611. Mother’s Situation
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I’m not an idiot.
Sure, magic is a hassle to unlock, but in daily life, it’s like the ultimate cheat code! Right now, she doesn’t know many spells, but she’s already enjoying the conveniences that magic brings.
Besides, considering the price of these spells is turning into a girl, how could I possibly give up my magic? I haven’t even had my fill of it yet, so there’s no way I’m returning it to Lilith!
Chen Yao clutched Lin Nan’s hand tightly, worried that this girl might just vanish into the crowd if he lets go.
Every now and then, he glanced back, noticing that Lin Nan seemed to be carrying an unusually heavy heart today.
“Aren’t you afraid you’ll space out again?”
“Aren’t you holding my hand?” Lin Nan replied, hugging the black cat, Cola, with one arm while holding Chen Yao’s hand with the other, before getting lost in thought as she stared down at the furry creature.
This cat better not eat my parrot!
If Cola had been in her care the whole time, she wouldn’t be worried about that, but with Lilith looking after it lately—who knows what shenanigans it’s been up to?
And let’s face it, this is a purebred Chinese farm cat—we’re talking about a serious bird-catcher back in the countryside!
Chen Yao couldn’t fathom where Lin Nan’s brain found so many things to ponder every day. He gripped her hand tighter to make sure she didn’t wander off on her own.
“Hey, can you still use magic?” Lin Nan suddenly asked, her head snapping up to face Chen Yao.
Saying that in broad daylight was definitely unexpected!
But the surrounding crowd didn’t seem to think much of her question, likely imagining she was just another case of a girl going through a phase.
“Nope, I borrowed all my magic from Li Na, and not much at that,” Chen Yao answered, “but I still remember a bit of theory from those few days of cramming. If I had more magic, I could pull off some minor tricks.”
He had only dabbled in a crash course in magic for two days, so his skills amounted to pretty much nothing—merely parlor tricks. Though he started with a lot of enthusiasm, once he found out Earth didn’t have magic at all, his interest fizzled out.
Unfortunately for Lin Nan, even if she was packing a nuclear power station with her, it was registered under someone else’s name. Unless Lilith gave the green light, there was no way she could lend magic to Chen Yao.
Otherwise, we’d have a couple of rogues with cheat codes… if only they had some business acumen, partnered with magical abilities, they could probably be billionaires in a couple of years.
Before long, the two found themselves back at the class teacher’s clothing stall.
This time, the teacher wasn’t in a crisp white shirt and black pants; instead, he sported a white tank top and beach shorts, paired with flip flops—a totally rich guy vibe!
“Hey, old teacher!”
“Back again?” The teacher looked up and waved at Chen Yao’s shout.
“Just came to check on you.” Chen Yao pulled Lin Nan forward to the stall.
The teacher then turned his gaze to Lin Nan, who seemed a bit lost in thought, “You’re probably here to see your future mother-in-law, huh?”
“Not at all! I’m here to see YOU, okay? Lin Nan is here to see her mom!” Chen Yao flatly denied, while scanning the nearby stalls for Lin Nan’s mother’s figure.
But the teacher, noticing the gloom on Lin Nan’s face, chuckled as he waved at her.
Lin Nan snapped out of it, released Chen Yao’s hand, and stepped forward, still a bit confused.
“Is it the school reunion that got you down?”
“Uh? No,” Lin Nan shook her head.
The teacher pressed on, “So it’s about not getting along with some old classmates?”
She hesitated for a moment and then nodded ever so slightly.
The teacher pulled out a small stool hidden behind the clothing rack and gestured for Lin Nan to sit down.
With a soft sigh, Lin Nan plopped onto the stool, her gaze wandering vacuously over the passersby.
“I can guess what this is about,” the teacher said, ruffling Lin Nan’s hair, turning her already messy locks into an even bigger mess. “Is it Zhu Yong Wen? Or did some other classmates find out about you?”
“Three, I think…”
Pan Hui was the first to know, and then, with Lin Nan’s consent, she told Zhu Yong Wen and Li Ya. As for the other classmates, if they saw her, they’d probably just think she was Chen Yao’s girlfriend.
But with Pan Hui and Li Ya, it didn’t matter much—they weren’t that close, and if it weren’t for this reunion, they wouldn’t chat much online either. At most, Lin Nan would catch their posts once in a while.
But Zhu Yong Wen… they used to game together, boast online, and though their meetups were rare since graduating high school, they still kept the connection alive.
Today’s bad mood stemmed mostly from Zhu Yong Wen’s sudden change in attitude toward her.
She briefly recounted Zhu Yong Wen’s behavior today, then vented about her future mother-in-law: “Why does she have to announce everything? I don’t want to talk about it…”
“If you don’t say anything, people will just think you’re a weirdo who wears girls’ clothes!” the teacher said, laughing.
“But… I feel like becoming a girl and dating old friends is just as weird.” Lin Nan grumbled, shooting a glare at Chen Yao.
Chen Yao crossed his arms, staring up at the sky dramatically.
“And it seems Zhu Yong Wen doesn’t want to play with me anymore,” Lin Nan sighed, looking down and fiddling with her long fingers. “If I were a weirdo in girl’s clothes, even if Zhu Yong Wen found it strange, at least he’d still see me as a bro.”
And let’s be real, a good-looking girl dressed as a weirdo isn’t as creepy, right?
The teacher chuckled at Lin Nan’s perspective: “But you can’t hide forever. Besides, people just need time to adjust.”
Is that so?
Lin Nan buried her head deeper.
It’s not as simple as needing time to adjust, though.
Even Xiong Da and Tu Junhui, who used to live with her, have changed their attitudes toward her, let alone all the friends who found out…
Maybe only Big Dog stayed true, albeit he now called her ‘Sis Nan’ instead of ‘Bro Nan’. Yet he still acted like a lovesick puppy, always thinking about how to make Lin Nan happy so she’d help him level up.
Maybe it’s because she didn’t hang out with Big Dog much, so she didn’t notice any shifts in his attitude toward her.
Seeing that bittersweet expression on her face, the teacher could only ruffle her hair again and reassured her, “In the future, you’ll meet more friends. No need to overthink it.”
“Yeah…”
Standing off to the side, Chen Yao shot a side-eye at the teacher. This old guy used to be quite the smooth talker, managing to get both him and Lin Nan, who were notorious for skipping class, pumped up to study for the college entrance exams. And now, after just six months of not teaching, his persuasive skills have plummeted so drastically?
“Your mom’s up ahead with her stall, and it looks like business is pretty good.” The teacher pointed toward the road ahead.
“Let’s go check it out…”
With a heavy sigh, Lin Nan stood up, calling for Chen Yao as they walked forward.
After a few steps, they indeed spotted her mother deep-frying stinky tofu.
But here, the stinky tofu didn’t smell bad; rather, it had a unique aroma mixed with the scent of frying oil, wafting through the air and even making one’s mouth water.
At her mother’s stall, a couple was waiting, and the business looked quite decent, almost bustling.
After observing from a distance, Lin Nan realized there were in fact quite a few customers, with a steady stream keeping her mother’s hands busy.
But it seemed her mother’s mood was anything but bright.
