Limited Edition for Second Sister, Relationship... Thawing

"I got it, Mom. Leave this to me. I'll look into it discreetly later."

Cao Cheng nodded.

Ren's mother was currently in no position to handle it herself, otherwise she would have taken care of it already.

She had previously tried probing Second Sister indirectly, but clearly, nothing useful came out of it.

Ren's mother said, "Just put a little thought into it. Also, you should settle your own matters soon—you're not getting any younger."

"..."

Seriously?

Had she reached that age where even Ren's mother was starting to nag about marriage?

Cao Cheng chuckled. "I’ve got this under control. If all goes well, I’ll be married next year."

"Next year?"

Ren's mother knew about Cao Cheng and Tang Xin.

Once, during a smoke break, Old Cao and Cao Cheng had casually mentioned that he had a girlfriend.

Old Cao had been quite pleased at the time, thinking his son was following in his footsteps.

But Old Cao hadn’t taken it too seriously, assuming that if Cao Cheng was truly like him, he wouldn’t settle down so quickly—probably playing around for years, even decades...

After all, that’s how Old Cao had lived, only stabilizing in the past couple of years.

Ren's mother had caught wind of it too.

"So soon?" Ren's mother was surprised. Cao Cheng was the youngest in the family, yet he was ahead of the others.

"Mhm." Cao Cheng didn’t elaborate further.

A flicker of emotion passed through Ren's mother’s eyes—whether joy or worry, it was hard to tell.

She didn’t press the topic any further.

At dinner.

The whole family was back, including Second Sister, who hadn’t been handling any major cases lately. Ordinary cases weren’t much of a challenge for her.

Especially now, with society improving, technology advancing, and surveillance cameras everywhere, solving cases had become much faster.

Smaller cities might still lag behind, but in a metropolis like Zhonghai, criminals had nowhere to hide.

Second Sister’s job had gradually become a bit easier.

The family enjoyed a warm, lively meal together.

During dinner, Cao Cheng’s gaze drifted toward Second Sister—subtly, yet deliberately.

And sure enough, something was off.

Resentment?

Was that resentment?

From the briefest flicker in Second Sister’s eyes, Cao Cheng caught a trace of bitterness before it vanished.

The system picked up on the emotional shift too.

Late at night.

In the master bedroom, after Ren's mother had finally managed to lull the little troublemaker to sleep, she turned to Old Cao, exhaustion lining her face.

"Did you know our son is getting married?"

"..."

Old Cao’s eyes widened, and he instinctively reached for the belt at his waist. "Such a huge thing, and his own father doesn’t know? That little brat—I’ll go give him a piece of my mind!"

"Get back here," Ren's mother snapped in a hushed tone.

Old Cao instantly retreated.

Ren's mother had just casually revoked a father’s authority.

She then recounted the day’s conversation to Old Cao.

Hearing that the wedding wasn’t until next year, Old Cao scoffed. "He’s got his own ideas now. If he hadn’t slipped it out to you, we probably wouldn’t have known until the wedding day. Doesn’t even consider us important."

"..."

Ren's mother understood.

Old Cao was just stirring the pot.

These two, father and son, couldn’t go a day without butting heads.

Ren's mother sighed. "Before, I thought since The Fourth and our son were so close, maybe there was still a chance..."

She trailed off.

After all, children would find their own paths.

While they would’ve been happy to see Cao Cheng with any of the girls in the family—

Legally and morally, it wouldn’t have been an issue.

But since Cao Cheng had found someone outside, they couldn’t exactly oppose it.

He had his own mind, and he wasn’t a kid anymore. In many ways, he was more of a pillar in the family than Old Cao himself.

"Ah..."

Ren's mother exhaled softly. "It’s just these girls—I don’t know when they’ll settle down. Every time I ask, they say they’re in no hurry. Now Second Sister seems to be showing signs, but it feels more like a breakup."

"I mentioned it to our son today, asked him to look into it."

"What’s he gonna find out?" Old Cao snorted dismissively.

As the resident antagonist, Old Cao would keep clashing with Cao Cheng till the very end.

Even if Cao Cheng became the richest man in the world, it wouldn’t change a thing.

That was just how their dynamic worked.

Seeing Old Cao’s attitude, Ren's mother shook her head with a wry smile. "I don’t know what’s wrong with you two. You bicker face-to-face, you bicker behind each other’s backs—like sworn enemies from a past life."

"Not just the past life. This one, and the next one too!"

"So you’ll still be father and son in the next life?"

"..." Old Cao was about to say "Hell no," but he bit it back. "Whatever. Doesn’t matter to me."

Ren's mother chuckled, shaking her head.

It was clear—these two had a deep bond. They just couldn’t help acting like rivals.

Midnight.

Knock, knock, knock—

A soft rapping sounded at the door.

Cao Cheng stood outside Second Sister’s room, a box at his feet.

The reason for the late visit? Earlier, The Fourth and Third Sister had dropped by his room.

The Fourth, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, came to tease and mess with him.

As for Third Sister, she’d come under the pretense of discussing work, but really, it was just to spend some time with him.

Eldest Sister, with her pride, hadn’t shown up. She preferred being pursued.

She liked it when Cao Cheng sought her out.

All this had delayed him, and by the time they left, it was already midnight. Only then did Cao Cheng quietly slip over to Second Sister’s door.

After a long pause, the door opened.

Second Sister rubbed her eyes, as if she’d just been woken up.

"Do you know what time it is? Can’t you let people sleep?"

Her tone was laced with irritation.

Sure enough.

That same resentment lingered in her eyes.

She was clearly awake but pretended otherwise when opening the door.

Cao Cheng was sharp—he saw right through her act.

But he didn’t call her out. Girls would always be girls, and Second Sister was in the prime of her youth.

A little drama was understandable.

"Move, move..."

Cao Cheng carried the box inside.

Second Sister stared at the vaguely familiar box, her cheeks flushing. She wanted to refuse, but her body instinctively made way, letting him in.

She shut the door behind him, sneaking a glance outside to make sure no one saw.

The guilt was palpable.

"Second Sister, I went all out for you this time."

"I traveled across cities, even hit up the most famous spots in Guangdong. Scoured for the rarest limited editions."

"Especially in Dongguan—thank goodness I went now. Any later, and they’d be gone."

"Here, take a look—"

As Cao Cheng moved to open the box,

Second Sister’s foot came down hard, pinning the lid shut.

Who opens something like that right in front of someone?

Have some decency!

The hem of her nightgown fluttered slightly.

Cao Cheng, crouched low, glanced up—

A flash of red...

Her zodiac year?

Wait, no.

This wasn’t her year.

It was just a glimpse, too quick to make out anything.

But in that moment,

Second Sister’s stance was undeniably domineering.

At a full 175 cm, her towering presence was downright regal.

At the same time,

Cao Cheng could sense her simmering frustration—especially toward him. Every interaction lately had been laced with irritation.

Ever since he’d returned, Second Sister had barely spoken to him.

After piecing together some things Ren's mother had mentioned, Cao Cheng roughly understood the situation.

"So you're jealous, right?"

Second Sister frowned. "What jealousy?"

Due to the information gap, Second Sister didn’t immediately grasp what Cao Cheng meant.

Cao Cheng said, "You’ve been acting like you’re going through a breakup lately, and you’ve been so resentful since I came back. Did Tang Xin tell you about our plans to get married?"

"..."

She got it.

Second Sister understood what Cao Cheng meant.

Her heart skipped a beat.

An inexplicable discomfort washed over her, and she fell into a brief silence.

Cao Cheng stood up and teased, "You are jealous!!!"

"..."

After shouting, he immediately prepared to run away.

Just like before, when he teased her, she would chase after him to hit him—their sibling bond was built on this kind of playful fighting.

But this time.

Second Sister didn’t move.

Cao Cheng had only taken two steps before stopping in place.

The room fell into complete silence.

With Cao Cheng’s sharp hearing, he could even hear a heartbeat from meters away.

The atmosphere was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

...

To be fair, this situation wasn’t really Tang Xin’s fault.

She hadn’t intentionally leaked anything.

Second Sister, Ren Fanxing, had seen Tang Xin’s post on her social media feed.

That’s right.

WeChat (Green Bubble) had been around for a while now, steadily growing, and the five-year bet with Pony Ma had already begun.

As smartphones became more widespread, the number of active WeChat users also increased.

It was now on track to surpass QQ.

The future trend was clear—mobile would replace computers.

And this shift wouldn’t take long. By next year…

Once Apple’s truly revolutionary "kidney-selling phone" (iPhone) debuted, with its slogan of "reinventing the phone," the market would be completely transformed.

Xiaomi would soon follow suit.

But Cao Cheng had no plans to venture into smartphones yet—it wasn’t the right time.

...

Second Sister had noticed Tang Xin’s post—no photos of Cao Cheng, just a simple image of blue skies and white clouds, accompanied by a smile.

It was clear Tang Xin was in a good mood.

The next day, she posted another picture—this time of a wedding dress, both traditional red and Western white.

Tang Xin was semi-publicly announcing the happy news on her feed, asking: "Which is better, traditional or Western style?"

Second Sister was sharp. She instantly understood what it meant.

She didn’t ask about it, didn’t even hit "like." From that moment on, her mood darkened.

Ren's mother noticed it too.

...

The room remained silent for over ten seconds.

Cao Cheng chuckled and shook his head.

Having lived two lives, he never thought he’d still have to deal with matters of the heart.

But someone who had died once knew—none of this really mattered.

Cao Cheng stepped forward slowly.

Then, without warning, he scooped her up in a princess carry.

"You—" Second Sister stiffened, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck to keep from falling.

Cao Cheng smiled. "So what if you’re jealous? But don’t let it ruin your mood. Life’s too short to dwell on things. You haven’t been sleeping well lately—let me give you a massage..."

As he spoke, he walked to the bed.

Gently laying her down, he said, "Stay still. I’ll light some incense—it’ll help you relax."

Ren Fanxing stayed obediently in place.

Not because she wanted to.

But because she felt like she couldn’t move.

Inside, her emotions were a storm—chaotic, conflicting thoughts swirled in her mind.

At this moment, she was frozen.

To resist or not to resist—the battle raged in her head...

Until the scent of incense filled the air.

Only then did she gradually begin to relax.

And in that instant, she made her decision.

Slowly, she closed her eyes.