Chapter 10 Power Outage Why did his movements just now seem so natural?
Mu Tingyu was indeed quite tired today. Spreading fertilizer and feeding the animals were not easy tasks, and she still had mud splattered on her body that she hadn't washed off.
She went into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and waited for the water to get hot.
Amidst the rising steam, her gaze swept over the furnishings inside the restroom.
Although when he first met Xing Ze, his attitude clearly showed that he found her troublesome, it must have been because Xiao Ping gave him some benefits that he reluctantly accepted her living here.
But everything you need for daily life is there: new towels, new slippers, shower gel, shampoo, soap...
She had previously assumed that Xiao Ping had prepared all of these things, but when she brought it up today, Xiao Ping smiled and said to her, "Xing Ze handled everything. He even asked me if I was a young girl, probably thinking about what to prepare."
Xiao Ping also asked her, "Teacher Mu, how are you and Xing Ze getting along?"
She replied, "It's fine."
“Right,” Xiao Ping laughed, “He’s a nice person, but he has a really sour face, like someone owes him two million.”
But Mu Tingyu felt that he was easy to get along with.
Apart from the first time they met when he warned her not to go up to the third floor, she never saw him being fierce again.
However, he is indeed a man of few words. Now that we're more familiar with each other, he sometimes says a few more words, but most of the time he doesn't speak much on his own initiative.
She's usually the one chattering away, and he's the one listening.
Moreover, the thoughtfulness and refinement he exudes from within cannot be concealed.
For example, as long as she is on the second floor, he will not voluntarily step into the second-floor area, let alone approach the second-floor room.
For example, the other day she asked where to dry her clothes, and that evening he set up a small clothes rack for her to put in her room and stuffed countless plastic hangers into her clothes, probably because he thought girls have a lot of clothes.
Later I found out that he dried his clothes in the backyard, but he did so separately from her to avoid embarrassment.
Mu Tingyu stared at the pink rabbit-shaped mouthwash cup on the washstand and chuckled.
She believed that if it were anyone else who came, he would have treated them with the same consideration.
She took off her clothes and stood under the shower. The slightly hot water washed over her body, almost wiping away her fatigue and relieving her sore muscles.
She breathed a sigh of relief and carefully lathered her body with shower gel.
Just as I was about to flush it off, the overhead light suddenly flickered, and after flickering several times, it finally gave way and went out with a "click".
The bathroom instantly turned pitch black.
Mu Tingyu held up the showerhead and blinked in confusion.
Why?
Is the power outage?
She didn't know if there was a circuit malfunction or what, and she fumbled to get her phone.
I fumbled around on the cold counter for ages before I remembered that I'd left my phone charging in my room and hadn't brought it into the bathroom.
The small space was pitch black. Although she wasn't afraid of the dark, she was still not used to the sudden darkness and was a little flustered.
She was worried that there wasn't much hot water left in the water heater, so she quickly rinsed off the foam on her body. Once she was done, she turned off the water and prepared to reattach the shower card.
Suddenly, a slightly hurried sound came from outside, followed by Xing Ze's voice: "—Mu Tingyu?"
Her hand trembled, and with a "smack," the showerhead fell to the ground.
Through the door, Xing Ze's voice came somewhat muffled: "—Are you taking a shower? Are you alright?"
Mu Tingyu knew he had stopped at the top of the stairs and was calling out to her, so she shouted back, "It's nothing!"
His voice followed immediately, speaking quickly: "What was that sound just now? Did you fall?"
"Nothing! The showerhead is gone!"
There was a moment of silence outside, then the voice rang out again, this time a little quieter: "It might be a power outage. I'll go downstairs to check. You go back to your room after you've finished showering. It's too dark, don't wander around."
Mu Tingyu replied, "Okay—"
She groped around on the ground and picked up the showerhead.
The toilet has no windows; it's truly pitch black, so you have to feel your way around to do anything.
She stretched out her arm to reach the towels on the shelf, then suddenly hissed and pulled her hand back abruptly.
It's so hot!
She subconsciously put her fingers to her lips and breathed on them.
It seems like the hot water pipe of the water heater was touched; there's a slight leak.
Oh dear, that was 70 or 80 degrees Celsius hot water, I wonder if I got burned.
Mu Tingyu rubbed her fingers tenderly.
It's truly one problem after another; at this moment, she deeply felt the hardships of life for the blind.
She finally managed to reach the towel despite the pain, wiped herself off quickly, threw on some clothes, and opened the door.
Water vapor rushed out of the narrow space. There was a window on the second floor, and moonlight shone through the glass, casting a faint veil of light over the room.
Mu Tingyu breathed a sigh of relief, carefully avoiding the furnishings in the open space, and slowly moved back into the room.
It wasn't until I touched my phone and turned on the flashlight that I felt alive again.
It really doesn't work without light.
She walked out of the room holding her phone and peeked down the stairs.
Why is there no movement?
She instantly forgot Xing Ze's warning to "not run around" and pattered down the stairs in her slippers.
Before they even reached the bottom, Xing Ze's voice rang out: "Didn't I tell you to stay in your room?"
Mu Tingyu leaned out from under the handrail and saw Xing Ze standing in the empty area at the bottom of the stairs, fiddling with the electricity meter without turning his head.
She shook her phone, and the beam of light flashed in response: "What happened? Is it hard to fix?"
"The fuse has blown."
Mu Tingyu knew nothing about electrical work. She grunted and walked over to him, tilting her head back to watch him tinker.
Xing Ze withdrew his hand: "I'll go get the toolbox."
Mu Tingyu volunteered, raising her hand: "I'll help you get it! I'll help you get it! Where should we put it?"
"Third floor."
“Oh,” Mu Tingyu shrank back, “then you go by yourself.”
Xing Ze raised an eyebrow and looked at her.
"What?" she asked innocently. "Didn't you tell me not to go up to the third floor?"
Xing Ze found it amusing to hear her complaining tone: "So vengeful?"
Mu Tingyu crossed her arms and curled her nose: "That's right, I hold grudges very much!"
Xing Ze hadn't intended for her to get it anyway, and turned to walk towards the stairwell.
When he came downstairs again with his toolbox, Mu Tingyu was squatting in front of the puppy's cage talking to it. When she saw him, she immediately stood up and walked over.
Her soft voice, accompanied by a sudden, delicate fragrance, entered his senses: "You brought it?"
Xing Ze held his breath slightly and hummed in response.
He carried his toolbox to the meter, skillfully put on insulated gloves, and picked up a screwdriver, long-nose pliers, and a small flashlight.
Mu Tingyu eagerly held up her phone: "Is it inconvenient for you to hold it? I'll provide the light for you!"
Xing Ze looked at her struggling to stretch out her arms, and said in a deep voice with a hint of amusement, "Just stay put."
Seeing him turn on the small flashlight and put it in his mouth, Mu Tingyu reluctantly withdrew her hand and muttered under her breath, "Why put the meter so high up..."
The space under the stairs was limited, so the two stood very close. Mu Tingyu had her hands behind her back and stared at Xing Ze's movements with curiosity.
After a while, Xing Ze spoke up: "...Stand back a bit."
Upon hearing this, Mu Tingyu obediently took a step back: "Did it affect your performance?"
The girl's breathing became slightly lighter as the distance increased, but there was still a faint breeze falling on his back, carrying the familiar woody scent.
That's the smell of shower gel.
It's inconvenient to buy things or receive packages in the village, so he hoards daily necessities in large boxes. Therefore, what he prepared for Mu Tingyu was just something he took from the warehouse.
He'd smelled this shower gel for years, but never before had he felt it like this...
Its presence was very strong.
He tightened his grip on the long-nose pliers, then casually replied, "If I move too much, I'll bump into you."
Without thinking much, Mu Tingyu took another step back and yawned, looking somewhat bored.
Xing Ze said, "Go to sleep if you're sleepy."
"I'm not sleepy." Mu Tingyu defended her sleep schedule, "I was just dizzy from serving food. Going to bed at this hour is way too early. I'm not old yet."
The room was pitch black, with only a dim light coming from this corner. Apart from the occasional sounds of Xing Ze repairing things, the only other sounds were the two of them breathing.
Mu Tingyu then noticed that Xing Ze had changed into a black vest and short-sleeved shirt, revealing his strong upper arm muscles that were not usually visible. The lines of his arms were clearly smooth as he raised his arms, showing that he had been training regularly for many years.
She huddled behind, not blinking, and feasted her eyes on the sight, even wanting to conjure up paper and pen to sketch the remarkable figure.
Actually, she had wanted to do this for a long time.
Back then, in order to practice her human anatomy, she looked at a lot of plaster statues and naked men. There are very few figures like this one, where she can't help but want to draw them even before they're fully clothed.
I wonder if Xing Ze would agree to be her model.
With that face and that figure, it would be a waste not to use makeup.
While Mu Tingyu was still lost in thought, Xing Ze deftly installed the meter casing and pushed up the main switch.
A "beep" sound suddenly came from the kitchen.
Xing Ze walked to the door and pressed the switch, and the light came on as usual.
Mu Tingyu followed closely behind him, promptly offering a free compliment: "It's fixed already? That's amazing!"
Xing Ze turned around, his gaze suddenly freezing. Mu Tingyu tilted her head in confusion, only to see him remain silent for a moment before reaching out and pulling up the shoulder seam of her pajamas, saying in a calm voice, "Put your clothes on properly."
Mu Tingyu was caught off guard when her collar was pulled up to her neck and caught in the crook: "...???"
How could she not be dressed properly? It's just a T-shirt.
I only used the clothes as pajamas because the neckline was a bit loosened by the washing machine.
She looked down at her loose T-shirt and shorts, paused for two seconds, and then suddenly reached out and touched her ear.
It seems... it seems I really don't have much of an image...
Do all girls wear cute pajamas with cartoon prints on them...?
As she was thinking this, Xing Ze had already turned off the lights again and walked to the stairwell.
The beam of light that automatically illuminated the building upstairs after the power was restored shone behind him. He stood at the top of the stairs, turned around, and waited for her. His face was somewhat indistinct. "What are you standing there for? Come upstairs."
"oh oh."
She quickly followed, and as she heard the footsteps going upstairs, she remembered Xing Ze's indifferent expression when he helped her with her clothes, so she looked down at her clothes again with some suspicion.
Why did his movements just now seem so natural?
It felt like...treating a child.
A note from the author:
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