The chopsticks in Lin Lu’s hand slipped with a “clatter”.
“Mmph? What’s wrong?” Lilith was still shoveling rice into her mouth.
“If you don’t eat… well, I’m going to finish all the dishes…”
Lin Lu ignored Lilith.
Right now, her mind was racing as she tried to figure out how to explain things to her sister.
This phone call was far too sudden!
“Hello? Are you still there? Who exactly are you?” an urgent voice came from the other end of the line.
“If you don’t say anything, I’ll have to call the police. Why do you have my brother’s phone? What have you done to him?”
“Ah! No, no, no!” Lin Lu said hurriedly, “I… I’m your brother’s girlfriend. He just went out to buy some things and left his phone at home.”
“Girl… girlfriend?!” Lin Xiaoxi found it hard to believe.
She sounded both anxious and angry, her voice carrying a hint of tears, “I’m telling you, don’t even try to lie to me! How could someone like my brother find a girlfriend with such a beautiful voice? He hasn’t called me in forever. What do you want? Money? Don’t harvest my brother’s kidneys! I’ll have our parents scrape the money together to ransom him!”
Lin Lu was speechless.
Although she felt relieved that Xiaoxi was worried about her, why did the girl have to slander her like that?
Just how terrible was the image of her brother in Xiaoxi’s heart?
However, on second thought, she really hadn’t called her sister or home in a long time.
The main reason was that she still hadn’t figured out how to explain everything to the family.
“Your brother is really fine.” Lin Lu tried to make her voice sound as gentle as possible.
“He’ll be back in a little while. If you don’t believe me, I can send you a location tag…”
“What use is a location tag? Those can be faked. Don’t think you can fool me,” Lin Xiaoxi interrupted.
“If you’re really my brother’s girlfriend, then why don’t you dare to make a video call?”
“What’s the point of a video call if your brother isn’t home…”
“Hmph! Keep lying! Just keep making things up!” Xiaoxi’s voice became increasingly frantic.
“I’m telling you, I’ve already bought a high-speed rail ticket to Beijiang. I’m going to call the police in a minute. You damn human trafficker, I’m going to see exactly where you’ve hidden my brother!”
Lin Lu felt a headache coming on.
She rubbed her temples, her mind working at high speed as she thought about how to make Lin Xiaoxi believe her.
“Xiaoxi,” she suddenly said, her voice turning very soft, “Your brother once told me that when you were little, you were often bullied by that village dog named Wangcai. Your favorite food is strawberry ice cream, and you once ended up in the hospital because you secretly ate five of them in a single day. Even now, you’re still afraid of the dark. When you stayed at the school dormitory, he was worried you wouldn’t be able to sleep well away from home…”
“Wait… wait a minute!”
Lin Xiaoxi interrupted Lin Lu.
If she let her continue, her embarrassing history was going to be completely exposed.
Why did her brother tell outsiders everything?
It was so annoying!
“Are… are you really my brother’s girlfriend?” Xiaoxi’s voice was muffled, still carrying a trace of disbelief.
“Mm-hmm. The real deal.”
“Then… when will my brother be back?”
The hostility in Xiaoxi’s tone had mostly vanished, but she still sounded a bit awkward.
After all, Lin Xiaoxi didn’t know what to do about this sudden appearance of a sister-in-law.
“Uh… it should be a while. He only just left a little bit ago,” Lin Lu continued to lie.
“Do you want to wait for him?”
“No need,” Xiaoxi muttered, “Just have him message me when he gets back. I… I’m hanging up now.”
“Wait a second,” Lin Lu stopped her.
“Did you just say you bought a high-speed rail ticket to Beijiang?”
“Yeah.” Xiaoxi’s voice softened, “I’m on vacation, and I wanted to come visit him. He hasn’t called in so long, and Mom has been nagging, so she told me to come check on him.”
Lin Lu felt like she was dying inside.
Her sister had already bought the ticket and was on her way.
It was impossible to tell Xiaoxi not to come now.
Saying that would only make her even more suspicious, and she would never be able to clear her name then.
“Then… when will you arrive?” Lin Lu asked.
“Tomorrow at 3:30 PM,” Xiaoxi said, “At Beijiang Station.”
Lin Lu took a deep breath.
She would be here tomorrow…
“I’ll go pick you up then.”
“No need.” Xiaoxi refused quickly.
After all, she wasn’t familiar with this “sister-in-law” and felt embarrassed making her go out of her way.
“Just give me the location. I can find it myself…”
“It’s your first time in Beijiang, and the place is unfamiliar to you,” Lin Lu interrupted.
“What if you get lost? Your brother would be worried to death.”
Seeing that she couldn’t refuse, Lin Xiaoxi could only whisper, “Alright then.”
“Okay, send me the train number,” Lin Lu said, “I’ll wait for you at the exit.”
“Mhm.” Xiaoxi paused, “Then… what should I call you?”
Lin Lu hesitated for a moment.
“Just call me Sister… Xue.”
“Then Sister Xue, see you tomorrow.” Xiaoxi’s voice softened, sounding a bit expectant.
“Don’t tell my brother, okay? I want to surprise him.”
“Alright.” Lin Lu sighed, “I won’t tell him.”
After hanging up the phone, Lin Lu felt exhausted.
‘A surprise?’
This sudden phone call and the news of her arrival had nearly given Lin Lu a heart attack.
“Burp~ Your sister is coming to see you? Isn’t that a good thing? It’s a rare chance for you siblings to meet up and have fun.” Lilith slumped back in her chair and let out a satisfied burp, gently rubbing her stomach.
“Hmph!” Lin Lu glared at Lilith.
“If I were still in my old form, it would definitely be fine. But now that her brother has become a sister, how am I supposed to explain it?”
“Just tell the truth. Don’t you have those fake medical records? Just use those.” Lilith, dragging her bulging belly, flew unsteadily until she landed on top of Lin Lu’s head.
“It’s something you have to explain sooner or later anyway. You can’t hide it forever. You’re family; your sister will definitely understand.”
“Sigh… I hope so.” Lin Lu understood the logic Lilith was using, but… she was just embarrassed to talk to Lin Xiaoxi and the rest of the family about this.
For now, she could only wait to pick up Lin Xiaoxi tomorrow and then explain things properly.
As for her parents… Mother Lu wasn’t much of a concern, but Father Lu…
Lin Lu shivered as she thought of her strict father, who used to give her a “minor” beating every three days and a “major” one every five, wielding the Seven-Wolves belt with master-level proficiency.
No way!
The situation at home could only be explained by her dear sister.
After all, she didn’t want to experience the heavy weight of fatherly love.
“Sigh. Since it’s come to this, let’s just eat first…”
Only then did Lin Lu pick up the chopsticks that had fallen on the table.
She looked down…
Where were the dishes?
There were only a few clean plates and an empty bowl on the table.
The food?
It had long since entered Lilith’s dimensional stomach.
“Burp~”
Hearing the sound of Lilith burping from the top of her head, Lin Lu’s grip on her chopsticks instantly tightened.
“Lil! Ith!!”