Volume One, Chapter 10: The Hot-Tempered Fourth Brother Defends His Sister Online

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When they returned to the Huo family compound, the living room was ablaze with light.

Huo Jianjun was holding a cup of hot tea. The moment he saw the two of them enter one after the other, his eyes fell on the conspicuous bruise at the corner of Huo Siye’s mouth.

He slammed the teacup onto the table. His expression darkened at once, and his thunderous roar reverberated through the living room.

“Huo Siye! You’ve really grown bold, haven’t you? You promised me just this afternoon, and now you’ve come home injured before the night is over! Do you think my words are nothing but wind in your ears?!”

Huo Siye stiffened his neck, looking thoroughly defiant. He was just about to talk back when Jiang Yu spoke first.

“Uncle Huo, please don’t blame Fourth Brother.”

Her voice was cool and clear, yet it formed a steadfast barrier before Huo Siye.

“This wasn’t his fault. After school, I was cornered in an alley by those people from my old technical school. Fourth Brother fought them because he was protecting me.”

Huo Siye: “…”

The moment she said this, not only did Huo Jianjun look over, but the other two Huo brothers sitting on the sofa did as well.

Half of Huo Jianjun’s fury immediately vanished, replaced by surprise and concern. He hurried over and looked Jiang Yu up and down.

“Xiaoyu, are you all right? How did they bully you? Are you hurt anywhere?”

Huo Siye: “???”

He was even more speechless.

How was it that the moment the main character in the incident changed, their attitude made a complete turnabout?

Was he really their biological son?

Wait—Jiang Yu wasn’t their biological daughter either!

A father truly was impossible to keep once he had grown old!

Jiang Yu turned around once. “I’m fine. Fourth Brother protected me very well.”

Only then did Huo Jianjun turn toward Huo Siye, his gaze much gentler.

He had intended to scold him a few more times, but when the words reached his lips, they somehow turned into an awkward compliment.

“You little brat… At least you know how to protect your sister! You haven’t been her brother for nothing!”

Huo Siye had never received such praise from him before. The tips of his ears grew warm, but he continued to put on a tough front.

“Got it. You’re so annoying!”

With that, he ignored everyone and headed straight upstairs. Halfway up, however, he stopped and looked back. In an impatient voice, he called out to Jiang Yu.

“Hey! What are you standing there for? Come on, get upstairs and study with me, you annoying little sister!”

He pronounced the words “little sister” quickly and stiffly, as though they were scalding his tongue.

Yet those two words left everyone in the living room stunned.

Second Brother Huo Mingyu pushed up the gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose. A teasing smile curved his lips as he said to Third Brother, “I didn’t mishear that, did I? Did Fourth Brother just call her his sister? Did he hit his head while fighting today?”

Third Brother looked equally baffled as he stroked his chin. “Seems like it. That kid’s probably just stubborn with his mouth.”

Only Big Brother Huo Chenyuan remained silent. His deep gaze had been fixed on Jiang Yu from beginning to end, carrying a hint of scrutiny and investigation.

This new sister seemed to have tamed the most troublesome troublemaker in the household in just a few short days.

Was she truly innocent, or was she far more calculating than she appeared?

…

That weekend, Huo Siye unexpectedly did not sleep in. Early in the morning, he knocked on Jiang Yu’s door.

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“Hey, country bumpkin, get up already!”

When Jiang Yu opened the door, he was already dressed in a fashionable dacron shirt and bell-bottom trousers. His hair had been slicked back with pomade until it shone.

“What do you want?”

“You’re skinny as a dried-up monkey. This young master is feeling charitable, so I’m taking you out to improve your diet.” Huo Siye awkwardly turned his face away and tossed her a brand-new army-green canvas shoulder bag. “Change quickly. Stop dawdling. And don’t tell Dad, or he’ll start nagging again.”

Jiang Yu looked at the new clothes. A warm current passed through her heart. Without asking anything else, she changed as instructed.

In this era, Kentucky Fried Chicken was an absolute rarity—a foreign fast-food delicacy seen only in newspapers and on television. Ordinary families would never even dare dream of eating it.

Yet Huo Siye ordered a huge amount of food as casually as if he were in his own kitchen. Fried chicken, hamburgers, and French fries filled the entire table.

“Eat.” He pushed a hamburger in front of Jiang Yu, then picked up a piece of fried chicken for himself. His mouth soon became slick with grease, but he still mumbled, “Eat more. If you eat me out of house and home, I’ll take responsibility.”

It was the first time Jiang Yu had ever eaten food like this, in either her past or present life.

She imitated Huo Siye, taking small bites of the hamburger. Its unfamiliar yet overpoweringly fragrant flavor instantly filled her mouth.

Huo Siye suddenly needed to use the restroom. Grabbing some paper, he dashed outside, and Jiang Yu was amused by the sight of him.

Just then, a sharp female voice, deliberately filled with surprise, shattered the rare tranquility.

“Sister? It really is you! What are you doing here?”

Jiang Yu looked up and saw Jiang Yuehua approaching with her arm linked through those of her eldest brother, Jiang Zhengguo, and her second brother, Jiang Chengzhi.

Jiang Yuehua wore a spotless white dress, making her appear even more delicate and pitiful, as soft and fragile as a willow.

When the Jiang brothers saw Jiang Yu—and especially the table laden with food before her—their eyes immediately filled with disdain and mockery.

“Well, if it isn’t the most capable tractor driver in the Jiang family?” Second Brother Jiang Chengzhi drawled sarcastically. His shrewd eyes were full of calculation. “What’s this? You married into the division commander’s family as a burden, and you still have money to eat foreign food like this? Let me guess… You can only stare at it and smell it, right?”

Eldest Brother Jiang Zhengguo frowned as well. In the tone of an elder brother acting as a father, he lectured her, “Jiang Yu, you’re being far too vain! Is this a place you ought to be visiting? I know you feel unbalanced inside, but a person must keep both feet on the ground! Stop dreaming of climbing high branches all day and living in fantasies!”

“Or did you come here to pick up someone else’s leftovers? Are things really so difficult that you can’t even get by anymore?”

Jiang Yuehua hurriedly tugged at her brothers’ sleeves. A saintly, benevolent smile appeared on her face, though her voice was so saccharine it could practically be wrung for tea.

“Big Brother, Second Brother, don’t speak to Sister like that. She’s sitting here all alone, so she must really want to eat, but she’s too embarrassed to say so… Sister, if you truly want to try some, just tell us. We can give you a little of what we leave behind. That would be better than sitting here greedily watching us and secretly eating, wouldn’t it? It would save you from disgracing the Jiang family.”

How considerate she made herself sound, as though Jiang Yu were a beggar so desperate for food that she was about to drool.

Jiang Yuehua sneered inwardly. She had known Jiang Yu would never enjoy a good life after entering the Huo family.

In her previous life, the entire family had ignored Jiang Yu after she went there. Forget Kentucky Fried Chicken—even chicken meat had rarely appeared on their dinner table.

Especially that Huo Siye.

He had never once given her a pleasant expression. He was more stubborn than a donkey, and no matter how sweetly she acted, he refused to pay her any attention.

Jiang Yu calmly wiped the corner of her mouth and was just about to speak.

“Get lost!”

A furious voice suddenly rang out beside them.

Huo Siye had returned with two cups of cola and had heard Jiang Yuehua’s words. He slammed the drinks onto the table, splashing cola everywhere. Then he pulled Jiang Yu behind him in one swift motion, his posture resembling a lion protecting its food.

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His brows and eyes were filled with defiance, his chin slightly raised. He swept his gaze over the Jiang siblings as though they were nothing but trash.

“What are you people supposed to be? Who gave you the right to speak to her like that?”

Huo Siye was dressed to the nines today, radiating wealth and nobility. He and the plainly dressed, shifty-looking Jiang brothers were worlds apart.

With a cold laugh, he pulled a thick stack of brand-new ten-yuan notes from his pocket and slapped it onto the table.

“See this? If she wants to eat, do you think I can’t afford it? Do I need a few buzzing flies like you to put on an act and offer her your leftovers? I find them filthy!”

He pointed toward the door, his impatience and disgust completely undisguised.

“Now, immediately, all of you get out! Don’t dirty my eyes or ruin my sister’s appetite!”

Sister?

The three Jiang siblings froze.

Jiang Yuehua’s eyes widened in disbelief, and the flames of jealousy nearly burst from them.

Why was this Huo family devil—the most uncontrollable little tyrant in the entire military district—protecting Jiang Yu?

And why had he called her his sister?

Why?

This was not how things had happened in her previous life!

Seeing their faces turn livid, Jiang Yuehua noticed that the commotion had also attracted the attention of those around them.

“Why are you still standing there? Are you waiting to eat what we leave behind? Don’t act like a pug begging for a meaty bone. You disgust me!” Huo Siye raised his voice even higher.

The surrounding whispers made Jiang Yuehua completely lose face. She stamped her foot with a huff, pulled open the door, and walked out.

“Slow down, Yuehua!”

Who could have expected that the door would rebound and slam straight into Jiang Zhengguo’s forehead with a loud bang?

Already furious, he turned around and shouted at Jiang Yu, “Jiang Yu, just you wait! One day you’ll come crawling back in tears!”

Huo Siye spat in their direction.

Only after they had disappeared completely did he push one of the cups of cola toward Jiang Yu, grumbling unhappily, “What a bunch of trash. They’re bad luck!”

Jiang Yu looked at him and suddenly began to laugh softly.

In both her past and present lives, this was the first time anyone had bought her clothes, taken her out for Kentucky Fried Chicken, and stood up for her.

So the person at fault in her previous life had never been her.

“What are you laughing at?” Huo Siye’s ears burned under her gaze. He shouted harshly, “Hurry up and eat… Eat, eat, eat your fill!”

“If you laugh too much, your jaw will fall off!”

“That happened to me when I was little!” Huo Siye’s words began to flow. “I was eating watermelon, and Big Brother happened to be telling me a joke. Before I knew it, my jaw wouldn’t close…”

“And then? My second brother had only just started studying medicine back then, and he was afraid I’d end up with broken hands and feet in the future…”

“You know, actually, my three brothers…”

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