As Yu Wan stepped into the stairwell, she looked back once.
Li Yi was still watching her. At that moment, the dim yellow stairwell light flickered on, casting half his face in light and half in shadow.
“You should head back,” Yu Wan said. “I’ve arrived.”
Li Yi nodded. “Good night.”
Yu Wan turned around and climbed the stairs with her back to him.
The lights in the stairwell were voice activated. As she climbed one floor after another, the lights came on one by one.
Besides the sound of her own footsteps, Li Yi’s thoughts continued to echo in her ears.
【System, what floor do you think she lives on?】
【According to the scan, the heroine lives on the top floor, Room 702.】
【The seventh floor?】
Then Yu Wan heard him sigh inwardly.
【This place doesn’t even have an elevator. She climbs up seven flights of stairs every day?】
【Yes, Host. According to the data, the heroine has already lived here for more than three years.】
【More than three years…】
Li Yi’s thoughts paused, carrying an emotion that was difficult to describe.
【System, I’m suddenly feeling a little relieved.】
【Relieved about what?】
【Relieved that the heroine is her.】Li Yi said. 【From now on, I’ll take care of her.】
Yu Wan abruptly stopped in her tracks.
Standing beneath the dim yellow light, she listened to the earnest conversation, and her heart suddenly ached a little.
But reason quickly took over once again.
She didn’t need anyone to take care of her, Yu Wan thought.
The Yu Wan from the original novel was a delicate vine that couldn’t survive without someone supporting her.
The current Yu Wan was a young tree sapling who could beat up thugs and squash cockroaches. Living alone over the past few years, she had even learned how to replace light bulbs and repair leaking pipes. Who did she need to rely on?
If she depended on someone else, sooner or later she would end up with nothing, just like in the original novel.
The only thing she needed right now was for this job that paid fifty thousand yuan a month to last until September.
By the time the original plot officially began, she would have saved enough money to pursue her master’s degree in Shanghai. Once she left, everything from the original novel would have nothing to do with her anymore.
Lowering her eyes, Yu Wan continued climbing the stairs.
Seventh floor, Room 702.
As soon as Yu Wan took out her key, she noticed the door was already slightly ajar.
She froze for a moment before pushing it open.
Several suitcases of all sizes, colorful and piled together, were stacked in the entryway, completely blocking the already narrow hallway.
The sounds of rummaging through drawers and boxes came from the living room.
Stepping around the luggage, Yu Wan peeked inside.
The master bedroom door stood wide open. A girl in pajamas was squatting on the floor, stuffing belongings into a large woven bag.
It was Wu Jiao, who lived in the master bedroom and had been Yu Wan’s roommate for nearly two years.
Yu Wan blinked. “You’re moving?”
Wu Jiao looked up. When she saw it was Yu Wan, she let out a long sigh of relief.
“You scared me to death. I thought those two idiots had come back.” She stood up and rubbed her numb legs. “Yeah, I’m moving. I’ll be gone tomorrow.”
Walking over, Yu Wan looked at the mess scattered across the room.
“Why are you moving so suddenly?”
“Isn’t it because of those two next door making babies every damn night?” Wu Jiao rolled her eyes. “They’ve been going at it every single night, and I’ve had to listen to it for three months! Yesterday I finally couldn’t take it anymore, so I banged on the wall and yelled at them. Then that bastard actually argued with me, saying I was narrow minded and couldn’t stand seeing people being affectionate. Narrow minded my ass!”
Yu Wan remained silent.
Of course she knew exactly who Wu Jiao was talking about.
The other bedroom was occupied by a young couple who had moved in more than two months ago. The man worked as a food delivery driver, while the woman seemed to work at a shopping mall. Every night, unmistakably intimate sounds drifted out from their room.
Yu Wan was a light sleeper, so she heard everything.
But she had long since gotten used to enduring things. After being yelled at a few times, she never complained again.
Wu Jiao continued venting.
“That guy’s a complete creep. You know, one time I came out after taking a shower and saw him wandering around outside the bathroom. I asked him what he was doing, and he said he was waiting for his girlfriend to use the toilet. What a joke. His girlfriend wasn’t even home at the time!”
Yu Wan’s heart skipped a beat.
“You didn’t tell the landlord?”
“Of course I did, but all the landlord ever does is brush it off.” Wu Jiao sneered. “This is an old neighborhood. The landlord couldn’t care less. As long as you pay the rent on time, no one would even notice if you died here.”
As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something and lowered her voice.
“Oh, right. Be careful around that guy. When I was showering before, I always felt like there was someone standing outside the bathroom. One time I deliberately yanked the door open, and guess what? That guy was standing right there! When he saw me, he just smiled and said, ‘What a coincidence.’ Coincidence my ass!”
Yu Wan’s fingers tightened slightly.
“You didn’t call the police?”
“There wasn’t any evidence.” Wu Jiao sighed. “He never actually did anything. He just wanted to disgust you. What could the police do? By the time they got here, all he’d have to say was, ‘I was waiting for the bathroom.’ What could you possibly argue with that?”
She paused and looked seriously at Yu Wan.
“I’m moving out tomorrow, but you need to be careful. You’re so pretty that I’m sure he’s had his eye on you for a long time. Just be extra cautious whenever you shower or use the bathroom.”
Yu Wan nodded. “I understand, thank you.”
Wu Jiao waved her hand dismissively and continued packing.
Standing in the doorway, Yu Wan looked at the pile of scattered luggage, lost in thought.
After hearing Wu Jiao mention it, many little details suddenly came back to her.
Sometimes when she went to the bathroom, that man would happen to be coming out, and his gaze would linger on her for a long time.
Sometimes while she was cooking in the kitchen, he would stand at the doorway smoking, though she had no idea what he was looking at.
There had even been one time when she came out after taking a shower and happened to see him standing in the hallway.
He looked at her, smiled, and said, “Finished showering?”
The way he said it had made her skin crawl.
At the time, Yu Wan hadn’t thought much of it and assumed it was merely a coincidence.
But now that she thought about it…
A chill ran down her spine.
Moving had become a necessity.
Now that she earned fifty thousand yuan a month, she could raise her rental budget to four thousand yuan per month. In the southern part of the city, that would be enough to rent a south facing master bedroom.
Yu Wan decided she would find time to look at apartments as soon as she had the chance.
Meanwhile, in the new office area of Hongtai Tower not far away, every light was still on.
The logistics department staff were working overtime to prepare the new office space. Desks, computers, office plants, water dispensers, everything was being carried inside one piece at a time alongside the workers.
Although everyone was exhausted, not a single person complained.
Hongtai Group paid triple overtime wages. Who would argue with money?
The global economy had been turbulent over the past few years, and investment banks everywhere had struggled. But under President Gu’s outstanding leadership, Hongtai had not only avoided the crisis but had continued to grow against the trend.
Top floor.
The head of the logistics department stood in the hallway watching the workers busily moving equipment when he suddenly spotted a familiar figure stepping out of the elevator.
“Secretary Lin!” he quickly greeted him. “You’re still coming to the office this late?”
Lin Lang smiled. “President Gu hasn’t left yet. I’m here to deliver a document.”
The logistics manager’s eyes lit up as he leaned in.
“Secretary Lin, there’s something I’d like to ask…”
Lin Lang looked at him.
“What is it?”
“Well…” The logistics manager lowered his voice. “Why did President Gu suddenly decide to put the new office area in the southern part of the city? Didn’t he originally plan to build it in the north because there are more universities there?”
Lin Lang’s smile remained unchanged.
“President Gu’s decisions aren’t something I would dare question.”
“Just give me a little hint…” the logistics manager persisted.
Patting him on the shoulder, Lin Lang chuckled.
“Old Zhang, isn’t triple overtime pay enough to keep you busy? Go do your job.”
With that, he walked past the logistics manager and headed toward the president’s office.
Behind him, the logistics manager muttered a few complaints before returning to supervise the workers.
Lin Lang stopped outside the president’s office and knocked.
“Come in.”
He pushed open the door.
Inside the office, Gu Chiyuan sat behind his desk with his computer screen still glowing in front of him.
He wore a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing lean, well defined wrists.
Outside the window, the night was deep, and the city’s lights reflected as blurred points across the glass.
“President Gu.”
Lin Lang walked over and placed a document on the desk.
“The investigation results you requested.”
Gu Chiyuan picked up the file and quickly skimmed through it.
Yu Wan, fourth year Business Administration student at A University, outstanding academic record.
Nothing seemed particularly unusual.
Lin Lang cleared his throat.
“It just so happens that several of the company’s new interns are from A University, so I casually asked around. It turns out that hardly any of them remember Miss Yu.”
Gu Chiyuan’s gaze darkened slightly.
“They hardly remember her?”
“I also found that a little strange. Judging by Miss Yu’s appearance, she looks like someone who should have been one of the most famous students on campus.” Looking at the photo of Yu Wan’s delicate features in the report, Lin Lang continued,
“However, there was a girl named Su Nanzhi. I heard she’s the campus belle of A University, and she remembered that Miss Yu used to be in the same class as her.”
Pausing briefly, Lin Lang continued.
“I also asked a senior student from the Business Administration department at A University. She said Miss Yu always wore a face mask and rarely spoke. She didn’t live on campus and hardly interacted with her classmates.”
Gu Chiyuan frowned slightly.
“She didn’t live on campus?”
Gu Chiyuan frowned slightly.
“She didn’t live on campus?”