Senior Sister, Please Act Human! - Chapter 10

“Achoo—!”

Xiao Yuanzhi sneezed and rubbed her nose.

She felt absolutely miserable.

Wei Zisu was truly despicable. She did not dare challenge Xiao Yuanzhi openly, so she resorted to underhanded tricks instead.

Ptooey!

Fortunately, Gao Yan had happened to pass by and brought her down. Otherwise, she would have spent the entire night stuck in that tree.

Thinking of this, Xiao Yuanzhi called out to Gao Yan, who was standing outside the door.

“Thank you for saving me, Junior Brother.”

“There is no need to thank me, Little Senior Sister.”

Gao Yan looked at Xiao Yuanzhi worriedly. Ever since he rescued her, she had sneezed more than a dozen times.

“Little Senior Sister, could you have caught a cold?”

“Achoo—!”

“Achoo—!”

Xiao Yuanzhi sniffed.

Two consecutive sneezes nearly made her head spin.

“What Junior Brother says makes sense. Achoo—! I probably did catch a cold.”

A woman’s voice came from behind Gao Yan.

“The medicine is here! The medicine is here!”

Yan’er came running over with a tray in her hands. Her eyes remained fixed on the bowl of medicine, afraid that it might spill.

She stopped in front of Xiao Yuanzhi.

“Little Junior Sister, the medicine is ready. Hurry and drink it while it’s hot.”

Xiao Yuanzhi shifted away from her.

Yan’er was just like Wei Zisu—neither of them was any good.

It was bad enough that Wei Zisu had tormented her. Yan’er had stood by and watched her suffer, then abandoned her without saying a word and fled.

Yan’er held the medicine closer, looking as though she were waiting to be praised.

“Hurry and drink it. I spent a long time brewing this for you.”

When Xiao Yuanzhi continued staring at her, Yan’er asked, “Little Junior Sister, why are you looking at me like that? Don’t tell me you’re afraid I poisoned the medicine?”

Xiao Yuanzhi said nothing.

Yan’er had already left her to die earlier. Whether she had added poison this time was anyone’s guess.

Who knew?

Yan’er had kindly brewed medicine for Xiao Yuanzhi, yet instead of thanking her, Xiao Yuanzhi suspected her of poisoning it.

Yan’er had a temper too. How could she tolerate such a misunderstanding?

“Hey, Little Junior Sister, what is that supposed to mean?”

Xiao Yuanzhi turned her head aside.

“It doesn’t mean anything.”

The light, casual reply was filled with resentment.

Furious, Yan’er heavily “placed” the bowl of medicine on the table.

Just as she was about to lose her temper, Xiao Yuanzhi turned toward her and asked, “When Eldest Senior Sister carried me into that tree, why was Senior Sister Yan’er nowhere to be found?”

“Where did you go?”

“And why did you conveniently appear with medicine the moment I caught a cold?”

Three questions in succession completely destroyed Yan’er’s confidence.

She hung her head. Knowing that she was in the wrong, she struggled for quite some time before muttering quietly, “I didn’t deliberately abandon you. In the end, I still found Junior Brother Gao and asked him to save you. Otherwise, you would still be sitting in that tree right now.”

Xiao Yuanzhi could only see Yan’er’s lips moving. She could not hear a single word.

“What?”

Watching the scene from outside the door, Gao Yan suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity.

He remembered that the female tutor at his family estate used to lecture his little sister in exactly the same way.

Unable to bear seeing Senior Sister Yan’er continue to be misunderstood, he explained, “Little Senior Sister, please do not misunderstand Senior Sister Yan’er. She was the one who came to find me. That was how I learned you were trapped in the tree.”

Xiao Yuanzhi looked again at Yan’er, who still had her head lowered.

Had she really misunderstood her?

Hearing Gao Yan defend her made Yan’er feel even more aggrieved.

She pouted and grumbled under her breath, “Exactly. Little Junior Sister only knows how to misunderstand me. You never consider my feelings at all. I kindly brewed medicine for you, yet you falsely accused me of poisoning you.”

This time, Xiao Yuanzhi clearly heard every word.

She was so angry that she laughed.

“So after all that, this is somehow my fault? I shouldn’t have wrongly accused you? Should I apologize to you?”

Yan’er did not raise her head. She continued muttering quietly.

“We are senior and junior sisters, so that isn’t necessary. But if Little Junior Sister wants to apologize, that would also be acceptable. I would forgive you.”

Xiao Yuanzhi was speechless.

She nearly lost her mind.

Her voice grew heavier.

“Was I the one who told you to abandon me?”

Hearing Xiao Yuanzhi speak through clenched teeth, Yan’er took a step backward, leaving enough distance for herself to escape.

After all, she genuinely could not defeat Xiao Yuanzhi.

Gao Yan understood that this was something the two women needed to resolve between themselves.

Besides, it was already late at night. It would be improper for him to remain outside Little Senior Sister’s room. If anyone saw him, there was no telling what gossip might spread.

He could not allow Little Senior Sister’s reputation to be damaged.

Therefore, he returned to his own residence first.

The more Xiao Yuanzhi thought about it, the angrier she became.

But suddenly, she realized something important.

Something was wrong.

Wei Zisu and Xiao Yuanzhi were not disciples of the same master. They should not have known each other that well.

And judging by Wei Zisu’s personality, she certainly would not waste time “showing concern” for Xiao Yuanzhi.

So how had Wei Zisu known she was afraid of heights?

Yan’er’s behavior was also unusual.

She had actually been considerate enough to brew medicine for her.

Was it because she felt guilty for abandoning Xiao Yuanzhi and wanted to make amends?

Or did she have something to hide?

Xiao Yuanzhi remembered that Yan’er had once promised never to report her affairs to Wei Zisu again.

Could it be…

Had this little spy caused trouble again?

Xiao Yuanzhi picked up the bowl of medicine from the table and was about to take a sip. However, the overwhelming smell of traditional medicine made her brows furrow.

“Senior Sister Yan’er, why do you think Eldest Senior Sister cares about me so much that she even knows I’m afraid of heights?”

Yan’er had never been good at lying.

The moment Xiao Yuanzhi questioned her, she shuddered. Every hair on her body stood on end.

She became exceptionally nervous, and even her speech turned hesitant.

“That… perhaps… maybe… possibly she happened to see it by accident and remembered? I’m not entirely… sure. Maybe she just happened to witness it.”

As Yan’er spoke, her feet unconsciously kept edging backward.

She wanted nothing more than to escape the room as quickly as possible.

Now Xiao Yuanzhi understood.

Wonderful.

So it really had been this little spy who told Wei Zisu.

Xiao Yuanzhi glanced at Yan’er’s feet and then looked directly into her eyes.

“Is Senior Sister trying to run away? Where are you going? Do you need me to accompany you?”

Yan’er did not dare meet her gaze.

She lowered her head and quietly defended herself.

“Little Junior Sister is overthinking it. There are merely ants beneath my feet, and I cannot bear to hurt them.”

“Hah. Senior Sister Yan’er truly has the heart of a bodhisattva. You can’t even bear to harm ants, yet you can bear to treat me like this. How contradictory.”

Xiao Yuanzhi suddenly shouted angrily, “Do you know that betraying your teammate and stabbing your junior sister in the back like this would have gotten you publicly denounced before the Reform and Opening-Up period? Even today, if this were posted online, people would curse you to death!”

Teammate?

Reform and Opening-Up?

Public denunciation?

And the internet?

Yan’er raised her head and stared at Xiao Yuanzhi in confusion.

What were all these things Little Junior Sister was talking about?

Had anger made her lose her mind?

Since Xiao Yuanzhi was currently furious, Yan’er did not dare ask.

She could only lower her head again and wait for the next torrent of scolding.

By the time Xiao Yuanzhi finished, her throat felt as though it were smoking.

She drank three entire pots of water before finally feeling somewhat better.

“Burp—”

Disregarding her image entirely, Xiao Yuanzhi let out a watery burp and said to Yan’er, “Leave. Go back wherever you came from. I’m not playing with you anymore.”

Keeping a little spy like this beside her was nothing more than inviting suffering!

Yan’er understood this time.

“Little Junior Sister, are you driving me away?”

Had Xiao Yuanzhi not made herself obvious enough?

Her stomach was now completely full of water, leaving her painfully bloated. She had no time to continue arguing with Yan’er.

She waved her hand, urging her to leave quickly.

Yan’er explained, “Little Junior Sister, although I abandoned you this time, I still sent Junior Brother Gao to save you. And I told Eldest Senior Sister about your fear of heights a long time ago. It wasn’t something I did during the past few days.”

Xiao Yuanzhi nodded perfunctorily while pushing her toward the door.

“Yes, yes, yes. I understand.”

Yan’er was forced forward by Xiao Yuanzhi.

She felt terribly wronged and still refused to give up. She turned her head and continued, “You can’t sever our friendship over something like this! When Eldest Senior Sister was giving you special attention before, I delivered steamed buns and congee to you for several days in a row.”

Xiao Yuanzhi continued responding perfunctorily.

“Mm-hmm, yes, all right. I understand.”

With one final push, she sent Yan’er outside.

Bang—!

The door slammed shut with a crisp, decisive sound.

Xiao Yuanzhi walked to the bed, kicked off her shoes, and lay down.

The sound of Yan’er knocking and calling to her came from outside, but Xiao Yuanzhi had firmly decided to ignore her.

In fact, she almost wanted to laugh.

That would teach Yan’er to betray her again.

If Xiao Yuanzhi did not show her a little color, Yan’er might truly believe she had no temper.

The following morning—

The moment Xiao Yuanzhi opened her door, she saw Yan’er walking toward her.

Her hands were full of oil-paper packages.

Xiao Yuanzhi reminded herself that she could not soften her attitude. Otherwise, this little spy would become completely lawless again.

She immediately turned around and prepared to go back inside.

Yan’er had still been hesitating over whether to give the packages to Xiao Yuanzhi.

After all, they contained all her favorite snacks. Some had even been sent from the capital by her parents through an intermediary.

But when she saw Xiao Yuanzhi about to leave, she panicked.

Yan’er hurried forward.

“Little Junior Sister, wait! Wait!”

Xiao Yuanzhi turned around and looked at her in confusion.

Yan’er gritted her teeth, closed her eyes, and thrust every package of snacks into Xiao Yuanzhi’s arms.

“These are all my favorite things to eat. Some were even sent to me by my parents. I’m giving them all to you as an apology. I hope Little Junior Sister can forgive me.”

Xiao Yuanzhi immediately felt as though she should say, You shouldn’t have brought gifts just because you came.

A delicious aroma drifted toward her nose.

She had never tried ancient snacks before, and these looked extremely tasty!

Yan’er had expected Xiao Yuanzhi to give her another lecture and was still preparing herself.

Instead, Xiao Yuanzhi’s expression suddenly changed.

She smiled brightly.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s all in the past. We’re so close—there’s no need to be so polite.”

“…”

Yan’er was astonished by how quickly Xiao Yuanzhi changed her attitude.

Had she known Xiao Yuanzhi would be this easy to appease, she would not have brought everything.

As though sensing Yan’er’s thoughts, Xiao Yuanzhi immediately put on a stern expression again.

“However, since Senior Sister has recognized her mistake, I will reluctantly accept them.”

Yan’er spoke softly and reached toward the pile of snacks.

“Actually, Little Junior Sister doesn’t need to force herself.”

Xiao Yuanzhi lowered her gaze and leaned backward, neatly avoiding Yan’er’s hand.

“I’m not forcing myself at all. If I didn’t accept everything, wouldn’t that waste Senior Sister’s heartfelt intentions? After all, I stood in that tree enduring the cold wind for several hours and even caught a cold. I still felt a little dizzy when I woke up today.”

Now that everything was already in Xiao Yuanzhi’s hands, Yan’er wanted to take it back?

Not even through a crack!

After hearing Xiao Yuanzhi say that, Yan’er’s guilt returned.

Naturally, she could no longer bring herself to ask for the snacks back.

She withdrew her grasping hand, but her gaze remained fixed on the treats in Xiao Yuanzhi’s arms. Her expression was filled with heartache.

“Then, Little Junior Sister… you must treat them well.”

Xiao Yuanzhi’s eyes curved with delight.

“Don’t worry, Senior Sister Yan’er. I will, I will. I definitely won’t disappoint your heartfelt intentions. Every last one of them will go into my stomach.”

Watching Xiao Yuanzhi happily carry the snacks into her room, Yan’er felt as though something inside her had shattered.