Liu Xinyu shooed away all the distracting thoughts and focused on the translation work. It was the first time Yiyi saw her looking so focused. And it seems that when she said she was good with languages she wasn't lying either. Once Liu Xinyu picked up a pen and started working, she didn't pay attention to anything else.
Oh, she only looked up to stretch her neck and that's when she noticed Yiyi reading a book too. Liu Xinyu paused as she looked at the copy in Yiyi's hands. Soon, Yiyi put that book back on the bookshelf and took another one. It was only now Liu Xinyu understood how a ghost managed to read books in the library last time.
Even though Yiyi could touch physical things, Liu Xinyu knew that by doing so, she'd be making a scene. If a book hovered in the air, it'd scare the living daylight out of people. Yiyi just touched the physical copy of the book and pulled out a shadow copy instead of moving the physical copy. It looked like this was a superpower called 'ghost scanner'.
Liu Xinyu laughed at her own not-so-funny joke before looking down and going back to work. When she was done, she gave the translated material to Yan Anyi who read through one herself and sent the other two to someone else's office.
Yan Anyi had to drop her careless attitude and pay attention once she evaluated Liu Xinyu's English translation skills. Just this was enough to prove Liu Xinyu's strength and she was actually looking forward to the evaluation regarding the other two documents. She received the answer quickly and Liu Xinyu passed the test with flying colors.
Now, there was a dilemma about which material they could pass to Liu Xinyu considering neither of her three languages were average.
"How about you take Russian?" suggested Yan Anyi. "We have a project that we need to finish soon. The time is short so if you don't mind, work with Russian first?"
Liu Xinyu nodded her head, "It doesn't matter. I'm fine with anything."
Yan Anyi actually expected such an answer from her so she wasn't really surprised. "Then let's do this." After that, she arranged all the material for Liu Xinyu to take with her. "The time is short. You only have two weeks to get this done. Is that okay?"
Liu Xinyu made an okay sign in response, "A week would have been enough if I had my laptop but I think two weeks isn't bad either."
Yan Anyi raised her brows at Liu Xinyu and seriously wondered which affluent family's little princess was she. Even computers weren't something that easily available or accessible to people at this time but she even had a laptop at home. It made one really wonder who she was.
On the other hand, Liu Xinyu had no regard for this since she really forgot that computers were not a common thing yet. They were not only bulky but also very expensive, unlike the future where one could always find a computer that would be within their budget.
"How should I contact you?" asked Yan Anyi.
Liu Xinyu was stumped for a moment before passing on Yi Qin's number to her and saying, "This is my housemate's number. His name is Yi Qin. Just let him know you're looking for me."
Yan Anyi noted down her number before seeing her off but once she left, Yan Anyi looked down at the paper where she noted down the number. "Yi Qin?" she frowned to herself when she repeated that name. "It can't be the one I have in mind, right? It can't be such a coincidence. And why would that pampered young master share a house with someone? It must be the same name." She convinced herself with this reasoning before getting back to her work.
Liu Xinyu was now carrying a cloth bag in which all the translating material including blank papers and pens for her use too. This publishing house was quite humane and considerate. She didn't have to spend money on anything.
"You finally have a job, congratulations!" said Yiyi. "Are you happy? You managed to deceive another person with your innocent face."
"I have never been told in my life that I have an innocent face," retorted Liu Xinyu sharply. "Everyone said I look quite aggressive."
"How is that possible? You have no idea how harmless your eyes look and how they are able to let people lower their guards too."
Liu Xinyu made a face as she really didn't know about this. She knew she had beautiful eyes like her mother and she always thought her eyes made people feel unnerved because she often saw people lowering their eyes or avoiding her eyes.
"Wait! I did not ask her how much I was paid for this project," Liu Xinyu knocked on her head. "How did I forget this?"
"You were too busy writing a bestseller," answered Yiyi as she learned a new term today and used it so appropriately too making Liu Xinyu shoot her a glare again. "You can go back now to ask. It's not too far."
"Forget it. What's done is done," replied Liu Xinyu as she didn't stop and continued to walk further. "Anyway, when I submit my work, I'll know how much I'm paid. I am not expecting big money from it. I'm only doing it to keep myself busy with something."
"You have a thing against rest?" asked Yiyi.
"I have been resting for a few months and felt like I was about to grow mold. A person like me who ran all her life rain and shine isn't suitable for resting. Also, when you have nothing to do, your brain becomes too active and starts creating unnecessary trouble."
Liu Xinyu found a kid eating a popsicle and felt like she should also buy one for herself. She looked at the shop ahead and went to buy an orange popsicle. Even though it wasn't summer yet, eating popsicles was still refreshing.
"You modern people are too good. We had ice cellars back in the day and had to collect snow in winter to use in summer. But you can get ice whenever you want. What a blessing!"
Liu Xinyu ignored the words of this ancient ghost who loved talking about the differences between the past and now. Liu Xinyu really wanted to take this ghost to 2023 to make her really understand the ingenuity of the human brain. After all, no matter how modern 1998 was, it was still not the time of the technology boom. It was far behind her times.
She was enjoying the orange popsicle when someone bumped into her from behind and her popsicle dropped to the ground. Even she barely managed to find her center of gravity to stop herself from falling flat on the ground. Looking at her popsicle that she didn't even get to finish, Liu Xinyu felt a nerve ticking in her forehead.
"Can't you walk properly?!" Her voice was cold and sharp as she looked at the girl who bumped into her. The girl had tears in her eyes and didn't dare look at her as she was still trying to run away. "Hey, where are you going after running into me? Forget about compensation, where is my apology?"
"Let me go!" The girl tried to pry open Liu Xinyu's hand to escape but how could a frail and dainty girl like her be able to escape from Liu Xinyu who exercised all year round?
"Hey, beauty! Where are you running?"
The girl shuddered once she heard that voice and her struggle with Liu Xinyu increased. She acted crazy as she even tried to bite Liu Xinyu, the latter did not even blink at being bitten and actually looked amused.
"AHHHHH!" The girl screamed and cried. "Why don't you let me go?!"
"Shut up!" said Liu Xinyu to her and turned to look at the group of high school boys who were after the girl.
They looked at Liu Xinyu who was with the girl now and the leader whistled like a hooligan when he saw Liu Xinyu's face. He licked his lips as he checked Liu Xinyu up and down with a lecherous look on his face which he didn't even try to hide.
Liu Xinyu's expression turned dark when she was met with undisguised coveting eyes. She was all too familiar with that look and it always made her want to commit a crime!