Chapter 51

Ding Ya hadn’t expected Shu Chi to come back carrying so many things.

Even the dog, who had been taken away in the morning, had nowhere to go. It followed at Shu Chi’s feet, its own leash dangling from its mouth. The scene was particularly comical.

Ding Ya asked hesitantly, “Are you… are you stocking up for New Year’s?”

The woman shook her head. “If your mother is coming over for dinner tonight, we’ll need more dishes.”

Ding Ya was silent for a few seconds before saying, “The three of us won’t be able to eat that much, right?”

As she helped free Shu Chi’s hands, she kicked a pair of slippers towards her.

It was just lunchtime now. The little dog, long accustomed to a self-serve kibble buffet, paid no attention to its owner.

Ding Ya noticed Shu Chi’s grave expression. There was a noticeable sluggishness, even in how she spoke, as if she had suffered some tremendous blow.

The sweet, everyday moments Ding Ya had imagined would follow two adults confirming their relationship hadn’t materialized. The person she’d found seemed to be sinking into immense anxiety.

Shu Chi, anxious? Ding Ya found it a little funny.

The little dog, having eaten, lay in its bed and watched Ding Ya as she sorted through the shopping bags. “You bought so much meat,” she said.

Shu Chi: “Mm.”

Ding Ya rummaged further. “What’s this? Lamb chops?”

Shu Chi: “For a soup.”

Ding Ya hissed in a breath, then unearthed another package. “And these? Chicken?”

Boss Shu: “To cook for the dog.”

…

Ding Ya’s refrigerator had never been this full; the door almost wouldn’t close.

When Shu Chi took the ingredients and went to cook, Ding Ya walked over. “There’s no need to be afraid. You’ve met my mother before.”

Standing by the sink and picking through vegetables, Shu Chi gave an “mm” of acknowledgment.

Ding Ya’s kitchen was open-plan. The range hood was clean, clearly showing the kitchen hadn’t seen much cooking.

Sensing Ding Ya’s effort to soothe her nerves, Shu Chi still offered an explanation: “It’s different.”

Ding Ya asked, “How is it different?”

With a mischievous glint, she leaned in, standing on her tiptoes just as Shu Chi turned her head.

Shu Chi instinctively stepped back, but Ding Ya hooked her arms around her neck. “Shu Chi, you’re so easily flustered.”

Shu Chi’s hands were wet, so she didn’t embrace her back. In that position, she asked, “Am I?”

Ding Ya asked with a smile, “Has anyone ever treated you like this before?”

Hooked from the side by Ding Ya, Shu Chi’s hands didn’t stop their work. Her movements were nimble, as if Ding Ya wasn’t in the way at all, and she wouldn’t dream of telling Ding Ya to let go.

Being able to be close to her is so nice.

Shu Chi thought to herself, but her head was shaking no.

Ding Ya seemed to have an endless stream of words, a ceaseless flow of sounds, like coconut water sloshing out after the shell is pried open—fragrant, mellow, crisp, and sweet.

Years ago, when Shu Chi and Jing Yuqi were still running a stall together, they had drunk and chatted aimlessly.

In those moments, Jing Yuqi usually did the talking. She said, “Shu Chi, you’re someone who talks so little. You need to find a partner who talks a lot in the future.”

“Otherwise, two quiet people together—how silent would that be?”

“And if there’s a kid who’s also quiet, then it’s all over.”

Jing Yuqi just loved to fantasize.

Shu Chi had never thought about children. Or perhaps it was that abrupt, fleeting relationship of hers that lit a fuse within her, and even after it was snuffed out, the lingering smoke could still spark other realizations.

Growing up, Shu Chi was accustomed to seeing male-female pairings. In that small place, any hint of deviance was fodder for gossip. Every trivial matter became a topic for mealtime chatter.

Many things couldn’t be spoken of, yet many others were slandered recklessly.

After leaving the factory, Shu Chi worked as an apprentice, delivered takeout. Once, while cutting through a university campus, she glimpsed two girls kissing under a camphor tree and nearly rode her bike straight into a lake.

Her world was split open from chaos by that kiss that day. It also caused her to subconsciously not dispute when [Bean Sprout] online explained her own title to her.

Could it be like this between a woman and a woman?

Shu Chi fell silent for a long time over it. She had no one to ask, so she could only use the broken computer in the internet cafe’s janitor room to search.

Homosexual.

Later, when she met Jing Yuqi, she never confided in her either.

Yet Jing Yuqi seemed to understand everything. Even with her joking and irreverent ways, she could perfectly strike a chord with Shu Chi’s heart.

Find someone who talks a lot.

Someone like Bean Sprout?

But I wasn’t fated to be with her.

Without Bean Sprout, there was Ding Ya. A vibrant Ding Ya, who barged into her life.

The corners of Shu Chi’s lips curled upwards involuntarily. She felt buoyant, utterly weightless. “No, you’re the first.”

Amidst the sound of running water, she finished washing the vegetables and started preparing the other dishes. Ding Ya stuck to her like glue. Every step Shu Chi took, Ding Ya followed.

Feeling rather helpless, Shu Chi asked, “Isn’t this uncomfortable for you?”

A nasal sound escaped Ding Ya, then she said, “No, not at all.”

“Are you already annoyed with me?”

Her words sounded a little unreasonable. Shu Chi shook her head. “I like it very much.”

Ding Ya’s mind went completely blank for a moment.

This is terrible. I’m always inexplicably experiencing heart flutters because of this person.

Shu Chi wasn’t unable to bear Ding Ya’s weight either. “If you’re hungry, eat something to tide you over first. I might bump into you once I start stir-frying.”

She pushed her sleeves up. The lines of her arms were different from Ding Ya’s—very firm and solid.

Ding Ya remembered the year she saw this person at the noodle shop, and having heard she once ran a stall, asked, “When you ran that noodle stall by yourself before, did you manage alright?”

Shu Chi: “I managed. Just had to move a bit faster.”

“Sister Qi was there then too.”

Ding Ya thought for a moment. The neighboring stall. No wonder these two were so close.

Seemingly afraid Ding Ya might overthink things, Shu Chi added, “I only like you.”

Eating the grapes Shu Chi had washed, Ding Ya’s heart nearly leaped into her throat. She hummed an acknowledgment.

She had almost blurted it out.

I am Bean Sprout.

But she couldn’t.

It seemed like it was never the right time. At this moment, Ding Ya even wanted to hide that part of the past.

Shu Chi was too good, so good that Ding Ya deeply realized her concealment was hurtful, and confessing would be hurtful too.

The only way, then, was to not speak of it.

“What’s wrong? Are the grapes very sour?”

While braising the meat, Shu Chi glanced at Ding Ya and found her looking as if she was about to cry.

Ding Ya put on a smile. “Just a bit sour on the cheeks at first.”

“It’s nothing.”

Shu Chi didn’t catch on. After lunch, she and Ding Ya snuggled up together and watched a movie. In the evening, they took the dog for a walk in the park outside the complex.

She rarely took photos, but today she secretly snapped several of Ding Ya. She didn’t set one as her screensaver but made one the lock screen for her home screen.

Like a step many dating couples feel compelled to take, as if finding a sense of belonging.

“What about tonight? What are we eating tonight?”

Ding Ya ran over with the little dog. There was a small park not far outside their residential complex. The little dog bounced along, Ding Ya ran slowly too, laughing cheerfully.

Shu Chi: “Are you hungry yet?”

She stood under a streetlamp. The weather was cold, there was no sun, and the sky darkened quickly.

Just then, the streetlights flickered on. To Ding Ya, it seemed instant. Shu Chi was bathed in a warm glow, like a fire in the depths of winter, irresistibly drawing people towards its warmth.

Ding Ya: “Don’t say it like I’m so easily hungry!”

She muttered, “I was just asking.”

On her lips, she said this, but Ding Ya was also full of anticipation.

Because at noon, Shu Chi hadn’t made noodles. She’d kneaded the dough herself, not buying pre-made ones, saying she’d try again in the evening.

Her handmade noodle stall back then had both thick and thin noodles. The handmade noodle shop also had many variations; making knife-cut noodles wouldn’t be a problem either.

Ding Ya no longer remembered the taste of that bowl of noodles from back then. She only remembered her shock and disappointment.

Now it was different.

She had to keep the secret and date Shu Chi properly.

Even if it was despicable, even if it meant concealment.

“I also really want to cook noodles for you.”

[T/N: In Chinese slang, ‘cooking noodles’ (xià miàn / 下面) sounds identical to ‘down below’, often used as a euphemism for oral sex.]

Shu Chi reached out and took Ding Ya’s hand, but unexpectedly, Ding Ya picked up the dog and burst out laughing. She laughed as she walked, nearly running out of breath.

Shu Chi didn’t understand why she’d suddenly laughed so hard. She was somewhat puzzled.

Ding Ya: “That sentence, it’s so… you know.”

“Even if it’s an old joke, coming from you makes it even more… hahahaha!”

Shu Chi repeated the phrase to herself again, still not getting it.

Ding Ya pointed, and Shu Chi suddenly understood, explaining hastily, “That’s not what I meant.”

Her usually emotionless voice became tinged with a hint of urgency.

Teasing Shu Chi is really too amusing.

Ding Ya: “It’s fine. After all, we just started dating. This kind of thing is normal. I’m afraid that after a long time, we won’t feel anything for each other anymore.”

She said this nonsense with a straight face, looking up at Shu Chi. “Be a little rougher with me today.”

Shu Chi: “I really didn’t mean it like that.”

Ding Ya was still laughing. Her laughter was radiant and spirited. Even without makeup, she exuded a vibrant liveliness.

Like a spring breeze sweeping across the land, Shu Chi felt it would blow her completely anew.

Holding the dog, Ding Ya ran while saying, “Our Boss Shu is still too stiff. Some things… you can switch up the position…”

People passed by, but Ding Ya didn’t avoid the topic. “For instance, when we run, we could also run backwards, right? So in bed…”

Shu Chi finally turned angry from embarrassment. She started running after her, and Ding Ya screamed, picking up the dog and speeding up.

The two of them, one after the other, were far removed from their girlhood years. Yet, as they ran, they were more vivid than high schoolers holding hands while dating.

In the end, Ding Ya’s stamina couldn’t hold up, and Shu Chi caught her in a flash.

Shu Chi pulled her and the dog close into her arms. “Don’t say things like that outside.”

Ding Ya blinked innocently. “Isn’t it just healthy exercise? Boss Shu, honestly.”

Even if her voice could produce a coquettish tone, Shu Chi wouldn’t associate her with the online Bean Sprout.

Ding Ya is one of a kind, she thought.

“You can say it at home.”

Shu Chi cupped Ding Ya’s face. Just as Ding Ya closed her eyes, expecting to be kissed, Shu Chi released her hands. Decisively, she strode forward in large steps.

Realizing she’d been tricked, Ding Ya chased after her indignantly. “Home? Whose home? Explain yourself clearly!”

Shu Chi turned her head. “I am yours. Your home is my home.”

She glanced at the little dog in Ding Ya’s arms. “My status must be higher than its.”

These words were somewhat childish, but that didn’t stop Ding Ya from finding this side of Shu Chi adorable.

She couldn’t help but imagine: if Shu Chi had continued high school, then gotten into university, what would she be like?

What if I had met her when I was still in school?

Would she have been that silent Senior Sister I might run into in an elective class?

Ding Ya shoved the dog into her arms. “Then you tell Yunbao that.”

On the way back, Shu Chi spent the whole time asserting dominance to the dog, but her mood was very good.

However, Shu Chi’s good mood didn’t last long. Just as she was carrying the dog and squeezing its paw while entering the apartment building, Ding Ya spotted a woman waiting for the elevator.

Ding Ya’s voice feigned surprise. “Mom, what are you doing here?”

Carrying her bag, Yang Jie turned around. Seeing Ding Ya, she smiled as usual. “Where are you coming back from?”

Shu Chi had just closed the main door when she heard these words.

She didn’t know if it was a psychological effect, but she actually felt a chill run down her spine at Yang Jie’s words.

Ding Ya wasn’t afraid at all. She hugged Yang Jie’s arm. “Went to walk the dog with Shu Chi. She’s eating at my place today.”

Yang Jie looked at the woman approaching. Shu Chi’s long coat didn’t make her look bulky. The little dog nestled in her arms barked at Yang Jie.

Shu Chi also greeted her, “Hello, Auntie.”

She seemed slightly more warm than in their first meeting.

Yang Jie recalled the feeling of unfamiliarity these two had given off last time. Now they were visiting each other’s homes. They were probably quite familiar by now.

She didn’t think much of it either, as Shu Chi had left a good impression on her before.

Later, when Ding Ya mentioned she was a collaborating company’s boss, and seeing her so young yet achieving so much was impressive.

Yang Jie smiled warmly. “Hello.”

Inside the ascending elevator, Yang Jie kept chatting with Shu Chi.

The woman’s speaking voice was already very gentle. Although Shu Chi, a type who started working early, was a woman of few words, she wasn’t exactly afraid of strangers. When Yang Jie said a few sentences, she could respond.

As they stepped out of the elevator, Yang Jie seemed to casually ask, “Shu Chi, do you know who our Ding Ya is currently dating?”