120. Buying Shoes
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Despite saying he didn’t want to, Wu Guodong couldn’t help but notice the sincerity in his nephew’s eyes.
Standing aside, Wu Guodong observed Lin Nan trying on shoes. He realized that Lin Nan might have always had a girl’s mindset, but due to his male identity, he never dared to express it. He had been repressing his feelings for so long, and only after recently discovering his condition did it all come flooding out. Otherwise, there’s no way he’d change so dramatically in such a short time.
Lin Nan, just like when he browsed at the clothing store last time, was trying on men’s shoes but kept glancing over at the high-heeled shoe display. Wu Guodong couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.
“If you like them, just buy a pair,” he suggested.
“Hmm, these shoes are still a bit too big…” Lin Nan sighed, looking up at the clerk, “Do you have smaller sizes?”
“The smallest size for men is this…” the clerk replied, looking a bit exasperated. She had seen Lin Nan walk in asking for men’s shoes, but now he was complaining they were too big. Was he here just to cause trouble?
“Can you check again? Or do you have anything more neutral?” Lin Nan said, feeling a bit guilty.
The clerk rolled her eyes and went to check the stock. Wu Guodong leaned in and continued, “If you like high heels, just buy a pair and try them on.”
“Ah?” Lin Nan casually kicked off the shoes he was trying on, planting his sock-clad foot right on top of his own shoes, and after pouting, he asked, “Uncle! Who has a uncle who keeps pressuring his nephew to buy women’s clothes and shoes?”
He still hadn’t noticed the cheeks puffing out, and quickly explained, “I was just looking at the high heels, wondering why girls like wearing those so much.”
“Oh~” Wu Guodong gave him a skeptical look.
Lin Nan couldn’t be bothered to argue. Sure, he glanced at women’s clothes because of Lilith, but the truth was, in this alternate world, there were no high-heeled shoes. Lilith wouldn’t even care about those things.
But ordinary women’s shoes did seem nice. Hmm.
At first, Lin Nan hadn’t been particularly focused on women’s shoes, but after Wu Guodong’s comments, he found himself uncontrollably looking at those ordinary pairs.
Actually, the difference from men’s shoes wasn’t that big… it was just a bit of mental resistance.
“Excuse me, can you bring me that pair of women’s shoes to try on?” Lin Nan pointed to a pair with a neutral style.
If it’s neutral, it shouldn’t stand out too much, right? His roommates in the dorm wouldn’t react too strongly.
The clerk sighed internally; if she sold more women’s shoes, then there wouldn’t be all this fuss.
She’d noticed Lin Nan’s feet, probably around size 35, and even though they were girlish, they were just a tad exciting.
No big drama buying shoes. After all, Lin Nan now looked just like a girl, with a figure almost indistinguishable from any normal female. The only problem was his emotional struggle against all things feminine, which put him in a bit of a funk when he tried on those shoes.
Who would’ve thought that he’d go from reluctantly wearing women’s clothes to asking to wear women’s shoes?
But seriously, men’s size 35 shoes were probably only available in kids’ sizes, right?
As his appearance grew more feminine, Lin Nan became increasingly self-conscious about it. Just like someone who’s shorter or has some physical flaws tries to cover up—wearing height-boosting shoes or insoles—Lin Nan didn’t want to expose his “defects.”
Even though he looked just like any normal girl, he still felt that his appearance was his flaw, and wearing feminine items made him feel like he was deliberately exposing it.
Noticing that Lin Nan became despondent as soon as he bought the shoes, Wu Guodong was confused, wondering who had upset him.
“What’s wrong? Buying things is supposed to be fun!”
He remembered how happy Lin Nan had been during his shopping spree last time. Why was he now sulking?
“I don’t want to wear women’s shoes…” Lin Nan mumbled, looking down.
Wu Guodong didn’t expect Lin Nan to be so averse to them. After a moment of silence, he tried to comfort him, “It’s okay, if you wear women’s clothes, who would even notice you’re a guy?”
“…..”
That statement seemed to hit Lin Nan hard, and his mood sunk even lower.
Wu Guodong was at a complete loss, not understanding why Lin Nan’s mood could swing so drastically—he had been fine trying on shoes just moments ago!
He felt worse than Chen Yao; having been single for so long, he hadn’t even spoken to a girl in two months due to work, let alone comfort Lin Nan right now.
So he tentatively asked, “Do you smoke?”
What kind of uncle pressures his nephew to smoke?
Lin Nan, still downcast, looked at the women’s shoes on his feet. They were comfy, but somehow just didn’t sit right.
“How about some drinks? Video games? Maybe basketball?” Wu Guodong was pacing around the silent Lin Nan, desperately pulling out all the stops, “How about I give you some money?”
Suddenly, Lin Nan’s eyes brightened, and he looked up at him.
“First of all, my money’s practically gone since your mother borrowed some.” Wu Guodong quickly stepped back, nervously adding, “How about fifty?”
Lin Nan immediately lost interest, sighing again. Just as he looked like he was about to spiral back into silent misery, Wu Guodong finally snapped: “Alright, how about I take you out for a nice meal?”
“Fine, as long as I haven’t had dinner yet.” Lin Nan sighed heavily, glancing at a nearby restaurant, then abruptly stopped in his tracks.
His mood brightened again: “Uncle, I want to go to Da Feng Shou!”
Wu Guodong, who had initially planned for fast food, felt his face darkening.
So, it was only the expensive stuff that could make him happy, huh? Feeding him was going to cost a pretty penny.
He looked up at Da Feng Shou’s storefront. He’d only been there once last year with colleagues, and the average cost was around seventy or eighty per person—not exactly filling compared to the twenty bucks he could spend at a fast-food place. Clearly, not the best bang for his buck!
Why did I let my sister talk me into picking Lin Nan up? Didn’t I learn from last time?
With a resigned nod, he muttered, “Alright, but don’t overdo it. My wallet is feeling a bit light lately.”
However, Lin Nan didn’t catch his last sentence. Upon hearing the first word, he was already walking towards Da Feng Shou.
Fortunately, Da Feng Shou’s prices weren’t outrageous. If Lin Nan had insisted on eating at some ridiculously expensive Michelin-starred joint, that would have bankrupted Wu Guodong.
Following Lin Nan into the restaurant, he clutched his wallet with concern.
Who knows how much of his money Lin Nan would burn through in the next few days… I don’t even have a girlfriend! How did my finances suddenly turn into a waterfall?
