A Young Woman's Heart

Mo Xueyao lost her balance and almost fell on the boy sitting in front of her.

At such close range, the boy could even smell the faint fruity scent on her, which made his face turn slightly red. He then stood up awkwardly and said, "Ah... um... please sit down?"

"Oh...is everything alright?"

"I'm getting off the bus right away."

"Okay." Mo Xueyao looked around to make sure there were no elderly people or pregnant women around in such a crowded place before she sat down comfortably and opened the tightly closed window.

The wind outside the window brushed against her face, instantly making her feel relieved.

As long as you face the window, you won't feel stuffy.

When it's crowded, buses without air conditioning are definitely more comfortable, since at least you can open the windows for ventilation.

"Oh, Xiaoyao, I want to sit too~" Wang Jiale said in a coquettish tone.

"Uh... um... there's no room left, is there?"

"Squeeze in a little."

"Okay, okay." Mo Xueyao could only lean further in. Fortunately, she was petite enough, and Wang Jiale was even smaller. They could barely fit on one chair.

However, one person has to sit upright while the other has to sit sideways, and it's a little uncomfortable, but it's still much more comfortable than standing there and squeezing in with others.

Although they were sitting, it was still quite tiring. When they finally arrived at their stop, everyone rushed off the bus. Mo Xueyao suddenly realized that the boy who had said he was getting off soon was actually still on the bus...

"Huff—huff—" Wang Jiale took a few deep breaths, "The air outside is so fresh...huff...I never want to ride such a crowded bus again..."

"Ugh, I'm so tired... I should have just ridden my bike here."

Everyone left their bicycles at Mo Xueyao's fruit shop, saying they would go to her house for dinner after buying musical instruments—mainly because of her parents' warm invitation.

"But Mr. Xue and Lele don't have bicycles."

"Actually, just giving one ride would have been enough," Mo Xueyao muttered.

"So, who suggested taking the bus?" Hua Yinyin looked at the others, only to find that everyone was looking at her.

Actually, I took the bus mainly because the drum set is so big; it would be difficult to get back by bike.

That's why I took the bus.

Actually, there are many other solutions, but everyone just chose the simplest and cheapest one...

The place where bus route 34 arrives is the bus terminal. Behind the terminal is a residential area that was built about six or seven years ago.

It's still quite new, relatively speaking.

There are also some shops in the community, such as grocery stores and barbershops, which are specifically for serving the residents.

That secondhand musical instrument shop is located at the very back of the residential area. Unless you know its exact location, most people wouldn't be able to find it.

Even people who live in this community, unless they live in one of the last few buildings, probably wouldn't know there's a second-hand musical instrument store here.

The shop door was wide open, and a large golden retriever was lying on the "Welcome" carpet at the entrance. When a group of people walked in front of the shop, it lazily got up to make way, and then found a corner to lie down again.

"Boss~!" Hua Yinyin shouted loudly.

The store has a very simple layout. The cashier and the worktable are combined into one, and there are musical instruments around the perimeter, leaving only a small space in the middle to stand.

The owner was carefully wiping down an electric piano, using various tools to remove the dust, making it look brand new at first glance.

"Looking for musical instruments?" the shopkeeper asked without turning his head. "Take a look yourself, they all have price tags."

"Oh, oh..." Mo Xueyao responded, then realized that she wasn't the one who wanted to buy the musical instrument.

She and Hua Yinyin had been to large chain music stores before, so when they came to this small music store, it suddenly felt a bit crowded.

Moreover, the musical instruments were arranged in a somewhat messy manner, making it look more like a pile of junk.

Some instruments have a larger number of instruments, while others have a smaller number.

In the far corner, there was a second-hand black and blue drum set.

Everyone excitedly went over to take a look, but the price startled Mo Zhuyou.

"Two...two thousand nine? Second-hand?"

“Drum sets are very expensive.” Hua Yinyin nodded earnestly.

"Luckily, my sister said she was buying it secondhand. If she had bought it new, I don't know how much it would have cost..."

"You want to buy a drum set?" the shop owner asked, turning his head.

"Yes, is there anything else?"

"Also, it's still in the warehouse and hasn't been taken out."

"So this isn't a warehouse after all..." Mo Xueyao teased softly.

"Do you have any cheaper ones? And ones that won't affect the performance?" Mo Xiaoxiao asked as she stepped forward.

"...There is one, a third-hand drum set."

"Third-handed?" Wang Jiale tilted his head.

This means that it has already been resold twice.

If it's bought again this time, it will be the fourth time it's been sold.

"Does it work?"

"Of course you can use it, but it's a bit dirty since it was just received and hasn't been cleaned yet." The boss said, stepping over a pile of tools on the ground and walking to the door. "Come on over, the warehouse is over here."

The so-called warehouse was actually a parking garage. Instead of cars, it was filled with all sorts of secondhand musical instruments, many of which looked dirty and dusty, indicating poor ventilation.

"This is it." The shopkeeper pointed to a white drum set that was casually placed on the ground. It was slightly yellowed, whether from dirt or its age.

"Can it be used?" Mo Xiao asked with a smile.

"No problem, it's not old. In fact, this drum set was bought in 97, so it's only been three years. It's just that the last owner left it idle for a while."

"Hmm..." Mo Zhuyou walked over and touched it, only to find that her hands were now filthy.

"This one costs one thousand."

"Can you lower the price a bit? This price is unreasonable."

"It's just a little dirty, it's not old at all. Listen to it, it's very sturdy."

Next, it was time for Mo Xiaoxiao to negotiate the price with the boss.

Everyone else watched and learned from the experience. In this way, the price was gradually reduced, and the drum set was finally bought for 650 yuan, which also came with a leather case that could hold the drum set—of course, it had to be disassembled and folded before it could be packed.

Everyone was stunned by such amazing bargaining skills.

Besides "amazing," it seems like there's no other word to describe it.

That's what real bargaining is all about! The key is the word 'bargain'!

……

Chapter Sixteen: A Lively Dinner at the Fruit Shop

"Hey, now I can use it after cleaning it when I get back!" Mo Zhuyou excitedly and laboriously carried the case containing the drum set and wobbled as she boarded the not-so-busy bus.

"Hey, remember not to wash it with water, and try not to get the dishcloth wet either," Wang Jiale reminded.

"How do we clean it? With a steel wool pad?"

"That's even more unacceptable."

"I have some musical instrument cleaning tools at home." Hua Yinyin lay down on Mo Xueyao's lap—on the way back, she and Mo Xueyao sat together.

It seems he was jealous because they weren't together when they arrived, and now he's clinging to her and won't let go.

“Yes, I have some at home too. When cleaning a drum kit, you usually need to use a fluffy, soft towel. You can’t just wipe it with water. At most, you can use a little soapy water, but you can’t use any corrosive cleaning agents.” Wang Jiale shook his head. “I’ll bring some tomorrow.”

“I’ll bring one too…” Hua Yinyin lazily raised her hand.

"So when you get to school tomorrow, everyone should help you clean up so you don't break anything." Mo Xueyao turned around and glanced at Mo Zhuyou sitting in the back.

"Okay, but does that mean I'll have to carry this huge suitcase to and from school from now on?" Mo Zhuyou said with a worried look on her face, holding the suitcase that was equivalent to an extra-large suitcase.

Incidentally, this suitcase is also old; it was bought for it by its previous owner.

“Of course, if you’re not worried about leaving it at school.” Hua Yinyin nodded. “Besides, I might need to practice when I get back. Anyway, I’m not comfortable leaving my favorite instrument at school. Even though there shouldn’t be any problems, I’m still uneasy.”

“Me too, me too!” Wang Jiale nodded vigorously.

Mo Xueyao paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered this matter.

In that case, it seems like she'll have to carry an electronic keyboard bag to and from school every day?

You look really tired.

Fortunately, the fruit shop wasn't far from the school, so the distance was somewhat acceptable.

Although her electronic keyboard was much cheaper than others, it was still the most expensive item she owned. And you can develop feelings for musical instruments after using them for a long time!

Everyone fell into deep thought. After about five or six minutes of silence, suddenly everyone turned to look at Mr. Xue, who was sitting alone on the other side.

All eyes were fixed on him, filled with complex emotions.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Xue asked, puzzled.

"Xiaoxue's musical instrument is the most convenient; she can just put it in her schoolbag."

"Yes yes yes!"

"Even though he's the only guy in the band, he's the most relaxed one!"

"That's it!"

"Let Xiaoxue do all the moving of musical instruments all the time!"

Agreed!

The girls all spoke in unison, but Mo Xiaoxiao didn't join in; instead, she covered her mouth and chuckled softly.

“No problem,” Mr. Xue said with a smile, which instead plunged everyone into a speechless silence.

"No, Xiaoxue is too easy to talk to, I can't bear to bully him..." Mo Xueyao muttered.