My Gorgeous Neighbor Is Cooking Every Day - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Rubbing her eyes and confirming she wasn’t mistaken, Xia Xingye didn’t bother to put on shoes and walked over barefoot, sticking her head out to look at the apartment next door.

The neighbor’s apartment was dusty and a complete mess, looking as if it had been ransacked.

As Xia Xingye stood there in confusion, her vision gradually cleared. There was someone next door, stumbling to their feet.

As the dust settled, an impeccably beautiful face appeared in Xia Xingye’s sight, and a pair of glassy, bewildered eyes looked back at her.

Xia Xingye was stunned. It took her a moment to realize this person was her neighbor.

“A-Are you alright?” Xia Xingye stammered, saying words of concern. She wanted to go over but couldn’t proceed because of the wreckage in front of her.

Jiang Yingyue blinked, and the ash on her eyelashes fluttered down. She shook her head and remained silent.

Xia Xingye had no mind to investigate the noise now. Her mind was racing with worry about Jiang Yingyue standing in the ruins. What if she got hurt!

“Do you want to come over here first?” Worried her suggestion was too abrupt, Xia Xingye explained, “It looks a little dangerous over there.”

Jiang Yingyue’s side looked like a dangerous, dilapidated house, messy everywhere. The bookcase opposite was shaky, looking like it would collapse at any second.

There were also many things Xia Xingye had never seen before—yellow paper, and on the floor, Xia Xingye looked closely, it seemed to be cinnabar powder?

Does the neighbor draw talismans?

“Um, my name is Xia Xingye. I just moved in here.”

“Jiang Yingyue,” Jiang Yingyue’s voice was a bit hoarse but very pleasant, “I’ve lived here for a long time.”

Xia Xingye nodded and invited her again: “Do you want to come over?”

“I apologize for the trouble.” Jiang Yingyue finished speaking and walked toward her front door. She wanted to exit and then enter through Xia Xingye’s door.

Jiang Yingyue reached the entrance and tried the doorknob, but the door was jammed and wouldn’t budge, only making a grating, harsh sound.

“Just come through here,” Xia Xingye said.

Her side of the wall was messy, but it was traversable.

Jiang Yingyue glanced over and immediately headed towards Xia Xingye’s side without a word.

The wall was practically blasted through, and Jiang Yingyue looked very slender, so passing through was no problem.

Jiang Yingyue carefully held onto the wall to cross over. Xia Xingye instinctively reached out to help her: “Slowly, slowly.”

Holding Jiang Yingyue’s hand, Xia Xingye helped her down, asking worriedly, “Are you hurt?”

Taking Jiang Yingyue to the living room, Xia Xingye kept an eye on her while pouring water. Only after setting the water down did she seriously look at Jiang Yingyue.

Jiang Yingyue’s face was dirty. Perhaps because of the grime, her face looked very small. As for her clothes, the sleeves and hemline had scorch marks, making her look like she had crawled out of a fire.

She was strange, yes, but Xia Xingye couldn’t bring herself to kick Jiang Yingyue out. It was the middle of the night, and it was dangerous outside.

As for her dislike of having people in her private space, Xia Xingye had completely forgotten.

And her earlier intention to have a good talk with her neighbor about the noise? That was forgotten, too.

Forgotten instantly.

Jiang Yingyue drank the water, seemed to recover, and asked Xia Xingye hesitantly, “Should I go?”

“Huh?” Xia Xingye was surprised. “Where would you go?”

“Anywhere.”

Xia Xingye asked with a hurt expression, “Do I look like a bad person?”

“No, but you look like you don’t like me being here.”

Xia Xingye was confused: “When?”

Jiang Yingyue: “Now.”

Xia Xingye: “…”

Seeing that Xia Xingye didn’t understand, Jiang Yingyue said seriously: “You keep staring at me.”

Constantly staring at her… wasn’t that a sign of vigilance?

Xia Xingye laughed: “I was looking at you because I was thinking.”

She got up and extended her hand to invite Jiang Yingyue: “Stand up.”

Jiang Yingyue was puzzled but still stood.

Xia Xingye compared their heights: “My clothes should fit you. I’ll lend you some first.”

“No need…”

“Do you have any good clothes?”

Jiang Yingyue: “…No.”

With her apartment in that state, where would she have any wearable clothes?

Xia Xingye enthusiastically found a clean bathrobe. While Jiang Yingyue went to wash up, Xia Xingye returned to the bedroom. She looked into Jiang Yingyue’s apartment. The situation there was comparable to World War II; nothing was intact. It looked awful, but besides this one wall being blown out, the other walls seemed fine.

What kind of thing is so powerful that it can blast through one wall but leave the surrounding walls untouched?

She didn’t see any other strange items, unless you counted the cinnabar.

Xia Xingye watched for a moment, then turned to clean her bedroom.

Her side was also somewhat affected. Logically, Xia Xingye should be upset, as she didn’t like anyone touching her belongings.

But thinking of Jiang Yingyue’s innocent expression, Xia Xingye couldn’t stay angry. She rationalized that Jiang Yingyue didn’t do it on purpose, and since Jiang Yingyue was her neighbor, it was normal for them to help each other out.

Xia Xingye flatly refused to admit she was also blinded by Jiang Yingyue’s beauty.

Jiang Yingyue came out after washing up, staring blankly at Xia Xingye.

Xia Xingye asked her, “You’ll have to rough it and sleep on the floor tonight.”

Jiang Yingyue had no objection: “Okay.”

Xia Xingye asked worriedly, “Can you sleep on the floor?”

She wanted to offer to go to a hotel with her for the night if she couldn’t sleep.

“Yes, I sleep on the floor often.”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

Jiang Yingyue said she could sleep, and she really fell asleep very quickly.

Listening to Jiang Yingyue’s steady breathing in the room, Xia Xingye inexplicably felt sleepy too.

The disturbing noises had also disappeared. Half-asleep in her confusion, Xia Xingye remembered the property management saying Jiang Yingyue slept during the day, and she belatedly wondered, Can Jiang Yingyue still sleep at night?

Before she could figure anything out, she drifted off to sleep.

Xia Xingye slept soundly that night. She woke up still a bit groggy, sitting on the bed for a while, staring blankly at the ruined wall.

“Thank you.”

Jiang Yingyue’s voice came from the side. Xia Xingye looked over. Jiang Yingyue had already changed back into her own clothes, which looked very new, as if just bought.

“It’s nothing. Everyone needs help sometimes.”

Seeing her looking at the wall, Jiang Yingyue said, “I’ll take responsibility for the wall.”

“We can talk about that later.”

Xia Xingye was finally awake. She glanced at the time and rushed to wash up. She had an 8 AM class, and it was almost 7:30.

Throwing out a quick assurance that Jiang Yingyue could use anything in the room, Xia Xingye rushed out the door.

Xia Xingye wasn’t worried that Jiang Yingyue would ruin her things. She didn’t know why, but perhaps because Jiang Yingyue looked very reliable, she instinctively trusted her.

Even if she was wrong, it didn’t matter; she didn’t have anything of great importance.

The class bell rang just as Xia Xingye arrived at the academic building. The teacher was already inside when she reached the classroom door.

The teacher simply told her not to be late next time and let her in. Her roommates had saved a seat for Xia Xingye and waved her over.

As soon as she sat down, her three roommates started asking questions in the group chat.

Su Nian’an: “Why were you so late today? Are you not used to living off-campus?”

Xu Youyou: “Living off-campus isn’t as good as being with us.”

Bai Lu: “Come back if you’re not used to it.”

Seeing all of them asking, Xia Xingye vaguely replied, “I just overslept.”

Xia Xingye didn’t plan to tell them about Jiang Yingyue for now, fearing they would be curious or worry about her.

She had finally managed to live alone, and she intended to seize this opportunity. She would enjoy the peace and quiet before inviting her roommates over to visit later.

Xia Xingye had classes all day and didn’t go back at noon, but she was worried about Jiang Yingyue, so she contacted property management for Jiang Yingyue’s contact information.

The manager replied with a message: “She doesn’t have WeChat.”

Xia Xingye: “?”

Xia Xingye: “Do you expect me to believe that?”

The manager smiled wryly: “There’s nothing I can do if you don’t believe it. She really doesn’t have WeChat.”

Xia Xingye found it hard to imagine someone living in a big city without WeChat.

“What about other contact methods?”

The manager gave Xia Xingye a phone number and added, “But she usually doesn’t answer calls, especially during the day. It’s best to call at night.”

Xia Xingye just thought the property manager was strange. After getting the number, she sent Jiang Yingyue a text message, but she didn’t get a reply even when afternoon class started.

“What kind of person rarely uses a cell phone?” Xia Xingye suddenly mumbled halfway through class.

They were sitting near the back, and while the teacher lectured, many people were whispering below. Xia Xingye’s voice wasn’t loud and wouldn’t disturb anyone else, but Xu Youyou, who sat next to her, heard it.

“An older person, maybe.”

Xia Xingye looked at Xu Youyou meaningfully. Xu Youyou felt uneasy under her gaze and asked worriedly, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just that I know someone who seems to rarely use a phone.”

Xu Youyou asked curiously, “Who is it?”

Xia Xingye replied vaguely, “I’ll tell you later.”

Xu Youyou pouted and complained jokingly, “Prioritizing your love life over friends.”

“Yes, yes, yes,” Xia Xingye said with a laugh, “I prioritize my love life over friends. I’ll treat you to ice cream later, how about it?”

“Yay!” Xu Youyou was only joking, but hearing Xia Xingye offer a treat, she immediately shared the good news with the other two roommates in the group chat.

Xia Xingye returned in the evening after dinner. The room looked no different than when she left. Jiang Yingyue truly hadn’t touched her belongings.

Xia Xingye stretched her neck to look into Jiang Yingyue’s apartment. Jiang Yingyue wasn’t there; she didn’t know where she had gone.

Xia Xingye placed the late-night snack she brought back on the table. She hadn’t planned to buy it on the way back, as she had just finished dinner and calling it a “late-night snack” was a stretch. But the owner was so enthusiastic, and they were both from the same hometown, so she couldn’t resist buying it.

Since Jiang Yingyue wasn’t here, it looked like it would just be a late-night snack for her.

After washing up and coming out, Xia Xingye heard a very soft sobbing sound.

Having experienced auditory hallucinations all day, Xia Xingye was used to it and paid no mind.

But although she paid no mind, the soft, childish voice sobbing sounded pitiful.

Xia Xingye looked around and finally focused her attention on Jiang Yingyue’s apartment. The sound was coming from that side.

Xia Xingye actually found it a little strange. Even if it was a hallucination, why would it always be specifically from Jiang Yingyue’s side?

Jiang Yingyue seemed to have cleaned up. The large bricks were mostly cleared, and the apartment was not as messy as before. Even the yellow paper and cinnabar that Xia Xingye found strange were gone.

Stepping across the threshold, Xia Xingye announced, “Excuse me.”

Xia Xingye closed her eyes. After she closed them, the sound became clearer. She fumbled her way in the direction of the sound and finally stopped in front of a potted plant.

It was a potted plant she had never seen before. It was a very small pot, and if she hadn’t leaned in, she probably wouldn’t have noticed it. It was a small, vibrant green plant, a bit like a cactus but without thorns, and she could faintly make out a human-like shape.

There were two round shapes in the middle of the plant, which looked like eyes. It was strange but also quite cute.

Xia Xingye was engrossed in looking when she suddenly heard a soft whimper. It was very faint but very clear.

Xia Xingye: “?”

Xia Xingye looked at the little fellow in front of her, hesitated, and gently touched it. The plant trembled and weakly complained: “If you break me, I won’t have anywhere to live.”

“What are you?”

“I, I am…”

Halfway through the sentence, a thud came from behind. Xia Xingye turned her head. Jiang Yingyue was lying on the floor, holding a bottle of mineral water. She looked like she had come from Xia Xingye’s side and accidentally slipped.

Xia Xingye no longer cared about figuring out what the talking thing was. She laughed and helped her up: “Why are you so clumsy?”

Jiang Yingyue glanced at her twice, then looked at the potted plant, and asked with an indescribable expression, “You can hear it?”

“What?” Xia Xingye was stunned, then realized and asked in surprise, “You can hear it too?”

The property manager clearly told her it was a hallucination, and her roommates said they couldn’t hear anything in the audio. She had already accepted that she was having auditory hallucinations and planned to go to the hospital.

But now that Jiang Yingyue asked that, if Jiang Yingyue could also hear it, didn’t that prove that she wasn’t hallucinating after all, only that she could hear sounds that others couldn’t?

Jiang Yingyue was silent. Xia Xingye wasn’t in a hurry; Jiang Yingyue was here and wouldn’t run away.

After a long time, seeing that Xia Xingye hadn’t left and was still waiting for her answer, Jiang Yingyue said solemnly, “Don’t worry about it.”

“Huh?” Xia Xingye exclaimed, asking in confusion, “You can’t tell me?”

“I can’t.” Jiang Yingyue refused without hesitation.

“Fine.” Since Jiang Yingyue didn’t want to talk, Xia Xingye didn’t press.

Xia Xingye’s quick agreement surprised Jiang Yingyue.

“Then can I play with it?” Xia Xingye pointed to the potted plant.

The noise she had been hearing for the past few days was coming from that potted plant. Although she didn’t know why the plant was quiet now, Xia Xingye had promised to confront the source of the noise.

Since the noise didn’t come from Jiang Yingyue but from the potted plant, she would confront the potted plant instead.

“No.” Jiang Yingyue remained cold and heartless.

Xia Xingye asked pitifully, “Seriously, I can’t?”

Jiang Yingyue: “It doesn’t want to.”

“I do!” As soon as Jiang Yingyue finished speaking, the potted plant gave a tiny squeak.

Xia Xingye: “…”

Jiang Yingyue: “…”