Just as Lin Xinyuan was still packing her things, a sudden knock came from outside.
She was a bit puzzled and stepped out of her room, heading toward the living room.
Only then did she clearly hear a female voice from outside.
“Xin, are you home?”
The voice sounded somewhat familiar.
After a moment’s thought, Lin Xinyuan knew exactly who it was.
It was her neighbor, the lady next door—though she didn’t know her actual name, she always called her Aunt Yi.
Aunt Yi’s husband was her Lin Uncle…
Coincidentally, the whole community was mostly designed with two households per floor.
When she took out the mortgage for this house, she hadn’t considered that her Lin Uncle’s family lived right next door.
It was purely by chance.
Hearing Aunt Yi’s voice outside, Lin Xinyuan felt a surge of panic.
It really was just as she feared…
Before she came back, she had already predicted the first familiar face she’d see would be Aunt Yi from next door.
When Lin’s mother used to come back for the New Year, Aunt Yi often dropped by.
Lin’s mother inside the room seemed to notice the commotion outside as well and came out of her room.
“Xiaoyuan, who’s outside?”
At this moment, Lin Xinyuan was too uneasy to respond to Lin’s mother’s familiar form of address.
She answered anxiously, “It’s Aunt Yi…”
It seemed the woman outside heard their conversation and raised her voice slightly.
“Aunt Yi, wait a moment! I’m coming now!”
After hearing this, Aunt Yi outside quieted down.
Lin’s mother glanced at the girl, sensing her unease and anxiety.
She walked over and gently stroked her head. “Don’t be afraid… Go boil a pot of water first. I’ll explain everything to Aunt Yi.”
“All right…” Lin Xinyuan wanted to say more but stopped herself.
She grabbed the kettle from the large tea table in the living room and quickly headed to the kitchen.
Lin’s mother watched her retreating figure, shook her head with a worried expression, but quickly composed herself and walked to the entrance, opening the door.
The door slowly opened, and the woman outside immediately spotted Lin’s mother.
Smiling, she said, “So it’s you! I thought I saw you down there earlier. We were just so caught up playing mahjong that we couldn’t get away. Just got back to check on things! Why are you back so early this year?”
Lin’s mother didn’t reply and, with a helpless expression, took out a pair of slippers from the shoe cabinet by the entrance. “Come in first, then we can talk.”
“All right…”
The door shut behind her, and the conversation drifted into the house, reaching Lin Xinyuan’s ears.
She was rinsing the kettle.
After such a long time without use, there was quite a bit of grime inside.
It needed several rinses.
It was best to boil some water first—not too much, just enough to clean the buildup at the bottom.
At that moment, Lin’s mother called from inside, “Xiaoyuan, remember to boil the water once, then boil fresh water again.”
Lin Xinyuan nodded silently.
She had already planned to do exactly that, even though no one could see her actions now.
But since someone she knew was around, she felt a little hesitant to respond.
“Oh, Xinyuan’s back? The holidays started early this year?”
Hearing Lin’s mother, Aunt Yi sounded surprised.
Then, noticing the affectionate way Lin’s mother addressed Lin Xinyuan, she became even more astonished. “What’s going on?”
She understood the circumstances from back then and had always felt sorry for Lin Xinyuan, but she could also understand Lin’s mother.
Lin’s mother gave a bitter smile, her voice tinged with regret. “It’s nothing… I’ve come to terms with it.”
“Wait till she comes out and you’ll understand.”
Aunt Yi grew even more curious but said nothing, neither hurried nor anxious, continuing to chat casually with Lin’s mother, waiting for her nephew to come out.
Meanwhile, Lin Xinyuan hesitated for a long while before slowly carrying the kettle filled with water out of the kitchen.
Her hands trembled all along the way—that was the nervousness showing itself.
Who could blame her for being anxious?
Whose son had developed into a girl…
Calm down… calm down…
This was just the first step… she still had to face many more people she used to know…
Thinking this calmed the girl slightly, but she still couldn’t stop trembling.
Biting her lip, she nervously walked toward the living room.
The moment she stepped out of the kitchen, the two people sitting on the sofa noticed and looked over.
But with that turn of the head, Aunt Yi’s originally kind smile ready to greet her nephew instantly froze like stone.
Lin Xinyuan lowered her head and walked straight toward the other side of Lin’s mother, avoiding Aunt Yi’s gaze. “Aunt Yi…”
The soft, delicate voice made Aunt Yi shudder all over, snapping her back to reality.
She glanced at Lin’s mother, who wore a calm expression, and forced a smile, “Oh, is this Xinyuan’s girlfriend? Didn’t expect she’d bring someone back, hahaha…”
Then Aunt Yi turned her head and called toward the kitchen, “Xinyuan, it’s been so long—you should come out by now! Aren’t you afraid to see Aunt Yi?”
No reply, only silence…
Lin Xinyuan had already set the kettle on the heater, plugged it in, and pressed the switch.
The sound of boiling water grew louder, glaringly obvious in the quiet room.
Lin’s mother shook her head at Aunt Yi. “Stop calling her… She is Xiaoyuan…”
These words made both Lin Xinyuan, still standing there, and Aunt Yi tremble.
Aunt Yi looked back, hesitant to speak, her eyes fixed on the graceful girl, filled with disbelief.
“This…”
Lin’s mother gave her a helpless smile and turned to gently tug the girl’s hand, who was standing dazed with her back to them. “Xiaoyuan, have a seat.”
Obediently, Lin Xinyuan sat down beside her mother, her heart pounding with unease.
She mustered the courage and glanced secretly at Aunt Yi sitting opposite her, then quickly lowered her head again.
Aunt Yi was still watching her!
“That’s right… Didn’t you just ask me why she came back so early this year?”
Lin’s mother briefly explained the situation.
Of course, she polished the story a bit since the true nature of Lin Xinyuan’s transformation was so astonishing it couldn’t be widely known.
“So… that’s how it is. A pseudo-hermaphrodite…”
Aunt Yi murmured, but her gaze showed no strangeness, only pity for the girl.
Unlike the loud, meddlesome women Lin Xinyuan had imagined, Aunt Yi was a genuine County native.
Her ancestors were educated scholars.
Though her family had declined later, and she only finished high school, her upbringing ensured her good character and mindset.
This was why even Lin’s mother, who normally disliked socializing, could become close friends with her—not just because they were relatives.
Honestly, sometimes relatives were even less trustworthy than strangers…
As far as Lin Xinyuan knew, Lin’s mother had poor relations with most Lin family relatives.
The Lin Uncle’s household was definitely an exception.
Sitting beside her mother, Lin Xinyuan felt uncomfortable under Aunt Yi’s piercing gaze.
“Xinyuan is a girl now… So pretty… She really looks like your mother when she was young.”
Looking at the girl’s fair face, Aunt Yi couldn’t help but reminisce.
Hearing that, Lin Xinyuan blushed slightly.
Any boy being complimented like that would find it hard to keep a straight face…
Aunt Yi’s reaction was quite different from what Lin Xinyuan expected…
But wasn’t this a good start? At least it proved… besides her own mother, there were others who could accept her…
That was because Aunt Yi had always treated her well and had a correct and open-minded outlook, which could also be seen in Lin Uncle and Lin Cousin’s behavior.
Truly not the same kind of people, not even from the same family…
Of course, her own family was the exception…
Still, even so, she couldn’t help but have some hope for her father, who had yet to return…
“You came back this time to solve Xinyuan’s problem. That’s not hard to fix, but the approval process upstairs might take a while…” Aunt Yi looked at Lin’s mother with concern. “By the way… um…”
Seeing Aunt Yi hesitate, Lin’s mother smiled casually. “It’s fine, just say it.”
Aunt Yi nodded and asked, “Chongshan… Does he know about this?”
“He knows. He ignores it. Don’t bother with him.” Lin’s mother replied bluntly.
Aunt Yi was speechless for a moment, vaguely realizing Lin Father’s attitude.
Sigh… don’t know what happened back then…
Afterward, Aunt Yi chatted with Lin’s mother for quite a while.
But she kept bringing the conversation back to Lin Xinyuan, asking some rather ridiculous questions like, “Does Xinyuan want to date girls or boys in the future?”
Such questions left Lin Xinyuan utterly embarrassed and at a loss, until Lin’s mother stepped in to defuse the situation, “She can do whatever she likes.”
Soon after, Aunt Yi prepared to leave.
The mother and daughter had just returned and still needed to unpack, so she didn’t want to disturb them too much.
Before they left, she urged them to come have dinner at her place, but Lin’s mother didn’t accept…