♡ Chapter 2.1 ♡

This little episode with the new neighbor helped ease Yu Xia’s bad mood after being betrayed by her ex-boyfriend.

Unfortunately, her cold seemed to have worsened.

After blocking Zhou Yu and deleting all the photos related to him, she curled up in bed and called Tang Yue.

Tang Yue was her high school classmate and close friend. She had performed poorly on the college entrance exam and had to repeat a year before finally getting into T University. Zhou Yu had come from another school to pursue a graduate degree at T University. Both were in the same major and happened to be assigned to the same advisor.

She had met Zhou Yu because of Tang Yue.

“Damn! What a jerk!” Tang Yue cursed when she heard that Zhou Yu had gotten back together with his ex-girlfriend and betrayed Yu Xia. “He had such a good reputation in school, but it was all fake. He only told you after he got back with her. I even praised him for being handsome and reliable, and I was the one who set you two up… What a fool I am.”

Yu Xia knew that it was Tang Yue who had played matchmaker for her and Zhou Yu. She could tell her friend felt guilty, so she tried to comfort her. “It’s okay. We didn’t date for long, and I didn’t lose much. It’s just disgusting.”

“I’m thinking about how to get back at him,” Tang Yue said angrily.

“Forget it,” Yu Xia replied, not wanting to make things more complicated. “At least he returned the birthday gift. I should thank him for that.”

“…”

“Well, if you’re okay with it,” Tang Yue sighed. “But why is your voice hoarse? Don’t tell me you cried over that jerk. It’s not worth it.”

“I didn’t cry. I just have a cold,” Yu Xia said.

Tang Yue was relieved. “Good. Tomorrow is Saturday, and I have something to do. I’ll come to see you on Sunday for lunch.”

After hanging up, Yu Xia took some cold medicine. She had been working too hard on her comic recently, staying up late and turning her days and nights upside down. Afraid she might not last long, she decided to take advantage of the break to adjust her schedule. To force herself to wake up early, she started ordering breakfast to be delivered every morning at 8 AM.

She ordered breakfast for the next day, put her phone aside, and fell into a daze as she tried to sleep.

—–

The next morning, as Lu Yanzhou left his house, he saw the delivery guy hang a food bag on the door handle of the apartment across from his.

A project at work was nearing completion, and the entire team was working overtime that weekend. Around 3 PM, he came back home to pick up a forgotten document. As he approached his door, his steps faltered when he saw the food bag still hanging on the door handle.

Had it been forgotten, or was something wrong?

He remembered the young woman’s cheerful smile as she had said, “New neighbor, please take care of me” the night before.

Maybe he should remind her to check on it.

Turning around, he knocked on her door.

There was no response.

Frowning, he knocked again, this time louder.

Still no response.

Had she slept through it, or had she gone out and forgotten?

Forget it, what’s it to him? He thought as he headed back to his place. But as he left again, he noticed the bag still hanging on the door. His mind wandered to some social news stories with keywords like “living alone,” “sudden illness,” and “sudden death.”

Frowning, he stood in front of her door again and knocked a few more times.

There was still no response.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to call the property management.

Inside, Yu Xia had a high fever and was fast asleep, wearing earplugs. She had set her phone to silent, so she didn’t hear it ringing several times. When she finally groggily opened her eyes, she pulled out the earplugs, and the noise from outside poured into her ears.

“The phone’s been ringing, and no one’s answering. We knocked, but there’s no response.”

“Miss Yu doesn’t have a car. She usually takes the bus or subway to work. The security guard hasn’t seen her leave the neighborhood today.”

“Officer, should we just break the door down? What if something’s happened?”

…

Break the door?

Break whose door? Mine?

That won’t do!

Yu Xia jumped out of bed in a panic, but her sudden movement made her dizzy, and she collapsed back onto the bed. She didn’t have time to catch her breath, struggling to get up. She grabbed her coat and shakily ran to the door.

She was afraid that if she was even a second too late, they would break her door down.

She yanked the door open, her messy hair and pale face facing the group of people outside.

“…”

“…”

This was quite the scene—she had never seen so many people at her door. The three leading figures were in police uniforms, with a few security guards and property staff, all wearing uniforms.

The only one who stood behind them was a man in casual clothes. He wasn’t dressed up but had the build of a model, and although his appearance wasn’t striking at first, he was undeniably handsome. Standing at the back of the group, he stood out like a crane among chickens.

Yu Xia couldn’t help but notice him. Although the situation in front of her was awkward and terrible, her dizzy head made her think, It’s hard not to notice how handsome the new neighbor is. But why is he so nosy? He’s even standing there watching the drama.

It seemed that Chinese people, no matter how reserved they looked, always loved gossip. Even a handsome guy who appeared indifferent was no exception.

“Ah, Miss Yu, you’re fine!” The property staff sighed in relief when they saw her standing at the door, though they sounded slightly reproachful. “We’ve called you so many times! Why didn’t you answer? We thought something had happened to you.”

Yu Xia was bewildered. “I just have a cold and a fever, wasn’t feeling well, and I’ve been sleeping… ” Looking at the relaxed but helpless expressions on everyone’s faces, especially when her eyes met the officer’s, she immediately became tense. “Officer, I’m a law-abiding citizen! I haven’t done anything wrong!”

Everyone: “…”

In those twenty minutes, everyone had been anxious and worried, while she stood there looking completely confused.

Lu Yanzhou looked at the big fuss he had caused and felt a headache coming on. Crossing his arms, he leaned against the door frame, his face unreadable as he looked at her. “Well, at least you’re still alive.”

Yu Xia: “…”

Bastard, who are you cursing?

The property manager explained, “Here’s what happened: Mr. Lu saw the delivery guy leave the food bag hanging on your door handle this morning. When he came back in the afternoon, the bag was still there. He thought you might have forgotten about it, so he knocked, but there was no answer. He got worried and contacted us. We called you several times, but there was no response. We checked the surveillance cameras, and you hadn’t left the neighborhood. That’s when we decided to call the police.”

Yu Xia let out a shocked “Ah!” and looked up at her good neighbor. So, these people had gathered outside her door thinking she had died suddenly in her apartment?

Lu Yanzhou: “…”

The property manager’s explanation and her stunned expression made him realize just how ridiculous this whole situation was. He looked away from her gaze and stood up, heading for the elevator. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll leave now.”

“Miss Yu, you don’t look too well. Do you need to go to the hospital?” the leading police officer asked with a smile.

Yu Xia quickly shook her head. “Ah, no need, no need. I’m fine, thank you…” She shook her head a bit too vigorously and almost stumbled to the side, feeling lightheaded.

Fortunately, the officer acted fast and caught her before she could fall in front of everyone.

Phew, that was close.