The beach Lin Nan's group went to was a tourist attraction.
Outside the beach was a place similar to a tourist town, with various restaurants and hotels. The beach had also been divided into different areas—horseback riding, four-wheel ATVs, self-service barbecue, and floating restaurants for going out to sea. There was an area farther from the ocean where people had already set up tents, obviously the camping spot.
He had never imagined the beach would look like this. Even though they arrived at 6 PM in the evening, there was still a constant stream of visitors. The town's restaurants were almost all packed, and at a glance there were at least dozens of tourists on the beach. This was still the number of tourists after the typhoon had just passed and temperatures had dropped.
If they came during summer vacation, this place would probably be packed with people.
Lin Nan had come once as a child. Though he wasn't sure if it was the same beach, at least the beach he went to then wasn't this commercialized.
The pitch-black night he had imagined also didn't exist. Probably to prevent camping tourists from going into the water at night, there were several searchlights around the beach. Even though it was just evening and the sunlight was only slightly dimmer than noon, the searchlights were already in use.
After seeing this scene, Lin Nan could only admit he was intimidated.
If he wore a swimsuit like this, wouldn't he be seen by a bunch of people? Even if he sneaked out in the middle of the night to wear a swimsuit, he'd probably encounter some tourists who didn't sleep at night.
Although his shame threshold was getting lower and lower, just thinking about wearing that figure-hugging swimsuit and being watched by everyone made his body tremble with embarrassment.
Too terrifying.
The beach had barbecue grills for tourists to use, but it was actually a buffet-style setup. Lin Nan had thought it would be bringing your own grill, skewering meat, and finding a deserted beach to barbecue. What he saw now was too different from what he had imagined.
His mother didn't notice Lin Nan's worried appearance and was still holding his arm, chatting and laughing with the uncle beside her.
"Let's go have dinner first." The uncle, not knowing if he was really wealthy, generously patted Lin Nan's shoulder. "We won't do the buffet! Let's go to a high-end barbecue restaurant and have the staff grill for us."
"Mm." Lin Nan nodded with little interest.
Only then did his mother notice his less-than-enthusiastic mood. She looked at the beach somewhat confused and asked gently: "What's wrong? Is the beach different from what you imagined?"
"It's okay..."
"Too many people making you shy, right?" the uncle laughed.
With you here I'm even more shy, okay!
Lin Nan silently rolled his eyes. Although this uncle thought his appearance was feminine, he knew Lin Nan's social gender was male.
It looked like he should temporarily cancel the plan and see what other magic was available.
Lin Nan followed his mother and the uncle to a Korean barbecue restaurant near the beach. This restaurant had two glass walls where you could directly see the sea through the glass—it could barely be considered a beach restaurant.
Different from the barbecue he had eaten with Chen Yao and the others last time, this time there was a dedicated server to help with grilling. But because it wasn't a buffet and was located in a scenic area, the prices were a bit expensive—the three of them spent over 400 yuan.
And the key point was that Korean barbecue eating style made him quite uncomfortable. It was very greasy and didn't fill him up. Lin Nan felt heartbroken eating it—this was close to half a month of his living expenses.
The uncle saw he didn't seem to be eating very happily and asked in confusion: "Your son doesn't like meat much?"
His mother's smile froze: "I don't know either..."
She had probably cooked for Lin Nan fewer than ten times in her life.
If you gave me this money directly I'd be happy.
Lin Nan thought silently to himself, but still politely smiled and answered: "It's a bit too greasy, I'm not used to it."
"Korean barbecue is indeed hard to get used to the first time. I'll go rent two tents first. How about you two share one tonight and I take one?"
"Three tents." Lin Nan suggested. If he didn't stay in the same tent as others, he could hide in the tent and wear the swimsuit. Anyway, the camping tents were all on the beach, so it should unlock the magic too.
His mother looked at him worriedly and unhesitatingly objected to Lin Nan's idea: "Stay with me. I haven't slept with you in a long time."
A long time?
Lin Nan carefully recalled his memories but couldn't see any scene of sleeping with his mother from his memory.
Maybe his mother was talking about when he was still nursing?
"There are double tents anyway, so it won't be crowded." The uncle smiled and agreed with his mother's idea, getting up to rent tents.
Lin Nan realized in distress that this uncle mainly went along with his mother's ideas, while his thoughts were at most just a reference.
After the uncle left, he asked his mother again: "Mom, is that uncle really just an ordinary friend to you?"
"..."
His mother was stunned and could only smile and ask back: "What relationship do you think he has with me?"
"I actually quite like him..." Lin Nan lowered his head. He had heard about his parents' situation from his maternal grandparents.
Roughly when his mother was just over twenty, his maternal grandparents began arranging marriage matters for her. In that era, his mother wasn't some highly educated intellectual and didn't have much of her own opinion, so she left everything to his maternal grandfather's decision. So during a blind date, she felt his father was acceptable and agreed to the wedding.
Reportedly, she and his father only knew each other for about a month from meeting to marriage.
Later, both of them got truck driver's licenses. After his mother gave birth to Lin Nan, they began driving long-distance trucks together. His maternal grandfather thought their relationship would develop feelings over time, but unexpectedly, because they were closer together, the two discovered that whether it was values or hobbies, they completely couldn't agree with each other. They increasingly disliked each other, and conflicts became more intense, but they didn't divorce early because Lin Nan served as a bond between them.
That is to say, his parents actually had no feelings for each other.
Lin Nan knew his parents' situation, so actually, even though he was unwilling in his heart, he still supported his parents' choices. If they could both find people they liked, then Lin Nan, who couldn't face them after becoming female, could feel better in his heart too.
"You like him?" His mother looked somewhat pleased.
"He's quite generous. He paid for the medical examination too, right?" Lin Nan said with a smile.
"Looking like this, you'll probably only be able to like rich second-generation guys in the future." His mother joked. "Who judges money so much while still in college? Be careful not to get kidnapped by someone with money."
It seemed his mother really had started treating him as a daughter.
Lin Nan felt somewhat more settled in his heart.
But what about his father... Up to now, he still hadn't visited his father, and didn't know what his father's attitude toward him would be.
Some anxious expression appeared on his face. Seeing this, his mother could only stroke his head with heartache and tried to comfort him: "If you don't want me to tell him, then let's go together?"
"That's fine too..."