ã€ŠThe Starry Sky, The Starry Seaã€‹


 CH 1

    At dawn, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the branches of the antler tree, shining onto my bedroom window through the tiny gaps, and landed on my face. It stirred me awake from my dreamland.

    Longing for some cold air, I left the windows open last night, letting the cool ocean breeze blow against the curtains. The familiar scent of the sea brought in by the morning wind gently entered my nose¡ªon one hand, I yearned for a bit more sleep, so I tightly shut my eyes and dug my head under the pillow; On the other hand, however, a subconscious thought popped in my head: ¡°If I get out of bed, I get to eat Grandpa¡¯s handmade seafood porridge again.¡± At thought, another image entered my head ¡ª My father, brother, and I wore black clothes and a white band, standing in front of the boat as we scattered Grandpa¡¯s ashes into the sea. White waves closely followed behind the boat, constantly surging, like the wreaths surrounding Grandpa¡¯s portrait in the funeral hall.

    At that instant, I clearly understood which was a dream and which was reality. Although I sincerely hope to continue living in the dream that Grandpa is still around, this so-called reality forces you to open your eyes and face it.

    Recalling that my step-mom was neither familiar with the kitchen nor cherished Grandpa¡¯s old kitchenware, I immediately opened my eyes and sat up. I looked at the clock on my table; It¡¯s not 6 o¡¯clock yet. The house was still quiet, and everyone else was soundly asleep.

    Because of Grandpa¡¯s funeral over the past few days, everyone was worn out. Dad and step-mom are the classic city people and are used to waking up late. I guessed they probably won¡¯t be up until after 9 o¡¯clock today.

    After washing up, I quietly went down the stairs and headed to the kitchen to make some porridge. Too lazy to put much effort, I only added scallops. That still counts as seafood porridge, right?

    I left the kitchen and stood in the courtyard, instinctively looking for Grandpa amongst the lush plants. In the past, the first thing Grandpa would do after waking up is to take a look at his plants.

    Surrounding the walls of the courtyard was the flower that blooms all year ¡ª Ixora ¡ª its red petals, gathered in balls, were bright and moving, as if it belonged to the bride¡¯s bouquet; climbing on the bluestone wall was the Bougainvillea ¡ª under the morning sun, its pink petals looked as if each bundle was pressed against the old walls to add colors to the refreshing morning. Below the window in the living room were the Devil¡¯s backbone and Peregrina blooming big and bright. Outside the study room¡¯s window were the Bleeding Heart Vine and the Orange Jasmine where clusters of their white petal stacks resembled clouds and snow, very pleasing; At the corner of the kitchen was Kumquat that was at least 100 years old, its leaves as green as ever with the little tangerines hiding shyly between the leaves.

    All these plants could be commonly found on the island, nothing rare. Almost every household would own one or two, but Grandpa always groomed them better than the other families.

    Everyone was busy these days and had no time to manage them. The fallen petals and leaves had accumulated on the ground, seemingly decadence. I wiped my teary eyes, took the broom, and began cleaning the courtyard.

    After cleaning the courtyard, I wanted to sweep the front area so I pulled open the courtyard¡¯s door. At that instance, I only felt something black falling towards me. Shocked, I subconsciously dodged backward, tripping onto something, and fell flat on the ground.

    ¡°Who left their¡ª¡± I narrowed my eyes. Upon seeing what laid in front of me, my jaw dropped and no sound came out. What had fallen in my courtyard was a person.

    The unconscious man was in an odd attire. His messy hair was covering half of his face and I was unable to see his facial features. But I could tell looking at his dark skin that he was malnourished. His upper body wore a piece of the sailor¡¯s black uniform. This isn¡¯t unusual, but he wasn¡¯t wearing anything else underneath. It was like the double line buttoned uniform people wore during the season from autumn to winter. His bottom wore a pair of Hawaiian pants that tourists usually wear, with coconut tree prints on it. Bringing my gaze down his legs¡­ he¡¯s bare-footed!?

    I stared at him for a moment and came back to my senses. Carefully poking him, I called, ¡°Hey!¡±

    There was no reaction, but the touch felt soft. Because Grandpa just passed away, the memory of a lifeless body was still fresh in my memory. I immediately understood that this person was still alive, but his body temperature was very low, abnormally low. I didn¡¯t know whether he was sick, or if my judgment was wrong and that he¡¯d already died.

    Holding my breath, I stretched my hand under his nose and felt his breath, and I let out a heave of relief.

    The way I reacted was unusual, probably because of this already a bizarre experience. After confirming that my house was not a ¡°corpse dumpster¡±, my first reaction was not to consider what to do about the man, but rather¡­ sneakily run towards the door and check whether there are any shoes left outside.

    He was barefooted!

    I looked at the shabby path outside the courtyard, the stone path that is filled with potholes, and looked at his feet. His feet were covered in black stains mixed with blood. It was difficult to tell where the wounds were but I was sure that his way here must have been difficult.

    I squatted next to him, taking out my phone to make a call while shaking his body. This place was no big city, I can¡¯t expect an ambulance to come within minutes. Furthermore, given the shabby narrow path leading here is the only entrance, the ambulance couldn¡¯t possibly reach where I am, even if it does make it to the area on time. So it was better to call someone for help.

    The call eventually went through, ¡°Dr. Jiang¡­¡± After saying my greetings, my hand was suddenly grabbed.

    ¡°Not the doctor!¡± The unconscious man slowly opened his eyes as he weakly talked to me.

    I looked at him in surprise. A breeze blew by, accidentally blowing away his hair that was obscuring his face. My gaze met his.

    He had such captivating eyes. Within the pitch blackness of his iris, there is a ray of the vast, yet tranquil indigo ¨C it was like the peaceful starry night during the summer, where the bright night sky swallows the ocean, hiding all the secrets in the world, tempting someone to peek and discover.

    I looked at him in a daze as he supported himself to sit up and said again: ¡°Not the doctor.¡±

    Looking at him again, even though his eyes were nice, they were not as charming as they were before. It was probably due to the angle earlier which nicely captured the magical moment from the sun¡¯s rays.

    As I remained silent in a daze, he said: ¡°I¡¯m just dehydrated, a little water will solve it.¡±

    He certainly wasn¡¯t local, his accent sounded weird as it took some effort for me to understand. But his tone was not overbearing, it was very convincing. Most importantly, my empathy towards a stranger was limited as I still had other matters on hand, so I¡¯d rather have fewer matters to worry about than more.

    ¡°Dr. Jiang, it¡¯s nothing. I pressed the wrong button. Something came up now, call you later!¡±

    I hung up the phone and helped the man up. The moment he stood up, I noticed his big build. I am 1.73m tall (roughly 5¡¯7¡¯¡¯) with a tough personality and was often treated as a tomboy. Yet, this person looks as if he was someone who could give me support and comfort.

    I helped him walk to a corner of the courtyard as he sat down on Grandpa¡¯s rattan chair, ¡°Wait for me here.¡±

    I walked into the kitchen, poured him a glass of warm water, thought for a moment, and scooped in two spoonfuls of honey.

    I handed him the glass of honey water, he took a small sip and then paused. It¡¯s probably because he tasted something different.

    I explained: ¡°You fainted outside my house. If you are not ill, then you¡¯re probably low on sugar. So I added some honey to replenish that.¡± As I was explaining, he had already finished drinking in one big gulp. Obviously, he had figured out what was added to the water before I could finish explaining.

    ¡°Do you want some more?¡±

    He kept silent, merely nodding his head.

    I went back to the kitchen and poured him another glass.

    Back and forth, he had drunk six big glasses of water straight. At the seventh glass, he finally slowed down.

    His eyes drooped down, still holding on to the slim glass. Other than ¡°not the doctor¡± from earlier, he had not spoken a word, not even a ¡°thank you¡±. I could not figure out what was in his mind.

    Between the gaps of the vines, a ray of sunlight landed nicely on the glass, making his finger appear white and clean, long and strong, as if those were the fingers of a pianist. Compared to his wounded and dirtied legs, the contrast was striking.

    Logically speaking, I knew I should not be letting a stranger into my house. But somewhere inside my heart softened and I couldn¡¯t bear to chase him out.

    I entered the kitchen and opened the lid of the pot. The porridge is almost ready.

    I poured a bowl of porridge, alongside a plate of side dishes with two halves of a duck egg, placed it on the tray, and passed it to him.

    I tactfully said: ¡°You should eat something to replenish your energy before leaving!¡±

    He didn¡¯t say anything, stared at the dishes in front of him for a second, then finally picked up the chopsticks. Perhaps he just woke up, because his hand was unstable and he only managed to grab hold of the chopsticks after a few tries.

    ¡°I still have other chores to do. So eat slowly, call me if you need anything.¡± fearing that my presence would make him uncomfortable, I casually find a reason to leave.

    I went into the living room and flipped through the shoe rack, grabbing a pair of old male slippers. Unlike the other shoes that required a fixed shoe size, slippers are usually one-size-fits-all.

    I took the slippers to the tap in the courtyard, washing the pair and then letting them dry under the sun.

    Guessing that he would need some time to finish eating, I grabbed a rag and started cleaning the dust in the courtyard, occasionally peeking at him.

    Back when Grandpa was still around, the rattan table and rattan chair would be usually placed in the middle of the courtyard. He would sit there sipping his tea and appreciating the view while he rested. How satisfying. After Grandpa became bed-ridden, no one had the leisure to bring out the table and chair so they were shifted to a corner. There were two Bleeding Heart Vine and Murray Exotica that had been growing for decades. The Orange Jasmine is around the height of a person, and creeping on it was the Bleeding Heart Vine, which covered his figure.

    I could not see him, but through the spares leaves, I knew he had always been sitting there obediently.

    I was slightly assured. Though life in Haidao is simple and plain, theft incidents were rare, let alone rape and murder. Grandpa had proudly claimed that our house was his settling place where he would rather be alone than to live with Dad in the city. As I had long adapted to the city-life, though I am occasionally empathetic, I still had my defenses up.

    As my thoughts wandered, my step mom¡¯s voice vaguely came in. I immediately put down the rag.

    Shen Yanghui rushed out of the house and made a big commotion: ¡°Shen Luo, why are you up so early?¡±

    Shen Yanghui is my paternal-half younger brother, portraying the classic single-child personality. Though he is naive, as a fourteen-year-old teenager, he is just well into his rebellious stage. Definitely not likable.

    Before I could answer him, Dad shouted from the toilet upstairs, ¡°Shen Yanghui, how many times must I repeat? Address sister!¡±

    Shen Yanghui made a funny face and unhappily grumbled: ¡°Shen Luo doesn¡¯t even address my mom as ¡°Mom¡±, why should I even address her as a sister? Right, Shen Luo?¡±

    Step-mom came out and greeted me with a smile, ¡°Xiao Luo, good morning!¡±

    I also forced out a smile: ¡°Aunt Yang, good morning!¡± Step-mom¡¯s surname is Yang, when she married my father, I was already ten-years-old. Children from divorced families usually mature earlier, what needs to be known I¡¯d already known. From the very beginning, I had no intentions of letting her become my mother. I¡¯d rather be scolded by my father and insisted on addressing her as ¡°Aunt Yang¡± rather than ¡°Mom.¡± She accepted it.

    Aunt Yang patted Shen Yanghui¡¯s back and urged: ¡°Go brush your teeth and wash up.¡± Then, raising her voice: ¡°Haisheng, watch your son brush his teeth, otherwise he¡¯s gonna stir up trouble again.¡±

    I couldn¡¯t help but snickered. After so many years, I had already turned 25 and was no longer the little kid I was back then, yet step-mom remained the same. She would always remind me that between Dad and her, I am not a family member but rather an outsider. Yet, she forgot that we were not in Shanghai in the two-bedroom house she shared with Dad, but at Grandpa¡¯s house, the place where I grew up. Here, she was the outsider.

    People in rural areas are less particular. The wide kitchen also acts as the dining hall. While waiting for Dad and the rest to finish washing up, I had laid out the breakfast.

    Aunt Yang politely said: ¡°We¡¯ve troubled Xiao Luo.¡±

    I blandly replied: ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve eaten. Help yourselves.¡±

    Dad seemed to have wanted to say something else but Shen Yanghui had already lifted his bowl and began munching. So he only said: ¡°Let¡¯s eat!¡±

    Halfway through breakfast, someone knocked on the door.

    Just as I was going to open the door, Shen Yanghui had slipped out and opened the door. Worrying, Dad put down his chopsticks and closely followed out, ¡°Yang Hui, how many times have I said, you need to ask clearly before opening the door. Only open the door to people you know¡­¡­¡±

    Standing outside was a neatly dressed man in spectacles ¡ª light blue checkered blouse and straight black pants ¡ª behind his gentleness was a speck of wittiness, evidently, he was not a local. Dad¡¯s lecture was halted.

    He looked at the person curiously, ¡°Who are you looking for?¡±

    The person wore his professional smile, holding a name card, and introduced, ¡°I am Lawyer Zhou Buwen. I was entrusted by late Mr. Shen to carry out his will. You must be Mr. Shen? We had spoken on the phone to arrange a meeting today.¡±

    Dad warmly welcomed the person in, ¡°Yes, yes! I did not expect you to come so early. I thought you would only come in the afternoon.¡± There are only two ferry schedules from the mainland to Hai Dao, one departs at 7:30 AM and arrives at 11:30 AM, while the other departs at 12 pm and arrives at 4 pm.

    Lawyer Zhou smiled and said: ¡°Just in case, I boarded the ferry yesterday at noon.¡±

    Step-mom didn¡¯t bother eating and hurriedly followed out, then immediately maintained her composure and covered her thoughts: ¡°Xiao Luo, let¡¯s go and listen. This is related to you too.¡±

    Dad politely invited Lawyer Zhou to the living room while Step-mom eagerly poured a cup of hot tea. At that point, I did not know what to do so I quietly stood by the door.

    After Dad and Lawyer Zhou dropped a few polite remarks, Lawyer Zhou put down his cup, indicating to Dad and Step-mom that he would be beginning the conversation properly. The atmosphere was tense. Step-mom pulled Shen Yanghui towards her, hugging him tight, in an attempt to gain more assurance.

    Lawyer Zhou said: ¡°Late Mr. Shen¡¯s assets are simple so the process will be very clear. Late Mr. Shen¡¯s properties are divided into two, one is the fixed assets, which in this house, the total area is¡­¡­¡±

    Following Lawyer Zhou¡¯s words, Step-mom looked up to survey the old house. Although the house was old, its layout was reasonable, the courtyard was spacious, the plants were diverse, even a picky person like her also fancied the place. Too bad the house was not in Shanghai but rather on an inaccessible island. Even though more tourists were visiting in recent years, which had brought up the value of the house, this place was still unlike other popular tourist sites such as Sanya and Qingdao. These tourists would only come over and take a quick look instead of staying for a period of time, so its worth was still limited.

    Lawyer Zhou finished his detailed explanation on the current situation and added: ¡°Although the house is private property, not a commercial property. According to the law, it cannot be transacted. As such, if no one is residing here, you can only rent it out instead of selling it.¡±

    Step-mom blurted: ¡°Those houses along the shores still can be converted into guesthouses, but this house is on the mountain and far from the sea, in addition to its inaccessibility, if we¡¯re not allowed to sell, who else can we rent it out to?¡±

    Lawyer Zhou courteously smiles, avoiding Step-mom¡¯s question, and continued: ¡°Except this house, late Mr. Shen¡¯s remaining assets are cash. Because late Mr. Shen did not know how to manage his finances, all his cash is fixed deposits, totaling 1.1 million, saved under ICBC and ABC* respectively.¡±

    [*t/n: ICBC and ABC are local China banks, representing the Industrial and Construction Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China respectively. These are one of the few larger and more prominent banks in China.]

    Dad and Step-mom were delighted as they quickly smiled at each other, and upon realization, they controlled themselves from continuing. On the other hand, Shen Yanghui, who was unable to hide his thoughts, leaped up excitedly, ¡°Mom, mom, you were right, Grandpa did hide some money! Don¡¯t forget your promise to me, after paying off the house loan, you¡¯d use the remaining to buy a car and send me to school!¡±

    Step-mom glanced over at him and spoke intentionally: ¡°Stop spouting nonsense, this money might not even be left for you! You may be the only grandson of the Shen family, but you weren¡¯t Grandpa¡¯s favorite! However, grandsons are just grandsons, if the allocation is unfair, your father will not agree to it.¡±

    Step-mom elbowed Dad, Dad faked his composure and said: ¡°Let¡¯s continue listening to what Lawyer Zhou has to say. Father will fairly manage this.¡±

    I stared at the floor in silence. It was not that I was generous, nor was I going with the flow, but rather at this moment, imaging that these were arranged before Grandpa had passed away, for a second, I could vaguely see the image of Grandpa sitting on the bamboo chair and clearly instructing Lawyer Zhou. In my memory, Grandpa had never troubled the descendants and always laid out everything orderly, even his afterlife. My heart soured, I feared that the moment I opened my mouth, tears would flow endlessly. So I could only tightly bite my lips and listen quietly.

    Lawyer Zhou, not seeing anyone object, continued: ¡°According to late Mr. Shen¡¯s will, the assets are divided into two. The first is the 1.1 million fixed deposits, the other is a house located at No. 92 Mazu Street and everything included within. Between these two assets, one will be allocated to the granddaughter Shen Luo, the other will be allocated to grandson Shen Yang Hui¡­¡­¡±

    Listening up to this, Step-mom who has been calm slammed the table and angrily exclaimed: ¡°That old man¡¯s too unfair! Leaving all the money to the other, while giving Yang Hui a worthless old house. Even if we could find a way to sell it away, we can probably only scrape 200K out of it. Shen Haisheng, let me tell you, you must stand upon this matter, even if we bring it to court, we must reallocate the inheritance! In the end, it does not make sense for the granddaughter to be given more than the grandson*!¡±

    [*t/n: Sharing some context to the Chinese family, males are usually more favored over females. As such, ingrained deep in the Chinese family, males are typically given more resources and treated better at home than their female counterparts.]

    As if nothing happened, Lawyer Zhou stared at the documents and waited for Step-mom to finish her words, and calmly continued: ¡°Between the two assets, late Mr. Shen did not state which of the grand-children were to inherit them. But rather, he left the decision making to Shen Luo and Shen Yanghui.¡±

    Step-mom was stunned, nervously asked: ¡°Who¡¯s choosing first?¡±

    Lawyer Zhou said: ¡°Late Mr. Shen did not specify. Please discuss amongst yourselves!¡± Finishing his words, Lawyer Zhou closed his file and lifted the teacup as he engrossed himself in drinking the tea as if his presence no longer existed.

    Step-mom sharply looked at me as her hands continued pushing Dad, indicating him to speak.

    Acknowledging the fact that I was still his child, Dad stuttered: ¡°Xiao Luo, you think¡­¡­ who should choose first?¡±

    Step-mom quietly nagged next to Shen Yanghui¡¯s ears but being in his rebellious stage, he swept away his mother¡¯s guidance and rudely said: ¡°Shen Luo, I want to choose first!¡±

    I already had the answer in my heart and peacefully asked Step-mom: ¡°Aunt Yang, who do you think should choose first?¡±

    Step-mom could only further explain: ¡°Xiao Luo, you see¡­ your younger brother is still young, he still has to study, then find a job, get married, his expenditures are higher. You¡¯ve already attended university and Grandpa forked out all these years, your living expenses and education fees but your younger brother did not spend a single cent of Grandpa¡¯s money¡­¡­ Logically speaking, you should let your younger brother make the choice first.¡±

    I smiled bitterly. My living expenses and education fees were forked out by Grandpa, was this what I wanted? Glancing at Dad, his gaze avoided mine and I couldn¡¯t be bothered to argue any further, replied to Step-mom: ¡°Ok, let Yang Hui choose first then!¡±

    Lawyer Zhou who had been pretending he wasn¡¯t present immediately put down the teacup and lifted his head, asked Shen Yanghui, ¡°May I ask which asset are you choosing?¡±

    Before Shen Yanghui opened his mouth, Step-mom spoke: ¡°Cash. We want the cash in the bank.¡±

    Shen Yanghui followed his mother, repeated exactly in the same manner: ¡°Cash. We want the cash in the bank.¡±

    Lawyer Zhou then looked at me, and I said: ¡°I want the house.¡±

    Lawyer Zhou took a stack of documents from his bag, ¡°Please scan through these documents. If there are no issues, please sign. My assistant will follow up with you on the subsequent procedures.¡±

    After we finished reading the documents and signed, Lawyer Zhou tidied his attire, stood up, and shook our hands as we bid goodbye: ¡°My condolences!¡±

    Witnessing Lawyer Zhou leaving, Dad closed the main door.

    Carrying the documents up, Step-mom shouted: ¡°I¡¯m going to pack the luggage, let¡¯s rush for the 12:30 PM ferry out. If we could buy the air tickets for tomorrow morning, we should be able to reach home by afternoon.¡±

    Giving a loud ¡°Yay¡±, Shen Yanghui celebrated and happily ran up: ¡°We¡¯re going back to Shanghai!¡±

    Dad saw his wife and his son possessing the ¡°can¡¯t wait to get out of here¡± mentality, and knowing that he was not in the position to object, he could only look at me in apology and said: ¡°Company¡¯s leave was only 10 days¡­ I- I¡­ must return to work.¡±

    These years I had already given up and had no expectations. Dad is not a bad person, but at times he had been weak and had no principles, which was more disappointing than a bad person. I calmly said: ¡°Hmm, understood. Thank you Dad for rushing back in time this time.¡± Though during the final 6 months, I was the one who accompanied Grandpa, Dad still made it back in time before Grandpa left, running back and forth, he had also put in his best in arranging Grandpa¡¯s funeral.

    Dad said worriedly: ¡°You, child, didn¡¯t discuss with me and left your job to take care of Grandpa. It¡¯s difficult to find a job nowadays, you should hurry¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Dad, Mom asked me to help you pack the luggage.¡± Shen Yanghui stood at the stairs above and shouted.

    Dad reluctantly said: ¡°I will go up first, anyways just remember, hurry to find a job. If you are left unemployed for too long, no companies would want to hire you.¡±

    After Dad had gone upstairs, I entered the house and kept the documents from the lawyer in the drawer. Vaguely, I somehow felt that I had forgotten something. But Step-mom¡¯s sharp voice rang now and then hindered me from thinking.

    Giving up, I walked to the window to look at the scenery, regardless of what the matter was, I¡¯ll wait for them to leave first then figure it out!

    A few specks of jade-green from the Bleeding Heart Vine shook along with the wind, petals of flowers on the branches, some only just bloomed, still, snow-white; some blooming vividly, its white stem holding onto a red flower crown, resembling a dragon ball.

    I gently smiled as I hooked onto a vine, casually waving it around. I didn¡¯t have the spare capacity to tidy the plants, the vine of the Bleeding Heart Vine had already grown to the side of my window. Suddenly, I recalled what the vaguely forgotten matter was ¡ª that man who fainted in my courtyard!

    Frustrated, I knocked my head hard. I forgot that there was a stranger at home!

    Opening the window, I peered my body out, looking down, below the layers of green leaves and petals of flowers, that black figure that stood out was sitting still as if he had fallen asleep.

    Just as I was about to call for him, I recalled that Step-mom was currently walking around in the house packing her belongings, there was no need to further complicate matters. I conveniently plucked a petal of flower from the Bleeding Heart Vine and threw it towards him.

    Probably hearing the movement, he immediately looked up towards me, his gaze was sharp and expression cold as if he was ready to pounce and kill his prey. I leaped in shock. Though I used a lot of force, a flower is only a flower, which cannot be used as a murder weapon. In the breeze, the white stemmed red-crowned flower floated towards him. This moment was rather rosy. The gaze within his eyes left, slightly squinting his eyes, he quietly watched the flower float towards him, until the moment before it landed on his face, he then lightly lifted his hand and received the flower.

    At this moment, the flower was like snow, resting between his fingers as he lazily leaned on the rattan chair. Through the layers of vines, half lifting his head, looking towards me, it was just a plain and boring man, giving no signs of hostility. The breath held inside me from the startle earlier on finally let itself out. I could only feel my legs turning soft as I held onto the sides of the window to stand well.

    What was this unlucky situation? A moment of goodwill to adopt a stray cat, and yet I was nearly frightened to my knees by the stray cat.

    I frowned and glared at him harshly, wanting to affirm my position as the boss, Dad¡¯s voice came in from the outside, ¡°Xiao Luo, we¡¯re going off!¡±

    I gave up fussing with the stray cat, hurriedly turned around, opened the door, and ran out of the room.

    Grandpa¡¯s legs had rheumatism, where they hurt after climbing too many stairs, so he shifted to using the room downstairs, which was larger in the later years. It was both a study room and a bedroom. As I passed up, I casually swept a look and immediately felt something was amidst. Giving it a second careful look, the antique frame was gone.

    ¡°Yang Hui, hurry up! Otherwise, we might not be able to get the tickets!¡± Step-mom had already carried the luggage and walked to the courtyard.

    I rushed a few steps forward and blocked the main door, preventing them from leaving.

    Instantly, Step-mom understood what I was trying to and shouted sharply: ¡°Shen Luo, what are you doing?¡±

    Confused, Dad looked at me, ¡°Xiao Luo?¡±

    I said: ¡°Before going, leave Grandpa¡¯s mirror behind.¡±

    Shen Yanghui rushed in: ¡°Mirror? What mirror? Why would we bring a broken mirror back to Shanghai? Except for the gravel and sand, what else here can be better than Shanghai¡¯s?¡±

    I smirked: ¡°Indeed it is a broken mirror. Even so, that is dated back to the Qing dynasty, otherwise, why would Aunt Yang yearn for it?¡± That was great-grandma¡¯s wedding gift to grandma. According to grandpa¡¯s grandpa, it cost the entire family¡¯s fortune. Other than the bronze mirror, there were also a pair of silver bracelets and a silver hairpin. Unfortunately, with time, the most valuable two items can no longer be located, leaving behind the only bronze mirror.

    Dad tightly looked at Step-mom who was holding onto the luggage and understood. Feeling awkward, he looked at me and then his wife, as per usual, not knowing what to do.

    Step-mom realized she could no longer hide it any further and gave up, arrogantly said: ¡°I did take that old mirror but so what? That item belongs to the Shen family! The whole house is already given to you, I am only taking a piece of souvenir for Yang Hui, is that not right?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget, the lawyer has said clearly: I inherited both the house and the items within.¡± I finally understood why Grandpa¡¯s will emphasized this sentence and even requested Dad and Step-mom¡¯s signature.

    Aunt Yang gave up reasoning with me and pushed me forcefully, ¡°Yes, I¡¯m helping the Shen family¡¯s grandson to take a piece of Shen family¡¯s mirror, go ahead and sue me!¡±

    I snatched her luggage while she grabbed onto it tightly, as the both of us broke out fighting. She was wearing high heels while I was in flats, in addition to the fact that I was much younger and was stronger, her luggage was snatched over by me. As she was unstable, she fell onto the ground.

    Step-mom instantly cried out, ¡°Shen Haisheng, look at your daughter, she turned violent to an elder!¡±

    Dad received my fierce gaze and was unable to speak up. He only compensated with extra care in supporting Step-mom up, ¡°A mirror is a girl¡¯s item after all, and Yang Hui is a boy, he won¡¯t need it, just give it to Xiao Luo!¡±

    Step-mom was furious as she cried and scolded and hit: ¡°Cut the crap! The house is in a rough state, only this item is slightly valuable, and you simply give it away! Let me tell you, there is no way!¡±

    Couldn¡¯t be bothered, I placed the luggage on the ground, squatted down, opened the luggage, and began flipping for the bronze mirror.

    Following a ¡°Pa!¡± sound, a slap heavily landed on my face. I was startled. Looking up, I stared at Shen Yanghui. His energy was equivalent to an adult¡¯s, that slap was also harsh, causing my left ear to ring. I was unable to stand up for a second.

    Before I reacted, he pushed me away with force, grabbing the luggage back, quickly zipping it, and holding it tightly in his hands.

    I had always been alert against Step-mom and Dad, but had forgotten there was a Shen Yanghui, they were a family of ¡°three¡±. The fourteen years old Shen Yang Hui was already 1.7m (approx. 5¡¯6¡±) tall. In his mischievous look, there was still some sense of childishness. Facing him seriously, his looks were already close to that of a grown man. Putting in the historic context, he was already able to be sent out for battles.

    Shen Yanghui looked at me fiercely and said: ¡°You hit my mom first, so I hit you.¡±

    Step-mom immediately stood up and smirked: ¡°Those who hit others will eventually be hit!¡± Pulling her son towards the exit, ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Unwilling, I grabbed onto the luggage trying hard to stop them from leaving. Without a single bit of hesitation, Step-mom kicked my arm away in her high heels, sending a sharp pain, I quickly let go of my hand as I watched them leave the courtyard.

    Dad bent down to pick me up, ¡°Xiao Luo, don¡¯t put it in your heart. Yanghui is still a child who doesn¡¯t know anything. Just give the mirror to Yanghui, he is after all a son of Shen¡¯s family. You are after all a girl, you will be married to another family eventually.¡±

    Bearing the pain, I didn¡¯t let out a sound.

    Dad knew that I was hard-headed since young and would never allow anyone to bully me. He held onto my shoulders and sternly said: ¡°Xiao Luo, I know what you are worried about. You are not the only one who holds the last name of Shen. Rest assured, that mirror, I make sure to let Yang Hui take good care of it. It will not be sold!¡±

    My eyes met with the pair of eyes that resembled closely to Grandpa¡¯s, and slowly nodded my head.

    Dad understood the importance of the matter and wanted to add a few more words before Step-mom roared from the outside, ¡°Shen Haisheng, if you aren¡¯t leaving, then stay here forever!¡±

    Dad hurriedly stuffed a bunch of things into my hands, ¡°I¡¯m leaving, if there¡¯s anything, call me.¡± After finishing his sentence, he rushed out to catch up to his wife and son.

    Quickly, the courtyard that was bursting with arguments turned silent, leaving me standing alone.

    After my ear stopped ringing, I looked down. My arms had turned purple. Looking at the things in my hands, it was a few rolls of hundred dollars cash. Helpless, I laughed. If this was father¡¯s love, then his love was cheap!

    I was already 25 years old, and am no longer that weak little 10 year old. I have a university degree and a big house that Grandpa left behind, I can also live well! But, no matter how my logic convinced me, my heart was empty, and felt nothing but sadness, I was even more at loss than back then.

    Perhaps because I knew back then, even if I did not have my parents, I still had Grandpa. But now, I have lost Grandpa, lost my one and only relative. From now onwards, in this world, I am alone! When I¡¯m tired, I have no one to rely on; when I¡¯m hurt, I have nowhere to retreat!

    Looking at the house in front of my eyes, I laughed and threw the cash out. Pink notes flew out all over, my smile remained on my face while tears were overflowing.

    When I was seven, when my parents divorced, I knew that my tears were useless and were never willing to waste time on crying. But at this moment, as if a tap was turned on, the sorrows contained in my heart became an endless stream of tears, flowing out non-stop.

    Losing a loved one was like¡­ you thought you could accept it, reason with it, be strong about it, but never be not sad over it, at a specific moment, specific instance, sadness will overwhelm you.

    Grandpa, grandpa¡­¡­

    Crying out in silence, I attempted to wipe away my tears a few times while trying to force out a smile. Since there will no longer be anyone to help wipe away my tears, no longer anyone to understand my pains, then I can only face it with a smile. However, every time I try hard to smile, it will be quickly broken by tears.

    Crying hard, I could no longer stand steadily and fell onto the ground. Tightly biting my teeth and hugging myself, I wanted to give myself more strength and comfort, but looking at the empty house in front of me, remembering that the owner of the house was no longer around, tears came down like rain showered, continuous and endless.

    I kept crying and crying as if the world was about to end.

    Suddenly, a ball of Bleeding Heart Vine¡¯s flower floated in front of my eyes. Like a kid trying his best to make someone laugh, flipping a few rounds in the air, it landed into my arms.

    That moment, I stopped crying and stared at the ground. It was a flower ball made from the Bleeding Heart Vine¡¯s flower, with the green vines at the structure, flowers as decorations, it fitted nicely in my palm, delicate and pretty.

    I forgot about sorrow as I impulsively picked it up. As I was about to study it carefully, I thought of a question: Where did this flower ball come from?

    I was like a robot without its lubricating oil, inch by inch, I gradually turned my head towards the direction where the flower ball came from. That man¡­¡­ He had witnessed everything¡­ That moment that I hid deep within, my weakest, my most sorrow, most out-of-image moment¡­

    He quietly looked at me, without speaking a word; I felt both awkward and frustrated, my mind turned blank, and could not speak a single word too.

    Separated by the leaves and the white petals of the Orange Jasmine, we speechlessly gazed at each other for a while, I jotted up, lifted my hands, wanting to harshly throw the flower ball towards him, but was unable to bring myself to do so. I turned around with the flower ball in my hands and rushed back into the house.

    I looked into the mirror at my shabby state. Feeling even more embarrassed, I wanted to smash the flower ball. But upon lifting it and looking at its exquisite beauty, I put it down and advised myself, don¡¯t vent other¡¯s mistakes on your flower!

    I quickly washed my face with cold water and re-tied my messy hair. Looking at the mirror, finding that I had already given myself a makeover and restarted my life, I walked out with assertiveness, feeling certain to sternly tackle the man who fainted in my house!

 CH 2

    ¡°As the sun was setting, shadows were casted onto the ground. He stood over there in a white top and black pants. His tall figure made him resemble a lonely yet mighty pine tree. His features resembled a portrait and his gaze brightened, as if he didn¡¯t belong in the present world.¡±

    At noon, the sun was scorching hot. The corner between the main house and the courtyard was unexpectedly cool and the flowers were fragrant. No wonder he could sit here quietly the entire morning.

    I stood in front of him with my hand on my hips, expressionless and asked, ¡°Are you done watching? Are you satisfied with our soap opera?¡±

    He didn¡¯t answer.

    I angrily asked: ¡°Why were you hiding here to watch us?¡±

    He calmly replied: ¡°I wasn¡¯t hiding. It¡¯s just that without the owner¡¯s permission, I wasn¡¯t able to casually walk around.¡± It was incredibly difficult to listen to him speak this morning, but now, even with his strange accent that remained, it didn¡¯t take too much effort.

    I scorned: ¡°Did I stop you from leaving? Why did you not leave?¡±

    ¡°There wasn¡¯t an appropriate chance to do so.¡±

    He left me speechless. The soap opera lasted throughout the entire morning, so there really was no appropriate chance to leave. I unwillingly asked: ¡°Why did you¡­¡­ throw a ball of flowers at me?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you also use a bunch of flowers to throw at me?¡±

    Hmph! How stingy! I glared at him angrily while he looked back, disinterested. His calm gaze contained a slither of carelessness, similar to the ocean acting impartial as it embraces the river that swirled around in front of its eyes.

    I got angrier and as I was about to unleash my temper.

    Suddenly, a gust of wind came and flowers fell down, as swift as sudden snow. I subconsciously waved my hand and tilted my head left and right, while he remained seated still as he observed the flowers disintegrate and scatter in the air, floating past his brows and landing on his lapel.

    Within the shadows of the flowers, the sun shined gently and warmly, but his gaze was lonely and cold, like a god that overlooked the people with no emotions. However, deep in those focused eyes, there was a strike of melancholy missing the past.

    I stopped moving unconsciously and stared at him blankly¡ª

    All of a sudden, everything fell silent. The petals falling in the air slowed down and all that was left in the entire space was him, lazily sitting in the spot, as he watched the petals dance around and fall like snow.

    But the moment, he caught sight of me looking at him. His gaze slashed across, staring towards me.

    Meeting his gaze, I regained my senses, immediately shifting my eyes away. In my heart, I weirdly felt guilty and my cheeks turned hot. Where did the anger from just now disappear to?

    Stop, stop stop! It¡¯s my own private matter, why should I take my anger out on others?

    Disheartened, I said ¡°You may leave now, the timing is absolutely perfect!¡±

    He stood up and walked around me as he headed out without saying a word.

    I bent down to pick up the utensils he used but saw the porridge and side dishes barely touched. I froze for a moment before turning around to see him walk out step-by-step, dressed in a comical fashion along with his bare feet. However, perhaps due to his tall figure, seeing him made others not take him lightly.

    ¡°Hey¡ª Stop!¡±

    He stopped to turn around to look at me, without any questions or expectations. His face was expressionless and disinterested.

    I asked: ¡°Was the food not good enough for you? Was the food I made that terrible?¡±

    He nodded his head without hesitation.

    I literally, literally¡­¡­. I was so furious at him! He is in this¡­¡­ in this shabby condition, had actually dared to loathe the food I made. I should have let him starve to death!

    I waved my hands in disgust and said: ¡°Go, leave!¡±

    He turned around, continuing his walk step-by-step, neither slow nor fast. I could not help but to stare at his feet, as I recalled the rocky stone path outside¡­¡­

    ¡°Hey¡ª Stop!¡±

    He turned around to look at me, still holding that expressionless and disinterested face.

    I walked to the middle of the courtyard to pick up the pair of slippers that had been drying and placed it in front of his feet, ¡°Old slippers, don¡¯t you dare dislike them, take them and wear them!¡±

    He stared at the pair of slippers for a moment, before actually opening his mouth and took the initiative to request: ¡°I¡¯d like to wash my feet, may I?¡±

    ¡°S-sure, come with me!¡±

    I walked to a corner of the kitchen and passed him the plastic hose. After turning on the tap, I started to feel embarrassed for staring at him while he washed his feet, and turned my body to look away.

    After a while, I heard him say: ¡°Done.¡±

    I took over the water hose and turned off the tap. From the corner of my eyes, I took a glimpse of his cleaned feet, pale as a sheet of paper, and the red scars on his feet became even more prominent.

    He put on the slippers and took two steps. The slippers suited him well.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°No problem. It¡¯s just an old unwanted pair of slippers.¡±

    He moved towards the exit without saying anything.

    I stared at his back and suddenly shouted: ¡°Hey¡ª Stop!¡±

    He turned around and looked at me. He was still looking expressionless and disinterested.

    I hesitated for a moment, and before I regretted not speaking, I blabbered: ¡°Where are you from? Why are you in this state? What plans do you have? Do you need to contact your family or friends for help? I have a phone, I can lend it to you! If you need money, I¡­ I can loan you some!¡±

    He remained silent. I was even more nervous than him. In a panic, I said: ¡°I will only help you because you are in an emergency. But I won¡¯t lend you much, at most just enough to cover your expenses for your trip home.¡±

    He faintly said: ¡°It¡¯s only me.¡±

    His words were very brief, but I understood. He was the only one left. There was no one whom he could call for help when he faced difficulties; there was no haven for him to return to rest whenever he got beaten up. My eyes turned slightly teary, and the feeling of wanting to cry returned. I took a deep breath, and gave a grin. I said: ¡°You have hands and legs and you¡¯ve grown up, you don¡¯t possibly intend to be a beggar, right? Eventually, you will need to find a job to support yourself!¡±

    He thought for a while: ¡°I should find a job.¡±

    I carefully asked: ¡°What¡¯s your education attainment, university, technical school, vocational school, or picked up any skills?¡±

    ¡°None.¡±

    ¡°None? Nothing at all? You must have learned something since you¡¯re grown up! Even if your grades weren¡¯t good enough for university, you should have at least picked up a skill¡­¡­.¡±

    He remained silent, appearing expressionless and disinterested, but it was like a silent smirk: I already said I have none, what nonsense are you saying?

    I was going mad, ¡°So how have you been living in the past years? You can¡¯t possibly be living off your old parents, right?¡±

    He frowned with displeasure, ¡°I depended on my own strength to survive.¡±

    Okay! As long as you weren¡¯t lazing around or committing crimes, doing labor work is also a decent job. I hesitated as I spoke nothing. He was not in a hurry so he quietly stood under the hot sun, allowing me to battle with my logic and impulsiveness.

    of Mother Mary, but turned out my true nature is that of a scammer.

    For a moment, I frowned and gritted my teeth. After thinking for about ten minutes, I anxiously asked: ¡°Are you willing to stay here and work? Accommodations and food will be provided, as for pay¡­ It depends on your performance.¡± Just earlier, he probably felt he was living with a good Samaritan, before finding out I was similar in essence to Huang Shiren*.

    [t/n: Huang Shiren is a fictional character from a Chinese play titled ¡°The White Haired Girl¡±. He is known to be a usurious and despotic landlord who makes fortune as a loan shark by exploiting peasants.]

    He was silent while I was nervous, though I didn¡¯t know why I was nervous. The job opportunities on the island were limited. With his current shabby situation, shouldn¡¯t he be boot-licking me?

    Finally, he nodded his head, ¡°Sure!¡±

    I heaved a sigh of relief and happily said: ¡°Then it¡¯s settled. As long as you work hard, I will not treat you badly. My name is Shen Luo, Luo from the word conch, not carrot. What¡¯s your name?¡±

    He was silent for a moment, then said: ¡°Wu Julan.¡±

    After a brief introduction, Wu Julan and I were considered to have officially met each other, but what should we do next? It seemed like we needed to sign an official employee contract, but I wasn¡¯t intending to give wages and was even prepared to chase him out anytime. This employee contract¡­¡­ Anyways, I was not going to be the first one to propose it. If he wanted to call me an extortionist, so be it!

    Face to face in the silence, a rare moment happened where he initiated the conversation and asked: ¡°What should I be doing?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I was deep in thought, so I did not react.

    He said: ¡°You asked me to work, what do you need me to do?¡±

    ¡°Oh! There¡¯s no hurry, let me settle you down first.¡± I looked at him and decided that the first thing to do was to buy him some clothes.

    ¡°I¡¯m going out for a bit, you and I, together¡­¡­¡± before I finished my words, I quickly shut my mouth.

    Logically speaking, he was still a stranger. I should not be leaving him at home, but considering his current state, I could bet that news would spread across the entire island in less than half a day if I were to bring him to the streets with me. Maybe even before evening, a ¡®kind Samaritan¡¯ would be calling to inform Dad, I must be crazy to do that!

    I gritted my teeth and quickly changed my mind, saying firmly: ¡°Stay at home!¡±

    I pointed at the spot where he was sitting just now, ¡°You can bring out the rattan chair and sit anywhere.¡±

    I went upstairs to change my clothes while feeling conflicted about my decision earlier on, to leave a stranger whom I only just learnt the name of all alone at home; was it really appropriate? Would my house be emptied before I even made it back home?

    In the midst of being conflicted, I rummaged through my drawers and wardrobes, taking out all the cash, credit cards, identification cards, and even the accessories that I rarely put on and stuffed them into a handbag. This way, what¡¯s left at home would only be the old clothes and old furniture. Even if he wanted to carry them away, it would not be this easy anymore!

    Upon closing the door of the bedroom, I thought for a while, before going into the bathroom to get my comb, carefully retrieving a strand of hair between the seams and placed it between the fine seams of the door. I moved on to do the same to the doors of the three bedrooms upstairs and the study room downstairs.

    This way, if he were to open the door, the hair would drop unnoticeably. I picked up this trick from the television when I was 10 years old. I deliberately placed a strand of hair within my diary to prove whether my step-mom secretly peeked into my diary. When the truth turned out to reveal she had read it, we had a huge fight and I ended up being labeled as ¡°kid who was scheming at a young age¡±.

    Carrying an exceptionally heavy handbag, I walked out of the house. I saw Wu Julan had shifted the rattan chair to the eaves of the main house, and leaning against it, watching the blooming bougainvillea on the walls of the courtyard. My heart slightly moved, the delicate and beautiful hue of pink from the petals contrasting against the old and aged hue of rusty green made it more prominent, forming a very distinct beauty. I often stared at it as well.

    I said: ¡°There¡¯s water and food in the kitchen, you can help yourself. Although you dislike my cooking skills, there is no need to starve yourself.¡±

    He nodded slightly, indicating that he had heard it.

    ¡°Then¡ª I¡¯m leaving! I¡¯ll be back soon!¡± The moment I closed the door, our eyes met, I was full of conflictions and uncertainties whereas he was all calm and even carried a stint of humour. That moment, it felt like he had seen through my worries and was amused by my childish anger!

    In a daze, I stood in front of the closed courtyard door, impossible! It must be an illusion, it must have been due to the angle of the light!

    In recent years, the tourism industry has developed quickly on this island. The clothing stores along Denglong Street were mainly tailored towards the tourists, primarily selling floral tops and floral shorts, which were not suitable for daily wear. However, I didn¡¯t dare visit the shop I frequent as the shopkeepers know me. I was afraid that they might ask who I was buying for, so I could only visit the other shops that were unfamiliar.

    After visiting several shops, I finally bought some clothes that Wu Julan could wear. I bought him two round-neck T-shirts, two checkered long-sleeve blouses, two pairs of short pants, two pairs of long pants, and a pair of slippers. Lastly, with my face all red, I gritted my teeth and bought him two packets of underwear. There were three in each packet, so I got six in total.

    This is really cheating! I¡¯d never bought underwear for my grandpa. For the first time in my life, I was getting male underwear that was not for my boyfriend but a stranger!

    On the way home, I bought some ingredients. Carrying two big bags, I walked along the usual rocky stone path while making some scenario plans for myself: if I return home to realise that he has stolen everything and ran away, it would be normal, I will take it as becoming bankrupt! It¡¯s better to see through such a person earlier than later! So even though my actions today were slightly reckless and impulsive, it was not a loss from this carefully laid out experience!

    When I reached the main door and took out my key, I hesitated as I took 2 steps back and carefully studied the surface of the door. The door remained tightly shut, while there were only dropped petals and dust on the ground. There were no signs of anyone attempting to bring anything out after I left.

    Biting my lip, I put the keys into the lock as my heart beated nervously. This reminded me of the anxious feeling I got when I received my university entrance exam results.

    As soon as I opened the main door, I spotted him sitting under the eaves. I couldn¡¯t help but put a smile on my face. I leaped in front of him and placed the bag of clothes next to him, ¡°These are yours. I randomly bought them so take a look.¡± Without waiting for his reply, I turned to the kitchen and placed the ingredients I bought earlier on into the refrigerator. ¡°I bought live fish to steam for tonight.¡± In Grandpa¡¯s words, while steaming fish tests the chef¡¯s ability to control the fire, the greatest challenge is still choosing the right ingredients. Even if the fire was mishandled, as long as the fish is nice and fresh, it will still taste just as good.

    After I washed my hands, I exited the kitchen and found him flipping through the bag of clothes. Once he finished looking at the shirts and pants, he lifted and examined a packet of underwear. My face felt hot, and quickly shifting my gaze elsewhere, I rushed to the living room, saying loudly: ¡°You should go take a bath and put on the new clothes. If they do not fit, I can make an exchange tomorrow. You can use the bathroom on the first floor. As for the clothes you¡¯re currently wearing, you can choose between washing them yourself or throwing it into the trash.¡±

    I stood outside the bathroom on the first floor and said to him: ¡°This is the bathroom, there¡¯s shampoo and bath soap. I¡¯ll get you two clean bath towels. Once you¡¯re done picking your clothes, you can go shower.

    While I was rummaging the cupboard to look for towels, he walked behind me and asked: ¡°What is this?¡±

    I turned around, seeing him holding onto an opened packet of underwear and was looking serious at me. Blood flushed to my face, almost shouting, I said: ¡°What do you think it is? Even if you didn¡¯t have education and am illiterate, there¡¯re still images on it!¡±

    ¡°How do I wear it?¡±

    I roared: ¡°How do I wear it? What do you think? Of course it¡¯s worn under your pants. Unless you want to be like Superman, wearing the underwear outside? Or like Batman and wear it over your head? I¡¯m warning you, I won¡¯t spare you the next time you crack such a lame joke!¡± Infuriated, I dumped the towel on him and rushed out of the living room.

    I stood in the courtyard and gritted my teeth, vowing to never buy underwear for any men other than my boyfriend! Otherwise, my kindness will be taken as a joke!

    After the wind blew for a while, I finally felt the burning on my face cool down. I looked at the time. It was almost time for dinner, but¡­¡­ I will have to see whether he qualifies to stay for dinner.

    I walked into the living room, and saw that the bathroom door was still tightly shut, I tip-toed next to the door and heard the sound of water running through the tap. It seemed that he was still bathing. I hurried to the study room, bent down and examined. My hair was still stuck between the gaps of the door.

    I stood back up and headed up to the 2nd floor immediately, examining all 4 bedrooms. Every strand of hair remained in its original place, putting aside falling; they weren¡¯t even broken. Obviously, after I left, he did not attempt to enter any of the rooms and sat still in his spot at the courtyard.

    Biting my lip, I walked slowly downstairs. Staring at the tightly shut bathroom door, a grin gradually surfaced on my lips. The anger I felt from being ridiculed earlier on had vanished. As long as he had no ill intentions, having some occasional annoying behavior is not unforgivable.

    I finished preparing dinner but Wu Julan was still yet done with the shower. I ran to the bathroom door and heard the water still flowing. He couldn¡¯t have fainted in the bathroom, right? I banged the door, ¡°Wu Julan, Wu Julan!¡±

    The sound of the water flowing disappeared, ¡°Coming out soon.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, take your time.¡± As long as he did not faint, I would definitely support him taking a longer and cleaner shower.

    I moved the rattan table and rattan chair to the courtyard, placed the dishes on the table and covered them with saran wrap to prevent flies. Once Wu Julan comes out, we could start having dinner

    The sky had not turned dark yet, but it was no longer hot, and the breeze was also very comfortable. In the past when the wind wasn¡¯t too strong or it wasn¡¯t raining, Grandpa and I would eat in the courtyard. I sat on the rattan chair, waving the Pu fan* at myself and lifted my head up to look at the white clouds in the blue sky above the eaves. There were no buzzing sounds of vehicles or the noises of human traffic. Just the sound of the wind blowing against the trees and the chirp of crickets. The familiar scenery, the familiar serenity. This unexpectedly brought some comfort to my sorrowful heart that I haven¡¯t seen or felt in a long time.

    [t/n: Pu fan is a fan made using cattail leaves.]

    Feeling a shadow blocking the light in front of my eyes, I was startled when I realized that Wu Julan was already standing in front of the dinner table. I lazily looked towards him but was caught in surprise, and the fan in my hand dropped onto the ground.

    As the sun was setting, shadows were casted onto the ground. He stood over there in a white top and black pants. His tall figure made him resemble a lonely yet mighty pine tree. His features resembled a portrait and his gaze brightened, as if he didn¡¯t belong in the present world.

    I wasn¡¯t sure whether he had already gotten used to my shocking gazes or if he didn¡¯t notice it at all. He calmly sat down, ¡°The clothes fit well. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Oh, oh¡­ You¡¯re welcome. Eat, eat!¡± I came back to my senses. Borrowing the excuse to pick up the fan, I attempted to conceal my awkwardness. My heart was beating like the running of ten thousand horses. Was this the same person who fainted outside my house? He actually looked so pleasing to the eyes after washing himself clean.

    Wu Julan lifted the chopsticks and picked up a piece of fish. While I ate and secretly examined him ¡ª his long hair neatly hanging from the sides of his ears, his face no longer half-covered but rather fully shown. The shape of his features remained the same, but after the shower, his skin no longer looked dry and dark but white and bright. His features instantly looked radiant, as if the dust collected on an orb had been wiped clean, revealing its original radiance.

    The table had a plate of meat and two plates of vegetables. I noticed that after Wu Julan had taken a first bite, he never took the second again. I gradually realized one fact: he¡¯d rather eat rice by itself than eat the dishes I¡¯d cooked! I leaped up, fumed, and forgot about the vegetables, in order to steam that fish, I had kept my eyes fixed on the clock and guarded dutifully next to the stove, not daring to distract myself.

    ¡°You¡¯re not eating the vegetables. Are you finding the food I make disgusting again?¡±

    Without lifting his head, he bluntly replied with a ¡°Hmm.¡±

    I glared at him, enraged. I kept my livid glare on him.

    He finally lifted his head, looked at me, thought for a bit and said: ¡°I know you have done your best, it¡¯s alright.¡±

    What? What is he saying? Do I need him to place himself all so high and mighty in order to forgive me? What have I done wrong that needed his forgiveness? I was so angry and left utterly speechless that I lowered my head. With my chopsticks, I took half of the fish into my bowl. Since you refuse to eat it, I will eat it!

    Determined to uphold the idea that I might support myself, I ate ferociously. Wu Julan had already placed his chopsticks down, yet I continued eating with all my might, till the extent that I was going to puke. Wu Julan watched me silently as I said angrily: ¡°What¡¯s there to look at? Have you not seen someone with a large appetite!¡±

    The corner of his lips slightly twitched, seemingly holding a slight smile.

    I glared at him and said: ¡°I cooked dinner, you wash the dishes!¡± After finishing, I wanted to stand up impressively and leave gracefully, leaving my suave figure behind. Who knew that the moment I lifted my bottom, I realized that I had eaten too much, the highest amount that I could handle when eating at a buffet, to the extent that I needed a wall to support my movement. I swayed a little and sat back down pathetically.

    I picked up the Pu fan and pretended to fan myself, ¡°It¡¯s pretty cool outside, I¡¯ll sit for a while longer.¡±

    He said: ¡°Indeed, sit a while longer.¡±

    Before I had the chance to reply, he had already cleaned up the dishes and went into the kitchen, leaving me staring at his suave figure.

    I sat for a while, still feeling uneasy, then staggered as I stood to enter the kitchen and check on his progress with the dishes.

    He didn¡¯t add any detergent, so in order to remove the grease, he used steaming hot water, as if it weren¡¯t too hot!

    I turned on the tap to put some cold water, picked up the detergent and added a few drops in the water, ¡°If you can¡¯t find anything in the future, just ask me.¡±

    He picked up the detergent bottle and looked at the instructions and calmly said: ¡°Yes.¡±

    I said: ¡°Once you¡¯re done with the dish, clean the countertop, and the stove, and the cupboards, and the floor, and the windows, and¡­¡­¡±

    I displayed the figure of a boss as I listed all the picky requests one by one, but Wu Julan remained expressionless and replied with a simple, ¡°Yes.¡±

    The both of us, one commanding while the other working, finished the job beyond my expectations. Not only did he clean the countertop, stove and cupboard well, he even wiped the window and the marble surface around the stove till they sparkled. He passed the task I assigned him with perfection.

    Seeing the spotless kitchen, I started to become curious about him. Although this person is picky, he is serious and diligent when it comes to work, and is not one to laze around. How did he land in a situation where he ended up being bare-footed?

    After cleaning the kitchen, Wu Julan took the initiative to go clean the bathroom he used earlier.

    I sat in the empty living room, hearing the occasional sound of water from the bathroom while pondering my thoughts.

    Grandpa died of stomach cancer. When he learnt about it, it was already at the middle to late stages. He kept it a secret from us until he could no longer hide it. Only then did we find out. Back then, I was working as an accountant in a foreign company in Beijing. After finding out, I immediately put through my resignation, carried all my luggage and returned to the island.

    Grandpa did not object to my stubborn decision, nor did I object to Grandpa¡¯s rejection to be hospitalised in order to undergo operations. Compared to lying on a hospital bed, being cut open here and there, or having people insert tubes in your body, it was better to live like an ordinary human and enjoy the last moments of life.

    We intentionally forgot the pains of the illness and lived normally, growing flowers, playing chess, and tasting tea. When the weather was nice, we even set up a stall at the harbour and went fishing in the sea. The time spent was no different from the past, as if the 7 years that I was away from home never existed, as if I had always stayed in the island, only that in the past he was the one who held my hands and walked, while I became the one holding his now.

    Before Grandpa fell ill, or even when I was in university, I had thought of returning back to the island to stay. But because of the living costs and that I had already spent quite a bit of Grandpa¡¯s retirement money, not wanting to burden him further and for my plan in ¡°settling back home¡±, I worked hard to earn more money. This was so that I could come back once I had saved enough and rent an old house along the coast, then transform it into a cafe. This way, not only could I take care of grandpa but also enjoy my life by the ocean. Despite these plans I had for the future, time didn¡¯t wait for me and Grandpa was no longer around.

    If I had known Grandpa would leave so early, I may have told him earlier that I did not like the big city, perhaps¡­ However, there is no such thing as ¡°if I had known¡± in this world.

    While I was putting the blame on myself over this, I suddenly heard Wu Julan say: ¡°I¡¯m done cleaning the bathroom. Are there still other tasks that I need to do?¡±

    I looked up, seeing him walk towards me from the bathroom, with even-paced steps. Although all he wore was a pair of cheap black pants, he was able to bring out the aura of the legendary cloud dragon; delicate and swift whilst floating. I could not help but to stare at him for a moment before speaking: ¡°There¡¯s nothing left to do. I¡¯ll bring you to take a look at the place you¡¯ll be living in!¡±

    I stood up, spreading my arms wide open and gestured, ¡°As you can see, this is an old house, it¡¯s the Shen family¡¯s old mansion¡­¡­¡±

    According to Grandpa, this old mansion was built using the money his grandfather got from selling pearls that he risked his life collecting when he was younger. Because the island was too poor to live in, three great-aunts married in far away places and Grandpa left home, leaving no one else living in the old home. The old home was gradually deserted and the roof was covered with moss. After grandpa left the salvage crew, he did not choose to remain in the city but to return back to his hometown instead. Tidying up the old home, he settled back home.

    Different from the structures of the traditional house in the mainland, the old home is formed with masonry. Using resources collected within the island, Hai Dao residents used dark green bricks and greyish green tiled roofs to construct a sturdy home. Not only could it stand against the typhoons, but was also resistant against the humid climate and termites.

    The main building of the old mansion is in the shape of a ¡°7¡±, with a long horizontal portion and a short vertical one. On the upper and lowers levels are two huge rooms. One is a living room and the other one is a study room. The living room is on the horizontal of the ¡®7¡¯ and the study is on the vertical of the ¡®7¡¯. Both rooms are incredibly spacious. Grandpa had rheumatic legs that made it difficult to go up and down the stairs, so the study was turned into a bedroom.

    The staircase going up is located at the turning corner of the ¡°7¡±. Going up the staircase, the horizontal portion of the ¡°7¡± has two rooms ¡ª both have their own bathrooms within. The room closer to the staircase is slightly smaller. After placing a double bed and a few simple pieces of furniture, there is not much leftover space. These two bedrooms are guestrooms, for the convenience of Dad and the family when they come over for a short stay. Speaking of which, the reason why the old home was renovated to be so ¡°modern-style¡± was all thanks to Shen Yanghui. When Shen Yanghui was six, he could not adapt to living here, crying and wailing to leave. To satisfy his grandson, the grandpa spent half a year hiring someone for a major renovation, installing shower taps and flushing toilets. Unfortunately, Dad and his family gave back little, spending only two to three days over the subsequent two to three years.

    The two larger bedrooms are located at the ends of the horizontal and vertical portions of the ¡°7¡±, along with another wall to divide in the interior. Even with the bed, bookshelf, study table, rattan stofa, and rattan chair inhabiting the room, it still looked spacious. The room at the horizontal portion was once Grandpa¡¯s bedroom, while the vertical portion was mine.

    The kitchen is an independent stone-tiled hut situated on the left of the main building, forming the shape of a door with the main building¡¯s ¡°7¡±. On the top left corner of the ¡°door¡± shape was the garden. The lime tree that must be at least a century old is located within. Based on what Grandpa said, he also had no idea the exact age of the lime tree but according to his father, he once plucked the limes for its juice to dip with mackerels.

    The left vertical portion of the ¡°door¡± is a rectangular-shaped garden. Closely situated along the walls of the courtyard are the Chinese Ixora and the Bougainvillea. There is a water tap along the wall closer to the kitchen. Using bluestone and cement, a drain was carved for the ease of washing and cleaning. The right portion of the ¡°door¡± is an empty space, where the Bleeding Heart Vine and Murray Exotica are planted, just nicely located outside the study room and my room. In the middle of the ¡°door¡± is a rectangular shaped courtyard, the dark green stones laid on the ground, with some bonsai scattered. The bottom opening of the ¡°door¡± is exactly where the main door is located.

    After taking Wu Julan on a tour around the house, I stood along the windows of the guestroom on level 2, overseeing the entire courtyard, back facing Wu Julan and said: ¡°I plan to open a guesthouse here. It¡¯s not possible to do it alone so that¡¯s why I asked you to stay.¡±

    It was a secret that I had hidden in my heart, and this was the first time I shared it with someone. Feeling a sense of excitement, I could not help but add on: ¡°Since the day I came back, I had no intentions of leaving. No matter how big or bustling Beijing is, it has no connection to me. I will only be a guest who¡¯s staying under someone¡¯s roof. I¡¯ve had enough of such tastes. Even if it is poorer here, I would rather remain back in my own home.¡±

    After finishing my words, I realised I had talked trivally and spoke too much, appearing as too talkative. I quickly changed the topic, putting on a stern face, and said: ¡°The location of the old home is not good. It is located slightly further from the coast and will not be the tourists¡¯ top choice. Hence, I need to create a selling point to attract them. Once I have gained enough reputation, tourists will naturally come over. In the future, I will be the boss of the guesthouse and you will be the service crew of the guesthouse. I will use my brain and you will use your labor. As such, all the dirty work and tiring work will be left to you¡­¡­¡± I suddenly felt worried that I might have frightened this crew away right before the guesthouse opens its business and quickly added: ¡°Of course, this is just a guesthouse and not a construction site. There won¡¯t be much dirty or tiring work to do. You just need to be studious.¡±

    Wu Julan gave a ¡°Hmm¡± sound to indicate his understanding, ¡°Where will I be staying?¡±

    I said: ¡°This room.¡± This is the decision I made after thinking thoroughly. Since I¡¯d be opening a guesthouse it was only logical that I should let him stay in the study room downstairs while renting out the rooms upstairs. However, as I was not yet prepared and could not bear to let someone else stay in a room where Grandpa once lived, I could only let him stay in one of the rooms upstairs. Between the two guestrooms, this room is right next to mine, allowing me to ¡°monitor¡± him easily. After all, he is still a stranger.

    ¡°My brother was just staying in this room. There are clean bedsheets in the drawer under the bed. You can change it yourself. If you want to clean the bathroom, you can also do so yourself. The rag is in front of the sink and the detergent is in the cupboard below the sink.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± Wu Julan readily agreed.

    ¡°I¡¯m tired today so I¡¯ll be sleeping early. You should sleep early too! Once you are well-rested, we have a lot more work to do.¡±

    I helped Wu Julan to shut the door and entered my own room.

    After a few days of insufficient rest, in addition to waking up so early today, my head was feeling heavy and I could not wait to climb onto my bed and rest. But, there was still someone next door.

    Though he had passed my test this afternoon, there would always be this group of people ¡ª behaving prim and proper in the day but turning into the opposite person at night. The human heart cannot be underestimated. Who knew whether Wu Julan could be such a person?

    After locking the door properly and placing a long bench behind the door, I placed a beer bottle on the bench. Once someone tries to push open the door, the bottle will fall onto the floor and wake me up immediately.

    I put a small flashlight below my pillow, laid my phone next to it, and set ¡°911¡± as the emergency number so that the police could come over at its fast speed. I also placed a small knife under the bed.

    Thinking through and affirming that I had not forgotten anything, I particularly wore a pair of thick cotton socks and laid down on my bed. Although it was not comfortable, the movies always showed the female lead running with bare feet when making her escape. Just in case, I felt that greater sense of safety in wearing a pair of socks.

    At first, I tried hard to resist the temptation of falling asleep. I was on high alert, trying to notice if there were any sounds outside. Slowly, however, my tiredness overcame me and I eventually fell asleep.

 CH 3.1

    ¡°The process is not important. What is important is that we all grew up well, this is the best thing!¡°

    After a night of no dreams, I woke up and squintedly looked at my phone. It was almost 9 o¡¯clock.

    I closed my eyes as I yearned for a little more sleep. Suddenly, Wu Julan¡¯s face appeared in my head. I quickly got up and looked at the door ¡ª the hollow beer bottle remaining standing straight, like a dedicated knight reporting to their master that no enemies entered.

    Indeed, I didn¡¯t judge the wrong person! My excitement was immeasurable, it flowed out of the bottom of my heart. I couldn¡¯t hold back my excitement and broke out into a smile. I laid back onto my bed and smiled.

    I slept for a whole ten hours. The fatigue from the past few days vanished and even my mood became better.

    I stretched, closed my eyes, and thought, ¡°Is Wu Julan awake yet? I don¡¯t know how well he rested last night¡­¡± While I was pondering, I heard a sound coming from the yard. I jumped off the bed, ran to the window, and looked out¨C

    The sky was clear and blue; the sun was magnificent; the green trees danced; the fresh flowers bloomed; the colorful bed sheets that hung on the bamboo pole swayed with the wind. Wu Julan was wearing a white shirt and black pants, and stood among the sheets and quilts that flowed up and down. He was currently hanging the washed clothes, one by one.

    Perhaps the sky was too clear and too blue, the sun was too magnificent; perhaps the trees were too green, and the flowers were too vibrant. A simple scene like this made my heart suddenly feel warm. I smiled as I continued watching.

    The bedsheets and quills flapped up and down, following the flow of the wind, rising up and falling down. As a result, Wu Julan¡¯s figure kept being revealed at one moment, then hidden in another. After he finished hanging up the last shirt, he raised his head and looked towards me. The specks of sunlight created highlights near his body, which made his shadow seem clear yet blurry. I lightly waved my hand, raised my voice and said, ¡°Good morning!¡±

    Wu Julan lightly smiled and replied, ¡°Good morning.¡±

    ¡°Have you eaten breakfast yet?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    While adjusting my hair, I said, ¡° Wait a little bit, it¡¯ll be ready soon.¡±

    I rushed into the bathroom, quickly finished brushing my teeth and washing my face, then rushed into the kitchen, and started making breakfast. It was too late to prepare congee, so I decided to make two bowls of Dragon Beard Noodles and a plate of tomatoes with eggs. Let¡¯s just eat tomato egg noodles then!

    While I was cooking, Wu Julan stood at the kitchen door the whole time, watching me. As he had done the laundry for the whole morning, I decided not to order him to help.

    Wu Julan asked, ¡°Do people nowadays use these stoves to cook?¡±

    I watched the noodles in the pot, making sure that none spilled out, while stirring the tomatoes while replying, ¡°We use liquified gas tanks, while those cities on the mainland use natural gas.¡±

    Once the breakfast was ready, each of us got ourselves a bowl of noodles as we sat down and ate.

    I peaked at Wu Julan. He had no expression. He just slowly ate and wasn¡¯t being picky. Whether it was tomatoes or eggs, he ate them all.

    I couldn¡¯t hold it in any longer as I asked, ¡°How does it taste?¡±

    Wu Julan just glanced at me and said nothing.

    I understood. As I¡¯d already gotten used to his despises and breakfast was prepared in a haste, I wasn¡¯t looking for his satisfaction with the meal. I mumbled to myself, ¡°My cooking skills surely can¡¯t compare to the skills of a master chef who works at big restaurants, but I have been doing housework since I was a child. So my home cooked dishes are still decent. Even Auntie Yang, who always picks at my mistakes, said that my cooking is pretty good. It¡¯s probably just the fact that you are not used to our style of cooking.¡±

    Wu Julan lowered his head and concentrated on eating, not saying a word.

    I sullenly found out about one of Wu Junlan¡¯s ¡°moralities.¡± He never lies. Even if it was a small harmless one to smoothen out the relationships between people, he will never say it. I casually rumbled over such a ¡°moral¡± person and just left it.

    After the both of us finished eating, Wu Julan cleaned up the bowl and chopsticks and started to do the dishes. He did it concisely, unlike yesterday where I had to constantly remind him from time to time, as I left the task to him.

    I looked at Wu Julan, who was focused on doing the dishes, then I looked at the yard. I saw the new clothes that I bought for Wu Julan and the bed sheets and quilt that he had changed were drying under the sun and the bed sheets and quilt from the room that Dad and step-mom stayed in have been washed clean and hung on the bamboo poles to dry. This made the yard seem very full.

    In the current society, even the recruiters who actively look for new hires may not be able to find such a diligent worker. For the first time, I felt that I was being rewarded for being a good person who made a smart choice. He also had good looks. How could such a diligent worker level down to cloth rags and faint at my door?

    However, my experience as a child made me understand that everyone has something that they don¡¯t want to let others know about. If he doesn¡¯t want to say, I won¡¯t pry. What I don¡¯t want to do is force another person.

    I beckoned to Wu Julan, ¡°Go to the study room to work.¡±

    While passing by the bathroom near the stairs, I suddenly stopped. The bathroom was so clean, unlike how it was before. The washing machine¡¯s power light was black and I opened the cover. It was clean, with not even a drop of water.

    I became restless and ran into the living room, ¡°Wu Julan, how did you wash the clothes in the morning?¡±

    Wu Julan stared at me across from the kitchen window, not understanding what was going on inside my head.

    I asked, ¡°Did you use the washing machine?¡±

    Wu Julan shook his head.

    Even though I already guessed it, I had to check if I was correct. I found it hard to believe. I pointed towards the yard and shockingly asked, ¡°You hand-washed all of those clothes?¡±

    ¡°Is it not right to hand-wash clothes?¡± Wu Julan asked back.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that it¡¯s not right, but don¡¯t your hands hurt? Next time, use the washing machine to wash the bigger items! You shouldn¡¯t waste your your energy like that even if you have it!¡±

    Wu Julan emotionlessly replied, ¡°My hands don¡¯t hurt. This much energy is nothing to me.¡±

    I was speechless for a moment and firmly said, ¡°Well, in the future, use the washing machine to wash the bedsheets and quilts! I did not buy a washing machine for nothing!¡±

    Wu Julan stayed silent for a moment, ¡°Ok.¡±

    I turned away, headed into the study room and sat in front of the computer. While waiting for the computer to open, I stared at the bed sheets and quilts hanging in the yard in disbelief. Wu Julan is unreasonably diligent, I thought.

    Nowadays, there are still many people hand-washing clothes, but almost no one hand-washes bed sheets and quilts.

    Well, there are still a few people. Take for example a neighbor on this street, Auntie Li. In order to reduce the water and electricity fees, she doesn¡¯t have a washing machine. Of course, Auntie Li is one of the poorest people on this street.

    Wu Julan¡¯s family must also be very poor, to the point that they couldn¡¯t afford a washing machine, so they were used to hand-washing bed sheets and quilts.

    After the computer turned on, I shook off this burdened feeling and got to work.

    Hello readers! As you know, the chapters for this novel is very very very long. Hence, to pace myself out a little, I¡¯ve decided to release each chapter in parts. So, I hope you have enjoyed reading the first part of this chapter. I will quickly work on editing the subsequent parts to this chapter so we can have it published!

    If you like the work so far, I¡¯d appreciate if you can rate the novel and leave a review on NovelUpdates~ Do continue to stick to NovelUpdates or follow me on twitter @whalelyy to receive prompt chapter updates. Similarly, if there are any issues, you may also reach me directly via discord @whalelyy#4262!

    Once again, special thanks to the following for making this chapter possible!

 CH 3.2

    After thinking about it once, I listed all the things I had to do today. The first thing was to apply for a business license and other economic documents regarding opening a private inn. I¡¯ve already heard before that even though this is a little frustrating, it isn¡¯t difficult. Now that the islands are focusing and developing tourism, they strongly support locals making some interesting businesses, to develop cultural tourism, and make the tourism industry thrive. When ¡°natives¡± like me do business like this, time is the only problem. What worries me is the future renovations and operations of the private inn.

    Even if the old house is old, it¡¯s still pretty comfortable to live in, in my opinion. However, my opinion and the customers may be different, each room has to at least be renewed, have wifi and a television installed, curtains, bedsheets, quilts, towels and such will have to be newly prepared.

    I worked in Beijing for three and a half years, lived cheaply and saved a total of one hundred twenty dollars. After I quit and went back home, I spent around a thousand and now my bank account has around ten thousand dollars left. That¡¯s all of the money I have aside from the old house. I need to consider the fact that I may not be able to get customers and as a result not earn money at the start of my opening. I need to be meticulous when it comes to my spending since I must leave enough money for my daily life and initial operating fees for the start of the inn. I can only spend a limited amount of money for renewal and repairs, so the costs have to be calculated carefully.

    I went online and looked at other people¡¯s renewal experiences to learn more. I learned about taking the shortcuts, how to save money, and how supervising the construction will prevent deception.

    While I was watching a video and taking notes, I saw a long and white arm reaching over. It poked the figures on the screen and poked some more, as if it wasn¡¯t enough. It seemed like it was very curious as to why there was a moving person on the screen.

    What¡¯s happening?

    I stayed still for a while, then turned my head, speechlessly looking at Wu Julan who I had not known for how long he had been standing by my side.

    Wu Julan looked at me blankly and calmly. Almost like a cold, dominant silence. If I did not see with my very own eyes, I really would have thought that the person who just poked the screen was someone else, not him.

    I couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°You¡¯ve never used a computer before? Did you have to send all of the money that you earned back home?¡± Even though computers are considered of the normal level in today¡¯s society, in very poor places, they don¡¯t even have colored lights. According to my understanding of Wu Julan¡¯s family condition, it is very normal that he doesn¡¯t have a computer. Even so, there are palaces called ¡°internet bars¡± where many workers who can¡¯t afford to own a computer will play games, and chat on QQ. Unless he¡¯s like me, who needs to save money and cut down on daily expenses in order to do so.

    At that moment, a lot happened in my head. Even the ¡°Wu Julan¡¯s parents are ill that he has to send all the money that he makes back home¡± sympathy almost came out.

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t answer my question. He  just stared at me in disdain and then coldly said, ¡° You¡¯re overthinking it. It¡¯s not that I can¡¯t afford one, it¡¯s that I have no use for one.¡± After saying this, he turned around and walked away. His straight back expressed: I don¡¯t need one!

    I looked at his backside and it felt like a thousand grass mud horses trampled in my heart. It was funny, yet painful. This prideful man, even if his dignity was hurt, he still wouldn¡¯t lie by saying he has used a computer before. He would only simply and rudely use disdain and coldness to conceal himself. This made me think about my younger self. That year I was six, mom and dad were arguing about getting a divorce, so no one could care for me. No one noticed even when my pants were too small. A mom of a friend that I would play around with noticed and kindly bought me two new pairs of pants. However, the sensitive me didn¡¯t feel grateful at first, and instead, I felt the embarrassment of it being pointed out. So I insisted on not taking the pants, and continuously forced my mom to buy many pairs of pants for me, but I don¡¯t like wearing new clothes. I liked wearing old clothes.

    I jumped up and quickly ran over, blocking Wu Julan, ¡°You finished washing the dishes?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    I pushed Wu Julan towards the computer, ¡°I still have something for you to do, come over here!¡±

    Wu Julan looked at me, not budging. It was like pushing a huge mountain, no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn¡¯t move.

    I got annoyed and stared at him, ¡°I¡¯m the boss, so shouldn¡¯t you do as I say?¡±

    Wu Julan followed me to the front of the computer table.

    After I sat down, I pulled over a stool and motioned for Wu Julan to sit. I looked serious and business-like. ¡°I¡¯m researching how to build an inn, you should also learn. This is our future ¡®life support¡¯, so if you want to eat and drink well, you have to be focused.¡±

    I opened the browser, and showed him how to use the search tool. As long as one knows how to use the search tool, the rest can be learned slowly. I slowed down the speed, Wu Julan sat next to me, silent and watching.

    I suddenly remembered that he hasn¡¯t used a computer before, so there is a high chance that he doesn¡¯t know how to use a keyboard. ¡°Is your pinyin good, or do you prefer handwriting?¡±

    T/N: There¡¯s an option to type out the pinyin and then select from the list of chinese characters on the application.

    Wu Julan thought about it and replied, ¡°Writing.¡±

    I immediately downloaded a five stroke input tutorial, simply displayed it, and after, told Wu Julan, ¡°You¡¯ll get the hang of this after some practice and familiarizing yourself with the strokes.¡±

    The books that grandfather used to use to learn how to work a computer are still here. I took them off the shelf and put them in front of Wu Julan, and asked him to use the books to learn.

    I stood by Wu Julan¡¯s side while he carefully flipped through the books. My eyes unintentionally glanced at the yard, and I saw the quilts and bed sheets that flowed with the wind. A thought suddenly popped into my head, ¡°Did Wu Julan not use the washing machine because he didn¡¯t know how to use it?¡±

    I was shocked by my own thought, yet I felt hat it may be true. Just where did he come from? An old village deep and remote in the mountains? Where computers aren¡¯t used for everyday life? No wonder his accent was so weird when he first spoke¡­

    Even though I was a bit intrigued, I wasn¡¯t planning for Wu Julan to become my boyfriend. I won¡¯t be responsible for the later half of his life, so I became even less interested in knowing about the first half of his life. The important thing is to solve the problem in front of me.

    The other electronics in the house are a microwave, an air conditioner, a refrigerator, a rice cooker, a TV, and a DVD player¡­ I don¡¯t know what he has or has not used before.

    I thought about it, rummaging through the place and brought out all the instructions on how to use electronics, which were placed at the bottom of the cabinet, and placed them on the corner of a desk. ¡°These are the instructions for all the electronics in the house, look through them sometime.¡± I was afraid of hurting his dignity so I rushed to add, ¡°Different brands of electronics, and products that were produced in different years, have different instructions. So look through them, or you might act on your previous experiences and ruin my things.¡±

    Thank goodness Wu Julan wasn¡¯t as sensitive as I was when I was a child. After listening to my orders, he only simply replied, ¡°Ok.¡±

    I got my ID card, and paperwork that I thought may be useful for the registration, then headed out the door to register for a license to operate a private inn.

    I originally thought that this much work wouldn¡¯t take up much time, but who knew that the procedures were so bothersome. I needed to show a picture, then a recent medical diagnosis. Thank goodness I¡¯m the ¡°popular kid¡± of the island. No matter where I go, I¡¯ll always encounter a classmate or a classmate of a classmate, it saves me so much time. However, according to what I¡¯m doing, I need to run around and get tossed around for the whole day so this job would be considered done.

    T/N: She encounters familiar people but for this registration process. She still needed to go to many palaces and was so busy(tossed around) so that this job could be completed.

    It was almost six o¡¯clock. I carried a watermelon that I bought along the way and tiredly went home. I managed to utter, ¡°I¡¯m home¡±, then collapsed onto the wicker chair.

    Wu Julan glanced at me, and silently carried the watermelon to the kitchen.

    After a while, he came out with a plate of peeled watermelon that was cut into cubes. There was a fruit fork nicely placed to the side of the platter.

    I was a bit surprised. The way he was acting this morning didn¡¯t seem like he knew how to use a fruit platter and a fruit fork, but I didn¡¯t think too much of it since there was good food in front of me. I smiled widely, and stabbed a piece of watermelon with the fruit fork, ¡°Thank you!¡±

    I only felt revived after slowly eating half of the fruits on the platter. I told Wu Julan, ¡°I already made an appointment with the builder. He¡¯s coming tomorrow afternoon to see the place, and calculate an estimated cost. You definitely have to make the house sparkling clean. Hopefully this will save some money.¡±

    Wu Julan replied, ¡°Okay¡±, to show he understood.

    It was already dinner time, so I decided to make some noodles and considered it done. I heard a sudden ¡°knock knock¡± from the door.

    I got up and asked, ¡°Who is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s me!¡±

    It was my old neighbor, Jiang Yisheng¡¯s voice. You could say that we grew up together, or so called ¡°childhood friends¡±. He was called the ¡°magical doctor¡± when we were little because he had a very high IQ and was ranked first in the class. He would easily beat me and other people in seconds. Nowadays, he is the main surgeon at the island¡¯s public hospital. ¡°Yisheng¡± and ¡°doctor¡± sound similar(in chinese), so even if you say ¡°Jiang Yisheng¡±, it sounds like ¡°Doctor Jiang¡±, so no one really cared anymore and just called him whatever they felt.

    As usual, I ran to open the door, but I first stopped to say ¡°Coming¡± and hesitatingly glanced at Wu Julan.

    Wu Julan was very keen. He immediately sensed my concern and turned around to hide in the room. I made an impulsive decision and stopped him. Hiring a worker was just business. There was nothing to hide.

    I whispered to Wu Julan, ¡°It¡¯s a good friend of mine. He¡¯s a very good person. Later on, I¡¯ll introduce you two to each other.¡± After telling him this, I went to open the door.

    ¡°Xiao Luo, you don¡¯t have to make dinner. We¡¯ll go out to eat today.¡± Jiang Yisheng said as he walked in.

    There were two people behind him. A young girl wearing a long dress,  with long hair that went up to her shoulders, a slim body and a beautiful face. The other was a man who wore glasses and gave off a gentle feeling. He seemed like a polite man. Coincidentally, he was the lawyer that I chatted with yesterday, Zhou Buwen.

    I hesitated, then welcomingly greeted Zhou Buwen, ¡°Builder Zhou, hello.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng laughed out loud, placed his hand on Zhou Buwen¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°How sad, you two really don¡¯t recognize each other! Little Luo, look closely, do you really not recognize him??

    Zhou Buwen lightly smiled while looking at me. It wasn¡¯t like the thankful, distant, professional smile he gave me yesterday. This time, his smile showed actual happiness, with some touches of nervous anticipation. I felt so conflicted, and wanted to kick Jiang Yisheng who seemed to be playing a mystery game with us, but I held back, politely smiled and said, ¡°We met yesterday, how could we not recognize each other?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng gave a long, strange sigh and just when he was about to say something. Zhou Buwen stopped him, looked at me and said, ¡°Little Luo, it¡¯s me, Big head.¡± with a smile.

    The polite smile on my face immediately disappeared. I shockingly looked at Zhou Buwen.

    Big head Li, original name is Li Jing, my best friend when I was a teenager. I remembered him to be skinny with a big head, long legs and long feet, who wore a fierce expression. No one in the school dared to piss him off. The man in front of me was tall and polite. Looking closely, besides from his eyes and eyebrows that looked somewhat similar, nothing else resembled the way I remembered him.

    When I was ten years old, because his dad remarried and his stepmother was pregnant, the cramped house had no place for me. My grandpa took me back to our hometown. I couldn¡¯t speak the Hokkien or the Li clan¡¯s language. I spoke Mandarin which caught the attention of many at school. When I first started school, my classmates were curious and jealous of me. However, not long after, the news that my dad didn¡¯t want me anymore and my mom running away with a random man spread in school. The curiosity and jealousness became pity and disdain. At that time, I was like a porcupine, using sharp defenses to protect my almost shattered pride.  I soon became the needles in people¡¯s eyes, the spike in people¡¯s flesh, the homework book thrown in the bathroom, the spit on the side of the road. There were even boys who put snakes in my backpack¡­Looking back, those were just childish, evil pranks, but at that time they made me feel as if I was in prison, until Big head Li moved there.

    He was like me. He only knew how to speak Mandarin and had no parents; he lived with his grandma. But the reason he had no parents wasn¡¯t because his parents divorced, it was because his dad died. For some period of time, I had an extreme thought. I would¡¯ve rather been like him, where my dad died, instead of him abandoning me.

    We were both vengeful people. Maybe because he was a boy, or maybe because he never lived with step parents, his defenses were always clear and bold, unlike me with my meek defenses. He was good at fighting. He could beat three upperclassmen who bullied him. No matter what names you called him, he would beat you till you surrender. He used pure strength to make everyone fear him.

    Big head Li was three grades higher than me. Even though we both lived on Mazu street, and saw each other frequently after and before school, we never interacted with each other. Until one day, I was blocked by some classmates in a little forest near school. They continuously asked, ¡°Did your mom run off with a random man?¡± Big head Li suddenly showed up and roughly chased the bullies away, warning them to not to come close to me, or he¡¯ll hit them every time he saw them.

    From then on, I stayed with Big head Li. Slowly, we learned how to speak Hokkien and a bit of the Li language and assimilated into island life. Later on, we became good friends with Jiang Yisheng, a true native who lived on the same street.

    The three of us played around together for around three years, it was wonderful. It was like we all wore the same clothes. That was all up until I was thirteen years old. I received a confession letter from Big head Li. It was then that I suddenly realized I was a girl and he was a boy. My mind blanked out. I didn¡¯t know how to respond to the ¡°I like you¡± Big head Li wrote.

    While I was thinking about how I should reply to the first love confession letter of my life, Big head Li¡¯s grandma¡¯s brain uncontrollably bled out and she suddenly died. Big head Li was then picked up by his mother. They left in a hurry. They left so quickly that we didn¡¯t even have the time to say goodbye, and so, I didn¡¯t have time to give him an answer to that confession letter.

    I heard the neighbors gossiping that his mom was lucky and married a rich man who treated her well. He was a man from Nanyang who lived in a foreign country, but he didn¡¯t have kids yet. When Big head Li gets there, as long as his step dad likes him, he¡¯ll definitely be happy.

    With the passing of time, big head Li faded away from my memory, but because he accompanied me through my life¡¯s 3 hardest years, and the confession letter that I never replied to, he stayed in a corner of my blurry memory.

    Jiang Yisheng pushed me, ¡°Why are you in a daze? Do you remember him or not?¡±

 CH 3.3

    After coming back to reality, I felt a bunch of mixed feelings. There was some awkwardness but I managed to give a smile, ¡°A friend that I¡¯ve played with for three years, how could I not remember? Come in and take a seat!¡±

    I moved tables, chairs, and beckoned for them to sit. Jiang Yisheng told me to stop doing this for nothing, but I didn¡¯t listen to him. I ran into the kitchen and sliced the remaining half of the watermelon. I calmed down only after the slices of watermelon were orderly placed on the fruit platter.

    I carried the fruit platter and the fruit forks out of the kitchen. I saw Wu Julan, Jiang Yisheng, and Zhou Buwen sitting with each other, and with the help of icebreakers, started to talk. Wu Julan introduced himself with a smile, ¡°My name is Wu Julan. I¡¯m little Luo¡¯s cousin. I just came to the island yesterday afternoon.¡±

    I stumbled a bit and almost slammed the fruit platter on Wu Julan¡¯s head. Wu Julan seemed to be well prepared. He held me, took the fruit platter off my hands and placed it on the table. Then, he smiled at me and said, ¡°Little Luo is used to being independent. She doesn¡¯t like to trouble others for little things. However, the more she¡¯s like this, the more I worry. Anyways, I have a lot of freedom at work so I came to accompany her for a while.¡±

    Zhou Buwen asked, ¡°What is Mr. Wu¡¯s occupation?¡±

    ¡°Programming, or also known as coding. This type of job can be done anywhere, as long as I submit my work on time according to the client¡¯s requirements.¡±

    You¡¯re a programmer? Who was the one poking at the computer screen this morning? I glared at Wu Julan.

    Wu Julan smiled widely at me, dragging me to sit next to him, and very politely said to Zhou Buwen, ¡°Just call me Wu Julan, or else I¡¯ll have to call you Mr. Zhou.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng half-believingly complained, ¡°Little Luo, you never told me that you had such an amazing cousin.¡±

    I laughed and said, ¡°Have some watermelon everyone.¡± I also didn¡¯t know that I had a cousin, but he understood very well where he stood. He peacefully entered my house and didn¡¯t cause me trouble. I decided to take back my ¡°can¡¯t lie and moral¡± rating of him. It¡¯s not that he doesn¡¯t know how to lie, but that he is a clever liar so he doesn¡¯t care to tell the small lies that don¡¯t cause any harm.

    Jiang Yisheng and Zhou Buwen looked at me as if they didn¡¯t want to further talk about my cousin. They also knew that I had an awkward relationship with my mom, so they didn¡¯t bring it up.

    Zhou Buwen signaled at the pretty girl beside him and said, ¡°Little Luo, let me introduce you guys. Zhou Buyan, my cousin.¡±

    I smiled and said, ¡°Hello, my name is Shen Luo. I used to be Zhou Buwen¡¯s neighbor, and good friend.¡±

    Zhou Buyan sweetly smiled and replied, ¡°Hello, *Sister Shen, I frequently hear my *brother talk about you, I¡¯ve always wanted to meet you!¡±

    [T/N: Sister is referring to a female older than you but not old enough to be your mom. Brother is referring to Zhou Buwen.]

    I felt that she meant something else, but I can¡¯t tell what it was, so I could only politely smile.

    Zhou Buwen apologized to me, ¡°I¡¯m sorry about yesterday. I knew it was you but I pretended like we were complete strangers.¡±

    I said, ¡°I understand, you did it for my good.¡± According to Stepmother¡¯s temper, if she knew that I was familiar with the estate lawyer, she would definitely suspect that the testament was forged.

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°Let¡¯s not just focus on talking. Let¡¯s first decide what we¡¯ll eat tonight!¡±

    Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng were talking about where we should go to eat. I was very tired from running around today and didn¡¯t have much enthusiasm, so I just said ¡°yeah, yeah, yeah¡± and went along with whatever they were saying.

    Zhou Buwen smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s so torturous to go here and go there. What¡¯s important is that this is a reunion of old friends, so what we eat isn¡¯t important. How about we just order takeout?¡±

    I wanted to be more welcoming and call the order, but Jiang Yisheng looked at me and said, ¡°Coincidentally, I also don¡¯t feel like going anywhere, I¡¯ll order a takeout!¡± He¡¯s a famous main surgeon on the island. No one would want to reject him. Takeout stores that don¡¯t usually deliver takeout at this time would be willing to deliver if he was the one that called them.

    Jiang Yisheng asked everyone what they preferred to eat, and then placed an order over the phone.

    Half an hour later, a guy riding on an electric motorcycle delivered the takeout order. Jiang Yisheng ordered BBQ. There were two big plastic boxes. One contained different types of skewers packed tightly with two layers of aluminum foil. They were kept clean and warm. When the aluminum foil was removed, it was still steaming. The other box contained ice which kept the drinks and beverages cold.

    I looked at the roasted fish, roasted shrimp, roasted mushrooms, roasted oysters, and roasted corn on the table¡­There were around twenty different types of skewers that filled my sight. This restaurant is very famous on the island because their ingredients are fresh and their food tastes good. Every night, there is a long line of people. They don¡¯t even accept reservations. One call from Jiang Yisheng had them obediently deliver takeout. I had no choice but to applaud Jiang Yisheng.

    Jiang Yisheng went from being a guest to the host, he smiled and looked at everyone, ¡°Eat the food while it¡¯s warm. If it¡¯s not enough, we¡¯ll order some more. Eating there and having them deliver the food takes around the same amount of time.¡±

    A few people held beer, made a toast, and celebrated the reunion of old friends. After drinking a cup of beer, the atmosphere started to warm up.

    Zhou Buwen handed me a stick of roasted squid, ¡°This was your favorite when you were little. I don¡¯t know if you still like it as much now?¡±

    I took it and smiled, ¡°I still do.¡± I only ate a bowl of rice noodles at noon, so I was really hungry, and it was something I like to eat. I immediately took a big bite.

    I ate to my heart¡¯s content while looking at Wu Julan. I originally worried that he wouldn¡¯t be used to eating these types of food. I didn¡¯t expect him to smile at me after eating a bite of roasted fish, then took another bite which shows that he likes the food from this restaurant.

    At the same time I felt relieved, I sadly sighed. I guess it¡¯s just that I don¡¯t cook well.

    Wu Julan and Zhou Buyan both knew that they were just accompanying guests, so they silently ate the whole time.

    I¡¯ve never been a social person since I was little, I didn¡¯t talk much. I just listened to Jiang Yisheng and Zhou Buwen talk. From their conversation, I roughly knew Zhou Buwen¡¯s situation¡ªHe went with his parents to Malaysia, and after graduating from highschool, he went to America for university. Now, he has settled in Fuzhou. He¡¯s now working at a popular law company. His parents are healthy and he¡¯s single.

    Judging from his character, I could tell that his step dad treats him very well, so he affectionately says ¡°Dad¡±. If I wasn¡¯t an old friend that knew the details, I definitely would¡¯ve thought that he was his biological father.

    Jiang Yisheng and I were both smart people. We purposely avoided the past whether Zhou Buwen wanted to or not. We also didn¡¯t ask when he changed his name. I removed the ¡°Li¡± surname from the way I called him. I only called him ¡°big head¡±, as if his name was always Zhou Buwen.

    Only after Jiang Yisheng and Zhou Buwen finished talking about their business, and worriedly started to talk about me, I realize both of them were outstanding people of society. They aren¡¯t missing anything, except a girlfriend. In comparison, I¡¯m the most miserable one. In Beijing, a place full of talented people, I had average standards, and a very normal job. As of today, I don¡¯t even have that job. I¡¯m unemployed.

    Zhou Buwen caringly asked, ¡±What do you plan to do? Do you plan to go back to Beijing for work?¡±

    I replied, ¡°I can¡¯t get used to living in Beijing, so I don¡¯t want to go back to Beijing.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°You can consider Fuzhou, I can help you find a job.¡±

    Zhou Buyan interrupted with a smile, ¡°Usually, my brother loves to trick people, yet sounds so sincere when he¡¯s talking to Sister Shen. Sister Shen, don¡¯t listen to how modest my brother sounds. He¡¯ll definitely be able to get you a good job. Uncle has a company in Fuzhou that definitely needs employees.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng already started to seriously think about this even before I could say anything. ¡°Fuzhou isn¡¯t bad. It¡¯s not too far and the food and weather is similar to the food and weather here. What will happen to this old house if you leave? This house will probably be desolated if no one¡¯s living here.¡±

    Zhou Buyan said, ¡°Sister Shen, coincidentally I have something I wanted to discuss with you.¡±

    I confusingly asked, ¡°What is it?¡±

    Zhou Buyan bit her lip and said, ¡°I went around the island since I was bored, and discovered that the old houses here are very interesting. I really like it here, and I also really like the old houses here made of stone. I originally wanted to buy one, but after conversing with an innkeeper, I realised that these old houses are not for sale. The government doesn¡¯t allow the selling and buying, so outsiders can only get a long term lease. That innkeeper does have a long term lease for twenty years. I really liked this house after walking in. Since Sister Shen is going somewhere else for work, and this house will be empty, how about you rent it long term to me? I¡¯m willing to pay one hundred thousand per year.¡±

    I felt surprised when I heard one hundred thousand. As far as I know, even those old houses with great location and a sea view don¡¯t cost more than seventy to eight thousand dollars per year. Whether it was the fact that Zhou Buyan saved her money or the fact that it was because Zhou Buwen was here, she was already very generous. I smiled and said, ¡°Thank you for liking this house, but I do not have any plans of renting it out as for now.¡±

    Zhou Buyan glanced at Zhou Buwen and said with a  bit of implority, ¡°Sister Shen is afraid that I¡¯ll destroy the house, right? Sister Shen, rest assured. I don¡¯t plan to rent it for business. I just want to live here for a few months per year. At most, there will be some rearrangements, I will definitely not change the structure.¡±

    Zhou Buwen spoke in support, ¡°Buyan has learned art from a young age, and she is a jewelry designer. She really likes old houses, antique furniture, and antique jewelry. She really cherishes old items. You really can trust her.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng was clearly moved, and tried to convince me, ¡°Little Luo, old houses need people in it. If it¡¯s empty, it will break down quickly. Anyways, you¡¯re going out to work and so the house will be empty. How about you just rent it to Buyan! The lease agreement can be shortened. We¡¯re all friends, so everything can be discussed.¡±

    Zhou Buyan continuously nodded her head, ¡°Yeah, yeah!¡±

    We¡¯ve already talked to this point, I had no choice but to be honest, ¡°If I plan to leave the island for work, I would definitely rent this house to Buyan. However, I want to stay and live here alone.¡±

    The three were shocked. Aside from fishing and tourism, there were no other economic industries, excluding special jobs like that of Jiang Yisheng. The young people on the island leave the island if they can, since there are more opportunities and money.

    Jiang Yisheng asked, ¡°What do you plan to do while staying here?¡±

    I embarrassingly said, ¡°I plan to open an inn.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng picked up a barbeque kebab and slowly ate while saying, ¡°Even though I feel like it¡¯s irresponsible, if you really want to do it, I¡¯ll support you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you!¡± I raised my cup and had a toast with Jiang Yisheng.

    Zhou Buyan was unhappy. It was written all over her face.

    Zhou Buwen picked up the wine bottle, smiled, and said, ¡°Once Little Luo opens her own inn, you can come and live on this island anytime you want! Won¡¯t that be great?¡±

    Zhou Buyan reacted, hurriedly picked up her cup, smiled and replied, ¡°Then I¡¯ll wait till for sister Shen¡¯s inn to open.

    We made a toast, and wished that my inn would open soon and the money would come rolling in.

    We ate, drank and laughed till around ten o¡¯clock at night. Then Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng got up and said goodbye.

    Zhou Buwen stood at the yard¡¯s door and looked at me. He wanted to say something but stopped.

    Jiang Yisheng is smart. He immediately figured out what was going on and dragged and coaxed Zhou Buyan away to give Zhou Buwen a chance to speak with me privately. It¡¯s a pity that Wu Julan stood behind me the whole time, so Zhou Buwen had to push down all the hesitation, and sadly left.

    I lived with my stepfather, then lived with my stepmother. The days where *I lived under the fence made me become very observant from a young age. It¡¯s not that I couldn¡¯t tell what Zhou Buwen wanted to say. It¡¯s just that his appearance today was too sudden, so I wasn¡¯t prepared to have a good talk with him. I just pretended to not know.

    [T/N: living under the fence means that she lived like a slave.]

    I closed the yard door, and walked up the stairs absentmindedly.

    I sat on the bed in a daze for a while, then suddenly searched my cabinets. I pulled out a storage box from under my bed that contained items from when I was little. A steel biscuit tin that contained some random small stuff and at the bottom of it all was the first confession letter that I had received in my life.

    I didn¡¯t carefully read it. I just stroked it with my hand. After a long time, the letter was a little softer and a little yellow. The words on the letter looked more and more childish, but the time condensed between the lines was the wonderful time of two innocent children¡¯s need to rely on each other for warmth.

    I looked at it and couldn¡¯t resist but smiled slightly. The happiness of reuniting after a long time didn¡¯t emerge until this moment.

    Those years, while I was beside my grandpa and experiencing peaceful and warm days, I worried about Zhou Buwen countless times. I was worried that his step father would hate him. I was afraid that he wouldn¡¯t be able to continue studying. I was worried that he would accidentally learn bad things and be led astray.

    Time separated us and time brought us back together.

    I know that his step father treated him very well. Not only did he finish his studies, but he studied at a prestigious university abroad. Now, he had a warm home, a very good occupation, and a cousin who he gets along well with.

    I smiled while thinking, the process isn¡¯t important, what is important is that we all grew up well. This was the best thing!

    After all these years, the stuff I had been worrying about for years was finally resolved. I smiled as I neatly folded the letter and placed it back into the steel biscuit can.

 CH 4.1

    After I woke up at dawn, I was surprised to notice that under the eaves of the house, on the square table was a bowl of plain rice porridge, with a bowl of golden steamed eggs and a plate of jade-green seaweed as the side-dishes.

    I couldn¡¯t help but gulp before shouting, ¡°Wu Julan, you made breakfast?¡±

    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t me, then was it you?¡± Wu Julan¡¯s cold voice came from the study room. His words were said so casually yet it still sounded like he was mocking my intelligence. But given my understanding of him, he probably found my question purely redundant.

    With little anticipation, I tasted the porridge and was instantly caught by surprise.

    Plain porridge maye be a simple dish to make, but not many are able to prepare it well. A mouthful of it, neither hard nor soft, neither thick nor thin. Just nice. The rice was so fragrant that it could make any person savour it, rather than swallow it down. I¡¯ve only had such a fragrant porridge in a small, old local restaurant in Guangzhou.

    The seaweed and the steamed egg side dishes each had their own surprises. One¡¯s refreshing and the other¡¯s fragrant. Eating them with porridge was exceptionally appetizing. Without lifting my head, I emptied the plate and two bowls.

    I once used to read, but never believed, in novels saying that the simpler a dish is, the more it tests the cook¡¯s skills. The breakfast this morning was delicious. I finally believed and understood why Wu Julan despised my cooking.

    After washing the dishes, I walked into the study room and saw Wu Julan playing on the computer.

    I dragged a stool to sit at the side of Wu Julan. Placing my elbows on the computer desk and tilting my head, I stared at Wu Julan without blinking silently.

    A few moments later, Wu Julan¡¯s attention shifted from the computer screen to my face. His face displayed a calm and cold gaze that said, ¡®what¡¯s wrong with you?¡¯

    Wu Julan¡¯s skin was exceptionally fair. His features were well-defined. His nose was sharp. His eyes were darker than ordinary East-Asians and his brows were dark and long. When he was expressionless and looking at the opposite party coldly, he looked like a predator on top of the food chain that was waiting for his prey. I can¡¯t help but describe him as intimidating.

    Too bad I¡¯ve already seen him in his ridiculous and weak appearance, and have also witnessed him diligently doing the laundry, sweeping the floor, and cooking. No matter how dignified he may appear to be, his image has already been shattered.

    I didn¡¯t feel afraid. Instead, I felt that he looked like a child who was just pretending and enjoyed frightening people. As I sunk in my world, I subconsciously reached out my arm and pinched Wu Julan¡¯s cheeks tenderly.

    His soft skin was as cold as ice.

    I grinned for a moment and only then came to realise what I was doing. I was startled and so was Wu Julan.

    The both of us looked at each other in disbelief that my hand was actually pinching his face!

    Wu Julan¡¯s gaze drooped slightly, looking at the hand that was still pinching his cheek. His gazes were very strange, making me think that he might bite my hand in the next instant.

    I was well aware of the situation and quickly retracted my hand, hiding it behind my back. I laughed dryly, ¡°Hehe, hehe¡­¡±

    Wu Julan lifted his eyes to stare at me. My throat instantly felt dry and I couldn¡¯t laugh anymore.

    I quickly changed the topic, ¡°I¡¯ve finished the breakfast you made. It was really delicious. No wonder you look down on my cooking skills. Now, I don¡¯t even like my cooking skills.¡±

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t waiver at my attempt to appease him and calmly said, ¡°It¡¯s good that you know. Next time, I¡¯ll do the cooking.¡±

    Of course I had no objections and immediately nodded my head with certainty. However, that was not what I wanted to focus on, ¡°Wu Julan, since your culinary skills are so good, it shouldn¡¯t be an issue being a chef at a five-stars restaurant. How did you¡­ end up here? At this shabby place?¡±

    Yesterday, I also denied the thought of seeing him as a potential-boyfriend since I had no interest in finding out about his past. Today, I couldn¡¯t help but be curious. There¡¯s no choice. He was a puzzle from head to toe. Even someone like me, who has read novels and watched dramas, with such a big imagination couldn¡¯t figure out his past.

    Wu Julan stared at me, slightly squinting his eyes as if he was also thinking very seriously on how he ended up here.

    For no reason, I suddenly shivered. My hairs stood upright, as if I suddenly realised he was like a poisonous snake staring at me. I reflexively felt afraid. My body froze and couldn¡¯t move. Luckily, Wu Julan quickly shifted his gaze away and quietly looked back at the computer.

    I let out a sigh and slouched on the computer desk. I looked at Wu Julan again but there was nothing unusual. I was very frustrated. This was the second time his gaze has given me the shock of my life. I couldn¡¯t help but to cover the computer with my hand, and said fiercely, ¡°I¡¯m talking to you! Answer me!¡±

    Wu Julan looked at me and said, ¡°Everyone has unlucky days or encounters. My luck these days has been bad.¡±

    He didn¡¯t give me a proper explanation and yet at the same time, his reply somewhat explained a lot. My anger vanished instantly and I felt a little sorry. Not knowing how to comfort him, I remained silent for a while then said, ¡°If you currently haven¡¯t thought of where to go, then stay here and help me out! When you decide to leave, I¡¯ll give you enough for travel expenses.¡±

    Wu Julan remained expressionless. He stared at me for a moment. Then, without saying a word, he stood up and left.

    I stared at his back, mumbled and cursed, ¡°How cold-hearted! I¡¯m helping you for goodness sake! You didn¡¯t even slip a smile!¡±

    At around 1p.m, Wang Tianlin, the renovator whom I had an appointment with, is the husband of my middle school classmate. We¡¯ve previously met so he was considered someone who I knew rather well.

    I led him upstairs for him to examine the entire house. Wang Tianlin knew that I was tight on cash and told me honestly, ¡°Renovation is like a bottomless pit. With the same house, some people spend more than a million yuan to renovate while some people spend only up to a hundred thousand yuan. My suggestion is to save on areas where we can and spend on those that we can¡¯t. One is for safety and health, another is that cheap products tend to break down in a year or two and the repairs in future will be even more expensive.¡±

    It was very reasonable. I nodded my head in agreement.

    Wang Tianlin took out a book and a pen and noted down clearly on the areas that needed reconstruction and the areas that only needed a refurbishment. As the last renovation was eight years ago, many areas have already aged. I pointed them out one by one ¡ª those that needed to be fixed and those that needed replacement. The both of us discussed the drafted renovation plan.

    I have trust in Wang Tianlin and also know that he has connections in procuring the materials at a lower price than I can get commercially. So I decided to have Wang Tianlin purchase all the materials we needed. Wang Tianlin did a rough calculation and told me that the total costs for materials and labour would be at least eighty thousand yuan.

    This was slightly higher than my budget but it was normal for renovations to exceed the budget by ten or twenty thousand yuan, so I agreed. As there was a need to purchase materials, on top of the deposit, we¡¯ve agreed that the initial payment would be fifty thousand and the remaining payment would be made in installments according to the renovation progress.

    Wang Tianlin knew that I was in a hurry for the work to begin. After calculating, we fixed the day after for renovation work to start. Since it was not a major renovation and Wang Tianlin promised to complete the work at his speed while ensuring the quality, it was estimated that the renovation will complete in around half a month.

    With gratitude, I asked, ¡°Is the deposit made via bank transfer or cash payment?¡±

    ¡°I prefer cash.¡±

    Though it would be a little troublesome, I was willing to compromise, ¡°Then I¡¯ll send you the cash tomorrow.¡±

    Wang Tianlin said readily, ¡°I will be taking the ferry to cross the sea to buy the materials tomorrow morning and will be back at night. Since we know each other well, I trust there¡¯s no funny business so you can just give it to me when we start work, which is the day after tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Okay!¡±

    Seeing that everything had been settled, after a short chat, Wang Tianlin left. I thanked him before I saw him off.

 CH 4.2

    The next day, I went to the bank to withdraw the money.

    Other than the fifty thousand yuan that I had to pay Wang Tianlin, I withdrew another ten thousand to buy a television, tables and chairs etc. As the transport in Haidao is inconvenient, big items will often take around ten days to half a month to be delivered. I¡¯d rather have them early than late. At most I can find somewhere to place them first. If I get them late, the goods may not even be delivered by the time the inn officially opens for business.

    Despite knowing that the residents on the island weren¡¯t greedy and that the island was safe, there was still sixty thousand yuan* in my bag. I was very careful and deliberately held the bag tightly to my chest, squeezing it under my arm.

    [t/n: For your understanding, US$1 = 6.49 Chinese Yuan]

    Passing by the bustling market, I lifted my head as my gaze followed Mazu street along the meandering mountain path. Thinking that I was about to reach home, I slightly let down my guard.

    For various reasons, the old streets of Hai Dao have undergone countless reconstructions. By the time the government had realised the need for preservation, only Mazu Street, which was the most remote, and Denglong Street, which was the street at the harbour where all the tourists gathered, was left. The old streets were too narrow for cars to drive through. Both sides of the streets were local mansions. Except for the small shop selling some cigarettes, alcohol and snacks, there weren¡¯t any other businesses selling anything ¡ª it¡¯s very quiet.

    As it was work hours, there was no one on the street. I walked along the uneven stone path in the middle. A motorbike came towards me. There were two men seated on it ¡ª both their faces were covered by the helmet.

    I moved to the side to make way but the motorbike drove towards me directly instead. When we were about to pass each other, the man seated behind reached out his hand to grab my bag. With the roar of the engine, the motorbike suddenly sped up and dashed forward. I instinctively grabbed onto my bag and didn¡¯t let go. However, my strength wasn¡¯t enough to fight against the power of the motorbike. I immediately fell onto the ground while getting dragged along with it.

    The thin dress I wore didn¡¯t provide any protection. Being dragged across the rough stone path at a fast speed brought pain throughout my entire body, yet my mind was still focused on that sixty thousand yuan. I held tightly onto the bag and refused to let go. The man seated at the back of the motorbike murmured some vulgar words, before taking out a knife and cutting the straps of the bag. As the motorbike shook, the sharp blade of the knife slashed my hand. Due to the sharp pain, my hand finally let go of the bag and my entire body fell onto the ground. I wasn¡¯t sure whether it was the dust or the blood that got in my eyes, but I was in so much pain that I couldn¡¯t see clearly. I could only hear the sound of the motorbike going further away and then disappearing.

    After encountering the motorbike and getting robbed, in less than two to three minutes, Mazu street returned to its quiet and peaceful state, as if nothing had happened. Yet, I¡¯ve just visited hell.

    With much effort, I stood up. One of my shoes was missing and the skin on my legs scraped off ¡ª they were covered in blood. The blood on the back of my hand dripped. I felt that my vision was getting blurry since I couldn¡¯t see the road clearly at all. I tried to rub my eyes with my hand but I ended up making it worse as I got blood and dirt on my face.

    I wanted to call the police but my phone was in the bag that got snatched earlier. Roughly making out the direction to go home, I walked, trembling as I shouted, ¡°Is anyone there? Is anyone¡­¡±

    My whole body was in pain as I shouted with all my might, hoping that someone would help me. But either my voice was too hoarse or there was no one around because nobody came. At that moment, even though I was walking under the bright sunlight, I felt that I was in a dark and desperate world.

    No one will help me. All I have is myself.

    Since no one heard me before, I decided to stop shouting. As I was reaching the limits of despair, I felt at ease instead. Fear was useless, and so was crying. Just like when I was younger, the only way forward was to grit my teeth and move on. Back then, I firmly believed that I would grow up. Now, I firmly believe that I will make it back home.

    Because I couldn¡¯t see the road clearly, I could only act like a blind man, with both hands stretched out, trying to figure out each step as I walked forward. Each step I took was like I was walking on sharp blades.

    Suddenly, a cold hand grabbed me and like a frightened little animal, I abruptly retracted. Then I immediately heard Wu Julan¡¯s voice, ¡°It¡¯s me!¡±

    Accompanying his voice, he tightly held onto my hands and didn¡¯t let me break away. His hands were undoubtedly cold, not even slightly close to being warm. But at this moment, they felt like the warmest place in the universe.

    I tightly grabbed his hand, scared that he might disappear. I slightly raised my voice. He somewhat understood my fear and said, ¡°I¡¯m here. I won¡¯t leave.¡±

    I slowly calmed down, feeling a little embarrassed, I covered it in with my hoarse voice and said. ¡°I was robbed. Quickly call the police. I¡¯m also injured so I probably need to go to the hospital.¡±

    Wu Julan said, ¡°I can see your injuries. Don¡¯t worry. Only the cut on the back of your right hand is serious. For the other injuries, even if they may look terrifying, they¡¯re only scratches.¡±

    I said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened to my eyes. I can¡¯t see well.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s just dust. You¡¯ll regain your vision after washing it with clean water.¡± Wu Julan said gently, ¡°You¡¯ve got injuries on your hand. Loosen your grip. Don¡¯t use too much force.¡±

    I loosened a little and Wu Julan immediately removed both his hands. I nervously shouted, ¡°Wu Julan!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here.¡±

    Only hearing a ripping sound, Wu Julan used a cloth to tightly wrap around my arm and explained, ¡°It¡¯s to stop the bleeding.¡±

    ¡°Thank you¡­ah!¡±

    Amidst my shrieks, Wu Julan carried me up, took big steps forward, ¡°Let¡¯s go to the hospital.¡±

    Earlier on, I was making my lonely way over, solely based on my perseverance and courage. Now that I have someone to rely on, I let down my guard completely. Only then did I feel scared, with my limbs weak and my entire body was trembling. I gave in and leaned my head against Wu Julan¡¯s shoulder, shrinking my body in his arms.

    Although I couldn¡¯t see anything clearly and my entire body was in pain, I could clearly feel the sun shining on my body. Right now, it was the warmest and brightest daylight.

    When passing by the small shop along the streets, a few elderly who were sitting in front of the shop and playing chess saw my frightened expression. They raised their voices in shock, and eagerly helped to hail a taxi and call the police.

    After getting in the taxi, Wu Julan lifted my arm that was injured, ¡°It¡¯s to slow down the bleeding.¡±

    I laughed, ¡° I guessed so. I¡¯ve seen it on TV.¡± I touched the bandage that was on my arm, ¡°Where did you get the cloth from? You didn¡¯t tear it from your clothes, did you? That would be a little old-fashioned.¡±

    ¡°You guessed that right. Do you like to watch TV shows and movies?¡± Wu Julan probably considered that since I couldn¡¯t see and wanted to assure me so he spoke a little more than usual.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know whether I like them or if it¡¯s just a habit. As far as I can recall, my parents have always been fighting and didn¡¯t have time to take care of me, so I could only watch the TV quietly. Later, when I was living with my step-father and step-mother, I didn¡¯t want to cause trouble. So whenever they went on a vacation, I would stay at home, watching TV. And even later on, I realised that the TV wasn¡¯t only a suitable form of entertainment for a person, but it was also free, so it¡¯s the best choice for a frugal person like me.¡± From Hong Kong¡¯s TVB dramas, to home-produced dramas, Korean dramas, then afterwards were American dramas, Thai dramas¡­ Although some may look down on such a boring way to pastime, to me, these TV shows have almost accompanied me throughout my years as I grew up. Within these dramatic plotlines, there were people with sinister thoughts, betrayal and evil schemes, but there were also warm kinships, romantic love and passionate friendship.

    I smiled as I said, ¡°When I was younger, my classmates always admired that I had no adults supervising me and was able to watch the TV that only the adults could watch. In fact, I was the first person in class to watch a kiss between a man and a woman, people rolling on the bed¡­¡±

    Uh, I think I lost my composure¡­ I immediately added, ¡°Not porn, they were just the kind of passionate kisses between the male and female leads, pretending that they were going to do something but in fact the scene was quickly changed, merely hinting the audience that they were going to¡­¡±

    I felt that the more I said something, the more wrong it sounded so I stopped talking.

 CH 4.3

    Luckily the hospital wasn¡¯t too far away. Seeing my terrified look, the driver drove at lightning speed and we arrived very quickly.

    Jiang Yisheng had received the call. Pushing the rolling bed, he waited outside the hospital entrance.

    Wu Julan opened the door. As I was trying to figure my way out of the taxi, he carried me out.

    Seeing my terrified look, Jiang Yisheng was in shock. After Wu Julan placed me on the bed, he immediately pushed me to the A&E.

    Jiang Yisheng asked where I was hurting as he walked. The moment he heard that my eyes were in pain and couldn¡¯t see clearly, he quickly leaned down and checked, making sure that pain wasn¡¯t due to my eyes getting hurt but rather the dirt getting mixed with the blood in my eyes. He assured me, ¡°The nurse will rinse your eyes with a solution later. It¡¯ll be fine soon.¡±

    Entering the A&E, seeing that Doctor Jiang brought someone in, the nurse didn¡¯t chase them out but enquired, ¡°Doctor Jiang, are both you and this gentleman staying behind?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng laughed awkwardly and said to me, ¡°We know each other very well, so well that I can¡¯t bring myself to see you remove your clothes. I fear that I might become traumatised. So it¡¯s better I wait outside!¡±

    Both the doctor and the nurse burst into laughter. I couldn¡¯t help but to grin and curse, ¡°Get out!¡±

    Dragging Wu Julan along, Jiang Yisheng got out of the A&E. He didn¡¯t close the door but only pulled the curtains. So even though he couldn¡¯t see inside, he could still hear the conversations going on.

    While the doctor was checking my body, the nurse helped to wash my eyes. Because of my relationship with Jiang Yisheng, both the doctor and the nurse were very dedicated.

    When my eyes could finally see, the doctor¡¯s check up was also completed. He said, ¡°The injury on your hand is a little more serious. The rest are just scratches. The injury on your hand would need at least twelve to thirteen stitches. It won¡¯t affect the mobility of your hand after you recover, at most it will leave a scar.¡±

    The deduction was similar to Wu Julan and Jiang Yisheng¡¯s. I said, ¡°Thank you, doctor.¡±

    The doctor removed the cloth stripe on my arm that was tied by Wu Julan, he asked, ¡°Who did your first aid? It¡¯s pretty well done!¡±

    ¡°¡­ My cousin.¡±

    Making sure of my answer, Jiang Yisheng¡¯s voice came in from outside, ¡°Cousin Wu seems to be well knowledgeable in first aid. Have you learnt it before?

    Wu Julan said, ¡°A little.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°I must give you a thumbs up! Normally people would completely forget everything when they encounter the real deal, even after attending a few lessons. I see that though your actions were swift, you weren¡¯t nervous. Clearly you have determined that Xiao Luo¡¯s alright.¡±

    Wu Julan remained silent, he neither admitted nor denied.

    Jiang Yisheng was just making small talk and didn¡¯t probe more. On the contrary, I was surprised that Wu Julan not only knew first aid but also had some medical knowledge. Just like what Jiang Yisheng said, though Wu Julan¡¯s actions were quick. He didn¡¯t panic at all. Clearly he had determined that I was alright. This was something only a professional could do.

    After the doctor attended to the wound, I wore a set of the nurse¡¯s uniform, a pair of the nurse¡¯s shoes and limped out of the A&E.

    Jiang Yisheng burst into laughter, ¡°Wah! What a seductive uniform!¡±

    My face turned bright red instantly. Being 173cm tall, the borrowed uniform was a little short, revealing both my long legs. I initially wanted to change out of it but the doctor said, ¡°Perfect, it¡¯s not hindering the wounds on your leg.¡±

    I quickly glanced at Wu Julan and said to Jiang Yisheng, ¡°My dress can¡¯t be worn anymore. The nurse borrowed some clothes from someone else, out of your courtesy. Seductive? What is there to seduce in this state of a mess!¡±

    Seeing that I was getting annoyed, Jiang Yisheng didn¡¯t dare to tease me any further. He patted the wheelchair prepared, ¡°Let¡¯s go! I¡¯ll send you back.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not going to work anymore?¡±

    Copying my tone, Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°Why should I be working when you¡¯re already in this nasty state.¡±

    Not knowing whether to cry or laugh, I glared at Jiang Yisheng and sat on the wheelchair.

    Driving the car, Jiang Yisheng sent Wu Julan and I to the market that is outside Mazu Street. The road ahead can¡¯t be accessed by a car and would require us to walk. Though the injuries on my leg still enabled me to walk a few steps, walking all the way home would be impossible.

    Jiang Yisheng got out of the car and opened the door but he didn¡¯t speak for a long while as he worried over how to send me home, probably by piggy-backing me.

    I also noticed this problem in front of my eyes. Looking at the meandering Mazu Street, I frowned my brows as I pondered.

    Without making a sound, Wu Julan walked to the door and bent down. With one hand wrapped around my back and the other below my bent knees, he easily carried me out of the car and said in a tone as if this was not a big deal, ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng glared.

    My face flushed, pressing my voice, I said, ¡°Put me down!¡±

    Wu Julan asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Am I hurting you anywhere?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s go!¡±

    I whispered, ¡°This¡­ isn¡¯t appropriate. There are many people watching.¡±

    As Wu Julan took big strides, he said calmly, ¡°Earlier when I carried you like this, there were also many people watching.¡±

    To people like him who don¡¯t know what it means to ¡°the handling of urgent matters takes precedence over how it is done¡±, this made me feel completely helpless and could only shut my mouth.

    When he first carried me, I couldn¡¯t see and my entire body was in pain, so I didn¡¯t think further. Now that my senses are clear, I realised that this is the first time in my entire life to have such close body contact with a man. My heart was beating loudly, so loud that I suspected that Wu Julan could hear it clearly.

    Before we even got home, I already saw two policemen standing outside the door, alongside with a few gossipy neighbours.

    I immediately struggled and said, ¡°Put me down.¡±

    Wu Julan ignored me. It was only until he carried me to the courtyard that he put me down.

    Under the gazes of the policemen and the neighbours, I was too embarrassed to even raise my head. Thank goodness for Jiang Yisheng who quickly introduced Wu Julan as my cousin to everyone and emphasised the wounds on my leg.

    The wounds on my leg looked very frightening. The neighbours nodded their heads in agreement. Then, I finally managed to calm down.

    I invited the policemen into the living room while the neighbours who were gathering and stood watching from the courtyard continued their chattering.

    I said politely to the policemen. ¡°Please let me change my clothes. I¡¯ll come down soon.¡±

    An auntie from the neighbourhood, who watched me grow up, supported me as I slowly went up the stairs. She helped me remove the nurse¡¯s uniform and changed into a loose dress. I finally felt at ease.

    I sat across from the policemen and recounted the entire robbery incident in detail. It was a pity that I didn¡¯t see the appearance of the robber and that the motorbike didn¡¯t have a license plate so it was of little help to the investigation. The only impression I had was that the person who snatched my bag seemed to have a black mole on his wrist.

    The policemen expressed that they would put in their best in the investigation. But given the fact that the words have spread across, suspects for cases like this, usually flee quickly. Right now, the suspects might have already left Haidao so pursuing the belongings will be difficult.

    I already expected this outcome so I didn¡¯t have much of a reaction.

    The policemen asked what they could ask and left. After sending them out, Jiang Yisheng also appeased the neighbours and sent them back.

    Jiang Yisheng walked into the living room, sitting opposite me, he asked, ¡°How much money are you left with?¡±

    ¡°Around 40,000.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said angrily, ¡°Those bastard thieves. If I catch them, I¡¯ll make sure to break their arms.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng studied in a medical school in Beijing. He knew clearly that living in Beijing is not easy for someone like me who comes from the rurals ¡ª clothing and housing both needed money. For a young lady like me who had just only started working, my pay was no more than seven to eight thousand yuan. Saving up to a few tens of thousands definitely required me to be frugal and not spend on what I want. And now sixty thousands have vanished all at once.

    I chuckled and consoled him instead, ¡°Just see it as an exchange for safety to avoid disaster. It is what it is!¡± I once put in my entire life to grab it back when I was being robbed. But when I was watching the doctor stitching me up, I recalled hearing about incidents where people lost their lives as a result. In the future if I were to encounter such a robbery again, I must immediately give up my money for my life.

    Seeing that I wasn¡¯t forcing a smile but have really put the matter down, Jiang Yisheng said, vexed, ¡°You¡¯re really quite generous!¡±

    I chuckled and said, ¡°The greatest virtue for people like us is that we have a big heart!¡± It was already unfortunate to have encountered an unfortunate event. If we don¡¯t put it that way, we¡¯re merely just tormenting ourselves. Be it me or Jiang Yisheng, we¡¯re not such people.

    Jiang Yisheng startled, then smiled in relief, ¡°How much does your renovation cost? I¡¯ll loan you, but I can only provide fifty thousand.¡±

    I thought about it and said, ¡°I don¡¯t even know when I can pay them back. Just give me twenty thousand. Any more will add to my stress.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Jiang Yisheng knew his own circumstances and also knew my personality so he didn¡¯t press me any further. He suddenly realised something and probed, ¡°Big Head¡¯s a rich man now.¡±

    I smiled and didn¡¯t answer him. Jiang Yisheng understood. He said to Wu Julan who was sitting across from him and hadn¡¯t spoken a word, ¡°Cousin Wu, I¡¯ll have to trouble you to take care of Xiao Luo. If there¡¯s anything, you can always call my number.¡± He took out his phone, ¡°Let¡¯s exchange our numbers. It¡¯s easier to contact.¡±

    Wu Juland said, ¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng froze.

    I quickly said, ¡°Cousin lost his phone on the way. We wanted to get a new one but haven¡¯t had the chance to. Now that my phone is also gone, help me buy a new one. My identification card was in my wallet, which is also gone. Help me think of a solution to get my phone number back first.¡±

    ¡°Sure! Cousin Wu, give me your identification card. I¡¯ll also get your phone settled.¡±

    Wu Julan looked at me quietly. My heart jumped a moment, suddenly realising how I was being such an inexperienced boss. I actually have never asked for his identification card. In a moment, I was in a panic and without thinking much, I appeased Jiang Yisheng first, ¡°It¡¯s alright. Just settle mine.¡±

    ¡°Okay! Then rest up well. I¡¯ll come over again later.¡± Jiang Yisheng left hurriedly to settle his work.

 CH 4.4

    Wu Julan and I were the only ones left in the house. I hesitated on how to speak. As his employer, it is normal for me to ask for his identification card. But as a friend, it would be weird for me to check his identification card. I have no idea when I¡¯ve started to treat him as a friend.

    Wu Julan broke the silence and spoke, ¡°If you want to ask me about my identification card, I don¡¯t have one.¡± His expression was very calm, as if he was speaking about a very ordinary matter.

    What was odd was that even though I was somehow mentally prepared and wasn¡¯t at all surprised. I was just feeling empty, though I don¡¯t know what I was feeling empty for. In a moment, I thought about many things¨C

    Exceeding the number of children in a family under the policy  ¡ª a blacklist without a Hukou*; smuggler ¡ª there were those who were smuggled to Vietnam and the Philippines to Haidao in the past, and also Haidao¡¯s residents smuggling to the USA and Europe. Although I¡¯ve never witnessed it, I¡¯ve heard about it.

    [t/n: Hukou is part of the Chinese population registry system. Each individual is registered to the Hukou system of their birth city upon birth and hence is a highly effective system in tracking family-sizes during their implementation of the One Child Policy.]

    I asked. ¡°Did you lose your identification card or you didn¡¯t have one in the first place?¡± Before waiting for Wu Julan¡¯s reply, I hastily said, ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me. I actually don¡¯t want to know as long as you do your work properly.¡±

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t seem at all hiding his nonchalance on this matter, he gently smiled and said, ¡°If you¡¯re alright, I¡¯ll go boil some water.¡±

    I nodded my head and he walked towards the kitchen.

    To help me stop the bleeding, he tore the hem of this T-shirt, drastically shortening it and making it look odd. I stared for a moment, and my heart that was frantic earlier gradually calmed down.

    Now, I¡¯ve an even more pressing issue to face and deal with ¡ª the renovations will commence tomorrow and the payment money has been snatched away.

    I thought in silence for a while and used my house¡¯s landline to call Wang Tianlin.

    After exchanging greetings, I asked if he had bought all the materials. Wang Tianlin happily said yes and was on the ferry back. He told me rest assured that all the workers have been informed, that despite the tight notice in looking for workers, many of them respected him and he managed to hire the skilful workers.

    The industry works on trust. I can¡¯t let Wang Tianlin go against his words so I gave a big red cross to ¡°cancel renovations¡± in my heart.

    I told Wang Tianlin about me being robbed and said that my finances were a little tight and consulted him if the renovation scale can be readjusted to finishing only a portion of it and to work on the remaining after I got more cash.

    The both of us discussed through the phone for a bit, removing some changes, and readjusted the renovation budget to 40,000 Yuan.

    I repeated a couple of ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, thank you¡± before hanging up the phone.

    Lifting my head up, I saw Wu Julan bringing a cup of water and standing at the door. Probably guessing that it wasn¡¯t convenient for me to walk and yet afraid that I was thirsty, he brought me some water.

    I sighed and said, ¡°After the renovation, I¡¯ll really be left without a single cent.¡±

    Wu Julan said plainly, ¡°You can earn back the money that was lost. But you can¡¯t do anything once your life is gone.¡±

    He passed me a cup of water. Since I was also thirsty, I drank it and tasted honey in it, then immediately finished it. Recalling the incident when I first met Wu Julan, I couldn¡¯t help but to grin.

    I gently said, ¡°You said you ended up here because you were unlucky. I¡¯ll help you live through this period of unfortunate times to the best of my ability. As for the others, if you don¡¯t talk about it, I won¡¯t ask.¡±

    Wu Julan stared at me in silence for a while, without saying a word, he turned and left.

    Wu Julan was preparing dinner in the kitchen. As I was a little bored, I laid in front of the computer desk and practiced using my left hand to use the computer.

    ¡°Bam bam!¡± The sound of someone patting on the door rang. I reacted, standing up with difficulties, I shouted, ¡°Wu Julan! Open the door!¡±

    Wu Julan opened the door in the courtyard. As expected, Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng came in.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Xiao Luo?¡± As Zhou Buwen spoke, he spotted me. He quickly dashed to the window and asked anxiously, ¡°Jiang Yisheng said that you¡¯ve hurt your hand. Is it serious?¡±

    I used my left hand to lift up my right arm to show him, ¡°It¡¯s fine. The robber probably didn¡¯t have the intention to hurt me. The knife cut my arm when he was cutting the shoulder strap of my bag. The doctor told me to have a good rest and there shouldn¡¯t be any post-effects after recovering.

    Zhou Buwen examined my hand and said, ¡°Thank goodness you¡¯re alright. Otherwise I would¡­¡± He paused, then swallowed his words, ¡°Be careful next time.¡±

    I nodded my head, ¡°Hm.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng laughed, ¡°Eh, I say, are the both of you really talking through the window? Big Head, get inside the house first. I¡¯ll put the things we bought in the kitchen.¡±

    As I limped into the living room, I asked, ¡°What did you buy?¡±

    ¡°Pig trotters! Nourish yourself with what you eat!¡± Jiang Yisheng¡¯s voice came from the kitchen.

    I couldn¡¯t help but roll my eyes. Is this the same child genius who skipped three grades?

    After I slowly sat down on the sofa, Zhou Buwen handed me a brand new phone, ¡°Jiang Yisheng and I went to buy this. The number is the same as your previous one.¡±

    ¡°How much is it?¡±

    ¡°Forget about it. It¡¯s a present.¡±

    It¡¯s a locally manufactured phone, probably within a thousand dollars. I thought for a bit then accepted it, ¡°Thank you!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng ran out from the kitchen, making a commotion at Wu Julan and said, ¡°Cousin, you can actually cook! What are you stewing in the pot? It smells really good!¡±

    Wu Julan said, ¡°Pork ribs.¡±

    I interrupted and said, ¡°Since you bought a cabbage, how about you and Big Head stay behind for dinner!¡± The barbeque meal last night was all covered by Jiang Yisheng and I initially planned to invite him and Zhou Buwen over for a meal.

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°You¡¯re still injured. We shouldn¡¯t trouble you!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not the one preparing the meal so I¡¯m not troubled at all. Right, cousin?¡± I emphasised on the word ¡°cousin¡±, and smiled at Wu Julan cheekily. Too bad that Wu Julan doesn¡¯t watch TV shows and didn¡¯t know whenever there was a scene with a cousin, there would also be conflicts and that the cousin would alway be on the losing end.

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t rebut me, and said to Jiang Yisheng and Zhou Buwen, ¡°Whether it¡¯s preparing a meal for two people or five people, there is not much of a difference. Just join us.¡± He made the decision swiftly then went to the kitchen to prepare.

    Five people? I was stunned for a bit then remembered Zhou Buyan and quickly said to Zhou Buwen, ¡°I almost forgot that your cousin is also on the island. Give her a call and invite her over!¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°No need.¡±

    I was surprised, ¡°Why not? She would need to eat dinner regardless. It can¡¯t be that we¡¯d only invite you but not her for dinner. How would she think of us, who are your friends?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng asked oddly, ¡°Big Head, is your relationship with your cousin bad?¡±

    Zhou Buwen hurriedly said, ¡°No, I just don¡¯t want to trouble you guys too much.¡±

    I said, ¡°Since the chef has already spoken, and doesn¡¯t find it a chore, there¡¯s no need to be polite.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng chimed in, ¡°You¡¯re not one of us if you¡¯re being so polite!¡±

    Zhou Buwen smiled bitterly, ¡°Fine! Fine! Fine! Then I won¡¯t be polite!¡± He immediately called Zhou Buyan and hung up the phone after saying a few words, ¡°Buyan¡¯s already eating. She said she won¡¯t be coming over but she thanked the both of you and will come over to visit you later.¡±

    Zhou Buyan gave an indescribably odd feeling. Even though she was Big Head¡¯s relative, I wasn¡¯t able to see her as one of us, so whether or not she came, it didn¡¯t really matter to me.

    I turned my head and said to Jiang Yisheng, ¡°Go tell Wu Julan to just prepare enough for four people.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°I originally even thought to ask my mum to come over everyday to make your meals. Since Cousin Wu knows how to cook, I don¡¯t have to worry anymore. Xiao Luo, just sit with Big Head. I¡¯ll go to the kitchen to help Cousin Wu.¡± Finishing his words, he gave me a wink and a look of ¡°See, I¡¯m so understanding.¡±

    After Jiang Yisheng left, the living room fell into silence. With only Zhou Buwen and I sitting next to each other on the sofa, the atmosphere was a little awkward. I quickly searched for a topic, ¡°When are you leaving?¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°It was planned to be tomorrow. But with you getting injured now, do you want me to stay until you recover before leaving?¡±

    I said, ¡°Thank you very much but I only injured my hand and don¡¯t need anyone to specially take care of me. Although it¡¯s a little inconvenient, with Jiang Yisheng around, and¡­my cousin, it¡¯s better you stick to your plans and return to work.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll come back and visit you again after some time.¡±

    ¡°Sure! Work comes first. After some time, you¡¯re always welcome to visit Jiang Yisheng and I.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°After losing so much money, is your plan to set up an inn affected?¡±

    ¡°Nope. We¡¯re going as planned. Don¡¯t worry, if there¡¯s a problem, I will say so.¡±

    Zhou Buwen¡¯s sullen look finally loosened a little, ¡°As long as you remember your words today.¡±

    I smiled and turned on the television. With sounds coming from the television, even if we didn¡¯t talk, it wouldn¡¯t be odd. Two people watching the television and occasionally chatting randomly.

    Half an hour later, Jiang Yisheng shouted over, ¡°Dinner time!¡±

    Without consulting me, Jiang Yisheng placed the table and chairs in the courtyard. Zhou Buwen went to wash his hands and then headed to the kitchen to also help in bringing out the dishes.

    I sat on the rattan chair and waited leisurely for the dishes to come.

    Four dishes and a soup, cold mixed seaweed, stir-fried bok-choy, roasted small yellow croaker, braised pork ribs, seaweed-egg soup.

    Although it was just a home-made dish, the colours looked better than how an average person would cook it. Zhou Buwen didn¡¯t give too much thought into it and casually took a bite of the small yellow croaker. His expression immediately changed and couldn¡¯t help but be amazed, ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve eaten such a fresh and tender small yellow croaker.¡±

    He ate one of the rib pieces and exclaimed, ¡°Tender and sweet. I can¡¯t bear to swallow it.¡±

    I asked gleefully, ¡°How is it? It¡¯s not any worse than those big restaurants, right?¡±

    Zhou Buwen said to Wu Julan, ¡°Cousin Wu, to be frank, I¡¯m not flattering you but I¡®ve eaten dishes made by a few famous chefs and yours is not any worse than theirs.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng probably has taken a few bites in the kitchen so he wasn¡¯t as surprised or shocked as Zhou Buwen but just buried his head and continued eating, while saying, ¡°Xiao Luo, I¡¯m applying to come over for meals in the long-term.¡±

    Hearing them complimenting Wu Julan, I felt proud and smiled, ¡°Eat more if you like it.¡±

    Zhou Buwen laughed, ¡°Don¡¯t just look at us eat. You should eat too!¡±

    Using my left hand to hold the chopsticks, it took me forever to pick up a stalk of bok-choy. Even after spending much effort in picking it up, it dropped on my clothes just when I brought it to my mouth. I frantically put down my chopsticks, picked up the vegetable and put it at the corner of the table and said awkwardly, ¡°No wonder foreigners find it difficult to learn to use our chopsticks!¡±

    Zhou Buwen stood up, wanting to help but Wu Julan had already taken tissue papers and helped me to clean off my hand, then passed me another clean piece of tissue paper for me to clean my clothes.

    Wu Julan gave me an empty bowl and a spoon, picking up only pork ribs with regular shapes and putting them in the bowl, ¡°Use a spoon to eat instead.¡±

    I scooped a piece of pork ribs and put it into my mouth, realising that even though I feel like a little kid eating, I didn¡¯t encounter any troubles. I laughed and said, ¡°Everyone, carry on and eat. Stop staring at me or else I¡¯ll feel very nervous.¡±

    Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng quickly shifted their gaze away and continued eating.

    Wu Julan happened to sit on my left. He used his left hand to hold his chopsticks and eat while his right hand was holding the shared chopsticks, occasionally putting some seaweed stripes or bok-choy on my spoon and also tore a few pieces of the fish maw, where there aren¡¯t any fish bones for me.

    Using both his left and right hands at the same time, Wu Julan didn¡¯t appear flustered and ate very naturally. One could even say it was very elegant. Being taken care of by him, I was also at ease and wasn¡¯t in a hurry.

    Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng completely disregarded their manners and glared over. I was also dumbfounded, while watching Wu Julan in a daze, I mechanically placed the food into my mouth. Only Wu Julan didn¡¯t seem to find how amazing he was and carried on eating quietly.

    Jiang Yisheng couldn¡¯t hold on and asked, ¡°Cousin Wu, you can use chopsticks with both hands?¡±

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t even lift his eyes and said plainly, ¡°My left hand and right hand are exactly the same.¡±

    Since the speaker didn¡¯t even take it to heart, it wasn¡¯t appropriate for us to make a fuss out of it. Jiang Yisheng and I exchanged glances, hypnotising ourselves that ¡°this isn¡¯t a big deal, it¡¯s very normal¡± and continued eating.

 CH 4.5

    After dinner, Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng helped Wu Julan pack up the utensils. The four of us sat in the courtyard and talked while enjoying the breeze.

    Yesterday was their first meeting after being away from each other for so many years. Nervousness and excitement made them want to continue talking. This evening, everyone had relaxed themselves, holding a can of beer, chatting and even their bodies were less tense. Jiang Yisheng even directly lifted his leg and placed it high on the back of another chair.

    The moonlight was bright and clear, the evening breeze was cool, the insects were chiming, and flower petals danced as they fell.

    Zhou Buwen looked at the familiar courtyard, then looked at Jiang Yisheng and I, in a daze, ¡°It feels like we¡¯ve gone back to our childhood days, as if nothing has changed.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng smiled and swirled his can of beer. He stretched out his index finger and swayed it, ¡°At least there¡¯s one thing that has changed. We definitely didn¡¯t have the guts to sit openly and drink beer when we were younger. We¡¯d always hide behind the rocks along the beach and drink!¡±

    Zhou Buwen and I couldn¡¯t control our laughter. I said, ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect that we could still eat together, talk together. It¡¯s as if everyone walked into a maze, thinking that we¡¯ve all split up. Little did we know that there¡¯s only one exit and everyone ended up gathering at the exit.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng squeezed me a little and mocked, ¡°Cousin Wu, do you know that your cousin is so eloquent?¡±

    Wu Julan smiled plainly and didn¡¯t say anything, probably because he knew that the emotions of those in the courtyard had nothing to do with him.

    The knocking on the door sounded, ¡°Knock, Knock.¡±

    Wu Julan opened the door. Zhou Buyan entered with two boxes of gifts, ¡°Sister Shen, I heard from my cousin that you got injured. So I bought you some tonics.¡±

    I saw it was two boxes of bird¡¯s nests and found them too expensive. But it would have soured the relationships and been too impolite to outrightly reject them, so I could only remember this kindness in my heart and repay them in future, ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Zhou Buyan sat down for a short while, then Zhou Buwen said, ¡°It¡¯s not early anymore. We still have to catch the ferry tomorrow morning so we¡¯ll need to return to the inn.¡±

    Anyway, there are plenty of chances to meet up in the future, so I didn¡¯t make them stay.

    After waiting for them to leave, I locked the gate outside, watched Wu Julan pack up the courtyard and the sound of the door knocking rang out again.

    I found it odd and opened the door, seeing Zhou Buyan standing outside the door, I asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Did you leave something behind?¡±

    Zhou Buyan smiled and said, ¡°I told my cousin that I need to go back and pick up my phone but I actually didn¡¯t leave anything behind. I just wanted to say something to you privately.¡±

    I looked at Zhou Buyan and quietly waited for her to continue.

    Zhou Buyan said, ¡°I heard that you got robbed of over sixty thousand yuan. Your savings are probably limited and so it would be a stretch to set up an inn. Considering that you¡¯re my cousin¡¯s good friend, I¡¯ll be honest with you. I don¡¯t have high hopes for your inn. Tourists often pick inns that have either unique views or convenient transportation, while you have nothing over there¡­¡±

    I interrupted her sentence, ¡°Miss Zhou, what exactly is your point?¡±

    Zhou Buyan smiled confidently, ¡°My point is that I really like your old mansion so please sell it to me. I don¡¯t really care if there isn¡¯t a property deed. You¡¯re free to name whatever price. If you really don¡¯t want to sell it to me, I¡¯m also fine with renting it. I¡¯ll just rent for two years, with an annual rental of twenty thousand paid up front, and two years later, the house will be returned to you in perfect condition.¡±

    Is she trying to throw me money? I felt dizzy for a while and said, ¡°I¡¯m touched by your generosity. If it was an ordinary house, I would have agreed to you instantly. However, this isn¡¯t just a simple house, it is the home that my grandfather left behind for me. I really cannot sell it to you nor can I rent it to you.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said anxiously, ¡°But you have so little money¡­¡±

    ¡°Those loaded with money have their own lifestyles and those with little money also have their own lifestyles. Even if I don¡¯t have a single cent, I¡¯ll still be able to open this inn. Miss Zhou, I have said this very clearly.¡± The smile on my face remained polite but my tone sounded cold.

    Zhou Buwen stared at me deeply for a moment and said while faking a smile, ¡±I hope you won¡¯t regret it in the future. When the time comes, I might not be this nice to talk to. Forty thousand is nothing to me but it isn¡¯t a small sum to you¡­¡±

    ¡°You¡ª say too much shit!¡± Wu Julan¡¯s voice came from my side, interrupting Zhou Buyan¡¯s words abruptly.

    I turned my head to look at him, instantly all the feelings of dismay turned into smiles. Zhou Buyan¡¯s face was flushed with anger. She glared at Wu Julan and said, ¡°What, what¡­did you say?¡±

    As if Wu Julan didn¡¯t see her, he helped me take two steps backwards, and with a sound of ¡°clack¡±, he gently closed the door.

    I looked at him astonished but he behaved as if nothing had happened, ¡°You go up first. I¡¯ll come up after I clean up the rubbish.¡±

    I heard a sound of frustration coming from the other side of the door and looked at Wu Julan who was engrossed in doing his work and suddenly understood, The greatest insult to a person is to ignore a person¡¯s presence.

    Returning to the bedroom, I saw that the time was past nine o¡¯clock. I decided to heed the doctor¡¯s advice to sleep early to quickly recover.

    I clumsily used one hand to slowly brush my teeth and wash my face. When I was limping out of the toilet, I saw Wu Julan standing outside my room instead.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    He took out the medicine and cotton ball and wore the disposable medical gloves. Then, I realised that he planned to apply medicine on me. The doctor has specially reminded me to apply medicine on the wounds on my leg once every morning and night for five consecutive days.

    I quickly said, ¡°You don¡¯t need to do that. I can do it myself.¡±

    He looked at me and said, ¡°Bend down.¡±

    I hesitated and didn¡¯t move. I was aware of my wounds. If it was sitting, or lying down, or standing up, as long as I don¡¯t move, it would be alright. But once I moved, not to mention any actions that required motion such as going to sit down or stand up or bend down ¨C just any of these minor actions could affect the wounds, causing it to bring pain. Trying to apply medicine on my leg, and using just one hand, it would definitely be painful.

    I grit my teeth, and when I was about to bend down, Wu Julan had walked next to the bed and said, ¡°Lie down.¡±

    I glanced at his expressionless face and decided that it was better to not challenge him, then laid on the bed obediently.

    Wu Julan first dipped the cotton ball with the brown disinfectant on my wounds, then applied the ointment prescribed by the doctor on the wounds.

    Although he was wearing disposable medical gloves, the thin layer of plastic may have isolated the bacteria but it didn¡¯t isolate the warmth and touch. His fingers were long and fair but weren¡¯t soft. They felt firm and full of strength. I started to believe that he survived solely with his strength through manual labour but when he applied the ointment, I didn¡¯t feel any pain, even the cold from his fingers made me feel comfortable.

    Not sure whether it was the silence causing the awkwardness or the awkwardness causing the silence, neither of us spoke. My heart had an indescribable feeling of panic and confusion, as if ants were crawling into my heart. I suddenly broke the silence, ¡°Your hand is really cold. I bet your blood circulation is bad. Do take note of your body and don¡¯t overwork yourself.¡±

    Wu Julan gave me a look, not letting out a single sound and continued applying the medicine.

    I didn¡¯t have any more courage to say anything, and could only remain silent in this awkwardness and feel awkward in this silence.

    After the injuries were attended to with much difficulty, as if I was finally relieved, I immediately said, ¡°Thank you! Rest early too!¡± And almost added, Please quickly leave.

    Wu Julan packed up the disinfectant and ointment, and said calmly, ¡°Goodnight.¡±

    After I watched Wu Julan walking out of my room, I fell softly on my bed, as if my bones were removed, and the disturbing feeling of frantic and confusion remained lingering in my heart.

    T/N: YES YES YES!!! The plot¡¯s starting to get interesting even more from here onwards~!

 CH 5.1

    The happiness from our daily interactions, the peacefulness when I¡¯m around him, the flutters I get when I¡¯m facing him, the doubts I have when he ignores me, whether intentionally or subconsciously. I have somehow neglected them all because I don¡¯t dare face the answer.

    The two guestrooms upstairs were the main focus of the renovation. Wu Julan needed to vacate his room before the renovation started. Although my room didn¡¯t need to be renovated, I was contemplating doing so. Since my leg was injured, it wasn¡¯t convenient for me to move up and down, and neither do I want to experience the strong odours from the renovation. It was better to move to the first floor with Wu Julan.

    After discussing with Wu Julan, we made a decision. Wu Julan would sleep on the sofa in the living room for the time being and I¡¯d move to the study room on the first level. It was previously Grandpa¡¯s bedroom so there was a bed and a closet, but not an independent bathroom, so I¡¯d need to share the toilet with Wu Julan.

    With one instructing and the other following directions, we quickly finished moving.

    At nine o¡¯clock, Wang Tianlin showed up on time with the workers.

    After exchanging some simple greetings, Wang Tianlin briefed the important points to take note of for the project to his workers in front of me and then started the renovations officially.

    Renovation is a very trivial yet annoying work. Although Wang Tianlin has employed his most trusty workers, to the workers, this is just another normal business; to me, this is my only home and there are many things to worry about.

    My right hand couldn¡¯t be used at all and I can barely walk a few steps, so I could only rely on Wu Julan to take care of everything. Fortunately, Wu Julan listens to me and has read a few credible technical posts online so he knew everything about renovations. So I was well assured to let him monitor the renovations.

    Although Wu Julan may be poor, his behaviour and the way he interacted with people weren¡¯t cautious or sleek, like how poor people would be, but instead, it was full of arrogance. He didn¡¯t know how to please people. He didn¡¯t know how to tell white lies to soothe interpersonal relationships, and he has never compromised himself for others. So I was worried that he might rub the workers the wrong way and have to remind him again to be more tactful and not be too direct when he sees the workers doing something wrong. If he needs to correct someone, I told him not to reprimand them, instead he can call Wang Tianlin to coordinate changes.

    Unexpectedly, Wu Julan¡¯s temper was worse than I imagined.

    He has a calm personality, has strict standards for perfection, and is used to giving orders. He was straightforward as if he didn¡¯t know how to appease people, and his words were full of thorns as if he was trying to stir a fight. He even gave others an idiotic look for no reason. A few workers had already gotten very unhappy with him on the first day. If I wasn¡¯t a friend of their boss, Wang Tianlin, and wasn¡¯t full of wounds, I¡¯m certain they would¡¯ve already left and quit.

    I recalled how frustrated I was when Wu Julan told me that the food I made tasted terrible, so I could completely understand the feelings of the workers. However, understanding them was one thing, now that Wu Julan and I are on the same side, I couldn¡¯t see Wu Julan¡¯s actions as wrong. It was true that the workers weren¡¯t doing well enough, so it was inevitable that they would get singled out for their mistakes. Wu Julan may be harsh with his words, but what he said was the truth. Just like how he despised my food because compared to him, the food I made was really not good enough!

    But no matter how much I side with Wu Julan, I didn¡¯t dare to tell the workers upfront that their skills were bad. So I could only let Wu Julan play the bad guy while I play the good guy; he gives the stick, I give the carrot.

    I wore an embarrassed smile and asked the workers to be more accommodating for Wu Julan who was ¡°immature¡±. To appease their anger, I also initiated to cater for everyone¡¯s lunch during the renovation duration.

    I didn¡¯t tell Wu Julan about my complicated feelings. I just passed the money to him, telling him that we¡¯re in charge of the meals for all the workers and to go shopping for more ingredients.

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t look like someone who works for others, and his ego was bigger than mine.  But when it comes to doing work, he has always been very serious. He would follow my instructions, without question.

    As I expected, Wu Julan didn¡¯t slack off just because he was making food for the workers. Just as if he was making food for both of us, he cooked diligently. After the workers had lunch, their hostility against Wu Julan immediately faded.

    I laughed secretly. No wonder our ancestors said that it¡¯s a good habit to talk business at the dining table. When a table of hand-made food is brought into the mouth, they will be able to savour the taste of the ingredients and the thoughts of the one preparing the food. No matter how harsh Wu Julan¡¯s words are, he has always been open and fair in his treatment of people. This group of workers has been going around for work, was experienced in reading people¡¯s expressions so they have their own way of judging people and doing things.

    Even though the workers no longer hated Wu Julan, they didn¡¯t particularly like him either. But accounting for the sumptuous meal during noon, they would hear Wu Julan out when he spoke. Immediately, they realised that Wu Julan wasn¡¯t trying to make things difficult for them as his words were reasonable. Even some of his suggestions were far more professional than theirs.

    They complained that his idea was easier said than done, so Wu Julan personally demonstrated, which completely shocked them. The workers developed a sense of respect for him, and were meticulous in their work. The renovation process went very smoothly and I was completely relieved.

    The workers¡¯ attitude towards Wu Julan completely changed, and they even occasionally complimented Wu Julan to me. I would always reply back to them with an expression that says ¡®of course¡¯. But in reality, my surprise wasn¡¯t any less than theirs. Wu Julan may have read some articles online, but how could he have mastered them so easily?

    The only explanation is that he has done them before.

    Knowing how to do the laundry, to make food, medical skills¡­ Excluding doing the laundry, he cooks better than a chef from a five-star restaurant, and his medical skills weren¡¯t any worse than a professional doctor. Even his construction works were more refined than the workers with decades of experience. I couldn¡¯t help but wonder what other things he knew.

    Although it was only the second level that was getting renovated, the first level wasn¡¯t quiet. Rumbling, clinging and clanging sounds were echoing. Luckily, the kitchen was a stand-alone building so I hid in the wide kitchen.

    One of the windows in the kitchen faces the courtyard while the other faces the walls of the courtyard, directly looking at the large, beautifully blooming, heart-moving bougainvillaea. Bringing over a comfortable chair and sitting by the window, it didn¡¯t feel uncomfortable at all.

    Wearing my earphones, I listened to the MP3 player and read ¡°The Collection of Tang Poems¡± that was published by Shanghai Lexicographical Publishing House*. It was Grandpa¡¯s collection. When I came to Grandpa¡¯s house, it was already sitting on the shelves and had been a resident here longer than me.

    [t/n: Shanghai Lexicographical Publishing House is a publishing house in mainland China, specialised in publishing reference works.]

    There was a period of time where Grandpa would ask me to recite a poem every day after dinner and I had to memorise one every week. In the beginning, I only took this as a task and did it unwillingly. But overtime, I¡¯ve also gradually developed a love for it and fully understood what Grandpa meant by ¡°the book that one can never finish reading¡±. Every poem, accompanied by the author¡¯s life experiences, the societal context of when the poem was written, and also the origins of the words; after reading them carefully brings about a scent of reminiscing or a story of lingering and sorrow.

    When I have nothing to do, I would often casually flip open a page and slowly read each poem. Whether it was on success or failures, or the sadness of parting ways, or the happiness of achievements, or death and life, the past and the present were similar. After reading a few poems, the heart becomes at peace and the body feels enlightened.

    After finishing reading a page, just as I was fumbling to flip the page, a hand helped me do it. I turned my head and saw Wu Julan, not knowing when he arrived, sitting quietly next to me.

    I removed one side of the earphones and said, ¡°It¡¯s okay. I can do it myself.¡±

    Looking at the book, Wu Julan said casually, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m reading it too.¡±

    I reacted after a while and then understood what he meant. ¡°Are you saying that you want to read the book with me?¡±

    ¡°Mhm.¡±

    I would understand if this book was a wuxia novel or a fantasy novel. But this was a book about Tang poems. It¡¯s something that even university graduates wouldn¡¯t read to kill time. I unknowingly looked at Wu Julan suspiciously. He looked at the book seriously. His gaze faintly revealed melancholy. His lips were pursed. Perhaps his heart was stirred by the poem. He must have really been engrossed in it.

    I silently scolded myself for belittling people, even the Nobel prize winner Mo Ya didn¡¯t even graduate from elementary school! I pushed the book in Wu Julan¡¯s direction and lowered my head to read. It was Wang Wei¡¯s ¡°The Song of Xinqin County¡¯s Pine Tree¡±:

    The Pine Tree on the green, green hills

    Cannot be seen for several miles.

    When I didn¡¯t see you,

    I kept the memory of you in my heart,

    You should know how I feel in my heart,

    For you are striking and free,

    Slowly rising above the floating clouds.

    After finishing reading the poem, Wu Julan didn¡¯t flip the page. I peeked at him a few times, but he didn¡¯t notice and kept staring at the page.

    I was a little curious and so I read it in detail once again, feeling a little sad, and sighed, ¡°This poem appears to be writing about the pine tree but in fact, it should be writing about a person, just like how Qu Yuan* used herbs to describe a gentleman. However, Wang Wei¡¯s historical records state that ¡®he was clever and charming¡¯, ¡®excelled in the arts and could play the pipa skillfully¡¯. This literary figure praised another person who he described as ¡®striking and free, slowly rising higher to stand out among the floating clouds.¡¯ I really wonder what kind of person a pine tree is.¡±

    [t/n: Qu Yuan is a famous Chinese poet who lived during the period of Warring States.]

    Wu Julan gently smiled and said, ¡°Do you seriously pursue Vimalakiriti¡¯s words of high acclaim?¡±

    While listening, I felt that his words were odd, but I couldn¡¯t pinpoint what about them was weird. Wu Julan also looked strange. He didn¡¯t look as cold and sharp-tongued as usual. His finger slid across the page, wearing a faint smile. He gently sighed, giving off a feeling of ¡®matters that accumulated from centuries ago are difficult to put into words.¡¯

    His sigh made my heart feel a sense of sorrow out of nowhere. I couldn¡¯t help but want to quickly wipe away the misery that furrowed his eyebrows. I asked, ¡°Do you want to listen to music?¡±

    ¡°Music?¡± Wu Julan was surprised for a bit and stared at the MP3 in my hand.

    T/N: Yay a release finally! Thanks for waiting so long. This particular chapter had too many literature and poetry references that Minji and I just suffered through when working on this part. We¡¯ll be taking a break from this novel for a (short) while and focus on completing Unique Legend releases first before returning to finish this up. If all the stars are aligned, we should be expecting the next release in the second half of 2022. Till then, see ya~

 CH 5.2

    In the beginning, his expressionlessness frightened me, but now, it has already¡­ I glanced at him and immediately understood that this person whom I cannot underestimate at all, definitely did not know how to use an MP3.

    I passed one end of the earpiece to Wu Julan, prompting him to put it on.

    Wu Julan took and toyed with it in his hand before he slowly put it in his ear. This was the first time he revealed a surprised and happy expression.

    I softly asked, ¡°Is it nice?¡±

    Wu Julan smiled and nodded his head. I said, ¡°The song is called ¡®Starry Night in the Summer Ocean¡¯. I like this song a lot.¡±

    The two of us sat next to each other under the window in the kitchen, each with an earpiece in, as we listened to music together, and read together. The sounds from the renovation outside were noisy and ear-splitting, but the little paradise inside was gentle and warm, blooming with flowers, and peaceful.

    At night, after the workers had packed up and left, the house once again returned its serenity.

    As it was not convenient for me to move around while Wu Julan was unfamiliar with the neighbourhood, after dinner and shower, we just sat on the sofa and watched the TV together.

    I handed over the remote control to Wu Julan for him to choose. I noticed that Wu Julan was only interested in animal and nature-related programmes. After he had looked through the channels, he began watching ¡®Animal World¡¯.

    I rarely watch nature-related programmes and presumed that these nature-related programmes were very boring. But after watching it, I realised that it was not boring, but quite interesting. The battles between living things and mother nature, the battles between predator and prey were bloody, ruthless yet thrilling and touching.

    This episode of ¡®Animal World¡¯ featured the battle between the lions and elephants on the African grasslands. According to the narrator¡¯s elaboration, lions actually rarely attack the elephants because, unlike the weak zebras or goats, attacking the elephants requires them to fork out a massive price. Furthermore, the elephant¡¯s flesh is much more difficult to swallow than the zebra¡¯s or goat¡¯s. So the lions and elephants tend to not interfere in each other¡¯s business.

    But due to the lack of food, the starving lions who were on the edge of death, decided to hunt for elephants. Their target was the smallest elephant in the group. To protect the little elephant, the adult elephants would walk on the outside and use their bodies to block the lions¡¯ sharp claws. Although the lions are scheming and ferocious, the elephants are not any weaker. In the previous two hunts, the lions have failed. There were even some lions who got injured. But when facing death, the lions had no choice, but to raise another attack. According to their body strength, this was their final attack. If they fail to succeed, they would be unable to start another hunt and can only wait quietly for their death in the African grasslands that rely on their own abilities for survival.

    Thousands of miles of pursuit, days and nights of attacks, neither side can retreat for it means death. I watched with great worry, not knowing which side I was hoping for to win. If the elephants survive, the lions would die. Both sides were respectable powerhouses who were fighting for their survival.

    In the final attack, after endless brutal killings, the lions not only succeeded in killing a little elephant but also knocked out an adult elephant. Eventually, the elephant pack left in sorrow.

    [Editor¡¯s notes: I¡¯m actually so sad.]

    The lions who were still alive distributed the food and calmly couched on the ground as they quietly watched the sun rising up. Their ears stood up warily while they laid lazily. Their eyes were not filled with the pains of survival, nor were they filled with any joy of victory, as if this was just another day.

    I was astonished because their gaze and posture were just like Wu Julan¡¯s ¨C unafraid, indifferent, cold and calm; wary and lazy, ferocious and comfortable were all weirdly embodied in him.

    However, Wu  Julan didn¡¯t have any reaction. Even when the credits were shown, he just switched off the TV and went to prepare to sleep.

    I prompted him, ¡°Any thoughts after watching it?¡±

    Wu Julan glanced at me coldly and said, ¡°None.¡±

    At that moment, I truly understood some reasons for his difficult personality.

    He never spent a thought on his interpersonal skills ¨C he would never say any harmless lies just to appease people. I initially thought he didn¡¯t know but I later realised that it was not that he didn¡¯t know, or rather he was like those lions ¨C who didn¡¯t not know how to hunt for elephants, but was there a need to do so when food is sufficient? Since there was no need, naturally they wouldn¡¯t. Similarly, when there is a need, they would naturally do so. This was the ruthless conclusion I had after analysing the results rationally and calmly. Wu Julan would never fake his words just to make me feel happy, nor would he sugarcoat his words to please the workers, because our reactions were unimportant and it didn¡¯t affect him. But he would tell Jiang Yisheng that he was my cousin only because this lie would save him from a lot of unnecessary trouble.

    My gaze at Wu Julan was complicated. What exactly had he gone through to become a person like this? A human world equivalent of the African grasslands?

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t have any expression and said, ¡°It¡¯s getting late. You should rest.¡±

    I was well aware that he noticed my strange gaze, but he completely didn¡¯t care. I couldn¡¯t clearly tell my feeling so I stood up in frustration, wore a cold face, and dumped the words ¡®Mind your own business¡¯ at him before returning to the study.

    I laid on my bed and flipped around. I wasn¡¯t able to fall asleep as I felt angry and resentful. I thought that even though we didn¡¯t meet for long, our relationship was¡­ So it turned out that to Wu Julan, I was unimportant, I was nothing.

    As anger continued to boil, I gradually calmed down.

    Did Wu Julan have the obligation to take note of my emotions?

    None at all! Even my parents didn¡¯t care about my emotions, so why should I expect that from Wu Julan?

    Wu Julan treated everyone the same and he didn¡¯t treat me any worse. I am the boss and he is my worker. Has he ever failed in delivering his work?

    Never! He washes clothes, does the cooking and the cleaning! He even handled well in other areas beyond his responsibilities, such as monitoring the renovations and looking after me, who had difficulties moving around.

    So what other unhappiness do I have?

    I shouldn¡¯t have any!

    As the boss, I should only take note of Wu Julan¡¯s work and not about his character.

    After reasoning rationally, I was no longer angry and deeply regretted throwing my temper at Wu Julan for no reason. As for the resentment I had at the bottom of my heart, I chose to ignore it.

    I gently opened the study¡¯s door and looked across the long walkway. It was pitch dark and silent. I was unable to tell whether Wu Julan had slept.

    Just when I was hesitating, Wu Julan¡¯s voice appeared from the darkness, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you sleeping?¡±

    I took a few steps forward to close our distance but did not go too close considering that he was sleeping, ¡°I have something to tell you.¡±

    The blinds weren¡¯t completely drawn so the moonlight pierced through the gaps of the blinds, slicing the darkness into staggers. As I happened to stand under the crossings of darkness and moonlights, I felt as if the world had become shadowy and confusing.

    I could hear my voice amidst the darkness ¨C at times it was clear, and at times it was a blur. It was also in a stagger, just like my confusing state of mind.

    ¡°Sorry¡­ about earlier. I¡­ I was unreasonable, please forgive me. I shouldn¡¯t have¡­disturbed your sleep. But grandpa has always taught me not to bear my anger overnight as it is harmful to the body and heart.¡± As I said, I tried hard to look towards the sofa. But in the darkness, where I was under the light and he was in the dark, I could only vaguely see that he had never moved. If he hadn¡¯t spoken a word, I would have thought that he was sound asleep.

    After I finished my words, Wu Julan never replied.

    Under the silent darkness, when I started to feel awkward, Wu Julan¡¯s voice finally came over, ¡°I forgive you.¡±

    It was cold, just like his usual expression. Yet somehow or rather, there was something more in it. I said, ¡°Thank you!¡±

    I waited for a bit. Seeing that Wu Julan didn¡¯t have anything to say, I collected my mind, and said with a smile, ¡°Goodnight! Sweet dreams!¡±

    T/N: Sorry for the long wait. We¡¯re slowly getting back to this¡­ (hopefully)

 CH 5.3

    Two weeks later, the renovations were completed as scheduled. In addition to the TV, tables and chairs and repairs made to some parts that were wearing off, a total of approximately 47 thousand yuan was spent.

    The expenses were painful to bear, but I was very satisfied with the renovated house. The sockets that were loose and falling apart, the shower that was already old have all been completely replaced with new ones. The cabinets in the kitchen that were broken, have all been fixed. The entire house feels more comfortable than in the past.

    After two weeks of rest, the injuries on my leg have mostly recovered and I could walk normally. The wounds on my arm have also healed. The doctor said I still couldn¡¯t do work, but it was fine to come in contact with water. All I needed was to put on gloves and be careful in the shower.

    I finally got rid of being in the ¡®disabled¡¯ category who is unable to take care of herself. I very excitedly instructed Wu Julan to carefully decorate two guestrooms that were filled with warmth and comfort.

    After decorating the rooms, I called Jiang Yisheng over so that he could take a picture of the rooms from every angle ¨C the comfortable bed, the brand new bathroom, grandpa¡¯s collection of conches and corals, the flowers in the courtyard¡­ After I have edited the pictures and paired them with a suitable caption, I published them on all travel pages on the internet.

    I also printed some flyers and dragged both Wu Julan and Jiang Yisheng to paste them at the harbour¡­ After all these tasks were gradually completed, besides the fact that my arm wasn¡¯t suited for working, everything else, such as eating and washing up, has returned back to normal.

    On a bright and sunny morning, Wang Tianlin and Jiang Yisheng, along with Wu Julan, hung up the inn¡¯s signboard that was made during the renovation. The dark-brown colour background with white coloured words, when I saw the words ¡®The Conch Inn¡¯ firmly hung under the frame of the main door, I personally lit firecrackers.

    ¡®Pitter patter¡¯, in the midst of the crackling sounds of the firecrackers, Wang Tianlin, Jiang Yisheng, and the neighbours who were here to join in the crowd loudly celebrated, ¡°Congratulations on the opening!¡±, ¡°May the business prosper!¡±

    Even though there were many hiccups, my inn finally opened its business officially. I smiled and said, ¡°Thank you¡± as my vision subconsciously searched for the person who had helped me walk through this path.

    Wu Julan was standing a distance away, at the outside. He wore a polite smile as watched silently; he looked completely out of place amongst the lively atmosphere. I trotted over next to him tip-toed and moved up next to his ear and said loudly, ¡°Thank you!¡±

    Wu Julan stared at my bright and smiley face.

    I tilted my head and provoked mischievously ¨C I teased you, what can you do?

    Wu Julan didn¡¯t bother reacting to my little tricks. He reached out his hand and carefully removed the pieces of red-coloured firecrackers that were caught in my hair. We stood very close to each other and with his actions, I could clearly feel the warmth of his fingertips and the scent coming from his body. My heart fluttered and the smile froze on my face, I was no longer as complacent as I was earlier.

    Wu Julan looked at my idiotic behaviour and laughed, ¡°What are you staring at? Are you done with your work?¡±

    His smile this time was different from the smile he showed out of politeness earlier. This made me startled a little, then I recomposed myself and replied, ¡°I¡­ I was thinking about some stuff. I-it¡¯s related to operating the inn,¡± I very sternly added strength to my tone. After I said my words, I immediately turned around and walked towards the neighbours, as if I was trying to escape away.

    I thought in frustration, I clearly knew he was like a lion, why did I even tease him? In the end, not only did I fail to tease him, I was teased by him.

    Although I had mental preparations that customers wouldn¡¯t stream in so soon, humans always harbour unrealistic expectations. I have been waiting next to the phone, hoping that some wise customer would select my ¡®Conch Inn¡¯.

    Jiang Yisheng mocked me, ¡°Don¡¯t be obsessed over money. You¡¯ve only opened for two days, how could it be so soon¡­¡±

    The phone suddenly rang. I was astonished in disbelief and quickly picked up the call, ¡°Hello, this is The Conch Inn!¡±

    A few minutes later, I hung up the call excitedly and patted on the notebook in protest at Jiang Yisheng, ¡°My shop¡¯s about to welcome its first customer. And they have booked for a month.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng snatched the notebook over, ¡°Booked by Miss Hu, for a month.¡± He raised his eyebrow, ¡°What kind of dirty luck is this?¡±

    I scoffed, ¡°Shoo! They¡¯re not here for sight-seeing but instead, they wish to stay in Haidao for some time. They caught interest in our inn that is very family-like, has a heart-warming decor and quiet ambience.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng smiled happily, ¡°Anyway, congratulations on your grand opening.¡±

    Wu Julan and I cleaned all the rooms so that they are speckless as we wait to welcome The Conch Inn¡¯s very first customer.

    I told Miss Hu that the inn was located on the last street, which was an old street filled with a local atmosphere. But because cars couldn¡¯t go through, it would be a little inconvenient. However, we could pick up the customer at the harbour and help carry the luggage and other belongings so the customer didn¡¯t have to worry. But Miss Hu rejected and said that she could manage.

    In the evening, a few knocks on the door rang and the door at the courtyard that was closed was gently pushed open. I composed myself, wore a polite smile and brisk-walked over. Just when I was about to say ¡®Welcome¡¯, I saw Zhou Buwen carrying his luggage and walking into the courtyard.

    I asked in surprise, ¡°Why¡­ are you here?¡±

    Zhou Buwen chuckled, ¡°I¡¯m here to stay at the inn. I¡¯ve already booked.¡±

    ¡°Miss Hu booked your room?¡±

    Zhou Buwen smiled, ¡°She¡¯s my assistant.¡±

    My heart felt a little weird but I couldn¡¯t possibly leave Zhou Buwen standing in the courtyard, ¡°Come on in!¡±

    Zhou Buwen examined my expression, ¡°Are you upset? Is it because you think that I¡¯ve lied to you?¡±

    ¡°No. I really thought there was a customer who had caught interest in my inn, and didn¡¯t think it was you. So I somewhat feel that my happiness was in vain. It¡¯s not because I don¡¯t welcome you here.¡±

    ¡°Am I not a customer? An inn like yours is supposed to build its reputation through word of mouth. After I am comfortable here, I¡¯ll share my experience with my friends on WeChat and perhaps one of them will become your next customer.¡±

    I smiled, ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll make sure your stay is comfortable. But don¡¯t you need to work? Why did you book for a month?¡±

    ¡°I was a little tired and wanted to give myself a break. Going for a vacation can also be tiring. Over here, I don¡¯t need to worry about anything and have a proper rest.¡±

    I examined him and noticed that he indeed looked a little lethargic, there were faint dark circles under his eyes which clearly showed that he hasn¡¯t got proper rest in a while ¨C perhaps his stress came from work or from his family. I didn¡¯t probe further, ¡°Which room do you want to stay in?¡±

    Zhou Buwen looked at the two guestrooms and said with a sigh, ¡°The change is huge. I remember there wasn¡¯t a toilet on the second level when I was young. Are you still living in the same room?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I am.¡±

    Zhou Buwen pointed at the room at the end of the corridor, ¡°How about that? I remember grandpa used to live in that room, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but grandpa moved to the first level afterwards. We added a bed in the study room so it became both a study room and a bedroom.¡±

    Zhou Buwen pondered for a while and asked, ¡°Is the room below meant for guests?¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t renovate the study room because it was still comfortable to stay in. But no matter how much cleaning we do, things that are old will still appear dirty, it¡¯s not very suitable for guests to stay. So I let Wu Julan stay in it.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said in surprise, ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t bear to let anyone stay in that room!¡±

    ¡°Indeed I wouldn¡¯t bear to let outsiders stay in that room. But the house is only this big and letting guests stay in the study room is definitely not a good idea so I could only let Wu Julan stay in it and empty the remaining three rooms upstairs for the guests. Wu Julan¡­¡± I paused and continued, ¡°is my cousin so he¡¯s not considered an outsider.¡±

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°I¡¯ve never heard you mention your cousin. I thought you weren¡¯t close with your maternal relatives. I didn¡¯t expect you¡¯re still quite close with them.

    I stayed silent. I didn¡¯t think about this either. When Wu Julan asked me where he should be staying after the renovation, I actually let him stay in the study room without any hesitation.

    Zhou Buwen looked at the two guestrooms and said in hesitance, ¡°Both rooms are well decorated but a little small. Can I stay in the large suite that grandpa used to live in?¡±

    I smiled and said, ¡°Of course you can. But we only renovated the toilet in that room, the floor and walls were untouched, so it doesn¡¯t look as new as these two guestrooms.¡±

    I opened the door and led Zhou Buwen to look around. Zhou Buwen said, ¡°I like it. It¡¯s not new, but it feels like home.¡±

    ¡°As long as you like it. You should unpack your luggage and take a break. After that, you can come over for dinner.¡±

    I closed the door for Zhou Buwen and slowly went down.

    As I passed by the study room, I subconsciously stopped in my steps. Zhou Buwen¡¯s words ¡®I didn¡¯t expect that you¡¯re still quite close with them¡¯ rang next to my ears.

    When I made the decision initially, I didn¡¯t even hesitate for a moment, but believed that this was a logical arrangement made for the inn¡¯s business. But today, Zhou Buwen¡¯s words reminded me that my actions couldn¡¯t be justified with ¡®for the inn¡¯s business¡¯. Perhaps for those who understand me, I could never let out this room for anyone to stay in. Even in the situation where someone needs to stay in it, I would be the one moving in and freeing up my room. Yet I could so easily, without any hesitation, allow Wu Julan to stay in it. No wonder Jiang Yisheng gave me that astonished gaze when he learnt that Wu Julan was staying in the study room.

    T/N: hmm just wondering if we should release Starry as a full chapter instead of in parts subsequently since the interval for this novel is just as long as our TL-edit speed¡­ thoughts?

 CH 5.4

    I was a little perplexed. Exactly when did I see Wu Julan as not an ¡°outsider¡±? I used the excuse of ¡°he is my cousin¡± to lie to Zhou Buwen, but I couldn¡¯t possibly lie to myself.

    ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng¡¯s voice suddenly rang from behind, which gave me a big shock. In frustration, I hit his shoulder, ¡°You scared me!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°That¡¯s just your guilty-conscience, how could you blame me for scaring you!¡±

    I asked fiercely, ¡°Why are you here?¡±

    ¡°I was curious about your first customer so I came to take a look? Have they come? How are they?¡±

    I said listlessly, ¡°Zhou Buwen.¡±

    ¡°Big Head?¡± Jiang Yisheng winked and smiled, ¡°He even booked for a month¡­ do you think that¡­ Big Head is trying to woo you?¡±

    I frowned, ¡°What nonsense are you spouting?¡±

    ¡°Stop feigning ignorance. I read the love letter Big Head wrote to you back then, but since you never mentioned it, I pretended I didn¡¯t know about it.¡±

    ¡°Crazy! How old were we back then?! You also pee in your bed when you were a child. Do you still pee in your bed now?¡±

    ¡°The more you deny, the more guilty you¡¯re feeling.¡± Jiang Yisheng snickered and headed upstairs.

    I grabbed him, ¡°Hang on. I have something to ask you.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    I contemplated a little and whispered, ¡°You¡¯ve dated a few women, so you¡¯re quite experienced in relationships. What do you think is the difference between friendships of the opposite sex and being boyfriend-and-girlfriend?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng began to feel interested. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked at me attentively, ¡°Miss, what exactly do you want to ask. Can you be clearer?¡±

    ¡°I just want to ask you, what is the feeling of liking someone?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°You¡¯d feel that the person¡¯s very interesting, you¡¯d enjoy being with the person and you won¡¯t feel bored at all after spending the whole day with the person.¡±

    ¡°I think you¡¯re pretty interesting, and I quite enjoy being with you. After being with you for more than ten years, I still don¡¯t find it boring.¡± I looked at Jiang Yisheng and said with a straight face.

    Jiang Yisheng stared at me speechlessly and continued, ¡°You¡¯d be very bothered by the person. When the person is sad, you¡¯d feel sad as well; when the person is happy, you¡¯d feel happy for them; when the person is in trouble, you¡¯d seek all means to help them; when someone bullies them, you¡¯d feel very angry and help to find revenge.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m very bothered by you. When you¡¯re sad, I bet I won¡¯t be happy; when you¡¯re happy, I¡¯d be happy for you; when you¡¯re in trouble, I¡¯d seek all means to help you; when someone bullies you, I¡¯d help you to fight back, and this has been proven by experience!¡± I glared at Jiang Yisheng and said, ¡°Are you hinting that I like you?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng didn¡¯t know whether to cry or to laugh, ¡°You like me and I like you. But the ¡®like¡¯ we have is different from the ¡®like¡¯ you are asking about.

    ¡°How is it different?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng furrowed his brows and pulled me towards him, where we were almost next to each other, ¡°When he holds your hand, your heart would beat faster; when he gives you a hug, you would feel breathless; when he touches you, your whole body would tremble, wanting to retreat while yearning for it; when he kisses you, you would feel that that was the sweetest taste on earth.¡± While whispering next to my ear, Jiang Yisheng held my waist in one hand and the other hand gently held my arm.

    He stared at me while I stared at him. From his eyes, I could see my calm and clear eyes.

    Jiang Yisheng smiled, ¡°Your eyes have clearly written the answer.¡±

    I began to understand Jiang Yisheng¡¯s words, but I was completely stunned by my understanding as I stood like an astonished chicken* on the spot.

    [t/n: I did a literal translation of the Chinese idiom ´ôÈôÄ¾¼¦, which essentially translates to ¡ª an utterly shocked expression.]

    Jiang Yisheng noticed that something was wrong with me and was just about to probe further when Zhou Buwen¡¯s startled voice came from the stairs, ¡°Xiao Luo?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng murmured, ¡°Crap!¡± and he quickly let go of me, ¡°Xiao Luo, hurry and explain.¡±

    ¡°Explain? Explain what?¡± I looked at the surroundings in a daze and noticed that Zhou Buwen was standing at the stairs and Wu Julan was standing in the living room. They both looked silently at Jiang Yisheng and I ¨C one with a complicated expression and his gaze was heavy while the other didn¡¯t have any emotions and his gaze was still.

    At the moment, I was in a fluster so I lowered my head and said nothing. Instead of clearing Jiang Yisheng¡¯s name, I even made the situation more awkward.

    Jiang Yisheng had no other choice but to clear the situation himself and he said awkwardly, ¡°Cousin Wu, w-when¡­did you come in?¡±

    Wu Julan said clearly and plainly, ¡°If you wanted to ask whether I had seen something that I shouldn¡¯t, the answer is ¡®I had¡¯. Sorry!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng quickly said, ¡°D-don¡¯t be sorry. I can explain. We were just fooling around. Xiao Luo¡­¡± He forcefully nudged me to prove his words.

    Instead, I turned around and walked out, ¡°I¡¯m going out to buy stuff.¡± Without turning back, I rushed out of the courtyard, leaving the three men in the house.

    I sat on the reef and looked out at the sea in the far distance.

    Under the twilight, the waves surged one after another without a pause but it could not be compared to the emotions surging in my heart right now.

    How could I like Wu Julan? No, no, impossible!

    From the beginning, Wu Julan had never hidden anything. I was very clear of his true face ¨C poor, eccentric, mysterious, who even did not have an identification card.

    I was never curious to ask and simply accepted all the facts, thinking that he was just a passerby in my life who would leave soon after so there was no need to ask. Now, I realised I was actually too cowardly to ask.

    Actually, the many details have already told me the answer.

    However, the joy from our daily interactions, the peace from being next to him, the fluster when facing him, the frustrations when being ignored by him, I have ignored them all intentionally and unintentionally, because I absolutely didn¡¯t dare to face the answer to it all.

    Until the last moment, I struggled to use ¡°a good friend¡± to lie to myself.

    I smiled wryly. I will be twenty-six soon and I was no longer a teenage girl. How could I like such a person? He is like a dandelion flying in the sky; no matter how beautiful it looks, it cannot hide the harsh truth: no roots, no home, nothing.

    Young girls may fall in love with such handsome men: mysterious, romantic, and exciting. They have enough courage, enough youth, and enough enthusiasm to pursue passionately and vigorously, caring only about loving at the moment and a love lasting forever.

    But I wasn¡¯t like that. My parents divorced which made me experience three types of man-and-woman relationships and marriages from a very young age ¨C my mother and father, my mother and step-father, and my father and step-mother. Moving from one family to another family has made me indifferent to ¡®wandering¡¯ and ¡®mysterious¡¯ which many young girls would fantasise. One could even say that I despised them. More than anyone on earth, I yearned for stability, firmness and reliability.

    Probably because I was exposed to the unbearable relationship between men and women too early, I have never been a romantic person. I had never believed in a lasting marriage and had even prepared to be single in this life. Even if I really were to get married, my ideal marriage partner should have: a clean family background, no bad hobbies, possess a certain financial foundation, doesn¡¯t need an outstanding career but shouldn¡¯t have any financial constraints; he doesn¡¯t need to be good-looking, just decent-looking will do.

    To be blunt, I am one of the world¡¯s countless sensible girls who wouldn¡¯t daydream over unrealistically, hoping to meet a prince charming to save myself; neither would I be crazy over love and sacrifice everything for it, at the expense of my living quality just to save a man.

    How could a woman like me possibly fall in love with a man like Wu Julan?

    ¡°Xiao Luo!¡±

    Zhou Buwen¡¯s call interrupted my train of thoughts. I calmed myself down, hid all my thoughts, and turned around to smile and look at him.

    ¡°I came to try my luck. I didn¡¯t think that you would be here.¡± Zhou Buwen jumped into the reef, just like when we were young, and pressing on my shoulders, he sat next to me.

    I subconsciously shifted aside a little, ¡°Luckily the view here isn¡¯t great so there are little tourists. So it¡¯s still as quiet as it was in the past.¡±

    Zhou Buwen looked at the gap in between us and asked sadly, ¡°You like the doctor?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re referring to liking him as a friend, of course I do. But if you¡¯re talking about liking him as a man, I don¡¯t. We were just playing with each other earlier.¡±

    Zhou Buwen¡¯s expression was relaxed as he smiled and gazed at me.

    I looked at him and suddenly thought: he should be the partner that I dream for! He is knowledgeable, successful, and gentlemanly¡­

    Zhou Buwen suddenly said, ¡°Xiao Luo, can you give me a hug? As a welcome back gift.¡±

    I was stunned for a moment, then I stretched open my arms and lightly hugged Zhou Buwen. I was very happy, it was very warm, but my heart didn¡¯t beat faster nor did I feel shy and nervous.

    Zhou Buwen said, ¡°Xiao Luo, I¡¯m back.¡±

    It was a simple sentence but only the both of us understood the hardships within. I said, ¡°Welcome back!¡±

    Zhou Buwen murmured, ¡°The same sea breeze, the same reef, the same person. The light that was missing from my heart is finally filled again.¡±

    I let go of Zhou Buwen, patted his shoulders exuberantly, smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Jiang Yisheng and I were always here.¡±

    Zhou Buwen probed, ¡°What are you thinking about while sitting alone over here?¡±

    I said, ¡°I was just randomly thinking about things. Let¡¯s go. It¡¯s getting dark so we should go back for dinner.¡±

    I stood up, swept my gaze and noticed a somewhat familiar figure standing on the cliff afar. After a closer look, there were only lush tung and saffron trees. I stared at the cliff and Zhou Buwen followed my line of sight and asked strangely, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    I smiled, ¡°Nothing. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    T/N: okay honestly, finally another chapter is completed. thank you for the wait ;-;

 CH 6.1

    Upon facing the harsh reality of making a living, I don¡¯t even have the courage to begin! Yet, what wrong did I make in carefully planning for the future?

    There was a popular quote on the Internet: every girl will meet a scumbag when she grows up. I scoffed at it, and thought that it should be changed to: every stupid girl will meet a scumbag when she grows up. A girl like me, who doesn¡¯t have dreams about love, and is utterly unlovable, can never fall in love with a man that she shouldn¡¯t love.

    I never imagined that many years after my impressionable years that I would be facing such a plight one day. Although Wu Julan isn¡¯t a scumbag, to be fond of him is probably not much better than liking a scumbag.

    I know very clearly that my feelings for him shouldn¡¯t be and aren¡¯t right, and I wish I could pluck and burn all these feelings that have grown in my heart; like pulling out weeds and burning scrap paper. However, these feelings that have grown aren¡¯t weeds in a flowerpot that can be easily pulled out whenever someone says they need to be pulled out, and they¡¯re not scraps of paper in the trash which can be simply burned when someone says they need to be burned. The only thing I can do is to use logic to restrain and weaken these feelings until they disappear little by little with the passage of time.

    I have always thought that there was no eternity in this world. If we must say eternity, the only eternity in this universe is that everything disappears with time.

    Whether it is love or a vow; whether it is a mountain or the sea; even the Earth we are on, the sun that shines on us. The universe that holds everything, as long as there is enough time, will eventually all die and disappear.

    Even the things that seem eternal, like the sun and the universe, will disappear with time. This is even more so for my insignificant feeling.

    I¡¯m confident that it¡¯ll go away if I give it time.

    Although I wanted to get rid of these unwanted feelings in my heart, I didn¡¯t plan to drive Wu Julan away. Not only because I promised to help him through this unfortunate time, but also because Wu Julan didn¡¯t make any mistakes when working. It¡¯s my own fault that I like him, and I can¡¯t punish him for my own mistakes.

    I decided to use a gentle way to separate from Wu Julan and downplay my feelings.

    First, I started paying him because Wu Julan has multiple jobs so his salary must be higher than a waiter. He will be paid 2,500 yuan for food and housing a month. In terms of money, I have made it clear that Wu Julan and I are in an employment relationship, and that everything is measured by money.

    I¡¯m also less casual when I speak to him. Using ¡®please¡¯, ¡®not to trouble you¡¯, and ¡®thank you¡¯ as a way to be as polite and courteous as possible in every interaction. I know how tedious this is because my stepfather did this to me as well. My stepfather studied in the UK for many years, and he taught me everything about the etiquette of British nobles and their servants. Always be polite, always. He appeared so gentlemanly, but every move, every word, and every deed reminded me that he was the master, and I was an outsider living in his house. There was always a gap between our statuses.

    In the end, I tried my best to avoid being alone in the same space with Wu Julan. If I had something to tell him, I would stand at the door and say it in a polite tone, then leave immediately. Keeping distance was the best way to resolve these ambiguous feelings.

    I think Wu Julan noticed my change immediately, but he didn¡¯t care at all. It was as if I had treated him like this from the beginning, and he was still indifferent to it.

    I clearly made the choice to end these feelings. I shouldn¡¯t care about his reaction. I should actually be happy that he doesn¡¯t care, but seeing with my own eyes that he didn¡¯t care at all, made me feel uncomfortable, and even harboured a sense of disappointment and shame.

    Is every woman in love always contradicting themselves?

    Trying to ignore the other person, trying to create a boundary, but seeing that you have been ignored by the other person, you¡¯ll feel sad and frustrated.

    In the midst of my internal conflicts, my attitude towards Wu Julan became more and more strange. Not only Wu Julan, but even Zhou Buwen and Jiang Yisheng noticed it. Zhou Buwen just watched coldly and didn¡¯t question it, but Jiang Yisheng couldn¡¯t restrain himself.

    One night, the four of us had dinner together. When I said, ¡®not to trouble you¡¯ to Wu Julan again, Jiang Yisheng frowned and said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you two have a fight? If you have any resentment, just say it with consideration. Don¡¯t keep it in your heart. This tensed atmosphere is even making me feel uncomfortable.¡±

    I immediately denied it, ¡°No! Why would we fight? Shouldn¡¯t I just be polite?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng stared at me. His expression showed that he was in disbelief.

    ¡°There¡¯s really no conflict. If there was a fight, Wu Julan would have left a long time ago. This place isn¡¯t nice enough for someone unhappy to remain, right? Wu Julan? It¡¯s not like I have a nice place to stay when I¡¯m unhappy. Right, Wu Julan?¡± I looked at Wu Julan pleadingly.

    Wu Julan raised his eyes to look at me. His gaze was, as usual, calm and profound, indifferent. I knew I was pushing myself and maybe also Wu Julan.

    Wu Julan said coldly to Jiang Yisheng, ¡°There wasn¡¯t a fight.¡± After saying that, he lowered his head and ate his food in silence.

    My heart ached, but I didn¡¯t look at Wu Julan. Instead, I deliberately talked and laughed with Zhuo Buwen, chatting about embarrassing things when I was a child, as well as the fun and happy times.

    I once read a line in a book, ¡®Women are born actors¡¯. I didn¡¯t understand it before, but now I do. Everytime I deliberately hurt Wu Julan, I was actually more uncomfortable than he was, but I acted like I didn¡¯t care at all.

    After dinner, when Jiang Yisheng was going home, I dragged him aside and whispered, ¡°Do me a favour.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng followed me upstairs and into my bedroom, and found that the curtain rod of one of the windows had come loose. It¡¯s not technically a difficult job, but two people need to hold the pole together and keep it at a certain level before it can be fixed.

    After the curtain rod was fixed, Jiang Yisheng jumped off the table, pushed the table back to its original position, and said, ¡°Are you and Cousin Wu arguing? You didn¡¯t want to get him to fix this, but you came to me?¡±

    I leaned against the window and said nothing.

    Jiang Yisheng said bitterly, ¡°You don¡¯t have many relatives. I think Cousin Wu treats you well. Humans should cherish happiness. So don¡¯t take it for granted!¡±

    In a muffled voice, I said, ¡°He¡¯s not even my cousin. We have no blood relations.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng was stunned for a moment and said, ¡°No wonder I thought that something was a little off. But because I decided that you two were related, I didn¡¯t think too hard about it. You, you¡­¡± His face showed a sudden realisation and asked in shock, ¡°You¡­ It¡¯s you¡­ Isn¡¯t it?¡±

    I knew what he was going to ask. I looked out the window into the night, and admitted frankly, ¡°I like him.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng sighed and said, ¡°Cousin Wu is very nice, but I¡¯ve always hoped that you would like Big Head.¡±

    I said bitterly, ¡°I wish I could like Big Head too!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng asked, puzzled, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Cousin Wu isn¡¯t a monster. If you like him, you like him. What¡¯s there to be worried about?¡±

    I hesitated for a moment and said, ¡°He lied, not only about his identity, but also about his occupation. He didn¡¯t go to college, and he didn¡¯t even know how to type on a computer. How could he know anything about programming?¡±

    ¡°So he just turned out to be a liar!¡± Jiang Yisheng got angry, rolled up his sleeves, and wanted to beat someone up.

    I quickly grabbed him, ¡°Wu Julan didn¡¯t lie to me! The first time I saw him, he was a penniless homeless man. I asked him about his education and job, and he told the truth. He had no degree or job.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng looked at me in shock as if he was listening to a wild story, ¡°You mean you just randomly picked up a homeless man and went home?¡±

    I nodded.

    Jiang Yisheng touched my forehead and murmured, ¡°Xiao Luo, you don¡¯t have a family history of mental illness, do you? How can you do something so crazy?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not crazy. I know what I¡¯m doing! You¡¯ve never known homelessness and you can never understand what we¡­¡± I smacked his hand away, indicating that I didn¡¯t want to talk anymore about this issue, ¡°If I had to do it again, I would!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng asked, ¡°Have you seen his ID card? If you know where he¡¯s from, I can find a way to check him for you.¡±

    I felt a little guilty and said hesitantly, ¡°He said¡­ that he didn¡¯t have an ID card. I don¡¯t know if he lost his ID card, or ¡­if he is unregistered, he wouldn¡¯t have an ID card at all.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng hit my head and said angrily, ¡°Maybe he¡¯s a wanted criminal! After murdering people and stealing things, he came to us.¡±

    I pursued my mouth and looked at JIang Yisheng. Not knowing whether to cry or not.

    Jiang Yisheng¡¯s heart softened immediately, and he quickly comforted me and said, ¡°I¡¯m not trying to scare you! Wu Julan doesn¡¯t seem to be a bad person. If he was a bad person, he would have done all the bad things that a bad person should do. But¡­ Xiao Luo, you clearly know his circumstances, how can you still like him? Is this kind of person suitable for marriage?¡±

    I turned my head and said in a low voice, ¡°It¡¯s precisely because I know I shouldn¡¯t like him, that I am in such pain now!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng patted my shoulder and sighed, not knowing what to say.

    I lowered my head and said sadly, ¡°It¡¯s more miserable to fall in love with this kind of person than to fall in love with a scumbag!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said with reassurance, ¡°Okay. Okay! It¡¯s just what it is! Look at my girlfriends. At first, they all jumped at me, chasing me and saying they loved me. But as soon as they arrived at my house, they all gave up when they saw my father and my grandmother¡¯s appearances. It¡¯s proof that it¡¯s not difficult for women to give up on a relationship. Since you know it¡¯s not going to work, just give up!¡±

    I gave Jiang Yisheng a punch, dumbfounded, ¡°Are you comforting me or scolding me?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said with a smile, ¡°No matter what it is, as long as you¡¯re happy.¡±

    I said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Go home quickly!¡±

    Since the both of us were too familiar with each other, I only sent Jiang Yisheng to the stairway, ¡°Remember to lock the courtyard door.¡±

    Jiang Yisheng said, ¡°Don¡¯t feel bad. There¡¯s someone else waiting for you!¡± After speaking, he pointed to the room at the other end of the corridor.

    I raised my foot and tried to kick Jiang Yisheng, ¡°Go away!¡±

    Jiang Yisheng quickly took the flip-flops off my feet and threw them. They hit the door of Zhou Buwen¡¯s room. While yelling, I jumped on one foot to pick up my shoes.

    Zhou Buwen opened the door and asked with a smile, ¡°What happened?¡±

    Jiang Yisheng laughed and rushed downstairs, ¡°I¡¯m leaving. Have a good chat, you two!¡±