Elf: Rewriting the script, starting with Black Stocking Hanako

The morning sunlight peeked through the gaps in the curtains, cutting a golden band of light across the carpet.

Xiaoxia was woken up by her own biological clock.

She groggily turned over, one hand reaching out from under the covers and groping around the pillow. After a couple of tries and not finding the alarm clock, she finally managed to open one eye.

The curtains weren't fully drawn.

The sunlight outside was already blindingly bright.

Xiaoxia was stunned for a moment.

The next second she suddenly sprang up from the bed, the blanket was thrown off and piled up in a ball at the foot of the bed.

"It's all over, it ...!"

She muttered to herself as she hurriedly rolled out of bed. Her feet landed on the carpet, and her left foot tripped over her right, causing her to stumble forward two steps before regaining her balance.

She was wearing a light pink slip dress, one of the straps of which had slipped down while she was sleeping, hanging crookedly on her arm. The neckline was wide open, revealing a patch of fair skin below her collarbone, and the hem of the dress had been rolled up to her upper thigh, revealing glimpses of her white cotton panties.

Xiaoxia didn't care about any of this.

She didn't even put on slippers, rushing out of the bedroom door barefoot, her soles slapping against the wooden floor of the hallway with a "slap slap slap" sound.

Jiang Chuan booked this suite; it had three bedrooms and a living room, with one bedroom each for her, Hua Zi, and Jiang Chuan. The three of them had been living together for quite some time, and they had long since let go of any unnecessary formalities.

So Xiaoxia never even considered changing her clothes before going out.

She ran barefoot to Jiang Chuan's bedroom door and banged on it.

clap clap.

"Get up, get up, get up!"

Her voice was still hoarse from just waking up, but she spoke rapidly, like a machine gun.

"Stop sleeping in! Let's go see Xiao Mao get his comeuppance!"

After she finished speaking, she knocked on the door twice, then withdrew her hand, put her hands on her hips, and stood at the door waiting for a response from inside.

The shoulder strap of her nightgown slipped down a little more. She reached out to grab it, but couldn't, so she just gave up.

next second.

Jiang Chuan's voice came from behind her.

"Only one person is sleeping in."

His voice carried a hint of laughter, unhurried and gentle, accompanied by the crisp, light sound of a porcelain cup being placed on a saucer.

Xiaoxia suddenly turned around.

Jiang Chuan sat at the dining table, holding a coffee cup in one hand and his phone in the other, looking down at something. On the table in front of him were several plates containing fried eggs, bacon, toast, and a small dish of jam.

Hanako sat opposite him.

Xiaoxia stood there, barefoot, her pajamas askew, one hand still on her hip.

She looked at the two neatly dressed people in the living room who had been eating breakfast for quite some time, and the expression on her face changed from anxiety to blankness, and then from blankness to embarrassment.

"ah."

She uttered a short syllable.

Then she stuck out her tongue, the tip of which peeked out from between her lips.

"You're all up!"

Jiang Chuan picked up his coffee cup, took a sip, and looked at Xiaoxia. He smiled.

"You ate too much barbecue last night, didn't you?"

"After you got back, you tossed and turned in bed for almost an hour before you finally fell asleep. I could hear you turning over in the next room."

Xiaoxia's face flushed red.

She remembered what happened after she came back last night—she had eaten too much barbecue, her stomach was bloated, and she couldn't fall asleep no matter what she did. She rolled around in bed, sometimes lying on her stomach, sometimes on her back, sometimes with her legs up against the wall, and it took her a long time to finally drift off to sleep.

"I...I just ate so much that I felt great!"

Xiaoxia stubbornly tried to defend herself, but her voice was noticeably softer than before.

"The beef tongue at that restaurant was so delicious, I couldn't help but eat several plates..."

As she spoke, she realized she was in the wrong, so she stopped explaining and ran to her room.

"Wait a minute! I'll be right there changing!"

Hanako watched Xia's stumbling figure and gently shook her head.

She put down her orange juice glass, wiped her mouth with a napkin, then stood up and walked to the kitchen counter.

On the counter was an insulated bag containing her pre-portioned breakfast: a sandwich wrapped in plastic wrap, a box of diced honeydew melon, and a bottle of warm milk.

Hanako zipped up the insulated bag, picked it up, and weighed it in her hand to make sure the weight was just right.

Less than three minutes later, Xiaoxia rushed out of the room.

As she walked, she stepped down on the heels of her sneakers, alternating between her feet, and then she was done wearing them.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

Xiaoxia rushed to the dining table, grabbed Jiang Chuan's wrist, and pulled him out.

"Let's hurry up and leave! We can't be late and leave Xiao Mao getting beaten up!"

She was quite strong, pulling Jiang Chuan forward.

Jiang Chuan was pulled to his feet by her, and pointed with his other hand to the untidy plates on the table.

"You're skipping breakfast?"

Xiaoxia didn't even glance at the plates, shaking her head vigorously.

"I'm not eating anymore!"

She freed one hand and patted her stomach.

"I ate so much meat last night, and it still hasn't been digested. Look, my stomach is still bloated."

As she spoke, she deliberately straightened her back, letting Jiang Chuan see her abdomen. There was indeed a slight bulge above the waistband of her denim shorts, which accentuated her slender waist and gave her a touch of youthful roundness.

"Hurry up, let's go see the show!"

She didn't give Jiang Chuan a chance to speak. She grabbed his wrists with both hands, leaned back, and used her full weight to pull him toward the door.

Hanako walked over from the kitchen carrying an insulated bag, saw this scene, and shook her head helplessly.

She walked to the door, picked up her parasol and a small handbag from the shoe cabinet, then took Jiang Chuan's sneakers out of the cabinet and bent down to place them at his feet.

After doing all that, she straightened up and hung the strap of the insulated bag on Xiaoxia's wrist.

"Take it with you to eat on the road."

Hanako's voice was gentle and soft, but there was an undeniable certainty in her tone.

Xiaoxia looked down at the insulated bag hanging on her wrist, then looked up at Huazi.

"Hanako-nee~"

Her voice softened, and her eyes reddened slightly.

Hanako reached out and gently wiped away a drop of water that was still wet on Xiaoxia's face with her fingertips.

"Let's go."

She withdrew her hand, and Chong Jiangchuan smiled slightly.

"If you don't leave now, Xia is going to break your wrist."

Jiang Chuan glanced down at his wrist, which had turned white from Xiaoxia's grip, smiled and sighed, bent down to put on his sneakers, then straightened up and took Hanako's hand with his other hand.

"Okay, let's go."

…………

The three of them left the hotel and walked along the streets of Viridian City toward the dojo.

The streets this morning were a completely different sight from last night.

Last night, the neon lights and signs were all turned off, replaced by the clattering sound of shop shutters being pulled up early in the morning, the beeping of delivery trucks reversing, and the hurried pace of office workers' leather shoes on the sidewalk.

The sunlight slanted in from the east, casting long shadows of the three people.

Xiaoxia walked in front, holding Jiang Chuan's wrist with one hand and taking out a sandwich from her insulated bag with the other, munching on it as she walked. She would take a bite of the sandwich, chew it twice, then take a sip of milk, her cheeks puffed out like a hamster's.

"Eat slowly, don't choke."

Hanako walked on the other side of Jiangchuan, one hand held by Jiangchuan, the other hand holding a parasol. She turned her head to look at Xia's ravenous eating and couldn't help but remind her.

"It's alright, it's alright!"

Xiaoxia mumbled a reply and took another big bite of her sandwich.

The three of them turned two street corners, crossed a commercial street, and walked uphill for a while.

The Viridian Gym is built on the highest point in Viridian City, and its black structure can be seen from afar. The closer you get, the stronger the sense of oppression becomes.

The exterior walls of the Tokiwa Dojo are made of dark gray stone, polished to an extremely smooth finish that gleams with a cold sheen in the sunlight. The main building of the dojo is trapezoidal, wide at the bottom and gradually narrowing upwards, culminating in a platform at the top where a flagpole stands, with a black flag hanging from its apex.

The dojo's main entrance consists of two double metal doors, which appear to be over three meters tall. The doors are undecorated, with only two vertical handles, giving them a cold and imposing look, like the doors to a vault.

Two men in military uniforms stood on either side of the gate.

If it weren't for the "Tokiwa Dojo" sign hanging at the entrance, Xiaoxia would have almost thought she had wandered into some kind of military restricted area.

"Wow."

Xiaoxia stuffed the last bite of her sandwich into her mouth, tilted her head back, and looked at the building with her mouth agape.

"This Tokiwa Dojo is really impressive."

She swallowed the food in her mouth and pointed to the guards at the door.

"Why are there guards standing guard? Other dojos at most have a receptionist at the entrance, but this one looks like a military headquarters!"

She took two steps back, looked up at the black flag again, and frowned.

"Why does this curator seem to have an ambition to conquer the world?"

Jiang Chuan stood beside her, his hands in his pockets, his gaze fixed on the flag.

"Maybe."

Xiaoxia didn't pay attention to his tone.

She finished the milk in a few gulps, tossed the empty can into a roadside trash can, wiped her mouth, and took a deep breath.

"Walk!"

She started walking towards the dojo's main gate. Just as she reached the gate and was about to step inside, the two security guards who looked like soldiers suddenly moved at the same time.

Two metal forks crossed in an X shape in front of her, blocking her way.

The surface of the metal fork gleamed coldly, and it was less than ten centimeters from the tip of her nose.

Xiaoxia instinctively jumped back a step.

"What's going on?"

She stared at the metal fork in front of her, then looked up and glared at the two security guards.

The security guard on the left spoke up.

His voice was completely flat, as if he were reciting a line he had said hundreds of times.

"There are already people challenging the gym inside."

"Only one group of challengers can enter at a time. Please try again later."

Xiaoxia was stunned after hearing this.

"what?"

She uttered an incredulous question, then her voice suddenly rose a half-octave.

"No spectators? Why? Other gyms are allowed to spectate! Why is it different at your Viridian Gym?"

She became more and more agitated as she spoke, gesturing wildly with her hands in front of her, as if she wanted to jump up and punch the security guard in the knee.

"What?! The dojo has a rule that forbids spectators...!"

She was only halfway through her sentence when she was about to unleash her full theoretical power.

At that moment, a dull metallic scraping sound was heard.

The doors of the Tokiwa Dojo slowly opened.

Xiao Mao walked out of the door.

He walked very slowly.

His steps were slow and hesitant, each step feeling like he was wading through mud, his heels scraping against the ground with a soft, rustling sound.

The way he stood yesterday, head held high, chin in hand, pointing at the river and drawing arcs with his finger, was completely different from the dejected and lost figure he is now.

Following behind him were his team of female cheerleaders.

Six girls walked out of the door in a few scattered rows, each with red eyes and tear stains still on their faces.

"Young Master Mao has lost..."

"Young Master Mao actually lost..."

Xiaoxia stood there, stunned for three seconds.

then.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Her laughter exploded at the entrance of the Tokiwa Dojo, crisp and loud, carrying a natural schadenfreude.

"Lost? Really lost? Hahaha!"

Xiaoxia straightened up, took a deep breath, and laughed again.

However, her laughter only lasted a few seconds before stopping.

Because she suddenly realized something—she hadn't seen how Shigeru was defeated.

Xiaoxia's expression changed from gloating to heartbroken.

"wrong!"

She whirled around, staring at the gate of Tokiwa Dojo. The gate was already closed again, and two security guards stood there with metal forks, expressionless, as if nothing had happened.

"What kind of lousy gym is this! And spectators aren't allowed!"

"I should have come sooner! I knew I shouldn't have slept so long!"

She slapped her head in frustration, then turned to look at Xiao Mao.

Xiao Mao paused upon hearing her laughter. He glanced at Xiao Xia, his eyes vacant and devoid of emotion. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but ultimately nothing came out.

Xiaoxia wouldn't let him off the hook just because he looked pitiful.

She put her hands on her hips, took a step forward, and stood in front of Xiao Mao.

"Hey, Shigeru."

Her voice carried a hint of mischievousness, as if she already knew the answer.

"Weren't you bragging quite a bit yesterday? What 'crushing' Viridian Gym? What 'Don't compare your skills, as a beginner trainer, to mine'?"

She repeated Xiao Mao's words from yesterday word for word, exaggeratedly mimicking his condescending tone.

"Where did you run over?"

Xiaoxia stretched out a finger and poked Xiaomao's shoulder—this action was also imitating what he did yesterday, only the roles were reversed.

"Based on the usual opening hours of a dojo, you've only been inside for less than half an hour, right?"

She withdrew her fingers, crossed her hands in front of her chest, tilted her head to look at Xiao Mao, and couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.

"That's it?"

Xiao Mao was poked by her finger, and his body swayed slightly.

His lips were trembling; he wanted to refute, to argue, to retort in his usual condescending tone.

But his lips trembled a few times before finally closing.

Then he sighed.

The sigh was long and slow, as if he were exhaling the last bit of pride in his chest. After the sigh, his shoulders slumped, and he seemed to shrink two centimeters.

Xiaoxia was stunned for a moment.

She had prepared a lot of things to say to Xiao Mao, but seeing his indifference to even refuting him, she was at a loss for words.

She turned her head and glanced at Jiang Chuan, a hint of surprise in her eyes.

Was this guy hit that hard?

The cheerleaders behind Xiaomao cried even harder when they heard Xiaoxia's words.

"Waaaaah... Poor young master Mao..."

"That gym leader went too far, bringing out such a terrifying Pokémon..."

"Waaaaah...you scared me to death..."

The six girls were crying together, and the sequins on the ball fell to the ground, shimmering in the sunlight.

Jiang Chuan stood a few steps away, and upon hearing the name of the terrifying Pokémon, he immediately perked up.