A Young Woman's Heart

……

"Cough, cough, cough..." On a deserted street, Hua Yinyin had just taken a big gulp of the cola she had taken from the dining table when she was choked and started coughing violently.

It seems like once the Spring Festival arrives, there's no need to worry about gaining weight.

She didn't go back to her maternal grandmother's house or her hometown this year, so she arranged to meet Wang Jiale on the evening of Lunar New Year's Eve.

Most people had gathered in their residential areas, making the city streets appear exceptionally wide and deserted, a stark contrast to the lively fireworks display in the sky.

The air was thick with the smell of sulfur, and there was even visible yellow smoke drifting around.

"Hey, Lele!" Hua Yinyin patted her chest, finally stopping her coughing. "How much lucky money did you receive this year?"

"I had my New Year's Eve dinner at home; I didn't invite any relatives," Wang Jiale said, touching the red envelope in her pocket. "I haven't counted them yet~"

"Hehehe, I received two thousand yuan in red envelopes today! My parents gave me five hundred, and the rest came from relatives who came to my house for New Year's Eve dinner."

"Wow, so many!" Wang Jiale finally couldn't resist and took out his own red envelope.

The father gave slightly more than the mother, so together they gave a total of eight hundred yuan.

For a high school student, this is already a fairly large red envelope.

The families of the wealthy are different; the children don't have to hand over the red envelopes they receive to their parents—they are entirely their own money.

The reason why children from poor families give red envelopes to their parents is to save their parents money. If someone gives your child a red envelope, you can't just not give one back, can you?

This so-called reciprocity, when applied to the poor, eventually becomes a formalistic exchange.

Whether you make a profit or a loss, it won't be much.

"That's quite a lot." Hua Yinyin blinked her almond-shaped eyes, her two braids swinging back and forth. "What are you planning to buy with it?"

"Hmm... I saw some really nice picks at the music store last time! I'll buy them first, and then... um~ right, I want to buy one of those wheeled backpacks, the kind you can pull around like a suitcase!"

"Pfft, Lele, are you still in elementary school?" Hua Yinyin teased with a smirk. "High school students don't have that many books. You can put the ones you don't need in your drawer!"

"Hmm, what should I buy..." Wang Jiale had just tilted her head in thought when she noticed the 'sarcasm' in her words, "What, you're talking about me? What do you want to buy, Yinyin? Maybe you're even more childish than me!"

"Oh, so you do realize that what you want to buy is childish? Hmm, not bad, not bad at all, you have some self-awareness~"

Wang Jiale laughed and raised his fist: "I'll hit you!"

"Hmph, I'm definitely going to buy adult stuff—a nice set of lingerie, so I can wear it for Xiaoyao!"

"...I'm sure Xiaoyao will never watch it."

"Of course she'll watch it! This is only for her!"

"Yinyin, if you keep doing this, Xiaoyao will blame you if she can't find a boyfriend."

"Isn't that even better! Don't worry, I'll take responsibility for Yaoyao!"

Wang Jiale couldn't help but cover her forehead, but she was still amused by her.

"Oh, we're here!"

"The door isn't even open, how are we supposed to get in...?" Wang Jiale asked, puzzled.

"Hmm—go through the fire escape, that one's chained up, there's a gap you can squeeze through!"

"Can it be done?" Wang Jiale was eager to try. Even as a girl, she was still very interested in mysterious adventures.

"Why not give it a try...?"

Normally, this place is a bustling downtown area, but it was unusually deserted at this time.

Even the old man who used to open the door wasn't in the gatehouse; it seemed he had gone home for New Year's Eve dinner.

The two girls ran to the emergency exit in a flash. Hua Yinyin pulled the heavy safety door outward, revealing a small gap.

"It seems a little small..." Wang Jiale tried to stick one leg in, then covered her hair to prevent it from getting caught on anything, and squeezed in. "No problem!"

"I'll do it, I'll do it~ Lele, hold the door open for me!"

"Ok!"

Wang Jiale and Hua Yinyin are both petite.

This tiny gap is actually too big for adults to squeeze into, but it's a place where kids can run in and play.

Hua Yinyin first inserted her leg, then half of her body was inside. Just when she was about to succeed, her chest got stuck...

"Eek—Ugh—Ah—Huff huff...I can't get through...?"

"How could you not get through? You've basically made it through already, haven't you?" Wang Jiale tilted her head in confusion, then remained silent for several seconds with a speechless expression before teasing her with a mixture of schadenfreude and envy, "Hmph, who told you your place is so big? Now you know it's inconvenient, right? Having such a large place is pointless!"

"Who said...it's useless...! Hmph, Lele is just jealous of me!" Even though she was stuck, Hua Yinyin still didn't forget to retaliate.

Enraged, Wang Jiale reached out and slapped her chest, which was stuck outside the door.

"Ouch—that hurts!" Hua Yinyin jerked back, finally managing to squeeze behind the door. "You brat, Lele, you're waiting for your chance to get revenge!"

"Tch, you should be thanking me for helping you."

The two girls playfully bickered as they went upstairs.

This is a thirteen-story office building.

This building was quite conspicuous for its time.

Two girls ran up to the rooftop, which was surrounded by a fence, seemingly to prevent anyone from coming up there to commit suicide.

Standing here, it seems like you're closer to the fireworks.

"Wow! Look, Lele, look at that! That firework exploded right next to us!"

"Hey, be careful..." Wang Jiale stepped back.

The fireworks weren't powerful enough; they shot up from the ground and exploded completely at the height of a thirteen-story building.

However, as long as you don't stand too far to the side, this experience is still quite fun.

It felt as if I were high above the clouds, watching the mortals in the world celebrate such a New Year.

"I hope we can all come here to watch the fireworks together next New Year."

"But everyone has their own things to do, so it's hard to get together." Wang Jiale took a can of cola from Hua Yinyin's arms and took a sip. "Oh, right, I heard there's going to be a fireworks festival this summer. Can we go together? Everyone's usually free during summer vacation, right?"

"Hmm—but summer fireworks and winter fireworks always seem to feel different." Hua Yinyin took out a long, thin firework from her pocket, threaded it through the holes in the wire mesh, and placed it on top.

"Huh, are you wearing such big clothes? I didn't even notice you were hiding a firework stick inside..."

"Hehe, pretty cool, right? Let's put this one out!"

"Hey, you're supposed to hold this with your hands, right?"

"Yes!"

"Ugh... I'm a little afraid to touch this thing, it feels so dangerous..."

"Don't worry, come on, let's hold it together!" Hua Yinyin pulled Wang Jiale's little hand and then lit the fuse.

The stick-shaped firework began to heat up gradually, and then, with a tremor, it shot out a stream of light with a "whoosh," transforming into a blue-purple flower that bloomed in the air...

……

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Reality is Material

The black-and-white television set not far from the bed looked like it had been left on all night.

Mo Xueyao slowly woke up from her dream, and the sounds entering her ears gradually grew louder.

It was faintly discernible that it was the voice of an elderly man surnamed Zhao.

In this day and age, if someone says they don't recognize this old man who performs crosstalk, they'll probably be laughed at.

"You see? My wife noticed it too. She said you suddenly became lame."

"What do you want a bicycle for? What do you want a bicycle for!"

"Mmm..." Mo Xueyao turned over and almost pressed her face against Li Wanyan's. Although she didn't open her eyes, she could already feel her warm breath.

So she rolled over again, this time facing the television.

The morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year is a rare day when everyone can sleep in without any problem.

Mo Xueyao had just stretched out her hand when she was so cold that she withdrew it.

The TV was showing a rebroadcast of yesterday's Spring Festival Gala. There were some parts she hadn't seen before, but she was watching them with great interest while lying in bed.

She didn't get out of bed until the TV commercials started.

As soon as she finished dressing, she saw Li Wanyan sit up, rubbing her eyes in a daze.

"You're up?"

"Ah."

"It's okay to sleep a little longer, it's the first day of the Lunar New Year anyway." Mo Xueyao stretched and yawned after putting on her new clothes. She took out the small game console she had won in a lottery from her schoolbag and planned to go downstairs to play Snake or Tetris for a while.

"Since you're awake, get up." Li Wanyan shook her head.

"I'll go down now!"

Although it's a day when you can sleep in, the mountain village was still bustling on the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year.

The alley was bustling with people, many of whom were visiting each other's homes on this special day, while others were heading out early in the morning to pay New Year's visits to their relatives in the city...

"Xiao Yao!" Bao Cheng, who had a snowball fight with her yesterday, waved vigorously at her. In this snow-covered mountain village, he, as black as a lump of coal, stood out conspicuously.

"Good morning." Mo Xueyao waved lazily, grabbed a piece of steamed cake, and sat down at the door.

The snow in the south is different from that in the north. When it falls, it is generally not as fierce. Except at the beginning, it usually falls slowly, little by little, like a slightly melancholy girl who is feeling sad by herself.

"Are we going to 'dig a hole' today?"

"What are we going there for? Is there anything fun to do?"

"Haha, let's buy some things, oh, how about we go bird hunting?" Perhaps only when there is no burden or pressure can Bao Cheng appear as playful as a child.

"Great!" Mo Xueyao immediately thought of her Desert Eagle, which she had just bought but hadn't had a chance to use yet.

Do you have a slingshot? Can I lend it to you?