Sister, can I be a maid too?

"By the way, have you noticed that your sister has been acting strangely lately?"

Jiang Yubai swallowed the roasted meat in his mouth, turned his head, and tried to gather some information.

Lin Tingwan, who was sitting next to him, thought for a moment and nodded gently.

"Really?" Jiang Yubai's eyes lit up, and she moved a few more inches closer to Lin Tingwan. "What's wrong with it?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Tingwan casually handed the half-eaten lamb skewer to Jiang Yubai's lips, while her other hand fumbled for a small notebook beside the pillow.

Looking at the meat skewers handed to him, Jiang Yubai hesitated for a moment, but still opened his mouth and bit off the last two pieces of meat.

The way he's feeding the animals seems to be getting more and more natural...

Lin Tingwan threw the bamboo skewer into the trash can, picked up a pen, scribbled a few lines on the spiral notebook, and handed it over.

"My sister has been reading a lot lately."

Jiang Yu was stunned for a moment upon seeing this sentence.

What's wrong with reading? Isn't it normal for high school students to read?

But soon, as if he had thought of something, he hesitated and asked:

"You mean... your sister is reading a novel?"

Lin Tingwan nodded, then lowered her head and added a sentence to her notebook:

"Watching from the bathroom."

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

If it were a serious book, Lin Jianxia wouldn't need to hide to read it; it's most likely one of those strange novels she'd read before.

However, this matter probably has nothing to do with her recent state; it's mostly just because she's become so cautious since her novel was discovered last time.

However... Lin Tingwan still noticed it.

Thinking of this, Jiang Yubai couldn't help but turn his head away.

But you really don't treat me like an outsider... your own sister secretly reading novels in the bathroom...

Can you just tell me everything directly?

As soon as their eyes met, they saw Lin Tingwan tilt her head slightly, then lower her head as if she had thought of something, and skillfully began to write on her notebook.

“Wait, Lin…” Jiang Yubai sensed something was amiss.

"hug."

Looking at the spiral notebook handed to him, he hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back, and finally could only sigh and resignedly open his arms:

Come on, come on.

The familiar warmth gently approached.

Lin Tingwan quietly snuggled into his arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, rested her head on his shoulder, and smelled a faint scent of lavender from her hair.

Hmm, it also has a bit of a barbecue cumin flavor.

Jiang Yubai reached out and gently wrapped his arm around the girl's slender and soft waist.

Oh no, I feel like I've gotten used to it already, what should I do?

He sighed inwardly, thinking to himself.

-----------------

After dinner.

Inside the study.

Lin Jianxia looked down at the Chinese test paper in front of her, making corrections with her red pen.

After a long while, she nodded gently:

"That's good. You've basically mastered all the knowledge points we've covered. The mistakes are mainly in the subjective questions of reading comprehension, which isn't a big problem."

She pushed the test paper towards Jiang Yubai, pointing to several markings with her fingertip:

"You're not familiar with these types of questions yet, so just practice more similar questions."

"The same applies to English. As for vocabulary, just keep memorizing it as usual, and the rest is up to accumulation."

His tone was calm and even, revealing no emotion, just like an ordinary tutor giving instructions.

Jiang Yubai, however, was already used to it, and shrugged, asking:

"So, Teacher Lin, how do we improve from here?"

Lin Jianxia glanced at him and took out a stack of test papers she had prepared beforehand from her schoolbag:

"Okay, all that's left is to practice coding problems, two a day."

“No,” Jiang Yubai stared blankly at the stack of test papers, incredulous, “Chinese and English… two papers a day?”

"The teachers are assigning less homework now, so there should be enough time, right?" Lin Jianxia said calmly.

“It’s not a matter of whether there’s enough time,” Jiang Yubai argued. “These are two humanities subjects. If I have two extra exam papers every day, what am I going to do with my free time?”

Lin Jianxia paused for a moment.

She raised her eyes, her gaze slightly sharpening:

"What do you want to do with your free time? Date?"

"Dating? Sure," Jiang Yu chuckled. "Who are you dating, you or your sister? Or can you introduce me to a few?"

"Jiang Yu Bai Ni—"

Lin Jianxia was about to explode in anger, but suddenly pursed her lips, looked away, and muttered under her breath:

"You can be with whomever you want, it's none of my business."

Jiang Yubai looked at her as if she were an alien, until Lin Jianxia glared at him with a hint of embarrassment and annoyance, at which point he couldn't help but speak:

"Lin Jianxia... what have you been doing these past few days?"

Lin Jianxia's expression froze upon hearing this, and she awkwardly turned her head away:

"...Nothing."

It would be strange if they didn't do something!

If it were the old Lin Jianxia, ​​the moment he uttered those words, he probably would have already thrown a cat punch.

What's with this backtracking halfway through...?

Jiang Yubai couldn't help but mutter to himself:

“I said, you seem to be acting strange ever since the weekend, but you haven’t been willing to tell me.”

He stroked his chin and tentatively asked, "Did my mother say something to you?"

"Aunt Qin is very kind to me, and we had a very pleasant chat." Lin Jianxia pouted.

Not Mom?

That's true. She'd be overjoyed to see a beautiful girl in the house, so how could she possibly say anything harsh on their first meeting?

Wait, if it's not Mom...

Jiang Yubai's expression remained blank: "Lin Jianxia, ​​did I offend you somehow?"

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed, and he couldn't help but complain:

"Look at you now, you're so unresponsive when I talk to you, and you get angry for no reason..."

"Who got angry for no reason?!"

Lin Jianxia couldn't help but raise her voice a little.

“See, that’s it.” Jiang Yubai shrugged.

Lin Jianxia opened her mouth, then suddenly turned her head away and said in a muffled voice:

"It has nothing to do with you, it's my own problem."

ha?

Jiang Yubai turned his head to look at her, feeling even more puzzled.

Holy crap, what's going on?

It wasn't because I was in a bad mood due to my period, nor was it because I had done anything to upset her, and it certainly wasn't because my mother had said anything...

Could it be... that something happened at home and they're short of money?

Thinking about how determined she was to get the scholarship, Jiang Yubai realized the logic in her words and understood immediately.

No wonder.......

He thought for a moment and then casually said:

"By the way, did you only eat steamed buns and porridge for lunch again?"

"What?" Lin Jianxia rested her chin on her crossed arms, her voice muffled. "Do you have to tell me what I eat?"

"Of course I'll manage you. You're my employee now, after all."

Jiang Yubai counted on his fingers, looking completely at ease:

"Actually, I didn't explain it to you clearly before. I was supposed to have all the meals covered, but I usually have to eat in the school cafeteria."

Lin Jianxia raised her head upon hearing this, her lips slightly pursed:

"...What are you trying to say?"

"In that case, I'll have to pay for your meals at the cafeteria, right?"

"Your original salary was 1200, right? I'll add some food allowance, so how about 1700 in total?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jianxia suddenly fell silent for a few seconds.

She looked at Jiang Yubai, her tone inexplicably melancholic:

"...Giving me money for free?"

Uh......