Thinking of Aunt Hua, Nuannuan remembered that there had been a phone call from Dadao Village saying they wanted her to come back once. The bus station was completed, and now it was time to settle the compensation issues. For the initial shop Qin Xiangnuan had, she didn’t ask for monetary compensation but for a shop front instead. Indeed, she topped it off with roughly two shop fronts; one was not very large, just over twenty square meters, so both combined were nearly fifty square meters.
She now had two more pieces of real estate. Although it wasn’t clear how much they were worth at present, they would certainly be lucrative in the future. The bus station was an area of high foot traffic, and opening any kind of shop there, selling anything, would be profitable.
However, to select a shop, Qin Xiangnuan would need to go back herself.
But for now, she was waiting for Qin Xiangyang to help her for a couple of days over the weekend.
Why go back to the village? Seeing Qin Xiangnuan recently preoccupied with this matter, Jian Zhiqing felt uneasy about her going alone. After all, a young girl being out and about is not too safe.
Yes, I’ve been thinking about it recently, Qin Xiangnuan lifted her eyelashes, thinking about the issue of selecting the shop. She was quite worried; she didn’t know which spot she would be able to pick. What she really wanted was a shop on the first floor close to the roadside. She was worried someone else might take it, so she was somewhat anxious.
Jian Zhiqing patted her head, "No worries, Brother Jian will go with you, so those people can’t take advantage of you being a young girl."
Qin Xiangnuan’s biggest concern was exactly that. She wanted to go with her brother, but given his character, he could only be considered a supporting pillar—too honest and easily fooled. If it was Jian Zhiqing, it would be different.
Because her Brother Jian was essentially a crafty old fox in human skin, a cold-faced one at that.
"Does Brother Jian have time?" she asked uncertainly. She couldn’t let him take leaves frequently because of her matters. She felt she owed too much already. How could she repay it?
"Don’t worry, I can always find time for a leave," Jian Zhiqing did not answer yes or no, but if he said he could find time, he could.
"And..." He tapped Qin Xiangnuan’s forehead.
"Nuannuan, Brother Jian has something to tell you."
"Okay," Qin Xiangnuan sat up straight, feeling suddenly solemn. Was she being too serious? Had she made some mistake?
"No need to be so serious," Jian Zhiqing withdrew his finger and tapped gently on the stone table.
"Nuannuan, Brother Jian isn’t an outsider, right? We’ve known each other for over a decade."
Qin Tongnuan smiled. Of course, they were not outsiders now. Although she wasn’t sure how to define their relationship, they were certainly not strangers; they were closer than friends, more intimate, yet not exactly relatives since they weren’t related by blood.
So, it was a relationship that was closer, and better, than friendship.
Jian Zhiqing once again lifted his hand, placing it on the top of Qin Xiangnuan’s head.
"Brother Jian isn’t an outsider; you don’t need to wrap yourself up so tightly every day. Girls naturally develop during puberty; you can’t stop yourself from growing up or getting old. Changes in the body follow time naturally, and Brother Jian won’t laugh at you. At home, be more casual. You’re not that old yet; be careful not to suppress too much—it’s not good for your health."
Qin Xiangnuan felt her ears redden, thinking of the tight chest binder she was wearing that made it hard for her to breathe.
Indeed, it was uncomfortable to continue binding her chest so tightly, but she felt rather embarrassed to be seen without it. She knew Jian Zhiqing was right, but having grown such much suddenly after getting off the plane was a bit...
Every time her chest tightened, she regretted why she had taken so much medicine all at once; she had overdone it.
Jian Zhiqing did not continue the topic. He crossed his legs and said, "Whenever you plan to go, just tell Brother Jian." His long lashes fluttered slightly, the dark depths of his hidden pupils were profound and obscure, a faint, indescribable halo falling within. Occasionally looking at him, Qin Xiangnuan felt like she was floating in the universe, wanting to get closer, yet also afraid of it.
She nodded, having never really said anything in the end.
As for whether or not to wear a chest binder in the future, she thought she needed some courage.
Calculating the time, Qin Xiangnuan planned to go over the weekend. She had already spoken to her brother to take care of her shop for two days until she returned on Monday. After settling the shop at the bus station, there wouldn’t be much else to do. Right, she should also visit Granny Lu.
After removing the chest binder, she instantly felt much more relaxed, and even her breathing smoothed out. She took a shirt and tried to put it on, only to find the buttons wouldn’t close, or if they did, they might snap open.
She was speechless about this, it was fine when she was bound, but without it, it seemed she could no longer wear this shirt. She felt it was still best to wear a loose pullover.
She entered the system and pulled out a few meters of cotton fabric, plain with small flowers, to make herself a few clothes—home clothes didn’t need to be fancy; as long as they were comfortable, they just had to cover her chest well, not looking too big, without her having to bind it.
And she decided to listen to Jian Zhiqing’s advice to not wear a chest binder at home.
She was afraid of causing problems by continuing to bind it, as she was genuinely growing, not afraid of not developing, but afraid of damaging herself.
The clothes she wanted to make were simple, not difficult to make, usually just needing a few cuts and pressing down some lines. To not highlight her chest, she made an elastic waistband and folded several pleats, making it quite comfortable to wear, though it still somewhat accentuated her chest.
She knew it wasn’t a problem with the clothes but rather her own body shape. The neckline she made wasn’t too low, using elastic so it wouldn’t expose too much whether she bent down or did anything else. The sleeves she chose were medium-short, just at the elbows—given the current era, which was somewhat feudal, she couldn’t show too much. Nowadays, if she didn’t wear long sleeves or something like mini sleeves, she might get beaten and scolded for being "corrupt and decadent" when going out.
Although the clothes were not very fashionable and lacked style standards, they were suitable for now.
Nevertheless, she truly felt much more relaxed.
When Jian Zhiqing returned, she had already put the food she cooked on the table—cold cucumber and green beans, stir-fried shredded potatoes, steamed buns and rolls that were not too big, just two bites to finish, and also red bean porridge.