My girlfriend isn't as cute as me.

This was a sense of powerlessness that Wang Yuting had never shown before.

It was as if I was being chased by something invisible, and even after more than 20 years, it still caught up with me.

"I've learned a lot of things... martial arts, swimming, painting, piano, art, violin... I wanted to learn everything I knew, and I studied like crazy back then. But no matter how hard I studied, I couldn't get any awards. Apart from martial arts, there wasn't anything worth mentioning. Although my parents would be very happy when I received consolation prizes in other areas and would take me to very fancy restaurants, I wasn't happy at all. I'd rather eat instant noodles at home."

Wang Yuting's gaze slowly lowered, her eyes becoming somewhat dull, as if something had been drawn from her body.

She grabbed the fork again, accidentally poking it off course twice before finally managing to pierce the ham toast omelet. She brought it to her lips, paused, and slowly ate it in small bites. As if recalling something, a look of melancholy gradually clouded her eyes.

“My parents are both talented people, while I am just a useless good-for-nothing. When I was a child, I looked at their backs and thought that I would definitely become like them, but in the end I still ran away because of fear. I ran away to a city in the south, to a place completely different from my past life, wanting to make a different change. I wanted to become an outstanding person, but in the end I just became a white-collar manager in a shopping mall. I am just an ordinary person, and I can't even take care of myself.”

"Yuting..."

Lin Jiu extended his hand.

"—That's all in the past."

Wang Yuting grasped Lin Jiu's outstretched hand. Her eyes reflected Lin Jiu's image, and her dim eyes gradually brightened. As if she had found her own home, she revealed a captivating smile.

"Since coming to this city, I've been worrying about these things almost every day, but after meeting you, I've forgotten them all! Instead of spending time thinking about these things, I'd rather finish work early and see you before you get off work. If my mom hadn't been coming, I wouldn't have thought of this at all; it's made me lose my appetite... Wow, it smells so good!"

Just as Wang Yuting lowered her head to indicate that she wasn't in the mood, Lin Jiu stood up and used a fork to feed her a piece of ham toast omelet.

She glanced at Lin Jiu, then pounced on the egg pancake like a hungry tiger, taking a bite.

Hah hah.

She ate with great relish.

The crispy and delicious outer layer gives way to a soft and sweet taste that is just right, making it a very satisfying meal.

"It's all thanks to you, Lin Jiu." Wang Yuting ate her breakfast, her voice muffled. "Thank you for showing me a different kind of scenery."

Lin Jiu smiled slightly, handed over the fresh milk, and instructed, "Don't talk while eating."

"roar~"

What Lin Jiu was most satisfied with about Wang Yuting was that she knew how to be obedient when she needed to be.

Lin Jiu lowered his head and ate his food, his mind filled with thoughts, feeling that he had come to know a new side of Wang Yuting.

feel good.

No, that's not it.

It feels good.

Lin Jiu wondered if she had laughed out loud.

He wasn't laughing at Wang Yuting, but rather he felt reassured because she valued him so much.

Every family has its own troubles.

Lin Jiu watched Wang Yuting munching on her toast and egg pancake and suddenly felt that this world was so hard.

It's not good if your parents are too bad, and it's not good if your parents are too outstanding.

Lin Jiu compared her blood relatives with Wang Yuting's parents and couldn't help but sigh deeply.

He suddenly remembered the parents of those three students.

It's not good for parents to spoil their children too much, it's not good for parents to be too permissive of their children, and it's not good for parents to neglect their children.

Not to mention parents who never look for their own mistakes and only try to shift the blame onto others.

Those parents, sitting at home smoking, legs crossed, playing mahjong, shouting: "Regulate games! Regulate novels! Regulate movies! Regulate animation! Our children aren't doing well in school, it's all their fault!"

The child took his homework to his parent for a signature, but the parent glanced at it and turned back to playing mahjong.

"How could I have time? Seriously, I'm speechless. Go and manage the school!"

Human beings are diverse and varied.

Lin Jiu sipped his fresh milk, watching Wang Yuting eat with relish, and thought to himself... If we had children in the future, what kind of parents should we be? No one is born knowing how to be a parent; everyone stumbles and falls along the way, trying to find their own path, having high expectations for their children while also preventing them from collapsing under pressure.

That's really difficult.

However, if we're with her, nothing will be too difficult for us.

For some reason, Lin Jiu felt a surge of confidence. He put down his empty cup and decided to learn about parenting whenever he had free time. It would come in handy eventually; it was just a matter of time.

"Are you full?"

I'm full!

"Give me the plate, I'll go wash it."

"no!"

Wang Yuting refused Lin Jiu, and snorted, "You're always the one doing all the work, this time it's my turn to wash the dishes."

“…I think you may have forgotten that I’m paid, and this is my working time.” Lin Jiu forcefully took the plate from me. “Please don’t deprive me of my right to work. After you’ve eaten, please stand and move around for fifteen minutes before sitting down.”

"Damn it, if my colleagues were half as dedicated as you, I wouldn't have to work so hard!"

Wang Yuting muttered something as she stood up and ran to the balcony to sunbathe.

Lin Jiu watched her retreating figure with a smile, then happily went back to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

When Lin Jiu had almost finished the housework, he smelled the sweat on his body and remembered that he hadn't taken his clothes from last night to wash. Lin Jiu rummaged through the storage cabinet and found some old clothes she had given him, struggling for a moment to figure out how to style them…

"Why don't you wear this outfit?"

Wang Yuting, who was playing a game, appeared behind Lin Jiu at some point, and she even took out a set of cosplay clothes.

Although Lin Jiu didn't know much about this, he had worked as a staff member at the convention center for a few days before he started working part-time at the convenience store in his first year of high school. At that time, he held multiple jobs, basically doing whatever work was available, including all kinds of manual labor. He also helped fix the ticketing system when it malfunctioned, so he earned a little more per day than others and even got a late-night snack when he finished work.

However, he had no interest in those young women at the time; women would only interfere with his work.

Lin Jiu asked, "What is this?"

Wang Yuting pretended to be clueless and said, "These are beautiful clothes!"

"No, no, no, I mean, what anime is this outfit from?"

"A true expert!"

Wang Yuting was surprised that Lin Jiu could recognize her; she had wanted to casually trick him into wearing it.

"This is the school uniform from 'Cardcaptor Sakura,' isn't it super cute! I bought this myself because I admire the heroine, Sakura Kinomoto. No matter what happens, she can always say 'absolutely no problem!' As long as you believe in yourself and work hard, you will succeed..." Wang Yuting gently hugged the Yueda Middle School girls' school uniform, her eyes filled with reminiscence.

Lin Jiu roughly understood why she liked Cardcaptor Sakura so much.

At that time, Wang Yuting lacked self-confidence and couldn't do anything well. She felt powerless and incapable of anything. Then she saw Sakura, a girl on television, who never gave up no matter the danger, striving to find solutions and overcome one difficulty after another. Even when faced with an opponent she thought she could never defeat, she still stood up in the end. How could such a girl not be captivating?

"I see."

Lin Jiu stretched out his hands and beckoned to Wang Yuting.

Wang Yuting said that after she met Lin Jiu, she would never think about those boring things again.

Lin Jiu was like her hero, and a hero can't desert his post.

"Don't misunderstand," Lin Jiu said stubbornly, "I'll only wear it once, I won't wear it again."

"I understand, I understand."

Wang Yuting nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

Once it happens the first time, it will happen again.

Then it won't be up to you anymore.

Lin Jiu took the clothes and glanced at them, her expression showing a mix of helplessness and regret, but she still went into the washroom.

Wang Yuting was very well-behaved this time.

She didn't offer to help Lin Jiu scrub his back and take a bath, but instead obediently waited for him to come out on the living room sofa.

Therefore, she ignored the game she was playing and became a heartless AFK (away from keyboard) player.

At this moment, the game chat box was filled with blessings from teammates.

In a sense, the two have already come together with blessings.

Wang Yuting held her phone, swaying her body, eagerly anticipating what Lin Jiu would look like when she came out.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Wang Yuting tilted her head, finally remembering something.

The apostles are attacking!

No, it's Mom who's here!

"Holy crap?!"

What happened last night was so exciting that she completely forgot her mother was coming over today.

Wait a minute, didn't Mom say she'd come over at 5 p.m.?

It's only 11:30...

Wang Yuting understood.

Are you trying to pull a fast one?!

Wang Yuting immediately jumped off the sofa and prepared to lock the door from the inside.

There is no greater example of a filial daughter in the world than this.

Mastering the stick, but aiming for the yard.

If Wang Yuting hadn't twisted her ankle, she would definitely have made it in time and arrived at the door immediately.

But just a few seconds too late, the door opened.

What comes into view is my mother, whom I haven't seen for over a year, and whom I miss dearly.

Although she is her own mother, it is impossible to determine her exact age based on her appearance, as the two look extremely similar.

The biggest difference between Wang Yuting's mother, Mo Xiao, and her is their eyes. Compared to Wang Yuting's often unintentionally absent-minded look, her mother's eyes always gleam with a sharp light, a kind of willpower accumulated from countless successes. In addition, her lips are relatively thick, making her look somewhat serious and unsmiling.

However, Wang Yuting knew very well that her mother always had a smiling expression when she was at home.

The reason why a mother's age is hard to predict is not only because of her appearance, but also because of her childish behavior.

Do you miss your mom?