The 99th Divorce

“But, it’s too hard to stick out the three fingers in the middle…” Li Jianyue pouted and said, “I might have sworn wrong, but my intention was sincere. I really can’t bear to bully Older Brother Mosen!”

Upon that declaration, she flung herself over and announced, “Older Brother Mosen, I la biu!”

Li Jianqian heard that and looked up. “It’s ‘I love you,’” he corrected.

Li Mosen started to feel a little embarrassed, which made his face blush.

Li Jianyue, on the other hand, was still laughing, completely unaware of the effect her words had the other person. Her little face was awash with glee as she said, “That’s what I meant anyway. It’s good enough that you understand me!” She looked toward Li Jianqian and announced, “Old Brother, I la biu too!”

This declaration in itself wasn’t anything much. When Li Mosen heard it, he felt a little displeased. Ersu had given the same thing she had given him to Dasu.

But, it was Dasu who was her biological brother, wasn’t it?

He, on the other hand, had been adopted.

Li Jianqian hadn’t noticed Li Mosen’s strange expression. When he heard his little sister’s declaration, he burst out laughing and replied, “Ersu, it’s supposed to be ‘I love you!’”

“Yeah, yeah! I lai biu tu!” Li Jianyue repeated.

Li Jianqian was exasperated. He laid his book down and said to her, “Come, repeat after me…”

The two siblings began to work on their pronunciations. Li Mosen, on the other hand, sat to the side and picked up Li Jianqian’s book to peruse it. The book was abridged, so it wasn’t too difficult to read.

The siblings spent their whole afternoon in the room. When Su Qianci finally entered, Li Jianqian was in the midst of patiently teaching Li Jianyue some new vocabulary.

Li Jianqian was extremely patient. Conversely, Li Jianyue’s fidgety little body betrayed her lack of interest in the activity at hand.

She looked at the words her brother had written and commented, “Older Brother, your handwriting is beautiful.”

“Hmm? Why don’t you write one for me?” he asked.

Li Jianyue picked up the pencil and maneuvered it on the paper with much effort. She produced a circle and added a dot at the back as she proudly declared, “A!”

“No. This is how you write it.” Li Jianqian held her hand as he guided her through the strokes. “Why are you so stupid? I suspect Mom might have brought the wrong child home after giving birth.”

Li Jianyue was upset when she heard that and pouted her little lips. “No way! Daddy said that I look very much like Mommy, and I’m equally pretty and cute! I’ll definitely grow up to look like Mommy.”

“No, you won’t,” Li Jianqian said.

“Why not?” Li Jianyue asked.

“Because you aren’t twins,” Li Jianqian said.

“Huh?” When Li Jianyue heard that, she turned to look at her twin brother. She blinked her eyes and asked, “If that’s the case, will I look like Older Brother in future?”

“No!” Li Jianyue cupped her head and turned it back as he said, “Don’t overthink it! You’re a female, and I’m a male. How could we look identical?”

“But, you’re my twin brother! You just said that twins will look alike!” Li Jianyue refused to give up. She didn’t want to go back to learning how to write.

“There are different kinds of twins. Some are identical looking, and some aren’t,” Li Jianqian said.

“Oh.” Li Jianyue seemed to comprehend that statement before asking, “So, why don’t we look identical?”

This question had Li Jianqian stumped. His eyebrows creased together. He thought about for a long time before eking out, “That’s because we don’t look alike.”

“But why?” Li Jianyue asked.

“Just because,” her brother said.

“Just because what?” Li Jianyue asked.