Chapter 5 Liu Shishi: You Truly Are a Timely Rain
“Is the water pipe clogged? No water coming out?”
“All right, I got it. I’ll send you the property management’s number right away.”
“Should I come over first to take a look? If it’s not fixable, then you can call the property management.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up, Zhang Yang casually grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off his body, changed into a fitted tank top, then took his keys and headed to Naza’s place.
Women are generally more sensual than men, though they often appear reserved. When a man has a physique to show off, he shouldn’t hesitate.
For women, seeing a man’s eight-pack abs, the V-shaped line, and broad shoulders is as thrilling as men watching a captivating scene in a survival game.
*Ding dong.*
Zhang Yang arrived at apartment 802 and pressed the doorbell, calling out, “Naza, it’s me.”
The door soon opened, revealing Naza with a bare face yet stunningly beautiful, dressed in a snug nightgown.
“Senior... Brother?!” Naza was about to greet him warmly, but when she noticed Zhang Yang’s toned upper body outlined by the tank top, her heart skipped a beat.
Instinctively, her gaze drifted toward his faintly visible, well-defined chest muscles. Her ears flushed fiercely, and she swallowed nervously.
The sound of her swallowing was rather loud, and she blushed deeply all the way down to her neck.
Zhang Yang seemed oblivious to her embarrassment and smiled, saying, “I was working out earlier, so I missed your call. Sorry.”
Naza, feeling a bit guilty, averted her eyes and replied lightly, “It’s okay.”
At first, she was a little annoyed that her call hadn’t gone through, but now seeing his physique, it wasn’t so bad.
“So, you said the water pipe is clogged. What’s the exact situation?” Zhang Yang cut straight to the point.
Naza led him to the bathroom and explained, “I wanted to take a shower, but no water is coming out.”
“My agent told me that the water and electricity bills are paid on time, so I thought maybe the pipe is broken.”
Listening to her, Zhang Yang turned the shower valve, confirming no water flowed out.
He then went to the nearby sink and turned on the faucet—still no water.
“I think the clog is pretty serious,” Naza said, folding her arms and standing at the door.
Her eyes kept drifting unconsciously to Zhang Yang’s muscular arms and abs, then she quickly looked away, as if afraid he’d notice, like a guilty thief.
Zhang Yang said nothing, stepping out of the bathroom and checking the kitchen faucet, which also had no water.
“Just as expected.”
He smiled inwardly, then turned and went outside. Under Naza’s watchful gaze, he opened the utility hatch and reached in to turn the main water valve.
*Splash, splash!*
After a few breaths, water could be heard flowing again inside the bathroom.
“The water’s back!” Naza exclaimed joyfully.
Zhang Yang approached her with a teasing look. “The main valve wasn’t open. That’s quite serious. Even if you dismantled all the pipes in the apartment, no water would come out.”
Naza blushed again.
The first time was embarrassment; this second time, she felt downright ashamed.
She could clearly detect the teasing tone in Zhang Yang’s words.
“Junior sister, now that it’s fixed, I’ll go back and take a shower,” Zhang Yang said succinctly and left decisively.
He actually had ways to keep teasing Naza—like purposely not bringing his keys so the property management would have to come open the door. He could have asked Naza to let him stay for a while; after all, a young man and woman alone in one room would create a certain atmosphere.
But he didn’t do any of that.
There’s always time.
“Naza asking me for help just now confirmed one of my suspicions,” Zhang Yang pondered as he soaked in the bathtub.
Since Naza is in the entertainment circle, helping her solve a problem could be an opportunity to get closer. Yet the opportunity manual hadn’t indicated anything.
This either meant the manual foresaw he would solve the problem, or that Naza would never have faced such a difficulty otherwise.
He replayed the day in his mind. If he hadn’t gotten the entertainment circle opportunity manual, he’d probably have gone back to his dorm to sleep, never meeting Naza in the apartment, let alone exchanging contact information or having her come to him for help.
In the original timeline, she might never have encountered this trouble.
Meanwhile, as Naza soaked in the tub, she messaged her agent about the evening’s events.
Her agent quickly replied: “There’s a notice left by the property management on your front door, reminding you to open the main valve before using water.”
Naza: “...”
When she first came home and saw Zhang Yang enter 801, she hadn’t even glanced at the door of 802.
She quickly finished her shower and ran to the door to tear down the notice.
If Zhang Yang had seen it, she’d be mortified beyond words.
Though their time together was brief, Zhang Yang had left a deep impression on her.
That impression soon became a memory she would never forget.
“No, no!”
The next morning, Naza startled awake.
Looking around, she felt she must be crazy.
Someone she had just met appeared in her dream.
Though nothing substantial happened in the dream—probably because of her inexperience—it was still unsettling.
On the other side of the wall, Zhang Yang had slept soundly all night.
After waking, he washed up, dressed neatly, enjoyed a meal of pan-fried buns at an old shop, then took a car to the office.
Wearing a mask, he stopped by a nearby convenience store. Guided by the clerk, he bought several types and sizes of sanitary pads.
Liu Shishi needed daily-use pads with a soft cotton surface, between 240 and 350 mm. He wouldn’t just buy those, though—that would seem too deliberate, too obvious.
The cashier seemed accustomed to men buying such products and checked him out smoothly without a flicker of surprise.
Zhang Yang breathed a sigh of relief and returned to the company with his “props,” quietly waiting in his lounge for the right moment.
Meanwhile, Liu Shishi arrived at the company in a chauffeured car and immediately went to Cai Yinong’s office.
The two chatted casually for a long time before Cai Yinong broached the topic: “Shishi, no objections to partnering with a newcomer, right?”
Liu Shishi smiled lightly, “Everyone was a newcomer once. I have no objections.”
Given Cai Yinong’s authoritarian nature, even if she had objections, they wouldn’t matter. Besides, she truly didn’t care about such things.
“Good,” Cai Yinong was pleased with Liu Shishi’s attitude. This was also a test of her control over her artists.
“Actually, you don’t have to work with the newcomer,” Cai Yinong said, “Try persuading Old Hu to take the lead male role.”
Liu Shishi knew this was Cai Yinong’s real agenda—she still wanted Hu Ge to play the male lead.
She was about to politely refuse when a sudden heaviness and warmth in her lower abdomen caught her attention.
Realizing the date, she inwardly frowned and quickly said, “Sister K, I understand. I’ll try persuading him again. I have something to attend to, so I’ll head back to the lounge first.”
Having gotten the answer she wanted, Cai Yinong naturally didn’t object.
Liu Shishi hurried back to her lounge and went straight to the restroom. She opened the storage box beside it, only to find it empty.
“Used up!” she frowned instinctively, about to ask her assistant to buy more.
But as soon as she opened her mouth, she remembered she’d given them the day off.
“This is terrible!”
Liu Shishi realized she had no choice but to endure the discomfort and handle it herself.
She couldn’t just stop a stranger to buy some for her.
Putting on her contact lenses, mask, and baseball cap, she stepped out of her private lounge and saw someone approaching.
A familiar face—Zhang Yang!
“Sister Shishi!”
Zhang Yang’s face registered surprise upon seeing Liu Shishi.
He hastily hid the transparent bag behind his back.
But this only piqued Liu Shishi’s curiosity. She looked closely.
Seeing what was inside the bag, her expression grew subtle.
It was as if sleepiness had been met with a pillow; Zhang Yang was her timely savior.
“Ah Yang, why are you buying this kind of thing?”