Chapter 33: MAMA-33

MAMA-33: She gave too much.

Mi Shanxin’s voice was just drowned out by the music blaring from a passing store. Jian Wanji didn’t catch it. “What?”

Mi Shanxin repeated herself. “I said, what if I’m in a hurry for it now?”

Jian Wanji could actually hear the implication in her words, and understood the restless heart so common to Mi Shanxin’s age.

She maintained that teasing smile. “Then what do you want to buy for me?”

Diagonally across from them was the offline brand store for the lingerie Jian Wanji had bought Mi Shanxin. It looked very girlish, the colors light and airy.

Jian Wanji thought for a moment, seeming to picture herself in that kind of clothing, and shook her head with a smile. “I’m not really suited to wearing something like that.”

Mi Shanxin looked at Jian Wanji’s Moments whenever she had free time, but she never liked any posts.

Jian Wanji’s Moments had so much content, it seemed impossible to scroll to the bottom. Just like when people her age wanted to start a relationship, few others wanted to dig to the very bottom either. Asking about exes seemed immature. Adult lives were hurried. If someone had seriously dated and then broken up, that was a normal process; no need to make a federal case out of it.

Compared to the degree of affection considered in youth, it was more about compatibility for living together. There was always a motive. No one wanted to lower their quality of life because of a new relationship.

Mi Shanxin knew all of this. Her conventionality wasn’t as focused on matching social status as Li Yin’s, but she couldn’t refute that Li Yin’s view was wrong either.

Even though before meeting Jian Wanji, she had never thought about spending her life with anyone. Her exhaustion was like a tide, and it could affect the mental state of those around her. Even Li Yin, when hanging out with her, had to consider her mood, subtly tending to gauge Mi Shanxin’s expression.

But Jian Wanji wasn’t like that.

Her facial expressions were so rich she seemed never to worry about the risk of causing wrinkles. When she smiled, the corners of her eyes lifted, and her eyeliner changed colors along with her eyeshadow.

But looking at the photo of Sui Yuqian and Jian Wanji together from Moments just now, the woman had even drawn downturned eyeliner once. The difference was like that between a fox and a big dog.

I’ve never seen that.

Maybe when she was a teenager she wore underwear like that too?

Mi Shanxin thought sullenly, kicking the toe of Jian Wanji’s shoe. “I don’t care if it suits you now. I’m the one who wants to give it, you just have to accept.”

Mi Shanxin was rarely so forceful. Jian Wanji didn’t get angry, seeming almost happy for her. “Alright, if you give, I’ll accept. But it can’t be right now.”

Mi Shanxin: “Why?”

“I have my pride,” Jian Wanji said. She had scoped out the location when buying lingerie for Mi Shanxin. Though the store had no intention of chasing customers out, this brand, like the puff-sleeve dress shop next door, just didn’t cater to her. “I don’t want to go in and try things on.”

Mi Shanxin kicked her again. “Then how am I supposed to know what size you wear?”

Jian Wanji was about to say, I’ll just tell you, but the little mama, whose insides were actually yellow, gave a little ‘oh’. “You want me to take my own measurements?”

She was more subtle now, at least not mentioning feeling her chest outright.

Jian Wanji was at a loss for words for a long moment, then simply pushed the person into a mobile phone brand store, releasing her grip on Mi Shanxin. “Let’s buy a phone first, buy a phone first.”

The tone of the last words was practically pleading, but Mi Shanxin wasn’t buying it. “Stop faking, that’s definitely not what you’re thinking.”

Jian Wanji easily pulled her into the store. It wasn’t unheard of for kids to want phones, but usually parents disapproved. The two of them seemed reversed. “Then tell me what I’m thinking?”

“Thinking…” Mi Shanxin lowered her head. “‘This is great, let’s end this quickly, block her early and cut contact… Kids are so annoying, I still prefer mature women.’”

Jian Wanji: “That’s too much, really too much. How could I think that?”

Many new phones were on the counter, their prices enough to send the old Mi Shanxin running in fright. Jian Wanji wouldn’t let her leave anyway. She seemed to love giving gifts, from Mi Shanxin’s inner and outer clothing to the digital products she used, to furniture and home furnishings. If it weren’t for the major disruption of changing property ownership, Mi Shanxin wouldn’t dare fantasize. Occasionally, she had the illusion that Jian Wanji really could do it.

Did she do this for others too?

Even if Sui Yuqian said Jian Wanji didn’t date, and Jian Wanji herself said she was single with no current partner, her reluctance during sleep assistance sessions and Sui Yuqian’s revelation that she’d recommended quick-tutorial videos seemed to prove Jian Wanji led an entirely chaste life. Before Mi Shanxin, she hadn’t engaged in such acts with anyone.

But that didn’t mean no one had made advances.

Wasn’t there a phase before actually dating?

Sui Yuqian was just a friend; she didn’t necessarily know who Jian Wanji had ambiguous moments with. What if Jian Wanji had also felt the impulse to almost take that step?

If only it was directed at me.

Mi Shanxin had never wished for these things before, and couldn’t be bothered to simulate them.

In her peers’ social circles, pure love was rare too. Most gathered just to eat and drink, and being able to have fun together was already pretty good.

Anything deeper seemed like empty moaning. Everyone took a long-term view on studying, but presupposed the uncontrollability of feelings, so they seized the day and drank.

Jian Wanji casually picked up a phone. Seeing Mi Shanxin silent again, she tested the phone’s size, slipping it into Mi Shanxin’s hand to see if it would be too big.

“Don’t think so badly of me, I wouldn’t block anyone.”

Mi Shanxin’s hands weren’t very big. The highest-spec phone shoved into her hand was practically like a brick, and quite heavy too.

Jian Wanji clicked her tongue, pulled it away, and replaced it with a smaller one. The process inevitably involved fingertips touching.

Jian Wanji’s skin was thick enough to be peerless. Having already become Mi Shanxin’s sex tool, she naturally wouldn’t be distracted by a slight brush of skin.

“Fine.” Mi Shanxin put the phone back in its place. Jian Wanji watched her walk to another side and strode after her, asking, “What does ‘fine’ mean?”

Mi Shanxin: “Means this topic is over.”

Jian Wanji stood beside her, exclaiming “Huh?” in confusion. “Why is it over, we haven’t finished talking about it.”

The girl was expressionless. “Normal people wouldn’t keep pressing, right?”

With her work attitude, Jian Wanji wouldn’t normally be so persistent. Now she chose to be tactless. Mi Shanxin ignored her even more, looking down at the cheapest model.

“I didn’t say I was normal.”

The store was crowded, many people trying out the new product released recently.

Jian Wanji seemed to have upgraded to it very soon after the launch date. The color suited her perfectly, just like the feeling she gave off—not a bit dull.

Orange seemed tailor-made for her. Now, saying this while leaning against the table and looking at Mi Shanxin, the orange surface bright, even though the store was full of people, Mi Shanxin’s eyes could only see her.

So unfair. If only I’d been born a few years earlier.

Today, Jian Wanji’s eyeliner had a hint of eyeshadow blended outward. Under the old, worn chandelier in her bedroom, the fine shimmer might twinkle like the frequency of stars, easily giving Mi Shanxin comfort, only to then agonize over the uncontrollable drenched aftermath.

“Then keep being abnormal.” Mi Shanxin still underestimated her thick skin. Jian Wanji absolutely had to drag the topic back. “Why do you think I would block you?”

“I think we get along pretty well.”

Mi Shanxin had messages from friends on her phone. She read while responding, “So what? After the work is over, are you going to keep being my soother?”

Jian Wanji stood beside her. Even without intentionally looking, a glance could see Mi Shanxin’s screen. She averted her gaze. “That I can’t. The contract period has fully ended.”

Mi Shanxin: “Exactly.”

Jian Wanji: “So?”

Mi Shanxin: “That’s it.”

Jian Wanji had never before regretted her ability to keep a conversation going; not letting others’ words fall flat was her social principle. Yet she repeatedly hit a wall with a girl twenty years younger than her. Even without children of her own, she suddenly understood what colleagues meant by a generation gap with kids.

She hadn’t experienced Mi Shanxin’s adolescence, had missed her growing pains, nor had she intervened in the loneliness of her life, caused by experiencing the loss of loved ones too early.

That was why she was so out of place among her peers, why friends had difficulty soothing her depths.

Then who could? Jian Wanji didn’t continue the thought. She wasn’t among the options.

Perhaps because they stood together with an awkward atmosphere, a staff member came over to ask if they needed help.

Jian Wanji: “Give her…”

Mi Shanxin: “No need, I’ve chosen.”

She pointed at the same model as Jian Wanji’s. “I want the same one as you.”

Jian Wanji showed a surprised expression. Mi Shanxin asked, “Can’t I?”

“It’s not that. I just thought you’d pick a different color.”

“This is my lucky color.” Mi Shanxin opened her phone app’s fortune calculation to show her.

It even included a daily lucky number and score. Jian Wanji was increasingly unable to keep up with the younger generation’s trends. Mimicking Mi Shanxin’s earlier attitude, she gave an “Oh,” and said, “Alright then.”

She never hesitated when buying things for Mi Shanxin. As the staff were teaching Mi Shanxin to transfer data, Jian Wanji went outside to take a call.

She returned quickly. Mi Shanxin hadn’t finished the data transfer yet. The woman stood beside her, seemingly thinking about how to speak.

Mi Shanxin looked down at the data migration progress, not looking at Jian Wanji either. “Need to go?”

The staff had clearly undergone excellent training and wouldn’t ask what the customer relationship was.

At first, they assumed relatives, but the tone didn’t quite fit.

That one sentence killed any speculation of a familial connection, sounding inexplicably like a wife exchanging a phone and a husband offering amends.

But the age difference was quite large too, making it even more suggestive.

“… Mm, sorry.” Jian Wanji glanced at the message on her phone. Work-related. If Sui Yuqian wasn’t drunk, she would have wished the other party could go.

“No need to see me off, I’m on leave.” This area had many shoppers during the winter break. Eccentric outfits barely raised an eyebrow here, let alone Mi Shanxin and Jian Wanji, whose style could be classified as a mishmash of old and new. “Go on, I’ll leave once this is sorted too.”

“I’ll get you a cab.” Jian Wanji started typing a message as she spoke. “The clothes you changed out of are still in my car.”

The store clerk’s foot didn’t budge, on the surface looking very concerned about the customer’s data transfer, but actually ears perked up.

“Just give them to me next time,” Mi Shanxin said. “Not in a hurry for this set.”

Jian Wanji didn’t think much of it. “That works too. Still, I’ll wait for you to finish here and see you into the car.”

“I’m not going home yet. A friend invited me out for another round, an escape room.”

“Another round?” Jian Wanji looked at the time, puzzled. “Shouldn’t you be heading back to sleep around now?”

Mi Shanxin glanced at her. “Don’t you have something to attend to?”

And it circled back again. Jian Wanji’s expression was a little odd, apparently pondering how to reply.

“What about class tomorrow then?” Having become physically familiar with Mi Shanxin by now, Jian Wanji somewhat understood the little mama’s class habits.

Mi Shanxin took this matter very seriously.

After her grandfather passed away, the study became hers, and she would practice calligraphy there. That room had the best natural light. Various types of raw and sized rice paper the older generation hadn’t finished using were stacked in the cabinets, like rolls of cloth.

Mi Shanxin’s discarded practice sheets piled up in a stack. Her handwriting was, to an outsider like Jian Wanji, very beautiful.

She didn’t need to learn very advanced skills anyway. Signing up for the class was just a roundabout way to achieve her goal.

“Yes, I’m going. Tomorrow a few kids asked for leave, so it’ll mostly be classroom practice time.”

The Teacher Mickey Mouse those kids talked about even prepared little stories in advance. Though she kept a cold face, her storytelling was actually quite effective. Not the cutesy, overly animated voice of typical preschool teachers, like coaxing puppies.

Jian Wanji had sat in on one class and somewhat understood why the kids liked her.

“… Alright.”

After saying this, Jian Wanji still hadn’t left. Mi Shanxin asked, “You aren’t leaving?”

Jian Wanji’s phone kept ringing with calls, seemingly very urgent.

Mi Shanxin had no interest in her job. Having spent days freeloading the heating in the cafe while writing lesson plans, she’d seen plenty of these elites.

Jian Wanji was indeed a relatively lively horse among elite corporate drones. Perhaps of the crazy-cow level.

Two days ago, when treating Mi Shanxin to soft serve, she’d even demonstrated a tongue flower sculpture.

Maybe realizing afterward she’d been a bit too cocky, she awkwardly swallowed it whole, freezing herself into a spectacularly pained expression. Even Mi Shanxin, who had such a high laughter threshold, couldn’t hold it in.

“I’m going.” Jian Wanji thought for a moment before saying, “Then when you get home, send me a WeChat message.”

Mi Shanxin asked, “Why?”

She asked very seriously. People came and went around them, and beside the service counter were the brand’s display models, playing test footage.

Mi Shanxin had seen vlogs on an app of people chasing the sun lighting up the Meili Snow Mountains—very sacred, as if any wish made there could come true.

As if no matter what answer Jian Wanji gave, Mi Shanxin would accept it.

“Just worried about you walking at night, unsafe,” Jian Wanji ruffled her hair. “Forget it if you don’t want to.”

She tossed out a “See you tomorrow” and left hurriedly.

Her orange-red coat swept away Mi Shanxin’s rare anticipation. Even the brightest of people could be drowned out by the crowd in such a bright setting.

Mi Shanxin averted her gaze before Jian Wanji disappeared from her sight, forcing herself to accept an ending that was bound to come sooner or later.

Li Yin sent another call request. Mi Shanxin picked up.

She passed through the subway security check, preparing to ride home. “Shanxin, you really aren’t coming with us?”

“No, you guys have fun.” Mi Shanxin’s reasons were always solid. “I need to go home and sleep.”

“Sleep with that woman?”

The previous train closed its doors in front of Mi Shanxin. She wasn’t in a hurry, standing in a corner listening to Li Yin’s voice, which sounded slightly angry. “Mi Shanxin, do you even know what you’re doing?”

“I’m being her mother.” Mi Shanxin didn’t hide it from her anymore. Her voice mixed with the sound of the arriving train. Li Yin could picture her standing in the corner of the subway.

Mi Shanxin always liked the very end of the car, stubbornly heading to the deepest spot.

The head and tail were her comfort zones. Contrary to her habit of wearing a mask and trying to blend into the crowd, you could actually glimpse certain extremes in her nature.

Li Yin seemed unsure what to say. Mi Shanxin could hear the sound of her steadying her breathing. Voluntarily, she said, “Don’t be mad. There’s nothing to be mad about.”

“This is my choice.”

Li Yin let out a breath, recalling the business card she had dug out last time she ate with Mi Shanxin, and that strange name.

The clues strung together. It was hard for her not to suspect Jian Wanji had ulterior motives.

What damn calligraphy class student, it was basically a cover!

Her adorable friend was about to be devoured by a pervert, and she hadn’t even noticed. Such dereliction of duty!

Li Yin’s voice sounded like it was squeezed through gritted teeth. “Shanxin, didn’t you say you rejected her?”

The subway doors opened. Many people rushed in. Mi Shanxin stood in place, silently watching the doors close. She wanted to say I like her, but when the words reached her lips, what came out was—

“She gave too much.”

If money is where love is, then Jian Wanji was the person who gave her the most money in her life. More than her parents, treating her better than family.

Then can I twist that into meaning…

She is in love with me?

————————

=Teeth=

[Okay]

Mi Shanxin didn’t have great teeth and disliked very hard food. Jian Wanji was the one who had observed this.

Jian Wanji: “Why are you like a little old lady? Are your teeth really this bad? Let me see.”

Mi Shanxin ignored her, gulping down her sugarcane juice.

Nearby, a ninety-year-old woman was chewing sugarcane vigorously. The nurse aide laughed and said, “The old lady has dentures.”

Mi Shanxin sought confirmation from Jian Wanji: “Really?”

Jian Wanji gave an “Mm.” “Full dentures.”

Mi Shanxin: “My grandmother had them too, but she still didn’t eat sugarcane.”

Jian Wanji: “Probably just didn’t like it.”

Mi Shanxin asked, “And you?”

Jian Wanji: “I don’t like it either.”

Sugarcane was now cut into small pieces, but it still seemed like too much trouble for Jian Wanji. “It’s better to just drink the juice.”

Mi Shanxin: “You only took one sip too. What a waste.”

Jian Wanji: “Can’t help it, they don’t sell smaller portions.”

Mi Shanxin: “Fifteen kuai a cup. Fresh green sugarcane is only 6.90 a stalk right now.”

She looked frugal and thrifty, very good at managing a household. Jian Wanji laughed loudly. “Anyway, I have no kids, so you don’t need to save money for me.”

The nurse aide beside them said, “No kids doesn’t mean no partner. There’ll be someone to manage things in the future.”

Mi Shanxin guiltily fantasized for two seconds, but still felt that compared to being a wife, being a mother was way more satisfying.