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Chapter 50 Showdown

Soon, Jiang Yu returned in two trips, carrying three full trays.

He ordered three family buckets.

When we were taking orders, the staff looked both shocked and calm when they saw the scene.

The shock comes from the fact that it's indeed rare for one person to order three family buckets.

They remained calm because they had seen this kind of scene before—these store employees had already been shocked once on Sunday when the little girl showed off an entire family bucket at lightning speed.

It's just that "one" has become "three," but it's essentially the same thing.

Jiang Yu sat down and pushed the tray toward Jiang Ning.

"Eat."

Jiang Ning swallowed hard, but didn't act immediately.

She looked up at Jiang Yu cautiously and asked, "Brother, aren't you going to eat?"

"I'll eat too."

Jiang Yu picked up a cup of mashed potatoes, symbolically scooped out a spoonful, and put it in his mouth.

Although he wasn't hungry, he felt he still needed to get some basic nutrition to avoid developing low blood sugar.

Seeing that Jiang Yu wasn't behaving so strangely, Jiang Ning felt relieved.

She reached out and grabbed a piece of crispy chicken, but didn't wolf it down like last time.

Instead, he ate it slowly and methodically.

She ate while secretly glancing at Jiang Yu.

It looked like a wary kitten, constantly watching out for any disturbances even with delicious food right in front of it.

Jiang Yu noticed that she seemed preoccupied, so he started a conversation to make conversation.

"Why are you out alone after school? Did you have a fight with your friends?"

"No, I don't have any friends. I'm usually alone..." Jiang Ning's eyes looked somewhat disappointed.

Remembering that her brother's memory hadn't returned and he didn't know about her situation, she quickly added a sentence.

"I don't get along with anyone..."

"It's fine if we can't get along," Jiang Yu said casually.

"There's no need to become too close to your classmates. Classmates are just like that; after graduation, nobody will know anyone. So it's better to save time and not waste it on them."

"Remember, if you can't get along with everyone, that's their problem, not yours."

"Just be yourself. It doesn't matter what others think of you. You're not eating their rice anyway, so you don't need to pay them any attention."

Jiang Ning was stunned for a moment.

The chicken leg in her hand froze in mid-air, oil dripping from between her fingers, but she didn't even notice.

In the past, her brother would always tell her to get along well with her classmates.

Because she was different from others, her brother asked her to act like an ordinary person as much as possible and not to seem too out of place.

My brother once said: The safest way in this world is to blend in with the crowd, mingle with ordinary people, and not attract anyone's attention.

But now…

"Brother" allows her to not care about other people's opinions and just be herself.

She felt a surge of emotion.

But at the same time, a complex mix of emotions welled up within me.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Jiang Yu felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze.

"N-nothing..." Jiang Ning lowered her head and continued to gnaw on the chicken leg.

Jiang Yu noticed that Jiang Ning seemed distant, as if she was always on guard against him…

Then I thought back to my "normal" persona...

I shouldn't have said such extreme things.

How do you talk to a 12-year-old about how to get along with classmates?

Isn't this a bit too abrupt?

Judging from the chat logs and photos on his phone, the "normal" him should be a gentle, kind, loving person who speaks and acts appropriately.

The things he just said sounded like something a disgruntled young man would say.

"Do you think I'm talking strangely?" Jiang Yu asked tentatively with a smile.

Jiang Ning nodded, but then quickly shook her head.

She didn't know what to say.

It's strange...

But those words sound very uncomfortable.

It's not surprising...

But this is definitely not my brother's usual style.

Jiang Yu sighed.

Although he did a lot of ideological work on the way here.

For example, how to play the role of an older brother well in the future...

For example, never give yourself away and pretend everything is normal...

But after only two minutes of chatting with Jiang Ning, he was already starting to lose control.

Is this really the right thing to do?

Is it really right for me to pretend I'm not sick and deceive Jiang Ning into acting like before?

Even if Jiang Ning really believed it…

How long am I supposed to keep acting?

If I never regain my memories, am I supposed to act for the rest of my life?

After much deliberation, Jiang Yu decided to confront Jiang Ning.

This is good for everyone.

Jiang Yu dislikes acting the most.

Or rather... he dislikes people-pleasing personalities.

He has been playing the role of "older brother" for the past two days.

In his eyes, this was a way of trying to please others.

Making friends with the neighbors, greeting a bunch of annoying people—it was all to keep Jiang Ning calm…

Taking her to school, picking her up from school, taking her to KFC...

He has to think about how he would normally do something before acting out a role, and then act according to that template.

Although my sister is no stranger, this kind of life is too tiring.

It's more tiring than going to school.

Moreover, he felt that he hadn't done a good job of pretending.

Although Jiang Ning didn't say it, she must have already sensed that something was wrong.

Rather than letting her keep guessing and worrying, it's better to just say it clearly.

Just admit it openly and honestly, and that's it.

Moreover, Jiang Ning certainly wouldn't want to go back to the mental hospital and leave her alone.

It's better to explain things clearly to her to avoid any further mistakes.

At least the brother and sister are on the same side.

What if Zhang Guiqin finds out about his "illness" one day...

Old Deng would definitely notify the mental hospital to send someone immediately.

At that point, there won't even be a chance to explain.

Besides…

The only thing left on the memo to do is the parent-teacher meeting on Friday.

What happens after the parent-teacher meeting?

What about winter break? What about next year?

He's like an NPC completing a quest now; the memo is his quest.

Without the memo, he would have no idea what to do.

Thinking of this, Jiang Yu put down his spoon.

He placed his hands on the table, looked at the little girl in front of him who was eating a chicken leg with her head down, and remained silent for a few seconds.

"I have something to tell you."

Hearing Jiang Yu's serious tone, Jiang Ning's expression also became very solemn.

Oh no...

Are you sending me away?

I knew taking me to eat three family buckets of KFC wasn't a good thing...

Waaah…

I need to eat right away!

Jiang Ning, with a mournful little face, sped up the cooking process.

"Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you..." Jiang Yu couldn't help but laugh.

"Brother... what do you want to tell me..." Jiang Ning asked nervously while eating.

What I want to tell you is…

"Actually, I know I've had another episode," Jiang Yu said calmly.

Jiang Ning's eyes widened, and the chicken leg in her mouth fell onto the table.

Ignoring her shock, Jiang Yu continued to tell her what he wanted to say.

"I'm sorry you've had to go through all this trouble these past few days."

"You must be feeling really bad, right?"

"She kept enduring it, pretending nothing had happened, and playing along with my act..."

"You also need to figure out a way to prevent the neighborhood committee from finding out about me."

"Sigh, I only realized today that I shouldn't be doing this anymore."

He paused, his tone becoming more serious.

"But you must believe me, I won't pretend to be crazy when I know you're my sister."

"I really don't know anything anymore."

"I remember seeing you for the first time on Sunday afternoon when you came out of the bathroom."

"I don't remember anything from before."

"I don't know how to describe that feeling..."

"I have no recollection of anything about growing up together, having a close sibling relationship, or visiting me every day while I was in the hospital."

At this point, Jiang Yu looked intently into Jiang Ning's eyes.

"I'm sorry, it's my fault for not taking good care of you as your older brother."

"If you want to hit me, yell at me to vent your anger, or order a family bucket of coffee or something, that's fine with me."

"Even though I still can't remember anything about you..."

"But don't worry."

"From now on, I will no longer treat you as a stranger."