New Arrangements at Home

After Jiang Han woke up, she found herself lying on the bed in her own room, a pleasant yet slightly dull ache radiating from her brain.

She squeezed her eyes shut again, kicked her legs with a bit of vigor, and instinctively let out a few "wu" and "a" sounds. Clutching her pillow, she drifted into a state between sleep and wakefulness—

Half-asleep, and half-awake.

You feel both illusory and real; you feel as if you are omnipotent, capable of experiencing the very freedom you desire.

It is as if you have cast aside the "cause" and effortlessly obtained the "effect."

Jiang Han felt that in this half-dreaming state, she had become a philosopher, a thinker!

Then, she stretched and woke up. Only after waking did the question arise: "How did I get back?" She glanced at the wall clock; it was 6:30 PM. The sky still held some light, brighter than dusk.

Her clothes and her bag were intact, though the bag containing her qipao work uniform seemed to have been opened.

Jiang Han checked it and found a note inside:

"You will look beautiful in this--Jing"

She scratched her hair, stuffed the note back into the bag along with the clothes, and bit her lip. "That's enough..."

After changing into a comfortable smock, Jiang Han inevitably caught sight of her wardrobe and suddenly felt the clothes inside were a bit monotonous: Witch robes for going out, smocks for home, and simple pajamas.

After a brief silence, she closed the wardrobe door.

Walking down to the first-floor hall, she was about to check if the magazine rack had been updated, only to find new items in the living room.

A large, boxy television set.

Next to it were four glass tubes of varying heights, filled with water.

Floating in the water were blue, red, green, and purple gemstones, one of each.

Just as she was at a loss, the front door opened. Jiang Zhenling walked in from outside, glanced at her sister in the hall, and bent down to take off her shoes.

She was also carrying a bag of fresh carrots.

"You're awake? You were sleeping very soundly." Ignoring her sister's puzzled gaze, Jiang Zhenling walked over to the sofa, sat down comfortably, and placed the carrots on the coffee table.

"How did I get back?" Jiang Han remembered the matter and sat down next to Jiang Zhenling.

Jiang Zhenling picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned on the television.

The show on screen was a variety program, featuring, quite rarely, a human male participant.

"You were brought back by a particularly beautiful Witch. She said you fell asleep in the car."

Zhenling paused, put on a somewhat serious expression, and said:

"Sister Han, if you're short on money, you can borrow from me..."

Jiang Han froze, then grabbed a pillow from the sofa and threw it at her sister's face:

"That's my tutor! My former tutor!"

Jiang Zhenling wore a malicious, calculating smile as she said:

"Then why did she send you home? And carry you from the car all the way upstairs?"

I was carried? Jiang Han was about to ask, but her sister interrupted her.

She waved her hand slightly and added:

"She's very beautiful and very thoughtful... well, should I say very graceful? That kind of polite demeanor. And you don't have a girlfriend; our family needs your eggs. Perhaps that doesn't sound very nice, but the family needs your descendants."

...Please, I beg you, stop talking... Jiang Han was truly blushing this time, covering her burning face and shaking her head repeatedly:

"I don't want to, we are still in a teacher-student relationship!"

"Isn't that even better!" Zhenling easily said what others wouldn't dare to.

"A cram school tutor is a very good choice. Knowledgeable, high salary, plus allowances. I'd bet she's passed the A3, otherwise, a cram school teacher's salary wouldn't be enough to afford a car. Most importantly, she's the most beautiful Witch I've ever seen. The offspring between you and her would definitely improve our family's physical genes."

"Won't you consider it seriously?" Zhenling listed the points very earnestly.

The clan ideology of Witches is both backward and open.

It is backward in that, even at the end of the 19th century, they still treat the clan and family as a single, pervasive, and tight-knit unit.

It is open in that they do not shy away from the issue of descendants; leaving behind strong offspring is simply a part of life for them.

Jiang Han covered her face, her voice as thin as a mosquito's:

"Stop it... I, I really don't have those intentions toward her... Besides, besides, it's impossible for her to take a fancy to me just like that, right?"

...Jiang Han felt like she wanted to die.

"You have high mana, you're pretty, you... well, just those two things."

...Jiang Han wished she could slaughter her sister on the spot. What did she mean by "just those two things"? Did she not have a third merit? Truly, nothing good ever comes out of a dog's mouth.

She raised her foot to kick her sister, but was caught by her well-trained sibling. After some playful scuffling, they lay on the sofa together, watching TV.

To her relief, her sister didn't continue talking about that blush-inducing topic.

The program on TV had ended and was replaced by a nature documentary.

"Holy crap!" Her sister blurted out a curse, staring at the television in extreme shock:

"I just spaced out for a second to communicate with my foolish... sister, and my favorite show is already over?"

Jiang Han, who bore the title of 'younger sister' while actually being the older one, twitched the corner of her mouth:

"You were the one who started lecturing..."

To prevent Jiang Zhenling from making a mountain out of a molehill and steering the conversation toward embarrassing topics, Jiang Han quickly added:

"By the way, when did we buy this TV?"

"One-thirty this morning. Comrade Ye Keshu and I spent two hours putting it together."

Jiang Han listened politely.

"We only realized later that it came with a bonus pack of potion ingredients—a simple recipe for a Mage Hand variant! They said the assembly sequence was already programmed... To avoid any accidents, we had to take the TV apart, brew this potion, and then use this variant spell to put the TV back together. Do you have any idea how exhausting that was!"

...It felt like buying furniture at IKEA, spending all day putting it together, only to realize you built it backward.

Jiang Han nodded, then looked at the TV and asked curiously:

"Why did you suddenly want to buy a TV for the house?"

"Because I got my paycheck, and combined with the money I'd saved up, it was just enough to buy one." As Jiang Zhenling spoke, she picked up the remote, pointed it at the TV, and switched it to a fashion show.

Comrade Zhenling's way of spending her salary made Jiang Han blush; while others used their wages to invest in the household, she had spent hers immediately on potion ingredients.

...No wonder the younger sister is the one managing the family finances... Jiang Han thought for a moment and asked:

"Where are you working?"

"Hm? I hold the position of logistics manager at a cargo Transfer Station, working three days a week." Jiang Zhenling watched the models on TV and answered nonchalantly.

Logistics manager!?

This... Jiang Han took a moment to compose herself, managing not to cry out in surprise.

She was a bit skeptical and asked cautiously: "Aren't you only 15?"

"...Can't a 15-year-old be a manager? Hmph." Zhenling snorted and then said: "I scored 148 out of 150 on the management training test—that's higher than your height."

...I, you... Jiang Han took a deep breath, warning herself: killing your sister is bad luck, you must be patient.

Taking another deep breath, Jiang Han asked with great restraint:

"So, where do you work?"

The younger sister blurted out an address, and upon hearing it, Jiang Han took two more deep breaths... It was just one street behind the Witch House, separated physically by only a single wall.

"Sister Han, where do you work?" Zhenling asked.

Jiang Han was silent for a moment, her gaze shifting away from the TV:

"...The service industry."

"The service industry." Jiang Zhenling repeated, turning to look at her. After sizing her up, she affirmed, "Not bad. If you were selling tickets at the entrance of an amusement park, I'm sure plenty of people would go in."

Jiang Han exhaled, let out a soft huff, and stared at the TV, though her attention was not on the show at all.

Phew, it's a good thing she isn't interested in my job... If Zhenling knew I was selling drinks at a tavern, who knows how she'd tease me... or mock me... Jiang Han watched the TV, feeling a bit uneasy, and asked about Jiang Zhenling's work schedule in a roundabout way.

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Only Thursday overlapped with her own shift, and since she worked from 5:00 PM to 12:00 AM, it was unlikely they would run into each other.

Still, only working three days a week—isn't that just too nice?

Jiang Han turned her head away in silence, trying to keep her composure...

"This witch is so pretty, I wonder where her clothes are sold." Zhenling watched the TV, curled up on the sofa with her feet propped on the coffee table in an unladylike but cozy posture.

Seeing this, Jiang Han stretched out her own legs, preparing to rest them on the coffee table, only for her feet to hit empty air.

Jiang Han:...

Jiang Zhenling:...

In all her years—both lives combined—Jiang Han hadn't cried many times, but right now, she felt her eyes starting to sting.

"..." Jiang Zhenling pulled her older sister closer and held her in her arms, "It's more comfortable sitting like this."

Jiang Han bit her lip, pressed her mouth into a line, and after a few seconds of silence, accepted the gesture.