Although the dishes were washed clean, Pei Xu’s clothes were soaked through.
“I think we should install a dishwasher at home.”
In the long run, the water and detergent costs from Pei Xu washing dishes would be enough to buy a dishwasher.
Besides, Shen Zhiyi didn’t particularly enjoy washing dishes either.
“There’s no need. It’s fine as it is.”
Otherwise, when she left, the dishwasher would just sit idle.
“How could there be no need? After all, we’ll be living here for a long time.”
Pei Xu held back the words on the tip of his tongue.
Let her do as she pleased. Once she grew tired of it, she would leave.
“Pei Xu, I noticed there’s a small room opposite the master bedroom. Can I stay in that room?”
Pei Xu was currently staying in the master bedroom, which was spacious enough to help him adjust to living here more quickly.
“That small room is used for storing miscellaneous items.”
All the smaller items from the master bedroom had been moved into that room. Rather than calling it a secondary bedroom, it was more like a storage room with a bed.
“It’s fine. I’ll stay in that small room.”
Shen Zhiyi wasn’t one to complain. Although the room was a bit small and cluttered, it could be tidied up and made livable.
By nightfall, Shen Zhiyi lay in bed, unable to fall asleep.
She glanced through her shopping list, adding items as she went.
“I need to buy a few sets of bedsheets, pajamas, slippers…”
Shen Zhiyi yawned, placed her phone beside her pillow, and prepared to rest.
Hearing a noise outside the door, her drowsiness vanished instantly. She sat up in bed, listening to the commotion outside.
The old residential building offered little soundproofing. Listening to the footsteps in the living room, Shen Zhiyi hesitated whether she should go out.
If she went out, she worried Pei Xu might think she was making a fuss. Maybe she should just pretend to be asleep?
As she hesitated, she heard a clattering sound from the living room. Without even putting on her shoes, she rushed out.
“What happened? Why didn’t you turn on the light?”
As soon as she said it, Shen Zhiyi wanted to slap herself.
In Pei Xu’s current condition, turning on the light or not made little difference.
“Did I wake you?”
Pei Xu didn’t mind her earlier remark. Instead, he crouched down, feeling around on the floor.
“Where’s the switch for the living room light?”
Shen Zhiyi thought it would be better to turn on the living room light first. The house was pitch black, and she couldn’t see anything, let alone help Pei Xu.
“To the left of the entrance door.”
Shen Zhiyi walked over and tried several times before finding the living room light switch.
“What’s wrong? Are you looking for something?”
Only after turning on the light did Shen Zhiyi notice that Pei Xu’s clothes were on inside out.
She averted her gaze, pretending not to have seen it.
Pei Xu was at home, not going out, and only the two of them were there, so there was no need to point it out.
“I wanted some water. I accidentally broke the kettle and cups in the living room this afternoon.”
“Do the cups need to be placed in a specific spot?”
“To the right of the coffee table.”
“Got it. I’ll get you a bottle of mineral water. I’ll buy a new kettle and cups tomorrow.”
Shen Zhiyi stood up to fetch a bottle of mineral water for Pei Xu. As she handed it to him, she suddenly remembered what he had said earlier.
He said he had broken the kettle and cups in the afternoon, but it was clearly evening.
Because he couldn’t see, he didn’t even know the time. He might not even be able to distinguish between day and night…
“Pei Xu, drink some water and go to sleep. It’s already midnight.”
“Is it that late already?”
Pei Xu remained seated on the sofa without moving. He placed the water bottle beside his right hand and sat quietly.
It wasn’t until Shen Zhiyi couldn’t hold back a sneeze that Pei Xu realized she was still sitting beside him and hadn’t returned to her room.
“Why haven’t you gone back to your room to sleep?”
“What about you? Aren’t you still sitting here too?”
Shen Zhiyi leaned lazily against the sofa, looking at Pei Xu.
“My sleep schedule isn’t fixed.”
Pei Xu couldn’t distinguish between day and night; he slept whenever he felt tired.
“Then what are you doing sitting on the sofa right now?”
“Zoning out, passing the time.”
“So aside from sleeping, you spend the rest of your time zoning out?”
If this goes on for long, even a sane person would go crazy…
“You could find something to do in your daily life.”
“What can I do now?”
Shen Zhiyi sat up straight. “Tomorrow, help me wash and sort the vegetables. And you wash dishes quite cleanly too, don’t you? Pei Xu, you’re not useless. Don’t keep saying that word from now on. Since you’re not tired, just sit here for a while.”
Although Pei Xu couldn’t see now, he wasn’t a fool. He would definitely know to go back to his room and sleep when he felt tired.
The next morning, Shen Zhiyi woke up naturally and saw it was already ten o’clock.
After a quick wash, she came out of the guest bedroom, planning to make breakfast.
Walking into the living room, she saw Pei Xu curled up asleep on the sofa, with the living room lights still on.
She went to Pei Xu’s bedroom, fetched a thin blanket, and draped it over him.
Even though it was summer, the night breeze was cool. Sleeping without even a thin blanket would surely lead to catching a cold.
Shen Zhiyi looked at Pei Xu’s somewhat gaunt profile, squatting down to examine it carefully for a long time.
His face had almost no flaws—a high nose bridge, deep-set eyes.
If the original owner hadn’t caused trouble and had lived honestly with Pei Xu, the two of them could have been quite happy.
But all of this was based on the premise of ‘what if.’
Shen Zhiyi stood up and turned off the living room lights.
It was already daytime, bright and clear, making the living room lights seem unnecessary.
Shen Zhiyi guessed Pei Xu would sleep for a long time, so she didn’t wake him.
She changed her clothes, took the keys from the entryway cabinet, and went to a nearby mall to buy groceries.
Shen Zhiyi pushed a shopping cart, glancing at the list as she selected items and tossed them into the cart.
By the time she had bought everything on the list, the shopping cart was already full.
“You’ve bought so much. Did you drive here? If so, you can use the receipt to offset the parking fee.”
“No, I didn’t drive.”
After paying, Shen Zhiyi took the long receipt from the cashier.
But the supermarket cashier’s words reminded her.
Buying a car would actually be quite convenient, whether for grocery shopping or taking Pei Xu out.
However, now wasn’t the time to think about that. She needed to hurry and take a taxi home.
She had spent a lot of time shopping and didn’t know if Pei Xu had woken up yet.
Shen Zhiyi raised her hand to hail a taxi on the roadside. The driver, seeing her carrying five or six large shopping bags, specially got out and came around to help.
“Is the supermarket having a big sale today? Why did you buy so much?”
“I just moved, so I need a lot of things for the house.”
The driver nodded in understanding, filling the trunk and then placing two more shopping bags in the back seat.
When they arrived at the residential complex, Shen Zhiyi had the driver take the car directly to the entrance of her building.
The elderly guard in the security booth held a newspaper in hand, not even lifting an eyelid as he watched the taxi “whoosh” into the complex.
Shen Zhiyi couldn’t possibly carry all these things by herself in one trip. She scanned an extra small red envelope for the driver and asked him to keep an eye on her belongings for a while.
Only after moving all six shopping bags to her doorstep did she finally take out her keys to unlock the door.