A Young Woman's Heart

"Well, I'll try my best." Tian Tingchan brushed her hair back and walked towards the bridge.

"Brother Chan, wanna go boating?" Zhou Yong put his hands, which had nowhere to go, into his pockets.

"Too expensive."

"It's okay, this time it's on me!"

"What a waste of money." Tian Tingchan couldn't help but chuckle. "You might as well treat me to a meal."

"Ah—okay, then I'll treat you to dinner?"

"Let's go back and talk about it later, it's too expensive here."

"Oh my, Chan-ge, you're so frugal!"

"I just don't want to waste money."

Zhou Yong opened his mouth and then closed it again. He wanted to say, "Whoever marries you is truly blessed," but in the end, he swallowed those words back.

As for the reasons?

He himself didn't understand.

Have you fallen in love with it?

There must be some.

After all, while the Heavenly Cicada wasn't exactly stunning, it was still quite charming and unassuming.

Who doesn't like good-looking people?

"It's a rare treat to come to West Lake, and the tickets are so expensive, why don't we take a picture?" Tian Tingchan stopped. West Lake is divided into several areas that charge admission fees, and the two of them had already walked halfway through.

This is the main area of ​​West Lake, and the biggest attraction is West Lake itself.

However, if you want to visit places like Leifeng Pagoda or Liuhe Pagoda, you'll need to buy separate tickets.

Do you have a camera with you?

"Rent it? How stupid!" Tian Tingchan laughed and slapped Zhou Yong on the head. "Look at your head, it's quite big. How come you don't seem to have much stock?"

At times like this, Tian Tingchan becomes even more like the "Cicada Brother" from the internet.

Which one is the real her?

When Zhou Yong went out with her, he couldn't help but think about this.

"Want to rent a camera? Or should I take a picture for you? Taking a picture is very cheap, ten yuan for two. We also have costumes here, you can wear them for the photo, but there will be an extra charge for changing clothes."

"Just a regular shot will do," Tian Tingchan said to the shop owner.

"Alright, which side do you want to stand on for the photo? I think it's better under this willow tree."

"Well... let's leave it here." Zhou Yong stepped forward.

The two stood at a distance from each other under the willow tree, with the shimmering surface of West Lake behind them.

"Wait a minute, why are you two standing so far apart? Are you two having a fight? Haha, stand closer, act a little more affectionate!"

"Lovers—!" Zhou Yong was startled, glancing at Tian Tingchan with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

The latter, blushing slightly, explained, "We're just ordinary friends."

"Haha—we're just friends now, but we'll definitely be a couple after today! If we're not a couple, it's okay, we can just take a picture!" The boss laughed heartily. "Come on, girl, rest your head on boy's shoulder, and boy, uh, put your arm around her waist."

"This...like this?" Zhou Yong felt his whole body stiffen.

"Yes, yes, that's it! Be more natural, relax, don't be nervous! Haha!"

Tian Tingchan's face was as beautiful as a peach blossom, while Zhou Yong's face turned as red as a pig's liver.

"Click!" The camera shutter was pressed, freezing the moment in time.

"Would you like to take one more picture?"

"No need...just print two copies." Zhou Yong said, taking out his money.

"Okay, just wait a moment." The person who specializes in developing photos took the negatives and went to work on them.

Zhou Yong and Tian Tingchan sat down on a wooden bench not far from the shop.

"Sorry..."

As soon as Zhou Yong finished speaking, Tian Tingchan, who was initially a little embarrassed, raised her eyebrows: "Why do you keep apologizing?"

"Uh... Ah... I'm sorry."

"Apologize?"

"Ahem!" Zhou Yong chuckled awkwardly and scratched his cheek, unsure of what to say.

"Zhou Yong".

"what?"

"Why did you make two copies? Are you trying to hide them and peek at them yourself?" Tian Tingchan said with a teasing laugh.

"Uh... I was thinking, it would be nice to have one for each of us as a souvenir..." Zhou Yong said awkwardly.

Tian Tingchan stretched out a slender finger and poked Zhou Yong's cheek: "Are you free tomorrow?"

"Yes, I have."

"Come with me to the job interview." She slumped against the bench as if all her strength had suddenly left her, letting out a long, sorrowful sigh. "Sigh..."

"What's wrong? Am I getting in the way?"

"Of course not." Tian Tingchan was somewhat speechless. "Don't always think that everything is your fault."

"what……"

"I was just thinking about some other things."

"Is something bothering you? Why don't you tell me? I can help you cheer you up."

"If even your brother Chan can't solve this, what troubles do you think you can handle?" Tian Tingchan poked Zhou Yong's forehead. "It's nothing serious, you don't need to worry."

"We're friends, right? Anyway, you can talk to me about anything."

"When did I ever say we were friends?" Tian Tingchan deliberately raised her voice slightly and lowered it slightly to make her voice sound soft and weak.

"Huh?"

“Aren’t we buddies?” she said with a smile, her eyes crinkling.

"You scared me..."

"Brother Chan, stop switching back and forth like that. People who don't know better might think you have a split personality..."

"That's great, you can play by yourself now."

“Uh…” A sudden thought flashed through Zhou Yong’s mind. “To be honest, if I were a woman and I was good-looking, I would really be interested in having a relationship with myself.”

"Pfft." Tian Tingchan covered her mouth and laughed, "I didn't expect you to be so narcissistic!"

"It's not narcissism..." Zhou Yong explained embarrassedly, "I just feel that maybe only I can understand myself and accept myself?"

Tian Tingchan, who had been smiling, suddenly fell silent upon hearing this.

Fortunately, the boss broke the oppressive atmosphere that was about to set off.

"Here you are, both of you. Your photos are printed, one copy for each of you, and they've all been laminated."

"Thank you." Zhou Yong quickly thanked him and stood up. "Let's go, Brother Chan, we still have a part to explore, right?"

"Hmm." Tian Tingchan took hers and put it into her small shoulder bag. "Actually, West Lake is crowded with people, so there's not much to see."

"What's wrong? Uh... are you tired?"

"No." Tian Tingchan pursed her lips and shook her head.

At that moment, a single thought simultaneously popped into their minds—

This mundane world may be bustling and exciting, but what does it have to do with me?

Even walking among the crowd, I still felt lonely and isolated.

As if sensing something, Zhou Yong subconsciously looked at Tian Tingchan, only to find that the other person was also looking at him.

Their eyes met, and neither of them uttered a word, yet it felt as if they had been talking all night.

In that instant, the two seemed to have achieved a spiritual connection.

"Let's look around some more, otherwise the tickets will be a waste," Zhou Yong said, scratching his head.

"If the scenic spots that those poets visited back then all required entrance fees, then there probably wouldn't be those poems that have been passed down through the ages."

“Not necessarily,” Zhou Yong retorted. “Those poets will still leave behind poems that will be famous for thousands of years, but they may not have the original artistic conception.”

"Perhaps." Tian Tingchan looked at the various plump and round carp on the lake shore and answered absentmindedly.

……

Chapter Five Unpaid Leave

Clouds aren't always white; they can be pale gray or even dark.

Sometimes, it can be colorful.

Otherwise, how could there be such a thing as clouds?

The weather is perfect today; the sunlight shines on the clouds as if the excess paint from a rainbow has been splashed onto them.

Around eight or nine in the morning—there's no fixed time—the two sisters, Mo Xiaoxiao and Mo Zhuyou, arrived at Yinniang's Burger & Fried Chicken shop.

As soon as the shop opened, the shop manager, Duanmu Bi, yawned and tidied up her things, lazily greeting the two of them: "Good morning."

"Good morning." Mo Xiao smiled, her eyes curving like the moon.

"Good morning—ha—" My sister also greeted her, but she clearly hadn't woken up yet. Before she could finish speaking, she yawned widely and walked into the store in a daze.

"Smile."