Chapter 41: Stepbrother

Chapter 41: Stepbrother

"..."

The dreamlike quality of that sentence felt incredibly ill-timed, as if it were answering exactly what Bai Li was thinking.

Bai Li looked up and saw Ms. Hu standing at the foot of the apartment building, talking to someone on the phone. Ms. Hu caught sight of her and waved for her to go on ahead. Bai Li pretended she hadn't heard anything and walked toward home.

Autumn in Jiangcheng was mild, a gradual transition of seasons that didn't make one feel as though the weather had shifted all at once. Throughout Saturday, Bai Li spent her time thinking about Fang Ye being in Jiangcheng. She felt quite happy, though unfortunately, she had no time to go see him.

On Sunday, she headed to school with her backpack as usual. She found the flow of people at the school gate unusually heavy; many students were lingering around the small shops, hesitant to go inside.

Just as Bai Li stepped off the bus, He Suisui rushed out from somewhere, grabbed her, and pointed toward the milk tea shop next to the school, laughing, "Go quickly! Your handsome brother is over there!!"

Bai Li thought she was having auditory hallucinations. She turned her head toward the milk tea shop and saw Fang Ye’s striking face. Her fingers curled slightly, and her heart skipped a beat.

Just as she had imagined, Fang Ye was the type of person who easily attracted girls. He wore a black windbreaker, leaning casually against a high stool in front of the milk tea shop, his expression as indifferent as ever. The female students around him were secretly watching him, their faces flushed. Some of the bolder ones would hesitate for a moment before walking over to buy a milk tea, just to get a closer look at him.

Two withered leaves drifted down from a nearby parasol tree as Bai Li hurried over with her backpack.

"Brother."

The distance between them closed in an instant. Fang Ye looked at the young girl walking toward him with a flushed face, his gaze fixing on her exposed arms. Even though it was already a chilly season, she was still wearing a thin summer school uniform. She walked quickly as if she didn't feel the cold, letting the October wind lash against her face. Because she was carrying her backpack, she had no way to cover her arms, and the five fingernail marks on