A Young Woman's Heart

At first, I had a good dream in which I told my secret to my close friends and they all accepted me. But then, my secret was accidentally let slip by a friend and spread throughout the school. My life, which was supposed to start anew, was plunged into endless darkness.

Fortunately, it was all just a dream.

Mo Xueyao pinched her cheek hard, the pain was incredibly clear.

Yes, that is indeed the reality.

It was getting late, and the clock on the bedside table was pointing to '12'. Still half asleep, Mo Xueyao was a little unsure whether it was a weekend or not. If it was, why hadn't her mother woken her up?

On the table were BJD dolls that hadn't been put away yet, and Nancy's red eyes were staring blankly out the window into the distance.

"Phew—what day is it today...?" Mo Xueyao rubbed her head, feeling as if it were filled with lead.

I was preoccupied with too many things yesterday, so I probably didn't go to bed at all last night. How did I end up in bed to sleep?

...Maybe someone carried her up here.

With that thought in mind, she swayed as she walked out of the bedroom wearing only a thin set of underwear.

Simply put, it's a tank top on top and blue and white striped briefs on the bottom.

My mother had moved a chair to sit in front of the TV, with a small folding table in front of her, and was slowly making dumplings.

The TV was replaying last night's drama, which seemed to be a Korean drama. The exaggerated and repetitive dubbing made me feel uncomfortable after listening to it for a while.

"Awake?" the mother asked, turning her head. "Are you hungry?"

"It's alright." Mo Xueyao, who had just gotten up, didn't feel hungry, but her head was still spinning, and she urgently needed to wash up to clear her head. "What day of the week is it today?"

“Thursday,” the mother replied casually.

"Huh? Wait, Thursday?!" Mo Xueyao, who had just filled her toothbrush cup with water, suddenly looked up, but instantly lost her balance and almost crashed into the already cracked mirror. She hurriedly grabbed the sink for support. "It's already twelve o'clock!!"

"Yes, look at you, so young. I'm so worried. I've already called your teacher to ask for leave."

"Huh? Why are you taking a day off? Does this count as sleeping in?"

"You had a high fever this morning, didn't you even realize it?"

"Huh? I don't feel anything?" Mo Xueyao touched her forehead. She couldn't tell if it was hot or not, but she was definitely sweating a lot.

"Maybe she's feeling better now that she's had enough sleep," her mother said, standing up to pour half a glass of boiled water for Mo Xueyao, then adding some cooled boiled water to warm it up so she could drink it right away.

Mo Xueyao rubbed her temples. As she regained consciousness, she could indeed feel a severe headache. Was this a side effect of staying up all night?

"The fever reducer and anti-inflammatory medicine are on the table, and I've poured you some warm water. Take them quickly," the mother instructed.

"Oh." After washing up, Mo Xueyao stuck the comb into her hair, picked up the pill, threw it into her mouth, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Why can't you comb your hair yet? I feel uncomfortable every time I see a few extra strands of hair sticking out." The mother said with disdain, wiping her flour-covered hands on a clean rag, and then beckoned to her, "Come here, squat down."

"What are you doing...?"

"Let me tie your hair."

"Mom, it's tied too tight." Mo Xueyao felt like her eyes were being forced into slits, and she cried out in pain.

"How else can I tie it up neatly and cleanly?" her mother said with dissatisfaction, quickly tying her hair into a simple and neat single ponytail.

"I feel uncomfortable at all." Mo Xueyao shook her head, feeling uneasy all over.

When she usually ties her hair in a ponytail, she likes to tie the hair tie relatively low, while her mother tends to tie it very close to her forehead.

Just like when you wear a watch, if you fasten it too tightly, your wrist will hurt after a while.

She was also not used to having her hair tied up like this, and instinctively fiddled with the hair ties to let them slide down to the lower half before she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ugh, Mom, it's so prickly, it's more uncomfortable than wearing ten sweaters on," Mo Xueyao muttered softly.

"You know, a lady should tie her hair up like that. It looks neat and tidy. Look at Yan Yan, isn't that how she does it?"

"She is her, and I am me. Stop comparing me to others!" Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes in dissatisfaction. I think this loose ponytail is very comfortable, and it can hang down on my shoulders. It's so nice.

"You're being disrespectful." Her mother rolled her eyes at her. "Fine, we're home today anyway, so do whatever you want."

"Hmm... I might have caught a chill last night; I feel a bit dizzy now."

"I'll cook you something. Would you like wontons or dumplings?"

"Wontons, please." The reason for choosing wontons is that the wonton wrappers are thinner and taste better when cooked, and she doesn't have the strength to chew the thick dumpling wrappers right now.

Dumplings are definitely better eaten after being drained of water and dipped in sauce, right?

While her mother was cooking, Mo Xueyao returned to her room, packed Nancy into a box, and placed it on the bookshelf along with the miniature furniture.

Strong winds and bright sunshine seem like completely contradictory weather, but that's exactly what happened today.

The clothes hanging on the balcony were being blown around as if they might fall off the pole and fly away at any moment.

"Mom, aren't you afraid your clothes will blow away if you hang them out to dry?"

"Then why don't you take it back right away?"

"Then why did you hang them out to dry!" Mo Xueyao muttered helplessly, taking all the clothes into the balcony.

Although the sunlight on the balcony is not as strong as that outside, it's still better than having your clothes blown away.

Plastic bags on the street were blown high by the strong wind. Mo Xueyao yawned widely, thinking about what she had dreamed about earlier.

Upon waking, the events in the dream become increasingly blurry until they are completely forgotten.

However, she still vaguely remembered that she had confessed her affairs to Li Wanyan, and that Hua Yinyin and Mr. Xue had overheard it.

Looking back now, I'm terrified.

Thankfully, this wasn't said in real life...

As for Li Gutao saying that he is 'Mo Xueyao's' younger sister, let's think of some other excuse to get by.

Although I feel a little sorry for Li Wanyan, it's best not to let others know this secret.

Besides, I'm a real girl now, so it doesn't matter if we showered together. Nothing happened, right?

She thought to herself with a clear conscience, then switched to that damned Korean soap opera and started watching the Shanghai Bund episodes on TV.

Although I've watched it many times, I don't think I've ever watched it completely, so sometimes I still manage to find some episodes I haven't seen before.

In this era, many TV dramas are pieced together gradually by watching these disjointed and disjointed episodes.

The wontons were quickly served and placed in front of Mo Xueyao, while her mother sat down on the stool and started making dumplings.

Why did you change the channel?

"That didn't look good, why don't you change it back yourself?" Mo Xueyao muttered. "Why does it taste sour?"

"I added vinegar to disinfect it for you."

"Isn't that too much?"

"Eat more, it's good."

Mo Xueyao nodded silently and ate the wontons one by one without much appetite.

After finishing the meal, the mother busied herself for a while, then packed her things and went to the fruit shop with Mo Xueyao.

The sight of her at the fruit shop during school hours gave her a strange sense of novelty. In reality, there was nothing special about it, except that there were fewer customers than on weekends.

Upon seeing Mo Xueyao arrive, Su Tang licked its paws and darted into her arms.

"You're here." The father said this to the mother, then looked down at Mo Xueyao, "Is your fever any better?"

"It's alright," Mo Xueyao replied, pulling out her textbook to read.

Although I didn't go to school today, I still need to study on my own. Fortunately, it's only for one day, so I don't have to worry about falling behind too much. If all else fails, I can just ask Li Wanyan to explain things to me.

In front of the grocery store across the street, Zhuang Lianlian sat on a small bamboo chair, holding a bowl of rice with toppings, eating slowly.

Mo Xueyao sat down at the entrance of the fruit shop, holding the sugar candy, and greeted her: "Zhuang Lianlian!"

"Didn't you go to school today?" Zhuang Lianlian asked with a smile.

She seemed to have emerged from her gloom and become much more cheerful.

"I have a fever, so I'm taking the day off to rest at home." Mo Xueyao saw the husky, which had grown quite a bit, come out with a silly look on its face and circle around Zhuang Lianlian, seemingly wanting to share lunch with her.

"Stop fooling around." Zhuang Lianlian patted its head. "'Haha,' didn't you just eat?"

“This guy’s stomach is much bigger than you think.” Mo Xueyao said knowingly, gently stroking Su Tang’s head. “It’s still cheaper to raise a cat.”

"It's so noisy, it even chewed up one of the shelves, it's worse than a rat." Zhuang Lianlian also looked helpless.

"Hehe, it's alright, it's alright, it's just a child." Grandma Jin said with a smile as she stood at the door.

"Shouldn't we buy some bones for it to gnaw on?" Mo Xueyao asked, rubbing Su Tang's belly. "Look, it's already started gnawing on your chair."

"Hmm, I was just about to go out and buy some bones," Grandma Jin said with a smile. "Would you like to bring some treats for Xiaoyao?"

"No, no, no need," Mo Xueyao quickly shook her head. "We have plenty of food at home."

"Hehe~ See you later."

"Okay, see you later."

After Grandma Jin had walked away, Zhuang Lianlian smiled and said, "Grandma Jin is very kind to everyone."

"Yes, my dad was able to rent this shop thanks to her," Mo Xueyao said with emotion.

……

Chapter 102 Lies

The sun, a symbol of the passage of time, slowly sets. As winter passes, the days grow longer. At this time, the sky is still relatively bright; in winter, it would probably be almost dark.

Li Wanyan rode her bicycle, her shadow stretched long by the setting sun, and stopped next to the fruit shop. There she saw Mo Xueyao, who was asleep in the sun, sitting in an armchair.

"Godmother, is Xiaoyao's fever still not better?" Li Wanyan asked Mo Xueyao's mother, who was preparing dinner.

"It should be about time."

"Oh." Li Wanyan nodded, put her schoolbag on the cardboard box next to her, and gently poked her cheek.

"Ugh..." She waved her hand unconsciously, muttering in her sleep, "Where did these mosquitoes come from..."