I Waited for You for Fifteen Years - Chapter 1

The rain fell heavily last night, and lightning flashed from time to time, appearing so fierce it seemed ready to split the sky in half. The thunder triggered the hallway lights to flare to full brightness; flickering and dim, it was as terrifying as the coming of the apocalypse.

This is the third body I have soul-transmigrated into a 16-year-old girl.

My first body belonged to a 12-year-old girl, but the timing of that transmigration was poor. I was sent to the Qing Dynasty, resulting in me being married off to a man twenty years my senior just two years after arriving. I died in childbirth at sixteen. It was as tragic as it could possibly be.

The second time was luckier. I was a female infant fresh from the womb. My parents were both present, and my paternal and maternal grandparents were all alive and well. I seemed to be the first child of the family; many people surrounded me when I laughed, they laughed, and when I made a sound, they mimicked it. It was quite fun.

But! Heaven did not favor me for long. When I was two, my paternal grandparents died in a car accident, and my maternal grandmother fell ill. To take care of her, my mother quit her job and opened a small convenience store next to the hospital. She often took me back and forth between the hospital and the shop. Although life was hard during that time, my mother treated me very well; she never took her emotions out on me, nor did she ever abandon me because caring for me was a burden. I was deeply moved by this.

Then, things got worse. When I was four, the pandemic hit. My grandmother passed away, and my father lost his job. The entire family relied on my mother’s convenience store for a living. But with the pandemic, there was no business. There was no choice; the store went bankrupt shortly after. To make matters worse, I was infected. In less than a week, I had gone to the Great Beyond.

Just as I was speculating about the patterns of this soul-transmigration, the next second, I found myself lying in a cozy little room.

My head felt dizzy. I tried to get out of bed, but my footing was unsteady and I fell to the floor. With a “clatter,” I bumped my head, adding insult to the injury of my already uncomfortable body.

No way… is this a frail and sickly body?!

Just then, there was movement at the door. A woman wearing an apron rushed in. Seeing me sitting on the floor, she hurriedly brushed the dust off her hands and came over to help me up.

“Lingling, why didn’t you tell Auntie you were awake? Where did you hit yourself? Does it hurt? Is there anywhere else you feel unwell?” As she spoke, she placed her hand on my forehead.

I didn’t understand a word she said, but I could tell this Auntie cared about me very much.

She felt my forehead on her own accord and judged seriously: “Still a bit of a low-grade fever, but it’s nothing major anymore.”

I was completely dazed, blinking my big eyes at her.

Auntie turned her gaze toward me and asked with concern: “Does Lingling’s head still hurt? Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?”

I felt a bit better and shook my head: “I feel quite good now. By the way, Auntie, where is my mom?”

At the mention of my mom, the look in Auntie’s eyes changed, as if she were avoiding something. She stammered slightly: “Your mother has gone on a mission, did you forget? Before she left, she promised to take you to adopt a cat as soon as she gets back!”

My eyes lit up a cat! That was a pet I had loved but failed to obtain for three lifetimes!

“Really! That’s wonderful!” I became so excited that I completely forgot my sick body; for a second, I wanted to jump out of bed and dance.

Auntie was quick to stop me: “Don’t get excited! You need to recover first. Once you’re healthy, your mom will naturally be back.”

I agreed immediately, though my mind had already begun to fantasize about the joyful scenes of meeting the cat.

Once Auntie left, I immediately flipped out of bed and began searching the room.

The cat was indeed something to look forward to, but the most pressing priority was to know my own identity.

Quickly, I found my ID card in a drawer.

Immediately following that, I found a photo album and a name tag in my school bag.

My name is Wen Ling, 16 years old, born on February 29, 2016. I am a first-year high school student at the Affiliated High School. Besides me, this family includes a father who is a soldier and a mother who is a police officer.

Not only that, there is also an uncle who is a teacher, an aunt who is a nurse, and an older sister who is a graduate student.

Well then, a family of honor. Given this family background, and the fact that I’m an only child! These conditions… are truly what I deserve after suffering for two lifetimes!

But can this name be changed? I’ve been called Wen Ling for three lifetimes; at least give me a nice nickname other than ‘Lingling’! My ears are getting calloused from hearing it.

Forget it, call me whatever. It saves me an adjustment period and avoids the need for getting used to a new name.

I put the things down and began to look around. This room was very large; the minimalist decor made it look clean and bright. It was equipped with a full wall of custom wardrobes, a corner desk, and even a private bathroom. It didn’t look like a typical guest room at all; in fact, saying it was the master bedroom wouldn’t feel out of place. Regardless of the family’s economic strength, allowing a relative to stay in such a nice room was enough to show how much this family valued me.

“Lingling, there’s an emergency at the hospital and Auntie has to head over. Rest at home by yourself. There’s washed fruit in the fridge, the TV remote is on the sofa send me a message or leave a note if you need anything, or you can find your uncle!”

Hearing the sound, I ran out and saw the Auntie who had just been wearing an apron; she was now dressed differently, hurriedly putting on her shoes at the door.

I quickly responded to her: “Got it, be careful on the road.”

Auntie smiled at me and rubbed my head: “Lingling is so good. Rest well at home, Auntie is leaving now.”

After saying goodbye to Auntie, I looked around. After confirming the positions of any cameras and their filming angles, I began to patrol the house.

The house had two floors. The third floor led to the rooftop and was locked, making it inaccessible. On the second floor, there were two rooms: one belonged to the graduate student sister, and the other appeared to be the room of the Uncle and Auntie.

The first floor also had two rooms. One was kept very clean and seemed to be a guest room that had been unoccupied for a long time. The other was the room where I slept.

Compared to the other guest room, my room’s configuration was countless times better. Therefore, this couldn’t be a guest room; it only proved that “Wen Ling” often stayed here in the past, and that this family was not only wealthy but also particularly fond of Wen Ling.

The soil in the yard was not yet dry, and water stains remained on the swing. Looking at the street outside, I confirmed it: it rained heavily last night, and I became ill because of that rain, as my clothes were still hanging in the yard to dry.

With everything confirmed, I slumped onto the sofa. After all, this body still had a fever and couldn’t keep up its strength; I was forced to “recharge.”

Suddenly, I remembered what Auntie had said earlier, so I felt around for the TV remote. Since I was bored anyway, it would be a waste not to watch this 100-inch big-screen TV.

Multiple soul-transmigrations had left my memory muddled; I had no concept of space-time, eras, or dates anymore. But after turning on the TV and seeing advertisements identical to the ones I saw in my previous life, my mind suddenly became clear, as if I saw hope.

I checked the news wow, 2032. It had been 12 years since my previous life. These commercials have quite a long lifespan.

When I calculated it, wouldn’t you know it, my body from the previous life and this current body were peers!

It’s a pity I died so young in my last life; if I were still alive, I would be 16 now too. My parents there must still be missing me.

Ah, don’t think about it; these are such heartbreaking topics.

After watching TV for a while, I found the programs boring and turned it off. But I was truly bored, so finally, I found my phone and began flipping through chat records.

There weren’t many people talking in the newly created class group. I didn’t seem to have many friends; my social circle was small and monotonous. Looking through it all, there wasn’t a single friend who could be called “close.”

The original owner was so pitiful; didn’t she feel lonely?

Never mind that; from the moment I took over this body, I won’t allow this situation to continue!

There’s no rush for that; let’s look at something else first.

Scrolling down, I actually found a three-person family group.

Dad: How has Lingling been lately? Have you gone out traveling?

Wen Ling: No, I’m busy attending cram school.

Dad: You’ve already graduated, why are you still in cram school? A summer without homework should be for running wild!

Wen Ling: I feel like… there’s nowhere fun to go, and besides, no one is here to go with me.

Mom: Find your classmates or friends and go in a group. Don’t have any worries; Mom will provide the funds, just focus on playing!

Wen Ling: [Sigh emoji]

After reading a pile of chat records, my head felt like it was going to explode.

Although the original owner was an only child with no worries about food or drink, she was extremely starved of love due to the long-term lack of parental companionship. This led to an introverted personality and an inability to make friends she had even been bullied.

Wait, who is so blind that they dare to bully Wen Ling? With this family background, they’ve got quite the nerve!

Alright, it seems that although the original owner’s life was good, she had unspeakable suffering as well—another pitiful child.

Don’t worry, original owner; now that I, Wen Ling, am here, I won’t let this body suffer a bit for the rest of its life! Uh… at least I can guarantee that for the next four years.

Having investigated enough, I finally returned to my luxurious master bedroom to sleep with satisfaction.

“Wen Ling, why are you here?”

I was startled by a sudden voice and discovered I was standing on a cloud. The surroundings were a vast expanse of pure white, possessing a heart-shaking beauty.

“Wen Ling, I’m talking to you.”

I suddenly snapped out of it and looked toward the voice, seeing a beautiful young woman. The girl was dressed in a light green, chest-high Ruqun with a white gauze robe draped over her. Her head was full of hairpins and ornaments. She stood not far away, staring at me with a half-smile, which made me feel quite uncomfortable.

But this “Sister” was truly beautiful; it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was a celestial being descended to earth. Maybe she really is a celestial.

She walked slowly toward me, keeping that smile while staring at me. Only when she was close did she ask: “How did you get up here?”

I was also quite confused and shook my head: “I was sleeping, and when I opened my eyes, I was here.”

The sister frowned, as if she had discovered something, and sighed: “I’ll send you back. Don’t run around blindly in the future.”

“Oh,” I replied honestly, but being truly curious, I asked her a question: “Beautiful sister, do you know me?”

She curled her lips and asked back: “Do you know me?”

“I don’t.”

“Then why did you call me ‘Sister’ as soon as we met?”

I didn’t think there was anything wrong with that: “It’s normal; I can’t call you ‘Little Sister,’ that would be too strange.”

“So you think I am older than you?”

“Uh… yes and no… I guess.” I was dying of embarrassment. How could such a beautiful sister ask such a tricky question!

She suddenly laughed: “Alright, call me whatever you want, as long as you’re happy.”

She escorted me all the way to a large door, telling me that I could wake up if I walked through it. But I wasn’t satisfied; before leaving, I asked one more question.

She laughed after hearing it and said I would know the answer in a week.

This time she didn’t give me a chance; she pushed me directly through that door.

Support I Waited for You for Fifteen Years