I save a pathological girl with a twisted love story.

The two people sat under the eaves where copper bells hung, eating lunch.

This bento box contained a lot of fried fish, and there were also more tangy cherry tomatoes than usual.

She opened the lid, put her hands together, and said, "Thank you."

Xia Wuzhao didn't have that habit; he simply ate his bento calmly, pondering what aspects of the food could be improved.

Did you hear what I just said?

Asahi asked this question on purpose, but Natsumi ignored her.

She pushed Xia Wuzhao's shoulder somewhat angrily.

"heard it."

Xia Wuzhao replied casually.

"Then what did I say?" Aoi Asahi insisted on getting to the bottom of it.

"Thank you."

"Yes, that's right, thank you." Aoi Asahi said happily, "We should thank the food before we eat."

But Natsugiri Kai wasn't interested in that, even though Asahi Aoi had said so.

However, he did not do the same thing as Aoi Asahi.

Aoi Asahi didn't ask Natsumi to do it; her purpose seemed to be to let Natsumi hear and understand that she had just said "thank you."

The bento box was slightly cold and a little greasy. However, it contained a lot of vegetables, which helped to balance the texture.

Sitting here and looking in all directions, I can't see a single person.

When the wind blows through the copper bells, the decaying ema (votive plaque) stand creaks and groans.

Sitting here makes one feel at ease without even realizing it.

It's like hiding in a narrow closet and feeling that there's no better place in the world.

Asahi tried hard to find a topic of conversation, saying, "What exactly is Second New Tokyo like?"

"It's probably a city that's constantly rainy."

Xia Wuzhao said absentmindedly, "It's a narrow and cramped city."

“Is that so?” Aoi Asahi asked again, “But isn’t Second New Tokyo a fairly large city?”

"Ah."

Xia Wuzhao gave a perfunctory reply, but said, "You'll understand when you get there."

"Will you understand when you get there?"

"Will I really be able to see a second New Tokyo?"

Aoi finally stopped talking and just quietly ate her bento.

It wasn't until 2 p.m. that the two finally managed to wrap up the lunchbox and put it in their backpacks.

After taking out the square-shaped transparent box, the two finally began today's task.

The woods were damp and dark, with occasional rays of light filtering through the layers of green leaves and scattering into spots on the trees.

The shimenawa rope wrapped around the tree had rotted and turned black, and not a trace of the original golden yellow of the straw could be seen.

But it still clings to the tree, retaining its basic shape.

The moss on the big tree was patchy, with tiny water droplets glistening on it. Xia Wuzhao peeled it off and placed it in the small box.

Finally, spray some water mist on it, and the wild gathering is complete.

Sunflower seemed very energetic. Occasionally, when she spotted a rare patch of moss, she would say with a cheerful tone, "Natsugiri Kai, look!"

When Ruoxia Wuzhao turned her head to look, she held the box in her hand high.

But if Xia Wuzhao didn't react, she would insist on walking up to Xia Wuzhao and showing her the rare moss she had found.

And she still insisted on saying, "Xia Wuzhao, look, I found some new moss."

As is customary, Xia Wuzhao would offer a few words of praise, otherwise Asahi Aoi would keep pestering her.

But after each compliment, Aoi Asahi would say, "That's so perfunctory, and it doesn't sound nice."

She would complain like this every time, hoping that Xia Wuzhao would say more.

But Xia Wuzhao refused every time.

Sunflower was helpless.

Because of this, the two of them worked for three hours before finally finishing their field survey.

The backpack was piled high with small boxes filled with moss, looking bulging and heavy.

But in reality, it's so heavy that you can lift it with one hand.

It's almost dusk.

Xia Wuzhao casually said, "Let's go down the mountain."

Aoi Asahi stood in front of the ema shelf and asked, "Would you like to see the ema written by other people?"

“What’s so interesting about this?” Xia Wuzhao said. “These ema are already rotten.”

Aoi, however, did not believe it and bent down to turn over the prayer plaques on the ema stand.

These wooden signs were moldy from being exposed to wind and rain, with black and green remnants remaining in the crevices. Even the ropes used for wearing them were mostly rotten.

If you don't touch it, it's fine, but if you do, it will break easily.

She turned the wooden plaques over and over, the writing on them already blurred and illegible.

Obscured by overlapping mold, only faint patches of spreading red could be seen.

It was disappointing to see.

Aoi had no choice but to place the wooden plaque with the broken hanging rope back on the ema shelf. She said to Natsugiri Kai, "Tell me, have these wishes come true?"

"Probably not," Xia Wuzhao replied casually.

"Why?" Aoi Asahi said, "The person who wrote the ema must have written these prayers with great sincerity."

"Because most of it is just wishful thinking, because we realize that we can never achieve these things. So we place our hopes on the gods and pray for their favor."

"Even if you don't believe in the existence of gods, you are unwilling to give up. — Because as long as you write an ema (votive plaque), it's like you can deceive yourself into thinking that you have tried your best."

Xia Wuzhao said calmly.

Asahi Aoi frowned, not directly answering Natsumi Kai's question.

Instead, she mocked, "Xia Wuzhao, you're so boring."

She seemed to be deliberately killing time, as if she didn't want to leave.

As if unwilling to leave this isolated, abandoned shrine, she asked, "If it were you, what wish would you make?"

"There's no need to have wishes that can't be fulfilled," Xia Wuzhao replied nonchalantly.

"How boring, Natsugiri Kai."

Asahi Aoi tossed a strand of hair, her chestnut eyes looking at Natsugiri Kai: "You're so boring."

As they climbed the mountain, the sunflowers appeared light and lively.

But when descending the mountain, the sunflower seemed slow and heavy.

The further down you go, the shorter the trees on both sides become.

The deeper you go, the quiet atmosphere around you seems to be gradually being drawn away.

The further down you go, the more you can hear whispers coming from somewhere, along with the noise of passing cars.

On the third to last step, Aoi stopped.

Is it really dusk now?

Her tone was nonchalant, but it concealed her resentment.

"Ah."

Xia Wuzhao answered casually.

“I think there’s still plenty of time.” Asahi Aoi looked down at Natsugiri Kai.

Xia Wuzhao ultimately did not answer, so the girl could only say, "Alright then."

—Her tone was somewhat low.

But then he looked at Xia Wuzhao and said, "However, don't think that the day's work is over. Tomorrow! There are other things to do tomorrow."

She deliberately avoided mentioning how to deal with the wild moss, only reminding him, "Don't be late tomorrow."

Chapter 50: The starkly different reflections of you and me in the mirror.

In the evening.

Jiro Yajima and Keiko finally ended their date.

Keiko was dissatisfied, but she cleverly used a worried tone to say, "Won't something happen to your daughter?"

"Just now, a customer from the store called you. Is it because of this?"

Upon hearing this, Jiro Yajima comforted Keiko, saying, "What could possibly go wrong? That's my daughter. She's probably being ordered by her mother to follow me again. That crazy woman really doesn't know what she's up to."

He was extremely angry.

Keiko then said, "Really? There really is a mother who would harm her own daughter. Doesn't she know that doing this will damage your image of your daughter?"

She looked very angry, but then said insincerely, "This mother is really incompetent. If it were me, I wouldn't do this."

Upon hearing this, Yajima Jiro also said, "That's right, that crazy woman doesn't count as a mother at all!"

“But if you give this necklace to your daughter, she’ll be very happy. And she’ll come back to your side,” Keiko said insincerely, adding at the end, “As long as her mother hasn’t instilled too much prejudice in her, it’ll definitely be fine. After all, she’s just a little girl; a small gift will suffice.”

As Yajima Jiro listened, his worries eased slightly.

When he was about to take Keiko to her neighborhood, he saw a gloomy girl.

Yajima Jiro couldn't help but sigh, "Look at this girl, her gloomy appearance is simply unbearable to look at. I really don't know how her family raised her. A girl like this has no future at all, and in the end, she will just be a useless person with no social skills."

"If my daughter continues like this with her mother, she'll probably end up like this too!"

He sighed, looking very worried and dissatisfied: "My daughter must never become such a wimp."

Huizi looked at it and felt it looked familiar.

She was extremely embarrassed, but not because she was angry at Yajima Jiro.

She was angry at her own daughter; her mind felt like it was about to explode.

But she remained rational and said in an approving tone, "This girl is really pathetic. I really don't know how she ended up like this."

After chatting for a while longer, Jiro Yajima said to Keiko, "Remember to keep in touch. We can let our daughters meet first, so that if we get married later, it will give them some buffer time."

Huizi smiled and said, "Okay."

After saying that, he got out of the car and waved to Yajima Jiro inside.

Keiko's smile gradually faded after Yajima Jiro left.

She quickly walked over to the girl and angrily scolded, "Aoi Asahi, you're such a jinx! Are you trying to embarrass me on purpose? Are you just jealous that I found a good man, so you're trying to ruin it?"

Keiko cursed loudly, venting her anger on Aoi Asahi.

Aoi glanced at Keiko, her eyes indifferent yet sorrowful.

"This is my mother."

"That's why I don't want time to end so quickly."

She thought this to herself, but her face remained indifferent.

Like a deaf person who can't hear anything, this made Keiko even angrier and more furious.

She wanted to slap Aoi across the face, but then she thought that if the slap didn't leave a mark, it might cause trouble later.

He could only angrily stop, shoving Asahi Aoi's shoulder: "Go home and don't embarrass yourself in public again."

"Aoi Asahi, you make me feel utterly ashamed. What sins did I commit in my past life to deserve this torment from you!"