The scene of Su Xiaoqi and her aunt entering the swimming pool together was quite impressive.
People around them made way for them.
Su Xiaoqi's aunt had a strong physique.
Seeing a 150-pound woman wearing a swimsuit and looking sturdy and developed was relatively rare in the small city of Lushan.
Standing next to her aunt, Su Xiaoqi appeared slender and delicate in contrast.
Su Simei felt a bit embarrassed. In reality, she was wearing a flowery XXXL swimsuit, and when she walked out, she was extremely nervous.
She wasn't like this before.
She had fair skin and a round face. Back then, when she was dating her ex-husband, everyone said she looked like Liu Sanjie from the movies, with a sweet and cheerful smile.
But their married life didn't go smoothly. Her ex-husband loved drinking and would become physically abusive after drinking.
Eventually, she couldn't bear it anymore and divorced him, one of the early batches of divorced women.
The people around her, including her parents, didn't understand her decision. They thought her husband didn't have other women outside, he was hardworking, and skilled at his job. They found the divorce unreasonable just because of his drinking habit.
But she couldn't just show her bruises to everyone.
People would assume it was some kind of marital playfulness, especially since they had a daughter.
Her ex-husband treated their daughter well and never laid a hand on her outside.
He had a stable job, and their daughter was awarded to him after the divorce. So she was left alone, enduring countless gossips, and living a difficult life.
And then she started gaining weight continuously, transforming from a beautiful village girl into the overweight person she was now.
Her face remained round, her smile still bright, but everything had grown larger, and no one praised her beauty anymore.
"Xiaoqi, maybe your aunt should go back. It feels awkward here," Su Simei spoke softly, an unusual occurrence.
She felt uncomfortable, even though no one in this place knew them, it was still embarrassing.
Xiaoqi also felt a bit nervous, but since they had already come, and it was rare for her aunt to agree to come out, if they went back now, her aunt might be even less willing to come out in the future.
"It's fine. We don't know anyone here, so let's enjoy ourselves," Xiaoqi held tightly onto her aunt's hand, not letting her leave.
Approaching them was a woman wearing a professional swimsuit, a plain black one without any fancy decorations.
She revealed her toned shoulders and thighs. Her shoulders were slightly broad, but it gave a pleasant and comfortable impression.
She had short hair, very neat.
"You must be Coach Wu, I'm Su Xiaoqi, and this is my aunt. We want to learn together," Xiaoqi confidently addressed her.
"Yes, I'm Wu Peirong. Do you have any swimming experience?" she asked.
"No, this is our first time swimming," Su Simei looked at her niece conversing so confidently and felt a bit self-conscious.
She mustered the confidence she had while working at the hospital, lifting medical equipment.
Anyway, no one around here knew her, and the teacher's gaze didn't show any strange feelings. Su Simei relaxed a little.
They had a dedicated learning area.
Wu Peirong's classes were expensive, one and a half hours per session, costing 600 yuan. It was the most expensive in the entire swimming pool.
But she was the best swimmer and had the best results. Many people sought her out for lessons.
"Since you both haven't swum before, let's start with freestyle," she said in a slightly hoarse voice.
It's not very common to see an aunt and her niece learning swimming together, but the aunt was just teaching the class and didn't care about anything else as long as she was paid.
She asked if they had any health conditions that would prevent them from getting into the water.
Xiaoqi, a high school senior, had just had a physical examination, and her aunt, who worked at the hospital, also had to undergo regular check-ups. Both of them shook their heads.
"Then let me swim a lap for you to watch. You can get into the water and get a feel for it, leaning against the edge of the pool. Don't go towards the center right away. If you fall into the water, don't panic. The water is shallow, you just need to stand up."
Xiaoqi and her aunt nodded obediently.
As they got into the water, they instantly felt a chill and a shiver down their bodies, but after standing for a while, they began to adapt to the temperature.
Coach Wu, on the other hand, swam out like a fish, swiftly disappearing into the distance. The water's surface rippled, and they watched her gradually return, emerging from the water and creating splashes.
It was beautiful.
Xiaoqi couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.
Due to her weight, Su Simei was more sensitive to heat than others. Being in the water made her feel cool and comfortable, and she didn't have to worry about anyone staring at her. She felt much more at ease.
"Swimming is quite simple. I estimate that you'll learn it in two classes. After that, it's mainly about familiarization and consolidation. I'll break down each movement and teach you. Once you've mastered the individual movements, putting them together will be easy. First, let's start with the leg movements. Start by practicing the seated position."
As she explained, she sat by the edge of the pool, demonstrating with her hands supporting her behind, legs extended, toes pointing towards each other, and heels forming a V shape.
"When you're splashing the water, keep your legs relaxed and pivot from the hips."
She tapped her hip area.
"The power of the thighs drives the lower legs, and then you alternate splashing the water."
Xiaoqi and her aunt practiced on either side.
Xiaoqi was surprised to find that the step count and money amount in front of her were increasing as she splashed the water.
This motivated her even more.
Although the movements were repetitive, she diligently followed the teacher's instructions and watched the numbers increase, bringing her joy.
After practicing land-based splashing, the coach asked them to take a break and start practicing in the water.
The entire afternoon was spent practicing splashing in the water.
Her aunt mainly practiced prone splashing.
She held onto the edge of the pool, trying to float her body as close to the water's surface as possible, legs extended, and kicking with straight and bent legs.
Xiaoqi, on the other hand, quickly learned prone splashing with just one instruction from the coach. Her movements were precise.
For Xiaoqi, every kick changed the numbers in front of her, so she could clearly see how many times she had practiced.
Coach Wu Peirong was pleased with their performance.
Especially the young girl.
She herself was not too old, but there was no hope for the national team and compared to others, she was already overage. She's 27 years old this year, and an athlete's prime years are short.
Ranking sixth in the country was already her best achievement, with no potential for further development.
She chose to become a swimming coach instead, focusing on teaching others.
However, the young girl in front of her, only seventeen years old, didn't initially evoke any special feelings. But as she watched her practice, she felt something different.
Wu Peirong corrected a few improper movements of Xiaoqi's and instructed her to continue practicing.
Then she taught Xiaoqi various exercises like prone gliding, supine gliding, freestyle gliding, and kicking with a board...
Each leg movement in these exercises was essentially the same, and it became a bit tedious.
Xiaoqi diligently practiced without cutting any corners because even she could see if she slacked off.
She was actually excited because these exercises could substitute for steps, and the more she did, the more money she earned.
Unknowingly, an hour and a half had already passed, and the first session was over.
Xiaoqi still felt a bit reluctant, but when she stood by the shore, she realized her legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.
Raising her legs in the water was more tiring than walking on land.
And Su Simei was equally exhausted, resembling a dead dog.
Xiaoqi had thought she could continue practicing, but she could only go to take a shower.
After washing up and changing clothes, Xiaoqi stood by the door blow-drying her hair and suddenly heard a loud scream from the bathroom.
It seemed to be Su Simei.
She hurriedly went over.
She saw Su Simei standing on the weighing scale, vigorously waving at Xiaoqi.
"Qi, come here quickly, look, I've lost weight! I've lost six kilograms! Shouldn't we come again tomorrow?"
Xiaoqi walked over and saw the scale displaying 147 pounds...
"Auntie, didn't you say you weighed 150 pounds? Losing six kilograms should be 144, right?"
"I just roughly estimated, it's actually 153 pounds." Su Simei said sheepishly.
But she was very excited. She had thought her physique was the problem, that she couldn't lose weight. Despite being tired from working at the hospital, her weight kept increasing instead of decreasing.
"You should weigh yourself too."
Xiaoqi stepped onto the scale and saw it showing 103 pounds.
She was also pleasantly surprised. During her physical examination before the college entrance exam, she weighed 108 pounds.
But it probably wasn't from swimming today; it must be due to all the walking she had been doing recently.
Su Simei's weight was initially much higher, so she could lose six kilograms at once.
After showering, the two of them headed back together.
Xiaoqi noticed that Su Simei looked much better than usual, and her smile didn't have that greasy feeling.
They passed by a McDonald's.
Xiaoqi asked, "Auntie, do you want to eat ice cream? I'll buy two."
"You want to eat ice cream right after losing weight?"
"It's fine. You lost six kilograms, so the ice cream is just a little bit."
Xiaoqi ran over and joined the queue. There were two people ahead of her, but the ice cream counter was fast, and it was soon her turn.
She happily bought two ice cream cones.
For Su Xiaoqi, ice cream was truly delicious.
If she was out shopping after school, she couldn't resist buying one.
On the way, they each held an ice cream cone and licked it.
Their slightly awkward manner of licking seemed to clash with their refined appearance, but they were still happy.
"It's quite tasty," Su Simei said while eating.
"The host helps a middle-aged woman with mild depression and binge eating disorder to exercise, successfully losing 6 pounds, reducing her negative emotions, and bringing her hopeful progress and positive energy. As a reward, her vision will be corrected once, and after the correction, her eyesight can reach 1.2, making her life more convenient."
