Chapter 69

He was only encouraging her to exercise, but her frail body clearly couldn't withstand high-intensity training; she needed more time to recover. She already had a good relationship with Xiang Guan Mu Feng, so the only thing left was to become friends with someone of the opposite sex? It seemed that only this remained of their initial plan. As for challenges like not wearing masks or hoods, that was obviously too early; Hua Xin needed to gradually accept them, and rushing things would clearly backfire. As for the person... although he had many girls on WeChat and often replied to their messages... honestly, this kind of "cooperation" to make friends with someone else? Many people would probably find it baffling. Xia Yan checked his phone case and sighed inwardly. If she wanted to face society alone, interacting with the opposite sex was unavoidable in the future. To make Hua Xin understand this, it couldn't just be a "playing house" act; she had to take that step herself. "Speaking of which..." "Brother Yan?" "Hmm? What's wrong?" Xia Yan's thoughts were suddenly interrupted. He looked up at Mu Feng, who seemed hesitant to speak, and asked with some confusion. "Did Brother Hua mention that Lin Qingyu came to see her before?" "Lin Qingyu?" Xia Yan was stunned and didn't react. He repeated the question again, still puzzled. "Looking for Hua Xin?" "Yeah." Mu Feng chewed on his missing tooth and said ambiguously, "I went to the bathroom and when I came back, I saw Lin Qingyu just leaving Brother Hua's side. Later, she said something about Lin Qingyu... that she wanted to get to know her?" "I remember she had a problem with Lin Qingyu standing next to you at the activity center before... "And Brother Hua wasn't even on his phone when she was running the 1000 meters just now." (His phone was dead.) Mu Feng didn't continue, but just shook his head with a hint of regret. "What kind of overly enthusiastic, socially awkward girl could possibly like someone like us who's into 2D?... She only said a few words because of Brother Yan, right?... "It seems like there is such a thing." "But any guy would be a little tempted by Lin Qingyu... It's human nature... Even Hua-ge is no exception..." "Buzz buzz." Xiang Guan added from the side, then excitedly typed on the keyboard after seeing the source of the message. Mu Feng rolled his eyes at him, knowing without even looking that it was Xiao Ling. "Lin Qingyu..." Xia Yan murmured these three words thoughtfully, a glint of light gradually appearing in his eyes. If Hua Xin really has someone she likes, then this is the best breakthrough. "You... you're dating Lin Qingyu?" Hua Xin's question from that night resurfaced in his mind, and combined with the information Mu Feng had just given him, everything seemed to make sense... Xia Yan slowly opened WeChat, clicked on a chat box, and saw a page of "Good morning." "Good night." and caring words about his wound. A high-level senior? "I still remember how you tried to turn my brother against me, all those underhanded tricks..." He stroked his chin, the determination in his eyes growing stronger. "Brother Hua... to repay you for standing up for me... this time it's my turn to help you. Brotherhood (choking back tears) is in my heart!" ———————— "Grandpa, another Roujiamo without meat!" The girl happily placed a crumpled one-yuan bill and a fifty-cent coin on the table, the fragrant aroma of braised meat constantly tempting her stomach. "Alright." "Girl, do you want some more sawdust?" The old man, wearing a headscarf, laughed heartily, then generously added a slice of meat to the baked bun, put it in a plastic bag, and handed it to the girl who was already swallowing her saliva. Since Hua Xin had been led astray by a terrible map when she first went to school, and had also forgotten to buy steamed buns here using her fake voice, she decided to come here every week for a "feast." She gradually became familiar with the surrounding vendors, and everyone took good care of this kind and pitiful child. As for food, adding more meat wouldn't reduce their profits much, and adding less wouldn't save them much money. If everything is measured in terms of money, what's the point of having a conscience? "Grandpa, you gave me meat again?..." the girl said, her eyes brimming with tears. She felt the heavy weight of the plastic bag in her hand, far exceeding the weight of a single steamed bun. Opening it, she found it indeed filled with meat. "What kind of meat is this? It's all sawdust." "Look at this big dent on my cutting board; you can tell what I added to it." The old man pointed to the cutting board with the obvious dent, then frowned and dismissively sent the girl away. "Come on, it's getting late, it's not safe for a group of people to be out here." A steamed bun cost one yuan and fifty cents, but a Roujiamo) cost a full seven yuan. Hua Xin placed her schoolbag on the ground, tied the plastic bag to prevent it from getting cold by the time she got home, then put it in a compartment inside her schoolbag. She then took out her last piece of Flower Cake. "Wishing you prosperous business," she said happily, placing the insignificant Flower Cake on the stall. She then skipped back two steps, slung her schoolbag over her shoulder, and left, heading home. The old man watched Hua Xin's somewhat lonely figure, sighed, and picked up the Flower Cake... The road home was always so quiet and deserted. The avenue, swept by the evening breeze, was deserted. The streetlights cast a soft glow, unlike the bleak and cold loneliness of winter. Did she remember walking this road before? She couldn't quite recall. Hua Xin looked around, and seeing no one, gently removed her mask and hood. Strands of hair fluttered beside her ears. She stopped, quietly watching the sky gradually turn blue until the clouds became inky black, seemingly lost in thought, feeling the long-lost sensation of the wind on her face. Going out isn't scary, shopping isn't scary, even walking here alone isn't scary. The girl understood all of this. The past is the past. Should she try to become a new version of herself? But the girl still didn't understand whether she should be known as "Hua Xin" or simply as Hua Xin. Then she smiled softly, a faint smile on her face, which had never been seen by anyone. "Ha... me..." "I've made some good friends." "I've met so many good people." —————————— As dusk fell, he moved the tables and other things outside back into the house behind him. After washing off the thick grease from his hands, he took off his dirty apron and sleeves and slowly walked into the kitchen. He saw an old woman with a wrinkled face carefully braising meat, with dough to be kneaded for the early morning beside her. The old man approached mysteriously and placed the Flower Cake in front of her. "Old woman, have some." The old woman glanced at it, then turned down the heat in the pan. "I'm not used to this kind of food young people eat." Although her tone was disdainful, her eyes were full of joy. Old people, they're like children. The old woman tore open the packaging, broke off half, and handed it to the old man. "Where did you get this?" "A little kid gave it to me." "You can eat it yourself..." The old man chuckled, the delicate fragrance of the Flower Cake filling his mouth. "I've never given you flowers before, so I thought I'd give you a Flower Cake."