Ling Qianhe turned to get on the elevator.
Lin Muci's heart stirred, and then she walked beside him. Ling Qianhe frowned.
What are you doing?
Lin Muci looked at Ling Qianhe with a smile.
Didn't you tell Mrs. Ling that I was your girlfriend? You're going to visit your awakened vegetative older brother, right? If you go alone, won't Mrs. Ling become suspicious?
There's no reason to visit an older brother and abandon his girlfriend. Doesn't that clearly show that we don't have a good relationship and you don't consider me family?
The delicate-faced youth opposite him snorted.
I just couldn't be bothered with that woman arranging blind dates for me.
He knew perfectly well that if Mrs. Ling arranged blind dates for him, they would most likely be undercover spies planted around him.
But he couldn't afford to fall out with Mrs. Ling right now.
He just didn't want any trouble.
It wasn't that he genuinely wanted to get involved with Lin Muci.
Lin Muci leaned closer to him, her smile radiant.
Then take me with you.
Ling Qianhe didn't speak.
But after a while.
Lin Muci heard him say in a muffled voice.
Consider it a favor I owe you.
Mrs. Ling would probably investigate Lin Muci, but it was okay. This young lady had a clean background and no weaknesses or vulnerabilities that woman could exploit.
Moreover, he would use a little leverage to protect her.
Ling Qianhe's older brother's room was a private VIP suite, a special ward.
As Ling Qianhe pushed open the door, the man inside, sitting in a wheelchair, struggled to lift his head.
Ling Qianhe's older brother was named Ling Wanli.
He was seven years older than Ling Qianhe, twenty-seven this year.
Compared to the extraordinarily handsome Ling Qianhe, Ling Wanli's appearance was much inferior.
His facial features were rougher.
Only his eyes bore some resemblance to Ling Qianhe's, equally deep and unfathomable.
He looked at Ling Qianhe, then at the young woman he brought with him. After a moment, he spoke gently.
Xiao He is here?
This is the first time Xiao He has come to visit me since I woke up.
I thought Xiao He didn't want to see me, his brother.
Ling Qianhe's face was cold. He merely said a cold "no." The man opposite smiled, the smile on his lips unreadable.
Lin Muci stared blankly at the flowerpot on the windowsill. The flowers in the pot had withered, and for some reason, they hadn't been replaced.
The system opened Ling Wanli's character profile for her.
Ling Wanli. Male. Twenty-seven years old.
Ling Qianhe's paternal half-brother.
Blackening Value: ???.
Affection: ???.
Good heavens, there was a string of question marks after his name. This was the first time Lin Muci had encountered such a situation. She asked the system curiously.
Is it malfunctioning again? Why isn't anything showing, did the power go out?
The system coughed and played dumb.
This is all hidden information, it can't be displayed for now.
Lin Muci thought for a moment and asked.
Then can I exchange it with points?
The system still refused her.
Lin Muci was very angry, and the system fawned over her.
Be good, host, you really can't see this, and my permissions aren't enough. Let's take it slow, okay? Besides, this man just woke up from a vegetative state, and his stats are unstable.
Lin Muci was chatting with the system.
Meanwhile, Ling Qianhe's older brother looked at Ling Qianhe with concern.
Xiao He, Mom said you've built your own business outside over the years, and it's booming. Xiao He, you've really grown up. I always feel like you're still that little boy with red-rimmed eyes who was brought to the Ling family to be recognized. Ah Huang bit you, and you didn't make a sound. It was the nanny who discovered it and ran to tell us.
He spoke of the past with a sense of emotion.
It felt like time flew and years cut like a knife.
Ling Qianhe's eyes were as cold as ice.
Yes. The nanny told you, and you immediately said she was meddling and fired her.
The hardships he suffered in his childhood.
How could he forget?
Every moment, every second, it gnawed at his heart. He wouldn't forget that the moment he stepped into the Ling family's luxurious villa, the little boy faced the most terrifying hell on earth.
The man opposite, sitting in his wheelchair, still smiled at Ling Qianhe.
Xiao He, don't dwell on it. That's all in the past. Xiao He, aren't you living well now? I heard you've become the world's most popular superstar. We underestimated you back then, but now you've proven your capabilities.
On the contrary, I was in a car accident, and even though I'm awake now, I'm useless. I heard you're managing the Ling family's business. As your brother, I'll have to rely on you more in the future.
In this world, we are the only blood-related brothers.
Ling Qianhe's expression was obscure and unfathomable.
The man opposite reached out his hand, wanting to shake Ling Qianhe's, but Ling Qianhe avoided his outstretched palm. The smile on Ling Wanli's cheek faltered slightly.
But not wanting to fall out immediately, he changed the topic.
Is this your girlfriend?
She's very beautiful. But I thought you'd be with your sister from the orphanage. Didn't you care about her the most back then?
Ling Qianhe finally spoke. He had maintained his composure and politeness before, but now, his pupils instantly turned red. It was as if a switch had been flipped, and he instantly transformed into a terrifying devil!
Shut up!
Ling Wanli, however, met his tempestuous rage with a smile. He turned his face to look at Lin Muci, his smile seeming intriguing, more like an expression of someone wanting to watch a good show.
You don't know yet, do you? Qianhe used to have a sister he really liked, whom he met at the orphanage. Qianhe valued her more than his own life.
Qianhe said he would marry her. Hmm, a teenage boy, so naive. In a family like ours, even if Qianhe is an illegitimate child, we wouldn't allow him to marry a girl whose family had gone bankrupt and who had to work in an orphanage to earn money.
Ling Qianhe's voice was already filled with displeasure!
Ling Wanli, I told you to shut up, did you hear me!
Do you believe I can make you lie in bed forever, a vegetative state for all eternity?
He threatened the other person fiercely.
But Ling Wanli said.
But I'm awake now.
As for your sister, where is she?
See, Ling Qianhe, you ultimately abandoned her and chose a rich young lady. Ling Qianhe, stop pretending. You and I are the same kind of person. Half the blood in our bodies is the same. We are equally cold-blooded and ruthless, equally driven by self-interest.
Ling Qianhe was furious! He directly kicked Ling Wanli's wheelchair over!
Ling Wanli struggled to sit up. His legs were weak and unstable. Looking at him, a pale and strange smile appeared on his lips.
Idiot. To climb up, you have to pay a price.
Ling Qianhe, can you really hold onto the entire Ling family?