NOVEL NEXT Ch. 19
Chapter 19: A Boring Day
Raindrops struck the surface of the umbrella, producing a dull sound.
They splattered onto the roadside metal panels and slanted steps, clinking noisily.
Bai Lengci held up a black umbrella, walking along the wet sidewalk.
Her black shoes stepped through puddles, making muffled “thump, thump, thump” sounds.
The hems of her dark-colored pants inevitably got soaked, the fabric turning even darker.
They clung to her fair, slender ankles, bringing a cold, sticky sensation.
The air was filled with the damp scent of rain washing over soil and city dust, somewhat refreshing.
But to her overly sensitive sense of smell, there was also a faint trace of sewage stench mixed in.
What should she eat tonight?
It had already been several days since she drank a little chicken blood on the 20th.
And today, that deep, gnawing feeling returned again.
Drinking blood every day… the very thought made Bai Lengci feel a kind of physical aversion and fatigue.
This was not a long-term solution.
She walked along the roadside and saw, not far away, a brightly lit supermarket.
She calculated how much money she still had and her budget.
Rent, utilities, the most basic living supplies… there were still more than 20 days before school started.
She needed money, the credentials to maintain a “normal” operation in society.
That library job she had quit back in the second semester of her sophomore year of high school—
The hourly pay had been decent, but it consumed too much time and was not worth it.
While calculating her livelihood this way, Bai Lengci pushed open the glass door of the supermarket.
The bell on the door gave a crisp “ding-ling.” Warm air mixed with the scents of food rushed at her.
Fresh produce section.
Beef: 29 yuan/jin.
Pork: 18 yuan/jin.
Whole chicken: 15 yuan/jin.
She walked up to the beef counter, picked a small piece of sirloin that looked reasonably fresh and red, had it weighed, and a label was printed: 23.5 yuan. She then went to grab half a dozen eggs.
There were not many people at the cashier counter.
Only a young female cashier wearing glasses scanned the items.
“Beef, 23.5 yuan. Eggs, 6.5 yuan… total 53 yuan.”
Her voice carried no fluctuation, tinged with the weariness of staying up late.
Bai Lengci took out her phone to scan and pay.
“Beep.”
“Payment successful.”
Walking out of the supermarket, the rain had already eased a lot, turning into a fine drizzle, barely needing an umbrella.
The damp, chilly air entered her lungs, carrying the freshness that followed rain.
Back at her rented apartment, she turned on the light.
Bai Lengci took off her coat with the wet pant hems and changed into dry home clothes.
She boiled water, waiting for it to heat.
She divided the piece of sirloin into two halves, leaving one for later and eating one now.
She sliced it into thin pieces and dropped them into the boiling water.
There were no scallions, ginger, or cooking wine to mask the odor—only plain water and meat slices rolling in the pot.
After about twenty minutes, the meat slices had completely turned grayish-white, losing all blood color and freshness.
On the dining table sat a bowl of plain boiled beef slices and a glass of water.
Bai Lengci sat at the table, picked up her chopsticks, clamped a piece of somewhat tough beef, and placed it into her mouth.
It carried a faint meaty odor.
She slowly, bite by bite, chewed it.
Meanwhile, she scrolled on her phone.
Her fingers slid across various job-hunting apps and information platforms.
“Milk tea shop clerk: good appearance and temperament required, cheerful personality, able to work morning and night shifts.”
“Restaurant waiter: quick and efficient, experienced preferred.”
“Private tutor: help with junior high mathematics and physics, requires current student or graduate of a top university.”
“Online shop customer service: fast typing speed, patient and attentive, able to accept night shifts.”
…
One requirement after another flashed before her eyes.
Most required high-frequency interactions with people, requiring traits like “cheerful,” “enthusiastic,” “patient”—qualities somewhat alien to her.
Some required academic qualifications or skills she did not currently have.
And quite a few, when opened, were filled with false promises or ambiguous hints.
“High pay, daily settlement,”
“Easy part-time work,”
“Female only, appearance and temperament prioritized”...
These were often followed by the addresses of nightclubs or KTVs.
Expressionless, she swiped away those obvious traps.
She continued scrolling for another ten minutes, marking a few jobs that seemed more reliable.
Bai Lengci put down her phone, the screen dimming.
She looked at the empty bowl, silent for a few seconds.
Then she picked up the bowl, walked to the kitchen.
She turned on the tap, washed it clean, and placed it back on the dish rack.
She turned off the kitchen light, then the living room light.
She entered the bedroom without turning on the light, lay down directly on the bed with her clothes still on.
Outside, the city’s neon lights seeped in through the gap of the not-fully-drawn curtains.
The fine sound of rain had, at some unknown time, completely stopped. Silence enveloped outside.
Tomorrow…
Tomorrow she would go out and look again.