Jiang Lijin suddenly felt waves of exhaustion washing over her. She walked up to the bedroom area on the second floor.
There was a row of rooms here, each spacious and fully equipped. She picked one that stood apart from the rest, which looked like the master bedroom, and walked in. Right in the center sat a massive bed that looked big enough to sleep four people. The bedding was already laid out in an understated grayish-blue, feeling incredibly soft to the touch.
[Wow, Host, this bed is huge! It could sleep seven people!]
Jiang Lijin couldn't help but laugh. "Where would seven people come from? Did you count yourself in?"
[Hehe!]
She ignored Xiao Yi, kicked off her shoes, and threw herself straight into the blankets.
She slept very deeply. There were none of the messy nightmares from the original owner's memories, nor was the system chattering in her head.
When she opened her eyes again, it was already broad daylight outside the window.
The thermostat system kept the room temperature perfectly comfortable. Jiang Lijin rolled over in bed, reached for her optical computer, and checked the time.
It was actually already 9:30 AM!
Just as Jiang Lijin finished washing up and walked downstairs to the living room, the doorbell rang right on time.
"Ding-dong—"
She walked to the front door and turned on the security monitor. Outside, a refrigerated transport truck bearing the imperial crest was parked, and two uniformed staff members were moving boxes onto a cart.
As soon as the door opened, the staff stopped what they were doing, their attitude impeccably respectful. "Good morning, Ms. Jiang! These are your special food supplies for the week. Please sign for them."
Three large insulated boxes were neatly pushed into the kitchen. After the staff left, Jiang Lijin opened them.
The first box contained lush, fresh vegetables and fruits, with water droplets still clinging to the leaves. The second box held various unnamed but incredibly high-end looking meats, all neatly cut. The third box was packed full of rice, flour, oil, and a dozen perfectly round eggs.
In the interstellar era, the value of this pile of goods was no less than a box of gold bars.
In a good mood, Jiang Lijin hummed a song as she took out an apple, walked to the sink to wash it, and took a bite right away. The sweet, crisp juice burst in her mouth. Heaven knew how long it had been since she last ate fresh fruit!
[Host! It's a fresh apple!] Xiao Yi swallowed greedily. [Eat a bit more, just pretend I'm eating it too.]
Jiang Lijin ignored it, finishing the apple in a few bites before sorting and stuffing the rest of the ingredients into the refrigerator. The originally empty fridge was now packed to the brim, which was quite a satisfying sight.
Fed and hydrated, she walked out into the yard where the sunlight was just right. She circled the crooked tree twice, then picked out a natural wood-colored swing set on the Star Network, filled in her address, and placed the order.
Jiang Lijin stood in the yard soaking up the sun for a while. She turned to walk back inside, but stopped halfway.
She remembered that she still had some things left at Chiron's villa. Yesterday, her original intention was just to come and look at houses. She hadn't expected to fall in love with the very first one, completely forgetting to grab her luggage.
[Xiao Yi, I need to go back to Chiron's place to get my luggage,] she called out in her mind.
[What luggage, my Host!] Xiao Yi was displeased, its voice clamoring in her head. [You are now a wealthy woman with a monthly salary of sixty thousand interstellar credits and a million in savings! You're also a 3S-grade national treasure! Just throw away the original owner's ragged clothes and old shoes! We'll buy new ones, expensive ones!]
Jiang Lijin walked over to the sofa, sat down, and poured a glass of warm water. "The clothes can be thrown away, but that old box can't. It contains the original owner's old diaries and photos."
Those things were indeed of no practical use to the current Jiang Lijin, but they were the only remaining traces that the original owner had ever existed in this world. Since she had taken over her body, she couldn't just throw away her last bit of memory like trash.
Xiao Yi paused, then came up with an idea a moment later: [Then just send Chiron a Star Message. Ask him to bring it over on his way. He's definitely going to move in and live with you anyway.]
Jiang Lijin's drinking motion froze in mid-air. "Move in? Live with me?"
[Isn't that obvious?] Xiao Yi said righteously. [You two are a legally married couple now. Interstellar law dictates that successfully matched beast husbands must cohabit with their females.]
Jiang Lijin slammed the water glass down on the coffee table and leaned back against the sofa.
"They are 3S-grades. Chiron is the Dean, Baal is the military's Commander-in-Chief, and there's also that interstellar richest man. These people are busy with a myriad of affairs every day; how would they have time to squeeze under the same roof with me? Living our separate lives and occasionally meeting to maintain a superficial marriage—that's the tacit understanding adults should have."
[You're too naive.] Xiao Yi clicked its tongue twice. [Because 3S-grade males suffer from manic mental energy, they desperately crave the soothing of a high-grade female. You are now the only antidote in the entire universe. They wish they could tie you to their belts; how could they possibly live separate lives?]
Jiang Lijin was stumped. She had almost forgotten that she, as a partner, also had a job to do. She opened her Star Messages and found Chiron's profile picture. Before she could figure out how to phrase her message, a text from him popped up first.
Chiron: [Address received. I have some important data to verify at the Academy of Sciences today, so I'll be over a bit late. Is there anything you need me to pick up on the way?]
His tone was overly natural, sounding exactly like the daily inquiry of a husband away from home checking in on his wife.
Jiang Lijin stared at the screen for a few seconds before her fingers tapped away rapidly.
[For the luggage I left at your place, don't worry about the clothes and such. Just help me bring that old box over. Thank you.]
Chiron replied briskly: [Alright. What do you want for dinner? I'll bring it back.]
Xiao Yi mimicked the message in her mind with a weird, teasing tone: [What do you want for dinner? I'll bring it back.]
Jiang Lijin rolled her eyes and didn't reply about dinner, simply sending an "OK" sticker before exiting the interface.
Setting her optical computer to mute, she got up to continue touring this large house that now belonged to her. After walking around the first floor, she pushed open a frosted glass door.
It was an indoor heated swimming pool. The water was crystal clear, and the temperature control system was running quietly, leaving a very faint mist drifting over the surface of the pool.
Standing by the pool, Jiang Lijin looked at the gently rippling blue water, and without warning, scenes from her previous world flashed through her mind.
Back then, to please the male lead Gu Chenyuan, she had forced herself to learn how to swim. Just because Gu Chenyuan casually mentioned that he liked going out to sea, she choked on pool water until her throat inflamed, learned to hold her breath underwater, and mastered various swimming strokes, including diving. In the end, all it amounted to was Gu Chenyuan taking the female lead on a yacht vacation, while she didn't even have the right to board the ship.
How ironic.
She crouched down and reached out to trail her fingers through the water. The water was warm and soft to the touch. The skills she had learned for someone else in her past life could now be used for her own enjoyment in this one.
I'll buy a swimsuit another day; this pool shouldn't go to waste. She stood up, shook the water droplets off her hands, and turned toward the kitchen.
The kitchen was fully stocked with ingredients, but Jiang Lijin had little interest in cooking a big meal.
She grabbed two fresh eggs and scooped out a bowl of rice that the smart rice cooker had automatically prepared, planning to make the simplest egg fried rice.
[Wow—] Xiao Yi let out a rather pathetic gasp of amazement in her mind. [Host! It smells so good, so good, so good! What kind of peerless delicacy is this!]
"It's just egg fried rice. You really haven't seen the world." Jiang Lijin turned off the stove and scooped the perfectly separated, golden and glistening rice onto a white porcelain plate.
[In the interstellar era, everyone drinks nutrient solutions. Who has the time for this kind of ancient cooking!] Xiao Yi wailed with greed. [You don't understand, if this aroma wafted outside, the kids on the next street over would cry from craving it!]
Jiang Lijin carried the plate to the dining room, picked up a spoon, and had just scooped a spoonful into her mouth.
"Ding-dong—"
The front door's smart doorbell rang. Jiang Lijin didn't stop chewing. Her optical computer automatically linked to the house's surveillance system. She casually tapped the virtual panel, pulling up the security footage from outside.
The screen lit up, revealing two men standing outside the door.
