It was quite a coincidence. President Zhou had just arrived at the entrance of the Central Academy of Fine Arts with the painting group, ready to handle some business.
As luck would have it, they ran into Jiang Si and Huo Tingzhou, who were just coming out from inside.
The biting cold outside kept the conversation brief.
After confirming that Jiang Si was willing to take on the project, President Zhou’s excitement was unmistakable.
Though it wasn’t an official employment yet, he made sure to offer the best possible treatment and benefits within his capacity.
“I’ll have the finance department draft an agreement, and I’ll bring it to you next time we meet,” he said, pulling a sealed folder from his briefcase.
“This contains all the materials for the large-scale mural project. You can review it in advance, and if everything looks good, you’ll officially join the team in five days.”
Jiang Si had no issues with the timing.
She was also very satisfied with the terms.
Huo Tingzhou, however, sighed quietly when he heard that the original one-week period had been cut down by two days after arriving here.
But that wasn’t the main concern. Huo Tingzhou said, “Everything else is fine, but you must guarantee her safety.”
The mural stood six meters tall, and the scaffolding would have to reach at least five meters high.
At that height, even an average person would have their legs trembling.
Painting was an activity that demanded intense concentration.
Huo Tingzhou worried that if she stayed up there too long, her legs might go numb or she might misstep...
Just the thought of it made his heart race uncontrollably.
It wasn’t just Huo Tingzhou who was worried—President Zhou was just as concerned.
This was the capital’s main square, after all!
If anything were to happen, the consequences would be severe.
That’s why, even before taking on the project, President Zhou had already reported safety as the top priority.
Fortunately, the authorities took the matter very seriously.
President Zhou explained, “The construction team started setting up the scaffolding yesterday. This time, it’s not wooden or steel pipe scaffolding—it’s the ‘Mantanghong’ type.”
“Each wooden plank on every level is two meters wide. Rest assured, all the planks will be firmly nailed down.”
“Additionally, there are three layers of hemp nets underneath the scaffolding.”
In other words, every possible safety measure had been put in place.
Hearing this, Huo Tingzhou finally felt less anxious.
On their way back, the two stopped by the state-run market near Dongdan. With the cold weather, Jiang Si didn’t want to go out shopping every day, nor did she want to eat at the canteen constantly.
Once at the market, Jiang Si assigned Huo Tingzhou a task.
She told him to queue up and buy two live chickens—she planned to make chicken soup hotpot that evening.
Of course, the hotpot was real, but so was her intention to get him out of the way for a bit.
While Huo Tingzhou was busy standing in line, Jiang Si quickly found a chance to enter her space and gather some supplies: a few cuts of pork from different parts, and 30 eggs.
Seafood was a challenge—winter in Capital City meant very limited fresh seafood options.
In the end, she managed to get two large yellow croakers, a few ribbonfish, and about two pounds of shrimp.
For the rest, she picked a variety of seasonal vegetables, taking a little of each.
Before leaving the space, she didn’t forget to hit the one-click feed button, giving all the little creatures inside a quick meal.
The two of them spent over an hour inside, finally managing to buy everything they needed.
They grabbed a quick lunch at the company cafeteria.
As soon as they finished eating, Huo Tingzhou took care of the live chicken, prepping it and starting to simmer it slowly over low heat.
Meanwhile, Jiang Si went back to her room to organize the portraits she had been painting recently.
It was still early and already getting dark—before five in the afternoon—and the weather outside was starting to turn.
By the time Jiang Si came out, the meal was already laid out on the table.
She didn’t even bother asking where Huo Tingzhou had gotten the clay stove and charcoal. Her eyes were completely drawn to the bubbling hot chicken soup simmering in the clay pot.
The soup had been cooked to perfection, and with the first sip, it was rich and fragrant.
Jiang Si drank two bowls in one go.
Knowing she liked to eat the bones and cartilage—especially chicken feet and wings—Huo Tingzhou carefully picked those parts out and put them into her bowl.
Jiang Si returned the favor by offering him a huge chicken drumstick.
She had never been fond of meat-heavy parts since she was little, thankfully Huo Tingzhou was there to balance things out.
When it came to eating, they truly complemented each other perfectly, their tacit understanding seamless.
“Want some more?” Huo Tingzhou asked, knowing her appetite well.
She had eaten much less than usual today, barely touching anything besides a few chicken wings and feet.
Jiang Si gave him a half-smile, half-tease glance.
Then she propped her arm on the table, leaning her face close to his.
“If I eat more, I’ll get sleepy soon—”
Huo Tingzhou paused mid-cleanup. Ever since that day, he’d noticed she liked to tease him from time to time.
His tone was slightly helpless. “If you don’t want to eat, then don’t.”
After saying that, he quickly changed the subject. “Want to take a bath? I’ve already heated the water for you.”
A bath?
Jiang Si wanted to, but there was no bathtub here.
Before she could say anything, Huo Tingzhou added, “While you were painting this afternoon, I went out and bought a bath tub for you. You go back to your room first, I’ll bring it upstairs.”
Following his finger, Jiang Si saw a wooden bath tub.
She wasn’t sure what kind of wood it was, but the surface was smooth and warm to the touch—it was clearly chosen with care.
Jiang Si grabbed his arm. The tub was pretty big and must be heavy to carry upstairs.
Besides, it seemed like the bathroom wouldn’t fit it.
And the bedroom was even less suitable—filling it with bathwater would be a hassle.
“Let’s just use it downstairs,” she suggested.
There was a storage room in the small courtyard, originally used to store winter vegetables and coal.
After the community switched to gas, the storage room had been left empty.
Now, besides a few old pieces of furniture, there wasn’t much inside.
When Jiang Si had finished changing and came downstairs, Huo Tingzhou had already adjusted the water temperature.
“Don’t soak too long, or you might get dizzy. I’ll be right outside, just call me if you need anything.”
Jiang Si smiled at him. What could possibly go wrong with her taking a bath?
But as it turned out, sometimes it’s best not to say things too confidently.
Just as Jiang Si had been comfortably soaking for over ten minutes, she suddenly heard a faint squeaking sound, followed by a harsh scratching noise against the wood that was extremely grating to the ears.
Looking up, she saw a huge rat darting back and forth along the wooden beam.
Jiang Si’s pupils constricted sharply in terror, and the next second, she let out an uncontrollable, piercing scream.
“Huo—”
“Th-there’s a rat…”
Whether it was her sudden scream that startled the rat, or the rat itself was just as shocked, right after she shouted the words “there’s a rat,”
a shadow dropped from the beam.
With a thud,
it landed right into Jiang Si’s bath tub!
Locking eyes with the rat for a brief moment, Jiang Si was instantly petrified.
She wanted to move, but her body refused to obey.
In her panic, she heard a loud bang!
The door was forcefully kicked open from outside. Before she even fully registered what was happening, Huo Tingzhou had already pulled her out of the bathtub.
He wrapped her tightly in a thick blanket from head to toe.
By the time she regained full awareness, they were already in her bedroom.
“Don’t be afraid! Don’t be afraid!”
“It’s okay now! It’s okay now!”
Huo Tingzhou kept soothing her back as he spoke, while Jiang Si said nothing, clinging to his waist like a koala.
Though the fear inside her hadn’t completely faded, his presence inexplicably brought her a sense of comfort.
With each repeated “don’t be afraid” from Huo Tingzhou, sensation slowly returned to Jiang Si’s limbs.
After some time, she lifted her head.
Her hands snaked around his neck, and as she moved, the blanket silently slipped down,
revealing her slender neck and smooth shoulders.
The next second, Huo Tingzhou’s breath caught in his throat—
