Chapter 264: The Second Smartest Brother in the Family
Shen Qingxia saw Ning Xiyue looking down at the photos and couldn’t help wanting to say more.
“Cute, isn’t he? When this kid was little, he was so adorable — the best-looking child in the entire family compound. His skin was fair and soft, everyone who saw him wanted to hold him and make him laugh. I always felt that the reason he keeps such a serious face nowadays is probably because he was traumatized by all that attention back then.”
Ning Xiyue couldn’t help but feel a flash of sympathy for little Comrade Ji.
Poor guy — good-looking children could never escape the clutches of overly enthusiastic adults. Everyone loved to play with cute kids, after all.
But if she had to guess why he kept that cold face now, she thought it was more due to his line of work — it simply required him to be like that.
Still, Ji these days was already quite different.
Ning Xiyue naturally followed the conversation: “Aunt Shen, he smiles a lot more now than he used to.”
“Really? That’s good. I used to worry he’d never find a girlfriend. But now that I see such an outstanding girl like you, I can rest easy. Everyone has their own blessings in life.”
Shen Qingxia was genuinely happy for her nephew. The boy had finally opened up — her elder sister could stop worrying. And this young lady seemed like a very fine one indeed.
“Come on, let’s keep looking. There’s more. I’ll tell you about what he was like when he was little.”
“Alright.”
Ning Xiyue gladly listened. Apart from learning about Ji’s childhood, she also wanted to know more about his family’s personalities and interests — knowledge never hurt, and it could come in handy someday.
So while chatting with Aunt Shen, she subtly probed here and there — about Ji’s grandparents’ preferences, his mother’s temperament, and so on.
Of course, she didn’t ask directly. She cleverly used modern psychological-style “fun questions” to indirectly learn things.
By the end of their talk, she had gathered quite a lot.
Not only did she understand their personalities better, but she’d also figured out some of their hobbies and tastes.
Ning Xiyue believed that if she ever suddenly met another member of Ji’s family again, she’d be able to handle it gracefully and win them over without batting an eye.
She wasn’t at all worried about having any family conflicts with Ji’s relatives in the future. If she truly wanted to make someone like her, she could absolutely coax them into smiling ear to ear — it was just a matter of whether she wanted to or not.
The reason she cared to learn so much today was because she genuinely valued this relationship — and his family too. Ji treated her family with such warmth and care; she couldn’t fall behind. She wanted to leave a good impression as well.
Marriage, after all, was never just between two people. It was a bond between two families. No one came into the world alone — everyone had people they cherished, whose blessings they hoped to have.
So she remembered everything Aunt Shen said today carefully. Sooner or later, it would come in handy. As long as she did her best, she would have no regrets.
After chatting for quite a while, Ning Xiyue checked her watch — it was already past seven. Time to head back.
She said goodbye to Aunt Shen, then went out to find her second brother so they could leave together.
Once again, the two siblings rode their bikes home, flashlights in hand.
On the road, Ning Qingyuan couldn’t hold back his curiosity. He’d been wondering what kind of “secret” Aunt Shen had told his sister. The two had been talking for so long, and when they came out, both were smiling from ear to ear — clearly in good spirits.
After they rode past the edge of town, he couldn’t help but ask, “Sis, what was that secret Aunt Shen told you? You two talked forever.”
“You’d never guess it, bro. Go on, try guessing,” Ning Xiyue replied with interest.
“Then I have to guess properly this time,” Ning Qingyuan said, pretending to think deeply. “If she told you but not me, it must have something to do with you. Don’t tell me it’s about Brother Ji — could Aunt Shen be related to him or something?”
Ning Xiyue’s eyes widened in amazement, and she let out a genuine exclamation.
“Wow, Second Brother, you’re amazing! You’re getting smarter by the day — you even guessed that right! I’m impressed!”
“Really? I guessed it? No way — Aunt Shen’s actually his mom?” Ning Qingyuan was stunned at his own accuracy.
“She’s his aunt — his little aunt, not his mom. But tell me, how did you even guess that? You’re incredible.”
Ning Xiyue was honestly curious.
Based on the original owner’s memories, she used to think her eldest brother was the smart one, while her second brother was just a sweet, naïve fool.
But after spending so much time with him, she discovered that her second brother was actually quite clever — maybe even sharper than their eldest in certain ways.
Ning Qingyuan flicked his short, inch-long hair smugly and grinned.
“That’s easy. I know pretty much everyone who knows you around here. If she wanted to tell you a secret and not me, it must’ve been about you. And the only person I could think of who’s connected to you like that is Brother Ji.”
Ning Xiyue rang her bike bell repeatedly to cheer him on.
“Second Brother, from today onward, I declare you the second smartest person in our family!”
“And who’s the smartest?” Ning Qingyuan asked, just as he was about to boast further.
“Why, the clever and beautiful Ning Xiyue — your little sister, of course!” she said without blushing.
“Fair enough. I’ll accept that,” Ning Qingyuan said, grinning with satisfaction. As long as he ranked ahead of their big brother, he was happy.
The two siblings chatted and laughed all the way home, their cheerful voices echoing in the quiet night. The boundless darkness around them no longer felt the least bit frightening.
