A Novel Idea: Rinzi’s Research

“Chen Ran, please, make yourself comfortable. Would you care for something to drink, or perhaps another cup of black tea?”

“Yes, that would be lovely.”

“In that case, Auntie will go and brew some tea for you.”

Having arrived at Rinzi’s home, Chen Ran found himself perplexed as to why she had summoned him over, particularly at such a late hour, just as dinner was typically being prepared.

Still, he surmised there must be some matter she wished to discuss.

“Rinzi, has something broken down again?”

“Oh, no, nothing like that. It’s mostly… mostly that…”

As Rinzi brewed the tea in her kitchen, her hands trembled almost imperceptibly, a clear sign of her profound embarrassment at the thought of revealing her true intentions.

If Chen Ran were to discover her true desire—to ask him to simply remain seated in her home while she secretly… *indulged herself*—

Her life, she mused, would surely be irrevocably ruined.

Chen Ran would undoubtedly summon the authorities.

And have her, a veritable hentai pervert, hauled away!

Yet…

Rinzi, however, possessed a compelling reason to act in such a manner: her latest novel.

The novel she was currently endeavoring to write was a romance.

Specifically, it explored the dynamic of an older woman-younger man romance!

Inevitably, the book contained numerous audacious, explicit scenes.

After all, desire forms an intrinsic part of love, and thus, to pen a truly authentic romance, one must confront the profound sexual intimacy (TL Note: The original Chinese uses a character that represents ‘s*x’ or ‘sexual desire’) that exists between men and women.

Indeed, she affirmed, there was absolutely nothing amiss with this approach.

For, truly,

If one genuinely loved another, how could the thought of intimate encounters (TL Note: The original Chinese term ‘涩涩’ (sèsè) is a euphemism for sexual or lustful acts.) with them not cross their mind?!

Surely, this was an undeniable truth, was it not?!

However, despite Rinzi pouring her heart into the first draft of her novel, completing it with ardent enthusiasm before submitting it to her publisher’s editor, she had been met with a stinging critique just that very day!

The elderly editor, a woman well over sixty, a mother of two and grandmother to four, had visited her earlier that afternoon, delivering her words with profound gravity.

“Rinzi, you’ve never actually been in love, have you?”

“!!!”

“Why have you suddenly started writing romance stories? This isn’t your usual style.”

“I… I wanted to… challenge myself.”

“Hmm, every mature writer certainly wishes to break new ground, but regardless, even if it’s magical realism or abstract art, a novel should always be grounded in reality, do you understand?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Then look at what you’ve written here—it’s simply too strange.”

The older woman produced the original manuscript of the novel, laying it before Rinzi with an utterly bewildered expression.

“That… Rinzi, no matter what… those… those testicles simply cannot… cannot fit inside, do you understand?”

“Just look at this jumbled mess you’ve written.”

Rinzi’s face burned crimson.

The elderly editor merely sighed, adjusting the reading glasses perched on her nose, and spoke with solemn sincerity.

“Rinzi, we’ve known each other for almost twenty years, haven’t we?”

“Yes.”

From the age of fourteen, when she first submitted her work, this same elderly woman had been her editor.

Rinzi even recalled attending the celebratory banquets for her two children’s junior high school admissions, their weddings, and the births of their own children…

“Perhaps, you should first get to know a real boy, a living one, a genuine boy who likes you.”

“…”

After seeing the old editor off, Rinzi felt utterly wronged.

Yet, the editor’s words held undeniable truth: how could she possibly write well about something she had never experienced herself?

And so,

After an entire afternoon spent deliberating at home, Rinzi, in a sudden rush of impulse, hurried to find Chen Ran.

Since Chen Ran was the only person she truly liked, she felt compelled to ask him for this favor.

So Rinzi thought to herself.

But with the words hovering on her lips, how could she possibly voice them?

[Chen Ran, please be Auntie’s boyfriend. For the sake of my writing, during the creative process, you can do whatever you wish with Auntie… And of course, even after the writing is finished…]

Such a thought was utterly preposterous, no matter how she framed it!

She would undoubtedly be branded a hentai!

So what was she to do?

Watching Chen Ran’s back as he sat on the living room sofa, engrossed in the television, Rinzi felt an intense surge of nervousness.

Her sudden impulse had led her to rush next door and invite Chen Ran into her home, but what to do next, she had absolutely no idea.

The gurgling of the boiling tea, along with the woman’s rising body temperature and quickening breath, steadily intensified.

Fortunately,

The sounds of the news emanating from the living room prevented Chen Ran from hearing any strange noises Rinzi might inadvertently make.

She couldn’t simply…

Rinzi rationally concluded that she could not act so impulsively.

But she could “take things slowly.”

For instance,

In her novel,

There was a scene where the female protagonist invites the young male protagonist from next door to her home as a guest.

Consequently, the female protagonist, unable to control herself, secretly watches his back and begins to… *indulge herself*.

Rinzi now intended to reenact this very scene.

After experiencing it firsthand, she would then commit it to paper!

As for why the plot contained such twisted, strange, and even utterly hentai elements…

This was literature! True literature!

Did they not understand what literary writing entailed?!

If it wasn’t strange and twisted, how could she accurately convey the love she felt for Chen Ran in her heart?!

Besides,

She genuinely did think that way…

!!!

[So-called writing,]

[Is when an author confronts their own inner self.]

Rinzi thought with unwavering conviction.

She poured the freshly brewed black tea into a porcelain cup, bit down on her lip, and, trembling slightly, bravely walked towards Chen Ran, her legs already feeling somewhat weak.

“Chen Ran… you… please drink your tea first.”

“Alright.”

Taking the teacup, Rinzi observed the young man’s calm, handsome face as he offered her a faint smile.

Immediately,

Her heart began to tremble as well.

Ugh!

This ineffable feeling—indeed, one could never truly comprehend it without experiencing it firsthand!

“Auntie still has something to do; please sit for a while…”

“Hm? Do you need help, Rinzi?”

“No, no need!”

Rinzi hastily retreated to the kitchen.

The absurd story from her novel had suddenly transformed into something she was actually about to do in reality, causing Rinzi’s mind to feel temporarily deprived of oxygen, on the verge of suffocation.

Yet, an insistent voice within her continually urged her onward.

Standing before the stove in the semi-open kitchen, she could perfectly glimpse Chen Ran’s back as he sat on the sofa.

The pure white light from the living room spilled down, falling upon the young man’s ordinary black short hair.

And onto the shoulders of his black short-sleeved shirt.

Rinzi pretended to continue boiling water, allowing the rising white steam to obscure her figure in the kitchen.

Her novel had described it thus:

[I gazed at the young man’s back, seemingly within the house, like a towering mountain hidden amidst green smoke, solid and broad. My hand unconsciously began to move towards the hem of my skirt…]

No, that wasn’t right; she wasn’t wearing a skirt today!

Rinzi realized that her original description in the book had been fundamentally flawed from the very beginning!

More importantly,

With the mist from the water, she couldn’t even clearly see Chen Ran’s back; how was she supposed to… *indulge herself*?!

!!!

Indeed.

What on earth had she been writing before?!