jdhmnovel Chapter 263 Did the neighbors come over for dinner today? 1
Chapter 263 Did the neighbors come over for dinner today? 1
Aunt Wang straightened the last cushion on the sofa, and as she stood up, her eyes were filled with unspoken worry.
"Xiao Wan, everything's packed. Are you sure you don't need me to take care of you?"
Jiang Shuwan turned around and smiled brightly at the nanny who had watched the original owner of this body grow up:
"It's alright, Aunt Wang. I'm a grown woman, I can take care of myself."
"Well, that's true, but Xiao Wan, you've never lived alone outside before," Aunt Wang sighed, picking up her cloth bag.
"Our home isn't far from the school, so why do you suddenly insist on moving out? If your husband and wife find out, they'll definitely blame me for not being able to dissuade you..."
“They don’t have time to care.” Jiang Shuwan walked over and gently put her arm around Aunt Wang’s shoulder. Her tone was light, yet carried an unyielding gentleness.
"I wanted to try studying independently, and it's close to the library, which makes it convenient for me to study. You know, I can't concentrate at home."
Independence is real, and so is self-study.
But more importantly...
Jiang Shuwan's gaze seemed to casually sweep over her own open door and look at the tightly closed dark walnut wood door across the way—1801.
...Naturally, it was for the sake of being close to the water tower and getting the moon first.
Aunt Wang gave a few more instructions about the food in the refrigerator and the weather changes, and finally left reluctantly.
The apartment fell completely silent the moment the door closed.
A profound stillness, filled with material things yet still feeling empty, enveloped me.
Jiang Shuwan walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.
From the height of the eighteenth floor, the city unfolds beneath your feet like a galaxy.
She could see the outline of the library on campus in the distance.
Further away, you can see the Jiang family's villa, surrounded by a meticulously maintained garden—a glamorous but rather cold "home".
The original owner's memories became clear at this moment.
Her childhood was spent in countless "next time for sure" moments.
"Wanwan, Daddy will take you to Disneyland after this project is over."
“Honey, Mommy will be able to take a long vacation after the gallery opens next month, and then we’ll go see the aurora together.”
……
Promises are like pretty soap bubbles, rising, sparkling, and then silently bursting amidst busy phone calls and transatlantic flights.
What replaces parental companionship is a constant stream of gifts.
The latest model of dolls, expensive painting tools.
Then came designer clothes, jewelry, bags...
The material piled up to form a soft yet hollow fortress.
The original owner hid inside, learning to use a bright smile and carefree extravagance to cover up those nights when no one noticed, facing the loneliness of the empty room alone.
Until he met Lu Yan.
It wasn't a dramatic encounter.
In her view, it was more like a long, silent observation.
I first noticed him outside the inter-college programming marathon during my freshman year.
The original owner was dragged by her friends to join in the fun, and through the glass wall, she met the boy wearing a simple black T-shirt.
The surrounding team was discussing it intensely, gesturing wildly.
He was the only one who stared quietly at the screen, his fingers tapping out almost inaudible rhythmic sounds on the keyboard, his brows slightly furrowed, completely focused, as if the surrounding noise was separated from him by an invisible barrier.
Later, I learned that he was a famous genius in the computer science department, and I also heard some rumors about him: his parents were divorced, he had a withdrawn personality, and he had a childhood sweetheart named Lin Weixia.
The original owner of this body began to pay attention to him, whether intentionally or unintentionally.
A fixed seat by the window on the fourth floor of the library, a solitary figure walking across the ginkgo avenue at dusk.
She had witnessed his silent concern when he brought an umbrella to Lin Weixia, who was caught in the rain, and she had also seen his polite yet distant expression when he rejected the confessions of those girls.
But what truly touched the original owner was probably that winter day.
It was a December afternoon, the sky a grayish-blue, heavy with the weight of the bare branches.
The air I inhaled was crisp and clean, like a knife.
The original owner of the body walked out of the classroom with a paper cup of coffee in her arms. The scalding heat warmed her palm through the paper, and a small wisp of white steam escaped from the gap in the cup and quickly dissipated into the cold air.
After finishing her morning routine, all she wanted to do was get back to her dorm and lie down, but she unexpectedly saw Lin Weixia talking to Lu Yan under a tree not far away. She was gesturing occasionally with her hands, her brows were slightly furrowed, and she looked aggrieved.
Jiang Yu—the boy who had attracted most of Lin Weixia's attention since entering the school—was walking from another path, surrounded by several friends, laughing heartily.
Lin Weixia's gaze involuntarily followed Jiang Yu, and she even forgot that she was confiding in the person next to her just a second ago.
Lu Yan simply maintained a slightly bowed head and listened quietly, standing silently beside her.
Then, quite naturally, he took off his coat and draped it over Lin Weixia's shoulders, who was clearly underdressed.
Perhaps the weight and warmth on my shoulders drew my attention back.
Lin Weixia pulled her oversized coat tighter, gave Lu Yan a somewhat absent-minded smile, and then couldn't help but look in the direction Jiang Yu had left.
What expression did Lu Yan have on his face at that time?
The original owner stood by the window on the second floor, the warm coffee in her hand gradually cooling down.
She could see it clearly—Lu Yan's face was expressionless.
There was no disappointment, no jealousy, not even helplessness.
Just a quiet act of protection.
It's as if he simply did what he was supposed to do, without asking for anything in return.
At that moment, something inside the original owner's heart was gently bumped.
Does love truly exist without expecting anything in return?
This love was given so quietly to only that one person, that even the envy of others seemed out of place.
[Ding! Task issued:]
Conquer Lu Yan: 10000 points;
Maintaining character profile (optional): 5000 points.
0077 said guiltily, "Wanwan, in the last world, because of my mistake, you lost your memory. Not only did you almost fail the mission, but you also nearly revealed the existence of the system. There was no S-rank rating in the last world, and there are no cheat codes to use in this world."
Jiang Shuwan detached herself from the original owner's memories and comforted her: (It's okay. Although you don't have any cheat codes, you provided Lu Yan's address, which allowed you to become his neighbor before the original tenants. That was a huge help.)
Really? Hehehe, these are nothing.
0077's mood improved considerably: [But our points have already reached 100,000, Wanwan, why don't you choose to go back to your original world and live it all over again?]
(My original world, huh...) Jiang Shuwan raised an eyebrow.
Although she would deliberately seal away the emotions and memories of the previous world after each world ended, having experienced so many worlds, the memories of the original world had long since become blurred.
and……
(I have no regrets. I got everything I wanted. Although she was murdered, she didn't get away with it either. Living a second life wouldn't change anything. It's more interesting to continue the mission.)