Entwined Gardenia

Growing up, Pei Zhi heard many people say she was nothing like a child from the elite Pei family of Huai City.

The elders in her family and the brother who had cared for her since childhood were mature, steady, sharp, and forceful. She, on the other hand, was timid and clumsy, like a useless gardenia.

Her brother, Pei Jingshen, excelled at school. At a young age, he went abroad to study, then returned to take over the family business. By comparison, she was thoroughly mediocre, her grades no better than average.

When the poor classmate who ranked first in their grade, the Pei family's real young master, Pei Shuhan, returned, everything strange finally made sense.

On the day she learned the truth, the elders were discussing the switch in her brother's study, including whether she should be allowed to stay with the Pei family.

Separated from them by a single door, Pei Zhi lowered her eyes and listened. Her brother, who had always treated her with warmth and affection, remained silent.

Pei Shuhan, whose place she had taken, was in the same class as Pei Zhi. He was cold and distant, and despite being classmates for years, they had barely interacted.

She had only heard that his family was poor and his life miserable, and that he spent every day either studying or working.

After learning the truth, Pei Zhi saw him again in class. She lowered her eyes to the faded cuffs of his sleeves, pressed her lips together, and stammered her first words to him: “I'm sorry.”

Pei Shuhan merely glanced at her before turning away coldly, as if he didn't want to deal with her at all.

Feeling guilty, Pei Zhi took the initiative to switch back. She never expected to have anything to do with the Pei family again.

She adjusted her attitude and prepared to get used to her new life.

Then one day, while sorting through the odds and ends in her room, Pei Zhi found one of Pei Shuhan's old exercise books.

[Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Little Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi My Little Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi Pei Zhi]

The yellowed, crumpled exercise book was filled from cover to cover with her name, written over and over in a cramped hand.

Pei Zhi panicked, dropped the exercise book, and ran outside, only to crash into the arms of a grown man who smelled comfortingly familiar.

Her brother's voice, once so gentle, was like a bright red apple coated in sugar. A cold finger traced her lips, like a dark, clammy snake winding up her back.

“Little sister, you used to say you wanted to be with your brother forever... Do you want to break that promise now?”

A timid, clumsy fake heiress vs. a gloomy, ghostlike, cold true heir and a gentle, sweet-on-the-surface, deranged older brother

This story expands on the original premise and adds more tropes. Sorry if that's not your thing.

Theme: Happiness