Chapter 38 Adopted Brother [VIP]

Thump.

My heart skipped a beat, and I could almost hear the echo.

Pei Xuhui's breath hitched slightly, his mind went blank, and his gaze moved down to those rose-colored lips, then down to his own hand that was pinching the other person's chin.

The boy had fair skin, and under his fingertips, it looked like a delicate piece of jade.

He withdrew his hand, curling his fingers, and after a long while, he finally found his voice and said, "Don't be silly."

"I'm not being silly," Qingran said innocently, tilting her head, her gaze still lingering on the boy's lips.

The gaze felt so real that Pei Xuhui felt his lips burning and tingling, so he pursed his lips and turned his head away.

"You're not kidding, why are you suddenly bringing this up?"

Qingran thought for a moment and answered him with a sentence she had seen in the past: "You're so close to me, what are you babbling about? You want to kiss me."

Unfortunately, Pei Xuhui had also seen this sentence online.

He didn't know whether he felt relieved or more disappointed. He didn't dare to carefully discern his current feelings and repeated, "Don't be silly."

Before he could finish speaking, Qingran, who was disobedient, stepped on him and launched a sneak attack. The boy reacted quickly and raised his hand to cover her.

Pei Xuhui had a headache and had to face this person who could easily disrupt his emotions.

After being stopped, the boy behaved himself well, standing still and breathing warm and moist air onto the web of his hand, like the hot and humid air of a tropical rainforest.

On her small, straight nose, her clear, bright eyes stared intently at him, clean and sparkling, making Pei Xu's heart itch.

His feelings were complicated, like a tangled mess of thoughts that he couldn't untangle. He didn't know how to explain to Qingran that kissing wasn't something to be taken lightly.

In the end, all I could say was, "This won't do."

Then I felt the lips under my palm move, and a soft, smooth sensation came over me.

Pei Xuhui withdrew his hand as if he had been electrocuted!

"Yu Qingran." The boy's expression carried a warning, and he clenched his fist as he withdrew his hand.

Qingran thought he was making a fuss: "What's the big deal? It's just a lick."

There have been even worse things before; he bit Pei Xuhui's ear and Pei Xuhui didn't say anything.

"Brother, you're getting more and more stingy," he even commented.

At times like this, I do remember to call him "brother."

They don't bark when they should, and they bark when they shouldn't—

Pei Xuhui's mental activity came to a halt.

"Okay, okay, I won't mess around." Qingran said, drawing out her words. She really hasn't figured it out yet; it's like throwing a seductive glance at a blind man.

He turned and walked out: "Weren't we going to call Grandpa for dinner? Let's go."

Behind him, Pei Xu exhaled the breath he had been holding in his chest for a long time and shook his right hand, which had been licked.

Even now, my palms still feel tingly.

Qingran doesn't understand anything yet.

The boy gave a helpless smile and quickly caught up with the person who had walked away: "Was it burned or not?"

"No, I was just kidding."

"I knew it." The boy tapped the boy's head with his finger in an annoyed tone.

"You knew it, yet you still got scammed?"

Yes, even if you guessed it, you would still fall for it willingly.

The two figures stretched out in the alleyway, their shoulder shadows overlapping and separating as they walked.

The pink roses blooming nearby stretched their branches out from inside the courtyard wall, their buds hanging down. A gentle breeze rustled the petals, scattering them all over the ground.

After lunch, the four members of the family went back to their rooms for a rest.

The original owner, Yu Qingran, grew up in the county town until she was five years old, and later moved to the city with her parents, becoming neighbors with the Pei family.

Moreover, Yu's parents moved to the city because they thought the educational resources were better and they didn't want to delay their child's education.

Therefore, Qingran has her own room at her maternal grandparents' house. The room where her parents lived is empty, and Pei Xuhui usually lives with her.

The two hadn't been there for a while, and only during their lunch break did they discover that their usual room had been freshly painted and equipped with air conditioning.

The bed and wardrobe were also replaced; the bed was replaced with a larger double bed, but the window remained the old-fashioned sliding latch window.

Pei Xuhui smiled knowingly at the sight of the newly decorated pink and white color scheme, thinking it looked fair and tender, just like the feeling Qing Ran gave off.

The air conditioner overhead was blowing cool air, and the room temperature was just right.

The person on the bed was sleepy after eating, and was now asleep with their limbs outstretched, their belly rising and falling with their breathing.

Pei Xuhui bent down and pulled a corner of the blanket over Qingran's belly.

Even the slightest noise was enough to make the sleeping person stir and open their eyes.

Pei Xuhui froze, but then saw Qingran lift her eyelids, glimpse him, and then turn over and go back to sleep.

The boy stood up quietly, looked around, found an old photo album on the bedside table, went over and sat on the edge of the bed to look at it.

This wasn't the first time Pei Xuhui had looked at this photo album.

I know that it records Qingran's entire life from infancy to high school, and also includes some photos with her family.

When the boy flipped through the album to his kindergarten and elementary school photos, he took the album and placed it by his bedside to compare them.

The person on the bed is sleeping peacefully and beautifully, and their features show traces of their childhood, but otherwise they look nothing alike.

The impression I gave after starting junior high school was very similar to how I am now.

Turn the page again, and the next picture shows Qingran suddenly jumping onto his back, and the two of them smiling at each other.

The smiles have different meanings. Qingran's smile is the cunning of someone who has succeeded in playing a prank, while his smile is the arrogance of someone who has anticipated it. What they have in common is the pure joy revealed in their eyes.

Judging from the background of the photo, it's in this small courtyard. It's winter, and there's light snow falling from the sky. It must have been during last year's winter vacation.

He didn't even realize when his grandmother had secretly taken the picture.

I took out my phone and snapped a picture of the new photo into my album. Just then, I heard the sound of the old man getting up outside.

Pei Xu put down the photo album and quietly left the room, gently closing the door behind him. He asked, "Grandma, did Grandpa just go out?"

Grandma Yu nodded, then said with a hint of affectionate complaint, "Someone asked him to go fishing, so he rushed out, saying he wanted to catch some fish to make you a nice meal."

Then he asked, "Did I wake you up?"

Pei Xu replied no: "I'm not asleep, I'm looking at photo albums."

Grandma Yu smiled kindly: "Look, I took a lot of pictures of you and Ranran during the New Year."

Pei Xuhui smiled and said, "Yes, I've already seen it. Is Grandma going out too? You can go if you need to, don't worry about me."

Grandma Yu explained, "As people get older, they need less sleep. Go out and chat with your friends. Don't feel constrained at home; make yourself at home."

“I’ve long considered this place my home,” Pei Xu replied.

After watching Grandma Yu leave, he didn't go back to his room. Seeing that it was already four o'clock in the afternoon, he walked to the rocking chair in the yard and lay down.

As the sun began to set, the courtyard was no longer directly exposed to sunlight, and the tall banyan trees cast their shade.

But to be honest, the air was still hot and stuffy, far less comfortable than a cool air-conditioned room.

A fine sheen of sweat soon appeared on his smooth forehead, but the boy lay motionless in the rocking chair, staring blankly at the dappled light and shadows above him.

He seemed to have thought a lot, yet he also seemed to have thought of nothing at all; his mood was like a feather floating in the air, light and unsteady, unable to settle down.

And this breeze has a name that sounds tender and gentle when you hold it in your mouth.

Aren't you hot?

Suddenly, a delicate and beautiful face entered his field of vision, standing beside him and looking down at him.

After Qingran finished speaking, she plopped down on the edge of the rocking chair and squeezed her feet up.

Pei Xuhui moved to a different spot while reminding him, "I'm sweating."

"It's okay, I don't mind," Qingran said.

She drew a circle with her index finger where the boy couldn't see it, and a cool breeze blew by, quickly taking away the remaining summer heat.

Unfortunately, the rocking chair only has so much space that even if Pei Xuhui wanted to, there wouldn't be enough room for two people.

Pei Xuhui, who was being squeezed so tightly, rubbed his forehead and said, "Get up first, I'll let you pass."

Qingran: "No, I want to squeeze in with you."

She pursed her lips, got up, sat on the boy's lap, leaned against his chest, and smiled again.

"It's okay now."

Her smile was bright and radiant, just like a rose on a branch.

Pei Xuhui stared at him, lost in thought.

"How do I feel? Do I feel cool?" Qingran asked lazily, leaning against his chest.

"Yes, it's very cool."

"It's so hot outside, why don't you go inside?"

The boy paused for a moment before coming up with an excuse: "...Enjoying the scenery."

This little courtyard is indeed very beautiful. Not to mention the roses that climb all over the walls, there is a magnolia tree in full bloom right up in front of you, and gardenias in full bloom next to the rocking chair.

Both magnolia and gardenia are fragrant flowers; just one or two blooms can fill the air with their aroma.

However, even though these two flowers are so prominent, Pei Xuhui could still detect a hint of jasmine's subtle fragrance amidst the rich aroma.

It seems to exist yet not exist, sometimes hidden, sometimes visible, sometimes close, sometimes distant.

"Ao Ran."

"what?"

"nothing."

He silently hugged the body in his arms, wishing that time could stand still at this moment.

The temperature seemed to suddenly cool down, and a gentle breeze carried the scent of flowers. The two lay embracing on the rocking chair, enjoying the tranquility.

Around 5 p.m., Grandma Yu called to say that her friend was picking lotus roots and asked if the two of them wanted to go.

Qingran and Pei Xuhui knew that the other family also grew lotus roots in previous years, and they had visited them last year.

The two answered on the phone and closed all the doors and windows.

Then Pei Xuhui pushed the bicycle out of the tool shed and rode Qingran towards the lotus pond in his memory.

Upon arrival at the destination, one is greeted by a vast expanse of lotus leaves stretching to the sky and boundless blue waves.

July is the season for harvesting lotus roots.

The two got out of the car, greeted Grandma Yu and her friends, rolled up their trousers, and went down into the pond to pick lotus roots.

Their harvest was certainly not as good as that of professional lotus root hunters, but the two of them had a great time.

After playing for two hours, around 7 p.m., as darkness began to fall, Grandma Yu called them home from the shore.

"Your grandma's son will drive us home in a bit, you should go back first."

Qingran and Pei Xu returned home the same way they came, carrying the harvested lotus roots.

The first thing I do when I get home is take a shower.

Pei Xu brought over the hose that Grandma Yu used to water the flowers, and turned on the tap to rinse off the excess mud from their legs and feet, so as not to clog the drain when they took a shower later.

After rinsing, I noticed dried mud spots on Qingran's neck.

"Don't move, how did you get mud all over your neck?" He put down the water pipe and pretended to check Qingran.

Qingran raised her chin blankly: "Really? I don't know how it happened."

Pei Xuhui wiped away the mud splatters from his neck, cheeks, back of his neck, and even his hair in a series of inexplicable and strange locations.

Coming to his senses, he found the boy standing barefoot in front of him, obediently raising his head and letting him do as he pleased, his eyes bright and his lips rosy.

It was as if she were asking him for a kiss.

The boy lowered his eyelashes and said, "Alright, you're going to take a shower anyway, just be careful when you do."

"How can I wash it carefully? I can't see it myself. Why don't you wash it for me?"

"I'll check it for you after you're done washing," Pei Xu said, turning his back and bending down to tidy up the water pipes.

Qingran pouted in displeasure and went inside.

After he left, the boy who had finished cleaning up went to the sink to wash his hands. While washing, he suddenly buried his head under the running water.

No older brother would want to lean down and kiss his younger brother when he looks up.

No older brother would develop inappropriate desires because of a joke made by his younger brother.

Pei Xuhui sadly realized that he really did have feelings for Qingran that he shouldn't have.

He Anzhou, you have caused great harm to people.

A note from the author:

Thanks for watering! *kissing*

Reader "Gu Miao" watered the plant with 10 nutrient solutions.

Reader "Tree Without Thoughts" watered with nutrient solution +1