Why didn't you tell me earlier that my little sister is still waiting for me?

The ward was filled with the faint scent of disinfectant. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the blinds, casting dappled bands of light across the polished floor. Lan Weiwei lay on the bed, her face still pale, the liquid in the IV dripping slowly, drop by drop. Yang Tao sat in a chair beside the bed, her back straight, her hands tightly gripping the straps of her medical bandage, her knuckles white.

Silence weighed on her chest like a heavy stone. After a long moment, Lan Weiwei's eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze was fixed blankly on the ceiling, as if she hadn't come to her senses. Finally, after a long moment, Lan Weiwei moved. She glanced at Yang Tao, who was sitting on a chair nearby, and then turned to look out the window.

After an unknown amount of time, Lan Weiwei finally spoke. Her voice was hoarse and dry, with a strong nasal tone: "Taozi... I noticed that during those years when you were together, you weren't that happy..."

Yang Tao's body stiffened slightly, but she didn't say anything, just pursed her lips.

Lan Weiwei seemed lost in memories, staring blankly ahead as he muttered, "Because every time we quarreled, he would come to me to complain... Later, he told me... that he had me in his heart, that he liked me, and that he wanted to be with me... He said that being with me was happier than being with you, and that he wanted to be with me forever..."

Yang Tao's breathing became slightly rapid, and her chest heaved, but she still forced herself to remain silent and listen to this cruel truth that had been delayed for many years.

"You know we are sisters, I couldn't possibly agree to him... But as time went on, I felt that he was actually quite good... I was thinking, since he really likes me, and I... I also fell in love with him, why can't we be together?" Lan Weiwei's tears slid down the corners of her eyes, soaking the pillow: "Later, we were together... He told me not to tell you, that... that would hurt you again... I was also quite embarrassed... I didn't know how to tell you, so I never told you..."

She choked and could hardly continue: "I thought at the time that soon there would be a man who would be more suitable for you... Then I would tell you, and you probably wouldn't mind so much... Then we would still be good sisters..."

"Weiwei," Yang Tao finally spoke, her voice low and calm, yet with a suppressed tremor: "You said you two truly love each other, I really have nothing to say. But I just want to ask you one question -"

She turned her head abruptly, her eyes sharp as a knife, piercing Lan Weiwei: "He transferred my savings and overdrew my credit card. Were you involved?"

Lan Weiwei whipped around, shock and disbelief written all over her face. "He transferred your savings? And overdrew your credit card? That's impossible! He told me at the time that he broke up with you because he felt really sorry for you and wanted to give you some compensation... Then he gave you most of his savings, almost a million yuan!"

"One million?" Yang Tao repeated the number, a bitter sneer twitching from the corner of her mouth. That laugh was filled with endless sadness and mockery: "When he left, he took all my savings and overdrew four of my credit cards! He only left me with a car that still has a loan!"

Her voice finally rose uncontrollably, filled with years of pent-up grievance and anger. "I've endured it all these years alone! But do you know what it's like to pay off my debts? Do you know how many jobs I've worked, how many sleepless nights I've pulled, and how many people's faces I've had to pay off all that debt?!"

"Taozi..." Lan Weiwei was completely stunned, her face even paler than before. It was like she was truly getting to know the man who kept saying he loved her for the first time, and it was also like she was seeing for the first time how terrible this scam she was in was. "I really didn't know...he treated you like this...I had no idea...he's treating me like this now..."

The overwhelming guilt and regret overwhelmed her like a tide. She burst into tears and could only apologize repeatedly and palely: "Taozi... I'm sorry... I'm really sorry... I didn't know..."

"Okay, stop talking!" Yang Tao stood up, interrupting Lan Weiwei's tearful apology. Her voice was cold and tired. After saying that, she turned and left!

"Taozi!" Lan Weiwei saw this and hurriedly struggled to sit up, pleading in a tearful voice, "Don't... don't tell my parents..."

Yang Tao paused, without turning back, but tilted her head to the side, and said calmly: "Uncle and aunt are on their way."

Lan Weiwei's face instantly lost all color, and panic welled up in her eyes. She added anxiously, "Then... then don't tell them... Zhuang Yan is... is Li Wei..."

Hearing the name, Yang Tao's body stiffened imperceptibly. She was silent for two seconds before she spoke slowly, with a tone of aloofness and self-mockery, "Don't worry, there are some things I don't want to talk about anymore than you do."

After saying that, she didn't stop, opened the door and walked straight out, closing the door gently, isolating Lan Weiwei's low sobs behind her.

The corridor outside the ward was quiet and empty. Lin Bufan was leaning against the opposite wall, waiting. When he saw Yang Tao coming out, he immediately stood up and went to greet her.

Yang Tao's face looked very bad, with slightly red circles under his eyes, but his eyes showed more of a tiredness of relief and cold clarity.

Lin Bufan didn't ask anything. He just naturally reached out his hand, gently held Yang Tao's somewhat cold fingers, and whispered, "Let's go."

Yang Tao didn't struggle, letting him lead her as they walked side by side towards the hospital exit. Sunlight streamed in through the glass windows at the end of the corridor, stretching their shadows very long.

Arriving at the hospital entrance, the fresh air hit her face. Yang Tao took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, as if to empty the depression in her chest. She turned her head and looked at Lin Bufan, who had been quietly accompanying her. She tried hard to force a smile to show that she was fine, but the corners of her mouth only twitched slightly, and she finally gave up.

Lin Bufan looked at Yang Tao's forced appearance and understood. He held her hand tightly and changed the subject in a relaxed tone: "Are you hungry? Let me take you to eat something. I know a sweet shop that makes really soft red bean paste."

Seeing the obvious concern in Lin Bufan's eyes, Yang Tao felt a slight warmth in her heart, and the tension she had felt finally relaxed. She nodded gently and whispered, "Okay."

The two of them went to the dessert shop and each ordered a bowl of their signature red bean paste. The sweet, rich red bean paste, with a hint of tangerine peel, slid warmly into their stomachs, slightly dispelling the chill in their hearts. Yang Tao ate in small, silent sips, and Lin Bufan quietly accompanied him, occasionally interjecting a few insignificant remarks to lighten the mood.

After finishing the sweet soup, it was already dark. Back in the car, Lin Bufan started the engine, and the warm air blew out gently. Yang Tao leaned back in the passenger seat, looking out the window at the shimmering yet blurry street scene. The car was silent, with only the faint sound of the air conditioner running.

Yang Tao leaned back in the passenger seat, staring out the window at the neon lights passing by, silent for a long time. It wasn't until the car stopped at a long red light that she suddenly turned her head and looked at Lin Bufan, who was concentrating on the road beside her. Her voice was filled with a subtle hint of fatigue and tentativeness: "You... don't you have anything to ask me? About what happened today?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Bufan withdrew his gaze from the front and turned his head to look at Yang Tao. His face was filled with his usual relaxed smile, a little provocative but not infuriating. "What are you asking? Why did your ex-boyfriend become your best friend's current boyfriend, and even run away with the money? If you want to talk about it, I'll clean my ears and be a qualified tree hole. By the way, I'll use my IQ of 250 to help you analyze it and see if I can summarize some life lessons like "On the Self-cultivation of a Scumbag" or "Preventing Fire, Theft, and Best Friends." If you don't want to talk about it," he shrugged, looked forward again, and slowly started with the traffic: "Then I'll just treat it as watching a live version of a relationship mediation show today. Although the plot is a bit melodramatic, the guests are quite good-looking, so it's not a loss."

Yang Tao was left in a state of confusion by these absurd words. Her originally heavy mood was relieved a little. She couldn't help but raise her hand and gently hit Lin Bufan's arm: "You... you are never serious! I'm talking to you seriously!"

"I'm very serious!" Lin Bufan said innocently, "My attitude is very upright! I fully respect the wishes of the parties involved and never force gossip. This is the basic quality of a good boyfriend in the new era... Oh no, it's the basic quality of a good man!"

"Bah! Whose boyfriend are you?" Yang Tao spat, her cheeks flushed, but the corners of her tense mouth curled up slightly. She took a deep breath, and as if making up her mind, she recounted to Lin Bufan everything Lan Weiwei had said to her in the hospital today, along with how Li Wei (also known as Zhuang Yan) had deceived her, embezzled her savings, and overdrawn her credit card. By the end, her voice was calm, but her clenched fists betrayed the turmoil within her.

After hearing the whole story, Lin Bufan just wanted to complain, the two of them just couldn't get along, right?

Seeing that Lin Bufan remained silent after listening to her story, Yang Tao's heart began to falter. She pursed her lips, a hint of uncertainty and a subtle worry in her voice as she asked softly, "Why... aren't you talking?"

Lin Bufan tapped the steering wheel lightly with his fingers, as if he had just come to his senses, and spoke slowly: "I was wondering...how do you and Lan Weiwei, your best friend, work together so well?"

"Cooperation?" Yang Tao was confused by this nonsensical question and frowned in confusion: "What cooperation? What have we cooperated on?"

"You two are such good friends, yet for so many years one of you said nothing, the other asked nothing. If this isn't tacit cooperation, then what is it?" Lin Bufan glanced at Yang Tao, his tone filled with helplessness. "If only one of you had spoken a few words, you wouldn't have been fooled around by such a low-class scumbag for so many years. This scumbag's tricks are only a few. A smarter one would have seen through him long ago."

Yang Tao opened his mouth to retort but found that he had nothing to say.

Lin Bufan didn't dwell on this matter any further, and instead complained, "But then again, what I least expected was Lan Weiwei. She usually seemed to be very close to you, but what happened? Knowing that Li Wei was your boyfriend, she was still able to stay with him for so many years with a clear conscience? What do you call this? This is called fake sisters! You really can't judge a person by their appearance!

Also, you see how smart she usually is, but what happened? She was fooled by a scumbag using the same old clichéd "I'm not happy with her, I'll be happy with you" trick? Such an unfair IQ tax! I saw her yoga practice, and it only stretched her limbs, not her brain..."

Listening to Lin Bufan's barrage of complaints, Yang Tao initially nodded along, but as Lin Bufan's tone grew increasingly serious, she couldn't help but defend Lan Weiwei again, "Don't talk about her like that... You saw how she looked today. She truly doesn't know the disgusting things Li Wei... and Zhuang Yan did. She was also badly deceived; she's a victim, too."

"Even if she is the victim, we can't let her go so easily!" Lin Bufan looked indignant!

Yang Tao sighed and looked at Lin Bufan helplessly: "So what do you want? Do you still want to beat her up to vent your anger?"

"Hit someone? That's something rough people do, it's illegal!" Lin Bufan had a look on his face that said, "I'm a civilized person," and then a sly smirk appeared on his lips: "If we're going to have fun, let's do something advanced. Give someone a taste of their own medicine, understand?"

"What do you mean?" Yang Tao didn't understand.

Lin Bufan cleared his throat and began his "performance" seriously: "You see, Lan Weiwei is the most vulnerable now and needs comfort the most. Her heart is empty and her defenses are the lowest. As for me, I will sacrifice a little, use my personal charm, take the initiative to approach her, care about her, and warm her wounded heart. When she becomes dependent on me, loves me to death, and is determined to marry me..." He paused, deliberately keeping the other party in suspense.

Yang Tao's eyelids twitched as she heard this, and she had a bad feeling: "And then?"

"Then?" Lin Bufan said confidently, "Then I'll swindle all her savings and valuables away from her! You'll make a grand entrance and snatch me back! We'll also let her experience firsthand what it's like to lose both her money and her life! How's that? Isn't this plan perfect?"

Yang Tao was stunned as she listened to Lin Bufan's "revenge plan" of "beauty trap" and "rolling up the bag society." She was completely petrified for a few seconds. Then, as if she had finally digested this outrageous content, she couldn't help but burst out laughing. She punched Lin Bufan's arm with a mixture of anger and amusement: "Lin Bufan! Are you sick?! What a mess you keep thinking about all day! And beauty trap... I think you're trying to make it real? You wish!"