Chapter 143: Too Full of Himself
After riding several laps with Ning Xiyue, Ning Qingyuan was finally stopped by her before he reluctantly gave up on doing another round. They then rode their bicycles back to where she had parked hers.
Ning Xiyue retrieved her bike, and the siblings each mounted their own bicycles, leaving the town and heading back home.
Of course, they were headed toward the Daliu Production Team. Ning Xiyue had invited her second brother to come back for dinner. Now that they both had bicycles, it was much easier to get around, and since the two production teams were next to each other, going back and forth didn’t take much time at all. It greatly improved how often the siblings could visit each other.
After dinner, seeing that the weather was getting colder, Ning Xiyue went inside and brought out one of the military coats their eldest brother had mailed them. She handed it to Ning Qingyuan.
“Big Brother sent these to us before — one for each of us. It wasn’t cold yet, so I put them away, but now the temperature is dropping every day. It’ll get colder soon, so we should get our winter clothes ready so we don’t catch a cold.”
“Thank you, little sister. You really are the best.”
Ning Qingyuan accepted the coat, feeling deeply touched. It was nice to have a younger sister who always thought about him.
Just as he was about to leave, Ning Qingzhi, dressed plainly and carrying a burlap sack, came down from the mountain. Seeing the two siblings standing at the door, he raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Then, with a cheerful smile, he said, “Well, well. What’s the occasion today? All three siblings gathered together.”
“Big Brother!” Ning Xiyue exclaimed happily.
Fortunately, she had removed the bandages from her body after dinner and hadn’t had time to rewrap them. If her big brother had seen them, he would’ve been worried sick again.
“Big Brother, what brings you here?”
When Ning Qingyuan saw his brother walking over, his eyes instinctively went to the bicycle he was pushing and the military coat he was wearing. This was the perfect chance to show off — Big Brother had come at just the right time.
He switched sides, pushing the bicycle into better view.
“If you’re here, why can’t I be? I came to see my little sister,” Ning Qingzhi said as he walked closer, shooting a disdainful glance at his second brother. “Were you about to leave? Then hurry up and go. I want to talk to my sister.”
“Who said I was leaving? I was just about to take a ride on the new bicycle my sister bought for me. I only got it today.”
When Ning Qingyuan saw that his big brother had come, he had no plans to leave now. He patted the seat, raised his eyebrows proudly, and looked at Ning Qingzhi with an annoyingly smug expression.
“Nice, isn’t it? My sister bought it just for me. And look, here’s the military coat you sent. Thanks for that, Big Brother.”
The brand-new military coat in his basket was displayed right before Ning Qingzhi’s eyes. Still feeling it wasn’t enough, Ning Qingyuan pushed the bicycle around his brother in circles.
Ning Xiyue looked at her big brother’s now expressionless face, covered her face silently, and stepped back a few paces — she couldn’t bear to watch.
Ning Qingzhi grabbed the handlebars, stopping the bicycle, and walked around it once. “Hmm, let me see. Not bad. I’m confiscating it. From now on, this bicycle is mine. Right, little sister?”
His gaze drifted meaningfully toward Ning Xiyue.
“Yes, yes, yes — it’s Big Brother’s,” she nodded quickly.
Bloodline pressure — she couldn’t afford to offend either of them. She backed up a few more steps and even shot her second brother a “good luck” look.
“No, no, Brother, that’s intimidation — robbery! This is the bike my sister bought for me. It’s mine!” Ning Qingyuan panicked, prying at his big brother’s fingers wrapped around the handlebars.
“Call it and see if it responds. If it does, it’s yours,” Ning Qingzhi said as he tightened his grip and even sat down on the bike. “Mm, nice and comfortable seat.”
“Brother, I was wrong, I was wrong! I’ll never do it again. Please, I’m begging you!”
Ning Qingyuan was desperate. Would his first-ever bicycle, a gift from his sister, really be taken by his big brother just like that? If he’d known, he would’ve ridden it home before showing off. He’d only ridden it once! Boo-hoo.
When Ning Qingzhi saw that his brother had been humbled enough, he let go of the bike and got off. With a sharp look, he said,
“Since you begged so nicely, I’ll be generous — we’ll share it. From now on, you can ride it, but you’d better take good care of it. If I come back someday and see it’s damaged, I’ll beat you.”
Tears welled up in Ning Qingyuan’s heart. He’d shown off too much. What was once exclusively his was now shared. Why couldn’t he keep his mouth shut? He’d just had something confiscated last time too — had he learned nothing?
He secretly slapped himself across the face. “Serves you right for not keeping your mouth shut. If only you’d ridden the bike home first!”
Having bullied his younger brother once again, Ning Qingzhi was in an excellent mood. Showing off in front of him? He had to remind the boy who the big brother was. Big Brother would always be Big Brother.
“Alright, go ride it. And if you don’t take care of that coat, I’ll confiscate that too.”
Ning Qingyuan quickly strapped the basket back on, circled around the outside of the educated youth courtyard, and parked his bicycle again outside Ning Xiyue’s kitchen, signaling with his actions that he wasn’t going anywhere.
When Ning Qingzhi looked her way, Ning Xiyue stepped forward flatteringly and took the burlap sack from his hands like a lapdog. “Big Brother, you must be tired from walking. Let me carry this.”
He let go, and his gaze softened a little. “Alright, let’s go back to your kitchen.”
Sensing the goodwill radiating from her big brother, Ning Xiyue’s face instantly lit up with a bright smile. She led the way, not through the educated youth courtyard but down the same path Ning Qingyuan had taken earlier.
This stone-paved path had been specially laid by Ning Xiyue so she could bring her brothers over for meals without disturbing the people inside the courtyard. It went around the right side of the building and led directly to the kitchen, complete with a small wicker gate.
When Ning Xiyue and Ning Qingzhi reached the kitchen, Ning Qingyuan had already parked the bicycle and was crouched by the door playing with Xiao Hui.
By now, Xiao Hui had grown a lot. Thanks to Ning Xiyue’s good feeding, its fur shone and it was starting to look more and more like a husky — a big fluffy bundle that gave off a strong sense of security.
Seeing Xiao Hui, Ning Qingzhi frowned with concern. “Sister, that’s a wolf. You need to be careful. Maybe let your second brother take it away — it looks dangerous.”
“Don’t worry, Big Brother. Xiao Hui is very gentle and well-behaved. It understands human speech and can protect me. Look, I’ll show you.”
Ning Xiyue waved at Xiao Hui. “Xiao Hui, come here.”
Xiao Hui dropped what it was doing with Ning Qingyuan and bounded over to Ning Xiyue, wagging its tail excitedly.
“Sit.”
Xiao Hui sat down obediently.
“Stand.”
It followed the command again. Whatever Ning Xiyue said, it did.
Ning Qingzhi patted its head. “This little guy really listens to you. It’s good to have it around, but you still need to be cautious — it’s still a wild animal at heart.”
“Mm, I know,” Ning Xiyue nodded obediently.
Honestly, Xiao Hui was better than most people — it did whatever she asked and even let her tug on its wolf teeth.
Ning Qingyuan bounced over eagerly and asked Ning Qingzhi, “Big Brother, have you had lunch yet? Let me show off my cooking.”
“I’ve eaten,” Ning Qingzhi replied, then turned to Ning Xiyue. “Sister, open the sack. I brought you something good.”
At his words, Ning Xiyue opened the heavy sack to take a look, and Ning Qingyuan leaned in curiously too.
Inside was an entire lamb leg.
“Big Brother, where did you get this?” Ning Qingyuan asked excitedly in a low voice. “It’s huge — so much meat!”
Ning Xiyue was also drawn to the impressive leg. With the weather getting colder lately, it would be perfect for making lamb soup or even a hot pot.
“A friend of Lao Ji and mine brought it over. I saved a leg for you two. Nice one, right? It was slaughtered today — super fresh.”
Seeing his younger siblings so happy made Ning Qingzhi feel happy too.
Ning Xiyue already knew how she was going to cook it. “Big Brother, Second Brother, are you both free? Stay for dinner. Let’s have a lamb hot pot tonight — warm up and chase away the cold.”
“I’m free,” Ning Qingzhi nodded. “Sister, we’ll see you tonight. I have something to talk to you about, too.”
“I’ll head back and grab my hot pot cooker. Then I’ll come help you prepare,” Ning Qingyuan said excitedly, already looking forward to their sibling dinner.
“Alright, go ahead. I’ll be here at the educated youth courtyard all afternoon.”
Thanks to Wu Xiuli, she had successfully taken a few days off.
