Chapter 217: In a Hurry to Change Back
All morning, Ye Ziming kept looking at Lin Muqing with a strange expression, half smiling, half amused. He had already guessed something. It was surprising that something he had said without thinking could make this little cutie act nervous all morning.
"I’m telling you! Even if I’m a girl right now, I’ll definitely find a way to change back!"
Around noon, while the two of them were packing their things in the room to return to Chengnan City, Lin Muqing finally couldn't hold it in and shouted at Ye Ziming.
This morning had been really hard for her. First, he kept staring at her for no reason, saying she was "the cutest one."
Then, he brought out a bunch of pretty little dresses and said his mom had bought them for her, and told her to pack them and wear them once they were back in Chengnan City.
What finally made her break down was when Ye Ziming suggested that maybe she should just go to school as a girl from now on.
"Change back?"
Ye Ziming raised an eyebrow and squinted a little, giving her a subtle look.
"That's right! If I could change into this, there has to be a way to change back!"
For once, Lin Muqing stood her ground, stubbornly raising her chin and looking him in the eyes seriously as she answered. Starting today, she was officially going to find a way to return to normal, and she was in a real hurry.
Why? Because over the past few days, she had started to think… life as a girl wasn’t so bad. She even had some thoughts like, ‘Maybe staying like this wouldn't be so bad?’
That was terrifying. She had always thought of herself as a tough guy! How could she be thinking things like that?
Now, she was genuinely worried. If this kept going, what if one day she didn’t want to change back anymore?
“You really have to change back?”
Ye Ziming’s expression shifted a little. He stepped in front of Lin Muqing and asked softly.
“Of course!”
Lin Muqing answered seriously, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“Isn’t life now pretty good though?”
Faced with that question from her good buddy, Lin Muqing hesitated for a long time and couldn’t give an answer, because honestly, life was pretty good now. So good, in fact, that there was nothing to complain about. Whatever she wanted, she could have, as long as she reached out.
But she had always grown up as a boy, and that thought made her feel very conflicted. For a while, she didn’t know what to say.
“I…”
After a long pause, Lin Muqing finally looked up again, as if she wanted to say something.
But before she could speak, Ye Ziming raised his hand and gently patted her head like he was petting a kitten, stepping closer. When they were standing just inches apart, he smiled softly and looked her in the eyes.
“You think life now is really good too, don’t you?”
From watching her reaction, Ye Ziming could tell Lin Muqing didn’t actually dislike being a girl. She just had some inner doubts messing with her. And now that he said it out loud, she froze. It was clear he had hit the mark.
“You know, your brothers really dote on their little sister. Your parents are the same. They love having a daughter more than a son.”
Seeing that his words were getting through, Ye Ziming went on.
It might sound a bit unfair, but the Lin family really was like that. Including their relatives in Chengnan City, the Lin family had no shortage of boys. But when it came to girls? Across this whole generation, even counting the previous ones… there was only one, Lin Muqing.
In other families, having a lot of sons might be seen as a blessing. But in the Lin family, it almost felt like a strange kind of curse.
“But what if I stay like this forever?”
After a moment, Lin Muqing suddenly came back to her senses. Then, with a frown, she looked at her best friend and said,
“What am I supposed to do in the future? Marry some guy? I don’t want to do that.”
This was the real issue, she didn’t like boys. What she liked were soft, cute girls. That was something she was completely sure of.
Proof? Even now, she still really enjoyed looking at cute illustrations. As long as the girls were sweet and adorable, she liked them all.
“Forget it. We’ll talk about the future when it comes. Anyway, there’s no way I’d ever like a boy, and I’ll never wear a dress again! I mean it! Not even if Jesus himself came down!”
Lin Muqing knew she couldn’t out-talk her best friend, so just as he was about to say something, she quickly cut him off.
Then she turned around to face the closet and continued packing her things.
Seeing this, Ye Ziming raised his eyebrows again. Smiling at her back, he felt a mix of helplessness and affection in his heart. He didn’t know if she could ever go back to the way she was before, but one thing he knew for sure. If he ever found a way to reverse things, he would destroy it with his own hands.
He had finally made up his mind to live his life with her from now on. If she changed back, what would he do? Where would he find his adorable girl again? But he couldn’t rush things. He also needed to find a way to change her mind about boys.
“Why are you holding my dress?”
After packing her clothes, Lin Muqing turned around and saw her best friend holding one of her dresses, pretending to put it in her bag.
“This was a gift from your future mother-in-law. I have to make sure you bring it,” Ye Ziming said with a grin, then lowered his head to keep packing.
The message was clear, bring these cute little dresses along, and he’d figure out a way to get her to wear them later.
“What are you bringing them for? I’m not wearing them!”
“You’re still bringing them.”
Looking at the slightly irritated Lin Muqing, Ye Ziming raised an eyebrow and smiled.
It might have seemed like the earlier conversation was a failure, but he had noticed something, despite all her complaints, Lin Muqing never once said anything bad about being a girl. Oh? That meant maybe she didn’t hate it as much as she claimed. So in the end, Ye Ziming felt like he had still won.
“Hmph! I’m not talking to you anymore!”
She stomped her little foot, put her hands on her hips, and looked quite unhappy. Tossing out that final comment, she turned her head away with a deliberately pouty expression and left the room.
As she headed downstairs to help her mom prepare lunch, a strange question suddenly popped into her mind, between her boy self and her current girl self, which one did her buddy like more?
He used to take care of her a lot too, but starting this semester, he had become even more thoughtful. So… does that mean he prefers her as she is now?
What a weird feeling… As soon as she thought about being treated differently, it was like she was getting jealous of her own self.
“Mom, let me help you.”
Shaking her head hard to get rid of those strange thoughts, Lin Muqing walked into the kitchen to help.
The banquet would start in the evening, but it wouldn’t be held here. It was at another villa that also belonged to the Lin family.
That place was bigger and better suited for entertaining guests.
Before that, besides getting ready for the banquet, Lin Muqing also had to prepare to return to school in the southern part of the city. Today was the last day of vacation. After the banquet, she and Ye Ziming would leave the next morning.
Time was tight, but thankfully, they had arranged to take the morning off from school, saying it was due to a big family event that would be hard to leave in time.