I turned reality into a romantic comedy.

In fact, Chen Junqian has never been particularly interested in shoes, socks, feet, and the like. He used to pay attention to them mainly because of the system's achievements. However, after Xu Youwei took both the achievements for wearing socks and taking off socks, the only sock-related achievements left in his mind were those related to stockings, which felt quite distant. He seemed to recall that Shen Nianqiu had only mentioned it a long time ago.

"I'll test the water temperature first—then Qianqian will put her feet in, because Mom says my feet are delicate and soft, so if it feels right to me, then I shouldn't get burned."

As she spoke, Lin Mu tentatively dipped her toes into the water, her toes barely touching the surface before she reflexively lifted them back up, placing them on Chen Junqian's lap opposite her. Her fair, rounded toes curled slightly from the heat, and then she revealed a slightly shy smile.

"Hmm...it's still a little hot."

To be honest, Chen Junqian always felt that the water temperature for soaking feet was essentially a matter of trial and error, since everyone's feet have different tolerance levels. Some people just like the feeling of being scalded. However, since Lin Mu had already gone this far, he naturally went along with her wishes. And Lin Mu was indeed quite cute.

So, winter really is Mu Mu's comfort zone.

"It should be about time now..."

After waiting a while, Lin Mu finally removed her feet from Chen Junqian's thighs. This time, the temperature was indeed much more comfortable. After putting both feet in and feeling them for a while, she invited Chen Junqian to put his feet in as well.

Following the other person's instructions, Chen Junqian took off his shoes and socks. As soon as he put his feet in, the other person lifted his foot slightly and pressed it on the instep of his foot. However, this was not a prank or out of any perverse sense of humor. It was just that the foot bath was only so big, and it would be a bit cramped if two people soaked their feet together. So they could only make do with it for now.

It seemed that Lin Mu had completely replaced the towel with the soles and toes of her feet. After a while, she started rubbing Chen Junqian's insteps on the towel. The water in the basin swayed slightly with her movements, making a sound that made people feel a little sleepy.

There was absolutely no need to ask whether Qianqian had ever washed her parents' feet before. For Lin Mu, her childhood friend, this was practically basic information. So she simply focused intently on washing the feet until she felt she was done, then picked up the thermos next to her and added a little more hot water.

"Qianqian, lift your foot."

"Ah."

It's only polite to reciprocate, so after adding a batch of hot water, Chen Junqian took the opportunity to wash Mu Mu's feet as well. However, he didn't have the leisure to use his feet. Instead, he focused on using his hands to scrub Mu Mu's toes several times with a towel, making sure not to miss any gaps between them. Then, he realized once again that his childhood sweetheart was indeed a very ticklish child.

If he just touched the armpits, the sides of the waist, and the soles of the feet with his fingers, the other person would react very strongly. Their entire arch would be stretched straight, and they would sit there supporting themselves with both hands, looking up with a pained expression as if they were trying hard to suppress a laugh, their whole body shaking.

Why isn't Qianqian ticklish?

"It's probably related to your constitution? Besides, Mu Mu, you're always scratching openly. If you suddenly launch an attack, it might be more effective."

"Okay, but I was clearly bumped into by Qianqian in a perfectly legitimate way, sigh."

Feeling easily manipulated, Mu Mu puffed out her cheeks in protest, then abruptly changed the subject, turning her head to look at the television and complaining:

"Almost every channel is showing a rerun of the Spring Festival Gala... It's boring."

"After all, it's still the first day of the Lunar New Year. Some local TV stations are showing their own Spring Festival Gala, but it seems like Mu Mu isn't particularly interested."

It's more accurate to say that few children are interested in the Spring Festival Gala. At most, they might watch a skit or a magic show. As the comedy programs have become increasingly bad and he has grown older, Chen Junqian himself has stopped watching the Spring Festival Gala. He has no recollection of this year's gala, as he spent most of his time playing games with his younger sister and chatting with his older sister.

"Hmm."

Lin Mu casually flipped through a few channels with the remote but couldn't find what he wanted to watch. He put the remote down and turned back to look at Chen Junqian's face seriously. He then took out the four-leaf clover that the two of them had found in the mountains that afternoon from his pocket.

"You're really amazing, Qianqian."

"Do I even need to praise this?"

"Because it's really amazing, it found it right away. After all, that's a one in ten thousand chance, almost like winning the lottery. I'm going to send a picture to Weiwei, but it's so annoying that there's no internet right now."

After picking up the tablet computer, which didn't have Wi-Fi, from the coffee table next to him, Lin Mu remembered this and could only take two photos using the camera function.

"Did Qianqian go to Weiwei's house this morning?"

"Well, it's kind of an annual routine, if the wear-resistant factory doesn't go out of business."

"Will the wear-resistant materials factory not go bankrupt?"

Lin Mu tilted his head in confusion upon hearing this. After all, Phoenix Wear-resistant Materials Co., Ltd. was a large factory in Guoning, and he couldn't see any connection between it and going bankrupt.

"Because these things are always hard to predict. After all, no one could have imagined that Guoning's hickory nuts would turn out like this three years ago."

In fact, Chen Junqian's words were just casual remarks. After all, in his memory, although the wear-resistant factory where his parents used to work had indeed had a very difficult time in the past two years, it had not reached the point where the song "Kill That Guoning Man" was sung. After all, Guoning's economic structure and focus were not entirely on this aspect.

"That's true."

Lin Mu didn't know much about wear-resistant factories, but he did know a lot about his own hickory nuts. The changes in the past three years were more dramatic than those in the previous ten or twenty years, and sometimes they could make people feel a sense of disorientation and disorientation.

Thinking about it carefully, even she herself hadn't watched cartoons in a long time.

Those old-fashioned people who held the idea that everything would remain the same and nothing would change have been swept away by the tides of time. That's why Lin Mu thought that stopping time was a good idea.

Anyway, it seems there's not much hope left for her to grow taller.

As they chatted, the two of them shifted the topic back to their studies.

After a semester of intensive training from her English teacher, Lin Mu's English grades actually improved significantly. Her weaker subjects have become the four new subjects added after entering middle school. Among the four subjects of biology, geography, history, and moral education and law, biology and geography are the most difficult to learn, and her results in this final exam were not very ideal.

"I even borrowed books for next semester from my cousin during winter break to prepare for the upcoming semester, but how should I put it..."

When Lin Mu's gaze wandered and his speech became somewhat hesitant, Chen Junqian simply recalled the biology textbook knowledge from the second semester of junior high school and quickly understood the reason.

To be honest, so many years have passed, and it's impossible for him to remember all the textbook knowledge he learned in junior high school. But the biology in the second semester of junior high school is one that he remembers very well, because it was the first time he experienced what it meant for the students to stifle or even burst into laughter when the teacher said any word.

Because the textbook begins with "Unit 4: Humans in the Biosphere", and the second and third chapters are "Human Reproduction" and "Puberty".

Those were clearly professional biological terms, but the words that Chen Junqian later couldn't get published in his works were undoubtedly bombshells for children of that age. He himself didn't feel angry or shocked, but simply thought that it was quite interesting to think about it in retrospect, especially after the news came out a few years later that the sex education booklet he promoted was successfully reported by parents and eventually recalled.

After all, this kind of thing has always been strictly guarded against by parents and closely linked to a sense of shame. But just like the famous saying that seeing a white arm will remind you of something else, if white arms are like this, then when these terms are blatantly displayed, it's naturally earth-shattering.

Without a doubt, Mu Mu in front of him was one of them.

The talk about height and stature is just a joke. Chen Junqian's childhood sweetheart, who is now fourteen years old after the New Year, has certainly entered puberty. Normal physiological phenomena and secondary sexual characteristics, although not obvious, are indeed developing. However, these are all things that he can recognize. He is still completely clueless about the opposite sex.

"Do you feel shy about that kind of content?"

If Chen Junqian remembered correctly, in those two terrible classrooms where it was impossible to teach normally, their biology teacher also hastily went through the knowledge points and then moved on from the content, ending this 'carnival'. However, he didn't have any such thoughts, since it was just him and Mu Mu here now.

Moreover, he had actually discussed this topic with Zhu Wenyun many, many times over a long period of time.

"Of course he can! Don't you think Qianqian can't?"

In fact, one thing that Lin Mu was very satisfied with about Chen Junqian was that he didn't have the same verbal tic as other boys his age who would constantly talk about genitals. So even if they talked about this topic, Lin Mu didn't feel particularly embarrassed.

"It's alright."

Because the person they're talking to is different, Chen Junqian's attitude and words will also change. It's fortunate that Zhu Wenyun doesn't have any strange fetishes, otherwise, if she just recorded a few of their past phone conversations, she could create a strange file like, "Hmm? So this is how Qianqian talks to you? It's completely different here. If you have the courage, open it and listen."

"I thought Auntie would explain things very clearly to Mumu."

"Even if I were to talk about it, I would only talk about the parts related to girls."

As she spoke, Lin Mu reached out again, gesturing for Chen Junqian to tilt his head back. She touched her childhood sweetheart's protruding Adam's apple with her fingertips, but only briefly before pulling away and touching her own neck.

But that's where it ends. He didn't have the courage to ask questions like "Have you ever had a nocturnal emission?" that Zhu Wenyun could ask so casually. Even though it was written in black and white in textbooks as a sign of entering puberty, the physical and psychological development were indeed two factors that influenced each other. Lin Mu, who was not obvious in the former, would be much slower in the latter, as if he was still shrouded in a hazy fog.

After washing their feet, the basin was almost full of water and much heavier, so Chen Junqian, who was stronger, took over the task of emptying it.

Lin Mu, alone in his room, sat there recalling the contents of an age table he had seen in his biology textbook. Fourteen years old corresponds to… He unconsciously pulled his collar open a little and peeked inside.

Science no longer exists.

...It was clearly still in the stage of a budding lotus just beginning to emerge.

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Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Word We Never Speak (Part Two)

Chen Junqian, who went out to pour out the foot bath water, was of course unaware that his childhood sweetheart was in the room overturning the first year of junior high school biology. Having been in the room for a long time, he took the opportunity to go out into the yard for some fresh air while pouring out the water, and breathed in the fresh mountain night air.

The gambling scene in the courtyard outside was still bustling with activity. Judging from the sounds coming from there, they seemed to be playing "Two-Eight" mahjong, also known as "Pushing the Tiles" or "Tiles Skill." The winner is determined solely by the cards you draw, making it a purely luck-based game. The game starts very quickly, sometimes every minute, so it has been a popular game during the Chinese New Year gambling season. A large group of adults with cash in their hands were also crowding around, placing bets.

The only thing that made Chen Junqian somewhat relieved was that Lin Mu's parents hadn't gotten involved. Gambling can cause percentage-based damage once you get hooked, and no amount of family wealth can compensate for that. After listening for a while, he learned that the amount of money being bet at their place was substantial. People were casually betting seven or eight hundred each, and each player could bet thousands or tens of thousands. A single game could generate a turnover of forty or fifty thousand. It just goes to show that pecans are indeed very profitable, especially for those working in this industry.

After glancing at it twice and finding it uninteresting, Chen Junqian picked up the empty basin and prepared to return it to the back. However, he saw Lin Youfeng sitting on a small stool over there, facing a small pot in front of him, seemingly doing something.

Upon closer inspection, there was a plate of freshly wrapped egg dumplings piled up next to the other person, while the boss himself was quickly wrapping more dumplings with chopsticks in one hand and a spoon in the other, though his movements didn't seem very skilled.

"They've been washing your feet for quite a while now."

Seeing Chen Junqian carrying an empty basin, Lin Youfeng also stopped what he was doing and greeted him in a friendly manner.

"Yes, I soaked in the water with Mumu for a while longer."

Following the other party's instructions, Chen Junqian placed the empty basin aside and then asked curiously:

"Why are you only making egg dumplings now?"

"Hi, my mom had some back pain before the New Year, so she missed a day of making these. She used up all the leftovers yesterday and today, so I'm just making two more plates to tide her over."

As one of the main dishes of the Three Delicacies Hot Pot, Chen Junqian's hometown has always prepared egg dumplings before the New Year or on New Year's Eve. Although this thing is essentially just an egg skin wrapped around meat filling, and the tools and ingredients used are quite simple, it is not an easy task to wrap them quickly and beautifully. Lin Youfeng in front of him is the best example.

"I'll try?"

"You can do this too?"

"Yes, I've done it at home."

Walking over and taking the tools from the other person, Chen Junqian sat down in front of the small charcoal stove that had been lit. He quickly demonstrated to Lin Youfeng that he hadn't lied. He first picked up a piece of fatty meat that was placed next to him for rendering oil and rubbed it around the bottom of the already scorching hot iron spoon. Then, he scooped up a spoonful of egg liquid with a small spoon, and with a light twist of his wrist, the bottom of the iron spoon bloomed into a golden sunflower. The aroma of eggs instantly wafted up.

Time it right before it's set, then use chopsticks to add the right amount of meat filling. Finally, use the tip of the chopsticks to lift one side of the egg skin and fold it over to the other side, using the heat and residual oil to seal it. A steaming egg dumpling with pretty golden lace curled at the edges is then successfully made and placed on the tray next to it by Chen Junqian.

Compared to the row of egg dumplings Lin Youfeng had just made, these dumplings were indeed several times better in appearance and presentation. One middle-aged man was even sweating a bit, but then he thought about how his daughter had been fooled by this guy's cooking skills in the first place, so it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.

After doing this a few more times, Lin Mu, who hadn't seen Chen Junqian return to the room for a long time, found out on her own and discovered her childhood sweetheart in the kitchen, completely immersed in the art of making egg dumplings.

"What is Qianqian doing?"

Completely ignoring her father who was also there, the girl hurried over, found another small stool, and sat down next to Chen Junqian. Curious, she leaned in to watch his every move, her little nose twitching.

"It smells quite good."

"Make egg dumplings."

Talking to Lin Mu didn't delay Chen Junqian's work. With a light twist and turn, the egg liquid turned into a beautiful egg skin at the bottom of the spoon, perfectly even in every part as if it had been measured. To Mu Mu, it was practically magic, since it was the first time she had ever seen Chen Junqian make something like this.

To be honest, although Chen Junqian cooked the first meal for her alone, and then cooked for her many times afterward, Lin Mu was a complete kitchen novice, so her sense of participation was not as great as when she tried to use the pot lid as a shield the first time. She basically just sat outside waiting for the meal to be served.

However, Mu Mu herself also had something to say. It's quite rare for students of this age to be able to cook for themselves. Among the people she knows, only Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun can cook.

"I really want to eat it..."

Lin Mu certainly acknowledged Chen Junqian's culinary skills. If their first meal together was somewhat embellished by memory, then from that moment on, her childhood sweetheart's cooking truly became delicious, as if he had learned it specifically for her.

Of course, if Mu Mu is willing to flip through last year's "Fireworks" magazine, or buy "Plums Too Ripe Are Bitter, Unrequited Love Too Long Is Sour" which will be officially published this year, then she can also find another explanation for Chen Junqian's improved cooking skills.

Incidentally, another friend of Guo Ning's childhood sweetheart alliance, Youyou, can also claim that this is the result of her training in the doomsday shelter plan over the past two years, which can be considered a kind of three-way interaction.

"The filling inside is raw; the aroma comes from the egg on the outside. Don't even think about it."

Standing beside him, Lin Youfeng said something to his daughter with a bit of a laugh. However, Chen Junqian just smiled knowingly, because when he was very young in his previous life, he had said the same thing to his mother when she was making egg dumplings. Although his mother said something similar to him, she eventually found a solution to fulfill his wish.