“Hey… Stinky Yellow-Hair, what do you mean by that…”
Lin Xinyuan had just found a quiet spot when Qin Nanfeng called her on video.
She angrily answered.
His opening tone was accusatory, yet it sounded like he was afraid someone might overhear.
There was also a hint of awkwardness, making him come off as a total coward…
The young man on the other end seemed to be in a hotel room, smoking a cigarette.
Hearing the girl’s words, he smirked mockingly: “What do I mean? Why don’t you tell me?”
“What did you mean by what you just said… What do you mean you thought it was true…” Lin Xinyuan looked visibly displeased.
This guy threatened her, and still had the nerve to ask?
“Oh, judging by your tone, it wasn’t true after all! What a pity~ Hey~”
“…”
Lin Xinyuan’s face flushed bright red, her almond-shaped eyes wide open, her small mouth slightly parted—but she couldn’t get a word out.
She was genuinely angry!
But thinking that the Stinky Yellow-Hair held a secret on her, she forced herself to hold back.
She barely managed a stiff smile, one that was all surface and no warmth, almost spitting out through gritted teeth: “Then spit it out if you’ve got something to say!”
However, Qin Nanfeng wasn’t in the least bit flustered by her words.
The phone’s screen wobbled as he set it down on the coffee table, took a drag from his cigarette, exhaled a cloud of smoke, stroked his chin with one hand, and started to appraise Lin Xinyuan.
The girl was still as beautiful as ever today, her fair skin flushed red from anger, her almond eyes glaring like an angry cat…
After a moment, he snapped back to himself and nodded slightly: “Hmm… no big problem, still human… not bad, not bad…”
Before Lin Xinyuan could explode, he chuckled: “Where are you now? So lively?”
“Hmph…” Lin Xinyuan snorted coldly. Every time she talked to this guy, she never got anything good out of it. “You’ve seen it yourself, I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong, I’m hanging up! I still have things to do!”
She then tried to end the call, but Qin Nanfeng spoke again, his expression gentle: “You don’t want to…”
“I said! I said it’s fine already… I’m getting treatment!” Lin Xinyuan couldn’t take it anymore, her mood sinking, her voice lowering as she glanced around, seemingly checking if anyone was paying attention to her.
At that moment, the itch in her throat became unbearable.
She covered her mouth and coughed loudly: “Cough cough cough cough…”
Having held it back for so long, the girl’s face turned a bit pale from the coughing.
“Cold again? Such a childish brat… never makes anyone worry…” Qin Nanfeng’s tone remained teasing, though something stirred in his heart.
Lin Xinyuan calmed down a little, her eyes slightly reddened.
Hearing the Stinky Yellow-Hair’s words, she didn’t want to argue back.
Knowing she couldn’t win, she chose not to pick a fight, her voice faint: “Yeah… just accidentally caught a draft. The injection later will fix it…”
Thinking of that, her complexion paled further, showing a trace of fear, looking pitiful.
Though the girl looked pitiful, Qin Nanfeng obviously wasn’t about to let her off that easily.
He chuckled darkly, a strange glint flashing in his eyes.
“You’re not afraid of the injection, are you?”
Hearing this, Lin Xinyuan bristled with indignation and perked up a little.
She wasn’t about to let Qin Nanfeng, this dog, look down on her!
“Impossible! I… well… I definitely won’t be scared!”
Her voice trembled a bit despite her best efforts to control it, unable to hide the fear within.
“Tsk, that doesn’t sound like you’re not scared at all. Hey, don’t shake so much!” Qin Nanfeng clicked his tongue repeatedly, then spread his arms wide: “Hehe… if you’re scared, come here and let this big brother give you a hug!”
The young man was indoors, wearing only a long-sleeved shirt on his upper body.
He’d been casually slouching on the sofa; his build wasn’t particularly bulky.
But now, as he stretched his arms casually, the solid muscles beneath the sleeves subtly showed, full of power…
A perfect example of ‘slim when clothed, muscular when unclothed.’
Lin Xinyuan’s heart trembled slightly.
Her gaze immediately dropped, and her ears flushed hot.
Qin Nanfeng’s words involuntarily reminded her of that night’s scene…
Not gonna lie… it really was warm…
No! How could she think like that?
It had to be… it had to be a woman’s physiological reaction…
No way!
Suppressing her emotions, she feigned indifference, but inside she seethed with hatred, wishing she could reach through the screen and slap that annoying face!
Her resentment toward Stinky Yellow-Hair deepened.
Not only had she been mercilessly mocked by Qin Nanfeng…
But this guy had actually managed to affect her state of mind.
He must be exploiting her female biological reactions just to make a joke out of her!
That must be it…
He had just threatened her earlier; all of this was probably just to embarrass her!
Absolutely!
To disgust her, he would stop at nothing.
Lin Xinyuan’s thoughts grew more malicious as she remained speechless.
Just as she was wondering how to reply, a distant call broke the awkward moment.
“Xiaoyuan?”
Hearing her mother’s voice, Lin Xinyuan immediately breathed a sigh of relief, immensely grateful for her timely rescue, nearly moved to tears.
Otherwise, she had no idea how to continue this conversation with that guy…
Flustered, she told the young man on the screen: “I really have to hang up now, my mom’s calling me, goodbye!”
Without waiting for his reaction, she hung up as if fleeing.
Beep—
Qin Nanfeng silently stared at the still-lit screen showing their chat history.
He shook his head with a wry smile…
Then he thought of the girl’s flustered lowering of her head earlier.
The corner of his mouth curled into a victorious grin, his tongue pressing against his palate, his mood greatly improved.
Looks like…
She noticed something wasn’t right… that’s how it is…
Don’t overthink it.
Heh.
Lin Xinyuan nearly trembled as she came out, feeling a sharp sting on her backside.
She was very grateful.
Seeing her like this, Lin’s mother chuckled: “It’s just an injection, is it really that bad?”
“How could you blame me!” The girl still looked uneasy, muttering, “It’s all because that doctor gave me so many shots before. Anyone would have psychological trauma…”
Lin’s mother smiled helplessly but happily, because this was the first time her daughter had talked about past experiences with her.
She got on her electric scooter first, patting the seat behind her: “Alright, let’s go! It’s crowded here. We’ll head to Xingyi Market to buy some groceries first.”
Only then did Lin Xinyuan snap out of her fear of needles and notice the gazes around her.
She shied away: “Oh…”
She quickly got on the scooter and buried her face behind her mother’s back, trying to block out the stares.
She was much more used to strangers’ gazes now, but the fear was still there deep down—an emotional scar that only time could heal, though never fully erase.
From the commercial street downhill was Xingyi Market.
Residents from the town and surrounding villages all came here to buy daily ingredients and supplies, so mornings were usually packed with people.
But now it was afternoon, nearing evening.
Meat and vegetable stalls had mostly closed, or the few vendors still open were selling less fresh produce at low prices.
Lin’s mother wasn’t here for those stalls, but for the Roast Pork Stall that only opened around dusk.
The Roast Pork Stall had just started operating.
A burly man had just sent off his first customer and caught sight of Lin’s mother and daughter.
His face immediately broke into a warm smile as he looked over.
“Pretty lady, want some roast pork?”
Lin’s mother didn’t answer immediately but smiled brightly at the middle-aged man: “Rong-ge?”
The burly man froze for a moment, his knife paused mid-air, a bit confused.
He hadn’t recognized Lin’s mother right away.
Only after looking carefully at her for a while did he exclaim in disbelief.
“Xiao Xin? How come you’re…”
He trailed off, truly surprised.
It had been nearly twenty years since they last met, so it was impressive he recognized her at all.
Back then, this roast pork stall was run by his father.
Lin’s mother would come with her grandmother on weekends to buy groceries, and they’d often meet.
He’d harbored feelings for Lin’s mother but she suddenly disappeared.
When he asked around Tangjia Village, all he heard was that she’d married someone.
It broke his heart, and he never understood why she suddenly married and vanished…
Seeing her again after so many years naturally filled him with surprise and nostalgia.
Lin’s mother understood what Rong-ge wanted to say but waved him off, signaling she didn’t want to talk about it.
Rong-ge got the hint and didn’t press further.
After all…
The past was the past, things were different now…
“Hahaha, good to have you back. This must be your daughter, right?”
Rong-ge had noticed Lin Xinyuan hiding behind her mother.
The girl looked strikingly like Lin’s mother in her youth, which was one reason he recognized her so quickly.
“Yeah, my daughter.”
Looking at the delicate girl, Rong-ge felt like he was seeing a younger version of Lin’s mother and got lost in memories. He sighed: “She really looks like you, really pretty…”
“Is that so…”
They chatted for a while, but Rong-ge needed to mind his business and was rusty after so many years apart, so they didn’t talk long.
After buying the roast pork, Rong-ge took Lin Xinyuan and her mother away.
Rong-ge even gave them a 20% discount.
Lin’s mother didn’t refuse; after all, there would be plenty of chances to come back, no need to fuss over a small loss.
Because Lin Xinyuan had a cold and shouldn’t eat roast pork, Lin’s mother then bought a pound of White-Cut Chicken from the roast and marinated meat stall.
Afterwards, they picked up some vegetables, which weren’t very fresh but still acceptable and cheap…