A Young Woman's Heart

"Look at you, how old are you already? Hmm? You'll be nineteen soon..."

"Mom, I'll only be seventeen next year, okay?"

"I'm referring to your age in the traditional Chinese way!"

"Now everyone talks about age in years, not age in the traditional Chinese way."

"Okay, okay, you'll be seventeen next year, and you're still wetting the bed? People will laugh at you to death if they find out."

"Cough cough!"

"I need to wake Yan Yan up later. I need to change the sheets and duvet cover, and I also need to air out the comforter. Otherwise, the smell will get into the comforter and it will be even harder to clean."

"Oh..." Mo Xueyao pretended to be nonchalant, but her tone was full of embarrassment.

After I came out of the shower, my mother was already busy in the kitchen. Her change of clothes was placed on the chair by the door—a winter dress.

She was no longer averse to this kind of clothing and put it on skillfully and naturally. Although it was still early, she was full of energy because she had just taken a shower and was not sleepy at all.

She peeked into the master bedroom and saw that her father was no longer in bed. Although the van meant he could get up later, he should have arrived at the wholesale market by now.

My mother had just put the rice in the pressure cooker when she put it on the stove to cook.

Then he quickly went into the small room, and when he saw Li Wanyan sleeping soundly, his movements suddenly became gentle.

It's not even five o'clock yet, which is way too early for a student on the weekend.

She gently patted Li Wanyan's forehead: "Yanyan, Yanyan, get up for a moment and change the blankets and sheets."

"Hmm..." Li Wanyan frowned slightly, but she still mustered her spirits, opened her eyes slightly, and struggled to get out of bed with difficulty, standing aside while shivering.

She was clearly still asleep.

The two of them read together last night, and they didn't go to sleep until 12:30, so by this time, she had only slept for a maximum of five hours.

Li Wanyan can usually get up early not because she doesn't get enough sleep, but because she usually goes to bed early—in fact, like Mo Xueyao, she needs eight hours of sleep to be fully awake and not drowsy.

It's hard to imagine how those geniuses can live their entire lives while only sleeping two or three hours a day.

The mother lifted the quilt, pointed to the somewhat dried black patch, and smiled at Mo Xueyao.

"Look, the evidence."

"Cough—!" Mo Xueyao coughed heavily.

The mother removed the sheets and blankets, and seeing Li Wanyan still standing there drowsy, she gently said to her, "Wanyan, why don't you go to my room and sleep for a while?"

"Okay..." Li Wanyan walked out in a daze, almost bumping her head into the door.

She is a rare sight indeed.

Mo Xueyao followed her into the large room.

Li Wanyan collapsed onto the bed with a thud, her eyes already closed, her body moving entirely on instinct—pulling the blankets to wrap herself up.

But perhaps it was the smell that made her frown even more.

She shifted uncomfortably, her body contorting like a shrimp.

Mo Xueyao curiously leaned closer, wanting to see her blank little face.

But as soon as she sat down, Li Wanyan seemed to sense something and instinctively moved closer to her.

Mo Xueyao sat down subconsciously, and the latter pressed his forehead against her thigh. His brows finally relaxed, and he fell into a deep sleep again.

She was so close that Mo Xueyao felt she shouldn't leave so easily.

Anyway, Mother is still busy—just pretend she hasn't woken up.

"Yaoyao, what are you doing—?" After a flurry of activity, her mother knocked on the door. Mo Xueyao hesitated for only two or three seconds before her mother impatiently opened the door herself. "Why didn't you open the door when I told you to?"

"I haven't had time to get up yet..."

"Forget it, I can't rely on you. Come here and get me a hanger. I need to hang these out to dry. Also, wring them out for me. They're too heavy, I can't wring them out."

Clearly, during this time, the mother had washed all the clothes, bedding, and sheets.

The mornings are hectic, but she still manages to get so many things done.

Mo Xueyao hesitated whether to stand up.

"What are you sitting there for?" The mother, like a crab, laboriously carried two large basins forward. "Aren't you going to open the balcony door for me?"

This time, she finally decided to stand up.

She gently moved her buttocks outwards, but Li Wanyan's forehead remained pressed against her thigh until she was almost curled up in a ball.

The mother slammed the basin down, looking somewhat annoyed at Mo Xueyao, who was moving very slowly. Then, her tone suddenly softened: "Forget it, you can sit down. I can't rely on you anyway. I can do it myself!"

"Huh? Don't you need help anymore?"

"Sit down, or you can take another nap."

"I'm not sleepy anymore..." Mo Xueyao picked up the storybook on the bedside and started reading. To make herself more comfortable, she squeezed herself onto the bed and used her thigh to push Li Wanyan's forehead back, so that she changed from a curled-up position back to her original side-lying sleeping position.

Her mother's busy schedule seemed to have nothing to do with her, and Mo Xueyao didn't feel much psychological burden. Over the years, she seemed to have gotten used to it.

The mornings are like a battle, and it only calms down after a while.

"distant."

"Ah!" Mo Xueyao was reading a ghost story when she was startled. She looked up and saw that her mother was already dressed, with her small shoulder bag on her back and some bags in her hands, which should be filled with food or something.

"I'm going to open the door. Breakfast is in the pressure cooker, and there are egg pancakes in the frying pan. If they get cold, just heat them up yourself..."

"Okay, okay—" She'd repeated these words countless times; she practically knew what her mother was going to say next. "Bye-bye-bye—"

"You heartless bastard, didn't you even tell me to be careful on the road?"

“Be careful on the road,” Mo Xueyao replied helplessly, drawing out the last syllable.

"I'll make the bed when I get back tonight, or you can make it yourself; it's in the closet, the first one..."

"No need, no need, I'll wait for you to come back," Mo Xueyao quickly replied.

"Alright, alright, I'm leaving." The mother didn't say anything more. Although she could decide the opening hours of the shop herself, it was still about making money for herself, so it was best not to be lazy if she could avoid it.

The door slammed shut, and the hurried footsteps faded into the distance.

Lately, my father seems to keep talking about whether or not to buy my mother an electric scooter.

But electric bikes aren't cheap these days, especially since he wants to buy a better one that can carry more things, which will be even more expensive.

So I'm still undecided and haven't bought it yet.

Mo Xueyao suddenly felt that the stockings on her thigh were a little wet. She was startled at first, and then realized that it was saliva dripping from the corner of Li Wanyan's mouth...

She drools in her sleep too?

Or is it that everyone drools when they sleep on their side?

……

Chapter 213 Talking on the Phone

Even the cheerful and optimistic Hua Yinyin is afraid of being alone.

No one was home today. A ray of golden sunlight shone on her face. Outside, the sun was already high in the sky. For many people, half the day had already passed, but for her, the day hadn't even begun!

She stretched her fair, slender arm out from the warm blankets, half-closed her eyes, and groped on the bedside table. She grabbed the phone, which was as cold as an ice cube, and dragged it back into the blankets.

Hua Yinyin's phone was given to her by her father after he got a new one. Although it was old, apart from some wear and tear on the exterior, all its functions were still working smoothly, and it could easily last another three years.

In this day and age, it's already a rare thing for a high school student to have their own cell phone, and even for a family like hers, it's not something to ask for more.

Even if you have money, you shouldn't squander it!

At least in this era, this is the prevailing view among most people.

Hua Yinyin wrapped herself up tightly in the blankets, covering her head completely, and used the light from her phone screen to search for phone numbers before dialing Wang Jiale's number.

After three rings, the call was finally answered.

"Hello?"

"Lele—haha." Hua Yinyin yawned as soon as she opened her mouth. "What are you doing?"

"Having lunch? What's wrong?"

Are Mom and Dad home?

"No, Tongjue and I were at home, and we ate sushi."

"Oh~ that's pretty good." Hua Yinyin licked her lips and rolled over in bed. "It's so cold outside, I don't want to get up."

"You're not up yet, are you?"

"Hehe~"

"It's already 12:30!" Wang Jiale exclaimed in surprise on the other end of the phone. "If you don't get up now, half the day will be gone!"

"It's all in the past anyway... Ugh, I don't want to get up at all."

"You have to get up whether you want to or not." A rustling sound came from the other end, along with Mika Hitomi's voice speaking in Japanese.

"Can you find a way to wake me up? I really can't get up by myself~" Hua Yinyin said in a coquettish tone.

"How about we go play at Xiaoyao's place later?"

"Okay!" Hua Yinyin yanked off the quilt with a "whoosh," then quickly put on the clothes by the bedside, as if that would keep the cold at bay.

"It's so cold... I think I need to buy new fleece-lined leggings." Hua Yinyin sneezed, shivering. "They're not keeping me warm enough."

"Let's go buy it later. Anyway, there's a Yinshan Commercial Street near Xiaoyao's place." The sound of chopsticks being put down came from the other end of the phone. Wang Jiale let out a comfortable sigh of relief. It sounded like she was talking to Sanhua Tongjue next to her. "Shall we go to the commercial street we went to last time?"

"Hmm—where's Xiaoxi?"

"Let me see if he's home. If he is, I'll bring it to you all!" Hua Yinyin felt her body gradually warming up. "We're running low on oil at home, I'll go buy some more later."

"Looks like we're in for a big shopping spree?"

Yes, where are you?

"We're eating noodles outside," Wang Jiale replied, her voice seeming to fade into the distance. "How much, boss?"