Hunt her

Many ethnic minorities live in Yunzhao County. Xiaotong and Aunt Chen said that the Torch Festival is in five days, and the county will be very lively then.

Many people from other places come here specifically to experience their traditional festivals.

The rooms at Zhenyunxuan were quickly booked.

With more customers, there are also more people of all kinds. Among the good people, there are inevitably some unreasonable and abnormal individuals. For safety reasons, Yan Xu specially hired Yan Zheng, a strong and healthy male college student, as a part-time worker to prevent Xiao Tong and Aunt Chen from getting into trouble.

After finishing her work, Yan Xu checked her phone and saw, "It's almost nine o'clock."

She concluded by telling Yan Zheng, "If the customer encounters any problems, call me and I'll come right away."

Yan Zheng nodded emphatically, his eyes filled with the innocent clarity of a college student: "Don't worry about leaving it to me."

Under the moonlight, Yan Xu returned to the residential area. As soon as he stepped out of the elevator, the corridor lights were so bright they were dazzling.

"Hiss!" She raised her hand to shield her eyes, and after her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she looked up to examine the headlights, which were clearly newly installed.

The property management company in this residential complex is notoriously lazy and irresponsible, so this shouldn't be their responsibility.

Who was so kind as to replace the light bulb?

Thinking of this, Yan Xu's gaze unconsciously drifted toward the rented room.

He was one of the new people who recently moved in, and he happens to be the owner of a hardware store.

Just as she was thinking, another elevator arrived with a "ding".

The neighbor had just come home from get off work and, upon seeing the brightly lit hallway, exclaimed with delight, "Hey! The lights are finally fixed! After all these complaints about the property management, they've finally done something worthwhile!"

A neighbor came over and complained to Yan Xu: "Let me tell you, I gave the property management a good scolding this morning. I thought they would agree quickly but not do it like before, but this time they actually took action."

The other party's words were full of unexpected surprises.

Yes, besides the property management, who would pay out of their own pocket and go through the trouble to repair the corridor lights in the public area?

People are all self-interested; no one is stupid.

Yan Xu shook his head, laughing at himself for actually thinking that Shen Yi had done it.

As soon as I opened the door, a delicious aroma of food wafted out.

Yan Xu noticed Shen Yi wearing an apron and carrying a plate of food out of the kitchen. She asked, "You're back so early today?"

He usually gets home late at night, close to midnight.

Shen Yi put down the dishes and untied her apron: "I've been busy lately and get off work early, so I was thinking of learning to cook. Let's eat together. I made quite a lot."

Three dishes and a soup were laid out on the table, all looking and smelling delicious; just by looking at them, you could tell they tasted great.

Yan Xu praised, "I didn't realize you were such a good cook."

Shen Yi didn't mince words: "Yeah, I never realized I had a talent for cooking before."

He had automatically forgotten about the several large plates of food that had burned to a crisp in the kitchen.

It's my first time cooking, so it's good that it looks presentable.

Yan Xu glanced at him unexpectedly. This guy was quick to take advantage of the situation and was quite arrogant.

Yan Xu took a bite; the taste was a bit bland, but still edible.

Shen Yi sat opposite her, subtly observing her reaction out of the corner of his eye.

No reaction is probably the best reaction.

Yan Xu ate a few more bites, then ate all the rice in his bowl before putting down his chopsticks.

Yan Xu wiped his mouth with a tissue: "I'm full, you can eat slowly."

She had only eaten less than a third of the food on the table; it had only been a few minutes since she sat down to eat.

Shen Yi's mood darkened: "You...don't like what I made?"

"No." She realized she had hurt his confidence. "It's not your problem. I have anorexia, and I'm still not better."

She had to work very hard to stuff the rice in her mouth before she could finish eating it.

It's not that she doesn't want to, but that she can't.

Shen Yi understood. No wonder she was so thin that she was practically skin and bones and never seemed to eat anything.

He thought it was because she was a picky eater, and even considered morbidly dieting, but he never imagined it was a psychological reason.

In an instant, the image of her pulling out the hairpin and stabbing the middle-aged man flashed through his mind.

All she could see was ruthless madness and trembling hands after seeing blood.

The person seemed to be in a state of stress response, extreme yet timid.

Yan Xu, what exactly did you go through in the past...?

Seeing that Shen Yi didn't react, Yan Xu thought he was really upset.

She added, "I'll wash the dishes after you finish eating, and I'll cook them tomorrow night."

Consider it an apology to him.

Shen Yi declined: "No need, I'm already learning to cook."

This time, Yan Xu didn't refuse, afraid of discouraging him again.

Shen Yi quickly finished his meal, not wanting to keep her waiting too long.

One person was washing dishes in the kitchen, while the other, with cut hands, was clearing the table.

There was a trash can under the sink. Yan Xu thought it was in the way and tried to kick it aside, but he couldn't move it.

He glanced down suspiciously.

The food, a mushy mess with no discernible ingredients, nearly filled an entire trash can.

It seems he put a lot of thought into this meal.

Just as she was about to continue washing the dishes, she caught a glimpse of something fleshy next to the trash can out of the corner of her eye. She kicked it again, and the trash can shook.

This time I saw it clearly; it was a band-aid, and I could faintly see bloodstains on it.

Shen Yi cut his hand while chopping vegetables.

Not only did he not say anything, but after all the effort he put into making the meal, she barely ate any of it.

More importantly, he didn't blame her.

Yan Xu lowered his shoulders and slowly said, "Are you short of money lately? I can lend you some."

The man who came to the hardware store a few days ago was clearly not from the same social class as Shen Yi.

If he really is here to collect a debt, then she can help him.

We should apologize for this meal.

Shen Yi casually replied, "How could I possibly..."

Yan Xu turned her head to look at his back and waited for him to finish speaking.

Shen Yi's eyelids twitched, and he swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue: "How could I possibly borrow money? The more I borrow, the more I owe. Besides, I still have the ability to open a shop, which means I can manage."

That's true. Having enough money to open a shop shouldn't be a problem; it's more like a shortage than an urgent need.

Yan Xu said coldly, "Next month's rent and utilities will be split equally." Accounts that need to be clearly divided should still be divided.

Her abrupt change of topic shattered the warm and harmonious atmosphere between the two.

"..." Shen Yi said, "Okay, as you wish."

There was a hint of tenderness in her words that Yan Xu didn't notice.

At night, the cicadas chirped incessantly outside the window.

The moonlight streamed into the room.

Shen Yi sat in front of the computer, resting his chin on his hand, his brows furrowed: "What's the point of searching all this time if it doesn't even teach any treatment methods?!"

He angrily shut down his computer, thought for a long time, and then dialed a number: "How do you treat anorexia?"

The other party launched into a lengthy explanation: "This is a psychological illness, often caused by long-term anxiety, worry, fear, unease, or sudden, intense emotional fluctuations."

Shen Yi rubbed his forehead with one hand and said sternly, "Get to the point."

On the other end of the phone: "Try to make the patient happy, give them lots of love so they can feel happiness, and most importantly, help them resolve their inner conflicts."

A knot in one's heart.

How would he know?

Yan Xu's protective shell is as thick as an Antarctic glacier; asking him will only make things more distant.

This is difficult...

The other person questioned, "When are you coming back? Everyone's so busy and chaotic, and you're still asking about anorexia?"

Shen Yi, annoyed, said, "I'm hanging up."

He threw his phone on the table, looked up at the moon outside, and said angrily, "What a nice girl! Who bullied you like this?"

Inside the master bedroom.

Yan Xu stood by the window with wet hair, letting the water droplets fall on the ground, staring blankly out the window.

The night my grandfather passed away, just like now, the moonlight was blindingly bright, and I felt like crying.

For the next two mornings, I still received breakfast and notes, but they were replaced with pink notepaper with heart patterns.

The note read: "I was in such a rush this morning that I didn't have time to eat my takeout. Could you please eat it? It's on me, so it doesn't go to waste."

Yan Xu was in a dilemma; he had precisely touched upon the point that concerned her.

She doesn't like wasting food, and when she goes to the wonton shop, she always pays for a small portion but only gets half the amount.

Yan Xu opened the bag and sighed helplessly, "What else can I do? Just eat it, even if I have to stuff it in."

When she suddenly increased her food intake, she felt like her stomach weighed a ton and she was too weak to walk.

This was the largest meal she had eaten since she started having anorexia.

Finally, she transferred the money for the wontons to Shen Yi: "[Breakfast money, thank you.]"

Shen Yi quickly replied: "[There are some digestive tablets I bought before on the coffee table. Suddenly increasing your appetite can cause indigestion, so bring them with you.]"

In the end, he accepted the transfer; otherwise, Yan Xu would probably never eat what he bought again.

Upon seeing the message, Yan Xu glanced sideways and noticed that there was only a box of medicine on the empty coffee table, placed too conspicuously in the center.

It became so obvious that she began to doubt Shen Yi's motives.

Yan Xu's guard rose: "Is he deliberately being nice to me? What's he after?"

For money? Doesn't seem like it, otherwise he wouldn't have refused her offer to lend him money.

"What a scene!" The image of the two of them standing at the bedroom door on their first night flashed through her mind.

But neither of them did anything inappropriate, nor did they seem to be.

It can't be because I like her, right?

Impossible, and it cannot be done.

Yan Xu immediately rejected this idea.

Since her grandfather passed away, she no longer believes in love without a reason.

All love is like a honey pot hiding a knife; one day it will draw blood.

Yan Xu's final reply to him was: "Don't buy it again."

......

The closer it gets to the Torch Festival, the busier Zhenyunxuan becomes.

Every now and then, guests come to ask which restaurants are good and which attractions are fun, and some even come to check in with friends.

Anyway, there are always customers looking for the front desk from morning till night.

Yan Xu managed things methodically, but Yan Zheng, who was doing this part-time job for the first time, lost his patience.

Yan Zheng complained, "I changed the sheets and blankets in front of him yesterday, and he just said they were dirty and wants me to change them again. Did he fall into a mud pit? They get dirty after just one lie down."

Yan Xu comforted him, "Go change it. This person is probably a germaphobe. We'll do what we can within our capabilities."

That's how the service industry works; within reasonable limits, we have to do whatever it takes, no matter how troublesome.

"Ahem!" Shen Yi stood at the front desk with a dark expression. "Have I disturbed you two?"