Liu Yinuo nodded with a smile and gave her an encouraging look. She immediately felt more confident.
Turning her head back, the girl nodded. “Um…”
—
Mother Liu blinked and spoke coaxingly. “Well, in that case, there’s no need to be so formal in our home. I chatted with Nuonuo yesterday, and I happen to have many things I want to ask little Ye. Is that all right?”
“That’s fine.”
She felt that Mother Liu seemed a bit different today compared to that other day, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. The girl could only nod obediently. After all, based on her current feelings, it seemed the other party had only ever been concerned about her.
“Very well. I’ll ask then. The first question might be a bit offensive; can you accept that, Student Ye?”
After a moment of silence, the girl guessed what she was going to ask. To be honest, she was hesitant. That was her secret, after all. If possible, she hadn’t wanted anyone to know.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. First, it was Qin Haiyue, then Liu Yinuo, and then Lin Ziyan. Now, even Liu Yinuo’s parents were asking this question. She felt a bit lost and remained silent for a long time.
It wasn’t until Liu Yinuo suddenly patted her shoulder and leaned into her ear to whisper, “Don’t be afraid.”
‘Right,’ she suddenly realized. ‘Since they’re asking this, they must already know something from Yinuo. What do I have to fear? They’re just confirming it, right?’
Taking a deep breath, she said, “Go ahead and ask.”
Seeing the girl’s reaction, Mother Liu understood her emotions. She fell silent for a moment, organizing her words.
“So… Student Ye, are you actually a girl?”
It was that question, as expected. The girl had prepared herself mentally. Since she couldn’t hide it anymore, she might as well just admit it.
“Yes,” she nodded.
Mother Liu and Father Liu, who had looked up, exchanged a glance. Confusion was visible in both of their eyes.
“How can that be? Doesn’t your school record say your gender is male? Did you misreport your records? Are you attending school disguised as a boy?”
Everyone knew that was almost impossible. This was exactly why they were confused.
“I… I suddenly turned into a girl… I used to be a boy…”
“Suddenly?”
“Yes…”
Feeling the confusion in the girl’s words, Mother Liu couldn’t help but frown. That was it. Only this situation could explain the many doubts surrounding her. If she had suddenly turned into a girl, then it all made sense.
But why would a perfectly fine boy suddenly become a girl?
It defied common sense. She was completely baffled. On the other hand, Father Liu, who had been scrolling through his phone, was the first to get an idea.
“I actually know of a few rare diseases that might cause this. If your physical condition and appearance haven’t changed too much, um… I’d like to ask, did you suddenly become like this? I mean your appearance, and…” He pointed to his chest, his meaning self-evident.
“No, it seems to have started over the last few months…” The girl hung her head. Being interrogated like this for the first time made her feel uneasy.
“Well, that makes sense then. Don’t worry, this isn’t some supernatural phenomenon or a case of demonic possession. It’s most likely just an illness. Have you seen a doctor? Should we take you?” Father Liu offered a bright smile, trying to ease the girl’s tension.
“No… no… I’m not going to the hospital…” However, facing his suggestion, the girl only shook her head.
“Hmm? Why? In your situation, it’s best to see a doctor as soon as possible to avoid any hidden dangers.” He seemed to want to say more, but Mother Liu cut him off with a look.
“Are you stupid? If she sees a doctor, won’t everyone else find out? Where would her privacy go! She must have her own reasons for not wanting to go.”
Scolded by his wife, Father Liu scratched the back of his head and gave an apologetic smile, falling silent.
Although he stopped talking, the girl’s mood improved slightly because of his words. It showed that her secret hadn’t been discovered by bad people, and her trust hadn’t bred two more people like Qin Haiyue. They even cared about her in return, which was a good thing.
‘But… an illness…?’
She had thought that turning into a girl was some joke played on her by a nonexistent god just to laugh at her. After all, what else could it be besides supernatural forces?
However, Father Liu’s words gave her new hope. ‘If it’s an illness, is there a chance I can be cured? I want to be a boy again; I want to escape this mess.’
In her eyes, her current predicament was mostly caused by her transformation. So she looked up at Father Liu with hope. “Then… can I change back?”
Meeting her gaze, Father Liu was stunned for a moment, then began frowning while searching for information on his phone.
“No. Your situation is actually that you were originally a girl, but there were problems with your physical development before, and now your body has adjusted itself. So wanting to change back into a boy is basically impossible.”
“Is that so…” The girl lowered her head, falling into despondency.
“All right, now for the second question.”
Sensing the girl’s low spirits, Mother Liu’s ability to accept things was strong despite hearing something incredible, as she was highly educated. The priority was to look after the girl’s emotions and move past this topic.
“Last time you came to our house, I remember you said you were living with adoptive parents? Why adoptive parents? Where are your biological parents?”
At the mention of this topic, the girl’s mood darkened further. After all, the previous question was about herself, but this one was about her family background.
“My mother is working in another city. As for my father… I don’t know. I’ve never met my father.”
“I see.” Looking at the girl, Mother Liu couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. Although she wasn’t clear on the girl’s upbringing, living in someone else’s house since childhood surely wasn’t a great experience. However, she still had some doubts.
“Then how long has it been since your mother came back?”
“I don’t know. It’s probably been about ten years.”
“How could it be that long? She doesn’t even come back for the holidays?”
After a moment of silence, the girl shook her head. “I don’t know.”
After that, Mother Liu asked a few more questions, such as the situation in the adoptive parents’ home, their attitude toward the girl, and some minor details. In the end, she reached a conclusion.
‘What a poor child.’
Compassion surged within her, and she felt somewhat regretful for treating the girl so harshly before. She wanted to apologize but felt it would be useless and redundant, so she finally sighed.
“Little Ye, if you’re willing, you can choose to stay at our house. I’ll help communicate with your adoptive parents.”
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