"Exactly. You have to see it with your own eyes to confirm if it’s all real."
"So what do we do?"
"I’ve got it!" Liu Nan slapped his thigh. "I have an incredible... er, no, a brilliant idea!"
As everyone watched, his eyes gleaming, he began to lay out his earth-shattering vision.
...
「Lanjing, Fengting District.」
Jiangg Ning pushed open the door and slipped out of her high heels at the entrance. She carried an ivory-white bag, and her outfit for the day was simple and elegant.
As her feet slid out of her heels and into a pair of soft slippers.
She finally let out a sigh of relief.
She had to wear formal attire for job interviews every day. Since she had a rare afternoon free from Chen Yuan, she’d gone to several companies.
She’d crisscrossed the city, making two and a half round trips between the east and west sides.
She’d been hoping for a sweet, romantic dinner with Chen tonight, but she had just received a ssage from him.
Chen Yuan said he was hanging out with his roommates tonight and that they could talk tomorrow.
She felt a pang of disappointnt.
’Still, giving each other so space is good, too. Couples can’t be stuck to each other’s side every day. You’d lose all the mystery and excitent.’
"Yaoyao, have you eaten yet?"
Her voice carried to the second bedroom, and a mont later, a reply ca in an identical tone.
Just from the sound of their voices, it was nearly impossible to tell who was who.
"Nope. Check the fridge and see what you can make."
"Stop imitating . That’s not your real voice."
"Heya, what’s wrong with imitating you?" Jiangg Yao poked her head out. "I was just doing a ’cool big-sister’ voice for my stream. How’d I do? Did I sound convincing?"
"Why did you have to use my voice for your ’cool big-sister’ impression?"
"Because... sis, in my eyes, you’re the ultimate cool big-sister~"
"Hmph."
A faint smile touched Jiangg Ning’s lips, but she still rolled her eyes at Yaoyao.
Their life went on as usual, as peaceful and warm as ever.
They remained completely oblivious to the fact that their secret was out.
"Oh, right, Sis. Did you take any pictures with the young master when you went to the beach?"
"Yeah, I did."
Jiangg Ning answered while tying her long hair up behind her head.
"Send a few."
"What do you want the photos for?"
"Isn’t the young master’s birthday coming up? I’m thinking of giving him a huge surprise. What if we decorate our room? Plaster photos everywhere, get a big... cake!" Yaoyao trotted over, biting her lip as she excitedly described her plan. "Then when he goes to cut the cake, he’ll be like, ’Whoa, why is this so hard?!’ And then I’ll magically pull out a ring~ The BGM starts playing."
"Are you proposing to him?"
"No, it’s just a gift."
"That whole bit is pretty cheesy, to be honest."
"No fun..."
Jiangg Yao pouted and stood up. She wanted to roll her eyes at her unfazed sister; their young master was much more cooperative.
If it were Chen Yuan she was talking to right now.
He would definitely have played along, exclaiming, "Wow, what a surprise!" Then they would’ve hugged and dissolved into a fit of laughter like a pair of lunatics.
Even if Chen Yuan was just pretending, at least he’d give her so kind of reaction.
"How co you’re not with the young master today? You ca back to cook for ?"
"Chen went to hang out with his friends. Probably to play video gas."
"Sis, you really need to do so self-reflection. You’re less fun than a video ga. If it were , the young master would’ve co racing ho by now."
"Heh."
With a scornful little laugh, Jiangg Ning walked past her and headed for the kitchen.
That evening, the two went about their routine: dinner, relaxing, and then bed.
The seemingly peaceful night slipped away.
...
「The next day at noon.」
The sun shone brightly in a clear, cloudless sky.
In the kitchen, Jiangg Ning wondered why Chen Yuan still wasn’t ho. He hadn’t even sent a ssage, even though he’d said he would be back this morning.
’Did he do more than just play gas last night? Maybe he went drinking and still hasn’t woken up?’ Her slender fingers peeled cloves of garlic, her movents absentminded.
Jiangg Yao had woken up relatively early and was now brushing her teeth and washing her face.
Since it was warm inside, they were both dressed lightly in simple slip dresses. Jiangg Yao wore a pale white one, while Jiangg Ning’s was vermilion red.
Gushing water rinsed away stray bits of garlic peel.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—
The dull knocking was rhythmic, like the ceaseless beating of a drum.
It seed as if it would go on endlessly if no one stopped it.
Jiangg Yao heard it. She called out, her voice muffled, "What’s going on outside? Who’s knocking?"
Hearing this, Jiangg Ning turned off the faucet and wiped her hands.
"Soone’s knocking?"
"You didn’t hear it? I’ll go take a look."
Jiangg Yao quickly rinsed her mouth, grabbed a random jacket from the sofa, zipped it up, and went to the door to look through the peephole.
Her sister poked her head out from near the kitchen.
"Are they knocking on our door?"
"It’s a delivery. Looks like it’s from the young master’s family."
"Oh... but he’s not ho."
"Wait—" Jiangg Yao suddenly held up a hand. "I know what it is!"
She exclaid in delight and threw the door open.
Instantly.
The sight that t her eyes was three deliveryn in uniform, wearing masks and baseball caps, standing beside several enormous cardboard boxes.
They looked a bit flustered for a mont when they saw the door open.
They just stared at Jiangg Yao without saying a word.
"Delivery?"
"Yes, Miss."
"Is it the monitor and graphics card I ordered?"
"That’s right," said the lead deliveryman, a very muscular guy. He lowered his voice, "An RTX 4090 graphics card. The recipient is a Miss Jiangg in apartnt 1302. Do you have her contact information?"
"That’s !" Jiangg Yao quickly replied. "No need to check. Phone number ends in 8787, total order of 73,200 yuan, and I used a coupon. The apartnt across the hall is mine, too."
"Alright then... do you need us to move it inside for you?"
"Go ahead. Just be careful not to bump anything."
Jiangg Yao rubbed her hands together and let all of them inside, watching as they struggled to lift the boxes one by one and set them down in the living room.
Ever since she started dating Chen Yuan, she had dread of setting up a gaming room. There was a massive graphics card shortage back then; she’d ordered all her electronics from a single store, and they’d only just arrived half a year later, right as the next-gen models were about to be released.
But whatever. The specs were more than enough for most mainstream gas.
Then, she could finally build her dream gaming room with the young master.
With a sweet smile, Jiangg Yao trotted to the fridge and got a bottle of water for each of the deliveryn.
"The receipt... please sign here, Miss."
"Okay, okay."
"Do you need to open the boxes to inspect them?"
"No need. I’ll open them all when my boyfriend gets here. I’ll record an unboxing video then."
"Alright, goodbye, Miss."
The deliveryn shoved at each other.
They headed for the door in a flustered hurry.
Jiangg Yao watched them, a little puzzled, but didn’t think much of it.
Her mind was completely occupied with her new gear.
CLICK—
The door swung shut.
The boxes were piled together. The one at the very bottom lay silently crushed beneath the others in the narrow, cramped space.
Staring into the total darkness, Chen Yuan cursed inwardly.
’Those bastards put the box upside down! The air holes I made are supposed to be on top, but now they’re pressed against the floor.’
Breathing was becoming difficult. He had no choice but to claw desperately at the corner of the box. His fingertips ached before he finally managed to poke two small holes through the cardboard.
But what really made Chen Yuan nervous was... he clearly heard two voices talking in the living room.
’So familiar...’
A familiarity that sent his heart plumting into an abyss.
"Yaoyao, what’s in all these boxes?"
"Graphics cards, monitors, PC cases... a bit of everything, really."
"Didn’t you just spend tens of thousands upgrading your setup last year? Why spend so much money again?"
"Oh, co on, Sis~ This is for the young master, it’s got nothing to do with my stream. By the way, where’d you put the box cutter? I want to open this one first and see if the PC case is the right model... Say, why is this box so huge?"
Chen Yuan listened as the footsteps drew nearer. Finally, he sensed Yaoyao co to a stop right beside his box.
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