The Young Girl's Chronicles of Demon-Slaying

Chapter 7: Shopping

Adopting a child is no simple matter. Not only does it require the consent of one’s family, but according to regulations, adopting a minor who has reached the age of ten also requires the consent of the child to be adopted. The idea of adopting Fang Heng had simply popped into Lin Yuqin’s head on a whim. She had been somewhat hesitant at first, as she hadn’t yet discussed such a major decision with her husband, Song Wencheng. But she figured it wouldn’t hurt to check with the police first to get the facts straight. Moreover, it would be even better if the girl could stay with them for a while to get to know each other better. As it turned out, she received a satisfactory response: a minimum of one week, and at most half a month—that should be enough time for them to get to know each other a little, right? Lin Yuqin walked back into the room with a spring in her step. She saw Fang Heng still watching TV—though it was currently showing commercials—and said, “Fang Heng… I’ll call you Hengheng! The police officer said you can stay here for a few days. What do you think?” Hengheng…… It was actually the first time anyone had called him that. It sounded a bit awkward, but he couldn’t really think of a reason to object to any other name, so he just went along with it and said, “I don’t mind.” A temporary stay is a temporary stay! It’s all the same wherever I stay, anyway, Fang Heng thought. Seeing that Fang Heng had agreed, Lin Yuqin felt she’d successfully taken the first step. Next, she would use the time he spent staying here to make him feel the warmth of a home—then he’d surely agree to be adopted by her! But before that, she’d let him experience a little maternal love first! “It’s boring staying home on a Sunday. Since it’s still early, let’s go for a walk!” Strange—why did it seem like this aunt’s mood had brightened up after he agreed to stay temporarily…? Was it just his imagination? Fang Heng thought about it for a moment. He figured going for a stroll wouldn’t be a bad idea. With everything that had happened recently, his head was throbbing. Going out for a walk and getting some fresh air was definitely better than sitting here watching boring cartoons, so he nodded and agreed, “Okay!” With the decision made, the two of them sprang into action. Fang Heng only had one set of clothes—the ones he was wearing—so there was nothing to change into. Lin Yuqin, on the other hand, went upstairs, changed into a different outfit, tidied her hair a bit, slung her bag over her shoulder, and then, taking Fang Heng’s hand, stepped out the door. The weather in May wasn’t too hot yet; the temperature hovered around twenty-three or twenty-four, which was just right. The Sun felt warm on their skin without being overly hot. Once they stepped out onto the street, Lin Yuqin hailed a taxi right away. Once they were in the car and Lin Yuqin had given the address, Fang Heng suddenly realized that what he had thought of as a “stroll” seemed to have a slightly different meaning than what Lin Yuqin had in mind. His idea of a “stroll” was actually just that—a stroll—but Lin Yuqin’s version didn’t seem to be a stroll at all; was she planning to go shopping instead? However, since he’d already followed her out, it wouldn’t do to back out now. He could only sit in the car, and they soon arrived at their destination—Nan’an Pedestrian Street. Although Fang Heng hadn’t been in Yashan City for very long, he’d heard a bit about it. Mainly, whenever his female coworkers talked about shopping, this pedestrian street—just a few stops away from the office—was invariably their top choice. This pedestrian street wasn’t very long, but it was quite famous in Yashan City because the shops here mainly sold women’s goods—all kinds of women’s clothing, cosmetics, gold and silver jewelry, and so on. It was well-known among women and considered one of their top shopping destinations. After getting off the bus, standing among the crowd of people coming and going—regardless of height, weight, or age—he could see that most of those walking in groups were women, with only a small number of men. Undoubtedly, most of these men were there to accompany their wives or girlfriends. He’d long been curious about this place, and male colleagues had mentioned it in casual conversation—just as Liberation Monument is the best spot in Gaoqing to see beautiful women, Nan’an Pedestrian Street in Nan’an District is the best place in Yashan City to see them. There are plenty of beautiful women here, and they’re top-notch—from married women to young girls to mature ladies, from white-collar workers to blue-collar powerhouses, you name it. Each one is dressed in light, airy, and eye-catching outfits. As long as you’re not afraid of being dazzled, sitting here lets you take in every beautiful woman in Yashan City. There are even seasoned veterans who claim to know a few prime spots where you can get the best angles to see the widest variety of beautiful women. To be honest, he was a bit interested in this, but before he could hop in the veteran’s car, he ended up in his current state—which is truly a sad state of affairs. At the entrance to the pedestrian street is a fairly spacious little Square with a fountain. Surrounding the fountain are some flower beds and long stone benches for resting. Back then, that “veteran” had been all mysterious and didn’t go into detail, but he figured the so-called “prime spots” must be right here on this Square, right? Standing here now and glancing around, he did indeed see quite a few people sitting on the long stone benches in the Square—though the age range was quite broad, with men, women, and children of all ages—so it was hard to tell for sure if this was really the place. However, he didn’t have much time to ponder this, because Lin Yuqin was already pulling him further inside. As soon as they stepped onto the street, several women’s lingerie stores were clustered right at the entrance, as if afraid people wouldn’t notice them. He couldn’t help but glance inside—not out of any ulterior motive, but purely out of natural male curiosity; he just wanted to take a look. However, Lin Yuqin noticed what he was doing and said, “There’s no rush—we can buy it when we get out!” Buy it when we get out? What does that mean? Although it was a simple, straightforward statement, Fang Heng sensed a vague sense of foreboding in it. Recalling what Lin Yuqin had said earlier while combing his hair, he couldn’t help but shiver, and a thought crossed his mind: Could it be that the whole point of this shopping trip was just to buy him clothes? Before they left, he’d never thought of it that way. After all, he and Lin Yuqin weren’t related or acquainted—why would she be so kind to him? Maybe she was just shopping for herself? Hoping for the best, Fang Heng followed Lin Yuqin and soon entered a clothing store. The store sold women’s clothing, with a particularly wide selection of dresses. The shopkeeper warmly greeted them as they entered. Lin Yuqin began browsing, while Fang Heng quietly followed, looking around. While she was shopping, Lin Yuqin didn’t ignore Fang Heng; every now and then, she’d hold up a garment she liked, try it on, and ask for his opinion. Opinion? What could he possibly say? Other than “it looks good,” there wasn’t much else to say. To be honest, Lin Yuqin really takes good care of herself. Even though she’s clearly in her forties, she looks like she’s in her early thirties. She dresses with taste, puts outfits together perfectly, and is naturally beautiful—she has a very artistic air about her that complements Song Wencheng’s good looks perfectly. I imagine their son must have inherited those excellent genes and be quite handsome, too. Perhaps out of sheer boredom, Fang Heng had unconsciously let his mind wander. Lin Yuqin, who had been enthusiastically trying on clothes, turned her head to ask Fang Heng for his opinion again, only to catch him daydreaming. She couldn’t help but slap her forehead in frustration, remembering why she’d brought Fang Heng along in the first place. She’d clearly come to buy clothes for the little girl—so why had she started shopping for herself the moment they walked in? Finally remembering why she was there, Lin Yuqin handed the clothes she’d been trying on back to the shopkeeper, cutting off the shopkeeper’s stream of praise mid-sentence. She muttered an “Excuse me,” then, as the shopkeeper looked on in confusion, took Fang Heng’s hand and walked out of the store. Not only was the shopkeeper baffled, but even Fang Heng was a bit puzzled: “Aren’t we buying it? It looks pretty nice.” A beautiful person looks good in anything. Lin Yuqin turned her head and said, “I’m not in a rush for myself. I came out today specifically to buy clothes for you.” Just as he’d feared, her blunt words instantly extinguished the sliver of hope in Fang Heng’s heart. He hurriedly said, “I don’t need one for myself, do I? I already have one, so there’s no need to buy another!” “How can that be? Just one outfit—how will you have something to change into?” Lin Yuqin reassured him, “Don’t worry. The clothes Auntie buys for you will definitely be stylish and beautiful—they’ll suit you perfectly.” That was exactly what he was worried about! “Do we really need to?” Fang Heng protested. “It’s fine!” Lin Yuqin insisted. Seeing that Lin Yuqin was adamant—and realizing that one outfit really wouldn’t be enough for changing—Fang Heng had no choice but to settle for the next best option. “Then no skirt!” he said. “No skirt?” Lin Yuqin found this a bit strange. She looked at Fang Heng and said, “It’s so hot in the summer—if you don’t wear a skirt, what are you going to wear? Girls look prettyest in skirts!” “I just don’t want a skirt,” Fang Heng shook his head firmly. “Otherwise, let’s not buy it at all.” Seeing how firm Fang Heng was, Lin Yuqin didn’t dare to be too stubborn and had to give in: “All right! If you don’t want a skirt, then so be it.” Even without a skirt, there were plenty of clothes that looked just like skirts! That’s the advantage women have—clothing styles are far more varied and intricate than men’s, so a simple “no skirts” isn’t enough to limit the options. The two reached a compromise. Fang Heng knew there was no getting around it, so he could only obediently follow Lin Yuqin as they browsed shop after shop. The so-called “women’s goods” on this pedestrian street weren’t limited to adult women’s clothing; they also included children’s clothing for both boys and girls, as well as baby and toddler items. After all, the term “women” also encompasses the noble title of “mother,” so the merchandise naturally had to include this category as well. It’s perfectly normal for moms to pick up a few items for their children while shopping for themselves. Right now, Lin Yuqin was acting just like a mom, taking her “daughter” out to buy clothes. Judging by her enthusiastic energy—far greater than when shopping for herself—she’d take down any clothes that caught her eye to try them on. If she was satisfied, she’d start haggling, knocking off five or ten yuan, and then have them wrapped up right away. Throughout this process, Fang Heng felt as if he were a plastic mannequin standing in a store window—clothes being put on and taken off, taken off and put on, over and over again. At first, he was quite shy and self-conscious, but after doing it so many times, he eventually became numb to it. When the two of them were walking back along the same route, carrying bags of all sizes, and were about to leave the pedestrian street, Lin Yuqin suddenly stopped and said, “I almost forgot!” “What is it?” Fang Heng felt completely bewildered; after trying on and taking off clothes in front of the mirror so many times, he no longer knew whether he was a man or a woman. “We still haven’t bought underwear!” Lin Yuqin turned and headed straight for a lingerie store on the side of the street. Fang Heng didn’t react right away. It wasn’t until Lin Yuqin noticed he hadn’t followed and started urging him on that he finally trailed after her, his face expressionless and his body stiff. I wonder if it’s too late to pretend I have a headache now? (End of Chapter)