"Something’s not right... Not right..."

Xue Rui felt a strange nervousness welling up inside him.

He hurried back to his room and started rummaging through old photos. He looked at a picture of his mother with her hair in braided pigtails. She and Gu Muxue were practically cast from the same mold.

Both were born beauties.

’How did I never notice before?’

’Don’t tell me... I have a mother complex?’

’No, no, no, beautiful women just have certain things in common. It’s just a coincidence that they look alike.’

But could it really be a coincidence? How? Why would they look so similar?

Xue Rui’s mind was a mess, and he scared himself into a cold sweat.

’No, I have to ask.’

Xue Rui couldn’t shake his unease. He took out his phone and dialed Gu Muxue’s number.

"Hello? Are you asking me out to eat? I’m not free today, you know. I have to practice piano." Gu Muxue said with a smile, her fingertips tapping lightly on the piano keys.

This was the first time Xue Rui had ever contacted her during a school break.

Before, she had assumed Xue Rui’s family was poor, so she never contacted him during breaks, afraid she might inadvertently hurt his feelings.

But now that she knew Xue Rui was a second-generation heir, that concern was gone, and she felt a little eager.

Especially after Xue Rui had asked her on QQ if she wanted to eat lamb spine hot pot.

It was a bit unrefined, but not entirely out of the question.

"No, that’s not it. I wanted to ask, what hospital were you born in? And are you sure you remember your birthday correctly?"

Xue Rui’s tone was anxious.

In his past life, Gu Muxue had suddenly vanished, becoming an unsolved mystery for him. He hadn’t known much about her family back then either.

If... if he and Gu Muxue were blood-related siblings, it would be impossible for them to be together.

That would explain why Gu Muxue left without a word.

’That seems to make sense...’

’Could it be that Mom was pregnant with twins back then? Is Gu Muxue the lost child?’

’It can’t be that cliché, can it?!’

Xue Rui swallowed hard, his back almost soaked with sweat.

"What are you talking about?" Gu Muxue’s confused voice came through the phone.

"It’s just... I was on the street and saw someone who looks a lot like you," Xue Rui lied glibly.

Gu Muxue’s reaction was casual. "Oh, that’s normal. I look a lot like my mom, too."

"Your mom?" Xue Rui asked, surprised.

"Yep. I’ll send you a picture of my mom when she was young on QQ. Let’s talk there." With that, Gu Muxue hung up.

She pressed down hard on a few piano keys, producing a dissonant sound.

’He saw someone who looks like me, so now he doesn’t want to see me?’

Gu Muxue pouted and sent the photo to Xue Rui.

However, Xue Rui’s phone could only receive text and couldn’t display images.

"..." Xue Rui was speechless.

He walked to the room next door and opened the door without knocking.

Xue Yao was home, too. She was wearing pink over-ear headphones, her eyes glued to the computer screen, completely oblivious to Xue Rui’s arrival.

The screen showed a game: a 5v5 on Summoner’s Rift.

"Quick, quick! Heal me!" Xue Yao yelled, furiously clicking her mouse.

"This is a tower-pushing game, don’t you get it?!"

The enemy Sword Saint activated Highlander and cleaned up the remaining enemies in the blink of an eye. The screen turned gray.

Xue Rui deliberately piped up, "Why are you playing a black-and-white game? Can’t our family afford a color monitor?"

"Bro! Why’d you come in without knocking?" Xue Yao snapped, kicking Xue Rui.

"Yaoyao! Our family line has been passed down through a single heir for generations! What are you trying to do?!"

Caught off guard, Xue Rui doubled over, grimacing in pain.

"Can’t you see I’m not dressed?" Xue Yao said, giving him a sideways glance.

"Who’d want to look at you!" Xue Rui cursed.

Xue Yao was in her third year of middle school this year, only two years younger than Xue Rui. At fourteen, she was already 1.7 meters tall.

Although her figure was still slender, with such a beautiful mother, she had a natural advantage. Her delicate features and long, perfectly proportioned limbs clearly marked her as a budding beauty.

At that moment, Xue Yao was wearing shorts and just a black sports bra on top. Her long, beautiful hair was tied back with a hairband, revealing a clear forehead.

But in Xue Rui’s eyes, his little sister had never been beautiful—just a pure, humanoid female T-Rex.

"Um... Bro... I was wrong. How about you kick me to blow off some steam?"

Seeing Xue Rui’s miserable state, Xue Yao felt a strange sense of unease.

Once Xue Rui recovered, it would be her turn to suffer. Better to just surrender now.

"Move!"

Still clutching his crotch, Xue Rui shoved Xue Yao aside with his hip, sat down in front of the computer, and logged into QQ.

He found the chat window with Gu Muxue and enlarged a photo.

In the picture, a woman holding a child was nestled happily against a tall, handsome man.

The child in her arms was, without a doubt, Gu Muxue. The woman was certainly quite attractive.

However, compared to Xue Rui’s mother, she was still a world apart. Their eyes and brows were very similar, but when put together, this woman’s features lacked a certain spark.

Still, judging from the woman’s features in the photo, combined with the looks of the handsome man beside her, it was certainly possible for them to have a goddess-level daughter like Gu Muxue.

"Hiss... What a coincidence," Xue Rui muttered.

From her appearance, he could tell that this was indeed Gu Muxue’s mother.

What caught Xue Rui’s attention the most was Gu Muxue’s father.

What sharp, sword-like brows and star-bright eyes. He looked like a white-robed swordsman who had stepped right out of a painting.

Xue Rui quickly typed the three digits "886" on the keyboard and logged off QQ.

With his doubts dispelled, it was now time to settle the score for the kick Xue Yao had given him earlier.

Xue Rui let out a cold laugh and picked up a small teddy bear from Xue Yao’s bed.

"Don’t run if you’ve got the guts!" Xue Rui shouted, raising the doll to throw it.

In any case, he had to make Xue Yao realize her mistake.

"I don’t have any guts!" Xue Yao yelled as she fled in disarray.

...

After a round of roughhousing, Xue Rui lay on the bed, panting heavily.

Looking at Xue Yao’s height, something suddenly occurred to Xue Rui.

"Yaoyao, how tall are you now?" Xue Rui asked.

"172 centimeters. Why?"

Xue Yao had a popsicle in her mouth as she decorated her cringey, alternative-style QQ Space.

Xue Rui walked over, pulled Xue Yao to her feet, and looked her up and down.

Xue Yao subconsciously crossed her arms over her chest.

"Stop covering up. There’s nothing there," Xue Rui sneered, pulling her arms down.

"You! I’ll have them in a few years," Xue Yao bit out, doing her best to restrain her right leg.

"Not even in a few years," Xue Rui said with a wave of his hand. He had, after all, returned from the future.

In that future, Xue Yao was nearly thirty and still waiting for her "second puberty."

The corners of Xue Rui’s mouth curled up. ’Yaoyao is about the same height as Lin Ruoxi, and their shoulder widths are pretty similar, too,’ he thought.

In other words, their clothes would be interchangeable.

That silly girl, Lin Ruoxi, would never bring herself to buy new clothes. When Xue Rui helped her move her luggage, he saw she only had a few school uniforms and some ill-fitting outfits.

Those were all hand-me-downs from the villagers, but not many of the village women were even 1.6 meters tall, so nothing fit Lin Ruoxi properly.

But now, weren’t Xue Yao’s clothes the perfect solution?

Lin Ruoxi probably wouldn’t accept new clothes, but what about old clothes that were going to be thrown out anyway?

Secondhand clothes were the perfect gift for Lin Ruoxi. And since they were his sister’s clothes, it was even more reasonable.

As for whether there were any spare clothes?

That didn’t matter. If there weren’t any secondhand clothes, he could just "create" some.

Xue Yao felt like she was being cursed. Her eyes darted around, and she put on a deliberately regretful expression. "Bro, don’t even think about it. It’s impossible between us."

Xue Rui’s smile froze on his face, his eyes filled with utter disgust. "I’d date a female T-Rex before I’d date you."