One Can’t Judge by Appearance #1

Hey, first of all, thanks for reading my lousy Machine Translation. To be honest, I’d really like it if you guys corrected the mistakes I made. But please speak nicely and politely. My heart is not strong enough to read your too-harsh comments. Have a nice day. 🙂

Chapter 1. Dad

While Yan Xi was digging into the cup of ice cream, she listened to the aunt at the next table complaining about her son’s ex-girlfriend on her cell phone.

“She is dressed in a seductive way and wearing a lot of jewelry and cosmetics. She doesn’t look like someone who lives a peaceful life. She also has a body that can fall down in the wind. It is definitely not easy to have children.”

Yan Xi put down the spoon, wiped her mouth with a tissue, took out a mirror from her bag, and applied lipstick on herself.

“My son also said that he would bring her back during the Chinese New Year. I said, what is there to bring back with this kind of woman? The family can also save two red envelopes for the meeting…”

Speaking of interest, the aunt’s voice became louder and louder, causing several young people next to her to turn around frequently. Yan Xi even saw the contempt on the faces of those young people for the loud aunt.

Closing the mirror, Yan Xi put the mirror and lipstick back into her handbag, stood up, and walked to the door, where she met a familiar man.

“Xiao Xi…” The man hesitated to speak, his handsome face showing a bit of sadness and surprise.

“I’m a mighty river, the small stream1.” Yan Xi raised her wrist to look at the time, turned around, and walked out. They were not filming a bitter, sad idol drama. Why would he show this look to people?

But the man stopped in front of her.

During the airport announcement, the ground staff’s voice was as gentle as water, reminding them which flight was delayed due to weather conditions. Yan Xi looked at the person blocking her. Her hand holding the bag felt itchy.

“Mingdong,” the aunt who was talking loudly on the phone just now came over. She glanced at Yan Xi, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s okay,” Chen Mingdong shook his head, “Mom, you go sit down and rest first.”

“So you are mother and son,” Yan Xi recalled what the aunt said when she was on the phone. She raised her eyebrows, turned to Mrs. Chen, and said, “Then both of you are quite similar.”

After saying that, no matter what Chen Mingdong thought, she avoided him and prepared to find the boarding gate.

“Xiao Xi.” Chen Mingdong was so anxious that he reached out to grab Yan Xi’s wrist.

The moment she saw Chen Mingdong dare to stretch out his paw, Yan Xi smashed the bag in her hand. After hitting it, she felt a little distressed. She had only bought this bag two days ago. It was her favorite. Who would care if it was broken? 

“Didn’t your family tell you that men do not touch girls without their consent, it’s called nasty and untutored?” Yan Xi rolled her eyes, “Go away, don’t block the way of this old mother2.”

Mother Chen didn’t expect that this girl, who looked weak and easy to bully, would take action when she spoke. She was so angry that she wanted to curse, but her son stopped her before she could say the ugly words.

“Mingdong, who is this girl? She has such a bad temper…”

Chen Mingdong ignored Mother Chen’s complaints. He looked at the direction Yan Xi was leaving and whispered, “Okay, Mom, stop making trouble. Everyone around you is watching.”

Yan Xi walked to the waiting area at the boarding gate, found a seat, stopped, took out her mobile phone, and sent a message to her Wechat Moments.

The mighty river, I am a stream: I encounter a fool, pure me! [With a picture of an ugly crying Shar-Pei dong]

The enmity between her and Chen Mingdong can be roughly classified as the most old-fashioned and best-selling last-ditch dog-blood3 novel. Chen Mingdong was regarded as a popular figure in the school back then, the secretary of the Youth League branch of the Student Union. He was white and handsome. Her girly heart could not hold it for a while under Chen Mingdong’s pursuit, so she agreed.

It’s a pity that the man in this style of the hero also has a love debt4. During the summer vacation, this one cheated on her, and her classmate was the object of the cheating. Given that she was born with a pitiful appearance, she hadn’t said anything, and others automatically sympathized with her.

Many people later disregarded this pair of dog men and women, so when she graduated from university, Xiao Sanr5 scolded her as Bai Lian Hua. What’s wrong with the white lotus? The white lotus is also a delicate flower, better than the shameless mistress.

She hasn’t seen him in two or three years, but the cheating man’s leg hasn’t been broken yet6, so she counts him as having a strong leg.

After playing the game on her phone for a while, she clicked on her circle of friends and saw that her friends who were in regular contact with her gave her likes, asked her what the dog did wrong, and requested her to take the pot back7.

Just at this moment, the plane started to check in. She stuffed her phone into her bag, got up, and queued up.

It took about two hours to fly from Haicheng to the Imperial Capital. After Yan Xi turned off her mobile phone, she slept through the whole journey. When she got off the plane and went to the carousel to pick up her suitcase, her mind was still a little dizzy.

People were coming and going at the Imperial Capital Airport. She had not been to the Imperial Capital for many years. She felt a little bit timid about the homesickness in her heart.

Walking out along the flow of people, she accidentally stepped on the foot of the person next to her. She turned around and apologized.

“Excuse me.”

The man she stepped on was over half a head taller than her. When she apologized, he didn’t even lower his head. He moved the corners of his lips: “It doesn’t matter, I’m used to it.”

Yan Xi:?

Most tall people have long legs. Yan Xi looked up and saw only the back of the other person’s head. His thick black hair was combed into a neat hairstyle, giving off an air of indifference and unattainable elitism.

Walking out of the passage, Yan Xi saw her dad in the crowd, not because of the strong telepathy between father and daughter, but because the gold watch on her dad’s wrist was too dazzling.

“Yan Yan,” Song Hai saw Yan Xi with a bright smile and waved to her constantly. Taking advantage of the opportunity when her daughter walked over, he said to the secretary next to him, “This is my daughter, is she even more beautiful than those celebrities on TV?”

The secretary smiled and nodded: “Your daughter’s eyebrows look like you.”

“That’s not true. When I took her out when she was a child, others said she looked exactly like me.” Song Hai touched his fat belly, “It’s good for my daughter to look like her father. She is blessed.”

The secretary thought to himself, this Song daughter is really unlucky.

“Dad,” Yan Xi trotted up to Song Hai, “you have gained a lot of weight.”

Song Hai laughed and took the suitcase from his daughter’s hand. “When you come back this time, how about settling down in the Imperial capital?” His tone was cautiously flattering. His fat body bowed slightly as if afraid of Yan Xi’s words. Say a word, “No.”

Yan Xi looked at Song Hai, reached out to hold his arm, and smiled, “Okay.”

“That’s good, that’s good,” Song Hai was so excited that the flesh on his face was shaking, “Go home and see what else you need. Dad will accompany you to buy it tomorrow.”

Yan Xi smiled and turned her head to look at Song Hai: “You won’t go to work tomorrow?”

“Work is not as important as my daughter,” Song Hai carried the suitcase boldly, wishing he could carry Yan Xi’s suitcase on his shoulders to show his excitement for his daughter.

Nine years ago, he divorced his ex-wife amicably. His ex-wife prefers art, and he is a self-made businessman with a copper smell. The different values ​​between the two are getting bigger. In the end, this marriage that has lasted for more than ten years can only be ended. Since then, his ex-wife and daughter have lived in Haicheng, and he has lived in the Imperial capital.

He has not remarried in recent years, and his ex-wife seems to have no interest in other men. They live a quiet life without disturbing each other. Song Hai’s only regret is that he can’t see his daughter often, and his daughter’s name has even been changed from Song Yan to Yan Xi.

His ex-wife died of illness two years ago, and his daughter has not graduated from college. Later, she had to deal with the assets left by his ex-wife, so she delayed coming to the imperial capital for two years. Although he has kept in constant contact with his daughter over the years and even helped handle his ex-wife’s funeral two years ago, he doesn’t spend much time with his daughter. He worries that his daughter is alienated from him as a father.

Now, seeing his daughter take the initiative to hold his arm, his weight of 180 kilograms seemed to have instantly become 80 kilograms, and his whole body was floating.

After the father and daughter got into the car, Song Hai took out a bottle of drink from the small refrigerator and said, “Yan Yan, here.”

When Yan Xi saw this drink brand, she felt sour and sweet at the same time. She liked this drink very much as a child when her family’s conditions were still average. Her father always carried her to small shops in the community to buy it; he never disapproved of her spending money.

In the blink of an eye, more than ten years have passed. This drink has changed its packaging countless times, and even the boss behind it has changed, but her father still remembers her taste. Unable to bear to tell her father that she had stopped drinking this brand of drink, Yan Xi took several sips and turned around to see a satisfied smile on her father’s face.

“We have a swimming pool and a small garden at home. You can raise pets, plant flowers, or swim if you want,” Song Hai rubbed his hands in embarrassment, “It’s just that there is no one at home, so it’s a bit deserted.”

He lives alone and is not very particular. He often eats out and stays in hotels, so no one else is at home except for hourly workers to clean.

“It doesn’t matter, it will be lively when I get home.” Yan Xi looked at the slowly falling night outside the car window and let out a long breath.

Nine years later, the Imperial Capital still seems the same but isn’t the same city she remembers.

The villa Song Hai bought was not big, with three floors, including the basement. There was a flower shed on the top floor and a garden, garage, and swimming pool downstairs. Although not a typical wealthy household, it is also a huge asset in the Imperial Capital. Still, it made people envious.

Yan Xi opened the door to her room. The decoration inside was exquisite, but this was obviously different from her father’s aesthetic style.

“I originally thought it would look good if the wall was made pink, but my secretary and assistant said that young people like modern European, bohemian, etc. I can’t figure out the difference between these styles and that style. We hired a designer to decorate it. Song Hai put the suitcase against the wall. “If you don’t like it, I’ll have someone reinstall it for you tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Dad,” Yan Xi turned around and hugged Song Hai, “I like it very much.”

“As long as you like it, as long as you like it,” Song Hai smiled and walked around the room before remembering that his daughter hadn’t eaten yet. “You take a shower and change clothes first, and I’ll go downstairs to cook. It will be ready in a few minutes.”

Seeing her father’s fat body coming downstairs in a hurry, Yan Xi walked into the house and opened the closet. All kinds of clothes and skirts were hanging inside, as well as many pairs of shoes. Some of the shoes were ugly, but Yan Xi smiled.

No wonder her dad asked her on the phone what color she liked a few days ago. It turned out to be this.

Footnote:

  1. What Yan Xi says here is a play on words; her name he calls ‘Xiao Xi’ means small stream, and she says, “I’m a mighty river.” This refers to her other nickname, ‘Dahe,’ the name her close friend calls her. There’s this sentence a correlation with what she says; ‘dàhé yǒu shuĭ xiăohé măn, dàhé wú shuĭ xiăohé gān’; The small streams rise when the mainstream is high, or when the mainstream is low, the small stream run dry. Individual well-being depends on collective prosperity. In a simple way- Yan Xi says fuck off to him ↩︎
  2. Old mother is a dialect used by harridan to refer to herself ↩︎
  3. Dog Blood means poor plots or story-line ↩︎
  4. Fēng liú zhài means love debt / moral obligation in consequence of a love affair / karmic consequences of a love affair ↩︎
  5. Xiao Sanr means Mistress girl/the third person. Bái Lián huā means White lotus flower. 1) Kind, innocent, lovable, good people. 2) People who pretend to be kind, innocent, and lovable. ↩︎
  6. The cheating man’s leg hasn’t been broken yet, = The cheating man’s entanglement has not ended yet. It’s my own understanding ↩︎
  7. Take the pot back; it’s the same as taking words back ↩︎

11 thoughts on “One Can’t Judge by Appearance #1

  1. $400 in two years?!

    Domain name from squarespace is $12+/year depending on the name (ex. Assibuntulu.com is currently $12/year on domains.squarespace.com). You can make a website for free on Google Sites, and connect your domain name to it.

    This is what I do, I pay $12/year + tax for my domain name and use Google Sites to create and host my site, because my site is a hobby and I don’t get paid or make any money off of it.

    • Assibuntulu is still a free website- that’s why the domain still wordpress.com. Why do I need to pay for the domain that still has the hosting name tagging on mine? Assume I changed it to Assibuntulu.squarspace.com.

      The pay one is aiworkroom. The hosting I used. FYI, After looking at so many hosting options, the one I used was the cheapest one in my country. In my location- I can not buy a domain without paying for the hosting website. I can’t use the Google One for Assibuntulu- because, in my country, WordPress doesn’t have the option for PayPal payment or debit card payment. It just has a credit card- and I don’t have a CC to use.

      Same as you, I translated for hobby at first- then I saw someone copying my projects to their website with these ads on it. I feel bad, that’s the solid reason why I buy a hosting + domain. If the website copies my project, it’s a free domain (blogspot.com or wordpress.com). I don’t mind it. Because I know I am a lousy translator.

      I checked the Squarespace you say. The only option I have in my country for using Squarespace is either paying for a Personal plan or a Business. For the Personal one, I need to pay annually 187.54 USD for a year’s normal price. I got a discount for the first year 31% so for the first year I just need to pay 131.28 USD. But for my personal website plan- I can’t use ads, and the domain option is limited.

      Assume I want to choose the better one, business plan. I need to pay 273.49 USD with the normal price, cut it discount by 30% first-year payment, I need to pay 191.44 USD.

      Every country has different adjustments and the price I write upstairs before tax.

      Let’s elaborate on Squarespace payment. There’s no option in my country to buy a domain without paying for the hosting. It’s the whole package here.

      Personal Plan
      1-year payment discount 31%: 131.28 USD
      2-year normal price: 187.54 USD
      = 318.82 for two years with the benefit
      – Mobile-optimized websites
      – Templates to fit every need
      – Free custom domain* (limited option)

      Business Plan
      1-year payment discount 30%: 191.44 USD
      2-year normal price: 273.49 USD
      = 464.93 for two years with benefit
      – Mobile-optimized websites
      – Fully integrated ecommerce 3% transaction fee
      – Checkout on your domain
      – Templates to fit every need
      – Free custom domain
      – Advanced website analytics

      aiworkroom used Business Plan type
      400 USD is still cheaper than the Squarespace Business Plan, 464.93 USD.

    • I did. The cheapest one is actually (google wordpress) but need a credit card payment. I do not have one. There is no paypal payment option for my country option.

      Hostiger is okay, but than I think to move all the data from this hosting to new hosting is a little bit complicated. Not like I can’t study it. But better just focusing to translating more?

      All hosting actually is cheap for first year payment, the next year they will give us the normal price. Thinking I need to move the data every year looking for the cheap hosting kinda scared me.

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