The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

The exquisite breakfast dishes were served one by one, with small steamers and porcelain plates laid out on the table.

Zhi Qiu held the white porcelain teacup, the wisps of tea fragrance swirling around her fingertips, and she naturally steered the conversation toward Ye Shu.

"Little Shu, judging from your accent, you don't seem to be a local from Nancheng?"

Ye Shu nodded, and unconsciously became more candid with this gentle older sister.

"Yes, my hometown is in the north. I finished university here and just graduated. I'm currently looking for a job."

"oh--"

Zhi Qiu nodded knowingly:

"The job market hasn't been great these past two years, has it? It must be hard to find a job, right?"

These words struck a chord with Ye Shu, and he couldn't help but sigh:

"Absolutely! Many companies openly demand recent graduates, but then turn around and require three years of work experience. Isn't that contradictory? Or they treat people like beasts of burden, making you work yourself to the bone for a month, only to find out you only get 1,800 yuan!"

He said this, spreading his hands with a hint of helplessness.

Zhi Qiu was amused by his appearance and said to comfort him:

"It's okay, no rush, take your time. Good opportunities always require a bit of fate."

She paused, her voice becoming even softer:

"Anyway, with your sister here, providing food and lodging, you can focus on finding a job."

The words "meals and accommodation included" struck Ye Shu's heart like a gentle hammer. His eye twitched slightly involuntarily.

What does this sentence actually mean?

A: She's interested in me; she fell in love with me at first sight.

B: She wants to be my sugar daddy, she needs a male lover.

C: She was actually the behind-the-scenes boss of a small coal mine, and she planned to sell me to the mine to dig coal, with food and lodging provided.

He stole a glance at Zhi Qiu, who was smiling across from him, and then quickly lowered his eyes again.

No, no, she doesn't seem like the type to kill and rob, but it's impossible for her to fall in love at first sight with an ordinary person like me. That leaves only one possibility... But thinking about it... young, beautiful, and rich, it doesn't seem so bad, at least I'd avoid decades of hard work...

The next second, he mentally berated himself.

Ye Shu, Ye Shu! Look at yourself! You've barely escaped poverty and you're already thinking about living off a woman? You've fallen so low!

"Oh? This...this isn't right...we can't keep letting you spend money, Sister Zhi Qiu..."

Seeing the shifty look in his eyes, Zhi Qiu immediately guessed his little scheme.

Far from being angry, she found it extremely amusing, deliberately leaning forward and lowering her voice, her tone somewhat provocative:

"What's wrong, little Shu? You don't mean... when I said I'd provide room and board, I meant I was planning to keep you as a mistress, do you?"

Having his thoughts laid bare by a single sentence, Ye Shu coughed awkwardly twice. He wished he could disappear into the ground, his eyes darting around, avoiding Zhi Qiu's smiling eyes.

Seeing his embarrassed and almost fuming state, Zhi Qiu finally touched the corner of her lips with her fingertip and chuckled softly:

"Oh my, our little Shu is so cute... Don't worry, I don't have any thoughts like that yet. I just feel it's not easy for you, a recent graduate, to be out there, so I wanted to help you out if I could. Don't overthink it, just eat your food."

After saying that, she pushed a plate of crystal-clear shrimp dumplings in front of Ye Shu.

Ye Shu looked at the fragrant food in front of her, and then secretly glanced at Zhi Qiu across from her, who was sipping tea. She felt a mix of emotions.

On one hand, I felt ashamed for misunderstanding the other person's good intentions; on the other hand, there was a faint, extremely small sense of loss that I didn't even want to admit.

He quickly shook his head, dismissing those unrealistic thoughts, and focused on eating. This Sister Zhi Qiu is too much for him; with his limited skills, he'd better just eat properly.

But as Ye Shu ate, he lost his appetite.

From the moment he started eating, he keenly noticed that Zhi Qiu's gaze was always seemingly falling on him.

Her gaze wasn't sharp; it still carried her characteristic gentleness. But being stared at quietly for so long by such an unpredictable older sister made Ye Shu feel uncomfortable all over. She even subconsciously softened her chewing movements, afraid of making any unseemly noises.

Just as he was about to become uneasy under this silent scrutiny, Zhi Qiu finally put down the porcelain spoon, gently dabbed her lips with a tissue, and broke the silence.

"Little Shu, can I ask you something?"

Ye Shu didn't stop eating, and nodded in response:

"Sister Zhi Qiu, please speak."

He noticed that the gentle smile on Zhi Qiu's face, which seemed to never change, seemed to have faded a little, and her eyes, which were always habitually slightly narrowed, were now wide open, revealing clear and deep pupils.

This subtle change instantly transformed her aura from one of gentle warmth to one of clarity and composure that revealed the truth.

"What do you think of Xiaoqing and Xiaoxue...?"

Ye Shu, with half a crab roe bun still in his mouth, was taken aback by this abrupt question. He chewed a few times and swallowed, then answered hesitantly:

"Uh... they're all fine. Xia Qing has a very outgoing personality, and Miss An... well, Xiao Xue is a bit shy, but she's quite cute."

Zhi Qiu listened quietly and nodded. Then, she changed the subject, posing a more crucial question, her clear eyes looking directly at Ye Shu:

"Then...aren't you even a little curious? Why do we all look...exactly the same?"

Curious? Of course he was curious! He just suppressed his desire to explore, adhering to the survival philosophy of "mind your own business" to avoid getting into trouble.

"Aren't you... sisters? Triplets?"

He tried to answer with the most normal explanation, but as he talked, he himself felt that the hypothesis was becoming more and more untenable.

Sure enough, Zhi Qiu gently shook her head, a faint smile playing on her lips:

"Even among sisters, including twins and triplets, it's extremely rare for them to be exactly alike. There will always be some differences in height and build. But look at us..."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over Ye Shu's somewhat bewildered face:

"Is there anything different from head to toe?"

Ye Shu fell silent.

He thought back and realized that whether it was An Suxue, Xia Qing, or Zhi Qiu in front of him, apart from their vastly different temperaments, their faces and bodies were indeed cut from the same mold, with even the smallest mole in the exact same position. This could not be explained by "sisters".

"That……?"

He opened his mouth, but couldn't bring himself to ask the question.

Seeing the curious look on his face, Zhi Qiu leaned forward slightly, rested her elbows on the white tablecloth, and supported her chin with the back of her hand.

This gesture brought her closer to Ye Shu, and it also gave her next words a heavy weight.

She looked into Ye Shu's eyes and calmly told the truth:

"Actually, little brother Shu... we are the same 'person'."