“Xin Xin, this is great!” Su Mumu cheered.
“… Huh?” Jiang Mengxin was dazed.
“It’s the Hippo Lady! We’re saved!” Su Mumu said confidently.
“Uh… what?” Jiang Mengxin finally processed the situation and beamed. “It’s all thanks to the Hippo Lady for blocking that club. Hurry up and thank her.”
“Thank you, Hippo Lady!” Su Mumu gave a solemn, graceful bow.
“… You two…” The Hippo Lady’s face turned beet red. “Damn it, you did that on purpose, didn’t you?!”
“I didn’t do it on purpose…” Su Mumu muttered innocently. “This mallet is just too heavy……. I couldn’t hold it steady.”
“So, what are you going to do about it!” The Hippo Lady crossed her arms.
“Then….. if there’s nothing else, we’ll be going now?” Su Mumu scratched her head. “Goodbye, Hippo Lady.”
But Su Mumu found that the hippo in front of her was stubbornly blocking her path.
The two of them shifted from side to side, exchanging looks. One wanted to leave, and the other wanted to stop them. The scene was somewhat ridiculous.
A crowd of tourists gradually gathered around to watch the drama unfold. The tourists who had originally been eager to wait in line for a turn at the stall all fled.
The Stall Owner looked left and right before hurrying forward.
He said with a cheerful smile, “This… Hippo Lady? Do you two know each other? Since it’s a misunderstanding, why don’t we shake hands and make up? My little stall still needs to do business…”
“You’re the hippo! Your whole family are hippos!” the Hippo Lady roared, spit flying everywhere.
The Stall Owner, whose face was sprayed with saliva, looked embarrassed. “I’ll give both of you a storage bag! Let’s just be friends! Doing business these days isn’t easy!”
“A storage bag?” Su Mumu’s interest was piqued.
“Yes!” the Stall Owner explained. “It’s the first-place prize of this shop, a small storage bag worth 3,000 yuan!”
“Such a good item? Hurry up and bring it out!” Su Mumu’s eyes lit up.
“Right away!” The Stall Owner rummaged through a box and quickly pulled out two small bags.
Su Mumu took one. It felt delicate to the touch and the knitting was smooth, though she couldn’t really tell what made it special.
“I don’t want it,” the Hippo Lady said, rejecting the Stall Owner’s kindness.
“This…” The Stall Owner’s expression soured.
“If she doesn’t want it, I’ll take it,” Su Mumu said.
“Customer, you… want it?” The Stall Owner was stunned.
“Yeah, give it to me. I’ll give it to my best friend,” Su Mumu said.
“Oh, oh… sure! Make sure to visit often in the future!” the Stall Owner said.
“You bet.”
And so, Su Mumu took the second storage bag.
The Hippo Lady standing nearby was utterly bewildered. She stared at Su Mumu in disbelief, unable to speak for a long time.
” Su Mumu, I’m not letting you off…”
“Run, Xin Xin! The hippo is about to explode!”
Su Mumu shouted, quickly grabbing Jiang Mengxin’s hand. The two of them squeezed through the crowded street. Wherever they wanted to go, the crowd seemed to automatically make a path for them.
‘Sometimes, being good-looking really is an advantage.’
Jiang Mengxin was stifling a laugh because the Hippo Lady, who had been hot on their heels, was suddenly stuck in the dense flow of people, vanishing without a trace.
Lanterns swayed in the breeze.
The firelight fell on Su Mumu’s profile. Her face, as fresh as a hibiscus, was so beautiful. While they were running away together, Jiang Mengxin took the opportunity to admire her with ease.
‘Does it feel like Mumu has become even prettier? It seems like her skin has gotten even better…’
They kept running and running, leaving the candlelight behind and tossing away all the troubles in their minds. The air was slowly being drawn out of their lungs, but they didn’t care.
The road beneath their feet continued to stretch out. The shouting of vendors in their ears became distant and small. Their hair was blown messy by the wind, blurring their eyes, but they ignored it.
They laughed to their hearts’ content.
‘Let our hearts beat a little faster. Let our hands be held a little tighter. Otherwise…’
‘I’m worried that one day when I wake up, I won’t be able to fool around like this anymore.’
‘Can you hear me?’
‘I am Su Mumu, and you are Jiang Mengxin.’
‘We are the absolute, absolute, absolute best friends in the entire universe, the entire galaxy, the entire world, and all of Xianzong!’
‘We are the best!’
‘But I’m so lost.’
‘I am a fox demon, and you are a monster catcher.’
‘We are destined to be incompatible; our positions are different.’
‘Will we go our separate ways in the future? Or will we kill each other?’
‘What should I do then?’
‘I’m so scared.’
‘Fortunately, I ran fast. You won’t notice the sweat on my palms, and you won’t care about my panicked heartbeat right now.’
‘Forget it. I’ve been a bit tired lately. This is enough. Let this second last a little longer…’
‘Longer than next year’s spring rain, longer than the waterfall of Lao Deng’s crashing investments!’
They came to a stop in front of a grocery store near the middle of Xianzong.
Su Mumu was panting heavily, her cheeks flushed red. She leaned against her knees, her smooth hair a mess.
Jiang Mengxin, on the other hand, was composed. She maintained a smile and gently stroked Su Mumu’s back to help her catch her breath.
“Honestly, Mumu, why did you run so fast?”
“To exercise… so I can counterattack Xin Xin in the future!” Su Mumu wiped her sweat and flashed a confident smile.
“There’s no chance of that. Careful you don’t get crushed like a newbie,” Jiang Mengxin teased mercilessly.
“Hmph, I’m not listening.” Su Mumu rolled her eyes.
After resting for a while, she finally felt much better. Su Mumu stood up straight and roughly smoothed her hair with her fingertips.
Meanwhile, Jiang Mengxin had already run into the grocery store. She stood before a row of shelves, picking through items with a face full of curiosity.
“What are you buying?” Su Mumu followed her inside.
“These!” Jiang Mengxin held up a cute kitten phone charm in each hand. They were made of knitted plush. “Are they cute?”
“They look a bit like Tangyuan,” Su Mumu said.
“Should I buy them?” Jiang Mengxin asked.
“Hmm… sure.” Su Mumu nodded.
‘If my good friend likes them, then buy them. It’s not like I’m the one paying back the money anyway.’
The two kitten phone charms were exactly the same. Su Mumu wasn’t good at handling knots, so she left it all to Jiang Mengxin. After a bit of maneuvering, their phones had “new clothes” on.
“They’re a matching set…” Su Mumu muttered softly, looking at the phone charm.
“Right?” Jiang Mengxin was very happy. “I’ve wanted to buy a charm for a long time. This is great. Today wasn’t a waste of a trip.”
“Even so, Lord Mu won’t fall in love with you, you know?” Su Mumu teased.
However, Jiang Mengxin’s footsteps suddenly stopped. This forced Su Mumu to stop as well. She looked back slightly in confusion.
Under the interplay of the tree shadows and streetlights, Jiang Mengxin’s eyes looked even more beautiful. They sparkled with a watery light, filled with a smile.
She said, “Then what if I fall in love with Lord Mu?”
The wind happened to sweep past at that moment. It lifted a lock of hair by her temple.
Su Mumu instinctively blinked, preparing some kind of witty comeback. But Jiang Mengxin hurriedly stepped forward, urging her without looking back.
“Let’s go. Let’s find a place for dinner. I’m so hungry.”
“Oh, oh… don’t walk so fast!”
Su Mumu quickly trotted to catch up. As for the location for dinner?
— [Xianzong Inn]
They arrived there once again.
In Jiang Mengxin’s words: “I don’t know if other places are hygienic or not. Anyway, we aren’t short on money, so let’s just eat here!”
Su Mumu could only give a thumbs-up, signaling that having money was indeed awesome. To avoid the peak hour noise, Jiang Mengxin even booked a private room.
The ceiling was a starry sky. When the lights were turned off, a sea of stars twinkled above.
The floor was made of transparent crystal, and beneath the crystal was a massive pool filled with all kinds of expensive fish.
“Um… isn’t this going to be too expensive?” Su Mumu was a bit intimidated.
“It’s not expensive.” Jiang Mengxin thought for a moment. “It’s less than half a day’s allowance. It’s fine.”
Su Mumu wanted to cry but had no tears. “Sister Jiang, please let me hug your thigh!”
“Sure thing.” Jiang Mengxin shifted her chair, stretched out a leg, and lifted her skirt. Her snow-white skin was revealed, looking so tender it seemed as if water would squeeze out if pinched.
“…. Wait? You’re being serious?” Su Mumu was stunned.