Chapter 16: Jiang Yubai, You Bastard!

"RING RING!" The alarm clock buzzed incessantly. Jiang Yubai fumbled around on his nightstand for a good while before his hand finally met the noisy little thing, and he reached out to shut it off. He kept his eyes closed and lingered in bed for a few more moments before sluggishly grabbing his phone from the bedside, squinting at the screen.

11:00 a.m.

Jiang Yubai let out a long yawn and reluctantly sat up from the covers. Unlike most high school seniors who rigorously woke up at five or six in the morning, he always slept until the sun was high in the sky on weekends. After all, it was a rare opportunity to thoroughly relax, and sleeping until noon meant he could skip breakfast. In this remote suburb, having to eat the meals he cooked himself was pure torture, so skipping even one meal was a blessing.

After sluggishly brushing his teeth and washing his face, Jiang Yubai wandered over to the fridge, his stomach letting out a loud GRUMBLE. He hesitated for a long time before giving up on the idea of cooking. First, he was heading out soon and couldn't be bothered to wash the dishes. Second, and most importantly—he really didn't want to eat any more of his own food, which tasted like kitchen scraps.

With a sigh, Jiang Yubai turned back to his room and helplessly rummaged through his snack box, eventually pulling out a cup of braised beef instant noodles and two sausages. Although his stockpile of convenience foods was overflowing, he truly didn't want to touch the stuff unless he had absolutely no other choice. Instant noodles were a delicacy if eaten once, and tasteless if eaten twice. If eaten frequently... it was sheer torture.

After hastily dealing with his lunch, Jiang Yubai was about to head out when he paused as he passed the full-length mirror. With his messy bedhead and casually worn solid black T-shirt and sweatpants, he looked like a crow that had just crawled out of its nest. He thought for a moment, then dragged his slippers and returned to his room. Although he didn't know what Lin Jianxia was up to, Jiang Yubai decided to treat it as a guest invitation; at the very least, he should tidy himself up a bit.

Twenty minutes later, having taken a shower and changed his clothes, Jiang Yubai went back downstairs.

He wore a solid white T-shirt and light gray sweatpants, looking like he had transformed from a black crow into... a grayish-white pigeon. However, he was quite satisfied with himself. He nodded at the mirror and finally stepped out the door.

By the time he stood in front of Jinxiu New Village again, it was almost 1:00 p.m. He turned his head to look at the row of closed shops along the street, his gaze lingering on the signs of several snack bars for quite a while before reluctantly looking away and stepping into the residential complex.

"Damn it," he thought. "Why couldn't this food street be located right below my apartment?"

Grumbling inwardly, Jiang Yubai dragged his feet up the stairs. Just as he reached the second floor, a plump figure appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Oh, Mr. Jiang, here to collect the rent?" Since she had been given a heads-up beforehand, Landlord Li was not surprised by Jiang Yubai's appearance and spoke with a beaming smile.

Jiang Yubai gave a casual nod and was about to squeeze past to go upstairs, but she called out to stop him. Under Jiang Yubai's questioning gaze, Mrs. Li lowered her voice. "Last night, I ran into that young girl from the Lin family. She didn't look like she was in a good mood, and her eyes were a bit red."

"Not in a good mood?" Jiang Yubai paused in surprise. "That isn't right. She was perfectly fine yesterday at school," he thought. "Could it be that the landlord actually saw Lin Tingwan?"

Before he could straighten out his thoughts, Landlord Li leaned in closer and spoke mysteriously. "When a girl is like this, her emotional defenses are at their weakest. Young man, this is a rare opportunity. You have to seize it."

"I..." Jiang Yubai instinctively wanted to retort, but the words died on his lips. Finally, his mouth just twitched. "...I know."

It was no wonder she had that expression. After all, he had clearly told her last week just to transfer the rent to him, yet this time he had suddenly called to say he was coming to collect it in person.

"Forget it," he thought. "Let her misunderstand all she wants; at least it might make this landlord treat the sisters a bit better."

After bidding farewell to Landlord Li, Jiang Yubai climbed a few more flights of stairs and finally stopped in front of the twins' door. He raised his hand and knocked.

Inside, it was completely quiet.

Jiang Yubai slightly raised his eyebrows and knocked twice more with greater force. This time, a rustling of footsteps finally came from inside the apartment.

"Water meter inspec—"

Jiang Yubai's joke about checking the water meter was just on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it forcefully the moment he saw the girl before him.

The Lin Jianxia standing inside the doorway looked like a completely different person from the girl Jiang Yubai had seen at school. Faint dark circles floated under her eyes, and her complexion was rather pale. Even her normally neat ponytail was loose, with a few stray strands hanging limply by her neck. She looked exactly like someone who hadn't slept well all night.

Perhaps it was Jiang Yubai's imagination, but the moment Lin Jianxia saw him, her face seemed to grow even paler.

"Wait," he couldn't help but say, "what happened to you?"

Lin Jianxia didn't answer. She hesitated for a moment before stepping aside to clear the way. "...Come inside first." Her voice sounded somewhat hoarse.

Brimming with confusion, Jiang Yubai stepped into the apartment. The moment he entered, the aroma of a home-cooked meal caught his nose. He blinked and followed the scent, only to see two simple dishes placed on the dining table: a plate of stir-fried baby bok choy and a plate of scrambled eggs with scallions.

They were obviously the most ordinary, homestyle dishes, yet the greens were vibrantly emerald and the eggs golden and fluffy. The faint scent of scallions wafted over, tempting Jiang Yubai's throat to involuntarily swallow.

"Are you... just eating now?" As he asked, his eyes couldn't help but guiltily dart toward the food.

Lin Jianxia absentmindedly replied, "Yeah. Do you want to eat some with me?"

This was supposed to be a mere polite remark, but Jiang Yubai's eyes instantly lit up. "Can I?!"

Lin Jianxia snapped back to reality and stared at him, slightly dazed. But soon after, as if something came to her mind, she pursed her lips without saying a word. Instead, she turned and walked into the kitchen, bringing him out a steaming bowl of rice.

Now it was Jiang Yubai's turn to be stunned. He stared at the bowl of rice handed to him, unable to process it for a moment.

"Wait a minute," he thought. "Normally, in this kind of situation, shouldn't she retort with something like, 'In your dreams'? What does it mean if she brings the rice straight out? And what does it mean if she only brings one bowl for me and doesn't eat herself? Since she already brought it out, wouldn't it be impolite not to eat..."

Jiang Yubai hesitantly accepted the bowl and chopsticks as his stomach let out another embarrassingly loud GRUMBLE.

He reached out with his chopsticks, picked up a piece of scrambled egg, and popped it into his mouth. His eyes instantly went wide. The egg was fluffy and fragrant, with just the right amount of savory flavor and the fresh aroma of scallions. It instantly awakened his taste buds, which had long been numbed by instant food.

Almost involuntarily, he reached out again and grabbed a chopstick-full of greens. Crisp and refreshing—cooked to perfection.

And then... he couldn't stop.

By the time he came back to his senses, he realized that he had swept through more than half the plates like a whirlwind. His bowl of rice was completely empty, as clean as if a dog had licked it.

Jiang Yubai blinked, suddenly realizing a very serious problem.

"Did I... just eat up all of the sisters' food?" he thought to himself.

He hesitantly turned his head, only to see Lin Jianxia sitting to the side, staring at the nearly emptied plates. She still looked like she hadn't quite registered what had happened.

Swallowing his last mouthful of food, Jiang Yubai thought for a moment. He felt that offering a compliment first would be the best way to ease the tension. "Um... the food was really delicious."

But hearing these words was the final straw that broke the camel's back for Lin Jianxia.

She stared at him, her eyes instantly turning red. "Jiang Yubai, you bastard!"