Chapter 43 Brother

I:"???"

My brain instantly shut down! My first reaction was: Did I walk into the wrong door?! I quickly took two steps back and looked up to confirm the door number—yes! It was Lin Yan and I’s doghouse!

"Uh...I..." I stuttered a little, looking at the young man in front of me with a strong aura and noble air, I didn't know what to say for a moment.

The boy didn't urge me, but just looked at me casually, his eyes moving from my face to the rustic plastic bag in my hand with "XX Specialty" printed on it, and then to my dusty appearance.

His beautiful eyebrows raised slightly, as if he had finally confirmed something. The corners of his lips curled up into an extremely subtle smile that held a hint of playfulness and understanding. He casually dropped a bombshell:

"Oh—you are my 'sister-in-law', right?"

I nearly dropped the souvenir bag in my hand! Sister-in-law?! Me?! A 5'8" tall man?!

My face suddenly flushed red, and I felt the blood rushing to my head. I almost fainted on the spot! This name...this name is too...too scary, right?!

"Hello..." I struggled to stand, my voice shaking. "You...you are Lin Yan's...brother? Lin Heng?"

I remembered the younger brother Lin Yan mentioned, who was four years younger than him and should be in his third year of high school now.

The boy lazily replied, "Hmm," which was considered an acknowledgment. Then he stepped aside to make way for the door and said, "Come in, 'sister-in-law'."

The word "sister-in-law" with emphasis made me stumble, and I almost moved into the door at the same time.

The familiar entrance hall, the familiar living room, but with the addition of a strange and powerful "brother-in-law", the whole space feels oppressive.

I struggled to move the large and small bags of things to the kitchen and put them away. In my heart, I had already greeted Lin Yan eight hundred times using Zuan quotations!

This bastard! He didn't even tell me his brother was coming! He made me so embarrassed!

I immediately took out my phone and bombarded Lin Yan with messages:

"Lin Yan!!! Where are you?!"

"Why is your brother in our house?!"

"He calls me sister-in-law!!!"

"What the hell are you doing?! Get back here and explain!!!"

Lin Yan replied quickly, and was obviously surprised:

"Lin Heng? He's at our house?!"

"I don't know! How did he find his way there?!"

"I'll be right back! Wait for me!"

After getting Lin Yan's confirmation, I was even more confused. Lin Yan didn't know either? Then how did this guy find us? And even get in?

I took a deep breath, adjusted my expression (even though I was panicking inside), and went back to the living room.

That distinguished "brother-in-law" was slouching on our sofa like a lord, his long legs crossed, playing my Switch. On the screen was my treasured Zelda save file! He was pretty good at it!

A nameless anger and embarrassment suddenly surged up.

I cleared my throat and tried to force a friendly smile: "Um... Lin Heng, right? Are you... hungry? Do you want to eat something?"

After all, he is the younger brother of my girlfriend, and he is still a minor (although he has the aura of a gangster prince), so I still have to show him basic hospitality.

Lin Heng didn't even raise his head, his slender fingers operating quickly on the buttons. On the screen, Link killed a guardian with a beautiful shield counter.

His voice was still cold: "I'm not hungry." After a pause, he asked, "When will my brother come back?"

I checked the time: "On the way, should be here soon."

Unable to suppress my curiosity, I cautiously probed, "Your brother...it seems like he doesn't know you're here either?"

Subtext: How did you get here?

Lin Heng finally stopped the game in his hand and looked up at me.

A hint of amusement flashed in those eyes, which were very similar to Lin Yan's but sharper and more charming.

The corners of his mouth curved up into a sinister arc, and his tone was understated, but it made people's hearts skip a beat:

"I've been 'keeping an eye on' my brother's whereabouts." He emphasized the word "keeping an eye on" meaningfully.

Me: “…” I gasped! This tone… why does it sound so much like… a stalker?! Lin Yan’s brother… is a bit wild!

"Uh..." I laughed dryly, trying to ease the strange atmosphere. Acting like an adult (even though I was a bit scared), I softened my tone and asked, "So... why did you suddenly want to come here? Did you miss your brother?"

I think, no matter how evil and crazy she is, she is still a high school student who misses her brother, right?

As a result, Lin Heng's handsome eyebrows immediately frowned, and his face revealed an expression of being offended and extremely disdainful, and his tone became a little colder:

"Miss him? Ha." He sneered, with the sharpness of a teenager. "There's a mad dog in the house, barking all the time. It's really annoying. Come out and hide for some peace and quiet."

Mad dog? My mind raced. Considering what Lin Yan had mentioned earlier about his family's troubles...was he referring to his irresponsible father? Or the "trouble" his father had caused later?

I was thinking about how to respond to this, but before I could open my mouth, a white lightning "whoosh" out from the cat's nest and landed in my arms with incredible precision!

"Meow~" Snowball rubbed against my arms, purring contentedly, his sapphire eyes looking at the stranger on the sofa curiously.

"Huh? A cat?" Lin Heng's attention was instantly attracted, and the evil and lazy look in his eyes faded a little, and a hint of real interest appeared in his eyes.

He put down the Switch and sat up straight, "You raised it?"

"Yes, his name is Snowball." I nodded quickly, feeling that this was a good opportunity to break the deadlock! I quickly handed the soft Ragdoll cat in my arms to him, "It's very affectionate, do you want to hug it?"

Lin Heng hesitated for a moment, but still stretched out his hand.

Snowball, this "forgetful owner for the sake of beauty" guy, immediately abandoned me when he smelled the pleasant cool fragrance of his new owner (?), and happily crawled into Lin Heng's arms, rubbing his chin with his head.

Lin Heng had obviously never held a cat before, so his movements were a little stiff. But as he looked at the furry and soft Snowball in his arms, his pretty face, which always had a bit of sarcasm and alienation, slowly and softly blossomed into an extremely pure, even childish smile!

His slender fingers carefully stroked Snowball's smooth long hair, his eyes focused and gentle.

I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, my heart finally half relieved. Looking at the boy in front of me holding the cat and smiling defenselessly, I couldn't help but sigh in my heart:

As expected... no matter how evil and crazy a high school student is, he is still essentially a child who can be captured by cats...

Just then, the sound of a key turning was heard at the door.

The real "parents" are back.

The sound of the key turning in the lock is like the trumpet of the savior!

I just breathed a sigh of relief, but before I could react, the young man on the sofa, who looked like a lazy lady petting a cat and had an aura of two meters and eight, instantly turned into a black shadow and rushed to the door in a "whoosh"!

"elder brother--!"

That voice, clear and cheerful, carried an undisguised intimacy and dependence, a stark contrast to the aloof and cold tone it had just used towards me! It was like a large dog (albeit perhaps a more expensive and ferocious breed) meeting its owner!

The door opened, and Lin Yan's tall figure appeared at the door, carrying the cold air from outside.

He didn't look at his brother who was rushing towards him at first glance, but his eyes passed over him and fell accurately on me.

That look was questioning, comforting, and contained a hint of imperceptible eagerness, as if silently confirming whether I was frightened by this "little monster".

I quickly winked at him and signaled: I'm fine, but your brother... is a bit of a problem!

Lin Yan then turned his gaze to the boy who was holding his arm. His handsome eyebrows raised habitually, and his tone was that kind of helplessness that was unique to his own naughty child: "Ancestor, why did you come here? Why didn't you tell me in advance?"

Lin Heng, who was full of enthusiasm just now, instantly switched back to his lazy and evil "I am the best in the world" mode when he heard this.

He let go of my hand and walked back to the sofa like a noble cat. He picked up Snowball again, petting him while glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. Then he spoke slowly:

"Brother, you have no idea. That mad dog at home and his worthless mother are getting more and more outrageous."

His tone was as disdainful as if he were discussing street trash. "You clearly have a nanny at home, yet you insist on cooking for yourself. The food you serve is so utterly inedible! Ha, you've never seen the world. Do you think you can gain entry to the family just by capturing Old Deng's stomach?"

Me: “…” Although I know that the person scolding me is not me, but… I felt an arrow hit my knee for no apparent reason! Lin Yan often cooks and feeds me at home! What… what is this?

Lin Yan was clearly used to his brother's harsh words. He didn't pay much attention to the content. He just sighed, walked over to me, and naturally put his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. He said helplessly to the "lady" on the sofa, "It can't be helped. It's my father's fault... he married her."

When he mentioned the word "father", his tone was flat and without a trace of emotion.

Lin Heng immediately looked like his tail had been stepped on, his pretty face full of disgust, and his hand petting the cat became heavier, causing Snowball to meow in dissatisfaction:

"Don't mention it! It makes me angry! Lao Deng can't come home more than a few times in half a year, and he's so old, yet he still stuffs all these things into the house!"

He grew angrier as he spoke, then, as if suddenly remembering something, he turned to me with a hint of mischief, "Sister-in-law, tell me, isn't this outrageous? The key is that the little one (referring to the stepmother's son) is even more troublesome. He usually pretends to be a decent and well-behaved person, but that look in his eyes...tsk, sometimes it's so sinister, like a wild dog staring at meat! He's more cunning than a sieve! He's far inferior to you, sister-in-law!"

I was filled with indignation during the first half of the song, but when I heard the last sentence...

What do you mean by "I'm far inferior to you, sister-in-law"?!

This doesn't sound... nice at all! Is he praising my innocence? Or is he scolding me for being stupid?!

The smile on my face froze, and when I realized what was happening, I was so angry that I almost jumped up! I couldn't get angry in front of Lin Yan, so I could only secretly reach out and pinch the soft flesh on Lin Yan's lower back!

"Hiss..." Lin Yan took a breath and almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

He quickly closed his arms, holding me tighter, patted my back soothingly, and then said seriously to his brother, "Well... your sister-in-law is definitely different. She's the treasure I carefully selected and pursued with untold hardships. How can any of those random people out there compare to her?"

"That's right!" Lin Heng immediately nodded in agreement, his face full of approval. "It's obvious at first glance that my sister-in-law is... well... a legitimate daughter!"

He probably meant to compliment someone, but his vocabulary was clearly used elsewhere.

I watched these two brothers singing the same tune, one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop, coordinating perfectly, and roasting me on the fire of being "simple (stupid) and harmless (easy to deceive)", which made me so angry!

I was furiously complaining in my mind: Foxes! Two foxes that had become spirits! They were screaming and acting in unison!

The Lin family's genes...are definitely not simple! Everything is black when you cut it open!

However, more "disasters" are yet to come.

Lin Heng, this great god, he! Can’t! Stay! Down!

The excuses were plausible: "The house is too smoky and it's affecting my preparation for the college entrance exam (although he doesn't look like he's ready to study from the game he plays)." "My sister-in-law's place is quiet (?), and there are cats to pet (the key point)."

He wasn't picky. He pointed to the not-so-spacious couch in the game room where I usually lounged and played games. "I'll sleep there. It's fine."

I:"……"

Lin Yan: “…”

We looked at each other and saw despair in each other's eyes.

What I'm desperate about is: my gaming room! My happy home! What if I play games with this powerful "Overseer" standing next to me? Will I ever be able to enjoy Zaun? And... my gaming console! My save files! They feel precarious!

Lin Yan's despair was clearly on another level: How could they still be together as a couple? How could they go on with those pink "love days" planned for the postgraduate entrance exam? Sleeping next to a brother who was incredibly sharp-eyed and, perhaps, even out to cause chaos?!

But Lin Heng was firm in his attitude and had good reasons (there was a "mad dog" at home), and Lin Yan was soft-hearted towards the younger brother he had protected since childhood.

So, the second young master of the Lin family officially settled down in the game room in our little nest.