Chapter 24

Mu Hanxia returned home around two or three o'clock. Perhaps because it was the weekend, her neighbors next door were still awake, as light seeped from beneath their door.

Mu Hanxia tiptoed inside, changed her clothes, washed up in the bathroom, and then lay down in bed.

Outside the window, the chilly night seemed sharper, and the withered tree branches grew in silence. Somewhere, a tap wasn't turned off properly, or a pipe was leaking, making a clear "drip, drip" sound.

Mu Hanxia tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

After a while just as she was starting to feel drowsy, she heard the people next door, full of energy, making the bed creak at half past three in the morning. Mu Hanxia grabbed her pillow and pressed it over her ears, but it was no use. The irritating noise penetrated her ears, and she couldn't sleep.