After Being Bent by Reader

While slurping on some pickled cabbage and beef noodles, Xu Chuanchuan browsed her reader group using her phone.

—Good evening, everyone.

—Huh? Isn't this Darling Shi? You finally reappeared after going missing for so long! Muah (づ￣3￣)づ╭～

—Good evening, Darling Shi~

—Tycoon Shi, Lord says you have a girlfriend. Is that true?

…

It was no wonder why the group was so lively. It turned out that a certain someone had appeared in the chat. When Xu Chuanchuan saw the word "girlfriend," though, she couldn't help but have a bad feeling.

The next second, Passerby Shi replied: "We broke up."

—Huh? Did you break up? I'm sorry. Let me give you a big hug.

—Out with the old, in with the new. Don't cry, Darling Shi.

—I got dumped too…

—Darling Shi, if you lack a girlfriend, you can consider me! [Twirl]

…

Xu Chuanchuan wondered why Passerby Shi could face a break-up so casually. It was as if the break-up wasn't a heartbreaking matter to her at all.

Murong Shi: Because I never had a girlfriend.

Xu Chuanchuan couldn't keep up with the rapidly appearing messages at all. After giving the matter some thought, she sent a private message to Passerby Shi.

I Love Malatang: "You can chat with the girls in the group if you're unhappy. Look at how enthusiastic they are."

Passerby Shi: "I never said I was unhappy."

Xu Chuanchuan: …

I wonder if she's pretending or really doesn't care.

Just when Xu Chuanchuan was agonizing over what to type, her screen changed, and her phone started ringing—Xu Xiangxiang had sent her a video call request.

Xu Chuanchuan quickly accepted the call.

"I knew you would still be awake."

"Get to the point. What do you want?"

Snorting, Xu Xiangxiang said, "Can't I find you just to chat? Why are you eating instant noodles so late at night?"

In a nonchalant tone, Xu Chuanchuan replied, "There's nothing else to eat at home."

"It's bad for you to eat instant noodles frequently. My roommate visited Guangxi recently and brought back some local specialties. I'll bring them to you tomorrow."

Surprised, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "You're coming tomorrow?"

"Yes. You look like you hate it."

Xu Chuanchuan didn't exactly mind her little sister staying over. The only problem she had was that she had to write her novel using her phone during Xu Xiangxiang's stay and doing so hurt her fingers a lot.

After giving the matter some thought, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "Suit yourself. What time are you coming over?"

"Around noon."

…

Xu Xiangxiang finally didn't come empty-handed this time. Handing a bag filled with local specialties from Guangxi to Xu Chuanchuan, she said, "Snail noodles[1]. They say it's good, but I don't have a place to cook it."

Shrugging, Xu Chuanchuan said, "I don't have anywhere to cook, either."

"Oh, I forgot that you don't even have a pot. Why don't we go buy one now?"

Tapping her little sister's head, Xu Chuanchuan said, "Buying a pot just for a bag of noodles? How wasteful are you?"

Instead of getting angry, Xu Xiangxiang smiled and said, "It just rained this morning, so it's cool outside. Why don't we head to the supermarket to buy some things?"

Putting on a false smile, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "So, is this your real goal?"

Xu Xiangxiang lowered her head and pretended to be shy as she said, "It's been a while since I went shopping."

In the end, Xu Chuanchuan caved into her little sister's pleading. After changing her clothes, she brought Xu Xiangxiang out for lunch first before heading to the supermarket.

Xu Chuanchuan wasn't interested in shopping, so she simply helped Xu Xiangxiang carry her handbag and stood aside. "Take your time."

Xu Xiangxiang didn't bother with her elder sister this time. Instead, she walked into a jewelry store and picked out a few head ornaments, earrings, and necklaces.

When it was time to pay, Xu Chuanchuan was naturally the one to foot the bill. While watching the store clerk place a bunch of items into the bag, Xu Chuanchuan looked to her little sister and asked in confusion, "Xu Xiangxiang, are you doing wholesale? What would you need all these things for?"

"They look nice. They're also very cheap. Sis, stop being so stingy."

Xu Chuanchuan rolled her eyes at her little sister.

After shopping in the small jewelry store, Xu Xiangxiang skipped and hopped into a hat store. After trying on hats for a long time, she eventually settled on a red sun hat, an imitation navy cap, and a nurse's cap. She then went on to negotiate prices with the shopkeeper.

Seeing this, Xu Chuanchuan walked over, tapped her little sister on the shoulder, and asked, "Don't tell me you want to buy all three?"

Xu Xiangxiang blinked and said, "Don't you think these three hats look unique? Not to mention, they're cheaper than those sold online. The owner even agreed to a 20% discount."

Frowning, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "What exactly are you doing buying all these strange things?"

Before Xu Xiangxiang could reply, the shopkeeper interjected, "Isn't it for a uniform?"

"A uniform?" Xu Chuanchuan raised an eyebrow at Xu Xiangxiang.

Several emotions flashed across Xu Xiangxiang's face briefly before she stammered, "Yes, it's for a uniform. Our department is having a uniform party, and I signed up for it."

Xu Chuanchuan narrowed her eyes at Xu Xiangxiang's reply. She then said, "I can understand if you're only buying one, but do you think I'll believe it if you buy so many at once? If you don't be honest, I won't buy them for you."

"If you won't buy them for me, I'll buy them myself," Xu Xiangxiang said as she pulled out her wallet to pay.

Looking at her little skeptically, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "What are you plotting?"

Widening her eyes innocently, Xu Xiangxiang said, "I'm not plotting anything. I already told you I'm attending a party, yet you still don't believe me."

"You're going to wear three hats to one party?"

"The party lasts three days. I'll wear one each day," Xu Xiangxiang said. She then leaned into Xu Chuanchuan's left ear and said, "To tell you the truth, this is a party organized by students. I heard many handsome men would be attending, so I plan to pick up a guy for myself."

Xu Chuanchuan was flabbergasted as she stared at her little sister.

The next moment, Xu Xiangxiang placed a straw hat onto Xu Chuanchuan's head and laughed, saying, "Sis, this hat fits you perfectly! You look so silly in it! Isn't that right, shopkeeper?"

The shopkeeper had quite the sweet mouth as he said, "A good-looking person will look good in whatever they wear. But mostly only older people like this type of hat."

Xu Chuanchuan hurriedly removed the straw hat and glared at Xu Xiangxiang.

In response, Xu Xiangxiang giggled and started helping Xu Chuanchuan straighten up her hair.

After Xu Chuanchuan returned the straw hat to the shopkeeper, a third person's hand suddenly reached out and grabbed it. This person then began speaking a bunch of words she couldn't understand.

"Lady, do you want to buy it? It's 15 yuan each." The shopkeeper's attention immediately shifted to the person standing behind Xu Chuanchuan.

The straw hat entered this new arrival's hand in the blink of an eye. This new arrival then spoke in a heavily accented common language, "Fifteen? That's too expensive. These things only sell for five yuan each in my hometown."

The shopkeeper shook his head and said, "Five is impossible. I won't even get back my cost."

Realizing that they were in the way, Xu Chuanchuan dragged Xu Xiangxiang aside. When she was turning around, though, she saw the face of the person behind her, and she couldn't help but be stunned. "Auntie?"

"Oh, pretty lady! It's you!"

Xu Chuanchuan never imagined she would come across Aunt Lian here. "Auntie, you can just call me Little Xu. Are you here to buy a hat?"

Holding up the straw hat in her hand, Aunt Lian smiled and said, "Yes. This kind of hat is very common in the countryside. I didn't think I would find it here as well. It's just that it's a little more expensive here."

The shopkeeper hurriedly corrected, "Fifteen isn't expensive."

"I'll give you ten, deal?"

"I can't sell it for ten."

Pushing the hat back to the shopkeeper, Aunt Lian said, "Forget it, then. I'll go to another store."

The shopkeeper panicked and hurriedly said, "Fine, fine, fine. I'll give it to you for 13."

"Ten. Not a cent more."

"Fine, fine, fine. Take it, take it."

Aunt Lian revealed a triumphant look and pulled out a bundle of folded notes from her pocket. After handing the shopkeeper a ten yuan bill, she wore the straw hat and said, "This makes things easier. I won't have to hold an umbrella when shopping for groceries later."

Xu Chuanchuan couldn't help but be dumbfounded when she saw Aunt Lian's negotiation. She then smiled and asked, "Did you come out to shop alone?"

After stuffing her money back into her pocket, Aunt Lian explained, "I didn't come alone. Little Shi dropped me off, but she's at the bank handling some matters right now. I was heading to the market, and I just happened to walk by and saw you two. You two sure bought a lot of things."

Pointing at Xu Xiangxiang, Xu Chuanchuan said, "Everything's hers."

In a pleased tone, Xu Xiangxiang said, "Alright, alright, I won't buy any more stuff. Sis, let's go home."

Turning to Aunt Lian, Xu Chuanchuan said, "We'll be leaving now."

"Okay. I'm going this way."

Seeing the direction Aunt Lian pointed at, Xu Chuanchuan said, "We seem to be going in opposite directions, so I guess this is goodbye, Auntie. Oh, by the way, your cooking is delicious."

"It's delicious, is it? Then, next time, I'll—"

"No, no, no! No need! There are a lot of busybodies in the company. I'm already satisfied after getting a taste. Thank you, Auntie."

"It's me who should be thanking you. Alright, I'll stop talking. Goodbye."

While the two sisters were making their way to the exit, Xu Xiangxiang suddenly asked, "Is she the old lady who asked to borrow your phone last time?"

"Mhm." Xu Chuanchuan responded absent-mindedly. Inwardly, she thought to herself, Murong Shi came to visit the bank. Is there a bank near here?

As soon as Xu Chuanchuan had this thought, she immediately came across an eye-catching signboard with the words "Bank of China" written on it.

In the meantime, Xu Xiangxiang dragged Xu Chuanchuan toward the bank's direction while pointing at a certain location and saying, "It's so hot. Let's get a cup of milk tea."

While passing by the bank entrance, Xu Chuanchuan couldn't help herself from taking a look through the transparent glass door. There were many people visiting the bank since it was the weekend, so she failed to find Murong Shi's figure even after scanning the crowd.

Strange. Why must I look for her?

Xu Chuanchuan retracted her gaze and suppressed the strange feeling in her heart. All of a sudden, Xu Xiangxiang fiercely shook her shoulder and said, "Sis, look! Doesn't that car look like your boss's daughter's?"

TL Notes:

[1]snail noodles: also known as Luosifen. The dish consists of rice noodles boiled and served in a soup. The stock that forms the soup is made by stewing river snails and pork bones for several hours with black cardamom, fennel seed, dried tangerine peel, cassia bark, cloves, white pepper, bay leaf, licorice root, sand ginger, and star anise. It usually does not contain snail meat, but it is instead served with pickled bamboo shoots, pickled green beans, shredded wood ear, fu zhu, fresh green vegetables, peanuts, and chili oil added to the soup.

Wikipedia link:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luosifen