### Chapter 19: Sharing Secrets
Seeing Xia Ling being pulled away by Mom, Xia Yu heard the knock on the door a moment later…
“Open up! Open up~”
Recognizing that familiar voice, Xia Yu was curious what her younger sister could possibly need. So, she got up and opened the door.
As soon as the door cracked open, Xia Ling slipped through with surprising agility and turned around to wrap her arms around Xia Yu’s neck, pouting: “Mean sister, you were mean! You didn’t tell Mum the truth earlier, and now she thinks I’m lying to her.”
But Xia Ling’s pout was short-lived, and she soon let go of Xia Yu’s neck and flopped onto her bed with a huff, indicating that Xia Yu better give her an explanation.
After closing the door, Xia Yu couldn’t help feeling conflicted. Keeping such a big secret all alone was exhausting. Yes, she needed someone to share this burden with.
But… Xia Yu was terrified of the secret leaking out. If word got out in the village, her reputation would be ruined. She needed someone to help her keep this secret.
Looking at her younger sister, Xia Yu mustered the courage for what seemed like a major decision. Then, she slowly began, “Xiao Ling, there’s something I have to tell you, okay? You can’t tell anyone about this, promise?”
“What is it?” Xia Ling asked curiously.
“Promise first. After I tell you this secret, you can’t tell anyone—not even Mom or Dad. Only the two of us know this, right?” Xia Yu said becoming more serious with each word.
Seeing how serious Xia Yu was, Xia Ling figured the secret must be really important, which only made her more curious: “Okay, Sis, tell me. I’ll keep your secret safe.”
Taking a deep breath, Xia Yu began softly, “Xiao Ling, do you know what I’ve been doing since I was taken away?”
“No idea~”
They spent nearly half an hour talking in the room. Xia Yu recounted everything—how she had been experimented on. It was definitely easier to bear knowing someone else knew too.
Xia Ling was quite shocked after hearing this, realizing her sister wasn’t actually her real sister; she was adopted.
Given Xia Ling’s young age and the effective education she had received, she agreed with Xia Yu that the surgery had turned her brother into… well, not exactly a traditional person. To be specific, Xia Ling thought, one of those… things.
“Oh my god, our second brother is… one of those?” Xia Ling’s face revealed disbelief, and she fell silent for a while.
Seeing such reaction from her sister, Xia Yu started to panic. She feared that Xia Ling might run off to tell their parents, making things even worse for her.
However, after some time, Xia Ling composed herself. She took a deep breath before tremblingly asking Xia Yu, “Then… what will our second brother do now?”
With her new perspective, Xia Ling had returned to calling Xia Yu just by her name.
“I don’t know. If our parents find out this secret, they’ll probably kick me out, then you won’t have a second brother anymore. Can you please keep this a secret for me?” Xia Yu pleaded pitifully, seeing no other way out.
Though young, Xia Ling was in fifth grade. She understood the seriousness of the situation. Therefore, she could only agree, “Okay, I’ll keep it a secret.”
