Secretly, But Unable to Hide It

Chapter 20

This translation is by Pocketrobbin at S h a n g h a i f a n t a s y . c o m

Sang Zhi had ice applied to her ankle for a while and the wounds on her hands and knees had also been treated, easing the pain significantly. As a result, her mood improved considerably.

She had always been taken care of like this since she was little, so apart from feeling that they were a bit too close, she didn’t find anything inappropriate.

Sang Zhi glanced at him and muttered, “I didn’t ask you to do anything, did I?”

It was just applying some medicine and wiping her face.

It wasn’t like she asked him to do anything difficult.

How did it become like serving an ancestor?

In that case, ‘this’ ancestor was really easy to serve.

“I suddenly got a sister and your real brother even ran away.” Duan Jiaxu’s eyelids lifted as he stood up straight. “Kid, do you know how much Brother has helped you?”

Sang Zhi paused and couldn’t help but say, “Well, I can help you too if you need anything.”

As if finding her words amusing, Duan Jiaxu sat down beside her with great interest and smiled, turning his head, “Hmm? What can you help me with?”

“Well……” Sang Zhi only managed to utter one word before stopping, completely unable to think of anything she could help him with. She scratched her head, admitting defeat, and awkwardly changed the topic, “Where did my brother go……?”

Duan Jiaxu lazily replied, “He probably doesn’t want you anymore.”

Sang Zhi snorted. “I’m the one who despises him.”

After saying that, she remembered the earlier incident and started to worry, “Would my brother find it weird that I called him dad in front of the teacher, and he even heard the teacher call you Sang Zhi’s brother.”

“Yeah.” Duan Jiaxu said, “He probably guessed that I pretended to be him to meet your teacher.”

“……”

Sang Zhi’s scalp tingled. “What should we do then?”

“What can we do?” Duan Jiaxu sighed. “Both of us are doomed.”

“……” Hearing him say that, Sang Zhi felt a bit anxious and muttered, “It won’t be that bad. I’ll talk to him later, he won’t tell our parents……”

Duan Jiaxu said, “Weren’t you ignoring him?”

“It’s not that I want to ignore him, it’s just that he always scolds me.” Sang Zhi’s mood dropped as she spoke, “Normally it’s fine, but he still scolds me even when I fall.”

“You think he doesn’t care about you?”

Sang Zhi pursed her lips, neither nodding nor shaking her head.

“Didn’t you say something interesting in front of the teacher just now?” Duan Jiaxu said, “Your brother heard it so doesn’t he need to ask a few more questions? Isn’t that also a form of care?”

Sang Zhi mumbled, “But can’t he ask more gently?”

Duan Jiaxu found it amusing. “You want your brother to be gentle? Isn’t that asking too much?”

“……”

That seemed to make some sense.

Sang Zhi didn’t know what to say. She glanced at Duan Jiaxu again and quickly lowered her head.

In this quiet atmosphere, Sang Yan, who had gone to get water and had been missing for a while, finally returned. He held two bottles of water, handing one at room temperature to Sang Zhi. “Drink this and then we’ll go to the hospital.”

Sang Zhi didn’t move.

Sang Yan squatted in front of her, hand still raised. “Are you going to drink or not?”

Only then did Sang Zhi reluctantly take it.

Afterward, Sang Yan turned to Duan Jiaxu and asked, “Did you treat her wounds?”

Duan Jiaxu nodded.

Sang Yan tossed the other bottle of water to him. “Thanks, buddy.”

Duan Jiaxu leaned back against the chair, smiling lightly. After a few seconds, Sang Yan turned his back to Sang Zhi and said, “Get on.”

Sang Zhi still felt like she was in a cold war with him and pretended not to hear.

Sang Yan turned around and stared at her for a while before saying, “Your ‘brother’ has classes this afternoon and can’t take you to the hospital, so your ‘dad’ has to take you.”

“……”

“Hurry up.”

Hearing that, Sang Zhi instinctively turned to look at Duan Jiaxu.

Duan Jiaxu also stood up, took out his phone from his pocket to check the time, and casually said, “Don’t you have classes too?”

This implied Sang Yan wasn’t planning to go.

“You’re mistaken.” Sang Yan didn’t even lift his head and repeated to Sang Zhi, “Hurry up.”

His tone always carried a bit of impatience.

Without Duan Jiaxu as her support, Sang Zhi didn’t dare to stay angry for too long, fearing Sang Yan might actually leave her behind. She had no choice but to begrudgingly climb onto his back.

Duan Jiaxu then put his hat on her head again.

“Listen to your brother.”

Sang Yan carried Sang Zhi towards the exit of the sports field.

Both of them were very quiet.

After walking a few meters, Sang Zhi suddenly turned her head to look in the direction of the tent.

Not far from it, a boy had fallen while running. Sang Zhi saw Duan Jiaxu quickly walk over and help him up.

The distance wasn’t close and the sun was blazing, so she couldn’t see his facial expression clearly.

She could only see him bending down to pat the dust off the boy’s pants, his demeanor gentle and clear, as if he were smiling. He looked like someone who exuded warmth from his very bones.

Sang Zhi’s mood suddenly felt heavy.

She had some things she wanted to say to him.

She wanted to ask him to stop calling her ‘kid’. At least, she felt she wasn’t a little kid anymore.

But it seemed unnecessary.

Because there weren’t that many chances to see him.

Moreover, he didn’t seem to be nice only to her.

He was nice to everyone.

Gentle, yet distant.

Sang Yan carried Sang Zhi out of the sports field, silently heading towards the campus gate.

Because of the recent argument, Sang Zhi felt a bit conflicted. She was slightly regretful but didn’t want to swallow her pride and makeup with him.

Since Sang Yan wasn’t talking, she didn’t speak either.

Sang Zhi hooked one arm around his neck, holding the water bottle with the other hand, and gradually lost herself in thought. She remembered that when she was little, Sang Yan often carried her home like this.

It felt like a long time ago.

Sang Zhi then remembered what she had said to him in a fit of anger.

At that moment, Sang Yan suddenly spoke, interrupting her thoughts, “I won’t tell Mom and Dad for now. They’re at work and it’s a hassle for them to come back.”

Sang Zhi replied, “Oh.”

Sang Yan continued, “I’ll ask Mom to call your teacher later to excuse you.”

Sang Zhi was silent for a few seconds, then let out another, “Oh.”

Once they left the school gate, Sang Yan hailed a taxi and helped Sang Zhi get in. He told the driver, “To the nearest hospital”, and then turned to Sang Zhi, “Buckle up.”

Noticing the wound on Sang Zhi’s palm, he leaned over to buckle it for her.

Sang Zhi couldn’t help but say, “Why don’t you buckle up seat belt?”

The corners of Sang Yan’s mouth tugged down. “I find it uncomfortable.”

“Then I find it uncomfortable too.”

Sang Yan had already sat back, indifferently saying, “Then you’ll just have to deal with it.”

“……”

The car fell into silence again.

After a long while, Sang Yan suddenly tossed a pack of gummies over. “Have some candy.”

It landed right on Sang Zhi’s lap.

Sang Zhi instinctively looked down, staring at the candy in silence. She picked it up. She and Sang Yan had similar tastes and both liked this brand of gummy candy.

There were nine pieces inside.

She always took five while Sang Yan took four.

Sang Zhi looked at Sang Yan again.

He wasn’t looking her way. His eyes were fixed on the window, appearing somewhat tired. This sudden gesture with the candy felt like a concession, yet it also seemed like an apology.

The kind of unspoken apology between family members.

After a while, Sang Zhi suddenly asked, “Brother, did you just go out to buy candy?”

“What are you thinking?” Sang Yan’s eyelids drooped as he spoke, not even glancing at her. “I just picked it up on the way.”

Sang Zhi didn’t say anything. She lowered her head, tore open the packaging, and poured out the nine pieces of soft candy inside. Then, she picked up four pieces and leaned over to Sang Yan’s side.

She placed the candies in his palm.

Sang Yan’s fingers twitched slightly but he continued to maintain his original posture, as if he hadn’t noticed.

A few seconds later, Sang Zhi took two more pieces from her remaining five and gave them to him in the same manner.

She used these two candies to convey her message.

One piece was to thank him.

The other piece was to express she was sorry.

The quarrels between siblings came quickly and disappeared just as fast.

Once Sang Zhi’s temper subsided, she stopped staying silent. After holding back for a long time, she finally voiced all her grievances, “You were wrong first. As soon as I got there, you called me short, mocked my clothes, and said I was bad at the long jump.”

Sang Yan sneered. “You call me ugly every day. Did I ever say anything?”

“That’s different.”

“How is it different?”

“What I said wasn’t a lie.”

“……”

Sang Yan couldn’t be bothered to argue with her anymore.

Sang Zhi lay by the window, looking outside for a while before she called out, “Brother.”

Sang Yan didn’t respond.

Sang Zhi asked, “Why did you volunteer today?”

“……”

“Do you want to participate in more activities,” Sang Zhi pondered, “so you can meet more girls and increase your chances of getting a girlfriend?”

Sang Yan’s temple twitched.

“Brother, I think you shouldn’t waste your time.”

“Shut up.”

“You should study hard and make more money.”

Seeing that she wouldn’t stop talking, Sang Yan, irritated, frowned and said, “I just went to volunteer. Why do you have so much to say?”

Sang Zhi pulled her neck back and muttered, “I was just asking.”

“You don’t usually care about me like this.”

“That’s because I don’t usually see you.” Sang Zhi said matter-of-factly. “Now that I see you, it’s rare, so I thought I’d show some concern.”

When this little brat got started, there was no stopping her.

Sang Yan sighed and replied perfunctorily, “They were short of people. Chen Junwen from our dorm is part of the sports committee, so he put our names down.”

Satisfied with the answer, Sang Zhi finally quieted down a bit. Her lips moved as if she wanted to ask about Duan Jiaxu, but after hesitating for a long time, she didn’t say a word.

After a while, Sang Yan suddenly said, “Daughter?”

Sang Zhi: “?”

But it seemed like he wasn’t talking to her. With his eyes half-closed, he muttered, “Duan Jiaxu is your brother?”

Sang Zhi looked at him. “What’s up with you?”

Sang Yan rubbed his chin and continued talking to himself, “That’s pretty good too.”

“……”

He’s crazy.

After checking at the hospital, it was confirmed that there was no major issue. Once Sang Zhi’s wound was re-treated, Sang Yan took her home. He then returned to school after Li Ping got back.

———pr

After the school sports meet, the weekend arrived.

Sang Zhi rested at home for two days, still struggling to walk properly. But since both Sang Rong and Li Ping had work, they thought of Sang Yan, who was in his third year of university and had a lot of free time.

So, Sang Yan resumed his duties from before Sang Zhi was in third grade.

He picked her up from school every day.

At first, Sang Zhi wasn’t too happy about it.

But later, seeing that Sang Yan seemed even less enthusiastic than she was, always showing up with a face darkened by displeasure, she began to enjoy it.

———pr

Thursday after school.

Since Sang Yan wasn’t available until after five, Sang Zhi stayed in the classroom to do her homework as usual. A few classmates were still there, cleaning up.

Before long, someone called out to her, “Sang Zhi, someone is looking for you.”

Sang Zhi immediately looked up from her homework and was surprised to see Yin Zhenru, who she hadn’t seen for a while, standing at the door. She blinked, stood up, and walked over. “Why are you here?”

Yin Zhenru noticed her bandage. “What happened to your foot?”

“I twisted it.”

“Why weren’t you more careful?” Yin Zhenru frowned. “Does it hurt?”

Sang Zhi shook her head. “Not much anymore.”

The two hadn’t spoken for a while and felt a bit distant.

Yin Zhenru scratched her head and, after a moment of silence, hesitantly said, “Sang Zhi, can you come with me somewhere?”

Sang Zhi was stunned. “Huh?”

“It’s just, I have something to do……” Yin Zhenru acted like she used to, shaking Sang Zhi’s arm and pleading, “Just accompany me. I can’t go alone.”

“Where?” Sang Zhi said, “I’m waiting for my brother.”

“Why is your brother coming?”

“To take me home.” Sang Zhi replied honestly. “It’s because my foot is hurt.”

Yin Zhenru said, “You seem to be walking fine.”

Sang Zhi didn’t reply.

“Come on.” Yin Zhenru shook her arm again. “I won’t take you anywhere bad. I’m just bored. Let’s go get something to eat nearby.”

Sang Zhi stared at her for a while, then slowly nodded.

“I need to tell my brother first.”

Sang Zhi went back to her seat, took her phone out of her bag, and was about to call Sang Yan when his call came through. She answered, “Brother.”

Sang Yan asked, “Are you out yet?”

“Not yet.”

“Come out a bit later.” Sang Yan explained, “I have something to do today so I’ve asked Duan Jiaxu to pick you up. He finishes class at five thirty, so wait a bit longer.”