A Young Woman's Heart

The falling night also brought with it a dazzling array of stars.

Even though this is in the city, you can still see many bright stars.

Mo Xueyao pulled Li Wanyan out, moved a small stool to sit at the entrance of the fruit shop, looked up at the starry sky and said, "Class monitor, do you think that's the North Star?"

“Yes, when you put them together, it forms the Big Dipper.” Li Wanyan nodded. She couldn’t bear to refuse Mo Xueyao’s kindness and tried her best to pull herself out of her sadness.

It was already 8 p.m., not early anymore, and the fruit shop wasn't as bustling with customers as it was right after dinner.

The whole street seemed rather deserted.

The cassette player that my father bought from a street stall was placed on the counter, playing a popular song that has been popular since last year, with lyrics by Andy Lau – "Stupid Kid".

However, I don't know if it was because the tape recorder was too cheap or the tapes were too pirated, but almost every song would get stuck slightly.

But once you get used to it, you won't care anymore.

"Oh, oh, oh~ Outside the quiet little village, there lived a clumsy little boy, born in the 1960s~"

"Hey, girls!" As the song "Stupid Kid" played, the father casually tossed the pruning shears into a drawer, turned around with a flourish, placed his right hand on the fruit counter, and pulled a pack of Liqun cigarettes from his jacket pocket with one hand. He took a cigarette out, put it in his mouth, lit it with a lighter, took a satisfying drag, and then continued, "You just finished your sports meet today, aren't you going to take a shower?"

"Shall we go to the bathroom to shower?" Mo Xueyao asked. "Speaking of which, I didn't bring any spare clothes... Hmm... But I didn't sweat much, so I'll just change my clothes underneath."

"Both girls are sitting at the door?" Just then, the sprightly Aunt Jin walked to the front of the fruit shop and said with a smile, "Are they trying to attract customers?"

"Oh dear, Aunt Jin, what are you saying? Hahaha—we are a legitimate fruit shop."

"What are you thinking, you little rascal?" Aunt Jin said with a laugh. "I just heard you say you were going to take a bath?"

"Yes, hello Grandma Jin," Mo Xueyao replied politely.

"Hello, Grandma Jin." Li Wanyan was a beat late this time.

"Going to the bathroom is such a waste of money. Just come to my house to shower. My house is big, and there's no one else here."

"Is there no one else?" The father keenly noticed this.

"Hehe, I'm all alone." Aunt Jin smiled. "There's hot water and a bathroom heater. If you want to go, I'll give you the key, you can go and take a shower."

"I'm so sorry," the father said politely.

"What's there to be embarrassed about?" Aunt Jin said, taking the keys out of her pocket. "My home is on this road, the first building on the left, apartment 303."

The father gave Mo Xueyao a look, and she immediately took the keys and said, "Ah, thank you, Grandma Jin!"

"I told you not to be so polite, haha." Aunt Jin shook her head. "There's shower gel and shampoo inside. You just need to bring your own towels and changes of clothes."

"Change of clothes..." Mo Xueyao was at a loss.

Li Wanyan, who was standing to the side, immediately said, "If Xiaoyao doesn't mind, then wear mine."

"Huh?"

“I have a smaller one, which I wore in junior high school, and I put it in my suitcase.”

Mo Xueyao touched her reddened earlobe and muttered softly, "Wear your...?"

"It should still be quite clean."

"Haha, it's alright, it's alright. The clothing stores should still be open. Hurry up and buy a set, it should still be possible..." As her father was speaking, he saw Li Wanyan's somewhat disappointed expression and immediately changed the subject, "However, it's not very convenient to go and pick one out now. Why don't you just wear Wanyan's clothes?"

"Huh?" Mo Xueyao looked at her father with disbelief. She thought he would come to her rescue, but she didn't expect him to say such a thing, and even change his meaning halfway through. What was he thinking?

"It's okay, I'll go help Xiaoyao choose one, it won't be inconvenient," Li Wanyan said immediately.

"Let's just go and buy it, it should be on the way anyway." Mo Xueyao breathed a sigh of relief. She had only just gotten used to wearing girls' clothes, how could she possibly wear other girls' clothes?

I just can't accept it psychologically.

"Then let's go." Li Wanyan suppressed her disappointment, took Mo Xueyao's hand, and said with a smile.

"it is good."

"Here's the money." Her father handed her a dark brown fifty-yuan bill with three portraits on it.

"Girls, be careful," Aunt Jin said with concern.

"Okay, Grandma." Mo Xueyao waved her hand and walked forward with Li Wanyan's arm around her.

By 8 o'clock, the night market was already set up, even occupying the bike lane, so cyclists could only use the car lane.

Fortunately, there weren't many cars at night, so the streets weren't too congested or busy.

Many people come specifically to visit the night market, most of them having finished dinner and coming out for a stroll.

Take a stroll aimlessly through the night market, and if you see something you like, buy it.

Anyway, things are relatively cheap at the night market. If you have a little spare money, spending it to have some fun is a good thing.

In Hangzhou, there are even night stalls selling alcohol.

It was like a small tavern from the Republican era, except that it had no storefront, only a slightly larger tricycle with two tables and a few small stools next to it.

The cargo bed of the tricycle was used as a counter, and various colored thermos bottles were placed next to it.

A group of burly men, dressed in this short-sleeved shirt in this weather, sat down, slapped five one-yuan coins on the table, and shouted to the owner, "Boss, warm a bowl of wine and a plate of fried peanuts!"

"Alright!" the boss replied, and quickly opened the wine jar, scooped out the wine with a small copper spoon, poured it into a small covered pot, and then placed the small pot into a larger teapot filled with boiling water, like a Russian nesting doll.

A short while later, the warm wine was poured into a clean ceramic bowl and placed in front of the man, along with a dish of roasted peanuts with white sugar.

Compared to the bustling night market stalls, the shops on the side seemed rather lackluster.

The women's clothing store was very quiet. The owner was sitting in a chair yawning, and it was clear that he was planning to close the store if there were no customers in a while.

"Boss, do you sell underwear?" Li Wanyan asked directly as soon as she entered the store.

"Yes, who's buying?"

“Her.” Li Wanyan pointed to Mo Xueyao.

"She looks cuter in this. Do you also want some underwear?"

"I want to buy one of each."

"Then this one is easier to match..." The shopkeeper pointed to a pair of blue and white striped briefs that were not much bigger than the palm of his hand and said, "This is a sample. If you want to buy it, you can only buy it by the box, four pairs per box."

"Shall I help you choose?" Li Wanyan asked Mo Xueyao.

"Hmm... come on over, there doesn't seem to be a fitting room here..."

"It's okay, I'll pick the perfect one for you." Li Wanyan seemed very confident in this regard.

After much deliberation and selection, I finally bought one.

The fabric was even more comfortable than what Mo Xueyao had worn before, and Li Wanyan also managed to negotiate the price down a bit, so the underwear and pants together came to twenty yuan.

"Okay, this seems to be the neighborhood Grandma Jin was talking about." Mo Xueyao peeked around curiously.

This is an old residential area, and the tallest building is only four stories high, with some buildings not even four stories high.

For example, the first building on the left in the community is a low-rise building with only three floors.

Although the building was old and dilapidated, the staircase was still quite spacious.

Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan walked up the old stairs to the top floor, and the innermost room was Room 303.

Although the building was old, the interior was very cozy and clean, and did not feel dilapidated at all.

It's like the renovation only happened a few years ago.

However, the old-fashioned decorating style betrays the era in which this house was renovated.

It was renovated at least in the 1970s, or even possibly in the 1960s, right?

The upper half of the walls was white, while the lower half was painted dark green. The house also contained some old-fashioned furniture, a large radio, and even a gramophone with a gold horn.

Mo Xueyao couldn't help but touch it out of curiosity. There was no dust on it, which meant that the machine was still frequently used or had always been well maintained.

"Xiaoyao, do you want to wash first?" Li Wanyan asked.

"Ah, okay," Mo Xueyao replied, feeling relieved.

Thankfully, he's an upright class monitor. If it were Hua Yinyin, she would definitely have insisted on washing together.

Aunt Jin's bathroom is also very simple; there's no bathtub, just a small, enclosed shower room.

Standing inside, you can't really make any big movements; even turning around might cause you to bump into the glass on the side.

The only window in the bathroom is in the shower room. Pushing open this frosted glass window, you can see the street of the community below.

With such low buildings, it always feels like people below can see what people above look like just by looking up.

Thinking this, Mo Xueyao quickly closed the bathroom window.

Although the shower room wasn't big, it was still much better than Mo Xueyao's shabby bathroom.

At least there's a showerhead and a separate shower stall.

There are even shower gel and shampoo.

When taking a shower at home, the biggest worry is that the soap will slip and fall into the squat toilet next to you.

She had always dreamed of having a toilet with a lid.

Mo Xueyao took a quick shower, but she couldn't help but admire her increasingly alluring figure in the mirror.

"Hmm... I think I've grown a little taller?" she muttered to herself, putting on her clothes, putting the ones she had changed out of into a bag, and then walking out of the bathroom.

"So fast?"

"That's fast?" Mo Xueyao scratched her wet hair. "It's more comfortable to take a bath here. I even enjoyed the hot water a little longer..."

"Really?" Li Wanyan shook her head helplessly. "Girls need to wash themselves thoroughly, otherwise they'll get gynecological diseases."

"Don't worry, don't worry—" Mo Xueyao waved her hand, "I washed it very clean."

Li Wanyan didn't answer again, but went inside and closed the door.

Before long, the sound of rushing water filled the air, evoking a sense of wonder...

……

Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Narrow Bed