Chapter 8: Chapter 8 Unusual (2)_1
About one meter to the left of the small pond, there was a spring eye continuously bubbling with water. Situ Xin stood some distance away from the spring eye and wondered if the water was drinkable or not.
Straight ahead of the small pond, and to the left of the spring eye, there appeared to be a thick white fog that obscured any clear view of what lay within.
On the other side of the land stood a white, pure European-style villa. Situ Xin fell in love with the villa at first sight, as it resembled the one she had adored in her previous life. Back then, although Situ Xin was wealthy and could afford such a villa, her job kept her away from home almost all year round, traveling continuously, so even if she bought a villa, it would have remained unoccupied and closed up most of the time. Therefore, right up to her rebirth, she had never purchased a house. Now that she was on her own, there was no point in owning a house. "Where exactly is this? It looks like an outdoor peach garden," Situ Xin muttered to herself. "Is anyone there? Is anybody there?" she called out several times in a raised voice, but no one responded.
"Where am I really, why is there nobody here?" Situ Xin pondered this internally. In her previous life, there was no place she hadn't been to, so she felt no fear in a place that looked like a beautiful paradise yet was devoid of people. However, Situ Xin was a bit worried that suddenly disappearing like this might cause great anxiety for the family she had only recently found. She thought of the four elderly members of her family, their concern and affection for her, and the distress they would feel upon discovering her disappearance—she felt uneasy inside. "Ah, I wonder if I've traveled through time or something? But it would be great if I could go back. I don't want my family, who I've struggled so hard to gain, to worry about me." No sooner had Xu Yuwei finished muttering to herself than the scenery before her changed, and after a brief blur before her eyes, when she could see clearly again, she found herself back in her own room. "Eh, what's going on, wasn't I just in that peach-like paradise a moment ago? How did I suddenly return to my own room?" Situ Xin was confused and realized she could no longer speak; she could only make "oh, oh" sounds. Moreover, her movements were not as agile as before. "Could I just have been dreaming?" she now seriously doubted whether she had been dreaming, but if it was a dream, it had felt incredibly real.
As Situ Xin pondered what had happened, the door creaked open. She quickly shut her eyes and pretended to sleep, and the person who entered tiptoed carefully, fearing they might wake her. Aunt Wu from the Situ Family, the nanny responsible for taking care of Situ Xin, was the one who had come to check on her, worried Situ Xin might be hungry or had wet herself in the middle of the night. She was well aware that the young miss of the Situ Family had been the darling of the entire household since birth. The elderly masters of both the Situ and Loo Families doted on her greatly. Aunt Wu had taken to the charming child from the moment she set eyes on her. Seeing the little one peacefully asleep in her bed, Aunt Wu smiled, then left the room feeling reassured.
After Aunt Wu had left the room, Situ Xin could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. She then continued to grapple with the question: "Was I actually dreaming?" Situ Xin calmed herself and thought back carefully on what had just happened. She recalled that she was thinking "I want to go back" when everything before her eyes blurred, and when she opened them again, she found the scenery had changed to her own room. Reflecting on everything, for some reason, she found the situation oddly familiar. "Why do I feel as if I have seen such a scene somewhere before?" Offered Situ Xin, who had been very intelligent in her previous life and possessed a photographic memory. Sometimes, she could recall very clearly things she had seen just once.
"Ah, I remember now." Situ Xin searched her past memories carefully. "Isn't this just like the scenarios described in those novels Zhang Li used to read?" Back when they were in the same team of agents, Zhang Li, the newcomer, had a hobby of reading novels. There was a time when novels about Personal Space were popular, and after reading them, she spoke of them in the team, claiming how convenient it would be for their line of work, as agents, to have a Personal Space; it would be a safe hideaway during dangerous missions. Many in the team would laugh at Zhang Li for daydreaming.
"Is it really the Personal Space that Zhang Li talked about?" Situ Xin was still unsure. The whole notion of a Personal Space seemed too incredible. However, she then thought that if she could be reborn with her memories after death, then the idea of having an additional Personal Space didn't seem so far-fetched.
Situ Xin tried to recall Zhang Li's description of the Personal Space from the novels; however, it was only a few words. Fortunately, even those few words were useful. For instance, to enter the space, one only had to think "I want to go in," and to leave, just think "I want to come out." Considering this, Situ Xin thought, "I don't know whether my situation just now was due to the Personal Space," although uncertain, she still wanted to try.
"I want to go in." Situ Xin silently chanted in her mind, and miraculously, the scenery before her eyes changed again, transforming back to the paradise-like environment. "I've really come in," said a thrilled Situ Xin. "There really is such a thing as Personal Space." She considered that if she had had such a space in her previous life, maybe she wouldn't have had to die. But she soon came to terms with it; as lonely as she had been in her last life, if she hadn't died, she probably wouldn't have all these loving family members now. Compared to her previous life, Situ Xin preferred her current life filled with familial love and without the need to undertake dangerous tasks.
Standing there, Situ Xin scrutinized the scenery of the space once more. Her view had completely changed from the last time. Initially, it was sheer appreciation, but now, she was looking at something that belonged to her.