Both Mr. Sinclair and Ethan Sinclair were shrewd men, so they naturally sensed that something was amiss.
Mr. Sinclair's expression immediately turned serious. "What exactly happened? Nina, didn't you say your sister fell on her own?"
Nina Sinclair shuddered, knowing she couldn't hide it any longer. On the verge of tears, she cried, "Dad, I didn't mean to push her! That day, she said I had stolen your affection and told me to leave. I... I accidentally gave her a push. I was scared you'd all abandon me, so I... I didn't... didn't dare say anything. Dad, I'm sorry. I was truly wrong. Please, forgive me."
Mr. Sinclair's face turned grim. He turned to Chloe Sinclair and asked, "Is what your sister said true?"
Chloe Sinclair nodded. "It's true."
'This all happened in my past life, anyway. How could I possibly remember it so clearly?'
'But I never came out on top against Nina Sinclair in my past life. And as a grown woman, there's no way I'd suddenly trip and fall hard enough to land myself in the hospital. It was Nina Sinclair, ten to one.'
So instead of feigning ignorance, Chloe Sinclair admitted it directly.
'I can't completely ruin Nina Sinclair right now. Besides, I need to play the long game to catch a bigger fish—I have to lure out Mason Drake.'
Hearing his daughter admit it so readily, Mr. Sinclair felt a pang of resignation.
While Nina Sinclair might not have been entirely to blame for the incident itself, her lying about it displeased him.
"Alright, that's enough. Sisters shouldn't hold grudges. Let's eat."
Chloe Sinclair nodded, obediently walking past Nina Sinclair to sit beside Mr. Sinclair. She then ladled a bowl of congee for her father and for her older brother, who had just come downstairs.
"Our little sister is being much more well-behaved than usual."
Though Ethan Sinclair was in a business suit, his face was gentle in his sister's presence. All she'd done was serve him a bowl of congee, but his simple words of praise made her extremely emotional.
Hearing this, Chloe felt her nose tingle.
'In her past life, not long after Ethan Sinclair was framed and sent to prison, he had died from food poisoning after rescue attempts failed.'
Seeing him again, Chloe Sinclair couldn't contain her joy. She placed the bowl of congee in front of Ethan Sinclair and praised him without hesitation, "You're even more handsome today than you were yesterday, Big Brother."
Her words made Mr. Sinclair laugh heartily. He teased, "Such a sweet-talker."
Having already done something wrong, Nina Sinclair remained silent. She knew she couldn't blend in with them, so she just mechanically ate the food in her bowl, her fingers turning white as they gripped her chopsticks. Watching the happy trio, she seethed with inner rage.
'I'm supposed to be the young lady of the Sinclair Family! Why does Chloe Sinclair have to compete with me over everything? Wouldn't it have been better for her to stay in that godforsaken corner and be a country bumpkin for the rest of her life?'
'No matter what, I absolutely cannot let Chloe Sinclair be the center of attention.'
'I'll make her rot and fester until she's despised by everyone!'
——
Chloe Sinclair returned to her room and found her senior year textbooks. She was still confident in Language Arts and English, but the math problems gave her a headache.
'In her past life, her grades had actually been pretty good. But after returning to the Sinclair family, she was constantly belittled, and her academic performance plummeted.'
'And while she had learned a great deal after marrying Jasper Shaw, she'd been away from her schoolbooks for too long. Her knowledge of mathematics was hazy.'
"Master, the Studyholic System can compress study time. It also contains all sorts of reference books, so you don't need to worry so much," 54088, which had been silent until now, suddenly chimed in.
"What?"
The voice that suddenly echoed in her mind made Chloe Sinclair jump.
'She remembered vaguely hearing a voice like this back at the hospital, but she had been so groggy at the time that she'd assumed it was a dream.'
"What did you mean just now?"
"Your genetic profile is the most compatible with this system, so it automatically bonded with you. Time within the Studyholic System flows differently from reality. To put it simply, you could study inside for a month, and only a few hours would pass in the real world. Furthermore, by maxing out the progress bar, you can earn corresponding points that can be exchanged for all kinds of information."
Chloe Sinclair's heart skipped a beat when she heard this.
'The college entrance exams wouldn't be a problem for her, but right now, the one thing she was short on was time.'
'There were less than three months until the exams. If she wanted to get a high score in every subject, she definitely wouldn't have enough time.'
'But with the system's help, the college entrance exams would be a piece of cake.'
"Then let's start studying now."
As soon as she said that, Chloe Sinclair lay down on her bed. The moment she closed her eyes, countless books appeared in her mind's eye, some even containing knowledge beyond the scope of human learning.
'She was startled for a moment, but then it occurred to her that the system was probably a piece of high technology from thousands of years in the future, and her surprise faded.'
After finding a suitable textbook, Chloe Sinclair began to study.
An unknown amount of time passed before a rapid knocking sound suddenly came from outside her door.
Chloe Sinclair was still half-asleep. She frowned at the sound but slipped on her slippers and opened the door.
"What is it?"
The one knocking was, of course, Nina Sinclair.
"It's Monday. Dad sent me to wake you up."
Nina Sinclair watched her every move, her eyes fixed. She still couldn't figure out why Chloe Sinclair's behavior had changed so drastically overnight.
"Alright, you can go on ahead. I'm going to get washed up."
With that, she started to close the door.
"Hey, wait!" Nina Sinclair suddenly grabbed the doorframe, refusing to let it close. "Didn't you always have me pick out your outfits before?"
Chloe Sinclair paused, giving Nina just the opening she needed to slip into the room.
"I'm wearing my school uniform today."
She turned away, her expression blank, but her mind drifted back to her past life.
'She remembered feeling like she didn't belong when she first returned to the Sinclair family. Nina Sinclair was elegant and gentle, and she took such good care of her that Chloe had truly come to see her as an older sister.'
'She had been pretty when she first started at the new school, and quite a few boys had pursued her. But the very next day, Nina Sinclair came to her room and told her that her clothes were unflattering.'
'She'd taken her at her word and started letting Nina pick out her clothes every day.'
'But of course, Nina Sinclair had no intention of actually helping her.'
'Nina bought her cheap, tacky clothes from street stalls, gave her a new hairstyle with thick, heavy bangs, and made her wear a pair of black-rimmed glasses.'
'When she first arrived at the school, she found the big-city curriculum was naturally much more advanced than her old town's. She was at the bottom of the class in everything. Some of her teachers saw her as a burden holding everyone back, and at times, they would even encourage the entire class to single her out.'
As these thoughts ran through her mind, Chloe Sinclair quickly changed into her blue and white school uniform.
When Chloe Sinclair emerged, Nina Sinclair's pupils contracted. An unnatural smile spread across her face. "I thought you didn't like wearing the school uniform?"
"The teachers say students are supposed to wear them," Chloe Sinclair replied without looking up.
Downstairs, Mr. Sinclair and her older brother were reading the newspaper. They smiled when they saw Chloe Sinclair.
"Morning, Dad. Morning, Big Brother."
As soon as she sat down, Ethan Sinclair's sharp eyes noticed the change in his little sister. A hint of relief appeared in his eyes. "You look much better today, Sis."
He had no sooner spoken than Mr. Sinclair kicked him under the table.
Ethan Sinclair's smile froze. Realizing his blunder, he quickly tried to backtrack. "I mean, you always look good."
Thinking of her cringey old outfits, Chloe Sinclair's face flushed red, and she buried her head in her food like a timid little quail.
Since it was on his way, both Chloe Sinclair and Nina Sinclair rode to school in Ethan Sinclair's car.
Their school was one of Kennet's top public high schools. While it wasn't filled with the children of rich and powerful families, it was teeming with academic prodigies and boasted the highest university matriculation rate in Kennet.
Ethan Sinclair pulled over about a hundred meters from the school, then took a black card from his wallet and handed it to Chloe Sinclair.
"Nina mentioned the school lunches aren't very good. Take this card. Buy yourself whatever you like."
Chloe Sinclair was taken aback for a second, but she didn't hesitate. She nodded and said obediently, "Thank you, Big Brother."
That "Big Brother" was as sweet as honey to Ethan Sinclair's ears. He couldn't help but turn and ruffle her hair. "Good girl. Go on, get to school."