Xu Weiwei arrived home from school rather late, with everyone else in the family busy with their own affairs.
Xu's Mother sat in the living room, waiting for her youngest daughter to return from school. This had become her tradition over the past six months, only feeling at ease to retire to her room after seeing her daughter safely home. The household staff, aware of her habit, had prepared freshly cut fruit, awaiting Xu Weiwei's arrival.
As Xu Weiwei sat on the living room sofa, hugging the fruit platter as she ate, Xu Weiwei's Older Brother came downstairs to greet his sister.
"How was the loving lunch box today?" he asked.
Reminded of this, Xu Weiwei recalled Shi Li's inner thoughts, and her mood soured.
Being very attuned to his sister, her brother noticed her furrowed brow and knew she was unhappy. His protective instincts kicked in, and he stood up abruptly, declaring, "Did Lu Shao upset you? I'll go have a word with him."
He muttered, "I really don't understand why Dad brought him home and wants you to get engaged to him. It's absolutely ridiculous."
Xu Weiwei, who previously hadn't known either, now understood. She laughed coldly to herself and tugged at her brother's sleeve. "Alright, take it easy. Aren't you tired from work at the company? How do you still have the energy to worry about my affairs?"
At the mention of company matters, Xu Youlin's voice weakened. "You know, I'm just a vice president in name only, a mere mascot. No one comes to me with company issues, so how could I be tired?"
Xu Weiwei's older brother, Xu Youlin, was the stereotypical rich family's son – foolish, wealthy, and incompetent. Despite being the boss's son and having entered the company, his abilities were so mediocre that no one dared to use him.
He quickly regained his righteous tone, "So many people worry about the company, they don't need me. But you only have one brother, if I don't care about you, who will? Company matters, no matter how big, are small issues. But our Weiwei's matters, no matter how small, are big issues."
Hearing Xu Youlin speak like this, Xu Weiwei felt a warmth in her heart. Her brother might be a bit useless, but he truly cared for her.
"Brother, don't put yourself down so much."
Xu Youlin thought his sister was about to praise him for having other virtues despite his lack of business acumen.
As he waited for her to list his other good qualities, Xu Weiwei said, "It's valuable to know oneself. You know your weaknesses, and that's your strength. Not meddling in areas you're not good at is a good habit. Big brother, you should keep it up."
Her words didn't sound like praise, but Xu Youlin still happily agreed, "Alright, I'll listen to you."
Xu Weiwei pushed the fruit platter towards Xu Youlin, gesturing for him to eat too. She then casually asked, "By the way, brother, is Lu Shao at home?"
Hearing that name from his sister's mouth, Xu Youlin's face immediately fell. "Sister, why are you mentioning him? Have you taken a liking to that boy? I knew it, he's a troublemaker. Did he try to seduce you while delivering your lunch? Oh, my pure, innocent little sister, you've been deceived..."
Xu Weiwei listened with growing exasperation. Her brother's tone sounded just like the village elders who thought they could determine life and death with a single word.
Where did he learn to talk like this?
Perhaps instead of working at the company, he had been spending his time in the break room, learning to gossip like his coworkers.
Xu Weiwei suddenly understood the necessity of Mencius's mother moving three times. She now desperately wanted to discuss with her parents about changing his job position, to prevent him from spending all day in the break room learning bad habits from his colleagues.
But then again, she thought, listening to office gossip in the break room might be unproductive, but it wouldn't cause much harm. It was certainly better than putting him in a more important position where he could potentially ruin the company's crucial business. The losses then would be far greater.
Xu Weiwei quickly abandoned her earlier bold idea.
Lu Shao came downstairs to get some water, overhearing Xu Youlin's nonsensical speech. He passed by the two with an expressionless face, as if he hadn't heard anything.
Seeing Lu Shao, Xu Weiwei's eyes lit up. The male lead had arrived on the scene.
"Brother, is Dad in his study?" she asked.
"He is. Do you need to see him?" Xu Youlin wondered. Ever since their father had verbally arranged Xu Weiwei's engagement to Lu Shao against her wishes, she had thrown several tantrums in front of him and hadn't shown him a pleasant face since. What could have happened to make her want to see their father now?
Xu Weiwei smiled shyly. "There are some things I need to discuss with Dad face-to-face."
"Should I come with you?" he offered.
Xu Weiwei rejected him without hesitation. "No need, I'll go with Lu Shao. You must be tired from work, go and rest."
Lu Shao was puzzled at being suddenly involved, but before he could say anything, Xu Weiwei had already taken his hand and was heading upstairs.
Xu Weiwei took large strides, causing Lu Shao to stumble for a few steps before matching her pace. He didn't pull his hand away, though, and followed her lead to Xu's Father's study.
Xu Weiwei casually knocked twice on the door and pushed it open before Xu's Father could even say "Come in."
Seeing his youngest daughter, a smile appeared on Xu's Father's face. His smile faltered for a moment when he noticed Xu Weiwei and Lu Shao's joined hands, but it quickly returned, even more enthusiastically.
Xu Weiwei, having mentally prepared herself, quickly noticed this momentary oddity.
"Weiwei, what brings you to see Dad?" he asked.
"Dad, I've come to thank you. I've been so unreasonable lately."
"Oh?"
Xu Weiwei raised their interlocked hands. "You arranged for me to be engaged to Lu Shao, and I was blind earlier, thinking that in modern times there shouldn't be arranged marriages. I was being foolish and didn't understand your good intentions. After spending the past two weeks together, I've realized how wonderful Lu Shao is. He's such a good boy, and I feel so lucky to be engaged to him. Thank you, Dad."
The smile froze on Xu's Father's face.
Xu Weiwei, with a face full of happiness, continued, "Dad, you must be so pleased now."
Xu's Father couldn't bring himself to be happy.
How could he say it? Should he just blurt out that they were half-siblings with the same father, that they couldn't be together, that their relationship was wrong?
For the first time, he truly felt the weight of his own misdeeds, but the worst was yet to come.
Xu's Father watched in horror as Xu Weiwei kissed Lu Shao. If he had been able to maintain his composure before, this direct stimulation caused him to stand up abruptly, accidentally knocking over the water glass on his desk and spilling water all over important documents.
At this moment, however, Xu's Father couldn't care less about the documents.
Xu's Father: "Stop this nonsense!"
Xu Youlin burst through the door, "Sister!"
