The two returned to the apartment.
Qin Wang knew Jiang Shining’s rules and maintained a respectful distance inside the apartment.
“Good night.”
“Good night.”
Exchanging goodnight wishes, the two now seemed like ordinary neighbors.
After bidding goodnight, Jiang Shining opened her apartment door.
“You’re back?”
Jiang Wan’s voice rang out. Jiang Shining looked up in surprise. “Mom, what are you doing?”
A ladder stood in front of the living room.
Jiang Wan, whose health was already poor, sat on a high stool, one hand pressing against the living room ceiling light.
Jiang Wan explained, “The light hasn’t been working well for the past couple days. Since I have time today, I’m replacing it.”
Even the delicate female lead had to change light bulbs.
Watching her mother’s cautious movements, Jiang Shining could hardly imagine how Jiang Wan had climbed this tall ladder.
“Come down! I’ll do it.”
Jiang Shining steadied the ladder while urging her mother to descend.
Jiang Wan insisted, “I’m almost done.”
“Come down,” Jiang Shining repeated firmly.
The next moment.
Clatter.
The lightbulb that had been in Jiang Wan’s pocket fell to the floor, shattering into pieces.
Fortunately, Jiang Shining had anticipated this and narrowly avoided the falling debris.
Jiang Wan looked embarrassed and tentatively suggested, “How about… my little Ning baby hands me another one?”
…
Jiang Shining didn’t give Jiang Wan another chance.
Watching Jiang Wan slowly descend, she guided her mother to sit on the nearby sofa. Then she picked up a new lightbulb from the box and climbed the tall ladder herself.
Wasn’t it just changing a lightbulb?
She could do it!
Before crossing over, Jiang Shining had always lived alone and had tried changing lightbulbs herself before.
The wooden ladder was old, clearly borrowed by Jiang Wan from someone. Jiang Shining’s white sneakers stepped onto the ladder as she carefully climbed upward, both hands gripping the sides.
Sitting on the ladder, she reached up and slowly twisted the lightbulb.
The old bulb came loose in her hand.
Jiang Shining installed the new lightbulb and replaced the lampshade.
Changing a lightbulb wasn’t difficult at all.
As the ceiling light brightened again, Jiang Wan’s admiring voice sounded.
“My little Ning baby, you’re so amazing!”
She had grown accustomed to these elementary school-level compliments.
“Alright.”
“If you need to change lightbulbs in the future, just call me. Or you could ask Qin Wang next door.”
As she spoke, Jiang Shining began descending with the old lightbulb.
Jiang Wan recalled the cold-faced, tough guy who had nearly beaten someone to death that night, her face paling slightly.
“Qin Wang… would he help?”
Living in this chaotic neighborhood, Jiang Wan had an instinctive fear of troublemakers.
Jiang Shining paused mid-step. “Yes.”
“Haven’t I told you? He’s a kind-hearted person with a cold exterior. He’d help.”
Jiang Shining felt she should appropriately boost his likability.
After speaking, she continued descending, but the entire ladder suddenly tilted to the right.
“Be careful!”
Jiang Wan’s cry echoed in her ears. Jiang Shining’s heart tightened.
Before she could react, the whole ladder crashed straight toward the floor.
And the floor was covered with shards from the broken old lightbulb.
Crash!
Jiang Shining and the ladder fell together onto the ground.
One hand braced against the floor, trembling slightly, the ruyi lock on her wrist swaying gently.
Right before her eyes, a glass shard stood upright, less than one centimeter from her eyeball.
Her breath caught, her entire body frozen in place.
She… had almost gone blind.
Jiang Wan’s footsteps sounded as she was helped to a nearby stool.
Jiang Wan nervously looked her up and down, checking her over.
“How are you? Are you hurt?”
Jiang Shining snapped back to reality.
Seeing the worry in her mother’s eyes, she forced a faint smile.
“N-no, I’m fine.”
But Jiang Shining’s complexion still looked pale.
After confirming that Jiang Shining had no injuries, Jiang Wan went to the kitchen, poured a glass of warm water, and handed it to her.
“You scared me to death. I thought something terrible was going to happen.”
Jiang Shining took the water, took a small sip, and her gaze fell on the string of beads on her wrist.
Her luck had never been very good.
Before transmigrating into a book, there were even relatives who said she was the one who brought misfortune to her parents, causing their deaths.
Jiang Shining lowered her eyes. The warm water settled in her stomach, easing the tension she had felt moments ago.
Buzz. Buzz.
Her phone vibrated. Jiang Shining glanced at the caller ID, then looked at Jiang Wan cleaning up the mess in the living room. Clutching her phone, she returned to her bedroom.
Only after closing the bedroom door did she answer.
Qin Wang: “Did something happen?”
The soundproofing in the apartment wasn’t great, and Qin Wang was just on the other side of the wall.
Jiang Shining pressed her lips together. “No, I’m fine.”
Over the phone, Qin Wang let out a sigh of relief. “That’s good.”
Jiang Shining raised her hand and looked at the cinnabar Ruyi lock bracelet on her wrist, giving it a slight shake.
“Qin Wang, this cinnabar string… feels quite effective.”
During the day, she was stabbed by an attacker without even a scratch, and at night, she fell from a ladder and was still unharmed. Jiang Shining had never felt her luck was this good before.
After chatting with Qin Wang for a few more minutes, Jiang Shining hung up and went to sleep.
Early the next morning, Jiang Shining was awakened by knocking.
Hearing her best friend’s voice outside her bedroom, Jiang Shining confirmed it was her good friend Lin Momo.
She changed clothes, slipped on her slippers, and went out, immediately spotting the familiar figure of Lin Momo sitting casually at the dining table.
Lin Momo also lived in this chaotic neighborhood, not far from her.
Lin Momo waved at her. “Jiang Shining!”
Jiang Shining nodded faintly, pulled out a chair beside the table, and sat across from her, yawning lazily.
She had finished her call with Qin Wang late last night, leaving only a few hours of sleep. She was still very tired.
“Auntie is so wonderful, so virtuous and beautiful, and her cooking is so delicious. If only she were my mom…”
After snagging a steamed bun, Lin Momo fixed her eyes on Jiang Wan, who was wearing an apron and cooking porridge in the kitchen, her voice filled with envy.
Her best friend’s family situation was even more complicated than hers.
Both from the same chaotic neighborhood, both from single-parent families, but Lin Momo had an older brother who was idle all day, gambling, and a mother who showed favoritism.
Jiang Shining sympathized with her best friend.
She considerately pushed the plate of delicate steamed buns Jiang Wan had made toward Lin Momo. “If they’re delicious, eat more. But… dreaming about my mom is out of the question.”
Jiang Shining gave a faint smile.
Shattering Lin Momo’s fantasy mercilessly.
She was willing to painfully sacrifice half of her steamed buns for her best friend.
But her mother, Jiang Shining, was absolutely not up for sharing right now, not to mention the domineering CEO father waiting in the wings.
“I know, I’m just talking big.”
Lin Momo only dared to imagine.
But being able to snag a few more steamed buns still made Lin Momo happy.
As she ate the steamed buns, Lin Momo seemed to remember something. She glanced at Jiang Wan in the kitchen and lowered her voice.
“By the way, what exactly happened yesterday?”
Jiang Shining: “It’s a long story, a bit hard to explain.”
Both her own situation and the matter with her domineering CEO father were difficult to explain clearly.
Lin Momo: “Then, what about the person next door yesterday? Is it settled?”
“Next door” referred to Qin Wang.
She nodded, taking a sip of soy milk.
“Yeah, settled.”
Lin Momo gave a thumbs-up. “Impressive. I thought, given Qin Wang’s crazy intensity yesterday—”
Halfway through her sentence, her foot was stepped on under the table.
Jiang Wan had already come out of the kitchen, carrying a bowl of shrimp congee, and was looking at the two curiously.
“What are you talking about, so happily?”
Seeing Jiang Shining across from her calmly drinking soy milk but with a warning in her eyes, Lin Momo quickly explained.
“Nothing much, just chatting with Jiang Shining about today’s part-time job. We still have to hurry to the café for work today, right?”
Jiang Shining nodded. “Mm.”
She set down her soy milk cup and glanced at the clock in the living room.
“It’s getting late. We should go.”