Wen Bai glanced in Aunt Wang's direction. She was still cleaning in the kitchen, seemingly unaware of the doorbell.
Since moving in, Wen Bai hadn't seen anyone else visit Su Ying's place. This was the first time someone had rung the doorbell.
He put down the fruit fork, got up from the sofa, and opened the door.
Outside stood a man who looked to be in his thirties, with short hair and small eyes. He squinted slightly as he looked at Wen Bai, whom he had never seen before.
"Su Ying isn't home," Wen Bai said directly.
"If you need to find him, you can wait until he gets off work or go to the hospital to find him."
Even if this person was looking for Su Ying and knew him, Wen Bai felt no obligation to entertain him. After speaking, he started to close the door.
However, just as the door was about to close, the man extended his hands, one blocking the door and the other gripping the doorframe. He stammered, "I... I I I... I'm not looking for Su... Su Su Su Su... I came to find my... my my..."
The man outside the door looked like a normal person when he wasn't speaking, albeit a bit ugly.
But the moment he opened his mouth, his entire face contorted, his features shifting. Combined with his exaggerated gestures and movements, he looked quite frightening.
He couldn't express himself clearly and became anxious. The more anxious he got, the less coherent he became. Sweat visibly broke out on his forehead.
But Wen Bai wouldn't concern himself with that. In his understanding, this was Su Ying's house. Anyone who came here and wasn't looking for Su Ying must have come to the wrong place.
Wen Bai didn't want to waste time. "If you're not looking for Su Ying, you've come to the wrong place. This is his home."
Aunt Wang inside seemed to have just heard the commotion and quickly walked over.
Upon seeing the situation, Aunt Wang's usually calm expression turned anxious and even flustered.
"Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to wait for me at home?" Aunt Wang asked, her tone a mix of concern and reproach. She suddenly remembered Wen Bai was present and quickly turned back, her expression conveying that she was afraid her son might have scared her employer's guest, Wen Bai.
"Um, Mr. Wen, I apologize. This is my son. He... he has some issues with his mind. He's here to see me. He... didn't scare you, did he?" Aunt Wang said, pulling her son behind her as if to shield Wen Bai from any further fright.
Wen Bai shook his head and paid no further attention to the mother and son. He then went back into the house and settled back onto the sofa.
Aunt Wang's son was still peeking out from behind her, only seeing Wen Bai's back.
Aunt Wang didn't let her son come in. She closed the door, cutting off their sight and sound. What she said to him outside, Wen Bai didn't know, but when she returned, she was alone.
After Aunt Wang had dealt with the situation, she looked at Wen Bai with a hesitant expression.
Aunt Wang had only cleaned the living room and kitchen. She hadn't gone anywhere else, and she certainly hadn't set foot on the second floor.
Wen Bai glanced at the sun outside and suddenly wanted to ask Su Ying when he would be back.
This was his first time truly waiting for someone, and he felt time was dragging impossibly slow. Today felt exceptionally long.
He felt like he had watched television for a very long time and eaten several plates of fruit.
The lunch Aunt Wang made was acceptable, and the snacks were edible, but compared to Su Ying's cooking...
There was simply no comparison.
Wen Bai felt like a wilted eggplant, dejected.
Wen Bai searched around the sofa, then walked back to the dining room, and then went to the kitchen, but he couldn't find his phone.
Aunt Wang watched Wen Bai pace around the first floor and then search the sofa and tables. She asked, "Mr. Wen, what are you looking for? Do you need my help to find it?"
"My phone, it should be upstairs," Wen Bai concluded.
Aunt Wang said, "Mr. Wen, if it's upstairs, then I can't help. When I came to work here, the contract stipulated that I only need to clean the first-floor living room, dining room, and kitchen. I don't need to clean other areas, and naturally, I can't go there."
Wen Bai hadn't intended for her to retrieve it anyway. He wasn't that delicate; it was his head and left shoulder that were injured, not his legs. Besides, he didn't like strangers entering his sleeping quarters.
Hearing this, Wen Bai simply thought, "He's quite particular."
Aunt Wang said, "You can't really say that. Mr. Su is a very kind person. Perhaps he felt sorry for my son and me. This house is very clean, and he doesn't have much trash even living alone. There's just a little dust, so it's not a bother for me to tidy up a bit. He even pays me a salary higher than the market rate. I'm already very grateful. Mr. Su is a truly wonderful person."
Wen Bai had no particular reaction. "Oh."
Aunt Wang said, "Well, if there's nothing else, Mr. Wen, you see... I..."
Wen Bai finally noticed that she seemed to have something she wanted to say. He looked at her and thought of the person who had come looking for her outside.
Wen Bai said, "You can go back now."
"What about Mr. Su..."
"I won't tell him you left early."
"Okay! Okay! Thank you, Mr. Wen."
Then came the sound of the door closing.
Wen Bai went straight upstairs to look for his phone.
System 001 sighed, "This is your human race – cunning and hypocritical. On one hand, they accept favors and profess gratitude, yet on the other, they don't even bother to do their job properly. Look, now they're asking you to lie for them to protect their own interests."
He pushed open the door, and indeed, his phone was on the table.
"You really dislike humans?"
"I dislike specific humans very much."
Wen Bai picked up his phone and saw missed calls and unread messages. He wasn't in a hurry to check them.
The most important thing was to call Su Ying.
The call connected, but it wasn't Su Ying who answered. Wen Bai heard a woman's voice on the other end, "Dr. Su, the call is connected."
Then came Su Ying's voice, starting softly and growing louder, followed by his deep, magnetic tone: "Bored?"
"When are you coming back?"
There was a low chuckle from the other end, a pleased sound from his throat: "I'll get off work early today, earlier than usual."
"Okay," Wen Bai said, hanging up the phone.
With the confirmation of Su Ying's earlier departure time, Wen Bai's mood brightened considerably.
The desk was by the window, and the curtains were not drawn, making it a floor-to-ceiling window.
As Wen Bai was on the phone, he caught a glimpse of a figure below.
He looked down and saw Aunt Wang's son, hiding among the bushes, peeking up at Wen Bai from below.
Wen Bai habitually ignored people who were irrelevant to his tasks.
He withdrew his gaze and began replying to messages, informing Lin Shuang that he had been discharged yesterday.
Lin Shuang immediately called: "Mr. Wen, I bought you some things. Send me your address, and I'll bring them over now, shall I?"
The person downstairs had disappeared, and it was rare to see anyone in the vicinity. Su Ying's house was quite isolated. A thought crossed Wen Bai's mind, and the words of refusal he was about to speak were swallowed back. He said, "Okay."
Then he sent his address.
Humming a tune, Wen Bai went to the kitchen. His fingertips brushed against the handles of various sharp objects, and he picked out an extremely sharp knife, holding it up to the sunlight.
"Very beautiful."
System 001 watched, increasingly uneasy. Inviting the female lead here, with this demeanor, had she not given up yet?
It subtly reminded him, "Host, does your shoulder hurt?"