Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

Chapter Sixteen: Mu: I'll hit Chu Hua?

Even after the internal struggle, Chu Hua was still unable to resist the voice that had been bewitching her. She casually brought up the existence that had always bothered her.

"Although I have complete faith in Xiaojun's abilities and I'm very happy to have your approval, perhaps... it would be appropriate to ask Xiaomu's opinion as well?"

After receiving a satisfactory answer from Kazama, she couldn't help but want more.

This is probably what it feels like to like someone.

I want to hear his voice over the phone, I want him to understand and acknowledge my thoughts, and I want to hear his gentle words of comfort and his unwavering commitment when I feel lost and helpless.

But that alone is not enough.

Her feelings of affection also made her naturally jealous of every girl around him, like a female patrolling her territory, always concerned about whether any reckless outsiders would dare to trespass and meddle. With such a perverted and twisted mindset, she wanted to possess everything about him.

I am so despicable that it makes me want to vomit.

Despite having fully realized that she was a cowardly person who pretended to be righteous, easygoing, and gentle, but was actually selfish, sensitive, and fragile—

She still hopes to have her favorite person all to herself.

So, in order to achieve this step—

Some necessary sacrifices will definitely have to be made.

"Should I show the lyric book to Mutsu... I didn't expect you to think that way, Hatsuka."

On the other end of the phone, Kazama was a little confused as to why Chu Hua would suddenly bring up the girl who didn't stand out much in the team at this time—who was also his mother, Xiao Mu.

"It's okay, we're all in the same band, aren't we? And even if we keep it a secret for a while, we'll still sing it together when it's finally finished."

"Really? I thought you, Chuhua, would feel that lyrics in a lyric book are your own private feelings, so you wouldn't be willing to share them with others..."

"Xiao Mu is someone Xiao Jun trusts, right? She's also the woman who will raise you in the future... So as long as you trust Xiao Mu unconditionally, I will trust her unconditionally too."

Although Kazama was a little confused, Hatsuka's voice on the other end of the phone sounded as gentle and kind as ever.

"This song is a work that we created together. If we could show it to Xiaomu beforehand, I believe she would definitely give us her unique opinions."

Pregnancy...pregnancy...pregnancy...what's wrong with this guy lately? He's been saying more and more outrageous things.

Kazama coughed lightly, feeling a little awkward. Even though he was used to Chu Hua Su Shi's various gravity-related behaviors, Chu Hua's ability to speak so calmly and surprisingly was still somewhat frightening.

Fortunately, Su Shi and the others weren't here, otherwise he would probably have witnessed another war without gunpowder.

"Ahem... Chu Hua, although your choice of words is easy to misunderstand, well, I can understand your logic. But why not Xiangzi? I thought you would show the work to Xiangzi first. After all, you two..."

"After all, we were childhood sweethearts who spent some time together on an island?"

Hatsuka interrupted Kazama's question, which was unusual for her, but only because she knew what he was going to say next.

"I'm sorry, I just remember you from the future... Aunt Hatsune was devastated and depressed for many years after learning of Xiangzi's death."

Therefore, it's only natural that Kazama would assume that Toyokawa Shoko is a very important person in Mikami Hatsuka's heart.

"Hmm... But the person who knows my true identity and accepts and understands me without any reservations... is not the current Xiao Xiang."

Chu Hua listened patiently to him finish speaking, and once again reiterated her feelings to Kazama.

"Xiao Xiang will still be an important person to me, but he'll just be an important friend now."

Compared to this friendship and support that has lasted for years, she now has something more important to protect.

Chu Hua didn't say it outright, but Kazama already understood her unspoken meaning.

"So, I wanted to show it to Xiaomu too. After all, she's a very important person to Xiaojun, right? If she thinks there are no problems, then our new song production is already 80% complete!"

Chu Hua said this, but she had other plans in her heart.

She was curious about what kind of expression Wakaba Mutsu would have when she saw the lyrics she wrote for Kazama, so she tried every means to let Mutsu witness her feelings.

Even if Akatsuki only treats her as a projection of her mother, Mutsu is still a force to be reckoned with—possessing Kazama's unconditional trust and favoritism, she is actually someone who can rival herself and Sose in Hatsuka's heart.

In the current situation of "three kingdoms in a tripartite balance," Chu Hua, who is so selfish that he does not want to share Xiao Jun with others, has already begun his own "strategic planning."

Nagasaki Motoyo is a difficult person to deal with, but she's also quite easy to understand. In terms of threat level and mystery, she's far less threatening than the unpredictable Mutsu, so Hatsuka mentally ranked her down in terms of priority when dealing with her.

The most urgent task, of course, is to test Xiao Mu's abilities.

Although Xiao has always respected her as a woman who could become her mother, if Mu didn't think that way, given how important Mu was to Xiao, it would probably only be a matter of time before things turned sour.

Misaka Chuka would absolutely not let this happen; she wanted to seize the initiative first.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the phone, Kazama was completely unaware that she was plotting something so complicated.

He even secretly marveled to himself that he hadn't expected Chu Hua to be so eager to get along with Mu—after all, he had helped these two people who hadn't seen each other for decades to rebuild their friendship when they were young.

Even if the process is very different, he still seems to have a chance to make these girls get along and unite like he did when he was a child.

Perhaps this can be considered a case of different paths leading to the same destination?

Feeling an inexplicable sense of mission, as if guided by fate, Kazama readily agreed.

"No problem, leave it to me!"

After saying goodnight to Hatsuka, Kazama enthusiastically organized the lyrics and corresponding demos, arranged to meet Mutsu the next day, and then lay down on the bed with this joy in his heart.

He longed to be able to use his own strength to reunite the women of Muhe like he remembered them.

Perhaps he has already taken the right steps.

Kazama drifted off to sleep contentedly, but when he looked back much later, he would surely feel a mix of emotions and mock his past self for being so naive.

Aunt Hatsune and Aunt Su Shi both repeatedly warned that the more beautiful a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive people—and this statement couldn't be more true when it comes to them.

Chapter Seventeen: A mother and son shouldn't do that, right?

Shouldering the heavy responsibility of "restoring the relationship between the aunties and Mom"—Xiao felt full of energy again and arranged to meet Xiao Mu the very next day.

That's right, that's what he should do when he comes into this world.

It shouldn't be too difficult to get the girls to get along peacefully and harmoniously like in our memories, right?

After all, the people who have been separated for a long time will reunite because of the responsibility of raising him. So, in this younger and more mature time and space, he should be able to recreate the harmony of the past, right?

With this mindset, Kazama spent the long night. The next day, about an hour or two before the agreed time, he quickly washed up and left home, heading to the place where he had arranged to meet Mutsumi.

It was still a place known only to the two of them, still a corner of the plantation that few people visited on holidays.

When he arrived at his destination, weary from his journey, the somewhat slender figure of the young girl was, as he had expected, squatting in front of the cucumber field, patiently and calmly scattering fertilizer in her hands, quietly waiting in place as agreed.

Kazama slowed his pace and walked towards the girl. In a daze, he remembered that when he was a child, he seemed to be just like Mutsu now, quietly squatting at the school gate waiting for Mutsu to pick him up from school and take him home.

Now that the roles have been reversed, it's his turn to repay Xiao Mu's kindness.

"...You've come, Xiao."

Before he even appeared beside Xiao Mu, the girl with light green hair, like an alert little animal, sensed his arrival first and turned her head to greet him with a gentle smile.

"Our cucumbers are growing very well lately."

She gently tugged at the boy's sleeve, gesturing for him to come to her side. Kazama obediently squatted down beside her, and as they examined the plants in the soil, their heads inadvertently touched.

"Thank you for coming to help me water and fertilize the plants so often."

The usually taciturn Mu becomes unusually talkative in front of Xiao, or perhaps this is simply her nature in front of people she trusts enough.

Speaking of which... Mu was referring to "our cucumbers," right?

Kazama appeared to be accompanying Mutsu as she looked at the thriving cucumber seedlings, but in reality, he had been inwardly pounding with anxiety over what Mutsu had just said.

Even though he hadn't helped Mu tend the fields many times, Xiao Mu was willing to include him in the list of people who would grow cucumbers together...

It was just like when she guided me step by step when I was a child, nurturing my first little cucumber.

Kazama was momentarily overcome with reminiscence and tears welled up in his eyes, and Mutsuya quickly noticed his subtle changes.

"What's wrong, Xiao... you look like you're about to cry. Are you allergic to cucumbers?"

"No, it's that I was almost allergic to happiness... (sniffles)"

The most important person to him, Mu Zheng, who had raised him single-handedly, quietly tugged at his sleeve and said these words that he would only speak honestly to his family—

Could there ever be a happier moment than now?

Even if I die of happiness the next moment, it shouldn't matter, right?

"By the way, what did Xiao want to see me about?"

While Kazama was moved to tears, Mutsu kept his eyes fixed on the tender green cucumber seedlings.

“You said in the message that you had something very important to show me.”

"Cough—that's right, that's right."

Since Mutsu had taken the initiative to ask a question, Kazama quickly suppressed his tearful and sentimental expression, took out his phone from his pocket, and connected it to his wired headphones.

In the coming decades, wired headphones will gradually be replaced by wireless Bluetooth headphones, and wired headphones will naturally become rare collectibles. Only some young or middle-aged people who believe in retro trends will still pay for them out of nostalgia.

Since he had somehow traveled back several decades, Kazama decided to buy a pair of wired headphones to experience the electronic products his mother and aunts used in their youth.

You only realize how different the atmosphere can be after using them.

"Here."

Kazama smiled faintly and waved the earphone in his hand at Mutsu beside him. The earphone that should have been worn in the left ear lay quietly in his palm.

"........."

Mu didn't press further, but quietly observed his expression before silently picking up the earphones he offered.

Headphones are gradually becoming a new organ in the human body, and clichéd love stories always begin with headphones being exchanged between two people, especially wired headphones.

Although it's inaccurate to use such words to describe the relationship between mother and son, Kazama doesn't feel embarrassed about sharing a pair of headphones with his mother if it helps them get closer to each other.

The moment I received the headphones, it was less about accepting the sharing of the song and more about silently agreeing to an invitation to enter each other's inner world.

The tangled threads became new organs, and the intertwined currents and signals transformed into blood flowing between the two ends.

No one can be too far away from the other. Even two people with no blood ties can become a shared destiny for each other for a short time because of these headphones.

While Kazama was looking through music files on his phone, Mutsu, who hadn't said a word the whole time, slowed his breathing.

She said nothing, and her heart was filled with a mix of emotions, neither big nor small.

She merely glanced at the boy's profile while waiting, watching the sunlight streaming through the window fall on his slightly trembling eyelashes, turning his handsome features into the same golden hue as his pupils.

Mu couldn't quite tell whether the rising and falling sounds that followed were drumbeats in music or a faint, throbbing rhythm in his chest.

All she knew was that she hadn't even noticed when her legs went numb from squatting; she was simply admiring the boy's profile while listening to the music in her headphones.

"Your eyes are very beautiful."

Mu gave a sincere compliment.

"Ah, of course."

The boy smiled as if he had expected her to say that.

"After all, my eyes are—"

"She looks a lot like Xiang, but her beauty is quite different."

"……Eh?"

Kazama was completely stunned, not expecting Mutsumi to say such a thing.

Even now, he still remembers why he was adopted by Mu. If it weren't for his amber eyes, which were so similar to Xiangzi's, that caught Mu's attention, his connection with Mu probably would never have begun.

But why does she feel that their eyes look different now...?

"Well, well, these are the lyrics written by Hatsuka, which correspond to the instrumental demo."

Unable to sort out his thoughts, Kazama decided to put these details aside for the time being. It wasn't until he handed the phone to him that Mutsu reluctantly parted his gaze.

She took Kazama's phone with a puzzled look, but after quickly reading through the lyrics written by Hatsuka, she paused slightly in surprise.

Oh dear...it seems this is a declaration of love.

Mu's consciousness relaxed for a fleeting moment, and a voice deep within her lingered in her mind like the whisper of a devil.