A Young Woman's Heart

The old man said this is called a small sweet cookie, and it's a local specialty.

The pancakes aren't just made of flour; to make them chewier, some rice cake crumbs are also added.

"Ugh—this is way too sweet..." Mo Xueyao couldn't stand the taste; it was so sweet it was almost cloying.

Li Wanyan, sitting on a stone bench to the side, lowered her head, taking small bites of the bitter tea and occasionally sipping it, looking quite content.

"I guess that's the kind of thing? Bitter tea with small cookies or something," Hua Yinyin muttered, tilting her head.

"I think it tastes pretty good." Mo Zhuyou took a big bite and chewed it repeatedly. "Sister, do you know how to make this kind of pancake?"

"I should be able to figure it out when I get back." Mo Xiao smiled and took a small bite. "It doesn't look difficult."

"These are very rustic snacks," Cha Li said, taking a sip of the bitter tea. "Especially this tea, the more you drink it, the more flavorful it becomes."

"I just feel it's so strong..." Wang Jiale, who can't stand bitter tea, stuck out her tongue. "And... it feels like I ate a lot of mangoes, or those bamboo shoots. My tongue feels prickly and a bit uncomfortable."

"I agree." Mo Xueyao felt the same way.

A cup of tea can be refilled an unlimited number of times, but in the end only Li Wanyan and Cha Liqu refilled their cups. In the eyes of the other girls, it was as if the two of them couldn't taste the bitterness.

"Some things taste sweeter the more bitter they are."

"Huh? What kind of logic is that?"

"Yaoyao will understand later."

"What? I'm not a child. You're making it sound like Wanyan is in her thirties or forties. Tch." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes, closed her eyes, and drank the tea in her cup in one gulp. Her whole face immediately scrunched up, as if she were drinking Chinese medicine in pain.

Seeing the expression on her face, the girls around her couldn't help but grab each other's arms and giggle.

Like a row of flowers gently blown down by the wind.

……

(two)

We visited different attractions and strolled along the road for quite a while, enjoying the scenery along the way, and even forgot about having lunch.

It was already past three o'clock when I remembered.

Everyone thought they might as well just have dinner with the school.

"Get off the bus!" Hua Yinyin took the lead and jumped off the bus first. Standing on the platform, she waved vigorously to the girls.

They had already agreed to walk the last stretch of road to the bus parking lot.

It's not very far, only about four bus stops away, roughly two or three kilometers.

The main reason they were able to stroll over so leisurely was because there was still plenty of time before the meeting time.

Of course, there's another purpose: if we happen to see any local delicacies along the way, we can buy them and eat them while we walk.

After getting out of the car, Li Wanyan walked beside Mo Xueyao and naturally reached into her pocket, took out the pink flip phone, and dialed Ye Wen's number.

"Teacher Ye, we are already on our way back and should be able to reach the parking lot before 5:30."

"Ah, that's 'qian gao'! I've had it near my fruit shop, it's delicious, do you want to try it? This is probably the most authentic one."

"Wow, that's huge! You can't eat that by yourself, can you?" Wang Jiale rubbed her stomach; she had eaten the most snacks along the way.

"I'm so hungry, I feel like I could eat a whole cow right now..." Mo Zhuyou mumbled, leaning on her sister's shoulder.

"It's definitely bigger than the ones we bought in Hangzhou. If you can't finish it, you can share it and ask the owner to break it in two."

"That makes sense! Shall we buy some to eat?"

"Buy it!"

"Okay, okay, we're almost there, about two kilometers away, okay..."

"Wanyan!" Mo Xueyao turned around, interrupting Li Wanyan who was reporting the situation to Ye Wen, "Let's eat qian gao! What toppings do you want? How about pickled shrimp? And what about pork intestines?"

"all good."

"Boss, I'd like to add pickled shrimp, pork intestines, and... um... can I add pork floss?"

"can."

"Then I'll have pork floss too!"

……

(three)

The girls, each holding half a piece of inlaid cake, walked forward chatting and laughing, talking about everything from the city's history to myths and legends, then gossip about school, and even their studies.

Mo Xueyao took this opportunity to tutor Wang Jiale and the others on some basic math concepts.

In this playful and lighthearted atmosphere, the speed at which difficult problems are understood is actually a few times faster than usual.

"By the way, should we buy some souvenirs to take back?" Mo Zhuyou suddenly asked.

"Oh, right, by the way, shouldn't we bring some souvenirs for Shu'er too?" Wang Jiale jumped up and down happily.

"Hmm, what should I bring?"

"It must have local characteristics."

"Want to take a steamed cake back with you?"

"Hey, there's still a month to go! By then it'll be stinky!"

"So it really has to be handicrafts?"

"Ok!"

"How's the seashell?"

"So ordinary."

"Then let's go with the inlaid cake, we can buy it on the way back?"

"...It really is a seashell."

"Then we have to go to the beach."

"There's still a month, there's bound to be a chance! Hey, Wanyan, are we still going out to play tomorrow?"

"Correct."

"Look, there's another chance to buy it tomorrow, no rush—oh dear, Yao Yao, your big intestine is sticking out!"

"Alas--"

Really?

"Then please don't make it sound so scary..."

"Hehe~"

……

Chapter 251 What Kind of Gift Do You Want?

The bus stopped in a relatively bustling part of the city, and as we approached, the surroundings became noticeably more lively.

However, even in the bustling area, there are few tall buildings to be seen; the tallest one seems to be only twelve stories high.

However, this also resulted in the preservation of many ancient buildings.

There are wooden buildings from the Japanese occupation period, as well as classic concrete buildings constructed with Soviet aid.

In the square before us stands a huge red star, and below it, a rough hand grips it tightly.

The square was filled with stalls, seemingly a temporary market specially prepared for the May Day holiday.

The stall owners are mostly locals dressed simply, while the people strolling around are mostly tourists, who are dressed much more smartly.

"Xiaoxue!" Mo Xueyao saw Mr. Xue here. His team had also returned, and like them, they were halfway there.

"Mom!" It was Zhou Yong who answered her, seemingly encouraged by those around him to shout so loudly. He turned around and waved his hand forcefully.

The girls couldn't help but laugh out loud, while Mo Xueyao was speechless.

The two teams were both outside the market and hadn't gone in yet, so they easily met up.

Everyone was wearing the standard school uniform of Yukong High School, which attracted the attention of many passersby who wondered which prestigious school these students belonged to.

The students in Class Two have always gotten along well. The boys and girls are mixed together without any awkwardness, and they start chatting in no time.

"Oh, you went to the Ye Ancestral Temple? Is it fun there?" Mo Xueyao and Zhou Yong walked side by side and entered the market with everyone.

The market is only the size of a square, just one road leading to the end, so you don't have to worry about getting separated from other people.

"Yeah, the Ye Ancestral Temple is amazing. It has such a huge stone sword. It's said to have been dug out from underground. I forget how many hundred years ago it was, but it was carved a long time ago. It's so big, more than ten meters tall!"

"Is it really not a product of modern industry?"

"No, why would I lie to you? These are burial items. It is said that a long time ago, Ye Zu was the ancestor of a prominent family here, who fled from the Central Plains."

"Speaking of which, Wen's surname is also Ye." Mo Xueyao thought of several teachers at school, "And Teacher Ye Yu, Teacher Ye Ran, oh, could they be from the same family?"

“Maybe we really were one family five hundred years ago.” Zhou Yong stretched and twisted his neck with great satisfaction. “We had so much fun today. We went rafting afterwards, haha—it was so awesome.”

How many tourist attractions did you visit today?

"Three attractions, and then we also went rafting, kayaking, and beach volleyball..."

"So many? You guys are incredibly efficient! Are you just going through the motions?"

"It's alright, quite fulfilling, the time was arranged by Xiaoxue."

"Oh—no wonder."

As they were talking, Wang Jiale suddenly picked up a smooth bone artifact, shaped like a talisman.

"Xiaoyao! What do you think about giving this to Shuer?"

"What is this?"

"Fish bone amulets, and those processed seashells are quite pretty too."

"I think it would be better to buy something practical, like salted fish."