Page Thirty-One Conversation (Extra Update)
“Actually, I was planning to give up yesterday…”
The next day at noon, Senior Li Jianlian came over with his lunch box, finding me and Zhao Zhao sitting on the stairs in front of the rooftop door.
“Thanks to you, the interview went well. It’s amazing that you guessed it was my older sister.”
Zhao Zhao nodded in admiration: “I didn’t have a clue at all.”
“Hmph, a monkey’s wisdom wouldn’t be able to figure it out.”
I habitually mocked Zhao Zhao.
Before he could refute, I turned back to Senior Li and asked:
“What happened after Xiao Lei and I left?”
Senior Li picked at his food. When I asked, he shook his head, putting down his chopsticks with a look of helplessness.
“Don’t mention it, Cháng Kǎi. What did you tell my older sister? Yesterday she was showing me around work and kept asking me about unrelated topics.”
“Oh, to make her help you voluntarily, I said you and her younger brother ‘Li Jianlian’ were very close. There’s nothing wrong with that, right?”
After hearing my answer, Senior Li pursed his lips: “Yeah, no problem. So she took ‘that me’ as my girlfriend.”
“Pfft.”
I had already guessed something like this might happen, but hearing it from Senior Li made me laugh out loud anyway.
Zhao Zhao, who was drinking juice, choked on it. After a series of violent coughs, he said:
“Your sister’s acting skills are really impressive. She looked so much like a maid, even the shopkeeper was fooled. And they said she had a heart of service? Pfft.”
“How do you know my sister, Zhao Zhao?”
I hadn’t expected there to still be people in the school who didn’t know about Zhao Zhao’s exploits. Senior Li must have a very narrow social circle, meaning he has few friends.
“Senior, you don’t know, this guy broke into the girls’ school multiple times last semester and dealt with your sister’s security force many times. It’s not surprising that he recognizes your older sister’s face.”
“Oh, it’s not because of that… never mind, let’s just assume it is.”
Zhao Zhao wanted to explain more but ultimately gave up.
Senior Li continued: “I never imagined my older sister would work as a maid in a manga café. Although our family conditions are getting worse, my older sister always had strong self-respect. She must have made a big decision to take such a job.”
“Senior, don’t underestimate maids!”
Zhao Zhao wagged his finger, making a face as if to say, “You still don’t understand.”
“The maids in these coffee shops aren’t ordinary waitresses. You see, the customers are mostly otakus. Though they call them maids, their status is akin to idols. If they perform well, they are highly sought after, and for the shopkeepers, they’re money trees.”
Senior Li seemed to not fully understand, nodding dumbly while holding an iron lunch box.
With Zhao Zhao’s words, I thought of the idol theory from Thunder Meow-Meow. Applied to maids, it seemed plausible.
I asked Senior Li again: “Aren’t you going to tell her directly?”
“It’s not easy to say.” He shook his head and sighed: “Working as a maid and letting the family know, she probably doesn’t want that. Telling her she’s a girl is also awkward. After thinking about it, it’s better not to say anything.”
“Even if she thinks you’re her girlfriend, it’s fine, right?”
“…”
“Do your sister oppose you going to college?”
Without hesitation, Senior Li denied: “No, she doesn’t oppose it, but if I go to college, it will add to her and mother’s burden.”
“Then work at the store for a while first. Once you get the hang of it, we can find a chance to tell her.”
Senior Li was confused and asked: “Why does she need to know?”
“Having someone at home supporting you will also help with your future college plans.”
“Huh? What plan?”
Come to think of it, we haven’t explained B Plan to him in detail. Since he didn’t believe in transformations before, it was hard to talk about it properly.
Now it’s time to explain.
“You mean I should participate in the college entrance exam as a woman?”
“It’s not just about the exam. After that, you’ll need to continue living as a woman in college and even after graduation. Of course, we won’t force you, but if you want to continue studying, it’s worth considering.”
Senior Li hesitated. Zhao Zhao asked: “Senior, do you have machismo tendencies?”
“Even if I don’t, being a man for so long, suddenly being asked to live as a woman isn’t something easily accepted, right?”
Actually, it wasn’t that hard to accept. After all, the notebook has the ability to correct inner thoughts. Don’t Thunder Meow-Meow and the others live well now?
“Let’s consider the part-time job as an adaptation period. Are you going to the store today?”
“That uniform, the maid outfit, isn’t ready yet. You don’t need to go today.”
Zhao Zhao stroked his chin and thought, saying:
“Then don’t go today. I’ll go with you to buy some women’s clothes. You can’t keep wearing Lin Hua’s clothes.”
Xiao Lei wears Lin Hua’s clothes too, but the main issue is the size. Senior Chángpú has a decent figure, so Lin Hua’s clothes definitely won’t fit. Therefore, buying some suitable women’s clothes is necessary.
“Ah…”
Hearing that he’d have to spend more money, Senior Li looked bitter.
After school, Senior Li waited for Xiao Lei, which was reasonable.
If I had Zhao Zhao accompany Senior Li to buy clothes, it would be like throwing meat buns at a dog, wasting resources.
“Senior went to the restroom.”
Receiving Xiao Lei’s phone call, I wrote Senior Li’s name in my notebook.
Right, this time I didn’t join them. Admitting that I didn’t want to watch Senior Li change clothes would be a lie, but I still needed to get the flat key from Auntie Fei.
Pushing the wheelchair out of the school gate, Lin Hua was already waiting by the wall. She pushed me along the wall of the girls’ school, heading to the same fancy and elegant café.
“Why is Kǎi-Chan so slow today? Why isn’t Zhao Zhao pushing you?”
“He has a basketball game outside the school today.”
I casually gave a reason. He indeed had quite a few games recently.
“It seems Kǎi-Chan is not as important as a basketball game?”
“I know you’ll come to help,” I changed the subject: “How is Auntie Fei doing?”
Lin Hua vaguely replied: “She seems fine.”
Meaning, is she really fine?
It’s understandable. Being called a murderer by her longed-for daughter, Auntie Fei must have been severely affected. It wouldn’t be easy for her to recover.
Entering the café, Auntie Fei was sitting in her usual spot.
Today, she wasn’t reading but sipping coffee, staring blankly out the window.
Outside was sunny, but what she saw in her eyes was a gloomy sky.
As if her thoughts were still stuck in the storm two days ago, only reacting when Lin Hua and I sat down in front of her.
“Fei Auntie.” I greeted her: “Are you alright?”
She shook her head slightly and softly responded: “I’m fine. Xiao Kai, you want to borrow the keys, right?”
“Oh, yes.”
She knew about Senior Li Jianlian’s situation too, so when I called her last night, I didn’t hide much. Auntie Fei agreed readily.
She pulled out a key from her skirt pocket and flicked it onto the table. The key, silver-gray with rust stains, slid to me.
“Thank you, Auntie Fei. You’ve been a great help.”
“The two rooms aren’t mine. They’re rented under Feng Jingsheng’s name.”
“Originally rented rooms?”
It made sense. Old Feng had been reduced to poverty, so how could he still own property?
“Yes, because the rent is cheap, I’m still renewing it. If everything goes well, I’ll consider buying it.”
Considering buying it, it seems Auntie Fei truly intends to open a restaurant there.
“Do you need Senior Li to contribute some rent?”
“No, it’s fine. I’m renting it empty anyway. Let him use it. He’s struggling enough as it is.”
Auntie Fei isn’t short on money now, but talking about hardship, Uncle Feng’s situation was much tougher than Senior Li’s.
“By the way, Kǎi-Chan, I have a gift for you.”
Lin Hua said, pulling out a flat package from beside Auntie Fei.
“Shall we open it?”
