Lin Xiyue didn’t dare look up, but even without raising her head, she knew He Mingchu was very unhappy.
However, since He Mingchu had just shown kindness this afternoon, she couldn’t let his goodwill go unacknowledged.
So Lin Xiyue looked up and said ingratiatingly, “Ming Chu, you mentioned last time that you like leek pancakes. I made some—would you like to try them?”
He Mingchu raised an eyebrow, only then realizing that Lin Xiyue had prepared tonight’s dinner.
He hadn’t known Lin Xiyue’s cooking skills were this good.
Did she cook specifically to apologize to him?
He Mingchu calmly picked up another leek pancake and took a bite.
“Mmm, not bad.”
A faint dimple appeared at the corner of Lin Xiyue’s mouth.
He was talking to her!
Did that mean he wasn’t angry anymore?
After dinner, He Mingchu took charge of washing the dishes.
Lin Xiyue followed him to the well.
He Mingchu washed while Lin Xiyue rinsed, their coordination seamless.
“Ming Chu, can I come to your room later to study?”
He Mingchu glanced at her and said quietly, “No.”
Lin Xiyue’s expression froze.
“Why not?”
Seeing her crestfallen look, He Mingchu couldn’t help but smirk inwardly.
“Why do you need to study in my room? Can’t you study in your own?”
Lin Xiyue carefully placed the bowl on the ground beside her.
“There are several questions I’m unsure about. Could you help me check them?”
Her voice was soft and delicate, carrying a girl’s charming sweetness. He Mingchu felt a surge of pride inwardly.
This little girl has learned to act cute.
He paused his movements and replied in a businesslike tone, “Fine, come over later. I’ll take a look at how you’ve done on those questions.”
Lin Xiyue’s heart leapt with joy. “Great!”
Jin Yao sat on the sofa at home with her arms crossed, her expression grim.
“I asked you to find some stray cats and dogs—still no news until now?”
The butler wiped sweat from his forehead.
“Miss, there are no stray cats or dogs around our neighborhood! This whole area is a villa district!”
Jin Yao slapped the sofa. “I don’t care! You must find me two today! And remember—don’t harm them!”
The butler hesitated for a moment but ultimately said nothing, leading the staff out to search for cats.
When Jin Chen and Jin Yu returned home, they discovered all the household staff had been sent out to look for cats and dogs.
Jin Chen hadn’t even gotten a warm meal after coming back. Furious, he pointed at Jin Yao and demanded, “What exactly do you see in that He Mingchu? Why are you so obsessed with him?”
The Jin family members were all quite good-looking. If it was about He Mingchu’s appearance, well…
Alright, he was indeed fairly handsome.
But that shouldn’t make Jin Yao so infatuated.
Jin Yao: “He… not only is he good-looking, but he’s also very gentle.”
The first day he transferred to their school wasn’t Jin Yao’s first time seeing He Mingchu.
On her initial visit to the school, she had seen He Mingchu carrying Lin Xiyue’s backpack, a smile on his lips as he watched Lin Xiyue walk ahead, occasionally reminding her to slow down and be careful not to fall.
When Lin Xiyue picked a small wildflower from the roadside, He Mingchu would patiently explain its details to her.
If only such a gentle man could be her boyfriend.
Jin Yu snorted upon hearing this. “What’s the use of a gentle man? A real man needs to be tough!”
Jin Yao stood up and headed upstairs. “Second Brother, not all men are like you. I just prefer someone gentle like He Mingchu!”
The calendar turned another page, and Lin Xiyue continued going to school with He Mingchu as usual.
Teacher Wang wrote the countdown to the college entrance exam on the blackboard, creating the same oppressive atmosphere as it would decades later.
Last night, while taking her homework to He Mingchu’s room, she had become so absorbed in studying that she forgot about Jin Yu’s existence. It wasn’t until she saw Jin Yao in the morning that she remembered she had provoked someone not to be trifled with.
That bag of skincare products remained unopened in the corner of her room. She could only pray to finish the college entrance exam quickly and leave this place.
No matter how far-reaching Jin Yu’s influence was, could it possibly extend thousands of miles away?
As soon as Jin Yao spotted her, she approached right after class.
“Xiyue, haven’t you used the skincare products I gave you?”
Lin Xiyue felt her head throb at the question. She pulled out a textbook to block her line of sight.
“No, I haven’t finished my previous ones yet!”
He Mingchu frowned at Jin Yao. “What are you doing here?”
Jin Yao retorted confidently, “I came to see Xiyue, not you!”
That single statement left He Mingchu somewhat irritated.
Lin Xiyue peeked out from behind her book, observing their interaction.
Wasn’t this the beginning of a love-hate relationship?
Jin Yao turned back to look at her.
“Xiyue, you should stop using that homemade Astragalus Cream. It’s not as effective as my family’s products. I’m not lying—look at my skin.”
Jin Yao didn’t just talk; she took action.
She grabbed Lin Xiyue’s hand and made her touch her cheek.
At seventeen, collagen was abundant, and Jin Yao’s face was smooth, fair, and tender—even better than her own thirteen-year-old skin condition!
Lin Xiyue felt envious.
He Mingchu’s tone turned cool. “Is the homemade Astragalus Cream not good?”
Lin Xiyue snapped back to reality, withdrew her hand, and turned to speak seriously. “It’s excellent! There’s no skincare product better than homemade Astragalus Cream!”
He Mingchu knew perfectly well that Lin Xiyue was saving face for him.
He curled his lips slightly and looked at Jin Yao.
“Lin Xiyue doesn’t just slather any random stuff on her face. Her skin condition doesn’t need Miss Jin’s concern.”
Jin Yao was no fool and immediately grasped the key information from their exchange.
The skincare products Lin Xiyue used were all made by He Mingchu himself!
Suddenly, Jin Yao felt unsettled again.
So what if her family manufactured skincare products? It couldn’t compare to someone like Lin Xiyue, who had a person willing to personally create products just for her.
Jin Yao had worked hard to build a good relationship with Lin Xiyue, planning to use visits to her as opportunities to see He Mingchu.
But now, she began to doubt the nature of Lin Xiyue and He Mingchu’s relationship.
Previously, Lin Xiyue had firmly stated that she and He Mingchu were siblings, but weren’t real siblings supposed to be like her and Jin Yu?
Besides, as half-siblings who had known each other for less than six months, were they already close enough for He Mingchu to bother making skincare products for her?
She recalled Jin Yu telling her yesterday that Lin Xiyue’s ambitions were far greater than she imagined.
Were He Mingchu and Lin Xiyue really just siblings?
Jin Yao collected her thoughts. Her second brother often said she acted too impulsively. She had finally established a good relationship with Lin Xiyue, and since she hadn’t made progress with He Mingchu yet, she couldn’t afford to sever this connection with Lin Xiyue.
So what if he made skincare products?
Now that they had the Jin family’s skincare products, He Mingchu didn’t need to make them anymore.
Thinking this, Jin Yao smiled.
“Xiyue, homemade Astragalus Cream has some technical flaws and isn’t very nutrient-rich. If you want proper skincare, just use what I gave you yesterday. Once you try it, you’ll notice the difference.”
“If you don’t think it works well, you can just go back to using Astragalus Cream.”
Lin Xiyue felt completely overwhelmed. She didn’t want to conflict with the female lead, but she also didn’t want to have any connection with her second brother. On top of that, He Mingchu was still waiting for her rejection.
What should she do?