A Young Woman's Heart

"Chinese style? No problem, that's the cheapest."

"Uh-huh."

"Hey, don't shake your head."

"Mmm!"

The hair dyeing process was rather lengthy. Even though a while had passed, it wasn't until Su Yuqing and Ai Xiuer were almost asleep that the dyeing was finally finished.

Aisha's long, dark blue hair has been dyed back to pure black, which is her original hair color.

This is, after all, a high-end 'hair salon'. Well, no matter how fancy the name is, it's still just a hair salon in function. All the hair dyes used here are imported and very high-end, causing very little damage to the hair. The hair that has been dyed back to black looks just like completely natural black hair, shiny and smooth.

"Sister Qing, shall we go get some snacks?" Ai Xiu'er, who was about the same height as Su Yuqing, asked, tilting her head.

"Okay, let's go~ Don't bother picking us up today, let's go home by ourselves."

Okay.

In this era, for some reason, shops along this street, as long as they have even a slight connection to the West, can sell their goods at very high prices.

Moreover, most of these shops are decorated in a more luxurious style, while Chinese-style shops are mostly simple and ordinary.

However, it's not necessarily true that one tastes better.

This is also why Aishuer likes Chinese pastries.

Moreover, Chinese pastries come in a wide variety of types, with most shops specializing in only one type, such as those that specialize in wife cakes, sponge cakes, or plum blossom cakes...

Finally, the two stopped in front of this small wife cake shop.

The arrival of two young women dressed in expensive clothes instantly brightened the entrance of the small shop.

Actually, neither of them showed the brand logo, but anyone with a discerning eye could tell that the quality of the clothes was exceptional.

Leaving aside Aishuer's seemingly well-behaved and quiet demeanor, Su Yuqing's temperament was different from that of ordinary people. It was difficult for someone without a large family fortune to exude such a temperament.

To put it simply... she probably has the air of a rich young lady?

Moreover, she is the kind of well-bred young lady with a solid background, not a nouveau riche young lady.

It's quite rare to see someone like that patronize a roadside stall like this.

What would you like to order?

"Hmm..." Su Yuqing tilted her head and looked at Aishuer beside her, "What does Aishuer want to eat?"

I want to try every flavor.

"Pfft, there are more than ten flavors here."

"Haha, little girl, you can't possibly eat all of this, can you?" the owner laughed. "How about I recommend a few of our best-selling flavors? This one has pork floss, this one has lean pork, this one is sweet with preserved mustard greens and pork belly, and this one is savory."

"Hmm—" Ashleigh was caught in a dilemma.

"Yes, sweet preserved vegetable wife cakes are delicious." Su Yuqing nodded vigorously. "When I was living alone, A-Kong would often buy them for me."

"Eh...? Hmm... Well then, shall we take two of everything the boss mentioned?"

"Alright!" The owner immediately packed up the pancakes. All the pancakes here are weighed, so their sizes seem to be a bit irregular. It seems they are all handmade, without any molds.

Each type of cake has a different price and must be weighed separately before the final price is calculated.

"Ah, it's Teacher Su!" Just then, Mo Xueyao's voice came over. She waved her hand vigorously, "What a coincidence, we bumped into each other here."

"Hmm, Xiaoyao, are you alone?"

"Yes, I came out to buy some snacks." Mo Xueyao, with her hands in her pockets, glanced at Ai Xiuer curiously. Because Ai Xiuer's signature long black and blue hair had been dyed back to black, she didn't immediately recognize her. "Ah, it's Ai Xiuer?"

"Hmm?" Ashley certainly didn't recognize her.

“You weren’t fully awake at the time, so she and other classmates went to see you a few times.”

"Oh, I see. Hello."

"Hello, hello~!" Mo Xueyao greeted cheerfully, laughing loudly, "Looks like you've fully recovered?"

"Yes, I'm all better now."

"You'll be fine now." Mo Xueyao glanced at her dark blue eyes, and their gazes met. They both seemed to be drawn to each other's blue eyes.

"I like the color of your eyes, sky blue, so clear."

"Really? I think yours looks better. It's black and blue, and it has a deep, mysterious feel to it!"

"Young lady, what would you like to buy?" the shopkeeper interrupted their conversation.

"Oh, give me four sweet preserved vegetable wife cakes! And with pork belly!"

"Okay okay."

"Aishue will be taking classes with you next semester," Su Yuqing said to Mo Xueyao with a smile as she paid, picked up the bag of wife cakes.

"Huh? Really? By the way, I just realized her Chinese is really good! But she hasn't had class in a long time, is it really okay for her to start with a second-year high school curriculum all at once? Or would it be better to start from the first year of high school?"

"No problem, she has already passed the test and is qualified."

"Well, that's good then. Otherwise, it would definitely be very painful to learn."

"Will you have to teach her a lot then?"

"Eh? Well...maybe she's better than me!" Mo Xueyao said modestly, but actually she just didn't want the hassle.

"Pfft." Su Yuqing didn't know if she understood or not, she just covered her mouth and laughed, then handed the bag to Ai Xiu'er, "Here you go, Ai Xiu'er."

"Hmm... I can't tell what flavors they are..."

"Let's just grab one and try it out, see if we get lucky."

"Hmm~" Aisha didn't rush to take it. Instead, she asked the shopkeeper for a clean little bag, used the bag as a disposable glove, grabbed one and put it in her mouth.

"You used to just hold it with your hands?"

"Because I've lived with Sister Xiaoqing..."

"If you eat it with your hands, it will be all oily, but eating it with your hands is the only way to truly savor it." Mo Xueyao took the wife cake handed to her by the shopkeeper, picked it up with her hands, and took a bite. The oil inside dripped from the corner of her mouth and almost soaked her clothes.

"Xiaoyao, it's better to be a little more ladylike." Su Yuqing waved her hand gently. "Then we're leaving. See you when school starts!"

"Okay, bye-bye!" Mo Xueyao forced down the food she was chewing before replying loudly.

……

Chapter 137 Hopscotch

I ate dinner early, around 5:30 p.m.

The painted bicycle was left behind the shop, so Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan had to take the bus home.

The sky was not yet completely dark; the area where the sun had set looked as if it were on fire, and the clouds resembled raging flames.

"Ah, it's a fiery sunset!" Mo Xueyao, sitting by the car window, shouted, pointing at the sky.

This bus doesn't have air conditioning. Although it gets very hot during the day, as long as the bus is moving in the evening, a gentle breeze will blow in your face.

Leaving the hillside area, the vast area behind is mostly farmland or factory zones, appearing somewhat desolate.

Although this area is part of Hangzhou, I always feel that this road separates it from the city. Getting from here to there feels like going from a small county town to a metropolis.

—Although Hangzhou is not a big city, it is still a provincial capital. Even if some people are unwilling to admit that it is a second-tier city, it is more than enough to call it a third-tier city at this time.

The gap between county towns and third-tier cities is quite significant.

The long '312' bus meanders forward like a snake, its two carriages making it sway particularly when going around bends, and passengers can even feel the bus tilting slightly.

As the car crossed the stone bridge, it seemed like there were a few more shops around, but as you drove further ahead, you saw all sorts of factories and that somewhat cold overpass.

"Ganchang Village, we've arrived..."

"We've arrived at Xiwen Village..."

It's clear that although these places have been designated as urban areas, they are still referred to as 'villages'. The nearby farmland and rows of farmers' houses also give the impression that these are still villages and have not truly become part of the city.

"Click—" The bus door opened, some people got on, and some got off. Several children, their skin tanned by the sun, rushed up and quickly put coins into the coin slot, but one of them was caught by the driver.

"You didn't insert any coins!"

"I voted!"

"Pretend I didn't see it?"

"You really voted..."

"Never mind, just remember to pay next time." The driver waved his hand impatiently, seemingly not in the mood to argue with a few third or fourth graders.

The little guy who hadn't inserted a coin immediately showed a triumphant look and skipped and hopped with his friends to the exit door.

They didn't like having seats, but seemed to particularly love this spot. Perhaps it was because there was a relatively spacious open area where several of them could gather and chat?

Moreover, even if the vehicle wobbles, it can quickly grab onto the iron pillar beside it.

The car drove through Yanjiacun and across Changmu Bridge, finally stopping at the bus stop near Mo Xueyao's house.

This station is also named after an oxygen manufacturing plant.

It's said that even the nation's top leader has visited this factory, which seems to be of a very high rank.

To get back to Mo Xueyao's home, you have to pass through rows of low-rise buildings. These are semi-open staff dormitories, specifically for factory workers and their families.

In a quiet alley where no cars would pass, a few children were gathered in this relatively clean and spacious area.

They drew squares of different sizes on the ground and then played a game of rock-paper-scissors.

Hopscotch is actually a very simple game. There are nine squares in total. Some have two squares in a row, while others have one square in a row. The last square is the final position, and you win when you reach the last square.

But there are requirements; you can't just skip over them and be done with it.

First, you can only stand on one foot in a square, which means that you have to hop across some squares on one foot.

After jumping, you have to kick the prepared stones. If the stone only moves one square forward at the beginning, you can only kick one square at a time. If you go beyond that, you're out. In short, it's based on the number of squares kicked the first time.

Furthermore, you can't stay in a square for more than a certain amount of time, about seven or eight seconds, otherwise you're out.

This is a local custom, but Mo Xueyao doesn't know how it's done in other places.