A Young Woman's Heart

There was a huge pile of book covers of various materials and patterns displayed at the entrance.

In other words, a protective cover for books.

Since new books will be distributed when school starts, they need to be protected.

To avoid getting it dirty.

The most commonly used method is still using bundles of paper book covers.

Actually, that thing is made of similar material to newspaper, so buying it is the least cost-effective option. You might as well just use old newspapers to wrap it.

Of course, some people love this style because there are so many different designs to choose from.

Plastic covers are a good choice. They are waterproof and easy to use. Textbooks usually come in only two or three sizes, so you can just choose the right size and insert it directly without any cutting required.

These are all transparent or semi-transparent; they're convenient, but they lack individuality...

There are also some made of cardboard or kraft paper.

These kinds of fruit are available in stores. Mo Xueyao could easily ask her father for two. The only difference between them and these is that they don't have any patterns and are rather plain.

"Ah... never mind, let's just stick with plastic book covers?" Mo Xueyao looked at Li Wanyan. She actually wanted to choose one with a unique design, but after thinking about it, she felt it was unnecessary and far less cost-effective than plastic ones.

"Hmm." She nodded, glanced around a few times, and walked inside, stopping in front of the shelf selling ballpoint pens.

This entire wall is covered with all kinds of ballpoint pens.

But basically, the differences are just minor variations in patterns and shapes. Occasionally, there are a few that are particularly exaggerated and interesting, but once you actually start writing, you'll find that they're not practical at all.

"Oh—Wanyan! Look at this, the whole pen is made of hearts, how do you sculpt it?"

"Haha, those are basically for giving as gifts." The young shopkeeper explained with a laugh, "Are you looking to buy a good ballpoint pen? If you're a girl, I recommend this 0.35 or 0.3. The writing is particularly delicate and small, very beautiful. Both of these sell very well, you can try them out, the writing is very smooth."

"Ah, okay, let's take a look ourselves..." Mo Xueyao pouted, feeling that the joy of choosing products was immediately diminished by the boss getting involved.

……

Chapter 82 Going to Pick Up the New Book Ahead of Schedule

The morning of the 16th.

Light cloud and wind.

It finally stopped raining today, but the sun still hid from the world, and the gloomy sky still held the possibility of rain at any time.

A refreshing breeze swept through the fruit shop. Mo Xueyao, who had just finished breakfast there, stretched and teased the lazy cat, Su Tang, with her toes.

Today, my mother's old friend came to the shop. The two of them were chatting enthusiastically, as if they had endless things to say.

Listening closely, it's not really that interesting; most of it is just everyday family stuff, or at worst, reminiscing about stories from when you were young.

Perhaps because she hasn't reached the point where she needs to frequently reminisce about her past, she wasn't very able to empathize with the excitement of the two of them.

The shop was relatively empty today. My father was sitting leisurely at the door, smoking a cigarette. There was a bag of sesame candy next to him. He would chew on a piece every now and then, and then take a sip of hot tea. He was very happy.

"Wanyan! Let's go?" Mo Xueyao stretched, walked down the steps with her empty backpack, and called out to her.

"Hmm." Li Wanyan picked up her schoolbag. Although both were given to her by her godfather on the same day, hers looked a little newer.

After leaving the fruit shop, you'll also have to pass by Grandma Jin's convenience store across the street.

Inside the convenience store, Li Wanyan's mother, Pan Jiexiang, was sitting at the cashier.

There weren't many customers at the moment, so she took a break from her busy schedule to knit a sweater.

If it were any other boss, they certainly wouldn't be so easy to talk to, but Grandma Jin never minded these little things. In fact, Mo Xueyao always felt that she deliberately kept Li Wanyan's mother working here.

—Although the employees we hired before have left, we've been recruiting during this period anyway…

Since we see each other every day, we're not as excited when we meet.

Li Wanyan wasn't the kind of child who liked to cling to her mother all the time. She glanced at her mother through the shop window, but the latter didn't notice her gaze and kept her eyes fixed on the knitting needles in her hands.

"What is your mother doing?" Mo Xueyao asked curiously.

"It might be a scarf." Li Wanyan wasn't too sure either, since only a small part of it had taken shape, and obviously most of it was still unfinished.

"Oh, the husky isn't in the store."

"Grandma Jin hasn't been coming around much lately, so I've been taking her with me all the time."

"Too."

For an elderly woman living alone, this dog, which she has watched grow up, may be no less important than her own grandson.

After all, this was one of the few times she had someone to accompany and care about.

The gray sky made the leaves look duller. Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan walked side by side, passing the convenience store and the noodle shop.

Then, after a turn, we entered a narrow road with only two lanes.

The two were going to school, not for the start of the semester, but because Ye Wen had sent a text message and made a phone call yesterday to inform the students that they could pick up their books from school in the next three days. This was because all the textbooks for the two semesters of the senior year would be distributed, and the quantity was quite large. In addition, the study time for the senior year is quite tight, and they hoped that the self-disciplined students could start studying early, so they distributed the new books ahead of schedule.

"Hmm, Wen said the quantity is quite large. Will our backpacks be able to hold it all?"

"I brought two cloth bags."

"Hmm, as expected of Wanyan, she's really reliable!" Mo Xueyao smiled and gave a thumbs up.

On a branch, two sparrows were hopping playfully, startling a magpie that was standing alone. The magpie let out a few clear chirps and flapped its wings, which were much wider than the sparrows', and flew away.

Although it hadn't rained in the morning, the ground was still wet. Mo Xueyao would occasionally glance down at the ground before hopping across puddles of all sizes.

Sometimes she gets distracted and doesn't notice, but don't worry, because Li Wanyan will definitely pull her back to prevent her from getting water all over herself.

The signboard at the entrance of Yukong High School remains unchanged.

"Wanyan, don't you think that sign is covered in moss?"

"No."

"Hmm..." Mo Xueyao, wearing sandals, quickly walked forward and took a closer look. "It seems there isn't any, but it's a bit yellowish."

"No." Li Wanyan gently shook her head.

She wore her hair in pigtails today, so the two pigtails swayed as well.

This was something Mo Xueyao insisted on having done.

Because she said that Li Wanyan had this hairstyle when they first met.

But in reality, she usually wears a single ponytail and rarely wears double ponytails.

She asked if that day was special, but the answer was no.

Perhaps it was just a coincidence or fate.

On an ordinary day, I saw a hairstyle that she rarely wears.

The school's sliding door has a small gap, enough for an electric scooter to pass through.

This proves that today is indeed a good day to pick up a new book.

But since there are three days to pick up the books, and the notification was only given yesterday, many people will probably delay and choose to pick them up the next day. Today, naturally, there are very few people picking up their books.

So the school seemed rather deserted.

Mo Xueyao liked the quiet school the most because it gave her a different feeling from usual.

Just like how a bustling city center becomes deserted during the Lunar New Year, the feeling of walking on those streets is exactly the same as the feeling of walking on campus right now.

"Speaking of which, shouldn't we still get the books from the same classroom?" Mo Xueyao asked as she stepped onto the stairs, suddenly remembering something.

This question stumped Li Wanyan as well.

But she didn't stop: "Let's go up and take a look first."

"Yo-ya!" Just then, a lively shout came from behind, not from a classmate, but from the teacher.

Mo Xueyao didn't turn around, but she knew it was Wang Qianyu's voice.

"Teacher Qianyu?"

"Are you going to pick up the new book?" Wang Qianyu was dressed in ancient costume, looking as if she had just come from a film set.

This style looks beautiful, but it's hard to say which dynasty it belongs to.

It doesn't look like the imperial concubine's attire from a palace drama.

"Yes, does Ms. Qianyu know which classroom Awen is in?"

"Of course I know, I'm just about to go up. She should be in classroom 508 right now~"

"Huh, how come it has the same room number as our band room?"

Of course, the classrooms are definitely not the same.

One is in the main teaching building, and the other is in the laboratory building.

"Yes, it's at the very end of the corridor, where it's quieter. And Class 1 of Senior Three is right across from you—not next door."

The main teaching building of Yukong High School looks like a pair of big underpants. In fact, it is equivalent to two teaching buildings connected by a corridor in the middle.

"Come on, I'll take you there~" Wang Qianyu walked briskly ahead. Mo Xueyao felt that the hem of her ancient costume was about to touch the steps several times, but each time it was just a little bit off, which looked very uncomfortable.

"What is Ms. Qianyu wearing?" she finally couldn't help but ask.

"Hanfu (traditional Han clothing)."

"Uh... was it one of those theatrical costumes you bought?"

"No, no, it's a Hanfu that I specially commissioned to be made according to ancient books. What do you think? Isn't it beautiful? This set is newly made. It was originally supposed to take three months, but I paid double the price and it was finished in just over ten days."

“…Money is such a wonderful thing,” Mo Xueyao muttered softly, her eyelids drooping.

Li Wanyan, who was standing to the side, nodded in agreement, her lips slightly pursed and turned up in a smile.

In classroom 508, at such an early hour, only Ye Wen was there.

Qiu Yi, who had just finished hard labor, was covered in sweat and was lying on two desks placed side by side to rest, as if he had collapsed.

"Wen! We've come to get our books!"

"Oh? So early? I just brought the books upstairs."