My Gloomy Stepsister Has Her Eyes on Me - Chapter 22

When she felt her hand being pulled backward, Zhen Zhu instinctively gripped tighter.

Zhen Min’er couldn’t fall.

Zhen Zhu told herself, Zhen Min’er cannot slip from my grasp.

Because she can’t.

That’s why she held on so tightly.

It was only when Lin Zhi dragged her toward the pond that Zhen Zhu released her grip, allowing herself to be pulled into the water as well.

Absolutely, absolutely not because…

Zhen Min’er couldn’t swim.

Submerged, holding her breath, Zhen Zhu quickly turned to find Zhen Min’er. Having just entered the water, she should still be near the surface—

But to her utter shock, when Zhen Zhu turned, she saw Zhen Min’er sinking rapidly toward the center of the pond.

The water wasn’t even that deep, barely two meters.

Zhen Zhu stared at Zhen Min’er, who lay motionless at the bottom, eyes tightly shut and not struggling at all. She nearly choked with frustration. It’s not even that deep! At least try to reach up!

Her overly long gown hampered her movements. Zhen Zhu kicked off her heels and tore open the slit at her knee. Thankfully, the dress had a slight slit; otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to tear it open at all.

With her legs freed, Zhen Zhu kicked her way through the water and immediately grabbed the soft body—

Ice-cold.

At the same moment, thin trails of bl00d began to swirl through the crystal-clear lake water.

Several bold red goldfish swam down to peck at the bl00d trails.

Yes, Zhen Min’er’s hand was injured!

It shouldn’t be exposed to water.

Zhen Zhu quickened her pace, pulling Zhen Min’er to the surface and toward the shallow end of the lake. But as soon as their heads broke the surface, Zhen Zhu realized something was wrong.

The voices were too loud.

“Jining Lan, get these people away from here now!”

“Lin Zh, what do you mean by that? Are you planning to team up with Zhen Zhu to kill Min’er?!”

“Zhen Zhu pushed Min’er in just now, and now you’re—”

“Who pushed her?!” Lin Zhi hadn’t seen exactly what happened, but based on the suspicious circumstances, she was certain Zhen Zhu wouldn’t have pushed Zhen Min’er. Glancing at the crowd closing in, spurred on by Jining Lan’s loud accusations, she truly wondered if Jining Lan had lost his mind. “Shouldn’t you be getting her out of the water first—”

“Zhu’er!”

“Min’er!”

“Someone fell into the water! Help!”

Clear the area? Lin Zhi’s words were cut off by Sang Xiaohua’s shout.

Her cries had already drawn a crowd from the restaurant…

Lin Zh quickly tried to stop her. “Don’t shout!”

Now that Zhen Zhu had fallen into the water, her pure white gown would become completely see-through when she stood up, revealing every curve of her body.

Even though this was the modern era, not ancient times, society was still essentially a giant Edinburgh. Lin Zhi, though dissatisfied, still wanted to protect Zhen Zhu from harm.

Her peach-blossom eyes narrowed as she stepped forward and yanked Jining Lan’s suit jacket off him. “Borrowing this.”

Just in case…

“Lin Zh, help me,” Zhen Zhu said, guiding Zhen Min’er, who was clutching her eyes shut, out of the lake. The water-soaked gown clung to her skin, revealing the curves beneath and the outline of her chest.

Ignoring everything else, Zhen Zhu had initially planned to assess the situation before getting up. But when she patted Zhen Min’er, she realized the girl’s eyes remained tightly shut.

Less than five minutes…

Had she already choked on water?!

Zhen Zhu didn’t hesitate. She immediately called out for help and pulled Zhen Min’er out of the water.

Lin Zh knew Zhen Zhu could swim, but at a banquet with over a hundred guests, Zhen Zhu’s soaked attire would undoubtedly draw unwanted attention. Fortunately—

Lin Zh grabbed the suit jacket Jining Lan had shed and draped it over Zhen Zhu, helping her pull Zhen Min’er ashore.

They laid Zhen Min’er on the lawn. Her eyes remained closed. Zhen Zhu pressed her fingers to the girl’s nostrils… no breath.

“Min’er!”

Stripped down to his white dress shirt, Jining Lan shoved aside the dazed Zhen Zhu and shouted repeatedly, “Get a doctor! Hurry!”

The shout snapped Zhen Zhu out of her shock.

Barefoot, she kicked Jining Lan away, ignoring his furious roar. She pulled Lin Zhi down from where she stood blocking the crowd’s view. “Help me.”

“I’ll perform CPR on her,” Zhen Zhu said.

Only a few minutes had passed—there was still time.

She instructed Lin Zhi to hold Zhen Min’er’s arms down, then recalled her CPR training and pressed down forcefully.

Nothing.

She pressed again.

Still no response.

Biting her lip, Zhen Zhu pressed down a third time, mentally pleading, “The Main Lead can’t just die like this, right?!”

“…I don’t think so,” the System’s childlike voice replied uncertainly. “Could it be that because the Host is saving the Main Lead, the ‘Main Lead always survives’ rule doesn’t apply?”

“That’s it!” the System exclaimed excitedly. “We can do mouth-to-mouth resuscitation!”

“Mouth-to-mouth!” Lin Zhi chimed in simultaneously.

“I’ll do it!” Jining Lan immediately stepped forward, trying to pull Zhen Zhu away.

Zhen Zhu didn’t budge.

She pressed her lips together. Kissing before we’re even together?

Besides, Jining Lan was still engaged to her. If he performed mouth-to-mouth on Zhen Min’er now, where would she save face?

Zhen Zhu pushed Jining Lan aside. “I’ll do it.”

“Host? Why aren’t you letting the Male Lead do it?”

“…If the Main Lead and Female Lead get intimate too early, it’ll deviate from the plot and things will go wrong!”

Zhen Zhu quickly replied to the System’s childlike voice in her mind.

Right, I need to revive Zhen Min’er quickly, or I’ll really take the blame for this!

She closed her eyes, aimed at those pink lips, lowered her head, and tried to ignore their softness as she blew air into them.

Her delicate fingers curled slightly, her palms, soaked in water, were no longer burning but swollen and aching. She gripped the grass beneath her, enveloped in her elder sister’s unique scent.

Zhen Min’er couldn’t resist the lingering aroma. Her pearly teeth parted slightly, no longer clenched tightly, revealing a gap just wide enough for a tongue to slip through.

She lightly licked those red lips once.

Then she sank into the warm breath, her tongue touching something soft, sweet, and familiar—her elder sister’s taste…

“Ugh?!” Zhen Zhu’s eyes widened, and she immediately straightened up.

That soft, jelly-like thing!

It was a little sweet! Could it be—

Zhen Zhu immediately stood up and took two steps back, her face burning. The cold wind helped cool her flushed cheeks, and she met Lin Zhi’s thoughtful gaze. Before Lin Zhi could ask, Zhen Zhu blurted out, “Min’er is awake.”

“Min’er!” Jining Lan rushed over, his eyes fixed on Zhen Min’er’s flushed face and teary eyes. He tightened the suit jacket that Zhen Zhu had hastily dropped around her shoulders.

“Are you alright, Min’er?” Jining Lan reached out to steady her, but Zhen Min’er’s coughing interrupted him.

“Cough, cough, cough—” Zhen Min’er bent over, avoiding Jining Lan’s touch, and looked pitifully at Zhen Zhu. “I’m sorry, Elder Sister…”

“It’s my fault…”

“Just now…”

“Nothing happened just now!” Zhen Zhu blurted out, her mouth moving faster than her brain, her face burning.

“What are you saying?!” Jining Lan roared. “You pushed Min’er into the water! How can you pretend nothing happened?! Is this how a sister should act?!”

“Who pushed Zhen Min’er?” Lin Zhi immediately retorted, stepping forward to shield Zhen Zhu, whose body was nearly half-exposed.

Her gaze couldn’t help but dart to Zhen Min’er’s dress before she turned back to Zhen Zhu and asked, “Zhen Zhu, you wouldn’t…”

“No!” Zhen Zhu’s head was still buzzing, the sweet fragrance lingering in her mouth. She couldn’t focus on anything else, her face flushed as she huffed, “I’m not that crazy!”

“Ahem…” Zhen Min’er pitifully raised her head and chimed in, “It’s not Elder Sister’s fault… It’s my fault…”

“You!” The moment Zhen Min’er spoke, that soft, jelly-like sensation surged from Zhen Zhu’s left brain to her right. She couldn’t bear to hear Zhen Min’er’s voice any longer.

“Shut up!” Zhen Zhu’s voice trembled, her fox-like eyes glistening as she glared at her stepsister, who was still cautiously peering at her with tear-reddened, deer-like eyes.

“Say another word! Just one more word, and I’ll sew your mouth shut!”

“Zhen Zhu.”

The familiar deep voice startled Zhen Zhu, who was stomping her foot in frustration. She straightened her posture, forcibly suppressing the recent incident deep into her mind.

Turning to her father, who was dressed in formal attire, Zhen Zhu regained her composure and nodded calmly. “Father.”

“Zhu’er, go change your clothes and attend Grandfather J’s birthday banquet,” Zhen Hongbo said sternly, his brows furrowed in disapproval. “This is utterly disrespectful. How can you call yourself the Zhen Family’s Eldest Miss acting like this?”

Zhen Zhu looked up at him in shock. “What do you mean, Father?”

“Zhu’er,” Zhen Hongbo said, his gaze direct. “Go change your clothes.” He turned to Sang Xiaohua. “Take Zhu’er to change. This is utterly inappropriate.”

Lin Zh whispered, “Eldest Miss, your clothes are soaked through.”

“You’re such an embarrassment!” Jining Lan hissed through gritted teeth, glaring at Zhen Zhu. “Go change your clothes now!”

At the same time—

The whispers that had been murmuring through the crowd grew louder and more distinct.

“Who knew the Zhen Family’s Eldest Miss had such a figure? Hahaha…”

“Well, this is a treat for us.”

“She may be beautiful, but her character is awful. Pushing her own sister into the water just to win a man’s affection?”

“Is she just desperate for attention? Hahaha…”

“Maybe. Otherwise, why would the Zhen Family’s Eldest Miss keep chasing after Young Master J when the Zhen Family is so much more prestigious than the J Family?”

“I heard Miss Zhen had quite a few boyfriends overseas…”

“No wonder! I always said she had those foxy eyes!”

The buzzing whispers gradually spread through the crowd. Suddenly, a man’s amplified voice boomed across the scene: “Miss Zhen, if Young Master J doesn’t want you, you can marry me! Even though you’ve lost your reputation, I don’t mind!”

Disgusting. Nauseating.

Men were just like that.

Zhen Min’er skillfully used her throat to force another cough. As she’d predicted, she noticed Jining Lan retreating, his expression darkening with contempt as he listened to the jeering voices.

But…

Though she hated others seeing her elder sister’s beautiful body, Elder Sister…

Zhen Min’er covered her twitching lips, forcing herself to cough as she glanced at the trembling figure behind Lin Zhi.

Elder Sister, don’t worry.

Even if you’re mired in mud, Min’er will always be by your side.