The room fell quiet.
Lin Wangxi lay back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling above her. Waves of pain came from her ankle, and her thoughts were a mess.
She took out her phone. The screen reflected her smudged makeup and slightly swollen eyes—it was hard to look at.
She opened her contacts, her finger hovering over the word “Mom” for a long time, but in the end, she didn’t press it.
Forget it.
She turned off her phone and began looking around the small living room.
There were a lot of things—books and documents piled into cardboard boxes in the corner, and electronic components and circuit boards she couldn’t understand scattered across the dining table, half-covered with a dust cloth.
She had never paid attention to these before, but now she couldn’t help thinking—over the past six months, he had lived in this environment, dealing with all her unreasonable demands while taking care of his younger sister and working on that money-burning research project with no guarantee of success.
Before, she had believed that anything that could be solved with money or methods wasn’t a problem—including Zhou Jinyuan.
In her eyes, he had been no different from a piece of clothing or a luxury bag. Whether she loved it or not didn’t matter—wanting it was enough.
But now, with her money and support gone, she finally began to glimpse the real Zhou Jinyuan—a person of flesh and blood.
After an unknown amount of time, the sound of a key turning came from the door.
Zhou Jinyuan returned carrying several bags.
“Here,” he said, handing them to her.
Lin Wangxi took them and looked inside. There were simple toiletries—a towel, toothbrush, toothpaste—as well as two sets of women’s pajamas, a set of underwear, and two dresses.
She openly took out the underwear and examined it from side to side.
Then she glared at Zhou Jinyuan indignantly. “Am I really that small?!”
Zhou Jinyuan’s gaze instinctively dropped to her chest.
Lin Wangxi puffed out her chest in protest. “I’m clearly a B. What’s with you buying me an A?”
He immediately looked away. “I’ve never seen it.”
Lin Wangxi noticed the faint redness at the tips of his ears and couldn’t help but laugh.
She revealed a mischievous smile. “Do you want to take a look? So you won’t get it wrong next time.”
“I’ll go buy new ones,” Zhou Jinyuan said, tossing out the words before turning and leaving, almost as if fleeing.
Lin Wangxi pouted. Was she really that scary?
Not long after, he came back with another bag.
Now that he knew the size, he bought two extra sets this time.
Seeing that he bought more, Lin Wangxi gave him an approving look. “Not bad. You’re teachable.”
Zhou Jinyuan ignored her. “When are you going to wash?”
“Now! Hurry, I can’t stand it anymore!” She spread her arms, signaling for him to carry her.
Zhou Jinyuan didn’t say anything further. He lifted her steadily and walked toward the bathroom.
She was very light—he could carry her easily. She definitely didn’t weigh more than a hundred pounds.
After setting her down, he checked the shower switch and the anti-slip mat.
Still not reassured, he asked, “Can you manage by yourself?”
Lin Wangxi rolled her eyes. “Then you help me.”
Zhou Jinyuan looked at the cast on her leg, as if trying to determine whether she really could manage.
After a moment, he nodded. “Alright.”
Lin Wangxi froze. She hadn’t expected him to actually agree.
“Are you serious?”
“Aren’t you inconvenienced?”
Lin Wangxi stared at him for a long time. His gaze was firm, almost excessively serious.
Even if he helped her bathe, it would probably be like washing pork.
He was fully dressed, while she would be completely naked—thinking about it made it feel pointless.
Lin Wangxi said, “Then you have to take yours off too.”
Zhou Jinyuan twitched his lips. “You’d better wash by yourself.”
With that, he turned and walked out.
Lin Wangxi glared at his back and muttered, “Stingy man. It’s not like looking would cost you anything!”
Zhou Jinyuan ignored her and closed the door behind him.
Lin Wangxi pouted.
Her left foot couldn’t bear any weight, so she could only stand on one leg.
One hand held onto the wall, the other operated the shower, and her injured leg had to be lifted far away to avoid getting wet.
It was a difficult position, yet she managed it—she was even a little impressed with herself.
But she didn’t know how to use the water heater in Zhou Jinyuan’s house.
She turned it to the left—no hot water. To the right—still no hot water.
She tried every direction, but nothing worked.
Leaning against the wall under the showerhead, Lin Wangxi fell into deep thought.
Could it be that the siblings were so poor they usually took cold showers?
After a while, she noticed steam coming from the showerhead and reached out to test it.
The next second—
“Ah—!”
Zhou Jinyuan had been standing outside the door. Hearing her scream, he immediately pushed it open.
“What happened—”
He saw her standing there without a single thread on, clutching her hand and shrinking into the corner.
Lin Wangxi instinctively tried to cover herself, but the man had already averted his gaze first, looking elsewhere.
His expression was slightly unnatural as he asked, “What happened?”
Lin Wangxi said, “Your water heater is crazy—one moment it’s freezing, the next it’s scalding!”
Zhou Jinyuan looked at the heater switch.
He realized she had turned the hot water to maximum.
“You turned it too high.” He adjusted the knob back. “This level is just right.”
Lin Wangxi frowned. “But I tried earlier and there wasn’t any hot water.”
“You have to wait. It’s not that fast.”
“Oh, so you have to wait? That explains it.” Lin Wangxi had never used this kind before. She was used to ones where you preset the temperature and just turn it on.
Zhou Jinyuan stood sideways, his tone stiff. “Try it now. See if it’s okay.”
Lin Wangxi stretched out her hand and cautiously tested the water. “A bit cool. Just a little warmer.”
Zhou Jinyuan carefully adjusted the temperature again.
Through the rising steam, Lin Wangxi watched his profile.
His clothes were already half-soaked from splashing water, faintly revealing the contours of his body beneath the shirt.
His figure looked quite good.
But then her gaze fell on her casted leg, and she felt dazed again.
Scenes from her dreams resurfaced in her mind.
Would she really wait another six months, only to die in some unexpected way?
Could it really not be changed?
A trace of unwillingness rose in her heart. Even if she had been a bit spoiled, her flaws were shallow—it didn’t mean she deserved to die, did it?
And besides… she secretly glanced at the tall figure beside her.
But after thinking it over, she sighed.
Even if Zhou Jinyuan didn’t abandon her after her fall, it wouldn’t change anything.
In all those dreams, it wasn’t like she hadn’t tried to change things.
Yet she still died.
So whether she died or not had nothing to do with changing the storyline.
It was as if everything had been predetermined. No matter what she did, even if she avoided certain deaths, when the time came, another way would still claim her life.
“Lin Wangxi, try it again.”
She snapped back to her senses, responded with an “oh,” and tested the water again.
“Mm, it’s good now.”
Zhou Jinyuan didn’t look at her and turned to leave.
Lin Wangxi hopped toward the shower, but the floor was too slippery, and she couldn’t balance on one foot.
She lost her footing, her elbow hitting the nearby rack with a loud crash, sending things tumbling to the floor.
Zhou Jinyuan had barely stepped out for two seconds before coming back in, deliberately avoiding looking at her.
Lin Wangxi gave an awkward smile. “I lost my balance.”
“Wait there.”
He left again and returned with a stool.
“Sit on this while you wash.”
“Okay…”
After he went out, Lin Wangxi quickly finished washing.
She picked up her clothes. The new ones Zhou Jinyuan bought were supposed to be washed before wearing, so she hesitated between the new and the old.
To be safe, she chose the old ones.
She called out to let Zhou Jinyuan come in.
Her hair was still dripping, and the pajamas she had just changed into were damp, faintly clinging to her body.
Zhou Jinyuan picked up a dry towel nearby and placed it over her wet hair, rubbing it gently.
As Lin Wangxi looked up, she saw his face very close to hers.
In such an intimate atmosphere, his expression remained calm and restrained.
Lin Wangxi began doubting herself again.
Was she not pretty enough? Or was her figure not good enough?
Could it be… that he liked men?
The thought startled her.
She couldn’t help asking, “Zhou Jinyuan, is your orientation normal?”
Zhou Jinyuan’s hand paused.
His gaze moved from her cheek to the slightly open neckline of her pajamas.
Then he quickly looked away.
His Adam’s apple seemed to bob, but his face remained expressionless—only his eyes grew darker.
“What do you think?”