Chapter 227: Chapter 227 – Extraordinary Sister

“Ah, I haven’t played with you for such a long time. Let’s conquer the main quest of ‘Heroic Spirits’ tonight!”

After clearing yet another stage of the game, Ren Suo drank another mouthful of fruit juice and smiled cheerfully as he sat cross-legged on the couch.

Ever since he purchased the Hell 4PRO game console and several other games over the past few months, he had not played that game. Now that his sister had come to visit him, Ren Suo also regained interest in the game and played it with his sister for the entire afternoon.

The feeling of being able to kill massive numbers of targets in the game easily while not needing to care about the consequences was refreshing. Fully immersed in such entertainment, dopamine was secreted by Ren Suo’s ‘rotting’ brain, allowing him to enjoy the long-lost fun of such a game.

Even though Ren Suo himself had not realized it, he was already treating the Mini Worlds game console like a job he had to do.

Of course, he still experienced the thrill of exploration and immersion in the games on the Mini Worlds game console. However, because those games were important and had the potential to cause massive impact, Ren Suo had to constantly remain alert when he was playing those games. He feared that any mistake he made could cause him to miss unlocking the achievements and result in a lower chance of him clearing the game.

It was not wrong to be serious while playing games, but having to pay attention and concentrate at all times inevitably made Ren Suo slightly tensed up.

As such, when he could play such a hack-and-slash game that had exquisite graphics and cool special effects with his sister, Ren Suo could relax himself completely.

“Bro, you are such a noob at this game, you have already died so many times. It’s my first time playing this game, and, yet I still have to save you,” his sister said.

“Tch, this is my first time playing the game too. Let’s play one more round. Let me show you what true skill is,” Ren Suo replied.

“Aren’t you going over to Sister Dong’s house for dinner?” Ren Xingmei asked. She said with a smile, “Before I came here, Mom was saying that you would certainly be eating instant noodles or ordering takeout every day. Who would have known that you actually receive such ‘special treatment’ and have someone to cook for you!”

Ren Suo replied without looking away from the screen, “Ah, it’s rare for you to have come to Lianjiang City, and I was intending to bring you out for some delicious food.”

“However, I have not been spending lavishly throughout the past few years in Lianjiang City either. I always eat in the school’s dining hall or simply settle for instant noodles,” Ren Suo said.

Ren Xingmei boosted Ren Suo’s ego slightly, saying, “Bro, it must have been tough for you too. Did you sleep very late yesterday?”

Ren Suo sighed and replied, “Yeah, I could only sleep at 7 p.m. last night.”

“So you had to get up early today?” Ren Xingmei asked.

“No, I was awakened by the alarm for lunch,” Ren Suo replied.

After clearing “The Mage Under the World Tree”, Ren Suo had spent the whole of the following day Practicing. It was only after he had completely used up the last bit of energy in the [Jade Pendant of the Goddess of River Luo], that he slowly studied the mechanics of the Coupling System. After all, the Coupling System would remain with him and would not disappear over time; on the other hand, the effect of [Jade Pendant of the Goddess of River Luo] could wear off at any time.

Ren Xingmei spent 0.3 seconds to calculate in her head: 19:00 ~ 12:00 (+1) = 17 hours.

(Had this old person turned into a child or baby after he went to university…?)

“Let’s go then,” Ren Suo said as he stretched his hand out to grab his keys and his mobile phone. He got to the door before his sister and said, “There’s no need to bring anything over.”

“But… Bro, are you going over just like that, wearing slippers? Aren’t we going to Sister Dong’s house?” Ren Xingmei questioned as she looked at Ren Suo in shock. He was wearing a white t-shirt paired with a pair of beach pants and a hat, along with a pair of slippers.

“What else would I wear then?” Ren Suo replied.

…

…

“Welcome.”

Gu Yueyan opened the door with a smile on her face—had Ren Suo been alone, he would likely be seeing a scowl instead. Gu Yueyan’s eyes lit up and she said, “Eh? Sister Xingmei, you’re so cute.”

Although Ren Xingmei was still in men’s clothing, she had washed and restyled her hair before heading over. In stark contrast, Ren Suo, who was standing beside her, was wearing a pair of beach pants and slippers, so her gracefulness and beauty were naturally made more apparent.

“Thank you, but please don’t call me sister, I’m about the same age as you anyway. Just call me Little Star,” Ren Xingmei said as she walked over and held Gu Yueyan’s hand. She laughed and added, “Otherwise, it would make me feel like I’m older than you.”

“No, I have only just finished my second year of senior high school, while you are already going to university,” Gu Yueyan said. She smiled and continued, “You’re still older than me, even if it’s just by one year.”

(It can’t be that this lass has feelings for that silly dork of a brother, can it?)

(It can’t be that this tomboy has feelings for her brother, can it?)

Ren Suo looked puzzled as Gu Yueyan and Ren Xingmei got to know each other better. He noticed that Lin Xianyu was around too, so he greeted her and asked, “Are you here today for a free meal too?”

“Brother Ren, your use of the word ‘too’ is extremely apt,” Lin Xianyu remarked.

She glanced at Gu Yueyan and Ren Xingmei who were ‘communicating intimately’. She asked Ren Suo curiously, “Brother Ren, are you very close to your sister? Aren’t siblings around both of your ages usually colder to each other?”

“Mmm? I suppose we can still get along well,” Ren Suo replied as he sat down. He continued, “We have been playing games together ever since we were young. When we were still kids, both my sister and I had one game console each, and we would connect them together to play. Later on, when we bought computers, she still insisted on playing two-player games like Richman with me. After I went to senior high school, I could only play during the holidays, but it was mostly spent playing multiplayer games like League of Legends with her.”

“Nonetheless, I’m actually a noob at these games. No matter how much I play, I’m stuck at Silver rank, while she had already risen to Diamond rank a long time ago. She just insists on ‘carrying’ me,” Ren Suo said.

Lin Xianyu exclaimed in awe, “Little Star is a master gamer!”

“She’s extremely skilled at playing games!” Ren Suo praised. He turned to Lin Xianyu and asked, “By the way, Xiao Yu, do you need any help from me?”

“What help would I need from you?” Lin Xianyu wondered.

Ren Suo did not know what to say momentarily. He tried to think about what difficulties a senior high school student would face, but he had only ever helped Gu Yueyan before, so he replied, “For instance, if there is anywhere that you want me to accompany you to go to…”

(Is this… another way to ask for a date?) Noticing Gu Yueyan’s gaze, Lin Xianyu hurriedly waved her hands in the air and replied, “No, no, no— I would not be fooled by you!”

Ah? Ren Suo was at a loss of what to say as he looked blankly at Lin Xianyu. If she was unwilling, there was nothing he could do then—Couplings could not be established by force, and both parties had to be willing for the Coupling to be successful.

Nonetheless, Ren Suo did not mind that she was unwilling. After all, he had only just acquired the Coupling System, and he still had a lot of time to study it. Moreover, as far as the effect of the Coupling System was concerned, there was also no need for Ren Suo to cast his net far and wide; it would be sufficient for him to have a few higher-leveled Couplings.

The more Couplings he had, the more time he would need to spend to level up the individual Couplings. However, Ren Suo still had to manage his Practice, play games, and write report papers, simultaneously. Where would he find so much time to socialize?

…

…

Dinner was served. It was a rare large group meal: Ren Suo, Ren Xingmei, Lin Xianyu, Gu Yueyan, as well as Dong Chengling were there.

Originally, Ren Suo had intended to take her sister out for dinner. However, earlier in the afternoon before they left, Dong Chengling had asked, “Are you still coming over to eat tonight?” Ren Xingmei was keen enough to deduce something from that question, and she was adamant about eating at Dong Chengling’s house with Ren Suo. She even said that she would cook herself.

“I only know a few home-cooked dishes, I don’t know if it would taste nice either… I’m really not good at cooking ~” Ren Xingmei said with a laugh.

Gu Yueyan and the rest of them took a bite and were forced to admit—the food was delicious!

“It’s even more delicious than Teacher Dong’s cooking!” commented Lin Xianyu, adding to the praise.

“Bro, what do you think of the food? If a girl had such culinary skills, would she be able to be your girlfriend?” Ren Xingmei asked cheerfully. She usually spent her free time learning to cook, and her culinary skills were even better than their mother’s. Of course, she had to make use of the chance to showcase her skills and entice Ren Suo!

Ren Suo smacked his lips. The Coupling Ability ‘Insights of the World’ had enhanced his sense of taste significantly. He replied, “Mmm, it’s too sweet, you should reduce 1 gram of sugar.”

Ren Xingmei narrowed her eyes: I did not ask you to give suggestions!

After being a class chairwoman for so many years, Gu Yueyan could obviously feel the hostility in Ren Xingmei’s words. She immediately changed the topic and asked, “Sister Xing, didn’t you just finish your college entrance examination? How did you fare?”

“I performed normally this time, I’m generally satisfied,” Ren Xingmei replied. She continued, “I only scored 91 points higher than the minimum admission score for the key top-tier universities, and I ranked ninth in my school.”

Gu Yueyan pulled her lips and changed to another topic again. She asked, “It must be tough to keep studying so hard, no? Do you have any other hobbies?”

“I don’t have many hobbies. Apart from playing games with my brother, I only won first place in my school’s singing competition by singing while playing the electric guitar. During my free time, I usually write and submit articles to newspapers and periodicals to earn some spare cash. I also volunteered at the subway station for a few days before coming here,” Ren Xingmei replied as she smiled gleefully.

Lin Xianyu was astonished. She remarked, “You’re good at cooking, in your studies, music, literature, and you are cute too… Are you and Ren Suo really siblings?”

“Of course!” Ren Suo said. He put his face next to Ren Xingmei and asked, “Don’t we look like each other?”

“Indeed, both of you have eyes.”

“Yes, both of you have a nose too.”

After a round of careful observation and serious discussion, Gu Yueyan and Lin Xianyu finally came to such a conclusion.

“Shouldn’t it be that the sister’s cute and the brother’s handsome?” questioned Ren Suo, pulling his lips.

At that juncture, Ren Xingmei hugged Ren Suo’s arm and laughed, “In my eyes, my brother is the most handsome and the best!”

Ren Xingmei secretly added in her heart: (So, you all should quickly give up and surrender!)

“Sister Xing, how long are you intending to stay here?” Gu Yueyan asked suddenly, changing the topic. She continued, “You should have a lot of activities planned during this vacation break, right?”

“Just call me Little Star— I’m planning to live here for a month or two. Anyway, I have already finished my exams, and I’m very free during the vacation break. I will play with my brother during this period,” Ren Xingmei replied, all smiles.

A month or two?

The expression on Dong Chengling’s face remained unchanged, but that on Gu Yueyan and Lin Xianyu’s faces changed ever so slightly. Ren Xingmei took it to heart and smiled secretly—of course, she was not going to stay for such a long time. However, if Ren Suo was going to go out on a date, she would be sure to think of ways to disrupt them. When that happened, she need not create trouble; all she needed to do was to kill the atmosphere.

When they lost their patience waiting for Ren Suo, Ren Xingmei would be able to head home with the smile and treasure of a winner!

“Brother, would that be okay—”

Ren Xingmei turned her head to see Ren Suo looking at her with his arms crossed.

He said, “NO.”