NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 8
Lin Fangyu and Yu Shu were good friends and classmates for many years. After Yu Shu went to college out of town, she saw Lin Fangyu less often, only catching up briefly during winter break and Chinese New Year once a year. However, they kept in touch, infrequently but never losing contact. They remembered each other on holidays and birthdays every year.
Lin Fangyu only went to community college. Last year she returned to the county town and opened a bakery with her boyfriend Chen Xiao. The business was going well, and her relationship with her boyfriend was stable too. Both of their families were talking marriage, so it would not be an overstatement to call her a winner in life, with a foreseeable future of stability and prosperity.
Yu Shu did not elaborate on her recent developments, only saying things were fine.
Lin Fangyu also did not inquire further. She asked Yu Shu to come visit the shop tomorrow. Yu Shu readily agreed.
As Ye Ping watched the young couple walk away hand in hand, she turned back to look at Yu Shu, her eyes full of resentment.
Yu Shu understood her meaning and stretched out her hand, "Do you want to hold my hand too?"
"Like hell I want to hold your hand!" Ye Ping slapped her hand sharply, "Next year, you must bring a boyfriend home for Chinese New Year."
"No need to wait until next year!" Yu Shu waved her hand confidently, "I'll go find a man to lead over to you right now!"
Ten minutes later, Yu Shu returned holding "someone else's boyfriend", waving at Ye Ping triumphantly, "See, a boyfriend! You didn't say he couldn't belong to someone else, did you?"
Someone else's boyfriend · Yu Yang: "Sis...please act normal, you're scaring me."
The veins on Ye Ping's temple pulsed as she tried to restrain herself, but eventually she could not help slapping Yu Shu twice on the back to seal away this outrageous behavior.
Inside Yu Shu's mind, her inner chibi wailed as she sprinted across a desolate, wind-swept plain - what was the point of being a wealthy woman if her mom still spanked her around like a ball?
The mother and two children returned home. Ye Ping went to wash up while Yu Yang ate dinner. Yu Shu fully displayed the Yu family's time-honored tradition of deep sister-brother affection and ate another meal to accompany her brother.
High school seniors only had 20 minutes for dinner. Yu Yang usually just wolfed something down and went back to eat a proper dinner after evening self-study ended.
"Oh you poor thing, you've become so skinny over the past two years I hardly recognize you," Yu Shu teased while gnawing on a pig's trotter.
Ever since he was little, Yu Yang had been a fat and round dumpling. Even during the most difficult times for their family, he never lost weight, leading everyone who saw him to doubt their claims of poverty and destitution. But over the past two years, Yu Yang had shot up in height and shed all his baby fat. With some leanness showing through, he had taken on the air of a slender young poplar: albeit one that seemed a bit overfed still.
Now that he was older, Yu Yang had also become more thin-skinned. After just a few sentences he grew embarrassed, "Thanks...big sis for the gifts."
While she was in the capital city, Yu Shu had sent him many things, from stationery supplies to reference books to shoes and clothes.
"You're welcome~"
Yu Shu returned to her room after dinner, patting her full stomach. She flopped down straight onto the bed and burrowed into the blanket: her dad Yu Feng had already laid out the electric blanket for her and left it switched on.
Over the past couple years her dad had grown more taciturn, but his care and affection for her had not diminished one bit.
Yu Shu picked up her phone to look for an orthopedic specialist in Rongcheng, but the famous doctors were all booked until after New Year's.
Yu Shu wailed in despair. Out of options, she sought help on her Moments feed. Soon her consultant friend Yu posted a comment: Girl, you know nothing of the power VIP banking customers wield.
Yu Shu private messaged Yu Consultant: [??? A City banks can influence hospitals in Rongcheng?]
Yu Consultant: [......]
Yu Consultant: [King disregarding others dot jpg.]
Yu Consultant: [There are no branch locations in Rongcheng?]
Yu Shu: [......Sorry, my worldview has not caught up after suddenly becoming wealthy.]
Yu Consultant: [What a silly girl dot jpg.]
Yu Shu: [Please show some respect for this VIP!]
Soon Manager Yi from the Rongcheng branch contacted her. Yu Shu explained her needs and her dad's condition.
Manager Yi: Consider it done.
Yu Shu had slept too much during the day and could not fall asleep at night. Lying in bed, she browsed her phone and chance upon a serial web novel being updated - Rapid Wealth Super Evolution.
The appealing title prompted her to immediately tip the author 5,000 RMB. She had expected it to be humorous wish fulfillment, but the depth of ideas in the content surprised her. The writing was fluent, the plot twists unexpected, and every character fully fleshed out.
I love it, I love it!
Yu Shu read through all the available chapters in one sitting until 4:30 AM.
Tsk, time for a reread to fully appreciate this.
The next morning at 9 AM, Yu Shu was woken up by Ye Ping to eat breakfast.
The instant Ye Ping flipped off her blanket, Yu Shu unilaterally declared she was cutting ties with her mother for half a day: nothing Ye Ping said would restore their maternal bond before then.
Once woken up, no matter how tired she still felt, Yu Shu could never fall back asleep. Sulking grumpily after breakfast, she meandered her way to Lin Fangyu's bakery. The warmth and sweet aroma that greeted her upon entering made her tummy rumble: she hadn't eaten that well for breakfast.
Over the past month, her appetite had become even better. Combined with regular, balanced meals and the effects of the salon's weight loss treatments starting to emerge, plus improved mood, she had lost 10 kg this month. Along with tightened skin and glowing fair complexion, she looked to have slimmed down by 20 kg. No longer obese, she now fell into the slightly overweight category, but her chest had not shrunk one bit with the weight loss.
She blushed shyly.
Hers was now the sort of figure that attracted admiring glances from all genders on the street.
At the bakery, Yu Shu ate some food then took Lin Fangyu with her towards the commercial district. She vaguely recalled one of her middle school classmates' families ran an appliance shop, but couldn't remember which one. She brought Lin Fangyu along to jog her memory: they should at least get the friends and family discount right?
Gotta save money where you can, splurge where appropriate~ Ride bikes bar hopping~
That middle school classmate was called Zhao Zhuo, who had now inherited the family appliance business and even expanded the storefront to twice the original size. Business was slow for air conditioners in winter, and they were former classmates, so Zhao Zhuo immediately offered her 80% off.
"Refreshing!" Yu Shu gave a thumbs up, "One floor unit, three wall mounts please."
"......" Zhao Zhuo's eyes flashed with green light. "Money god empress!"
Yu Shu smiled cheekily, "So when can you help install the AC for your grandma and grannies?"
Zhao Zhuo had not expected her shamelessness. "Girl, the size of your face."
"Dropping my status by two generations just like that. If my beautiful face gets any smaller, you all won't be able to see clearly." Yu Shu patted her still slightly chubby cheeks.
Just then, Lin Fangyu tugged urgently on her sleeve, "Shu, your first love."
"Which one, niece?" Yu Shu followed her pointing to see a young man walking towards them from across the street.
A sudden reunion four years after the breakup, without any warning.
Yu Shu withdrew her gaze, eyes downcast.
Meng Xulin was the most colorful stroke in her youth. As deskmates for six years, they grew from innocent crushes to mature affection in their ignorance.
The young know not love or hate, but stir the heart most keenly.
What started from the heart was halted by propriety, and those feelings were buried upon reaching adulthood. On the night of their high school graduation, emboldened by the drunken revelry, they finally confessed to each other.
Their universities were in neighboring cities with a four hour bus ride in between, or under two hours by train. At first they shared an intense honeymoon period, but both were also at the peak of youthful pride. Various petty conflicts accumulated until two years later, the first love ended sloppily.
Four years had passed. Even the most heart-rending love fades into the soil, the most jagged hurts smoothed by time.