483. Makeup
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Lin Nan suddenly thought that maybe her cousin had some secrets of her own.
She claimed she underwent surgery to become a girl, yet here she was with a kid? That’s not very scientific, is it?
Could it be an adopted child?
No way, could she also have been transformed into a girl by magic?
Lin Nan’s eyes frequently drifted over to Lin Jin, her intense curiosity making her want to ask where Lin Jin’s child came from, but she felt that such a question might be too direct.
After having breakfast downstairs at the inn, Lin Nan and Lin Jin headed towards the village.
“So what are we doing now?” she asked, trailing behind Lin Jin while idly watching the passersby and the scenery.
“Just wandering around.”
This village hadn’t changed much in over a decade. The only difference was a few new buildings along the street, but overall, it was pretty much the same.
Arriving at the small square in front of the ancestral hall, Lin Nan soon spotted Lin Chen’s robust figure from a distance.
“Lin Chen! I brought my cousin back!” Lin Jin waved at Lin Chen, then turned to Lin Nan, explaining, “The other cousins are busy helping our eldest cousin, so we probably won’t see them until the wedding tonight.”
She grabbed Lin Nan’s arm and led her into the convenience store they visited last night. As soon as Lin Nan entered, she spotted a familiar girl selecting snacks inside.
This was the real Lin Dan, a girl she had played with as a child, who Lin Qi mistakenly thought Lin Nan had a crush on.
Lin Nan froze for a moment and then turned to the young man behind the counter.
The young man glanced at Lin Nan and said, “Didn’t you say you were Lin Dan last night?”
“Huh?” Lin Dan looked up, surprised, glancing at Lin Nan at the door, unsure why her name was mentioned.
But she didn’t recognize the girl at the door!
Lin Nan felt extraordinarily awkward and dropped her head, pretending to search for ice cream in the freezer. Who would’ve thought Lin Dan really came back for the wedding? Now, all the embarrassing lies from last night were coming to light!
Lin Jin observed Lin Nan’s discomfort and seemed to piece together the situation, her lips curving up in a smile that nearly broke into laughter.
So she decided to play along, pointing at Lin Nan and saying, “She’s actually named Lin Dan.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Nan quickly nodded, defending herself, “Yeah, yeah, having the same name is normal! It’s not that rare of a name.”
Such a solid argument; it almost convinced her!
The young man behind the counter dismissed the two of them and happily chatted with the real Lin Dan.
After grabbing an ice cream, Lin Nan paid and dashed out the door, her face turning beet red from embarrassment.
If she had known, she wouldn’t have impersonated Lin Dan in the first place.
What a headache.
Lin Nan worked hard to calm herself and followed Lin Jin to her house.
Outside, under the eaves, a few neighboring aunts were chatting, while a tall, grown-up guy leaned against the windowsill, playing on his phone.
Their arrival instantly drew the attention of the aunts, who looked up in unison.
“Mom.” Lin Jin nodded towards one of the aunts.
“Who’s this girl next to you?” Lin Jin’s mother asked, looking at Lin Nan.
Lin Nan quickly pulled out her prepped excuse: “I’m Lin Nan’s girlfriend.”
“Lin Nan?” Lin Jin’s mother blinked, then nodded, “Oh, Nan Nan? Where is he?”
“He’s still at the inn on the street, hasn’t woken up yet,” Lin Nan said, lying with surprising ease.
But pretending to be her own girlfriend felt really weird.
Lin Jin’s mother didn’t have a strong memory of her, but the other aunts certainly did; they had taken care of her since she was little. The tall guy beside them was one of the aunt’s child, about ten years older than Lin Nan, who was currently eyeing her with curiosity.
Worried about revealing anything, Lin Nan pretended to be shy and looked down to keep her face hidden.
Otherwise, her features, which were still similar to what they used to be, might give her away.
One of the aunts turned her gaze to Lin Jin and asked her mother, “Is this your child? I remember you had two boys, right?”
“Yep, she’s the eldest, Lin Jin.”
This triggered a commotion, and the aunts completely overlooked the flaw in Lin Nan’s lie, diving straight into discussions about Lin Jin’s situation.
Lin Jin’s eyes glinted with a hint of helplessness as she tugged at Lin Nan’s hand, intending to head inside.
But before they could, a door nearby swung open, and a hefty guy, weighing around two hundred pounds, stepped outside.
Lin Nan took one look and suddenly found her feet wanting to freeze.
This was her other cousin, aside from Lin Qi, who cared about her the most.
“Let’s go,” Lin Jin pulled her inside the house and muttered, “Don’t be too quick to reveal, being your own girlfriend for now is just fine.”
“Huh?”
After being forcefully pulled inside, Lin Nan felt rather confused.
“Once someone accepts my story, you can tell them your actual situation, otherwise, your little heart might just break!”
Lin Jin was surprisingly considerate of Lin Nan, seeming to be on the same wavelength as her.
The room hadn’t been cleaned in years; cobwebs filled the corners, and a thick layer of dust covered the floor.
Not wanting to linger, Lin Jin quickly dragged her upstairs.
The second floor was much nicer; there were three beds in two rooms, all neatly made. It seemed Lin Jin’s family had focused only on cleaning upstairs since they returned yesterday.
Curiously surveying the freshly cleaned room, Lin Nan found herself pinned to the bed.
Lin Jin leaned on the table with a smile, arms crossed, “You should sleep with me tonight!”
“Uh, let’s pass on that.” Although she had a good relationship with her cousin when they were younger, now it felt like they were just strangers.
It was probably because they were from the same family that Lin Nan had some fondness for her.
But sleeping together? No, thank you.
Lin Nan shook her head vigorously, “It’s better if I just visit Grandpa’s house after the wedding.”
But as soon as she finished speaking, she paused, glancing around for a moment before asking, “How about… staying for two days?”
“Two days? I’m leaving tomorrow morning! I have to work too.”
Now that was a tricky question. It was two days until she could go up the mountain to bring back the ghost, and she initially wanted to convince a few cousins to go with her, but aside from Lin Qi, there had been no progress.
Lin Jin tilted her head slightly, utterly baffled by what was going on in Lin Nan’s little head.
“Forget it, I’ll teach you how to do makeup! I brought my makeup kit!”
“Uh?” Lin Nan looked up, only to see Lin Jin already turning around and grabbing the makeup box from the table.
“I might not know much, but I can definitely teach you a bit about makeup. It’s not very difficult; just be a bit meticulous. Let me do your makeup first, you’re actually very pretty—you really should be wearing some!”
Isn’t this cousin being a bit too nice?
“You don’t need makeup if you’re pretty!”
“Being pretty means you need makeup to highlight it! And looking at you, I bet you haven’t even put on sunscreen before heading out, right?” Lin Jin hooked a chair with her foot and dragged it over, “Sit here.”
Lin Nan let out a small sigh; perhaps her previous bro mentality made her a bit resistant to makeup.
