Chapter 47

The driver noticed that he didn’t look well, slowed down, and handed him a motion sickness pill.

He glanced at the little box holding the pills – it had been bought by Jiang Yu many years ago.

He suddenly remembered: their relationship hadn’t always been so bad.

He still recalled back in high school, he and Fu Ziyi were in the same class.

Jiang Yu would always trail after him, asking if she could join them.

Whenever she talked to him, she always seemed so cautious, as if afraid of being rejected.

Back then, he didn’t know what to say, so he always wore a cold expression.

But in truth, he wanted to tell her that he didn’t dislike her. It was fine if she got a little closer.

How could he possibly dislike her?

When he was three years old, people often asked him, “Do you want a little brother or a little sister?”

Every time, he would touch his mother’s belly and give the same answer: “A little sister.”

She was the little sister he had always looked forward to.

But as he got older, he saw his mother whipping He Yu’s hand with a bamboo stick, making her take off her coat in the depths of winter and stand outside in just a thin shirt, or kneel in punishment for the smallest mistake.

He felt like he didn’t know this version of his mother at all.

So he always protected He Yu.

He was the older brother – wasn’t it his job to look after his sister?

And so, this became a habit that was hard to change.

The night their parents discussed bringing Jiang Yu back, all he could think about was: what would happen to He Yu?

She had suffered so much and only just barely been accepted by their mother. Was she going to be sent away again?

What if her new mother was as biased as their own?

She never complained, so if she got hit, she’d never tell him.

So he made up his mind that He Yu would stay. His parents couldn’t change his mind, and eventually, they gave in.

The day they went to pick up Jiang Yu, it was supposed to be all four of them.

But He Yu said she wasn’t feeling well and stayed home.

He hesitated at the door, then turned back.

He was afraid He Yu would hide in her room and cry by herself, just like she did every time their mother scolded her when she was little.

And that time, just like so many times before, he found her sadness without fail.

He Yu asked him, “Brother, will you ever not want me?”

That was the only time He Yu had ever asked him that.

Usually, she smiled at everyone, her eyes crinkling into slits, keeping all her anxiety and sadness hidden inside.

He was silent for a moment, then said, “No, I’ll always be on your side.”

But he still didn’t dislike Jiang Yu.

He just sensed He Yu’s uneasiness so keenly that he deliberately put Jiang Yu in awkward situations.

He didn’t dare show even a hint of favoritism toward Jiang Yu – that would only hurt He Yu.

It wasn’t until Fu Ziyi approached him and asked, “Did you know Jiang Yu was being bullied at school?” that he realized how serious the problem was.

That night, he couldn’t sleep. After wrestling with himself for a long time, he warmed a cup of milk, knocked on Jiang Yu’s door, and told her, “If you’re ever bullied again, you can tell me.”

She looked at him in surprise but obediently took the milk and said, “Okay.”

He turned to leave, thought it over, and came back to apologize sincerely: “I’m sorry, I was careless. But if you ever have any trouble, you can tell me.”

Jiang Yu agreed, her eyes curving in a smile.

From that moment on, their relationship began to improve.

It was then that he realized he actually found her quite endearing.

If the incident with Jiang Qi hadn’t happened, they should have been truly important people in each other’s lives.