A Young Woman's Heart

"Sir, may I ask what you do for a living? And what can I do for you?"

"Ah, you can be my assistant." The young man seemed a little embarrassed. "I'm just an ordinary... pedophile."

……

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This is a side story and has little to do with the main story. The only connection is that Hua Yinyin's short story will appear in the main story later. The details are in this story, but only the title and excerpts will appear in the main story.

Chapter Ninety-One: Birthday Gifts Prepared for Hua Yinyin

February usually only has 28 days.

There will be a difference only once every four years, meaning there will be one extra day, and February will become twenty-nine days.

People born on February 29th are probably the unluckiest.

After all, others get to celebrate their birthdays every year, while they only get to celebrate them once every four years.

Although you can celebrate your birthday a day earlier in a year without the 29th, the feeling is just not the same.

Besides, although Mo Xueyao always seemed to dislike Hua Yinyin, it has to be said that she was indeed one of her close friends.

Moreover, there is a blood relationship between some distant relatives involved.

So even though he said he wouldn't prepare a gift for her, he was still secretly planning it.

It was drizzling, and she and Li Wanyan were too lazy to ride their bikes, so they pushed them all the way back to the fruit shop.

"Wanyan, what do you plan to send the flowers?" Mo Xueyao couldn't think of what to send, so she decided to take a look at Li Wanyan's ideas.

"Let's send something useful," Li Wanyan said honestly.

After all, they came from a poor background, so even when giving gifts, they hope it's not just a decorative item that can only be looked at, or something that will be left to gather dust in a drawer after being received.

Given her personality, it's really not surprising.

"Hmm, so you'll give her a pen? A ruler? A notebook? You're not going to give her a workbook, are you? I think that would be the last thing she wants to receive," Mo Xueyao teased.

"Do you remember there's a Chenguang Stationery Store on the way to Grandma Jin's house?" Li Wanyan asked, putting down her schoolbag.

"I know."

"That stationery store has a special product called 'stationery blind boxes,' each costing ten yuan. Inside, there are random stationery items included, and you might even get stationery worth more than ten yuan."

Well...

“Birthday gifts should have a little surprise, shouldn’t they?” Li Wanyan smiled and turned her head. “After all, Yinyin is our friend too.”

"Hmm, that's a pretty good idea. Even you don't know what it is as a birthday present? And if it's a stationery blind box, it's bound to be something useful no matter what."

“Yes, that’s it.” Li Wanyan rarely took the initiative to wave to Sutang. The latter, as if it had received a command, jumped up in a flash. However, it did not stay on her. Instead, it used her shoulder to jump into Mo Xueyao’s arms and rubbed its obviously larger, fluffy cat head against her increasingly soft chest.

"Let's go buy it then, and I'll also see what gifts I can give as a gift."

"Hey girls, figuring out who to give a gift to?" The father walked over, holding a blue rose. "Want your dad to help you?"

"Hey Dad, what kind of gift can you give me? How about a bouquet of flowers?"

"Yes, isn't sending flowers a good idea? Isn't it a birthday present? Birthday presents can be sent with flowers, right?"

"Let's not talk about that..." Mo Xueyao asked curiously, pointing to the blue rose in her father's hand, "Dad, what kind of flower are you holding? It looks like a rose, but the color is wrong. Do roses come in this color?"

"Haha, you've never seen anything like it, have you? This is called a Blue Enchantress." The father proudly pinned the blue rose in his mother's hair as she cooked. "It's made with blue dye, and it will never fade. It's also healthy and pollution-free."

"What are you doing? Don't bother me." The mother waved her hand dismissively, shooing the father away as if he were a mosquito.

"Today is our wedding anniversary. This is a gift for you. How about it? Don't underestimate this little thing; it's very expensive."

"how much is it?"

"Fifteen yuan a piece."

"What a waste of money," the mother said irritably, but she couldn't bear to take the blue rose that she had put in her hair as a hairpin.

"What do you mean by wasting money? You should celebrate once in a while." The father looked at Mo Xueyao with an expression that said his good intentions had been taken for granted, and then turned to her, "Are you two giving birthday presents to a boy or a girl?"

“It’s a girl,” Li Wanyan replied.

"Is it for a girl? If it's a girl's birthday, then lilies should be the main flower. Lilies symbolize elegance and immortality, and in the context of friendship, they also symbolize deep friendship and never forgetting."

"Whatever, Dad. You're the expert in this anyway, aren't you?" Mo Xueyao said, holding out her hand. "Oh, right, Dad, give me money for my birthday present!"

"Huh? I'll wrap you a bouquet of flowers, what else do you want?"

"The flowers are a bonus!" Mo Xueyao said, one hand on her hip. "We also need to give a gift that has real meaning!"

"Tsk tsk, my daughter is a money-devouring black hole," the father smacked his lips and sighed, taking out three ten-yuan bills from the drawer and giving them to the two of them. "Here, share them between the two of you. This is all the money we have, so don't buy anything too expensive. Consider the extra as your allowance."

Mo Xueyao, who doesn't have a fixed allowance, loves times like this the most; it's probably her only source of pocket money...

However, she wouldn't squander the pocket money she received, because she was well aware that her family's situation was still not good. The fruit shop business was doing well, but a new competitor had entered the market, so it certainly wouldn't be as easy as before.

Most of the money I earned last year was returned to my godfather, and I still need to return some more this year to pay it all off.

This speed is actually quite fast, considering it's a full 50,000 yuan!

Once the money is paid off, I can be debt-free and carefree.

Next, I can buy a van to haul goods myself...

The future is still full of wonderful hopes.

Mo Xueyao took the money and walked out of the fruit shop. She saw the new fruit shop that had opened this year on the slope. It seemed to be imitating the style of Mo Xueyao's family in terms of both display and layout.

"Dad, the fruit shop next door seems to be copying our display style. It looks like they even copied the poster you wrote."

"Let him copy, what can you do to stop him?" The father laughed magnanimously. "In life and in business, it's impossible not to be copied. As long as you have a little success, others will flock to copy you. Once you fail, those people will scatter like birds and beasts and go to copy the next person. There's nothing to care about. No matter how great their achievements are, they will only be temporary."

"Tsk, you make it sound so easy. I heard from Mom that the profits this month have been much lower, haven't they?"

"It's alright, only a third less. That means our business is still better than theirs. Actually, it's not normal for a hospital to only have one fruit shop. Competition is the most normal thing." The father waved his hand casually. "Alright, alright, don't worry about adult matters, you little brat. Go buy your birthday present!"

"Tch." Mo Xueyao gave her father the middle finger, expressing her contempt, and walked out onto the street with Li Wanyan under one umbrella.

Li Wanyan spent ten yuan to buy a stationery blind box. According to the shop owner, it might contain a fountain pen, a ballpoint pen that writes smoothly, or other interesting toys, but in any case, the price would definitely not be less than ten yuan.

It sounds like you're making a profit no matter what you buy, but actually it's probably just some unsellable items that are put in there.

That can be considered a sales tactic.

After all, how could a boss really lose money? Otherwise, what kind of business would he be in?

Li Wanyan didn't open the package. Instead, she asked the shop owner to wrap it as a gift. Originally, she was supposed to pay an extra dollar for the wrapping, but after bargaining, the dollar was waived.

Don't underestimate this one yuan; it can buy two steamed buns the size of a boy's fist!

Mo Xueyao browsed around the shops for a long time before finally deciding to buy Hua Yinyin a mug.

The mug features an anime-style cow girl, dressed in cow-themed clothing and striking alluring poses.

It seems quite suitable for spending money.

Doesn't her family have a lot of milk? And she herself... is practically a dairy cow, right?

Mo Xueyao, with a wicked sense of humor, bought the five-yuan mug.

With the remaining fifteen yuan, the two bought some stationery they needed. In the end, Mo Xueyao put the five yuan left in her pocket as pocket money.

In case I want to eat some snacks after school one day, I won't be short of money.

When they returned to the fruit shop, dinner was almost ready. After washing her hands, Mo Xueyao sat properly at the table, waiting for the food to be served.

"Can't you help serve the food?" the mother said helplessly.

"Huh? Isn't Wanyan enough? Wouldn't having another person just cause more trouble?"

"Alright, Xiaoyao is a young lady, let her sit down. We 'servants' will take care of things." The father teased jokingly.

Even though she knew Mo Xueyao hated being called that.

Especially when talking about the young lady, it would make her feel a bit irritable.

As a girl, it wasn't her choice.

Dinner consisted of three dishes and a soup; it wasn't particularly lavish, but it was still quite good.

It's much more 'luxurious' than when we didn't run a fruit shop.

Being able to eat meat every day was one of Mo Xueyao's wishes, and now that wish has come true.

"Come on, have some soup before you eat." The father picked up a large soup ladle and ladled soup into Li Wanyan and Mo Xueyao's bowls. "Mushroom and bamboo shoot soup, the taste is absolutely delicious, one sip will definitely whet your appetite!"

"It's a bit sticky."

"Because to be precise, it's soup." The father laughed loudly. "By the way, when we're about to close, I'll help you wrap up the flowers you're giving to your classmate tomorrow. I'll put the bouquet in this vase next to the counter. Don't forget to take it with you when you and Wanyan leave in the morning."

"Know it."

"One bunch or two bunches?"

“We’re together, so one bouquet should be enough,” Mo Xueyao replied, mainly because she was worried about wasting money.

After all, flowers don't have much practical use; as long as the symbolic meaning is conveyed, that's enough.

……

Chapter Ninety-Two: A Curious Dream

This is a dream.

Mo Xueyao knew very well.

She was also very conscious.

After all, the collapsed high-rise buildings, the overgrown roads, and the abandoned structures—it doesn't look like reality.

The sun in the sky was still a dazzling gold, but the rest of the earth was gone.