Chapter 3
Chapter 3
8:30 p.m.
The woman’s phone screen lit up again.
A prompt popped up in the ride-hailing app: Arrived at destination.
The order page showed the drop-off point as Juyuan Community, South Gate.
The settlement screen showed a fare of 12.8 yuan.
The woman tapped into the payment system.
Password entered: 925741
After the payment went through, the phone dimmed again.
…
I silently repeated that string of numbers twice.
And burned it into my memory.
That was useful stuff.
Maybe it would come in handy someday.
I lifted the glass in my hand.
My fingertips traced the rim over and over.
I closed my eyes.
I pictured the woman walking into the community, then into the building.
Her steps were light, carrying the coolness of the night wind with her.
8:33 p.m.
The woman’s phone screen lit up again.
She opened WeChat.
And sent Ah Zhe a message:
“I’m home.”
Ah Zhe replied instantly:
“Okay, I’m almost off work.”
“Remember to deadbolt the door. Don’t open it for strangers.”
The woman sent back a sticker that said “Got it.”
Then, as if by habit, she opened her WeChat step count.
She glanced at the 8,627 steps she had taken today.
Then she pulled down to refresh the friends’ step rankings twice.
…
Seeing that, my heart sank.
Deadbolt the door?
Ah Zhe was pretty considerate.
I unconsciously slowed my breathing.
Then I tapped the screen-peeking terminal with my fingers.
My eyes swept over that eight-thousand-plus number on the screen.
8,627 steps?
She had really been all over the place today.
Had she gone somewhere?
Was she hiking?
8:36 p.m.
The woman opened a social trending app.
The top hot search was “Some celebrity’s scandal blows up.”
She clicked in and browsed for a while.
Then she left a comment in the section: “The entertainment industry really is a mess.”
After that, she exited and switched to a music app.
She tapped “Late-Night Healing Playlist” and hit shuffle.
Lyrics danced across the screen:
“The evening breeze brushes the windowsill. Who are you waiting for to say goodnight…”
The woman turned the volume up a little, then switched back to the home screen.
She swiped around the screen and opened a rental app.
She browsed rental listings near Juyuan Community.
After checking the details on two properties, she backed out.
…
Seeing that, I frowned.
A rental app?
Didn’t she already live in Juyuan Community?
Was she planning to move?
A trace of doubt flashed through my mind.
But it was quickly swallowed up by the thrill of peeping.
Whatever. The more secrets she had, the more fun it was for me to watch.
8:40 p.m.
The woman opened a shopping app.
At the top of the page, in the search bar,
there were undeleted previous searches:
“Silent slippers”
“Door-gap anti-collision strip”
“Motion-sensor night light”
The woman opened her cart.
Inside were a few sets of loungewear and a pair of fluffy slippers.
She compared product reviews and shipping times from two different stores.
Then she chose a coral fleece set and placed the order.
The shipping address was Building 4, Juyuan Community.
She sent Ah Zhe a screenshot of the order:
“I bought you a set too. It’ll keep you warm in winter.”
Ah Zhe replied with a heart sticker:
“Baby, you’re the best. Once I get through this busy spell, I can spend more time with you.”
…
Seeing that, I found it even more interesting.
I thought back to the search history in the shopping app.
Silent slippers, door-gap anti-collision strips, motion-sensor night lights…
Those were all things a woman living alone would use to feel safer, weren’t they?
And she even bought homewear for Ah Zhe?
So considerate. She looked every bit like she was head-over-heels in love.
I curled my lip, and that little bit of irritation bubbled up again.
My fingers tightened around my phone unconsciously.