Man Man

Seeing Tang Qinqin's scrunched-up little face, Lin Yu nodded in satisfaction.

Sitting down on the chair by the hospital bed, Lin Yu rummaged through the bedside cabinet and pulled out a clean porcelain bowl.

He opened the thermal container and poured the golden chicken soup into the bowl, then handed it to Tang Qinqin with a smile, saying softly:

"Here."

"Drink it while it's hot."

"I heard you've loved chicken soup since you were little, especially the kind with astragalus."

"I specially asked the chef to add an extra ten yuan's worth of astragalus for you."

"Come on."

"Drink it while it's still warm."

Hearing Lin Yu's words that struck right at her weak spot, Tang Qinqin instantly realized who had betrayed her. She whipped her head around to glare at her sister, her face full of grievance, as if accusing her—how could you side with an outsider to bully me?

Tang Manman couldn't bear the weight of her sister's reproachful gaze. She turned her face away, leaving Tang Qinqin with a barely suppressed smirk, as if to say, "This has nothing to do with me."

Realizing her sister had already defected and was no longer a reliable ally, Tang Qinqin turned back to face the obviously doctored chicken soup, reeking of bean paste. Pouting angrily, she declared:

"I won't drink it!"

Then she pulled the covers over her head, hiding entirely under the blanket to escape the horrifying soup.

Lin Yu's smile didn't waver. He placed the soup on the bedside table, leaned down close to the slightly bulging blanket, and asked gently:

"Not drinking it?"

"If you don’t, I’ll have to tell your mom about you sneaking around with your phone."

"Such a cute little sister like you surely wouldn’t want your mom finding out about that, would you?"

"Otherwise, your phone might get confiscated."

"And then you’d have nothing to do all day but read books and study. How boring~"

???

Why am I talking like this again?

...

...Whatever.

As long as it works!

The tactic clearly worked. Almost immediately after Lin Yu finished speaking, Tang Qinqin emerged from under the blanket, her face as bitter as a gourd.

Holding onto one last sliver of hope, she glanced at her sister, only to find her still feigning indifference. Resigned to her fate, Tang Qinqin gave up resisting.

Lin Yu handed her the soup with satisfaction, watching as she frowned deeply and took tiny, reluctant sips. Suddenly softening, he said gently:

"Alright."

"Drink up."

"The soup is for you, and the mango cake is yours too."

"Finish the soup, and then you can have the cake."

Tang Qinqin looked up, her youthful face still etched with misery.

"Can I skip the soup and just eat the mango cake?"

Lin Yu smiled sweetly.

"Of course not."

"Drink it now."

"Or I’ll tell your mom you’ve been playing on your phone all day!"

"And she’ll take it away!"

Tang Qinqin’s pink lower lip jutted out even further, her displeasure evident.

Whether it was the irresistible lure of the mango cake or the realization that there was no escaping today’s ordeal, she stopped sipping the soup hesitantly. Instead, she screwed up her face and downed the entire bowl in one go.

"Here, have another bowl."

Lin Yu took the empty bowl from her and refilled it.

Tang Qinqin panicked and protested:

"I only ever drink one bowl!"

Lin Yu calmly handed her the refilled bowl and said with a smile:

"That’s on normal days."

"But today, I’ve got leverage over you."

"Drink up."

Tang Qinqin scowled, eyeing the remaining half-bucket of soup with dread, refusing to take another sip.

"Really not drinking?"

Lin Yu blinked innocently.

Tang Qinqin stayed silent, shaking her head firmly.

"Fine then."

Lin Yu sighed and set the soup aside on the bedside table.

"Actually, there’s something else I wanted to ask you."

"Since you don’t want to drink, let’s move on to the questions."

"Fir—"

Before he could even finish the first word, Tang Qinqin’s confusion turned to horror. She grabbed his hand and blurted:

"I’ll drink!"

"I’ll drink it!"

"Huh?"

Lin Yu feigned surprise, playing the considerate role.

"You still want more?"

"Don’t force yourself if you don’t like it."

Tang Qinqin forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and said through gritted teeth:

"It’s fine. I love it."

"Just give it to me."

"Alright then."

Having achieved his goal, Lin Yu handed her the soup again. Watching her hesitate, he added helpfully:

"Don’t worry."

"Drink up."

"No need to savor it so much."

"I’ll bring you a whole bucket every time I visit from now on."

"Wha—?!"

Tang Qinqin’s mouth fell open, her face now even more bitter than before.

Once she had finished the soup and was thoroughly waterlogged, Lin Yu leisurely opened the mango cake box.

"Wait, don’t open it yet!"

Tang Qinqin quickly stopped him.

"I’m too full right now. Let me open it myself when I’m ready to eat."

Lin Yu paused, turning to her in mock surprise.

"You still want to eat it?"

"You drank all the soup by yourself, and now you’re hogging the mango cake too?"

"How selfish can you be?"

"Your sister and I haven’t even had lunch yet!"

Tang Qinqin froze for a second before exploding in outrage at his blatant twisting of the truth.

"You forced me to drink the soup!"

"And you said I could only have the cake after finishing it!"

"How can you go back on your word?!"

Lin Yu looked utterly baffled.

"Did I say that?"

"Wasn’t it you who claimed you loved the soup and gulped it all down without leaving any for us?"

Watching him flip the script so shamelessly, Tang Qinqin was almost amused.

But thankfully, she kept her cool and turned to her sister, who had been spectating the whole time, her confidence soaring.

Hmph!

I’ve got my sister as a witness!

No way you’re wriggling out of this!

"Sis!"

"Tell him—didn’t Lin Yu force me to drink the soup?"

"And didn’t he promise I’d get the mango cake after?"

At the same time, Lin Yu also turned to Tang Manman, his face the picture of innocence.

"Huh?"

"Did I say that?"

"Manman?"