Chapter 72: I really should die

Wang Yingna gave Li Jiaci a deep look.

"How come you suddenly started caring about me?"

Wang Yingna said, "That doesn't seem like your style."

"I don't want to either."

"But who made you already come to my house?"

Li Jiaci pursed his lips and said, "What if you get depressed? Your brother would bury me in minutes."

"So that's..."

"You're also only caring about me because of him..."

Wang Yingna's eyes were forlorn, and a sorrowful aura lingered around her.

After a while, she finally asked, "Can you give me a cigarette?"

Li Jiaci didn't think much and immediately threw the cigarette case and lighter together to her.

"Thanks!"

Wang Yingna lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, then slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke.

"Sometimes I'm actually really curious."

"What is my brother really like in your eyes?"

Li Jiaci blinked, shook his head and chuckled lightly: "What else could he be? Just like that—smart, capable, with money, with people, with power; he's an idol to who knows how many."

"How?"

Li Jiaci casually asked, "Is he different in your eyes from ours?"

"Indeed, he's a bit different."

Wang Yingna pursed her lips and said softly, "At the very least, in my eyes he's not a competent brother, and I don't even want him to be my brother."

"Huh?"

Li Jiaci was a bit taken aback: "You're being a bit ungrateful—out there, who knows how many people envy you for having a brother like him."

Wang Zhen not only has ability himself.

Moreover, everyone knows he treats his sister extremely well, never skimping on money or resources for her.

Wang Yingna had just graduated from university when Wang Zhen handed over all the entertainment businesses under his command for her to manage; he himself retreated behind the scenes, taking only a small share of the dividends, while the bulk went entirely to Wang Yingna.

Li Jiaci couldn't understand, what else could there be to be dissatisfied about?

If he could have a brother like that, he'd probably laugh awake even in his dreams.

"Perhaps..."

"I guess I'm just ungrateful."

"In your eyes, what kind of person is my brother? I don't know."

"But in my eyes, he's just a clueless, lousy brother."

Wang Yingna said with a gloomy expression, "I told him I don't like studying, but he insisted I keep studying—after elementary school came middle school, after middle school came high school, after high school came college."

"I also told him I don't like eating meat, but when he handed out lunches at the construction site, he'd save the meat dishes and bring them home for me."

"I didn't want to drink milk, but he used his only two days off each month to go to the dairy factory to shovel cow dung for others and buy cheap, fresh milk to bring back for me."

"I didn't want new clothes, but he insisted on working extra to buy me those brand-name clothes, saying, 'Others have them, so I must have them too.'"

"Heh..."

Wang Yingna laughed, but as she laughed, her eye sockets began to redden and a mist gathered in her eyes.

"But who knows how I felt seeing him, for my tuition, out in the construction site getting sunburned until his skin peeled?"

"But who knows how I felt seeing him sick, taking a few painkillers and then going to the cattle shed to clean dung?"

"But who knows how I felt seeing him, in order to buy me a few brand-name clothes, his leg almost got crushed yet he kept working nonstop?"

After saying all that.

Wang Yingna was already crying, tears streaming down her face.

"But what about me?"

"And yet I'm still so unpromising."

"And I've even gotten involved with that damned thing."

Wang Yingna clenched her lips tightly, her voice trembling as she said, "I clearly know, I know everything—our family fell apart because of this thing, yet I still got hooked on it."

Having said that.

Wang Yingna raised her hand and slapped herself twice.

"I deserve to die, I really should die..."

Seeing this, Li Jiaci rushed forward and grabbed her wrist.

At this moment.

Li Jiaci also fell into an unusual silence.

He truly didn't know what to say.

He knew some things about Wang Yingna and Wang Zhen, but not the whole story.

Only now, upon hearing Wang Yingna speak, did he realize how difficult things had been for the siblings before.

Likewise, only now did he understand why Wang Yingna would rather ask a stranger like him for help than turn to her own brother.

One aspect.

It's because she understands Wang Zhen.

She knows Wang Zhen can't bring himself to be hard on her the way she can.

On the other hand.

She also felt ashamed to face Wang Zhen.

As she herself said, their family fell apart because of this thing.

But she still got hooked on this thing, tormenting herself into a state neither human nor ghost.

Whoever it was, they also couldn't face the person closest to them.

Li Jiaci couldn't help but sigh inwardly, reached out to rub Wang Yingna's head, and softly said: "It's okay, it's not too late now, everything can still be done."

"Really not too late?"

Wang Yingna looked at Li Jiaci with tearful eyes and asked.

"Of course."

Li Jiaci said: "At least you're still alive, at least you're still in this world, at least Wang Zhen still has a sister, and you can definitely overcome your powder addiction, definitely get back on your feet, and become a sister who makes Wang Zhen proud."

Wang Yingna tightly pressed her lips.

Afterwards, she rushed straight into Li Jiaci's embrace, hugging him and bursting into tears.

Suddenly being embraced, Li Jiaci was somewhat caught off guard and instinctively wanted to push her away.

But hearing her restrained sobs, he ultimately didn't do that, turning the motion of pushing her away into a gentle pat on her back.

In his previous life, he had a very good relationship with Wang Zhen.

In this life, Wang Zhen has helped him a lot.

Helping him treat his sister's wounds could be considered repaying part of his kindness toward me.

……

Meanwhile.

Wang Lan followed Li Jiaci home, originally intending to sleep directly, but couldn't sleep despite tossing and turning.

Finally, he simply got out of bed, went to the night market outside the apartment building, bought a plate of fried rice, and returned home.

It was also when he was holding the egg fried rice, preparing to go upstairs.

Suddenly, an uninvited guest appeared before him, blocking his way.

Wang Lan looked at the person before him, dazed for a long time before saying: "Sister-in-law?"

This uninvited guest was no one else but Li Qinglan.

"I've already broken up with your brother."

Li Qinglan said calmly: "Don't call me sister-in-law anymore!"

After saying that, she lowered her head to glance at the pocket in Wang Lan's hand and asked: "Did you go out again to buy something tasty?"

"Yeah."

"I'm used to eating late-night snacks; if I don't eat something at night, I can't sleep."

Wang Lan scratched his head embarrassedly, then looked up at Li Qinglan, hesitated a moment, and asked: "Sister-in-law, can you tell me why you and my brother broke up?"