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Chapter 51 Sister and Brother

It's noisy inside KFC.

Some people are ordering food, some are chatting, and children are running around...

The background music was some unknown English song, with such heavy drumbeats that even the Coke on the table was shaking.

The noise was constant.

But the small space between Jiang Yu and Jiang Ning was so quiet that it was as if all sound had been sucked out.

Jiang Ning stared blankly at Jiang Yu.

In Kazilan's big eyes, emotions surged several times in a short period of time.

A few seconds later…

Her shoulders slowly relaxed, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

The small body exhaled a long breath.

It was as if the grievances I had suffered over the past two days had been released at this moment.

"Brother, you...you finally admitted it..."

Her voice trembled slightly, and her eyes began to redden.

But she didn't cry.

Just blink hard to spread the water in your eyes evenly.

She pursed her lips again and again…

That's how I managed to suppress the urge to cry.

Actually, Jiang Ning has been feeling quite desperate these past two days.

For a 12-year-old, the word "despair" might be too heavy.

But she really didn't know what to do.

Everything was normal until suddenly, her closest brother started looking at her like she was a stranger.

She had seen that look before.

Five years ago, my brother viewed Liang Zhichao in the same way.

She was young at the time and didn't quite understand what had happened.

He just wondered, "What did Liang Zhichao do to upset my brother? Why is my brother suddenly pretending not to know him?"

Now it's my turn.

She then realized that it felt even worse than eating a hamburger without a Coke.

What should I do next?

Are you going to continue playing house with your brother, hiding things from me?

Pretend everything is normal, pretend nothing happened, pretend your brother just made a bad joke?

When will those days ever end?

Every day, she had to carefully observe her brother's expression, guess his thoughts, and judge whether he was "normal" or "having an episode".

She dared not say the wrong thing, dared not do the wrong thing, and dared not let anyone discover that her brother was acting strangely.

Because she was afraid.

She was afraid her brother would be arrested again.

So she can only act.

She can play a well-behaved and obedient younger sister, a younger sister who is loved by her older brother, or a carefree younger sister.

It was so tiring acting...

Fortunately, the situation has now taken a turn for the better.

"Brother, I thought you were going to keep pretending like this..." Jiang Ning's voice carried a hint of complaint, but mostly she was happy.

"I've been pretending for as long as I could, but now that I can't keep up the act anymore, I'm coming clean with you." Jiang Yu smiled.

He guessed right.

The little guy really saw through his act.

Come to think of it...

For those closest to you, any slight abnormality in you will be magnified infinitely.

Those subtle gestures, tone of voice, and eye contact that you thought were perfectly disguised…

In the eyes of the other party, it must be full of loopholes.

"But then again, I really didn't pretend on purpose," Jiang Yu emphasized.

"Who knows if you did it on purpose..." Jiang Ning muttered.

She reached out and picked up the chicken leg that had fallen on the table, blew off the dust, and continued eating.

He looked both disheveled and adorable.

Jiang Yu looked at her, and a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but it felt really warm.

Perhaps this is what "family" feels like?

It's as if no matter what happens, no matter how bad you become, or how disappointing you are, the other person will never hold it against you.

Even if I did something to hurt her.

Suddenly I don't remember her, I treat her like a stranger...

She just muttered, "Who knows if you did it on purpose," and then continued eating her chicken leg.

It's as if nothing ever happened.

The heartache and grievances of the past two days seem to have been lightly brushed aside.

The brother and sister reconciled, and the atmosphere became much more harmonious.

There's no need to hide anything anymore; we can openly discuss it on the table.

"Brother, you said you know you're having an attack, so what do you remember now?" Jiang Ning asked while gnawing on a chicken leg, her voice muffled.

Her emotions visibly relaxed, and she was no longer as tense as she had been the previous two days.

Even the way he ate the chicken leg became more unrestrained, with one leg naturally draped over Jiang Yu's thigh.

"I remember too little..."

Jiang Yu thought for a moment and added, "To be precise, I only remember the two days we spent together starting from Sunday. I don't remember any other memories about you."

"Sunday? The day I take a shower?"

Yes, that was the day.

"That morning, Zhang Guiqin came to conduct the census. I saw you taking a shower at home, and my first thought was that you were a thief..."

"And then you still had the nerve to lie and ask me to take you to KFC." Jiang Yu dissed Jiang Ning for making up stories.

"Oh, I was just trying to see if you were really having an episode!" Jiang Ning said with a "Oh, what are you doing?" expression.

"Besides, you're the one who taught me those things; you don't even remember them yourself, do you?"

Jiang Yu: "..."

Black water, believers, an old man with white hair and no limbs, body parts...

Did I teach her all of this?

It seems like the "normal" me is just using overused and tired jokes?

"Okay, then I take back the word 'liar'."

Jiang Yu smiled helplessly: "Anyway, that's all I remember now, I don't remember anything else."

"What orphanage, what childhood, what things we did growing up together..."

"I don't remember any of it."

"In my memory, you only existed for two days."

Jiang Ning's eyes dimmed.

His eyes, which were just bright and alert, have now gone out like a candle blown out by the wind.

"Okay, fine..."

Looking at Jiang Ning's dejected expression, Jiang Yu felt that this fact was somewhat cruel.

My sister, with whom I depended on for survival, became a stranger who existed in my memory for only two days…

It's a bit hard to hold back.

Besides, the other party is just a little kid.

"Maybe I'll be fine tomorrow, and then I'll remember everything?" Jiang Yu tried to comfort Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning nodded thoughtfully, but she knew it was obviously impossible.

My brother had a relapse last time and stayed in a mental hospital for a full year.

How could things possibly get better tomorrow?

"Brother, I feel like your illness is more serious this time than it was five years ago..."

"Five years ago?"

"Yes, it was when you were in your second year of high school that you suddenly didn't recognize Liang Zhichao, and you even got into a fight with him, and then you were sent to..."

"I know that. I know why I was admitted to the mental hospital," Jiang Yu interrupted.

"But that time you just didn't know Brother Chao. You knew everyone else, and you remembered everything about your family. You did what you were supposed to do every day, but you just refused to admit that Brother Chao existed."

"But this time when you had an attack, you didn't even recognize me..." Jiang Ning pouted, her voice tinged with grievance.

The feeling of grievance was tinged with a sense of helplessness, a feeling of "why me of all people?"

Jiang Yu fell silent.

He absentmindedly picked up the cola and took a sip, the ice cubes making a "clattering" sound in the glass.

In his memory, Liang Zhichao appeared out of nowhere.

He didn't know that person and had no memory of them.

But the whole world told him, "That's your best brother."

Just like the situation of this younger sister in front of me.

He has absolutely no recollection of having a sister.

But my younger sister remembers Liang Zhichao.

and so…

Did Liang Zhichao really exist?

Yes, since his sister's situation is the same as his, there's really nothing more to say.

He opened his mouth as if to ask something, but didn't know how to ask.

Because he had absolutely no memory of Liang Zhichao in his mind.

Jiang Ning seemed to have seen through his thoughts and took the initiative to explain.

"Brother, Brother Chao really exists."

"He was your deskmate in high school, you two were really close, like you were inseparable!"

"You often borrowed money from him, and he would bring you delicious homemade food. You even said you were best buddies and would be brothers for life!"

"During the time you were in the mental hospital, Chao would visit you every few days, but the doctor said that he was afraid of aggravating your condition, so he was not allowed to meet with you."

"He often squatted outside the mental hospital doing his homework."

"Several times when I went to see you, I ran into him, and he asked me with red eyes, 'How is your brother?'"

Jiang Yu: "..."

"If you don't believe me, wait until you recover and go find him. He'll definitely still be living in the same place."

"He lives in that old apartment complex across from your high school, building number three, unit one, apartment 601!"

"You used to take me to his house for meals all the time. His mom's cooking is amazing, especially her braised pork ribs!"

"You can eat two big bowls of rice every time!"

"Chao's dad even said you can eat more than his own son!"