When Shan Gui was twelve, her father brought home a boy and told her that from then on, he would be her older brother.
The boy stood with his hands at his sides, his features cool and distant. He barely raised his eyes, letting his gaze sweep over her face.
Shan Gui tightly curled the fingers hidden beneath her sleeve. She glanced at the boy's thin shirt, washed until it was faded but still spotless, then turned slightly away and gave a single reply:
"Oh."
-
Shan Gui never called Nan Du her older brother.
For many years, the words she said to him more than any others were:
"Nan Du, help me."
So he fought countless fights for her, took the blame for her, and did her homework.
During her sophomore year of college, her father found an opened box of condoms in Shan Gui's car and demanded an explanation, shocked. Shan Gui looked at Nan Du, who was standing not far away, and smiled serenely as always. Without a sound, she mouthed:
"Help me."
Nan Du didn't hesitate. He walked straight over to them, pulled up the payment record from the last time he'd bought them for her and her boyfriend, and showed it to her father.
"I'm sorry, Uncle." Completely composed, he stood with one shoulder partly in front of her. "They were mine."
-
Later, the same kind of foil packet ended up in Nan Du's hands.
He held it between two fingers and waved it in front of Shan Gui.
"Is this the box I bought?"
Shan Gui's mind had wandered. She couldn't bring herself to think, and answered on instinct.
"I don't think... so."
Dark clouds covered the moon, and the last glimmer of light in the room vanished in an instant.
Shan Gui lifted her face slightly, then suddenly couldn't stop herself from trembling.
A faint warmth followed, breathing into her ear.
"Yinyin, you used something another man bought for me?"
-
Content warnings:
1. The female lead isn't a virgin; she has had several ex-boyfriends. The male lead is a virgin.
2. This isn't a wealthy-family setting. The female lead's family is comfortably well-off.
3. The leads aren't on the same household register and aren't related by blood. She was simply fostered by his family.
The blurb was screenshotted on June 30, 2025.
Theme: Live life with a positive attitude.
