Four Seasons of Strawberries

In May, Xiao Lin is working hard to update daily!

Next up: "The Bankrupt Heiress Meets Her Crush on the Run," starring an endearingly confident, down-on-her-luck heiress x a laid-back car-rental owner who's all talk and no action

-Premise-

[Upright, self-restrained older brother x bright, mischievous younger girl] [Restrained possessiveness x straightforward initiative]

"Big brother." Song Lingling's voice was timid.

She had never been shy around strangers, but the first time she met her cousin Gu Rongyu at her maternal grandfather's house, she was unusually reserved.

Perhaps it was because he was the only person in the Gu family who didn't smile at her.

It didn't matter if he didn't smile. She was great at winning her family's affection.

*

At first, Gu Rongyu thought Vincent van Gogh was the person he understood least in the world, for tearing himself apart over an intangible obsession.

Later, that person became Song Lingling.

He couldn't understand how someone could be so cheerful every day, despite her abysmal grades and having achieved nothing.

At some point, he seemed to have become the same kind of inexplicable person.

Seeing her or thinking about her made his mood relax and soar beyond his control.

Along with the happiness she brought him came a belated realization: he was falling for her.

He began to care for her and protect her. That brotherly affection took on a different meaning after that night.

When all was said and done, he wanted to possess her.

But this was the one thing he couldn't, and shouldn't, do.

*

Song Lingling remembered that night. She had drunk too much, and Gu Rongyu had taken her back to her apartment.

And then...

While he turned to pour her some water, she came up behind him and loosely wrapped her arms around his waist, gripping the hem of his shirt. When he turned back helplessly, she rose on tiptoe and quickly brushed his lips with hers, then stumbled backward in fright. Seeing his shirt soaked through, she ran her hands all over him, groping his chest, abs, and thighs.

When nineteen-year-old Song Lingling woke up from her first drunken night, she remembered all the outrageous things she'd done and avoided Gu Rongyu for the entire summer vacation.

She felt she deserved to die for what she'd done. She didn't dare admit she remembered, much less let anything slip in front of her family.

Four years of college, then two years in a professional master's program. She rarely returned to her maternal grandfather's home, devoting most of her time to her studies.

But avoiding him didn't mean she didn't miss him.

In fact, with each wave of longing and every fond recollection, her feelings for Gu Rongyu quietly took root.

We're not even related by blood! So what if I fall for him? So what if I like him? It's not against the law!

So whenever she had some free time, she couldn't help flirting with Gu Rongyu.

Maybe... he felt the same...

There was no maybe.

Gu Rongyu was going on a blind date. Song Lingling sensibly retreated to her place as his younger sister.

*

"Song Lingling, there's nothing wrong with relying on me."

"But can I rely on you for the rest of my life?"

"Why not?" Gu Rongyu's gaze burned brightly.

Song Lingling saw nothing wrong with it, but Gu Rongyu had far too many reservations about their relationship.

And even more so after they got together!

*

On an ordinary day after they started dating, Gu Rongyu picked Song Lingling up after her company outing.

The car was parked, but no one got out.

In the back seat, Song Lingling sat on Gu Rongyu's lap as they kissed passionately.

Oblivious Gu Jiming knocked twice on the window. When no one answered, he opened the door without a second thought.

The couple hadn't gone public yet. Gu Rongyu had been looking for the right moment. He didn't want Song Lingling to feel even the slightest guilt about their relationship, and he was even less willing to let her feel she couldn't hold her head up in front of the Gu family.

So he solemnly warned his younger brother, who had walked in on them:

"What happened tonight stays between us."

Theme: Keep making progress, one step at a time, and your efforts will not be wasted.