CHAPTER 24 (PART 1)

Shi Li froze for a moment, her hands around him instinctively loosening slightly. Shen Jingyan propped himself up on the ground, his gaze deep as he looked at her face.

After a brief silence, it was as if they both suddenly realized something, hurriedly scrambling up from the floor and sitting in awkward silence.

Moments later, Shen Jingyan spoke in a low voice, “The document I need is in the first drawer under the desk, the one in the kraft paper folder.”

“Oh, okay, I’ll get it for you.” Shi Li responded, clumsily climbing to her feet and quickly running to the study. Just as she grasped the doorknob to push it open, her entire body stiffened, and a cold sweat broke out on her back.

The door had been locked at first, but in her rush to leave, she had completely forgotten to lock it again. If she opened it now, everything would be exposed.

She turned back with an awkward smile, seemingly catching a trace of thoughtfulness in Shen Jingyan’s eyes. But when she looked again, there was nothing. “Uh… the door is locked. Where’s your key?”

“Here.” Shen Jingyan pulled it out from his pocket.

Shi Li ran over to take it. When she returned to the study door, she pretended to unlock it but merely poked at the keyhole. She hurried inside, grabbed the document he needed, and rushed back out, handing the folder to him.

“Thanks,” Shen Jingyan said stiffly.

Shi Li quickly nodded, not daring to meet his eyes for fear of exposing her guilt. Shen Jingyan gave her a deep look before taking the folder and leaving.

Once he was gone, Shi Li finally relaxed. She touched the spot where he had kissed her earlier, her eyes slightly dazed.

Shen Jingyan’s reaction had been strange. Given his current personality, if he had accidentally kissed her, he should have apologized immediately. But why had he remained silent instead?

A vague suspicion arose in Shi Li’s mind. It wasn’t just her overthinking—although his attitude toward her lately had been entirely that of an old friend reunited after years apart, without a trace of romantic interest, who would use an old friend’s birthday as their password?

She sighed, putting the thought aside for now, and started searching for information on the university she had just discovered.

Meanwhile, after stepping outside, Shen Jingyan unconsciously brushed his fingertips over the corner of his lips. Noticing the upward curve of his mouth, his eyes flickered with surprise. He then pressed his hand against his chest—sure enough, his heartbeat was faster than before.

That small incident passed without further mention. Neither of them brought up the kiss again. Shi Li spent the next few days browsing the university’s forums and message boards but only found praise about how friendly and approachable Shen Jingyan had been. Nothing particularly useful.

…It seemed that if she truly wanted to understand his past, she would have to visit the university in person and ask his former professors.

After forming a rough plan, Shi Li attempted to put it into action—only to face a major obstacle: she had no money.

What did having no money mean? The subway fare from Shen Jingyan’s place to Donglai University was five yuan, the bus fare was three yuan, and a taxi ride would cost more than forty yuan. And that was just one way.

And she… didn’t even have a single cent.

She shamelessly searched around Shen Jingyan’s house for some loose change, hoping to scrounge up enough for the cheapest bus fare. However, whether due to an extreme case of obsessive tidiness or something else, his home was completely devoid of any coins.

This was awkward. She couldn’t just outright ask Shen Jingyan for money—that would be too shameless.

That night, Shi Li awkwardly looked at Shen Jingyan.

“What do you need money for?” Shen Jingyan asked seriously.

Shi Li coughed lightly. “It’s nothing, really… I just want to buy something.”

“What are you buying?” Shen Jingyan pressed further.

Shi Li forced out a dry laugh, trying to hint at something private. “It’s not really appropriate to say… You’re a man, and it’s kind of embarrassing to talk about.”

Shen Jingyan studied her for a moment before realization dawned. “You need to buy sanitary products?” He paused, his brows furrowing. “But I already bought some for you. You know that, right? And your period isn’t due for another ten days, so you don’t need them yet.”

Shi Li: “……”

Oh, right. She had been living too freely lately and completely forgot that, as his test subject, there was nothing about her that he didn’t know.

Seeing her fall silent, Shen Jingyan’s expression turned serious. “Are you experiencing irregular periods? If that’s the case, you need to tell me. Your health is important—you can’t afford any issues. I should take a blood sample just to be safe—”

“No, no, my cycle is perfectly normal,” Shi Li quickly interrupted.

Shen Jingyan nodded. “That’s good. So why do you need money?”

Shi Li: “……”

“If there’s anything the house is lacking, just tell me and I’ll buy it. You don’t need to worry about anything else right now. Just stay home and take care of yourself, okay?” Shen Jingyan looked at her gently. “If you want to go somewhere, just call me and I’ll take you. No matter what it is, talk to me—don’t keep things to yourself.”

Shi Li’s mouth twitched. “…Got it.”

Since Shen Jingyan seemed determined to get to the bottom of the matter, her plan to ask for money completely fell through. She had to think of another way.

The next day, after Shen Jingyan left for work, she stayed at home for a while before getting bored and heading downstairs for a walk. As she strolled around, she noticed plastic bottles and cardboard boxes in the trash bins and suddenly had a bright idea—she had found a new way to make money.

She grabbed a black plastic bag from home and went downstairs, casually picking up bottles and boxes while keeping an eye on her surroundings. If anyone who knew Shen Jingyan saw her, she’d have no way to explain herself.

High-end residential areas truly lived up to their reputation—every trash bin had recyclable bottles and boxes, yet no one else was competing with her. In no time, she had gathered quite a few. Just as she was heading back home with her loot, she suddenly heard a sharp female voice from around the corner.

The voice sounded painfully familiar. Shi Li couldn’t help but sneak closer, only to see the old lady who had previously tried to scam her and Shen Jingyan, now being shoved around by her daughter-in-law. The son stood uselessly nearby, only moving his mouth to say half-hearted words of persuasion, too afraid to intervene.

“If you hadn’t been dragging my husband into your nonsense all the time, he wouldn’t have failed his exams! Get out of here and go back to your countryside home!” the daughter-in-law shouted angrily, pushing the old woman again.

Despite her aggressive behavior when trying to scam people, the old woman was utterly spineless in front of her daughter-in-law. After being shoved a few times, she directly fell to the ground. Shi Li frowned, feeling instinctively uncomfortable at the scene.

Sure, there was a saying about villains getting their due karma, but when faced with someone being completely overpowered and unable to fight back—especially when that person was elderly—it still didn’t sit right with her.

Tying up her plastic bag and setting it aside, Shi Li walked straight over.

The family of three turned to look at her, momentarily stunned. The daughter-in-law, mindful of her public image, immediately scowled and turned to leave. The son hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily and chasing after her, leaving the old woman sitting on the ground, wailing dramatically.

Shi Li frowned as she approached. “Are you okay?”

“Help me up,” the old woman stretched out her hand toward her.

Shi Li didn’t move. Instead, she asked, “You’re not going to scam me, are you?”

“…The entire neighborhood has surveillance cameras. How could I possibly scam you?” The old woman, who had been wailing just moments ago, was momentarily speechless.

Shi Li was silent for a moment. “Where are you feeling unwell?”

“My back… my back hurts terribly. I can’t even move,” the old woman said, starting to sob again, her extended hand still reaching toward Shi Li. It was clear she had a strong will to survive.

Shi Li looked at her seriously. “I’ll call an ambulance for you.”

“…You’re not going to help me up?” The old woman glared at her.

Shi Li blinked. “Putting aside whether I’m afraid you’ll try to scam me, we don’t even know where you might be injured. It’s best not to move you recklessly to avoid worsening it. Waiting for the doctors would be the safest option.”

Hearing this, the old woman huffed in anger and withdrew her hand. “What kind of person are you? Can’t even help an old woman up? What, am I going to eat you alive? You heartless little—”

“One more word, and I’ll leave you here to fend for yourself. Let’s see if your son and daughter-in-law will bother to take care of you.” Shi Li interrupted her coldly.

The old woman immediately fell silent.

Only then did Shi Li make the call for an ambulance. After reporting the address and hanging up, she stared at the old woman with a thoughtful expression.

The old woman looked at her warily. “What are you looking at?!”

“Do you know where I can sell recyclables around here?” Shi Li asked.

The old woman: “…”

“I think you should know,” Shi Li glanced at her and said seriously, “Among all the old ladies in this neighborhood, you’re the only one who dresses so modestly.”

The old woman scowled at her. “…If you want to mock me for being poor, just say it outright. No need to beat around the bush.”

“So do you know or not?” Shi Li pressed.

The old woman: “…I do.”

“Great, give me a phone number.” Shi Li grinned.

The old woman shot her an unwilling look but still recited the number for a scrap collector, clearly having sold recyclables more than a few times before. Once Shi Li noted it down, the old woman asked, “You’re selling recyclables?”

“Of course. Why else would I need the number?” Shi Li replied without looking up.

The old woman snorted. “You sure know how to make ends meet.” Then, after a pause, she muttered, “Better than that shrew at my house.”

“Still cursing your daughter-in-law?” Shi Li raised an eyebrow. Since she had to wait with the old woman for the ambulance anyway, she might as well chat with her. “Even though she’s in the wrong, if I were in her shoes and found out my mother-in-law was taking my child to scam people, I’d be furious too.”

She clicked her tongue. “It’s one thing to scam people, but you’ve got an addiction to it. You tried to scam us twice in one day! I’ve never seen anyone as greedy as you. And teaching a child to lie—”

“We didn’t lie! That man really tricked my grandson into climbing the tree!” The old woman suddenly became agitated. “That kind of tree has decorative stones underneath it, sharp as blades. If my grandson hadn’t been lucky, he would’ve been impaled by those stones!”

Shi Li stared at her flushed face, momentarily unable to respond.

The old woman panted, looking at her with resentment. “My grandson never goes near that area. Why would he suddenly climb a tree by himself? Do you really believe that man didn’t lure him into it?”

Shi Li held her gaze for a few seconds. As she heard the sound of an approaching ambulance, she turned and walked away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m only telling you this because you seem like a decent person. Stay away from that kind of man, or you won’t even know how you’ll end up dead someday!” the old woman shouted.

Shi Li’s fingers trembled slightly. She steadied herself, went to guide the ambulance over, and only after the old woman was taken away did she pick up her plastic bag and head home.

For the next two days, she continued collecting recyclables, stashing everything in her bathroom. When she had gathered a decent amount, she waited for a morning when Shen Jingyan was at work, called the scrap collector, and sold everything for 23 yuan.

Looking at the meager amount, Shi Li felt a pang of bitterness but quickly changed her clothes and set off for Shen Jingyan’s alma mater.

She had done her homework over the past few days—not only did she know who Shen Jingyan’s professor was, but she also found out that one of his former dormmates had stayed on as a university counselor. So, after arriving at the school, she quickly located the people she wanted to meet.

The dormmate wasn’t in his office, but the professor was in the middle of a lecture. Originally, Shi Li wanted to speak with the dormmate first, but after some thought, she decided to attend the professor’s class.

By the time she arrived, the lecture had already started, and the classroom was full. The professor was on the podium. Shi Li crouched slightly and slipped in through the back door, finding a seat at the back row, planning to wait until class ended to approach him.

As the bell rang, the professor began his lecture. Shi Li sat quietly in the back, expecting to have no interaction until after class. However, at one point, the professor accidentally made eye contact with her, and his previously smooth speech suddenly stuttered. After a brief pause, he continued, but the hesitation was noticeable.

His reaction was too obvious. Shi Li immediately noticed, furrowing her brows as she observed him more closely. She soon realized that throughout the lecture, the professor kept glancing in her direction.

What did this mean? Did he recognize her? A thought gradually took shape in Shi Li’s mind.

Finally, the class ended. Before Shi Li could approach him, the professor walked over first. “Are you here to see me?”

Looking at his gentle smile, Shi Li felt a strange sense of familiarity. After a moment of silence, she nodded. “Yes, Professor. Hello.”

“Let’s find somewhere to talk,” the professor suggested kindly.

Shi Li agreed, and the two went to a nearby café.