The room lights were off, leaving only the bedside lamp for illumination.
Rao Beichen could clearly see Rao Can's flushed face, her heavy breaths carrying the scent of alcohol.
He took Rao Can's warm little hand, pressing it to his cheek, and drew them closer. Gazing at her face, he murmured to himself, "The year you came to our home, it snowed heavily. You were so small and thin back then."
"You had just been adopted by Mom and Dad from the orphanage, wearing a yellow coat and a yellow knitted hat. You were only five years old then, with a pair of dark, bright grape-like eyes, timid and shy."
Rao Beichen reached out to touch Rao Can's feverish cheek and continued, "Back then, you were so tiny. Although you wore pretty clothes, you looked disheveled. Your little hands were so cold they developed chilblains, cracking and festering. You looked so pitiful."
"Mom and Dad told me then that you were the little wife they found for me, and that I had to treat you well, not bully you, and protect you. But I didn't want that. I was young and impetuous, and I thought you were ugly and dirty."
At this point, Rao Beichen chuckled, "I refused to let you join our family. To protest to Mom and Dad, I ran away from home in anger and didn't come back for days. They searched for me frantically."
"When they finally found me, they told me you were my sister, not my little wife." He removed his hand from Rao Can's cheek and brought it to his nose, sniffing the faint fragrance. "I don't remember how they convinced me, but I eventually went home with Mom and Dad and stayed, as their daughter."
"This life has lasted for fifteen years. Mom and Dad are long gone, leaving only us to keep each other warm. And I have finally understood the deep intentions of Mom and Dad. My feelings for you have long since undergone a seismic shift."
"I promised Mom and Dad that I would take good care of you and find you a good husband. Your brother always keeps his word..."
"Brother." Rao Beichen's words were cut short by Rao Can's voice.
Hearing Rao Can speak, Rao Beichen quickly asked, "Are you thirsty and want some water?"
After asking, Rao Beichen got up to fetch Rao Can some water.
"No," Rao Can said, grabbing Rao Beichen as he rose.
After stopping Rao Beichen, Rao Can sat up on the bed and looked at him. "Brother, I don't want to get married. I don't want to leave you. I want to stay by your side forever, and go nowhere."
As she spoke, Rao Can tightly clasped Rao Beichen's hand, her eyes red as she looked at him. "In this world, you are the only family I have left. I don't want to be separated from you."
Hearing Rao Can's words, Rao Beichen sat back down, looking at her closely. "Meeting someone you like, falling in love, getting married – all of this doesn't change anything. You and the person you like can always stay by your brother's side."
"So, Brother, are you trying to find a sister-in-law for me?" Rao Can looked at Rao Beichen. "You're acting so strange today. Is there something you want to tell me?"
Rao Can's heart ached. She knew her brother was already of marriageable age, but because of her, this had been postponed.
But now, they couldn't postpone it any longer.
She was twenty this year, and her brother was thirty. He wasn't young.
Thinking of this, Rao Can bit her lip in genuine distress.
Rao Beichen looked at Rao Can, who had misunderstood him. He stared directly at her and decided to take a gamble. "Will you be my bride?"