Chapter 103: She is already in the Shape of a Girl

“MA…”

Lin Xinyuan quickly glanced at the elderly man with the “terrifying smile,” her own smile a little stiff, then she timidly looked toward the man who had just turned back around.

No denying it, Second Cousin really lived up to being Second Uncle’s son.

The resemblance between the two was quite obvious, especially in their brows.

But compared to Second Uncle’s gentle yet solemn aura, the unspoken authority in his expression, Second Cousin had a more scholarly vibe.

He gave off the impression of being easy to get along with…

“Second Cousin.”

Lin Xinyuan’s tone softened a bit, though she was still somewhat nervous and awkward.

Her voice was sweet and soft—not forced.

She was trying her best to speak normally.

Tang Chengmin’s eyes were blank.

Only now did he snap out of his daze from earlier.

He seemed a bit incredulous.

“Are you really…?”

He didn’t know how to say it, words stuck in his throat.

Lin Xinyuan lowered her head and gave a quiet “mhmm.”

“Yes, Cousin…”

The silence lasted only a few seconds before Grandpa spoke up: “Xinyuan, come sit. Why are you just standing there?”

“…”

Lin Xinyuan quietly moved to sit across from Tang Chengmin on the sofa, not daring to say much.

She wasn’t really that afraid of Tang Chengmin, it was more awkwardness that kept her from facing him directly.

Back in the day, they used to discuss sparrows and such.

Years apart…

A boy growing into a man…

Then from a boy to a girl…

Sad… she’d completely taken the shape of a girl now…

Tang Chengmin across from her looked uncertain as well.

Grandpa chatted casually, occasionally sneaking glances at the girl.

The girl’s head was lowered, bangs falling over her forehead, but her delicate features were still faintly visible.

Her small mouth was pursed slightly in discomfort, making her look pure and charming.

Childhood memories were blurry, but he still vaguely remembered the little boy’s clear and delicate face…

It seemed? There wasn’t anything wrong?

Tang Chengmin gradually recovered from his shock, already accepting most of Lin Xinyuan’s transformation.

After all, they hadn’t seen each other in so long.

Strange as it was, it wasn’t really strange anymore.

Still, a bit of awkwardness lingered.

Tang Chengmin couldn’t help but think of old times…

Though he didn’t know how his little cousin had changed into a little female cousin, he didn’t ask much.

He didn’t dislike the change.

Grandpa and Tang Chengmin kept chatting while Lin Xinyuan listened quietly without saying anything.

This scene wasn’t broken until Grandma appeared.

“Dinner’s ready! Has Xinyuan come down yet?”

“She’s down, Grandma…”

“That’s good, let’s eat!”

Thanks to Tang Chengmin’s return, the atmosphere around Grandma’s dining table improved a lot, far less tense than earlier that day.

Grandma kept fussing over Tang Chengmin, serving him dishes and soup, which made him quite helpless.

He glanced at the girl quietly eating her rice with her head down.

He thought for a moment, deciding to ease the tension between them.

After all, she was his cousin… oh wait, now cousin-girl…

He should look out for her.

With that in mind, Tang Chengmin used the serving chopsticks to pick up a piece of pork rib for her and gently placed it in her bowl: “Cousin, eat more.”

Lin Xinyuan noticed Second Cousin’s gesture, a little surprised but still accepted his kindness.

Her voice was a bit muffled.

“Thanks, Second Cousin. You should eat too…”

As she spoke, she dazedly used the serving chopsticks to pick a rib for Tang Chengmin as well, a hint of shyness on her delicate face.

Tang Chengmin hurriedly took the rib with his bowl.

Looking at the dish in his bowl and then at the girl who quietly kept eating, Tang Chengmin almost laughed but held it back.

The girl really was adorably silly!

So blank and naive…

Could she really be so easily tricked by some punk outside with dyed hair?

Thinking that, he suddenly shivered for no reason.

Something about this feeling…

It was a premonition?

The two cousins’ interaction was watched by the two elders, who exchanged a glance and nodded in satisfaction.

They were very pleased with this harmonious scene and served the kids more dishes enthusiastically.

They piled their small bowls high and still didn’t stop.

The girl said nothing and just quietly ate.

Eventually, it was Tang Chengmin who stopped his grandparents from overfeeding her.

He thought, if he hadn’t said anything, this girl would probably eat whatever the elders gave her.

With that in mind, Tang Chengmin figured Lin Xinyuan wasn’t just adorably naive—she might also be very socially withdrawn?

Looking up again at Lin Xinyuan, he was momentarily speechless.

After a long while, he shook his head silently.

To be honest, Tang Chengmin didn’t know what was going on in his little aunt’s family…

After all, she left and never came back, and they had never met again.

The little cousin who used to be lively had become so sensitive now; there must have been complicated things involved…

He guessed a bit but didn’t want to dwell on it.

The elders must have their reasons, so there was no point in overthinking.

All he could do was take care of his little cousin now.

Judging by the situation, the little aunt and cousin were probably going to stay in Lei City for a while.

Speaking of which, his sister’s school vacation was almost here, right?

She used to complain nonstop to their mother about why she didn’t have a little sister.

Now that she had an older sister to play with, it should be about the same, right?

Tang Chengmin thought that his sister’s lively personality might help bring Lin Xinyuan out of her gloomy shell.

The meal lasted quite a while, but for Lin Xinyuan, it was at most half an hour.

After eating, she found a corner to sit alone.

She sat there listlessly for a while, and when everyone else finished, she said goodbye to Grandma and the others and went upstairs by herself.

Closing her room door, Lin Xinyuan took off her clothes and showered, spending nearly an hour to finally finish.

Compared to when she was a boy, it used to take just over ten minutes to shower and dry her hair.

Being a girl was definitely more complicated—some parts harder to clean than a boy’s and impossible to explain.

Lin Xinyuan didn’t want to touch there because it was too sensitive, and that sensation was hard to forget…

Because it was still too intense compared to when she was a boy.

Even without doing anything, it was unbearable…

No wonder some people online said girls were twice as comfortable as boys—Lin Xinyuan thought they were underestimating it.

Though she didn’t want to indulge in this feeling, feeling embarrassed to talk about it…

She was a bit of a neat freak; not washing made her feel dirty.

Plus, she had to dry her hair, so it took so long.

Coming out of the bathroom, Lin Xinyuan’s pale face was flushed, whether from the hot water or something else she didn’t know.

After putting on her pajamas, she dried her hair until slightly damp, then crawled into bed.

Leaning against the headboard, she opened her phone.

The familiar pinned avatar still showed no activity.

Wasn’t he supposed to come play games with her soon?

Why…

Still no sign…

Qin Nanfeng hadn’t sent Lin Xinyuan any new messages, and the girl couldn’t bring herself to start the conversation.

They had just agreed this morning, but ignoring him was already failing… and it only took a little while to completely fall apart…

Sometimes, Lin Xinyuan couldn’t help but think.

She was really pathetic…

She hated her own awkwardness and envied those outgoing “social butterflies,” then turned around and despised her own gloominess…

She wanted to be the sun shining brightly in the sunlight, but…

Lowering her eyes, all she saw were two familiar yet strange hills.

The pajamas no longer concealed the beauty of her modest curves.

Lin Xinyuan was a little self-mocking, not ridiculing herself—she had come to accept this body.

She was mocking fate!

But she knew that no matter what, there was no escaping it…

In the end, blaming that guy would only seem even more unreasonable…

Damn yellow-haired punk…

A friend like that, could you really accept? She felt like she was really annoying…