Sister, can I be a maid too?

Jiang Yubai belatedly realized that his intentions were indeed a bit too obvious.

He coughed lightly and joked:

"Well, you're my little maid, after all... If you feel bad about it, how about giving me another massage?"

The moment Lin Jianxia heard that word, her spine stiffened.

Jiang Yu blinked and tentatively asked, "What do you think?"

"How about it....."

Lin Jianxia bit her lower lip, then suddenly grabbed a pillow from the bed and started throwing it at him.

"You find it fun to tease me?! 'Your little maid,' who's your maid?!"

Jiang Yubai was clearly caught off guard and covered his head, dodging to the side.

"Hey, hey... go easy on me! Are you really going to hit me?"

Although he said that, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Thank goodness...

It's much better to throw a pillow at him than to keep quiet and keep quiet.

After hitting it a dozen times, the action suddenly stopped.

Jiang Yubai quietly looked up from under his arms and saw Lin Jianxia standing there, her eyes slightly red and wet, as if covered with a thin layer of water.

It seemed like she was extremely angry, but also like she had some unspeakable grievances mixed in.

Seeing this, Jiang Yubai's heart skipped a beat.

He lowered his arm, hesitated, and then spoke:

"Uh, are you really angry?"

"Jiang Yubai".

Lin Jianxia gently pursed her lips.

"You've helped me a lot, and I'm truly grateful that you were willing to give me this job..."

Her voice gradually lowered, unconsciously taking on a slight tremor:

"But...you can't keep making fun of me like this, over and over again."

Jiang Yubai hesitated for a moment, then asked in a low voice, "What am I joking about...?"

"I am not a maid."

These words were spoken very lightly, yet they left Jiang Yubai stunned on the spot.

"Jiang Yubai, I'm not some maid..."

Lin Jianxia pursed her lips and repeated softly:

"It's not because I'm short of money that I'll accept a raise without feeling guilty..."

“It’s not like I have to obediently come over and massage your shoulders and serve you tea and water just because you, as the ‘master,’ call me that casually.”

She looked up at him, a hint of grievance hidden in her eyes:

"Jiang Yubai, I..."

She stopped abruptly halfway through her sentence, as if she couldn't find the right words or was afraid to continue.

The room fell silent, with only faint breathing sounds remaining in the air.

After an unknown amount of time, Lin Jianxia seemed to suddenly come to her senses.

She sniffed, hurriedly said "I'm leaving now," and turned to push open the door and leave.

Chapter 66 A Morning Without Lin Jianxia

After saying goodbye to her younger sister through the door, Lin Jianxia hurriedly went into the bathroom.

Warm water poured down from above, gradually wetting the strands of hair.

Lin Jianxia closed her eyes, letting the water droplets trickle down her eyelashes.

It was as if her delayed emotions had finally caught up, and only now did she realize... what she had just said.

Almost instantly, a strong sense of regret welled up in my chest.

—Wasn't what you said just now too much?

She even had an urge to turn around and apologize immediately.

But as soon as she turned to the side, her beautiful eyes dimmed again.

What's the point of apologizing now that the words have already been spoken?

Perhaps... people will think I'm just saying things against my conscience because I'm afraid of losing my job.

Lin Jianxia scooped up a handful of warm water, gently patted her cheeks, and tried to calm herself down.

Amidst the gentle patter of water, she finally dared to calm down and confront the question she had always been unwilling to consider.

In fact, until just now, she had been avoiding the question, unwilling to think about where the tangled mess of emotions in her heart came from.

I don't know... why I feel this way about Jiang Yubai.

Everything was clearly moving in a positive direction.

Mingming found a job she never dared to dream of before, and her younger sister's condition is improving day by day. Mingming...

Mingming finally had someone to talk to.

So what exactly is the reason?

Why do I feel so choked up and uncomfortable when I hear the word "maid"?

Why do people slow down after leaving school, secretly hoping that someone will catch up with them from behind?

Is Jiang Yubai that kind of person?

Is he the kind of guy who takes advantage of kindness and tries to make her humble herself and serve him tea and water under the guise of helping her?

Is he the kind of person who kicks someone when they're down, secretly calculating his reward, and waiting to see her bow down?

no.

She knew perfectly well what was going on in her heart.

Jiang Yubai has been very, very good to her and her sister. Those jokes and teasing were just casual remarks and had no malicious intent.

But why does it still feel like there's a small pebble stuck in my heart, making me feel stuffy and a little suffocated?

.....

Perhaps it's because... she hates how she is now.

I hate needing help from others, I hate having to carefully calculate every penny, and I hate having to nervously test the other person's reaction before even making a simple agreement like "studying together."

What she wanted was to stand before him as equals, to joke and play around like ordinary classmates, instead of always being placed on the side that needed to be taken care of.

She wanted to get the two thousand yuan scholarship so she could use the money to buy her younger sister a new dress.

I want to buy Jiang Yubai a small gift.

Instead of what he does now, where he skimps on lunch and then finds excuses to pay himself more.

She didn't want it to be like this...

Good intentions come at a price; they pile up layer upon layer, heavy and suffocating her.

But what can she use to repay this debt?

Should we make the food more delicious? Or should we clean his house more thoroughly?

Or... should she pay it back herself?

She didn't want it to be like this.

She didn't want Jiang Yubai to actually treat her like a maid.

but--

The more you try to break free from this dependence, the more unconsciously you will move closer to where he is.

Like right now, I should be more assertive and independent, but something keeps nagging at my mind...

He still handed over the note with a smile.

Jiang Yubai said she was like a little hedgehog, and he wasn't wrong.

She understood his kindness towards her and Lin Tingwan, and was grateful for all the help he had given the two sisters...

But whenever Jiang Yubai makes a joke, and that feeling of being 'given charity' surges up, she can't help but raise a soft layer of thorns.

Even though I know I shouldn't, I just can't control myself.

It seems that as long as you stab someone first, your own pitiful self-esteem will suffer less damage.

The sound of water pattering, the rising steam.

Lin Jianxia slowly squatted down and buried her face in her arms.

...Seriously, this is so awkward.

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

the other side.

Staring blankly at the tightly closed door in front of him, Jiang Yubai sat there in a daze, unable to come back to his senses for a long time.

According to his envisioned script, Lin Jianxia should have picked up a pillow and hit him a few times to express her dissatisfaction, then he should have made some jokes and teased her, and finally she should have reluctantly agreed to a raise.

Maybe I can get another massage.

Yes, perfect.

But he never expected Lin Jianxia's reaction to be so...intense.

Judging from her expression just now, she was definitely angry.