Sister, can I be a maid too?

If we're talking about putting others in a difficult position... I think I'm the one who's putting others in a difficult position.

I bet the older twin is holed up at home right now, brooding over money, and maybe even berating herself in front of her younger sister.

The corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly before he spoke, "No, they're quite reasonable."

"That's good... Oh, right, son, remember to collect the rent from those shops next to No. 3 Middle School next weekend. The ledgers are in my study."

"Next week?" Jiang Yubai's voice unconsciously rose a few decibels. "No, where are you?!"

There was a noticeable pause in the voice on the other end of the phone, followed by a slightly awkward laugh:

"Um... son, I've made some last-minute plans with your aunts to go to the beach for a few days to relax. I'll leave the house in your care for now."

"The rent is fine, consider it pocket money. How about that? Isn't Mom good to you?"

Jiang Yubai almost laughed in anger upon hearing this:

“Dad said he was going ice fishing up north last week, and he slipped away so fast it was one thing, but now you’ve run off without a word?”

"You're leaving it to me to take care of... Is it possible that I'm the one who needs to be taken care of?"

"What kind of care do you need?" Mom's voice was lazy. "The school cafeteria provides meals during the day, and you can just order takeout when you get home at night, isn't that enough?"

It would have been better if this topic hadn't been brought up, because the moment it was, Jiang Yubai's anger flared up instantly.

"I'll tell you! Why did you two insist on buying this villa in the suburbs? The location is terribly out of the way, there's no village or shop in sight!"

"Ordering takeout? Within a ten-kilometer radius, the only options are those expensive and terrible home-cooked restaurants or convenience store sandwiches! This plate of fried rice I made was cobbled together from the last of the food in my fridge!"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone before someone spoke softly:

"I know, otherwise why do you think your dad and I go out to play every day? Isn't it just to eat something good?"

Jiang Yubai: "?"

"Alright, alright, we were just scammed by that house seller," Mom's voice immediately softened, with a hint of coaxing. "They said it was a beautiful place with clear waters and lush mountains, but who knew it would be such a remote and desolate place."

She paused, then quickly added, "Oh right, didn't you say you wanted to find a place to move out and live on your own?"

"Just go and look around. If you find something you like, just tell Mom. Mom will reimburse you for the rent. I definitely won't let you suffer, okay?"

Jiang Yubai felt a little better: "That's more like it."

"Okay, remember to collect the rent from the shops near No. 3 Middle School next week too," the voice on the other end of the phone became cheerful. "My seafood feast is all cooked, so I won't talk to you anymore. I'll hang up now!"

Jiang Yubai: "......."

He listened to the busy tone on the phone, then looked at the disastrous bowl of fried rice on his table, and remained speechless for a long time.

To be honest, if there were even a decent restaurant around this suburban villa, Jiang Yubai wouldn't have bothered to cook this dish himself.

Not to mention restaurants, even the nearest milk tea shop is nearly 20 kilometers away, the kind that delivery riders are unwilling to deliver to.

Jiang Yubai stared at the plate, took a deep breath, and finally, with a tragic expression of "the sooner I die, the sooner I'll be reborn," scooped up a full spoonful, closed his eyes, and stuffed it into his mouth.

The sun is scorched.

Jiang Yubai gritted his teeth and chewed the strangely textured fried rice in his mouth while secretly making a vow in his heart.

Spacious rooms, tranquil environment... it's all an illusion.

This time, I must find a house right next to a food street.

It would be even more perfect if it were closer to the school.

A villa? Even a dog wouldn't live there!

Chapter 5 Lin Tingwan and Jiang Yubai

Monday morning, inside Lincheng No. 3 Middle School.

Jiang Yubai shook the water droplets off the black umbrella and casually tucked it into the umbrella stand next to the classroom door.

Because he lived far from home and it was raining, by the time he arrived at school, most of the students were already sitting in the classroom.

Several girls were sitting on small stools, chatting in hushed tones about gossip.

Several boys in the back row were hunched over their desks, writing furiously, clearly trying to catch up on their weekend homework.

Jiang Yubai glanced around, his gaze involuntarily landing on the figure below the podium.

Lin Tingwan was wearing a clean and crisp sky-blue school uniform. Her back was straight, and she was looking at the textbooks spread out on the table with her head slightly lowered.

As a private high school, Lincheng No. 3 Middle School has a relatively relaxed approach to uniform management and does not require students to wear them every day.

Therefore, many students who care about their appearance quietly began to use this limited freedom to their advantage.

Girls will tie delicate bow ties at the collar of their shirts, or switch to dark-colored straight-leg pants with a better fit.

The trousers are slightly short, just enough to reveal a section of beautifully shaped ankles, paired with clean white socks and canvas shoes, exuding a youthful vibe.

The boys' situation is a bit simpler.

They might wear a brightly colored hoodie open, or deliberately roll up their pants cuffs once or twice, and then add a pair of stylish sneakers, and that's it.

Amidst all this commotion, Lin Tingwan remained an exception.

She was almost the only one in the entire class who wore the full sky-blue school uniform every day.

The shirt buttons are always fastened to the top, the jacket zipper is zipped up to the chest, and the wide sweatpants are ironed flat with the cuffs hanging neatly over the shoes.

The unadorned school uniform, when worn by her, did not appear dull at all; instead, it accentuated a clean and serene temperament.

Outside the window, a gray curtain of rain fell, and she sat there, like a quiet corner of solitude amidst the noisy rain.

"Jiang Yubai, what are you looking at so intently?"

A cheerful voice rang in my ears.

Jiang Yubai snapped out of his daze and realized that Lin Tingwan's deskmate, Zhao Yun, had somehow ended up standing next to him.

He subtly took half a step away and replied casually:

"Nothing, just spacing out for a bit."

After giving a perfunctory reply, Jiang Yubai didn't linger and turned to walk towards his seat at the back of the classroom.

The moment he turned to leave, Lin Tingwan, who had been looking down at her book, raised her eyes slightly, then quickly lowered them again, returning to the open pages of her book as if nothing had happened.

As Zhao Yun watched Jiang Yubai's retreating figure, a hint of annoyance flashed in her eyes.

Jiang Yubai was naturally unaware of what was happening behind him.

He tossed his schoolbag onto his desk, casually pulled out a still-warm plastic bag, and deftly took out a steamed bun and stuffed it into his mouth.

There was no way around it. Although the school rules explicitly prohibited eating in the classroom, for someone like him who lived far away and wanted to dedicate every minute of the morning to his bed, this rule was simply too much of a luxury.

As a result of pushing myself to the limit every day, I didn't even have time to eat breakfast. I would often buy breakfast and then eat it in the classroom.

As for not eating? That's impossible.

Putting aside whether I'd have the energy to handle a morning of classes on an empty stomach, just the sight of those steaming hot, fragrant buns, pancakes, and soy milk at the breakfast stalls outside the school...

For Jiang Yubai, who was being tormented by his own cooking skills and the remote location at home, this was simply an irresistible salvation.

How could he possibly let this meal go?

After quickly devouring the large meat bun soaked in gravy, Jiang Yubai licked his lips with lingering satisfaction and reached into the bag again.

Just as I took out the second steamed bun, before I could even bring it to my mouth, my deskmate Li Yang's familiar, slightly obsequious voice came from beside me:

"Brother Jiang, um... I need help urgently..."

Jiang Yu didn't even lift her eyelids, took a big bite of the meat bun in her hand, and replied indistinctly:

"Take it yourself, it's in the left mezzanine."

"Alright! Brother Jiang, you're like my second parents!"

Li Yang was overjoyed upon hearing this. He reached out and pulled out a math test paper, then turned to his own paper and began to frantically copy it.

Jiang Yubai glanced at the mountain of test papers on the table and said speechlessly, "Don't you know how to just pick one to copy?"

"No, people must uphold brotherhood," Li Yang said emphatically, his hands still busy. "Since we've acknowledged Brother Jiang as our elder brother, we absolutely cannot have any disloyalty!"

"Bullshit, you can see how right my answers are." Jiang Yu rolled her eyes.

After swallowing the second meat bun, he wiped his mouth, stood up, and shouted to the class, "Those who haven't handed in their math homework yet, hurry up! This time, we'll be writing down names."

As soon as he finished speaking, the figures in the classroom who were writing furiously visibly quickened their pace.

Suddenly, even the scratching sound of paper and pen rubbing together became more frequent.

Jiang Yubai wanted to say something more, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a familiar figure walking towards him in the corridor.

He had a bad feeling and kicked Li Yang's stool.

Li Yang shuddered and, as if by reflex, grabbed the Chinese textbook that was spread out on the table and slammed it down on the two test papers.

The next second, the classroom door was pushed open, and a middle-aged female teacher, around fifty years old, with a serious expression, walked in.

“…How could it be Master Zhang?” Li Yang gasped and slammed the Chinese textbook in front of him down.

The classroom, which had been making some rustling noises, fell silent instantly. Students who had been whispering to each other shrank back to their seats, and those who had been blatantly copying homework looked up and quickly used their books to cover themselves.

"Stop making so much noise! ​​You're the noisiest kids in the whole grade!" Teacher Zhang slammed her hand on the table. "Xie Rui, Fei Lixuan, and Fang Yu, bring your test papers up here!"

Several students sheepishly handed in their test papers and stood aside with great self-awareness.

Looking at the students being reprimanded on the podium, Li Yang felt a layer of sweat break out on his back, and his voice trembled slightly:

"Father, you gave me my life..."

"Lunch is on you," Jiang Yubai replied softly.

"No problem! I'll bring Dad a Coke after I finish eating!" Li Yang readily agreed.

After those who had been caught had finished their scolding, looking disheveled and embarrassed, Teacher Zhang pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and said in a tone that was quite disappointed in them:

"You're already in your final year of high school! How many days are left until the college entrance exam? Do you really need your teachers to watch over you like you're elementary school students, making sure you don't copy homework and hand in your papers on time?"

She picked up another stack of freshly graded test papers from the podium and waved them in the air:

"The results of last week's diagnostic test were far from ideal! The average score dropped by nearly ten points compared to the second semester of the second year of high school!"

"Ten points! Students, improving by just one point means surpassing a thousand people! You've just given up ten thousand places, letting ten thousand people walk ahead of you!"