A Young Woman's Heart

The car made a U-turn at the spacious school gate and then slowly drove onto the main road.

The RV gradually picked up speed, and the road in front of us slowly began to widen.

"Tick."

"Da da—"

Suddenly, a drop of water landed on Mo Xueyao's forehead, and like a bugle call to charge, a heavy rain suddenly began to fall from the sky.

A long-awaited lightning bolt streaked across the dark sky, briefly illuminating it before disappearing again.

Mo Xueyao quickly closed the car window, but a lot of rainwater still drifted into the car.

She blinked her water-drenched eyelashes and gently shook her head.

There were hardly any cars on the road, and lightning flashed across the sky, but there was no sound.

A few rays of light peeked through the dark clouds, like the gates of hell opening, ready to swallow everything in the world.

Suddenly, a series of thunderclaps rang out, as if there was a delay in a game, and the sound only came at this moment.

She really liked this kind of rainy weather.

Rain kept lashing against the windshield, and even with the wipers on full speed, they still seemed somewhat ineffective.

It was as if the car was about to be submerged by a raging flood.

The car slowed down considerably, making driving somewhat difficult.

"It's like the end of the world!" Hua Yinyin, who was lying on top, shouted at Mo Xueyao through the transparent plastic panel.

Taiyin stared blankly ahead, her deep eyes unfocused.

It looks like a delicate doll.

"Yeah, it's kind of like a scene from a disaster movie."

"Ah Qiu, drive faster!"

"Go away, go away, drive faster or you won't even know if you crash," Qiu Yi said irritably, turning on the high beams.

The dim light couldn't illuminate the road very far; at that moment, the world was darker than the darkest night.

Only the lightning in the sky provided a little light.

The roadside trees were bent over by the wind, and even if the car window was only slightly open, the fierce wind could be heard, making one's ears tingle.

"Auntie even brought food? Did you make it yourself?"

"Hmm, rice ball, a very simple snack."

"I want to eat~" Wang Jiale had brought her own snacks but didn't seem interested in eating them. Instead, she picked up the rice ball that Xuan Anyi had brought and took a bite without waiting.

The harsh weather outside didn't dampen the spirits of those inside the RV; in fact, they found the weather quite atmospheric.

"At times like this, you should tell some ghost stories or something!"

"You always tell ghost stories when we go out. Can't Lele come up with something new?" Hua Yinyin teased from above. "I think at times like this, you should tell some love stories! For example, do you think Xiaoxi would date some guy if she didn't have a girlfriend?"

"Yinyin, why are your topics always so strange..." Mo Xueyao said helplessly, "Can't you come up with something normal?"

"It's okay, it's okay, let's talk about this, I love listening to it!" Ye Wen, who was still awake, not only didn't stop them, but started to cheer them on.

This made Hua Yinyin even more excited, and the RV suddenly became noisy.

……

Chapter Ten: The Journey

The downpour didn't last long, or perhaps the RV simply passed through the area covered by the clouds.

In short, after passing through a narrow tunnel barely illuminated by car headlights, the sky outside suddenly opened up.

The sky was an incredibly clear, deep blue, as if it had been washed clean.

Mo Xueyao couldn't help but glance back, and suddenly regretted choosing the passenger seat, because she couldn't communicate with anyone from there, as if she were separated by an invisible wall.

Duanmu Ji, who was somewhat out of the loop, looked around in boredom and his eyes met Mo Xueyao's.

A second later, he quickly looked away, pretending to be very casual.

"Do you have to add oil when making soup? We don't add any at home." The conversation had somehow veered towards cooking, and Cha Li looked at Xuan An Yi with some confusion and asked.

"Well, I usually cook a pretty oily dish, then I don't wash the pan, I just make soup."

"Aren't you afraid it will taste like the food that was served?"

"It's usually fine."

“I always wash them thoroughly before making soup, and I feel that adding oil makes it less palatable; clear broth is much more pleasant.” Cha Li said, then suddenly looked at Mr. Xue jokingly, “Does Xiao Xue know how to cook?”

"I know a little bit."

"Don't pretend to be modest. Do you know how or not? You're not that you're a master at cooking, are you?"

"Just average," Mr. Xue smiled.

Xuan Anyi immediately understood his meaning: "Cha Li, Xiao Xue means that she is at the same level as ordinary people who usually cook at home."

"Really?" Cha Li nudged Mr. Xue's arm, somewhat reluctant to believe it, hoping to get a positive answer from him.

"almost."

"Xiaoxue is too... all-around amazing. Really, you can even do things that girls are good at. You can't do cross-stitch, can you?"

This time, it wasn't Mr. Xue who answered, but Xuan Anyi. She recalled the answer and said uncertainly, "When we had home economics class in the first year of high school, I think Xiaoxue got an excellent grade in cross-stitch."

"Hmm—could it be that his mother helped him?"

I made it myself.

"Can't you leave us girls a little bit of advantage over you?" Cha Li took a sip of goji berry tea from her thermos. Her words sounded like a complaint, but her tone was very generous and even a little teasing.

Mr. Xue tilted his head slightly and thought for a few seconds, then nodded firmly: "Yes."

"What is it?" Cha Li, sitting next to him, asked curiously, putting an arm around his shoulder.

"When it comes to romance, my imagination isn't as rich as yours," Mr. Xue said sincerely, but Li Wanyan couldn't help but lower her head and cover her mouth.

Xuan Anyi said with a smile, "If Xiaoxue hadn't said that, people would definitely think we were being sarcastic."

"Yes! But there's nothing particularly admirable about that..."

Mr. Xue patted Cha Li's hand on his shoulder and gently shook his head: "No, no strength is useless."

"For example, not missing out on your own love life?"

"Ah."

“But girls usually just talk about it when they’re chatting. If they really like someone, they won’t say it easily.” After saying that, Cha Li quickly added, “After all, girls like Cheng Yuan are a minority.”

Mr. Xue nodded as if he understood, then suddenly looked at Cha Li, his expression unreadable—whether he was joking or putting his knowledge into practice—"Cha Li, do you like me?"

"Pfft!" Cha Li almost spat the goji berry tea she was drinking onto Xuan Anyi's face. Although she managed to swallow it, she still choked and coughed, "Cough cough, cough cough cough..."

"From a psychological perspective, people who like someone will often want to get close to them and do intimate things."

Before Mr. Xue could respond, Li Wanyan's usually serious face flushed slightly, and she silently looked out the window as if she were carsick.

“Yes, I do like Xiaoxue.” Chali patted her chest lightly, took a breath, and put her right hand around Mr. Xue’s neck. “But everyone likes Xiaoxue, because you’re different from other boys.”

Xuan Anyi across from Cha Li answered for her: "To us, they're like best friends, just like how we like Xiao Yao, Xia Xia, and Le Le."

“I see.” Mr. Xue was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly reached out and put his arm around Cha Li’s neck, but only for a moment before pulling it back. “But I can’t treat you like brothers.”

"It's okay, it's just that other people might misunderstand."

"But if all girls treat a boy like this, others won't misunderstand much."

“Yes.” Xuan Anyi nodded.

Mr. Xue fell into deep thought, perhaps wondering what had led to this social phenomenon.

Duanmu Ji, who had been sitting quietly to the side for a long time, suddenly stood up and started walking around in the speeding RV, eventually sitting on the steps connecting the driver's seat and the passenger seat.

"Hey, Xiao Ji." Mo Xueyao looked at him sympathetically. This time, everyone was a girl, and the only boy, Mr. Xue, was very good at 'fitting in' with the girls' conversations, so he seemed a bit out of place.

Duanmu Ji raised his eyelids to look at her, but suddenly couldn't keep his expression in check and scratched his head awkwardly.

Sitting in this position, you can see Mo Xueyao's long, slender legs clad in semi-transparent white over-the-knee socks, and even the slightest undulations on her ankles are clearly visible.

"cough……"

However, Mo Xueyao was quite happy because she had someone to chat with.

Although she could have chatted with Qiu Yi, there was an age difference between them, and there was a generation gap between them.

On the bench sofa, Ye Wen, still with her head resting on Su Yuqing's, answered a phone call. It was unclear who was calling: "Okay, I know. You're so worried about borrowing your Xiaoqing for a while? If you're so worried, come and see for yourself! Tch, I know, don't worry—"

"Xiao Ji, have you finished watching it yet?" Mo Xueyao adjusted her tone, imagining the feeling of chatting with her best friends in the past. "I only managed to buy one or two pirated discs, and I couldn't find any more after that."

"I've finished watching it. I have a whole set at home, including a pirated copy with Chinese translation."

"Really? Lend it to me next time!" Mo Xueyao said, half seriously and half trying to lighten the mood.

"Okay, there's also the latest one, Agito, which is even better."

"What are we going to talk about?" She didn't mind expanding the topic.

Looking at Qiu Yi driving ahead, he chimed in, "Oh, that's really good, but I doubt there's even a translated pirated version, right? I read the Japanese version directly."

“Yeah, I only read the novel's setting book, translating it using a Japanese dictionary.” Duanmu Ji’s eyebrows danced with excitement. “That one is basically a sequel to Kuuga, and it also features human-made Kamen Riders, like the kind that wear power armor.”

"Wrong, wrong. It's not really a sequel because the plot isn't directly related. It's just that the worldview is similar, and Kuuga doesn't appear in it."

“But the protagonist Kamen Rider is very similar to Kuuga!” Duanmu Ji did not completely deny Qiu Yi’s words. “It’s probably like the connection between Tiga and Dyna, right?”

“It’s still a bit different.” Qiu Yi chuckled. “I brought my laptop this time and downloaded some software tools. I plan to translate the videos I recorded from the TV and add subtitles when I have some free time. The only problem is that the picture quality might not be as good.”

"Huh, so that means we can see the latest version?"

"Correct!"

"Ah Qiu, please!"