Tang You wasn’t sure what Wu Zhiyu was implying, but she didn’t have time to ask. Her phone showed it was already 7:20, and she needed to leave.

She stood up and said her goodbyes, “I have to go home now. Please thank him for me.”

Wu Zhiyu responded, “It’s no trouble. Come by whenever you have time.”

As Tang You left, Song Xiaoyang tugged at her sleeve, “Big sister, come play with me. I’ll teach you how to fly the plane.”

The little boy probably didn’t have many friends, and he was especially happy to see Tang You. Feeling soft-hearted, Tang You nodded, “Alright, I’ll come play with you when I have time.”

Shortly after returning from the alley, her private tutor arrived.

The private lessons three times a week were a task specifically assigned to Tang You by Fang Lai. Although her performance had already reached a professional level, Fang Lai always hoped she could do better.

An hour later, the lesson ended. After the teacher left, Aunt Rong hesitantly approached Tang You. “Miss…”

Tang You asked, “What’s wrong?”

Aunt Rong, wringing her hands and looking anxious, said, “I just received a call from my son’s school. He got injured playing basketball and was taken to the hospital. I want to ask for leave to go see him! But…”

Tang You understood Aunt Rong’s hesitation.

With only the two of them at home, Fang Lai had given Aunt Rong a very high salary to ensure she could be by Tang You’s side 24/7. Leaving without permission was absolutely not allowed by Fang Lai.

Tang You decided to handle the situation herself and asked Aunt Rong, “How long do you expect to be gone?”

Aunt Rong replied urgently, “It’s at the People’s Hospital. I’ll be back as soon as possible, definitely before tomorrow morning to make you breakfast.”

Since it was only for one night, Tang You felt it wasn’t a big deal. She comforted Aunt Rong, saying, “Then you should go quickly.”

Aunt Rong still hesitated, “Will you be okay alone at home?”

Tang You smiled helplessly, “I’m eighteen, not eight. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. I’ll just read for a bit and then go to sleep. By the time I wake up, you’ll be back, right?”

That was true; usually, after rest, the servant and the master only saw each other when it was already dawn.

Aunt Rong was somewhat reassured. She was anxious about her son at the hospital and didn’t linger any longer, quickly changing her clothes and leaving the villa.

At nine in the evening, the silent villa was left with only Tang You.

She turned off all the lights on the first floor and went upstairs, where the only sound she could hear was the wind blowing outside the window.

Since autumn had begun, the temperature had been dropping day by day.

After practicing the piece assigned by the teacher a few times and reading for a while, Tang You decided to take a shower and go to bed at ten.

The bathroom was filled with steam, quickly dispelling the slight chill. Tang You stood comfortably under the shower, closing her eyes and letting the hot water flow over every inch of her body.

Suddenly, she thought of Zhou Qinyao from last night, taking off his mask and handing her the umbrella.

She also recalled the ambiguous words from Cheng Xuan and Wu Zhiyu today.

The young girl sighed and rubbed her face with both hands.

What am I thinking about… They just kindly gave me an umbrella…

After finishing her shower, Tang You put on a white cotton nightgown and went downstairs to get a glass of water.

As she reached the first floor, she heard a strange “bang” from the kitchen, as if something had burst, followed by the sound of rushing water.

Frowning, she walked over and opened the door. Seeing the scene in front of her, she nearly dropped the glass she was holding.

The kitchen’s water pipe had burst.

This was an old villa, with many facilities outdated and worn out. Fang Lai had planned to have the plumbing and electrical systems checked, but unexpectedly, a problem arose before any repairs could be made.

And it happened while Tang You was home alone!

The water gushed out like a column, flooding the entire kitchen. Tang You instinctively rushed over and tried to press down on the burst pipe, but she couldn’t hold it in place. She searched everywhere for the main water valve but couldn’t find it.

Aunt Rong had never allowed her into the kitchen, so Tang You was unfamiliar with its layout. After a fruitless search, she was unable to locate the valve. 

With the water flow uncontrollable and soaking her completely, Tang You had no choice but to grab a few towels from the table and press them tightly against the burst pipe. Then she ran upstairs to find her phone.

Her first thought was to call Aunt Rong for the property management’s contact number!

But after several rings, no one answered.

Suspecting that Aunt Rong might be busy with her son’s situation at the hospital, Tang You didn’t call again. 

It seemed her only option was to find a repair person urgently on her own.

But where could she find one in the middle of the night?

Having just moved in, Tang You only knew Cheng Xuan, who might be her only chance to help. She decided to give her a call.

She dialed Cheng Xuan’s number.

After a few rings, the call connected. Cheng Xuan’s voice was groggy, indicating she might have been asleep.

Tang You knew she was interrupting her, so she kept it brief: “Sister Xuan, my water pipe burst. Could you ask if there’s a plumber nearby? I can offer an emergency fee.”

Cheng Xuan, still half-asleep, responded, “Oh… There’s a plumber in our alley. I’ll send you his number.”

Tang You saw a glimmer of hope and thanked her profusely: “Thank you!”

Less than three seconds after hanging up, Tang You received Cheng Xuan’s forwarded contact card.

【Cool Guy 138xxxxxxxx】

Tang You was momentarily stunned by the name, wondering who would be named that. But the urgent water flow left her no time to ponder further, so she quickly dialed the number.

After three rings, someone answered.

A deep voice said, “Hello.”

The voice was partially drowned out by the sound of rushing water. Tang You urgently asked:

“Is this—uh,” she recalled, “Are you Cool Guy?”

There was silence on the other end.

“My water pipe burst. I live at No. 7 Huai Tree Street. Can you come fix it? Please.”

The silence continued.

At this moment, Tang You felt a chill as she glanced down and saw that the water had reached her ankles. Panic tinged her voice as she pleaded, “I’ll pay whatever you ask…”

Finally, the voice responded, “Got it. I’ll be right over.”

Tang You, almost in tears with gratitude, said, “Thank you…”

After ending the call and leaning against the cabinet, she hadn’t had a chance to relax when she saw Cheng Xuan had sent her three more WeChat messages.

She looked at her phone—

【Oh no, I wasn’t fully awake and sent the wrong number. That was Yao Ge’s number.】

【This is the right number for the plumber.】

【Plumber 189xxxxxxx】

A single bead of sweat silently slid down Tang You’s forehead.

Tang You: “……”