Chapter 031: A Sudden Change

“Senior Brother... you... you don’t care about me anymore...” Qin’er’s voice trembled as she tried to hold back her sobs, but tears streamed silently down her cheeks like pearls from a broken string—she looked as pitiable as one could imagine.

She and her senior brother had grown up together as childhood companions. Both their master and her senior brother had always cherished her deeply; they had never once scolded her. But ever since that girl Jin’er arrived, her senior brother had changed. He’d become someone she was even a little afraid of.

Seeing her standing there with her head bowed, crying so sorrowfully, Xiao Jiu sighed helplessly. He rose and walked over, gently wiping the tears from her face. His voice was soft as he said, “It’s not that I don’t care about you anymore. This time, you really were in the wrong. You’ve always been mischievous and willful—have I ever truly scolded you? But this time is different. You hurt someone, do you understand? Jin’er is still young, and as her elder sister, you should be taking care of her.”

Qin’er bit her lip through her sobs and looked up at Xiao Jiu with tear-filled eyes, choking out, “I... I was wrong. Senior Brother, please don’t be angry with me, all right? I really didn’t mean to pull her down just now.”

Xiao Jiu took a deep breath, his face softening with affection as he wiped her tears away again, his tone gentle: “I believe you didn’t do it on purpose, because I know you have a kind heart. The blame is on me for spoiling you too much all this time.” As he finished, he smiled and lightly tapped her nose with his finger.

Qin’er burst into laughter through her tears and threw herself into Xiao Jiu’s arms, hugging him tightly.

Xiao Jiu stiffened slightly, then smiled. “You’re a grown woman now—how can you still act like a child, clinging to your senior brother’s arms and pouting? If someone sees, they’ll laugh at you.” As he spoke, he tried to gently separate them, but Qin’er only held him tighter.

“No! I’m not afraid of others laughing—I’m just afraid you’ll ignore me.” Qin’er closed her eyes and pouted.

Xiao Jiu could only smile helplessly and let her hold him as she pleased.

The next day, everyone at the shop came to visit Jin’er.

“Girl, you have to be more careful. How are you feeling now? Does your head still hurt?” Doctor Chen sat down at her bedside, his tone tinged with concern.

Jin’er was momentarily taken aback and glanced at Xiao Jiu beside her. Seeing the apologetic look he gave her, she immediately understood.

“Thank you for your concern, Doctor Chen. I’m much better now. I’ll be more careful walking in the future,” Jin’er answered calmly and serenely.

Doctor Chen nodded, then his gaze shifted to a medical book on the cabinet nearby. He turned back to her with a smile: “Are you teaching yourself from the medical books?” Noticing Jin’er seemed a little nervous, he quickly added, “Don’t worry, Xiao Jiu has already told me everything. It’s rare to see someone so interested. Feel free to borrow any of the books here to read, and if you have any questions, you can always come to me for answers.”

At this, Jin’er’s face showed a hint of delight. “Thank you, Doctor Chen.”

Just then, Qin’er walked in carrying a bowl of porridge.

“Jin’er, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? I made this porridge myself and brought it to you,” Qin’er said with a sweet smile as she approached.

Jin’er frowned, finding it hard to adjust to this sudden change in attitude.

“Well now, Yun’er, when did you become so considerate?” Doctor Chen stroked his beard and laughed.

“Master, you’re teasing me again. I’m not a child anymore—I need to learn to be caring and thoughtful,” Qin’er replied sweetly as she sat down beside Jin’er, preparing to feed her the porridge herself.

Doctor Chen and Xiao Jiu both watched with pleased smiles; the girl was finally growing up.

But Jin’er was far from pleased—in fact, she practically got goosebumps.

“No need, I can do it myself, thank you.” To be personally fed porridge by Qin’er? She couldn’t handle that.

“Jin’er, don’t move, be careful of your wound. I know I haven’t taken good enough care of you before, so let your big sister make it up to you now,” Qin’er said with a smile, dodging Jin’er’s hand.