Lin Wangxi knew that he had an R&D team of about seven or eight people. Half of them were his classmates, and the other half she had no idea where he had found.
He had started researching that project since his junior year. Lin Wangxi didn’t understand it, but from the way they talked about it, it seemed quite impressive.
If they succeeded, they could become rich overnight.
But the upfront investment was also huge, and nearly all of them had fallen into debt.
Aside from that, he wasn’t exactly poor either.
Lin Wangxi looked at him with a hint of sympathy.
According to the original story, Zhou Jinyuan had originally been a rich second-generation heir, with a powerful and wealthy family.
But when he was fifteen, his parents had an accident, and the family business was seized by his uncles.
Using education as an excuse, they had exiled him and his younger sister to Ning City, giving them no money. The siblings had lived in poverty ever since.
It would still be several years before he reclaimed his family’s fortune.
Unfortunately, she probably wouldn’t live to see that.
Lin Wangxi asked him, “Didn’t you sell the patent? Wasn’t that enough to pay off your debts?”
“Not enough.”
Lin Wangxi sighed softly. “You should’ve just listened to me back then.”
If he had accepted her help, he wouldn’t have ended up having to sell the patent.
Her voice was quiet, but Zhou Jinyuan still heard it.
Zhou Jinyuan said, “Even if I had listened to you, it would’ve been sold sooner or later.”
“Why?”
Zhou Jinyuan started the car on his own and said, “You wouldn’t understand.”
“If you don’t explain it, how am I supposed to understand!”
Zhou Jinyuan sat down beside her, his expression somewhat complicated, but he didn’t speak for a long time.
Lin Wangxi thought he wouldn’t continue the conversation, but he suddenly spoke, almost as if talking to himself. “Everyone was exhausted.”
Alright, Lin Wangxi still didn’t understand.
She reached out and patted his shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m broke now too. I don’t mind you.”
Seeing that he still didn’t respond, Lin Wangxi suddenly realized something. Was what he said earlier a way of hinting that she should leave soon?
A trace of disappointment crossed her face as she sighed. “I know you dislike me. Don’t worry, I’ll leave once my leg heals. I won’t bother you for too long.”
Zhou Jinyuan paused, instinctively glancing at her.
But he said nothing. Instead, he suddenly stood up.
“I’ll go clean up a room for you.”
After saying that, he ignored Lin Wangxi and walked into the bedroom.
Lin Wangxi stared at his back, grinding her teeth as she punched the sofa in frustration.
She tried to stand up, but the moment her left foot touched the ground, the pain made her grimace, and she collapsed back onto the sofa.
Leaning against it, she took out her phone from her pocket.
Aside from a few messages in group chats, no one had contacted her since yesterday. No messages, no calls.
They were probably busy reuniting with their real daughter.
A sense of loss and sadness crept into her heart, but compared to death, this kind of disappointment felt insignificant.
Just as she was thinking, her phone suddenly vibrated.
She quickly checked it, only to find it was a call from the bank.
Probably another promotional call asking her to claim some gift. She casually answered.
“Hello.”
“Hello, this is the Debt Management Center of XX Bank. Are you a friend of Zhou Jinyuan? His loan with us has been overdue for 378 days. Please inform him to contact us as soon as possible. Avoiding the issue won’t solve anything. If there are difficulties, we can negotiate.”
Lin Wangxi was stunned. “Huh?”
Why was a debt collector calling her?
The voice on the phone continued speaking rapidly when she suddenly saw Zhou Jinyuan walking out carrying bedsheets.
Seeing her confused expression, his lips pressed into a thin line.
“Zhou Jinyuan, the bank is looking for you.”
“……”
Zhou Jinyuan seemed like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he remained silent and turned to the balcony.
Lin Wangxi blinked, no longer paying attention to the agitated voice on the phone, and quickly hung up.
She put down her phone and looked toward the man on the balcony. Somehow, he seemed a bit… broken.
He tossed the bedsheets into the washing machine, added detergent, and soon the loud rumbling of the machine filled the balcony.
She didn’t know what brand of washing machine it was, but it practically danced while washing clothes, making noise as loud as a drill.
After finishing, he came back out and hesitated before asking, “What do you want to eat? I’ll go buy it.”
Lin Wangxi tilted her head and thought for a moment. “I want seafood from Imperial Kitchen.”
“……”
After she said that, Zhou Jinyuan fell silent.
She glanced at him. His face showed no expression.
“What’s wrong? Is it too far?”
After a long pause, Zhou Jinyuan slowly said, “Pick somewhere else.”
Lin Wangxi suddenly remembered. “Oh right, that place requires reservations in advance.”
“No. I don’t have enough money.”
Lin Wangxi paused, then realized—she had almost forgotten he was poor. And now she was poor too.
That restaurant cost five thousand per person. She couldn’t afford it anymore either.
Lin Wangxi sighed. “Then… should we cook?”
Zhou Jinyuan nodded. “Okay. I’ll go buy groceries. What do you want to eat?”
“I want bamboo shoot tofu.”
Zhou Jinyuan twitched the corner of his mouth. “…I don’t know how to make that.”
“What about Buddha Jumps Over the Wall?”
“Don’t know how either.”
Lin Wangxi rolled her eyes. “Then why did you even ask me what I want to eat!”
Zhou Jinyuan said nothing more. He turned and walked toward the door. “I’ll go buy groceries. Don’t move around at home.”
Hearing that, Lin Wangxi felt a bit annoyed. “Who would touch your junk! Who do you think you are?”
Zhou Jinyuan paused, then turned back helplessly. “I meant your leg is injured. Don’t move around.”
“……”
Lin Wangxi awkwardly scratched her nose, guiltily looking away. “Oh.”
After Zhou Jinyuan left, she leaned back on the sofa in boredom. She instinctively looked for a remote to turn on the TV, only to realize the wall across from her was empty.
Half an hour later, Zhou Jinyuan returned with groceries.
He casually tossed a few coins onto the table.
Lin Wangxi was a bit surprised. “Did you use cash?”
“Yeah.”
“Does spending cash feel more real or something?”
Zhou Jinyuan glanced at her. “Because if the money’s in the bank, it’ll be automatically deducted.”
“……”
“You… owe a lot of money?”
“Four million seven hundred thousand.”
“That’s not too bad.”
Zhou Jinyuan smirked slightly at her words but didn’t reply, carrying the groceries into the kitchen.
After cooking, since she couldn’t move easily, he placed all the dishes on the coffee table.
“They’re just simple home-cooked dishes. Try them.”
He set a bowl of rice in front of her and brought over a small stool to sit opposite her.
“That Buddha Jumps Over the Wall you mentioned—I looked it up online. I’ll go buy the ingredients this afternoon and make it.”
Lin Wangxi felt a bit touched. Even though she was in such a miserable state, not only did he not dislike her, he still tried to fulfill her requests like before.
Not wanting to trouble him, she shook her head. “No need. I just said it casually. I don’t really want it that much.”
Zhou Jinyuan didn’t respond and quietly picked up his chopsticks.
Lin Wangxi looked at the dishes—stir-fried greens, salt-baked shrimp, and minced meat with eggplant.
She picked up her chopsticks and tried a bite. She hadn’t expected much, but it actually tasted good.
“How is it?” Zhou Jinyuan suddenly asked.
Lin Wangxi rarely praised others. Especially in front of him, she almost instinctively replied, “It’s… barely okay.”
Zhou Jinyuan looked at her. She said “barely,” but her chopsticks never stopped moving.
One bite after another, she even finished an entire bowl of rice.
After putting down her chopsticks, Lin Wangxi accidentally let out a small burp and quickly covered her mouth.
Zhou Jinyuan lowered his head and continued cleaning up, as if he hadn’t heard it. She quietly let out a breath of relief.
Suddenly remembering something, Zhou Jinyuan asked, “Do you have a change of clothes?”
Lin Wangxi shook her head. “No.”
Zhou Jinyuan said, “Do you want me to take you back to get some?”
Lin Wangxi shook her head even faster, like a rattle drum.
“I’m not going back. That’s not my home anymore.”
Right now, she wanted to be as far away from that house—and the people in it—as possible.
As she said that, she suddenly remembered her dirty face. “Oh right, I want to take a shower.”