Lin Wangxi stared at the box, set her phone aside, and with some difficulty propped herself up to take it. “What is this?”
“I saw it while passing by a stationery store. It’s for you to pass the time.”
After saying that, he carried the groceries into the kitchen.
Lin Wangxi opened the packaging on her own and took out the rolled-up item inside.
It turned out to be a roll-up electronic piano. Once unfolded, it was quite long, with a full 88 keys.
She eagerly spread it out on the coffee table. After fiddling with it for a few minutes, she figured out how to use it.
Her fingers pressed a few keys, and the sound made her frown.
She could not help muttering, “What is this? The pitch isn’t even accurate.”
Despite her complaints, her hands did not stop.
A smooth melody slowly flowed from her fingertips.
In the kitchen, Zhou Jinyuan was washing vegetables. The sound of running water intertwined with the piano melody, creating an inexplicably harmonious atmosphere.
After finishing a piece, she instinctively looked toward the kitchen.
The man’s figure stood there, his back facing her. The midday sunlight was bright. Although it could not shine directly into the room, the light refracted through the glass and fell entirely upon him.
Even his slightly worn white shirt, washed to the point of pilling, seemed elevated by the light.
Lin Wangxi picked up her crutch and hopped toward the kitchen.
Leaning against the doorway, she called out to his back, “Zhou Jinyuan.”
Zhou Jinyuan turned to look at her. “What is it?”
“Thank you.”
Zhou Jinyuan looked at her. The light from the glass fell on her face, making her skin appear even fairer.
She stood there, seeming completely out of place in the old, worn-down room—like someone cut out from a refined magazine and forcibly placed into this corner.
It was the first time Zhou Jinyuan truly realized that “fair enough to glow” was not an exaggeration.
He forgot that he was still washing vegetables. Water continued to rush from the tap. Only when droplets splashed onto his face did he suddenly come back to his senses and quickly turn off the faucet.
He averted his gaze and arranged the vegetables in the basket. “Thank me for what?”
“For taking me in, buying me a piano, cooking for me.” Lin Wangxi counted them one by one. After a pause, she added softly, “And… thank you for not disliking me.”
In a certain sense, it felt as though Zhou Jinyuan was the only one she had now.
So she unconsciously held back her sharp edges, trying her best not to trouble him.
Zhou Jinyuan paused, then turned the faucet back on.
The thin stream of water made his silence feel even longer.
Just when Lin Wangxi thought he would not respond again and embarrassment and regret began to rise within her, he finally spoke. “No need to thank me. I took your money.”
Lin Wangxi was immediately choked by his words.
Her earlier emotion had been wasted.
But then she seemed to remember something. Leaning on her crutch, she hopped back to the sofa and picked up her phone to check.
Turning toward the kitchen, she called out, “You didn’t accept the money I transferred to you.”
Zhou Jinyuan’s back stiffened slightly. “I forgot. I’ll deal with it after cooking.”
“You should accept it quickly. It’ll expire soon.”
“…”
Zhou Jinyuan tossed the vegetables back into the basket, wiped his hands, took out his phone, and accepted the transfer. He then set the phone aside and continued washing vegetables in silence.
Lin Wangxi looked at him curiously. Why did it feel like he was unhappy again?
Could it be that he thought it was too little? But he was the one who had said two thousand would be enough.
After thinking for a moment, Lin Wangxi made a decisive gesture and transferred another ten thousand to him.
That should be enough this time.
“Hey, Zhou Jinyuan, I transferred another ten thousand to you. Hurry and accept it.”
Zhou Jinyuan ignored her, picked up the kitchen knife, and began chopping vegetables. The sound of the blade hitting the cutting board nearly drowned out her voice.
Lin Wangxi pouted and sat back on the sofa, continuing to fiddle with the electronic piano.
Zhou Jinyuan still had to go out in the afternoon. After finishing the meal, he left.
The house was left with only Lin Wangxi again. Other than sleeping and staring into space, she spent her time playing the electronic piano he had bought.
In the evening, Lin Tanyu sent her a message—a string of phone numbers.
Lin Wangxi was puzzled. Just as she was about to type and ask whose number it was, the other party called directly.
She hesitated for a few seconds before pressing the answer button.
“Xixi.”
Hearing that familiar yet unfamiliar voice, Lin Wangxi could not describe how she felt.
“Mm. What did you send me?”
Lin Tanyu seemed to sigh softly before speaking slowly, “It’s your biological father’s number.”
At those words, Lin Wangxi’s heart sank.
She remained silent.
She felt nothing toward these so-called biological parents—no expectation at all.
It was not because they were poor, but because she did not know them.
Aside from that faint blood connection, she did not even know what they looked like. They were no different from strangers.
There was no anticipation, no fantasies—only a blank emptiness.
Instead, Lin Tanyu’s actions made her feel like a hot potato, something being hastily passed along.
Lin Tanyu continued, “I don’t mean anything else. No matter what, they are still your biological parents. You should have their contact. As for what you think or what you do, that’s up to you.”
Lin Wangxi still said nothing, staring at the piano on the coffee table, her expression somewhat dazed.
“Hey, don’t overthink it,” Lin Tanyu softened her tone. “In my heart, you’re still my younger sister.”
“It’s just that Lin Lin just came back. Try to understand—she’s suffered for over twenty years. We can’t let her come back only to feel uneasy. Once she adjusts, you can come back anytime.”
Lin Tanyu truly lived up to being the heir of the Lin family. Her words sounded pleasant, yet they quietly drew a clear boundary.
Every word carried a sense of condescension.
Someone who once held her so dearly—how could Lin Wangxi not notice these subtle changes?
Compared to a clean break, this kind of slow, slicing distance was even more cruel.
Like a carrot forever out of reach—dangling there, offering no real hope.
Lin Wangxi hung up the phone and lay back on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Suddenly, she remembered something. She took out her phone and opened a game she had not logged into for several days.
For the past few days, she had been hesitating about whether to sell her account.
There were many friends on it, and she had even met quite a few of them in real life. If she sold it, she would definitely be bombarded with questions.
But now, she could not worry about that anymore. It was the only valuable thing she had left.
Without hesitation, she listed the account on a trading site.
She had spent over six million on it altogether. She wondered if anyone would buy it for one million.
Just after posting it, the sound of the door opening came from outside.
Hearing the noise, Lin Wangxi immediately sat up straight and quietly adjusted her emotions.
She turned her head with a smile.