Chapter 38: No Matter How Poor a Man Is, He Can’t Sell Himself!

Lin Lu walked out of the school gate and flagged down a taxi, giving the driver the address.

“Driver, please take me to Beijiang High-Speed Railway Station.”

“Got it. Please fasten your seatbelt.”

“Ding-dong”

[Lin Xiaoxi: Sister, what color clothes are you wearing? I’m afraid I won’t recognize you.]

Lin Lu looked down at her outfit—her usual casual female college student look, a white JK pleated skirt.

[Lin Lu: White JK pleated skirt, silver hair. Easy to spot.]

[Lin Xiaoxi: Silver hair? Yeah, that should be easy to recognize. I’m wearing a beige jacket with slouchy socks. I should be easy to spot too.]

The corner of Lin Lu’s mouth curved up. 

No matter how ordinary Lin Xiaoxi dressed, how could she not recognize her own little sister?

[Lin Lu: Don’t worry, I know what you look like. I won’t miss you.]

After sending the message, she put her phone away, leaned back in her seat, and closed her eyes to rest.

[3:30 PM, Beijiang Station.]

She stood at the exit, watching the train information scrolling on the electronic board.

[3:25, 3:28, 3:30.]

The status on the board changed from “Boarding in Progress” to “Arrived.”

A crowd of people poured out of the exit. 

She stood on her tiptoes, scanning the crowd for that familiar figure.

‘Beige jacket… Lin Xiaoxi… Ah! There she was!’

Lin Lu raised her hand and waved vigorously, calling out loudly.

“Xiaoxi! Over here!”

Lin Xiaoxi stood at the exit, looking around. 

When she heard someone calling her name, she turned her gaze and spotted Lin Lu in the distance, waving hard.

She dragged her suitcase over and stopped two steps away from Lin Lu, looking her up and down. 

‘Hmm… silver hair. That must be right.’

“Sister?” Her voice carried a hint of uncertainty.

“Mm.” Lin Lu smiled and said, “I’m here to pick you up.”

Lin Xiaoxi stared at her for several seconds, then muttered softly, “Hmph… I don’t know how my brother managed to chase after such a beautiful girl.”

Lin Lu naturally heard Xiaoxi’s mutter. 

For a moment, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. 

She reached out and gave Lin Xiaoxi a light flick on the forehead.

“Alright, let’s go. Otherwise, you’ll start thinking I’m a human trafficker again.”

Lin Lu took the suitcase from Xiaoxi’s hand and pulled it toward the station exit.

“Eh? Sister, I can carry it myself.”

The suitcase was very light. 

It probably only contained a few changes of clothes and some of Xiaoxi’s favorite snacks.

She remembered that her little sister had never liked bringing too many things when going out since she was young. 

When she started school, their parents would stuff big and small bags for her to take to school. 

Xiaoxi would secretly stuff them into her own luggage instead. 

She used to wonder why her own luggage suddenly felt much heavier to the teachers.

“It’s fine. I’ll pull it for you.” Lin Lu didn’t let go. 

Her gaze softened unconsciously as she smiled and said, “It’s your first time in Beijiang, and you’ve been tired from the long trip. Let me carry it. It’s not heavy anyway.”

Seeing this, Lin Xiaoxi stopped trying to take the suitcase back. 

She let out an “Oh” and obediently followed beside Lin Lu.

The two of them walked shoulder to shoulder out of the high-speed railway station. 

The setting sun shone on the side of Lin Lu’s face, casting a golden halo on her silver hair. 

It left Lin Xiaoxi, who was secretly observing her, momentarily stunned.

Lin Lu, who had just hailed a taxi, turned her head and saw Lin Xiaoxi staring blankly at her. 

She touched her cheek in confusion and asked, “Hm? Is there something on my face?”

“Ah? Oh… it’s nothing. It’s just that Sister is so pretty.”

Lin Lu found it a bit amusing. 

She reached out and ruffled Lin Xiaoxi’s hair and said, “You can look if you want. I won’t eat you.”

Lin Xiaoxi escaped from Lin Lu’s hand, pouting as she fixed her messy hair. 

“Hey! Sister, why do you like rubbing my head just like that stinky brother of mine! You messed up my hairstyle.”

“Because… our Xiaoxi is just too cute~” Lin Lu couldn’t help but chuckle softly. 

“Alright, get in the car. The driver is getting impatient.”

After putting the suitcase in the trunk, the two of them got into the taxi.

“Sister, is your place far from here?” Xiaoxi sat inside and fastened her seatbelt.

“Not far. It’s only about a twenty-minute drive. We’ll be there soon.” Lin Lu saw Xiaoxi yawning while leaning against the car window and said, “Tired? If you’re tired, you can sleep for a bit. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”

“I’m fine.” Xiaoxi shook her head. 

Then something occurred to her, and she asked, “By the way, Sister, does my brother know I’m coming?”

“Of course… of course not. Didn’t you want to surprise your brother?”

Lin Lu’s fingers resting on her lap unconsciously tightened a little.

“Hehe~ When we get home, I’ll give him a big surprise.” Lin Xiaoxi asked expectantly, “So what about dinner tonight?”

“Hm? I’ll cook, of course. Why?” Lin Lu looked at her with some confusion.

“Ah? You two are already living together?!” Xiaoxi clenched her fist. 

“Ugh… he has such a pretty girlfriend and doesn’t even take good care of her. He still makes you cook for him? Hmph! When I get home, I’ll help you deal with him! I’m not jealous at all… really…”

“Uh… actually, your brother can cook too, and he’s pretty good at it.”

“Sister, you don’t have to make excuses for my brother. The guy who can even burn instant noodles—can he really cook?”

Lin Lu’s mouth twitched, ‘Little sister… That was ages ago.’

Back in middle school, he was playing games at home, forgot to adjust the heat, and let the water boil dry. 

Just that one time, and she still remembered it after all these years?

“People always improve.” She muttered a soft, vague rebuttal.

Xiaoxi snorted and didn’t say anything more.

The car turned into the residential complex and stopped downstairs.

“Wow~ Sister, does my brother have money to live in such a nice place? He didn’t do anything illegal, did he?” Lin Xiaoxi looked at the building in front of her—clearly not something a student could afford to rent—and nervously grabbed Lin Lu’s arm, shaking it. 

“Or did he get picked up by some rich lady?! No matter how poor a man is, he can’t sell himself!”

Three black lines appeared on Lin Lu’s forehead. 

Her fist hardened.

Hold it in… this is her own little sister. 

She can’t hit her…

“What are you imagining?! Your brother earned the money to rent this himself. Can’t you think better of him for once?”

“Uh… cough cough. As long as he didn’t do anything bad… haha…”

Lin Xiaoxi scratched her head, laughed awkwardly a couple of times, and dashed into the building.

“Bro! Bro?!”

“Lin! Lu! Come out and welcome your extremely invincible super cute little sister!”

The living room was quiet. 

The TV wasn’t even on. 

Lin Lu had already asked Lilith to hide and rest in advance. 

After all, if Xiaoxi saw a talking bat, she would probably be scared to death.

Seeing that her brother wasn’t home, Lin Xiaoxi turned back to Lin Lu, who had just put away the luggage, and asked in confusion, “Sister… My brother isn’t here. Don’t tell me you really are…”

“Eh eh?! Stop right there!” Lin Lu knew what Lin Xiaoxi was about to say. 

She made a gesture to cut her off and said, “He should be at the supermarket buying drinks. Since you’re here, we have to make a proper big meal, right?”

“Oh… so you’re really not a human trafficker…”

“No! If I were a human trafficker, would you still be safe right now? I would’ve taken you away in the car already!” 

Lin Lu tossed the remote control from the table to Lin Xiaoxi and said, “Watch some TV for a bit. I’ll go cook. Your brother… should be back by the time dinner is ready.”

“Oh…”

Lin Xiaoxi sat on the sofa with some doubt and turned on the TV.

Lin Lu walked into the kitchen.

“When exactly are you going to tell your sister?! I’m getting anxious for you!”

Lilith’s voice came from inside the bracelet.

“I’ll tell her after dinner.” Lin Lu sighed, “This isn’t something that can be explained in a few words. If I tell her directly, I’m afraid we won’t be eating dinner tonight…”

“You’d better.”

“Trust me.”