Qing Ye understood – with a shared bathroom, no family wanted to take the loss. Just for a cheap lock. Qing Ye gave a cold laugh.
She simply got up to stand in front of the electric fan to cool off. The standing fan was placed in front of the curtain, which Xing Wu had moved earlier to face her side, meaning his side got no breeze at all.
Qing Ye curiously glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He was wearing a black T-shirt, leaning against the headboard, truly without a drop of sweat.
She couldn’t help but ask: “Aren’t you hot?”
“A calm mind stays cool.” Xing Wu focused on his game.
“Why don’t you install air conditioning in your room? Is this how you spend every summer?”
Xing Wu suddenly raised his eyebrows, coldly stared at her for a few seconds, and without warning threw his phone onto the bed: “If you have money, I don’t mind you installing locks and air conditioning for my family. If you can’t stand living here, then get out.”
The air suddenly grew still. Qing Ye stood motionless at the foot of the bed, staring at him. Neither spoke. In the next second, Qing Ye’s eyes suddenly turned red, and Xing Wu’s sharp gaze flickered slightly.
Qing Ye turned around, grabbed her phone, and headed straight out. Soon, footsteps could be heard going down the stairs. Xing Wu stayed frozen on the bed for a few seconds, then cursed under his breath: “Damn it!”
…
This day had been terrible for Qing Ye. She had suddenly fallen from a bright, glamorous world into a slum, surrounded by strange people, an unfamiliar environment, dilapidated streets, barely edible food, and relatives with no blood ties. All of this, coupled with Xing Wu’s “get out,” had pushed her last nerve to the breaking point.
She felt her head buzzing, her chest tight, her whole body burning hot as if about to combust. She didn’t know where she would go after opening this door, but she didn’t want to stay here anymore, not even for a minute.
Just as she pulled the door open, suddenly a dark figure appeared before her. Xing Wu’s tall figure loomed over her, exuding a fierce wildness in the darkness, his eyes staring at her like a wolf’s, his voice deep: “Want to go out? Fine. Let me tell you about our area first. After nine at night, the only people you’ll see on the streets are gamblers, drunks, and perverts. With your looks, you’d be considered provocative around here – guaranteed to attract attention the moment you step out. By the way, people in our small town can barely make ends meet, nobody likes to get involved in trouble. No matter how loud you scream, no one will risk getting involved. Call 110, and you’ll be lucky if the old police officer arrives within an hour. As for what might happen during that hour, you can try going out if you’re brave enough.”
With that, Xing Wu opened the door, watching her. A stuffy wind blew against Qing Ye, and as she looked at the empty street outside, she suddenly shivered.
Her mind was clearer now. Whether what Xing Wu said was true or false, there was no need to risk her safety just to spite him.
So she decisively turned around and went back upstairs to the room. Fortunately, Xing Wu didn’t come up again – Qing Ye wasn’t sure if he had gone out.
Qing Ye lay there in a daze for two or three hours, unsure if she had actually fallen asleep, just feeling her stomach constantly growling until she was finally awakened by hunger. She rummaged through her luggage – when leaving, she had indeed planned to bring a pack of snacks, but thinking she could buy snacks or order takeout anywhere, she thought it would be troublesome to carry them and didn’t bring any.
Who could have imagined there really were places where you couldn’t order takeout or buy things at night?
Qing Ye tossed and turned in bed, then really needed to use the bathroom, so she finally sat up and put on her slippers. Outside was pitch black. She didn’t know if Li Lanfang had returned from playing mahjong, and it wasn’t appropriate to call her at this hour.
She could only walk toward the stairs using her phone’s light. She felt her eyes hurt more after waking up and blinked hard several times. Passing by the sofa, she suddenly kicked a leg that startled her. She quickly shone her phone light on the sofa – someone was lying there. He raised his hand to block the harsh light, his voice somewhat hoarse: “What is it?”
Qing Ye then realized it was Xing Wu lying there. He hadn’t gone out that night but had fallen asleep on the sofa.
She quickly moved the light away and said: “I’m going to the bathroom.”
After speaking, she fumbled her way to the stairs. Halfway down, looking at the pitch-black salon below with its eerily reflecting mirrors, she suddenly stopped and quietly called up: “Hey… are you asleep?”
“Mm.”
Qing Ye stood on the stairs holding it in for a while until Xing Wu impatiently said: “Speak.”
“Can you… accompany me to the bathroom?”
“…”
There was no movement from upstairs, and just as Qing Ye thought Xing Wu wasn’t going to respond, she heard the shuffling sound of slippers, and Xing Wu’s tall figure appeared at the top of the stairs.
The backyard was extraordinarily quiet at night. There were no trees here, not even cicada sounds. Her hearing seemed magnified countless times, making Qing Ye somewhat nervous.
Xing Wu stopped at the back door, wearing a loose number 14 basketball T-shirt and gray sweatpants, leaning against the door frame with his tall frame. Qing Ye walked a few steps, and hearing no sound behind her, turned back to look at him: “Why did you stop?”
Xing Wu lowered his head to light a cigarette, took a drag, and said with a crooked smile: “Stop where? Stand by the toilet waiting for you?”
“Weirdo.” Qing Ye took small quick steps and rushed into the toilet, closing the door.