Cleaning and Dinner

After the analysis was complete, Lin Yue released her hold on Hermione and mechanically stepped out of her embrace. Her eyes swept lifelessly over the entire room, but she didn't see a broom, mop, or anything of the sort.

"What are you looking for?" Hermione turned to Lin Yue and asked in confusion.

"A broom, a mop, a rag. Your room needs cleaning." Lin Yue said it expressionlessly, leaving Hermione momentarily stunned.

Coming back to herself, Hermione quickly raised her hands and waved them. "I can do it. You don't need to clean. Just rest nearby. You're still a little overheated."

As she spoke, she reached out and rubbed Lin Yue's head, signaling that Lin Yue didn't need to worry about cleaning the room.

Lin Yue shook her head, her voice completely flat. "I'll help you."

Hermione sighed helplessly and didn't argue with Lin Yue any further. If Lin Yue wanted to help, then she might as well let her.

With that thought, Hermione took Lin Yue's hand and led her out of her bedroom and into the second-floor bathroom, where the broom and mop were kept.

Before Hermione could say anything, Lin Yue took the mop and Mop Bucket. Between fetching the water, carrying the bucket, and rinsing the mop, mopping was basically the most exhausting chore. Her brain took no time at all to decide that she would do it.

As she set the bucket beneath the faucet to fill it, Hermione picked up the broom and asked, watching Lin Yue's back, "Do you want me to carry the bucket for you?"

The bucket got pretty heavy once it was full. Every time Hermione used it, her arm would ache from carrying it.

Lin Yue instinctively calculated the bucket's maximum capacity, then looked back at Hermione and shook her head. Her voice sounded mechanical as she answered.

"No, I can manage."

"All right." Hermione pressed her lips together and walked out of the bathroom with the broom.

Back in her room, Hermione slowly swept the floor, but most of her attention remained on the bathroom outside. She strained to listen for any sounds from there, afraid something might happen to Lin Yue while she was alone.

The bucket was so heavy once filled, even if it wasn't completely full. What if Lin Yue slipped while carrying it? What if she strained her arm?

Or... what if she accidentally got her clothes wet while rinsing the mop? Could she catch a cold?

One worry after another sprang into Hermione's mind, while Lin Yue was nowhere near as "in danger" as Hermione imagined.

When Lin Yue realized there was enough water in the bucket, she reached out and turned off the faucet.

The water was just enough to rinse the mop clean without splashing out—not a drop too much or too little. It was as precise as if someone had measured it out, cup by cup, with a graduated cylinder.

Picking up the mop beside her, Lin Yue bent down and rinsed it briskly, then wrung it out.

She held the mop in her right hand and gripped the bucket with her left. With a pull, she lifted it steadily and walked out of the second-floor bathroom, her steps firm as she returned to Hermione's bedroom.

Hermione had nearly finished sweeping her room. Lin Yue went in with the mop and began mopping carefully and thoroughly. She put visible effort into every stroke, leaving the floor spotless.

She was only eleven, after all. Once she finished sweeping, Hermione felt a little tired. She straightened up and leaned against the wall by the doorway to catch her breath.

Then she saw Lin Yue briskly finish mopping the floor—not even forgetting beneath the bed—before immediately going to rinse the mop again, ready to mop a second time.

As Hermione watched the faint sheen of sweat on Lin Yue's forehead, her heart gave a sudden thump. She seemed to feel sorry for Lin Yue, but... perhaps it wasn't only that.

Hermione reached out and rested a hand on Lin Yue's shoulder. Her voice was gentle. "Lin Yue, why don't you take a break before continuing?"

Lin Yue shook her head stiffly, her voice flat. "No need. I'm not tired."

With that, she took the freshly rinsed mop, left her slippers at the bedroom door, and walked into the room in her black ankle socks to mop a second time.

Hermione watched Lin Yue work without looking up and pressed her lips together. She left the broom by the door, then ran downstairs to ask Mrs. Granger for a rag so she could wipe the desk and windowsill.

Lin Yue was working, so Hermione couldn't just rest, either. She couldn't let Lin Yue finish mopping while she hadn't done any of the other chores and leave them all for Lin Yue.

When Hermione ran downstairs and entered the kitchen, Mrs. Granger—who had been talking to Mr. Granger about Lin Yue's situation—paused. She glanced at the slight sheen of sweat on Hermione's forehead, understanding flickering in her eyes.

She took a tissue and came over to wipe Hermione's forehead. "Are you tidying your room? What are you doing down here?"

Hermione felt a little embarrassed and raised a hand to touch her nose. "Lin Yue's helping me tidy up. She's mopping the floor, so I came to get a rag to wipe the desk and windowsill."

Mrs. Granger nodded, picked up a rag, rinsed it thoroughly twice, and handed it to Hermione.

"Why are you letting her do chores for you?"

Hermione stuck out her tongue playfully. "I tried to stop her, but it didn't work. She insists on helping."

"She really is a good girl..." Mrs. Granger sighed, feeling even more resentment toward Lin Yue's parents.

Such a wonderful child—and look at what they'd done to her.

Hermione took the rag, unable to keep from feeling happy as she heard her mother praise Lin Yue. She turned and hurried back upstairs.

"Compared to that child, our Hermione seems so much more lively and energetic."

Mrs. Granger turned to her husband and said with a sigh, "You know, the teachers and students at Hermione's school have always thought of her as a bookworm."

Mr. Granger smiled and put an arm around his wife. "That's because we've always respected Hermione's wishes and let her live her own life."

So Hermione only seemed a little quiet because she loved reading. In reality, she was confident and optimistic.

Mrs. Granger nodded in agreement. It was their first time being parents, too, and they knew there were plenty of things they could have done better.

But compared to the parents Lin Yue had described, they suddenly felt they might not have done such a bad job after all.

When Hermione returned to the room with the rag, she expected Lin Yue to still be mopping. Instead, Lin Yue had finished, and even Hermione's desk had been tidied.

All the books had been arranged where Hermione could easily reach them. The ones that Lin Yue could tell at a glance Hermione hadn't finished reading had been placed at the very front of the desk. Everything was neat and orderly, arranged in the most convenient way.

Hermione stood rooted to the spot, staring in astonishment at the spotless floor and perfectly organized desk Lin Yue had left behind.

She swallowed with difficulty, unable to stop herself from thinking that Lin Yue's cleaning skills were almost on par with a professional housekeeper's.

Considering how completely she immersed herself in her studies... how had she found time to learn housework, and become so skilled at it?

Wait. No, Lin Yue had said her parents wouldn't let her waste time that should be spent studying. When had she learned to do housework, then? How had she managed it?

With skills like hers, Hermione really couldn't believe she didn't do chores often.

Holding two rags, Hermione took off her slippers at the bedroom door and walked to her desk. As she wiped it down, she casually asked Lin Yue, "Lin Yue, you're so good at housework. Did your parents teach you?"

Lin Yue naturally took the other rag from Hermione's hand and turned to carefully wipe the windowsill.

"I taught myself by reading books."

"Oh." Hermione nodded in understanding, not at all surprised.

After all, Lin Yue had been the same way at Hogwarts Library: she'd gone through the books on the shelves one by one, "leaving none behind," no matter what they were about or whether they were useful to her.

You could say she'd taken advantage of her quick thinking, strong memory, and short need for rest to study at an almost overwhelming pace.

"Then..." Hermione paused for a moment, steeling herself before continuing, "when you were at home, when did you do the housework?"

Lin Yue quickly finished wiping the windowsill and was already getting ready to climb onto it to clean the window.

"After school, during breaks."

Hermione furrowed her brow. She was about to ask how Lin Yue had found time for chores when her study schedule filled every moment apart from eating and sleeping. And according to the rules her parents had set, she wasn't allowed to waste time that should be spent studying. Wasn't that a contradiction?

But when Hermione looked up, she saw that Lin Yue had already put one foot on the windowsill. In another second, she could climb right up.

Hermione's brow twitched sharply. The windowsill in her room was high. She immediately stopped wiping the desk, dropped the rag, and hurried over to stand behind Lin Yue, steadying her by the waist.

"You don't need to clean the window! Come down!"

At Hermione's words, Lin Yue slowly lowered the foot she'd placed on the windowsill and turned to look at her.

"Do I not need to clean the window?"

"No!" Hermione said firmly, shaking her head.

"All right." Lin Yue nodded and shifted her gaze calmly to Hermione's bed. "Should I help you change the bed sheets and duvet cover?"

Hermione was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Okay."

Only after getting permission did Lin Yue walk over to Hermione's bed. She unfolded the duvet and began removing its old cover.

Watching how smoothly Lin Yue moved, Hermione sighed to herself. That serious, by-the-book manner of hers was both adorable and heartbreaking. Manners and politeness seemed to be etched into her very bones.

Hermione followed and helped Lin Yue remove the duvet cover, then turned to open her wardrobe and take out a clean duvet cover and bed sheet.

Lin Yue took the duvet cover and changed it in a few quick moves before Hermione could even lend a hand. Hermione silently changed the bed sheet, and Lin Yue immediately spread the new one over the bed.

With Lin Yue's almost professional-level skills, they finished tidying the whole room in just sixteen minutes. Hermione sat on the bed with Lin Yue and took a tissue, carefully wiping the sweat from her forehead and neck.

"Lin Yue, don't you usually study whenever you're not eating or sleeping? Where did you find time to do housework?"

Lin Yue explained expressionlessly and without emotion, "You can do housework and study at the same time. You just memorize your notes while you work."

"Besides, you need to check whether you've memorized everything firmly. You might as well do it while you're doing chores. If you can concentrate on the housework without getting your notes wrong, doesn't that prove the knowledge has become muscle memory? That's what it really means to have learned it."

The woman handed the broom to the expressionless girl standing in front of her. Her own daughter had cleaning skills no less impressive than a professional's, and was even better than a cleaning robot. Why spend tens of thousands on a cleaning robot, then?

Besides, her daughter would make sure her grades didn't slip.

Hermione gently pinched Lin Yue's cheek, her heart full of sorrow for her.

So Lin Yue's parents hadn't just forced her to study every moment of every day—they had relied on her to take care of herself, too?

What had they ever provided for her? Probably only material things—in other words, money...

A hard-to-describe bitterness filled Hermione's heart, but Mrs. Granger's words interrupted her thoughts in time.

"Hermione, Lin Yue, dinner's ready!"

At Mrs. Granger's call, Hermione took a deep breath and stood up. She took Lin Yue's hand and led her out of the room. "Come on, let's go downstairs for dinner."

"All right." Lin Yue nodded expressionlessly and followed Hermione downstairs.

The table was already set for four, and a generous dinner had been laid out.

Lin Yue paused at the sight of the dishes and cutlery, then quickly worked out that Mrs. Granger must have made the meal.

She sat down at the table with Hermione and rested her hands flat on her lap, waiting quietly. Hermione, who hadn't tasted her mother's cooking for an entire term, had already eagerly picked up her knife and fork. Noticing Lin Yue still sitting primly beside her, she turned to her in confusion.

Lin Yue remained seated upright, her expression calm. She waited until Mr. and Mrs. Granger had sat down and picked up their knives and forks before reaching for her own. Hermione was momentarily stunned.

Was this table etiquette from where Lin Yue came from? Hermione wondered, but her desire for food ultimately won out over her curiosity. She used her knife and fork to take a piece of steak and put it on her plate.

After her initial wait, Lin Yue, seated beside her, immediately began eating quickly.

As expected. Hermione shook her head helplessly and gently caught Lin Yue's hand just as she was about to bring her fork to her mouth.

"Slow down, okay? No one in our family is going to rush you."

Lin Yue froze, then mechanically lowered the hand holding her fork. "All right."

The Grangers pressed their lips together at the sight. Just as Hermione had said, Lin Yue couldn't even eat in peace.

Mrs. Granger gently pushed a small serving of soup in front of Lin Yue. "My cooking is pretty good, you know. Hermione likes it, so could you take your time and enjoy it, Lin Yue?"

Lin Yue raised her head and looked at Mrs. Granger with empty eyes. "All right. Thank you for the effort, ma'am. I'll be sure to enjoy it."