Volume 1, Chapter 31: How to Appease a Younger Sister

On the other end of the phone, Lu Nanfeng simply let out a long sigh.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy. Ningning is truly heartbroken."

He had tried to coax Lu Ning during this time, but nothing had worked. In fact, she had even walked out of the restaurant earlier today and had neither returned home nor replied to any messages since. In the past, he would have sent people to find her or even threatened to call the police. But now, afraid of angering her, he could only wait for her to message him back. Most importantly, he was wary of that mysterious school doctor. It was no wonder they hadn't been able to track Lu Ning's whereabouts before.

Lu Liu didn't believe it. "Second Brother, Lu Ning has been so close to us since she was a child. Isn't she most fond of us brothers? I believe that as long as I explain the previous misunderstandings and coax her properly, it will definitely be fine."

Lu Nanfeng frowned. "Do not appear near her until after her exams."

"I know my limits."

Lu Liu hung up the phone directly. He knew how to coax Lu Ning; he just hadn't wanted to do it before. It was a trivial matter. He took out his phone, opened a chat window with Lu Ning, and sent a message.

After Lu Ning logged out of her game and returned to her room to wash up for bed, she saw an unread message. She assumed it was from her second brother. When she clicked on it, however, she saw it was from Lu Liu: [Lu Ning, let's meet at the cafe across the street after school tomorrow. I have something to say to you.]

Lu Ning glanced at it, remembering the slap she had received. She deleted Lu Liu’s contact immediately and enjoyed a refreshing, peaceful sleep.

The next day, since Ji Chiqian wasn't working, she took a taxi to school alone. Lu Ning noticed a crowd outside the school and a flashy luxury car parked by the roadside, surrounded by people. Judging by the uniforms, the occupants were not from her school.

As soon as Lu Ning stepped out of her taxi, someone shouted, "Lu Ning is here!"

She noticed the crowd around the sports car quickly disperse. A boy in a school uniform stepped out; he had handsome features, but his gaze, as he looked her over, made her uncomfortable. Lu Ning recognized him—he was Gu Yan from the private school next door, and also the boy Qin Xiang secretly admired. She hadn't expected him to show up in person.

Gu Yan looked at her with a cocky attitude. "You're Lu Ning? You look pretty good."

Lu Ning raised her eyelids, her eyes clear and sharp, her features fair and delicate.

Gu Yan smiled with satisfaction. "I'm Gu Yan. I want to be friends with you."

As soon as these words were spoken, many girls nearby shrieked.

"Young Master Gu's way of hitting on people is so direct! How handsome!"
"But they say Young Master Gu's girlfriends have a shelf life of only one month. He’s had more girlfriends than one can count. It's a pity that some girls still fall for it."
"But the Gu family is wealthy and he's generous with his money; many ordinary girls simply can't resist."
"But the Lu family is quite wealthy, too, though perhaps not on par with the families from Yunjing."

Lu Ning’s mouth twitched upon hearing this. In her previous life, Gu Yan had said the exact same thing—only he had said it to Qin Xiang. It was absolutely absurd!

At that moment, Qin Xiang stepped out of the car. Her face twisted when she saw Gu Yan standing in front of Lu Ning. So, Lu Ning really did have such intentions!

Qin Xiang walked straight over. "Sister Ningning, you didn't come home all night, and Second Brother was worried sick. After all, your relationship with that school doctor is so ambiguous; how could you spend the night out with him?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Yan frowned. He seemed unable to believe that someone who looked so innocent could have such a loose private life.

Lu Ning looked at Qin Xiang with a faint, enigmatic smile that made the latter’s skin crawl.

"Sister Ningning, are you angry? I was just worried that you were being deceived by that man, which is why I reminded you."

Lu Ning withdrew her gaze, her tone indifferent. "Save your fake concern."

She knew exactly what Qin Xiang’s intention was—to smear her reputation—but it happened to suit her just fine, as she had no desire to be involved with this young playboy anyway. Lu Ning walked straight toward the school. With her schoolbag on her back and her fair face devoid of expression, she carried an inexplicable air of authority.

With so many people watching, they parted to let her through. After all, Lu Ning had shot to fame with her twelve-hit combo; she was the new darling of the e-sports world, and many teams were watching, hoping to recruit her. It was only because she was a Lu that those teams hadn't dared to poach her. With her grades soaring and her gaming skills so impressive, she had become an object of admiration for many.

After Lu Ning left, students continued to discuss how amazing she was. Qin Xiang bit her lip and looked at Gu Yan, her voice exceptionally gentle. "You're Gu Yan, right? Sister Ningning just has that kind of temper. Please don't be angry."

"Does Lu Ning often stay out all night?"

"Not often, as the family is strict. But recently, she’s been getting very close to a school doctor, which caused a falling out with her family, leading to her staying out." Qin Xiang seemed to look vexed. "Gu Yan, please don't spread this around; it's not good for Sister Ningning's reputation."

Gu Yan glanced at Lu Ning’s retreating figure, his expression noticeably changed. Qin Xiang lowered her eyes, masking a flash of darkness.

Once Lu Ning reached her classroom, she noticed many boys peeking in from outside. After she sat down, she found her desk filled with even more love letters than the last time. She took one look, gathered them all up, and dumped them into the trash can.

A wail came from outside the classroom: "Your love letter got thrown out. She didn't even look at it."
"It's not just me. Yours got tossed too."

Lu Ning found it noisy; she truly had no interest in such things.

When Qin Xiang walked into the classroom and saw the letters, she felt uneasy. She had previously been the most popular girl in class, and she hadn't expected Lu Ning to become even more popular than her.

After class, Lu Ning felt a bit of discomfort in her stomach and headed to the restroom. She calculated the days and realized her period was likely coming. As she stepped out, Qin Xiang walked beside her. "Sister Ningning, what do you think of Gu Yan?"

Lu Ning’s tone was cold. "Not close. Don't know him."

"But I think Young Master Gu is quite good, Sister Ningning..."

"Are you ever going to stop pestering me? If you like Gu Yan so much, go for him yourself! Don't come here whining and souring the air in front of me!"

Qin Xiang’s eyes reddened instantly. "That's not what I meant."

One of her little followers chimed in immediately: "Lu Ning, don't think that just because Young Master Gu took a fancy to you, you can climb into the Gu family. That's not a status someone like you can reach."

Lu Ning scoffed. "If not someone like me, then someone like you?"

Surrounding students nodded. "That actually makes sense. After all, Lu Ning is the real eldest daughter of the Lu family. Qin Xiang is just an adopted daughter. Can they really be the same?"

"Don't talk about it. Be careful someone hears."

Lu Ning ignored them and walked away. Qin Xiang lowered her eyes, filled with deep hatred. She had worked so hard to take Lu Ning’s place; she would not give up on the person she liked.

Near the end of the school day, Lu Ning walked to the gate and found even more people gathered there than in the morning. She frowned, a bad premonition washing over her. As she walked out, she saw Gu Yan leaning against his luxury car, with a massive bouquet of roses and candles arranged to spell out her name.

"Lu Ning! Lu Ning! Lu Ning!"
"Say yes! Say yes! Say yes!"

Lu Ning turned, grabbed a fire extinguisher from the security booth, and walked over, carrying it in one hand. She stood there, aimed the nozzle at the candles, and sprayed them into oblivion.