050 Adolescence, Oh Adolescence

Chen Zimo frowned slightly as he looked at his younger sister, who was glaring furiously at Ziqing. Even so, he couldn't bring himself to say a harsh word to her. He simply nodded at Lin Xia and then left with Liu Ziqing at his side.

Once the two of them had gone, the crowd around them also began to disperse.

"Hey—hey—"

Zhao Qian called out to Lin Xia twice, and when she didn’t respond, she waved her hand in front of her face, still to no avail. Finally, she pressed her hands together in a ritual gesture and shouted into Lin Xia’s ear, "Come back to life!"

Startled, Lin Xia snapped out of her daze and murmured, "A single glance topples a city, another glance topples a nation!"

Xie Xitong, who had just been calmed down a little by Sun Xiaoxiao, snorted coldly when she heard this. Seeing Lin Xia’s dazed expression, she pinched her arm hard.

Lin Xia yelped in pain and turned around, annoyed.

Seeing Xie Xitong glaring at her, Lin Xia forced an awkward smile and said, "Hey, it’s just that I’ve never seen such a beautiful woman before!"

Those words seemed to hit a sore spot for Xie Xitong. She sprang up and exclaimed, "So you’ve fallen for that woman too? She’s just a little prettier, that’s all. Why is everyone so bewitched by her? My brother’s like this, and today’s the first time you’ve seen her, yet you’re the same!"

Lin Xia rubbed her arm and said, "It’s not exactly that..."

She was about to continue, but noticing the few remaining people around them, she glanced around. On the corner of the street opposite, there was a tea house, soft music drifting from inside.

"Let’s go to that café and sit down, have some tea and pastries," Lin Xia suggested, pointing. "Standing out here like this isn’t a good look."

Xie Xitong glanced at the passing pedestrians not far away, wrinkled her brow, but reluctantly agreed. "Let’s go," she said, striding toward the café first.

Once the four of them were seated, Xie Xitong sulked angrily on the sofa. The other three exchanged helpless glances; the atmosphere was tense and awkward.

"Hello, what would you like to order?" The polite voice of the waiter broke the silence. Lin Xia breathed a sigh of relief. "What do you all want to eat?"

"I’d like a strawberry cake and a milkshake," said Sun Xiaoxiao.

Zhao Qian added, "A blueberry cake and an orange juice."

"Tongtong, what about you?" Lin Xia asked.

"I’m not in the mood."

Lin Xia rolled her eyes in exasperation and addressed the sweet-voiced waiter, "We’ll have two matcha cakes and two glasses of water."

"Certainly, please wait a moment." The waiter confirmed their order and withdrew.

For a moment, the air became heavy again.

When the tea and pastries arrived, Lin Xia sipped her water and, seeing that Xie Xitong had calmed down, finally spoke: "Alright, can you tell me what happened now?"

She couldn’t help but mutter inwardly: What on earth is going on? They’re only middle schoolers—how could there be so much drama? Having been given a second chance at life, she only wanted to live peacefully and warmly, with no desire to get caught up in such messy affairs.

But she’d forgotten that wherever there are people, there will be conflict and drama.

Sun Xiaoxiao and Zhao Qian glanced at Xie Xitong. Seeing that her expression had eased and that she showed no displeasure at Lin Xia’s questioning, they began talking over each other, recounting everything that had happened.

After listening, Lin Xia looked at Xie Xitong, whose face was still flushed with anger, and sighed inwardly.

She was nothing more than a spoiled little girl.

All that had happened was that the appearance of Xie Ziqing had diverted some of the affection that used to be hers alone, so she couldn’t get along with Xie Ziqing.

It made sense. Parents and an older brother who had always doted on her were now constantly praising Xie Ziqing and comparing the two girls. How could Xie Xitong bear it?

At thirteen or fourteen, she was in the throes of adolescence and rebellion. Before Xie Ziqing appeared, she had always been the little princess in everyone’s eyes, cherished by all.

Now someone had come who stole away the love she felt she deserved, and given how much she admired her brother, her reaction was hardly surprising.

Thinking of how Chen Zimo was always so aloof, even though she and Xie Xitong were on friendly terms, Lin Xia usually only exchanged nods with Chen Zimo, and could count on one hand the words they’d ever spoken.

At this thought, Lin Xia suppressed the sourness in her heart, took a sip of water, and sighed: "No wonder they say novels are drawn from life—this is just one melodrama after another!"

Sun Xiaoxiao and Zhao Qian didn’t have any ill feelings toward Xie Ziqing and Chen Zimo’s situation. In fact, deep down, they felt the two of them would make a great couple, like a prince and princess from a storybook.

For someone like Chen Zimo, only someone as ethereal as Xie Ziqing would be a fitting match.

"Xiaxia, tell us, what do you mean by melodrama?" Sun Xiaoxiao asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Yeah, yeah, hurry and tell us!" Zhao Qian echoed eagerly.

Seeing their gossipy expressions, Lin Xia laughed. "Isn’t it obvious? Just imagine, if Tongtong were replaced by the typical evil mother-in-law in a novel who tries to keep the hero and heroine apart, or if she weren’t his sister but a childhood friend—wouldn’t this be just like one of those over-the-top romantic dramas?"

"True, the second female lead is always so hateful," Sun Xiaoxiao agreed emphatically.

Zhao Qian chimed in, "Tongtong, do you have a brother complex?"

Lin Xia was speechless—brother complex? Or did she mean something else? How wicked her mind had become.

Xie Xitong bristled. "You two are the ones with a brother complex! You don’t just have a brother complex, you have a father and mother complex too!"