The sun was high in the sky, yet Jiang Ling was still lying in bed.
Because of her new book’s success, she had stayed up late chatting with Ji Qingyan.
Lu Yuyao was the one who woke her up.
When she opened her eyes, Lu Yuyao was sitting by her bedside, holding her phone and acting sneaky, looking as if she were about to take a secret photo.
Jiang Ling’s eyes widened instantly.
She pulled the quilt over her head and questioned loudly, “Lu Yuyao, how did you get in?”
She clearly remembered locking the door!
Lu Yuyao looked away guiltilly, tapping her cheek with a finger.
“How should I know? The door just opened when I pushed it.”
Lu Yuyao felt annoyed that Jiang Ling had woken up so quickly; she had been planning to take several candid photos.
When she first entered, Jiang Ling was still asleep.
Sitting by the bedside, Lu Yuyao had originally intended to play a prank, but looking at that peaceful sleeping face, she couldn’t help but be drawn in.
The small, heart-shaped face was barely the size of a palm, with a delicate nose and lips as pink as cherry blossom petals.
Her long eyelashes fluttered occasionally, making it seem like she might wake at any moment.
Jiang Ling was stunningly beautiful.
After spending so much time together, Lu Yuyao usually didn’t think much of it, but now that everything was quiet and she could observe closely, she couldn’t help but sigh in admiration at Jiang Ling’s beauty.
That blonde hair was like golden silk.
Although it was a bit messy from her sleeping posture, the shimmering gold complemented Jiang Ling’s fair skin, making her look even more radiant.
Suddenly, Lu Yuyao felt a burst of inspiration.
‘A blonde beauty…’
Among the commissions she had taken over the years, there had hardly been any characters with a blonde image.
Perhaps she could try it.
As Lu Yuyao thought this, her phone was already in position.
She pressed the shutter button.
She had turned off the flash, but she had forgotten to silence the camera sound.
Click, click.
Several photos were taken in succession.
Realizing the sound had exposed her, Lu Yuyao stopped pretending and hurriedly took a few more pictures before Jiang Ling fully woke up.
“Did you just take a secret photo of me?”
“No, I was just checking the time, getting ready to wake you up,” Lu Yuyao replied calmly.
Her expression was so serious that it didn’t look like she was lying.
She opened her photo album to show Jiang Ling.
“Look, see? There’s really nothing, right?”
“Besides, it’s almost 9:00 AM. If you don’t get up soon, the breakfast Grandma made will get cold.”
Jiang Ling glanced at the screen and didn’t see any photos of herself.
Hearing that both Grandma and Lu Yuyao were waiting for her to eat, Jiang Ling’s heart skipped a beat.
This was bad—she had made them wait for her on the very first day.
Knowing this wasn’t right, Jiang Ling gave Lu Yuyao a glare, while Lu Yuyao just giggled.
There was no time to argue with Lu Yuyao about how she got into the room.
Jiang Ling was about to change her clothes, but she saw that Lu Yuyao was still sitting on the edge of the bed, staring straight at her.
She snapped in embarrassment, “I’m going to change now!”
“Oh.”
“I said, I’m going to change my clothes!”
“Then change.”
In the next second, Jiang Ling hugged her pillow and threw it at Lu Yuyao’s face.
Her movement was light, but Lu Yuyao cooperated by letting out a yelp before scurrying out of the room.
Jiang Ling sighed.
She felt like Lu Yuyao was becoming more and more mischievous.
Lu Yuyao had brought her the toiletries, which were likely spares kept in the house.
After washing up, Jiang Ling went downstairs and sat at the dining table in the living room.
Lu Yuyao and Dong Hui were already eating.
Seeing Jiang Ling appear, Dong Hui asked with concern if she hadn’t slept well since it was her first night.
The elderly woman’s expression was sincere, and Jiang Ling felt too embarrassed to admit she had stayed up late.
She pretended she just had trouble sleeping in a strange bed and would be fine once she got used to it.
Lu Yuyao snickered on the side.
Jiang Ling gave her a look, wondering what she was laughing about.
Breakfast was millet porridge.
Dong Hui had prepared two simple side dishes to go with it, along with two plates of pickles that seemed to be homemade.
Dong Hui’s cooking was excellent.
Jiang Ling had already realized this during dinner last night.
Jiang Ling considered her own cooking skills good enough to work in a small restaurant making home-cooked meals, but Dong Hui’s level was much higher.
Moreover, since Dong Hui and Lu Yuyao had lived together for so long, she knew exactly what Lu Yuyao liked to eat.
Jiang Ling thought that perhaps she could learn a few things from her.
The three of them chatted about everyday things.
The simple, warm atmosphere made Jiang Ling feel a sense of unreality, as if she truly belonged to an ordinary rural family.
Lu Yuyao was telling jokes, making Dong Hui laugh heartily.
Jiang Ling watched the grandmother and granddaughter duo quietly.
She could see traces of Dong Hui in Lu Yuyao—gentle and empathetic.
She knew the truth about Lu Yuyao’s unhappy childhood.
Dong Hui was indirectly a link in the chain that led to Lu Yuyao being bullied, but Lu Yuyao was very sensible.
She understood Dong Hui’s intentions and knew what she had to do.
Back then, all the grievances and pain had been swallowed by an 8-year-old girl.
‘The qualities a heroine should have,’ Jiang Ling thought.
She felt it might be inappropriate to say that, but it also felt very fitting.
“Grandma, we’re going out to play now!”
“Alright. Be careful when you go out. Don’t…”
Dong Hui seemed to view them both as small children, constantly giving instructions.
Lu Yuyao and Jiang Ling didn’t find it annoying.
After all, having someone care about them was a form of happiness.
Having lived a second life, Jiang Ling understood this better than anyone.
“Where are we going?”
Jiang Ling asked curiously.
Leaving the house, the two walked side by side along the road in front of the gate.
Lu Yuyao had her hair tied in a bun today, which looked very cute.
Jiang Ling’s gaze lingered on it for a long time, and she even began to imagine herself with a bun.
Then she shuddered.
Whenever she realized she used to be a guy, she felt that this version of herself, slowly becoming more feminized, was quite strange.
“Let’s go look at the lotuses.”
New Village had many ponds of various sizes.
Lu Yuyao took her to the one she thought was the best, though the location was somewhat remote.
The two had to walk for 1 or 2 kilometers to get there.
Jiang Ling glanced around; they were almost out of the village.
“Look, isn’t it beautiful?”
Lu Yuyao’s voice came in admiration.
The pond was large.
Looking across, the surface was a mix of red and green, very pleasing to the eye.
The lotuses were starting to wither this season, but a final trace of pink remained, giving Jiang Ling a feast for the eyes.
There was a wooden hut by the pond, as if announcing that the pond had an owner.
A wooden stake emerged from the water near the hut, with a small boat tied to it by a rope.
The pond was vast; it would surely be fun to row around in that boat.
The two approached the hut and listened at the door for a moment, but they didn’t hear any movement.
It seemed the owner was away.
Lu Yuyao’s fair face was filled with excitement as she suggested, “Do you want to go rowing?”
Jiang Ling chuckled.
Lu Yuyao was always like this—sensible and cute, yet excessively lively in some ways.
“It wouldn’t be good if someone saw us, right?”
Jiang Ling was tempted; she wanted to play on the boat as well, but clearly, these were private possessions.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Worst case, we’ll just pay them later!”
With that, Lu Yuyao had already walked toward the boat.
Seeing this, Jiang Ling quickly followed.