After sighing, he picked up his phone again.
Only then did Chen Lusi notice that Lin Ying had also sent a message.
She said quite a lot, apologizing for asking him to return for the grave visit, and at the same time explained the reason he was renting.
She also mentioned that her younger sister was about to take the college entrance exams, hoping he could have a meal with her to cheer her up or something like that.
All trivial matters.
As for the rest, she said they would talk when she returned.
Chen Lusi read the entire message, replied with an OK emoji, then put down the phone and looked back at the ceiling.
He was recalling the events of the day.
But soon, Chen Lusi realized there was nothing much to recall.
Because he didn't really know what he had encountered, thinking about it was pointless.
He got out of bed, put the related matters behind him, and decided not to think about it anymore.
Let others explain it.
He had lived for twenty-five years, always quite confused, with many things he couldn't understand.
But having lived for so long, he did have some experience, which is—life is always full of surprises.
And no matter how difficult the hurdle, even if at the time it seemed like the sky was falling, if you stretched out the time long enough, you could always get past it.
This time would be the same.
At the time, he thought he was going to die when he was attacked, but now he's still alive, so it wasn't a loss.
Who knows if he might drop dead in a few days?
So whatever happens, happens.
Chen Lusi stood up from the bed, stretched a bit, then went to the balcony to collect his clothes for washing, and walked into the bathroom.
He took a refreshing shower.
Chen Lusi walked out while drying his hair, changed into clean clothes, then picked up his phone to order takeout.
Afterward, he hummed a song softly, went back to the bathroom, stood in front of the mirror, applied a layer of shaving cream to his chin, and picked up a razor... preparing to tidy up the stubble that had become noticeable in the past few days.
Electric razors are convenient, but Chen Lusi thinks life needs some rituals, and he also finds shaving manually very stress-relieving, so he has never bought an electric one.
This can be considered his unique way of relaxing.
The razor blade slowly slid across his chin, the foam along with the stubble disappearing together.
Chen Lusi looked up at the mirror, just about to smile.
The next second.
He froze.
Because the reflection in the mirror wasn't just him.
At the bathroom door.
A girl in a white dress stood there quietly, slightly tilting her head, looking at him without moving.
Chen Lusi didn't know when she appeared there.
By the time he noticed, she was already standing there.
He slowly turned his head, holding the razor, and asked hesitantly towards the doorway, "Do you need anything?"
"..."
The other party didn't reply.
Just tilted her head, staring at him with pitch-black eyes.
Chen Lusi took a deep breath, turned back to finish shaving, then washed off the leftover shaving cream, bypassed the girl at the door, left a "suit yourself," and walked out of the bathroom.
Picked up the phone.
Dialed a number.
"Hello? Is this Miss Xia?" Chen Lusi suppressed his anger and cautiously asked.
"Yes, what's the matter?" a clear voice came from the other end of the line.
"It's here again, the girl who controlled me to attack you, she's standing at my bathroom door..."
As he spoke, Chen Lusi leaned back, glanced at the bathroom, and found that the person was still standing there, but no longer looking into the bathroom, instead looking at where Chen Lusi was standing.
They exchanged a glance again.
Chen Lusi withdrew his gaze and continued, "Can you help with this? Like, take her away or something."
"No."
Xia Panqiu replied straightforwardly.
"Can you make her disappear?" Chen Lusi asked again.
"No, she will disappear eventually, but not in the short term," Xia Panqiu replied again firmly.
Chen Lusi: "..."
"Does she have any intention of harming you?"
At this point, Xia Panqiu asked a question in return.
"Not at the moment."
"Does she intend to control you to go out and attack others?"
"Not at the moment."
"Has she done anything out of the ordinary?"
"Not at the moment... she's just watching."
After receiving "no" responses to all three questions she asked, Xia Panqiu summarized, "Then just ignore her, act as if she doesn't exist, and go about your business. You're pretty lucky, at least having a normal humanoid, and it's a non-threatening child form. Don't worry, most people can't see her, you can live with peace of mind."
"…Miss Xia."
Chen Lusi took a deep breath, expressionless, and said, "I could have chosen a shared apartment, but I still opted to live alone. Do you know why?"
"...Why?" Xia Panqiu kindly asked.
"Because of freedom, because I can completely live at my own pace. As an unmarried, childless, long-time single man, you're suddenly telling me that I have to live with a troublesome child... I can't accept that."
With a straight face, Chen Lusi said, "That's worse than killing me. How's that different from having a roommate? She can't even help with the rent... is there really no solution?"
"No,"
Xia Panqiu firmly replied, "And I've already said, you can treat her as if she doesn't exist, or even not as a person. I don't think a presence similar to a shadow can affect your normal life, taking away the 'freedom' you mentioned. Maybe some adjustment is needed, but I don't see it as a problem."
"Do you think a normal adult male, knowing there's a humanoid presence in the room, would come out of the bathroom undressed after a shower?"
"..."
"That's part of freedom too, and now that freedom is gone."
"..."
"Got nothing to say, huh?"
"...As expected."
Finally.
Xia Panqiu spoke up, gritting her teeth, "Fine, you can do that! Just treat her as a shadow! That's it!"
With that.
She directly hung up the phone.
"?????"
Chen Lusi took the phone away from his ear, full of question marks.
Did I ask for your permission?
I was trying to reason with you! Seeking a solution!
What is she talking about?
Looking at his phone, Chen Lusi considered calling back, but recalling her resolute attitude.
Ultimately decided against it.
There seemed to be no solution.
He could only hope that she would disappear on her own.
And besides, he didn't even know what she was... just wait a few more days.
He put down the phone.
Chen Lusi gathered his still wet long hair, considering what to do next.
A knock on the door came first.
The delivery had arrived.
Chen Lusi walked to the door, opened it, took the delivery, thanked the delivery person, and brought it back into the living room.
The apartment he rented wasn't big, just one bedroom, one bathroom, one balcony, all interconnected, like a studio.
The so-called living room was actually the bedroom too.
It would be cramped for two people, but spacious enough for one.
And as a single person, there's no need for a lot of furniture.
Besides the bed, the only table in the room was the long table near the balcony.
This was his dining table, and also served as his computer desk, gaming table, accommodating all activities that required a table.
And most of the time, he stayed there.
He moved the keyboard and game controller aside, making room for the takeout.
Chen Lusi pulled out a chair, just sat down, and noticed the little girl at the bathroom door quietly walking over to him.
Not a sound was made.
Maybe it was because she was barefoot?
He glanced at her bare feet under the white dress.
The little girl stood beside him, motionless, not speaking.
She was just like a shadow.
Assuming she was indeed a shadow, Chen Lusi opened the takeout bag, took out the pork chop with scrambled egg rice he ordered, and got ready to eat.
But he underestimated the pressure of having a little girl standing next to him.
She stood by him, silently watching. Initially, she looked at Chen Lusi, but once he opened the takeout box, her gaze turned to the golden, crispy pork chop.
"..."
Holding chopsticks, Chen Lusi couldn't bring himself to eat after noticing her gaze.
He sighed deeply, resigned, and picked up a piece of pork chop.
"Don't stare at me like that, it makes me feel like I'm abusing a child... Either join me, or go play somewhere else, okay?"
He offered a piece of pork chop to her mouth, speaking in a negotiating tone.
The little girl didn't move and showed no intention of eating, just looked up at him.
Holding the pork chop, Chen Lusi stood there.
For a long while.
But she showed no reaction.
Finally unable to endure it, he shoved the pork chop into his own mouth and started eating.
Oh well.
Let her watch if she wants.
And from then on.
The little girl watched from the side the entire time.