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Chapter 53 Let me show you some fine chaff

Even after returning home, Jiang Ning showed no signs of stopping.

She was like a tireless smart speaker, constantly following Jiang Yu around and talking about the past.

Jiang Yu went to the restroom to wash his hands, and she leaned against the door frame and continued talking.

Jiang Yu went to the kitchen to get water, and she moved a small stool to sit next to him and continued talking.

Jiang Yu sat on the sofa playing on his phone, while she sat cross-legged at the other end of the sofa, propping her cheeks up with her hands and continuing to talk.

"Brother, do you remember the little river behind where we used to live?"

"There are lots of tadpoles there in the summer; you took me there to catch them."

"Later, you kept the tadpoles you caught in a basin of water, and they all died the next day."

"You lied to me and said they didn't die, they just turned into frogs and jumped away."

"I actually believed it at the time, and then I spent the whole day looking for frogs in your room."

"Hahaha!"

Jiang Ning laughed heartily, but by the end she started coughing.

Jiang Yu sat on the sofa watching her, thinking that this little one had a pretty low threshold for laughter.

In the next few hours...

Jiang Ning recounted all the wonderful memories the two shared as siblings.

Jiang Yu was very cooperative at first.

Let this "little speaker" chatter on and on in front of me.

But as I listened, I felt like taking out her battery.

He forced himself to put on an act that suggested, "So our relationship was that good."

When you should be surprised, widen your eyes; when you should be moved, remain silent for a few seconds and then pat Jiang Ning on the head.

In fact, he didn't resonate with any of the things Jiang Ning talked about.

Kindness, thoughtfulness, compassion, thriftiness, caring nature...

He has absolutely nothing to do with these words, okay?

The "normal older brother" that Jiang Ning described was exactly the kind of person he hated most in his life.

Good-tempered, warm-hearted, sensible, always considerate of others, and would rather suffer a loss himself than let others feel uncomfortable.

Isn't this just a pure NPC?

I was originally a saintly NPC living bodhisattva?

Jiang Yu found this fact even harder to accept than the fact that he had developed a mental illness.

After listening for another twenty minutes…

"Go do your homework," Jiang Yu couldn't help but interrupt.

"what?"

Jiang Ning paused for a moment, then slapped her forehead.

"Oh no, I forgot to bring my homework..."

"???"

"It's okay, I'll go copy Chen Zihan's work earlier tomorrow."

"..."

Jiang Yu was not surprised.

He knew that his sister's academic performance was not ideal.

He didn't expect his sister to succeed on this winding path of learning.

Forget about homework, even forgetting to bring her schoolbag back is a given.

But as the "older brother," I still need to give him some encouragement.

"Although, you still need to study hard. Whether our Jiang family's ancestral graves will be blessed with good fortune depends on you from now on."

After Jiang Yu finished speaking, he felt that something was not quite right.

He and Jiang Ning are not related by blood.

She no longer needed to shoulder the heavy responsibility of bringing glory to her ancestors.

But why does his sister have the surname Jiang?

Was this Old Tan's idea?

"Oh right, who named you Jiang Ning? I've been holding back for so long, this name is awful..." Jiang Yu complained.

"you."

"..."

"Brother, you gave me my name. You said you wanted me to be like a lemon, so that others would feel sour when they see me, sour about my happiness..." Jiang Ning said weakly.

"All right…"

Jiang Yu felt helpless.

So it had a symbolic meaning?

To make others envious of your own happiness is truly a bizarre thought process.

Is it called Jiang Ning because of lemons?

I feel that "Jiang Meng" would be a better name.

"hiss!"

When the name "Jiang Meng" came out, Jiang Yu suddenly felt a headache.

It's like a toothache that's connected to a nerve, causing a throbbing pain in your temple.

My mind is a mess.

It was as if something that had been dormant for a long time was trying to emerge.

Jiang Meng, Jiang Meng…

Especially the pronunciation of "meng" at the end.

Why does this sound so familiar...?

"Brother, since I didn't bring my homework back, let's watch some TV shows?" Jiang Ning said with a smile, shaking Jiang Yu's arm.

Jiang Yu snapped out of his daze: "Okay, what do you want to pursue?"

Jiang Ning replied without hesitation, "Hmm... let's catch up on the anime we used to watch every day. Maybe you'll regain your memories while watching it?"

"Okay, what anime did we watch before?" Jiang Yu asked, taking out his phone.

"Little hero who fights demons!" Jiang Ning exclaimed, her eyes shining.

Jiang Yu: "?"

"It's an animated series about a group of really smart guys outsmarting and fighting against bad guys. The male lead wears a bandana and his weapon is an umbrella. In the last episode, his bandana gets blown off, and he's actually bald, haha!"

"The male protagonist's companions include a pig-headed creature, a magical girl, and a caveman..."

"There's also a vampire who fights by reciting multiplication tables—it's really interesting!"

"..."

Jiang Yu searched...

There is no such anime as "Demon Slayer" online.

It might be a resource issue.

Many of the cartoons I watched as a child are no longer searchable.

However, judging from Jiang Ning's description...

The plot of this anime... is a bit vague.

When I was a child, I was a "normal" person, and I would watch this with my younger sister.

"No resources available, can't find anything, can you take a look..."

Jiang Yu handed the phone to Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning frowned after discovering that she couldn't find the Demon Slayer Heroes.

"Huh? How could this be? You brought me here last month..."

"It's probably been taken down due to copyright issues. Besides, from your description, this anime doesn't seem very interesting," Jiang Yu couldn't help but complain.

"No, touching the little heroes is really fun!" Jiang Ning retorted.

"That's it? Come on, let me show you something more interesting."

After saying that, Jiang Yu pulled Jiang Ning to sit down next to him.

He opened a compilation of anime he usually liked to watch.

What kind of things are kids watching these days?

We must give this younger sister some fine food.

soon…

The room was filled with all sorts of battle cries.

"Give us your hearts!"

"Jojo, this is my last Ripple, please accept it!"

"Naruto, without a doubt, you are the child of prophecy..."

"Thank you for carrying us for so long, Merry."

"I...I want to stay by Kirito's side forever..."

"Menma, I've found you!"

"Mr. Purgatory did not lose; he did not let anyone sacrifice themselves!"

"Possessed by an evil spirit!"

……

An hour later, Jiang Ning's eyelids were drooping from reading so much.

She secretly glanced at Jiang Yu…

Jiang Yu clenched his fists, his face flushed with excitement and passion, showing no signs of sleepiness.

He had watched these iconic scenes countless times.

But every time I watch it, I still can't help but feel excited.

It was as if he were there.

Jiang Ning withdrew her gaze and sighed silently in her heart.

What exactly is my brother burning with passion?

Do not understand.

Jiang Ning rubbed her eyes and let out a huge yawn.

"Are you sleepy?" Jiang Yu asked from the side.

"Hmm, a little..."

"Then go to sleep, you have school tomorrow," Jiang Yu said, sounding disappointed.

"Oh, you should go to bed early too, bro."

"Um."

Jiang Ning stood up and shuffled towards the restroom in her slippers.

After washing up and returning to my room…

Jiang Ning turned on the desk lamp and took out her diary.

She turned to a new page and picked up her pen.

The pen nib scratched across the paper…

"September 15, Tuesday, Weather: Cloudy, Temperature: Fair."

"Today is a day to remember!"

"My brother actually admitted that he had a relapse!!!"

"I'm so happy! Although it's not a good thing that my brother is having an episode, the fact that he admitted it means he won't send me away! (＾▽＾)"

"I used to be so scared that he would throw me away, but now I'm not afraid anymore, hehe!"

"My brother said he only started getting to know me on Sunday, and he doesn't remember anything from before that."

"I told him a lot about our past, and he listened very attentively, but I knew he didn't actually remember any of it because there was no light in his eyes when he was listening to me."

"But it's okay, take it slow, your brother will get better eventually."

"I'm not in a hurry."

"There's something else that's really puzzling me today."

"It's that one-yuan barbecue place my brother took me to yesterday. All the skewers were one yuan each, and the owner even gave us two free pancakes. I remember it so clearly..."

"Chen Zihan said that barbecue restaurant does not exist."

"At noon, Chen Zihan, a few classmates, and I went to look for that store, but it was really sold out!!!"

"I asked the uncle at the auto repair shop next door where that barbecue restaurant went, and he said there had never been a barbecue restaurant here."

"I don't know what to do..."

"I dare not argue with Chen Zihan and my classmates anymore, because I'm afraid they'll think I'm playing them for a fool."

"I just peeked into the fridge, and the two leftover pancakes from this morning had turned into two starchy sausages..."

"I don't dare tell my brother because he just admitted today that he had a relapse. If I tell him this, will he think I'm sick too? (⊙ˍ⊙)"

"But I really did eat it!!!"

"I still remember the taste of the barbecue, and the owner. He had a bowl cut, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, and spoke with a strong Northeastern accent. He even complimented me on my looks!"

"How could it not exist..."

"I'm so scared."

"I'm not afraid that the store won't exist anymore; I'm afraid that I'll get sick like my brother."

"Because I searched on Chen Zihan's phone today, and I couldn't find the orphanage from her childhood!"

"The name 'Grace Welfare Home' cannot be found."

"I thought they had changed their names, but when I tested my classmates, they all said that my brother and I grew up in a place called the Happy Orphanage..."

"My brother had mentioned the Happiness Orphanage before, and he also said that the director's name is Tan Shilin, not Lan Huixin."

"Is there something wrong with my memory?"

"What if I also get sick and end up in a mental hospital?"

"Then brother will be all alone again!"

"He'll be very sad if he's alone..."

"What I really want to know is whether mental illness is contagious from person to person?"

"Did I catch something from my brother? (T_T)"