The door hinge had barely creaked before the entryway light came on.
Su Bai stepped inside carrying a plastic bag, with dried noodles poking out of the top and tomatoes tucked underneath.
He looked up and stood there for two seconds.
An unfamiliar woman.
Short hair, an outdoor jacket, and one of his soda crackers pinched between her fingers, crunching loudly as she chewed.
"Bro-!"
Su Xiaoxiao sprang off her little stool, rushed behind him, and peeked half her head out. "You're finally back!"
"This woman picked our lock and broke into our home!"
She pointed at the sofa, her voice rising steadily. "She even insulted Magical Girls! She called Lady Ziwei a calamity! Bro, she's the guardian of the whole city!"
"She saved thousands of students! What this woman did is awful!"
Su Bai followed her finger with his gaze.
When the woman saw him looking, she waved the cracker at him. "Hello~"
That counted as a greeting.
Su Bai didn't respond.
He bent down, pulled the dried noodles out of the plastic bag, and set them neatly on the shoe cabinet, then arranged the tomatoes beside them.
Once that was done, his gaze fell to the floor.
A trail of dusty footprints stretched from the entrance into the living room, covering six square meters, every print distinct.
"Ma'am~"
Su Bai took a ledger out of his trouser pocket, opened it, and produced a pencil stub. "How about we settle the bill first?"
Chen Shu stopped chewing.
"What bill?"
"Depreciation."
Su Bai lowered his head and made a note. "The floor tiles were laid last year. Eighty per square meter. With these footprints, I'll have to mop again. Water, wear on the mop, labor... I'll round it down for you."
He looked up. "Thirty. Cash or mobile payment."
The