Men and Women Are Different

The sky of parting

Gray-blue

Carried my old dreams

The waving hand

No matter how much tenderness there was

Could not hold back the pain in my heart

A deep song drifted from Ji Yehao's speakers. Su Yuan froze for a moment, then slowly immersed herself in the flavor of the lyrics. She gave Ji Yehao a shove. "Hey, what song is this? It's pretty good."

"The great thinker has awakened? This song is called Autumn of Parting. There are several versions. The one playing now is Gao Hang's male version. I prefer this one."

"There's a female version too? What's it like?" Su Yuan asked curiously.

Ji Yehao frowned. "The emotional expression seems about the same, but the male version is relatively more resolute, while the female version always seems to carry a little more resentment."

"I see..."

Since she had never heard it before, Su Yuan did not know what to say.

Glancing at his phone screen, she asked, "Oh, right, you were looking at the stock market just now. Which stock caught your eye?"

Ji Yehao said, "Huaxin Technology. I've been watching this stock for several months. Based on my analysis, it should already be under the control of major players. Next, there should be a period of growth."

"So that means it's suitable to buy?"

Ji Yehao nodded. "Stocks controlled by major players tend to follow certain patterns. Since they have a lot of capital and can basically manipulate stock prices, retail investors usually end up cutting their losses when competing with them. But if you have insider information and sell before they suppress the price, there's still a lot of profit to be made. I got word that there'll be major good news soon."

Su Yuan leaned closer and smiled. "But the stock price on the screen keeps falling."

"That's a smokescreen put out by the major players. They release negative factors to drive down the price, then take the opportunity to absorb more shares. Look, this stock has been falling for several days straight. That's very abnormal."

Su Yuan snorted. "Those major players really are terrible profiteers!"

Ji Yehao smiled. "Isn't that just how the capital market works? Big fish eat little fish, little fish eat shrimp, and in the end, it's usually the retail investors who foot the bill."

Su Yuan made an "Uh" sound. Thinking it over carefully, she felt that he had a point.

"Go to sleep. Classes start tomorrow."

"Yeah, it's pretty late."

Su Yuan lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. The air conditioner blew with a steady hum. As she drifted into a haze, a wave of weakness washed over her, and her consciousness gradually seemed to leave her body. Su Yuan only felt as though something had pinned her tightly to the bed, as if her own weight were pressing her body against the bedframe.

Just like last night, her body once again sank into a deep, burning heat.

Su Yuan had a dream, one that stretched on endlessly.

She vaguely seemed to hear someone calling her. It was Ji Yehao and Gao Jun, calling her to class. She was about to go with them when she discovered in horror that she could not control her body at all. With her eyes open, she could only watch them take their textbooks and leave the dormitory...

Sleep paralysis? Her face filled with terror.

Everything around her grew silent, gloomy, and frightening. Then, inexplicably, jagged cracks split through space. The world collapsed...

"Ah!!"

She woke with a scream and discovered that she could control her body again. Her thin blanket was soaked through with sweat, and her underwear clung to her body, damp and unbearably hot. Besides, she did not know whether that scream had come from the dream or reality. Seeing that Ji Yehao and Gao Jun had not reacted at all, it must have been in the dream.

After calming down and looking around, she found herself lying on her side beneath a thin blanket. The sky outside was overcast, and she had no idea what time it was. Her stomach felt a little hungry. When she checked the time, it was already five thirty in the afternoon.

She had slept through the entire day just like that?

"Hey, why didn't you wake me up this morning?" Su Yuan shouted at Ji Yehao and Gao Jun, who were busy with their own things below.

"You're awake?"

Gao Jun said, "Why wouldn't we call you? You were sleeping like the dead. We called you several times. When you didn't wake up, we went on our own."

So that was what happened? She smiled sheepishly. She had not expected to skip class on the first day of school.

What a pity.

Thinking back, she did seem to remember hearing them call her. Then she could not blame them. Feeling guilty, Su Yuan did not pursue the matter any further. She climbed down from the bed, grabbed a few changes of clothes, and ran into the bathroom to shower and clean herself up.

The gentle stream of water struck her body, and the refreshing sensation immediately washed away the discomfort of being drenched in sweat. As she rubbed herself down and pinched her smooth skin, she felt that after one night of sleep, her body seemed to have become even more feminine.

Could the female hormones be taking effect? She was startled.

Su Yuan felt that it should not have happened so quickly. Perhaps she really had been modified by aliens.

Men and women differed not only in physical structure, but also in psychology. Yet Su Yuan found that aside from the tremendous physical changes, her mentality still seemed the same as before. She did not feel much different. She just did not know whether, as time passed, she would gradually change without realizing it.

Did psychology determine physiology, or did physiology determine psychology? Su Yuan studied biology, so she naturally knew that physiology was the foundation. Humans were made of matter, after all. What people called the spirit was merely a result expressed through material reactions—the result of countless individual brain cells joining together in a particular living environment.

Male and female patterns of thought tended to differ. Perhaps it was because their bodies contained different stimulating factors. If a body changed from male to female, then in the absence of certain "factors," its thoughts would inevitably be unable to form purely male patterns. Thus, even if she insisted that she still thought like a man, it would actually be somewhat self-deceiving.

That was why Su Yuan was so frightened. She did not know where to go from here, nor could she guarantee that she would not be assimilated in the future.

But in the field of philosophy, these two things could not be explained clearly.

Naturally, vastly different physiology affected one's way of thinking and caused it to drift in a certain direction. But regarding sexual orientation, "psychology" also had quite a lot to say. As for how homosexuality arose, the mental aspect probably accounted for a large part of it.

After showering, a few sparkling droplets still hung on her body. Ji Yehao saw Su Yuan wiping her face and froze for a moment. "Su Yuan, at a glance, you really do look a little like a girl..."

Hearing that, Su Yuan, who was putting her bath supplies back in the storage cabinet, stiffened all over. "What kind of joke is that!"

Ji Yehao also felt that this was not the sort of joke one could make casually. "I was just saying it. Don't take it to heart."

How could she not take it to heart? Her heart filled with worry. She felt that her secret might be exposed someday if things went badly. Especially with this Yehao—his eyes were far too sharp.

Over there, Gao Jun took his hands off the keyboard, turned around, and teased with a grin. "Our Su Su just has a smaller frame and weighs a little less. He'll grow sturdier later on."

"Gao Jun really knows how to talk!" Su Yuan said happily, shooting him an approving look.

"Of course!" Gao Jun nodded smugly. Then his eyes suddenly fixed on her, as though he had discovered a new continent. His eyes widened, and he said, "But if someone wanted to give away a cute boy like Su Yuan, I'd be very happy to take him."

"A dog's mouth can't produce ivory. What a waste—I thought you were a good person." Su Yuan replied lightly.

"Don't call me a 'good person' again in the future. It's unlucky!" Gao Jun protested sharply.

"Hehe, you're a good person..." Su Yuan knew that he was rather hung up on it, which was precisely why she loved calling him a "good person."

Gao Jun shook his head and sighed that he had chosen his friends poorly.

"Hey, are you hungry?"

"I've been hungry for ages!" Su Yuan rolled her eyes at him.

"Then what are we waiting for? Yehao, let's go eat!!"

Ji Yehao gave an "Mm," unhurriedly tidied up the desk, then followed Su Yuan and Gao Jun toward the cafeteria.