Chapter 17: He... Couldn't Have Been Driven Away by My Crying, Right?

"Jiang Yubai, you jerk!"

Lin Jianxia's eyes instantly reddened. Yesterday, the bookstore proprietress had made things incredibly difficult for her, and the meager wages she received weren't even enough to cover the rent. After coming home, she had hardly slept a wink all night. She had finally mustered the energy to cook a meal, only for Jiang Yubai to walk through the door and devour every last bite. He hadn't left a single morsel for the two of them, and he even had the nerve to praise how delicious it was!

The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. She glared at Jiang Yubai as tears cascaded down her cheeks, DRIP, DROP.

Jiang Yubai had never seen such a scene before. He panicked, scrambling to comfort her. "Hey, hey, hey, don't cry. I know I was wrong. I should have left some for you..."

If he hadn't tried to comfort her, it might have been fine, but his words only made it worse. Lin Jianxia bit her lower lip tightly, her tears falling even harder.

Jiang Yubai opened his mouth but was rendered completely speechless. It was obvious at a glance that something was wrong with her, yet he hadn't been able to control his appetite and had eaten the sisters' entire lunch. But he had already eaten it, so he couldn't exactly un-eat it...

He thought for a moment, then stood up and dropped a quick, "I'm going out for a bit. I'll be right back." With that, he turned and headed for the door.

Caught off guard by Jiang Yubai's sudden action, Lin Jianxia froze, forgetting even to cry. She stared blankly as he hurried out without looking back, his footsteps gradually fading down the corridor.

She wondered, "Did my crying drive him away? What about the rent? Is he still going to pay it?" She wanted to get up and cook another lunch for herself and her sister, but her mind was a jumbled mess, and her body felt as heavy as lead. The sheer exhaustion of an almost sleepless night, mixed with the dazed aftermath of her emotional breakdown, surged up all at once. She didn't even have the strength to lift a finger.

She thought, "Just rest for a little bit. Just a moment." Thinking this groggily, she rested her small head on her folded arms and slowly closed her eyes.

In her groggy state, Lin Jianxia was coaxed awake by a tantalizing aroma. She opened her eyes in a daze, her vision gradually coming into focus. She saw that, at some point, a steaming clay pot had magically appeared on the small dining table in front of her. The lid was slightly ajar, and the rich, savory scent of chicken soup was wafting out in wispy trails.

Jiang Yubai was standing by the table, taking things out of a takeout bag one by one: salt and pepper chicken wings, sweet and sour spare ribs, and a large bowl of milky-white fish head and tofu soup. To the just-awakened Lin Jianxia, this scene felt far too surreal. For a moment, she suspected she was still dreaming.

"You're awake?" Jiang Yubai noticed her stirring and shrugged. "Here. I ate your meal, so I bought you some food as compensation.

"Oh, right. I also got some groceries. See where you want to put them."

Lin Jianxia blinked in surprise. Following his gaze, she looked down and saw three large bags of ingredients neatly stacked by the table leg. There were tomatoes, potatoes, baby bok choy, lean pork belly tightly wrapped in cling film, a box of fresh mushrooms, and even a vacuum-sealed bag of frozen peeled shrimp alongside two packets of hotpot base. If she could see this much just from the top of the bags, she could only imagine how much was packed into those three bulging sacks. It was probably enough to feed the two sisters for half a month.

"Did you... buy all of these?" Lin Jianxia asked hesitantly.

"If I didn't buy them..." Jiang Yubai turned his head and rolled his eyes at her dramatically, "...did they grow out of the ground on their own and march in a single-file line right up to your door?"

Hearing this, Lin Jianxia subconsciously bit her lower lip. She looked at the lavish, steaming food on the table, then peered down at the three hefty bags of groceries by the table leg. For some reason, she looked rather flustered.

Jiang Yubai finished arranging the dishes, glanced around, and asked curiously, "Speaking of which, where's your sister? Tell her to come out and eat together."

Lin Jianxia glanced at him, hesitated for a moment, and stood up to walk toward the tightly closed bedroom door inside.

Inside the room, Lin Tingwan was sitting at the desk, completely An Jing. Upon hearing the door open, her originally vacant eyes slightly regained their focus. Her gaze lingered carefully on Lin Jianxia's face for a moment before she lowered her head and scribbled something in a spiral notebook. Soon, she turned the notebook around to face Lin Jianxia.

"Are you feeling okay, Sis?"

A rare trace of concern seeped through the lines of text. Lin Jianxia's heart warmed, yet she couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. She walked over to her sister, rubbed her hair, and tried hard to make her voice sound cheerful.

"It's nothing major. Jiang Yubai... he brought us lunch. How about you come out and eat with me?"

Hearing the name 'Jiang Yubai', Lin Tingwan tilted her head, picked up her pen, and wrote again.

"Didn't you say I shouldn't go out, Sis?"

Lin Jianxia sighed silently in her heart, thinking, "That was before." She had planned everything out perfectly: she would pay the money, draw a clear line between them, and they would go their separate ways, minimizing any future contact. But who would have thought things would turn out like this?

Her gaze seemed to pierce through the wooden door, visualizing the steaming food on the table outside, along with the several hefty bags of groceries. Suppressing the complicated emotions welling up in her chest, Lin Jianxia simply bent down and softly instructed her sister.

"Wanwan, we're just going out to eat. Just focus on your food. You don't need to talk to him. If anything comes up, I'll handle the talking, okay?"

After all, she had been using her sister's name every day. If Jiang Yubai and Wanwan started talking and her sister blurted out, "Tingwan doesn't know," everything would be ruined.

Lin Tingwan nodded, seemingly half-understanding. Seeing her sister agree, Lin Jianxia breathed a quiet sigh of relief before leading her out the door.