Jiang Zhu looked down, toward the elevator.
Inside the elevator was a girl sitting in a wheelchair.
Her jet-black hair was loose, cascading down her shoulders and into her lap, pooling above her knees.
Though paralyzed, she still wore a black pleated skirt that just passed her knees, unwilling to cover her legs with pants or a blanket.
Black knee-high socks wrapped around her slender calves, revealing a strip of pale skin between the socks and the skirt hem—so pale that one could instantly tell those legs had lost all life.
She looked up at Jiang Zhu and took the initiative to greet him.
“Bro, good morning.”
“How did you come out alone? Where are Mom and Dad? Aren’t you afraid someone will kidnap you…”
Jiang Zhu stepped into the elevator, his hand naturally resting on the wheelchair handle.
“Stop nagging, I don’t care.”
Jiang He waved her hand as if to swat at his mouth to shut him up.
Jiang Zhu was just reminding her out of habit, and even as he said it, he knew it was pointless.
After losing her legs, she had become extremely sensitive about her emotions.
She completely refused to see herself as disabled, wheeling herself around everywhere every day without any concern for her own safety.
The most Jiang Zhu could do was remind her verbally; if he dared to try and stop her, she would threaten to kill herself right in front of him.
“Alright, alright. So, what brings you all the way here?”
Jiang Zhu raised both hands in surrender.
“To ask about your marriage with Sis Lin, of course.”
Jiang He tilted her head, her face full of gossipy curiosity.
“I heard from Mom that the matchmaking is going pretty well?”
“Not sure…”
Jiang Zhu couldn’t confidently claim he could win Lin Ciwei over.
Others didn’t know what he did during the blind date, but he had a pretty good idea himself.
“Tsk tsk, I envy you, Bro. Sis Lin is both your childhood sweetheart and a Magical Girl… If we could swap genders, then I’d be the one marrying Sis Lin. I’d die happy.”
Jiang He was only four years younger than Jiang Zhu.
When Lin Ciwei came to play with Jiang Zhu as a child, Jiang He always tagged along.
Their relationship went without saying.
“How come you also know Lin Ciwei is a Magical Girl?”
“After all, we’re going to be family soon.”
Jiang He said it matter-of-factly.
“How did we jump straight to being family soon…”
“You wouldn’t dare not marry Sis Lin, would you?”
“Well… that depends on what she thinks…”
The elevator doors slid shut slowly in front of them.
Jiang Zhu stood inside the elevator but didn’t press any floor buttons.
“What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and take me to see Sis Lin.”
“She made an appointment with me for tomorrow. She should be busy today…”
Jiang Zhu originally planned to brush it off, but halfway through his sentence, he felt Jiang He’s burning stare and had to tack on at the end, “right?”
Jiang He rolled her eyes.
“You don’t know anything about Magical Girls, do you? Adult Magical Girls like Sis Lin are usually free on weekends. At least do your research.”
“We already agreed to go tomorrow. Xiao Lin has her own life. It wouldn’t be good to disturb her, would it?”
Jiang Zhu really didn’t dare to go.
With Jiang He beside him, he couldn’t exactly put on a scowling face for Lin Ciwei, could he?
Going now would just be a waste of affection points for no reason.
“Tomorrow is your alone time together. I’m not going to be a third wheel!”
Jiang He did a little bounce in her wheelchair, hitting Jiang Zhu’s stomach with the back of her head.
“Come on, come on, less talk. I rarely have free time today.”
Jiang Zhu pressed the button for the first floor and dialed Lin Ciwei’s number.
“Xiao Lin, um… my sister wants to see you. Where are you now?”
“Sure, sure, welcome! I’ll send you the address.”
The address she sent wasn’t the place from last time.
It seemed she had moved.
Jiang Zhu was relieved that he didn’t have to worry about her dragging Feng Ling into cohabitation.
“Okay.”
Jiang Zhu looked at the address Lin Ciwei sent.
It turned out to be not far from here—less than a kilometer away.
This distance made him feel a bit uneasy.
He’d have to be more careful in the future; it would be bad if Lian Ge happened to see her while flying transformed.
Jiang He also propped herself up on her arms to look at Jiang Zhu’s phone screen, seeing the map on his phone.
“Oh, she lives this close? Then Bro, you might as well move in and live with Sis Lin. After all, you’re earning 700,000 a year now. Why stay in that crummy rental?”
‘If only I actually had 700,000…’
Jiang Zhu’s eyes dimmed a little.
He couldn’t even be bothered to defend himself.
“One step at a time, one step at a time, okay?”
Jiang Zhu pushed Jiang He’s wheelchair out onto the street.
Though it was still a while until mealtime, he could still see delivery drivers zooming past on their e-bikes, and he silently calculated another loss to his daily income.
With Jiang He here, he wouldn’t be able to do deliveries today.
Not only would he lose the money from deliveries, but he’d also have to rack his brain on how to manage Lin Ciwei’s affection level.
So exhausting.
“What are you spacing out for, Bro? Charge! Charge!”
Jiang He pointed forward as if commanding a charge.
Since his sister had spoken, Jiang Zhu had no choice but to pick up the pace and jog toward Lin Ciwei’s new residence.
Lin Ciwei’s new place was much nicer than Jiang Zhu had expected.
The neighborhood was brand new, full of greenery.
The building’s exterior was clean, with a beige paint finish.
Many balconies had potted plants, making the whole building look lively.
He had thought that after being “humiliated” during the blind date, Lin Ciwei would learn from the pain, tighten her belt, and move to a cheaper place.
But her life seemed completely unaffected.
Actually, a Magical Girl’s salary of 5,000 was not low.
As long as she didn’t think about saving, she could live quite comfortably.
Compared to her, Jiang Zhu, the miser, could earn some extra income and made much more money, but his quality of life was actually worse.
Jiang Zhu pushed his sister, took the elevator to the floor in the message, and knocked on the corresponding door.
Soon, the sound of slippers approaching came from behind the door.
The door opened, and Lin Ciwei appeared in front of them, wearing a short-sleeved T-shirt and cotton shorts.
“Brother Jiang, and…”
Her gaze shifted from Jiang Zhu’s face to the small figure in the wheelchair, and her voice suddenly paused.
“Xiao He…”
“I wanted to come see you with fully healed legs, but it looks like I’ll never recover. So I can only meet you again like this.”
Lin Ciwei lowered her eyes, bent down on one knee, and brought her eyes level with Jiang He in the wheelchair.
Then she reached out her arms and gently pulled Jiang He into a hug.
“Don’t say that. No matter what, you’re still the cutest Xiao He in my heart.”
“Sis Lin… you’re making it so mushy, I feel embarrassed.”
Jiang He said that, but her face wore a warm smile.
The two of them clung to each other like that.
Seeing this scene, some of Jiang Zhu’s buried memories came back.
When they were kids, most of the time it was like this—the two little girls chattering and clinging together, while he, the big brother, was in charge of looking after them.
But watching this harmonious pair, Jiang Zhu found himself troubled.
The more gentle Lin Ciwei was toward Jiang He, the harder it was for him to put on the scowl he had planned for yesterday.
The more Jiang He looked forward to him and Xiao Lin being set up, the harder it was for him to say those harsh words.
‘How am I supposed to lower her affection level?’