Wait a Minute!

"Xiaoze's memory is truly astonishing! By the way, Yukino, why have you stopped talking? Are you feeling unwell?"

Tuanzi first chuckled, but then she noticed Yukino had been silent the whole time, so she asked with concern.

Yukino first shook her head, then voiced her own hypothesis.

"I was thinking, since the layout of the second floor is the opposite of the first, could it be that the times when we are safe to move around are also reversed?"

"Not bad, you've improved!"

Bai Yuze gave Yukino a thumbs-up; if the house's soundproofing weren't so poor, he would have applauded.

"People grow, you know. I'm not some pre-programmed script, so what's with that 'discovering a new continent' look on your face?"

Yukino was speechless. She was a person of flesh and blood, not a character in a novel world; could settings and mechanics really exist?

Bai Yuze smiled without a word. In his eyes, Yukino was indeed growing; perhaps this was a case of necessity being the best teacher.

"Huh? What are you two talking about? Why can't I understand? Please, no isolation!"

Seeing the two talking about "programs" and the like, Tuanzi's brain immediately crashed.

"It's fine, go home, kid, just go home."

"Huh? Home? How do I go back, by sleeping?" (O∆O)

Tuanzi was confused again. She recognized every word Bai Yuze said, but why couldn't she understand them when put together?

"Alright, stop messing around. Are we waiting for nightfall now?"

Yukino ended the farce. She sighed; what time was it, and they were acting out a play?

However, this did prevent the atmosphere among the three from falling into despair and collapse.

Therefore, Bai Yuze also pondered in his heart whether Tuanzi was truly silly or just trying to act silly to liven up the mood. But whether it was real or fake, he wouldn't expose her, at least not for now.

"Rest for a bit. There are rules for the second floor over there; go and memorize them."

Following the direction of Bai Yuze's finger, Yukino saw a note on the table. After picking it up, she and Tuanzi began to read it together.

[Welcome to the second floor. For your safety, please note the following items:]

[1. Due to the aging of the second-floor floorboards, walking will produce creaking sounds. Therefore, running and making noise in the hallway before ten o'clock at night is strictly prohibited.]

[2. The residents of the second floor have somewhat irritable tempers. Do not disturb them unless necessary.]

[3. The Minzhai has no cleaning staff, but residents will spontaneously perform cleaning work. Please try your best to cooperate with them, do not defy them, and do not get into conflicts with them.]

[4. The front desk is on the first floor, so if something happens, the front desk cannot arrive immediately. Therefore, you need to do everything possible to protect yourself until the front desk comes to mediate the conflict.]

[5. Residents must live in harmony. Theft is strictly prohibited! If it occurs, please notify the front desk immediately.]

[6. Please keep these rules in mind, as they are mandatory for all residents to follow.]

"Well, have you thought of our plan?"

Bai Yuze wasn't sure if the two girls would encounter other rule-based instances in the future, so he felt he had somewhat neglected their input.

"Hmm, since the rules state that residents must follow them, this means these rules are also effective against those anomalies."

Seeing Yukino express her view, Tuanzi also focused her attention on the restrictions the rules placed on the residents.

"Hmm, so we are going to use the rules to deal with them?"

"Exactly." Yukino nodded. "We are here on the second floor to find something, and that thing is likely inside the rooms of those anomalies. With our strength, it's impossible to force our way in."

"So, have you figured out what we should do?"

"I think we can act as cleaning staff to enter their rooms and search."

"An interesting plan, but here's the problem: even if we find the item, how are we going to take it out? Remember, theft is strictly prohibited."

While praising her, Bai Yuze didn't forget to pour a bucket of cold water. After all, the item wouldn't run away, but whether they could take it with them depended on their skill.

"This... I haven't thought that far yet..."

Yukino bit her lower lip and frowned. She really hadn't thought about how to bring the item out, and besides, she didn't even know what the item looked like. Who knew if it was a potted flower, a patch of grass, or a piece of moldy, rotting bread covered in warring microorganisms worth 500,000 yen?

"You need to broaden your thinking; don't just limit yourself to what is 'strictly prohibited'."

"Um... I have an idea..."

Tuanzi timidly raised her hand. Seeing that both of them were looking at her, she took a deep breath and voiced her thought.

"Since the rules don't let us steal, then we won't steal—we'll just take it openly! Because our status is that of cleaning staff, if I say the item is trash, then it is trash."

"That works, but I want to correct one thing: what do you mean 'take it openly'? It's the other party voluntarily giving it to me!"

"Isn't that a bit bad?"

Yukino asked at this moment. In response, Bai Yuze gave her a lesson in ideology: "Mercy to the enemy is cruelty to oneself."

But something unexpected happened to Bai Yuze. After he finished his lecture, he saw Yukino reveal a mysterious, wicked smile.

"In that case, I have a plan!" Yukino held up her index finger.

Night fell quickly. Watching the hour hand on the clock point to nine, Bai Yuze knew it was time to act.

He knocked on the iron door of 207, and after waiting for quite a while, the wooden door of 207 was finally opened.

"What do you want? It's late at night and you aren't sleeping. You two had better give me an explanation, or I'll make sure you regret it."

Zhu Daqiang was somewhat angry, but the constraints of the rules prevented him from directly attacking the two of them at this moment.

"We are here to clean your room. How can we clean if you don't open the door?"

Bai Yuze did not show any fear, his entire body radiating an air of superiority. Seeing this, Zhu Daqiang subconsciously shrank his neck, which reminded him of the time his fingers were chopped off by debt collectors.

"Clean? What kind of cleaning are you doing in the middle of the night? Go away, go away, don't bother me."

Zhu Daqiang barked, immediately moving to close the door.

Bai Yuze didn't say anything, just smiling at Zhu Daqiang.

"Aren't you going to stop me? Or perhaps barge in?"

Zhu Daqiang was a bit confused. He was certainly aware of what Bai Yuze and his companion were after, yet Bai Yuze was acting as if he knew nothing at all.

"Close it if you want. Your hands are on your own body, what can I do? Besides, why would I need to barge in?"

Bai Yuze's reply choked Zhu Daqiang. That was true; Bai Yuze had no reason to barge in, and the question he had asked was like asking someone "why isn't Li Bai called Li Hei."

"Inexplicable."

Zhu Daqiang muttered, and just as the door was about to close, Bai Yuze slowly spat out a sentence.

"Since you don't need it, we'll go help Yuan Xing clean his room instead."

He moved! Not only did Zhu Daqiang's body move, but Zhu Daqiang's brain moved too!

"Wait a moment!"