Chapter 10 He is taking a shower! I mean...he...I...
After his body resumed absorbing vitamins and proteins, Gao Xing felt that his mental state had improved a lot. He gradually gained strength and was awake longer during the day.
After saving on food expenses, she had more money on hand and had some spare cash to buy some new daily necessities, such as towels, paper towels, shampoo, shower gel, etc.
But human joys and sorrows are not universal. Shen Xingjian, who lives on the first floor, is not so happy. Because every time a package is delivered, it rings the doorbell, and Gao Xing can't hear it from the second floor, so he has to answer the doorbell and then ask the couriers to put it at the door again and again.
After receiving the doorbell call for the Nth time, Shen Xingjian could no longer bear it and settled accounts with Gao Xing, who came down from the second floor after hearing the noise: "Can you handle your own affairs? Am I your housekeeper? Do I have to receive express delivery for you every day?"
Gao Xing has already made a note to the courier, telling him to just leave her package at the door, but some couriers still ring the doorbell. She checks the logistics status promptly every day, but there are always a few that slip through the net.
Gao Xing didn't want to argue with him and just said that he knew it.
After returning from picking up the express, Shen Xingjian was still chattering: “I don’t know why you buy so much junk all day long, it’s so noisy, I tell you, don’t expect me to help you in the future!”
Gao Xing pretended not to hear and opened the small package in front of him, took out the small item wrapped in velvet and threw it to him.
Shen Xingjian caught it reflexively: “What is this?”
Gao Xing deadpanned, "Rubbish."
Shen Xingjian opened the gray velvet bag, which contained a pair of earplugs with the words "ultra-quiet" written on the plastic shell.
He blurted out: "Why did you give me earplugs?"
"Forget it!" Gao Xing pretended to snatch it back.
Shen Xingjian immediately hid the earplugs behind his back, “You want to take back something you gave away?”
As he spoke, he noticed Gao Xing still had a large one in his hand and asked, "What's in that?"
Gao Xing ignored him, held the book-shaped package in his hand, and went upstairs.
After Gao Xing left, Shen Xingjian played with the earplugs in his hand, saying he was disgusted, but he was secretly proud in his heart.
Okay, even if you still have some conscience and know that you are disturbing others!
At noon, Shen Xingjian was awakened by a burst of urgent doorbell ringing again. He irritably took out the two things from his ears and glared angrily at the three words "ultra-quiet" on the packaging shell, thinking that this was a rubbish product, it was simply a scam!
After he reflexively sat in the wheelchair, he remembered that he had just said this morning that he would never help Gao Xing receive express deliveries again. Wouldn't it be a contradiction in terms if he went to open the door now?
He took a deep breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead after waking up from a nap, and brainwashed himself that he was not getting up to receive a package for her, he was getting up to take a shower!
After finding a sufficient reason for himself, Shen Xingjian opened the door with peace of mind, stopped at the stairs and shouted to the second floor: “Express delivery!”
Gao Xing was typing on the second floor. When he heard the shout, he immediately put down his computer and ran downstairs.
When she arrived at the first floor, Shen Xingjian was carrying a change of clothes to the bathroom, whining as he moved: "Don't think you can bribe me with just an earplug. I will never help you receive a package again, absolutely!"
Gao Xing was speechless: "..." Who was counting on you?
Gao Xing ignored him and walked straight towards the front door. She was a little confused. Did she have any more deliveries? Aren't the earplugs the last one?
Gao Xing walked over to the doorbell and called out "Hello" several times, but there was only silence. Just as she was wondering, the "ding dong" sound rang out again, and she realized that the sound wasn't coming from the doorbell, but... the door?
There has been no visitor to Villa No. 1 since she moved in.
Who could it be?
With a certain degree of caution, Gao Xing slowly opened the door. Sunlight poured in, casting a bright streak of light across the entrance. A young woman stood within the halo.
She wore a beautifully tailored white dress, her long, smooth hair pulled into an elegant bun behind her ears. Her slightly raised face, amber eyes shone with a distant brilliance in the sunlight, and she exuded an air of inviolable nobility.
As if she didn’t expect that it would be someone else who opened the door, the girl looked Gao Xing up and down, frowned slightly and asked: “Isn’t this Shen Xingjian’s house?”
Gao Xing was stunned for a moment, and when he heard that she was looking for Shen Xingjian, he came back to his senses from surprise and surprise, and said as soon as he opened his mouth: "He is taking a shower."
After saying that, he realized something was wrong, and his mind was busy chasing after it: "No! I mean...he...I..."
Gao Xing tried to find the right words several times but couldn't find one. In a panic, a more critical question came to her mind: In her time and space, this is a resort, and Shen Xingjian no longer lives here. The fact that she came here and specifically asked for Shen Xingjian means that the girl in front of her is also from ten years ago?
Gao Xing calmed himself down and asked, "By the way, how did you get in?"
Shi Yunran frowned slightly, and although confused, he still remained polite: "The gate was not locked, so I just walked in. But you..."
She looked Gao Xing up and down, her tone questioning, "Why did you appear at Shen Xingjian's house?"
Gao Xing was about to explain when the bathroom door suddenly opened.
Shen Xingjian came out in a wheelchair, his hair still dripping with water. He wiped his wet hair with a towel, and when he raised his eyes, his whole body suddenly froze.
When Shi Yunran saw him, she immediately rushed in, stepping over the door.
“Shen Xingjian!”
This sound, full of twists and turns, contains the joy of reunion, the bitterness of longing, and the grievance of not seeing each other for a long time.
The water droplets slid down from the ends of Shen Xingjian's hair, rolled along his brow bones to the corners of his eyes, and left a wet mark next to his slightly trembling pupils.
"I'm back." Shi Yunran said with tears in his eyes.
Shi Yunran and Shen Xingjian had known each other since childhood, spending their childhood and school years together. It's no exaggeration to call them childhood sweethearts. For as long as they can remember, they've been the prince and princess of their lives, and Shi Yunran always imagined they'd have a happy, fairytale-like ending.
If it weren't for that accident...
"These years...how have you been doing?" Shi Yunran's voice was slightly choked, with some cautious tentativeness.
The water droplets fell on the floor with a "pa" sound, and they were particularly clear in the quiet living room.
Looking at the tearful woman in front of him, after a brief moment of shock, Shen Xingjian said coldly: “What are you doing here?”
Seeing his respectful attitude towards her, Shi Yunran's heart ached. She squatted down, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and tried to explain: "Are you still angry with me? What happened back then..."
Shi Yunran reached out to touch the back of his hand, but he quickly dodged it and moved his wheelchair far enough back.
"Shi Yunran, there's nothing left to discuss between you and me." His voice was as cold as ice. "While I still have patience, get out on your own and don't force me to kick you out."
Shen Xingjian's tone and actions were not kind, and could even be described as indifferent. His stern face was unusually gloomy, completely different from his usual talkative and mean-spirited self.
Gao Xing looked at the strange and subtle relationship between them and silently retreated to the wall.
Seeing that he was still so resistant, Shi Yunran hurriedly explained, "I know that what I did back then was wrong. I've been regretting it all these years, regretting why I couldn't be braver!"
"But I was too young at the time. I didn't dare disobey my parents. My dad asked me to go abroad and threatened me that if I didn't obey, he would refuse to help me contact a doctor. I was afraid you would die. I was really scared, so..."
“That’s enough!”
Shen Xingjian interrupted her and turned his face away, as if he was disgusted by even getting close.
"Get out," he said as calmly as possible.
Shi Yunran grabbed the armrest of his wheelchair, stood up and stopped him from turning around and leaving, her voice tinged with tears: "Shen Xingjian, let's not be like this, okay..."
The distance that had just been widened returned to its original point in an instant. The irritation in Shen Xingjian's eyes was no longer concealed. He said in an almost vicious tone: "Let go!"
The electric wheelchair made a slight humming sound, but it could not move at all under Shi Yunran's pull. The sound of the machine running and the stalemate silence tore at each other in the air.
Shi Yunran still didn't give up, and kept saying: "Shen Xingjian, why can't you forgive me once, just once, is it so difficult? You even Xu..."
Her unfinished words were interrupted by a figure that appeared and grabbed her wrist with a hand. Shi Yunran looked up in surprise.
"He said, let you go."
Gao Xing's grip on her wrist was just the right amount of force, not leaving a bruise but still strong enough to prevent her from breaking free. Her voice was soft, yet it carried an undeniable tone.
Shi Yunran had wondered at the door just now, how could there be a woman in Shen Xingjian's house? But at that time, she was overwhelmed by the joy of reunion after a long absence and forgot to explore it for a while.
And now, Shi Yunran looked up and down at the plain-looking girl in front of him, her eyebrows furrowed. "Who are you? Why do you care about me and him—"
As she opened her mouth, the seemingly frail hand suddenly tightened like a clamp. Shi Yunran felt a sharp pain in her wrist, and her entire arm suddenly lost strength. She stumbled back a few steps, nearly falling to the ground.
"you!"
Shi Yunran covered her rapidly reddening wrist and stared at the man in disbelief. She had been pampered since childhood, so how could she have ever been treated so rudely?
"Are you asking me why?"
The girl in front of him had completely blocked the figure at some point, forming an insurmountable barrier.
"Just because you're standing on this is my house!"
Looking over her shoulder, Shen Xingjian's first reaction was surprise. He didn't expect Gao Xing to stand up, even though his attitude towards her had never been good.
Gao Xing was not tall, and even looked a little frail because she was too thin, but she stood straight, her arms tense, with an unquestionable fierceness.
At that moment, Shen Xingjian felt something slowly expanding in his chest.
Even if Shi Yunran was slow-witted, she could sense the unusual relationship between them at this moment. What she didn't expect was that after Shen Xingjian broke his leg, he would be so self-destructive that he would even fall for a woman like this?
Shi Yunran chuckled at herself, turned around, picked up her handbag, and returned to her usual delicate appearance.
“Shen Xingjian,” she raised her chin slightly, “You will regret it!”
High heels tapped out a crisp rhythm on the tiles, and after the sound of the door opening and closing, only dust floating in the sunlight remained in the living room.
For a long time after Shi Yunran left, the living room was silent, with only the pendulum clock on the wall ticking to record the passage of time.
Just like some people are born good at listening and comforting, some people are not born good at dealing with these things. Feeling that Shen Xingjian might have a past that he didn't want to be discovered, Gao Xing's first reaction was to avoid him and not embarrass him.
She put away her fighting stance from the confrontation, pursed her lips slightly and turned to leave.
"You won't ask me?"
In the wheelchair, Shen Xingjian hunched his body slightly, and when he heard the footsteps behind him that were obviously lighter, he whispered.
"If you don't want to say it, you don't have to embarrass yourself."
Gao Xing stopped at the corner of the stairs, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the wooden handrail. She didn't look back, but just lowered her voice.
Everyone in this world has secrets, things they don't want others to know. The maturity and decency of an adult lies in not prying into other people's secrets.
By the shore of Mingjing Lake, a sapphire blue sports car suddenly braked to a stop on the side of the road, and Shi Yunran's exquisite manicure angrily poked at the call button on the car's display screen.
In less than ten seconds, the call was connected and a low, hoarse "Hello" came from the other end.
"Xu Jiakai, I give you 30 minutes to come find me at Xinjiehui, or you'll never see me again in your life!"
Without waiting for a response, the phone was hung up mercilessly.
On the other side of the city, in a dim rental house, Xu Jiakai woke up from the sofa, holding his hungover forehead.
He rubbed his brows tiredly, looked around at the mess on the ground, smiled bitterly, grabbed the suit jacket on the hanger and went out.
The author has something to say:
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This is a big misunderstanding [chin]
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