Chapter 265

She sighed, then closed the door again, letting Chun Qiu slowly walk into the living room. Before, when it returned from its trip, it had managed to steal Ragdoll Chacha from the delivery station, and she'd caught them having an indescribable encounter. Since then, Chun Qiu had stopped pretending to be a gentlemanly cat, spending all day going to Chacha's place, completely forgetting where its home was, practically living in the delivery station's warehouse. Now, it generally only comes home at night, and even then, only if it's hungry, since cat food outside isn't as unlimited as at home. Sure enough, upon returning home, Chun Qiu only meowed twice at the girl before heading straight to its food bowl to gulp down its food. Hua Xin also listlessly continued eating, the two of them quietly enjoying their own food in the house. What was slightly unusual was that the food in the girl's bowl wasn't the chicken skeleton she occasionally ate when she had to treat herself to meat; instead, it contained whole chicken pieces, and a small bowl next to it even held two fried eggs and some vegetables. While the meal couldn't be described as extravagant, it was certainly thousands of times better than her usual fare. The combination of meat and vegetables was perfectly balanced, a far cry from her usual cooking style. This wasn't because it was New Year's or any other holiday, but rather... Hua Xin was starting to clear out the various supplies in her refrigerator. Fearing the hunger pangs of insufficient food reserves, Hua Xin would use coupons she'd snagged to buy a lot of food online at the beginning and end of each month. Combined with her frugal lifestyle, her refrigerator had become overflowing, with only a few indulgent meals during holidays. But now that she could earn her own money, she would occasionally go to the market to snag some cheap fresh vegetables and meat for a simple, indulgent meal. This slowed down the consumption of her emergency food supplies. Hua Xin is actually like a hamster. Whether in various games or in daily life, she meticulously saves up all her in-game currency and resources, only to spend it all on her favorite characters or in-game items much later. Clearly, the same applies to money. Her now-broken computer was the product of her long-term savings, for which Hua Xin almost went hungry for about a month, thankfully surviving on just noodles. As for why she needed to quickly devour all the pre-made dishes and food she had painstakingly acquired, it was because... "Buzz buzz buzz..." Several messages simultaneously lit up her phone screen, jolting the girl, who was lost in thought and feeling down, awakening her from her reverie. She didn't even have time to put down her chopsticks. "My phone died and I didn't receive any messages. Don't worry, Lao Hua, my grandpa suddenly got hospitalized and might not be able to come back for a while. You'll have to take notes for me so I can copy your messages later." "Sorry, sorry, my phone died, honey... I have some things to take care of at home, I can't come to see you for a while..." Hua Xin looked at the messages Xia Yan sent to the same person under two different identities on her phone, and her tense mood slowly relaxed. She was no longer the composed and resentful person she had been looking at. Apart from these two messages, one to Hua Xin and one to Gu Xin Hua, there was no further communication. In comparison, Xia Yan was more specific about the situation when he spoke to Hua Xin, not just giving perfunctory explanations, but there was still a hint of bravado in his words that a young girl could easily see. On the other hand, he didn't say much to Gu Xin Hua. It was obvious that Xia Yan wanted to tell his good brother that he was fine and could handle things, so there was no need to worry too much, while he didn't want his "girlfriend" to be bothered by his situation. But... what's the point of comparing them?! Anyway, whether it's Hua Xin or Gu Xin Hua, it's all just her! As long as Xia Yan is alright, that's all that matters. Hua Xin simply edited a message to comfort him and express her hope that her grandfather would be safe, then slowly breathed a sigh of relief, put down her phone, and continued eating. He must be very busy right now, and he doesn't only need to reply to her messages; it's better not to bother him too much at this time. The food that had been tasteless in her mouth suddenly tasted a little better. Sure enough, it was due to uncontrollable factors that things turned out this way; otherwise, Xia Yan wouldn't have left her hanging all day. Then, the girl's eyes paused slightly, as if she had connected Xia Yan's words to her own situation. Family matters... For Xia Yan, her grandfather was a very important person. Hua Xin knew this well from her interactions with Xia Yan. If it were just a small problem, Xia Yan wouldn't have said he wouldn't be coming back for a while; it must be... a rather complicated issue. Hua Xin silently got up and sat on the sofa. She was about to lose the house she depended on for her livelihood. From now on, she would no longer have a "home" of her own in this world. But Hua Xin didn't want to simply accept it as her due, nor did she want to obediently follow orders. She understood many things. In exchange, a new version of herself emerged. 203. Silence "Your soup." "Okay, thank you..." Xia Yan carried a thermos in his hand, his expression heavy. His once light and bright eyes seemed to have vanished, replaced by an undisguised sadness that seemed to constantly emanate from his heart. The tone of his reply to the shop assistant was strained, leaving only the subconscious politeness of the conversation. Carrying the thermos, he walked silently. Even though Xia Yan was surrounded by unfamiliar surroundings, and his destination wasn't his home. People always have something to do. But for Xia Yan now, he didn't know what he was doing, what was driving him. His steps became heavy, as if a thousand pounds were pressing down on them. Every step was like this. On the way to the hospital, he always saw many scenes he had never seen before, or rather, not scenes he had never seen before, but all sorts of expressions on people he had never noticed before. He turned his head slightly to look at another street corner. It was nearing lunchtime, and there were others also out buying food at the restaurants near the hospital. Some stood still, silently leaning against the wall smoking, seemingly lost in thought. Some were on their phones, talking incessantly. If he could look at himself, Xia Yan didn't want to see the expression on his face right now. He knew it would look terrible. He wouldn't look any less relaxed than the other people rushing around, nor would he be lazily enjoying the midday sun like a typical college student. Yes. If he were at school, he would probably be in class now, or after class, he would be eating lunch with Mu Feng and Xiang Guan in the cafeteria, then playing basketball and going home to work out.