"Sorry, I was just speaking from the heart. I wasn't trying to compete for your sisterhood, but I can be a sister to both of you. From now on, you are both my little sisters."
"Uh..." Li Nianlong's translation left the Yue sisters a bit dazed. They had never had someone offer to be their elder sister before, and they were momentarily unsure how to react.
Noticing their inner dilemma, Li Nianlong smiled faintly. "The terms 'brother' and 'sister' are a bit conventional. It's better to be friends. And if we look at it from a hundred steps back, even if we're not blood-related as siblings, they still call me Big Brother, and you, Sister Ruyue, right? This is already good; we don't need formalities. What matters is what's in our hearts."
"Right, right, right." Yuexi nodded repeatedly. "Big Brother is absolutely right. Although we're not related by blood, we've long considered Big Brother as our brother and Sister Ruyue as our sister in our hearts. Surface forms don't matter at all; what's important is... yes, the heart, the heart is most important."
"Mm..." Yue Chang rested her cheek on her hand, thoughtful, and nodded. "Big Brother makes a good point."
"..."
Nalan Ruyue pondered for a moment, then smiled faintly, seemingly at ease, and nodded. With her hands, she conveyed, Formalities truly don't matter. Even without a superficial relationship, as long as we acknowledge each other as sisters in our hearts, we'll always be sisters, right?
"That's for sure." Both Yuexi and Yue Chang nodded vigorously after Li Nianlong translated. Yuexi added, "I already regarded Sister Ruyue as my sister since we were on the train."
"I did when we got off the train!" Yue Chang tapped her head, stuck out her tongue, and said with a soft smile, "After all, I slept through the entire trip!"
Nalan Ruyue smiled and nodded, signing, We'll always be good sisters.
"That's for sure." ×2
Perhaps because they had accepted their sisterhood in their hearts, Nalan Ruyue and the Yue sisters engaged in lively conversation afterward. Laughter filled the villa through the medium of a small phone. But when Nalan Ruyue couldn't help but laugh once, the harsh "Ah, ah" startled the Yue sisters, and Li Nianlong frowned.
Seeing their reactions, Nalan Ruyue quickly covered her mouth, her eyes moistening. She hurriedly hid her eyes from them, gesturing an apology before rushing back to her room without looking back, despite the sisters calling out to her.
"Sister Ruyue, we really don't mind," Yuexi chased to Nalan Ruyue's door, knocking hard. "If we did, would we still be good sisters? Please open the door, okay? If you don't, I'll break it down!"
There was still no response from the room. Yuexi huffed, "I don't believe it." She took two steps back and prepared to charge into the door.
"Ding-ding-dong—" Just then, Yuexi's phone beeped with a text notification. She halted her charge, pulled out her phone, and found a message from Nalan Ruyue. It was short: Sorry, I need to be alone for a while.
"Sister Ruyue..." Yuexi's heart ached after reading the text, even someone as straightforward as her couldn't help but feel deeply for her. A girl as beautiful as a fairy should have been blessed by heaven, but while heaven had given her unparalleled beauty, it had taken away her melodious voice.
Yuexi looked at the door and whispered, "Sister Ruyue, I understand. Take your time to calm down. But I have to tell you this: No matter what, you're my Sister Ruyue, forever不变."
In her bedroom, Nalan Ruyue hugged her knees, curled up in bed, as two streams of tears rolled down, dampening her pillow.
...
Downstairs, the Yue sisters and Li Nianlong sat facing each other, the atmosphere heavy.
"Is Sister Ruyue going to be okay?" Yue Chang's soft face was filled with worry. "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have reacted so strongly."
"It's not your fault." Li Nianlong consoled her. "I reacted too. It's no one's fault. It's just that heaven envies beauty."
"Sister Ruyue is so pitiful." Yuexi's eyes were a bit watery as she wiped the corner of her eye. "She couldn't speak since she was young but has been so strong. I can imagine how much pain Sister Ruyue carries in her heart. It hasn't been easy for her."
"How many people in this world have it easy?" Li Nianlong sighed softly. "Let Ruyue have some peace. I believe she'll be fine. She's that kind of girl."
Pausing, Li Nianlong stood up. "It's getting late. Let's all get some sleep."
The Yue sisters nodded gently, locked the door and turned off the lights with Li Nianlong, wishing each other goodnight before returning to their rooms.
Li Nianlong climbed upstairs. Passing Nalan Ruyue's door, he paused, hesitated, then raised his hand to knock. "Ruyue, can I come in? I'll give you ten seconds to decide. If there's no response, I'm coming in."
Hearing Li Nianlong's voice, Nalan Ruyue hastily wiped her tears, took a few deep breaths, and opened the door.
Nalan Ruyue's bedroom was dark, but moonlight poured through the window, casting a silvery glow. Bathed in this light, Nalan Ruyue looked like a celestial maiden from the moon, stunningly beautiful.
Li Nianlong was mesmerized.
Nalan Ruyue's heart raced under his intense gaze, her cheeks flushing. She lowered her eyes and signed with small gestures, Big Brother, please come in and sit.
"Oh?" Li Nianlong snapped out of his reverie, nodding a bit awkwardly. "Okay."
Switching on the bedroom light, Li Nianlong stepped inside, closing the door behind him. As the door clicked shut, the Yue sisters' bedroom door downstairs was pushed open, and two little heads peeked out, checking the second-floor hallway. Their eyes met, and they grinned, closing their door again.
Go for it, Big Brother. Sister Ruyue is in your hands.
In the upstairs bedroom, Nalan Ruyue hastily tidied the bed, inviting Li Nianlong to sit on the edge. She pulled a chair to sit opposite him, head lowered, fingers intertwined nervously, unable to look up.
Watching Nalan Ruyue's bowed head and flustered demeanor, Li Nianlong sighed inwardly and asked softly, "Ruyue, is there really no hope for your voice to be cured?"
At the mention of her voice, Nalan Ruyue's tears flowed again. Wiping her eyes, she signed, It can't be cured. I've been to all the famous deaf-mute hospitals in Dragon City and even overseas, but everyone says there's no possibility of recovery.
"Not even a glimmer of hope?"
Nalan Ruyue nodded gently and signed, The doctors all said that unless medical technology advances another hundred years, there might be hope for curing the deaf and mute.
Damn it!
A thousand horses galloped in Li Nianlong's mind. A hundred years? Why not say a thousand? F*ck!
The room fell silent, but Li Nianlong didn't idle. He called out Dragonfly mentally and relayed Nalan Ruyue's condition, asking, "Dragonfly, is there any hope for Ruyue's voice to be healed?"
"Of course there is." Dragonfly's gaze swept over Nalan Ruyue, a playful smile on her face. "The Dreamland System is not known in vain. If the host unlocks all permissions, they will understand how powerful the Dreamland System truly is."
Dragonfly's answer brought a glimmer of joy to Li Nianlong's face. "How can we heal Ruyue?"
"It's simple." Dragonfly landed on Li Nianlong's shoulder, fluttering her wings. "As long as the host continues to level up and unlock access to the upper levels of the shop, higher-grade pills will appear in the medicine store. Among them is a pill that can reshape limbs and organs. Even if the body is cut into a hundred pieces, as long as the spark of life remains, it can restore the body. Curing congenital deafness and muteness is not difficult."
"Really that awesome!?" Li Nianlong was taken aback, his eyes blazing. "Where can I find that pill?"
"The host's level is too low, and permissions are insufficient. I cannot answer for now."
"..."
Damn permissions again!
Li Nianlong gnashed his teeth in frustration but decided not to hold it against Dragonfly since she provided valuable information.
His focus returned to reality. Li Nianlong gently patted Nalan Ruyue's shoulder. "Ruyue, I promise you here and now."
Nalan Ruyue slowly lifted her head, her starry eyes meeting Li Nianlong's, her tear-streaked face incredibly endearing.
Wiping away Nalan Ruyue's tears with his finger, Li Nianlong said tenderly yet firmly, "One day in the future, I will find a way to heal your voice and let the whole world hear your enchanting voice."