As dawn broke, Zheng Lanxiang finished cooking and came to knock on the door.

Jiang Shuyin reluctantly got up to wash and sit at the dining table. Jiang Jianli glanced at her and smiled helplessly.

Zheng Lanxiang: "A nearby bread factory is urgently hiring, and I want to go work there. I can bring back some scraps."

"Then I'll let them know." Jiang Jianli nodded, then asked his daughter, "How's the novel coming along?"

Jiang Shuyin gave an awkward smile: "Just like that, I can earn enough for a cup of milk tea."

Jiang Jianli realized that he earned less than thirty yuan a day: "Then I'll find you a job, working under me. It'll be like a census, where you'll need to register nearby properties and residents, and collect ID card information."

Jiang Shuyin hesitated.

“One hundred a day, and Dad will give you an extra thirty.”

Jiang Shuyin's eyes widened, and she pounded her fists and hands: "Let's do it!"

She had always wanted to work part-time writing novels, but good jobs were too hard to find. Jobs related to her major looked respectable, but in reality, the monthly income sometimes didn't even reach 3,000 yuan after deductions for social insurance. Companies treated their employees like donkeys in a production team, and when the off-season came, they would discard them after they had served their purpose. Jiang Shuyin was forced to become unemployed and stay at home.

Fortunately, she wrote novels like crazy for those two months and got some reward, barely making three thousand a month.

Her job search was put on hold for the time being, and she started to feel anxious whenever no one was reading her novel.

Is it because I wrote it badly?

Is the plot too bland?

Is it because the subject matter is too niche and there are few readers?

At times like this, she feels like going to work, frantically browsing job posting apps, only to back down when asked to meet in person.

Jiang Jianli arranged a job for her nearby, with her biological father taking care of her, and she was also classified as a social worker. Jiang Shuyin was very satisfied. The only difficulty was communicating with people and the physical exertion.

Jiang Jianli was on night duty yesterday. After dinner, he went to his room to catch up on sleep. When he stood by the bed, he said to his wife, "I feel better than before. I just feel sleepy after staying up all night."

Zheng Lanxiang put his clothes away and watched him lie down before closing the door and leaving. When she got to the living room, she thought for a moment and then turned on the news channel.

"...Why is Anshi so special? Let's contact Director Zhan Lian, a meteorological expert in the area, to give us a detailed report."

"Hello everyone, this is Zhan Lian. After six hours of surveying, we have obtained..."

Zheng Lanxiang looked out the window and was surprised to find that only Anshi was not experiencing rain.

"Not only that, my friends in country A told me that they are facing a prolonged heat wave and are now planning to immigrate here to seek refuge."

Watching the news can indeed provide a lot of information. Zheng Lanxiang's initially uneasy mood returned to calm after learning about the situation in other places.

Jiang Shuyin was typing in her room when Zheng Lanxiang knocked on the door: "Is it convenient for you to come in?"

The baby was lying beside her, and Jiang Shuyin lifted her clothes to let him hide inside.

"Come in."

Zheng Lanxiang sat down on the edge of the bed and looked around her room. She took a deep breath and asked, "If I divorce your father, who will you live with?"

Jiang Shu looked up in shock: "My dad's having an affair?"

"Not yet, I'm just scared." Zheng Lanxiang said dejectedly, "You saw last time that after Xiao Zhang and her husband argued in the neighborhood, she rented a house to live in so as not to interfere with her son's studies. It's because once a man has a status and identity that he can't satisfy his desires."

Jiang Shuyin remained silent for a long time.

She didn't know what to say, so she went over and hugged her mother: "I'll go with you, anywhere is fine."

Zheng Lanxiang laughed, but then burst into tears.

After wiping away her tears, she cooked a delicious and fragrant meal at 2 PM, and Jiang Jianli was woken up to eat.

Upon seeing fish and eggs on the table, he exclaimed in surprise, "Our family's conditions are far superior to others; I'm so lucky!"

"...Have you been crying?" Jiang Jianli then noticed his wife's red eyes: "What happened? Why didn't you tell me?"

Jiang Shuyin looked at her mother, and if she didn't want to talk about it, she would change the subject.

Zheng Lanxiang smiled and shook her head: "It's nothing, it's just that I feel sorry for Xiao Zhang in our neighborhood. It's not easy for her to be divorced and raising a child alone."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jianli immediately understood. He pulled his still-attractive wife into a tight embrace and gently coaxed her, "You're worried about me? You've already had sterilization surgery, and you still don't feel at ease..."

Jiang Shuyin quickly picked up a few bites of food and put them in her bowl, then rushed back to her room with the bowl in her arms.

Jiang Jianli looked away from his wife and said, "Look how sensible your daughter is. She'll go to your room and comfort you after dinner."

After saying that, he put some food on Zheng Lanxiang's plate: "Eat more, so you'll have energy."

Zheng Lanxiang's face felt hot and swollen, and she almost buried her face in the bowl.

Because he was on night duty last night, Jiang Jianli had a day and a night off. After fussing around all afternoon, Jiang Shu led him out to get some water. When she saw her father cooking in the kitchen, she secretly chuckled a few times and slipped back to her room.

After becoming a superhuman, Jiang Jianli's five senses were enhanced. Looking back, he saw his daughter's furtive back and couldn't help but chuckle.

During the meal, Jiang Shu noticed the satisfaction and exhaustion in her mother's eyes. After looking away, she was glared at by her father.

He ate his food with a sullen look on his face, thinking to himself: "We're an old married couple, and they still act like this in front of me, a single guy. It's too much!"

That night, Jiang Shuyin stayed up very late. The little one was getting restless, bumping around in the room. The wind outside was making the windows shake. She took her hands off the keyboard and beckoned the little one over.

"What do you want to do?" The voice used to coax the child must be soft and low.

The little one finally calmed down and moved to the bed.

After a two-second silence, seemingly noticing that she hadn't moved, he ran up to her again and made the motion of getting into bed once more.

Jiang Shu laughed: "You mean you want me to go to bed?"

The baby bobbed up and down, and she knew that meant he agreed.

She glanced at the word count and decided to write the remaining two thousand words tomorrow. She turned off her computer, lay down on the bed, but couldn't fall asleep for a while, so she opened her phone to read a novel.

Zai Zai: "......" His body swelled up.

Rushing over to block the phone screen, Jiang Shuyin was slightly surprised. It used to be the size of a fingernail, but now it could cover the entire phone screen. It has grown so fast.

[An invasive species, fifty years as a juvenile, three hundred years to adulthood; if the first offspring is a hybrid, then it's hard to say.]

Jiang Shuyin turned off her phone and held her baby in her arms: "Then I won't be able to see my baby grow up."

Not necessarily. Earth is forced to evolve, and some humans will gain extended lifespans after paying a price.

Jiang Shu's breath hitched. She leaned her face against the soft pillow, cupped the baby in her hands, and slowly closed her eyes.

After hearing her even breathing, the baby darted out of her palm. The window was immediately opened, and after the baby crawled out, the black mist outside seeped into the room, lingering on Jiang Shuyin's long, ink-black hair.

Jiang Shuyin felt uncomfortable with her shoulders being pressed down, and unconsciously turned around. The black mist was startled and quickly rushed out, just like Zai Zai's action.

Only after confirming that she was not awake did they slowly close the window at a snail's pace.