The engagement was with the younger brother, but I've fallen for the older brother.

Si Ningyou tightened her grip on the cardboard box, her nails digging into the edge and leaving several dents in the corrugated cardboard.

"You stopped me just to say this?"

"yes."

Si Yimian curled her lips into a smile, her dimples deepening.

"What makes me happiest is that you haven't changed at all from beginning to end."

"You didn't suddenly wake up, you didn't clear your name, you're still the same pure and simple Si Ningyou, leaving me with no moral baggage whatsoever."

"These days, there aren't many villains like you who are evil from beginning to end, who don't get redeemed or have any plot twists, and who don't annoy the audience."

She paused, then her tone suddenly became lighter.

"If you suddenly do something inappropriate one day, this will be a problem."

"That would put me on a moral high ground, and my hatred would be seen as immaturity."

"If a bad person does ninety-nine bad things but does one good thing in the end, everyone will whitewash him, and the victim will be considered ungrateful if he pursues the matter further."

"But I can't swallow my anger if I don't get revenge on you."

Si Yimian's smile deepened, revealing two small tiger teeth.

"So thank you for your 18 years of persistence, which helped me block all the moral blackmail of repaying evil with good."

"You make it perfectly justifiable for me to mess with you, without any psychological burden."

"Because everything you've ever done is worthy of anything I've done to you."

Si Ningyou's expression turned extremely ugly, and her knuckles clenched so tightly they cracked.

"Si Yimian, what kind of skill is it to win once?"

Her voice was strained, and she forced the last syllable to rise, trying to maintain a last shred of dignity.

Si Yimian couldn't help but scoff, as if she had heard an interesting question.

"Winning once doesn't count as a skill."

"True skill lies in beating you once, leaving you utterly helpless."

She took two steps forward, leaned closer to Si Ningyou, and lowered her voice.

"Furthermore, I don't intend to win only once."

"I want you to keep losing, until you feel that the word 'winning' has nothing to do with your life anymore."

"I'm a person who follows the rules. If you're bad, I'll beat you up. If you keep being bad, I'll keep beating you up."

"So you'd better stop with your plans later, whether it's targeting my kidneys or having someone defile me."

"After all, your current situation isn't really suitable for you to spend a few more years in prison."

"Cause and effect is a strange thing. The dirty water you throw on others may end up being poured on your own head."

Si Ningyou's pupils suddenly contracted, and her lips lost their color.

She wanted to argue, but her throat felt like it was filled with cement, and she couldn't utter a single word.

Because everything Si Yimian mentioned was indeed on her to-do list.

It's just not time to implement it yet.

Si Ningyou suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.

She realized that all her cards were laid bare before Si Yimian.

Before she could even play a card, her opponent had already announced the suit.

"you……"

Seeing her fascinating expressions, Si Yimian straightened up and patted the cardboard box in Si Ningyou's arms.

"You play rock, I play paper, I'll always be one step ahead of you."

"Sister, oh no, I can't call you sister anymore."

She tilted her head and thought for a moment.

"Miss Ning, I wish you that your future path will become increasingly narrow."

"I won't see you off."

Si Ningyou suddenly felt a wave of weakness and instinctively stepped back, her heel hitting the wall.

The cardboard box in her arms suddenly felt incredibly heavy, pressing down on her and causing her to fall.

She thought she was setting up a strategy, but in reality, she was just a piece on someone else's chessboard.

This feeling is worse than losing.

Losing at least means you're still at the poker table.

She didn't even get to touch the edge of the card table; she was forced to sit in the audience and watch herself lose the entire time.

……

The review meeting concluded at 5:30 PM.

Si Yimian came out, and He Nanxian was standing at the end of the corridor.

He was carrying a paper bag and leaning against the window looking at his phone.

The setting sun cast a warm glow on his profile, making him look gentle and patient.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up, put his phone in his pocket, and walked over.

"Mianmian, how did the judging panel go?"

"Passed."

Si Yimian rubbed her neck, speaking casually.

"I knew you could do it."

He handed me the paper bag, which contained a dessert.

"Let's grab something to eat first; it'll take another hour to get to the old house."

Si Yimian looked down at the paper bag, hesitated for half a second, and then took it.

"Thank you, Brother Nanxian."

She was indeed hungry.

The review committee worked non-stop all day, and the sandwich I had at noon had long since been digested.

"The car is in the underground parking lot, let's go."

Si Yimian followed him toward the elevator.

Suddenly, he paused, then looked up at He Sichen, who was talking to Si Congshan.

He had his back to her, his shoulders flat, as if he hadn't noticed anything.

She carried her handbag, walked around him, and stood two steps behind him.

"Dr. He, I'm leaving now."

Si Congshan and the two professors continued their conversation, while He Sichen, sandwiched between them, didn't turn around but turned his head to look at her.

"Um."

His gaze swept across her face, but he didn't ask where she was going.

Si Yimian stood still, without moving.

He looked up at her: "Is there anything else?"

When are you going?

He Sichen lowered his eyes; the hands on his watch had just passed 5:30.

He assessed the current progress of the conversation and gave them a timeframe.

"Once this is over, we'll move on."

"it is good."

Si Yimian waved from the other side of the mountain.

"Dad, I'm leaving now. I'm going to Grandpa He's house for dinner tonight."

Si Congshan waved his hand: "Go ahead, don't keep the elders waiting, and give my regards to Grandpa He."

"Um."

She turned and walked toward He Nanxian, who was waiting at the entrance of the corridor.

He Nanxian was waiting for her at the elevator entrance. When he saw her coming, he casually pressed the down button.

"Have you finished talking to your older brother?"

"Yes, he said he'd be there later."

The elevator doors opened, and she stepped inside, switching the paper bag between her hands.

He Nanxian pressed B2, and the door closed.

The floor numbers jump down one by one.

He Sichen withdrew his gaze and looked back at Si Congshan.

Where were we?

He paused for a moment, then realized he had forgotten.

He put his hand in his pocket, his fingertips touching the milky white hair tie, the little sheep on it digging into his wrist.

He pushed the hair tie towards his cuff, his face expressionless.

……

The He family's old house is located in the west of the city. It is a detached courtyard house with two century-old ginkgo trees outside the courtyard wall.

The iron gate opened automatically, and the lawns on both sides of the driveway were meticulously trimmed.

The restaurant was brightly lit, and several people were already seated around the long table.

The man in the main seat was an old man with completely white hair, thin, with deep-set eyes and high cheekbones.

Grandpa He Huaipu is eighty-three years old.

Crane Father He Jian'an and Zhou Wanqing sat on the left and right respectively.

When He Sichen arrived, Zhou Wanqing was pouring tea for the old man.

"Si Chen is here? Please have a seat."

Zhou Wanqing smiled gently and pointed to the seat opposite Si Yimian.

He Sichen sat down, with half a table's distance between them.

The dishes were served one by one.

The butler and the servants left, leaving only the He family and Si Yimian in the dining room.

The old man started eating first, and the atmosphere was fairly relaxed.

We chatted briefly about Chenxi and Yu'an's collaboration, and then about the judging panel.

Si Yimian's sweet words made the old man laugh.

When the matsutake mushroom and chicken stew was served, Zhou Wanqing put down her spoon, wiped her mouth, and suddenly spoke.

"Si Chen, have you gotten a girlfriend lately?"

"The villa manager was reporting on the maintenance to me and casually mentioned that you brought a girl back for the night a while ago."

She paused, but her tone remained gentle.

"They also said that they used all the things you don't usually use that day."