Chapter 19: The Price of Glitter and a Friend’s Tease

Having completed a few preparations for leaving the house, I descended into the living room, only to find no trace of Lan Xinyue.

Just as I wondered if she had already departed, and with the intention of tidying myself in the washroom, I happened upon Lan Xinyue. She had, at some unknown moment, in some unseen place, and for some unfathomable reason, changed into a white, short-sleeved, flowing dress, accented by a small lapel and a bright red belt.

She stood before the mirror, meticulously rubbing something onto her face.

It was undoubtedly sunscreen, an obvious sign of her imminent departure.

A four-leaf clover fashioned from pure green jade, set within the platinum bracelet on her right wrist, shimmered faintly with her every movement.

Curiously, I had never seen her wear earrings or necklaces. Given her unpierced ears, her disinterest in the former seemed self-evident, though her reasons for eschewing necklaces remained a mystery.

The bracelet itself was a twelfth birthday gift from her mother, reserved solely for her leisure on weekends.

I found myself deeply regretting the damned curiosity that had led me to search for it online.

The findings were rather straightforward: the bracelet’s value, too vast to detail, was more than enough to effortlessly purchase this entire space I currently inhabited—my so-called home.

Consequently, when my mother made a spontaneous decision to deep clean last Sunday, the sight of Lan Xinyue directly assisting while still wearing the bracelet filled me with a constant, nagging dread, terrified she might accidentally chip or scratch it.

Through such incidents, I gained a stark, undeniable awareness of our class disparity.

“Would you like to put on some sunscreen as well?”

As she spoke, she extended a plain white tube, devoid of any labels.

So it *was* sunscreen, but…

“What exactly is this? A ‘three-no’ product (TL Note: A Chinese slang term referring to a product without a brand, producer, or production date)?”

I found myself blurting out the question.

“It’s a byproduct from my father’s research lab,” she explained. “Rest assured, it’s undergone thorough testing. These are for their personal use, so they didn’t bother with elaborate packaging.”

“Oh, thank you.”

While ‘byproduct’ sounded rather ominous, her father’s deep affection for her assuaged my unnecessary fears, allowing me to brazenly accept the tube.

Lan Xinyue, for her part, simply shifted a little to the left, a clear indication that she had no qualms about sharing the washbasin.

Having grown accustomed to this dynamic, I stepped beside her, maintaining our usual distance, and somewhat awkwardly began to apply the sunscreen.

After all, my weekend outings typically consisted of either work or the Sunday coffee shop. My usual routine focused solely on maintaining a neat appearance, and my only experience with styling products was a single encounter with hair wax. While I could manage to spread the sunscreen evenly, determining the appropriate amount to apply left me genuinely uncertain.

“A little thinner.”

Noticing my predicament, she offered a gentle reminder, followed by a few more helpful pointers.

Had her tone not been tinged with amusement at my expense, the moment might have felt considerably gentler.

By the time I had finished applying the sunscreen, exhaling a quiet sigh of relief, she had already smoothed on her lip balm. She placed the tube I had returned into her sling bag, then retrieved a square compact mirror from the cabinet on the left and held it out to me.

I took it in a daze, a new wave of emotion stirring within me.

‘Only you,’ I thought, ‘I didn’t even know there was a mirror hidden there.’

Before I could even inquire what assistance she required, she had already produced a red hair tie from her sling bag, wrapping it twice around her right pinky finger. Then, with nimble, practiced fingers, she swiftly braided sections of hair from both sides into two delicate, elegant three-strand plaits. Bringing the ends of the braids together, she then looked at me.

“Could you hold this so I can see the back? I’m worried it might be crooked.”

‘Ah, so that’s it,’ I mused. ‘A rather simple task.’

After I adjusted the mirror so she could see her hair, she quickly fashioned a bow with the hair tie, securing the braided ends precisely at the central parting point on the back of her head.

Her exquisite skill was truly admirable, yet it sparked a suspicion: had she secretly been watching my game screen?

[Yalin], one of my favorite game characters, whom Li Pengcheng once teased by saying she’d look identical to Lan Xinyue if she cut her hair short—though in reality, they only shared a five-tenths resemblance.

On Yalin’s character illustration, a section of her long hair, cascading down to her knee-pits on the right side, wasn’t braided but fell naturally. Yet, it too was adorned with a red hair tie, which, starting from the middle, crisscrossed downwards before culminating in a delicate bow at the very end.

This particular detail was, in fact, a significant ‘moe point’ (TL Note: A Japanese slang term referring to something that evokes feelings of affection, adoration, or excitement in fans) for me, though others would likely find it difficult to comprehend.

Naturally, achieving the same effect in reality—a bow that maintained both its three-dimensional form and a whimsical sway in the breeze, as depicted in the illustration—was an impossibility.

Thus, Lan Xinyue likely simply shared a fondness for the red and black color scheme; nevertheless, it was an undeniable truth that my gaze had been momentarily stolen.

And so, this was another way to style a three-strand braid.

“Let’s go.”

Just as my thoughts threatened to drift entirely, Lan Xinyue, seemingly pleased with her hairstyle, gave a gentle nod, then grabbed her sling bag and headed for the door.

“Huh? Are we going together?”

“First, put the mirror back. You’re so spaced out right now; I’m genuinely concerned you’ll drop and break it any second.”

‘You’d better be referring to the mirror,’ I thought.

Once I had returned the mirror, I heard her continue:

“Besides, I get awfully bored all alone at home.”

More than that, I desperately wanted to know if she was referring to her home or mine.

Yet, at this moment, it seemed to make no difference. My father still hadn’t returned, likely having encountered a friend during his walk and, after a lengthy chat, been pulled into their home as a guest.

In this regard, I held immense admiration for him. It must have been a boon of his steady and earnest character; while not universally adored, he was certainly deeply trusted. Friends he knew well, once engaged in conversation with him, typically found it almost impossible to stop.

I only hoped that the incident from last time wouldn’t repeat itself; it had truly left a terrible feeling.

Since Lan Xinyue had already stated her intention, I naturally found myself unable to object further. Besides, the prospect of strolling down the street with such a beautiful girl…

‘Was I simply born to be a filter?’ I wondered.

Upon reaching the entryway, Lan Xinyue was suddenly struck by an idea.

“This dress would pair wonderfully with stockings. What color do you think would be best?”

“You’re already captivating enough to charm a vast crowd; please, just stop.”

‘I earnestly implore you not to add any further to my psychological burden,’ I pleaded internally.

“How utterly uninteresting~”

As she slipped into her white flat sandals, a mischievous curve played upon Lan Xinyue’s lips.

‘This person, it seems, simply enjoys teasing me,’ I concluded.

Thankfully, no further unforeseen incidents occurred along the way, and we arrived smoothly in District Eleven.

Such thoughts stemmed entirely from a recent pattern: it seemed every time I stepped outside, an unexpected mishap was sure to follow.

It even led me to wonder: had I simply been friendless before, thus never realizing I possessed such an ‘accident-prone constitution’?

The current state of affairs was, to say the least, difficult to assess.

Lan Xinyue, likely unwilling to stay home alone, parted ways with me as soon as we exited the station.

I, meanwhile, sought out a shady spot and waited for approximately ten minutes before Nina, a radiant smile gracing her face, emerged from the station exit.

“Nana, over here.”

Today, she wore the same outfit as our last visit to Amyrock, complemented by a straw sun hat adorned with a white ribbon.

It suited her perfectly.

Was it the hat’s design, or her inherent elegance, that created such a harmonious effect?

In any case, I had seen countless other women wear straw hats, yet only Nina had, at first glance, evoked such a profound impression in me.

Hearing me, Nina’s gaze met mine, and her smile instantly blossomed into a brilliance akin to sunlight as she quickened her steps towards me.

Combined with her striking golden hair, it felt, for a fleeting moment, as though the entire world had grown brighter.

‘Hmm, that must be an illusion,’ I mused.

With that thought, I stepped forward to greet her.

Speaking of accessories, Nina also didn’t have pierced ears and had explicitly stated her dislike for earrings. Yet, during our last visit to Amyrock, she had, at one point, retrieved a pair of leaf-shaped, light blue crystal clip-on earrings from her sling bag, claiming they would complement her outfit and wishing to try them on.

The outcome: less than ten minutes later, she tossed them back into her bag with unconcealed disdain.

In truth, I had wanted to ask then: if she detested them so much, why had she even bought them?

However, judging by her daily rotation of pendants—each day a unique piece, either a rare crystal or a precious gemstone—along with her collection of bracelets and anklets, it seemed she simply possessed little resistance to anything that glittered.

Incidentally, it was only after discovering she, too, hailed from a prominent family that I realized those pendants were genuine. The girls who typically gravitated around her, however, remained blissfully unaware, uttering remarks such as:

“Nina, the red diamond in your pendant today is such a perfect shade! Where did you find it?”

“Oh, today it’s an amber crystal pendant! Wow~ that color must look stunning in the sunlight.”

“And today, deep green jade! Nina, I truly admire your ability to find such a diverse array of jewelry. Are you perhaps considering becoming a designer someday?”

I could confidently assert that if they knew they had playfully handled items worth one to two million, or even tens of millions, they would undoubtedly be startled. As for their subsequent emotions, those would be far more complex, and I couldn’t even begin to describe them.

My own feelings, at this very moment, were incredibly intricate.

Today, she wore what others would likely perceive as merely a platinum pendant with a synthetic blue gem.

Driven by that accursed curiosity, while researching Lan Xinyue’s bracelet, I had, out of keen interest, also taken the opportunity to appraise other gemstones.

And, if my assessment was correct, that was a genuine blue garnet.

Although the setting made it appear slightly larger, it was likely at least four carats.

Simply put, she was currently… well, to stick to my earlier phrasing, she was twenty moving versions of my own house, and they were moving towards me.

‘Ugh… that’s quite a mouthful,’ I thought. ‘Is it a problem with the unit of measurement?’

In any case, could I possibly *not* feel complicated?

“What’s wrong, Qiuqiu? You don’t seem very happy. Is your health deteriorating, or do you actually not want to see me at all~?”

Nina’s smile quickly transformed into a slightly pouting, one-eyed glare of displeasure.

“I just suddenly felt a strong urge to kidnap you.”

“Eh? Eh?!”

Whether startled by my words or overcome by disbelief and hurt, Nina froze, her face gradually flushing red.

“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s just that I never expected to see the real thing, so my emotions got a bit complicated for a moment.”

“Ah… so that’s what you were talking about…”

As my words registered and she noticed my gaze repeatedly falling upon her pendant, she finally grasped my meaning.

“It’s fine,” she said, though her tone seemed to carry a hint of sadness. “After all, no one else stares quite as intently as you are right now.”

Her mood seemed to dip considerably, her tone sounding distinctly annoyed.

My actions must have been quite rude. After all, staring so fixedly at a girl’s pendant would likely appear to others as having entirely ulterior motives, inevitably causing her to feel a sense of disgust.

It seemed our usual sense of distance was already delicate, and our interactions had become too casual, making me somewhat overconfident. I needed to rein myself in.

Precisely because we were good friends, it was even more crucial to maintain proper boundaries to preserve the relationship well.

“No, to say I wasn’t curious would be a lie, but I’m quite satisfied now. Besides, it suits you perfectly, and it matches your outfit wonderfully.”

“…Really?”

“Is there even a need to ask? Nana is an angel in every sense of the word, so a radiant smile suits you far better.”

“Hmmph~! I’ll let it slide this time! Let’s go!~”

My recovery seemed timely. Nina, without reservation, once again flashed her brilliant smile. Perhaps considering my state, she simply took my hand quite naturally, leading me towards our destination.

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