Chapter Nine: Comfort

Jiang Hu stood under the shower, turning on the hot water. Steam filled the air, shrouding his entire body, and the well-defined lines of his muscular frame could only be vaguely discerned.

He took a quick, almost military shower, changed his clothes, and stepped out, immediately putting on a radiant smile as he opened the door. "Sis, are you hungry? Have some snacks first. Dinner will be ready in just a moment."

Mo Nianian signaled an OK with her hand and kept her eyes glued to the television.

To be fair, aside from all the delicious food in the world, these little diversions to pass the time were quite delightful as well. Take this drama, for instance—she could binge through more than a dozen episodes in a row and never get bored. The acting was truly impressive.

As she watched, Mo Nianian couldn't help but sigh with contentment.

Jiang Hu's culinary skills improved by the day and increasingly catered to Mo Nianian's tastes. The two of them chatted casually about school as he cooked.

Jiang Hu was almost absurdly sweet, never missing a chance to call her "sis" and talk about how much he missed her.

For example, whenever he found an interesting game, he wanted to share it with her. If he saw something he liked, he wanted to bring it to her. If he came across something tasty, he wanted to buy it for her.

Mo Nianian was deeply gratified. Seeing how the child she had raised had grown into the young man before her, she felt an undeniable sense of accomplishment.

Raising a child was just like this—not too difficult, really.

She was flush with a sense of achievement.

The system, however, was not as optimistic as Mo Nianian. Jiang Hu’s malice level hadn’t changed in quite some time.

Although his malice toward the world had dropped significantly from where it started, it was still far above normal. Most troubling of all, his malice level didn’t seem to match his outward behavior.

If the system hadn’t been able to measure malice, just looking at Jiang Hu now, one would truly believe he was nothing more than a sunny, cheerful young man.

The system was anxious, but unfortunately, it had encountered a host who was unruffled and took everything as it came. It was nearly enough to drive the system mad.

Mo Nianian’s phone rang again—another call from a film crew. This time, the pay was substantial, and she was nearly out of money anyway. After a moment’s thought, she accepted the job.

Jiang Hu placed a piece of pork rib on Mo Nianian’s plate and asked tentatively, “Sis, is that something to do with work?”

“That’s right. I’ve had a good long break—it’s time to earn some grocery money again.”

Jiang Hu’s gaze dropped slightly. After all this time, he still didn’t know what Mo Nianian did for a living.

All he knew was that her work seemed easy—she only left home four or five times a year. The money wasn’t a fortune, but it was enough for them to get by.

He couldn’t guess what her job was, and until now, he hadn’t dared to ask.

But maybe now, he could afford to be a little more bold?

Jiang Hu weighed the matter in his heart and soon made up his mind.

“Sis, where is your job this time? Can I come with you?” He put on a look of aggrieved longing. “It’s been so long, and I’ve never seen where you work.”

Mo Nianian looked a bit puzzled. “Don’t you have classes?”

“Sis, you forgot—it’s National Day break. I have seven days off.” His voice grew even more plaintive. “Seven days alone at home would be so boring.”

She thought about it and realized he was right. “Alright, you can come with me. It won’t take long—four or five days at most.”

The director was quite sincere; he’d rescheduled all the action scenes together just for her. At most, it would take five days. If the others cooperated, it might be even quicker.

A flash of delight crossed Jiang Hu’s eyes, and he felt a flutter of excitement over this small matter.

He packed his things and left with Mo Nianian.

This time, the filming location was deep in the mountains—a perfect setting for a martial arts movie.

The director greeted Mo Nianian warmly. She was in a hurry and had no time for pleasantries. After a quick overview of the plot, she changed into costume.

Many of the crew had seen Mo Nianian before. To them, she was something of a mystery.

It was the first time she’d brought anyone to the set.

Especially someone as striking as this handsome young man.

A flurry of speculation arose about their relationship.

It was also Jiang Hu’s first time seeing Mo Nianian at work—and only then did he learn she was… a stunt double.

He’d heard that being a stunt double was grueling—dirty, exhausting work that nobody else wanted, all piled on the doubles.

Dressed in the female lead’s costume, Mo Nianian looked even more beautiful from behind than the actress herself.

It was one of her many advantages—she was tall and slender, perfectly matching the typical image of a female protagonist from behind. There was no worry about a male stunt double giving the game away.

Today’s scene was one where the heroine, after a fierce battle against dozens of men, escapes by diving into a river.

It was a tough scene, and even after just a few minutes, Mo Nianian was drenched in sweat.

The dozen or so men in front of her looked even more exhausted.

This was precisely the effect the director wanted, and he watched the monitor with excitement.

Jiang Hu stood in silence for a long time, watching Mo Nianian tumble, fall, drop from heights onto haystacks, leap into trees, and then crash down from deliberately broken branches.

So this was how she’d been earning money all along?

Jiang Hu couldn’t quite pin down his feelings.

“Has she always been like this?”

By his side stood a crew member—a woman who’d worked on several sets and was fairly familiar with Mo Nianian.

With open admiration, she looked at Mo Nianian, pride lighting her face. “Of course! Sister Nianian is amazing. There was even a scene where she jumped off a building—over twenty meters—and she did it without a second thought. We were so scared we nearly had heart attacks.”

The little fan’s pride was unmistakable as she recounted it, but soon her excitement faded. “It’s a pity no one knows that was Sister Nianian. That scene was even hailed as a cinematic classic.”

The leading actress whose part Nianian had doubled for took all the credit, boasting about how long she’d spent honing her skills and how the result was even more dazzling than she’d imagined.

It was truly unfair!

The last scene was a plunge into water—Nianian only needed to roll off a cliff into a pool below. The rest would be left to the leading actress.

Mo Nianian was expert at scenes like this, wrapping up the shoot in just over half an hour.

The director was thoroughly satisfied, showering her with praise and declaring that the film was sure to be a hit thanks to her.

Whether it was a hit or not didn’t matter to Mo Nianian—as long as the money was right, everything was negotiable.

She exchanged a few words with the director, then headed off to change out of her costume—the water was still quite cold that day.

“Hey! Sister Nianian, wait! Your clothes are here!” The little fan chased after her, calling out loudly.

But Mo Nianian had already gone inside, shutting the door and the fan’s words on the other side.

Busy with a mountain of chores, the little fan handed the clothes to Jiang Hu, who was standing there, lost in thought. “Take these to Sister Nianian for me, please. I have to run.”

Before Jiang Hu could react, she’d already tossed the clothes into his arms.

“Thanks!” She dashed away like the wind.

Jiang Hu stood at the door, holding Mo Nianian’s clothes, caught in an awkward dilemma.