A Young Woman's Heart

"Okay, I'll order then." Chen Cheng picked up the menu and started choosing. "First of all, of course, we have to have pizza. How about a 15-inch seafood and ham pizza?"

“No problem.” Mo Xueyao nodded.

No one else had any objections.

So Chen Cheng ordered the same food he usually ate, enough for five people.

In addition to pizza, there is also a large serving of clam chowder, a steak for each person, and a vegetable salad for each person.

Don't be fooled by the seemingly small quantity; the price was anything but cheap. Mo Xueyao was astonished to find that she had paid over four hundred yuan in one go.

Chen Cheng, however, seemed completely unconcerned.

Although the quantity doesn't seem like much, there's a lot of meat. Just one steak is enough to make Mo Xueyao feel about 80% full, so overall it's enough for five people.

Soon, all the food was served at once.

Zhuang Lianlian swallowed hard, looked at the steak in front of her, and carefully used her knife and fork.

Mo Xueyao stood up and served her a bowl of clam chowder: "Here, have some soup to warm your stomach first. You haven't eaten for so long, eating steak all at once will make your stomach uncomfortable, won't it?"

"Thanks……"

Zhuang Lianlian's eyes were a little moist. She took the clam soup, sipped it, and then became intoxicated by its wonderful taste.

The protective shell has been removed, so you can bite directly without worrying about it hurting your teeth.

Mo Xueyao couldn't taste any cream in the so-called creamy clam chowder; she just thought it tasted very fresh.

Pizza was also a novel food that Mo Xueyao had never eaten before.

She first gave Zhuang Lianlian a piece, and then took a piece with seafood for herself.

Well, the taste was okay, but not as delicious as I had imagined.

I feel like the layered pancakes sold at the breakfast shop near my home are still the tastier ones.

The only special thing about it is that it can be stretched into strands, right?

However, the strands that came out had no flavor and didn't taste good; it was like chewing rubber.

Perhaps it's just that Mo Xueyao's taste is different from others, since everyone else seems to be enjoying their meal quite a bit.

Steak is an absolute luxury for her; she usually only buys about two ounces of braised beef for her family.

But this big steak in front of me must weigh about two ounces.

"Huh, why is there still blood in it?" Mo Xueyao said, somewhat awkwardly cutting off a piece with her knife and fork.

"Because it's not fully ripe," Chen Cheng replied.

"Huh? Can I eat it if it's not fully cooked?"

"Haha, steak is fine, this is medium-rare, which is usually the best-tasting steak."

"Really? I didn't taste it." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes. "Hmm... it's a bit hard to chew..."

Zhuang Lianlian, standing to the side, was gently slicing the steak, looking much more skilled than Mo Xueyao.

Zhou Yong, however, couldn't cut the plate properly no matter what he tried, and instead made a loud 'crunching' sound as he cut it.

So he simply stuck his fork into the steak and started eating it.

"Yeah, this is definitely more fun!"

"You're too..." Chen Cheng sighed helplessly, then laughed again, "Never mind, as long as you enjoy your meal."

Upon hearing this, Duanmu Ji breathed a sigh of relief and began to learn from Zhou Yong.

"Haha, is it really better to eat like this?" So, Mo Xueyao stopped pretending to use a knife and fork and simply ate with her hands. Although she had washed her hands earlier, it was still a bit unrefined.

No, I wouldn't say "not too much," I should say—it was far too 'rude'.

By the time dinner was over, it was completely dark.

"Oh no, I have to go back right away." Mo Xueyao stood up abruptly and looked at Zhuang Lianlian beside her. "What about you? Do you... want to stay at my house for the night?"

"No, no need... Thank you, I'll just stay in the van..."

"Huh? Are you sure it's okay?"

"Ah."

Seeing her insistence, Mo Xueyao stopped pressuring her. Instead, she went to a nearby shop and used her own pocket money to buy a large amount of milk and snacks, which she handed to her: "Here, take these. Don't go hungry anymore. If you change your mind, come find me at the fruit shop near the cancer hospital."

"Thank you……"

"I'm going home now!"

"Ah, Mo Xueyao, wait for me, we're going the same way!"

"Your bus stop is only 500 meters ahead, what do you mean 'on the way'?!"

"Five hundred meters is on the way!" Zhou Yong shouted as he chased after him, but his foot slipped and he fell face-first into the mud.

"I just can't do anything with you." Mo Xueyao smiled helplessly, turned around and pulled him up. "Alright, alright, let's go together then."

"hey-hey……"

Duanmu Ji glanced at Chen Cheng and said softly, "Let's take her to the van."

"Okay." Chen Cheng nodded and picked up her suitcase. "Let's go."

……

Chapter Twenty-One: The Simp

Perhaps because of the heavy snow, the shop wasn't very busy.

Two bowls were placed on the small table, both covered with lids, seemingly to prevent them from getting cold too quickly.

"You brat, why are you so late?" the father said with displeasure as he picked out the rotten fruit. "Where have you been running around?"

"You didn't even call your parents. Wanyan came back and said she didn't know where you went." The mother looked at Mo Xueyao and scolded, "Do you know how dangerous it is for a girl to be out alone at night?"

"Ah... I just ran into some trouble, and I had dinner with a few other classmates. Don't worry about it!" Mo Xueyao waved her hand and sat down next to Li Wanyan. A brazier was slowly burning at her feet.

"So you've had dinner?" the mother asked.

"Ah."

"I even left you some leftovers, but it seems you don't need them."

"It's not bad to save it for tomorrow's porridge," Mo Xueyao muttered lazily, picking up Su Tang, who was warming herself up beside her.

Li Wanyan, who was holding an essay magazine, smiled slightly and asked softly, "Where did you go?"

"I was originally going to go to the internet cafe with Zhou Yong, but something happened... well, it was a misunderstanding, but we almost got into a fight."

"Ok?"

"You know Chen Cheng, right?"

"of course."

“He often goes to that urban village that is slated for demolition to smoke. There is a dilapidated van there. He used to sit in the van for a while, but today when he opened it, he saw a girl. The girl was startled and screamed, which attracted other people who thought he was up to no good.”

"I see." Li Wanyan nodded gently. "So, a dispute arose, and then you intervened, calmed everyone down, and explained the situation. Chen Cheng treated you to a meal to express his gratitude?"

Mo Xueyao rubbed Su Tang's increasingly chubby face vigorously: "Wan Yan, you're amazing! You guessed it all?"

"It's just reasoning."

"Holmes Wanyan Li," Mo Xueyao teased, "What did the homeroom teacher ask you to do today?"

"Grade the papers from the last monthly exam," Li Wanyan replied simply.

"The class monitor is really busy. Luckily, I've never been a class monitor before."

“But taking on responsibilities is also a very fulfilling thing,” Li Wanyan said with a smile.

Fulfilling?

Does she often feel empty?

This question suddenly arose in Mo Xueyao's mind. She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not say it aloud.

"What did you eat for dinner?" Li Wanyan started a new topic.

The two sat together, and to avoid boredom, they would always chat aimlessly. Although many of the topics might seem meaningless, isn't life just a series of seemingly pointless repetitions?

"I went to Pizza Hut."

"It must be very expensive."

"Yeah, but Chen Cheng didn't even blink when he paid. Is he that rich? Is he like Gao Yuan, a rich kid?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wanyan frowned slightly: "Rich...? I don't think you're very rich."

"Anyway, they're richer than us." Mo Xueyao said while combing Su Tang's soft fur. "Let's go to Grandma Jin's house to take a bath later. I haven't taken a bath for two or three days."

"it is good."

As we were talking, we suddenly heard footsteps at the door.

It wasn't a customer who came to the door, but a round and chubby-looking dog.

It's "Haha" from Grandma Jin's house next door. Since the name is made up of two "Ha", let's just call it Erha for now.

The husky often comes here to play. Even though there should be many other huskies around, it prefers to play with Su Tang—even though the latter usually doesn't want to pay any attention to it.

The husky has grown a bit bigger, but it has also gotten a lot fatter, making people wonder if it has some short-legged dog genes mixed in, otherwise why would its legs look so short?

Or is it because you're too fat that your legs look short?

"Hmph hmph—" The husky, panting and wagging its tail, darted into the shop and ran to Mo Xueyao.

She looked up and gazed with her blue eyes at the candy in her arms.

"Wang Wang!"

Su Tang drooped its eyelids and slowly wagged its tail impatiently, seemingly not wanting to pay any attention to it at all.