Chapter 13: I’m Not Your Brother
Lin Yuejiu froze for a moment, then instinctively replied, “I’m… used to it.”
The homeroom teacher looked at her, eyes full of boundless pity.
“I know about your situation—after all, the rumors have spread so far. I haven’t experienced something like this myself, but what I want to tell you is: without going through wind and rain, you’ll never see a rainbow. Roses grow among thorns. Even though right now there are so many voices gossiping about you, you can’t only listen to their voices—you also have to listen to the voice in your own heart. What is it that you truly want to do?”
“You’re still young, your future is bright. You can’t let yourself break here.”
Lin Yuejiu lowered her eyes. “I understand. Thank you, Teacher.”
The homeroom teacher sighed quietly, then added, “I’ve taught you for two years now, and I still like you. If you have any difficulties, you can come to me, alright?”
Lin Yuejiu obediently answered, “Alright.”
“This test doesn’t mean much. The college entrance exam is the real goal, and you’re only in your second year. Your foundation is solid—you’ll catch up soon. No need to rush, okay?”
Lin Yuejiu nodded and said seriously, “Thank you, Teacher.”
“It’s nothing. That’s all I wanted to say. You can go back to class now.”
“Okay.”
“They’re all still kids—hot-blooded and impulsive—so they might say things that go too far without meaning to. Don’t take it to heart, in one ear and out the other, alright?”
“I understand.”
“Go back to class then.”
Just as she stepped through the classroom door, Lin Rumeng spotted her and called out sweetly, “Sister!”
Lin Yuejiu paused for a moment. “I’m not your sister.”
But Lin Rumeng only smiled without the slightest embarrassment. “Even though we’re not related by blood, you’re older than me—so calling you ‘sister’ is only right.”
Lin Yuejiu ignored her and returned to her seat.
Some of the classmates looked at Lin Rumeng with strange expressions.
Wasn’t that basically rubbing salt into her wound in front of everyone?
Sure, we gossip too, but not like that.
Lan Qingqing, seeing this, gave a mocking laugh. “She’s not wrong, though. Even if you’re a fake heiress, you still lived with the Lin family for so long, playing the stand-in for all those years. Now that the real heiress is back, calling you ‘sister’ is reasonable enough.”
The classroom instantly fell silent.
Chen Qianxi couldn’t stand it anymore. She stood up and glared at her. “And what business is it of yours? Whether she wants to call her that is up to them—and whether Jiujou wants to hear it or accept it is her choice. Why stick your nose where it doesn’t belong? Like a dog meddling in a mouse’s affairs—too nosy!”
“You—! You say I’m meddling, but aren’t you meddling right now?”
Chen Qianxi snorted disdainfully. “I’m Jiujou’s friend. When my friend’s in trouble, of course I help. But you—may I ask, which one of them is your friend?”
Lan Qingqing choked.
Lin Rumeng stood up to smooth things over. “Don’t fight, you guys. We’re all in the same class, and since we’re in the same class, we’re all friends.”
Chen Qianxi ignored her and went back to her seat.
Lin Rumeng turned to Lan Qingqing. “You’re Lan Qingqing, right?”
“Mm, that’s me.”
“Let’s be friends, then?”
Lan Qingqing’s face lit up. “Sure!” She hurried over to grab Lin Rumeng’s hand. “From now on, we’re good friends!”
“Alright.”
Lan Qingqing held her hand, then glanced at Lin Yuejiu sitting at her desk with open disdain. “See how generous the real heiress is, unlike a certain fake heiress who’s so petty.”
Chen Qianxi was about to get up and curse her out, but her deskmate tugged on her sleeve, signaling her to look at Lin Yuejiu. Chen Qianxi looked over; Lin Yuejiu shook her head. Chen Qianxi pouted, sat back down, and ignored them.
Lin Rumeng just smiled and said nothing.
A cold, indifferent voice came from the side, “If you want to make friends, go do it somewhere else. The seat next to me isn’t here for you to socialize.”
The two of them turned to look. Xu Nianshen’s expression was calm and distant.
Lan Qingqing still respected Xu Nianshen in her heart, so she let go of her hand and went back to her own seat.
Lin Rumeng giggled, “Brother Nianshen, don’t be mad. I won’t do it again next time.”
Xu Nianshen’s face remained expressionless, “Don’t go around calling me ‘brother.’ I’m not your brother.”
“How could we not be familiar? The Lin family and the Xu family live so close, and there’s so much friendship between us.”
“So what? Even if there is, it’s not between you and me.”
The smile on Lin Rumeng’s face froze for a moment, “Even if we don’t have a bond now, we will in the future. We can cultivate it slowly.”
“Sorry, but I have no interest in cultivating it.”
“Brother Nianshen…”
“I already told you, I’m not your brother. My mother didn’t give birth to a younger sister for me. And right now, it’s class time. If you keep talking, don’t blame me for being impolite.”
Lin Rumeng obediently shut her mouth.
In her heart, she secretly thought: It’s all that Lin Yuejiu’s fault. If it weren’t for her, she would have been the one growing up with Brother Nianshen.
She had heard that Lan Qingqing used to be Lin Yuejiu’s best friend—hmph! Now she was her friend instead.
And as for Brother Nianshen, even though he didn’t like her now, she was his deskmate. Sooner or later, he would definitely become her good friend.
This period was self-study. There was no teacher around, and usually during this class everyone would go ask each other about problems they couldn’t solve. Most people tended to gather in the first row.
But today’s self-study period was unusually quiet. No one got up from their seats. The first row was completely empty.
Many eyes kept flicking toward Lin Yuejiu.
The class monitor couldn’t stand it anymore. He picked up his math workbook and pen, ready to get up from his seat.
His deskmate stopped him, “What are you doing?”
The class monitor gave him a puzzled look, “Going to ask a question, obviously.”
“Ask who?”
“Lin Yuejiu.”
Quite a few people turned to look at the class monitor.
His deskmate was stunned, “Are you crazy? Before, I could understand you asking Lin Yuejiu for help, but her scores have dropped so much this time, and you still want to ask her?”
Lin Yuejiu, who was bent over her work, tightened her grip on her pen until her fingertips turned white.
“She just made a mistake this time. Her foundation is still there. And even with the drop, she still scored over 140 in math.”
“The teacher already said, we shouldn’t only ask people who have high grades. Everyone has strengths and sides you don’t know about. You can’t judge someone only by their scores—there might be many things they know that you don’t.”
The deskmate flushed in shame and let go of his hand.
The class monitor walked over to Lin Yuejiu’s side, “Um, goddess, I have a math problem I can’t solve. Can you teach me?”
Lin Yuejiu quietly took a deep breath, looked over, and asked, “Which one?”
“This one.”
She glanced at it and began explaining in a soft voice.
In the whole classroom, the only sound was her gentle explanation.
Her own deskmate, sitting beside her, couldn’t help but listen in as well.
A few minutes later, she asked, “Do you understand now?”
Before the class monitor could reply, her deskmate blurted out, “Hey, hey! I got it!”
The class monitor shook his head.
“There’s still one part.”
“Which part?”
“The second-to-last step.”
