Early in the morning, the plumber informed He Luo of some bad news: the kitchen pipe was too old and damaged to be repaired and needed to be replaced. While dealing with the pipe issue, the workers discovered that there had been a longstanding leak in the kitchen, which had caused water damage that spread to the living room walls, making the wall base soft. Since the damage was in a corner and covered by wallpaper, it wasn’t obvious.
“Since we’ve identified the problem, we might as well fix it all at once. That way, you’ll have peace of mind living here.”
He Luo had fallen in love with this old house at first sight. It was actually quite elegantly decorated, but the previous owner had moved abroad years ago, and with no one maintaining it, many things had gradually deteriorated.
Renovating an old house was not a small undertaking.
He Luo had just moved in and hadn’t settled down yet. Now having to renovate the house would be quite inconvenient.
The master plumber seemed to sense He Luo’s concerns and said, “If everything goes smoothly, we should be done in about half a month. We start work at 8 AM and finish by 5:30 PM. If you’re not home, just lock your valuables in the bedroom. It won’t disrupt your eating, sleeping, or coming and going.”
Better to endure short-term pain for long-term gain. Thinking of the many inconveniences of living in the old house as it was, He Luo agreed.
After finalizing the renovation plan, the workers started that afternoon, even helping He Luo clear out unwanted junk. Although the place still looked chaotic, at least it was organized chaos. Get faster updates on g.com.
With nothing else to do, He Luo decided to wash some fruit to serve as an afternoon snack for the workers. She kept a peach for herself, not to eat, but to take back to her room and hold, enjoying its fragrance.
This refreshing scent always reminded her of Jian Yue.
Jian Yue was probably still busy at the shop. Not wanting to disturb him, He Luo picked up her phone, opened his profile, and looked at his posts. Jian Yue only had a few posts, the most recent from a few months ago, when he encountered a stray cat begging for attention during his morning run in the park.
Even cats know to seek out handsome guys.
He Luo opened the picture, zooming in on the details, staring repeatedly at Jian Yue’s exposed hand.
She recalled how that hand had grasped her breast yesterday, the faintly bulging veins, and the forceful grip…
He Luo felt her cheeks flush and didn’t dare to think further. She set up her easel and began to paint. Despite the noise from the construction outside, she was so preoccupied with her thoughts of him that she didn’t feel annoyed. She painted straight through until evening.
The workers had already left when He Luo, stretching her sore legs, walked to the living room intending to order some food to curb her hunger.
But misfortune struck unexpectedly. He Luo’s good mood didn’t last long. In the next moment, she stumbled over something left in the living room, twisted her ankle, and fell hard onto a small pile of sand…
It felt like her butt had split into four pieces.
She grimaced in pain, barely able to catch her breath. It took He Luo quite a while to get up from the floor, and to her dismay, she found her ankle swollen, making every step extremely painful. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
When He Luo had announced her plan to move to the southern part of the city to live alone, her mother had strongly opposed it, worrying about her safety and ability to take care of herself.
He Luo had brushed off those concerns, but now it seemed her mother had been right. Her small mood of defiance was quickly deflated by the pain.
Jian Yue had just finished organizing the freezer when he received a call from He Luo. Her voice was tearful, soft, and trembling, stirring his heart.
“Jian Yue… do you… do you have a moment?”
“Don’t worry, what’s wrong?”
Hearing Jian Yue’s voice, He Luo felt a bit calmer. “My ankle seems to be swollen, I can’t walk. If it’s convenient for you, could you bring me some medicine for bruises and swelling?”