Good day. At school, in the second secret rented apartment, she had been kicked out by Jiang Chi with the excuse, “Summer vacation is over, you should go back.” Now, after climbing over the school wall to return, she changed into men’s clothing and was experimenting to see if she could turn back into a man.
“Change me back!”
“Change me back!”
“Change me back!!”
Two different female voices echoed alternately in the rented room. That body would suddenly shoot up, then just as suddenly shrink down again. The men’s clothes would be comically oversized and sag off her body, then suddenly cling tight, making her look awkward and squeezed.
In the full-length mirror tossed in the corner of the room, the scene was even more fantastical, like something out of a sci-fi special effect.
At times, the mirror reflected an innocent and lovely young girl, her pretty face tinged with a bit of petulant anger. Other times, it showed a tall and mature lady, her graceful figure exuding a unique charm.
Yet no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t change back into that tall, dashing, confident, and arrogant young man she’d once been.
“Damn it!”
“Why can’t I change back!”
With a furious toss, Ji Yuennian flung the silver coin to the floor, her anger nearly boiling over.
Lady—girl, girl—lady. It seemed she could only switch between these two forms now, unable to become that self she remembered: full of youthful vigor, ambition, and masculine pride.
For a long, long moment, Ji Yuennian took several deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down as she muttered continuously, “Calm down, calm down, face the collapse of Mount Tai without batting an eye! Face the collapse of Mount Tai without batting an eye!”
“Just because I can’t turn back now doesn’t mean I never will.”
“I have to keep calm, there’s always a way.”
“That’s right, there’s always a way in the future. With my peerless intellect, I refuse to believe I can’t figure out this transformation’s mechanism!”
After comforting herself in this fashion, Ji Yuennian finally calmed down. She bent down to pick up the silver coin, glanced at the black suitcase by the bed that had gathered a bit of dust after being unused for nearly two months, and thought silently, “Right now, the most important thing is to disguise myself as a man and go home to let them know I’m safe.”
With this thought in mind, Ji Yuennian dragged the suitcase, nimbly and expertly climbed over the school wall, and soon found a barbershop.
“Boss, cut it short—a crew cut.” As soon as she entered, Ji Yuennian sat down in the barber’s chair and shouted loudly to the boss.
The barbershop owner was a man in his thirties or forties with long hair and an air of artistry about him. His eyes swept over Ji Yuennian’s glossy, pitch-black long hair, then frowned slightly at her request and couldn’t help but advise her.
“Miss, did you just go through a breakup?”
“Even if you did, you shouldn’t give up on yourself. As they say, there are thousands of young men and women in Huayuan, if one doesn’t work out, just find another.”
“Such beautiful hair, it must have been well cared for over several years. Don’t destroy it over some scumbag. I’ve seen so many like you, even ones who went for tattoos.”
“If you ask me, the most important thing for a girl is to be beautiful. Only when you’re beautiful do you never have to worry about boys chasing after you.”
Ji Yuennian’s face darkened.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but when she met the barber’s kind, concerned gaze, she held her tongue.
In the end, Ji Yuennian left the shop with freshly cut, ear-length short hair, dragging her suitcase away under the barber’s regretful gaze.
*****
Kains Community.
After two months of endless matchmaking and several days as a “homebody,” Ji Haotong had just been sent downstairs by Huang Qingchuan to throw out the trash. Leaning against the elevator, he scrolled leisurely on his phone while waiting.
Before long, the elevator doors opened with a “ding,” and Ji Haotong walked in. As the doors slowly closed, a hand suddenly shot out, forcing the doors open again. A tall, androgynous woman in men’s clothing with a commanding presence entered, dragging a heavy suitcase.
Seeing Ji Haotong in the elevator, she nodded slightly, called out “Bro,” and turned to play on her phone.
Ji Haotong: ???
Bro? What bro?
Could she be another blind date his mom set up for him? He did have a thing for little sisters, but that didn’t mean he wanted a girlfriend who acted like a little sister.
“Miss, you are…?” Ji Haotong frowned and looked quizzically at the tall, commanding woman with her back to him.
“It’s me, bro.” Ji Yuennian turned around and gave Ji Haotong a sweet, beaming smile, her dimples deepening.
“Little bro?!” Recognizing that familiar face, Ji Haotong’s eyes widened in shock. He rubbed his eyes hard in disbelief.
“You, you, you…”
His gaze swept over her now soft, rounded features, the glossy, ear-length short hair, the chest that no longer lay flat…
“You’re about to say I’ve changed a lot, right?” Ji Yuennian shot him a look and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “I’ll explain when we get home. I’m starving. Did Mom cook anything?”
At her words, Ji Haotong said nothing more.
They went home. After changing their shoes in the living room, Ji Haotong called out, “Mom, little bro’s back!”
“Yuèyuè is back?” From inside, a beautiful woman with a face mask on hurried out.
She caught sight of the commanding young woman at the door, and her eyes lit up instantly.
She stepped forward, took the black suitcase from her hands, and smiled brightly at her. “Yuèyuè’s girlfriend?” She glanced outside the door. “Where’s Yuèyuè? Did you buy me a special present, planning to surprise me?”
Ji Haotong shot a look at the sibling next to him, whose gender was now anybody’s guess, and couldn’t help twitching at the corners of his mouth.
In the end, Ji Yuennian stepped forward and explained herself: “Mom, it’s me.”
Huang Qingchuan was stunned.
She turned back and met Ji Yuennian’s round, black eyes and that face—nearly identical, but now much softer.
She recognized that look. This was her family’s most worrisome second son. But after just two months away, how had he turned so girlish?
“Doesn’t it look artistic?”
“I deliberately kept my hair short, accompanied her for face masks, bought makeup, did skincare, took care of my hair, tsk tsk tsk. As expected, having a girlfriend is expensive.”
“I declare, the former little tyrant school overlord Ji Yuennian is now offline. Now I am Ji Yuennian, determined to become an artist!”
After much coaxing, fibbing, and fabrication, Ji Yuennian finally convinced Huang Qingchuan and Ji Haotong that this new look wasn’t the result of a trip to Thailand, but that her girlfriend liked men with an artistic vibe, so she transformed herself for love.
After helping Ji Yuennian settle her things, the three of them sat in the living room. Huang Qingchuan called out again, “Honghong, Yuèyuè’s back!”
“Yuennian’s back? Perfect, I’ll take him out of town one of these days.” With that, Ji Hong walked out of the bedroom, paused at the sight of two women and one man on the sofa, then asked, “Is this… Yuennian’s girlfriend?”
Ji Yuennian: ……
Great, here comes another round of explanations.
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Ok but how do you explain the chest tho?