After Nianchu took her seat, she encountered another problem.
Playing chess was originally a two-person affair. Elder Jiang and Jiang Tiansong sat facing each other, with plenty of room to spare.
Now with her as an extra spectator, she felt somewhat superfluous.
She wanted to stand and watch, but when the old man saw how uncomfortable she was, he gestured for her to sit beside him.
However, the men of the Jiang family all had long legs.
Two pairs of long legs couldn't fit facing each other.
Elder Jiang sat upright and proper, while Jiang Tiansong had to angle his body slightly to the side.
When Nianchu sat down, her knee happened to bump into his leg.
Jiang Tiansong lifted his gaze to look at her. Nianchu's face flushed red, and she quickly moved her legs away.
But the space under the chess table was limited. Even though she pressed herself as close to the edge as possible, Jiang Tiansong's legs were still very close to hers.
To avoid another awkward moment like just now, Nianchu had to exert every effort to control her posture, crossing one leg over the other and pressing them against the table leg without daring to move a muscle, lest she cause any more unintended contact.
This meant that by the time the chess game was only half over, her bottom leg had gone numb from the pressure. The tingling discomfort made it even harder for her to concentrate, and she kept wanting to shift slightly to find relief.
What she didn't know was that she had already shifted.
The game had reached a tense moment. Jiang Tiansong was just about to place his piece when his leg itched—the girl had brushed against him.
That was only the beginning. Then, as if she had bugs crawling on her, her legs kept nudging his from under the table.
Jiang Tiansong frowned. The space beside him was reserved for Elder Jiang, so he had nowhere to move.
He could only finish his move quickly, then cast a heavy gaze toward Nianchu, hoping she would have enough self-awareness to stay still and stop fidgeting.
Nianchu kept her head down, her mind consumed entirely by her numb leg. She was utterly miserable and completely unaware of Jiang Tiansong's gaze.
The old man, a chess enthusiast, had all his attention absorbed by the game and didn't notice the undercurrents between the two.
Just then, Jiang Tianqi finished brewing the tea and came over cheerfully carrying the teapot:
"Grandpa, Second Brother, I've brewed some tea for you."
Aside from his poor academic performance, he excelled in every other area.
Having grown up immersed in the Jiang family's traditions, he had considerable skill in the art of tea.
Before the teapot even reached them, a faint, refreshing fragrance wafted through the air.
Elder Jiang didn't pay it much mind: "Pour some for Zhaozhao first."
Jiang Tianqi said, "Oh, I just remembered there's another person. I forgot to bring her a cup."
He was openly needling her.
But Nianchu was overjoyed—finally, an excuse to stand up:
"I'll get it myself. Where are the cups? I'll go fetch one."
With that, she immediately moved her stiff legs, hobbling awkwardly as she walked out.
Jiang Tianqi had looked down on her before, but now he laughed.
"Grandpa always says I'm restless and can't sit still, but I think this wild girl is worse than me. It's only been a short while and her legs are already lame."
Jiang Tiansong also noticed Nianchu's walking posture. He glanced at the space under the table and finally understood what had been going on.
The comfortable positions had been taken by him and his grandfather—wasn't she just making do?
Thinking of how she had only kept her head down without any complaint or protest,
Jiang Tiansong felt a pang of guilt:
"That girl has a good temper. Xiao Qi, don't keep picking on her."
Jiang Tianqi snorted but said nothing.
Now that only the three Jiang family members remained, all of them family, Elder Jiang finally spoke up:
"Little Six is hopeless. Tiansong, you teach him."
Jiang Tiansong then said patiently:
"She came to Tianbei to study. She'll be starting school before long. How many days can she even stay at the Jiang residence? She'll leave sooner or later.
Xiao Qi, you're the one who's truly part of the Jiang family. By that measure, you're the host and she's the guest. You should show the courtesy and dignity befitting someone receiving a visitor.
Why lower yourself by making things difficult for an outsider?"
The old man nodded approvingly from the side.
In his youth, he had been busy with military affairs, barely seeing his family more than a few times a year. He hadn't been present for much of his two sons' upbringing.
By the time he finally had the leisure, both children were already grown, with no room left for him to mold them.
As for his grandsons, they had their own parents—it wasn't his place to raise them.
Except for Jiang Tiansong, who had often been sent to stay with him as a child. His manners and way of dealing with people had been cultivated by the old man personally, and he had inherited his grandfather's ways deeply.
Jiang Tianqi listened, but remained unimpressed in his heart.
The only one who truly took those words to heart was Nianchu, standing outside the tea room door.
She had planned to return quickly to continue learning chess, so she had deliberately walked faster, compressing her travel time to the minimum.
But instead, she overheard that conversation.
Yes—to the Jiang family, she was ultimately an outsider.
They treated her politely precisely because she would leave eventually, and there was no need to create any unpleasantness in such a short time.
Jiang Tiansong's words were practical, and Nianchu didn't find anything wrong with them.
She just felt a little disheartened.
When Elder Jiang had shown her such concern at their first meeting, there was a moment when she had actually harbored the delusion that Grandpa Jiang genuinely liked her.
Now that delusion was shattered. It was time to wake up.
The Jiang family was taking her in out of respect for her grandfather's sake.
If she was smart, she should stay in her place and not cause them any trouble.
Afraid that entering now would be awkward, Nianchu stood outside the door with her teacup for a while longer, only going back in once the three of them had switched to a different topic.
Elder Jiang smiled and waved her over:
"Zhaozhao's back, come here. This boy can't do anything right, but his tea-making is passable."
Nianchu squeezed out a faint smile, trying hard to forget what she had just overheard.
"Thank you, Grandpa."
She carefully placed the teacup on the table. Jiang Tianqi came over with the teapot to pour her tea, and she whispered a quiet thank you.
She no longer dared to think about bickering with this young man. She was an outsider; being taken in by the Jiang family was already an immense kindness.
If Jiang Tianqi could tolerate her presence, she should be grateful to him.
Jiang Tianqi had caused trouble for her several times, yet Nianchu showed no temper. Jiang Kaishan looked at her, growing more satisfied with each glance, and remarked with feeling:
"Old Liang really knows how to raise children. Look at Zhaozhao, so well-behaved. That little monkey Xiao Liu can't compare at all."
All three were savoring their tea, so Nianchu followed their example, standing to the side holding her teacup and taking a small sip.
It was fragrant on the palate, but just like at mealtime, her mind was heavy with worries, and she couldn't fully appreciate the tea's goodness. She ate without tasting, drank without savoring.
A game of chess had already ended. The old man's energy was limited, and he yawned.
Jiang Tiansong noticed his fatigue and said, "Let's stop here for today. Grandpa's tired. I'll walk you back to rest."
Jiang Kaishan glanced at the old-fashioned clock hanging on the wall. "Mm, I am a bit tired."
Then he said to Jiang Tiansong, "Don't worry about me. I'll head to my room. You young ones keep having fun. Tiansong, you play chess well—teach Zhaozhao a thing or two."
Nianchu wanted very much to refuse, but remembering that in the Jiang household she really had no say, she lowered her head again instead.
Jiang Tiansong seemed to read her mind: "Grandpa, I still have some work to finish."
Jiang Kaishan understood immediately. "Work matters more, then. Tiansong, go ahead and attend to it."
He then looked at Nianchu and Jiang Tianqi. "As for you two…"
Jiang Tianqi cut in eagerly, "I'm busy too. I've made plans to play games with my classmates. No time to teach her."
Jiang Kaishan shot a reproachful glance at this clueless young grandson—a wooden fish that wouldn't wake no matter how hard you knocked. Whatever you said to him was wasted breath.
"Zhaozhao, you go play too, then. There's a game room in the house. See what you like."
Jiang Tianqi rushed to add, "Just so we're clear, that computer with the Iron Man sticker on it is mine. Don't you dare touch it."
Jiang Tiansong shot him a cold look, but Jiang Tianqi stiffened his neck:
"Who knows if she can even use it? My setup is top-of-the-line. What if she breaks it?"
Nianchu's hand hanging at her side tightened on her skirt hem, desperate to escape the awkward situation:
"Thank you, Grandpa. I'm used to going to bed early. I'll just head back to my room to rest."
Jiang Kaishan said nothing more, and the group dispersed.
As Jiang Tianqi passed her, he bumped her shoulder again and said in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"Smart of you to know your place."
By now, Nianchu no longer even considered whether to hold it against him.
She lowered her head, forlorn.
All her emotions were tucked away beneath her downcast lashes.
The mattress in the Jiang house was unbelievably soft. Lying on it felt like resting on a cloud.
The bedside lamp housed an aromatherapy candle. When switched on, it cast a warm glow and released a faint botanical fragrance that soothed the mind.
Such comfortable luxury was something Nianchu couldn't have dreamed of in her first eighteen years.
Yet on this bed, she suffered her first bout of insomnia.
She tossed and turned several times before finally pulling out her phone and searching for part-time jobs again.
This time, she adjusted the start date from after the semester began to as soon as possible.
Ideally, she'd find a place tomorrow where she could earn her own keep.
Soon, a listing for temporary housekeeping caught her attention.
The employer was looking for someone to clean a room: a young girl, under twenty, at least 1.65 meters tall, quiet and obedient. She fit every criterion.
Nianchu sent the employer a message to ask about the specific pay.
It was already dark out, and she assumed they wouldn't reply until tomorrow.
But the person responded surprisingly fast, saying the pay was three thousand per job, with a tip if she did well.
Three thousand! The number made Nianchu bolt upright in bed.
Then the person asked if she could come over right now, and sent her a location pin.
Nianchu was a bit puzzled. Didn't people usually hire for such work during the day?
She asked: It's already very late. Are you in a hurry?
The person replied quickly: Very urgent. Can you come? If you can, I'll add another five hundred to cover your travel expenses.
Thirty-five hundred. Wow, making money really was easy in the big city!
Before this, Nianchu had worried that sending two thousand home each month might be a struggle.
She was tempted. With this money, after setting aside two thousand for her family, she'd have fifteen hundred left—maybe enough to find a new place to stay.
Then she could keep working in the time that followed and earn enough for tuition too!
After hesitating for a moment, Nianchu got up, dressed, and pushed open the door to head out.
Jiang Tiansong had been busy for a long while, finally finishing up his official duties before coming downstairs to the kitchen for a drink of water.
Hearing movement on the stairs, he instinctively looked up.
Nianchu came down from upstairs holding her phone, having changed back into the same set of clothes she had worn when she first left the small mountain village, with a faded, washed-out old schoolbag slung over her shoulder.