Home, even in his own room.<br>In a way that felt like a direct crossing, Xavi instantly returned here from the lounge currently located on the shopping street.<br>Looking at all the familiar objects in the room, a sense of time passing surged within him, as if it had been a lifetime. The lounge wasn’t without resting places; in fact, the top two floors of the lounge were designated as living quarters.<br>As the owner of the lounge, unless one intended to await death, one could always live a long life. The endless river of time would cause the lounge’s owner to lose their home, leaving only the lounge as a place of belonging.<br>Thus, the upper two floors of the lounge appeared exceptionally elegant.<br>However, such concerns were still far away for Xavi. The luxurious incense burning in the upper level of the lounge, while calming, couldn’t compare to the sunlight-drenched quilts in this small room.<br>Xavi turned on the old-fashioned CD player in the room. The flowing notes brought a sense of comfort.<br>He lay on the bed, trying hard to recall the events of the past two days.<br>He had completed his first transaction; the thirty days of life he originally had left had now become sixty. But it wasn’t as if the additional thirty days allowed him to treat his predicament carelessly. It was simply due to the fact that Xavi thought if he couldn’t have time alone to calm down, he wouldn’t be able to plan what to do next.<br>He wasn’t naturally a rational person; it was just that prolonged solitude, along with the feeling of loneliness echoing in his heart, made him accustomed to thinking.<br>Typically, there was a fundamental difference between acting after thinking it through and acting without any thought.<br>He slowly mapped out his path—if all went well, his life would stretch into eternity. He wouldn’t age either, but in ten years or at most twenty, this secret would be impossible to keep.<br>The lounge wandered from place to place, this time settling in a shopping street, likely for that reason.<br>It was impossible to stay in one place for too long, let alone form any attachments. He couldn’t have a family because when he disappeared from their lives at the peak of happiness, what would remain—besides the pain of his family—would likely be his own sorrow.<br>Suddenly, Xavi somewhat understood why the lounge’s previous owner had displayed such ecstatic joy and desperation... desperate to escape from such loneliness.<br>The former owner of the lounge might have watched their loved ones, or partners, or even descendants, grow old and die one by one—though this was merely Xavi’s conjecture.<br>Before returning, he had asked You Ye what kind of person the previous owner was. Based on You Ye’s response, all he learned was that the previous owner had been a silent and reserved individual.<br>The former owner only appeared when there were guests. Otherwise, they spent most of their time in their room, with a vintage music box playing continuously for an entire day.<br>And for You Ye, a day was three hundred years.<br>Viewed this way, it seemed quite terrifying—perhaps in the future, Xavi might become like the previous owner.<br>“First, I’ll spend these ten years as if I were a normal person.”<br>Perhaps the future would be accompanied by eternal solitude, but for Xavi, at this age still brimming with dreams, the lounge’s mysteries and wonders captivated him even more.<br>As the CD player softly played an English song to lull him to sleep, its name was *A Wondrous Blessing*.<br>Just before he drifted off, Xavi thought, if solitude was what he yearned for, perhaps this was all a strange grace for him.<br>…<br>…<br>When he woke up at night.<br>It was likely the noise from the kitchen that had awakened him.<br>Xavi stepped out of his room. The aroma wafting from the kitchen indicated that the person cooking was preparing a dish he liked.<br>The woman was modestly dressed, wearing a simple blue shirt and jeans. Her hair was casually tied, and she bustled about the kitchen in an apron.<br>Though simple, she was also youthful and beautiful. At twenty-nine, this was arguably the most beautiful period for a woman in today’s society.<br>Perhaps many successful men would pursue her, yet it was clear she spent her time going home to care for the child instead.<br>Ziling Ren claimed it was out of interest that she took up a journalist job at a newspaper after graduation. Apparently, she already held the position of deputy editor now.<br>As a young journalist, she had met Xavi’s father while covering a murder case. It was as if she had been enchanted, falling for the widowed man who had lost his wife early in life at first sight.<br>Perhaps there had been some compelling stories that moved the middle-aged widower and the young woman, though Xavi was unaware of them.<br>Subsequently, the monotonous two-bedroom apartment began to carry the scent of this woman named Ziling Ren.<br>It had been three years... since that man passed away.<br>But she was still here.<br>“Xavi, are you awake? I was planning to call you when the meal was ready,” Ziling Ren said, turning around with a spatula in hand after hearing the noise behind her.<br>Perhaps due to the high heat, her bangs stuck to her forehead in strands, resembling threads misplaced by a seamstress.<br>Seeing Xavi silently watching her, Ziling Ren instinctively touched her face. “Is there something on my face?”<br>Xavi shook his head, turned, and headed to the living room to watch TV but still reminded her, “...The range hood isn’t on.”<br>“Ah! Oh no!”<br>As if suddenly realizing it, Ziling Ren hurriedly turned on the range hood, fumbling in the process. Yet she still managed to emphasize, “It’ll be ready soon! Really soon! Do you want to wash your hands first?”<br>Receiving no response from Xavi, Ziling Ren didn’t seem to mind and continued busying herself with the food on the stove.<br>Xavi turned on the TV and began watching the news—this had been their usual routine for the past few years.<br>At 9 PM, they sat down at the dining table.<br>Ziling Ren seemed quite proud as she introduced her cooking skills to Xavi and directly placed some food onto his plate.<br>Xavi suddenly said, “If work has been busy lately, you don’t have to come back to cook.”<br>The lounge was operating as usual... compared to this deputy editor of a newspaper, Xavi’s schedule was undoubtedly less stable.<br>Ziling Ren, however, tapped Xavi’s bowl with her chopsticks. With a stern expression, she said, “Xavi, I haven’t questioned your so-called ‘impromptu journeys,’ have I? So shouldn’t you allow me to exercise my rights as a mother?”<br>“Mm...”<br>Xavi could only bow his head as he chewed on a piece of Chinese Meatball Stew in his bowl.<br>Indeed... even after all these years, this dish still didn’t taste right.<br>…<br>…<br>Perhaps due to exhaustion, after dinner and a quick cleanup, Ziling Ren left the unwashed dishes and went straight to her room to sleep.<br>After washing the dishes, Xavi planned to relax on the balcony, enjoying the breeze. However, he suddenly heard You Ye calling him, saying a new guest had arrived at the lounge.<br>The so-called new guest referred to those who stumbled into the lounge without holding a token... these were the first-time visitors.")
