A Young Woman's Heart

Because the fruit shop was stuffy and hot, Mo Xueyao wanted to turn on the ceiling fan, but her mother insisted that she clean it herself before using it.

Not wanting to work, she simply dragged Li Wanyan along to the countryside.

These simple container villas near the tea plantation are indeed much cooler than in the city.

Although ordinary shipping containers can be very stuffy, this place has many windows and good ventilation, and it also uses heat-insulating materials. As long as it's not scorching hot with temperatures over 40 degrees Celsius, it feels no different from any other house.

—Besides, if it's really that hot, can't we just turn on the air conditioner?

It's so nice to have air conditioning.

Such moments evoke endless emotions.

In the yard outside, the grapevines that were planted earlier have slowly climbed up. I wonder if they will be able to cover the entire trellis this summer. Even if you don't enjoy the shade there, just looking at the greenery will make you feel refreshed.

Dark Chocolate was released from its cage. Now it's as big as a cat. It's sitting on a cute little platform, leisurely washing its face with its paws and saliva.

"Ah, who made that mini station by the door?" Mo Xueyao tilted her head and looked out the window.

The windows were wide open, and the sunlight, hiding behind the clouds, appeared and disappeared intermittently, as if playing hide-and-seek with the wind.

"Is today Nurses' Day?" Mo Zhuyou idly flipped through a fortune-telling book in her hand, and happened to turn to the taboos about various holidays.

However, this book seems to be quite trendy, as it even includes modern holidays and provides modern interpretations of them.

Times have really changed, even the Chinese almanac has to change now, right?

"There are so many holidays."

"Yes, there are so many holidays every month... and tomorrow is Mother's Day."

"It's Mother's Day, just pretend you don't know." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes, as if she was sulking.

"What's wrong, Xiaoyao?"

"Oh dear, why do I have such high expectations of my mom?"

"Oh~" Mo Zhuyou nodded thoughtfully, but after tilting her head and thinking for a long time, she finally asked stupidly, "Hey, sis, were Mom strict with us when we were young?"

"Hmm...it's quite strict."

"Is that so? So all mothers in the world are probably pretty much the same."

Mo Zhuyou turned over and started looking for things in the TV cabinet.

"Hey, sis, where's the greeting card I left here?"

"Is it at the very bottom?"

"Mmm-mmm—Found it! Ta-da! Yao, at least write a greeting card for your mom, right?"

What should we write?

"Just write what you want to say, and of course, don't forget to thank me." She licked her lips, casually picked up a black pen without a cap, and started writing on the greeting card. "I want to write too."

Who are you writing to?

"Hmm—Written for my sister?"

Mo Xueyao glanced at Mo Xiaoxiao, who was grinning sheepishly, and couldn't help but poke Mo Zhuyou's butt with her toe: "Seriously? Is this your mom?"

"That's about it. My sister is taking care of me for longer than my mom is going to."

"Tsk tsk." Mo Xueyao lazily rolled over. "It's a good thing my mom is still here, otherwise Wanyan could be my mom by now."

Li Wanyan calmly smoothed Mo Zhuyou's long hair and looked at Mo Xiaoxiao.

The two girls, who were both older sisters and 'mothers', glanced at each other, as if exchanging experiences.

A commercial was playing on the TV. Mo Xueyao, hunched over, scribbled on a greeting card: "Happy Holiday, Mom! I hope you won't be so demanding of me in the future. I'm just an ordinary person; isn't it normal to slack off sometimes?"

Mo Xiao smiled, covering her mouth, and said, "Pfft, Xiao Yao is so cute."

"Huh? What is that? How is it cute?"

"So adorably silly, even cuter than Youyou!"

"What?! My sister actually thinks I'm not the cutest?!" Mo Zhuyou shook her legs in dissatisfaction, wriggled over like a worm, and climbed onto her sister to start 'competing for her favor'.

The early summer breeze was so comfortable that Mo Xueyao, who was lying on the greeting card intending to watch TV for a while, unknowingly fell asleep.

I had a dream within a dream.

Yes, it was like having another dream within a dream.

I almost completely forgot the contents of the dream when I woke up, only vaguely remembering that I seemed to have entered a fairy tale world, and the only thing I remembered was the bouncy bed made of jelly.

My head felt as heavy as if it were filled with lead. It was already dark outside, the TV was off, and no one was inside.

As the evening sun was almost sinking below the horizon, the campfire surrounded by piles of stones blazed even brighter.

Perhaps because she was dreaming within a dream, she felt as if she had slept for two days and two nights in a row, feeling drowsy and listless.

"Ah..." She bumped into the clean glass door without thinking, rubbing her forehead as she pushed it open.

Right next to the door was that exquisite platform, where a dark rabbit almost blended into the shadows, its eyes squinting as if waiting for a bus.

For a moment, Mo Xueyao wondered if she was still awake, because the scene was like a fairytale dream.

"Xiao Yao~!" Mo Zhuyou waved vigorously by the campfire, "You're awake!"

"Hmm, haha, what time is it?"

It's almost seven o'clock.

"It's still so bright at seven o'clock?" Mo Xueyao yawned and sat down on the wooden post she was using as a stool. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I was just about to call it." Mo Xiaoxiao was washing something, and the mud next to her was stained red.

"What is this?"

"rabbit."

"Huh?" If Mo Xueyao hadn't seen Dark Chocolate when she went out earlier, she probably would have thought she had killed and eaten it.

Although it does look quite plump...

“It’s a wild rabbit! Dark Chocolate is over there!” Mo Zhuyou pointed towards the door. “It was brought by an uncle from a nearby village. He used to bring us firewood often, and we would give him earthworms, herbs, and things like that.”

"Is the uncle a hunter?" Perhaps because she had just woken up, Mo Xueyao didn't feel that the fireside was very hot. The hot wind blowing from the city passed through the woods and the river, and then became very cool.

The chirping of crickets and the croaking of frogs mingled together, a scene unique to a summer night in the countryside.

If there were a watermelon, it would bring back even more childhood memories.

Even someone like Mo Xueyao, who has hardly ever been back to her hometown, has such memories.

"He's just a farmer, I guess. He sometimes goes hunting. I can't even pull his bow, it's so heavy!" Mo Zhuyou exaggeratedly spread her arms and gestured the shape of the bow.

"Were the rabbits also shot down with a bow?"

"Those are usually done with traps, bows are probably only for defense against wolves or wild boars."

"That's great, there's even rabbit to eat." Mo Xueyao rested her chin on her hand and noticed that the picnic table next to her was already full of various seasonings and pre-prepared food.

There wasn't much meat; it was mostly vegetables.

But with good cooking skills, vegetables can be grilled very well.

Especially some soy products.

"Why are there so many sausages?" Mo Xueyao picked up a sausage and ate it directly, because her stomach was already protesting.

"Ham sausages are cheap, and they can be considered meat, albeit in a lesser sense."

“That’s true.” The two sisters, who weren’t exactly well-off, had to be careful with their money in everything they did.

"Oh, right, I'll pay you for the groceries later."

"No need."

"Yes, yes, you two don't have much money. It's not right to make you spend so much money when you come to play."

"Xiaoyao, you're talking like a middle-aged man who's been living in society for a long time," Mo Zhuyou patted her on the back and said with a smile. "It's okay, we're friends, very good friends, it's not like I'm always coming over for meals~"

"Hmm, then I'll bring more ingredients next time I come!"

“This is great!” Mo Zhuyou picked up a sausage as well. “Xiaoxue always fishes here when she comes, and sometimes we grill the fish.”

Does he come often?

"No, I don't think so. I only come here when I need to do those 'creaking' and noisy handicrafts."

"Sawing wood..."

"More or less?"

Mo Xiaoxiao skewered the cleaned rabbit onto a straight and sturdy wooden stick, and looked at the two of them helplessly: "You're eating it before you've even grilled it?"

"Are you hungry... hehe..." Mo Xueyao and Mo Zhuyou both showed embarrassed smiles at the same time.

The rabbits were roasted on the top rack, while the others were roasted on a wire mesh.

At first, I found the smoke unpleasant, but as the aroma of the food was released, especially when golden ghee dripped from the rabbit, my stomach started to rumble with hunger.

It was as if they hadn't eaten for three days and three nights, and they couldn't wait to pick it up and take a big bite right now.

Mo Zhuyou picked up a skewer of grilled cauliflower and crunched it away. The conversation then began to stretch out like the night: "Speaking of which, Children's Day is on the first of next month!"

"What, you've thought about it again?"

"Hey, I'm not an adult yet, I guess I'm still a child, right?"

“No—it doesn’t count—” Mo Xueyao drawled out.

"Ugh, I want a Children's Day present..."

……

Chapter Seventy: Starlight Shining on My Face

"Wow!" Mo Zhuyou ran into the activity room with her wet hair, just like a theatrical performer.

This is the basement level of the container villa. Originally, it was designed to be a dance studio or gym.