27 vs 19 is a pretty big difference. Perfectly fair for Xiaoen to worry about that.

Oh you young people, thinking 8 years is a big age gap...

i think 8 is fair to worry about given one party is under 21-22 in particular, but especially like 19.

Really? I don't think so,

I was around 21-22, and the first woman I fell in love with was 20ish years older than me.

Oh ho, someone is having their armor chipped and possibly destroyed by that "I like you" :P

Fantastic chapter. A lot of the previous chapters have been heavier on the mood and internal thoughts, this one was a dialogue heavy chapter and it's nice to see their dynamic expand and develop. Really fun, we got the misunderstanding fixed, and now it's fair game.

"Does not!"
"Does too!"
"Does not!"

Ugh they are so cute xD

Wow, Shi Xingyuan's drive is goals. I know it's probably pretty new to her too since she's used to running, but damn, it looks good on her!!

I love them! Shi Xingyuan is just too smooth this is going to be a short seduction for sure.
Also Wang Fang thinking he's getting a cold because they keep talking about him has me in stiches!

I really did not expect her to be that old tbh, and I expected Shi Xingyuan to be older too. Huh!

Also, 8 years, 2 generations...? How young do people get married over there?

8 years isn't that big of a gap, tbh. But it kind of is when she's as young as she is. Someone in their late 20s flirting with a literal teenager is kinda creepy to me.

Again, the gap itself isn't really the issue. When I was 24 I dated a 38 year old woman lol 8 years ain't shit. But 19 is prrretty young.

Reminds me of that old "rule" that went around my highschool when I was a kid. You divide your age in half, then add seven, and that's the lowest age you can date before its creepy. I wonder if that rule was universal. It's obviously bullshit and dumb, but I do wonder if it was just my highschool lol

Also, 8 years, 2 generations...? How young do people get married over there?

Ehhh, obviously one of those cheating things where she has extended family, like second cousins or something, where one branch had the generations go kind of quicker than the other branch so she's got grand-nieces even though she's 27. She's just the kind of quibbler who would use that.

I do have a vague memory of hearing that rule of thumb. But I don't know if I heard it when I was a kid or just saw it mentioned on the internet much more recently.

last edited at Feb 1, 2023 3:15AM

It’s a pretty commonly known rule. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_disparity_in_sexual_relationships There’s versions of it going back as far as the 19th century.

I mean, there are very obviously potential power dynamic issues here, but that was true before they found out the age gap. Business owner v Part Time worker is obviously a big difference in wealth, and Mu Xiaoen is one of the most influential people in that whole town. So the power dynamics problems present in an age gap story are already here. And that wasn't enough to make people worried before. I think it really comes down to how the two interact in this case, and Mu Xiaoen doesn't seem to be the person who will abuse her power, especially when she's already so conscious of the age issue.

Kabedon from the back.

And that whole exchange made it abundantly clear who the more childish one is between them. (Hint: it's not the younger one.) :P

Honestly, with all the things Xingyuan has gone through, she gets a few honorary years tacked onto her in my book

Happy to see the comic get back to form in the past few chapters!

It's nice to see a 27 year old being realistic about someone 8 years their junior (even if she's a bit immature for her age in other ways). 8 years isn't a big deal for like people in their 30s and older, but between an older teenager and someone in their mid-to-late 20s, it isn't a small thing.

That being said, this is a work of fiction and so, it's not worth getting too worked up about.

I mean, there are very obviously potential power dynamic issues here, but that was true before they found out the age gap. Business owner v Part Time worker is obviously a big difference in wealth, and Mu Xiaoen is one of the most influential people in that whole town. So the power dynamics problems present in an age gap story are already here. And that wasn't enough to make people worried before. I think it really comes down to how the two interact in this case, and Mu Xiaoen doesn't seem to be the person who will abuse her power, especially when she's already so conscious of the age issue.

Yeah I second. I sometimes get the feeling people learned what a "power dynamic" is and turned it polemical when the reality is every relationship is going to have, to varying degrees, A Power Dynamic. That doesn't make it unreasonable for someone like mu xiaoen to have some discomfort about it, but it's also meant to be, yknow, a comedic overblowing of a situation because by any metric shi xingyuan is an adult who has autonomy over her own actions and her desires. you don't just avoid every potential encounter out of a fear of power dynamics, you gotta take it case by case and just, yknow, learn how to be good to each other.

I mean, there are very obviously potential power dynamic issues here, but that was true before they found out the age gap. Business owner v Part Time worker is obviously a big difference in wealth, and Mu Xiaoen is one of the most influential people in that whole town. So the power dynamics problems present in an age gap story are already here. And that wasn't enough to make people worried before. I think it really comes down to how the two interact in this case, and Mu Xiaoen doesn't seem to be the person who will abuse her power, especially when she's already so conscious of the age issue.

Yeah I second. I sometimes get the feeling people learned what a "power dynamic" is and turned it polemical when the reality is every relationship is going to have, to varying degrees, A Power Dynamic. That doesn't make it unreasonable for someone like mu xiaoen to have some discomfort about it, but it's also meant to be, yknow, a comedic overblowing of a situation because by any metric shi xingyuan is an adult who has autonomy over her own actions and her desires. you don't just avoid every potential encounter out of a fear of power dynamics, you gotta take it case by case and just, yknow, learn how to be good to each other.

Hear, hear.

It's nice to see a 27 year old being realistic about someone 8 years their junior (even if she's a bit immature for her age in other ways). 8 years isn't a big deal for like people in their 30s and older, but between an older teenager and someone in their mid-to-late 20s, it isn't a small thing.

Bah. Like people in their mid-to-late 20s are so mature. Still kids really.

With how things are between them and the way they interact I think they can start dating now, and it might be a little awkward with the gap at first but a couple and even few years will fly by pretty quickly, where the gap between them will become less and less awkward for them. 19 now and then 22, 24, before they know it.

wow how refreshing

It's nice to see a 27 year old being realistic about someone 8 years their junior (even if she's a bit immature for her age in other ways). 8 years isn't a big deal for like people in their 30s and older, but between an older teenager and someone in their mid-to-late 20s, it isn't a small thing.

Bah. Like people in their mid-to-late 20s are so mature. Still kids really.

That’s kind of the point—I’ve known people pushing 40 who essentially hadn’t matured since they were 15, and people just out of their teens who were stable and competent far beyond their years.

There are generalizations, but with individuals, everything’s a situation.

It's also worth noting that Mu is guaranteeing her apartment (iirc), so there is a somewhat problematic power dynamic there, in so much as Mu could mess with her housing, but given the other factors involved, that doesn't seem terribly likely.

With that said, the poses continue to be amazing. Something about the way Xingyuan is holding her on page 3 is really striking.

It's also worth noting that Mu is guaranteeing her apartment (iirc), so there is a somewhat problematic power dynamic there

Number one dumbest comment in all this thread, so congrats I guess.

This is so fitting of Mu. Is she weirded out that a girl likes girls? No, her issue is age. I think that for the first time, I'm fine with the main pair not immediately and officially getting together. Because what might happen sounds fun. Since I'm sure that Shi has no other limiters applied to her gayness, she will just go full speed ahead.

Also, I know the whole thing will settle down, because I'm sure Mu being the mature adult with a business degree that she is, will finally figure things out. Yet I can't stop thinking of the possibility that it actually doesn't work out for Shi. Not only could she curse herself for being "born this way" but also for being born at the wrong time. Such a dark though, luckily there's no way this could happen.

This chapter is great and awesome and amazing to such an extent that I'm not going to review it; for, if I did, I would have to analyze every panel and wax lyrical about every single little detail and I'd end up writing a 20-page essay.

I'll just highlight one scene:

In America, romantic mood brings about little hearts.
In Soviet Russia, little hearts bring about romantic mood!
In Maoist China, blue-leaved climbing plant turns into little hearts to match romantic mood and nobody has to bring about anything!!!

Go go China!

It's also worth noting that Mu is guaranteeing her apartment (iirc), so there is a somewhat problematic power dynamic there, in so much as Mu could mess with her housing, but given the other factors involved, that doesn't seem terribly likely.

She isn't guaranteeing her apartment, she told the landlady that she would just manage it, so like clean and maintain, do make ready after she leaves, that kind of thing. She wouldn't have any actual power over the rental, just making sure that everything is being taken care of properly.