Chapter 29: MAMA-29 Part 2

But she wasn’t in the mood to connect with anyone else. She fell behind, standing by the mall’s railing to call Mi Shanxin.

Her closer classmates glanced back frequently, feeling Li Yin’s attitude towards Mi Shanxin was even more intense than towards a guy she liked. Someone who didn’t know better might think they were dating.

This couldn’t be said outright. Li Yin’s attitude towards homosexual relationships was very poor; saying she was homophobic was a perfect fit, even extreme.

Back when she’d handed a love confession letter over to the teacher, Mi Shanxin had even tried to persuade her.

Li Yin had said it was wrong, very agitated.

Later, that senior schoolmate graduated and left. The fate of the love letter was unknown.

The signal that Li Yin was solidly straight was very strong. Mi Shanxin, who’d long realized her own expectations towards the female body, dared even less to say anything.

She understood she would lose this eventually, but she was greedy for Li Yin’s protection and communication.

This seemed to be her only source of contact with peers in the outside world.

When a person falls to a certain level, the psyche seems to activate a self-rescue mode.

Li Yin was Mi Shanxin’s cliff rope, Mi Shanxin’s subconscious hope for a normal life, and an unbreakable cornerstone of her socialization.

Mi Shanxin could refuse many people, but found it hard to refuse Li Yin.

Even though the other’s parents didn’t like her, and hated Li Yin spending her allowance to buy her things.

If it were before, Mi Shanxin would have left long ago.

“…Shanxin?” The call connected, but she didn’t hear Mi Shanxin’s voice. Li Yin called out again.

“She’s changing clothes.” Jian Wanji glanced at the fitting rooms not far away, multiple stalls. No figure was visible, but she knew exactly which stall number Mi Shanxin was in.

Jian Wanji’s voice was naturally clear. Actually, without that long, drawn-out tail, it would be much more proper. Except for very serious business settings, she mostly liked speaking in a teasing way; it was a very prominent personal label of hers.

Li Yin hated people who spoke like that the most. Her life was engraved with meticulous rules. The family, a solidly middle-class household, didn’t allow her to make choices beyond it.

She’d known very early on that she would follow the standard path—school, work, marriage.

She hadn’t chosen to be a doctor, the same profession as her mother. Probably she’d work at the court in the future. All within the plan.

She wanted Mi Shanxin to walk the right path just like her. Becoming a teacher was the most suitable choice for Mi Shanxin, but it shouldn’t be as an institution teacher outside mainstream schools.

If only her own university had that major, she’d have preferred to attend university with Mi Shanxin.

It shouldn’t have mattered anyway; they kept in touch, messaged daily, knew each other existed.

Yet a slip had still occurred. How had Mi Shanxin’s narrow social circle gained someone Li Yin didn’t know?

Even if it were a university classmate, Li Yin wouldn’t have been surprised. Over the years, she had blocked many people who had a crush on Mi Shanxin.

But the woman she’d just seen, the one who called Mi Shanxin Teacher, was hard to categorize.

The words changing clothes swirled in Li Yin’s mind. She remembered Mi Shanxin taking off her school uniform in the locker room during PE class back then, her body thin like it had been mistreated, bones very prominent.

Most girls were fuller. Mi Shanxin was barren, almost flat. Someone once joked and laughed that it was hard to tell Mi Shanxin’s gender when she took off her top.

Li Yin would defend her then, saying it was fine, Shanxin was just growing slowly.

They had shopped in malls together, seen each other’s bodies in fitting room mirrors. She ought to be familiar with everything about Mi Shanxin.

Something was slipping out of control.

“Anything else?” Jian Wanji detected the change in breathing on the other end and asked with a smile, “Are you Teacher Shanxin’s best friend?”

She called her Teacher Shanxin, yet there wasn’t a shred of the respect due between teacher and student. Perhaps there was a tilde between those four characters.

Not yet to the point of obscene, the frivolity was obvious.

“What’s it to you?” Li Yin’s voice was anything but gentle. Jian Wanji relaxed her brows, mentally groaning. The little one’s glasses are so tinted. Where is her friend gentle? She’s fierce as hell.

“No relation, just asking casually.” Right then, Qingqing brought out Mi Shanxin, who’d finally managed to get dressed. “She’s out now.”

Mi Shanxin had always worn black, white, and gray; her outfits lacked any bright accents. Jian Wanji was undeniably middle-aged now. Though she hadn’t awakened to the point of waving silk scarves and posing at tourist spots, one could still see many clever styling details on her.

Sometimes a brooch, sometimes earrings. Her stacked rings were also very stylish.

She herself was complex, and her exterior was also intricate, distracting enough to make people overlook her features, almost sculpted as they were.

The sleeves of Mi Shanxin’s outfit were a highly saturated blue, not glaringly so, but enough to attract immediate attention.

The lapel flower and belt were both black with indigo, highly ornamental. As she walked over, the skirt seemed to float with a subtle blue.

Mi Shanxin’s battle-scarred sports shoes had long been thrown away by Jian Wanji. Today she wasn’t wearing new sports shoes, but the leather ankle boots Jian Wanji had sent over in a bundle.

Compared to girls in very elaborate traditional outfits, this leaned more towards a new mix-and-match approach, making her look like she was with Jian Wanji.

Mi Shanxin had never worn clothes like this. She felt they were hard to work in, though she essentially had no work left to do.

Living alone made housework easy to solve—just tidy up as you go, no need to set aside a whole day to get busy.

She never really had much energy. If appetite weren’t non-negotiable, she’d rather trade hunger for the desire to sleep.

Many first-time experiences were brought to her by Jian Wanji. When Qingqing pulled aside the heavy changing room curtain, the girl immediately looked for Jian Wanji.

The other party waved her over, coming closer. Without praising Mi Shanxin’s new clothes, she handed her the phone. “Your friend called.”

“She kept calling, so I took the liberty of answering.”

“Oh. That’s fine.”

Li Yin on the other end heard this and grew even more unhappy. After Mi Shanxin said “Hello,” she said nothing and hung up the phone.

“Hello?” Mi Shanxin picked up the phone. “Why’d she hang up?”

She called Li Yin back, but the other party didn’t answer.

The girl holding the phone still had short hair.

Jian Wanji could have someone deliver many new clothes, shoes, and bags, but she hadn’t yet taken her to get her hair done.

For one, hair needed upkeep. For another, doing hair would take a very long time. Considering the speed at which she and Mi Shanxin interacted with no distance between them, it probably wasn’t suitable.

In fact, disturbing her like this today wasn’t suitable either. She’d likely be mocked by Sui Yuqian again later.

She’d predicted Jian Wanji would capsize in a ditch. Because Jian Wanji disagreed with the ditch description, changing it to: Jian Wanji would capsize in Shanxin’s spring water.

Truly too risqué, to the extreme. Jian Wanji didn’t want to touch that sentence, still wanting to be a candid fake daughter.

“Order food first. When it arrives, you’ll have finished your photos too.” Jian Wanji didn’t care about this posturing. “I’ll order braised pork for you?”

Mi Shanxin gave an “Mm,” head still lowered, reading Li Yin’s WeChat messages, frowning, seemingly hesitating over what to reply.

Jian Wanji urged her, “Photographer is ready too.”

She handed back the open bag Mi Shanxin had given her, signaling her to put the phone inside. “Let’s go.”

Mi Shanxin sent Li Yin a message: It’s not what you think. She didn’t have time to check the reply.

Sui Yuqian sat in the private room upstairs. This restaurant was quite the gimmick; you had to take a number and wait ages for a table.

From the indoor window, one could see the artificial interior scenery outside—little bridges over flowing water, maple leaves and pavilions, all kinds of customers in costume weaving through it all. Anyone who didn’t know better would think this was a film set.

Sui Yuqian spotted Jian Wanji. The other party was accompanying Little Mother in choosing a spot. The photographer was a woman in a hat, seemingly following Jian Wanji’s direction.

The woman eating with Sui Yuqian was one of the owners, a former colleague of Sui Yuqian and Jian Wanji. She asked Sui Yuqian, “Is that Sister Wanji’s relative?”

Sui Yuqian neither nodded nor shook her head, saying ambiguously, “You could say so.”

Looking at their ages, Jian Wanji and Mi Shanxin were too far apart. Ordinary people wouldn’t think in that direction.

The owner didn’t either, just a little surprised. “I only knew she was popular with kids before; I didn’t expect she’d actually take a kid out to play.”

“But can’t we all eat together?”

“The kid was called over by her from a friend’s gathering,” Sui Yuqian said, going along with the other’s assumption. She herself was also very thin; even with makeup, it was hard to achieve Jian Wanji’s inherent vitality, but no one dared underestimate her. “Probably needs some parental emotional counseling.”

Mi Shanxin couldn’t strike any good poses for photos either; she was very stiff, and the photographer tried her best.

Jian Wanji stood to the side, very much like a parent accompanying a child on an autumn outing. She could see Mi Shanxin was very uncomfortable and didn’t force her to finish the fixed number of shots, just letting her do it herself.

Mi Shanxin asked, “Have you taken yours already?”

“Long ago.” Jian Wanji glanced over Mi Shanxin’s phone and realized she had overlooked a phone upgrade. “Let’s go buy a new phone later.”

“Are you very free?” Mi Shanxin asked. “Don’t you have to eat with your friend?”

“You’re the mother, so of course you’re more important.” Jian Wanji carried Mi Shanxin’s bag. She stopped Mi Shanxin, who was about to go change. “No need to change out of the clothes. This set is new; it suits you so well, I’m buying it for you.”

Mi Shanxin froze for a moment. “How can I go out wearing this?”

Jian Wanji pointed at girls passing by. “There are people going out for a day of fun like this too. What’s wrong with it?”

Mi Shanxin shook her head. “No.”

Jian Wanji seemed a little regretful. “Really not?”

She very much resembled a persuasive merchant, but Mi Shanxin didn’t have to pay any substantial cost.

It seemed like her soul was the burning chip. The merchant didn’t know, nor did the guest.

Mi Shanxin was silent for a few seconds. Jian Wanji was still watching her, as if waiting for her true answer.

“Can… I really?” The girl was dressed unlike ever before. Her eyes were unchanged from the past, but Jian Wanji had seen the vividness in her gaze. Even if it was during those times, it was still endlessly memorable.

“Of course you can.” The woman smiled. “There’s nothing you can’t do.”

As if even if Mi Shanxin committed some heinous crime, Jian Wanji would still heap praise upon her, telling her she was great.

A little absurd.

Mi Shanxin asked, “Really?”

Jian Wanji confirmed again, “Mm.”

Mi Shanxin: “Then you wear yours out too.”

The woman choked for a few seconds, still nodding. “Alright, but my set is second-hand. After dinner, I’ll ask Qingqing if there are any new ones.”

Mi Shanxin suddenly asked, “You don’t like second-hand things?”

Jian Wanji: “Sort of. But these costumes are meant to be rented anyway, so buying or not doesn’t really matter.”

Following her upstairs, Mi Shanxin suddenly tugged on Jian Wanji’s clothes and asked quietly, “What about me?”

A very dangerous question. Jian Wanji, in that instant, gleaned its profound meaning and understood what Mi Shanxin wanted to ask.

“You’re a person, not an object.” Jian Wanji ruffled her hair. That teardrop mole sparkled under the light, just like the gemstones Mi Shanxin liked.

“No need to compare.”

But her Little Mother was stubbornly immune to logic and wouldn’t drink this chicken soup. She pulled down on Jian Wanji’s collar, forcing the woman to bow her head, her low ponytail swaying slightly.

Qingqing had brushed mascara onto Mi Shanxin; her lashes were already thick, now they looked even longer. Perhaps there were some glittering dots too, shimmering like precious pearls.

Mi Shanxin whispered in Jian Wanji’s ear, “Then what if I had a girlfriend? You wouldn’t still agree then, would you?”

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Mi Shanxin: “Her name is Qingqing, and you are Changchang. You both have repeated characters.”

Jian Wanji: “You are the mother.”

Mi Shanxin: “…………”