Midnight Cinderella Chapter 12

When Jiang Ran and Er Huang got back from a walk, they spotted a rather eccentric-looking man standing below their apartment building. He wore a cap on his head, a mask on his face, had his hands in the pockets of his jeans, and was looking up at the building where she lived. Though his clothing looked suspicious, Jiang Ran felt a twinge of attraction to his long legs. They were tall and straight, with beautiful, smooth lines shown off by tight jeans, and looked very s.e.xy.

He was also in good shape, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist.

I wonder if there are any abs under those clothes.

Wait a minute. What on earth was she thinking?

"Woof woof!" Er Huang's sorrowful cry seemed to draw his attention, and the man turned to look over at them.

Jiang Ran inadvertently met his eyes and couldn't help but lament in her heart how beautiful they were. Just gazing at him was like bathing in the river of love.

...What the h.e.l.l was wrong with her today!

Jiang Ran felt like it wasn't really her fault - although this man was dressed in a very low-key fashion, he gave off an aura that couldn't be ignored. As soon as he appeared, one's eyes involuntarily moved to him.

"Woof woof woof!" Her dog suddenly rushed forward excitedly, darting around the man's legs and barking.

"..." What's going on? Is even Er Huang attracted to him?

"I'm sorry." Jiang Ran pulled at the leash in her hands, trying to drag her dog back. The man looked in her direction for a while, his eyes downcast. "It's no problem," he replied.

The sound of his voice was so pleasant it was unseemly. "Is this your dog?" The man crouched down and patted the dog's head. Er Huang was still very excited, jumping around and rubbing at his big hand, barking.

Huh? Jiang Ran was puzzled. Er Huang was usually a very vigilant dog, never eager to get close to strangers. Why was he so affectionate to this man, even wagging his tail at him?

"Your dog is very cute." The man stroked Er Huang again and then stood up. Perhaps because Er Huang liked him, Jiang Ran felt that he wasn't a bad person, and she gave him a smile. "Thank you."

A smile flashed back in the man's eyes, and Jiang Ran suddenly felt like he looked somewhat familiar. Where had she seen him before?

"My friend used to have a dog too, but it got depressed and killed itself."

"...Eh?" Jiang Ran looked at him, "Why?"

The man exuded sadness such that even Jiang Ran was infected. "His dog was sterilized, and afterward it was so embarra.s.sed it couldn't even leave the building. Finally, it jumped off the roof."

"..." She had heard about cats jumping off roofs, but dogs, too?

"Is your dog sterilized?"

Jiang Ran shook his head: "Not yet."

The man sighed. "One should be prudent when it comes to sterilization. If the dog had made it clear that he doesn't want it done, don't rush to bring him in. Small animals can be emotional."

"Uh... I know." Jiang Ran recalled how fiercely opposed to the idea Er Huang had been when she raised the issue of sterilization last night. She'd put this matter aside for the time being. Smiling at the man in farewell, she led Er Huang upstairs.

Feng Jing stood outside until Jiang Ran's back completely disappeared before taking out his phone and dialing Mi Xi Er's number. "Mi Xi Er, contact that landlord. I want to rent the apartment here. As soon as possible."

Mi Xi Er: "......"

Back home, Jiang Ran looked down from her balcony.

The man was gone. What had he been doing here? Was he someone's family or friend?

Jiang Ran thought about it but couldn't figure it out, so she put the matter to the back of her mind. Changing into a set of comfortable clothes, she turned on the computer and checked her messages on WeChat. When a notification suddenly popped up, she clicked open the interface to find that her coworker Lan Ning was looking for her.

Cauliflower: Jiang Ran, how's the translation of the magazine ma.n.u.script draft going? We just signed on the publication of "The Last Witness" by Kitano-sensei. Do you have time to work on it?

Jiang Ran: Yes.

Jiang Ran: You move so fast! It feels like the j.a.panese version of this book had just come out.

Cauliflower: No way :') If we're not quick on the uptake with these books, they'll be quickly s.n.a.t.c.hed up by other companies :')

Cauliflower: This book is a total of 200,000 words. Is three months enough?

Jiang Ran: Yes.

Cauliflower: Then it's yours. The fees will be at the same rate as before, and I'll send you the contract when I have it. The ma.n.u.script will be sent to your mailbox.

Jiang Ran: All right.

Jiang Ran stretched her fingers and began working. In the evening she counted the orders of the day and checked the logistics report sent by Zhao Wei. A box of goods should arrive in a few days. She opened a shopping site to browse around, and saw Er Huang sneaking in again. Tonight he wasn't sticking to her, but instead he jumped onto the windowsill, looking particularly restless.

Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow. Is this dog also somehow embarra.s.sed about last night? It hadn't seemed to feel awkward during the day. Well, whatever, she would wash off her facial mask first. Jiang Ran peeled off the mask attached to her face and went to the bathroom.

Feng Jing watched her go into the bathroom before glancing at her computer. He didn't expect that this X-Bao seller would still want to visit X-Bao!

X-Bao recommended products according to one's browsing history. Since Jiang Ran usually searched for dog food related products, in the home page for her recommended things were plenty of different dog biscuits. Feng Jing remembered that the dog had s.n.a.t.c.hed a few biscuits last time, so he jumped down from the window and onto the chair where Jiang Ran had been sitting. Paw on the mouse, he clicked on the detailed page for dog biscuits.

The biscuit sales looked good, and the descriptions were tempting. With another click of Feng Jing's paw, they were added to Jiang Ran's shopping cart.

He was a man who always paid his debts.

Jiang Ran returned, ready to turn off the computer and go to bed, but suddenly found dog biscuits in her shopping cart.

Jiang Ran: "....."

She turned her head in silence and looked at Er Huang, sleeping on the windowsill. He was in deep sleep, completely unmoving.

Jiang Ran: "...."

What was going on?! Jiang Ran thought for a while and finally decided that she must have added them herself. But... these dog biscuits were much more expensive than usual!

She hesitated for a moment, then ordered them. After buying the biscuits, she put on her eye mask and turned off the lights. "Good night, Er Huang."

Feng Jing on the windowsill quietly opened one eye to look at her, in a very good mood.

The next day, Jiang Ran began to read through the original text of "The Last Witness". Before beginning a translation, she preferred to read through the original, making it easier for her to determine the style and to convey the nuances. In fact, translation work was rather boring, despite the fact that Jiang Ran had chosen her favourite genre of books in order to have a little fun while working. Still, though Kitano-sensei was a novelist she enjoys very much, he just loved complex words, making reading difficult.

After spending her morning reading through the ma.n.u.script, Jiang Ran had a headache. She went to the kitchen to make lunch and relax, then began putting together the packages that needed to be sent out that day.

She had always lived a very regular lifestyle. After sending away the courier that afternoon, she took Er Huang out for his usual walk. As soon as she got downstairs, she noticed a movement out of the corner of her eye. Glancing over curiously, she spotted a man in a cap and mask. He saw her too, and walked over. "h.e.l.lo, it's good to see you again."

His strong masculinity shrouded Jiang Ran, and she hurriedly concealed her accelerated heartbeat. "Ah, you're the man from yesterday... are you are moving in here?"

Feng Jing nodded. "I live on the fifteenth floor. We'll be neighbors."

Jiang Ran suddenly realized that he must have come here yesterday to look at the house. "It's nice to meet you. I'm a resident of the seventh floor, Jiang Ran."

"I..." Feng Jing thought for a moment. "My name is Feng."

He didn't say his full name, which seemed a bit rude, but Jiang Ran only smiled, not minding. "Do you need any help?"

Feng Jing looked down at the dog she was holding. "Did you come down to walk the dog? I can handle moving in by myself, I wouldn't want to bother you."

"That's good." Jiang Ran was about to lead Er Huang away, but taking a second glance at the mask on his face, she asked, "Mr. Feng, do you have a cold? "

Feng Jing let out a timely cough. "I'm afraid of infecting others, so I always wear a mask, sorry."

"Not at all." Jiang Ran left it at that, instead leading Er Huang out. Feng Jing stood downstairs watching her until Mi Xi Er came down from the stairs and called to him, "The wardrobe is on it's way. I'll wait here, you go up first."

"Mn." Feng Jing turned and took the elevator up. Upon seeing him go, Mi Xi Er finally relaxed a little. He had been deathly afraid of some sharp-eyed resident recognizing them. And honestly, he really couldn't understand why Feng Jing wanted to rent this place so badly. He obviously didn't like it very much, to the point of changing all the furniture provided by the landlord. Yet he hadn't hesitated to put a name down on it.

While he was silently going crazy, a phone call came in from Qin Fan. Mi Xi Er suddenly raised his spirit by 120,000 points. "Supervisor Qin."

"How is the situation these days?"

Mi Xi Er replied, "Nights have been better after the doctor prescribed some medicine."

Qin Fan 'hmm'-ed and said: "It seems that psychological counseling will still be useful. I've already made an appointment with Dr. Zhang. Every week, you'll be responsible for picking him up."

"All right."

"I've been busy recently, and may not be able to check up on him. I hand Feng Jing over to you. If anything happens, immediately inform me."

"..." Mi Xi Er swallowed the words that came to his lips. To the man on the other side of the phone, he said, "I know, Supervisor Qin. "

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Crystal: If Feng Jing always pays his debts, doesn't that make Feng Jing a Lannister?

In translation news, no luck contacting scrpgrl, so I will begin posting chapters (probably once a week) as I proofread them. By the time they're all up, ISUD will likely be complete and we'll see which project I pick up after that!