Just then, Su Chen’s voice came from outside: “Lin Bei, come out for a moment.”

Lin Bei walked into the living room and saw Su Chen standing in front of the refrigerator, his expression as serious as if he were presiding over a board meeting.

“What’s wrong?”

“Your stuff—put it in the fridge. There are rules,” Su Chen said, opening the fridge door.

Lin Bei leaned in to take a look—the inside of the fridge was as neatly organized as a supermarket display case.

The top shelf held beverages, arranged by bottle height with the labels all facing outward.

The middle shelf contained food ingredients, sorted into transparent storage boxes, each labeled: vegetables, fruits, dairy products.

The bottom shelf was the freezer section, with vacuum-packed meats neatly arranged by type.

“Wow,” Lin Bei exclaimed sincerely, “Your fridge is tidier than my entire house!”

“Where’s your stuff?” Su Chen asked.

Lin Bei pulled out half a bottle of dish soap, a pack of spicy gluten snack strips, and yesterday’s unfinished cup of sugar-free green tea from the woven plastic sack.

Su Chen’s expression shifted several times as he looked at these three items, finally settling on an “I’m trying hard to keep myself under control” face.

“The dish soap goes under the kitchen sink,” he said, taking a deep breath. “As for the spicy gluten snack strips… they can’t go in the fridge; the smell will spread.”

“Then where should I put them?”

“Throw them away.”

“No way—I spent 3.5 yuan on them!”

Su Chen closed his eyes. “Then put them in your room, and don’t eat them in the common areas until you’ve finished them.”

“Okay,” Lin Bei said, slipping the spicy gluten snack strips into his pocket. “What about this cup of tea?”

“You bought it yesterday?”

“That’s right. I drank half of it, and I’ll finish the rest today.”

“Overnight tea shouldn’t be drunk—it’s best to throw it away.”

“It’s fine; I’ve drunk it many times before and never died.”

Su Chen’s temple twitched. “Common sense about food safety tells you that overnight tea breeds bacteria.”

“Bacteria are life too—I can’t deprive them of their right to exist,” Lin Bei said earnestly.

Su Chen stared at her for five seconds.

Then he reached over, grabbed the cup of tea, and tossed it straight into the trash can.

His movement was clean, crisp, and seamless—like shooting a basketball.

Lin Bei watched the half-cup of tea disappear into the trash can, her heart aching for three seconds, before she looked up and said, “Mr. Su, you threw away my tea.”

“No, I saved you from food poisoning.”

“Well, then you owe me a cup.”

“What…?”

“You destroyed my property, so according to the law, you have to compensate me.” Lin Bei pulled out her phone. “A cup of sugar-free green tea costs 13 yuan. Do you prefer WeChat Pay or Alipay?”

Su Chen opened his mouth as if to say something, but found he had nothing to say.

She was right. That’s exactly what the law says.

He took another deep breath—his nth one of the day—opened his phone, scanned the QR code, and transferred 13 yuan.

“Thanks, boss—you’re so generous!” Lin Bei collected the money, turned around, and said to Wang Tangtang, “Let’s go downstairs and buy some milk tea; it’s on me.”

Wang Tangtang had been watching the whole “one-sided crushing” unfold, and she was already laughing so hard she was doubled over on the floor.

“Lin Bei, you really are amazing!”

“This is what we call ‘knowledge pay’,” Lin Bei said as she changed her shoes and headed out. “Mr. Su, I’m going to buy some milk tea—would you like a cup?”

“No.”

“Alright, then let me get one for you—less sugar, no ice, with oat milk.”

“I said no!”

“Fine, no problem—I’ll treat you. It’s on me,” Lin Bei said as she closed the door and left.

End of Chapter 4: Moving Is a Battle, and I Choose to Surrender 2