In a boundless space, a person and a ball of light stood opposite each other. It was Shen Jianxi and 77.
Suddenly, a small ball of light floated out from 77 and attached itself to Shen Jianxi's neck.
As the light faded, it transformed into a teardrop-shaped necklace.
"Xixi, the new world will erase your memories and implant new ones."
"I won't appear in the new world. This necklace is key to your mission. As for how to use it, you'll have to figure that out with your lost memories. Good luck, and... "
"Come back soon."
77 flickered reluctantly. After losing her memory, Shen Jianxi wouldn't even know she had a mission to complete, and it was uncertain when she would return. Thinking about potentially years, or even a decade, of loneliness, it didn't want to let her go.
Watching the ball of light in front of her dim, Shen Jianxi stepped forward, placed her hand on its top, and gently stroked it a few times. "Wait for me, I'll be back soon."
"Mhm!" 77 nodded heavily, its ball of light bobbing up and down twice. It nuzzled obediently in the girl's palm. "Waiting for you, Xixi~"
With that, Shen Jianxi vanished from her spot.
...
Shen Jianxi sat up in her small bed, rubbing her head which ached from a hangover.
The alarm had gone off twenty minutes ago. Seeing she was about to be late for work, she had no time to linger and quickly got out of bed to get dressed.
It was a bit disheartening. Two years after graduating from university, she had thought she'd be able to achieve great things. However, in today's highly saturated job market, with no connections or money, she could barely find a job as a primary school Chinese teacher in a second-tier city.
This was only because her sympathetic counselor, unable to bear seeing her hit wall after wall, had introduced her to this position.
There was no choice. Although the pay was low and the work was demanding, for someone on her own, it was enough to make ends meet.
After washing her face in the bathroom, the sapphire teardrop necklace, her grandmother's heirloom, still shone brilliantly under the cheap light.
Applying a simple touch of makeup, Shen Jianxi grabbed a piece of bread, stuffed it into her mouth, and rode her newly purchased electric scooter to school.
Fortunately, she was fast enough to clock in at the very last second.
"Phew—" Shen Jianxi let out a long sigh.
Su Ying, the Chinese teacher from Class Two next door, saw her state and quickly handed her a yogurt from her desk, chuckling. "It's rare to see you so rushed. Did you oversleep?"
Shen Jianxi nodded, took the yogurt with a word of thanks, and slumped into her chair, exhausted.
"After my shift last night, my colleagues insisted on going out. I couldn't refuse, so I went along," she said, rubbing her aching eyes. "I really can't do this again next time. My energy just can't keep up anymore."
Su Ying deeply agreed. Her energy levels after starting work were completely different from when she was in school. She, who used to never sleep before 2 AM, now felt sleepy before 10 PM.
Morning reading was about to end, and the two stopped chatting, both lowering their heads to prepare their lessons diligently.
Finally, after the third class ended, Shen Jianxi was aching all over and so hungry that stars swam before her eyes.
Just as she was about to get up and buy something to eat at the school gate, she was called over by an older teacher in the same office.
"Little Shen—" Hearing this, Shen Jianxi's head began to throb, and she instinctively wanted to run outside.
However, the sharp-eyed old teacher had already seen through her intentions. As soon as she moved, her wrist was grabbed.
The grip was light, but she couldn't break free.
After her attempts to escape were unsuccessful, Shen Jianxi could only smile wryly and look at the "kind and amiable" old teacher in supplication, moaning, "Teacher Wang, please let me off! I'm not the only single female teacher in this office; there's Teacher Su too!" As she spoke, she subtly gestured towards Su Ying.
Seeing this, Su Ying, who was watching the scene unfold, repeatedly waved her hands. Fortunately, Teacher Wang's attention was solely on Shen Jianxi.
"Little Shen, believe me, the young man this time is good-looking and a doctor. You two, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, look so compatible!"
Shen Jianxi was at a loss for whether to laugh or cry. She didn't understand why these married, older female teachers always loved playing matchmaker. In the two years since she started, they had been introducing her to potential partners.
Her lips tightened into a straight line. Shen Jianxi instinctively wanted to refuse as she usually did. However, she had already declined countless times, and refusing again this time might be impolite.
Considering this, she could only nod hesitantly. "Alright then, Teacher Wang, but let's make it clear, this is the last time, whether it works out or not!"
Finally getting her agreement, Teacher Wang didn't care about anything else and nodded repeatedly. "This Saturday afternoon at four o'clock, at 'Meet Café', don't forget, Little Shen."
"Okay, okay, I'll be there on time." Relieved, Shen Jianxi quickly slipped away. The time she had lost meant she was so hungry now she could gnaw on a table!
...
After her second job ended that evening, Shen Jianxi rode home, her body dragging with fatigue.
She probably wouldn't be able to do this job past the end of the month. If the school found out, she might even face disciplinary action.
Today, Su Ying had subtly warned her that the school was cracking down on teachers giving private tutoring and working outside jobs, with severe penalties for anyone caught.
Shen Jianxi didn't want to give up her stable job for a part-time gig.
As she pondered this, she arrived downstairs from her apartment building. Just as she parked her electric scooter, a metal box suddenly fell from the sky and landed on her scooter. Fortunately, she had already moved away, or the box might have hit her head.
The loud crash set off the alarms on the electric scooters downstairs. Ironically, the perpetrator showed no remorse or guilt and even made a face at Shen Jianxi provocatively as she looked up.
This brat! Anger surged through her.
Shen Jianxi, clutching her bag, angrily stomped up to the eighth floor.
The troublesome child on the eighth floor had always loved playing pranks, and his family doted on him. Adhering to the principle of minding one's own business when renting, and because he hadn't bothered her before, Shen Jianxi had chosen to ignore him.
Who knew that her indifference would be interpreted as being easy to bully, and today he had nearly ended her life!
Shen Jianxi's footsteps echoed loudly on the old stairs. Arriving at the eighth floor, she saw the closed door, as expected.
She raised her hand and knocked heavily.
"Who the hell is it!" a rude male voice boomed from inside. The sound of slippers shuffling grew closer, and as the lock clicked, the closed door swung open.
"Who the hell are you! Do you want to die?" A man with a brutish face appeared at the doorway.
Facing his ferocity, Shen Jianxi did not back down. She said coldly, "Your son engaged in projectile throwing, not only almost injuring me but also damaging my vehicle. You guys..."
"Are you fucking looking for trouble?" The man interrupted her before she could finish. "Who knows if you're trying to scam us? What evidence do you have?"
The neighborhood was too old, and the cameras within the complex had broken long ago. Knowing this, the man was full of confidence.
"Exactly! Who knows if you, a poor outsider, are trying to extort money? A young girl like you, not learning any good, her mind is all on scamming people, isn't it?"
Their argument attracted the man's wife, who held her son and spoke arrogantly, her words filled with discrimination against Shen Jianxi as an outsider.
The mischievous child peeked out from behind them, looking at her provocatively.
Shen Jianxi took a deep breath, silently repeating "I will not get angry" seven or eight times. After calming down, she spoke again, "It's okay if you don't admit it. I'll call the police. Your son's fingerprints are on the box. I believe the police will give me a fair outcome."
Hearing this, the couple finally lost their composure. They became furious and started spewing all sorts of curses. Shen Jianxi, unable to hold back and retorted a few times, was then violently shoved.
Standing at the top of the stairs, she stumbled backward from the push and fell heavily. Blood gradually flowed from the back of her head, and Shen Jianxi's consciousness began to blur.
In the final moments before losing consciousness, she only saw the backs of the couple as they nervously closed the door.