A Young Woman's Heart

Unfortunately, I don't have a camera at home.

Because it's just too expensive.

Money should, of course, be spent wisely.

With that spare money, it would be better to replace my mother's three-year-old mobile phone, which had been damaged by water and was always malfunctioning, with a new cell phone.

Hmm... Of course, buying myself a phone would be a good idea too—Mo Xueyao thought to herself with delight.

Then I suddenly came to my senses.

Where would my family get so much money? Surgery is expensive enough as it is, so buying a cell phone is just a wish, at least for the next few years.

He took a small sip of his Coke, thinking, "If I could drink Coke once a week without a cell phone or anything, that would be great."

……

Chapter Eleven: A Bustling Metropolis

The journey wasn't long, but Mo Xueyao still fell asleep with the cool breeze blowing in her face.

It wasn't until her mother woke her up that she realized they had arrived at their destination.

Shanghai is one of only four first-tier cities in China.

Although neighboring Hangzhou is the provincial capital, it is like a backward small town compared to Shanghai.

It was around ten o'clock, and the blazing sun was already high in the sky.

Stepping out of the train station, I felt waves of heat hitting me one after another.

Mo Xueyao looked up at the sky and saw more of the tall buildings on both sides of the road.

Hangzhou is just a city center with many high-rise buildings, and it's not that exaggerated. Most of them are only ten or so stories high, and there aren't many buildings that are more than twenty stories high.

In Shanghai, however, you can always see buildings of twenty-something stories, and even the towering Oriental Pearl Tower standing in the distance.

This is a world of reinforced concrete.

Although there is greenery, the feeling it evokes is completely different from that in Hangzhou.

"Is this what a metropolis is like..." Mo Xueyao looked around with wide eyes, but she didn't feel any longing. Instead, she felt a little depressed.

Tall buildings are everywhere, as if they have blocked out the sky.

There are many places under construction near Shanghai South Railway Station.

The already narrow road was further encroached upon, making traffic extremely congested.

"Shall we take the bus?" Mo Xueyao asked.

"No, Dr. Wang said I can take the subway." The mother stood on the street, looking around, seemingly unable to find where to take the subway. In desperation, she approached an elderly man passing by and asked, "Excuse me, sir, could you tell me where to take subway line 1?"

"All you need is..."

The old man pointed out the way, and only then did her mother get a general idea of ​​the direction. Although she seemed to be visiting Shanghai for the first time as well, Mo Xueyao followed her with great peace of mind, as if there was no problem that could not be solved as long as her mother was there.

My mother would solve all the problems as they arose.

"Is this the subway?" Mo Xueyao exclaimed as she stepped into the spacious underground space. She felt that Hangzhou was twenty years behind Shanghai in terms of technology, as if she had stepped into an underground world from a science fiction movie.

"Yes, let me see, where is the ticket office..."

Since it was my first time taking the subway, I went through a lot of trouble just to buy a ticket.

After much difficulty, they finally chose a station and bought subway tickets. Each of them held a ticket and headed towards the automatic turnstile.

Soon it was their turn. The mother walked ahead, swiped her ticket, but found that the machine had a red light on and she couldn't pass through.

This was repeated several times, but still had no effect.

The people behind them seemed a little impatient.

"You need to stand outside. If you try to swipe your card inside, you won't be able to get through," a kind passerby reminded them. Only then were the mother and Mo Xueyao finally able to pass through the turnstile, and they breathed a sigh of relief.

“Automated equipment everywhere isn’t necessarily a good thing,” Mo Xueyao muttered.

"That's because you're not used to it," a passerby said.

This made Mo Xueyao smile awkwardly, and she and her mother followed the crowd down the stairs.

After confirming the direction, the mother and son waited on the platform.

Looking at the crowded people around her, Mo Xueyao whispered in her mother's ear, "Shanghai is truly amazing, it looks so advanced."

“Otherwise, why would so many people want to come here to develop their careers?” The mother smiled slightly. “Alright, alright, the car is here, let’s get in.”

Mo Xueyao squeezed into the carriage with the crowd, feeling like a sardine trapped in a can.

"Aside from not having enough seats, it seems no different from a train." Mo Xueyao commented as she squeezed towards a less crowded area, finally finding a pole to hold onto, where she could finally stand comfortably.

At only 1.58 meters tall, Mo Xueyao was not very tall in the crowd and could not breathe fresh air at all. She could only feel that all kinds of smells were mixed together in the carriage, which was complicated and unpleasant.

"We've arrived at People's Square, let's get off quickly." The mother, who had been standing on tiptoe watching the station, hurriedly grabbed Mo Xueyao's wrist and squeezed her out.

Then I returned the ticket and left the subway station.

"Phew... I was suffocating." Mo Xueyao let out a long breath. "I definitely don't want to take the subway again."

“Taking the bus is more uncomfortable; at least the subway is faster.” The mother took out a written note from her pocket and handed it to Mo Xueyao. “Take a look and see how to get there.”

"Can't I see for myself..." Mo Xueyao grumbled, but still took it. "Wait a minute, Mom, you made a mistake!"

"is it?"

"That's right, we should start from 20!"

So, Mo Xueyao and her mother ran back into the station and came out through another exit.

After that, things became much easier. They walked straight along the road, turned left at the first intersection, then walked straight to the first intersection again and turned left. They continued walking straight for about a kilometer until they finally saw the big characters for "Shanghai Changzheng Hospital".

Mo Xueyao instinctively took a half step back.

But her mother grabbed her hand.

"What's wrong? Are you still scared when we get there?"

“Uh…” Mo Xueyao swallowed, “No matter what, it feels like being a eunuch in the palace…”

"What nonsense are you talking about? It's not about becoming a eunuch, it's about turning back into a real girl—you were supposed to be a girl, weren't you? Hmm, that's good. If you were a boy but were so petite, I, as your mother, would be worried!"

"..." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes and pulled her hand back. "Don't pull me, I can walk by myself."

Upon entering Changzheng Hospital, the mother called Dr. Wang, who said he had arrived that day and was in the hospital with other hospital leaders. Mo Xueyao and her mother then went to the office.

Not long after, Mo Xueyao met with Dr. Wang again.

"Hello, Uncle and Aunt..." he greeted them listlessly, standing at the door reluctant to go in.

Even though I know that surgery is the only option, I still can't help but feel resistance and fear deep down.

"What's wrong, Xiaoyao? Come in, there's a seat for you inside," Dr. Wang said, half-jokingly and half-seriously.

"..." Mo Xueyao suddenly felt a headache coming on.

I don't know if it's psychological or if my body's organs are affecting my nerves.

And the headache kept getting worse, so bad that he couldn't help but swear, "Damn it, this is killing me!"

The atmosphere in the office froze for a moment, then the older men all burst into laughter.

"What's wrong? Your headache is back?" the mother asked with concern.

"Ugh...it really hurts..." Mo Xueyao rubbed her temples, spread her legs and plopped down on the sofa, sinking into it as if she had no bones, not wanting to move at all.

"We'll schedule Xiaoyao's surgery as the first one tomorrow morning," Dr. Wang said to Yang Xiaoyu, getting straight to the point. "Remember not to eat or drink anything in the morning, and you can come over at eight o'clock."

"Okay." The mother nodded, then placed the local specialties she was carrying on the coffee table with some embarrassment. "These are just some local specialties, nothing expensive, please don't mind them."

It's actually just some West Lake lotus root powder and Longjing tea.

Longjing tea is just ordinary; after all, the expensive ones are unaffordable.

"Oh dear, why are you being so polite?"

"Of course..."

"No need for that. We value all patients and will definitely do our best to complete Xiaoyao's surgery."

"Of course, of course, consider it a gift for a friend."

Dr. Wang shook his head helplessly and said nothing more.

Having been a doctor for so many years, he knows very well that sometimes, if you don't accept gifts from patients' families, the latter may develop a distrust of you.

Chinese people are so strange; they only feel at ease when the other party accepts their gift.

"Then here are some things to do after the surgery. You can have a follow-up examination at Hangzhou First People's Hospital. You can also get psychological counseling there. There will be a doctor to receive you. You need to go once a month for the first three months, then once every three months thereafter. So, you need to go six times in total, which is the twelve-month observation period."

Then comes a whole host of precautions.

The mother, who only had a second-grade education, struggled to take notes with paper and pen. Mo Xueyao couldn't bear to watch any longer, so she took the paper and wrote it down herself.

There are quite a few things to be aware of.

But the first month is the most troublesome.

Because you need to be very careful about your diet.

I need to eat bland food for a month.

The best option is liquid food such as meat porridge.

"We'll conduct another comprehensive check-up today to prepare for tomorrow's surgery. Please let us know in advance if you have any allergies."

"Allergies...? I don't think so?" Mo Xueyao shook her head blankly.

Then I was taken to undergo various examinations.

It took almost the whole morning, and it still seems quite complicated.

"This child is in good health, and what's even more encouraging is that because he already has a vagina, all we need to do now is move the catheter and other tissues inside," Dr. Wang said happily. "What we need to do becomes much simpler. We just need to make an incision and then move those organs. We don't even need to reconstruct the hymen; it's already there."