk, already feeling sorry for her? She was just on the phone with some unknown lover a second ago. Poor big brother, being toyed with by this heartless woman.]
Lover? What lover?
Hearing the familiar inner voice, Lu Xunli froze. He glanced toward Lu Xiaoxiao's spot and realized his sister was pretending to be asleep.
Though unsure of her motive, he had no intention of exposing her. He averted his gaze, pretending not to know.
"You asked me to look after Xiaoxiao, so of course I want her to be comfortable. Your sister is like my own sister—it's no trouble at all, Xunli, even if it's a bit tiring."
Chen Xiwan claimed not to mind, yet her expression carried a hint of grievance. Biting her lower lip, she linked arms with Lu Xunli and gazed up at him pitifully, a sight meant to evoke sympathy.
"By the way, when Xiaoxiao arrived today, she had a little misunderstanding with my cousin. My cousin didn't recognize Xiaoxiao and thought she looked suspicious, so she stopped her from entering."
"My cousin was indeed in the wrong about this matter. Xiaoxiao was very angry at the time and even slapped my cousin in a moment of impulse. I happened to arrive just then and advised them not to hold grudges against each other."
"But… I think my cousin might still be struggling to adapt to this position. How about we transfer her to work in the pantry? That way we can avoid such misunderstandings in the future."
Lu Xiaoxiao sneered inwardly. With every word Chen Xiwan spoke, she mentally refuted:
[Quite skilled at glossing over the important details, aren't we? Was it just about blocking my way? Didn't your cousin falsely accuse me of trying to become my older brother's mistress?]
[Playing the "accuse first" card very smoothly indeed. Don't pretend you don't know how long she chased after me hurling insults. You two are just like the stagnant inflation of the 1970s American economy.]
[Oh dear, aren't you thinking too optimistically? If she made mistakes, why should she be rewarded? Working in the pantry is much easier than front desk duties, with no reduction in salary. Wanting to have your cake and eat it too is a bit excessive, don't you think?]
[Brother, wake up! This woman is not only two-timing but also brings you bad luck. Don't wait until she bankrupts the Lu Family before you try to turn back time! We can handle being deceived emotionally, but we must never let our money be taken too!!!]
Lu Xunli felt a headache coming on from all the noise in his ears, but after listening for so long, he had managed to extract the key points from Lu Xiaoxiao's mental commentary.
He didn't want to believe that Chen Xiwan was two-timing, nor did he like forming opinions about people based on others' words.
However, Lu Xunli didn't think Lu Xiaoxiao had any reason to lie in her thoughts, which planted a seed of doubt in his mind. Without thinking, he brushed off Chen Xiwan's hand that was linked through his arm.
"I understand. I'll inform HR later," Lu Xunli said in a slightly deeper voice.
Chen Xiwan noticed his unusual behavior and felt puzzled.
Normally, whenever she used this kind of coaxing tone with Lu Xunli, he would always affectionately pat her head and say he'd agree to whatever she wanted.
Today's reaction was noticeably colder.
She tentatively continued: "By the way, about buying the apartment for my brother that we discussed last time… I think we don't need to rush into it. We've only been dating for a short while, and you being so good to my family makes me feel overwhelmed."
"But you know, I'm not dating you for these material things. Just being able to stay by your side is enough for me. I don't deserve you giving so much…"
[I'm about to vomit, such strong "tea" vibes! Brother, your taste is really terrible! Isn't this just a roundabout way of reminding you to buy her brother an apartment?]
Lu Xunli thought it over carefully and realized this did seem to be the case. So he went along with her words: "Alright, since you feel it's inappropriate, we won't buy it then."
The shy, modest expression on Chen Xiwan's face immediately cracked: "What did you say?"
According to the script in her mind, Lu Xunli should have comforted her by saying "You deserve all these things, I'll buy your brother the apartment right away."
Seeing her stunned expression, Lu Xunli felt a wave of disappointment wash over him, his tone growing wearier: "I said we'll do as you suggested. Were you actually saying the opposite of what you meant?"
Chen Xiwan quickly realized she was straying from her established persona and forced a smile: "Of course not, not buying is perfectly fine."
["I can't take it anymore, should I wake up now? Wait, my leg seems to have fallen asleep, ahhh damn it I can't move!"]
Lu Xunli no longer wished to continue the conversation. With a slight nod, he stepped over to Lu Xiaoxiao and called out, "Wake up, Xiaoxiao. It's time to go home."
Lu Xiaoxiao then opened her eyes: "Huh? Big brother, you've finished your meeting?"
Watching his little sister trying hard to pretend she was still drowsy with sleep, Lu Xunli found it rather endearing and couldn't help but curve his lips into a slight smile.
"Mm, let's go."