The landlady was a kind-looking, middle-aged woman who was already waiting at the entrance.
The driver parked the car, and Wen Yu opened the door and helped her mother out.
Seeing the mother and daughter get out of the car, the landlady hurried over with a warm smile, greeting them in Mandarin with a strong local accent.
“You must be Miss Wen, right? The journey must have been tiring. Come in and take a look at the house. I hope you like it.”
As she spoke, she took the suitcases the driver had unloaded.
Wen Yu smiled and greeted her as well. “Hello, Auntie. I’m Wen Yu.”
The landlady smiled warmly. “Good, good. Miss Wen, you’re really beautiful.”
Wen Yu smiled shyly. “Thank you for the compliment.”
The landlady wheeled her suitcase ahead of them.
Wen Yu supported her mother as they walked into the courtyard.
“Mom, this place looks pretty nice. What do you think?”
Wen’s mother smiled. “It’s very nice. I like it a lot. It’s much better than the hospital, and it’s brighter and more comfortable than our old house.”
The living room wasn’t particularly luxurious, but it was warm and cozy. The furniture and appliances were all complete, and the natural lighting was excellent.
Both mother and daughter were quite satisfied.
The house had two floors. Wen Yu arranged for her mother to have the master bedroom on the first floor so that she wouldn’t have to climb stairs and could move around more easily.
Seeing that they had no objections, the landlady happily took her leave.
Wen Yu began moving the luggage into the living room.
“Mom, sit down and rest. We should clean the whole house before moving in. It’s been empty for a while, so there’s bound to be some dust.”
Wen’s mother sat on the sofa and watched her daughter work so hard, sweat already beading on her forehead. Her heart ached for her.
“How about Mom helps you?”
She was about to stand up when Wen Yu immediately pressed her back down.
“Mom, you haven’t recovered yet. You can’t move around too much. Have you forgotten what Dr. Li said? Your heart isn’t suited for strenuous exercise. If you just take good care of yourself, that’s already the biggest help you can give me.”
Only then did Wen’s mother stop trying to help with the cleaning.
She silently sighed in her heart, blaming herself for having such a weak body and becoming a burden to her daughter.
Wen Yu went outside the villa. There was a faucet beside the courtyard wall. She found a bucket and a towel, filled the bucket with water, and carried it inside.
She began wiping everything down.
After cleaning all the furniture upstairs and downstairs, she was about to mop the floors.
However, halfway through, the mop broke.
With no other choice, she grabbed her phone and went outside to buy a new one.
After walking a little over a hundred meters, she saw a large supermarket.
Wen Yu walked inside.
There were quite a few people shopping. When they suddenly saw such a beautiful young woman who clearly wasn’t from the area, with such fair skin, they couldn’t help casting curious glances her way.
Wen Yu was already accustomed to being stared at like this, so she didn’t think much of it.
She picked out a mop and went to the checkout counter.
The cashier was a middle-aged woman. Seeing the unfamiliar face, she asked curiously, “Beautiful girl, are you here on vacation?”
Wen Yu smiled faintly. “No. I’ve moved here permanently. I live nearby.”
The woman nodded with a smile.
“You’re so beautiful. I could tell right away that you’re from somewhere else. There aren’t many people around here with skin as fair as yours. We have everything you could possibly need here, so come by whenever you need anything.”
Wen Yu simply smiled.
“Okay, thank you. I’ve only just arrived. If I stay here long enough, I’ll probably look just like everyone else.”
Her fair complexion was natural. Previously, when she had gone on a business trip with Gu Huaizhi and spent an entire day working at a construction site under the sun, her skin had only turned red. A few days later, it had returned to its usual fair complexion.
After paying, she walked out of the supermarket and took a moment to observe the surroundings.
This was a residential area, but most of the homes were detached villas. It seemed that the people living here were relatively well-off.
When Wen Yu returned home, her mother had already fallen asleep on the sofa.
She opened her suitcase, took out a thin blanket, and gently covered her mother with it.
Then she got up and began mopping the floor.
Like a diligent little snail, she went up and down, inside and out, cleaning every corner of the house until it was spotless.
The floors gleamed so brightly that they almost reflected her image.
After finishing the cleaning, she began unpacking her luggage, including some things she had shipped over ahead of time.
She chose the largest master bedroom on the second floor as her own.
There were three bedrooms on the first floor and another three on the second.
So apart from the rooms occupied by her and her mother, there was still plenty of space left.
By the time she finished unpacking, the sun was already beginning to sink toward the horizon.
She was covered in a layer of sticky sweat, so she took out a Bohemian-style dress and went into her bedroom to take a shower.
An hour later, she came downstairs feeling completely refreshed.
Her mother had already woken up and was sitting beneath the covered porch at the entrance, enjoying the evening breeze.
“Mom, you’re awake? Do you want to take a shower? It’s hot, and you worked up a sweat during the journey here.”
Wen Yu walked over to her mother.
Wen’s mother turned her gaze away from the scenery and smiled at her daughter.
“Okay.”
Wen Yu prepared the bathwater for her mother before heading into the kitchen to see what vegetables were available. She planned to make dinner for the two of them.
When she opened the refrigerator, she was surprised to find it packed with fresh vegetables and fruit.
It was probably something the landlady had bought for them.
The freezer, however, was empty. She would have to go out and buy some meat later.
Her mother hadn’t finished bathing yet, so she sat in the living room and waited.
Her mind began making plans.
Once they were settled in, she would take her mother to the local hospital for a thorough examination and have a new medical record established.
Her mother had heart disease. After her father had left in such an extreme and devastating manner, her mother had been unable to accept it. The emotional shock had caused her to collapse, and afterward, problems with her heart had developed.
She had undergone several surgeries over the years, and her health had gradually deteriorated.
Wen Yu placed a hand over her lower abdomen and frowned slightly.
Perhaps it was because she had been under too much pressure lately, busy making arrangements to leave while her daily routine had become completely disrupted.
Her period was already several days late.
She had also been feeling unusually tired, along with a strange, indescribable sensation in her body.
Since she was planning to go to the hospital anyway, she might as well get a complete physical examination. She had always made a point of getting one every year, but she hadn’t had one yet this year.
She also needed to clear out one of the rooms on the first floor and decorate it simply, filling it with some floral arrangements she liked.
Although she had majored in finance at university, she had always enjoyed making handicrafts.
It didn’t matter how much money she could make from it. As long as it could cover the basic living expenses for her and her mother, preventing them from simply living off their savings, and gave her something meaningful to do, that would be enough.
For the open space outside the courtyard, she wanted to plant some flowers and vegetables she liked.
She was tired of the scheming and backstabbing of the workplace.
Today was only her first day on this unfamiliar island, yet she had already fallen in love with the place.
The peaceful surroundings made it easy to relax.
Everything would be all right.
Wen Yu walked into the courtyard.
The evenings on the island seemed to pass more slowly. The setting sun painted the sky in warm shades of orange and red.
She paced around the courtyard, inspecting everything. Then she walked around the front and back of the house, taking in all the available space.
In her mind, she began planning where to plant roses, where to grow vegetables, where to place her succulents, and where to set up a small table with two chairs.
In the future, she could sit here with her mother, drink tea, and enjoy the breeze together.
This place would be the beginning of a new life for the two of them.
She lifted her head and gazed at the glowing evening sky, the corners of her lips curving into a faint smile.
So this was what freedom felt like.