5: Such a routine

Xu Yan's home is on the ground floor, so the kitchen connects to the residential community's public area.

Outsiders can easily reach the window.

"Sister Yan, did you hear any movement outside just now?"

Ye Tian spoke up.

"Movement? I didn't notice. People walk around out there all the time; I'm used to it."

"Then are you used to having this many Cockroaches?"

"How is that possible? You make it sound like your Sister Yan isn't clean. My home might not be perfectly tidy, but I pay enough attention to it, plus I often have you do a thorough cleaning. Don't you know whether there are many Cockroaches here? Wait... you mean these Cockroaches aren't from my house, but came from outside?"

"Otherwise?"

"Then what should I do? The kitchen gets so smoky; I can't cook without opening the window, right?"

"Uh, it doesn't really matter if the window is open or not. If you knew the habits of Cockroaches, you'd know that when people are around, unless your house is a total mess, Cockroaches rarely come out in swarms like this. If they do, it must be man-made."

"Man-made? You mean... Zhang Guilan?"

"Most likely!"

Xu Yan looked angry. "I knew it. My house never had many Cockroaches, so how could so many suddenly appear? That shameless woman, causing trouble for me. No, I have to go find her!"

Saying this, Xu Yan's brows rose, and she prepared to rush out aggressively, but was stopped by Ye Tian.

"Sister Yan, don't rush. If you go like this, she'll just flat-out deny it. What can you do then?"

"Then what?"

"Add a bit more money, and I'll handle it for you!"

Ye Tian chuckled, looking like a money-grubber.

Xu Yan blinked, somewhat confused.

Ye Tian had already turned back to his tools and pulled out a folding soft box.

This box was one Zhang Liang used for fishing before; after it got a few small holes, he didn't want it anymore, so Ye Tian took it to use as a toolbox.

"Xiao Tian, what are you doing?"

Watching Ye Tian place the toolbox on the living room floor.

Zipping open the Fishing Box, he lit a small section of something like a mosquito coil, put it in a small box, and placed it inside. Xu Yan asked.

"To prove it to you, even if there are many Cockroaches in a house, they won't appear in swarms for no reason when people are around. By the way, Sister Yan, you'd better sit on the sofa, or I'm afraid you'll stab me with a knife again!"

"What are you talking about? Xiao Tian, I've found that you're especially good at speaking in riddles today... Ah!"

Before Xu Yan could finish her sentence.

Her pupils suddenly constricted, and she let out a scream.

In her vision, at least seven or eight Cockroaches crawled out from all directions.

The study, the bedroom, the kitchen.

Even from under the sofa where she wanted to hide, Cockroaches were crawling out.

She jumped onto the sofa instantly.

Xu Yan's voice was trembling.

"Xiao... Xiao Tian, how can there be so many Cockroaches in my house?"

"Sister Yan, don't panic, it's normal. If someone has lived in a house for a long time, it's strange not to have Cockroaches. Not to mention this community has been here for decades. There's a saying: when you find one Cockroach in the light, it means there are countless more in the shadows."

"Then what should I do?"

It was clear Xu Yan was truly panicked. As someone who usually liked to be clean, she never imagined there could be so many Cockroaches in her home.

Curling up on the sofa clutching a pillow, her face was a bit pale.

"What to do? Sister Yan, didn't I just say? Add more money!"

Ye Tian chuckled and continued, "Sister Yan, given the situation in your house, if I said I could clean them out completely, how much would you be willing to pay?"

"Any amount!"

Xu Yan said without hesitation.

"Sister Yan, don't joke around, I'm being serious. This affects my pricing."

"Can you really wipe them out completely?"

"Of course!"

Xu Yan's attention was drawn to Ye Tian's topic, so she wasn't as nervous anymore.

After thinking for a while, she said, "If it was before I saw so many Cockroaches in my house and you said you could kill them all, I guess I'd pay two or three hundred at most. But now..."

She looked at the scalp-numbing number of insects.

Xu Yan took a deep breath. "Even one or two thousand, I wouldn't hesitate."

"So now, do you know what trick the family of The one surnamed Zhang is playing?"

Ye Tian smiled.

Xu Yan was stunned.

Then her eyes slowly widened.

"You mean, they're using low prices as a front, but they actually want to make money from Cockroaches?"

"It should be. I wasn't sure before because I only happened to see this scheme once while researching methods for Cockroach extermination."

"There are some scammers posing as a Housekeeping Company to provide door-to-door service. Then, they take the opportunity while cleaning to drop Cockroaches in various corners, causing panic and charging high extermination fees."

"Many timid hostesses, like you, Sister Yan, can only be manipulated by them."

"Even more ruthless is the follow-up scheme."

"After charging high extermination fees, they tell you that Cockroaches are hard to kill all at once, so they need multiple visits to eliminate the problem for good."

"If they come to the door, won't the subsequent housekeeping be conveniently outsourced to them as well?"

"As for whether they make money from housekeeping, when they show you a pile of dead Cockroaches, do you still have the heart to care about hygiene issues? So, for them, housekeeping is just surface work; they don't really need to do it. Just a quick wipe of the surfaces and they're done."

"That's ruthless, like shearing a single sheep until it's bald. But what if they meet someone brave who dares to swat the Cockroaches themselves?"

"How can they swat them? They don't release just one or two, but a whole bunch, and they choose nooks and crannies. As soon as someone approaches, the Cockroaches scurry into cracks and disappear. If you saw so many Cockroaches in your own home, wouldn't you feel disgusted? And don't even talk about pesticides. That stuff is useless; I've tried it, spraying all over the dormitory. I almost poisoned myself with pesticide, but after a few days, the Cockroaches would show up again anyway."

"So it's unsolvable?"

"Normally, yes. So I have to thank them for giving me a new idea for making money. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have researched this stuff."

As he spoke, Ye Tian's face was full of smiles.

He crouched down to look at the box.

The Cockroaches in the room had mostly crawled out.

The bigger, faster ones were all in position.

Only some larvae were still on their way.

Some smaller ones crawled directly through the holes and cracks in the box.

Fearing they might escape later.

Ye Tian looked around and took the tissue he had used to wipe the blood off his hand from the table.

He stuffed it into those small holes.

And Xu Yan had now completely calmed down.

Her beautiful eyes watched without blinking as the insects swarmed into the box as orderly as if they were in military training. Her face was full of amazement.