My sister, whom I raised, has turned evil after faking her death for three years.

After dinner, Su Qing tidied up the takeout boxes and glanced out the window.

Before it was completely dark, the streetlights in the neighborhood were already on, their warm yellow light filtering through the branches of the camphor trees below, casting dappled patterns of light on the walkway.

A cluster of colorful amusement park rides can be vaguely seen in the distance.

Su Qing wiped her hands, turned to look at Jiang Ran sitting on the sofa holding a rabbit: "Come on, let's go downstairs for a walk and digest a bit."

Jiang Ran slid off the sofa, placed the rabbit neatly against the armrest, and jogged to the door to change her shoes.

She was already very skilled at wearing those bunny ear slippers; she could slip them on with a single push.

The park in the neighborhood isn't big, but it has everything you need.

A combination slide, several rocking horses, a row of swings, and a small climbing area with a soft rubber floor.

There weren't many people at this time; only a few parents were playing with their children.

A little girl with pigtails was swinging high on a swing, while her mother stood beside her, scrolling through her phone and glancing up every now and then.

Over at the climbing area, a little boy wearing glasses was climbing up the rope net by himself, while his father stood below with his arms outstretched, seemingly protecting him.

Su Qing held Jiang Ran's hand and walked slowly along the path.

The evening breeze was gentle, carrying a hint of sweet osmanthus fragrance, and Jiang Ran's skirt swayed gently in the wind.

Her steps were much lighter than in the days immediately after she was discharged from the hospital. Although she was still clutching Su Qing's clothes with one hand, it was no longer the tense grip that seemed ready to pull back at any moment.

Then they saw a little boy dash out diagonally from the lawn to their right.

Su Qing first heard a series of pattering footsteps, followed by a round figure that flew past her and tripped precisely at the seam of the plastic mat.

With a thud, he fell forward and landed hard on the ground.

The fall was quite bouncy; Su Qing even saw him bounce once on the ground.

He was a chubby little boy wearing a green T-shirt with a cartoon dinosaur printed on it, and his two chubby little legs were showing below his athletic shorts.

He lay on the ground, stunned for a second, probably not yet realizing what had happened.

Su Qing looked around and saw that no adults were walking in this direction.

She released Jiang Ran's hand, walked over, bent down, and reached out to support the little boy's arm, helping him up.

"Are you alright? Where did you hurt yourself?"

The little boy looked up at her.

The streetlight shone directly on Su Qing's face, making her already beautiful face even more gentle. In addition, her movements as she helped the person were light and steady, and her voice was low, just like the gentle older sister on TV.

The little boy's eyes visibly lit up, and the pain from his fall was instantly replaced by a stronger emotion.

He brushed the dust off his knees, puffed out his chest, and said in a loud voice that didn't sound like he'd just fallen, "It's okay! I'm not hurt! I'm a man!"

  This book is first published on 101 Reading Network, 2006.com, which offers a fantastic reading experience with error-free and orderly chapters.

Seeing that he was indeed unharmed, Su Qing nodded and was about to turn around to take Jiang Ran's hand.

The little boy grabbed her sleeve: "Sister, what's your name? My name is Cheng Xiaoyu! I'm seven years old! I'm in first grade! I go to Sunshine Elementary School! Sister, are you new here? I've never seen you before!"

He spoke a string of words with great energy and at a speed so fast it sounded like a self-introduction he had memorized beforehand.

Su Qing was stunned for a second by this barrage of attacks.

She looked down at the chubby boy named Cheng Xiaoyu, who was looking up at her with bright, undisguised affection in his eyes.

She thought to herself, "This little guy is quite outgoing, perfect..." She glanced back at Jiang Ran, who was standing a few steps away.

Jiang Ran was still standing there, holding the ginkgo leaf that Su Qing had just picked up for her, her eyes fixed on this side, or more precisely, on the hand that Cheng Xiaoyu was using to tug at Su Qing's sleeve.

Su Qing didn't notice the change in Jiang Ran's expression; her attention was completely focused on "making friends."

Jiang Ran needs to interact with people her own age. The psychologist at the hospital specifically mentioned to her that moderate peer social interaction would help her recovery.

This chubby boy named Cheng Xiaoyu seems to have an outgoing personality, and he's the same age as Jiang Ran. He's practically a perfect social practice partner sent from heaven.

"Cheng Xiaoyu, right?" Su Qing bent down and pointed to Jiang Ran behind her with her free hand.

"This is my younger sister, Jiang Ran, she's also seven years old. Would you like to play with her?"

Cheng Xiaoyu looked in the direction she was pointing and saw Jiang Ran standing under the streetlight, wearing a floral dress.

He nodded generously, "Okay!" Then he ran up to Jiang Ran, held out his hand, grinned, revealing a missing front tooth, and said, "My name is Cheng Xiaoyu! I'm in first grade! What grade are you in?"

Jiang Ran did not answer.

Her gaze swept across Cheng Xiaoyu's face, then over his shoulder, and landed back on Su Qing.

Su Qing was standing a few steps away, watching them with an expression that resembled anticipation.

Jiang Ran took a step, walked around Cheng Xiaoyu and his outstretched hand, and went straight to Su Qing.

Then she stretched out both hands and hugged Su Qing's arm tightly, hanging all her weight on it, her face pressed against Su Qing's upper arm, her lips pursed into a thin line.

She looked up at Su Qing, her dark eyes filled with an emotion she had never seen on Jiang Ran's face before.

"My sister is mine."

The voice wasn't loud, but every word was pronounced clearly. The tone wasn't coquettish or tantrum-like, but rather a very serious and earnest declaration.

Cheng Xiaoyu's hand was still outstretched in mid-air. He blinked, a little confused, and asked, "I know she's your sister?"

Jiang Ran ignored him and hugged Su Qing's arm even tighter.

Su Qing looked down at the little guy hanging on her arm, paused for a moment, and then realized what was going on.

She didn't pull her hand away, nor did she say anything like "Don't be so impolite."

She gently patted Jiang Ran's head with her other hand, her voice soft: "Of course it's yours."

Jiang Ran looked up at her, her expression relaxing slightly, but she still didn't loosen her grip on her arm.

Su Qing bent down to meet her gaze: "But Xiao Ran also needs to make new friends. Xiao Yu is a really nice guy; he didn't even cry after falling. Xiao Ran, why don't you get to know him?"

Jiang Ran pursed her lips, glanced at Su Qing, then turned to look at Cheng Xiaoyu, who was standing there scratching his head, and remained silent for several seconds.

Then she slowly released Su Qing's arm, turned around, and nodded very slightly to Cheng Xiaoyu.

The nod was only about 15 degrees; if Su Qing hadn't been watching closely, she probably wouldn't have noticed it at all.

But for a child who, just a week ago, was huddled in a corner of the balcony and made no eye contact with anyone, this is already a leap forward in social development.