Chapter 12

After sending off Ye Ermei and the others, Ye Xiaoyu carried a basket of tangerines and went to visit her neighbors.

In this era, neighborly relationships were warmer than in later years. Plus, it was hard not to be friendly when neighbors were so kind. Little LeLe, with his adorable and naïve charm, made it hard for the older folks not to tease him.

But the neighbor across the hall was different.

It turned out there was only one person living there, and she was a stunning beauty. With her captivating fox-like eyes, even the dark circles under her eyes couldn’t hide her allure.

Ye Xiaoyu snapped out of her daze, pointed at the opposite door, and lifted her basket of tangerines with a smile, “Sorry to bother you. LeLe and I just moved in today, and we wanted to say hello. We brought some fresh tangerines, they’re sweet—want to try one?”

“I don’t like tangerines. They’re too sour, even if they’re sweet,” the beautiful neighbor replied bluntly, then turned around without a word. A moment later, she came back holding a box of chocolates. “I have too much, take them.”

Ye Xiaoyu was a bit surprised—this lady wasn’t very good at small talk or building relationships, but she didn’t mind. Being someone who appreciated good looks, she immediately liked her and didn’t mind her prideful attitude. “I love sweets, thank you so much! By the way, do you like flower tea? I just bought some hibiscus, jasmine, and rose tea—they go perfectly with you.”

The neighbor raised an eyebrow. “?”

“They’re all beautiful, just like you,” Ye Xiaoyu sincerely complimented.

The neighbor finally smiled, her expression blooming like spring. “Alright, I’ll try your rose tea and see how well we match.”

Breaking the ice.

As they exchanged gifts, they introduced themselves.

The neighbor’s name was Yu Mingzhu. She had previously worked at a radio station, but because of her good looks, she was transferred to a nearby TV station. Now, with fewer housing opportunities from her work unit, she hadn’t moved yet, as her job was still in Yanjing.

Ye Xiaoyu didn’t pry into why her neighbor seemed down when talking about her work or ask any personal questions. After handing over a small tin of rose tea, she took LeLe by the hand and returned to her apartment.

Back home, she turned on the TV.

The TV in Teacher Li’s house wasn’t black and white, but color. However, the programs were still the same. She flipped through the channels with the remote, mostly news at this time, finally stopping on a traditional opera channel.

Ye Xiaoyu shifted the furniture around in the living room and laid out a mat from the bedroom on the floor.

Originally, she had planned to start her diet tomorrow, but seeing her neighbor, Yu Mingzhu—so beautiful and graceful—she couldn’t help but feel motivated to get in shape.

What woman doesn’t love beauty?

She needed to step up her game.

Ye Xiaoyu weighed herself at 227.5 pounds, which she found on an old-fashioned scale at a nearby shop. This weight was already considered “overweight,” and she was determined to lose weight. Creating a healthy weight-loss plan was unavoidable.

In her past life, Ye Xiaoyu was a food lover. Her body wasn’t prone to gaining weight easily, but it wasn’t immune either. If she couldn’t control her appetite, she had to exercise. She had always tried various activities, though her busy work schedule and inherent laziness often made it hard to maintain a routine.

The exercise she stuck with the longest was running and yoga, especially yoga, because it was convenient, quiet, and effective for body shaping. It also helped with posture and relaxation, making it a perfect match for her.

Ye Xiaoyu changed out of her coat into more flexible clothing and began her yoga practice.

This body was stronger and healthier than her previous one, with a lot of potential. Though each pose seemed painful, she could feel the body’s flexibility, more like a teenager’s than an adult’s. With continued practice, she hoped to master even the most difficult poses from her previous life, reaching the peak of her physical potential.

“Go, go, go!” Ye Xiaoyu kept encouraging herself, not wasting this rare opportunity to motivate herself, while Lele clapped beside her.

The little one, now and then, followed the TV and tried singing opera, then turned around to look at his mom, imitating her by rolling on the floor, busy and joyful.

After sweating a lot, Ye Xiaoyu, though unable to measure her weight, took a refreshing hot shower and, feeling exhausted but confident, thought she had lost two pounds.

She had dinner before 6 PM, then ate some fruit. That night, she only drank water and didn’t eat any snacks.

At night, without a doubt, Ye Xiaoyu and Lele slept in the same room.

The heating truly is one of the greatest inventions in the world. It makes the room comfortably warm, making it easy to fall asleep. They didn’t even need much of a story before both mother and child, one after the other, fell into a peaceful slumber.

The next morning, there was no trouble getting up because the bedding was too warm.

Lele could now dress himself for part of the clothes, though his short arms still couldn’t lift heavy sweaters, and he might get stuck trying to pull them over his head. However, he could wash his face on his own and apply baby lotion diligently.

This winter, the household’s highest consumption item was definitely the moisturizing cream, followed by hand cream. With the heating on, usage increased, and they would often apply it.

As soon as Ye Xiaoyu got up, she filled two cups with hot water from the kettle. It had just reached a warm temperature, and the mother and son both drank it before putting on their coats and taking a small stool to go outside.

Downstairs, they wandered to a nearby park.

There were many breakfast vendors selling buns for 50 cents each, steamed buns for 20 cents, and also douzhi (fermented mung bean drink), fried dough sticks, porridge, and tea eggs.

After asking around, Ye Xiaoyu bought a meat bun and a cup of douzhi for Lele, then found an empty spot by the flower bed, set down the stool, and let Lele sit on it to eat.

Meanwhile, she started a half-hour fat-burning workout, mostly jump rope. Running was also considered, but it wasn’t convenient with a child—adults running while a child can’t keep up, and she couldn’t let him out of her sight.

At this time, there were already people in the park doing morning exercises, mostly elderly people.

Of course, their exercises were slow-paced: some were walking, some were practicing boxing, or singing. Young people like Ye Xiaoyu, who were jump roping, stood out.

If Ye Xiaoyu were alone, there might have been no problem, with each of them doing their own thing.

However, Lele was seriously sipping his douzhi, nibbling on his meat bun, his round, tender face puffing up, looking like a little hamster, incredibly cute.

Because of this, after Ye Xiaoyu finished her workout, an elderly man and woman came over to chat. “How old is your child? Why isn’t he at school today?”

Ye Xiaoyu let Lele answer the first question and briefly added the second: “We just moved here. He’ll start school next year.” She kept other details to herself.

It was already November, and in another month or two, schools would break for the Chinese New Year holiday. It wasn’t worth sending him halfway through the term, so she planned to send Lele to school next semester.

She also wanted to spend more time with Lele alone in this unfamiliar environment, giving him a sense of security.

The elderly couple recommended some local kindergartens and even a primary school: “At five, he can attend a pre-school class. The pre-school class teaches a lot, and after a year and a half, he can go to primary school.”

“Exactly what I needed to know! Thank you so much for your help,” Ye Xiaoyu said with a smile, organizing the school information and details in her mind.

Seeing her truly paying attention, the elderly couple’s impression of her rose.

Ye Xiaoyu and Lele bid farewell to the group, then bought another breakfast. She carried the stool, and Lele held the jump rope as they went to the market on the way home, returning to the Huayuan residential area.

After resting for about an hour at home, doing nothing in particular, the mother and son played a round of Liar’s Dice.

This was the first time Lele played a game so closely with his mom. He easily became addicted, but after an hour, Ye Xiaoyu told him they could play again tomorrow. He immediately complied, neatly organizing the pieces and putting them away in the living room coffee table drawer, then ran back to her, eager for praise.

In the morning, Ye Xiaoyu took Lele out again.

This time, the purpose of the outing wasn’t very clear. They might go to a small market, or maybe be distracted by a construction site, or a familiar-sounding place name, or a bus station—almost like the whole city of Yanjing was their destination.

They had lunch at a restaurant.

Although Ye Xiaoyu was on a diet, she didn’t limit her lunch intake. Of course, it was different from the indulgent eating days from a few days ago. She tried to avoid heavy oils and spices.

In fact, many restaurants still hadn’t fully realized that strong flavors could mask many flaws. They were reluctant to add extra seasoning, so many restaurants served food close to its original taste.

There were so many delicious foods!

Ye Xiaoyu wished this time could last for a few more years, but regretted that her cooking skills weren’t good enough to bring this taste home.

“Ah—”

“Mom?”

Lele tilted his head.

Ye Xiaoyu patted his head like she was picking out a watermelon. Tonight, she cooked dinner.

In addition to vegetables, she steamed a fish.

Steaming the fish was really simple. The fish had already been prepared by the fish vendor at the market. She made crisscross cuts on both sides, rubbed salt and cooking wine on both sides, placed it in a dish, added some ginger, garlic, and spring onions, steamed it, and then poured hot peanut oil over it.

It tasted quite good, mainly because the fish was fresh.

Although the day’s exercise had been sufficient, before bed, Ye Xiaoyu still did a short yoga session, mostly to tone her muscles, improve circulation, and relieve fatigue. It didn’t last long, about twenty minutes.

Then, she took a relaxing hot bath.

The next day, she woke up and noticed that her muscles weren’t as sore as after the bike ride, but still a little stiff. Children’s energy was far stronger than that of adults, and Lele wasn’t affected at all.