Chapter 59: A Terrifying Story Triggered by a Can of Milk Powder (Three-in-One)...

“No.” Wen Han pointed to the baby waving his hands and giggling, “Then what about this one? Isn’t this their grandson too?”

“They might have been implicated and harbored resentment,” Wen Ruan said sympathetically. “Besides, that child can already call out to people now.”

"She's not the same age as him, is she?"

"Um."

The baby had no idea what was happening and was still babbling "Aba aba".

"Host, this story sounds familiar."

"Have you been watching too many TV dramas? These kinds of family ethics are all pretty much the same."

Wen Ruan suddenly started emitting pheromones. All babies can sense the presence of pheromones before the age of one, and then they will be suppressed until differentiation. Wen Ruan's pheromones have a rather sweet milky smell. Wen Han said with mixed feelings, "Don't let him smell it. What if he gets hungrier the more he smells it? Then we'll have to boil water and make milk late at night."

“He was hungry.” Wen Ruan glanced at Wen Han with some confusion. “His family doesn’t have money to buy milk powder, otherwise why would he go out to ask for child support in the middle of the night?”

What's this? A baby version of quenching thirst by looking at plums?

This tiny baby obviously can't distinguish between milk pheromones and real milk; he keeps opening his mouth, smacking his lips, and sticking out his tongue, wanting milk.

"Host, the baby is so pitiful." The system was showing its compassion again.

"Are you going to buy the baby formula?"

"I'll buy it!" The system went offline for a while, then sheepishly logged back in, saying, "It's too expensive, I don't have enough points."

If this continues, the baby will probably starve and cry incessantly. They'll have to borrow one from a neighbor who has a baby. Wen Qingke is rushing to finish a project today, Wen Ruan is busy taking care of the baby and can't leave, and Wen Han doesn't want to hold the baby either, so they have to ask Wen Ruo to borrow one.

"Wen Ruo, go and get some milk powder."

Wen Ruo pointed expressionlessly at the washboard, implying that someone should wash the sheets. Wen Han covered her nose and could only accept her bad luck, grabbing her baby bottle and heading out.

*

"System, can you identify which family has a baby?" Wen Han thought for a moment and added, "They're all awake right now."

It was already eleven o'clock. Wen Han followed the system's instructions and knocked on the door to ask for baby formula. The other person frowned and said, "Can't you go buy it yourself?"

"Uh...but it's so late now, and I only need to borrow a little."

"Why should I lend it to you?" The other person slammed the door shut without hesitation and complained to their partner, "Honestly, we don't even know each other and they have the nerve to ask to borrow baby formula. They're shameless. How can they raise a child if they can't even afford baby formula? Are they going to beg like this?"

Even though it wasn't his own child, Wen Han still felt his face burning with embarrassment. He really wanted to bang on the door and argue with them. But then he remembered that if it were him, he would definitely react the same way, yelling at the other person for not having money to raise a child, so he could only take the baby bottle and slink away.

"Host, it's alright," the system reassured you. "There are still several other options."

"Never mind." Everyone living in this tenement building has their own troubles, and most of them are struggling financially. Sometimes it's not about the little bit of baby formula; it's just that they're holding onto resentment. In those situations, they don't have the extra compassion to help others. Wen Han knows this feeling all too well.

"I still have money in my card, I'll go to the supermarket to buy it." It would be great if they had small bags of it.

The salary the Jing family paid him far exceeded the effort he put in, yet it was cleverly within Wen Han's acceptable range, so that he wouldn't feel uncomfortable or want to refuse.

"How much does a can of baby formula cost?" We can't buy the expensive kind; if the other party doesn't get child support, we'll definitely still owe them money.

Wen Han went to the supermarket at the entrance of her residential complex, but it only had snacks and other snacks, not baby formula. So Wen Han went to a larger supermarket and asked the staff where the baby formula was.

When the other person saw Wen Han buying milk powder late at night, dressed like a high school student, they assumed he was an Omega. A hint of sympathy flashed in their eyes, and they sighed softly, "What a tragedy."

Wen Han: "......"

However, the shop assistant was still very enthusiastic in introducing him to which milk powder was of the best quality. When Wen Han saw the rows of canned milk powder on the shelf and then looked at the prices, he gasped in shock. Each can cost more than 500 yuan.

"Although the price is relatively high, it's all imported milk powder."

"Um... do you have any domestically produced ones?"

"Oh, yes, yes." The shop assistant noticed that Wen Han was short of money, so she showed him a cheaper milk powder. "This one costs a little over two hundred, and there are samples with it."

The sample pack of milk powder was the same size as a can of eight-treasure porridge. Wen Han hesitated for a moment: "Can I just buy the sample pack?"

The shop assistant's smile suddenly froze a little.

There were other parents nearby picking out baby formula. Hearing Wen Han's question, one of them muttered, "They dare to have a baby even if they don't have money to buy baby formula."

"I bet he didn't even finish high school."

Wen Han couldn't take it anymore and hurriedly slipped away.

"Sigh." An older, simply dressed Omega pulled Wen Han aside. "If you can't afford formula, just buy soy milk powder, or a bag of fresh milk. A bag only costs a few dollars."

"Is that okay?" Wen Han sensed something was wrong. "If people can drink pure milk, why do they all buy milk powder?"

"It's good enough that you have something to drink, and besides, you can't afford it, can you?"

It's not that he can't afford it... it's just that there's a risk of wasting the money. He felt it wasn't right to ask Wen Han to buy pure milk, but he also felt the pinch of spending several hundred yuan on milk powder.

"Wen Han, what are you doing here?" Lin He didn't expect to run into Wen Han here.

"Shh!" Wen Han quickly told Lin He to shut up and not to mention his name. "I'm asking you the same thing, what are you doing out so late at night?"

"Buying baby formula? Isn't this the baby formula section?"

*

"Oh, so you're buying baby formula for the neighbor's kid?" Lin He's smile was disgusting. "I never expected you to be so kind, despite your fierce demeanor."

If there weren't so many people around, Wen Han would have really wanted to hit him: "What about you? You're not a father at such a young age, are you?"

Lin He said innocently, "I bought it for my sister; we're out of formula at home."

Wen Han felt a rare pang of guilt, but he couldn't bring himself to apologize to Lin He. So he pretended to start a conversation: "Your family is so rich, why do you need to come out and buy baby formula yourself?" The Gu family's banquets don't invite ordinary people.

“I don’t live with them. I live separately from my dad.” Lin He put his arm around him and said, “Did you not bring enough money? I knew it. You’re so careless. What would you have done if I wasn’t here? You would have made a wasted trip.”

Lin He can be truly annoying at times, but he can also be incredibly perceptive and adept at reading people's expressions. He clearly knew that Wen Han's family wasn't well-off and didn't know that a can of milk powder was so expensive, yet he insisted that Wen Han had simply been careless and forgotten to bring money.

Wen Han pursed his lips, surprised that Lin He hadn't elbowed him when he put his arm around him.

Wen Han wanted Lin He to buy the milk powder and then give him the sample pack, but Lin He led her to a shelf where Wen Han saw that the milk powder cost more than 700 yuan!

“This one is better.” Lin He took several cans. “Babies with sensitive stomachs can drink this, and it can also boost their immunity.”

With such expensive formula, they probably wouldn't even bother with samples to attract customers. Wen Han thought she should just buy the one that cost over 200 yuan.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?" Lin He grabbed him. "You want to buy a different brand?"

“No…it’s just…” Wen Han explained, “That baby doesn’t usually drink this brand.”

"Let's change things up. Adults need to eat different dishes every day."

Lin He wanted to give him two cans directly, but Wen Han refused: "He's not my own child, and besides, his parents have had conflicts with me before, they're so annoying."

Lin He could tell that his pride was getting the better of him, and muttered, "Then why don't you just feed him rice cereal, or even just feed him his saliva? Why go out and buy him formula?"

Wen Han's face was contorted in disgust. How could Lin He say such disgusting things!

Lin He found his current expression quite amusing and chuckled, "I wouldn't mind if you fed me saliva, of course."

The shop assistant was tidying up the merchandise when she saw Wen Han return, accompanied by an Alpha standing in front of the high-end baby formula shelf. She quickly tried to approach him to promote the product. However, the Alpha said something, and Wen Han grabbed his neck and shook him violently, which looked like she was using force and not flirting at all. The Alpha was scared away again.

*

Wen Han looked at the formula in the bottle; it should be enough for two feedings. In the end, he firmly refused Lin He's offer to give him a can of formula.

"Why don't you walk back? Why don't you ride your electric scooter?"

"It's out of power, it's charging."

"How about I give you a ride?"

Wen Han didn't seem to care, but he frowned and said, "Why does your car look so much like a motorcycle?"

"It just looks similar," Lin He said, puzzled. "And so what if it's a motorcycle?"

"Only thugs like riding motorcycles."

Lin He didn't like hearing that: "Why are you still discriminating? Who told you that only those who get by—"

Before he could finish speaking, several motorcycles sped past in the middle of the street. The motorcycles were equipped with colorful lights that flashed in all directions, and none of the people on them had black hair. They were howling like monkeys.

Lin He: "......"

"Host, you should ride in his car. Walking back will be too slow, and the baby must be hungry."

Wen Han had been out for a while, so she reluctantly got on the motorcycle that only hooligans loved.

"Hey, do you know how to make baby formula?"

"It's not like I don't have hands."

"Then let me ask you, should you pour in the water first or add the formula first? And what temperature should the water be?"

Wen Han really didn't know these things, so Lin He kept talking about "how to prepare milk powder" the whole way.

Lin He dropped him off about fifty meters from the building. Wen Han was already tired of hearing about it. After walking a short distance, Lin He suddenly called out, "You forgot your things! I put them on the ground for you."

Wen Han then realized that his hands were empty. He had put the baby bottle in Lin He's shopping bag on the way, afraid that he would drop it.

Before leaving, Lin He tried to blow a kiss, but the streetlights in this run-down neighborhood were practically useless; his flirtatious gesture was only for the blind.

Wen Han approached and discovered that the baby bottle was placed on top of a can of formula.

——

Wen Han carried the milk powder up the stairs. What to do? A can of milk powder costs over 700 yuan. If she took it, she would owe Lin He a favor. It was absolutely impossible for Wen Han to pay him back 700 yuan. But if she brought a can of milk powder to school tomorrow, wouldn't everyone laugh at her to death?

Wen Han heard a child crying as soon as she reached her doorstep. It seemed the child had finally realized that milk pheromones were just empty promises and couldn't satisfy hunger.

Although the water was boiling at home before Wen Han left, the water temperature was definitely too hot, so Wen Han had to pour the milk powder out of the bottle and put it in a bowl first, since Lin He had repeatedly emphasized that the water should be poured out first and then the milk powder.

"Host," the system whispered, "this milk powder smells so good."

"How could it not be good for over seven hundred yuan?" It does smell quite good, though.

"The baby can't drink that much anyway, why don't you try some?"

Wen Han immediately guessed what it was up to: "Are you sure you don't want to try it?"

The system said hesitantly, "It's over seven hundred yuan worth of milk powder!"

These words struck a chord with Wen Han; it was over 700 yuan worth of milk powder.

He washed his hands, then dipped his fingertip in the mixture and put it in his mouth.

Wen Han frowned. He thought it would have a sweet milky flavor, but it also had a rusty smell. Had it gone bad?

He looked up and saw Wen Ruo standing there, having just finished washing the sheets and was about to hang them to dry. She witnessed the whole thing.

Wen Han: "......"

Wen Ruo pretended not to see it and went to hang up the bed sheets.

After a while, the system said cheerfully, "Host, I actually think it's okay! He'll forget about it tomorrow!"

"Shut up!" From then on, he felt guilty whenever he argued with Wen Ruo, wondering if she would bring this up again!

The system obediently shut down.

After preparing the formula, Wen Han turned the bottle upside down and brought it into the room. Wen Ruan took it and found the temperature was just right. She put it in the baby's mouth, and the baby's eyes lit up and immediately stopped crying.

"Oh my god." Wen Han saw the milk in the bottle visibly decreasing rapidly. "How long has it been since I last fed her?"

They waited until midnight before someone finally knocked on the door. Wen Ruan, carrying the child, went to open it. Wen Han was just about to go to sleep when he heard Wen Ruan's scream, which nearly gave him a heart attack.

"What are you yelling for!" Wen Han got up impatiently and walked into the living room, only to see a person with a face covered in blood. She instinctively yelled out as well.

Judging from this, he definitely didn't get a single penny of child support back, and even got into a big fight.

Wen Qingke heard two screams and rushed out to see what was wrong. Fortunately, the other person had gone to the bathroom to wash their face before coming out, and they didn't look so scary anymore.

After asking around, Wen Qingke learned that the man had promised his father that he would no longer care about them and would only provide the minimum child support each month. However, that little money was not enough to buy milk powder. When she went to his door, he refused to give her any money, and they ended up fighting.

These kinds of scumbags are quite common in tenement buildings; Wen Han has heard so many that she's become somewhat numb to them.

"Thank goodness you guys are watching my child tonight, otherwise I would have had to take the child with me, sob sob..."

I hope not. Wen Han felt scared when she heard her say that. Never ask them for help out of gratitude.

What can they do to help?

The sound of heartbroken sobbing continued in the living room. Wen Qingke comforted him, "Alright, you should cheer up. You still have a child."

The baby was crying because he was hungry, but he was actually exhausted. He had just eaten and was sleeping soundly, so much so that even adults talking to him couldn't wake him up.

"The baby is still hungry."

Wen Ruan quickly replied, "It's alright, I just fed her."

"Thank you so much, thank you all," the man cried. "Even strangers are more soft-hearted than him." The woman was somewhat surprised to see a can of baby formula on the table; she had seen it in the supermarket, where a can cost over seven hundred yuan!

Perhaps because the blow she had just suffered was too great, and with the people here comforting her, the Wen family immediately became her lifeline. The woman whispered, "I can't count on them anymore. From now on, I can only rely on my neighbors—"

"You should go now," Wen Han said softly. "It's too late, we have to go to school tomorrow."

"We understand that today's situation is special, but please don't come again in the future."

The other person was stunned. Wen Qingke felt a little reluctant, but he was interrupted before he could say anything.

“If the person who should be responsible for you and the child isn’t taking responsibility, don’t just look for someone else.” Wen Han’s tone was relatively gentle. “I know you’re desperate for comfort and to share the pressure right now. Go back and get some sleep; you’ll feel better tomorrow morning.”

The other woman just kept crying, saying she couldn't raise a child. Seeing that no one around her was moved, she could only wipe away her tears, take the child's toys and bottle with her. When she saw that the other woman wanted to take the can of formula, Wen Han said, "I have to return this tomorrow. I didn't buy it. I didn't know it was given to me."

The woman's eyes held disbelief, even a hint of resentment. Wen Han hated that kind of look, and immediately sneered, "Otherwise what? Do you think my family can afford this? What kind of look is that? If you're so capable, go beg everyone in this neighborhood one by one and see who's willing to help you. They even turn you away when you ask for a little bit of baby formula. Only these few are suckers!"

Seeing that they were about to start arguing, Wen Qingke advised, "Hanhan, it's just a can of milk powder, let it go."

"Forget it, forget it, forget it!!!" Wen Han suddenly broke down emotionally for some reason, screaming, "Do you know how much this milk powder costs? More than seven hundred yuan! You can't even buy a few cans with your monthly salary! Yes, they gave it to me as a gift. They bought several cans of seven hundred yuan milk powder like it was free, so do you think I can just take it? Am I begging for food with my palms up to me?! Huh?"

"Do you know how much I hated and despised him before?! Why was he so kind? He could tell I couldn't afford it, and that person is my classmate! Do you know how embarrassed I was? If I gave him the baby formula, how am I going to pay him back tomorrow? Am I supposed to pretend I didn't know?! Will I still be able to talk to him so confidently in the future? What if we argue and he suddenly asks me for the baby formula?! Can you handle that? You're just a smooth talker and a pushover!"

By the end, Wen Han was practically shouting. Her voice was so loud that it finally woke the baby up, and the baby started crying loudly.

Wen Han was agitated, her body trembling with anger. Wen Qingke's figure grew smaller and smaller, and by the end, Wen Han's shouting had made him curl up like an old man.

The woman remained silent, perhaps ashamed that helping her had caused the Wen family to quarrel, or perhaps because it was too embarrassing. She said nothing more and left the Wen family in silence.

Hearing the sound of the other person gently closing the door, Wen Han felt conflicted, but she still issued an ultimatum: "We've done what we could to help. Helping any further would be a bottomless pit. Don't open the door if she comes again."

——

When Wen Han went to school the next day, his schoolbag was bulging. He had wrapped the milk powder in several layers of bags before he dared to put it in his schoolbag.

There's not enough time now, so I'll go to the student union office during lunchtime.

Wen Han was in a daze throughout the entire morning self-study period, and even when Fang Songxia called him during the third period, he didn't respond.

"Wen Han, what's wrong?"

Wen Han shook her head: "It's nothing."

"Wen Han, let's go play badminton?" Fang Songxia asked excitedly after finishing her run.

Wen Han suddenly remembered something. Class 3 also had a PE class this time, and Lin He was there too. She might as well give it to him now.

"No, I have something to do." Wen Han looked around the playground, wondering where Lin He was.

Jing Yu was very perceptive: "Wen Han, who are you looking for?"

Just as Wen Han was about to say she was looking for Lin He, Lin He suddenly appeared out of nowhere: "Wen Han, are you having PE class this period too?"

"Okay." Since there was no one in the classroom at the moment, she took Lin He to get the milk powder.

When Wen Han asked him to go to the classroom, Lin He was secretly pleased, wondering if it was some kind of small thank-you gift. Without asking any questions, he hummed a song and followed her.

"Why is he following along too?" Lin He asked, pointing at Jing Yu.

"Go back and do your homework."

"Pfft." Lin He chuckled. "What, is the homework too hard? Can't you finish it without using PE class?"

Wen Han glanced at him sideways: "It's because I can't finish writing it. Of course, I have to ask someone if I don't know something."

Lin He chuckled twice.

*

Lin He was initially looking forward to it, until he saw that Wen Han's schoolbag had bulged into a suspicious cylinder.

It took Wen Han a lot of effort to pull the milk powder can, which was wrapped in several layers of bags, out of her schoolbag.

"Here you go," Wen Han added. "That neighbor took the child away and didn't want the formula."

Lin He didn't believe it: "Hmph, if you force him to accept it, how could he possibly refuse?"

"Why should I force her to give it to me? I don't even know her." Wen Han found it quite amusing. "Besides, we don't need the formula at home. Wouldn't it be better to take it back for your sister?"

"You can drink it now, it'll just be milk after you soak it."

Wen Han's patience was almost exhausted. Today, he had been very nice to Lin He: "Who would drink this rusty-tasting beverage?"

Lin He smiled and winked: "Hey, Wen Han, how did you know this tastes like rust?"

Wen Han: "...I can smell it." Jing Yu was still sitting next to her, so he must have heard it. Wen Han really wanted to strangle Lin He.

Wen Han opened her homework, not wanting to argue with him anymore: "Just take it back."

Lin He sat down opposite Wen Han, resting one arm on the table as he watched her do her homework.

Wen Han looked up at him and said, "That's Yang Lanjun's chair."

"What's wrong?"

"If she sees you, you'll die at her hands."

Lin He chuckled and took another stool, showing no intention of leaving.

Wen Han gritted her teeth and thought, "Fine, he'll leave eventually."

This math problem was very difficult, and Wen Han got stuck on it as he wrote. Anyway, it was the last big problem, so it wouldn't hurt to leave it unfinished. He threw down his pen and was about to write something else when Lin He suddenly whispered, "This isn't how it's written."

Wen Han froze as he rummaged through the desk drawer. He watched as Lin He circled the conditions on the test paper with a mechanical pencil, then wrote his thought process in the blank spaces, muttering to himself, "How can you give up just because you don't know the answer? That's not right..."

Wen Han pursed her lips and remained silent. Jing Yu watched Lin He explain the problem to Wen Han and frowned slightly. Normally, Wen Han would have already told Lin He to get lost in annoyance; how could she possibly let him use her pen to scribble on her homework?

Wen Han was in a state of confusion, so she didn't listen to much of Lin He explaining the problem to her.

"Wen Han, Wen Han?" Lin He called out.

Wen Han was still immersed in his own world. Although it was common for them to have big arguments at home, for some reason, what happened last night kept lingering in his mind.

Jing Yu chuckled lightly: "It seems you're not very good at explaining problems."

"If I don't know, do you think you do?" Lin He said, then remembered that Jing Yu and Wen Han were deskmates, and usually Jing Yu would explain the problems to Wen Han.

Wen Han was lost in thought and naturally didn't notice the undercurrents around him. By the time he finally snapped out of his reverie, several minutes had passed.

He looked up and suddenly asked, "Jingyu, are you alright?"

Jing Yu was stunned, and Wen Han was a little embarrassed: "Um, is it that your heat cycle is coming soon? Your pheromones are different from before."

Jingyu's pheromones are usually a clear and delicate floral scent, but now they seem exceptionally rich and noticeable.

Jing Yu was only taken aback for a moment, then revealed a faint smile, his beautiful eyes curving slightly: "It's okay, I was just a little worried about you, you don't seem to be in a good mood."

Wen Han assumed Jing Yu was in heat and didn't think of anything else. Lin He was initially gloating, but he quickly realized why Jing Yu's mood had improved, and his smile turned cold.

Wen Han belatedly realized that there was still the scent of honey pheromones in the air. He glanced at Lin He suspiciously, but then thought that it was normal for Lin He to be so flamboyant.

Thinking about how cold she had been that morning, Wen Han explained to Jing Yu, "I was thinking about that neighbor with the child. We had a fight last night."

"Luckily you met me," Lin He interjected, "otherwise you wouldn't know how to make formula."

Wen Han was indignant, but then she deflated. If it weren't for Lin He, he probably would have poured boiling water into the milk powder.

"Did you two have a fight because of this?" Lin He looked at the milk powder can for a couple of seconds. "It's best not to have any conflicts with your neighbor. Why don't you take it back and give it to her? Most people will feel embarrassed to bother you again once they see a gift."

"Why would I give it to her?" Wen Han certainly couldn't say that the argument was because of this can of milk powder. "Aren't you afraid that if you give it to her, she'll still have the nerve to come asking for it next time? It's better not to say anything when you meet her."

"Maybe it will actually help you, since you're neighbors after all."

"Then I'm really unlucky. My neighbors are just trying to take advantage of me," Wen Han said coldly. "Besides, if I give her child such good formula, what if she gets used to it and refuses the cheaper stuff? Are you going to take responsibility?"

Seeing Wen Han's indifferent expression, Lin He lowered his body while holding the milk powder and said in a helpless and ingratiating tone, "Alright, alright, it's just a can of milk powder, don't think so much about it."

Jingyu pondered for a moment, then comforted her, "After all, you're not family, so you have no obligation to help her, and there's only so much you can do to help."

“Shuyuan recently launched a support program,” Jingyu explained. “It’s the local milk powder manufacturer in Linjin that provides welfare subsidies to local employees working there. They can receive a certain amount of free milk powder every month, which also includes government subsidies.”

“If she’s a single parent, she’ll have a better chance of being selected there,” Jingyu said with a smile. “If you’re worried about getting entangled with her if you help her, but you can’t bear not to help, just tell her the news. As for whether she’s willing to go or not, that’s none of your business. After all, you’ve done what you should have done.”

Wen Han breathed a sigh of relief, her expression finally relaxing. No matter how much help others give, nothing beats a reliable job.

Seeing Wen Han smile at Jing Yu, Lin He felt a pang of jealousy, but he could only blame himself for not thinking of that.

"Then I'll tell her tonight," Wen Han smiled. "After all, the rent on my floor is already very cheap, and hers is a whole floor higher than mine—"

Before she could finish speaking, Wen Han suddenly felt a sharp pain in her temple.

etc.

His apartment is on the sixth floor, isn't it?

Seeing Wen Han's pale face, Lin He assumed he was unwell and was about to ask him what was wrong when Wen Han asked him, "Lin He, you've been to my house before, haven't you?"

"Yeah." Lin He didn't know why he suddenly asked this. "Last time I went to your house, what happened when you picked up Wen Ruan to go to the Gu family's dinner party?"

"You remember, my house is on the top floor, right?"

"Yeah," Lin He said, puzzled. "What's wrong?"

Wen Han's lips trembled: "But, that neighbor, she lives upstairs from me."

Even Jing Yu was surprised. Wen Han had lived at home for so long, it was impossible that she didn't even know which floor the house was on.

Lin He revealed Wen Han's greatest fear: "...It's not ghosts, is it?"

"Ahhh!!" the system yelled first, startling Wen Han.

"I'll go home and check again." Wen Han felt a chill. "Maybe I just haven't noticed it before."

“That’s right,” Lin He laughed. “How could there be ghosts?”

Wen Han originally didn't believe in ghosts at all, but after witnessing the haunted room at the Jing family's house, even her strong will wavered.

*

After finishing his run, Zhang Huihui didn't gossip with Wen Ruan as usual. Knowing that Lin He also had PE class, he looked around for him. Wen Ruan saw this but didn't know how to persuade him: "Let's go back to the classroom and do our homework?"

Zhang Huihui failed his exam and was severely scolded by his parents. Although the homeroom teacher didn't say it explicitly, he mentioned it quite a bit, and the parents quickly guessed that his grades had plummeted because of his relationship with a girl.

Seeing that his expression softened, Wen Ruan continued, "Last time it was just an off day. If you work harder this month, your grades will come back."

Zhang Huihui lowered her head, and Wen Ruan thought for a moment: "If it really doesn't work, you can come to my house on Friday night and I'll tutor you. Wen Han won't be home on the weekend."

"Okay," Zhang Huihui replied. "I can go back to the classroom by myself. Wenruan, you go play badminton."

He didn't see Lin He on the playground, so he went to Class 3 first on his way back, but when he found that Lin He wasn't there, he had no choice but to go back to his own classroom.

Just as he reached the back door of the classroom, he heard voices coming from inside. Zhang Huihui stopped in his tracks. Lin He was in their classroom! He must have come to see him. He immediately smiled broadly, but just as he was about to go in, he heard Wen Han's voice.

He held onto the door frame to hide himself and watched as Wen Han took a can of milk powder out of her schoolbag and handed it to Lin He. Lin He and Wen Han chatted and laughed, and Wen Han even gave Lin He a cold look. Lin He apologized to Wen Han in a very polite manner.

Jealousy burned fiercely, and tears welled up in her eyes. Just then, Jing Yu seemed to sense something and glanced indifferently at the back of the classroom. Zhang Huihui quickly retreated completely, hiding in a corner and not daring to utter a sound.

With some time left before class ended, Zhang Huihui turned and went to the office. The teachers had a meeting during this period, so the office was empty. He found a computer with the lights on and entered the brand of baby formula he had just seen.

——

When Wen Han returned home that evening, she stood at the bottom of the building instead of going straight in as usual.

He counted them layer by layer.

"One, two, three, four, five... six."

All the buildings in the residential complex have the same number of floors, six in total. Wen Han noticed that the light was on on the sixth floor, and the upside-down "福" (good fortune) character pasted on the window was a gift from Wen Qingke's company.

He walked in silently, going up one floor after another.

Reaching his front door, Wen Han noticed the stairs continued upwards. It was strange; he'd never seen stairs here before, so why hadn't he suspected anything? Not only him, but no one else in the building had.

He continued walking upstairs, stopping at the door of that family's house. The floor ended there. Looking at the number 703 on the doorframe, a sense of panic washed over Wen Han. Wen Han's apartment was 603, so the apartment above hers was naturally 703.

But this floor only has 703. There isn't a single household on its left or right.

A long corridor, blank walls that stretch endlessly, and it's the only one on this floor.

The soundproofing in the tenement building was very poor; Wen Han could even hear the children making noise inside, but he didn't dare to open the door now.

"System, do you think they...could be ghosts?" The motion sensor lights were not only useless, but they were also flashing, which gave Wen Han a chill. "Didn't you say this wasn't a supernatural world?"

The system was weak: "I don't know either."

Wen Han ultimately didn't dare to knock on the door. He planned to go back and tell Wen Qingke so that Wen Qingke could come up and talk to him.

*

Before going home, Wen Qingke bought chocolate cookies, intending to let the children eat them when they got home. However, Fei Nai'er smelled the aroma of the cookies and, when Wen Qingke wasn't looking, secretly came up and took a bite of half a cookie.

"Oh dear, what should we do!" Wen Qingke was terrified. "Can't cats eat chocolate?"

Wenruan poured a glass of water: "It's okay, Dad. Those cookies only contain cocoa butter substitutes, not real chocolate."

But when he came back, he clearly saw Wen Han's electric scooter. Where was Wen Han?

When Wen Han came in, Wen Qingke thought he had caught a cold: "Hanhan, why is your face so pale?"

Wen Han was about to point out the strangeness upstairs, but then he remembered that he still needed Wen Qingke to go up and talk to him about the milk powder company. So he only told him about looking for a job. Wen Qingke was very happy and naturally went upstairs to knock on the door.

Wen Han sat at the table, and Fei Nai'er meowed twice, but he didn't react.

"Wenruan, our house is on the top floor, right? All the buildings in the complex are six stories high, right?" Wen Han asked.

Wen Ruan asked curiously, "Yes, why are you asking this?"

"What's going on with apartment 703 upstairs?"

Wen Ruan thought for a while, and Wen Han thought that he had finally realized that something was wrong. However, Wen Ruan was silent for a moment, and then said cautiously, "Wen Han, isn't our house 503? The upstairs is 603."

"What?" Wen Han frowned. "You just said our house is on the top floor!"

"Did you hear me wrong? I didn't say that."

Wen Han ran straight outside. He had just confirmed that the number 603 on the door had changed to 503.

What on earth is going on?!

When Wen Qingke came downstairs, he saw Wen Han standing motionless at the door: "Hanhan, what are you doing standing outside?"

"It's nothing." Wen Han knew she wouldn't get any answers from him. "Have you talked to the people upstairs about it?"

“I already said so,” Wen Qingke said happily. “She said she’ll try it tomorrow.”

"Hmm." Wen Han responded absentmindedly. Wen Qingke pointed to the cookies on the table: "Are you hungry after school?"

Faced with this situation, even though he was hungry, Wen Han couldn't eat a thing. He shook his head, took his clothes, and went to take a shower.

"System," Wen Han tossed and turned in bed, "Do you know what's going on?"

"I just checked, there's definitely nothing supernatural about our worldview," the system said confidently. "Then it must be a bug in the space itself, host, you can go to sleep now."

"There's a bug?" Wen Han asked, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"The current plot is different from before, so it's normal for there to be some changes in the characters. After all, it's impossible for the space to be completely error-free."

Wen Han breathed a sigh of relief, but this was also a problem. With the plot changed, the information he had previously read became much less relevant. He remembered that at this point in the series, Lin Jin had some kind of big news story—something like a crime of passion?

"I can't sleep anyway, can I watch the plot again?"

The system said dejectedly, "I can't see it anymore, it's grayed out now."

"Huh? Why?"

"I don't know, I plan to ask my teacher when I have time."

——

Knowing it was most likely a bug in the space and not some supernatural event, Wen Han felt relieved. The next evening, Wen Qingke happily told them that the person upstairs had passed the interview, and now the baby's formula was secured.

"That's wonderful." Wen Ruan was organizing her old notes in the living room, preparing for Zhang Huihui's return to give lectures over the weekend. "That heartless man will never have a change of heart. I heard he's already planning to buy a new house."

Wen Ruo asked, "Does she know?"

"They probably don't know," Wen Ruan said softly. "It was our neighbor, Aunt Wang, who told us. She even told us not to tell anyone."

That's terrible. With Aunt Wang's big mouth, the whole neighborhood will probably know.

*

On Friday after school, Zhang Huihui saw that Wen Han was leaving with Jing Yu, so he felt relieved and prepared to go to Wen Ruan's house. However, the homeroom teacher was going to call him in for a talk, so Wen Ruan had to go home first.

Arriving at the building where Wen Ruan lived, Zhang Huihui frowned as she looked at the dilapidated cement building, but then, thinking that Wen Han had to live here every day, she smugly hummed.

That can of milk powder cost over seven hundred yuan. Wen Han definitely didn't buy it as a gift for Lin He; it must have been a gift from Lin He to him. Zhang Huihui was furious when he thought about this.

He knocked on the door, but no one answered. Zhang Huihui increased the pressure on his knocker, but an older woman across the hall called out to him, "This family isn't here; they've gone out on business."

"What's up?"

"Oh my, what a tragedy! You're his kid's classmate, right? Do you know Wen Han?" Seeing someone listening to her gossip, Aunt Wang said excitedly, "You have no idea, he drove someone to their death."

"What?"

"Yes, it's right upstairs from my house." Aunt Wang clicked her tongue in amazement. "They were driven to desperation just over a can of milk powder."

Zhang Huihui's eyes lit up, and she turned and went into Aunt Wang's house.

-----------------------

Author's Note: I'm now a paid author! [Exclamation]

I'm in pretty bad shape after writing 10,000 words [cracked face] But I'll still update tomorrow and the day after [eared bunny head emoji]