Sister, can I be a maid too?

"......What's this?"

Wait a minute, is Wanwan's panda plush toy really that big?

It can't possibly grow on its own, can it?!

The next second, she realized: "Jiang Yubai bought this for you?"

Lin Tingwan gently stroked the doll's round ears and nodded.

No, I was just about to give my sister a few words of advice, but when I turned around, I found myself being offered sweet words instead?

"Wanwan, you..." Lin Jianxia hesitated, then said with a pained expression, "Didn't my sister tell me not to accept gifts from strangers..."

Lin Tingwan paused for a moment, first glancing at her sister with a hint of doubt, then taking out her notebook and writing something down.

Lin Jianxia peeked over and saw only two simple words on it:

"other people?"

“Jiang Yubai is considered ‘someone else’ too!” Lin Jianxia emphasized, puffing out her cheeks. “Wanwan, if he bullies you, you have to tell me right away!”

Lin Tingwan's gaze returned to the doll, and she nodded gently again.

Seeing her like this, Lin Jianxia's tone immediately became resentful:

"Wanwan, you promised me the same thing last time... but you didn't even tell me about the rumors that were spreading at school."

"Jiang Yubai has taken care of it; he was afraid his sister would worry."

Upon seeing that familiar name, Lin Jianxia pursed her lips, her expression somewhat complicated.

In the end, she simply said "oh" softly and slowly lay back down on the bed.

Staring at the pristine white ceiling, Lin Jianxia had no idea what she was thinking. Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, impossible to sort out.

As I thought about it, a sense of regret crept into my heart.

Should I have... not given him a massage last night?

Looking back now, wasn't it a bit too ambiguous for a man and a woman to be alone in a room, especially in a study?

Will he feel... that he's too frivolous?

They would actually do something like this just for that two thousand yuan scholarship.

Jiang Yubai, Jiang Yubai...

She silently repeated the name in her heart, her lips pursed even tighter.

The reason he gave Lin Tingwan such instructions wasn't because he was genuinely worried that his sister would be kidnapped by Jiang Yubai.

Okay, maybe a little, but more than that...

From the very first meeting in the hallway, it seemed that my sister and I had always been burdened by his kindness.

Once, twice, three times.

He was the one who agreed to extend the rent, he was the one who helped recover the withheld wages, and even the future living expenses and his sister's illness... it seems that his involvement is indispensable.

Logically speaking, Lin Jianxia should be extremely grateful to Jiang Yubai and should accept his kindness with gratitude and in due course.

But for some reason, a barely perceptible sense of grievance lingered in my heart.

The more you give, the more you feel you can't repay it.

Lin Jianxia couldn't quite put her finger on what she was anxious about or afraid of, but that inexplicable emotion was taking root in her heart.

As she pondered, she slowly closed her eyes.

Let your consciousness slowly sink into darkness.

.............

study.

Jiang Yubai stared at the English test paper in front of him, racking his brains. In the end, he sighed and decided to ask Teacher Lin to teach him.

There's nothing I can do. I've memorized several pages of vocabulary, but when it comes to grammar, just knowing the meaning isn't enough.

Jiang Yubai looked up at the wall clock and muttered to himself.

No, it's already this late, why hasn't Lin Jianxia arrived yet?

Speaking of which, this guy was acting really strange this afternoon... He didn't say a word while eating, and after finishing, he grabbed Lin Tingwan and left in a hurry.

It's almost like she's avoiding him.

Just then, I heard a soft "click" from the doorknob.

Turning my head, I saw that familiar figure sitting down beside me, carrying a schoolbag.

"Why are you so slow today?" Jiang Yubai asked casually.

"I overslept."

Lin Jianxia pursed her lips, her gaze drifting to the side, avoiding his eyes somewhat guiltily.

Jiang Yubai didn't mind, and moved closer to her, pointing to a grammar fill-in-the-blank question on the test paper:

"Hey, hey, I was just worried you wouldn't come. What form should I fill in for 'fail' on this question?"

Before he finished speaking, Lin Jianxia suddenly shrank to the other side, creating a distance of half a meter between them.

"..."

Jiang Yubai looked at this guy with a subtle expression and couldn't help but complain:

What are you doing? Are you having a fit?

Seemingly realizing she had overreacted, Lin Jianxia's ears suddenly turned a little red, and she moved back a little closer to him, stammering:

"Let me...let me look at the questions..."

No, what's going on?

Jiang Yubai looked her over suspiciously a few times.

However, Lin Jianxia quickly calmed herself down and lightly tapped the question stem with her fingertip:

"Look, here's a concessive adverbial clause introduced by 'Although'..."

Jiang Yubai also put her strange reaction out of his mind and focused on listening to the explanation.

After the two had finished reviewing each other's subjects and assignments, Lin Jianxia took out an A4 sheet of paper from her bag and handed it to him:

"Here are the words to memorize tomorrow."

Jiang Yubai took the paper and glanced at it from top to bottom—it contained fifty words neatly copied by the girl, with beautiful handwriting that was very pleasing to the eye.

"Oh, right, you said you'd memorize vocabulary for another month..." He raised an eyebrow, "The reward for another month should be even more generous, right?"

Lin Jianxia paused in her packing, her voice unconsciously faltering:

"...Yes."

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Jiang Yubai stroked his chin and tentatively asked:

"What's the reward? Can you give us a sneak peek?"

Lin Jianxia took a deep breath and said with a straight face:

You'll find out then.

Not this trick again?

Jiang Yubai clicked his tongue twice, making a serious-sounding conjecture:

"If carrying it for a week can earn you a grilled fish meal and a massage, then carrying it for a month must be even better."

His eyes suddenly lit up:

"I've already tried serving tea, pouring water, and giving massages, you're not really going to wear it..., are you?"

"Jiang Yubai!"

Lin Jianxia suddenly raised her voice, her ears turning bright red as she glared at him:

"Don't even think about it! I, I absolutely will not wear a maid outfit!"

Jiang Yubai was clearly not expected her reaction to be so strong. He blinked and was speechless for a moment.

Lin Jianxia pursed her lips, muttered "I'm going back," and hurriedly opened the door and left.

......

In the corridor, Lin Jianxia took a deep breath, trying to suppress the burning sensation in her ears.

No matter what they said before, the "maid outfit" thing was ultimately just a joke.

Before that, she could at least confidently tell herself:

Her relationship with Jiang Yubai... was that of classmates, or at most, landlord and tenant.

Even though she cooks for him and cleans the house for him every day now, he pays her for it, and she puts in the effort.

Clear and distinct, equal and equal.

She will be grateful and hopes that one day she can repay this favor.

But if I actually wore that outfit...

Wouldn't that really turn them into master and maid?

Absolutely not.

Thinking of this, Lin Jianxia bit her lower lip, turned around and went into her own home.

Chapter 64 Jianjian's Summer Seems Very Strange

Good afternoon everyone!

“Good Afternoon Mrs Zhang.”

After the routine pre-class greetings, English teacher Mrs. Zhang picked up a stack of test papers from the podium, habitually adjusted her glasses, and began announcing the scores one by one in a cheerful tone:

"Alright, students, now let's announce the results of last week's quiz. Students whose names are called, come up and get your test papers."