Chapter 513: You Call This Brother and Sister?

June 9, morning.

For some unspoken reason, after their morning run ended, Ying Chanxi returned to her bedroom to catch up on sleep.

Yan Zhusheng went off to practice piano in the music room.

Neither of them tried to cling to Li Luo.

So Li Luo easily walked into Xu Youyu's room and rescued her from her wicked bed.

"Mmm… let me sleep a little longer~" Xu Youyu mumbled, her upper body lifted from the pillow by Li Luo, only to slump back down immediately.

"You clearly agreed before that you'd come with me to that hands-on experience studio," Li Luo said helplessly. "Clay firing takes time—if you don't go early this morning, you won't get your finished piece today."

True, the hands-on studio could provide semi-finished pieces for customers to simply paint, so it wouldn't take much time.

But it wouldn't compare to the sense of achievement and satisfaction from starting from scratch yourself.

Xu Youyu naturally understood this. Rarely getting a chance to go out alone with Li Luo, she struggled for a long while in bed before finally escaping, squinting as she shuffled in slippers to the bathroom to wash up.

"I'm planning to sign up for driving lessons tomorrow," Xu Youyu said as she followed Li Luo out the door, riding the elevator. "I'll try to get my license done by summer, then I can buy a car!"

"Have you decided what kind of car you want?" Li Luo asked.

"Can I get an SUV?" Xu Youyu's eyes sparkled. "One with a high chassis—I really like the feeling of being up high."

Li Luo smiled. He wasn't surprised by her choice; though the age gap from his past life was significant, tastes in hobbies really were quite similar.

"Sure," Li Luo nodded. "There are plenty of good options in the four- to five-hundred-thousand range."

As they chatted, they went downstairs, hailed a taxi at the gated community entrance, and headed toward Yintai Department Store.

…

DIY Clay Handcraft Experience Studio.

Tan Huilin was tidying her shop, arranging tables and chairs, waiting for today's customers.

She hummed a tune, checked the clay-firing machine, confirmed everything was normal, then briefly glanced at her Taobao store, handling a few orders.

She was in good spirits today because an old customer was coming again.

If she didn't have her Taobao store as an online channel, she'd probably have starved long ago.

But teaching people to make clay crafts in person gave her deeper spiritual meaning and satisfaction.

Even if only one or two customers came every few days, she never grew tired of it.

If an old customer returned, that was even better.

Though nearly three months had passed since their last visit, Tan Huilin still remembered Li Luo and Ying Chanxi vividly.

On one hand, her shop had few customers; on the other, those two young people were strikingly beautiful—hard to forget.

Tan Huilin hummed as she thought about what to recommend them this time.

After all, they had prior experience and some skill now—maybe they could try something more challenging?

Thinking this, Tan Huilin felt cheerful, already having several ideas she thought were excellent.

But when she heard the door open and turned with a bright smile to greet them, her expression froze as she saw who entered.

Li Luo.

She recognized this boy—he'd called to book both visits.

But this girl beside him…

Tan Huilin instinctively glanced at the girl's chest, then shifted her gaze to her face, pausing in brief thought.

Though she sometimes doubted her own memory, she still had a clear impression of Ying Chanxi.

This equally beautiful girl bore no resemblance whatsoever.

"H-hi there~" Tan Huilin forced a smile. "Come sit over here."

Though she was deeply puzzled why Li Luo had brought a different girl this time, she'd run her shop long enough to possess basic emotional intelligence—she wouldn't ask outright.

Still, inside, Tan Huilin's curiosity flared with gossip.

Had Li Luo broken up with the previous girl?

And found a new girlfriend?

Could he possibly be a player juggling two girls?

After all, he'd brought another girl here before—if he was a player, that was terribly unprofessional. Wouldn't he risk slipping up?

In the short walk from the door to the craft table, Tan Huilin's mind raced through dozens of theories, nearly conjuring an entire soap opera plot.

Li Luo didn't notice the shop owner's expression.

After all, nearly three months had passed since his last visit—he assumed she'd forgotten him or had only a vague memory.

But Xu Youyu noticed something. After sitting down, she smiled sweetly at Tan Huilin. "Didn't he bring another girl here before?"

"Huh?" Tan Huilin was startled by this blunt question, momentarily speechless, and looked helplessly at Li Luo beside her.

She was just running a business—she didn't want to witness customers fighting.

If they started quarreling and wrecked her shop, it'd be a nightmare.

But when Li Luo heard Xu Youyu's question, he stared at her in disbelief.

"You know full well that Chanxi came before—why are you pretending?"

"Hahaha~" Xu Youyu burst into laughter, then turned to Tan Huilin, patted Li Luo's shoulder, and said, "I'm his sister. Was the girl he brought last time pretty?"

Hearing Xu Youyu's words, Tan Huilin breathed a sigh of relief.

Oh—it's just siblings… scared me half to death.

Relieved, Tan Huilin smiled and handed them the clay tools. "That little girl was gorgeous—perfect match for him."

"And how about me?" Xu Youyu raised an eyebrow.

"Each has her own beauty," Tan Huilin chuckled smoothly, then smoothly changed the subject. "Let me introduce you to the tools."

Xu Youyu stopped teasing and began listening attentively.

Beneath the table, her hand was gripped tightly in Li Luo's palm, crushed and kneaded as if punishing her.

Tan Huilin, deeply absorbed in her explanation, naturally noticed none of their private little gestures.

When the explanation ended, Tan Huilin gave each of them a lump of clay and told them to try their hands at it.

"So what are we making?" Li Luo asked.

"A cup," Xu Youyu said with a grin. "I've been wanting to replace my water cup anyway."

Li Luo: "..."

What they made didn't matter much—it was mainly for the experience. Li Luo, having been here once before and with his Memory Palace to guide him, merely familiarized himself with the feel of the clay and quickly shaped a cup blank.

In contrast, Xu Youyu moved much more slowly.

After too many failures, she pulled Li Luo's hand over to help her.

While Li Luo helped, she secretly scraped two fingers covered in clay across his face.

Tan Huilin had originally assumed they were truly siblings.

But as she watched, something felt off.

Even if they were siblings, this was far too intimate!

Tan Huilin's expression grew strange, but she said nothing more.

Near noon, with Li Luo's help, Xu Youyu finally finished her cup; they handed their blanks over to Tan Huilin.

"We'll come back this afternoon."

"Mm, I'll call you," Tan Huilin nodded with a smile, watching them leave. She shook her head, pushing her gossiping thoughts aside, and turned to enter the kiln room—only to spot a phone on the table.

"Huh? Did they forget it?" Tan Huilin froze, then quickly set down her tools, snatched up the phone, and ran out the door, shouting after the pair who hadn't gone far, "Hey! You—"

In one look /p>

The words died on her lips.

Tan Huilin froze.

Because as soon as Xu Youyu stepped out the door, she eagerly took Li Luo's hand.

At that moment, the image burned into Tan Huilin's mind.

"What's wrong?" Xu Youyu turned at the sound, saw Tan Huilin holding up the phone, realized she'd forgotten it, immediately let go of Li Luo's hand, and hurried over. "Thank you."

"N-no problem…" Tan Huilin handed back the phone, bid them farewell again, and returned inside—her expression even stranger.

Who are siblings that hold hands walking down the street?

They're not even siblings with a huge age gap—this is just weird!

If they're not siblings, could this guest named Li Luo really be cheating on two people?

But if they really are siblings, that's even more terrifying!

In just one morning, Tan Huilin felt her worldview severely challenged; her nerves were frayed and dazed.

"Did the shop owner just see?" Li Luo whispered, feeling Xu Youyu's small hand slip back into his palm.

"Let her see," Xu Youyu grinned, pressing close to Li Luo. "It just proves how close we are as siblings."

"What siblings still hold hands at their age?"

"Us," Xu Youyu swung their linked arms back and forth, utterly unconcerned. "Other people's stares are just illusions—you still need training, young man."

They chatted all the way until they reached the entrance of the Golden Lake Bathhouse.

Xu Youyu glanced curiously around the entrance before following Li Luo inside.

Following the attendant's instructions, they each took a locker tag and went to the men's and women's baths separately, planning to reunite upstairs in the common recreation area after bathing.

Now, Xu Youyu had tied her hair into a bun at the nape of her neck, giving her a softer, wifely air that made Li Luo's gaze flicker.

"What's wrong?" Xu Youyu, in her bathrobe, bowed playfully to him, then winked mischievously. "Pretty?"

"Pretty," Li Luo snapped back to himself, nodded, pulled her into his arms, and held her close. "I've never seen you with a bun before."

"I just thought of it on a whim and tried it," Xu Youyu touched her bun with her fingers, smiling. "Looks good, doesn't it?"

"Let's go," Li Luo released her, still holding her hand as they walked toward the restaurant. "Let's eat first."

Xu Youyu walked beside him, gazing curiously at the upstairs decor, then couldn't help laughing: "If we could've bathed together, this place would've been perfect."

"I don't want any other man seeing you, Youyu."

"I meant just us two alone," Xu Youyu rolled her eyes. "Can't they add a private hot tub room here?"

"Next time I'll take you to a hot spring hotel," Li Luo said. "Like the one in Qiongzhou City last time."

"Someone's thinking of doing something naughty, huh?" Xu Youyu chuckled wickedly, tracing a circle on his chest. "Not that I mind."

"I'm not the one thinking of doing something naughty," Li Luo looked down at her. "You're the one who wants it."

"Everything I do is a good deed," Xu Youyu said solemnly. "Dare you call it bad?"

Li Luo: "..."

After lunch upstairs, they played pool, then switched to game controllers, curling up in a lazy sofa. Xu Youyu leaned against Li Luo as he played, occasionally reaching out to mess with him.

Midway, Li Luo pulled out his phone and called his homeroom teacher, Kong Junxiang, to take a leave—skipping evening self-study today.

"We'll paint the cups this afternoon, then fire them again—they won't be ready until tonight," Li Luo told Xu Youyu, nestled in his arms. "I might as well take the day off and stay with you."

"I'm so jealous you can take leave~" Xu Youyu grinned. "I can't even take leave after my college entrance exam."

"... Is that really envy?"

"Why not?" Xu Youyu rolled onto her side in his arms, lips curled in a smile, arms wrapping around his neck as she pressed her soft lips to his.

They sank into the moment; long after, Li Luo received a call from Tan Huilin, and he took Xu Youyu away from the bathhouse.

"So last time, you brought Chanxi here too?" Xu Youyu glanced back one last time at the bathhouse entrance, then turned to Li Luo.

"Yeah," Li Luo nodded. "Didn't you say you wanted to do the same as last time?"

"So what's planned for tonight?"

"The show-off phase of going to school for evening self-study?"

"Hahaha~" Xu Youyu couldn't help laughing, "I already have a mental image of Xixi holding her water cup."

The two returned to the handicraft experience studio, each painted patterns and words on their cups, then handed them back to Tan Huilin for firing.

After dinner, the two returned to the handicraft experience studio for the third time, received their cups already packed in gift boxes, and took their leave.

Tan Huilin never managed to ask out her inner confusion, nor did she know what relationship the little Miss now had with Li Luo.

Li Luo naturally had no idea what the shop owner was thinking.

After taking Xu Youyu away, seeing the time was still early, he was dragged by Xu Youyu to watch another movie.

They didn't get home until past nine at night.

At this time, Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng had already finished evening self-study and returned home.

Hearing the noise at the door, they stepped out from their rooms.

Xu Youyu made no effort to hide it; she took the cup out of the gift box, rinsed it simply under the kitchen sink, poured herself some juice, and took two small sips right in front of Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi did not yield; she took out the water cup Li Luo had given her.

Only Yan Zhusheng stood at the door of the piano room, expressionless, watching the two with their cups, his face looking deeply unhappy.

(End of Chapter)