After dinner, Song Kening cleaned the dishes in the kitchen. When she came back out, she picked up her phone.
She looked at Lu Zhiyu.
“Can you crack the Wi-Fi password? The data on our 50-yuan phone plans isn’t enough at all.”
Lu Zhiyu was mopping the floor. He looked up at her.
“Probably not a good idea.”
“What are you afraid of? Adding two more devices won’t affect their internet speed. Just crack the hair salon downstairs. Its signal is the strongest.”
Song Kening said this matter-of-factly.
Lu Zhiyu was silent for a few seconds before putting down the mop and taking her phone.
Song Kening quickly leaned closer.
She watched as he opened a complicated-looking interface and rapidly tapped on the screen.
Less than a minute later, her phone displayed “Connected.”
Song Kening’s eyes lit up.
She took the phone back and tested it.
The signal was indeed full bars, and videos played without the slightest lag.
She couldn’t help praising him.
“Not bad, President Lu. You even know how to do this.”
Lu Zhiyu ignored her teasing and continued mopping.
After everything was cleaned up, Song Kening picked up the trash and opened the door.
Lu Zhiyu got up and followed her.
Song Kening suddenly remembered something.
She turned back, picked up the air-conditioner remote, and pressed the power button.
“Let’s turn off the air conditioner to save electricity. We’ll turn it on again when we go to sleep.”
It was already past nine in the evening.
People were still coming and going along the streets—customers eating late-night snacks, elderly people taking walks, and the lively atmosphere from the roadside food stalls filling the entire street.
As they walked, Song Kening suddenly stopped and turned around.
“Should we get a bamboo sleeping mat or a straw one?”
“Whatever,” Lu Zhiyu replied casually.
“Then bamboo. It’ll be cooler.”
The two entered a general goods store.
After asking about the price, Song Kening found that a 1.5-meter bamboo mat cost 30 yuan—just enough for two people to sleep on the lower bunk.
She immediately had the shopkeeper bring one out.
After paying, she handed the mat to Lu Zhiyu.
Lu Zhiyu took it and casually carried it over his shoulder.
He followed Song Kening as she wandered around the urban village.
On their way back, she spotted someone selling chive-infused oil at the street corner for eight yuan per jin.
She bought a jin so Lu Zhiyu could mix it with rice noodles.
Back at the apartment, Song Kening went straight into the kitchen with the rice noodles.
She poured a spoonful of chive oil over them, added some soy sauce, crushed two cloves of garlic, chopped them up, and tossed everything together with chopsticks.
The rice noodles turned a light brown from the soy sauce, while the fragrant chive oil and garlic aroma filled the air.
She carried the bowl out and placed it in front of Lu Zhiyu.
“I know you’re still hungry. Eat.”
Lu Zhiyu looked up at the bowl of noodles.
“I’m going to shower first. You can shower after me.”
Without waiting for his response, Song Kening turned around, took the new pajamas from the plastic bag, and went into the bathroom.
Warm water poured over her body, relaxing every pore.
She closed her eyes and let the water run from the top of her head down her body.
She had never imagined that one day she would live like this.
Back home, although her family wasn’t wealthy, her parents took care of everything.
All she had to do was study.
During college, she lived in a dormitory, ate at the cafeteria, and had air conditioning and hot water. She never had to worry about anything.
And now?
She had somehow been transported into a ridiculous novel.
Not only did she have to take care of herself, she also had to worry about a six-foot-two man.
All she could hope for was that he really would be able to help her find a way back to the real world someday.
As Song Kening rubbed the foam over her arms, she suddenly thought of her mother.
Whenever her mother rendered lard, she would scoop out the crispy pork cracklings, sprinkle them with a little salt, and let Song Kening and her older brother dip them in it.
Freshly cooked pork cracklings were crispy and fragrant, making a satisfying crunch with every bite.
Song Kening tilted her head back and let the warm water wash over her face.
Don’t think about it.
Thinking wouldn’t help.
She had to settle down first, then find a way to solve everything.
She quickly finished showering, turned off the water, and dried herself with a towel.
The pajamas had been bought earlier that day at the discount section of an affordable clothing store while they were out buying the sleeping mat.
They were pure cotton and only 19.9 yuan a set.
She had bought one for herself and one for Lu Zhiyu.
She changed into them, soaked the floral dress she had taken off in a basin, and opened the bathroom door.
Lu Zhiyu was sitting beside the folding table.
The bowl in front of him was already empty.
There was only a little soy sauce residue left at the bottom.
He had eaten every last strand of rice noodles.
Song Kening glanced at the empty bowl and felt strangely happy.
She dried her hair with a towel and casually asked,
“Finished?”
“Mm.”
Lu Zhiyu stood up, took his clean clothes from the plastic bag, and went into the bathroom.
Song Kening dried her hair until it was half-dry, then sat down beside the bed.
The coolness of the bamboo mat seeped through her pajamas and onto her skin.
It was so comfortable that she almost let out a satisfied hum.
Finally, she could lie down.
Today had been more exhausting than her entire college military training.
She turned over, crossed one foot over the other, and lazily swung her toes back and forth.
Water splashed in the bathroom.
Song Kening stared blankly at the upper bunk.
Lu Zhiyu came out.
He was wearing the dark-gray short-sleeved sports pajamas she had bought for him.
They were cheap, but somehow looked no different from designer clothes on him.
Broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs.
His wet hair hung loosely over his forehead.
Compared with his usual cold and rigid appearance, he now looked a little younger.
He dried his hair with a towel.
His gaze swept over.
Song Kening was still swinging her feet, one hand behind her head and the other resting on her stomach.
She looked completely relaxed, as though she were lying on her own living-room sofa.
Lu Zhiyu looked at the upper bunk, then at Song Kening lying on the lower bunk.
“I’m sleeping on the top?”
Song Kening didn’t even stop swinging her feet.
“You can sleep with me on the bottom.”
Lu Zhiyu’s hand stopped for a moment as he dried his hair.
Song Kening continued,
“You’re so tall and have such long legs. I’m afraid the upper bunk won’t be able to support you and it’ll collapse.”
Lu Zhiyu was silent for a while.
He draped the towel over the back of the chair, walked to the bed, and lay down.
Song Kening moved closer to the wall to make more room for him.
But no matter how much she moved, it still wasn’t enough.
Lu Zhiyu’s shoulders were simply too broad.
“Move in a little more,” Song Kening said, shrinking further toward the wall.
She caught the clean, soapy scent coming from him.
It was the jasmine-scented soap they had bought that day, which had only cost 1.5 yuan.
When she used it herself, she thought the scent was a little strong.
But coming from him, it actually smelled quite nice.
She closed her eyes.
After being busy all day, her body felt completely drained.
Her consciousness soon became hazy, and her breathing gradually became slow and even.
Lu Zhiyu lay flat on his back, staring at the ceiling.
Light from outside filtered through the window.
The streetlights in the alley and the lights from the building opposite cast a hazy glow into the room.
A faint rustling sound came from behind him.
Song Kening turned over.
One of her hands landed around his waist.
Lu Zhiyu’s body immediately stiffened.
Song Kening was completely unaware.
Like a little cat, she snuggled closer to him, her warm breath brushing against his neck.
Before he could react, she rolled over completely.
Half her body ended up lying on top of him.
Her head rested against his chest, one hand draped over his shoulder, and one leg happened to rest across his lap.
After finding a comfortable position in his arms, she slept even more soundly.
Lu Zhiyu tried to push her away.
But every time he moved her, she simply clung to him again.
Eventually, he gave up.
The light from outside fell across Song Kening’s face.
Her small oval face was so fair that her skin seemed almost translucent, with a faint pink glow.
Her almond-shaped eyes were closed, her thick eyelashes like two little fans.
Her nose was slightly upturned, and her lips were a soft cherry-pink, naturally curved slightly upward at the corners.
She was sleeping deeply, her breathing soft and steady, her chest rising and falling gently.
At some point, the neckline of her pajamas had loosened.
A patch of fair skin was exposed beneath it, almost dazzling in the dim light.
Lu Zhiyu looked away.
He reached over and pulled the hotel bathrobe over the exposed skin.
His fingers accidentally brushed against her collarbone.
Her skin was smooth and warm.
He immediately withdrew his hand and stared up at the ceiling.
What exactly was this woman trying to do?
Renting a room in an urban village.
Buying second-hand furniture.
Rendering lard.
Mixing rice noodles…
Lu Zhiyu lowered his eyes and glanced at her.
She was lying against his chest, her mouth slightly open, with a tiny trace of drool at the corner.
Earlier that day, when she was rendering lard in the kitchen, she had been sweating from the heat.
Her face was flushed, damp strands of hair stuck to her cheeks, and the back of her clothes was soaked.
Yet she had simply wiped away the sweat with the back of her hand and continued stirring the pork fat.
She hadn’t complained at all.
She had even looked happy.
It hadn’t seemed like an act.
Song Kening shifted in his arms, smacked her lips, and let out a soft, unintelligible mumble.
Her lips moved as though she were talking to someone in her dream.
“Dad… Mom… wait for me to come home.”
After saying that, she rubbed her face against his chest and continued sleeping.
Home?
Hadn’t her adoptive parents gone overseas long ago, leaving her behind because of her bad behavior?
What did she mean by “home”?
Was she talking about the home she had lived in before entering the orphanage?
Lu Zhiyu stared at the ceiling.
This woman was completely different from the Song Kening he knew.
The exact same face.
The exact same name.
The exact same identity.
But how could someone become an entirely different person overnight?
A woman who had always been obsessed with money—why would she stay by his side after he went bankrupt?
A woman who was always scheming—why would she haggle with a street vendor over one yuan and worry about whether he had enough to eat?
A sharp-tongued, selfish woman—why would she call out “Wait for me to come home” in her sleep?
He couldn’t understand it.
The woman in his arms shifted again and snuggled closer against his chest, finding an even more comfortable position.
Her warm breath brushed against his neck, ticklish and soft.
Lu Zhiyu lowered his head and looked at her.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly.
He didn’t know what she was dreaming about.
Her lips were slightly pursed, almost as if she were acting spoiled with someone.
He reached out, intending to move her arm away from him.
His fingers touched her wrist.
It was slender, with delicate bones beneath warm skin.
He moved her hand away.
But she immediately put it back.
She even let out a dissatisfied little hum.
Forget it.
He withdrew his hand and closed his eyes.
Tomorrow, he still had to wake up early.
He had to find a job.
He had to figure out how to survive.
Those things were far more urgent than figuring out exactly who this woman really was.