As soon as Su Yao entered, she immediately locked the door behind her.
Only after hearing the crisp click of the lock did she finally relax completely.
Luckily, Bai Jianlian hadn’t tried to force the door open, or else Su Yao might have scared herself into a heart attack.
Glancing back at the empty living room, she thought, this home was her one and only, and her last sanctuary of peace.
Bai Jianlian had put enormous psychological pressure on her—not only did Bai have a physically intimidating presence, but Su Yao also knew some terrifying rumors about her.
Once, while sunbathing, Su Yao overheard some people talking about Bai Jianlian, and the impression had stuck deeply in her mind.
That was why most of the time she kept a respectful distance from Bai Jianlian, yet Bai Jianlian always found a way to come up to her and say strange things.
Su Yao wanted to leave but didn’t dare.
After all, if you crossed someone with such a fearsome reputation, a person like her, with no support, wouldn’t end up well.
She felt like she was just a garbage bin for Bai Jianlian’s emotions—how hateful!
As for that so-called “relationship,” Su Yao never took it seriously for even a moment.
A fifteen-year-old delinquent with a somewhat unstable mind said those words; taking them seriously was a sure way to lose badly.
She peeked through the peephole and confirmed there was no one outside anymore.
Only then did Su Yao let out a deep sigh, the last heavy weight in her heart finally lifted.
But just thinking about Bai Jianlian knowing exactly where she lived made her face darken considerably.
This time she’d just been lucky, and Bai Jianlian hadn’t really wanted to act.
Otherwise, if she’d been blocked outside the door, Su Yao wouldn’t have known how to deal with it.
If this were the old Su Yao, she probably would have been hiding somewhere, waiting to go home tomorrow.
From the foyer to the living room, she tossed her backpack—only containing a few books—onto the sofa without care for whether it rolled to the floor.
She hurried into her bedroom, switched on the air conditioner, and glanced at her phone for the time.
Standing in front of the mirror, looking at herself, Su Yao frowned.
Maybe she should think of a way to dress up properly?
But for her, just putting on clothes already counted as dressing up.
Holding her phone, she searched online and discovered she could also style her hair, do her nails, and most importantly, apply powder, draw eyeliner, and shape her eyebrows.
Looking at the vast array of dazzling makeup tutorials, Su Yao’s vision became somewhat dazed.
“So difficult…”
She had occasionally watched such videos before, enjoying the sight of beautiful girls after makeup, but now, with her changed status, the thought of doing it herself was headache-inducing.
She’d rather play a hellishly difficult puzzle game or spend an hour doing sudoku than this.
Maybe this was what lack of talent looked like?
Even if she wanted to learn, she didn’t have the financial means to support the expenses involved, so it was better to just go bare-faced.
At that thought, Su Yao couldn’t help but lift her chin and puff out her chest, her confidence soaring.
She believed her natural face wasn’t bad—at least better than most people’s.
Aside from clothes, the only grooming that didn’t cost money was hair styling.
Hair styling wasn’t just about dyeing or perming; it was about the hairstyle itself!
There was an old saying: clothes make the man, and the horse needs its saddle.
A hairstyle greatly affected one’s image.
Su Yao started searching for braid tutorials online, planning to try them out tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Bai Jianlian returned home distractedly.
The moment she stepped inside, Bai Family Mother’s sharp gaze fell upon her.
“Lian’er?”
Bai Jianlian didn’t respond, walking straight into her bedroom.
If she stopped, her mother would definitely nag and try to get her to say who had bullied her, but in truth, no one had.
Sitting at her dressing table, she took off her hat and mask, revealing a strangely swollen face and a head of yellow hair.
She brushed through her hair, and Mu Nanqiu’s image involuntarily surfaced in her mind.
As soon as she thought of Mu Nanqiu, Bai Jianlian bit her silver teeth tightly, eyes blazing with fury.
She made up her mind.
No matter what, Bai Jianlian would take Su Yao back!
The next day, Su Yao nervously went downstairs.
Her little heart was pounding wildly, betraying how tense she felt.
She couldn’t help but reach up and touch the double bun hairstyle she had tied.
She had learned it yesterday and even went to the Convenience Store across the neighborhood to buy several cute hairbands.
After a lot of effort, she finally succeeded in trying it out.
She had stayed up late the night before, mostly because she couldn’t sleep, then got up early this morning to prepare.
Although there was plenty of time today, Su Yao still wanted to get ready as early as possible.
Stepping out of the front gate with a happy stride, her mind fully focused on Mu Nanqiu, Su Yao didn’t realize she had become a striking sight.
Many eyes fell on her as she made her way to their meeting spot.
There, Su Yao saw Mu Nanqiu standing by a car, waving at her.
Su Yao waved her arm enthusiastically in return.
They had missed the morning rush, but the street was still crowded.
Because of her excitement, Su Yao’s exaggerated movements drew many gazes.
After noticing them, she quickly lowered her raised hand and jogged toward Mu Nanqiu with her head slightly bowed.
Mu Nanqiu’s face was already beaming when she saw her.
After that adorable gesture, the curve of her lips lifted even higher.
Less than a meter apart, Su Yao slightly tilted her head up, pursing her lips with wide, bright eyes.
Mu Nanqiu feigned being dazzled and teased in an exaggerated tone, “Oh? Whose little cutie is this? So pretty~”
“Um…”
Suddenly praised like that, Su Yao’s face flushed crimson, and her gaze flickered.
She hurriedly denied it, “No, no,” but a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth—clearly happy.
Mu Nanqiu chuckled and reached out, pulling the adorable girl into a tight hug.
“Is she really mine?”
“Ah!”
If the previous blush was just bubbles beneath the surface, now her brain was boiling.
Su Yao felt a hand slip around her waist, gently kneading her side.
Her entire body softened.
Mu Nanqiu had made a move on her.
After her mind exploded, only a faint sliver of clarity remained, and she coquettishly said, “No, there are people!”
There really were quite a few people here; after all, a busy shopping street was only dozens of meters away.
Mu Nanqiu squinted slightly, watching the struggling Su Yao closely.
After appreciating her for a moment, she loosened her hold so Su Yao could move freely.
A lovely girl and a tall, elegant woman hugging together attracted a lot of attention.
Only after Mu Nanqiu released her and they got into the car did the gazes gradually shift elsewhere.
Su Yao had just sat down and fastened her seatbelt when a delicate hand reached over and turned her head.
“From today on, I’m charging fees.”
“?”
Su Yao stared blankly at Mu Nanqiu, not understanding what was happening.
Mu Nanqiu pointed at her own face, tapping a few times.
Su Yao still didn’t get it at first, but under Mu Nanqiu’s gaze, she suddenly realized.
The blush that had faded earlier now deepened again, though she was a bit shy, these days together had loosened her up a lot.
She leaned in toward Mu Nanqiu, stretched out her fair neck, and gently pressed her lips against that beautiful face.
Afterward, Su Yao quickly straightened up and turned her head toward the window.
Thanks to all those previous experiences, the trip wasn’t dull.
When they arrived, the two got out of the car.
Since the movie hadn’t started yet, they weren’t in a hurry and decided to stroll around outside.
“Still didn’t get it…”
Watching the loose claw drop the plush toy, Su Yao felt her scalp tingle.
She had already spent twenty yuan but hadn’t caught a single doll.
Every time she almost got it, just missing by a bit—so frustrating!
Looking at the now empty little basket, which had held twenty tokens, all gone, and her hands still empty, Su Yao would have needed to find a place to emo if it weren’t for Mu Nanqiu standing beside her.
“Here’s fifty more.”
Su Yao’s brows twitched when a basket full of Game Tokens was suddenly placed before her.
She turned her head and looked at Mu Nanqiu, a hint of puzzlement in her eyes.
Mu Nanqiu’s expression was calm as she said simply, “Keep going.”
“Okay!”
Though not fully understanding, Su Yao took the basket of tokens, stacking it onto the empty one, grabbed two tokens casually, and put them into the machine.
She began manipulating the joystick, focusing intently on the claw, mentally analyzing the force and angle needed to catch the doll.
She took out two coins from the basket—she had lost count of how many by now.
Her hands were starting to feel weak and trembled.
After inserting the coins, she even did a flick of her wrist before pressing the button.
Continuing to operate the joystick, Su Yao swallowed hard.
If the first ten yuan was just for fun, and the second was a second try, then Mu Nanqiu’s fifty yuan was getting Su Yao hooked.
The last one hundred yuan was a battle for dignity.
Originally, Su Yao was planning to switch machines, but now she was only focused on winning this doll.
If she didn’t get it today, she might as well stop calling herself Su and just take Mu Nanqiu’s surname!
“Damn it, you stupid frog, just you wait!”
Wiping the sweat from her brow, Su Yao pressed on.
The men and women around who were playing before all started looking over.
Who could blame them? Su Yao had failed so many times already.
She was drenched in sweat.
When the last token was used up, she completely lost it and nearly cried in front of everyone.
Mu Nanqiu was about to add another hundred yuan, but Su Yao stopped her.
“Forget it, I don’t want it anymore! Whoever wants it can have it!”
Mu Nanqiu blinked and nodded in agreement.
But before they left, the shop owner gave them two Frog Plush Toys for free.
Su Yao got the frogs, but she couldn’t feel any joy at all.