“Big Brother isn’t an outsider! He’s my only family!”
Seeing that Zhou Sui’an was safe and sound, Zhou Suisui’s heart—which had been tense with worry all night—finally settled.
Her brother’s face was etched with exhaustion.
They had only been apart for a single day, yet he was already unshaven, with such heavy bags beneath his eyes.
Even his refined, handsome features couldn’t hide how pale and haggard he looked.
“Big Brother, are you all right?”
“Did Su Wan do anything to you?”
“Why did you rush over here without getting some rest? Don’t you know how dangerous that was?”
“What would I have done if something had happened to you?”
As Zhou Suisui spoke, tears began to fall.
If Sister Wu hadn’t told her in time, would her brother have already ended up following the same path as in his previous life?
Whenever she thought about the tragic fate Zhou Sui’an had suffered after being framed by Su Wan in her previous life, Zhou Suisui still felt shaken to her core.
Silly Big Brother!
Idiot Big Brother!
She loved him and hated him all at once, wishing she could crack open his head and see whether it was filled with nothing but a lovesick fool’s brain.
Faced with her barrage of questions, Zhou Sui’an’s heart ached terribly. He awkwardly wiped away her tears.
“Don’t cry, Suisui. It was Big Brother’s fault. I won’t do it again. Please, don’t cry!”
Zhou Suisui threw herself into Zhou Sui’an’s arms.
Her tears fell like beads from a broken string.
“Big Brother…”
“Suisui…”
“…”
Jiang Zongyan’s temple began to throb.
Then he suddenly tugged at the corner of his mouth, almost laughing from sheer exasperation.
What was this supposed to be?
So the siblings were getting along beautifully, and he had once again become the unwanted outsider?
Zhou Sui’an seemed to remember only then that there was an irritating man standing nearby.
His expression darkened as he ground out, “All right. Now explain everything to Big Brother. What exactly is your relationship with this man?”
Zhou Suisui glanced guiltily at Jiang Zongyan.
Thinking about how she had used him the night before, she didn’t even dare look him in the eye now.
“It’s… it’s just like that…”
“What does ‘just like that’ mean?”
Seeing his sister’s shy expression, Zhou Sui’an’s imagination immediately conjured up all sorts of scenes not suitable for minors.
Suddenly, he was full of energy again.
His sharp gaze swept back and forth between the two of them.
The fact that they had slept in the same bed didn’t necessarily prove anything, did it?
His sister might very well be lying to him again.
Zhou Sui’an reached out, lifted the quilt, and held it beneath his nose to sniff.
The gesture was rather ridiculous and undignified.
He looked like a puppy that had found a bone by the roadside and was sniffing it to determine what it was.
Zhou Suisui stared at him in disbelief. “Big Brother, what are you doing?”
There was no smell.
Zhou Sui’an ignored his sister’s question. After finding nothing suspicious on the bed, some of the tension in his expression eased.
He didn’t answer Zhou Suisui. Instead, he set the quilt down and walked around the foot of the bed.
His eyes swept over the carpet back and forth like X-rays, refusing to overlook a single spot.
Nothing!
There was nothing in the trash can either!
Only then did Zhou Suisui realize what he was doing. Her entire face flushed scarlet.
“Big Brother! Could you stop already?!”
She stole a glance at Jiang Zongyan, then covered her face as if she wanted to disappear.
What would Jiang Zongyan think after seeing her brother act like this?!
Heavens!
What was Big Brother doing?
Zhou Sui’an didn’t care in the slightest how ridiculous he looked, nor did he feel embarrassed, as Zhou Suisui imagined he would.
He even crouched down on the floor and stuck his rear into the air so he could peer beneath the bed.
He checked every angle, refusing to miss a single clue.
Still, there wasn’t a single suspicious item in sight!
At last, he let out a sigh of relief. Some color returned to his pale face, and he gave Jiang Zongyan a smug, challenging look.
“Heh. I told you—my sister could never fall for you!”
Jiang Zongyan had been rendered speechless by Zhou Sui’an’s performance.
He had known for years just how shameless Zhou Sui’an could be.
But he had never imagined that the man could sink to this level.
He turned to Zhou Suisui and said meaningfully, “Suisui, why don’t you tell your brother whether we were together… all night?”
The words “all night” rolled off his tongue in a deep, husky voice, carrying an especially suggestive undertone.
Zhou Sui’an clenched his fists, his furious eyes fixed on her.
“Go on, Zhou Suisui. Tell me! What exactly did you two do last night?”
He looked as though he would strangle her on the spot if she dared say anything too outrageous.
The gazes of both men landed on her.
“…”
Zhou Suisui felt as though she were standing on a bed of needles.
No matter how she answered, she was bound to offend one of them.
Her long, thick lashes trembled.
She slowly raised her eyes to look at the man standing not far away.
When Jiang Zongyan met her guilty gaze, his heart sank slightly.
The little ingrate.
Just try siding with your brother and see what happens…
The chill in his eyes frightened Zhou Suisui, and she shrank her neck.
She gently shook her head.
No. She couldn’t betray Brother Yan.
If he hadn’t patiently kept her company that night, she wouldn’t have known what to do!
Her pink lips pressed together faintly.
Her mind raced as she searched for a way out of the situation.
Got it!
She planted her hands on her hips and demanded with a fierce expression, “And you have the nerve to question me? I haven’t even asked you what you plan to do about Su Wan drugging you and setting you up!”
“I…”
Zhou Sui’an was indeed caught off guard.
Su Wan had unquestionably done something wrong.
But the incense had been given to her by Wang Zhen, and she hadn’t known it would have any other effect…
Of course, the most important reason was that he had already decided to sever ties with Su Wan.
He intended to let the matter go and consider the debt of gratitude between them partially repaid.
But he didn’t know how to explain any of this to his sister.
Seeing him hesitate yet again, unwilling to hold Su Wan accountable, Zhou Suisui immediately laughed in anger.
“Fine, fine! Then don’t interfere in my affairs either! We’ll each mind our own business!”
Zhou Sui’an panicked. “Don’t be angry. I only went to see her this time because I agreed to have one last meal with her!”
“She asked you to dinner, and you just went?”
Zhou Suisui gritted her teeth, clenching her fists tightly.
“Do you know that there were reporters all over the lobby downstairs? The moment you made a move against Su Wan, they would have rushed over and photographed evidence of you ‘molesting’ her. By tomorrow, the entire internet would be buzzing with headlines about your ‘attempted rape’! How were you supposed to clear your name then?”
“…”
Faced with his sister’s accusations, Zhou Sui’an had no way to defend Su Wan. Nor did he even think of trying.
“I know…”
“You know what?” Zhou Suisui exploded. “If you care about her so much, why did you come all the way to Hai City? She’s not unconscious in the hospital? Then go keep her company!”
Zhou Sui’an’s eyes were filled with helplessness. “Suisui, Big Brother won’t involve himself in her affairs anymore. Please believe me one last time.”
“I wouldn’t believe you if you paid me!”
She had trusted him too much, and that was why he had continued acting recklessly.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became!
Zhou Suisui threw back the quilt and climbed out of bed barefoot. Then she placed both hands against Zhou Sui’an’s chest and pushed him toward the door.
“Go! I don’t want you here! Go find your Su Wan!”
“I’ll just pretend I don’t have a brother like you!”
Naturally, she was only saying this in anger.
But she knew her brother’s personality well.
If she forgave him too easily, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t run back to Su Wan and continue acting like her devoted lapdog, indulging her without limits.
“Suisui, Big Brother really won’t go looking for her again…”
Zhou Sui'an’s expression changed, and he was about to explain further when she pushed him out of the room without hesitation.
The door slammed shut with a bang.
Zhou Suisui let out a breath and turned around, only to meet Jiang Zongyan’s probing gaze.
A chill ran down Zhou Suisui’s spine.
Could he tell that she had been using him?
So when Jiang Zongyan stepped forward, about to speak to her, she glared at him fiercely with her big eyes before he could say a word. Her babyish expression looked downright menacing.
Pointing toward the door, she accused him first to gain the upper hand.
“You get out too!”
Jiang Zongyan: “...?”
He hadn’t even done anything to her.
