359. The Gift 【17/99】
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Ever since Lin Qi learned about Lin Nan’s situation, he finally understood why his cousin had transformed into a cross-dressing pro.
Because she was actually a girl all along.
Being young and all, not to mention that Lin Nan was a girl in the medical records, he easily accepted her change, though he still felt a bit out of sorts.
“Bro, are you still working as an internet admin back home?” Lin Nan perched herself on a little stool. After explaining everything and being accepted, she relaxed and tried to slip back into their old dynamic.
“Nope, I’m working here as a delivery person—making about six to seven thousand a month. Just a bit exhausting.” Lin Qi wolfed down the takeout Lin Nan ordered for him.
“How about the cousins?”
“Heard they’re planning to switch to delivery too, they were working in a factory before.”
He was eating so fast that he kept burping, and Chen Yao hurriedly brought him a glass of water.
Lin Nan reminisced about her other two male cousins. They were much older, and even though they had taken care of her in the past, the generation gap meant they didn’t have the same bond she shared with Lin Qi.
Propping her chin on her hand, she watched Lin Qi eat and sighed dreamily: “So, are you renting a place in the city now?”
“Yeah, I rented a single room for a bit over a thousand.” Lin Qi finished his meal, let out a contented burp, and comfortably slumped on the couch. “I’ll head back later. The bus takes two hours.”
“Come visit whenever you can!” Lin Nan nodded firmly, then added, “But don’t tell anyone about me. If someone asks, just say you don’t know.”
Especially those older relatives—if they got wind of it, most would react like Grandma or Auntie, and who knows how they’d really respond?
“Got it.” Lin Qi got up, today’s experience had really jolted him; he needed to get back and figure out how he ended up in girl’s clothes while looking so confused.
Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something very important. He had almost reached the door of the rental apartment when he turned around.
“You better study hard and not turn out like me.”
Lin Nan chuckled, “I know.”
“There’ll be plenty of time to play later. Focus on your studies, aim for a PhD, then you can make so much money your dad will regret it.”
“Sure, sure, I’ll get a PhD.” She nodded, a bit too dismissively.
After seeing Lin Qi off, the rental apartment fell silent again. Chen Yao returned to his computer to edit his videos, while Lin Nan let out a sigh of relief, curling up on the couch.
What a chaotic day.
Stretching, Lin Nan noted she was lucky not to have classes in the afternoon; otherwise, after all this ruckus, she wouldn’t have had the energy to attend.
Just as she was playing with her phone, she suddenly received a text about a package delivery.
She froze, not remembering ordering anything recently, so she ran off to check her shopping platform but found no dispatched orders.
Could it be that Chen Yao secretly bought her a gift?
“Chen Yao! Did you order something and put my phone number on it?” she yelled toward the bedroom.
“What?” Chen Yao, busy editing videos, stepped out to meet her gaze. “Nope.”
“Nothing? Then whose package is this?” Lin Nan pondered. Mom hadn’t sent her anything recently, and Chen Yao’s mom had never mentioned a thing.
After thinking for a long while, she couldn’t figure it out. She got up from the couch and muttered, “It can’t be a cash-on-delivery scam, can it?”
“What’s that?”
“A new scam I heard about online. They send you something worthless, you pay for the delivery, and they make money that way.” Lin Nan didn’t really understand the mechanics of such a scam.
Chen Yao nodded, impressed by his girlfriend’s awareness of scams—she’d probably never fall for that kind of trick, which was reassuring.
“I’ll check it out. If it’s cash-on-delivery, I’ll just refuse it.”
Packages at school are never delivered to your door; they all pile up at the delivery point.
Lin Nan found this system quite troublesome. The delivery point was off-campus, and when she lived in the dorms, she could barely be bothered to pick up her packages, but now it was just a quick trip across the street.
On Monday afternoon, many students still had classes, so the delivery point wasn’t overly crowded. Following the info from the text, Lin Nan finally spotted a small box on the shelves.
She was increasingly skeptical about it being a scam.
But when she confirmed the recipient’s info, the delivery staff didn’t request any cash-on-delivery fees.
This further puzzled Lin Nan, and as soon as she stepped out of the delivery point, she started tearing into the package on the street.
“What a coincidence.”
Hearing someone greet her, Lin Nan turned around to see a junior she played online games with.
What was his name again?
The junior showed up right in time—if he had arrived half an hour earlier, she might have roped him into cross-dressing with her.
Taking a second look, she realized this junior actually had the right looks for cross-dressing.
Lin Nan responded coolly, since Chen Yao didn’t want her interacting with this junior, she subtly stepped a few feet away to maintain her distance.
“Senior, I have a question for you.”
For some reason, hearing that masculine title now felt a bit strange.
Lin Nan focused back on the package, “What’s up?”
“I’m from the anime club, and we’re recruiting new members. We need a few cosplayers as backup. Our club doesn’t have enough pretty girls.”
“Not interested!”
“If the president puts your picture on the promotional poster, we’ll pay you a hundred bucks.”
Whoa, now that sounded a bit tempting.
“On the recruitment day, those who cosplay also get red envelopes.”
Her interest peaked even further.
Lin Nan hesitated, “I’ll ask about it when I get home…”
“Ask who?”
Now Lin Nan took several steps back, her face turning a bit red. This junior probably thought she was just a pretty guy and had no clue she had a boyfriend.
Finally tearing open the package, Lin Nan found another layer of beautifully wrapped packaging inside.
This layer was much easier to unwrap, and inside was a lipstick box.
“I’ve seen this lipstick on TikTok, I think it costs over a thousand. Who’s so rich to send this expensive stuff to a senior?” the junior leaned in to ask.
Lin Nan was even more surprised, “Is it really that expensive?!”
Chen Yao was getting better at acting dumb lately; he had secretly bought something so pricey, yet when she asked him about it earlier, he played clueless.
“Could be? Or maybe it’s a knockoff.” The junior reminded her, “Senior, if you decide to join us in cosplay, let me know. There’s cash involved!”
He emphasized once more: “Cash involved!”
“Got it, got it!” Lin Nan grinned widely, hugging the lipstick box as she dashed back towards the rental apartment.
That Chen Yao, buying such expensive things without consulting her—he’s in for it now!
