Chapter 16

That night, Shen Yue was woken up by the sound of thunder. The moment she opened her eyes, a flash of lightning lit up a corner of the room, and the camera with its flickering red light was hard to ignore in the darkness.

Shen Yue got out of bed and turned off the camera sitting in the corner.

This unscrupulous crew was even filming her while she was sleeping.

Just as she was about to lie back down to continue sleeping, she heard the faint sound of someone sobbing by the door.

The sound was very soft, hidden amongst the deafening thunder and sound of rainwater dripping. But Shen Yue still noticed it.

She was extremely sensitive to the movements around her now.

And from the voice, it sounded a little like Zou Xuerong, the younger sister of the wicked woman.

Thinking about Zou Xuerong's unnoticeable performance during the day, Shen Yue opened the door. In the corner under the eaves on the left, she found Zou Xuerong.

This was one of the rare spots not covered by the cameras. Plus the cameras filming the livestream at night were all inside the rooms. This really was the best place to vent emotions.

Shen Yue was quite surprised that Zou Xuerong was able to find this spot. If it wasn't just a coincidence, then Zou Xuerong was very observant.

When Shen Yue got closer, Zou Xuerong immediately lifted her head. Seeing it was Shen Yue, she was startled, but also relieved.

Perhaps not wanting to disturb others, she softly apologized to Shen Yue, "I'm sorry, did I wake you? I'll go back right away."

Before she even finished speaking, thunder rumbled loudly again. Zou Xuerong's body involuntarily trembled. She struggled to get up to pass by Shen Yue's side, and in the dim light Shen Yue also saw her frightened yet enduring expression.

Nothing like a 12-year-old child at all.

Just as Zou Xuerong was about to return to her own room, Shen Yue suddenly reached out and grabbed her.

Shen Yue didn't use much force, but held Zou Xuerong in an inescapable grip.

"What are you trying to do?!" Zou Xuerong was a little scared, but for some reason didn't dare make too much noise, which worked to Shen Yue's advantage.

Shen Yue dragged Zou Xuerong back to her own room and pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed.

Zou Xuerong wanted to resist at first, but just then thunder roared again. She had just stood up and now shakily sat back down on the bed.

At this time Shen Yue opened her luggage and took out a clean piece of clothing to wipe the rainwater off Zou Xuerong's head and body. As she wiped, Shen Yue silently berated herself.

Damn it, she had left home in such a hurry and forgot to bring a towel.

Surrounded by Shen Yue's warmth, Zou Xuerong's previously tense and fearful emotions gradually calmed down under Shen Yue's gentle ministrations.

"Thank you," Zou Xuerong said softly. Even without a response from Shen Yue, she somehow felt a trace of comfort.

After Shen Yue finished drying Zou Xuerong's hair, she climbed onto the bed herself and turned off the lights, ready to continue sleeping.

Zou Xuerong sat at the edge of the bed. In the darkness her expression was unclear, but from her motions of standing up and sitting back down, it was evident she was hesitating about something.

Boom—

Another roar of thunder, and Zou Xuerong's body stiffened again. Her sobbing could be heard once more.

Shen Yue opened her eyes and sat up as well.

"I'm s-sorry...I disturbed you again..." Zou Xuerong's words trailed off abruptly, because Shen Yue had suddenly pulled her into an embrace.

"Shen Yue...sister?" Zou Xuerong asked in confusion, still receiving no response.

After hugging Zou Xuerong, Shen Yue's right hand didn't stay idle either, gently patting her back.

Zou Xuerong understood that Shen Yue was comforting her, and her heart warmed. Just now she had thought Shen Yue would harm her, but she was mistaken.

At this moment, a longing rose in Zou Xuerong's heart. After struggling internally for a bit, she took advantage of the cover of darkness to voice her wish, "Can I...sleep here tonight?"

Shen Yue didn't reply, but silently slid over to make space on half the bed for Zou Xuerong.

Zou Xuerong was overjoyed. She took off her shoes and lay down next to Shen Yue, only now discovering that Shen Yue's bed seemed softer than hers.

Thinking it was just a difference between rooms, Zou Xuerong didn't dwell on it.

The thunder outside continued rumbling. Although having someone by her side made Zou Xuerong less afraid, she still couldn't help trembling reflexively whenever thunder sounded.

Yet again at a thunderclap, a pair of hands reached behind her back, gently and rhythmically patting.

Finally, at some point, Zou Xuerong fell asleep at ease, even happily talking in her dreams.

At this time, Shen Yue was the one unable to fall asleep. She got up and went outside, preparing to squat under the eaves and exercise.

The prison boss lady had said, if you can't sleep, it means you're not tired enough! It means you're slacking off from labor reform! How could she possibly not fall asleep at her age?! She just hadn't moved around enough!

So Shen Yue started doing horse stances, then deep squats after finishing those, then Tai Chi after squats, and Muay Thai after Tai Chi. By the time the rain had lightened, she began running laps around the courtyard.

By now the staff were up and about. Seeing Shen Yue running, they were a bit surprised but didn't say anything.

Before the official start of today's filming, they still had much work to do.

"This camera here is busted, it's gone black." "What's the situation?"

"Did water get in? Why's it completely unusable now?"

"That's impossible, these are waterproof."

"Tsk, why did it have to break down now of all times? With one less camera, live broadcast later will be somewhat difficult."

Listening to their discussion, Shen Yue unconsciously approached the problematic camera.

She had seen this model in prison. Even back then it was called an ancient relic, used as a teaching tool for her.

Taking advantage of the director's call to the repair team, she went up and took a look. She almost immediately spotted the issue.

She didn't even need any tools. Lightly tapping three spots on the machine's body with her hand was enough to restore it to normal.

"So we urgently need it today...never mind, no longer urgent now...Wait, it suddenly works again?"

"How's it working again?" The director put down the phone and came over to ask. A staff member pointed at Shen Yue and said, "Shen Yue fixed it."

The director was shocked. Shen Yue could repair machines too?! Still, she had helped them big time.

The director wasn't stingy with his words. "Shen Yue, you've done us a huge favor. I can pay you for it now. What would you like? I'll give anything reasonable."

This was cleverly phrased. It seemed he would agree to any request, but the ambiguous authority to decide what was "reasonable" still lay in his hands.

That meant if Shen Yue was greedy and made some unreasonable, selfish demand, he could directly refuse without giving her anything.

On the other hand, if Shen Yue was modest, they would have a mutually beneficial relationship.

The director waited for Shen Yue's reply. Shen Yue barely hesitated before running to the kitchen, preparing to take the note from the pot.

But to her surprise, the note in the pot was gone.

Shen Yue could only write a new one on paper. After all, she couldn't speak.

When the director received the note, he was puzzled. After reading the contents carefully, he immediately understood Shen Yue's meaning.

"So you want a new pot?"

Shen Yue nodded.

In that moment, the director was moved by Shen Yue's innocence and kindness.

He had assumed a girl raised in a good environment like her would make more unreasonable, selfish demands. And from her self-centered behavior yesterday, he also thought she was that type of person. But now she only wanted a pot! To avoid affecting others, she used this once-in-a-lifetime chance to ask for just a pot! Oh my, a pot! And not even two pots!

The director was too touched. He decided, "Alright! I'll go buy you two pots right away!"

Buy! The biggest ones!

Shen Yue: ?