A Young Woman's Heart

Mo Zhuyou deliberately raised her voice a little louder, but Mo Xiaoxiao acted as if she hadn't heard her and walked straight to the door.

"Want to make some dessert together?" Mo Xiaoxiao asked, stopping at the doorway with her back to her sister.

"Tch—" Mo Zhuyou turned her head away as if she was being sulky, but her body moved honestly—she ran up behind her older sister.

"Okay, okay, why are you suddenly angry?"

"I'm not angry at all!" Mo Zhuyou puffed out her cheeks.

"What kind of desserts do you want to make later?" Mo Xiaoxiao changed the subject.

"Hmm... I'd like a red bean paste bread!"

"I wonder if there's any red bean paste left. Let's ask Teacher Shui." Mo Xiaoxiao turned her head, grabbed her sister's wrist, and slowly walked downstairs.

……

Chapter 42 The Money That Arrived

At home, Zhuang Lianlian rarely gets a break.

Chen Cheng had just finished washing the dishes and was sitting on the sofa, leaning on her shoulder.

Who sent the letter?

“…My mother.” Chen Cheng answered coldly after a few seconds of silence.

"You sent money again?"

"Hmm." Chen Cheng gave a cold laugh.

"She's still your mother, and she even sends you money. Why are you always so unhappy?" Zhuang Lianlian reached out and touched the downy hair at the corner of Chen Cheng's mouth.

“This is what they should do.” Chen Cheng frowned. “They gave me a broken childhood, and it is the law that they should pay for my upbringing. They shouldn’t try to make up for what happened in the past in this way.”

“It means they still care about you.” Zhuang Lianlian forced a bitter smile as she said this. “It’s better than my parents both passing away.”

"If you still care about me, you shouldn't have gotten a divorce. If you still care about me, even after the divorce, at least one of you should be by my side. But both of you have left to start your own families. Ha..." Chen Cheng said coldly. "Let's not talk about this anymore. I'm going to get the money. Are you coming?"

"Let's go together~" Zhuang Lianlian smiled and touched Chen Cheng's cheek. "Don't always look so bitter and resentful. Let bygones be bygones."

“I would like to go there, but every time they send me money, it feels like an insult to me.”

"If that's the case, then don't do it." Zhuang Lianlian was also slightly angry. Although her voice was gentle, it had an undeniable force. "Why are you being so dramatic?"

"I..." Chen Cheng choked, "I'll be looking for a job in the next few days."

"Let's be realistic, complaining won't help." Zhuang Lianlian's tone softened again, and then she extended her right hand to Chen Cheng. "Okay, let's go out."

"Let's go." Chen Cheng took a deep breath, but ultimately said nothing more.

The sun was shining brightly outside, and Chen Cheng, wearing a pair of thin-soled slippers, felt as if his soles were on a hot iron pot.

"You can even fry an egg with that." He squinted at the sun.

“After all, one o’clock in the afternoon is the hottest time of the day.” Zhuang Lianlian shook Chen Cheng’s arm. “Shall we ride the electric scooter or walk?”

"Let's walk, it's not far. We can buy two popsicles on the way."

"Okay~" Zhuang Lianlian tilted her head and smiled, looking genuinely happy.

Or rather, she was quite happy every moment she spent with Chen Cheng.

After so much time, although her right leg is now fitted with a prosthesis, she no longer limps like she did at the beginning.

Unless she takes long strides or runs, most people can't tell that her right leg is actually a prosthetic leg.

At the entrance of the residential area, the shop owner was fanning himself with a fan, looking rather dejected.

"Boss, I'd like to buy some popsicles."

"Okay...see for yourself." The boss said listlessly, pulling away the cloth covering the refrigerator and sticking out his tongue like a dog.

What does Lianlian want?

"Hmm... Little Pudding will do."

"Oh, then I'll buy two small puddings."

"Six cents," the shopkeeper gestured.

The two bought ice cream and ate it as they walked.

"How much money did you send this time?" Zhuang Lianlian stuck out her soft, small tongue and licked the ice cream, just like a kitten eating ice cream for the first time.

Chen Cheng was so engrossed in watching her lick the ice cream that he didn't hear her talking to him.

"What are you doing?" Zhuang Lianlian's pretty face flushed slightly. "What strange things have you been thinking about again?"

"No, I just think Lianlian's tongue is cute."

"No, you just want me to do that kind of thing for you. I told you I don't want to do it anymore, it's too painful."

"I didn't say anything, you were the one being lewd, weren't you?"

"Well!"

"That little glutton wanted to try it himself."

Zhuang Lianlian blushed deeply from the teasing. She used her other hand, which was being held by Chen Cheng, to suddenly pinch his soft flesh and twist it hard.

"hiss--"

"What nonsense are you talking about? I'm asking you, how much money did you send?"

"How much more? Same as before, eight hundred yuan." Chen Cheng said with a sneer, "They're all big business people, and they only send such a small amount of money each time, ha."

“Eight hundred… Phew, if it were me in the past, I probably wouldn’t have thought it was much.” Zhuang Lianlian smiled. “But for us now, it’s quite a lot, and this is only the part your mother sent.”

"I wanted to buy you some nice clothes, but how can I afford anything under a hundred yuan?"

"You're going to buy me expensive clothes? Then you should earn the money yourself and buy them. Don't use your parents' money." Zhuang Lianlian blinked. "Besides, I don't really care whether the clothes are brand names or not. As long as they're comfortable, that's all that matters."

Chen Cheng was somewhat unhappy, perhaps because he had been constantly teased by Zhuang Lianlian all day.

The money arrived via postal mail; it wasn't sent as cash, but rather as a receipt.

It's somewhat similar to a check. You have to show your ID to withdraw the money, and only after verifying that you are indeed the recipient designated by the sender can you withdraw the money.

There will probably be a handling fee of three to five yuan.

Of course, it's impossible to send cash directly, because if the mail gets lost or the money inside is gone, the post office won't be responsible. For safety reasons, it's more convenient to use a check-like method.

In the past, people would sometimes put money in letters and send it, but that was back in the time of Chen Cheng's parents' generation. He only saw his father put money in envelopes and send it when he was three or four years old.

"Speaking of which, didn't I write to you this time either?"

"Ha, no, just a check. That woman didn't bother to talk to me at all—and neither did the man."

"Maybe I'm just busy."

"How much time does it take to write a few sentences?" Chen Cheng asked in return.

Zhuang Lianlian paused for a moment, then nodded silently.

"Is your mother literate?"

“How could she be illiterate? She graduated from primary school.”

"OK……"

At the post office, Chen Cheng presented the withdrawal slip and his ID card. After going through some procedures, he received eight 100-yuan bills.

In this day and age, many people don't even earn 800 yuan a month.

The minimum subsistence allowance in this era is only three hundred yuan.

If Chen Cheng takes a summer job, his part-time income will only be around three to five hundred yuan a month.

He stuffed the money into his wallet, turned to Zhuang Lianlian, and said, "Lianlian, want to go for a walk in the park?"

"I don't know if it's hot in the park, but I'll still go for a walk~ These days, I'm either stuck in the shop or at home, which feels pretty boring."

"Your legs aren't good, so you shouldn't run around."

"That's why I need you to come with me~" Zhuang Lianlian smiled and leaned against Chen Cheng.

The two chatted as they walked into the park, where they bought two bottles of chilled drinks from a styrofoam box at the park entrance.

"This place is nice~" Zhuang Lianlian pointed to a shady spot under a dense tree where there was a bench, perfect for relaxing in the shade.

"The wind here is cool, it's quite comfortable." Chen Cheng plopped down, draping both arms over the back of the chair, and Zhuang Lianlian could lean on his arms after she sat down.

This park is a popular spot for couples, but it seems there aren't many people here now because of the hot weather.

Just a few trees and bushes away, there were two boys sitting next to them.

When couples have been together for a long time, they don't need to chat all the time. Even just leaning on each other can make them feel fulfilled and satisfied.

While enjoying the peace and quiet, the two overheard whispers from next door.

Because of the bushes and several large trees, the figures of the two people were not clearly visible; at most, their genders could only be barely discerned.

"Have you... succeeded recently?" one boy asked another.

"I can not."

"Sigh...me too."

"Most people would definitely not accept it, so just keep it to yourself."

"Phew..." The boy in the white sweatshirt seemed quite tall and slender, with some streamlined muscle lines vaguely visible on his back. "Sometimes I wonder, do I simply like him, or do I like men in general..."

At this moment, Chen Cheng, who had overheard the conversation between the two, opened his eyes wide and looked at Zhuang Lianlian, whose eyes were also wide open.

The two tacitly refrained from speaking and disturbing each other, continuing to listen quietly.

"Who knows?" The boy in the beige shirt shook his head. "But I think... I might just not like women."

"But there's no future in being together like this."

"Who said that men can... with men?"