Life Plan

Chapter 36, Styling

The last typhoon of the year arrived with the New Year, and the New Year's Day holiday was submerged in the heavy rain after the typhoon. The white noise of the rain hitting the window made Liu groggy and unwilling to get out of bed even after waking up late.

Liu Chunhong pushed open her door for the third time, and a cold wind rushed into the room. She buried her head under the covers. But Liu Chunhong didn't give her much of a chance. She rushed to the bedside, grabbed the corner of the blanket, and yanked it off. Liu Chichi felt a sudden chill and her ears started ringing, but her mother's voice was even louder: "Get up quickly, Xiao Li's parents will be here soon."

"Who?" Upon hearing her mother's words, Liu Chichi felt her tinnitus grow even louder, and even wondered if she was hallucinating.

"He Qing's parents."

Liu Chichi no longer felt cold. The blanket fell back onto her body as if a layer of cold air had been placed over her, but she felt nothing.

All I could see was Liu Chunhong wearing a turtleneck sweater and a brown vest, with her old trench coat on top, a black belt around her waist, and her hair looked like it had just come from a hair salon, styled with curling iron and hairspray, and her lips were an exaggeratedly red.

Liu Chunhong tossed a set of clothes onto her bed: a sleeveless corduroy dress, a knitted fitted sweater, and a plaid coat—all clothes Liu had never seen before. A quick glance confirmed it was impossible for her to recognize them, as Liu Chunhong was currently removing the tags and care labels from the coat's collar.

Under the pressure of Liu Chunhong's gaze, Liu Chichi didn't dare to say a word. She put on her clothes and followed her mother out the door. They stopped in front of a styling studio.

The exquisite decor made Liu Chichi hesitate to enter, but Liu Chunhong urged her to come in. While sitting awkwardly in the waiting area, Liu Chichi couldn't help but take out her phone to check if there were any group-buying discounts and whether she could afford the average cost per person.

As she kept switching between apps, trying to find the best deal on group buying, the ever-frugal Liu Chunhong pointed to the highest tier and said, "This is it."

Liu Chichi glanced at it—1688, so expensive that she gasped.

She lay on the sofa chair as a young girl applied a face mask to her, then gently washed her hair, blow-dried it until it was half-dry, applied hair oil, and then completely dried it before attaching an exaggerated curling iron.

A girl with a large amount of glittery makeup handed her a photo album: "This is a showcase of our past makeup looks. What you see is what you get. You can choose the ones you like."

Liu Chichi turned to the second page and saw a woman with black eyebrows and red lips, so beautiful she looked like a painting behind a mirror. She had only lingered there for half a minute when Liu Chunhong reached out and turned the page for her: "Choose a gentle and obedient one. I didn't choose one just to make you look good."

The girl next to me flipped through the photo album again. Under the makeup light, the glitter on her face was exaggerated and eye-catching. Her words also carried a sense of self-will: "Choose whatever you like. We're here to look good."

Liu Chunhong flipped through the pile again: "I don't like this one."

The girl leaned closer to Liu Chichi: "Pick one you like."

Liu Chunhong frowned and slammed the photo album shut with a sharp "snap." "Can't you understand?"

The woman carrying a makeup bag immediately approached with a fawning smile, shooing the girl behind her: "Xiaoting is new here and doesn't know any better; her taste isn't great." She quickly flipped the page to the middle, where a girl with a neat side bun and nude makeup looked up obediently at the camera, her expression innocent yet slightly ingratiating. She said to Liu Chunhong, "Your daughter has fair skin and a serene demeanor; what do you think of this one?"

Liu Chunhong glanced at it, satisfied but also somewhat worried: "Today is the first time meeting the man's parents. Does this seem immature?"

"How could that be? Young girls are easier to marry off, and as the old saying goes, a man's favorite age is eighteen." The stylist, with his keen eye, immediately sensed that this potential bride's family might be well-off, and proceeded to say something in that direction, "This hairstyle also makes her look sensible and virtuous. What family wouldn't want a good daughter-in-law? Don't you agree?"

After the photo album was taken away, Liu Chichi kept her head down and listened silently to her mother and stylist's conversation. When she looked up again, she saw her mother's satisfied smile in the mirror. Her mother pointed to the photo and asked, "Chichi, is this one good?"

"Okay." Liu Chichi nodded with a smile. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Xiaoting roll her eyes and turn to leave. The spotlights above her were too bright, and the glitter on her face was unusually white when she turned around.

She was getting her hair washed at nine o'clock. She remembered receiving a video call from Jiang Xiaonv just as she lay down. When she checked her phone again, it was still 10:30. The stylist was drawing her eyebrows.

She idly scrolled through her phone, looking at her chat history with Jiang Xiaonv, and even started searching for the meaning of the sign language Jiang Xiaonv was using.

When she flipped to two weeks ago, she suddenly felt something was off. Jiang Xiaonv had very few clothes, but this black cotton coat appeared very often, with only the inner layer changing.

Two weeks ago, in the video, Jiang Xiaonv was wearing a blue collared shirt underneath, which was Sun Zhixiao's junior high school graduation uniform. Liu Chichi couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong. She quickly scrolled back and found that in today's video, she was also wearing a blue shirt under a black cotton jacket.

Two weeks ago, before the typhoon arrived, the sun was shining brightly, and people at home wore shirts under down jackets; the temperature was just right. But today, with wind and rain, Liu Chichi remembered that they rented an old house with a courtyard in the middle. In this weather, the wind and rain had long since poured into the balcony from the courtyard. The thin windows couldn't keep out the cold air, and the only old air conditioner on the background wall was locked.

Jiang Xiaonv's ponytail never changes, her messy bangs, and her ever-present black cotton-padded jacket—everything looks the same.

Even the hand gesture for the official sign language word "health" is the same: place both hands on the chest, move them slightly downwards, clench your fists, extend your thumbs, and press them down.

It's the same every day.

only……

These two are too similar, even the duration is only slightly shorter.

Liu Chichi downloaded the two videos again and used editing software to stitch them together. Sure enough, the gestures and movements were exactly the same—it was an old video from two weeks ago.

One of the biggest problems with clinical trials is "subject lying." No matter how many times you are told to fill in the forms truthfully, regardless of the effects and side effects of the medication, there are still stubborn people who choose to lie.

Some people worry about losing their eligibility to take the medication if they report side effects, while others want to quit midway but choose to exaggerate the side effects because they think the doctor will charge them extra money. Some even use the trial to cause trouble for medical staff.

Jiang Xiaonv was very compliant. Even when she was arrested, Liu Chichi suspected her of murder but never of lying.

Jiang Xiaonv does have some social anxiety, or perhaps she chose the wrong video option. To avoid misunderstanding her, Liu Chichi tentatively inquired about her health, mentioning the cooler weather.

There was no reply for a while after the message was sent. It was morning, so perhaps Jiang Xiaonv was busy. Sun Zhixiao was already on winter break, so she wasn't worried that Jiang Xiaonv wouldn't be able to reply to her message.

After a while, Jiang Xiaonv sent two words: 【No】

Liu Chichi asked again: "Did you record anything in your diary card today?"

【Have】

Don't forget to take a picture and send it to me.

A few more minutes passed, and the makeup artist's powder puff made her cheekbones ache before Jiang Xiaonv finally sent a photo. Today's diary card had another smiley face drawn on it, all in a flamboyant style, looking both anxious and in a good mood.

Liu Chichi got to the point: "Did I choose the wrong video for today? It's exactly the same as the one from two weeks ago, showing my medication status that day."

Jiang Xiaonv took a long time to send a message: 【Wait】【Cooking】

Since it concerned her own well-being and was a normal inquiry, Liu Chichi didn't think the other party would hide anything. After asking one more question, she turned off her phone and closed her eyes to endure the various powders falling on her.

It wasn't until 11:30 that she was finally able to get up from the makeup chair, only to find that her back and waist were sore from sitting so long, and her false eyelashes were pressing down on her eyes so she couldn't open them.