Chapter 25: A Headbutt and a Secret

Lin QingYu indeed possessed a spare key to Bai YuYang’s place.

However, the petite Lin QingYu now found herself questioning if there was something fundamentally wrong with the way she had opened the door.

She retreated to the entryway, then stepped back in, rubbing her eyes.

No, it seemed she hadn’t been mistaken. The scene remained precisely as it was.

“W-what are you two doing?!”

‘Ah, the sight of Lin QingYu, covering half her face, her cheeks flushed crimson as she questioned them, was truly quite endearing.’

‘No! They needed to let go first!’

After a brief moment of delayed reaction, Bai YuYang and Bai YuXi instinctively released each other, stepping apart to stand on either side.

Bai YuYang’s delay was due to Lin QingYu’s sudden outburst, catching him completely off guard.

Bai YuXi, on the other hand, resembled a victor. While still in Bai YuYang’s embrace, she had cast an almost triumphant glance at the young Lin QingYu. Her slow separation was born of reluctance.

Indeed, it was precisely because Lin QingYu had arrived that Bai YuXi wished to continue holding Bai YuYang, letting her truly savor the envy.

Yet, it was clearly no longer possible, for her brother had already taken two steps back in a panic, beginning his explanation with a wry smile.

“Ah, this… QingYu, you must let me explain. Just now…”

“No more words! They’re useless!”

Lin QingYu extended her index finger, pointing directly at Bai YuYang’s abdomen. “First… first, take a headbutt from me, then we can talk!”

“Don’t! Ah!”

***

Well, Bai YuYang truly had reason to be grateful that there were still a few minutes before afternoon classes, allowing him a moment to recover on the sofa.

How many times had he been struck today?

This was the third time, wasn’t it? Could it be that Lin QingYu’s headbutt possessed the ability to double its damage with successive uses in a short period?

In any case, this time, she had truly meant it; the impact was genuinely painful.

On the other side, Lin QingYu quickly pulled Bai YuXi into a corner. Her small face flushed crimson as she whispered,

“What were you… what were you two doing just now?”

It wasn’t that Lin QingYu was being overly dramatic. The problem was that just now… that wasn’t a normal hug at all! While embracing, Bai YuYang had appeared quite normal, but what about Bai YuXi?

Her eyes had been glazed over, and her cheeks looked as if they could drip blood.

Heaven knew what might have happened if the young Lin QingYu hadn’t rushed in!

No, no… nothing would have truly happened. Bai YuXi felt that the conditions weren’t ripe yet; she knew her limits.

Just as her reply now was calm and composed: “I’m not quite sure what you’re talking about, Sister QingYu. Is there something wrong with normal emotional exchanges between siblings?”

“Normal, my foot!”

Lin QingYu cut straight to the chase. “No, don’t tell me you’ve already revealed everything? So quickly?!”

“Revealed? Revealed what?”

“About us being reborn, of course…” Lin QingYu glanced towards Bai YuYang, who was still moaning on the sofa while clutching his abdomen, and once again lowered her voice.

“If you haven’t revealed it… how could you have progressed so fast?! You’re cheating!”

‘Cheating? Heh, that analogy is truly vivid and apt.’

Bai YuXi chuckled. “Don’t worry, Sister QingYu, I haven’t revealed anything. That really was just a normal heart-to-heart with my brother. And you’re right, the identity of a younger sister can sometimes truly feel like a cheat code.”

Indeed, because she was his sister, other girls couldn’t possibly imagine the extent of Bai YuYang’s doting affection for Bai YuXi.

This was Bai YuXi’s advantage, her ‘cheat code’.

“?”

There were some things Lin QingYu didn’t quite understand, but she grasped that Bai YuXi hadn’t revealed their secret.

“Phew~ It’s good that you haven’t revealed it. Haste makes waste, after all.”

“Mm-hmm, Sister QingYu is right. So, can we head to school now?”

“Sch-school? Oh right, there’s that too.”

It was truly difficult to adapt quickly after being reborn. Even Lin QingYu sometimes found herself slow to react.

Having already graduated from university and prepared for postgraduate studies, suddenly returning to high school and following a class schedule made the young Lin QingYu annoyed just thinking about it.

But there was nothing she could do, so her tone suddenly became rather “unfriendly.”

“Hey, YuYang! Stop pretending! Hurry up, let’s go! I don’t want to be late twice in one day!”

“Who’s pretending…”

Bai YuYang was truly suffering. “Don’t you know how thick-headed you are? If you ever hit me again, I’ll fight back.”

“Hmph!”

‘Hmph what, hmph! Next time, I’ll show this foolish girl what fighting back really means!’

Bai YuYang had a million ways to deal with her.

***

The walk to school, just like their return home at noon, made Lin QingYu somewhat uncomfortable.

Whenever Bai YuYang and Bai YuXi appeared together, Bai YuYang invariably adjusted his pace to match Bai YuXi’s.

This meant that Lin QingYu, with her short legs, found it incredibly difficult to keep up with their stride.

She would gradually fall behind… then take quick, small steps to catch up, only to slowly fall behind again…

*Whine.*

‘Bai YuYang, would it kill you to show me a little consideration?!’

“Bai! Yu! Yang!”

“Huh?”

Bai YuYang instinctively protected his abdomen first, fearing another headbutt. Then he turned around, finding Lin QingYu fuming.

“What’s wrong with you now?!”

“Don’t ask!” She strode forward. “Let me walk in front, and you two follow behind!”

“But…”

Before Bai YuYang could finish, Bai YuXi smiled. “It’s alright, Brother. Sister QingYu wants to be the leader, so we’ll just follow.”

“Now that’s more like it!”

With that, Lin QingYu stepped forward contentedly, leading the way.

‘Hmm, it looks like they’re going to be late for the second time today.’

The siblings had been walking fast earlier, not out of disregard for Lin QingYu, but because they had left home a little late. At her pace, they would certainly be late.

Their initial plan was to walk faster and set the pace for Lin QingYu, but who knew this foolish girl would get so sulky?

There was nothing for it. If they were late, then they were late. In any case, none of the three were particularly bothered by it now.

Bai YuXi was fine; her first-year high school classes started ten minutes later.

Bai YuYang was fine; as class monitor, he had any number of excuses for being late.

The only one truly inconvenienced by herself was Lin QingYu.

Unaware of her impending tardiness, the young Lin QingYu was still making her own little plans.

Since they had to conceal their rebirth, the act needed to be thoroughly convincing.

Given her excellent memory, she thought she could bring up topics relevant to this period, which would, to some extent, dispel Bai YuYang’s suspicions.

And there was one particular event that Lin QingYu remembered with exceptional clarity from this stage of her life.

“Oh, that reminds me!”

She turned around, maintaining her previous speed, and walked backward.

She pressed down her cherry-blossom pink hair, which was fluttering in the wind, and said with a cheerful laugh, “By the way, do you two know? About my final exam results last semester.”

The siblings, who had been discussing what to eat for dinner, both looked over when she suddenly spoke.

Lin QingYu gave a mysterious smile, then suddenly lifted her head, puffed out her non-existent chest, and exuded an air of absolute confidence!

“Me! You definitely don’t know my final exam results from last semester. I was outside the top 200 in the midterms, right? Guess how well I did in the finals—I ranked eighteenth in the grade!”

“……”

“……”

Two points here were worth mentioning.

Of the three people present…

Bai YuYang had consistently held the top rank in his grade since arriving at Qifeng High School.

Bai YuXi had ranked first in the entire city for her high school entrance exam.

Yes, Lin QingYu’s academic improvement deserved encouragement, but the two academic prodigies were simply taken aback by the suddenness of her topic and hadn’t reacted yet.

Hence, the brief silence…

It was only then that Lin QingYu suddenly recalled Bai YuYang’s and Bai YuXi’s high school grades.

Immediately, the young Lin QingYu’s face flushed crimson with extreme embarrassment. Without another word, she turned around and once again quickened her pace!

“Ugh… I’m not talking to you anymore!”

‘Why be silent now?! Why not praise me now?! It just makes me look utterly foolish!’