Lin Ran couldn't be bothered to say anything more to Su Shijie. After Su Shijie decided to go out for one last bout of reckless fun and left his place, Lin Ran could finally settle down and do his homework.

“Brother Ran, Xiaoxue and I are going out. Wanna come?” The bedroom door was shoved open, and Si Qing came in with a giggle.

......

Lin Ruixue tugged on Si Qing's arm, signaling that they should run. Lin Ran's expression was terrifying—scarier than the first time they'd met!

“O-okay, then we won't go! Why are you glaring at us like that?” Si Qing was clearly scared, but she still tried to sound tough.

“Out.” That was the last time Lin Ran spoke to them “nicely.”

“S-sorry, Brother Ran.” Lin Ruixue hurriedly apologized, then quickly pulled Si Qing out with her.

After Lin Ruixue and Si Qing left, Lin Ran let out a heavy breath and picked up his pen again. Damn it, he couldn't focus on his homework at all. He was so annoyed.

They'd barely stepped outside when Si Qing started complaining about Lin Ran's twisted personality and how he changed moods faster than the pages of a book. Then Lin Ran came after them, and Si Qing immediately shut her mouth.

Lin Ran stood in front of them. Lin Ruixue nervously ducked behind Si Qing, who was a little intimidated too, but forced herself to stay calm. “W-what do you want? You're not gonna beat us up, are you?”

“If I wanted to beat you up, I would've done it the first time you knocked on my door. I'm not interested. You're annoying me so much I can't get any homework done, so I'll come with you and buy Lin Ruixue a computer while we're out. Then you won't have to bother me whenever you need to look something up.” Lin Ran's expression was cold. He'd made up his mind: he'd buy them everything they needed so those two girls wouldn't bother him again. As long as he didn't have to hear sudden pounding and shouting at his door, that was good enough.

Lin Ruixue and Si Qing stared at each other. What? Lin Ran hadn't come after them to beat them up? He was going to buy Lin Ruixue a computer? That couldn't be right. There wasn't any thunder or rain today, and the weather was perfect. What was going on?

They were confused, but neither dared ask. They were genuinely afraid Lin Ran might suddenly turn on them and start hitting them. With his twisted personality, there was no telling what he'd do next.

Once they were outside the residential compound, the two girls followed behind Lin Ran.

At first, everything was fine. But after a while, Si Qing couldn't keep her mouth shut.

“Is your brother possessed today? One minute he's all storms and lightning, and the next he's buying you a computer?”

“Don't tell me he's taking us somewhere deserted to beat us up.”

.......

As it turned out, Si Qing's imagination had run wild. Lin Ran had taken them to a computer mall. He'd bought his own computer at one of the stores there.

Most cities had a computer mall like this, and they all seemed to have silently agreed to rip off their customers. Whoever came in, they'd fleece them for all they were worth: a computer that cost two thousand yuan would be sold for four thousand, and one that cost four thousand would go for eight thousand. If you were silly enough to buy one, you'd realize the scam too late—and by then, there'd be no way to get a refund. The staff would have changed by then, guaranteed. The mall might look busy every day, but hardly anyone actually bought anything there, except for clueless people with money to burn or brave souls hoping to get lucky.

The store where Lin Ran had bought his computer was a rip-off too, but it never ripped him off. The reason was that the owner knew Su Shijie. Lin Ran had no idea how Su Shijie had gotten so friendly with the guy. When they'd bought his computer, the owner had quietly taken them aside and recommended genuinely good machines. Whether you wanted one for showing off, studying, gaming, or getting the best value for your money, each one was worth what it cost. Later, when Lin Ran's computer had broken down once or twice because he'd used it improperly, the owner had fixed it for free—all because he was buddies with Su Shijie.

When they arrived at the familiar entrance to the Baijiahui shop, Lin Ran glanced inside. The owner happened to be there.

“Hey, Boss, busy?” Lin Ran walked in and greeted him with a smile.

“What is it? Your computer acting up again?” the owner asked with a smile.

“No, I'm planning to buy another one from you. My little sister's starting high school and needs a computer to look things up. Could you recommend a laptop for studying?” Lin Ran said with a smile, gesturing toward Lin Ruixue and Si Qing.

“What's there to recommend? Here, take a look at the catalog. Just tell me which one you like.” The owner smiled.

Lin Ran smiled, picked up the catalog, and took Lin Ruixue and Si Qing to a small table. He flipped to the page showing the study laptops and handed it to them.

“See which one you like,” Lin Ran said flatly.

“Whoa, Brother Ran, did you get rich?” Si Qing took the catalog without a hint of hesitation and exclaimed. Then she pulled Lin Ruixue over to look. “Look, your brother's loaded! We'd be fools not to make him treat us.”

But neither girl knew anything about computers—not even Si Qing. Her family had a computer, but she had to fight her younger brother for a turn. When she got it, she used it to read gossip. She'd never bother learning about computers. Lin Ruixue knew even less; Lin Ran had only just bought her a phone, so it was impressive enough that she knew what a computer was.

The two girls looked for ages, but still couldn't decide which one to pick. They couldn't understand the specifications at all.

Lin Ran had a headache.

“Wow, this pink one is so pretty!”

“This white one's nice too. Xiaoxue, don't you like white? What about this one? Hmm, it's so expensive—over four thousand yuan! Wow, that's crazy expensive.”

“This black one costs 5,200 yuan? Oh my god, it's so ugly and still that expensive!”

They'd been looking all this time, and all they cared about was the color? Good grief.

But Lin Ran noticed that Lin Ruixue kept looking at the white study laptop priced at 4,333 yuan. Its specs were pretty good. Lin Ran wasn't an expert, but an i5 dual-core processor and 2 GB of video memory were impressive for a study laptop. It could handle more than studying—even regular games would run fine.

After looking for a long time, Lin Ruixue ended up pointing at the worst study laptop on the page. It was listed at 2,500 yuan and came in black, white, or red. Its specs were downright awful.

Lin Ran smacked his lips but didn't say anything. He picked up the catalog and went to find the owner.

The owner pursed his lips and told Lin Ran he'd go get the computer from the storeroom.

Lin Ran glanced back at Lin Ruixue and Si Qing. Si Qing was still quietly complaining to Lin Ruixue about him, while Lin Ruixue was looking at the laptop stickers hanging on a nearby rack. Among all those stickers, one yellow Pikachu was grinning like crazy. Lin Ran smacked his lips.

The owner came back with the computer and let Lin Ran inspect it. Then he said that since Lin Ran was Su Shijie's friend, he naturally had to throw in some freebies. Lin Ran wasn't interested in the keyboard, mouse, backpack, or any of the other stuff.

“I don't need any of that. I've got it at home. No need for freebies—why don't you give me some stickers instead?” Lin Ran said with a smile.

“Sure. Just take whichever ones you like.” The owner cheerfully put the free gifts away.

In the end, they left the computer mall with the new laptop and ten Pikachu stickers.

Walking ahead of them, Lin Ran vaguely heard Si Qing say, “I've figured it out—your brother's a total tsundere. Just look at him. He acts all cold, but deep down he's actually really nice. He got you all those Pikachu stickers, too. Tsk, tsk. Ask him later if he needs another little sister!”

Lin Ran felt helpless. It wasn't like he was deliberately keeping an eye on Lin Ruixue. She just couldn't hide what she liked. If she liked something, she looked at it, but she wouldn't say a word. She clearly liked the 4,300-yuan model, yet insisted on pointing at the 2,500-yuan one. Lin Ran really couldn't stand that computer. It'd be obsolete before long, so buying it would just waste money. They might as well get a better one that would last longer. And as for the stickers, anyone who'd bought a computer knew the keyboard and mouse the owner gave away were garbage. They'd just take up space at home. Stickers were more useful.

After buying the computer, the two girls stopped talking about going out. As soon as they got home, they dragged Lin Ran over to teach them how to use it.

Lin Ran took out an old mouse he'd replaced. It wasn't broken; he'd just gotten a new one.

He taught them in the living room. Using a computer was easy. For beginners like them, all they needed to remember was not to click on pop-up ads. The basic stuff was simple: how to turn it on, download things, run an antivirus scan, and clean out junk files.

Si Qing shouted in amazement the whole time, while Lin Ruixue studied everything very seriously.

After the lesson, Lin Ran went back to his room and picked up his pen. All right, he still couldn't focus. He lay on the bed and played on his phone for a while, but soon got bored. So he slung on his backpack, packed a change of clothes and his membership card, and headed to the gym.

“I'm heading out. Stay here, and if you want to go out, let me know. Don't open the door to strangers while I'm gone. If you leave, remember to take your keys and lock the door behind you.” Lin Ran reminded them before leaving.

After Lin Ran left.

“See? I told you he's a total tsundere. Ah, I'm so jealous! A Brother Ran just fell out of the sky for you, and he's so nice to you. Aah, I'm dying of envy!” Si Qing grumbled as she rolled around on Lin Ruixue's bed. She'd always wanted a brother like that, but never had one. Meanwhile, Lin Ruixue had gotten absurdly lucky and gained the wonderful big brother she'd always dreamed of.

“Then ask Brother Ran if he wants you,” Lin Ruixue said with a happy smile. Lin Ran could be scary and he was always picking on her, but he really was a good person. She didn't feel as afraid of him anymore.

“I'm scared he'll beat me up. You ask him for me. He's so nice to you, he definitely won't hit you!” Si Qing said with a grin, her eyes darting around.

“I don't dare. You're the one who wants to be his sister, so you go ask him yourself.” Lin Ruixue shook her head.

Si Qing muttered a few things under her breath, then commandeered the computer.