Chapter 33: Qin Yachu Pays a Visit

Qin Yueran was speechless. Why were people coming again?

"Is there something you need? Are you here to demand justice for your mother?" Qin Yueran glanced coldly at Qin Yachu, her voice devoid of any warmth.

Qin Yachu’s gaze lingered for a moment on Qin Yueran’s traditional attire; a flash of admiration crossed her eyes, but it was quickly replaced by jealousy. Seeing her boyfriend staring intently at Qin Yueran, she felt a surge of displeasure and gave him a light nudge with her elbow, causing him to immediately look away.

Qin Yachu’s voice turned aggrieved, her eyes welling up with tears: "Sister... it seems you don't welcome me?"

Qin Yueran crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow: "Indeed, I don't. So what? Didn't I tell the third aunt not to bother me again?"

"Brother Bin~" An overly sugary voice rang out, making Qin Yueran’s skin crawl. She couldn't help but rub her arms and asked earnestly: "Are you not feeling well?"

Qin Yachu choked on her words and glared: "You’re the one who’s not normal! Your whole family is abnormal!"

"Then you are indeed not normal either," Qin Yueran nodded in admiration, her tone laced with mockery. "You have quite a bit of self-awareness, little cousin." She mused to herself that her own family, of course, included this little cousin.

Qin Yachu clenched her fists, wanting to snap back, but remembering Brother Bin was by her side, she buried her face in his chest, her shoulders trembling slightly.

Brother Bin glared at Qin Yueran with dissatisfaction and suppressed his anger, saying: "Chuchu heard you opened a fruit and vegetable shop, so she brought me here to show some support. What kind of attitude is this? She was even kind enough to think about helping you get a job at her company."

"Then go ahead and buy something. I’m not stopping you." Qin Yueran spread her hands with an innocent expression. "You came straight for me the moment you walked in, and Qin Yachu looked so smug, I thought she was here to cause trouble."

Qin Yachu choked out: "I wasn't. I just wanted to greet my sister first."

Qin Yueran was expressionless: "Oh. Buy something then, just don't complain about the price."

"Unreasonable! Who do you think you're looking down on?!" Brother Bin erupted in anger, looking around with disdain. "How expensive could this dump of a shop possibly be?!"

Qin Yueran shouted back impatiently: "Then buy something! Why are you rambling so much in front of me instead of doing something practical?" She was already annoyed by seeing people she didn't want to see, and they just wouldn't stop yapping.

Brother Bin’s face turned livid, and Qin Yachu stopped her sobbing.

"It seems your sister doesn't need our patronage. Let's go." Brother Bin pulled Qin Yachu away.

"Tsk, if you're broke, just say so. What's with the act?" Qin Yueran curled her lip.

As expected, men can’t handle being provoked. He rushed over to the fruit display: "Chuchu, buy whatever you want, don't be shy."

Qin Yachu looked at him tenderly: "Thank you, Brother Bin~"

Qin Yueran couldn't help but gag, and they both looked at her. She scratched her face sheepishly: "Sorry, couldn't help it. Why don't you two continue?"

Qin Yachu & Brother Bin: "..."

***

Damn it all! Qin Yachu had come to mock Qin Yueran and show off her boyfriend, but she felt like she had just punched a pile of cotton. Her cousin seemed different; these little tricks no longer worked on her. Furthermore, a sense of crisis washed over her—Qin Yueran seemed taller and more beautiful. It wasn't the makeup; it was her natural features. She had just seen that Qin Yueran only had a bit of lipstick and a floral decal on her forehead. Damn it, what on earth had happened to her recently?!

Qin Yachu looked at Qin Yueran, who just smiled and met her gaze: "Not buying anything?"

Qin Yachu felt a vein throb on her forehead: *Buy your sister!* Of course, if Qin Yueran knew, she would have said in surprise: "Oh! Aren't you my sister?"

Both of them looked as though they were constipated, though the rich fragrance of the fruit was indeed tempting. They picked out a few crates and headed to the register. Qin Yueran raised an eyebrow: "Are you sure? Don't come back later saying you don't want so much."

"I'm sure. Hurry up and ring it up!" Brother Bin tugged at his tie, his voice cold.

Qin Yueran: "Fine by me." Since they were rushing to hand over money, she found Qin Yachu much more tolerable. After weighing the fruit and entering it into the computer, she asked sincerely: "Do you need me to apply the twenty percent opening discount?"

"No need," Qin Yachu smiled softly. "I'm afraid my cousin won't make much profit."

Brother Bin patted Qin Yachu’s hair: "Our Chuchu is so kind, unlike some people."

Qin Yueran couldn't be bothered with them: "You said no discount, then~" She turned the monitor toward them, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "That's 22.5 jin, totaling 14,985. Are you scanning me, or am I scanning you?"

The two stopped their flirting instantly. Qin Yachu gasped: "What?!" Realizing the situation, she became furious: "What kind of rotten fruit is this? Are you trying to scam us?!"

"How could that be?" Qin Yueran smiled, pointing to the fruit display. "Isn't the price per jin written right there? Prices are clearly marked~"

Qin Yachu looked over, and sure enough, the sign read: Original price 666 per jin, twenty percent off during the first three days of opening.

Qin Yachu was burning with rage: "Why don't you just go rob someone?!"

Qin Yueran let out an "ah" and shrugged: "Isn't this easier than robbing someone?"

Qin Yachu: "..."

***

Qin Yueran sighed: "If you don't want to buy them, you can put them back. I'm not forcing anyone. Didn't you say you came to support me?"

Qin Yachu gritted her teeth: "I'll buy it!" After paying, she glared at Qin Yueran before pulling up her payment code.

Qin Yueran ignored her dagger-like gaze, packed the fruit, and placed it on the table: "Slow walk, I won't see you out."

Qin Yachu stared at her. Qin Yueran touched her face, feigning shyness: "I know I'm pretty, but you don't have to stare at me so directly, do you?"

Qin Yachu felt like throwing up, but she urged the furious Brother Bin to take the fruit and leave first, as she had something to say to Qin Yueran.

Once they were gone, Qin Yachu’s face darkened completely: "Qin Yueran, you’re feeling pretty smug, aren't you?"

"If that's what you want to believe, sure," Qin Yueran remarked lightly. "I've been wondering, I've never provoked you since we were kids. Why is your hostility toward me so intense?" This was something Qin Yueran had never understood.

"Heh... never provoked me... heh," Qin Yachu laughed suddenly, tears welling in her eyes as she wiped them away. "Since we were small, my mother always said I had poor grades and was disobedient, while you were smart and well-behaved. We were in the same grade, and she constantly compared me to you."

"Your parents having only you as a daughter was enough for them. But me? They were obsessed with having a son. Once they finally had one, all their focus shifted to him. Whenever they were unhappy, they would beat and scold me, then compare me to you."

"So, after your accident, our whole family was gloating. And when your grades started slipping, I thought I could finally surpass you."

"But then?" Qin Yachu stared intensely at Qin Yueran. "Even with your grades slipping, you still managed to reach the undergraduate cutoff, while I could only get into a vocational school."

Qin Yachu sneered: "She started cursing and beating me again, comparing me to you, saying I had lost to a child with no parents."

"When I finally got lucky with my career, I thought I was finally ahead of you, but you didn't seem to care anymore." Qin Yachu looked at Qin Yueran, trying to find a crack in her calm expression. "You were so depressed just a month ago; how did you suddenly change?"

Qin Yueran pursed her lips and said calmly: "I didn't know all that. I only knew that your family was constantly suppressing me. So, as I said before, I never provoked you, and I don't owe you anything."

Qin Yueran sighed: "Let yourself go, cousin. Escape their shadows and live a good life from now on."

Qin Yachu glared at her: "I don't need your pity." She grabbed her bag and walked away in her high heels.

Unexpectedly, Qin Yueran felt very calm. Even after learning the reason for Qin Yachu’s long-standing animosity, she remained unperturbed. She even found the mental space to think: *Good thing there weren't many customers this morning, or I might have scared them all away.*