A Young Woman's Heart

"Old Chen...? I don't really remember him."

“That year, Lao Chen drove us out for fun. We took the back roads instead of the main roads, and ended up getting lost. We couldn’t find our way back, so we just drove to the top of this small hill, took some pictures, and stayed overnight. We sold our old optical camera after we got married.”

"Who knew you were so poor? How dare you say that?"

"You're not poor, you just lost money in business, okay?"

"Do you have a photo of Old Chen here?"

"I think so, let me look." Mo Wenli quickly flipped through the photo album and found the yellowed old photo. "Look, this is Old Chen, you forgot? You said he was tall back then."

"Oh...that's him. I vaguely remember him. He's almost 1.8 meters tall, right?"

"Yes, he's tall and strong. This kid comes from a very wealthy family, eats well, and has been taught martial arts since he was a child."

"A family of martial arts practitioners, perhaps?"

“Yes, a family of martial arts masters, but it seems they didn’t do so well later. After I married you, I didn’t have much contact with him.” Mo Wenli patted his head. “Let me think… it seems that not long after he got married, his family fell into decline, right? They sold off the old house, antiques, and everything else.”

"Why sell it? Gambling? Or something else?"

“No, he just lived a normal life. It was probably during the beginning that he wasn’t used to living a normal life. He didn’t look for work and just sold things from home. Later, when he had nothing left to sell, he humbled himself and did manual labor.” Mo Wenli laughed loudly. “The next time I saw him, he didn’t smoke Liqun cigarettes anymore. He was smoking either Double Happiness, Hongmei, or Hongtashan cigarettes.”

"How can you still laugh when he's in such a miserable state?"

"Sigh, what can we do? No matter how bad things get, we still have to smile. Life goes on. But I saw that he was really having a hard time later on. He kept thinking about the days when he had money. I heard that he went into business and then lost a lot of money. It must have been six or seven years ago. I heard from other friends that he went bankrupt and was threatened by others to pay back the money. He almost lost his life."

"And then what?"

"After that... I don't know much about it. I think he said that in order not to mortgage his house, he divorced his wife. Then his wife temporarily put the house in her younger sister's name, and when her son came of age, the house could be given to him."

"I see."

"I don't know what happened after that. Anyway, Old Chen is heavily in debt and should stay away from his wife. Otherwise, those debt collectors might kill him." Mo Wenli sighed. "His wife should be taking care of his son now. I haven't been in touch with him for so long. I wonder how he is doing now."

"Every family has its own troubles, and very few families are truly living a happy and fulfilling life."

“Relatively speaking, it’s fine. I think our life is pretty good.” Mo Wenli flipped through a few more pages, and all the photos were finally looked at. However, two-thirds of the album was still empty. He solemnly placed the album on the bookshelf next to him. “This needs to be saved. It’s full of memories from our youth.”

“If you hadn’t gambled, our family would be living a very comfortable life long ago.” His mother gave him a disapproving look. “Back then, I insisted that you buy this house. If you hadn’t gambled back then, you would have been doing business steadily, and we would have at least two cars and at least two houses.”

“If I hadn’t gambled back then, I would have had the money to give you an abortion, and Xiaoyao wouldn’t have been able to give birth,” Mo Wenli said with a dry laugh.

"Maybe it's because you gave me cheap abortion pills back then that Xiaoyao is suffering like this. Don't you know that yourself?"

"How could that be? What does that have to do with abortion pills?"

"Of course it's related. Some women who take abortion pills have children with deformities. Luckily, our daughter is deformed in one place, but otherwise she's beautiful. Otherwise, her life would be ruined. Even now, she would definitely not be used to living like this."

“What’s wrong with her? I think she’s already used to being a girl.” Mo Wenli rolled over and climbed onto the bed. “Besides, she’s always looked like a girl since she was little, and her personality is also on the softer side. Although she’s mischievous, it’s a bit different from the mischievousness of other boys. She’ll adapt very quickly. By the time she graduates from high school, she’ll probably have forgotten that she was once a boy.”

"You make it sound so easy for you, why don't you try it yourself?"

"I don't have that opportunity."

"So you mean you want to?" His mother gave him a disdainful look.

"Haha..." The father chuckled loudly a few times, then quickly pulled the switch, and the incandescent light went out immediately. "Go to sleep, go to sleep. We have to get up early to haul goods tomorrow!"

When are you planning to buy a minivan?

"Let's pay back the money first. You should have raised enough money by now, right? You should be able to pay it all off by the end of this year."

"you sure?"

"It's barely acceptable, it should be about the same. Doing business is still profitable. The net profit per month is about three to five thousand... Let's say three thousand, that's thirty thousand a year, plus last year's."

"Did you calculate the costs last year, when we first opened the store?"

"Of course it counts, it's about the same anyway."

"Does net profit include the cost of food?"

"I've excluded the cost of food from net profit."

"Oh, that's alright, but I think we should buy a car first."

"Tsk, why buy a car? Pay off your debts first. Isn't it painful to be in debt? Besides, buying a car will increase your expenses, and you'll be even less able to pay it back later."

"You're so stupid. You even brag about how good you are at business." Yang Xiaoyu tapped his forehead. "Ah Liang isn't in a hurry to pay back the money. He's not even in a rush to ask for it back. Why are you in such a hurry? Use the money to buy a van first. You can make even more money then."

"I don't think so. Besides, even though Ah Liang says he's not in a hurry, who knows if his wife will urge him? He's a bit of a prideful guy and he's too embarrassed to say it out loud."

"Fine, whatever." Yang Xiaoyu rolled over. "You weren't this timid before."

“That was before. Now that I’m old, of course I want a peaceful life.” Mo Wenli’s words had barely been finished when his deep snoring began.

……

Chapter 261 Divination in the Mirror

Wang Jiale's bathroom is similar to Grandma Jin's, the only difference being that the shower room is a bit larger.

Hua Yinyin insisted on taking a bath with Mo Xueyao, and this time she finally succeeded in keeping the former out of the room.

When Hua Yinyin is around, it's not easy to take a comfortable bath all by yourself.

Thinking this, Mo Xueyao walked out of the washroom while drying her hair with a towel.

"The ice water is in the refrigerator, Xiaoyao, help yourself if you want some." Wang Jiale, who was the first to finish showering, was wearing a tank top and briefs, sitting cross-legged at a low table on the tatami mat, peeling a fresh orange with her hands.

"Hmm." Mo Xueyao rubbed her hair and walked to the refrigerator, while Hua Yinyin walked dejectedly into the bathroom.

She was still muttering to herself, "Damn it, Yaoyao won't take a bath with me... Damn it, Yaoyao won't take a bath with me..."

This gave Mo Xueyao the illusion that a broken record had been turned on and not turned off.

"Your resentment runs a little too deep," Mo Xueyao shrugged, seemingly speechless.

"Ouch, my heart is hurting, it hurts so much here." Hua Yinyin clutched her stomach. "It feels like needles are pricking me."

"If you have a stomachache, go buy some medicine yourself."

"I meant the heart!"

"Where is the heart?"

"Look at the position of my left hand."

"If you have a heart condition, don't always think about doing strenuous exercise." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes and closed the glass door between them. "Go take your shower!"

Meanwhile, Wanyan squatted down, picked something up, and threw it into the trash can next to her.

"What's wrong?" Mo Xueyao asked, puzzled.

"Your hair."

"Oh...sigh, that's the downside of having long hair, it always falls out." Mo Xueyao rubbed her hair vigorously, and a few more strands fell out. "I guess I should cut it short during summer vacation."

Li Wanyan remained noncommittal. She sat down on a chair next to the washroom, waiting for Hua Yinyin to finish washing before it was her turn.

"Phew..." Mo Xueyao didn't put the towel away, but just covered her wet hair with it, and sat down next to Wang Jiale.

"Doesn't Xiaoyao need a hair dryer?"

"Ah, that kind of thing is too troublesome. I don't usually use it. If I shower every day, I'll probably use it once every two or three days."

"Your hair will get really stiff if you don't use a hairdryer," Wang Jiale said, taking a sip of ice water. "Xiaoyao, let's play some spooky games tonight!"

"Huh? What kind of supernatural game? Ouija board?" This was the only one Mo Xueyao knew.

"Mirror divination!" Wang Jiale exclaimed excitedly and nervously. "It's so interesting! I've always wanted to try it, but I'm too scared to do it alone."

"For someone like me who isn't superstitious, this kind of thing isn't scary at all." Mo Xueyao touched the black mole on her neck; if you touched it carefully, you could feel that it was slightly raised.

"Xiaoyao, um, can I touch the mole on your neck?" Wang Jiale suddenly leaned forward, his slightly messy hair scratching Mo Xueyao's cheek.

"Huh? Why are you touching this?"

"Because...because it feels so nice to touch, and I see you always touching it."

"...I'm just used to it, and there's nothing particularly interesting to touch." Mo Xueyao stretched her neck helplessly. "Here, touch it."

The mole on her neck only appeared last year; to be precise, it was after the surgery that she suddenly noticed it on her neck one day.

Fortunately, the mole wasn't large, so it didn't detract from her appearance; instead, it added a unique charm.

A small black mole on her flawless white neck made her even more alluring.

Sometimes, imperfection is the most beautiful thing.

"Hey, ah, Xiaoyao's neck is so soft." Wang Jiale touched it with his palm and rubbed it against his cheek, feeling like it was a clingy kitten.

"Alright, alright... how come you're just like Yin Yin?" Mo Xueyao pushed her away helplessly, took a sip of ice water, and then comfortably lay down on the tatami.

Tatami mats are neither cold in winter nor hot in summer.

It's suitable for all weather conditions.

Lying on it is much softer than the cement floor at Mo Xueyao's house, no wonder Wang Jiale always likes to roll around on his tatami.

By the time Li Wanyan, who was the last to take a shower, finished, it was already quite late.

The TV started showing late-night anime, mostly adult-oriented shows, and sometimes animated movies. Mo Xueyao really enjoyed watching these.

However, I usually have to go to bed early at night and don't have time to look at them.

“As expected, the DVD player is still the best. You can watch whatever you want.” Mo Xueyao sat up lazily because Wang Jiale had already started inviting them to play a supernatural game together.

"Hurry up, hurry up! This is the perfect time to play divination in the mirror!" Wang Jiale urged everyone, turning off the TV, closing the study door, and even turning off the lights, leaving only an oil lamp on the table.

"Why make it so dark..." Mo Xueyao muttered.

"That's what makes it fun!" Wang Jiale leaned on Li Wanyan excitedly and nervously. "Class monitor, Yinyin, Xiaoyao, let's begin!"

“Lele’s going to play another boring game.” Hua Yinyin shrugged. “Oh well, I have nothing to do tonight anyway, so I’ll play with you.”

"Either is fine," Li Wanyan replied casually.

Mo Xueyao sat upright, appearing to be the most serious one, but this was actually just to give Wang Jiale some 'face' so she wouldn't be too embarrassed.

However, she doesn't seem to feel awkward when it comes to things she likes.