Chapter 47: A Friend’s Birthday Dilemma

A little later, Lin Duo returned alone to the fruit store, taking her seat at the cash register. She greeted customers as they arrived, and when the store was empty, she immersed herself in her textbooks.

After closing the shop that evening, Wu Bijuan affectionately ruffled Lin Duo’s hair, a warm smile gracing her lips. “You know, little Wang isn’t a bad boy at all. Are you truly not considering him?”

“Mom, I genuinely can’t think about dating right now,” Lin Duo replied, looking up with earnest eyes. “I only want to secure a good job in the future to repay your kindness for raising me.”

Wu Bijuan, however, dismissed her daughter’s seriousness with a wave of her hand. “My silly girl, every woman gets married eventually. You’re still young, so there’s no rush to choose, but don’t drag it out too long. Your father and I are eager to hold our grandchildren soon!”

“She’s right!” Yue Renhui chimed in, stepping closer to join the conversation. “Our daughter, your mother and I feel more and more each day that we’ve truly found a treasure in you. To have such a beautiful and sensible daughter is a blessing beyond measure.

We sometimes dread to think what might have happened, fearing that a single moment of hesitation could have led us not to take you in. Alas, I can’t fathom what your birth parents were thinking, to treat such a wonderful daughter with such cruelty.”

Lin Duo’s birth father was named Lin Fu, and her mother was Mao Qianwei; both worked at a sports school. Her father had a volatile temper, often lashing out at her mother when his mood soured. Lin Duo also had an older brother, Lin Cheng, who appeared as a bright, handsome young man in the eyes of his classmates and teachers, yet he would bare his vicious fangs at his younger sibling whenever they were alone.

During the nearly fifteen months since she ran away, Lin Duo had severed all ties with her old home. She had never confided the specifics of her past to anyone. Even the fact of her adoption was known only to her adoptive parents and the Wang family in the entire city of Nan’an. Not even Lin Duo’s closest friends, Gu Xuexuan and Shen Jing’an, knew about it, let alone her other classmates.

Yue Renhui seemed to sense Lin Duo’s unspoken thoughts, letting out a sigh. “I know you resent your birth parents, but they did raise you for fourteen years. If they ever find us here, or if you change your mind, we would never stand in your way.

As long as you remember that you once had a home here, and remember us, your adoptive parents, and come to visit us occasionally, we will be content!”

Seeing the genuine concern from her new parents made Lin Duo’s nose tingle once more. She quickly changed the subject. “Mom, Dad, let’s not talk about this anymore. Let’s go up for dinner. Tonight, your daughter will show off her cooking skills!”

****

At six o’clock on Sunday afternoon, Lin Duo once again took the bus back to school with Wang Linshu. Although Wang Linshu’s family owned a car, and his retired grandfather, Wang Desheng, had ample time to drive him, he still chose to ride the bus, purely for a certain someone’s sake.

They bid each other farewell at an intersection on campus and returned to their respective dorm rooms. Shen Jing’an had not yet arrived. Their two-person dorm room was quite cramped; after accounting for furniture, there wasn’t much space to move around. It would have been perfect for one person.

Yet, living alone might prove a little too dull. Lin Duo had grown somewhat accustomed to the little girl’s daily chatter filling the air.

It wasn’t until eight o’clock that evening that Shen Jing’an returned to the dorm, panting, with a large plastic bag in hand. “Phew, my parents worried I wouldn’t eat well at school, so they insisted on giving me all my favorite foods. Hey, want some?”

Despite her fondness for good food and her occasional laziness, Shen Jing’an was never stingy with her friends. Lin Duo took a few pieces of beef jerky, chewed them, and then her delicate brows furrowed. “Why does this have a pork smell?”

“Huh? Are you Muslim, that you can even tell that?” Shen Jing’an asked, swallowing another piece of beef jerky as she spoke.

“It’s nothing… I’ve just always been sensitive to fatty meat since I was little…”

After snacking a bit, Shen Jing’an promptly went to the end of the hallway for a shower, returning in a light, sheer nightgown. Shen Jing’an was, it seemed, a proponent of the ‘no underwear with sleepwear’ philosophy. Her well-developed chest was subtly visible beneath the thin fabric, making Lin Duo blush and avert her gaze as much as possible.

Shen Jing’an was the type who would suffocate if she didn’t talk, so she quickly started chatting with Lin Duo again. “Hey, have you ever used a tampon?”

“A tampon? No.” Lin Duo only found the word vaguely familiar.

“Well, that thing does look a bit scary, having to insert it. But yesterday, I heard a junior high classmate say that tampons aren’t that bad, actually. Once you get used to them, they’re much more comfortable than pads, and especially suitable for girls with heavy flows. My flow is a bit heavy this time; I even had to run to the restroom to change during class this Friday.”

Lin Duo didn’t quite understand what she was saying, merely nodding in a perfunctory manner.

Unfortunately, Shen Jing’an didn’t drop the topic. “According to last time, your period should be due these past few days, right? I haven’t noticed anything unusual about you.”

“I… my symptoms are just milder…” Lin Duo explained softly, her face flushing.

“Hehe, it seems we’re both among the lucky ones. You know Zhou Xuehan from the dorm next door, right? She’s a classic case of dysmenorrhea. Every time those days come, her face is pale and she looks so troubled; it’s truly heartbreaking to see.”

Shen Jing’an continued to chatter on and on until her mouth felt dry, then she stopped and started browsing novels and movies online. Lin Duo, being more pragmatic, diligently practiced correcting her poor accent using online English pronunciation tutorials.

On Monday, precisely at six in the morning, the loudspeakers in the hallway blared majestic music. Students from every dorm, regardless of whether they had slept enough, climbed out of bed, gradually beginning to wash and change.

They had to be in their classrooms before seven o’clock for morning self-study. Approximately thirty minutes into self-study, the loudspeakers throughout the building played music again.

Students then left their classrooms and headed to the large sports field for morning exercises. Soon after the exercises concluded, the morning classes officially began.

By twelve o’clock, morning classes ended and the lunch break commenced. Students could go to the school cafeteria, visit off-campus restaurants, or even eat a sandwich back in their dorms.

In any case, they absolutely had to return to their classrooms before half-past one to prepare for afternoon classes. Following that were dinner and evening self-study, then showering and sleeping, ready to greet a new day, in a continuous cycle.

Lin Duo had been at Nanli High School for nearly a month and had essentially adapted to this new campus life. However, he was a little distracted in class today, as he was preoccupied with thoughts about a gift.

According to their agreement, Lin Duo was to attend Wang Linshu’s birthday party at a restaurant after evening self-study. By all rights, a gift was necessary, especially since Wang Linshu had given him such a precious one last time. But what kind of gift should he give? Lin Duo had no idea.

After class, Lin Duo first sought out the class committee member, Sun Shida, to give him a heads-up. “Hey, I have something tonight, so I’m pausing oral practice for a day.”

“Granted,” Sun Shida replied without looking up.

“What’s with the attitude!” Lin Duo grumbled softly, returning to her seat. She decided to consult her roommate. “Xiaojing, it’s a friend’s sixteenth birthday today. Will you come with me to pick out a gift at noon?”

“Boy or girl?” Shen Jing’an, as expected, was most concerned about this question.

“It’s a boy, but just a normal friend!” Lin Duo emphasized the latter part of her sentence.

“Ohh~” Shen Jing’an deliberately drew out the end of her word. “Well, that depends on how tall your tower of friendship is! Hmm, the teacher’s here. I’ll give you good guidance during lunch break!”