A Young Woman's Heart

(One)

Friday, July 18, 2002.

When life is so busy that you don't have time to think about anything else, time seems to fly by.

It's as if a hand is forcefully manipulating the hands, making them spin back and forth, round and round.

The time for sunset was delayed without anyone noticing. When the school bell rang on Friday, a pale sun was still hanging high in the sky, casting a ghastly white light on the city.

After a week, every Friday, students finish their evening self-study early and then leave school, which can feel a bit strange.

Sitting in the chair, Mo Xueyao felt as if her bones had turned into cotton candy, her whole body was limp, and she had no energy to pack her schoolbag.

If it weren't Friday, she would even have asked Li Wanyan to bring her dinner so she could sit in the classroom and calm herself down.

"Whoosh—" As the heating was turned off, the windows were suddenly pulled open by the students who were cleaning.

Today, Ma Jianhang is cleaning the windowsill. Perhaps because he doesn't get much sun in winter, his bronze skin has turned a bit sallow. Right now, he's using his knees to brace against the windowsill, half-climbing out a little, and is wiping the outside of the window glass, which is covered in a lot of dust, under Li Wanyan's direction.

Although the windows of the teaching building have a protective net for repairing air conditioner outdoor units, they still look very dangerous.

"Be careful," Li Wanyan kept reminding him from the side. Ma Jianhang's good partner, Ma Jia, was standing next to him, holding tightly to his leg to prevent him from falling.

"Little Yaoyao~! We're not going to the band practice room today, we're going straight home!"

"Huh? Not going?" Mo Xueyao yawned lazily. "Then I won't go... anyway, finals are coming up soon..."

"Okay, I'll go inform Shuer later. I'm leaving now!"

"Bye-bye..." Mo Xueyao was actually quite glad that Li Wanyan would stay in the classroom for a while longer and didn't have to pack her bag and leave right away.

"Let's go, Haruka~"

"Bye-Bye……"

"See you next Monday, Xiaoyao!"

"See you next Monday..."

"Goodbye, Mo Xueyao." Zhou Yong also suddenly picked up his slightly heavy schoolbag. A slight breeze brought out a few test papers from his messy drawer. He bent down as if carrying a huge tortoise shell and struggled to stuff the papers back in.

"Goodbye." Mo Xueyao rested her cheek on her arm, her chubby face pressed together, and her blue eyes narrowed into slits.

At least half of the students in the class would greet her when they left after school, giving the impression that she got along well with almost everyone.

However, she didn't actually cultivate any relationships with anyone; it's just that both boys and girls seemed to have a natural affinity for her, most notably—

"Xiaoyao~ You look so cute lying down like that? Let's go." The tall and slender Aya Akimoto bent down and vigorously rubbed Mo Xueyao's cheeks, as if to relieve some of her stress.

“Bye…” Mo Xueyao mumbled indistinctly.

For example, people will always inexplicably say she's cute.

It's as if everything they do is adorable.

……

(two)

There's a big cleaning session after school on Fridays, so the students on duty will be busy for a longer time than usual today.

Ye Banxia helped wash the mop clean, then shakily carried the wet wooden mop back to the classroom, wiping the sweat from her forehead and letting out a soft breath.

The acne on her face has almost completely subsided, but there are still a few faint acne marks remaining.

Mo Xueyao, who looked like a noodle, finally packed her schoolbag, swayed as she carried it to the classroom door, and then let out a big yawn.

Her pink tongue seemed numb, with a small part dangling outside her lips. It took her a few seconds to come to her senses and pull her tongue back in.

"Yaoyao, you should go back now." After checking the classroom, Li Wanyan walked out with unhurried steps and locked the door with her key.

"Oh, what's wrong?"

"My homeroom teacher needs to see me, so I might have to stay busy for a few more hours."

"Oh, oh..." Ye Wen needed to see Li Wanyan, which was nothing new to Mo Xueyao. She nodded listlessly, "Then I'll head back now?"

"Okay, be careful while riding your bike."

"Okay—I'll wait for you at the fruit shop today. We'll go back together in Dad's van later. I really don't want to ride that far."

"Ok."

……

(three)

Standing in the teaching building, Li Wanyan watched as Mo Xueyao rode her rainbow-colored bicycle, wobbling as she left the school.

The English-style schoolbag given to me by my godfather was tossed into the bicycle basket, and the little ornaments hanging on the zipper swayed gently.

"Wan~yan~!" From Ye Wen's office behind her, Hua Yinyin jumped out first and slapped her hard on the shoulder. "Little Yaoyao is gone, isn't she?"

"Ah."

"Alright~ Let's go!"

"What gift should I buy for Haruka?" Tall Aya Akimoto stood out among the girls. "She always seems to say she's too short, how about we buy her some calcium supplements?"

"Lingling, your idea is really... quite novel..." Xuan Anyi smiled helplessly.

"Won't this make a lasting impression on Haruka?"

"So that's what you were thinking?" Hua Yinyin thought of the wrench Huang Zhengyang had given her before, and couldn't help but consider other hardware tools. "Hmm... screwdriver? Electric drill? Multi-tool?"

Wang Jiale couldn't help but roll her eyes: "What kind of weird gift is Yinyin thinking of again..."

All the girls were there, but not all of them had time to attend Mo Xueyao's birthday party.

Because it was a Monday, and we had to attend evening self-study.

However, this also means that it is permissible to send gifts.

A dozen or so people walked side by side in twos and threes, creating a lively scene.

The conversation shifted from discussing what gift to give Mo Xueyao to gossip about how many boys liked her.

……

(four)

The place they went to wasn't far, just around Yinshan Commercial Street. If Mo Xueyao suddenly felt like it, she might run into her friends who were struggling to decide what gift to buy for her.

Of course, finding this small group of people in this bustling market is not an easy task.

Although they said they came to buy gifts, it was more like a rare shopping party. What attracted the girls the most were the street snacks.

Sometimes people would buy a snack, each person would have a bite, and then they would move on to the next place...

They can satisfy their cravings without eating too much, and have a great time.

"Hmm, these takoyaki are almost the same as the ones Tongjue treated me to last time!" Wang Jiale's eyes widened. "But it seems like there's no octopus in them?"

"This is made of pure flour." Cha Li, who had watched the entire production process, seemed a little disappointed.

"Just like there's no wife in wife cake, it's normal that there's no octopus in takoyaki."

"But the authentic one should have octopus in it, although this one doesn't taste bad either..."

"Mmm." Mo Zhuyou bit off a small meatball her sister handed her and put it whole in her mouth. "So! Which restaurant should we eat at next?"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Hua Yinyin, unusually, appeared to bring things back on track. "We're here to buy a gift for Xiaoyaoyao. We've already walked halfway down the street, haven't we decided yet?"

"That's right!"

"What do you mean 'right'? Seriously!" Hua Yinyin said irritably, hands on her hips. "I do have some ideas, but let's explore the other places first."

Li Wanyan, who was only close to Hua Yinyin, suddenly stopped, turned around, and walked quickly towards the small shop that was so small that one person sitting inside could block the entrance.

The signboard hanging vertically reads "Gold and Silver Jewelry Repair" in large characters.

"Boss," Li Wanyan said, looking at the sprightly old man sitting on a small stool, "the silver bell isn't ringing anymore, can you fix it?"

"Yes." The boss's answer was very brief.

"how long?"

"soon."

How much will it cost to repair?

"Let me see the bell first."

So Li Wanyan put down her schoolbag, took out the bell that was wrapped in paper, and handed it to him.

"Do you want copper beads or silver beads inside?"

"How much does it cost?"

"Eight dollars for silver, three dollars and fifty cents for copper, including handling fees."

"Silver."

"The red string has turned a bit black, should we replace it?" The old man looked up and said calmly, "No need for money."

"Hmm, let's change it."

"It will be ready soon."

The silver beads can't just be thrown directly into the bell; they have to interact with some mechanism inside.

Li Wanyan watched from the side. The old man used the tweezers as nimbly as if they were his own hands, and even more steadily than a young person.

The silver beads were quickly packed, and he tried shaking them vigorously, producing an exceptionally clear sound.

"Where are you from?" he asked, lifting his eyelids.

"Ankle." Li Wanyan replied without hesitation.

So he gestured with his hand to indicate the length, cut a section from the coiled red rope, skillfully and deftly pulled off the old rope, replaced it with the new rope, and tied a slipknot that could be tightened or loosened, making it less likely to fall off than the original one secured with a button.

"Eight pieces."

Li Wanyan handed over a ten-yuan note, and the latter skillfully tossed two coins, which landed right in her open palm.

"Thank you."