Do Not Approach

25

Without another word, Qin Yi left, leaving behind the stinging slap of rejection that crushed Mu Xiaoxiao's budding culinary confidence.

Mu Xiaoxiao: ...

What was the point of coming down, if only to bully her?

That's right, the eldest miss just came here to cause trouble.

Qin Yi, now back in her room, felt a strange sense of calm. If Mu Xiaoxiao truly wanted to be her sister, she needed to prove it by coaxing her—at the very least, she should come to comfort her. After all, Qin Yi wasn't easily impressed.

The eldest miss sat in a wheelchair and waited and waited.

As time passed, the sea bass was devoured. Mu Xiaoxiao, unfazed, snapped a photo of the fish bones and sent it to Qin Yi with a playful message: [Ugly, maybe, but still delicious.]

Qin Yi: ...

Mu—Xiao—Xiao!!!

Mu Xiaoxiao could sense that the eldest miss was genuinely in a bad mood. She considered asking Liu Wannian if something had happened yesterday—had Qin Shuang come by again? What else could have angered her like this?

The eldest miss' anger was evident, and her entire demeanor radiated a long-lost "stay away from me" kind of hostility. For once, the usually boundary-pushing Mu Xiaoxiao, who often disobeyed and hovered around Qin Yi, surprisingly chose to behave herself.

She obediently stayed downstairs and ate an entire fish by herself. After finishing her meal and tidying up, Mu Xiaoxiao didn't idle but started thinking about her younger sister's surgery.

The first thing she did was call Zhang Qiao, asking if she knew anyone in the medical field who could help arrange things. Mu Xiaoxiao promised to express her gratitude financially later.

She had just searched online and found that it was impossible to get an appointment within the next half month. Even if she tried to book as soon as slots opened, there was no guarantee she'd succeed, even at midnight.

Meanwhile, upstairs, the eldest miss was starving and had waited for a long time without seeing Mu Xiaoxiao come up. She opened her door a crack and peeked downstairs.

Mu Xiaoxiao was frowning, a laptop on her lap, muttering and sighing, "Yes, I know it's summer break and really hard to book an appointment. Please think of another way for me."

Zhang Qiao, known at school for her extensive social network, had connections that left Mu Xiaoxiao amazed.

As a good friend, Zhang Qiao naturally knew about Mu Xiaoxiao's situation and felt sorry for Qiuqiu. She was willing to do whatever she could to help. She opened her phone's contact list and scrolled through it, eliminating unreliable people and those she hadn't spoken to in years until she finally settled on one number.

"Hey, Xiaoxiao, do you remember Senior Wen Hui?"

Mu Xiaoxiao froze mid-reach for an apple on her plate, frowning. "Why are you bringing her up?"

Of course, she remembered. Back when Mu Xiaoxiao was a freshman, she had met Senior Wen Hui.

Wen Hui was stunning, assertive, and came from a wealthy family. She was the president of the student council at the time and very famous at the university. She was unlike typical college students—she wore designer brands and even drove a luxury car. Wherever she went, her arrival was preceded by the elegant yet overwhelming scent of her perfume, which captivated many young men. She was also on excellent terms with professors and had access to numerous projects and resources. These weren't just resume-boosting activities; they brought real money into her hands.