《A Girl Who Wants to Be a Beneficial Person to Society》


 Chapter 1: Walking for Money

    Chapter 1


    The setting sun cast its golden glow upon the stone-paved road.


    Su Xiaoqi walked along the stone-paved road, her head lowered. There were two small shops by the roadside, and no matter the time, there were always people idling there. She hurried past, avoiding looking at the people, afraid that someone might greet her.


    As she neared home, she lifted her head slightly, and her steps became lighter.


    However, to her surprise, a middle-aged man approached her from the opposite direction, carrying a hoe. Without waiting for her to greet him, he shouted, "Oh, Su Lame''s daughter is back. They say you went to get your acceptance letter. Did you get it?"


    Su Xiaoqi''s face quickly flushed red.


    She didn''t like it when people called her father "Lame Su." Even though the villagers probably didn''t mean any harm by giving him that nickname, she didn''t like it.


    "Hello, Uncle Li. Yes, I got it," she replied.


    "Wow, impressive! You''re the first college student from our village." The man spoke loudly, putting down the hoe on his shoulder and acting as if he wanted to chat in the middle of the road.


    Xiaoqi felt embarrassed and anxious that he might strike up a conversation with her. She quickly said, "I still have chores to do at home, Uncle Li. I''ll go back first."


    She walked home without looking back, practically running.


    She didn''t want to show off. Although she was the only one in the village attending a prestigious high school, her college entrance exam score was only 42 points above the minimum requirement for the second-tier universities. She didn''t make it into any of the schools she applied to and was reassigned to a private second-tier university. The tuition fee stated in the acceptance letter was more than three times that of a regular university, far beyond her family''s means.


    She could hear people gathering around Uncle Li behind her, saying things like, "The lame man''s daughter is a college student. Impressive..." She felt even more ashamed.


    Her father was one of the few in the village who had completed middle school and was educated. However, he had difficulty walking due to a shorter right leg, which made him limp. He was also short and physically weaker for farm work. Moreover, she was the only daughter in the family, which some people viewed as a disadvantage.


    Fortunately, she had good grades and attended a prestigious high school in the city, which made her parents proud.


    When others mentioned not having a son, her father would reply with a smile, "My daughter is a good girl."


    Her mother, on the other hand, had a more assertive personality and would retort loudly, "My Xiaoqi can study and work hard. She''ll have a better life than sons in the future."


    But this time, her college entrance exam results were unexpectedly below the minimum requirement. She performed much worse than usual.


    She rushed back home in a state of panic.


    She ran a few steps, gasping for breath.


    Her father, who had received the acceptance letter, didn''t go out to show it off as usual. He just looked at the letter silently, chopping firewood in the yard.


    Her mother was cutting wild vegetables in the backyard. After chopping them into small pieces, she put them in the pot to cook. They had three pigs at home, and her mother took care of them meticulously. Originally, they planned to sell the pigs before their child went to college to gather enough money for tuition and other expenses.


    Both her parents were farmers with no fixed income or salary.


    They had thought that raising more pigs would bring in more money.


    She opened the mirror and saw a girl with a melon seed-shaped face, fair skin, and black hair wearing large black-framed glasses.


    That was her.


    She was considered pretty, but she felt out of place among the other villagers.


    She heard people mocking her for being aloof.


    She wasn''t aloof.


    She just didn''t know how to interact with the people in the village after going to school.


    Now, she didn''t know what her future held.


    Should she go to this university or retake the exam?


    She fell asleep in a daze and woke up covered in sweat. There were no glass windows, and air conditioning was out of the question.


    When she heard her mother calling her for dinner, she went downstairs.


    During dinner, she casually said, "Mom and Dad, maybe I should retake the exam. I didn''t do well this time."


    Her father didn''t immediately respond.


    "Go to college, don''t retake the exam. I made some calls, and that university you got into, the employment rate is high. We can figure out a way to borrow some money. Don''t worry about the finances."


    These words came from her father, who had always seemed indecisive and lacking ideas.


    His voice was soft, with a mouthful of food, and a bit unclear.


    Su Xiaoqi murmured in agreement.


    She lowered her head and ate her meal, and once again, tears welled up in her eyes.


    The rice, now slightly salty with tears, was being consumed by her when suddenly a voice echoed in her ears.


    "Matching host detected. Binding with host in progress. Binding successful. Congratulations to the host for successfully binding with the Level 1 Progress System. This system is a lifelong system, and the binding will be released upon the host''s death. The host will receive 0.1 yuan for every step taken, with a maximum limit of ten thousand steps."


    Su Xiaoqi paused for a moment, and then her recently graduated-from-high-school mind started calculating. Walking ten thousand steps a day would earn her one thousand yuan? Was she going crazy, obsessing over money?


    "Mom, Dad, do you hear any sound?"


    Both her parents were holding their bowls, a little puzzled. They couldn''t hear any sound.


    "No sound. Let''s eat, finish up and go for a walk outside. You can also meet up with your classmates. Don''t stay cooped up in the house all the time," Su''s mom spoke up.

 Chapter 2: Memory buff

    Chapter 2


    After finishing her meal, Su Xiaoqi went out the door.


    Gumula Village was very lively after dinner.


    The children had all run out to play, frolicking and horsing around. One could hear the laughter and cries of the little ones. Upstodatee from


    One could also hear the more fashionable young people who had turned on the stereos in their homes, filling the village with the sound of popular songs.


    The women who had finished eating were chatting freely about family matters, speaking ill of their mothers-in-law, daughters-in-law, and gossiping about certain neighbors.


    The men were smoking, joking with each other about the mountains, discussing the harvest, and telling dirty jokes.


    All this liveliness had nothing to do with her.


    She did not head towards the village center, but instead turned left out the door.


    In front of the door was a small river, and along the riverside was a stone path. Following the flow of the water all the way led to the tail of the river.


    There was no one at the tail of the river, and it had a somewhat sinister feeling. After people in the village left, this was where they burned discarded clothes and old belongings.


    But Su Xiaoqi actually really liked it here. The tail of the river wasn''t actually the end of the small river, but rather here there was a large grove, with red maple trees marked with signs saying they were protected trees of ancient age. The stone path was covered in rotting leaves.


    This made the stone path seem very quaint.


    She slowly walked step by step. To get here took over two thousand steps.


    At the end of the stone path was a stretch of rural fields, at a 60 degree incline, with knolls of rice paddies extending as far as the eye could see downhill.


    In the distance was the setting sun, which had already sunk below the mountains, with just a hint of light remaining on the horizon.


    She could see the rice in the fields had already started to yellow. In the evening breeze, the rice swayed back and forth.


    In addition to these familiar scenes, she kept seeing a small interface in front of her eyes, with her step count continuously increasing. She stopped, and the interface showed she had taken 2672 steps, and earned 267.2 yuan.


    If she ran into villagers out there, she''d have to greet them, and they''d all ask how her exams went, how''s college.


    Or some might make sour remarks, like saying the Su family''s luck turned out well...


    She wasn''t very good at conversation.


    The haughty attitude she put on was only because of her own insecurity.


    "I''m going upstairs to read," Su Xiaoqi said, sticking her tongue out at her parents.


    She went back to her bedroom, lifted up a corner of the plastic sheeting, letting in a breath of fresh air, finally feeling a little cool.


    Looking at the romance novel on her desk, rented from a book rental shop, very tattered, who knows how many people had borrowed it before.


    She had read over half but hadn''t finished it yet. As her hand reached for it, she drew it back again.


    Instead, she took out a New Concept English textbook.


    Sitting there memorizing vocabulary.


    Surprisingly, her worst score on the gaokao exams this time was English, just barely passing.


    She didn''t know why, but this English textbook that she normally found so difficult to get through now seemed very easy.


    Perhaps it was a different mindset after taking the gaokao.


    While prepping for the gaokao, she had been burdened by the pressure of the exam itself and all kinds of messy emotions, which made studying very inefficient.


    She sat there reciting vocabulary for a full hour, time flying by quickly.


    Just then, she suddenly heard a voice sound in her ear.


    "Host''s diligent studying has completed 1 hour of reading, rewarded with 10 day memory buff. For the next 10 days, the host will be able to quickly remember everything she sees."

 Chapter 3: Lying

    Chapter 3


    "Xiaoqi, have some sweet peanut soup," Mom Su said as she knocked on the door and came in carrying a bowl. for new novels


    Seeing her daughter holding an English textbook, Mom Su had a smile on her face and was very happy, despite not being able to understand the book.


    Normally, Xiaoqi would be annoyed that her mother came in without knocking first, even though Mom Su had changed that habit. Xiaoqi felt like she was being suddenly attacked and inspected.


    Especially during a period when she was reading more romance novels, although her mother may not have been able to understand them, Xiaoqi felt guilty herself. Her guilty reaction was to get angry.


    However, today when Xiaoqi saw the mushy peanut sweet soup that Mom cooked, she drank it with complex emotions.


    Although the ingredients for peanut sweet soup were simple, it was very troublesome to make. First, the peanuts had to soak in cold water for an hour. Then the red peel on the outside had to be removed. Next, the peeled peanuts were put in a sandpot and boiled over high heat. After boiling, it was switched to low heat and simmered for about an hour before adding cold water again. It was boiled again over high heat before adding rock sugar. Then the heat was reduced and simmered until the soup became thick and milky white. Only then was it considered cooked well.


    It took several hours to make a simple bowl of peanut sweet soup.


    Other than Mom, probably no one else would be willing to spend so much effort to make her this sweet soup.


    "Use a spoon to drink it. Don''t hug the bowl. The rim of the bowl has chips. Be careful not to cut your mouth," Mom Su said, rubbing her apron.


    With that one sentence, Su Xiaoqi''s eyes reddened again.


    There were no unchipped bowls in the house. If there was even one, it would definitely have been given to her to use.


    After finishing the sweet soup, she said, "Mom, I want to go into town tomorrow."


    "You''re on summer vacation now. What do you need to go into town for? It''s hot in the city in summer. It''s easy to get heat stroke. It''s cooler at home. You don''t need to do any chores at home. Just stay home and read books comfortably."


    "No, a classmate introduced a tutoring job to me. I want to try it and earn some tuition at the same time." Su Xiaoqi slowly explained.


    Since starting high school, it seemed like lying was no longer the first time.


    He had to go up the mountain to chop bamboo, drag the bamboo back home, dry it for a period of time, then split the bamboo into long strips. He had to remove the innermost bamboo pith layer, and split the thin bamboo strips into three layers. From stiff, straight bamboo, it became soft bamboo strips. Only the outer layer with skin was usable. Then he wove them into baskets.


    If he worked exclusively on weaving baskets all day without doing anything else, Dad Su''s record was two and a half baskets in one day, five winnowing baskets total. That meant working from dawn to midnight, for 65 yuan.


    That didn''t even include the time spent chopping bamboo up the mountain and carrying it back, plus the bus fare to take the baskets into the city to sell.


    Because the baskets were so big, they couldn''t even take the public bus into the city.


    Once, Su Xiaoqi had walked with her dad all the way from where they got off the village bus to the place they sold the winnowing baskets. She carried nothing while her dad shouldered the baskets. The bamboo baskets were wet and heavy. Her dad''s left foot was also lame, yet she was the one who walked until she was panting heavily. The public bus cost one yuan even for such a long distance, but her dad had to shoulder the baskets and walk there.


    It wasn''t possible to take a taxi. With just a few baskets, there was hardly any money left. The entire earnings were from hard work.


    Dad Su''s hands continuously wove the basket, although they were coarse and calloused. The fresh bamboo still managed to cut his hands, leaving dense scars.


    He was silent for a long time before speaking. "If you want to go, then go. You''re grown up now. You''ll eventually have to go out. In the future when you go to college, you''ll go even farther. We can''t accompany you forever."


    Mom Su didn''t make a sound now as she tidied up the stove and sat down to help weave the basket.


    When Su Xiaoqi finished reciting a book and saw the step count display 10,000 and the money display 1,000 yuan without increasing further, she went downstairs to get some water.


    She saw her parents sitting under the dim light, weaving baskets.


    Moths fluttered around the lamplight.


    Outside was very quiet now. The chatting adults and playing children had all gone home. Occasionally, a dog''s bark carried over.


    "Your mom said you''re going into town tomorrow. I''m going to sell baskets anyway, so I''ll go with you," Dad Su said.


    "Okay, good."

 Chapter 4: Trying to Spend Money

    Chapter 4


    The next morning, very early before dawn.


    Su Xiaoqi''s door was knocked on.


    "Xiaoqi, get up quickly."


    She opened her eyes, turned on the light, and looked at the clock on the table. It was only five o''clock.


    The village had only one bus going to the city every day.


    It normally left at six, taking over two hours to get to the city. Usually it came back at noon. If there were a lot of people, it would make another trip in the afternoon, coming back at six.


    People who needed to go out had to go early instead of late.


    Usually when she had to go from home to school, Su Xiaoqi felt dead tired, having to get up so early.


    But today she was a little excited. The interface was still in front of her, with one thousand dollars on it.


    To be honest, she had never gotten so much pocket money since she was little.


    Their Gumula Village was located very remotely with poor transportation. The villagers could not earn much from the crops on the mountain and things like that. They either went out to work, but Dad Su was lame and could not find a good job when he went out.


    Mom Su was quite tall and good looking, but did not have much education. for new novels


    The couple only had one child. They did not have big ambitions, just hoping to support the child to finish college so that the child could be self-reliant and not have to suffer in the countryside like themselves.


    Su Xiaoqi read New Concept English Workbook 1 last night. Today she thought about it and took Workbooks 2, 3 and 4 with her too.


    Although she was going to be a tutor, she did not have many things to pack. She did not have many clothes. With school being out, she could not wear her school uniform either. She had a few t-shirts which were extremely precious to her. She washed and folded them very carefully. Her shorts were boys'' knee-length ones. Usually she just wore t-shirts and shorts, dressed a bit like a little boy. Su Xiaoqi had fair skin, a melon seed face, small eyes with single eyelids, red lips and white teeth. She was slim and tall, resembling her mother, very delicate looking.


    After breakfast, she went with Dad to catch the bus.


    Dad carried a large burden of winnowing baskets, weighed down by shoulder poles. The road was dark. Dad walked in front, breathing heavily.


    She walked behind Dad. Before she would have felt ashamed and embarrassed but now she felt more sad.


    Poverty was not wrong, and working hard to earn money was not wrong either. But all this made the just turned seventeen-year-old girl Su Xiaoqi feel awkward and upset.


    She looked at the interface in front of her. As they started walking in the morning, the number one thousand went up.


    Her heart beat a little faster. This was real, right? It could not be an illusion. It must not be.


    When they arrived at the bus stop, because Dad carried a burden of winnowing baskets, he sat in the pickup bed. The front seats were usually left for women, children and the elderly. The men would usually not squeeze in. Of course some shameless ones would.


    Su Xiaoqi was good looking and still a young girl, so she naturally sat in the front, squeezed between two older women.


    She looked back through the glass at Dad outside. The sky had lightened a little, cool, very windy. Dad huddled in a corner, sitting on a piece of rag, chatting with others. His smile looked a little forced.


    Unknowingly she had arrived at the entrance of the biggest mall in the city. To her surprise the doors were not open yet, a group of people waiting outside, eyeing covetously like things were free.


    It was over 1500 now. What could she buy?


    Seeing most of the people waiting at the entrance were older women.


    The city women dressed very nicely too.


    Next to her was an old lady wearing vertical striped pants, a white halter top with a pink jacket, even a strand of pearls around her neck. One look and you could tell she was well-off. Wrinkles on her face showed her age, but just looking from behind, she would even think this old lady looked younger and better dressed than her own mom.


    At this moment, Su Xiaoqi recalled her mom''s clothing, forever those few pieces. Although mom was quite good looking, she only wore those floral shirts from when she got married. Mom rarely came to the city, let alone buy clothes.


    She wanted to buy a set of clothes for mom.


    Somewhat nice clothes.


    It seemed a bit impulsive, but it was what she most wanted to do right now.


    When the mall doors opened, she followed the crowd in.


    She had come with classmates once before, just went along looking around, not familiar with it. But she subconsciously followed the fashionably dressed old lady.


    She saw the old lady take the elevator to the third floor.


    The third floor had many women''s clothing stores, looking very mature.


    Mom was quite tall, about five foot six, not skinny either, around one hundred and twenty pounds. She should buy one size up from herself. She wore size small, so mom could probably fit medium or large.


    First time buying adult clothing, and at the mall, she felt a little nervous.


    Her expression was still the seldom smiling one she usually had in the village.


    She picked a short sleeve knit top with a knit cardigan, tan color. Although it was summer, mornings and nights were cool in the village, so this could be worn.


    Just these two pieces together cost six hundred and eighty, way exceeding what she could normally afford. She had not even bought something like this before.


    But feeling it in her hand, cool to the touch, she could imagine how mom would look wearing this, straightening her back and laughing.


    "I''ll buy it."


    She took out her card and swiped.


    There was no strange sound stopping her. It actually went through smoothly.


    At this moment the balance on the interface changed to 985.8.


    Carrying the clothes, she felt extra happy. She could even see a girl with a big smile, extremely delighted, in the mirror as she passed by.

 Chapter 5: Cell Phone

    Chapter 5


    Carrying clothes, she walked toward the bookstore on Jiangbin Road.


    Her pace quickened, and her money continued to increase.


    At this moment, most of the shops on the street had opened their doors. When she passed the bustling Drum Tower Street, she saw a roadside shoe peddler and went to buy two more pairs of flip-flops, one red pair, one khaki pair, the red ones size 37, the khaki ones size 41.


    They were made of very soft tire rubber material, comfortable to wear without pinching the feet. Watching the shoe peddler twist and turn the shoes, the quality was very good, of course they were relatively expensive, a pair of flip flops actually cost over 80 yuan. Su Xiaoqi bargained a little on the price, buying two pairs, which just wiped out the small change, 160 yuan.


    Then she asked the boss for a pair of scissors and cut off the tags from the shoes and clothes she had just bought, putting them all in a plastic bag to carry and wait at the bookstore.


    Because she didn''t have a cell phone, she was worried that if she went in to read, her dad would come and not be able to find her, so she sat on the front steps with her New Concept English Book 2.


    She had finished Book 1 yesterday. Book 1 was just junior high school level, basic entry level, very simple, she had basically learned it.


    Book 2 was intermediate level. She hugged the book and sat quietly reading at the entrance.


    Not many people went to the bookstore in the morning, so she sat undisturbed.


    But she couldn''t read aloud, only silently.


    However, the effect was surprisingly good. Reading through once and then reciting silently, it seemed to stick. To consolidate this feeling, she would read five sections before going back to recall the first section.


    "Host is undisturbed and focused on reading for one hour, rewarded with 10-day English language sense buff, making reading more fluent for host in the next 10 days."


    Hearing this voice, Su Xiaoqi was startled to find that a whole hour had passed. She had gone shopping for clothes and shoes, and read for an hour, but her dad still hadn''t come over. Could something have happened?


    She was a little worried and wanted to go check, but also worried about missing her dad if he came looking for her.


    If only she had a cell phone now.


    Thinking of her dad walking over carrying a burden basket, he would be walking slowly. If delayed a bit while selling, it would be one or two hours before he got here. Calculating the time, she decided to read for another half hour. If her dad still hadn''t come, she would go look for him.


    But now holding the book, she was a little restless.


    So she simply read aloud.


    "Yesterday afternoon Frank Hawkins was telling me about his experiences as a young man......"


    In front of the steps, cars came and went, pedestrians hurried by.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t look left or right, and kept reading. She didn''t notice a passing pedestrian pause briefly before continuing on.


    "Bought you a cell phone. Your mom and I worry with you out here alone. If anything comes up you can call Granny Liu''s house next door, and we''ll call you if needed too."


    Su Xiaoqi was stunned.


    Seeing her dad''s scarred, weathered hand holding out the phone, tears instantly flooded her eyes.


    "Take it, what are you dazing for. Your dad''s burden baskets sold for more, the boss said mine were well made and raised the price to 30 yuan a pair, higher than anyone else''s." Dad said this happily. Other villagers'' baskets sold for only 24 yuan a pair, while his were sturdy and beautiful, with the stray twigs meticulously sanded smooth, selling better than others''.


    "Yeah, I''m just happy." Su Xiaoqi choked up a bit.


    30 yuan a pair, with Dad carrying a shoulder pole load today, that was about 30 pairs, already heavy enough to bend him over. Not counting transportation and labor fees, it was 900 yuan total.


    This one cell phone cost at least 700-800.


    "I heard you still need to buy a SIM card to use it. I''ll take you to buy a card then have to head back, can''t miss the bus." Seeing his daughter blankly stunned, Dad rubbed her head.


    There was a SIM card seller near the bookstore. Dad bought a card, paid, and added 50 yuan of call credits, having his daughter write down her number for him. He solemnly folded the paper with the number and put it in his pocket.


    "I''ll tell your mom when I get home. She''ll definitely be thrilled, and will probably call you at Granny Liu''s to check. Remember to listen for it." Dad said happily.


    After buying the card they took the bus, when normally he''d have walked home, but the phone purchase held him up today.


    Only when boarding did Xiaoqi remember the clothes to give Dad.


    Seeing the items, Dad said, "Oh you silly girl, spending the money I gave you on this stuff when your mom and I have everything we need."


    "It was very cheap at the wholesale market by the riverbank. There''s money left over." Su Xiaoqi said.


    Still Dad shoved 20 yuan back to her.


    She saw his pockets were empty.


    The bus left.


    Though only middle aged, Dad looked like an old man and was given a seat.


    He was very happy, sitting there craning his neck to wave goodbye to his daughter, smiling.


    Su Xiaoqi held the phone, watching the bus depart.


    Tears streamed down her face.

 Chapter 6: An Awkward Encounter

    Chapter 6


    The twenty yuan note in her hand was crumpled.


    Her mom had stuffed one hundred yuan into her pocket last night when she said she wanted to find a summer job.


    This morning when she parted ways with her dad, he had given her fifty yuan and told her to go buy some food. And now he had given her another twenty yuan, so she had a total of one hundred and seventy yuan.


    The app showed she had 1160 yuan, so she didn''t add any more.


    The money the system had given her today had reached the limit. After walking ten thousand steps this morning,


    Su Xiaoqi only confirmed that this system really existed and wasn''t just imagined when she spent the money.


    If she got one thousand yuan per day, and there were thirty days in a month, that would be thirty thousand yuan.


    Then she wouldn''t have any pressure paying her tuition fees; half a month would be enough.


    But paying tuition wasn''t the same as buying clothes. She couldn''t cheat. She still needed a source of income.


    She had only casually mentioned wanting to tutor yesterday, but today she decided to really find a tutoring job.


    She could temporarily stay at her aunt''s house.


    She used to care more about appearances.


    She felt working part-time jobs was embarrassing, but after going home this time, she experienced that while other families were sleeping in the middle of the night, her parents were still working hard, doing tiring labor to earn meager wages, and then giving all of it to her.


    Compared to that, her going out to work should be something to be proud of, not embarrassing at all.


    There was another thing: she had money now, and it made her feel different.


    If she didn''t have money and went to work, it would be just to survive.


    Just surviving was always carefully treading, afraid of making a wrong step and losing her livelihood.


    But with money in her pocket, she inexplicably had more confidence. Even if she lost her job, she could still live.


    Going to work was to gain more than just money, but also experience in dealing with people and the world.


    Su Xiaoqi walked all the way to her aunt''s house.


    Her aunt''s house was actually just the hospital dormitory.


    The hospital was right next to her high school. Her aunt was a janitor at the hospital, responsible for the hygiene on the first floor of the inpatient department, practically working 24 hours a day, so the hospital provided dormitories.


    But the conditions were very crude. It was different from where the doctors and nurses rested. It was in the basement of the hospital, dark when you went in, with windows on one side, and not far away was the hospital morgue.


    It was awkward because on the day they got their college acceptance letters, she had run into Liu Shaowei.


    The boy she had promised before the college entrance exam to go to the same university with.


    Then Su Xiaoqi didn''t test well, getting into a private university, while Liu Shaowei performed decently, getting into a top public university.


    Su Xiaoqi went south to another city, while Liu Shaowei went north.


    Their lives diverged from here, seeming worlds apart, like a huge ravine, insurmountable.


    That day, standing in front of Liu Shaowei, he had just smiled awkwardly before leaving surrounded by a group of classmates. She heard they were going to celebrate getting into college at KTV.


    She stood there, crying like a dog.


    Very sad about not testing well for college, and the boy she liked was gone too. Hard to say which made her sadder.


    To make things worse, she had cried so hard her glasses fell off, and it was this boy living next door who had picked them up and returned them to her.


    She had cried until her eyes were blurry, snot running down her nose.


    Very embarrassing.


    "Xiao Lin, I heard you got into Alliance University. My niece Xiaoqi also got into Alliance University. You''ll have to look after each other there." Her aunt greeted him loudly.


    Su Xiaoqi could only stand aside awkwardly smiling.


    Very awkward.


    Although he was at an average high school, he had tested into the best university in the city, while she was at a top high school but only got into some unknown private school in the city. There was no comparison.


    "Okay Aunt Su, I''m off to a part-time job. Let''s chat later." He smiled appropriately and walked out.


    "Um, Lin, wait a moment." Su Xiaoqi called out to him, her face a little red.


    She had only been a student before, with pitifully little social experience, let alone working part-time jobs. Hearing him so calmly talk about going to a part-time job, she thought she could ask him about it.


    "You guys chat, I''m going to make dinner." Her aunt walked away blithely.


    Leaving Su Xiaoqi standing there, pushing up her glasses again, trying her best to stand upright and look him in the eye.


    "Um, I also want to find a part-time job, tutoring or something. Could you tell me how to find one?"


    On the narrow stairwell, Lin Min did not expect Su Xiaoqi to actually take the initiative to talk to him. Seeing her standing in front of him, cheeks fair with some baby fat, eyes curved, lips red, most of her face obscured by big black glasses, actually she looked much prettier without them. Because he often saw her with a towel on her head after washing her hair, glasses off, looking soft and cute.


    But with glasses on, she became a bit fierce, a bit arrogant, not very easy to get along with.


    He smiled and said, "Sure, let''s go together. I have a tutoring interview today."

 Chapter 7: The Interview

    Chapter 7


    Lin Min did not mention the awkward thing that day.


    Su Xiaoqi naturally would not talk about it either.


    But when the two walked side by side, it was still very awkward.


    "Today, our teacher introduced us to a second-year junior high student who wants to learn English but has a very poor foundation. However, the money her mother is willing to pay is quite suitable - 100 yuan per hour. So she called several people to come interview together. My English is fine, but my spoken English is just average."


    Lin Min knew her partner did not perform very well on the college entrance exam, but she was still going to do some work, so he introduced her a little bit.


    "Thank you." Su Xiaoqi did not say how good her own spoken English was. As a student from the prestigious No.1 Middle School, she was a little ashamed that she did not test as well as a student from the less prestigious No.2 Middle School. But now, since the other person was willing to take her along to the interview, what else could she say besides "Thank you"?


    After leaving the hospital, when they walked past the No.1 Middle School student street, Su Xiaoqi asked Lin Min to wait for her for a moment.


    She ran to a familiar store and bought two milk teas and a bread roll.


    She generously paid the 28 yuan - 12 yuan for each milk tea and 4 yuan for the bread.


    Drinking milk tea was popular among the school students. She didn''t drink much of it often before. When she was with Liu Shaowei, he had bought her some several times.


    It seemed like the first time she had a crush was because of a milk tea.


    He was tall, with slightly curly hair, a high nose bridge, small eyes - not one of those especially handsome boys. But when he handed over the milk tea, his smile was so warm, so gentle, his whole being seemed as bright as sunshine.


    "Here." She handed the milk tea to Lin Min.


    Lin Min was stunned. He knew girls seemed to really like drinking milk tea - that''s how it was with the girls in his class.


    But he rarely drank it himself. His father was a caregiver and his mother ran a street food stand. The two of them together did not make much income. They wanted to save up to buy an apartment in the city. Plus there was money needed for him and his siblings'' education. So they lived very frugally.


    "I don''t like sweet stuff," Lin Min declined.


    "I bought two cups." Su Xiaoqi insisted and shoved the milk tea into his hands.


    She stabbed the straw into the cup, puffed up her cheeks and sucked up the milk tea, not looking at him. She wolfed down the bread in three to five bites.


    Lin Min had never spent time alone with Su Xiaoqi before, but they were neighbors after all. Their building corridor was narrow and dimly lit. They bumped into each other from time to time.


    In the sunlight, Su Xiaoqi wore a white T-shirt and black pants. Her hair was down to her shoulders. Her skin was so fair, so white. He stole an extra glance before quickly turning his head away, too shy to keep looking. He accepted the milk tea from her.


    It felt a little warm in his hand.


    So as not to seem pretentious, he also opened it and took a sip.


    There was a hint of milkiness, a hint of tea, very sweet.


    Looking at the girl walking beside him, cheeks puffed up as she ate the bread, like a chubby squirrel, he suddenly felt the milk tea was cloyingly sweet.


    The student''s home was not far, near No.1 Middle School. As Su Xiaoqi looked at the interface on her phone, she increased her pace. Over 10,000 steps now, but her money had not increased again. What a pity.


    Seeing the interior made her even more nervous.


    At her home, they just had electric lights with wires strung up, swaying this way and that with the wind. No need to take off shoes when going indoors either. Looking at the beige, furry carpet, she instinctively felt a sense of unfamiliarity and fear.


    Don''t be nervous, don''t be nervous, she told herself over and over. She wasn''t dead set on tutoring. She just wanted to give it a try and gain some experience.


    After repeating this to herself several times, she finally got her hands and feet to stop shaking as badly.


    When a young woman in an apron handed her a pair of slippers, she didn''t know how to address the other party. She just tried her best not to shake as she accepted them. She changed into the slippers and said, "Thank you."


    She thought the woman was the lady of the house. Only after entering did she realize the student''s mother was in the living room. The one who gave them slippers was actually just the housekeeper.


    Among the group, Lin Min appeared the most steady and composed. He was tall with smooth, decisive motions.


    "You''re Lin Min, the one Teacher Qi recommended. I heard you got into Qingmeng University. Very impressive. My younger brother is also a graduate of Qingmeng University."


    On the living room sofa sat a woman with long, wavy hair, wearing a red polka dot dress.


    "Hello Ms. Liang. Thank you for the praise," Lin Min responded in a neither obsequious nor supercilious manner.


    "My daughter Jiajia is in 8th grade this year. She''ll be in 9th grade, a critical year, in the second half of the year. But her English is really poor. So I want to find her a tutor for a month, two days a week, Monday and Thursday, 2pm to 4pm. The pay is 100 yuan per hour. There will be additional bonuses if she learns well."


    After she finished speaking, the few students who came to interview grew even more nervous.


    Normally student tutors charged 50, 60, 80 yuan per hour at most.


    But this parent was offering 100 yuan, 20 yuan more than the highest rate.


    And very stable too.


    Teaching for a month would be 1600 yuan. Teaching well could mean extra bonuses on top.


    This family was clearly very well-off. The home decor was luxurious and spacious. There was even a housekeeper.


    This also indicated the requirements would probably be very high.


    "Originally I wanted to hire authoritative teachers. But my daughter Jiajia doesn''t like teachers. She dislikes the feeling of still having class during summer vacation. I feel recently graduated high school students are more suitable. You''ll have clearer memory of the knowledge points and there isn''t too big of an age difference, so you can communicate more easily. That''s why I wanted to interview you."


    Hearing this, the students grew even more reserved.


    Lost in thought, Su Xiaoqi calculated that 1600 yuan per month was a lot, a lot for her. Her dad had to weave over a hundred bamboo sieves to earn that much, and it would take him a long time. For her previously, that sum of money was enormous.


    But now, unusually, she felt rather calm, not even as nervous as when she first entered the home.


    She sat beside Lin Min, keeping her back straight, making an effort to control herself from pushing her glasses up. She felt the glasses were a nuisance - hers were quite big black-framed ones that often slid down, making her reflexively reach up to nudge them back in place when she got nervous or out of habit.


    She made a mental note to change to a different pair of glasses after this interview.


    "Which high school are you from? Which university did you test into?"


    Just as Su Xiaoqi was spacing out, Ms. Liang suddenly spoke up and asked her.

 Chapter 8: Interview Success

    Chapter 8


    This question was almost her killer question now.


    It was like a poor student dreading when others asked about his exam scores after the test.


    Su Xiaoqi felt choosing which university was much more daunting than choosing the exam scores. Upstodatee from


    After all, if she didn''t do well this time, she could try harder next time for a better result - she could say that.


    But choosing a university - unless she repeated a year to take the exam again, could she do better by repeating a year?


    This was a question that even Su Xiaoqi herself didn''t dare to ascertain.


    Her period had nearly come before the Gaokao, and it still hadn''t come, she had been nervous and uncomfortable all along, affecting her test-taking. She had been distracted before the Gaokao, and had wanted to fall in love...


    "Hello Ms. Liang, my name is Su Xiaoqi, today I came to learn together with Lin Min, I also took the exam for schools in Meng City, Enhua University."


    "Pfft!"


    Su Xiaoqi had just finished speaking when an abrupt laugh sounded.


    Ms. Liang didn''t reply, the one who laughed was the girl who had just greeted Lin Min.


    After laughing she also felt it was a bit inappropriate, and quickly said: "Sorry, I thought a student from No.1 Middle School would have very good grades, I didn''t expect you''d go to Enhua, that''s a private university, my cousin went to Thirteen Middle School, he went to that school last year, it''s said you can get in by paying money."


    The girl''s casual manner, made this apology even more of an embarrassment.


    Su Xiaoqi had done a lot of psychological preparation these past few days, her complexion didn''t turn ugly, she just smiled, without saying much.


    Ms. Liang was quite cultured, she also didn''t say anything, but evidently, this one remark, she had excluded both girls.


    She didn''t like that interrupting girl, she was too shallow, somewhat rude.


    And as for a No.1 Middle School girl who actually tested into a private university, naturally she wouldn''t consider her either. With No.1 Middle School''s teaching resources being so good, testing like this could only mean she was either usually not hardworking, or really stupid. If it was just a fluke with the exam, that would just be unlucky.


    She started the interview, evidently she was prepared, originally she had only prepared to print 3 articles, she would read the books herself, she didn''t expect 4 people to come, she clearly favored Lin Min, giving him the book and handing out the printed articles to the others.


    "Finished reading it? Which of you will go first."


    Ms. Liang''s voice sounded, interrupting everyone.


    Ms. Liang most favored Lin Min, but she saw that No.1 Middle School girl called Su Xiaoqi who had self-introduced earlier, actually had tears in her eyes, seemingly not only understanding it, but also very moved.


    She was a bit surprised, and simply pointed at her and said: "You go first then."


    Lin Min was somewhat surprised, going first was obviously a bit disadvantaged, after all the few people after could read and consolidate again, but this was an interview, he also couldn''t help, he just smiled encouragingly at Xiaoqi.


    Hinting for her not to be nervous.


    While the other two breathed sighs of relief, reciting a thousand word English article in ten minutes still put on some pressure, a bit more time would of course be best.


    "Thank you Ms. Liang for giving me this opportunity, letting me read such a beautiful essay, I really like it." Su Xiaoqi said.


    Ms. Liang raised her brows, she didn''t expect this girl to speak quite pleasantly, although she was looking for a home tutor for her daughter, speaking pleasantly was useless, but her impression did improve a bit.


    Xiaoqi finished speaking, and closed the printout before her.


    This time, she still couldn''t help pushing her glasses, because she had looked so attentively earlier, the frames had nearly slid down her nose.


    "If I were a boy again, I would practise perseverance more often, and never give up a thing because it was hard or inconvenient......If I were to live my life over again, I would pay more attention to the cultivation of the memory......if I were a boy again, try still harder to make others happy"


    In the spacious bright living room, a girl in a white T-shirt, sitting on the sofa, one hand on her knee, the other holding a rolled up document, her smooth English voice, spoken with feeling, gentle, sweet, unhalting, even the cleaning maid who was cleaning the living room, stopped her motions, standing there, seemingly able to understand, an expression of yearning on her face.


    Lin Min also blankly looked at Xiaoqi, he didn''t expect this seemingly unsociable neighbor girl, to actually have this side to her.


    She was like an elegant 18th century noble lady, her tone and phrasing gentle and intimate, subtly infectious.


    He also understood the article, could summarize the main idea, and recite it, but it was more like reciting an essay, and not like Xiaoqi, elegantly and sincerely speaking from the heart.


    In this moment the girl''s entire body emitted light.


    The other two had originally been holding the materials preparing to seize the time to read more, but now they had stopped, looking at Su Xiaoqi somewhat incredulously.


    Damn... I haven''t even fully understood the specific content, and she''s already expressing it emotionally with tears like a foreigner... How can I compete?? No way!

 Chapter 9: Helping Grandma

    Chapter 9


    Ms. Liang did not expect that this female student''s sense of English was so good.


    Moreover, she did not miss a single word and made no mistakes at all.


    It was as if she was reading an article.


    Even better than reading, her emotion was more abundant. Ms. Liang also had a college degree, her English was decent, she passed the level 4 test, but her English was dumb English, she could not do what this female student did, able to memorize it quickly in a short time, and even her spoken language was so good, it was amazing. She believed that even if teachers were invited, they may not necessarily have the same feeling as this girl.


    "You are very good," Ms. Liang praised.


    "Your English is so strong, how come your high school entrance exam score was so bad, was it a mistake?" The same female student could not help but interrupt again, because she felt she definitely had no hope, so she relaxed instead.


    Su Xiaoqi shook her head, and did not answer.


    She let the others continue with the interview.


    Next up was Lin Min. Lin Min''s performance was also good, he basically translated the article, but he could not recite it word for word like Su Xiaoqi. His sense of language was also not as good as Su Xiaoqi¡¯s.


    The other two students were even more stuttering, but they could get the general meaning across, so their performances were still considered decent.


    But with Su Xiaoqi ahead, naturally there was no comparison.


    "You can come tomorrow afternoon. My daughter went to her grandmother''s house today. She should be happy to meet you when she comes back tomorrow," Ms. Liang said as she stood up and shook Su Xiaoqi¡¯s hand.


    Su Xiaoqi was somewhat flattered. She stiffly stretched out her hand which was sweaty.


    The few of them went downstairs. Lu Jiaojiao, the female classmate of Lin Min, introduced herself again: "My name is Lu Jiaojiao. Su Xiaoqi you are so amazing!"


    The male classmate also looked at her admiringly: "My name is Wang Ding, you can call me Nail. Let¡¯s hang out sometime if we have the chance. The students from your high school are so awesome!"


    Su Xiaoqi felt somewhat ashamed. She had actually been stuttering before as well, at best just a little better than Lu Jiaojiao.


    But amidst the shame, it also increased her determination to study hard.


    No matter whether there were buffs or not, at least what she learned would be her own.


    She thought when she went back, she would go to the bookstore and read more books. That was definitely the right thing to do. She understood too little, and got nervous when encountering people and events.


    The other two still had other tutoring jobs, so they left first.


    Lin Min stayed behind.


    "Brother Lin Min, thank you. Ms. Liang should have chosen you this morning."


    The huge watershed of the college entrance exam, the crossroad in life, made Su Xiaoqi mature a lot all at once.


    Like with her aunt, most of the time she had taken her kindness for granted, seldom reciprocating, feeling that her company was the best reciprocation. But that was not actually the case.


    Su Xiaoqi thought she should treat her aunt and parents better.


    Unconsciously, she had arrived at the pedestrian crossing opposite the bookstore, about to cross the road, when she saw an old lady walking down the stairs from a planter box next to her. With a thud, the old lady fell right in front of her not far away.


    The old lady sat tremblingly on the ground.


    In an instant, the people around all took a few steps back.


    Lost in thought, Su Xiaoqi did not react in time, so she was the closest.


    Ever since the news report of someone helping an old lady up only to get scammed afterwards, there had been extensive discussion about whether to help old ladies up. The same discussions happened in their school.


    And now, right in front of her eyes, an old lady had fallen down with a thud. Should she help or not?


    Normally Su Xiaoqi would have turned away, or retreated into the spectating crowd, because her family was truly poor, her parents even had to sell blood to get by. They couldn''t afford to get scammed.


    But she had money now.


    That was not the real reason though. She saw the old lady''s foot seemed to be limping even before falling.


    She hoped that if her dad fell, someone would be willing to help him up, so she still walked up and helped the old lady up, picking up her cane and handing it to her.


    Some in the crowd had already taken out their phones to record.


    The old lady who was helped up did not make a big fuss. She thanked normally: "Thank you young lady. I''m fine, just slipped and fell. I can walk after getting up."


    The old lady slowly walked away leaning on her cane.


    The vehicles on the road all gave way to her.


    Su Xiaoqi heaved a sigh of relief. She smiled at the people around and continued walking towards the bookstore.


    No big incident, no applause, no scam. Just doing a small good deed, she felt relieved. This was good.


    "Host helped up an old person who fell down, increasing positive energy in society for the first time. System level unlocked, system upgraded to Level 2 Positive Energy System. Host will gain 0.2 yuan for every step, capped at 20,000 steps daily."


    A mechanical voice sounded in her ear.


    With a thud, Su Xiaoqi fell at the entrance of the bookstore. Then she saw the interface in front of her eyes increase by 0.2 yuan.

 Chapter 10: Bamboo Weaving Skills Card

    Chapter 10


    Su Xiaoqi stumbled and fell, hurting her knee a little.


    But she had a silly grin on her face.


    She never imagined that doing a rare selfless good deed would bring such a pleasant surprise.


    Her parents had always taught her not to get involved in other people''s business, just focus on her own matters.


    A young girl from the countryside sticking her nose into other people''s affairs would only cause trouble for her parents, so Su Xiaoqi was always very careful.


    She didn''t expect that the one time she did a good deed, there would be such a generous reward.


    She couldn''t wait to go for a run right now.


    Walking 20,000 steps every day would earn her 4,000 RMB.


    A month would be 120,000 RMB.


    What did 120,000 RMB mean to Su Xiaoqi?


    She had no concept of it. She felt light on her feet just thinking about it.


    Everything she had on added up to just 364 RMB.


    Her 188 RMB glasses, 59 RMB white t-shirt, 39 RMB athletic pants, 48 RMB sneakers, a no-name digital watch that a classmate had given her for her birthday purchased at the school gate boutique for around 30 RMB, and a small cloth bag that came free with a purchase.


    Just 364 RMB worth of outfit made Su Xiaoqi feel guilty and anxious, because she knew her parents worked hard for money.


    But she didn''t want to be looked at differently by her classmates. There was a girl in the dorm across from hers who was from the same village. She often wore ill-fitting hand-me-down clothes to school and was frequently mocked.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t mock her, but she worried about being mocked herself, isolated, gossiped about. That feeling was awful.


    This was her vanity and contradiction.


    But now, tens of thousands of RMB??


    She really didn''t know how to spend that much.


    She floated into the bookstore.


    By the time she made her way to the shelves and picked up a book, she snapped back to reality.


    She was holding a copy of "The Art of Bamboo Weaving Inheritance" for some reason.


    Time to go back or Auntie would worry since she didn''t know Xiaoqi had a phone now.


    She got up and returned the book to the shelf, gently stomping her numb legs.


    "Host has finished an immersive reading session of one book, lasting 2 hours 19 minutes. Awarded one Platinum Bamboo Weaving Skill Card, which comes with one affiliated card. Host can use one card themselves and assign the other card to someone else," sounded the mechanical voice.


    Su Xiaoqi was stunned, then overjoyed.


    She desperately needed this skill. No - her dad desperately needed it.


    Since discovering the system''s existence and that it was real, she had been thinking about how to improve her parents'' lives.


    Suddenly giving them a large sum of money wouldn''t work - she had no explanation and they wouldn''t dare spend it freely.


    They were just ordinary farmers. Dad had some education, finishing middle school, while Mom didn''t even graduate primary school. Giving them money to start a business wasn''t realistic either.


    She could only build on what they currently did. Bamboo weaving was perfect - Dad often helped villagers weave useful items and was praised for his skill. But it was a sideline, nothing remarkable.


    Xiaoqi decided that once her tutoring job was settled, she would make a trip home.


    Leaving the bookstore, she walked back to the hospital dorm, stepping lively.


    The young girl Su Xiaoqi walked down the street, loudly singing a song - she needed roller skates.


    Under the neon lights...


    "One step, two steps, one step two steps


    It''s the devil''s pace, the devil''s pace


    Friction, friction


    I''m keeping the beat for myself


    This is a beautiful moment in my life


    I''m going to complete my favorite dance


    Under this lovely moonlight


    On this lovely street


    I tell myself this is real, this is no dream"

 Chapter 11: : Generous Posture buff

    Chapter 11


    On the way back.


    Su Xiaoqi received a phone call from her mom.


    The voice was very loud.


    Like yelling.


    She could imagine her parents yelling while making the call from Granny Liu''s house.


    They rarely made calls, worried it wouldn''t be loud enough.


    Gumu Village was such an extremely, extremely backward place.


    The outside world had turned upside down, but the village seemed to never change.


    Ancient, tiny.


    "I found a tutoring job, the parents are very satisfied. I''ll start working tomorrow, I''ll come home in a couple days." She held the phone, quickly saying what she needed to say.


    Otherwise her parents would feel bad for making the call too long at Granny Liu''s house.


    "Okay, did you eat? It''s hot outside, don''t run around, be careful of getting sick, eat on time. Your dad and I are fine, we have everything at home, don''t waste money buying stuff for us." Mom Su yelled loudly.


    "Gotta go, bye when you''re done, that''s all I gotta say. Bye, Xiaoqi call if anything comes up, Granny Liu is calling us to eat." Dad Su grabbed the phone and said before immediately hanging up.


    Mom Su wore new slippers, so did Dad Su. Mom Su didn''t dare wear the clothes, the fabric was too nice, Xiaoqi must have underreported the price, fabric this nice cost at least 100 yuan per yard.


    But the two pairs of slippers were enough to make the couple very happy.


    After making the call and chatting for a bit, they didn''t leave until they were satisfied with showing off the slippers Xiaoqi bought.


    After they left, Granny Liu''s daughter-in-law muttered: "That girl Xiaoqi, she''s crafty, buying two pairs of plastic slippers to make the lame Su couple so happy. They''re bending over backwards to pay for her college."


    "Woman, watch your mouth. At least Xiaoqi got into college, your daughter can''t even get into high school." Granny Liu''s son scolded.


    Xiaoqi got back late again. She walked all the way to the dorms where Auntie stayed. Auntie already ate and went upstairs to work.


    She not only cleaned the floors, she also helped look after patients at night sometimes.


    Xiaoqi first went to the wards to let Auntie know she was back, before going back to her room.


    On her way back, she was stuffed a bunch of bananas, given by a patient''s relatives.


    After hearing that Xiaoqi was a student at No. 1 High School, they praised her nonstop.


    Xiaoqi fled.


    Auntie left food heating in the rice cooker for her to eat by herself.


    Dinner was fried rice, made with leftovers from lunch, plus eggs, and a seaweed soup.


    "I don''t know how, you put your number in for me." Auntie handed her phone over.


    Xiaoqi saw that Auntie''s phone was a super old smartphone she never changed. The contacts were very messy.


    There was her daughter Feifei''s number, she had helped set a speed dial before, just press 1 to call her.


    And grandma''s number, Auntie''s mom''s number, press 2 to call her.


    She also set a speed dial for her own number, press 3 to call.


    She had Auntie test it.


    Auntie pressed 3 and her phone rang as expected.


    "This is convenient. When you''re at college later I can call you too." Auntie laughed.


    Her daughter was 3 years younger than Xiaoqi, at a rebellious age. Other than asking for money, she normally ignored Auntie entirely.


    "Okay Auntie, call me whenever you miss me." Xiaoqi finished her congee before replying.


    Auntie looked at her niece and suddenly said: "Xiaoqi, you seem a little different today, like you grew up. If only Feifei could be like you."


    Xiaoqi didn''t feel any change in herself. But it seemed like she had the Graceful Demeanor buff on her, forcing her to pay attention. Like when you have food in your mouth, don''t try to talk at the same time.


    Her posture sitting seemed straighter too.


    She never paid attention to these details before. She was young after all, still looked nice being ungraceful.


    But after focusing on demeanor, there was an obvious difference.


    Auntie hadn''t finished eating when her phone rang. A nurse from the first floor called her down to work. She hurriedly grabbed a bun and left,


    Auntie was heavyset, it seemed the whole hallway shook when she ran.


    Xiaoqi kept eating. She wanted to hurry too, wolf down a few bites and be done. But her body inexplicably had this mood forcing her to eat slowly and properly, posture elegant.


    She finally finished eating with great difficulty. Looking up, she didn''t know when Lin Qingqing sat down across from her.


    She didn''t talk to Lin Min much, but was quite familiar with Qingqing. Qingqing went to No. 7 High School, grades mediocre. She admired the legendary Xiaoqi from No. 1 High School.


    "Sis Xiaoqi, were you out with my brother yesterday? Where did he go? Does he have a girlfriend he''s dating? Is she pretty?"


    The little girl threw out several questions in one breath. Xiaoqi hadn''t reacted yet.


    Then Lin Min appeared. Face slightly red, he nodded at Xiaoqi, then grabbed his sister by the collar and dragged her away.


    Then came the sounds of chaos from the next room.


    Xiaoqi smiled. Carrying her bookbag and a thermos of hot water, she headed out.


    The municipal library was quite far. Of course she chose to walk.


    Seeing the interface showed she already had over 3000 yuan, she walked with great motivation. Go girl, keep it up, progress girl Xiaoqi!

 Chapter 12: The Little Sister Who Writes in the Library

    Chapter 12


    The city library opened at 8 o''clock.


    Getting a reader''s card was very convenient, just needing an ID card and a 50 yuan deposit.


    Seeing the money skyrocket to over 6,000 yuan, Su Xiaoqi took out 50 yuan without even frowning once.


    After getting the card, she could go to any reading room. She could only borrow two books at a time, limited to one month.


    To renew the lending period, she would need to swipe the card again.


    Su Xiaoqi had never been to the city library before. She hadn''t even finished the books at her school library.


    But now during the break, she had graduated high school, so of course she couldn''t go to the school library anymore.


    She had a 10-day memory buff, and today was already the third day, so she had to take advantage of it.


    Recently when reading books she felt especially smooth. Although not quite photographic memory, she found it easier to concentrate, and by reading carefully two or three times, she could remember it very firmly.


    Since she still had to go tutor English in the afternoon, she went to the foreign language section to pick out some books to read.


    She chose two relatively simple foreign language originals.


    After finding a seat, putting her backpack on the floor, and placing her filled water bottle on the table, she started reading.


    The two books were ''The Little Prince'' and ''Robinson Crusoe''. ''The Little Prince'' was a book she really liked, but she had only read the Chinese translated version before.


    Today she wanted to try reading the English translation. ''The Little Prince'' was written in 1942 by the French author Antoine de Saint-Exupe?ry.


    So the original should have been in French.


    But the bilingual versions in China defaulted to Chinese and English. Xiaoqi really admired French. If she could understand the French version someday, that would be wonderful.


    Although The Little Prince was classified as children''s literature, for the 17-year-old Xiaoqi, it was already a book she could read hundreds of times without getting tired of it.


    The words in it always felt amazing, profound yet concise.


    The English version was quite exquisite. It was still relatively easy to understand because the library''s English version had English and Chinese side by side.


    Reading while comparing, it gave her a different feeling. Different people''s translations were also different.


    The Little Prince was very short, a thin book, but she still spent nearly an hour to finish it.


    The moment she closed the book after reading, Xiaoqi still felt that no matter how many times she read this book in the future, she would never get tired of it. for new novels


    She had brought paper and pen. The teacher always said in class that good memory is not as good as bad handwriting. Writing it down would help reinforce the memory.


    She decided to copy it out silently.


    The notebook was not fancy, just ordinary A4 paper, plain white, but she wrote very neatly on it.


    Like a scholar in ancient times, with the entire family''s effort to support her studies, hoping she could make something of herself and live a better life.


    The sunlight just crawled to her hand and didn''t move forward anymore.


    Maybe blocked by the curtains, or bookshelves, or something else.


    But the girl Xiaoqi, now used to the light, did not pause. She kept on writing.


    Her handwriting was very nice, much prettier than most people''s.


    Ever since she got the fountain pen from Dad, she had taken care to practice diligently, persisting all along.


    The sound of the pen tip touching the paper, the smoothness of the ink, was probably one of the best sounds in the world.


    Time seemed to have stopped.


    Or time was still flowing, just more slowly. An hour outside, but enough for Xiaoqi to linger a lifetime in the world of the Little Prince.


    Reading was wonderful.


    Writing was wonderful.


    This was probably the most fundamental reason people should read books. Topping the imperial exam and living in riches, fame and beauty were just extra gains.


    When writing, the posture had to be upright, the pen grip also upright, otherwise it would be hard to keep writing for long periods and would cause fatigue and hunching.


    The girl in the corner of the library, in this moment, had become the library''s best scenery.


    At her feet was a backpack.


    On the table were two books, a glass water bottle.


    She had short hair, the bangs tied up in a little clump.


    A gray T-shirt, the T-shirt had a pink puppy pattern, khaki shorts, white shoes, seventeen years old.


    English words and sentences poured smoothly onto the A4 paper.


    No pause, no hesitation. Her side profile was a little chubby, very clean.


    Someone casually recorded a short video and posted it on TikTok.


    "Seriously writing girl, didn''t dare disturb."


    After finishing writing, Xiaoqi stood up and twisted her neck around.


    Seeing that she had actually filled most of the notebook, she was shocked.


    She didn''t realize she had written so much.


    "Host wrote happily and earnestly, adding positive energy to society. Awarded calligraphy skill diamond card. This card can be upgraded as host persists. Host will advance to next level after accumulating 100 hours of daily 1-hour writing sessions. Host''s current calligraphy level is beginner."

 Chapter 13: Little Sister of Tiktok

    Chapter 13


    In this world that is not perfect, hard work will be rewarded, while idleness will be punished. - Maugham


    Xiaoqi kept reading her book.


    In the blink of an eye, it was already half past twelve.


    She needed to go eat.


    It took half an hour to eat. By one o''clock, she could walk to Liang Lady''s home. She was scheduled to tutor from two to four, so arriving half an hour early would be appropriate.


    As it turned out, eating only took her ten minutes or so. There was a fast food chain restaurant right under the library.


    A bowl of braised pork rice cost 18 yuan. It came with braised pork, egg, vegetables, soup, and unlimited rice.


    Su Xiaoqi had been very active these past two days. Her schedule was packed, plus she was a seventeen year old girl still growing. She finished the entire meal box, not leaving a single grain of rice.


    After eating her fill and resting for a bit, she headed towards Liang Lady''s home.


    It was a little hot at noon, so she didn''t walk very quickly.


    She realized walking at a steady pace lasted longer and didn''t make her as tired compared to walking briskly.


    By the time she arrived downstairs at Liang Lady''s building, it wasn''t even half past one. But she suddenly felt very nervous.


    Yesterday, going for the tutoring interview could be considered just trying it out. She had never interviewed to be a tutor before, so she felt calm instead of nervous or scared. Also, yesterday there were several candidates and Lin Min was by her side.


    But today it was just her alone. What if she messed up?


    What if the student didn''t like her?


    The moment she stepped into the elevator, Su Xiaoqi asked herself countless questions.


    Finally, she still pressed the button for the 23rd floor.


    "If I could go back to my childhood again, I would cultivate courage. There is nothing in the world as polite as courage, nor anything as cruel as cowardice."


    Watching the elevator numbers change, she silently repeated this to herself.


    It was the passage Liang Lady had them analyze during yesterday''s interview.


    Investing courage will gain you far more than you can imagine.


    Liang Jiajia felt that girl was too impressive, and even liked the video.


    In truth, Liang Jiajia''s grades in other subjects were fine, it was just English she struggled with.


    In elementary school her English had been very good. Her dad was an English teacher after all.


    But later her dad went abroad on an exchange program, then came back and divorced her mom to marry his exchange partner. And dad didn''t want custody of Jiajia, soon having a son with the other woman.


    Liang Jiajia was furious, feeling abandoned by her father. Her personality became rebellious, and she developed a hatred for English by association, although it made no sense. She didn''t even want to study it anymore. Her mom''s business meant they weren''t lacking money, and she was given the best of everything.


    But when she visited her grandma during vacation, that woman and her dad were there too. Right in front of her, they actually spoke English, acting like she couldn''t understand them, which infuriated her. And grandma clearly favored her little brother now. Her grandma used to save the best food for Jiajia, but only brought it out now that the boy was here.


    When she returned, Liang Jiajia told her mom she wanted to take English lessons and get a tutor. But she didn''t want a teacher; in her heart she had even developed a hatred for English teachers, although it was nonsensical.


    As a result, when she walked into the living room, she saw that girl from the video sitting in their living room sofa - gray t-shirt, khaki knee-length shorts, pixie cut with a little ponytail at the back. Holding a glass of water and smiling warmly as she sipped it.


    Liang Jiajia could hardly believe it. She opened TikTok on her phone, and there was the same scene, identical. It had to be the same person.


    Liang Jiajia wanted to shriek with excitement. Just now, people had been commenting on TikTok, asking to see the girl''s face, asking for her address and name.


    She never imagined that girl was now sitting in her living room!


    Liang Jiajia wanted so badly to post about this on TikTok.


    "Jiajia, what are you standing around for? Hurry and greet your teacher," Liang Lady said, seeing her daughter standing there in a daze with a dumbstruck look.


    Liang Jiajia practically bounced over to Su Xiaoqi. Fortunately their home was spacious.


    "Hello Teacher Su," Liang Jiajia greeted her, beaming.


    Su Xiaoqi also stood up. She had felt a little nervous at first, worried the girl might be hard to get along with. Glancing around the lavishly decorated living room earlier, the photos on the wall were only of Liang Lady and a young girl - no man of the house.


    When changing shoes, she hadn''t seen any men''s shoes either. It seemed there was no man living here.


    She guessed it might be a single parent family, well-off but possibly with a difficult child to teach.


    She didn''t expect the girl to be quite polite.


    "Hello," Su Xiaoqi held out her hand.


    Liang Jiajia also extended her hand and shook it, immediately growing excited. The girl from the video shook my hand! Eeee!


    Seeing the unusually energetic and jumpy young girl, Su Xiaoqi thought...

 Chapter 14: The Little Sister Who Can Make Bamboo

    Chapter 14


    Su Xiaoqi was tutoring for the first time.


    She was actually a little nervous, but she handled it quite well. No nervousness was detectable, as she was composed and at ease.


    On the other hand, her student Liang Jiajia seemed a bit too lively.


    With chubby cheeks and looking quite cute, she talked a lot, always veering off-topic, seemingly curious about everything.


    She would also grin at Su Xiaoqi from time to time. If it wasn''t their first meeting, Su Xiaoqi would have thought they might have met somewhere before.


    "Ms. Liang said your English foundation isn''t very good, so shall we start from the basics of Grade 7?" Su Xiaoqi asked gently.


    Her voice was naturally delicate and crisp.


    "Sure. Teacher Su, are you a student from No.1 Middle School? Where is your family from?" Upstodatee from


    "Yes, I''m from No.1 Middle School. My family is from Gumula Village, Balong Township, Huanghe Town." After glancing through Liang Jiajia''s textbook, Su Xiaoqi had made some messy notes. She also took out the glass water bottle and A4 homework paper covered with English writing, using the old style fountain pen. These confirmed her identity.


    "Teacher Su, your home is so far away! Do you ride horses to school?"


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    "No horses."


    Su Xiaoqi accepted the new copy of New Concept English that the nanny brought over.


    Indeed, Liang Jiajia''s book was brand new, with the plastic wrap still on. Su Xiaoqi''s book was well-used, with lots of notes written in it, making it much thicker.


    The first book was quite simple to begin with. With her good memory, she basically knew it by heart.


    "No other questions. Let''s start today''s lesson." Su Xiaoqi said sternly.


    Otherwise the little girl''s questions would be endless.


    "Then, then Teacher Su, one last question."


    Liang Jiajia had just secretly looked up some info about Gumula Village online, which said it was located in the highlands and hills, with bamboo forests as the main resource. So Gumula Village had a bamboo weaving tradition, with daily necessities all made from bamboo.


    "Teacher Su, can you also do bamboo weaving?"


    Su Xiaoqi was taken aback, then nodded. "Yes, I can do a little."


    The two moved to the study room.


    The study room looked like it hadn''t been used in a long time. The desk was clean, but when books were moved aside, there was a layer of dust on the edges and corners.


    The view from the study room was excellent, with floor to ceiling glass windows overlooking a large part of Lvshan City.


    When Su Xiaoqi sat down and started weaving, it felt as if she was instantly transported back to her parent''s side.


    In the corner of the living room on the small bamboo stool, her dad had a piece of coarse blue cloth under his leg, and the long bamboo slats quickly took shape in his rough, big hands - from a stick to a winnowing basket, as if conjured out of thin air when he sped up.


    Her hands were different, slim and fair, with even whiter palms, a young girl''s hands where the blood vessels could be seen.


    The backdrop was no longer the rural cottage with a messy pile of bamboo and bamboo scraps in the living room, but a brand new, spacious study, rows of bookshelves, floor to ceiling windows, curtains.


    The girl''s hands moved as nimbly as if dancing, and the long greenish bamboo slats seemed to be given life.


    In Su Xiaoqi''s mind was the bamboo woven handbag she had seen a classmate show off before.


    As there were not many slats, she made a slightly smaller version.


    After weaving the base, her speed increased, even becoming adept very quickly, moving rapidly. Her expression was no longer so serious, she even found enjoyment in it.


    "The English word for bamboo basket is ''bamboo basket''. This bamboo basket is my own work. Can you make a similar sentence with the same structure?"


    Su Xiaoqi''s hands kept moving as she started to ask questions.


    Liang Jiajia, who was happily filming the video, did not expect Teacher Su to be able to teach while weaving. She stuck out her tongue, trying to think of a sentence.


    Liang Lady was even more surprised. She did not anticipate that the young girl was not only good at English, but could actually weave bamboo. She had assumed a girl like Su Xiaoqi with such good grades must have been pampered at home, and did not expect her to be so capable with handiwork.


    Seeing her daughter''s confused look, she glared at her and shook her head before leaving the room.


    The two-hour home tutoring session ended at 4pm.


    Liang Lady asked Su Xiaoqi to stay for dinner but she declined, only taking her pay for the day of 200 yuan.


    Liang Jiajia personally walked her teacher to the door.


    This was a rare display of manners from Liang Lady''s daughter.


    Seeing the small green bamboo bag on the table, it was truly exquisite and charming. The green bamboo exterior faced outwards. Despite being woven from bamboo, there were no splinters, with tight fine stitches. Just the right size to hold a cell phone, lipstick and other items.


    After seeing her teacher off, Liang Jiajia rushed back and snatched the bag from her mom''s hands.


    "Mom, you have so many designer bags, don''t take mine. This was handmade by Teacher Su, she gave it to me as a gift."


    Then she was seen taking endless photos of the bag with her phone, while muttering the English sentence she just learned: "This bamboo basket is my own work..."


    Then she lied on the sofa with her phone, smiling as she fiddled with her phone, listening to the familiar music, and scrolling through TikTok again.


    Ms. Liang shook her head and laughed.


    This time Liang Jiajia wasn''t just scrolling through TikTok, but making a TikTok video, posting the video of Teacher Su teaching her how to weave bamboo while simultaneously teaching her English earlier, with the caption "My tutor Miss Su is an all-rounder."

 Chapter 15: How to Say No

    Chapter 15


    A clean and tidy study room.


    The window and desk were spotless.


    A grey T-shirt with a pink puppy on it, a very ordinary piece of clothing that could be bought in streets and alleys everywhere.


    Khaki knee-length shorts, looking a bit old and faded in color. for new novels


    Slender calves.


    The little white shoes were a bit dirty too.


    Long arms propping up a bamboo tray, weaving swiftly as if playing music, it could be titled "Inheritance of Traditional Handicraft Skills" if given a header.


    But the young girl was speaking, and it was fluent English.


    She was explaining English to someone, while keeping her hands moving.


    She spoke very simply, most people who opened Douyin could understand.


    But she never fully showed her face.


    Likes suddenly surged.


    The likes on her two Douyin videos slowly increased from a few thousand.


    The library girl''s Douyin was good but not outstanding, likes plateaued around eight thousand.


    Liang Jiajia happened to be browsing nearby videos in the city.


    But the home tutor video she posted became super popular, due to the contrast of traditional bamboo weaving and authentic English, plus the girl''s voice and physique, it strangely went viral, likes jumped from ten thousand to twenty thousand to a hundred and thirty thousand.


    Because this Douyin went viral, some interested people found that library girl''s Douyin, recognized the same clothes, shoes, hands, turns out it was the same person, so her video also got a small boost, likes slowly climbed to over ten thousand.


    Comments were filled with praising the girl''s handwriting, figure, asking her to look up and smile...


    The home tutor video was even hotter, all kinds of comments.


    Some said it was staged. Immediately others jumped out saying they were disciples of certain bamboo masters, the girl really was weaving bamboo, though not very skilled, but at least entry level, her voice and build showed great talent, bamboo weaving skills are categorized as basic, entry, skilled, master, above master, nowadays even reaching basic is rare, entry level is already impressive, and even left contact info, hoping the girl would join them, contribute to passing on traditional skills.


    "The girl''s spoken English is so standard, what a pleasant voice!"


    "Get me a home tutor like that, I guarantee I''ll pass, no, excel at English exams."


    Now, Su Xiaoqi looked at the woman flaunting her bandaged finger, hesitated a moment.


    The system seemed to always reward helpfully doing good deeds.


    But she also disliked this woman.


    Unfilial.


    Besides, left hand has a bandaid, right hand''s fine, shouldn''t be unable to carry things, otherwise she would''ve had to lug the bucket over even without running into Qi, just saw Qi as easy to bully.


    A caregiver''s niece should do caregiver''s chores, that kind of entitled mentality.


    Qi had thin skin, some inferiority, would normally just help if asked.


    But going through her recent experiences, looking at the 7000+ RMB on screen, suddenly felt money emboldens heroes.


    "Sorry, I''m busy with other things, can''t help you." Su Xiaoqi declined.


    "Hey, what''s with you, so heartless, what''s wrong with helping out a bit, how were you raised by your parents? I even gave fruit to your auntie, you won''t do a little favor when asked."


    "Don''t want to." Su Xiaoqi didn''t argue with her. The fruit she gave auntie was all rotten, blackened, covered in tiny bugs, auntie accepted to not offend the elderly woman, but threw it away.


    Had complained about it to Xiaoqi too.


    The woman wanted to say more, seeing the petite girl easily heft two large buckets of hot water steadily downstairs.


    Muttered under her breath: "Country folk, big deal being strong..."


    Xiaoqi carried the hot water downstairs.


    "If I could live my childhood again, I would cultivate the habit of saying ''no'' more often...a boy should learn to stand up for himself, decline doing senseless things - just because they are senseless."


    Thanks again for this passage.


    Saying "no" felt so refreshing.


    Needless things can be declined without compromise.


    Downstairs saw neighbor Lin Min again.


    "Carrying water? Let me help, why so much?" Lin Min said in alarm seeing Xiaoqi.


    "No need, I''ve got it." Xiaoqi smiled and shook her head, effortlessly toting the two buckets, strode briskly to the washing area.


    Lin Min: ......

 Chapter 16: Add a Little Light

    Chapter 16


    Evening.


    The sky had a big half moon with few clouds.


    Su Xiaoqi washed the clothes and prepared dinner. The dishes were stir-fried by her aunt. She just cooked the rice.


    Her aunt''s stir-fry was not very tasty, it was coarse. The greens were just boiled with water. The meat was also boiled with water, quite tough.


    Of course it was still much better than the school cafeteria food.


    And it was much cleaner than the school food.


    Su Xiaoqi watched her aunt rush home from work to stir-fry the dishes.


    Then they ate and drank hurriedly together before her aunt was called away urgently by a patient to work again.


    Xiaoqi was responsible for washing the dishes.


    After washing the dishes, the sun had just set. The early dinner time was because her aunt accommodated her school dismissal time. She would be starving every time right after school dismissal, so they ate earlier.


    After the meal, she looked at the interface in front of her. She still had not completed her 20,000 steps for today. She planned to go out for a walk.


    At the same time she also brought along the New Concept English Book 2, she had read most of it, with only one third left.


    She planned to go to No.1 Middle School. Although it was during the holidays, there were still many teachers living there, so the school gate was open. She could go under the streetlights on the school grounds to read her book. That was what she did frequently when she was studying there. Walking circles around the track while reading under the dim lights was quite efficient for memorizing.


    She could walk and read at the same time, killing two birds with one stone.


    She just didn''t expect there would still be so many people on the school track even during the holidays, because when it was hot, residents nearby would come to take walks and stay cool, and young people would come to play basketball. Unlike during classes when night study hall prohibited playing ball, there were no restrictions during the holidays, so the track was quite lively.


    Su Xiaoqi hugged her book and walked along the edge of the track. She walked to the area of the track closest to the lab building. The basketball hoops there were the most broken, and there was a part of uneven ground. There probably wouldn''t be people there.


    Sure enough when she walked over, there were no people playing ball, although there were a few people strolling occasionally.


    That didn''t matter, it wouldn''t affect her. She just hugged her book and wandered around reading it there.


    When she finished reciting the remaining one third of the book, she realized the step count for today had already exceeded 20,000 steps. The money amount had paused at 7160 yuan without increasing further.


    This was the third day.


    She now had this much money herself. She felt her whole psychological state was different now.


    At this moment, she suddenly understood a little, the text she had studied before in her textbook, the story "The Necklace" written by Maupassant. A woman borrowed a diamond necklace and accidentally lost it. As a result, she worked hard for most of her remaining life to repay the necklace. She lived frugally and worked hard, only to find out in the end that the necklace she had borrowed was fake.


    The woman in the story was burdened by debt all the time, even though the debt did not exist. The burden bent her over.


    While she herself now, was increasing her account all the time. Even though she did not use the money, it straightened her back.


    But this was just the beginning of the money. How to spend this money, Su Xiaoqi felt was also not an easy thing.


    She had never thought spending money would not be easy before, but now she truly felt this way.


    She planned to go home tomorrow. This time she could buy some new clothes for her dad too. Her dad was actually quite envious of others who could ride motorcycles. Although her dad was lame, when riding a motorcycle it didn''t show at all. He looked quite stylish. But she had only been away for two days, it was not quite suitable to buy a vehicle yet.


    As for what else she could buy, she had not thought it through yet. She would take a look tomorrow.


    Go home first, tell her parents she found a tutoring job, ease their worries first.


    But it was more difficult for the Lin family. Their family of four occupied the corner of the hallway. Other than the bedroom, they had also cleared up the adjacent utility room, which was Lin Min and his sister Lin Qingqing''s room. There was a curtain separating the two''s spaces, with two beds.


    There was no space to put a desk. But when she did not live at her aunt''s place before, just coming to eat meals, she rarely saw Lin Min studying. Lin Min also usually came back quite late, often missing each other.


    She did not expect he was studying like this.


    She thought about it, and took the desk lamp from her room out and put in on the table, saying "Brother Lin Min, I''m done studying. Let me give you the desk lamp first. I''m going to sleep first. Turn it off after you''re done."


    Lin Min blanked for a moment, and gave her a smile. He did not say much, just nodded.


    Tomorrow he still had to prepare lessons for three tutoring students.


    Earlier, when he saw Su Xiaoqi writing in her room, because the basement was stuffy when not sleeping, the doors were kept open with just a curtain hung up. He saw the shadow inside through the curtain.


    He saw her writing very properly for a long time.


    He bid her goodnight, and continued studying.


    Su Xiaoqi closed her door, didn''t lock it since her aunt may come back later.


    It was another fulfilling day. Sleep.


    Outside the door, Lin Min''s pen scratched heavily on the notebook, almost piercing through the pages. He was a little glad Su Xiaoqi was not here when his parents were arguing earlier.


    That scene was very awkward and upsetting.


    It started with his dad saying a dish his mom cooked was too salty. His mom suddenly blew up, complaining his dad was not ambitious enough, going out drinking and gambling. His dad angrily stormed out and slammed the door.


    His sister was making a fuss wanting to buy headphones. She happened to get slapped by the angry mom, and hid in her room angry, slamming her door shut too.


    What could he do?


    What could he do to make his mom not angry? To make his dad not drink and gamble? To make his sister not buy headphones?


    He seemed to be useless.


    His usual calm and composure could not cover up that he was just an 18-year-old teen. He had tried very hard, yet seemed useless.


    In the silent hallway, tears of the youth dropped onto his lesson plan notebook.


    In the vast world, at this moment he only had an oily table in a dimly lit tunnel, there was no desk.


    There was an extra table lamp in front of him, and the lamplight became much brighter.


    What was in front of his eyes also became much brighter.


    He stared blankly at the table lamp for a while, and suddenly thought of Su Xiaoqi''s crying appearance that day, then continued writing.


    In the room, Xiaoqi was almost asleep, but suddenly there was a sound: "The host has taken the initiative to help others improve their learning conditions, bringing a ray of positivity to the darkened teenager, reducing the other party''s negative emotions. Reward: teeth straightening once. The straightened teeth will make the host''s smile sweeter and her face more elegant."


    Su Xiaoqi: ???


    Darkened teenager? Lin Min looks very friendly!


    What''s more, teeth straightening is nonsense. Her teeth are quite neat, only her front teeth are a little big, and her canine teeth a little sharp.


    She took out a mirror and bared her teeth at the mirror...

 Chapter 17: Be Gentle with the World

    Chapter 17


    Xiao Qi could only stay at home for half a day as the car to take her home wasn''t coming until midnight. She had to leave early the next morning again.


    The next morning, Xiao Qi woke up early around six o''clock without hitting the snooze button. Although there was no extra reward for waking up early today, she felt good and somehow felt like her day was much longer than others.


    After washing up, she went out to buy breakfast. When she came back with breakfast, Auntie happened to come home and was about to give Xiao Qi money to buy food. To her surprise, Xiao Qi had already bought it without asking for money from Auntie.


    "Auntie, I have money. My tutoring session went well yesterday. I earned 200 yuan for just an afternoon lesson. The parents said they would introduce more students to me." Upstodatee from


    "That''s good. You must work diligently and live up to the money people pay you," Auntie said.


    Xiao Qi nodded.


    Auntie worked very hard among the caregivers living on the ground floor. She felt she worked the hardest while others seemed more relaxed. Uncle Lin next door even had time to drink and play cards.


    However, similarly, Auntie also got the most benefits - daily fruits, bonuses, and extra jobs from patients who liked her in particular. Although her work was dirty and tiring, her income was quite good.


    After breakfast, Xiao Qi bid Auntie goodbye and headed home. Auntie gave her some durable fruits to bring home.


    Suddenly, Xiao Qi had a clever idea - she could take more stuff home under Auntie''s name.


    After breakfast, Xiao Qi was in no hurry to leave. The mall definitely wasn''t open yet. She wrote for another hour, looking at the calligraphy for beginners (2.5/100) on the screen before stopping. She then changed her clothes and left, putting the fruits in her backpack.


    Oddly, it was quiet next door today.


    She didn''t think much about it and headed straight to the wet market. She bought two ducks and some pork ribs, then went to the department store.


    She should buy practical clothes for Dad. He wasn''t tall, had a bit of a leg problem, was skinny, so a size S men''s clothes should fit.


    With a big backpack on her back and holding a bag of groceries, she went to the department store. She stored her stuff at the concierge first before going upstairs to the men''s section.


    As the men''s section had just opened, there weren''t many people.


    She had never bought men''s clothes before, but looking at the rising money count on the screen - already over 8,000 yuan - she wasn''t afraid of any of these shops.


    She had bought clothes for Mom before, so going into these kinds of shops shouldn''t be too difficult.


    What''s more, she now had the demeanor buff, making her look very poised. Although dressed plainly, she gave off the vibe that she wasn''t poor or timid.


    The cup was gently placed in front of her, even with a little coaster. Two baby daisies floated in the water.


    Then, Xiao Qi bought a pair of gold earrings.


    The salesperson recommended two styles. One was hollow floral large earrings.


    The other was solid little gold beans.


    The hollow flowers were lighter but with workmanship fees cost 799 yuan. The solid gold beans were smaller but heavier, with lower workmanship fees at 880 yuan.


    She chose the little gold beans.


    Two tiny little gold beans.


    The salesperson smiled the entire time while placing the little beans in a red velvet box.


    She bowed and saw Xiao Qi off with a smile.


    Xiao Qi felt very happy.


    The happiness of spending money, and receiving good service.


    At the same time, she also felt that smiles seemed to make a difference. She didn''t intend to buy anything but was won over by the salesperson''s consistent smiles, and it went straight to choosing between this and that without even considering whether to buy or not.


    She realized she usually had some issues with how she treated people. She often wore a long face, as if others owed her money, when in reality no one owed anyone anything. Sunny smiles could put people around her in a good mood, and herself too.


    She should smile more. Don''t be stingy with smiles.


    Moreover, she now had a nice set of teeth.


    On the first floor, she retrieved her stored belongings from the concierge, smiling brightly and giving thanks.


    Unexpectedly, the auntie at the counter also handed her a bottle of water, "It''s hot outside, little miss, take this."


    "Thank you." In the mirror behind the service counter, there was a sweetly smiling girl who looked very pretty.


    July 31st, Xiao Qi learned to see the world with more tenderness.

 Chapter 18: Coming Home

    Chapter 18


    Su Xiaoqi carried two large bags of things, with a backpack on her back.


    She tried her best to stuff clothes, shoes, earrings into the bag, while the things she was carrying in her hands were all food.


    Even so, when she arrived at the place to take the car, a group of people still curiously asked questions.


    In the past, she would have ignored them with a straight face, feeling that these were her private matters.


    However, life in the village was like this. There was not really any privacy to speak of. Each family left their doors open. When you cooked something, others would smell it and come over.


    Today, before she came, she had steeled her face.


    Smiling did no harm.


    "My aunt gave them to me. Some are for my grandmother," she explained with a smile, then went to sit in the corner of the car.


    Then she heard a lively discussion outside, with those already on the bus explaining what was going on to those just arriving.


    "Su Laifeng''s daughter, extraordinary, works in a hospital, must make good money."


    "What''s good about working in a hospital, nothing but crap and piss. Don''t make me work there."


    "I heard she got divorced, heard her husband had an affair outside."


    "No, I heard her husband loved drinking and hitting people."


    "..."


    Xiaoqi listened to a few sentences before automatically tuning them out.


    By noon, almost everyone had arrived and boarded the bus. But halfway into the journey, the driver got a phone call.


    Someone had missed the bus, and asked the driver to wait in Huanghe Town so they could take a car there to meet up.


    This happened frequently. Sometimes people missed the bus, so they asked the driver to wait in town, since taking a taxi directly to Gumula Village was too far, probably costing over 100 yuan one way.


    As a student, Xiaoqi only paid 4 yuan for the bus ticket, subsidized by the village for students. Adults paid 8 yuan.


    The car arrived in Huanghe Town around 1pm and stopped. The small pickup truck disgorged its occupants.


    Xiaoqi also got off to stretch her legs. The small car and many people had made her legs numb.


    Huanghe Town was just one street, with scattered dilapidated shops lining both sides.


    It was said that long ago there had been a match factory here, and the town had grown up around the factory.


    Even the name came from the yellow matchboxes, hence Huanghe or "Yellow Box" Town.


    Later the factory had closed and the town declined.


    Occasionally a dog barked, cicadas buzzed in the trees, but there were scarcely any people.


    After getting off the car, Xiaoqi paced around it, looking at the interface in front of her. She had spent over 2800 yuan today in one go. Remembering it made her a little nervous.


    Yet the money on the interface didn''t seem to have decreased much.


    Yesterday there had been over 7000 yuan. After walking over 10,000 steps this morning, it increased by another 2000 yuan. Looking now, there was still over 7000 yuan left.


    Moreover, as she walked around, the numbers kept increasing by 0.2, 0.2.


    In any case, after Zhang Juan loaded her things onto the bus and everyone boarded again, one man reluctantly moved to the back seat.


    Zhang Juan politely said, "Thank you, uncle."


    The man waved his hands repeatedly, even blushing a little. "Don''t mention it."


    The bus started up again. It was 1:40 already after they had waited here nearly 40 minutes.


    With the window open, the breeze coming in, it didn''t feel stuffy despite the crowded bus.


    Earlier everyone had surrounded Zhang Juan, but now it was like they noticed Xiaoqi for the first time.


    "Xiaoqi, congratulations on getting into college. I work in Quanhai City, pretty close to Meng City. Come visit me sometime," Zhang Juan said breezily.


    Xiaoqi nodded rather awkwardly. To be honest, she had never left Lvshan City before, and had no idea where Quanhai or Meng City were.


    Luckily Zhang Juan didn''t chat with her further, turning to speak with the auntie beside her instead.


    She seemed to know how to address everyone - uncle, auntie, granny... Hearing it made Xiaoqi confused. Almost everyone in the village was related. She really couldn''t remember what to call them.


    "Juan brought back a lot of things. For your parents?"


    "Yes, it''s rare for me to come back, so I bought two sets of clothes for my parents, shoes for my dad. Quanhai is more developed with lots of cheaper goods."


    "How much did that cost?"


    "Not expensive, the clothes and shoes totaled just over 2000 yuan, less than 3000." Zhang Juan said matter-of-factly.


    At this, the bus suddenly became quiet.


    Then someone else asked, "Clothes that expensive can''t be eaten. Bit of a waste, no?"


    "I bought food too. My mom''s health isn''t good. My friend''s family has a shop, so I got some nutritional supplements for her."


    "Wow, Juanzi, that bag of yours looks so nice! It''s so petite yet the fabric looks sturdy. It looks chic to carry around. Must have cost a few hundred, right?"


    "Psh, auntie, this is branded - Guqi. Have you heard of it before? It was over five thousand yuan."


    The car went quiet again before erupting into even more chatter.


    They seemed to be grabbing at everything Juanzi had on, asking about each and every item.


    Hearing the prices Juanzi quoted, they gasped and exclaimed in astonishment again and again.


    Thus the ride home flew by quickly, and they soon arrived at the entrance of Gumula Village. Everyone was still reluctant to part.


    The passengers disembarked, warmly inviting Juanzi over to their homes.


    Little Qi didn''t join in the excited chatter. She just waved briefly at Juanzi from afar before grabbing her hefty school bag and two shopping bags and heading home.


    A few others going the same way as Little Qi had barely walked a distance when one auntie remarked from behind, "She''s so young, how could she earn so much money? She must be up to no good."


    "That''s right, I think so too. I wonder what she does. That man who drove her here looks over 40, even older than her dad."


    Little Qi clutched her two bags tightly and dashed home as fast as she could.


    The gossiping aunties and grannies she left behind wore looks of utter bewilderment.


    "Don''t you think that Suliezi''s girl is quite strong?"

 Chapter 19: How to Spend Money Quietly

    Chapter 19


    Xiaoqi ran home as fast as she could.


    She didn''t care about the scenery in front of her.


    She also didn''t care about the sounds behind her anymore.


    After taking the bus for nearly three hours and unexpectedly meeting her old classmate again, Su Xiaoqi gained some new insights.


    Casually showing off wealth without a proper reason is absolutely unacceptable.


    These aunties, sweet-talking to your face but gossiping behind your back as soon as they''ve walked a few steps away. Rread latest chapters at novelhall.com


    She didn''t know where Zhang Juan went to spend money, but her shopping did seem a bit excessive. Still, Zhang Juan had lived abroad to study before, so Xiaoqi knew there was always a bigger world out there and always people better off than you, and being able to afford those things wasn''t too outrageous.


    It was just that Zhang Juan loved to show off too much.


    And it really was difficult to keep smiling: at most Xiaoqi could politely smile, but she couldn''t smile sweetly at everyone and greet them affectionately like Zhang Juan did.


    After Zhang Juan acted like that, those aunties would still gossip about her behind her back.


    So being sweet and gentle to the world doesn''t necessarily mean you''ll be treated gently in return. Xiaoqi couldn''t be like Zhang Juan, but she could maintain her politeness. At the very least this time, she had gained more than usual: except for the driver Da Yong calling her a college student, no one else had mocked her.


    She smiled: she had gained enough.


    Right on time.


    Arriving home, she saw at the door her dad surrounded by a pile of bamboo slats, weaving winnowing baskets, and her mom was also sitting there, the two of them side by side but not too close together lest the bamboo slats hit each other.


    "Mom and Dad, I''m back!" Xiaoqi called out loudly.


    This startled Dad Su and Mom Su.


    "How come you''re back? Did something happen? Why didn''t you call ahead of time?" Dad Su stood up a bit nervously.


    Mom Su also put down the half-finished winnowing basket she was working on.


    Xiaoqi walked into the living room to let her mom see her more clearly, before explaining: "Nothing happened, I found a tutoring job and started working yesterday. The parent really likes me and wants to introduce me to new students. I was worried I''d be too busy later to come back home, so I came back today first."


    Hearing this, Dad Su and Mom Su both breathed a sigh of relief.


    But Mom Su immediately added: "You must be starving, I''ll go make you something to eat. You didn''t say you were coming, we don''t have much food at home. Fu, go to the convenience store and see if they have chicken claws: Xiaoqi loves those, buy 1 jin. Don''t buy 3 jin, I''ll braise them and let her bring some to her auntie in the city tomorrow."


    Dad Su stood up to head out, but Xiaoqi stopped him.


    "No need, Auntie knew I was coming back and gave me a lot of delicious food, because she was sending some to Third Grandmother anyway so she included extra portions."


    Xiaoqi took out the things she bought for Dad from her schoolbag.


    Dad Su looked at the items in front of him and was stunned for quite a while.


    "Daughter bought this for me?"


    His hands holding the scissors even trembled a little.


    Worried he might cut the new clothes with the scissors, he quickly put them down.


    After washing his hands again, he finally dared to touch the clothes.


    Seeing there were also leather shoes, Dad Su''s face stiffened a bit, from delight to displeasure.


    "Where did you get so much money? Don''t lie to your dad, these leather shoes aren''t cheap, they''re real leather."


    "Dad, what are you thinking! I wouldn''t dare do anything bad even if you gave me a hundred guts. I went to tutor and the parent is really nice, she pays me 100 yuan per hour, I taught for 2 hours so I got 200 yuan. She also introduced me to a few students, some even gave a deposit, altogether I collected over 800 yuan, so I wanted to buy some things for you."


    Su Xiaoqi sighed inwardly, one lie really was destined to need countless more lies to cover it up. Lying really was too tiring.


    "Is that parent male or female?" Dad Su still couldn''t help asking one more question. Having experienced ups and downs in life, they had heard all kinds of good and bad things, and absolutely didn''t want their child to stray for a bit of money.


    "My student is a second-year middle school girl. Her parents divorced so she lives with her mom, it''s just the two of them at home." This wasn''t a lie, so Xiaoqi answered smoothly.


    "Then you should teach her well, orphans and widows have it hard too." Right after saying this, he still couldn''t help lecturing her for spending money lavishly: tuition was due soon, if she didn''t save up, they wouldn''t be able to pay next time, otherwise he wouldn''t wear the clothes even if she bought them.


    Yet he still stroked the clothes and pants and shoes over and over, asking if they could be returned.


    And for the earrings Xiaoqi bought Mom, she could only say they were gold-plated, bought at a small shop for a few tens of yuan. She knew that even so, her mom would cherish them dearly.


    Mom Su put them on right away, touching them left and right, extremely happy.


    That night, Dad Su deliberately took a bath and changed into all the new clothes, the pants fit perfectly, and with the leather shoes, he looked a good 7 or 8 years younger all of a sudden.


    Beaming with satisfaction, he could hardly wait to go out and show off immediately. But he looked in the mirror for a bit, then took all the clothes and shoes off and changed back into his regular clothes.


    "Dad, how come you''re not wearing them? Don''t you like how they look? We can exchange if the size is wrong, but they can''t be returned."


    Xiaoqi had cut off the tags but kept them.


    "No need to wear such nice stuff everyday, like your mom said, your big cousin is getting married at the end of the month and we''ll be going to the banquet, I''ll wear it then."


    After changing, Dad Su went back to the living room to weave winnowing baskets.


    Xiaoqi also sat in the living room, as she still had a bamboo weaving skill bonus card to give to her dad. The main purpose of this trip was for him to use it.


    "Activate the Platinum Bamboo Weaving Skill Bonus Card for Su Youfu. Su Youfu''s bamboo weaving skill level is Basic+, after using the skill card it will be Expert+."

 Chapter 20: Supplementary Card

    Chapter 20


    After giving his father the supplementary card, Su Xiaoqi observed that his father didn''t feel anything special. He continued weaving the winnowing basket.


    It seemed that the speed had increased a bit, and the weaving became tighter.


    He made a winnowing basket with the front half slightly larger than the back half, which was smaller and more solid.


    Su Youfu didn''t know what was going on, but he held the winnowing basket in his hands, examining it from different angles. He couldn''t help but feel that there was something strange about the way it was made, something not quite right.


    However, being a practical person, he didn''t say much and continued picking up bamboo sticks from the ground, starting to make the frame of the winnowing basket. Because he had been doing it for years, it was an easy task for him, and Su Xiaoqi was helping by handing him the bamboo strips.


    Su Youfu felt that everything was going exceptionally smoothly today, fast and good. He thought it was probably because his daughter was home.


    Su Xiaoqi accompanied her father in making the winnowing basket when Third Grandmother came by carrying a bag of things.


    She had called her daughter before dinner, but unexpectedly, her daughter said she didn''t bring anything and asked Su Xiaoqi to bring some fruits that were given by a patient. Third Grandmother was worried that her daughter might have some taboos, so she didn''t let Su Xiaoqi bring them over. She only asked Su Xiaoqi to take them back home for her parents.


    It had happened before when Su Simei brought back a big bag of fruits, and her sister-in-law looked unhappy, saying that the things from the hospital were unhealthy for children. It made her angry, and since then, she hadn''t brought anything back, and she also visited less often.


    Since her daughter didn''t bring anything, it must have been Su Xiaoqi who sent them.


    Su Xiaoqi was a well-behaved child, and Su Youfu and his wife were also kind-hearted. They probably thought it was the holiday season and wanted to send something.


    However, Third Grandmother was happy in her heart, using her daughter''s name as an excuse. She lived with her son and daughter-in-law, but her daughter was divorced and living alone. Third Grandmother was very worried, but there was nothing she could do. Her daughter had a straightforward temperament and couldn''t get along with her sister-in-law. When Su Xiaoqi brought the things over today, her daughter-in-law was quite happy and mentioned having a family gathering when her older sister had a day off, so they could roast a duck.


    That''s how family relationships are. Her son is married now, and her daughter is considered part of another family. No matter how close they are, there will always be interactions.


    Knowing that it was Su Xiaoqi''s family who sent the things, Third Grandmother didn''t reveal it but still came over.


    "Third Grandmother, you''re here." Su Xiaoqi stood up and went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water.


    "No need to hurry, I''ll just sit here. I heard you found a tutoring job, not bad. I brought a piece of cured meat. Take it to your aunt tomorrow," Third Grandmother said.


    Since Su Xiaoqi and her daughter would eat together, both of them would be able to enjoy it.


    "Okay, cured meat can be stored for a long time. It''s delicious to slice and steam it with rice. Thank you, Third Grandmother," Su Xiaoqi quickly accepted it.


    Su Youfu felt a little embarrassed.


    "Third Aunt, you''re too polite."


    The trees weren''t very big yet, so they wouldn''t fetch much money, but at least it could help cover his daughter''s tuition fees.


    Third Grandmother didn''t stay long. She left with the chicken feet, saying she had to go back to take care of her grandson.


    "Third Grandmother is a good person," Su Youfu sighed.


    Su Youfu continued to work on the winnowing basket. In the time they had been talking, he had already made significant progress. Unconsciously, he was working much faster than usual.


    He held the winnowing basket in his hand and couldn''t help but like it more and more. It seemed better than usual.


    It was as if he had suddenly gained insight.


    This winnowing basket unexpectedly turned out exceptionally well. He had made it just like he always did, but when he held it in his hand, it felt different from his usual work.


    Neat and proper, every joint was smooth, the curvature was just right, and the gaps between the bamboo strips were perfect, with one fitting snugly against the other, as if it could hold water.


    A truly well-made bamboo utensil could hold water.


    There were overlapping parts between the two bamboo strips, tightly woven together.


    Su Youfu had been making them himself for decades, and the more he looked at it, the more he liked it.


    "Dad, you''ve done a great job," Xiaoqi also noticed the difference and praised happily.


    Su Youfu blushed instantly.


    "It''s nothing. I''ve been making them for so many years."


    Xiaoqi knew her father''s lack of self-confidence, so she deliberately bought that book for him.


    "Dad, look, this bamboo weaving is amazing, and it can sell for a lot of money. I saw it at the bookstore last time. Take a look."


    Su Youfu never expected his daughter to buy him books. Although he dropped out of junior high school, he had no problem reading and his handwriting was quite good. During the Lunar New Year, he even helped others write couplets.


    He also loved buying books, but he was often ridiculed by people in the village.


    As he flipped through the pages, Su Youfu found the illustrations on the cover increasingly intriguing.


    His heart couldn''t help but feel a bit more lively.

 Chapter 21: Reading and Learning

    Chapter 21


    The next morning, before even the stars had set, Xiaoqi was already up.


    This time Dad Su did not accompany her, but still sent her to the vehicle.


    Sitting in the car, Xiaoqi watched through the window as her father gradually grew distant, the village gradually got smaller, and she took a deep breath.


    There was reluctance, but also encouragement from ambition.


    Today the vehicle was very lively, and the topic of conversation was uniform - everyone was talking about Zhang Juan.


    There was not much news in Gumu Village. When something happened, everyone flocked over.


    On ordinary days, if Xiaoqi went home, many more people would also visit to chat. No wonder only Third Grandmother had come yesterday.


    Xiaoqi felt this was good.


    She was also not too used to large groups of people.


    "I heard Zhang Juan made a lot of money, she has hundreds of people working for her."


    "I heard she sells cosmetics. How can you make that much money selling cosmetics?"


    "I heard the plastic shoes on her feet cost 3,000 yuan. Not 30 or 300, but 3,000. She really is wealthy."


    "If that''s the case, Zhang Juan is more capable than college students."


    "Of course. Zhang Juan says college students work under her."


    "..."


    As Xiaoqi listened to them speak, her expression did not change. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    After getting a mobile phone, she also installed WeChat. Last night she looked at Zhang Juan''s moments, lots of cosmetics advertisements, being an agent, and also transferring large incomes. But she did not read carefully since the signal in Gumu Village was not very good. She had to climb to the top floor and hold her phone high just to get a little signal.


    She did not want to join the conversation, and just closed her eyes to rest, planning for the day¡¯s schedule.


    She would arrive in the city before 8:30, first take her things to her aunt¡¯s dormitory. Aside from the cured meat Third Grandmother took, Dad and Mom also prepared vegetables, potatoes, taro, and Chinese cabbage for her, as well as chicken claws stewed in soy sauce.


    In short, it was a large bag.


    Xiaoqi was glad she was quite strong now, otherwise these things would be difficult to carry.


    After putting everything down, she still needed to go read books, but today¡¯s schedule was tighter so she would go to Xinhua Bookstore.


    After finishing reading, she still had tutoring work in the afternoon.


    Tonight she would continue working on memorizing New Concept English Book 3, and could not fall behind on calligraphy practice either.


    Memory and language sense buffs would disappear, but what she wrote down would be hers forever.


    Xiaoqi wished every day had 48 hours that she could use. Thinking this way, she soon fell asleep on the shaky vehicle.


    Without carrying a huge bag now, walking was much more relaxed.


    When she arrived downstairs at the bookstore, a few young girls were handing out flyers.


    Xiaoqi had also done part-time flyer distribution before, so she took one from them.


    Glancing at it, it was a swimming pool advertisement. The gym had renovated and reopened their pool for swimming. There was now a discount for applying for a membership card.


    She did not throw it away in front of the girls, but took it inside the bookstore with her.


    She now had money, but still did not know how to spend it. It seemed she still felt like a poor person, nothing had changed. She felt like an idiot hugging a goose that laid golden eggs,


    Always unable to resist eating the goose.


    Or unable to figure out how to use the golden eggs.


    In any case, the resource she had now was reading more books.


    The bookstore environment was not as nice as the library. This Xinhua Bookstore used to be huge, with two floors. The first floor sold textbooks while the second sold other types of books. Now the first floor only had a staircase entrance left, with some audio-visual products displayed around the entrance. The rest of the space was rented out to clothing stores. The second floor also only had one third of the space left. The remainder became an internet cafe?.


    Fortunately there were not many people in the morning. Xiaoqi wandered around inside, randomly grabbed a book from the celebrity biography section, and found a small corner nook by the window to sit down. She placed her schoolbag on the floor and sat cross-legged on it.


    A little sunshine could shine in. She put the book on her lap.


    It was another thick volume.


    When getting the book earlier, she flipped through and saw there were many illustrations inside.


    She liked these kind with illustrations, easier to read.


    Because she discovered that even with her memory buff, borrowing an English dictionary and bringing it home, she still could not memorize everything.


    Just like learning New Concept English Book 3, it was not as easy as the first two books.


    So her memories were still built on a foundation of understanding and comprehension, just easier to commit to memory without forgetting, rather than glancing and instantly remembering.


    Therefore, she would not grab a difficult thick volume now in the hopes of memorizing it all. That would just waste time.


    The book Xiaoqi picked was ¡°Biographies of Ten Outstanding Women in History,¡± clearly a very readable book without academic purpose, and one with attractive illustrations of beautiful women.


    She felt spending a morning reading a book like this would also be wonderful.


    There was also a bit of psychology at play here. Last time at the bookstore when reading about bamboo weaving inheritance, she actually obtained a bamboo weaving skill card. So she still wished to try her luck.


    With these many thoughts, upon opening the book with sunshine falling at her heels, they all dispersed,


    Leaving only words traced in ink.


    The first introduced character was Empress Changsun, the most virtuous woman.


    The accompanying illustration showed an ancient beauty playing the zither.

 Chapter 22: Stochastic Learning Puka

    Chapter 22


    Cars and horses flowed outside the window.


    Sunlight was occasionally blocked by clouds, and occasionally peeked out.


    Sitting on her schoolbag, Su Xiaoqi had just finished reading the life story of Princess Changsun.


    This woman only lived for 36 years. However, she was Emperor Taizong of Tang''s only empress. After she died, Taizong did not establish another empress, and continued to grant her posthumous honors.


    She lost her father at the age of eight and was raised by her uncle. She married Taizong at 13.


    Xiaoqi is 17 years old this year.


    If she were Princess Changsun, she would have already married for four years.


    From imperial consort to crown princess to empress, she gave birth to seven children. Historically, rather than describing her as virtuous, the word "capable" suits her better.


    As Xiaoqi read from beginning to end, she felt that the story was more like describing a female business partner, who considered everything for Taizong, from the court to the harem. She even wrote precepts for women and was a very resourceful woman.


    But after reading, she still felt somewhat unsatisfied.


    36 years old was too short a life.


    The second introduction was about Diao Chan. The evaluation of her was female spy. There have been too many TV shows and books about Diao Chan, one of the Four Beauties, with a closed moon beauty. It sounds more like folklore.


    It talked about her life''s love, hate and intrigue, and how she carried out the beauties'' scheme and the serial scheme.


    Xiaoqi skimmed through it quickly.


    The third was also an empress, Emperor Gaozu of Han''s Empress Lu? Zhi. She was labeled as a female politician and also the most vicious woman. The human swine incident in history came from her hands.


    Reading it made Xiaoqi'' hair stand on end.


    Empress Lu? outlived Emperor Liu Bang and died in her sixties.


    Her ability and political strategy were very powerful. She laid a good foundation for the rule of Emperor Wen and Jing in the Han dynasty.


    Sima Qian spoke highly of her.


    However, if she accidentally learned Empress Lu?''s method of making human swine, it would probably never be used in her lifetime.


    "The host has successfully selected the singing ability of courtesan Liu Ruosi. Does the host want to learn it?"


    "Learn it." Xiaoqi breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, there were no strange abilities.


    When she skimmed over Liu Ruosi earlier, she felt it was still hard to describe and skipped past it. Liu Ruosi''s life seemed miserable. She became a high-end socialite courtesan in ancient times. Her skills must have been very powerful, with many trysts.


    The book did not describe how she sang. However, it said that she was also very skilled in calligraphy and painting, and also wrote good poems.


    For Xiaoqi, this was already a pleasant surprise.


    She had gone to KTV with her classmates before. She would usually sit in the corner from beginning to end, not singing as she was tone deaf.


    At her village elementary school in Gumu Village, music was not tested at all. At Huanghe Middle School, no one paid attention to it either. As No. 1 High School focused on preparing students for college entrance exams, she remained tone deaf until the age of 17.


    With this new ability, at least she wouldn''t embarrass herself when singing anymore.


    Xiaoqi thought to herself.


    Just then, her new cell phone suddenly vibrated. She picked up the phone her father had bought for her and received only the second phone call to it so far.


    The previous one was from her parents.


    It took her a while to react that it was ringing.


    She hadn''t shared her phone number with too many people, only her dormmate Xia Zhen from high school.


    It was an unfamiliar number. Seeing that it was about noon, she decided to go eat first before taking the call. So she left the bookstore and answered the phone.


    "Class monitor? What''s the matter?"


    "We''ll get together tonight for dinner and karaoke at Fire Bar. You must come. Our whole class will be there. After this, we''ll all go our separate ways. Consider this our last get-together. 7:30 PM at Fire Bar, Store No. 4." The class monitor said cheerfully.


    "Okay." Xiaoqi nodded by habit.


    After hanging up, she then realized that she had already graduated.

 Chapter 23: Back to back like the flow of teaching little sister

    Chapter 23


    The afternoon tutoring session went very smoothly.


    Liang Lady was not at home, only Liang Jiajia and nanny Sister Wang were there.


    Liang Jiajia studied diligently today without causing any more trouble in between.


    I didn''t ask if I could record a video.


    Su Xiaoqi felt there was no problem, since she was not a celebrity herself and would not do anything inappropriate, just teaching, so she wanted to record it thinking Liang Lady may want to see it.


    The lesson covered the content from New Concept English Book 1 which Liang Jiajia was very clever at and learned quite quickly, so Su Xiaoqi felt teaching her was very relaxing.


    "Teacher Su, Lesson 15, how do you read the fourth sentence?"


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t even lift her head and said: "AreyourfriendsDanish,too? Are your friends Danish too?"


    "Lesson 29, the fifth sentence?"


    "Openthewindowandairtheroom. Open the window and air out the room."


    "Lesson 45, the ninth sentence?"


    "Canyoutypethisletterforthebossplease,Pamela? Can you type this letter for the boss please, Pamela?"


    Su Xiaoqi did not need to check the book at all, she had the Book 1 content memorized and could even recite it backwards.


    However she felt her student giggling subtly again, ready to start acting up.


    She looked at her watch, it was almost time, she had come half an hour early and it was 4pm now.


    "Let''s stop here for today. Your attention won''t stay focused anymore. You did very well in the last lesson and memorized most of it. Please keep this up."


    Liang Jiajia obediently nodded, smiling like a cat with her chubby round face and squinted eyes.


    "Teacher, teacher, can I add you on WeChat?"


    Su Xiaoqi agreed. She had just registered her WeChat and basically had nothing on there. She had been quite busy these past couple days and found many friend requests when she logged in today.


    She added Liang Jiajia''s WeChat, seeing her WeChat name was "Flying Cat". Her moments were quite lively with selfies, life photos, and food pics. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    After the tutoring session ended, Liang Lady promptly transferred her payment.


    She told Auntie she wouldn''t be back for dinner, then went to shower and wash her hair. She changed into the normal tee and pants she wore daily, flipping through the same few outfits.


    A gray tee with a pink puppy print, khaki knee-length shorts.


    Her mid-length hair was quite fluffy after washing, making her face look a little smaller.


    She regarded herself in the mirror, feeling slightly uneasy that Liu Shaowei would likely attend tonight too.


    She checked the time again, only 5:30pm. The Number 4 Bar wasn''t far. Leaving at 7pm she could easily make the half hour walk to arrive by 7:30pm sharp with time to spare. No need to rush. She settled down to practice her calligraphy.


    The workbook she had borrowed from the library was already half-filled by her. She set an alarm.


    It was evening rush hour, even hotter and more stifling in summer. The underground floor 1 had poor lighting but offered blissful coolness now.


    Su Xiaoqi diligently and properly practiced her calligraphy, losing track of time.


    She realized the greatest benefit of obtaining that progress system wasn''t the money after all, but rather her experiences, insights, and habits cultivated these past days.


    When filled with the courage to earnestly strive forwards, she felt vigorous all over.


    Auntie came in twice but left without disturbing Su Xiaoqi''s writing.


    When her alarm rang, Su Xiaoqi checked her interface.


    Host: Su Xiaoqi


    Calligraphy: Beginner+ (5/100).


    Strength: Average strong human (can lift two times own weight)


    Bamboo Handicrafts: Beginner. Proficient specialty card


    Singing voice: Specialty+


    Appearance: Nice set of teeth.


    Memory buff (5/10)


    Linguistic sense buff (4/10)


    Bearing buff (3/10)


    Closing her book, capping her pen, she gathered her items in her purse to check phone, keys, wallet all there. Changing into white sneakers, the 17-year old Su Xiaoqi freshly moisturized, 108 pounds, 5''4", full of hope for life and about to see her suspected ex-boyfriend, headed out the door.

 Chapter 24: Bringing Family

    Chapter 24


    Xiao Qi, when she first obtained the system, used to intentionally walk fast, wanting to see the money faster.


    The result was that she became exhausted from walking and it took even longer.


    By the time she reached the last kilometer or two, she didn''t even feel like lifting her legs.


    So, for the past couple of days, she deliberately controlled her pace and breathing. She didn''t walk too fast or purposely slow down; she found the most suitable state, just walking normally. Surprisingly, this made her walk longer without feeling tired.


    She walked as much as possible instead of relying on other means of transportation.


    Because covering a distance of 20,000 steps in a day is still quite far.


    And today, the money displayed on the interface broke through ten thousand yuan, with an extra digit. It always felt somewhat unreal.


    She arrived at 7:20, ten minutes earlier than the time mentioned by the monitor.


    Xiao Qi doesn''t often come to this kind of place. The pressure of studying in No.1 Middle School is still relatively high. However, most of the students in No.1 Middle School are local, and their conditions are generally better. Sometimes, classmates would treat each other here.


    But among classmates, reciprocity is valued. It doesn''t feel good to only accept treats and not be able to return the favor. If you can''t reciprocate, it''s better not to come at all.


    "Private Room No. 9," she walked over and said to the greeter at the entrance.


    The greeter was taken aback. This little girl looked very young and dressed like a school student, but her demeanor was impressive.


    Without reacting, the greeter obediently walked ahead, leading the way.


    Even before reaching Private Room No. 9, they could already hear the lively noise.


    No. 9 was a super-large private room. There were 48 students in their class, plus 8 students who were attending on a temporary basis, making a total of 56 students.


    Usually, the class is also divided into two categories: those who were admitted through the regular entrance exam and those who were temporary students.


    Temporary students generally have better conditions because the tuition fees for temporary students in No.1 Middle School are said to be very high, amounting to several tens of thousands.


    Further division includes day students and boarding students. Most boarding students are not local and come from families with relatively poor conditions, forming another small group.


    When Xiao Qi pushed open the door, she saw that more than twenty students had already arrived. It was quite lively inside, and it looked quite formal. There was even someone setting up a video camera in the corner.


    "Wow, Xiao Qi is here!"


    The person holding the microphone shouted.


    Xiao Qi followed the voice and saw Li Changhai sitting in front of her desk.


    Li Changhai was a day student. Most of the city''s students choose to be day students and would attend evening self-study together during their third year of high school, but they wouldn''t stay at the school. Li Changhai was among that group. After becoming more familiar, they gave her a nickname, "Xiao Qi," after the doll in the movie "CJ7."


    Li Changhai was chubby, but very lively and good at livening up the atmosphere. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    He was singing while holding the microphone. After greeting her, he continued singing and twisting his body, making the other students burst into laughter.


    Liu Shaowei had a well-proportioned figure, standing at around 1.79 meters, and he wore new shirts and jeans every day. He carried a different backpack, giving the impression that he came from a well-off background. Xia Zhen quite liked Liu Shaowei.


    Coming as a surprise, Liu Shaowei and Xiao Qi seemed to have developed a close relationship, exchanging glances and gestures.


    She was particularly unhappy. After discreetly inquiring about Su Xiaoqi''s family background, she learned that Su Xiaoqi''s aunt was just a nurse at the hospital, doing dirty and tiring work, while her parents were farmers. Su Xiaoqi showed off her father''s excellent handwriting and appeared cultured. So, on one occasion, she deliberately arranged for Su Xiaoqi to meet her aunt, who happened to be emptying the hospital''s garbage. Su Xiaoqi even helped push the garbage cart. She wanted Liu Shaowei to see this scene.


    Sure enough, Liu Shaowei began to distance himself from Su Xiaoqi.


    However, Su Xiaoqi seemed rather obtuse and didn''t notice at all. She was focused on preparing for the college entrance examination and didn''t pay attention to anything else.


    Initially, Xia Zhen felt a little guilty, but later she heard that Su Xiaoqi didn''t perform well on the exam, and she felt that her choice was correct. Being friends with outstanding people would make her more outstanding, and there was nothing special about someone like Su Xiaoqi.


    But now, when she saw Su Xiaoqi, Xia Zhen felt a bit awkward.


    After all, they usually acted very close to each other.


    In the dormitory, Xia Zhen had the best relationship with Su Xiaoqi.


    "Xie Ruan, I didn''t expect you to become our class monitor. You didn''t even tell anyone. That''s not fair," Li Changhai, who was vying for the microphone, spoke again. It was clear that he was quite familiar with that girl.


    Others joined in the teasing.


    Liu Shaowei held his girlfriend''s hand and explained, "I pursued her. We both got accepted into Capital Normal University. Don''t mock Xie Xie."


    When Liu Shaowei said this, everyone laughed and understood without saying a word.


    Upon graduating from the third year of high school, some were not yet eighteen, while others were already eighteen. They all felt mature and knew what to say and what not to say.


    Liu Shaowei pulled his girlfriend to sit on one side.


    They deliberately chose a spot far away from Su Xiaoqi.


    Xia Zhen also felt embarrassed and didn''t go over. She sat with other classmates. Su Xiaoqi had saved a seat for Xia Zhen, leaving one empty beside her. Now it looked very awkward.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t expect that Liu Shaowei would actually have a girlfriend, nor did she expect that Xia Zhen would know about it.


    It was already 7:40, and almost everyone who was willing to come had arrived, totaling more than thirty people.


    Su Xiaoqi realized that almost none of the boarders had come. She had only received a phone call from the class monitor this morning, and since she was in the city, she came right away. If she had still been in her hometown, there wouldn''t have been any transportation available.


    It seemed like she would have to sit on the cold bench from start to finish.


    "Qi Er, why don''t you sing a song too?" Li Changhai finished singing and felt that Su Xiaoqi sitting in the corner was quite awkward, considering they often had evening self-study together.


    Xia Zhen and Xie Ruan were in conversation, and upon hearing Li Changhai''s voice with the microphone, they thought Su Xiaoqi''s personality would definitely refuse.


    Liu Shaowei didn''t even look up.


    At this moment, a clear female voice responded, "Sure."

 Chapter 25: Farewell

    Chapter 25


    Su Xiaoqi unexpectedly wanted to sing, which startled Xia Zhen. She almost spat out the drink she was drinking.


    Previously, when a friend treated her, she invited Su Xiaoqi to accompany her, but Su Xiaoqi didn''t sing at all. She just sat in the corner and said she would sing off-key.


    Normally, Su Xiaoqi rarely hummed songs in the dormitory.


    Liu Shaowei also looked embarrassed.


    He had a vague relationship with Su Xiaoqi for a while, but that time he happened to see Su Xiaoqi helping her aunt take out the trash. With a flushed face under the scorching sun, surrounded by people coming and going, he felt particularly awkward. He started distancing himself from Su Xiaoqi since then, but she seemed unaware of it.


    He believed he had handled the situation well. He couldn''t possibly talk to her about these things before the college entrance examination. What if he didn''t perform well in the exam and blamed himself?


    As a result, Su Xiaoqi indeed failed the college entrance examination, but it had nothing to do with him, and he had a clear conscience.


    However, he didn''t expect Su Xiaoqi to come. She never participated in such activities before.


    Others were also taken aback.


    Some students found Su Xiaoqi quite unfamiliar but also somewhat familiar.


    "I didn''t have lunch to wait for this dinner. I''m starving. Let me eat first, and then I''ll sing." Su Xiaoqi said confidently.


    "Of course, the dishes are here. Let''s eat first and sing later." Li Changhai saw the dishes and barbecue and finally put down the microphone. He walked over and sat in the empty seat next to Xiaoqi.


    The students liked this place because they could eat and sing here. It was affordable, there was no need for two sessions, and it was convenient.


    Xiaoqi didn''t care about how others looked at her.


    In reality, she felt a bit awkward. Although they were classmates, the only people she was familiar with were Li Changhai, Xia Zhen, Liu Shaowei, and the class monitor.


    She had never left any impression in the class, feeling inferior and self-conscious, not as likable as Xia Zhen.


    Xia Zhen had a square face and wide mouth but had a lively and accommodating personality.


    Su Xiaoqi had fair skin and decent features, but she usually wore large black-framed glasses. Unless someone was very familiar with her, they would find her quite plain. However, from this moment on, she spoke openly and changed into a lighter pair of glasses. Many students took a few more glances at her and realized that there was actually a good-looking girl in the class whom they hadn''t noticed before.


    Even the class monitor glanced at Su Xiaoqi several times.


    "Now that the dishes are here, let''s start eating." The class monitor said loudly.


    Su Xiaoqi was indeed hungry. She usually had an early dinner with her aunt and had been doing a lot of physical activities recently.


    Without any hesitation, she filled her bowl with whatever she wanted to eat and ate earnestly, paying no attention to others.


    After three years of being classmates, she felt like a failure. She thought her best friend was, in fact, not her best friend. She thought the boy who liked her was also not the one.


    She didn''t leave any trace in the class, as if she were invisible.


    She ate two and a half bowls of rice, drank a bowl of soup, ate around ten skewers of barbecue, ten skewers of vegetables, ten skewers of potatoes, and finished the juice in front of her.


    She wiped her mouth and stopped eating.


    Su Xiaoqi had no idea that when she was eating, everyone in the class was watching her.


    Her aura and speed were truly impressive. Despite that, they couldn''t help but find her movements graceful and agile, with an indescribable feeling... perhaps a touch of elegance?


    Although she dressed plainly, while other girls wore skirts and light makeup, she remained ordinary. Her hair was a bit messy, yet as she sat there eating, she didn''t appear the least bit uncomfortable.


    Li Changhai, seeing the neat stack of leftovers and crumbs beside him, exclaimed in surprise, "Damn, Xiaoqi, how long have you been hungry? You can eat more than even I can."


    "I''m from a rural area, where we do a lot of farm work, so it''s normal to eat a lot," Su Xiaoqi replied, looking at the chubby Li Changhai, who clearly didn''t engage in any physical activity.


    When Xia Zhen heard the words "rural area," she became sensitive. She also lived in the school dormitory and disliked it when people assumed she came from a rural area. She always emphasized that her family lived in the outskirts of the city.


    He never expected that Su Xiaoqi would look so beautiful when she smiled, especially enchanting, as if it reached deep into his heart.


    "I''ll sing a farewell song for everyone. After tonight, we''ll all go our separate ways. I wish everyone a bright future."


    After Su Xiaoqi finished speaking, the melody started playing.


    It was tranquil and serene.


    Very soothing.


    People slowed down their eating and spoke in hushed voices.


    "Outside the long pavilion, by the ancient road, green grass stretches to the horizon."


    As the first line of the lyrics was sung, everyone was stunned.


    Some thought that the original singer hadn''t turned off.


    Xia Zhen asked someone to turn off the original singer.


    But the screen showed that there was no original singer, and it was Su Xiaoqi''s voice singing.


    Su Xiaoqi paid no attention to the reactions of others.


    She continued singing.


    "The evening breeze brushes against the lingering sound of the flute, and the sunset lies beyond the mountains. At the edge of the earth, at the corner of the world, half of our acquaintances have drifted away. Let''s finish this jug of wine and enjoy the remaining joy. Tonight, let''s bid farewell to the coldness of dreams..."


    As her voice filled the air, everyone felt a tingling sensation and even their thoughts became sluggish.


    Today, Su Xiaoqi hadn''t read any books about how Liu Ruyi sang, but as a courtesan who left her mark on the long river of history, she was certainly extraordinary.


    For ordinary people, reaching an intermediate level in singing was already impressive, but Su Xiaoqi was now at an expert level. She was just a step away from being a master.


    She was only seventeen years old, yet her voice was pure and her soul untainted.


    Her world was simple and bright.


    Her singing voice was the same.


    Pure music resonates with all living beings.


    "Outside the long pavilion, by the ancient road, green grass stretches to the horizon. I ask you, when will you return? Don''t linger when you come."


    "At the edge of the earth, at the corner of the world, half of our acquaintances have drifted away. In life, the rarity lies in joyful gatherings; it is in partings that we find abundance."


    Su Xiaoqi sang repeatedly.


    Towards the end, tears streamed down her face.


    Even the classmates who were eating and drinking paused, their faces wet with tears.


    She was bidding farewell, to her classmates and to her imperfect self of yesterday.


    She was embarking on a new journey, with her present self.


    After finishing her song, she left.


    No more goodbyes.


    No lingering voices.


    Only the camera in the corner continued recording.

 Chapter 26: The First Time You Spent Five Figures in One Sitting

    Chapter 26


    After coming out, Su Xiaoqi felt that her entire body smelled of hot pot and grilled meat, which was very unpleasant.


    She was not feeling peaceful in her heart.


    She felt a bit awful.


    The tears in her eyes hadn''t dried. As she walked, she cried all the way.


    She had too much confusion and lack of understanding.


    As she walked past one car after another, she unknowingly arrived at the gymnasium.


    The gymnasium was in the shape of a large half-egg, gorgeous illuminated at night, like a glowing egg.


    She went inside. People were coming and going, dressed very athletically, with somewhat flushed complexions. Some came out alone, some came out chatting and laughing together, with an indescribable feeling of relaxation about them.


    When they went in, their expressions seemed rather serious.


    When they came out, whether exhausted or relaxed, their spirits seemed very loose.


    She stood at the entrance for a while, then got ready to go inside.


    The inside was brightly lit, with a very large plaza.


    She said she came to sign up to learn swimming. The staff then took her inside.


    This was her first time coming inside. She had only been to the outdoor playground of the gymnasium during school sports meets before.


    The swimming pool was on the right side of the gym. Looking up, there was a transparent glass ceiling. Walking in, it was a stretch of azure. There were many people inside, especially many children, with the sound of whistles, very lively.


    There were eight lanes, four in the shallow water area and four in the deep water area.


    The shallow water area was one and a half meters deep, and the deep water area was two meters deep. Next to it was a kids'' pool for little children to play in, with several little yellow ducks floating on it.


    The lights in the swimming pool at night and the ceiling lights made the whole pool shimmering.


    Su Xiaoqi grew up in the deep mountains. She was still a little afraid of water, like the little creek in front of her house. When she was in second grade, after heavy rain, a female classmate of hers accidentally fell into the creek on the way to school and was washed away, only to be found two days later, having been washed very very far away.


    From then on, her parents warned her never to play in the water.


    She watched the staff flip through notebooks excitedly, make phone calls, write and draw in notebooks, before finally coming back after quite a while.


    "Miss Su, I have a suggestion for you after our chat just now. As you''ve never had contact with swimming before, my recommendation is for you to learn two courses - freestyle and breaststroke, 12 sessions total, enough for six sessions to learn each one. The coach is extremely outstanding, having just obtained 6th place in the National Women''s Swimming Competition this year, and 2nd place in the Provincial Swimming League. The course fee will be slightly higher, $600 per session. For the fitness coach, considering that your amount of swimming exercise is already quite large, she has arranged only to provide guidance to supplement your daily training, which will be cheaper, only $300 per session. She is also a female coach - the one you saw just now leading the dance aerobics. Considering the time frame, I''ve only selected 12 sessions, so you can use them up within a month, which is more reasonable."


    As the staff member spoke, he displayed the price list, as well as introductions of those two coaches.


    There was a lot more information introduced about the female swim coach, including all the competitions she had participated in and awards she had obtained.


    There was less information for the private fitness coach, but looking at her own figure which was quite good - curvy and sexy yet fit, and a nice cheerful smile, it was also convincing.


    Su Xiaoqi calculated the price - 12 swim sessions at $600 each, plus 12 fitness sessions at $300 each, that was $600 + $300 = $900 per session, times 12 sessions = $10,800. Having just finished the big college entrance exam, she could calculate it all instantly in her head. It turned out to be over $10,000!


    In the past, she would surely have been shocked speechless to spend money so easily.


    To be able to spend five digits of money so easily, used to improve herself, just from casually walking by the gym after a meal. She would have never imagined spending this much before.


    Looking at the amount of over $12,000 remaining in her account, she still habitually asked, "Any opening promotion offers or discounts? I saw that there were discounts right?"


    Hearing this, the staff became even more enthusiastic. A customer who was willing to bargain intended to really make the purchase.


    "Miss Su, regular membership cards have 20% off discounts, but private lessons do not have discounts. So here is what I can offer you - a complimentary one-year regular gym membership card, so you can also come to work out on your own during ordinary times without private coaching. I will also gift you a gym bag and one year¡¯s usage rights of a locker in the gym."


    As the staff member spoke, he showed her the prices of these gym membership cards, locker rental, and gym bag, which would normally cost over $3,000 to apply and purchase. Getting them for free was like a 30% discount.


    Something was better than nothing.


    Su Xiaoqi decided to get the membership.


    She nodded and went with the staff to swipe her card.


    The staff had an even bigger smile on his face. He was about to get off work and had received quite a decent sale order at the last minute. He carefully registered and swiped the card, and also saved the girl''s WeChat contact. He saw it was a WeChat account with no profile photo yet, with a very simple introduction of the name Su Xiaoqi, no Moments posts either, which was a bit unexpected, but he would take it slowly.


    After Su Xiaoqi finished swiping her card, she saw there was $1987 remaining in her account.


    She breathed a sigh of relief.


    Spending money felt so good!


    "Host has spent a five-digit amount of money for the first time, used to improve herself. Host has unlocked the correct way to spend money, rewarded with 30-day Swimming Talent buff."

 Chapter 27: I am Su Xiaoqi, please give me more advice

    Chapter 27


    It was 11 p.m.


    Liang Jiajia still hadn''t gone to sleep. She opened Douyin and watched her video one more time.


    Her bamboo weaving video had over 150,000 likes now, and her English teaching video had also gained some more likes, now over 4,000.


    She went to find that video filmed in the library again. That Douyin user filmed all kinds of random things. Out of all their videos, that library one had the most likes, around 18,000.


    Liang Jiajia felt a little disappointed, but scrolling and filming Douyin videos can be addictive.


    Because she had one video with so many likes, people would click on her other videos too. Over the past couple days she had tried filming some other things, but those got even fewer likes, just a paltry amount.


    There were only two classes per week. Tomorrow was Friday. She wouldn''t have class again until Tuesday of next week. Liang Jiajia felt she must be crazy, she was actually looking forward to English class.


    Or maybe she could contact the teacher tomorrow and see what she was up to. She looked at the teacher''s WeChat, where she didn''t say much. It seemed so lonely...


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi took the bus home.


    She had already reached her 20,000 step goal for the day. Her feet were sore and she couldn''t walk anymore.


    She took the public bus instead of calling a taxi, since she didn''t even know where to stand to hail a taxi. But she was quite used to taking the bus. She found the stop she needed that would take her to the inpatient department at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.


    The late night bus had fewer people, so she could righteously sit in a seat.


    Leaning against the window, feeling the breeze.


    Xiao Qi also felt she must be crazy. Just now she had spent over 10,000 yuan without even blinking an eye or trembling.


    Spending money really was addictive.


    The wind blew her hair into disarray. She fished a hair tie out of her pocket and tied her hair back.


    She had thought there weren''t many people, but when the bus arrived at the Provincial Government Station, suddenly a large group surged on.


    They spoke in thick rural accents, with booming voices. Some carried lunch boxes, some carried sacks, some carried rods.


    In Lvshan City, the ten villages speak fifteen dialects between them. They can''t understand each other, and intermarriage is the only way to resolve communication barriers. The other way is making everyone learn Standard Mandarin.


    Xiao Qi''s maternal grandmother''s village speaks an entirely different dialect from her paternal grandmother''s side. But thanks to her mother, she could understand both. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    This group that boarded spoke a dialect Xiao Qi could understand three or four sentences of. It sounded a little like the dialect spoken in her maternal grandmother''s village. It seemed like they were planning a wedding, but then the groom had an accident riding his motorbike and was hit by a truck.


    The brighter light let him see her smile especially clearly. She had a gorgeous smile, with straight white teeth that reminded him of sunshine pouring in through the window, bright and cheering him inexplicably.


    "Good evening. I heard you went to a high school reunion? Was it fun?" Lin Min asked casually, as if just recalling it. He had heard from her aunt that she went out and thought back to the scene he witnessed last time, so he couldn''t help but ask.


    "It was great, we''re all going our separate ways so it was nice to get together," Xiao Qi replied. Then she went back to her room to wash up and get ready for bed after the rather long, tiring day.


    She washed her face, then soaked her feet in hot water ? her aunt had suggested it would help with her sore legs the past couple days.


    She was too lazy to carry water inside, so she just soaked her feet at the dining table. It was a little scalding initially, but she soon got used to it. It did feel rather comfortable.


    Lin Min continued prepping his lesson next door. He would occasionally glance up at the girl not far away, head lowered looking at her phone. Her small, fair feet soaking in a big red basin.


    She wore an old nightgown. At the back of her head was a little pigtail tied up.


    She had only intended to soak her feet briefly, but then she picked up her phone which kept buzzing nonstop.


    Class monitor Li Changhai had added her to their high school class WeChat group. People kept talking in the chat so her phone kept vibrating.


    No one seemed to have noticed she joined. The group had existed for a while already.


    "Fuck, fuck, I must have been blind for three years of high school. We had a campus belle in our class, she sat up front and had a domineering aura two meters tall."


    "Hearing that song again, my goosebumps still haven''t gone away. What should I do, what should I do? Looks like I won''t be able to eat meat for the next three months ? even if I do it''ll be tasteless."


    "I''ll be reminiscing in that private room for the next three days."


    "What should I do, I feel like I''ve fallen in love."


    "Class monitor, did you record a video? You must send it to me. I need to save a copy."


    So many animated emojis.


    Xiao Qi thought for a moment then sent: Class monitor, how much was the gathering last night? I''ll transfer it to you.


    Then the chat suddenly fell silent.


    The class monitor responded: 147.


    Xiao Qi sent a red envelope [online money transfer]: 147, thanks class monitor.


    Then she sent another random red envelope for 200 yuan, writing: Hello everyone, I''m Xiao Qi. Please give me lots of guidance.

 Chapter 28: Long Eyelashes, Blinking Eyes

    Chapter 28


    After sending out red envelopes in the group, Xiao Qi stopped checking the messages.


    She set the group to mute notifications.


    Then she went to pour out the foot-washing water.


    When she returned, she saw Brother Lin Min next door still reading a book. She had intended to go to sleep, but considering that the time for her memory and language skills buffs was limited, she thought it would be better to study more.


    She took out the third volume of the New Concept English from her room and continued to delve into it.


    Lin Min sat at his dining table studying, while Xiao Qi sat at the neighboring table studying.


    She planned to study for an hour before going to sleep.


    However, reading English books tended to make her easily drowsy, so she tried her best to read and look at the same time.


    But she was a little worried about disturbing others, so she only read out softly.


    Lin Min saw the girl next to him, holding an English book, sitting upright and quietly reading and writing.


    Hmm, she even yawned occasionally.


    "You should go to sleep if you''re tired. Your efficiency will suffer," Lin Min spoke up.


    Xiao Qi wanted to say something but ended up letting out a yawn.


    She opened her mouth wide, facing Lin Min...


    "Okay," she sheepishly went back to her room and closed the door.


    It would be better to go to sleep after all, feeling slightly embarrassed.


    At this moment, she became somewhat awake.


    In the bright light of the night, she realized that Lin Min next door was actually more handsome than the boys in her class. He was wearing a simple white T-shirt, clean washed jeans, and sandals.


    Recalling it, even when Lin Min was at home, he always dressed neatly, unlike her who often wandered around in pajamas.


    During the time she had been eating at Auntie''s place, she hadn''t seen Lin Min looking particularly messy.


    At most, his hair was slightly disheveled after taking a shower, but his clothes were always neatly worn.


    Even his towels and such were neatly folded.


    He was truly an oddity in this dim tunnel.


    She remembered when she went to play at Lin Qingqing''s house, she and Lin Min were in the same room, separated by curtains, and it felt like two different worlds.


    Lin Qingqing''s side was messy, well, it had a lively atmosphere.


    But Lin Min''s side, from the sheets to the towels, everything was immaculate, to the point where one would feel embarrassed to touch anything.


    After the college entrance examination, she realized how vast the world was.


    It didn''t matter which class she was in, which desk she sat at, or which boy was next to her.


    It was also after the college entrance examination that she realized how small the world actually was.


    Lin Min would pass by Su Xiaoqi''s door on his way to wash up in the morning. Through the thin half-curtain, he couldn''t see the specifics inside, but he could still see someone sitting at the table writing, and a pair of bare feet in slippers.


    He hadn''t paid much attention to Su Xiaoqi before. He only knew that she was from Yizhong High School and they would often come and go in a hurry. Now that it was the vacation, and she was living in this area, he discovered that she was actually such a hardworking person, studying diligently from morning till night, with a very strict routine.


    He couldn''t help but admire her. He was also a hardworking person himself, knowing that his family background was not good, and attending Erzhong High School was just average. He had to work many times harder than most people to achieve success.


    In his view, society was unfair. Their starting point was too low, so in order to obtain what they wanted, they had to put in several times more effort than others.


    He knew that Su Xiaoqi had actually passed the entrance exam for a private university called Enhua, but couldn''t help feeling sorry for her. These past few days, he had watched her efforts, and her English was really good, not obtained easily. While his own sister was busy playing with her phone, Su Xiaoqi was either studying from books or going out to study, or going to the library.


    But even with all her efforts, she still made mistakes on the college entrance exam.


    Lin Min thought it was a pity.


    However, seeing her still smiling and being positive, radiating sunshine early in the morning, Lin Min couldn''t help but be infected by her mood.


    Xiao Qi greeted him and went to buy breakfast, then called her aunt to come back and eat.


    She had made an agreement with her aunt that if she was around, she would take care of breakfast.


    Her aunt must have been busy last night. When she went to call her aunt to eat, her aunt was still sleeping on a bed in an empty ward. It was so late and she hadn''t gotten up yet, so she must have had the day off today.


    "I had an emergency in the middle of the night. There was a patient with severe bleeding, so I had to get up and clean up. It took a long time and I didn''t sleep at all," Su Simei yawned and said, "Xiao Qi, you have to study hard. Don''t end up like your aunt, working so hard but not earning much money."


    Xiao Qi looked at Auntie, her face flushed with blood vessels. Auntie had a huge figure and weighed over 150 kilograms. She had a heavy workload and ate a lot. Although she appeared cheerful and filled the hospital room with her laughter, deep down she was quite pessimistic.


    That''s why her weight kept skyrocketing.


    Third Granny had three daughters and one son. Su Simei was the eldest daughter and had always done a lot of work since she was young.


    Xiao Qi had also met the other two aunts before. They both worked in government institutions, had good looks, and dressed appropriately, like typical city dwellers.


    However, Auntie had probably had the worst time.


    Xiao Qi believed that her aunt''s excessive weight gain was due to her depression after her divorce. It was just that her way of coping was to eat voraciously and work hard, laughing heartily.


    "Auntie, are you resting today? Is there anything you need?" Xiao Qi asked.


    "Well, there''s nothing much. What could I possibly have? I can''t even find clothes in my size when I go shopping. Feifei is on vacation, so I called her and she said she''s practicing swimming during her break, but she hasn''t come over."


    "Then Auntie, I''m also going to the gym to learn swimming this afternoon. Will you come with me?" Su Xiaoqi pondered and asked.


    As Auntie continued to gain weight and sink deeper into depression, it became a vicious cycle. The other caregivers were all together with their families, but once Xiao Qi went to college, Auntie would be alone. She should encourage Auntie to develop some other hobbies.


    Yesterday, in a fit of impulsiveness, she bought so many swimming lessons, which might not be used up within a month. She could let Auntie go as well. Perhaps a change of environment would be beneficial.


    "Swimming? I''m so fat, I won''t go, I''ll just be laughed at by others," Su Simei said, her mouth full of big buns, shaking her head continuously.


    "Auntie, you should go. Feifei is learning how to swim, and if you learn too, you can swim with her in the future. I''ve already signed up, and you can come along without spending extra money."


    Indeed, Auntie was moved by this statement. Being able to swim with her daughter was her biggest regret.


    "Then can I go with you?"


    Xiao Qi smiled and nodded.


    "Sure, I''ll go to the library in the morning, come back for lunch, and go out with you in the afternoon."


    "Okay, you go study, I''ll buy some groceries and make a delicious meal for lunch." Auntie''s face was filled with a beaming smile. Her rosy face was brimming with joy in that moment.

 Chapter 29: Run Fast

    Chapter 29


    Carried her schoolbag and walked to the library.


    The morning sun was not hot and a light breeze blew, very comfortable.


    When she arrived at the library, Xiaoqi continued to choose English originals to read, and picked up a copy of "Diana: Her True Story".


    It was an introduction of Diana''s life, with English translations and photos.


    Because she was struggling a bit with New Concept English Book 3, even with a memory buff, she still had to read it over and over again many times without understanding the meaning, so she still couldn''t memorize it.


    She chose this book because she liked Diana. Once at her school library she came across Diana''s biography and was amazed. for new novels


    Diana was so beautiful.


    In the eyes of the young girl Xiaoqi, Diana''s beauty was unparalleled, far superior to other celebrities or anything like that.


    Xiaoqi at this age still didn''t quite appreciate sexy and glamorous beauty, she preferred Diana''s charm, fascinating but not flamboyant, dignified and elegant.


    Plus there was a difference in status, royalty and nobility, which naturally felt different.


    Especially the young Diana wearing jeans, sweaters, kneeling on the grass, leading her own pony, with short hair and a smiling face bathed in sunshine.


    Radiant like an angel.


    The later Princess Diana was like a pure white flower bud slowly unfolding, more and more beautiful every time.


    The English reading material, Xiaoqi felt, needed to be interesting enough for her to read on, so next to this book she also placed an English dictionary.


    She was very happy that the seat she had sat in last time was still empty since she had come early.


    She put the book on the table and took out her notebook and water bottle and started reading.


    Facing the window, she could still see the top of a tree outside, looking up to catch a glimpse of green.


    She read while referring to the translation, and whenever she encountered a word she didn''t understand, wanting to grasp the deeper meaning, she would look it up in the dictionary.


    Time flew by quickly.


    Reading transported Xiaoqi into the scenes of Diana''s life as described in this book.


    She was so elegant, beautiful and articulate that even after divorcing the Prince, she was still the most beautiful Princess of the British Royal Family.


    There was a photo of her sitting in a large chair wearing a pearl white ball gown, head lowered, fallen asleep.


    Just looking at the photo made your heart beat faster and voice turn softer, afraid to wake the sleeping princess in the picture.


    The book introduced Diana''s early life, her marriage to Charles, her life after marriage, the events she participated in, as well as the scandals of the last period of her life.


    Xiaoqi read it with some struggle.


    Some of the sentence structures were a bit long and tiring to read.


    But she copied them all down, reading and reciting aloud as she wrote.


    She felt she had gained a lot.


    Not only in English knowledge, but also having witnessed the life of a beautiful woman.


    At a time when her own husband was infatuated with another woman, one even older and far less beautiful than herself, Diana did not feel inferior or desperate. She lived her life to the fullest to the end.


    Auntie had WeChat too but rarely posted on Moments, but she could already video call her daughter Feifei.


    And Auntie''s daughter Cheng Feifei''s daily life was also very lively, basically maintaining a pace of three Moments posts a day.


    Typically starting in the afternoon, more posts at night.


    Her former elementary school classmate Zhang Juan whom she met when going back this time, seemed to have taken over her Moments feed these days, almost ten posts a day, mostly product ads, videos, transfer and shipping records, a few were her life photos. If Xiaoqi didn''t know Zhang Juan, she would have thought this WeChat account belonged to a millionaire young female boss.


    The life records were also hanging out in various cars, traveling, and luxury goods.


    But Xiaoqi felt Zhang Juan probably wasn''t actually as well off as she claimed. If she really was that good, she wouldn''t have needed to ask the village driver Dayong to wait for her last time. She could have just taken a cab home directly. Although a cab home wouldn''t be cheap, compared to her shoes and bags it was nothing.


    Front desk classmate Li Changhai''s Moments, were all food related, either found online food recommendations or check-ins of the different restaurants where he was eating, giving the impression he was a professional foodie.


    The class leader''s Moments was unexpectedly all curly hair selfies after another.


    Her roommate Xia Zhen''s Moments had a bit of an artistic flair, capturing flowers, articles, occasional side selfies, petting cats.


    As for Liu Shaowei...she didn''t add him on WeChat, nor looked.


    She added Brother Lin Min but he never posted anything.


    In short, just looking at Moments was very interesting, different people showed different statuses.


    It should be a worthwhile research subject.


    Xiaoqi got the book and sat back in her previous seat, not noticing someone had sat diagonally across.


    And that person diagonally across was thrilled.


    He was the one who had casually posted a Douyin video, and unexpectedly it got a little popular with over ten thousand likes. His other videos only had likes in the double digits.


    These days he came every day trying his luck, and actually hadn''t seen the campus belle.


    Just now he came again, thinking his luck was still bad.


    Unexpectedly, the other party had come early, it was he who had come late.


    He was extremely excited, secretly hiding behind a book, phone mounted on a holder.


    He had specially bought one.


    Seeing the other reading professional books, he instantly grew even more respectful.


    As soon as Xiaoqi sat down, she heard the mechanical sound beside her ear: "Host is reading seriously, learning to see a relationship through the perspective of an adult, rewarded with one random study card, use it now?"


    Xiaoqi really liked this system, affirming her every behavior and little progress.


    Moreover, it was actually study cards for the biography of Diana, Princess of Wales. She felt that learning anything about the Princess would benefit her for a lifetime.


    "Use."


    "Host, do you want to learn the long distance running ability of Hugh Whitewell, Princess Diana''s riding coach?" the system asked.


    "Learn."


    Su Xiaoqi thought to herself, this riding coach was a character who appeared in the last scandalous rumors about Princess Diana''s biography. It was said that he was one of Diana''s lovers, but he shamelessly betrayed Diana and published the book "The Princess in Love", smearing Diana and threatening her for money...


    A person like this... should be able to run fast, right? If not, probably everyone in the UK would want to catch up to him and give him a beating.

 Chapter 30: Give Up Your Seat

    Chapter 30


    Qi Wei also found a book to read.


    His mother works in the library as the deputy director.


    Unable to bear seeing him playing games all the time, she sent him to the library during the vacation to read books.


    Originally, he chose a spot where he could enjoy a cool breeze while pretending to read a book and play with his phone.


    Unexpectedly, he ended up capturing a super amazing girl on camera.


    Last time, he didn''t dare to take a picture of her face, but this time he deliberately bought a phone stand, adjusted it, and pretended to take a selfie, but actually captured the girl''s face across from him.


    Her eyelashes were so long.


    Especially when she lowered her head to read, her eyelashes naturally covered her eyes.


    They were like feathers, teasing one''s heart.


    Especially her posture, sitting there, giving off an upright feeling. The initial impulse he had to take a picture was probably because of that.


    Qi Wei is a first-year high school student, soon to be in his second year. He attends Yizhong High School.


    He usually performs well in his studies, especially in science subjects, but he loves playing games.


    He has reached the diamond level with almost all the characters in Honor of Kings. He plays various games like PlayerUnknown''s Battlegrounds and Hearthstone. Recently, he''s gotten a bit tired of them and started using TikTok. As a fun-loving player, his main focus is on creating videos.


    While he secretly took pictures of the girl, he felt that he was being too creepy and couldn''t help but keep looking. So he also found a book to read.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t notice the other person.


    She had just gained a new ability, so she was currently looking at the interface in front of her.


    Host: Su Xiaoqi


    Calligraphy: Beginner level+ (8/100).


    Strength: Strong, average human level (can lift two of herself).


    Speed: Beginner level+.


    Bamboo weaving: Beginner level. Attached card is Expert level+.


    Singing: Expert level+.


    Appearance: Has good teeth and long eyelashes.


    Swimming talent buff (2/30).


    Memory buff (6/10).


    Sense of language buff (5/10).


    Demeanor buff (4/10).


    As Xiaoqi looked at the increasing content, she realized that there were many things she lacked that she hadn''t paid attention to before.


    Although she had been busy with studying and arranging her time for walking recently, due to her good posture and paying attention to how she stood, sat, and walked, she found it less tiring compared to before during class.


    She no longer experienced back pain or shoulder ache.


    It''s just that she had walked too much, and her legs felt a bit swollen.


    The demeanor buff was really good. She felt that she subconsciously stood straight and looked more focused when talking to people. She no longer felt shy or hesitant to speak, and she even got rid of the habit of hunching her back during her teenage years due to chest development.


    He looked up and saw people around him, including the girl across from him who seemed to be looking at him. Feeling guilty, he walked away with his phone.


    Then he went to his mother''s office chair and leaned against it.


    He started editing the just-recorded video.


    The long eyelashes lowered, the focused reading and note-taking, and the final smile.


    Her smile was so beautiful, with perfectly aligned, white teeth.


    When she smiled, it was especially sweet.


    He set the smiling scene as the cover and then edited it, compressing the time and linking the best moments he thought were attractive.


    Worried about being discovered, he also didn''t fully capture his face while filming.


    But compared to last time, he revealed more, showing his face.


    Last time, he only filmed his writing, without showing his head or face.


    Once he finished fixing it, Qi Wei absentmindedly bit on the jade Guanyin pendant hanging from his neck. His mother insisted he wear it, claiming it was a highly effective talisman obtained from a temple. When he was deep in thought, he would unconsciously take it out and chew on it, much like a child sucking on their fingers.


    "I fell in love with the girl I met at the library," he wrote.


    Then he clicked on the upload button.


    As he watched the progress bar, he suddenly felt a tap on the back of his head.


    Startled, Qi Wei jerked and almost dropped his phone.


    "Mom, you scared the life out of me without even saying a word."


    "You''re hiding here playing with your phone instead of studying in the library. Is this my office or yours? Do I need to report to you when I come in?"


    He stared at the screen, seeing the successful upload, and then resorted to the tactic of acting cute, using his mother as the target.


    "Isn''t it already lunchtime? Let''s go eat, Mom."


    Liu Yan couldn''t resist Qi Wei''s playful demeanor.


    Checking the time, it was already twelve o''clock, so they could go back home for lunch. They packed up and went downstairs together.


    While passing by the second-floor reading room, Qi Wei glanced inside and saw that the table was already empty.


    It felt somewhat desolate.


    When he and his mother reached the bus stop at the entrance on the ground floor, he planned to wait here while his mother brought the car out. However, when he turned his head, he unexpectedly saw the same girl who had taken the No. 3 bus to the Chinese Medicine Hospital First High School, which he also took to school.


    He wished he could rush over and take the bus with her.


    But a black car had already stopped in front of him, and he got into it.


    Inside the bus, Su Xiaoqi found an empty seat and sat down. After two stops, more people boarded, so she stood up and gave her seat to a pregnant woman who looked exhausted. Since she planned to go to the gym in the afternoon, she chose to take the bus instead of walking.


    However, after just a few days of taking the bus, she realized that it was more crowded than walking. Standing and swaying was also tiring.


    As she was squeezed to the back of the bus and accidentally stepped on, Su Xiaoqi heard a voice in her ear:


    "The host voluntarily gives up her seat for a pregnant woman, bringing a touch of comfort to the weary and depressed pregnant woman and injecting a bit of positive energy into the indifferent crowd. System level unlocked: Level 3 Progress System. The host will receive 0.3 yuan for every step taken, with a daily cap of 20,000 steps."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    She really wanted to find another empty seat and see if she could offer it to someone else.

 Chapter 31: The Swim

    Chapter 31


    On the smelly bus covered in sweat front and back, Su Xiaoqi had a bright smile on her face. The people on either side inexplicably felt the stench lessen somewhat. The curses quieted a bit.


    "Dammit, don''t crowd me, don''t you see there''s a young girl back here!"


    Su Xiaoqi kept foolishly smiling.


    Three level progression system, walking 20,000 steps a day, 0.3 yuan per step, that''s 6,000 yuan a day, so 18,000 per month, 180,000, one hundred and eighty thousand.


    What does 180,000 represent?


    For the villagers of Gumula Village, some people probably don''t earn that much in their lifetime.


    Su Xiaoqi felt her legs tremble from excitement.


    Just then the bus pulled into a stop.


    With a crash, Su Xiaoqi was thrown to the front of the bus by inertia.


    Though the bus had been quite crowded just before, for some reason, everyone neatly moved aside when she fell. As a result, she accidentally fell right next to the seat she had given up to someone else earlier. Rread latest chapters at novelhall.com


    The pregnant woman she had given up her seat for did not expect the young girl to give up her seat, only to get pushed to the back and even fall over from standing.


    Seeing she had fallen quite hard, long eyelashes, and very young age. Felt extremely distressed.


    She was about to have a child herself, truly hoped she could have a girl as well, and feel as distressed for her.


    "Young miss, thank you for giving up your seat for me. If not for you giving up your seat, you wouldn''t have fallen. I''m going to the hospital, just two more stops. Otherwise I can stand for a bit, you can have a seat."


    Su Xiaoqi waved her hands again and again.


    Hearing the pregnant woman''s words, everyone else looked approvingly at the young girl.


    Such a petite young girl with a huge schoolbag on her back, yet still giving up her seat for others. What a good child.


    Of course there were also those who felt the young girl was too silly. If it was their own daughter, they wouldn''t bear to have her give up her seat for others. She''s still growing!


    "I''m getting off at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital stop as well, it''s nothing. Just now I was distracted for a moment and accidentally fell." Su Xiaoqi declined. How could she take back the seat she had already given up?


    Still, there was an older lady next to her who gave up her seat for Su Xiaoqi, forcibly pulling her over.


    "Young miss with such a big schoolbag, you have a seat, have a seat."


    Su Xiaoqi felt somewhat dumbfounded as she was pushed into the seat.


    She was somehow the one being offered a seat. It felt inexplicably like, doing good deeds wasn''t so bad after all. Felt pretty good.


    When they arrived at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital stop, Xiaoqi got off. The older lady then reclaimed her seat again. The pregnant lady also slowly made her way off the bus. The bus remained stopped for some time.


    Seeing someone had come to get the pregnant lady, Su Xiaoqi didn''t go over. She was in a great mood, and headed straight for her aunt''s dorm.


    Because there was only one bed in the dorm, she was worried Xiaoqi wouldn''t be used to it. At night she specially took on looking after hospitalized patients so she could sleep in the wards most of the time.


    They took the bus again at over 2 in the afternoon when the sun was highest.


    Fortunately there weren¡¯t many people outdoors this time. The bus was quite empty.


    But Xiaoqi still felt taking a taxi would be better. Or a small vehicle.


    However her current legitimate income was still too little. Reckless lifestyle inflation was still not good.


    Zhang Juan was the prime example. When your capabilities and status don¡¯t match the money you possess, people would become suspicious and even secretly try to uncover the truth. Not to mention others, even Xiaoqi herself harbored doubts about Zhang Juan, staring at her feed pondering for a long time.


    Xiaoqi felt she needed to constantly improve herself before she could more rationally possess this money, and more justifiably spend this money.


    Aunt and niece arrived at the sports complex.


    Xiaoqi¡¯s swimsuit was a gift from the membership card issuer, Little Wu, who had given it to her together in the package with the card.


    She took a look at the size, S. Fits her perfectly.


    She had never gone swimming before and also didn¡¯t know where to buy swimwear. She was planning to just wear this first.


    They first headed to the changing area together.


    The swimsuit Xiaoqi received was just the most common kind. Two pieces. Tank style top, shorts bottom. Quite modest other than the exposed waist.


    But she was unused to wearing so little. Still felt somewhat uncomfortable.


    Even when boarding at school, she usually went to shower at her aunt¡¯s ward instead of with classmates.


    Seeing all the pale flesh in the changing room, and no one looking at her, she adapted a little.


    Then when she saw her aunt walk over after changing, Xiaoqi froze completely.


    1.68 meters tall, 150 pounds. Her aunt wasn''t the imagined lump of flesh mountain. Unexpectedly quite evenly robust andhusky overall.


    Her aunt wore a one piece with seemingly developed muscles, feeling like some warrior.


    Come to think of it, her aunt did move medical equipment and things like that at the hospital everyday. She was also frequently called over.


    "What are you staring for, help me take the tag off."


    Her aunt turned with her back facing Xiaoqi.


    Xiaoqi looked at the new tag on the swimsuit. Yeah, new clothes. Take off by hand? Won¡¯t come off right, she couldn¡¯t take off the tags on clothes she bought before.


    But with a light tug, it snapped right off.


    Forgot...she was a powerful ordinary human now.

 Chapter 32: Vision Correction

    Chapter 32


    The scene of Su Xiaoqi and her aunt entering the swimming pool together was quite impressive.


    People around them made way for them.


    Su Xiaoqi''s aunt had a strong physique.


    Seeing a 150-pound woman wearing a swimsuit and looking sturdy and developed was relatively rare in the small city of Lushan.


    Standing next to her aunt, Su Xiaoqi appeared slender and delicate in contrast.


    Su Simei felt a bit embarrassed. In reality, she was wearing a flowery XXXL swimsuit, and when she walked out, she was extremely nervous.


    She wasn''t like this before.


    She had fair skin and a round face. Back then, when she was dating her ex-husband, everyone said she looked like Liu Sanjie from the movies, with a sweet and cheerful smile.


    But their married life didn''t go smoothly. Her ex-husband loved drinking and would become physically abusive after drinking.


    Eventually, she couldn''t bear it anymore and divorced him, one of the early batches of divorced women.


    The people around her, including her parents, didn''t understand her decision. They thought her husband didn''t have other women outside, he was hardworking, and skilled at his job. They found the divorce unreasonable just because of his drinking habit.


    But she couldn''t just show her bruises to everyone.


    People would assume it was some kind of marital playfulness, especially since they had a daughter.


    Her ex-husband treated their daughter well and never laid a hand on her outside.


    He had a stable job, and their daughter was awarded to him after the divorce. So she was left alone, enduring countless gossips, and living a difficult life.


    And then she started gaining weight continuously, transforming from a beautiful village girl into the overweight person she was now.


    Her face remained round, her smile still bright, but everything had grown larger, and no one praised her beauty anymore.


    "Xiaoqi, maybe your aunt should go back. It feels awkward here," Su Simei spoke softly, an unusual occurrence.


    She felt uncomfortable, even though no one in this place knew them, it was still embarrassing.


    Xiaoqi also felt a bit nervous, but since they had already come, and it was rare for her aunt to agree to come out, if they went back now, her aunt might be even less willing to come out in the future.


    "It''s fine. We don''t know anyone here, so let''s enjoy ourselves," Xiaoqi held tightly onto her aunt''s hand, not letting her leave.


    Approaching them was a woman wearing a professional swimsuit, a plain black one without any fancy decorations.


    She revealed her toned shoulders and thighs. Her shoulders were slightly broad, but it gave a pleasant and comfortable impression.


    She had short hair, very neat.


    "You must be Coach Wu, I''m Su Xiaoqi, and this is my aunt. We want to learn together," Xiaoqi confidently addressed her.


    "Yes, I''m Wu Peirong. Do you have any swimming experience?" she asked.


    "No, this is our first time swimming," Su Simei looked at her niece conversing so confidently and felt a bit self-conscious.


    She mustered the confidence she had while working at the hospital, lifting medical equipment.


    Anyway, no one around here knew her, and the teacher''s gaze didn''t show any strange feelings. Su Simei relaxed a little.


    They had a dedicated learning area.


    Wu Peirong''s classes were expensive, one and a half hours per session, costing 600 yuan. It was the most expensive in the entire swimming pool.


    But she was the best swimmer and had the best results. Many people sought her out for lessons.


    "Since you both haven''t swum before, let''s start with freestyle," she said in a slightly hoarse voice.


    It''s not very common to see an aunt and her niece learning swimming together, but the aunt was just teaching the class and didn''t care about anything else as long as she was paid.


    She was actually excited because these exercises could substitute for steps, and the more she did, the more money she earned.


    Unknowingly, an hour and a half had already passed, and the first session was over.


    Xiaoqi still felt a bit reluctant, but when she stood by the shore, she realized her legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.


    Raising her legs in the water was more tiring than walking on land.


    And Su Simei was equally exhausted, resembling a dead dog.


    Xiaoqi had thought she could continue practicing, but she could only go to take a shower.


    After washing up and changing clothes, Xiaoqi stood by the door blow-drying her hair and suddenly heard a loud scream from the bathroom.


    It seemed to be Su Simei.


    She hurriedly went over.


    She saw Su Simei standing on the weighing scale, vigorously waving at Xiaoqi.


    "Qi, come here quickly, look, I''ve lost weight! I''ve lost six kilograms! Shouldn''t we come again tomorrow?"


    Xiaoqi walked over and saw the scale displaying 147 pounds...


    "Auntie, didn''t you say you weighed 150 pounds? Losing six kilograms should be 144, right?"


    "I just roughly estimated, it''s actually 153 pounds." Su Simei said sheepishly.


    But she was very excited. She had thought her physique was the problem, that she couldn''t lose weight. Despite being tired from working at the hospital, her weight kept increasing instead of decreasing.


    "You should weigh yourself too."


    Xiaoqi stepped onto the scale and saw it showing 103 pounds.


    She was also pleasantly surprised. During her physical examination before the college entrance exam, she weighed 108 pounds.


    But it probably wasn''t from swimming today; it must be due to all the walking she had been doing recently.


    Su Simei''s weight was initially much higher, so she could lose six kilograms at once.


    After showering, the two of them headed back together.


    Xiaoqi noticed that Su Simei looked much better than usual, and her smile didn''t have that greasy feeling.


    They passed by a McDonald''s.


    Xiaoqi asked, "Auntie, do you want to eat ice cream? I''ll buy two."


    "You want to eat ice cream right after losing weight?"


    "It''s fine. You lost six kilograms, so the ice cream is just a little bit."


    Xiaoqi ran over and joined the queue. There were two people ahead of her, but the ice cream counter was fast, and it was soon her turn.


    She happily bought two ice cream cones.


    For Su Xiaoqi, ice cream was truly delicious.


    If she was out shopping after school, she couldn''t resist buying one.


    On the way, they each held an ice cream cone and licked it.


    Their slightly awkward manner of licking seemed to clash with their refined appearance, but they were still happy.


    "It''s quite tasty," Su Simei said while eating.


    "The host helps a middle-aged woman with mild depression and binge eating disorder to exercise, successfully losing 6 pounds, reducing her negative emotions, and bringing her hopeful progress and positive energy. As a reward, her vision will be corrected once, and after the correction, her eyesight can reach 1.2, making her life more convenient."

 Chapter 33: The Good Samaritan

    Chapter 33


    Xiao Qi and Auntie walked back to the hospital.


    Today, after swimming and walking, they had already taken nearly 20,000 steps.


    Looking at the money on the interface, it had increased by almost 10,000.


    There was so much money that Xiao Qi didn''t even know how she spent it. At first, she would remember even the decimal places, but now she was starting to forget.


    Spending money is really nice, especially when it''s spent wisely.


    Like today, after learning how to swim, Xiao Qi felt that the sky was particularly blue, the sunlight was especially beautiful, and the buses on the road looked especially nice.


    The ice cream cone was also unusually sweet.


    The two arrived at the hospital, and Xiao Qi planned to continue studying English.


    Auntie Su Simei couldn''t sit still either and went for a walk in the ward.


    She was in a good mood and felt like she had lost weight. She felt more confident, and even the old patients greeted her.


    Even the usually strict head nurse seemed to have a pleasant expression today.


    Su Simei was quite happy.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi took off her glasses and looked at herself in the mirror.


    She grinned and blinked.


    Without glasses, she felt like she looked different, and it took some getting used to.


    She had been wearing glasses since primary school because she loved reading even back then. Her dad bought her many books, and she would often fall asleep while reading, which caused her eyesight to worsen.


    In primary school, Xiao Qi, with her glasses on, was often made fun of by the villagers for being a "four-eyed frog."


    When she went to middle school and high school outside the village, fewer people called her by that nickname.


    After wearing glasses for a long time, suddenly not wearing them made Xiao Qi feel a bit uncomfortable.


    But not wearing glasses was convenient for running and playing ball. Otherwise, while running, she would have to keep adjusting her glasses, afraid that they would fall to the ground.


    However, for some unknown reason, this time she started running and felt like the thief was strangely slowing down. After running for a short while, she actually caught up with the thief.


    Oh my god, they were just a hand''s distance away, too close.


    With a brave face, Xiao Qi reached out and grabbed the thief.


    And then she caught a thief who was much bigger than her.


    Is it too late to let go now?


    Why did she have such an impulsive act?!


    She remembered her father''s words, "When you encounter danger, the first thing you must do is protect yourself."


    But she only managed to grab the thief with one hand, and the thief surprisingly didn''t break free.


    "Help, help! Let go! I only took a crappy phone, is it worth it, is it?!"


    At this moment, the surrounding people finally gathered around.


    Some were holding their phones, seemingly recording videos from the beginning.


    Su Xiaoqi was speechless.


    She took back her phone and handed it to the person who had just been stolen from. She remembered that the person was wearing green pants and was still watching the spectacle.


    "Miss, here''s your phone."


    The person looked puzzled and, after patting their back pocket, exclaimed, "My phone! They actually stole my phone!"


    "Thank you so much, young lady. I''m really grateful," the woman said, still shocked.


    "It''s alright. Can any of you help call the police?" Su Xiaoqi hurriedly left.


    Because the voice in her mind started to speak again, "The host acted bravely, caught the thief, helped the owner retrieve the phone that was supposed to be lost, prevented the thief from committing further crimes, and brought positive energy and progress to society. Unlocking the system level, upgrading to Level 4 Progress System. The host will earn 0.4 yuan for every step taken, capped at 20,000 steps per day."


    Holy crap, 8,000 yuan a day, 240,000 yuan a month, 240,000 yuan, 240,000 yuan...


    Su Xiaoqi exclaimed "holy crap" several times in her mind, but her emotions couldn''t be calmed.

 Chapter 34: The Sense of Smell

    Chapter 34


    Su Xiaoqi hazily returned to her auntie''s dormitory.


    Her steps were a little unsteady.


    On one hand, she was really frightened by the sudden system upgrade. On the other hand, she really felt tired from all the walking today.


    After swimming and walking all day, when she gave up her seat on the bus for someone else and caught a thief at night, her system mysteriously leveled up twice for no reason.


    When she got back, her mind was still messy, but as soon as she lay in bed, she fell straight asleep.


    In the middle of the night, she woke up briefly when her auntie came to grab some things. Glancing at her watch, she saw it was after 4 AM. She rolled over and went back to sleep.


    The next morning, she woke up needing to pee urgently.


    Opening her eyes, she surprisingly saw it was after 7 AM. She had probably overslept because of how tired swimming had made her yesterday. Her legs felt especially sore, as if they were not her own.


    As Su Xiaoqi got up, she instinctively reached for her glasses by the bedside.


    After groping around for a while without finding them, she suddenly realized she could see very clearly without her glasses. She had already put away her now unnecessary glasses.


    She should get some lens-less fake glasses, otherwise it might seem strange when she went home after randomly taking off her glasses.


    She hurried to the bathroom and then came back to wash up.


    Her hair was a messy bird''s nest so early in the morning. To get to the bathroom, she had to go through a hallway and climb some stairs. Living here was a bit inconvenient.


    Or she could rent a place nearby for herself.


    As Su Xiaoqi stood at the sink brushing her teeth, she suddenly thought:


    Wait, with so much money, she could probably afford to buy a small house!


    Housing prices in Lvshan weren''t too high. It reached as high as 8,000 or even 10,000 RMB per square meter near First Middle School because of school district home buyers.


    But she could buy somewhere not as central for around 5,000 RMB per square meter.


    The old lady sat dozing off in front.


    Su Xiaoqi handed over the food and said, "My auntie told me to bring this for you. My auntie is Nurse Su."


    The old lady was startled to see a young girl bringing her things. But soon her eyes flooded with tears.


    "I don''t need it, thank your auntie for me. I''m not hungry. You''re a good girl." Although the old lady''s voice was hoarse without much strength, she spoke very clearly.


    Just then, the man in the hospital bed suddenly opened his eyes.


    He seemed to have already been awake and just hadn''t opened his eyes.


    "Mom, eat something first to regain your strength to take care of me. And thank you, little sister, as well as your auntie," said the young man from the bed.


    Su Xiaoqi was also startled.


    "It''s nothing. I didn''t really help with anything."


    Seeing the old lady''s brimming red eyes with tears rolling down her face, Su Xiaoqi couldn''t stand the scene and hurriedly left after handing over the things.


    A severed leg could not be reattached.


    Even just being lame like her own dad made life in the countryside very difficult and inconvenient.


    As for the patient in that hospital bed, the shape beneath the blanket was sunken from the knees down where his legs should have been. It was empty.


    They said the perpetrator who had hit him still hadn''t been found. And his bride had inexplicably disappeared, claiming she went out to work. There was still the issue of medical fees. The bride''s family had taken 160,000 RMB of dowry from the groom before marriage. He had barely scrounged that together through his migrant work and borrowing money everywhere.


    Yet now his bride suddenly said it was gone because her brother had spent it all buying property.


    Things in this world were sometimes so absurd and laughable.


    Su Xiaoqi thought if she were that patient lying paralyzed in a hospital bed, she would probably be depressed to death.


    But as soon as she walked out of the hospital entrance, she heard a mechanical voice from her system speaker: "Host helped deliver breakfast and received one sincere thanks. Though the host''s actions were small, she increased the positive energy of a sunny-hearted young man. Reward: Host is granted enhanced sense of smell, reaching the level of a Chinese rural dog. Host now possesses the sense of smell of a Chinese rural dog."


    Su Xiaoqi: ......

 Chapter 35: Introduction to Cooking

    Chapter 35


    Saturday.


    The weather was fine and sunny.


    The hospital seemed a bit lazier than usual.


    As I walked out, I noticed two nurses standing under a rose bush at the entrance, chatting with their hands in their pockets.


    One of the nurses must have said something funny because the other nurse bent over laughing.


    I glanced at them and continued on my way, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the heavy scent of the hospital.


    I hurriedly made my way outside.


    Nurses are highly regarded by the nursing assistants in the hospital.


    They think nurses are great because they handle all the dirty and tiring work.


    But my classmates in school look down on nurses. We attend a prestigious high school, and our goal is to go to university. Nurses usually graduate from nursing schools, which creates a hierarchy of disdain.


    As usual, I slung my backpack over my shoulder and headed to the library.


    On the way, I checked my personal interface:


    Only 4 days left for the memory buff, 5 days for the language proficiency buff, and 28 days for the swimming buff.


    I''ve gained new skills in long-distance running and singing. My strength has increased, my eyelashes have grown longer, my vision has improved, and I''ve even acquired an enhanced sense of smell. What''s that for?


    I absentmindedly pushed up my glasses and realized they were empty. I no longer needed them.


    The world seemed a bit clearer, a bit brighter.


    When I arrived at the library, I found someone sitting in my usual spot. Perhaps it was because it was the weekend, but the library seemed a bit more crowded today.


    I continued searching and found a copy of "To Kill a Mockingbird" in its original English version.


    While searching for books, I felt a bit lost.


    Today, I suddenly felt a sense of desolation, a inexplicable low mood. Not even the smiles of the two nurses at the hospital entrance could lift my spirits.


    I felt that my act of coming to the library to read was more of a formality, yet without reading, my mind felt empty, as if there was nothing at all.


    I hadn''t read this book before, but I had heard about it.


    I picked up the book and also grabbed an English dictionary. Then I found a corner near the trash can, which was unoccupied.


    Not far away, some parents were reading with their children. The children couldn''t sit still, constantly shifting in their seats. They looked around, occasionally bothering others.


    I envied those children. I had never come to the library with my father. He always had endless work to do, and even when he went into town, he had to calculate the time to catch the bus back. He never had the chance to accompany me to the library to read.


    It felt like two completely different worlds.


    But the reason I could sit in the library and read was because of my father''s efforts.


    After I sat down, I opened the book, and my restless heart gradually calmed down.


    At first, it took me a long time to read a page, and I had to consult the dictionary frequently. But as time went on, my reading speed increased.


    The library didn''t close at noon; there were staff on duty, so she wasn''t being rushed. However, if she wanted to borrow books, she would have to wait until they resumed work.


    Time flies by, and when reading, it always feels exceptionally fast.


    This book is very captivating; it was challenging at first, but then she gradually became engrossed in it.


    Even the notebook beside her recorded many pages.


    Closing the book and putting it back in its place, she tidied up her things, ready to go eat and then head to the gym.


    "The host has engaged in immersive reading for more than 3 hours, combined with personal experiences for reflection, and has elevated her spiritual thoughts. Rewarding with a random study booster card, would you like to use it?"


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t expect another surprise.


    "Use it."


    "The host has successfully chosen to learn the culinary skills of the black chef Calpurnia. Would you like to proceed with the learning?"


    Su Xiaoqi: ...I''m starting to get used to these random choices.


    "Yes, I''ll learn."


    Instantly, her interface added a new option: Beginner''s Guide to Culinary Skills.


    Originally, she planned to go to the previous fast-food restaurant for a cheap and satisfying meal.


    But as soon as she reached the entrance, a strong greasy smell rushed over, and she felt nauseous...


    She had no choice but to find another place that looked cleaner.


    She ordered two stir-fried dishes, one with meat and one vegetarian, a serving of rice, and a glass of juice.


    It was half past one, not the peak dining hour, so there were fewer people.


    The food arrived quickly.


    Su Xiaoqi realized how hungry she actually was when she saw the dishes.


    However, her etiquette buff was still active, so she ate slowly and deliberately.


    She even ordered an extra bowl of rice, and finished all the dishes. This meal ended up costing her 98 yuan, and the glass of juice alone was 25 yuan. When she saw the bill, Su Xiaoqi felt a pang of heartache, especially when she noticed that the rice was priced at 5 yuan per serving...


    Although the money on her interface kept increasing, she still couldn''t shake off the mindset of being poor.


    After leaving the restaurant,


    Su Xiaoqi started to feel a bit tired and didn''t want to go back to her aunt''s place¡ªit seemed troublesome.


    So she decided to take a taxi.


    Coincidentally, a taxi was parked right in front of her.


    She asked the driver if he was going to the gym, and he confirmed.


    Once she got into the car, she regretted it a bit. The taxi was narrow and had a strong smell compared to the comfort of a bus. However, the ride was uninterrupted, and they soon arrived at the gym.


    Su Xiaoqi dozed off a little in the car and only fully woke up when she submerged herself in the swimming pool at the gym.

 Chapter 36: Bacon Rice

    Chapter 36


    Su Xiaoqi''s whole body was immersed in the water.


    She relaxed her breathing, gave up struggling, and her whole body floated up and down in the water, swaying with the waves.


    At that moment, it was as if Su Xiaoqi had died, her soul leaving her body.


    She suddenly opened her eyes.


    There was also an interface in the water.


    The numbers did not bend with the undulation of the water surface.


    She stood up and found that the coach had already come over.


    "Practicing holding your breath? Beginners should pay attention to safety and not hold their breath for too long to avoid cramps," the coach said.


    "Got it, thanks coach." Su Xiaoqi wiped the water off her face.


    Next was to continue practicing basic movements with the coach.


    Kicking legs, paddling, she had been practicing for half an hour before the coach let her rest.


    Xiaoqi sat by the pool, panting, watching as the coach walked over to speak with another coach. She blankly thought that when she was practicing swimming just now, she did not actually smell anything weird.


    She felt that the rewards from the system, if not used properly, could also be very troublesome.


    Like this sense of smell, it seemed to be ordinary smells, but now everything smelled pungent and unpleasant. She had to learn to control this feeling, otherwise she would always be in the vomiting stage... people might mistakenly think she was pregnant.


    The coach over there walked over to chat with a coach she was familiar with.


    "I met a good seedling, very talented. It would be great if she was willing to join our swimming team."


    "You think they''re all good. Let''s take a look later?"


    "Unfortunately, I heard she''s a student from No. 1 Middle School who has already been admitted to university, so she definitely won''t be willing to stay."


    Xiaoqi rested for a while, and saw the coach bring another coach over.


    "Your basics are good enough, next we can start getting in the water officially. Stay by my side and pay attention to my movements and breathing coordination." for new novels


    Exercise makes the muscles tired, but the mind relaxed.


    Xiaoqi, who had been reading books all morning, really needed this.


    She concentrated on learning from the coach.


    Thanks to having the swimming talent buff, she learned very quickly. In addition, she herself was very serious and active. After swimming a lap following the coach, she was already swimming extremely well, with standardized and elegant movements, and it didn''t seem to take much effort.


    She snapped both ends of the string beans - the ends and fibrous sides of string beans were harder and needed to be removed.


    When at home Xiaoqi often helped snap string beans and was very skilled at it.


    A handful of string beans snapped clean in one go, then cut into small dice for later use. Next were the onions - the dry red outer skin pulled off to reveal the tender watery part inside. The tops cut off, then also diced for later use.


    Carrots peeled and cut into dice. Shiitake mushrooms washed clean then cut into small dice. Then the preserved pork.


    She cut a slab of preserved pork the size of her palm, about four inches square, peeled off the rind. The preserved meat was dark and the right kind properly smoked at her family home. Even before cooking, the scratchy hungry feeling already hit Xiaoqi''s stomach.


    Standard procedure of cutting into dice. When she finished and had piles of little diced bits on the table, Xiaoqi realized her knife skills didn''t seem bad.


    Lin Qingqing came over, curious, even taking pictures.


    Xiaoqi didn''t mind and proceeded to rinse the rice, layering the diced vegetables and preserved pork, mixing in a little soy sauce and salt since the preserved pork would be salty.


    Then into the electric rice cooker and switched it on.


    The whole thing seemed pretty easy, finished in less than half an hour.


    Tomatoes also washed and sliced for later. Seeing Lin Qingqing, she washed a couple more and handed her one, taking one for herself to fill their stomachs first.


    Home grown tomatoes, still a little hard, skins quite thick, but biting in released a sweet and sour juicy flavor, much tastier than store bought.


    The stomach-filling took the edge off her hunger and felt much better.


    Xiaoqi planned to practice her writing for a bit.


    "Sis Xiaoqi, do homework together with me. When my mom sees me together with you she won''t have anything to say or nag about."


    Seeing the sunshine in the yard and not too glaring, the basement room was indeed a bit stuffy, so Xiaoqi took out her writing workbook and they did it outside together.


    There was a small table outside with a layer of cloth over, and some little stools. Xiaoqi sat and felt the seat height quite comfortable, and began writing.


    Lin Qingqing listened to music and secretly read her novel while holding up a textbook. Xiaoqi just smiled - she was so much like her past self.


    Occasional ambulance siren sounds.


    Wind rustling tree leaves.


    Nurses calling aloud.


    Rice cooker bubbling.


    Writing scratching sounds.


    A young man lying in a bed beside the window upstairs laboriously cranked up his hospital bed height to peer out the window. He had just wanted to see the tree at first, and then spotted the writing girl underneath.

 Chapter 37: Giving Money

    Chapter 37


    The sunset fell below the trees.


    Ambulances were parked under the hospital entrance.


    The young nurses took off their uniforms and changed into beautiful dresses, put on some makeup, and turned into fashionable young ladies. Some of them went to the hospital entrance and got into cars to meet people, while others hurriedly flagged taxis to go on dates.


    Xiao Qi stood in front of the pot waiting for the water to boil. She cracked the eggs into the pot in circles, stirred them, then added the tomatoes she had cut up earlier. When the water boiled again, she turned down the heat, let it simmer for a while, then added some salt. When the water boiled rapidly again, she turned off the heat.


    A good cook knows when to add just enough salt.


    Xiao Qi tasted the soup she made. Surprisingly, she found it light and refreshing for once, with the sour-sweetness of tomatoes and the fresh sweetness of eggs, and a proper amount of saltiness.


    With the soup done, the rice was also cooked.


    Her aunt had originally planned to cook, but didn''t expect Xiao Qi to have everything ready.


    When she opened the rice cooker, the scent of braised pork rice wafted up, glossy and oily. The aroma of braised pork filled the air.


    The white rice had taken on a reddish color from the sauce, accompanied by green bean pods, red carrot cubes, and white onions, presenting a colorful and nutritious sight.


    Xiao Qi washed her hands and served herself and her aunt each a large bowl.


    She also scraped and divided the crispy rice from the bottom for her aunt, knowing that she liked eating it, while she only took a small piece for herself since she wasn''t so fond of it.


    By this time, others in the tunnel had also started cooking. Smelling the fragrance from Xiao Qi''s place, they were made hungry one by one.


    Su Simei was the crude sort when it came to living conditions, and she wasn''t too picky about flavors either, but she did enjoy eating a lot.


    She gobbled down the food with great gusto.


    After finishing the last spoonful of soup, there was not a single grain of rice left in that pot.


    Su Simei patted her bulging belly and said, "I didn''t expect you to be quite a good cook Xiao Qi. This tomato egg soup you made tastes even better than when I make it."


    Xiao Qi also felt very satisfied from the meal.


    The tomato egg soup her aunt normally made was covered by a thick layer of oil floating on top, with added pepper powder and other odd seasonings. The tomatoes and eggs were distinctly separate instead of blended.


    Whereas her soup had everything infused as one, yet still tasted light and refreshing.


    With some spare money lately, Xiao Qi still felt terribly pressed for time, investing most of it towards learning and improvement.


    In fact, she already had a sizable following on Douyin by now.


    Her videos on Douyin included tutoring classes, bamboo weaving, studying English books in the library, catching a thief, and cooking/food prep pictures.


    The cooking photos were posted by Lin Qingqing, who had recently gotten new headphones and loved the Douyin music. She didn''t shoot videos, just a series of pictures matched to music. It included Xiao Qi cutting vegetables, shots of her in profile at work, the stone tables and big trees downstairs in the hospital, and her writing in the back. Grouped into 8 photos posted together.


    Without anything particularly viral, it still managed several hundred likes.


    What had ignited lately was the catching a thief video. Comments debated whether it was staged or real¡ªthe girl ran too quickly, must have super strength; some recognized it as No.1 Middle School. In any case, the phone theft victim watching the hoopla chimed in with more plot twists that got laughs all around, ending in more likes. This random Douyin video shot by a passerby somehow garnered hundreds of thousands of likes out of nowhere.


    The girl in the video was holding an English textbook, looking very young in plain clothing¡ªthe nighttime schoolyard scene simply lacked bright lighting.


    Xiao Qi studied then left after memorizing the day''s assignment. Campus seemed livelier for some reason, but she didn''t think anything of it and just returned to the hospital to check in with her aunt.


    Her aunt followed Xiao Qi back to their room, phone in hand, asking how to use the Stone-Skipping platform: the young man upstairs with the broken leg had set up a Stone Skipping page and she wanted to donate.


    Xiao Qi was puzzled. Stone Skipping pages were nothing rare in hospitals¡ªfrankly there were so many per ward that people were numb to it. If you donated to every sob story, the hospital staff wouldn''t even have salaries left to feed themselves.


    Thus working here long enough, you''d actually grow more indifferent about such causes. Her penny-pinching aunt never donated either.


    "That young man''s a good sort. Filial to his old ma, polite to folks, didn''t badmouth his runaway bride either. I say that woman will regret it someday. He told his ma cheerily that being a mechanic would be even more convenient crawling under cars with his legs cut off!"


    Xiao Qi opened the Stone Skipping page her aunt indicated in WeChat moments. Liu Anquan, 29 years old¡ªXiao Qi felt that was rather old to be newly married. His photos showed an average-looking but youthful man in military uniform, while the hospital shots simply omitted his missing legs under the blanket, his face wearing the same mild smile against the pillow. Hard to believe his legs were gone seeing that carefree grin.


    Xiao Qi walked her aunt through linking WeChat to donate, and helped submit the 200 yuan contribution she wanted to give. Her aunt was quite pleased about it, and headed upstairs after sorting it out.


    Left alone, Xiao Qi wanted to practice her writing, but couldn''t really focus.


    The image of the mother and son taking a shower upstairs kept coming to my mind.


    And the photo of her lying in bed.


    She simply opened Stone Savings and took a look at the donations. There were quite a lot - $5 and $10 donations, fewer hundreds, more twenties and fifties. She looked at her own interface and donated $15,000 in one go.


    She repeatedly counted the zeros to make sure there were no mistakes before confirming.


    Then she felt relieved.


    During her next calligraphy practice session, she was much more focused and suddenly felt at ease.

 Chapter 38: Moderate Blackening

    Chapter 38


    The next morning.


    Xiaoqi had just opened her eyes when the mechanical sound next to her ears rang. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    "The host is willing to help others get through difficulties in life, gaining sincere thanks and bringing positive energy to society, unlocking the system level. The system is upgraded to a level 5 progressive system. The host earns 0.5 yuan for every step, capped at 30,000 steps per day."


    Xiaoqi lay in bed, without needing to calculate, she knew it was 15,000 yuan per day.


    Compared to the initial excitement and craze, she felt much calmer now, but still a bit annoying... 30,000 steps... to walk so many steps every day, would her legs become thinner or thicker? If the system kept improving like this, with more steps in the future, she wouldn''t even be able to walk so many steps to earn all the money.


    She now had WeChat. Looking at the WeChat sports on top, she was almost at the top of the leaderboard with 20,000 steps per day.


    It was quite early to get up. After cooking yesterday, she felt pretty good at it. And ever since the smell enhancement, reaching the sense of smell of a Chinese rural dog (manually dog head), Xiaoqi felt that she could no longer smell the greasy odor outside.


    Seeing it was just past 6, the sky barely bright, she might as well make breakfast herself.


    She got up to wash the rice, and found Lin Min working in the yard.


    "Morning."


    "Morning." Lin Min saw her washing rice and felt a bit strange, but he did not say much.


    Xiaoqi also found it odd. Usually it would be Lin Min''s mom doing the chores. She did not expect to see only Lin Min himself this morning.


    Looking at the stuff he was handling, very clean, flour and all, it was pretty good.


    The green onions were also washed very clean. But the morning water was a bit cool. Seeing Lin Min''s pair of slender hands, red from the cold.


    After Xiaoqi finished rinsing the rice, she was also going to cook later. So she went upstairs to the patient''s room to fetch hot water.


    She carried two buckets in one go, gave one to Lin Min, then went back to her room. She was going to practice writing for a while, continuing to copy New Concept English Book 3. There was only a tenth left and she expected to finish it today.


    Book 4, she flipped through, was more difficult. The articles in Book 3 were still interesting, narrative essays, but Book 4 articles were dry, like expository and argumentative essays, harder to memorize. It felt like there wouldn''t be enough time ahead, but she would remember as much as she could.


    After tidying up the room once, there had been a strange smell from spoiled food before. She cleaned it up and now felt the room was much fresher. She planned to go out and buy some white wallpaper today to paste on the walls to brighten up the room.


    Xiaoqi soon immersed herself in the English copywriting. The porridge in the pot cooked slowly. The rice grown in their own field, harvested, dried, and then blown clean with an electric fanner before dehusked by the rice machine. The rice grains were quite broken but very fragrant. In recent years Xiaoqi and her aunt ate rice carried back by her dad when visiting home for meals.


    Last time Lin Min brother was just a darkening teenager, now he was moderately darkened already? This was even after some alleviation, the speed was too fast!


    And what were the manifestations of a darkening teenager anyway? Every time she saw Lin Min brother he had a gentle smile, and just now he was helping his mom with chores, looking like a filial son.


    Body proportions?


    She learned about the golden ratio and proportions and stuff in middle school maths. And dorm mates gossiped about celebrities, things like nine heads proportions etc. She had secretly measured her own proportions before, hmm, a very reasonable fifty-fifty split.


    If waist-chopped, upper and lower body would be the same length.


    Adjust and enhance proportions?


    She couldn''t make out anything standing in front of the mirror. Or it might look more pleasing?


    It felt like because of herself wiping the mirror last night, and the room mirror was leaning, making herself look taller than actual.


    Glancing at it, no special feeling.


    The porridge was cooked.


    She steamed the large buns her aunt bought yesterday, and cut a salted duck egg, also made by mom. Whenever she came here for meals, mom tried to prepare what she could make and let her bring over.


    Cut open, the golden egg yolk flowed with oil.


    There were also mom''s homemade pickled bamboo shoots and crispy radish sticks.


    Put a small plate of each.


    The bamboo shoots were a little sour and sweet, the radish sticks very salty, salted egg, buns, porridge, just in time. Xiaoqi gave her aunt a call to come eat breakfast, better to eat early and not while working later.


    Seeing the small plates and buns on the table, Su Simei was very happy.


    In fact, she also didn''t like buying breakfast outside in the morning, oily, but had too many things to do in the morning to make it herself.


    Somehow she felt her niece had become more and more well behaved recently, and more attractive as well.


    Seeing her, Su Simei thought of her own daughter, wondering how her daughter was doing.


    After breakfast, Xiaoqi did not go straight to the library, because she had an appointment with the swimming coach yesterday to go for training at the pool this morning.

 Chapter 39: The Taste of a Pig

    Chapter 39


    In the morning, there were few people at the swimming pool.


    The waves on the water''s surface made Xiao Qi feel relaxed in her mind.


    Xiao Qi wore a red swimsuit that her coach had prepared for her, one like the athletic unitard swimmers would wear on the field, complete with a bright red flag logo on the top.


    Her skin was fair, her eyes as clear as water, and her figure was well proportioned.


    She had previously felt that her existing swimsuit made her look stouter since she had a longer torso, but seeing herself now, she felt her legs looked very long and the new swimsuit fit her perfectly.


    Her chest hadn¡¯t developed much yet, the bulge there was actually the foam padding built into the suit.


    The seventeen-year old girl still had some fluffy facial hair, with a bit of lingering baby fat around her cheeks.


    Xiao Qi walked barefoot into the swimming pool. The morning water felt a bit cool, and she couldn¡¯t help but shiver a little as she first stepped into the disinfecting pool.


    "Good morning Coach."


    Xiao Qi saw that Coach Wu had already arrived. A towel was wrapped around her and she appeared damp¡ªshe had likely already finished two laps.


    Seeing her latest student, Peirong''s eyes lit up.


    She had taught two lessons so far and found the young girl to be very hardworking. Diligence was what Peirong appreciated most. As a former athlete herself who had trained for so long, she understood that although natural talent was important, a willingness to learn and work hard mattered more. Her swim team wasn¡¯t competing internationally but rather in municipal and provincial level meets. And in those competitions, those who won weren¡¯t always the most naturally talented¡ªto be honest they weren''t competing at the level where natural talent was the key deciding factor. It came down to who put in the effort and hours of diligent practice.


    In her very first lesson, the young girl had meticulously completed all the practice tasks Peirong assigned, even going above and beyond. Typical students who paid for private lessons tended to be less obedient, practicing half-heartedly as long as they could swim decently. But Xiao Qi took her lessons even more seriously than the team Peirong coached.


    Her second lesson had been the same story.


    Not only was the girl hardworking, Peirong had been pleasantly surprised to discover she also had natural talent for swimming. She slipped into the water smoothly and effortlessly.


    ¡°You¡¯re sufficiently warmed up. Let''s start practicing freestyle today. It''s the event with the highest number of races at the Olympics so a country''s freestyle capabilities are seen as indicative of their overall swimming prowess."


    Peirong''s coach had shared that sentiment with her long ago and she had been filled with passion, eager that one day she could win honor for her country. But looking back now after so many years, she realized how naive she had been then.


    In contrast, her current student showed no signs of impassioned aspirations for winning national glory. Xiao Qi had much simpler motivations¡ªif she placed in the top three in this upcoming competition, the prize money would be sufficient.


    Xiao Qi slipped into the water and began swimming, steadily accumulating steps on top of the over 10,000 she had already logged that morning in the pool. Working that hard underwater felt far more grueling than walking the same number of steps on land. By the end of the workout she felt like every muscle in her arms and legs had been evenly pulverized.


    Following her teacher¡¯s guidance, she focused intently on each swimming stroke and turn. One lap, two laps, three laps... fifteen laps...twenty laps... As she neared twenty her limbs grew increasingly fatigued. She slowly swam to the pool''s edge where Coach Wu reached out to help pull her up. Beaming encouragement, Fang Fang praised:


    "You practiced very well today. Let''s wrap it up for now. In a few days I¡¯ll have you race some others to get a feel for the competitive difference."


    Xiao Qi hauled herself up the ladder, muscles quivering with exhaustion. But rather than immediately rest she began more stretching exercises.


    The morning swim had already exceeded 10,000 steps. Accruing so many paces underwater was far more draining than walking the same amount. Her arms and legs felt uniformly crushed.


    Following her teacher¡¯s prescribed routine she worked to fully stretch every muscle.


    By the time she finished, the previously empty pool had flooded with people streaming in steadily like water poured into dumpling skins. More kids had arrived too, some with life rings and others with little duck floaties. Practically converting the pool into a water park. At least her section of the deep end remained relatively calm.


    It was Sunday morning and many parents were bringing their children swimming.


    Coach Wu also had to leave to start her paid lessons. The training with Xiao Qi was complimentary but Xiao Qi could gift Wu¡¯s reserved private lessons to others.


    After saying goodbye to her teacher, Xiao Qi headed off to shower. The hot water poured evenly over her skin. She felt her whole body relax blissfully as all her pores opened up and warmth seeped through.


    "The host diligently completed her swimming practice, meticulously following instructions to improve her skill which positively impacted those around her. Rewarding the host with one level increase in taste perception. Ordinary humans have approximately 3,000 taste buds. After this increase, the host now possesses taste buds comparable to a pig, around 5,500 taste buds. She will be able to perceive flavors more keenly.¡±


    Xiao Qi: ......


    The hot shower had left her a little numb already when she received notice that along with her new canine sense of smell, she now also possessed a porcine sense of taste...

 Chapter 40: My Niece Is a Good Cook

    Chapter 40


    After coming out of the gymnasium, it was only eleven o''clock.


    On the road, pedestrians hurried along.


    Sunshine shone brightly through the tree tops directly onto the ground, dappling the shadows.


    Lvshan City was an old town shaped like a hillside. Big trees were planted densely along both sides of the roads, which rose and fell.


    The flattest area was Binjiang Road along the river.


    Xiao Qi felt completely empty as soon as she went out, hungry enough to eat an entire pig''s leg.


    She had originally wanted to go straight to the fast food shop at the gymnasium entrance to eat something quick, but the billowing smell of oil smoke made her unable to go in.


    If she ate stir fry like yesterday again, Xiao Qi still felt it wasn''t worth it - to eat nearly 100 RMB alone per meal was too extravagant, and it wasn''t especially delicious either.


    She finally decided to return to her aunt''s dormitory.


    She was too tired from her morning workout, and also needed an afternoon nap.


    On the way, she thought about what to eat when she got back. She was very hungry already and wished she could eat immediately. She couldn''t make anything too complicated.


    Passing by a deli, the aroma smelled quite nice to Xiao Qi with no rancid oil smell. She went in and bought two jin of braised pig''s trotters, then at the vegetable seller''s cart in front of the hospital entrance, she selected a handful of water spinach, bought some fresh shiitake mushrooms, and a block of tofu.


    Xiao Qi paid with her mobile phone. The water spinach cost 6 RMB per handful, the mushrooms 1.8 RMB, and the tofu 1.5 RMB, totaling just 9 RMB 30 cents. Xiao Qi didn''t bargain, but the owner saw that she was a young girl and voluntarily waived 30 cents, making it just 9 RMB total.


    The braised pig trotters cost 47 RMB.


    Returning to her aunt¡¯s dormitory, Xiao Qi first called her aunt to say she had come back to cook. Her aunt was busy and just made an acknowledging sound before hanging up.


    Xiao Qi used her learning card to gain cooking skills, but it seemed the chef¡¯s brain imprint was a foreign chef. There appeared to be many impressions of baking bread but nothing else. She could only make dishes she had eaten herself or seen her mother make before.


    She felt that even after learning this skill, she still needed practice. It was like singing: she could only sing songs she had heard before, not conjure something out of nothing. Cooking was the same.


    First she rinsed rice to cook it.


    Rice from her family¡¯s own fields was still very fragrant. The cooked rice was sticky and glutinous. With the autumn harvest approaching soon, Xiao Qi thought of the new crop rice that would come out and became even hungrier.


    ¡°Delicious! Your mushroom soup is stewed like my old mother¡¯s, with that kind of flavor. I¡¯ve tried copying her many times but can¡¯t cook it the same way.¡±


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    ¡°The water spinach is so tender and fresh too, not the least bit overcooked.¡±


    Her aunt had left only a small portion of the dishes, basically upending the rest of the bowls into her mouth, eating with quite the uncivilized gusto.


    Xiao Qi ate with decent speed as well. She had deliberately made extra rice to fill one large serving bowl that she and her aunt both finished entirely, with only a few pig trotter pieces left in the end.


    Her aunt automatically took initiative to wash dishes while Xiao Qi tidied things up. After the meal, she already felt overwhelmingly drowsy. She had thought one shouldn¡¯t sleep right after eating, but couldn¡¯t resist the fatigue, immediately falling asleep as soon as she lay down on the bed.


    Su Simei came in and found her niece already breathing deeply with limbs sprawled everywhere like a piglet, having kicked off her covers. Simei pulled the covers back over her, quietly closing the door as she left again.


    The nurses and doctors napped during lunch break, leaving a more relaxed atmosphere on the wards. Su Simei liked to go up and chat during this time. If any patients temporarily under her care were up there, she would often just grab an empty bed to catch a nap there too, more relaxing than downstairs.


    Patients also quite enjoyed joking and chatting with the bubbly, chubby caretaker. After all, stuck in the hospital daily, it wasn¡¯t constructive to just cry and mope all day.


    Su Simei had a very cheerful personality, always smiling radiantly. Her big, round face was quite charming. It was simply too bad she was too overweight, otherwise there would surely be hordes of old hospitalized patients trying to introduce her to potential partners.


    ¡°Xiao Su finished eating so quickly. Did you eat takeout again today?¡± an old lady asked languidly, one leg propped up on the bundled sling hanging above her bed.


    ¡°Takeout isn¡¯t tasty. Too oily,¡± Simei shook her head. ¡°My niece Xiao Qi cooked. After she finished cooking, she called me to eat. Doesn¡¯t look it since she¡¯s still a student, but she¡¯s actually an amazing cook already, much better than me.¡±


    Hearing her brag about her niece piqued the others¡¯ curiosity. A caretaker having a niece in middle school was rather interesting after all.


    Everyone immediately started chattering noisily, some lamenting their nearly thirty-year-old daughters still couldn¡¯t even make sticky rice, though their expressions were quite proud about having spoiled their girls this way. Others expressed doubt: young girls these days still knew how to cook?


    With cacophonous heated discussion in one patient room right next to Liu Anquan¡¯s, his ward also received new patients. His old mother was now familiar with the hospital and no longer constantly dabbing tears. After eating and washing dishes, she also would amble over for some neighborly gossip.


    Voices carrying noisily, intermittent laughter, Liu Anquan lying stiffly in bed still unable to get up could only prop himself up to peer out the window. The caretaker¡¯s niece who could cook: he had seen her before, slicing ingredients quite adeptly.


    Fumbling for his mobile phone, inside his Stone Savings app, the 15,000 RMB first-place donation... He didn¡¯t recognize the name, just seven characters. He left a message of thanks but received no reply.


    He strenuously flipped himself over to face the window and gaze at the trees outside, unknown blossoms releasing a faint sweet fragrance.


    Under her cocoon of blankets, Xiao Qi turned over again, still deep in slumber.

 Chapter 41: Photography White Silver Card

    Chapter 41


    Su Xiaoqi woke up at three o''clock after a long sleep. It felt as if she had passed out. She had been physically active lately.


    Upon waking up, her whole body was sore and she felt lazy, not wanting to get out of bed. However, going back to sleep didn''t feel comfortable either. She was drenched in sweat, even the back of her head was damp.


    She got up and went outside to the water basin to wash her face, which helped her fully wake up.


    Since she didn''t feel like going to the bookstore or the library in the afternoon, and it was neither early nor late, she decided to tidy up her aunt''s dormitory. The walls were dark and greasy. Usually, she was the one sleeping there, while her aunt mostly stayed in the hospital ward, only coming back for a nap occasionally.


    Su Xiaoqi was an impulsive person. Once she thought of doing something, she wanted to do it right away.


    After washing her face, without applying any sunscreen or anything like that¡ªsummer and putting stuff on her face made it greasy, and it would smudge once she started sweating¡ªshe simply put on a duckbill cap. It was given to her during her sophomore year, on the school''s centennial anniversary. The cap had the school''s name, "Yizhong," written in red.


    With the cap on, Su Xiaoqi went to the three stationery stores near the school gate. She remembered that they had special paper for sticking on walls, and many boarding students used posters or other things to decorate their walls.


    But when she arrived, only one of the stores was open. It had a small door, and there were no lights inside.


    The other two stores were closed. Probably not much business during the summer vacation.


    Su Xiaoqi knocked on the door, and a young man with sleepy eyes poked his head out.


    "Do you have any wallpaper for sale?" she asked.


    The young man rubbed his eyes and saw that it was a little girl wearing a particularly silly little red cap, but she looked delicate. He quickly nodded and said yes.


    While on the phone, he said, "Hello, Mom, Mom, where did you put that stack of wallpaper for sticking on walls? What? The one Dad said nobody wanted to burn? The attic? Oh, got it."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    The young man hung up the phone and smiled kindly at Su Xiaoqi.


    "Just wait a moment, I''ll get it for you right away."


    Then he climbed up a small ladder and came down with a big pile of wallpaper.


    The outer layer was gray and yellowed, and the corners were curling up. But after removing the outermost sheet, a creamy white wallpaper with some dark patterns showed, it looked quite textured. Su Xiaoqi estimated the size of her aunt''s dormitory and the size of the wallpaper. Each sheet seemed to be about one square meter. She roughly calculated that she would probably need the whole stack to cover it completely.


    "How much are these?" she asked.


    "How many sheets do you want?"


    They almost spoke at the same time. The young man looked surprised and said, "You want all of them? Let me ask."


    The room suddenly became bright, like a newly decorated one. She even pasted the ceiling. The basement room wasn''t tall, so she could step on the table to do it. The whole room was covered in creamy white wallpaper with a gentle tone. The old wardrobe appeared gentle as well.


    Su Xiaoqi also lifted the glass on the table and padded it with wallpaper, making it look brighter and fresher.


    After finishing everything, Su Xiaoqi lay on the bed, too tired to move. She took deep breaths, feeling exhausted but still happy.


    For less than two hundred yuan, she was able to transform the dark basement into something like this, and she felt a great sense of accomplishment.


    Auntie would definitely love it.


    The door curtain was a fiery phoenix red, made of the kind of fabric popular in the 1980s for wedding decorations. She didn''t know where Auntie had gotten it from.


    Xiao Qi had just taken it down and washed it. It should be dry by now. She got up again and went outside to collect the curtain fabric hanging under the tree. After washing it once, it wasn''t as bright red, but it also didn''t have any dark stains. It looked fresh and clean. Once she hung it back up and opened the window, there would be a bit of airflow between the door and the window.


    Xiao Qi also cleaned the small jar that Dad had taken down, which was originally used to ferment pickled vegetables. The pickled vegetables had long been eaten, and the empty jar was placed under the table.


    She didn''t go out to buy flowers this time, so she casually broke off two branches from the dense trees in the yard.


    She filled the jar with water, inserted the branches, and placed it on the table. The creamy white walls, the creamy white table, and the old black clay jar with two lush green branches sticking out of it.


    The wind blew in through the window with the red window sill, causing the leaves to tremble slightly.


    The branches cast shadows, imprinting them on the table and the wall.


    In this moment, Xiao Qi felt that everything in front of her looked amazing. The whole room seemed grand and stylish.


    Unable to resist, she took out her phone and snapped a photo.


    The phone displayed a picture-like image.


    White walls, black jar, green trees, and shadows.


    Xiao Qi, who was not accustomed to posting on social media, shared this picture for the first time.


    Not knowing how to caption it, she only posted the image alone.


    It was a bit sentimental, but also beautiful.


    "The host independently completed the renovation of the living space, improving her living environment, which is beneficial for enhancing study efficiency. As a reward, the host is granted a Silver Photography Card. The host''s current photography skill level is basic, but with the card, it will be elevated to entry-level. Would you like to use it?"


    Hearing the familiar mechanical voice, although she didn''t know what it was for, Xiao Qi calmly nodded, "Yes, I would like to use it."

 Chapter 42: Running Forward

    Chapter 42


    Xiao Qi finished tidying everything up. When she lay on the bed, her aunt got her period and came downstairs. Seeing the room become like this also gave her a shock.


    However, she was very happy, smiling with a face full of teeth.


    She reached out and touched the wall, then touched the table.


    "This is good, it doesn''t collect dust."


    She then turned her head and saw the jar used to store pickles. Seeing the branches plugged in it, she laughed and said: "You young people are really amazing. Just messing around a bit makes it look nice. There are still lots of flowers that patients above give me. Next time I''ll bring them here to put in this jar."


    Su Simei didn''t ask how much the wallpaper cost. She thought that after Xiao Qi started school, she would give her a sum of money. She heard from her neighbor Xiaolin that Xiao Qi''s college tuition was not cheap, and she could help a little.


    "I''ll come and cook tonight. I''ll make the stewed pork rice you made last time, it was tasty too. You go and take a bath."


    Xiao Qi was sweaty from being busy. But before taking a bath, she thought she still hadn''t walked enough steps today and needed to walk another ten thousand plus steps, making her sweaty again. So she decided to take a bath later.


    "Auntie, I''ll go out and exercise for a bit, then come back to eat."


    Making stewed pork rice was simple, so Su Simei didn''t mind.


    Xiao Qi changed into shorts and short sleeves, put on her phone, and tied it to her arm. She had downloaded the content of New Concept English Book 4. She had almost finished Book 3 and planned to start tackling Book 4. She could listen to the English recordings while running.


    It was nearly 6 pm. The dishes were all served in the fast food restaurant at the hospital entrance, visible through the glass cover, with a dazzling variety.


    Those who ate fast food the most were the families of hospital patients, as well as the migrant workers doing odd jobs at the hospital and No. 1 Middle School.


    The hospital was always constructing buildings. An additional building was added behind the inpatient department. After all, there were never enough beds for patients, who often had to lie in the corridors.


    At No. 1 Middle School, during the summer vacation, there would be hammering and repairs done.


    The small eatery next to the fast food restaurant also had people streaming in one after another. The boss set up a big pot and started a fire right under the window sill at the entrance.


    When Xiao Qi came out, she still smelled the greasy aroma, but also had another indescribable feeling, very lively.


    She went to the school every day to study. She was young with a delicate complexion. The security guard at the school gate saw her and let her in without saying anything.


    No. 1 Middle School had several basketball courts. But being located downtown, that was all the land available. There was no soccer field, nor a standard 400-meter running track.


    But after all it was a school campus. Although there was no standard running track, they still managed to create a makeshift rubber track, which turned out to be even longer than 800 meters, winding around the campus like intestines, over 1,000 meters long.


    It wasn''t very standard, but sufficient for running.


    Xiao Qi first did some warm-up exercises, still the swimming drills taught by her coach Teacher Wu.


    She stretched her arms, waist and legs until her body felt relaxed and limber before starting to run.


    Although she was a country girl, her PE grades were quite mediocre.


    Every step earned 0.5 yuan. Her daily step count alone earned enough to cover her tuition.


    Recently Xiao Qi had been busy yet confused.


    Actually, she was still at a loss about how to spend money after earning it.


    Xiao Qi didn''t really have many opportunities to spend money.


    It felt like going around drumming up business.


    But while running, she completely let go of all that, freed herself of various strange burdens.


    She only needed to simply run.


    She even found it easier and more focused to listen to English at this time.


    She discovered that she liked running.


    Liked the feeling of sprinting.


    Freedom, flying.


    This sensation was somewhat addictive and intoxicating.


    It was like the rebooting process of a computer or phone. After running over 10,000 steps, Xiao Qi gradually slowed to a walk, breathing heavily. Her whole being felt like it had rebooted, exceptionally clear-headed like never before.


    She decided she could run more often from now on.


    Not only could it solve the problem of step count, more importantly, running was like a spiritual cleanse. The "splash splash" of sweat on her body seemed to not only cleanse her spiritually, but even bodily.


    After finishing running, she slowly walked half a lap more.


    On the playground, her shadow with back consistently straight stretched long.


    As she gradually walked back, queues were forming at the fast food stands at the hospital entrance, with people coming and going.


    She went back to her aunt''s dorm to fetch a bucket and showered in the ward, washing off the stench of sweat. Her entire being felt refreshed.


    Of course she was still tired, so she ate quite a lot for dinner.


    The stewed pork rice her aunt made had unevenly chopped vegetables, both large and small pieces, and slightly too much water.


    But Xiao Qi was very hungry now, so she wolfed it all down.


    After drinking the last spoonful of egg drop soup, she let out a loud burp of satisfaction.


    She felt today was perfect.

 Chapter 43: The Aunt Who Wanted to Change

    Chapter 43


    When Xiao Qi went out for a run, Su Simei called everyone from downstairs to visit her house.


    She received waves of compliments.


    She felt quite proud.


    Since her divorce, she had been feeling very insecure and living a messy life, becoming increasingly overweight.


    Her daughter and she weren''t close, and they only contacted each other when her daughter needed money. Apart from that, her daughter never took the initiative to reach out to her. But today, her room was tidied up and transformed, and Su Simei felt like she had returned to her younger days.


    Back then, she loved tidying up and dressing up. Her own room was always neat and organized. However, after her divorce, when she started working at the hospital, she didn''t like staying in the dormitory. It was dark and everything was just scattered around. Moreover, everyone downstairs had their own families, while she was alone. Most of the time, she preferred to stay in the ward, which was spacious and lively, with its white walls and many people.


    But when she saw the room rearranged by Xiao Qi, Su Simei sat inside alone for a while. The entire room was clean and beautiful, except for her reflection in the mirror. She had elephant-like legs, a flushed face, and messy, greasy hair. Sitting in the room, she felt a bit out of place.


    Through the mirror, she seemed to see herself at the age of nineteen. She had dark hair, two big braids, and a flushed face. But her skin was delicate, and she had big, bright eyes. At that time, the TV series "My Fair Princess" was very popular, and some people even said she looked like Xiaoyanzi, with her long, slender legs. Little did she know that over twenty years had passed, and she had ended up like this.


    Tears fell unconsciously, and in those tears, she saw her past self. Wiping away the tears, she still saw her current self, overweight and ugly. Upstodatee from


    She wanted to lose weight, she wanted to change herself.


    During the summer vacation, living with her niece Xiao Qi for this period of time, Su Simei had deep feelings.


    This child was truly hardworking and studious, never wasting a single moment.


    Before, she would only come over to eat and then leave. They didn''t spend much time together. But now, living together every day, she suddenly felt different.


    Even a young girl like her niece was so disciplined. When learning to swim, she was better than herself, but she still obediently practiced the basic movements, showing great patience.


    In her own life, Su Simei had thought that it would be this way, with no expectations. But in reality, she was still under forty, thirty-eight years old. If she continued like this, drifting through life in a daze, she would have to go on like this for decades.


    Su Simei felt that this shouldn''t be the case.


    Looking at the desk, next to the stack of English books, there was a pickling jar. If it was cleaned, it could be turned into a beautiful vase. Wasn''t she stronger than a pickling jar?


    "Teacher, can I go swimming with you tomorrow? My mom also got me a gym membership, and I''ve been there several times."


    Xiao Qi was going to practice in the morning, but the swimming pool was big, so it was fine for her student to go. Besides, Liang Jiajia was Xiao Qi''s first student, so she cared about her.


    She agreed and set a time for tomorrow morning.


    At 7:30 a.m.


    Xiao Qi wanted to go early to practice, so she would have some time to rest by noon and it wouldn''t affect her afternoon study.


    Liang Jiajia frowned when she heard 7:30 a.m. During the summer vacation, she hadn''t woken up before 9 a.m., but it was Teacher Xiao Qi, so she happily agreed.


    She closed WeChat and immediately jumped up.


    "Mom, Mom, let''s go shopping."


    Liang Yinghua was watching TV and didn''t expect her daughter to want to go shopping with her. She wondered what whim she had this time.


    "Teacher Xiao Qi is going to the swimming pool at the gym tomorrow, and I told her that I want to go too. I made an appointment to go together, so can you take me to buy a few swimsuits?" Liang Jiajia had many swimsuits at home, but it had been a long time since she went swimming, and her family never had to consider the cost. They had the money to be indulgent, so she wanted to buy new ones.


    Liang Yinghua had a good impression of their family tutor, so when she heard that her daughter wanted to spend time with her, she agreed.


    She changed her clothes, put on some lipstick, and went downstairs to drive her daughter out.


    Liang Yinghua was meticulous. In addition to the few swimsuits chosen by her daughter, she also picked out one for Xiao Qi.


    The little girl was slim, so it seemed like she could fit into a size small.


    The price was not cheap either. The swimsuit she chose cost over 800 yuan.


    Liang Jiajia didn''t care about the price. She just picked what she liked and bought it. She hadn''t even gone swimming yet, but she had already spent over 4,000 yuan on equipment. Liang Yinghua shook her head, realizing that she was doing well in business; otherwise, with her daughter''s spendthrift behavior, she didn''t know how things would turn out when she grew up.


    Xiao Qi started practicing swimming, but she hadn''t bought a swimsuit for herself yet.


    After dinner, she copied English for two more hours and went to bed early, unaware that someone had prepared a gift for her.

 Chapter 44: Swimming

    Chapter 44


    Early the next morning, under the simultaneous blaring of three alarm clocks, Liang Jiajia managed to sleep in until past 7 o''clock. She hurriedly got up, skipping breakfast, and grabbed the steamed buns her aunt had made. Squinting her eyes, she sat in her mother''s car and headed to the sports center. Upstodatee from


    Although the distance wasn''t far, she was already running late because she woke up late.


    Liang Huaying never expected her daughter to actually have the determination to wake up. The alarm clock in the morning was so loud that she could hear it from the other room.


    Meanwhile, Su Xiaoqi got up promptly at 5:30 am. She cooked the porridge and then went to freshen up.


    After practicing calligraphy for forty minutes, she steamed the red bean paste buns that her aunt bought yesterday and added two eggs.


    The eggs were from the chickens raised in Su Xiaoqi''s home. Her mother would collect the eggs and when there was enough to fill a basket, she would either have Su Xiaoqi bring them or bring them herself.


    Genuine farm eggs were quite expensive in the city. Some people were willing to pay two or three yuan per egg, and during peak times, they could be sold for five yuan.


    Su Xiaoqi used to feel that the eggs from her home had more yolk. When she ate at her aunt''s place, her parents would always bring whatever they had and could bring to her aunt''s place since her aunt didn''t charge her for meals.


    By 6:40 am, Su Xiaoqi had prepared breakfast: plain rice porridge, dried radish, boiled eggs, and hot steamed red bean paste buns. She then called her aunt to come and have breakfast.


    As she ate the rice porridge she cooked herself, it felt fragrant and sticky. The dried radish was made by her mother and was a bit salty, which paired well with the rice. As expected, the boiled eggs had a lot of yolk. However, because her mother would collect them for a while before bringing them, they weren''t very fresh, and the shells were hard to peel. The red bean paste buns were bought from outside but were quite authentic, with a fragrant dough. However, they were not cheap, costing two yuan for a large red bean paste bun.


    Previously, Su Xiaoqi could be satisfied with half a bun, but now her level of physical activity had increased, and she could eat a whole one.


    When Su Limei saw her niece preparing breakfast, she was very pleased and found it refreshing.


    The aunt and niece finished breakfast together, each having an egg, a red bean paste bun, half a plate of dried radish, and two bowls of porridge.


    After eating, Su Limei urged Su Xiaoqi to hurry up and go swimming while she washed the dishes.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t encounter the Lin Min family next door when she left. It seemed like she hadn''t seen them for the past two days. She didn''t think much of it and continued on her way.


    Su Xiaoqi decided to walk to the sports center.


    She arrived at the sports center at 7:20 am.


    Coincidentally, she ran into her student Liang Jiajia, who was being handed breakfast by her mother.


    Liang Huaying was furious. Her daughter was her biggest headache, always being irresponsible. She wanted to come swimming but didn''t even have breakfast, yet she made her bring it along, and now she forgot to take it.


    While she was scolding her daughter, she noticed Su Xiaoqi walking over, looking fresh and clean. The young girl was dressed simply, wearing the same clothes as before: a plain t-shirt and blue school pants with red trim. Her short hair was tied up, and she wore a small red cap. She wasn''t wearing glasses and looked refreshing and neat. Liang Huaying couldn''t help but think that it would be great if she were her own daughter.


    When Liang Jiajia finished changing into her swimsuit, holding a bunch of snacks and a towel, she looked as if she were going on an outing to the swimming pool. She was ecstatic when she saw her teacher, Su Xiaoqi, wearing a red one-piece swimsuit with the national flag emblem.


    "Teacher, you look so beautiful in a swimsuit, especially without glasses," Liang Jiajia exclaimed, examining her teacher from head to toe. She finally noticed the difference and remarked, "No wonder you look even prettier today. It turns out you''re not wearing glasses."


    "Since my eyesight is not high, it''s inconvenient for me to wear glasses while swimming, so I didn''t wear them. Jiajia also needs to protect her eyes," Su Xiaoqi explained.


    Liang Jiajia nodded in agreement, "My eyesight is very good, so I don''t wear glasses. Wearing glasses looks ugly."


    Su Xiaoqi, who used to wear glasses all the time: ...


    The two of them entered the swimming pool. It was already 7:40, and Xiaoqi saw that Coach Wu was already swimming in the water, which impressed her.


    She had tried to come early, but she ended up procrastinating until now. Coach Wu seemed to live in the gymnasium.


    Xiaoqi walked over and said she wanted to swim, and Jiajia, who actually treated it as an outing, followed her.


    Jiajia had been learning to swim since kindergarten. She could swim, but she was just an amateur. She didn''t learn seriously and wasn''t particularly interested. She was just an ordinary member of the swimming pool.


    Wu Peirong only swam a lap or two before coming out of the water. She lived next to the gymnasium. Over the years, she had earned money from competitions and coaching to buy a small two-bedroom apartment. It was over 60 square meters and she lived alone. It was the building behind the gymnasium, and she could see the gymnasium''s large playground when she opened the window. The view was good, but the downside was that it was quite noisy. Whenever there was a celebration, the loudspeakers wouldn''t stop. There were also many square dancing teams at night. However, Wu Peirong was still young and didn''t mind.


    When she saw the students coming with a little follower, she came out of the water.


    "Good morning, Coach. This is my student, Liang Jiajia. She came to play," Su Xiaoqi introduced.


    Liang Jiajia nodded. She was just here to play and didn''t plan to swim. She would go to the shallow water area later.


    "Teacher, you can practice. I won''t disturb you," Liang Jiajia promised sincerely.


    Then she put a bunch of snacks in the back and after a while, she somehow borrowed a recliner from somewhere. The little girl looked round and cute. When she wanted to please someone, she had a sweet mouth. She even had someone move her recliner over and comfortably lay on it, eating breakfast, drinking soy milk, playing with her phone, and having a bunch of snacks.


    Xiaoqi saw that she was enjoying herself and didn''t bother her. She started her warm-up exercises and then got into the water.


    Her recent goal was clear¡ªto participate in a competition¡ªso she didn''t practice fancy swimming styles, just freestyle.


    She might not be able to come every day within the next eighteen days, so every time she came, she took it seriously.


    Meanwhile, Liang Jiajia, who was eating a bun, took a bite and exclaimed, "Oh my god!"


    The surprised juice splattered on her white swimsuit, but when she saw Teacher Xiaoqi, who jumped into the water like a beautiful mermaid and quickly disappeared, Liang Jiajia deeply felt that she should also improve her Chinese language skills. Her mind was now full of expletives, and she didn''t know how to praise. She didn''t care about her dirty swimsuit anymore and quickly took out her phone...

 Chapter 45: The Mermaid Teacher

    Chapter 45


    Liang Jiajia thought everyone swam like her - just paddling lazily round after round, advancing a lap then turning back a lap, and soon panting heavily out of breath.


    At least that''s how her classmates swam. Her mom wasn''t much better either.


    But watching Teacher Xiao Qi swim, she realized it was totally different, completely different, though she couldn''t quite find the words to describe it.


    The moment Teacher entered the water, things changed.


    It seemed even better than the coach''s swimming just now. Hmm, it was an indescribable feeling - very light and agile...


    Liang Jiajia stuffed a steamed bun into her mouth in one go, as it was inconvenient holding it in her hand. Then, phone in hand, she went to the poolside and started filming. But the swimming pool was so big, and her phone wasn''t professional equipment. By the time Teacher Xiao Qi had swum far out, the image was too blurry to see clearly.


    It''s at times of need that one regrets having too little. The phone she was using was an Apple X, which had cost her nearly 10,000 RMB when she bought it. But now the photography effects seemed just average. She wished she had a video camera.


    She dragged a deckchair step by step to the poolside. It was better than standing there holding up her shaking phone. She could rest her phone on her lap and use her legs as a tripod.


    Once Xiao Qi began practicing, she paid no more attention to Liang Jiajia. After all, they were in a sports center with lifeguards around. No need to worry about her safety. Xiao Qi concentrated wholeheartedly on practicing - lap after lap.


    Coach Wu said she had to swim until she felt she was pushing her physical limits, because that''s when one makes progress.


    Wu Peirong felt her new student was very talented, but talent alone didn''t mean one was formidable. One had to uncover and develop that talent.


    Having grown up as a young athlete herself, her experience told her that with each training session pushing past one''s limits, qualitative leaps in skills and performance would follow.


    Though she too had hated the gruelling practices then, being cursed by her coach daily, sometimes even crying.


    By comparison, her present 17-year-old student was much better - highly self-disciplined, never compromising on the practices Teacher assigned. Such dedication was truly precious.


    Xiao Qi wasn''t thinking so much. She knew the money from the System was impossible for her to explain for now. But if she won swimming competitions, she could rightfully collect prize money. Then her parents wouldn''t have to worry all day long. Moreover, she knew she had a swimming buff now - it was like taking the same exam but having done similar questions before, giving her an advantage over others. With so many advantages, how could she not work hard?


    She would feel she was letting herself down if she didn''t give it her all.


    So she swam with utmost concentration.


    Besides, exercising did make her feel differently.


    As soon as she hit the water, she shuddered from the cold.


    Her white dress immediately billowed up like a flower.


    After informing Coach Wu, Xiao Qi accompanied Liang Jiajia into the pool.


    Coach Wu knew Xiao Qi was diligently training and didn''t mind her taking a fun break. Rest was important too for peak performance. Pushing oneself too hard could be counterproductive. Everything in moderation.


    She didn''t really mind the girl causing some distraction either.


    After swimming for a bit, Liang Jiajia slowly got her bearings back.


    Seeing that she could in fact swim - though her form was a bit flawed - Xiao Qi relaxed, relieved that if her student couldn''t swim at all, a rescue or whatnot could have been tricky for her too.


    But Liang Jiajia hadn''t come to actually swim. After convincing herself that she still remembered how to swim and wouldn''t drown pathetically in front of the teacher, she began playing in earnest.


    She''d specifically bought an 80-RMB waterproof phone case from the gym shop, the only young girl customer. She didn''t know if it was value-for-money, buying it straight off without bargaining.


    "Teacher, teacher! You keep swimming, don''t mind me. I''m helping you film!" Liang Jiajia shouted.


    One moment she was underwater, the next she popped up. Busier than a bee.


    Seeing this, Su Xiaoqi had no choice but to swim a while for her filming. She then shooed the girl out, afraid she''d get hurt.


    Satisfied with her shots, Liang Jiajia now sat cozily wrapped in a towel on a deckchair, editing her videos. Xiao Qi continued training in the pool.


    The more Liang Jiajia watched, the more thrilled she became, sure that these TikTok videos would smash it online. Unfortunately her account couldn''t post long videos in one go. She''d have to split and post separately.


    She must polish and refine them further! First Teacher''s warm-ups by the poolside. Then Teacher swimming. Next, her epic underwater shots! And finally, Teacher getting out, leaning against a chair drinking water, droplets rolling down her face, long eyelashes bejeweled...


    After she finished piecing it all together, she searched tirelessly for fitting music. Nothing felt quite right. Until the quirky song "Riding My Beloved Moped"! Something about the ¡°moped¡± lyrics drew her, though the images and lyrics seemed worlds apart.


    Besides, Teacher looked so mesmerizing - sporting swimsuit and swim cap, showing a rounder face with the hair all tucked in. And that glowing smile, perfect pearly teeth...


    So she finally posted her series, grandly titled: ¡°My All-Round Invincible Home Tutor Teacher Su - Swimming Series".

 Chapter 46: Using Photography Skills

    Chapter 46


    After posting on Douyin, Liang Jiajia couldn''t take her eyes off the Douyin post she just published, watching it repeatedly.


    However, perhaps because it was early morning, the number of likes did not skyrocket, but it was still better than the random posts she had published these past few days, quickly reaching a few hundred likes.


    When Xiao Qi finished training, she saw that her student was still playing with her phone, and felt speechless.


    It was only then that Liang Jiajia realized how fast time had passed. She had come to swim, and had intended to also post about herself swimming on Moments.


    Seeing that the teacher was doing stretches, she said, "Teacher, I''m going to go swim for a bit. Could you help me take some photos? Just get me in the shots. I''ve already taken photos of the surrounding scenery."


    Since she was posting on Moments, Liang Jiajia was quite a narcissistic girl - she definitely had to post photos of herself, otherwise she would have bought the new swimsuit for nothing.


    Xiao Qi wanted to say that her own photography skills might not turn out that great, but then she remembered she seemed to have somehow acquired photography skills, and wondered if she would be able to use them.


    Without waiting for a reply, Liang Jiajia pushed her phone into Xiao Qi''s hands, and hurriedly prepared to jump into the water.


    Xiao Qi shook her head. Although she herself was only 17, compared to Liang Jiajia she felt like a little old man.


    Without stopping her leg stretches, she looked at the phone which was already switched to camera mode. She took one photo, but didn''t have much feeling about it. Noticing there was a "portrait mode" option, she toggled to that, and the clarity of the person improved at once.


    Using portrait mode, she took several photos with the phone.


    One photo captured her mid-jump into the water, water splashing around her.


    One photo was of her swimming, lifting her arm up and sweeping it through the water with eyes closed, eyebrows arched, looking very cute.


    There was also a photo of her standing in the water waving to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi deleted the first one, leaving these three photos.


    By the time Liang Jiajia swam back, Xiao Qi had finished her stretches too and said goodbye to Coach Wu.


    However, when helping Liang Jiajia take photos just now, she had also taken one photo of the coach.


    The coach was standing at the poolside in the photo, clapping her hands and calling a team member over - it felt like a special, focused and expectant moment, full of energy.


    Wu Peirong urged her to go home and rest properly. This student was extremely self-disciplined in training, that Wu didn''t need to worry at all.


    She had originally wanted to call over some of the swimming team''s best prospect trainees to train together with Xiao Qi, to help Xiao Qi get a feel for competition swimming too, since competition and normal training swimming were still quite different after all.


    "I haven''t eaten here before. Order what you like, I don''t have preferences," said Xiao Qi, looking up at Liang Jiajia.


    "I''ve come with my mum a couple times. The food here is pretty tasty. Let''s just order a standard set meal, 500 yuan per person," said Liang Jiajia, waving over a server and ordering an ordinary 500 yuan per person set.


    Xiao Qi: ......


    500 x 2 was 1000 yuan total already. Seeing the little girl order so matter-of-factly, she felt slightly uncomfortable with it.


    A thousand yuan for one meal - many families in her rural hometown of Gumulacun earned less than 1000 yuan a month.


    But Liang Jiajia didn''t even bat an eyelid, as if it was perfectly normal. Xiao Qi didn''t say much more either, resolving that she would pay.


    She had felt it would be inappropriate to accept Liang Jiajia''s gift without returning the favor, and she had thought treating her to a meal costing a few tens of yuan would help even out that favor or perceived "debt". Her parents had taught her since young that as far as possible one should avoid "owing" others or benefiting too much from others'' things. Since the meal was so expensive, they should be just about square now she reckoned, and that made her feel much more at ease.


    So she looked left and right, settling comfortably into her seat as she waited for the food.


    She also gave her auntie a call to say she wouldn''t be home for dinner.


    Meanwhile, Liang Jiajia was preparing to post on Moments, but when she opened the photos, she was stunned to see the pictures her teacher had taken of her.


    Her teacher didn''t use beauty filters, but it looked so good even without!


    She scrutinized those three photographs repeatedly - how could every single one look so nice? She had originally intended to select just one nice photo of herself to go along with scenic shots, yet unexpectedly all three photos made her look gorgeous.


    "Teacher, you take such great photos!" Liang Jiajia loved them more and more as she looked. She felt her teacher was simply unmatched - it was perfect, even more so than just her Douyin post from the morning that she had already felt so pleased about.


    "Not bad. Oh yes, I took a photo of my coach as well. Could you send it to me afterwards then delete it?" Xiao Qi didn''t have much feeling about the photos she took for the little girl. Liang Jiajia was still young with some baby fat - of course she would photograph well from any angle. But Xiao Qi felt the shot she captured of her coach had a very poetic ambience that she wanted to send to Wu later.


    Having obtained such flattering photos of herself, Liang Jiajia was elated beyond measure. She forwarded the pictures to her teacher, then mulled over the perfect caption to pair with it.


    She typed and deleted several sentences, before finally settling on an aloof line seeming embarrassed to show affection: "Went swimming with teacher today. These are the pics teacher helped take of me. Pretty nice right?"


    She uploaded all three photographs, extremely thrilled.


    After Xiao Qi forwarded Wu''s photo to the coach, there was still no response yet when the private room door opened.


    A server dressed in traditional costume entered half-kneeling, placing the first dish on the table.


    It was a creamy white tureen, giving off wisps of steam when the lid was removed.


    "This is a bamboo shoot and bamboo pith soup, please enjoy your meal."

 Chapter 47: Food

    Chapter 47


    Clear soup, like a flowing stream.


    A sky-blue pot with raised white magnolia flowers on the outside.


    Floating inside are two white bamboo mushrooms, resembling two flowers, with fresh, thin strips of bamboo shoots settled at the bottom.


    It was Xiao Qi''s first time tasting it. With a sip of the soup, he felt a refreshing sweetness fill his lungs, making him feel rejuvenated.


    Who would have thought that bamboo shoots could be prepared this way? Gumula Village, where Xiao Qi lived, had an abundance of bamboo shoots because there were many bamboo forests in the mountains. The season for bamboo shoot production was from winter to the Qingming Festival in spring.


    Bamboo shoots accounted for a significant portion of the villagers'' annual income in Gumula Village. Winter shoots were fresh and spring shoots were sweet. Winter shoots were not easy to find as they were mostly hidden beneath the ground. One had to observe the terrain and study the cracks in the ground, just like searching for matsutake mushrooms, in order to find them. Skillful villagers could dig up around ten jin of winter shoots in a day, but the prices were high. Some people in the village would buy them, and the price would be five to six yuan per jin.


    Spring shoots were abundant everywhere, and there was no time to pick them all. As a result, the prices were low, dropping to as low as five to six fen per jin. For the villagers, it was labor-intensive work. They would carry a hundred jin of spring shoots from the mountains to the village collection point, earning only fifty to sixty yuan. Those with great strength could make four trips to the mountain in a day. However, during the spring season, it rained every day, and the mountain road was muddy. They had to carry one or two hundred jin of bamboo shoots from deep in the mountains to the village. It was extremely tiring.


    Xiao Qi was the kind of person who would trip even when walking on an empty road without carrying anything.


    Bamboo shoots were the most frequently eaten dish in Xiao Qi''s memory. Spring shoots were cheap, and if they couldn''t be sold in time, people in the village would smoke and dry them directly on the mountain by building a bamboo shoot drying kiln and burning firewood. The smoked and dried bamboo shoots could be preserved for a longer time. Stir-fried dried bamboo shoots with meat was an excellent dish to accompany rice.


    Throughout the spring, the dining table at home almost always had bamboo shoots.


    But today, the taste was completely different. It was August, and they didn''t know where the fresh shoots came from, but they were incredibly crisp and tender.


    Xiao Qi had a big appetite. He finished the entire pot of soup in one gulp, mainly because he thought the pot was beautiful. It seemed large, but there was actually only a small bowl''s worth of content inside.


    Liang Jiajia picked and ate the contents of the pot, leaving most of the soup.


    After a while, a waiter came to take away the pot and set up new tableware. Then, a new dish was served.


    "Green Lotus Lion''s Head," the waiter announced.


    Xiao Qi saw a transparent glass bowl, not the smooth kind, but one with hammered wrinkles on the sides that seemed to emit light. Inside were two pieces of emerald green lettuce leaves, with a meatball lying in the middle.


    The meatball was the lion''s head. When he took a bite, he could feel both fatty and lean meat, as well as a slightly sweet and crispy taste. Xiao Qi finished it as instructed and then ate the lettuce, which had soaked up the soup. Surprisingly, it wasn''t too old and had a crunchy, fresh sweetness.


    The dishes were served one by one, and the meal took nearly two hours. Although each portion was small, just a handful, there were twelve dishes in total.


    Xiao Qi remembered that the three hundred yuan set menu had eight dishes, and there were sets priced at six hundred and eight hundred yuan, with sixteen and eighteen dishes respectively.


    Xiao Qi went out for a moment in the middle, and Liang Jiajia thought she had gone to the restroom and didn''t pay much attention.


    Xiao Qi did go to the restroom, and inside there was actually an old big drum, bright red with some peeling on the surface, looking a bit scary. But on top of the drum, there were fresh flowers.


    The restroom was filled with a pleasant fragrance, not the slightest bit smelly.


    Xiao Qi asked the waiter how to pay as soon as she came out. The waiter led her to the bar, and she mentioned the room number. Surprisingly, they gave her a 20% discount, and the total came to eight hundred yuan.


    After paying the bill, Xiao Qi felt more at ease. In fact, she didn''t have much experience of treating others to a meal, so she wasn''t sure when to pay or if she should pay first.


    When she returned, she felt much more relaxed. She listened to her student, Liang Jiajia, chattering away, "This restaurant is owned by my mom''s friend, so we get a discount. My mom said the things here are not considered expensive at this price."


    Xiao Qi agreed. You get what you pay for. She walked into a small shop and randomly ordered some dishes for a meal, which cost more than a hundred yuan. The food was greasy, and some of the dishes were not cooked properly. Not to mention the exquisite presentation like here.


    Listening to the sound of flowing water outside and the gentle classical music playing in the background, it was very comfortable and enjoyable to have a meal here.


    The only downside was that the tables and chairs were formal and hard. Perhaps it was to encourage customers to savor the food seriously. After finishing the meal, Xiao Qi felt full and sleepy. She really wanted to find a sofa to take a nap.


    If she had the chance, she would love to bring her parents here for a meal.


    But considering her parents'' spending habits and her current situation, it felt like it would be a long time before that happened.


    Liang Jiajia was enjoying her meal. When it was time to pay, she found out that her teacher had already paid. Her mom had a membership card here, which had a lot of money in it. All she had to do was deduct the amount. Xiao Qi smiled and said, "It''s delicious, and we even got a discount. It''s great."


    Liang Jiajia felt a bit guilty for the first time. She had intended to treat her teacher to a meal, but ended up getting a free meal instead.


    But after spending the whole morning with her teacher, she had to go back. She said goodbye to her teacher.


    Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory for a nap at the hospital. She ate too much and felt drowsy. As she sat on the bus, she was nodding off. A middle-aged lady who took the bus every day recognized her as the girl who gave up her seat to a pregnant woman and got injured. Seeing her dozing off in the seat, the lady smiled and thought, "She''s a young girl. The bus is crowded at noon. I''ll stand by her side and make sure she doesn''t fall."

 Chapter 48: The Tiktok Effect

    Chapter 48


    ¡°The young lady has such a nice figure,¡±


    ¡°Is she on the swimming team? She''s so fast, is she using special effects?¡±


    ¡°Love it.¡±


    ¡°I want to go learn how to swim too.¡±


    ¡°Where is this swimming pool? It looks kind of familiar, I want to go stake it out.¡±


    ¡°Does anyone else think the tutor is getting prettier and prettier?? Is it just me who thinks this?¡±


    ¡°The beautifying effects here are too much, too fake.¡±


    ¡°That figure ratio, tsk tsk.¡±


    ¡°TikTok beauty, ugly in real life, no explanation...¡±


    ¡°Like.¡±


    ¡°Like +1¡±


    ¡°Like +10086¡± Upstodatee from


    When Liang Huaying got off work and returned home, she saw her daughter lying on the sofa playing on her phone again, not even taking an afternoon nap, totally absorbed in it.


    ¡°How was lunch, did Xiao Qi like it?¡±


    She asked as she took off her shoes.


    ¡°Xiao Qi quite liked it, but she paid.¡± Liang Jiajia said.


    Liang Huaying was speechless, and reached out to poke her daughter¡¯s head.


    Liang Jiajia nimbly avoided the first poke, but got hit by the second one.


    Putting on headphones with authentic-accented English, she went for a run around the neighboring school.


    Her afternoon plan was to practice calligraphy, study English, and go running. Then come back and cook.


    Lunch had been pretty good, leaving her feeling rather spirited.


    Engrossed in listening to English while running, she hadn¡¯t noticed that there were often people craning their necks out of the upstairs windows watching her study English downstairs.


    There were long-term inpatients as well as newly admitted ones.


    Hospital stays aren¡¯t generally pleasant experiences, filled with despair, regret, remorse. Lying in a hospital bed often makes one realize that health is the most important thing, and they would give up everything just to have a healthy body again.


    Seeing that studying girl downstairs through the window brought envy, but also injected their moods with something indescribable.


    Liu Anquan, who had lost both legs, watched the longest. Facing the problem of getting prosthetic legs, which were very expensive, he only had his elderly mother left in his family. His wife of so many years had left, taking all their savings.


    The hospital had subsidized part of his surgeries, and he borrowed money from relatives too, but everyone felt that money spent on his lost legs was money down the drain with no chance of repayment. Even the over 20,000 RMB raised online barely covered his surgical and hospital fees. There definitely wouldn¡¯t be enough left for prostheses. These days, he kept wondering if he could try standing up and walking a few steps, but he had lost too much blood during the surgeries and was too weak to even sit up, at most propping up his hospital bed to gaze out the window.


    As he watched that girl diligently studying below, all sorts of ideas turned in his mind about what he could still do.


    He knew car repair, a job that often required squirming under vehicles, which could still be done with shorter legs. Glancing at his bare feet, he decided that once he recovered, he would wrap cloth around the stumps and fit rubber tires underneath to relearn walking. He could still repair cars.


    Eyes shining, he stared fixedly out the window with a smile and tears in his eyes.


    After Xiao Qi finished her stretches, she started running: 30,000 steps daily that she couldn¡¯t waste. She also enjoyed the feeling. By the time she finished, drenched in sweat that seemed a bit excessive, she did feel somewhat faint and drained. But at the start of today¡¯s run, her legs had felt a little sore and hard to lift at first. Yet the more she ran, the more loose and relaxed they became, until by the end sailing around the entire school track, she unexpectedly still felt quite free and easy.


    Furthermore, engrossed in listening to English while running, she felt that even without the language sense buff now, she could already speak much better English than before. Language mastery isn¡¯t about rote memorizing grammar rules and vocabulary lists. What matters most is daring to speak up, constantly listening and familiarizing oneself until expressions flow out naturally. Reciting textbook phrases day after day without daring to say them aloud or enunciate clearly means one can never truly learn a language. This was her deepest realization from this period. Speaking unabashedly, unafraid of mistakes which native speakers are sure to forgive, while feeling delighted over every successful exchange, is key to language learning. Unfortunately Xiao Qi hadn¡¯t grasped this before taking the gaokao and clammed up during English exams, anxious about making errors and fixated on accuracy rather than daring to speak at all.


    Seeing her step count nearing 30,000, she slowed to a walk for a bit before doing some post-run stretches and leaving campus to buy vegetables from a food stand outside the school gates for dinner. She cooked very simply: stir-fried green peppers with meat, garlic saute?ed broccoli, a mushroom soup, and steamed rice.


    Her homemade dishes weren¡¯t greasy, instead quite healthy she felt, with decent flavor. But her aunt wolfed it down excitedly.


    After swiftly finishing her food, her aunt said, ¡°Xiao Qi, you do the washing up today. I¡¯m meeting your coach for swimming practice.¡±


    Xiao Qi was quite happy to agree to her aunt¡¯s enthusiastic initiative. Her aunt hurried off, practically galloping down the hallway.

 Chapter 49: One Centimeter Taller

    Chapter 49


    August 6, Tuesday.


    Cloudy turning sunny.


    She has tutoring work this afternoon, so she did not make a swimming date.


    Wu Peirong originally felt time was tight and they should practice every day, but seeing Xiaoqi really working hard and taking the initiative, she was instead worried that this student was overdoing it, too tense, and would not perform well on the day of the competition. So she also agreed to let her rest.


    Yesterday she received the photos Xiaoqi took of her and really liked them. She posted them on Moments and received many likes and compliments. Wu Peirong was in a very good mood all day.


    Having no need to go swimming practice early in the morning, Xiaoqi got up, planning to go for a morning run.


    Over the past few days her biological clock has adjusted. She woke up at 5:30, before dawn.


    The sky doesn''t get light until 7.


    But she could already hear sounds from next door by 5:30. Her neighbor Lin Min''s mom sells breakfast and gets up very early. Xiaoqi thought it strange not having seen Lin Min these past two days. Later she heard from Lin Qingqing that her brother went out of town with friends. for new novels


    After getting up she went to wash up first, said hello to Lin Min''s mom, who was packing things in the yard.


    Then she went back to her room, soaked the rice¡ªshe found that soaking rice for half an hour before cooking makes it taste better.


    After soaking the rice, she started practicing her calligraphy, copying over text from her reader.


    The copybook she borrowed¡ªshe had started the fifth round of transcription. She had the contents memorized basically just glancing at it occasionally.


    As for New Concept English Book Four, she has been gnawing at it the past couple days. It¡¯s still quite difficult, so she copies that over too, finding that copying aids memorization.


    But she was still a bit tired by the end. Having to compete with the music, attention wavering.


    Xiaoqi slowed to a walk on her way back, sweaty body meeting the slight morning chill. Fortunately the sun has risen higher now.


    August is not cold yet.


    Back inside she still had to use the ward bathrooms to shower. Using ward bathrooms in the morning is a bit inconvenient actually, since patients wake early to prep for rounds. Her aunt arranged an empty room for her, but going there to shower really makes her feel like she entered a movie scene, wandering between vacant hospital rooms, coming and going, not knowing who is supposed to be housed where.


    After showering, the congee had finished cooking. Her aunt prepared side dishes and steamed buns.


    She seemed to be eating less, no oil. Somewhat listless.


    "Not feeling well?"


    "I got tired swimming yesterday, lost 5 jin.¡± A smile broke through Su Simei¡¯s weary face as she talked about this.


    She did feel tired coming back last night, having also taken a home care job that had her up multiple times at night. Usually she would have a midnight snack, but seeing the scale drop and thinking to keep it that way, she didn¡¯t eat. Her stomach rumbled all night. Today she looks low energy.


    She figures this is the last month to take the home care job. The measly extra income she directs to her daughter who never visits.


    She wouldn¡¯t have thought this way normally, but living with her niece recently, seeing her study and exercise busily with no time to spend money, while attending Number One High without any apparent need for constant purchases made her reconsider. Whereas her daughter Feifei in middle school still gets spoiled by her father despite abandonment, showing up designer clad without ever working for what she has, unlike her niece. Witnessing the contrast daily in their shared habitat, something has felt off-kilter. Her extra money directed toward Feifei does not seem to engender good. She has consistently heard Feifei¡¯s grades are poor.


    Su Simei was called back upstairs shortly after eating, the morning usual busy shift beginning.


    Xiaoqi washed the dishes.


    While washing, she suddenly heard the mechanical voice sound in her ear, ¡°Host subtly transforming outlook of mildly depressed middle aged woman with binge eating disorder, alleviating her depression and binge eating, bringing her forward looking positivity and motivation for self-improvement, rewarding host with 1 cm height increase. Congenitally quite short by human standards, host¡¯s efforts shall continue.¡±


    Xiaoqi: ......

 Chapter 50: Seven Students

    Chapter 50


    Xiao Qi first went to the library and stayed there for three hours, then went to buy shoes.


    Nike specialty store.


    Xiao Qi saw that there was actually a place to measure height in the store, with a wall marked with height scales.


    Her original height was 163. She felt that it was pretty good and thought she was already quite tall. However, she used to have the bad habit of hunching her shoulders and holding in her chest, which made her look about 160. Recently, she had a posture buff, and would unconsciously walk without holding in her chest and sit without hunching her back, making her look a bit taller.


    She stood in front of the wall and a service clerk came over and measured her¨D164 centimeters. The service clerk smiled and said, "Young lady, you''re quite tall, and it looks like you''ll grow even more."


    Xiao Qi felt like she hadn''t grown at all recently.


    Gaining an extra centimeter wasn''t bad.


    "I want a pair of running shoes and another pair for daily walking," Xiao Qi stated her needs after getting her height measured.


    The service clerk felt this young lady was quite aloof. She dressed plainly, but had a nice temperament. Service clerks were quite observant, and she could tell this customer had potential.


    Seeing that the young lady didn''t ask about prices or anything, the clerk brought out four pairs of shoes¨Done pair on sale for just over 300 yuan, one regular pair for over 600 yuan, one new pair for over 800 yuan, and another more expensive pair that their shop was heavily promoting lately that was very lightweight and suitable for running, but cost over 1300 yuan.


    Xiao Qi tried on the shoes without looking at the prices.


    The service clerk noticed this detail¨Dit meant either the customer couldn''t afford them for sure, or price didn''t matter to her.


    Judging by the young lady''s nonchalance, she figured it was the latter, and became even more attentive.


    It was Xiao Qi''s first time buying brand name shoes. Nike and Adidas were brands she was very familiar with since almost all the students in her class had them. Her friend Jiajia also liked Nike, which influenced Xiao Qi as well.


    Although Xiao Qi hadn''t contacted Jiajia since that night out at the bar with classmates, she would still think of a person like her from time to time. After all, she had always thought Jiajia was her best friend, so it did have some influence.


    Just like when buying shoes, she went straight to the Nike store.


    In the past, she bought shoes from small roadside shops, including fake Nikes. But she was a little embarrassed and would rather buy shoes without a noticeable brand than fake Nikes from a roadside stall. She had seen students in her dorm bluntly point out and relentless compare when someone bought fake ones.


    After washing the dishes and tidying up a bit, she rested for a while.


    When she woke up it was past 1 pm. She had gone to the library in the morning to prepare lessons. The library had a lot of books, so if she needed any teaching materials she could find them on the spot.


    Liang Jiajia said some of her classmates were coming too, so Xiao Qi had to prepare more content and also consider how she would teach.


    She compiled half a notebook full of thick teaching notes.


    After waking up, she changed into another pair of pants. Liang Huaying''s home had air conditioning, and after sitting for a long time her knees felt a little cold in shorts, which was the first time wearing them. The short sleeves were quite cool and fresh though. Her long sleeved clothing was old, and the jacket was a bit thick. Changing made her realize she should buy some new clothes too.


    After changing, she brought along the thermos Auntie had brewed chrysanthemum tea with goji berries for her¨Dstrangely enough since Auntie didn''t used to care about health preservation, but now she had even boiled a whole pot of herbal flower tea.


    Xiao Qi packed up the lesson plans she had prepared, along with New Concept English Book 1 that Liang Jiajia was studying, Book 2 in case her students'' level was higher as they were middle school second graders, and Book 4 which she was self-studying herself and could use for recitation when she had time.


    Today was the last day of her memory buff, which would have made her nervous before, but recently with persistent exercise and proactively studying, it seemed her personality had stabilized somewhat without being as impulsive as in the past.


    At exactly 1:30 pm, Xiao Qi arrived at Liang''s residence on time, half an hour early as usual.


    As soon as she entered, she felt a lively atmosphere and thought there would only be two or three students. Unexpectedly, the sofa in the living room was completely filled!


    There were actually seven or eight young ladies.


    When Liang Jiajia saw the teacher arrive, she jumped up from the sofa, too eager to wait for Xiao Qi to even change her shoes before rushing over.


    Seeing this, Liang Huaying felt sour. Her own daughter was not so enthusiastic when she came home.


    She had planned to go to the company early today, but her daughter had somehow gathered so many students. As the parent, she could only stay and observe for a while to prevent any incidents.


    She was very satisfied with Su Xiaoqi always arriving on time. The tutoring started at 2 pm every time, yet she would arrive right at 1:30 pm, half an hour early.


    "Teacher, you''re here!" Liang Jiajia bounced up to her, then stopped short, oddly a little agitated as if not knowing what to say, and ended up stating the obvious.


    Su Xiaoqi nodded. It was good she had prepared in advance, otherwise she would be panicking with so many students too.

 Chapter 51: The Company of Three, Always have my teacher

    Chapter 51


    In the afternoon, the air conditioner was blowing strong, and the white lace curtains on the floor-to-ceiling windows fluttered in the air conditioning wind.


    In the study, there was a huge square table. In the middle of the square table was a vase, not a pickled vegetable jar washed by Little Seven, but a proper vase, a rather European style one, milky white, with a bouquet of flowers with red berries inserted in the middle.


    At first, Little Seven thought the flowers were fake, but later found there were fallen leaves on the table, so she knew they were real flowers. Upstodatee from


    Liang Lady seemed to have quite good taste in her life, and the little details at home were very delicate.


    Like this flower arrangement. Little Seven would make do with a pickled vegetable jar and insert branches, probably influenced by this.


    At Little Seven''s age, seventeen, she was still very much influenced by her environment, and had a good memory. Sometimes when she saw something, she would unconsciously remember it.


    The flowers didn''t have much fragrance, they wouldn''t affect people.


    Surrounding the bouquet, seven female students sat around the huge square table.


    Plus Little Seven, there were eight people total.


    Nanny Sister Wang responsibly served tea, fruit and pastries, placing them in the middle.


    It didn''t look like tutoring, it was more like an afternoon tea gathering.


    At first, Little Seven also felt a bit awkward. This group of children were probably twelve or thirteen, four or five years younger than her, but they all looked quite mature, dressed decently, and should come from well-off families.


    One girl in particular, who sat next to Liang Jiajia, was clearly also liked by Liang Jiajia very much. She was exceptionally beautiful, Little Seven felt amazed just looking at her the first time.


    Her skin was especially fair. Little Seven also had fair skin, but compared to her, she still felt she must be darker by two shades. The girl''s skin was fair in that soft and lustrous way, it even had that transparent sense where you could almost see the blood vessels underneath.


    And her eyes were so big and bright. Her hair was neatly trimmed to her shoulders. She wore a white butterfly hair clip on her head, on others it might seem redundant but it looked just right on her.


    When she smiled, her teeth were exceptionally straight, as if her parents had paid special attention to changing her teeth since she was little, pulling them out as soon as they grew in and replacing them straight away, so her teeth were like a TV commercial, even straighter than Little Seven''s, who had the special skill of orthodontics.


    Little Seven''s teeth were also quite neat, but there were still little fangs. She had simply corrected irregularities, without actually changing out her teeth, so there were still little differences in sizes.


    The seven girls came from varying backgrounds but they were all well-off.


    Among them, Guan Jingzhi''s parents were civil servants. Her mom worked in the Municipal Party Committee Propaganda Department and her dad was a leader in the Military Region. She was doted on by everyone. Originally she didn''t want to come but Jiajia kept showing off in their group chat, annoying her, so she came out of boredom.


    She didn''t expect to be pleasantly surprised. This teacher gave off a truly impressive presence.


    Because of her family background, Guan Jingzhi interacted with many people, making her quite mature herself. She rarely thought highly of others. Yes, it was rare for her to find someone impressive.


    But that''s the feeling she got from the young teacher in front of her, very easygoing.


    The other students all had their own thoughts, but at the start of the lesson they were more well-behaved than Jiajia had been initially, probably because they were at someone else''s house so had Jiajia to compare to.


    After the simple diagnostic test, Little Seven let them take a break while she graded the papers on the spot.


    With the pace she had been learning recently, grading seven papers she had written herself was of course easy.


    The results - three students, Jiajia included, belonged to the group who hadn''t studied English well, with weaker foundations.


    Another three had slightly better foundations, but were a little weaker in grammar and listening.


    As for Guan Jingzhi, who looked the prettiest, Little Seven was quite surprised. Her English was very good. She had gotten all the foundational knowledge questions right. She had also mostly answered correctly for the more advanced reading comprehension. Just some more peripheral knowledge she was slightly weaker at. But that peripheral knowledge was what Little Seven had only recently started persisting in reading original English materials at the library for, so she felt if it was her from before, she wouldn''t have gotten those right either.


    So Little Seven felt that Guan Jingzhi didn''t need to take these classes at all. Her English was very good, very solid, far surpassing normal 8th graders.


    After grading, organizing took just ten minutes.


    Little Seven called them back in to go over the test papers. She had been a student herself, so she understood especially well that sometimes when teachers lectured extensively, students might not necessarily understand or have the patience to listen attentively. It was better to focus specifically on going over questions, and only talk about other things after. This was from her own experience. So when she taught these students, she also took this approach, explaining things as simply and clearly as possible without rambling on just to show off her own knowledge.


    From time to time she would pay attention to Guan Jingzhi. Although Guan Jingzhi had gotten most of them right, she still listened very attentively and didn''t show impatience.


    Little Seven thought to herself, among three people there must be someone worthy to learn from. This saying really applied to life. At this moment, looking at this twelve year old girl, she even felt a little admiration - if it had been herself who had gotten everything correct, she probably wouldn''t have the patience to keep listening like that.


    Because of this point, Little Seven also reined in her somewhat reckless and arrogant state of mind lately.

 Chapter 52: Daddy’s Coming

    Chapter 52


    Because there were so many people, Xiaoqi extended the teaching time. Usually the lessons ended at 4pm, but today after finishing teaching it was almost 5pm.


    Outside, the edge of the sky was a stretch of bright red, tomorrow would definitely be good weather.


    Xiaoqi took a quick glance then retracted her gaze. Her temperament was fairly good, and she spoke gently. These few students actually seemed to be led in mischief by Jiajia, the others were pretty good, so teaching them was not strenuous.


    Xiaoqi told them each person''s current level and progress.


    "Consider today''s lesson as your trial lesson. If you''d like to continue, each lesson is $150. Originally when I was only teaching Jiajia, the fee was higher. But now there are so many of you, still on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but the time is extended by one hour. You can discuss with your parents."


    This was what Xiaoqi had thought of earlier. She didn''t have experience with pricing and the like, but changing from one-on-one to a bigger class was like one-to-many. So charging that much more wasn''t suitable. There was also the issue of a venue for lessons. Jiajia''s home was very big with a great environment, well suited for teaching. But she wasn''t sure if Mrs Liang agreed. She also needed to ask Mrs Liang. Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    "Also, Jingzhi, your English foundation is very solid. If I taught you, there really wouldn''t be much I could teach. You can read more original English materials and books, there''s no need to attend class."


    Guan Jingzhi immediately shook his head. "Teacher Xiaoqi, you teach very well. I understand clearly and can reinforce my English. I''m very willing to come."


    The others echoed agreement. Even though Jingzhi''s English was so good he was still willing to come.


    Moreover, when Jiajia was in class she recorded videos. During their break they sent the videos to their parents. Girls their age were able to work hard and show off to their parents with a little effort. Even Jingzhi sent them.


    When Mrs Liang learned that little miss Xiaoqi had even lowered the price, she admired her more and more. As a businesswoman, she valued money greatly, but the more she valued money the more she knew, sometimes money was not the most important, especially money on hand.


    Even if Xiaoqi didn''t lower the price she would still be very satisfied. Recently her daughter Jiajia had become much better behaved and was willing to study diligently. As for using her home as a classroom, she was even more willing. Jiajia could play with classmates and study together safely at home. Moreover, the families of the few girls Jiajia now associated with were not lacking. At parent-teacher meetings she had also exchanged contact details with them, bringing them even closer. Business people greatly valued connections. Whether presently useful or not, knowing more friends was never wrong.


    That the young miss had taken the initiative to lower prices and add time, she was extremely satisfied. She wasn''t worried at all her daughter would suffer losses and go.


    "No need auntie, I got quite a few more students these days and earned a lot more money. Consider this a celebration gift. Please keep it auntie, it wasn''t expensive." Xiaoqi said.


    Sumei didn''t politely refuse either and insist on paying. Seeing the price tag said over 100 RMB, she had originally planned to give her niece a thick red envelope when she entered university. She could just add a bit more then.


    After dinner she hurriedly went swimming again. Xiaoqi cleared up the bowls and chopsticks.


    After tidying up, unexpectedly there was a phone call from her rural hometown. It was old lady Liu next door''s number.


    "Tomorrow when I go sell winnowing baskets, I''ll bring back some dishes for you and your aunt." Su Youfu yelled loudly into the phone.


    Even without speakerphone on Xiaoqi could hear it blaring.


    Unexpectedly after just a week, dad had made more winnowing baskets to sell. Based on dad''s efficiency he probably stayed up past midnight making them every day. When Xiaoqi thought of it, her heart felt somewhat sour.


    "Dad, I''m free tomorrow. I''ll go pick you up." Xiaoqi said.


    Recently she felt very fulfilled. On the contrary she felt even more grateful. She discovered that when she felt empty she would actually complain about her parents, complain that they didn''t give her an affluent life. But when she was busy and fulfilled, she felt grateful to her parents instead.


    Now she didn''t feel selling winnowing baskets was embarrassing either.


    Youfu hurriedly declined. You could feel him shaking his head through the phone.


    Then her mother''s voice cut in.


    "Xiaoqi remember to eat your meals. Dress warmly since it''s cold...."

 Chapter 53: The Rising Sun

    Chapter 53


    The sky had not yet brightened when Su Youfu got out of bed. At the high altitude of Gumula Village, the temperature was relatively low. In August, one had to wear a thick coat early in the morning.


    He carried a load of winnowing baskets, but not as many as before, only twenty baskets, ten on each side. On either side of the baskets were two large hemp sacks as well, though it was unclear what was inside them.


    After loading the baskets onto the back of his vehicle, Su Youfu finally breathed a sigh of relief.


    The villagers beside him joked, "Crippled Su, you''re desperately making big money huh. You just went to sell winnowing baskets last week, and now you''re going again this week!"


    "With just ten pairs of winnowing baskets, what treasures have you got in those sacks?"


    "Crippled Su is not the same as us. We can only sell our baskets for 10 yuan each, but he can sell them for 13 yuan. He knows how to make money to support his college student daughter."


    The group babbled on.


    Su Youfu simply responded innocently, "The sacks have some vegetables and dried goods I prepared to sell. My wife was missing our daughter and told me to bring her some food."


    The villagers figured that was the case. This time of year was not the autumn harvest, so they were short on cash. They would make things like dried bamboo shoots and mushrooms to sell.


    After speaking, Su Youfu didn''t say anything else. He sat to the side waiting for everyone to gather.


    The vehicle was small, and there were many villagers heading into town, so Su Youfu still didn¡¯t get a chance to sit in the front. He was too shy to wrestle a spot from others, so he could only sit in the pickup bed. But he was long accustomed to this and had prepared a thick hat and coat. He plopped down next to the winnowing baskets, leaning against the front of the vehicle to avoid some of the wind.


    Sitting in the back was quite nice. No one would tease him, which worked well since he wasn¡¯t very good at idle chatter anyway.


    Su Xiaoqi¡¯s personality was greatly influenced by her father in this way. She also felt awkward and uneasy when teased, not knowing how to retort.


    But Su Youfu had told a lie today. The sacks did not contain dried goods. The family¡¯s dried bamboo shoots and everything else had long been sold. His daughter needed money every week for school, so they couldn¡¯t wait until now. The bags actually contained some bamboo baskets and bags that he had tried making based on the book his daughter had bought for him. They had turned out pretty well.


    He wanted to try selling them. If winnowing fans could sell, these items could probably sell too. Weaving the bamboo was a bit more laborious, but he had felt excited making them these last few days, staying up until one or two in the morning.


    Xiaoqi had never noticed before how beautifully spectacular an early morning sun could look, without needing to visit any famous scenic vistas. Just standing on the bridge¡ª


    Surrounded by the unceasing traffic, faced with the surging unrelenting river, the sun a golden red circle that looked as precise as if drawn by a compass, simply suspended there in a sky so clean it resembled a child¡¯s drawing, a swathe of blue with a single circle to represent sun and river.


    In that moment, Xiaoqi inhaled deeply, feeling the heaviness that had sat in her heart dissipate like smoke.


    She couldn¡¯t deny that the terms ¡°father¡± and ¡°mother¡± carried a lot of pressure for her. She even felt it was more tiring to deal with her parents than her aunt.


    Her parents¡¯ love was too dense, heavily unconditional with only giving and no expectation of return. She actually felt a huge amount of pressure, constantly fearing she was not good enough or outstanding enough to repay them.


    And because of this heavy devotion, she would feel guilty telling the occasional lie due to feeling suffocated by their affections, like during the time of the college entrance exams. She desperately wanted to test well, get into a top university, gain face for her parents. But the more she thought that way, the greater the pressure, even though her usual grades indicated zero issues with reaching the first-tier university threshold. Yet when it came time for the actual exam, she cracked and failed, not even making the first-tier cutoff score at first. She had to go through remedial admissions procedures before finally getting into her current second-tier school.


    That moment when she learned her score truly felt like the sky was falling down.


    She even had passing thoughts of suicide, of wandering into traffic and letting a car take her life. Brief as the notion was, it had existed.


    Her parents hadn''t pressured her, yet she felt their devotion itself to be an immense burden.


    Fortunately, it was all in the past now.


    The crimson sun rises, the great river surges on.


    Every day is brand new.


    Xiaoqi stood for a while longer atop the windy bridge before resuming her run.


    She arrived at the village drop-off point, but the vehicle hadn¡¯t come yet. She stood catching her breath for a bit, face flushed like the rising sun, warm and beautiful.


    After rattling around for over two hours, Su Youfu¡¯s face had gone stiff and his hands clenched into numb fists. Before the vehicle even fully stopped, someone nudged him, ¡°Hey crippled Su, isn¡¯t that young lass over there your daughter?¡±


    Su Youfu looked up to indeed see his daughter there, smiling brightly. He suddenly felt a surge of warmth and vigor course through his rigid body. He wanted to smile back, but his stiffness only made his expression look more dour.

 Chapter 54: The Girl With the Bamboo Basket

    Chapter 54


    Early in the morning, everyone sat in the car and shook for over an hour on the mountain road, then on the highway, and felt dizzy.


    Da Yong didn''t get carsick, but after sitting in the same position and driving for two hours, his waist was also quite sore. When the car stopped, he immediately jumped out and took out a cigarette to light up. After taking a deep breath, he felt revived.


    Looking at Lame Su''s college student daughter, after not seeing her for a few days, she looked even more handsome and tall, wearing her school uniform. It seemed like she had lost some weight. Lame Su said his daughter was tutoring students in the city.


    Da Yong had worked in the city before and went to big cities to try his luck (work). He knew that No. 1 Middle School students were valued highly by city people, unlike villagers who thought it was a waste of money for a girl to study, and felt Lame Su was silly.


    There was a kind of vigor in college students that they didn¡¯t have.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t care about the eyes of the villagers. She stood at the back of the truck and reached out to help her father who was about to jump off the car.


    After sitting in the cargo box for a long time, her legs were numb. Lame Su was already a little lame, so getting off the car was a bit strenuous.


    Seeing her daughter lend him a hand, he felt a little embarrassed. His daughter was so young, but still he stretched out his hand.


    Although the villagers jokingly called him "Lame Su, Lame Su" with ridicule, they still helped Lame Su get the burden of winnowing baskets down from the truck.


    Driver Da Yong also came over with a cigarette dangling to lend a hand.


    Xiaoqi rarely thanked everyone without shyness.


    Although it was effortless to help, gratitude still had to be expressed. If kept in the heart, others wouldn''t know and it would be forgotten after some time.


    Lame Su had a grinning face.


    "I said I would go straight to your aunt''s place to find you after selling the winnowing baskets. How come you ran over so early? Have you eaten?"


    "I went out after eating. I have nothing to do in the morning and will accompany you."


    She realized her father had only picked ten pairs of winnowing baskets today, plus two sacks, but the load was not light at all.


    She could see the difference in the winnowing baskets this time. They were better and more solid than the ones made before. Just looking at them, they were very beautiful. When touching, they were not prickly either. The twisted parts were also nice-looking, unlike the previous ones which were crudely twisted, and she had worried the bamboos might break.


    Noticing his daughter''s gaze, Lame Su couldn''t help saying, "I looked at the pictures in the book and figured out that twisting the bamboo strips one more circle makes the bamboo more flexible and smooth without burrs, also better-looking. I tried loading them and they are more sturdy."


    On the way, Xiaoqi told Dad about her recent life. Although she didn''t lie, her wording was still ambiguous. For example, saying she went swimming with Auntie, Dad would assume by default that Auntie took her. In Lame Su''s mindset, things like swimming were not proper necessities anyway.


    Hearing his daughter now had 7 students with over 2,000 yuan income per week in summer, Lame Su was also shocked.


    She could indeed earn her tuition back this summer break. With some money he and his wife pitched in, living expenses would also be covered.


    Thinking this way, he suddenly felt the burden on his shoulders lighter and he didn''t seem to hunch that much.


    Usually carrying winnowing baskets from North of River to South was particularly long. The more he carried, the heavier they became. With fewer winnowing baskets today plus Xiaoqi carrying a bag, it was rare for Lame Su to feel more relaxed. He also had less pressure without too huge a burden.


    When he could change shoulders, he chatted with his daughter.


    "I made the baskets and bamboo bags from your book. I''m thinking of taking them to give it a try selling them since they didn''t take much effort anyway." Lame Su said lightly.


    Of course it actually took huge efforts unlike the simple little bamboo bags he made for his daughter''s student Liang Jiajia. Lame Su racked his brains for several nights before figuring it out. His calloused hands even chafed a few more blisters. He almost thought about how to make them when sleeping at night.


    It seemed more hair had fallen in recent days.


    But he wouldn''t tell these to his daughter. Lame Su always only talked about the good side.


    Xiaoqi was also very happy to hear Dad made other stuff.


    The father and daughter kept talking all the way to the destination. Xiaoqi did most of the talking.


    Soon, thanks also to Xiaoqi''s recent exercises like jogging and walking which enhanced her physical fitness by a lot, otherwise, she probably wouldn''t have been able to walk so long with Dad carrying such a heavy bag.


    They arrived at the place selling winnowing baskets which was a messy market with many old furniture and second-hand items, very dark.


    Xiaoqi followed Dad into a store she hadn''t entered before. Dad asked her to wait outside.


    That store was neatly arranged against expectation. It was huge with indeed a lot of things - winnowing baskets and other woven bamboo items.


    Xiaoqi also went inside with Dad. Together they opened the sack and took out the bamboo baskets and bags made.


    Xiaoqi held a bamboo bag reluctant to put down. It was delicate with the cool touch of bamboo strips yet not prickly at all. Old bamboo strips were inserted with natural bamboo markings on them, boiled, still emitting the fragrance of bamboo.


    At this time the middle-aged female owner noticed the young girl holding the bamboo bag standing by the door. For some reason, it reminded her of a painting she recently bought from an art shop when decorating her home to embellish - a little girl holding a water pot. And she freakishly felt as if that painted girl was standing at her store entrance now.

 Chapter 55: Selling Baskets for Money

    Chapter 55


    At the bustling intersection of a small chaotic street stands the largest store, Huang''s Bamboo Crafts Store.


    Many shops in the area don''t even have a sign, so this store, with a big sign hanging at the entrance, is considered relatively formal.


    That''s why Su Youfu, an honest and straightforward man, chose to sell his brooms here, thinking that a large store would conduct business in a more proper manner.


    For many years, he has been directly delivering his brooms to this store, and the price is always determined by the boss.


    However, the boss is fair and gives him a higher price compared to others. Although Su Youfu is honest, he is not foolish and would inquire about the prices offered by others.


    In reality, it is normal for the price of his brooms to increase several times when they reach the boss. After all, running a store of this size incurs costs such as rent, water fees, and workers'' wages. It''s not charity work.


    The boss, Huang Yufeng, is a decisive and efficient person. This store was passed down from her maternal family. Her parents had two daughters, and as the eldest, it was agreed that she would inherit the store and find a son-in-law.


    Once her younger sister got married, this store would no longer have any connection to her family.


    Now, Huang Yufeng was looking at the young girl standing at the store''s entrance with great interest.


    "Old Su, is this your daughter? She looks beautiful," she commented.


    Su Youfu smiled and nodded, standing a bit straighter than usual.


    "Hello, Boss Huang," Xiao Qi greeted with a smile.


    "The things you''ve made are quite interesting," Huang Yufeng, being a businesswoman, complimented the young girl. However, her gaze quickly fell on the bamboo-woven bag in Xiao Qi''s hand, examining it closely.


    The bag was exquisitely made, with a lid that had a button made of bamboo tied with hemp rope. It was convenient to open and close.


    He sold these seven woven bamboo items for 950 yuan, while a bundle of brooms, twenty of them, was only sold for 300 yuan.


    Su Youfu thought the price was fair, even pleasantly surprised. However, he was a slow person by nature, so even though he was particularly surprised, he didn''t show it on his face. He just nodded.


    Upon hearing this price, Xiao Qi didn''t know if it was high or low. Although she had confidence in her father''s craftsmanship, the market also played a role in such matters. Her father wasn''t a master craftsman but an ordinary farmer. The price offered by the other party seemed quite good in her opinion.


    Seventeen-year-old Su Xiaoqi wasn''t good at this kind of thing, but she had the impression that agricultural product prices were not high, and the same applied to processed agricultural by-products made by farmers themselves.


    Su Youfu left Aunt Liu''s phone number. With everything sold, he carried the bamboo pole and a sack of vegetables and walked out with his daughter, wearing a serious expression on his face.


    They walked for a long time, far away from that street, crossed the road, and passed by the entrance of a commercial bank. Suddenly, Su Youfu burst into laughter.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    "Dad, Dad!" Su Xiaoqi looked at the puzzled look on the security guard''s face at the bank entrance and tugged at her father''s sleeve.


    "Xiaoqi, I''ve calculated all the way here. I can make at least two baskets and an additional small bag in a day. That''s a total of 300 yuan per day, which means 9,000 yuan per month. You don''t have to worry about your tuition anymore. Dad can earn money now. And when I earn more, we can renovate our house. We can fix the collapsed wall at the entrance and you won''t have to worry about your monthly expenses anymore."


    Su Youfu had never been so excited and full of ambition before. His shoulders straightened, and he no longer hunched his back.


    "Dad, please don''t get too carried away. The boss said they still need to see the sales volume. What if we can''t sell them all?" Although Su Xiaoqi was happy, she thought her dad was being too optimistic. If things didn''t work out, they would be disappointed. It''s better to be clear-headed from the beginning.


    "No, I''m not blindly selling things. I''ve checked out all the shops on that street. This boss pays the best and sells the fastest. I''ve seen it myself. She sells our brooms for two or three times the price she bought them from me. She also rejects some items. She doesn''t accept everything that comes her way. But if she accepts it, it means she can definitely sell it. I sold her one for 150 yuan, and she can easily sell it for at least 500 or 600 yuan." Su Youfu explained to his daughter.


    Su Xiaoqi thought to herself that her dad may seem simple-minded, but he''s actually quite cunning. He''s a typical crafty farmer from the countryside. She wasn''t sure how to express it, but having some cunning is better than being foolish and getting taken advantage of.


    Neither the father nor the daughter found anything wrong with the boss selling at a higher price. After all, that''s how selling things worked. When watermelons are in abundance, farmers sell them to middlemen for a few cents per kilogram, but people in the city still buy them for one or two yuan per kilogram.


    At this moment, both father and daughter were quite happy. Su Xiaoqi suggested, "Dad, why don''t we buy you a mobile phone too? It''s inconvenient for us to always go to Grandma Liu''s house to make phone calls."

 Chapter 56: What to Look forward To

    Chapter 56


    Su Youfu finally bought a cheap mobile phone at the urging of his daughter.


    In his opinion, mobile phones were not that expensive - being able to make calls and send text messages only cost a few hundred yuan. Installing a landline phone had cost hundreds of yuan in the past as well, but the monthly fees made him feel distressed.


    Su Xiaoqi also knew her dad''s distress. After buying a phone and a China Mobile SIM card, she got the cheapest plan that only cost 19 yuan per month. It did not include mobile data, but allowed 60 minutes of free calls. The network in Gumula Village was not very good. China Unicom signals were completely unavailable and you had to find a tall mountain to get any signals.


    Su Youfu felt it was good enough and happily saved his daughter''s phone number.


    But the first thing he hurriedly did was to call Boss Huang who bought winnowing baskets to ask her to record his phone number, so she could directly call him when needed in the future.


    Su Youfu spoke very loudly, and had a bit of an accent. Passersby on both sides could not help but look over. Su Xiaoqi stood beside him and did not shy away in embarrassment. If it had been before the Gaokao, she might still feel uneasy and vain. But her experiences over this period, including the setback in the Gaokao, made her re-examine herself and suddenly become much more mentally mature.


    Avoiding her father would not make others look highly upon her. On the contrary, people might think she had issues.


    After making what he believed was the most important phone call for now, Su Youfu heaved a sigh of relief. He had some petty shrewdness common of small farmers, but was still an ordinary person at heart and did not consider whether his hurried call might make Boss Huang feel he was too anxious or something.


    Today Su Youfu had bought some things and also planned to go to his cousin Su Simei¡¯s place to take a look, since his daughter had been troubling her for some time.


    This time Su Youfu carried the sack himself, unwilling to let his daughter handle it.


    Su Xiaoqi could not snatch it from him either. But when they got to auntie¡¯s place, it was still Su Xiaoqi who cooked lunch.


    Her dad had brought a home-made smoked duck - a duck they raised themselves, smoked with rice bran. It was very fragrant. Cut into pieces and briefly boiled with some garlic sprouts, it tasted great.


    There was also a big cabbage grown in their home garden. Each cabbage was very big and could feed them for several meals.


    After lunch, seeing her dad was clearly a little tipsy, probably from being too happy today and drinking a bit more than his limit, Su Xiaoqi said nothing.


    She had not drunk any alcohol, but still felt speechless looking at the empty beer bottle that had put her old dad flat.


    Letting dad rest in the room for a bit, she went to wash the dishes and tidy up, while auntie also returned to the ward.


    Today Su Xiaoqi¡¯s high efficiency memory buff had expired. She had accompanied her dad all morning and not done any studying. After finishing the chores, seeing dad asleep, she did not want to disturb him. Sitting at the table nearby, she put on her earphones and started her daily practice of copying texts.


    She still had not finished Book 4 of the New Concept English series, having memorized only half the book so far.


    Her efficiency going forward would definitely decrease compared to before. But having memorized the first three New Concept English textbooks made Su Xiaoqi feel like she had gained the overbearing aura of ruling the realm with half the Analects. Indeed, she had felt extremely relaxed and capable during her recent tutoring jobs.


    Still she did not want to give up.


    Dad¡¯s snores were a little loud. Su Xiaoqi felt very assured taking a glance back at the middle-aged man lying comfortably on the bed. Even half-drunk, he was still concerned about dirtying the bed with his clothes and had taken off his outer jacket, revealing the worn shirt inside.


    His legs tilted casually off the bedside. Su Xiaoqi covered him with a blanket as he slept soundly.


    Having to get up before dawn when it was still dark outside to leave home carrying winnowing baskets to sell was truly exhausting work. Some days they had to rise even earlier to pick the vegetables at first light when they were freshest.


    Then came lugging the heavy shoulder poles with loads of winnowing baskets and walking half across Lvshan City.


    Su Youfu was not a strong man to begin with. Short and troubled by foot problems, such was still life for him. Yet at this moment he slept very contently, because he felt life had given him very well. He had new hopes - hopes he did not tell those around him about. He was very happy, truly very happy.


    Even a short noon break seemed to have brought beautiful dreams, with his sleeping face still bearing a smile.


    Taking another look, Su Xiaoqi put her earphones back on and continued copying English texts, her pen swiftly darting across the blank notebook. Words flowed from the tip of her steel pen onto the snowy pages in fluent rows and paragraphs before she flipped the page to proceed.

 Chapter 57: : Watch the Swimming Competition

    Chapter 57


    In the afternoon, the gym was very lively.


    There were more people than usual, as if there was some event going on.


    Su Xiaoqi sent her dad Su Youfu off. She had wanted her dad to stay for a day and leave tomorrow instead. She could have slept in the room above the ward with her auntie. However, Su Youfu was full of energy. If he didn''t want to stay to see his daughter, he would have gone home after selling his winnowing baskets to make more bamboo baskets and wares. He was the kind of person willing to work hard. Otherwise, as a lame man, he wouldn''t have been able to send his daughter to high school.


    However, before Su Youfu left, he had his daughter take him to the bookstore. He found some more books related to bamboo weaving. Carrying the books and shoulder pole, he strode onto the car heading to town full of confidence.


    Su Xiaoqi didn''t insist. Seeing her dad so happy, she figured giving someone the ability to earn money made them happier than just directly giving them money.


    Su Xiaoqi deeply understood this feeling. The money in her interface had reached over 60,000 now, yet she didn''t have the initial excitement and joy anymore. Instead, it was the little bits of daily progress in English, swimming, and cooking that made her feel more real and gave her more sense of achievement.


    Also, getting money from tutoring gave her particular sense of stability and accomplishment.


    Arriving at the swimming hall, a wave of heat rushed over, along with sounds of applause and cheers, very passionate.


    Su Xiaoqi changed into her swimsuit and went in, looking around for a while before finding her coach.


    There was a group of people dressed neatly not in swimwear surrounding the deep pool side, probably spectators here to watch a swimming competition.


    Su Xiaoqi squeezed over to her coach Wu Peirong with some difficulty. Seeing Su Xiaoqi come over, Wu Peirong quickly pulled her over.


    "I forgot to tell you this morning, there is an intra-team competition for our swim team this afternoon. You happen to be here so you can watch and learn."


    Su Xiaoqi nodded. She wasn''t too familiar with competitions herself, although the coach had told her about them. Still, nothing beat direct observation.


    "Later, I''ll send you some links to videos of classic competitions. In addition to practicing these days, you should watch more of these and learn."


    The swimming lanes were holding competitions at the moment, so Wu Peirong didn''t say more and motioned for Su Xiaoqi to watch attentively.


    Su Xiaoqi pulled over a small stool to sit aside and truly concentrated on watching.


    But swimming also required considerable leg strength. Running built up leg muscles.


    She had been exercising a lot recently, eating more too, but her meals were healthier than before. The dishes she made herself weren''t as oily. Her aunt''s cooking tended to be fatty meat-based, with a lot of oil. She even often ordered takeout stewed meat. After improving her diet somewhat lately, she felt that although she was eating more, her weight was still under control. When she came in earlier, she weighed herself and it was only 99 lbs, under 100.


    She had always been above 100 lbs since high school it seemed.


    Now she was 5''4 and 99 lbs, looking rather slim.


    At first when Su Xiaoqi started swimming, her thoughts wandered to this and that, what those people and her coach were saying. After swimming for a while, she became completely focused and immersed, thinking about the difference she observed between the faster and slower swimmers in the races as she swam.


    When looked at individually, they all seemed to swim fast, but there were clear differences when placed together.


    Su Xiaoqi had always studied decently and wasn''t stupid either. As she swam, she subconsciously tried to learn by imitating and changing some subtle motions. Sometimes she felt she swam faster, sometimes more strenuously. Still, she persistently kept trying.


    The difference between her and the others swimming was probably that she could see her step count changing. She didn''t merely view these step changes as money numbers rising. She paid attention to time as well¡ªwith identical durations, whether the step count increased or decreased as she changed poses and swam.


    In short, while looking at the interface she explored and practiced on her own.


    Before watching the swim competition, she had still been blindly quite confident in herself since she thought she had buffs. But after watching their team''s competition, she realized she had still been too arrogant and underestimated her opponents.


    Nothing came easily.


    Su Xiaoqi practiced even more seriously and attentively than before.


    Also, with her dad''s affairs settled, her heart relaxed further. Although her dad''s current bamboo wares couldn''t sell for hundreds or thousands either, it was still a huge leap from the mere ten-odd yuan previously. Such delight could keep her parents happy for a long time. It gave them motivation to live on. Su Xiaoqi felt it was already very good.


    The pressure inside her lightened a bit too. She had initially been determined to win prizes in this. Now instead she became more calm, feeling that having this swimming competition experience itself was an enormous gain, making her more steady.


    On the other side, after Wu Peirong chatted with her teammates for a bit, she got mocked several times. They all felt she was too naive and impatient for casually finding a student she thought was promising talent for swimming, which wasn''t something you could excel at overnight. In short, none of them looked favorably on her.


    She felt somewhat vexed by their words herself too. But when she walked over to the swimming lanes and saw her own student diligently practicing on her own, swimming back and forth tirelessly without stopping or minding the outside hubbub, even seeming to swim more effortlessly than usual like a fish in the water, she clenched her fist. She felt she had chosen correctly.

 Chapter 58: Helping the Old Lady

    Chapter 58


    The sunset today came exceptionally red.


    When Su Youfu got home, even the broken wall at his doorstep was illuminated red.


    His face was the same.


    Sheng Juanhua, who was feeding pigs in the backyard, heard someone entering the house. When she looked back, she saw the man of the house had returned.


    Seeing he was still carrying a sack, her face was shocked. Had he not sold the things?


    In order to make those things recently, her husband had been staying up until 3 AM every day, losing several jin. His leg pain had also flared up. If those things didn''t sell...


    Sheng Juanhua carried the bucket for feeding pigs back into the house, still revealing a smile on her face. Life must go on, whether bitter or sweet. In any case, don''t wear a grieving face.


    When she entered the house without even setting down the bucket, she did not expect the man of the house would actually come over to her, reaching out to lean on her.


    It gave her a fright. Was it not broad daylight?


    "Have you been drinking?"


    "Just a little." Su Youfu mumbled.


    On the way back walking into the village, he had inevitably encountered another round of ridicule again. With Su Youfu''s limping figure, he had always been a regular target of ridicule in Gumula Village. Moreover, he only had one daughter, which was another focal point to mock him.


    He was already used to it, but today he was very happy, especially happy. It was not worth telling others. Only after coming home and seeing his child''s mother did he show it.


    He hugged his wife in a silly way. Since he was actually shorter than his wife and had lost a lot of weight recently from overwork, the move seemed a bit ridiculous. Instead, it looked like a delicate woman was nestling against a tall man.


    Sheng Juanhua was a bit taller and stronger.


    Being embraced so emotionally by her husband, although no one was around, she still felt shy about it. They were in the kitchen, and the window was not sealed tightly either. There were people moving about outside. What if the neighbors saw?


    "Sold out, all sold out. The price was very high - one basket could be sold for ten winnowing pans'' worth of money." After Su Youfu said this, he even choked up.


    The old lady still walked quite fast. She swished right in and sat down on the long bench in front of the dining table.


    "Your uncle''s family is taking a daughter-in-law this Saturday. You three brothers must each give me 500 yuan. As the auntie, I still need to take out red packets."


    500 yuan per person, 1,500 yuan total from the three brothers. Sheng Juanhua was unhappy immediately. Had her mother-in-law lost her mind? For her husband''s uncle''s wedding back then, they didn''t even want to come to their door and only threw them 10 yuan. Yet that same uncle had only given 200 yuan when the second uncle married a wife a few years ago. They came to eat and drink lavishly for many days, while saying city folk could not stand oily food. Yet they ate the most during meals.


    Su Youfu also felt it was a bit much, but his mother had said clearly when they split the family that he would still need to pay obligations for interpersonal dealings.


    "Ma, isn''t 500 too much? I didn''t even sell that many winnowing pans worth in the city today after peddling all day," Su Youfu still dared to retort.


    He was honest and filial, but he still had some petty cunning of a small farmer. Otherwise, he would not have split the family back then either and lived alone, though more bitter. It was much more relaxed this way.


    The old lady naturally didn''t believe him and sized up Sheng Juanhua, spotting the red plastic slippers on her feet. She also flipped through the sack Su Youfu had carried back. There was no food inside, only some tattered books. She then launched into a scolding spree.


    "Money to buy shoes, clothes, useless books, yet no money to treat your uncle''s family to wine. You''re heartless Goodman''s family had been eaten by dogs.* When you go out, may you get hit by a car..."


    This was the old lady''s usual tactic, cursing while bringing calamity, without any regard for what others felt.


    Su Youfu was helpless. In the end, he could only take out the 370 yuan on him and send his old mother away, saying he would borrow the remaining 130 yuan from someone.


    As the old lady left, she instructed, "This Saturday, Xiao Qi is in the city, isn''t she? She can attend the wedding banquet to represent us. I''ll have your second brother bring the money. City banquets are expensive unlike our countryside. It''s enough to send two family representatives."


    The couple was left with emptied joy after being ransacked.


    Su Youfu also had no alternative. His birth mother was just like this, scolding her own family the harshest yet only daring to scold her own.


    She always felt that having married to the countryside herself while her sons still had no prospects in the countryside, she must give the city uncle gifts for every holiday, killing pigs and giving him fish, meat and vegetables. She always took these things for granted without even leaving them a meal, afraid the poor relatives might come to mooch.


    "I''ll start the fire. You make food," Su Youfu said as he sat by the stove.


    Sheng Juanhua silently said nothing as she stood by the sink and started rinsing vegetables.


    The phone felt heavy in her pocket.


    *Idiomatic Chinese curse meaning extremely heartless

 Chapter 59: The UnAttainable buff

    Chapter 59


    The sky in Lvshan City darkened later in the evening.


    After finishing swimming practice in the afternoon, Xiaoqi went home to cook dinner. After eating, she went to the school next door to review her lessons while the sky was still not dark.


    Coach Wu praised her again and vigorously encouraged her, saying she was very promising and swam better than many members of their swim team.


    She really liked Coach Wu. He was always encouraging and never scolded her even when she had her period during training. He just kept praising her.


    But because of this, she felt her current state was largely due to the coach''s encouragement rather than her own ability. She didn''t dare be arrogant since she wasn''t a genius.


    Today her memorization buff was gone. While reviewing her lessons on the school track, she felt there was a noticeable difference.


    The content in New Concept English Book 4 was more difficult to begin with. Usually she would read through a lesson three times and roughly remember it. Then when she went back and copied it out, she would remember more clearly. Reviewing it again the next day would deeply imprint the memory.


    Now after reading the same lesson five times, she still only vaguely grasped it. She estimated that when she went back she would have to copy it out at least twice, and still review and consolidate it the next two days.


    That was her plan. She would just double her previous efforts. With this pattern, it should be adequate.


    Today was the last day of her language sense buff. She read very carefully, desperately hoping to remember this feeling.


    Luckily she had the language sense buff and memorization buff at the same time recently, so she was able remember what it felt like when she read English.


    And recently the amount of English she read aloud was probably her total for the previous semester.


    Previously she had always felt too shy and embarrassed to read aloud, so she had learned "deaf-mute English". But recently whenever possible she tried to read out loud.


    She also listened to the English program on Ximalaya every day.


    She hoped she would have a chance to go abroad someday and see what it was like.


    This desire didn''t just suddenly pop into her head. It came up yesterday when the tutor Jingzhi, who had excellent English, asked Xiaoqi how she learned English and commented her language sense was also very good. Jingzhi said her aunt had married to America, so whenever she was on break she went to visit. Her aunt''s family all spoke English there, so her language sense was quite natural.


    It described another distant, distant world that Xiaoqi never dared dream of before. But now she thought of it a little bit.


    She walked while reviewing her book. When she got tired from walking she would sit under a streetlamp and rest for a bit, then continue reviewing.


    After reviewing for two hours, she felt like her brain was spent¡ªused up.


    She decided to go for a run.


    She still hadn''t reached her 30,000 daily step goal.


    She left her school bag under a conspicuous streetlight and started jogging slowly while listening to the English program on Ximalaya to pass time.


    When her back was drenched in sweat, she saw she had almost reached 30,000 steps. She had run for about an hour and was already very tired.


    At this point it felt like both her body and brain were spent. She sat under the streetlight, exhausted. Then she lay down on the sports field.


    Looking up, she saw the night sky.


    Beside the streetlight in front tonight, angled slightly above, there was a new crescent moon¡ªa slender crescent.


    She thought it looked especially beautiful and took out her phone to snap a picture. But she discovered a cell phone camera has difficulty capturing the moon and stars, especially with a streetlight right there. The glow from the streetlight dominated the frame and obscured the moonlight so the picture just showed a lone streetlight.


    So now the staff dorm changed out the bouquet every day¡ªa whole basin full of flowers making it look very lovely.


    Sumei had also changed out the light bulb because her niece often studied at night. She specially installed a brighter one. Previously the room was a bit dingy so she felt a darker bulb was fine. But now that it was so clean and tidy, it of course should be brighter.


    Not having seen it for several days, Min now saw such an elegant room, feeling as if they lived in completely different worlds.


    After all, it was right next door, yet the girl''s room was clean and neat. There were books on the desk, schedules posted on the wall.


    Shoes were neatly stowed under the cabinet.


    Clothes were neatly folded alongside the bed.


    Xiaoqi was still wearing an oversized t-shirt. He knew she wore this big white tee as pajamas at night. It could almost pass as a nightgown it was so big, making her look even more petite.


    Her chest protruded slightly.


    When his gaze shifted there, Min''s ears turned a bit red.


    "These past several days I was with my friends. We organized a short-term training class with pretty good income. Want to come help out?" Min asked.


    If it was previously, Xiaoqi would have readily agreed. But considering her schedule recently¡ªshe had to train for the swim competition¡ªplus she already had 7 students and didn''t feel right taking money without working for it by preparing lessons and whatnot, she probably wouldn''t be able to manage. She could only decline with a shake of her head.


    "That student you introduced last time brought me six more students, so I''m a bit busy now and can''t go. But Brother Min, you''re so capable!"


    In fact, Min didn''t plan to invite her in the first place. The training class he organized with his friends operated on a partnership model with far higher returns than what he could earn independently tutoring. But it was also kind of illegal¡ªessentially an underground operation. Yet the profits were extremely high.


    They already had over 80 enrolled students seeking tutoring or to retake exams. Riding on Min''s reputation of being admitted to Qingmeng University, they kept attracting more students.


    They earned several thousand yuan a day. Sometimes during peak registration periods they even earned over 10,000 yuan a day.


    He was brimming with ambition and quite conceited these days. He didn''t even come back to sleep recently.


    He didn''t like this dim tunnel. Buried here was his dark life and dark past. He eagerly wanted to pursue a new life and move out¡ªflee this place.


    But in this moment, seeing this clean little bedroom, he grew confused again.


    Xiaoqi politely bid farewell and good night, then closed the door.


    Beside the vase of flowers on the table was a large yellow pomelo. The room now carried an additional fruity fragrance blended in.


    She stretched lazily and saw it was past midnight already.


    Qixi Festival had ended.


    She lay down.


    "The host tidied up the room and brought a ray of warmth to the dark heart of the moderately darkening teenager, relieving the speed of the teenager''s darkening, and rewarding the host with the unreachable buff for 20 days."


    The mechanical sound that I haven''t heard in a long time suddenly sounded, strangely feeling a bit intimate.


    The drowsy Su Xiaoqi opened her eyes, always feeling that the neighbor Lin Min was simply an NPC for brushing equipment. Every time she met him, no matter what she did or didn''t do, there were always rewards.


    What on earth is the unreachable buff??

 Chapter 60: 80 Cent Little Sister

    Chapter 60


    Thursday.


    Sunny day.


    In Lvshan City, the late summer and early autumn are mostly sunny days, which feels very comfortable.


    Today, Xiaoqi Su has a big class to teach in the afternoon, with seven students, so her plan for the morning is to go swimming early, and then go to the library after finishing swimming.


    However, at breakfast, her auntie was very quiet. After finishing eating, she rushed to wash the dishes. Before Xiaoqi went out, she asked if Xiaoqi had anything on her mind recently.


    Xiaoqi looked completely puzzled, saying she didn¡¯t have anything particular on her mind.


    "It''s just that I feel you are especially serious today, making your auntie not even dare to look at you."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    Thinking back, it seemed that she had somehow gained an inexplicable aura of being unapproachable.


    She looked at herself in the mirror but couldn¡¯t see any difference at all.


    Today, the memory buff was gone, the linguistic sensibility buff was also gone, and the grace and confidence buff only had one day left. Then there still remained the swimming talent buff and this new unapproachable aura...


    Without the memory buff, she adapted yesterday and found it acceptable. Based on the learning method she had tested, she could still remember things by spending more than twice the effort learning. She just needed to be careful with reinforcement and it was also easier to forget.


    With the linguistic sensibility buff gone, on her way to the gym this morning, she listened to English while reading aloud at the same time. She felt a little awkward, but still much better than she was before the college entrance examination. It was just that she was slightly constrained and couldn''t fully let go. But it would slowly get better once she got used to reading aloud, and gradually regain some sense for the language.


    She realized that although these buffs were gone, the impact they had on her did not disappear. The more buffs she used, the more deeply things were engraved in her memory. Now without the buffs, things were not as smooth, but she could still feel her own progress.


    This was actually something she couldn¡¯t appreciate when she had the buffs, because the buffs let her maintain a constant level. Now with the absence of buffs, she could clearly feel her own progress and deficiencies.


    She used to feel that the buff duration was too short, thinking it would be so much better if the rewards lasted longer. But now she realized that without the buffs, she could better sense her own progress and differences. If she purely relied on the buffs, she might have become useless.


    With this new thinking, her mood improved by a lot, and she went swimming diligently in the morning.


    However, she also felt her coach Peirong Wu behaved a bit strangely today, even saying to her: "Xiaoqi, you are truly outstanding now. Don''t put so much pressure on yourself and try to relax more."


    He was too embarrassed to admit it, but over the past few days at home, he had even watched fewer adult videos. Just watching the girl in his Douyin videos - her lips, chin, neck, he would somehow feel a strange indescribable sensation.


    So today, he plucked up his courage and was determined to go chat her up and at least get her contact information.


    However, in the beginning he felt a bit nervous. After sitting for a long time the girl still didn''t show up, and he even wondered if she wasn''t coming today at all.


    He had a small group with only four people, a few buddies he got along super well with, practically lifelong friends since their parents were friends. Qi Wei was the youngest among them.


    Qi Wei was from No.1 Middle School, Linzi from No. 2 Middle School, held back for one year in middle school and another year in high school, a seasoned veteran from No.2 Middle School. Shen Hao was studying abroad in the UK, and hadn¡¯t come back this vacation. He was one grade above Qi Wei, very mysterious and didn¡¯t talk much at all. Da Dong was preparing to study abroad in Australia.


    They originally planned to travel to Japan during summer vacation, but since Qi Wei didn''t go, the other guys kept asking him why, pestering him to confess after questioning many times. Finally he admitted it, being lovesick...


    The few guys went all out in their group chat, yelling and shouting, even more excited than Qi Wei himself.


    Because they had all watched that Douyin video. If not for the beautifying filters when shooting, that girl¡¯s looks should be around 80 points. Not the kind of shocking beauty, but very decent. Judging from her clothes and belongings, her family background was probably very average. But she was undoubtedly a top student. Her handwriting with a fountain pen looked so beautiful. And she read foreign language original books.


    She would also smile when reading books and liked spending time in the library, seemingly a girl with a very sweet personality who should be easy to get along with. She probably didn''t have a boyfriend and went to the library alone every day. This kind of girl would be easy to chase. With Qi Wei¡¯s handsome looks and family wealth, getting her would be a piece of cake.


    Da Dong analyzed it very confidently. He also liked this kind of innocent-looking girl at the beginning, but after dating three or four, he found they really lacked common topics and sometimes had a bit of shabby aura due to poverty. Real life wasn''t like the idol dramas Meteor Garden where the rich guy always falls for the very poor but independent girl. That simply wasn''t realistic. It would actually be quite awkward being together in reality.


    "Listen to Brother Dong, flowers, bags, meals at fancy restaurants, and going for rides in his car if necessary. 10 days, no, 5 days to get her, guaranteed she will give you WeChat messages every day after that, so annoying you¡¯d wanna block her."


    "Go for it, Little Qi."


    "Remember to record a video and report on your progress, haha," said one of Qi Wei''s friends.


    "Yeah, yeah, yeah, just turn on the video and let your brothers advise you and provide on-site guidance," added another.


    Qi Wei only half-listened to his friends'' analysis. At the moment, he was more focused on appreciating the view.


    It had taken a great deal of lively chatter in their group chat before things finally started blossoming around 10 PM, when someone at last sat down in the previously vacant seat across from Qi Wei.


    When Qi Wei glanced up and saw the figure in the doorway, he scrambled to set up his phone stand and hit record on the video, pretending to look at his book.


    Xiao Qi entered just as she always did, sitting in her usual spot with an armful of books which she set down before beginning to prepare for class, utterly engrossed in her work.


    Qi Wei stole a glance at his brothers'' chat group, only to find that, for some inexplicable reason, it had suddenly fallen silent with no one saying a word.

 Chapter 61: Dare not talk to the Little Sister

    Chapter 61


    Just coming out from the swimming pool, taking a shower with fluffy hair that was slightly longer, the kind when short hair gets too long, Little Seven took a black hair band and tied all her hair up, making a small twist at the back of her head, and some wisps of hair still falling on the sides of her forehead and ears.


    She had been very busy recently, and should have gone for a haircut.


    Little Seven used to have long hair, but after entering high school and receiving the admission letter that required short hair to participate in military training, she obediently cut her hair short according to the requirements in the letter. After arriving at the school, she found out there were still female students with long hair, and the school did not really enforce the requirement to cut hair short.


    Those female students who really cut their hair short according to the requirements regretted it afterwards. Little Seven also regretted it a little, but after cutting her hair short, it was hard to grow it long again, so she just maintained short hair since then.


    Previously at 108 pounds, her face looked still a little chubby. With intensive exercising recently, her weight dropped significantly, and her face became much smaller, while her eyes remained the same as before, not big, but very long eyelashes.


    In the video Qi Wei saw, there was a girl carrying many books over, including an English dictionary, original English books, and English textbooks.


    Without looking at anyone, she started reading and making notes.


    After 10 o¡¯clock, the sunshine had crawled in from outside the window, crawled to the middle of the desk. The girl happened to be behind the sunshine.


    The seemingly easily hooked up 80-point girl Da Dong bragged about solemnly, at this moment in the video, unexpectedly exhibited some kind of unspeakable aura. She was focused, serious, and even somewhat stern.


    Sitting there, her whole body seemed to emit an aura.


    Not easy to provoke.


    Let alone hook up, strike up a conversation or hit on her.


    After a long while, Shen Hao, who was studying in the UK one grade above them and seldom spoke in the group, was the first to talk.


    ¡°Little Qi, I think you''d better give it up. This girl is just studying hard. If you just want to play around, don''t disturb her and find another target.¡±


    Qi Wei also felt a bit nervous. The words he had prepared to confess and the tricks he was going to use were all forgotten when he saw the girl today. He felt somehow being seen through and was very embarrassed.


    He didn''t expect that Shen Ge, who seldom participated in their discussion and seemed not to check the group at all, would suddenly speak.


    And Da Dong, who was usually talkative, fell silent.


    At this moment, Little Seven just happened to gain a strange buff. In fact, her ears were still soft. When going shopping, she couldn¡¯t withstand the slight enthusiasm from shop assistants.


    A large part of this personality was influenced by her family environment.


    Little Seven''s dad Su Youfu was a bit cowardly, not fighting back or retaliating when mocked by others or cursed by his mother-in-law. Although mom Sheng Juanhua had a more irritable and unconstrained personality, she still listened to dad on important matters, leading Little Seven to subconsciously take more after dad.


    These things were deeply ingrained in the bones and usually hard to change.


    Little Seven didn¡¯t think so much at this point. Reading for a while made her eyes tired. She got up and walked to the window.


    From here she could see the Lv River not far away, long and wide, looking like a green silk scarf wrapping around the whole Lvshan City under the reflection of the mountains on the opposite river bank.


    After enjoying the view and taking a rest from reading, Little Seven continued her lesson preparation.


    With 7 students across 3 levels, she needed to prepare 3 sets of teaching plans. Luckily these students were quite obedient, all girls, and seemed easy to teach.


    Time went by quickly when she was working. Little Seven felt her neck sore. When she got up and stretched, she happened to glance at her watch and surprisingly, it was still showing 8 o¡¯clock with water inside...She forgot to take it off when swimming and water got into it.


    This watch was gifted by Xia Zhen, and she''d been wearing it all the time.


    Even after she and Xia Zhen lost contact after that night at the Huoba bar, she didn''t throw it away. She wasn''t the kind of melodramatic heroine in romance novels who would throw stuff away when upset. But now the watch was indeed broken.


    It was sold for 30 yuan at the boutique shop at the school gate and had accompanied her for a long time.


    Checking her phone, it was already 12:30 pm. Little Seven packed up her books and notes into her bag.


    She took off her watch and walked to the trash can nearby. Letting go of her hand, the watch fell into the can.


    She was going to buy herself a new watch since she got used to checking time on her wrist.


    After Little Seven left, Qi Wei, who was frustrated all morning, actually went to dig the trash can, for the first time in his life, utterly humiliating.


    Luckily the trash was very clean, with just some waste paper and the broken watch inside.


    He picked up the watch furtively and quickly rinsed it in the restroom, feeling like a pervert.

 Chapter 62: Learn English by Singing

    Chapter 62


    After leaving the library, Xiaoqi did not go back to her aunt''s dormitory. She was running short on time today, so she could only call her aunt to say she wouldn''t be back for lunch.


    In recent days, Xiaoqi had been trying hard to balance her sense of smell and not intentionally sniff things.


    Seeing KFC, Xiaoqi walked in. There were many people, but the queue moved efficiently. Xiaoqi ordered a hamburger and coke combo meal according to her appetite, plus an extra hamburger.


    Two hamburgers, a coke, some fries, Xiaoqi got her piping hot meal.


    With the taste buds of a pig, Su Xiaoqi found the meal to be pretty good, mainly because it was hot and the oiliness was neutralized by the breading. The vegetables were a bit overcooked and there was a bit too much salad, but when hungry, these were minor issues.


    With the slightly salty, crispy fries and chilled coke, the overall experience was nice.


    Though after finishing, the aftertaste was not so nice. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    It was very satisfying to eat.


    But very greasy after finishing. That was probably the feeling.


    After lunch it was already one o''clock. Xiaoqi walked to Ms. Liang''s home.


    She would normally feel sleepy after eating, but the walk helped her fight it off. She listened to English lessons on her phone as she walked.


    Though this was only her second time teaching, Xiaoqi felt more nervous than last time.


    After all, today she didn''t have the memory buff anymore, nor the sense for language buff, so even as she walked, she was following along the audio lessons to study English. Fortunately there weren''t many pedestrians at noon, otherwise hearing someone muttering bird language to themselves would probably cause people to think she was crazy.


    But Xiaoqi discovered another method to study English - singing English songs. Previously she was just an average singer and didn''t even like singing Chinese songs, let alone attempting English ones.


    But now she felt singing was quite easy. And it was better for memorization than pure recitation. If it was a song, she could remember it after singing it once, because the melody helps, singing lyrics along with the tune makes memorizing very easy. Especially after losing her memory buff, Xiaoqi realized this. It was simply a shortcut to cheating memorization.


    But this was limited to set songs. She didn''t yet have the ability to take a textbook passage and turn it into a singable song herself.


    This didn''t prevent her from listening to English songs occasionally though. And trying to sing along still felt more effective for language sense than just repeating after audio.


    So she spent her walk humming and singing. By the time she reached the tutoring venue, she had gone through two or three English songs already. Learning them alongside New Concept Book 4 felt much more relaxed this way.


    At half past one, she rang the doorbell on time.


    Ms Liang usually left home at 2pm. Seeing Xiaoqi arrive, she was very warm and welcoming.


    This young girl always arrived early and left late. As the boss, she really appreciated employees like this - especially given her young age, Liang was very impressed with her discipline.


    The girl had come early, not just this once but every time after too.


    Opening the door today and seeing the girl change shoes to come in and greet, Liang Huaying suddenly had a feeling that this girl would undoubtedly have a bright future ahead. Despite her youth, she gave off the air of a teacher already that Liang subconsciously called out "Teacher Su has arrived!"


    Time passed quickly alternating between them.


    She gave Guan Jingzhi the original English book she was reading before, The Little Prince, telling her to write a reading reflection on it.


    The group with the weakest English foundations, Liang Jiajia''s, was still mainly going over New Concept Book 1. But up through today''s lesson, they had reached a point of being able to summarize and integrate knowledge already. Xiaoqi saw Liang Jiajia had scored 91 points on her test, a marked improvement from the initial 46 points.


    The two students at intermediate level had already started on Book 2, content Xiaoqi knew backwards and forwards, teaching it with ease.


    The few students were exceptionally well behaved today for some reason, lacking their usual playfulness. Xiaoqi even felt her teaching was a bit too stern and solemn as she shared her own experiences of studying English.


    Singing English songs.


    After nearly three hours of obedience, Liang Jiajia couldn''t sit still anymore. She couldn''t really edit Teacher Xiao Qi into a news anchor. Hearing the teacher mention English songs, she immediately piped up "Teacher, sing us one!"


    Even Guan Jingzhi gazed at her expectantly.


    The other girls finally chimed in pleadingly as well.


    Xiaoqi did not decline either. With her language sense buff missing today, the lecture had actually left her feeling a bit tense. But singing she could handle. And she had learned many songs recently.


    "Alright then, let''s end today''s lesson with an English song - ''Say You Say Me.''"


    In the evening study, the air conditioner had quieted to a balanced, silent state.


    The desk was covered with books and workbooks.


    "Say you, say me speak of yourself, speak of me


    I had a dream, I had an awesome dream


    People in the park


    Playing games in the dark


    Believe in who you are


    Have faith that you are the one


    You are a shining star......oh, you yourself are a shining star


    Say it together, naturally, let''s all say it together naturally......


    The gentle tones, melodious singing, like a river, ding-dong sounding, flowing slowly, sometimes a bit slow, then gradually getting faster, becoming passionate and sonorous, as if expelling all the turbid air from the chest.


    Xiao Qi really liked this song, not only for learning English, but also because singing it always makes one feel full of hope and strength.


    The camera continues flashing, and the eyes of several students are also flashing.

 Chapter 63: Receiving a Gift

    Chapter 63


    Xiao Qi walked back to her aunt''s dormitory, bathed in the glow of the evening sky.


    Her steps were much lighter than before, and she couldn''t help but bounce and skip along.


    Finally, she had successfully fooled her way through another class. The next class wouldn''t be until next Tuesday, so she felt a wave of relaxation.


    Teaching seven students was still quite stressful, and Xiao Qi felt that her abilities were lacking and her skills were limited. She worried about not being able to teach well.


    But even Guan Jingzhi, her classmate, looked at her with admiring eyes. Xiao Qi couldn''t help but feel a little proud.


    "Ring ring..."


    The sound of her old-fashioned mobile phone rang, and she answered the call.


    It was her parents calling. She had been wondering why they hadn''t called her yet. Maybe they couldn''t figure out the phone, she had tried calling them that night but couldn''t get through.


    It turned out that Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua thought the new phone needed to be turned off and charged, so it was charging all night, and Xiao Qi couldn''t get through.


    "Xiao Qi, it''s me, your dad. Your third uncle''s son is getting married this Saturday. Your grandma wants you and your third uncle to come and have a drink. Your third uncle will call you. The wedding banquet is around noon on Saturday, probably at some business hotel."


    "Xiao Qi, have you eaten? It''s your mom. Remember to eat on time."


    After her dad finished speaking, the phone was taken away from her.


    Looking at the time, it was a little after five, which was not yet time for dinner. It seemed that every time she talked to her parents, they would ask if she had eaten.


    "I haven''t eaten yet. I just finished class and I''m heading to Auntie''s house."


    "I told you to call later. It''s not safe to talk on the phone while walking," Su Youfu complained from the other end of the phone.


    Sheng Juanhua was also worried and said anxiously, "Then I won''t say much. Remember to eat, buy whatever you need, and if you don''t have enough money, call your mom."


    Then they hung up the phone. It was really just like the previous call to Grandma Liu''s house. Xiao Qi probably hadn''t gotten used to the phone yet.


    On the way, Xiao Qi bought some steamed buns. There were quite a few dishes that her dad had brought, so she stir-fried two vegetables, steamed the buns, and had porridge for dinner.


    She noticed that Auntie had been in good spirits lately and seemed to have lost weight.


    Full of energy.


    "Do you have any plans for tonight, Xiao Qi?" Su Simei asked.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t resist and had to go along with it.


    If she were buying clothes for herself, she would definitely buy T-shirts and pants. However, her aunt believed that girls should wear dresses. It seemed that the dresses she bought for her cousin Feifei were all dresses as well.


    Xiao Qi changed into a gorgeous, colorful dress that resembled a princess gown in the mirror. Looking at herself, she felt a bit unfamiliar, but she still couldn''t get used to it, so she walked out.


    However, Su Simei praised her repeatedly, saying, "Girls should wear dresses. Dresses look good on you."


    She urged Xiao Qi to continue trying on new dresses.


    It was apparent that her aunt liked the glamorous princess style, probably because she lacked material things in her era and always felt that these kinds of dresses were beautiful.


    Xiao Qi currently had a very good body proportion. With her daily running and swimming, her legs looked straight, slender, and fit. Her upper body didn''t appear broad, and she still looked like a young girl, except her chest was relatively small.


    All the dresses she tried on looked good when she walked out, but Xiao Qi really didn''t want to wear them. She felt like a birthday gift, uncomfortable all over.


    In the end, she chose jeans and a T-shirt for herself, but under her aunt''s gaze, the T-shirt she picked was not the usual plain and ordinary type. Instead, she chose a short-sleeved doll shirt. Originally, she wanted a beige one, but her aunt replaced it with a light pink one.


    When she tried it on, Xiao Qi instantly liked it.


    The washed-out white jeans were of a normal denim color, not an extremely tight fit, just a regular slim fit.


    But they perfectly showcased the well-toned shape of the young girl''s legs. Her buttocks were slightly raised, her waist was slender, and she wore a light pink doll shirt on top, revealing her neck and arms. Xiao Qi already had fair skin to begin with, and the combination made her look clean and beautiful.


    Xiao Qi liked her outfit very much. It was comfortable to wear, and she had just checked the price tags in the fitting room. The top cost a little over 300 yuan, while the pants were a bit more expensive at over 500 yuan. However, jeans were durable and compared to the skirts her aunt had just bought, they were cheaper. Those chiffon skirts cost over 1,000 yuan each. After all, Aunt Su worked hard, and Xiao Qi didn''t want to ask for something so expensive.


    When they were checking out, Su Simei still bought Xiao Qi the outfit and even added another skirt.


    Su Simei couldn''t resist Xiao Qi''s insistence and didn''t buy the colorful skirt that Xiao Qi tried on initially. Su Simei thought it looked beautiful, like a flower girl at a wedding, but Xiao Qi found it too flashy. She reluctantly chose a white long dress with a light pink layer at the waist and hem. The dress was simple overall, not too flashy when she wore it, and it was also more affordable, costing just over 700 yuan.


    Su Simei happily paid for the clothes and then took Xiao Qi upstairs to buy herself a pair of pants. When Su Simei said she was buying pants, she really meant it. She didn''t buy anything extra. If it fit and looked good, she paid and left in a hurry.


    Compared to patiently accompanying her to try on clothes, this was probably Aunt Su''s limit.


    Xiao Qi felt deeply moved.


    After buying the pants, Su Simei didn''t linger and they left the mall. On the way, they saw a stinky tofu stall and bought two servings of stinky tofu. As they walked, they ate and headed towards the hospital.


    "The host receives a heartfelt gift from a loved one, brightening her mood and inspiring more positive energy. As a reward, the host grows one centimeter taller."


    While eating the stinky tofu, Xiao Qi unexpectedly heard this voice. She took a bite and the juice from the tofu flowed out, slightly spicy and slightly sweet.

 Chapter 64: Eating Wedding Wine

    Chapter 64


    On Friday when there was no home tutoring and no other things scheduled, Xiao Qi had packed her day full.


    In the morning she went swimming, then the library. In the afternoon she would go to Auntie''s dorm to practice writing characters and copy texts, tutor at the school next door, and go running.


    When she woke up early Saturday morning, Xiao Qi saw that the amount of money displayed on the interface had reached over 90,000 yuan. If she walked 30,000 steps today she would break 100,000!


    She felt a little overwhelmed and felt that with her current spending level, she didn''t know how she could ever spend it all.


    She was a bit excited as vague ideas began budding in her mind. She had been thinking about it for a while but still felt uncertain. Hmm...she wanted to buy a house. She had thought about it before - whether to renovate her parents'' house back in her hometown or buy a house here in the city. Over the past period she considered more and felt that renovating the house back in the village would be a bit too showy since she wouldn''t have a good explanation for where the money came from. Seeing how confident her dad was, he would probably scrape enough money together first to replace the windows and install glass. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    As for herself, she could buy a small house in Lvshan City. She really liked the area near No.1 Middle School - it was convenient no matter where you wanted to go. If she could buy a little house, it would also be easy to rent out. No.1 Middle School had elementary through high school, the best schools in Lvshan. There would definitely be a lot parents looking to rent nearby to send their kids to those schools. Xiao Qi didn''t have a concept yet of school district housing, she just felt it was a nice area.


    However this was just an idea for now. She had never made such a big purchase before and didn''t know how to go about it, plus she wasn''t 18 yet this year so wasn''t sure if she could buy property.


    Her birthday was in December, so she wouldn''t turn 18 until the end of December.


    As Xiao Qi got up in the morning to make breakfast, she recited English texts from memory. Youngest Uncle had called Auntie last night and said he would come over this morning first. Xiao Qi figured Youngest Uncle probably hadn''t eaten yet, so she should make extra breakfast.


    She steamed three pork buns and three red bean buns, plus three eggs, prepared radish dried goods and pickled bamboo shoots, and stir-fried some flowering cabbage, and cooked congee.


    Youngest Uncle wouldn''t get here until after 8.


    She had Auntie eat first while she waited for Youngest Uncle herself.


    From what mom said, originally grandma wanted Second Uncle to come, but she was worried Second Uncle was too sly and would take advantage of Uncle''s son. So in the end she called over Third Uncle.


    Actually Xiao Qi felt it was a bit strange - grandma had made such a big deal about going to Uncle''s son''s wedding, apparently giving 1,500 yuan cash, and adding another 500 yuan of her own private money. She had made a fuss for a long time gathering the 2,000 yuan red envelope. But in the end, she had sent the two youngest junior family members to attend.


    Auntie was a warm and generous person. Whenever anyone from their hometown came out, if they didn''t have a place to stay they would almost all come over.


    "It''s outrageous your grandma is sending a young girl like you to drink at a banquet. You can''t wear that - why don''t you change into a dress?"


    Su Xiaoqi: ......


    Even when scolding her niece, Auntie was still intimate and affectionate, showing it was a little different.


    She thought about how Auntie had bought her dresses, and it was true she probably rarely wore them. She swam and ran every day, which made dresses inconvenient. Under Auntie''s gaze she still went to change though.


    Youngest Uncle had just been focused on eating earlier and hadn''t paid much attention to his niece. He was still holding a teacup drinking tea when his niece came out from the other room wearing a dress. Su Youqian did a spit take, spraying tea everywhere.


    "Xiao Qi, you''ve really gone through a dramatic change from a young girl to a woman now that you''re 18! When you were little you were dark and skinny with a dirty snot nose. Do you remember when you were in 2nd grade and I tried to cut your hair? My clippers weren''t sharp and I ended up shaving you bald, aiya! I wouldn''t have imagined you would look like this now. Tsk tsk, in another few years you might become the most beautiful girl in Gumula Village, even prettier than Old Cheng''s daughter who married to America."


    Originally Xiao Qi already felt a little awkward wearing a dress, though it was at least a long dress which was slightly better. But hearing Youngest Uncle''s words, she wasn''t nervous anymore and instead recalled her foolish younger self. It seemed like there was a time she had gotten shaved bald...that time Youngest Uncle had wanted to learn hairdressing it seemed, so he bought some clippers to practice on her...


    As for Old Cheng''s daughter who married to America, she was said to be the most beautiful girl ever from Gumula Village. Xiao Qi had seen her as a child. She was quite pretty indeed, seemed super sophisticated and different from everyone else, graceful like the actress Gong Li, with fine brows and eyes. But people from the village were envious to her face yet gossiped behind her back, saying she had become a mistress to some tycoon. After all that was how it tended to go in the village - anyone super pretty or rich had idle rumors spread about them. Judging by success, Old Cheng''s daughter was likely the most accomplished person from Gumula Village, which hadn''t produced much talent.


    Seeing Xiao Qi had changed into a dress, Youngest Uncle couldn''t sit still. "Your grandma called me to go early to help out. I better get going."


    As expected, honest foolish Youngest Uncle. Xiao Qi had no choice but to go along with him.


    She felt like going to a wedding banquet would waste half the day. She''d have to move her swim to evening instead.


    Going so early, Youngest Uncle would probably get called on to run errands and help out with chores. Xiao Qi had gone to Uncle''s place before with dad, and her general impression was so-so because dad had a limp yet uncle made him help fix the toilet, drains, change lightbulbs and the like.


    She had heard Uncle''s son had opened some kind of dry cleaning shop and acted like a successful boss, but she vaguely recalled he was quite old, maybe 5 or 6 years older than Youngest Uncle? She also heard it was his second marriage or something, but she hadn''t paid too much attention, just catching it in passing when mom was gossiping.


    Auntie looked quite proud seeing her dressed up niece, also telling her to go early.


    Xiao Qi thought bringing a book to a wedding would look pretentious so didn''t do it, plus her phone was fully charged - she could listen to English with headphones on sitting in a corner. Her friend Jiajia had also been strongly recommending she watch TikTok, which she still hadn''t gotten around to.

 Chapter 65: The Descendants of the Old Su Family

    Chapter 65


    On Thursday, because there were still cameras to use, Liang Jiajia had to develop the films and didn''t make a TikTok video right away.


    This time, not only did she make one herself, she also had to divide up materials among her classmates.


    The other few were all excited, but Guan Xi, who didn''t like browsing TikTok or posting TikTok videos, also rarely posted on Moments. She was influenced by her parents - her mom and dad were both government employees who didn''t casually post these kinds of things.


    However, she did save the segment of video where Teacher Xiao Qi was singing.


    When she returned home, she listened repeatedly to other versions of that song, as well as the original - the song was mostly sung by boys.


    In the end, she actually felt that she liked Teacher Xiao Qi''s version the most.


    The teacher''s voice was very clean, and perhaps because she was Chinese, she actually felt that the teacher''s singing was more comfortable and nice to listen to.


    The girl''s gentle voice wasn''t the slightest bit mushy - it was too nice to listen to. Over the past couple days at home, she kept it on repeat.


    She had a Bose speaker system in her room that made the singing sound even better.


    Her mom even thought her daughter had recently become obsessed with some singer she was chasing stars of, but hearing that it was a foreign song, she didn''t interfere.


    And while Liang Jiajia also liked listening to songs, she was more obsessed with TikTok.


    Because she had to make TikTok videos recently, her mom had upgraded and bought her a new computer, and the camera was also new. Anyway, just to play around with this, they''d spent over 20,000 RMB. Mrs. Liang truly doted on her, actually thinking this was serious business. She waved her hand grandly and bought them, even saying that Liang Jiajia had to show her the first TikTok she made.


    Last night, she hadn''t made two TikToks she was satisfied with until midnight.


    One was of the teacher giving a lecture - today he was particularly serious and stern. She had altered it into looking like a news broadcast.


    The other was a video of the teacher singing.


    It sounded too good. Luckily she had bought the camera early. Last time when they went swimming, she felt her phone wasn''t enough, otherwise her phone definitely wouldn''t have recorded the teacher''s singing well.


    Liang Jiajia was now a brainless fan. She edited and then fixed the videos over and over, never satisfied, feeling that the video was nowhere near as good as listening to it live.


    But TikTok didn''t allow videos that were very long. Helpless, she registered accounts on some other video websites.


    She uploaded the original videos to keep as a base, before making the TikToks.


    Sure enough, just as she had imagined, the TikTok where she had spoofed the news broadcast was pretty funny and got quite a lot of likes, with several thousand, but the comments were all saying things like "What a pretty young lady!" and the like.


    But the singing video became popular again.


    Her young uncle was a simple-minded man. Whatever mom had instructed, he would be sure to do first and arrange things in the proper order.


    He paid his uncle no mind and still headed over to the gift money recording table first to log it.


    As a result, her young uncle pulled a bit of a trick. The money wasn''t all put into one pocket - the 2,000 RMB. He laboriously fished 500 RMB out of one pant pocket.


    Seeing that 500 RMB, her uncle harrumphed.


    "I already said you wouldn''t lose that little bit of money. Who would take yours?"


    Then her young uncle fished out another 500 RMB from his other pocket, also with great effort.


    Seeing he had more, he bent over, pulled up one pants leg, tugged 500 RMB out of that shoe, then pulled up the other pants leg and from the other shoe - the money in that shoe had shifted around some. He took his shoe off before getting the money out.


    In total it came out to 2,000 RMB, neatly laid out on the table.


    He had been running around all morning...the money fished out of his shoes was soaked through....


    Li Dalong looked down on his rural niece''s destitute family, feeling far beneath his own. Seeing his nephew act like a fool, he truly couldn''t stand watching.


    However, in the current log of gift money amounts, this was definitely the highest. The others were all 200 or 300 RMB, 500 RMB at most, with 1,000 RMB very few. This 2,000 RMB was currently the sole amount that high.


    "This money is from us three brothers together with Mom''s personal savings," Su Youqian said while taking out the money, feeling it was a sizable amount and raising his voice.


    Little did he know that his honest play-by-play was making for an awkward scene.


    Xiao Qi stood at the side resisting whether to laugh or cry. She felt granny had miscalculated. All these years, whatever the family had, granny would force them to give to maternal uncle, anxious that they might take advantage of even a tiny bit from him and also liking to give him face. As a result, she hadn''t let second uncle come but instead let this fool of a youngest uncle come....


    Seeing the 2,000 RMB, her uncle felt it was still not bad. But the way he took out the money and explanation about pooling money really slapped his face.


    He was even a bit embarrassed, making it sound like he was taking advantage of his niece''s family. Wanting to redirect people''s attention, he finally noticed Xiao Qi.


    He had actually spotted her early on - next to his nephew was walking an exceptionally pretty young girl, and he had assumed she wasn''t with them.


    Don''t look down on his great-nephew''s family - destitute eating dirt, only knowing how to dig in the fields day in and out. What kind of talent could come out of there?


    But she had actually walked over together with them. He hadn''t paid any attention before. Now he opened his mouth and asked, "Little miss, are you here for the wedding banquet or the one-month celebration? The one-month banquet is upstairs."


    "Maternal uncle, it''s me Xiao Qi! You don''t recognize me anymore? One time I went with my dad to deliver vegetables to your place, and dad also helped you fix your pipes. You even gave me a bottle of mineral water?" Xiao Qi''s memory was rather deep. Because at that time she was quite young, in elementary school. She rarely came into the city. When she was handed the bottled water, she even thought it was some tasty beverage. As a result when she opened it to drink it turned out to just be water, not as tasty as the water at home even. For a time she even suspected something inside had been swapped out....


    Li Dalong still couldn''t recall her. But since she called him maternal uncle, she should be the daughter of one of his great-nephews. He only had one daughter. Plus she was disabled - he hadn''t paid her any mind at all and hadn''t imagined a young girl from that rural Gumula Village place could grow up looking so spirited and standing there full of poise, strangely emanating a hard-to-describe aura. Seeing others cajole and laugh, she also stood there perfectly calm and unperturbed.

 Chapter 66: A Toast

    Chapter 66


    The man recording the gifts took the writing brush, dipped it in ink, and asked: "Whose name should I write down?"


    Little uncle said: "Write down my mother''s name, Li Fengjiao."


    "What did you say? Fengjiao as in proud?"


    Little uncle couldn''t explain clearly and shook his head. Little Qi saw a brush nearby, wrote down the name and handed it over.


    "Li Fengjiao"


    Without flamboyance, but Little Qi had been practicing her writing recently. Although she was still a beginner, the amount of time spent was increasing.


    Moreover, her beginner-level words were better than most people''s already.


    These three casually written words had a much grander aura and were nicer looking than those of the middle-aged gift recorder.


    Originally everyone felt awkward about whether to count this somewhat pitiful amount of money. Now the topic was nicely changed.


    "Little miss writes very beautifully, she has practiced. "


    "Dalong, this is your nephew''s daughter. She''s grown up nicely!"


    Although surprised, today was his son''s big happy day, so praise was good.


    Seeing that he had recorded and taken the money, honest rich Su asked: "Uncle, where do I move the wine to? I''ll go now."


    Little Qi also wanted to go along. She was only familiar with little uncle. She didn''t recognize anyone else so sitting there would be awkward.


    Li Dalong was used to ordering people around. Seeing the little girl dressed prettily and cleanly, he also wanted to maintain face and go along.


    He waved his hand: "Forget it. I''ll call to have the wine delivered. The shop is over on Maken Road. You guys go inside and sit."


    Little uncle had a silly disposition. If not allowed to go, he wouldn''t insist on asking why. He just went inside.


    The interior was decorated rather nicely. There was a big stage draped in red with many flowers on top.


    There weren''t many guests yet. The people preparing the wedding were still busy. Little Qi found a corner and sat down, preparing to continue learning English on her phone. Little uncle couldn''t stay still. Seeing Little Qi sit down, he went off wandering.


    Little Qi opened the Xi Ma La Ya English program to listen and practice.


    Little Qi also had a big appetite.


    Although she looked delicate with quite good temperament, she didn''t eat daintily at all like others around her who ate very little to keep up appearances since they were dining at a hotel.


    Midway through the meal, the newlyweds came to toast. The groom called little uncle "Little Money". They were clearly very familiar, ordering him around to work. He casually put his arm around little uncle''s shoulder. "Couldn''t find you just now, Little Money."


    Little Qi was now 1.65 meters tall without high heels. Standing next to little uncle.


    The groom was clearly drunk, words slightly slurred, swaying a bit.


    The bride had a slightly protruding belly, said to be a few months pregnant already.


    This "uncle" had already married and divorced not long ago. Judging by the bride''s belly, she was already pregnant when he left his previous marriage.


    Little Qi rarely attended such occasions and wasn''t very used to it. Seeing the swaying groom stagger over, she moved aside a little.


    The groom had people propping him everywhere today yet unexpectedly got avoided here.


    Lifting his head he saw a little girl, unexpectedly very pretty, tall, very young with an air unlike others, probably a well-educated feeling. He was used to putting his arm over people but actually drew back.


    "Congratulations Uncle and Auntie. Happy marriage, may you be together for a hundred years." Little Qi raised her cola and toasted the people before her.


    Held up by the bride, the dizzy groom drank another cup of wine.


    Others teased to drink more alcohol.


    Little uncle quickly said: "My niece is still in school, not eighteen yet. Cola is fine. I''ll drink wine."


    He foolishly downed a cup of wine in one gulp.


    The newlyweds had to move on to toast the next table.


    Little Qi breathed a sigh of relief. She didn''t know why but the groom''s gaze just now was so uncomfortable, somewhat disgusting.


    Even though he was her elder.


    She heaved in relief.


    It was the first time she felt that having a mysterious untouchable buff was pretty good. But how could she make herself truly unattainable as well?

 Chapter 67: The Little Things

    Chapter 67


    The wedding banquet ended and many people got drunk, all Youngest Uncle''s friends. The smell at the scene was not very pleasant.


    But Youngest Uncle was still kept behind to work.


    There were many leftover dishes from the banquet table that could be packed up. Maternal Uncle told Youngest Uncle to pack up several chickens and take them home for Grandma.


    One of the dishes at the banquet was a whole stewed chicken. The whole chicken was stewed in soup, placed towards the end. Many people got tired of eating it and just picked the chicken legs and wings to eat, leaving just the chicken belly floating in the soup.


    There were a lot of leftovers, but basically none were whole¡ªfalling apart. As Maternal Uncle handed them to Youngest Uncle, he said, "Your mom has bad teeth, this is best for her to eat."


    In fact, there were also some whole trotters, hairy crabs, lobsters and prawns that would have looked nice and been more convenient to take back.


    But Maternal Uncle picked out all the nice-looking ones, preparing them to give to other people.


    Xiao Qi could imagine the scene of Youngest Uncle taking back a pile of fragmented food, but Grandma would still proudly show it off to the neighbors, bragging "this is what my eldest son brought back for me to eat from his wedding banquet at the big hotel, he specifically called Youngest Uncle to get it for me to eat..."


    After Youngest Uncle packed up the food, he helped clean up. Xiao Qi waited at the entrance of the hotel. Cars came and went. The sunshine was bright, almost glaring.


    A gust of wind blew past and the small tree on the roadside shook gently. Xiao Qi''s stray strands of hair were also blown up by the wind.


    She took a deep breath. She felt she shouldn''t be like this. She only attended a relative''s wedding but somehow her perspective had narrowed substantially, only paying attention to little things¡ªbeing bossed around to work, the subpar leftovers she got. She was just feeling wronged over minor issues.


    If she kept focusing on these trivial matters and let them make her angry, nothing would change and she would just be wasting her time.


    She was angry about the unfair treatment, but if her family''s situation persisted, the treatment wouldn''t change either. Getting angry was futile.


    She looked up at the trees. Dappled sunlight shone down from the leaves onto her fair face.


    She felt a bit annoyed but also came to some realization.


    She didn''t know how good she looked in this moment.


    In her white dress and flat shoes, her slender and shapely legs.


    Her long eyelashes, somewhat messy hair.


    Liu Shaowei did not expect his next encounter with Su Xiaoqi to be in such circumstances.


    He lived nearby.


    In the afternoon he had made plans to play tennis with some friends.


    The tennis court was close to his home so he walked over.


    He did not anticipate running into Su Xiaoqi at the roadside.


    At first glance, he thought she was just some beauty, quite good-looking, so he took an extra look.


    Although he thought this way, Liu Shaowei was still somewhat distracted when he went to play tennis, even with Xie Ruan cheering on the sidelines in her cheerleading skirt.


    The 18-year old was more mature than most, already able to weigh pros and cons, gains and losses. But deep down, there was still a shred of regret and dissatisfaction¡ªprobably because he felt Su Xiaoqi was truly quite beautiful.


    Xiao Qi and Youngest Uncle left the hotel and did not go to Maternal Uncle''s home either, nor were they asked to.


    When Xiao Qi stood by the hotel entrance earlier, she thought things over and felt it wasn''t worth her time or effort to dwell on such matters, as that would only narrow her perspective and make her petty.


    It was still most important to focus on improving herself and not waste energy on unworthy people.


    An uncle like Maternal Uncle was simply a bad relative. There was no use getting angry at them. Best to keep them at a distance.


    With the wedding banquet over, they had missed the bus ride home. Youngest Uncle also planned to walk back.


    He had drank some alcohol but Youngest Uncle could hold his liquor better than Dad, half a catty of baijiu was no issue, so his perpetually sunburnt farmer''s face only appeared somewhat flushed. He was walking steadily and soberly.


    "Youngest Uncle, let me accompany you to the bus station to take a bus back to Huanghe Town," Xiao Qi offered.


    To walk back home they would have to take a bus from Lvshan City to Huanghe Town in the countryside.


    Youngest Uncle nodded. The alcohol had made him somewhat livelier than usual without his typical dullness.


    He seemed quite delighted and remarked after a few steps, "Xiao Qi, Cousin told me his dry cleaning shop needs a driver to deliver clothes. He said if I get a driver''s license I can work there."


    Xiao Qi''s first thought was disbelief. That cousin got completely smashed at the wedding.


    Moreover, that side of the family hadn''t been much help at all over the years. They only bossed people around, treating them as free labor. People in business make empty promises as they please.


    However, seeing how thrilled Youngest Uncle looked, he seemed eager at the prospect.


    "That''s fine. Youngest Uncle can start by going to get a license first. Whether Cousin has an opening or not, you''ll still have a license that you can use elsewhere," Xiao Qi said.


    "You think I should do it too? I''ve wanted to learn to drive for a long time but your Grandma didn''t approve, said it''s too dangerous. But this time one of Maternal Uncle''s cousins suggested it so she''ll definitely agree. Just wait Xiao Qi...once I learn how, I''ll drive you to the bus stop when you start university." Youngest Uncle was brimming with excitement.


    Xiao Qi gave a nod. "It''s a deal then. I imagine it will take quite a while to get licensed. I''ll be back from university by the time that happens so you can pick me up from the bus stop then."


    They arrived together at the bus station and Xiao Qi bought Youngest Uncle''s ticket. He appeared somewhat embarrassed.


    "It''s fine, I earn money tutoring now," Xiao Qi said.


    "Big Sister-in-Law said that you''re very accomplished, better than anyone else in our family."


    It was rare that Youngest Uncle praised her like that too. Xiao Qi felt a little embarrassed as well. She sent him onto the minibus that rumbled as it departed. Youngest Uncle stuck his head out and shouted:


    "When I''m back I''ll tell Grandma about learning to drive right away. Once I learn how to drive I''ll come get you!"


    Xiao Qi nodded again and waved in case he didn''t see clearly.

 Chapter 68: Buying a Watch

    Chapter 68


    Xiao Qi plunged her head into the swimming pool.


    She opened her eyes.


    She blew a few bubbles.


    The world underwater was blue.


    Sunlight streamed down from the transparent roof overhead, the water shimmering.


    Xiao Qi swam freely, like a fish in the water.


    Only now did the jumbled thoughts finally drain completely from her mind.


    The splash of water in the pool washed them away without a trace.


    Her hometown, Grandet''s grandmother, her unpleasant relatives, the unfairness...everything slowly faded.


    Exercise didn''t just strengthen the body, it broadened the mind.


    Because when Xiao Qi was truly immersed in running or swimming, exhausted as she was, she had no thought left to dwell on those things. And later when she did think back on them, she realized they were such small, tiny things, they wouldn''t impact the next decades of her life at all, not really even the present.


    After swimming back and forth vigorously for a few laps, the Teacher finally came over.


    She had Xiao Qi keep swimming so she could observe her. After watching for a while, she finally said, "There''s a qualifying round tomorrow, a more formal one. If you maintain the level you showed today, you''ll be fine."


    Xiao Qi nodded.


    Tomorrow was the 11th, the last solar term of the summer. The formal competition was on the 20th.


    "Any issues? Did you watch the competition videos I gave you?"


    "No issues. Yes, I watched them."


    Now when Xiao Qi cooked or took breaks or went to the bathroom, she would open the videos of swimming competitions that Teacher sent and watch.


    "Good. Don''t be nervous. Just perform at your normal level and there''s no need to worry. Come in the morning tomorrow. The qualifying rounds in the morning should finish pretty quickly. After a bit more practice, remember to come get the gear and uniform for the competition from me."


    After the Teacher finished speaking, someone else called her away.


    She was quite busy in the afternoons.


    So Xiao Qi practiced on her own. She swam vigorously and happily. She couldn''t quite feel the other improvements herself, but her endurance really was much better. In the past she would be exhausted and ready to get out after 10 laps, barely able to lift her arms and legs. By that point she just wanted to lie down by the poolside. However, the Teacher had strictly instructed that even when tired from swimming, she couldn''t lie down but had to do stretches.


    Only after stretching could she rest.


    The saleswoman was very attentive, smiling widely, her lips a bright red that contrasted sharply with her very white, straight teeth.


    She looked quite beautiful with that huge smile.


    "This watch is simple and understated, very suitable for students like you to wear. What do you think?" The saleswoman held out a silver watch resting lightly on a black velvet box, encased in her white gloved hands.


    On her slender, fair wrist beneath the store lighting, the silver watch gave off a dazzling brilliance.


    It matched her hand perfectly and looked very attractive.


    "This is a Longines watch with a white mother-of-pearl dial. It displays the date and is mechanical, so it has lifetime warranty coverage without needing batteries. It''s waterproof to 15 meters deep." The saleswoman enthusiastically introduced it from the side.


    Xiao Qi quite liked it. The price tag was right on the watch. She had assumed it would be 1-2,000 RMB at least, but when she looked closely she realized she was far too naive, short by a zero.


    This watch cost over 16,000 RMB!


    In that moment Xiao Qi hesitated, wondering whether to buy it or not.


    The saleswoman continued persuading her, "The watch band is stainless steel so it won''t break. If you flip it over you can see the inner workings. You can wear it your whole life. And if you don''t like it someday, you could always gift it to someone else to enjoy for just as long."


    Amortized over a whole lifetime, the price didn''t seem too unreasonable.


    But Xiao Qi still hesitated a bit.


    In the mirror across the counter stood a 17-year old girl in a white dress, graceful and pleasing. She held up her wrist with a hint of bright color upon it.


    The watch suited her outfit today very well.


    Yet she didn''t buy it, because at that moment the girl seemed to see her elementary school classmate Juan Zhang through the mirror. She had a lovely bag on her arm and pretty high heels on her feet, laughing together with some fellow villagers and inviting them to her home. At that time Juan Zhang looked so beautiful, young and vibrant, fashionably dressed, brimming with confidence.


    But soon after, all sorts of gossip spread through the village about her.


    Xiao Qi set the watch back down to look for another option.


    "This one''s too expensive. I just want something waterproof I can wear swimming, it doesn''t need to be so nice. Something more cost-effective with decent quality that I can check the time on is fine," she calmly replied.


    The saleswoman''s smile didn''t waver as she returned that exquisite Longines watch and led Xiao Qi over to another counter. She brought out another watch for her consideration.


    This watch looked much cooler with a larger dial and rubber strap. It had lots of buttons around the edge and could display the time along with acting as a stopwatch for timing. A thin gold rim encircled it with gold lettering that gave off a modern robotic vibe.


    Xiao Qi saw it cost 1,500 RMB and relaxed, even finding it amusing now that watches costing 1,000 seemed cheap when before that sum used to seem expensive. Clearly her sense of money had inflated quite a bit.


    In the end Xiao Qi purchased that casual CASIO electronic watch which clashed somewhat with the feminine dress she had on. While her watch was sportier, her dress looked elegant and ladylike. However, Xiao Qi usually dressed casually so she felt the watch suited her better, having more functions and being waterproof for timing her swims although she probably wouldn''t wear it her whole life. When she became truly wealthy someday, she could always buy herself another watch.


    Still she felt quite grateful to the saleswoman for introducing her to the Longines brand, something she''d never known about before when it came to watches. It might not be the most expensive but she imagined one day she would certainly buy a Longines for herself.


    Xiao Qi put on her newly purchased watch as she walked out of the watch store. The moment she stepped out of the shop, the mechanical sound rang in her ear, "Host has made reasonable consumption purchases, choosing things currently most suitable for herself. This establishes the correct concept of consumption and rewards the host with a 20-day doubled learning efficiency buff."

 Chapter 69: Learning Efficiency Doubled buff

    Chapter 69


    Xiao Qi, wearing a white dress, passed by a small makeshift market that had formed spontaneously at the entrance of the hospital and bought some vegetables.


    She noticed that buying vegetables while wearing a dress was slightly more expensive than usual, costing an extra one or two cents. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    Moreover, when she squatted down in her white dress, the hem easily touched the ground and got dirty.


    Xiao Qi bought some sweet potatoes, some sweet potato leaves, a slice of winter melon, and half a pound of mildew-free vegetables.


    In the evening, she planned to make sweet potato rice, stir-fried sweet potato leaves, winter melon and mildew-free vegetable soup, and also stir-fry some preserved pork with cabbage, using the leftover cabbage from before.


    Carrying a bundle of vegetables, she entered the hospital and encountered the unmarried groom with a broken leg that Auntie had mentioned. He was sitting in a wheelchair, pushing himself along the small cobblestone path in the hospital courtyard.


    Xiao Qi saw that he was stuck on a step, so she walked over and helped lift the wheelchair a bit.


    Liu Anquan recognized the person who had come¡ªit was Su the nurse''s niece, the girl who he used to see from his bed when he couldn''t get up. He could see her reading, cooking, and she was pretty and well-behaved.


    When he heard Su the nurse calling her Xiao Qi, he couldn''t help but think of the donation number that also had a seven in it. But he thought he was overthinking it since the girl was still in school and he heard she was working part-time during the summer to earn her tuition.


    "Thank you. Do you cook after buying vegetables?"


    "Yes, I''ll be on my way. If Grandma Liu needs to use a pot to make soup, she can come down and borrow one."


    She was a bit curious about this man with a broken leg.


    His leg was broken, his wife had left him, and everyone said he was miserable and unlucky, but the system actually said he was an optimistic and positive person who didn''t have any negative emotions.


    And Brother Lin Min, who looked polite, studied well, got into a prestigious university, and was praised by everyone, the system kept mentioning his moderate darkening, as if he had an antisocial personality.


    While thinking about this, she ran into Brother Lin Min as she was going downstairs.


    Brother Lin Min was planning to go out and was dressed neatly.


    White shirt, dress pants, his outfit was somewhat similar to what Uncle wore today, but the effect was completely different.


    Brother Lin Min was tall, with long legs, and his dress pants were crisp and well-fitted. He had a pair of slender legs, and on his feet were casual yet formal sneakers. The fabric of his pants was shiny, unlike Uncle''s loose and somewhat faded dress pants.


    The same went for the shirt. It was also a white shirt, but Uncle''s shirt collar was slightly curled, while Brother Lin Min''s shirt was very upright, clean, and had no stains. You could see the creases in his clothes, as if they were brand new.


    And because she had just seen him buy a watch, Xiao Qi noticed that Brother Lin Min was wearing a new watch, which seemed to be a Longines.


    The salesperson had strongly recommended Longines watches to her before, so she had a particularly deep impression of the brand logo. The two of them met at the entrance of the underground passage, which was the backyard, and Brother Lin Min waved and greeted her. He had just finished washing his hair, and he looked much more handsome than usual.


    She had learned how to swim now, and it was the perfect time for swimming. Moreover, swimming was really effective for losing weight. She felt like she had shed a layer of fat recently, not only did she lose weight, but her spirits were also better.


    After Xiao Qi finished her meal, she had been running around all day. She spent almost the entire afternoon in the swimming pool. Now, as she lay on the bed for a while, she could even hear her backbones clicking.


    After lying down for a while, she decided to get up and study. It was almost eight o''clock now. If she went to sleep, she didn''t know when she would wake up.


    And today, with a new doubled efficiency buff, she wanted to experience what difference it would make.


    She decided to start studying the fourth volume of New Concept English and finish reading this book.


    She poured herself a glass of water, went to the bathroom, and then sat down properly. The graceful demeanor buff was no longer present, but she found that it still left some traces on her, and she had to maintain it herself.


    It was like someone had forced her to sit up straight before, and now it had become subconscious, but she had to actively maintain it.


    She glanced at her watch; it was exactly eight o''clock.


    Opening the well-thumbed fourth volume of New Concept English, she began by transcribing what she had memorized yesterday, using it as a review and reinforcement.


    As the pen tip touched the paper, scribble-scrabble, time passed like sand slipping through an hourglass.


    At this moment, she was completely absorbed, focused and undistracted, as if she had blocked out all external sounds, supremely concentrated.


    Normally, she would get up and stroll around or suddenly pick up her phone, inevitably getting distracted.


    But today, when the clock struck nine, her set alarm went off, and she finished her study session.


    A full hour had passed, and she looked at the courses she had transcribed, which were two or three times more than usual.


    What used to feel arduous and hard to remember in the fourth volume of English now seemed simple and easy during that hour.


    It was more than just doubling her study efficiency; she felt that one focused hour of studying could achieve the same results as three hours before.


    However, at this moment, her mind was a little tired, and she felt like collapsing back onto her bed.


    Having experienced the buff''s enhancement and subsequent disappearance, Xiao Qi felt that the buff could be memorized and learned. The more she used the buff, the more traces it left on her.


    Her memory and sense of language were better than before, and she carried herself with more grace.


    So, she was very excited about the efficiency buff. If she could benefit from the efficiency buff, it meant she could learn more content.


    She had originally thought about learning another language, but she always felt that she had the desire but lacked the ability. Now, it seemed that this problem was being solved, and she wanted to learn Japanese. Liu Shaowei liked watching Japanese anime and had shared it with her before. At that time, she thought it was really cool when Liu Shaowei could say a few words in Japanese.


    Now, Xiao Qi rarely thought of Liu Shaowei, but she still remembered the Japanese anime he liked. She decided to learn Japanese.

 Chapter 70: : Swimming Preliminaries

    Chapter 70


    August 11th, Sunday, sunny.


    I learned that there was a swimming competition (preliminary) today, and my niece Xiao Qi would also participate. Su Simei specifically asked someone to switch shifts so she could go early to cheer for Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi did not have much sense of competition at first. As a result, her aunt was more nervous than her. Su Simei got up early in the morning to cook, worried that she would constantly want to go to the bathroom. In the morning, she did not even make porridge, but hot milk and toasted buns, paired with pickles.


    Su Simei also deliberately dressed up a bit and wore her most flamboyant skirt, saying she wanted to cheer for Xiao Qi.


    The skirt Su Simei wore was really ostentatious. In fact, if Su Simei lost 50 pounds, wearing such a flamboyant skirt with a smile, she might have had the feeling of a model in a publicity poster. It''s just that with Su Simei¡¯s current weight, wearing this skirt was indescribable. But as long as Su Simei was happy, it was fine.


    Xiao Qi wore light shorts and a T-shirt because she would mainly wear a swimsuit later anyway, so it was easy to change.


    They arrived at the gym early in the morning. Sure enough, because there was going to be a competition, there were many people. Early in the morning, the parking lot at the entrance of the gym, as well as both sides of this road, were full of cars. A huge red arch-shaped inflatable was also blown up at the entrance for publicity.


    There were also red publicity banners.


    "Pre-congratulations on the complete success of the 16th Jingnan Provincial Swimming Select Competition."


    There were a bunch of other banners around, all from various sponsors, as well as Lee''s special fragrant buns and Old Street Crayfish...


    "It''s quite lively. I heard Coach Wu say that I thought it was just an internal small competition. I didn''t expect so many people," Su Simei said in surprise.


    Xiao Qi was also quite surprised. Because the coach said it was very simple, she also thought it was a small competition. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    At this moment, seeing a bus stop at the entrance of the stadium one after another, people got off one after another, dressed in neat and uniform clothes. Looking at her sportswear, she seemed very irregular.


    Xiao Qi did not stay at the entrance for too long and went in first.


    After changing into a new swimsuit and rinsing off in the shower, her swimming goggles hung around her neck. Aunt did not change clothes and diligently helped carry things.


    Xiao Qi came out with a bath towel on. Aunt helped her carry water and her bag. At this moment, she felt good to have someone accompany her. It was indeed inconvenient to be alone. There were many people today and coaches were also busy.


    When she walked into the swimming hall, there were indeed a lot more people already. The swimming pool was not open to the public today.


    So the people who came should be those participating in the preliminary contestants and their relatives, coaches?


    "You are Coach Wu''s student, right? I am Zeng Tingting."


    "Hello." Xiao Qi reached out and shook hands with the other party. She felt the other party''s hands were soft but quite powerful.


    The feeling of years of swimming.


    "Coach Wu said you are very outstanding. But you haven''t been swimming for long. Just get familiar with it today, don''t be nervous."


    "Mm-hmm." Xiao Qi was not nervous at all originally. She was much more confident now than before.


    With the sound of the start of the competition, everyone stopped chatting and watched the track attentively, listening to the broadcast.


    Soon Xiao Qi heard her name called and went to prepare.


    As coach Wu was responsible for maintaining order at the scene today, he could only take the opportunity to speak when Xiao Qi was about to enter the field.


    "Don''t be nervous, just play at your usual level."


    The lanes were standard 50-meter ones. The competition event was women''s 200m freestyle. The top three would be determined by individual performance, and the team score would also be calculated.


    This was why people in the Three Flowers team were dissatisfied that Coach Wu had crammed his newly recruited student in, worrying that she would drag them down. They had no thoughts about the first place. It was said that the previous champion, Li Enya, had already been spotted by the national team. She would only participate this time because she came from Jingnan Province.


    When she really came to the game field, Xiao Qi finally felt a little nervous.


    The lane she usually swam in was equipped with starting blocks. With the whistle sounding, the athletes stood on the starting blocks and prepared.


    On the opposite side, her plump aunt waved a red flag she obtained from someone whose target was big so she could recognize it.


    Xiao Qi calmed her mind. Her results were usually pretty good. She underperformed in the college entrance exam which was actually a big blow to her. So coming to participate in the swimming competition was also an opportunity for her to temper herself and not panic during exams. She told herself.


    With the whistle of the interconnected timer, she jumped into the water and then started swimming according to her usual pace, without looking at the people on the left and right, just focusing on herself. Every time she practiced, she tried to be better than last time because she felt there was still a lot of room for improvement with her short practice time.


    After four laps, she returned to the original position.


    Xiao Qi didn''t even care about other people, just thinking faster, faster, watching the number on the screen increase rapidly.


    After the game ended, there were waves of cheers, irregular. The specific results did not come out immediately, but Xiao Qi saw that she was the first to arrive in this group, she just didn''t know how it compared to the other groups.

 Chapter 71: Personal Sixth

    Chapter 71


    Xiao Qi''s competition ended, and her aunt hurried over to hand her water.


    Coach Wu Peirong came over to praise Xiao Qi a sentence: "The performance was not bad."


    Because it was the preliminary round, it was not like those major competitions, the results were not announced immediately, but it was self-evident that Xiao Qi was the winner of this group.


    Without staying for long, she returned to the Three Flowers Team''s position. At this time, many team members were not there, they had gone to prepare for the competition.


    Xiao Qi saw that her score appeared on the big screen in front of her.


    1 minute 59 seconds 56, Xiao Qi didn''t know how this result was, but looking at more than 2 minutes next to her, it should be fine.


    "Do you want to eat oil cakes? I brought oil cakes?" Su Simei had just watched the swimming, her heart was tugged, feeling the splash of swimming, it was like she jumped into the water, she knew Xiao Qi and herself started learning at the same time, she didn''t expect her to swim so well.


    She always heard the coach say that Xiao Qi comes to practice every day, she still thought it was the same as her, she didn''t expect it to be completely different.


    "Not hungry, I''ll just drink some water." Xiao Qi took the water from her aunt and wrapped the bath towel around herself.


    It wasn¡¯t cold today, but there were still wet water droplets on the body after getting out of the water which was uncomfortable.


    After drinking a sip of water, she still went to the corner to stretch, although she was a little excited, but today was only the preliminary round, the formal competition would be in ten days, so she shouldn''t waste time, and the last game was different from usual swimming practice. She felt like soaking in the water during normal practice, she was a fish, she could be a grass carp, carp, fat head carp or something, anyway, she was a fish that was quite comfortable in the water.


    But when she dived down from the platform and heard the electric humming sound during the last match, she suddenly felt that she was not a shark but maybe a swordfish or something, rushing forward with a clip-clop sound. Anyway, her fish species had changed, and she swam harder than swimming ten laps normally.


    So she didn''t know if her spirit was tense or relaxed now, but her muscles were very tense, and the necessary stretching had to be done.


    Her aunt still wanted to watch the game, so Xiao Qi stretched aside.


    The girls from the swimming team came back one after another, and saw Su Xiaoqi stretching to the side, looking a little embarrassed.


    Because there was no one with better results than Su Xiaoqi, they didn''t know how the later players would perform.


    The preliminary round would take a long time, and half of the people would be eliminated in this preliminary round. Xiao Qi couldn¡¯t practice in the water again, and it was uncomfortable to wear a swimsuit, so she said hello to her aunt that she would go take a shower and change her clothes.


    For learning Japanese, she wanted to ask her neighbor Brother Lin Min. She remembered he said before that he ran training classes, so he might know more about related matters. She planned to go out herself to ask several real estate agencies about buying a house.


    She sent a message to Brother Lin Min on WeChat, and the other party replied very quickly.


    "Wait a moment, let me ask around for you, I don''t have direct contact with this either."


    An Fangling was drinking coffee in her office. She liked to grind coffee beans and then drip them on ice.


    On summer days, a cup of iced drip coffee, with some bitterness and fragrant aroma, kept one awake yet intoxicated.


    She made a cup for herself, and poured a cup for the young man in front of her as well.


    It would be more accurate to call the young man in front of her a boy rather than a man. There was still fine fluff on his face, but he was very mature with behavior and manners that did not reveal his age of only eighteen, only occasional panic that betrayed a little bit.


    Seeing him reply to a message so quickly, An Fangling casually asked, "Girlfriend?"


    "No, I don''t have a girlfriend. It''s a little friend from my neighbor''s house who wants to learn Japanese and is asking me where it''s suitable to sign up for classes." Lin Min replied casually as well.


    An Fangling smiled without continuing on that topic.


    Lin Min asked several classmates on his phone.


    Not knowing much, he searched online for about twenty minutes to get this matter done, and sent the results to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi saw the detailed introduction of three of the more formal Japanese training schools in Lvshan City sent by Brother Lin Min. However, Brother Lin Min said his classmate learned at Yamada Training School with average results.


    Xiao Qi thanked him.


    Although Brother Lin Min explained it very clearly, she was still confused and had difficulty deciding.


    Just then her student Liang Jiajia sent her a message to ask what she was doing. She talked about wanting to learn Japanese.


    Liang Jiajia immediately replied: "Teacher, Jing Zhi is also learning Japanese. She said her Japanese teacher is very good. You can learn together with her."

 Chapter 72: Learning Japanese

    Chapter 72


    Xiao Qi didn''t like to trouble others.


    Moreover, although Guan Jingzhi was her student, she felt that she hadn''t really taught her anything.


    It was a feeling of being unworthy as a teacher when you had such an excellent student.


    But Liang Jiajia was an incredibly enthusiastic girl, and since it was about helping Xiao Qi, whom she admired as her teacher, she couldn''t refuse.


    After a while, Guan Jingzhi took the initiative to send a WeChat message to Xiao Qi.


    "Xiao Qi, Jiajia said you want to learn Japanese? I''m learning it too. If you''re interested, let''s meet at the entrance of the Cultural Palace tomorrow morning at 8 o''clock. You can come with me to attend a trial class." Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    Faced with such a thoughtful student, Xiao Qi could only say, "Okay."


    Feeling a bit too serious, she said, "Thank you," and sent an emoji.


    Then she told Lin Min and got up to practice calligraphy for a while.


    She hadn''t practiced calligraphy much these past couple of days.


    She freshened up a bit. The basement room was actually quite comfortable in the afternoon, cool inside while hot outside, and opening the window made it well-ventilated.


    The flowers in the pottery jar on the desk had been replaced with fragrant lilies, blooming beautifully.


    Xiao Qi adjusted her posture, sat upright, and earnestly began copying the character exercises.


    Practicing calligraphy was a tedious task, but at the same time, it was a particularly calming activity.


    Exercise broadened her mind, while calligraphy brought her emotions to a state of tranquility, with more room for reflection.


    Attending weddings, participating in competitions, made Xiao Qi''s mood fluctuate.


    She was only seventeen years old and had experienced very little. Almost every experience was like trying something for the first time.


    And she couldn''t always adjust her mood well.


    For example, when she heard the announcement of sixth place, there was a feeling of, "Wow, sixth place." It wasn''t clear whether it was regret or joy, actually not that calm.


    "Here''s the deal. Leave me your phone number, and I''ll search for options in the next few days. If there are suitable properties that meet your requirements, I''ll call you to arrange a house viewing. The agency fee is 1.5%, as you probably know."


    Xiao Qi didn''t fully understand and asked what the 1.5% meant. The other person patiently explained that it referred to 1.5% of the house price as the agency fee, which covers the cost of the agency assisting her in purchasing the house and completing the transaction.


    Xiao Qi nodded, still a little confused, especially about completing the transaction. She initially thought that giving money and signing a contract would make the house hers. In this way, her parents wouldn''t find out, but she decided to go back and research it thoroughly.


    As she left the real estate agency, she felt a little overwhelmed, but overall, she felt fine. She never expected that one day she would dare to ask about the price of a house... Her confidence was indeed growing.


    She decided not to continue asking the agency for now because she felt like she didn''t understand anything and could easily be misled. She wanted to learn more about it.


    Next, she planned to visit a bookstore. Since she intended to learn Japanese, she thought it would be best to buy some study materials first. Proper preparation prevents poor performance, after all.


    Fortunately, though the Xinhua Bookstore had become much smaller than before, there were still plenty of reference books.


    Xiao Qi saw many books for Japanese language proficiency exams, as well as those for English proficiency exams. She heard that she could take the English proficiency exam once she entered university, so she decided to focus on that later. Since she had already started learning Japanese, she knew she would also have to take an exam for it. However, she also realized that if she approached it like she did with English in high school, focusing only on exams without actually being able to read, it would be of little use. Of course, a strong foundation was crucial. Her recent success in learning English was also due to the solid foundation she built during her three years in middle school and three years in high school.


    Starting with the basics, Xiao Qi chose a beginner''s Japanese textbook and bought a few books on practical daily Japanese, travel Japanese, and business Japanese. They were relatively thin but came with corresponding websites and video tutorials.


    After purchasing these, Xiao Qi originally wanted to look at some extracurricular books. However, checking the time, it was already close to dinner, and it seemed like she wouldn''t be able to accomplish much in the afternoon.


    She found another book on improving learning efficiency, discussing how to organize study time. Next, she wanted to learn Japanese and English, so she needed to plan it out. Although she studied humanities, she never considered the possibility of forgetting history while learning geography during school. With multiple subjects every day, she just went along with it. However, when it came to managing her own time, she suddenly realized it was quite challenging.


    After buying the book, she went back home and had porridge, a big steamed bun, and some pickled vegetables for dinner.


    Her aunt made the meal for her because she knew Su Simei had a busy schedule. Since Su Simei didn''t want to cook, her aunt took care of it.


    Recently, Su Simei felt a bit embarrassed when eating the dishes she cooked by herself. Either they were too greasy or the seasoning was off. After having a few meals of her niece''s cooking, she started to doubt her own cooking skills.


    After dinner, Xiao Qi rested for a while and went to the neighboring school to study English and jog, completing today''s exercise.


    At night, when Xiao Qi went to bed, she saw that her account balance had exceeded 110,000 yuan.


    She lay down and quickly fell asleep.


    The lilies on the desk hung slightly.


    The busy week came to an end.

 Chapter 73: Fifty Tone Chart

    Chapter 73


    7:50 AM at the entrance of the Culture Palace.


    A bustling scene of cars and people.


    Xiao Qi walked over because she had made an appointment with someone, so she arrived ten minutes early.


    At 5:55, she noticed a black sedan slowly pulling up at the entrance. Xiao Qi wasn''t really knowledgeable about cars, but she thought this one looked nice. The paint on its surface had a shimmering effect under the sunlight, as if it were flowing.


    The driver got out of the car first and hurriedly went to the back to open the door.


    The door opened, and a girl in a blue dress stepped out.


    Her posture as she got out of the car was graceful.


    She smiled and thanked the driver.


    Then she walked towards Xiao Qi and said, "Good morning, Teacher Xiao Qi."


    "Good morning." Xiao Qi felt a little embarrassed that the other person called her "teacher." They were going to study together later, so she said, "Just call me Xiao Qi."


    Guan Jingzhi nodded. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    She found Teacher Xiao Qi quite interesting. Looking at her, she seemed aloof and unapproachable. Guan Jingzhi had seen her from the car, standing at the entrance, looking beautiful and serious. She didn''t seem like someone you could casually strike up a conversation with. In this aspect, she reminded Guan Jingzhi of her cousin, who was also very aloof and dominant. But as soon as she spoke, she seemed actually quite shy, blushing even with a single word.


    Xiao Qi was wearing jeans and a doll T-shirt today, which her aunt had bought for her. Her legs were long and slender, and the light pink top complemented her fair and charming appearance, adding a touch of playfulness, making her look very ladylike.


    After exchanging greetings, the two of them entered together.


    Zhou Meiling, Guan Jingzhi''s Japanese language teacher, was a staff member at the Culture Palace. It was said that she had spent over ten years in Japan and South Korea and was proficient in both Japanese and Korean. Unlike those Japanese language training centers in Lvshan City nowadays, some of which were just pretending to teach after studying Japanese for a few years and weren''t really good at speaking it, she was genuinely knowledgeable. After all, compared to English, Japanese was considered a minor language in China, so it was easier to deceive people.


    Zhou Meiling was arranged as Guan Jingzhi''s teacher by her family and didn''t offer classes publicly. However, she did accept a few students who had connections. The tuition fee was not high, only 100 yuan per class.


    Yesterday, Guan Jingzhi had sent Zhou Meiling an introduction about her friend who wanted to learn Japanese. Zhou Meiling wasn''t very happy about it. She was only teaching these few students as a favor because they all had connections. Otherwise, she wouldn''t have easily taken on this responsibility.


    But Guan Jingzhi was one of the more outstanding students, and Zhou Meiling personally liked her. The young girl studied diligently and had a good understanding and quick learning abilities. The same couldn''t be said for the other students. Fortunately, even if some students didn''t perform well, they would lose interest after a while and wouldn''t bother her anymore.


    At her age, if she really didn''t like a student, it would be easy for her to make them give up. Besides, if the person Guan Jingzhi brought along was also someone from her circles, she couldn''t afford to offend them. So she agreed to teach the friend.


    Guan Jingzhi had just started learning not long ago and had only taken three or four classes.


    She had a favorable impression of this teacher. The teacher was polite, taught well, and had a clear and articulate manner of speaking. The teacher also had a certain elegance and insight, perhaps because she had spent time abroad. During the summer vacation, Guan Jingzhi would also go abroad to visit her aunt, giving her a similar feeling of having traveled abroad.


    Xiaoqi and Guan Jingzhi entered a room that resembled a conference room. They saw a middle-aged woman sitting at the front, below the screen where slides were being projected. She wore a professional pinstripe dress with a gold-rimmed glasses.


    In fact, her age was the perfect time for learning¡ªher memory was sharp, and her mind was agile, making it easier for her to grasp new things. However, because of these factors, children of her age were more susceptible to external influences. Learning often extended beyond textbooks and encompassed social knowledge. Their capacity for learning remained the same.


    Therefore, the social environment in which a person resides is crucial, as is the ability to think critically.


    Xiaoqi found this class to be extremely engaging, particularly the Hiragana and Katakana charts.


    The teacher taught them how to read each character, and she followed along with Guan Jingzhi.


    This experience was different from being a teacher or being in a regular class. Small-group teaching had distinct advantages because you could ask questions when you didn''t understand, and the teacher would promptly provide answers, greatly increasing efficiency.


    The class lasted for an hour and a half, and Xiaoqi surprisingly found it effortless.


    Writing was quite easy, and reading was also straightforward. Japanese seemed even simpler than English in many ways.


    The teacher also interjected a few simple Japanese greetings:


    "Good morning: ¤ª¤Ï¤è¤¦ (Ohayou)


    Hiragana pronunciation: ¤ª¤Ï¤è¤¦


    Romanized pronunciation: ohayou"


    "Good morning, teacher: ÏÈÉú¤ªÔ礦¤³?¤µ?¤¤¤Þ¤¹ (Sensei ohayou gozaimasu)."


    These phrases were easy to remember.


    After learning these, it became easier for Xiaoqi to understand her Japanese textbook and the examples provided.


    When the class ended, Xiaoqi bid farewell to Teacher Zhou and Guan Jingzhi and went to the gymnasium for swimming.


    Zhou Meiling was also pleased. It seemed that the new student was exceptionally diligent in her studies. Zhou Meiling had already considered Guan Jingzhi to be quite good, but she hadn''t expected this new student to learn even faster. It was as if she had mastered Hiragana and Katakana in just one class. Zhou Meiling couldn''t help but feel a sense of admiration. People truly differed from one another. If she had possessed such a strong drive for learning when she was young, her current situation might have been different.


    Xiaoqi hummed a song along the way, feeling exceptionally cheerful as she walked.


    Learning new things made her feel good.


    When she arrived at the swimming pool, her mind was still filled with the Hiragana and Katakana she had just learned.


    She noticed that her memory had improved compared to before. It seemed that the more she used her brain, the more active it became. If she didn''t use it, it would stagnate.


    Swimming was a mechanical activity, allowing her to swim and recite the morning''s lesson simultaneously.


    Since yesterday was a swimming competition, the coach didn''t push her to swim too fast today. Instead, they focused on maintaining the swimming rhythm and practicing more. As a result, she felt relaxed, and it was the perfect opportunity to recite while swimming.


    When she emerged from the water and stretched her body, she suddenly heard a mechanical voice in her ear: "The host has learned a new language and quickly mastered the Hiragana and Katakana charts. As a reward, the host will receive an experiential reading card."

 Chapter 74: Experiential Reading

    Chapter 74


    After swimming, Su Xiaoqi went back to her aunt''s dormitory.


    After having lunch, she took a half-hour nap.


    At this moment, the entire hallway was quiet. She leaned against the bed. Since she had pasted wallpaper all over the room, her aunt had also changed the lights, and the entire room was clean and bright. Even the musty smell in the basement seemed to have disappeared.


    Xiao Qi was very cautious about the things given by the progressive system. She didn''t know what experiential reading was like specifically, and there was only one chance, so she had to choose a book.


    After flipping through her own books, she was still most interested in Japanese at the moment.


    After all, she had just started learning it.


    Today, the teacher taught her some daily expressions: good morning, welcome, I am Su Xiaoqi...


    It seemed simple, so she took out the few books of daily expressions she had bought.


    There were expressions for tourism, business, company, Xiao Qi hesitated for a moment and chose tourism expressions.


    After all, business and company expressions seemed a bit far away from her at the moment, and tourism felt like there was still a chance.


    She opened this thin Japanese tourism daily, and at the same time found the website and turned on the dialogue while wearing headphones.


    She listened for a while. It was the script content of the situational dialogue in the text.


    Then she silently recited in her heart: Use experiential reading card.


    Just after saying this, the white wall in front of her suddenly disappeared, the picture turned abruptly, and she felt that she was actually on the subway.


    There was no subway in Lvshan City, and Xiao Qi had never even taken the subway before.


    But the first act of the text happened on the subway. The protagonist of the text, girl A, went to Japan for tourism. She didn''t understand why she would speak Japanese when going to Japan for tourism...


    At this moment, Xiao Qi suddenly felt that she was that girl. First, she observed the subway with some curiosity. It looked like a very long bus that couldn''t see the end at a glance. There were seats on both sides. She couldn''t see outside clearly. It was pitch black. Because it was black, the glass on both sides could be used as mirrors. She saw in the mirror glass opposite her the reflection of a girl with long, curly hair who looked about twenty years old and was very thin.


    She knew that this was not her. Her hair had never been that long before.


    But now she felt like she was her again.


    Then the dialogue started.


    The long-haired version of Xiao Qi asked the person next to her which stop to get off at to go to Kiyomizu Temple.


    A middle-aged uncle next to her enthusiastically said it was the next stop.


    Then the subway arrived at the next stop, and she hurried off with the crowd.


    But she still felt a sense of dissonance.


    Then the itinerary jumped to the third day.


    It turned out to be the last day already.


    The young man didn''t show up. Xiao Qi found an acquaintance in Japan, her classmate who was studying abroad in Japan and had finally made time to accompany her today to go hot spring bathing.


    They also went shopping at a mall to buy gifts for friends going home.


    They ate Japanese-style hotpot with her friend. She saw a lot of sugar was added and finally Xiao Qi didn''t swallow her saliva. She felt it might not suit her taste.


    The day ended; her friend said goodbye to her.


    On the fourth day, she flew home alone.


    When leaving, she called her friend and that young man to say goodbye.


    Tanaka actually came to see her off.


    Xiao Qi was quite curious about the flight procedures but that part was skipped over.


    Then the whole book ended.


    Xiao Qi thought she was sitting on the plane, but when she looked again, she was leaning against her bed.


    What was covering her feet wasn''t the pink blanket given by the flight attendant, but rather the quilt on her bed.


    The time didn''t seem to be very long either, because the dialogue on the headphones had just finished, about two hours.


    She had actually experienced four days and been to so many places and taken so many means of transportation.


    But her body didn''t feel tired at all. However, her mind felt a little sluggish.


    She got up, intending to tidy up and go for a run.


    As soon as she opened the door, she saw Lin Qingqing next door. She reflexively greeted her.


    "Ko-n-nichi-ha."


    After saying this, Xiao Qi covered her own mouth.


    Lin Qingqing also looked confused.


    "Sister Xiao Qi, what did you say?"


    "Uh, I''ve been learning Japanese recently. That''s the daytime greeting, meaning good afternoon." Xiao Qi explained awkwardly.


    Lin Qingqing looked surprised: "Wow, Sister Xiao Qi, you''re so awesome."

 Chapter 75: Bluffing

    Chapter 75


    Running is the most convenient time for contemplation.


    On the playground, the figure of a young girl running casts a long shadow behind her.


    In Su Xiaoqi''s mind, there seemed to be memories of crowded Japanese subways and the scenery of Kiyomizu Temple, as if she had truly been there.


    However, this feeling slowly faded away as she ran and contemplated.


    This kind of experience felt somewhat like a dream. When waking up in the morning, sometimes things would feel particularly clear, but after an hour, it seemed like nothing was remembered.


    Fortunately, this was from a book on everyday Japanese travel phrases. If it were from a horror or detective novel, she wouldn''t actually see any dead people or ghosts, Su Xiaoqi thought and shivered.


    But she also felt that it probably wouldn''t happen. It was as if her own perception of those scenes was gradually fading, while the dialogues from the textbook were becoming more deeply imprinted. However, she had only learned the Japanese hiragana characters, which was equivalent to learning phonetics. Even though she had a vivid memory of those dialogues, she couldn''t actually use them without studying and understanding them.


    In any case, this experiential reading made a profound impression, but it was ultimately just an experience.


    The gains after the experience were not the same for everyone.


    Su Xiaoqi felt that she should seize the opportunity to consolidate her knowledge.


    She thought while running, her steps brushing against the ground, her face flushed and healthy under the evening sun.


    When she finished running and reached thirty thousand steps, she was exhausted, but she felt comfortable overall. The experiential reading had a good effect, but she also felt some after-effects. She always felt a bit dissociated. Now that she finished running, she felt much better. She was still Su Xiaoqi, sixteen years old this year.


    Her clothes were soaked after the run, so she slowly made her way back and took a shower.


    Auntie prepared porridge, steamed buns, pickled vegetables, and some greens for dinner when she saw Su Xiaoqi showering. She just needed to stir-fry the greens after Su Xiaoqi finished showering.


    After dinner, Auntie went swimming, while Su Xiaoqi began planning her evening study session.


    Now she had an additional Japanese lesson, so she felt the need to coordinate her schedule. Luckily, Japanese and English were both language-related, but they were not easily confused.


    She started with calligraphy, calming her mind. She had bought a brush and ink from the bookstore and practiced for half an hour.


    Then she began transcribing the texts from the fourth volume of "New Concept English" and the hiragana characters.


    After finishing these tasks, she went outside to review her lessons. She was still reviewing the texts from the fourth volume of "New Concept English." There were only ten lessons left.


    If someone had told her before that she could finish studying "New Concept English" in a month, she would have thought it was bragging and completely impossible.


    However, this time she had experienced it firsthand. Of course, she had six years of English learning foundations and some buffs. She had truly dedicated a significant amount of time to studying every day and had a genuine desire to learn.


    If she had this kind of determination before the college entrance examination, the results probably wouldn''t have been so unstable.


    The two greeted each other and went inside together.


    Zhou Meiling had been waiting early on. Although she was considered a small leader at the Culture Palace, there wasn''t much to do. However, when she saw Su Xiaoqi''s appearance today, she was momentarily stunned.


    But it only lasted a moment, and she quickly regained her composure.


    Guan Jingzhi''s mother works for the Publicity Department of the Municipal Party Committee, which can be considered as their direct superior department. Her father is from the Military Region and holds a high rank. Zhou Meiling definitely wants to please them. However, she originally thought that the friend Guan Jingzhi brought along would also be from a high-ranking leader''s family. Judging by her demeanor, she seemed to come from such a background. But today, Zhou Meiling looked at the clothes she was wearing and felt deceived. These people may be low-key, but they shouldn''t be so plain.


    Of course, no one initially mentioned anything. It was a bunch of assumptions she made in her own mind. But now she realized something was off and instantly felt displeased. She felt that the other party did it intentionally. She never expected that at her age, she would be fooled by an underage girl.


    She asked Su Xiaoqi where she was from.


    Xiaoqi replied, "I''m from Gumula Village."


    Zhou Meiling: ...


    She managed to keep her emotions in check and maintained a gentle smile on her face. She casually chatted about the scenery in Gumula Village.


    In reality, she only knew about Gumula Village because it was mentioned in the introduction of Lvshan City. It was described as a village deep in the mountains, particularly poor and with inconvenient transportation.


    Who knows where that is.


    After a few moments of conversation, they started the class. Today, Zhou Meiling didn''t mention accommodating Su Xiaoqi further. Instead, she continued teaching the fifty sounds chart and said, "Today, let''s start teaching some simple everyday phrases. Xiaoqi has just finished learning the fifty sounds."


    Su Xiaoqi had no objections. She came here to audit classes with Guan Jingzhi, and after completing her studies, she specifically searched online. This Teacher Zhou was indeed proficient in both Japanese and Korean. At least compared to those language training centers, there weren''t many experienced teachers.


    Lvshan City was too small, and someone like Teacher Zhou who chose to stay and become a civil servant was an exception. It was normal for her to know Japanese since there weren''t many good job opportunities related to it in Lvshan City. Such a waste.


    Guan Jingzhi didn''t think much about it. The people she interacted with mostly revolved around her, and she rarely had to be cautious.


    That''s how Zhou Meiling began teaching everyday phrases, and the pace unconsciously became faster. Self-introduction, asking for directions, and casual conversations¡ªshe deliberately did this today. Normally, these topics would require a few more lessons before being taught. However, she just didn''t want to see Su Xiaoqi. She always felt embarrassed being fooled by a girl from the countryside.


    When Su Xiaoqi used the experiential reading card, she didn''t have any special feelings. She just thought it left a deeper impression than usual. But now, during Teacher Zhou''s class, she noticed something different. Whatever Teacher Zhou taught, she immediately found it etched in her memory with a deep impression. She could even remember the intonation and tone of those spoken phrases.


    It was as if she had truly lived in Japan before, speaking fluently with an authentic and standard accent.


    Originally, the book she found had a Japanese person as the narrator, but the character was a Chinese tourist visiting Japan. When Xiaoqi read it yesterday, it was like swallowing it whole without much understanding. But now, as the teacher taught these contents, she happened to review them again, and she instantly recalled everything.


    Zhou Meiling, on the other hand, was increasingly astonished by the progress. She had thought Guan Jingzhi was already quite intelligent, but she hadn''t expected this countryside girl to be even more formidable, surpassing her by far. Meiling recalled her own attempt to study the Japanese syllabary, spending over half a month on it before she could barely make the grade. Eventually, she had to attend a preparatory course in Japan.


    However, this young girl, on only her second attempt at learning, was able to speak fluent Japanese effortlessly.


    Meiling couldn''t help but marvel and asked her how she had come to know Guan Jingzhi. Jingzhi replied, "Xiaoqi is my English tutor."


    Meiling: ...

 Chapter 76: Discharge

    Chapter 76


    Guan Jingzhi''s English was very good. At just twelve years old, she had already seen her communicate with people in English.


    Although Lvshan City was small, it had everything. The Cultural Palace had even invited some foreign children to visit last year. Guan Jingzhi was also there at that time, chatting with those foreign kids directly in English.


    Meanwhile, Zhou Meiling''s strengths with foreign languages were Japanese and Korean. To be honest, there should be quotation marks around Korean. She had only stayed in Korea for a little over a year and could not be said to have mastered the language. She only knew some basics and could understand simple conversations. Her Japanese, on the other hand, was quite good. After all, she had spent nearly ten years in Japan.


    However, the young girl in front of her was actually Xiao Qi''s English tutor...


    Zhou Meiling could only feel that some people were probably geniuses who had a natural talent for languages.


    Thinking this way made her feel uncomfortable about her own pettiness today. No wonder she, someone who had been to Japan and Korea, would eventually end up settling in such a small city with a meager salary.


    She had taught so many students and often missed her life in Japan. Usually at the Cultural Palace, she could not find anyone to speak Japanese with, read Japanese books, or watch Japanese movies. Sometimes she would even be gossiped about, with people saying she was pretentious and aloof.


    She was also afraid. She was afraid that she would forget all this, forget about her past, as if she had grown up to become a little civil servant in Lvshan who had never set foot outside.


    Originally harboring utilitarian thoughts, she now truly wanted to teach well.


    Her language sense was too good, as if she had stayed in Japan before.


    When class was over, Zhou Meiling even added Xiao Qi''s WeChat.


    They made an appointment for the Friday lesson.


    Xiao Qi was also very surprised. She had originally felt that Teacher Zhou gave off the impression of being a very aloof and elegant woman, a bit like her Chinese teacher from when she was in school, very petty bourgeois.


    At that time, her Chinese teacher had required everyone to buy the latest edition of the Modern Chinese Dictionary, which cost 105 yuan. Xiao Qi¡¯s weekly allowance was only 100 yuan. She didn''t have time to go back and ask her parents for money, and she didn''t want to ask her aunt for money either. Besides, she already had a Chinese dictionary, just not the latest edition. As a result, the next day during morning reading class, the Chinese teacher made her and two other students who hadn''t bought the dictionary stand for the entire morning reading.


    That sense of humiliation was deeply imprinted in Xiao Qi''s mind.


    So she was very careful around the Chinese teacher and would observe her very closely. At first glance, she felt that this Teacher Zhou gave her the same feeling as her Chinese teacher did: similarly well dressed and put together, very demanding of herself and also very demanding of others. Although the teacher didn''t mean it intentionally, her approach was still very inconsiderate.


    Unexpectedly, Teacher Zhou''s attitude seemed different. She encouraged Xiao Qi to study hard, saying that she had a natural talent for languages, much more sincere than before.


    Xiao Qi was deeply moved. If she worked hard and excelled, those around her would be much more tolerant, right?


    Today was Wednesday the 14th, one week before the swimming competition. After class, Xiao Qi hurried to the swimming pool as usual.


    But today, Guan Jingzhi went with her.


    After dinner, as she was washing dishes, the mother of the newlywed groom with the broken leg from upstairs unexpectedly came by with a huge bag of fresh sweet potatoes.


    "Miss, we''ll be discharged from the hospital soon. We don¡¯t have anything nice, just some sweet potatoes grown at home. Please take them." The old woman was afraid she wouldn''t accept them and felt embarrassed that what she had brought was worthless. She set the bag down and hurried away.


    She was thankful for Nurse Su¡¯s care and for often using their pot to cook broth in the ward. She felt it wasn¡¯t appropriate to give it to them upstairs at the hospital, so she deliberately brought it down here.


    It was a very big bag. Xiao Qi felt it was a little heavy when she picked it up. Opening the bag, inside were big sweet potatoes weighing over 1 jin (0.5 kg) each with bright red skins.


    Looking up, she saw a very short figure upstairs, standing as if seated on the ground.


    Behind her was a large bag of things with a small trolley cart.


    After being hospitalized for a period of time, there turned out to be a lot of stuff, like moving house.


    In the busy hospital, few people were actually remembered or greeted regularly.


    Xiao Qi put away the sweet potatoes and went upstairs to see some patient¡¯s family members helping to load luggage into the car for the mother and son pair.


    Mother and son, both old and crippled, apparently would not have an easy life ahead, but the smile never left the young man¡¯s face. It didn¡¯t look forced.


    The other patients gathered behind them chatting.


    ¡°This young fellow''s not bad. I heard he already found a auto repair job and rented a place for him and his ma to live in the city.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, willing to work hard. He¡¯ll get by.¡±


    ¡°I heard there''s news of the driver who caused the accident. If they can get compensation money, maybe he can get prosthetics. The young man¡¯s got spirit; he¡¯ll land on his feet in the future.¡±


    Listening to everyone chatter away with mostly praise, Xiao Qi felt at peace and believed this mother-son pair to be genuinely good people who had gotten along very well with those around them at the hospital.


    Watching as the car drove off and left the hospital, Liu Anquan sat in the seat like an ordinary person, even waving goodbye to everyone.


    Xiao Qi felt that he seemed to be looking at her. She waved back.


    Her heart felt a little sad, yet also a little relieved.


    Since she was little, this was the first time she had given so much money to help someone else. She hoped they would have a good life.


    Just as Xiao Qi was lost in thought, her phone buzzed. She saw a friend request from a stranger and ignored it.


    Then the familiar mechanical voice rang out beside her ear again: "Host, your good deed goes unnamed and is rewarded with one sincere blessing paid for with lifespan."

 Chapter 77: Happy

    Chapter 77


    It was dark.


    At the crossroads, dimly lit, there were several people kneeling on the ground.


    Candles were lit, bonfires started.


    If it were an ordinary day, this would definitely be stopped by the city management, but tonight was different.


    Tomorrow was Ghost Festival. In Lushan City, paper money was burnt for ancestors on the eve, usually at busy crossroads. The roadsides were already blackened by heaps of ash.


    There was a man standing not far away, holding a bucket of water, in case the paper did not burn completely and caused a fire.


    It was Xiao Qi''s first time joining her Auntie in the city to burn paper money at the crossroads. Back in the village, adults usually did not let children participate. Gu Mu Village had fewer people, so they could just burn paper at the riverbend.


    Xiao Qi knelt on newspapers, watching as the paper money was slowly consumed by the flames, the "hundred millions" characters on it disappearing one by one.


    She did not have much impressions of her grandfather, but still followed local traditions with her Auntie, muttering blessings in her heart for her grandfather to have money to spend and live in comfort underground.


    Her Auntie was burning paper for Xiao Qi¡¯s maternal great grandparents.


    After the blessings, Xiao Qi concentrated on burning the paper money, because her Auntie said she was not allowed to go out at night. She had gone jogging in the afternoon, so today¡¯s exercise was enough. But at this moment, the sincere blessing that cost lifespan emerged in her thoughts again ¡ª what exactly did it mean?


    Xiao Qi asked the system, but it ignored her, seemingly a mechanical system, a bit like Apple''s Siri, without any EQ.


    She thought about how she used to casually say, I wish to trade two or five years of my lifespan, praying to gain the favor to become a super pretty, not super smart girl. Of course, she felt she was just joking, not for real. Making wishes wasn¡¯t real, and she didn¡¯t even know clearly what she wanted.


    Moreover, there were no real wishes, nor gods and spirits.


    Yet now she had actually received a sincere blessing that cost lifespan. Was it like her childhood casual wishes?


    It shouldn¡¯t be. If it was a casual wish, it would not have been granted to her.


    But when she thought about it, it still felt unbelievable.


    In fact, what she gave wasn¡¯t much either. She looked up the person who added her, Liu Anquan who was just discharged from hospital.


    He should know that she donated the money.


    Xiao Qi neither accepted nor rejected his friend request, she just left it.


    She just thought, don¡¯t casually make wishes from now on.


    Also don¡¯t easily owe favors or anything that needs repayment, and the price is often higher. It¡¯s still best to rely on one¡¯s own efforts.


    Anyway, having obtained a sincere blessing, what Xiao Qi thought about at this moment were these irrelevant things.


    She checked the sincere blessing ¡ª it could be used once, when she felt necessary.


    Hearing Sister Xiao Qi willing to help, Lin Qingqing immediately cheered up, also forgetting her earlier fear.


    She came hugging a stack of books, pretending to read together. But she actually disliked reading, grades average. Even less interested during holidays. Soon she took out the novel <The Female Supporting Role Wants a Comeback> tucked in her books ¡ª rented from the school gate book rental. Despite having novels on her mobile, school strictly monitored phones. So she still habitually rented books, otherwise her mum would scold her for always being on her phone. But her mum doesn''t interfere with reading books.


    Glancing once, Xiao Qi knew what she was up to. She did similarly in the past. Hadn¡¯t rented books for some time already. Rental books were separate storylines, some templates, some unique. Felt really satisfied from finishing them, emotionally invested in the plotlines. Hard concentrating in class, dying to know what happens next.


    But after reading loads and loads, looking back she somehow didn¡¯t have much impression strangely. Just deeply addictive, Xiao Qi once felt the best life was spending the afternoon without worries or cares, with sunshine, snacks, a novel, reading till the end of time.


    Lin Qingqing started reading her novel, no longer disturbing Xiao Qi.


    But earlier she texted her brother about her fear, asking where he was. He didn¡¯t reply then. Only now replied with a video ¡ª looked very noisy and crowded. Thankfully she had earphones on.


    Not even a word of comfort. Lin Qingqing didn''t feel like replying either, just took a video showing Xiao Qi studying and herself reading a novel, sending it to him.


    Lin Min and his friends were at a noisy KTV, singing, drinking, smoking, dazzlingly disorderly. If ghosts appeared, they''d probably be frightened away.


    Feeling his phone vibrate, he was slightly worried about his sister too, so he stepped out.


    She opened her phone and saw her sister had replied to her on WeChat.


    Sitting under the bright lights was an upright figure.


    Next to the vase, pure white carnations quietly bloomed.


    On the table was a thick stack of books, and on the wall hung a schedule.


    Everything seemed peaceful and quiet.


    Just then, a woman helped another woman hurriedly walk past him, and he heard the sound of retching, the air foul.


    He froze for a moment, replying: Go to bed early, don''t bother others.


    Then he turned off his phone.


    He reentered the KTV private room and pushed the door open.


    "Come now, be joyful, we have ample time after all,


    Come now, love, we have ample foolishness after all,


    Come now, wander, we have ample directions after all,


    Come now, pretend, we have ample scenery after all,


    It itches..."


    Standing center stage in a black, off-the-shoulder dress and high heels, the woman sang earnestly. Seeing him enter, she waved at him, a too-sweet smile on her face, as cloying as overripe wine.

 Chapter 78: She Looks So Good

    Chapter 78


    Outside the window, the sky was gray and gloomy.


    Xiao Qi got up, opened the window, and a gust of cool air rushed in, instantly improving the air in the room and waking her up a bit.


    Lin Qingqing was still curled up in the corner with a quilt. She had come back with a quilt to sleep here last night.


    Now she was sleeping soundly. Her parents didn''t even notice that their daughter wasn''t sleeping in her own room.


    Xiao Qi went out to wash up and saw Lin Min''s mother making pancakes in the yard. She greeted her.


    Lin Min''s mother scolded "Damn girl" under her breath, but then awkwardly said, "Sorry for the trouble. I didn''t disturb you, did I?"


    Xiao Qi smiled and shook her head. After a while, she saw that Lin Min''s mother had brought a few hot pancakes over and put them on her table.


    She didn''t know what kind of flour was used to make these pancakes. They weren''t very oily either and didn''t have much in them, just some sesame seeds sprinkled on top. They were a little salty with a crisp outside and soft inside. Xiao Qi had eaten them once before and found them quite tasty, but since the neighbor sold them, she was too shy to go buy them herself. She had only tried them when she was out with classmates.


    It was still early so she reviewed what she had studied the night before.


    She was mainly going over her New Concept English, all four textbooks of which she had completely finished.


    For some reason, she felt like her English skills had been unleashed, and she probably wouldn''t do too badly on an English exam now. Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    On the gaokao, she had made a lot of mistakes in English and Math. She got just over 110 in English and only 99 in Math. Fortunately her Chinese and liberal arts composite scores hadn''t completely tanked.


    After Xiao Qi finished reviewing and made breakfast, by the time Aunt Xiao Qi came down to eat and clean up, Lin Qingqing had just opened her eyes. She was a little embarrassed, but normally she would sleep until after 11am since she was on break. So with the quilt rolled up, she went back to her room to sleep.


    When niece Su Simei heard that the girl had come to sleep with her last night because she was scared, she just laughed and didn''t say anything.


    Her own daughter was around the same age as Lin Qingqing, but the two girls didn''t get along well. Whenever her daughter came over, she wouldn''t even say hi, and she also liked to sleep in late, never getting up before noon.


    After breakfast, Xiao Qi went to the library. She had a tutoring session in the afternoon and needed to prepare lessons in the morning. Her swimming was arranged for the evening.


    Since she had started planning her learning, she found that she had less and less time. When she didn''t have much of a plan before, she had time to read extracurricular books, daydream, and chat with friends. But now she felt like she didn''t have as much time for those things.


    On her way now she would also listen to some Japanese audio, simple daily phrases, as well as the dubbing from Japanese anime, which helped reinforce what she learned and get a sense of the language.


    She sat in her usual spot at the library.


    This was the third class. Xiao Qi now felt more relaxed. Grasping each student''s learning progress and explaining lessons interchangeably wasn''t actually that hard.


    She was also planning to prepare today''s lesson at the library and then look for some Japanese learning materials.


    He really wanted to come but didn''t dare to come. He dragged his feet until it was almost noon.


    By this time, Xiao Qi had already prepared her lesson and was looking at Japanese learning materials.


    Qi Wei didn''t even know what mindset he entered the reading room with¡ªhoping she would be there yet hoping she wouldn''t be.


    If she wasn''t there, then after he got back from Japan and school started, maybe he would have forgotten all this.


    If she was there...what could he even do?


    It was entirely one-sided pining.


    It didn''t even count as a secret crush. There was no intersection whatsoever.


    Lost in these random thoughts, he walked into the reading room. As expected, no one was at that table and he breathed a sigh of relief followed immediately by an immense feeling of loss.


    His whole being felt empty. It was like going to Japan no longer held any meaning.


    Just then his phone rang.


    "Qi Wei, where are you? Weren''t we meeting for lunch?"


    "I''m at the library."


    "Still going there? Don''t tell me you can''t let it go yet?"


    "No, I''m going to Japan soon. You dimwits don''t even know Japanese. I came to the library to find some Japanese language materials to make an itinerary. What would you guys do there every day otherwise¡ªjust stay at the hotel playing games?" Qi Wei laughed mockingly.


    "Alright, the itinerary is in your hands then. Wrap it up and come eat. Lvshan Restaurant. Hurry up." Da Dong hung up.


    Qi Wei smiled bitterly and went to the reading room. He found the Japanese section and checked out a Japanese travel guide to read on his way to kill time.


    He slowly made his way to that section and then froze.


    In front of the long bookshelf, the girl was on her tiptoes, reaching up for a book.


    Her hair was a bit messy with a little ponytail at the back of her head.


    She was slightly taller than he had imagined.


    She was so beautiful, just standing there.

 Chapter 79: The College Dream

    Chapter 79


    The plane flying to Japan whistled across the night sky.


    I wonder if it would fly past Lvshan City.


    Da Dong saw that Qi Wei had been smiling silly since he got on the car and was still smiling silly on the plane, hugging his phone and taking a look at it from time to time. He was simply neurotic.


    At this moment, Qi Wei was looking at his phone which had been switched to flight mode, but he still opened WeChat and smiled silly. There was one more friend in his WeChat.


    Her name was just Seven.


    He didn''t expect to meet her by chance when he was looking for travel guides to Japan. She happened to be learning Japanese.


    So she was also looking for some Japan-related books.


    Not only did he add her on WeChat, but also chatted with her for a few sentences. She even told him that he could go to Kiyomizu Temple, and Ginkakuji Temple nearby was also good.


    When she heard that he was going to Japan, she also said that if he saw any interesting places, he could share them with her.


    He left a message to her that his name was Qi Wei and his WeChat name was a string of symbols followed by a word "time".


    She also left a message to him with her name, Su Xiaoqi.


    In fact, he already knew her name, but what she told him was different.


    Da Dong peeked over to take a look, and saw that it was the interface of adding a new friend on WeChat. There was only their names and no content at all. What was there to see?


    After a while, he suddenly reacted: "You added that girl''s WeChat? Not bad! Showing her real face!"


    Qi Wei just smiled silly and didn''t care at all even being punched on the shoulder.


    Lin Zizuo next to him had stayed up late playing games last night. At this moment, he was snoring, with saliva flowing out.


    Outside the window was the endless night sky. Qi Wei wished he could immediately turn the plane around and fly back. But thinking of what she said about sharing anything interesting with her, he suddenly felt that this trip was like having a mission. His mind was filled with her frowns and smiles. He felt a little dizzy. Her voice was so nice. He should have talked to her earlier.


    Xiaoqi jumped into the swimming pool. The pool water submerged her. She had a wonderful feeling of sinking down and floating up again, making her feel dizzy.


    After practicing swimming for so long, Xiaoqi was no longer just swimming for the competition to win prizes. Now she felt that swimming was really a very relaxing sport that soothed body and mind.


    Xiaoqi¡¯s next tutoring time was next Tuesday. But now she had to learn Japanese on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. She also needed to practice swimming. There would be a competition on the 20th. So she couldn¡¯t go home either. Fortunately, it was convenient to call her parents now.


    She was quite busy today. It was not easy to talk to her parents. She actually stayed in the swimming pool at night after swimming. The gym would close at 10 pm and start driving people out at 9:30 pm.


    After Xiaoqi took a shower and waited for Coach Wu Peirong to leave together.


    Coach Wu¡¯s home was next to the gym. She remained single up till now and dedicated herself to sports education. She was also from the countryside, not as remote as Gumula Village which was an hour drive to Lvshan City.


    In the village, she was considered a powerful girl. At a young age, she bought an apartment in the city by herself. Of course, there were also talks that she was stupid. What did a girl need an apartment for? Even her parents didn¡¯t understand her and thought she should have bought an apartment for her younger brother instead. Anyway, because of this, she almost had a falling out with her family. They thought she was selfish, arrogant, ungrateful and unrighteous...


    Today was Ghost Festival. Her family called and asked her to go back home. She originally thought it was for dinner. But then her mother brought up the house purchase on the phone again, asking her to help her younger brother. Her younger brother was going to get married and the bride¡¯s family had an apartment in mind to buy.


    Coach Wu became upset.


    Years ago, just because the family had to pay high tuition fees for her brother, she was not allowed to go to university.


    When Coach Wu saw her new student, who looked very energetic and scholarly, she was particularly envious.


    "You''re going to university in half a month. You''ll be a college student soon. How nice."


    Xiaoqi felt that the coach was a little upset today, very different from her usual encouraging and resolute manner. It was rare to hear such an emotional tone from her.


    "Well, teacher is very powerful. I heard from my auntie that teacher bought an apartment near the gym by yourself. I really admire you, teacher." To Xiaoqi, it was true that there were too many college students, especially those like herself who got average grades. But few girls in their early twenties could buy an apartment by themselves.


    "What''s so powerful about it? It''s a mortgage. Our swimming team happened to have a group purchase welfare of a little over 5,000 yuan per square meter. I saved some money myself over the years, and borrowed some from friends as down payment. Now I still have to pay back more than 2,000 yuan in loans every month."


    "Coach, you really are powerful. Houses around here are almost 10,000 yuan per square meter now. The price would double if you resell it. That''s money most people earn in a lifetime."


    Wu Peirong was rather proud of this point. At first, many people in the team didn''t want this quota, but she decisively bought it, even going to borrow money for it. She also asked her parents, who scolded her for a while and refused to lend her money. They said they would only be willing to lend money if she put the house under her younger brother''s name. Gritting her teeth, she bought it herself anyway. Now her parents were urging her to sell the house, simply because housing prices had gone up and they felt it was useless for a girl to have a house. They thought it would be more sensible to sell the house and use the money to buy one for their son instead.


    Originally when buying the house, she had not been willing to put it under her brother''s name. Now being pressed to sell the house and use the money to buy one for her brother, she was even more unwilling.


    But what was the point of telling a 17-year-old student all this? If she did, the girl probably wouldn''t even understand.


    "Focus on your studies, you''re very fortunate to have the chance to attend university. I never had the opportunity, which is why I''m stuck with just the one property. Keep at it, your coach sees potential in you," Wu Peirong said, patting the girl''s shoulder.


    She seemed to have grown a little taller, Wu Peirong thought with a smile.


    Xiao Qi bid her coach farewell at the crossroads. In her heart, she felt strangely heavy. So her coach had always dreamed of going to university. For most people, university graduates were worthless, yet for some, getting into university remained a dream.

 Chapter 80: House Watching

    Chapter 80


    August 16th, Friday, overcast day.


    The weather is a bit changeable today.


    When I got up early in the morning, it was overcast, the wind was also cool, like ghosts had come out for a walk during ghost festival and hadn''t left yet.


    Xiaoqi wore her school uniform and pants, and went to Culture Palace to learn Japanese in the morning.


    Zhou Meiling, who was called Teacher Zhou, saw Su Xiaoqi in a full school uniform, and was completely stunned. She had to admit it.


    She knew that nowadays young girls would absolutely not be willing to wear school uniforms again after leaving the school gate.


    She was like that herself at that time too, unless she really had no clothes to wear.


    Last time she had asked where Su Xiaoqi''s family was from, and Su Xiaoqi said Gumula Village, so she specially checked where that village was. It was extremely poor that even now the per capita annual income was only two to three thousand yuan. It was unbelievable. She didn''t know there were still such poor places in Lvshan City.


    Located in deep mountain high altitude area, the transportation was especially inconvenient. The population was small too, it was almost a feeling of isolation from the world.


    So the probability of not having clothes to wear was relatively high.


    Zhou Meiling was someone who had seen the big world. She had high material requirements. Although now she worked in Culture Palace and didn''t have much salary, her clothes were almost never repeated. She liked the brand Gede Ama Shi. Almost as soon as this brand had new clothes, the shop assistants would call her to come and try them on.


    Originally, she didn''t even look up to this kind of local brand. But in Lvshan City, Gede Ama Shi was already considered the highest level. A windbreaker cost more than 5,000 yuan, a shirt 1-2 thousand yuan. The money she spent on clothes and dressing up was extremely high, almost the biggest expenditure.


    She was currently single and divorced. Her ex husband was quite rich, but later had a mistress, so she divorced him. He gave her an apartment and a sum of money.


    She didn''t have children. At home, clothes were piled up. She didn''t know how many she had to sort out and throw away every year.


    She looked at Su Xiaoqi, the sleeves of whose clothes were pilling. She wore sportswear until they pilled. It showed they were worn every day.


    Although wearing school uniform didn''t look bad on her at all, on the contrary very good, like a young girl in a movie, youthful and bright, it was very easy to associate that with first love and so on.


    She originally wanted to say that she could give her some clothes. Those that she had only worn once, and some that she bought back but didn''t like after seeing the tag was still on. Anyway they were all better looking than the school uniform the young girl was wearing.


    But she gave up on the thought after thinking about it. Young people nowadays have a lot of self esteem. Also, this young girl in front of her had an air about her. At first she thought she was some high ranking official''s child, with a feeling that she was unreachable. Even now wearing school uniform, she was still like that.


    It was just because she was an experienced woman that she would think so much.


    She had discovered in last class that the other party had very good intuition for Japanese. She spoke Japanese sentences without fumbling at all, as if she had been to Japan. She had even fully memorized the 50 Japanese syllables chart, not unfamiliar at all. Her learning progress was not slower than Guan Jingzhi at all. So in this class, she sped up the pace a little bit again.


    She started teaching normally, talked about Japanese humanities and customs, some embarrassing things that happened to herself when she went to Japan, combining it with Japanese grammar and sentences. The class was soon over.


    "Graduated already."


    "You''re too young. If I take a client your age to see houses, the homeowners might think I brought an employee to trick them and they''d be unhappy. But I see you really want to buy a house sincerely. Later when you see it, if there''s any problem just communicate with me."


    Old Wang said a few sentences to Xiaoqi on the way. She didn''t speak, so he didn''t say more either.


    Not far away, halfway up the No.1 Middle School slope, close to Liang Jiajia''s place, but not her high rise building, rather the low houses opposite the high rises.


    There was a big iron gate after entering. Xiaoqi had walked past here before too. This was No. 1 Middle School''s back door, housing area for teachers'' families. Going to school from here was closer, but students were normally not allowed to walk through here. The gate was closed.


    When Xiaoqi saw this place she was quite satisfied. Although it was a low rise building, if calculated it was about the same as being inside school. The yard inside was very big, with lawns on both sides and big trees, very open and spacious.


    The only thing was the building was quite old with vines crawling all over the outside.


    The house was on the first floor.


    Xiaoqi walked in and felt it was slightly dark because there were big trees outside that blocked the sunlight. It was a two bedroom one living room apartment. Unexpectedly there was a small yard at the back, irregular triangular shape, but the space was quite big, like a small living room.


    The kitchen area also had an extra small air well added, it also became a storage room.


    Xiaoqi quite liked this place, quiet inside school, actual area was big, with air well and yard.


    Also first floor. Others might feel it was gloomy and damp, but Dad''s legs and feet were not well. If living here going in and out would be very convenient without climbing stairs.


    Dad could continue making bamboo weaving at the small back yard too.


    Xiaoqi was quite satisfied, but didn''t show it either. She had the unreachable buff on her. The home owner didn''t feel the other party was an agent''s fake customer. Seeing her wearing school pants, she was quite intimate and asked if she was a No.1 Middle School student.


    Although she really wanted to settle it down, she still followed the agent to see another apartment. The other one was also this kind of floor without elevator, but on the fifth floor. The lighting was a bit better, even closer to school, but at the periphery. Downstairs there was no yard, right facing the street. There seemed to be many rental tenants in the building, not many resident owners.


    Between the two houses, Xiaoqi naturally preferred the first one.


    After coming out she told agent Old Wang directly.


    "That set is a reduced area apartment previously issued by the school. The registered apartment area is only 50 square meters, but the actual area is 70 square meters. In addition, the extra courtyard and yard add up to nearly 100 square meters. The only problem is that it''s a little old, so the lighting is average, but the price is also very affordable. The landlord is eager to sell, willing to part with it for 350,000 RMB, which equals less than 5,000 RMB per actual square meter."


    Su Xiaoqi looked at her own screen showing just over 190,000 RMB, not even 200,000 RMB yet...


    She asked how much another apartment was, and the other apartment was 400,000 RMB.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...

 Chapter 81: Praise the second Girl

    Chapter 81


    A person used to being poor might haggle over a couple of dollars, but would have no concept of tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, and might even become generous. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiaoqi felt that she was like this now.


    When buying clothes for a few hundred or thousand dollars, she would calculate it on her phone calculator and make a memo.


    But faced with 350,000-400,000 dollars, she had no concept anymore and felt a bit numb.


    After looking at the house, she told the real estate agent Old Wang that she would think about it and to contact her again if there were any good listings. Then she went back.


    Returning, Xiaoqi felt a little tired and took a nap first, originally planning to sleep for half an hour and setting an alarm. But she was too tired and slept another half hour.


    Waking up, she looked at the interface in front of her, just over 190,000 dollars.


    She scratched her head. Lately the system had remained at Level 5, earning 0.5 dollars per step walked, with no increase. She recalled that she had to do good deeds for the system to unlock higher levels.


    But she also couldn¡¯t distinguish what the system used to judge whether she had done a good deed, helping someone out yet the system gave no reaction.


    It wasn¡¯t easy to just plain do a good deed for no reason.


    Having just woken up, still a bit groggy, there was a knock at the door then. She got up to open it.


    She saw Lin Qingqing with an excited face saying: ¡°Sister Xiaoqi, I bought the wallpaper, are you free now?¡±


    Xiaoqi remembered she had promised to help paste wallpaper for her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not busy now.¡± She went back and put on an apron, then came out.


    From the last experience of pasting wallpaper, cleaning was imperative, moving beds and cabinets, wiping the walls as well with a wet cloth, otherwise too much dust will prevent the wallpaper sticking or else falling off after a couple days.


    Lin Qingqing¡¯s room was in the corner. The hospital originally just provided living quarters for the nurses, at the end of the underground corridor. They had cleared up the storeroom at the end to make another room.


    The window was very small, a skylight, its orientation slanted at an angle, framed higher up by a nearby tree, looking as if a glass-framed picture hanging there, letting some sunlight into the dark little room.


    Lin Min¡¯s situation was even poorer though, with just a bed with curtain separation. The window was on Lin Qingqing¡¯s side so he couldn¡¯t even see the window, his room pitch black.


    ¡°My brother¡¯s going to university soon, after that it will be just me in this room.¡± Lin Qingqing happily said.


    She was 15 this year, simple-minded, not even thinking so much, just happy that with her brother gone she could monopolize a room to herself.


    Xiaoqi rather envied her carefree innocence, unlike her own state of mind at age 15.


    In the afternoon no one else was in the tunnel corridor. Outside was not as overcast as the morning, lifting the curtain a ray of sun came through the window.


    The two spent an entire afternoon rearranging the furniture and hanging curtains. Only then did Xiaoqi notice that the wild beasts print wallpaper seemed specially selected for her brother. With the curtain down, Lin Min¡¯s room appeared as one wall with wild beasts and one curtain wall. Very compact yet still giving a delightful, quirky feel, like a boy¡¯s room.


    While Lin Qingqing herself sprawled largely on her bed, also pulling Xiaoqi to lie on it with her. The two peering at the blue ceiling, green leaf wall, red flower wall, plus a soft curtain on one side.


    Lin Qingqing suddenly turned over and hugged Xiaoqi tightly.


    Hugging her for awhile.


    Then let go.


    Xiaoqi felt her clothes get wet...


    Right at her chest area, as the little girl pounced over just about that spot.


    ¡°Sister Xiaoqi I love my room, thank you.¡±


    Lin Qingqing¡¯s voice sounded a bit hoarse.


    Xiaoqi awkwardly patted her head.


    ¡°You¡¯re really good, your choice of wallpaper has not gone to waste at all. The colour schemes blend very nicely together, I couldn¡¯t coordinate this sense of cohesion.¡± Xiaoqi earnestly said.


    Hearing her praise made Lin Qingqing¡¯s eyes appear slightly damp, but more so, shining brightly at her.


    ¡°You really think I¡¯m good?¡±


    Xiaoqi nodded.


    ¡°Also, you worked very fast. Pasting wallpaper, your speed is much quicker than mine. Your edge trimming was neat. You have very capable hands, high work competence.¡±


    Lin Qingqing¡¯s eyes became even brighter, spinning around with joy. As a poor student, she had always resigned herself at home to be scolded, never washing bowls, pretending not to hear constant haranguing until her ears were calloused. She felt herself useless trash, with parents also cursing her thus.


    But of what use even if she put in effort and performed brilliantly like her brother, still getting cursed by parents?


    No one had ever praised her before, neither parents nor teachers, nor peers of the same age. Even her brother who treated her well, never commended her either.


    She suddenly felt happy.


    Feeling as if she did seem to have some strengths after all, not so trashy as she thought.


    Xiaoqi watched the little girl¡¯s eyes shine with swirling delight, wondering what she could be thinking. Then she saw her again spring up from the bed bubbling with joy.


    At the same time, she heard the familiar mechanical sound ringing by her ear: ¡°Host has noticed the strengths of the neighbouring little sister, giving her affirmation, instilling confidence into this rebellious emo kid, changing her worldview and bringing positive energy to society. System level unlocked, system upgraded to Level 6 Progressive System. Host now earns 0.6 dollars per step walked, capped at 30,000 steps daily.¡±


    Su Xiaoqi: ...... Turns out a whole afternoon¡¯s hard labour helping to paste wallpaper means less than a few kind words spoken.

 Chapter 82: NPC Brother

    Chapter 82


    At dusk, there was a sunset and evening glow.


    The small skylight had turned red.


    The view from the window changes with the time of day, like a transforming painting, very beautiful, always showing different scenery.


    Xiao Qi stared blankly at the window, calculating that she could now earn 18,000 yuan per day - with 30,000 steps per day and 0.6 yuan per step.


    Compared to 15,000 yuan per day previously, she strangely did not feel there was much of a change.


    In fact, there was an increase of 3,000 yuan per day.


    Perhaps because this money did not come from hard work, but too easily, she felt a bit numb about it.


    This money was still not enough to buy a house, she could only keep looking.


    After tidying up the house, Xiao Qi started cooking dinner. After the meal she still needed to study and go for a run.


    While cooking, she was also reviewing Japanese. She was more tired than usual this afternoon, so she hugged the book Elder Zhou had given her to read.


    It was a copy of "One Day in the Life of an Edo Resident", surprisingly with simple manga-style drawings, the cover looked very interesting.


    The author was Sugiura Hiromiko, a manga artist, writer, and researcher of Edo period culture and customs.


    Xiao Qi really admired people who could draw. She felt that verbal expression could not compare with visuals in intuitiveness and interest. If she could draw, many writings would be more interesting.


    But her drawing skill capped out at coloring inside triangles on the floor.


    She had not received focused training in art since she was little. Art class was a period she could use to do other things.


    Reading this manga while cooking was truly interesting. The opening was about Japan''s public bath culture.


    The manga depicted Japanese men with their hair in neat round buns, different from cute girl buns; the front had a U-shaped bald patch above the forehead, if they applied to be programmers they would all qualify as senior developers.


    It then introduced the clothes and styles of Edo fashionistas, also in manga, annotated explanations were like casual scribbles, crooked and skewed. That half bald bun even had a name, called "Hontamo sideburns", which was basically half bald, not sure if it was to get ahead of future baldness by already shaving part of the head bald.


    It was easy to get absorbed in manga, oblivious to people walking by.


    Lin Min came back, wanted to greet her, saw her standing there seriously hugging a book reading, and didn''t greet her, just went straight in.


    But he really liked how the room was now, truly.


    Seeing the flowers and leaves pattern on the opposite curtain while fierce beasts on his own side, although one room, separated by the curtain, it was like two independent rooms already.


    "I''m going." He called out.


    Lin Qingqing had changed into comfortable clothes and lied in bed while turning on music, unwilling to get up, only responded lightly.


    "Oh."


    Looking at her money, she excitedly thought about what she could buy.


    Lin Min didn''t get a response from his sister. He went out, also didn''t run into his parents, only saw Xiao Qi still standing there facing the wok reading her book, now she finally raised her head.


    Saw him.


    "Hello Lin Min."


    Lin Min nodded, saw her reading manga, and asked: "You started learning Japanese? How''s it going?"


    "Just started, taught by a teacher from the Culture Palace. Feels pretty good, mornings on Monday Wednesday and Friday. "


    Lin Min wanted to ask how expensive were the fees, if she had enough money, but couldn''t open his mouth. He could give his sister money, seemed not right to give Xiao Qi money, but seeing her standing there reading while facing the wok, really wanted to ask.


    "That''s good. And thanks for helping decorate my sister''s room, I''ve been quite busy lately, it was supposed to be my job." Although Lin Min felt his sister had many flaws like loving to eat and play while being lazy, she was still his one and only sister, he actually doted on her a lot.


    Hesitated for a moment, asked: "Is learning Japanese expensive?"


    "Not expensive, only 100 yuan per class. I should be thanking you, the tutoring student you brought me to interview last time, she also introduced me to quite a few students. This Japanese teacher was also someone she helped recommend. I can earn enough to cover most of the fees." Xiao Qi said sincerely.


    "Don''t need to thank me, you earned it yourself." After speaking, Lin Min felt he didn''t know what else to say. Wanted to offer money but couldn''t say it. Seeing people coming and going, soon would probably be rush hour after work. He picked up his stuff, and left first.


    Xiao Qi also felt Lin Min was a bit odd, just couldn''t say where exactly.


    She put away her book, about to go wash vegetables. At this time the mechanical voice sounded by her ear again: "Host is happy to help, giving the moderately darkening teenager a clean and beautiful bedroom, easing the pace of his darkening, rewarding host with skin one shade fairer."


    Su Xiaoshi: ......


    Suddenly thought after starting university she wouldn''t get to see the NPC Lin Min who specially delivered gifts anymore......felt a bit sad for some reason, she watched Lin Min leave longingly.


    And halfway leaving, Lin Min suddenly turned back, and saw that girl, hugging a book, gazing at him seriously, had she been watching him the whole time?

 Chapter 83: Pre-game Training

    Chapter 83


    During dinner, Su Simei picked up a few chopsticks of food for her niece.


    "Eat more. I''ve noticed that you''ve been looking paler recently. Is it because you''re not getting enough nutrition?"


    Su Xiaoqi, holding her second bowl of rice, remained silent.


    It wasn''t because of a lack of nutrition. It was probably because of the trouble caused by that incident earlier.


    Su Xiaoqi was naturally fair-skinned, and they say that the water in Gumula Village produces beautiful women.


    The men in the village were dark and thin, while the women were mostly fair and beautiful.


    There''s even a local folk song in Lvshan City: "Aunt from Gumula, sugar from sugarcane fields, water from West Mountain Spring..."


    So, the women in Gumula Village had no trouble finding husbands, but it was difficult for the men to get married.


    All the girls in the village had married and the girls from other villages didn''t want to come here.


    The young men had to go out to work and deceive girls into coming back...


    Xiaoqi was already quite fair, but after studying in Lvshan City for a few years, she had become slightly tanned. However, if she became any fairer, she would probably be on par with Guan Jing.


    Xiaoqi looked at her arm as she reached out to pick up the food, and she could see the faint blue veins on her fair skin... She inexplicably felt a bit fragile.


    "It''s probably because I''ve been swimming a lot lately, spending too much time in the swimming pool," Xiaoqi quickly withdrew her hand and said, feeling guilty.


    When Su Simei heard this, she felt it was possible. Although Su Simei was plump and had a sunburned face, her skin was extremely fair.


    "I know how to swim now. Feifei said she''ll come at the end of the month, and I''ll take her swimming then," Su Simei seemed to be in a good mood today.


    Xiaoqi seemed to have to go to her uncle''s house at the end of the month to attend her cousin''s wedding.


    Also, according to her father''s suggestion, they wanted to have a celebration for her academic achievement. Xiaoqi didn''t think it was necessary. The university she attended was just an ordinary one, and there wasn''t much to celebrate. But she understood that her parents took pride in it. In their village, families with only daughters were rare, and not having a son was a matter of great embarrassment. Her parents were proud of her and wanted to show off.


    They would probably end up having the celebration, inviting relatives and friends to eat and drink.


    After dinner, Xiaoqi tidied up while her aunt went swimming. Once everything was in order, Xiaoqi prepared to study.


    She had finished studying all the books in the New Concept English series. She bought a stack of past papers from the bookstore, including those for the College English Test Band 4 and 6. After going through the ordeal of the college entrance examination, doing exam papers was a breeze for her.


    She spent half an hour practicing calligraphy and looked at her progress: beginner level (72/100). Unknowingly, she had been practicing for so many hours. She realized that she hadn''t consciously practiced calligraphy every day; she just made use of fragments of time. Time was indeed like that ditch, if you squeezed, it would be there.


    After practicing calligraphy, she took out a College English Test Band 4 paper to do.


    She spent over an hour on the paper, including the listening section. Her essay writing had improved compared to before, but she didn''t know how to evaluate herself. She could check the answers for the listening and reading comprehension sections. Xiaoqi took a look and saw that she had passed, but she still made quite a few mistakes. It was probably because it was her first time doing this kind of test, and she wasn''t used to the question format.


    Xiaoqi thought that today''s training would be quite intense, so she brought along the illustrated book "A Day in Edo" as well.


    She could also read the book during breaks.


    During the weekend, Coach Wu rescheduled his private lessons just to focus on teaching Xiaoqi.


    Swimming was not something that could be accomplished overnight. That''s why before, he mainly focused on Xiaoqi''s practice, allowing her to become skilled and familiar with the water, to develop an affinity with it, before pursuing speed.


    As soon as today''s training began after the warm-up, Coach Wu asked Xiaoqi to swim quickly, to use her fastest speed, simulating a competition scenario.


    The coach held a stopwatch and closely observed.


    Glancing at the time, Wu Peirong was taken aback. Little Seven had clocked in at 1 minute, 57 seconds, and 19 milliseconds, a significant improvement compared to her previous qualifying time. The champion of the 200-meter freestyle at the National Games had a time of 1 minute, 56 seconds, and 21 milliseconds, so Little Seven''s progress was remarkable.


    Wu Peirong thought it might have been an error on her part when timing with the stopwatch. After all, there''s always some margin of error when translating the swimmers'' speed from visual observation to the stopwatch.


    She was thrilled nevertheless because even with some error, it still indicated Little Seven''s rapid improvement. However, Wu Peirong restrained herself and only praised Little Seven''s progress without going overboard. She didn''t want to affect the young girl''s competitive mindset, considering her tender age.


    But Wu Peirong wasn''t one to hide her emotions. She couldn''t conceal the smile on her face.


    After finishing her lap, Little Seven noticed that Coach Wu seemed to be in a good mood. Curiosity got the better of her, and she asked her aunt about it when she got home. It turned out that Coach Wu considered her a student, while her aunt was only a student in her private lessons. Moreover, her aunt was outgoing, carefree, and older, so she would often chat with Coach Wu about various things.


    That''s why her aunt knew more about Coach Wu.


    Little Seven casually asked her aunt a question and was surprised to find out that her aunt actually knew. Her aunt said that Coach Wu had good grades back in school and could have gone to college, but due to their family''s poor financial situation, they sent her to a sports school on a full scholarship. However, her younger brother didn''t do well academically, so their family had to pay a hefty fee for him to attend No. 2 Middle School.


    Little Seven was familiar with the concept of "borrowing study fees." In her own No. 1 Middle School class, there were many students who paid such fees, which were rumored to be several tens of thousands, with certain academic requirements.


    But Coach Wu''s brother had to pay the fee even for attending No. 2 Middle School, indicating his average academic performance.


    Life''s unfairness and favoritism are likely the greatest harm to children.


    Although Little Seven knew the reason, she could only pretend not to know. However, she genuinely sympathized with Coach Wu. But seeing Coach Wu''s bright and sunny demeanor now, she felt that the coach didn''t need her sympathy. Hardworking people like her could thrive anywhere.


    She swiftly finished her swim, got up to stretch and rest, and then continued swimming.


    The morning went on like this¡ªsprint swimming, resting, stretching, and more sprint swimming.


    It felt like participating in several competitions in a single morning. However, Little Seven felt that she was making progress. When comparing her watch and the time displayed on the interface, she clearly felt that her speed had increased.


    Previously, the coach hadn''t specifically trained her for speed, but now, with just one practice session, the results were showing.


    The same routine continued over the weekend, and Little Seven spent both days at the swimming pool.


    She felt that she was no longer a novice swimmer... at the very least, she was a little shark.

 Chapter 84: Don’t just Play

    Chapter 84


    During the weekend night, Xiaoqi was busy studying until very late.


    Su Simei came back in the middle of the night to get something, and saw her niece still studying. She felt quite distressed and brought over a bag of hot milk.


    Xiaoqi had to move her Tuesday lessons to Monday because she had a competition on Tuesday. She didn''t move them to Wednesday because she had classes on Thursday, and was worried the students wouldn''t be able to digest the material if she taught them on Wednesday after just learning new things on Monday. Plus on Monday morning she had Japanese class, so she didn''t have time to prepare her lessons, so she had to prepare them ahead of time.


    That''s why she was studying so late into the night.


    She was worried that after passing her peak awakeness she wouldn''t be able to fall asleep. Sometimes that would happen. But after drinking the warm milk her auntie brought over, she fell asleep almost immediately after laying down, feeling very settled.


    The next morning after breakfast she went to Japanese class, and taught English in the afternoon.


    Her Japanese teacher Zhou Meiling dressed beautifully as always, wearing a white silk blouse with a big butterfly bow drooping over her chest, and a tight skirt around her bottom. At her waist was a small thin belt, and she wore sheer stockings and very high heels, at least 10 centimeters. But she walked very steadily in them. Xiaoqi noticed that even with the high heels on, Zhou Laoshi was about the same height as herself. She looked tall but wasn''t actually that tall.


    Her hair was permed and curled into waves, half put up and half down. The half that was down curled in neat waves, while the half that was up, having been permed, was a bit messy looking but made her face appear smaller.


    Xiaoqi¡¯s first impression was that Zhou Laoshi was dressed very elegantly. Dressing like that, she would have had to sit very properly, with her legs together side-saddle style. If she carelessly spread her legs while sitting in that tight skirt, her underwear would show. The thin belt at her waist surely wasn¡¯t comfortable either, requiring her to continually suck in her stomach.


    When Zhou Meiling saw Xiaoqi¡¯s outfit of sweatpants and a faded t-shirt, she was already convinced. Although Xiaoqi was young and beautiful with fair white skin and decent features, Zhou Meiling, who had very high standards for clothing and appearance, still felt uncomfortable seeing her dress like that.


    On the other hand, Guan Jingzhi was much more pleasing to the eye, the little girl wearing a pretty bubble sleeve blouse and chiffon skirt, looking like a little princess. With above average looks and such clever dressing, she was a perfect 10.


    After scrutinizing their appearances, Zhou Meiling started teaching.


    First she reviewed the previous lesson, and saw that both students had studied well and done the review very nicely. Xiaoqi spoke particularly fluently without any unfamiliarity. Zhou Meiling then continued teaching new content.


    Seeing both girls studying diligently, competing with snow white skin, faces plastered with layers of skincare products, Zhou Meiling felt quite unhappy. She thought to herself that while Guan Jingzhi had good family circumstances and conditions enabling nice skin from a young age, this Xiaoqi grew up in the countryside yet also had such fair smooth skin. The privileges of youth!


    During the break, Zhou Meiling asked Xiaoqi, ¡°How are you finding the books I gave you?¡± Alll latest novels at novelhall.com still reading ''One Day in the Life of an Edo Townsman''. I haven''t started on the other two yet,¡± Xiaoqi admitted bashfully.


    In the afternoon lessons with the seven Liang Jiajia students, everyone chattered excitedly about going to see Laoshi''s competition tomorrow. Xiaoqi was quite shy by nature, although the aura of being placed on a pedestal warded people off. Still, Liang Jiajia and girls were clever and not afraid at all, knowing Teacher had an easygoing personality.


    Unable to refuse with the girls¡¯ insistence, Xiaoqi conceded. After all the venue wasn''t opened specially by her; official competitions allowed ticket buying spectators. She couldn''t stop them from entering even if she declined.


    During the break the girls talked about making banners and colored light boards - they were in full fangirl mode. Xiaoqi was exasperated but amused.


    She hurriedly dissuaded them from going overboard, emphasizing she was merely a small-time newbie on the swim team.


    The afternoon classes went smoothly, chatting and laughing the whole time until it was over.


    Xiaoqi herself had taken some Japanese lessons and felt Zhou Laoshi taught very well in one respect - integrating personal examples to teach depth and clarity for impressive memorability.


    Now when teaching, Xiaoqi would also use examples. Of course not all were from herself; she didn¡¯t have that many shining moments. At most some embarrassing tales. She would also share some classmate stories sometimes, or recall examples her own English teachers used, combining them with the textbook content to liven up the lesson. Her relationship with the students also grew closer.


    Before she knew it the afternoon had passed, and Xiaoqi had also extended the time, earning some extra money. But she didn''t feel tired at all.


    Liang Jiajia had also improved tremendously. Her foundation was slightly weaker but she was clever and caught up quickly. Studying together everyday with her group of girlfriends, they spurred each other on to study harder too.


    After class finished, it was nearly dark outside already. Liang Huaying happened to get off work from her company and come back right then.


    She asked Xiaoqi to stay for dinner but Xiaoqi declined, saying her auntie had prepared dinner already and it would be inappropriate.


    She still felt uneasy eating at someone else¡¯s home.


    The other students all said goodbye and left too.


    Liang Huaying knew today¡¯s lesson was moved up early because of Xiaoqi¡¯s swimming tournament tomorrow.


    She had specially set aside time to go watch it with her daughter tomorrow. Her daughter had pestered her insisting they go.


    Unable to refuse her daughter¡¯s demands, Liang Huaying felt very grateful to the young teacher for the tremendous change in her daughter lately. She pondered how to properly thank her. Hearing her daughter wanted to make banners and signs and such, she immediately called her company employees and ordered them to start preparing banners and signs.

 Chapter 85: The Interview 02

    Chapter 85


    August 20, Tuesday.


    After a day of rest, the gymnasium should have been thoroughly cleaned. The plaque at the entrance was shinier than usual.


    It was probably because the leaders from the city would also come to watch the competition today.


    Coach Wu was also called in to clean yesterday.


    Just like at school, there would often be general cleaning where every corner had to be wiped spotless and lights that normally weren''t bright would be re-installed and lit up.


    Xiaoqi was feeling a little nervous, though she had initially entered for the bonus prize money.


    The first prize was 15,000 yuan which would directly solve her tuition fees. Even if she didn''t get first place, second prize was 8,000 yuan which she could scrape together to pay for school. Third prize of 5,000 yuan was still a lot.


    However, after practicing swimming for so long, she instead felt that she was ignorant back then to dare think that way.


    First place was not that easy to obtain. She had been soaking in the water every day that her skin had turned white. Now, she didn''t dare to confirm that she could win a prize.


    Moreover, her opponent in this competition, Li Enya who got first place in the preliminaries, was already a reserve member of the national team. She was surrounded by a professional coaching team which was completely different from an amateur like herself. Although Coach Wu taught very well, Xiaoqi didn''t dare to say that she was stronger than Li Enya''s coach.


    It felt a bit like an unrealistic ambition.


    Usually, Wu Peirong was very casual and had high hopes for Xiaoqi. But here at the competition venue today, she also felt a little unsure. However, when she turned around and saw Xiaoqi in the corner doing warm-up stretches with the same calm expression as usual, she felt a sense of pride inside. This was the student she had picked and who would definitely succeed. Xiaoqi was still young at 17 years old, the same age as Li Enya, and had unlimited potential.


    In fact, an athlete''s career was very short. At 26 years old, Wu Peirong already belonged to the category of veteran athletes.


    Zeng Tingting of the Three Flowers Team was 19 years old and ranked fifth in the preliminaries, so she was also seen as a top contender for the championship. The Three Flowers Team still had quite a reputation in Lvshan City as a local team.


    The girl who ranked second in the preliminaries was very tall, Wang Songli. She had broad shoulders, the standard body shape of a swimming athlete, very strong and powerful and also a veteran athlete with explosive strength.


    Ranking third was Li Si from Meng City. She was tall with good looks and dressed very fashionably. She also had a whole entourage of people waiting on her. Meng City was the most developed city in Jingnan Province and was quite highly ranked nationally with good conditions as a coastal city.


    Having learned from past experience, she made sure to bring a towel for outerwear, wearing a longer T-shirt over her swimsuit until the start of the race.


    There were many cameras set up around the venue today, people with media passes and cameras hanging around their necks walking everywhere taking photos.


    Xiaoqi saw reporters specifically interviewing Li Enya and Li Si from Meng City. Zeng Tingting also accepted a short interview but it was quite brief.


    Xiaoqi wondered if they would try to interview her as well and soon a reporter came over shoving a microphone in her direction.


    They were probably doing pre-race interviews to compare against post-race reactions from the eventual champion.


    When the microphone suddenly appeared, Xiaoqi was a little stunned.


    But the girl looked young with fair skin and hair tied in a little ponytail. After swimming training for so long, she had become thin and tall, still appearing pretty even on camera. The cameraman seemed quite satisfied with the footage, at least she photographed well.


    And her attitude was very calm and composed, but somehow also a little stern, oddly feeling like she was being interviewed as some leader.


    Yet a pretty, serious looking young girl also had an endearing gap moe.


    Her responses were also one-by-one, seemingly not nervous at all.


    Reporter: How do you feel your current form is? Are you confident about the race?


    Su Xiaoqi: I think my condition is very good, I''m confident.


    Reporter: Who do you think has the best chance to be champion?


    Su Xiaoqi: Don''t know.


    Reporter: What plans do you have for your future development?


    Su Xiaoqi: Go to university.


    Reporter: ......

 Chapter 86: First in the Group

    Chapter 86


    The competition process was a little more complex than the preliminaries. Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    The leaders on stage spoke for quite a long time.


    It was said to be a live broadcast on Channel 5 of Lvshan City''s local TV station.


    It would also be broadcast on Lvshan City''s evening news tonight.


    The music on site was all passionate and fiery, with little red flags hung everywhere.


    The mood of the audience present was also quite passionate, especially...that group of boys and girls waving light boards and banners.


    Liang Jiajia had very strong organizational skills. Adding that Guan Jingzhi, one of the core figures in their class, was also present, she had called almost half of the students in her class to come and cheer for Teacher Xiao Qi, teaching them properly how fans cheer for celebrities. If not for not having agreed on a name yet, she even wanted to call them Qi Fan, but felt it was a little tacky, so she had not decided on a name yet. For now they just held light boards and banners.


    But apart from them, others were not prepared at all, so they stood out very prominently...


    Su Xiaoqi: ......Maintaining the untouchable buff, not joking around or smiling, nothing else to do.


    She also did not know what to do. The competition would start soon and she was a little nervous, which made her want to go to the bathroom again.


    Considering the leaders were still giving speeches and it would take some time, she should just go to the bathroom. Otherwise, if she waited until the competition started to go, she might miss her own session...Just thinking about it was scary.


    Xiao Qi quietly went to the bathroom after all.


    After spending some time in the bathroom and looking at herself in the mirror while washing her hands, she found that her hair that could be tied was all tied up. Her face had a bit of a sharp chin now instead of being as round as before, but her cheeks still had some baby fat.


    Washing her face with cold water sobered her up a bit.


    She had been swimming almost every day without interruption recently.


    She could see her own slight improvement. She thought, no matter what one does, as long as they can work hard tirelessly every day, sweating and putting in time, they will improve.


    It was the same with swimming.


    So there was nothing to fear today. It was not much different from her usual training.


    Their lanes were adjacent. Standing together, Xiao Qi felt Wang Songli was a good one third larger than her in size.


    Wang Songli was clearly the hot favorite for the championship. She had participated in many competitions before, getting second place and the championship for several times. However, already 20 years old and with ordinary looks, she did not seem very popular. Xiao Qi only knew about her from participating in this competition.


    Wang Songli could be considered an ordinary athlete with a rather bleak outlook. Either she would end up coaching others like Xiao Qi¡¯s coach in the future, or completely leave this field. Truly outstanding athletes who could represent the country and win glory on the world stage were few and far between, just a handful that could be counted on one hand, while there were countless athletes nationwide.


    Xiao Qi smiled and nodded at Wang Songli in greeting.


    Wang Songli¡¯s expression was even more stern, appearing rather fierce even when smiling. She did not pay much attention to the novice Su Xiaoqi. Her targets were Li Enya and Li Si from Meng City. So she did not say another word and left first.


    The official competition was more serious than the preliminaries, with no one running around at the venue, only the athletes and cameras present.


    Xiao Qi felt the camera was focusing on her quite a lot, always moving around beside her. Luckily she was used to it now and did not feel an urge to go to the bathroom. Standing on the diving platform, Xiao Qi took a look at the big banner and light board on the opposite side, and also saw Coach Wu standing across the pool.


    Coach Wu revealed a big smile to her and waved her hands vigorously, her standard gesture of encouraging students onshore.


    The electronic starter''s whistle sounded, prompting the athletes to dive into the water simultaneously.


    Water splashed.


    Xiao Qi felt her body sink slightly before swiftly regaining her swimming rhythm and surging forward, forward. She was like a fish happily swimming in the creek by her village back home. Very fast, faster and faster.


    She concentrated on enjoying the swimming process and feeling the change in speed.


    She had started sprinting from the very beginning, taking the lead as soon as she hit the water.


    She turned and reached the end.


    Panting heavily, she had come in first place. She was first in her group.


    Feeling like there was water in her ears and unable to hear very clearly externally, she could still make out the cheers.


    Standing in the water with a smile on her face, her teeth looked very neat. Water droplets clung onto her long eyelashes.


    Xiao Qi thought, how refreshing!

 Chapter 87: The Champion

    Chapter 87


    "Jingnan Province Women''s 200m Freestyle Dark Horse Competition."


    "The champion had only practiced swimming for a month. Is she a genius or just a coincidence?"


    "The captain of the Three Flowers Team said this champion is well-deserved."


    "17-year-old girl from Gumula Village, Lvshan City bravely won the Jingnan Province Women''s 200m Freestyle Competition championship."


    When little seven stood on the award podium, bowed her head low, a middle-aged bald man who was a provincial leader put the champion medal on her and handed her a shiny gold trophy.


    The trophy was engraved with small words "Jingnan Province Women''s 200m Freestyle Champion" and sparkled under the lights.


    The second place winner, Li Enya, was awarded her medal and trophy by a city leader next to her.


    The third place winner was Ouyang Yan, the girl with the tall nose bridge who looked a bit mixed-race, who was ranked fourth in the preliminaries.


    Only the top three places received rewards in the formal competition.


    Then the competition''s sponsors came over to give them bonuses, one red envelope and signboard per person.


    Little Seven''s signboard read 15,000 yuan, with the sponsor''s store name written below.


    The camera kept shooting and she showed a big smile on her face, even more excited than when she had received the trophy and medal.


    When receiving the trophy and medal, she still had a somewhat bewildered reaction, not quite believing that she had become the champion, thinking it would be like the preliminaries where although she was first in her group, she could still end up ranked further back.


    It wasn''t until the sponsor came over to give the red envelope and she received the light signboard that Little Seven had a sense of reality, that she had truly won the championship. Now her smile was silly and foolish.


    When the leader had awarded her the trophy and medal, Little Seven''s smile had been dignified, aloof and full of poise. Now she revealed the appearance of a silly 17-year-old girl that made people want to take her home.


    In contrast, the second place winner Li Enya maintained just a faint smile on her face the whole time.


    She had not expected to lose and for her, anything less than first place was losing.


    Moreover, she had lost to an unknown girl that she had never even heard of before. She hadn''t paid much attention to her opponent''s information before the match. Her coach had only mentioned it in passing and she hadn''t taken it to heart or even knew until now that the girl standing on the podium slightly taller than her was called Su Xiaoqi.


    Su Xiaoqi''s time was 1 minute 56.48 seconds. The time of this year''s National Games women''s 200m freestyle champion was 1 minute 56.21 seconds. Li Enya''s time was 1 minute 56.56 seconds and Ouyang Yan''s was 1 minute 56.59 seconds. So it could be said that there really wasn''t much difference between the second and third place finishers, less than a blink of an eye, while the gap between first and second place was still less than a second. But in this kind of speed competition, a single second represented an immense difference.


    As a reserve member of the national team, Li Enya had come just to compete for experience in her hometown match as support. She had never imagined such an outcome would occur at all.


    Ouyang Yan had a much better mentality. She also hadn''t thought she could beat Li Enya. Now that Li Enya had become second place, she could still get third place, better than her fourth place result in the preliminaries. This was improvement.


    Little Seven was very unfamiliar with this kind of dinner party. She had never participated in one before. After showering and changing clothes, she went to find Coach Wu.


    Her aunt had her wear the new outfit bought for participating in today¡¯s competition, a pink babydoll top with jeans.


    Short hair in little pigtails.


    She was not very tall at 165cm, but her proportions were exceptionally standardized. The jeans showed off her straight, long legs.


    Standing together with the famous Little Hu Mingxia, Li Enya, and the exotic-featured Ouyang Yan, she did not lose out at all.


    Wu Peirong did not actually have the qualifications to participate in this kind of dinner party, but she was Little Seven¡¯s only coach. Little Seven brought her along and she was not assured leaving Little Seven alone either, so she came as well.


    The top three finishers and a bunch of leaders sat at one table.


    It felt a bit like a banquet, with people continually coming over to toast the leaders at Little Seven''s table. No one asked them few younger girls to drink though.


    Little Seven wasn¡¯t even eighteen yet.


    Li Enya was around the same age. Ouyang Yan was a bit older at nineteen.


    At the dinner, Li Enya was still quite eloquent and no longer had the dissatisfied expression from the awards ceremony. At this time, she affectionately called those leaders uncle this and uncle that, skilled at getting along.


    It seemed she had participated in this type of dinner party several times already.


    Little Seven felt very uncomfortable with the situation of eating with a group of strangers. If not for having her coach sitting next to her, she would have felt even more self-conscious. All she could do was maintain the aura buff she carried with her, silently focus on eating. Only when someone asked her a question would she respond. Otherwise if no one spoke to her she would just steadily eat her meal. Fortunately the food on the table suited her tastes¡ªcrab and sticky rice, lobster, sea cucumber soup were all delicious. Little Seven ate a lot.


    In contrast, Ouyang Yan and Li Enya did not eat much. As professional athletes they had dietary restrictions to adhere to.


    Little Seven ate boldly and generously. Coach Wu Peirong also had not expected this situation. Of course, Wu Peirong was very happy herself today, especially happy. She toasted the leaders around one by one like a triumphant mother hen.


    The captain of the pitiful Three Flowers Team could only show respect and courtesy to her now. After all, if she had not stubbornly fought to squeeze a slot for someone else to participate in the competition, the Three Flowers Team would have completely failed. Maybe due to nerves, Zeng Tingting''s performance in the formal competition was about the same as her prelim result. She was eliminated in the first round. Everyone else improved their times greatly in the formal event, so naturally if you did not improve, you regressed instead.


    Li Si from Meng City lost to Ouyang Yan and became fourth place. But with only the top three places awarded, she did not even make an appearance on stage and reportedly went straight back to Meng City. After eating, Little Seven sent Coach Wu back first before returning. Coach Wu got drunk.


    At the dinner party, Little Seven added a lot of WeChat contacts and was a bit confused as she didn''t recognize any of them. She earnestly asked every one of them for their name and added a note.


    As a result, her WeChat contacts filled up with a pile of people labeled with various official titles.


    Finally, the competition was over. Little Seven thought this could be considered a major event, worth posting about on Moment.


    She received many photos Liang Jiajia had taken of her. She chose one of herself receiving an award, holding up a trophy and medal in one hand and a paper plaque representing the 15,000 yuan prize money in the other, smiling foolishly.


    "I won today."

 Chapter 88: The Two Worlds

    Chapter 88


    Walking on the streets of Osaka.


    Qi Wei took photos seriously, capturing anything interesting he saw, even a roadside house that he found interesting would be carefully photographed.


    Da Dong was a little hungry and impatient, shouting: "Stop taking photos, the houses on this street all look the same, you''ve taken plenty already. Besides, there haven''t been many likes on the photos you''ve posted."


    Shen Hao was rather patient. He didn''t have many friends in the UK, so going out with a few buddies was quite intimate to him. He was dressed the most gentlemanly among them, in suit pants, looking very British, extremely handsome. Walking down the street, some young girls even came up assuming Shen Hao was a celebrity.


    Of course, Qi Wei was also very handsome, just dressed more casually like a youth.


    Da Dong was dressed more hip hop style, very outgoing. He was the one communicating with all the Japanese girls they met, chatting vibrantly despite not knowing Japanese, gesturing animatedly.


    Linzi was obsessed with his game, walking while gaming, he''d definitely get lost if they weren''t dragging him along.


    "The restaurant is not far, just ahead. Xiaoqi has been quite busy recently which is why she hasn''t replied to my messages." Qi Wei said with a smile, not annoyed at all.


    Da Dong shook his head and started lecturing again.


    Acting like an expert with experience dating at least 25 girls, he said: "Let me tell you, she''s just stringing you along. We were wrong about her initially, her level is too high for an inexperienced youth like you to handle."


    Qi Wei ignored him and continued walking ahead without saying anything. His mood seemed a little low.


    At this initial crush stage, he did think too much about her - what others said, her smiles, even a comma in her messages - he would ponder over everything.


    Seeing this, Shen Hao was quite envious of Qi Wei. He had always been rather calm, couldn''t imagine what it would be like to have a crush on a girl, feeling he could never be so silly.


    "Da Dong, stop talking nonsense."


    Shen Hao had the highest status among them. When he spoke, even Da Dong kept quiet.


    They soon arrived at the restaurant. Shen Hao ordered food. No one knew how he had learnt Japanese in the UK, though not very fluent, it was enough for ordering food in Japan. His English would be useful too as some places had English menus.


    Qi Wei picked out the photos he just took, planning to edit them into a TikTok video.


    Although Xiaoqi had asked him to send what he saw in Japan to her, he didn''t feel right sending them one by one on WeChat. He took the effort to compile the scenery into a series or video before editing a TikTok and sending it to her. This way, it seemed like he made the TikTok for posting and happened to send it to her, pretending it was to promote his TikTok account. That would give him the justification to send them.


    She''s our classmate?


    The sunny beauty smiling confidently in a swimsuit without glasses is our bespectacled class bookworm Su Xiaoqi? Her change is too drastic, so gorgeous!


    Lost opportunities worth billions...


    Girls really are hidden treasures! Plain looking in school uniforms and glasses every day, who knew she''s so good looking!


    I already loved hearing her sing in class. Now, my love has gone numb...


    The class group exploded with all kinds of shock and awe.


    Xia Zhen, who had acted closest to Xiaoqi in class, remained silent. She was online but stunned into speechlessness, scrutinizing the photos and videos in disbelief over and over. This is Su Xiaoqi? That rural country girl who helped her aunt push garbage carts?


    The news report wrote: From Gumu Village, graduated from Lvshan No.1 High School, excellent morals and academics...


    She was unhappy with the phrase "excellent morals and academics". It was just some third-rate private university, Enhua University. Even their university, the legitimate second-rate Lvshan Agricultural and Forestry University had higher score requirements!


    Despite her indignance, she still felt awful and vexed.


    Liu Shaowei also didn''t say anything.


    He had seen Su Xiaoqi near his home last time. Her change was rather drastic but at the time, he was meeting friends Xie Ruan and Rao Chen to play tennis. Seeing Xiaoqi happily chatting with her country bumpkin relatives, he felt too awkward to even greet her. It reinforced his feeling that she and him were people of two different worlds, no possibility of intersecting.


    But now, watching the video of her confidently diving into the water, swimming ahead gracefully...


    That girl confidently standing at the podium accepting her award...


    The woman calmly answering reporters'' questions...


    The flashing light boards and huge banners in the stadium...


    Her confident smiles...


    It was as if telling him they really were people of two different worlds, but it wasn''t him looking down on her - she was the one looking down on him!

 Chapter 89: The Dazzle

    Chapter 89


    Xiao Qi returned to her aunt''s dormitory after 2:30 in the afternoon.


    It was her aunt''s busy time, so she did not disturb her.


    The sound of her friends circle on her phone was not turned off, and there was a ding ding ding sound. She took a glance and saw many likes and comments.


    Probably because she rarely posted, but suddenly posted something, even her elementary school classmate Zhang Juan left a comment: Too awesome (thumbs up), and curious questions: You actually know how to swim?


    Various praises and curious comments, at a glance, were longer than a screen. She didn''t know how to respond. She had never had the experience of not replying to messages before. She should reply to every one of them, right? Thinking this way, she felt posting on Friends Circle was a waste of time.


    She was a little tired. In fact, swimming today was not as tiring as the usual training. She had not seen so many people and the atmosphere of the competition. Now that it was over, her whole body felt very tired, heavy, not just physically, but mentally as well.


    At this moment, the phone rang. Xiao Qi saw that it was a call from home and quickly picked it up.


    Her parents did not make calls lightly. Her relationship with her parents was not like Jiajia, who was spoiled by her mother. Although Xiao Qi would occasionally act spoiled with her mother, she was still very reserved. At most, she would ask her mother to cook something delicious. So when her parents took the initiative to call her, she always felt something was wrong.


    Moreover, her parents could never figure out when it was best to call her. They probably thought she was taking a noon break now, but if it was a normal Tuesday at this time, she would actually be in class. She still could not get her schedule across to her parents. Xiao Qi answered the phone.


    "Dear daughter, this Saturday, your cousin is getting married. Can you attend?" It was her mother speaking first.


    She heard her father speaking in the background: "Ask our daughter first if she is busy or doing anything important. If she is busy, call her later."


    "I''m not busy Dad. I''ll go home Friday afternoon and we can go there together from home on Saturday," Xiao Qi replied after calculating her schedule.


    "There are no buses running in the afternoon. It would be too dangerous for you to walk home alone. On Saturday, you can take the bus directly to Uncle''s house. Your dad and I will walk over," said Sheng Juanhua. Her maiden home was in Dafang Village, not far from Gumula Village, just ten kilometers away, which would take them two hours to walk there.


    Xiao Qi wanted to go with her parents, but did not argue further, otherwise her mother would definitely shout for her father to come and pick her up Friday afternoon and accompany her walking.


    She had not yet explained that she won first place and prize money. Her main point was to tell them that the tuition fees don''t need to worry about here, and she also earned a good amount from tutoring employment, which was going to last her several face value months of living expenses.


    But thinking she would be home again Friday, she would just tell them in person. It would be hard to explain clearly over the phone. Otherwise, hearing about so much money, her parents might feel uneasy if she did not reassure them in person, and be arriving at her place tomorrow.


    As soon as Sheng Juanhua came into the village accountant Old Yang''s home, there sat a group of women at the card table in the living room, with many more gathered around watching them play.


    Accountant Old Yang''s daughter-in-law liked playing cards. Old Yang''s family was also well off and had opened a small grocery store. His daughter-in-law did not have to do farm work like other women, never going up the hills or down to the fields. She was raised nice and plump at home just playing cards and bringing together her card friends to play everyday.


    Their location was also central with lots of space. With small sales at the store and card games hosted, they spent days very comfortable.


    In contrast, Sheng Juanhua did not often appear here. Sheng Juanhua was born very nicely. Tall and fair, slender phoenix eyes, delicate nose, nice lips, her appearance outstanding that she could pass as the land owner''s first wife, appearing very blessed.


    Among so many village beauties at Gumula, this woman married from outside did not lose out one bit. But beautiful village women who failed to bear sons were useless. There was much gossip. At first Xiao Qi''s grandmother even demanded separating the eldest son or finding another wife who could bear a son. Later after hearing from someone the congenital limpness could require lots of dowry money to take another wife, and if the younger brothers had to help pay for the eldest brother''s new wife, the grandmother finally stopped making a fuss.


    Sheng Juanhua herself worked very hard, going along doing hills and field work. Often when other women were playing cards, she would be seen passing by carrying a load of firewood she had chopped, or bundles of bamboo she had culled, basically taking on a strong man''s labor. This was because Xiao Qi''s father Su Youfu indeed had limited mobility to keep up with farm work, so the couple working together could barely finish the tasks.


    Moreover, although the couple only had one daughter, they were still financing her through high school and intended to support her going to university.


    Seeing Sheng Juanhua actually come out and wander around, the group of card players started to tease.


    "A rare guest! Juanhua, want to buy some snacks? Or are your in-laws coming?" hollered one of the joking women at the card table.


    The others also laughed along. Sheng Juanhua did not normally come to play cards. She would only occasionally come to the convenience store when her daughter came home to buy ingredients to cook up dishes for the precious "ancestor" who was out to marry soon. Every time the daughter came back she wanted to buy meat and fish.


    Old Yang''s daughter-in-law chimed in laughing, "What do you want to buy? There was a fresh grass carp yesterday, do you want it?"


    Sheng Juanhua shook her head. "Not buying anything. Don''t you have a satellite TV here? Can you receive Lu Shan Channel 5? My daughter said she entered a competition that''s being shown on TV. We don''t get that channel at home to watch. Just want to come here to see if I can watch it. Please, you all continue playing cards."

 Chapter 90: Fifteen Thousand Sensational Gumura Village

    Chapter 90


    Women in Gumula Village like to gather at the small convenience store run by Old Yang to play cards and chat.


    Men in Gumula Village prefer to gather in the village hall, holding cigarettes in their hands, shaking off the ash, and discussing national affairs. Of course, there aren''t many national affairs to discuss, just a few repetitive phrases that are not very interesting. Most of the time, they end up gossiping about the people around them¡ªsomeone making a fortune, someone having a secret lover, and so on.


    When men gossip, they wear a righteous expression on their faces, laughing heartily, and their conversations are no less intriguing than those of women.


    When Su Youfu hobbled over, the men in the village hall were already getting a bit tired of chatting.


    It was around two or three in the afternoon, the perfect time when the sun was neither scorching nor too bright. There was a large television in the hall, and for once, the sound from the television drowned out the chatter of the people.


    People in the village always started their work early in the morning. They would wake up around four in the morning and head into the mountains by five. They had plenty of time and energy in the morning.


    If they went to work at eight or nine in the morning, they wouldn''t get much done. Once the sun rose, the sunlight would become scorching, making it difficult to work.


    Therefore, everyone preferred to start work early and finish early, except for a few slow workers who would take the whole day to complete their tasks, or those who were exceptionally hardworking.


    Su Youfu was one of the exceptions. He was hardworking but slow. It was rare to see him coming to the village hall for a chat at this time, and when people saw him limping, they would tease him, thinking they had found a topic to talk about.


    "Su Lame, why aren''t you making your baskets?"


    "Su Lame, we heard that you made a fortune and are sending your daughter to an elite school. The annual tuition fee is over ten thousand."


    "Is your daughter made of gold?"


    "I heard that the guy from the neighboring village''s fourth son is willing to pay a hundred thousand yuan as a dowry to marry a college student. Su Lame, are you interested? You have a college student in your family."


    Suddenly, the whole village hall became lively.


    Su Youfu''s face turned slightly red. These people usually made fun of him and called him Su Lame, and he didn''t mind. He had gotten used to being called that, even his own mother would casually scold him like that.


    But when these people started talking about his daughter, he felt uneasy. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    The fourth son from the neighboring village was a scoundrel, a lazy thief. It was said that he had been imprisoned once. Who would marry their daughter to him?


    "If my daughter gets into college, I''ll support her. As for marrying the fourth son, it''s up to you. You can marry him yourselves," Su Youfu said with a flushed face, standing there with his neck stiff.


    He had initially wanted to show off, but he was not good at speaking and was defeated before he even opened his mouth.


    Honest people get angry easily.


    But there was nothing he could do.


    Everyone seemed to be watching a show, enjoying the laughter.


    At that moment, Su Lame, Su Youfu, suddenly opened his mouth wide, his eyes staring ahead as if he had been possessed. He pointed his trembling hand in front of him, startling everyone. They wondered if he was really upset and had some kind of reaction.


    At that moment, Old Yang''s wife took out a large bag of melon seeds and distributed them to everyone.


    She was very good at pleasing people. The melon seeds were loose and not expensive. By giving them out, everyone remembered her kindness and would feel embarrassed not to buy things from her.


    It was the first time Sheng Juanhua had been given a handful of melon seeds, and she was a little overwhelmed by the favor.


    Then Old Yang''s wife said, "That girl just now, she looks just like you. She''s so well-raised."


    Others complained that Old Yang''s wife''s chatter was blocking the sound from the TV. This was the prime scene for gossip, and it said "replay" on the screen. Who knew if they would show it again.


    "Turn up the volume a bit, Old Yang''s family. We can''t hear it."


    None of them had the habit of watching sports competitions. They usually liked to watch TV dramas and the like. The sports channel was usually only exciting during the national Olympics or when they wanted to know how many gold medals our country had won.


    But they were actually engrossed in this swimming competition because, from time to time, they would see a familiar yet unfamiliar face and a huge banner on the venue saying, "Su Xiaoqi, go for it!"


    Su Xiaoqi was from their Gumula Village, the only daughter of Su Lamezi and Sheng Juanhua.


    There were some murmurs in the midst, criticizing the girl for dressing so scantily and going against societal norms, but the voices were faint and did not resonate.


    Although Gumula Village was remote and impoverished, they did have television. This swimming competition was a global event, something even the Olympics featured. The young girl wore a one-piece swimsuit, exposing her arms and legs while keeping her chest firmly covered. Compared to the women in the village who wore revealing clothes in the summer, with transparent garments that revealed their bras and low necklines emphasizing their curves, the girl appeared rather underdeveloped, with a straight figure.


    But as the show progressed and it was revealed that Su Xiaoqi was standing on the champion''s podium, receiving the award from a high-ranking official from the province, and also receiving a prize of 15,000 yuan, everyone watching the television reached a climax of excitement.


    It wasn''t 150 or 1,500, it was 15,000 yuan!


    The red envelope being handed over was thick.


    The sign clearly stated "15,000."


    Just a moment ago, people were mocking Su''s daughter as being made of gold, but now it was true, as she could receive 15,000 yuan just by swimming a lap.


    And on television, she spoke confidently with the leader.


    She was completely different from them.


    The people in the auditorium had just mocked Su''s crippled daughter, but now their faces burned with pain.


    And since there was no major event happening in the village, someone had shouted, and most of the villagers who were able to come had rushed to watch television. Old Yang''s small shop and the village office were packed to the brim.


    Even the village chief and secretary were alarmed.


    The village chief was a native of the village, while the secretary was sent from the city, named Gong Shu.


    Now, Gong Shu walked up to Su Youfu, shook his hand firmly, patted his shoulder, and said, "Comrade Youfu, you have raised a great daughter. Not only has she brought honor to Gumula Village, but also to Lv Shan City. Perhaps in the future, she will bring glory to our country as well."

 Chapter 91: After the Champion

    Chapter 91


    Xiaoqi took a nap for over an hour. When she got up, she washed up and first practiced calligraphy inside her room.


    She had already borrowed a new calligraphy copybook from the library to practice calligraphy. She was practicing regular script as a beginner, writing each character neatly and properly.


    There was no need to grind ink; she just poured the bottled ink right into the bowl.


    Sometimes when the previous ink dried up, she would just add some water.


    Xiaoqi practiced for half an hour, then got up and took a walk outside, before coming back to review Japanese.


    Mr. Zhou''s teaching pace was slowly picking up, and there was quite a lot of content. Perhaps because there would be an immersive reading experience, Xiaoqi felt Japanese was very intimate and easy, not difficult at all, so reviewing it was also easy.


    After memorizing everything and reviewing it well, she took her phone and headphones, planning to go running at the school next door. She would be back just in time to take a shower and cook.


    On the way there, she listened to English audio recordings. Xiaoqi was already very familiar with the voice. From the school gate, she went inside, but the security guard uncle actually stopped her today, before letting her in.


    She was wearing headphones and didn''t hear the security guard talking to someone else inside, "It''s this young lady. I watched the livestream this morning. She''s a student at our school."


    Xiaoqi started running slowly, then sped up after getting used to it. The wind at her ears blew up her hair while the trees and school buildings on both sides retreated as she ran, breathing, breathing, breathing...


    Finally, she somehow felt a kind of indescribable feeling dissipating in her chest with each breath.


    The moments after posting on Moments, her friends'' praises and inquiries, the lively class group chat yelling for her to give out red packets, her parents'' reactions, the feeling of standing on the champion platform, the reporter''s microphone, the camera, the leader raising a toast...everything, everything was slowly fading away and dissipating.


    She was still her, Su Xiaoqi.


    A country girl from Gumu Village.


    She was about to attend an expensive private university.


    She had tested in herself. Although it was because she underperformed, this would be her path going forward.


    She was going to university.


    Everything else was preparation for this.


    Thinking this way cleared her mind quite a bit.


    Even the nurses she ran into were like this. Xiaoqi was shocked. She was starting to understand her aunt''s feelings, because normally when she went upstairs to the patient rooms to shower, the nurses would never crack a smile and seemed very fierce.


    It seemed to the nurses that it was one thing for Aunt Simei the janitor to use the patient bathrooms out of convenience for herself, but to bring relatives along to use them too created extra trouble when there was already so much going on at the hospital and the nurses were the busiest, always rushing here and there. To get a smile out of a nurse was no easy feat.


    She didn''t expect the nurses to not only be cordial with her today, but to take the initiative to greet her. Xiaoqi also experienced the feeling of being favored.


    She smiled back politely.


    Xiaoqi didn''t know that the nurses weren''t actually very old themselves and were fun-loving girls at heart. While the job was tiring, they also liked to play in private. Their friendly attitude wasn''t because they saw any livestream or anything since they hardly watched TV, but because they liked scrolling through Douyin.


    The hottest Douyin video in the city today was made by Jiajia.


    "My Home Tutor Teacher Breaks the Cute-Hot Scale Again" Casually swimming and becoming the provincial swimming champion, do you believe it or not?


    Paired with clips from the swimming competition, Jiajia rushed home to immediately produce the video with epic music added in. With official endorsement, it shot straight up to become a trending topic in the city, bringing all her previous Douyin videos along.


    Likes skyrocketed to over a million.


    And the likes on her previous videos swelled rapidly too.


    Home tutor teacher recites New Concept English fluently.


    Home tutor teacher has gorgeous handwriting.


    Home tutor teacher''s singing captivates me.


    Home tutor teacher can even do bamboo weaving...


    Teacher''s swimming training...


    One video after another showcasing different sides of an unfussily dressed teacher in plain T-shirts and athletic pants, very simple-looking, clearly not deliberately shot videos, with perfect bare-faced visuals.


    At least among Douyin users, Su Xiaoqi was now an online celebrity in Lvshan City.


    And a positive energy one at that.


    Good English, also learning Japanese. Nice singing voice. Can swim. Persistently runs every day... What kind of fairy girl is this?


    The nurse finished greeting Xiaoqi and excitedly went back to tell her colleagues, "Wow, she looks so cool but her smile is so warm. What a gap moe, I''m sold!"

 Chapter 92: Knowledge Is Power

    Chapter 92


    Su Simei had never posted on her friend circle before. If there was anything she posted, it would only be the occasional health content rumors that others had made up, which she would share. It seemed to be a place specifically for posting advertisements and rumors.


    But today she asked Xiao Qi to teach her seriously how to post something. She wanted to post about Xiao Qi winning the championship on her friend circle.


    After taking a shower, Xiao Qi was helping her aunt cook. She quite enjoyed cooking now. Mainly because she was very picky about her taste buds. After eating so many terrible and random things, it was better to just do it herself.


    Her aunt let her teach. She was also quite patient, because her aunt was very good to her. Although she was her cousin on her father''s side, Auntie was really a good person. She had been with her auntie for so many years. Even when she threw tantrums with a black face, her aunt had never said anything about her.


    As a result, after Su Simei learned how to post photos and videos, she posted a full nine Moments in a row. First it was a photo collage. Xiao Qi forwarded the photos Jiajia took of her to her aunt. Her aunt liked every one of them. She also wanted to show where they were, so she took photos of the exterior of the gymnasium and the banners of the competition. So one collage of nine photos was not enough. She posted three collages of nine photos in total.


    After posting three nine-photo Moments, it still wasn''t enough. She also posted four videos of the swimming competition scene.


    Then she discovered related public account news and forwarded another two news posts.


    She still wanted to post more. Xiao Qi quickly stopped her. Posting too much at once would get her blocked. Really. She had already blocked her elementary school classmate Zhang Juan. Mainly because she posted too many ads. Every day there would be more than ten posts when scrolling through. It was very time wasting.


    No one from Su Simei''s hometown saw the Moments she posted because the signals weren¡¯t very good in Gumula Village. The network connectivity was intermittent. So her family had no reaction.


    But they did watch the news on TV. It was sensational enough. Su the cripple¡¯s, no Su Youfu¡¯s daughter appeared on TV. Not only did she appear on TV, but she also won the swimming championship and prize money of over 10,000 yuan. She was truly capable and impressive (An expression meaning impressively capable in Gumula Village dialect). Moreover, she also worked as a tutor in the city, teaching foreign languages with seven students. It was said she could earn over 1,000 yuan for one afternoon class.


    If I could earn over 1,000 yuan per day, why would I need to go to college? Just earning this money would be enough.


    Sheng Juanhua explained out there that it wasn¡¯t that much. Those students only had two classes per week.


    The villagers calculated that would still be over 2,000 yuan per week. Four weeks in a month, that would still be over 8,000. Who from the village going out to work could earn over 8,000 now? Even the village secretary who was transferred from the city to work here, they heard his monthly salary was just over 4,000 yuan. With the mountain subsidy added, only a little over 6,000 yuan. That was still less than Lame Su¡¯s daughter!


    My god. As the villagers calculated, if Su Youfu¡¯s daughter earned over 8,000 yuan a month tutoring in the city, plus the 10,000 yuan prize for winning the swimming competition, wasn¡¯t that a total of over 20,000 yuan?


    It was even more sensational than Zhang Juan who went out to work, earned big money and came back with a designer handbag worth over ten thousand yuan.


    Everyone crowded around Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua, asking, "How did you teach your daughter to make her so capable?"


    Su Youfu was always mocked by the group on normal days. It was rare for someone to sincerely ask him questions. He coughed heavily a few times before finding his voice again.


    "It¡¯s about letting the child read more books. Only through reading can they increase their knowledge. I have been like this all my life. I just want her to not be like me. She must read books. As long as she could study, I would sell all my belongings to support her."


    Previously when Su Youfu said he would sell everything to support his daughter¡¯s education, others would all laugh at him for being silly. They said he was foolish to waste money like that. In the end wouldn¡¯t she still be married off? Xiaoqi''s Grandma scolded him most fiercely, saying his leg was lame and his brain muddled. Telling him that if there was money it would be better to spend it on her old mother, and it was wasting it to spend it on the loss-making goods daughter.


    But tonight, when he said this, some villagers inexplicably felt it did make some sense.


    In such a remote village, most people truly didn¡¯t have a sense of education or anything like that. They hadn¡¯t seen Zhang Juan who didn¡¯t study but still earned a lot of money. Old Cheng¡¯s daughter who also didn¡¯t study got married to an American. She sent money back to her elderly parents every month. Taking care of them until they got fat and were glowing.


    But today they felt it was different.


    Studying did seem different.


    Even if the money earned wasn¡¯t as much as Old Cheng¡¯s American daughter, everyone seemed to inexplicably have a sense of respect arising. Even those who usually loudly called him Lame Su properly called him Youfu now.


    The villagers were very excited and chatted late into the night.


    Some smarter villagers began thinking. Their own children were only in elementary school. As the elementary school in Gumula Village stopped operating this year, they had to travel to the neighboring village for school. Since they already needed to travel, why not send them into town for school?


    Some families with children who had entered middle school, originally thought that graduating middle school would be enough, since their grades were average. They could go out to work and earn money too. But now they hesitated, feeling that studying did seem different after all. Educated people, like they saw Lame Su''s daughter clearly speaking confidently on TV, were not the same.


    Su Youfu was also very excited, but he still sat down with his hands continuously weaving bamboo products. The money for his daughter to attend university was settled. And there would be living expenses in the future too. His daughter was more outstanding than others. Whatever others had, his daughter should also have as much as possible. At least she shouldn¡¯t fall behind. There was one time his daughter came back home on the weekend in tears. She said she didn¡¯t have money to buy a dictionary and was made to stand as punishment by her teacher. When Su Youfu heard this, even his eyes turned red. Sheng Juanhua was unhappy the whole day. They didn¡¯t want their daughter to suffer this kind of grievance again.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi was doing College English Test Band 4 test papers in her room. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the mechanical sound appeared in her ears again: ¡°Host has become champion of the 200m Women''s Freestyle swimming in Jingnan Province and appeared on the news, bringing Gumula Village villagers a positive outlook that studying can lead to success and make them realize knowledge itself is power. System level unlocked and system upgraded to Level 8 Progressive System. Host will obtain 0.8 yuan for every step walked, capped at 30,000 steps per day.¡±

 Chapter 93: : Adjusting the State

    Chapter 93


    Before going to bed, Xiao Qi did two sets of CET-4 test papers, reviewed some content, and felt the listening section was easier than before. In fact, the listening style of each set of test papers is very similar and not too difficult.


    She planned to tackle it piece by piece next, starting with intensive listening practice. Then she read her extracurricular book for a while again, still the one called "A Day in the Life of an Edo Person." Although the actual content was not extensive, since there were pictures, Xiao Qi was reluctant to just flip through casually. She read every page very carefully, including the captions and annotations with the illustrations, which were quite interesting.


    She had just read the introductory first chapter, which introduced "The Beauty Ranking," the beauties of Japan''s Edo period. The actual writing was only one page, but it was too interesting to read along with the pictures. Japanese aesthetic standards for women have changed tremendously over different eras.


    In the second year of the Minghe era in Japan, 1765 in China''s calendar, Qianlong''s 30th year of reign, the popular beauties in Japan at that time had slender necks, arms, waists and legs, sloping shoulders, dreamy eyes, small mouths, and were approximately of the frail willows in the wind, white lotus style, with relatively undemanding height requirements¡ªseven heads tall was adequate.


    After about twenty years, the fourth year of the Tenmei era in Japan, 1784 in China''s calendar, Qianlong''s 49th year of reign, when the Siku Quanshu was completed, Japanese aesthetic standards for beauties increased, requiring ten heads tall, clearly defined facial contours, cheerful temperament, slender limbs, fit figure¡ªby today''s standards they would still qualify as beauties, while the white lotus style tasted defeat... Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    Another decade later, the eighth year of Japan''s Kansei era, equivalent to China''s 1796, the first year of Emperor Jiaqing''s reign in Qing dynasty when he took over power, while Qianlong became the Retired Emperor, and the corrupt official Heshen was still alive. The popular taste in Japan at that time favored women with round chins, round eyes, chubby cheeks, pursed lips, ample bosoms¡ªsounding similar to China''s Tang dynasty beauty standard; I wonder what had happened in between historically?


    By 1824, the seventh year of Japan''s Bunsei era, still Qing dynasty in China, Emperor Daoguang''s fourth year on the throne, the year when Lin Zexu was building water conservancy projects in Zhejiang, aesthetic standards for beauties in Japan underwent tremendous change, basically having no bodily requirements as long as she reached six heads tall. They liked those without waists, short and stout, thick legs, high insteps, small breasts, long faces, pointed chins, slender phoenix eyes¡ªbasically opposite of Euro-American standards: short necks, slight forward-leaning head, also undemanding about the shape of hands and feet.


    It is said that such figure and looks, when dressed up lazily, exhibited a kind of desolate and utterly charming allure...


    For this little section alone, Xiao Qi spent quite a while, as there were no clear correspondences of time periods provided in the book. As she read, Xiao Qi looked up information on Baidu to match Chinese history, unintentionally reviewing some historical knowledge. She felt political regimes in Japan have changed too frequently.


    Nowadays, the popular aesthetic is basically thin, pointed chin, fair complexion, also slightly androgynous, because the girls in her class are always shouting about which male celebs they want as their husbands, mostly those fresh tender young boys.


    She didn''t expect that for beauty, there have also been such distinctive standards across different times.


    Xiao Qi used to be somewhat self-conscious about her looks too, always feeling her shoulders might be a bit sloped, her calves somewhat thick. She didn''t realize sloped shoulders and thick calves were once emblematic of beauties in Japanese history.


    Aesthetics do evolve, and if she were to change herself to cater to them, in the end whether she would turn out beautiful would remain uncertain either way, so one should persist in being oneself.


    She also felt tangible improvement comparing her current work with previous ones.


    Still must persevere though, looking back now she has used more paper on calligraphy practice in the past year than total previous years.


    Her aunt even felt they were good work, preparing her a box labeled pharmaceuticals on the outside, filled inside with everything she has written.


    After practice, congee was also done. Xiao Qi seldom had stir-frys for breakfast, occasionally blanched vegetable greens, basically pickles, buns and breads her aunt prepared steamed hot. And today she unexpectedly received pancakes again delivered from Lin Min¡¯s mom, her aunt also brought down a huge pile of buns, soy milk, fruits and more.


    "They all said to give to you, so you eat more." Aunt Su Mei said gleefully. She also didn''t know why everyone was so enthusiastic all of a sudden.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Feeling strange like this, she still tried to decline as much as possible later, or make something herself to give back to everyone, otherwise such human favors would be too difficult to repay.


    After breakfast, she went off to Japanese class at the Culture Palace.


    As usual, Xiao Qi wore a T-shirt and school pants, backpack on.


    Guan Jingzhi had matters come up today and did not attend, so only Xiao Qi in class.


    Xiao Qi felt Teacher Zhou was a bit odd today, staring at her since she came in, like there was something on her face. She checked repeatedly but nothing like food residue.


    Zhou Meiling really couldn''t help staring at her. She didn''t expect this young girl to be the champion of Jingnan Province 200m women''s freestyle competition, and competed just yesterday, yet today showed up to class looking no different, still wearing these casual clothes.


    Unable to restrain herself, she asked: ¡°You won bonus prize money yesterday, Jingzhi said you tutor English too, over 2,000 yuan weekly, how come you don¡¯t buy some new clothes for yourself?¡±

 Chapter 94: Just Walk Away

    Chapter 94


    The Culture Palace had an excellent geographic location, a small western-style building with green trees on both sides providing shade.


    Outside the window was lush greenery, with occasional rays of sunlight streaming in.


    Teacher Zhou''s office was also decorated with vases of fresh flowers, very elegant.


    On her desk there was also a faint blue vase in the shape of a woman''s waist, looking quite antiquated and heavy, like an antique.


    Evidently Teacher Zhou was quite fond of it, because the few times Xiaoqi had come to see Teacher Zhou, she had seen her polishing that vase twice, using a very soft cloth.


    She had thought she''d done something wrong after Teacher Zhou stared at her all morning, and had not expected that what Teacher Zhou actually took issue with was this.


    Today Teacher Zhou had on another suit, a tight-fitting yellow knit sleeveless top with lace around the collar, paired with a dark green skirt just above the knees, slightly longer. The materials of the top and skirt both looked rather heavy, clearly very good quality, showcasing her slender waistline wonderfully. On her feet were a pair of nude high heels, not completely nude but with a band of darker pattern at the toes, giving an antiquated feel. Her whole outfit was very beautiful, and she also wore earrings, little tower-shaped ones with shiny stones that swayed prettily when she spoke or lifted her head, also accentuating the shape of her face.


    Whereas Xiaoqi herself was wearing sweatpants and a T-shirt, the T-shirt naturally worn outside.


    If one''s proportions were not good, this would be a typical case of so-so, or even 4/10 for the top half and 6/10 for the legs.


    But Xiaoqi was quite tall now and her proportions were not bad either. She also regularly swam and jogged, so dressing this way was not an issue.


    But Zhou Meiling, who refused to repeat an outfit in front of the same person, clearly could not stand it - the wrinkled T-shirt and those sweatpants, why did she feel like the girl wore the same thing every time she saw her?


    And yet that was the case. The girl also exuded a kind of confident, high-spirited aura. When she was serious she was even a bit daunting. Zhou Meiling really could not stand it anymore and spoke up when they were taking a break.


    "I originally participated in the swimming competition for the prize money. My college entrance exam scores were just average, and I''m enrolled in a private university with very high tuition. If I had won that prize money, my parents wouldn''t have to worry about my tuition. As for the tutoring income, I thought that earning a bit now for living expenses would be a bit less for my parents to worry about. As for clothes, I have new ones. My aunt just bought me a skirt and the outfit from the first time I met you. The shoes are new too, two pairs - one for jogging and one to wear normally."


    Upon hearing the girl''s explanation, Zhou Meiling felt a moment of embarrassment.


    Her closet couldn''t even fit all her clothes. Her daily delight after work was shopping for clothes.


    Her family was well-off and she had her own income. With no children to spend on, she could indulge however she liked.


    She could not come up with any rebuttal when she heard Xiaoqi''s words. But she still felt something wasn''t right - this stubborn girl, clothing matters in making an impression. Who has the time to analyze and observe you in depth?


    After the break, Xiaoqi assumed the topic was finished and earnestly resumed her Japanese lesson.


    She did not expect Zhou Meiling to speak again after the lesson ended: "You''re free this afternoon and evening, right?"


    Xiaoqi considered and indeed had no tutoring or swim training today, so nodded.


    What was with that relieved look on Teacher Zhou''s face?


    Teacher Zhou was disparaging of her clothing, yet Xiaoqi did not feel insulted. Not like in school when the head teacher had admonished her that students should focus on studying and not care about their appearance - she had felt utterly mortified then.


    She didn''t know if her skin had gotten thicker or her mindset had changed.


    When Auntie Sumei Su heard Xiaoqi say her teacher was taking her to a concert, she didn''t doubt it at all. She just told her to take care and come home early.


    The main thing was Xiaoqi was usually so well behaved. Other than studying, all she did was study and help with housework. Sumei felt a good kid like this wouldn''t cause any trouble, and trusted her completely.


    Xiaoqi had assumed Teacher Zhou wanted her to go shopping that afternoon. She did not expect Zhou Meiling to have it all arranged already.


    "Just study and read here this afternoon. There''s a cafeteria in the Culture Palace, we''ll eat there. After eating I''ll drive onto the highway to Fucheng. Fucheng''s malls are huge with lots of selection."


    "Uh... Teacher don''t you have to work this afternoon?"


    "No need, I took time off," Zhou Meiling replied. She actually didn''t need to apply for leave at all. Her work was very relaxed. As long as superiors didn''t come inspect, playing hooky was no issue. She often skipped work in the afternoons to go drink tea at the teahouse. Not wanting to explain all this to a child, she simply said she took time off.


    By the time Xiaoqi was sitting in the beautiful Volkswagen Beetle-like car, she still felt a bit dizzy.


    There was music playing in the car. She sat in the passenger seat.


    The car smelled nice, seemingly sprayed with perfume. Xiaoqi felt sitting in Teacher Zhou''s car was even better than sitting in Guan Qiuzi''s car.


    Though that was probably an illusion since it was her first time sitting in the passenger seat.


    At most she had ridden in the ramshackle van transporting her village to the city. Bumping and rattling, loud noisy engine, strong gasoline fumes, she was lucky if she could squeeze a seat each time. Let alone something like this - sitting sweetly scented in the car.


    The decorations in the car looked to be made of fresh flowers.


    The car was very clean. The seat was soft - sitting back she even felt a bit sleepy.


    This was Xiaoqi''s first time catching a ride to go out of town. Only on the highway did she feel it was a bit crazy.


    She had thought before getting in the car that she should buy Teacher Zhou some food and drinks, but it turned out the car had everything already.


    Presently she saw Zhou Meiling had taken off her high heels, tossed in the back, wearing flat shoes now. Stepping on gas and brake pedal with one hand on the wheel and the other holding a can of coffee she took a swig from, body swaying to the rhythmic music, while saying to her, "Go ahead and nap if you''re tired. Sleep a bit and when you wake up we''ll have arrived."


    Xiaoqi looked at cars zipping past outside, one hand grasping the seatbelt for dear life while the other clung to the door handle, quickly shaking her head. "I''m not tired, Teacher."

 Chapter 95: Making Excuses to Buy Clothes

    Chapter 95


    Mountain ranges stretched endlessly.


    Teacher Zhou drank a can of coffee.


    The Zhou Meiling driving a car and the Zhou at the office of the Cultural Palace were completely different.


    She was still wearing that extremely professional-looking thick knitted sweater and medium-long green flannel skirt, but she had on little white shoes. Her body swayed to the music in the car - Japanese, English, Chinese songs, very popular Chinese folk-style songs.


    When listening to this song, little Su Xiaoqi held onto the door handle even more tightly.


    Because the teacher¡¯s body swayed to the music like she had Parkinson''s disease.


    "The vast horizon is my love, the soft green hills are flowering below. What kind of rhythm is the most, the most swaying..."


    Her skirt also flipped up and her clothes pulled out from her tight belt. If Teacher Zhou wasn''t a woman, little Su Xiaoqi would have thought Teacher Zhou was about to do something...


    Finally, tall buildings slowly emerged among the mountain ranges as they approached Fulong City.


    The teacher finally stopped swaying.


    While waiting to exit the freeway, the teacher neatly tucked her clothes back into her belt and pulled her skirt back down over her legs, once again the epitome of a graceful, lady civil servant femme fatale.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    After entering Fulong City, there was more traffic and they couldn''t drive fast anymore. Teacher Zhou finally stopped swaying randomly, though she seemed quite excited in spirit.


    "Let''s go straight to Guojin Building. There are lots of signs there, all the newest and prettiest clothes." Zhou Meiling set the navigation on her phone.


    It showed it would take an hour to get there.


    There really was traffic congestion. It only took two hours to drive from Lvshan City to Fulong City, but once inside Fulong City, it took a whole hour to get to the department store in the city center.


    A Teacher Zhou who could cite so many principles just to buy clothes...she didn¡¯t have it easy either.


    Little Su Xiaoqi chased after the teacher running wildly, taking the elevator up. Curiously she asked, ¡°Teacher, how will you find your car later? We¡¯re on the second basement level.¡±


    Zhou Meiling: ...


    ¡°Oh crap I forgot my parking space. But don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll take this elevator back down and go find it, then my key fob has sensor detection.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, that number, EZoneChapter 97 written on the front of your car before is a parking space identifier, right?¡±


    Zhou Meiling¡¯s eyes lit up: ¡°Yes, that¡¯s it! Let me remember that.¡±


    Su Xiaoqi: ...That¡¯s dialect...Teacher Zhou exposed herself again...


    From the second basement floor to the first floor above ground, they were suddenly blinded by bright lights.


    Little Su Xiaoqi had never seen such a brightly lit department store in Lvshan City. It felt like her entire body was under lights from head to toe, flashing like stars.


    The mall was not crowded, there were many cosmetic counters and many large stores.


    Little Su Xiaoqi recognized the sign of one store, Gucci. She had been specifically educated about this brand by Zhang Juan, who said her handbag was from Gucci and cost over $10,000.


    Glancing in through the big glass windows, inside were shelves full of bags...How much did this shop cost? Little Su Xiaoqi looked at several other stores that were like Gucci, very big, entrances glittering, men in suits standing outside like guardians - they didn¡¯t look like shopping stores but more like high-end office spaces, making people not even dare to casually walk in.


    Were they going to buy things here? Hadn¡¯t they come to the wrong place? Little Su Xiaoqi felt that even all her prize money from winning the swimming championship was not enough to shop here.


    Zhou Meiling was focused, not dragging little Su Xiaoqi to luxury shopping, as she was quite obsessed with new clothes, not so much bags. Mainly she believed different clothes had to be matched with different bags, and those bags were really too expensive. She felt pain to spend that much as a civil servant and it was also inappropriate to change luxury bags every day.


    Wearing white shoes, she walked extremely fast, dragging little Su Xiaoqi to a certain cosmetics counter. Little Su Xiaoqi looked up at the English letters: Armani. She sounded it out - Ah-ma-ni.


    "Do you have tomato-colored lipstick?" Zhou Meiling''s eyes shone as she asked the clerk excitedly.

 Chapter 96: Crazy Women

    Chapter 96


    Su Xiaoqi was pressed onto a cream-colored chair.


    The surroundings were illuminated by lights, and there was a large mirror in front of her.


    A beautiful young lady in a black uniform with a purple bow belt around her waist carefully held a cotton swab. It wasn''t lipstick on the swab, but something different from what Xiaoqi was used to seeing. It was a small brush. The cotton swab picked up a bit from the brush and applied it to Xiaoqi''s lips.


    Xiaoqi didn''t usually wear makeup, nor did she apply lipstick in the summer. Except for the school anniversary performance, where others danced while she stood in the back, waving her hands in a long-sleeved dress. The makeup artist applied lipstick to her uniformly, but it was a terrible experience. After the makeup was done, Xiaoqi felt even uglier than her usual self.


    Her lips felt greasy and uncomfortable, and she wasn''t allowed to eat anything for fear of smudging the lipstick.


    Sitting there, Xiaoqi had a tense expression, and the effect of the unattainable buff on her body became prominent.


    Even though the Armani counter lady saw her dressed plainly, she didn''t look down on her. On the contrary, she provided even more careful and serious service.


    Looking at herself in the mirror, Xiaoqi felt that she looked a bit serious and stern.


    She carefully experienced the feeling of the unattainable buff manifesting itself. It meant maintaining a proper posture, a serious expression, and a clean and focused gaze without flinching.


    She only glanced at herself in the mirror for a moment while Zhou Teacher was excitedly selecting foundation nearby, and the saleswoman was trying it on her hand.


    "Your skin is really good, so fair and flawless. Not a single pore in sight," the saleswoman who applied lipstick to her couldn''t help but exclaim.


    Usually, such words were just a way to please customers and build rapport.


    But while she lowered her head to apply lipstick for this young girl, she truly felt envious.


    The girl was indeed fair, extremely fair. Not a single pore could be seen on her face. She had a bit of fine hair on her face, indicating that she was quite young. But she exuded a strong presence. The saleswoman spent some time applying the lipstick before she dared to speak.


    Xiaoqi didn''t know how to respond to such compliments because she couldn''t even smile while applying the lipstick.


    However, looking at herself in the mirror, she was already quite fair, and now she appeared even fairer than before. Combined with the effect of the surrounding lights, the girl in the mirror looked exceptionally fair, just like the feeling she had when she first saw Zhou Meiling, radiating with brightness.


    "It''s done. Take a look. This lipstick color suits you perfectly. It''s simply perfect. You''re young, so you don''t need much makeup. Just a touch of lipstick will bring out your aura," the saleswoman said.


    In the mirror, there was now a girl with red lips, truly red. Xiaoqi didn''t know how to describe it, but it was the tomato red that Zhou Teacher had wanted from the moment she walked in. Her lip line wasn''t very distinct¡ªit was usually a bit blurred. But after applying the lipstick, her entire lips became vividly clear, and there was a unique sensation that made Xiaoqi want to take a bite herself.


    Zhou Meiling finished trying on the foundation and ultimately chose the lightest shade of Armani''s liquid foundation. Then she turned around and saw Su Xiaoqi.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    Fortunately, Teacher Zhou was very decisive at the cosmetics counter. She was loyal to the brand and only visited the Armani store. They finished shopping there and left.


    Then they went upstairs.


    Teacher Zhou walked really fast, and even Su Xiaoqi, who was used to running, felt like she couldn''t catch up. She hoped Teacher Zhou would put her high heels back on. Right now, she looked like a martial arts master taking off the sandbags from her legs, moving as if flying.


    Zhou Meiling led Su Xiaoqi to the second floor, where they found mature women''s clothing that suited Zhou Meiling''s taste. The stores were quite spacious, with few customers. The air conditioning was so cool, as if the electricity bill didn''t matter. Seeing the well-dressed sales staff in suits, Su Xiaoqi thought they were probably afraid of getting too hot.


    Zhou Meiling only visited a couple of stores before leaving without making any purchases.


    Su Xiaoqi glanced at the prices and understood why. It was because they were already transitioning to autumn clothing, and that small jacket was priced in the five digits... over ten thousand yuan.


    Zhou Meiling''s expression was a bit off. In Lvshan City, this small town, she was considered the most fashionable when it came to wearing clothes from brands like "GODI" and "Amass." Her friends often said she spent a lot of money, but compared to this place, her choices were simply not up to par. Xiaoqi saw a trendy little jacket from MaxMara with a five-figure price tag; Zhou Meiling had bought a coat from the same brand for over 20,000 yuan. It was expensive, and she couldn''t bear to part with it even after several years. However, she loved wearing new clothes, so she would hang them in the closet each year¡ªtaking them out in the winter and putting them away in the summer.


    Upon reflection, it wasn''t really worth it. Women''s clothes couldn''t be worn for a lifetime, and keeping them for a few extra years only made sense because they were truly expensive and she couldn''t bring herself to throw them away.


    They explored a few shops on the second floor, and Zhou Meiling bought a silk scarf for over 2,000 yuan before moving on to the upper levels.


    The third floor had men''s clothing, and the fourth floor was entirely dedicated to shoes.


    The fifth floor was where they found the section for teenage girls.


    This was the place Zhou Meiling intended to bring Xiaoqi to.


    Compared to mature women''s clothing, teenage girls'' attire was much cheaper. After all, young girls didn''t fuss over the fabric and anything they wore looked good.


    Xiaoqi noticed that women shopping were all the same, whether it was the elegant and sophisticated Zhou Teacher or her laid-back aunt. When they entered a store, they would enthusiastically pick out many clothes for her to try on.


    The most outrageous item was a formal gown, which was incredibly heavy to hold and adorned with numerous frills.


    Zhou Meiling even insisted that the salesperson take the dress off a mannequin. It took three salespeople to dismantle the mannequin just to remove the dress because it was really large and had a tight waist.


    Perhaps because Zhou Meiling had just been shopping on the second floor, where even a scarf cost several thousand yuan, now that they were on the fifth floor, she suddenly felt that the clothes were cheap, as if they were free. It exuded an air of nouveau riche.


    Quietly, Su Xiaoqi calculated the amount of money she had in her wallet. She could only bring out a limited sum, and buying clothes was definitely out of the question. She already felt embarrassed taking the lipstick from her teacher.

 Chapter 97: Listening to the Symphony

    Chapter 97


    Zhou Meiling didn''t have any children.


    The couple had a decent relationship, but the only drawback was this aspect.


    Normally, she didn''t have the desire to be a mother. Mainly because she was tired of hearing people constantly talking about wanting children. Her ears were calloused from hearing it so often. She was living a good life, without any worries about food and clothing. In the future, she would have a retirement pension when she grew old. She wanted to go shopping, travel, and enjoy herself. Why would she want children to burden her? There are plenty of families without children in foreign countries, and they live just fine. Why couldn''t she do the same?


    Whenever someone brought up the topic, she would lose her temper, and after a while, nobody mentioned it anymore.


    But now, as she watched the seventeen-year-old girl step out in a fluffy evening gown, Zhou Meiling felt a sudden realization. If she had had a child during the first two years of her marriage, the child would be this age by now.


    Su Xiaoqi, wearing the gown, exuded confidence and looked incredibly beautiful, just the way she wanted to feel.


    Xiaoqi looked at Teacher Zhou with sparkling eyes, just like when her aunt used to buy clothes for her.


    She had just seen the price of this gown, over 3000 yuan. She definitely wouldn''t buy it. It was too big, and she didn''t have a place to store it at home. Besides, she didn''t have any occasion to wear it to school. It would be too strange.


    However, in the mirror at this moment, she looked really good. Like a little princess.


    No wonder young girls all have princess dreams. This feeling made her feel dignified, as if she needed to be careful with every move, maintaining her sense of dignity. She couldn''t do anything casually, not even walking. She had to stand tall and straight, not run around recklessly.


    With the help of the salesperson, she changed out of this outfit.


    The salesperson''s attitude was quite good. Perhaps it was because Zhou Meiling had been assertive in picking out many clothes as if she were a nouveau riche. The salespeople in the clothing store were not afraid of demanding customers as long as they made a purchase in the end.


    Under Teacher Zhou''s eager gaze, Xiaoqi tried on several more outfits.


    Fortunately, except for that gown, the other clothes were not expensive. They were similar to the prices in Lushan City''s shopping malls. But here, there were discounts. One item at 90% off, two items at 80% off, three items at 70% off, four items at 60% off, and five items at 50% off...


    Xiaoqi wasn''t great at math, but it sounded really cost-effective. Most people would probably buy five items just for the 50% discount, whether they needed them or not.


    After trying on clothes and pants in almost half the store, Zhou Meiling finally picky chose two outfits and a skirt.


    Xiaoqi felt that although Teacher Zhou''s personality was sometimes a bit peculiar, her taste was quite good.


    One outfit was a pair of sporty pants, with a bit of a hip-hop feel. They were tight around the calves, but when paired with a T-shirt, it looked playful. The T-shirt wasn''t complicated either, just a regular one with a design on the front. One of them was a deep pink T-shirt with a small black elephant on the chest, very cute.


    The other pair of pants was a casual straight-cut style with a light checkered pattern. It was paired with a shirt, and when she put it on, it felt somewhat formal. Plus, Xiaoqi applied some lipstick. This outfit actually gave her a professional feeling. She had never tried this kind of casual pants that resembled trousers before, and she rarely had the chance to wear a shirt. The shirt was white with a faint checkered pattern, very clean. When she wore it like this, Xiaoqi almost didn''t recognize herself anymore.


    Most ladies wore dresses, and the gentlemen were quite elegant in their suits and shirts.


    Upon passing the security check and entering the lobby, a huge chandelier caught their attention. It was made entirely of sparkling glass crystals, illuminating the space.


    In the center, there was a large screen displaying information about the orchestra for this performance. The conductor, dressed in formal attire, exuded an impressive aura. He was a middle-aged foreigner with receding hair, so only the top of his balding head was visible from the audience''s perspective.


    There was also a prominent promotion of the clarinet virtuoso Martin Foster, a young man with golden hair, long and straight legs, and a gentlemanly and handsome appearance.


    Inside the lobby, there was a dedicated counter with promotional brochures. However, it was stated that only those with tickets priced above 1200 could obtain them. Mr. Zhou and Little Qi each took a copy.


    The magazine was quite thick.


    It was then that Little Qi realized that different seat categories had different prices. She noticed someone next to her holding a ticket priced at 490 and asking if they could still receive a brochure. The attendant replied that they could purchase one for fifty yuan. Surprisingly, the person actually paid for it.


    Little Qi flipped through the brochure, which was filled with colorful pages. It provided more detailed information, mostly in the form of photographs. It also outlined the program for today''s performance, consisting of three pieces.


    While she was engrossed in reading the brochure, the doors opened, signaling that it was time to enter the auditorium.


    "Do you want to use the restroom? We can''t leave until it''s over. There''s a fifteen-minute intermission," said Zhou Meiling.


    Little Qi went to the restroom and then they both entered the auditorium together.


    The theater had a fan-shaped layout, and surprisingly, there were seats on the second floor as well. There were also seats on the left and right sides, situated between the first and second floors. Mr. Zhou''s seat was in the front row of the first floor, providing a clear view of the stage.


    After Little Qi took her seat, she noticed there was still plenty of empty space on the left and right sides. However, after a while, the lobby seemed to fill up gradually. Even the upper levels were almost completely occupied.


    Suddenly, the hall lights dimmed, leaving only the stage illuminated.


    It was then that Little Qi looked up and realized that the stage had already been filled with people, though she wasn''t sure when they had taken their seats. The men were dressed in suits and formal attire, while the women wore long dresses or uniforms. Those in the front row held violins, and there were drums and long instruments on either side. The back row consisted of cellos, arranged in an orderly fashion, with several dozen musicians in total.


    She turned her head to glance at Zhou Meiling, who sat with an upright posture, attentively focused on the front.


    Little Qi followed suit and sat up straight, fully engrossed.


    "Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"


    The tremendous sound of the music surged like waves, and suddenly, Little Qi felt as though she wasn''t in a concert hall but at the seaside. The seats had transformed into damp sandy beaches...

 Chapter 98: Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony

    Chapter 98


    Life has infinite possibilities, and life deserves more attempts.


    My eardrum had the feeling of throbbing for the first time, but it was not harsh, my heartbeat quickened, as if beating along with the rhythm of the music: thump, thump, thump.


    The conductor on stage was not waving a baton, but stirring up one wave after another.


    It made people sit up straight with their backs quivering slightly.


    The auditorium was dark, with only a spotlight at the front.


    The music echoed around.


    A big wave rose up, fell, and another even higher wave was whipped up by the sea breeze, crashing down noisily, after a few times, the seawater calmed down, I could hear the sound of small waves lapping against the rocks, and the sound of waves colliding with each other, it felt a little delightful, a little tranquil.


    It calmed my excited heart down as well.


    Yet my heart could not completely settle, because I felt like a nerve in my back was still pulling at me, as if facing the temporarily calmed sea, I kept feeling that an even bigger wave would come surging over.


    Sure enough, when I was lulled by the soothing music and my mind seemed to be completely at ease, the waves suddenly rose again, and my heart was seized as well.


    Xiao Qi did not expect that just by listening to music, she would have such an immersive experience.


    She could feel excited, passionate, angry, calm, cheerful and different emotions exchanging within her body, she was very nervous. She stroked the hair by her ear and realized her palm was already wet with sweat.


    The effect was completely different from listening with earphones. She even felt her back turn slightly cold.


    Fortunately, although the air conditioner in the concert hall was turned up high, it was very high up and there were many people, so it was not cold.


    There was an intermission in the middle. The screen next to us specially indicated that applause should be withheld during intermissions between movements.


    Since most people did not have much experience listening to symphonies, sometimes during an intermission, they would uncontrollably applaud, mistakenly thinking a piece had ended.


    Each piece was very long. When it got exciting, the violinists¡¯ bodies swayed along with the rhythm of the music. Sometimes their bodies would bend like shrimps.


    The conductor waved his baton even more extremely, flailing in all directions as if his whole body was convulsing.


    The concert hall seemed to have become a small leaf boat rocking and struggling forward amidst tempestuous winds and rains.


    When a piece finished, Xiao Qi felt that even her soles were sweating.


    Finally applause rang out and she clapped along.


    The lights in the venue also brightened. She turned to look at Teacher Zhou beside her, but saw that Teacher Zhou still sat upright, like she was at work, also clapping politely. Compared to Xiao Qi¡¯s strange state, Teacher Zhou was much calmer, even using her phone to take pictures in between.


    Next, some violinists left part of the stage with their violins and some cello players also left, but the cellos were not taken away, probably because they were too heavy. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi still slowly squeezed out bit by bit.


    Stepping outside, she heaved a breath of relief.


    She saw a few foreign youth, male and female, chatting by the door. Xiao Qi thought her English was pretty good...yet it turned out they were probably speaking German or something she couldn¡¯t understand. They were all very tall, the girls over 1.7 meters at least, blonde hair styled crisp and neat, guys had brown hair. Unsure if they were musicians or fans.


    In all of China, Fucheng was still not considered a very developed city, at most third-tier. Fucheng did not have many foreigners, especially Europeans. Whereas Meng City as a coastal town had way more foreigners and a stronger economy too.


    Xiao Qi loitered outside awhile, specially checking if the doors were closed. She had wondered if so many people would walk out on this kind of dull, tedious concert during intermission with the doors wide open...but the doors were shut, everyone had to re-enter...


    Although photography was prohibited in the hall, based on current social media trends, people would still sneak photos and videos on their phones periodically. Teacher Zhou also took quite a few, seeing her edit posts for her moments.


    When they returned after intermission, the music suddenly felt much more comfortable and enjoyable. Xiao Qi¡¯s mind no longer wandered.


    The previous sax concerto had been Mozart¡¯s pieces. Next up were Beethoven ones.


    Beethoven''s compositions were very passionate, highly suitable for symphonic modes. Many musicians streamed onto stage again all at once.


    Xiao Qi adjusted her state well until she finished listening, without falling asleep halfway or looking around. It was not until the lights on site turned on and people started leaving in batches that Xiao Qi realized it had ended.


    She was a little impatient earlier, feeling it was very long. But when it really ended, she felt it was over very quickly.


    She was a bit stunned that she had just watched a world-class performance. She strangely felt that being rich is great. Listening to these pieces live and through earphones is completely different. If she were very rich, she would probably buy tickets too and feel they were worth that much money.


    Some instruments are very difficult to carry onto planes and cannot be checked in normally. They probably need to buy separate cabin tickets.


    Walking out of the concert hall with Teacher Zhou, they got into the car. Zhou Meiling glanced at her phone occasionally, liking and commenting on posts, then turned to ask Xiao Qi, ¡°How was it?¡±


    ¡°The opening was very shocking. It felt like my whole body was shaken. The middle was a bit boring and I couldn¡¯t sit still. By the end, it was relatively tranquil and I could calmly appreciate it. It was quite good and very different from what I usually experience. I can¡¯t really describe it clearly.¡±


    Zhou Meiling only asked casually. Her friend gave her expensive tickets. She also wanted to go shopping in Fucheng, so she could enrich her social media feed. She did not expect the girl to answer so seriously.


    "It''s okay, you''ll get used to it if you listen more next time." Zhou Meiling patted her shoulder and enviously glanced at how the girl''s shoulders shone white without blemishes or pimples in the dim car.


    "En." Xiao Qi nodded.


    She thought that you really can''t judge a book by its cover. She previously felt Teacher Zhou was quite casual and liked listening to very popular folk music. She did not expect that Zhou Meiling actually likes such elegant music. *fog*


    She instantly felt there was still so much for her to learn in life, which seemed endless.


    Zhou Meiling drove back without planning to stay overnight in Fucheng.


    Perhaps because they just listened to such elegant symphonic music, the music in the car now was very comfortable without the most popular folk music, flowing like a mountain stream.


    The mountains outside the window looked like ink paintings in the dark night.


    Xiao Qi looked outside, lost in thought.

 Chapter 99: Back to the Dorm

    Chapter 99


    It was not very congested at night, and Zhou Meiling dropped off Little Seven at the hospital entrance.


    Little Seven got out of the car. It was already very late, almost midnight, but the entrance of the hospital was still bustling. Some late night snack stalls were still open.


    On the way here, Little Seven had already texted her aunt saying that she was almost there.


    She was worried that she wouldn''t have enough steps today. Unexpectedly, when she checked the app interface in the car, she already had almost 30,000 steps. She didn''t run or swim today, just went shopping with her teacher, yet she walked so many steps. It was magical.


    Little Seven didn''t notice that as soon as she got out of the car, another taxi pulled over at the entrance as well.


    It was Lin Min.


    Lately, Lin Min rarely came back here. The training school he set up was on the right track with a lot of enrolled students. It occupied a whole floor like a school.


    The classroom was bright and clean. Every time he taught, he felt as if he was a teacher or a student in school.


    His partner Kang Yuan who co-founded the school even wanted to stay and continue running the training school instead of going to college. He tried hard to persuade Lin Min too.


    The two had some disagreement recently because of this.


    He knew Kang Yuan persuaded him this way because the current premises of the school was provided by An Sister who seemed to like him quite a lot. If he left, An Sister would probably stop supporting the school.


    But Lin Min still disagreed. Although he had made quite some money now, he didn''t feel secure. He used to be the top student in school. He didn''t have much social experience but his foundations in calculations and accounting were solid. He calculated the normal rent An Sister should charge for lending the whole floor and their actual income. To put it simply, they didn''t really make money. They only transferred the rent from An Sister''s pocket into theirs.


    If they were to run a formal school paying proper rent, they would be operating at loss. This was something he had just realized recently. At first, he was indeed a bit tempted, feeling that he had made money and wanted to buy his sister things she liked, reduce some burden off his mother, and even wanted to give Su Xiaoqi money. But he couldn''t find a reason to do so. He knew her tuition was expensive and family conditions mediocre. Otherwise why would she live in a basement with her aunt and still work part-time jobs during summer breaks. He just didn''t have an excuse.


    When the idea came to him, he also sensed vaguely that he liked Su Xiaoqi a little.


    Not romantic love, just admiration and fondness.


    But yesterday, he saw a post from Xiaoqi on social media.


    She won the swimming championship.


    She smiled as radiantly as the blazing sun, utterly joyful and free.


    It jolted Lin Min awake in an instant.


    Lin Min still lived at An Sister''s place, although she claimed it was a vacant house. Sometimes An Sister would be there too. There were also things that belonged to her in the house, female perfumes and cosmetics.


    He didn''t know exactly what An Sister did, seemed to be in finance. Kang Yuan said An Sister was rich, an investor and operator.


    Lin Min didn''t really understand. But once he caught sight of a text message alert popping up on An Sister''s phone left on the table, showing money transfer of over 10 million yuan.


    And An Sister owned more than one floor of the building.


    Yet in this room with huge floor-to-ceiling windows, Lin Min felt restricted all over, feeling even his small basement bed was better.


    He also understood a bit more. The training school he opened wasn''t legal. It had not been cracked down probably because An Sister helped a lot. So sometimes he also needed to entertain others on her behalf, which basically meant obediently pouring drinks for her guests.


    He was tall and handsome. With some grooming, he could be quite presentable.


    He noticed An Sister was fond of him.


    He left and shut the door.


    Hailed a cab and felt relaxed all the way, unprecedentedly so.


    Until...until he arrived at the hospital entrance and saw the girl in a black skirt he had never seen before, getting out of the car. At that moment, he felt his bones and blood freeze.


    He thought himself laughable for insisting like that.


    He even wanted to ask the cab driver to turn back.


    Then he saw a mature beautiful woman in long dress getting off from the small sedan. She took something out of the trunk for Xiaoqi.


    Lin Min felt as if he was on a roller coaster, instantly dropped from the peak to bottom.


    While relieved, he also felt his heart must be too despicable and filthy to have thought for a moment that Xiaoqi was in similar circumstances.


    He felt ashamed and remorseful.


    He got off the car.


    ¡°Xiaoqi!¡± He called out.


    Xiaoqi looked back in surprise and exclaimed, ¡°Lin Min?¡±


    The two stood at the hospital entrance, somewhat peculiarly. Xiaoqi was unusually elegant today in a nice black dress, still wearing sneakers though. She rarely wore dresses, let alone a sleeveless low cut one like this, a bit sexy and mature.


    Lin Min stole a glance and immediately looked away. Her chest protruded slightly, unlike An Sister¡¯s fuller bosom.


    Her calves were shapely and glowing under the street light.


    ¡°Where have you been? Why so late?¡±


    ¡°My Japanese teacher Zhou brought me to a symphony concert in Fucheng since she drove here. So it¡¯s very late to drive back.¡± Xiaoqi had nothing to hide from Lin Min. She had always felt that Lin Min was similar to her in reality. For him to test into Qingmeng University from their average high school was remarkable.


    The two walked downstairs together. Xiaoqi didn''t ask where Lin Min had gone, seeing he was carrying a large bag of stuff. She was also holding some clothes.


    Possibly from napping in the car, she was still quite awake now.


    Went to wash all the new clothes. It didn''t feel right to wear them straightaway without washing first.


    When Xiaoqi was doing laundry, Lin Min also came out to wash up.


    Xiaoqi then remembered why she had felt strange when she saw Lin Min earlier. The previous two times she had seen him, he had been dressed very formally, but today he seemed to be wearing a T-shirt and sweatpants again, giving off a somewhat sloppy impression. However, Lin Min was quite good-looking, so he didn''t look odd, it''s just that after spending so much time with Zhou Teacher that day while clothes shopping, her theories about buying clothes had somewhat brainwashed Xiaoqi...she had subconsciously started observing what Lin Min was wearing.


    Seeing Xiaoqi had changed into an oversized old T-shirt, and was washing the skirt and other clothes she had just bought, Lin Min couldn''t help asking: "Did you buy new clothes?"


    "Mhm, Zhou Teacher took me shopping at a mall in Fucheng, there was a sale on so I bought quite a lot." Xiaoqi blushed a little. More than "quite a lot" actually, it was a whole lot.


    Lin Min just smiled.


    After he had washed up, he returned to his room.


    Xiaoqi then heard that familiar mechanical sound in her ears again: "Host has shown self-reliance, relying on her own efforts to earn money to buy clothes, giving the moderately darkening youth positive encouragement, easing the speed of his descent into darkness. Reward: Host strength +1."


    Su Xiaoqi''s hands were still immersed in a pile of bubbles as she scrubbed the clothes forcefully. Suddenly, she heard a "click" from the plastic tub below her...it had cracked...cracked...

 Chapter 100: Growing Up Teenage

    Chapter 100


    August 22nd, Thursday, sunny.


    Today''s Su Xiaoqi is 165cm tall, weighs 49.5kg, and currently has over 290,000 yuan in her bank account.


    She has the strength of a strong human, the taste buds of a pig, and the sense of smell of a dog.


    Entry level skills in: calligraphy, photography, long distance running, cooking, bamboo weaving.


    Expert level skill: singing.


    Unreachable buff for 5 days, swimming talent buff for 5 days, learning efficiency enhancement buff for 16 days, self-confidence buff for 9 days.


    Unused: one sincere blessing, one study card.


    Xiaoqi looked at her interface before getting up.


    She went to bed a bit late last night and accidentally broke her aunt''s wash basin. She later found another basin to wash her clothes. Fortunately, there are many basins in the hospital, just the white ones with the red cross hospital logo. But they are a bit thin. Xiaoqi thought that they are just too thin, it definitely wasn''t because she was too strong.


    She has a home tutoring class this afternoon. She wants to go to the library this morning to prepare for lessons and review. She¡¯ll go swimming tonight. Although the competition is over, she didn¡¯t swim or run yesterday, which felt weird.


    Swimming and running can also be very tiring, but after sleeping, she feels refreshed the next day. However, after walking 30,000 steps shopping, she feels uncomfortable all over when she wakes up in the morning.


    She woke up a bit late and didn¡¯t even have time to practice calligraphy. She hurriedly ate breakfast and found that the NPC Lin Min who lived next door was actually at home. She hasn¡¯t seen him for a long time recently.


    Xiaoqi greeted him and hurried out with her school bag to the library.


    Today she wore the jeans and cute top her aunt bought for her, looking very spirited and good-looking.


    Maybe, maybe she was a little influenced by Zhou Teacher. She could feel that Zhou Teacher seemed to hate her wearing ragged old T-shirts and those fuzzy sports pants with pulled threads. The way he looked at her made her feel uneasy.


    Since she bought new clothes and had several changes, Xiaoqi decided to wear the new ones and pack up the old clothes to take home. She could wear them when she goes to the mountains or vegetable plots with her dad when she gets home.


    As Lin Min watched Su Xiaoqi leave, today''s Su Xiaoqi looked extraordinarily beautiful.


    Boys seem to have a special liking for girls wearing jeans, although Lin Min has never noticed this point. But when he saw Su Xiaoqi in jeans, he was stunned for a moment, unable to stop himself from looking at her legs.


    But among the few students, the one who left the deepest impression on Xiaoqi turned out to be that girl called Lin You.


    Her level was better than Liang Jiajia, but not as good as Guan Jingzhi.


    However, she listened to classes very carefully and didn¡¯t talk much, very quiet and composed, her looks were not outstanding. Xiaoqi didn''t pay much attention to her in the first two classes.


    Later on she slowly realized that this girl did her assignments very carefully, her handwriting when copying sentences was very neat and beautiful. She worked very hard and progressed quickly. She wasn¡¯t as lively as Jiajia or as outstanding as Jingzhi, but she made steady progress and performed very impressively. She herself was just very quiet.


    As a teacher, she also really liked students who worked so hard like this.


    She must have seemed not hardworking enough to teachers back then.


    Everything else was just an excuse.


    Xiaoqi realized that when she experienced different professions and identities, her feelings were different.


    But such experiences were very good and warned her.


    Her past self had been too insecure, remembering every word and action from teachers, very inferior and even resentful, when actually teachers probably didn''t have any ulterior motives.


    It was just casual reprimanding.


    Also because of this, Xiaoqi was especially careful with her own words and would not easily judge students, because after gaining the identity of a teacher, what she said would be different to children.


    The home tutoring class went very smoothly in the afternoon.


    In the evening, Xiaoqi went to the swimming pool with her aunt.


    Coach Wu had been waiting there for a long time, in addition to Coach Wu there were other coaches who suddenly swarmed over.


    Xiaoqi still felt a little uneasy.


    Her aunt came to swim for weight loss. Seeing that Xiaoqi was busy, she didn¡¯t stay long and went to swim by herself.


    ¡°Xiaoqi, there¡¯s going to be an interview at the TV station tomorrow morning, they want you to go.¡± Coach Wu Peirong said as she came over.

 Chapter 101: TV Interview

    Chapter 101


    Early in the morning, Xiaoqi finished practicing her calligraphy calmly and had breakfast.


    However, her aunt Su Simei was extremely excited.


    Xiaoqi was originally going to attend her Japanese class in the morning, but had to ask for leave due to a conflicting interview with the TV station. Coincidentally, Guan Ximiao also asked for leave for this lesson, so Teacher Zhou would be teaching previous content that both of their progress could keep up with.


    Upon hearing that Su Xiaoqi was going to be interviewed on TV, Zhou Meiling still felt a tinge of jealousy...just a tinge. Then she immediately urged her to dress nicely and not embarrass her.


    Su Xiaoqi: ......


    In recent times, she had been trained by her student Jiajia to be used to being in front of the camera. Just thinking about the TV station interview felt a bit too far-fetched. She didn''t feel nervous while practicing calligraphy earlier, but when her aunt came to ask what she would wear, she blanked out again.


    She didn''t have many clothes to choose from, only T-shirts and sweatpants. It wasn''t something she needed to consider before, but now with her new clothes, it became an issue.


    The laundry was done drying, and Xiaoqi felt it would be best to wear something light and comfortable, so she changed into her new sweatpants and pink elephant T-shirt that she quite liked because the elephants were cute.


    However, Su Simei felt it was inappropriate, the pants were a bit too baggy, she thought it didn''t look formal enough and was too casual.


    So Xiaoqi changed again into casual slacks and a blouse, which looked very formal.


    But Su Simei felt that was too formal, it seemed a bit too serious, like a little girl trying too hard.


    She wanted Xiaoqi to change again, maybe try wearing a skirt.


    Xiaoqi: ......


    "Auntie, there''s no time to change again, this will do." Xiaoqi didn''t like wearing skirts much, she found them restricting. She hurriedly used it as an excuse to end the clothes change turmoil.


    Su Simei had work so she couldn''t tag along. But there was a car to pick Xiaoqi up, so Su Simei saw her to the car.


    Luckily she didn''t wear a skirt. Wu Coach seemed rather nervous, not daring to stand to greet Xiaoqi when she saw her, so Xiaoqi went over by herself.


    Head Coach Zhao was wearing a suit while the stylist attempted to cover his middle hair loss by styling his fringe.


    As the main interviewee today, Xiaoqi was also due for makeup. After the makeup artist finished Wu Coach''s makeup....she turned and smiled at Xiaoqi....quite creepy.


    A woman in her 20s made up to look nearly 40 years old.


    "I don''t usually wear makeup, so I''m not used to heavy makeup." Xiaoqi spoke up first to the makeup artist.


    The makeup artist was one of the TV station''s makeup artists, not the main one of course. The main makeup artists handled the hosts and celebrities, she was responsible for basic makeup for guests coming in since they don''t look good enough under studio lights without makeup. Whether it looked good or not wasn''t so important since they weren''t significant people and they didn''t require anything elaborate.


    But having a young girl say that to her, immediately put her in a bad mood. She was about to retort when she saw this young lady sitting steadily exuding quality, even more overbearing than the top hosts in the station. Glancing at her, she did indeed have fair skin and naturally red lips, long curled lashes, no drastic makeup job needed at all.


    "Your eyebrows are a little light. I''ll fill them in a bit." The makeup artist quickly found an excuse to bow out gracefully, though rather awkwardly.


    Xiaoqi nodded slightly.


    That instant, Wu Peirong and Head Coach Zhao were a little dumbfounded. Head Coach Zhao wondered just where little Wu found such an outstanding specimen. Simply too aggressive! With that imposing manner from before, it was like seeing the bureau chief.


    While Wu Peirong felt a little proud and gratified.


    Despite arriving early, they didn''t start interviews right away.


    They still had to wait around to be called.


    This waiting lasted a few hours!


    Wu Peirong passed the time by licking off her lipstick. While the head coach''s heavily hair sprayed hair drooped with two strands poking out.


    Luckily Xiaoqi had the habit of keeping books in her schoolbag for spare time reading. She took out her Japanese textbook to review and pre-study. It was nice and quiet here, good for learning. The only thing was she had told her parents on the phone beforehand she would return today, at this rate walking home looked to be the only way back.

 Chapter 102: TV Half-Day Tour

    Chapter 102


    Ji Su ran for the whole morning, and the internship at the television station was not as glamorous as people imagined.


    She was almost doing odd jobs full-time. She had to know how to make coffee, and printing documents was naturally her responsibility. Running errands was the most common task. When she first came to the television station, she dressed up seriously and wore high heels. But the next day, she switched to sneakers.


    Running up and down the television station in high heels was exhausting.


    After running for a whole morning, her boss asked her to pick up the little girl who had won a swimming award. Only then did Ji Su remember the girl she was supposed to pick up in the morning. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    But she had no energy to complain. It was common for the station to keep people waiting for a whole morning. Getting an interview was a big deal, and they couldn''t let the host wait. It''s not like they were celebrities.


    Ji Su was mentally prepared to deal with interviewees who frequently got angry and had a bad attitude. She, being a small figure like her, had learned to handle it.


    Unexpectedly, when she arrived at the dressing room, it was quite quiet. There was a middle-aged man looking in the mirror and fixing his hair, and an older woman was actually exercising, bending and stretching... Meanwhile, the little girl she picked up in the morning was studying??


    She was really studying. Ji Su suddenly remembered a previous occasion when a school organized a visit to their television station. During lunch break, a group of kids took out their homework and sat in a row doing their assignments...


    "Teacher Zhao, Teacher Wu, Teacher Su, the interview is about to start. Let''s go over and prepare." Ji Su sweetly spoke up. In a place like the station, addressing people as "teacher" was a standard and safe way to address them. Even though the girl reading the book was young, Ji Su couldn''t call her by name.


    Being called "teacher" didn''t make Xiao Qi uncomfortable either. After all, she now had seven students.


    She put away her book and stretched lazily.


    She still carried her backpack.


    Ji Su wanted to say that she could leave her backpack here, but she thought that the station was crowded and someone might use this dressing room soon, so she decided not to speak up.


    Wu Peirong was slightly nervous, feeling a bit clumsy as she walked out. It was her first time being interviewed. Captain Zhao, the head coach, was a little better, but not by much. He would fix his hair every few steps.


    Xiao Qi, carrying her backpack, looked around with some curiosity. The doors were closed, but there were different signs hanging on them. Some rooms had glass walls, and you could see people inside. There were actually some young men and women dancing. At first glance, they might not be as good-looking as the stars on TV, but they were all pretty and handsome.


    Because they looked about the same age as Xiao Qi, or even younger, she couldn''t help but take a few more glances.


    Ji Su explained, "These are trainees. Sometimes when the television station has events, they participate."


    Xiao Qi thought that only large entertainment companies had these trainees. She didn''t expect the local television station to have them too. But thinking about how many television stations and entertainment companies there were nationwide, and how many young trainees there were, only a few would truly stand out and be remembered. This path was even more difficult than studying.


    With a glance, Jiang Yiru already had a script in mind. There were a few newsworthy points to explore today: 1. It was said that Su Xiaoqi had no previous swimming experience and trained for only a month? A sports prodigy? 2. Su Xiaoqi came from Gumula Village, a very remote and impoverished village? A girl who emerged from the village? A top student?


    Jiang Yiru had a sweet and generous smile on her face, and she already had her script in mind. She invited everyone to take a seat.


    As a well-known host, guiding people in conversation was still quite easy.


    Xiaoqi was a bit nervous at first. When she was nervous, her aura of unapproachability became apparent, making her seem serious and difficult to approach.


    As she was invited to sit on the sofa next to Coach Wu, with Captain Zhao sitting on the adjacent single sofa, the host also took a seat on the single sofa next to Xiaoqi.


    There was a pile of cameras in front of them, and there was a long one that looked like a excavator standing above their heads.


    Xiaoqi''s nervousness subsided a bit.


    Because every time she taught Liang Jiajia, the camera would sometimes be particularly close, saying that they wanted to give her a close-up shot.


    And sitting down made her feel more secure than standing.


    Jiang Yiru had a very pleasant and sweet voice that was highly recognizable and crisp.


    Xiaoqi realized for the first time how different a person''s voice could feel. As soon as someone spoke, everyone''s attention would be drawn to them, unable to help but quiet down and listen attentively to what she had to say.


    Before formally beginning, Jiang Yiru chatted with them for a few moments, saying, "Don''t be nervous. It''s not live, there will be editing afterwards. Feel free to talk about anything, and if there''s anything inappropriate, we''ll edit it out."


    Despite the host''s reassurance, the three of them didn''t dare to relax. Who knew how it would be edited?


    Captain Zhao had interview experience and was very cautious.


    Wu Peirong had no interview experience and was very nervous.


    As for Xiaoqi, because she was born and raised in Gumula Village, her limited exposure to the outside world made her very cautious. Since she was young, her parents always told her not to cause trouble outside, as it was dangerous out there, especially when she went out to school. She had to be reminded almost every week when she went back.


    So when the host said that, she didn''t dare to say anything random. However, she had the "unapproachable" and "confident" buffs simultaneously, which made her behave generously, causing the host to instinctively put away her casual attitude.


    She flipped through the materials in her hand again, wondering if Ji Su had overlooked anything.

 Chapter 103: Walking Home

    Chapter 103


    The scene was a room that looked a bit like a lecture hall, with the backdrop of high-rise buildings in the city. Anyone who watched Lvshan Channel One would be very familiar with this backdrop.


    As the interview began, Jiang Yiru quickly found her home ground. She chatted casually with several people for a few sentences about this competition, and then started to focus her interview on Su Xiaoqi.


    "I heard that you were a top student when you were in school, with excellent grades."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    Her scalp tingled. Although this was not a live broadcast, hearing the beautiful hostess saying this in her sweet voice made Xiaoqi feel it wasn''t right.


    Today''s interview was supposed to praise her more, after all it was an interview about her recent victory in the Jingnan Provincial Women''s 200m Freestyle competition, and also to publicize herself and Lvshan City''s own swimming team.


    But who told her this?


    Seeing the hostess professionally holding information in her hands, Xiaoqi did not feel dizzy with the idea that she really was a top student. Although she was at Lvshan No. 1 Middle School and her usual grades were decent, upper middle level, she did poorly on the college entrance exam and was almost bottom of the class - she was nowhere near being a top student.


    Xiaoqi did not yet understand the concept of an "image", but her instinct told her that the accolades the hostess was piling on her did not feel right. The old Xiaoqi might have just smiled awkwardly, which could be taken as acquiescing. Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    In an instant she felt it was inappropriate. Without much hesitation she answered, "No, the competition at No. 1 Middle School was intense. My grades were only average in class."


    After all, there was one student from her class who made it into Tsinghua University or Peking University. Calling her a top student would be too cheap.


    Jiang Yiru paused slightly, her smile still present. She did not expect the young girl to explicitly reject this.


    Jiang Yiru''s subsequent questions became more conventional. There were two more ambiguous questions, trying to push Xiaoqi closer to the image of a top student, but Xiaoqi firmly denied it each time.


    Jiang looked at the information in her hands again, wondering if her assistant had gotten the data wrong - could this girl without background really be such an unexaggerated and direct village student?


    Besides, the girl had great camera presence, seeming very unconstrained while sitting close by. Jiang noticed she had very little make-up on her naturally pale face. Although not shockingly beautiful, she had very long lashes. Occasionally laughing to reveal a mouth of straight teeth, wearing clothes with a hint of professionalism, she was a budding young woman far from the impoverished mountain prodigy Jiang had envisioned.


    Jiang felt that while the girl did not seem to like to speak much, she was not insecure at all.


    They started to talk about swimming.


    Xiaoqi did not want to say much, often deflecting the conversation to Coach Wu or Captain Zhao.


    Captain Zhao revealed a kindly smile, feeling inwardly that the young lady handled things very adroitly - rather than just sitting on the side as a potted plant, it was better she did not come.


    Elderly people''s clothing was not too expensive, only about 100 RMB each.


    She bought Granny a bottle of liquor over 100 RMB - Granny loved to drink liquor, insisting on a cup of white wine before meals to stimulate her appetite.


    Xiaoqi also went to buy Mom a pair of leather shoes, red, soft leather, rounded toes with shoelaces like athletic shoes, the sole made from cow tendon, very comfortable for walking. Xiaoqi tried them on too. Her skin was as pale as Mom''s, Mom was just more tanned from working outside more. Her hands and feet were still especially white, red leather shoes would definitely look good on her. The shoes were slightly expensive, over 400 RMB.


    Xiaoqi did not buy anything for Dad. He probably would not have borne to wear the new clothes she got last time either, so buying more would lead to real complaints of wasting money.


    In all, buying bits and pieces still added up to a large package. Fortunately Xiaoqi''s school bag was big, able to stuff everything into it.


    She first took an express bus from the bus station to Huanghe Town. After arriving at Huanghe Town she alighted and started walking.


    She walked a segment along the highway, then turned in at a village along the roadside, entering the mountain from a small path at the edge of the village.


    It was around 4 pm, before sunset.


    Xiaoqi found a dead branch in the path and cleared it up as a walking stick. Some parts of the path were narrower, so having a stick helped.


    Xiaoqi felt her physical fitness was much better now. Carrying a heavy load for a long time did not make her pant too badly. It was just extremely tranquil in the mid-afternoon mountain, even birds calling out were scarce, occasionally hearing some insect cries, or the sound of wind shaking the branches.


    And the sound of dry branches crunching underfoot.


    Xiaoqi took out her phone to check and found she had entered deep into the mountains already, no signal.


    After walking for over half an hour more, she finally felt the scenery becoming more familiar.


    Because she spotted paddy fields.


    Where there were paddy fields meant there were people. These fields belonged to Gumula Village, Xiaoqi remembered her Second Uncle''s family had fields here.


    Compared to the deep mountains, walking in the open paddy fields felt completely different.


    It would be the autumn harvest soon. The setting sun shone the fields all golden-orange, a very beautiful sight.


    The setting sun stretched Xiaoqi''s silhouette out long, a bead of sweat appearing on her forehead. The wind carried the smell of the paddies, seemingly entering deep into her lungs.


    Still no people encountered, but the scarecrows in the paddy fields swayed in the wind as if waving hello to Little Seven.

 Chapter 104: Grandma’s Smile

    Chapter 104


    Xiao Qi walked home while the sky was still bright.


    The setting sun had already disappeared behind the mountains.


    The time was somewhat like when she was holding her notification letter and walking home herself.


    That time, Old Yu, the driver from the village, happened to be away for something that evening and came back late.


    She walked on the stone paths in the village, passed by the bustling village auditorium and small shop, then ran into Uncle Li carrying a hoe.


    "Oh, Xiao Qi''s back. Did a car bring you just now?"


    She felt somewhat strange that he called her Xiao Qi. Previously, he had always called her the Su Family''s crippled daughter. Adults in the village didn''t remember children''s names. They usually called them someone''s daughter or someone''s son. She didn''t expect that he would actually call her by name.


    "Hello Uncle Li. No car. I walked back." Xiao Qi replied.


    "It''s too dangerous for a young girl to walk back herself like this. You should have asked your dad to come get you." Face beaming with kindness, the not-so-familiar Uncle Li said.


    Xiao Qi: ......


    She said she had to go back first and hurriedly left.


    Indeed, no matter how confident or unconfident she felt, she was still no match for the uncles and aunties in the village.


    She felt somewhat weird.


    Li Zhicai wanted to chat some more and ask whether she really won the award and got so much money. Some people said it was just an honorary certificate and didn''t necessarily come with that much money. There were still taxes too. But she had already run off, which was a pity. Still, he had just come back from the vegetable plots and could go over to the Su''s house after dinner at home to gossip. Everyone in the village must be curious.


    Xiao Qi got home with her backpack still leaving Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu flabbergasted.


    "I told you to go straight to your aunt and uncle''s place tomorrow. Why did you come back again?" Sheng Juanhua asked in a worried and angry tone.


    Her daughter''s personality was a bit like her dad''s. Stubborn at times.


    Su Youfu also put down what he was weaving and came over to take her backpack.


    "If you wanted to come back, you should have called dad to pick you up. Why did you carry such a heavy bag yourself?" Su Youfu was short and not very strong. He picked up his daughter''s backpack and felt his hand sink.


    The family went into the kitchen. Su Youfu put the backpack on the chicken coop.


    Every household in Gumula Village had a chicken coop built into their kitchen, which looked like a hollow bench against the wall with a small door on its side. The chickens and ducks they raised ran freely outside during the day and were herded back into the chicken coop at night.


    The coop could not only hold chickens. They could also bury ginger in it to dig out pieces to eat when needed.


    Sheng Juanhua also tidied up and efficiently started a fire to cook dinner. She had been preparing pig feed earlier.


    She poured the wash from the pigs'' food back into the pot to recook it with some vegetables and rice hull. It helped pigs grow fat and their meat to be more compact and delicious. Real farm-grown pigs. You couldn''t buy this quality in the city. Commercial pig farms also wouldn''t raise pigs with such care and attention.


    As Sheng Juanhua cooked, she told Xiao Qi to deliver the liquor to her grandma.


    Her grandma had come over asking several times after hearing Xiao Qi was on TV. Trying to figure out exactly how much money was involved.


    Sheng Juanhua told her to carry the liquor while getting Su Youfu to bring two of the dragon fruits over to her grandma''s place together.


    On their way over, they passed half the village. Word had already spread out that Xiao Qi was back and bought her grandma liquor.


    Xiao Qi understood her mom''s underlying intention but when it came to grandma, she really couldn''t resist either and could only obediently listen.


    After handing over the liquor, Xiao Qi rarely saw her grandma not frowning at her. She actually revealed a smile. Only then did Xiao Qi realize smiling, her grandma was actually quite a good-looking old lady.


    Xiao Qi had heard her paternal grandma was the daughter of a landowning family who went to private school as a child to study the Great Learning, Doctrine of the Mean and such.


    However, her grandma had never looked kindly upon her before.


    Money-losing goods. She had grown up listening to this title all the time. Her ears were calloused. She often wanted to ask why grandma was so harsh towards her as a fellow woman.


    But she didn''t dare to speak this out. Grandma could throw herself onto the ground bawling and cursing for over an hour without repeating herself even once.


    Back when they still lived together, little Xiao Qi coveted the tasty dishes on grandma''s table like braised fish or steamed minced meat rolls. She would hold her bowl wanting to eat only to get thoroughly caned by mom for it. The thin bamboo branches stung sharply in rapid succession but wouldn''t seriously injure. She remembered crying herself hoarse but it was useless. She obediently stopped afterward. Even when grandma served appetizing dishes, she didn''t dare go over holding her bowl anymore.


    Only later did she realize the sheer injustice. Grandma wanting to pick fault would scold mom over anything. Really nothing better to use as an excuse, she''d accuse mom of inciting her to eat grandma''s food. But she was the one drooling over those tantalizing smells of pan-fried fish. Eyes staring longingly, she''d just head over there herself without any egging on. Consequently little Xiao Qi still preferred meat over greens even now. Perhaps the deep-rooted childhood obsession ran too deep!


    Looking at the currently affable-looking grandma before her, Xiao Qi was suddenly reminded of childhood memories as if merely yesterday.


    Yet grandma seemed largely unchanged over time if not for the deeper wrinkles on her face.


    After delivering the liquor, grandma unexpectedly asked Xiao Qi to stay for dinner!


    Little Xiao Qi who had obsessed over partaking of grandma''s table back then and got thoroughly whacked over it several times as a result felt somewhat honored and a bit shocked.


    She hurriedly declined, saying mom had cooked dinner already.


    Rather rattled, she dragged dad along to run back.


    Su Youfu was also startled by his mother''s unusual display of affection...He couldn''t recall mother being so intimate ever since young when he was scolded all the way into adulthood...


    Rather shaken, father and daughter simultaneously heaved in relief only upon seeing the broken wall in front of their house.


    Xiao Qi said: "Dad, let''s repair the wall when you have time. We can even build a small yard."

 Chapter 105: A Family of Three

    Chapter 105


    It was still dark outside.


    Occasionally, a few barks of dogs could be heard.


    The roosters had not crowed yet.


    Sheng Juanhua got up early, and Su Youfu had gotten up even earlier.


    Su Youfu started the fire and heated a pot of water, then let his wife wash her face and hands.


    Su Youfu was short in stature and had a leg problem, but he was extremely attentive and treated his wife very well. Such small matters were not worth mentioning to others. Whether they were living well or not, they knew it best themselves.


    Sheng Juanhua was very happy. From the outside, she was tall and fair-skinned, and her appearance could be considered as a village beauty. Her older brothers in the village were pursued by girls.


    With a tall and handsome figure and well-defined facial features, she resembled a righteous protagonist from early movies and TV dramas, with thick eyebrows and big eyes.


    Sheng Juanhua had three older brothers. The eldest brother was a doctor and had a clinic in the village.


    The second brother was a fortune-teller, and his business was even better than the clinic. His reputation had spread far and wide, with people from nearby villages and even the city coming to seek his services.


    The third brother was strong and naturally had a lot of strength. He worked as a security guard and earned a good income.


    There was also a younger brother and a younger sister in the family.


    The younger brother was involved in transportation and also made good money. He was handsome and married a particularly good-looking wife. From Xiao Qi''s perspective, there were few women around who were more beautiful than her sister-in-law. She had a unique charm that couldn''t be described, but when they were together, she seemed more beautiful, more refined than others.


    The younger sister got married and moved to the outskirts of the city. It was said that she was living a good life. Her husband''s family sold clothing.


    In short, the Sheng family could be said to be thriving, with favorable conditions. Although they didn''t live in the city, they had small Western-style houses in the village, which were completely different from Su Youfu''s house, which had windows covered with plastic sheets.


    Today, it was the eldest brother''s daughter who was getting married, marrying someone from the city, specifically from the outskirts of Lvshan City, near the highway intersection.


    In any case, the most unfortunate one who had married into Gumula Village was Sheng Juanhua, Xiao Qi''s mother.


    Because her husband''s family couldn''t establish themselves, when she returned to her parents'' home, she had to be more careful, not boasting, just trying not to make any mistakes.


    Today, it was her eldest brother''s daughter who was getting married, and it would be good to go early to help out.


    Originally, she should have gone a day or two earlier, but since they had pigs and chickens to take care of at home, and no one to watch over them, Sheng Juanhua thought that she didn''t even have a few new sets of clothes, and she couldn''t just wear the same outfit all summer. It was enough to go and meet people.


    Upon hearing that they were going to Shangxie Village for Sheng Juanhua''s niece''s wedding and to partake in the wedding banquet, they wished them well.


    Looking at this family of three, one can''t help but feel a sense of warmth. Sheng Juanhua, in her everyday appearance, is already quite attractive, but she rarely dresses up. It''s rare to see her wearing a small knitted sweater with a little jacket on top. She''s wearing black pants and red leather shoes, with long legs. Because she''s always working, she doesn''t have a protruding belly like other middle-aged women. Her belly is flat. Wearing a knitted sweater requires a certain body shape, and even a slight bulge can be noticeable. Moreover, Sheng Juanhua has fair skin, so when she dresses like this, she looks like someone from the city. Some people even think she resembles Xie Dajiao from that rural love story.


    As for Su Youfu, he''s even more remarkable. Wearing a striped T-shirt with trousers and a belt, he looks presentable. Standing there, you can''t tell he has a limp foot, and he looks much younger than he actually is. I always thought he was almost fifty.


    But he''s wearing a pair of worn-out liberation shoes on his feet, and someone jokingly says, "Youfu, your daughter is making money. Why doesn''t she buy you a pair of leather shoes?"


    Su Youfu, blushing, laughs while holding the shoes in his hand, just as he always does when teased, without responding.


    Su Xiaoqi looks like a young girl. She''s wearing a pink T-shirt and is slim and tall, with fair skin. When the three of them stand together, Sheng Juanhua is beautiful, Su Youfu is honest, but this little girl is particularly eye-catching.


    As everyone watches this family walk away, they discuss it among themselves.


    "Su Youfu''s daughter truly lives up to having an education. Her bearing is even more refined than that of city folks."


    "The Su family is going to rise. That girl is remarkable."


    Even Lao Chen, who is known for his proud daughter marrying abroad, compliments them. He has been overseas, and his status in Gumula Village is quite different. When he speaks, everyone listens.


    The sounds of roosters and barking dogs gradually fade into the distance.


    The sounds of insects and croaking frogs become more intense.


    The Qi family walks halfway up the mountain road, surrounded by bamboo and cedar trees, and then they hear the sound of water.


    It means the mountain road is coming to an end, and they are getting closer to Shangxie Village.


    Because this stretch of rice fields belongs half to Gumula Village and half to Shangxie Village.


    There are also some wild fruits along the road, like wild blueberries and raspberries, which they can pick and eat directly.


    Su Youfu knows his daughter has a sweet tooth, so they pick a lot along the way. Thanks to his worn-out shoes, he even climbs up the mountainside to gather some.


    Xiao Qi walks along, eating the wild fruits, feeling content, as if they are having a picnic.


    Occasionally, they can hear Mom humming a tune, and Dad sings along.


    Dad may not have an impressive appearance, but he has a beautiful singing voice. His voice is good, and he sings with a high pitch. With singing and laughter all the way, they walk under the sunshine.Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m

 Chapter 106: The Married Cousin

    Chapter 106


    On the edge of a dense thicket, Su Youfu took off his Liberation shoes and put on a pair of leather shoes.


    It was the first time Xiao Qi had bought leather shoes for her father, and her lack of experience meant that the leather wasn''t of the best quality, although it did look quite shiny.


    Su Youfu found the leather shoes a bit tight when he put them on, but he liked them nonetheless. Due to his leg problems, he paid extra attention to his feet, and being somewhat short in stature, the small heels in the leather shoes made him feel much more upright as soon as he put them on.


    After entering Shangxie Village and passing by a pig farm, they followed a small path and arrived at Xiao Qi''s uncle''s house.


    Today was a joyous occasion, as there were many people gathered at the entrance from afar.


    The couplets on the door were particularly vibrant in red, and occasionally the sound of firecrackers could be heard. It seemed that mischievous children were finding unexploded firecrackers on the ground and lighting them up to add to the excitement.


    When a family in the village celebrated a joyous event, relatives from all around would come together. Almost half of the village''s residents had gathered, creating a lively atmosphere similar to that of the Lunar New Year.


    Shangxie Village was more developed than Gumula Village, with a larger population of nearly a thousand households. The village was flatter and wider, with a lower elevation, making it easier to reach the town. Shangxie Village was under the jurisdiction of Xiahe Town, which was only half an hour away.


    When someone spotted the three people walking over from the small path, they shouted, "Here comes the son-in-law from Gumula Village."


    The distance wasn''t particularly long, but the sounds of merriment seemed somewhat distant to Xiao Qi. Since she entered her final year of high school, she rarely attended weddings or other celebrations in the village. Her studies kept her busy, and her parents tried not to disturb her.


    Seeing so many people gathered together again felt quite fresh. The festivities in the village were different from those in the city¡ªmuch livelier.


    However, she quickly realized that with so many people, she couldn''t figure out the generational hierarchy. This one might be an uncle, that one might be an uncle''s wife, and so on.


    As a student, she could always just act like a child. Xiao Qi still received red envelopes containing money when she returned home for the Lunar New Year.


    Her older cousin had started working and no longer received red envelopes in recent years.


    It seemed that having a job was a sign of adulthood.


    Before entering the village, they put the gifts for her grandparents in Xiao Qi''s backpack, while Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua went empty-handed.


    Xiao Qi felt that her father looked fine, his face showing his trademark silly smile. However, her usually assertive mother seemed quite nervous, constantly adjusting her clothes.


    Sheng Juanhua felt nervous because she hadn''t gone out visiting her relatives during her previous visits to her parents'' home. She felt awkward when encountering people she used to know.


    In her youth, Sheng Juanhua was considered a beauty in Shangxie Village. Who could have imagined that she would marry a man with nothing? They said she had wasted her beauty, but later on, she gave birth to a daughter instead of a son. Those families who had shown interest in Sheng Juanhua but were rejected couldn''t help but feel relieved. It was a good thing after all; otherwise, what use would a beautiful woman be if she couldn''t bear a son and bring him back home?


    She never expected that her cousin would get married this year.


    When Xiao Qi entered the room, the giggling girls quieted down for a moment.


    It wasn''t until Xiao Qi called out, "Hello, elder cousin," that the atmosphere was unlocked.


    The girls from Shangxie Village were also quite pretty, especially those from the Sheng family, but when they saw the little girl with a backpack entering, everyone fell silent. She seemed different.


    Sheng Jinghua, after taking a few more glances, only then realized that the girl in front of her was Xiao Qi, her aunt''s daughter and her cousin.


    The Sheng family had good looks, but their academic genes were average. In this generation, not many of them pursued higher education. Xiao Qi, who attended the First Middle School in the city, could be considered unique.


    At first, Sheng Jinghua didn''t think highly of her cousin. She thought Xiao Qi was silly in her studies. But after working in society for a few years instead of pursuing further education, she began to envy her cousin. Although their uncle was disabled, he truly loved Xiao Qi and even supported her in going to college.


    "Congratulations, elder cousin. You look particularly beautiful today." Xiao Qi didn''t recognize the other girls in the room, probably her cousin''s friends, but she truly thought her cousin looked stunning. This young woman in her twenties was like a blooming flower, her face adorned with makeup, resembling a flower in full bloom.


    And there was a delicate and pleasant fragrance emanating from her, making it impossible for people to resist feeling a sense of beauty.


    "Thank you, Xiao Qi. You''ve become so beautiful. A woman undergoes a tremendous transformation when she reaches eighteen. If we were to meet on the street, I probably wouldn''t recognize you," Sheng Jinghua exclaimed. Gumula Village in Lvshan City was known for its beautiful women, but they had previously thought it was just a reputation.


    Which village doesn''t have a few pretty girls, after all?


    But today, when they saw their cousin, it was truly different.


    That feeling, that aura, didn''t fit in with them, yet it didn''t make people dislike her. It was just that she looked pleasing to the eye, as clear as a mountain spring, with a tinkling sensation. They were attractive too, but at most, they were wildflowers by the spring, each with their own beauty. However, the one making the sound was still the springwater.


    It was somewhat chilly, yet sweet.


    As the bride, Sheng Jinghua felt that her cousin was different from the others.


    The same went for everyone else. The bride''s room was not as lively for a moment, so Xiao Qi, feeling somewhat restrained among them, stepped out.


    "Jinghua, your cousin feels different from us. I heard she''s a university student?"


    "She doesn''t seem easy to get along with, does she?"


    "I feel like I''ve seen her somewhere before."


    "Yes, yes, I feel the same way. It''s like she''s vaguely familiar, but I can''t remember."

 Chapter 107: Grandma’s Old House

    Chapter 107


    Gray tiles, black walls, and green vines.


    This is the appearance of Grandma''s house.


    In my childhood memories, I loved coming to Grandma''s house. We used to play hide-and-seek with our friends, and this old house seemed to have countless hiding places.


    The old house is a traditional wooden house with two floors, stretching in a long row. The main hall is in the middle. Upstairs, there are storage rooms, a barn, and a balcony for drying rice. The barn can store the harvested rice, sweet potatoes, and more.


    There is a long corridor at the entrance where we can play.


    The old house was not occupied by just one family; many families lived there. Grandma''s family lived in the rightmost section.


    There were two kitchens and two bedrooms. Originally, one of the sections belonged to my second uncle.


    My second uncle worked as a feng shui master, a profession that earned him good money. He built a brick house with a private courtyard on another piece of land in the village. So, that section was left for Grandma and Grandpa.


    When Xiao Qi arrived at Grandma''s house, she saw Grandma, a petite figure, standing in front of the stove, lifting the lid of a large wooden barrel where sticky rice was being steamed. She stirred the rice inside with a half-meter-long stick.


    Grandpa was tending to the fire.


    When cooking this type of sticky rice, the fire should not be too strong. If it''s too strong, the rice will become overcooked, and the rice cakes made from it will lack elasticity and chewiness, making them less delicious. However, the fire should not be too low either, as the rice won''t cook properly and the rice cakes will turn out undercooked.


    In the neighboring kitchen, another pot was filled with hot steam. Second Aunt was watching over it while stewing chicken. The pot was stacked high, covered with plastic wrap. She needed to stew thirty chickens because they were expecting thirty tables of guests today.


    Second Uncle was a very clever person. He was known as a master fortune teller, and everyone said his predictions were accurate and insightful. However, after meeting him a few times, Xiao Qi felt that he was simply sharp-minded and had a way with words. He hadn''t received any formal education, but when people came to him seeking advice, he would first chat with them about everyday life and then choose an auspicious date to help them with their matters.


    Xiao Qi thought that Second Uncle was good at figuring out people''s concerns when talking to them. He had all the details in his mind and knew how to communicate. That''s why the clients who sought his help were always satisfied.


    Although Second Uncle hadn''t received a formal education, he could repair the refrigerator and washing machine at home when they broke.


    Compared to the smooth and clever Second Uncle, Second Aunt gave people the impression of being very honest. She was short, with a round face and a sweet smile. Xiao Qi liked her a lot. Among all the aunts, she liked Second Aunt the most. She felt a sense of closeness whenever she saw her.


    Second Uncle''s family had two children, an older male cousin and an older female cousin. The male cousin was two years older than Xiao Qi, while the female cousin was actually three months older, making them the same age.


    Second Uncle''s family was well-off, and both cousins were attending school. The male cousin had average grades and was attending a vocational college in Fucheng. The female cousin was still in high school at No. 8 Middle School. Both of them didn''t seem to inherit Second Uncle''s cleverness and had average academic performance.


    After greeting Second Aunt, Xiao Qi went to Grandma''s kitchen with Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua.


    Grandma''s face lit up with a smile when she saw her daughter and son-in-law. She asked, "Did you have breakfast yet? The sticky rice is almost ready. I''ll make a few rice balls for you."


    Grandpa didn''t talk much. He stood up to pour water and had a smile on his face.


    When Sheng Juanhua was at her parents'' house, despite being the middle child, she was pretty and had a lively personality, so her parents doted on her.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help but crave for freshly cooked sticky rice balls. It had been a long time since she had last tasted them. These sticky rice balls were not sold in the city. They had to be steamed in a large wooden barrel over a clay stove fueled by firewood, with constant stirring. The timing and heat had to be just right. The aroma of the sticky rice could be smelled from two rooms away, and they were chewy and increasingly sweet with each bite.


    Whether dipped in a bit of salt or mixed with some sugar, they were incredibly delicious, each with its own unique flavor.


    However, they were quite filling. Just two or three of them would make you full.


    In the past, Xiao Qi''s mother never let her eat too many because sticky rice balls were usually served only during special occasions. Now that she had eaten her fill, she wouldn''t have any room left for the dishes at the banquet.


    Sheng Juanhua took a sip of the hot water her father poured for her and stood up, taking out two new pieces of clothing.


    The weather today was exceptionally nice, with clear skies and the sun casting slanted rays from the eaves. However, when Xiao Qi looked at the old, hardened mud near the big pillar at the entrance, she noticed several small whirlpool-like holes.


    They were unevenly arranged.


    Xiao Qi remembered that she used to love digging into these small holes when she was a child.


    Underneath each hole, there would always be a little bug called "Golden Dangler." It looked somewhat like a small earring, and when the sunlight hit it, its shell would reflect a golden gleam.


    Perhaps the adults couldn''t stand seeing their child constantly digging in the dirt, so they would often threaten her, saying that if she dug up these Golden Danglers, it would cause her hands to develop calluses.


    As a child, Xiao Qi was torn between the thrill of digging and the possibility of getting calluses, which only heightened the excitement every time she dug into those holes.


    Looking back, she realized that as a child, she was rebellious and unwilling to give in. Because she heard that digging up Golden Danglers would cause calluses, she started using a small wooden stick instead.


    It seemed like a clever move.


    Now, as she looked at the sun shining on the small holes on the ground, they appeared beautiful, like funnels, scooping out the hardened mud and revealing the feeling of sandy beaches.


    Xiao Qi finished eating the two large rice balls just as she reached her grandmother''s house. She felt slightly full. She had walked over 20,000 steps from her own house to her grandmother''s house, even though the actual distance was only five kilometers. The winding mountain road made the journey much longer.


    At this moment, the entrance became lively.


    The stone mortar had been washed early, and now her cousin had arrived, carrying a wooden pestle for pounding rice cakes. The pestle had a T-shaped design, with a thin vertical handle that was easy to grip and a thick horizontal bar.


    In the countryside, pounding rice cakes was done manually, requiring three or four strong men to complete the task.


    Two sturdy men carried out a large wooden barrel filled with glutinous rice and poured it into the clean stone mortar.


    Then, her cousin started pounding with the wooden pestle. After each pound, someone would dip their hand into cold water, skillfully grab the sticky rice off the pestle, and repeat the process. The visible grains of glutinous rice gradually turned into soft, chunky pieces.


    Pounding rice cakes was truly a physically demanding task. The wooden pestle was heavy, and one had to master the rhythm; otherwise, they might accidentally hit their hand.


    A crowd gathered around to watch the pounding, and the rhythmic shouts of the beat filled the air.


    Xiao Qi noticed that her cousin looked handsome even though he was married. He was tall, swinging the wooden pestle with a steady rhythm. His face beamed with a smile, revealing a set of well-aligned teeth. His joy seemed to come from within, making him pleasing to the eye.


    For some reason, she thought of that handsome guy playing the clarinet from Germany.


    That guy was incredibly graceful, dancing with his clarinet. He had golden hair, long legs, and a face that resembled Venus.


    He was handsome in a distant and alluring way.


    And before her eyes, a completely different scene unfolded. Wielding a wooden hammer, with black hair, long legs, and a radiant face.


    There stood a handsome man right before her.


    Suddenly, Xiao Qi realized that pursuing refined beauty is a form of pursuit, and appreciating the beauty before her is also a form of pursuit.


    That magnificent concert, which shook her soul, now unexpectedly gave her a sense of perfect closure.


    It taught Xiao Qi to appreciate beauty.


    The distant and the near.

 Chapter 108: A Feast in the Village

    Chapter 108


    The freshly pounded rice cakes were as exquisite as Russian white jade.


    They were white and radiant, emitting a white smoke.


    The men swiftly and skillfully turned a large piece of rice cake, resembling Russian white jade, into small balls. Like an assembly line, the elderly brought out ancient molds that had been used for years. They pressed the white cake mixture into the molds and then released them.


    The molds were pre-greased with tea seed oil.


    The released rice cakes turned into beautiful pastries adorned with floral and animal patterns, which were quite appealing.


    On the other side, several women carried a large basin of cooked food. From afar, Xiao Qi could already smell the sour aroma. It was made with pickled cabbage, pork, bean sprouts, and Chinese cabbage, all stir-fried together. The pork came from their own pigs, and the vegetables were cooked in oil, which made them glisten.


    The nimble women flattened and rounded the small rice cake balls, similar to making dumplings. They flattened them, pinched them into shape, and then scooped a spoonful of the cooked filling, swiftly wrapping it inside the rice cake and firmly sealing it. This way, large dumplings were formed one by one.


    The pace was swift because once the rice cakes were pounded and taken out, they quickly hardened and became unsuitable for shaping.


    Thus, a group of people gathered around a big table, working diligently, while another group surrounded them, eagerly waiting to eat.


    Xiao Jiu handed a neatly wrapped rice cake to Xiao Qi and held one for himself. He ate it heartily, finishing it in just a few bites.


    Xiao Qi could have done the same, but she had given in to her greed and devoured two glutinous rice balls in one go. Now she felt a little full and regretful because the freshly wrapped rice cakes were incredibly delicious.


    The pounded rice cakes were soft and fragrant, but not grainy. They had a chewy texture and could be pulled into long strands with the teeth. They were particularly enjoyable when combined with the freshly stir-fried filling. The family''s homemade pickled cabbage was truly fermented in an old earthen jar, sealed with clay. When the jar was opened, a distinct sour scent filled the air. It required multiple washes to get rid of the red residue, and the discarded cabbage heads could be sliced into snacks for children, resembling pickled radishes.


    The family-raised pork was cooked with the pickled cabbage, and the cabbage quickly absorbed the flavorful oil. Together with bean sprouts and Chinese cabbage, the dish had the sweetness of the cabbage, the crispness of the bean sprouts, the sourness of the pickled cabbage, and the fragrance of the pork. Encased within the rice cakes, each bite was a delectable delight, truly satisfying.


    Rural folks had many chores to attend to. For a festive feast, they had to slaughter pigs, pound rice cakes, and harvest vegetables. Chickens, ducks, and fish also had to be prepared. But they also had an abundance of food. While making rice cakes, they could easily stuff two or three into their mouths without feeling hungry.


    Xiao Qi, being a glutton, couldn''t resist and ate another one.


    After eating two wrapped rice cakes, she couldn''t consume the third, or else she wouldn''t be able to enjoy the feast later. However, she admired the aesthetically pleasing rice cakes made with molds, so she took out her phone and snapped a photo, also taking one that her younger uncle gave her.


    Usually, the molded rice cakes were meant for display, and people wouldn''t eat them.


    Xiao Qi wanted to eat them, but she couldn''t eat anymore.


    As soon as the rice cakes were ready, firecrackers were heard.


    It must be the bridal procession arriving.


    Mom and Dad have gone somewhere, probably to help with work, and Xiao Qi followed the crowd to see what was happening.


    I thought that when the groom arrived, he would take the bride with him, but that wasn''t the case in reality.


    Shangxie Village is quite developed, and there is no custom of beating the groom. When he arrived, the bride''s bridesmaids made things a bit difficult for him, but it was just a formality to give a red envelope, and then he saw the bride.


    Then the groom and bride paid respect to their parents with wine and tea.


    Xiao Qi noticed that Eldest Uncle looked particularly dignified today and wasn''t smiling much.


    Having eaten too much earlier, she couldn''t really eat anything when the feast began.


    In the countryside, feasts were prepared by the wives of relatives from the countryside, with several wives helping out together.


    The dishes were authentic and flavorful.


    Xiao Qi particularly liked the bamboo shoot feast. Although it wasn''t bamboo shoot season, dried bamboo shoots were used instead. The dried bamboo shoots were soaked and cut into fine shreds, along with various fresh vegetables, lean meat, and vermicelli. They were stir-fried in a specific order, resulting in a dish that resembled a green vegetable paste. However, the taste was incredibly delicious, with the flavors of all the ingredients blending together harmoniously, creating a delightful and layered sensation.


    As for the whole stewed chickens, they couldn''t eat them anymore; it was just for show.


    After circling around, the older people would tear off a chicken leg and taste it, but they would generally take it away as it was.


    The same went for the big pork hocks; people would pick a few chopsticks'' worth and then leave the table.


    This was very different from Xiao Qi''s memories. When she was a child, she remembered that during feasts, everyone would bring a few small plastic bags. As soon as the dishes were served, they wouldn''t rush to eat but rather compete to claim their portions.


    No dish would be left on the plates, and after finishing the feast, everyone could take a bag of food home.


    The food tasted especially delicious when eaten at home.


    Nowadays, it was evident that everyone''s living standards had improved, and no one was fighting over food anymore.


    There were also some people who seemed to be on a diet and ate very little.


    Xiao Qi considered herself to be eating a lot, even though she had already eaten to her heart''s content before the feast.


    Towards the end of the feast, her father came over.


    Upon seeing her husband''s flushed face, Sheng Juanhua glared at him and asked, "How much did you drink?"


    "Just a glass of beer." Su Youfu had a low alcohol tolerance and was well aware of it. Although he was seated in the living room, everyone would still urge him to drink, and he couldn''t escape, so he had a glass.


    But now his face was as red as a cooked shrimp.


    He smiled foolishly at his wife and daughter.


    Everyone joined in the teasing.


    After just one glass of alcohol, Su Youfu was already feeling a bit dizzy. Ignoring everyone, he took out a piece of winter melon candy from his pocket and handed it to Xiao Qi, saying, "You like eating this."


    Xiao Qi held the candy, feeling a mix of laughter and tears. When she was a child, she loved eating these candies. If her father had a chance to sit in the living room during a feast, she would hardly be able to stay put and would often slip over to her father, asking for a piece of winter melon candy.


    The white candy, when bitten into, would bring sweetness to her heart, making her feel like it was the most delicious thing.


    However, many years had passed, and she was no longer like that.


    She never expected that her father would still remember.


    She took a bite of the winter melon candy and thought, "Hmm, it''s still sweet."

 Chapter 109: Sister Quarrel

    Chapter 109


    Comrade Su Youfu got basically drunk after one beer.


    Half-conscious, he gave his daughter some winter melon candy, then went to Old Lady Qi''s house to sleep.


    The gentleman from the ancient Mulala Village was often mocked by everyone on a daily basis. Every time he participated in some activity, this would basically be his state - after one beer, he would go to sleep.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi''s several uncles were particularly good at drinking. They could easily finish a case of beer.


    The Third Uncle in particular could really hold his liquor. He could drink two jin of baijiu by himself. When drinking beer, he felt like he was just drinking water.


    For a brother-in-law who could get dead drunk after one beer, they were really at a loss for words...


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t care about the mockery at all. If they weren''t all her relatives here, she might even retort back sharply. But since this was her parents'' home, she held back a little, only laughing.


    In her heart, she didn''t think there was anything wrong with getting drunk after one beer. Her husband also didn''t crave alcohol. At most, at most he would only drink one bottle of beer. He was also very good to their daughter, never favoring sons over daughters. Others felt not having a son was a big deal, but her husband had never said anything like that. He wholeheartedly treated her and her mother well.


    Also, even when drunk, he didn''t make trouble or say nonsense.


    In fact, some were envious. Sheng Juanhua''s younger sister Sheng Meihua had disliked her elder sister ever since she was little. She was the youngest, but wasn''t as pretty as her sister, and her personality wasn''t as cheerful either. Her several older brothers all liked her elder sister more. Even as the youngest child she didn''t get to enjoy that status at home. She finally got married, thinking she could hold her head high, but it turned out her elder sister married a disabled poor man, while she herself married into the city. She thought she would be able to act arrogant, but the warmth and coldness of married life is something only the people going through it will know. After seeing her elder sister for over a decade, there was basically no change to her smile. But she herself had become much more petty. She was several years younger than her sister, but now when the two sisters stood together, people would often mistake her for the elder one.


    Her husband sold clothes. They even had a car. When they were busy she would go along to help sell things, haggling with customers over prices. They earned quite a bit when business was good, making several hundred yuan a day. But businessmen were extremely stingy no matter how much they earned, unwilling to part with anything. They only put on an impressive and wealthy appearance on the outside, but were actually petty misers on the inside. Her husband also didn''t like her going back to visit her parents'' home, complaining that she would take things back to her countryside hometown.


    The two of them had sharp personalities, constantly fighting and bickering in their daily life. In recent years when they set up their stall at night to sell things, her husband would disappear somewhere during the day, always going out drinking and gambling with his friends. He also didn''t let money flow through her hands.


    She saw how her elder sister lived, with her brother-in-law''s money certainly all under her control. Although there wasn''t much money, she lived freely and unrestrained.


    Also, her elder sister had been married over ten years, but the way her brother-in-law looked at her-- heh heh. As a fellow woman, Sheng Meihua knew what that gaze meant. They had been married over ten years, yet her brother-in-law looked at her elder sister the same way as when they first met and were in love. Her own husband barely glanced at her normally, and if he did look, it would be with disgust on his face.


    Yet her brother-in-law hadn''t changed one bit after so many years. Her elder sister was simply a vixen who had somehow managed to capture her husband''s heart even after more than ten years of marriage. It was like they were still in a honeymoon phase. Sheng Meihua looked at them enviously and sourly.


    She didn''t harbor immense hatred or wish her elder sister immense misfortune. But seeing her elder sister living so well, she just felt displeased. Seeing Xiao Qi leave, Sheng Meihua suddenly spoke up, "Sis, I heard Xiao Qi''s college entrance exam scores were just average. Will there be enough money for tuition fees? If there''s not enough, I can ask my husband Zhi Liang and see if he can lend some. In my opinion, if it really won''t work out, it''d be better if Xiao Qi didn''t go to college after all. Look, Jinghua didn''t go to college either, but she still married into a good family."


    The banquet was already wrapping up, but these women who worked in the kitchen certainly couldn''t just roll up their sleeves and leave. They still had to stay in the kitchen to clean up--wash all the bowls, tables, chairs and whatnot and send them to other families.


    For events held in the village, people would bring their own things for communal use.


    A few of them swiftly came downstairs and started chatting about clothes and dressing up, while continuing to work busily with their hands.


    Sheng Meihua didn''t do any labor. At the moment, she couldn''t even pretend to be busy.


    But still dissatisfied seeing everyone gather around her elder sister, she said, "A young tutor can earn that much money? Don''t let yourself be fooled. Xiao Qi looks pretty good, who knows what she''s doing in the city since you can''t keep track? "


    Sheng Juanhua was washing a chopping block and no longer wanted to bother with her younger sister. Hearing those words, she firmly chopped the vegetable knife down with a loud clang, making the entire room jump in fright from the resounding noise.


    The chopping block was made of ironwood, hence the loud and clear sound.


    Sheng Meihua had always been loose-tongued, so although she was the youngest, she didn''t have the most favored treatment. Now seeing her elder sister get angry, she shrank back her neck, wanting to leave.


    "Sheng Meihua, stop right there! What kind of elder slanders their niece like that? Xiao Qi is good at English. She tutors 7 students in English. Each student pays 150 yuan per class. She teaches two classes per week. Go try tutoring if you have the capability! My daughter fair and square appeared on television and even specially went to the TV station for an interview yesterday after winning first place. I was too lazy to show off to you. You apologize to me today. If you don''t apologize, we''re going to have a good talk in front of our parents."


    "I just casually said a few words..." Sheng Meihua mumbled.


    Seeing things were not right, everyone else swiftly advised her and saw Sheng Juanhua off, since she had gotten truly angry.


    Your sister is even using a knife now after your nonsense.


    A dispute thus came to an unresolved end.


    Sheng Meihua avoided seeing her elder sister at her own home, but the more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She hadn''t said anything out of line, just asked an extra question about what was going on. She had originally planned to stay for dinner, but in her anger she grabbed her bag and yelled for her husband that they were leaving. Her husband had never wanted to stay in the countryside for long anyway, and didn''t think very highly of these rural relatives. Every time his wife wanted to stick around and chat for a long time, he would listen for the word that they were going, and would immediately drive off.


    When they got home, their children were not there, having gone to their aunt''s house.


    The whole family should have attended the eldest brother''s daughter''s wedding, but in the end it was only her and her husband who went.


    Her in-laws looked down on her rural hometown, her father-in-law and mother-in-law even more so. They didn''t even want to let her bring the kids back to visit, which of course influenced the children''s mindset as well.


    As soon as her husband got home he disappeared again, off to play cards.


    She was left alone, fuming, and turned on the TV. She actually fell asleep watching it.


    When she opened her eyes, it was already dark outside and the TV was still on. Sheng Meihua rubbed her eyes and saw that her niece had somehow ended up on the TV screen, sitting properly in a chair. Next to her was Jiang Yiru, Lvshan City''s hottest host.


    Could she be dreaming?

 Chapter 110: Hold Your Head Up High

    Chapter 110


    The reeds on the side of the road swayed, clump by clump.


    Walking along the small path through the reed marsh, the stone steps slowly came into view.


    Green moss grew on the stone steps, with pine trees on both sides. Inside the pine forest was an open space.


    In the open space was a tilting, half-collapsed tombstone.


    It was an ancient graveyard that no one knew who it belonged to. Every Qingming Festival, no one came to clean it, but it was always there.


    This was on the way to Shangxie Village Elementary School.


    When Xiao Qi was little, she really liked coming to her grandmother''s house, and would come almost every winter and summer vacation.


    What she liked best was going to the elementary school in Grandmother''s village to play.


    Shangxie Village''s elementary school was bigger than Gumula Village''s. It had two sports fields while Gumula Village¡¯s only had a small dirt field and a two-story building, with the teachers living in small houses next door.


    But Shangxie Village''s elementary school not only had ping pong tables on its two sports fields, it also had basketball hoops and running tracks. In little Xiao Qi''s eyes, Shangxie Village''s elementary school was like an amusement park, extremely fun to play in.


    These were basically elementary school memories. After that, when Xiao Qi went to middle school and high school in the county town, she seemed to have changed rapidly.


    She didn''t really like running over to Grandmother''s house anymore, or rather, she still liked going, still longing for Grandma and Grandpa''s exceptionally preferential treatment, secretly feeding her delicious food, but she suddenly felt grown up, caring about some of the things her aunts and uncles said that didn''t seem very nice to hear before.


    She also realized that elders would treat people differently.


    When she and her cousins on her father''s side came to Grandma''s house together, her aunts and uncles were a little more enthusiastic towards her cousins. Maybe it was just a little bit, but she sensed the difference very sensitively.


    Her cousins weren''t here this time.


    Her big cousin got married and went to be a young auntie with her same-aged cousin from her second uncle''s family.


    Her second uncle''s son said he was on vacation with his classmates and hadn''t come back yet.


    She wasn''t very familiar with her two younger cousins from her third uncle''s family.


    Her young uncle had only been married for two years and didn''t have children yet.


    Xiao Qi remembered that when she was little, she did have some playmates at Grandma''s house, children of Grandma''s neighbors, but most were like her, only coming during the winter and summer vacations, and they lost touch after growing up.


    After eating, the adults cleaned up. As a student still in school, Xiao Qi went out alone to wander around.


    Unknowingly, she arrived at Shangxie Village''s elementary school.


    The walls were still the yellow she remembered, very beautiful in the sunlight.


    But up close she discovered many worn patches. The two towering buildings she remembered as magnificent now looked like just ordinary five-story buildings.


    Xiao Qi knew Shangxie Village''s school left a door open during vacations. It wasn''t the front gate, but a small back door. It looked latched from the outside, but was actually just pulled to. With a push, you could enter.


    She remembered that during summer vacations there was an old man who watched the school, entering and exiting through the back door. He didn''t stay at school all day but went out to work during the day as well.


    At this hour, after lunch and before dinner, there was no one at school and the old man wasn''t there either.


    Xiao Qi went in and saw that the ping pong tables she remembered as brand new were now very old, with one table even half-collapsed, unrepaired.


    The wooden basketball hoops were still there, with what looked like a new net above them.


    Looking up at the basketball hoop, Xiao Qi had a little secret: she liked playing basketball.


    But she wasn''t very open about it.


    In high school, every time she passed through the basketball court on the way from her dorm to the classroom, she enviously eyed those carefree boys running around and playing ball on the sports field.


    With her own family members here, no one strongly pressured her to keep drinking. If she wanted a bit she could have some, otherwise she could just eat.


    The aunties, especially bossy Big Auntie, still tried currying favor as was her usual wont, but being busy flying about with her daughter''s wedding today, Xiao Qi hadn''t yet suffered her maneuvering. Now with the family dinner though, sitting there watching Big Auntie arrange dishes, she sensed something subtly amusing.


    After a hectic day, Xiao Qi pulled mother and father to sit on either side of her. But Big Auntie kept pushing the leftover dishes from the afternoon right in front of their space...


    These kinds of little details in interacting with relatives could be quite awkward and frustrating.


    Su Youfu as a man felt nothing much.


    Sheng Juanhua knew what kind of character her sister-in-law was. Since it was her sister-in-law''s family''s big celebration today, Sheng Juanhua couldn''t be bothered to say anything.


    But when they were eating, she stood up and heaped a large pile of dishes onto a plate and set it right in front of her daughter.


    There were no taboos about the family eating dinner together in the living room. Everyone ate there, with the big TV on for background noise to liven up the occasion.


    The men drank up a storm in the afternoon while the women were just as lively drinking a bit in the evening too. Some of the unfinished wine bottles from this afternoon gathered together from tables here and there totaled two or three bottles worth that could be finished off.


    Preparing for a girl''s wedding required starting preparations a week ahead: figuring out how many people would come, buying ingredients, borrowing tables and chairs, and so on. A young daughter-in-law basically entered into this family and village by participating in one celebratory event after another like this.


    The daughters-in-law tittered and drank happily while the men conversed unrestrainedly about everything under the sun.


    Leisure after a busy time.


    Sheng Juanhua had grown from a young girl into someone else''s daughter-in-law. Whenever she came over, she would actively help with the chores. There was no choice, her husband''s family was not well-off and could not afford helpers, so she could only do more work and talk less.


    However, she was quite happy today. After getting married, this was the first time she had stood up to her talkative younger sister, although it had made her a laughing stock. Still, she felt thrilled inside.


    Others poured wine for her, and she did not refuse.


    Xiao Qi saw her mother pick up a glass tumbler with half a glass of liquor and down it in one go... Then someone filled up her glass again and she finished it off in one go too...


    She glanced at her father. His glass had a beer which he slowly sipped bit by bit. After a long time, the level of beer did not seem to go down at all.


    Her own glass had coconut milk. There was an unspoken rule not to let minors who were still schooling to drink alcohol.


    They drank until past 8 pm, nearing 9 pm. Women really went wild when drinking, especially the daughter-in-laws in the village.


    After days of hard work, it was time to relax and drink a little at the end of the day. No one said anything.


    The men drank much less at night. They bantered and joked around. Mainly because women behaved differently drunk. They would not give anyone face and would still scold people fiercely outside, just like their normal selves.


    Of course the men would gently chide them to drink less, just for appearance sake.


    All the women were at one table. Su Youfu was a little worried for his wife and refused to leave the table, sitting there accompanying her thoughtfully and helping to add food to her plate.


    Xiao Qi went to see what her grandmother was doing and helped out.


    Just then, the TV announced the next program was "All The Way". The attractive opening sequence showed the female host Jiang Yiru.


    "City folks are better. Dressing up nicely everyday, such beautiful clothes and slim figure."


    Everyone chatter animatedly.


    The men couldn''t help looking at the TV too. Jiang Yiru was very famous in Lvshan City, the pride of Lvshan City even. She was a rare outstanding female host.


    After the opening sequence were some advertisements, then the show started.


    This program was quite interesting. It helped to liven up the dull village life. At this hour, many families would be home watching TV already. They often watched this show too.


    But when the opening sequence was shown again, Jiang Yiru emerged confidently on screen. They realized with a shock that the young girl sitting next to Jiang Yiru looked extremely familiar...


    The slightly tipsy Sheng Juanhua pointed at the TV and said, "Xiao Qi, why are you there? Come over here and sit next to mum."

 Chapter 111: A Night at Grandma’s

    Chapter 111


    A group of people were too excited.


    On the way home, the street lights in Shangxie Village were all off.


    Grandpa was walking with a flashlight, young people were walking with their mobile phones, each going back by themselves.


    Grandpa walked at the very front, he walked very slowly, holding a flashlight in one hand and a stick in the other, tapping all the way.


    Xiao Qi held Grandma''s hand, using the flashlight on her mobile phone.


    Grandma was a little old lady, but her hands were very warm.


    Holding her hand felt hot.


    Dad walked behind with Mom in his arm, Mom had her mobile phone flashlight on.


    Sheng Juanhua was a little drunk, and had some sweet soup thick tea afterwards, so she was slightly sober now, but still different from usual. Usually Sheng Juanhua was a bit serious in front of her husband. Today she was like a little girl again, giggling and very happy, silly laughing all the time.


    It was a bit cool in the early autumn night in the countryside.


    It was very late, the insects and frogs were even louder. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    So Grandpa would tap with the stick to avoid getting scared by bugs or snakes.


    It was not far, and they arrived at Grandma¡¯s house very soon.


    The dark old house looked a bit scary from afar at night. Once people walked in, Grandpa turned on the kitchen light. The dim light made one feel secure.


    They had been busy the whole day. The water in the pot was still hot.


    Grandma scooped some hot water for her daughter and son-in-law to wash up first.


    Because it was very late, the neighbors had all fallen asleep quietly.


    After washing up and soaking their feet, the family tidied up and went to bed.


    At Grandpa and Grandma''s house, they did not sleep in separate rooms.


    Grandma''s bedroom was a long rectangle. There were three beds inside, Grandpa and Grandma slept in separate beds usually.


    Third Uncle drank too much and was still confused, patting Su Youfu¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Brother-in-law, you also have advantages, you can read and your daughter can read too.¡±


    Third Aunt was hardworking and busy all the time. She occasionally watched TV and was polite to Xiao Qi.


    Young Aunt was the most exaggerated. Xiao Qi and Young Uncle were only a few years apart in age and had a very good relationship. Young Aunt asked her a lot of questions very excitedly, like fangirls, what the TV station was like, where Jiang Yiru''s clothes were bought, were there many stars, could ordinary people enter, did she see the host Chen Xiao, etc...


    Xiao Qi was confused by the series of questions, she didn''t even know who Chen Xiao was.


    In summary, the exciting topic in the daytime was the factory of new brother-in-law¡¯s family, which seemed to repair and sell cars, by the highway entrance, occupying a large area.


    The exciting topic at night was their niece.


    At a young age, she could be on TV, and was well-spoken sitting beside the famous host Jiang Yiru.


    Xiao Qi had a strong sense of the camera. She didn''t have an ugly face on camera, but could be seen from all angles. Although Jiang Yiru beside her was very charming, Xiao Qi was no inferior.


    But in reality, sitting next to them, she kept a very low profile, so everyone didn''t notice her.


    It was said that girls change a lot after 18 years old. She had become much more beautiful, but still completely different from what she looked like on TV.


    In real life she was just a little girl in pink T-shirt.


    Everyone parted after recalling the past one by one, still somewhat reluctantly, wondering whether this niece had shown her talent early on.


    But they couldn¡¯t recall any impression no matter how they thought about it. They only remembered that she was good at studying it seemed. She had been studying all the time, didn¡¯t like to talk much. She was quite active when she was little. After going to school, she wore glasses and became decent, not talkative.


    "I thought Juanhua married poorly without having a son and lived a hard life. I didn''t expect that it looks like she will have a better life in the future.¡± Third Aunt poked her husband and said.


    On the other side, Young Aunt was young. After coming back to the countryside, she even took a bath and changed into pajamas, snuggling up to her husband.


    "Your sister has pretty good genes. I wish we could have such a nice girl too."


    "You drank today, it''s not good."


    "But you didn''t drink much, did you?"


    In the dark night, the young couple groped each other.


    It was very late and almost everyone was asleep.


    Xiao Qi also fell into a sweet dream.

 Chapter 112: The Little Car

    Chapter 112


    Early the next morning, Su Youfu retrieved his worn-out Liberation shoes from the grass. Despite the heavy morning dew, he had wrapped them in plastic bags when he left them, so they remained dry. He deftly took off his leather shoes and put on the Liberation shoes again.


    Although rural folks may seem to have nothing major going on, they are actually occupied with numerous trivial matters every day. They have to feed the chickens, ducks, and pigs, tend to the vegetable garden by watering and pest control, and manage and cut down trees in the mountains.


    Therefore, after staying overnight, the couple left early in the morning.


    Grandfather and grandmother saw them off all the way to the village entrance, feeling reluctant to part. Xiao Qi turned her head from a distance and could still see their figures¡ªone tall and one short. She was still wearing the new clothes her grandmother had bought for her.


    There was still no phone signal along the way, but the scenery was pleasant from grandmother''s house to their own, providing opportunities for taking photos without any signal.


    The three of them returned home and were met with a warm welcome in the village.


    Jiang Yiru''s TV show, "A Promise Along the Way," had high ratings in Lushan City. During that time slot in the evening, there were no activities in the countryside, so it was a popular program. The women enjoyed chatting about TV dramas, while the men preferred discussing things closer to reality, as if they could know everything without leaving their homes.


    Compared to news and such, local programs like "A Promise Along the Way" were more relatable to everyone''s daily lives and provided more topics for discussion.


    Unexpectedly, last night, they saw Su Youfu''s daughter on TV again.


    Now even the Lame Su didn''t use that name anymore; he was called Youfu instead.


    As Su Youfu entered the village, he ran into his cousin who was working with a hoe. His cousin warmly called him Youfu, causing him to tremble and feel uneasy. In the past, everyone used to call him Lame...


    As he passed several houses at the village entrance, people waved enthusiastically and asked if they had breakfast. If they hadn''t eaten, they were invited to have a meal at their homes. Sheng Juanhua, who had returned to her mother''s family with her head held high, was startled and her shoulders tensed up.


    Xiao Qi was never good at facing the uncles and aunties in the village. When greeting them, she simply smiled with an open mouth.


    The three of them quickened their pace and breathed a sigh of relief after entering their home.


    Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu immediately changed out of their clothes.


    When they arrived home, they had to start working, and they didn''t want to soil their new clothes.


    Su Youfu started a fire, and Sheng Juanhua let the chickens and ducks out and fed them, then she fed the pigs.


    They heated water, and Xiao Qi wanted to take a bath.


    There was no water heater at home, so they filled a bucket with hot water and carried it to a small building behind the kitchen.


    Below the small building was a ditch, and the water would flow directly into it.


    Xiao Qi effortlessly carried two buckets of water. There was a cold-water pipe in the small building, which they used for mixing. It was similar to having to carry water oneself when taking a bath in the school dormitory, but the facilities in the maternity ward were slightly more advanced, with a water heater and a showerhead.


    After washing her hair and taking a bath, Xiao Qi changed back into her old T-shirt and sweatpants, and put on the white shoes she had been wearing before.


    After changing clothes, Xiao Qi helped with the chores. Originally, she was planning to finish the chores before taking a bath, but she hadn''t showered since spending the day at her grandmother''s house, so she couldn''t resist taking a bath first.


    Su Youfu had taken good care of the chickens and ducks, but feeding the pigs was a bit troublesome. He had bought two pigs at the beginning of the year, with the intention of using the money to pay for his daughter''s school fees. He had been diligently looking after them, and they were almost ready to be sold. During this period, they were eating a lot.


    She experienced a mix of inferiority and arrogance, a constant state of unease.


    It was during the summer vacation that Xiao Qi truly found herself.


    She became more grounded and no longer feared putting in effort.


    Initially, it was thanks to a system of improvement, but afterward, she felt a sense of progress through her own diligent efforts, which helped her grow.


    Now, even when she accompanied her father to the vegetable plot, she no longer felt inferior to her classmates. She had matured in her thinking.


    However, when she went to the sweet potato field with her father, Xiao Qi discovered that her weakness still haunted her. Standing in the middle of the vegetable patch, she spotted a large green caterpillar on a sweet potato leaf, and she couldn''t help but scream and jump around in a frenzy.


    She continued jumping until she reached the riverbank, where there were no more green vegetables, not even grass. Only then did she stop.


    She was terrified of those soft, chubby, and green little insects. The sight of them made her shudder, and her back trembled.


    Compared to small insects, she wasn''t even afraid of snakes.


    But when it came to these little bugs, she couldn''t handle it. As a child, she was so afraid of them that she couldn''t even eat green vegetables.


    Lately, Su Youfu felt that his daughter had grown up and become more mature and sensible. Although he felt gratified as a father, he also felt a bit lost. He always felt that as his child grew older, she seemed to be drifting further away from him, and she could even take care of herself without his help.


    But now, seeing his daughter still screaming and running away at the sight of a tiny bug, just like when she was a child, he found it amusing. She would always be his little girl.


    Xiao Qi was genuinely scared of bugs and didn''t dare touch those leaves. Her father picked the leaves and dug out the sweet potatoes while she followed behind, collecting them in a basket on her back. The basket soon became full.


    It was already quite heavy. The sweet potatoes had just been dug out and were full of moisture. Each one weighed over a pound.


    The basket probably weighed over fifty pounds.


    "You''ve packed too much. Pour out half of it and carry it back home. I''ll handle the rest," Su Youfu said, noticing how hot the sun was and not wanting his daughter to stay out in the sun.


    "It''s fine. I''ve been eating a lot lately, and I''ve become stronger," Xiao Qi said. She didn''t want to stay out in the sun anymore and was still afraid of bugs, so she carried the basket on her back and headed home.


    With the basket full, she managed to carry it without feeling particularly heavy.


    As she walked back home with the sweet potatoes on her back, she passed by the village office and noticed that something was happening. It was bustling with many people; it seemed like someone had arrived.


    By the time she reached home with the sweet potatoes, she already knew what had happened.


    Her elementary school classmate, Zhang Juan, had actually come back in a small car that she had bought herself.


    The whole village was in an uproar. It was indeed a small car.


    Its white exterior gleamed under the sunlight.


    And it was said to be a German brand.

 Chapter 113: : Spring Power Optimization

    Chapter 113


    The small car that had just been driven back suddenly became the hottest topic in Gumu Village.


    Early the next morning, when Xiaoqi took the village car into town, the people in the car were all talking about it eagerly.


    Xiaoqi felt quite good; otherwise the topic would still be on her and she was not used to such attention in the village.


    She had to get up very early every time she went into town.


    Sitting in the corner, Xiaoqi closed her eyes to rest, but did not actually fall asleep, as everyone was chatting too excitedly.


    "Juanzi spent 180,000 on that car. Da Yong, I remember when you first bought your car new it was only over 40,000. Juanzi''s little car could buy four of yours!"


    "Old Zhang''s daughter really struck it rich."


    "I heard the company she works for opened some kind of platform and makes money from money."


    "It''s not a platform, it''s a website."


    "Is it legal?"


    "Juanzi is my niece whom I''ve watched grow up. She definitely wouldn''t do anything illegal. How could she afford a car if it wasn''t legal? Don''t talk nonsense if you don''t understand. Am I right, college student?"


    Xiaoqi was already nodding off, but was forcibly jolted awake.


    Xiaoqi: ...


    Zhang Juan came to her house to see her yesterday afternoon, and was very polite and enthusiastic, making Xiaoqi feel very awkward.


    There were people like that out in society too, but the person before her eyes was her former classmate who grew up with her. Suddenly acting so polite, a bit fawning, and showing off a bit, it did feel very strange.


    They only chatted for a short while before Zhang Juan went back when it was time for dinner.


    "I fell asleep, I didn''t hear what you said," said Xiaoqi groggily, opening her eyes.


    This auntie, according to seniority Xiaoqi should call her auntie, was the village gossip who usually talked too much.


    Normally, she would definitely repeat herself to make Xiaoqi say something, then relay it to others later: The college student said this, this is what the college student says...


    But looking at the girl beside her now, she didn''t know why, but seeing her knitted eyebrows and cold demeanor, she inexplicably felt it was better not to provoke her. She spoke awkwardly, "It''s nothing, go back to sleep."


    Xiaoqi was also not polite and closed her eyes to continue resting.


    After Xiaoqi paid the driver, she left.


    Carrying another bag full of vegetables and rice from home, she didn''t plan on taking any transport but would walk back instead as there was still ample time.


    Driver Da Yong happened to have business in town today. He assumed Xiaoqi would take a bus so was surprised when he saw her walking alone on the bridge after driving off.


    One couldn''t park on the bridge. Da Yong took a glance at her elongated shadow in the morning sun before continuing to drive forward.


    When Xiaoqi returned to her auntie''s dormitory, she felt a sense of intimacy. After being away for just a few days, she actually felt unaccustomed.


    Her books and notes were still on the desk where she had left them, the table wiped clean.


    After Xiaoqi finished putting away the rice and vegetables she brought, she saw Lin Min from next door.


    She was surprised to see neighbor Lin Min had not gone out and even greeted her.


    Xiaoqi''s family had brought back a lot of sweet potatoes that her dad dug up yesterday: the nicely shaped ones without broken skin were kept for people to eat while the rest were feed to the pigs.


    The newly unearthed sweet potatoes could be directly rinsed and peeled to eat raw like apples, but not as sweet with the taste of starch instead. They were also delicious when steamed. Her auntie loved eating sweet potato rice as it was very filling and considered whole grains, healthy by modern standards.


    Xiaoqi gave Lin Min a bag of sweet potatoes. "Dug up a lot from our field yesterday." She was sincerely grateful to him after all, feeling she inexplicably gained a lot of benefits every time they met.


    On the contrary, Lin Min felt a little embarrassed, not even when receiving expensive gifts from An An.


    Moreover, Xiaoqi so frankly said they were dug from her family''s field. Lin Min felt strangely ashamed for some reason. He always avoided mentioning his mom selling pancakes and his dad working as a hospital custodian when meeting others, acting aloof and cold to cover up his inferiority complex.


    He took the sweet potatoes and asked, "Had breakfast yet?"


    "Yeah." She had to catch the 6 AM ride so her parents got up at least before 4 AM to make breakfast and make sure she was full before leaving.


    However, eating at 5-plus felt too early. Just as Xiaoqi replied she had eaten, her stomach cooperated by growling in hunger again. She smiled awkwardly. Her appetite had increased noticeably recently.


    She went back to her room to pack her bag, still deciding to go to the library since it had the best studying vibe.


    She had just finished packing when Lin Min knocked on her door, handing her two pancakes that should have been freshly bought. They were still piping hot from his mom''s latest batch.


    Xiaoqi really enjoyed eating the pancakes made by Lin Min''s mom: she would call this pancake-making skill peerless, having never eaten better ones despite her current picky sense of taste and smell.


    "You''re going out right, eat this along the way." Along with Lin Min''s voice, the mechanical sound in Xiaoqi''s mind that had been absent for a long time rang out again: "The host gifted homemade produce obtained from her own labor to the blackening youth, bringing him a ray of positivity and slowing down his pace of blackening, rewarded with enhanced bounce buff. Although the buffed host cannot match a monkey''s agility, she can rival a panda''s."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...

 Chapter 114: The Book: Fitness

    Chapter 114


    It had been a long time since she had heard this sound.


    Hearing the mechanical sound of the system, Xiao Qi felt extremely nostalgic.


    As expected, all game players like those NPCs who send gifts. Meanwhile, Lin Min seemed to always be on the path towards becoming more villainous.


    At Lin Min''s training school, there were still things that needed to be handled. However, it wasn''t that his business partner had withdrawn, but rather that he himself had withdrawn and was going there to wrap things up and hand over the business.


    Originally, he had still felt somewhat apprehensive, but unexpectedly An Sister''s attitude towards him seemed to have become even better. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    In reality, men''s and women''s minds work differently.


    A woman might feel that because he didn''t sleep with her, he must be a good man.


    An Sister didn''t say anything else extra. She was polite with Lin Min during the handover, no longer displaying the former ambiguous flirtation. It was as if she were truly his sister, having him take away the things she had given him and telling him that if he ever needed help with anything in the future he could come to her.


    Having encountered so many men who just wanted to sleep with her, discovering one who was different must have been a surprise.


    Lin Min thanked An Sister, and also thanked his business partner. After completing the handover, he even received 2,000 RMB, which wasn''t much, but it made him feel very relieved.


    Carrying his book bag, wearing faded jeans, a t-shirt, and slippers, he was going to embark on a new journey.


    At the library, Xiao Qi didn''t immediately look for books after arriving. Instead, she first went to her usual spot and practiced calligraphy for an hour.


    Learning is like rowing a boat against the current; if you don''t advance, you fall behind.


    Returning home these past few days, Xiao Qi had felt unsettled and very guilty, probably because she hadn''t been studying properly.


    Practicing calligraphy helped her regain that feeling of learning.


    At times like these, her phone was usually muted and placed in her bag.


    Xiao Qi discovered that playing on her phone was also extremely time and energy consuming. Seemingly having done nothing, just picking up her phone and putting it down a short time later, one or two hours might have passed, as if time had flown by, inexplicably.


    Sitting upright properly and practicing calligraphy gave her the strongest sense of spirit.


    Perhaps it was the effect of the posture buff taking effect, but Xiao Qi seemed to demonstrate peak performance when practicing calligraphy, so the sense of composure she retained was the best then.


    As the soft sunlight streamed into the library, Qi Wei also listlessly entered the library.


    Ever since returning from Japan, he had maintained this decadent appearance. His mother had assumed the group of young people must have partied too wildly, but as long as her son had returned safely she didn''t say much.


    The secret admiration and first loves of youths come fiercely and turbulently.


    It was possible nothing whatsoever had happened during this time, but he himself could spin over 120 episodes worth of TV drama in his mind.


    First she went swimming, but in contrast to her past solitary practice which had been refreshing, as soon as she arrived at the aquatic center today it seemed many people who recognized her swarmed over, such that she didn''t even have a chance to calmly swim.


    Coach Wu also didn''t know what to do, after all with Xiao Qi''s current popularity it was inevitable.


    Xiao Qi swam two laps, but there were too many people. She could only wash up, change, and go over to the fitness club side.


    Having finally gotten a membership card after so long, Xiao Qi met her personal trainer. She had an incredible figure - ample bosom, trim waist, curvy hips, and long legs.


    She really did have abdominal lines at her waist. Her flesh was very firm.


    As another female, Xiao Qi felt a strange sensation even just looking at her.


    For instance, when looking at Teacher Zhou, she would also feel Teacher Zhou had a nice figure and slender legs and gave an impression of being in shape, but the coach before her gave a totally different aesthetic feeling.


    Teacher Zhou seemed more cerebral, while the coach seemed more sexy.


    She didn''t have any female acquaintances like this around her. Very vibrant, with slightly heavy makeup on her face that didn''t actually make people recoil, instead making her somehow more charming and alluring.


    "My name is Li Dan. I saw your swimming competition - it was amazing," said Coach Li, unexpectedly contrary to her sexy appearance, her voice was somewhat hoarse giving the impression of poor throat health.


    "Thank you Coach for the praise," Xiao Qi hadn''t expected she seemed to have become a minor celebrity.


    "Since today is your first day, start by running. I''ll observe your running condition and arrange a training plan for you," Coach Li said, following normal procedure.


    Xiao Qi had been planning to run anyway, the difference was running indoors at the fitness club versus outdoors.


    Once at the treadmill, she didn''t feel accustomed to it at first. Coach Li taught her how to use the machine, being able to adjust the speed and incline.


    After getting used to it for a bit, she set it to 5.7 km per hour and started running.


    Xiao Qi discovered that running on the treadmill wasn''t as dull as she''d imagined, because mounted on the wall in front were televisions. She could also place her phone on the treadmill and listen to its contents. Moreover, because it was more mechanically stable, it was even more efficient than running laps on the track outside without any external distractions.


    She just kept slowly running and running, since she had to meet her daily 30,000 step goal everyday anyway, so she was in no hurry. She planned to just keep running until the coach came to get her.


    As it turned out, after Li Dan finished making arrangements, she went to the break room and started chatting with the other coaches about her new student today - unexpectedly it was the swimming champion Su Xiao Qi herself, and she was quite pretty in real life but looked like an delicate young lady. Definitely the type who excelled academically based on appearances alone.


    Su Xiao Qi could be considered a celebrity at this point, at least in the gym, so the other coaches were also very curious. The group chatted as takeout arrived for afternoon tea. Despite the high levels of exercise, coaches actual eat quite a lot, so the group ate and chatted.


    Originally Li Dan had planned to go fetch Xiao Qi, but another coach had something sudden come up and asked her to fill in for an aerobics class instead. She ended up being dragged over to teach the class.


    She jumped and jumped excitedly, jumping for over an hour.


    When class was over, Li Dan patted her head, suddenly remembering that the student still hadn''t come to find her. Could she have left already? Li Dan didn''t even take the time to shower before hurrying to find Xiao Qi.


    To her surprise, Xiao Qi was still on the treadmill. Li Dan had assumed she would rest for a bit before getting back on. But when she saw the data on the treadmill...

 Chapter 115: The Long Distance Runner Delayed by Swimming

    Chapter 115


    The evening sun cast a slightly yellowish hue, giving the sleek treadmill an unusual and captivating futuristic charm.


    On the treadmill, there was a slender girl with a tall figure. Her legs moved rhythmically, maintaining a symmetrical stride.


    Exercise is a form of beauty.


    And it carries a primitive sense of power and sensuality.


    Seeing her coach approach, Xiao Qi followed the instructions and slowed down the speed of the treadmill.


    "You''ve been running without taking a break?" Li Dan asked, surprised.


    "No," Xiao Qi replied. Sweat had already formed on her forehead, and slowing down actually made her sweat even more.


    When running on the track, Xiao Qi always aimed for a goal of thirty thousand steps.


    At first, it was as exhausting as running like a dead dog, but the motivation of money was strong. Even when she couldn''t lift her feet anymore, she kept pushing forward.


    Now she had become accustomed to it. The human body truly has boundless potential.


    Li Dan''s mouth twitched as she watched Xiao Qi. Despite sweating profusely, Xiao Qi seemed to speak without any noticeable shortness of breath. The new student appeared to be in good spirits.


    "Great, you''ve warmed up enough. Come with me. In today''s first class, I''ll teach you some basic exercises."


    Li Dan was also a fitness fanatic but had never seen someone come in for the first time and run so much.


    Most of her students came to lose weight, both girls who were significantly overweight, weighing over 150 pounds, and boys who weighed over 200 pounds. For her, weight loss was relatively easy; it just required intense exercise and controlling calorie intake.


    As long as the students were willing to come, she could help them lose weight.


    However, unlike school teachers who had authority over their students, in fitness training, they had to beg the students to come for classes. After practicing for a while, the students would find various excuses, gradually attend fewer sessions, and eventually disappear. They had to constantly find new students to maintain their high income.


    Looking at the slim Xiao Qi, who seemed to have plenty of energy while running, Li Dan realized that she herself might not be as relaxed even if she ran for such a long time.


    During aerobics classes, there were breaks and interactions with the students, but running on the treadmill was different. The treadmill had to keep going, and the feet had to keep moving.


    Li Dan watched his student diligently following his instructions without cutting any corners, executing the movements flawlessly. However, when he heard her uttering some gibberish, he was taken aback.


    "What are you saying?"


    "I''m learning Japanese along with the audio."


    Li Dan:...


    Her lessons with Li Dan usually lasted for about an hour and a half. After completing the exercises, he would say, "We''re almost done for today. Stretch and take a rest, then you can go and shower."


    Xiao Qi stretched her body a bit, glanced at the screen, and realized that she hadn''t reached her goal of 30,000 steps for the day. So she decided to finish it off by running on the treadmill.


    She found an available treadmill and continued running.


    Running on the treadmill felt easier, as if someone was running alongside her, almost like cheating. Her legs moved effortlessly.


    But while running, she switched between English and Japanese, alternating between the two languages for learning.


    Learning two languages was quite interesting, and sometimes comparing them brought her great joy.


    As she watched the number of words on the screen steadily increase, she realized it had surpassed 350,000. That was the same amount the real estate agent mentioned for the price of a house. Now it seemed like she had enough money, but there were still other fees and procedures involved in buying a house. Xiao Qi felt that converting this money into a house would bring her more peace of mind.


    Furthermore, that house belongs to a school called Yi Zhong, and it has a small courtyard with a garden at the entrance. It feels great in every aspect, even though it''s a bit old. Xiao Qi still likes it very much.


    While running, she wondered if she could negotiate the price.


    Alternatively, she could ask someone for help to go and have a look together.


    Xiao Qi thought of Teacher Zhou, whom she had attended a music concert with before. She felt that Teacher Zhou seemed aloof on the surface, but in reality, she was a pretty nice person. Asking her for help should work.


    She continued running while contemplating.


    Meanwhile, Li Dan, who had just finished taking a shower, saw that the new student she had recently enrolled was still on the treadmill, drinking from a water bottle and spraying water all over the place.


    "What''s wrong?" her colleague asked.


    "Nothing," Li Dan shook her head and stayed silent. In her mind, she thought, this girl would probably be a champion whether she went swimming or running. Her endurance is remarkable.

 Chapter 116: Buying a House

    Chapter 116


    At the gym, working out felt exhilarating.


    After practicing for an hour as the coach instructed, Xiao Qi continued to go for a run, feeling a little reluctant after running 30,000 steps.


    Moreover, no one was surrounding her here. She was able to study while running, allowing her to be highly efficient.


    Sometimes when running outside, the wind would be strong and she might accidentally take in one or two gulps if she ran too quickly.


    She didn''t feel tired. Just some of the moves the coach taught felt a little awkward. When doing them, she felt like her body was being exercised, but after finishing running, the sorest parts were surprisingly not her feet but her buttocks and waist. It was a strange sensation.


    After resting and stretching for a while, Xiao Qi went to take a shower.


    Leaving the gym, she remembered she had first signed up for a membership because she saw someone emerge from the gym flushed with a spirited look.


    The feeling after working out was awesome¡ªher body had a slight sense of fatigue yet her spirit felt highly invigorated.


    If she were to study all afternoon, her mind would become numb, but at this moment she still felt quite spirited. And despite listening to so many audio materials, she didn''t feel uncomfortable at all.


    Xiao Qi bid farewell to her new coach Li Dan, declaring that she would come again tomorrow. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Li Dan neither confirmed nor denied, as students were usually highly enthusiastic at first but could hardly persevere for long.


    Returning to her dorm at the hospital, Xiao Qi immediately started cooking, actually hoping to cook and show off her skills at home for her parents as well... Though they still couldn''t bear to let her in the kitchen.


    Xiao Qi made a Hongshao pork dish, stir-fried tomatoes and eggs, cold liangban woodear fungus, boiled greens soup, and made enough rice for four.


    She now felt like she could eat endlessly, with her stomach feeling empty no matter how much she ate, as though she couldn''t get full.


    It had been a few days since Su Simei last saw her niece. Eating alone, she would just hastily eat whatever. Used to cooking and dining together with her niece, eating alone now felt uncomfortable and she struggled to adjust.


    Thinking that her niece would soon have to go to school in a few days, with the neighbor Lin Mindu already starting to pack, she felt a little reluctant for her to leave.


    In fact her own daughter attended the No. 8 High School, which wasn¡¯t far from the hospital either, though her daughter disliked coming over and her ex-husband didn¡¯t stop her.


    The portions made for four people were finished by the two of them, with Xiao Qi eating about three people¡¯s worth and auntie one person¡¯s worth. Xiao Qi noticed her auntie was eating much less than before and had also lost a lot of weight.


    Not having noticed when together daily previously, after returning from home for a few days then coming back, she discovered her auntie had really lost a tremendous amount of weight and her clothes now looked baggy on her.


    Seeing her auntie wearing the blue work gown of caregivers, she looked rather good in it.


    When smiling, she gave off a sense similar to Liu Sanjie¡¯s character in the movie "Liu Sanjie". The impression was deep in Xiao Qi''s mind, as her music teacher had played this movie clip in class once. On screen, Liu Sanjie¡¯s face looked so big and round, yet also flushed red, unexpectedly considered a beauty back then.


    ¡°Auntie, you¡¯ve lost so much weight, and your skin has improved a lot too. You look prettier!¡± Xiao Qi praised.


    Su Simei hadn''t expected her niece to actually compliment her.


    Lately it seemed many people had told her she lost weight.


    There were many long-term patients at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital who would be hospitalized for a period then discharged for some time, all familiar with her by now. They too remarked she lost weight upon returning.


    With a frank and easygoing personality, hardworking, and attentive in her caregiving duties, patients were rather fond of Su Simei.


    Hearing their compliments, Su Simei took them jokingly, aware patients were nice to her mainly hoping she''d be more proactive in serving them when needed. After all, with so many tasks at hand, there was an order of priority, and acquaintances would be put first.


    Zhou Meiling''s expression said clearly that she doubted if this young girl had eaten any actually delicious food before. However, needing to put on makeup and dress up as she was late, she merely grabbed a carton of milk to heat up in the microwave. Then disdainfully eating the pancakes with the warm milk... she finished with reluctance and smacked her lips longingly.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...A classic case of actions speaking louder than words regarding her teacher indeed.


    After a while Guan Jingzhi arrived, the young lady impeccably dressed up beautifully as usual, wearing an orange skirt today that complemented her fair and tender skin, making her very lovable.


    Xiao Qi also noticed that her student/classmate never repeated outfits, sporting new clothes each time they met.


    With soft hair draped over her shoulders casually, she gave off a very refined impression.


    Zhou Meiling was very warm to Guan Jingzhi, praising her looks profusely before starting the lesson.


    The young lady was dressed so well and modestly that Xiao Qi truly didn''t have the boldness to take out those pancakes.


    The plastic bag just looked too oily. She felt that if giving Guan Jingzhi something, it should be presented properly on an elegant dish.


    The lesson then commenced. Their progress was roughly on par.


    Xiao Qi was learning quickly. Japanese felt simpler compared to English, and being her third language with an attentive focus from the start without falling behind, she discovered some commonalities between Japanese and Chinese. She wouldn''t dare claim conversational fluency yet with others at present, but had grasped the foundations with basic phrases. It should be adequate for basic communication when travelling. At least, she now had the level of a first grader.


    Zhou Meiling taught in a casual freewheeling style. Covering whatever came to mind, but with smart students, she enjoyed teaching them and would occasionally converse a little in Japanese too.


    The class time flew by rapidly.


    As usual, Guan Jingzhi left when her family driver came to pick her up by car. Xiao Qi stayed behind, hoping to ask Teacher Zhou about purchasing property.


    It seemed a greater intimacy formed between them after watching a musical together then shopping around town. Hearing her student unexpectedly wanted to purchase an apartment, Zhou Meiling was rather surprised.


    To be honest, housing prices have been driven up very high now. Prices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have skyrocketed.


    The small city of Lvshan has not risen much, but in this era when everyone cares about housing prices, Zhou Meiling''s colleagues would talk about houses when chatting. Zhou Meiling felt that housing prices in Lvshan would still rise. Although Lvshan is a small city, it has a reputable industrial product - Lvshan batteries are nationally renowned and should be considered an industry leader. When buying batteries, people recognize this brand.


    In addition, she heard from an insider that Lvshan would also introduce a very large auto plant, with tens of thousands of employees. The factory buildings were under construction, one in the east and one in the west. When so many people come to Lvshan in the future, housing prices will definitely rise.


    "What does your father do?"


    "He''s just an ordinary farmer, but my father is good at bamboo weaving. The things he weaves are pretty good," Xiao Qi said.


    When Zhou Meiling heard this, she thought he was a craftsman. It seemed that she had seen this student was also good at bamboo weaving, it ran in the family. She should have saved some money. Zhou Meiling felt 300,000 yuan was not a lot. When her husband''s business was good he could make that in a month.


    Since Xiao Qi asked her for help buying a house together, Zhou Meiling felt this was a sign of trust in her. Buying a house was a big deal.


    She readily agreed.


    Xiao Qi immediately contacted the agent and made an appointment to go see the house again in the afternoon.


    Not surprisingly, as a civil servant who had lived abroad, when negotiating with the agent and landlord, Zhou Meiling managed to talk down the price from 350,000 to 310,000 yuan. After paying the agent and other fees, the total came to 340,000 yuan.


    Then getting the property certificate and other documents, Zhou Meiling made a few calls to friends to expedite processing.


    The whole thing went unbelievably smoothly.


    Xiao Qi was a little stunned. From beginning to end she hadn''t said anything, she just watched Teacher Zhou go back and forth with the agent and landlord.


    She had thought herself quite mature, but now felt there was still much to learn.

 Chapter 117: Money Rewards

    Chapter 117


    Xiao Qi held the house purchase contract in her arms like a little thief, lying in bed giggling for a long time.


    For some reason, probably due to her Chinese nature, she felt that having a house meant having a nest, a place to stay.


    Although Auntie had been very kind, Xiao Qi still felt bad staying at her dormitory since Auntie had to sleep in the hospital ward for fear of disturbing her. After all, this was Auntie''s staff quarters for work.


    Her hometown was also nice, surrounded by beautiful mountains and clear waters, but transportation was too inconvenient, with the two-hour drive on a rickety bus making it feel like a whole day trip whenever going out.


    As long as her parents were there, Xiao Qi felt that home would always be warm wherever she was.


    She was going to treat Zhou Teacher to dinner after buying the house, but Zhou Teacher said she had plans for the evening so she just went home.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi still felt a little silly with happiness.


    She carefully put the documents away after sneaking another look at the contract, then rolled happily in bed, envisioning what the little house would look like furnished and lived in.


    Sunshine coming in through the window, very nice.


    "Host has purchased her first property with money, adding a safeguard to her assets. Host is rewarded with an additional 340,000 yuan. Host is required to spend it within 10 days. The reward money cannot be reinvested," the familiar mechanical voice rang in her ears as she rolled to the edge of the bed.


    The content was a bit surprising, and Xiao Qi saw that a separate reward column for 340,000 yuan had indeed appeared on the interface.


    The money left on the interface was just over 20,000 yuan. Xiao Qi had paid the house purchase amount this afternoon.


    Spend hundreds of thousands in 10 days??


    Xiao Qi was a little dumbfounded.


    But she was still immersed in the excitement of buying a house, so she temporarily put this matter aside.


    After dinner, Xiao Qi went to the gym with Auntie. Auntie went swimming while Xiao Qi went straight to the gym area, starting with a run to warm up.


    She had only run for over an hour when the coach came looking for her.


    Seeing the data on the treadmill, Li Dan couldn''t help twitching.


    During training, she increased the intensity even more, otherwise it would be too embarrassing.


    Leaving her parents, aunt and the others behind, she wondered how things would turn out.


    Returning to her room, Xiao Qi flipped through her stuff, thinking she should give Lin Min a gift, but strangely could not find anything suitable among her piles of books.


    She simply gave up on the idea.


    Xiao Qi quietly sat down to practice calligraphy for a while, preparing for bed.


    Unexpectedly, before falling asleep, she received a copybook as a gift from Lin Min.


    Without having prepared a gift herself, she somehow received one instead, sincerely thanking him while feeling a lump in her throat. As an only child, she had often envied Lin Qingqing despite the girl''s constant bickering with her brother, who she nevertheless doted on and clung to all the time.


    The next morning, Xiao Qi went to the library as usual to prepare lessons and read. Her last two home tutoring sessions were mainly for summarizing and concluding.


    She suddenly felt time flying by, as though there was not enough of it.


    In the afternoon class, when Xiao Qi mentioned an exam, the chattering girls fell uncharacteristically silent instead of their usual noisy behavior, reluctant to part ways with watery eyes all around.


    Especially Bertha Liang, who had previously hated English due to her father being an English teacher, often rebelling by refusing to study. Now she was the most reluctant to part with Teacher Xiao, wishing they could have lessons every week.


    But of course that wouldn''t be possible with the teacher going off to university.


    Moreover, not only had her English improved over the summer, she had also gained some fame on TikTok, unexpectedly nurturing a new interest. She felt it had been a very fulfilling summer.


    After learning English with the teacher, she somehow became much better behaved than before, no longer throwing tantrums with her mother on a whim. Even when visiting Grandma or seeing Dad again, she was far more well-behaved than before, no longer arbitrarily losing face, leaving her own father feeling embarrassed instead.


    The girls quietly took an exam and summarized what they had learned during the lesson.


    Xiao Qi was reluctant to part as well, realizing that being a teacher had taught her a lot too, not just the students.


    She handled herself much better now when interacting with others.


    Initially, she had shuddered at the thought of stepping on the new carpet when first visiting Mrs. Liang''s home. But now she could sit calmly in front of the camera chatting away at her seven female students, even conversing casually with Mrs. Liang without nervousness or timidity.


    Xiao Qi felt this was too important.


    Having grown up in the countryside, she lacked experience and her father''s disability had led to her being mocked since childhood, leaving her with a deeply ingrained inferiority complex. This was not easy to change. But taking a step forward made all the difference.

 Chapter 118: Sign up for the League City Marathon

    Chapter 118


    Brother Lin Min left early in the morning.


    When Xiao Qi finished teaching and returned to her aunt''s dormitory, she saw Lin Qingqing sitting alone at the stone table in the yard. Although she was still playing with her phone and wearing new earphones, she still looked a little lost.


    Seeing Xiao Qi come back, she just greeted her weakly.


    As usual in the evening, Xiao Qi went to the gym. Although her buttocks, waist and legs were still sore today, it seemed that persisting in practicing had improved a lot. On the first day, even raising her legs hurt, and sitting down hurt too.


    However, after practicing the basic movements, the coach also taught her to practice equipment like weightlifting. Xiao Qi felt it was quite easy.


    Coach: ......Seeing that weight number......Then looking at the thin body of the little girl......


    Seriously suspecting the machine is broken.


    After Xiao Qi left, she secretly tried it herself, lifted one third of the weight. The coach silently got off the chair.


    Today after Xiao Qi finished working out and returned, she didn¡¯t just fall asleep dead, she could still practice calligraphy for an hour with a writing brush, do one set of CET-4 English test papers, and previewed Japanese once.


    Before going to bed, she took another look at the interface. The money had risen to more than 50,000 yuan again. Next to it was a bonus of 340,000 yuan, followed by the number 9, and there were 9 days left. Would it disappear if she didn¡¯t spend it herself?


    It seemed that the system currently did not have any punishment options. Spending so much money in ten days, she had no clue at all. Buy a watch? Such an expensive watch was unlikely to exist in this small city Lvshan.


    Suddenly she thought of Zhang Juan''s car, which was said to cost more than 100,000 yuan. So wouldn''t she be able to buy two cars for her.


    Xiao Qi smiled foolishly for a while, and felt that she was being childish again. She didn''t even get her driver''s license yet. Wasn''t it silly to buy two cars? Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    In recent days, she didn¡¯t want to spend money on things. She had to finish learning Japanese and tutoring English classes, which were quite busy.


    The next day, she went to learn Japanese in the morning and made an appointment with the agency in the afternoon. Teacher Zhou helped make an introduction to the agency. With the full payment and clear property rights of the house, the agent took her to the property certificate hall to go through the formalities. So Xiao Qi got a little book.


    When she got the little booklet, she felt her bag got heavier.


    "Do you plan to live by yourself or rent it out? School will start soon, and this place should be easy to rent. The landlord urgently needed money, otherwise he wouldn''t sell it. The price is really affordable," said the agent, who was in a good mood after making a deal. He asked one more question, thinking that maybe he could make another deal.


    Xiao Qi considered it for a moment. If she told her parents now that she had bought a house, they would be scared. She would go to school soon, so it would be better to rent it out. Dealing with this agent felt quite smooth.


    "Then please help me rent it out, I will leave a key with you." Anyway, there was nothing inside, and she usually wouldn¡¯t live there either, so there was no need to spend money on renovation.


    She remembered that her long-distance running had reached the entry level, the normal segments were basic, entry, proficient, master and perfect level......


    Reaching the basic level means being better than more than half of the people already, reaching the entry level should be better than eighty percent of the people. And this is an ability she uses every day, so she feels there¡¯s still some hope.


    And participating in the marathon can also explain her reason for running at least 30,000 steps per day.


    At the moment Xiao Qi was very tempted and asked the coach in detail about how to sign up.


    "You can register on your mobile phone. Just download the official app of Meng City Marathon and you can go to register." Li Dan has friends who have participated before, so she was familiar with the process.


    Xiao Qi thanked the coach, said that she would go to Mengcheng to register at the end of the month, and that time her aunt would come to mainly lose weight.


    Li Dan didn''t care, as long as she finished teaching the class she would get the money.


    Afterwards, Xiao Qi also went to see Coach Wu at the swimming pool.


    Coach Wu was very happy to see Xiao Qi. She was not only a swimmer who had ranked sixth in Jingnan Province before, but also a coach who had trained a champion in Jingnan Province. As a result, her private tutoring fees rose suddenly, not just rose, the number of people registered also increased sharply.


    Moreover, in the Three Flower team, her rank seemed to have been upgraded by one level. She became the deputy captain of the Three Flower team.


    When she saw Xiao Qi, her whole face was smiling, very energetic.


    Xiao Qi hugged Coach Wu. She was still very strong.


    "I will start school soon, I probably can only come back in the winter vacation, just to let you know."


    "Yeah, I heard from your aunt. Focus on studying at university when you have free time and contact me on WeChat if you have." Although Wu Peirong was Xiao Qi''s swimming coach, she didn''t stick to Xiao Qi becoming a professional swimmer. She was an athlete herself, and felt athletes had too hard a life. She thought it was better for Xiao Qi to go to college, although if Xiao Qi continued swimming, it might be more beneficial for herself.


    However, she also saw that her student had natural talent in swimming, but more importantly was her hard work, basically swimming almost every day, never easily falling behind, her actual practice time was not less than that of the girls in the team at all, and her execution ability was particularly strong.


    But the path of professional athlete was too narrow.


    Wu Peirong patted her arm. No matter what, she hoped the girl would have the life she wanted.


    Xiao Qi smiled foolishly again, the coach¡¯s strength seemed to have increased.


    By then it was almost off work and there were much fewer people. Xiao Qi changed into a swimsuit and swam a few laps.


    It felt wonderful.

 Chapter 119: The Endurance of the Little Donkey

    Chapter 119


    Thursday, August 29, Sunny


    Today was the last home tutoring lesson for Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi went to the library in the morning to prepare for class as usual, with a strange feeling that was somehow reluctant yet relaxing.


    Maybe this was how her teachers felt when she graduated.


    For the last lesson, there was not much to prepare since the previous class was an exam and she already had a good understanding of everyone''s grades.


    Xiao Qi felt she did quite well, all her students improved, especially Liang Jiajia who made great progress from a weak foundation.


    Guan Jingzhi''s English was good to begin with, and after a summer without getting rusty plus reading all the extracurricular books Xiao Qi recommended and discussing English programs together, her language sense seemed even better.


    For the last lesson, Xiao Qi just found some fun and interesting English materials to maintain the enthusiasm for learning English.


    Then she picked up a book on marathon running and read for a while.


    The full marathon distance is about 42.195 kilometers, which takes a normal person 2-5 hours to complete.


    It tests endurance and perseverance more than anything. There are even some professional athletes whose knees get worn out from running marathons so much that it becomes an occupational hazard.


    Xiao Qi estimated that with her daily 30,000 steps, about 15 kilometers, it was already quite far. Her knees did not have problems recently, but it could be dangerous if she was not careful.


    She wanted to borrow the book but then realized with school starting soon she would not come to the library anymore, so she gave up and left after flipping through it.


    Surprisingly, that little boy she often saw was not there today. Xiao Qi thought if she ran into him, she could say goodbye.


    Xiao Qi left the library earlier today and went to a bookstore. She wanted to buy some gifts for her students.


    In the end she chose the bilingual Chinese-English edition of "The Little Prince" for everyone. Xiao Qi really liked this book. Then she signed her name and wrote best wishes on the first page of each copy.


    After lunch, she went to Liang Jiajia¡¯s home.


    She told Jiajia''s mom she would not be home for dinner because Jiajia said they would eat out tonight.


    As expected, no one was focused in the last lesson. Even Guan Jingzhi came over to chat.


    Eventually Jiajia insisted they sing songs, and they sang an English song together.


    Xiao Qi¡¯s English recently improved tremendously. On top of finishing New Concept English level 4, listening to various audio materials, doing College English Test papers, plus two home tutoring lessons every week forcing her to study hard, it felt like something just clicked. Her English was unblocked and she made a breakthrough. Singing English songs was no problem at all now, and chatting with Guan Jingzhi in English was very smooth too.


    ¡°Host gains sincere appreciation from others and passes on her positive energy, rewarding host with Endurance +1. Host shall have the perseverance of a little donkey."


    Xiao Qi was in the middle of shedding tears when she heard this voice out of the blue and nearly tripped and fell in shock.


    What the heck was a little donkey? And perseverance??


    While the people standing over there saw that the teacher seemed too emotional and lost her balance.


    Jiajia¡¯s mom said: ¡°Your teacher Xiao Qi is great. If you like her, she can continue tutoring you all next term when she¡¯s back.¡±


    The buffs of being out of reach and swimming talent that Xiao Qi had since last Tuesday the 27th had just ended today, so she was currently just an adorable young girl.


    She gained a lot more confidence compared to the past, not just from the confident aura buff but her temperament itself changed tremendously. Learning brings enrichment and empowerment.


    The summer tutoring concluded successfully signifying an end to Xiao Qi¡¯s first job ever.


    She still had one last Japanese class tomorrow before ending her Japanese studies for now and preparing to head back to register in Alliance City.


    When Xiao Qi returned to her aunt¡¯s apartment after the gym, she surprisingly discovered a brand new shiny black suitcase that her aunt specially went to buy for her tonight.


    Watching Brother Lin Min pack his luggage she felt a bit silly and muddled, but when she started packing her own luggage she felt time was flying by so fast.


    Her dad just called to say he was coming down tomorrow to sell bamboo baskets and would help bring her luggage up.


    Xiao Qi did not have much clothing while packing, just some new pieces she bought recently that did not amount to a lot of weight. But there were a lot of books - she only now realized unknowingly she had purchased quite a few books over this time.


    Moreover she had read through them all, not entirely brand new books. An entire big box of them, giving her a great sense of accomplishment.


    When Su Simei brought fruit over and saw her niece Xiao Qi packing things, she suddenly felt the room becoming empty.


    ¡°Auntie don¡¯t worry. Alliance City is very closeby. Whenever I have time I¡¯ll come back, and you can also come visit me at Alliance City if you have days off. The swimming lessons you took are done but there are also fitness coaches you can still train with. I already contacted them for you.¡± Xiao Qi sat next to her aunt at the edge of the bed, looking in the mirror at the aunt and niece who did not actually resemble each other very much.


    Her aunt¡¯s face was round while she took after her own mother more, with more refined features without her aunt¡¯s rough air.


    Yet they still looked harmonious together.


    ¡°Alright, you rest early. Auntie will come find you to hang out if I get days off. I haven¡¯t been to Alliance City yet.¡± Su Simei candidly said.


    She did not stay for long and went back upstairs after.


    Xiao Qi lifted the door curtain and saw her aunt''s back as she walked down the long corridor, still quite broad, and also a little lonely.

 Chapter 120: Made by the Master

    Chapter 120


    Xiaoqi had class in the morning, her last Japanese lesson.


    She couldn''t go pick up her dad, so her dad had to go sell bamboo baskets himself while she went to class first.


    It was the last lesson. Zhou Meiling didn''t really follow a curriculum after teaching hiragana. She taught whatever came to mind, quite freely.


    It was different from Xiaoqi''s methodical teaching according to the textbook. Zhou Meiling was quite whimsical, just glancing at the textbook when she remembered.


    If you judged teachers as good or bad, Zhou Meiling''s style would probably be agonizing for most students. She taught whatever she wanted to say, but the homework was still from the textbook. You''d feel confused doing it, thinking "Where is this? What is this? The teacher didn''t talk about this at all!!"


    But for especially smart or talented students, her style was very good. They could connect the dots doing homework, realizing the teacher mentioned this, the teacher also brought up that, so the question must mean this.


    Xiaoqi wasn''t an especially smart or gifted student. Guan Jingzhi was younger but better than her in this regard. But Xiaoqi was very diligent, and she had tried immersive reading which was really effective. It was like being a Japanese-speaking child, or vaguely always having that feeling. When she studied later, she felt she could grasp things easily and make great progress.


    But diligence was still the most important. She should have had this motivation when learning English earlier, then she wouldn''t be in this situation now.


    Grasping every moment to study and practice resulted in great gains.


    In the last lesson, Zhou Meiling taught quite freely as usual with two students she quite liked in front of her. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    She liked Guan Jingzhi at first, naturally because of the girl''s family background, but Guan Jingzhi herself was also quite outstanding. As for Su Xiaoqi, Zhou Meiling was lost for words.


    The first time she met this student, she thought she had an impressive background. But it turned out she was just a rural student. She thought Xiaoqi was just an ordinary rural student, but it turned out she was even Guan Jingzhi''s English tutor. She thought Xiaoqi was just a better student, but somehow she inexplicably won a swimming championship...


    Every time Zhou Meiling thought she understood, she was proven wrong immediately. She thought Xiaoqi was poor, but she casually took out over 300,000 yuan to buy a house. Her husband''s circumstances were good, giving her a high allowance, but Xiaoqi herself didn''t have hundreds of thousands in cash on hand.


    The girl bought a house as calmly as buying a tube of lipstick.


    After repeatedly reevaluating, Zhou Meiling ended up liking this student.


    She felt different, somehow like they were friends.


    In the last lesson, there was no summary or anything. But Zhou Meiling gave both students small gifts.


    Crystal hair clips.


    Xiaoqi looked at the sparkling thing, was this really for her?


    Shouldn''t the teacher''s gift have gone to Guan Jingzhi?


    But as Zhou Meiling forcibly clipped it into her hair, Xiaoqi felt her neck go stiff. When the teacher handed her a mirror, she saw two girls inside, one with medium-length hair and a clip at her bangs that should have looked silly. But surprisingly, it looked quite nice.


    The long-haired girl beside her had a clip at the side, also very pretty.


    For the first time, Xiaoqi realized that she and the beauty Guan Jingzhi looked good together in the mirror. She almost couldn''t believe it.


    "Are you tired? Do you need to rest a bit more?"


    Xiaoqi felt her dad was a bit excited, like his body was shaking.


    "Not tired. Driver Dayu said he was coming to town this morning and gave me a ride. He dropped me straight at Shuidong, so I went right to the shop after getting out of the car, not tired at all. It''s because Boss Huang raised the price again."


    Su Youfu spoke then stroked his face, perplexed. "I don''t know where Boss Huang found it, but a video you took of me weaving bamboo. He said it was filmed by a student and wanted me to also film when I work in the future. I don''t know how to do that so I''ll have your mom learn when we get back. She''s smart and should pick it up quickly. And Boss Huang raised the price. The small ones used to be 150 yuan, big ones 200 yuan. Now the small ones are raised to 250 yuan, big ones 300 yuan. He even asked if I could make them if he sends me pictures, and said the price could be even higher."


    Su Youfu had a thick stack of cash in his pocket. He always did business in cash, and had an exceptionally large amount this time.


    "Oh right, I saved one for you that you said you wanted to give your teacher."


    Su Youfu took a bamboo basket out of the sack, woven like a shopping bag. Somehow the edges were connected without any frayed bits, using old bamboo with spots, looking antique. The handles were made from bent bamboo roots section by section.


    It was quite large, just the right size for Xiaoqi to carry A4 paper.


    She was pleasantly surprised. It could definitely work as a commuter bag in normal times. Despite being made of bamboo, it wasn''t too heavy. Her dad had even sewn a white cloth pouch inside.


    "Your mom sewed it and said it''s for city folks, in case it''s not secure, with a drawstring closure inside."


    Xiaoqi wanted one for herself just looking at this bamboo bag.


    She noticed there were even carved characters on the bamboo root handles.


    The characters carved were "You Fu."


    Examining the bag, she felt it was perfect from every angle.


    "Dad, wait for me. I''m going to take this to my teacher then come right back."


    Carrying her dad''s bamboo bag, Xiaoqi trotted back to the cultural center.


    Zhou Meiling had felt inexplicably awful after seeing that scene earlier, maybe from the bitter coffee, so she closed the window and went into her office. But then she saw Xiaoqi run back clutching an extremely quaint and beautiful bag.


    "Teacher Zhou, my dad made this to give you. I have to go, bye!" Xiaoqi put down the bag and trotted off again.


    Zhou Meiling: ......


    Looking at the bag on her desk, she examined it from top to bottom... It matched her traditional clothes so well, gorgeous.


    Mixed feelings welled up in her heart again... Especially when she saw the engraving on the handle of the handbag.


    She was an old regular at a tea house that served tea. A few days ago, she went to a relatively upscale new tea house. The boss there boasted about his small bamboo packs made by grand masters. It was a tiny little bamboo basket that could only hold two teacups. He said the small basket cost over two thousand yuan.


    She thought it was quite elegant and had wanted to buy it at the time. She looked at it carefully and saw a small engraved character on it, but considering it was not very practical, she gave up on it in the end. Still, she took quite a few pictures of it and even posted on her social media.


    Now...the exact same engraved character was right in front of her...

 Chapter 121: The Legacy of Unreach

    Chapter 121


    As the car traveled from Huanghe Town to Gumula Village, the air gradually cooled down. The number of trees on both sides increased, and among the green forest, there were occasional clusters of a different shade of light green - those were eucalyptus trees.


    It was said that eucalyptus trees were poisonous. Once planted, they inhibited the growth of other plants nearby. However, Gumula Village was too poor, so some people still relied on selling eucalyptus leaves to earn some money.


    Xiao Qi found eucalyptus trees quite beautiful at first glance. Despite being green like the surrounding trees, they stood out and had a unique shade of green.


    She didn''t bring back the suitcase her aunt bought for her; instead, she packed the books and clothes she needed and brought back the ones she didn''t need.


    The return journey was bumpy, and by the end of August, Gumula Village had become pleasantly cool. When they reached the entrance of the village office, a gust of cool wind blew, instantly refreshing Xiao Qi.


    The village hall was bustling with people. When they saw Su Youfu returning with a bamboo pole, they couldn''t help but tease him.


    "Su Lame went to sell baskets again. How much money did you make?"


    "Why do city folks need bamboo baskets? Must be because they''re overfed. They''re still useful for making brooms, brooms can be used to carry soil and vegetables."


    Amidst the lively conversation, a girl in a skirt stepped out of the car.


    Xiao Qi usually didn''t like wearing skirts, but today was the last Japanese language class, and Teacher Zhou had been nagging about it for a long time. So she decided to wear a skirt to class today.


    Zhou Meiling was indeed delighted. Xiao Qi wore the white chiffon skirt her aunt bought for her and had a cute hairpin given by Teacher Zhou clipped to her hair.


    She looked quite like a city girl. When she looked in the mirror earlier, she found that she didn''t appear rough or unattractive compared to Guan Jingzhi.


    The hall momentarily quietened down when the girl in the skirt walked up to Su Youfu and helped him carry his things.


    Then, the hall erupted into loud conversations. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    "Is that Su Lame''s daughter?"


    "She''s grown up so beautifully!"


    "Lucky Su Lame, his daughter has returned!"


    "She must be a college student. Isn''t the new semester starting soon? Why hasn''t she gone to school yet?"


    Xiao Qi steadied her steps and composure. She didn''t know if they were talking to her or just chatting among themselves, but whenever their gazes met, she smiled foolishly.


    In the eyes of others, Su Lame''s daughter was indeed very beautiful.


    But it was said that Su Lame''s wife was also good-looking. He must have had some stroke of luck.


    It''s a pity they didn''t have a son.


    That thought crossed their minds, tinged with envy.


    Xiao Qi breathed a sigh of relief when she returned home, greeted by the burning gazes and enthusiastic greetings. Surprisingly, the broken wall at the entrance had been repaired. Previously, she used to casually step over the broken wall to enter, but this time, she walked up the stone bridge at the entrance, which was over a small river, and there was a small open gate. Walking through it, she could see a spacious courtyard.


    The house Xiao Qi lived in was built on the foundation of an old landlord''s three-courtyard house. When her grandmother insisted on dividing the property, they gave the disabled eldest son his share.


    Su Youfu repaired and renovated the old house, but the windows were still not properly installed.


    There were gossips in the village, thinking that Xiao Qi''s grandmother was heartless, but she was fierce when throwing tantrums, and since it was about her own son, nobody dared to meddle.


    "Take these hot buns to your grandmother and also give a bag each to your third grandmother," Sheng Juanhua quickly divided the remaining buns on the table into two bags.


    Su Youfu had eaten two buns and was now helping to start the fire.


    He was always satisfied with how his wife handled things. His mother, on the other hand, had a bad temper and wasn''t very reasonable. But whenever there was food, Xiao Qi''s mother would always send some over.


    Xiao Qi ate a lot in one go, which helped with digestion, and then went to deliver the buns.


    Since Third Grandmother lived closer, Xiao Qi went there first before going to her own grandmother''s house.


    Xiao Qi was a bit nervous around her own grandmother. As she grew older, her grandmother''s face became more pronounced with prominent muscles, and she appeared fierce.


    According to her mother, she was supposed to deliver the buns and come back immediately because her grandmother hadn''t been in a good mood lately.


    All this fuss was about money. Xiao Qi''s grandmother had thought that her eldest son would slaughter their pig, and she planned to have him leave a ham for their uncle in the city. The uncle liked the meat from the countryside, the firm texture. However, to her surprise, her son sold the entire pig. Even so, they could still buy a ham, but it would cost money. Xiao Qi''s grandmother didn''t want to spend any money and wanted it as a gift. Hence, the conflict arose.


    When Xiao Qi arrived at her grandmother''s house, she indeed saw her sitting at the doorway, angrily scolding someone, surrounded by a group of old ladies and daughters-in-law.


    In the countryside, being unfilial was a serious accusation. Her grandmother was skilled at scolding, and she didn''t take a break while scolding. Xiao Qi couldn''t understand the words, but she was familiar with this scene.


    She was still quite nervous.


    Childhood shadows were deeply ingrained, so she tried her best to keep a straight face and not smile, maintaining a stoic expression.


    She had a special buff that made her seem unapproachable. In reality, she didn''t feel anything particular, except that when she didn''t smile, she appeared more serious and stern. She couldn''t quite grasp that feeling, as if only a few traces of it remained on her.


    At this moment, she could only maintain her stoic expression. She had tried it in front of a mirror before, and it seemed to have that effect. People seemed to respect her more.


    "Grandmother, my mother made these buns. They just came out of the pot. I''ve brought them for you," Xiao Qi acted as if she didn''t understand her grandmother''s scolding, confidently approached her and handed over the steaming buns.


    Just a moment ago, her grandmother was talking about how her eldest son and daughter-in-law were unfilial and miserly, disregarding their mother''s well-being...


    Seeing the hot and fragrant buns right in front of her, Li Fengjiao, the wife of the eldest son who couldn''t bear a child, thought that her cooking skills were excellent. Every dish she made was delicious.


    Xiao Qi glanced around at her grandmother and the other daughters-in-law and said with a straight face, "Grandmother, you can continue chatting. I''ll go back and have my meal."


    After saying that, she turned and left.


    Leaving behind a group of people, they watched as Li Fengjiao held the large meat buns in her hands...


    Li Fengjiao stiffly got up and, with everyone watching, took the buns into the house. She said, "Leave them for our little Qian. He works hard."


    Everyone realized they missed out on the buns. Li Fengjiao was notorious for being stingy.


    People started discussing other topics.


    "I think Li Fengjiao misjudged the situation. Her granddaughter is extraordinary."


    "Yes, indeed. Just now, a young lady from the Fu family came by. The way she looked at people, oh my, it''s even scarier than when the secretary comes."


    "I''ve seen her on TV too, and it''s the same. She''s not afraid at all. Sitting there, the muscular woman next to her was trembling, and even that balding man, stuttering and constantly tugging at his hair, while Xiao Qi sat there, speaking fluently, just like a host."


    Grandma Xiao Qi was in the room, quickly devouring a steamed bun that was still hot and delicious. She planned to finish eating and then go out to scold her eldest son and daughter-in-law for being unfilial. However, she accidentally bit her tongue when she heard the loud voices outside...

 Chapter 122: The Whole Family Coming to Town

    Chapter 122


    It was late at night.


    The roosters in Gumula Village had all gone into the coop.


    There was the occasional barking of dogs, echoing through the village.


    Su Youfu fished the dripping wet bamboo strips out of the water and hung them on a rack nearby.


    He wore a pair of thick gloves on his hands that used to be white but had now been worn to black, with holes in some places.


    These were the gloves he wore when weaving bamboo, because sometimes the strips could be sharp, especially when twisting them, and it was easy to prick your hands accidentally. But he couldn''t wear the gloves when making intricate little things, and his hands were covered in calluses.


    The bamboo strips drying on the rack had spotted markings from old bamboo. Originally Su Youfu was reluctant to chop down new bamboo, so when he went up the mountain to collect bamboo, he would cut the older, crooked, poorly shaped, insect-eaten ones first.


    It was harder to split strips from this kind of bamboo. The pieces were twisted and gnarled, old and hard, and had to be soaked in water first before splitting.


    Unexpectedly, the bamboo wares made from these strips turned out to have their own unique charm. Boss Huang said customers liked this kind of thing.


    Su Youfu didn''t understand aesthetics or appreciation, but it was true that these strips were harder to work with, while the quality was better than new bamboo and the products were more durable, not as brittle and very flexible.


    Today when Su Youfu saw that his daughter liked the little bamboo bag, he decided to make one for Xiaoqi as well. She would be going off to school soon, and city girls seemed to like those little sling bags that couldn''t hold much, just a cell phone and keys and such.


    While Su Youfu was selecting bamboo strips, Sheng Juanhua was also busy.


    She had sewn a small cloth pouch with a drawstring that could go inside the bamboo bag.


    Not only that, she had also taken some old homespun fabric from the house. Gumula Village had a tradition of weaving fabric, but the homespun cloth was very coarse and rustic, without much use. Basically only the older generation still wove it. It used to be custom to give homespun cloth to newlywed couples, but in recent years it was more popular to gift bedding instead.


    The homespun cloth in their house was mostly gifts received at Sheng Juanhua''s wedding ceremony years ago.


    She had cloth in all kinds of colors - red, blue. Sheng Juanhua was skilled with her hands, and planned to use these fabrics to make a shoulder strap.


    She had seen it on TV before, those little bags with wide shoulder straps in bright colors.


    They looked very lively and cheerful when young girls wore them.


    She was sewing the strap, first piecing together three layers of thick cloth to give it substance, then wrapping the outside with a layer of homespun, carefully stitching together strips of different colors on the diagonal to create a vibrant, irregular pattern.


    While Sheng Juanhua worked on the strap, Su Youfu wove the bamboo bag.


    Xiaoqi had already gone to bed. The villagers loved gossip too much, and she couldn''t handle it even with her paralyzed face, so she went upstairs early to practice writing characters, do some English Level 4 exam papers, review some Japanese, then went to sleep.


    Sleeping earlier at home, because in the afternoon she had gone to the vegetable plot to get her step count in.


    Originally Su Youfu intended to take his daughter to Meng City, but Xiaoqi thought about it and decided against it. There was too much work at home, and her father wasn''t in the best health either. It would be hard for him to go alone, then come back alone. Xiaoqi was worried.


    She told her father that she would have classmates traveling together, lots of students from their school got accepted in Meng City and would take the same train. They could look after each other.


    Su Youfu had thought to go himself, but with one more person there would be extra expenses for transport and lodging. Meng City wasn''t far either, and if his daughter said she would have classmates along, he felt assured. So they decided together that he would go with his wife to see their daughter off in the city.


    Sheng Juanhua barely slept well all night, it was rare for her to go into the city after marrying into Gumula Village, especially for both husband and wife together.


    After eating, the couple changed into their best outfits, the ones Sheng Juanhua wore last time going back to visit her parents, even the red leather shoes. Su Youfu also put on leather shoes, but took along a pair of cloth shoes and sneakers for the trip back.


    With no car today they would have to walk home, and last time Sheng Juanhua insisted on not changing shoes, only to find a small tear at the tip of the leather shoes on the way back, upsetting her.


    Xiaoqi got up at 5:30, seeing her parents fully dressed and chickens fed, pig feed prepared for the newly caught piglets...


    "What time did you get up?"


    Xiaoqi couldn''t help yawning as soon as she opened her mouth.


    "Normal time, less sleep when older. Come eat quickly." Su Youfu pulled at his new shirt, feeling awkward in the unfamiliar clothes, but his face was wreathed in smiles, much gentler than usual.


    Sheng Juanhua was doing her hair out the back door. She had long, thick black tresses that took some effort to put up.


    She braided her hair neatly into one big braid and let it hang over her shoulder.


    Perhaps because life had been good recently, the wrinkles on Sheng Juanhua''s forehead seemed to have faded a lot, making her look many years younger.


    Xiaoqi wolfed down a few bites. With short hair it was easy for her to get ready, just brush it back with a comb and that was it.


    By the time Xiaoqi finished eating, her parents were already waiting by the door.


    Su Youfu carried a large bag, Sheng Juanhua also had a large bag, and Xiaoqi wore a backpack.


    The family of three headed towards the village community center. The sky was just growing light, and others going into the city were also hurrying to the community center.


    They walked quickly, because arriving early meant sitting in the front, where it was coldest on the bus. The morning chill cut through to the bone.


    Driver Da Yong squatted by the bus smoking a cigarette on a large rock.


    His job every day was driving people back and forth. Seeing the Su family of three appear, he stared blankly for a moment.


    Su Youfu walked with a limp, bobbing up and down. Beside him his wife Sheng Juanhua was tall and moved nimbly. She had a bold, handsome face. Their daughter Su Xiaoqi still looked half-asleep, a bit bleary-eyed as she shuffled over, like an unbloomed rosebud.


    Despite his limp, Su Youfu walked swiftly, hopping up to the driver and asking, "Da Yong, any space left? My wife and daughter sit in front."

 Chapter 123: Watch the Movies

    Chapter 123


    Su Simei knew her cousin was coming today, so she got up early to wait for him.


    Today was Saturday. She had wanted to ask for leave, but the person who had been covering her shift had something going on today, so she had to help out and keep working. Saturdays were a little more relaxed though, so she could slip away for a bit if needed.


    Xiao Qi''s family got off the car. Normally they would take the bus to go visit Auntie at the hospital.


    But Xiao Qi''s mother very rarely took the bus. By the time they got to Huanghe Town her face was as white as paper, and by the time they arrived in Lvshan City and got off, she had thrown up so much even her legs were weak, having emptied out not just that morning''s breakfast, but probably last night''s dinner too. It was quite a sorry sight.


    The driver Da Yong was used to sights like this. Villagers rarely came into the city, and the few times they did, something like this usually happened. He pulled over by those few trees, which were more lush than trees elsewhere, fertilized by too many incidents like this.


    And so the family of three had to walk the rest of the way to Auntie''s hospital.


    Luckily Xiao Qi was used to walking now, and didn''t find it tiring. She even took some of the things her mother was carrying.


    She wanted to take some of the things her father was carrying too, but Su Youfu quickly refused. It wouldn''t look right for the child to be carrying things while the parents walked empty handed.


    After walking for a while, Sheng Juanhua''s complexion gradually regained some color, though her feet still felt a little unsteady.


    She rarely came into the city, and looking at the high rises and big buildings, she found it all dazzling.


    "Lvshan City has changed so much. I remember there weren''t any tall buildings here that year I came."


    "It''s changed even more over that way, with a new movie theater and shopping mall built." Su Youfu said.


    "We can go watch a movie together." Xiao Qi suggested. Her parents probably hadn''t seen a big screen before. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    She thought to herself, they really were from two different worlds. Teacher Zhou had taken her to see a concert, with a bunch of foreigners playing and singing.


    Meanwhile her parents had barely even seen a movie on a screen this size.


    Sure enough, her dad said, "I heard a ticket costs several dozen yuan. Let''s not waste money, watching on TV is the same."


    "You''re right, it''s probably about the same as TV, a waste of money." Sheng Juanhua chimed in agreement.


    The family of three walked quickly, and it felt like no time at all before they arrived at the hospital.


    Su Youfu and his wife had come together, also wanting to thank Su Simei in person. After all, their daughter had been trouble for her auntie for so long.


    Seeing her aunt and uncle come laden with so many things, Su Simei smiled warmly, "You don''t have to bring so much every time, I can''t finish it all."


    The combo meal of cola and popcorn cost over seventy yuan. If she had bought it her parents probably wouldn''t have said anything, but she knew their hearts would ache, and her dad would be up late weaving bamboo ware again.


    Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu sat together, with Xiao Qi next to her mother.


    The seats were very soft, sinking down as you sat. There was air conditioning inside too, nice and cool.


    After the ads, the theater lights suddenly switched off, pitch black.


    Xiao Qi reminded her parents to put on their glasses, and put on her own pair too.


    The movie started, and a zombie suddenly lunged straight at them, seeming to run right up to their seats. Even Xiao Qi jumped in fright.


    Sheng Juanhua was even more terrified, one hand clutching her husband and the other grabbing her daughter''s arm.


    Then the zombie''s head abruptly exploded from a gunshot.


    The bullet seemed to be flying straight at them too.


    Xiao Qi tried her best to seem worldly, but was also badly startled.


    She instinctively clutched her mother''s arm tightly too.


    Once the movie properly began, whether they had adapted to the 3D effects, or the 3D wasn''t as intense after the start, in any case it wasn''t as thrilling as the beginning. But watching the big screen was still very different than watching TV.


    Xiao Qi had crammed to brush up her English over the holidays, so she was very familiar with the English dialogue and watched with great interest.


    Meanwhile Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu couldn''t understand a word, only able to read the Chinese subtitles. But even reading the subtitles was tiring, so they just watched the visuals.


    The couple was practically trying foreign food for the first time. Although they didn''t really understand it, they watched very attentively, thinking they could talk about the experience of watching a movie when they got back to the village.


    The pacing of the movie was decent, but the plot was muddled, never making clear by the end whether the zombies were all dead or not, if humanity was victorious or faced destruction.


    The credits rolled on screen as the theater lights turned back on. Only then did Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu take off their glasses, still a bit dizzy.


    Xiao Qi wasn''t much better off, just slightly more so. Seeing her parents walking unsteadily, she regretted not picking a better movie herself. She should have chosen a Chinese film, even if it was terribly bad. At least her parents could have understood it more clearly. She hadn''t even really understood this one herself.


    But when she saw her parents walking out hand in hand, so intimate, as Xiao Qi stood waiting at the theater entrance, she felt truly happy in that moment.


    The family of three together, all was well.

 Chapter 124: How to Spend Money

    Chapter 124


    Xiao Qi got on the train and found her second class seat.


    There were five seats in each row.


    Xiao Qi sat in the window seat farthest inside in a row of three.


    The seats could be adjusted to face each other, with a small table in between.


    Xiao Qi looked around and saw many other young people about her age, but most had elders accompanying them. There were some like her traveling alone too.


    Next to Xiao Qi sat a young girl and a middle-aged man.


    The girl seemed quite excited and started unpacking snacks as soon as she got on the train.


    Xiao Qi had one suitcase, one backpack. Her important bank card, phone, ID were all in a small bamboo bag her dad had made. It looked tiny but could actually hold a lot. She could take it with her when she went to the bathroom.


    The bamboo bag was very rustic, but paired with the wide, colorful fabric shoulder strap, it looked quite fashionable.


    There was also quite a bit of cash in the bag. Her dad had given her 1000 RMB to start, and then unexpectedly, her aunt had stuffed her with a red envelope with 2000 RMB before she left.


    She also had a little bit of spare change herself, so in total she had over 3000 RMB.


    Just after boarding, Xiao Qi nimbly stowed her suitcase away. Although there were books in it, it wasn¡¯t heavy for her at all. Before boarding, her parents and aunt had repeatedly told her not to talk to strangers or give out personal information. Just now a young man had offered to help carry her suitcase but she declined with a shake of her head.


    Her backpack was under her feet. It contained some snacks and books to read later.


    She wore the little bamboo bag on her.


    Her parents had come to see her off at the train station, but they couldn¡¯t come in past the entrance. She went in with her ticket and could only see them waving outside through the glass before passing through security and losing sight of them.


    To be honest, this was her first time traveling alone on a train to another place, so she felt a little nervous and disoriented.


    She had asked around and found out there were three students from her school who got into Enhua University, one boy and one girl, but she didn¡¯t know them well. She just told her parents that three students from school were going to Enhua University together.


    Her parents probably assumed their precious daughter had good grades and was popular, though that wasn¡¯t the case at all. Xiao Qi was too embarrassed to clarify.


    Now seated, with the train in motion, Xiao Qi called her parents first.


    She said she was seated comfortably and the train had departed, everything was fine.


    Plus she heard from her elementary school classmate Zhang Juan that some cars weren''t available immediately after purchase, requiring a wait.


    Perfect, Xiao Qi could learn to drive first while waiting for the car, then collect it once she got her license.


    These three items should allow her to spend most of the money.


    With a plan in mind, Xiao Qi stopped thinking about the issue and started envisioning her upcoming college life instead.


    She felt she had stumbled blindly through high school with little progress, constantly struggling to learn. It was because she lacked plans, operating chaotically.


    For college, she set the goal of passing the CET-4 English test. It was offered twice a year in June and December. She should be able to take the December exam.


    She had started learning Japanese and didn''t want to quit halfway, so she needed to keep studying and take the proficiency tests too. She felt learning without testing was pointless and easily forgotten, regardless of whether the exams were well-designed or necessary. Testing was an assessment of learning, if not on the full knowledge base, at least a portion.


    She didn''t care about collecting certificates, but others valued seeing them.


    Both the Japanese test and CET-4 were scheduled early December, conveniently not conflicting - Japanese early and English mid-month. She felt more confident about English.


    There was also entering a marathon, which nicely justified her daily runs and walks, included in Xiao Qi''s schedule.


    Beyond that, she would see what else came up at school. Right now she felt simultaneously forward-looking yet ignorant.


    With these thoughts, the scenery outside grew unfamiliar.


    The tall buildings and bridges of Lvshan City faded away. The long Lv River still stretched ahead but the trees and houses on both sides were unknown.


    The train car was lively.


    Xiao Qi had no desire to chat, so she took out a copy of The Daily Life of the Edo Period People and started reading.


    She sat up straight with perfect posture. In her final week at home she had gone to the gym everyday, running and learning moves from the coach.


    The coach was very attentive, teaching her sitting and standing postures to correct her hunched shoulders and sunken chest issues, which Xiao Qi felt were quite severe. She studied diligently.


    She wanted to emulate the coach''s attractive bearing, with shoulders back and head held high, exuding confidence.


    The coach moved fluidly with grace.


    Xiao Qi didn''t realize the coach had sneaked in other moves targeting the chest, waist, and hips, not just posture advice. But she taught those to all students - none were as sincere as Xiao Qi, practicing daily even when class was over.


    After running, Xiao Qi would do stretche

 Chapter 125: Advanced Level of Calligraphy

    Chapter 125


    The potato chips smelled delicious, like cucumber flavor. When you opened the bag you could smell the cucumber fragrance.


    But before Xiao Qi got on the train, her parents had warned her not to talk to strangers or eat anything given by strangers.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua were farmers who had never traveled far. They were still very fearful of the outside world, and the survival rules they taught their child were focused on being safe and avoiding risks.


    The little girl sitting next to her and the middle-aged man looked like a civil servant. The little girl was very lively and outgoing, not afraid of strangers at all.


    "Thank you, but I''ve also brought my own food," Xiao Qi declined even though she didn''t think they would poison the food or anything crazy like that. After all, she didn''t know them.


    A few hours didn''t seem very long to Xiao Qi. She figured she could just read a book and the time would pass quickly.


    Actually, she was a little tired now. She had gotten up early and walked around shopping with her parents, which had been very exciting. Now that she had said goodbye to her parents and was sitting alone on the high-speed train, she suddenly felt relaxed and sluggish.


    But her parents had also told her not to sleep on the train. Just look at the scenery and the time will go by fast.


    Xiao Qi rummaged through her backpack for food. Hmm, her parents had prepared mainly staple foods - 4 boiled eggs, 2 slices of cured pork pancakes with cured pork inside, sausages that could be eaten directly, also made from home-raised pork using their family''s method with lots of flour and glutinous rice added. The only fruits were cucumbers and tomatoes that her parents had grown at home. In her parents'' eyes, their homegrown produce tasted better than store bought. Over the years, whenever they ate store-bought cucumbers and tomatoes, they always found them tasteless and watery, with no sweetness, sourness or flavor.


    This was probably due to the chemical fertilizers used. Villagers who grew vegetables to sell all used a lot of chemical fertilizers. Their produce looked good and grew big, but didn''t taste good. What they grew for their own consumption used farm manure compost, which made the flavor sweeter, but the appearance wasn''t as nice and couldn''t be sold for a good price. At most they would give some to relatives and friends.


    Xiao Qi was actually quite hungry now. She had a big appetite.


    She took out two eggs, a cured pork pancake, a cucumber, and hmm, a thermal flask.


    It was a very simple combination of food.


    It startled the little girl and her father sitting next to her.


    The little girl had a bunch of potato chips, chicken feet, grapes, dates, cherries and strawberries on her tray, looking quite fancy.


    What Xiao Qi took out was hard to describe in one word.


    After all, they were still students. It seemed the quality of the schools could show the difference in grades.


    But when the little girl''s father heard Xiao Qi say she was going to Enhua University, his expression didn''t change much, but he was quite surprised inside. Enhua was a private university right? When he had helped his daughter apply, he had also checked - the tuition was extremely expensive. This little girl looked like she came from a good family, but the food she took out seemed odd. Also, when she got on the train, she had made a phone call in dialect, seeming like a country girl. Quite contradictory.


    The little girl was excited the whole trip. Hearing that Xiao Qi was going to Enhua University, she also didn''t continue the conversation, but turned to chat with the passenger across from her instead.


    Xiao Qi put on her headphones to listen to music, and continued reading her book.


    She hadn''t finished reading the three books Teacher Zhou gave her. This book "One Day in the Life of an Edo Townsman" was quite interesting. She had read it bit by bit and now just had a small part left at the end, which introduced Edo dialects.


    Xiao Qi was learning Japanese, but what Teacher Zhou taught was very scattered, talking about whatever came to mind. This way of learning also had an advantage - it was more interesting than always summarizing grammar, pronunciation and sentence patterns every day.


    So when she saw the section on Edo dialects, Xiao Qi was also very interested and read it carefully for a long time. She discovered the Edo dialects in Japan were similar to some regional dialects in China, with some variations in pronunciation and meanings of words.


    For example, in her hometown Gumula Village, when they wanted to say someone was good-looking and attractive, they didn''t say the person was born that way, but that the person had "grown" good-looking and attractive. The Edo dialect had some subtle changes that were similar. However, Xiao Qi could only remember the examples given in the book. To explore and learn more, she still found it difficult for now. It would be more suitable to learn standard Japanese first.


    Xiao Qi''s memory technique was to first read, remember, then copy by writing.


    The little girl had gone off to chat with someone else, leaving some space on the table. So Xiao Qi took out her notebook and pen and carefully copied down the two pages on dialects.


    As she was copying, suddenly the mechanical voice in her mind sounded: "Congratulations host for completing 100 hours of calligraphy, advancing from beginner to expert level. Continue your hard work, complete 1000 hours of calligraphy to reach master level."


    Xiao Qi was startled for a moment, then calculated the time. 1000 hours, 10 hours a day without rest would take 100 days. With heavy responsibilities ahead, even squeezing out as much time as possible to write every day, she could only manage 2-3 hours at most, and it had to be persistent daily effort. It would still take more than a year at least.


    But having a clear time and goal as a task, Xiao Qi felt it was quite good, giving her motivation to learn.


    She continued copying.


    Meanwhile, the little girl''s father had switched seats with his daughter. The lively daughter leaned over to chat with her neighbor. He happened to see this girl writing, and out of habit he casually glanced over, but was stunned instantly.


    People called him Director Cheng, Cheng the Great Calligrapher, and he liked those titles. But this random little girl''s writing, the feeling it gave, was actually better than his???


    What''s more, she had written a large part that he couldn''t even recognize at all!

 Chapter 126: The Seeds of Ambition

    Chapter 126


    The scenery outside the window gradually transitioned from mountains to plains.


    The clouds in the sky seemed much lower.


    This was the first time Xiaoqi had ventured so far from home, witnessing a completely different landscape.


    The outside appeared flat and vast, unlike Lushan City where a building or a river in the distance would be obstructed by mountains.


    But here, in front of her, everything was level and there were no mountains in sight, only clouds.


    It felt incredibly expansive, yet at the same time, the sky seemed lower, and the clouds appeared so close that if she jumped a little higher, she might actually touch them.


    This starkly contrasting scenery filled Xiaoqi with astonishment, prompting her to silently observe for a little while longer.


    She then put away the book she had just finished reading, "A Day in Edo," and took out another one, "The Three Prime Ministers of the Abe Shinzo Family and Hereditary Politics in Japan," which was a gift from Teacher Zhou.


    Unbeknownst to Xiaoqi, Zhou Meiling had casually grabbed three books, and since she hadn''t read them for a long time, she decided to give them to Xiaoqi.


    Xiaoqi had been quite busy lately, but she was a dedicated reader who always took her time to read books. She hadn''t had a chance to read this one thoroughly, so she decided to bring it along.


    She had heard that university life would be leisurely with plenty of free time, so reading more books wouldn''t hurt.


    Before opening the book, Xiaoqi took a sip of water and pulled out a tomato. She packed some snacks in her bag because she felt it would be better to eat them during the journey instead of carrying them around, worrying they might get squashed. Besides, eating them would also lighten her load a bit.


    The tomatoes grown at home were large, and their skin was still firm. Her mother specifically picked this type, where once you bite through the outer layer, the inside would be filled with tangy and sweet juice, truly appetizing.


    Xiaoqi would take a bite, slurping the juice, and if she didn''t finish it, it would dribble everywhere.


    She hadn''t received any formal training in dining etiquette, so her way of eating was somewhat casual. However, being a young girl, her casual manner didn''t make her appear untidy.


    Meanwhile, Cheng Minguang wanted to talk to this young girl about calligraphy, but the current situation felt a bit awkward. He was an experienced civil servant and yet he couldn''t find the right words to start a conversation.


    Moreover, the young girl had already put her notebook away.


    As an avid calligraphy enthusiast, he had profound insights into his own writing, and he couldn''t tolerate the fact that nowadays children preferred using computers and neglected the art of handwriting. Therefore, he always nagged his daughter, insisting that she should practice writing.


    However, his daughter had a carefree personality, and her calligraphy skills were only passable.


    But the characters this young girl had just written seemed, in his opinion, better than his own.


    The sensation of being caught off guard by someone''s talent made Cheng Minguang feel a bit uncomfortable. However, seeing her now pick up another book to read, he couldn''t help but envy his own daughter. He thought it would be audacious if he were to ask someone if they wanted to share a bag of potato chips. His daughter could do it without any reservations.


    Xiaoqi had no idea that the gentleman next to her was interested in her handwriting. She was fully engrossed in her book.


    The first part of the book provides an overview of these four individuals.


    At first glance, it seems like the position of Prime Minister is passed down within their family, with each member taking turns.


    In Xiaoqi''s family, being a farmer seems to be the hereditary profession. Her family has always been farmers.


    In the novel, Abe Shinzo''s grandfather and his generation have fallen from their once prestigious position as wealthy brewers of sake and soy sauce, a prominent family lineage in Yamaguchi Prefecture.


    At a glance, it may seem that changing one''s circumstances ultimately relies on marriage in reality. Abe Shinzo''s father''s generation faced a tragic fate, as he became an orphan after losing both parents, only to coincidentally be chosen by An Xinjie as a son-in-law.


    It was like changing the family''s fate and being reborn.


    Little Qi thought about her own family, who had been farmers for generations. The highest-ranking official in their ancestry was supposedly a deputy minister during the Song Dynasty, and their ancestral shrine still held his portrait.


    For seventeen-year-old Little Qi, the path of marriage and betrothal seemed like a distant world.


    Thinking about her cousin''s marriage, she realized that even though she married an ordinary person, they said her family owned a small factory, which meant her conditions were somewhat better. However, it was still far from changing her family''s fate and social class.


    Little Qi didn''t know why, but when she saw these things, she thought about the different social classes.


    Her current life seemed disjointed from the world portrayed in books, as if they were separate and disconnected realms.


    Perhaps she was overthinking it, but Little Qi had encountered more people during this summer break than she had in her three years of high school.


    There was Zhou Meiling, the Japanese language teacher and leader at the cultural center, Mrs. Liang, a successful businesswoman, Guan Jingzhi, who came from a well-off family, and Coach Wu, who worked hard to buy his own house...


    She couldn''t even measure up to the status of these people, let alone the world depicted in books.


    Reading books was the most straightforward and simple way for her to explore and connect with the world.


    Just because she hadn''t encountered it didn''t mean this world didn''t exist.


    At that moment, it seemed as though a tiny seed had been planted in her heart.


    This seed was so small, and she didn''t know if it would have a chance to sprout. Wrapped in a thick shell, it quietly nestled in a corner of Little Qi''s heart.


    Little Qi looked up and gazed out the window, and suddenly, the plains leaped, revealing a vast sea.


    A wide expanse of ocean, as far as the eye could see.


    It was the real sea, not something seen on television, but right before her eyes.


    The high-speed train swiftly traversed the sea, and the waves had an indescribable grandeur...Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m

 Chapter 127: Welcome to the New World

    Chapter 127


    The high-speed train crossed the sea and arrived in Meng City.


    Meng City is a beautiful coastal city. The tall buildings, green trees, and colorful flowers along the way are all very picturesque, exuding a strong sense of modernity.


    Compared to the provincial capital Fucheng in Jingnan Province that Xiao Qi visited with Teacher Zhou before, Meng City is much more beautiful and comfortable.


    Fucheng also has many skyscrapers, but it always feels crowded. The streets and such are relatively chaotic.


    But the first impression of Meng City is that it is spacious and clean.


    The entire city seems to have been scrubbed clean, even the crowded corners are neatly adorned with flowers and plants.


    Xiao Qi put away her book, as she hadn''t finished reading it and didn''t have any study cards. She eagerly looked at everything before her.


    If everything goes as planned, she will be staying here for at least four years.


    She is 17 years old this year and will stay until she''s 21.


    The train''s broadcast started playing as well.


    The cheerful voice of the train attendant introduced Meng City.


    Outside, the setting sun shines directly onto the train.


    It feels like we''re arriving very quickly. Perhaps because the train has entered the urban area, it has slowed down. Watching the sun set and the neon lights, the entire city is never covered in darkness; it remains bright.


    The little girl next to Xiao Qi stopped playing cards too.


    Everyone is excited, standing up and getting their luggage. Even though we haven''t arrived yet, some people have already taken their luggage to the door and are waiting.


    A line quickly formed at the door.


    Although they know they can get off as soon as the door opens, many people are still anxiously standing and waiting.


    Seeing the anxious queue, Xiao Qi also became a bit nervous.


    She packed up her book.


    Checking the time, there are still twenty minutes left before arrival.


    She took out the two remaining boiled eggs from her backpack and peeled the shells. She also ate a tomato.


    Both the eggs and the tomato are afraid of being crushed.


    After finishing her meal, Xiao Qi took a sip from the thermos cup. There''s still half a cup of water in it, just enough to bring along for the journey. She doesn''t need to fill it up too much; it would be too heavy.


    After tidying up, Xiao Qi prepared to get up and take her luggage. The little girl''s father next to her enthusiastically stood up to help.


    He was very enthusiastic, and Xiao Qi didn''t refuse, just saying, "It''s quite heavy."


    Cheng Minguang wondered how heavy the little girl''s suitcase could be. His daughter''s suitcase is much larger than this one, but when he carried it, it didn''t feel heavy at all.


    However, when he reached out and pulled, it didn''t budge.


    Xiao Qi stood on her tiptoes and smiled, "Let me do it. Thank you, sir. There are a lot of books inside."


    Xiao Qi effortlessly pulled her own suitcase out and placed it on the ground.


    With her backpack on her back, she stood there, tall and straight like a pine tree.


    Cheng Minguang: ...


    The train slowly arrived at the station, tilting forward slightly, causing many people to sway. Xiao Qi stood up, followed the crowd, and dragged her suitcase out.


    There wasn''t enough time to say goodbye; the little girl and her father sitting next to her had disappeared.


    The train station was crowded with people, and Xiao Qi didn''t walk quickly. She looked at the signs along the way and reached the exit. She knew she needed her train ticket to exit the station, so she put her ticket in the small bamboo bag. Following what others were doing, she inserted it, and the ticket popped out. The station gate opened, and she walked out.


    I don''t know what kind of consumption view this is, but when she exited the subway station from Exit 2, she saw towering skyscrapers with a Shangri-La sign hanging in front. The lights were bright, and there were probably more people living in this building than in the entire village of Gu Mu La.


    She walked to the entrance, pulling her suitcase.


    A young man wearing a uniform and a hat asked her if she was checking in.


    She nodded.


    The young man immediately took her suitcase and also took her backpack.


    Xiao Qi had the feeling that her luggage was being stolen. She wondered if she should snatch it back, but since he was still following her, Xiao Qi''s heart eased a little, although she felt a bit embarrassed.


    Xiao Qi appeared calm as she was led to the front desk.


    The hotel lobby was exceptionally luxurious, with a huge crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, sparkling and shining.


    The floor was as smooth as a mirror, and there were beautifully arranged fresh flowers with dewdrops on the lobby, looking very attractive.


    Behind the lobby bar stood a male waiter in a formal suit, with a face as white as if powdered, revealing a neat set of white teeth when he smiled, looking handsome like a TV star.


    And he was quite tall. He bent down politely, bowing his head to ask Xiao Qi if she had any requests. Xiao Qi shook her head, keeping a poker face.


    In fact, she had a little bun on her head, which had been raised all the way in the car.


    She wore a cute pink T-shirt with a colorful bamboo bag strap slung across her body, showing her average and not particularly prominent figure.


    Despite her serious expression, the waiter could tell from her ID card that she was a young girl with a few baby hairs on her face.


    "Miss Su, this is your first stay at our hotel. We have upgraded you to the full sea view suite on the 29th floor. Welcome to check-in," the handsome waiter said with a sweet voice, addressing her respectfully.


    He handed the room card to Xiao Qi with both hands, and also gave a detailed introduction to the restaurant. He mentioned that she could use the executive lounge for free after the upgrade, and the beverages in the room were complimentary.


    Xiao Qi continued to keep a poker face and nodded, accepting the room card and her own ID card.


    The guy who had snatched her suitcase was still waiting for her. When he saw that she had finished, he immediately greeted her and led her to the elevator.


    The elevator doors were as magnificent as glass walls. If someone hadn''t been leading her, Xiao Qi wouldn''t have known it was an elevator.


    Once inside the elevator, she saw that the person next to her needed to swipe a card.


    Xiao Qi was a little flustered as she took out her room card and swiped it, then pressed the button for the 29th floor.


    Time seemed to stretch a bit, and in the end, there were only her and the guy carrying the luggage in the elevator.


    When the number 29 lit up, Xiao Qi practically rushed out of the elevator.


    Then, in a daze, she followed the guy carrying the luggage to the depths of the corridor and looked at the door with the number 2918 written on it.


    She stood at the door in a daze, and after a while, she remembered that she had to open the door herself.


    She held the room key card, wanting to check if there was a latch, but the room and the corridor walls seemed to blend together, all made of metallic surfaces.


    Feeling a bit awkward, she handed the key card to the bellboy who was carrying her luggage.


    He took the card and made a circular motion on the door at a patterned spot, and with a swish sound, the door opened.


    The bellboy respectfully placed the luggage inside the room and explained how to use the electricity and switches before taking his leave.


    After hearing the door close, Xiao Qi double-checked and locked it before entering the room.


    Inside the room, there was a huge floor-to-ceiling window and a pristine white king-sized bed. Most astonishingly, outside the window was the sea, a boundless expanse of it.


    As she lay on the bed, she could even hear the sound of the waves outside.


    The sea breeze billowed the white curtains.


    There was also a gigantic chandelier on the ceiling, shimmering in a champagne color, radiating unparalleled brilliance.


    It seemed to be saying to Xiao Qi, "Welcome to this world."

 Chapter 128: Morning at the Hotel

    Chapter 128


    Xiao Qi was woken up by the rumbling sound of the steam whistle.


    She opened her eyes and looked at the scene in front of her, wondering if she was dreaming.


    She closed her eyes and opened them again.


    She was not dreaming.


    She really was in a luxurious hotel room.


    Floor-to-ceiling windows with curtains that could open and close automatically. The switch was right by the bedside. She pressed it.


    A whirring sound rang out as the curtains slowly opened automatically.


    What came rushing to meet her was the sea.


    And on the sea there was an enormous cruise ship.


    It really was very big, like a building.


    Xiao Qi was very curious. She got out of bed without even washing up and opened the floor-to-ceiling glass door to the balcony. The balcony railing was also glass. She leaned over it and watched the ship in the distance, moving slowly like a building.


    Nearby there were other boats that looked tiny like shrimp compared to the big cruise ship.


    Xiao Qi stared blankly for a while until the sunlight shone on her face.


    The bed was too soft and she was a little groggy from sleep.


    She rubbed her eyes. There were big clumps of eye boogers in the corners.


    After watching the cruise ship for a while, she felt the sea breeze was getting a bit strong, probably because of the height of the building. It blew her oversized T-shirt that she slept in, flapping noisily.


    She went back into the room where there was no wind and felt better. Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    The room really looked beautiful with a living room and soft sofas, a bar, and even a bathtub on the balcony where you could take a bath while looking at the sea.


    Xiao Qi was so excited when she arrived yesterday that she had played with the bathtub for a while.


    She didn''t know how to make bubbles so she poured in a bottle of shower gel and shampoo and finally made a tub full of bubbles.


    She didn''t dare soak in it, just stood with her feet in for a while.


    She used the hotel''s bathrobe. It was very pretty with a big floral pattern but not gaudy at all. It felt nice and smooth to wear but Xiao Qi still changed back into her old cotton T-shirt to sleep, as she was used to.


    Now she used the hotel''s toothbrush and toothpaste. Her parents had bought her new ones but it was too much trouble to open them so she didn''t.


    The hotel''s toothpaste and toothbrush were very nice, in a wooden box, and were disposable even though they looked so luxurious.


    There was soap too.


    On the sink in the lobby there were carved decorative soaps the size of a palm.


    By the face washing sinks there were also palm-sized soaps.


    And by the bathtub too.


    Xiao Qi checked online and found you could just take these and use them as you liked.


    She felt like just taking the soaps she saw and using them would be enough to last her a year.


    The shampoo and shower gel were in tiny bottles with long necks, no prices marked so they were clearly free to use as you liked.


    After washing her face and brushing her teeth, Xiao Qi took milk out of the fridge.


    She found a beautiful glass and poured the milk into it, drinking a glass of milk.


    It was the hotel''s instagrammable spot because many people could take pictures there with the pool extending visually into the sea beyond, like an infinity pool.


    The railings around the pool were glass, creating the visual effect of being one with the distant sea.


    The hotel advertisement had shots posing in the pool.


    Xiao Qi was not going for pictures, no one would take any of her anyway.


    She just missed swimming a lot. Ever since winning the award she could only swim a couple laps telling Coach Wu she was staying late after the pool closed. During open hours people would crowd around her and she couldn''t swim at all.


    Swimming in Meng City should be very convenient, able to swim in pools and the sea.


    Xiao Qi wanted to swim in the pool first, then shower and eat after.


    She brought her swimsuit, the provincial team one was plain but very good quality.


    There was also the swimsuit Madame Liang gave her, quite pretty, but she was most comfortable swimming in the team uniform.


    Plus swimming counted steps too, easier than running.


    The hotel also had treadmills that could be used.


    Xiao Qi went up to the 5th floor with her swimsuit.


    The huge 5th floor platform had indoor and outdoor pools.


    Meng City was not cold. Even in the morning the outdoor pool could be used.


    When Xiao Qi arrived there were not many people.


    The lanes did not look very professional, a very pretty irregular pool, water flowing noisily seemingly cleaner than sports center pools.


    Xiao Qi stretched by the poolside briefly then jumped in.


    The swimming talent buff had ended but with the buff Xiao Qi swam nearly every day, preserving the effects the most.


    So now there was no noticeable difference. She still loved it, swimming happily without feeling bored.


    Her body also felt very comfortable underwater.


    The reason Xiao Qi was unwilling to keep competing was because she loved swimming, but as a competitive sport for races, it felt different with all the pressure, even the sport she used to love became unlovable.


    Before it was for the bonus but now she felt this was good enough.


    She swam energetically back and forth several laps by herself.


    Tired, she clung to the outer glass railing, seeing the distant sea and street scenes below.


    What an amazing place.


    Looking out from Gumula Village all you saw were mountains, and more mountains beyond.


    She never knew there was the sea so far away on the high speed rail.


    Tall buildings.


    Xiao Qi rested for a while then continued swimming. More and more people came to the pool, some taking pictures.


    After a while a whole group arrived, not to swim but looked like they came just for pictures. Some carried ring lights and surrounded a woman taking photos of her.


    The woman wore a swimsuit and hat with dry hair, full make-up on her face.


    Xiao Qi looked at the pool and realized it would be hard to swim with so many people around. She decided to leave the pool, stretch on the side for a bit, then head to the showers.


    After her shower, Xiao Qi felt famished, as if she could eat a whole pig! Happily she headed downstairs for breakfast.

 Chapter 129: Shopping for Money

    Chapter 129


    After finishing the buffet breakfast, Xiaoqi finally felt that the expensive hotel was worth it.


    Not to mention the beautiful ocean view room, even the breakfast offerings were extremely abundant.


    Moreover, just eating breakfast, she felt like she had a thousand square feet of space filled with all kinds of food.


    The beehives she had seen in her rural hometown were even on the dining tables here. A real beehive with honey dripping out that you could directly cut and eat from the comb.


    There were dozens of kinds of fruit, many of which Xiaoqi couldn''t even name.


    There was also ice cream, seafood, very large crabs, all kinds of fish and shrimp.


    Then there were stations for cooking eggs and noodles to order.


    There were also all kinds of Western food, and wine.


    Beverages, fruit juices, all kinds of porridge.


    Xiaoqi had a very big appetite. She could eat for three people, but even so, she was eating very restrainly, only tasting a little bit of everything. Still her little stomach was round from fullness.


    After eating her fill, Xiaoqi went back to her room, tidied up her luggage a bit, and was going to go downstairs to the mall to shop.


    She had chosen this hotel precisely because the mall was connected to the hotel.


    This mall was called Longwen Center.


    Xiaoqi went from the hotel lobby to the side and directly into the mall. The mall was also very big, with decor similar to the hotel, but not as luxurious, more simple.


    Xiaoqi wanted to buy electronics, so she looked at the signs for directions.


    On the first floor there was an Apple store.


    Xiaoqi wanted to buy an Apple laptop. The silver one Zhou Teacher used looked really nice.


    For girls buying things, looks were probably the priority.


    Xiaoqi shopped very decisively. She picked out a 13-inch laptop, not too heavy, with 8 hours of battery life. She chose the model with higher memory. Her current phone always lagged because it didn''t have enough memory.


    Then she saw they also sold phones, so she chose a phone together with it.


    The price of the computer and phone were actually not too far apart.


    The clerk even gifted her Apple''s white earphones. They looked quite nice to wear.


    So in total she spent over 20,000. Looking at the flashing money display, she had 4 days and 310,000+ left.


    After Xiaoqi bought the phone and computer, under the clerk''s guidance she got them set up and installed software. Then she had to buy office software for the Apple, which cost a few more hundred.


    She switched the SIM card from her old phone to the new phone.


    The phone and computer were both silver and looked really nice.


    After buying, Xiaoqi went back to the hotel.


    Lying on the big bed in her hotel room, she felt lazy.


    But she still had tasks for the rest of today. She had to go buy a car, and then go register at the school.


    Xiaoqi took her luggage and went to check out. Then she called a car and went to the 4S dealership. She had searched online for places that sold cars.


    Xiaoqi''s knowledge of luxury cars was very shallow.


    Probably the deepest impression in her mind was BMW. BMW''s ads were very good "Drive a BMW, ride a Benz, I''d rather cry in a BMW than laugh on a bicycle."


    Also, when her cousin got married, the car that came to pick up the bride was a BMW. It received unanimous praise and envy from the villagers.


    Round, with a nice looking blue and white logo.


    So Xiaoqi decided to buy this brand.


    A person''s behavior was determined by their own experience and personality.


    In Xiaoqi''s world, this was probably the top for now.


    Following his sales script, Li Qishi focused on introducing the Mini. There happened to be one there now, a bright yellow one. The color was extremely attractive. Rounded front like an antique luxury car, with two doors, the doors standing upright when opened. The glass was also very nice looking.


    Xiaoqi wrinkled her brow. Her actual aesthetic didn''t feel this was good looking at all, rather it seemed very flashy.


    She felt the Shenzhou car that had brought her here was much better. Sitting in the back just now had also been very comfortable, spacious and the seat soft.


    The Shenzhou car was actually just an ordinary 200,000+ Volkswagen.


    But Xiao Qi also did not understand. She would not be shy or pretend to understand anymore. That would only hurt herself, and she was not afraid of being ridiculed either. A laugh or two would not matter.


    She directly stated her own requirements.


    When Li Qishi heard this, he felt it was quite strange. The young girl actually liked plain black mass-market cars.


    However, the customer''s preferences came first. He immediately changed direction and gave a new introduction.


    Xiao Qi liked business-style cars. She felt that made them look impressive.


    She also thought black was durable-looking.


    Her current aesthetic values were just like that. Deep down, she probably still had a peasant''s mentality, feeling that black was durable and not flashy.


    One by one, cars drove over. Xiao Qi looked at their exteriors and pointed to a car similar to the Volkswagen from before, possibly slightly bigger.


    "This is a BMW 530Li Luxury Line, the leading luxury model in the 5 Series lineup. Please take it for a test drive," Li Qishi enthusiastically opened the car door.


    Xiao Qi poked her head in to take a look. Black leather interior. Then she got in and sat down.


    She first sat in the back seat. It was more spacious, wide, and soft compared to the Shenzhou car from earlier. She liked it immediately.


    Then she went to the driver''s seat in the front and sat there for a bit. She could not drive, but it felt nice to sit there.


    She liked this car. The inside was roomy with a thick, sturdy feel.


    "How much is it?"


    Li Qishi did not expect the young lady to be so practical.


    He still conscientiously recited the information he had recently memorized.


    "This car has a jet black exterior. Although it''s black, it also gives off a deep blue sheen from certain angles, very textured. And this car has a sale going on. The original price was 463,900 RMB, but with the current promotion at our dealership, you get a 100,000 RMB cash discount if you purchase this car here, so you only need to pay 363,900 RMB for it."


    Xiao Qi''s eyebrows rose slightly. She did not expect there would be room for bargaining on the car price, and such a huge discount of 100,000 RMB could be given so casually.


    Wasn''t it said that some cars even had price markups?


    Xiao Qi calculated that she already had over 160,000 RMB from her daily walking fees, and there was still over 310,000 RMB to spend on the other side. Buying a 360,000+ RMB car did not seem too difficult.


    Still, she followed along to see some similar models.


    Most people buying things probably have a ''love at first sight'' mentality. Xiao Qi still liked that 5 Series from earlier, and there was a discount on it too, the fatal weakness of girls.


    She decisively said, "I''ll take that car."


    "That model is a display car. The new car you want will take two weeks to arrive," Li Qishi did not expect the young lady to agree to buy it so readily.


    When it came time to sign the contract, he was still a bit silly and stunned.


    Xiao Qi carefully looked over the contract but could not tell if there were any issues. She felt she should really take some law classes. There were quite a lot of contract signings in life.


    She paid the money and signed the contract, agreeing to pick up the car two months later.


    Li Qishi watched as the young lady calmly swiped her card, his heart pounded wildly. He enthusiastically asked, "Where are you going with your luggage? Should I give you a ride? It''s hard to get a taxi here."


    Xiao Qi thought that would work and asked, "Can I test drive the model I just bought?"


    Li Qishi briskly nodded.


    He scurried off to get the car. There was already a test drive option anyway, and the other party had already paid, so he enthusiastically gave Xiao Qi his brand new business card and added her on WeChat. Then he drove off with Xiao Qi.


    Once in the BMW, Xiao Qi told him the name of her university.


    The young man enthusiastically said, "I know that area well. My hometown is Enyang Town, and we''ll pass by Luoxi Town."

 Chapter 130: Registration for the New Semester

    Chapter 130


    On the way, the car ventured further into remote areas.


    From having buildings on both sides to tree-lined surroundings and then to mountains.


    Xiao Qi began to feel inexplicably nervous, wondering if she had encountered a bad person.


    She assessed her school bag, which contained books and was quite heavy. With her strength equivalent to that of a strong human, she believed she could overpower an ordinary person. She glanced at the young man driving the car, whose arms gripping the steering wheel lacked strong muscles. He was thin and tall, and she felt confident that she could handle him.


    Nevertheless, Xiao Qi still felt a bit anxious. She realized that although she had physical strength, she wasn''t skilled in fighting. If something happened, she might still end up at a disadvantage. When she got to university, she planned to look for taekwondo, boxing, or martial arts training classes to gain some systematic training.


    Li Qishi hadn''t realized that the young girl beside him had mentally beaten him up.


    As the car approached a sharp bend, he dutifully explained, "The performance of a BMW is excellent. When an ordinary car encounters such a sharp turn, you might feel a bit uncomfortable, and your body may even sway. But a BMW handles turns smoothly, and you won''t feel a thing. It''s really enjoyable to drive."


    "Are we almost there?" Xiao Qi asked.


    "We''re almost there. Once we pass this bend, we''ll reach Luoxi Town. There''s a bridge in the center of Luoxi Town, and after crossing that bridge, we''ll arrive at Enhua University."


    Xiao Qi fell silent. True to his words, after the bend, they were surrounded by mountains, and she caught sight of a lake ahead. Her heart eased a bit because Enhua University was situated on a campus enclosed by a lake. Indeed, after a while, she saw rows of red buildings on the other side of the lake, neat and beautiful. It didn''t resemble a modern metropolis, but it wasn''t like a small town either. It had a sense of order and must be the university.


    However, when the car passed through a gate, she noticed it said Enhua University Affiliated High School.


    Xiao Qi realized that this wasn''t the university yet, just the affiliated high school. But even the high school seemed quite large.


    After driving for a while longer, they finally reached the bridge.


    Spanning across the lake.


    On the opposite side stood a majestic building with stairs ascending layer by layer.


    Beside the lake on the other side was a huge square, resembling a stage.


    Under the bright sunshine, the glittering emblem of Enhua University was visible even from across the bridge, truly eye-catching.


    "This is it." Li Qishi dropped Xiao Qi off at the school gate, noticing many banners welcoming new students.


    Thinking that this young girl was actually a freshman, he found it rather intriguing. She must come from a wealthy background to buy a car before enrolling. Tsk tsk, she was probably from an affluent family.


    Recalling that he had saved Xiao Qi''s WeChat account, Li Qishi couldn''t help but feel a sense of delight.


    However, they had just met today, and he didn''t want to act rashly, so he drove back.


    On the way back, while waiting at a red light, he opened Xiao Qi''s WeChat Moments and casually skimmed through it.


    While they were arguing about who would take Xiao Qi to register, more new students arrived. They got off a bus, and new students with their luggage started walking over the bridge one by one.


    Several senior students, especially the senior sister, quickly grabbed Xiao Qi''s suitcase and left.


    The school''s roads were paved with cement, and although Xiao Qi''s suitcase was heavy, she managed to pull it along just fine.


    The tall and skinny senior brother from the Computer Science Department followed them.


    The other senior students went to greet other new students.


    Xiao Qi went to register with them, handed in her admission letter, paid the fees, and received her bedding and dormitory access card.


    She was assigned to Class 1 of the Information Management major. The teaching building was in the Zhulin Building, and her dormitory was in Room 606 of the Hua Shan Building.


    It was only then that Xiao Qi learned that the school''s dormitory buildings had unique names, all named after different places.


    The academic building was quite interesting and had a cultural vibe.


    "Let''s take you to the dormitory first."


    As soon as Xiao Qi saw the dormitory building, she understood why her senior sister and a senior brother accompanied her to register.


    It was because there was no elevator in the dormitory, and her room was assigned on the 6th floor, a total of 6 floors.


    Xiao Qi''s suitcase was already heavy with many books, and adding a computer made it even heavier. On top of that, there was a bedding...


    Seeing the senior brother struggling and veins popping on his face while carrying her suitcase up three flights of stairs, Xiao Qi felt embarrassed.


    "Senior brother, I can handle it myself. I''m strong enough." She took her suitcase and briskly climbed up, finding it quite effortless.


    Senior sister and senior brother, empty-handed: ...


    Xiao Qi effortlessly carried her suitcase to the 6th floor. When she reached the door of her dormitory, she had a key card. The school dormitory was quite advanced, as it had card access.


    When she arrived, the door was open, and someone was already inside. Xiao Qi thanked the senior sister and senior brother and went in with her luggage.


    The dormitory was a four-person room with a wall dividing the two bunk beds. The beds were on top, and there were desks underneath. There were lockers on the wall with locks. The dormitory also had a bathroom. Compared to Xiao Qi''s middle school and high school dormitories, the conditions were really good.


    Upon entering, one of the beds by the window was already occupied. Xiao Qi didn''t make a fuss about it. Of course, the bed by the window was preferred in the dormitory. People constantly came and went by the door, and it was never quiet there. Although the girls'' beds were arranged to resemble private rooms, with thick curtains hanging outside, even when tightly closed, one couldn''t see what was happening inside.


    Xiao Qi chose another bed by the window.


    She smiled at the girl across from her, placed her backpack on the bed, and climbed up to look outside. The view outside the window was quite nice, with clusters of green trees and a few basketball courts. People were gradually arriving with their suitcases on the road. This was what it meant to have arrived at the school. Even though the bed was not yet made, Xiao Qi already felt at ease.

 Chapter 131: Huashan 0606

    Chapter 131


    Xiaoqi was not very agile at work, a bit like her dad, slow.


    But she was quite meticulous.


    She didn''t find a rag, so she took the old towel brought from her aunt''s dormitory as a rag. She had to wipe the bed before putting on the quilt.


    When she went to the bathroom, she found a basin, but didn''t know whose it was. She didn''t use it either, and washed the towel directly in the sink, wrung it half dry, and came back to wipe the bed.


    It wasn''t very dirty, just a little dusty.


    As Xiaoqi was working, a little girl was sitting quietly next to her. She was clearly not used to working, with long hair over her shoulders, dressed simply in a white T-shirt and casual pants.


    Xiaoqi was not good at talking. After entering the dormitory, she smiled and didn''t speak, which was quite embarrassing. As she worked, she said, "My name is Su Xiaoqi, Class 1 of Information Management."


    "My name is Gu Yunshu, I''m also in Class 1 of Information Management," the quiet little girl said. She sounded like a very nice person.


    That was it for the conversation, and Xiaoqi didn''t know how to make small talk either.


    Seeing the rag was dirty, she went to wring it out again.


    By the time Xiaoqi came out of the bathroom after wringing out the rag, there was a middle-aged couple in the dormitory.


    The man was wearing a shirt, trousers and leather shoes. His hair was shiny and he looked quite handsome, the kind of handsome middle-aged man, clearly in good condition.


    The woman was wearing a black dress, with long hair over her shoulders and bangs, looking quite young.


    "Oh, you must be Yunshu''s roommate. We just went downstairs to buy things. There''s nothing here, quite a lot to buy."


    Seeing her holding a basin and new towel.


    Xiaoqi nodded.


    Then she saw the woman take the new towel and basin to the bathroom, and whined in the bathroom, "Honey, help me with the basin, it''s so heavy, I can''t carry it."


    Her voice was so coquettish that Xiaoqi couldn''t help but shudder.


    She thought she was terrible at work, slow, but when she saw the middle-aged couple, the bed was wet all over, water was dripping everywhere, the floor was a mess, and they looked flustered.


    Xiaoqi: ...An eye opener.


    If her parents were here, they could have finished this kind of work in a minute.


    Finally everyone was done, but Gu Yunshu''s parents were still messing around, hadn''t even opened the suitcase.


    Clearly Gu Yunshu''s parents didn''t usually do these chores either.


    Sure enough, Xiaoqi heard Gu Yunshu''s father grumble, "I told you to bring little Zhang to help with the cleaning. You didn''t bring him. You insisted on setting it up yourself. Look now, you still can''t get it right."


    Gu Yunshu and her father sat in front of the table by the window, looking very helpless.


    Fortunately at this time they had to go to the classroom to collect books.


    Xiaoqi didn''t need to watch Gu Yunshu''s mother make a mess of the dorm anymore. On the other side, Chen Mier chattered away with her father again, and her father went downstairs with her too.


    The classroom building for Class 1 of Information Management was not far from the dormitory. After leaving the dormitory area and crossing a playground, past a huge pineapple guava tree was the Bamboo Grove building.


    That tree was truly magical. The fruit on it was bigger than the largest winter melon Xiaoqi had ever seen, also covered in bumps. From afar it even looked like a bunch of beehives.


    As a coastal city, Meng City grew these tropical fruits that Xiaoqi had never seen before coming here.


    Apart from this giant pineapple guava tree, there were also some papaya trees along the roadside, short ones, but the fruit was also very big, green papayas.


    No one picked them. Xiaoqi thought the people at this school were really wealthy.


    Fruit this size would not stay on the trees near their village, only deep in the mountains.


    At the dormitory entrance, Chen Mier separated from her father. The four girls didn''t know each other but were in the same dormitory, so when they went out together so many people, they unconsciously huddled together in a little group.


    Among the few, Gu Yunshu looked gentle, Chen Mier was very lively, Wei Cheng was tall but seemed to be the most self-abasing and shy. But they all seemed easy to get along with, eyes bright and honest. Xiaoqi felt they were quite good.


    Little did she know as she observed the others, the others were observing her too.


    They unanimously felt wow, the new roommate is so pretty, but she looks so serious, a bit fierce, inexplicably feels not very easy to get along with, a bit high and mighty.


    Chen Mier''s family ran a clothing factory in town. She was the only child, with her father and uncle running the clothing factory together while her mother and aunt ran a clothing store. They could be considered a family doing small business, dealing with outsiders, relatively socially adept. Her personality was very lively.


    As she walked, she subconsciously went to Su Xiaoqi''s side, feeling this roommate seemed quite capable.


    As for Wei Cheng, typical rural roots, a little inferiority complex. Her parents were farmers. Compared to Xiaoqi, her family''s actual situation was slightly better. Wei Cheng''s hometown Taiyang Village was a famous mushroom town. Every household grew mushrooms, every household had a small villa. Although rural, they didn''t worry about food and clothing. However, she had an older sister and brother above her. Her sister was about to graduate from college, her brother''s grades were average so he repeated a year. She didn''t repeat but was admitted to Enhua University, and her parents gritted their teeth to support her coming here.


    She felt that of the dorm mates, Gu Yunshu from how her parents behaved was like a pampered young lady, but Gu Yunshu herself seemed nice. The other out-of-province one Chen Mier was very open, also good-looking. But the one she couldn''t figure out most was Su Xiaoqi, seeming to stand there very proper and confident, giving off an impressive feeling. She just felt this roommate was quite formidable.


    Gu Yunshu was also like this. She was well protected at home. She was not an only child, and had an older sister who was studying abroad. Her family lived in a Chinese-style villa in Fucheng, with front and back yards that added up to over 1,000 square meters. There was also a hot spring pool at home, with the unique hot spring water of Fucheng. Her father did business, and her mother was a full-time housewife. The family also had maids and drivers.


    Gu Yunshu simply found Su Xiaoqi very beautiful and attractive, and couldn''t help moving closer to her.

 Chapter 132: Third Class School Discipline

    Chapter 132


    Xiaoqi did not expect that there would still be fixed seats in university.


    She had heard before that university was very free, going to different classroom buildings for classes and choosing your own seat.


    But when she arrived, it was not like that at all.


    A young, petite female counselor said that she would be their head teacher from now on, and told them to line up so she could arrange seats first.


    Chen Mier was right next to her, so the two became deskmates.


    They sat in the second row of the classroom.


    While Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng were also sitting together, though their situation was worse - they were arranged in the front row.


    Xiaoqi and Chen Mier sat in the second row near the door, while Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng sat by the window in the front row, separated into pairs.


    After the teacher finished arranging the seats, she began to emphasize, "Enhua University''s discipline is extremely strict. Students must remember a few points - first, the school will conduct surprise dorm inspections, no overnight stays outside of the dorms are allowed; second, the school prohibits dating, if caught the entire school will be notified; third, the school prohibits eccentric clothing and dyed hair." Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m


    Then she gave each person a copy of the school rules and regulations. Xiaoqi opened it and took a look - the rules inside were very detailed, stipulating things like when going to public elective courses, seats and desktops must be tidy, otherwise if caught you would be criticized and notified, and each instance of criticism corresponded to a certain number of credits. Students could earn credits through labor, skipping class deducted credits, being caught dating deducted credits, dyed hair deducted credits. Usually you could earn credits through labor or excellent grades, and if your credits dropped below 60 by the end of the year, you would be expelled. Getting caught cheating on exams meant immediate expulsion.


    Xiaoqi didn''t know if all universities were like this, or if it was because Enhua was a private university.


    Anyway, looking at the regulations inside, the students around her were yelling and shouting, feeling like some of the rules were very unreasonable.


    For example, dyed hair - because when Xiaoqi looked left and right, she noticed many curly-haired and blonde-haired students in the class, as well as some with both curly and blonde hair. According to these regulations, they would have to immediately dye their hair black and straighten it.


    Also, prohibiting dating - Xiaoqi knew many classmates in high school who held hands, so it was obvious there would be even more cases in university. Not allowing dating didn''t seem very realistic.


    Also, why were seats fixed? Because as long as a seat was empty, it meant the student hadn''t come. The teacher didn''t need to take attendance, just looking at the seats each class was enough. But because of this attendance system, Enhua school had another unique job - not substitute teaching, but substitute attendance. Sitting in that seat and attending class for them, so the seat wouldn''t be empty and the teacher would mark attendance. Xiaoqi had even audited many classes because of this job, but that''s a story for later.


    At that moment, Xiaoqi heard a male student swear behind her, "Damn, first-tier schools supervise studying, second-tier schools supervise hygiene, third-tier schools supervise discipline. Our school only has discipline left to supervise."


    Xiaoqi had never heard such words before, but they seemed to make sense. At her previous No. 1 Middle School in the city, the school would give way to everything for studying.


    Her brother Lin Min''s No. 2 Middle School was slightly inferior to No. 1, and often had to do major clean-ups and emphasize hygiene. She often heard him complain about it.


    Her cousin Feifei''s No. 8 Middle School didn''t seem to emphasize studying or hygiene based on her complaints. Just many strict regulations, like what time they could leave school, what time they had to be back, etc. The school didn''t care about students'' grades as long as they didn''t cause trouble.


    It seemed this university gave off a similar feeling.


    After getting their books, everyone noisily went back to their dorms. From far away, Xiaoqi saw the dorm building''s door auntie standing there looking fierce, checking hairstyles. There was a student in front of her who seemed to have dyed hair, and was stopped by the dorm auntie to register her student ID and number.


    Xiaoqi heard her say that the hair must be restored within three days.


    The female student looked on the verge of crying from the scolding.


    Returning to the dorm, Gu Yunshu''s parents had finally made her bed and unpacked her luggage, with a bouquet of fresh flowers on the table.


    Gu''s mother enthusiastically said, "Let''s eat dinner together tonight."


    None of the parents had refused the invitation.


    But Enhua University was located in a small town, with no big restaurants in the town either. Gu Yunshu''s parents wanted to arrange a nice place, but ultimately could only find a relatively clean shop on the student street.


    In fact, Enhua University''s cafeterias were very good. In Xiaoqi''s old campus area, there were four or five cafeterias.


    Xiaoqi thought that with her appetite, she was highly likely to get hungry, and agreed.


    Wei Cheng and Gu Yunshu were both easygoing and agreed too.


    The four girls headed out, and there was a bread shop at the entrance of the school street.


    Lee''s Special Fragrant Bun, with a flashing sign at the door.


    Chen Mier browsed very carefully, looking over with her hands and checking prices as well as how tasty they looked.


    Gu Yunshu seemed to just be along for the ride, casually grabbing a small bun and milk without looking at prices.


    Wei Cheng didn''t take anything in her hands, only looking at prices, and finally chose a very big and cost-effective looking bun.


    Xiao Qi also chose a bottle of milk. When she lived with her aunt, her aunt would often heat up milk for her to drink at night, saying it would help her grow taller and she should drink more milk. She chose the same large loaf of bread as Wei Cheng, as well as a bag containing seven or eight small loaves.


    She bought the most in the end.


    Chen Mier must really love to eat. As soon as they left the store and started walking down the street, she opened up the bag of bread and generously handed one out to each of them.


    Wei Cheng hesitated a little, but accepted it when she saw everyone else take one.


    "This salad bun really is delicious. The salad inside is especially sweet. I''ve never had one before," she finished it in just two or three bites, looking blissful.


    "Is it good?" she asked Xiao Qi eagerly after polishing off her own.


    Xiao Qi tried a bite. It was quite nice, the bread was soft and not too sweet, but the salad inside was very sweet. The combination of flavors was great.


    She nodded.


    Gu Yunshu ate very daintily, and Wei Cheng also ate daintily. Wei Cheng didn''t normally eat so carefully, but was a little embarrassed since this food was given to them by someone else, so she split it into several bites.


    Xiao Qi finished hers in just three or four bites.


    By the time the group got back to the dorm, there was only one bag of buns left for Chen Mier.


    It was dark outside now, and the lights in the dorm were on. The room, which had been empty and bare during the day, now had beds made up and desks piled with books, looking cozy and warm.


    All kinds of noises could be heard coming from the dorm building, very lively.


    Xiao Qi put her newly distributed books in the cabinet, filling it up along with the ones she had brought from home.


    After running around all day, Xiao Qi felt she should sit down, practice her calligraphy, and collect herself.


    Gu Yunshu loved cleanliness the most, so she went straight to the bathroom when they returned.


    Chen Mier chatted loudly on the phone with her mother, the words unintelligible.


    Wei Cheng tidied up her belongings.


    Xiao Qi spread out rice paper, poured out some ink, sat straight at the desk under her bed, and started writing.


    Xiao Qi felt the light was a little dim. She would buy a desk lamp tomorrow. Other than that, everything was great - the height of the desk and chair suited her very well.


    A breeze blew in through the window, gently lifting the wisps of hair by Xiao Qi''s ears.


    At some point, Chen Mier''s voice on the phone grew softer.

 Chapter 133: The First Night of Life

    Chapter 133


    Su Xiaoqi practiced calligraphy diligently for an hour, using a stack of paper. Afterwards, she went to clean her brush and store the ink.


    At that moment, Chen Mier had already finished bathing, and Wei Cheng was also preparing to take a shower. Upon seeing Su Xiaoqi cleaning her brush, Wei Cheng quickly asked, "Do you want to take a shower first?"


    "No need, I''m going for a run. You go ahead," Su Xiaoqi replied.


    Su Xiaoqi thought Wei Cheng was very generous. Despite being tall, he had a great temperament. He had already waited for both of them to finish bathing, yet he still wanted to let her go first.


    Watching Wei Cheng, Su Xiaoqi felt like she was looking at her past self. But Wei Cheng seemed genuinely easygoing and unconcerned. If it were her before, even if she agreed, she would still be bothered inside and wouldn''t be as generous.


    Su Xiaoqi tidied up, changed into sports shorts and a sportswear, grabbed a towel and a bottle of water, and headed downstairs.


    Gu Yunshu, who had already changed into a fresh and beautiful white fluffy nightgown, was blow-drying her hair with the Dyson hairdryer she brought.


    That hairdryer cost around three thousand yuan.


    On her desk, there were also various bottles and jars of cosmetics.


    They were from the brand "La Mer."


    Neither Su Xiaoqi nor the other roommates recognized them. Chen Mier, who was more perceptive, didn''t know about La Mer either but thought that Gu Yunshu''s things should be expensive.


    On the other hand, Chen Mier was wearing a two-piece pajama set¡ªpink, sleeveless on top and knee-length shorts on the bottom. With her flushed face after taking a shower, she looked quite cute. She must be sensitive to heat since she didn''t wear a bra after showering, just a sleeveless camisole, but her breasts were well developed and quite large.


    Compared to Gu Yunshu in the white fluffy nightgown, she looked like an underdeveloped girl, even though she was wearing underwear underneath.


    Wei Cheng finished showering quickly and came out within three to five minutes. He also had short hair, a bit plain in a student-like style, with very dark and stiff hair. His face was slightly square, giving an impression of masculinity, but his personality was extremely gentle.


    The dormitory was steamy from the shower, and the door was left open.


    At this moment, someone from the neighboring dormitory came to visit. The adjacent rooms were all occupied by Information Management majors.


    It seemed that the other end of the 6th floor was for English majors, and this floor was divided between Information Management and English majors.


    The visitor happened to know Gu Yunshu and enthusiastically exclaimed upon entering, "Yunshu, you''re in Room 606! That''s great. I''m in Room 601. We can go to class together from now on."


    The visitor, acting familiar, wanted to sit next to Gu Yunshu. However, Gu Yunshu was in her fluffy pajama gown, blow-drying her hair, and there was a pile of clothes on the chair next to her. So she dragged a chair from Su Xiaoqi''s table and naturally sat down.


    Chen Mier and Wei Cheng thought the visitor was a friend of Gu Yunshu''s, so they didn''t say much.


    "Wow, Yunshu, you actually use La Mer products. No wonder your skin is so fair. You definitely have the best skin in our class," the visitor exclaimed.


    Gu Yunshu finished blow-drying her hair, and her long hair was slightly damp, cascading over her shoulders.


    "She went jogging," Wei Cheng whispered.


    "She should be very good at sports. I added her on WeChat and she turned out to be the champion of the women''s 200-meter freestyle in Jingnan Province," Chen Mier, who was more thoughtful, even checked.


    Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng were both oblivious to this. They added her on WeChat, but didn''t pay attention to that.


    "Why would such an extraordinary person come to Enhua University?" Rong Jiaojiao was puzzled.


    At this moment, Xiaoqi was unaware that her roommates were discussing her. She went downstairs to jog and discovered that Enhua University was really big, so big that she didn''t need to leave the dormitory area, there were three basketball courts side by side in a corner of this dormitory area, and she could just run along the edge of the basketball court.


    Every day, she ran at least 30,000 steps before considering training for a marathon. She had already registered on the running app and, because she came to study in Meng City, her household registration was transferred to the school. As a university student in Meng City, she could benefit from certain policies regarding her running performance, as she belonged to the local population, which had lower requirements.


    When Xiaoqi ran, she fixed her phone on her arm and wore headphones. The basketball court in the dormitory area was usually deserted and quiet, which made her feel at ease while running.


    The university campus was truly enormous. Today, she only came for a rough registration and passed by several buildings, feeling as if she had entered a huge garden. Moreover, most of the faces she saw here were young people like herself, giving off a vibrant and energetic atmosphere.


    Living in such an environment was really wonderful. At first, while running, her mind would wander, but after a while, she started listening to an English program for today. She listened for about an hour, took a short break, and then switched to a Japanese program. Japanese was easier, and the program was about traveling to Japan, which interested her since her Japanese vocabulary was still limited.


    Besides, she had very few opportunities to come into contact with Japanese, but there were plenty of opportunities to use English.


    She heard that Enhua University''s most impressive aspect was its abundance of foreign teachers. Looking at her timetable, it was indeed the case. She had four classes a week taught by foreign teachers, and they were different teachers each time. This was quite remarkable.


    Thinking about having so many learning opportunities, Xiaoqi felt her blood boil, and she ran with even more enthusiasm than usual.


    When she finished running 30,000 steps, she began to walk slowly while making a phone call to her family. She told them about her situation, and her parents seemed pleased on the other end of the line. Her father was doing bamboo weaving, and her mother was sewing fabric. She heard that bamboo bags with linings were becoming more popular.


    Xiaoqi asked them not to stay up too late and endured her mother''s nagging about eating meals on time. Her father reminded her to stay safe and not to leave the campus without a reason. They chatted for a while, and then she hung up.


    Xiaoqi leisurely walked back to the dormitory, preparing to take a shower.


    When she returned to the dormitory, Rong Jiaojiao from Room 601 was already gone.


    Wei Cheng and Chen Mier thought that Rong Jiaojiao was Gu Yunshu''s fellow villager, but Gu Yunshu said she wasn''t. They happened to meet each other during registration.


    Xiaoqi had finished her run, with a slight sweat on her body and a slightly flushed face. As she entered the room, she saw her three roommates staring at her with strange expressions, and she was puzzled.


    "What''s wrong?" she asked.


    "Xiaoqi, have you been running all this time? For two hours?" Chen Mier asked in surprise.


    "No, I haven''t. I took a break for twenty minutes and called my parents. I''m going to take a shower now." Xiaoqi returned at the right moment. No one needed to rush to use the bathroom, and it wouldn''t be filled with steam.


    She took her clean pajamas and entered the bathroom, while her three roommates still had a bewildered look on their faces.

 Chapter 134: Being a Useful Member of Society

    Chapter 134


    Xiao Qi dried her short hair quickly with a towel after taking a shower. Her hair was casually scattered around.


    She had just come out when Wei Cheng couldn''t help but say, "Xiao Qi, you have too much stamina! I often help my dad with work at home, but I''m not as capable as you."


    Indeed, Wei Cheng was tall and strong. Her family grew mushrooms and built sheds. She wasn''t unfamiliar with hard work. Her hands had calluses.


    On the other hand, Xiao Qi was from the countryside like her, but the calluses on her hands were from practicing writing, not hard labour. If you asked her to work in the fields with a hoe for a day, her hands would probably be rubbed raw.


    "I couldn''t do it at first either. I''d get very tired after running for half an hour. But after persisting for a while, I got better, because I signed up for the Meng City Marathon. So I have to practice running every day."


    "Marathon?" Even the composed Gu Yunshu was curious now.


    "What''s a marathon?" Chen Mier didn''t have a clue.


    Gu Yunshu was more knowledgeable and explained, "Meng City holds a marathon competition along the Ring Sea Road every year. It''s a big event. Not only citizens and college students, but many domestic and foreign professional athletes come to compete too."


    "Can we sign up too?" Wei Cheng asked curiously.


    "You can. There''s an app. Registration should still be open. There''s still time." Xiao Qi shared a screenshot of the app in their dorm group chat.


    But after taking a look, none of her roommates were interested after seeing they had to run over forty kilometres. It was too far for them.


    "We''ll just cheer Xiao Qi on then." Chen Mier shamelessly said.


    "Great. You''ll be my cheer squad. I''m pretty fast at running." Xiao Qi said confidently. She really felt that way. With anything, if you persist in doing it every day without giving up, you''ll see results.


    It was the same with running. She truly felt that the more she ran, the better her fitness got. Compared to how she first started, there was a world of difference. And there was the system pushing her too. She hadn''t given up for almost a single day, and had also consulted coaches at the gym. Her fitness, breathing and especially endurance were all very good.


    Additionally, after getting the Jump stat, Xiao Qi felt running was even easier. She even constantly felt an urge to sprint, but she always remained composed and paced herself. She wouldn''t blindly push for speed. After all, she had a daily target to meet. Going faster didn''t necessarily help her complete it better.


    She had a good grasp of pacing for running. What''s most important wasn''t speed, but consistency. Being able to run steadily, then slowly accelerating was the optimal state. Sprinting at the start to exhaust yourself, then having no strength left later was useless. Visitt  for the latest updates


    "My parents originally wanted to send me abroad. My sister is already in Melbourne. But I didn''t want to go too far from home, so I still chose Enhua in the end."


    After everyone had spoken, it seemed wrong for Xiao Qi not to say anything.


    "My parents'' thoughts are similar to Chen Mier''s dad. Since I tested in, I should just come."


    In truth, there was a lot more to it. They had sold pots and pans to scrimp and save to pay for their only daughter''s education. All the hardships behind that didn''t need elaborating. It was a difficult endeavour, but they still wanted to improve their station in life. Their efforts as a common farming family to transcend the farmer class were apparent.


    Xiao Qi spoke very plainly. It was all in the past.


    "Well, I feel this school is pretty good after coming here. My dad says it''s not bad too. The school is so big with so many buildings. We even met many foreign teachers on the roads. My dad feels it''s quite good." Chen Mier continued chatting excitedly.


    Then it became like a dorm room talk show, with each person taking turns to say one sentence.


    "Yeah, our school is really pretty. I heard the new campus looks even better. We can take the school bus or walk along the lakeside to get there."


    After thinking silently for half a day as if she had fallen asleep, Gu Yunshu finally slowly said, "For looks, Qingmeng University by the seaside is prettier. The school even has a golf course. It''s really beautiful when I went once before. It has that century-old campus vibe while our school is too new. The trees along the roads are all small. It doesn''t have that lush, shady feel from rows of big trees."


    Xiao Qi thought that she hadn''t contacted Brother Lin Min since coming over this time. She wondered how he was doing.


    It was Chen Mier''s turn to bring up a new topic again, chattering away.


    That was how they were, taking turns to say one sentence, and unconsciously ended up talking late into the night. Xiao Qi squinted at her watch and found it was already past 12.30am.


    "What do you all plan to do after graduating university? I don''t want to stick around my dad''s factory. And it probably won''t have much to do with me anyway. My uncles all have sons. My big brother already works at the factory. My mum and aunties selling clothes is also boring. Anyway, I don''t know what I want to do either. I just wanted to get away from home and go out to take a look. Maybe after studying for a few years, I''ll figure something out." Chen Mier had already laid bare her family background and the mess with their hometown family business.


    "I don''t have anything planned yet either. I just want to earn money to relieve some pressure from my parents. Growing mushrooms is too tough for them. They still need to support my two siblings and I through school."


    After thinking silently again for a long time, Gu Yunshu finally slowly said, "I don''t know. Ever since I was little, my parents have already decided everything for me. Coming to Enhua to study this time was an act of rebellion on my part. Or else I would have gone to Melbourne this summer break already. But I feel Enhua is quite good. All of you are great too."


    Xiao Qi yawned loudly. She had woken up early and kept regular sleep times. She usually tried to sleep by 12am the latest. She was exhausted now.


    "I want to become someone really useful to society... Really useful..." She yawned again as she said this. Hugging her pillow, Xiao Qi fell asleep.

 Chapter 135: The First Day of Military Training

    Chapter 135


    On September 2nd, Monday, the weather was clear with not a cloud in sight.


    Today was the official first day of school at Enhua. There were no scheduled classes because of military training.


    As usual, Xiao Qi woke up at six o''clock. It was already bright outside, and when she pulled back the curtains, it felt like the sky was just a little bit above the window, as if she could reach it by going up a few more floors.


    She thought she was the earliest to wake up, but to her surprise, Wei Cheng had already finished getting ready and changed into the military training uniform they received along with their textbooks yesterday.


    Wei Cheng was tall with long legs and slightly broad shoulders. Wearing the camouflage pants and uniform for military training, she looked even better than when she wore her own clothes yesterday.


    Xiao Qi remembered she wore jeans and a floral shirt yesterday. The shirt had puffy sleeves, making her look somewhat sturdy.


    But the military training uniform was unisex. With her tall stature, Wei Cheng looked even more impressive in it. Her short hair, reaching her ears, resembled the popular hairstyle of female soldiers in that era.


    "You look great in the military training uniform," Xiao Qi whispered, complimenting her.


    Wei Cheng immediately blushed and sat awkwardly at her desk under the bed, not knowing what to do. In fact, she wanted to say that Xiao Qi looked even better, that she looked good in anything she wore. But she was tongue-tied and couldn''t bring herself to say it.


    Xiao Qi went to freshen up and changed into the military training clothes in the bathroom. She was 165 centimeters tall now and chose size M, but because she had been exercising regularly and had firm muscles, the clothes seemed a bit loose on her. This outfit suited Xiao Qi very well. Her current body proportions were excellent, with long legs and arms. If Wei Cheng looked like a female warrior in her attire, Xiao Qi, in this outfit, had a delicate and graceful feeling. The belt around her waist was tied quite loosely, but it still accentuated her slender waist.


    The colorful camouflage pattern of the uniform contrasted with her fair skin, making her look even paler. Her neck, ankles, arms, and face all displayed an unusually fair complexion.


    At this point, Gu Yunshu also woke up. She usually didn''t like getting up early, but she was a light sleeper. When Wei Cheng got up just now, she was already half-awake. Now that Xiao Qi was also awake, she couldn''t lie in bed anymore. She yawned and sat up, seeing her two roommates dressed in military training uniforms. She greeted them with a smile, saying, "Good morning."


    When Gu Yunshu finished putting on the military training uniform, Chen Mier was still sound asleep, unaffected by anything. Her sleep quality was excellent. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    Gu Yunshu, in the military training uniform, also looked delicate and fragile. She was less than 1.6 meters tall, around 1.58 meters, and seemed a bit absent-minded. She was also a dainty young girl, but her eyebrows and eyes were slightly wider, giving her a less refined look.


    After Xiao Qi finished dressing, she sat down to practice calligraphy. She made use of any spare time she had. Her calligraphy had progressed from a beginner level to an advanced level, thanks to this habit.


    Xiao Qi became even more concerned and curious because it now takes 1000 hours to level up. Her calligraphy skills have reached the specialized level, and when she looks at her work, she already feels that it is quite impressive. The characters she writes have a special quality to them, as if she were looking at her own handwriting from a long time ago but couldn''t recognize it. However, now, as long as it''s her own writing, she can definitely recognize it.


    Because these characters are different from others, they have a certain charm. Xiao Qi can''t explain it clearly, but she can instantly recognize them.


    If specialized-level characters can achieve this state, what would it be like to level up to the master level?


    Xiao Qi yearned for it herself.


    Although the time required has greatly increased, it is still achievable with effort. So whenever there is a spare moment, Xiao Qi tries to make use of it.


    And it''s best to practice calligraphy in the morning when she is most energized.


    She feels very comfortable in her whole being.


    Xiao Qi practices calligraphy quietly and wholeheartedly. She uses the headphones that came with her Apple computer as a gift. When she puts them on, the whole world is filled with gentle music.


    She sits upright, fully engrossed in her practice.


    At this moment, Chen Mier finally wakes up in a flurry. Her movements are quite loud, with the sound of basins and buckets clattering.


    "Oh no, we won''t be late on our first day, will we?"


    But it felt like their combined food was still less than what Xiao Qi had.


    "I have a high level of physical activity, so I have a big appetite," Xiao Qi explained.


    During the dinner last night, they didn''t reveal that they ate more than others.


    They calmly started their breakfast. Xiao Qi took a sip of the mianxianhu first. It had a savory and fragrant taste, and it paired well with the mantou. Then they took a bite of the boiled vegetables, which also tasted good. Although it wasn''t as delicious as the vegetables at home, compared to those in restaurants outside, they were fresh and crispy.


    After finishing the mianxianhu with the mantou and vegetables, Xiao Qi moved on to the youtiao and soy milk, finishing them neatly without leaving any leftovers.


    At this point, Gu Yunshu still had half a cup of milk and more than half of the small croissant left.


    "Military training consumes a lot of energy, so you should eat more," Xiao Qi reminded.


    Gu Yunshu smiled shyly and said, "I don''t have much appetite for breakfast."


    Wei Cheng also finished their food cleanly, while Chen Mier finished the mianxianhu but left half of the fried pastries uneaten.


    Chen Mier exclaimed, "This mianxianhu is delicious. It''s my first time trying it, and I''ve decided to have it every morning from now on."


    Xiao Qi also thought it was good. It was a large bowl with not only finely cooked noodles but also other minced ingredients, which added a pleasant freshness to the dish.


    After witnessing Xiao Qi''s enormous appetite and petite figure, the other three members of Hua Shan 606 felt that their roommate was quite extraordinary.


    The military training required them to gather at Puxian Playground at eight o''clock.


    It was conveniently located across from the cafeteria, so they headed there after finishing their meal.


    The four of them walked together, already sitting in pairs at the same table. Chen Mier and Xiao Qi sat together, while Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng sat together, one in front and one behind, so as not to block the way.


    When they arrived at the playground together, they found their designated area for their class. A sign was placed there, indicating "Information Management Class 1." Many people had already arrived, and their class had over seventy students, so it was quite crowded on the grass.


    As Xiao Qi and the others approached, they noticed that the boys and girls in their class were all looking towards the right side.


    The right side was the area for the English majors, where the female students outnumbered the male students by a large margin.


    Chen Mier, always eager to join in the fun, stood on tiptoe and asked everyone what they were looking at.


    "The English major goddess, the one with long hair. Have you seen her? Her hair is incredibly long, reaching her waist," Chen Mier said, pulling Xiao Qi along as she squeezed to the front.


    Sure enough, they saw a girl in the neighboring area not far away. She was engaged in conversation with someone, wearing a bright smile and flipping her dark and beautiful hair, as if she were in a Pantene commercial.


    Her simple action elicited cheers from a group of boys.


    "Tsk, she''s wearing so much makeup on her face, and her chin and nose look unnatural. It''s obvious she had plastic surgery. I don''t know what these boys are so excited about," Chen Mier whispered.


    Looking back at her new desk mate, who had a fair and clean face with a colorful hair tie, Xiao Qi thought she looked much prettier than the English major goddess. Were these boys blind?


    "Wu Xinyue isn''t just the English major goddess, she''s also a TikTok internet celebrity. Don''t you know?" a nearby boy enlightened them, his face filled with admiration, as if he were looking at a celebrity.


    Upon hearing this boy''s words, Xiao Qi remembered Liang Jiajia, who loved playing TikTok. She had promised to make videos for her when they got to university. Taking advantage of the fact that military training hadn''t started yet, Xiao Qi took out her phone and filmed a video for her, panning around the playground and introducing herself before sending her greetings.

 Chapter 136: The Windfall

    Chapter 136


    It was the start of a new semester, and Liang Jiajia was now in her third year of junior high.


    As the oldest in the junior high department, the third year was an awkward grade.


    Facing the high school entrance exam, which would decide which high school she could take the college entrance exam at, she suddenly felt much more mature, even though she was still just a girl in her early teens, the same age as second year students. But somehow she had suddenly developed a sentimental, mature persona.


    After class, leaning on the railing in the school hallway, sucking on a lollipop, everything felt cooler than last semester.


    Although she hadn''t suddenly transformed into a study master, Liang Jiajia now had tremendous zeal for her studies, as if over the summer she had secretly trained while everyone else played, and now she felt her English was amazing. Her relationships with her group of friends were even better.


    What''s more, she now had a feeling of looking down on her fellow students, as if they were all foolish humans.


    This was because Liang Jiajia felt she had discovered her interests and goals, and suddenly seemed like someone with a career and ambitions.


    She felt very fulfilled.


    While others asked their parents for one or two yuan in pocket money every day, someone had actually come looking for her, asking if she was willing to film a TikTok ad for 300 yuan.


    At first she thought it was a scam, and that she should quickly get her mom to resolve this.


    But it turned out to be a real company. Still, money was not tight in Liang Jiajia''s family, so she naturally wouldn''t take the ad, just out of interest. But it gave her a different perspective.


    Little Liang Jiajia didn''t care about making money. Her comfortable life meant she didn''t have an urgent desire to earn money. But she felt that if you did something well, there would be gains and results.


    Although not every TikTok she filmed later had Teacher Xiao Qi, because she was now experienced, she could film complex shots. Her sense of filming, the image, content and viewership were all pretty good.


    She felt a great sense of accomplishment.


    Morning reading had just finished, and unexpectedly the perpetually silent Xiao Qi in their Seven Fairies chat group had sent them a video.


    Liang Jiajia was extremely excited. She had added Teacher Xiao Qi after tutoring ended, and the group name was still the same.


    After whispering for a bit, they saw a group of men in military uniforms approaching, marching very neatly in ranks.


    When they reached the students, they fanned out and went to different classes.


    The one who arrived at Xiao Qi''s class was a very tall young soldier with a shaved head, looking around 20 years old. Wearing a military uniform, he had a very neat appearance, with no smile on his face, quite handsome - a chiseled nose, piercing eyes, and sharp features. If not for slightly dark skin, he could rival the popular fresh meat celebrities.


    Despite the coach arriving before them, the students continued whispering.


    Especially the girls from the English department next door, who were quite noisy and spirited.


    The weather today was excellent, with sunny blue skies without a cloud. And there wasn''t a single tree on the entire field.


    Although Xiao Qi and the others wore hats, the brims were very short, just covering the forehead. Their cheeks and chins were exposed to the sun.


    These coaches seemed very strict and fierce, and quickly resolved the chatter and giggles from the English girls next door...by making them run laps around the field. Of course they weren''t executed...but you could see delicate girly figures jogging on the field.


    "Anyone else want to join them running outside?" the coach asked.


    The new students in Xiao Qi''s information management class shook their heads, quietly settling down.


    "My surname is Zhang, Coach Zhang Bowen. Call me Coach Zhang. Starting today for the next week, I''ll be accompanying you. I hope we get along in a peaceful, friendly manner. Next, everyone, start running."


    All the students: ...???


    When the English girls didn''t listen, the coach punished one or two with running laps. But for their class, he wanted the entire class to run?


    These fair-skinned new students had lived a blissful life over summer vacation. With PE classes mostly replaced by other courses before the gaokao college entrance exam, where would they get the stamina to run?


    But the coach looked very fierce, so they silently followed behind him as he ran, afraid to cause trouble and get singled out.


    Among the crowd, Xiao Qi was actually secretly delighted. She had worried military training would be too tiring and affect her running training, but unexpectedly running was part of the military training too. She could even ask the coaches for advice on long distance racing secrets and such. The military did the most long-distance running and endurance training, she knew. Thinking this, Xiao Qi''s eyes lit up.


    She inexplicably felt one step closer to the big marathon prize, like money was flying her way.

 Chapter 137: The Execution of Xiao Qi

    Chapter 137


    Running is one of Xiao Qi''s favorite sports now. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    It feels exhilarating.


    Although there are more people on the playground at this moment.


    But Enhua University is really vast. This is just one of the playgrounds, and it''s as long as the track in Lvshan City''s gymnasium. It''s a standard track with a slightly soft surface that feels comfortable to run on. Xiao Qi thinks she should buy two more pairs of specialized running shoes.


    After all, she will be running a marathon next, and it wouldn''t be good to ruin one or two pairs of shoes without proper practice.


    And during the race, she can''t wear new shoes; she needs to adapt first.


    Running among the crowd, Xiao Qi finds it easy to maintain a certain pace. She can even run while checking her interface, where she sees the money she earned. Yesterday, she withdrew some to buy a car, and she has over 110,000 yuan left.


    She used her father''s bank card to pay the tuition fee.


    There''s still over 10,000 yuan left in the bank card.


    Currently, she is just studying at school, so she has enough money to spend.


    In terms of skills, she sees that her calligraphy has become expert-level. In terms of physical fitness, she possesses the strength of a strong human, as well as the jumping power of a panda, the endurance of a donkey, and her long-distance running ability has reached the beginner level plus. Xiao Qi is pleasantly surprised to see the extra plus sign. This is not something bestowed by the system but the result of her consistent running practice during this period.


    It shows that as long as she works hard and perseveres, she can make progress too.


    Feeling even more invigorated by these accomplishments, Xiao Qi runs more freely. Enhua University is flat, and the wind is strong. Some students struggle with their breathing and start coughing due to the wind, but Xiao Qi pays close attention to the coordination of her breathing and running.


    After finishing a lap, she stands tall and spirited. Besides a slightly flushed face, she doesn''t feel any fatigue. After all, this lap is just a small beginning for Xiao Qi, as if she has just warmed up.


    However, half of the students in her class are already lying on the grass, most of them with flushed faces and weak legs.


    Her three roommates are not doing any better. Compared to them, Wei Cheng is slightly better, but he''s still hunched over, breathing heavily, looking exhausted.


    Gu Yunshu''s face is pale, and she sits directly on the ground.


    Chen Mier leans against something.


    So Xiao Qi, who has no problems at all, appears out of place.


    Instructor Zhang looks at her with curiosity.


    He walks over and asks, "Do you usually have running training?"


    Before Xiao Qi could answer, Chen Mier, who is quick with her words, interrupts, "Instructor, Xiao Qi is going to run in this year''s Meng City Marathon. She has been running regularly."


    Zhang Instructor even felt a sense of familiarity, similar to the soldiers he had seen during his time in the military.


    Before coming here, their team was mentally prepared. After all, Enhua University was known for being attended by children from wealthy families.


    Surely the students would be pampered.


    However, they were also told that the purpose of military training was to eliminate the students'' bad habits.


    They didn''t intend to go easy on them, but they thought it would be quite unbearable. After all, they had trained freshmen from various schools before, and as an instructor, Zhang could discern the differences. The higher the ranking of the school, the more self-disciplined the students, while those from schools with lower admission requirements tended to be more lax.


    This is not directed at any individual, but a feeling shared by a large group. It is undeniable that the college entrance examination (gaokao) is very fair.


    Regarding Enhua University, a private university, they were also well-prepared. Each student had a serious expression, ready to make a strong impression from the first day. This was based on past experiences, as if they didn''t establish authority on the first day, it would be impossible to control them in the following days.


    Therefore, they strictly followed the training methods used for new recruits, without any leniency.


    Watching these fresh-faced university students crying and howling, collapsing after running a lap on the track, one couldn''t help but shake their head.


    If this is how college students are, it''s hard to rely on them for the future of our country...


    In terms of academic knowledge, it''s uncertain whether getting into Enhua University is reliable.


    In terms of physical fitness, it''s just average. Not to mention defending the country on the battlefield, taking care of themselves would probably be challenging enough.


    In any case, there were plenty of instructors who were discontented.


    They were regular fourth-year students from the National Defense Military Academy, and being instructors was just one of their assignments. They had knowledge, open minds, and strong bodies. Therefore, when they saw these freshmen, they could only shake their heads in disappointment.


    Their main job was to train the students well during this one-week military training.


    However, Zhang Tianwei didn''t expect that there would be a female student in his class who performed exceptionally well, not falling behind at all compared to their previous batches of freshmen. But it was only the first morning, so he didn''t say much and decided to observe her more.


    Therefore, strict training remained the priority, with only a short break in between, and then they continued with queue training, marching. Zhang Tianwei himself was drenched in sweat, and the freshmen were in no better condition. They didn''t dare to show any signs of distraction or make any unnecessary movements, but their postures were already unsteady, as if they could collapse at any moment.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi still maintained an upright posture, thanks to what she had learned from her fitness coach. The coach didn''t like her hunching her back and slouching, so she was required to maintain an upright stance every day. Now, whenever she stood, Xiao Qi subconsciously lifted her head and straightened her chest.


    So, the demands of the instructors were not difficult for her.


    Moreover, with continuous marching, turning left and right, even marching in place, the money in the interface kept increasing. Xiao Qi found it very motivating, feeling that it was not boring at all. It was more like earning points in a game, just like grinding low-level monsters in a newbie village, very easy.


    At this time, something happened to the English major group. Wu Xinyue, the English major goddess and popular influencer on TikTok, fainted from heatstroke and was assisted away. With her distinctive long, flowing hair, she was easily recognizable.


    Xiao Qi thought to herself that it was fortunate she had short hair. If she also had that long, flowing hair, she would probably have also suffered from heatstroke...

 Chapter 138: System Upgrade

    Chapter 138


    At noon, the dire event of not allowing people to eat if they did not train well did not occur. However, after training all morning, many people simply had no appetite.


    Little Seven felt slightly tired too. She did not expect that just turning left and right, stepping in place and other small movements could be so tiring. But looking at the accumulated money, the amount of exercise was very large.


    She was also hungrier.


    Those who had not undergone social hardship, when tired, would not want to eat. Little Seven was the opposite. When tired, she felt especially hungry.


    This time it was her taking the initiative to squeeze into the canteen with her four roommates.


    Gu Yunshu originally did not want to eat. She was listless, probably never having been this tired before.


    Chen Mier also did not want to eat, only wanting to buy some fruit drinks.


    Wei Cheng''s neck was sunburnt and felt hot and painful. She did not pay attention in the morning and did not apply enough sunscreen on her neck. And she was exceptionally tall for a girl, without even having the chance to hide under someone else''s shadow to block the sun.


    But she had also done farm work before, so she was still hungry.


    Lunch was still self-service as usual. Little Seven took three staple foods: a bowl of rice, a rice cake and a plate of noodles; two vegetable dishes, one meat dish, and also a bowl of soup.


    Whereas the dragged-to-the-canteen Gu Yunshu took a bottle of fruit juice, an egg drop soup, and a small cake.


    Chen Mier kept saying she did not want to eat, but still took a bunch of pastries and all kinds of random food when taking her meal.


    Wei Cheng also took rice and dishes, but not as much as Little Seven, as she was more concerned about price and took affordable and cost-efficient food.


    When the meals of the four were placed on the table, the contrast was still striking.


    Gu Yunshu ate very little, like a bird''s stomach.


    Chen Mier, on the other hand, ate very wastefully. She would finish what she liked, and take one bite of what she did not like. But she was very generous, first giving everyone a share of what she did not touch.


    Wei Cheng took her food rather awkwardly.


    Little Seven had come to understand Chen Mier¡¯s character. She was probably from a family-owned business in a small town. There were likely many people in her family. Anyway, she liked to buy a lot when shopping, and then share it out. That was probably what it was like at home, with cousins and such often being together, so she was used to it.


    Little Seven accepted it frankly too. When she ate something particularly delicious, she would give Chen Mier a share, which made Chen Mier very happy. She did not put on airs.


    Seeing Little Seven do this, Wei Cheng learned to do the same. But she always felt that what she gave out was not as good as what Chen Mier gave her, so she felt quite pressured.


    As for Gu Yunshu, she ate very elegantly, slowly, taking a long time to finish a little bit of food.


    Over on Chen Mier''s side, she was already fast asleep and snoring softly, while Wei Cheng seemed to have fallen asleep too.


    Little Seven practiced calligraphy with her earphones on for half an hour, then climbed onto her bunk too. But she did not fall asleep immediately, instead opening up a Japanese dictionary.


    She felt her Japanese vocabulary was too lacking and should memorize more words.


    The afternoon military training started at 2:30pm.


    It was already past 1pm now. Little Seven planned to sleep for half an hour, then recite Japanese vocabulary.


    She felt the morning military training was a slight waste of time. She had always liked to exercise while studying at the same time, as she felt it improved learning efficiency and made exercising less dull, without compromising on either.


    Therefore, she planned to memorize at least 30 Japanese words before going for military training. When practicing military posture during training, she could repeatedly recite these words.


    Practicing military posture and reciting vocabulary were both relatively mechanical tasks, without conflict between the two.


    Plus, being able to remember 30 words per day would amount to 300 words in 10 days. Little strokes fell great oaks. It was very remarkable.


    At the beginning, there would also be some vocabulary she had learned before, making it easier.


    Memorizing 30 words the first day was not difficult. The hard part was consolidating them the second day, and then memorizing another new 30 words, which meant having to memorize 60 words the second day.


    Therefore, the homework for each day could not be delayed, or it would affect the subsequent days.


    Little Seven earnestly memorized 30 words, then went to sleep.


    She set her alarm for half an hour, then woke up, washed her face, and still applied moisturizer and sunscreen.


    The Alliance City sun was indeed intense. The locals here in Luoxi Town were all dark and skinny, probably due to the sea breeze and blazing sun.


    Little Seven then continued reciting those 30 Japanese words.


    By now, the others had gradually woken up.


    Wei Cheng might have gotten up too early and been too tired in the morning, sleeping like a log. Shaken awake, she saw Su Xiaoqi already washed and dressed, studying¡ªshe felt extremely ashamed. Some people were truly more outstanding, better-looking, and from good backgrounds, yet even harder-working.


    The inferiority in her heart lessened somewhat, but guilty conscience increased instead, feeling she could not muddle along and must strive harder.


    After Little Seven finished reciting the words, she stood up to change into military training attire when the mechanical sound she had not heard in a long time suddenly rang out in her mind, "Host''s diligent studying brings progress and positive energy to new classmates around, unlocking system level up. System upgraded to Level 9 Progressive System. Host will obtain 0.8 yuan for every step taken, capped at 30,000 steps per day."


    Little Seven froze for a moment, not needing to count on her fingers to know that would be 24,000 yuan a day. Feeling somewhat doubtful, she glanced around at her several dorm mates, wondering which new classmate it was who gave such an impressive boost.

 Chapter 139: Aesthetic Appreciation of Painting

    Chapter 139


    In the afternoon, at three o''clock when the sun was at its strongest,


    it was almost blinding to open one''s eyes.


    The newly enrolled freshmen were forced to shout slogans in their military training formation, with a feeling that it was tearing their hearts apart.


    The instructors clearly had no intention of going easy on them; they appeared determined to push the freshmen to their limits.


    The English major goddess who had received a sick leave slip for heatstroke did not appear on the parade ground, and the two absent classmates from Class 7 were also nowhere to be seen.


    As usual, Xiao Qi trained diligently. The afternoon training covered the same content as the morning session, but the formation finally started moving forward instead of marching in place.


    With each step, Xiao Qi''s virtual balance increased by 0.8 yuan, and she walked with great vigor.


    Compared to her roommates, Xiao Qi felt a bit inflated with her hundred thousand yuan virtual balance. However, when she chatted with her roommates, she discovered that one of them came from a family that owned a factory with over a hundred employees, even though it was a family business in a small town. The other roommate, Gu Yunshu, didn''t mention what her family did, but casually mentioned that they owned a villa and a luxury car. Her sister was studying abroad, and she bought things without looking at the price. Then, Gu Yunshu mentioned that her set of skincare products cost seven to eight thousand yuan, or even close to ten thousand. Calculating all this, Xiao Qi''s virtual balance was only enough to buy ten sets of such skincare products.


    And these were just some small aspects of their lives.


    So, in terms of money, there was simply no comparison. Of course, Xiao Qi didn''t feel jealous or envious because jealousy and envy couldn''t change anything. It was just a matter of one''s background. Besides, her parents'' money didn''t come out of thin air.


    Because she was used to being poor, Xiao Qi valued money a lot.


    When she saw the balance increasing, she was particularly happy, and her whole being exuded a joyful and spirited aura.


    Instructor Zhang Tianwei''s face, with distinct angles, was dripping with sweat. He could feel how hot Meng City truly was. Being a northerner, he wasn''t accustomed to this kind of heat and humidity. It felt like he was wrapped in a non-breathable plastic bag, making it uncomfortable and stuffy.


    But at a time like this, he needed to set an example for the students. When they had formed the training plan as a team, they had agreed not to go easy on the pampered freshmen from Enhua University. They came with confidence.


    However, the weather was unbearably hot, and they themselves were almost overwhelmed by the training.


    But as Zhang Tianwei looked at the girl in his class who was as energetic as a freshly watered bok choy, he inexplicably felt a lot of pressure.


    Did he set the training intensity too low?


    Or were the exercises too simple?


    Zhang Tianwei''s throat felt dry from shouting, and seeing the other classes sitting down to rest, he also wanted to take a break. However, when he saw the girl in the front row, who resembled a model soldier, thin and weak with sweat on her forehead, but it didn''t hinder her in the slightest, practicing with utmost seriousness and precision, he decided to let everyone run another lap.


    "Attention, everyone! Right face! Run!"


    The students of Information Management Class 1: ...??


    Why were they the only ones still training while the others rested? Was their instructor a devil?


    It''s no wonder, their instructor was indeed quite good-looking.


    In one morning of military training, the students spontaneously evaluated which class''s instructor was the most handsome.


    Their instructor from Information Management Class 1 won this honor.


    The girls, regardless of whether they were getting tanned or sweaty, really wanted to take a picture with the instructor, or take a selfie or something.


    As for Xiao Qi, she took advantage of the free time to quickly take out her little notebook.


    She looked at the two words that she just couldn''t remember no matter what.


    When she saw the words, she couldn''t help but tap her own head, wondering why she couldn''t remember them. They were so simple.


    She recited them again before putting away her little notebook.


    She missed the days when she had a memory buff, it was like being a super god. Remembering everything after just one read was such a great feeling, and she had this inexplicable sense of being a genius.


    Unfortunately, ordinary people could only rely on diligence.


    Fortunately, diligence could make up for shortcomings. Xiao Qi recited for a while and then took out her notebook to review once more.


    She was very focused while reciting and didn''t notice that the instructor was surrounded by a group of girls.


    Although Zhang Tianwei was an instructor, in reality, he was just a senior student at National Defense University. Looking at the freshmen felt like looking at future junior brothers and sisters.


    But due to preconceived notions, he felt that the freshmen from Enhua University couldn''t compare to the freshmen at their school. They lacked the same spirit and seemed more carefree, as if they were here just to have fun and generally had no goals.


    When he saw the girl who had completed the entire run and still had the time to take out a little notebook to study, he realized that it was not English or Chinese but rather Japanese written on her notebook.


    He hadn''t studied Japanese, but there were girls in his class who did, so he had seen it before.


    Seeing that the girl was so focused and oblivious to her surroundings, as if she were in a trance while reciting Japanese vocabulary??? Why would a prestigious private school like this have such motivated students? Did he come to the wrong place???


    Xiao Qi repeatedly recited those two missed words, stood up and turned a few circles to make sure she wouldn''t stumble and forget again, when the mechanical voice sounded in her ears:


    "The host has gained the sincere appreciation of the instructor, conveying positive energy to others and changing his biased view of Enhua University. As a reward, the host''s artistic appreciation ability for painting is increased by 1 point, raising the host''s artistic appreciation ability from 0 to basic level."


    Su Xiao Qi inexplicably looked up at the dignified instructor nearby.


    The instructor is praising me? System, are you kidding me? Did the instructor actually look at me directly?


    And why is my artistic appreciation ability 0? Was I that bad before?


    No wonder I always thought Mona Lisa looked too fat, with her round face... Now, if I look at the painting again, will I have a different perception??

 Chapter 140: Circe Toasts to Odysseus.

    Chapter 140


    The setting sun hung on the horizon, like a lantern hanging on the dormitory building.


    The freshmen were like bitter melons that had been pickled, still green on the outside but already soft and limp inside.


    Seeing the upperclassmen returning to the dorms with fruit and snacks, fully fed, Su Xiaoqi was famished with hunger pangs.


    Even Gu Yunshu started missing the aroma of rice, and she usually didn''t care for staple foods.


    Looking at her interface, Chen Mier didn''t expect the instructor''s training volume to be so high. She had almost completed 30,000 steps today.


    With training this intense, no matter how handsome the instructor was, the girls had lost all interest. He was simply a devil.


    Fortunately, the devil finally said they were dismissed.


    The entire ground was filled with the soft moans and groans.


    As they walked, they leaned on each other for support, unexpectedly developing comradeship.


    Chen Mier was also leaning on Su Xiaoqi. Chen Mier had a good figure, plump and curvy, protruding in the front and back. She felt a bit heavy, like Su Xiaoqi''s fitness coach, but Su Xiaoqi was strong and had no problem supporting her.


    Gu Yunshu was also very tired, but was too embarrassed to rely on her deskmate like Chen Mier did, just holding onto Wei Cheng''s arm.


    The group first went to the cafeteria. When they reached the cafeteria entrance, Chen Mier suddenly came to life, rushing in first to grab a seat. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    In the end, they didn''t get a seat by the window. There were just too many people. But Chen Mier still fought hard, finding them a seat against the wall.


    Su Xiaoqi and the others first went to get food.


    Dinner offerings that night had some variations, like seaweed pork rib soup, tea mushroom old duck soup, fried chicken legs, okra, braised egg and pork, and so on, with a rich variety of ten dishes.


    Su Xiaoqi quite liked the school cafeteria. Each dish was served in its own little bowl, self-serve style. She could take what she wanted. For a few dorm mates, it was like one big shared table.


    Of course, Su Xiaoqi still had a huge appetite. She took three main dishes, two vegetable and one meat, plus a soup. Her plates were all filled up. When she went to pay, others thought she was helping her roommates carry their portions too. In fact, this was just her own meal. With 30,000 steps of exercise a day, Su Xiaoqi needed a lot of calories.


    That night, Gu Yunshu finally took some proper main dishes. She seemed to not eat much during the day, and was really hungry now.


    Su Xiaoqi sat down without immediately eating, waiting for everyone to come before starting.


    Sitting against the wall, she looked up and noticed huge oil paintings hanging up.


    Glancing around the cafeteria, although crowded with people, it didn''t feel congested or uncomfortable. Perhaps because the ceilings were high, two stories like a normal house, with bright floor-to-ceiling windows and fancy European-style antique chandeliers, giving a very expansive atmosphere.


    The oil paintings on the walls also made it feel very upper class.


    "It''s pretty easy, simpler than English. But I''m also a beginner. I plan to see if the school has any specialized training programs and sign up for one."


    After the group finished eating, they slowly walked back to the dorms.


    Everyone felt like their whole body had been steamrolled. Back in the dorm, Gu Yunshu didn''t rush to use the bathroom to shower. Chen Mier went first. Gu Yunshu called home for a while.


    Seeing there was only one bathroom and they had to take turns anyway, Su Xiaoqi didn''t disturb Wei Cheng who was reading intently, just took her change of clothes and went to shower first.


    When Su Xiaoqi came out after her shower, she saw someone sitting in her chair, probably the classmate that Chen Mier had mistaken for Gu Yunshu''s hometown friend yesterday, but was actually just someone who had come with Gu Yunshu to sign up, Rong Jiaojiao from Class 3 of the Business Administration Department. Gu Yunshu had a faint expression while Rong Jiaojiao was all smiles and very chummy.


    Seeing Su Xiaoqi come out, Rong Jiaojiao belatedly realized she had sat in someone else''s seat. She stood up awkwardly.


    Yesterday when she came to sit here, she just habitually sat in the same spot today.


    "It''s fine, you can sit," Su Xiaoqi said. Having just showered, she didn''t plan on sitting down to study. Today''s moves taught by Instructor Li hadn''t been practiced yet, and the instructor said not to keep sitting unless necessary.


    "By the way, do you guys want to buy desk lamps or emergency lights? They sell them at the student market. Lights out isn''t until 11pm the first week in the dorms, but once classes start, lights will be turned off for evening self-study." Rong Jiaojiao asked.


    Gu Yunshu shook her head. "My mom said she''ll have someone deliver them to me."


    Chen Mier also shook her head. "I saw them yesterday. The ones at the student market aren''t good. I want to buy them downtown. Let''s go downtown after military training, Xiaoqi."


    Wei Cheng went to take a shower.


    Xiaoqi really wanted to buy a desk lamp, but after all it would be used for at least four years, so she also wanted to go downtown and take a look around, and nodded in agreement with her deskmate.


    At this time, Rong Jiaojiao suddenly said in surprise while holding her phone: "Our military training is on TikTok!"


    She had just seen Su Xiaoqi come out and felt a little uncomfortable, she didn''t know why. She sat next to Gu Yunshu and always felt that this girl seemed to see through her thoughts at a glance, while Gu Yunshu remained indifferent. She took out her phone and casually scrolled through TikTok, but did not expect to actually scroll upon their military training.


    Inside was a girl with waist-length hair, sharp chin and high nose bridge, briskly marching and turning left and right on the blue sky and white clouds drill ground. The comments were all like:


    Such a beautiful girl...


    The girl is so pretty...


    I can''t believe private aristocratic schools also have military training...


    Stanning, stanning...


    The girl is an English major, pretty and good grades, I love it...


    The TikTok title was just "Military Training at a Private Aristocratic School".

 Chapter 141: Hardware Conditional

    Chapter 141


    The Beauty Goddess of English Major did not go to military training in the end. She said she had heat stroke and took sick leave.


    As it turned out, she went and shot TikTok videos instead.


    Moreover, her TikTok was quite popular - she immediately got tens of thousands of likes.


    Xiao Qi basically does not use TikTok, because she finds that using TikTok is too much of a waste of time. TikTok is simply the biggest monster of this century. Previously, because Jiajia would send her the TikTok videos she made and insist that she watch them, she originally intended to just take a quick look. But then she scrolled a bit more with her fingers, and when she put her phone down, a whole hour had somehow gone by.


    It was simply baffling.


    She did not even remember what she had done during that hour - she just kept sliding and watching videos on her phone until her mind went completely blank.


    She even thought about ten years from now when she would be 27. It was possible there would be no change at all - she would still be hugging her phone, endlessly scrolling and watching TikTok videos, time disappearing while she did nothing and did not grow at all, still the same as she is now. Thinking this, she couldn''t help but shudder.


    She had walked enough steps today. The amount of training for military training was large, plus Enhua University was really big - it was quite a distance from Puxian Playground to the cafeteria, and from the cafeteria to the girls'' dorm area.


    Her legs were sore from the military training exercises. She wanted to go stretch her body, and also review every day what the coach taught them.


    She originally wanted to go exercise by herself on the rooftop, since Hua Shan Building only had 6 floors. Above that was the rooftop. Xiao Qi went to take a look at it yesterday - the rooftop was quite nice. There was an area with ropes hung up, probably used specifically for drying clothes, and also a large empty space with one or two tables and chairs placed there, probably moved by students. The rooftop was very suitable for studying in the early mornings and at night. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    Seeing the dispirited looks of her other roommates, and the awkward expression on Gu Yunshu''s face, she didn''t feel like chatting. But Rong Jiaojiao was still trying to make small talk there awkwardly. Gu Yunshu seemed to be a very nice person who did not easily reject others.


    Wei Cheng showered very quickly, just three to five minutes, then came out. Seeing Wei Cheng come out, Xiao Qi said, "Let me take you guys to stretch your bodies, otherwise your legs will hurt a lot tomorrow."


    Gu Yunshu was the first to nod and say okay. Rong Jiaojiao was just too familiar chatting with her, and she didn''t know what else to talk about.


    Meanwhile, Chen Mier''s eyes lit up as she looked at her deskmate. Her deskmate had such a good figure and was a sports star - this was a must.


    As for Wei Cheng, she was very willing to get along with everyone harmoniously.


    Seeing that Su Xiaoqi showed no intention of inviting her, Rong Jiaojiao left.


    And so Xiao Qi brought her four roommates together to the rooftop.


    She first taught them basic moves - stretching their legs, arms, thighs, calves, inner and outer leg muscles.


    They usually didn''t run, and doing so much training today out of the blue, if they didn''t stretch properly, they might not even be able to get out of bed tomorrow morning.


    The sun set early in Limeng City. By the time they got to the rooftop, it was already dark, but there were lights on the rooftop making it quite bright.


    The moon could not be seen in the sky, but the stars twinkled brightly.


    Enhua University was surrounded by mountains and lakes, with an excellent environment. Aside from the stars, one could also see the mountains behind the classroom buildings, which undulated layer by layer, dark black, like a layered ink wash painting.


    Xiao Qi had teaching experience - she had dealt with 7 little girls over the summer. So teaching her roommates to stretch was very easy. Even the lively Chen Mier obediently followed along with the practice.


    Though she kept exaggeratedly crying out, because the stretching movements did indeed touch on sore spots.


    Gu Yunshu smiled faintly.


    Wei Cheng obediently nodded.


    Xiao Qi rapped Chen Mier on the shoulder and said, "We were waiting for you to finish eating that mille-feuille in the end... Did you forget?"


    Chen Mier: ......


    On the new day of training, everyone listened much better. Seeing the instructor right before them, no one chatted or talked and laughed. They all obediently trained.


    But today, many people felt their legs hurt so much they couldn''t lift them, thinking it would be yet another day of torment worse than death. Unexpectedly, in the afternoon, the instructor uncharacteristically showed great compassion, bringing everyone together to the indoor gymnasium.


    Of course everyone still walked over themselves, it wasn''t super strict like that. Just a long line of people walking all the way.


    The indoor stadium was located between the new and old campuses. There was a road along the lake lined with stretches of lawn and the lake on one side, and various classroom buildings on the other.


    Xiao Qi and the others first passed by a lakeside dance floor. On the other side of the dance floor stood a building, with all kinds of music coming out.


    This was Enhua University''s Music Building, also considered one of the features that allowed Enhua University to boast of being an aristocratic private university. It required all graduates to learn to play a musical instrument and pass an exam before being allowed to graduate.


    Next, they walked past a building that was the Computer Science Laboratory Building. Xiao Qi and the others would probably come here often in the future. It was full of all kinds of computers inside.


    After walking a while longer, a strong fishy smell hit their faces, because there was a bend in the lake here. The lapping waves made it smell like seawater. The smell was very strong.


    There was also a lifeguard station next to it. It was said to be there to prevent accidents, because the school was located next to a lake. Worried that the young students might get desperate ideas, the school strictly forbade going into the lake to swim. Very expensive fines were imposed, reportedly 10,000 RMB if a student was caught swimming in the lake, and 20,000 RMB if the student drowned.


    Whether a fine would still be imposed in case of drowning was probably a rumor, but there were clear rules that going into the lake would be fined. It was written in Xiao Qi and their new student handbooks.


    After passing this river bend, an extremely beautiful building appeared up ahead, very majestic and expansive in scale. The entrance had the several large characters for Enhua Library. Seeing it made Xiao Qi''s heart fill with yearning. She had spent the whole summer going to the municipal library. Now she really enjoyed spending time in libraries reading, and felt that just based on this, coming to Enhua was very worthwhile.


    While it was too early to judge the teaching standards at Enhua University since classes hadn''t started yet, the hardware facilities were truly excellent.


    The Music Building, Computer Center, library, dedicated dance halls, swimming pools - everywhere exuded vitality.


    By the time Xiao Qi, Chen Mier and the others had walked past the library and finally arrived at the school''s indoor gym, it really was fantastic - spacious and wide, with electronic scoreboards on both ends of the walls. Inside it was cool and comfortable, with ample room for all the new students.


    It was so pleasant that no one wanted to leave. Although there were no chairs on the floor, the students of each class plopped themselves down directly on the ground, encircling their instructor.


    Incredibly, sitting on the bare floor to avoid the glaring sun somehow felt blissful.


    Happiness is relative after all.


    At this time, Chen Mier was leaning limply against her new deskmate, reluctant to get up. For some reason, her deskmate gave off a cooling aura and didn''t seem to sweat much.


    Xiao Qi was still getting used to this at first, but it turned out his new deskmate was rather clingy, often sidling up beside him. After pushing her away a few times, he got used to it...


    The instructor told everyone to settle down and said, "This afternoon we''ll have a singing competition."

 Chapter 142: Singing Contest

    Chapter 142


    The facilities at Enhua University were really great, very extravagant.


    At that moment, there were images of the new military trainees sitting on the ground appearing on the big screen on the wall.


    One by one, they were wearing camouflage uniforms with flushed red faces. ViiSiit  for latest novels


    Xiao Qi thought they were just here to take shelter from the sun in the Indoor Gymnasium, and didn''t expect the cameras to be on.


    From various angles, it seemed one could even see their own reflection on the big screen if they looked up.


    Wei Cheng next to Yu Qinshu was so nervous she didn''t even dare to look up.


    Xiao Qi was quite curious, looking up to see where the cameras were placed. They were probably in every corner, continuously changing positions. Were there special photographers?


    If Liang Jiajia were to see this scene, she would definitely be very excited.


    Xiao Qi watched for a while but couldn''t figure it out. However, she saw another huge oil painting hung on the wall beside the gymnasium.


    It was several meters tall and wide.


    It was very eye-catching. It seemed like the designer of this school really liked oil paintings.


    The painting depicted a patch of iris flowers with blue petals, looking like butterflies. Xiao Qi had those kinds of flowers in her hometown, and had even picked them before. They could be used as medicine with anti-inflammatory effects.


    Usually in Xiao Qi¡¯s eyes they were just ordinary wildflowers.


    However, a whole patch of iris flowers in an oil painting hanging on the wall looked very different, giving off a particularly beautiful feeling.


    She saw the signature was Van Gogh¡¯s.


    Xiao Qi also knew he was very famous, best known for his sunflower paintings. In the end, he committed suicide.


    She wondered if he had painted irises before.


    The painting on the wall was a replica, but she still thought the irises were beautiful. As she looked at it, it seemed as if a breeze was blowing, giving off a carefree feeling that made people want to run, or as if someone had run through the flower bushes but was not in the painting.


    Chen Mier saw her deskmate staring blankly at the wall and gave her a nudge, whispering: ¡°The instructor is giving a speech!¡±


    Xiao Qi was jolted out of her reverie.


    She then heard the instructor assigning tasks for Information Management Class 1 and Class 1 of English Majors to have a sing-off.


    The two classes happened to complement each other well. Most students in their class were boys while Class 1 of English Majors was almost all girls.


    And after entering the Indoor Gymnasium, many students had taken off their hats, making the divide even clearer.


    It was too hot. The hats could block a bit of sun outdoors but weren¡¯t needed indoors.


    However, some students didn¡¯t want to take off their hats because of their hairstyles.


    Everyone knew wearing hats for a long time could flatten the hair. It would look bad if they just took them off.


    Some girls headed straight for the bathroom upon entering, to fix their hair first.


    Xiao Qi didn¡¯t care much about her looks. In high school, she had a crush on Liu Shaowei in her class. Every day she would check herself in the mirror hundreds of times before going out, and would linger in front of the mirror in the bathroom during breaks. She just wanted to see more of herself and check if she looked good. But in the end...


    Those who don''t care about you will still not care, no matter how many times you look in the mirror.


    Those who do care will find you cute even with messy hair.


    It''s best to have an open mind and rely on your own efforts.


    So Xiao Qi took off her hat and put it aside.


    It was much cooler.


    For convenience, her bangs were tied up in a little ponytail away from her eyes so as not to obstruct her vision. It was refreshing and comfortable.


    Because the two classes were having a sing-off, their sitting positions changed slightly to face each other.


    Especially when spotting campus belle Wu Xinyue from Class 1 of English Majors, the boys from Xiao Qi¡¯s class became fired up.


    Hearing the instructor say they would have a sing-off, they were not shy at all and eagerly started looking for songs on their phones.


    Usually in the military, there were some set songs for sing-offs. Sometimes the singing didn''t have to sound nice. Even if it was out of tune, as long as it was loud and bold, they could "drown out" the other side by singing songs the opponents didn''t know. It was quite similar to dance battles, but sing-offs involved the collective, giving everyone a greater sense of strength and passion.


    The newcomers were still quite enthusiastic without any signs of indifference. Everyone was discussing what songs to sing.


    Wu Xinyue didn''t come in the morning. She actually didn''t want to come in the afternoon either, but she was very sociable. While the others didn''t dare chat with the instructor, she had already become quite familiar with him over WeChat.


    When the instructor said there would be a sing-off activity in the afternoon, she came.


    My heart calls out sentence after sentence day and night,


    Don''t let tears fall when we part,


    The barracks are our warm home..."


    You can tell as soon as someone starts singing whether they can sing or not.


    Xiao Qi had learned the singing skills of Liu Rushi, the famous courtesan of ancient times, reaching specialized level +. Usually she didn''t have much chance to show off her skills, and used them mainly to learn English and Japanese, singing English and Japanese songs as a way to learn the languages.


    So she usually just sang in private.


    But a singing voice has the power to move people. Even in the professional music industry, very few singers reach specialized level +. The goddess singer Wu Xinyue from the English department across from them at most reached beginner level.


    The boys from the information management class were stunned. Who was this girl from their class? How could there be someone so amazing in their class that they didn''t know about? If only they had got her to sing at the start instead of their tuneless caterwauling, she could have brought the house down!


    Without realizing it, even the big screen was showing this singing girl.


    Her voice had too much penetrative power, too much ability to inspire others.


    Everyone echoed along, even the students from the English department couldn''t help but join in.


    Xiao Qi belted it out, still feeling a bit nervous. She closed her eyes and imagined the people in front of her as rows of cabbages and watermelons, and just continued singing along to her feelings.


    As she sang, she suddenly missed her parents deeply.


    "Mother don''t worry,


    Your child has grown up,


    Being on sentry duty guards the country,


    Wind and rain don''t scare me.


    I sincerely wish you well, mother,


    Good health and long life to you,


    I''ll come back to see you when we celebrate victory."


    She still remembered her parents slapping the glass wall outside the train station to wave her off as she left on the train.


    Endlessly waving goodbye.


    Thinking of it now, it seemed the tears began rolling down her face.


    "....There''s a nice girl in my hometown,


    I often dream of her,


    Soldiers have feelings too,


    Wanting to spend my life with you,


    But duty comes first,


    Love must be put aside,


    White clouds drift carrying my love,


    Barrack''s green flower sent to her..."


    There were so many lovely things in her hometown. She''d only just got to university and didn''t even have time to dream yet before she had to leave, realizing she must leave, leave her hometown, leave her parents, study hard and improve herself, then go back and see her parents after getting her degree.


    By the end of the song, Xiao Qi was misty-eyed.


    The instructors there felt it particularly strongly, like Zhang Tianwei from the north thinking of his elderly father at home, remembering the heated brick bed, thinking of cucumbers dipped in sauce, missing home.


    The newly enrolled students had only been at military training for two days, suddenly realizing that they had left home and come to campus alone without even having had the chance to express their longing for home, yet their faces were already covered in tears.


    With just one song, "Barrack''s Green Flower", the singalong reached a climax, even the instructors couldn''t help joining in the chorus.


    "....Good health and long life to you, mother


    I''ll come back to see you when we celebrate victory,


    To visit you again, dear mother...."


    On the big screen, countless students had red-rimmed eyes.


    The girl standing there singing carried on.


    Tears hung on her long eyelashes, glistening brightly.

 Chapter 143: Singing and Crying Live

    Chapter 143


    For the first time, someone turned the passionate atmosphere of a karaoke venue into a red-eyed bawling convention.


    Truly.


    Looking back on that scene, instructor Zhang Tianwei felt a little embarrassed.


    He didn''t even want to admit that he had cried.


    But Enhua University''s equipment was so amazing that it clearly recorded every person''s expression. Not only were his eyes red,


    his nose was so stuffed up from crying that he couldn''t breathe.


    When Xiao Qi sang, she unconsciously imbued the song with her own emotions.


    She chose this song because she felt the lyrics were great and quite meaningful.


    While singing, she unconsciously started missing her parents.


    But she didn''t know it would cause so many people at the scene to cry while singing along.


    Needless to say, their class won.


    In the end, no other song could drown out this one rendition of "Green Flower in the Army."


    Wu Xinyue, who was on the other side recording a TikTok video, was also dumbfounded. What the hell? She had thought that with her participating, victory was guaranteed.


    When she came to the school, she had already noticed that there were no particularly outstanding female students in their cohort this year.


    Her grades weren''t that good, they were mediocre. She hadn''t been transferred here, she had applied to Enhua herself.


    For many people, university was a place to study, but for some, it was also a place to change their destiny.


    Students of this age were naive and passionate, perfect for making connections.


    Wu Xinyue had been more mature than her kindergarten classmates since she was young, able to charm more than half of the students in her class into giving her candy and chocolate.


    She was very good at utilizing her appearance to her advantage, giving off a sweet, pretty little girl vibe. This continued through middle and high school.


    She was used to using her looks to easily obtain many things, which of course led to being negligent about her studies.


    But it didn''t matter, wasn''t the purpose of going to university to get a good job afterwards, and getting a good job was for the purpose of living a good life?


    If she could connect with an excellent male university student, she would instantly have a good life.


    Her goals were clear and straightforward.


    She had looked around at the boys in her class and didn''t see any particularly outstanding ones. The boys majoring in English seemed delicate and effeminate. She needed to appear even more impressive and eye-catching.


    Xiao Qi really wanted to walk back, but seeing that Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng were interested, and since they weren''t in a hurry, it was fine to just eat first and then walk back later if they had to. Xiao Qi agreed.


    The four girls headed towards the new district together. On the way they ran into classmates who greeted them.


    Xiao Qi didn''t recognize them, they were probably from their class and knew her companions.


    From the teaching buildings, the new and old districts didn''t seem very different, both primarily red.


    The new district was flatter, with a cluster of teaching buildings. From afar, it looked like a palace, surrounded on four sides, with a garden in the middle.


    But the lake in the new district wasn''t next to Luoxi Town, it seemed to flow into the sea instead. So it looked boundless, especially at dusk when the scenery was particularly beautiful.


    Separated out in a single area along the lakeshore were four especially tall high-rise buildings without any obstruction in front of them, all ocean-view rooms.


    These were said to be for teacher''s residences. Teachers could purchase them if they wished, or rent them.


    As Xiao Qi''s group walked past the high-rises, many foreign teachers were coming in and out downstairs.


    "I heard the rent here is a bit higher. Foreign teachers prefer living here, but the best homes in the school aren''t actually here, they''re in the old district." Chen Mier gossiped.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know any of this. She always felt they spent most of their time together, how did her deskmate happen to know so much more news than her?


    In any case, Chen Mier couldn''t restrain herself from continuing even without anyone chiming in: "Did you guys notice when we entered the school gates? That big bridge, on one side there is a dance floor, and on the other side there is a thick grove. In that grove there is a villa. Our school''s boss is said to live there, although some say it''s on the mountain behind the Vocal Music building. They say the boss likes music."


    Xiao Qi imagined it in her mind. She felt the idea of a villa on the mountain behind the Vocal Music building was less plausible, because the music coming from the Vocal Music building really couldn''t be considered good listening. It was all new students practicing, various chaotic sounds mashed together that were truly noisy.


    She hadn''t noticed that grove when they entered the school gates.


    Gossiping all the way, they finally circled the entire new district campus, arriving at the student street.


    The planning of the new district''s student street was much better, with several orderly straight streets intersecting.


    Last time when Gu Yunshu''s parents treated them to a meal, it was at the Antaili Restaurant in the old district. Xiao Qi didn''t expect there would also be a branch in the new district.


    She remembered the rice there was very tasty. She ate four bowls. There was a black pepper beef dish with very tender beef and the perfect level of black pepper flavor that went great with rice. There was also a grilled corn cake that was sweet. You could taste the corn kernels, with white sugar sprinkled on top, crispy when you bit into it and very delicious.


    "Let''s go to this one." She suggested.


    The others didn''t object.


    The restaurant was busy inside, and there was only one small table left for the few of them.


    The server came over with menus. Seeing the server was around their age, probably a student working part-time. Xiao Qi took the menus first and said, "Let me treat today, to celebrate becoming roommates."


    Chen Mier smiled and nodded, "Sounds good!"


    Gu Yunshu also didn''t object.


    Wei Cheng could only nod along. In her heart she was calculating whether she would have enough money when it was her turn to treat.

 Chapter 144: Making Money

    Chapter 144


    Open-air dining tables, a blonde woman playing the guitar, the rich aroma of coffee.


    Xiao Qi and her friends had their fill of food and drink and were about to take the bus when they passed through a student street and saw this shop.


    There were books inside, music, steaks and coffee, but what was most eye-catching was the bunch of foreigners. At first glance it looked as if they had arrived in a foreign country.


    There were just so many foreigners here, this was the first time Xiao Qi had seen so many with her own eyes.


    These were probably all the foreign teachers from Enhua University. There were even a few children inside.


    One was even in a baby carriage with golden blond hair, so beautiful.


    Enhua University didn''t recruit international students, but it was famous for having a lot of foreign teachers.


    This scene in front of her made Xiao Qi feel it was very special. She even started looking forward to her upcoming classes.


    After all, studying English yourself and learning from foreign teachers must feel completely different.


    The bus stop wasn''t far. After a short walk they arrived. Buses came every 5 minutes, just going back and forth between the new and old campuses. There were quite a lot of people, all young faces.


    Enhua University was very prosperous.


    The bus route went along the mountain, with the mountain on one side and the campus walls on the other, circling the school districts.


    The speed wasn''t fast. It felt like even the bus ride would take over 10 minutes.


    Just from the student street of the new district to the student street of the old district, one yuan per person, you could directly tap your student ID card to pay.


    The student card was usable almost everywhere on campus.


    Back at the old district, there was still a stretch to walk from the student street back to the dorms. It still felt quite tiring.


    When they arrived at the entrance to the dorm area, Chen Mier had them wait. She stood in front of a few big advertising boards, looking at the various messages posted there.


    They were all campus notices:


    "Student Union begins recruiting this weekend."


    "Clubs recruiting new students!!"


    "Campus Top 10 Singers competition sign-ups begin."


    "New English corner added at Nanguan Building, welcome everyone to actively participate."


    It looked a bit like the bulletin board in a village.


    It seemed rather official. The Student Union''s notice even had the Student Union''s seal stamped on the bottom.


    Chen Mier read very carefully. Gossip collectors were really quite different. She was more sensitive to all kinds of information.


    Wei Cheng also spoke quietly: "Xiao Qi, I think you can do it. Your singing voice is really nice."


    Gu Yunshu didn''t comment. She wasn''t interested in money or going on stage in front of a crowd.


    Xiao Qi nodded. "Sounds good. When I get the prize money, I''ll treat you to hot pot."


    Xiao Qi took a photo of the Top 10 Singer sign-up form, then carefully looked at the notice board again, wanting to see if there was anything about getting a driver''s license. Sure enough she spotted one in the corner, an ad for a driving school. She also snapped a photo.


    It really covered everything--introducing vegetable markets, imported cosmetics sellers, all were in the student street. Supposedly most of the businesses in the student street were being run by university students renting the spaces.


    It was quite incredible.


    There were ads for Japanese language classes, and not just Japanese. There was also French, Spanish. The addresses were all in the new district, probably because more foreigners lived in the new district.


    Xiao Qi also photographed those. Although French and Spanish sounded advanced, it''s bad to bite off more than you can chew. Focus on getting English and Japanese down first.


    There was also some information relevant to their majors, like computer training. It really seemed there was nothing that wasn''t covered. It touched on every possible aspect.


    Xiao Qi photographed everything she was interested in, planning to make a schedule later on.


    Back at the dorms, Gu Yunshu went to shower again. She loved being clean.


    Chen Mier went off wandering other dorms. The only ones left in the dorm were Wei Cheng and Xiao Qi.


    When Xiao Qi got back she began practicing her writing as usual. Practicing writing was the easiest way for her to settle her heart.


    Wei Cheng felt somewhat distressed on the other hand. She saw how hardworking and proactive her roommate Xiao Qi was, yet when she herself got back and opened her books she didn''t know what to read. She was also worried about living expenses. Her family was prepared to apply for a student loan, but when they asked about it during enrollment the teacher registering them said to first pay the money, then apply for the loan. It would be approved afterwards. Applying for student loans wasn''t complicated and would be easily approved.


    So she had to consider her own living expenses. Her siblings were also in school and with her high tuition, she definitely couldn''t ask for more money at home for living expenses. But with the same amount, it seemed like it wouldn''t be nearly enough to spend at this school.


    Should she get a part-time job and wash dishes herself?


    Wei Cheng didn''t want to lose face. She felt it would be awkward if she met classmates while working. She had also seen the recruitment info when she looked at the bulletin board earlier.


    Some were posted by individuals, some by the Student Union, some by clubs.


    For example, cleaning the school''s screening room also paid well, fifty yuan each time. That was a Student Union job, but supposedly there were many applicants and work wouldn''t always be available.


    There were many quantified jobs listed that clearly stated the pay, but Wei Cheng was still conflicted.


    They had all been admitted to university and were the pride of heaven, so why did she have to worry about these things... She was very envious of her roommates, who seemed not to have any financial concerns.


    When she arrived at the dormitory, she unconsciously felt that the backbone of the dormitory seemed to be Su Xiaoqi, and she also felt that Xiaoqi seemed to be the one most able to empathize with her, probably because Xiaoqi said her family was also from the village.


    She saw Xiaoqi put down her writing brush and stand up to stretch lazily, and quickly asked, "Xiaoqi, what can I do if I want to work to support my studies?"


    Xiaoqi was taken aback when she heard Wei Cheng ask her this question. She had actually thought about working to support her studies before too, but had only thought about it and hadn¡¯t done anything. As students, they cared a lot about face, and as for herself now, she felt that she could use more time to study. At this age, they shouldn¡¯t be busy making money, their brains were at their best at this age and studying was the way to maximize benefits. But each person¡¯s situation was different.


    "I just looked at the bulletin board for the work-study program, the jobs are quite time-consuming and the income is low. It would be quite difficult if you did it. Think about what special skills you have and we can start from there. I''ve decided to participate in the Top Ten Singers competition, I think this can also be considered a type of work-study program, the prize money is much higher than doing odd jobs."

 Chapter 145: : Military Training Leader

    Chapter 145


    Blue sky and white clouds, red flags fluttering.


    September 6th, Friday.


    Today is the last day of military training.


    It is also time to demonstrate results. Puxian Playground is surrounded by more people in the stands, and there are quite a few leading teachers on the main stage in the middle.


    Xiao Qi and the others came over after breakfast and found their place very consciously. Then they lined up in neat rows.


    Each class has a student selected to hold up the class sign.


    Because of her meticulous performance and outstanding singing during the military training, Xiao Qi was unanimously voted by her classmates and instructor to hold up the sign.


    That is, one person holds up a signboard and walks in front of the class. When passing by the main stage, the signboard needs to be turned towards the main stage, so that the leading teachers on it can see clearly which class is approaching.


    To be honest, Xiao Qi was very obedient during training because she had experienced social education and knew that being obedient was the right thing to do at this age.


    However, when walking in front holding the signboard, she kept thinking of her parents'' words that the protruding nail gets hammered down first...she was now at the very front.


    Fortunately, she did not slack off at all during the military training. Because for every move, whether it¡¯s lifting her legs or turning back and forth, there would be immediate feedback on her interface, +0.8, +0.8, +0.8...


    She did every move very carefully.


    In addition, she always kept her head high and chest out, because she was following the fitness coach''s requirement to not always bow her head, hunch her shoulders or cave in her chest. Bowing head and caving chest would make one look lacking in confidence.


    The buff effect of Xiao Qi¡¯s confident temperament had disappeared. Now everything relied on her own efforts.


    Temperament was something that took more than ten years to develop. It was deeply ingrained and hard to change. Therefore, the initial change could start from her external form.


    The inside was an indescribable and incomprehensible thing. Personality charm was also not something discernible at first sight. The external form was the first thing a person conveyed to others.


    The founder of Enhua University was an overseas Chinese who had two wives. The first wife had two daughters. The second wife had no children, but had a nephew. And Su Li was the daughter of this nephew.


    It was said the second wife was managing the school. Though called second wife, she was already a 70 year old granny. And she was fluent in eight languages, supposedly the original secretary of the founder.


    Such a matter of having two wives no longer existed domestically now, so it sounded rather magical when talked about.


    When Xiao Qi listened, it sounded just like those school trustees or big shots portrayed in TV dramas. It had a bit of sense of Meteor Garden and F4 of some sort. Fortunately there was no such case of scenario noted in or heard of from their class yet. They just gossiped a little bit about the classmates who had not shown up.


    Today, as military training came to an end and there was only morning session, Xiao Qi actually discovered that the instructor had sent her a message after she had gone back to the dorm and had lunch. She thought it would only be a routine casual exchange and there would be no follow up.


    The instructor sent her an expression of a lively dancing goose...


    Xiao Qi also sent back an expression upon seeing it. It was probably just emoji friending.


    She soon put this out of mind. Back in the dorm, the first thing was still to practice handwriting.


    There was half a day free in the afternoon. Tomorrow and the day after were weekends with two days off too. Chen Mier was very excited and intended to invite everyone to hang out downtown.


    Xiao Qi practiced writing for half an hour and did not feel restless anymore before putting down the brush.


    She still had several things to get done next. She needed to go to the driving school to sign up. She had consulted in advance, it was over 40,000 RMB for students to sign up at the driving school which was near the New District, so very close too.


    Wei Cheng in the dorm was quite interested, as she was from the countryside where it was very inconvenient to get into town without a vehicle. However it was still more convenient than Xiao Qi¡¯s case, as the roads there in Mushroom Hometown were better built, with lots of vehicles transporting mushrooms in and out every year. But she had no money at the moment and did not dare to sign up, also being worried to be scammed.


    Chen Mier and Gu Yunshu¡¯s families had cars. Gu Yunshu¡¯s family even had a chauffeur, while Chen Mier¡¯s family was a truck driver in a factory. Smaller cars were driven by family members. They were just not interested in driving.


    Then Xiao Qi needed to go sign up for a Japanese language class. It was said there were also elective Japanese courses offered by the English department. Perhaps she could sit in the classes later. Chen Mier was also interested in going to learn Japanese together.


    Moreover, over the weekend a few people wanted to check out the school¡¯s clubs and student union to see what those were like, feeling that perhaps they should join a club or the student union. It seemed every student had some other identity, like member of certain club, or executive of student union and the like.


    Xiao Qi installed a few small hooks in front of her desk to hang several small notebooks. Some were exclusively for taking notes, others for recording vocabulary to recite every day, and one was for bookkeeping.


    Since there was nothing to do in the afternoon, she planned to get the driving school and Japanese class settled.

 Chapter 146: Fairy Tales are Not Deceiving

    Chapter 146


    After lunch break.


    The weather was still a bit hot.


    But finally I don''t have to wear the military training uniform anymore. The military training camouflage uniform was very thick, not to mention breathable. Xiaoqi felt it was more suitable to wear when going to the mountains at her hometown to work. There would be some insects in the mountains, and those dense forests, the branches would often tear clothes. Wearing the military training uniform would probably be fine. She washed and hung up the military training uniform to pack it up later. If she didn''t need it anymore, she would send it back home.


    She could wear it at her hometown.


    She also took a shower at noon. Enhua was especially stuffy and hot.


    Now the order of taking showers in the dormitory was more or less settled. Gu Yunshu and Chen Mier went first, taking turns, while Xiaoqi and Wei Cheng went after, also taking turns. The personalities of the girls in their dorm were pretty good, without any conflicts.


    After taking off the military training uniform, Xiaoqi changed into the jeans and T-shirt her aunt bought for her, light washed jeans, and a pale pink T-shirt that could be pulled down to reveal her shoulders if pulled hard, but Xiaoqi didn''t like revealing her shoulders, so she wore it normally. After military training for a few days, she didn''t tan at all. Wei Cheng had a tan ring around her neck and chin. Chen Mier originally had wheat-colored skin, so she didn''t get whiter or darker. Gu Yunshu darkened by a shade, but it made her look healthier, otherwise when they first met, she always looked a bit sickly pale.


    The school girls liked to use umbrellas, but Xiaoqi didn''t. Carrying an umbrella was too cumbersome for her. She wore a duck bill cap instead.


    In the afternoon, her roommates were all taking naps in the dorm, so she went out alone.


    She took the school bus to the New District, then found the place according to the advertising posters she had taken pictures of. Indeed there was a driving school on the outskirts of the school. After walking down a stretch of road, you could see a field, but it didn''t seem to be used for growing rice, more like a farm stay used for fishing.


    After passing this field, there were two roads, one uphill road, and the driving school was up there.


    Xiaoqi walked for a while and found that there were not only her but also many students along the roadside. She had just looked at the road signs at the intersection. Besides the driving school, there seemed to be a temple up the mountain.


    Enhua University had very strict management of students dating. You basically couldn''t see any hand-holding students on campus, but on this somewhat desolate road, there were surprisingly pairs after pairs of hand-holding boys and girls.


    The boys'' faces were young and a bit pretended to be mature. The girls generally felt more mature and dressed up nicely.


    Xiaoqi came with a backpack. The backpack was homemade by her mother with colorful homespun cloth and army green canvas, very unique. She thought the driving school might need some documents and stuff, so she brought everything.


    After turning another bend, she finally saw the sign for Yuandai Driving School. There was a small building at the entrance, followed by a huge square. There were cars driving slowly around the site.


    Xiaoqi went in and found a registration office on the first floor. She said she had come to sign up for driving lessons. The receptionist was a boy who also seemed to be an Enhua student. As expected, when he saw Xiaoqi, he enthusiastically introduced himself, saying he was a sophomore majoring in finance. Xiaoqi handed over all the documents she needed to submit, as well as the tuition. The other party said they would confirm her instructor for her tomorrow, and also added her on WeChat.


    After everything was done, Xiaoqi watched outside the square for a while. From time to time there were men''s loud shouts, which seemed to be scolding. It seemed the instructors were not very good-tempered. But this was the driving school closest to the school surroundings.


    So Xiaoqi just hoped everything would go smoothly for her and she could get her license done quickly.


    After signing up, Xiaoqi walked back to the New District. Unexpectedly, she ran into her classmate, Chen Daen, on the road.


    Chen Daen was also very surprised to see Xiaoqi and stopped to say hello.


    There was a group of boys and girls around, exchanging glances.


    "They are my fellow villagers. There are new students this year as well as upperclass sisters and brothers. We went out together to walk around. What are you doing here alone?"


    There were both boys and girls.


    This was a completely unfamiliar world to Xiaoqi, horse riding, photography, leisurely and carefree.


    Xiaoqi looked at the tall fence, walked for a while but didn''t find where the door was, just reluctantly looked at the little pony.


    Perhaps every little girl had princess dreams when young, watching cartoons and fairy tales where the female protagonists had horses, just a sentence in the story, but growing up, she realized it was so damn difficult. Forget having a horse, you don''t have a castle, no servants, you are not even as good as Cinderella, at least Cinderella still had stunning beauty that attracted the prince at first sight. You have nothing.


    Those fairy tales were all lies.


    But one day when seventeen-year-old Xiaoqi realized that fairy tales were not lies, they just weren''t written for you.


    You were not the protagonist.


    She stood in a daze for a while as the little pony briskly sauntered away to look for a patch of grass it thought was sweeter.


    Xiaoqi left the paddock and returned to campus, walking along the lakeside road, on and on, until she arrived at the library. She looked at the sign and swiped her student card to enter, discovering the library had five floors.


    The first floor was full of all kinds of magazines.


    The second floor had all kinds of books for exam preparation.


    The third floor had fiction, self-help and motivational books.


    The fourth floor had many reference books and documents.


    The fifth floor had all kinds of random books, even books on fortune-telling.


    At a quick glance, the categorization was roughly like this. The environment here was much better than the city library, with many new books that seemed to be updated frequently.


    At this time, there weren''t too many people reading in the library, but still a decent amount, especially on the first floor, where many people seemed to be studying.


    Everyone was quiet and well-behaved, in contrast to the unrestrained spirit seen earlier at the racetrack. Here, the atmosphere was introspective and disciplined, diligent and aspiring.


    Xiao Qi felt the library''s atmosphere suited her well, and decided to come to the library every day when she had time.


    She went back to the first floor. As her mind was not completely at ease, she just picked up a magazine and found a corner to read it in.


    She rarely read magazines normally, but the library''s magazine classification was very good, with the most recent issues and archives of previous issues.


    Flipping open to the first page, it introduced a currently popular female celebrity - a studious star from a celebrity family. The picture showed a long-haired girl wearing leather shoes, jeans, a tank top, with loose long hair, walking down the street carrying a cello on her back.


    It gave off a feeling of purity, talent and impressiveness.


    Xiao Qi''s delicate fingertips touched the picture, her gaze falling on the cello on the girl''s back.

 Chapter 147: Learning Makeup

    Chapter 147


    Xiao Qi finished reading through the magazine at the library. It was all about introducing various celebrities. The current trend among celebrities was very young male stars. The female stars also had very fresh faces. Xiao Qi could barely recognize even a handful of them. She could just barely count a palm''s worth because there were some old celebrity faces, although very few. But at least she knew who they were.


    One had to become famous young. Xiao Qi originally thought that at 17 years old, she was not considered old and could still work hard to make it in time. But seeing those young faces on the magazine posters, some as young as 14, she strangely felt that she was already a bit old.


    The whole magazine was about celebrities - their clothing, accessories, handbags.


    There was also a water bottle one celebrity had on her back. It was just a regular water bottle, non-insulated, but it cost over 40,000 yuan.


    Probably because of this price, and the fact that a female celebrity was wearing it, Xiao Qi actually thought the bottle looked very beautiful and wished she had one. But seeing that price, even with the system giving her money every day, the amount was not enough to buy a water bottle.


    Xiao Qi regained some clarity.


    But taking another look, she still felt the bottle looked so nice...


    Damn.


    The 17 year old Xiao Qi felt a kind of desire arise within her, somewhat inexplicably.


    It wasn''t a branded bag or watch, but a branded water bottle instead.


    She usually carried a water bottle when going out, finding it very practical.


    At this moment, she felt her mind was a bit muddled. She got up to return the magazine, deciding to head back to the dorm since she rarely went out alone for this long. It would not be good to return too late.


    However, as Xiao Qi stood in front of the magazine shelves, looking at rows and rows of beautiful covers with young male celebrities, whose delicate features she thought herself inferior to, she suddenly became very curious. If she used a learning card right here on the magazine she just looked through, what would she learn?


    Xiao Qi was a slightly impatient person who acted on her thoughts without hesitation or much deliberation. She said to the system, "Use learning card."


    There was an unused learning card on the interface that flashed briefly before disappearing.


    "Host has successfully selected the top traffic Card Card''s makeup skills. Would you like to learn?"


    Xiao Qi: ...???


    Top traffic Card Card?


    Which one was that?


    She turned back and flipped through the magazine again.


    Then she went downstairs to go jogging.


    Her deskmate Chen Mier was clamoring about wanting to lose weight, so she came along too. It was unknown whether it was the school food that suited her, but after one week of military training, she had actually gained two pounds.


    She was very persuasive and managed to drag Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng to come along as well.


    Xiao Qi was quite happy to have people to jog with.


    But Chen Mier only made it one lap before she couldn''t go on, lying down on the grass and refusing to get up.


    Gu Yunshu jogged about halfway before stopping to rest.


    Wei Cheng jogged two and a half laps with Xiao Qi before also taking a break. Xiao Qi could only continue on her own.


    She had signed up for a full marathon and her training volume could not slip. She had to complete her daily minimum of 30,000 steps.


    Reciting and listening to music while jogging were both very effective. By the time Xiao Qi finished her run, her roommates had all gone back.


    Xiao Qi returned to the dorm at just the right time to shower.


    Now each of their beds in the dorm were enclosed by curtains, creating a private space when drawn. However, their dorm was quite harmonious and instead of each using their own color, they had chosen bed curtains in the same pale blue color scheme. Walking into the dorm filled with the fragrant curtains in one color and none in disarray, except Chen Mier''s desk which had some books strewn about, while Gu Yunshu''s desk was tidy without a thing out of place, even her toothbrush lined up neatly in one direction.


    As for Gu Yunshu''s very petite bourgeois style, her desk was neat, and she even had fresh flowers on it.


    She changed the flowers every three to four days, ordered online. Flowers were delivered to her twice a week.


    At first, Xiao Qi was a bit shocked. Some of the flowers could last one to two weeks, while others had short blooming periods and looked unsightly after three to four days. But they all cost money, bought just to look at briefly before being thrown away. What a waste.


    Previously at her aunt''s ward, she also often changed the fresh flowers since there were so many flowers at the hospital that her aunt had collected without paying money.


    Gu Yunshu was used to it. At home it was the maid who arranged the flowers, so now she took pride in trimming the stems herself, feeling that she had improved a lot.


    It also left a faint floral scent in the dorm, making it especially cozy.


    Xiao Qi''s desk could be said to contain the most stuff because of her many books and calligraphy practice. She tidied up every day though, so it was not messy.


    Her new laptop sat on the desk. For now Xiao Qi used it for learning - watching English and Japanese instructional videos, and also downloading some shows to watch. This way she could continue watching after lights out.


    When lights out time approached in the evening, everyone prepared as if going to battle.


    After Xiao Qi finished tidying up and got into bed, her phone suddenly lit up with a WeChat message from Brother Lin Min.

 Chapter 148: Lin Min’s Old Book Stall

    Chapter 148


    Lin Min arrived in Meng City a week early for the summer vacation.


    After spending a month during the holidays, he also gained quite a bit of inspiration. When he arrived at Qingmeng University, before the semester started, he looked at the school''s bulletin boards and found a place in the school that rented beds for 50 yuan a day.


    Then he just wandered around the school.


    Qingmeng University was very big. Right across from the main gate was the entrance to one of Meng City''s most famous tourist attractions, Big Buddha Mountain. It was very well known nationwide and was said to be very efficacious. Many devout believers came from far away to worship there. Every day it was filled with crowds of people.


    And right across from the back gate was the ocean, with long and soft sandy beaches and uniquely beautiful scenery.


    The school had a long history. In front of the College of Liberal Arts building there was even a thousand-year-old tree. The roots of that one tree took up an entire garden.


    The shops on the school''s student street were very mature. Almost every one gave you the feeling it was an internet celebrity shop.


    Facing students, the decor was very delicate and fresh, and the prices of goods were also cheap.


    There were many barbershops.


    As the start of school approached, every shop was actively preparing.


    Lin Min''s major was medicine. He was thinking about what he could do. Medical students had to go one more year than others, with undergraduate taking five years total, and now undergraduate medical students also had difficulty finding jobs. At least they needed a master''s degree, which meant he would have to study books for many more years.


    Studying books for so many years, with his mom selling pancakes and his dad working as an orderly, plus his dad loved to gamble and didn''t bring money home, instead losing quite a bit, and his sister still needing to go to school, all of these worries added up together, he simply could not calmly study.


    On the first day he accomplished nothing, and returned to the rented bedspace.


    It was the same on the second day.


    And the third day, fourth day, fifth day, sixth day, seventh day...


    He didn''t create the world in seven days like God. He wandered very confusedly for seven days.


    And he had originally said that Xiaoqi would come to register, and he would go pick her up, but in the end he didn''t dare send a message either. He felt a little confused. In Lushan City he had casually started a business with his classmates, that tutoring school, and he had also busily run around and done quite well, although in the end he rejected Sister An and dropped out, he still felt that he was capable. But the result was that when he arrived in Meng City, he discovered he knew nothing and had no use.


    He chose to set up his stall every night after dinner. At that time after eating, many people would come out for a stroll. Qingmeng University didn''t have strict lights out rules, it was relatively freer, half the people chose to study at night, half didn''t go.


    Lin Min was handsome, although not the sunny big boy type. His face was rather ascetic, a bit of a fresh little meat. He dressed neatly and cleanly, with a slightly hoarse voice. Together with his ascetic face, some people who originally didn''t plan to buy books would casually flip through them, and in the end inexplicably buy one.


    The profit was pretty good too.


    Better than those work-study students washing dishes and sweeping floors.


    And when there were no customers, Lin Min could also look through the books and study, so it didn''t hinder his studies too much.


    For Lin Min this was a good start. He dared to contact Xiaoqi now.


    He asked her how it was going adapting to the school.


    Xiaoqi was quite excited to see Brother Lin Min''s message. After all they had been neighbors for three years of high school, although they hadn''t been particularly close, but Brother Lin Min seemed like someone with an especially soft heart but also very contradictory inside. The system kept hinting that Lin Min was turning evil, but he was also the most easily moved. Even if she gave him a bucket of water, Brother Lin Min would feel grateful. Through the system Xiaoqi already knew, not all good deeds brought rewards, most of the time there were none actually, even if someone expressed gratitude excitedly and ardently, they were not actually moved inside.


    "It''s pretty good, the school''s facilities are great, the library is huge with lots of books, and there are a lot of foreign teachers, the environment for learning foreign languages is very good. How about you, Brother Lin Min?"


    Lin Min had been looking at Xiaoqi''s Moments. These past few days she had posted a military training photo, wearing a hat and camouflage uniform, vigorous and heroic, very upright. He gave it a Like, and saw his sister had also Liked it, since they only had each other and his sister as mutual friends.


    "I''m doing pretty good too. Are you free on Saturday? Some classmates happen to be going to Enhua and I can drop by to see you on the way."


    Lin Min edited his words several times before finally fixing it up to send.


    Actually he just wanted to go to Xiaoqi''s school to see her, but felt it was a bit abrupt to say it that way.


    Xiaoqi didn''t expect Brother Lin Min to come to Enhua, but she had already made plans with her roommates to go into town tomorrow, so could only cite her plans.


    Lin Min was thinking about calling Xiaoqi''s roommates to go to Enhua together and treat them to a meal, but when he saw her reply he generously said, "No problem, I was just going along for fun with my classmates anyway. Next time when you''re free, I''ll come find you."


    After sending the message, Lin Min sat in front of a pile of old books in a daze for a very long time.


    Xiaoqi closed WeChat and turned on her computer to start watching Japanese study videos. She didn''t encounter any suitable ones today, so she should start self-studying first. The Apple computer had very good battery life, able to last seven or eight hours without plugging in, enough for her to study.

 Chapter 149: The Magic of Makeup

    Chapter 149


    It was early Saturday morning.


    Chen Mier, who loved to sleep in every day, woke up earlier than anyone else.


    Because she was going shopping downtown today, she woke up before dawn.


    No matter how she tried to sleep, she couldn''t fall back asleep, disturbing everyone awake.


    Xiao Qi woke up and, as usual, started off her day by practicing her calligraphy.


    Seeing Su Xiaoqi sitting with her back straight, brush in hand, dissolving ink as the dorm mates woke up, the others admired her, initially awed by how well she could write, especially respecting her since in this day and age most people play with their phones and computers, and it''s already impressive if someone can write decently, but Su Xiaoqi''s writing looked like it came right out of a model book, simply incredible.


    However, after a week, they discovered that Xiao Qi actually persevered in practicing calligraphy every day, morning, afternoon and evening, always finding time to practice. Even when others were browsing their phones or chatting away, and half an hour would fly by, she would have already filled several pages with her large characters.


    Only then did they realize that her excellent writing was not innate, but the result of diligent practice. Along with their admiration, their respect for her grew.


    There was also reciting vocabulary. Xiao Qi would write out and recite thirty Japanese words every day, also making use of small pockets of time.


    Perhaps influenced by Xiao Qi''s example, an academic atmosphere pervaded the entire Huashan 606 dormitory. While the other dorms would be boisterously laughing, people in their dorm could often be found quietly studying or reading.


    After finishing her calligraphy practice and copying down the vocabulary for recitation today, Xiao Qi glanced at her interface, noticing that she hadn''t been spending much money recently, and had accumulated over 230,000 yuan in her account again.


    She got up, just as everyone else finished washing up, so she went to wash up as well.


    Chen Mier wore denim shorts and a knitted tank top, showing off her exceptionally good figure.


    Not skinny like "Ribs Spirit", but nicely filled out and proportional, with round and plump legs and an impressive bust that made one subconsciously want to give her a hug.


    Gu Yunshu wore a plain white dress, matching her usual calm personality, with long straight black hair draped over her shoulders, not particularly eye-catching, but appropriate.


    Wei Cheng, as usual, wore jeans and a T-shirt, owning only a limited wardrobe that she rotated through.


    Xiao Qi also did not have many clothes, favoring comfort by wearing athletic pants and T-shirts most of the time.


    Since they were going out, Chen Mier brought out her stash of little bottles and jars of cosmetics, so many items - eyeshadow, eyeliner, lipstick, blush and more, all looking quite new. She sat seriously in front of the window, starting to put on her makeup.


    In the whole dorm, only Chen Mier had a full set of cosmetics.


    Perhaps because of not examining her closely initially, the small-town girl actually wore makeup daily, eyes darkened.


    Although Gu Yunshu used very expensive skincare products, she did not wear makeup, only occasionally putting on some lipstick.


    Xiao Qi also owned a tube of lipstick, gifted by Zhou Teacher, prettily brightening.


    Noticing her discomfort at looking in the mirror, Xiao Qi covered it and assured, "Don''t worry, just very light makeup. Barely noticeable."


    The variety of cosmetics proved complex, yet after learning top influencer Kaka''s makeup techniques, Xiao Qi found them intuitive like painting colors.


    Though freckled, Wei Cheng''s skin remained delicate and fair with nearly invisible pores, not oily either. Just washed, her bare face clean, Xiao Qi applied some nourishing lotion first then a layer of makeup primer.


    Using her hand for the primer and a sponge for the foundation, Xiao Qi applied very thinly without fully concealing freckles yet brightening Wei Cheng''s complexion, carefully extending to her neckline for evenness. Wei Cheng freckled easily because of paler undertones. Darker skin hid freckles better.


    Wei Cheng had slender almond-shaped eyes but coarse, messy eyebrows. Xiao Qi trimmed them, movements steady without shaking though not extremely practiced. Altogether she radiated composure.


    Initially disinterested in makeup, Gu Yunshu browsing her phone now watched curiously.


    Having removed her full makeup, Chen Mier stuck on a sheet mask for her bare face.


    With groomed eyebrows, Wei Cheng''s face immediately appeared softer, eyes even larger.


    Xiao Qi did not use eyelid glue or tapes to create a temporary crease, keeping Wei Cheng''s natural single eyelids while simply lining her eyes.


    Eye lining proved slightly tricky with blinking motions, but Xiao Qi''s strokes flowed smoothly. After several flicks, Wei Cheng opened her eyes looking unchanged yet gaze markedly brighter. For mascara, considering Wei Cheng''s already adequate lashes, Xiao Qi chose a volumizing rather than lengthening formula without overdoing it.


    Square faced with a flattened bridge, Wei Cheng''s features were disproportionate. Xiao Qi stroked blush along the cheekbones and touched highlighter onto the bridge, softly diffusing outwards with a fluffy brush.


    Despite thinly wide set, Wei Cheng''s lip shape remained attractive. Xiao Qi defined the lip line in a cool-toned pinkish purple rose.


    Initially nervous, Wei Cheng gradually relaxed under Xiao Qi''s steady ministrations, curiously anticipating the final look. Strange or not, she could always wash it off like Chen Mier if necessary.


    In the dormitory, Chen Mier was the youngest. Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng were both eighteen years old. Xiao Qi was seventeen years old, and Chen Mier was a few months younger than Xiao Qi with the most developed figure.


    Girls of seventeen or eighteen years old were naturally curious about such things.


    When Xiao Qi said she had finished putting on makeup, she told Wei Cheng to take a look at herself, and the dormitory became very quiet.


    Because at this moment, Wei Cheng was completely different from her usual self.


    Gu Yunshu''s eyes were wide open, and the music from the same video clip on her Douyin app played over and over again. Chen Mier removed her facial mask and immediately asked Xiao Qi to put makeup on her too.


    Wei Cheng originally had a square face, small eyes, collapsed nose bridge, and many freckles. She was just a somewhat rough, ordinary girl. But after Xiao Qi put makeup on her, she inexplicably looked very high-class. Although she didn''t have very heavy makeup on, even the freckles on her face were not concealed but revealed. Looking at these freckles now, they seemed cute and playful. Wei Cheng''s eyes were especially attractive¡ªthey were originally very dark and pure. With the makeup on, as she looked at herself in the mirror, she felt very beautiful, not with the traditional goose egg or melon seed face, but she just felt good-looking and comfortable. She had never thought of herself as so pretty before.


    The girl in the mirror was her yet not her. As she looked left and right, there was some aloofness yet purity. She smiled shyly at herself in the mirror, and the beautiful girl suddenly bloomed like a pure white camellia.


    At this moment, Wei Cheng''s hunched shoulders suddenly opened up. It turned out she could be so good-looking, so beautiful. It turned out she was not ugly or unattractive at all.


    She could hardly bear to leave the mirror, wanting to look at her beautiful self a moment longer, and then another.

 Chapter 150: An Introduction to Marxism

    Chapter 150


    Wei Cheng''s change was too big.


    Chen Mier was so excited that she immediately asked Xiao Qi to help her with her makeup.


    Even Gu Yunshu, who was usually aloof, uncharacteristically spoke up, "I want to try it too."


    Chen Mier has nice facial features - big eyes, a tall nose, small lips. Her face shape is good too, an oval face. She''s just a little darker complexioned. Chen Mier''s face seems like the kind that wouldn''t have as dramatic a change as Wei Cheng''s when she puts on makeup. Her features are already quite suitable and good-looking.


    However, an ordinary person''s face still has some issues with details. Chen Mier''s eyes are big with double eyelids, but they don''t have the liveliness that Wei Cheng''s eyes have. They just feel big without being lively.


    Because her skin is generally darker, she gives off the feeling of "Oh, this girl looks quite good, but she still has that small town vibe. Her features are good-looking, but unsophisticated, not stylish."


    Xiao Qi still carefully applied her base makeup first. To make darker skin appear lighter doesn''t mean just applying lighter-colored foundation. Based on feel, Xiao Qi chose a shade that matched Chen Mier''s skin tone and applied her foundation. She had just done a facial mask and usually took care of her skin too, so makeup application was easy.


    She has a great face shape, so as long as the foundation is evenly applied, it''ll be fine. Xiao Qi felt that she should look into relevant books later and not just know the surface without understanding the reasoning behind it.


    After applying the foundation, her whole face became more three-dimensional, smooth and tender, without getting much lighter, but looking much cleaner.


    Next was eye makeup. Xiao Qi also trimmed Chen Mier''s eyebrows. She must have gotten them trimmed before, but new growth had come out recently, because with her big eyes, Xiao Qi didn''t trim them to be too thin. She kept her original brow shape for the most part, just clearing up the messy hairs. There was a scar on the tail of her left eyebrow, probably from falling when she was little. So her left brow was shorter by a bit.


    After tidying up her brows, Xiao Qi lightly filled in the tail with brow powder, not using black brow pencil like the one Chen Mier used herself to fill them in, which looked abrupt when seen as a whole. Her original brows were quite nice-looking and didn''t need that kind of emphasis. Using natural brown to add a little tail was good enough.


    Then it was eye makeup. Xiao Qi made Chen Mier''s eyeliner a little thinner, just a thin line, because her double eyelids were very obvious. Just that little flick made her eyes look much more lively. She added a tiny bit of light blue eye shadow, very faint.


    As for lashes, hers were already quite thick and dense, just not very long. Just brushing them lightly was good enough.


    Next was lips. Chen Mier''s personality was lively and outgoing, her skin a little dark. Xiao Qi chose a matte peach pink shade for her, which paired with her skin tone well, looked bright but not too heavy, and suited her youthful beautiful girl look today.


    When Xiao Qi said she was done, Chen Mier looked in the mirror and cheered loudly. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi felt it was fine. Chen Mier''s makeup transformation wasn''t as dramatic as Wei Cheng''s. At most, she was like a camera with no beauty filter turning into one with beauty mode on. She looked more delicate and refined.


    But to Chen Mier herself, she was very satisfied no matter how she looked at herself, feeling like she was the most dazzling little beauty. She almost couldn''t wait to go out now.


    Choosing lip color was easy. Xiao Qi picked a bright true red since her fair skin was the perfect backdrop for it, but applied it thinly since the makeup look wasn''t meant to be too heavy.


    When Xiao Qi said she was done, Gu Yunshu looked in the mirror and was also very surprised. She looked great; very satisfied.


    If her mom saw her now, she''d probably chatter on about it for a whole day.


    She''d always felt her face was ordinary and dull, flat and plain. She wasn''t very competitive or outstanding because of that, but she would never have imagined that with Xiao Qi''s makeup, the transformation would be so dramatic. She now looked like the most dazzling girl at a formal dinner party, exquisitely beautiful. Gu Yunshu didn''t even know how to compliment herself anymore.


    You''re most familiar with changes in your own appearance, so even little changes can be very surprising.


    The three of them looked themselves over from top to bottom in front of the mirror, quite pleased.


    They''d all gotten their makeup done while Xiao Qi hadn''t put any on herself. Chen Mier asked her to do her makeup too, but Xiao Qi shook her head. "Look at the time. If you don''t leave now, you won''t be able to catch the bus back."


    "Fine, Xiao Qi still looks pretty without makeup anyway." Chen Mier was anxious to go out and gave in first.


    The four roommates left their dorm like an army procession with their bags on back.


    They were taking the coach bus. Although Gu Yunshu usually had a private car, she wasn''t that particular after getting to campus either. The four of them were a team after all, and the bus only cost 7 yuan into town, very economical.


    If she called a private car without letting her roommates chip in, it would have been awkward.


    Chen Mier walked like she had wind at her heels, feeling exceptionally beautiful.


    Wei Cheng was tall but usually slouched when walking. Today she was even walking proudly with head held high, very confident.


    Gu Yunshu always had good poise. She didn''t actually lack self-esteem, but she was low-key normally and not very noticeable. Yet today she stood out exceptionally.


    The dorm mates were obviously all in great moods.


    Xiao Qi was feeling pretty good too, seemingly able to glimpse her own developmental process just from seeing such obvious changes in others, as she steadily improved.


    At this moment she once again heard the familiar mechanical voice in her ear: ¡°Host helped roommates with makeup, raising their confidence and bringing them positive energy. Rewarding host Marxist basic principles and theoretical overview expertise.¡±


    Xiao Qi: ......

 Chapter 151: Shopping for Food

    Chapter 151


    Outside the car window, there was a big curve, and the woods on both sides were lush. At this moment, Xiao Qi was sitting on Wei Cheng''s lap... That''s right, the four of them did not grab the seats, there were only two seats available, Mi''er and Gu Yunshu were squeezing together, and she was with Wei Cheng.


    Enhua University was very high-end, but the bus from Luoxi Town was not high-end at all. It was not a big bus, but a minibus. The car shook and there were not many seats. There were also many people standing on the bus.


    The four little girls sat close to each other.


    Wei Cheng had a larger frame and let Xiao Qi sit on her lap. Xiao Qi actually felt that standing was fine too, but later more and more people got on the bus, probably because it was the weekend and there were too many students going into the city, so the standing spots were very crowded, so she had to sit on Wei Cheng''s lap.


    Xiao Qi thought that next time, she should get her driver''s license earlier, it would be better if she could drive herself.


    It was probably because she saw Zhang Juan from the same village driving, and she felt like she really wanted to drive too.


    Human nature, still like comparing with people around.


    Xiao Qi could not escape the common failing, especially since she was only 17 years old. Deep down in her heart she was very competitive.


    The mountains on both sides were a little familiar yet strange. The last time Xiao Qi took the car with the BMW car salesman, she deliberately looked at the roadside, and was a little afraid of being taken the wrong way, but after driving a while, she did not recognize the scenery, it seemed to be another road.


    All the way into the city, they arrived at the bus station. The four little girls stuck close together.


    Because they had heard from the school staff earlier that the bus station in Meng City was very chaotic, there were quite a lot of pickpockets, who specifically targeted students like them. It seemed that every student had to experience losing a cell phone or wallet before being considered mature.


    Xiao Qi had her little bamboo bag in front of her, and the others also carried their backpacks in front.


    Among the four, Gu Yunshu was not completely innocent, but she was not very sociable, her usual personality was rather introverted. Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng belonged to the inexperienced type. When they reached the entrance of the bus station, the towering high-rise buildings and crowds across the street were still quite shocking. At this time, the bold little country girl Chen Mier was the bravest.


    Without any hesitation, she had done her research on where to go shopping before they came. She was now pulling a passerby asking for directions.


    "Sister, excuse me, how do I get to Xinmen Street?"


    The girl who was called sister also looked like a young woman. She was surprised to be called sister, but seeing that the one asking for directions was a few little girls, who were clearly students, and also looked quite pretty, she did not get upset.


    "Go straight along this road in front, turn left at the street in front of the City God Temple." Upstodatee from


    Chen Mier thanked her and pulled Xiao Qi to cross the road.


    Wei Cheng pulled Gu Yunshu and followed behind.


    Xiao Qi was fine. She had a daily walking routine, so she was not bothered by the unusually long street, and walked patiently.


    In between, Wei Cheng would also rush to pay. They were not expensive items, but it made her feel better.


    With oily hands, the group did not go into the clothes stores. They went to small goods stores to look at desk lamps and such. Chen Mier was very familiar with these. Although her hometown was just a small town, it was basically Taobao Town, Taobao Village, so her family business was able to thrive. There were not only textile factories, but also all kinds of small commodity manufacturing factories, a wide variety.


    Xiao Qi picked a desk lamp suitable for reading and studying, already the most expensive in the store at 168 yuan. She also bought an emergency lamp.


    These were a bit heavy. After everyone had picked something, they left them in the store first and continued browsing, planning to grab them when leaving.


    After finishing the chicken feet, the girls finally rushed into the clothes stores.


    The wealthy lady Gu Yunshu rarely went out shopping like this herself. Every time she went with her mother to various boutiques and bought clothes, it was boring. She did not expect that going out with her roommates, although not spending much money, was very fun.


    And she looked especially good today. In these inexpensive clothing stores, no matter what clothes she tried on, looking in the mirror, she felt that everything looked good on her, resulting in a surge of desire to shop.


    Chen Mier was quite knowledgeable about clothes. She not only picked styles, but also felt the fabrics, whether they were breathable or not, whether the workmanship was good or bad. For clothes at the same tens or hundreds of yuan price range, she could pick out the first, second and third tier.


    With her as an advisor, Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng each bought two sets of clothes.


    Gu Yunshu and Chen Mier bought even more, very extravagant, almost 4-5 sets each.


    Gu Yunshu probably felt these clothes were so cheap that she bought blindly.


    Chen Mier simply loved dressing up, buying and buying.


    The group returned fully loaded, and went back to the lamp shop.


    Everyone was already carrying a lot of stuff. Seeing the lamp shop owner had packed everyone''s desk lamps and emergency lamps into a box, Wei Cheng said, "Let me carry it, I''m stronger."


    Among the four dorm mates, Wei Cheng was the tallest and most sturdy looking, seeming quite strong.


    But when she squatted down, she did not manage to pick up the box in one go, mainly because the emergency lamps were too heavy, and the bases of the desk lamps were also quite heavy.


    Her face instantly turned red.


    Xiao Qi handed her stuff to Wei Cheng and said, "Help me carry my things, I''ll take this box."


    Since it was hard to walk carrying it, Xiao Qi asked the owner to tie a handle with rope, then lightly lifted the big box before the eyes of everyone.


    With an unchanged expression.


    Seeing her roommates dumbfounded, Xiao Qi said, "Let''s go, or we''ll hit rush hour again for the shuttle bus and have to line up."

 Chapter 152: Su Li Li, a Privileged Student

    Chapter 152


    A few lucky people got on the return trip bus and did not have to line up for too long.


    It was said that if it was a little later, the line of students going back to Enhua would be able to circle the bus station twice, because on the bus station everyone had a seat.


    In the last two rows, Chen Mier and Xiao Qi sat in one row, Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng sat in another row. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    The four roommates in the dormitory got along quite well, but because two of them were deskmates, the relationship between the deskmates was even closer.


    Gu Yunshu''s family was complicated. She had seen many people since she was young, so she preferred the girl Wei Cheng who had no ulterior motives.


    Chen Mier grew up in a family business factory environment. She especially admired capable people. Since she was young, her family education was to make friends with talented people, so she liked Xiao Qi more. She felt that Xiao Qi was very capable. She was probably the "talented person" mentioned by the elders.


    Xiao Qi did not have a very strong social attribute. Chen Mier was more assertive, so she just went with the flow.


    Wei Cheng remembered whenever someone was nice to her. She was quite sensitive. Seeing Gu Yunshu¡¯s weakness, she always took the initiative to help, carrying things and so on, with no utilitarianism.


    At this moment, Chen Mier still looked at her deskmate excitedly.


    "I always thought that you could eat a lot without gaining weight, and envied you very much. I didn''t expect you to be so strong!"


    "Well, I''m a little stronger." Xiao Qi did not deny it. After all, this was not something that needed to be concealed.


    Chen Mier''s eyes rolled, and she immediately thought, "Then in the school sports meeting, Xiao Qi, you can participate in shot put and javelin competitions, and you will definitely win."


    Thinking of this scene, Chen Mier smiled slyly by herself.


    Xiao Qi thought... shot put and javelin competitions were not necessarily won by the one with the greatest strength. Also, there were so many people at the school sports meeting. Although Xiao Qi was strong, she was not strong enough to break through human limits. She just had the strength of a slightly stronger human. Not bothering with whatever else Chen Mier was thinking about with an even more sly smile, she recalled the Japanese vocabulary she had copied this morning, closed her eyes and recited words.


    The bus swayed as it moved. After a day of shopping, it was actually quite tiring.


    Gu Yunshu in front had already leaned on Wei Cheng. The two slept sloppily.


    Xiao Qi was still reciting words. Suddenly she felt that one of her shoulders became heavy. Chen Mier had also fallen asleep with her head tilted on her shoulder.


    Looking at the pair of roommates sleeping dead in front, Xiao Qi felt awkward again.


    Except for school buses, outsider vehicles were generally not allowed on campus. Unexpectedly, the car they just saw could drive in.


    When Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory and saw that the door of Room 605 across from them was wide open with people moving in and out and carrying air purifiers, humidifiers, air conditioners...


    Room 605 was said to have only three people originally, but only two had come, and the one who hadn''t come was the legendary Su Li.


    One of the two who had come had special permission for her naturally yellow hair. She was the only student in the school with yellow hair, Lin Dongqing. She was quite special. She had a certificate to prove her natural hair color so she didn''t have to dye her hair black.


    There was another girl whose name Xiao Qi didn''t remember. She just felt very weak. Gu Yunshu in Xiao Qi''s dormitory already gave a weak impression, but Yunshu was actually quite independent and did what she could by herself. The girl across, Xiao Qi saw her ask others for help carrying things and doing chores several times, seeming very delicate.


    It was said that she was not in good health and had to be hospitalized frequently every year.


    Anyway, Xiao Qi kept away from such people. There was such an old lady in her hometown Gumula Village. She had claimed to be in poor health all her life, very fussy. If anyone touched her, she would kick up a fuss about going to the hospital. Whenever anyone passed by the old lady''s door, she would take away some of their things. Xiao Qi and her dad passed by carrying vegetables, and had things snatched away several times. As long as they met, no one dared to scold or touch her. When she was younger she was already like this. Now that she was old, people even less dared to provoke her, and just turned a blind eye since they were from the same village.


    So Xiao Qi still couldn''t remember her name to this day, she just kept away from her.


    Now the mysterious third person of their dorm had finally arrived, making a big fuss as soon as she came, living up to her identity as a relative of the school¡¯s sponsor.


    Actually Xiao Qi felt the air quality at Enhua University was already quite good, the humidity was also very suitable. It got a little hot in summer but still bearable. After all, it was close to the sea here, and was in fact more comfortable than Lvshan City. But the dormitory across had all installed Dyson humidifiers and air purifiers. It felt strange.


    Through Gu Yunshu''s hair dryer, Xiao Qi knew about Dyson.


    Gu Yunshu''s hair dryer was actually worth several thousand yuan. But she was very generous and just left it on the table in the middle for public use by roommates.


    Xiao Qi had short hair and basically did not need to blow dry after washing her hair during the day. Chen Mier also had short hair, but she must blow dry her hair after washing to make it fluffy. She found that Yunshu''s hair dryer worked much better than hers, so she just used Yunshu''s directly. It wasn¡¯t that she liked to take advantage, normally she shared food with roommates very generously, so generous exchange was normal and she didn¡¯t feel there was any problem.


    Wei Cheng had medium-long hair to her earlobes, neat and trim. She was too shy to use Gu Yunshu''s hair dryer and rarely used it unless it was very late.


    Dormitories generally did not allow large electrical appliances. Obviously Su Li, the student across, had the rumored special privileges. After Xiao Qi and the others finished organizing their things, Gu Yunshu took a shower and opened the windows and door for ventilation because the dorm was foggy after showering, they saw the dormitory across had also just about finished organizing things.


    They finally saw the legendary Su Li.


    From Xiao Qi''s professional-grade makeup techniques, one could tell with one glance that she had put on meticulous makeup. However, Su Li was not a traditionally beautiful girl. She even looked a bit like the animated Mulan, with the type of Asian features favored by foreigners. At first glance she was quite charming. Her clothing and styling were also very fashionable. In the summer she even wore ankle boots, culottes, and a halter top, with a very stylish look.


    At that moment she was holding an original English book, lazily sitting in the doorway, kicking the rebar at the entrance, making a "bang bang bang" sound. Her figure was slender, her eyes were looking askance, and her lips were bright red - a very arrogant demeanor. The frail girl from their dorm room didn''t dare get angry but couldn''t say anything either. She sat in the dorm room looking especially weak.

 Chapter 153: The Exquisite Northern and Southern Dynasties

    Chapter 153


    Xiao Qi''s dormitory harmoniously took turns showering.


    Gu Yunshu went first, followed by Chen Mier who took some extra time to maintain her makeup and took numerous selfies. She carefully selected a photo of everyone hanging out and eating together today and posted it on her social media.


    Admiring the photos, Xiao Qi couldn''t help but feel envious. She didn''t wear any makeup, yet she still looked beautiful and photogenic.


    Wei Cheng went next, and Xiao Qi went last. As soon as Xiao Qi returned, she started practicing calligraphy and then worked through a set of English Level 4 exam papers. Finally, she opened her textbook titled "Introduction to the Basic Principles of Marxism"...


    As she picked it up, she felt a mix of emotions. It was familiar, as if she knew the content by heart, and it seemed she could casually discuss the theories from the book.


    This course seemed to be a mandatory subject for their first year, with very few credits. Xiao Qi glanced at the other textbooks on her desk ¡ª algebra, statistics, calculus... Just looking at them made her feel how difficult they were.


    If only there was an expert level in calculus, she would be invincible.


    Xiao Qi pondered for a moment. Although she felt a bit regretful, she wasn''t particularly upset. She still had the advantage because once she mastered the content of the mandatory courses, she could save time and focus on studying her major courses. That was already pretty good.


    After Wei Cheng finished showering, it was Xiao Qi''s turn.


    After everyone finished showering, they decided to go out for a proper meal. They had eaten too many random things outside today, and their stomachs weren''t feeling great.


    Everyone changed into new clothes. They weren''t expensive, but the quality was quite good.


    Normally, new clothes should be washed before wearing them, but the girls couldn''t resist. Since they showered every day, wearing them once shouldn''t be a problem.


    Gu Yunshu wore a blue striped top with a knee-length blue skirt, a very ladylike outfit.


    Chen Mier wore white denim shorts with a tight black T-shirt. She was conscious of her large chest and knew that black made her look slimmer. The overall black and white combination looked refreshing.


    Wei Cheng hesitated and finally chose a white long dress. She was tall and looked graceful in a dress. As long as she avoided puffy sleeves and too many ruffles, her height was an advantage. Her shoulders were slightly broad, which could be considered a drawback for extremely feminine clothes, but with her figure, she looked good in simple designs.


    This simple white cotton dress was quite nice and cost just over eighty yuan.


    The cotton fabric was thick, and it looked like good quality.


    When they came in, the backlight made it hard to see clearly. It was only when they brought their food and chose a long table by the window that Xiao Qi and her friends got a clear look at the leader.


    The first impression was that he was really handsome.


    Xiao Qi felt like she was looking at a teenage boy on a magazine cover. He had black hair, deep eyes, and was also wearing a T-shirt and sweatpants. It was as if he had been blessed by a beauty camera, making him look remarkably refined.


    During military training, their instructor was also very handsome, but in a different, refreshing and sunny way. However, the boy in front of them was exquisitely handsome, with features even more delicate and attractive than most girls.


    Chen Mier blushed and quietly asked, "Who is he?"


    Even Chen Mier, who was usually well-informed about dormitory gossip, didn''t know, let alone Xiao Qi and the others.


    They heard Chen Daen''s loud voice shouting, "Weijin, do you want cola?"


    The boy shook his head and replied, "I don''t drink soda, just mineral water."


    He was holding a bottle of Evian mineral water. They had it in the cafeteria''s beverage section, but the first time Xiao Qi saw it, she thought the price tag was wrong¡ª25 yuan for a bottle of water...


    Later, she looked it up online and found out that the price was correct. It even cost 18 yuan in the supermarket.


    If you saved a bit and came to the cafeteria, only got vegetables, soup, and rice, it probably wouldn''t cost more than 25 yuan.


    "Wow, his voice is so nice," Chen Mier whispered.


    So, that exquisitely beautiful boy was Li Weijin, the legendary wealthy student who had never appeared in their class before. He really seemed wealthy, and he seemed to get along well with the boys in the class. They played soccer together and he treated them to meals, without any awkwardness.


    He was just really too beautiful, with a charm that seemed to come straight out of a novel, transcending the pages and entering real life. Xiao Qi felt inferior and didn''t dare to look too much.


    While Yunshu was eating slowly, the boys finished their meal and left. Xiao Qi and the others were still at their table when unexpectedly Chen Daen came back, skipping happily, and gave them a fruit platter, smiling and saying, "Compliments of Weijin."


    Then he opened WeChat on his phone again and said, "I''ve created a class group, add yourselves."


    Xiao Qi and the others added themselves one by one, and upon entering the group, they saw the group chat being flooded with red envelopes from the same person, with the username "Southern and Northern Dynasties"...

 Chapter 154: Refuse to Add Friends

    Chapter 154


    When someone sends a red envelope, it''s hard to resist clicking on it.


    Even Xiao Qi couldn''t resist.


    She didn''t expect to get rich from receiving red envelopes, but because they''re random and luck-based, she couldn''t help but click and see if her luck was good.


    Chen Mier was the most enthusiastic when it came to grabbing them. When she saw a red envelope, she stopped eating the remaining desserts and stared at her phone, shouting for everyone to grab it together.


    Xiao Qi casually clicked on the latest one and unexpectedly got 169 yuan... How big were these red envelopes? And looking at the quantity, there were actually 20 of them. Judging from what others were grabbing, the lowest amount was around ten yuan.


    It turned out that her casual click was the luckiest.


    Several more appeared later, but Xiao Qi felt embarrassed to click on them because the amounts of money were larger. It felt different to grab one or two yuan compared to a hundred or two hundred yuan.


    There was a feeling of getting something from someone for no reason.


    In the group chat, apart from red envelopes, there were nothing but expressions of gratitude.


    There were various thankful images, thanking the boss, thanking the big shots, thanking the richest person in China, thanking Wei Cheng...


    After a wave of red envelopes, it seemed that new members kept joining the group. Chen Mier was hopping mad because the red envelopes were almost instantly grabbed, and if she was a little slower, there would be none left.


    After a while, a red envelope rain descended in the group chat. This time it wasn''t from the Southern and Northern Dynasties, but directly from someone named Su. Of course, it wasn''t Xiao Qi.


    Hearing Chen Mier''s surprised exclamation, she had grabbed 166.66 yuan, which was a fixed amount. They were sent in batches of 20, and several batches were sent in a row. What a rich person.


    A group of people started sending images of gratitude again, thanking Su, thanking the boss lady, and even thanking someone''s sister-in-law...


    Judging from the profile pictures, it should be Su Li. The profile picture was a high-end artistic photo, giving a sense of an international internet celebrity street shoot. It vaguely resembled Mulan and had a trendy vibe. The eyes were single-lidded, but they were beautiful and captivating.


    Xiao Qi thought that her classmates were really rich. They could casually send red envelopes worth thousands of yuan.


    Wei Cheng also had a look of disbelief, a mixture of excitement and nervousness. She had never grabbed so much money from red envelopes before. Someone in the group teased and said, "Thanks, big shot. It''s enough to cover a month''s food expenses."


    She truly believed that the red envelopes she grabbed could cover a month''s food expenses.


    Because of the red envelopes, the group chat was lively.


    They were all chatting about the two big shots who sent the red envelopes.


    Although they hadn''t participated in the military training, it seemed like they instantly became familiar with the whole class.


    But the original sender of the red envelopes didn''t mind.


    But when she walked up, she couldn''t help but speak up, "Can just anyone come here now?"


    Most of the people there were familiar faces, and Wu Xinyue was the only unfamiliar one.


    She sat somewhat awkwardly, and her smile froze on her face.


    "This is my friend, Su Li. Weren''t you in England for the summer vacation? You just came back, right?" a tall and thin boy with many acne scars on his face spoke up.


    Someone else tried to smooth things over by asking Su Li if it was true that her aunt really had a castle in England.


    Su Li had a bad temper and often caused a scene without giving people face.


    But when she saw Li Weijin, she let it slide and went to sit next to her friends to talk.


    Meanwhile, Wu Xinyue''s face turned pale, and she was also feeling unhappy.


    That girl who had just entered was so ugly. When she heard someone call her Su Li, she knew who that girl was. She was the relative of the school''s founder, Xiaomi, and she acted all high and mighty, but she wasn''t any better than herself.


    However, Wu Xinyue knew that she was new and didn''t have any background, so she just smiled and didn''t mind anything.


    The acne-faced guy next to her actually apologized to her, saying, "Don''t mind Su Li''s character. You''ll know when you get to know her. She''s actually straightforward and easy to get along with."


    Li Weijin had no idea that he was the reason behind this unpleasant incident.


    He saw Li Taiping trying to please that girl over there and shook his head. Being a bootlicker would eventually lead to having nothing. It was obvious that the girl was just keeping him around.


    Before Su Li arrived, he was actually busy looking down at his phone and didn''t talk to Wu Xinyue. She took the initiative to approach him for a chat, but he didn''t find it funny and wondered what she was laughing about.


    He continued scrolling through his phone.


    He initially found En Hua, his new classmate, boring. He was preparing to study abroad, but he hadn''t taken the English IELTS test yet, and he was getting confused. Passing the IELTS this semester should be enough.


    Anyway, he was just passing time at school, but then he saw a photo of their class during military training. The girl leading the class with the class sign unexpectedly looked beautiful. It was the type of feeling he liked¡ªneat, heroic, and pretty. For some reason, she caught his attention.


    Later, when he went to the cafeteria, he saw that girl again at a glance.


    But the girl didn''t look at him. She was eating, very focused. Her roommate said something, and she smiled when she looked up. In any case, she looked even better while eating, giving off an appetizing feeling.


    Finally, he asked Chen Da''en to bring her some fruit, and he also joined the class group and sent a bunch of red envelopes, trying to become familiar. They chatted a bit, and he noticed that she accepted one of his red envelopes and then posted a picture without saying anything. He thought it was about time and should be able to add her on WeChat.


    Ignoring what the person next to him was saying, Li Weijin clicked on "Add Friend" and thought about what to say to make it sound natural and not awkward. But he was surprised to see the prompt: "Due to the other party''s privacy settings, you cannot add them to your contacts via group chat."


    Li Weijin: ...What the hell.

 Chapter 155: Student Union

    Chapter 155


    Sunday was a nice sunny day, and the students were busy like weavers.


    Along the road to Enhua University, there were empty spaces everywhere with all kinds of advertising signs.


    Some were paper signs, some were wooden signs, and some were even electronic screen ads. Seniors were distributing leaflets along the road.


    Looking at the advertising signs made of different materials and the exquisiteness of the leaflets, some leaflets were just a piece of paper, while some were even made like a book introducing the club''s previous activities. Some leaflets were not just leaflets, but also came with flowers and other gifts. Through these differences, you could preliminarily judge the affluence of different clubs.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know why these clubs were so actively recruiting new members.


    Anyway, the four dorm mates went out for a walk and got enough flowers to take back to the dorm and put in a vase.


    The promotional leaflets and brochures were too numerous to look straight at. They had some ideas before going out, but now they almost forgot.


    Xiao Qi had originally planned to join the calligraphy and painting club. She wanted to join one because she was passionate about practicing calligraphy these days. In addition to practicing by herself, she also wanted to see other people''s calligraphy. The calligraphy and painting club not only had students from the school, but also invited some masters from time to time, from the Meng City Calligraphy and Painting Association. Xiao Qi felt she could also learn and improve.


    In addition, she also wanted to join the long distance running club. She was going to participate in the marathon and felt she could practice running with others, and maybe get better results. So when she saw the leaflet of the long distance running club, she took it out very seriously. But the long distance running club looked a little poor. It was just the most rudimentary leaflet, and the sign was just a poster.


    The introduction on the leaflet was also very simple. It said that after the long distance running club recruited new members, there would be a long distance running activity from Enhua University to Duxian Mountain. Duxian Mountain was a well-known mountain in Luoxi Town. There was a temple with heavy incense burning on the mountain. It was said that there was also a natural stone fountain on the mountain, and many people went there with empty bottles to collect the spring water, which could cure all diseases.


    For Enhua University students, this mountain had become a place to watch the sunrise. You needed tickets during the day. Students generally went up the mountain in the evening, then stayed overnight in the temple on the mountain. Some might play cards all night, while others just found a place to crash until sunrise the next morning.


    It seemed unbelievable, but for students, staying up all night didn''t seem to be difficult.


    The devout believers had to go up the mountain at 1 or 2 o¡¯clock in the morning to grab the first pillar of high incense burned in the morning.


    This was all gossip that Chen Mier had passed on to Xiao Qi when the lights were turned off in their dorm at night.


    Running to Duxian Mountain? Xiao Qi didn''t feel it was very attractive. There was no more activity introduction. But it introduced the resume of the club leader, who had run the Meng City Marathon and was in the top 100.


    Xiao Qi was not planning to join other clubs, worrying that she would not have enough time.


    The most popular seemed to be the Golf Club and the Equestrian Club. These two clubs had electronic large screens to showcase the handsome golfers and the handsome riders. But while there were many onlookers at these two clubs, there were few people actually joining because their requirements were also very high.


    As clubs of the school, they actually charged fees for recruitment, while other clubs were shouting to attract people, introducing all kinds of benefits of joining the club. But to join these two clubs, the basic fee was 2,000 yuan.


    This basic fee barred most people outside.


    Although they were attending a private university, not everyone was an aristocrat. Most students came from ordinary families. The over 10,000 yuan tuition was expensive, but applying for a student loan could alleviate some of the pressure. Families slightly better off could take out that much. But the living expenses were still the same.


    So there were few who could casually take out a few thousand to participate in club activities.


    Although few in number, there were actually people joining.


    Xiao Qi saw that beautiful girl with long hair to her waist, Wu Xinyue, actually paid the money and joined the Golf Club.


    With each of the four dorm mates signed up for their desired clubs, the student council recruitment was in the afternoon.


    The student council was more complicated. Do well and you would become a leader. Not well and you would run errands every day.


    Only Chen Mier in Xiao Qi¡¯s dorm was interested. Gu Yunshu didn¡¯t like crowds. Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng felt they were too busy and didn¡¯t have time, so only Chen Mier went.


    They split up in the afternoon.


    Xiao Qi went to the library. Gu Yunshu was on her computer in the dorm. Chen Mier went to sign up for the student council. Wei Cheng said she had something to do and went out.


    The library was exceptionally quiet on the weekend afternoon.


    Xiao Qi picked a place by the lake and sat down by the window. Classes would begin tomorrow and she was quite excited. She took her textbooks for the courses tomorrow, preparing to preview.


    After previewing, she was going to find some books about makeup as well as an introduction to Marxism basic theory, linking and integrating them together.


    Originally having an advantage, she should study and apply her advantages more.


    Time thus disappeared in the splashing waves on the lakeside.


    The high sun also slowly hung from the sky to the horizon, as if it had fallen into the middle of the lake.


    Xiao Qi kept reading, occasionally standing up to stretch.


    Not until the phone rang did she realize the outside light had somewhat darkened.


    Looking at her phone, she did not expect the call to be from Wei Cheng.


    Roommate Wei Cheng was the most worry-free in the dormitory, basically serving others everywhere, without bothering others at all.


    Xiao Qi walked to the window to answer the call and softly asked what was going on?


    "Xiao Qi, are you in the library? I''m downstairs of the library. Want to go back together?" Wei Cheng carefully asked on the phone.


    "Okay, wait for me. I¡¯ll pack up and come right away. Let¡¯s meet at the library entrance," Xiao Qi also felt hungry.


    After packing up her bag, she went downstairs and saw Wei Cheng pacing back and forth at the library entrance, looking somewhat excited and nervous.


    "Were you in the library too? I was on the second floor."


    "No, I came back from the new area. I thought you were in the library, so I asked if we could go back together."


    Xiao Qi nodded, without asking what Wei Cheng was doing in the new area, but after walking a while, Wei Cheng couldn''t help but open her mouth, "Xiao Qi, this morning I saw the club recruitment, the Equestrian Club has work-study contents, like washing horses and stables for two hundred dollars each time. This afternoon I went to ask about it. I even went in to see. The stables weren''t very dirty. The horses were a bit fierce, but I washed cows at home before. I want to apply. They need two people. Are you willing to go with me?"


    After speaking, Wei Cheng looked at Xiao Qi somewhat apprehensively. Living together in the dormitory for so long, she still hadn''t figured out whether Xiao Qi had money or not. Xiao Qi used pretty good computers and phones, and her temperament was also very good, but she seemed quite thrifty usually, without using any luxury goods, except an Armani lipstick she said was given by her teacher. Her bag was handmade by her father. When eating, she didn''t waste either. Usually she wouldn''t spend money randomly.


    Also, Xiao Qi was one of the roommates who understood her most. In some small details, she could feel it. So when such a good opportunity came up, she still wanted to pull Xiao Qi to go together.

 Chapter 156: Preparing for Class

    Chapter 156


    The setting sun casts long shadows of the two of them.


    Wei Cheng was happy to hear Xiao Qi agree to go with her. Her 5''7" frame was bouncing about happily.


    "Let''s go together at first. Once we''ve learned the ropes, we can take turns going," Wei Cheng said with a smile. Her single eyelids narrowed into slits, making her look even smaller, but still cheerful and infectious.


    "It''s $200 a visit, so going three times a week is $600. If we go every week, that covers a month''s living expenses. I''ve looked around, and this seems like the highest paying part time job for students. There''s also a cafe on campus looking to hire servers with pretty good pay, but I''d rather serve animals than people. Animals are simpler than complex humans."


    Xiao Qi had agreed to go together because she wanted to practice driving near the new campus, which wasn''t far. She was also quite interested in the horses they saw the other day. That little horse had touched her heart.


    She didn''t expect Wei Cheng to say serving animals was better than serving people. Crude but true.


    On the way over they messaged their roommates about dinner. Chen Mier excitedly replied that she had joined the student council and they were having dinner tonight. Gu Yunshu was reading novels in the dorm and didn''t want to come out, asking them to get takeout.


    So Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng went to the cafeteria. You can order good food there, and it''s cheaper than the restaurants off campus and cleaner too. Wei Cheng preferred the cafeteria.


    The portions at the cafeteria were huge. Don''t just pick at the meat, eat until full for cheap.


    After they ate, they got takeout for Yunshu and some fruit. She liked fresh fruit and fancier things.


    When Xiao Qi got back to the dorm, she practiced writing for a bit, then went for a run.


    The key to distance running was perseverance. Skip one day and you''d feel lazy the next day. Skip two days and you basically won''t want to move on the third day. Xiao Qi was alright thanks to the system''s natural motivation. She had also consciously increased her training lately, like doing sets of TOEFL after SETs of CETs. The CETs felt easy after the TOEFLs.


    It was the same with running. At first even 10,000 steps a day was exhausting. Now 30,000 steps was nothing. 10,000 steps felt like child''s play in comparison.


    Xiao Qi really liked the environment at Enhua University. Spacious, quiet, separate dorm areas for males and females with the male dorms in a completely different zone. No disruptions when exercising.


    After finishing today''s 30,000 steps, she ran two more laps. She felt more tired than usual but her heart rate remained steady instead of racing too fast.


    With swimming experience under her belt, Xiao Qi also looked up running videos to learn techniques. Besides building stamina, there were skills to running faster or breaking records, like breathing, leg thrust, and movement. She ran while recalling the videos, correcting her mistakes.


    Xiao Qi studied with headphones on, undisturbed by her surroundings. With other people around, she was even more efficient, driven by the sense of urgency from seeing others fool around.


    Wei Cheng also came to preview books. Gu Yunshu was absorbed in a good novel she''d found this afternoon.


    It wasn''t until 8:30 that Chen Mier came back, smelling of barbecue. She''d probably gone to eat barbecue. Xiao Qi''s keen sense of smell found the aroma too strong.


    Chen Mier snuck in and saw her deskmate studying. She whispered, "I''m just stopping by to take a look. Keep going, I''m going back to shower. So tired." Then she trotted off again.


    There was a break during mandatory study hall. Wei Cheng came over to discuss with Xiao Qi, "Let''s go report to the stables after English class tomorrow since we''ll be near the new district and get out early."


    Xiao Qi nodded in agreement.


    By the end of study hall, she had finished an English set and reviewed tomorrow''s English lesson again, completing all the exercises. She felt Academic English Reading and Writing didn''t seem difficult, possibly because they had just started. It was quite simple.


    Language learning was always easy to hard. Like Japanese - the Fifty Syllabic Chart seemed so simple at first, giving the illusion of fluency. Then upon further study, the complexity emerged - grammar, context, uppercase and lowercase letters, etc. Memorization was the safest bet.


    Some of the academic English vocabulary Xiao Qi had memorized before, overlapping with New Concept English, making it feel like cheating and very quick to learn.


    She rewrote and organized the Japanese vocabulary learned this week. She had searched but the school cafes were about the same as the one in the new district so she didn''t sign up. There were Japanese electives in the English department she could try to audit. Teachers who taught students must have superb skills.


    People started leaving the classroom around 9, before the end of study hall. Her roommates came to get Xiao Qi and she left with them.


    Back at the dorm, it smelled pleasantly of Chen Mier''s shower gel and shampoo, from Sephora.


    Seeing her deskmate return, Chen Mier eagerly rushed over as if to fling herself into Xiao Qi''s arms, only to be blocked by a book Xiao Qi held up.


    Chen Mier didn''t care, still smiling and said: "I became a student union executive, maybe I''ll be in charge of checking the dorms in our building in the future, so if you guys need anything, you can sneakily bribe me first."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    The student union really seems complicated, Mier who had just gone for half a day, already knew how to take advantage of a little power.

 Chapter 157: The First Class

    Chapter 157


    September 9th, Monday, sunny day.


    Very early in the morning, the sunlight had already shone on the flowers in the vase on Yunshu''s table.


    Xiao Qi had already practiced writing characters for an hour.


    She called her mom yesterday. Xiao Qi seemed to have endless energy. She just wanted to study well and study hard. She wished she could graduate and start working soon to let her parents stop worrying. Of course that was impossible, so she could only try harder.


    On the first day of school, Xiao Qi dressed very neatly - jeans, white T-shirt, also bought last Saturday, very simple, super cheap for the jeans and T-shirt set, only 60 yuan in total. The Meng City mall really deserved to be in a big city. Not only were things cheap, but quality was also good. The clothes had been crumpled by her roommate Mier from a family running a clothing factory for a long time. Mier had scrutinized all kinds of threads and pulled hard on the clothes for a long time. Xiao Qi had also pulled hard. The pants were perfectly fine without any issues. The buttons and seams were solid. There was elasticity. The T-shirt was also thick instead of thin and cool. It also had some shape. Anyway, Xiao Qi felt quite comfortable wearing this set. It was simple. Matched with sneakers and a schoolbag. Her hair had grown a bit longer with bangs in the front. She tied a small puff with a colored hair band, which was the most eye-catching color on her. Upstodatee from


    Her watch was a sporty Casio, very lively.


    Her schoolbag was made of old denim cloth, but retro style was popular now so it still looked nice.


    Xiao Qi packed up very neatly. Ever since getting the system, she did things more efficiently, when she used to lose things all the time. Now she had unconsciously corrected this bad habit.


    But her roommate Chen Mier in the dorm couldn''t. She had already started screaming early in the morning.


    Because her alarm clock had rang three times but failed to wake her up. Now getting up was a mess with her running around throwing things. She still wanted to put on makeup but apparently there was no time for that. And she ate barbecue last night. The seasoning was probably too heavy and salty. She had kept getting up at night to drink water. Now her eyelids were swollen.


    Gu Yunshu and Wei Cheng had gotten dressed and were ready, Gu Yunshu always slowly without rushing, she kept reading her novel.


    Wei Cheng was nervous flipping through her books. It was the first day of class and she was a bit agitated.


    They didn''t leave the dorm until Chen Mier finally got herself ready.


    When they went out, they happened to run into the three girls from the dorm room across. For some reason, Chu Yu, who had looked upset yesterday, was smiling happily today together with Su Li, seeming to be on good terms. Lin Dongqing was walking behind them alone.


    They were from the dorm across so didn''t know each other well, just nodded and said hi. Then Chen Mier hurriedly pulled everyone to walk away. She had gotten up the latest but was also the most impatient.


    Xiao Qi was dragged away by Chen Mier, holding hands. She saw Wei Cheng also pulling Gu Yunshu by the arm. Xiao Qi thought they were lucky to have four people in the dorm, pairwise, unlike having an odd number where someone would end up alone. She somehow felt girls really needed companions, otherwise it could feel lonely.


    Maybe they hadn''t learned to be alone yet.


    After hurriedly finishing breakfast, the noodle soup was packed to go.


    Xiao Qi found the noodle soup was packed in those milk tea cups with the thick straws. It tasted especially delicious, quite a different flavor.


    They didn''t arrive late to class after rushing through breakfast.


    It quieted down quite a bit once roll call started.


    Teacher Wei read down the list one by one.


    "Su Xiaoqi."


    "Present," Xiao Qi raised her hand and saw the teacher nod at her.


    Xiao Qi smiled.


    Having been a teacher, she knew they could easily tell students'' attentiveness from experience. The teacher nodding at her probably meant encouragement.


    She had paid attention and taken notes at the key points.


    However, when the English teacher called out Su Xiaoqi, Li Weijin, who had been sleeping head down in the last row finally looked up.


    Peering over the ocean of heads, all he could see was a slender, fair arm raised.


    Li Weijin needed to take the IELTS but really disliked English, particularly this teacher''s lesson content today as a total sleeping pill.


    By the time roll call finished, over ten minutes had already passed for the period. Teacher Wei resumed teaching. Wails could be heard below since the students figured out in one period that the English teacher had an easygoing temper, completely ignoring them acting noisy.


    The teacher kept teaching, drinking from his insulated water bottle twice, basically ignoring the students'' ruckus, seemingly immersed in his own world.


    Xiao Qi discovered that although this teacher was just reading from the lesson plan, his lesson plans were made very detailed. After previewing them, she could feel that many knowledge points were spoken about by the teacher one by one without any omissions.


    After class, Teacher Wei stood up and said, "Those who need lesson plans can come directly to me to get them."


    Xiao Qi felt the teacher''s lesson plans were well done, but since she had her own listening and note taking records from class, she didn''t need them. However, Chu Yu from the dormitory across from hers, who was said to be in poor health, went up to ask the teacher for a copy of the lesson plans, like a very serious and studious student. She even went out with the teacher afterwards, all smiles and exceptionally sweet and sunny.


    If she hadn''t seen her blackfaced appearance in the dormitory, one would have thought she was a particularly sunny person.


    In the meantime, their class teacher came in again to notify that there would be a class meeting during the evening self-study session to elect the class committee members, and absence was not allowed.


    The next class was Management Information Systems, with a longer break in between.


    By the time the next class was about to start, Xiao Qi had already received new gossip from Mi''er.


    "Our English teacher Teacher Wei isn''t even a teacher from our school. He''s externally hired, which means he just comes to give part time lectures. Our school must pay him handsomely for Teacher Wei to actually be from Qingmeng University. Ah, a teacher from Qingmeng University is even teaching us! However I felt what he taught was too academic and dull, I actually wanted to fall asleep three times during class."


    Xiao Qi: ......

 Chapter 158: A Different Class Experience

    Chapter 158


    Management Information System was a thick book, as big as an A4 paper, thicker than a finger joint, Xiao Qi finished reading it last night during self-study, and left it directly in the classroom without taking it back.


    It wasn''t that she was afraid it was too heavy, but rather her schoolbag couldn''t fit it in, it was about the size of a notebook.


    University students don''t seem to like carrying schoolbags, students like Xiao Qi who properly carried schoolbags were rare.


    When the bell for the second class rang, in came a fat man, also relatively old, definitely older than Teacher Wei who just left.


    He was dressed rather casually, slippers, shorts, large T-shirt, he seemed to dislike heat a lot, came in wiping the sweat on his forehead with a tissue.


    The teacher had a very high forehead, probably because he was a little bald, as soon as he came in and spoke, the class burst out laughing.


    "My surname is Bie, you guys can call me Teacher Bie."


    He wrote a big "Bai" on the blackboard...


    Teacher Bai had a heavy accent, after sitting down, he didn''t start teaching directly like the English teacher, but chatted with everyone first, the whole classroom burst into cheerful laughter.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help laughing too, this Teacher Bai was so humorous, matched with his fat figure, and exceptionally agile actions, he said he was from Beihu Province.


    "I don''t know if you guys have adapted to the school after enrolling, I had a really hard time adapting when I first came, one serving of fries was enough for one bite for me, we eat potato shreds in Beihu, a large plate, and the noodles here are so small, I can eat several bowls and still not be full, the hot dry noodles we have, I reckon would take several people here to finish..."


    "The aroma of hot dry noodles, dipping sauce, sesame, a bowl of hot dry noodles, a bowl of spicy soup in the morning, heavenly."


    As Teacher Bai spoke, he seemed to even swallow his saliva, it was about time for lunch, and not few students were hungry, their stomachs growled from his description.


    He chatted about local customs from different places.


    Unknowingly, it shortened the distance between them, making them feel Teacher Bai was one of them.


    He chatted for most of the class, leaving less than 10 minutes, then let everyone open their books.


    After everyone sat down, it was a little noisy, each table had earphones, Xiao Qi curiously picked them up to try, no sound came out.


    When the bell for class rang, Teacher Betty finally appeared, the entire classroom quieted down as soon as she appeared.


    Perhaps most students in the class were like Xiao Qi, never having the experience of being taught by a foreign teacher before.


    Betty had blonde hair, standing at the lectern she started smiling, very pretty when smiling, probably not very old, because foreigners generally looked mature, Betty wore a floral dress ending at the knees, with a handmade rope belt around her waist, she had a great figure, very full bosom, probably the only one in the class who could compare with Betty''s chest was Xiao Qi''s deskmate Honey, but Betty''s chest was probably even bigger, because although her dress had a round neckline, it also had a V-cut at the chest, appearing plump and looming.


    Not only were the girls curious and looking over the teacher, the boys in the back were even more excited.


    Such a voluptuous blonde, young foreign teacher probably had an even bigger impact on the testosterone-filled freshmen, some boys even whistled.


    Betty didn''t know Chinese, started with English as soon as she came in, but still said "Hello" when greeting them.


    Everyone felt very amiable.


    Xiao Qi also felt very happy, especially since the teacher didn''t know Chinese, teaching entirely in English, even if nothing was taught, like the fat man Teacher Bai in the morning, just chatting, their English would improve greatly in this environment.


    In this setting, everyone could only speak English, even if it was clumsy and poor, they dared to speak boldly.


    When class officially started, Xiao Qi discovered that not only was Betty beautiful, she was also very professional, her English was very pleasant to listen to, she taught very comprehensibly and accessibly, not difficult at all, the English Xiao Qi learned was still largely exam-oriented English in China, but in front of Betty, she just wanted to speak.


    Moreover, Xiao Qi noticed her deskmate Honey had very good linguistic sense, although she made some mistakes, she was very bold and dared to speak. Xiao Qi originally still felt rather proud, having crammed on English the whole summer, feeling her English was pretty good, only now discovering that there were things to learn from the people around her. She had the language sense, but was far from having Honey''s bold spirit of daring to speak and not fearing mistakes, the more you speak, the better you get.


    Xiao Qi was very active in this class, and was still a little reluctant to leave when school was over. Fortunately, she had a helpful deskmate who was the first to rush up and add the teacher on WeChat. Miele also brought her along to add the teacher too.


    Xiao Qi also praised the teacher for having very beautiful shoes and hair.


    Betty generously smiled and said, "My hair is dyed. I''m actually golden brown. You''re a pretty girl, like a black-haired angel."


    She had wanted to compliment the teacher, but instead was praised by the teacher, and Xiao Qi''s face turned red.

 Chapter 159: Working People Look Best

    Chapter 159


    After class, Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng, Honey and Yun Book, the four roommates in the dormitory went their separate ways.


    Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng went to the new district racetrack, while Honey and Yun Book went back to the old district.


    Honey wanted to go to the student union to sign in, looking like an enthusiastic student union member.


    After getting along for more than a week, I realized that the most introverted of the roommates was actually the rich second generation Gu Yun Book. She loved to stay in the dormitory whenever she could instead of going out. She really liked reading novels. When reading novels, her emotions were very rich. She would often cry along with the plot of the book. She would also often grin by herself uncontrollably.


    After school, in addition to Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng, some students also went to the new district. The experimental building was close to the new district, and most new students were very free and had no goals, so there were many people wandering around.


    The two boys in front of Xiao Qi''s desk also went to the new district, and they ran into each other on the road.


    Maybe because Xiao Qi didn''t look like a very good conversation partner, her military training performance was outstanding, and she was also very serious in class, giving people the feeling that she was very good at studying, but she was not the bookworm type either. There was always an inaccessible feeling about her. Xiao Qi actually felt that it was the aftereffect of the unapproachable buff. Anyway, as long as she kept a serious face, she could avoid a lot of unnecessary socializing. Otherwise, it would be tiring to make small talk.


    Now the two boys in front of Xiao Qi were chatting with Wei Cheng all the way. Wei Cheng was honest and would not reject people. When others asked her questions, she would always purse her lips and smile obediently to answer.


    However, she did not mention the matter of going to the racetrack to work, probably because the matter was not finalized yet, and she had called Xiao Qi to go with her, so it was not just her own business. So when asked what she was going to do in the new district, she just smiled silly.


    Xiao Qi discovered that Wei Cheng''s silly smile was also very powerful. Recalling that sometimes when she didn''t want to talk about something in the dormitory, she would just smile foolishly. It seemed that everyone didn''t notice it and just felt that Wei Cheng was very honest and couldn''t help taking care of her more.


    A few people parted ways on the student street. Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng arrived at the racetrack. Wei Cheng had been here before and took Xiao Qi through the iron gate.


    There was an uncle guard at the iron gate. Seeing the two young girls, his attitude was quite good. He took them to the horse stable.


    The horse stable turned out to be a very long rectangular building. From a distance, Xiao Qi thought it was an employee dormitory or something. Only after walking in did she discover a different world inside.


    "The boss originally said that the jockeys had to clean the stables themselves. Those young bosses were very excited the first two days, and cleaned up once or twice, but then they stopped coming," said Old Man Yu. "I usually clean up a bit, but there were a few more horses this semester, which was not easy to handle. Today, just follow me and do it first. The work is not hard, just tedious, and not very clean. You are students, right? My surname is Yu. Just call me Old Yu."


    Of course, Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng would not call the other party like that. In the village, the elderly, regardless of whether they were relatives or not, should be called uncle according to their age.


    The stable was empty and very new now, built very professionally. Old Man Yu gave each of the two girls a raincoat-like jacket and told them to put it on.


    While chattering, he said, "It''s the boss''s rules."


    Wei Cheng wore a blue plastic jacket and Xiao Qi took a yellow plastic jacket, with matching colored plastic rain boots.


    Then there were tools, carts, forks, shovels, brooms.


    Xiao Qi had seen her parents clean pig pens at home, but it was not so complicated. Cleaning the pigsty in the countryside was just shoveling away the pig manure and garbage, then sweeping it clean, washing it clean with water, drying it, and then driving the pigs back in.


    When cleaning, they also had to clean the top and bottom corners of the stable to prevent spiderwebs and the like. So I also had to wear a hat. It was a little stuffy in the stable, and it was actually sweating all over after working. After coming out, Xiao Qi took off her hat, revealing her little hair buns, and continued to follow Old Man Yu to push the cart.


    After walking a good distance, they finally dumped the trash in the cart.


    It was much easier on the way back.


    By the time Xiao Qi came back, there was no sight of Wu Xinyue near the runway, but there really were people riding horses, galloping past them, as if a gust of wind blew from beside them, making Xiao Qi''s plastic clothes rustle.


    When Xiao Qi returned, she saw that Wei Cheng was checking and cleaning the corners and bottom of the stable as required by Old Man Yu, sweeping away spiderwebs and trash from the corners that had quite a bit, indicating that Old Man Yu didn''t clean so carefully himself on ordinary days.


    Then the three poured the clean padding back into the stable together, covering three-quarters of the area, before moving the water basin, material basin, toys and the like back in again.


    "There are also tricks to laying the padding. You can lay it a little higher near the wall and lower in the middle. This stable has a rubber mat laid inside, so just this much padding is fine without needing too much. If it was a cement floor, it would need to be laid thicker," said Old Man Yu.


    Old Man Yu was quite satisfied with the two young girls who had come to work. He could see they were hardworking people. Some other students had come to try out before, but they had shrieked at the idea of mucking out horse stalls. Really! These university students were too delicate. These two girls were good though.


    They worked carefully, unafraid of dirtiness or laziness, and they were strong too.


    Old Man Yu told them to keep sweeping while he went to find the person in charge.


    When Old Man Yu came back, he saw that the two girls were working briskly and had already cleaned out each of the horse stalls, not trying to cut corners while he was away. Nodding in satisfaction, Old Man Yu was quite pleased.


    The few teenage boys following behind Old Man Yu had surprise on their faces though.


    Old Man Yu had said there were some students coming to interview who were doing a good job. Usually cleaning the horse stalls was the stablehands'' own work, but they often didn''t want to do it after a try or two, which was why they wanted to hire someone. The boys hadn''t expected it to be two girls. This work required some strength, which they themselves even found tiring. They''d assumed it would be male students. But now Old Man Yu was saying the girls were doing a good job and told the boys to inspect their work.


    Upon entering, they saw two girls, one in blue and one in yellow, working up a sweat on their foreheads as they labored. Both had smiles of joy on their faces and were chatting happily.


    The boy walking in front, Xiao Shengzhou, was the person in charge of the stables. He also had another identity - he was the student council president. But he rarely made appearances, with the vice presidents handling student council affairs while he devoted himself to horse riding. On a whim, he and his friends had set up this stable, and he had casually established an equestrian club too. The club membership was pathetically low, really just himself and his friends playing around.


    Xiao Shengzhou had a broad forehead and angular features, looking imposing and dignified unlike the pretty boys currently in fashion.


    Behind him, a few of the other boys were giggling. Among them was Li Weijin, who had come along to play because his friend had called him out. The other day, he had tried unsuccessfully to add that girl on WeChat. But he hadn''t been too persistent about it. Since the add request failed, he had basically forgotten about it and moved on.


    He was good-looking and came from a wealthy family, constantly fawned over since childhood. It was rare for him to take the initiative to pursue someone, especially given the group of fools surrounding him. Just look at Li Taiping - today he had brought that college girl to the stables again. Clearly this was a stable, yet she had worn a skirt totally unsuitable for horse riding. No doubt they had gone off to the lake to take pretentiously elegant photos to plaster all over WeChat Moments.


    But Li Weijin hadn''t expected to see a girl from his class here - Xiao Qi.


    She was prancing around the stable in her skirt, hair streaming behind her. The sight of her hadn''t made Li Weijin''s heart stir. But looking now at the girl in front of him wielding a broom, face flushed red from exertion, flashing a bright smile as she chatted, teeth gleaming white - Li Weijin felt his heartbeat accelerate rapidly as if trampled by galloping hooves - thump thump, thump thump - like a burst pipe going drip drip drip.

 Chapter 160: Horse Affinity

    Chapter 160


    Xiao Qi felt that working with Wei Cheng was quite nice. The two of them worked well together and it didn''t feel tiring.


    Wei Cheng was willing to put in effort and wasn''t afraid of getting dirty. She was also tall, strong and sturdy, even more efficient at working than some boys. After cleaning out the garbage together once, they took turns going out to clean out the horse manure and waste.


    The work went quickly.


    Wei Cheng was also very grateful that she had called out to Xiao Qi to come help. Xiao Qi looked delicate but actually had a lot of strength and didn''t cut corners when working. She had actually prepared herself that later she would do more and let Xiao Qi do a bit less, but she didn''t expect that when actually working, it turned out that she relied on Xiao Qi''s help.


    When she saw someone arrive, Wei Cheng instinctively lowered her head. She was a bit shy.


    It was fine working in front of Old Man Yu, but when she saw it was a group of male students who were probably around the same age as students, Wei Cheng became nervous.


    Xiao Qi was also blankly stunned, but it wasn''t because she was shy or nervous. Rather, the mechanical sound in her mind rang out again.


    "Host cleans the horse barn, not afraid of hardship or tiredness, sweating while working, giving classmates the most beautiful and positive impression of laborers, spreading positive social energy. Reward host with +1 horse affinity. Hosts with horse affinity are most easily seen by horses as part of the herd and can sense basic horse emotions of happiness, anger, sorrow and joy."


    Every time, the system''s reasons for giving rewards and the actual rewards given left Xiao Qi at a bit of a loss over what to do.


    What was the most beautiful laborer? Giving what classmates a positive impression?


    Horse affinity that can understand them is one thing, but being most easily seen by horses as part of the herd was just bizarre.


    Xiao Qi blanked out for a while, and when she raised her head to look at the horse barn again, she unexpectedly felt that the horse barn she and Wei Cheng had cleaned seemed comfortable and clean, and looked rather cozy. She especially wanted to just roll around on those neatly laid out pads...


    Stop stop.


    Xiao Qi hurriedly stopped herself from having that frightening idea, and followed Wei Cheng back outside.


    Old Man Yu introduced the people who had arrived.


    Xiao Sheng Zhou, the owner of the horse farm.


    Wei Cheng and Xiao Qi were new students and also hadn''t joined the student union, so they didn''t know anything about him.


    It was said that all the past presidents of the Enhua University Student Union were extremely outstanding, and after graduating they all had great career developments, easily securing sponsorships for the school in sums of millions.


    Xiao Qi copied Wei Cheng in politely smiling blankly.


    Especially during the military training closing ceremony performance on the last day. Their two platoons were combined, with Xiao Qi holding up the banner for the business management platoon while she held up the banner for their English program platoon. In the end her platoon didn''t get any honors while afterwards there were actually people complaining to her that she didn''t pay attention while marching and went the wrong way, leading their whole platoon to march incorrectly. Then they actually compared her to Su Xiao Qi, saying the business management banner holder marched very well and led everyone to march properly.


    So when Wu Xinyue saw her now, she immediately recognized her.


    However she didn''t go up to greet them, only went outside after finishing touching up her makeup.


    She casually asked Li Taiping about them as if she wasn''t too interested.


    When Li Taiping heard Old Man Yu''s name and that they were students coming to do work-study cleaning up the horse barns, he smiled and said, "Oh, then they''re probably students coming to do work-study, cleaning up the horse barns and grooming the horses. Why do you ask about them? Do you recognize them?"


    "No." Wu Xinyue shook her head, pulling at Li Taiping''s sleeve. "Let''s go out, I feel a bit stifled in here. That Taylor horse was so fierce earlier, can we switch to a different horse?"


    Li Taiping felt several jin lighter when his sleeve got pulled at. And seeing the beautiful girl in front of him acting cute and trying to get her way,


    "Taylor is already the one with the best temper. Fine, let me go ask again if there are any other horses."


    The two of them walked out together.


    Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng meanwhile took the money over here and also got keycards that allowed them to enter directly through the main entrance in the future instead of having to go around Student Street and cut through the new school district. Old Man Yu also gave each girl a portion of the pastries sent over every day to the club lounge that would just be thrown out if not eaten by end of day.


    He knew students coming to do work-study must have average family conditions at best, while these snacks were sent over everyday and tossed if uneaten by end of that day when new ones arrived.


    He was old himself and couldn''t eat too many sweet things, so he gave them to Wei Cheng and Xiao Qi, a large packet for each girl. Although from yesterday, they were still pretty fresh with some being sold for days in stores without going bad.


    Wei Cheng was very happy as she could save money on snacks and desserts now. Girls seemed to universally love snacks.


    And usually she would eat what Miao''er shared the most in the dorms. Miao''er liked desserts, and these looked great to bring back for her.


    After Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng left the horse farm, they went to eat in the new district cafeteria. Wei Cheng usually preferred eating in the cafeteria.


    They had to hurry back after the meal because there was dormitory self-study that night as well as a class meeting. So the two girls rushed to catch the school shuttle bus back.


    Arriving at the dorms, both showered very quickly combat style.


    The weather was very hot. The skirt that Xiao Qi had brought was barely worn, and it would be a waste to just leave it there, so she wore the white dress that her aunt had bought her that evening. There were pink gauzy ribbons tied at the waistband, and autumn nights in the alliance market were still very hot, especially at night. Wearing a dress with bare legs was actually very comfortable.


    Wei Cheng still wore that new white dress she had bought. She really liked it and was very careful when washing and drying it.


    The two of them came back late. Mei Er and Gu Yunshu had already gone to class ahead of them, so the two girls went afterwards.

 Chapter 161: Class Selection Committee

    Chapter 161


    On the first day of class, for the class meeting, everyone still gave face and came quite complete.


    When Wei Cheng and Su Xiaoqi arrived, the head teacher was already in front of the podium.


    However, the head teacher seemed quite short. Standing in front of the podium, only one head poked out. Judging by height, at most 1.5 meters tall, short hair, dressing also relatively casual, an old white T-shirt plus jeans.


    The white T-shirt was obviously quite old, the sleeves were a bit rolled up, and it was a little yellowish under the armpits.


    Relatively unkempt, the age didn''t seem much older either.


    Su Xiaoqi hadn''t even seen the head teacher when she came in. She first saw Chu Yu from the dormitory opposite, who was said to have poor health. Chu Yu was chatting enthusiastically with the teacher in front of the podium. Su Xiaoqi first saw Chu Yu and then the head teacher.


    After sitting down in her seat, her deskmate Chen Mier asked excitedly: "Was the horse farm fun? How did you guys do?"


    Then she leaned in to smell Su Xiaoqi and breathed a sigh of relief, "Good, good, still a fragrant deskmate."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    The horse barn did have some smell, not very pleasant. She had a rather keen sense of smell. During work she tried her best to block her sense of smell. Next time going to work she''d have to prepare clothes.


    "Next time I''ll bring you and have you specifically be in charge of mucking the horse manure since you have great strength." Su Xiaoqi said seriously.


    Chen Mier quickly shook her head: "I can''t do that."


    As she shook, her chest shook along.


    Today she wore a floral shirt with denim shorts. Her legs were slender and still looked good, but her upper body was still a little full. She chose a floral shirt thinking the colorful pattern would draw attention away from her huge chest, but this kind of concealment was quite conspicuous.


    Like the foreign teacher Betty, who was very open¡ªV-neck, with all the boys in class yelling.


    Su Xiaoqi''s gaze fell on her deskmate''s large chest, then looked down at herself. Even with a bra on she was flat, the slightly protruding part was probably thanks to the bra padding...


    The two chatted and laughed for a while, then the evening self-study bell rang.


    Speaking softly and weakly. She dressed very neatly and cleanly, not aggressive at all, a very gentle style. Spoke very coherently and talked for a long time, about her strengths like singing, guitar, having learned dance before, and so on... Seemed quite popular among the male students in class, thunderous applause.


    Su Xiaoqi hadn''t thought it concerned her at first, but then her deskmate Chen Mier pushed her up, "You''re definitely the academic committee member, go on up."


    With all eyes on her, Su Xiaoqi still wasn''t used to it and her face flushed red.


    She glanced down at her grinning mischievously deskmate.


    Chen Mier put her palms together pleadingly, laughing exaggeratedly as if at death''s door.


    Afterwards she even lifted her own clothes, vexedly saying, "My skin''s dark and I clot easily, you pinched me so hard yet didn''t leave a mark. Unfair, I have a cousin who''s especially fair. I''ve barely touched her and she bruised purple. My mom says I naturally lose out with this skin."


    Su Xiaoqi was amused by her deskmate and ignored her, continuing to recite Japanese vocabulary.


    After a round of candidates went up, voting began.


    Unsurprisingly, Cai Yu was class monitor and that other Alliance City girl Yue Lai became vice class monitor.


    The two had very prominent temperaments, clearly big city people.


    Chen Daen got his wish as publicity committee member. And assisting him as vice publicity committee member was unexpectedly Lin Dongqing, the only girl in class with dyed yellow hair.


    As for Chu Yu, she didn''t get voted in as publicity committee member. Instead she became labor committee member, with the vice labor committee member being the male student in front of Su Xiaoqi, Chen Mier''s fellow townsman Chen Hanhe.


    Su Xiaoqi became academic committee member...with especially high votes. The vice academic committee member was a male student, tall and refined looking. Wearing glasses with quite a strong prescription, occasionally pushing his glasses higher, very scholarly like Mao Wenshu before him. Surname Mao, given name Wenshu, the name was also very scholarly.


    In the end, that Li Weijin unexpectedly became the PE committee member.


    Su Xiaoqi had thought prep students like him wouldn''t participate in class activities.


    Because they didn''t show up for military training.


    But then Su Li unexpectedly became vice PE committee member...


    The class committee was one monitor and vice monitor each, male and female paired up. The head teacher boldly said, "Men and women paired up aren''t as tired doing work. Others can freely take part. Class committee stay for the meeting."

 Chapter 162: Adding wechat

    Chapter 162


    Yan Ruyu, the homeroom teacher, is incredibly efficient. She finished selecting all the class committee members just as evening self-study was coming to an end, without any delays.


    There were exactly ten class committee members left.


    Five boys and five girls.


    Among the ten individuals, Xiaoqi noticed that the female committee members were all quite attractive. It seems people''s first impression of girls begins with their appearance.


    The ones who were selected are all quite good-looking...


    The vice class monitor, Yue Lai, is tall and elegant, with handsome features and a great figure. He dresses stylishly and has a unique arm bracelet. As Xiaoqi approached him, she noticed the intricate animal pattern on it.


    Surprisingly, all three roommates in Dorm 605 are class committee members.


    Lin Dongqing, there''s no need to mention her. She has eye-catching blonde hair and mixed-race genes. Her facial features are delicate, resembling the female celebrity Chen Hao. She has fair skin, a cute little tiger tooth when she smiles, and a lovely and charming appearance. She''s the kind of girl who is instantly perceived as beautiful.


    Su Li''s appearance doesn''t conform to traditional aesthetics, and she''s relatively petite. However, when she stands among a group of people, she definitely won''t be overlooked. She''s 1.58 meters tall but exudes a presence of someone who is 1.85 meters tall. It seems like she didn''t wear much makeup for the evening, just some bright red lipstick. But the color is vibrant and doesn''t clash with her lips; it actually looks pretty and unique.


    Then there''s Chu Yu. Although she has a somewhat sickly demeanor, her facial features can be described as delicate and refined, though not as striking. She wears a very ladylike cotton and linen skirt and top, giving off a gentle, artistic vibe. She''s probably the type that many boys like.


    However, Xiaoqi can''t help but feel that she''s not as carefree as she appears on the surface. Perhaps it''s because Xiaoqi had a bit of bias against her from the beginning. When she sees Chu Yu, she can''t help but think of the old lady in the village who always took advantage of others under the pretense of being chronically ill.


    Moreover, Chu Yu originally ran for the publicity committee member position, but when she saw that Chen Daen had an exceptionally high number of votes, she immediately gave up and switched to the labor committee member position. She''s very concerned about being the main or vice committee member.


    As for the male class committee members, the class monitor Cai Yu is quite handsome, with a sunny disposition and good taste in fashion.


    The vice academic affairs committee member Mao Wenshu is also pleasant to look at. Although he wears glasses and seems a bit silly, his facial features are symmetrical, and his skin is fair. He looks like the kind of pampered baby from a good family. He wears a checkered shirt and khaki cropped pants. Surprisingly, he even wears long sleeves, and the cuffs are neatly done. His shoes are white sports shoes, exceptionally clean, with white shoelaces. He''s clearly someone who values cleanliness.


    Of course, at first glance, the most good-looking one is the sports committee member Li Weijin. Xiaoqi doesn''t know why he decided to run for class committee. Li Weijin''s attractiveness doesn''t require careful observation. He''s probably just like the hottest popular stars now. Whether he''s slouching or sitting up straight, he immediately catches people''s attention and gives the impression of being exceptionally delicate and beautiful.


    Yes, even though he''s a boy, using the word "beautiful" doesn''t sound out of place at all. Xiaoqi only glanced at him and didn''t dare to look more, feeling a sense of inferiority if she were to stare too long.


    As for the other two boys, the vice labor committee member, Xiaoqi''s former desk mate, Mier''s fellow villager, Chen Hanhe, was thin and had ordinary features, resembling an average person without leaving much of an impression.


    Chen Daen was also thin and dark-skinned, but he had a striking appearance. His way of speaking was unforgettable. Although it had nothing to do with being handsome, he had a great deal of charisma.


    Xiaoqi didn''t really want to add so many friends. She still considered WeChat quite personal, and usually refused friend requests when joining groups because sometimes people would share personal things, making it feel like they were putting themselves on display.


    But since everyone else scanned, Xiaoqi followed suit and scanned too. She didn''t want to stand out.


    In her heart, she thought that classmates like Li Weijin probably just went through the motions and wouldn''t actually accept friend requests.


    She sent a friend request to Li Weijin, with the nickname "Su Xiaoqi."


    She also added Su Li, and Su Li quickly accepted. Looking at Su Li''s Moments (social media feed), it felt like watching a live show of an internet celebrity flaunting wealth. Seriously, luxury cars, mansions, handbags, cosmetics, fashion shows, travel pictures from all over the world... It was eye-opening.


    Xiaoqi genuinely felt that being born into a wealthy family was a skill, truly something entirely different.


    Coming to Enhua University was Xiaoqi''s first time traveling by high-speed rail. She hadn''t even been on a plane before, while Su Li had been to who knows how many countries...


    The homeroom teacher held a brief meeting, and I mean it was really brief. After joining the group, she said that if there was anything important, she would notify them in the group and then left immediately.


    Then the class monitor, Cai Yu, unexpectedly asked everyone to stay a bit longer. He mentioned that tomorrow was Teachers'' Day, and although they were freshmen, they still needed to show some appreciation.


    Xiaoqi hadn''t even thought about this, but as she looked at the class monitor confidently talking, she couldn''t help but admire him. He truly deserved to be the class monitor.


    As she watched the propaganda committee member, Chen Daen, and the labor committee member, Chu Yu, actively brainstorming and giving suggestions, Xiaoqi''s mind wandered off again.


    After a while, her phone vibrated, and it was actually a friend request approval.


    Nanbei Chao??


    There was also a reply from Li Weijin, with a cute cat avatar.


    Xiaoqi was startled.


    She looked up and saw Li Weijin, who was sitting not far away, still lazily sitting there. He seemed to have noticed her gaze and actually looked up and smiled at her.


    Xiaoqi''s heart skipped a beat. Damn, he had such a beautiful smile.


    She quickly and embarrassedly lowered her head.

 Chapter 163: The Curious

    Chapter 163


    Zhang Wuji''s mother said, "My child, when you grow up, you must be cautious of women trying to deceive you. The more attractive they are, the more likely they are to deceive."


    This statement probably applies to boys as well.


    Xiaoqi took a glance but didn''t dare to look any longer. She was too good-looking, even a bit enchanting.


    It was a feeling that could only be admired from afar.


    Xiaoqi had also looked in the mirror before. It wasn''t an exaggeration to say that she was good-looking. Her features were delicate, and there has always been a saying in Gumula Village that beautiful women are born there. Her mother, Shen Juanhua, fully lived up to the title of "Village Flower" in Shangxie Village. Upstodatee from


    Although the village was small, it didn''t mean that the people there were not beautiful enough because of its size. In fact, girls from beautiful mountains and rivers were indeed very attractive.


    In the past, the most beautiful girls who participated in beauty pageants were all naturally discovered from obscure places.


    Xiaoqi was also good-looking. Now she didn''t have to hunch her back and lower her shoulders like she used to. She had gained more confidence.


    But in the face of a boy like Li Weijin, Xiaoqi couldn''t help but feel overshadowed. It was true, comparisons can be hurtful.


    Li Weijin had exquisitely chiseled features like a sculpture by an artist. His temperament was both restrained and relaxed, contradictory yet reasonable.


    Xiaoqi quickly shifted her attention and focused on listening to the class monitor and the deputy class monitor discussing their plan.


    The class fee was included in the tuition, which amounted to a considerable sum of money. In the end, the class monitor Cai Yu and the deputy class monitor Yue Lai decided to send flowers to their subject teachers, with each teacher receiving a bouquet. It was Xiaoqi''s first time participating in such a small-scale event, and she felt it was quite complicated. For example, there was a budget for each bouquet because tomorrow was Teachers'' Day and time was tight. Cai Yu and Yue Lai, who were from Meng City, provided some information about the flower wholesale market. The budget for each bouquet was 100 yuan. There were a total of thirteen main subject teachers, so the budget was 1,300 yuan. This also included expenses for transportation, amounting to 200 yuan, as well as greeting cards, with a budget of 100 yuan. Then they had to arrange for students to deliver the flowers because not all the teachers would have classes tomorrow.


    In short, it was quite novel. Xiaoqi watched as the class monitor wrote down the budget, and Chen Daen volunteered to buy the flowers early tomorrow morning.


    Then they assigned the task of delivering the flowers to all the teachers who had classes tomorrow. As long as they were delivered to the classrooms, it would be fine.


    Fortunately, their English teacher Wei Laoshi had classes tomorrow; otherwise, they wouldn''t know how to deliver the flowers to Qingmeng University.


    With the teacher''s day gift arrangements completed, Xiaoqi''s first meeting as a class committee member came to an end.


    Although it was a small class committee, some things could still be observed, such as who was more active, who was more willing to work, and who was just there to make up the numbers... Xiaoqi felt that she belonged to the latter group.


    Even though she was pushed into this position by her desk mate, she actually appreciated it. Without that push, she would probably miss out on many opportunities. She was always passive and hesitant, which was not good. Many times, she should be proactive and seize opportunities.


    But looking at the background, it appeared to be a dimly lit room with wallpaper that wasn''t smooth.


    The desktop also looked old and worn-out.


    And then... there was a photo of her as the women''s 200-meter swimming champion in Jingnan Province???


    Damn!


    Li Weijin sat up straight.


    He carefully scrolled through her social media page, but there was nothing more. It was followed by pictures of scenery from the mountains and some recent military training photos. The content was scarce.


    He couldn''t help but search on Baidu for information about swimming competitions. He remembered that there was a talented female swimmer in Meng City, who even made it to the national team. She had some distant relatives in his family, which he had heard about before.


    Nowadays, the internet is well developed, and news is readily available.


    He found information about Su Xiaoqi''s awards. Not only that, but he also found videos of her participating in swimming competitions, as well as an interview she did on a talk show in Lvshan City.


    On the television program, Su Xiaoqi gave off an aloof and distant vibe, not just towards herself. Li Weijin felt somewhat relieved by this thought.


    And she participated in the competition for prize money?


    15,000 yuan???


    If he were to ask his mom for 15,000 yuan by acting spoiled, he would feel embarrassed. Yet, Su Xiaoqi became the swimming champion of the entire province for that amount.


    And then she returned to university???


    What''s so good about Enhua University?


    Normally, he hated official reports, but because of Su Xiaoqi''s name, he searched through several pages of content.


    Gumula Village? Such a remote village name. Su Xiaoqi doesn''t seem like someone from a village.


    Li Weijin curiously searched for various random content, and in the end, he found news about seven students from Suzhou skipping classes to go to an internet cafe...


    Li Weijin didn''t know what time it was when he fell asleep with his phone lying next to him, his face flushed.

 Chapter 164: The Scheming Woman

    Chapter 164


    Xiao Qi got up early in the morning and went jogging first.


    The school environment was very good and suitable for morning jogging.


    Moreover, she felt her head was clearer all day after exercise.


    There were only two classes in the morning today, and no classes in the afternoon. Xiao Qi planned to go to the driving school to report to the coach in the afternoon, and then go to the equestrian center for a part-time job.


    In the afternoon, Wei Cheng''s Film Club, Miao''s Student Union, and Yunshu''s Floral Arrangement Club also had meetings, so everyone acted separately.


    Xiao Qi also received text messages that she had been admitted to the Calligraphy and Painting Club and the Long Distance Running Club she had applied for. The Calligraphy and Painting Club directly said there would be an event on Saturday and asked everyone to gather at the Wenchang Pavilion, while the Long Distance Running Club had not notified of any events yet.


    Xiao Qi found that university really would not let people be idle, whether it was academic learning or non-academic learning, there were always things to do.


    After jogging 10,000 steps leisurely in the morning and reciting today''s Japanese vocabulary, Xiao Qi went back and took a shower. Upstodatee from


    Then she went out for breakfast and to class with her dorm mates.


    The teacher for the first class this morning was an old man named Dai. He was really an old man, thin, wearing Chinese-style clothes with crossed collars, not using PowerPoint slides, just the blackboard. The chalk quickly made his clothes dusty.


    In fact, in the large classroom, it was not easy to see the blackboard clearly from the back. But the voice was still good, because he wore a microphone, so the whole class could hear him. But this Teacher Dai also had a strong accent, Xiao Qi didn¡¯t know where he was from. He taught Principles of Accounting.


    Through the gossip channel of her deskmate Miao, Xiao Qi learned that Teacher Dai was a professor from a top domestic university who had retired and was re-employed here.


    Accounting was a very practical new discipline that seemed to be useful in everyday life. Xiao Qi listened very carefully.


    At the end of the class, the teacher assigned homework and simply said to hand it to the study committee.


    Then the vice class monitor Yue Lai went up and personally handed the teacher a bouquet of flowers.


    The accounting teacher nodded slightly and did not smile. He took the flowers and left.


    The second class was Basic Principles of Marxism. Although it hadn''t started yet, Xiao Qi felt she had already reached expert level in this course and was quite looking forward to it. She felt that once she understood it, reading this book would be like getting enlightenment. Before, when she read this book, it was always vague, but now she felt it was very logical.


    Originally she just wanted to give a rough overview, after all they were impetuous freshmen. This course was more political than practical, and was a compulsory course for students. But in the minds of students it was probably useless.


    However, she didn''t expect to get carried away with her lecture. She noticed one girl in particular in the second row who listened very carefully and seemed to understand what she was saying. It was also her questions that prompted her to keep explaining in depth.


    Meanwhile, other students in the class were like: ???


    What is the teacher talking about???


    Why is the study committee member so enthusiastic???


    Li Weijin, who was about to fall asleep, also opened his eyes in curiosity and flipped through the textbook, wondering if he and Xiao Qi had the same book?


    Why did she have so many questions, and the teacher seemed happy to answer them?


    At this moment, Xiao Qi¡¯s dorm mate Chu Yu, who sat in the third row next to her, was flipping through the textbook with her arm propping up her chin.


    In her heart she sneered contemptuously, thinking the study committee member was too much of an attention seeker. She stood out during military training by leading the singing and attracted the instructor''s attention so she could be the class flag holder. And now in class she also put on an act. What was there to be enthusiastic about for a course like Basic Principles of Marxism? Wasn''t it just because the teacher was an adjunct from Qingmeng University? Chu Yu had been paying attention to Xiao Qi for a long time.


    She noticed that Xiao Qi was also very active in Academic English Speaking and Writing. She must have asked around in advance and knew the teacher was from Qingmeng University, so she deliberately curried favor. As if she could get into Qingmeng University by sucking up to their teachers after getting admitted to Enhua.


    Some people are just naturally incompatible. Just as Xiao Qi disliked Chu Yu who always made others work from the beginning, Chu Yu also didn''t like Xiao Qi and thought she was a scheming girl.


    Xiao Qi didn''t think that much. She just didn''t like the sight of Chu Yu and hadn''t interacted with her much.


    After class, without her deskmate''s prompting this time, she took the initiative to find Teacher Mao Xihong and asked for her WeChat and added her.


    This time she said she was the study committee member, and the teacher could contact her directly if needed. She was very magnanimous, and was quite grateful for the convenience of this little student job, otherwise she wouldn''t have had the nerve to say that.


    "Xiao Qi, right? Okay, I''ll contact you on WeChat if I need anything." Mao Xihong''s laughter was very hearty. She quite liked the girl in front of her who was so spirited in class and seemed to understand.


    But Xiao Qi adding her WeChat made Chu Yu roll her eyes again, thinking she was scheming.


    Because on the first day of class, she had gone to ask for the slides from Academic English Teacher Wei, and also asked to add his WeChat, but Teacher Wei didn''t add her...

 Chapter 165: The Bath

    Chapter 165


    Meng City''s autumn climate is always very good, and most days are sunny.


    In the afternoon, Xiao Qi''s roommates in Huashan 606 Dormitory went their separate ways.


    Xiao Qi first took a bus to the New District and went to the driving school to check in. The driving school assigned her a fat, middle-aged male coach with two whiskers under his nose. He looked quite amiable when he smiled. The senior who was processing Xiao Qi''s student card said he was a retired veteran who taught very carefully.


    "You can leave your student card with me and I''ll clock you in. These next few days just focus on studying Stage 1, it''s all theoretical knowledge. You students will definitely pass easily. When you feel like you''ve learned it, you can go online to register for the exam. After passing, come find me to practice driving," Coach Miao said while smoking, the smoke swirling around his dark, tanned face.


    Looking at the petite, fair-skinned young girl beside him, he deliberately kept his voice down, afraid to scare her on their first meeting.


    But when he looked up and saw the students practicing driving, he suddenly shouted loudly: "Chen Zhiyu, are you trying to run over all my flowers? Reversing into the flowerbed, what the hell!"


    The coach''s voice was so loud it made Xiao Qi''s forehead buzz. The student next to them who had reversed into the flowerbed immediately turned off the engine. Xiao Qi saw it was a male student wearing glasses, flustered.


    It was a bit like looking at her own future self, also feeling panicked.


    She watched as the coach got into the car, started it up, and demonstrated reversing again. He was fierce but didn''t seem impatient.


    Only after the coach got out of the car again did Xiao Qi say goodbye to him.


    On her way out, she asked the senior who had processed her student card what clocking in meant.


    "Students need enough in-car practice time with the coach before they can schedule the Stage 2 exam. And each time, they can only clock 30 minutes. Coach Miao is pretty nice, he''ll clock time for you so you don''t have to keep coming back and forth. It''d be such a waste of time since the higher-end driving schools are all downtown," the senior explained.


    "So do I need to give him a gift?" Xiao Qi had asked around before coming to the driving school and heard that gifts were expected.


    Her uncle had also learned to drive. She heard he said you had to give cigarettes, otherwise you''d never get any driving practice. At the school you''d wait a whole day and the coach would only let you drive for half an hour max. But if you gave gifts, the coach would prioritize you and let you practice longer.


    Of course, some driving schools charged higher fees, provided shuttling service, and had scheduled driving practice times so you didn''t have to wait around.


    But after checking, Xiao Qi saw this was the only school near campus that catered to students with lower fees. You really had to just wait your turn, based on what she saw with several students idling by as the coach taught. The higher-end schools were all downtown, each trip would probably take a few hours in transit¡ªthat''d be too much of a waste as well.


    "If you can, just give the coach a pack of cigarettes, nothing too expensive, mid-range is fine. Coach Miao will prioritize your practice time a little, so you wait less. He''s one of the better ones," the senior advised Xiao Qi.


    Having no experience with gifts, Xiao Qi felt this was going to be difficult. She didn''t feel comfortable buying cigarettes, let alone giving them to the coach...


    Maybe get through Stage 1 first, then see, she thought.


    After leaving the driving school, Xiao Qi went to the riding field.


    Since she''d entered from the off-campus student neighborhood, Xiao Qi went straight to Old Man Yu at the metal gates.


    Seeing Xiao Qi arrive, Old Man Yu smiled and said, "Xiao Qi, you''re right on time. The boss said the weather''s good today, time to give the horses a wash. Little Wei isn''t here today?"


    "Good day, Old Man Yu. Wei Cheng had something to do this afternoon, so it''s just me today." Xiao Qi greeted him politely.


    "That works too. Horses are bad tempered when being washed, more people would actually make it tougher to wash," Old Man Yu locked the gates and brought Xiao Qi to the stables. Today they were going to bathe the horses, so when Xiao Qi entered the stables, she saw two horses.


    "Thirsty? Didn''t he drink from the basin?" Old Man Yu muttered and went back to check the stable.


    He had thought the water was all drunk, but upon approaching, he discovered the bottom of the basin had somehow cracked and all the water had leaked out.


    Ji Gu likely kicked it himself. Though tame, Ji Gu was the biggest and strongest horse on the field. The basin was a consumable that could easily be broken by his kick. It was normal.


    Old Man Yu took the broken basin outside and replaced it with a new full one.


    On Xiao Qi''s end, she filled a basin with water and set it in front of Ji Gu, who immediately started drinking.


    What made Xiao Qi want to complain a little was that Ji Gu ignored the tap water and only wanted to drink premium bottled mineral water... He looked so pretentious as Xiao Qi carried over bottles of mineral water to pour into the basin before he deigned to elegantly lower his head to drink...


    It really acted like quite the spoiled pet.


    But also very cute.


    As Ji Gu drank, Xiao Qi couldn''t help scratching his head. He was clearly parched and paid her no mind, allowing Xiao Qi''s hand to scratch him.


    After downing nearly half the basin in one go, he lifted his head, let out a dignified burp, and gracefully stood as if to say bath time could commence...


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She saw the shampoo and conditioner were also specialized horse products, very high-end.


    Xiao Qi filled a bucket with warm water, squeezed a big blob of shampoo, and soaked a sea sponge. She first washed Ji Gu''s back while he was drumming. Ji Gu seemed to be enjoying it very much, especially when the sea sponge rubbed against his fur and skin, and he kept humming contentedly and moving closer to Xiao Qi.


    When washing his belly, she felt a little shy.


    When washing his head, he kept shaking it. Xiao Qi even felt Ji Gu was smiling at her, baring his teeth...


    Old Man Yu changed the wash basin and found that the little girl had already efficiently started working, which pleased him very much. He thought even this horse had become clever, liking the pretty young girl. Ji Gu had not been nearly so cooperative when he himself washed him.


    Xiao Qi wiped Ji Gu down once with the sponge, scrubbing harder at spots she could feel were itchier. Then she adjusted the sprayer to a warm stream and rinsed him completely clean.


    She had even soaked his tail in the bucket of shampoo and put conditioner in it, as well as the mane on his back. After applying conditioner she did not tangle it, but used a fine-toothed brush to brush the hair out.


    Ji Gu was very happy and quite satisfied with the human washing him. He felt she suited his taste perfectly and was cooperative the whole time.


    Once Xiao Qi had rinsed him off completely clean, she draped a bath towel over Ji Gu''s back and dried his head with it, basically wiping down all his fur. He shook his body in the sunlight, still splashing some water, and Xiao Qi laughed merrily.


    Ji Gu looked so handsome after his bath, his coat all fluffy and expanded. The fur on his face was soft, and his tail like a huge feather duster, with long, soft black hair that was both gentle and beautiful.


    Just then, the other little white horse in the stable had already stuck out its head and was whinnying loudly.


    When Old Man Yu let it out, it rushed up to Xiao Qi, eagerly squeezing its head in front of her. Ji Gu then nudged it aside, and Xiao Qi laughed heartily.


    The scene of one girl with two horses was truly picturesque.

 Chapter 166: Really Small

    Chapter 166


    Little Gray, the horse with a white body and gray mane, looked very petite and delicate next to Ji Gu.


    The height of Little Gray''s back was about the same as Xiao Qi''s small stature, and its whole body was also a bit thinner.


    Little Gray''s tail had less hair and was not as thick and long as Ji Gu''s tail.


    However, Little Gray seemed to have a more irritable temperament. When Xiao Qi was giving Ji Gu a bath earlier, Little Gray kept pacing around in the stable and whinnying impatiently.


    Clearly, it was very anxious.


    After being let out by Old Man Yu, it kept jumping and rubbing itself against the wall happily, as if it had ADHD. As soon as it came over, it squeezed its head in front of Xiao Qi.


    It desperately tried to squeeze next to Ji Gu.


    The water Xiao Qi had prepared was all knocked over.


    Fortunately, Xiao Qi could sense that Little Gray had no malice, it was just inexplicably excited for some reason.


    She could only prepare another bucket of water and start scrubbing with a sponge again.


    Only while scrubbing did she discover that Little Gray had been bitten by some insect on its left hindquarter near its butt, leaving a red swollen bump that was oozing pus. And because it was close to its butt, it was hidden by the long hair and impossible to notice unless you washed it.


    Moreover, there was more than one spot. Its hind legs also had some, no wonder it kept rubbing against the wall.


    The spots on the legs were just red and swollen, without pus, likely very itchy.


    Xiao Qi first rinsed Little Gray with water, applied conditioner, rinsed it clean, then asked Old Man Yu what to do about this situation.


    Old Man Yu was checking the stables on the other side, seeing if any other water buckets were leaking. As it turned out, he discovered a flying ant nest on one of the pillars in Little Gray''s stable, with several large flying ants. They must have been what bit Little Gray.


    "There is anti-inflammatory medicine in the cabinet over there, take some and apply it on Little Gray. I need to get rid of this nest and spray insecticide here. Also check the other stables for more. You take Little Gray and Ji Gu out for a walk first," Old Man Yu instructed.


    Horses couldn''t stay in the stable during insecticide spraying.


    Old Man Yu felt that Xiao Qi was very reliable. He saw how she handled the horses and washed them very skillfully, so he felt at ease leaving the two horses to her.


    In fact, Ji Gu was a thoroughbred racehorse, arguably the most valuable horse on the ranch. Old Man Yu didn''t know the details, which was why he left it to Xiao Qi.


    As for Little Gray, it was an adolescent colt. After Xiao Qi applied the ointment, it became extremely docile, likely because the ointment felt cooling.


    After the bath, with its coat dried, Little Gray also looked very beautiful - a white body with gray mane, a very pure shade of gray without any discoloration, like a handsome young man.


    Xiao Qi held two lead ropes, walking the horses slowly along the path.


    Ji Gu held its head high arrogantly, while Little Gray would occasionally lower its head to nibble on roadside grass.


    The closer they got to the lake, the stronger the wind, because the far end of the lake connected to a sea bay, blowing Xiao Qi''s hair into a mess. Fortunately she had tied her hair in little buns for convenience at work, leaving her forehead exposed, so while her hair was messy, it didn''t block her eyes.


    She led the two horses to the lakeside. Ji Gu and Little Gray were both excited, clearly the horses didn''t like bathing but seemed to enjoy water play very much.


    Listening to Old Man Yu''s introduction yesterday, he felt the little girl was pretty capable at the job.


    He didn''t expect to see this scene today.


    Little Gray had clearly wanted to go in the water, yet the little girl directly pulled it back and even slapped its head, and Little Gray obediently quieted down without running or whinnying. It was like two well-behaved babies. When did the horses he bought become so obedient?


    Watching the little girl lead the two horses over, even his Ji Gu was competing with Little Gray for her affection. It was too adorable a scene to watch directly.


    Xiao Shengzhou''s uncle Xiao Yu also watched the scene with amusement.


    "Is that girl a member of the club? She seems quite good, looks like a promising groom."


    For playing with horses and such, having an affinity with the animals was crucial. The little girl could handle two horses obediently by herself, very capable indeed.


    Xiao Shengzhou also had an odd expression. Since when was his uncle interested in this type of little girl? The women around him were usually long-legged and glamorous, and always different ones.


    "She''s not a member, just a student working part-time to pay her way through school. She''s a new freshman this year, very young, uncle please don''t make trouble here." Xiao Shengzhou forgot the girl''s name. Yesterday he had the two girls submit their student ID photos but didn''t pay attention.


    Xiao Yu was amused seeing his nephew''s nervousness. As if he would be interested in a student like this? His gaze contained no malice, just a casual question.


    Somehow the uncle and nephew had come to stand by the floor-to-ceiling window as they talked.


    Xiao Qi led Little Gray and Ji Gu past below, walking to a grassy area ahead. Xiao Qi let go of the ropes and sat down on the grass. Old Man Yu said the stables needed disinfecting for at least two hours before they could return, so she sat down and the two horses obediently stood like guards, though ultimately they couldn''t stay still.


    Ji Gu ran around first, just nearby, back and forth.


    The sound of Ji Gu running really sounded like beating a drum, dong dong dong, very heavy, as if it could beat into the heart.


    While Little Gray''s sound was tick-tack tick-tack, very crisp. When happy, he would run around in circles around Xiao Qi. Running around her in circles made Xiao Qi haha laugh out loud.


    At this time, Xiao Qi was not reciting words or thinking about anything else. Her mind was completely blank, but her face was full of smiles. It seemed that when you are with animals, you can really relax.


    Unconsciously, it seemed that she had reached a most pure state, comfortable and lazy, without worries.


    She lied down on the grass, the sky was azure, clouds drifted by.


    At some point, Ji Gu and Little Gray had also stopped, standing leisurely next to Xiao Qi, rubbing their faces against Xiao Qi''s face from time to time, even spraying her face with hot air.


    Xiao Qi felt that she was being catered to by two guys at the same time, one mature and steady, one lively and humorous. Especially Little Gray, rubbing her face was not enough, he actually went to rub her chest. Because the plastic raincoat was too thick, she only wore a small vest inside. Little Gray opened the zipper of her raincoat with his mouth. Xiao Qi amusingly patted Little Gray''s head and sat up.


    She zipped up her coat again, looked at her watch, it was about time, stood up and walked towards the stables.


    The two horses obediently followed her without her calling.


    The expressions of the uncle and nephew by the french windows were even more strange, because their position happened to overlook the lawn below, and of course they also saw the lustful behavior of the little horse...


    Xiao Yu shook his head: "Really small..."


    Xiao Shengzhou: ...

 Chapter 167: Dining

    Chapter 167


    After safely taking Ji Gu and Little Gray back and applying more anti-inflammatory medicine to Little Gray, Xiao Qi went to take a shower.


    Old Man Yu also disinfected the stable and was very happy to see the two horses return clean.


    The young girl is very reliable in her work, which puts one''s mind at ease.


    In the past when he washed the horses himself, he would get soaked every time, with the horses not cooperating well, even neighing inexplicably as if he was abusing them.


    The weather should also be good the day after tomorrow. Old Man Yu plans to have the young girl come over to wash the horses again.


    There are still several horses that need washing.


    Xiao Qi went to the club bathroom. The bathroom was empty. The facility was quite nice with separate glass doors, better than the gym bathroom in the Lvshan Sports Center. That bathroom only had partitions without doors.


    The shower head in the bathroom was also good with ample hot water. The shower gel and shampoo were Hermes Le Jardin de Monsieur Li scented, smelling very nice and seeming better to use than Xiao Qi¡¯s own bottle of Pantene.


    After the shower, she changed into her favorite set of sweatpants and a pink baby elephant T-shirt, feeling very comfortable all over.


    She doesn¡¯t feel the part-time job is bad. She started because Wei Cheng invited her. Wei Cheng herself is very honest and unable to refuse people, always seeming to be taken advantage of. Xiao Qi has seen Chu Yu next door make Wei Cheng run errands for her several times, which made her very annoyed, yet Wei Cheng was still all smiles.


    As a result, whatever Wei Cheng asks Xiao Qi to do, she is also reluctant to refuse her.


    It¡¯s probably the law of attraction. Xiao Qi actually has a lot of money now and doesn''t need a part-time job.


    Firstly, she agreed to Wei Cheng because she can¡¯t say no to Wei Cheng. Secondly, Xiao Qi was also quite curious herself.


    She now finds it to be pretty good, interacting with animals is especially relaxing. Ever since the end of the gaokao, Xiao Qi had been tightly wound up. After getting the progress system, it had been the same, constantly demanding herself to work hard and make progress, always feeling like she hasn¡¯t done enough.


    She is only seventeen after all.


    But thinking of her parents and everything she has seen and heard, she feels anxious all the time, feeling like she hasn¡¯t done enough, far from enough.


    However, during that brief moment of blankness in her mind earlier, Xiao Qi suddenly felt that she had gained another kind of reward: emptiness and relaxation.


    Effort and rest complement each other. With only effort and no rest, you will eventually snap.


    With only rest and no effort, you become useless.


    Such opportunities for relaxation and emptiness are rare. This doesn''t refer to sleeping. Sometimes Xiao Qi even dreams about reciting English words and doing test papers when she sleeps. That is a physical kind of rest. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Mentally, Xiao Qi rarely relaxes.


    Even when running, it is goal-oriented.


    But interacting with Ji Gu and Little Gray earlier, Xiao Qi felt an extreme sense of relaxation and emptiness. She likes this feeling. Getting along with animals is really great, making her feel like she has been purified, as if she were a container, having thrown away a lot of miscellaneous things, and can now confidently forge ahead again with confidence.


    Xiao Qi has short hair and didn''t need to blow dry it. She just rubbed it with a towel and shook her hair.


    After getting out of the shower, she was actually quite hungry. There were many desserts and drinks laid out. Xiao Qi is not someone with a sweet tooth. But her appetite has been very big recently. She took her cup and chugged down a whole cup of water, at least easing her hunger a little and even burping. As she burped, she ran into the boss.


    After returning last night, she had been briefed by Mi''er on Xiao Shengzhou, the student council chairman this term. Mi''er regretfully stomped her feet, wishing she had come too so she could have added the chairman on WeChat.


    But she was just talking big. As the second generation of a small town textile factory boss, she didn¡¯t actually have much work experience.


    The noodles were also particularly chewy, not dried noodles but handmade. There was a noticeable difference, you could taste the flour fragrance.


    Having sensitive taste buds has downsides. It is easy to break down when eating terrible food. But there are more advantages. When eating delicious food, the enjoyment is something that can''t be given by others. It''s too wonderful, making you feel like life itself is wonderful.


    Xiao Qi had a somewhat rippled expression.


    After finishing the noodles, she had officially opened up her appetite.


    Xiao Qi pushed away the bowl and started on the steak.


    She first ate a piece of bread, dipping it in the rich soup. Yet another kind of delightful flavor.


    In fact, Xiao Qi''s cooking skills were better with Western food. But she didn''t have the chance to make it.


    At this moment, Xiao Shengzhou, who had just casually asked if there was food to eat earlier, saw how upon hearing there was food, the young girl had said a sentence to him and then eagerly went off to eat without even glancing at him again.


    And from start to now, the watch, custom shoes, shirt, custom pants, belt, cufflinks, and other wares adding up to over a hundred thousand yuan on Xiao Yu had not even been glanced at once. He felt......


    Normally when he stood together with his nephew, girls would look over several more times, after all his nephew was much better looking than him.


    Uncle and nephew silently returned to the office. The office was fully enclosed with blast-proof floor-to-ceiling glass, so that you could see outside from the inside but not vice versa.


    Then the two saw that greedy little girl had actually ordered two main dishes.


    One was noodles, the other a steak, as if she had never eaten out before.


    Xiao Yu looked down on this very much, thinking it wasteful.


    The chef here was quite good, specially hired by the nephew at a high price, because he would occasionally bring friends here.


    Then they saw that the little girl was not self-conscious at all when eating, not behaving like a thriftily hardworking student. She sat there enjoying the big meal, calmly finishing a whole large bowl of noodles, leaving them hungry just watching.


    But seeing her casually wiping her mouth, it turned out to just be the appetizer. She then started on the steak.


    If they hadn''t seen it with their own eyes, they would have thought they were watching an eating broadcast performance.


    The little girl was quite slim, but after polishing off the large bowl of noodles without leaving a drop of soup, she went on to eat toast, creamy soup, and that huge platter of steak, thickly cut, which she elegantly sliced piece by piece, preserving the juices. Her forehead didn''t have a drop of sweat as she enjoyed it with a carefree expression, even closing her eyes at times to relish a particularly tasty bite, looking very satisfied.


    Not only were they watching, but the two idle chefs also watched the little girl eat.


    Watching her enjoy the food gave them a great sense of accomplishment, feeling their cooking was delicious.


    To have their food appreciated in this way was affirming.


    Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Yu watched as Xiao Qi finished the last sip of creamy soup, not even letting the vegetable salad escape its fate of being completely consumed.


    Soon the table was covered in empty plates.


    At this point, the office uncle and nephew''s stomachs made a tacit long rumble...


    Hungry.


    Looked hungry.

 Chapter 168: English Corner

    Chapter 168


    Free meals turned out to be more delicious.


    Xiao Qi felt that this meal was the most satisfying meal she had eaten since she came to Enhua.


    Not to mention the fresh ingredients, the quality was also extremely good, and the seasoning was also very suitable and smooth. Upstodatee from


    The steak was basically unseasoned, it should have only been salted before roasting, very naturally giving off the aroma of beef and that juice. When chewing, the meat juice burst in the mouth, without any fishy smell at all, leaving fragrance on the lips and teeth.


    The accompanying thick soup and toasted bread were also perfect.


    Even the final vegetable salad was very good, just a little less salad, the vegetables were all sweet, juicy and crispy.


    Eating was very satisfying.


    This meal would cost more than 200 yuan, after eating, Xiao Qi saw the 200 yuan the boss sent, very intimate, just for this meal, it would be worth it even without money.


    While in the office, Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Yu had been waiting until the little girl finished eating and left before coming out. The two couldn''t wait to order a bowl of noodles and a steak.


    They felt that today''s food seemed to be especially delicious, and both of them were full, feeling bloated. Not knowing before trying, only after tasting it personally did they understand how much that little girl could eat.


    "Looking at how that little girl eats, her etiquette is quite good, doesn''t look like someone coming to work and study. But eating so much, could it be that she has taken a liking to eating here? What an appetite." Xiao Yu leaned back in his chair, unwilling to move. He couldn''t finish that last mouthful of vegetable salad no matter what.


    While Xiao Shengzhou still had half a bowl of noodles left, also because he ate too quickly he was even burping, with slight sweat on his forehead.


    "She can really eat. It''s not easy to raise such a girl with a big appetite."


    Xiao Yu originally had a dinner appointment tonight, but after eating his fill here, looking at the time, he had to leave, or he would be late.


    In a hurry, he went to get in the car and left.


    A turquoise sports car, very flashy.


    As he drove, he came across Enhua''s school bus, and saw the girl by the window was precisely that little girl from just now. The setting sun shone on her flushed face, her hair was blown messy by the wind, smiling foolishly by herself, a full mouth of teeth, eyes narrowed.


    He somehow couldn''t get that image out of his head, all the way the picture kept popping up in his mind.


    Smiling so foolishly, so f*cking foolish.


    After Xiao Qi returned to the old district with a full stomach, she was in an especially good mood. Back at the dormitory, Yunshu and Wei Cheng had both returned. Hearing Xiao Qi say there was lots of delicious food available for free,


    Wei Cheng said longingly, "How nice!"


    That seemed to be her catchphrase.


    How regretful that she didn''t go to the horse farm today. The film club she signed up for was very boring, just gathering to introduce which movies would be shown on which days. The school had many screening rooms, and new club members had to do work to maintain order in the screening rooms. Wei Cheng was also assigned tasks, which was quite good in one way, allowing her to watch movies for free, and she could also apply to show movies she liked. If approved by the higher-ups, they could be screened.


    "Next time you guys want to watch a movie, you can all tell me, I''ll help apply for you, then we can go watch movies together." Saying this, she sighed again, "How nice!"


    She was happy with herself.


    Yunshu''s flower arranging club was clearly fruitful as well.


    She was already arranging flowers, taking the flowers from her original vase, snipping here and there, not cherishing them one bit, leaving every flower bald.


    "Mi''er said the student council has a dinner tonight, so she won''t be back." Yunshu said.


    Xiao Qi nodded, having guessed it would be so. The student council seemed to have a lot of dinners.


    Since there was still time, Xiao Qi practiced her handwriting first. Calligraphy practice was basically the easiest way to calm her emotions and focus on studying. After half an hour of practice, she then started doing English worksheets.


    "Wu Dalang comes from a famous classical Chinese novel Water Margin. I didn''t expect you to know about him, your knowledge is really extensive. Regarding Wu Dalang, he himself was short and ugly looking, probably similar to the Hunchback of Notre Dame. His profession was selling pancakes. He had a very beautiful wife, whose name was Jin Lian. She committed adultery and murdered him. He had a very capable younger brother, who sought revenge for him after finding out what happened. Because the story is so famous, some shops are named after Wu Dalang, like Wu Dalang pancakes."


    Teacher Grace listened very attentively, because the students'' English levels varied greatly, if she didn''t listen carefully, sometimes she couldn''t understand what the students were saying at all.


    She didn''t expect the new female student to speak such a long paragraph, very fluent, with good language sense, no stuttering at all. She understood everything.


    She was even praised by the student for being knowledgeable, students usually only praised her for having a nice name, being tall, beautiful, but rarely for being erudite.


    "There is a very tasty Wu Dalang pancake shop in the new district. Although there''s no cheese added, the taste is perfect, I don''t know what''s added to make it so delicious. Chinese cuisine is so amazing, another example is hot pot, although we don''t eat internal organs, but cooking vegetables in the spicy broth is great, extremely spicy, you know it will lead to pimples, but it''s still addictive. Hot pot is another magical Chinese cuisine." Grace spoke excitedly in one breath.


    The other students could only understand a few words like Wu Dalang pancakes, hot pot, as they were transliterations, but they didn''t really understand most of what was said.


    Xiao Qi had already picked up on the topic: "Actually Chinese cuisine is very simple, take Wu Dalang pancakes for example, you can make them yourself if you have an oven at home."


    Thinking that foreigners are more sensitive towards numbers and data, Xiao Qi went on: "First you need 500g of flour, 5g of yeast, an egg, 20g of white sugar, 50g of salad oil, 200g of pure milk, mix them together into dough, let it rest until the dough has doubled in size, then roll the dough into strips and cut into small pieces, flatten them out, shape them how you like, then spread minced meat on both sides, put them on a baking sheet."


    Xiao Qi spoke a long string of instructions without any stuttering or hesitation, especially when it comes to cooking, she was quite knowledgeable.


    The students around heard her chatter on and on, most had no idea what she was saying anymore, probably some numbers and measurements, but Grace listened attentively. She was very curious about Chinese cuisine, being able to cook one or two dishes herself and bring them back would be awesome.


    She listened carefully this time because she was interested, not because she was afraid of missing something and not being able to communicate properly, so her expression was especially animated.


    "Then I can just bake them directly? Do I need baking paper?" Grace asked.


    "No need for baking paper, but you still need to brush some salad oil, and sprinkle white sesame seeds, chili powder, that''s the soul of Chinese BBQ, and hot pepper powder, the spice that''s in the hot pot you like, you can add more or less according to your own taste. Bake at 200 degrees for 20 minutes in the oven and it''s done."


    "That''s awesome, I can almost smell the aroma it seems." Grace acted dramatically, sniffing with her nose, looking as if it really smelled and tasted delicious.


    Everyone else laughed too.


    The speed was too fast and content too much at the beginning of the English corner, some people still felt it was a bit inappropriate for the new student to speak directly with Teacher Grace. But after Xiao Qi spoke such a long string of sentences, everyone turned to admiration.


    Most of the students at the English corner were actually English majors, including freshmen English majors. They recognized Xiao Qi as the student who held up the class sign during freshman registration, from the business school. They didn''t expect her English to be so good, much better than them English majors.


    The ones who came here were usually freshmen and sophomores. Juniors were already old birds on campus, rarely came. Seniors were busy preparing for internships and graduation, slowly separating from campus activities, so they wouldn''t come either.


    Xiao Qi chatted with the teacher for so long, she also realized this was an English corner, with many people, so she didn''t continue dominating the conversation. She accommodated others by bringing up some simple topics, a technique she learned as a tutor, because she had to teach 7 students, when teaching she had to engage everyone, since their English levels varied. Xiao Qi conversed deeper with Grace, and more shallowly with others.


    This way, besides admiration, others also grew fond of her, thinking this girl had a great personality.


    Wei Cheng didn''t expect her roommate Xiao Qi to be so amazing, full of admiration, she also stuttered a few sentences, very excited.


    As the bell rang for end of night self-study, the English corner activity also came to an end, great success, no awkward silences, even the shyest ones said a sentence or two.


    At the end, Grace called Xiao Qi over.


    She asked if Xiao Qi was willing to teach her to cook delicious food. Xiao Qi agreed.


    Grace said she wanted to host a dinner party for friends at home on Sunday, and asked Xiao Qi to come, and bring some friends along.


    "Su, you must come." Grace took the initiative to add Xiao Qi on WeChat, calling her by last name since she didn''t have an English name.


    Xiao Qi realized foreigners were different from them, they seemed to skip the polite song and dance in between, if they wanted something they would directly make the request, asking the other party sincerely.


    Regarding cooking skills, Xiao Qi was quite confident, plus she hadn''t cooked for herself at all since coming to university, her hands were itching to get back in the kitchen.


    She told Grace she wanted to bring her roommate along, so 4 people total.


    Grace welcomed them.

 Chapter 169: Preparing a Gift

    Chapter 169


    Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory, and there was already a phone call.


    Yun Shu had changed into comfortable white princess-style pajamas and was leaning against the bed reading a novel.


    In the dormitory, flowers were blooming beautifully. She had spent a whole afternoon on flower arranging, and it turned out she did have some talent for it, although she had trimmed quite a few stems. But the flowers looked even more vibrant without them.


    Mei Er was taking a shower. Xiao Qi put down her school bag just as Mei Er finished showering and came out.


    She said excitedly: ¡°This Friday is Mid-Autumn Festival. Our student union is responsible for organizing the Mid-Autumn Festival party at the new stadium. I also got quite a few mooncake vouchers and we can go redeem mooncakes at the bakery on the student street tomorrow.¡±


    When Xiao Qi heard about the Mid-Autumn Festival party, she suddenly remembered something she seemed to have forgotten.


    She had signed up for the Campus Top Ten Singers competition. The organizer notified her to submit a demo recording before midnight tonight.


    Xiao Qi checked the date and realized she almost missed it.


    ¡°Are you free now? Can you help me record a video?¡± Xiao Qi asked Mei Er.


    "I''m free, I''m free!"


    With Mei Er in the dorm, there was always liveliness. When she heard Xiao Qi was going to record a video, even Yun Shu put down her novel.


    The roommates all came to help set up the background for Xiao Qi''s video recording.


    "No need to go through so much trouble. I think Yun Shu''s vase background looks quite nice. I''ll just casually sing a song, that''s good enough." When it comes to singing, Xiao Qi now had some confidence.


    Since this was just a demo submission for evaluation, Xiao Qi felt it would be best to play it safe and chose a very popular song "Invisible Wings" that was easy for female singers. It could be sung a cappella without much accompaniment.


    The roommates were very cooperative. They closed all the doors and windows to block outside noises. Then Xiao Qi started singing.


    "Every time, wandering in perseverance; every time, even when deeply hurt, no tears in sight... Now I''m finally soaring, gazing ahead fearlessly. Wherever there are winds, I''ll fly as far as I can. Invisible wings let my dreams last eternally, leaving behind a wish, letting myself imagine."


    This was a very familiar song, and Xiao Qi felt the lyrics were also very good, very suited for a female vocal. She sang it effortlessly from start to finish.


    After Mei Er finished recording, she hit save, and then regretfully said: "Oh no, I forgot to turn on the beauty filter! It would look better with the beauty filter on. Should we record it one more time?"


    "My mom said, when seeking help from others, gifts are useful." Mei Er righteously said. "I gave one to the student union executive in our grade. She quite liked it too. These sell for over 300 RMB outside, actual production cost is very low."


    Xiao Qi: ......


    Her parents would definitely not teach her this. Looks like upbringings truly differed between families. Mei Er''s family started from a small business, quite flexible mindset, family education drilled in from young.


    Speaking of local specialty products from home, Wei Cheng also went digging through native goods.


    She dug out a bag of dried mushroom slices...


    Xiao Qi gave it a sniff. It really did smell nice, different from those sold at supermarkets. The fragrance was particularly strong, and the mushrooms were very uniform in size, all slightly larger than a thumb, chubby. They looked rather cute.


    "My family makes these ourselves. We package them ourselves too. Can''t buy these outside. Not dried by large machines, we dry them using traditional way at home that''s why the aroma is so intense. Is it okay to gift this?"


    "Of course it''s fine!" With Xiao Qi''s senses of smell, taste and culinary skills, she felt this pack of dried mushroom slices was truly superb, premium ingredient.


    Yet looking at her roommates all preparing something, it turned out she was the only one without a gift.


    It seemed on TV when foreigners visited each other, they loved to bring food items, but with current dorm conditions she couldn''t make anything food related. The dorms imposed strict checks on items like electric stoves and rice cookers, afraid students would use them improperly and burn down the dorm.


    For folk crafts, Xiao Qi knew bamboo weaving, but it would be difficult to find bamboo here, might have to go into town to look for it. Anyway there was still time before Sunday to prepare.


    The roommates felt rather thrilled to have gifts readied.


    And so lights out time came.


    In the darkness after lights off, each took out their emergency lamps again.


    Xiao Qi sat practicing writing for a while more before crawling into bed.


    She re-organized her planner again, recording all the things she needed to do but hadn''t gotten to yet. Felt like there were too many things losing track of priorities. As a student her studies should still come first, everything else was secondary, just assisting her learning and improvement.


    Xiao Qi took a photo of the two words she had practiced writing that night: "Self-urging", to post on her social media as a reminder for herself.


    Then she turned off her lights and went to bed.

 Chapter 170: Introduction to Calculus

    Chapter 170


    September 11, Wednesday, cloudy.


    There were quite a few classes today, surprisingly four lessons, two in the morning and two in the afternoon.


    But it''s just the beginning for freshmen, I heard there will be much fewer classes when you get to sophomore year.


    The two morning classes were Macroeconomics and Calculus. The afternoon classes were Marketing and Mental Health for College Students.


    The other classes were all in the Bamboo Grove building, while the last one, Mental Health for College Students, was a big class with the three information management classes together in the Grand Tang Complex building. Fortunately the Grand Tang Complex building is not far, still in the old campus area, otherwise we would have had to sprint after class.


    Early in the morning, Xiaoqi ran as usual, practiced calligraphy, and recited Japanese vocabulary words. She felt last night''s English corner was quite rewarding, and seemed to have given her a bit more courage. It was a start, and she felt that next time, she would be able to speak up more easily on her own initiative.


    She was also somewhat surprised at her own English level. She had finished all four volumes of the New Concept English series, and had been steadily working through the TOEFL test papers. Following the steps methodically, she now found that speaking English did not seem to pose any difficulty for her. Given the opportunity, she was confident she could communicate just fine.


    Their major, Information Management, used bilingual textbooks for Management Theory, the same as for Academic English. Both were a bit difficult, just right for Xiaoqi''s current stage of learning. The library also had many books, she could borrow some original English books to consolidate her knowledge.


    Xiaoqi thought about it last night, and felt she still lacked time. She planned to get a part-time job, but no more than twice a week. Doing it too often would be a waste of time.


    She preferred to treat part-time work as a process of relaxing body and mind.


    Having just arrived in class and sat down, Chen Hanhe, the student sitting in front of her, curiously asked: "Class monitor, how come you didn''t come to help yesterday afternoon? I heard you went to work-study yesterday?"


    Xiaoqi was just thinking about getting a part-time job when she was suddenly asked about it out of the blue.


    She didn''t feel anything in particular, but Mier exploded: "It''s none of your business what she does. You''re a guy, why do you love gossiping about other people''s private affairs? It really makes us Qinjiang people lose face."


    Among students, it seemed to be a common view that work-study was embarrassing, just like applying for financial aid loans. There was some indescribable feeling, a sense of losing social status, especially in a school like Enhua.


    Chen Hanhe was rendered speechless by Mier''s sharp retort. Somewhat embarrassed, he said in a low voice: "I was just curious, didn''t mean anything else. Yesterday a few of us went with Chu Yu from the Labor Committee to give teachers flowers. We asked the class monitor why she didn''t come, and she said Xiaoqi had to work a part-time job and didn''t have time. But Chu Yu didn''t mean it, she just blurts things out without thinking. Don''t blame her."


    Xiaoqi hadn''t thought much of it at first. She had money and didn''t really need a part-time job. It didn''t matter if people knew. Now her attitude towards such things was extremely open-minded. But before she could say anything, this guy had already started defending Chu Yu, afraid they would misunderstand or wrongly accuse Chu Yu... Simply ridiculous...


    It was like suddenly being spoon-fed a mouthful of shit.


    Originally, about the flower delivery yesterday, Xiaoqi had asked too. After all, she was also a class monitor, and had wondered if she should help out. Chu Yu had taken charge and said it was unnecessary, that they would handle it since it was close by. Xiaoqi had seen her roommates Lin Dongqing and Su Li in the dorm and they hadn''t gone either, so she didn''t go. Upstodatee from


    Xiaoqi felt it was a very trivial matter, not even worth mentioning. There was no need to bring it up.


    She didn''t expect such a tiny matter to spread two versions of the story.


    It was simply childish...


    But now, over such a minor issue, going to confront Chu Yu clearly made no sense either. Even if no one else had been around when Chu Yu spoke, she could just deny it. And it seemed she had wanted to spread the news that Xiaoqi was working part-time. Xiaoqi didn''t mind people knowing, she and Wei Cheng had worked at the riding club, and Li Weijin had seen them that day, so it wasn''t a secret.


    She went on:


    "Specifically, there are five main points in analyzing the GDP concept. First, GDP measures the value of final products and services, namely the final sales value of final products and services in that period. Based on actual use, products can usually be divided into intermediate products and final products...bla bla bla...


    Second: GDP is a concept of market value...bla bla bla...


    Third, GDP generally only refers to value created by market activities...bla bla bla...


    Fourth, GDP calculates the value of final products produced during the period, thus representing a flow rather than a stock.


    Fifth, GDP is not actual circulating wealth, it only represents the quantity of wealth using standardized monetary values. But whether produced goods can be fully converted into circulating wealth is uncertain."


    After she finished, the whole classroom was quiet as chickens.


    While Shao Xianwei pushed his glasses up again, seeing that this student had no more to say, he hurriedly said, "Very good, student please sit down, you answered very correctly and completely. Other students should learn from the class monitor, ahem, let''s continue."


    Shao Xianwei felt that he shouldn''t call on this student to answer questions next time. He had already answered all the content of his next lecture slides. Was this Yen Hua University? For a moment just now, he felt like he was back in his student days, feeling the pain and dread of being dominated by the top student in the class. He had just started explaining noun definitions here, ready to give an easy giveaway question, but the top student not only explained the basic concepts without even looking at the book, but also gave a complete explanation of the profound connotations. What more could he lecture on??


    Chen Mier saw Xiaoqi sit down, extremely excited. My deskmate is the best, she secretly gave Xiaoqi a thumbs up.


    On the other side, Chu Yu felt even more depressed seeing Xiaoqi like this. Yesterday she went to give flowers and chatted with the teacher for a bit, even adding his WeChat. But the teacher didn''t seem to remember her and didn''t call on her to answer questions. It was Xiaoqi again, stealing the limelight. What a schemer. The teacher only asked for a noun explanation, but she had to say so much, showing off her knowledge.


    Roommate Wei Cheng respected Xiaoqi even more inside. Xiaoqi had to do so many things and learn so much every day, yet she was still more diligent and comprehensive in her pre-studying than herself. She must work harder.


    The deputy class monitor Mao Wenshu, who was sitting in the middle of the classroom, also pushed his glasses up. He was also a diligent student who usually did quite well in exams. He had been unlucky during the Gaokao, getting heat stroke, so his results weren''t ideal. That''s how he ended up being admitted to Yen Hua University. He had wanted to retake a gap year originally, but he had been weak ever since he was little, and always seemed to have bad luck. Whenever there were tests or exams, he underperformed compared to usual. His parents were worried that retaking the Gaokao might not go as well as getting into Yen Hua, so he still came to Yen Hua in the end.


    He felt a little out of place at Yen Hua. Nothing felt right. Deep down he also looked down on his classmates, feeling like everyone was a failure, with different lifestyles and habits. His roommates basically didn''t study when they got back - they played games, basketball, and chatted about girls in the class.


    He looked down on everyone, yet still felt a little aggrieved about being elected deputy class monitor. He had specifically checked the Gaokao scores and saw he was ranked first in the class. It must be because the girls looked better and had that advantage. Yet he ended up as the deputy class monitor. But the teachers all treated the class monitor as the main one.


    Just now when he saw her stand up, he also felt a little depressed. But after hearing Su Xiaoqi finish answering, this feeling of depression grew even stronger, along with shame, because even if he had been called on, he wouldn''t have been able to answer so comprehensively either...the later concepts weren''t in the textbook.


    Sitting at the very back of the class, lying on the desk and barely moving, Li Weijin looked through the gaps between the backs of the students in front, at that especially straight back after she sat down, and the pen twisting around her hand.


    Yesterday afternoon he had also idiotically gone to give flowers, thinking Su Xiaoqi would be there too. But she hadn''t shown up at all, and he heard that girl say Su Xiaoqi had gone to her part-time job. He felt very depressed.


    The others all had looks of bafflement on their faces. He disdained them greatly. What was so shocking about a part-time job? He would have to work at his dad''s company in the future too. It was the same thing. Did they think they wouldn''t have to work after entering society...


    Now he felt it was different. Su Xiaoqi was different.


    After Xiaoqi sat down, the familiar mechanical ringing sounded in her ears, ding ding dong dong, several times before it started speaking. "Host has studied diligently and perfectly answered the teacher''s question, obtaining 12 sincere admirations from classmates. Rewarding host with Elementary Calculus."


    Xiaoqi hadn''t expected that diligently pre-studying the lesson and answering the teacher''s question would bring such great rewards. Yesterday when pre-studying calculus, she had felt it was quite difficult, harder than the math she had learned in high school since she was in the arts stream. Looking at calculus made her head spin. Only by calming down and studying hard did she barely understand it. Indeed, diligent study brought good returns. Xiaoqi felt she needed to work harder and take her studying more seriously, not overlooking any opportunities to learn.

 Chapter 171: The Rumor

    Chapter 171


    The second class was calculus.


    Xiao Qi went from being a little nervous at first to looking forward to it with great anticipation.


    Reviewing what she had previewed yesterday, many things she didn''t quite understand before suddenly became crystal clear.


    Calculus was supposed to be relatively difficult. She had earned the admiration of twelve classmates, but was only rewarded with an introductory level, while Marxism Basics directly reached the expert level.


    She felt the system also had corresponding algorithms.


    Whether it was introductory or expert, Xiao Qi still needed to spend time practicing and learning hands-on. If she didn''t look at the books or study at all, this would actually be an empty skill and useless.


    Having an introductory or expert level meant that was her level of understanding. To actually reach that level still required her to work hard, rather than reap without sowing. However, compared to others, she already had many advantages. She had a clear goal, and knew that as long as she was willing to make an effort, there would be a reward.


    The class bell rang, and an older lady came in wearing stylish glasses.


    The glasses were very beautiful, gold rimmed, with fine gold chains on both sides that could be hung around the neck.


    The old lady was also wearing lipstick. Her hair was snow white, short and permed into soft curls. She wore a burgundy track suit and was very tall, standing up straight.


    She looked very fashionable. If not for her white hair, it would be hard to tell she was an old lady.


    This was an old lady who lived a very elegant life. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi immediately received the first-hand gossip from her roommate Mielle: "This teacher is very powerful. She returned after being recruited from a famous university. It''s said that she likes the natural environment here, so she came to retire. Otherwise our school wouldn''t be able to hire such an awesome teacher at the professor level."


    The old lady wrote beautiful characters on the blackboard and introduced herself as Lu Ruxue.


    After finishing writing, she turned and smiled at everyone. Her teeth were very neat and white...they must be dentures, but looked very nice.


    Ms. Lu was clearly not old-fashioned. Xiao Qi thought she would just write on the blackboard, but instead she took out a USB drive decorated with furry charms and plugged it into the computer at the podium. She began showing her slides.


    She also took out a blue folding pointer that looked like a conductor''s baton. Not only was it beautiful, but it also lit up when pressed...


    Teacher Lu''s slides were very simple without much content, just listing a few points.


    But she taught the class very well.


    Calculus, which most people find difficult, seemed very simple under her lucid instruction. At least Xiao Qi felt this way. She not only found it simple, but also very interesting.


    This teacher was too good. If Xiao Qi''s high school math teacher had taught like this, she felt her math score could have easily been 30 points higher.


    How a teacher is reflects directly on the students.


    From this experience, Teacher Lu''s teaching ability seemed to be the highest among the few teachers she had so far.


    Although Rong Jiaojiao was a bit opportunistic, she was also relatively familiar. She didn''t stand on ceremony and was very forward. Xiao Qi and her roommates were not very good at rejecting people, so they were used to her.


    Mielle didn''t like Rong Jiaojiao at first, but Rong Jiaojiao was also very gossipy, and the two gossip-lovers got familiar with each other.


    Rong Jiaojiao asked Yunshu, and the slow-talking Yunshu barely acknowledged her. Mielle replied, "Jiaojiao, just help us grab seats in the middle towards the back, the further back the better."


    The mental health education lecture was said to just be watching educational videos, nothing interesting. Sitting too close in a lecture hall like that was uncomfortable. Since you could see the big screen clearly anyway, sitting in the back made it easy to slip out if needed. As someone who had already attended student council meetings before, Mielle was very familiar with this routine.


    "Okay, I''ll try my best to grab back seats for you guys later." Rong Jiaojiao said with a smile.


    After looking around, seeing the door was closed, she then gossiped in a low voice, "Yunshu, I heard that every time your dorm eats, you pay to buy food and everyone eats together. They said you''re really generous and treat everyone. I''d love to be in the same dorm as you."


    Yunshu looked confused.


    Xiao Qi had a serious expression.


    Wei Cheng''s face turned red.


    Mielle jumped off her bed in excitement, "Who''s spreading rumors?"


    It was clearly everyone buying their own food and then eating together. Even though the food Wei Cheng bought was more ordinary, she was always careful not to take advantage of others. If she ate an extra bite of Rong Jiaojiao''s bread, she would make a note of it and think about helping Rong Jiaojiao out later by doing some chores or something to make up for it. The bread and pastries she brought back from the stables, she divided up evenly among her roommates.


    Rong Jiaojiao had not expected Chen Mei to get so emotional. She had just heard something that sounded a bit off, so she came over to say something.


    In her opinion, this was the kind of thing Gu Yunshu would do. Gu Yunshu''s family really had money. In a city as big as Fu Cheng, the Gu family was located right in the city center by the best location in the hot springs park. They had a huge villa that took up a very large area of land. The family was said to have a hot spring pool directly in their home where they could soak in the hot springs. Their front and back yards were like gardens. Although she had never seen it herself, she had heard classmates talk about it. The Gu family were truly wealthy people, not just regular rich. Treating dormmates to a meal was nothing to them.


    "I didn''t treat my dormmates to eat," Gu Yunshu explained.


    She was not the type to ingratiate herself with others through fancy gestures. After living together for so long since the start of the semester, she felt she got along well enough with her roommates that there was no need for that.


    Wei Cheng''s face was flushed red, but she still spoke up, "Yunshu often buys lots of fruit for us to eat."


    Gu Yunshu loved eating fruit and would always buy piles of it. Wei Cheng would help carry it all back, but without a fridge in the dorm, it would easily spoil. So Yunshu would share it with her roommates, otherwise it would just go bad.


    In the past, little seven would probably have felt just as awkward and embarrassed as Wei Cheng. But now she just realized that college students weren''t much more mature than high schoolers after all.


    It was after she had joined the class group chat over summer break and a classmate added her, telling her about how Xia Zhen had gossiped behind her back saying her family were peasants and her aunt was a garbage collector, while pretending to be rich herself, that Xiao Qi finally understood what was going on between herself and Xia Zhen. At first she had felt hurt, but later she came to terms with it, realizing that when you associate with petty jealous people, you can''t win no matter what you do or don''t do. You just have to stay away from people like that.


    "It''s been exposed as a rumor already, why are you still getting worked up? We have class this afternoon, hurry up and get ready," said Xiao Qi to the bristling Mei.


    Chen Mei was still upset. "If I find out who spread those rumors, I''ll definitely..."


    "You''ll definitely what?"


    Chen Mei thought about a gossiping cousin she had once fought with without resolving anything. "Forget it, I won''t bother with people like that. The innocent have nothing to fear," she said awkwardly.


    Rong Jiaojiao had already sensed things were off and made her exit earlier. The others tidied up and headed out the door to class, without any hard feelings about the incident. On the contrary, Yunshu felt bad and apologized to them.

 Chapter 172: The Teacher Who Loves Sugar

    Chapter 172


    Xiao Qi was very glad that she was assigned to Huashan 606 Dormitory. Her roommates were nice people, which was really a stroke of good luck. After all, university classmates would spend the most intimate time together over four years, being each other''s first roommates after leaving home for the first time. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    It was the same for others. After living together for so long, everyone understood Gu Yunshu''s personality - she didn''t like to stand out, preferred staying in if possible, came from a well-off family, didn''t have any particular goals, and went with the flow. So this matter certainly wasn''t something she brought up herself - she was also a victim. Although being a rich scapegoat wasn''t a good reputation, she still apologized to Xiao Qi and the others.


    After joking and laughing together, they didn''t take it to heart, and the matter was dropped.


    The first afternoon class was Marketing, taught by a young male teacher named Shi. Compared to the slightly shy Macroeconomics teacher Shao in the morning, Teacher Shi was much livelier, and spoke very loudly without needing a microphone, making everyone''s ears buzz.


    Teacher Shi was very passionate when teaching, but he easily went off topic, talking about his own experiences. He was very self-amused, though some stories weren''t funny at all. He wasn''t as interesting and lively as Teacher Bai, but students still laughed easily, because his hometown accent was a bit strong - he would unintentionally slip into a rural accent when he got excited, which made everyone laugh out loud.


    In terms of expertise, Xiao Qi felt that Teacher Shi was pretty good, with his own insights, but he was very young and students didn''t seem to take him too seriously.


    A common problem among university students was looking down on young teachers for not being skillful enough, while older teachers were seen as outdated. Boring teachers had dull classes, while those fond of joking cared little whether students listened seriously or not... In summary, it seemed that no teacher needed to be listened to attentively, since self-study was better. But how many people could really self-study diligently when there were so many campus activities that they could hardly participate in them all?


    Xiao Qi had previewed the content, so she was quite interested in what the teacher said. Marketing itself was an intriguing subject.


    And comparing it with the Macroeconomics class this morning gave her many new perspectives.


    It was just that the teacher really liked going off topic.


    "I received a text message saying my bank card was used for an overseas transaction of 80,000 RMB. I immediately became nervous and called the head office..."


    The whole class laughed again. This teacher couldn''t be an idiot right? It was clearly a scam message. Why call the head office?


    "I wanted to ask the head office if there really were 80,000 RMB in my account. If so, could they send me a screenshot for me to post on Moments..."


    The laughter grew even louder, with some even pounding the tables.


    Even Xiao Qi couldn''t help laughing.


    Once seated, it felt like watching a movie - there was a projector screen up front, someone adjusting a video, and occasional sounds testing the audio, which seemed to come from speakers in all four corners, very loud.


    With three classes together for the first time, it was quite noisy, several hundred people total. The terraced lecture hall quickly filled up, since they''d heard the class monitor would take attendance.


    Xiao Qi came fully prepared, taking out textbooks and test papers.


    At this moment, she felt she should have become the qualified university student described by upperclassmen, who knew public electives could be used to slack off.


    Worried it would be too boring, she brought Level 4 test papers to work on.


    She also brought her Calculus textbook, as the Calculus teacher had assigned homework. She could do that Calculus homework and preview the next class.


    She planned to continue consolidating her Japanese vocabulary as well, repeatedly reciting the words. After getting through this busy week, Xiao Qi intended to audit Japanese classes at the English Language Institute.


    She heard they not only had Japanese classes, but also Spanish, French, and other languages, all evening electives, perfectly timed to avoid conflicting with her own courses.


    Once everyone was seated, the teacher below tapped on the table for quiet and started playing the video. Sure enough, it was the old, cliched video. Xiao Qi felt only students with real psychological issues would pay close attention.


    She began taking the English test papers, as those were most familiar and easy to get into the zone with.


    Xiao Qi quickly finished a Level 4 test paper. Only then did Honey quietly nudge her and pass her phone over.


    Honey''s speed was awesome.


    On her phone were the details she''d found about Teacher Shi. Teacher Shi''s full name was Shi Zhaolai. It was said he was the hard-won son in the family, with three older sisters above him.


    He also had a stage name, Shi DaShan, because aside from teaching Marketing, he was also a amateur painter of some renown, specializing in landscape paintings. There were many of his works, which Xiao Qi flipped through one by one. At a glance, one painting seemed to just be zigzagging lines, the entire image composed of lines. But Xiao Qi immediately recognized it as terraced fields in the countryside, a stretch of terraced fields, with a lone tree. Looking at it gave her a warm yet cold feeling, very intimate yet sorrowful.


    It was quite contradictory.


    Seeing this painting made Xiao Qi suddenly homesick, as if the dots in the painting weren''t trees, but her father slowly walking along the ridge, hobbling along, walking a bit slowly... His figure went from tiny dots to that tall, grand tree.

 Chapter 173: Renting Clothes

    Chapter 173


    When the mental health education class for college students had not ended yet, Xiao Qi had already received a text message notification from the school''s music club that her demo had passed. She was informed to go to the indoor gymnasium at 2pm on Friday for a rehearsal, and the performance would start at 8pm. During the rehearsal, the performance order would be decided by drawing lots, and a total of 20 people were selected.


    Xiao Qi felt that the schedule was too tight. Fortunately, when she first saw the poster for the Top 10 Singers, she had already considered what song to sing. But she still felt quite nervous, thinking to herself - would anyone even go to the performance at such a large venue? If the venue was empty, that would be embarrassing.


    After class, Xiao Qi and her dorm mates, plus an additional person Rong Jiaojiao, walked out of the Datang Complex Building. Although it was not yet dark outside, Xiao Qi felt the atmosphere was different than usual. There were red flags fluttering everywhere, posters flying around. Even on the electronic display outside the Datang Complex Building, there were promotional videos for the Mid-Autumn Concert.


    Some of the videos showed singing clips of the singers. One segment was of Xiao Qi singing "Invisible Wings" in her dorm room... Although it was only 2-3 seconds long, she had complex feelings about it. Because it was just casually filmed, Xiao Qi was wearing a T-shirt in it, with the dorm room window visible in the background. Her hair was also messy and unkempt. The dorm room lighting was also quite dark and unsuitable for filming. Proper photography lighting would use strong lights, but fortunately her singing voice sounded clear and bright in the segment.


    In the promotional video, she also saw Wu Xinyue from the English department. Right after Xiao Qi''s dark footage, she looked radiant by comparison. Her skin was glowing, with a cute and charming expression. There was also some dancing, making her seem captivating at first glance. She seemed to be singing an English song, her voice sounded a bit soft, Xiao Qi did not pay much attention to listening and focused more on looking at her.


    Rong Jiaojiao could not help but exclaim: "Her skin is so fair, I wonder what face mask she uses?"


    As the few of them continued walking, they discovered there were also promotional ads on the screens outside the cafeteria. The efficiency was exceptionally fast.


    This time, Xiao Qi saw the white-haired granny singing beautifully by the lake - who turned out to be their Calculus professor, Lu Ruxue. She had also joined the Top 10 Singers competition, how impressive.


    The demo only had a short clip showing Professor Lu''s side profile, but her singing voice was loud and clear. She normally sounded like she uses good vocal techniques, quite professional.


    Apart from the singing clips, there were even mentor introductions... making it seem formal like an idol talent show.


    Xiao Qi even recognized one of the mentors, the horse ranch owner Xiao Shengzhou.


    She also saw an elderly lady appearing on screen, and Mei¡¯er excitedly gave them background information.


    "That''s Madam Su, the school trustee." Upstodatee from ei''er mentioned that the current actual administrator of the school is the school founder''s secretary, also his second wife, an inheritance from history. The Enhua school founder was Chinese but permanently settled overseas in Southeast Asia, where polygamy was practiced at that time.


    She was also the aunt of Xiao Qi''s classmate Su Li. Madam Su had black hair, wore a purple shirt, a small silk scarf around her neck, black pants. Her wrinkles around the eyes were quite deep, but one would still feel that she looked very graceful and beautiful.


    Xiao Qi felt that Su Li''s lips resembled her aunt''s, but was less good-looking.


    Upon hearing "Madam Su", Xiao Qi found it a bit strange at first, since she also had the surname Su.


    She wondered if people would address her in this way in the future.


    Most were also low cut, exposing shoulders and backs.


    "I''m looking for traditional opera costumes, the ancient era type." Xiao Qi told the shop owner that she did not want those outfits,


    "We have those too, our shop is very comprehensive, with new and old district costumes for rental here." The owner boasted.


    But she did not mention that the better formal outfits had already been booked out a few days prior by participants of the Top 10 Singers event. The remaining garments on display now were actually meant for accompanying singers and dancers.


    And Enhua''s students'' money was still very good to earn. The students did not bargain, and those clothes were just newer. Wholesale also cost a few hundred yuan, but renting to students once could earn a few hundred.


    The quantity was also large. Enhua''s students had a lot of activities, and there were various evening parties and dances from time to time.


    Although her store''s evening dresses were not good, they were shanzhai, but students who were really rich were not the customer base of this store. Those who were really rich custom made their own or bought their own, and did not need to rent from them.


    When Xiao Qi and Honey entered, Su Li was already upstairs in the cafe next door.


    She and Li Weijin did not go to listen to that health education class. Listening to that kind of class was a waste of time. They had experienced a round of skipping classes during the preparatory period, and there was no pressure to skip classes at all.


    Although the class monitor took attendance, the class monitor was smart. Just give him a greeting and it would be fine. After all, there were obedient students who went, and it did not matter if they did not go.


    Of course, coming to the cafe was not just to drink coffee. Anyway, it was quite boring. But she observed that Li Weijin seemed to be a little abnormal recently. In the past, when he heard him argue with his parents, brothers and sisters, he was lively and active, but recently he seemed to be not in high spirits, and often ran to the new district''s racetrack.


    A few people chatted casually, and Su Li lowered her head and saw two familiar figures downstairs, the two girls from the dormitory opposite hers.


    She had always paid little attention to others. She would pay attention to those girls, also because Chu Yu, their dormmate, kept mentioning Xiao Qi in a roundabout way. On the surface she praised Xiao Qi for being excellent, but actually she felt that Xiao Qi loved to attract attention and so on. That level of smearing was not worth looking at in Su Li''s eyes. On the contrary, it made her pay attention to Xiao Qi.


    Li Weijin also saw the two girls. In fact, he noticed Xiao Qi earlier than Su Li. It was funny to say, he was the young master of the Li family, the real estate tycoon in Alliance City, who liked to drive sports cars and go to bars, but he actually had never fallen in love, not even in kindergarten. He had been aloof since he was a child. When other children gave him gifts, he would ignore them.


    Then when Xiao Qi appeared in front of him holding the hand of the girl beside her, his heart started pounding rapidly. He didn''t even hear what the people around him were saying.


    Seeing her walk downstairs, he even thought Xiao Qi was going to come upstairs. His heartbeat felt stuck in his throat. His legs were even shaking, and his palms were a little sweaty. He also looked in the mirror across from him to see how he looked today.


    Very good, white shirt, seven-point pants, very clean and neat.


    As a result, Xiao Qi just went into the shop next door.

 Chapter 174: Preparation for Rehearsal

    Chapter 174


    The boss lady enthusiastically led Xiao Qi and Honey to the inner room. They were surprised to find that the store was quite deep, with two more rooms inside.


    The ancient-style clothes Xiao Qi wanted were all in one room. They seemed to be knockoff Hanfu costumes for performances.


    "Which kind do you want? We have individual pieces and also batches for entire shows. Buying in batches can get you a discount." Seeing they couldn''t decide, the boss lady assumed they wanted costumes for a group performance and enthusiastically introduced the options.


    Xiao Qi shook her head. The clothes here had an ancient vibe but were also brightly colored. They reminded her of the time she had played a tree on stage. It had been quite awkward. These would probably clash with the other dancers'' outfits too.


    "Do you have anything else?" Xiao Qi asked.


    The boss lady said they had all the ancient Hanfu and dance costumes here. Hanfu rentals were popular with young girls for photoshoots. She had just gotten a new batch in. There was nothing else.


    "Can we see the men''s section?" Xiao Qi asked.


    They continued walking deeper inside.


    There were floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Enhua Lake. The layout of this building was quite strange, with rooms lined up end to end.


    The innermost room contained men''s formalwear, probably because those got rented out less often. Upstodatee from


    There were tailcoats, suits, top hats, and other items. In the corner, Xiao Qi saw some changpao robes that looked promising. The fabric looked thick and substantial, without wrinkles.


    She asked Honey, "What do you think of these?"


    Having a bit of a blind worship of her roommate, Honey didn''t offer her own opinion. She just went along with Xiao Qi''s selection. She was surprised that Xiao Qi had picked out the changpao robes.


    Feeling the fabric, it did seem decent, better than the gaudy stage costumes and Hanfu outside.


    Seeing the two girls looking at the changpao, the boss lady rushed over to hype up the robes. "You two have good taste. These are new arrivals, top quality material, custom-made. Groom changpao are popular for ancient-style weddings these days, very dignified. Just look at this fabric, the drape, the quality, the color..."


    The beginning of the semester was the easiest time for all classes. A good start made the rest of the term less difficult.


    Without building a solid foundation in the beginning, studying would only get harder later on.


    The start was important. Besides, compared to high school, university courses were not that heavy. Most students'' busyness came from clubs, student council, and other social activities. Actual class time did not take up the majority.


    But compared to other students participating in various activities, learning commissioner Xiao Qi faithfully attending self-study sessions every evening did come across as bookish. Being bookish in high school was still a compliment, but not so much in university. Knowing only studying and nothing else would clearly not get one far in society.


    On top of being poor, needing to work part-time jobs, mooching off roommates¡¯ food, attention-seeking, adding teachers on WeChat, and other undeservedly negative reputations, Xiao Qi also gained the label of being a bookworm who only knew how to memorize...


    Xiao Qi was aware of some of these labels, unaware of others. But she generally brushed them off with a laugh.


    In high school she had been thoroughly ignored and was used to keeping a low profile. She did not feel anything had changed much after entering university. Focusing on studies and self-improvement was her motto in life currently. She did not pay much attention to others.


    Before she knew it, the Mid-Autumn Festival arrived, on a Friday afternoon.


    Xiao Qi had to go for the competition rehearsal. Luckily classes were off that day for the festival, otherwise she would''ve had to ask for leave.


    Xiao Qi felt it''d be a waste to miss class for an activity. She had paid so much in tuition to attend Enhua University. After attending classes for this long, she felt the school''s hardware facilities were great, and the software - curriculum and teachers - was also very good. The teaching staff was quite strong, though more diverse in background. But compared to other universities, it was unlikely they had so many retired professors from top domestic institutions coming back to teach. Each of them was a gem.


    There were also lecturers from Qingmeng University teaching part-time, effectively allowing students to enjoy half of Qingmeng''s offerings. The younger teachers may be weaker, but still passionate. And there were many foreign teachers too. Overall the teaching resources were very abundant, which was an advantage.


    Xiao Qi declined her roommate''s offer to accompany her to the rehearsal. It was just a run-through, probably mostly waiting around in line for their turn. A waste of time. She hoped they would all come to the actual competition at night.


    Being low-key, Xiao Qi did not promote the event in her class either. University students were busy, no need to bother them. Her brief appearance in the promo video was in dim lighting and probably unrecognizable to most.


    In the afternoon, Wei Cheng went to work at the stables. Yunshu had flower arrangement club - she had gotten quite into it lately, ordering more flowers all the time so their dorm was fragrantly flowery.


    As for Honey, there was some student council task she had to handle. Xiao Qi just found out the Mid-Autumn Gala singing contest was jointly organized between the student council and the music club. So Honey was headed to the Indoor Gymnasium as well.

 Chapter 175: Top 10 Singers

    Chapter 175


    It was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and school was closed. However, there were still quite a few people at the equestrian center.


    Wei Cheng went there to work, cleaning horse stalls as usual. Unexpectedly, she ran into her classmate Li Weijin from the Computer Science Department.


    Li Weijin was not only well-known among the three classes in their major, but probably the entire Computer Science Department. He was just too good-looking, and was said to come from a very wealthy family.


    Wei Cheng heard from her deskmate, Yunshu, that Li Weijin''s family was much richer than hers by many times over - they were not on the same level at all.


    In Wei Cheng''s eyes, Yunshu''s family conditions were already quite good. After all, Yunshu used very expensive skincare products, and her bags alone cost tens of thousands. She also bought flowers every day that didn''t seem to serve much purpose. The money she spent on flowers was enough for Wei Cheng''s living expenses for a month. Yet Yunshu said her family couldn''t compare with Li Weijin''s at all.


    Seeing Li Weijin, Wei Cheng didn''t know whether she should greet him or not. After all, they were classmates. But she also felt that Li Weijin probably didn''t even recognize her, so it would be awkward to say hi.


    Although they were in the same class, it was a large class of over 70 students. It was normal for classmates to not have spoken to each other at all.


    Wei Cheng was tall and big, but extremely shy and insecure inside. She was only outgoing around people she was familiar with. So after hesitating for a while, she decisively chose not to greet Li Weijin to avoid awkwardness.


    However, when she was shoveling waste from the horse stalls into the cart, Li Weijin unexpectedly came over to talk to her.


    "Wei Cheng, why didn''t your roommate Su Xiaoqi come today?" Li Weijin asked.


    "Xiaoqi is competing in the Top 10 Singers Competition tonight and went to the rehearsal this afternoon," Wei Cheng obediently replied before realizing - wow, Li Weijin actually knows my name? And he even asked about Xiaoqi?


    After asking, Li Weijin just walked away.


    Wei Cheng was still confused...What did the school prince mean by that?


    After thinking through many possibilities, she finally concluded that as a class leader, Li Weijin was probably having a Mid-Autumn Festival meeting with Xiaoqi, who was also a class leader.


    That must be the only explanation.


    Wei Cheng didn''t think more about it. She hurried with her work because Old Man Yu said they could get off work early today for him to go celebrate the festival with his daughter''s family. She also wanted to finish early and go watch Xiaoqi sing tonight.


    Xiaoqi arrived at the gym where many people had already gathered. Overall, things seemed orderly amidst the busyness.


    Probably because there were not many other events at school, but there were many students, so human resources were plentiful and arrangements were made nicely.


    Each contestant was paired with a member of the Music Society to assist with any unexpected incidents at any time.


    Xiaoqi''s assistant was a thin, quiet boy who introduced himself, "I''m a new Finance Major student this year, my surname is Wu, you can just call me Xiao Wu." Visitt  for the latest updates


    Seeing the slightly shy boy in front of her, Xiaoqi was suddenly reminded of the intern who came to pick her up at Lvshan City TV Station.


    She felt the school was quite similar to the society in some ways. At times, participating in student organizations seemed like a waste of time, but not necessarily. It was also like gaining experience of society in advance, like having an internship in a small community ahead of time.


    Xiaoqi: "..."


    For his last sentence, Xiaoqi struggled to grasp his humor, vaguely understanding he was mocking or joking. After all, not many Chinese could be treated as well as pandas.


    While Xiaoqi was conversing happily with the two teachers, Wu Xinyue from the English Department also arrived. It was commonly believed English majors had better English because while other majors only needed the College English Test Band 4 and Band 6, English majors had to take the Test for English Majors Band 4 and Band 8 which were much harder than CET.


    But in reality, the English proficiency of first year English majors was about the same as students of other majors who had just taken the college entrance exam.


    Wu Xinyue''s English was quite mediocre. She didn''t expect to see Su Xiaoqi here, but she should have realized Su Xiaoqi was very good at singing after that episode during class when she sang out loud for the whole grade to hear. However, Wu Xinyue was still confident about her looks. At this moment, seeing Su Xiaoqi chatting so happily with two teachers, and even speaking English with the foreign teacher, she felt a bit irritated.


    Somehow, at this moment, she felt Su Xiaoqi was too dazzling. Despite wearing plain t-shirt and shorts, she still made Wu Xinyue feel annoyed. Why did she run into Su Xiaoqi everywhere?


    Soon Xiaoqi''s assistant Xiao Wu came to say they could start drawing lots to determine the performance order at night.


    Xiaoqi drew the 15th place, quite late in the lineup.


    Professor Lu drew the 1st place, the opening act. Professor Lu also smiled and said, "Perfect, I''ll open the door to good fortune."


    The old man Garen drew the 5th place.


    After drawing, everyone went backstage to get familiar with the venue and walked through the order. Xiaoqi noticed it was quite interesting that her video introduction would play right before Wu Xinyue''s singing performance. Wu Xinyue drew the 14th slot.


    At this point, everyone submitted their song choices.


    The rehearsal progressed efficiently. Xiaoqi added her assistant Xiao Wu''s WeChat so they could contact anytime.


    If she needed makeup artists, special accompaniment or anything, the assistant would handle it so the contestants could go back to rest up and deliver their peak performance at night.


    Xiaoqi felt the Music Society handled all the details very well, even better than her experience at the TV station. They were probably very experienced running the yearly Top 10 Singers Competition.


    Wu Xinyue didn''t leave immediately. She lingered behind wanting to take a look at the program schedule.


    She chose a Japanese song. She knew her appearance gave her an advantage, that she was suited for dancing, and that her long hair was also one of her strengths. She chose an extremely cute Japanese song, and planned to sing and dance to it - the effect should be very good. She had practiced it privately for a long time, and she had also become popular in high school thanks to this song. Back then she had been a little nervous performing it, but now she could do even better.


    She had thought about choosing an English song, but there were too many English teachers at the school, so she was afraid it would expose her weaknesses during the formal competition.


    Besides, English songs tended to be more lyrical, less suited for acting cute.


    She wondered what song Su Xiaoqi had chosen to perform. As for that white-haired granny and the foreign gentleman, Wu Xinyue didn''t take them seriously at all. After all, it was an unspoken rule that the top 10 campus singers chosen each year would be students - the other teachers just participated for fun.


    Normally, contestants weren''t supposed to know what songs the others had chosen, but Wu Xinyue had always been good at this - a little flirting and acting cute with the boy in charge of the list, and he''d let her sneak a peek.


    When she saw the song Su Xiaoqi had chosen, she was stunned for a moment. What kind of song was this? It was ridiculous!

 Chapter 176: Steady

    Chapter 176


    In the evening, Wei Cheng brought two large boxes of mooncakes, one box for Xiao Qi, saying it was from the racecourse boss.


    There were already mooncake coupons obtained by Mi''er from the student union in the dormitory, as well as the freshly made meat mooncakes unique to Fucheng sent by the driver of Gu Yunshu''s parents. They were still hot when delivered. In addition to the mooncakes brought by Wei Cheng, there were piles of mooncakes in the dormitory.


    Fortunately, pastries like mooncakes can still be kept quite well.


    Everyone first ate the meat mooncakes sent from Gu Yunshu''s family.


    Gu Yunshu didn''t like to eat meat, but her mother loved to eat this kind of mooncake, so she specially sent it over, probably because her mother thought you would like to eat it.


    It was very fresh, the meat inside was fat, but crystal clear, not greasy at all, with both sweet and savory flavors, both quite tasty. When I first ate it, I felt the sweet one was delicious, but when I ate it later, the slightly salty one was more durable, but the slightly salty one had garlic flavor. Xiao Qi was worried about bad breath and didn''t dare to eat too much.


    The four girls in the dormitory just ate some together. Although none of them went home, eating mooncakes together in the dormitory was also a perfect Mid-Autumn Festival.


    Everyone called home.


    Xiao Qi had sent her military training clothes and mobile phone back home. Her parents had already received them. Now everyone having a mobile phone is quite fashionable.


    It''s just that the network at hometown is not good, otherwise they could have had video calls.


    Sheng Juanhua originally didn''t want to use a mobile phone. One mobile phone was enough for the couple. Paying fees for two mobile phones was too much. But nowadays, her husband''s bamboo weaving business was unexpectedly getting better and better. Although there were others in the village doing bamboo baskets and bamboo baskets, you wouldn''t know without doing it yourself and having something to compare with. On the contrary, it highlighted Su Youfu''s superior craftsmanship. Exquisite workmanship resulted in even better sales.


    Su Youfu was very busy. Sheng Juanhua would answer calls for custom orders for bamboo wares. Although Sheng Juanhua was not well educated, she could remember customers'' requirements and the like, and she spoke loudly and confidently, giving people a free and easy impression. She was also very careful in her work, so more people called her and both of them ended up using mobile phones.


    Xiao Qi chatted with her parents for a while and heard that everything was fine at home, so she felt relieved.


    After taking a bath at night, Xiao Qi borrowed Mi''er''s makeup kit, and the four roommates in the dormitory went to the gym together in full force.


    Xiao Qi checked the rented clothes and there was no problem. The hem had been neatly sewn in for an extra length last time by the shop owner. It was a simple alteration that could easily be let down again if needed for a taller person next time.


    Next was the second contestant, a student.


    It was a tall and fat boy who looked a bit clumsy and nervous. But he sang ¡°The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau¡±, hitting very high notes at the start, with excellent timbre. But at the climax, probably from nervousness, his voice cracked a little, somewhat shrill. The earlier Xiao Qi wouldn¡¯t have noticed, but now with her improved singing skills, she could clearly feel the obvious difference.


    In the end, the judges gave their scores one by one, averaging out to 7.8 points.


    Then came the third contestant, fourth contestant, scoring 7.9 points and 7.0 points respectively. It seemed the mentor teachers were scoring very cautiously.


    The fifth contestant was Garen. He chose the Chinese song ¡°A Fire in the Winter¡± and stunned the audience as soon as he appeared, wearing a dazzling sequined suit with vest and pants which went with his big beard, looking very handsome. And when he started singing in Chinese, the atmosphere became even more enthusiastic. Although his pronunciation was a bit vague, this song was too familiar. Garen wore shiny leather shoes, even singing and dancing at the same time, making a group of students scream. Many foreign teachers were also shouting ¡°Garen! Garen! Garen!¡± there.


    After listening to Garen finish singing, Xiao Qi went backstage to get ready. She was the 15th contestant. Although quite late, it was about time for her to go get her makeup done. With the student union status, Mi''er followed Xiao Qi to sneak backstage to carry the makeup kit for her.


    Xiao Qi decided to do her own makeup. She had already submitted her music. The music club just needed to provide the basic accompaniment. Judging from the songs earlier, the musicians in the music club were very capable indeed, providing professional accompaniment.


    She chose a long dress in an ash grey shade with light blue. The color seemed light when looking normally. But after seeing the stage lighting effects, it actually looked bright under the lights. This long dress had a silky feel to it. Under the lights the color looked deeper and more gorgeous.


    When she was in the makeup area, Wu Xinyue was already backstage.


    With Mi''er following Xiao Qi as a little attendant, her jaw practically dropped when seeing Wu Xinyue''s outfit. Wu Xinyue had made herself up to look all fluffy, like either a rabbit or a fox, complete with a long tail, bunny ears, a pink furry one-piece micro dress and black over-the-knee boots. Her long black hair reached all the way to the hemline. The coquettish yet sexy look in this outfit could probably overwhelm most male classmates instantly.


    Xiao Qi took a glance and also felt somewhat surprised. It was really...ahem...a bit too dreamy. The skirt seemed to be a little too short, she could see the underwear when sitting down, although Xiao Qi didn''t do it on purpose.


    However, it did look good, it''s just that Wu Xinyue''s face was slightly more mature. It would look even better if she appeared more childish and lively, but I don''t know why, Wu Xinyue gave people the feeling that she was quite mature.


    Xiao Qi only swept a glance without looking much. She put on her robe before starting to put on makeup, worrying that changing clothes after finishing makeup would ruin it.


    The quality of Mei''er''s makeup products felt somewhat average to Xiao Qi.


    Wu Xinyue also saw Su Xiaoxiao wearing a long robe. She felt like an underdeveloped little boy...she became even more confident about herself, feeling that she would definitely rank among the top ten beauties tonight.

 Chapter 177: Stunning

    Chapter 177


    Wu Xinyue was also quite skilled at putting on makeup.


    She would put on makeup every time she went out, so of course she couldn''t ask someone else to help her with it every day. The best makeup artist is still oneself. Even celebrities can''t have makeup artists with them all the time.


    However, she just wore light makeup on a daily basis. Now that she was going on stage, she made her makeup look heavier, due to the stage lighting.


    Under the bright lights, makeup that''s too light can make features look very plain.


    So Xiaoqi felt that Wu Xinyue''s appearance was more mature and glamorous now. Uh, it was a bit overdone. From afar it still looked fine, but up close it really looked a bit scary.


    She didn''t have much time left, so she didn''t pay attention to the others and started doing her own makeup.


    Wu Xinyue also didn''t have the composure to notice Su Xiaoqi. She just smiled at her in greeting, then went to watch the other contestants'' performances. As it turned out, none of the next few contestants scored above 8 points, so she felt a bit more at ease. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    Although she was just a TikTok internet celebrity, she often made TikTok videos. Viewers liked it when hosts filmed outdoors in crowded places, as the effect was better. So she did have experience performing outdoors. She was much better than the other contestants in this regard.


    She saw that the second contestant, a fat guy, sang quite well, but was too nervous and stiff. His performance as a whole definitely wouldn''t work.


    The other contestants also had various issues, either too nervous, too inexperienced, or just average singing skills.


    Looking at everything comprehensively, Wu Xinyue felt that she was still stronger than them.


    Xiaoqi didn''t watch the other contestants. She was putting on her own makeup.


    This was actually the first time she had earnestly put on makeup for herself.


    After doing makeup for Honey, Yunshu and Weicheng last time, Xiaoqi had specially gone to the library to read books about makeup application.


    She realized that there were many intricacies to putting on makeup. The makeup for daily wear and stage performance had big differences.


    She had just seen that Wu Xinyue made her makeup heavier to cope with the stage lighting.


    This was what most people did, like putting thick makeup on elementary school students performing on stage, sticking on false eyelashes and the like, making their faces look like monkeys'' butts. This was actually the most basic stage makeup, just to look eye-catching and bright.


    But with the advanced technology nowadays, there were also close-up shots on stage. Some cameras could get right up to your face. Thick makeup would look inappropriate in such shots.


    Those trendy male celebrities did this very well. Whether it was daily life or on stage, their faces looked flawless even in extreme close-ups, with zero pores and distinct 3D features, looking very refreshing.


    With such good-looking faces, no wonder groups of teenage girls and older women would scream that so-and-so was their husband every day. These delicate pretty boys did look better than the greasy men in real life.


    The applause was deafening. Wu Xinyue scored 8.4 points, the highest so far since no one else had scored over 8.


    She smiled broadly and walked off stage, forehead slightly sweaty. She didn''t dare wipe it off for fear of smudging her makeup since she still had to go back on stage later for the finale. So she hurried off to touch up.


    Xiaoqi went on stage from the other side.


    She calmly walked to the middle of the stage. To be honest, she was a little nervous.


    But working as a tutor in summer had built up her courage somewhat, plus Jiajia often filming her had made her less afraid of cameras. Having gone to TV stations for interviews before, this was just a school competition, so Xiaoqi kept encouraging herself not to be scared and to relax.


    In reality, following right after Wu Xinyue''s stellar performance was a bit of a disadvantage. Wu Xinyue had done really well, whipping the audience into a frenzy. It was like Teacher Lu singing excellently as the first contestant, then the second contestant ate the loss even though his rendition of ''Plateau of Tibet'' was actually better than the subsequent contestants, but he got lower scores.


    Xiaoqi was not afraid, because this was a singing competition after all.


    She had chosen to sing ''Exploring the Qingshui River'', requesting simple guitar accompaniment.


    After the previous exciting song and dance, the next contestant coming on stage in robes was quite a contrast. The audience and judges were taken aback, wondering if she was going to perform Peking opera? How interesting.


    Luckily the large screens in the gym clearly showed the person walking on stage.


    A group of girls exclaimed first: "This pretty boy is too good-looking!"


    "It''s a girl, didn''t you see the program? Su Xiaoqi is a female student in Class 1 of the Information Management Department."


    A person of ambiguous gender in long robes walked slowly across the big screen.


    The girls all felt it was so elegant and graceful, and were captivated, especially compared to the sexy and revealing fox and bunny outfits Wu Xinyue had worn just before. It was captivating to their hearts, and in an instant felt like a cleansing of their eyes. They felt entertained by the beauty.


    The boys, after experiencing the previous energetic song and dance, the long-haired bunny outfit and big tail, like a game character Da Ji''s perfect figure - the only regret was feeling the internet celebrity sister''s face looked a bit oily up close, but compared to them ordinary students, it was already a visual feast, perfect.


    But the contestant who came out now sat down calmly on the high chair in the middle of the stage, adjusted the microphone in front.


    Facing the students below and judges, she smiled lightly, just a light smile.


    The boys all suddenly felt their hearts race, thump thump, they were actually captivated by her beauty. Her face looked so exquisite on the big screen, simply flawless, beautiful from every angle.


    Especially those eyes.


    Just now Wu Xinyue was dressed up as a fox, but the clean long robes on the girl in front seemed to give her an innate grace and charm.


    She wore very plain clothes, light blue robes, no extra jewelry on her body or hands, just ordinary slippers on her feet, but sitting there, her ankles looked fair and shining, clasped high, just a small section of her neck revealed, very white, when she looked up with a smile, it made everyone involuntarily hold their breath, the whole empty stage seemed to take on an air of elegance and beauty.

 Chapter 178: Glitter

    Chapter 178


    Contestant number fourteen took the stage, and the atmosphere was extremely hot.


    The air was filled with a thick, fragrant aroma.


    The judges sitting in the front rows were most profoundly moved.


    Therefore, when contestant fifteen went on stage after contestant fourteen left, Xiao Shengzhou took the opportunity to grab the bottle of Yunquan mineral water in front of him and took a sip.


    As a result, when he saw contestant fifteen, he couldn''t hold back and spit out the water with a "pffft" sound.


    He had heard from another staff member named Wei Cheng that Su Xiaoqi was going to the rehearsal that afternoon and would be participating in the Top Ten Singers Competition that night. However, whenever Xiao Shengzhou saw Su Xiaoqi, she was basically wearing a little yellow outfit. He didn''t pay attention to what she looked like. To him, she was just a girl from his horse farm working her way through school. He would see her running around the horse farm looking quite free every day, but in reality she had a lot to do. Who would pay attention to such trivial matters? As long as the girl worked hard, that was enough. The horse farm was supposed to hire a manager to handle things, but since Xiao Shengzhou was still in school, his uncle let him do it himself to gain experience from the ground up.


    That was why he had to deal with students in the work-study program, but it was limited to that extent.


    However, at this moment, seeing the girl who calmly took the stage, she was a girl, right? He had a program list in his hand: Su Xiaoqi, Information Management Class 1, the same person as the student ID she had given him the other day. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    He didn''t expect her to look like this.


    No wonder his dog-like little uncle took notice of this little girl at first sight when he met her the other day. After he left, he even called Xiao Shengzhou to ask for her WeChat, and got mocked by him. What kind of taste did he have, going after a school girl? Of course Xiao Shengzhou wouldn''t let his little uncle bother the school''s students.


    Xiao Shengzhou felt like his little uncle had his fill at the banquet and now fancied some plain congee and vegetables, wanting to change his palette.


    But the girl in front of him was no plain congee or vegetables. As she sat on the stage adjusting the microphone, she looked up and gave a faint smile, and Xiao Shengzhou felt like the whole stage lit up. Endless romantic feelings.


    Her eyes were extremely charming, naturally so charming it was incredible, yet her gaze was extremely pure, without any extra emotions.


    Vice chairman Gao Qimin also smiled.


    School governor Mrs. Su said, "The future belongs to the youth."


    And Li Weijin, who had fruitlessly gone to the horse farm that afternoon, suddenly felt his behavior had been extremely silly and decided not to do such silly things again.


    It was none of his business that Su Xiaoqi was participating in something like the Top Ten Singers Competition. But in the end, he still got dragged over by his fox friends and dog friends. Li Taiping said Wu Xinyue was performing and they should go support her. Li Weijin definitely wouldn''t have joined in the hubbub, but when he heard the next act was Su Xiaoqi, he reluctantly came in a hurry.


    Then he saw Su Xiaoqi walking calmly onstage in a cheongsam, adjusting the microphone with her fair hand, and giving him a faint smile.


    He suddenly understood why Li Taiping had reacted like an excited dog to that internet celebrity Wu Xinyue earlier, shamelessly shouting that Xinyue was the best. Now he also wanted to shout...


    Every time he thought he understood Su Xiaoqi, she would reveal another new side to him.


    There was the hardworking, sunny Su Xiaoqi working at the horse farm, the genius debater Su Xiaoqi in class, and now the shining, dazzling Su Xiaoqi on stage, glowing from head to toe.


    Others said she was good-looking, but at this moment, he felt Su Xiaoqi was a hundred times better-looking than him.


    His good looks came from various lucky backgrounds.


    But Su Xiaoqi in front of him now just wore a simple cheongsam. With a faint smile, she made the whole stage brighten. His heart also lit up, with endless feelings of romantic flair, yet restrained and pure.


    The gentle guitar music rose.


    Xiaoqi began to sing along with the accompaniment:


    "The peach leaves tip tip top, the willow leaves shade the whole sky..."

 Chapter 179: A Well-Deserved First.

    Chapter 179


    "The peach leaves are pointed at the tips, the willow leaves cover the sky, the eminent Mr. Ming who sits in his place, listen carefully as I tell my tale..."


    As the singing rang out, it scalded the ears. It was as if the ears were being soaked in hot water, with white steam rising before the eyes.


    In an instant, you were brought to the Beijing West Indigo Factory, surrounded by coarse cloth-wearing old men with large tobacco pipes.


    "In the firearms camp of the Indigo Factory, there is a San Lao Three who sells tobacco rolls. Speaking of that San Lao Three couple..."


    Then you see the daughter Chan Juan of the couple selling tobacco rolls, with an oiled braid and red cheeks, seemingly giving a shy smile as she walks towards you.


    But when you look up, it''s just a handsome singing girl in a long robe.


    She continues singing:


    "Little girl, sixteen years of age, given the pet name Da Lian, girl called Da Lian, beautiful in looks and temperament..."


    "This fresh flower remains unplucked, the pipa strings are unplucked as well, I''m like Diao Chan longing for Lu? Bu, and also like Yan Po regretting Zhang San up in her tower..."


    On stage is still that singing girl, whose eyes suddenly brim with gentle passion, giving a little shake of her head, making you think you were seeing things, as the singing girl on stage just continues singing calmly.


    But Da Lian has walked over.


    "The Sixth Brother I think of day and night has come to my door...we made a date for midnight tonight to meet, shy Da Lian bows her head not knowing what to say..."


    You inexplicably feel a thief''s guilty conscience, as if you''ve come to a secret tryst, feeling a bit anxious.


    But the white smoke disappears.


    There''s no secret meeting before your eyes, the girl on stage pauses, her expression very serious.


    Then suddenly opens her mouth to continue singing:


    "At the first watch, the girl weeps copiously, most pitiful are her parents, addicted to opium, delaying my marriage prospects..."


    This time your heart is suddenly scalded.


    As if hearing the night watchman bang the drum.


    Veteran musician Yi Zhou''s eyes shine brightly, impatient to do something, feeling this evening was worthwhile coming, having been in the music business so many years, the little girl before him, not to mention her looks, just that voice and vocal gifts, even if she looked like a pig he could promote her into a huge star.


    And the Deputy Chairman of the Business Federation, his usually stern face is actually a bit red, he was just immersed in the second watch, third watch, fourth watch, fifth watch situations, seeming to see first love, ultimately without results, at that time he was without prospects or backbone, let alone jumping in the river, he''d simply run off, his current success makes him never want to recall the past, but this moment, he gives a score of 10.


    Little Seven does not immediately get off stage, waiting for the judges to score.


    She sits in her seat, adjusting the mic stand height again, because the next contestant would probably not need to sit on a high stool like her.


    But when she''s adjusting the mic, some girls actually go on stage to give her flowers.


    Also female students.


    Bringing up a bouquet of roses, face red, hurriedly running off stage after putting them down.


    And so in the middle of the judges'' scoring, 4 or 5 more girls run up to bring flowers.


    All with red faces running off stage afterwards.


    Male students below the stage: ...


    Wake up, the one on stage is a girl, a girl...


    Li Weijin''s face isn''t red, but it feels hot, he wants to give flowers too, but because earlier Grandpa Li said he''d be giving flowers to cheer on Wu Xinyue, Weijin was ridiculed by them and too embarrassed to go buy any himself, so he has no flowers in hand now.


    He finally stands up and goes to the doorway, where there are many flower baskets for the gala event, and shamelessly grabs a bunch from a basket, not even checking clearly what they are, just hugging them in a dash back inside.


    Then with an expressionless face he goes on stage to give flowers too, the spotlight shines on his face and the flowers in his hand, that damn flower basket actually had a bunch of leaves and clover flowers and marigolds...luckily it didn''t look too bad clumped together.


    But so embarrassing, Weijin''s first time actively giving a girl flowers, and it''s a bunch of clover and marigolds...he says in serious face: "I''m giving these on behalf of the class committee."


    Then just as seriously goes off stage, thinking he was quite graceful.


    But after getting off stage, Li Taiping whispers: "Brother Weijin, you looked a bit unsteady on your feet just now getting off stage."


    Weijin: ...serious face finally red...


    White with red showing through.


    Extremely red.

 Chapter 180: Take the High Road

    Chapter 180


    She posted a photo, holding the trophy for the top ten singers first place and twenty thousand yuan prize money, smiling very silly.


    Her final score was 9.5 points.


    After she finished singing, Little Heavenly Queen Ding Nan took the stage to perform.


    Ding Nan sang calmly, after all she''s a celebrity, and the reaction from the audience was still quite enthusiastic, but because of the contrast with the previous performer, it still felt unsatisfactory. The few singers after also performed normally.


    The last contestant sang an English song, a boy with a very strong stage manner, and sang well too, 8.6 points, second place.


    Wu Xinyue got third place.


    Xiaoqi''s score was so high, first because her image was clean and lovely, second because the song she chose was very thoughtful. As soon as the tune of "Exploring Qingshui River" came out, even the foreign teachers at the scene thought they were seeing the essence of this magical country, when it was actually just a Beijing ditty, with the addition of modern pop elements sung again.


    But it was accidentally pleasing, if it really was Peking opera, Xiaoqi wouldn''t know how to sing it either, and many people wouldn''t understand it either. So this simple Beijing ditty was very rhythmic, plus the pop elements, the story was simple too, so everyone could understand it.


    There were twenty songs on site, most of them chose pop songs. If you want to win the twenty thousand yuan first prize money, it would still be quite risky, because everyone would get aesthetic fatigue.


    As for bel canto, Xiaoqi''s vocal cords were restricted, and may not sing as well as Teacher Lu who had practiced singing for decades.


    And Xiaoqi found that she was quite good at empathy when singing, which was probably a specialized level+ ability. Obviously, if she sang foreign language songs, the empathy ability would not be useful, as not all students on site would have good foreign language skills.


    Like Wu Xinyue choosing a Japanese song, her singing was just average to begin with, she interacted more and could dance, but there were still very few people who could understand it on site. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    So her choice of a foreign song was actually playing to her strengths and avoiding weaknesses.


    Out of the twenty songs, Xiaoqi carefully chose "Exploring Qingshui River" as her preparation for the top ten singers competition, it was her tactic.


    She won.


    She accomplished her initial goal, she was very happy when she got the prize money, just like when she got the swimming championship, only this time she was more determined, believing that with effort, goal-oriented effort, and wisely exerted effort, she could ultimately succeed.


    Li Weijin also saw Su Xiaoqi¡¯s WeChat moments, she looked so good on stage, like a fairy under the moonlight when she sat there alone singing, any random photo could be used as a phone wallpaper. Yet she chose this one, smiling so silly, involuntarily reminding him of the photo when she won the swimming championship...with the exact same silly smile...He thought back to when reporter asked Su Xiaoqi during an interview: What was your motivation for participating in the competition?


    Su Xiaoqi said: the prize money...


    Now it clicked for Li Weijin, could it be that Su Xiaoqi participated in the top ten singers competition for the prize money again?


    Thinking of her taking the work-study job, Li Weijin felt a little sour in his heart, could it really be so.


    After the competition ended, Xiaoqi took a group photo with the other contestants and judge teachers, unexpectedly even adding a few of the judge teachers on WeChat, though she didn''t add School Governor Su, who hurried off after the event ended.


    So after finishing calligraphy practice, Xiaoqi still went downstairs to run a few laps. Her thoughts flowed freely while running.


    Facing the night breeze felt very comfortable.


    She finally completely exited from that stage tonight.


    Practicing calligraphy just calmed her mood somewhat, like suppressing those emotions.


    While running dispersed those emotions.


    Yes, for a moment there, Xiaoqi was also enraptured by the stage too.


    Captivated by that feeling of being the center of attention, as if entering another world, as if she really was a successful figure, walking into the fairy tale world she once heard about.


    Mesmerizing.


    But that was only an illusion.


    Merely a campus top ten singers competition, nothing else.


    If she indulged in it, that''s where she would stop.


    The world was still so vast, still so much more out there.


    Like little heavenly queen Ding Nan, cheered on stage by thousands, Xiaoqi also felt envious. But thinking back now, she envied Teacher Lu even more.


    Gentle and refined, almost 70 years old, still brimming with wisdom. Singing was just her hobby, part of enjoying life. Gracious onstage and offstage.


    Such a life even more wonderful.


    If chasing applause, how to conduct oneself when applause disappears?


    Running dispersed that sneakily sprouting sense of utilitarianism and vanity in Xiaoqi¡¯s heart, dispelling it, sobering up again. Clearly she was still just a student for now. Most important was studying, nothing else.


    The road of life was long with many temptations and forks. But certainly the initial main road was the brightest. The forks seem like shortcuts but actually of unknown destination. The end of the main road had her original goal. She must continue on.


    After finishing running, I returned to the dormitory to take a shower.


    After taking a shower, I went to sleep and calmly drifted off.


    Before falling asleep, I thought that I could put this 20,000 yuan into my bank savings account. My parents would definitely be very happy when they see it.

 Chapter 181: Visit Luoxi Town

    Chapter 181


    Xiao Qi woke up to the familiar mechanical sound ringing in her ears again: "Host has obtained a bonus of 20,000 yuan based on her own abilities, which has brought positive energy to the surrounding classmates. Xiao Qi is rewarded with an additional 20,000 yuan, which must be spent within seven days. The additional reward money cannot be reinvested."


    So Xiao Qi saw that in the interface, the previously appeared additional reward section showed 20,000 yuan separately, with a flashing number 7 behind it.


    This was the second time Xiao Qi had received such a reward. She was much calmer this time. Anyway, there were still 7 days left. It was easy to spend money.


    Today was Saturday. She only had club activities in the afternoon. Her morning was free. But she had made plans to go to foreign teacher Grace''s home tomorrow. Xiao Qi wanted to buy gifts, so she thought about going to the market in Luoxi Town to see if there was anything she wanted. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    When Xiao Qi asked if anyone wanted to go to Luoxi Town, her roommates were very surprised. They did not expect the study maniac to want to go shopping.


    Now the dormitory had recognized Xiao Qi as the study maniac. She seized every minute to study whenever there was time. She could even lower her head to look at Japanese vocabulary while drying her dripping wet bangs.


    Someone similar to Xiao Qi was Gu Yunshu, who was obsessed with novels. She always held her phone while eating to read novels, taking a bite after glancing at the phone once, as if she was eating meals with novels.


    If no one disturbed her, she could read till the end of time.


    In contrast, Mi''er in the dormitory preferred going out. Keeping her in the dormitory to read books all day would drive her crazy.


    Wei Cheng was more moderate. She did not show any particular preferences. She studied quite hard but always felt kind of directionless.


    However, since even Xiao Qi had asked if anyone wanted to go to Luoxi Town, Mi''er was definitely the first to agree.


    "I''ve wanted to go see it for a long time."


    Wei Cheng nodded, "That''s good, yes."


    Although Gu Yunshu was obsessed with novels, with three votes against one in the dorm room, she had no choice but to be brought along.


    She also knew that only reading novels all the time was not good. But life was just so boring, still novels were more interesting.


    The activity level in the dorm room was high. After eating, they set off directly. Luoxi Town was right outside the university campus, just across the bridge, so they walked over there. But since they were going to the market, they headed to the town center.


    Surprisingly, there were two hotels in the center of Luoxi Town. One was the town reception hotel, and the other was some commercial hotel. The building looked quite tall and was probably the best hotel in town.


    Xiao Qi wondered if anyone would stay at the hotels here.


    There was an alley entrance at the central square which led to the Luoxi Town central market.


    A few little girls roaming the market was quite interesting. They were curious about everything.


    As the alliance relied on the sea, there were many seafood products in the market. Kelp dangled moistly like curtains.


    Asking the boss, surprisingly they did have bamboo strips, but those were for the boss''s personal handicrafts and were not for sale.


    Still, Xiao Qi wanted to buy them. At a loss, the boss did not know how to price them.


    In the end, Xiao Qi bought a bundle for 10 yuan, and the boss threw in some jute ropes and such.


    Xiao Qi thanked him and added his WeChat. She would come to him if she needed more in the future.


    After buying things, the four dorm mates went to eat at a famous local steakhouse rumored to be a hundred-year-old shop. It did not serve Western steaks but specially stewed Chinese beef steak unique to Meng City.


    Large chunks of bone-in beef simmered in master stock until soft and tender. Diners used large scissors to cut off pieces to eat. The bone was simmered into beef bone broth with radish. There was also shredded ginger beef soup and mustard green rice.


    It was basically a meal with rice, a piece of steak, radish soup and shredded beef soup as a set.


    It was not cheap either, 68 yuan per set, or 53 yuan if you did not want the shredded beef soup.


    Since Xiao Qi was treating them, she ordered the 68 yuan set for everyone, as she had won a prize yesterday.


    It was quite delicious indeed. The unbroken grains of rice were glossy and slightly sticky. The vegetables made the rice a little salty. The steak was extremely tender, especially the parts with tendons which were even more delicious, both bouncy and chewy. Even Yunshu who did not have a big appetite finished her entire bowl of rice.


    You could have unlimited rice refills. Xiao Qi refilled her rice once more.


    She had wanted to refill twice originally, but Yunshu could not finish her shredded beef soup, while Mi''er barely touched her radish soup. So they were given to Xiao Qi instead. This was still a rare delightful occasion for the two though, since Mi''er seldom finished even half a bowl of rice, always complaining about dieting and not taking staple foods.


    Wei Cheng ate a normal portion and finished it without asking for refills.


    After the four were done with their meal, they slowly walked back to school.


    On the way, Wei Cheng smacked her lips, still reminiscing the taste, "The steak was so delicious. But too expensive. I''ll eat it everyday when I''m rich in the future!"


    The rest laughed. Wei Cheng was quite innocent in this aspect.


    Today''s steak was indeed exceptional. That shop''s flavor was very authentic, probably having some secret family recipe. It was not greasy at all, yet still so memorable after eating that you just craved for more.


    "Next time any of us from our dorm gets some kind of prize money or achievement, let''s go eat there together again," Mi''er remarked.


    Even Yunshu spoke enthusiastically, "Our flower arranging club seems to have some competition coming up. Maybe I''ll participate."


    At this, it was Wei Cheng''s turn to feel helpless. She felt she had no talents or advantages whatsoever, at a total loss as to what she could possibly do...


    Xiao Qi also chuckled, "I will work hard to give Wei Cheng more opportunities to eat steak!"

 Chapter 182: : NHwa University Official Tiktok

    Chapter 182


    A few people chatted and laughed as they returned to their dormitory.


    At noon, everyone took their lunch break on time.


    But unexpectedly, the official TikTok account of Enhua University exploded.


    It started with Ding Nan''s singing.


    Ding Nan was after all a rising little heavenly voice. Although she had placed fifth in the talent competition she participated in, the top three didn''t make the cut but the first six finalists of that talent show''s first season all became popular, just at varying levels.


    Ding Nan was also considered a vocalist with decent singing skills, with a round and lovely face.


    When a video of her singing was posted on Enhua''s official TikTok, it garnered a lot of likes and comments, with Ding Nan already having a sizable fanbase. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    But surprisingly, the TikTok video with the most likes wasn''t Ding Nan''s singing one.


    Instead, it was another video titled "Exploring the Qingshui River", with the caption "Don''t know if it''s a little brother or little sister, but I''m a fan, feel free to check it out."


    Since it was the official TikTok account, no student information was revealed. It just said it was one of the top 10 singers at Enhua University''s Mid-Autumn Festival gala.


    Naturally, there was also a TikTok video clip of Wu Xinyue singing which she had recorded herself and already posted on her own TikTok, but she also reposted the official TikTok video which had more overall footage like the full venue going wild, so after weighing the pros and cons she ultimately promoted the official TikTok more.


    Her current persona was that of a privileged rich girl attending a private university.


    She gained a lot more fans, as attending a prestigious private university was quite an appealing tagline after all.


    With Wu Xinyue''s fans in addition to Ding Nan''s fans, plus the official TikTok account''s fans and many organic fans, the one who ultimately went viral was the singer of "Exploring the Qingshui River", Xiao Qi.


    Although the official TikTok did not reveal the contestant''s details, this particular video became hugely popular.


    It gained many more likes than the videos Jiajia had previously posted of Xiao Qi.


    The number of likes on the TikTok video of Xiao Qi singing reached over 400,000, breaking the official TikTok account''s record for most likes.


    The official TikTok account was quite random to begin with and basically had no major marketing campaigns, as it was the official university TikTok after all.


    Outside his window on the first floor were lush trees, so when looking outside all he saw was greenery.


    Convenient to head out but the downside was more mosquitoes.


    There was usually some mosquito repellent incense burning in the dorm.


    He studied very diligently, basically hugging textbooks whenever he had time. Although he ran a used book stall, the boys were quite simple-minded with few concerns, so no one would mock him over that or anything. Plus now in university, everyone felt they were adults who had matured in many ways in their speech and conduct.


    Lin Min was no longer as sensitive or insecure as when he was in high school. Although his expression was still aloof, his temper had mellowed out quite a bit now. He no longer reacted sharply like before and got along much better with his classmates and dormmates.


    A good university really was a cradle of talent.


    Qingmeng University had such a strong academic atmosphere with students competing over studies rather than money or material matters. Students focused more on learning than other stuff.


    But of course they weren''t all bookworms. After all those admitted into Qingmeng University had decent IQs with diverse hobbies as well, liking gaming, TikTok, etc. just like other youths their age, but with more self-restraint in their behavior.


    Lin Min''s dormmate Chen Youkuang had been reading textbooks all morning. Now he was lying in bed scrolling TikTok, though he still wore headphones to avoid disturbing others. Suddenly he leapt up and shouted, "Come quick and see this!"


    He unplugged his earphones and the room instantly filled with singing: "Peach leaves so very pointy, willow leaves blot out the sky. This Lord in his place, listen closely to my tale..."


    It felt stunning in that moment.


    Lin Min''s was a six-person dorm but currently one was out, leaving five of them. They all gathered around to watch.


    Normally Lin Min wasn''t one to get involved, but upon hearing this voice he felt his heart quiver, putting down his book to squeeze over.


    And the first thing he saw was Xiao Qi sitting there quietly singing.


    Right then, he couldn''t hear his roommates yelling stuff at all, just utterly absorbed watching the video while the song ended with him still foolishly standing there.


    "The girls at Enhua University sure are good-looking. The girls in our medical department though, *sigh*..." Chen Youkuang sighed ruefully.


    "Stop dreaming. A girl with such sweet singing and stunning looks must already have a boyfriend," another dormmate said.


    "She doesn''t," Lin Min stated firmly.

 Chapter 183: The Little Bag

    Chapter 183


    Xiaoqi woke up from her nap, washed her face, but did not start practicing calligraphy as usual. Instead, she took out the bundle of bamboo strips she had bought from town that morning.


    The other people in the dormitory also gradually woke up, because everyone had things to do in the afternoon.


    Wei Cheng''s film club was going to screen a movie, Yunshu''s tea ceremony club also had an event, and Mier signed up for so many clubs that she had to run between the public relations club and photography club events in the afternoon.


    Xiaoqi had the calligraphy and painting club event starting at 3pm, so she wanted to make a little bamboo bag first.


    Since everyone was going out, they all got up to wash up and dress up. As a result, they saw their miraculous dormmate, Su Xiaoqi, actually weaving something with bamboo strips...she was really weaving something.


    Mier and Yunshu had never seen such a thing before, they were simply astounded.


    Wei Cheng had seen elderly people weaving bamboo products in her hometown, but her impression was that it was something only very old people did, so what kind of fairy roommate was this?


    Mier quickly took out her phone to record video.


    Xiaoqi was at beginner level in bamboo weaving, not as skilled as her dad, but she was cleverer, having seen more things outside. Her workmanship was definitely not as exquisite and intricate as her father''s, but much better than the bamboo baskets sold in stores.


    Bamboo weaving was actually an ancient craft with a long history in the ancient town of Muli. It had been passed down over the generations.


    Xiaoqi wove very quickly, the bamboo strips seemed to come alive in her hands.


    Because the dorm was stuffy, the girls usually left the door open, so people in the dormitory across could also see.


    Seeing a commotion in room 606, people from other dorms also came over to watch.


    As a result, they saw Su Xiaoqi classmate actually doing handicrafts...not just ordinary paper folding or something.


    Many of them grew up in cities and had never seen such a scene before, and were very curious.


    Xiaoqi didn''t want to be watched by so many people, thinking she should hang a curtain on the door later, to allow ventilation but also block people''s sight.


    She wove faster, actually just making a small bag that could be worn on the back, to hold a cell phone and lipstick. Foreigners didn''t have the habit of carrying hot water bottles, so she didn''t need to consider that.


    The little bag was soon woven, she just needed to twist two bamboo strips together to make the handle, bamboo roots would have been even better, but Xiaoqi saw the shop didn''t have any this morning, but they did have hemp rope, so she also bought some.


    The bamboo strips here were quite good, wide and green and beautiful. The good thing about bamboo products was that the color changed over time, each period had its own characteristics, from new green to old green to brown. The more it was used, the more it was like a natural varnish, and it actually looked better and more durable.


    "That''s unacceptable, if I don''t go to school, my parents would scold me to death." Xiaoqi always spoke more casually with Mier.


    With the item completed, the onlookers also dispersed.


    Xiaoqi looked at the time, it was about time to go sign up for the calligraphy and painting club. Their event was also in the Da Tang complex building, the same place where the mental health class for college students was held last time.


    On the way, Xiaoqi suddenly got a call from student Liang Jiajia.


    As soon as she picked up, she heard the familiar excited screams: "Teacher Xiaoqi I saw your singing competition video, you were amazing! The girls in our class all say they want to be your fans, do you think Xiaoqi fans or Su fans sounds better?"


    Su Xiaoqi: ......


    She held the phone away from her ear, the little girl''s screams really were too loud.


    Xiaoqi waited for Jiajia to calm down a bit before asking her how she was recently.


    "About the same, but the English teacher praised my progress. My mom has been really busy lately and doesn''t have time to accompany me. My dad wanted me to go to grandma''s house but I said no because I have swimming class, I really don''t get him, grandma clearly doesn''t like me and only loves her precious grandson, yet dad keeps wanting me to go over there, I don''t know what''s in his head. Teacher, when you have vacation for National Day can I come visit you and play?"


    Xiaoqi: ......


    She had never taken a little kid out by herself before.


    "You need to ask your mom, if she agrees then it''s ok. I have a marathon for National Day so I may not have a lot of time to accompany you."


    Liang Jiajia shrieked again when she heard marathon.


    Xiaoqi: ......had a bad feeling.


    After hanging up, she walked a few more steps and arrived at Da Tang complex building.


    This time the calligraphy and painting club was in Classroom 1 of the building. As soon as Xiaoqi entered, she saw a familiar figure...the sports committee member from her class, Li Weijin. Xiaoqi thought she had walked into the wrong place...why would Li Weijin join this club?? The calligraphy and painting club??


    She would have expected him to join golf, equestrian, or something like ing here clearly did not match his style.


    Indeed it did not match at all, because there was no one around him, so Xiaoqi noticed him right away.


    But Li Weijin did not seem as unapproachable as legend said, when Xiaoqi sang before, he even went on behalf of the class committee to give her flowers...he actually seemed quite friendly.

 Chapter 184: Book and Painting Club

    Chapter 184


    Li Weijin''s brain was a bit muddled.


    He went to the scene last night to watch Su Xiaoqi sing. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    When he went back to sleep, he even dreamed about Su Xiaoqi.


    He dreamed that Su Xiaoqi was wearing a long robe, and he himself was also wearing a long robe. The two of them went out together to take a walk.


    As a result, a group of little girls appeared and surrounded Su Xiaoqi, pushing him further and further away until the two got separated. When he woke up, the back of his head was even wet.


    He had heard from his roommate before that if you dream about a girl and wake up with your pants wet... but his was the back of his head...


    Although they were in the same class, Su Xiaoqi sat in the very front while he sat at the very back, so there was basically no chance to talk. Su Xiaoqi didn''t seem enthusiastic at all about class committee activities either. On the other hand, the labor committee member had even added him on WeChat and took the initiative to talk to him a few times. Did he look like an enthusiastic person? His eye contact was so bad...


    But he eventually managed to find out what club Su Xiaoqi had signed up for. With so many people in the class, it was hard to get close, but clubs were different. There would definitely be more opportunities.


    He had learned this trick from the bootlicker Li Taiping. Li Weijin had never thought there would come a day when he would have to learn from him.


    He came early and even dressed up specially, wearing a light blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a rather nice cufflink on one arm. As Li Weijin was putting on the cufflink himself, he imagined Su Xiaoqi standing prettily in front of him, helping him put on the cufflink. Thinking about this scene, he put it on and took it off several times before finally buttoning the cufflink.


    It was a Bvlgari cufflink, even studded with diamonds. A small cufflink cost over 20,000 yuan.


    He chose white nine-point pants.


    Li Weijin was the kind of child who had been dressed neatly by his mother since he was little. It was only in recent years that he had rebelled, but he still habitually dressed neatly when it came to clothes.


    It was actually quite rare for boys to wear white pants, because white pants were too hard to wash and easily got dirty.


    But Li Weijin''s white pants had creases and were neatly ironed, perfectly showing off his long, straight legs.


    His shoes were leather slippers, and he wore socks.


    Sitting there, he naturally kept an area empty around him.


    Luckily, he did end up waiting until Su Xiaoqi arrived.


    He had been casually glancing towards the entrance, and sure enough, he saw her come in and walk towards him.


    "Hi Li Weijin, so you joined the Calligraphy and Painting Society too. What a coincidence." The girl who walked up to him wearing a colorful pleated long skirt and plain white top had a smile like a refreshing spring breeze. Although faint, it was warm.


    Chu Yu didn''t actually have any particular feelings about Li Weijin, but her new dormmate Su Li had an arrogant temper. No matter how Chu Yu tried to get on her good side, Su Li was always curt and condescending, often aggressively putting people down. Chu Yu noticed that Su Li''s manner softened a bit only when she talked about Li Weijin. She even took the initiative to mention some things about him.


    As for getting sponsorships, it was the same principle. If a girl''s father was a bank president for example, companies trying to get on the president''s good side could donate money to his daughter''s campus event. On the surface it looked entirely reasonable, benefiting campus activities and promotions. But ultimately it allowed companies to curry favor with the bank president. That was generally how it worked.


    When Mi''er explained, Yunshu immediately understood, though Xiaoqi and Weicheng still found it rather complicated.


    Maybe Yunshu had experience with such social maneuvering of exchanging favors and currying favor.


    The reason Mi''er understood so well was because her own family belonged to the group that had to carefully curry favor from others. If they knew a leader''s relatives were organizing some event needing sponsorship, her family would eagerly offer money.


    By contrast, Xiaoqi and Weicheng''s families were at the bottom of the social hierarchy without the standing to curry favors.


    Today''s guest, the deputy director of the Calligraphy Association, was a middle-aged man with a big beard, white as snow. He looked the part of an artistic calligrapher.


    The deputy head of the Calligraphy and Painting Society, a beautiful junior girl, addressed him intimately as "Uncle Ke". Xiaoqi felt this was yet another lesson in practical social skills.


    She saw this calligraphy master''s introduction on the big screen. He was 50 this year and a deputy department head at his workplace. His photo was unretouched, making him look just like a Daoist sage. The screen also displayed his calligraphy works, specifically the Heart Sutra.


    Xiaoqi had some basic appreciation for drawing and aesthetics to discern calligraphy to some extent. She felt this Heart Sutra piece was fairly good, but also vaguely sensed it was missing something, though she couldn''t say exactly what.


    With everyone signed in, the group crowded around, cameras on hand to film Master Ke''s calligraphy process on site. It was a good learning opportunity that could improve each other. Being able to watch someone write characters up close, Xiaoqi felt it was a great chance. She had been learning calligraphy on her own from the very beginning, just copying model books. So she tended to spend more time figuring things out herself. If there was a teacher on hand for guidance, she believed she could make faster progress. Hence, she watched very attentively.


    Having completely forgotten about Li Weijin and Chu Yu.


    Chu Yu was surprised to find Li Weijin''s face even colder after she sat down.


    She tried to make conversation: "I''ve always loved calligraphy and painting since I was little. My dad even specially hired a private tutor to teach me calligraphy, but unfortunately I was stupid and didn''t learn well. Weijin, do you like calligraphy too?"


    Li Weijin gave an affirmative "Mm".


    She felt that the girl next to her was extremely chatterbox, acting very presumptuous. He was not even familiar with her at all. After thinking hard for a while, he finally remembered that she was the labor committee member in his class. She was the one who added him on WeChat and tried to chat with him several times, but he ignored her messages, so she finally gave up.


    Chu Yu also saw Su Xiaoqi among the crowd. Seeing Li Weijin''s very bored look, it would be quite awkward to just sit down and chat.


    She contemplated and said, "It''s said that every new member can leave their own calligraphy work. Do you want to give it a try?"


    She acted humble about her skills, claiming herself to be clumsy and not well-trained. But actually she''s quite confident. Her handwriting was beautiful. She knew she was not outstandingly pretty, but she had always positioned herself as talented and learned - an outstanding girl must have something beyond just appearances. So she wanted to show her work to Li Weijin.


    Li Weijin had been restless for a while. Hearing her suggestion, he promptly nodded.


    Chu Yu stood up first and smiled shyly at Li Weijin.


    Xiaoqi was watching the calligraphy of the legendary master. While appreciating, she somehow felt something was off. She turned her neck around, and to her surprise, she caught Chu Yu and Li Weijin gazing affectionately at each other. She was shocked...and quickly turned her head back, hurting her eyes.

 Chapter 185: Little classmate you try

    Chapter 185


    When it came to dating, Xiao Qi could be said to be once bitten by a snake, ten years afraid of ropes.


    Although high school, it could not be counted as love, after all no one pierced it.


    It was mostly just teasing by classmates.


    But the impression was very deep, at a certain moment, it made Xiao Qi''s entire worldview and outlook on life collapse.


    She even thought about the past, on the busy streets, pessimistically feeling relieved just by walking to the front of a speeding car.


    Thinking back now, it was shocking in hindsight.


    How could she be so stupid at that time? Stupid beyond redemption, the meals her parents gave her for more than ten years were eaten in vain.


    If she kept being so stupid, she probably didn''t need to continue wasting food.


    She was glad that when she was stupid, when she was crying like a dog, she met her neighbor Lin Min. He helped her pick up her glasses, and probably picked up other things at the same time.


    Later, when she saw Liu Shaowei bring a girl to attend a class reunion, she felt even more stupid.


    Stupid and unaware.


    So when she entered college, Xiao Qi set a rule for herself, which was not to date.


    She would absolutely not repeat the same mistakes.


    It is said that college is suitable for passionately falling in love, but Xiao Qi didn''t think so.


    "Mr. Ke asked if you are willing to try writing the Heart Sutra," someone next to Xiao Qi pushed her.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t believe she was singled out.


    But she still nodded.


    She felt itchy hands looking at Mr. Ke write, and she didn''t practice calligraphy at noon today in order to make zongzi. Also, looking at Mr. Ke write, she had an indescribable feeling, not knowing what was wrong. Mr. Ke wrote well, the Heart Sutra as a whole looked beautiful, but she always felt it wasn''t enough, as if something was missing, of course she couldn''t explain why, but being able to try writing it herself, she was also willing to try, maybe she would figure it out. And the xuan paper and brush were much better than what she used to practice calligraphy. At a glance it was expensive.


    Seeing the little girl eager to try, Ke Yinhua''s smile became even more benevolent.


    He handed her the brush and encouraged, "Don''t be nervous, just write as much as you can."


    When Li Weijin walked over, he saw Xiao Qi wipe the brush and praise it.


    He couldn''t help feeling distressed again. She really lacked money, that even a brush was something she had never used a good one of.


    But Li Weijin had misunderstood. Xiao Qi was not lacking money now, but Ershan City really didn''t have any good brushes for sale. And these things also depended on whether one was a layman or expert. Laymen couldn''t tell which brushes were good or bad, it wasn''t simply measured by money.


    It was after Xiao Qi arrived in Alliance City, her calligraphy skills had risen a level, reaching the specialty level, that she suddenly became enlightened, connecting everything.


    The xuan paper for writing calligraphy was provided by the calligraphy club for the guest to use, it was quite expensive. So it was also very soft, slightly yellowish, and the ink soaked into it just right.


    With good brush and good paper, Xiao Qi felt a strong desire to write.


    Suddenly she was bursting with inspiration, in the mood.


    No wonder those master calligraphers liked on-site writing, probably because the atmosphere set the mood, so the feeling came.


    While Chu Yu walked over and saw Xiao Qi standing out again, actually about to publicly perform calligraphy, she was very disdainful in her heart, determining that Xiao Qi had ulterior motives, and when she heard her say she had never used such a good brush, she couldn''t help mocking her in her heart for being so unsophisticated.

 Chapter 186: Treasure of the Town Group

    Chapter 186


    Xiao Qi attended the calligraphy and painting club activities at the Datang Complex Building, while Mi''er attended the photography club activities at the student council building.


    The student council building was dedicated for the student council''s use. Other clubs could use it if they paid rent.


    The student council at Enhua University already felt like a big company in society.


    The photography club and public relations club were clubs that had plenty of money, so they directly had large activity rooms in the student council building.


    Other clubs that didn''t want to rent fixed activity rooms could apply to the school to use classrooms. Public classrooms could be applied for use when time slots opened up.


    It''s said that photographers stay poor for three generations, so it''s easy to imagine that it requires spending lots of money. Not to mention how much cameras and lenses cost, just playing around casually could cost tens of thousands, and that''s just getting started.


    Of course, new members who had just joined didn''t have such high awareness and preparation yet. Many of the new female members of the photography club had joined aiming to take nice-looking photos, while some silent and unassuming members carrying large bags were actually the real enthusiasts. Those vibrant and pretty girls were just the lively scenery.


    Clubs were actually like this. Many students joined clubs on impulse, but only those who were truly passionate would stay and become the backbone of a club, while smart students would slowly figure out what they truly liked and wanted to become. Confused students would probably graduate without figuring it out.


    Mi''er had actually joined to take photos and post on Moments. She liked posting on Moments.


    Having her wait crouching for hours to take a nice scenic photo, that restless girl simply couldn''t do it.


    Listening to seniors on stage earnestly analyzing lenses, discussing which lenses suited which type of photos, Mi''er was practically falling asleep. But falling asleep in this kind of situation would be too embarrassing, so she really wanted to post the bamboo weaving video she had recorded for her deskmate earlier on Moments, but the recording was too long. She couldn''t bear to cut any part of it for the 15 second Moments limit.


    After the tall and thin senior on stage finished speaking and stepped down, Mi''er went over, wanting him to help her make a nice 15 second video.


    The male student smiled helplessly, but seeing the energetic and quite pretty young girl in front of him, he still patiently taught her.


    Photography hobbyist Mi''er felt she had no hope, but posting on Moments was very interesting. She listened very earnestly as senior Chen Jianfei, a second year math major, taught her step-by-step how to extract the footage she felt was best and stitch them together. She could also speed up or slow down parts of the video. It was simply perfect. Visitt  for the latest updates


    She had joined the right club with the photography club. "Senior, let''s add each other on WeChat... Senior, you''re also surnamed Chen, we''re from the same hometown... Senior, you''re a math major? I''m a computer science major, we''re in the same building! Senior..."


    Chen Jianfei: "..."


    Mi''er successfully picked up a math major senior with eight camera lenses at the photography club, asking him to teach her and help with posting on Moments...


    As soon as Xiao Qi started writing, she entered a state of concentration.


    It was like this whenever she practiced calligraphy. She could calm down and focus very easily. The noise outside wouldn''t affect her at all.


    She had persisted in practicing calligraphy since she was little. It was probably the easiest way for her to find calm.


    No matter if it was in the room without glass windows in her ancestral village, her aunt''s hospital basement, the bright school and library, when Xiao Qi practiced calligraphy, her state of mind was very peaceful. This was probably the main difference between her and her high school roommate Xia Zhen. She had inner fortitude.


    She was the same now. She didn''t pay attention to the still running camera, or Mr. Ke the guest invited by the club''s slightly odd expression, or Chu Yu in the crowd, or Li Weijin. She was immersed in her own world.


    The good brush felt so smooth, it was even smoother to write with than the one she used in her dorm.


    The xuan paper was the same. The ink spread and swirled on the xuan paper, giving it a special aesthetic and tactile feeling that made Xiao Qi a little intoxicated.


    The Heart Sutra content was a bit complicated for Xiao Qi, but this text overall had an aesthetic beauty and was very suitable for calligraphy practice.


    "When the Bodhisattva Avalokite?vara was practicing the profound Praj?a?pa?ramita?, he illuminated the five skandhas and saw they were all empty..."


    As Xiao Qi wrote more, she flowed more smoothly. She felt she had a good grasp of it and wrote faster and faster, fluently and effortlessly.


    "...Therefore in emptiness there is no form, no feeling, conception, volition, or consciousness; no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body or mind; no forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touchables or objects of mind; no sight-organ element..."


    Besides people like Li Weijin, most of the members of the calligraphy and painting club were students truly interested in it. Even Chu Yu believed her own calligraphy was good, and had been praised for it since she was little, so she joined the calligraphy and painting club.


    Some others were good at painting.


    But he felt a little insecure inside.


    Fortunately, the atmosphere became harmonious again. Those new club members began writing on the big table, leaving their own notes.


    This was also part of today''s event.


    Chu Yu was well prepared and earnestly wrote a poem, Yellow Crane Tower.


    It was quite neat. After finishing, she looked at Li Weijin with a flushed face.


    "Li Weijin, are you going to write?" she asked.


    When Li Weijin saw her handwriting... at an elementary school level, he didn''t know what gave her the face to write this and even sign off. As for his writing, thinking of Su Xiaoqi''s, he gave up. He didn''t want to write.


    The deputy head and several core members were chatting with Mr. Ke, kind of like interviewing him, praising him.


    At last, the awkward and strange atmosphere from earlier was suppressed again.


    At this time, the president came.


    The president was already in his third year and had the intention to gradually withdraw from the club. Usually when the third year ended, he would hand over the president position to the next one.


    The president of the calligraphy club, Li Luanliang, really had good skills. He had participated in national level calligraphy competitions and won second place.


    When he arrived, the atmosphere became even more enthusiastic.


    Deputy Head Han Wei immediately went up to introduce. She was probably the most suitable to take over so far, so she was very proactive. Although she personally didn''t have much interest in calligraphy or painting, she was quite capable.


    Like arranging today''s event.


    Li Luanliang came over to greet the guest first. He was really good at praising people.


    "I''ve long admired Mr. Ke''s great reputation. My grandma especially likes your Heart Sutra and really wants a copy to put in our home. I didn''t expect to meet you in person today. It''s truly an honor."


    Ke Yinhua didn''t dare look down on the young man in front of him. After all, the young man came from a family with artistic heritage. His grandfather was a famous traditional Chinese painting master that even he had to address as "Elder". His expression became more humble.


    Since the other party praised him like this, it also indirectly proved that his calligraphy was good and appreciated by others.


    "Mr. Ke just wrote out the Heart Sutra here. It was especially wonderful," Deputy Head Han Wei quickly added.


    Li Luanliang revealed a delighted expression. He walked to the writing table in front and the other students made way when they saw it was the president.


    At a glance, he saw two Heart Sutras placed in the middle. The one on top looked a little sloppy while the bottom one was steady and bold, full of charm that gladdened one''s heart, especially for a calligraphy enthusiast like him.


    The one on top was probably written by some student, and it was decent.


    He picked up the bottom one and couldn''t help sincerely praising, "I didn''t expect that after not seeing you for a long time, Mr. Ke''s calligraphy has improved again. It''s really rare. Mr. Ke is a true master of calligraphy and a role model for my generation."


    And the scene... went quiet.


    Because earlier, some smart club members wanted to please the guest and had sneakily placed Xiao Qi''s Heart Sutra on the bottom with Mr. Ke''s on top. Since it was just a small trick, they didn''t pay too much attention and just casually switched the positions.


    But everyone present had just watched the two of them write the Heart Sutras, so it was clear who wrote which one.


    As a result of the president''s words... how awkward!


    Li Luanliang was overjoyed at the sight and hadn''t noticed the problem yet. His smile became even more sincere and enthusiastic: "Mr. Ke, you haven''t signed and sealed it yet. You must sign it. I insist on framing this Heart Sutra nicely as the club''s treasure."


    And the scene...

 Chapter 187: It’s Not Me, I don’t

    Chapter 187


    In the afternoon, sunlight shone into the money tree in the room from the tall glass windows. Because of its auspicious name, potted plants like this could be seen everywhere in the school. At this moment, Ke Yinhua''s expression was even greener and more embarrassed than the leaves of the money tree shined on by the sunshine.


    Although Vice President Han Wei hurriedly came to the rescue and picked up the Diamond Sutra on the table again, it was still very embarrassing. The staff member who had deliberately placed the guest''s calligraphy on the table to curry favor also secretly shrank back to minimize his presence.


    Originally, if it hadn''t been for his unnecessary move, it could have been said that the wrong piece was picked up, and everyone would have thought the piece on the table was written by the guest. But after his extra move, the Chairman actually drew another piece from the bottom.


    This further showed that the two people''s calligraphy was different, and it was obvious whose was better.


    Ke Yinhua also regretted that he should have stamped his seal right after finishing writing. But he liked making a scene, and would usually stamp his seal only after everyone had invited him.


    These literary folk had an unspoken rule that a work was truly acknowledged as their own only after stamping their seal. Without a seal, it could also be just a practice work to be used as a draft, even if by a master calligrapher, a work with or without a seal would be valued very differently.


    If he had stamped his own seal, such an embarrassing situation would not have occurred.


    Social Chairman Li Luanliang was also very embarrassed. Although he had won the national second-class youth group calligraphy award, that was when he was young. His calligraphy was quite good, but the Diamond Sutra in front of him was obviously written better than his. His grandfather was a master Chinese painter, and as the saying goes, calligraphy and painting are intimately connected. He understood appreciation, but who would have thought that the better Diamond Sutra was not written by the guest Ke?


    When he realized his mistake, that this Diamond Sutra was written by a computer science freshman who had just joined the association this year, he could understand Ke Yinhua''s embarrassment.


    It was simply utterly offensive.


    Xiao Qi: I don''t know, it wasn''t me... Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    She also didn''t know such a mistake could happen, because she saw someone put the calligraphy she wrote underneath, and she thought that was pretty good.


    She didn''t expect the Chairman to actually take out her piece again, slapping her face twice...


    She didn''t even know how to explain.


    Xiao Qi thought back to when her father had her copy model calligraphy in first grade of elementary school, that should count as the start right. After calculating the time, she answered modestly, "Twelve years."


    "Very good. As mobile phones and computers become more and more popular, fewer and fewer people persist in practicing calligraphy. You¡¯re great." Li Luanliang felt some relief, having practiced for so many years with talent and diligence, it¡¯s no wonder her calligraphy was so good.


    "I have a form here, please fill it out and send it back to me later. Your calligraphy is very good, I¡¯ll apply and see if I can get you into the Meng City Calligraphy and Painting Association." On the one hand, Li Luanliang had discovered a talent, on the other hand, if he wanted the girl in front of him to take over the Painting and Calligraphy Society in the future, her current qualifications were definitely not enough, as seniority was very important in China even if one had ability.


    Xiao Qi did not expect that there would be such a thing as the Calligraphy Association, which was too far removed from her.


    But hearing the Chairman say this, she was still very grateful and said, "Thank you, Chairman."


    In fact, recommendation to the Calligraphy Association was not that easy. Even if your ability met the criteria, you still needed a nominator - two or more members of the Calligraphy Association, or well-known public figures in society.


    For Xiao Qi, it was like drawing a circle without lifting the pen. But for Li Luanliang it was quite easy. He himself was already in the Meng City Calligraphy Association, not to mention his old father who was the vice chairman of the National Calligraphy Association! Having a national level member and a municipal level member recommend someone was a breeze.


    Xiao Qi added the Chairman on WeChat, received the form, and the Chairman also asked if he could keep that piece of Diamond Sutra calligraphy she did. Xiao Qi readily agreed.


    "I produce a lot of draft calligraphy every day when I practice. But I did outperform myself today. Mr. Ke''s brush was very good, and the xuan paper provided by the association was better than what I usually use."


    Li Luanliang smiled when he heard this.


    He sent Xiao Qi the address of a store selling brushes and xuan paper in the old town district of Meng City. Xiao Qi decided to go check it out next time she was free.


    After finishing her conversation with the Chairman, Xiao Qi got ready to leave, not knowing what else to say.


    On the other side, Li Weijin had waited for a long time wanting to exchange a few words with Xiao Qi, but Chu Yu had kept standing in front of him the whole time, making small talk. On a normal day, Li Weijin would have just left without saying a word, but at that moment, seeing Xiao Qi chatting happily with the Chairman of the Painting and Calligraphy Society, he couldn¡¯t bear to leave.


    As a result, when Xiao Qi was about to leave, she saw Li Weijin and Chu Yu at the door, chattering intimately. Xiao Qi shuddered with disgust and briskly exited through another door.

 Chapter 188: The Invincible Roommate

    Chapter 188


    Little Treasure released another video on Douyin in the afternoon. The Fine Arts Club was having a club activity.


    Originally it was going to be about guest speaker Mr. Ke, but the process was too embarrassing, the contrast was too stark, and Mr. Ke probably didn''t want to show that side of himself either.


    So it mainly focused on the scene of Xiaoqi writing Heart Sutra.


    Xiaoqi didn''t follow the official Douyin account of Henghua University. She also didn''t know the follow up, but she added her deskmate on WeChat and saw the moments she posted on the way back.


    She didn''t expect her deskmate to be so good at making videos. The way she edited Xiaoqi making little bamboo purses made it feel very touching. It started with the bundled bamboo splints, then the process of her weaving them, even the scene where her finger was pricked and bled, wrapping hemp rope, making plaits with cloth to make straps, all packed into just fifteen seconds, but it was edited to be very complete, with a special charm. Even the music and the dorm background were made to look cute and fresh.


    Xiaoqi didn''t know she could look so ethereal making bamboo weaving in the video. Even she felt quite moved watching herself.


    She showed a little bit of her face when she lowered her head to look at the blood on her finger. It made her feel as if she was an ancient young miss from a good family...


    From interacting with Honey, Xiaoqi realized she was someone who liked praising others, and also liked being praised by others. Xiaoqi liked the video and commented "Filmed so well."


    Honey quickly replied: Thanks to the master''s guidance.


    People who post on Moments know that getting more likes and comments puts them in a good mood. Honey got a lot of likes and comments on that post.


    Her caption was "My Awesome Roommate."


    Honey was quite lively and extroverted with lots of friends.


    Not only did she get to know most of the classmates in their class since starting school, she also got acquainted with the two classes next door. Plus there was the student union and clubs. Even the aloof Li Weijin in their class she added on WeChat.


    Li Weijin went to the Fine Arts Club to try to encounter Su Xiaoqi, but failed without even realizing it. He was somehow pestered by someone who went on and on though he only grunted twice in response.


    As a result, he didn''t get to say a single sentence to Su Xiaoqi.


    He felt very frustrated.


    Thinking of the other club Su Xiaoqi joined, the Running Club???


    Should he go or not??


    Li Taiping''s idea clearly wasn''t very good. Each time he went to see more of Su Xiaoqi, he discovered more of her outstanding traits, and felt even more that he didn''t deserve her.


    Truly, the aloof Li Weijin who had never dated before actually had such low self-esteem thoughts.


    He didn''t go back to the dorm and went straight to Suli''s cafe to beat up Li Taiping first.


    Thinking how she worked part-time jobs to pay her tuition, how she said she hadn''t used such good brushes before, how she could make a bag herself, Li Weijin after all was already eighteen, and born in that kind of family environment. He wouldn''t simply think bamboo weaving was just a hobby and interest. Seeing her proficiency, he could even imagine that in the distant mountains, it was likely how they earned a living. What others thought was a refined hobby, could just be her means of livelihood. So she especially needed money.


    Thinking this, his heart felt like drinking a bottle of spoiled vinegar, both sour and astringent, and distressed. Thinking of her smile, he also felt the spoiled vinegar was a bit sweet, very sweet.


    He downloaded and saved Chen Mier''s video from that Moment.


    In the afternoon Xiaoqi only had the Fine Arts Club activity. After it ended, she went back and went jogging again.


    Having something to do all day today, Xiaoqi realized club activities were quite time consuming. She would have to be more selective about going in the future.


    After jogging and showering back at the dorm, she went to the classroom for evening self-study.


    Though it was Saturday today, the dorm had no lights out. But she felt it was still better to go somewhere with a studious atmosphere.


    The dorm environment felt more lazy, not very suitable for studying.


    Plus Xiaoqi kept some of her books in the classroom since the university textbooks were quite thick.


    When she got to the class, even fewer people had come today. She thought of the essay homework Professor Ma Xihong assigned for Fundamentals of Marxism, and today going to the club activity gave her some inspiration to write about.


    Though clubs weren''t formal classes, some students seemed to have a strong sense of belonging and were very active.


    Apart from clubs, Xiaoqi also thought of WeChat groups and QQ groups. Some people were very lively online but very quiet in real class. It seemed people played different roles in different groups.


    After recording these thoughts, Xiaoqi didn''t immediately start writing, just made a note of it.


    Then she began reviewing all of last week''s lessons. She had basically finished the calculus and English for accounting homework as soon as the teachers assigned it, so reviewing went quite quickly.


    After going through a week''s lessons, she felt more grounded, and previewing went faster too.


    Once she finished previewing all the courses, she realized a long time had passed when the end of class bell rang.


    There weren''t many people in class on weekends, but it was noisier. Xiaoqi took off her earphones and heard students around her gossiping, saying it seemed the labor committee member and PE committee member were dating, they saw those two together...


    Xiaoqi: ...So the speed of gossip really spreads fast. She had just seen them this afternoon, and hadn''t told anyone, yet it was already common knowledge?


    She wasn''t interested in gossip. She packed up her bag and went back to the dorm.


    She was meeting up with Grace tomorrow morning to cook at her place for the evening party. Grace lived in an apartment by the lake in the new district. She heard the scenery there was excellent, so she quite looked forward to it.


    Xiao Qi''s previous small house that the intermediary said was rented out, with a monthly rent of 1,800 yuan. The other party pays once a quarter, and when Xiao Qi receives the rent, she feels that the money is extremely reassuring. She suddenly becomes enthusiastic about buying a house. Looking at her interface, the daily money has accumulated to over 400,000 yuan again, which is so exciting.

 Chapter 189: Sprint Explosive Power buff

    Chapter 189


    Sunday, Xiao Qi woke up right on time.


    She got up at 6 o''clock, got out of bed, washed up, practiced writing characters, then went for a run.


    After running, she returned to the dorm. Wei Cheng had just woken up and was lying in bed, rubbing her eyes, not wanting to get up.


    Gu Yunshu, however, did get up because flowers were being delivered for her early in the morning. She wanted to trim and arrange them herself to bring to Grace in the afternoon.


    Wei Cheng also got up and was reciting English vocabulary words. She was still very nervous about going to a foreign teacher''s house as a guest that afternoon, so she specifically downloaded an app for daily English phrases to learn and memorize sentence by sentence, hoping she wouldn''t be mute and unable to say a word when the time came.


    Xiao Qi was quite tired after just finishing her run. She returned to the dorm to rest and gave Gu Yunshu a hand at the same time.


    Gu Yunshu seemed quite professional after only going to the flower arranging club a few times. She took a green sponge and large leaves, wrapped the sponge with the leaves, making it look like an elegant base.


    "You can add water to this sponge soil to keep the flowers fresh," Gu Yunshu explained to Xiao Qi who looked quite curious.


    Then she started trimming the flowers. Xiao Qi saw her chopping boldly without any hesitation. She cut a large bouquet and stuck it in the sponge soil. It looked quite stylish. CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin(.)c0m


    In Xiao Qi¡¯s eyes, flowers were always big blooms. At her aunt¡¯s dorm, her aunt would bring flowers, also in large bouquets. She would trim them evenly, insert them nicely, and really liked the feeling of large flowers crowded together in full bloom.


    But what Gu Yunshu liked seemed more sophisticated. To put it vulgarly, if sold in a flower shop, it would probably sell for a higher price.


    Even dead branches could be incorporated. Xiao Qi thought of Gumu Village where you could casually pick up bundles wherever you went. Here you had to buy them with money. She asked Gu Yunshu how much these kind of branches cost. Gu Yunshu said the branches cost more than the flowers because they lasted longer.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She felt that in the mountains nothing was valuable, they could only be used as firewood. But here, they became precious for some reason. There probably weren¡¯t any worthless things, just things in the wrong place.


    After Gu Yunshu finished arranging the flowers, Xiao Qi tidied up a bit before going to breakfast. She and Wei Cheng went to the library while Wei Cheng planned to be lazy in bed all morning. Gu Yunshu continued reading her novel.


    At the library, Xiao Qi had a clear goal today. Because her roommate Gu Yunshu was addicted to reading novels, Xiao Qi was quite curious about what novel she was reading. The result was that recently Gu Yunshu had been reading Pride and Prejudice fan fiction.


    Xiao Qi still didn¡¯t know there was such a genre. Only after Gu Yunshu''s introduction did she know what fan fiction was - it was still writing about someone from the book, not necessarily the protagonist, maybe a supporting role or villain, or someone who didn''t appear in the book, but the storyline was still roughly the original. The author incorporates themselves and goes through experiencing that story.


    She was quite familiar with the classic Pride and Prejudice, but she hadn¡¯t read it herself. She had read Jane Eyre, The Thorn Birds and so on. Anyway, Xiao Qi felt her own reading volume was far from enough. While still young, she should read more books. Reading more was definitely the right way. Reading other people''s life experiences to gain your own experience was much easier than stumbling through gaining them yourself. But after reading, you had to think carefully in order to make it useful to yourself.


    To study without thinking is futile, to think without studying perilous.


    Xiao Qi selected the Chinese and original English versions.


    After getting the books, she found a seat by the window and sat down to read.


    Wei Cheng also didn¡¯t disturb Xiao Qi, selecting a book and sitting down across from her.


    The library was very quiet. There was no need to wear headphones. Accompanied by the sound of waves from the lake outside the window, it was tranquil.


    Besides, she could always come to the library anytime.


    Xiao Qi separately returned the Chinese and English Pride and Prejudice to the shelves. Her mind was actually still a little muddled after reading the book. She had subconsciously ruffled her own hair while reading, leaving it a little messy.


    After leaving the library with Wei Cheng, there was a lake bay right outside. The wind was quite strong, carrying the fishy smell of the river. The wind blew on Xiao Qi and made her feel completely sober.


    The sunshine outside was bright and the streets were wide, with buildings scattered around. It was an advanced modern society, not the 19th century where you could see feces everywhere when riding a carriage.


    "Xiao Qi, I took a photo of you when you were reading just now." Wei Cheng handed her phone to Xiao Qi.


    Wei Cheng''s phone was just an ordinary smartphone without much capacity or beautifying filters.


    However, this photo was taken very well, with contrast between light and shadows. Half of Xiao Qi''s face was bright and the other half dark. Her hair was a bit messy and her expression was extremely focused and serious. In front of her was a book fully in English.


    "You have a very good talent for photography. This doesn''t look like a phone photo - it''s more like a professional took it with a camera." Xiao Qi praised.


    "That makes me really happy! When I finished taking it, I also felt it looked very good. I just happened to look up and see you while you were reading and thought you looked good, so I snapped the photo." Wei Cheng smiled with eyes bent into crescents, clearly very delighted.


    "Wait, stay just like that. Let me take a photo of you too." Xiao Qi remembered she also had a beginner level of photography skills, she just rarely took photos so she wasn''t highly skilled at it.


    As soon as Wei Cheng heard she was going to be photographed, she became a bit stiff in her hands and feet, flustered as she awkwardly refused, "I''m not very photogenic, I don''t look good. Don''t take it."


    "It''s fine, if it doesn''t look good we can just delete it. No one else will see it anyway. Just walk naturally, don''t be nervous."


    Between two dormmates where the family circumstances were the same for both, Wei Cheng was the most relaxed in front of Xiao Qi. She relaxed very quickly, but there was still some shy stiffness when she smiled.


    "You don''t have to deliberately force a smile, just do whatever feels natural to you." Xiao Qi encouraged, while at the same time holding up her phone. She chose the Portrait Studio Lighting mode in her phone camera app, which could blur the background and highlight the person being photographed, making it fresher and more delicate.


    Xiao Qi took several shots, they seemed better than she''d imagined. Wei Cheng was tall, her face wasn''t the traditional melon-seed shape but a bit bigger. Her hair at chin-length was also windswept from beside the lake into slight disarray, which actually nicely framed her face shape. Her face shape in the photos looked very high-class, giving a sense of sophistication.


    Under the bright sunshine, even the freckles on her face looked cute. Xiao Qi randomly snapped several shots and sent the one she was most satisfied with over to Wei Cheng.


    Upon receiving the photo, Wei Cheng''s face showed surprise.


    "Do I really look this good? Is this really me? You took it so well! Really good!"


    Indeed, the young girl walking casually beside the lake with her schoolbag looked very beautiful in the photo. Her chin-length hair was windswept somewhat disorderly, her eyes had a bit of daze but radiated cheerfulness at the same time. She hugged some books in her arms, with a trace of a smile at the corners of her mouth yet possessing some gravity. Even with the freckles on her face, it was a pleasure for one to look at such a pretty girl.


    Wei Cheng was very excited, looking over and over again, before finally deciding to post it on Moments.


    Went to the library with my roommate (smiley face)


    She posted two photos - the one Xiao Qi had taken of her reading, and the one Xiao Qi sent to her that she took herself.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi heard a burst of "ding ding dong dong" sounds near her ears, followed by the familiar mechanical voice again: "The host took a nice photo for her roommate, encouraging her roommate and increasing her self-confidence; rewarded with 30 days of Sprint Burst buff."


    Xiao Qi thought that was it, but the mechanical voice continued: "The host completed immersive reading of a book in 3 hours 21 minutes; rewarded with 1 Random Skill Learning Card that is applicable to this book. Use the card now?"

 Chapter 190: Equestrian Skill Level

    Chapter 190


    "Use."


    "The host randomly selected Weicome''s equestrian skills. Do you want to learn?"


    Xiao Qi''s mind was still filled with the romance between the protagonists in the storyline. As a result, when Weicome jumped out, he could be said to be the biggest villain in it.


    Weicome was the son of Mr. Darcy''s housekeeper. Mr. Darcy''s father regarded him as a godfather and gave him some property. After the housekeeper died, he not only squandered the property but also owed a lot of gambling debts. He also attempted to elope with the sister of the male protagonist but did not succeed. Later, he ruined the reputation of the male protagonist and eloped with Lydia, the younger sister of the female protagonist... In short, he was not a good person.


    He was not only bad and selfish, but also deceived women.


    The system was always unexpected...


    "Learn."


    "The host has obtained expert-level equestrian skills." Upstodatee from


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Probably this was Weicome''s best virtue. It was not easy for a skill to reach the expert level.


    Usually it started from the basics, then entry level, then expert level. Above that were master and perfect levels. Xiao Qi had not encountered the last two levels yet.


    It was reasonable to think that Weicome, who always wanted to secretly elope with girls, must be very good at riding. He also had the experience of joining the army, being a deserter, and collecting gambling debts... He was very good at running away.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help but sigh inwardly.


    On the other hand, Wei Cheng posted on WeChat and felt nervous and uneasy.


    If Gu Yunshu was a lazy otaku who was too lazy to socialize, Wei Cheng was more of a shut-in otaku. She didn''t dislike socializing. In private, she had a lively personality and would skip and jump when walking. She cheered up easily. She feared socializing. When doing anything, she was like stretching out an antenna carefully touching the outside world. As soon as she sensed something wrong, she shrank back. Therefore, she appeared particularly silent and cautious.


    Not posting Moments was also a manifestation of her shut-in personality. She lived in fear that she might post something inappropriate and get criticized or ridiculed.


    Today she finally plucked up the courage to post something on Moments. She just couldn''t help staring at her phone for fear that she might need to delete it if it was inappropriate.


    Mi''er had long finished getting ready. After wolfing down her meal she urged Xiao Qi to put on her makeup.


    She wore a deep red knit dress. Her complexion was darker but the vibrant red of the dress didn''t make her look darker. Rather, it set off her coloring brightly. The knitted fabric had slightly wavy finishes on the sleeves, collar and skirt hem with a skin-hugging fit that showed off her exceptionally good figure, especially her full bust and bottom. Her legs were also shapely and athletic, no doubt from always being on the go.


    Her figure was probably what Westerners would consider ideally healthy, though a little too curvy by the current standards of young Chinese girls. Hence Mi''er herself always feeling that she was fat and hardly eating staple foods.


    Yunshu also wore a dress, with a scalloped neckline and vertical blue and white stripes. Her mother had someone bring it specially for Mid-Autumn Festival, along with some mooncakes.


    Since it was a gift from Yunshu''s mother, her roommates gathered round to take a look and caught sight of the tag with an astounding price of 14,320¡ªfive digits! Over ten thousand yuan. Yet its gauzy fabric felt cool to the touch, looking like nothing special, a very ordinary dress similar to their school uniform skirts.


    Xiao Qi received an education in the Miu Miu label...


    Still feeling shocked that a dress could cost so much. She didn''t get what made it so expensive. It wasn''t encrusted with gems or adorned with frills and sparkles. It resembled a normal dress.


    Wearing this dress, Yunshu looked very ladylike and well-behaved at first glance¡ªthat was the impression she gave anyway.


    Yunshu also belonged to the flat-chested tribe with perhaps slightly more than Xiao Qi. Hidden under the scalloped neckline, the effect was not obvious. Similarly, her waist looked very slender, while this dress had artful detailing to make it appear looser there.


    Anyway, it was a rather cute dress that suggested Yunshu''s mom still viewed her daughter as a little girl.


    Since they were attending a party, Mi''er insisted on doing Xiao Qi''s makeup too.


    Xiao Qi was totally in her element and worked fast, matching each roommate''s makeup to her outfit. Originally she didn''t want any makeup as she would be helping with the cooking. The oil and smoke would just ruin her makeup which was extra troublesome. Still, Mi''er forced her into the chair to have some simple makeup applied.


    The four dormmates set off in high spirits.


    Mi''er resembled a proud little peacock after her makeup, which complemented her red dress perfectly. Her features were naturally attractive and the groomed brows and flawless base makeup made her look dazzling. Yet her large round eyes added a lively cuteness and hint of saucy spirit like a charming young maiden¡ªextremely pretty. She had already taken lots of selfies.


    Xiao Qi was the most fulfilled with Wei Cheng''s makeup, deftly enhancing her slightly square face into sophistication while keeping her freckles fresh. Her single eyelids looked open and steady, probably epitomizing Oriental beauty in Western eyes.


    A little eye makeup was all Yunshu needed for a bright-eyed sweet girlish effect.


    Xiao Qi knew herself best, but the black dress was quite sexy while she still didn''t exude sexiness. So her makeup was more gender-neutral, suiting her short hair. Last time singing on stage in robes, her makeup had also been very neutral. Xiao Qi felt that style was well-suited to her somewhat bewitching eyes, just needing a bit of touch up.

 Chapter 191: Teaching and Learning

    Chapter 191


    Grace''s home was on the 32nd floor of the apartment building, almost at the top floor.


    Xiao Qi and the others arrived around 3 o''clock, worried that it might be too early and disturb Grace, but also worried that arriving too late would be problematic since Xiao Qi had offered to teach cooking.


    When they arrived, there were already several guests present.


    Xiao Qi also saw the familiar old man Garen. At the Mid-Autumn Festival party that night, he had sung "A Fire in Winter" and brought down the house. Garen was dancing and singing along, completely immersed in the song.


    When Grace saw Xiao Qi arrive, she took off the gloves she was wearing to prepare food for baking and came over to give Xiao Qi a hug. Fortunately, there was no cheek-kissing or anything like that, otherwise Xiao Qi wouldn''t have known how to respond.


    Foreigners are very enthusiastic.


    As soon as Grace opened her mouth, she said, "Sue, I wasn''t there in person that night, what a pity! Garen showed us your singing video, you were amazing. Many of the friends who have come today are your fans."


    After Garen''s explanation, Xiao Qi realized that Garen had recorded a video of her singing that night and often played it at their hangout spot, the book bar. The song Xiao Qi sang was especially popular. Foreigners probably can''t tell the difference between Peking opera and other singing styles, so they just thought the way she sang in the long robe with that intonation was particularly cool.


    Xiao Qi introduced her roommates to Grace and also brought gifts.


    Grace was very happy and hugged each of them in turn. Her expressions were very exaggerated.


    When she received the scarf from Honey, and learned it was produced in Honey''s family factory, she exclaimed again about how much she loved the silk from this country, calling it too beautiful and a work of art.


    When she got the dried mushrooms from Wei Cheng, she smelled it blissfully and was told it was handmade by Wei Cheng''s family. She kept saying how awesome it was and that she really needed this ingredient. She also complimented Wei Cheng for being very pretty.


    Seeing the flower arrangement Yun Shu had brought that she had put together herself, Grace made an effort to praise her again, saying Yun Shu was a sweet girl with a sweet heart.


    Xiao Qi really admired the way these foreigners lavished sincere and unaffected praise without pretense.


    It was as if they were just naturally very happy.


    She also gave Grace the bamboo gift box she had made. Seeing the bamboo box made Grace even more exaggerated in her reaction. She said it was the most thoughtful gift she had ever received and that it was beautiful. When she learned that Xiao Qi had made it herself, she was even more amazed. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    She gave Xiao Qi another hug. Fortunately, Grace was also flat-chested, so there was no stifling feeling from the embrace.


    Afterwards, Xiao Qi went to help Grace in the kitchen while Honey and the others played outside.


    The foreigners meant business when they talked about cooking. They didn''t stand on ceremony but had already prepared an apron for Xiao Qi.


    It was a nice white apron with blue trim that matched well with the black dress Xiao Qi was wearing.


    Grace''s apartment was very nice. Upon entering, there was a bathroom to the left and a kitchen to the right. Directly opposite was an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling windows looking out onto a balcony living room.


    It directly overlooked lake and ocean views because this stretch of lake flowed right into the sea, so the lake seemed to extend endlessly and the scenery was beautiful.


    The kitchen here had extremely complete cooking ware. Grace said the school staff had prepared everything, and there was much that she didn''t even know the use for.


    What Xiao Qi needed was a large sandpot, and amazingly there actually was one here.


    She had thought a stainless steel pot would have to substitute, but the flavor would be different. Stewing meat in a sandpot made it soft and tender but still chewy, while stainless steel pots often ended up hardening the meat the longer it stewed.


    Plus, the beef Grace bought was on the lean side, so the sandpot was perfect.


    Xiao Qi first added the beef to the pot. Once the water started boiling, she skimmed off the blood foam layer and stewed for another half hour.


    In the meantime, Xiao Qi began teaching Grace how to make shredded yam strips.


    Indeed, foreigners liked sweet food. When the first fried piece was done, Grace took a bite and her reaction was simply spectacular as she started bouncing up and down with excitement.


    "Sue! I thought potatoes could only be used to make french fries. I didn''t expect they could be turned into such a magical dessert." She pointed eagerly at the big pot of oil, waiting for Xiao Qi to fry up the next piece.


    Xiao Qi fried several pieces and let Grace try her hand at it too. Grace didn''t quite grasp the temperature and ended up slightly scorching it, but she was still extremely thrilled since this was made by her own hand. She kept shouting "Perfect!"


    After frying up a batch of shredded yams, Xiao Qi checked on the meat stewing in the sandpot. The aroma was already wafting up in the bubbling pot by now.


    Grace also had a wide variety of seasonings and ingredients here. She was very curious about the seasonings and food ingredients from this Eastern country and had even procured things like star anise, cassia bark and wolfberries, as well as what looked to be beautiful bunches of fresh green Sichuan peppercorns.


    Xiao Qi added the spices one by one as Grace took notes. She had even set up a video camera to record it for easy future reference when learning.


    Xiao Qi felt great that she had taught Grace some cooking skills, while also getting to practice her English. After all, opportunities to directly interact with foreigners like this didn''t come by often. As they chatted, Xiao Qi realized there was still a gap between the English she had studied and actually speaking the language.


    Although her vocabulary was extensive, she felt like she was using formal, written language to talk with Grace, while Grace was just conversing in casual, spoken English. In reality, people don''t usually speak with formal language in everyday conversation, except maybe politicians.


    Xiao Qi figured it was probably because most of her English learning had focused on reading and writing rather than speaking and interacting. By chatting with Grace, she found herself unconsciously picking up many useful expressions.


    Grace commented that even English has different accents and she considered the London accent to be the most sophisticated and elegant.


    The two taught each other, and time flew by quickly.


    Xiao Qi also showed Grace how to make stretched sweet potatoes, bananas, strawberries, and many other foods. Grace gradually got the hang of it and felt these dishes would definitely be the most popular ones at parties.


    The two busied themselves in the kitchen while guests gradually arrived, mostly foreign teachers. Far from their home countries, they seemed to form a small, close-knit community that often gathered together.


    Xiao Qi also noticed a young man that she originally mistook for a fellow Chinese. But it turned out he was not Chinese but rather a Korean who spoke no Chinese. His English and Korean were very fluent. Xiao Qi later realized the "young man" was actually a Korean woman who simply looked boyish.


    As the evening sun shone through the window onto the simmering claypot, Xiao Qi removed the lid. The meat and potatoes continued to bubble away inside, the beef now fall-apart tender and the potatoes slightly crumbling. The broth had reduced to a rich, thick sauce, ready to be served.


    By now, the beefy aroma had wafted through the entire house, even drawing those upstairs back down. Grace was astonished, suspecting Su must have used some magic in cooking this dish. She had watched the entire process yet the finished product now seemed totally transformed, utterly perfect.


    Grace had originally asked a few people to help carry the heavy claypot to the table as the centerpiece main dish. But Xiao Qi simply wrapped a towel around the pot and carried it over herself...

 Chapter 192: The Perfect Party

    Chapter 192


    At first, Honey and Yunshu felt a little restrained.


    Honey was actually very lively with more people around, but now her language was limited, which affected her performance.


    Fortunately, as Xiaoqi initially felt, Honey was very talented in language. Although she spoke haltingly and clumsily, she soon chatted with Garen very fluently. It seemed even better than what Xiaoqi said. She was more generous and lively, laughing more openly. Her language and actions worked well together.


    Yunshu''s English was still decent. Her mother had specially hired a private tutor for her to take extra lessons when she was in high school. But she was a little unsociable. However, she looked gentle and sweet. Someone took the initiative to chat with her soon, the Korean tutor. When Yunshu heard her speak, she was also shocked. Yunshu had thought she was a boy, with short hair and wearing a shirt and shorts, giving a completely masculine feeling. But she turned out to be a Korean girl...


    Wei Cheng had originally thought she would be the most embarrassed. She couldn''t speak well either, and didn''t look good. She was also restrained, shrinking back. Unexpectedly, there were many tutors who wanted to chat with her. They all complimented her on being beautiful, unless she felt the tutors had no reason to joke with her. They seemed very sincere. She would have thought they were mocking her.


    Among the roommates, Wei Cheng felt she could never be the prettiest.


    Then a tutor took out a photo of who he thought was the most beautiful model for her to see. When Wei Cheng saw the photo of Lvyan...


    Aesthetics were very unique. Lvyan in the photo was quite beautiful, holding a white goose, with a lot of freckles on her face, also having a wide face and small eyes, but still very good-looking. However, it was really not the same type as the traditional aesthetic and the default definition of beauty in China.


    Only then did Wei Cheng realize that her face was actually considered very beautiful in the eyes of foreign teachers, and she gained some confidence.


    She studied very hard. Although she didn''t have special family tutors like Yunshu, or dared to speak like Honey, she still had vocabulary and such. She was just timid and had no chance to speak.


    Now relaxed, she found that people paid quite a bit of attention to her. She also tried hard to communicate boldly with others. It felt really good.


    Compared to the tutors, Xiaoqi and her roommates were still innocent young girls. Young people always radiated a lovely aroma of youth. And they were all good-looking in their own way, so despite the language barrier, everyone chatted very happily.


    When Xiaoqi finished preparing the food and appeared with Grace, Grace gave everyone a formal introduction to today''s chef, Su.


    Some had already recognized Xiaoqi as the singing girl in the video and were very surprised.


    Just now when Xiaoqi was cooking together, the two were still quite solemn, wearing chef hats and aprons. Grace had said earlier that she would invite a chef to come, and they did not expect it to be the singing girl.


    Wearing a white chef''s hat, Xiaoqi had not taken off her hat and apron yet when people pulled her to take many photos together.


    Turned out foreigners also liked posting on social media... or it wasn''t called social media, they most commonly used Facebook and Instagram to post photos and record their lives.


    When in Rome, do as the Romans do, so they also posted.


    With the food ready, Xiaoqi took off her chef''s hat and apron to go wash up a bit in the bathroom.


    Cooking really easily got you covered in oil fumes, making your face very oily.


    It was better for foreigners when cooking, either baking or making cold salads, because Xiaoqi had fried shredded potatoes together with Grace, so Grace also went to freshen up with Xiaoqi.


    She had a large bathroom downstairs, with two sinks and a whole wall of mirrors.


    Seeing Grace had everything, Xiaoqi simply found makeup remover products and took off her makeup. Otherwise it would be too oily, then she just patted on some lotion and milk.


    Grace also washed her face. Seeing Xiaoqi''s skin without a single pore, she envied her very much. It was like her skin at six or seven years old. Now she didn''t even dare go out with just lotion and milk.


    Xiaoqi saw Grace''s skin was still quite good, though there were visible pores. Their faces really relied on makeup.


    It was also the first time Xiaoqi''s roommates tasted the food she made, and they were truly shocked, because not only did these tutors who hadn''t eaten Eastern delicacies before find it delicious, they all found it very tasty too.


    The texture was perfect, the degree the meat was cooked just right, with the right chewiness without being too hard. The potatoes on the outside had all turned into potato paste, while the soup was thick and creamy, yet still sandy inside, like eating sweet chestnuts.


    The beef soup was slightly spicy and a little sweet, a very pleasant combination of sweet and salty. Wei Cheng felt it was too bad there was no rice. Otherwise she could have eaten two bowls of rice with each spoonful of beef.


    And Yunshu, who normally loved eating fruit and rarely touched meat, couldn''t help using two pieces of bread to eat the beef.


    Honey was even more exaggerated. As she ate, she murmured to herself, and after finishing declared she would have to go on a diet now.


    It was so delicious she cried. This flavor was very suitable for the native Chen Honey from Qinjiang. She felt like she was tasting the flavor of home. The usual bland food at school, not spicy or salty at all, had made her mouth dull. She could take this chance to diet too. It wasn''t that she didn''t love eating, the food was truly hard for her to get used to.


    They were chatting while eating at first, but today the food was clearly more important. Everyone ate first before chatting.


    It wasn''t until the Korean girl scooped the last spoonful of soup from the pot into her plate that everyone finally set their plates down.


    The suspected Korean boy named Jin Zaiyan turned out to be a Korean girl. She was also a tutor, teaching finance at the new campus.


    She had just arrived this semester, and was not yet accustomed to the local cuisine here. If it wasn''t for the kimchi she brought with her, which sustained her for a while, she might have become even more slender than she already was. She was 175cm tall and weighed just over 90 pounds.


    She wasn''t very fond of the flavors of the meat dishes here. The local fare tended toward sweetness, with even the meat imparting a sugary taste. Everything had a sweetness to it.


    Such were the culinary habits of Meng City. Local dishes were quite sweet.


    Jin Zaiyan loved to eat meat, but the sweet meat was hard for her to swallow. She could handle it for one or two meals, but by the third, just looking at the meat made her think of that cloying flavor. To improve her diet, she went to Book Bar, a foreigner hangout, and ate steak. The steak wasn''t sweet at least, though it was rather bland. Eating it daily was out of the question.


    Plus the foreigners had too many fried foods, also not to her Korean taste.


    She hadn''t expected to find such tasty beef today. It was delicious.


    She practically scraped the bottom of the hot pot clean with her spoon. Afterwards, washing up was easy.


    Luckily Grace''s home had a dishwasher. Otherwise after the party there would have been a huge pile of dishes to contend with, and Xiaqi disliked washing dishes. Back when she lived with her auntie, her aunt would wash the dishes after Xiaqi cooked.


    After eating their fill, the crowd clearly became more intimate. Even the most aloof people''s temperaments would become more relaxed and languid after a good meal.


    Together they watched the sunset and moonrise from the balcony, the vast heavens filled with stars. It really was beautiful.


    Enhua University was situated in wonderful natural surroundings. Just looking up, you could see so many stars.


    Listening to the sound of lapping water hitting the lakeshore. Splash, splash.


    Xiaqi had also eaten a lot. She quite enjoyed the feeling of a party like this, everyone chatting together, hearing English in different accents. Turns out foreigners also had many accents, plus customs distinct to their various home countries. It was quite eye-opening.


    Around 9pm, Xiaqi and her dormmates finally said their goodbyes.


    They had all added each other on WeChat and started a group chat.


    When it was over, the Korean Jin Zaiyan clung closely to Xiaqi, an odd look in her eyes that made Xiaqi feel strange inside. People said foreigners were quite open¡ªcould she be interested in girls?Upstodatee from

 Chapter 193: Each Has His Own Strengths.

    Chapter 193


    The weekend always goes by so fast. Before you know it, it''s a new week again. Everyone is slowly getting used to the college schedule. The first class of the new week is still Teacher Wei''s Academic English Reading and Writing. The teacher assigned homework last week. Xiao Qi discussed with the class''s vice study committee member and decided that she would collect the homework from the girls while Mao Wenshu would collect from the boys. It''s quite difficult to gather homework from the whole class at once, so it''s more convenient to do it by dormitory.


    Because she had to collect homework, Xiao Qi came to class a bit earlier. But then Mao Wenshu ran over and told her that he didn''t collect all of them. Looking at his thin stack of homework, it was clearly less than half.


    She had collected all of them from the girls. After all there were fewer girls, and they were generally more well-behaved and probably didn''t want to lose face by not turning in homework.


    When Mao Wenshu saw Su Xiaoqi frown slightly, he immediately felt very ashamed. He had thought this would be a simple matter of just collecting homework, but over the past couple days as he went around to each dorm to urge them, he had only collected homework from half of the students. At first he felt a bit unwilling about why he was the vice study committee member, but now he wished he wasn''t the study committee member at all. It was so annoying to have to collect homework. Why couldn''t they just voluntarily turn in homework on their own? They were all adults now. Shouldn''t they be more self-disciplined about turning in homework?


    Moreover, it seemed overkill to make such a big deal over this little matter, taking attendance like they were still in middle school or high school and reporting names to the teacher also seemed odd. But with so many not turning in homework, it also seemed useless that he was the study committee member.


    After thinking it over for a long time, Mao Wenshu still pushed the blame onto Su Xiaoqi in the end. After all, she was the one in charge.


    Looking at the stack of homework, Xiao Qi also felt a bit frustrated.


    "Did you record who didn''t turn in homework?" Xiao Qi asked. The class committee members had a roster.


    Fortunately Mao Wenshu was still reliable on this point and nodded, "I recorded it."


    "Give me the list of names."


    Xiao Qi looked over the attendance sheet. There really were a lot of people who didn''t turn in homework - half of the boys didn''t turn it in, which was equal to half the class. She had thought that since they were in university, everyone would be more proactive adults who understood that they should study diligently. But it turns out many still lacked self-discipline.


    She was too lazy to go find each person individually now. The current Xiao Qi felt that time was too precious. Anything outside of studying, unless necessary, was a waste.


    She directly took a photo of the name list and posted it in the class group chat. "For all classmates who still haven''t turned in homework, turn it in to me by the end of the break between the first and second class today at the latest. No exceptions."


    Then the class group chat exploded.


    To be honest, the group had been quite quiet these past couple days, other than the occasional red packet sent by wealthy students. No one had made a peep. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    But suddenly the study committee member popped out with this message and directly posted the list of names of those who didn''t turn in homework.


    Xiao Qi didn''t expect that the one who went up was her dorm mate, Yunshu.


    Yunshu was usually a shut-in who spent all day reading novels.


    They watched as she brought her own laptop up and tested the USB drive first. The USB drive itself had no issues.


    Then she tried all the ports on the classroom computer, but there was still a problem that prevented connecting because the classroom computer was connected to the projector screen so everything she did on it could be seen below.


    Xiao Qi watched as Yunshu updated a driver, but it still didn''t work.


    Then she calmly opened Device Manager, clicked on Universal Serial Bus controllers, then USB Mass Storage Device, and chose Enable Device.


    These series of operations were already very professional, at least completely beyond new student Xiao Qi. But the USB still couldn''t be recognized normally. Yunshu continued to click on USBRootHub under Universal Serial Bus Controllers, then opened Power Management and unchecked "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power". She confirmed it after that.


    This time when the USB was plugged in, the bong bong sounds finally stopped and the USB could be recognized.


    Teacher Wei thanked her and Yunshu just smiled and returned to her seat.


    Watching this series of operations, Xiao Qi was completely lost. Although it looked simple, she didn''t understand any of it at all. Watching Yunshu click around with her mouse, everything was fixed just like that.


    People really had different talents. She had thought she was pretty outstanding at Enhua. It seemed great and she felt pretty good about herself. But now she realized her sights had been too narrow. This was just Enhua, a third-rate school, yet there were many outstanding students around her already. If she went to a top university, the competition would be truly fierce with countless people more excellent than her. She hadn''t achieved anything yet and had no reason to be arrogant at all. She still needed to keep studying diligently.


    Thinking this, Xiao Qi''s slightly inflated ego in the past few days deflated back to its original size. She should focus on studying well. She knew too little. The less you know, the easier it is to become conceited.


    Moreover, she should set a study goal for herself. If her only benchmark was her classmates, most of whom didn''t even do their homework and acted smug just for doing homework, her progress would be too slow.


    Young people should use their limited time to learn unlimited knowledge.


    Xiao Qi became more solemn thinking this. She read even more attentively.


    She continued previewing what was coming up.

 Chapter 194: Think

    Chapter 194


    During the break, the boys who came to hand in their assignments were giggling at first, but when they saw the pretty yet stern, aloof face of the study committee member... they sheepishly handed in their assignments one by one.


    Xiao Qi checked off the names of each person who turned in their assignment against the attendance sheet, changing the crosses next to their names to ticks.


    Even Li Weijin and Wei Gaowen got this kind of treatment.


    Xiao Qi didn''t even glance at Li Weijin and Wei Gaowen once. If it was normal times, she might not have been able to resist appreciating them a little, after all it''s not common to see good-looking boys who can wear shirts every day even in the hot summer. But right now she was in very motivated "inject chicken blood into herself" mode, she didn''t have any spare effort to appreciate the scenery or good-looking boys at all. She felt like all these were illusionary, she preferred her English textbooks, Calculus, C language programming, information system development and design...


    Under the stern, aloof gaze of the study committee member, the assignments were perfectly collected this time.


    After class, Xiao Qi handed in the assignments to the English teacher, then asked the teacher for the course materials for the next few lessons. She just saw the teacher trying out a USB drive, the preparation materials were almost half a semester¡¯s worth of content, no wonder the teacher was a little lackluster when teaching. She thought, having to prepare and present the same materials over and over, teaching as a career can be quite dull sometimes.


    It¡¯s not easy to always maintain passion.


    Xiao Qi borrowed a USB drive from Yun Shu to copy all the content out, and also asked the teacher for her WeChat, planning to ask questions over WeChat if she doesn¡¯t understand something.


    Teacher Wei added her on WeChat, Xiao Qi set the remark with her own name and class.


    While below, Chu Yu¡¯s face flushed red and pale white... Teacher Wei actually rejected her request to add his WeChat during the first period... why did he add that Su Xiaoxiao?


    Wei Gaowen didn¡¯t think too much about it. This student¡¯s eyes were only on assignments and course materials, she didn¡¯t even look at him at all. And she was the study committee member, so if something suddenly comes up he can let her know.


    Last time when Chu Yu came to him to borrow course materials, face blushing, wearing a skirt, looking at him admiringly, it gave Wei Gaowen a shock. He¡¯s married with a child, the school highly forbids unclear student-teacher relationships. He only came to Enhua University as an adjunct to subsidize living expenses, last year he bought a new apartment, housing prices in Meng City were expensive, the mortgage pressure was big. His only thoughts were to teach properly and earn money, he didn¡¯t have any other ideas at all, so he quickly rejected her.


    Xiao Qi was also unaware that she was noted down by Chu Yu again for no reason.


    The second period was Teacher Bai¡¯s Management Information System class. As expected, the small lessons in the next two periods were mostly spent listening to his food stories. It was a tongue-top Management Information System journey getting to know all kinds of famous delicacies of the country. And then it was self-study again... Leaving aside the course content, if Teacher Bai opens a Douyin account, he would probably get popular. When talking about food he sounded so delicious, no matter what snacks he described, it made people crave endlessly. The teacher was a little off-track, he can go become a mukbang introducer or something. Coming to teach Management Information Systems was obviously a mismatch.


    When she felt that Teacher Bai could become popular on Douyin, she didn¡¯t know a video of her on Enhua University¡¯s official Douyin account brought her a small burst of popularity.


    The ¡°Searching for Qingshui River¡± song she sang last time actually got over 800,000 likes.


    It gave the young male teacher in charge of running the official account quite a shock and made him a little ecstatic.


    In the information age, traffic is everything.


    But random viral hits can¡¯t be ruled out too, sometimes a video can suddenly get popular for inexplicable reasons.


    Then the Calligraphy and Painting Association passed another video of that singing girl to the official Douyin.


    This time it was her writing calligraphy of the Heart Sutra. Things in cultural circles like this are actually quite niche, can¡¯t spread too widely.


    But unexpectedly, this Douyin video blew up again, getting over 100,000 likes again.


    The person-in-charge of the official account was baffled, are people so bored nowadays? Do they like tapping on likes so much?


    Back when he first started operating the account, he racked his brains but only got a few dozens or hundreds of likes, getting over a thousand was rare. What was happening now?


    He curiously tapped into the comments to take a look. There were things like:


    Damn, there¡¯s even an English song, his favorite ¡°Say You Say Me¡±. He listened to it eight hundred times that year when he had heartbreak.


    Damn, she really is making handbags... using bamboo. That¡¯s the ugly grey dorm curtain of Enhua University, uniform standard.


    Damn...


    He silently closed Douyin. No more damn, time to quiet down.


    On the other side, Xiao Yu, who didn''t use Douyin, happened to stay at home instead of going out to wander around randomly. He pretended to be a well-behaved young man in front of his family and played with his little niece Xiao Bao''er.


    Xiao Bao¡¯er was Xiao Shengzhou''s younger sister. There was a big age difference between them. She was the late-born daughter of her brother and sister-in-law, and was brought up very delicate. She was a little bit fat, just a little bit especially fat... Moreover, she looked very much like her brother Xiao Shengzhou with a righteous face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, but one size fatter...


    Xiao Yu was not a very patient person and did not understand why the little fat girl liked to play with him. However, the little fat girl looked lovely and especially adorable, but he was a little worried that with this face, the fat girl might not be able to get married when she grew up.


    Usually he just threw his phone to her and that was it... Maybe this was the reason why. Because except for her uncle, no one else in the family would allow the little girl to play on the phone for so long. She had endless lessons to take every day - dancing, violin, calligraphy, fencing, English, piano... Her mother was also worried. For her daughter¡¯s righteous fat face, in the future... it would be better to study more and enrich herself inwardly.


    Xiao Yu wanted to use his phone, but the little fat girl who was addicted to Douyin did not give it to him.


    "Give it to uncle for a moment and I''ll give it back to you."


    "No, I have a brother." The little fat girl grabbed the phone with sweaty palms.


    He had no choice but to coax the little fat girl with all kinds of promises before finally snatching the phone away. Then he saw on the screen a young girl in a long robe holding a microphone and singing. There was a flash of Xiao Shengzhou with a fanatical look on his righteous face. What kind of weird expression was that?


    Then he watched it again and listened again.


    He made a phone call with the phone, went to the bathroom, then opened the video again and listened to the catchy old song over and over again. It seemed that he had heard it while listening to skits. The bald guy had sung it before with a greasy middle-aged man''s feeling.


    But the girl on stage sang it with a special flavor.


    Especially when she sat there, her face was particularly delicate. Looking at it this way, he realized that none of the girls he was dating could compare.


    It was just that she was too small... small everywhere.


    Underage?


    Thinking of the silly smile on her face when she saw her laughing on the bus before, his heart felt itchy, like there was a feather scraping inside.


    He had listened to it dozens of times already, and the righteous little fat face of his niece looked like she was going to cry. So he had no choice but to play Douyin with his niece.


    Then he opened another Douyin showing someone writing...


    Xiao Yu took out all the girls he was dating and compared them again, and still found not a single one that could fight...


    In the afternoon he decided to go to his nephew''s horse farm and take a walk.


    He pulled the little fat girl and asked, "Do you want to see your brother?"


    The little fat girl with a high ponytail on her head thought for a moment. Going to see her brother meant she didn''t have to go play the piano in the afternoon, so she nodded immediately, "Yes!"

 Chapter 195: Xiao Bao ’er and Little Coral

    Chapter 195


    In the afternoon, it was Betty the foreign teacher''s class in the computer lab building. After class, Xiaoqi decided to go to the horse farm to work.


    She and Wei Cheng arranged their schedule so that Xiaoqi goes twice a week, taking the first half of the week and Wei Cheng takes the second half, going three times a week.


    Last weekend, Xiaoqi went to Grace''s house but did not see Betty. She thought they were not familiar with each other since they don''t hang out with the same people. After all, even foreigners should have their own social circles. Unexpectedly, during the break between classes, Betty came to chat with her. Betty said she regretted that she had things to do in the city yesterday and could not attend Grace''s party, so she missed the chance to eat the delicious food Xiaoqi made that they posted on Instagram. It looked amazing.


    Compared to the more conservative Greek Grace, teacher Betty was clearly more open in the American style. Her clothing and makeup were fiery and revealing. At this moment during the break, the big screen at the lectern was playing an English song MV with English rap. The scenes in the video were also quite provocative with men and women dancing intimately together, wet clingy clothes, and things like that.


    Betty teacher''s outfit was also very hot. She wore a shirt on top but the buttons barely held it together. It felt like her chest would pop out at any moment. On the bottom she wore a tight medium length skirt that showed the contours of her hips. When she leaned against Xiaoqi, you could see the imprint it left on her bottom.


    Xiaoqi thought, thankfully I''m a girl... otherwise I wouldn''t be able to handle it.


    Betty teacher spoke pure American English, and was very expressive, laughing loudly all the time and flashing her neat white teeth.


    "Su, you must come next time I host a party. I also want to invite your pretty roommates." Just then the class bell rang, and Betty winked at Xiaoqi as she brushed up against her body.


    Behind them a group of boys shrieked...


    Xiaoqi: ......


    Teachers shouldn''t behave like this, flirting with female students too.


    Even the usually chatty and noisy Mimi became a shy little girl in front of Betty teacher.


    Xiaoqi tried to keep a straight serious face, but Betty teacher casually squeezed her cheek anyway.


    It was a bit irritating... too enthusiastic.


    Unknowingly she sat behind Li Weijin instead of her usual less conspicuous spot at the back. The gossip was that he sits in front because of Chu Yu. So she ended up sitting behind Chu Yu...


    Xiaoqi didn''t know who spread the rumor that it was just the three of them, her Li Weijin and Chu Yu, who went to the calligraphy club that day. She would never gossip about classmates like that. Where did that come from??


    Chu Yu also seemed a little nervous, sitting up straighter than usual.


    In fact, from that seat Li could look up directly at Su Xiaoqi.


    Then he saw the English teacher actually flirting with Su Xiaoqi, and squeezing Xiaoqi''s serious little face... He... he wanted to squeeze her too.


    He also wanted to tug on that little hair bun on her head.


    Thinking of this, he finally understood why his kindergarten deskmate always pulled the hair of the girl sitting in front of them as soon as class started...


    He understood at 18 what his deskmate grasped at 4...


    After school, Xiaoqi went straight to the new horse farm. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Yunshu and Wei Cheng were going to the library, and Mimi had a community service event to attend for her external relations club.


    Xiaoqi went alone. The weather today was very nice for washing horses.


    ¡°My name is Xiao Bao¡¯er. Is Coral this horse¡¯s name? What¡¯s your name, big sister?¡±


    The topic shifted so smoothly... Looking at the dignified miniature fat version of the boss¡¯ face, Xiaoqi always felt an urge to laugh when she glanced at her. The little girl was too endearing, made people want to reach out and squeeze her cheeks.


    Which made her think of when Betty teacher squeezed her own face, probably felt the same way.


    Betty: Yes, this cute little Asian girl acts all serious and proper but looks adorable with that tiny hair bun. Just want to pinch her cheeks.


    ¡°I¡¯m called Su Xiaoqi. You¡¯re so cute.¡± Xiaoqi still couldn¡¯t resist pinching the little girl¡¯s chubby cheek.


    On one side, Xiao Shengzhou... also felt his face getting pinched.


    On the other side, the still ignored Xiao Yu... for the first time felt his name was badly picked. Xiao Yu, Xiao Yu, seemed a bit redundant?


    In fact Xiaoqi tended to avoid very handsome beautiful boys. Probably too dazzling, didn¡¯t dare look too much in case she acted like a silly fangirl and embarrassed herself.


    Her classmate Li Weijin was like that. Xiaoqi tried not to interact with him much.


    And the little girl¡¯s little uncle was the same. Peach blossom eyes, high nose bridge, thin lips, very tall too, over 6 foot probably. His clothes were neat and trim, gave off a refined charming air. Anyway not the sort one would find in the ancient wood village, Xiaoqi rarely saw in Lu Mountain City either.


    Compared to him, the Liu Shaowei from her high school class probably looked like a restrained primary school student.


    So one really had to go out and see the world, to realize how big it was with so many different people. Not be stuck in one corner, tangled up in what¡¯s in front of you.


    In any case, people like him were not of her circle. She did not pay them much attention.


    Xiao Bao''er had never heard anyone compliment her for being pretty before. At most, people would say she was cute. She was quite precocious and there was no helping it¡ªeveryone in her family was an adult and there were no other little kids her age. She already knew that being called cute was not the same as being called pretty.


    She immediately took a liking to this older sister.


    Even when she pinched Xiao Bao''er''s face, she didn''t mind.


    Moreover, she liked this older sister a lot and was prepared to include her among her circle of friends and peers.


    The older sister said solemnly, "Xiao Qi, you''re quite pretty. It''s probably because your hairstyle is the same as mine¡ªwe both look good."


    Xiao Qi held back her laughter and nodded, wanting again to pinch the little one''s cheeks. Her pretense of being grown-up was just too cute.


    But there were still things to do first; she couldn''t forget why she had come. Especially not in front of the boss.


    Xiao Qi picked Coral up and carried her to the side. Then she went to open the horse stables...the little girl was rather heavy.


    Having been so easily lifted up, Xiao Bao''er was very happy. None of the other older sisters could pick her up. Even her preschool teachers seldom carried her, complaining that she was too chunky. As a result, this older sister effortlessly picked her up. Clearly, it wasn''t that Xiao Bao''er was too heavy, but that the others lacked strength.


    When Xiao Qi opened the horse stables, she saw that Coral had curled up in a corner and did not want to come out. Upon closer look, the horse feed in front of Coral was wet. This silly creature probably had a cleanliness obsession and did not want to step on the damp area. She stubbornly stayed put and refused to come out.


    However, when Xiao Qi examined the wet patch, which smelled foul, she realized it was probably Coral''s own pee... How silly, the horse was repulsed by her own urine.


    Xiao Qi used a shovel to scoop that section of soiled feed into a corner. Sure enough, little Coral nimbly jumped out, even snorting loudly...looking as if she had barely escaped death.


    Xiao Qi was exasperated by this stupid horse. She should have known better than to pee in the corner if she was so repulsed by it...

 Chapter 196: I Want to Ride a Horse

    Chapter 196


    Xiao Shengzhou had to accompany his younger sister here.


    Xiao Yu was his new target here, stubbornly accompanying her. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi didn''t care about the two of them. She could now righteously say that she didn''t come to the part-time job for money. It was really as Wei Cheng said, being with animals made her feel very relaxed and emptied her mind. For Xiao Qi this was a rare restful time.


    Children were very much like animals, very simple.


    Dealing with Xiao Bao''er was also relatively easy for Xiao Qi, but interacting with people her own age or older was not so relaxing.


    She led Little Coral out to the open-air grooming stall. Little Coral looked at the damp wooden floor disdainfully. It didn''t want to step on it yet.


    Xiao Qi now understood this young foal very well. From just one look in its eyes she could grasp its meaning.


    She went and got a pink ball and a green ball.


    She put the pink ball in front of Little Coral. Sure enough, it obediently stood there and started seriously butting the ball to play.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Bao''er, whom Xiao Qi had seated in a chair on the other side, got the green ball. She was also happily playing, not crying or fussing, and no longer shouting to ride the pony.


    Seeing the scene of one human and one horse playing ball at the same time, the uncle and nephew both felt slightly complicated... They suddenly seemed to understand why Bao''er''s mother was obsessed with signing her up for classes. Her intelligence level was the same as that pony''s...


    Xiao Qi prepared the scrub water. Little Coral probably liked the pomegranate-scented bath wash - she whipped up a bucket of pomegranate-scented bubbles, soaked the sponges in it, and started scrubbing Little Coral.


    Little Coral whimpered contentedly, extremely comfortable. When it was happy it would lift its head and whinny shrilly a time or two. Its voice was sharp and delicate. After whinnying it would seem a bit self-conscious and shut up again.


    This was a very sensitive young foal. Xiao Qi scrubbed it very carefully from head to toe, and found no rashes or anything else wrong. It was quite healthy, if a bit on the thin side. It was probably a picky eater, not finishing its feed but preferring to sneak off to a corner and nibble on grass, which lacked nutrients.


    After Xiao Qi finished scrubbing Little Coral and rinsing it clean, she moved on to brushing its coat.


    Seeing that Xiao Bao''er had stopped playing with her ball, Xiao Qi lifted her down from the chair.


    She found a small brush for her: "You can help brush Coral too."


    Xiao Bao''er was thrilled. She earnestly scrubbed one of the pony''s legs with the brush, then took a bow out of her little bee backpack to tie onto its leg.


    Taylor had a better temper, but he was tall and large with a fierce black look. Yet Xiao Bao''er wasn''t scared of him at all. Very bold, while Xiao Qi held her she even reached out to pat Taylor''s head, and got a snort in her face. But she just giggled gleefully.


    Holding Taylor, Xiao Qi brought him over to wash. Xiao Bao''er went back to tying bows on Little Coral''s other legs, feeling it had to be symmetrical to look nice.


    While Xiao Qi kept an eye on her, Little Coral had just been washed and was quite docile at the moment, not rejecting the human foal, standing obediently for the bow-tying.


    It took much more water to wash Taylor. But Taylor wasn''t picky about bath scents - anything would do. Xiao Qi selected a lemon-scented soap that Taylor clearly enjoyed very much.


    After spending some time with the horses, Xiao Qi realized animals also had their little quirks. As long as you figured those out their temperaments were actually quite good.


    Taylor had an old scar on his back, probably an old injury. When scrubbing that spot he would get a little tense. The scar was probably still itchy, or for animals, injured spots carried unpleasant memories. Last time it had likely been when Xin Yue was taking photos and accidentally touched the spot, provoking Taylor''s agitation and irritability.


    Xiao Qi observed that although the scar was quite old it was still rather deep - the original injury must have been serious.


    While vigorously scrubbing him Xiao Qi was careful to avoid that area. Then she cleaned the scar separately, and found scissors to trim away the surrounding cracked skin so it wouldn''t keep getting irritated.


    Taylor was nervous at first when the sensitive scar was being carefully treated, especially at the sight of scissors. He even panicked briefly.


    But seeing the young pony and human foal so calm nearby, he persevered and stood relatively still, just pacing anxiously a few steps. As expected, when the nice-smelling human gave him a sense of safety like a herd mate, he obediently submitted. Indeed, the formerly uncomfortable injury site now felt much more comfortable and soothed.


    By the time Xiao Qi was rubbing him dry with a large towel, he had closed his eyes blissfully and was swaying lightly, looking very happy.


    After finishing bathing the two horses, Xiao Qi''s work for the day was done. Although it would have been easier to put the horses straight back into their stalls after washing, Xiao Qi felt they should still take them out for a walk in the sun and breeze, which would be healthier.


    So leading Taylor and Little Coral, one hand holding Xiao Bao''er''s, she took them on a stroll around the paddocks.


    Clearly Xiao Bao''er was very well protected - before heading out, she took a folding cap out of her bag and carefully put it on to avoid getting "too dark like her brother".


    Xiao Qi thought Bao''er was still quite fair-skinned and rosy - getting dark probably would make her look even more like her brother... hard to imagine that sight.


    Little Bao''er strutted proudly alongside Xiao Qi, with two horses behind her - how much more arrogant could she get!


    Because she was carrying a child, Xiao Qi was walking Little Seven on the grass at the edge of the runway instead of riding a horse.


    As a result, as Little Chubby walked, looking at others riding horses, her little chubby legs grew tired. She didn''t want to walk but was too shy to ask Xiao Qi to carry her. So she plopped down on the grass with a pout and said, "Xiao Qi, I want to ride a horse."

 Chapter 197: A Chinese Story on Horseback

    Chapter 197


    Little Fat Baby''s plan was this.


    She felt riding a horse was probably very dangerous, most likely she would be rejected.


    So by asking Xiao Qi to carry her, she would not feel so embarrassed.


    Although she had just decided to take Xiao Qi as her own person, within the category of her friends, not calling her sister anymore, directly calling her by name.


    But she still didn''t want to walk, she wanted a hug, her legs were sore.


    Unexpectedly, Xiao Qi actually agreed, agreed......


    Little Fat Baby felt like she had been hit by a stewed pig''s trotter, the kind that was fragrant.


    Xiao Qi actually really wanted to ride a horse.


    Just now when washing the horses, with two seniors watching, she was well-behaved.


    Now in front was just a little chubby girl, and two horses, it felt like the time, location, people and events were all favorable.


    She had learned equestrian skills at the expert level from Wicom.


    Xiao Qi was originally very familiar with horses and understood them well. Little Coral was too small, not used to letting people ride it. Xiao Qi didn''t want to bother it either.


    But Taylor was obviously a very well-trained horse, very docile, and also very intimate towards Xiao Qi.


    Taylor''s performance as a well-trained horse, obviously wanted Xiao Qi to ride on its back......it was a little hard to articulate, but Taylor really felt that way. Two-legged beasts, if they liked you, their most direct expression was an intimate ride on their backs.


    It didn''t feel humiliating at all, on the contrary it was an honor.


    Especially when galloping.


    Taylor had nudged Xiao Qi several times already.


    Xiao Qi also really wanted to try the feeling of expert-level equestrian skills. No intense dangerous moves, she should have no problem at all.


    Xiao Bao''er was somewhat blankly carried onto Taylor''s back by Xiao Qi. All of a sudden she felt the view was different, the front was so high up, she could see so far away. Compared to what she saw walking on the road with her little short legs, the scenery was completely different. She was so happy, the wind was strong, luckily her hat was tied under her fat chin, it wouldn''t blow away.


    Xiao Bao''er was very bold, not scared at all, although compared to Taylor, she probably wasn''t even as tall as one of Taylor''s legs.


    There was just a slight rocking, then Xiao Bao''er felt a warm embrace behind her.


    Xiao Qi put her feet in the stirrups and got up on the horse.


    Holding the reins, hugging Xiao Bao''er, she slowly walked a few steps on the grass, then went onto the track.


    By now it was evening, the setting sun hung by the lakeside, and there were no other horses on the track.


    Xiao Qi held the reins and gently controlled them.


    After actually obtaining the equestrian skills, she had specifically gone online to look up information about horse riding. She had earnestly studied the theoretical knowledge, and now was the time for practice. She carefully recalled the theoretical knowledge, and meticulously felt the specific differences.


    Little Coral followed closely behind, hopping and skipping, quite happily.


    Unless they had outstanding equestrians who could compete with their horses and get good rankings, only then would there be a possibility of making profit. Otherwise the cost of keeping these horses was extremely high.


    But good equestrians wouldn''t come to their school''s shabby equestrian center either.


    And actual professional equestrians, he probably couldn''t afford to hire, his horses were decent but still had a huge gap compared to horses that could compete professionally. The prices of those horses were astronomical, buying them wouldn''t be cost-effective either, they probably couldn''t even afford to keep them, they were too precious, too expensive.


    In short the possibility of making profit was small, so he also had to consider, after graduating should he just shut down the equestrian center? After graduation, he might need to go back to work at his family''s company, or he might want to do something himself too, juggling the equestrian center wouldn''t be very realistic, especially a non-profit one.


    Xiao Shengzhou was busy with solemn work on this end.


    Xiao Yu on the other hand was lazily sitting to the side playing on his phone.


    His legs were up on the coffee table, leaning against the floor to ceiling glass window, looking very relaxed.


    Xiao Shengzhou looked up and saw this scene, really......


    No wonder his dad, mom, grandpa, grandma all wanted to beat up his youngest uncle...seeing this, he also really wanted to beat someone up.


    But although Youngest Uncle was lazy, his work was actually very good. He didn''t work at the family business, and had started his own company which was operating very well. However the company gave off a somewhat unscrupulous vibe, too many female employees...


    Suddenly he heard Xiao Yu shout: Holy crap!


    Xiao Shengzhou was also startled, what could make his unflappable youngest uncle who got cursed out by the whole family without even furrowing his brow, be so surprised?


    He couldn''t help standing up, and also shouted: Holy crap!


    His little sister was actually riding a horse, her fat little face laughing with a full mouth of teeth, speeding by very quickly from far away...


    Scared the piss out of him!


    Hope nothing happens, although his fat sister was unanimously deemed too ugly by the whole family, if anything really happened, if she lost a single hair, he''d probably get punched and kicked by the whole family.


    Then he saw someone was holding Xiao Bao''er, Su Xiaoqi hugging Xiao Bao''er, holding the reins, rushing forward like a warrior, with Little Coral also dashing quickly beside them...


    Like a flash of lightning, flashing by the front of their building.


    Seeming to even hear Xiao Bao''er''s laughter.


    Xiao Shengzhou was scared into a cold sweat.


    Xiao Yu''s face was dumbstruck, the riding girl was so beautiful.


    Behind her was the glowing lake, she was like galloping out from a painting.


    And when he wanted to take one more look, all that was left was her back view.


    Like the wind.


    Xiao Yu blurted out blankly: I''m in love.


    Xiao Shengzhou said impatiently: "Youngest Uncle, I''ve been hearing you say that since I was in kindergarten."


    "This time is different, really serious." Xiao Yu jumped up.

 Chapter 198: Passive Invisibility

    Chapter 198


    Xiao Qi picked Little Fatty off the horse and sat him down on the grass. Little Fatty felt his legs go weak and plopped down on the grass. His face was sweating but he laughed gleefully, extremely happy.


    Xiao Qi led the two horses back to the stables and bid Taylor and Coral goodbye before taking Xiao Bao¡¯er to bathe.


    When they reached the club building, Xiao Bao¡¯er resumed his serious face, walking with his short legs like a little adult, saying he was going to find his brother.


    Seeing the chairman had received Xiao Bao¡¯er, Xiao Qi didn¡¯t pay it any more attention. She went to bathe herself.


    After her bath she wore a pair of light washed white jeans, a white t-shirt, the simplest outfit, with little white shoes. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.comely clean and refreshing, her fair face flushed a little red from the hot water.


    After getting ready she went to the cafeteria to eat.


    The food here still really attracted Xiao Qi. She felt the Chinese chef cooked better than her, she couldn¡¯t judge the Western food since Xiao Qi had never cooked Western food herself.


    Today she went straight to the Chinese food window, and saw the chef was the same middle aged chef as last time. She had asked Old Man Yu and he said the chef¡¯s surname was Wang, used to work in a state-owned factory cafeteria, and had excellent skills.


    ¡°Chef Wang, what¡¯s good to eat today?¡±


    ¡°There is. Today¡¯s fish is great, very fresh, caught from the reservoir, I kept it another day so the meat quality is excellent, it can be braised. The vegetables are also good, crisp from the water, Old Yu brought them over, his daughter grew them. The soup today has shark fin soup, very good, would you like some?¡±


    The chef had seen this young girl last time, she had a great appetite, seemed like she knew her food, eating with great enjoyment. These days young girls all clamored about losing weight, one who could eat so much and with such enjoyment was rare.


    And last time she had ordered both Chinese and Western dishes, but this time came directly to Chinese. Chef Wang felt like he had gained an edge over the Western chef Xiao Luo.


    Old Wang carefully prepared the dishes and went to cook the fish and vegetables that needed to be freshly made, while the soup was already simmering.


    Xiao Qi ordered her meal then sat down to wait.


    She didn¡¯t just sit around waiting, taking out her English textbook from the afternoon class to look over.


    For Xiao Qi now, such conversational English textbooks were very simple. She could even read original English books, so reading this was like taking a break, since she had time anyway.


    Meanwhile Xiao Bao¡¯er went to brag to her brothers and uncle that she could ride a horse now.


    Although Xiao Qi had held her while riding, they went around a big circle.


    She decided she would start to like Taylor now, but liked Xiao Qi even more, and declared that Coral was hers, she had marked and tied a bow on her.


    Striding on her little short legs she ran to Xiao Qi, the two men worried she might fall but fortunately she arrived safe and sound.


    "Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi!" Her voice arrived before her body.


    Seeing the fat little Xiao Bao''er barreling over like a little cannonball...fortunately Xiao Qi was quite strong, able to catch the little girl, others probably couldn''t.


    "I picked out a gift for you, to thank you for letting me ride the horse." Xiao Bao''er took out the sparkly hair tie.


    She didn''t expect the little girl to be so polite, even gifting her, she looked it over, it was quite pretty, and accepted it with a smile.


    Thinking next time she saw this chubby little girl, she should also gift her something.


    "Thank you, I really like it, it''s very nice." Xiao Qi couldn''t help but pinch her thick browed big eyed chubby face.


    Xiao Shengzhou walked over and saw Xiao Qi pinching his sister''s face, making his face twitch uncontrollably, feeling like she was pinching his face.


    Xiao Yu was very happy inside, turns out running into this girl made him muddleheaded after all. Girls still liked gifts. He thought about what gift to prepare next time.


    At this time the fish was done cooking in the chef''s kitchen, ready to serve.


    Xiao Bao''er wanted to eat with Xiao Qi, so the two men simply sat to eat together.


    Chef Wang had experienced it last time, the two bosses waited for the girl to finish eating before ordering the same dishes she did, so he specially made extra portions ahead of time.


    Sure enough a full table of dishes came out.


    Xiao Qi didn''t have much experience caring for a child, but Xiao Yu being with girlfriends a lot was more seasoned, removing the fish bones and giving Xiao Bao''er her own small pieces of fish meat.


    Though Xiao Bao''er looked fat, she was usually quite picky, didn''t eat staple foods, only loved snacks and all kinds of desserts and candy.


    But today eating with Xiao Qi, seeing Xiao Qi serve herself a third bowl of rice, she hurriedly finished her own bowl and shouted "Another bowl!" still with rice all over her face.


    Seeing this, Xiao Shengzhou was astonished. He still remembered when the whole family struggled to get half a bowl of rice into the little madam.


    Xiao Qi just really enjoyed eating here, mainly because the ingredients here were very good, and the chef was skilled too. Xiao Qi herself had beginner cooking skills, so had a sense of judging cooking. This Chef Wang must have specialized skills, plus her own senses of taste and smell were acute, good tasty food was especially delightful, put her in a good mood so she ate more. Others seeing her eat with such enjoyment unconsciously were influenced.


    Under Xiao Qi''s influence, Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Yu also ate a lot.


    The only downside was Xiao Yu didn''t get to speak more than a few sentences with Xiao Qi, seeing her just focusing on eating, occasionally interacting with Xiao Bao''er, completely ignoring him...


    He used to feel he was the center of attention wherever he went, but for some reason with this girl he felt like some passive stealth skill had activated, deliberately ignoring him.

 Chapter 199: The Little Boy

    Chapter 199


    After finishing her meal, Xiao Qi bid farewell to Xiao Bao''er.


    She received a part-time fee of 200 yuan.


    Xiao Yu noticed the 200 yuan that Xiao Shengzhou had on hand, and his eyes twitched.


    He felt that this 200 yuan was a bit too little.


    "You''re saying that this little girl just participated in the Top Ten Singers competition and won first prize, which is worth 20,000 yuan, and she still came here to work for you. Giving her only 200 yuan is really stingy."


    Xiao Shengzhou: ...


    Who was it that initially offered a salary of 200 yuan when he was hiring students for part-time work, complaining that he was wasting money and didn''t understand business, saying that he was giving too much... It seems like it was this shameless person in front of him.


    Xiao Yu felt slightly guilty under the gaze of his nephew''s righteous face, remembering that he had mentioned this topic before.


    "I was just speaking casually. It''s still up to you to decide. But do you think this girl has some grievances against me? I noticed that during the meal, she hardly talked to me or looked at me."


    After hearing Xiao Shengzhou''s uncle mention it, he also recalled that it seemed to be the case. The girl seemed to have a good personality, but in general, when there''s his nephew around, most girls would pay more attention to his nephew, engaging in lively conversations with him, while he was the one being ignored. CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin(.)c0m


    There was nothing he could do. The genes in his family¡ªhis grandfather, his father, his sister, and even himself¡ªall had a strong sense of justice. They had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and they had a calm demeanor. His nephew, on the other hand, had a completely different appearance. He had a melon seed face, single eyelids, and thin and long eyebrows. Fortunately, his nephew resembled his grandmother a bit, especially his grandmother''s mother... His grandmother''s mother was said to be the daughter of a wealthy landlord, and her young photos showed her as a delicate and weak person, leaning on the bed with exquisite clothing, thin eyebrows and eyes, and even smoking cigarettes with a sickly beauty. There was always a sense of pretentiousness about her.


    His nephew also had that pretentiousness, but on a man, it was quite handsome¡ªthe type that girls liked nowadays.


    His nephew could be considered the family''s visual representative.


    He was usually the focus of attention during gatherings. But now, after his nephew mentioned it, Xiao Shengzhou recalled that it seemed true. The girl seemed to have never spoken to his nephew from beginning to end, and she seldom even glanced at him.


    "Did you do something to scare her away?" Xiao Shengzhou suspected.


    "On my honor, I didn''t even add her on WeChat, and I haven''t said a word to her. What could I have done?" Xiao Shengzhou replied.


    Xiao Shengzhou still looked skeptical. The main reason was that his nephew had quite a history. There was a time when a female classmate from his class came to their house as a guest and saw his nephew. Then one day, she came to him in tears, crying her heart out, saying that his nephew had taken advantage of her and then abandoned her... Although it was later clarified that his nephew hadn''t done anything, he had just given his classmate a gift and had dinner with her, but his female classmate thought it was a romantic relationship, while for his nephew, it was just an insignificant social interaction. He treated all good-looking girls like that.


    Ironically, his nephew didn''t believe him when he finally told the truth, leaving Xiao Yu speechless.


    Xiao Bao''er played all afternoon and had eaten his fill. He was so tired that he fell asleep directly on the sofa. Xiao Yu looked at the darkening sky and realized he had to take the little rascal back home quickly, or else his sister-in-law would start bombarding him with phone calls.


    "Shanben-kun doesn''t like socializing much. He''s usually very quiet and doesn''t interact much. They say he''s quite old-fashioned, but he''s an excellent teacher. If you really want to learn Japanese, it''s a good idea to take his elective course."


    As long as the teaching is good, that''s what matters. Actually, Xiao Qi didn''t care about the teacher''s personality before. But now that she was in university and taking classes with different teachers, perhaps because she had grown older, she found herself observing more.


    Xiao Qi sincerely thanked Jin Zaiyan.


    Jin Zaiyan looked at Xiao Qi with bright eyes, making Xiao Qi feel a bit uneasy.


    She directly asked, "Is there anything I can do for you?"


    "Su, you''re good at cooking. You know, yesterday was the first time I felt full since coming to Enhua for so long. I''ve finished the pickled vegetables I brought from my hometown. Can I ask you, presumptuously, to help me make some pickled vegetables? I''m willing to pay for the ingredients." Jin Zaiyan looked at Xiao Qi with puppy eyes.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    So, it''s just making pickled vegetables. Why didn''t you say so directly? You could have just told me on WeChat. This kind of demeanor scared her, and she felt a bit uneasy.


    "No problem, I can only free up time for you on the weekend. If you want, we can go to the market together to buy the ingredients." When Xiao Qi was at home, her mother used to make pickled vegetables, pickled radishes, and bamboo shoots. She actually missed the taste of home, spicy and sour, very refreshing, while the local food in Mengshi was a bit too sweet.


    Now that Jin Zaiyan brought it up, she could also make some.


    "But for making these pickled vegetables, we need to have a ground floor." Xiao Qi remembered that her mother had specifically mentioned that pickled vegetables needed to have an earthy environment.


    Jin Zaiyan excitedly grabbed Xiao Qi''s hand and said, "Perfect! I chose a ground floor for that reason."


    Because she also planned to raise a dog for convenience, she chose an apartment on the ground floor with a small courtyard.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help but laugh and cry. This person was definitely a foodie. She just wanted to eat. She almost misunderstood Jin Zaiyan''s sexual orientation.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Yu, who was originally planning to leave, ended up picking up little Xiao Bao''er. Xiao Bao''er woke up and insisted on having a lollipop, but only the ones with Mickey Mouse patterns that she usually had. He had to go to the student street to buy them. As he passed by the bookstore, he happened to see through the glass window a young man holding Xiao Qi''s hand...


    Suddenly, his heart was filled with waves... He hadn''t even made a move yet, and the little girl already had a boyfriend???


    And that guy, he had a somewhat effeminate feeling, as thin as a pole. What was good about him?


    Not long after the start of the school year, the young girl wouldn''t be deceived, right? After all, she was an employee at her nephew Xiao Shengzhou''s horse stable.


    Xiao Yu felt that she should have a good talk with Xiao Shengzhou.

 Chapter 200: You Can’t Mess

    Chapter 200


    Xiao Bao''er returned home, brimming with excitement.


    She couldn''t stop talking, chatting incessantly.


    With her chubby face beaming with righteousness, she went around giving kisses to her parents, grandparents, and the whole family burst into laughter.


    Xiao Yu quickly made his retreat... otherwise, staying behind might result in a scolding from the entire family. Well, different people are treated differently.


    Ever since Xiao Bao''er arrived, the atmosphere in the Xiao household has completely changed.


    They had already moved out and lived separately, but later, because they needed to take care of the little one, the whole family moved back to the old house.


    The old house is a five-story garden villa with its own elevator.


    "I made new friends, Xiao Qi and I even went horseback riding together. Xiao Qi is really nice. Grandma, can I invite Xiao Qi to our house next time?" Xiao Bao''er hugged the arm of a thin old lady and shook it.


    Her own mother had to forcefully pull her away.


    She felt that her daughter had grown stronger. She''s only a few years old.


    "Don''t shake your grandma. You''ve made her dizzy," said Guo Ying, concerned. Her mother-in-law hasn''t been feeling well lately, and she''s a bit worried.


    The old lady shook her head. "What could be wrong with me? Bao''er said she made several new friends today, Taylor, Coral, and Xiao Qi. When the weekend comes, they''re all invited to our house."


    Mainly because it''s not easy for Xiao Bao''er, with her personality and appearance, to make new friends. They haven''t heard of her happily making friends at kindergarten and inviting them over to play.


    The whole family is delighted that the little one made new friends outside.


    Guo Ying also thinks her brother-in-law has finally done something decent.


    But then they heard Xiao Bao''er continue: "... Uncle likes my friend. I overheard him telling my brother that he wants to fall in love. My brother scolded him, saying he''s a dirty old man chasing after young girls. I feel the same way. That''s my good friend, and Uncle isn''t allowed to like her..."


    The whole family was dumbfounded.


    Xiao Yu is already quite grown up and still doesn''t have a stable relationship. He has had quite a few girlfriends, and there have been several who even called Guo Ying "sister-in-law" in front of her, but Xiao Yu himself doesn''t admit it at all.


    And now, he''s fallen for a girl who''s only a few years old. Goodness!


    Everyone thought that Xiao Bao''er''s friend, Xiao Qi, was just another child, probably chubby like her. Because Xiao Bao''er said she was strong, and they even had eating contests together. They even had the same hairstyle, both with pigtails...


    Guo Ying never imagined that her brother-in-law would be interested in such a young girl...


    The old lady''s face was filled with surprise, her expression changing, hesitating. She wondered if it would be easier to accept if her youngest son brought home a boy or a doll...


    The old master pounded the ground with his cane, almost creating sparks. "Help me up. I''m going to kill this unfilial child..."


    It was so amusing.


    A smile spread across Xiao Shengzhou''s face, with his righteous, thick eyebrows and big eyes.


    Jin Zaiyan didn''t expect Xiao Qi to know Xiao Shengzhou. Although she was a teacher, she also knew Xiao Shengzhou. Among their group of foreign teachers, Xiao Shengzhou had a good reputation.


    Because Xiao Shengzhou held the position of the student council president, in the eyes of foreigners, it was akin to a school''s teachers'' union or student union, advocating for the interests of teachers and students with the school. That''s roughly the idea.


    "Xiao Qi, you know the president. He''s great."


    Xiao Qi mentioned her part-time job at the horse stable and earned Jin Zaiyan''s admiration. Jin Zaiyan also had to work part-time while studying in the United States, so she felt a connection to working to support oneself. However, in Korea and China, their students didn''t have a very favorable view of working part-time, so she admired Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Shengzhou came over and found the person in charge of the bookstore, a tall and thin foreigner. They were discussing a charity fundraising event. After these foreign teachers came to Enhua, they traveled around extensively, exploring deep mountains and old forests fearlessly.


    As a result, they came across a village called Shanya Village, which was located beneath Luxi Town. The transportation there wasn''t very convenient, as one had to climb a cliff to enter or exit. There were quite a few people living there, and they wanted to raise funds to build a school for that village.


    Finally, it fell on Xiao Shengzhou''s shoulders, and he was asked to take the lead. After all, foreigners and the local government officials couldn''t communicate clearly.


    Xiao Shengzhou thought it was a good thing, fulfilling the foreign teachers'' philanthropic desires while also helping the local villagers.


    Although Meng City was a relatively prosperous city, there were still genuinely impoverished areas.


    He had been running around, contacting local officials and discussing the fundraising event. Foreign teachers were more direct in their approach. They were willing to donate money, but they wanted to see transparent results and required public announcements.


    There were some places with serious bureaucratic tendencies, and Xiao Shengzhou had to deal with those. Today, he happened to come to discuss this matter.


    When Xiao Qi heard Jin Zaiyan explaining Xiao Shengzhou''s purpose for coming, and when she heard about the fundraising, she felt a stir in her heart.


    After Xiao Shengzhou finished dealing with the matter, he came over to say hello. Xiao Qi asked, "President, I''m a student. Can I donate?"


    Xiao Shengzhou didn''t expect the young girl who worked part-time at his horse stable to also want to donate money. He was surprised, but he remained composed and nodded, saying, "Of course, it''s about showing love, not about the amount."


    Xiao Qi was thrilled to hear that. "Then, President, I''ll transfer the money to your WeChat, and you can handle it."


    She opened her phone and immediately transferred 20,000 yuan to Xiao Shengzhou. The message on her screen with an additional bonus of 20,000 yuan disappeared, and Xiao Qi felt relieved. Finally, she had completed another task.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Shengzhou opened his phone, his expression complicated. He had paid this hardworking student for her part-time job three times, giving her a total of 600 yuan. But now she had transferred 20,000 yuan back to him... It would take her a hundred more jobs to earn back that amount of money. For some reason, his throat felt sticky, as if there were words stuck in it, unable to come out.


    This money must be the prize from the Top Ten Singers competition.


    Looking at her joyful smile, Xiao Shengzhou didn''t know what to say.


    He made an excuse and left, not daring to look at her bright and innocent face anymore.


    As he walked out of the bookstore, his younger uncle called him.


    Xiao Shengzhou spoke seriously in just one sentence, "Uncle, this time I''m really advising you sincerely, don''t provoke that girl, you can''t handle her."

 Chapter 201: Japanese Optional Course

    Chapter 201


    Xiao Yu was yelled at by his nephew for no reason, leaving him completely bewildered.


    However, his nephew also said that the one holding the little girl''s hand was actually a woman, a Korean foreign teacher at their school, and Xiao Yu felt strangely relieved. But then he started worrying again - these days, some women also have ulterior motives towards little girls...


    Xiao Qi was very happy today after completing an extra task. She bid Jin Zaiyan farewell and returned to her dorm.


    It was getting a bit late, and the other dorm occupants had gone to class.


    Xiao Qi tidied up the dorm a little before heading to class as well. Unexpectedly, when she opened the door, the dorm across from hers was in the middle of a fight...awkward!


    It seemed a lot of people were gathered around watching.


    Chu Yu was actually crying, looking rather pitiful. People around her were trying to comfort her.


    Even Lin Dongqing spoke up, "Su Li, forget it. Chu Yu didn''t mean it. She''s not well, don''t be like this."


    "Why am I like what? I didn''t do anything and she suddenly started crying for no reason, acting as if she''s the victim when she doesn''t even deserve me bullying her. Li Weijin is that great of a person and she dares to get involved in scandals with him?" Su Li loved wearing boots the most and would wear them even in sweltering heat. Right now, she kicked a chair in the dorm with her boots, flipping it over violently.


    Chu Yu cried even harder. Her small face was deathly pale and she looked on the verge of fainting. Between sobs, she tried to explain, "I didn''t...I just happened to run into our classmate Li Weijin at the Calligraphy Club the other day and greeted him. And our classmate Su Xiaoqi was there too. I don''t know how such rumors started..."


    Su Xiaoqi, who was just passing by with books in her arms on the way to class: ......


    Feels wrongfully accused. CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin(.)c0m


    Sensing all eyes on her, she boldly declared, "I don''t have time for your bullshit. Don''t falsely accuse me."


    Then she strode off without looking back.


    In the business faculty, Su Xiaoqi was somewhat well-known across a few classes.


    Although Chu Yu made her tearful explanation, judging from Su Xiaoqi''s justification, most female students were inclined to believe Su Xiaoqi.


    Su Xiaoqi once had an intense debate with the Marxist philosophy lecturer during class and was the kind of student who actively participated in macroeconomics discussions, stumping the teacher. She was also the type to liven up a dull calculus lesson. On top of that, she was insane enough to walk 30,000 steps every day on WeChat''s exercise app. Rumor had it she was preparing for a full marathon...


    She even worked part-time jobs...


    From this perspective, it seemed she truly didn''t have much time.


    Moreover, Su Xiaoqi was quite beautiful, but her beauty was different from others. She was gorgeous, yet few claimed to have praised or chased after her. With a severe expression, she appeared rather frightening and unapproachable - the epitome of aloofness.


    Still, some said she was pretentious about her well-off background when she actually came from an impoverished rural family.


    Compared to Chu Yu, Su Li clearly believed Su Xiaoqi more.


    Also, did Su Xiaoqi just swear earlier? How daring of her! Seeing Chu Yu made Su Li want to curse as well.


    She remembered when she visited her aunt last weekend, her aunt had actually asked about her classmate Su Xiaoqi and even praised her.


    Since when did her aunt pay attention to such trivial matters, and praised an individual at that? Su Li felt a tinge of jealousy at that.


    She took out the Japanese textbooks she had been using to self-study, along with her vocabulary notebook she recited daily. Before she realized, she had amassed quite a sizable Japanese vocabulary through consistent review over time.


    Xiao Qi understood that for language acquisition, there were no shortcuts; recitation was fundamental, like paving building blocks for a road - the more vocabulary stones laid, the more solid and established the road became.


    After preparing her materials, the bell rang signaling start of class. At the exact second, neither early nor late, the classroom door was pushed open.


    First came a pair of leather shoes, polished till shiny and clean.


    Next was a crisp pair of trousers with folded creases indicating they were not brand new. A belt. A gray white checkered button-down shirt.


    The one who entered was a very petite old man.


    Xiao Qi guessed based on height that he was probably around her height.


    But he did seem to exude an aura of utmost prestige and severity, just as Jin Zaiyan described.


    His hair was neatly combed back with not a strand out of place. What little grayish hair he had left was sparse.


    He also wore black-framed glasses, giving off an initial stern, rigid impression.


    There are foreign teachers in both the new and old districts. Most who wish to live in the new district apartments do so because the environment and scenery are nice.


    The old district apartments are by the bridge behind the school''s back door. That bridge also connects the school to Luoxi Town, so going into town is convenient, but getting to the new district is farther away.


    Plus the view, that is the view of Enhua Lake, along with the little town across the way - the little town is still a bit dirty and chaotic when you speak of it.


    So it seems to naturally divide foreign teachers into two types: one type lively and passionate, the other type rigid and eccentric.


    Clearly Yamamoto probably belongs to the latter, you can tell from his outfit. His attire seems more rigid than the school''s old teachers.


    Until class starts, only about one third of the seats in this classroom are filled, and those filled are scattered about, making the room seem even more empty.


    But clearly the teacher does not care about this.


    He enters, rigid and well-behaved, greeting them in Japanese and even bowing.


    It''s a bit complicated, and many students do not understand. Xiao Qi has some basic knowledge and can understand, but also does not know how to respond - she has not been taught etiquette on this, and it would be awkward to stand up and bow as well. Country folk from her GuMuLa village do not easily bow, unless they are worshipping ancestors and the like.


    Xiao Qi can only respond to the teacher while seated: "Hello, teacher."


    She uses Japanese, crisp and clear.


    Yamamoto seems a bit surprised, but only slightly.


    A small portion of those who have come to take this Japanese elective are new faces, but a large portion are familiar faces. Pitiable are those who chose this course out of curiosity at first, hoping to breeze through an elective by reading some Japanese comics, playing some Japanese games, or even being able to understand Japanese films... Not expecting it would be a huge pitfall, actually failing the course and having to retake it.


    It can truly be called brutal - failing an elective course is just too unlucky.


    It also serves to warn the students who have come - you must think thrice, thrice, and thrice again before taking Yamamoto''s course. Otherwise what awaits you is endless failing grades and endless retakes, with no face given at all. There are still unfortunate seniors in this classroom...

 Chapter 202: The Temple Inheritor Teacher

    Chapter 202


    The strength of Enhua''s foreign teacher classes lies in the fact that the foreign teachers really teach the foreign language using the foreign language. It allows you to quickly become familiar with this language. The downside is that students who are used to exam-oriented English teaching may not adapt, wondering why they don''t teach grammar and sentence patterns.


    By the time they reach university age, students have many activities, and many become somewhat confused, no longer knowing why they are learning. Some feel truly empty and want to get certificates, as if that could prove they are learning and making progress, because the closer you get to the end, the more you can feel the pressure from society, understanding that you can''t stay in the ivory tower of the university forever.


    Pure foreign language teaching is more conducive for students to learn the language, and dare I say, they develop better language sense, but they are weaker when it comes to getting certificates, after all, the exam papers should be made domestically.


    For Little Seven, this is just right, because she has a foundation. She studied with Teacher Zhou during the summer vacation, and has been self-studying on her own, and she also had an experiential learning experience once, very nostalgic for that feeling, purely filled with this new language. What she lacks most is language sense training. After all, she can find grammar and sentence patterns in textbooks and materials, but language sense doesn¡¯t work that way.


    Now when she hears Mr. Yamamoto speaking Japanese, it feels very intimate, even if he is a very serious old Japanese man, Little Seven still feels that she has come to the right place.


    Also, the entire class is taught in Japanese from beginning to end, so she is actually learning all aspects - simple Japanese, complex Japanese, Japanese contexts. It''s perfect.


    Although Mr. Yamamoto still starts teaching from hiragana and katakana, which is equivalent to teaching pinyin, teaching it in Japanese gives it a completely different feeling. Little Seven is not impatient, feeling that being able to repeat what she learned is really great, because when she first learned Japanese, she was still a little confused, and even if she had questions about some parts, she didn''t ask them in time. Now some things make sense.


    Little Seven studies very hard, comparable to practicing martial arts, practicing the most basic skills. Once the foundation is solid, everything else will be much easier in the future.


    However, some students are very impatient. They don''t even know how many times they''ve learned hiragana and katakana. They can''t pass the exams anyway. But they know Mr. Yamamoto''s temper, so they consciously sit in the back, reading other books as to not disturb those who want to learn.


    Yamamoto is a very old-fashioned old man. His surname is also Yamamoto. In the past, his family was actually quite well-off, but later fell into decline. He relied on an uncle who married into another family to support him through school. After graduating, he became a low-level employee in a company.


    With the first money he earned, he sent it to his uncle, and continued sending money to his uncle for many years until he sent back double the amount his uncle spent supporting his education.


    Feeling that he had repaid his debt of gratitude, he then started his own life.


    With a wife and child, and his own life, he still thought about his uncle, hoping to support his uncle when he got old. But somehow, he lost contact with his uncle again, as if his uncle had disappeared.


    He became an ordinary, mediocre Japanese person among millions of others, a company employee, working hard and diligently. He also made steady progress, getting promotions and raises step-by-step. He looked forward to retiring in another decade, when he could live a happy retired life. Japan''s pensions are very high, with a large sum of money enough for him to live comfortably in his later years without worries about food and shelter.


    Unexpectedly, his company went bankrupt, and he only received a small severance payment.


    He felt like the sky had fallen. Fortunately, he still had his beautiful wife and sensible, hardworking daughter.


    But surprisingly, upon hearing about his company''s bankruptcy, his wife actually took the money and divorced him directly, taking their daughter with her. It turned out that while he was busy working, his wife had cheated on him. After the divorce, he found out the daughter he had worked so hard to raise and pay for her education was not even his biological child.


    He felt his life was too miserable. He had never done anything bad. As a child, he faced his family''s decline and ruin. In middle age, he encountered his company going bankrupt. Even his only child was not his. He decided to commit suicide.


    Sitting at the front of the classroom was a female student.


    As usual, he greeted the students, not expecting any response.


    But today someone replied to him.


    In fairly fluent Japanese. For a moment he felt as if he was back in Japan.


    Then he started teaching, going through the motions, dull and boring.


    But the female student listened carefully, seeming to record everything he said.


    In Japanese too.


    She had learned Japanese before, seemingly more than the other students in his class.


    Yet she still listened diligently.


    He felt today was a little different, just a tiny bit different.


    This female student was hardworking.


    He thought of his daughter Amako. Was Amako this diligent when she was in school too?


    For a moment, his face softened, but thinking of what came after, his expression quickly darkened again, even becoming irritable. His wife threw the DNA test report in his face as Amako smiled like it was natural.


    Thinking of that scene made him angry again. His face became even worse.


    It had been years, yet while furious, he could still mechanically teach the class.


    Like a zombie, lecturing the course content.


    The female student sitting below still listened carefully to the class. Occasionally a gust of wind blew in through the window, blowing a strand of her hair. She tucked the hair behind one ear with one hand, and continued taking notes with the other.


    The thick, battered vocabulary workbook on her desk fluttered open and closed in the wind.

 Chapter 203: Solitude

    Chapter 203


    The elective course time was the same as the regular classes, two periods with a 10-minute break in between.


    During the break, Xiao Qi went to the bathroom and saw the next classroom having a lively opera appreciation class, with a group of students chatting with the smiling teacher.


    When she returned to her Japanese class, it was even quieter. Perhaps the students had gone out for a walk or to the bathroom. At first glance, there was only a shriveled old man sitting in front of the lectern, giving an extremely lonely feeling.


    Yes, there is something called loneliness.


    Xiao Qi had seen this feeling in the village''s elderly receiving government aid. When Xiao Qi was in elementary school, the school organized students to visit these elderly to bring them warmth. Xiao Qi went with a group of students to one elderly man''s home. It was empty and dark. The old man who came out was hunched over and never smiled the whole time, looking very mean.


    It was said his wife had passed away early, and he had two daughters. One married far away and basically never came back. The other one''s whereabouts were unknown, so only the old man was left. The village had applied for government aid for him, giving 150 yuan per month.


    Xiao Qi went out of curiosity, thinking she could skip class and have fun with the other students and teachers.


    When they arrived and she saw the old man, when they were leaving, she saw the old man sitting at the door, expressionless, looking into the distance.


    That scene left a deep impression on young Xiao Qi. That winter, she heard that the old man had died, alone in his home, and was only discovered after several days.


    When she had nightmares as a child, she would often dream of a dark old house with an expressionless old man sitting in front, despite the warm sunshine, the old man had no warmth at all, just sitting there blankly.


    That feeling was truly lonely.


    This was also one of the reasons why people often mocked her father, Su Youfu. In the village, not having a son meant you would have no one to take care of you in old age, like cutting off descendants.


    Xiao Qi hadn''t had that dream or thought about that elderly man on government aid for a long time. But at this moment, she strangely saw that feeling in this foreign teacher.


    She inexplicably felt very distressed.


    What would a person experience from childhood to adolescence to adulthood to middle age and then old age?


    The bell rang signaling class was over. Xiao Qi didn''t think more and opened her textbook to continue listening to the lesson.


    Yamamoto also stood up on time to start class. By now there were even fewer people in the classroom, making it emptier, because it was so quiet that the teacher''s voice echoed. Because it was quiet, occasionally laughter could be heard from the next classroom, and the resonant singing of opera...


    Yamamoto did not take attendance. He only looked at test scores.


    He continued teaching.


    He had never thought he would become a teacher. In Japan, working in a company was a very good profession.


    He used to be just a company employee. The company made generators and had nothing to do with teaching.


    He made it through university relying on the sponsorship of an uncle through marriage, so he cherished hard-won educational opportunities.


    But now the classroom was empty, and of the few students present, very few were earnestly studying. Most had some recreational reading on their desks, and few were properly listening to the lesson.


    Yamamoto didn''t know whether it was the world that had changed, or he had fallen behind.


    He continued teaching.


    His hands grew colder and colder.


    He was actually waiting, waiting for that last remaining student to leave too.


    Then the bell rang signaling the end of class.


    He froze for a moment, standing at the lectern somewhat lost.


    Just then he saw that last student stand up and say to him, ¡°Goodbye Yamamoto. Your lesson was excellent, very educational for me.¡±


    She said it in Japanese.


    It was pretty good, though slightly clumsy, but admirable nonetheless.


    After speaking, Xiao Qi packed up preparing to leave. Glancing back, she was shocked to find no one there¡ªhad the others left that swiftly?


    She smiled at Yamamoto again before departing.


    And the classroom was finally left with just Yamamoto.


    He sat in the empty classroom, loneliness enshrouding him once more.


    Yet just before, it seemed he had temporarily emerged from it for a spell.


    Xiao Qi walked along thinking she hadn¡¯t completed her jogging task for the day and had better hurry back to the dorm to jog.


    She also still had mooncakes in the dorm. She had actually tired of the sweet pastries...she would never have imagined that possible before.


    She dashed along at a brisk clip brimming with energy.


    Suddenly that familiar mechanical voice sounded by her ear: ¡°Host worked hard learning with a positive attitude, bringing a glimmer of hope and positivity to a withered and desperate soul. Rewarding host language sensitivity buff for 30 days.¡±


    Xiao Qi¡¯s footsteps gradually stopped.


    She didn¡¯t know whether to feel happy or sad.


    She had possessed language sensitivity buff before for ten days. She felt like having supernatural aid when learning languages at the time, speaking exceptionally smoothly.


    From experiencing buffs a few times, she also grasped some patterns¡ªshe had to maximize usage and practice of the buff during the effective period. Even after it disappeared, some residue and sensation would linger.


    Language sensitivity buff really was extremely helpful, precisely what she needed now.


    What would an anguished and desperate soul be like?


    Xiao Qi seemed to have superimposed the blurry silhouettes of Teacher Yamamoto and the Five-Guarantee householder old man from Gumu Village, gradually becoming somewhat clearer.


    They were probably still somewhat different.


    There was no longer any vitality in the eyes of the Five-Guarantee householder old man, but there appeared to be some kind of persistence on Teacher Yamamoto...

 Chapter 204: He Laughs on the XX

    Chapter 204


    On Wednesday''s college mental health public class, Xiao Qi skipped it.


    She did something all college students would do, already becoming a mature college student, learned to skip class.


    At lunch time, she went directly to tell the vice class monitor Yue Lai, asking leniency.


    Generally for this kind of class, the class committee would turn a blind eye.


    As long as enough people show up to barely pass inspection.


    Vice class monitor Yue Lai was quite easy to talk to, even asked with a laugh: "Going on a date huh?"


    "No, part time work to be thrifty." Xiao Qi answered frankly.


    After being classmates for a while, although not as familiar as dormmates, since there weren''t many girls in the class, vice monitor Yue Lai stood out quite a bit, Yue Lai was from Meng City, family background should be well off too, kind of influential, very nice to students with good backgrounds, just so-so to students with average backgrounds.


    But she got things done efficiently, Xiao Qi didn''t know what category she fell into in Yue Lai''s eyes, good or not, anyway she had informed her.


    Xiao Qi skipped class to go to the horse ranch.


    Probably because last night''s Japanese class left too deep an impression, teacher Yamamoto, causing Xiao Qi to have a nightmare last night, maybe not a full nightmare, but she had been afraid of it since little.


    In the dream, she went back to Guyu Village again, with classmates and teachers to participate in that help the elderly activity, walked into that pitch dark old house, the house was empty, after Xiao Qi went in, her classmates and teachers suddenly disappeared.


    She was very scared and ran out, but when looking back, she could always see the old man sitting at the door of that old house.


    After a while the old man turned into teacher Yamamoto.


    Anyway when she woke up, her head was drenched in sweat.


    The feeling wasn''t great.


    Even after a morning run, she still couldn''t shake that feeling.


    Everyone probably had a childhood nightmare.


    So in the afternoon Xiao Qi skipped class to go to the horse ranch.


    She felt doing physical work, interacting with animals, riding horses, seemed to be exceptionally relaxing, also giving her a pleasant feeling, different from running, running was emptying herself, but didn''t have that feeling of joy.


    This afternoon was for cleaning the stables, but because she and Wei Cheng came to work part time, they didn''t need to clean everything like the first day, using up half a day, now they took turns cleaning.


    As a result when Xiao Qi went to the stables today, she unexpectedly discovered her classmate Li Weijin was also there, working in the stables...


    Young Master definitely wasn''t here for part time work to be thrifty, if he had to do that, everyone at school would be screwed.


    Young Master was Li Weijin''s nickname, anyway after lights out, going around the girls'' dorms, you could always hear gossip about him, everyone didn''t address him by name Li Weijin, directly calling him Young Master, probably because he was good looking and rich...


    No one else.


    Li Weijin''s heartbeat didn''t quicken, his face didn''t turn red either, but he felt itchy around his collarbones, didn''t know why.


    He usually didn''t sweet talk girls, never had a relationship since childhood, this was equivalent to his first time actively approaching a girl.


    He looked very calm on the surface, but was actually flustered inside, panicky to the extreme, even his hands holding the shovel were clammy with sweat.


    "Is your horse Yin Ni? Very good looking."


    Xiao Qi remembered the horse in this stable was a young chestnut horse, the name was also very nice, just called Yin Ni.


    Coming here so many times, she was quite familiar with most of the horses at the ranch already.


    Of course the most familiar ones were the ones she had bathed, Da Gu, Little Hui, Little Shanhu, Taylor.


    Because she had observed them closely, interacted with them, so more familiar.


    Yin Ni, would probably be in the next batch to bathe.


    Today was a little late.


    Li Weijin was very encouraged, feeling his strategy today wasn''t wrong.


    He continued working with the shovel.


    Xiao Qi greeted him, then didn''t say more, and started working.


    As a result after she finished both stables, Li Weijin had turned his white socks completely black, still not done, messy all over.


    This was originally Xiao Qi''s task, so Xiao Qi went over and asked: "Want me to help out?"


    Li Weijin nodded shyly.


    Of course his shyness appeared aloof in Xiao Qi''s eyes.


    Xiao Qi first took out the feed bins and such, Li Weijin wanted to help, Xiao Qi quickly shook her head saying: "No need, no need, these are heavy, you can''t handle them."


    Li Weijin: ...


    Just how weak did he seem in Su Xiaoseven''s eyes.


    But he didn''t rush forward to take them, not fitting for his image.


    Then he watched Su Xiaoseven divide by two three times five and somehow managed to clean half a day''s worth of filth in the stable, which Xiaoqi had already tidied up nicely. The foul smell seemed to have lightened considerably with Xiaoqi around...


    It wasn''t his imagination - Xiaoqi had cleared all the horse dung away.


    He really couldn''t believe the young master was standing in a pile of horse manure, still managing to look so handsome...

 Chapter 205: He’s Really in Love

    Chapter 205


    Li Weijin felt a little clumsy.


    Seeing Su Xiaoqi nimbly cleaning the stables, he decided he should help out a bit. He bent over to lift the feed bucket with both hands, then tried to stand up...unsuccessfully.


    He took a deep breath, bent over again, strained himself, nudged the bucket a little, then his hand slipped and the feed bucket crashed loudly to the ground with a jarring clang.


    Xiaoqi looked up to see Weijin looking awkward and helpless.


    "It''s okay, I told you earlier that this is a bit heavy."


    Xiaoqi came over to smooth things out. She bent over and lightly picked up the feed bucket, placing it back in the cleaned out stall. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    Weijin: ......


    His face felt a little hot.


    When Xiaoqi was about to push the loaded cart of garbage out to empty it, Weijin rushed over to help.


    Xiaoqi felt that the young master really didn''t know how to work. If they both pushed the cart, one side heavy and one side light, the cart would probably tip over halfway and she''d have to clean up again.


    Seeing that Weijin seemed quite embarrassed, in order to spare his self-esteem a little, she said, "If you want to get more familiar with Yinniu, you can spend more time with it. I''ll take out the trash real quick, you don''t need to help."


    So Weijin could only watch Xiaoqi push the cart away.


    He stood behind, feeling a little helpless. He didn''t want to get more familiar with Yinniu, he wanted to get more familiar with classmate Xiaoqi...


    But for now he went to find Yinniu. He had to tidy the stable and let Yinniu out, tying it up outside. Yinniu was an adolescent horse, quite docile. The horses at the ranch were generally at least docile, otherwise they might accidentally kick guests.


    Xiaoqi nimbly took out the trash and came back, taking off the yellow plastic coat, boots, and wearing her own jeans and T-shirt and white sneakers.


    She saw Weijin still at the stable door, leading Yinniu around in circles, looking confused and helpless.


    He looked exactly like a confused, lost young colt. It was as if the ranch had gained another horse called Weijin.


    Xiaoqi felt they had interacted enough for two people who weren''t very close, so she didn''t go up and say hi, but just walked away directly instead.


    She recalled the earlier disturbance with the dorm room across from hers. It seemed that Suli had scolded Chu Yu for being a toad lusting after a swan, fawning over Weijin, and directing and acting in fake news. Chu Yu had cried that she was being falsely accused.


    Whether Chu Yu was falsely accused or not, she didn''t know, but classmate Weijin was definitely dangerous. Just seeing him made her maiden heart sway left and right. It was better to keep her distance.


    Xiaoqi quickly walked away, arriving at the lakeside, where she saw Old Man Yu walking Drum.


    She went up and greeted them.


    Xiaoqi used to be that kind of person. She didn''t get along very well with her former roommates either.


    But when she started college, her horizons broadened, she learned to see things from others'' perspective, and realized these things were too petty to even mention or pay attention to.


    A person''s energy and wisdom is limited. The more that''s spent here means less spent there.


    Drum ran increasingly faster and Xiaoqi felt extremely free and elated. It was like taking flight together.


    No wonder so many people like buying cars, buying good cars. It''s probably just like the state she''s in now, riding the horse. As the speed steadily climbs up, that indescribable feeling of pleasure. Suddenly there''s passion.


    Xiaoqi raced on Drum''s back feeling exhilarated with its energy.


    Then Drum slowly slowed down. In the distance, Xiaoqi saw Weijin riding the date-red Yinniu. The clip-clop sound gradually got closer.


    The light of sunset shone reddishly on Weijin''s face too.


    Perhaps because he was riding, he lacked his usual meticulous neatness. His hair was slightly messy, his clothes a little disordered.


    "Hi!"


    Weijin called out a greeting to Xiaoqi from horseback.


    Xiaoqi was in good spirits and returned his smile.


    Weijin''s heart also soared.


    Just now he had waited for Xiaoqi at the stable door, but she didn''t show up for ages.


    Weijin: ......


    By the time he realized the galloping figure on horseback in the distance was actually Xiaoqi, riding that enormous Drum, Senior Brother Shengzhou''s horse, said to be hard for others to mount. Before, some had wanted Drum for looking so tall and mighty, but Senior Brother Shengzhou said it wasn''t easy to ride. After failing to mount it several times, they gave up.


    Yet now Xiaoqi was actually riding it with utter ease.


    Weijin couldn''t help taking out his phone to snap a photo, but they were too far, the picture just showing the vast riding field, sunset, a galloping horse, and an indistinct figure on its back - very much an abstract scene, but it had captured the artistic mood beautifully, even if the person couldn''t be made out clearly.


    He had taken riding lessons before and while not great at it, was competent enough to ride solo without needing someone to lead the horse.


    He mounted Yinniu, wanting to catch up, but from afar she appeared to just be riding fast. When he actually drew level on the same trail though, it wasn''t only fast - she was practically flying. He rode Yinniu yet the distance between them only grew. He was behind her yet riding Yinniu, she still managed to lap him completely, bringing them face to face.


    Weijin''s face wasn''t red but his collarbone below his shirt had flushed. Seeing Xiaoqi galloping towards him, she sat much higher on Drum than him on Yinniu, so they were almost at eye level. Their paths intersected for a fleeting glimpse before they brushed past each other.


    Li Weijin''s collarbone had not only turned red, but was also tingling.


    He thought, he had really fallen in love.

 Chapter 206: The Equestrian

    Chapter 206


    Xiao Qi rode Ji Gu, drumming with great delight.


    She felt exhilarated by the drumming, as if she hadn''t had a good run in a long time. It was rare for someone to take her on such a fast-paced ride, burning off the excess food fat accumulated in her belly.


    Every lap she made, she would encounter Li Weijin. Although they were both heading in the same direction, Li Weijin''s teenage horse, Mud Stain, was clearly not very fast. It could only be considered above average, nowhere near Ji Gu''s speed.


    Ji Gu had incredible explosive power and remarkable endurance.


    No wonder it always ate so much.


    Xiao Qi felt like she was just like Ji Gu.


    Except she didn''t have Ji Gu''s strength and robust physique. Instead, she had the endurance and stamina of a donkey, the bouncing power of a panda, the strength of a strong human, and a buff in sprinting explosiveness. Well, she should probably eat more to increase her own stamina. Lately, Xiao Qi found running to be increasingly effortless.


    Previously, she would be exhausted from walking 30,000 steps every day, feeling like a dead dog. But now, after finishing her run, she could leisurely stroll without any difficulty.


    Xiao Qi enjoyed this clear sense of progress in stages.


    Sensing that Ji Gu had exercised enough for the day, Xiao Qi grabbed the reins and slowed down, leading Ji Gu towards the stable.


    As she dismounted, a mechanical voice suddenly sounded in her ear, "The host''s beautiful and fit figure while riding a horse has brought positive energy to her classmates, allowing them to experience the feeling of first love. Reward: +1 cm in height for the host."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    The only classmate on the equestrian field right now is Li Weijin, right?


    What on earth is "first love"?


    Could it be what she''s thinking?


    Xiao Qi felt extremely awkward and strange. She quickly bid farewell to Ji Gu and rushed to the club.


    After taking a shower, she went straight to the dining hall.


    Eating first was the priority.


    Today, she ordered Western cuisine: spaghetti, cod fillet, fried chicken leg, donuts, and a pile of meat sauce, grilled bread, fresh mushroom soup, boiled broccoli, and a fruit salad. Except for the broccoli and fruit salad, everything else was high in calories.


    Xiao Qi felt particularly hungry after riding Ji Gu, so these dishes should be just right.


    She was originally worried about running into Li Weijin while eating, fearing that it would be a bit awkward.


    But as it turned out, she sat there and saw Li Weijin. Li Weijin came out after his shower, taking longer than her. His hair was still wet, and he was wearing a pink shirt with knee-length khaki pants. The shirt was not as meticulously buttoned as usual, with the top two buttons left undone, revealing his beautiful collarbone. Was the water too hot? His collarbone looked slightly red.


    His wet hair fell on his head, and his face still had a cool and aloof vibe.


    Xiao Qi: ... I guess he''s what they mean by "easy on the eyes."


    No wonder these young idols become so popular. Their looks alone are enough to captivate anyone.


    Many times, people are not indifferent or unwilling to help others. It''s just that they don''t know where to start or if their goodwill will be reciprocated. Over time, they become accustomed to indifference.


    Recalling the time when she helped the groom with a broken leg and quietly donated some money, even though the other person didn''t say anything, they gave her the most sincere return. They were willing to offer a genuine blessing at the cost of their own life.


    Xiao Qi felt that the system was quite sincere and honest. It always spoke the truth, so it must be the genuine feelings of the other person.


    Most of the people she encountered were grateful when helped. However, there were a few who seemed unappreciative and indifferent.


    She was willing to continue giving to the majority because she often thought of her own family''s hardships. If she were to encounter difficulties, she hoped that someone would extend a helping hand.


    "Thank you, President Xiao Shengzhou. This is the first time I''ve received such a certificate, and I will treasure it," Xiao Qi said sincerely with a smile.


    Xiao Qi''s words stirred something in Xiao Shengzhou''s heart. From what the young girl implied, it seemed that she had done good deeds before, but she had never received a certificate for them. He couldn''t help but regard her highly.


    The matter of the donations led by foreign teachers was a mix of some teachers genuinely willing to engage in charity and others perceiving China as a poor country and wanting to contribute. Overall, these foreign teachers were relatively well-off. They had decent salaries at Enhua, so it was a win-win situation for both parties to contribute some money for spiritual fulfillment. However, Xiao Shengzhou didn''t expect that Su Xiao Qi, a student who worked part-time at his horse farm, would also be willing to donate.


    Moreover, he was aware of the source of the money.


    Because Su Xiao Qi had donated, he took the initiative to look up some information about the girl and discovered that she was not only talented in singing but also excelled at swimming. When she participated in swimming competitions, she openly admitted that it was for the prize money.


    Considering the timing, it seemed like the money she donated could be used to pay her tuition fees. Enhua''s tuition fees were quite high for an average family.


    During the summer vacation, the girl worked as a tutor to earn money.


    Her family background should be ordinary, and her life experiences were very simple. Unlike some foreign teachers who seemed to have some childhood psychological trauma, hoping to soothe their own inner self by helping others, she had no vanity of seeking fame. When she transferred the money to herself, she didn''t even include any remarks and was genuinely surprised when she received the donation certificate.


    Xiao Shengzhou initially planned to give her the certificate and leave, but at this moment, he changed his mind and sat down.


    He asked, "I see that you are very good at horseback riding. The horses seem docile when you handle them, but in reality, they are not easily ridden by others."


    Xiao Qi nodded and said, "I love horses. I feel very comfortable being around them, probably because I grew up in the mountains."


    Xiao Shengzhou smiled.


    "We need an equestrian master at our horse farm. Are you willing to take on that role?"


    Xiao Qi was taken aback. Was he being so casual about it?


    Seeing her confusion, Xiao Shengzhou became even more determined. In fact, he hadn''t thought about hiring an equestrian master before. A formal equestrian master participated in relevant competitions with horses as their medium, and he was considering whether to close down the horse farm or explore other options.


    But when he saw this young girl and thought about her radiant smile on horseback, he suddenly wanted to give it another try.


    "Yes, the salary for an equestrian master would be much higher, and if you perform well, there will be opportunities to participate in official competitions with generous prize money," Xiao Shengzhou was a formidable person who knew how to steer a conversation.


    Indeed, as soon as he mentioned the prize money, the eyes of the girl across from him immediately lit up.


    However, she asked, "But I came here with my roommate. If I become an equestrian master, what about the previous job?"


    "It''s alright, I will find another suitable person," Xiao Shengzhou replied. This further affirmed his opinion of the young girl. It was rare for someone to not forget their friends when faced with personal gain.CHeCk for new stories on no/v/el/bin(.)c0m

 Chapter 207: The Meaning of Drunkenness

    Chapter 207


    On the way back, Xiao Qi was not bothered at all. Going from a part-time job through the work-study program to becoming an equestrian with a higher salary made her very happy. Now she could openly ride horses and even participate in competitions to win prize money.


    The allure of prize money was strong.


    Although Xiao Qi had a progress system that gave her money every day, she still felt uneasy about where that money came from. It was hard to explain.


    She didn''t dare to spend lavishly even though she had a lot of money.


    No matter how much money one has, the peasant mindset instilled from her upbringing in the countryside was hard to shake off in a short time. After all, that environment shaped who she was from birth.


    Just as she was thinking about this, her phone suddenly rang. She picked it up and saw it was a call from home.


    Xiao Qi quickly answered.


    "My daughter, today your dad went to town to sell bamboo baskets, and he deposited money for you. He said he saw over 20,000 yuan in your bank account. What have you been up to?" Shen Juanhua''s slightly anxious voice came through over the phone.


    When Su Youfu came home at noon, she had wanted to call but her husband stopped her, worried it would affect their child''s studies in case she was in class.


    Finally when it was evening, thinking she should be free now, Shen Juanhua called.


    At home, the parents were worried their daughter didn''t have enough money, but upon seeing she had more, they became even more concerned. A young girl outside alone could easily be tricked.


    Xiao Qi had forgotten to tell her parents about winning the singing contest prize, so she explained it to them over the phone.


    Neither Shen Juanhua nor Su Youfu doubted her. They felt their daughter was very honest ever since she was little.


    However, upon hearing it was a singing competition, Su Youfu sounded somewhat smug. His voice came over the phone, "The child takes after me. I was really good at singing. I even went on stage to sing during village events in the past."


    "It''s just that you have thick skin. The key is that our daughter looks like me."


    Xiao Qi held the phone listening to her parents bickering on the other end, and couldn''t help laughing too.


    In reality, she didn''t inherit her dad''s singing talent at all. He loved to sing, but she was just average.


    In looks, she did take after her mother more, and was quite pretty.


    But Su Youfu still asked, "Why is there so much money?"


    20,000 yuan really was a huge sum. Even in a good year, villagers in Gumu Village may not be able to save that much.


    Xiao Qi explained again that it was a private aristocratic school, so they had money.


    She also mentioned about her part-time job.


    She didn''t expect she really wasn''t smearing Su Xiaoqi''s name. Su Xiaoqi was precisely this kind of person.


    Shameless.


    Chu Yu''s thoughts had already wandered very far...


    Whereas Xiao Qi remained oblivious, still diligently doing practice problems.


    During the break, Xiao Qi told Wei Cheng about the equestrian club. As soon as Wei Cheng heard the chairman asked her to be an equestrian coach, her face lit up excitedly. "That''s so great! Xiao Qi, you''re so amazing."


    Xiao Qi felt relieved. She felt Wei Cheng was really good, very frank and honest. They went together, and it was Wei Cheng who introduced her, yet when Xiao Qi got a promotion, she was happy for her right away, not thinking anything else.


    "The chairman said they would still recruit more people to help. You probably won''t be too tired. In the future I can ride horses, and when you''re free, I can teach you."


    Hearing she could learn to ride horses, Wei Cheng''s eyes curved happily. "That''s so great!"


    The other dormmates were also quite envious hearing Xiao Qi could ride horses. Mi''er was especially excited, chattering about how next time she also wanted to go play.


    Xiao Qi said, "I can ask the chairman. If he agrees, next time our dorm of four can go together."


    Not only was Mi''er not disappointed hearing she''d ask the chairman, she was even more excited instead. She felt Xiao Qi would surely succeed going on her behalf. Very reliable. And she could get close contact with the student council chairman. Although she had gone to the student council several times herself, she only got a minor staff position by sucking up. She still hadn''t seen the chairman himself in the student council.


    Gu Yunshu simply felt going to the equestrian club together with roommates would probably be quite fun. She was an introvert, but willing to play together with familiar people.


    When the bell rang for next period, Xiao Qi still dragged Mi''er back to her own seat to keep studying, reviewing the Japanese they learned yesterday. Although the Japanese teacher only taught simple hiragana and katakana, she said a lot of sentences. Being able to remember all of them would actually help learn.


    Xiao Qi felt she should turn on voice recording on her phone next class. That way reviewing would be more efficient, since she didn''t fully grasp some of Teacher Yamamoto''s speech.


    Mi''er still wanted to chat, but seeing her deskmate start studying, she could only obediently study as well.


    The next morning when Xiao Qi came to class, Mi''er''s fellow townsman Chen Hanhe leaned over sneakily to chat. "Study committee member, I heard you got first place in the Top 10 Singers contest. How come you didn''t treat people to a meal or something? Too stingy."


    Before Xiao Qi could speak, Mi''er already scolded him. "Who said she didn''t treat us? Last weekend Xiao Qi treated us to eat in town already. Do I need to report this to you? You''re a guy, how are you such a gossiper, chattering on every day."


    Chen Hanhe quickly said, "I''m joking, just rambling randomly. But study committee member, you have so much money now, do you still need to do work-study? I heard the young master is also an equestrian club member. Do you get to see him often?"


    Another male student beside him, Liu Xiao, meaningfully stated, "A drunkard''s intention is not in the wine."


    Su Xiaoqi: ...


    What''s with guys speaking so cryptically too.


    She responded in a frank manner: "The prize money I won by my own ability and the money I earned, I have a clear conscience about them. Have I gotten in anyone''s way?"

 Chapter 208: Donation Certificate Exposure

    Chapter 208


    When it was time again for the big class in the afternoon, the computer practice class, everyone had to walk to the computer lab building.


    Liu Xiao then understood what the mysterious meaning of what Xiaoqi had said so secretively in the morning.


    It had spread throughout the day.


    It was nothing more than Su Xiaoqi obviously having money, winning first place in the Top Ten Singers and twenty thousand yuan, but still insisting on going to the racetrack to work part-time, actually it was to see someone...


    There were also those who said Su Xiaoqi was just money-grubbing, her family was too poor, so even though she got the prize money she didn''t spend a penny of it, and still went to work part-time.


    Neither were good words, one was lustful and the other greedy...


    Even when Xiaoqi left the dorm and met Su Li, she was given a disdainful look by Su Li. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Su Li was the kind of person who wore her joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness on her face, very straightforward.


    When Xiaoqi found out the reason, she immediately realized that not only were beautiful women disastrous, but so were handsome men. She had hardly had any contact with Li Weijin from beginning to end. She had only talked to him for a few sentences yesterday, and then never paid him any more attention because of her own work.


    Thinking back, they probably hadn''t talked at all during other times.


    Xiaoqi thought that Su Li was much more polite to her than to Chu Yu. She scolded Chu Yu directly, pointing her finger and accusing her of wishful thinking, while she just raised her eyebrows at Xiaoqi with an arrogant look. After this comparison, her mood surprisingly improved.


    Xiaoqi thought it was funny that there seemed to be a bit of masochism in human nature. Seeing someone very fierce scold someone else, and then just scolding herself, she actually felt grateful and happy.


    She could have held her head high and said straightforwardly that she had nothing going on with Li Weijin, but she thought of what the system had said... the first awakening of love... o(¨s¡õ¨t)o...


    She couldn''t justify herself so righteously.


    She still had that feeling towards Li Weijin of seeing something beautiful.


    There was no way around it, Li Weijin was just too good looking. Xiaoqi was like this, and all kinds of enhanced people were inferior to her.


    Xiaoqi felt that one day when she had carefully put on perfect makeup without making any mistakes, she might barely catch up to Li Weijin''s usual ordinary appearance.


    Moreover, the temperament was something that couldn''t be imitated. It was intrinsic to her, while Li Weijin had probably been finely cultivated since childhood, and was not of the same world as Xiaoqi.


    There was appreciation, but no other feelings.


    It was like seeing an exquisite and beautiful ornament that you would like and appreciate, but you wouldn''t want to date the ornament. That was the feeling.


    Xiaoqi sorted it out for herself and felt very clear, without worrying too much either.


    As for the talk of her loving money, desperately wanting money, and her family being poor, she cared even less. In Enhua, compared to truly rich people, how many people weren''t poor?


    She didn''t pay too much attention to the rumors in the class.


    If you cared too much about what others thought, you might as well be dead. There were over 70 people in the class with 70 different thoughts. She couldn''t explain to each of them individually.


    Since there was no basis to the matter, Xiaoqi was not worried at all.


    But it made her roommates very worried.


    Although Gu Yunshu read novels all day and seemed to not care about anything she saw, in reality her family circumstances were the best of the roommates, and she had the most experience. She just said, "Xiaoqi may have caught someone''s eye."


    Wei Cheng frowned, feeling somewhat guilty. It was clearly because she had gone with Xiaoqi to the racetrack to work and study, and if not for herself there wouldn''t have been so much trouble... And the talk of Xiaoqi coming from a desperately poor family, being greedy for money, made her even more uneasy. She always felt that someone like Xiaoqi who worked so hard should not be slandered like this. Xiaoqi really did work very hard and was very ambitious. She was the hardest working person she had seen so far, and a person like this deserved to obtain very good things, rather than being talked about like this.


    Honey was the angriest. She had a bad temper and couldn''t stand this kind of slander. Whenever she heard any, she would ask the person face-to-face who they heard it from, wanting to find each one.


    But with so many people in a class, it was difficult to find them one by one in a short time.


    After finishing the practical class, they had to run back to the Bamboo Grove building for lessons, without much time in between, and the group rushed to barely make it.


    He didn''t realize it himself, he just felt Xiaoqi seemed different somehow, but couldn''t say where. Anyway, different.


    Zhang Hu was also quite mischievous, horsing around with Chen Daen. But now he obediently went to pick up books, and saw a stack of English assignments... damn... as expected of the learning committee member.


    They all threw away their English books after the college entrance exam. Who would still do test papers?


    Looking through the papers, there were some English proficiency test papers, some were for the College English Test Band 4, some were for Band 6, and many were filled to the brim...


    Oh my god, after finishing looking through... came another "oh my god!"


    Some students who had already arrived also helped pick up the papers.


    Chu Yu, who had come in last with a sick beauty''s pose, finally arrived after the other students.


    The students picking up books saw Japanese books and Japanese exercise papers...Full of notes and exercise contents...Like heavenly scriptures...Were they from the same school?


    Why did it feel like there were so many "oh my gods"?


    At this time, Chen Daen picked up a piece of paper that had floated under someone else''s desk. Seeing the contents on it, he was stunned.


    He read it over and over again several times.


    The other people had put the books back already. Seeing that Chen Daen was still holding something, Zhang Hu, who had been messing with him earlier, also craned his neck to see what it was.


    As a result, they saw the words "Donation Certificate" in big letters.


    It said that Su Xiaoqi had actually donated 20,000 RMB to a village below Luoxi Town, to build a school.


    Chu Yu, who looked sickly, was given a spot by the gentlemanly male students to look at it.


    Seeing what was in Chen Daen''s hand, her face became even paler...Was it easy for her to painstakingly make up those vague rumors? She had even come up with two seemingly plausible versions, because she knew that sometimes when talking about someone, don''t say just one thing, saying two versions of a rumor would subconsciously make people choose A or B, rather than feel like believing it or not believing it.


    But looking at this donation certificate, those two rumors seemed ridiculous.


    It turned out Su Xiaoqi had donated all of her Top 10 Singer prize money. And this certificate wasn''t made right away, obviously she had donated it previously, and hadn''t publicized it, even her roommate hadn''t mentioned it.


    Because at this time the exaggerated voice of her deskmate Chen Mi''er rang out, "Xiaoqi, you actually donated all the prize money, you didn''t even tell us."


    Wei Cheng and Gu Yunshu also looked at the donation certificate with complicated expressions.


    Wei Cheng felt admiration, more admiration, and still admiration.


    Gu Yunshu had never lacked money, but had also never thought about giving money to others.


    Xiaoqi hadn''t expected this certificate to cause such an incident after falling out. That day she had gone straight to class after coming back from the horse farm. She was planning on organizing it today and taking it back home.


    Now it was not easy to explain.


    She could only helplessly say, "I happened to have this money, heard they were building schoolhouses and donated it. Class is starting soon, let''s return to our seats."


    Everyone dispersed.


    "Class monitor, let me admire this again, I haven''t seen this before." Chen Daen took the certificate and ran back to his seat before Xiaoqi could refuse.


    Then the certificate was passed around and viewed by the male students behind.


    Li Weijin, who was always fashionably late and entered last through the back door, haughtily sat down in his seat. Then he saw the "donation certificate" in his deskmate''s hands.


    He was stunned for a moment.


    He had always thought she was very poor.


    In order to win prize money she had participated in swimming competitions, singing competitions, and worked hard. She had never used good brushes, especially knew how to appreciate food, and cherished it when eating. She had to make handicrafts herself to earn money. But she was actually able to donate money without care, she had really just donated the money...

 Chapter 209: Faking Illness

    Chapter 209


    The class bell rang.


    At the same time, Xiao Qi heard a familiar mechanical voice next to her ear: "The host has selflessly donated to build schoolhouses for poor mountain villages and contributed to bringing positive energy to classmates around, gaining 37 admirations from classmates. The host is rewarded with a Learning Progress Diamond Card. This card can only be used for one course. After studying long enough or reaching a certain level, it can be upgraded on its own."


    Hearing this voice, Xiao Qi was still a bit surprised.


    She didn''t expect to gain so much admiration from so many classmates just like this. She actually got a Learning Progress Diamond Card. The Diamond Card can be upgraded. Xiao Qi''s calligraphy was like this. Although she had always practiced hard, this card was really amazing. There was always room for improvement, spurring her to keep working hard.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi suddenly felt grateful for those two inexplicable rumors. If it wasn''t for the rumors as a foundation, even with this donation certificate, her classmates probably wouldn''t have reacted so strongly and given so much admiration. It was just right that there were those rumors. As a result, as soon as this certificate came out, it directly refuted the rumors and the contrast was stark, reversing opinions directly. This made the donation seem even more precious and admirable.


    Sometimes a blessing in disguise.


    But which course should she use this Diamond Card on?


    Xiao Qi thought back to her own courses. They all seemed quite important. Xiao Qi couldn''t decide for the moment and decided to think about it some more.


    This class was Introduction to Computers. The teacher''s surname was Wu. She was a young woman, very capable, with her hair in a ponytail, oval face, some pimples on her face making her look a little oily. She was probably a recent graduate. She wore pants and a shirt, trying to dress mature.


    Teacher Wu spoke quickly in class, and it was a bit dull, but she looked quite nice when she smiled.


    She seemed to have a very cheerful personality.


    Xiao Qi paid close attention because she really had no computer skills at all, a complete newbie.


    But halfway through class, the classroom suddenly erupted in noise. Xiao Qi looked back and saw Chu Yu''s face was pale white, breathing with difficulty, giving everyone a scare.


    Her deskmate Lin Dongqing raised her hand, so the teacher had to stop teaching.


    She walked over and asked, "Do you need to go to the hospital?"


    Chu Yu shook her head weakly, "It''s just my chronic illness acting up. I''ll be fine after going back to rest. I forgot to bring my medication."


    Young Teacher Wu looked frightened seeing her like this. She was very worried. Seeing her clutching her chest and breathing with such difficulty, it seemed like a heart problem. If it really was a heart issue, it was no small matter.


    She told her deskmate to take her to the infirmary.


    The class leader volunteered to go along.


    Chen Hanhe also wanted to stand up and say he''d go too, but didn''t have the courage, so he remained seated.


    And so three people left the classroom.


    The class leader Cai Yu was also confused. The school doctor had examined Chu Yu and said nothing was wrong. Just advised her not to overthink and drink more water... Then he and Lin Dongqing sent Chu Yu back to her dorm.


    What would make someone their age overthink that much? As a guy, Cai Yu didn''t understand at all. Seeing how pale Chu Yu''s face was, breathing with such difficulty, it had frightened even him as class leader.


    Chu Yu herself also said it was a chronic condition.


    So he could only send her back to the dorm and tell her to drink more water...


    People in the group chat asked, but Cai Yu didn''t know what to say. He still felt uneasy about it. Should he say the doctor just told her to drink more water...


    As class leader, Cai Yu felt he should be more responsible.


    So he turned around and went back to the infirmary.


    He wanted to ask clearly what exactly was going on, so he could properly answer the group chat.


    But before he went in, he heard the female doctor who had just examined Chu Yu chatting with someone else.


    She seemed to be talking about Chu Yu.


    "Just now a young girl came to see me with a ghastly pale face, breathing haltingly. It frightened even me as a doctor. I thought it was heart disease at first, but when I took her pulse, it was very healthy and her physical condition was well-nurtured. Her heartbeat sounded normal too. Yet the young lady still said weakly that it was a chronic condition, that she had taken medicine since she was little, pretending so realistically. Can you imagine, girls nowadays pretending to be sick to skip class but acting so convincingly they almost fooled me as a doctor. With that acting skill, it''d be a waste not to become an actress. Why even attend class? She could probably become a celebrity if she went into acting instead."


    At the door, class leader Cai Yu...


    He had originally wanted to go in and ask what illness it was, but now didn''t dare after overhearing this.


    He quietly left.


    He also didn''t know how to answer the questions in the group chat.


    As class leader he didn''t want to skip class, so he returned to the classroom.


    The teacher also came to ask how the female student was.


    Cai Yu vaguely said, "She should be fine. She said it was a chronic condition and went back to the dorm to rest."


    How could he repeat what the doctor said about just drinking more water...


    The doctor didn''t even prescribe any medication...


    As a sunny, upright boy, Class Leader Cai Yu realized for the first time that girls were such frightening creatures... He had been so nervous sending Chu Yu out earlier that he kept his phone in hand, ready to call 120 at any time.

 Chapter 210: Memory Buffs for 30 Days

    Chapter 210


    That night, Xiao Qi still went to the elective Japanese class and signed up for the course.


    She arrived early at Classroom 6 in Yong¡¯an Building.


    The classroom next door was still very lively, with the teacher adjusting the computer and playing the famous opera "Sha Family Beach" on the big screen projector while students gradually filtered in in large numbers.


    In contrast, Classroom 6 remained cold and empty, and Xiao Qi was actually the earliest to arrive.


    Since she planned to record audio today, she sat at the front-most desk in the middle of the classroom.


    Before class, she even went for a run around the building, probably because the incident of Chu Yu falling ill had frightened her dormmates, who joined Xiao Qi for the run.


    Xiao Qi knew running required persistence to keep up, but since her roommates wanted to run, she ran a few laps with them.


    Taking the roommates on a run was actually more tiring for her than running alone.


    They didn¡¯t take it seriously, especially Honey, who kept chatting while jogging, panting for air until Xiao Qi almost lost her breath from the effort of talking while running. Her face was still flushed red now.


    It was rare to see her looking slightly more lively than usual.


    Recalling the System¡¯s last evaluation, that Mr. Yamamoto was a teacher in hopeless despair...it had given Xiao Qi nightmares for a whole night. She wondered what she could do.


    But even for such a desperate person, just because one irrelevant student studied diligently, he gained positive energy and hope. Xiao Qi felt that he wasn¡¯t actually in hopeless despair, but had probably endured terrible experiences, so even a small piece of good news made him feel particularly hopeful.


    Having regained the language sense buff these last two days, Xiao Qi increased her English and Japanese study time, focusing especially on reading for at least an extra hour every day.


    With the language sense buff, learning Japanese flowed more smoothly.


    Mr. Yamamoto entered right on the chime of the bell, dressed as meticulously as ever: Xiao Qi noticed he was wearing the same wrinkled pants with white crease lines especially visible over the knees.


    His shirt was different from last time, a slightly oversized white button-down that didn¡¯t seem to fit well. It didn¡¯t look new either; Mr. Yamamoto just seemed too thin, as if he had previously worn more fitted sizes.


    Upon entering, Mr. Yamamoto greeting the students dutifully in Japanese with utmost formality, not bothering about how many were present. That was the etiquette he had to observe.


    This time Xiao Qi also stood up to return his greeting before sitting down, speaking very authentic conversational Japanese.


    She had been repeatedly practicing the past two days.


    Mr. Yamamoto was taken aback for a moment before resuming class without any extra expression.


    Xiao Qi felt her recall had improved tremendously even compared to high school days: back then she couldn''t be said to slack in studies, putting in daily effort, but always lagged in efficiency with fleeting attention.


    Such gradual enhancements arose from continuous, unrelenting practice.


    Additionally, Xiao Qi found that the most outwardly grim or unapproachable individuals often nursed the gentlest hearts inside, take Brother Lin Min for instance, or Mr. Yamamoto. She hadn''t actually done much for Mr. Yamamoto, not expending any effort on his behalf even. She merely studied diligently for her own sake. Yet somehow that alone managed to move Mr. Yamamoto, make him feel touched and hopeful. So much that the System granted rich rewards in response.


    Such reactions resonated deeply with Xiao Qi.


    She felt as if she''d grasped at something, some realization, yet it remained intangible.


    Missing Brother Lin Min all of a sudden, she messaged him on WeChat, asking how he was recently.


    At that time Lin Min had a roadside bookstall set up under some streetlamps. It was just after classes ended when student traffic peaked, so he didn¡¯t have time to read then, wholly focused on engaging passersby.


    Two girls sorted through and picked three books for 20 yuan total.


    He took out his phone for them to scan payment, but one girl piped up, ¡°Let me add you on WeChat instead. I¡¯ll hit you up directly next time I want books, and just transfer you the money.¡±


    Under the lamplight the schoolgirl smiled sweetly at Lin Min, the hems of her pink knee-length skirt fluttering slightly in the breeze.


    He shook his head. ¡°I''m always stationed here. Just tell me next time what books you need, and I''ll keep an eye out for them.¡±


    Lin Min stuck to scanning their payment code, not adding the student''s WeChat.


    The two girls walked off looking quite disappointed.


    Just then Lin Min noticed the new message on his phone.


    His pinned WeChat conversation with Xiao Qi popped up: Brother Lin Min, how have you been recently? I heard you started a small bookstall business. Must be tiring for you? I also found a part-time job on campus with my roommate at the horse club. It''s pretty nice.


    Lin Min¡¯s heart rate quickened slightly, as if seeing Xiao Qi standing right before him.


    He glanced around: everything else was same old.


    He replied to the message: Pretty good, not tired, take good care of yourself, saw that you got the first place in the top ten singers, haven''t congratulated you yet, next time when you have time come over to our school to hang out, I''ll treat you.


    Xiao Qi replied: OK, my roommates all want to go sightseeing at Qingmeng University, next time when I go I''ll call you to be our tour guide.


    After Xiao Qi put away her phone, the mechanical sound next to her ear immediately rang out: "The host took the initiative to care about the life of the blackening teenager, bringing positive energy to the moderately blackening youth, slowing down the speed of his blackening, rewarding the host with longer fingers +1."


    Xiao Qi: ......

 Chapter 211: The Harvest

    Chapter 211


    After returning to the dormitory, Xiao Qi continued to go downstairs to run.


    After completing 30,000 steps for today, she added another 2,000 steps.


    She has been consciously increasing her running distance recently, while also training her sprinting explosive power, trying to see if she can reserve her strength in the last one or two laps and utilize her sprinting explosive power.


    It was difficult at first, because after running tens of thousands of steps, her whole body was already in an extremely fatigued state. Although she didn''t feel like a dead dog wheezing anymore, it was still an extremely limited state. Sprinting again and becoming completely limp after sprinting, she hated not being able to lie right on the playground.


    If she had accelerated from the beginning, she could have run very fast, but she would have had no strength left afterwards, because long distance running relies heavily on breathing state. By utilizing sprinting explosive power from the start, it was like her body was overdrawn all at once, and she wouldn''t have been able to persist for long afterwards.


    So recently Xiao Qi has been learning to use this sprinting explosive power buff skill.


    After multiple running trials and learning trials, Xiao Qi could basically understand that skill buffs don''t appear out of thin air, but are already inherently present in her own body. Having the buff is the state of maximum arousal of her body''s potential, not endless exertion, so the most critical thing is still to improve her own body''s basic state.


    There was still half a month before the marathon competition began. Xiao Qi felt that this period of time should be enough to practice.


    After running, she rushed back to the dormitory and took a final shower before lights out.


    She even used Yunshu''s Dyson hair dryer to dry her hair.


    Not drying hair before bed makes it hard to dry and easy to catch a cold. Yunshu''s hair dryer was the most powerful, drying hair with just a quick blow.


    When lights out came, everyone turned on their emergency lights and lay back on their beds. Xiao Qi was more tired today and didn''t continue studying, lying down instead.


    But no one else in the dormitory was in a studying mood tonight either.


    Mi''er started gossiping, "That girl across actually went to evening self-study in class tonight. I heard her roommate even bought dinner for her." Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Gu Yunshu certainly did not lack pocket money. She had a supplementary card from her mother, a Baifuzhang Prestige black card from CMB, with a very high limit that she could basically swipe freely.


    The pocket money her dad''s secretary sent her every month was a lot too, but if she took out tens of thousands for a donation all at once, her parents would probably ask her all sorts of questions, worried what she could have spent it all on.


    Plus, she remembered her family participated in charitable foundations and such, but that was different from Xiao Qi''s unconditional donation, also involving corporate tax deductions and publicity. At this time she rather admired Xiao Qi for the simplicity and directness.


    Lying in bed, Wei Cheng sighed, "How nice!"


    Not sure what about, she didn''t have that much money herself and was definitely in the poorer class in Enhua. But she definitely would not want to accept other''s donations either. Still, she felt what Xiao Qi did was very commendable.


    In her heart, Mi''er felt her deskmate''s actions were a bit silly. There are too many scammers in this world nowadays, not enough honest fools. But she also felt this was the exact reason she had taken a liking at first sight to her deskmate.


    Although she thought it silly, having such a silly and simple friend by her side also gave her a sense of security.


    Xiao Qi herself actually felt somewhat uneasy. She had initially only wanted to complete the task, but was receiving so much praise, feeling that this society, group, and class, though not without its unpleasantness and rumors, is largely positive and upward-directed, liking kindness and detesting falsity.


    Xiao Qi became even more resolved inwardly: to study diligently, strive to improve herself, and truly become someone useful to society.


    The emergency lights in the dormitory were extinguished one by one, conversation tapered off and disappeared.


    The street lights still shone outside the window.


    The stars bright and clear.


    Occasionally the soft chirping of crickets.


    Xiao Qi''s breathing evened out as she entered dreamland, a faint smile still on her face - probably sweet dreams.

 Chapter 212: The Long Distance Running Society

    Chapter 212


    On September 20th, Friday, it was sunny.


    Today, there were half-day classes in the morning and no classes in the afternoon.


    Originally, last Friday, the Long Distance Running Club had planned an event, but it got postponed due to a clash with the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday and was rescheduled for this Friday.


    Although I haven''t officially joined yet, this Long Distance Running Club seems quite casual and lacks organizational skills.


    But since I''ve already signed up for the club, I''ve decided to at least give it a try on my first visit. If I don''t like it, I can quietly disappear in the future.


    The venue for the club''s welcome event was quite unusual, giving off a sense of poverty and freedom. It was located at the dance floor near the school gate by the river.


    When I arrived, I saw a red flag with "Long Distance Running Club" written on it, and a few scattered people around.


    There were mostly boys, and fewer girls.


    In terms of physique, they were either very tall and thin or quite overweight. The girls seemed to be on the heavier side, as if treating this club as a weight loss group.


    There were about twenty people in total, sparsely distributed.


    It didn''t feel great.


    When the group of people saw me, they were surprised. They didn''t expect such a beautiful junior sister to join this year.


    I was dressed in sportswear, running shoes, tight black sports pants, a slightly loose white sports t-shirt, and a duckbill cap. It wasn''t the one from the high school anniversary, but when my parents sent me on the train, my dad actually bought me a black Nike duckbill cap. In Su Youfu''s eyes, it should be quite expensive, costing over a hundred yuan for a hat. But thinking that the little girl might like these things, he saw his granddaughter wearing a similar hat when he went to help his eldest uncle in the city, so he gritted his teeth and bought one for me too. I don''t usually wear it, but I treasure it because it''s new and, after all, my dad gave it to me.


    I had a waist bag tied around my waist, containing a water bottle, a towel, and my phone. This was the running gear I prepared for myself.


    Now I''m 167 centimeters tall, with a very well-proportioned figure. Engaging in long-distance running has also kept my leg muscles healthy and symmetrical. Appearing in front of the members of this impoverished Long Distance Running Club in this sporty outfit gave off a dazzling impression.


    It seems that Enhua''s club is also proportional to their wealth and appearance.


    The better the conditions of the club, the more outstanding its members are.


    But for a club like the Long Distance Running Club, which can''t even secure a proper classroom for organizing activities, you can imagine.


    Initially, everyone was already surprised to see a junior sister, but after a while, an incredibly handsome guy arrived. He was truly handsome.


    That appearance wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say it could make him a popular idol on TV.


    Xiaoqi looked at Li Weijin with a cold gaze and thought to herself, "I don''t believe you!"


    But this freezing expression, could the system have misjudged? Where is the first sign of blossoming love? Clearly, he still had the appearance of someone who thought he was better than everyone else, as if everyone owed him money.


    "What a coincidence," Xiaoqi replied politely and distantly.


    She didn''t dare to get too close and kept a certain distance in her replies. There was no choice; Li Weijin was toxic. Last time she saw him at the equestrian field, nothing happened, but rumors suddenly spread.


    Although Xiaoqi didn''t care about those rumors, she also didn''t like having people gossiping about her every day.


    The members of the Long Distance Running Club initially thought that this junior student came because of the junior sister. However, seeing the coldness between the two, they couldn''t figure out what was going on.


    Fortunately, the club president arrived.


    The club president was a thin, dark-skinned guy who was dressed quite professionally. He wore a quick-drying T-shirt, track pants, and had slightly muscular calves. He had long-distance running shoes on, giving the impression that he ran regularly.


    He arrived at the scene and announced, "Today is the first welcome event of our Long Distance Running Club this semester. We are a very pragmatic club, and our destination today is to run all the way from here to Bagua Temple in the new district. We will gather on the lawn in front of the temple."


    At the mention of Bagua Temple, Xiaoqi immediately recalled that it was the temple she initially went to when she went to the driving school. During that visit to the driving school, she also ran into Chen Da''en and his fellow villagers who were going to the temple on the mountain. The driving school was halfway up the mountain while the temple was at the mountain top, so it wasn''t too far. However, the club president meant for everyone to run there.


    Running on flat ground was fine, but Xiaoqi estimated that running uphill would be a bit tiring.


    Upon hearing the president''s announcement, the group of people exclaimed with surprise.


    The president smiled and said, "The top three will receive special rewards, there will be surprises."


    The group of students didn''t want to run but were curious about the surprises, so they started running with a clamor.


    Fortunately, the school had a beautiful environment, and it wasn''t too hot running along the lake.


    Although it was called a Long Distance Running Club, everyone seemed to be experienced, running for a while and then walking for a while, talking and laughing. It felt more like a leisure activity.


    Xiaoqi was really there to train for running.


    Seeing the president taking the lead with professionalism, she also started running.


    On the other hand, Li Weijin''s collarbone was red and itchy again after just calming down a bit. When he saw Su Xiaoqi actually running, he could only follow and run ahead.


    But he still had confidence. After all, he was a boy and had been going to the gym during the vacation, so running was not a problem at all. He thought about what he should naturally do if Xiaoqi got tired and couldn''t run anymore, so as not to embarrass her...

 Chapter 213: The Princess Hug

    Chapter 213


    Xiaoqi started running but did not run very fast.


    She quite enjoyed the feeling of running in the scenic campus.


    The air was fresh, the blue sky and white clouds picturesque, and the sunshine warm - everything put her in a happy mood.


    Then she saw a familiar figure dash by swiftly beside her.


    Mainly it was his pants fluttering about, even reflecting the sunlight, and there was a gold chain around his neck too - it was not common to see such boys on campus.


    In a flash she just saw his back, actually Xiaoqi wanted to say, don''t run too fast, it''s still quite a distance from here to Bagua Temple, running so fast now would mean you can¡¯t run later.


    Li Weijin was also quite confused, he had meant to run up to classmate Su Xiaoqi''s side, to run alongside her.


    But he had accidentally run too fast instead, and ended up ahead of her.


    He was too embarrassed to look back.


    He could only continue running aloofly.


    And thinking that she was right behind him, he felt his spine tighten up, not daring to relax at all, and ran more earnestly than ever.


    In fact he was overthinking it. Xiaoqi was quite focused when running, and did not keep staring at Li Weijin the whole time.


    For running, Xiaoqi was already quite enjoying it, and she had just started running - to her this was just warming up.


    She felt that before she knew it, she had already arrived at the new district. Xiaoqi had also rested briefly in the middle, taking a small sip from her water bottle, before continuing her run.


    Whereas the Li Weijin in front, he had a great physique and exercised regularly, but long distance running was not something one could definitely do just because they had a good body and worked out.


    Just like her roommate Wei Cheng also had quite a fit body, and worked on the family farm, but could not run long distances. Wei Cheng did not have the habit, her breathing was not adjusted well, her physical state was also not adjusted well, she put force on uneven spots, she would still get very tired running.


    Li Weijin was slightly better, he had at least run on the treadmill before, so he would not look as unseemly, but for him to maintain a relatively fast pace the whole way was still very tiring, exceeding his usual workout.


    When he arrived at the new district, he also rested briefly. Pretending casually, he turned and looked back. And he discovered classmate Su Xiaoqi had steadily and breezily caught up, looking quite flushed, and cuter than usual.


    He took a deep breath. He could not stop. He definitely could not lose to a girl.


    Now in Li Weijin''s heart there was an extra competitive spirit, as he continued running.


    From the new district to the foot of Bagua Temple mountain, he actually already felt his legs trembling weakly. But it seemed there was no one ahead. Could he have come in first?


    To be far ahead in first place was also very remarkable. He had finally exceeded classmate Su in something. Li Weijin felt a little secret delight. Although extremely tired, he still persisted in running.


    Xiaoqi was not far behind. She maintained her strength.


    And so Xiaoqi saw classmate Li Weijin in front. Not sure if he had stepped on some slippery pebbles, but that attractive figure went thud...and fell down...


    Xiaoqi quickly removed her earpiece and sped up running forward.


    She saw the pitiful sight of Li Weijin kneeling on the ground. Where he was on the ground, there was a pile of crushed rocks. He supported himself with both hands. Both palms seemed to be bleeding from scraping the ground.


    And his beautiful fluttering pants were torn at the knees, revealing fair tender knees. It seemed to be badly grazed, not just skin breaking but also blood.


    But seeing his pained frown, Xiaoqi felt it should not be just graze pain. Could it be broken bone or fracture?


    "Are you okay? Which part hurts the most?"


    There were tears in Li Weijin''s eyes. What hurt the most in his heart was...


    Why did he have to be so embarrassed in front of Su Xiaoqi?


    But he still said aloofly: "My knees hurt a bit but my ankles feel more painful. Think I sprained them."


    In fact it really hurt a lot. It made him ignore the scrape wounds on his knees and palms.


    Xiaoqi did not expect this young master to be hurting so much that tears were about to fall. His eyes were wet and shiny, it made her heart thump wildly.


    Not daring to look more at his face, Xiaoqi pulled up his pant leg. Indeed that ankle seemed to be swollen already, at a slightly different angle.


    Li Weijin really hurt a lot, but looking at Su Xiaoqi''s fair, slender fingers - her fingernails were not styled, just naturally soft pink fingernails - feeling those icy cool fingers on his feet, his clavicle burned and tingled again.


    Now he did not know whether it was his foot or somewhere else that hurt more.


    His entire being felt a little dizzy.


    "There should be people in the temple in front. Let me bring you there first to see if they can help treat simply." Xiaoqi looked at the distance. Bagua Temple was near. It was still better to head there first rather than being midway on the road just in case a vehicle came by or something.


    "Mm." Li Weijin agreed. Wanting to stand, he realized one ankle was swollen and simply could not bear weight. And the other knee was also fiery pain.


    He almost fell again.


    Xiaoqi said, "Don''t move around. Let me help you."


    She definitely did not want the young master before her eyes to be hurt again. Although she never formally learned first aid or such, having stayed in the hospital basement with her aunt for four years, she had seen quite a bit. And thinking how one fall made him look like crying already, she bent down and carried Li Weijin up, then walked forward.


    Li Weijin: ...This is bad... He had actually been princess carried. He was princess carried by the girl he liked... It should not be this way...


    His face still did not blush, his heartbeat still did not quicken, but his collarbone burned and tingled, even his breathing felt a little difficult.


    Then he could somehow still hear the sound of Su Xiaoqi''s earphones hanging on her collar - it was Japanese... Li Weijin had never learned Japanese, but he had seen Japanese videos... his friends had dragged him to watch them... he instantly blushed all over, feeling hot and tingly, both itchy and uncomfortable, with his eyes watering as well.

 Chapter 214: The Superfluous

    Chapter 214


    Xiaoqi lowered her head to take a look.


    The 18-year-old boy had a cold expression on his face, but there were tears in his eyes...


    Damn, she couldn''t watch other people cry at all.


    Seeing others cry made her want to cry too.


    She could only open her mouth to coax: "Not far, we''ll be there soon."


    Li Weijin still felt ashamed to death even after being put down.


    It was completely different from what he had imagined... Princess hug but it was him being carried by Su Xiaoqi... Why did it turn out like this?


    The tears in his eyes were not from pain, but from shame.


    Alright, half of it was also pain, but most of it was shame.


    If his little buddies knew about this... No, he would not tell anyone.


    He was taken to a pavilion in front of the Gossip Temple. Xiaoqi let him sit here while she went to find someone.


    Li Weijin was about to call out: This temple was so remote, it might be dangerous, so it¡¯s better to wait for the others.


    But then he thought of how classmate Su Xiaoqi easily picked him up... picked him up... So he shut his mouth again.


    Xiaoqi took a turn around the temple but didn''t find anyone. There was a locked room behind it. She saw flower pots and water buckets and other things in the corner. There were clothes and an old towel drying in the sunshine at the door. It should be where the temple keeper lived, but the person wasn''t there at the moment.


    This was not a big temple. There was only one main hall with three Bodhisattva statues in it.


    The one in the middle was the biggest and shone brightly. Xiaoqi didn''t know much about Buddhism. She just felt the Buddha statues were quite bare and had very kind expressions.


    The other two small Buddhas on both sides also smiled very kindly.


    But behind each Buddha statue stood two very fierce looking little ghosts.


    She didn''t go in. Usually when entering a temple, people would burn incense and worship the Buddha. So she just took a turn at the door of the hall and went back out.


    When she came out, she saw the President of the Running Club together with Li Weijin in the pavilion.


    She lowered her head while doing it because the brim of her cap would block the light if she left it on. So she took off her cap.


    Li Weijin was leaning against a horizontal bench in the pavilion, relying on a pillar, while Xiaoqi sat in front of him with lowered head. She held one of his hands, spread open his palm, and gently brushed over his wounds with cotton swabs in the other hand.


    Each contact with the wound stung like a burn, but his heart felt itchy.


    He didn''t dare look at Su Xiaoqi. He even felt her warm breath on his palm.


    His palm was especially sensitive due to the pain.


    He turned his head to look at the surrounding scenery. Next to them was a small stage. Behind that was a lawn and then a temple.


    Although he already finished his freshman year in prep school so was quite familiar with this place and had been here several times, it was the first time he found this place so beautiful.


    The grass was so lush and green. The small stage was so antique and quaint. The temple was also so nice and intimate. Even the old pavilion felt warm and endearing.


    A breeze blew by, gently lifting Xiaoqi¡¯s short hair. A wisp of hair grazed Li Weijin''s neck. He only felt his clavicles heat up again but this time hot like a scald. He couldn''t help but let out a soft moan.


    Xiaoqi thought she had hurt him so lifted her head and apologized, "Bear with it a little longer. It''ll be good soon. This piece of gravel is embedded quite deep."


    The result was that when she lifted her head, she saw his eyes wet... was he about to cry again?


    She was truly a little speechless.


    In fact, her father made bamboo weavings. In the winter his hands would sometimes crack open. The wounds were far more serious than Li Weijin''s hand injuries, directly splitting open wide. They looked quite hideous. But with such a little abrasion, this boy was already in so much pain. People really lived different lives and had different fates.


    "If it really hurts so much, close your eyes and don''t look. It''ll be over soon," said Xiaoqi. She had just cleared the last bit of gravel from this palm and also gently blew on it, breathing air onto the wound. This is how her mother, Sheng Juanhua, treated her injuries when she was little.


    This time Li Weijin directly felt the warmth on his palm.


    Then his hand was released, suddenly feeling empty.


    But his other hand was gently lifted up, so his heart settled again quickly.


    It had to be fair for both hands.


    When treating the other hand Xiaoqi became quite skillful.


    The club president on the side suddenly felt rather superfluous seeing the boy leaning against the pillar with a straight posture, while the petite girl sat before him, grabbing his hand and carefully treating the wounds. He coughed and said, "I''ll go see why the others haven''t arrived yet."

 Chapter 215: The Car With Wings and a B

    Chapter 215


    After walking for a while, Lu Chao, the president of the long distance running club, finally breathed a sigh of relief.


    He just felt kind of uncomfortable earlier.


    Now he understood why he felt that way - he must have been a huge lightbulb, glowing extremely brightly.


    The members of his club were too sly, all old hats. They must have chatted all the way while walking over instead of actually running. But then again, he had also sat on a tractor with some fellow villagers to get here first...


    Luckily, he was smart.


    The Gossip Temple was on the outskirts of Enhua University, surrounded by villages. The most common vehicles around were tractors, used to transport hay, fertilizer for farming, etc. The local villagers were quite nice - they were willing to stop and give you a ride as long as you called out to them.


    As he was thinking, he suddenly saw a shiny black car driving up the hill towards him. The front had a large grille, with huge air vents. Lu Chao didn''t know much about cars. He was just a poor loser.


    But even standing here and seeing the car slowly approaching, he still felt a little shocked.


    He had heard that the bigger the air vents on a car, the more expensive it was.


    As the car drew nearer, he could see two small wings in the middle, with a letter B between them. The wings looked like the winged pads used in feminine hygiene product commercials. He didn''t recognize this model of car either. What brand was it again?


    He was just thinking of taking out his phone to take a picture - a car like this must be a nice one. His roommate Ye Shuli knew a lot about cars. He could send the photo to him to take a look.


    But then the car actually stopped right in front of him!


    A middle-aged man wearing traditional Chinese attire stuck his head out. He looked very refined and scholarly.


    "Young man, have you seen an injured teenage boy?"


    Lu Chao was just about to shake his head - he hadn''t seen any injured teenage boys, though there was one who got force-fed dog food. But then he thought - wait a minute... Could that guy who took a tumble be the injured teenage boy this man was talking about? He nodded.


    "He''s one of our club members. I''m the president of the long distance running club. We organized an activity today and accidentally he took a bad fall."


    And so a bewildered Lu Chao was asked to get in the car.


    Sitting inside, his bottom sank into the seat and he felt even more dizzy.


    He didn''t even dare set his slightly dirty shoes down firmly on the soft, fluffy white carpet below.


    When he was outside, the car had seemed to be slowly crawling up the hill. But once he was inside, with a swoosh, the car was already at the pavilion - it moved as fast as flying!


    When they arrived in front of the pavilion, he pointed at the two people there and said, "That''s him over there, the injured one. Is that the person you''re looking for?"


    He wanted to get out of the car quickly, but the middle-aged man stopped him.


    "Young man, please wait a moment." Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    The man spoke very politely even though he had just come to pick someone up. He didn''t seem to be in a hurry to get out of the car at all.


    Lu Chao didn''t know why, but he felt a little constrained. Anyway, he just answered whatever the other party asked. He didn''t know the girl over there well anyway... He had only just met her today...


    "She runs very fast. A good long distance running talent," was all he could say.


    Little did she know, Li Weijin was so nervous he was sweating buckets from just having her close to him. He looked even frailer than before.


    Only then did Xiao Qi remember they could call a car over. But would they be able to get one all the way out here in the boondocks?


    Just then, she saw the club president jump down from a car.


    Xiao Qi took one look... Damn... She had gone to buy a car before, though it was in a muddle-headed state. She only realized later when picking up the car that there were still payments to be made. But it was true that you get what you pay for, and the car before her now was truly gorgeous!


    There was a little winged emblem in the middle that she didn''t recognize though.


    Still, wasn''t the president a little too awesome? She had just seen him leave and wondered where he went off to, but instead he managed to bring over a luxury car?


    Then when a middle-aged man in traditional garb emerged from the vehicle and bent down deferentially to address Li Weijin as "Young Master", Xiao Qi instantly snapped back to reality.


    She had forgotten about Li Weijin''s legendary family background.


    To actually witness someone calling a "Young Master" in real life... Xiao Qi felt she had broadened her horizons indeed.


    Seeing Li Weijin''s family member had arrived, she reckoned her assistance was no longer required so she moved aside to keep some distance.


    Uncle Rong had assumed it was the teenage boy who had helped his young master hobble over here and asked for the young man''s further assistance.


    But the boy had rough crude movements...


    So when it turned out the frail-looking young master had actually been carried here by that petite girl instead, Lu Chao was also resentful - his actions had been perfectly normal!


    Who could have imagined this strapping teen male had been transported here by that little girl instead?


    After sending Li Weijin into the car, Xiao Qi did not get in as well. A sprained ankle was just a minor injury and now that his family had arrived, she, being just an unrelated ordinary classmate, was certainly unneeded. Lu Chao also could not ride along as he was after all the president of the long distance running club.


    Uncle Rong thanked the young lady and then the boy before driving off in the car.


    In fact, internally he felt slightly puzzled. Usually for those young ladies, if given such an opportunity, they would surely have chased along.


    Yet this girl had simply stepped aside once she noticed his appearance, not revealing any hint of wanting to come closer.


    Judging by the young master''s expression, it was just as well he had been quick-witted earlier and not immediately exited the vehicle, otherwise the young master''s countenance would have likely been even colder.


    Watching as the car departed, Lu Chao suddenly smacked himself on the head as he''d forgotten to snap a photo of the vehicle! He still didn''t know what kind of car that was!


    Then a few club members finally arrived late.


    "President! We saw a Bentley driving down the hill just now as we were coming up the mountain. It was such a gorgeous Bentley! We just caught sight of it leaving along the mountain road. So, so beautiful!"


    When Lu Chao heard it was a Bentley, he felt even more remorseful and regretful. He had just sat in a Bentley but didn''t take any photos to commemorate the occasion!


    Xiao Qi looked at her interface, seeing she had over 500,000 yuan now. She searched Baidu to see Bentley''s prices, not understanding which model type it was, and just found a similar one that cost over 8 million yuan...


    She instantly became well-behaved.


    My child, just keep working hard.

 Chapter 216: Shortsightedness

    Chapter 216


    The first three to eight Bagua Temple had prizes, it was impressive that the president still remembered.


    Xiao Qi got two towels.


    The corner still printed with "Enhua University Long Distance Running Club".


    However, the towel looked like it had been there for a long time, the towel itself was new, but the plastic bag packaging was dusty.


    It felt like the Running Club should have been glorious once, at least able to customize gifts with their club name.


    The top three got one towel each, Li Weijin took one, and asked Xiao Qi to help bring it.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    The president waited for a long time, all members had not arrived, and two others called to say they were invited by friends to go eat hotpot in the New District...


    So the Running Club''s recruitment event this semester, three people were absent, one was on sick leave, and two were on hotpot leave.


    President Lu Chao was very good-tempered, said a few perfunctory words, then let everyone move freely, and then go back to school to report to him.


    While waiting for people to arrive, Xiao Qi strolled around nearby, she had just passed the temple, and walked up to the lawn above, unexpectedly there was a different world on the lawn, there was an artificial pond, with lotus flowers planted in the pond, and a rockery on top of the pond, like a waterfall.


    At the very top was a corridor, sitting in the corridor the wind was strong, but you could see the whole view of Enhua University New District.


    Very tidy.


    Looking closely, you could actually see that the school buildings and student streets, student apartments of the New District, all the building complexes together, really seemed to form a Bagua pattern.


    It was said that people in Meng City were very superstitious about feng shui masters and such, Xiao Qi thought it was just a rumor, she didn''t expect her own campus to be like a Bagua array, she wondered how the Old District was like.


    President Lu Chao came over to greet her.


    Xiao Qi called out, "President!"


    Lu Chao waved his hands again and again: "Just call me Lu Chao, or call me senior brother."


    When Xiao Qi joined the Running Club, she deliberately looked at the president''s profile, he had participated in the marathon, so she wanted to ask related questions.


    As soon as Lu Chao heard marathon, he shook his head again and again: "I actually just went to join the crowd, didn''t even run halfway, but the previous president really ran the whole marathon, and got a ranking of over 100, a good result, but this year he is a senior, and has contacted a company to do an internship, not in school anymore, otherwise I could ask him for you."


    Over 100 was considered a good result, it felt like the marathon was more difficult than she thought.


    Seeing the young junior frowning, Lu Chao hurriedly encouraged: "Junior sister wants to participate in the marathon competition, that''s great, so at least our club has one participant, achieving a breakthrough from 0 to 1. The top hundred should have commemorative medals, and there seems to be marathon exclusive bath towels and water bottles given out as well."


    Thinking that this young junior sister looked pretty good too, later taking photos could be used as publicity for their Running Club.


    Thinking this, Lu Chao looked at the young junior sister even more eagerly...


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She somehow felt that the club she had joined was unreliable.


    Xiao Qi also bought a few big green mangoes, very cheap, more than half price compared to in school, tasted one and it was very sweet, no fibers, a bit sour, texture was also very good, she planned to bring some back to the dorm, one per person.


    Jin Zaiyan felt the salted duck eggs were delicious, and bought twenty in one go.


    In short after wandering this one street, they had filled up the big box on the little motorcycle, also not sure exactly what they bought.


    Loaded up, it was almost dusk too, the two also went to eat local noodles and congee by the market.


    Only then did Xiao Qi discover that noodles and congee outside school had more variety, you could even add things like pork liver and fried dough sticks, basically anything you wanted.


    Xiao Qi chose a bunch of ingredients, and selected quite a few spicy ones for Jin Zaiyan too.


    After eating, both were sweaty indeed, there must have been a lot of pepper in the noodles and congee.


    Jin Zaiyan didn''t know much Chinese, it was rare for her to come out and have such unrestrained fun, she exclaimed it was awesome.


    Eating their fill, the two had to prepare to go back to school.


    Because of the little motorcycle, Xiao Qi didn''t go line up at the bus station either, she just rode back to school with Jin Zaiyan on her little motorcycle.


    The whole way back was sunny, with a cool breeze, it was quite comfortable, just the distance was still somewhat far.


    Jin Zaiyan was a foreign teacher, she could ride her electric motorcycle into campus.


    At this time it was dusk when there were many people, some who had stayed in their rooms all day also came out to eat, those who had wandered all day also came back to shower, to continue wandering at night.


    Having agreed to make kimchi at her apartment tomorrow, Jin Zaiyan sent Xiao Qi to her dorm entrance.


    The two were under the pineapple guava tree at the female dorm entrance, Jin Zaiyan in her denim jumpsuit, very cool, smiling especially brightly.


    Just a bit skinny, gave the feeling a gust of wind could blow her over.


    The two communicated in English, with Jin Zaiyan interjecting the occasional Korean.


    Xiao Qi took her big green mangoes, as well as some other food, said goodbye to Jin Zaiyan.


    Because they were taken out of the box behind Jin Zaiyan''s electric motorcycle, it looked like they were given by Jin Zaiyan.


    At this moment, Wu Xinyue from the English Major had just finished taking a shower and dressing up in new, pretty dress. She came out from the dormitory area.


    She did not expect to see this scene. Su Xiaoqi, she was quite familiar with her. After all, they had participated in the Top Ten Singers together. Su Xiaoqi was the one who lost, but Wu Xinyue did not expect to see Su Xiaoqi being so intimate with a young boy. She glanced over and shook her head then walked away. Although she was dating Li Taiping and some other boys, she would not behave too intimately in public because she did not want to confirm the relationship so early.


    In fact, the boys she was dating now were not who she considered her ideal match. She did not want to make a decision so soon.


    She did not expect Su Xiaoqi to be so rash. Originally, she still admired Su Xiaoqi, but when she thought about how Su Xiaoqi had to work part-time at the racetrack, she probably came from a poorer family background. People from disadvantaged backgrounds can easily have their eyes blinded by small benefits and be fooled.


    Moreover, she saw that the boy had given Su Xiaoqi a bag of mangoes and some snacks.


    Wu Xinyue looked down on this even more. Mangoes and snacks were worth little money. Su Xiaoqi really had short-sighted goals.


    She walked past Su Xiaoqi with her head held high, without greeting her.

 Chapter 217: Making Kimchi

    Chapter 217


    Su Xiaoqi''s roommates each got a large green mangosteen.


    Xiaoqi had eaten this kind of mangosteen many times before, her family would buy them often.


    Wei Cheng had never eaten one before. She thought they smelled very fragrant and was reluctant to eat it, placing it on her bedside table instead.


    Mi''er had eaten lots of mangoes before, but not this kind. They were still quite hard. She thought they needed to soften first before one could eat them. These mangosteens were very big, over a pound each.


    Upon hearing they could be eaten directly, Mi''er, who could never make it through the night without a late-night snack, was the first to cut into the large mangosteen.


    Since Yunshu liked to eat fruit in the dorm, they had a full assortment of fruit peeling and slicing tools.


    Mi''er sliced up a large bowl full from just one mangosteen.


    The dormmates sat together and ate, chatting about their days over the fruit.


    Xiao Qi just took Subject One of an exam today, and talked about her impressions of wandering through the Meng City marketplace. There was so much stuff there, she said they should all go together next time.


    Wei Cheng spent the morning in the dorm studying. In the afternoon she went to the Film Society and they screened an old foreign classic film called "Big Fish". She also worked a part-time job there, very simple, just tidying up the screening room after the movie ended. The students were all very considerate, rarely leaving garbage behind, so she just had to sweep up a bit. Fifty yuan for one screening.


    Mi''er''s External Liaison Society had an event today that kept her running around all day, including a trip to Meng City. She got to witness the legendary corporate sponsorship hunting - with her wit, she was kept by the upperclassman''s side the whole time. Xiaoqi was amazed to see how the upperclassman secured 8,000 RMB in sponsorship just by having a few banners up for their school event. It opened Mi''er''s eyes to a whole new world.


    Yunshu also spent the morning in the dorm studying. In the afternoon she went to the Tea Art Society and was now browsing Taobao on her phone, preparing to buy a tea set.


    Xiaoqi glanced at the price of that tea set...starting at four digits...and silently looked away.


    Yunshu''s hobbies were a bit pricey.


    Since the weather had cooled slightly, Xiaoqi had been thinking of going to Meng City to get some warmer clothes, but today had been too rushed - after finishing at the vegetable market it was already quite late, and the electric scooter wasn''t suitable for the winding mountain roads at night either, so she headed back early.


    The next day, Xiaoqi wore the somewhat ugly blue uniform pants from high school that all her former classmates unanimously agreed were hideous.


    The New District was right on the bay, so the winds were stronger and it felt cooler than the old district.


    The blue uniform, both jacket and pants, had two white stripes down the sleeves and pant legs. When selecting uniforms, Xiaoqi had deliberately chosen a size up, worried they''d look too short when she wore them. She''d directly selected size L back then, since it was the same winter uniform, and she could layer sweaters underneath.


    She''d maintained them well - just a bit of pilling at the cuffs, which her mom carefully trimmed off each time she was home. They were washed very clean, the white still white, the blue only slightly faded.


    Xiaoqi''s current proportions were quite decent, and her spirits were good too, so even in this rather tacky uniform she didn''t look bad per se.


    Of course it didn''t make her look stunning either - the uniform was quite loose, giving her a bit of a hip hop vibe. Her hair was simply tied back in a little ponytail, the most convenient style. She wasn''t patient enough to grow out long hair; when short, it would easily fall into her eyes, so she''d always preferred this very casual look.


    The high school uniforms weren''t differentiated by gender, the only difference in the stripes - narrower for boys, wider for girls.


    Xiaoqi had figured there would be work involved in making kimchi and whatnot, so no need to wear anything too nice that she''d feel bad about dirtying.


    The yard was nicely maintained, with a sun umbrella and table with two chairs underneath. The table was decorated with a simple tea set.


    Seeing the furnishings inside the apartment like the tablecloth and such, all delicate patterns, and her clothes neatly folded...contrary to Jin''s tomboyish exterior, inside the home was fully girly-girl, even sweetly scented from perfume. The yard plantings were also neatly tended.


    The yard would be a nice spot to work, with the gentle breezes and sunny brightness. Jin had earnestly asked her family how to make kimchi, even taking notes on the method, but she was helpless in the kitchen - even with the theory she had no idea how to actually make it happen. Xiaoqi was just the opposite.


    She herself was quite interested in cooking. Following Jin Zaiyan''s method, she started cooking, rolling up both sleeves and first washing the cabbage, since there was a sink in the yard.


    Jin Zaiyan assisted, following along as Xia Qi cooked.


    After a while, Grace also came over, because Jin Zaiyan had taken a photo of Xia Qi making spicy cabbage kimchi and sent it to their party chat group.


    Grace had not expected Su to actually be able to make Korean food. Carrying a dessert she had made at home yesterday, she came downstairs.


    She had learned it from TikTok, but it was not very successful. It was originally meant to be a large bread loaf, but when she made it, it turned out like a pancake, hard as a brick, but the taste was still ok, sweet, really sweet, cloying.


    Grace also pitched in to help.


    They were all following Xia Qi''s movements to learn. Xia Qi actually did not have any special tricks, her hands just moved smoothly by feel, and she had a good sense of how much salt and seasoning to use.


    Grace took out her video camera again, planning to learn it herself later when she went back.


    Korean kimchi pickles are very famous in their country, because it is said to be a dish Koreans eat every day, which is quite incredible.


    After working on it for a morning, they initially made something in the proper shape and put it in jars to ferment for 10-15 days before it could be eaten.


    In addition to the kimchi, Xia Qi also pickled some radishes and bamboo shoots, making both sweet and spicy versions.


    Pickled bamboo shoots are unique to Jingnan Province, since there is plenty of bamboo here that sprouts shoots.


    Upon learning that this stuff grows into food that pandas love to eat, Grace and Jin Zaiyan were quite curious.


    They may not know much else, but they both knew about pandas. Xia Qi felt that domestically raising pandas had been very successful in China¡ªthe cultural export was quite powerful, if nothing else.


    While Xia Qi was making kimchi pickles over here, Wu Xinyue and Li Taiping had made it to the Bagua Temple over there.


    Li Taiping circled around the Bagua Temple as if he were a headless fly. Seeing his pimply face, Wu Xinyue felt a little impatient. They had gotten up early and it was still making her feel somewhat sleepy, but thinking of his well-off family background, she endured and kept him company.


    She heard Li Taiping say, "What''s so special about this place that the young master actually said it was beautiful?"


    Wu Xinyue had already integrated herself into their circle for a period of time and knew who Li Taiping was referring to as the "young master", so she was also rather curious. She circled around a few more times herself but truly did not see anything special about this place.


    She then heard Li Taiping continue, "It seems like the young master has taken a liking to a girl. He''s finally opened his eyes."


    Wu Xinyue''s heart started thumping rapidly, while her expression remained as calm as ever. Her inner emotions surged as she casually asked, "Oh? Who is she?"

 Chapter 218: Work

    Chapter 218


    Li Taiping was a gossipy person who fawned over Wu Xinyue, but when it came to anything regarding the young master, he did not blurt it out recklessly like a hotheaded youth.


    In fact, he did not actually know, since the young master did not say.


    "It should be someone from his class," Li Taiping randomly guessed, then changed the topic to skirt around it.


    This left Wu Xinyue feeling itchy inside, though she was not self-important enough to think it was her. After all, she had barely exchanged a few sentences with Li Weijin, not even adding each other''s WeChat contacts. When they first chatted, Su Li had outright rejected her.


    Wu Xinyue greatly disliked Su Li, but knew she was part of that circle and very popular, so she could only swallow her anger and pretend to be innocent and oblivious.


    However, Wu Xinyue was a girl and could tell with one glance that Su Li liked Li Weijin.


    The one Li Weijin liked definitely wasn''t Su Li. If it was, Li Taiping would not be so equivocal about it.


    Wu Xinyue suddenly felt a tinge of schadenfreude.


    Someone from his class?


    As Wu Xinyue thought of one person, her expression darkened again.


    On Xiao Qi''s side, making kimchi and pickles had unknowingly taken up the entire morning. In between, she had learned some Korean with Jin Zaiyan, while Grace had joined in the fun too. However, she felt Chinese and Korean were truly too difficult.


    Jin Zaiyan felt Xiao Qi had a great sense for languages and taught her patiently. Encountering a good student gave her a wonderful feeling. With three people communicating in three languages, it was a real mix and match.


    Grace liked taking photos. She took pictures of the three of them together as well as videos of them making kimchi, their hands all red from it. The sunshine was great and everyone wore smiles, making them look very nice.


    At lunch, Xiao Qi cooked bibimbap in a stone pot, kimchi soup provided by Jin Zaiyan, and pickled napa cabbage with the remaining cabbage. Seeing some beef tenderloin in the fridge, Xiao Qi also stir-fried spicy beef.


    Jin Zaiyan and Grace ate with great delight.


    Grace was not accustomed to eating rice, but felt the stone pot bibimbap was very good. She thought it was similar to Italian pasta, mixed with sauce and a raw egg cracked over it, which was quite amazing.


    If it was plain white rice without any flavor, she would not understand how it could be eaten.


    Jin Zaiyan happily ate food that suited her taste.


    In fact, she had tried making the same dishes herself before, but somehow they always turned out too salty or too bland. Even store-bought powder to make kimchi soup gave her problems when she added hot water.


    Not to mention pickling napa cabbage or stir-frying beef.


    She had only bought the beef tenderloin on a whim after seeing inexpensive beef at the market, which would have cost at least five times more in Korea. But she did not know how to cook it herself.


    After her own failed attempt at cooking left the meat inedibly tough, she had wondered if it was a problem with the beef.


    Yet today, the beef Xiao Qi cooked was tender and smooth, easy to bite into, and full of juice...


    Grace posted Xiao Qi''s lunch and their meal to the group chat. The foreigners in the chat called out in regret for missing the chance to join in the fun. Even Camille and the others lamented at missing Xiao Qi''s home cooking.


    After lunch, Jin Zaiyan voluntarily cleaned up the bowls and chopsticks.


    Grace went back to rest after the meal.


    Hanging on the wall near the entrance was a painting that turned out to be of Ji Gu as a foal. It was vividly lifelike and Xiao Qi felt it must have been commissioned from a famous painter.


    The look in Ji Gu''s eyes seemed to leap out from the painting.


    Seeing Su Xiaohui enter, Xiao Shengzhou''s first reaction was mild astonishment because she was dressed in a school uniform.


    School uniforms for middle and high schools were mostly standardized in Meng City. Students headed to or from school in uniform could also be seen on the streets.


    Although Xiao Shengzhou was generally disinterested in matters between men and women, he was an extremely perceptive and observant person with high emotional intelligence.


    Seeing Su Xiaohui in her school uniform, which had clearly seen some wear with frayed sleeves, he watched as she rolled up her sleeves, exposing fair, slender arms and hands that were not at all unattractive and exuded innocence and liveliness. Compared to him, she seemed to be from a younger generation.


    And she was indeed much younger, only in her freshman year while he was already a college senior.


    At this moment as she gazed at the painting, seemingly an art connoisseur appreciating the work of another master, he gazed at her.


    For reasons unknown, standing before the painting in such a commonplace school uniform, she had a certain grace and poise.


    "When I first saw Ji Gu as a foal, I immediately fell in love with it and was determined to buy it no matter the cost. That year I spent all my pocket money on it. I even specially commissioned an artist to paint this so I could always remember what it looked like then. Ji Gu was a racehorse that unfortunately never saw the racetrack again after I acquired it. That''s rather regrettable."


    Xiao Qi nodded. She could feel the Ji Gu in the painting brimmed with more vitality compared to its current somewhat listless mood.


    "Very few people can simply do whatever they wish." Such freedom rarely truly existed. Everyone had to strive for what they wanted. Some obtained their desires through their efforts, while others did not, leading more people to eventually give up after trying.


    Those who gave up may regret it their whole lives, or they may forget their initial aims and simply live out their days.


    Xiao Qi felt that she was like the young drummer in the painting at this moment, full of vitality. She did not know what her future would be like, but she did not want to give up. She would persevere.


    "President Xiao, what do I need to do?"


    Xiao Shengzhou liked proactive people, but when he asked this little girl to be an equestrian that day, there was actually an impulsive element. He was rarely so impulsive. Being impulsive was not good. It was always because of impulsiveness for a moment, and then having to do a lot to make up for it.


    The little girl rode horses well, but becoming a professional jockey still required many conditions. She needed to get an equestrian qualification certificate and know a lot of rules. There were also many types of equestrianism, including obstacles, dressage, barrel racing...Equestrianism was the most popular sport for the British nobility, and it was also an Olympic event.


    It was also very difficult to make money by horse racing. Horses were very pedigree-oriented. Among all his horses, Ji Gu had the best pedigree, but a horse could mate over 100 times in a year. This meant that there were many horses with similar or even better pedigree on the market. Some horses already had excellent competition records, but he had basically wasted Ji Gu.


    His initial purpose of building this stud farm was just for fun.


    However, when he suddenly said he wanted the little girl to become an equestrian, things suddenly became complicated. But Xiao Shengzhou did not want to take back what he said.


    He could only think of a better solution to remedy this.


    "You just need to develop rapport with the horses here, choose your favorite one, try to understand it, while training your own riding skills. I found a good equestrian coach. He will come next week and you can learn from him first."


    Xiao Qi nodded. Although this was different from what was said at the beginning, this was more appropriate. She had no prior experience and could only ride horses. She knew nothing about the rules and could not directly participate in competitions. Not only was she not upset that this was a bait and switch, but she actually felt that this was normal. Moreover, there would be a special coach to teach her. Xiao Qi felt that she had taken a big advantage.


    "I will take good care of the horses. Since I came here to learn, President Xiao does not need to pay me extra. I feel very good to be able to stay here and eat." Xiao Qi said generously.


    Seeing that the little girl was not angry or aggrieved, but accepted it so generously, and even took the initiative to say that she did not want money, Xiao Shengzhou looked at her even more highly. When he suddenly talked about her becoming an equestrian to participate in competitions earlier, it was indeed reckless. The current arrangement was actually more prudent. Xiao Shengzhou had made many prudent arrangements before. Becoming the student union president was not something that happened overnight, but many students might not appreciate it. However, the little girl was very calm about it.


    He was so calm that Xiao Shengzhou did not even know what to say, he coughed and said, "Then go busy yourself."

 Chapter 219: The Rules

    Chapter 219


    Xiao Qi''s attitude was very positive, and she was not affected by the Chairman''s words at all, and did not feel wronged or anything.


    On the contrary, she felt that the Chairman was really good, she was not very smart, but she could still feel other people''s kindness.


    She conscientiously bathed the two horses that needed a bath today, and then rode a few laps on the horse by herself.


    She did not choose a horse first, but decided to get to know them all.


    There were a total of 8 horses in the horse farm, 6 adults and 1 foal, Little Coral, and 1 small pony with very soft hair like a little lion, it was really short, it felt as tall as Xiao Bao''er, probably bought by the Chairman for Xiao Bao''er to play with.


    The horses were expensive, several hundred thousand, tens of thousands, and the cheapest was tens of thousands.


    After taking care of the horses, she was also satisfied riding, both physically and mentally relaxed, then went to take a bath and eat.


    After finishing, unexpectedly the Chairman still gave her 500 yuan.


    Xiao Qi thought about it and still took the money.


    The Chairman probably didn''t want to fuss over such a small amount, and she didn''t either.


    The weekend passed very quickly.


    Before she knew it, it was Monday again.


    Xiao Qi got up at 5:30 in the morning, washed up briefly, then practiced calligraphy.


    Compared to weekends, Xiao Qi still preferred the regular Monday to Friday, feeling that time was arranged better.


    On weekends there were always a lot of things that could not be learned regularly.


    Every day without practicing calligraphy on time, Xiao Qi felt uneasy. She liked a regular life.


    Meng City brightened early.


    Xiao Qi had eaten the noodles and congee of Meng City, in comparison, the light meals at the school cafeteria were also very good without adding too much stuff.


    After breakfast, they went to class together.


    It was still early, Teacher Wei had arrived and also brought the homework from last class, giving it to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi had her roommates help hand it out, seat numbers corresponding to student IDs was easy to manage, whether people had arrived or not, just put it on their seat.


    Getting her own homework notebook, Xiao Qi found the teacher had graded very carefully, pointing out any small issues, and finally giving an excellent.


    Mi''er got a good+, she was a little careless and got a word wrong.


    Compared to the first class, the students were all much more experienced, though there were still some empty seats in the classroom, some students skipping class, in terms of skill at skipping class, college students probably maxed that out already, knowing Teacher Wei was not one to take attendance, so they simply didn''t show up. Of course if they were unlucky enough to run into the teacher suddenly taking attendance, they could still get their roommate to shout for them to come running back in time.


    Teacher Wei had a very good temper, as long as it wasn''t too noisy he basically didn''t care.


    Of course there were also very serious teachers, like Teacher Shi for Marketing, who would definitely take attendance, once at the start of class, once at the end, forcing everyone not to skip class, after all attendance was a large part of the usual grades, frequently missing class when called on, directly losing those points, then just testing average, would mean failing the course directly.


    Xiao Qi didn''t really understand the mentality of students skipping class, because for her getting to university had been very difficult, receiving the admission notice, she felt she might have to drop out. When she really shouldered her bag and got on the high speed rail, it still felt like a dream.


    In the dorm Wei Cheng also had the same feeling, she had older siblings who had supported her family, the burden was too much.


    Not daring to skip class or waste time.


    Besides, the content of the English for Academic Purposes class was quite a lot and difficult, different from normal English, it was professional English, Xiao Qi hadn''t memorized many of the vocab words before, learning more meant knowing more. With her memory buff in effect, she was even more unwilling to waste any time, able to memorize more then she memorized more.


    She had set her phone to vibrate, during class when it buzzed she ignored it.


    Because if she was distracted to check her phone, she might miss what the teacher was saying.


    Not until after class did Xiao Qi take her phone out.


    Unexpectedly it was a message from the chairman of the Calligraphy and Painting Society. Previously the chairman had sent her a form to fill out, it seemed to be an application to join the Meng City Calligraphy Association. She had properly filled it out and sent it back to the chairman. Now the chairman was telling her there was a result, asking her to go to the society in the afternoon.

 Chapter 220: The Kindness of Others

    Chapter 220


    The office of the Painting and Calligraphy Society was on the far left of the second floor of the student union building.


    A sign for the Painting and Calligraphy Society hung at the door.


    Inside, it wasn''t very big, looking like a small conference room.


    But you could still feel a little of the Painting and Calligraphy Society''s style, because the walls were hung with many framed calligraphy and paintings.


    In the corner was an erect money tree, and thick green ivy.


    In the middle was a long table, and against the wall was a row of file cabinets.


    When Xiaoqi Su knocked on the door and went in, both the president Li Luanliang and vice president Han Wei were there.


    Seeing Xiaoqi Su come in, vice president Han Wei''s expression was a little unhappy, while Li Luanliang still had a very friendly smile.


    Xiaoqi Su didn''t know what the two had been talking about, but in any case she felt it was still rather awkward.


    She went in, greeted them and asked how they were.


    Han Wei then stood up and said, "I still have an elective class tonight, so I''m leaving first."


    Then she left, leaving Xiaoqi Su with the president.


    Xiaoqi Su thought that the last time she saw the vice president she had felt very sophisticated and social, coordinating everything very smoothly and being very attentive, chatting and laughing easily with that Mr. Ke, and Xiaoqi Su was quite envious, feeling that this kind of person was very capable.


    She hadn''t expected that she would also show displeasure like a little girl, and had assumed there was discord between her and the president. Although dating was prohibited at Enhua University, if people really wanted to date, as long as they didn''t walk hand in hand and get caught, it was essentially impossible to prohibit.


    Xiaoqi Su kept her eyes on her nose and nose on her heart, sitting docilely across from the president.


    Li Luanliang looked at the rather ill at ease junior student sister, and said, "Don''t be nervous. I asked you to come just to talk about joining the Alliance City Calligrapher''s Association. Last week I saw your calligraphy and it was very good. I also showed it to some seniors, and they all thought it was quite good. You''re still so young, first joining the Alliance City Calligrapher''s Association, and later there will be even greater opportunities to join the National Calligrapher''s Association. This is an official status, and usually you won''t need to do anything or attend any activities, but having this member status, you can exchange ideas with more people, and learn from each other, which will be very beneficial for your life progression and career."


    Xiaoqi Su felt the Calligrapher''s Association and similar things were very far from her, that it sounded very impressive when talked about, and she hadn''t expected that hearing the president speak of it, it seemed very easy, because previously when hearing of any kind of association, she had felt it was something very impressive.


    "What do I need to do?" Xiaoqi Su cautiously asked.


    "I need you to give me a copy of your ID, I''ve found two people to recommend you, they have an activity this weekend, I''ll take you along to participate, and also get to know the recommenders, who are seniors in the Calligrapher''s Association. You just need to show your face."


    Li Luanliang felt the junior student sister before him was a bit nervous, much more constrained than Han Wei. Han Wei had been especially lively and outgoing when first meeting him.


    But it was probably this kind of personality that could calm the heart to practice calligraphy.


    "Okay," Xiaoqi Su nodded, feeling that she should thank the president, but didn''t know how to express it. She very rarely had this kind of feeling, of someone giving her goodwill without her actually doing anything, suddenly accepting another''s help, which made Xiaoqi Su very uncomfortable.


    Li Luanliang also didn''t keep her long, after finishing discussing matters, told her he''d notify her about the specific time in advance.


    When Su Youfu went to repay the money, the man was very happy.


    The two left each other their addresses, and kept in telephone contact. Su Youfu left the village phone number.


    Then the next year, the man suddenly called Su Youfu, saying his business had lost money, he couldn''t even pay wages, hoping Su Youfu could help out and lend some money to tide things over, although not asking Su Youfu to lend money himself, just to act as guarantor. At that time the village fund could lend money if a villager acted as guarantor.


    Su Youfu had received help from the man when in distress, and now he needed help, so Su Youfu agreed without much thought.


    He acted as guarantor.


    Later, the man disappeared, also changing his phone number. Su Youfu went to the address given to look for him, but didn''t find him.


    In the end that large sum became Su Youfu''s responsibility as guarantor to repay.


    And the Su family, that is, from that time on, the whole spine of the family collapsed, bent, and broken.


    Little Seven started needing hardship subsidies to barely pay tuition since elementary school.


    Every New Year''s, the foundations would come to the door to collect debts, and while those from the same village wouldn''t get violent, in Little Seven''s memories, the New Year really was difficult, just as written in the textbooks, very sad, the money borrowed from the foundations kept accumulating interest, and it seemed like no matter how much was paid back, the debt was never cleared. In her memories, eating an apple or orange during New Year''s was a luxury.


    Su Youfu really repaid a drop of water with a gushing spring.


    After paying it back for many years, not until Little Seven was nearing the end of middle school, was the debt finally cleared.


    The villagers all laughed that Su Youfu was silly.


    With this experience, Little Seven became very wary of others'' goodwill.


    She also didn''t dare to accept it readily.


    This kind of inferiority complex and fear was etched and cultivated by the worldview and environment she grew up in since she was little, and was hard to change.


    But deep down she also had another emotion, which was after leaving GuMuLa village for the key high school at LvShan No.1 Middle School, and being exposed to a different world, she wanted to change, to improve, to break free of the past hardships, and to live a different life.


    Little Seven felt that she and Lin Min were the same in this sense.


    She always heard the system say that Lin Min was a moderately corrupted teenager, but as long as someone was a little nice to Lin Min, he would become very wary and grateful.


    The system didn''t say what kind of person she was, Little Seven thought, if the system did say, she was probably an extremely corrupted girl, because deep down she had an extremely inferior person, so on the outside she was extremely hardworking, extremely sunny.


    She wanted to do good, to be good to others, because that was free of burden.


    Even after all these years, Su Youfu had never complained about the elder brother who didn''t pay back the money, and when it was brought up he was always worried that something might have happened to him, or other possibilities.


    After over ten years, Su Youfu''s daughter Su Xiaoqi was seventeen.

 Chapter 221: Solicitation

    Chapter 221


    A bright yellow sports car was parked at the equestrian club.


    It perfectly matched Xiao Yu''s T-shirt color today, with a bright yellow stripe in the middle of his white tee.


    He usually didn''t wear T-shirts, but today he decided to wear one, thinking it might make him appear younger.


    After all, he was Xiao Shengzhou''s uncle, and the generation gap between them was quite significant. He often felt like an old man, and that young girl didn''t pay any attention to him.


    When he saw Xiao Bao''er giving gifts the other day, he felt foolish for not giving presents to girls, especially to the ones he liked.


    But when it came to what gifts to give, like bags, necklaces, or jewelry, he felt that even if he gave them, she wouldn''t accept them.


    That day, his nephew suddenly warned him not to mess around, and he was taken aback, thinking that his nephew might also have developed romantic feelings. He felt embarrassed about it.


    As it turned out, his nephew mentioned the girl''s donation.


    Xiao Yu fell silent.


    Several days passed without any movement.


    It was mainly because of this young girl that Xiao Yu was at a loss. She seemed a bit different from the girls around him, the ones who were motivated by romantic interests, self-interest, give and take, and came and went easily.


    In the face of such a girl who worked hard and donated her bonuses without hesitation, he really couldn''t understand what kind of upbringing would cultivate such a girl.


    But he also didn''t impulsively suggest exchanging contact information through WeChat or anything like that.


    However, just giving up like this made him feel unwilling.


    Truly, after all these years, from when he was in school, it was so difficult to suddenly see a girl who made his heart beat faster, to feel something different. This feeling was very exciting, and he thought that if he didn''t seize the opportunity, he would regret it for a lifetime.


    Life is always greasy.


    Suddenly, there was a burst of sunlight, a trace of fresh breeze, breaking through that greasiness.


    He didn''t want to give up.


    But instead of thinking about buying jewelry or bags, he put in some effort and specifically found an equestrian coach, a very experienced one who was originally overseas. He spent a large sum of money to bring him over.


    He felt that the little girl loved horseback riding very much. When she was riding, she had no guard up and would laugh heartily. She truly appeared sunny and happy.


    When it comes to giving gifts, of course, it should be something she likes. So, despite the difficulties, Xiao Yu still managed to invite the coach.


    However, today in the afternoon, the little girl didn''t show up.


    Xiao Yu: ...


    After bothering his nephew for a while, Xiao Shengzhou finally said, "She went to the calligraphy and painting society. She told me in advance that she wouldn''t come in the afternoon."


    Xiao Yu: ...


    Du Xinyan found Su Xiaoqi to be quite peculiar. Although the young girl seemed to have a clear understanding, possessing good singing skills and a pleasing appearance, in the entertainment industry, she was just ordinary. To truly become a star, it wasn''t as simple as being good-looking or having good singing abilities.


    There were many hidden complexities behind the scenes.


    That industry was particularly intricate. Even the simplest person entering it would be like jumping into a big dye vat, losing themselves in the process.


    Du Xinyan still admired Su Xiaoqi, who sang on the rooftop that day. She had a unique spirit and was pure, a feeling that was lacking in that industry.


    "With your talent, if you''re willing, singing a song would earn you more than twenty thousand yuan," Du Xinyan said.


    In reality, after that evening event ended, two other judges approached her, inquiring about Su Xiaoqi. However, she had some matters to attend to during those days, so she politely declined.


    Today, she happened to encounter Su Xiaoqi, and Du Xinyan wanted to have a conversation with the young girl, to see what she thought.


    With one song earning twenty thousand yuan, singing one song a day for 365 days would amount to seven million yuan. Yet, even with seven million yuan, she still couldn''t afford a car like the one owned by Li Weijin''s staff.


    For some reason, Su Xiaoqi''s mind immediately equated those calculations. But just as quickly, she came to her senses.


    She shook her head.


    It was impossible for her to sing every day, let alone earn twenty thousand yuan each time. Her goal was clear¡ªto focus on her studies and improve herself.


    "Thank you, Senior Du. Singing is just my hobby. If it becomes a profession, I think it wouldn''t be as enjoyable," Su Xiaoqi expressed.


    Du Xinyan nodded in agreement. Indeed, there was a difference between a hobby and a profession.


    Although it was just a few sentences, Du Xinyan gained some understanding of the young girl before her. She wasn''t the type of girl who desperately sought fame and vanity but had a clear sense of self-awareness.


    In fact, after the end of the event, the third-place contestant had actively approached her. Unlike the girl in front of her, Wu Xinyue was ambitious and eager to become famous. Du Xinyan had agreed to let her join the music club but had doubts about her potential.


    She had also approached the second-place contestant, Zhou Chanxin, but that junior seemed even more laid-back. However, considering his affluent background, he didn''t care about the money, so Du Xinyan didn''t try to persuade him further.


    It was Su Xiaoqi in front of her who she initially thought would be the most suitable. She had looked into her student records and background and found her to be simple and pure, with an ideal canvas to mold.


    She never expected to be straightforwardly rejected.


    "If there are any school activities in the future, Senior can call me to help out. I''m sure I can be of assistance," Du Xinyan said with a smile.


    Having rejected her earlier, Su Xiaoqi nodded, still finding Senior Du impressive.


    Du Xinyan patted Su Xiaoqi''s shoulder and said, "You''re still too reserved. Be livelier in the future. Senior won''t bite."


    After bidding farewell to Du Xinyan, Su Xiaoqi finally breathed a sigh of relief.


    She looked up and noticed that the sky was turning dark.


    Watching Senior put on her high heels again, looking like a warrior as she walked away with determination and confidence, Su Xiaoqi realized she would probably never experience that kind of feeling.


    At this moment, Xiaoqi simply had an intense desire to go for a run, to joyfully sprint a few laps.

 Chapter 222: Great Rivers and Malice

    Chapter 222


    Xiaoqi returned to her dormitory, feeling like she had experienced so many things these past few days.


    She still decided to go for a run. When she exercised her body during the run, her mind soared, and her head became clearer.


    Today when she went running, she didn''t wear headphones to study English and Japanese. Instead, she used the time running to think back on her experiences since starting university.


    She felt that everything had gone smoothly since starting university, and the people she had met were all very nice.


    Was it that her luck had changed?


    Or were people outside just better?


    Obviously neither was true. In terms of luck, for someone in her circumstances, it clearly wasn''t very good - coming from an impoverished family, with a disabled father and uneducated mother. She had barely managed to get into a key high school herself, and then didn''t perform well on the college entrance exam, only getting into a third-rate private university.


    It wasn''t possible that people outside were all better either. She had seen all kinds of people, and although it was still a campus environment, not everyone was that innocent. Just as Xiaoqi had heard all kinds of crazy rumors about herself, those rumors didn''t appear out of thin air - someone must have been saying and spreading them.


    But the things she had encountered these past two days - the student council president getting her an equestrian coach, the calligraphy club president helping her join the municipal calligraphy association, the music club president inviting her to join the music club...


    It was as if in an instant, she had become talented and popular.


    But Xiaoqi felt that she was still herself. If she had to identify the biggest change, it would be her attitude towards studying. Her past self had studied passively - in high school, in order to do well on the college entrance exam. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    But now that she was in university, many students'' attitudes were completely different. Because in university, basically as long as you didn''t fail badly, you could graduate. Studying had become something more casual and self-directed. In this kind of environment, away from the tense high school life and parents'' company and nagging, many people''s mindsets would change.


    Not knowing what they wanted to do in the future, they might feel confused, and want to just enjoy themselves for now. Exposure to all kinds of new things - student organizations, student council, big city, new classmates - could also lead to confusion.


    In this kind of environment, Xiaoqi still persisted in the most basic studying, taking studying as the main focus.


    Xiaoqi felt this was the fundamental reason she was able to receive so much goodwill.


    Heaven helps those who help themselves - she hazily understood this principle, although not very clearly, but it suddenly appeared in her mind.


    She would not be like her father, who because someone gave him 100 RMB, spent most of his life repaying the favor, because her father Su Youfu was too weak after all. His whole life was trapped in that small village.


    Supposedly she was a new freshman this year, an information management major.


    She had won the Ten Best Singers competition, taking home 20,000 RMB in prize money.


    To rich students, 20,000 RMB wasn''t much, but even though Enhua was a private university, most students were still ordinary. For ordinary students, 20,000 RMB was still a significant amount.


    This post quickly caught fire.


    Because later on there were photos of the Korean foreign teacher escorting the girl back to her dorm building, giving her a bag of fruit and snacks, looking very intimate.


    Plus photos of them hugging outside the foreign teacher''s apartment building, with her dressed very scantily.


    Then leaked chats of the Korean esports players trash talking and using vulgar language, instantly escalating things from a minor scandal to feeling like a national level issue, especially since this online circle was full of youths, who reacted passionately.


    Posts expressing righteous anger that Hua Country female university students were throwing themselves at foreigners, and demanding the foreigners get out of campus.


    The discussion spun more and more out of control.


    And although no specific names were used, Miss Weekday was used in place of Su Xiaoqi''s name.


    Earlier, the two rumors about Xiaoqi had just spread within the class. After people saw the donation certificate, no one talked about that nonsense anymore.


    But now on the forum post, it was brought up again.


    Saying that Miss Weekday had just won 20,000 RMB from the Ten Best Singers competition, yet still needed to work a part-time job at the equestrian center - because it was full of rich young masters, so her goal was clearly very money-oriented.


    That Miss Weekday came from an extremely poor family, and didn''t spend any of the prize money, eating a lot, like she''d never eaten before - so it was understandable she could be taken advantage of by the Korean foreign teacher.


    Somehow this post started fermenting and catching fire.


    At first Wu Xinyue had just casually shared the photos online, cleverly using a computer outside instead of in her dorm room.


    She hadn''t expected later on that someone else would provide corroborating evidence - that girl had seen it happen but didn''t take photos, looks like Su Xiaoqi didn''t have great interpersonal relationships huh.

 Chapter 223: English Speech Competition

    Chapter 223


    The nonexistent thing, because of someone''s malice, plus the utilization of those with ulterior motives, the revelry of those bored, became something of great importance, the real facts.


    It seems that looking at the flawless people high above, being pulled down, their beautiful facade stripped away, would make the public feel refreshed.


    Then sigh: didn''t expect she was this kind of person, tsk tsk.


    Xiao Qi''s two TikTok videos on the school''s website, as a new student, made her a bit popular.


    But as a new face, with no background or resume, suddenly rising to fame, there would naturally be a lot of unfavorable comments.


    After the content on the campus forum exploded, countless keyboard warriors immediately jumped out, tsk tsk, sighed, so it turns out, sighed.


    If someone had been famous for a long time, or had a very deep background and brilliant resume, probably there wouldn''t be so many people, like pushing down a wall, passing by would spit, to show their own sense of justice.


    "I don''t know this girl of the week, but I despise her behavior."


    "Girls nowadays, for money they are willing to do anything, tsk tsk..."


    "She looks pretty good, didn''t expect she would be this kind of person."


    "Looking so good why go suck up to Koreans?"


    "Voluntarily debasing herself."


    "Students like this should be disciplined, expel directly, no need to keep at school at all, corrupting moral standards."


    "Isn''t it said school rules forbid dating, what to say about this foreign teacher?"


    "Freshman and directly sending herself to the door, tsk tsk..."


    "Upstairs don''t kid around, girls like this where got that kind of thing."


    Really made a big fuss, even Xiao Qi knew about it.


    Because suddenly felt classmates looking at her a bit strange, still Rong Jiaojiao from next door ran over to tell her.


    Xiao Qi''s deskmate Mi''er is gossipy, but isn''t in the habit of going on campus forums.


    After logging on she discovered, surprisingly Enhua University actually had a campus forum, inside was quite a lot of gossip.


    Saying things like the most beautiful freshman goddess English major Wu Xinyue, even had photos, threads were very long.


    But the hottest on top was a freshman being kept by a Korean foreign teacher, going in and out of an apartment.


    Xiao Qi was a bit apprehensive, being called to talk by the advisor was a very bad experience, just like in high school, left psychological shadows.


    Although the advisor in front of her was petite, seemed not much older than herself, still a bit nervous.


    She actually hadn''t done anything, and didn''t know why the school forum would spread stuff like that, also those photos, who was so bored, going to take photos of her, just yesterday still felt the world full of goodwill, now felt full of malice, those words on the forum, some really quite nasty, she couldn''t imagine what kinds of people would say things like that, but felt they were probably around the same age, because it was the school forum, main body still mostly students.


    The advisor called her out, to a tea table at the end of the hallway, a small rest area, left for the teachers, during breaks teachers could come here and sit, surrounded by a row of lucky bamboos and green creepers, teachers with heavier smoking habits would smoke here, this side was by the window.


    Xiao Qi sat properly and upright.


    Felt the advisor''s expression seemed a bit fierce today.


    "Do you mind if I smoke?" the advisor asked.


    Xiao Qi: Ah...


    "Don''t mind." She shook her head.


    But her expression was a bit surprised, didn''t expect girls to smoke, also didn''t expect the advisor to smoke, and in front of her.


    Then she saw the advisor take out a slender cigarette, lit it.


    Women''s cigarettes were lighter, Xiao Qi really disliked the smell of smoke to begin with, especially smoking men, get close and thick smell of smoke, very unpleasant.


    But in front of the petite girl, lighting a cigarette, just lightly taking a puff, then putting the cigarette in the ashtray in front, quietly burning.


    "Know why I called you out here?"


    Xiao Qi continued shaking her head.


    "I consulted the course instructor Teacher Wei, and foreign teacher Betty, said your English speaking is very good, there''s a competition, freshman English speech contest, I recommend you participate, any issues?"


    Xiao Qi blankly shook her head.


    "No issues."


    "Then it''s settled, there''s an internal speech contest at school first, the winner represents the school to participate in the finals at Qingmeng University, I''ll send you the specific competition procedure on WeChat."


    The advisor finished speaking, put out the cigarette, briskly got up and left.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Wasn''t it to discuss the forum stuff?


    Looking at the extinguished cigarette in the ashtray, still two thirds left, did the teacher use this cigarette to keep time?

 Chapter 224: Refuting Rumors

    Chapter 224


    Chu Yu saw Su Xiaoqi come back to the classroom with a blank look on her face.


    She was chatting with the student next to her, her smile a little more enthusiastic.


    "I have plenty of pens like this one, next time I''ll give you a box of them."


    As soon as Xiaoqi sat down, Miele bumped her arm: "What did the head teacher want you for? Did he talk about you?"


    "I''ll tell you when we get back." Xiaoqi didn''t want to talk about it in class, besides, the class had already started. She still listened carefully even though it was just an introductory course on Marxism, not a major subject. Xiaoqi really liked the teacher Mao Xihong. Listening to her lessons was really eye-opening and educational, so she always listened extra attentively.


    Xiaoqi was still a little confused about the English speech contest.


    She wasn''t a particularly outgoing or confident person, so when she saw people chatting away passionately on stage, she thought they were really impressive.


    Xiaoqi felt this was a great opportunity to improve herself, but what would she give a speech about?


    She felt quite restricted and didn''t know what to say. She worried she might get very nervous on stage. There would first be a contest at school this Friday, and only the winner could go on to compete at Qingmeng University after the National Day holiday.


    Brother Lin Min was at Qingmeng University. Whenever Xiaoqi and her roommates talked about Qingmeng University, they felt it was very different, like a completely different world from Enhua University, the gulf between mediocre and excellent students probably.


    In elementary and middle school, good and bad students still went to the same school, but they gradually got streamed. In high school they went to different schools based on their middle school exam results. Then they got streamed again into different universities based on their gaokao scores, preferences and luck.


    Xiaoqi daydreamed for a while before focusing back on the teacher when class started.


    She finally made it through class and didn''t go straight back to the dorm with her roommates. Instead, they went to the student street for a meal, since they easily got tired of the cafeteria food.


    Girls this age have big appetites. They went to the restaurant where Yunshu''s parents treated them. The food there was very good. Xiaoqi said her tutoring wage had gone up, so she would treat them, to celebrate a bit.


    Hearing that the head teacher had called Xiaoqi for the English speech contest rather than the campus forum thing, Miele got excited again, immediately distracted.


    "What day is the contest? We''ll all go cheer you on!"


    Xiaoqi had just received the competition schedule from the head teacher. The timing was pretty tight.


    "The school contest is this Friday afternoon. If I get through, the contest at Qingmeng University is after the National Day holiday."


    "Perfect, then we can all go to Qingmeng University together, as your cheer squad."


    "That would be so nice!" Weio said in her sweet voice.


    Miele also enlisted help from the senior Chen Jianfei from the photography club she knew. She asked him to help find the IP address of the person who posted the photos on the campus forum.


    And Yunshu, instead of reading novels as usual when she got back, also logged into the campus forum. She was responsible for posting the photos and videos of Jin Zaiyan and Grace from the party group. There were videos of them making kimchi together, Xiaoqi cooking, the food she made...


    Posting videos on the forum was a bit tricky, but easy for Yunshu.


    Weio was responsible for finding foreign teacher Jin Zaiyan''s resume and posting it, specially noting her gender as female.


    The girls took action separately.


    The math senior Chen Jianfei wasn''t great at it himself, but asked other experts, and got the IP addresses. One was from a black internet cafe on the student street, seemingly useless. The other was from their Huashan dorm building, likely their next door neighbors.


    It was easier to lookup IPs on campus, but not very precise.


    The senior sent the info to Miele. Miele was furious, not knowing who it was, but the random rumors in class earlier must have been spread by a classmate, certainly another girl since there were less than 20 girls in their class. Who was so nasty?


    As the roommates posted more content, the highly upvoted flaming post finally started to reverse. Different voices appeared instead of unanimous scolding.


    There were clear close up photos and videos.


    The so-called Korean foreign teacher who toyed with freshmen turned out to be female.


    And the Suixing girl who took the initiative to offer herself only went to make kimchi?


    The Suixing girl''s cooking skills looked great, I want to eat that!


    The forum slowly went off topic again.


    Endlessly discussing whether kimchi tastes good or not, whether Koreans really eat kimchi with every meal.


    Some also said the Korean female foreign teacher was quite pretty upon closer look, a bit like an actress who crossdressed to make it in the entertainment industry in a TV drama.


    And the Suixing girl''s English was so good, speaking so fast with great intonation. She sounded totally like a foreigner.


    Great singing, great writing, and strong English, a genuine study goddess!


    Probably realizing they had been easily fooled, the keyboard warriors now praised her the most enthusiastically...


    Xiaoqi drove slowly and steadily, passing sunshine and tree shade, beaming with joy. Driving was really fun.

 Chapter 225: Sincere Help

    Chapter 225


    The new equestrian coach''s Chinese name was Lu Zhiyu, and his English name was Steven. He generally only introduced himself by his English name.


    He was not very satisfied with his new workplace. The employer had spent a lot of money to hire him. He happened to not be doing so well at his previous job and wanted to change locations to relax his mind, so he came here.


    As a result, this was actually just a small horse farm. The environment was still relatively primitive and beautiful, but this horse farm was truly very small and completely irregular. It was simply a place for rich people to keep horses and could not even be called a horse farm at all. He felt he had been cheated.


    However, the salary offered by the other party was really not bad at all, more than double what he had before.


    The food was also still good, but it really felt like he was in the mountains.


    He had just video chatted with an old foreign friend, appearing very cheerful and optimistic, showing his friend the sea and saying this was a seaside horse farm with spectacular scenery. Everything was flourishing. He felt extremely happy and the food was also very good, finally eating to his satisfaction. His friend said the scenery here was not bad and congratulated him on starting a new chapter in his career.


    When he was on video, he laughed exaggeratedly and enthusiastically, but as soon as he put down the phone, his face suddenly clouded over.


    In equestrian circles, he was considered somewhat famous, but in the end he was actually cheated by one of his own students. Before he came, he had just participated in a relatively well-known equestrian freestyle competition. The first place champion was a student he had previously taught. He went up to congratulate him, but did not expect to be directly mocked in front of many reporters, saying that he had taught terribly and that he had forgotten everything he taught in order to regain his confidence in competing, and finally achieved good results.


    The young man who won the championship was very handsome. As he spoke, everyone laughed happily, thinking he was direct and lovely.


    But when Steven returned to the stable, he was lectured by his employer for bringing negative impact to the farm, and asked to consider resigning.


    Although Steven had taught abroad for many years, at heart he was still Chinese who cared a great deal about respecting teachers and education. He could not understand why, when he had taught obediently, the student who won the championship had techniques that clearly contained what he had taught, yet said such words in front of reporters.


    In anger, he suddenly had the idea of returning home to take a look. Alll latest novels at novelhall.come people gave impassioned, rousing speeches. Some gave very emotional speeches, quite rich, able to stir the emotions of the audience. Some had a calm tone of voice, but were chock full of inspirational quotes that made people think. Some were very lively and humorous, and the atmosphere was very cheerful.


    Basically, all the speakers seemed to have very high emotional intelligence.


    Xiao Qi really had a hard time achieving high EQ. Telling jokes and such, she decided to use the clumsiest method - listen and learn as much as possible, treating it like a quick hack, cramming all the excellent speeches she could into her own head, then picking out a style suitable for herself.


    She listened very attentively the whole way, getting a fuzzy impression of each speech on the first listen. The second time she could basically remember it, and the third time she had a deeper impression.


    Also, for herself, after listening three times Xiao Qi could retell it, and with her knack for language, she could even simulate the speaker''s emotions.


    There were impassioned ones, calm ones, funny lively ones, and sad solemn ones.


    Experiencing the tone and mood of different speeches, Xiao Qi felt it was quite interesting, like groping for something, though she couldn''t say what.


    For the whole afternoon, Xiao Qi''s roommates had all stayed in, battling it out on the forums. Although the general direction had changed, some keyboard warriors stubbornly insisted that what they saw first was the truth, and argued fiercely. Even the usually mild-mannered Yunshu flared up in anger.


    But basically opinions had shifted, and no one lumped Xiao Qi in with that group of Korean esports players anymore or farfetchedly brought in patriotism.


    And they sang more praises of Xiao Qi''s cooking skills.


    Room 606 of Huashan dorm could be said to have won a complete victory.


    They also felt a great sense of accomplishment.


    Xiao Qi was still muttering to herself practicing speeches. She didn''t know her roommates had been busy on the forums all afternoon on her behalf. When she was almost to the horse farm, the mechanical voice in her ears sounded: "Host has obtained sincere help from roommates to clear up false rumors and regain appreciation, rewarding host 30,000 yuan for 20 days. Host must spend this 30,000 yuan within 20 days, and cannot use it for investment."

 Chapter 226: I Don’t Teach

    Chapter 226


    Xiao Qi arrived at the racetrack and first went to check in with the chairman.


    Because the chairman said the new equestrian coach had arrived, he told her to come directly to get acquainted first.


    Xiao Qi was still a little nervous.


    She first put down the speech draft.


    When she passed by the glass door of the club, she looked over her outfit.


    The clothes she wore over and over were just those few sets, of which there were two skirts that she wore less often, only occasionally.


    What she wore the most were still jeans and T-shirts. Because she came to the New District, worried it would be cold, she also brought her school uniform jacket.


    What she was wearing now was a pair of washed white jeans and a white T-shirt, this was her most common outfit. The leisure pants and shirts that Teacher Zhou had previously selected for her were more formal and constrained, not suitable for work, and the slightly hip hop athletic pants were also unsuitable. The little elephant T-shirt was still ok, but Xiao Qi planned to change into clean clothes later.


    So when coming to the racetrack, she wore jeans and T-shirts the most.


    Although simple, she had always persisted in long distance running and the motion training with her personal trainer, so her figure was very good and healthy. Of course she still looked a little thin, probably because her small bust. Her whole person looked like her age was still a bit young. She would turn 18 at the end of the year, but her face looked at most 15 or 16 years old.


    But she was very spirited. Xiao Qi showed a smile towards the glass.


    At this moment, the equestrian coach Steven was sitting on the sofa in Xiao Shengzhou''s office, facing the excessively young boss. He was not very concerned.


    When he saw that there was a treasured liquor collection here, and the boss asked if he wanted a drink, he generously opened it and even asked for ice to add to the whiskey.


    The scenery here was indeed very beautiful.


    Although there was some boasting this morning when he video chatted with his old friend, the scenery here was indeed good. He felt the young boss also thoroughly enjoyed it. These damn rich people, their world was just so plain and interesting.


    Watching their horses galloping, watching the waves galloping, watching others galloping for them.


    At this moment, the sun was setting and the sea surface was shimmering. The glass in his hand was also shimmering, very dazzling.


    He was not an alcoholic. If an equestrian coach started drinking heavily, his career would be over.


    But when the fierce liquor went down his throat, that kind of stimulating and icy feeling, and the slightly dizzying refreshment, suddenly made him understand why so many people like to drink.


    That damn hypocrite, stepping on his reputation to move up, and only later found out he wanted to promote his family''s equestrian coach. Everyone boasted about training a champion coach, while he became the dog being mocked in the corner, a failure.


    He knew before coming that he was asked to come teach a rider. Hearing the young man who invited him say the rider was very excellent, in his heart he still had a little fantasy. What if there was a miracle?


    He could train a champion, so he could train a second one.


    He even dreamed of returning to the arena, his student holding up the champion trophy for him, a hundred times more grand than the small competition that hypocrite had attended.


    He regained his glory, he was the best coach, he had not grown old.


    But now, seeing the little girl in front of him, she wasn''t even an adult yet. She probably had a long time before becoming an adult. She looked very delicate, like a weak flower in a pond, she was an excellent rider?


    Steven felt that unless he was drunk.


    This was just some rich second generations trying to please a little girl right, and he was the pitiful pleasing tool.


    The girl in front of him, Steven admitted, if he were thirty years younger, he might also come to like her. She had a pair of clean eyes, very pure. Her figure was not bad either, except her chest was too small, probably because she was very young.


    This was a pretty little girl, her eyes were clean, but her eyes were grown very charming.


    With his many years of experience looking at horses and women, this little girl would become very beautiful when grown up, at least much prettier than now, perhaps would be dazzling. But the little girl in front obviously did not know herself.


    But what did this have to do with him.


    He was an equestrian coach, not a pimp.


    He forcibly held in his anger, did not smash the glass in his hand. He just shook his head and said, "Sorry, Xiao, I can''t teach this student. She does not meet my expectations, she won''t be a good rider. I think our contract can be terminated now."


    Just one look, and Steven had made the decision. He said this in English, and thought it would be difficult to say, but it actually wasn''t that hard for him to say it out.


    Perhaps the liquor helped him.


    Steven thought the girl in front might not even understand English, after all she was so little, English education in China was not that good either. But unexpectedly she replied in English, and her accent was very standard British English.


    Xiao Qi had just been practicing her speech and found that using different accents to pronounce gave a different feeling when speaking.


    She specifically tried changing her accent, and the feeling and tone when speaking was different too.


    "Coach Steven, don''t you want to see me ride a horse before making a decision?"

 Chapter 227: Real Smell

    Chapter 227


    Steven knows Chinese, but he chooses not to speak it and rarely does so.


    His refusal to engage with people is manifested in delivering long speeches in English.


    Having lived abroad for a long time, his English is excellent, but in reality, he is not a sociable person.


    He spends more time with horses than with people.


    He genuinely loves horses and is a person who enjoys equestrianism.


    He has been divorced once and is currently single.


    He looks at the little girl in front of him, who says she wants to try riding a horse.


    Steven smiles.


    His smile carries a hint of irony.


    Being an excellent rider requires more than just riding a horse. Moreover, a delicate young girl riding a gentle pony for a short ride cannot be considered a rider, at most she can be considered someone who can barely ride a horse.


    Riding a horse and galloping on horseback, treating the horse as an extension of one''s body, requires a high level of physical fitness.


    This little girl in front of him might get jolted by the horse, and she might even feel nauseous and turn pale after dismounting.


    Equestrianism is not a game but a demanding sport that most people are not capable of.


    Not to mention the young girl in front of him, even a stronger man might not be able to withstand the jolts of riding a horse.


    However, he is surprised by the little girl''s English. Her English is unexpectedly good, and her accent is very authentic. Her words are hard to refuse.


    She seems determined.


    While his hand holding the wine glass is steady, his head nods involuntarily.


    He feels like he may have had too much to drink.


    The alcohol content is too high.


    A horseman should not drink, as it hampers one''s judgment.


    He finds it amusing and wants to mock, but his head agrees uncontrollably.


    By the time he stands next to the young boss by the horse track, the sea breeze blows, and Steven becomes a little more sober.


    At this point, he is no longer torn about whether to watch or not, because after uttering the words to terminate the contract, Steven''s state of mind has become more serene, and he can calmly appreciate the scenery here.


    To tell the truth, this is indeed the worst and most rudimentary horse stable he has ever seen.


    But the scenery here is really good.


    A horse stable built by the bay gives a sense of galloping towards the sea when riding a horse, which feels expansive.


    Both horses and the sea exude a powerful aura, something Steven truly enjoys.


    But there she was in front of him.


    She seemed to be one with the horse, agilely leaping past him at a tremendous speed, like a wild wind whistling by.


    A smile appeared on her face, full of unrestrained brightness.


    He felt like he hadn''t had enough, but she had already disappeared.


    Soon, she appeared again, but this time for a short while. Steven estimated the time, lifted his hand to check the Rolex on his wrist¡ªa steel Rolex that he had won as a prize in an equestrian competition when he was young. He had always been proud of it. He had worn this watch for many years, and the strap was scratched, but the quality of the watch was excellent, always keeping perfect time.


    This watch was more loyal than his wife, accompanying him for a longer time.


    If he were to lose both his watch and his wife at the same time, he would definitely prioritize finding this watch.


    As he looked at his watch, he heard the sound of hoofbeats again.


    The rhythm of the sound matched the second hand of his watch perfectly.


    Upon hearing this sound, a smile involuntarily appeared on his face. It was the speed that only the most exceptional rider could control.


    An outstanding rider wasn''t just about being the fastest; it was about being able to control the speed of the horse. In a race, the rider who maintained a steady and uniform speed throughout would ultimately become the champion.


    Those riders who exerted all their energy right from the start often exhausted themselves halfway through.


    In reality, riding was similar to running for humans, but the challenge for riders lay not only in their own running but also in controlling the horse''s galloping.


    However, when he looked up and saw the young girl riding on horseback once again flying past him, a hint of embarrassment crossed his face.


    Was this underage girl standing before him the exceptional rider he had just been thinking about?


    She appeared delicate and fair, with no direct connection to horse racing.


    He suggested going for a walk, and Xiao Shengzhou naturally wouldn''t refuse.


    In fact, Xiao Shengzhou already knew the result from Steven''s expression.


    They walked together to a bay not far away.


    Little Coral had completed two rounds of riding, and on the third round, she came to this spot. She loved the sea, unlike the other horses. Even when she dried off, the seawater would stick to her, making her feel uncomfortable. Little Coral had a bit of cleanliness obsession and never approached this area on her own.


    But Ji Gu was different; the sound of the waves excited her greatly.


    Little Coral, ridden by Ji Gu, dashed into the water. Ji Gu raised her front hooves high, and the whole horse seemed to rise up, with Ji Gu''s body momentarily parallel to the ground, facing the sunset.


    Xiao Shengzhou, usually composed, couldn''t help but take out his phone and snap a photo.


    It was truly breathtaking and full of artistic appeal.


    If taken with a proper camera, Xiao Shengzhou believed this scene could even participate in a photography competition.


    Meanwhile, Steven''s heart was pounding like the crashing waves. Thump, thump, thump. He even wondered if he had had too much to drink, as whatever he desired seemed to come true. The girl before his eyes was the equestrian champion he had been longing for.


    She was amazing, gifted, and had a strong affinity for horses. She was a natural-born rider¡ªbrave, composed, and beautiful. She was young. If she were to appear on the racetrack, Steven could already envision the scene of applause and flowers surrounding her.


    He wanted to stay; he had discovered a rising star, no, a superstar.

 Chapter 228: The Gift I Want

    Chapter 228


    Xiao Qi rode around beating the drum a few laps.


    Steven swallowed down his previous words along with the drink, and didn''t bring up leaving again. His gaze was very ardent as he looked at Xiao Shengzhou. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiao Shengzhou also smiled.


    In a rare good mood, he posted a friend circle.


    It was just the photo he had taken just now of the sunset, Xiao Qi riding the waves and drumming, her figure parallel to the ground on the horse''s back.


    The golden sunset was in front of her.


    There were no words, just a single picture.


    Actually what he wanted to say was ''so beautiful'', but was afraid his parents would misunderstand. He was in his fourth year of university and still hadn''t dated, and his parents kept asking about it.


    If he said ''so beautiful'', his dad might think he was talking about the horse, but his mom would definitely think he was talking about the girl on the horse''s back...


    And Xiao Yu saw his nephew''s friend circle right away.


    Beating his chest in frustration, his nephew with those thick eyebrows and big eyes had started paying attention to girls!


    He also felt regret that the little girl had gone to the equestrian center today but he hadn''t.


    Xiao Qi, Steven, and the chairman ate dinner together at the club.


    Steven greatly admired Xiao Qi''s big appetite. A good rider needed a healthy physique and couldn''t lose weight just for a slender figure and be frail.


    Xiao Shengzhou laughed. "Steven, you don''t understand your student. Add her on WeChat and from now on, you''ll know the number one in your daily step count will always belong to one person."


    Steven didn''t understand what he meant. Xiao Shengzhou opened the WeChat step count.


    Looking at the daily champion displayed, it was always the same person.


    Every day it was over 30,000 steps.


    Steven was shocked. 30,000 steps was no small amount. When he trained riders, he also had them warm up and build a strong physique first. He didn''t expect the young girl in front of him to be able to run so many steps every day.


    "Are you a long distance runner?" Steven asked in surprise.


    Xiao Qi shook her head. "I signed up for the marathon equestrian race, so I''ve been persisting in running. Of course I also really enjoy running on my own."


    Xiao Shengzhou deliberately showed off.


    He also opened the photo of Xiao Qi winning the 200m swimming championship of Jingnan Province this year.


    He left Steven reeling. He had thought he had an eye for talent, and didn''t expect the young girl herself to already be so outstanding.


    "The world belongs to the young." He sighed and swallowed a big bite of the steak with blood veins.


    Xiao Qi still preferred the Chinese food the chef here made. She only occasionally ate Western food, mostly ordering Chinese food.


    The few chatted about delicious food for a while, communicating entirely in English.


    After showering and tidying up, Xiao Qi practiced her calligraphy for a while.


    Now practicing calligraphy morning, afternoon, and evening had become a habit, no need to say more about it.


    The roommates were used to it too, and kept quiet as much as possible.


    After practicing calligraphy for half an hour, Xiao Qi''s heart finally calmed down a bit. Actually giving help to others and accepting help from others were two completely different emotions.


    When giving help, Xiao Qi felt very happy and enjoyed it. The giver''s position was noble.


    When accepting help, she felt very apprehensive and uneasy, as if ashamed. The receiver''s position was low.


    She didn''t expect her roommates to actually do this. In fact, she herself was quite cold-hearted, protecting herself wisely. Small citizen and peasant thinking was deeply ingrained in her. If not for the system, she thought she wouldn''t have changed and wouldn''t have tried her best to help others, because malice in this world sometimes came so suddenly and turbulently that it could easily overwhelm goodwill.


    She took a look at the content on the forums earlier, and actually it wasn''t that she didn''t care. When she looked, she felt her blood freeze, hands and feet stiff, like something in her heart was collapsing, as if she really saw a group of people come up and scold her, pointing at her forehead, and she really was garbage.


    If not for the changes over the summer, she felt she really might be, perhaps just as those people said, unable to withstand temptation, because she possessed too little. So when the other side took out just a tiny thing, not to mention a bag of fruit, in high school it was because of a single milk tea that she would easily be moved and fall for someone.


    She was too impoverished, so all temptations easily succeeded for her.


    She felt those keyboard warriors scolded in a frightening way, but they had scolded out her heart''s most fragile place. This was probably why some people really couldn''t accept this kind of online violence and went as far as suicide.


    Because people were sometimes truly fragile.


    She ran, practiced calligraphy, studied, trying hard to forget those things.


    At this moment she truly felt grateful, grateful to have such good roommates who helped her.


    After finishing practicing calligraphy, she climbed into bed and suddenly asked, "What gifts do you all most want right now?"


    Honey was the most proactive, but thought for a long time and still couldn''t decide: "You guys go first, let me think about it."


    Wei Cheng was the most sincere and said, "I want a computer. After all, we are computer science majors, so I feel we should get familiar with computers." But she didn''t want to ask her parents for one since a computer was a big purchase for her. Her money from working part-time while studying could only cover living expenses.


    Yun Shu already had almost everything. She had recently started learning tea ceremony. She had a bit of choice paralysis and said, "I want a new tea set so I can brew tea for you all in the future."


    Mi''er mumbled for a good while before saying, "Ah, there are so many things I want. But recently I want a camera. Let me tell you, the upperclassman from the photography club is so handsome. Even though he''s a math major, he doesn''t look nerdy at all. He''s very suave and tall. He even asked me to go take pictures with him. But unfortunately I don''t even have a camera. Bringing my phone would be so unprofessional. If I had a camera, in the future when there are student council events and external affairs club events, I could bring a camera with me to take pictures. It feels like this position has good prospects. During meetings I wouldn''t have to sit there quietly, I could take the chance to wander around with the camera. Xiao Qi, what do you want the most?"


    Xiao Qi remembered what her roommates wanted. Caught off guard by the question of what she wanted, her mind went completely blank. It seemed there really wasn''t anything in particular she wanted?


    Oh right, she still wanted to buy a house. Xiao Qi had bought a house in Lvshan City last time and felt very reassured.


    She felt that while studying at Enhua, she could also buy one. She liked the lakeside apartments in the new district.


    But she didn''t say this. She felt like this idea might be a bit weird among students. Recently she basically hadn''t touched the money in the interface, 24,000 every day, it had already accumulated to over 600,000.


    She felt she was a happy miser.


    She had Jin Zaiyan help her look into the apartment. She estimated that when there were results, she would probably be able to afford it. No need to go big, just buy a small one. Like Jin Zaiyan''s little apartment, it would be great, very cozy.


    "I haven''t decided yet, I''ll let you know when I do. Let''s sleep early."


    Xiao Qi''s breathing was steady. She hadn''t actually fallen asleep, but soon the room echoed with Mi''er''s and Wei Cheng''s soft snores, one after another.


    At first she felt it might be a bit noisy, but now she was used to it. Listening to the soft snores, it seemed she could also fall asleep well. Xiao Qi also entered dreamland.

 Chapter 229: English Speech Writing

    Chapter 229


    Wednesday, the weather was beautiful.


    Xiao Qi got up early to go for a run while continuing to listen to speeches.


    Yesterday, she compiled a list of the top ten famous speeches in history. Some of them had videos, although they were in black and white. Some videos couldn''t be found, but there were audio recordings available.


    The speeches that have been preserved until now must have deeply moved countless people. It''s not just because they aligned with the prevailing ideologies at the time, but also because of the art of oratory within them. Xiao Qi believed that even if she didn''t participate in a speech competition, memorizing the contents of these ten speeches would allow her to learn more English expression styles and accumulate new vocabulary.


    An outstanding speech is not merely a speech; it can even change the course of a nation''s history. Speeches can be weapons, as well as a healing balm for people.


    Ranked first is Winston Churchill''s speech "We Shall Fight on the Beaches," delivered in June 1940 during World War II. At that time, Churchill had just become the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and learned that France was about to surrender. He delivered an important address, affirming that even if France was on the brink of defeat, Britain would continue to fight.


    It was an incredibly inspiring speech: "We shall never surrender, we shall never retreat, we shall fight on until the end... We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be."


    Listening to it, Xiao Qi felt a surge of passion and wished she could immediately join the battlefield. Even though she was currently in a time of peace, she couldn''t help but have her emotions stirred, as if she was witnessing a crisis on the battlefield. Young soldiers should always be ready to fight to the end, never to retreat.


    That feeling persisted even after listening to it several times, as if it possessed a magical power. Xiao Qi listened to it multiple times and even recited it, but she couldn''t quite recreate that same feeling. Perhaps her emotional resonance was lacking. Nevertheless, the sentences within the speech were truly remarkable. The use of parallelism during the speech was highly effective in arousing emotions.


    Ranked second is Abraham Lincoln''s speech at Gettysburg in 1863. President Lincoln had been actively working towards the emancipation of black people. When he delivered this speech, it was during the American Civil War. Although Xiao Qi didn''t strongly resonate with it due to different political backgrounds, she could sense the sincerity and heartfelt nature of Lincoln''s speech. Some of the phrases she memorized were still unfamiliar, possibly due to the linguistic differences of that time. However, the entire speech flowed smoothly and was very easy to remember.


    The third speech is one that Xiao Qi is quite familiar with from her school days¡ªMartin Luther King Jr.''s "I Have a Dream" speech. Because she had memorized it before, listening to it now still evoked strong emotions. The passion was still present, and even today, it resonated deeply.


    "I have a dream today.


    The content of the speech couldn''t be copied from the internet because the articles copied wouldn''t truly belong to her, and the emotions wouldn''t be her own.


    Xiao Qi ran circle after circle, thinking about how famous speeches in history could help her. However, the topics were too broad. Her current identity was only that of a student. She considered whether she could talk about her experience in learning English during this period.


    Starting from the end of the college entrance examination, she opened the first volume of the New Concept English textbooks. She started with the easy lessons and went on to the difficult ones. During one vacation, she thoroughly studied all four volumes of the New Concept English textbooks. Every day, she memorized at least 30 English words. She utilized fragmented time to study, read the original texts while comparing them to the books, listened to audio lessons, and sang English songs. In college, she could make use of the English corner and the foreign teachers in her class to actively engage in communication.


    Learning English wasn''t as simple as she had imagined, nor was it as difficult as she had imagined.


    Xiao Qi believed that her method of learning English could be emulated. In reality, if she had started putting in this much effort earlier, her English would have been better. Previously, she learned English because she had exams and assignments to do, and she was afraid of criticism from her teachers. She didn''t take the initiative to speak. But once she started actively learning, everything changed completely. The feeling of excitement and eagerness during active learning was remarkable. Learning more things made her feel more fulfilled and motivated her to continue learning.


    Moreover, even if she started learning now, it wouldn''t be too late, and in fact, it was never too late at any time.


    She still remembered an article she read during a tutoring interview, which deeply moved her. Every moment of the present could be seen as a return to the youthful past when one is old and gray. As long as one is willing to start making efforts, it would be a new beginning, leading to a completely different future.


    With a rough idea of the topic in her mind, Xiao Qi wasn''t too anxious. After finishing her run, she stretched and exercised, following the methods taught by her personal trainer every day.


    Xiao Qi no longer has the problem of hunching and having a concave chest. Her personality hasn''t really changed, but at least her appearance has improved. She now stands tall and even her buttocks are slightly more rounded and lifted than before. However, she doesn''t pay much attention to these changes because she doesn''t constantly look at herself in the mirror like Mier does. She feels confident and that''s what matters to her.


    Today''s schedule is quite packed. In the morning, there are classes on macroeconomics and calculus, followed by marketing in the afternoon, and a general education class. Previously, they had a session on college student mental health education, and now it''s mostly attending various lectures, somewhat resembling the conscription of able-bodied men.


    Professor Shao, who teaches macroeconomics, is young and gives average lectures, but he prepares his lessons diligently.


    Teacher Lu, who teaches calculus, is someone Xiao Qi really likes. Because of her fondness for the teacher, this class also seems particularly interesting to her, far from being dull.

 Chapter 230: Preparation

    Chapter 230


    Because his foot was injured, Li Weijin, who had taken leave for a few days, finally came to class.


    As a result, as soon as he came, he exchanged seats with the boy behind Chu Yu in a casual manner.


    He became the new deskmate of Mao Wenshu, the deputy learning commissioner.


    Chu Yu was originally paying attention to the campus forum. The person she hoped to see the most on that forum was Li Weijin.


    However, she did not expect that Li Weijin had not come to class these two days, and when he finally came, the content of the forum had completely changed, and it was no longer a hot topic, it had dropped down already.


    She had wanted to go up and say a few words, but she saw on the forum that Chen Mier, Su Xiaoqi¡¯s deskmate, went up in person to say that she had checked the IP address, and it was from Hua Shan Building. In order to save face for her classmate, she didn''t say who it was, asking the rumormonger to restrain themselves a little.


    She didn¡¯t know whether Chen Mier had really found out the IP address or was just scaring people, but she really didn¡¯t dare to speak up there anymore.


    Who would have thought there was something like checking IP addresses. She felt a little careless herself, she shouldn¡¯t have posted those things in the dormitory.


    Unexpectedly, even after all this, there was still a reversal. Su Xiaoqi somehow had good luck, her roommates were so nice to her, especially Gu Yunshu, who specially helped her clear her name on the forum. She remembered Gu Yunshu was quite aloof, came from a good family background, could be considered a rich second generation. Usually she wouldn¡¯t get involved in these things at all. She didn''t know what benefits Su Xiaoqi gave to them.


    Wei Cheng was just a country girl, timidly, yet she was arguing with others on the forum too.


    There was no need to mention Chen Mier, Su Xiaoqi¡¯s deskmate, who was completely brainwashed by Su Xiaoqi, almost like a brainless fan of Su Xiaoqi.


    Chu Yu believed Su Xiaoqi was very scheming. She actually gathered three roommates with very different personalities. She herself didn''t get along well with Su Xiaoqi¡¯s roommate Su Li who had a bad temper.


    Lin Dongqing''s personality was better, but Lin Dongqing was very beautiful, with long hair, very eye-catching, also Chen Mier''s fellow townsman, from the same province. Their personalities were similar. Sometimes they were a bit straightforward. Chu Yu didn''t like her that much either.


    At this moment, seeing Li Weijin sitting behind her, she still felt a little nervous. Her back was actually quite beautiful, very graceful, with long hair. But she knew Li Weijin was not looking at her, he didn''t care about her at all, which made her feel very angry.


    She turned her head to talk to Mao Wenshu. Mao Wenshu should have a good impression of her.


    She could feel it.


    She also greeted Li Weijin as if unintentionally, asking him why he hadn''t come to class.


    "I sprained my foot." Li Weijin answered concisely without elaborating.


    He had taken two days off to go home. His foot was still a bit swollen so he could only wear slippers. His mom had dressed him in a pair of LV slippers, very tacky.


    There was no way. That was his mom''s recent hobby. He could only bear it, too lazy to argue.


    Besides, for Top Ten Singers, she could know about her competitors¡¯ information. For the English speech contest, she had no idea what her opponents were like at all.


    Moreover, even if by some fluke she knew and defeated opponents from her school, then what about outside the school?


    There would be no such fluke.


    There were too many excellent people. Xiaoqi could only rely on persistence and diligent study to barely keep up.


    During the break between calculus classes, Xiaoqi took the questions she had accumulated and went to ask Teacher Lu, while also asking about the speech.


    Although it was an English speech contest, Teacher Lu''s English was also very good. And Teacher Lu was a very elegant and graceful old lady. Even listening to her teach boring calculus was a pleasure. If Teacher Lu gave a speech, Xiaoqi felt she would surely also be very popular.


    When Lu Ruxue heard that Xiaoqi was going to participate in the English speech contest, she highly approved.


    "Your English speaking is very good. You have an advantage with speeches. My English wasn''t as good as yours when I was your age. Your appearance is also advantageous. The only thing to pay attention to is speaking in front of many people. I noticed that when you sing, you basically don''t interact much with the audience at all, very little eye contact. In speeches, you need to pay attention to maintaining a certain amount of eye contact at the very least. In short, open yourself up, open your emotions, don''t be afraid. It¡¯s this Friday? Teacher will come cheer you on then.¡±


    Xiaoqi nodded.


    In the next class, Xiaoqi carefully observed how Teacher Lu taught class. Why did she feel Teacher Lu''s lectures were particularly good? One reason was the interaction. Teacher Lu was different from young new teachers. Like Professor Shao who taught Macroeconomics last period, his lecture was boring precisely because he only talked to himself, muttering to himself. No matter what he said, it made people feel dull, no sense of participation at all, couldn¡¯t focus on listening.


    Teacher Lu was the opposite. Even when teaching difficult calculus formulas, the students below would feel she was interacting with them, emotions constantly mobilized, unknowingly listening very carefully. Xiaoqi felt this could not be learned overnight, but since she had started learning now it was not too late. And now she had the memory buff, she could at least rote memorize this feeling for starters, and then imitate and learn it.


    When doing something, time really goes fast. Over the past few days when Xiaoqi was eating, sleeping, going to the toilet, the English speech was on her mind. In addition to the exciting state of those inspiring speakers, there was also the very stable and convincing tone of Xiao Shengzhou the Student Union President when he spoke. He gave people the impression that when he spoke, it was very grande, very reliable. As soon as he opened his mouth, everyone else would listen carefully.


    There was also Teacher Lu''s teaching state, very amiable, with a sense of interaction, very cordial, making people like her.


    Xiaoqi had also written her speech and let her roommates take a look, revising some parts. She had recited it to her roommates many times.


    In the blink of an eye, it was Friday afternoon. The speech contest was held in Datang Complex Building.


    There were no classes in the afternoon. The speech contest started at half past two. Xiaoqi¡¯s roommates all went to cheer for her.


    Surprisingly quite a few classmates from her class went too, after all the class monitor had made a call in the group.


    Even Su Li went, and Li Weijin went too.


    The speaking order was still decided by drawing lots. Coincidentally Xiaoqi drew seventh place.


    She felt it was quite good. She liked the number seven, it gave her a lucky feeling.


    The competition began. She discovered that in a speech competition like this, the judges included Mrs. Su, a member of the school board. Mrs. Su was indeed very concerned with all the big and small matters of the school. Little Seven had thought this was just a very small competition.

 Chapter 231: Abba’s Baby

    Chapter 231


    What a coincidence that Wu Xinyue from the English department was there too.


    Xiao Qi felt that she really had some fate with her.


    But it was also normal that there were more students from the English department participating in the English speech contest.


    After all, that was their major.


    When Wu Xinyue saw Su Xiaoqi, she was also completely bewildered. She had been one of the main participants in the campus forum incident, and was surprised that it seemed to have had no impact at all on Su Xiaoqi. Later, when someone posted photos and videos exonerating Su Xiaoqi, she realized that Su Xiaoqi''s English was really good.


    She had no problem communicating with the foreign teacher, and sometimes Wu Xinyue didn''t even understand what Su Xiaoqi was saying because she spoke too fast.


    Wu Xinyue also blamed herself for being too rash, hastily trying to link Su Xiaoqi to the scandal with the South Korean athletics team, without even investigating properly. She didn''t even know that foreign teacher was a woman!


    It had been a complete mistake, best forgotten about. Fortunately she had been careful not to do any of that on her dorm computer, but had gone elsewhere. Otherwise she would have almost blown her cover, as she hadn''t expected there to be ways to trace IP addresses.


    Seeing Su Xiaoqi at the speech contest venue now, she felt as uncomfortable as if she''d swallowed a fly.


    She considered her own English to be quite good. It was the only subject she had really applied herself to, since it was useful and impressive to be able to communicate with foreigners.


    She had heard that the winner of first place here could go on to continue competing at Qingming University.


    If she could win first place, she could show off on TikTok again. After all, the image of an outstanding and beautiful female student was far more compelling than those who just happened to be good-looking.


    But seeing Su Xiaoqi here...she had a very bad feeling.


    Xiao Qi was actually not as calm as she appeared.


    She had prepared very thoroughly these past few days, but as soon as the speeches were about to start, she suddenly became nervous and desperately wanted to go to the bathroom.


    This reminded her of high school. She would always feel like she needed to pee during exams and even the college entrance exam. Whenever there was something important, she would feel the urge to go to the bathroom, even though when she actually went she didn''t need to pee that much.


    It was a kind of fear and anxiety.


    She had been working out a lot recently and was in good physical shape. She hadn''t had any issues during the Top Ten Singers competition, but today, as each contestant went up and came back down, she became more and more nervous and started feeling like she needed to pee.


    She told her roommate she was going to run to the bathroom quickly.


    Her friends didn''t think anything of it, assuming she just needed to use the restroom. In their eyes, Xiao Qi was amazing, and they had heard her speech rehearsal many times without any issues.


    Xiao Qi was confused herself. She actually rarely got this nervous anymore, even having been interviewed on TV stations without feeling like this.


    "Your dad is very bold, going off alone to sell winnowing baskets and haggling over prices with people, not timid at all," Sheng Juanhua added.


    Xiao Qi listened feeling half amused, half exasperated. Alright, her parents didn''t really understand what a speech contest was, they just thought being bold on stage was all that mattered.


    But saying it this way did seem to make her less afraid.


    Simple and unadorned - you''re your dad''s daughter, you take after him, your dad is bold.


    Xiao Qi hung up the phone.


    She returned to the speech hall.


    By now it was already the fifth contestant on stage.


    Xiao Qi listened attentively from her seat below. Actually there were a lot of limitations on the freshman contestants. Perhaps because they had just gone through the college entrance exams, they were all still reciting their speeches like high school composition essays.


    Those with better English recited more smoothly without stumbling.


    Those with poorer English still recited a bit haltingly.


    It was completely different from the rousing speeches Xiao Qi had imagined. But she did see Wu Xinyue. Xiao Qi envied how outgoing Wu Xinyue was, able to chat breezily with strangers, while Xiao Qi felt like a child next to an adult in comparison. Wu Xinyue could casually converse with strangers, something Xiao Qi found very difficult.


    Fundamentally she was an introvert, just like Wei Cheng.


    Wu Xinyue was contestant number eight, Xiao Qi number seven, the reverse of their order at the Top Ten Singers competition. This time Xiao Qi was up first.


    After calling her parents, Xiao Qi didn''t feel as nervous anymore, at least she no longer felt like running to the bathroom. But her palms were still sweating.


    What she didn''t know was that Wu Xinyue was even more nervous than her... Damn, what bad luck, to be right after Su Xiaoqi. She had basically given up hope for her own speech this time. She was also reciting from memory, but she felt her advantage was being able to recite with more expression, gestures, and interaction even if reading.


    She had no confidence she could speak as well as Su Xiaoqi. She knew her own abilities well. Even chatting with foreign teachers relied on gestures and body language.


    Moreover, she hadn''t prepared as thoroughly, just picking an article that she originally thought would be good enough, but realizing now at the competition venue that it wasn''t enough. And it seemed like one of the previous contestants had chosen a similar article, a bit repetitive.


    The sixth contestant stepped down and it was Xiao Qi''s turn.


    Today Xiao Qi wore her school tracksuit and pants. She had wanted to wear jeans and a T-shirt but it had suddenly turned cold today, and this was her warmest outfit, so she could only wear this. Xiao Qi didn''t care much about clothes. She kept psyching herself up - she could do it. She walked onto the stage.


    She bowed to the students and teachers below, a smile on her face. In her mind she recalled her dad''s words - you''re your dad''s daughter, no problem.


    Li Weijin had also come. He sat very near the front where he could see the girl on stage, wearing a light blue tracksuit that looked beautiful and fresh, but he also noticed the cuffs were threadbare and fuzzy from washing, the blue faded to white. For a moment his heart twisted painfully.

 Chapter 232: The First

    Chapter 232


    In that moment when she stepped onto the stage, Xiao Qi''s presence transformed.


    These past few days, she had been scrambling to prepare, listening to various speeches and carefully analyzing the demeanor of historical figures during their speeches. She made a point to memorize their language patterns and tried to capture the speaking style of Xiao Shengzhou, the president of Enhua Student Union, as well as the expressive facial expressions of Teacher Lu, who taught calculus.


    Xiao Shengzhou was the best president Enhua University had seen since its establishment. Even in his senior year, no one had been able to find a suitable replacement for him. He was like a labor union chairman, expertly coordinating the relationships between students, teachers, and the school. His speeches were so convincing and charismatic that all parties involved were completely won over. The events he organized were recorded in the school''s history.


    Teacher Lu, who taught calculus, was a distinguished professor brought back to Enhua University from Qingbei University. With a wealth of life experiences, including studying abroad in Russia during his early years, he possessed extensive knowledge and a witty personality. She was an incredibly charismatic individual, and her charm remained undiminished even as she grew older. Her words were like a gentle breeze, leaving a slightly intoxicated feeling.


    One was unquestionably trustworthy, the other exuded warmth and approachability. Both individuals were directly accessible to Xiao Qi, providing her with face-to-face opportunities to learn and emulate them. At this moment, Xiao Qi embodied a blend of their qualities.


    She appeared confident, composed, and amiable.


    Among the audience was School Manager Mrs. Su, who always placed great importance on the power of language. She believed that for Chinese people to make their mark globally, language proficiency was of utmost significance. Enhua University boasted a considerable number of foreign faculty members, a result of her unwavering commitment.


    Mrs. Su herself was proficient in eight foreign languages and deeply understood the convenience and importance of language. Therefore, even for a freshman speech competition, she was willing to make time to attend personally.


    Although Enhua University was not yet ranked highly within China, Mrs. Su hoped that it could establish its own distinctiveness and carve out a place among numerous universities.


    As she saw the young girl stepping onto the stage, Mrs. Su remembered her as the girl who had sung at the Mid-Autumn Festival party. This revelation brought her a sense of surprise.


    During the party, the girl had appeared delicate and slightly nervous, captivating everyone with her enchanting singing. However, there was minimal interaction with the audience.


    She was a student with artistic talents.


    Never did Mrs. Su expect to see her standing on the podium today.


    In college, she had more opportunities to learn English. There were English corners and many lovely foreign teachers. The learning resources were abundant, and she was very grateful to be in Enhua.


    She felt anxious before coming here, but she felt fortunate after arriving.


    When she arrived at the school, the first banner she saw read: "Today, I take pride in Enhua, and tomorrow, Enhua will take pride in me." She hoped she could achieve this, and she thanked everyone.


    Xiao Qi''s speech wasn''t particularly impassioned because her personality isn''t the type that inspires and leads with charisma. However, she fully learned the sense of affinity from Teacher Lu, and she recounted her story in a relatable manner. She also learned the solid and convincing demeanor from Chairman Xiao Shengzhou, which gradually made people feel engaged.


    Many students couldn''t quite understand everything that Xiao Qi said throughout, only recognizing a few familiar words. But they truly admired her ability to convey her message. It wasn''t mere recitation; it was a genuine speech.


    She finished her speech.


    School Manager Ms. Su stood up and applauded.


    Mrs. Su liked what the girl said very much. It was inspiring and positive, especially the praise she gave to Enhua at the end, which deeply touched Mrs. Su''s heart.


    Even the foreign teacher stood up and applauded. He thought that as a young girl from China, her English was excellent, especially her accent, which had a touch of a London accent. They themselves admired this accent very much, and it was quite rare.


    The other English teachers serving as judges also stood up. To be honest, if they were to go on stage, they might not speak as well as this girl. English teaching in China is still heavily focused on exam-oriented education, with a majority of emphasis on written language education. To be able to speak so well, it was as if she had returned from abroad. However, looking at the girl''s simple attire and appearance, and the fact that she had to work as a tutor during summer vacation, it''s likely that her family background is average. To achieve such success as a student like her is truly moving, even though she didn''t say anything particularly tear-jerking throughout her entire speech. But she herself is an inspiring tear-jerker.


    One teacher even wiped away tears. She had also read that article "If I were a boy again," and it had touched her when she read it. However, she hadn''t done anything herself.


    The students below also stood up, all of them.


    Li Weijin, supporting one foot, stood up and applauded with great force.

 Chapter 233: Dinner Party

    Chapter 233


    Wu Xinyue came on stage next.


    She was dressed very professionally like an office lady, looking very refined and career-oriented, forming a stark contrast with Xiao Qi just now.


    Judging by her appearance alone, she looked very capable.


    With long, straight black hair, black high heels, a professional skirt suit, a little skirt with a gold Gucci belt buckled on, light makeup, she gave off the air of a sophisticated career woman.


    The moment she stepped on stage, she commanded attention, many boys looked at her eagerly.


    After all, there were few students dressed like her, especially among the new students. Dressing like that, she looked really too good-looking to students her age.


    She had quite a few supporters, there was applause even before she spoke.


    Wu Xinyue''s face reddened slightly in spite of herself.


    Even Xiao Qi felt that when Wu Xinyue came out, she could indeed be called an internet celebrity. Her makeup was also done very charmingly.


    However, the moment she opened her mouth, the strong contrast emerged.


    Not only did she recite from memory, but also because she didn''t spend much time on it, there were some hesitations in her recitation. If it was her usual appearance, gestures and smiles that could make up for it, but because of the strong contrast with Su Xiaoqi just now, it led to her severe psychological imbalance.


    She felt like she just came on stage to embarrass herself. As a result, she hurriedly finished reciting from memory and awkwardly exited the stage.


    She came on stage thinking she would be the king, but turned out to be a bronze...


    At this moment, the mechanical voice rang out in Xiao Qi''s mind again: "Host has delivered an outstanding speech, bringing positive energy to the people around, gained 52 sincere praises, rewarded with the aura buff for 30 days."


    After Xiao Qi finished her speech, her heart was still thumping faster than usual, her back was slightly sweaty, she was still nervous, but it was fine when she was on stage, it felt different once she got on stage, she didn''t think too much.


    This point was probably really owed to Dad''s genes, fearless and dauntless.


    Hearing the system''s voice now, she was a bit confused again, what was the aura buff?


    She felt like she didn''t have anything like an aura on her.


    After getting off stage, she relaxed all at once, feeling like she could lean back in her chair, soft and cushy, now she wished she could just lie in bed and sleep, forming a shape of the character °Ë.


    The competition wasn''t over yet, other than a small number who came to cheer for their classmates and already left, her class group chat was very lively now, few people left because they were all saying in the group to wait until Xiao Qi got first place before leaving.


    She always felt that Chu Yu was hostile towards her, this kind of feeling, there''s no need to spell it out between girls, you can just sense something''s not right in reality.


    She also didn''t know why.


    The class monitor and vice monitor had come, after all the class monitor called in the group, vice monitor Yue Lai always fully supported monitor Cai Yu. The two of them standing together looked quite well-matched.


    Publicity committee member Chen Daen was also there, as well as Xiao Qi''s front deskmate Chen Hanhe.


    In short, over half of the class committee members had come.


    Among the girls, Su Li seemed rather hot-tempered, her popularity didn''t seem great. It was probably because of her previous fight with Chu Yu when she lost face. Anyway, later there were a lot of rumors about her bad temper.


    Girls had thin skin, they were also unwilling to actively fawn over her. She did get along fine with the boys in class however, chatting and laughing.


    It hadn''t been long since the start of school, it was still boys on one side, girls on the other, sitting distinctly apart, somewhat shy.


    Only Su Li and vice monitor Yue Lai were sitting among the boys, occasionally bursting into loud laughter.


    You could see the difference between people at times like this. Some sat watching the scene, some very proactively picked up the menu, asked the girls what dishes they wanted to order.


    The monitor belonged to the latter, very thoughtful and considerate.


    Since it was the first collective activity, everyone acted rather modest, they just let the monitor decide on the menu.


    He ordered roast meat, snacks, and even secretly brought in fruit beer. The school didn''t allow selling alcohol to students. If discovered, there would be confiscation.


    The fruit beer could just pass as a beverage, closing one eye.


    Li Weijin sat in the corner, not very enthusiastic, browsing the song list. He was thinking Xiao Qi sang very well, he wondered what songs she wanted to sing?


    He wanted to look at Su Xiaoqi, but she was sitting between her roommates, proper and demure. She even took out a water bottle she brought and opened it to drink some water.


    With many people, the private room felt a bit hot. She took off her outerwear. Inside she wore a light pink babydoll blouse, looking even smaller than usual.


    Her cheeks were also slightly flushed.


    Thinking of how she chatted away freely on stage but now seemed a bit restrained sitting here, he felt his clavicle grow slightly red again. His expression was still serious and aloof on the surface.


    Taking the menu for ordering dishes handed over by the monitor, thinking of how she sipped water in small mouthfuls, he went ahead and ordered many all kinds of drinks, fruit juices, as well as mineral water, flower tea, fruit tea.

 Chapter 234: Because I Look at You Twice in a Crowd

    Chapter 234


    Su Li leaned over to request a song.


    Seeing Li Weijin ordering a drink surprised her and made her ponder. Normally, it was rare to see the young master so proactive. Among their group of friends, Li Weijin was known as the aloof little prince, so why was he being so enthusiastic in class?


    In the afternoon, she went to listen to a speech competition and was startled to see her aunt-in-law. She shrank back into the corner.


    She was quite afraid of her aunt-in-law. If she were caught, she would definitely receive a lecture. Fortunately, she wasn''t discovered, or if she was, her aunt-in-law never showed any closeness towards her in public, nor did she call her specifically.


    Her English was actually quite good, considering she had been abroad several times. But when it came to speeches, she felt silly. However, after seeing Su Xiaoqi''s speech, she thought she was pretty impressive.


    Su Xiaoqi, this person... She initially thought she might be like Chu Yu and those types¡ªlooking delicate and weak, which she didn''t particularly like. But time and time again, she proved to be unexpected.


    She had a dull afternoon and finally made it outside. At this moment, she really wanted to relax.


    She usually loved to have fun and had an outgoing and generous personality. She quickly selected several songs.


    Holding the microphone, she confidently took the stage, not feeling shy at all, as if she had become a karaoke queen.


    The first song was "Itchy." She sat on the stage with a microphone stand, displaying a powerful aura and singing impressively. The atmosphere instantly became lively.


    Fruit platters, snacks, and grilled meat were brought out one after another. The waiters also served them.


    Xiao Qi was really hungry.


    By this point, she was famished and exhausted. The previous speech she prepared was more tiring than running thirty thousand steps. It finally concluded, and she felt completely drained.


    She wasn''t talkative.


    Mier had a lively personality. When she first arrived, she felt a bit restrained, but she quickly became free and mingled with the boys.


    Wei Cheng actively helped Xiao Qi get drinks and food, but Xiao Qi didn''t wait for Wei Cheng and took matters into her own hands.


    She first grabbed a main dish, egg fried rice...


    There was no other choice. The immense mental exertion was also exhausting.


    Moreover, she had reviewed her high school habit of feeling nervous and needing to use the restroom. Now, she felt quite exhausted.


    Xiao Qi summarized that her first-place ranking in the school speech competition had a large element of luck. After all, Enhua''s new students generally didn''t have exceptional grades. If they were outstanding, they wouldn''t have been admitted to Enhua.


    Also, not all participants in the competition were necessarily strong in English. Some people might have excellent English skills but were unaware of this competition or had other commitments. Such possibilities existed.


    It could only be said that her victory was relative to the competition.


    However, she wouldn''t be as fortunate when she went to Qingmeng University to participate in the competition. There, she would be up against the elites from various schools. Compared to those outstanding students from prestigious universities, her own abilities would probably only place her at the bottom.


    Xiao Qi ate her egg fried rice heartily, digesting the fact that she had won first place in the school''s speech competition.


    Indeed, she was still a cautious person from a small town, always feeling uneasy about taking advantage of others for no reason.


    Luckily, she had money.


    She wouldn''t feel indebted to others for such a small bill, thinking that she was inferior to them for no reason.


    Returning to the private room, the atmosphere was still lively. The air conditioner was turned up high, but with so many people, it still felt hot, filled with excitement.


    In the dormitory, Lian Yunshu was dragged by Mi''er to go singing. Lian Yunshu appeared quiet outside, but unexpectedly, the songs she sang were bold and incredibly pleasant, earning resounding applause.


    Wei Cheng, on the other hand, was quite the opposite. He was tall and his singing showcased a tender and delicate demeanor.


    His voice was gentle, completely contrasting his appearance.


    Someone instigated and urged Young Master Li Weijin to go on stage and sing.


    To everyone''s surprise, Li Weijin actually went up on stage, hopping on one leg, clumsily but adorably.


    He wore exceptionally clean and brand-new clothes, like the cutest kid in kindergarten, and when Xiao Qi saw him on stage, she had a particularly sunny smile.


    Suddenly, she couldn''t help but think that he would cry if he scraped his hand... It seemed quite amusing.


    Li Weijin took the microphone and wiped it first before speaking, "Congratulations to our Study Committee for winning first place in the English speech contest. My singing is just average, so I''ll pick a random song."


    To everyone''s surprise, he chose Wang Fei''s "Legend."


    Wang Fei''s songs are highly recognizable and challenging to sing.


    Xiao Qi thought it was quite difficult to sing beautifully, especially for a male singer.


    "Just because I happened to look at you a little longer in the crowd, I couldn''t forget your face anymore... From then on, I began to feel lonely and miss you. When I think of you, you are on the horizon, in front of my eyes, in my mind, and in my heart..."


    Accompanied by the background music, a clear and clean male voice resounded from the microphone, unexpectedly pleasant to the ears.


    "... I would rather believe that we had an agreement in our past life, and the love story of this lifetime will not change. I would rather spend my whole life waiting for you to discover that I have always been by your side, never far away."


    A very handsome young man sang such a song, and it inexplicably felt visually appealing. No wonder the whole nation is obsessed with young idols. When this song is sung by Wang Fei, it evokes countless memories and stories, stirring the depths of one''s heart. But when it is sung by a clean and handsome young man, the first thought that comes to mind is, "I wish that girl were me. If only it were me."


    The venue became much quieter, and Su Li gazed intently at Li Weijin.


    She really liked him.


    In a corner, Chu Yu held a bottle of drink, not drinking, with a smile on her lips, looking very ladylike.


    Xiao Qi was drinking water and when she looked up and saw Li Weijin looking at her, she almost choked on the water... Quickly, she lowered her head.


    "I would rather believe that we had an agreement in our past life, and the love story of this lifetime will not change. I would rather spend my whole life waiting for you to discover that I have always been by your side, never far away."

 Chapter 235: God Is a Girl

    Chapter 235


    Xiao Qi eventually also got up to sing under everyone''s urging. After all, she was the first place winner of the top ten singers competition, so her classmates were quite looking forward to it.


    Xiao Qi didn''t try too hard, she just chose an English song "God is a Girl". This song is relatively simple.


    Wearing blue and white school pants and a light colored blouse, Xiao Qi sat on the stage, she was more at ease than when she had participated in the top ten singers competition, when the background music started slowly.


    Very gently, the students below chatted and laughed.


    But when Xiao Qi started singing the first sentence, the whole box quieted down.


    Xiao Qi really liked this song herself, the creative background of this song was very moving, one of the girls in a four person band was diagnosed with end stage kidney disease, needing two kidney transplants. The boy who loved her deeply accompanied her at the hospital all along, and decided to donate one of his kidneys to this girl, and wrote this song in the hospital hallway.


    The boy passed away before the girl, leaving a will to donate his body to medical research, not wanting the girl to know about this.


    The girl got the kidney, and upon waking up immediately knew why she was able to live on. Attending the boy''s funeral, the girl fainted from excessive grief, and never woke up again.


    The remaining two members of the band arranged this song and performed it.


    Truly good music must have a soul.


    "Remembering me discover and see all over the world


    To remember I am looking for and comprehending all over the world


    She''s known as a girl to those who are free


    She is a girl who wants to be free"......


    When Xiao Qi started singing, she unconsciously fully unleashed her charm, and all attention seemed to be on her.


    She didn''t even notice the new buff taking effect herself, singing very enjoyably.


    After all, compared to the speech competition environment, singing in front of a group of classmates was much simpler.


    "God is a girl


    Wherever you are


    Do you believe it can you receive it


    God is a girl......


    She wants to shine forever in time


    She is so driven she''s always mine


    Cleanly and free


    She''s forever my ''pure'' and ''free''......


    A girl like me


    God is a girl


    She''s only a girl"


    ......"


    Xiao Qi''s voice was so pure, and her lung capacity was also very good. Starting to sing this song, it was as if bringing people into the hospital, in that quiet hallway in the hospital, the boy looking at the girl in the ward, his eyes full of love.


    He was willing to give everything for her, including his life, only hoping for her to be a vibrant girl.


    Xiao Qi also noticed her phone ringing. The new group didn''t have do not disturb enabled. She opened it to see the chat in the group, and explained: "It''s to celebrate me after all, of course I''m treating, I hope everyone ate and drank well!"


    Right then Xiao Qi''s roommate Mier immediately shouted out: Bro Qi is awesome!


    And so a bunch of people followed to shout: Bro Qi is awesome!


    Some even sent stickers, very lively.


    Skipping over the topic of splitting the bill that Chu Yu had brought up initially.


    Students aren''t all that rich, and since they had come over initially because someone had offered to treat, feeling like going back on it to split felt unpleasant. It would have been fine if they had agreed to split the bill from the start, and Chu Yu bringing it up gave a sanctimonious feeling.


    The boys didn''t really understand sanctimonious, but still felt uncomfortable.


    The girls had started to gain an understanding of certain people''s sanctimony.


    After eating their fill, everyone split up.


    Xiao Qi went back to the dorm with her roommate.


    Right then, the official Douyin account of Enhua University went viral again.


    Because in the afternoon, the official Douyin had posted the video of today''s speech competition.


    Yet again it was Xiao Qi.


    The official Douyin was basically becoming a personal Douyin.


    As a result, a bunch of people after watching the speech, surrendered.


    "What else can''t this expert do?"


    "I was lying down scrolling Douyin, kept watching and ended up kneeling..."


    "Am I the only one who really went to check out New Concept English?"


    "Please caption this in Chinese big sis, I don''t deserve the full English version."


    "Simping for the genius schoolgirl."


    "Singing, writing, swimming, English all top tier, is this a model schoolgirl?"


    "Way better than those internet celebs, no filtering, natural good looks, stanning."


    "What''s the swimming thing?"


    "Has the above not heard the schoolgirl is this year''s 200m freestyle champion?"


    "Is it still possible for me to start learning English today, the schoolgirl said she got her English to this level in just one summer???"


    "Suddenly having an urge to simp for Enhua University, the old lady judge was so classy."


    "The old lady judge the above mentioned is one of the school trustees, knows 8 languages..."


    "I''m from Alliance City too. Everyone says Alliance is terrible, but Alliance has such an amazing lady like her. I really want to be her junior if I can."


    "The speech draft is done, focus: XXXXXXX, no need to thank me."


    "Brother Qi is so powerful!"


    "Brother Qi is so powerful!"

 Chapter 236: : Calligraphy Association Activities

    Chapter 236


    The activity ended, and Xiao Qi went back and still insisted on going jogging.


    She was not lazy.


    This small speech competition made Xiao Qi feel somewhat alert, feeling that she was still not strong enough. It was just a small competition within the campus, yet she was so nervous that she kept running to the toilet, unable to hold it in.


    This should be a psychological problem, because in reality she couldn''t even pee in the toilet.


    It was just nerves, running to the bathroom was probably a subconscious feeling that it could relieve tension.


    This problem must be overcome. There will be many more important moments in life, compared to a speech within the campus possibly the most trivial thing.


    Her psychology was still too fragile.


    Xiao Qi ran, analyzing her own state, the night breeze was slightly cool, making her slightly more clear-headed.


    Being nervous and wanting to go to the bathroom was partly due to her previous bad habit, and probably also due to her lack of confidence in herself, fear, fear of what?


    Think it through, she was actually afraid of embarrassment.


    Before even participating in the competition, her class WeChat group had said that she would win first place, and her roommates were also very confident in her. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    But what if not?


    When she arrived at the competition venue, she found that Mrs. Su from the school board was also there as a judge, the venue was full of students, so she became afraid of embarrassing herself, giving a bad speech, forgetting words, getting nervous and awkward.


    This kind of fear of embarrassment in front of everyone was probably the root cause of her anxiety.


    When she was very young, falling while walking or saying the wrong thing did not make her feel ashamed or embarrassed.


    But as she grew up slowly, she developed a sensitive self-esteem.


    It could be said that this kind of self-esteem was actually connected with self-abasement.


    The more self-esteem, the more self-abasing, the two emotions were one.


    In order to be afraid of embarrassment, she would try her best to refuse to speak up, refuse to stand out, refuse to take the lead, and slowly became a shut-in, feeling that it was safer that way.


    In reality it was also slowly wearing her down.


    Xiao Qi felt that her problem was quite serious as she ran, and needed to be overcome.


    If she was always afraid and never moved forward, she would always fall behind others.


    But was she willing?


    She sat in the back seat.


    The inside of the car was quite clean, looked quite new and very tidy, with a fresh scent. In front of the passenger seat there was a very cute doll. Xiao Qi felt that the president probably had a girlfriend - she wondered if it was the vice president.


    Li Luanliang''s eyes lit up when he saw the younger student.


    The previous times he had seen her dressed very casual, like a high school student, looking very young.


    Although he felt her calligraphy was very good, he still had some concerns about wanting her to take over the Calligraphy Association, as she looked too childish and he worried that she couldn''t handle the situation.


    But seeing her this time in a dress, looking serious, her aura was extremely powerful - she seemed different somehow.


    "Congratulations on winning first place in the English speech competition," Li Luanliang teased as he started driving.


    As presidents of these clubs and societies he would of course pay attention to the school''s official TikTok account, and he was quite surprised to see Xiao Qi''s win, she was really an outstanding young girl.


    You wouldn''t have thought she was also a top academically performing student.


    "Thank you, president." Xiao Qi''s face turned slightly red, but she still graciously thanked him.


    Humility was a virtue, but sometimes she felt that being unabashedly delighted like foreign teachers also had its good points. She was happy with the praise, at that moment.


    It made her slightly less nervous.


    She was currently learning to drive, and had held a steering wheel before, so very carefully observed how the president was driving after getting in the car, taking note of each step - how to navigate bends and turns, overtake, brake and so on.


    Li Luanliang could see the younger student staring at him from the rearview mirror and felt slightly uncomfortable. He asked, "What''s the matter?"


    "I''m learning to drive," replied Xiao Qi.


    Li Luanliang took a moment to digest before laughing again.


    Halfway through the journey, as it was taking quite some time, Xiao Qi couldn''t help but gossip and ask, "President, do you have a girlfriend?"


    "Yes, she studies at Qingming University, we''re in the same year but I''m at Enhua University. We were high school classmates."


    Xiao Qi breathed a sigh of relief, then couldn''t help mimicking Wei Cheng''s catchphrase, "How wonderful."


    To be together from high school to university was not easy. Although she didn''t know if they could continue in the future, but probably the most beautiful and purest years of their lives had been spent together.


    "Of course, I''ll introduce her to you next time if there''s a chance. Your senior is very outstanding like you." When talking about his girlfriend, Li Luanliang couldn''t hold back his smile.


    Halfway through, Xiao Qi received a phone call. It turned out to be from the little Xiao Bao''er.


    She greeted Xiao Qi very formally. Through the phone Xiao Qi could feel her big round eyes and little mature demeanor. She then coquettishly said, "Xiao Qi, tomorrow is my birthday. I''m inviting you to come."

 Chapter 237: Uncle Shaw

    Chapter 237


    The calligraphy association''s activity was held in the conference hall of Wentham Hotel.


    When Xiaoqi arrived at the hotel entrance, the chairman went to park the car and Xiaoqi got off the car to wait first.


    She saw there was a sign at the entrance saying today''s calligraphy association activity was on the fifth floor in Huachao Hall.


    Xiaoqi felt quite fortunate at the moment that she had stayed in a five-star hotel before, so she wouldn''t feel nervous when seeing the marble floors, the glittering chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, and the magnificent lobby.


    The last time she checked in a hotel alone, she was actually very nervous.


    Sometimes it''s true that you have to spend money once to experience the difference. This is probably what people call gaining experience.


    Otherwise she would probably feel nervous and not know where to put her hands and feet.


    The revolving door at the entrance kept flashing.


    People were coming and going outside. Xiaoqi went into the lobby and sat down on a sofa.


    She knew this sofa was for guests to rest on.


    The lobbies of hotels always give a very luxurious feel. As she sat on the sofa, she could see a wall in front of her which was made of mirrored panels joined together, and there were countless reflections of herself in the mirrors.


    She was wearing a black dress, a white cardigan, white shoes, a school bag.


    Compared to the people walking in and out of the hotel, she looked quite young.


    Sitting next to her was a middle-aged fat man with a very big round belly. Geett the latest novels at novelhall.com


    Sitting opposite was an elegantly dressed woman, wearing a dress that looked a bit like a cheongsam, with a high side slit. She wore high heels, had a curly perm, very red lipstick, and very beautiful eye makeup. She sat there looking very refined, constantly browsing on her phone.


    Xiaoqi also really wanted to take out her phone and scroll and scroll. She felt that although it was a waste of time, it seemed to be a good way to avoid awkwardness. Just sitting there blankly was not as good as scrolling on her phone.


    But she still didn''t take out her phone. Xiaoqi, who had just done some psychological self-affirmation the day before, wanted to actively engage with the world more, rather than avoid it.


    Fortunately, she didn''t have to wait long before the chairman appeared.


    She followed the chairman into the elevator.


    Unexpectedly, just as she was waiting by the elevator door, she happened to meet the younger uncle of the chairman of the association, who was also Xiao Bao''er''s uncle.


    Xiaoqi had seen him a few times at the equestrian center, and had even had a meal together, although they didn''t talk much. But she remembered him.


    He was quite good-looking, carefree, and seemed like the playboy type.


    Anyway, he was a type Xiaoqi had never encountered before.


    But since they met now, she still greeted him.


    "Uncle Xiao, hello." She thought that she, the chairman and Xiao Bao''er were all considered the same generation, so it was not wrong to call him uncle.


    But when Xiao Yu heard this "Uncle Xiao" greeting... he was dumbfounded.


    He felt very uncomfortable all over his body. After all, there was a generational difference.


    Looking around the elevator entrance, it was almost entirely mirrored walls, and seeing the woman next to him, fair-skinned and red-lipped, then looking at the innocent bare-faced Xiaoqi, both keeping a distance from the men beside them.


    "What are you doing here?" Having experienced many ups and downs in relationships, recalling when girlfriend number two caught him with girlfriend number four, he calmly asked.


    The chairman was also dressed quite like a businessman.


    Li Luanliang introduced two people to Xiaoqi, who were both directors of the Calligraphy Association, and also Xiaoqi''s nominators for joining the association.


    One man and one woman, finally she met a lady, who looked around 40 years old, dressed very stylishly, like her whole outfit was made of torn hemp fabric, but looking closely there was a sense of design.


    Xiaoqi remembered seeing dresses like this at the mall, not cheap at all, over 2,000 yuan for a dress.


    She was also wearing a beret.


    She passed Xiaoqi her name card, which read This Life Art Gallery, name: Qiu Meinan.


    Her name also had quite an artistic feel.


    The man looked to be in his forties as well. He also gave Xiaoqi his card. His title was Chairman of XX Transportation Company, Director of the Calligraphy Association, Gao Xinsheng.


    So these two were like Xiaoqi''s sponsors, to some extent her supervisors.


    Meeting for the first time, they didn''t say much.


    To be honest, Xiaoqi still felt a generational gap. With the age difference, she didn''t even know what to chat about, she just smiled obediently.


    Listen more, speak less.


    Chairman Li Luanliang still took quite good care of Xiaoqi, but now he got pulled away, leaving Xiaoqi in Ms. Qiu''s care.


    Ms. Qiu had a round face and fair skin, long eyelashes. She dressed very artistically but her personality seemed very gentle.


    "I read your transcription of the Heart Sutra, it''s very good," she praised, then quietly added: "Better than Mr. Ke''s."


    Xiaoqi could only say thank you, still feeling a bit awkward not knowing what to chat about.


    Ms. Qiu took Xiaoqi to get a drink, and asked if she wanted alcohol.


    Then she quickly covered her mouth and said, "Oh right, you''re not 18 yet, you can''t drink."


    She handed Xiaoqi a coconut milk, and took a cocktail for herself.


    "I''m actually just average at calligraphy, but pretty good at painting. Do you like painting? Feel free to come to my art gallery and hang out when you''re free."


    "I like painting, but I''m not very good," Xiaoqi thought of Teacher Shi, and took a small sip of the creamy sweet coconut milk, the sweetness was probably from sugar.


    "Painting and calligraphy come from the same source. Your calligraphy is so good, your painting must be great too," Qiu Meinan felt more and more heartache looking at the young girl, she was so delicate, but seemed a bit guarded.


    She took Xiaoqi around the venue, pointing to each person and introducing them: "It''s okay if you can''t remember them all, just get a general impression."


    Xiaoqi nodded. She had actually remembered them all. She still had the memory buff, and could instantly memorize everything Ms. Qiu said about those dozens of people, including each person''s interests and traits.


    Of course, the most important part of the calligraphy association''s activity, apart from socializing, was actually writing.


    Xiaoqi followed Ms. Qiu, watching others write. She felt some wrote very well, while some were average.


    To her surprise, the handwriting of her other recommender, Mr. Gao Xinsheng, the boss of the shipping company, was unexpectedly good, giving off a majestic aura like a flying dragon.


    As Ms. Qiu Meinan said about her own writing, it was passable, around average level at best. If rated, it would be beginner level. But as she held the brush to dot the ink, she casually painted a picture next to the characters, instantly elevating the piece.


    Seeing the serious look in the young girl''s eyes, Qiu Meinan smiled and said, "Xiao Qi, why don''t you try writing one too, as the youngest new member of our calligraphy association, show us what you''ve got."

 Chapter 238: The Aura Is On

    Chapter 238


    Jin An, wearing a modified qipao adorned with large Chinese-style flowers, always stood out wherever she went.


    She had a great figure and fair skin.


    But what really captivated others was her unique blend of playfulness and delicacy. It''s hard to describe, but it had a special appeal that men couldn''t resist.


    Xiao Yu was attending a business cocktail party.


    It was held at the sixth-floor Ocean View Hall of the Wyndham Hotel.


    He brought Jin An along as his companion for the evening.


    His choice of companions was always changing; he rarely had someone who stayed by his side for long. People around him were used to that.


    Jin An also knew, as perhaps every girl does, that feeling of being special, the last one, the one who stands out.


    Jin An was skilled in both conversation and dancing, and she could strike up a conversation with anyone while walking beside Xiao Yu.


    But today, she noticed that Xiao Yu seemed distracted.


    She was aware of Xiao Yu''s reputation for being open-minded and "loyal." He generally didn''t date two girlfriends simultaneously. He would break up first before starting a new relationship. It could happen in the morning, and by the afternoon, he would be with someone else...


    She asked Xiao Yu out, and he agreed, indicating that he was currently unattached.


    And she was only in the ambiguous phase with Xiao Yu. She knew girls shouldn''t be too proactive with guys, but it seemed like Xiao Yu hadn''t contacted her in a long time.


    That''s when she started to panic and went against the rules of being a "bad girl" by taking the initiative.


    The result...


    Jin An couldn''t help but think of the little girl who had called Xiao Yu "Uncle" earlier. Something didn''t feel quite right.


    A woman''s intuition.


    When they were alone, Jin An jokingly teased, "Are you still thinking about your little niece?"


    Xiao Yu, with his attractive single eyelid slightly raised, looked at Jin An.


    Jin An held a glass in her hand, the dazzling lights above, and the shimmering reflections from the glass illuminated her face, giving her a mischievous aura. He had always liked that kind of vibe.


    Men don''t love women who aren''t a little bit naughty.


    She leaned against the window, her entire body exuding elegance and grace.


    Her snow-white legs were together, yet a large portion of them were exposed, teasingly visible through the high slit in her skirt.


    Her upper body, however, was conservative, with a high collar and beautiful buttons, accentuating her prominent chest. It made people unable to resist the urge to undo each and every button.


    Yes, these were things that Xiao Yu would do.


    Things he had done before.


    He liked women like her, passionate and straightforward.


    But now, the image of the girl who called him "Uncle" kept appearing in his mind.


    She wore a black dress, a knitted sweater, and white shoes, revealing only her neck and lower legs.


    She had a natural, makeup-free face, with slightly thick and slightly messy eyebrows.


    What did she look like the first time they met?


    Lying on the grass, laughing joyfully, hugging a horse affectionately.


    Sitting on a bus, the wind blowing through her hair, a big, carefree smile on her face.


    Riding a horse, galloping freely, exuding a unique and wild beauty.


    Meanwhile, some of the people inside this so-called Calligraphy Association had greasy hair, probably not washed for a week.


    How could someone from Xiao Yu''s family end up here?


    Just now, there was a young boy with the young girl. He seemed to come from a decent background, well-mannered and polite. However, they didn''t seem like a couple. Who knows, maybe the young girl came here to hang out with that boy?


    Xiao Yu''s mind was preoccupied with worries about his niece being influenced negatively.


    Jin An had heard that Xiao Yu had a niece, but something didn''t seem right. If she was Xiao Yu''s own niece, she seemed a bit distant.


    Uncertain whether to call him Uncle Xiao or Uncle Shao...


    Jin An''s smile was particularly dignified.


    She thought to herself that the Calligraphy Association was mostly composed of elderly men, and if she walked in, she would surely become the center of attention. Especially those self-proclaimed cultured old men, their gazes would be even more blatant.


    But when she and Xiao Yu approached, they saw that everyone in the Calligraphy Association was gathered in one place, completely ignoring them.


    This made Jin An feel a little, just a little uncomfortable...


    Xiao Yu looked around but didn''t see Su Xiaoqi.


    But as they approached, they discovered that everyone''s attention was focused on her.


    She stood in front of a table, her fair hand gripping a brush. She was wearing a black dress, a simple knitted sweater. The black dress tightly wrapped around her upper body, barely revealing a slight bulge, which was quite small, and of course, her waist was even more slender.


    She didn''t raise her head to look at anyone, just focused on writing.


    On the paper, the ink gradually increased, one character after another, appearing as if it were a computer special effect.


    The reason it felt like a computer special effect was because it was so well-written, like a deliberately posed composition.


    Xiaoqi was writing Su Shi''s "Thoughts on the Red Cliff" from the Song Dynasty.


    They had recited this article in class, and she had memorized it by heart. Now, as she read it again, she basically had it down.


    In addition to practicing calligraphy three times a day, she had not only invested a lot of energy, but also during this time at university, she had met more people and experienced more things, constantly maturing and developing her thoughts.


    She had faced the sparkling lights on the big stage and felt the applause and flowers from the audience.


    She had run a long race on her own.


    She had encountered goodwill and attacks from strangers.


    She had gained new friends.


    Her life had entered a new chapter.


    These little changes were shaping her, causing the seeds in her heart to break through their shells and grow upward bit by bit.


    There were some small shadows, but there was more sunlight.


    Just like her current calligraphy, her state of mind had elevated, and her writing had progressed rapidly.


    She had moved from an Intermediate Level+ to an Advanced Level+, already showing a hint of mastery.


    Most importantly, she was only seventeen years old.


    At this age, there were countless possibilities. Her writing brought joy to people, conveying a sense of vibrant growth and tenderness. Most importantly, it exuded a sense of positive progress, which was encouraging, positive, and inspiring.


    This was a piece of work that made people feel delighted upon seeing it, something they would want to collect and look at every day.


    As Xiaoqi finished writing, she didn''t use a seal, just habitually cleaned the brush and put it back in its place, tidying up.


    At this moment, the entire hall erupted in applause.


    As Jin An, who had just witnessed everything, suddenly understood the meaning behind Xiao Shao''s compliment that her handwriting was very good.

 Chapter 239: Painting

    Chapter 239


    A teenage girl, when writing, had a strong aura about her.


    Sitting in the car, Jin An thought back to that scene. Looking out at the tall buildings, she suddenly felt very envious.


    She didn''t envy the plain old backpack the girl had on. Rather, she envied how even with such a plain backpack, the girl still shone brilliantly.


    Jin An herself held a small handbag that cost over 30,000 yuan.


    Yet in the reflection of the car window she saw a heavily made-up woman, with an expression that seemed calculating or tired.


    Youth is so wonderful!


    She envied the girl''s youth, envied how without a trace of makeup on her face she was the center of attention.


    Xiao Yu drove Jin An, and he was quite the gentleman.


    Although he had first offered to drive Su Xiaoqi, she declined.


    After the calligraphy association event ended, little seven had left with President Li Luanliang.


    It was reasonable for President Li Luanliang to take the young student out, so he couldn''t just abandon her midway. He took her to a shop where he often bought paper and writing brushes.


    Xiaoqi bought quite a lot, her backpack bulging. She was very happy.


    She also felt the calligraphy she had produced in front of everyone was better than when practicing alone in her dorm. It must have been because of the superior paper and brushes here.


    So she was delighted to have found brushes and paper to her liking.


    Since the shop also sold painting brushes and paper, Xiaoqi bought some of those on a whim too.


    Li Luanliang safely dropped off Xiaoqi at the school gate, then drove off as he had a date.


    Xiaoqi felt quite embarrassed, as she hadn''t wanted the President to send her back. But Li Luanliang felt it was his duty not to abandon a young girl out alone, so he had insisted.


    This made Xiaoqi even more eager to get her driver''s license, as that would make trips to the city alliance more convenient.


    There was the birthday banquet for Xiao Bao''er tomorrow that Xiaoqi felt strange about attending, but Xiao Bao''er simply hadn''t given her an opportunity to decline.


    Also, when Xiaoqi had accepted the little gift last time, a hairclip that Xiao Bao''er had given her - she took it back to her dorm and Yunshu had surprisingly said it was quite expensive, over 1,000 yuan...


    That gave Xiaoqi a shock. What family has a little girl with a whole pile of hairclips in her bag, only to casually take one out worth over 1,000 yuan?


    But now looking back, lying on paper just messily painting whatever, mixing her own colors - that feeling seemed quite pure and beautiful.


    Anyway, with no one else in the dorm, Xiaoqi first practiced calligraphy for a bit with her usual supplies, settling her mood.


    She then spread out the drawing paper. She wanted to paint.


    What floated into her mind to paint was a scene of chubby Xiao Bao''er riding the tall Taylor. She wanted to capture that.


    But she still felt somewhat hesitant to start.


    Glancing at her interface, she saw she still had two unused cards - one was a sincere blessing, the other was a study improvement diamond card (effective for one course). Xiaoqi had originally planned to use it for her computer courses, as she felt those were more difficult for her. But that seemed too pragmatically self-serving.


    Speaking of personal interests...painting was one of hers. But it seemed unlikely for a poor country girl to treat it as a serious pursuit.


    She hadn''t heard of people eating by painting.


    Xiaoqi felt she had already gained so tremendously in life. She wanted to indulgently treat herself just a tiny bit sometimes.


    So she used that study improvement diamond card, designating painting as the course.


    The mechanical voice in her mind sounded: "Host''s painting skill has advanced from basic level to entry level. Host should continue working hard. Painting at least 100 hours, or host making a qualitative leap in skill that system recognizes, will allow further upgrade."


    Xiaoqi sighed lightly. Indeed, even her own feeling that she painted wonderfully with lots of talent - that was still just basic level.


    Diamond cards were hard to obtain because they allowed skill upgrade, but usually only by one level relative to current level. Most important was still one''s own sustained effort after using the card. Even diamond cards were useless without one striving in an area.


    She still had to resign herself to being average, without special talent.


    But despite acknowledging all this, her mood rebounded quickly.


    Picking up a brush she first started sketching outlines.


    Then she began mixing watercolor hues.


    Taylor was a pure black young stallion, quite handsome. Near his hindquarters was a scar on his back where the hair and texture differed slightly from the rest of his glossy, sleek coat. His gaze seemed melancholy at times.


    As for Xiao Bao''er - she had thick brows and big eyes below her little round face. Such round, full faces seemed favored by Western oil paintings of women.


    Xiaoqi pictured the skirt, stockings and shoes Xiao Bao''er had worn that day.


    Before she even realized night had fallen, and she''d forgotten to turn on the dorm lights...the only illumination was from some window light streaming in.

 Chapter 240: Xiao Bao ’er’s Birthday Party

    Chapter 240


    Xiao Bao''er''s birthday was on September 29th, two days before National Day.


    Last year, she went to kindergarten and experienced a disastrous birthday party.


    It was also on a weekend, and as a result, none of the friends she had invited came...


    Xiao Bao''er''s dad, mom, grandfather, grandmother had prepared a grand birthday party for her. They all felt their precious darling was so cute that there would definitely be many little friends coming and they had to entertain them well.


    Their little darling must be very popular and definitely the prettiest baby in the kindergarten...


    But when the day came, surprisingly...no one came.


    Xiao Bao''er''s parents and grandparents were all shocked speechless.


    Looking at the spacious garden decorated nicely, their precious daughter (granddaughter) sitting alone in front of a cake bigger than her, that scene completely broke the hearts of both pairs of elders. It was too pitiful...too pitiable.


    Afterwards, Xiao Bao''er''s parents went to the kindergarten to understand their daughter''s situation.


    Every time when she came home from school, she seemed very happy and seemed to have played very cheerfully. They didn''t expect the truth was...their daughter was too strong, she would make other little friends cry easily. Even the teacher couldn''t hold this kid. She was simply a human-shaped beast in the kindergarten... Every day she said she played very happily with this and that friend, but actually she played very unhappily with them.


    The whole kindergarten, including the teachers, lived in her shadow.


    But Xiao Bao''er came from an influential family. As long as nothing serious happened, and she was just playing around with other kids, the teachers would turn a blind eye.


    But going to Xiao Bao''er''s house for her birthday party was absolutely out of the question. She was already so dangerous in the kindergarten, going to her house would be sending themselves to the tiger''s mouth...


    So this year, Xiao Bao''er''s parents and grandparents were actually a little nervous. They didn''t want a repeat of last year''s disaster. They planned to invite their old friends'' grandchildren to liven things up.


    But unexpectedly, Xiao Bao''er shook her head resolutely and said she had friends to invite herself.


    Watching their daughter (granddaughter) in a little skirt, making calls to invite Xiao Qi to her birthday party in all seriousness, and the other party agreed, the elders all breathed a sigh of relief.


    Xiao Bao''er''s parents and grandparents had always thought Xiao Qi was some teacher''s kid from Enhua University''s side, they played together at the riding ground. They would send a car to pick her up tomorrow anyway and she must come.


    To be safe, they asked Sheng Zhou to pick her up.


    He seldom paid attention to girls in this aspect. He had zero experience in love.


    But at that moment, looking at the girl sitting behind from the rear mirror, her sleeping face was also blushing. Her eyelashes were especially long. The sleeping her seemed even prettier, and somehow more adorable.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know how long she had napped. When she woke up, the scenery outside the window was unfamiliar to her, there were farmlands, high-rises, and mostly patches of small villas. After a while they saw a huge lake. The lake surface was as green as jade.


    And Chairman''s car stopped in front of a big gate.


    It was really a grand house with a tall gate.


    After a while, the gate opened automatically. The car continued driving, seeming to be turning around small woods, then they saw a small villa.


    The car finally stopped.


    Xiao Qi also breathed a sigh of relief. She felt like she had broadened her horizons again.


    Her home was also through patches of mountain forests before one could get there. But those mountain forests didn''t belong to her family.


    To get to Chairman''s house one had to go through a garden landscape. She felt the garden was already part of his house.


    One was true rural area with inconvenient transport.


    One was true wealthy for the sake of secrecy.


    Hearing the car sound, the door of the small villa automatically opened again. Xiao Qi saw the elated Xiao Bao''er skipping out to welcome her.


    She wore a bright red cheongsam today. With thick brows and big eyes, her righteous round face and small round belly, seeing Xiao Qi get off the car, she charged over like a cannonball.


    It was thanks to Xiao Qi''s strong physique that she could bend down and scoop Xiao Bao''er up into her arms.


    Xiao Bao''er giggled happily, extremely delighted.


    At home, only her mother could barely carry her. And every time after carrying her, she had to secretly ask the family doctor to give her a massage.


    "I asked them to make lots of yummy food today, also cakes. We''ll have a cake eating competition later!" Xiao Bao''er whispered gleefully next to Xiao Qi.


    And seeing her daughter charge out, Mama Guo Ying thought it was her daughter''s little friend who came. She also came out. Unexpectedly she saw a girl who even came in her son''s car. Her eyes instantly lit up. Oh my! Her old son is finally becoming a man!

 Chapter 241: Family Dinner

    Chapter 241


    When Xiao Qi found out that this little girl was the friend Xiao Qi her daughter kept chattering about.


    Guo Ying: ......


    Her daughter''s mind worked in strange ways. No wonder she didn''t like the little kids in kindergarten. Look at the standard she uses to make friends¨Cthey¡¯re all so much older than her.


    It made her reflect whether it was because there were no kids her own age at home, which made her daughter mature so early.


    When Xiao Qi saw the chairwoman''s mother, she was very enthusiastic. She was dressed very elegantly, wearing a long dress, with her hair tied loosely. She looked like a very beautiful and graceful woman, a bit different from the other women Xiao Qi had interacted with before.


    Jiajia''s mother, Liang Lady, ran a small business and was single. She had the air of a strong, independent woman, very shrewd, and gave off a calculating feeling. Xiao Qi''s Japanese teacher, Zhou Meiling, was a civil servant with a well-off family background. She was somewhat petty bourgeois who pursued elegance, but was still quite limited in reality. In Lushan City she was already considered quite unrestrained.


    Xiao Qi liked her tutor for Introduction to Marxism, Mao Xihong, who worked part-time with the Communist Youth League. She was very open and didn''t pay much attention to her appearance, but had the capable air of an academic and cultured person.


    As for Teacher Lu who taught calculus, he was already very old and had a lot of bearing. He felt like he had a deep cultural foundation, but belonged to another age group.


    In contrast, Xiao Bao''er''s mother in front of her could be said to be the gentlest of all the women Xiao Qi knew. Her smile made people feel extremely comfortable and ladylike.


    The contrast with Chu Yu in class was obvious. Chu Yu also often smiled like that, but it felt superficial, while Xiao Bao''er''s mother''s smile right now really made people feel like a spring breeze. It didn''t make Xiao Qi feel pressured at all.


    It dissipated a lot of Xiao Qi''s nervousness.


    She had originally thought there would be a bunch of kids at Xiao Bao''er''s birthday party that she was just there to make up numbers. She didn''t expect that it would be just Xiao Bao''er''s family.


    There was Xiao Bao''er''s parents, grandparents, and Uncle Xiao who had just woken up in time for the meal.


    Xiao Qi felt quite awkward, as if she had barged in on their family gathering.


    The gift she had prepared made Xiao Bao''er very happy. She ceremoniously put out the painting Xiao Qi had drawn, as well as the little box Xiao Qi had made.


    Xiao Bao''er''s mother also earnestly praised both gifts. She not only appreciated the painting, but also greatly admired the little box Xiao Qi had handcrafted herself.


    Moreover, unlike the exaggerated and somewhat pretentious praises of foreign teachers, she praised Xiao Qi very sincerely and carefully, making Xiao Qi feel like she hadn''t gifted a small box, but an extremely precious item.


    She could only say modestly, "My dad is a craftsman. He''s very skilled. I''ve only learned a little bit."


    At the meal, Xiao Qi saw Xiao Bao''er''s whole family. Xiao Bao''er''s father indeed had a righteous face, just like his grandfather. Their genes were very consistent, with thick eyebrows and big eyes. Xiao Bao''er''s grandfather just had more wrinkles on his face.


    Xiao Bao''er''s grandmother was also quite a beautiful old lady.


    Probably to match her granddaughter''s birthday, she also wore a cheongsam.


    The purple-red cheongsam worn by the old lady was very gorgeous. Although her face was full of wrinkles, it didn''t detract from her beauty at all.


    Her gaze at Xiao Qi was also quite warm.


    It was also rare for Xiao Qi to see Uncle Xiao at home, and he seemed very well-behaved, as meek as a rabbit.


    Xiao Bao''er sat next to Xiao Qi and ceremoniously introduced her again. Then she ate with Xiao Qi, making an effort to feed herself and competing to add more rice, saying she couldn''t lose to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi: ......


    Well, she had trained horse riding all morning today, so her appetite was even bigger than usual.


    Aside from eating a large slice of cake, she ate three bowls of rice along with a lot of dishes.


    Since it was the little girl''s birthday, the dishes were very abundant too. And because Liancheng was a coastal city, there was a lot of seafood.


    It was Xiao Qi''s first time eating shrimp crawl, which were not grass shrimp or lobster, but something in between with a similar appearance - thick and plump with a lot of meat, a bit like aliens.


    There were also many strange shelled snails that she found very fresh but tedious to eat.


    Although she tried to restrain herself, tasting each dish meant it still added up to a lot.


    Xiao Bao''er''s family didn''t expect the young girl to have such a good appetite. Mainly because Xiao Bao''er also ate very happily for once, her little cheongsam bulging out below from her fuller belly.


    After the meal, Xiao Bao''er took Xiao Qi for a walk around the yard with her little gifts and the mini pony, to aid their digestion.


    Xiao Bao''er''s mother and grandmother both had kindly expressions.


    They were thinking the same thing: Our son is finally interested in girls. This one is pretty good. Just looking at how much she eats, being able to eat another bowl, she''ll be very fortunate.

 Chapter 242: Little Bits of Progress

    Chapter 242


    Xiao Bao''er was taking an afternoon nap, Xiao Qi went back. She struggled to pull Xiao Qi''s hand for a long time because she held Xiao Qi''s hand tightly when she was sleeping.


    The world of little girls is so wonderful. They would suddenly be very nice and love some person, as if they were reluctant to leave even between life and death. But they also forget very quickly and probably won''t remember for long.


    Xiao Qi could not stay here for long.


    This time, Xiao Yu finally seized the opportunity and took the initiative to send Xiao Qi back to school.


    Xiao Shengzhou happened to be busy, so he let his young uncle send her.


    The main reason was that his uncle had stepped on him six times. If he stepped on him again, his shoes would be scrapped.


    When Guo Ying saw her silly son bring a little girl home, but he didn''t even know to send her back and asked his uncle for help because he was busy...


    She almost suffocated from anger.


    After Xiao Bao''er woke up and found Xiao Qi had left, she cried loudly again.


    Xiao Shengzhou took out his phone, opened Enhua''s TikTok, and showed Xiao Qi to Xiao Bao''er. Only then did Xiao Bao''er slowly sob while watching Xiao Qi.


    When Xiao''s Mama and Xiao''s Grandma saw the birthday girl crying, they were naturally busy, blaming Xiao Shengzhou for letting the child play with the phone while accompanying her to watch the phone.


    Then they saw the little girl just now. Her English was so fluent, her writing was so neat, and her singing was so nice...


    The more they looked, the more pleasing she was to the eye. Little girls nowadays are so amazing. Not only do they look pleasing to the eye, they are quite talented.


    The more the two of them watched, the more satisfied they became.


    When Guo Ying saw her old son wandering in the living room...


    When Xiao''s Grandma thought of her old son''s taste finally becoming proper for once...


    It was Xiao Qi''s first time sitting in a convertible sports car. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    The sunshine in the afternoon was not glaring. The roar of the car did feel very exciting.


    But she also felt that it would spread some rumors again if her classmates saw Uncle Xiao sending her to the school gate.


    Xiao Yu deliberately chose a two-seater sports car with intentions. If he chose a four-seater, Xiao Qi would definitely sit in the back. With two seats, she had no choice but to sit next to him no matter what.


    Xiao Qi was still a little restrained when she got in the car and didn''t know what to say. She carefully examined the car and found that many details of the sports car were different from other cars. Even the door handles were different. She couldn''t recognize what brand it was either, just that it was a champagne colored car giving a dainty feeling.


    Xiao Yu kept looking for topics to chat with Xiao Qi, while Xiao Qi was holding tight to her seat belt.


    She simply didn''t feel safe sitting in the sports car, especially around bends. But unexpectedly Uncle Xiao was talkative, still finding things to say when he had nothing to say, very distracted while driving. Xiao Qi''s back was erect the whole time.


    Finally, they were close to the school. Xiao Qi quickly said, "Uncle Xiao, you can drop me off here. I want to walk a bit."


    Xiao Yu: ??How unpresentable am I??


    Xiao Qi could only explain, "It would be too high-profile at the school gate and easily cause misunderstandings."


    The rejected Xiao Yu could only stop the car gentlemanly and then turned around. Seeing the little girl get off, he breathed a sigh of relief. She walked away happily...


    Of his previous girlfriends, which one didn''t hope he would directly send her upstairs.


    The little girl actually wanted to avoid suspicion.


    However, at least he got the little girl''s WeChat.


    Xiao Yu said he was worried Xiao Bao''er would wake up crying and added her WeChat to check on Xiao Bao''er.


    Xiao Qi didn''t figure out the logic behind it either, but somehow she added him on WeChat.


    After getting off and walking for a bit, she felt much more comfortable.


    Xiao Qi felt their auras didn''t match. She also wasn''t used to being alone with uncle-aged men like Xiao Yu.


    Back at her dorm, Xiao Qi went running.


    Although it was Xiao Bao''er''s birthday, facing the whole family still put quite some pressure on her. Although Xiao Qi had made psychological preparation not to be nervous or afraid, and behaved generously, the difference between her original family and this one was just too huge. That environment was literally an eye-opener for her. Xiao Qi still felt uneasy.


    Indeed, people like playing with little kids and animals probably because there''s no need to consider too much. The adult world was far more complicated.


    But there was still progress. At first when she went to tutor at Ms. Liang''s home, it was just a family slightly better off. The floor was shiny and the ceiling was nice. Now when she thought back, it was just an ordinary house decorated a little better. Yet she was so nervous that her hands and feet turned numb, restrained and not knowing where to put herself.


    But now she had gone to Xiao Bao''er''s home with its gardened villa, and she was actually able to calmly eat a meal without the initial restraint and tension. That was tremendous progress!


    People were also very social animals, constantly needing to interact with different people. Just like Uncle Xiao who sent her back was a completely different world of people.


    While jogging, Xiao Qi''s thoughts wandered and she randomly pondered. She felt her performance over the weekend was basically still good without being too bad. But overall, she was still restrained. Also, such activities didn''t really suit her. She should try to participate less in the future and focus more on studying to improve herself, which was the main path.


    When studying, she felt the world was in her grasp. Without studying, she felt the world still held her in its grasp.

 Chapter 243: Farewell and Welcome

    Chapter 243


    September 30, Monday.


    It was the last day of classes before the National Day Holiday, and actually some clever students had already asked for leave today, combining it with the weekend for a total 10-day National Day vacation.


    There were many new students in Class 7, so not too many asked for leave, but there were still fewer people in the classroom.


    After the Academic English class, the Information Management System class taught by Teacher Bai who liked to tell jokes about food was changed to Teacher Shi''s Marketing class on Wednesday... Clearly Teacher Bai was another one of those clever ones who asked for leave to go back home...


    Just happened that Xiaoqi had lots of questions to ask Teacher Shi about painting, so after class, she specially went to find Teacher Shi, and brought a painting she did yesterday, to show Teacher Shi. She didn''t know what was wrong with it, she just felt it wasn''t as good as the first painting.


    Shi Zhaolai really liked painting, he was also a fairly well-known artist. One of his small paintings sold for 800, and a large one sold for 2000. Although they weren''t sold everywhere, he still had some loyal fans who liked his paintings and were willing to buy them.


    Xiaoqi really liked Teacher Shi''s painting of the rice paddies.


    She was also willing to buy it, because that was the value of his labor.


    It wasn''t just the 5 minutes Teacher Shi spent painting, but was the accumulation of decades of hard work, inspiration, and life experiences before that enabled him to produce such a work in those 5 minutes of swift, flowing strokes.


    However, that painting had already been purchased by someone else. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    Shi Zhaolai looked very carefully at the painting his student presented. He felt it was quite good, already exhibiting some spirit and her own painting style. At least she had entered the door in painting. But it was a little rushed, and the strokes were somewhat immature.


    "You''ve painted very well, but painting is also a process of dripping water wearing away rock. If you really like painting, I suggest you practice more every day. Inspiration is certainly important, but fundamentals are the cornerstone on which inspiration and everything else is built. Without fundamentals, talking about inspiration or anything else is like building castles in the air. Try to paint at least one piece every day, no restrictions on subject, paint what you want to paint. This is what I do every day. In this area I''m not an expert either, I can only say we can explore together. Your use of color already exhibits some style, which is great."


    Xiaoqi listened and kept nodding. She really couldn''t be lazy.


    The teacher said it very clearly, she just needed more practice. Hearing that Teacher Shi painted a few pieces every day, Xiaoqi felt that he was right, there were no shortcuts to success, only continuous hard work.


    And below, Chu Yu saw Xiaoqi chatting and laughing with the Marketing teacher, and couldn''t help sneering again. Su Xiaoqi really buttered up everyone. Earlier it was the Academic English teacher who was from the Qingmeng League, so she cozied up and that was understandable, but Teacher Shi was just a young teacher at Huanhua, he said himself his family was very poor, yet Xiaoqi still tried to curry favor with him. She really was crafty, if you didn''t know better you''d think she tested into Huanhua instead of Qingbei!


    After Teacher Betty''s foreign teacher class in the afternoon, the National Day holiday would start.


    Betty had also joined their group chat and would occasionally pop in to chat a bit. They said they were organizing some activities over the National Day holiday together.


    Mrs. Liang had actually agreed, and gave Xiaoqi a call entrusting Jiajia to her - she really dared to presume.


    It was perfect, Xiaoqi had Jiajia stay in the dorm. Of her roommates, Weicheng had the best temper, so Xiaoqi asked her to let Jiajia sleep in her bed.


    It wasn''t bullying, it''s just that easygoing creatures were easily taken advantage of.


    So Xiaoqi also went with Yunshu''s car to the train station, to send off Mimi and also to pick someone up.


    At the train station, Mimi hugged Xiaoqi tightly for a good while before letting go to enter the station, repeatedly reminding her: "Send me video of the competition, I can watch it at home. I''ll bring back lots of delicious food when I come back, we have lots of good stuff."


    Xiaoqi felt a little smothered from her busty roommate''s embrace... Finally sent her off.


    Then she wandered the station a bit, buying some snacks, before going to the exit around the time Jiajia would arrive.


    From far away, she saw a girl with bobbed hair bouncing and skipping energetically, hauling a huge pink suitcase, waving her arms and shouting "Teacher, I''m here, I''m here!" before even leaving the station exit.


    Seeing her, Xiaoqi felt she looked much more spirited than when they first met, seeming to have grown up a lot. Young girls shoot up in height so quickly, like beansprouts. She smiled brightly with a full set of teeth.


    Xiaoqi met up with Jiajia, then gave Mrs. Liang a video call so they could both say hi.


    Then she hailed a Shenzhou taxi, and helped lug Jiajia''s huge heavy suitcase to go sit in the cab. The suitcase was not only huge but really heavy.


    "How did you carry this yourself, it''s so heavy?"


    "There were nice uncles and brothers along the way who helped carry it. It contains my latest equipment." Liang Jiajia spoke excitedly. She had brought a whole set of photography equipment, tripods, all to shoot the marathon. If not for her mom refusing to buy her a drone, she could have done aerial shots too.


    "Teacher, I had to beg my mom for a long time, and promise I''d test in the top 3 in my class on the final, before she''d agree to let me come."


    "What''s your class ranking now?" Xiaoqi asked curiously.


    "Uhmm..." Liang Jiajia counted on her fingers, thinking for a bit before answering: "Top 30, no, top 25 I guess."


    Xiaoqi: ...

 Chapter 244: Physical Improvement

    Chapter 244


    Xiao Qi moved Jiajia''s luggage back to the dormitory, which was on the fifth floor without an elevator. Everything had to be carried up by hand.


    Fortunately, Xiao Qi was quite strong. Otherwise, moving such a large suitcase up the stairs would have been difficult.


    After informing the dorm supervisor and registering Jiajia, Xiao Qi took her to the cafeteria for a meal.


    For the first meal, Xiao Qi still took Jiajia to the school cafeteria.


    Enhua University''s large cafeteria was beautiful, and the food was clean, though the flavors were relatively light. Since the little girl had just arrived, Xiao Qi was worried about her getting a stomachache if they went to the student street, so they went to the cafeteria.


    Everything was new and exciting for Jiajia since it was her teacher''s school. The university was so big that even the cafeteria seemed larger than the teaching building at her junior high.


    There was even a new district and an old district.


    It was the day before vacation, so the school was relatively empty. The cafeteria was the same, with most students leaving in the afternoon.


    Some of the classmates were local to the alliance city, and basically went home for the weekends, let alone for the National Day holiday.


    The class monitor had also sent a message in the group chat telling everyone to be safe over the National Day and did a tally of the students staying on campus during the holiday. Xiao Qi felt that the class monitor was quite responsible.


    When Li Weijin saw that Xiao Qi was not going home for the National Day holiday on the list of students staying on campus, he inexplicably felt a little excited. However, because his injured foot was not yet healed, his uncle Rong picked him up from school and took him home after class...


    The cafeteria was spacious but not very crowded. There was still a wide variety of food available.


    With the self-service model, Xiao Qi let Jiajia take whatever she wanted while she paid with her student card.


    Before Jiajia came to visit, Lady Liang had first transferred 5,000 yuan to Xiao Qi, intending it to cover Jiajia''s expenses over the next few days.


    Of course, Xiao Qi did not need the money and was not lacking funds.


    She had told Lady Liang about her part-time work on campus and winning prize money in a singing competition.


    After hearing about it, Lady Liang did not insist on giving the money. She just felt that the young girl was very capable and knew how to handle herself well. Although giving a lot of money to her naive daughter and telling her not to spend it recklessly was unlikely to work, she wanted to find other ways to help the capable young girl.


    She suddenly felt the teacher''s temperament had become even better since starting university, with a kind of inexplicably powerful aura.


    After finishing her stretching routine, Xiao Qi returned to the dorm to shower while Jiajia sat at the computer processing her photos.


    She processed them very carefully. After finishing, she edited them into a video and posted it on Douyin.


    She was finally by the teacher''s side again. Although during this time, her Douyin works also gained some popularity, with several thousand likes and occasionally over ten thousand, it was not even comparable to the teacher''s Douyin posts.


    After editing the video, she happily posted it and couldn''t resist browsing Douyin.


    When Xiao Qi came out after her shower, she saw the little girl engrossed in Douyin.


    "Lady Liang did say I should supervise you to do your homework during the vacation," she said.


    "It''s fine, there''s very little homework. I can finish it in the last day, no, half a day," Jiajia said unconcernedly.


    Xiao Qi shook her head, thinking since it was only the first day she wouldn''t push it.


    She started her daily routine, beginning with calligraphy practice.


    Practicing calligraphy had become a habit ingrained in Xiao Qi''s bones. She felt the process of practice calmed her mood and settled her state. Doing calligraphy first before starting other studies put her in an optimal focused state and greatly increased her efficiency.


    Jiajia had originally been engrossed in Douyin, but inadvertently glanced up and saw the teacher sitting properly and seriously, completely focused on her calligraphy practice. There were occasional sounds of frolicking from the corridor, and constant music from her Douyin feed, and from outside the window - she wasn''t sure where - there were sporadic noisy and musical sounds.


    But the teacher seemed oblivious to it all, quietly writing her calligraphy. She was completely immersed in it.


    Jiajia knew the teacher''s calligraphy was already extremely good. She also followed Enhua University''s official Douyin and occasionally saw posts of Teacher Xiao Qi. But seeing a teacher who could write so beautifully still diligently practicing calligraphy and taking it more seriously than anyone else, she didn''t disturb the teacher and quietly took out her homework, turned off her phone, and started doing it.


    Homework she usually hated so much didn''t seem so annoying or difficult now. When she encountered problems, she took out her phone to look up the answers, whereas before she would have just copied them outright. But today she carefully read through the material to understand it before turning her phone off, redoing the problem herself, and then checking the answer.


    The half hour of calligraphy practice time passed quickly.


    Xiao Qi habitually cleaned up her brush, ink, and paper. Just as she stood up, the mechanical sound rang out: "Host diligently studying has brought progress and positive energy to those around her. Reward: host physique +1. Host''s original physique was an ordinary healthy human. After +1 physique is now a strong healthy human."

 Chapter 245: Training

    Chapter 245


    The next morning, it was National Day.


    There were red flags and colorful banners fluttering everywhere in the school, celebrating National Day.


    However, there were much fewer students, and more than half had left the school.


    Xiao Qi had tasks in the morning, running and going to practice horse riding, as the marathon horse riding competition was about to start. Although it was impossible to suddenly gain skills at the last minute, running was different from exams. She felt it was better to persist every day and make it a habit.


    The night before, Jiajia had earnestly done her homework, and felt refreshed after finishing most of the homework she brought with her. The little girl still had endless energy after running around yesterday.


    In the morning, Xiao Qi still ran in the dormitory area. She had thought about running to the horse farm where the scenery was also good, but considering that Jiajia probably could not run that far, she just ran in the dormitory area.


    Jiajia did not sleep late as her mother had said. She not only got up early with Teacher Xiao Qi, but also called home to wake up her mother.


    Xiao Qi still got up early to practice calligraphy and then went running, without paying attention to the little tail following behind her.


    Jiajia took another set of morning run photos of the girl, and was very excited.


    After running, Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory, studied Japanese for half an hour, then took a shower and took Jiajia to the canteen for breakfast. After eating, the two took a bus to the new district.


    Jiajia was stunned when she saw the horse farm. It was like when Granny Liu entered Grand View Garden, exclaiming at everything she saw.


    Xiao Qi thought she was like this at first too, just too shy to yell like the little girl.


    Coach Steven could be said to have greeted Xiao Qi warmly. His stiff face squeezed out a smile.


    Xiao Qi was still training basics at the horse farm now, mainly training speed and cooperation with the horses.


    Although Ji Gu was the highest pedigree horse at the farm, Steven did not let Xiao Qi only ride Ji Gu. He asked Xiao Qi to choose a different horse every day to adapt to the temperaments of various horses and challenge the speed of each horse.


    Usually in the morning, riding horses made Xiao Qi a little tired. But today she felt energetic after riding all morning. Her physical condition was still very good. She thought it must be due to the +1 Constitution yesterday.


    She had thought her daily 30,000 steps of running and persistent swimming kept her in good shape. But it turned out she was just an ordinary healthy person. Reaching the level of a strong and healthy person felt different. It was not just about strength. It was as if her body was originally a small easy-open can that was full and heavy. Now it seemed to have turned into a family-size Coke bottle, and there was still room for more.


    She felt more relaxed and leisurely.


    To explain in a martial arts style, it was as if her meridians had expanded. Her blood vessels seemed much thicker, making everything easier and more effortless.


    Jiajia was on the side and did not disturb them. Apart from the initial shock, she then excitedly took photos from all angles with her camera.


    She kept shooting until the camera battery flashed before reluctantly stopping.


    She realized she was also sweaty, with flushed cheeks, and had even video called her mother in between to show her mother the scene of Teacher Xiao Qi riding.


    On the phone, Lady Liang was also shocked. It was hard to imagine the girl galloping on horseback was the nervous little girl who came to her house for the interview at first, fiddling with her hands.


    After training, Xiao Qi took a shower again. Then she had the club lunch with Jiajia and the coach. There was only one cook on duty today since it was a holiday, and it was the Chinese chef.


    With running training every day, taking showers two to three times a day, and the weather turning cooler, Xiao Qi was in desperate need of clothes. She planned to take Jiajia shopping in the city today to buy some clothes.


    Lin Min had not gone home either. Xiao Qi was going to see how he was doing, and take Jiajia to tour Qingmeng University, which would also count as receiving the influence of a prestigious university. She had not been there herself and was quite looking forward to it.

 Chapter 246: The Irreversibility

    Chapter 246


    After eating their fill, they took coach Steven''s ride into town.


    There were two idle cars in the horse farm, one was a pickup that was usually used to transport things.


    The other one was a Toyota SUV that could be used to get around. Steven lived at the horse farm so this car had been driven by him recently. Since he happened to be going into town, he gave Xiao Qi and Jiajia a ride because it was on the way. He directly dropped off Xiao Qi at Qingmeng University.


    Sure enough it was a prestigious institution. Enhua University was deserted and bleak during the National Day holidays, if not for the many banners you wouldn¡¯t even be able to tell it was during National Day. Qingmeng University was different, the school gate was even more exaggerated than an attraction entrance, with people lining up all the way.


    Many people wanted to visit the school.


    Qingmeng University allowed public access, but you needed to show your ID.


    There were too many people, the line felt like it would take 1-2 hours.


    Xiao Qi called Brother Lin Min.


    ¡°Where are you guys?¡±


    Xiao Qi looked left and right, and described an obvious location, ¡°You guys are at the McDonald''s entrance diagonally across from your school''s main gate.¡±


    ¡°Then you guys wait for me there, I¡¯ll come out to get you.¡±


    Xiao Qi bought ice cream cones for herself and Jiajia while they waited. They hadn¡¯t finished eating the cones when Brother Lin Min appeared.


    Brother Lin Min rode over on a blue bicycle. He was wearing a white t-shirt and sweatpants. His skin was a bit tanned and he had a big smile on his face, looking brighter than before.


    When Lin Min saw Xiao Qi, she was also wearing a white t-shirt with jeans. She seemed to have gotten taller again, tall and slender. Her hairstyle was still the same but she seemed more confident than before.


    He actually saw her often now because he specifically followed Enhua''s TikTok account. Just a few days ago he saw her presentation. That girl next door who used to always have her head down diligently studying, was now on stage speaking confidently with a big smile, great aura, and fluent English. It was like watching a blossoming flower slowly bloom.


    Seeing her in person with her student Jiajia, both seriously licking ice cream cones, Lin Min¡¯s heart raced wildly. There was excitement from seeing a familiar face in a strange land, and leaping joy from seeing the little girl buried in his heart again.


    She was still her.


    After parking his bike, he walked over.


    ¡°Xiao Qi, Jiajia.¡± Lin Min called out.


    Xiao Qi also smiled, ¡°Brother Lin Min.¡±


    Jiajia echoed, ¡°Brother Lin Min.¡±


    ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll take you guys in through the side entrance so you don¡¯t have to line up.¡±


    Lin Min deftly led them around to a lively little street. All kinds of little shops lined the way, very prosperous. The customers were all young people, probably Qingmeng students.


    There were many snacks along the way that Jiajia couldn¡¯t resist even though she had just eaten. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    There were also many people exercising on the track field, running, playing ball, soccer.


    Overall it gave off a feeling of great vitality.


    Xiao Qi usually felt she worked very hard, but seeing Qingmeng students, she realized her efforts were just basic at this school where all the students were like this. She suddenly felt somewhat complacent, still too arrogant, and that she should calm down and focus on studying.


    Jiajia was amazed everywhere they went.


    She couldn''t believe Qingmeng University had a beach, with the back gate opening right to the ocean. It was so beautiful.


    The seaside beach lined with coconut trees was completely different from Enhua which also had a bay but couldn''t compare with the scenery and long boardwalk here, as well as the vast ocean.


    That night they ate a hearty seafood dinner together at a small shop by the beach, with shellfish, fish, shrimp and more, stir fried spicy, very affordable pricing aimed at students since it was near the back school gate.


    Jiajia had her camera around her neck the whole day. She took photos of anything fun or interesting, focusing mainly on Teacher Xiao Qi. Now that Brother Lin Min had joined them, she got shots of him too.


    Initially when selecting a tutor, Jiajia had actually liked this boy quite a bit, mainly because he was handsome. She didn''t expect her mom to choose Teacher Xiao Qi. She was a bit resistant at first, but a young girl wouldn''t tell her mom she wanted that boy. If she did say that, her mom definitely wouldn''t let that boy tutor her, and she''d certainly get a scolding and all kinds of counseling.


    Lin Min was very happy today. Since starting university, besides studying, his mind had been occupied with making money.


    He rarely relaxed like this. Although he had been all over Qingmeng before, his mind was filled with thoughts about earning money rather than appreciating the scenery. Today was the first time he earnestly toured his own campus as if sightseeing.


    It was also one of the only times he didn''t overthink, simply walking around and eating.


    He knew Xiao Qi had a big appetite and ordered a lot of food. Seeing her eat everything up and their group finishing almost all the dishes, he felt very delighted.


    He wanted to treat Xiao Qi to a meal and had looked forward to this day for a long time.


    In his imagination it would be a high rise restaurant with ocean views and floor to ceiling windows.


    Now there was an ocean view, albeit from a small shop, looking out directly at the sea. Everything else was missing - no high rise, no windows, no music, no elegant lighting. But they still ate very happily.


    Lin Min was extremely happy, feeling today was the most relaxed and joyful day since coming to Qingmeng.


    Xiao Qi was savoring some small conch, very tiny but very flavorful. She carefully sucked them out.


    Out of the blue, a mechanical sound rang out in Xiao Qi''s mind: "The host has a positive and optimistic attitude, which has brought positive energy to the moderately corrupted teenage boy next to her and reduced his level of corruption. The host is rewarded with the most suitable pair of running shoes."


    Xiao Qi almost choked on the snail she was sucking...


    What the hell are the most suitable running shoes?


    And will Brother Lin Min be moderately corrupted forever? Where exactly is the reduction happening each time?


    Xiao Qi curiously asked in her mind.


    The mechanical sound rang out mechanically: "Moderate corruption is irreversible in psychiatric medicine. Only mild corruption has the possibility of being cured. The host has already achieved a breakthrough in medical history. Please continue your hard work, host."

 Chapter 247: Running Shoes

    Chapter 247


    After eating, Xiao Qi decided to take Jiajia shopping.


    Lin Minji had accumulated a day''s worth of work that was not done, so he could only go back to work, but he was in a very good mood. His roommates rarely saw him with a full smile on his face. Usually he had a stern face, even when teachers praised him, they didn''t see him so happy.


    There were just too many shopping malls in Meng City. Xiao Qi just chose a nearby one, Longhua Department Store.


    Mainly because she was very curious, where was the prize running shoes?


    Although there was an icon of running shoes on the interface, it was gray, and the item did not exist.


    This was the first time the system had rewarded such a physical item. Xiao Qi guessed, did she have to buy it herself before it counted?


    She was going to buy shoes anyway. She ran every day and went through shoes quickly. But she was also worried that if she bought new shoes, even if she practiced running these days, when it came to the marathon, the shoes would still be too new.


    Brand new shoes can rub your feet when running, old shoes are better.


    Longhua Department Store was huge, with fast consumer brands, Uniqlo, ZARA, H&M, probably also because there was a nearby university, these brands could all be considered good value for money. Especially ZARA and H&M, they kept up with fashion trends. The quality of the clothes was average, but the styles were very trendy. With some effort you could pick some very nice and unique outfits.


    After entering such fast fashion clothing stores, shopping felt completely different from buying clothes in Lvshan City. Here it was like a self-service supermarket, choosing clothes very freely, you could just take the nice ones to try on, without feeling awkward with one or two service staff following you if you didn''t buy anything.


    The only problem was there were too many people, possibly also because it was National Day, in addition to local people in Meng City, there were many tourists too.


    Jiajia and Xiao Qi took turns picking out clothes to help hold places in line, which saved some time.


    The two bought two or three sets of clothes each.


    Jiajia didn''t have much concept, Xiao Qi was quite busy, and didn''t often come to Meng City. It was changing seasons again, so she picked a little more.


    Then Xiao Qi went to Uniqlo to get some basic pieces. After being with Honey for a while, she felt like she had learned a little about looking at fabrics and such. She felt Uniqlo''s clothes were a little better in terms of quality and so on.


    At least some of the clothes wouldn''t rip like the ones at the other store if she pulled on them a little hard.


    Then they went upstairs to buy shoes, there was a special sports store on the fifth floor.


    Xiao Qi and Jiajia walked around together, and finally at the Nike store, she saw a pair of shoes.


    There was the whistling sound of cars passing by outside the window, and a rosy little cheek leaning on her shoulder.


    The feeling of deep night and quiet, Xiao Qi listened to the speech coming through her earbuds, this time it was a speech by a man with a broken leg, it seemed he made a living by giving speeches now. He spoke very passionately, the first time Xiao Qi listened she was also very moved, feeling that even though this person''s body was like this, only half, he was still so inspirational.


    But after listening many times, she started to feel tired.


    It was probably similar to the way of dealing with people and feelings.


    At first hearing someone close praise someone, she would also be curious to learn more, and then feel they were really amazing, but after hearing it many times she became numb to it. If some bad news suddenly came out about that person one day, she would suddenly have a bad feeling.


    Xiao Qi still didn''t fully understand these complex emotional changes, but she would remind herself, do more and show off less, focus on the fundamentals.


    When they arrived at the school, Jiajia groggily got out of the car. Xiao Qi took today''s haul, and the two went back to the dorm together.


    After taking a shower Jiajia finally woke up again. After shopping all day she really was very tired, too lazy to even move.


    Xiao Qi looked at her step count - women could walk over 20,000 steps shopping, no wonder Jiajia was exhausted. She still needed about 13,000 steps to reach her goal, so she went for a run wearing the new running shoes she bought today to break them in.


    After changing shoes and clothes, Xiao Qi went downstairs.


    Jiajia couldn''t come along to take photos today, soaking her feet. She was lying in front of the computer in the teacher''s dorm sorting through the photos and videos from today.


    Xiao Qi really felt like running today. And not just around the dorms, as she ran she went outside. The new running shoes fit her feet very well, she felt like she was running lighter and faster than usual. Indeed, upgrading her equipment seemed to have increased her stats, making her whole being seem to have increased a level.


    Running around campus gave her a different feeling.


    Compared to Qingmeng University, Enhua University was like a child that hadn''t grown up yet. The trees were all small, transplanted, but it was very spacious everywhere, open and broad, leaving lots of room for new developments.


    Xiao Qi envied Qingmeng University''s reputation, and the strong academic atmosphere inside, but coming back to Enhua, she still felt more intimate, liking the openness and grandeur here, also the inclusiveness. She would probably feel more stressed at Qingmeng with the pressure being too great, but Enhua was relaxing, the feeling of autonomous learning and striving made her feel very comfortable too.


    The place you''re in may not be the best, but it''s suitable for you.


    Xiao Qi suddenly had this feeling.


    The little seed in her heart seemed to have broken through another layer of its wrapping, growing upward a bit more.


    The night breeze was very warm, not cool or hot, just right.

 Chapter 248: Liang Jiajia’s Life Records and Observations

    Chapter 248


    Over the next two days, Xiao Qi stayed at school and did not go out.


    She led a very earnest life during the holiday.


    Liang Jiajia did not feel bored either, following the teacher around. Her temper seemed much more steady than when she first arrived.


    She just kept taking pictures with her camera all day long.


    In the dormitory, she even set up a tripod for her camera.


    Xiao Qi was used to Liang Jiajia''s quirk. When she was a home tutor, the little girl was like this too, with a video camera set up in the study room.


    During the holiday, Xiao Qi went jogging, worked at the stables, practiced horse riding, went to the library to read, practiced calligraphy every day, listened to English speeches, studied Japanese, and since there was more time during the holiday, she also squeezed out a little time to paint. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    Her classmate Liang Jiajia was thrilled to model for her.


    Xiao Qi felt that she liked painting people from the beginning, it seemed that people attracted her more than scenery, probably because there were more changing details and emotions.


    During the holidays, teachers were still on duty at night as usual.


    Xiao Qi also went to evening self-study as usual. It was more motivating to study in the classroom. She reviewed and consolidated what she had learned in class, and previewed what she was going to learn next.


    So although it was during the holidays, Xiao Qi''s schedule was very full.


    Meanwhile, Liang Jiajia, the faithful recorder, was recording the teacher''s daily life and she was very shocked.


    Previously she only knew that Teacher Xiao Qi was a hardworking student. Her mother also told her to learn from Teacher Xiao Qi. But seeing it in person and just hearing about it were different after all.


    From morning to night, without deliberate arrangement, eating, napping and sleeping on time, but basically no time was wasted. Jogging, horse riding training, studying - all fragmentary time was fully arranged. Whether it was learning or exercising, it was very fulfilling, yet she didn''t seem tired at all.


    Really, even just watching, Liang Jiajia didn''t feel too tired.


    On the contrary, sometimes when she inadvertently played mobile games or scrolled through Douyin, one or two hours would pass by, and she felt quite tired playing them - sometimes her eyes felt sore, sometimes her hands were sore from tapping, encountering bad teammates made her frustrated, she couldn''t help but spew some foul language and ask if the other person was a pig.


    But Teacher Xiao Qi had always been like this, arranging her life diligently and meticulously without slacking off at all.


    Teacher Xiao Qi also had Douyin on her phone, but she had set it to teen mode, which locked automatically after an hour. She didn''t even know the password, she just let her roommate set it randomly.


    As for jogging, it was part of her daily routine. If she didn''t have a competition coming up, Xiao Qi would take it easier.


    Xiao Qi was determined to study hard and improve herself, keep a low profile in life, and just steadily run the marathon to complete her initial goal, which also gave her a good excuse for running every day.


    She didn''t expect that many people were still paying attention to her.


    Previously, the class monitor Cai Yu asked who was staying at school during the holidays, and Xiao Qi said she was staying to run a marathon, which was just a minor matter she mentioned casually at the time.


    Now the competition was happening tomorrow, and the class monitor rallied classmates in the group chat to go watch the marathon and cheer for their classmate if they were in Meng City.


    Of course everyone was joking and teasing playfully. In the eyes of classmates, she was a textbook nerd. Now the vice class monitor Mao Wenshu who was also the deputy academic affairs commissioner had also silently shrunk into the corner. He had been a little dissatisfied at first, but after failing to collect assignments completely several times, and seeing the learning commissioner''s enthusiasm for studying - breezing through the CET 4 and 6 tests, and easily winning first place in English speeches - he silently stopped jumping around and admitted defeat.


    The nerd participating in a marathon was just about taking part for the courage. Being able to finish would be admirable.


    The class monitor was very excited to introduce the marathon route to everyone in the group. Part of it went past the building he lived in, which also indirectly proved the class monitor''s family was quite well-off. That stretch was along the seaside. Even if it wasn''t a seaside villa, it was at least a sea view apartment.


    Xiao Qi saw the class group was very lively. A bunch of people were stirring things up. But not many people stayed in Meng City, most still went back home. Her roommates were not around either. Across the hallway, Chu Yu and Lin Dongqing had both gone back home. Su Li was a local and had naturally gone back too. She probably wasn''t interested in lively events like this.


    It was the usually quiet Nan Beichao in class who was very active in the group chat, sending out red envelopes in the group from time to time.


    Red envelope rains came intermittently in the group, making it quite lively. Everyone kept up the polite reactions of thanking the boss while chatting and grabbing red envelopes.


    Apart from the class group, the foreign teachers'' foodie group Xiao Qi joined was also very active. The foreign teachers didn''t go back home, most of them stayed at school, and some went traveling with friends, but they were quite excited that Xiao Qi was participating in the marathon competition, because two teachers among them were going as well - one was the black teacher Bruce with dreadlocks who taught in Xinqu. Xiao Qi didn''t know him, but the marathon was almost the black people''s turf. And Old Gallen was also going to liven things up.


    Meng City''s marathon was also called the International Marathon, and adding "international" meant there were many foreign contestants.


    Every year it was a domestic marathon competition, but the top three places were almost always all black contestants.


    Lord Garen, who was very muscular with a white beard, also wanted to participate. He looked impressive, though he was already very old.


    In addition to these foreign teachers, there was also Lu Chao, the president of Xiao Qi''s running club. He surprisingly did not go back home and wanted to go cheer for Xiao Qi and be her support staff.


    The main reason was that for their running club, Xiao Qi was their only marathon runner, and she was a beautiful girl too. He wanted to take more photos of her. Winning or losing did not matter. The photos could be used to recruit new members and con some new people to join. Their running club was really poor.


    In addition to these people, there was also the lovely Xiao Bao''er who called Xiao Qi and said he wanted to go to the scene to support her and wave little red flags for her.


    There were two foreign teachers participating in the marathon. Enhua thoughtfully arranged a bus to take the teachers to the competition venue. Xiao Qi, relying on her strong (freeloading) relations, also got on the bus. She even brought along two little assistants with her - a schoolmate named Jiayi who was responsible for filming and the club president Lu Chao who was responsible for carrying water and bags.

 Chapter 249: The Marathon

    Chapter 249


    Jiajia classmate also did not expect Teacher Xiao Qi to actually know so many foreign teachers.


    She knew Teacher Xiao Qi''s English was good, but sitting in a group of blondes, redheads, brunettes, blue eyes, green eyes, brown eyes, white skin, black skin foreigners, she still felt a little nervous for some reason.


    Lu Mountain City is not developed, just a remote small city. Usually the whole city is hard to see so many foreigners.


    Now Jiajia classmate is sitting among them, and still feels a little disoriented.


    Especially listening to Teacher Xiao Qi chatting with them, she was also completely confused, she couldn''t even understand them.


    Their speaking speed is so fast.


    Originally this semester her English had improved greatly. In the previous two unit tests, she scored fifth and third respectively, and was very smug and proud, feeling that her English was very good and she was very talented, making up for it in one summer vacation. Her English was originally the third and fifth worst in the class.


    But now watching Teacher Xiao Qi chatting with foreigners, chatting so naturally and fluently, without needing gestures, just speaking directly, as if speaking Chinese, Liang Jiajia was completely shocked. She felt she still had a lot to learn. She remembered her dad had gone abroad for a year of exchange and learning, and then had an affair with a female teacher who went to study together, but her dad''s and that woman''s English combined was still not as good as Xiao Qi''s.


    They seemed to need gestures and miming, unable to express a lot clearly.


    Not only Liang Jiajia student was shocked.


    Lu Chao, the student council president of the long distance running club, was also very shocked. He and Xiao Qi were from the same school. He knew there were foreign teachers at the school. He had been at school for three years and had foreign teacher classes too, but he never felt there was much of a connection. He didn''t expect his club member to have such good English and have such a strong connection with foreign teachers. He felt like he and Su Xiaoqi might not have attended the same university.


    How could people from the same school be so different? Foreign teachers seemed invisible to him. At most they were just part of the scenery of Enhua. Occasionally seeing foreign teachers, he remained unperturbed. Foreigners were no big deal to him, but he had never thought about being able to chat with them in daily life.


    Sitting on a bus full of foreigners, Lu Chao felt dizzy. Watching Xiao Qi chatting away with the foreign teachers, he wondered just what kind of fairy his club had recruited. Fi?ndd new updates at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi chatted for a while, then closed her eyes to rest. After all, she was here to compete.


    Although she also got up early usually, sitting on the bus rocking back and forth this early in the morning made her want to conserve her energy. Although she never told anyone what ranking she wanted, most people assumed she was just participating without aiming for any particular result. But that wasn''t the case.


    The class leader wanted to organize people to watch the competition, but due to it being vacation time and the competition starting at 8am, in the end she only organized the vice class leader. The two of them, affectionately eating and drinking their fill early, also weren''t clear if they had come to watch the competition or date. They first went to eat a sweet breakfast together.


    A group of foreign teachers got off the bus and arrived at the starting point, very eye-catching.


    Especially Enhua''s black foreign teacher, Bruce, with his head of messy braids. Sturdy and muscular, he looked quite formidable. His number was also very front - 00109. Looking at the numbers, you could tell their expected finishing order. Black people had always been pillars of the long distance running world.


    Old man Garen was also wearing a vest, completely unbothered by the cold. His hairy, golden fur and the number he was asking others to help pin on. The older the ginger, the spicier it gets. Though already old in years, his arms and calves were full of muscles. The shorts and vest he wore weren''t bothered at all by the cold. His number was 01599.


    Xiao Qi was 00697. She wore tight, black athletic pants that showed off her slim legs very well. She felt this offered less wind resistance and had the benefit of retaining warmth. After all, it was heading into autumn already and the winds by the seaside were still quite strong. On top she simply wore a red dri-fit T-shirt. She normally wore red quite rarely. This was specially prepared for running. In her heart, she felt red was festive and auspicious. She hadn''t worn the official clothing provided, which was a bit wide and created more friction. But she did wear the bright outer vest.


    On her feet were the shoes she had bought with Jiajia last time. She had broken them in these past few days and felt they were quite good, not abrasive, very soft, breathable, and fit her feet very well.


    The sunshine was bright.


    There were extremely, extremely many participants in the run. You could say it was seas of people.


    There was no telling how many would actually make it to the finish line.


    Under the sunshine, Xiao Qi felt oddly excited for some reason.


    Because she was in the foreign teacher crowd, there were even more foreign athletes clustered around.


    The Ethiopian black male and female participants were especially eye-catching.


    All very slender and fit, just looking at their exterior made you feel they had an advantage. Their muscles looked tighter and their calves even longer. They seemed inherently suited for running.


    Xiao Qi felt a little pressure, but was still generally fine.


    Her current condition was much better than when she had participated in the swimming competition. She was much more confident now. She also would not hunch her shoulders or cave in her chest. Her gaze was steadier. She respected everyone''s efforts, and also respected her own efforts. For running, she would not lose!

 Chapter 250: The First Echelon

    Chapter 250


    No one expected that at this moment, this girl with fair skin and a slightly thin figure wearing a red T-shirt and black tracksuit pants had the goal of breaking records.


    Xiao Qi had prepared a lot for this day.


    She constantly adjusted her running state every day.


    She also constantly practiced the explosive power buff for sprints, and always gained new insights.


    She made good use of her innate skills - the endurance of a little donkey that was most important for long-distance running. This was simple to say but difficult to do in practice.


    The key was perseverance - not just the perseverance in this competition, but also the perseverance in the relentless daily training before the competition.


    There was also the jumping power of a panda. Pandas may look silly in black and white, but their jumping power was actually very good. Making good use of this jumping power was also a technique to increase running speed.


    The reason why blacks run so fast has to do with their innate physical advantage, and also their jumping power. Their calves are generally longer. When running, they cover more distance with every stride, which adds up over time. They have superior innate athletic ability and excellent jumping power.


    Compared to them, especially among the black athletes, Xiao Qi looked exceptionally fair and thin.


    She was 1.66 meters tall, not very tall.


    The red top was quite eye-catching. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    But the black female athletes next to her had muscular arms, sturdy as if they could lift a horse. Compared to them, Xiao Qi looked even smaller and thinner.


    Everyone was speaking English. Xiao Qi had very good English language sense, but she also noticed that even though it was all English, people from different regions had accents that differed greatly. Some blacks could even speak fluent Chinese, probably because they often came to Hua Country to participate in this kind of competition.


    For them, it was very easy money to win prizes in competitions like these. They were also considered veterans.


    She didn¡¯t expect that teacher could get first place or anything. But filming the entire marathon race was still very meaningful. This was her main purpose in coming in the first place. It was probably the most important reason she gave to convince her mom... Getting in the top three in final exams before summer break and the like were all trivial matters.


    The race had not started yet. Although the sunshine was bright, the sea breeze was still a bit cold. Ahead, two athlete representatives lit the torch. At eight o¡¯clock sharp, the starting pistol fired. Music sounded and tens of thousands of participants set off in an impressive stream.


    Xiao Qi started running with the group of black athletes around her. They broke away from most of the pack right at the start, running at the very front with about thirty people.


    Xiao Qi had carefully studied the history of marathon races before the competition, and watched videos to understand the importance of taking the lead at the start. If you don¡¯t go fast initially, hesitate a little and get caught in the dense crowd of casual runners, your speed gets dragged down greatly. So to get a good ranking, you had to put yourself in the leading pack at the start.


    So you needed a bit of speed at the beginning to pull ahead of the crowd.


    The black athletes around Xiao Qi were quite surprised. They didn''t expect the little girl who was warming up with them to be running alongside them. But they didn''t pay too much attention either. When running, having someone to pace you can sometimes make you faster. But this was a marathon, and it tested more than just speed. There were many other factors. They figured the little girl was running this fast now, but would get tired and drop back soon.


    And that was indeed what happened. At this time, Jiajia''s foreign teacher Garen and Bruce were also in the leading pack.


    But after running nearly 3 km, Bruce unexpectedly was the first to drop back.


    Apparently not all blacks have talent for running. Although Bruce was black, he didn''t have natural running talent and gradually fell behind, disappearing from the leading pack.


    Old man Garen persisted and kept up for 5 km before starting to fall back.


    Apparently he exercised regularly.


    Xiao Qi maintained a steady speed within the leading group, neither at the very front nor the back, a medium position.


    She adjusted her breathing, adapted to the current air. Her legs kept running. It actually felt more relaxed than usual, probably thanks to these shoes that suited her very well. She felt the wind at her feet, and really wanted to run faster, faster. But the full marathon course was very long. They were still only at the starting point. Going too fast now and consuming too much stamina too early was not wise. Xiao Qi maintained a steady speed, keeping her body in optimal condition as she continued running.


    The sea breeze, palm trees, seagulls, dense towers... Lines of spectators along the street. Running, it felt so free.

 Chapter 251: Awesome

    Chapter 251


    In the first echelon of runners there was one benefit - few people around.


    It was like a few people strolling through a spacious square.


    When she reached the 10 kilometer point, Xiao Qi still felt carefree and her breathing was very steady. She felt that she was doing quite well, which gave her more confidence in the race, though she didn''t dare get arrogant since no one knew the outcome until the very last second.


    10 kilometers was less than the amount Xiao Qi walked every day, so she was still running leisurely. Aside from the black runners, there were also some domestic athletes in the first echelon.


    Xiao Qi blended in without standing out too much, though she was noticeable mainly because of her bright red t-shirt, which made her look petite and slender compared to the athletes.


    Xiao Qi ate quite a lot but didn''t have bulging muscles, nor did she do any muscle-building training.


    The private lessons she took taught her movements aimed at accentuating a woman''s graceful figure. Xiao Qi did them daily as stretching exercises, which, combined with her persistent running, gave her a toned look. However, developing a woman''s graceful figure also depended on one''s physique and innate endowment. Xiao Qi had good proportions but was just average in terms of bust and hips, so she didn''t develop prominent curves. Still, her figure was quite graceful, making her look slightly delicate and slender among the athletes.


    There was a major water station at the 10 kilometer point.


    Some official vehicles also followed alongside the first echelon: they stuck closest to the front runners, who were likely leading the race.


    The masses behind had slowly strung out in an endless line, and it was impossible for vehicles to follow all of them. They were mainly there to handle any accidents or runners passing out from heat exhaustion. Rread latest chapters at novelhall.com


    At the 10 kilometer point, the Xiao family''s RV was also parked there.


    Xiao''s Mama had initially suggested waiting at the 5 kilometer water station, worried that the young girl couldn''t run very far and her precious granddaughter would throw a tantrum if she didn''t see her.


    However, Xiao Shengzhou said that Xiao Qi was this year''s 200m freestyle champion in Jingnan Province, and with her baseline training of running at least 30,000 steps per day, it was impossible for her to stop at such a short distance. He suggested waiting at the 15 kilometer water station, but Xiao''s Mama and Grandma felt that was too far and what if the girl couldn''t run that far, plus being good at swimming didn''t necessarily mean being good at running.


    In the end they compromised on waiting at this major 10 kilometer water station.


    While waiting, they also realized that being a random swimming champion was quite impressive...this young girl was truly exceptional.


    Xiao Qi kept running.


    By the 15 kilometer point, quite a few people had fallen back from the first echelon, now reduced to less than 20 people.


    Xiao Qi still maintained steady breathing, not too hurried, taking water twice along the way.


    Those still keeping pace with her in the first echelon were basically all familiar faces that could call each other by name.


    Even the domestic athletes recognized the black runners: their faces were too familiar from encountering each other at every race. It couldn''t be called bad luck, just unfortunate.


    They seemed like they could run laps around the globe without even wearing shoes.


    Naturally gifted.


    However, the girl''s face that had persisted in the echelon but they were only just noticing now, very young, clearly not a professional athlete based on her outfit.


    Because professional athletes wore very standardized, customized athletic wear.


    The black runners also wore similar casual shorts and vests, exposing lots of dark flesh.


    As a result, Xiao Qi, who already stood out among the first echelon runners, became even more conspicuous. Her complexion differed from the black runners, and her outfit differed from the other domestic athletes. Also, she looked exceptionally young.


    There was a TV station doing a live broadcast dedicated to the marathon.


    The camera couldn''t help but linger on Xiao Qi''s face and body multiple times.


    The class president, who had rallied people to come watch the marathon but ultimately didn''t make it to the site as it was too sprawled out, was at a drink shop not too far away with Yue Lai. The two ate cold desserts while watching the live broadcast on TV. It counted as a date in support their classmate''s competition. As Cai Yu ate tapioca pearls from his milk tea, he nearly choked when he saw a familiar face appear on screen several times: it looked like their classmate Su Xiaoxiao...


    He patted Yue Lai''s shoulder to get her attention to the TV.


    Yue Lai lady-likely sipped her milk tea. Although she also liked tapioca pearls, she felt it wasn''t proper to noisily chew them in front of a boy, so she had only ordered plain milk tea which she daintily sipped. When patted, she nearly choked, and also saw Su Xiaoxiao on TV... Out of habit she wanted to yell "Fuck!" but stopped herself at the last moment and said, "Wow, so awesome!"

 Chapter 252: She’s Different

    Chapter 252


    More than 70,000 people signed up to participate in this marathon, including over 10,000 people to participate in the full marathon.


    However, very few people finished the half marathon. Most only ran one third of the course before stopping, as it was simply too long.


    Although fewer and fewer people finished the full marathon, the first echelon of a dozen or so people still ran firmly at the forefront.


    And number 00697 was mentioned a few times.


    There is basic information for everyone who signs up for the full marathon. The organizers looked up the information and found that this was a freshman university student, not yet 18 years old, not a professional athlete, but the performance was very impressive.


    Looking at her, although not leading, she was always maintaining her position in the mid-front of the first echelon.


    Aerial footage clearly showed that the relative position of this player barely changed.


    If you think about it carefully, it''s a bit horrifying. Some academically gifted students can always rank among the top, while some academically gifted students can control their own scores and always rank at the same spot.


    Number 00697 gave people a feeling like that. But this idea was too unbelievable. The commentators did not say it out loud either. They just jokingly said, "A dark horse may emerge from this year''s marathon."


    The commentator next to him immediately fought back and disagreed, while introducing several other leading players. Tadesse from Ethiopia was last year¡¯s men¡¯s champion, and he broke his own record. Jones from Kenya was last year''s women¡¯s champion, but this year''s marathon also featured several young domestic track and field athletes who performed very well. Among them, Li Miaomiao, number 00018, was a very promising track and field athlete. She had been leading with a calm expression. I am more optimistic about her.


    The two commentators bantered with each other, which also contributed some interesting parts to the long live broadcast. But the main focus was still on the scene.


    After running more than 20 kilometers, it was also Xiao Qi¡¯s usual training volume.


    There were still 20 kilometers left, which was more testing.


    Xiao Qi was still relatively relaxed in the early stages, always running in the team, neither conspicuous nor outstanding, nor falling behind. In fact, it¡¯s easier to run when someone is leading.


    But the difficulties of a marathon race are still in the later stages. The more tired you get as you go along, and many people find it very difficult to persist.


    This is when you have to consider patience, endurance and physical strength.


    Xiao Qi still maintained a not fast but not slow speed. Her goal was to break the record. She must be steady in the early stages and have an explosion in the last stage. Any mistakes in between would waste all the preparation in the early stages, so she was still running very steadily now.


    By the 30 kilometer mark, the sun had become quite hot. Rread latest chapters at novelhall.com


    The breathing of those around had become much heavier. Even the black runners were panting. After all, although they had different skin colors, they were still people of planet Earth.


    And the female players would be weaker than the male players. The distance between people in the first echelon had also widened, at least more than one kilometer apart front and back.


    Every single thing was more tiring than running.


    She wanted to run.


    Run on this spacious avenue. She could run. In sight was the sea, in sight were tall buildings, in sight were all kinds of modern things, warm, bright and beautiful.


    She wanted to run.


    Not just physically, but mentally too.


    Keep running and never stop.


    Probably like Kuafu chasing the sun, that warmth, running, not knowing what was ahead, but running was better than retreating, better than stagnation, better than hiding in a shell. There would always be more scenery ahead.


    She had run out of Gumula village, run out of the Su Lame¡¯s house that villagers mocked was a cursed household, run out of the gloomy basement next to the hospital morgue, run out of that reputed number one high school in Lvshan which actually made her oppressed and timidly insecure, she ran out of the backward mountain city Lvshan, she ran to the seaside metropolis Meng City, she would keep running, running towards farther, bigger and wider places.


    Her spirit was running.


    Her body was also running.


    She did not notice that she had overtaken one player after another. She just looked ahead.


    The scenery in front seemed to be moving backwards as the images in her mind faded away.


    And the live broadcast picture made people a little dumbfounded.


    The class leader and deputy leader looked up at the screen at the girl galloping like a wild horse, both falling into an awkward silence, thinking what on earth was happening...


    Early in the morning, Uncle Rong had taken the young master out and they were waiting at the finish line.


    As they came to see the marathon, Uncle Rong was also very well prepared. He drove a car with a TV screen so the young master could rest comfortably in the back and watch TV.


    At this time the channel was also switched to the marathon live broadcast.


    Uncle Rong sat in the back, ready to serve water and drinks at any time, and provide food. As a result, as soon as he looked up, he saw number 00697 sprinting wildly on the screen. Then he looked at his young master again, with an increasingly stern and strict expression, showing no signs of liking the young girl at all.


    Li Weijin''s expression was very serious at this moment, but his clavicle felt hot, so hot that his throat felt a little uncomfortable, and his expression became even more serious.


    He saw her. He knew she was different.


    She would always give surprises.

 Chapter 253: Breaking Records

    Chapter 253


    Jones ran faster and faster ahead, with fewer and fewer runners beside her.


    Because an athlete who was suspected of being a dark horse in this race suddenly appeared on the scene, Lu Chao had to take a separate car to follow behind.


    It just so happened to be the car Liang Jiajia and Lu Chao were sitting in. Actually it wasn''t just a coincidence, since they knew those two were friends of that athlete #00697. It was good to take this car to follow them and get more information.


    Jiajia excitedly took photos. The heavy tripod she brought from far away finally came in handy. She could take photos when the car stopped.


    Although she was surprised, she wasn''t too surprised. She excitedly introduced to the uncles and aunties in the car: "My teacher only started learning how to swim last summer, but when she competed, she was the champion of the 200m women''s freestyle this year. You know what I mean."


    The others all shook their heads, indicating they didn''t understand...


    And Lu Chao was completely confused.


    He had enthusiastically come to run errands, with the simple purpose of getting some photos of the schoolgirl participating in the marathon, to provide their pitiful and lonely long-distance running club with some promotional material, and by the way, recruit more new members. Their club was really short on people, they didn''t even have enough money for team building activities.


    But he didn''t expect the schoolgirl to be so fierce, already halfway through the half marathon, and about to reach the finish line.


    This was not just finishing the full course, he remembered he had encouraged the schoolgirl earlier by mentioning the previous club president, saying the previous president finished in the top hundred or so, extremely impressive, and got prizes, a marathon-special commemorative towel, water bottles, things like that, and a big duffel bag with the marathon logo.


    But now the schoolgirl, she...


    Watching her overtake one black athlete after another, Lu Chao felt his heart trembling.


    No way...


    Earlier, at the 10 km mark, Xiao Bao''er waved to cheer on Xiao Qi, and wanted to keep watching, but her family coaxed her to go play instead.


    Kids don''t have the attention span to watch the whole race, hours long.


    Xiao Bao''er was soon coaxed to go to the amusement park.


    Her family treated it as a vacation outing, while Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Yu acted as porters.


    However, while the two men were waiting in the restaurant, when they saw the live broadcast on the restaurant TV, they were also dumbfounded.


    Xiao Shengzhou: What kind of little schoolgirl has shown up in his horse racing field?


    Xiao Yu: As expected of the girl he fell for, she really stands out from the rest.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know how many people were paying attention to her at that moment.


    In her heart there was only one belief - running, running fast, running even faster.


    At this point in the race, it wasn''t Xiao Qi against other people, it was her against herself, she had to run faster, even faster, faster than her yesterday''s self, faster than her self a moment ago.


    A flash of bright yellow passed by her side.


    She didn''t look more, but kept running forward, without any hesitation.


    The people in the following vehicle also went crazy. Could they really have followed an unbelievable athlete?


    Jiajia was shooting very excitedly, almost wanting to rush out.


    In the final moment, the TV broadcast commentators also went crazy, babbling in agitated voices.


    The first to reach the finish line was no suspense, the men''s group athlete Sesque from Ethiopia. Not only was he last year''s men''s champion, he was this year''s champion as well. He ran 2 hours 6 minutes 59 seconds, breaking his own previous Meng City Marathon record of 2 hours 7 minutes 11 seconds.


    The second place finisher was also a man from Ethiopia, Raleigh.


    Third place went to the man Otoya from Kenya.


    The top three were all men, all foreign athletes, all black athletes. The commentator excitedly said, but the audience had no ripples of excitement.


    Until fourth place? Or fifth place?


    A flash of red figure rushed up.


    And a black figure ran neck and neck with her.


    The commentator''s throat tightened a bit.


    At this crucial final moment, Kenya''s Jones, although looking very masculine with bulging pectoral and leg muscles, and even shorter hair than some men, still had a sports bra inside her sleeveless top, she was a woman. She was last year''s Meng City Marathon women''s champion.


    But closely following her, not too close nor too far, was a girl, definitely a girl, wearing red sportswear, athlete #00697, the freshman at Enhua University. She actually appeared here.


    She came.


    She ran extremely fast.


    Could she create a miracle?


    Everyone raised their heads watching the live broadcast, some even more nervous than the commentator.


    All yelling: Faster, faster, faster, even faster!


    In the final moment, the two figures overlapped, almost crossing the finish line simultaneously.


    There was a historical moment of silence, before the commentator''s somewhat trembling voice announced the results.


    Kenya''s Jones finished in 2 hours 18 minutes 55 seconds.


    While the Enhua University freshman Su Xiaoqi finished in 2 hours 18 minutes 56 seconds, a hair''s difference, in second place.


    However, this was already considered one of the best results in the history of the Alliance City Marathon. Finally, there was a Chinese woman among the top three, not third place, but second place.


    The announcer excitedly said that the national record for the women''s marathon in China last year was 2 hours 19 minutes and 17 seconds, held by a student from Enhua University. Not only did she get second place in the women''s group in this year''s Alliance City Marathon, she also broke the national record, improving the domestic record by a full 21 seconds. This meant that she could directly take home a prize of 1.21 million.


    Perhaps it was because there was a figure in red ahead of her, but Li Miaomiao also went all out and rushed forward to get fourth place. She surprisingly also broke the domestic record with an excellent time of 2 hours 19 minutes and 15 seconds. According to the "same day award for Chinese athletes" principle, although she was behind Su Xiaoqi in breaking the record, she still broke last year''s record, and could still take home a prize of 1.02 million.

 Chapter 254: Testing the Blood

    Chapter 254


    Ran to the finish line.


    Xiaoqi was still a little regretful.


    She didn''t come in first place.


    It felt like she tied for first, but her actual score was still 1 second behind. That 1 second could also be because the other person had longer shoes, bigger breasts? Got to the finish line first.


    Her whole body was also terribly overdrawn.


    The short sprint burst buff, that is, the skill bonus, is a buff that always runs out at some point, and will disappear at that time. She didn''t know if she relied on the buff or her own instinct at the end, she just ran desperately.


    When she got to the finish line, Liang Jiajia and Lu Chao jumped down from the car to help Xiaoqi.


    Unexpectedly, another figure went up first.


    Li Weijin walked over and caught Su Xiaoqi who fell into his arms.


    It felt like hugging a wet ball of cotton, without too much weight, the whole body soft.


    This was the first time that Li Weijin saw the weak side of Su Xiaoqi.


    In his eyes, Su Xiaoqi was always spirited, like the straightest bean sprout grown in a bean sprout bowl.


    The first time he noticed Su Xiaoqi was during the military training performance. She was holding the class sign and walked very steadily and uprightly from beginning to end, he couldn''t help but follow her figure and even regretted that he didn''t participate in military training.


    Then there was singing, calligraphy society, running association, English speech. She seemed to never get tired like an ever-spinning top, always being very upright and spirited no matter what. Be it the boring Marxist philosophy class, she could still listen with relish and interact with teachers by asking questions. For extremely difficult courses like calculus, she could also listen longingly as if it was a very serious and interesting subject.


    She seemed to never get tired.


    But at this moment, she collapsed softly.


    Her whole body was hot.


    He helped her onto the car next to him.


    Today, Uncle Rong deliberately drove an Alfa Romeo, which can be said to be a professional nanny car with very comfortable interior space, but not as flashy as a Rolls Royce. After all, this was a group activity, parking a Rolls Royce here would not give a good impression.


    The Alfa Romeo was much lower profile.


    Little classmate Liang Jiajia had stars in her eyes, wow, the boy who helped teacher Xiaoqi is so handsome...too handsome to describe in words.


    Li Weijin''s looks, even Xiaoqi who had a strong will and a brain full of studying hard could not bear to look more. He was too beautiful, with an aura of arrogance and coldness.


    For Liang Jiajia, a little classmate who was only in junior high school and still keen on chasing stars, the damage was even greater. She almost drooled just by looking.


    And Lu Chao also saw this young master, with a look of realization on his face.


    He pulled Jiajia along to follow the main character. After all, they were the little assistants today.


    Seeing the car not far away, Lu Chao breathed a sigh of relief and sighed again.


    Li Weijin handed the milk to Xiaoqi.


    Xiaoqi seldom drank milk. If she drank it on an empty stomach during breakfast she often felt lactose intolerance, her belly making gurgling noises and feeling uncomfortable all day long.


    But at this moment, there was nothing to nitpick over. She was extremely tired, even eating would feel strenuous.


    She took the hot milk, drank it all, and unexpectedly did not feel uncomfortable. Her belly warmed up and it was quite comfortable, even felt a little sleepy.


    She couldn''t help but doze off, and vaguely wondered why Li Weijin was here.


    She was indeed very sleepy. Seeing Jiajia still by her side, and club president Lu Chao was also there, she leaned on Jiajia to take a nap.


    Little classmate Jiajia saw the boy whom she swore was created by the heavens, actually covering teacher Xiaoqi with a blue and white checkered blanket. There were a lot of H logos on it, looked soft, quite nice and comfortable.


    She took a picture, intending to check Taobao to see if she could buy one too.


    A little girl''s brain circuits were still very special. One second ogling at the handsome guy, the next second already searching for blankets.


    While next to her, Lu Chao still felt rather constrained. For some reason, facing a group of older brothers and sisters from society sitting in this luxurious nanny van, he could chat and joke around, but no matter how he sat in this car he just felt constrained and uncomfortable all over, not knowing what to say.


    Seeing the little girl playing on Taobao, he craned his neck to take a look.


    As a result, he saw the little girl searching on Taobao for blankets like the one covering the student, the same as what was on his junior schoolmate. Seeing the price of the first result - 19,800...he thought his eyes were playing tricks and counted the numbers again. It really was a 5-digit figure, nineteen thousand and eight hundred... rich people''s lives were truly incomprehensible to average people like him. A tattered blanket, okay fine, not tattered, even if it was new, it wasn''t worth this price! Almost twenty thousand... He could buy at least 6 blankets with 100 yuan at the wholesale market.


    The marathon organizing committee was also actively conducting testing on their side. After all, the competition results had to be released as soon as possible. Testing for insurance so as to avoid ugly scandals and embarrassment afterwards.


    And the 1 million yuan prize for the "National Speed" competition was in its first year of implementation, so absolutely no mistakes could be allowed.


    The top three in the men''s group had already been taken by foreign athletes.


    Domestic athlete Wang Baifei fortunately got sixth place, which was comforting and celebratory. The top six in the men''s group did not get completely shaved bald.


    On the women''s side, a Chinese player almost got first place for the first time in history. It was almost a breakthrough in history, an unprecedentedly good result.


    In the end, it was a matter of a one-second difference. Among the top six finishers, there were two Chinese athletes who came in second and fourth place, which can be considered a historically good result. Moreover, both Chinese athletes broke the records set by Chinese athletes last year.


    The biggest surprise was that the runner-up in the women''s marathon this time was not a professional athlete, but a college freshman.


    This student had not been participating in competitive sports for the first time. Just over a month ago, she took part in the 200m freestyle competition in Jingnan Province and won the championship.


    When Xiao Qi was resting with her eyes closed, the follow-up reports had come out.


    The rankings were also announced. For her failure to come in first place, the organizers were very regretful. Many people felt she lost out due to being too thin. If she were a little fatter and sturdier, she might have finished first.


    It was said to be a one-second difference, but in fact it was not even a full second. They were more or less tied.


    There were absolutely no issues with the inspection results for the women''s group. On the men''s side, however, the fifth-place finisher, a foreign athlete, had a minor problem as there was a possibility he had taken stimulants.


    Seeing the results on the TV screen, Xiao Qi breathed a deep sigh of relief. Second place was pretty good. Her goal was the prize money rather than standing out. Being able to get the bonus and having a professional athlete get prize money along with her was great. Even now, they couldn¡¯t avoid all sorts of testing.


    Fortunately, Li Weijin''s car was here today, and his staff members accompanying them looked very capable. The marathon event staff were also very polite to Xiao Qi. She felt like she was pretending to have power she didn''t. She made up her mind that after the event she would collect the money, quietly return to school, study hard, make diligent efforts, try her best not to venture out and mess around anymore.

 Chapter 255: Millions of Dollars

    Chapter 255


    When they got off school, they took a bus full of foreigners.


    When they returned to school, they took a luxurious bus with TVs, blankets costing over 10,000 yuan each (there were at least four in the cabinet), leather sofas, all kinds of drinks, wine, snacks - the deluxe nanny car version.


    The poor Lu Chao, president of the long distance running club, was still a bit dreamy.


    Jiajia was young and didn''t care much about external objects. Mainly because her family conditions were also good. Although Liang Lady was not a super rich woman, she was quite well off in Lu?shan City, with some family property, and she followed the practice of raising her daughter richly, providing very good material conditions for her daughter. After Jiajia glanced at the price of the blankets, she felt they were expensive but didn''t think much more about it. She didn''t have the temperament to feel something was expensive and had to have it. She was very indifferent.


    She was a little tempted by the super handsome guy, but he was too handsome and never smiled, so Jiajia could only admire him like a fan. It''s human nature to adore capable people. Maybe when he wasn''t around she would yell, but when face to face she wouldn''t know what to say and would just silently watch the photos and videos she took today.


    Xiaoqi was a little tired. She drank milk and ate a bunch of snacks...they were called snacks, but they were actually like the main meal, with all kinds of buns, sweet and salty, dry and wet.


    Although Xiaoqi restrained her appetite and shouldn''t eat too much after exercising, she still wiped out more than half.


    Li Weijin really wanted to take Xiaoqi out for a meal, but felt she should rest first. Seeing her eat like a little hamster, he found her very cute, but still thought it would be better to send her back to rest first.


    Xiaoqi felt a little embarrassed, feeling that Li Weijin was waiting just for her.


    But then Li Weijin explained, "The class leader organized it and said to cheer you on. They were probably watching on the road. I was lazy so I just waited for you at the finish line."


    Hearing this, Jiajia got very excited and said, "Teacher, your classmates are so nice! Every time we have an event, we can barely get people organized."


    Lu Chao thought: You''re so naive, little one. It''s even harder to organize people in college. During vacations, gamers play games, lovers date, who has time for group activities...


    This time he learned to be smart and took a photo first to show his roommate Ye Shuli.


    Ye Shuli said this was a Toyota Alphard, a nanny car favored by the rich for being low-key and comfortable.


    The market price was several hundred thousand. Too popular, usually needing a markup to buy. But fitted out like this, conservatively at least 1.5 million, and 2 million or more would be normal too.


    Lu Chao thought this was super abnormal. What kind of freak family was this, did they own a mine?


    Xiaoqi also thought it was super abnormal. She had good eyesight. Although she was focused on running, there were people cheering her on the road and it seemed to just be Xiao Bao''er''s family. She didn''t see any other classmates at all.


    Because in the sprint the photos actually showed Xiaoqi in the lead, but in the end she was second place.


    As a result, this Douyin blew up because of this.


    It didn''t exclude the possibility that the marathon was trending, with people pushing the hot search.


    Anyway, as soon as this Douyin was posted, the likes shot up, clicking continuously.


    As president of the long distance running club, Lu Chao had also registered a Douyin account for the club before, but had posted nothing for many years. Hitting nails all over the place, he got Jiajia''s phone number and WeChat and Douyin accounts too, and hurriedly asked her for two copies to post on Douyin too.


    Proving that he as club president was still doing work.


    Then student Lu Chao was contacted by the teacher in charge of the school''s official Douyin.


    Student Jiajia''s Douyin also went up on Enhua University''s official Douyin.


    Enhua''s official Douyin had a much more official title: Our freshman breaks national marathon record, wins 1 million prize.


    With this title, the number of likes was on a different level.


    The words breaking record and 1 million connected, very hot, both hot search points.


    Soon several hundred thousand likes.


    The comments blew up even more, one after another.


    At the same time, the midday news in Meng City also reported the results of the competition.


    In the lazy afternoon in the remote Gumula Village, the village committee auditorium was lackadaisical. The small shop''s TV could receive many channels because a pot was used as an antenna. With nothing to do, little friends eagerly grabbed the remote and kept pressing buttons.


    Seeing the news, the little friends changed the channel, not noticing the passing marathon footage.


    After a while, an adult came over and snatched the remote, also pressing wildly until a news segment came on about the marathon breaking records and winning a 1 million prize. Hearing 1 million, the adult put down the remote and watched closely.

 Chapter 256: Down-to-earth

    Chapter 256


    When Xiao Qi woke up, the sky was already pitch black.


    She had slept for a whole afternoon.


    When she woke up, her whole body ached and she didn''t even want to move.


    This was normal given how extremely she had overexerted herself physically.


    Her stomach was also very hungry.


    But she still didn''t feel like going to eat.


    She opened her eyes. The dormitory was dark and the street lamps outside the window twinkled, looking somewhat like scattered stars.


    After being in a daze for a while, Xiao Qi finally regained her senses.


    She had participated in a marathon race and won. She broke the record and was about to receive a prize of over one million yuan. Even after deducting 20% in taxes, there would still be over nine hundred thousand left.


    This was money she could legitimately take out and openly give to her parents.


    Despite the aches all over her body, she also felt extremely carefree and refreshed. She lay spread-eagled on the bed.


    She quietly looked up at the dark ceiling. There wasn''t much to see but she still felt it looked nice.


    After a while, she suddenly remembered that she still had a little follower who was missing.


    She hurriedly picked up her phone.


    She discovered there were actually several missed calls. She hadn''t heard any of them at all, probably because she had been sleeping too soundly. They were calls from her dormmates.


    Honey was the earliest, followed by Wei Cheng, and then Yun Shu, as well as the class monitor...


    Her student Liang Jiajia had sent her a WeChat message, saying she had gone out to eat with Lu Chao and would buy food for her.


    Lu Chao wanted to thank the little girl for the TikTok video she had forwarded and so he offered to treat her to a meal.


    As a member of the impoverished class, Lu Chao didn''t expect that the one he was treating was actually a little rich girl. The little rich girl ordered very extravagantly. Lu Chao looked repeatedly at the balance of his living expenses, wondering if he had enough and if he would have to borrow some money from his classmates first. He wondered if he would have to eat dirt after this meal. In the end, it turned out that the little girl had paid the bill herself.


    She said it was to thank him for helping carry things and looking after her teacher.


    She said she was not very sensible and usually acted very casual in front of Teacher Xiao Qi. Whenever her teacher bought her meals or fruit, she never offered to pay. Jiajia probably was quite used to her teacher paying, including the previous time when she had treated her teacher to a meal in Lu?shan City and her teacher had ended up paying.


    Although the teacher was her private tutor and did some part-time work, Jiajia felt that her teacher didn''t seem short on money and was very generous whenever spending money, quite similar to her own mother, and also very close.


    Learned articles fill their bellies yet white hair and no success in the exams;


    Meager talent and little learning yet passing top as a youth.


    A gentleman poor from the start, born with bones and frame destined thus;


    Suddenly rich, the petty man cannot shed his poor cold skin.


    I once lodged in Luoyang, begging monk¡¯s meals in the morning, sleeping in broken kilns at night,


    With no clothes to cover my body, no food to fill my hunger,


    Scorned by those above, detested by those below.


    Now I reside in the court, an official of the highest rank, one of the Three Dukes,


    My body may bow before one but I stand over tens of thousands.


    Favored by those above, embraced by those below!


    Alas! For a person living in this world, wealth and nobility cannot be fully enjoyed, poverty and humbleness cannot be falsely claimed.


    Hear and obey as Heaven and Earth cycle round again and again!¡±


    The author Lu? Mengzheng was poor in his youth, living in broken kilns, without clothes to cover his body or food to fill his belly, looked down upon by all. Yet he did not give up but focused wholeheartedly on his studies, succeeded as top scholar in the exams, and attained the highest ministerial position, spoken of by everyone as a noble person, yet he was not arrogant. Whenever reading or copying this essay, it always evoked considerable feeling. Xiao Qi felt the most important message was that one should not be too pessimistic or give up on himself in adversity, nor should he be too complacent and wasteful in smooth going. Only this way can one expect lasting long-term success.


    It was said this essay was written by Lu? Mengzheng for the Crown Prince after he became the Prince''s tutor, to advise and warn him. As a crown prince and future emperor, he studied diligently and humbly. How could an ordinary commoner like herself have any reason to be arrogant?


    Xiao Qi did not set down her brush until she had carefully copied the essay three times.


    She felt her whole mindset was much improved, no longer adrift but like her feet had landed on the ground again, steadied and composed.


    Just then there was a knock at the dormitory door. Her student Jiajia had returned.


    ¡°Teacher, open the door quick! I bought lots of delicious food!¡±


    Xiao Qi opened the door. Jiajia was holding steaming hot dishes and laid them all over the table. There were also two cups of red date and brown sugar soup.


    ¡°The red date drink was bought by Brother Lu Chao,¡± she said.


    Just a moment ago when she had felt hungry without any appetite, the sight of the beef and green pepper rice dish steaming away instantly made Xiao Qi feel terribly famished, as if she could eat at least two servings, no, three.


    There were not three servings unfortunately, but her student Jiajia understood her teacher well enough. Besides the rice, there was also noodle soup, hot pot, pancakes, and a pile of fruit.


    Xiao Qi ate with gusto, giving a satisfied burp at the end, substantial and gratified.

 Chapter 257: Love Dearly

    Chapter 257


    After eating, Xiao Qi reported to the dormitory group chat that she was safe.


    She asked her classmate Jiajia for videos of herself running and some photos, and posted them to the group.


    She took a nap in the afternoon, and wasn''t sleepy now, but didn''t feel like moving either.


    She was full and lazy, a mood Xiao Qi rarely experienced.


    Jiajia had cleaned up the trash.


    She didn''t need to go running today either. In this state, going to evening self-study wasn''t reliable either, so Xiao Qi simply took her friend Jiajia up to the rooftop.


    The rooftop was empty over the National Day holidays, with no one sitting at the tables or chairs.


    Xiao Qi brought water, while Jiajia had a soft drink. Jiajia wore a new coat, and had a big scarf her mom had insisted she bring, saying it was cold and windy at the seaside. She hadn''t been happy about it earlier, but it came in handy now.


    The rooftop was spacious, with stars visible overhead, and the dark, steep mountain ridges behind them. The sparkling stars in the sky looked beautiful as they sipped their sweet drinks, leaving Jiajia very content.


    Xiao Qi drank warm water. At 17, she had a mature demeanor, liking to bring her own water bottle, thankfully without added goat horn fruit.


    A nice view called for...checking their phones.


    Both were silent, leaning back in their chairs, enjoying the comfortable night breeze while distracted by their phones.


    Under Jiajia''s influence, Xiao Qi downloaded King of Glory and played a few rounds.


    She instantly got a bit addicted. Turns out games were so fun, no wonder boys seemed to like playing them so much.


    And many familiar people seemed to be on there too.


    She had logged in with WeChat.


    She was still at the lowest Bronze level though. Xiao Qi played clumsily, but surprisingly kept at it for five whole games before realizing two hours had slipped by.


    Jiajia was already at the Supreme Star tier. To guide her teacher, she had started a smurf account.


    Seeing how time had flown, Xiao Qi felt a little guilty. She hadn''t indulged herself like this in a long time, limiting TikTok to one hour a day max. And she usually didn''t even use it that long, keeping it under an hour.


    She quietly closed the game. She''d play again next time.


    Or maybe she should switch it to youth mode too. She wondered if there was a setting like that - would she suddenly get kicked out mid-game and cursed by her teammates?


    Opening WeChat, the several group chats she was in were lively.


    There were still mosquitoes upstairs. Jiajia was clearly more enticing to them. With her sitting next to Xiao Qi, it felt like sitting next to a living mosquito coil, the insects biting her instead.


    It was rather late, so Xiao Qi didn''t call her parents. Calling now would probably startle them awake, making them think something had happened to her. She figured she''d call tomorrow instead.


    But Gumu Village was in fact not quiet, but very lively.


    Especially at Lame Su''s place.


    Even Grandma Su had shown up.


    Sitting in the living room filled with bamboo wares, Grandma Su usually found her eldest son''s home dirty and messy. Yet today she steadily occupied a bamboo chair, not budging an inch.


    "Youfu, why are you two still weaving baskets and whatnot? We saw it on TV, it''s your daughter - you told me before Xiao Qi tested into Enhua University in Meng City, the marathon runner is your girl, said to be running very fast, second place, with prize money over a million yuan. If I were you, I''d be packing up now and moving to Meng City. What are you still doing here? How much can those baskets earn in a lifetime compared to a million?"


    "Eldest son, you''ve always been useless. Sitting here all this time unable to let out a fart. Speak up! Give them a call and ask if it''s Xiao Qi or not. A young girl getting so much money, what if something happens to her? Have her wire the money back here. Your uncle is having a longevity celebration soon and you''re the eldest nephew - you need to give an appropriate gift and not lose face." Grandma Su righteously lectured.


    Seeing the daughter-in-law Sheng Juanhua come out with hot water, Grandma Su looked at her disdainfully as well. All these years, only managing to pop out a money-losing girl, though her eldest still doted on her. Already old as she was, still dressing flashy in bright red and green clothes, looking coquettish.


    After following her husband to sell woven wares several times, Sheng Juanhua had broadened her horizons somewhat, and was naturally plucky to start with, able to speak her mind. The two partners¡¯ bamboo art sold even better. They had earned some money but remained frugal. The gaudy red and green clothes Grandma Su resented were old pajamas that had been worn for over ten years already, the hems tattered. Only now that she was more worldly, Sheng Juanhua carried herself with more confidence and grace that kept the ragged old pajamas from looking tawdry. But no matter the circumstance, there would be fault found.


    "Mom, it''s late already. Xiao Qi''s probably asleep. She''s still a child. Lots of people have the same name as on TV, and you''ve always said Xiao Qi was frail and weak, couldn''t be raised up, so the winner couldn''t be her - you probably saw wrong. Everyone should disperse for the night. We don''t have field work tomorrow!" Sheng Juanhua said in her loud voice.


    Grandma Su was somewhat at a loss after being rebuffed by her daughter-in-law. She used to criticize her eldest son''s family for only having a useless girl, even cursing daily that she could never be raised and was as thin as a monkey, unable to grow up, saying it''d be safer to birth a son.


    These words had been incessantly repeated for all to hear in the village.


    The others had simply come to watch the fun, also half believing it implausible - after all it was a million yuan. But egged on by a few remarks, Grandma Su had been persuaded to come cause trouble, thinking about how her elder brother was about to have his longevity birthday, determined that if it really was her eldest grandkid''s money, he''d have to contribute a substantial gift and send something decent, her mind filled with such thoughts. Now dressed down by her daughter-in-law, unable to step down, she cursed and grumbled as she left with the crowd.


    With all the people gone, Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu were left facing each other speechlessly.


    Su Youfu had been dragged to the village shop by others to see the evening news broadcast.


    While they didn''t recognize her, how could he not recognize his own daughter? Standing amongst the crowded villagers watching the girl on screen running with all her might, tears had rolled down Su Youfu''s face that he wiped away repeatedly with his sleeve.


    The others only saw the million yuan prize. He saw his daughter striving there.


    Crippled as he was, not to mention running, even walking was difficult.


    His little girl was sprinting down that wide road. She was his daughter.


    He felt proud, and pained.


    But the pain was greater.

 Chapter 258: Cliff Village

    Chapter 258


    Xiao Qi woke up after a good night''s sleep.


    The next day, Xiao Qi got up as usual, washed up, and practiced calligraphy.


    However, she didn''t go for a run. She was going to Cliff Village today, and expected to do a lot of walking.


    Her body was still a little sore, but not too bad. Her usual stretching exercises had been quite effective.


    After practicing calligraphy, Xiao Qi stretched for a while, then went to wake up her student Jiajia.


    Jiajia, who had been excited for days, was starting to miss sleeping in during her vacation. But thinking about going out to play today with Teacher and a group of foreigners got her excited again.


    After lingering in bed a little longer, she bravely got up.


    She had wanted to wear her new shiny plastic flip flops, but Teacher Xiao Qi made her wear practical sneakers that were good for walking.


    Xiao Qi took Jiajia to Luoxi Town for breakfast, beef soup and steak with rice. Xiao Qi really liked this restaurant, too bad it wasn''t at their school.


    A new branch had opened in the new district, but the taste was completely different, probably not authentic. It didn''t have the same flavor.


    Xiao Qi needed to go to the local market in town to buy ingredients for the barbecue. The market had plenty of supplies.


    Various spices, Sichuan pepper, chili peppers, cinnamon, and Xiao Qi also bought a jar of honey.


    The lamb and pork belly also looked good, so Xiao Qi bought some of that too, and prepared lots of bamboo skewers.


    The foreign teachers were bringing chicken wings, chicken, sausages and more.


    Anything more complicated, they wouldn''t have been able to prepare.


    After buying everything, they returned to campus.


    On the way back, Xiao Qi called her parents.


    "My daughter, did you participate in a running competition? Your dad said he saw you on TV," Sheng Juanhua asked.


    "Yeah, I went yesterday and won a prize. It was probably because I was the girl from the village who could run. The prize money was quite a lot. I haven''t received it yet. Once I do, I''ll deposit it in my bank account. Take a look and see what we can use it for," Xiao Qi said.


    When she hadn''t won the race, the money had seemed very distant. Now that she still hadn''t received the money, it still felt distant. Let the chips fall where they may, this was probably how things were.


    After a day and night of calming down, Xiao Qi was quite composed about it now.


    The competition was over, she had finished that task, and the results were out. No need to get overly excited and crazy about it anymore. Just keep looking forward and moving forward. She still had so much to do.


    Hearing her daughter''s casual words, Sheng Juanhua''s mood also calmed down a bit. To be honest, the couple hadn''t slept well at all last night. Her husband had gotten up three or four times in the middle of the night, and she couldn''t sleep either.


    She had the call on speakerphone, so Su Youfu could hear too.


    Previously for the donation drive, the foreign teachers had a group. Someone had mentioned the drive there. Yamamoto himself lived an ascetic lifestyle, often just having a bowl of rice, one vegetable dish, and soup for a meal. Sometimes he just used plain water instead of soup. But he felt doing good deeds was important, so he also donated 5,000 yuan.


    He himself was very frugal. 5,000 yuan was a lot to him. Looking at his clothes, pants, shoes, he hadn''t bought anything new in years.


    Yamamoto didn''t expect that when a thought arose in him to go out for a walk, he would run into this diligent student. A smile spread across Yamamoto''s face. He wanted to express his joy, but probably because he hadn''t smiled in too long, his smile was ghastly and sinister, better to not smile at all.


    Xiao Qi was a bit frightened too, and couldn''t help but think of the elderly villager on welfare who had silently passed away in her village. It was said his corpse had rotted by the time he was discovered, but he had a smile on his face, very creepy.


    Even so, Xiao Qi could feel that Yamamoto was trying to express goodwill. She also responded with a bright smile.


    Once everyone had gathered, the bus started up again, heading in the direction of Luoxi Town.


    It had to go through Dadong Township first. Although the roads here were a bit narrow, whenever vehicles met each other they had to yield and pull over to the slightly wider shoulder to pass before continuing on. But the scenery along the way was beautiful.


    There were many rocky mountains along the road, majestic with a sense of history.


    Xiao Qi had specifically brought art supplies with her, though she couldn''t paint on the bus. She attentively took in the scenery along the way.


    After driving for over an hour, they arrived at Dadong Township. The scenery became ordinary here.


    The decently populated Dadong Township wasn''t very clean or orderly. It felt like a chaotic small town, like Xiao Qi''s hometown of Huanghe Town. Just one main street, with small shops on both sides of the road. It would be lively on fixed market days each month, but today wasn''t one, so it was very quiet.


    The bus continued on, the concrete road just wide enough for one vehicle gradually turning into a small muddy path barely wide enough for one vehicle, winding all around.


    The bus rocked back and forth.


    Finally it arrived at the foot of a mountain road, where the road ended completely.


    This was the access point to Cliff Village, but the bus couldn''t drive in. Motorcycles could make it, and walking was also possible.


    But this kind of steep uphill path was like a cliffside. Only locals dared ride motorcycles on it. Outsiders wouldn''t be able to.


    The only way left was to walk up.


    This place had originally been discovered by some foreign teacher explorers. They didn''t expect there to be a village midway up the cliffside. The scenery of that village was truly beautiful, but it was also truly poor.


    The bus stopped and everyone grabbed their things and got off, prepared to hike the rest of the way.


    Jiajia''s backpack contained lots of snacks, mostly puffed foods, so not heavy.


    The heavier drinks, spices, fruit, meat were all in Xiao Qi''s backpack. Xiao Qi wore athletic pants, a T-shirt, windbreaker, athletic shoes, a hat, fully equipped.


    The foreigners were the same, although it was just a picnic barbecue, each one was dressed as if going to war, dressed very warrior-like.


    The only one who looked a little out of place was probably Mr. Yamamoto, who was still wearing a shirt with creases and old trousers, though his shoes were sports shoes, they looked very old too.


    Walking uphill, you could still see the streams flowing down the mountainside along the road, and the scenery was indeed getting better and better.


    Seeing Mr. Yamamoto panting as he walked, Xiao Qi stopped, went to the roadside into the woods, and after a while came out with a tree branch in her hand, which she gave to Mr. Yamamoto, saying in Japanese: "Sir, you can use this as a walking stick."

 Chapter 259: The Girl of the Mountain

    Chapter 259


    Mr. Yamamoto had an extra stick in his hand as a walking stick, and walking became much more stable.


    The uphill mountain road was still slippery in some places.


    Seeing that the stick was quite useful, others also wanted to get one.


    Since they were all young people, they were shy to ask Little Seven to get them.


    Jin Zaiyan went looking all over, but there was only rotted wood on the roadside, or very slender twigs, so she had to ask Little Seven for help.


    They happened to come across a slightly flatter spot, and Little Seven let everyone rest for a while, while she went to find sticks.


    There were wild bushes at the roadside, and a little further in there was a small grove.


    When Little Seven was in Gumula Village, she had gone with her mother to chop firewood, although she didn''t do it herself, she just watched her mother chop.


    Not all trees in the mountains can be chopped down, usually the crooked little trees in the denser clumps are chopped first, leaving the wider, straight trees to grow bigger, and some visibly dying trees can also be chopped first. Managed forests with human activity won''t grow too dense to walk through, because they are thinned out periodically.


    Also, some trees are extremely hard, you can chop for a long time and still not fell them, more trouble than it''s worth, so those trees are generally left alone if possible.


    Little Seven had a knife in her bag, originally intended for cutting meat and whittling bamboo skewers, now it came in handy.


    Chopping trees with this kind of knife was impossible, but Little Seven could first break the trees, then use the knife to sharpen and flatten them.


    She was strong and fit, with the strength and physique of a robust healthy human, breaking small trees was quite easy for her. Jin Zaiyan and Grace followed her in, and seeing Little Seven whizzing out several walking sticks, they looked at her in amazement.


    Little Jiajia got tired from walking and didn''t come along.


    Grace stood at the opening of the bushes, holding a small video camera to film.


    Jin Zaiyan went along to help gather sticks too.


    When they came out, everyone had a "walking stick" and was very happy.


    Grace even said she wanted to take it home as a souvenir.


    Jin Zaiyan hugged the fresh wood and kept smelling it, saying her walking stick was exceptionally fragrant.


    So everyone else also brought their wooden sticks up to their noses and sniffed hard, and they did indeed each have a scent, and the scents were different.


    "There are many types of trees in the woods, but one kind, with rough bark and sawtooth edges around the leaves, is lacquer trees, avoid those, many people are allergic, touching them can easily make you itch, seriously it can make your face swell up like a pig head, but it''s no problem if your face really swells up like a pig head, it will go down by itself after about a week, you just have to endure it a bit." Concerned that people would be too curious and touch the lacquer trees, Little Seven gave a special reminder.


    The things they brought were quite complete, a plastic sheet on one side and a soft mat on the other side were spread out, they could sit or even lie down on it.


    There was also a pot.


    Garen built a stone stove, unexpectedly Mr. Yamamoto was also very adept at this.


    "I was sent on business trips to remote subsidiary companies before, and did this kind of thing." Yamamoto explained to Little Seven.


    When he spoke to Little Seven he would habitually use Japanese, when speaking to others he used English, clearly his English was also a bit clumsy, sometimes Little Seven would translate a sentence or two for him.


    When Jin Zaiyan spoke to Little Seven, she would sometimes use Korean, if Little Seven didn''t understand, she would translate it to English.


    So Little Seven was simultaneously learning three languages, English, Japanese and Korean.


    Thanks to memory and language aptitude buffs, Little Seven didn''t feel it was too difficult to learn now, but she also realized that learning English well was still very important. It was almost like a bridge, not just for her, the other foreign teachers were the same, coming from different places, without English they would also have difficulty communicating, usually English was a must-learn second language for them, so that was good.


    With the pot set up, they could cook instant noodles...some foreign teachers had brought a lot of instant noodles, still worried the other food might not turn out well, at least there were noodles.


    There were a lot of rocks by the riverside, Little Seven learned from Old Garen and built another barbecue grill.


    Little Jiajia also helped out, skewering meat on bamboo skewers.


    Everyone was busy.


    Surprisingly, Garen had even brought fishing rods.


    By now everyone was rather hungry already, and couldn''t help eating some snacks first. When the fire rose up and smoke drifted languidly, they felt it was all worthwhile.


    Little Seven set up the grill, and soon the smell of cooking meat wafted over.


    The charcoal-grilled meat sizzled, dripping oil, brushed with seasoning, extremely appetizing.


    Everyone gathered in a circle, grilling and eating. Suddenly Grace shrieked.


    She had left her coat not far away, and now some small cows of unknown origin were chewing on her coat. She quickly ran to rescue her clothes.


    Although she got the coat back, it was covered in drool...


    Looking up, they realized that somehow, a herd of calves had appeared, farther away there was also a flock of sheep, scattered on the mountainside.


    Cattle, sheep, grasslands, distant mountains, lake water, it formed an extremely beautiful scene.


    At this moment Little Seven''s thoughts were also very peaceful and joyful, deep down she still loved the mountains, after all she was a true mountain girl.

 Chapter 260: The Combination of Work and Rest

    Chapter 260


    After having their fill of food and drink, some people were fishing by the lake, while others were trying to find a beautiful pebble along the riverbank.


    There were also people chasing after cows and sheep, causing them to scatter chaotically... including Jiajia, a little child.


    Mr. Yamamoto was quietly cleaning up the food remnants, separating them meticulously... he cared a lot about waste sorting.


    Earlier, when they were grilling the meat, Xiao Qi mainly did the work. Now she didn''t participate in the cleanup because Mr. Yamamoto was too serious about it, and Xiao Qi couldn''t figure out how to properly sort and clean up, so she would only make a mess.


    She picked up her own sketchbook and leaned against a small slope, wanting to draw a picture.


    Her drawing skills were still at a beginner level. She felt that drawing was different from practicing calligraphy. Calligraphy only required a calm and composed mind, and one could quickly enter a state of tranquility. However, drawing seemed to require an excited state, a desire to draw.


    An excitement triggered by the sight of something beautiful.


    The scene before her was beautiful, and Xiao Qi could feel it. The brush in her hand brushed against the paper, sketching out a landscape painting.


    At first, she was just casually doodling, but gradually, she became immersed in it.


    Being able to immerse oneself in learning is extremely important, and this was Xiao Qi''s greatest takeaway from today.


    She drew the mountain scenery, the lake, the herds of sheep and cows before her eyes, but in her mind, she envisioned the scenery of Gumula Village, a place she had heard of.


    To be honest, Gumula Village was located on a plateau, and Xiao Qi even felt it would be more beautiful.


    But she had never felt that way before. Her most common feeling was that Gumula Village was backward, ignorant, and poor.


    She even felt inferior and self-pitying.


    She didn''t want to be born in such a backward and impoverished place. She envied her classmates, not just those in the city but even Xia Zhen, who lived in the suburbs, seemed so impressive.


    However, at this moment, deep down, she felt that the scenery here was beautiful.


    Unconsciously, she had become a part of the people she used to dislike and envy.


    But at this moment, she missed Gumula Village very much.


    That secluded and backward place had become like a paradise in her heart after being away for so long.


    Xiao Qi loved to use colors in her paintings.


    Her coloring was extremely vibrant.


    Her deeply insecure nature longed for growth and blossoming, and her paintings always had a lively and uplifting spirit.


    The sunlight shifted.


    She really wanted to study diligently and felt that she could start a new journey.


    Little Jiajia, being young, had run around all day and fell asleep on the bus. Xiao Qi was the one who had to help her off the bus, carrying her bag on her own.


    Mr. Yamamoto also got off at the old residential area.


    Mr. Yamamoto carefully took the trash back to the school''s garbage bins. However, the school only had two bins¡ªone for recyclable items and one for non-recyclable items.


    Mr. Yamamoto neatly sorted the trash he had collected, even dividing it further inside the bags.


    For someone who is meticulous, you might think they are overly fussy, but deep down, you feel a unique sense of admiration.


    You can''t help but think that someone who can persistently and earnestly do something, no matter what it is, is truly remarkable.


    Xiao Qi bid farewell to Mr. Yamamoto, who leaned on his "hiking stick" and revealed his cold smile, indicating that he had a great day.


    He also received half a bottle of pickled radish from Jin Zaiyan, which Xiao Qi had made before. Jin Zaiyan took it with him, but unexpectedly, it paired surprisingly well with the grilled meat, with a tangy and sweet taste.


    Among those present, Jin Zaiyan and Mr. Yamamoto enjoyed it the most, as their appetites were quite similar.


    In the end, there was still half a jar left, which Jin Zaiyan gave to Mr. Yamamoto.


    Mr. Yamamoto was eager to go back and have the pickled radish, plain water, and white rice for his dinner.


    As for Xiao Qi, she took Jiajia to the cafeteria and had a proper meal of rice. Eating things like grilled meat outside didn''t sit well with her stomach.


    Xiao Qi was also worried that Jiajia might have an upset stomach, after all, she was still young.


    After finishing their meal, they walked back to the dormitory slowly, soothing their digestion as they walked.


    Once they returned to the dormitory, Jiajia went to take a shower first, while Xiao Qi tidied up their things and also organized the dormitory.


    Then Xiao Qi took a shower.


    After a busy day, standing under the hot water was truly refreshing.


    If you were to ask her, Xiao Qi''s favorite thing when outside was the shower tools because it was inconvenient to take a shower in her hometown. She had to carry a bucket of hot water and wipe herself bit by bit. It just didn''t compare to a showerhead.


    The thing she most wanted to buy when she returned home was probably a water heater. Thinking about this, she realized she was quite practical.


    After Jiajia finished her shower, she lay on the bed and played with her phone. She was so tired today that she didn''t have the energy to use her computer to edit photos.


    However, she did trim the video she took of Teacher Xiao Qi painting on the mountain today and posted it on her TikTok account. Then she scrolled through TikTok, too impatient to wait for likes and comments, and fell asleep with her phone in her hands.


    Seeing this, Xiao Qi closed TikTok for her and put the phone aside.

 Chapter 261: Little Seven Buying Gifts

    Chapter 261


    The next day, early in the morning, Liang Jiajia got up.


    It wasn''t that she didn''t want to sleep in, but she had to go back today.


    The time she had agreed with her mom.


    These past few days she was like a bird let out of a cage, very free and happy, and played very happily.


    Busy but fulfilled, she also finished her homework in advance.


    She really wanted to stay a few more days until classes started again, but Ms. Liang was worried that with the end of vacation, there would be too much traffic on the roads and trains, so she asked her to go back home a day early, so she could also rest a bit.


    Since she was already allowed to go out on her own, which was already very surprising, her mom agreed to anything.


    So she could only go back today.


    On the noon high-speed train.


    Xiao Qi had helped her pack her luggage last night already, she didn''t buy any local specialties, afraid that her luggage would be too heavy for her to carry back herself.


    In the morning after getting up, Xiao Qi was still practicing calligraphy and going for a run as usual.


    Jiajia also got up early. She didn''t expect that Teacher had not only broken records in the marathon race, but still persisted in running. If it was her...she got third place in her English exam, her tail would already be up in the sky, and she wouldn''t want to open her English books again. But after going back this time, she wanted to be like Teacher, work hard in her studies, even if she was already very good, she still had to study well.


    Indeed, although the marathon was over, Xiao Qi still persisted in going running. At this time, running felt different again. Before, there was always a slight sense of urgency, but now she felt much more relaxed.


    Probably because after finishing the marathon, running 30,000 steps a day felt simply too easy and light.


    Xiao Qi started listening to other people''s speech content again while running. When she got tired of listening, she would switch, listening to some Japanese programs for a while. If that got tiring, she could also switch to Korean content.


    Jin Yien had introduced her to a Korean variety show that was very funny and relaxing, with simple sentences very suitable for beginners.


    Xiao Qi discovered that learning one language was difficult, learning two was a bit of a stretch, but when she started learning the third, she unexpectedly felt that they were quite interconnected and also not difficult.


    Probably a bit like the feeling of not worrying about debt when you owe too much.


    Previously when she heard that school supervisor Ms. Su could speak eight languages, she felt that was simply too amazing, too unattainable. But now that she really started learning herself, she discovered it wasn''t that far or difficult.


    Knowing difficulties and overcoming them was probably something discovered through practice.


    After finishing her run and calligraphy practice, Xiao Qi felt like it was a return to normal, and she felt very reassured.


    Then she took her student Liang Jiajia out for a meal.


    A single cup cost several thousand yuan!


    Xiao Qi had originally thought since there were 3 dormmates, it would be best if the gifts to each were around the same price. She thought tea sets might not be too expensive, which was why she specifically asked the president to introduce a better shop.


    She didn''t expect that seeing the prices, they were actually more expensive than the laptop and camera she had bought.


    She had originally planned to buy a whole set too, but saw that a whole set was marked at tens of thousands of yuan.


    Still, now that she was here, she kept a straight little face and told the boss that she was introduced by their friend Li Luanliang.


    Sure enough, having an acquaintance changed the boss''s attitude instantly to warm and enthusiastic, not like when she first entered with the boss just sitting there staring at Xiao Qi, unlike someone trying to sell anything.


    The boss asked Xiao Qi her price range. Xiao Qi said around ten thousand yuan, she wanted to buy a set of tea sets as a gift.


    In the end, the boss recommended a set of Chengde Xuan brand tea sets, with teapot and fairness cup and six small cups. Looking at them, they really seemed exquisite. Marked at over 12,000 yuan, the boss generously gave her a 40% discount...insisting it was the cost price.


    Whether it was the cost price or not Xiao Qi didn''t know, she just saw that they really looked very nice. Each small cup had light pink plum blossoms, elegantly simple. With Xiao Qi''s basic level of art appreciation, she felt they were very good, Yunshu would probably like them, and the price was suitable too.


    So Xiao Qi asked the boss to package up the tea set.


    Spending nearly 20,000 yuan in one go, Xiao Qi felt a bit of an extravagantly bizarre feeling.


    A bit of sour excitement, and also a bit empty.


    With the remaining money, Xiao Qi didn''t buy anything for herself after thinking about it. Instead she bought her Japanese teacher Zhou Teacher, who taught her Japanese, a set of Chantecaille lipstick. The packaging colors looked very bright and beautiful. Zhou Teacher would probably like it.


    She bought her aunt a delicate thin gold necklace, and her mother a small leather Chanel bag, costing several thousand yuan too. For her dad she bought a set of Chinese-style clothes, from a clothing shop she happened to pass by when looking for the tea shop in the antique market. They seemed very suitable for artisans. Still, buying the whole set cost another few thousand RMB.


    Xiao Qi discovered money really was easy to spend. After buying these gifts, she had already exceeded 30,000 yuan.


    The separate 30,000 yuan reward on the interface also disappeared.


    Through spending money, Xiao Qi felt some difference, the difference being their concepts of consumption were not the same. In Lvshan City, 30,000 yuan might go further, while in remote Gumula Village, there was basically nothing that could cost 30,000 yuan, unless you were constructing buildings or holding major events like weddings or funerals.


    But in Meng City, it seemed easy to spend that much, casually.


    But it also depended where in the city. Meng City also had very poor areas.


    Feeling extravagant spending money, Xiao Qi also warned herself not to indulge in this state. She still had to work hard to improve herself. Money was external after all, easy come easy go.


    She mailed out the gifts to be shipped from the city. The rest she brought back to her dorm.


    By the time she returned to campus it was dark again. After a shower Xiao Qi went to evening self-study as usual, continuing her second last day of vacation countdown.

 Chapter 262: The Gift Seed

    Chapter 262


    After self-study, Xiao Qi went back to her dormitory.


    She was the only one in the dormitory today, which felt a little strange.


    However, she neatly put away all the gifts, the camera for her friend Mier, the laptop for Wei Cheng, the tea set for Yunshu, and tidied up the dormitory again. It looked tidy and cozy.


    She didn''t go to bed too late either. She planned to sleep after lights out.


    But when the lights went out, the mechanical sound next to her ear rang out empty.


    "The host''s positive attitude towards life has set a good example for the underage children around her and helped establish the right values and outlook on life. The host is awarded a medal of heartfelt thanks and a talent seed. This seed can only be applied to one academic subject. Further development requires the host''s own efforts."


    Xiao Qi saw an interface in front of her with a bean-like grayish-green thing added.


    At this moment, seeing her daughter tidy up her things obediently and go to bed after finishing her homework, Ms. Liang shed tears of relief.


    She knew her daughter was playful, and she spoiled her. After letting her daughter go out and play for a few days, she started to worry about her safety, but she was too busy to accompany her daughter.


    She asked Jiajia to video call every day. Seeing her happy and energetic put her mind at ease, but it was not as reassuring as seeing her daughter safe in person.


    After running around for a few days, she didn''t seem tired at all, still very energetic and cheerful.


    When Ms. Liang saw her daughter come back safe and sound, she finally felt relieved. She didn''t expect there would be a pleasant surprise afterwards. She noticed her daughter had changed. Usually when she came back, she would just throw herself on the sofa and refused to do anything. But today, she tidied up her stuff, showed Ms. Liang that she had finished all her homework, and said, "Mom, I want to continue learning English. Please find me a good tutor. And I''m really bad at math, so I think I should make up for that too."


    Ms. Liang was astonished. When did her naughty daughter become so well-behaved? It was like she had become a different person.


    Ms. Liang felt she needed to have a good talk with her daughter.


    However, every time she tried to be a caring mom to chat with her daughter, her evasive daughter found ways to avoid it. Maybe it was the generation gap.


    So this time, Ms. Liang didn''t put on a knowing motherly air when talking to her daughter. She just chatted with her daughter about what she had seen and heard these days.


    As expected, her daughter was very excited to tell her all about her adventures in the past few days. She even enthusiastically took out her camera and showed her mother some videos.


    Most of the videos were about that little girl Xiao Qi. Running, practicing calligraphy, studying, painting, and talking with groups of foreigners. Her life seemed full of colors. Even Ms Liang looked at those videos longingly.


    She also reminisced about her own life. She didn''t go to college. Her brother was the one who went to college. So was her ex-husband. If she had had the chance to go to college, wouldn''t her life be different now? Maybe she wouldn''t have become a businesswoman.


    Now looking at her daughter, she felt her daughter could go to college and fulfill her dream, which was great.


    Moreover, she clearly felt her daughter had changed after the trip, not just temporary excitement. It seemed like her whole temperament had been transformed.


    Well there seemed to be some difference - she appeared to practice harder and listen more attentively.


    Although having lived abroad for a long time made him used to not prying into others¡¯ business, for the girl in front him, Steven felt like taking her as his closed-door disciple, his last hope to accomplish something. He was still very curious - hmm - very concerned.


    At dinner time, Steven finally couldn''t help asking, "Su, did you participate in the marathon? I saw you on TV. You were awesome to break the record. Don''t you want to do anything with the bonus you got?"


    Today the Western chef was here. Xiao Qi was having steak, eye of round steak and beef tenderloin, plus a serving of salad, thick soup and toast.


    Steven ate about the same amount as her, just without the toast.


    Hearing the coach ask about it, Xiao Qi was a little embarrassed. She had actually seen the gloves when buying a handbag for her mother and happened to think of the coach.


    When she just about finished eating, she asked the coach to wait for her for a bit. She went to her locker and took out a small box.


    She handed it to Steven.


    Steven opened the box curiously and saw a beautiful pair of leather gloves. The size happened to fit perfectly. Steven tried them on, feeling a little uneasy.


    Actually when he came back from abroad, he took things impulsively without much thought. Many things he was used to didn''t come with him. These days he had been handling the lunge lines with bare hands, although as an experienced horse riding coach he was used to it. But he did use to wear gloves before.


    He didn¡¯t expect Xiao Qi to give him a pair of gloves.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Hearing the coach sincerely thank her, Xiao Qi felt somewhat ill at ease. She actually just happened to think of the coach when buying things for her mother.


    Steven was very touched in his heart. From his observation, he felt his student was not well off. She dressed very plainly. Her clothes and pants seemed to have been worn for many years. Men could dress like that with no problem, but she was a young girl. Young girls tended to care about looks.


    What''s more, she had a good appetite, and Steven felt that being able to eat well was a sign that one had experienced hunger before - only those who had suffered from starvation would be so devout towards food.


    She was willing to work hard and didn''t mind getting dirty.


    After hanging out with Su several times, Steven completely broke his initial prejudice and grew very fond of this down-to-earth student.


    He didn''t expect that the first thing she did after receiving the prize money was to buy him a gift. This pair of gloves couldn''t have been cheap.


    "Su, I will definitely train you into the best equestrian rider. You will definitely succeed," Steven suddenly said passionately.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Is there some kind of misunderstanding here?

 Chapter 263: It’s good to have You

    Chapter 263


    After lunch, Xiao Qi went back to her dormitory.


    She saw that there was suddenly over 900,000 yuan more in her card.


    This time she broke the record and could get a total of 1.21 million yuan. After deducting 20% in taxes, there was still 960,000 yuan left.


    At the same time, someone called her to have her appear on an interview show.


    It was a recorded show, and they would notify her of the specific time.


    Compared to her previous experience of being on a show in Lvshan City, Xiao Qi was much calmer about hearing this news.


    She didn''t get especially nervous. Her overall policy in life was still to maintain a low profile as much as possible, not show off, and leave opportunities for showing off to people who wanted to show off.


    Meanwhile, in Gumu Village, it had been lively for a day or two, but looking at Su Youfu and his wife, they were still the same as usual, weaving bamboo every day. They didn''t even go to the small shop to buy chicken claws and vegetables. During the Double Ninth Festival, someone in the village killed a pig. Stingy Su Youfu bought a jin of pig intestines and said he would take them home to braise and eat.


    He really didn''t look like someone who had suddenly become rich.


    Moreover, one million yuan was simply too much, too far removed from the villagers, so most of them didn''t believe it.


    But they still had to tease him about it.


    "Su Youfu, one jin of pig intestines isn''t enough. If I were you, I would buy the entire pig''s intestines."


    Su Youfu just gave his usual silly smile, and didn''t say much. He just took the intestines and went home to prepare them.


    But things weren''t so good on Grandma Su''s side. She went around the circle of relatives all day, saying she had already told them that her older brother was having a longevity celebration, so Su Youfu had to pay for it.


    The pushy old lady had an air of superiority about her, which left Su Youfu and his wife at a loss for words. It made them even more cautious.


    Su Youfu could only say, "Mom, wait until I go into the city to sell these bamboo baskets, and see how much money there is."


    "You have enough money to pay tuition for that unlucky girl to go to college, but you don''t have money for your uncle''s longevity celebration? Who are you trying to fool?" Grandma Su cursed and swore, but when she looked at her son''s table, there really wasn''t any extra, they didn''t even eat well. So she left and waited for him to come back after selling bamboo baskets.


    When Xiao Qi returned to the dorm, she didn''t expect that Mi Er had also arrived.


    The dorm door was open, and Mi Er was jumping up and down saying she was hot.


    When she went home, her mom had brought her winter padded coats, and insisted she wear a big coat when going out. She was miserably hot and sweaty.


    The dorm door was wide open, the electric fan was on, and the windows were all open.


    Seeing Xiao Qi come back, Mi Er took out a pile of things from her luggage, including all kinds of dried meat, clothes, pastries.


    She spoke quickly and anxiously.


    On this trip back to Fucheng, Yun Shu''s mother had dragged her shopping. She had actually gone to Fucheng''s tea market and gotten a basic education. She saw this brand Chengde Xuan was very expensive. She felt the gift Xiao Qi gave her might even be more expensive.


    Mi Er didn''t expect that Yun Shu would also have a gift for her. She really liked the necklace and wore it vainly for a long time, reluctant to take it off.


    She was a bit more cunning and looked it up online even though she didn''t know the brand. The price was higher than she expected. She had thought it was a thousand-something yuan necklace since it was silver, but didn''t expect it to be several thousand yuan.


    The camera was also expensive, but she had already looked into it earlier. Thinking of how she had only brought some food and clothes, she felt a bit inferior.


    But she really liked the gifts her dormmates gave her.


    In the evening, Wei Cheng was the last to arrive.


    She didn''t pull a suitcase. When she went home she basically didn''t bring anything back. But when coming to school she carried a stuffed, heavy backpack. It looked very heavy.


    "My mom made a lot of food and told me to bring it for you all." She said, gasping for breath.


    When she opened the backpack, there were indeed fried fresh lychee meat, buns, rolled cakes, braised chicken claws and wings, pancakes, mushroom cakes unique to Wei Cheng''s hometown, roast mushrooms that could be eaten directly as snacks, and a large piece of spiced beef... It looked like they didn''t need to go out for dinner and everything was taken care of.


    Xiao Qi discovered she loved gnawing on chicken claws. Maybe it was because her mother at home often made them too, so when she was away from home she especially missed that taste.


    Wei Cheng''s mom''s chicken claws were spicier, but very flavoursome. Eating them made you sweat from the spice, but you still wanted to eat more. They were a little addictive.


    All the dormmates sat gnawing away at them.


    Wei Cheng didn''t eat any herself. She smiled and said, "This is great!"


    When she finished taking out all the food and went to organize her bed, she saw the laptop, watch, and clothes on it...


    She thought the dormmates had put their things on her bed.


    When she heard they were gifts for her, she was not just stunned and confused.


    Mi Er couldn''t help but say, "Xiao Qi bought the laptop for you. She won prize money in the marathon and bought gifts for us all. I got a camera, Yun Shu got tea ware, the watch is war spoils Yun Shu''s rich mom bought abroad. We all got some. The clothes are from my family''s factory, they''re hoodies. Just pick a color when you get back and we can use them as dorm uniforms."


    "This..."


    As Wei Cheng opened the laptop, watch boxes, clothes, she suddenly burst into tears, with her face covered in tears.


    The dormmates didn''t know what to do.


    It seemed like crying was contagious, as everyone''s eyes turned red.


    They hugged each other one by one.


    Wei Cheng cried with slurred speech, murmuring: "It''s so nice to have you all."

 Chapter 264: Want to Change Roommates

    Chapter 264


    The seven-day holiday flashed by in the blink of an eye.


    Everyone was very excited to go home, and they were also very excited to come back to school.


    Perhaps it was still the freshman phase, after going home for a bit, they felt the school was more fun.


    Even Li Weijin felt especially nostalgic for the school...really, he simply missed the school.


    On National Day, Su Li went abroad to play, and ran to Saipan, tanning herself even darker.


    Many classmates bought new clothes, because when coming to class, at least for the girls, everyone wore new clothes, like they had come home for the new year.


    Su Li wore small boots, jodhpurs, a short chic jacket, and also wore a loudly colored blue beret, looking very fashionable.


    Chic was a term spread by Mieli, referring to clothes like Chanel''s style, though later the two found out that she was wearing not just chic style, but Chanel clothes themselves, pretty or not aside, they were frighteningly expensive, crazy expensive, supposedly they couldn''t even be washed in water.


    The blonde Lin Dongqing also dressed exceptionally beautifully, wearing a thick skirt, her tall nose and white skin and delicate features gave her a mixed race girl characteristic.


    In comparison, although their dormmate Chu Yu had also changed into new clothes, they were still cotton and linen, something the boys probably couldn''t tell a difference between, and Xia Qi probably wouldn''t notice without looking closely.


    However, the class monitor and vice monitor seemed to have quickly heated up in their relationship. When coming to class, the monitor even brought breakfast for the vice monitor, causing whispers throughout the class.


    They were the first "class couple" in their Class One of the Finance and Economics Department.


    Today was October 8th, the Cold Dew solar term, Tuesday, and they had Tuesday classes.


    There weren''t many classes today, just the morning half day of Accounting and Marxist Theory.


    Everyone was still quite excited, feeling as if they were relaxing after a vacation.


    The accounting professor was a super old professor poached back from Tsinghua and Peking University. He basically ignored the students, had a heavy accent, taught class, then left, rarely taking roll call.


    The second period Fundamentals of Marxism class, most students took as an elective. But Teacher Mao took roll call, and did pop quizzes, so everyone was reluctant to skip class.


    The homework that Teacher Mao had assigned before, Xia Qi had spent a lot of effort and finally completed, handing it in.


    Teacher Mao had them write an essay, no set topic, it could be called societal observation, life observation.


    Xia Qi wrote about content regarding informal groups.


    Because the school had many clubs, as well as the student union. And usually, everyone had QQ groups and WeChat groups. Relative to the class collective and such, these should belong to another group.


    Xia Qi was usually so stingy, wearing such old clothes, backpack fraying, yet willing to buy such an expensive bracelet for herself. Chu Yu subconsciously felt it was wrong, but thinking of how rumors always collapsed on their own before.


    Plus this time, Su Xiaoqi seemed to have broken the marathon record, with a million yuan prize, real or not was unknown.


    It was common knowledge that Xia Qi ran every day, anyone with her WeChat could see her dominating the leaderboard on WeChat Sport every day.


    But was she really good enough to break records?


    Simply unbelievable, Chu Yu felt a jealousy that distorted her face, but still had a gentle smile on the surface.


    Seemingly on good terms with Xia Qi and the others, after class in front of the other students, she generously praised, "Wow, class monitor, your bracelet is so pretty, it''s Van Cleef & Arpels right? This one costs over 10,000 right, really bold! As expected of someone who got a big prize."


    Xia Qi''s brows furrowed slightly, it was that expensive? She asked Yunshu, Yunshu said her mother bought it at a duty-free shop, relatively cheap at just a few thousand.


    Deskmate Mieli had never liked seeing Chu Yu''s pretentiousness on normal days. At Chu Yu''s words, she loved to refute, immediately saying, "Xia Qi didn''t buy this, Yunshu gave it to her. Yunshu gave each of us gifts when she came back from the National Day holiday. Look at my necklace."


    Hearing Mieli''s words, everyone else was stunned, not expecting Gu Yunshu to be so rich.


    Compared to the four leaf clover bracelet, Bulgari necklace that Mieli wore was clearly more familiar to everyone, often seen worn by celebrities in various ads.


    They had also heard Gu Yunshu was a rich second generation, but she was usually very low-key, and didn''t talk much in class.


    Casually gifting necklaces and jewelry worth tens of thousands, simply too expensive! It would be so hard for guys wanting to date them! With a rich dormmate, what did they need boyfriends for?


    Chu Yu looked on enviously as well. Her dormmate Su Li had gone abroad for the National Day holiday, but had no special treatment when she came back, just bringing some snacks. Were they lacking those snacks? Those pastries were rock hard, completely inedible.


    Everyone expressed envy. The guys didn''t understand things like gifts and whatnot. Hearing the girls discuss, they just felt girls were so troublesome. But they also found out that seemingly very rich girl who usually didn''t talk, sitting in the corner by the window.


    Gifting items and jewelry worth tens of thousands so casually, it was too expensive! It would be so difficult for guys wanting to date them!


    Sitting behind Chu Yu, Li Weijin also saw the delicate bracelet on Xia Qi''s wrist. Thin and very pretty.


    In daily life he matched accessories when dressing, subconscious actions trained by his mother. He didn''t especially think they were very pretty or ugly. But seeing the thin bracelet hanging on Xia Qi''s fair wrist, the pearly white four leaf clover, he felt it was very dainty and pretty.


    Li Weijin''s face was stern, but his clavicle felt slightly feverish.


    He had so many bracelets, necklaces and the like, I really wanted to put one on Su Xiaoqi''s hand or around her neck.


    Chu Yu originally wanted to say that Su Xiaoqi was nouveau riche, so buying such expensive things for herself was too vain. But she didn''t expect that they were actually gifts from her roommates, and her jealous heart became uneasy.


    She couldn''t help asking, "Class monitor, didn''t you get a lot of prize money? Didn''t you buy anything? Are you going to treat us to a meal?"


    After Chu Yu asked this, the class bell unfortunately rang, and everyone returned to their seats.

 Chapter 265: The Primary Bad Luck Card

    Chapter 265


    Chu Yu was a little unwilling to give up and felt that Su Xiaoqi could always get through one disaster after another.


    It was hard to ask her, and as it turned out she had class.


    She was thinking about this matter the whole time during class and did not pay attention well. She endured until the class was over.


    Su Xiaoqi, on the other hand, listened to class attentively until the end of class refreshed and relaxed. Her knowledge level of Basic Principles of Marxism had reached proficiency. Whenever she listened to class, she always had the feeling of sudden enlightenment. She and Teacher Mao seemed to have endless words to say to each other, affectionate with each other. Although there were over seventy people in one class, Su Xiaoqi still felt like she was being tutored one-on-one. She especially liked to listen to Teacher Mao talk. Although the teacher looked ordinary, once she opened a book and started teaching, she was full of charm and very admirable.


    Every sentence the teacher said seemed to make a lot of sense.


    This was probably the charm of university. It was not necessary to learn any professional knowledge, because most people''s jobs after graduation had nothing to do with their majors. But at school you could always learn a lot of knowledge and insights that would benefit you for life.


    After a class, Su Xiaoqi was very satisfied, like she had eaten a delicious meal.


    When school was over, Teacher Mao Xihong unexpectedly took the initiative to come over and chat with Su Xiaoqi for a few sentences: "Congratulations on breaking the marathon record. My partner also participated in the competition and ran a half marathon. He also finished it. You are really amazing."


    This made Su Xiaoqi feel very embarrassed.


    "I run every day, and I am also from a mountain village, so my physical fitness is a little better."


    "Haha, I told my partner you are my student and he didn''t believe it." Mao Xihong said with a hearty laugh, "Come on, let''s take a picture together so I can show him."


    Su Xiaoqi was really pulled aside by the teacher to take a photo. However, Teacher Mao did not use a beauty filter and used the Apple front camera instead. Su Xiaoqi''s fair and delicate little face looked fine, but Teacher Mao''s own face in the photo was huge. She didn''t care and forwarded the photo to her partner after taking it.


    After going to eat, Chu Yu learned the news she did not want to know.


    Su Xiaoqi got so much prize money but did not treat anyone to a meal. However, she gave each of her roommates a particularly expensive gift.


    Wei Cheng, the country girl, got a laptop.


    The coquettish Chen Mier got a Sony camera.


    Gu Yunshu got a set of tea ware, said to be more expensive than a Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet.


    It was said that once when chatting in the dormitory, Su Xiaoqi had asked everyone what gifts they wanted. They each said what they wanted, and did not expect that Su Xiaoqi would actually buy them. At that time, Su Xiaoqi had not yet participated in the marathon, but she acted as if she knew she would break the record. Now she really bought all these gifts.


    Jewelry and other luxury goods did not make much of an impression on the students. Perhaps the distance was too far, and not everyone knew those brands. But things like computers and cameras, everyone knew how much they cost. After all, these were considered daily necessities, and were also necessities for college students.


    The girls were fine, but the boys were clamoring, almost wishing they were Su Xiaoqi''s roommates.


    The class monitor was too generous and domineering.


    Chen Mier paired it with denim overalls shorts, Wei Cheng paired it with a skirt, Gu Yunshu wore a strappy dress inside, and Su Xiaoqi paired it with jeans. Each looked good in her own way.


    There were even people coming to ask where they bought their clothes from. When they learned it was made in Chen Mier''s family factory, there were even people who wanted to place orders with Chen Mier.


    Chen Mier was very excited, and somehow felt like a small businesswoman taking over. She immediately said, "Sure, the clothes from my family''s factory, whatever you want I can give you at cost price. This hoodie is priced over 800 yuan outside, if you want it, let me ask my family. It should be around one or two hundred yuan, but it''s best to order more, otherwise shipping is difficult."


    There were also people who didn''t want the same style but wanted other styles. Chen Mier readily said, "Sure, there are many styles. I''ll make a group chat and send the clothing styles in it later. You can pick and choose yourself."


    So in this way, Su Xiaoqi''s roommate and deskmate somehow seemed to develop in a strange direction because of their matching dorm clothes.


    Her family was in business, so she was very smart. She later sent many more clothes, always in sets of four based on the sizes of the four people in Su Xiaoqi''s dorm. Su Xiaoqi and the others saved money on buying clothes, while also becoming advertisements for Chen Mier. Basically, a lot of people came to Chen Mier to order the clothes they wore.


    After deducting the factory cost of the clothes from her family, Chen Mier could actually earn tens or hundreds of yuan per piece of clothing. She completely earned her living expenses, and had a little extra pocket money.


    She didn''t know if this counted as encroaching on her family''s territory, but Su Xiaoqi was quite impressed with Chen Mier. Dealing with so many people to buy clothes in bits and pieces, she didn''t seem particularly busy. She handled it all on her phone, and her life was still the same as usual.


    The other three roommates all disliked dealing with people.


    Only Chen Mier seemed to take to it like a fish to water. Because of selling clothes, she later got along better and better in the student union. Most of the people in the student union had bought clothes from Chen Mier.


    Chen Mier''s classmate gradually developed into a campus micro merchant agent. Level by level, ordering a certain amount of clothes from her could get a discount and so on. These were all later events.


    For now, Su Xiaoqi and her roommates just watched Chen Mier deal with students from other dorms coming to place clothes orders, while they admired each other''s gifts back in their dorm, sighing and wishing they were in Room 606.


    What puzzled them the most was that girls from the English department also came to Chen Mier to order clothes, including the so-called English department goddess Wu Xinyue. Seeing her up close, Su Xiaoqi realized Wu Xinyue''s hair was really well cared for, truly black and waist-length. Her voice speaking was very tender, like Lin Chi-ling''s voice.


    Wu Xinyue was not actually very interested in clothes. She was very interested in Su Xiaoqi, so she came along. She saw that on Su Xiaoqi''s desk, in addition to English books, there were also Japanese and Korean textbooks... Not only calligraphy practice works, but also paintings... She really had too many complaints in her heart to voice out.


    When she just went home for the National Day holiday, this person actually broke the marathon record and earned so much money.


    If she had so much money, she would... she would most want to get her nose slightly reshaped again, and her eyes too.


    But Su Xiaoqi actually bought a pile of gifts for her roommates...


    Really, really, she was so envious of Su Xiaoqi''s roommates.


    Xiaoqi didn''t really like having so many people in the dormitory, but seeing that Honey was quite excited, she didn''t say anything and just put on headphones to practice writing.


    As a result, the mechanical sound in her ears suddenly rang out: "The host generously gave thoughtful gifts to her roommates, receiving six sincere jealousy chips. The host is rewarded with a basic bad luck card that the host can use on anyone for one day. Please use it prudently."


    Xiaoqi looked at the interface where a strange gray-black card had been added, as if a strange door had suddenly opened.

 Chapter 266: Buying a House Again

    Chapter 266


    There were no classes in the afternoon.


    Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng were both going to the equestrian center, so Mier and Yunshu went along as well.


    Mier had a small personal agenda - she was hoping to see the student council president directly at the equestrian center.


    Her family ran a small business, so there was a somewhat opportunistic side to her personality.


    Meanwhile, Wei Cheng felt some psychological pressure. She wished she could go to the equestrian center to work every day to earn more money.


    She felt that compared to the gifts she had received herself, the things she had given out seemed insignificant. She really wanted to do something for her dormmates too, and give them gifts too.


    She really needed a computer. Touching the silvery screen, seeing the Apple logo, she would handle it carefully. When using the computer, she would even take off her watch, afraid to scratch the keyboard or screen. Opening the colorful pages on the computer filled her with excitement. She had wanted a computer before, but didn''t dare wish for an Apple. Any off-brand would have been good enough.


    But thinking of being able to carry an Apple laptop, sitting by the window in a cafe, and opening it up - just picturing that scene felt wonderful, the kind of feeling that would probably make you laugh in your dreams.


    She also really liked the watch Yunshu had given her. She had never received such an exquisite gift before, golden and glittery, truly too beautiful.


    She would take it off carefully whenever washing hands or showering, placing it solemnly in its box on the bed, afraid that getting it wet would break it, even though Yunshu said it was waterproof.


    So although she loved it dearly, Wei Cheng did not wear it that afternoon, because she would be working at the equestrian center soon, afraid that it might get scratched.


    Xiao Qi looked at Wei Cheng almost as if looking at her past self, easily empathizing, also lamenting. She felt that Wei Cheng was stronger than her past self. Wei Cheng had always been very optimistic and willing to endure hardship, while she herself had been gloomier, often feeling the whole world owed her.


    Yunshu was mostly interested in the chance to interact with horses.


    The four took the bus together to the new district. Xiao Qi had let the president know beforehand that she was bringing her dormmates.


    It was the first day of classes after the break. Xiao Shengzhou was quite busy too, also back at school. Hearing Xiao Qi was bringing her dormmates to the equestrian center, he readily agreed.


    He now had a great impression of Su Xiaqi. Mainly because his little ancestor at home really liked Xiao Qi, talking about her day and night, Xiao Qi this, Xiao Qi that...


    He had assumed it would just be a fleeting three-day fascination for the little kid, but unexpectedly, this had persisted.


    There was now also footage on Douyin of Xiao Qi in the marathon at the equestrian center. Xiao Bao''er was even a little upset that she had not gone to the finish line to wait, instead leaving halfway through to go to the amusement park. She regretted going to the amusement park.


    Xiao Shengzhou and his younger uncle Xiao Yu were also quite astonished.


    They would never have imagined that the girl running, would suddenly break the record as she ran! What the heck?


    It made Xiao Yu even act a little depressed.


    Because he saw the silly smiling selfie Xiao Qi posted on Moments with a big card showing her prize money.


    He felt like he could sense Xiao Qi''s determination to participate in the competition stemmed purely from money as the goal, but how could chasing money like this allow her to actually obtain money? What kind of spirit was that?


    Previously he had assumed the girl lacked money and life experience, even envisioning various romantic pursuit tactics.


    But then the girl had casually entered a competition, won tens of thousands in prize money and unhesitatingly donated it away.


    And now even more extremely, directly over a hundred thousand.


    He was very curious what a poor country girl from the mountains would do with hundreds of thousands?


    There was also one thing they did not have the heart to notify Steven of. Steven''s ex-wife, also their mutual good friend, had divorced later. Steven kept providing alimony occasionally still drinking together. They had assumed Steven and his ex-wife had some lingering feelings, possibly even remarrying in the end.


    But recently received news she was remarrying, to a supermarket owner, seemingly quite wealthy.


    The good thing was Steven would no longer need to provide alimony. But they did not dare mention anything regarding the emotional matters, luckily Steven was now away in the far orient, otherwise facing this news Steven might have completely collapsed if still around.


    Steven himself did not know any of this. He was now filled with ambition to teach out an outstanding student. Su breaking the record at the marathon also encouraged him, making him feel this student had endless potential. Things he had previously deemed impossible, he now thought likely, with his ambitions rising even further.


    Thus he taught even more painstakingly and strictly than ever.


    Were his old friends to see Su now they would surely think her ready for tournaments already, but to Steven she was still ordinary, with more effort needed.


    Xiao Qi also did not know her own level, she was very amateur, completely listening to the coach. The coach said she performed average, so she thought she was still very average. The requirements for regular equestrians were probably very high, and the level of expertise in horse riding was far from enough.


    Therefore, she had never been arrogant and had always trained very hard.


    What''s more, every time she came to learn and train, the chairman would actually give her money, saying that she had trained the condition of those horses. Xiao Qi felt even more embarrassed, not daring to have the slightest laziness.


    There was a lot of physical activity in practicing horse riding.


    Xiao Qi''s roommates watched from the side, very amazed.


    It was unbelievable. Mi''er carried the new camera Xiao Qi had given her and was still in the early stages with the camera. She kept taking pictures, feeling like she had suddenly become professional when she picked up the camera. She captured many moments of Xiao Qi riding, too handsome.


    Yun Shu''s personality was gentle, she especially admired people with athletic ability. She did not expect Xiao Qi to be so capable. Looking similar to her, also skinny, but Xiao Qi on horseback was too handsome. She watched longingly, not wanting to ride, just feeling this picture was very beautiful.


    Wei Cheng squinted, watching, not knowing what she was thinking, with a smile on her face.


    After Xiao Qi finished her training for the day, she went to take a shower, covered in sweat.


    Wei Cheng also took a shower.


    A few people ate together at the club restaurant, it was very sumptuous. Not only was the food delicious, but one could also watch the view of the bay while eating.


    After they finished eating, there were still many self-serve desserts. While eating dessert, Xiao Shengzhou came over to say hello.


    Mi''er, this little clever girl, immediately added the chairman on WeChat.


    Xiao Shengzhou was very approachable to add her on WeChat.


    Xiao Qi thought of her previous idea of buying a house. Because of the National Day holiday she had not asked. Taking this rare opportunity to see the chairman, she decided to directly ask him which would be best.


    She wanted to ask about the school apartments. She thought the scenery was good. Jin Zaiyan had helped investigate for her, saying there were units for sale, but after all Jin Zaiyan was a foreign teacher and did not investigate very clearly. Xiao Qi simply asked the chairman directly. For such a big event, she felt it would not be clearly explained over WeChat, it would be better to ask face-to-face.


    Xiao Shengzhou did not expect the little girl to take the initiative to find him, also not knowing what was the matter.


    Xiao Qi asked her roommates to wait for her, and followed the chairman to his office, then told him her thoughts.


    Xiao Shengzhou did not expect that the little girl would want to buy a house with her bonus money...


    After thinking about it, he still shook his head and said, "The school apartments are available for sale to outsiders, but I don''t recommend you buy them. The school properties are not good. Future development space depends entirely on the development of the school. At present, the development of private universities in China is not very promising."


    Seeing the little girl listening carefully, slightly frowning, Xiao Shengzhou still could not help but continue: ¡°I suggest you buy a house in the city center of Meng City, but with your money, it¡¯s not realistic to buy in the city center. It¡¯s already several hundred thousand yuan per square meter. The eastern suburbs of Meng City that were recently developed are quite good. Although across the sea, the cross-sea bridge is already under construction. Once built, transportation will be more convenient than some places in the downtown of Meng City. The current price is not high and is expected to have great potential for appreciation in the future. I suggest you can buy there and think about it carefully."

 Chapter 267: : Beginner Lucky Card

    Chapter 267


    Xiao Qi looked at the interface in front of her. She hadn''t spent much of the money randomly, most of the large sums were saved, and now there was about 900,000 to 1 million yuan.


    She barely considered the Chairman''s proposal before nodding. Xiao Qi didn''t understand buying a house, but the Chairman looked very professional and reliable. For things she didn''t understand, it was a wise choice to let someone who did make the decisions.


    "I''ve never been to the eastern suburbs. Chairman, are you familiar with that area? If you have time, could you take me to take a look?"


    Xiao Shengzhou had actually mentioned the eastern suburbs before, it seemed his family had bought land there. He was a bit familiar with it.


    He didn''t expect the little girl to trust him so much. 1 million yuan was nothing to him, but it was Xiao Qi''s entire net worth.


    "Alright, let''s go take a look this weekend or another time, I''ll accompany you there." said Xiao Shengzhou.


    "Thank you, Chairman." Said Xiao Qi as she left the office.


    Perhaps because she felt a weight had finally been lifted after getting something done, Xiao Qi had an unusually cheerful spring in her step.


    Xiao Shengzhou watched her leave and shook his head.


    He then called his uncle Xiao Yu.


    "The small commodity housing in the eastern suburbs? Why do you ask about that? Looking for a love nest?" Xiao Yu joked.


    "Don''t fool around. To be serious, aren''t you curious what Xiao Qi spent her money on? She wants to buy a house."


    Xiao Yu: ......


    Many of his girlfriends had asked him to buy them houses as gifts before.


    But none had bought their own house.


    "Isn''t she still under 18?"


    "She won''t turn 18 until the end of the year." Said Xiao Shengzhou.


    "There are a lot of those small commodity houses there, they sell pretty well. But I''ve been more focused on villas before. I''ll have my assistant contact you later, ask him." Xiao Yu was busy at the moment, so the uncle and nephew didn''t chat long before hanging up.


    The front part was the same as always. Whether she gave a gift or not, as long as she studied hard, Mr. Yamamoto would reward her.


    A pale gold card appeared on the interface next to a dark gray one.


    Xiao Qi felt her system might have silently upgraded. The new rewards seemed slightly different from before.


    "Next holiday, I''m not going home. I''ll go out with you guys." Honey thought of the scenic videos. She was quite bored at home with her parents'' nagging and brainwashing.


    Meanwhile her brother used their parents'' money to play around. That jerk even bought a new car last semester, shamelessly claiming he needed it to find a wife.


    Thinking of her family, Honey was speechless.


    After another two classes from Mr. Yamamoto, her head was buzzing and spinning. Xiao Qi could take it but she couldn''t bear this "care". She urgently needed some sweets when they got back to the dorm to unwind.


    Back at the dorm, Xiao Qi saw her step count still hadn''t reached 30,000, so she went downstairs to jog.


    Her marathon record was broken, yet she still went running. Her roommates were used to it by now...


    While jogging Xiao Qi reviewed today''s Japanese and switched to English when tired. The English speech contest finals were at Qingming University and she was quite nervous. She didn''t dare aim for first place but couldn''t embarrass the school either. After all, some high school classmates had tested into Qingming while she went to Enhua.


    After her run, Xiao Qi stretched thoroughly before returning to shower and change into pajamas, just old shirts and pants.


    Wei Cheng also wore hand-me-down pajamas. Honey had cute sets but wore camisoles and shorts to stay cool.


    Yunshu''s pajamas were the most luxurious, with intricate princess gowns in white, blue and pink that cost thousands per piece.


    Xiao Qi felt deep down she was still poor, evident in such details.


    She could spend tens of thousands on gifts for friends now but still balked at a few thousand for a gown, unable to overcome that spending hurdle. Moreover, at thousands per gown, dozens would buy a whole house! She didn''t dare tally that terrifying cost.


    After her shower, Xiao Qi practiced writing for a bit before lights out, then climbed into bed to sleep.


    The roommates were still excitedly recounting their holiday experiences, having been too tired to share yesterday after the long trip back.


    Xiao Qi had stayed on campus, quite envious as they described things from home, good and bad.


    Thinking about calling home tomorrow. Dad can only see the numbers change in his bank book when he goes into the city to deposit money. I wonder how he''ll react.

 Chapter 268: The Million Old Man

    Chapter 268


    Being nagged by Xiaoqi''s Grandma Li Fengjiao every day, Su Youfu and his wife Sheng Juanhua had no choice but to go into the city together to sell bamboo baskets today.


    Even so, Li Fengjiao still had more to say. She felt that for just selling a few bamboo baskets, it was unnecessary for the daughter-in-law to tag along with the old man, wasting money on transportation fees. And they would surely spend more money on meals when they go out.


    Sheng Juanhua knew her mother-in-law''s temperament - no matter what you do, she will always have something to say, with a mouth that never stops. So she paid no attention.


    Feeling sorry for her husband''s lame leg, yet he still had to carry a heavy load, she added some extra money to hire Driver Dayong to drive them directly into the city early in the morning. External license plates could still enter the city at this time.


    They had done this several times now. It was much more convenient and faster this way. Otherwise it would have taken Su Youfu over an hour to carry the bamboo baskets there.


    Today, having sold the bamboo baskets under pressure from her mother-in-law, the couple did not make many. Bamboo basket prices had increased substantially, several times that of winnowing baskets. But the level of difficulty had also increased. In the past one could make several winnowing baskets a day, but bamboo baskets had higher requirements for both workmanship and bamboo quality. Su Youfu was a very sincere man, unwilling to cheat people. With the higher prices, he worked even more conscientiously. Occasionally there would be one or two damaged ones, which the family kept for themselves, never bringing them out to sell.


    So although the unit price was higher, they did not actually earn much more money.


    But it was still far better than before, over seven hundred yuan. The couple had planned to save every five hundred or thousand yuan they earned, depositing nice round figures into the bank.


    With just over seven hundred, they could deposit five hundred.


    Originally the two intended to save up a little more, to one thousand yuan before making another deposit. But with the grandmother pestering them every day about the great uncle''s upcoming birthday banquet, if they did not contribute at least a little money, she would probably become impossible to deal with regarding any other family matter.


    "It''s still more comfortable being Yellow Boss, just having to sit in her shop receiving and selling goods." Sheng Juanhua sighed as they left the shop.


    Another woman, Yellow Boss was quite ordinary looking herself. But she just looked so carefree, already having morning tea prepared to leisurely drink while opening her shop early in the morning. It gave off an air of comfort.


    Su Youfu also said longingly, "Of course. She has a storefront. The rent on storefronts is expensive. We could never afford one, let along the transfer fees."


    "If we had a small shop, with you making bamboo baskets and other little crafts, do you think there would be buyers? I see that Yellow Boss takes all you make each time we come. Everything you sold last time is gone. It seems to sell pretty well."


    "Maybe someone buys them. But those are probably regular customers for her business." Su Youfu did not linger on this topic, but was slightly moved in his heart.


    Over these last few times when his daughter-in-law accompanied him to sell bamboo baskets, she was the one who helped carry everything, unwilling to burden him due to his lame leg. Yet on these city streets, every woman they passed was dressed up brightly, clutching a small purse and strutting in leather shoes.


    Only his daughter-in-law helped carry a heavy burden for him.


    In the end it was because he was useless.


    In Su Youfu''s eyes, Sheng Juanhua was much more beautiful than those women on the streets.


    The two arrived together at the bank counter to deposit money. Su Youfu knew the ropes by now, going in to take a number and lining up.


    When his number was called, the couple went to the window together. Su Youfu sat down and crammed in the five hundred yuan cash and his bank book, foolishly saying, "Deposit money, deposit five hundred." Rread latest chapters at novelhall.com


    The teller relaxed upon hearing the explanation. Well that''s fine then.


    But she still felt baffled, passing the bank book back to the old man.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua craned their necks together to take a look. Indeed the several zeros first blinded them, not reacting at first. After a moment Su Youfu shakily counted with his fingers. It was in the millions.


    Even as his legs trembled counting, the lame one even tingling and going numb, Su Youfu kept in mind that the teller was still speaking to him. "It''s this much. My daughter said she broke some marathon record and won prize money. If you''ve seen our local TV station, they did a piece on my daughter. Comrade, so the money is deposited OK?"


    The teller had forgotten about the five hundred yuan cash, distracted by shock.


    Glancing at her supervisor standing beside after calling her over, she hastily tried processing the transaction properly, first running the cash through the counting machine.


    The head teller politely apologized, "Sorry for the trouble caused by our new trainee here still learning the operations."


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua repeatedly shook their heads to indicate no problem at all.


    After their previous experience with the foundation, the couple held a bias against banks and funds, feeling them all to be powerful figures. Such gentle, polite treatment made them quite uncomfortable.


    With the five hundred yuan deposit processed and bank book in hand, looking at the sum, the couple felt dizzy.


    Instead of leaving immediately, they sat in the bank lobby chairs.


    Su Youfu had Sheng Juanhua pinch him, then yelped softly before covering his mouth. Then he whispered, "I''ve never even seen this much money before. I wonder how long it would take to count it out when withdrawn."


    "How could you withdraw it? Taking it out, wouldn''t you worry about it being snatched away? It''s safest leaving it in the bank." After whispering back and forth a while but having no good ideas what to do with the money, they eventually agreed unanimously not to touch it. Their daughter had earned it. With no worries about food and clothing for themselves, no debts, they had no use for money.


    The couple discussed quite a while before finally leaving the bank. Sheng Juanhua tucked the bank book into her innermost garment, even clutching her belly as they walked.


    It was nerve-wracking to go out.


    Although it was still early, the two decided not to eat and to go straight back and take the bus.


    When they got to the bus stop, Su Youfu bought two scallion pancakes and took them on the bus with him.


    On the bus, Sheng Juanhua took a seat, and Su Youfu stood next to her to look after her.


    Others who saw thought this couple was very loving - the husband''s leg was lame, yet he still gave up his seat for his wife and was willing to stand.


    In reality, normally Sheng Juanhua would have let her child''s father sit, but today she was also nervous and afraid, covering her belly, scared that the bankbook might somehow fall out.


    It was an exceptionally long few stops, but they finally saw driver Dayong''s car, and both let out a breath, sitting at the roadside outside the car, each with a pancake, nibbling away at them with the water they had brought.

 Chapter 269: School Fame

    Chapter 269


    October 9th, Wednesday, sunny.


    The second day of classes after the National Day holiday.


    Perhaps on the first day of classes, everyone hadn''t fully reacted yet, but by the second day, Su Xiaoqi felt like she was attracting a lot of attention when she went out.


    When she reached the entrance of the dormitory area and even the cafeteria, she finally understood what was going on.


    There was a banner hanging at the entrance of the dormitory area: Congratulations to Su Xiaoqi, a freshman from the Computer Science Department of our school, for winning second place in the women''s division of the Meng City Marathon and breaking the record, winning a million-dollar prize.


    There were several banners like this.


    It was said that they were also hung at the school gate, the new area, and the entrance of the teaching building.


    She didn''t know who did it.


    Mier went to inquire and said it was done by the Student Union. It wasn''t specifically targeting Xiaoqi; whenever there was a major honor achieved outside the school, they would put up such banners.


    Xiaoqi felt nervous and didn''t like the feeling of being in the spotlight. Making a fortune quietly was her life principle.


    It felt awkward to be pointed at by people when she went out like this.


    And today she had to go to the Meng City downtown area. The interview that was supposed to take place earlier was rescheduled for tonight.


    Xiaoqi had no choice but to find the Student Union president again.


    Xiao Shengzhou didn''t expect the young girl to come to him for help twice in one week.


    Buying a house could be considered a rather strange matter, but he could understand it.


    However, this time she asked if he could take down the banners...


    Xiao Shengzhou saw the huge banners when he went to the student street, and it was a bit amusing. No wonder the young girl was anxious to find him.


    He didn''t know how things would turn out with her sudden wealth, but being hung on banners like this for publicity seemed quite awkward.


    In the end, Xiao Shengzhou came up with a compromise. As the Student Union president, he couldn''t use his power for personal gain, so the banners remained, but he had the name removed.


    It became: Congratulations to the freshman from the Computer Science Department of our school for winning second place in the women''s division of the Meng City Marathon, breaking the record, and winning a million-dollar prize.


    Xiaoqi felt it was a little better without her name being mentioned and reluctantly accepted it.


    Xiao Shengzhou asked if she would come to the racecourse in the afternoon.


    She mentioned that she had to go to the TV station in the evening to record a program, so she couldn''t go to the racecourse.


    Xiao Shengzhou:...


    Are all kids this calm now? That''s going to the TV station to record a program, not going to the student street.


    "I happen to be going to Meng City this afternoon. I''ll take you there," Xiao Shengzhou felt that this mysterious underclassman was unexpectedly capturing his heart.


    Xiaoqi hesitated for a moment and agreed. It seemed like she had asked the Student Union president for help many times, and now it had turned into a situation where she owed him a lot.


    Today, she was supposed to go to the TV station to record a program and originally planned to go with her roommates.


    Mier is still discussing the profound philosophical question of what to wear.


    In reality, only Yunshu and Mier have to worry about this philosophical question for a while. They both have a lot of clothes, so they have a wide selection. This time, Yunshu''s family driver brought a big box of clothes for her.


    Needless to say, Mier''s family, being in the garment industry, lacks nothing when it comes to clothes.


    As for Wei Cheng, even though she went home and came back, she only brought a backpack filled with food and didn''t bring any clothes. There aren''t many clothes at home either.


    Xiaoqi is still fine as she bought a few pieces during the National Day holiday.


    Wei Cheng decides to wear the hoodie that Mier gave her. It''s her newest piece of clothing, thick and stylish, and she really likes it.


    It''s loose-fitting.


    Yunshu didn''t have any particular ideas at first and thought she could just wear anything. After all, her clothes are all expensive, so anything would do. Moreover, they were just accompanying Xiaoqi, but after being teased by Mier, she thought about it and decided to wear a dress. She has quite a few dresses, and she can just pair it with a small jacket.


    Although Mier brought a lot of clothes, she feels that none of them are suitable and still can''t decide.


    After finishing their meal, they return to the dormitory and try on clothes for a while. In the end, Mier still feels that Xiaoqi''s black leather jacket suits her well when paired with her own clothes.


    There was originally only a half-length mirror on the bathroom sink in the dormitory, but Mier is quite particular about her appearance and had already bought a full-length mirror and brought it back.


    It''s common for the girls to borrow and try on each other''s clothes. Xiaoqi bought some clothes that she hasn''t worn yet, so she lets Mier do as she pleases.


    Initially, Xiaoqi felt okay, but her roommates were even more anxious than her and changed their clothes too.


    Mier always feels that she is dressed too plainly and wants Xiaoqi to wear a dress, but Xiaoqi feels uncomfortable in a dress, so it''s better to forget about it.


    After all the commotion in the dormitory, if Mier continues to fuss around, they''ll have to give up their nap time. Xiaoqi quickly lies down on her bed for a short rest.


    There''s still another class in the afternoon, Marketing.


    They can only leave after attending the class.


    Xiaoqi''s mindset is still fine. Mainly, if she''s not focused in class, she''ll get nervous herself, so she might as well concentrate and study.


    The content of the Marketing class is quite interesting. Teacher Shi has brought in many case studies, some of which Xiaoqi and the others are familiar with, such as certain ridiculous advertisements like "Brain Platinum" and "Sheep, Sheep, Sheep." Surprisingly, these are all successful cases. Come to think of it, even though they are particularly ridiculous, it seems like the whole nation knows about them.


    During the break, Xiaoqi takes out the painting she made during their previous picnic and shows it to Teacher Shi.


    She feels quite good about it. At the time, her state of mind was also good, and she''s somewhat satisfied with this painting. However, she can''t quite express it and feels that there are still many shortcomings. It seems that she can appreciate it herself, but it''s difficult to reach a wider audience.


    Teacher Shi''s eyes lit up when he saw this painting and he commented, "Very good. You can feel a sense of tranquility and distance in the painting, as well as a hint of nostalgia. The brushwork is still somewhat immature, but with more practice..."


    Xiaoqi immediately felt that Teacher Shi was indeed an artist. She knew that he must have a better appreciation for art than she did. She had a sense of nostalgia in her mind, thinking of the ancient trees and the village, and she found the scene before her to be peaceful and beautiful. However, she struggled to merge herself with the painting.


    After several attempts at painting, Xiaoqi felt that a painting could better express a person''s emotions and what they wanted to say, but she always felt that something was missing.


    In the second class, Xiaoqi was a little absent-minded while listening to the lesson.


    Coincidentally, Teacher Shi began to talk about his own peculiar life experiences... Xiaoqi looked up at the screen in front of her, where a small gray-green bean was lying quietly. She hadn''t said anything yet.


    The mechanical voice asked, "Has the host used a talent seed in painting?"


    Xiaoqi thought to herself that she hadn''t made up her mind yet, but her mind seemed to be a step ahead, so she answered honestly, "Yes..."

 Chapter 270: : League City Sports Channel

    Chapter 270


    Xiao Shengzhou picked up the four girls from Xiao Qi''s dormitory. Seeing four very youthful and pretty young girls, each with her own characteristics, he inexplicably felt old. As freshmen, they gave off an aura of endless youthful vitality.


    Xiao Qi sat in the passenger seat. Xiao Shengzhou turned his head to look at the young girl. She was dressed about the same as usual, very simply. The only difference was that today''s jacket was a brighter color, which made her look even fairer.


    Mi''er brought her professional makeup kit and asked Xiao Qi to prepare a set of clothes, just in case. She had probably watched too many TV dramas and felt that something dramatic might happen, so they should be prepared with a change of clothes anytime.


    Yunshu didn''t say much. She didn''t expect that the student council president would drive Xiao Qi, so she figured nothing would happen.


    Among the dormmates, she and Xiao Qi, the person involved, were the calmest.


    Wei Cheng didn''t say anything, but she was actually very nervous.


    Mi''er was so nervous that her mouth hadn''t stopped the whole time.


    Xiao Qi had asked the staff member from the TV station who contacted her if she needed to prepare any clothes. They said no, so she hadn''t prepared anything special. After all, why would a seventeen-year-old girl need to prepare formal or evening gowns?


    Xiao Shengzhou drove very steadily and thoughtfully told the girls they could rest in the car if they wanted.


    Xiao Qi dozed off, knowing a clear mind would help her answer questions better.


    In the interview show in Lvshan City last time, she had felt that there were traps everywhere in adults'' questions. She would need to be alert to handle them.


    She didn''t feel like she had napped long before the president said they had arrived.


    The TV station building in Meng City was very distinctive.


    The exterior looked like a tower made of stacked treasure chests, towering into the clouds.


    Xiao Qi called the staff member who had contacted her, a young man who came jogging out to meet them.


    The president didn''t follow them in, just said to call him when they were done.


    Xiao Qi had told them beforehand that she was bringing her roommates, so the young man had temporary visitor passes ready for the four of them. They went in together.


    "Security is tighter nowadays because sometimes celebrities come to tape shows, and their fans always try to rush in. In the past you could just sign in," the young man explained.


    As lively and daring as ever, Mi''er asked, "Are any celebrities taping shows today?"


    Li Ming saw that the college students all had very young, innocent faces but seemed quite spirited. He smiled and said, "A singer is taping a show on the 18th floor, but he''s pretty old so you probably don''t know him."


    The finished look was like her face had been artfully beautified, more refined and dimensional but still herself.


    Meanwhile the makeup artist had done Li Miaomiao''s and her coach''s makeup to look sharper, probably for the camera. It made them look fiercer and more mature than in person.


    With time to spare, Xiao Qi went ahead and did her roommates'' makeup too, since the assistant had said they''d be sitting in the audience and might be on camera.


    Xiao Qi''s makeup skills were top notch. If she couldn''t make a living later she could probably get by doing makeup for people.


    For Mi''er the main task was evening out her skin tone. She loved food and had an easy-weight physique, so her skin tended to be oily. With her skin evened out, the rest of the makeup was easy. She had very bright features, sort of like young Zhao Wei, with big eyes and a tall nose, very easy to make up.


    For Yunshu you just had to mind the distance between her brows and eyes, sculpt her nose more dimensional, or she tended to look silly. With makeup she was a cute, demure beauty.


    Wei Cheng was actually the most malleable, with a top grade face shape. Her face was a little square, but Xiao Qi could always bring out different vibes with Wei Cheng''s makeup.


    Based on mood, today she was wearing an oversized hoodie from Mi''er, with skinny jeans to accentuate her height. The finished look with makeup was very casual, almost model-esque.


    Li Miaomiao was also observing Su Xiaoqi. She had thought it was ridiculous for the girl to do her own makeup - as if she could do better than the TV studio! But seeing the results, the originally fair and smooth girl looked even prettier with makeup, with a heroic aura.


    Especially the tall girl she had done, who didn''t look remarkable at all until Su Xiaoqi worked her magic. The transformation was stunning.


    Looking in the mirror, Li Miaomiao felt uneasy no matter how she looked at herself. Her face was flawed with a short chin and generally short appearance. The makeup hadn''t changed that, just made her look much more mature, maybe normally a 21 but now a 28 with makeup.


    The contrast with the youthful Su Xiaoqi across from her was even more stark.


    Wei Cheng''s bob highlighted her long neck when she swept the hair behind one ear, instantly chic and elegant.


    After they finished makeup it was time to go. For recorded shows, things move quickly if they go smoothly but slowly if they don''t, with no time allotted for meals.


    Wei Cheng had brought sandwiches, so Xiao Qi ate one to fill her stomach. She got hungry easily but didn''t drink much water, afraid she''d need the bathroom and blank out when nervous.


    The studio hall was spacious and magnificent, with many audience members. Mi''er and the others sat in the audience while Xiao Qi followed the assistant to the sofa up front, surrounded by cameras on tripods of varying heights.


    Li Miaomiao and her coach sat nearby.


    It was a much bigger production than the studio in Lvshan, with the hall far larger and many more cameras.


    The backdrop was a large screen looping footage of the marathon.


    The sofa was soft and easy to sink into. Xiao Qi kept her back straight facing the camera, fully exhibiting the strong aura she had built up. The crew adjusting lenses easily focused on her.

 Chapter 271: Run, College Student.

    Chapter 271


    After a while, the host came.


    Xiao Qi had seen the host on TV before.


    With ear-length hair, sky blue suit, very tidy. He smiled quite characteristically, with a deep dimple on the right cheek but not on the left.


    Beside the host was a middle-aged man in a suit, another guest on the show tonight. The one million dollar grand prize this time was sponsored by his company.


    He was the deputy general manager of a sporting goods company called Mingrui Sports.


    So this show was probably doing some advertising for the company too.


    Once on stage, the logo of Mingrui Sports started rolling on the big screen behind.


    There were also some small Mingrui Sports logos on the surrounding details.


    Xiao Qi felt these types of interview shows were quite silly. Nowadays variety shows on TV were becoming more lively, shifting towards reality shows. Mundane sofa interviews like this rarely attracted viewers, unless the guest was especially famous, had something particularly interesting to discuss, or was exceptionally humorous with some personal character.


    But she guessed none of those applied here tonight. The most well-known person on the show was probably the host herself.


    The show began. Staff members were still walking around, adjusting cameras, audience clapping, live atmosphere on set, and close-up shots of Mingrui Sports.


    Only then did they come to the few people on stage.


    There was one host, and four guests.


    A representative from Mingrui Sports, a college student, a track and field athlete, and a coach.


    The coach was actually quite an experienced one, just that track and field was never a hot event in China, so the coach wasn''t famous either.


    Xiao Qi listened attentively like she was in class, carefully taking in the host''s introduction of each person and the conversations.


    Although Host Liya hosted a sports channel, she was quite articulate. There was no awkwardness at all, the chat was quite lively. She even brought in some product placement. It didn''t seem an easy job.


    She didn''t neglect Xiao Qi either. Occasionally she would ask Xiao Qi a few questions.


    "30,000 steps daily really is a lot. You clearly enjoy running very much. Was entering the marathon race this time coincidental or did you have a specific goal?" The host exaggerated her expression as she spoke.


    Xiao Qi nodded. "When I run, I feel very free and happy. My mood is great too. I entered the marathon race initially due to the attractive record-breaking bonus."


    Hearing about the record-breaking bonus, Boss Huang was eager to chime in, given that was what they had sponsored and paid for.


    He wanted the girl to elaborate more, but she had finished speaking after that brief response.


    "It seems Xiao Qi is very confident in herself. How about you, Miaomiao?" The host turned the mic to Li Miaomiao.


    As a professional track and field athlete, naturally she couldn''t say she did it for the money. She politely rambled a bunch about competitive spirit and similar things. It couldn''t be helped, they were repeatedly reminded beforehand to say such things during interviews.


    "...I''m honored to break the record, and look forward to achieving even better results next time." Li Miaomiao spoke a little quickly, slightly nervous. Her voice was louder too, but overall still fine. Clearly she was no stranger to being interviewed.


    Sitting aside, Xiao Qi listened attentively, occasionally peering over at her dorm friends in the audience.


    It must''ve been awkward for them too, having to mechanically clap whenever needed while sitting there so long without checking their phones.


    Especially Yunshu, not being able to read her novels must be boring her tremendously, yet she still sat gracefully and clapped dutifully like a proper lady when required.


    Honey was purely curious, constantly looking all around, even sneakily trying to snap photos of Xiao Qi on stage with her phone sometimes...


    Despite visible signs prohibiting photography and video recording by the entrance.


    Wei Cheng looked rather nervous, gazing at Xiao Qi and then at the cameras, since they occasionally turned to the audience seating too. Her expressions and body were quite stiff.


    Xiao Qi briefly glanced towards the audience stands, then returned her attention to the stage.


    By the time the host asked her feelings about breaking the record, Xiao Qi sensed the interview was nearing the end, close to the final round of thanks.


    "I''m honored to have broken the record. Thanks to the organizers for the generous bonus, thanks to my parents for giving me a healthy body, and thanks to my dormmates for always being so supportive. I spend a lot of time running, less time contributing to dorm chores, yet they often help me out. I''m very grateful to have such wonderful dormmates."


    The camera panned back to Honey and the others then. Honey waved boldly. Yunshu smiled elegantly. Wei Cheng smiled rather awkwardly and silly.


    As the camera returned to Xiao Qi''s face, she smiled beautifully, her first real smile tonight, with very neat teeth. She looked radiant and gorgeous.

 Chapter 272: The Seaside Food Stall

    Chapter 272


    The show lasted less than an hour, about half an hour, but a lot of additional footage was shot afterwards. Anyway, it was almost 9 pm when the filming wrapped up.


    Xiao Qi thought it was good that she had found the Chairman, otherwise it wouldn''t feel very safe for a few girls to head back this late at night.


    She called the Chairman and Boss Huang was still saying he wanted to treat them to a meal, but she declined, saying she was with her roommates and they had a campus curfew to adhere to, so it was inconvenient.


    They exchanged WeChat contacts with everyone.


    They even added the host Liya''s WeChat, which felt quite incredible since she was a celebrity.


    Liya was very nice. After the interview, she was more humorous in her speech and not as stern as during the interview. She seemed quite close with Boss Huang too and their interactions had some flirtatious undertones. Xiao Qi noticed Liya''s arm leaning against Boss Huang''s arm, and remained that way for a while.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t quite pinpoint the feeling, but something just seemed odd. Perhaps it was a young girl''s perspective on the world that made things appear disorienting and difficult to adapt to.


    When they arrived at the TV station''s underground parking lot, the Chairman was indeed already waiting for them. The Chairman drove a very ordinary Toyota while Boss Huang was in a flashy, high-end Mercedes that arrogantly drove by them.


    Boss Huang extended another invitation for them to leave together, but this time the Chairman turned it down in a neither arrogant nor subservient manner.


    It was very cool.


    Xiao Qi realized that the righteous-looking Chairman with thick brows and big eyes handled everything in a very reliable way in both speech and action.


    Once back in the car, the mood lightened up tremendously compared to the tense atmosphere at the TV station. It felt like arriving home, a sense of ease and comfort.


    "Have you eaten?" Xiao Shengzhou asked.


    Xiao Qi shook her head. "Luckily Wei Cheng brought some bread so we filled our stomachs a bit, but we basically didn''t eat anything."


    "Let me take you girls out for supper. We''ll eat first before I send you back to campus. At this hour all the shops near the school would be closed already."


    Xiao Qi thought it would be good to get a free meal, so she asked her roommates who were also quite hungry and they agreed.


    Xiao Shengzhou took them to a hawker center which was considered one of the signature things to eat in Alliance City. With the seaside location, there was abundant seafood, and many people would visit the open-air hawker centers at night when the weather was hot. Business was always booming.


    The aroma of food already made their mouths water as they arrived. Sitting on chairs facing the open view of the sea, they could even hear the sound of waves.


    "A little bit, but it was a pre-recorded show, so slightly better I guess. I was way more nervous when participating in the English speech competition previously. I kept running to the bathroom out of nervousness leading up to the competition. In comparison this was better."


    Hearing this, Xiao Shengzhou was somewhat amused. In his impression, this little girl Su Xiaoqi would unflinchingly return his gaze whenever he so much as glanced at her, exuding a powerful aura completely contrary to being insecure or introverted.


    "I know your English is very good. You were also very calm singing on stage last time, so I wouldn''t have expected you to be nervous for speeches."


    "Yeah, when I sang on stage I just closed my eyes so I couldn''t see anyone, and when opened, I couldn''t really make out faces either since the stage lights were so bright and the audience quite far. I was just singing on my own without paying attention to others. But speeches are different, the schoolmates and teachers are seated so close below. I feel I''m actually quite insecure and introverted at heart, afraid of not doing well and being mocked."


    Hearing this, Xiao Shengzhou was even more dumbfounded. In his eyes this little girl Su Xiaoqi was the very image of confidence bordering on arrogance even, absolutely no signs of being insecure or introverted. Was he to see her as ignorant or far too self-aware?


    "I watched your speech and thought you did great. Don''t worry, the student council is still waiting to hang up the second banner, you know." Xiao Shengzhou joked.


    Xiao Qi was also a bit embarrassed recalling the banner business...Any student winning accolades outside school would be granted the honor of having their achievement banners displayed...So the Chairman thought she could achieve a good ranking in her speech competition?


    Oh well, a speech competition is slightly better than some million dollar award.


    Best to avoid flaunting wealth after all.


    And so the two continued their sporadic conversation until Enhua University drew near, and Xiao Qi''s group returned to their dorm shortly before 11 pm.


    Not having told others about Xiao Qi''s interview, they simply explained they went downtown in Alliance City together for fun.


    Just returning at this hour piqued the curiosity of girls from other dorms who came over wanting to know details. Smelling the smoky scent of barbeque on them, they claimed they just went to eat at a hawker center.


    With no shopping haul either, the others soon dispersed back to their own dorms.


    After taking turns showering and blow drying their hair, all the roommates retired to their beds.


    Honey rolled around in bed, "Still our own beds are the comfiest! Just now when Xiao Qi mentioned us at the end, I was busy looking everywhere, wondering if we''d appear on the show, if I should ask my mom to watch."


    Wei Cheng was also quite excited to see what she would look like on TV herself, though she wasn''t sure if her rural hometown would even get the Alliance City sports channel.


    Thinking of how her mom would react, Yunshu felt it best not to mention anything.


    Xiao Qi actually wanted her parents to watch too, but knowing how dramatic people back home could be, she decided to record the show when it aired and send them the footage instead.

 Chapter 273: Sue Cripple Wants to go to Town.

    Chapter 273


    The broadcast time of the program was earlier than expected. The program recorded on Wednesday would be broadcast on Friday night.


    It was still in the prime time of 8:30 p.m. on Meng City Sports Channel, one of the hottest channels.


    Meng City Sports Channel was also considered a relatively popular channel. The program settings were quite distinctive. There was no fixed schedule like those TV drama channels that broadcast various TV dramas at fixed times every day. Sports channels decided what events were hot and when to broadcast more freely.


    This marathon had been hyped up for a long time. Many advertisements about the interview program on Friday night had been released.


    "The millionaire coming out of the mountains!"


    "Her record-breaking secret?"


    "Run, college student."


    With these titles and photos, the channel advertised itself within the sports channel.


    Xiao Qi also saw it. The millionaire coming out of the mountains referred to the athlete Li Miaomiao. Xiao Qi also paid attention during the interview. The host focused more on Li Miaomiao, who was an official athlete and key training target. Li Miaomiao also talked a lot, even shedding tears when she was moved.


    In contrast, Xiao Qi was like a rabbit that had accidentally sneaked in. She occasionally answered one or two sentences. Her interview time was definitely the least on the spot, even less than the coach''s interview time.


    Finally, the photo of her with the slogan "Run, college student" was a picture of her at the marathon, running with sports aesthetics but an unsightly face, since it was impossible for anyone to look like a tidy fairy after finishing a marathon. Just not having a hideous expression could be considered good-looking. Updated chapters at novelhall.com


    "Her record-breaking secret?" also showed Li Miaomiao''s professional training photos, in a professional training ground, with her coach''s gentle smile.


    They probably went to Li Miaomiao''s training ground to take photos specially.


    Compared to her, Xiao Qi was more like someone just there to make up the numbers.


    Miel felt it was unfair. Xiao Qi got second place, which was more amazing. Li Miaomiao only got fourth place.


    "Humph! You went to sell bamboo baskets yesterday yet only have this little money. You''re tricking your old mother!" Li Fengjiao felt she lost face and scolded them in front of the villagers.


    "Mom, we made bamboo baskets. They''re not gold or silver. Getting this much money means Youfu has good skills. If you don''t believe me, ask the other villagers. Everyone knows the price since they''ve all sold bamboo baskets before." Sheng Juanhua took the chance to bring this up. Some villagers were jealous Su Youfu could earn money and copied his products to sell in the city, but no one wanted them. They sold for even less than winnowing baskets.


    If the villagers hadn''t witnessed the lead-up, Li Fengjiao would be kowtowing at the door sobbing her son was unfilial and asking everyone to judge.


    But her silly eldest son took out all his money, yet she still refused to let it go, so she couldn''t show weakness.


    She grabbed the money, not leaving a single 5 mao note, and continued scolding, "You''ve lost your conscience. If not for your uncle giving your family a bag of grain back then, you would''ve starved to death. I say you shouldn''t have wasted money sending a daughter to school. Nowadays girls can earn money with any job. What''s the use of studying? You''ll just regret it eventually."


    After taking the money, Li Fengjiao left in a huff.


    The villagers watching the show also dispersed.


    The living room suddenly emptied.


    Sheng Juanhua was so angry her lips trembled. If not for this being her husband''s mother, she really wanted to scratch her face.


    Su Youfu also sat hunched in the spot where he usually wove bamboo baskets.


    After a long while, Su Youfu finally said, "Wife, why don''t we move to the city?"


    His mother didn''t like going to the city. She''d get carsick and was timid outside, only causing trouble at home. If he brought his wife to the city, his mother probably wouldn''t come bother them every day.


    Sheng Juanhua also thought, when would this end? Hearing her husband''s suggestion, it was like everything suddenly became clear. She felt full of energy.


    "Let''s call our daughter. She''s smart and will know what to do." Sheng Juanhua excitedly said.


    "Let''s call in the afternoon. Our daughter might be in class now." Su Youfu stopped his excited wife.

 Chapter 274: The Truth Card

    Chapter 274


    October 10, Thursday, cloudy with rain.


    Early in the morning, Xiaoqi got up and heard the pitter-patter sound of rain hitting the windows outside, tapping on the windows. The trees in the playground downstairs were soaked from the rain and looked lush green.


    It seemed that this was the first rain since coming to Meng City.


    She opened the window a little and wind rushed in immediately, unusually cold. The temperature had dropped a lot in just one day.


    It looked like she couldn''t go for her usual morning run.


    After washing up, Xiaoqi practiced calligraphy, and after finishing that, she started listening to English speeches, Japanese lessons, and Korean lessons. Morning time spent learning foreign languages felt highly effective and impressions were deep.


    Only the last two classes in the morning were scheduled today, Applied Statistics.


    It was still raining outside, making her quite sleepy.


    Her roommates had all woken up late.


    Xiaoqi simply changed into pants, a long sleeve T-shirt, an overcoat on top, little boots, full of autumn feels.


    She was planning to go out to eat.


    Wei Cheng also woke up and went with Xiaoqi. Wei Cheng wore a men''s jacket, her brother''s old one. Anyway, she was tall and wearing men''s clothes suited her.


    The two held an umbrella, a big black one that belonged to Xiaoqi, prepared for her by her aunt, and it was the first time using it.


    Raindrops hit the umbrella with a pitter patter sound, adding to the ambience. However Xiaoqi regretted wearing little boots, although the sole was thick, the leather probably shouldn''t get wet. If she had known, she would have worn a random pair of canvas shoes that she wouldn''t feel bad getting wet.


    The two went to the cafeteria together to eat breakfast, then packed takeout for Honey and Yunshu after eating. Wei Cheng carried them as they headed back to the dorm, giving her umbrella to Wei Cheng while Xiaoqi went straight to class.


    There were no early classes but the lights in the classroom were already turned on when Xiaoqi pushed the door open. Updated chapters at novelhall.com


    And under the lamplight was a shining youth...truly shining bright.


    It was classmate Li Weijin, wearing a flashy silver jacket which looked unexpectedly harmonious on him. His hair was a bit wet, rarely looking adorable.


    "Morning," although she was a bit surprised that young master would come so early, Xiaoqi still greeted. After all, he had been at the finishing line waiting for her at the last marathon and even sent her back to school. Otherwise she would have been exhausted then, with Jiajia and Captain Lu Chao of the long distance running club, not knowing what to do.


    "Morning," Li Weijin was elated inside. He had checked to see that although there were no classes, monitor Su Xiaoqi usually came to self study in the mornings. And as expected she had come, plus there was no one else right now.


    But outwardly, Li Weijin still had on a cool and serious expression,


    "Which question don''t you understand?" Xiaoqi asked.


    Then seeing Li Weijin standing by her side, bending over due to his tall height, his entire shadow seemed to envelope her, making her very uncomfortable. She moved to Honey''s seat beside and gestured for Li Weijin to sit down.


    Li Weijin sat down in secret excitement but also sighed internally. He had learned his first grade deskmate''s trick and it could actually be used!


    The Applied Statistics assignment was just review questions after each chapter. It should be solvable after carefully listening in class. But for these types of classes, you had to listen carefully right from the start. Missing one class would leave you completely foggy.


    Xiaoqi who had experience tutoring, explained three methods to Li Weijin for the question he asked. One was directly from the textbook. Another was from the teacher''s lecture notes. And the third was even simpler and more direct, but required previewing content from later chapters to know about it.


    The problem Li Weijin asked was one he roughly grasped himself. He could solve it but just wanted an excuse to ask a question, otherwise it would seem like he was really dumb.


    But after being taught three solution methods, he still couldn''t help feeling he was really dumb...


    After asking the question, he felt too embarrassed to keep sitting there and went back to his own seat.


    Thinking to himself, something didn''t seem right. He remembered his first grade deskmate had just kept sitting there and didn''t get up at all.


    More classmates gradually streamed into the classroom by now.


    Seeing Li Weijin still there, most were quite surprised. Their flashy young master actually came for self study time, surely he wasn''t that bored right!


    Xiaoqi continued reviewing English exam papers.


    After finishing one set, she previewed content for her Japanese night class.


    Time flew. Looking up again, the classroom seats were filled up. Her deskmate Honey had also livened up after a nice rest.


    On her way here, Honey had even posted on her Moment. After flexibly adding their assistant Li Ming who had come to pick them up yesterday on WeChat, her friend circle continued expanding.


    The title was Half Day Tour of the Meng City TV Station.


    Edited high quality photo collage with 9 pics.


    Scenes of the broadcasting hall where they sat in the live audience seats, selfies of them there, Xiaoqi''s pic sitting on stage, cameraman uncle''s pic, their temporary entry passes to the TV station, exterior view of the Meng City TV Station...


    After posting, she even commented below: Will officially air Friday night at 8:30pm!


    From her dorm to classroom, along the way this Moment post had already reached max likes, piles of comments that she didn''t even have time to read through, phone dinging nonstop.


    Yet at this moment, mechanical sound effects were also chiming incessantly in Xiaoqi''s mind: "Host appeared as interviewee on TV show, Host has received 1 Jealousy value, rewarded with 1 Must Truth card, effective on any person for 24 hours, host may ask 3 questions, please use with discretion."


    A bright yellow card now appeared on screen - Must Truth.

 Chapter 275: Circle of Friends Propaganda

    Chapter 275


    Xiao Qi wanted to know what was going on, so she saw Mier showing off her powerful friend circle, with likes expanding to fill up an entire screen.


    The comments were also full screen.


    All kinds of comments were below, some Xiao Qi knew, and some she didn''t.


    One particularly sour comment Xiao Qi could also see on her own phone.


    Chu Yu: You guys went to the TV station last night, didn''t see you come back at all, thought you all went out to play and didn''t come home for the night!


    The rest seemed more normal.


    Xiao Qi thought that this bitter jealousy probably wasn''t contributed by classmate Chu Yu.


    Although Chu Yu was a bit overdramatic and annoying, she didn''t seem to be completely useless.


    Earlier there was also the Misfortune Card gifted by the system.


    It didn''t look too damaging, so playing a prank on someone annoying might feel pretty good.


    After class, when Xiao Qi went to eat, she received a call from her parents.


    She didn''t expect that her parents would actually want to go to the city and even had the idea of opening a shop, which was even more advanced than she thought. She hadn''t thought that far, and didn''t expect her parents to be willing to leave their hometown, or dare to leave.


    Xiao Qi specifically asked about the cause and details. Sheng Juanhua held the phone and told her daughter in front of her husband in a relatively tactful way: "Your grandma heard from others that you won a prize, and made a fuss wanting to celebrate your uncle''s birthday, coming to our door every day demanding money, pestering me and your dad until we couldn''t even make bamboo baskets. So we want to go to the city. Your grandma doesn''t like riding in cars. If we go to the city, she probably won''t pester us as much."


    Xiao Qi thought of what her grandma was like throwing tantrums, and recalling it gave her a headache. It was simply a nightmare.


    She strongly agreed with her parents'' plan, but it would be easy for the couple to be cheated if they rashly went out. Xiao Qi remembered that the hardest years for her family were because her dad had been tricked when he went out.


    She told her parents not to rush, and said she would help them check around.


    She knew proper adults familiar with Lu?shan City, like her aunt, Teacher Zhou, and Jiajia''s mom, Ms. Liang.


    Her aunt herself was very sincere, but she worked at the hospital and had simple social connections. Although the closest relative, she probably couldn''t help.


    Boss: "Then help me move these computers upstairs."


    If she encountered a boss like this, Xiao Qi would definitely not hesitate and would directly start moving the computers.


    Moving computers would be easier than the class content, which was too difficult.


    Xiao Qi had zero interest in the internal structure of computers, and could only rely on her memory buff to rote memorize it all.


    She barely endured until the second class, computer theory class, and looking at the young female teacher''s face, Xiao Qi suddenly felt a sense of closeness.


    Teacher Wu also had a deep impression of this class, because last time during class a female student had acted like she was having a heart attack, which had startled her. After all, she was still a young teacher who had just graduated, so encountering something like this made her a bit nervous, afraid something bad would happen in her class.


    And monitor Cai Yu also had a fresh memory of it. He couldn''t understand why the female student had pretended to be sick - what was the point of pretending to be sick?


    This led to him feeling psychological shadows towards female students like Chu Yu who looked gentle and weak. At the same time, he suddenly felt his impression of vice monitor Yue Lai, who laughed openly and had a slightly overbearing personality, improve by eight hundred percent.


    Thinking of how the two of them went together to watch the marathon competition, and then ... and then they had held hands that day and ... established a relationship.


    Cai Yu felt a little embarrassed thinking about this. They had originally agreed to go cheer on the learning committee member, but he himself hadn''t even shown up. Yet the learning committee member not only ran the race, but got second place, and was practically tied for first with that black athlete.


    Because he had neglected his own private matters earlier, now that he was at school, he should do more.


    Seeing the learning committee member''s deskmate Chen Mier post on Moments, he clarified the situation, then called on everyone in the class WeChat group to watch the sports channel''s program on Friday night.


    Their class''s learning committee member would be on the show.


    He also proudly and actively shared the Moments post, finding the TV advertisement posters with her in them.


    And like a viral promotion, many people in the class reposted it. By the time class was over and Xiao Qi browsed Moments, she saw a solid wall of reposts about her upcoming appearance ... dumbfounded.


    She was actually a little nervous that everyone was actively promoting it, but then they discovered she barely showed her face on the program at all, only saying a few words, and would that be disappointing?


    The interview portion with her hadn''t gotten much time to begin with, and after editing... Xiao Qi sweated a little, but decided not to think too much about it.


    She hurried to go for a run after school while the rain was holding off, and still had Japanese class at night.

 Chapter 276: Upgrade to Level 09

    Chapter 276


    When the evening came, the sky started drizzling again. The night wind became even colder.


    On a rainy day, it turned dark early.


    Xiao Qi felt that sitting in an empty classroom at night would be even colder, so she put on a knitted sweater inside her coat.


    She wondered if Mr. Yamamoto would still be wearing his unchanged outfit - trousers and shirt.


    Xiao Qi went to class, bringing along a jar of pickled bamboo shoots again.


    Although Mr. Yamamoto would give her skills every time as long as she listened carefully in class, Xiao Qi still wanted to give him something.


    When Xiao Qi arrived in the classroom, there were even fewer people, perhaps because of the rain.


    Walking to the classroom, her feet felt a little uncomfortable. Meng City didn''t rain often, so she would inadvertently step into puddles along the way.


    However, she was wearing boots with thicker soles, so they didn''t get too wet, just a little uncomfortable.


    After sitting for a while, she saw Mr. Yamamoto come in.


    Sure enough, he was still wearing the same clothes and pants, but he had put on a very old-looking knitted jacket on the outside, very old, because she felt the yarn was hard.


    His shoes were still leather shoes, shinier than usual from the rain.


    Only then did Xiao Qi notice that Mr. Yamamoto''s shoes were actually quite new.


    Mr. Yamamoto came in right on time when the bell rang. He put down his teaching materials and books, and the bell rang immediately.


    At this time, there were still very few people coming to class. Although there were usually few students, those who needed to retake the class would at least come in several. But today, it seemed like it was just Xiao Qi and a couple sitting in the last row who looked like a young couple, huddling together.


    Also, they seemed to have intentionally turned off the lights at the back of the classroom, making it a little dark.


    Even so, when class started, Mr. Yamamoto still meticulously called for them to stand up.


    Recently, Xiao Qi had been progressing very quickly. With buffs in language sense and memory, plus her own hard work - basically using every spare fragment of time to study - her basic Japanese communication was very smooth now, apart from occasional obscure vocabulary.


    Mr. Yamamoto taught the class steadily and methodically, which further consolidated Xiao Qi''s foundation in Japanese. It was even better than when she first learned English.


    But listening to Mr. Yamamoto''s lecture today, it seemed a little different than usual. Usually he would follow the textbook, but today he talked loosely, like a general summary, and also like a statement of his own life.


    Hmm, Mr. Yamamoto said he had a friend...


    Generally speaking, when listening to this kind of thing, one would feel that this friend was probably you yourself.


    The couple sitting at the back quietly stayed out of the teacher''s lecture. Mainly all in Japanese, they couldn''t understand anyway.


    Looking back, as usual, the lights in the classroom were still on, and an upright old man sat at the lectern.


    Xiao Qi walked into the rainy night with an umbrella, with street lights along the roadside.


    The familiar mechanical voice rang in her ears again.


    "Host, you studied diligently, were positive in your attitude, took initiative to care for others, and brought hope of life to a desperate and disheartened old man, helping him walk out of the shackles of his past life. This has brought tremendous positive energy. System level unlocked, system upgraded to Level 9 Progressive System. Host will get 0.9 yuan for every step, capped at 30,000 steps daily."


    Xiao Qi paused, then continued walking forward, avoiding the puddles on the road.


    In the dead of night, Sheng Juanhua got up.


    Kneading dough, boiling water, the big pot bubbled as the water boiled.


    Su Youfu sat by the stove, stoking up a roaring fire.


    Today they were going into town to celebrate her big uncle''s birthday. Because they had handed in too little money, mother-in-law told them to make a basket of peach buns to bring into town.


    Buns they made themselves didn''t cost money, right, Li Fengjiao said righteously.


    It was already very cold in Gumula Village in the autumn.


    The couple both wore tattered padded jackets. The dining table was cleared, and Sheng Juanhua pinched out bun after bun, while Su Youfu cooperated to shape each kneaded bun into a peaked shape like a peach. Then Sheng Juanhua would dip the tip of each peaked bun into red flower decoction water, turning them into buns that looked just like real peaches with red tips.


    The boiling water in the pot bubbled vigorously. Sheng Juanhua arranged the dipped buns in the steamer, spacing them out because they would squeeze together after steaming.


    She filled up three whole layers. Making this many would definitely yield a large basket.


    After arranging them, Su Youfu continued stoking the fire, while Sheng Juanhua leaned against a stool, letting out a big yawn.


    Tears flowed out from the yawn. She was still very sleepy.


    But she didn''t go back to sleep. The couple were excited mentally, having slept late last night and gotten up early this morning, barely sleeping at all.


    Thinking of what they were about to do, Sheng Juanhua felt exhilarated all the way down to her bones.


    Su Youfu was the silent determined type once he made up his mind.


    The two dared not chat more in the kitchen. Rural kitchens were open on all sides, so anything said could be heard outside.


    Outside movements could also be heard from inside the house.


    "You go sleep for a bit. I''ll call you when the steaming is done," Su Youfu said, seeing his wife''s constant yawning.


    Sheng Juanhua shook her head: "I''ll wash my face and tidy up my clothes and pants, then stay overnight at aunt Xiao Qi''s place. I''ll go to the back door to get some fresh vegetables, and when I get to the city, I''ll first deliver the vegetables to the hospital. You can go directly to uncle''s place."

 Chapter 277: Sports Theory Course

    Chapter 277


    The longevity peach was steamed well, giving off hot steam and a rich aroma of flour.


    Sheng Juanhua took out the longevity peach and let it cool on the table, washed the pot, and cooked a pot of vegetable soup.


    The couple ate a breakfast of vegetable soup and some unsightly longevity peaches.


    Then they went out together.


    Su Youfu picked up a basket of longevity peaches, and Sheng Juanhua also picked up a basket of fresh vegetables.


    It was common in the village to pick vegetables to sell in the city. When they grew too many vegetables at home, they could pick some to sell in the city and earn a little money.


    Xiaoqi''s Grandma got up early and waited at the village committee auditorium. Seeing the couple coming, she looked inside Su Youfu''s basket and saw it was full of pointy longevity peaches. She nodded with satisfaction.


    Seeing her daughter-in-law had also come along, she frowned, wanting to scold her, but thought it would be unlucky since today was her eldest son''s birthday.


    Sheng Juanhua understood her mother-in-law''s temper and said first, "The vegetables from the back door are done. I thought I''d sell some, at least to earn the round trip fare."


    Although everyone in the village knew Li Fengjiao was a mean mother-in-law who snatched money from her son even in his 30s, she still cared about face outside. She didn''t say anything.


    Su Youfu''s third brother Su Youqian also arrived and helped carry his elder brother and sister-in-law''s loads onto the back of the truck.


    The second brother Su Youcai would meet them directly there, since he worked away from home.


    Xiao Qi slept very soundly and only woke up when it was barely light. It was autumn, so dawn came late.


    Today was Friday, with only two morning classes: C Language Programming and PE.


    There were no afternoon classes.


    Xiao Qi didn''t sleep in and got up early as usual.


    The English speech contest semi-finals were next Friday, and time was passing quickly. Xiao Qi felt it wasn''t enough time to prepare.


    It was still raining this morning, so she couldn''t run, but since there were morning classes, the dorm was still lively and everyone got up one after another. After Xiao Qi finished her writing practice, she started studying.


    Xiao Qi''s favorite addition to the noodles was the crispy fried dough strips. Soaked in the noodle soup, they didn''t easily soften. The aromatic, crunchy, chewy strips were very satisfying.


    After the satisfying breakfast they went to class. C Language Programming was a brand new course. At first it was mostly theory which sounded simple, but once the teacher dove in, it became incomprehensible. So she had to pay close attention.


    Of the four roommates, Yunshu was best at computer science and always grasped it easily.


    Wei Cheng, the literature youth, would sigh at everything and persist in keeping a diary and writing articles.


    Mi''er was great at math, but had an active personality and loved socializing, so her mind wasn''t focused on studying.


    Xiao Qi was probably best at languages.


    Although others thought she was the class monitor and great at every subject, she knew herself that she only found learning foreign languages easy and effortless; her other subjects weren''t outstanding.


    C Language class was dry. Many students skipped the first class, probably wanting to sleep in on the rainy day. For the second class, the teacher announced there would be roll call, so everyone hurried in.


    After C Language, the next class was PE.


    The rain hadn''t stopped, so they obviously wouldn''t have class at the track and field. The PE committee notified everyone they would have theory class in the classroom.


    Since the PE committee member and vice were Li Weijin and Su Li, everyone was very cooperative and no one skipped PE. There was another reason: the PE teacher had a loud, rough personality.


    When girls asked for leave due to their period, he didn''t let them go, saying they could rest in place, and recorded the dates. Next time they asked for leave, he would check the roll book for dates.


    Chu Yu said she wasn''t feeling well and wanted leave, but the PE teacher told her to bring a sick leave slip from the health center. There would be no leave without a slip, so Chu Yu reluctantly continued with class, saying it was too much trouble to go to the health center. Having been often ill since childhood, she hated the health center and infirmary most, preferring to endure PE class.


    Xiao Qi actually quite liked the rough, simple personality of the PE teacher. He wasn''t very tall, with well-developed muscles.


    In college, other subject teachers didn''t need to take over PE classes anymore. When the bell rang, the PE teacher came in holding the textbook.


    Seeing the PE teacher usually felt shaggy, in shorts and T-shirt, hairy arms and legs. It was rare seeing him in long pants and a coat, almost unrecognizable.


    The PE teacher actually solemnly opened the slides, then smiled and said, "Today we''ll have theory class. I''ll tell you about the history of marathon races, and an analysis of this session''s Alliance City Marathon."


    Xiao Qi: ......

 Chapter 278: The African Elephant’s Sense of Smell

    Chapter 278


    During class, the rain outside the window grew heavier.


    But it could not cover up the mechanical sounds in Xiao Qi''s ears, ding ding dong dong.


    "The host ran hard, persisted in exercising, and through her own efforts obtained huge rewards, bringing positive energy to the students around her. The system is upgraded to a level 10 progressive system. The host will earn 1.0 yuan for every step, capped at 30,000 steps per day."


    Xiao Qi calculated that one yuan per step equaled 30,000 yuan every day.


    She felt like the system had been upgrading pretty fast these past two days.


    The system had been silent for a long time now, she didn''t know the rules for its upgrades.


    Could it be that some greatly influential deed had to be done?


    Xiao Qi mulled it over without figuring it out. Just then, she heard the P.E. teacher at the podium taking her as a case study example and talking nonstop. She didn''t expect the P.E. teacher to be so eloquent.


    She also didn''t expect there to be so many professional things to say about her running.


    She actually wanted to stand up and say, "No, it wasn''t me, I don''t know..."


    Because she had to walk at least 30,000 steps every day, running had become a habit.


    In preparation for the marathon, she had watched many videos to adjust her stride, but she didn''t really understand the theoretical knowledge. She could only rely on her feel to continually correct her motions, the coordination between her limbs, breathing, etc. Now at the part with the P.E. teacher talking about turbine breathing methods and such, she hadn''t even heard of those things before...


    So when her classmates looked at her admiringly, Xiao Qi felt very ashamed.


    The P.E. teacher had basically spent the entire class period praising Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi: ...Teacher, could you talk about something else? Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    In the next class, the teacher didn''t talk about running anymore. Xiao Qi breathed a sigh of relief. But then she saw a big picture of a swimming pool appear on the projector screen behind the teacher...


    The second class was theoretical knowledge about swimming. There was a ready-made case study example - the Women''s 200m Freestyle Swimming Champion of Jingnan Province was in their class this year.


    Xiao Qi strangely felt she had gotten a science lesson. She thought dogs had the most sensitive sense of smell among animals, she didn''t expect there to be this many other animals.


    She even specifically searched it up. She discovered African elephants have 1948 scent detection genes that can detect water 12 miles away, their sense of smell is extremely reliable.


    Over two-thirds of a great white shark''s brain controls its sense of smell. It can smell a drop of blood a kilometer away and then go hunt it.


    The sense of smell king turned out to be the lumbering bear. A bear''s brain is one third the size of a human''s, but its olfactory region is five times bigger. A bear''s sense of smell is 2100 times better than a human''s. Bears can detect animal carcasses 20 miles away. For mother bears emitting intense pheromones, polar bears can detect smells 100 miles away.


    Super curious about the smell upgrade, Xiao Qi directly ignored those 5 admiring classmates, which included 2 contributed by female classmates...


    Xiao Qi felt she was immediately surrounded by various smells.


    She could even smell that the student sitting second from the window in the back row must have eaten egg rolls from the cafeteria this morning.


    Chu Yu who sat in front seemed to have sprayed perfume, a faint orchid fragrance.


    And Li Weijin who sat behind Chu Yu had also sprayed perfume, but it was some medicinal smell? Kind of like ginseng??


    The smell on monitor Cai Yu who sat in the third row from the back middle overlapped with the smell on vice monitor Yue Lai who sat in the front third row...this was normal too. After all the monitor and vice monitor seemed to be dating, they had gone public.


    But the smell on vice academic affairs committee member Mao Wenshu unexpectedly matched the smell of another girl in the class. She was very quiet, Xiao Qi didn''t normally pay attention. She just had good memory and remembered her name was Liu Xiaoli. She wore black-framed glasses and twin braids, seeming rather ordinary and didn''t talk much either. But these two people''s smells were the same...


    There was also a perfume smell on Su Li who sat by the window in the fourth row. Very special, it was a scent mixing grass, trees, and mango. Pretty nice-smelling, it felt like the best smelling of all the perfumes. The mango scent was refreshing, the grass and tree scent a little fresh and sharp.


    But the feet of publicity committee member Chen Daen who sat in the fifth middle row...seemed to be emitting a strange smell.


    Smelling this, Xiao Qi''s complexion immediately changed. She hurriedly stopped voluntarily opening her sense of smell to keep sniffing, urgently trying to remember how to seal off her sense of smell like before.


    Because after catching a whiff of someone''s foot odor, all kinds of foot smells drilled in...it was simply a disaster...


    Xiao Qi raised her head and continued to listen seriously. But she saw the screen had frozen on a picture of her beaming foolishly, holding up a huge sign that said 20,000 yuan.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Teacher, could you be a little more serious when teaching?

 Chapter 279: Stupid Brother Stupid Brother

    Chapter 279


    It was also raining in Lushan City.


    Su Youfu looked particularly disheveled as he carried the peach baskets, worried that the peaches would get drenched by the rain since he could not find any plastic sheets to cover them with. He could only put his jacket over the lid of the carrying pole.


    Su Youqian, his third younger brother, also took off his jacket. The two of them foolishly wore only single layers, shivering from the cold, while using their jackets to cover the peaches on either side of the pole.


    Su Youcai, the second son of the Su family and the sharpest of the three brothers, saw his brothers looking miserable in the distance. Despite wearing a tidy jacket himself, he did not approach them. Rather, he hid behind to avoid them, pretending not to see. He was too embarrassed to be associated with them, feeling it would be a loss of face.


    To him, his eldest brother was silly and his younger brother was stupid. And their mother was overbearing and clingy.


    He was the most cunning of the three brothers to begin with. After going to the city to work, he became more worldly and his mind more nimble.


    He humored his uncle''s family, though not with the blind filial piety his mother demanded. This was because after working in the city, he realized how difficult it was to find someone to help with things when needed.


    His uncle''s family had been in the city for many years and could help with some matters. UppTodated from


    His cousin was also doing well. When he talked about him at work, he made him sound impressive, unlike a typical rural migrant, but someone with many urban relatives.


    Su Youfu and Su Youqian did not see Su Youcai hiding. They entered the house and were met with many strange looks.


    Su Youfu was used to it due to his disability. But Su Youqian felt very embarrassed as a hot-blooded youth.


    He quickly put his jacket back on as it was quite new and he had not worn it many times. The shirt inside, however, had a stain on the chest that could not be washed off after too many wears.


    When people saw that the pole actually contained peaches that looked quite soft and well-made into nice pointy shapes with red tips, they felt they were not clean, having been covered with the two farmers'' clothes despite being separated by the lid.


    Su Youfu did not care about the strange looks. He simply asked his uncle where to put the things.


    The uncle looked down on these country nephews too. His own son had gifted a big cake. He did not think much of these peaches and said indifferently, "There''s no place for them now, just put them aside for the time being."


    He then asked someone to lead Su Youfu to put the peach pole in a corner of the back kitchen, with no intention of taking them out.


    Juanhua also felt reassured. She thought this cousin was truly decent. It was unfortunate that such a nice person had divorced.


    Unwrapping the package, she discovered a small leather bag and a set of men''s clothing, which was obviously for her husband. The ladies'' bag was for her.


    She examined the bag closely. It had no price tag, but the leather felt very solid. The layered floral pattern looked familiar and gave it a sense of quality. The strap was also leather.


    She wore black pants today with a skintight undershirt inside, and a shabby outer layer to avoid dirtying it while carrying vegetables. Now inside the room, she changed into a red knit sweater, which went nicely with her leather shoes. Carrying the small bag, she looked even more cosmopolitan than city folk, a very elegant and capable woman, and rather good-looking.


    She was born with fine features and fair skin. Tall from years of labor, she maintained a very fit figure.


    Looking at herself in the mirror, Juanhua was quite satisfied.


    She still wore a pair of delicate small gold earrings, also very fashionable.


    After freshening up, she went to meet up with her husband.


    When Juanhua arrived, she could not find her husband. Asking her brother-in-law, she learned that her husband had been called upstairs to fix a leaky roof.


    Seeing his sister-in-law, Su Youcai was also surprised. He felt that although they had not seen each other for some time, his sister-in-law seemed much more dignified, carrying an air of sophistication. Before, he had thought her looks were decent for a village woman, but still coarse and countrified. Yet today she seemed rather cosmopolitan, especially with that small handbag, as if she was a different person.


    Juanhua''s face darkened. Her mother-in-law pestered them every day for money to celebrate her uncle''s birthday, yet when she herself had gotten up in the middle of the night to steam longevity peaches, they were dismissed to do chores at an important time like this.


    With her good looks and fashionable attire, plus an elegant bag, many tried to chat her up, but she ignored them and went straight upstairs to her husband.


    Although her uncle''s family lived in the city, they were like a village within the city, in self-built housing rather than commercial apartments. Going upstairs, she saw her husband soaked from the rain. Her young uncle was the same, still handing up tiles piece by piece. The rainwater striking the tiles splashed out muddy water.


    Juanhua had no words for her honest husband and guileless young uncle. Her cunning second brother-in-law was chatting leisurely downstairs while these two were being so silly upstairs.


    Seeing his wife come, Su Youfu said foolishly, "Juanhua, don''t come over here, it''s dirty and slippery. We''ll be done soon."


    Su Youcai also smiled. "Sister-in-law, we''ll be done in a minute, just wait."

 Chapter 280: Avoiding Disaster

    Chapter 280


    Most urban people have to work on Friday, so celebrating a birthday party is usually done over dinner, with few guests able to make it during the day.


    However, several of Great-uncle''s nephews from the village had arrived early, partly because Auntie Qi had hurried them, and partly because the village only had one bus a day going out.


    Second Elder Brother told Su Youqian to squeeze together and spend the night at his construction job site.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua went to stay over at Auntie Qi''s sister-in-law''s place.


    None of them expected to be able to stay in Great-uncle''s big house, since they had never stayed there before.


    After Su Youfu and Su Youqian finished fixing the leaky roof upstairs, dinner was already being served downstairs. It took them a whole morning to complete the work.


    After eating, they were called away again.


    Even Sheng Juanhua was directed to help out in the kitchen.


    After all, the formal dinner banquet was in the evening, and there were still many dishes to prepare in the afternoon. There were quite a few neighbor women in the kitchen helping out.


    Seeing Sheng Juanhua dressed rather fashionably, a young woman with a large pregnant belly, who was quite polite, called Sheng Juanhua sister-in-law and asked her to give her the bag to put away in the room.


    Sheng Juanhua knew this woman was Great-uncle''s new daughter-in-law, after the previous one had left.


    This one who just walked in with a big belly.


    She looked quite proper now, but Sheng Juanhua had heard before that she used to be very showy and flashy. Maybe because she was pregnant now, she had toned it down.


    Even though they were properly married now, in Sheng Juanhua''s mind, she was still a mistress.


    She didn''t have much contact with the previous daughter-in-law, but still, she couldn''t get over this hurdle in her heart.


    She handed over the bag. There really wasn''t anything valuable inside, since she kept her valuables like phone and wallet on her. She carried a bag because it seemed fashionable for city girls to have a bag, and it looked good to have one slung over her shoulder.


    "Sister-in-law, this bag looks really nice, it''s the latest model from Coach right?" The pregnant woman praised with a smile.


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t know anything about brands, so she didn''t understand the compliment.


    "My daughter bought this for me. She goes to school in the provincial capital and mailed it to me," Sheng Juanhua didn''t really like this new daughter-in-law. In her mindset, the previous relationship wasn''t even properly divorced before she came in pregnant. Even though they were formally married now, she was still a mistress in Sheng Juanhua''s eyes.


    After speaking, she sat down to help wash vegetables, without saying anything further.


    The pregnant daughter-in-law then remembered who this girl was, connecting her to the pretty girl who came to drink at the wedding banquet last time. She recalled that at the wedding, her husband had gotten drunk and kept mumbling that the daughter of his country bumpkin cousin was quite a beauty, lively and cute, just a bit silly from too much book learning.


    Her husband had quite a track record, so she was very bothered by this.


    She cursed inwardly, she''s a college student, too good for the likes of you!


    Now she wondered, it''s only been a few years of college, how could she afford to buy such an expensive bag for her mother, who knows if she went to school or did something else outside. Tsk tsk, she looks innocent and demure on the surface.


    She had heard father-in-law say before that these cousins were all poor villagers, just get them to come and order them around as hired help, no need to give them any nice treatment or squeeze any benefits from them.


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t expect this pregnant daughter-in-law to be so indecent in her thoughts, imagining dirty things about her daughter. If she knew, she probably would stand up and scratch her face right now. When push came to shove, Sheng Juanhua could be quite fierce.


    On Friday nights, there was no evening study hall, and lights in the dorm stayed on.


    The class president had organized watching shows in the classroom...the classroom had a computer that could project onto the slides.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    After a day of the P.E. teacher''s theory lecture, Xiao Qi''s skin had probably grown thicker by a few layers.


    She actually felt it wasn''t too bad.


    And thought hopefully not many people would come watch.


    Her roommates would naturally come to show support.


    The class president went, so the vice president would definitely go too. Recently they were inseparable.


    Her other classmates had an even more different sense.


    They didn''t expect the study committee member to speak so eloquently and comfortably on TV, not nervous at all, attitude tranquil, not saying much, but hard to ignore.


    "Do you feel you have any advantages in running that others don''t have?" asked the host.


    "I grew up in a high altitude region, so my lung capacity is probably better," Xiao Qi replied.


    "Do you normally like running?"


    "Yes, every day, at least 30,000 steps."


    "30,000 steps every day really is a lot. Looks like you really enjoy running. Was participating in the marathon race this time just happenstance, or did you have a specific goal?"


    "When running, it makes me feel really free and puts me in a great mood. I entered the marathon race initially attracted by the prize money for breaking records."


    "I''m very honored to have broken the record. Thank you to the organizers for the generous bonus, thank you to my parents for giving me a good body, and thank you to my roommates for always being very supportive. I spend a lot of time on running, so help out less with dorm chores, and my roommates are often helping me out. I''m very grateful to have such good roommates."


    Xiao Qi remembered the questions asked of her were spaced out during gaps, but watching again now, it seemed like she was being exclusively interviewed, continuous.


    Editing didn''t have much choice, throughout the whole show, the girl with the most screen presence was her, unconsciously drawing attention again and again. If her content was cut out, this interview show wouldn''t seem to have much to watch.


    Xiao Qi spoke concisely and briskly, but her appearance was very sweet, forming a striking contrast.


    Chu Yu saw that the footage even showed the images of roommate Xiao Qi and several other dorm mates waving their hands at the end, and felt very depressed. Why couldn''t he be assigned to the same dorm room with Xiao Qi when they were allocated dorms, so he could also appear on TV?


    Although Xiao Qi was crafty, she was truly generous in giving gifts, not stinting at all.


    The other students also had different feelings. They usually thought the study supervisor was just the study supervisor. Even if her studies were a bit better, she wasn''t that different from them. They were all studying at Enhua University. What was the use of studying well? Could it compare to Azure League University?


    Any random student picked from there could probably beat the study supervisor.


    But seeing the study supervisor on TV, they felt it was different after all. Although they were in the same class and school, they were actually different.


    Li Weijin looked at Xiao Qi on TV, and saw another side of her. In his heart, Xiao Qi was a beautiful female classmate, his type. Independent and strong-willed, but she gave off a different feeling on TV, restrained and steady, with a strong aura.


    Seeing Xiao Qi on TV, Su Li was suddenly reminded that she had often appeared on TV when she was little. Her mother had often signed her up for various model competitions, and she had been a global child model ambassador for Kenzo. She had worn full Chanel outfits to do catwalks as a child. Her shoes alone filled up a room when she was small.


    She wasn''t very good-looking as a child, but she had a lot of flair on the catwalk.


    Later, she stopped participating in these activities, for some unknown reason.


    But her personality of not playing with the other kids backstage, looking down on them and being looked down upon, remained.


    At this moment, she felt Xiao Qi seemed different. She was good-looking too, but didn''t have the annoying traits of other girls, very decisive and straightforward.


    The interview program ended and everyone went back.


    At this time, Su Li unexpectedly received a call from her mother-in-law.


    She was startled. Her mother-in-law rarely took the initiative to call her, especially so late.


    "Mother-in-law, what''s the matter?"


    "Where are you?"


    "I''m in class watching a show. My classmate Xiao Qi had an interview on the sports channel tonight. The class monitor organized everyone to watch together." She didn''t dare conceal anything from her mother-in-law and answered honestly.


    She just felt that after she finished speaking, the other end of the phone breathed a sigh of relief.


    "Did you lend your car to your friends? That car got into an accident. Stay on campus, don''t go anywhere. I''ll handle the aftermath."


    Su Li was shocked. She had originally planned to go out and play with her friends. But since she didn''t go, she felt bad and lent her car to her friends.


    She checked her phone and there really was a car accident alert, on a winding mountain road from Enhua to the city. The car had collided with a large truck, and the front of the car looked completely smashed...


    Her hands shook as she held her phone.

 Chapter 281: The Wealth of the White

    Chapter 281


    Xiaoqi''s Father''s Uncle''s big birthday celebration was very lively.


    There were a full sixteen tables, and the number of guests who came was really quite large.


    Although six or seven tables were neighbors from all around who brought their whole families plus children to eat, the remaining ten tables of guests were no joke either.


    The neighbors didn''t need to bring gifts, but those ten tables of guests would.


    This was probably the highlight of Xiaoqi''s Father''s Uncle''s life - half of those ten tables were his son''s business friends. Whether they were false friends or true friends, they still came to give face.


    Although they didn''t hire opera singers or anything, it was still glorious enough.


    In fact, this birthday was partly to celebrate his birthday, and partly to celebrate the renovation of this old house. On their own property, they had torn down the original house and rebuilt it into a small Western-style house that could be called a villa.


    It had four floors. The first floor was a grand hall with a huge crystal chandelier hanging down. The walls around were tiled and polished shiny. The pillars at the entrance were wrapped in a layer of marble - it took two children hugging them to encircle them fully. Very extravagant. It was a mix of Chinese and Western styles - there were Roman-style elements, and Chinese-style railings on the staircase. They probably just went with whatever seemed prestigious whether Western or Chinese. Overall, it had a very nouveau riche feel.


    The first floor was decorated most magnificently and impressively. The bedrooms on the second floor were also nice, refined and luxurious. The third floor had basic renovations done. The fourth floor was still just concrete, which was why there was the issue of leaks in the roof.


    In addition to the big chandelier, there was also a big projector in the yard that could project directly from the living room onto the white wall of the yard, like a movie screen.


    It was noisy with people''s voices, and also the sounds of TV programs. It was really very lively. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    Xiaoqi''s two cousins from Guyumula Village didn''t even get seats. They helped out with the neighbors, serving dishes and pouring wine, doing odd jobs, and sneaking bites to eat in the kitchen when they could.


    Sheng Juanhua was also helping out in the kitchen, dividing up dishes, cooking, washing dishes.


    Su Youcai was the most cunning of them. He had wormied his way to the front hall early and sat at the guests'' table, socializing with them.


    He also helped his cousin fend off drinks, acting like a clever little brother, which was painful to watch.


    If Xiao Qi saw this scene, she would probably feel that it was better than her own father and uncle serving dishes and pouring wine. That was physical labor, but at least there was no need to fawn and flatter. It felt even worse, more humiliating.


    Calling him "Little Su, Little Su" as Second Uncle walked around raising his wine glass and bowing and scraping everywhere.


    The view was best from the front hall, like sitting in the middle of a movie theater.


    You could watch the big screen directly. Right now the big screen wasn''t playing any TV dramas or anything. After all, it wouldn''t be coherent to watch. There were just some singing programs or commercials.


    But Xiaoqi''s Father''s Uncle''s son liked watching the sports channel because he gambled on ball games and was quite interested in sports and such. So the big screen was showing Meng City''s sports channel. They said there would be a ball game later.


    At 8:40 pm, the wine drinking was in full swing, and people were half full from the dishes.


    Seeing him come over, Su Youfu quickly stood up and said, "Is it time to serve dishes? We''ll come right away."


    Li Darong quickly said, "No, Cousin, ah, and Cousin''s wife too, come see, I feel like I saw your daughter."


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t like this cousin. At a glance you could tell he was disreputable, someone who mixed around in society. But he was said to have made quite a bit of money in the last two years and become rich. Since he was showing them respect, and seeing that her husband had been pulled away, she was worried something was wrong and followed along.


    Then nothing happened. The TV channel had been changed.


    Li Darong was anxious. He looked everywhere for the remote control until he finally found it, and changed it back to the Meng City Sports Channel they had been watching before.


    Li Darong''s actions had already attracted quite a few people''s attention. The birthday man today also didn''t know what nonsense his son was up to, but since he owed his current status and face all to his son, he didn''t dare reprimand him to his face either. He didn''t know why his useless country bumpkin nephew was being pulled out like this.


    If he was bullying the guy, there was no need to choose this moment. Although he looked down on him, he had to maintain face.


    His son could make money, so he was a bit afraid of his son too, and didn''t make a sound.


    He watched as his son pulled out that lame nephew.


    At this moment on the TV screen was an especially pretty young girl wearing a red knit sweater, with short hair and a little ponytail tied. She had a very attractive face, and also seemed vaguely familiar for some reason.


    "I grew up in a high altitude area, so maybe I have good lung capacity," the girl said crisply.


    "Do you normally like running?" the host asked.


    "Yes, I run every day, at least 30,000 steps," the girl replied.


    "Cousin, is this your daughter?" Li Darong excitedly slapped Su Youfu.


    Su Youfu shuddered all over, not saying anything, just trembling for a while.


    It was Sheng Juanhua who reacted first instead: "She''s my daughter. She''s loved running all over the mountains since she was little."


    Su Youcai also reacted by now. He hurriedly walked up.


    Just now he had also thought his drunk cousin was causing trouble, so he had shrunk away to the back.


    The simple-minded Su Youqian, who had followed along holding his bowl earlier, now slowly said, "How did Little Seven get on TV? She looks even prettier than before."


    Li Darong slapped Su Youfu heavily again: "Cousin, you''ve struck it rich. Your daughter Xiaoqi broke the record in running and won over a million prize money!"


    At this time, his pregnant new wife came out too. Hearing what her husband said, she instantly recalled the bag she had helped that country cousin-in-law with earlier. She had examined it closely and felt it was genuine, not fake. The workmanship was too good. She had even looked online - that bag cost over 8,000 yuan for the newest model.


    Now hearing what her husband said, she chimed in, "Oh my, I said cousin-in-law was carrying a bag worth over 8,000 yuan and she said her daughter sent it to her. I was wondering how a young girl in college could have so much money. So this is how it is!"

 Chapter 282: Please be Seated, Drink

    Chapter 282


    Su, the eldest son of the Su family, who originally didn''t have a seat, inexplicably found himself being pulled into the front hall and given the most central seat.


    Li Darong, with a face full of flesh, showed a kind smile.


    "Cousin, cousin," he called affectionately. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    Sheng Juanhua was brought out from the kitchen and the cooking team.


    Meanwhile, Su Youcai, the smartest one in the family, seemed a bit dazed.


    He always thought that the only one who could make something of himself among the three brothers was him¡ªhis eldest brother had a disability, was too honest, and easily deceived, while his younger brother was a bit slow-witted.


    He spent the evening accompanying his cousin, helping him with toasts and blocking others from drinking, but he didn''t manage to make it to the main table. And now, his eldest brother was unexpectedly invited up there.


    Su Youfu was made nervous by his cousin''s attitude, and his face turned red.


    This cousin of his was said to be especially formidable in the city, running multiple laundry shops, not just one. It was rumored that he was very wealthy, with assets of several million. Every time his mother talked about her eldest brother''s son, she would act as if... he was more impressive than the mayor.


    Just look at the villas he built in the city.


    In reality, Li Darong, the businessman, had opened a second branch for his laundry shop, but it was rented space and he bought second-hand washing machines. Although the business boomed during the Lunar New Year, it was only temporary. And to save costs, he just used the dry cleaning machine as a display. He would secretly take the clothes to be washed and then return to iron them. If he happened to ruin a good piece of clothing, it would be his bad luck, and he would argue with the customer.


    He definitely didn''t have assets worth several million. He made a bit of money and spent it all on building and decorating his house.


    It was just an empty shell, a facade. But for business people, the emptier it was, the more they had to show off. They needed face in public in order to continue doing business.


    And he had many vices. He was a gambler, betting on sports, gambling with money, buying lottery tickets. He really didn''t have much money.


    Let alone millions or billions, he could make himself look like a billionaire even with just a few hundred thousand.


    Now, hearing his wife say that this rural sister-in-law carried a bag worth over eight thousand, he became even more envious.


    Rural people were so useless. What was the point of giving them money?


    It would be better to give the money to him so he could make more money.


    Since childhood, he never took these few cousins seriously. Following his father''s wishes, the special obedient aunt from Gu Mu La Village, who also had a slow mind, would give up all her possessions if their father asked. She would even make her children work like slaves willingly.


    Today, the birthday boy also realized that his son wouldn''t get up early for nothing. He must have some profitable plan. He remembered that his eldest nephew had brought a birthday peach in the morning.


    Now, he quickly had someone bring out the birthday peach, clear the table, and stack up the peaches high.


    Su Youcai and Su Youqian followed suit.


    Su Youfu, carrying an empty basket that had been filled with birthday peaches in the morning, walked on the street. Sheng Juanhua walked beside him, already a little drunk, stepping lightly and heavily.


    The two of them walked for a long time before reaching the hospital.


    It was a bit late, there was no bus, and they foolishly didn''t think of taking a taxi.


    After walking for a while, they became increasingly clear-headed.


    Originally, the two of them wanted to keep the money low-key, but now Xiao Qi appeared on television again. As more and more people got to know about it, denying it was becoming impossible.


    Having one million yuan was something that many villagers in Gumula Village would never dare to imagine in their lifetime. It was certain that they wouldn''t be able to live peacefully in their hometown, not to mention their own mother.


    "Your cousin doesn''t seem like someone who does legitimate business," Sheng Juanhua said.


    Su Youfu nodded.


    "It''s better if we don''t have any contact in the future."


    When they arrived at the hospital, Xiao Qi''s aunt, Su Simei, prepared hot milk for them, one pack each.


    The hospital wasn''t afraid of being late. Su Simei had to take care of patients at night and sometimes would be called by the nurses in the middle of the night.


    After telling their cousin and sister-in-law to freshen up, they returned to the ward.


    It was the first time Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua stayed at Xiao Qi''s aunt''s place. The room was clean and tidy, and when they looked at the stickers on the wall and such, they felt the presence of their daughter.


    "Xiao Qi lives here. Although it''s good in the city, it''s still a bit dark and damp," Sheng Juanhua, who had drunk a little too much, lazily lay on the bed, touching the wallpaper.


    Su Youfu also sighed, "It''s not easy, after all. It''s very close to the No. 1 Middle School."


    They lay down side by side, but as soon as they closed their eyes, they heard a distant "wo-an wo-an" sound, presumably the sound of an ambulance. Despite being tired, it still disturbed them.


    "Studying isn''t easy," Su Youfu sighed.


    They didn''t know when the couple finally fell asleep. The next day, they had to meet the parents of the students Xiao Qi had tutored.


    Xiao Qi didn''t sleep until after midnight, but as soon as it struck twelve, she opened her interface and requested to use a basic lucky card on Su Youfu.


    Seeing the system confirm its effectiveness, she finally fell asleep at ease.

 Chapter 283: Practice Car Painting

    Chapter 283


    On Saturday, the rain stopped, and Xiao Qi went to the driving school in the morning.


    He gave the coach at the driving school a pack of cigarettes as a gesture of goodwill, trying to blend in with the local customs.


    The coach generously let Xiao Qi practice driving three times. Xiao Qi found it quite simple. He practiced parking in reverse, navigating an S-shaped curve, parallel parking, and starting on a slope. He did all these exercises very smoothly.


    However, right from the start, the coach kept talking in the car. He mentioned that one of Enhua''s students had gotten into a car accident the night before. The young girl was driving a sports car and collided with a large truck. It was clear that she hadn''t learned to drive properly, and it was a mystery how she had obtained her driver''s license. Now she was lying in the hospital.


    The coach urged Xiao Qi to practice diligently.


    Xiao Qi was very diligent in his studies. Whatever the coach said, he listened attentively. He could grasp the basics after just one demonstration, remember them after the second, and become proficient by the third.


    Unlike some other students who took two months to practice parallel parking.


    Xiao Qi felt that his progress was a result of his dedicated studying. In the past, he was easily distracted and lost focus when studying. He would daydream during classes that didn''t interest him.


    But now, even if he wasn''t interested in a subject, Xiao Qi would still listen attentively because he believed that every learning opportunity was valuable and could be useful someday. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    With this mindset, his studying became more effective. It was as if he had become smarter, but in reality, his intelligence hadn''t increased. It was just his attitude towards learning that had changed.


    The coach also praised Xiao Qi greatly, saying he drove very well and asked if Xiao Qi had driven before.


    Xiao Qi hadn''t driven before, but the coach''s scent of cigarettes was so strong that Xiao Qi had to try adjusting his sense of smell. However, he couldn''t mask the smell of smoke coming from the coach sitting next to him. It was as if he had been smoked over by cigarettes, emitting a strong odor of secondhand smoke.


    It was worse than the smell of firsthand smoke.


    The coach did restrain himself and didn''t smoke while in the car. Sometimes he would step out to smoke one or two cigarettes. Judging by the frequency of the coach''s smoking, he couldn''t finish two packs of cigarettes in a day.


    After practicing all morning, Xiao Qi asked the coach to help him book the second phase of the driving test and then left the driving school directly, heading to the racecourse. He could also get a free lunch there.


    The coach thought Xiao Qi had driven before and that he drove well, so he readily agreed.


    Of course, it was mainly thanks to the cigarettes. Xiao Qi remembered the scent of smoke on the coach, so this time he deliberately chose the brand the coach liked. The first pack he gave might not have been to the coach''s taste.


    When he arrived at the racecourse, he had to readjust his sense of smell again because the smell of animals was stronger.


    But the benefit was that when he encountered delicious food, it seemed even more fragrant.


    Today''s lunch included fresh white shrimp, braised pork noodles made from farm-raised pigs, and particularly fresh vegetables. There was also Chinese flowering cabbage that had just bloomed, which was very appetizing. This year''s new harvest of rice had also arrived, and the white rice was especially sticky and fragrant.


    Xiao Qi was good at ordering dishes, and Coach Steven always ate the same as Xiao Qi. At first, he used to eat Western food every day, but now, when Xiao Qi was there, he would eat whatever Xiao Qi ate.


    Xiao Qi started by sketching Taylor''s figure and then worked on the specific details.


    Painting is a way of observing things more deeply. Things that are usually unnoticed, like the fact that Taylor''s left front leg joint seems a bit thicker and bent compared to the other legs.


    Xiao Qi faithfully captured it, along with the fur and the head.


    As expected, the most challenging part to paint was the expression in the eyes. The eyes require emotions, a conveyance of feelings. How to depict them with just a few strokes is truly not easy.


    Not all eyes can be portrayed by simply making them watery.


    Although it may appear watery at first glance, the eyes convey different emotions. Emotions are a very rich world, encompassing joy, sadness, pleasure, attachment, regret, and more. When Xiao Qi draws eyes, it feels very difficult because the stroke of the brush may not always capture the desired feeling.


    Today, she spent a long time with Taylor. At this moment, Taylor leans his head over, resembling a child.


    The intelligence of smart animals is roughly equivalent to that of human children.


    Xiao Qi gives his head a rub and continues drawing.


    With her head lowered, she is deeply focused. With just a few strokes, Taylor''s gaze comes to life.


    Unaware, Xiao Qi doesn''t notice that Xiao Shengzhou has approached and is standing behind her.


    Watching her as she puts the finishing touches on her drawing.


    Taylor seems to have walked right onto her paper, lifelike and vivid.


    Xiao Shengzhou spotted Xiao Qi sitting here from a distance, thinking she was daydreaming, but he never expected her to be drawing.


    When she draws, she is particularly calm and serious.


    The whole world is shut out.


    Xiao Shengzhou admires the young girl''s graceful figure when she runs, her handsome appearance on horseback, and her seriousness during English speeches. However, at this moment, he realizes that her appearance while drawing is the most beautiful.


    She devotes herself wholeheartedly, very serious. Under her brush, there is a world that belongs to her.


    "Hello, President." Xiao Qi finishes her drawing and notices that the President has come over, so she greets him.


    "Yesterday''s interview was good, you remained calm. You mentioned wanting to see a house. I''m free tomorrow, would you like to go take a look?" Xiao Shengzhou remembers the promise he made to the young girl.


    Xiao Qi is delighted to hear about the house and feels like she''s taking another step toward her dream of being a landlady.


    "I''m free, I have time tomorrow."

 Chapter 284: The Inheritors of Intangible Culture

    Chapter 284


    When Su Youfu woke up in the morning, he felt full of energy.


    It was sunny outside. Last night, he had felt a little scared when his daughter said the morgue was next door, and he had felt uneasy. But now, looking out the window, there was a tree and birds chirping, and the sunshine had come out too, which made him feel the weather was very nice.


    In the past, on rainy days, his legs would still hurt a little, but this morning, he felt much better right when he woke up, and his legs didn''t hurt at all - he felt very relaxed.


    Sheng Juanhua got up, washed up and got ready, but didn''t make breakfast since it was very cramped here and she didn''t know where she could cook. She went out and bought some breakfast food in a very casual manner. After all, they were staying at little aunt Xiao Qi''s place, and it wasn''t good to have little aunt Xiao Qi prepare food for them again.


    The two of them ate breakfast from the city in the room - soy milk, fried dough sticks, steamed buns. It was a little unusual, since breakfast at home was usually rice or porridge, mostly rice because they had to go do farm work after breakfast, and porridge wasn''t filling enough, let alone things like soy milk.


    But this morning Su Youfu felt very spirited, and the breakfast also tasted pretty good.


    After the two of them finished eating and cleaned up, Su Youfu listened to his wife and changed into the clothes Xiao Qi had sent them.


    The Chinese-style clothes, pants and cloth shoes fit very well unexpectedly.


    After putting them on, he felt very spirited, and when he sat there you couldn''t tell he was disabled.


    The outfit looked very sophisticated, with a kind of indescribable temperament. Anyway, it was different from usual - the fit was very nice.


    Sheng Juanhua had thought her husband wearing this outfit might look like a landlord''s long-term farmhand or something. She didn''t expect that after putting it on, while she wouldn''t say he looked like a landlord, he had the air of a shop owner - he didn''t look like a junior clerk at least.


    His shoulders were broad, he looked spirited himself, and the tailoring of the clothes and pants was very sharp. UppTodated from


    Her daughter had spent a lot, over 7000-8000 yuan, on this set of Chinese-style clothes. Xiao Qi herself wouldn''t spend that much on her own clothes, but for her parents she always wanted the best.


    Sheng Juanhua was dressed very breezily. She had a sturdy build and was tall, so bodycon A-line skirts would have actually suited her very well, paired with close-fitting knit tops on top. But with a daughter her age, she was shy to wear skirts, so she wore pants today - khaki pants, paired with a shirt on top. Under the shirt she wore a thin camisole. Her outfit looked quite capable.


    The khaki pants paired with the slightly dark red shirt, against her fair skin and with her small bag on her back, looked well-coordinated.


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t have much artistic sense when it came to outfits, but she had good intuition when choosing clothes for herself. She was born with sensitivity for color schemes.


    Her outfit today looked very harmonious and capable, as well as good-looking.


    The couple went out together, earlier than the agreed-upon time. At the barbershop outside the hospital entrance, Su Youfu got a haircut.


    His hair had gotten quite long, with a lot of white hair that he normally didn''t take care of.


    The barbershop at the hospital entrance charged over twice as much as the village, 20 yuan versus 5 yuan in the village. But in the city, it was considered very affordable. More upscale boutique salons would charge at least 50-60 yuan for a haircut.


    The city barbers were much better than the village ones. Sheng Juanhua felt it was worth 20 yuan. Her husband looked more spirited after the haircut, though the white hair was even more noticeable now. But nowadays some young men deliberately dyed their hair grayish white.


    At 11 o''clock sharp, Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu arrived at Tianyuan Restaurant.


    Liang Huaying had chosen a mid-range restaurant with a nice environment and semi-private rooms suitable for chatting. She was worried that choosing somewhere too high-end would make Xiao Qi''s parents uncomfortable.


    She picked them up and examined them closely one by one. They were very well-made, and she even felt a personal desire to buy one of each herself.


    She wouldn''t have imagined bamboo could be crafted into such intricate, delicate things with a sense of style.


    The bamboo felt smooth to the touch, with a pronounced artisanal vibe.


    Whether used to hold flowers around the home or carry items, they seemed fitting for a range of purposes - or simply pleasing on their own merits if left out for display.


    Bamboo carried a sense of history and tradition.


    As Liang Huaying looked over these items, her quick mind spun thinking about the optimal place for them to be sold. She had been thinking to lease out one of the many storefronts she owned to Xiao Qi''s parents for a small rental fee, for them to open a little shop. That should work fine, she figured.


    But now, seeing these items and also getting a feel for this couple with the capable wife and craftsman husband who didn''t talk much but gave off an educated, grounded vibe unlike her imagination of peasant farmers - Liang Huaying suddenly thought of something else. Wasn''t there currently some Intangible Cultural Heritage application process going on in the city, along with recognition for Inheritors of Intangible Cultural Heritage? This man seemed like the perfect candidate!


    Where else nowadays could you find such a legitimate master craftsman from this very city, whose work was so outstanding, and who himself made an upstanding, reliable impression that would look good promoted?


    If the application went through, they could get a discounted storefront with an exhibition-like nature next to the city museum, with very affordable rent and high profile.


    Liang Huaying thought to herself as she organized her language to tell this couple about this matter.


    Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu listened in bewilderment. It was just about selling things, yet it was also connected to culture.


    At this time, Zhou Meiling from the Cultural Palace was calling Xiao Qi.


    She was so surprised to receive a box of YueLan lipstick. This brand had not yet been sold in Lu?shan City, and buying it online did not seem reliable. YueLan products looked nice in every way, and were also quite expensive. Although she was not short on money, she still felt a bit reluctant to buy a whole set.


    She herself had a lipstick collecting obsession. She did not expect that brat Xiao Qi would know her so well, giving her a whole set.


    Xiao Qi went to school. She paid a lot of attention to this student, knowing from the beginning that she had broken records in the marathon. She did not expect to receive such a valuable gift.


    They usually exchanged WeChat messages and calls from time to time, maintaining contact, almost like old friends.


    She accepted this gift feeling reassured. It was from her own student, not asking her for any favors, fair and aboveboard. She had even bragged about it to her husband several times, making him jealous.


    Zhou Meiling did not think as much as Ms. Liang did, about needing to help Xiao Qi return the favor. She casually asked, and Xiao Qi talked about her parents'' situation. Zhou Meiling did not take it to heart either.


    She did not expect that Liang Huaying was a practical person. After lunch, she took the couple to sign up, going to the Cultural Palace, as it was said the registration was there.


    As it turned out, the staff said it was a bit late to register. Liang Huaying asked them to make an exception, and was about to stuff them money, when she happened to run into Zhou Meiling who rarely had to work weekends overtime. Zhou Meiling curiously asked, they chatted, and it turned out the other party was Xiao Qi¡¯s parents.


    No need to stuff money. As soon as the staff heard it was Vice Director Zhou¡¯s friend, they immediately signed them up, even carefully taking pictures of the things Su Youfu brought and uploading them, writing up information.


    Things went smoothly beyond imagination.


    Su Youfu felt that he had always been a somewhat unlucky person all his life. Things that others could easily accomplish required much more difficulty for him.


    Yet he did not expect his luck today would be so good, not to mention meeting a patron, everything went smoothly, feeling as if the times were changing, as if he was not the same as before.

 Chapter 285: Strange Keywords

    Chapter 285


    Xiao Qi received a phone call from her dad in the evening, and she was surprised to hear him excitedly describing his day''s experiences.


    In her memory, her dad was always quiet and didn''t speak much, giving the impression that the weight of life was pressing down on him, making it hard for him to breathe. It was uncomfortable. UppTodated from


    Thinking about the fatherly love that was as heavy as a mountain, it truly felt like a massive mountain with love, but more often than not, it brought pressure. It made her constantly want to work harder, to do better, and to be even better.


    She had never heard her dad speak with such a light-hearted tone before. It seemed like he had gained a lot of confidence.


    Even when her dad did well in bamboo weaving and received praise, causing prices to go up, it didn''t seem to make him as happy as he was today.


    Xiao Qi had a faint feeling that the Beginner''s Lucky Card played a certain role. Being someone who had long suffered from ridicule and disdain, even her own mother would mock and taunt him. Then one day, he suddenly discovered that he was very lucky and also received favor. It was as if his mindset had suddenly changed and elevated.


    People who have long been treated unfairly, even if they receive a bit of goodwill, will burst forth with great enthusiasm.


    It''s like a wild grass sprouting from a crack in a rock. As long as it receives a drop of water, it seems to grow vigorously.


    Listening to her dad''s rambling on the phone, repeating some things twice, he kept saying, "That student''s parent you met at the cultural center is really nice. I didn''t expect that the person you encountered there, who teaches you Japanese, is actually your teacher. They are a very kind person and didn''t hesitate to help..."


    It wasn''t until her mom snatched the phone away that he stopped.


    "Nan Nan, there''s nothing much happening here. Take care of yourself. It''s getting cold, so wear warm clothes and drink hot water, avoid drinking cold water. The clothes you bought fit your dad perfectly, and the bag you got me is too expensive. Don''t spend money on us in the future. Buy whatever you like for yourself."


    Then the phone was snatched away by her dad, and he continued to ramble on for a while.


    After hanging up the phone, her ears were buzzing, and her heart felt warm.


    Xiao Qi continued running. Even though the marathon was over, running had become a daily routine. It felt like running was her personal restart button every day. After finishing her run, her thoughts became much clearer.


    She returned to the dormitory to take a shower.


    On weekends, her roommates were all busy with their own things. The tea art club that Yunshu was in seemed to suit her taste, and they even went out for a club dinner in the evening.


    Wei Cheng was busy with the film club''s weekend movie screenings, so she went to work there.


    Mier had taken her camera and went with the external liaison club to the city. She hadn''t come back yet.


    They all reported their whereabouts in the dormitory group chat, naturally, it felt like home.


    Surprisingly, Su Li sat down with the hot water and didn''t leave immediately.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She hadn''t interacted with Su Li before, and she felt that it wouldn''t be easy to get along with her. But they were classmates, and Xiao Qi couldn''t just ignore her.


    And Su Li actually took the initiative to ask her what she was doing.


    Xiao Qi took out the speech she had just written and handed it to Su Li.


    Su Li''s English was also very good, and she spoke fluently. She often traveled abroad, but she didn''t seem like someone who enjoyed studying.


    Su Li read the speech, and tears suddenly welled up in her eyes.


    In this speech, Xiao Qi wrote about her own growth experience.


    Su Li choked up and asked, "Did you really not drink milk until the first year of junior high? Did you not know that the bottled water you drank for the first time contained water?"


    Xiao Qi nodded.


    "I was born in such a place."


    But Su Li''s tears flowed even more.


    This Su Xiaoqi, who had experienced the worst treatment, had the most kindness in her heart.


    Su Li drank the boiling water in his hand and unexpectedly burst into tears, startling Xiao Qi. He quickly poured her another cup.


    After finishing the drink, Su Li left without saying anything further.


    But then, a mechanical voice echoed in Xiao Qi''s ear, "The host''s positive and proactive attitude towards life has moved those aimless, purposeless classmates who live in a state of lethargy. As a reward, the host has been granted a ten-day Empathy buff."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Aimless, purposeless, living a state of lethargy... What on earth is this?


    Su Li''s choice of words was peculiar. What kind of family could raise a child like this...

 Chapter 286: Mengshi Real Estate

    Chapter 286


    Su Li returned to her dormitory.


    She had seen those reports about students from poor mountainous areas before, and always thought they were exaggerated.


    How could things like that possibly exist?


    But when she saw outstanding classmates around her who had grown up like that, she was shocked speechless.


    She had been in contact with those very hardworking students before, and always felt they were brooding and eager to forge ahead, and somewhat resentful of the rich, as if having money was an original sin in itself, and unwilling to accept other people''s kindness.


    Her dormmate Chu Yu gave off that feeling of grievance.


    But Su Xiaoqi did not.


    What stood out about her was that she was excellent and worked very hard with solid efforts, like right now when Su Li went to knock on her door, she really was studying in the dorm while Su Li''s dormmate Chu Yu was currently listening to music, reading novels, and checking her phone.


    Su Li felt moved inside but also did not know what to say. When she returned to her dorm, she opened a textbook to read, something she had never done before.


    It scared her roommates Chu Yu and Lin Dongqing, who did not know what madness had come over their dormmate Su Li.


    Early the next morning, Xiaoqi put on the sweater Pei''er had given her, jeans, little boots, shouldered her schoolbag, and went out.


    She was going to look at houses today at quite an early scheduled time.


    Xiaoqi waited for the chairman at the bridge in the old city quarter. She did not expect the car today was not the Toyota or pickup truck but a Mercedes-Benz she had not seen before with an upright sign on top that Xiaoqi always felt could be snapped off with a flick of the hand.


    Xiao Shengzhou wore a suit. He already had thick brows and big eyes that made him look serious and mature. Wearing a suit made him look even more mature while Xiaoqi looked very small in comparison. Finnd new chapters at novelhall.com


    Because she had checked the weather forecast earlier saying it would be sunny today and warmer, Xiaoqi had not worn a coat.


    Also, with Yunshu''s coat as a contrast in the dorm, Xiaoqi always felt her own coat seemed pirated from Yunshu''s. Not that she suddenly had brand awareness for clothes, just that she felt something was off and subconsciously did not wear that coat when going out on business, even if it was fine to wear on campus.


    Driving out so early in the bright sunshine on the weekend was rare even for Xiao Shengzhou.


    He was still a little sleepy.


    Seeing the girl in the light green sweater at this time instantly invigorated him.


    No matter when he saw her, she was always spirited and uplifting, infecting others easily.


    After Xiaoqi got in the car, Xiao Shengzhou asked her, "Have you eaten breakfast?"


    Xiaoqi nodded. There was milk and bread in the dorm that she ate some of.


    Because it was so early on the weekend, the cafeteria had not opened yet and food was not ready, so she ate in the dorm.


    Of course, having finished her morning run already and practiced her calligraphy homework, she had showered, eaten breakfast, and came out, inexplicably feeling like she had half a day more than those dormmates who got up late.


    Xiao Shengzhou had not eaten yet.


    He thought that the little girl did not seem to have any particular preferences, only seeming to be more interested in food, so he planned to take her to a good breakfast place in Alliance City.


    Xiaoqi had interacted with the chairman a few times now and was relatively familiar, so she did not feel constrained getting in the car.


    She even asked about how Xiao Bao''er was recently.


    "She still mentions you every day. Yesterday, holding her little pony, she went to the supermarket to buy things and was photographed and videoed by many people watching, feeling especially smug about it."


    Just hearing the chairman talk about it, Xiaoqi could picture that scene of the chubby little girl leading a pony, with a proud expression that made Xiaoqi want to smile.


    There was a very nice fragrance in the car, like the smell of freshly harvested grass in the early morning, and also a faint minty scent. She did not know if it was sprayed on the chairman or inside the car, but it made people feel very relaxed and pleasant.


    The two chatted all the way and soon arrived in Alliance City.


    Xiaoqi felt that perhaps her future would also become one of those coming and going here.


    Wearing a smart suit, walking into one of the bright glass towers, taking the elevator as the numbers kept changing, getting off at one of them, stepping out of the elevator...


    Xiao Shengzhou drove while glancing at the girl beside him from time to time, seeing her looking out the window curiously, engrossed, not knowing what she was thinking.


    Seeing her curiosity, Xiao Shengzhou drove slower.


    Finally, they stopped around a construction site. Xiaoqi saw the entrance said Xin Longhai Garden, probably the name of this new community under construction.


    She had never bought a new house before and did not know the process, just knew that new houses seemed not to be obtained immediately. There was a difference between pre-sale and ready-to-move-in houses that Long had mentioned to her when driving.


    For investment purposes, pre-sale houses were usually bought, those expected to be delivered next year or the year after, bought now would be cheaper.


    She had a little over 1 million yuan in her account now but planned to buy a house for just over 900,000 yuan. She did not understand this area herself and the senior she listened to should not have been wrong.


    Getting out of the car, she followed the chairman like a little attendant.


    Xiao Shengzhou was acquainted with the developer here. He rarely made rash promises. For the little girl entrusting him to help look at houses, he had done preparation and investigated real estate around the eastern suburbs.


    The location of this new Longhai Garden was very good, close to the CBD center here, also near a large shopping mall, very close to the subway station, definitely within 5 minutes'' walk. And it was purely residential property, meeting first-time home buyers'' demand. It should sell well in the future if she wanted to resell.


    What''s more, housing prices here were still quite reasonable, unlike the city center alliance where the highest ones had already soared to 50,000-60,000 yuan per square meter. The 10,000 yuan plus per square meter here could still be afforded.


    Xiao Qi was not yet 18 years old so she did not qualify for a loan. She planned to buy with full payment, so she could still get a discount.


    First, Xiao Shengzhou took Xiao Qi to see the show flats, available in 60, 70 and 80 square meters. Xiao Qi would not consider anything bigger than that, so they just looked at these three layouts.


    The show flats were fully decorated in a fresh, youthful style that young people would definitely like at first glance.


    However, the 60 square meter unit was truly tiny and cramped. Probably including the public area, the actual area was only 40-odd square meters. Although the interior design had maximized the use of space, Xiao Qi, who was used to more spacious living in the countryside, still felt very uncomfortable.


    She felt that piling up money like that, an area as big as what used to be her living room at home could be turned into a whole apartment for a family to live in.


    The 70 square meter unit was slightly better with a Mediterranean style decor. The tiles in the kitchen were colorful and there was a tiny balcony adding points, though as a two-bedroom unit one of the bedrooms was semi-open planned, still trying to make the space look bigger which might not be that practical for actual living.


    In comparison, the 80 square meter unit was the most cost-effective, an authentic two-bedroom apartment.


    Xiao Qi came with a clear goal this time, which was to invest. She would not come to live here herself. For rental or future resale value as an investment, practicality had to be taken into account.


    The 80 square meters suited newlywed couples very well, and would still be enough after having a baby.


    It was just a matter of price.


    The listing price per square meter here was 13,100 yuan, and there were differences depending on the floor chosen, higher floors costing more.


    Xiao Qi chose a south-facing 8th floor unit, not too high up. Higher floors would have a significant premium with an extra 1,000-2,000 yuan per square meter.


    Xiao Shengzhou did not offer much opinion during the flat viewing and selection, but he negotiated the price. As Xiao Qi was paying the full amount, she got a 4% discount. Also, Xiao Shengzhou knew the regional manager here so he managed to get them an additional 8% staff discount on top of that.


    Therefore, the final price calculated for this apartment was 13,100 yuan per square meter multiplied by the 80 square meters, then multiplied by 0.96 and further by 0.92, totaling 918,528 yuan. Being an acquaintance, she would also get one year of property management fees gifted after handover.


    The whole process went swiftly. Once Xiao Qi decided, without viewing other developments, she signed the contract here and paid.


    Xiao Shengzhou did not expect this young lady to be so swift and decisive. He thought girls would want to spend a whole day viewing, especially for such a major purchase as a home. He did not anticipate such resoluteness from her.


    Looking at the money leaving her account, Xiao Qi felt refreshed.


    Having bought the flat, Xiao Qi generously said: ¡°Chairman Xiao, where do you want to eat for lunch? Anywhere under 50 yuan, your pick, my treat!¡±


    Xiao Shengzhou: ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Oh never mind, my treat, anywhere 50 yuan and above is fine!¡±

 Chapter 287: Dare not Confess

    Chapter 287


    Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Qi didn''t end up indulging in feasting and revelry. Instead, they explored the small restaurants around their neighborhood.


    Since they were still in a developing area, some parts of the community were already in use while others were still under construction. As a result, the restaurants were not particularly high-end and mainly catered to workers and office-goers.


    So Xiao Qi and the Chairman had a quick meal at a fast-food joint.


    Thanks to Xiao Qi''s keen sense of smell, they found a small restaurant with clean ingredients and fresh food. Although they were having fast food, Xiao Shengzhou surprisingly found it quite tasty.


    He rarely ate at these kinds of small, unassuming eateries, but he didn''t expect the food to be good.


    Xiao Shengzhou watched as the young girl ordered a serving of roast duck rice and another serving of beef offal noodles as their main dishes. He couldn''t help but feel speechless.


    It was a little hot at noon, and one serving of beef offal noodles was enough for him, especially since he had eaten a filling breakfast.


    Xiao Qi was concerned that the Chairman might not be satisfied, so she ordered an extra serving of roast meat for him.


    Xiao Shengzhou looked at the large bowl of beef offal noodles and thought that Xiao Qi was overthinking it.


    "You don''t have to save money when it comes to my meals. I still have the means to eat, and besides, you''re my boss. I''ll be at the horse ranch every day from now on, and I''ll be earning a decent salary from you every month." Xiao Qi pushed the roast meat towards the Chairman.


    Xiao Shengzhou: ...


    It seemed to make sense. However, in the end, he couldn''t finish the roast meat. It all ended up in the young girl''s stomach. He wondered why she could eat so much despite her petite size.


    After buying the house, Xiao Qi felt like she had accomplished something significant and immediately relaxed. She fell asleep in the car on the way back to school.


    Perhaps it was the lingering excitement.


    Xiao Qi''s hair was tousled by the wind blowing in through the car window. The sunlight illuminated her face, and her long eyelashes looked gentle and serene while she slept, not as forceful as usual.


    Xiao Shengzhou closed the car window and turned on the air conditioning, adjusting it to a comfortable temperature before continuing to drive.


    He lowered the volume of the music playing in the car, switching to a more soothing style.


    Xiao Qi slept all the way until they arrived at school.


    She didn''t even wake up during the bumpy turns.


    Xiao Shengzhou drove straight to the horse ranch because the young girl mentioned that she would be practicing horse riding in the afternoon.


    Steven praised her endlessly, boasting that she was the most talented and diligent student he had ever seen.


    Perhaps in the future, she would become even more impressive and write something truly passionate, broader, and more substantial. But for now, she couldn''t do it yet.


    Perhaps due to the empathy buff, when she practiced her speech in front of her roommates, even Mi Er, who was usually carefree, teared up. Yun Shu was deeply moved, and her expression became even more solemn. Wei Cheng directly hugged Xiao Qi and burst into tears because she felt that Xiao Qi was speaking about herself. It was too heartbreaking and not easy at all. Xiao Qi had to practice alone afterward.


    At the beginning, she would cry after reading the speech once.


    But after repeatedly reading it over and over, it seemed that she no longer cried, although her eyes still easily turned red.


    She had probably read it dozens of times.


    While she was reciting her speech alone on the playground, a boy in the classroom stood by the window and watched her.


    Li Weijin noticed that Su Xiaoqi had been acting strange lately, always with teary eyes, which made him inexplicably upset.


    However, he didn''t know what to do.


    Even talking to Su Xiaoqi made him nervous and tongue-tied. Despite his intentions to be kind, his attitude seemed harsher, even compared to how he treated other ordinary classmates.


    As Li Weijin watched her from the window, Su Li also walked over and leaned against the window.


    He took out a lollipop and skillfully put it in his mouth.


    Li Weijin felt a bit uncomfortable. Over at her cafe?, she used to be the kind of person who would light up a cigarette. Although smoking is not good, she probably thought it looked cool. A girl taking out a thin cigarette, lighting it up between her fingers.


    But now, it''s replaced with a lollipop...


    "What''s the matter? Do you like her?" Su Li asked.


    Li Weijin said with a straight face, "No, just casually looking."


    "Hmph!" Su Li sneered.


    "If you like her, why don''t you just say it? You''re so cowardly. If I were a guy, I would confess directly," Su Li retorted.


    "Even if you were a guy, she might not necessarily like you. What''s the point of confessing?" Li Weijin argued.


    Su Li turned his head and looked Li Weijin up and down. She looked good, really good. From head to toe, she was exquisite, even more delicate than himself, a girl. She was also beautiful, but thinking back, Su Xiaoqi didn''t pay much attention to Li Weijin. It was said that many girls secretly admired Li Weijin, including Chu Yu, the drama queen in her dorm.


    She used to be one of them too, but now she realized how shallow she was.


    She patted Li Weijin''s arm and said, "Do your best. You''re not even brave enough to confess. I look down on you."


    Xiao Qi was practicing her speech when suddenly the mechanical voice rang in her ears, "The figure of the host diligently studying and radiating positive energy has brought a sense of first love +1 to the classmates who don''t have the ability to love others and love themselves the most, rewarding the host with an agile +1."

 Chapter 288: Losing at the Starting Line

    Chapter 288


    Xiao Qi noticed that the system seemed to have become more verbose recently.


    It didn''t use to describe things in such detail.


    But without the ability to love others, the person who loves himself the most, could he be talking about Li Weijin?


    In fact, Li Weijin was looking at her from the window, and she had noticed.


    She had very good eyesight now, and Li Weijin was just too conspicuous.


    The most conspicuous thing wasn''t Li Weijin himself, after all he was quite far away, but rather the at least one carat diamond earring on his left ear, which was reflecting a dazzling brilliance in the sunlight.


    Flashing and flickering, it made it hard not to notice.


    If other boys wore jewelry they would seem effeminate, but when he wore it, it seemed perfectly natural and very attractive.


    And even though he wore different accessories every day, it didn''t feel repetitive or annoying.


    So was it because he loved himself the most...


    As for the update to becoming aware of first love +1, Xiao Qi didn''t know what level she was at anymore.


    Others experienced first love awakening, while she got a sensitivity +1, and felt like a monkey the whole time.


    Interrupted by the system, the mood she had barely managed to brew up was gone, and Xiao Qi didn''t memorize her speech anymore, but called her dorm mates out to eat instead.


    With three missing from the dorm room, Wei Cheng was eating at the stables, so only Yunshu and Mier were left.


    While eating, Mier gestured excitedly and said, "The president of our external liaison club just told me that the sponsorship I pulled in last weekend has come through."


    Xiao Qi still didn''t understand what pulling sponsorships meant, so she curiously asked, "How much money?"


    "Three thousand. Don''t look down on this three thousand, this is the first sponsorship I''ve pulled in independently."


    Three thousand yuan was quite a lot, enough for a thrifty student to last two or three months.


    Yunshu also asked, "What did you promise the other party to get them to give you money?"


    "It was a Korean restaurant. I hadn''t actually planned on asking them for sponsorship, I just went there to eat. I ordered a bowl of cold noodles, wow, it was so delicious, sour and icy cold, with a touch of sweet and spicy, all kinds of flavors blended together, it was unexpectedly really good. It also had ice cubes, watermelon, sweet radish, tomatoes - not only were the cold noodles tasty, the side dishes and kimchi were also very delicious. The kimchi tasted even better than what Xiao Qi pickles. This was the first time I''d eaten something so great, so I went to find the boss."


    Mier took a sip of soup and continued, "I just felt the boss''s food was delicious and deserved an in-person compliment. I didn''t expect the boss to be a middle-aged Korean auntie who was very friendly and chatted with me enthusiastically. She asked what I did, and I said I was from a school club on a mission to get sponsorships. The boss lady laughed and said it was just asking for money. At that time I started rambling, saying it wasn''t just about money, we could advertise, hand out flyers, hang banners, etc. I didn''t expect the boss to actually let me distribute flyers for her shop, and said she would also provide sponsorship, and told me to eat there for free next time I wanted cold noodles."


    Mier spoke extremely fast, babbling on and on, and even left Xiao Qi a bit dizzy after recounting the whole story.


    It felt like a blind cat running into a dead mouse, randomly obtaining a sum of money.


    The club rewarded students who pulled in sponsorships with a 20% commission.


    That meant Mier could still get 600 yuan herself. UppTodated from


    She looked amazing in a high-neck sweater, goose egg face, the standard beauty look.


    The other Qingmeng contestants also looked great in their photos.


    It was as if attending a good university made you grow more attractive.


    Looking at these people''s profiles put a lot of pressure on Xiao Qi.


    She was so far behind them in elementary, middle and high school.


    She was already at a disadvantage from the starting line.


    The others probably started attending the best elementary schools from childhood, with all kinds of hobby classes and competitions, while at that time Xiao Qi was at a village school in Gumu La, where the teachers were villagers and spoke Mandarin with a thick rural Gumu La accent, mostly not even using Mandarin, just the local dialect.


    Some teachers who came from the city only lasted a year or two before running away, simply unable to adapt to the high altitude, impoverished and remote countryside with poor transportation and nothing there.


    Xiao Qi''s memories of elementary school teachers were not friendly ones.


    Moreover, in that terrible school, Xiao Qi was even one of the students who owed tuition, essentially the poorest of the poor, because at that time her dad was guarantor for a foundation''s loan, and went from guarantor to debtor.


    As for middle school, at Huanghe Town Middle School, there was even less of a studious atmosphere. With the original factories shut down, no one had any life prospects, so most students from those families drifted into becoming local ruffians and hoodlums. Still, those hoodlums looked down on Xiao Qi and the other country kids.


    What Xiao Qi experienced was all kinds of fighting and brawling, even teachers being hit, going to internet cafes, drinking, dating, dyeing hair - a bizarre world.


    Meanwhile, these outstanding Qingmeng University students had probably already entered an even wider and more intense competitive learning environment, with parents preparing school district housing for them, hiring the best tutors, and sending them to all kinds of contests and activities.


    While Xiao Qi could only accomplish not following her friends to go to internet cafes or out to play, and it wasn''t because she had more willpower, just that she was poorer than the others.


    In high school, she finally stood out among her peers and entered a better learning environment, but did she transform? No, she became more lost. She realized no matter how hard she tried, she could never catch up to her classmates. She was always the last place, lacking so much knowledge, as if she had gone to a different middle school from the others. She didn''t understand a lot of common sense that the other students knew, she even got nervous about turning a computer on and off, afraid she''d break it.


    She drifted through school in a daze.


    While other excellent students had already participated in various competitions and even studied abroad, seeing everything was different.


    Xiao Qi was still spinning around in her own inferior small circle, because she didn''t have money to buy the latest Xinhua Dictionary and was made to stand as punishment by the teacher; because she wore a new piece of clothing, she was criticized by the teacher for not working hard enough. It wasn''t that the teacher was biased, but she had always had the label of a poor student on her. In the eyes of others, she should look like a poor student, a model.


    She had always lagged behind.


    Without better conditions, she also didn''t know how to learn better.


    These were the differences between Xiao Qi and those other Qingmeng University prodigies. Her resume was very simple, while those students had very impressive resumes that made people feel they were outstanding as soon as they looked at them.


    When Xiao Qi saw this list of contestants, her original uneasiness was actually reduced a little. There was an inexplicable sense of continuous motivation in her heart. She had missed a lot of time and wasted a lot of time, but it wasn''t too late. She was only seventeen years old. Speaking when she was eighty years old, she was just starting out now. If she worked hard now, there was still time.


    What was happening now also proved this point. She had started learning English over the summer vacation, and now she could already go and take part in this speech contest. At least she could stand in the same place now, so it was never too late to work hard at any time.


    It wasn''t too late.


    After that day, Xiao Qi''s roommates discovered that Xiao Qi was studying even harder, and her time management was tighter. Although she had worked very hard before, it felt like her condition was a little different recently. In the past, they would sometimes see Xiao Qi running club activities and such, but now whenever they saw her she seemed to be studying.

 Chapter 289: A Speech at Youth League University

    Chapter 289


    It was Friday, and the weather was beautiful with clear skies and bright sunshine. The leaves on the trees by the Enhua University campus were slowly turning red, creating a stunning sight of fiery red everywhere.


    Going to Qingmeng University for a speech was quite a grand occasion.


    Enhua University sent a delegation consisting of a teacher in charge, a school bus driver, a class teacher named Yan Ruyu, and a participant named Su Xiaoqi, along with Su Xiaoqi''s group of friends and three roommates.


    The competition was scheduled to start at 7 p.m., conveniently leaving the afternoon free from classes.


    The school bus arrived in the afternoon to pick them up.


    The teacher in charge was a young male teacher, and Su Xiaoqi''s class teacher, Yan Ruyu, was easygoing and had a camaraderie with the male teacher.


    This was Su Xiaoqi''s second visit to Qingmeng University, but this time she didn''t contact Lin Min, although she sent him a message informing him of her arrival.


    Lin Min had been quite busy recently. He was studying medicine and had a heavy workload. Moreover, he was the type of person who would spend extra time in the anatomy lab whenever he had the chance. He didn''t consider himself a genius, nor did he think his brain was significantly better than others'', so he needed to devote more time to studying.


    In addition, he had started a business of selling used books and handling courier services, which kept him occupied. When it came to making money, as soon as there was a hint of opportunity or a trend, there would be a lot of people following suit. To survive, one had to be ahead of others and excel where others were lacking.


    During the National Day holiday, he organized his business and tidied up his shop. He also used his connections with senior students at the university to spend two days experiencing work at a courier company.


    He was willing to endure hardship and put in the effort, and he did a good job.


    When he learned that Su Xiaoqi had broken a marathon record, he was quite surprised. However, he had already been amazed when she won the swimming championship before. It seemed that she had a natural talent for sports and was quite strong.


    He admired her, but he didn''t think much about the large sum of money she won.


    He just felt that he should work even harder.


    Originally, he had planned to attend Su Xiaoqi''s speech tonight, but he didn''t expect that his dormitory mates would also want to go.


    "Goddess Tang Baolin is participating in the speech. I must go and support her."


    "I don''t care whether she''s a goddess or not. I''m not judging based on looks. I just want to learn English, really."


    "I''m going to cheer for our cute little Tang Yuan from our major. I heard that the male students all turned pale during their first anatomy class, but Tang Yuan remained calm."


    "I''m just going to have a look at the goddess. English or no English, it doesn''t matter."


    The roommates chattered happily. They were surprised to learn that Lin Min, the workaholic in their dorm, was also going to attend the speech.


    "Lin Min, could it be that you''re also a fan of Baolin? But if you make a move, who knows what might happen."


    Among their dormitory mates, Lin Min was the most attractive, tall and slim, a restrained and pure-looking guy. He had even been called the "grass" by the female students in their major and was voted as the most handsome freshman in the medical department.


    Enhua was a vibrant university, while Qingmeng was a serene and introverted one.


    Under the guidance of their teacher, she arrived at the registration point for the English speech competition. They drew lots to determine the order, and Xiaosi drew the 14th place, a middle position among the twenty participants.


    Qingmeng University considerately provided navigation to the cafeteria for everyone. The cafeteria at Qingmeng University was quite good, considered one of the better ones among several famous universities in terms of delicious food.


    Xiaosi and her group, consisting of four students and two teachers, went to the cafeteria and ordered some stir-fried dishes.


    Their homeroom teacher casually mentioned that they could get reimbursed for the expenses, so there was no need to worry about money.


    In reality, the stir-fried dishes at the school were not too expensive. The six of them ate for around a hundred yuan, and the taste was indeed quite good.


    After finishing their meal, it was already around 6:30 p.m., so they headed to the gathering point for registration.


    The evening speech contest took place in a small auditorium at Qingmeng University.


    Although it was called a small auditorium, it was not really small and could accommodate a considerable number of students.


    Xiaosi didn''t feel an urgent need to use the restroom today, but she made sure to locate it in advance. From the small auditorium, she would turn right and make a small half-circle to reach the restroom.


    Students kept arriving one after another, and Xiaosi felt that there were many more students compared to the speech contest she attended at Enhua University. At that time, it seemed like many students were there with their families and friends.


    Moreover, the scale was quite impressive. She even saw cameras.


    A banner hung at the entrance, indicating that it was the finals of the Jingnan Province Freshman Speech Contest.


    Would there be a national final afterwards?


    Although there weren''t as many electronic screens as at Enhua University, only banners and flags here, it felt like there was a greater sense of enthusiasm, with a lot of students present.


    The small auditorium was arranged in a relatively simple and formal manner. There was a large red backdrop, a table in the middle, and the contestants would come up on stage and stand behind the table. There was a microphone and bottled water on the table.


    At 7 o''clock, it started punctually.


    The atmosphere suddenly quieted down, and a host appeared. They asked everyone to silence their phones, repeating the instructions in both Chinese and English. The host was said to be a sophomore student at Qingmeng University, giving a very competent and scholarly impression.


    The first contestant to go on stage was a male student, and he was very impressive. Xiaosi read from the introduction that he was a student from Qingmeng University, majoring in Materials Engineering. He had a voice suitable for broadcasting and hosting, and it wasn''t just reciting an essay. He discussed a topic on how contemporary university students should seize their youth.


    He was passionate and eloquent, not only excelling in English but also in delivery and presence. It was clear that there was a gap between him and the students who participated in the speech contests at Enhua University. Even with so many speech contestants from Enhua University, it was doubtful that any of them could match his strength. Surprisingly, his introduction didn''t mention any awards or achievements, keeping it quite simple.


    If the first contestant was this strong, what about the rest?


    Especially Tang Baolin, who had half a page dedicated to her introduction. Xiaosi had a deep impression of her.


    Sitting in the front row, in the waiting area for the contestants, Xiaosi spotted Tang Baolin. Even without comparing her to the introduction, she was very beautiful. Her posture was elegant, with a fair and slender neck. During the breaks between contestants, she would turn her head and talk to the person next to her, with a faint smile on her lips, exuding grace and charm.

 Chapter 290: Someone Else’s Home Game.

    Chapter 290


    The second contestant''s performance was a bit terrible. She was probably too nervous when she got on stage.


    Her speech was halting and stuttering. It was just an article from the internet. Xiao Qi had looked through countless speeches in preparation for this speech contest. The speech chosen by this girl was one Xiao Qi had recited by heart, but halfway through, this girl got stuck for a good few seconds when she forgot her words. The students in the audience were quite tolerant. When she paused, there was no ridicule but applause instead.


    Her face flushed red as she finished reciting the content and almost ran off the stage.


    According to the introduction, she was from Agriculture and Forestry University, which was not bad in Jingnan Province compared to private universities like Enhua. The admission score line was not low either. It was a second-tier university, and during good years, the admission line was close to first-tier universities. Of course, it was different from top universities like Qingmeng with admission lines 40-50 points above first-tier universities. But with this contrast, Xiao Qi felt the gap was too big.


    The first contestant was just an ordinary student from Qingmeng University, while the second contestant was the cream of the crop sent by Agriculture and Forestry University to compete.


    It was like Xiao Qi, who had competed in a round at her own school already.


    But here, the contrast was too stark. This must be the real gap in the real world.


    One step behind meant falling further and further behind.


    After getting off stage, that girl started crying. She happened to sit near Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi saw her eyes red and tears streaming down her face. She didn''t know what to say.


    The third contestant was also from another school, Meng City Normal College. She was also female. Her performance was slightly better than the second contestant''s. At least there was no forgetting of words. Her English was also good, very fluent. From start to finish, there were hardly any halts or stutters. Unfortunately, Xiao Qi had also recited this speech before. The other party had modified some of the content, but it was still quite familiar.


    It gave the impression that she was a hardworking student. But compared to the first contestant with the broadcaster voice, there was obviously still a gap.


    And she was also slightly nervous.


    Xiao Qi felt that her past self was probably like the second contestant, wanting to do well but never able to. There were too many things, unable to prioritize. There was an element of relying on luck, cramming at the last minute but still feeling like she had tried her best, yet ultimately unable to do well and feeling ashamed.


    The slightly more mature version of herself was possibly like the third contestant, working hard to recite well, striving not to embarrass herself, but that was it.


    The fourth contestant was a short-haired girl from the English Department of Qingmeng University, slightly chubby. She came up with a cheerful smile, giving off a very amiable feeling. Her speech was also very steady. At a glance, she was clearly the kind of student who would be very good at Chinese speeches too. She had a certain aura about her, like a class monitor or leader, with leadership qualities.


    As soon as Tang Baolin got on stage, the applause was very enthusiastic. The mood in the auditorium became exceptionally lively compared to before.


    She was clearly very popular at Qingmeng University.


    Standing there in front of the desk, she adjusted the mic a little. The previous contestant was male, so the mic was too high up. She jokingly said in English that she was too short, again eliciting applause and laughter from the audience, as well as shouts of "Tang Baolin I love you!".


    Xiao Qi realized top universities like Qingmeng also had fangirls, and they were more passionate and straightforward.


    The atmosphere was very heated. Tang Baolin was composed and graceful on stage, looking especially beautiful when she smiled. She had dimples that made her even sweeter.


    Most importantly, not only was she exceptionally good-looking, her English speech was also very smooth and melodious. Her voice sounded sweet and clear through the mic, like a mountain spring. Her speech topic was happiness - its definition, how to attain it, her own insights on happiness, with content that was her original work, talking about little things around her, simple and relatable. Together with her smiles, the entire speech was pleasant to listen to. Even if one didn''t understand English, it was still visually appealing and aesthetically pleasing.


    Her concluding summary was also very good. She felt that happiness was a state, better than before with room for improvement. From this perspective, the richest were not necessarily the happiest, and the poorest not necessarily the most miserable. High salaries and luxurious homes did not necessarily mean happiness, just as a lack of material possessions did not necessarily mean unhappiness.


    The applause was even more thunderous after she finished her speech, with continuous screams. She was also the only contestant to receive an on-stage flower bouquet, handed to her by a sunny-looking male student who ran up on stage. It did not elicit teasing laughter but was gracefully accepted.


    The scoring mechanism for the speech contest combined the judges'' scores with the students'' scores, each making up 50%. Scoring was done during the interval before the next contestant.


    As expected, Tang Baolin had the highest score so far. The teachers'' impression of her was great, and the students loved her too. Her final score was 9.5 points. In contrast, the first male contestant with the broadcaster voice that Xiao Qi thought performed decently only scored 8.2 points. The second contestant did even worse. Although she was given benevolent applause when she forgot her words, scoring was still harsh. She only scored 5.9 points, below the passing line.


    The third contestant scored 6.4 points. Generally, contestants from other schools who scored above 8 points were very few.


    Ouyang Huiyan scored 9.0 points. Xiao Qi felt Ouyang Huiyan''s performance was also very good, though she was slightly lacking in terms of external image compared to Tang Baolin.


    The eleventh place was Qingmeng University''s own, still affected by the tenth place, the performance was average. The previous contestant was too amazing, the later contestants would be more disadvantaged, because people''s emotions have a constant value. The excessive draining in the front, the latter is a bit tired. What she said was not bad, but the score was only 7.9 points.


    As a result, the twelfth and thirteenth place contestants were both from other schools, even more unbearable by comparison. This may also be due to the home advantage of Qingmeng University.


    The twelfth place contestant scored 7.1 points, and the thirteenth place contestant scored 6.8 points.


    Next, the host announced that the fourteenth place contestant, Xiao Qi from Enhua University, took the stage.

 Chapter 291: If You can’t Laugh Together, Cry Together.

    Chapter 291


    The stage curtain was a deep red, unusually thick. The table in front of the stage curtain was exceptionally lonely.


    Xiao Qi walked onto the stage. She did not receive a warm round of applause like the previous contestant, Tang Baolin. After all, this was Qingmeng University. Hardly anyone recognized her.


    The students were still somewhat curious about Enhua University. It was rare for a private university to be rated as a second-tier university. There were many private universities in China, but respectable second-tier ones were scarce.


    A few of Xiao Qi¡¯s dormmates sat in the back rows, watching her go on stage. Mi¡¯er tried her best to clap, but she did not garner much momentum. The applause was sparse and scattered.


    At this moment, even her friends felt immense pressure. Before coming, they were confident Xiao Qi would do well. Some even believed she could clinch first place. After all, Xiao Qi had always created miracles for them, even breaking records in marathon running.


    But after watching contestant after contestant, even Xiao Qi¡¯s number one fan, Mi¡¯er, was uncertain. The Qingmeng University students were truly exceptional, each one more outstanding than the last. They had assumed all college students would be on par with each other. In reality, there were vast discrepancies.


    It made sense when they thought about it. Qingmeng University accepted students with over 600 points on the college entrance exam, while they had 400-something points for Enhua. There was already a 200 point gap. Even the worst Qingmeng student would be better than them.


    The stark contrast between Qingmeng and students from other universities was even more disheartening. Their confidence plummeted; even the usually absent-minded Yunshu¡¯s face seemed more vacant.


    Wei Cheng¡¯s cheeks were puffed up, deadly serious, extremely nervous - as if she were the one on stage.


    On the other side, Lin Min¡¯s roommates nudged him and whispered, ¡°Damn, your girl is so pretty, on par with Tang Baolin. No wonder you have zero interest in Tang Baolin.¡±


    Xiao Qi had not put on any makeup. Although it was only a small auditorium stage with some distance, makeup would have made her facial features clearer and more sculpted. But considering her speech content, she felt she might have difficulty controlling her emotions and end up crying, smudging her makeup and looking strange.


    Her speech theme was ¡°Become a Person Useful to Society.¡± During late night dorm discussions, she had told her roommates that she wanted to become someone useful to society, someone with value.


    Her initial draft centered around her life experiences, mostly from childhood. Recalling those memories still easily moved Xiao Qi to tears. Many said the misfortunes of childhood required a lifetime to heal. Some spend their whole lives healing the wounds of an unfortunate childhood.


    If not for the later transformations and changes in her life, Xiao Qi felt she might have lived a completely different life - no college, working at factories like the other village girls. At a certain age, she would start thinking about getting married for the bride price. The poorer the place, the higher the demands for a bride price. She would marry another equally poor man and repeat her parents¡¯ life, possibly having children of her own. If the child did well in school, they could continue their education with financial aid subsidies, as she could not provide the best conditions. If the child did poorly, they would drop out and start working outside like she did.


    Even happy Tang Baolin cried. She seemed to see the pain and hardship endured from ballet and piano lessons forced by her mother.


    The girl who had gone second and scored only 5.9 points sobbed the hardest. She already felt awful that tonight had turned into an embarrassing spectacle for her.


    Xiao Qi went on.


    Tears still wet on her cheeks, she spoke of her hopes and dreams - that despite everything, she still wanted to become a good person, someone useful to society. She was constantly striving towards that goal.


    In conclusion, Xiao Qi¡¯s voice rang loud and clear, for this speech embodied not just words, but the lifelong goal she was determined to realize, possibly even her life¡¯s purpose.


    Everyone who had cried now seemed to feel that power and resolve.


    Perhaps not extremely strong yet, but firm and forceful enough.


    It was like a tiny, tender seed had been planted in the depths of every listener''s heart to later take root, germinate, and grow over time.


    Xiao Qi finished her speech and bowed as she exited the stage.


    There was no applause.


    It was only after she had returned to her seat that reactions gradually set in, and thunderous clapping rang out, even more orderly and enduring than when previous top contestant Tang Baolin had appeared.


    The judges dabbed their eyes as they gave their scores.


    Many had not cried for a long time, not because life was perfectly smooth without cause for tears, but because weeping felt weak. Unwilling to face their own weakness, they would force smiles no matter what.


    But this speech today had driven nearly every audience member to tears.


    The final score: 9.7

 Chapter 292: Zhuangzhou’s Dream Butterflies

    Chapter 292


    In the finals of the Jingnan Province college freshman public speaking competition, the first place winner was surprisingly not a student from Qingmeng University, but rather from a private university.


    It was shocking.


    However, Enhua University had always promoted itself as having many foreign teachers and strong faculty. No one had believed them before, but now quite a few people were inquiring about Enhua University after this incident.


    Enhua did have a comparatively large number of foreign teachers. Compared to other universities, they had an absolute advantage in terms of the number of foreign teachers, with each class assigned one or two foreign teachers. Things like English corners, while ambiguous to those unfamiliar, gave off an air of mystery and intrigue.


    Even Qingmeng University''s own students were a bit confused. They had assumed the first place winner would be Tang Baolin. After all, Tang Baolin had been the MC at the freshman gala, speaking fluent Chinese and English, especially articulate, with a long face. They did not expect the winner would be a student from Enhua.


    And it happened at their home court, so they could not even claim unfairness. Out of curiosity, some people went to check out the competition video on the school website, leaving them with nothing more to say. Watching the video and listening to the other student¡¯s speech left them inexplicably moved to tears.


    Tragedies always seem to have more power and leave a deeper impression than comedies.


    Additionally, the girl standing on the stage in the video was especially beautiful, with an aura distinctly cooler than Tang Baolin¡¯s sweet and delicate beauty. If Tang Baolin resembled the girl-next-door type that everyone had a first love crush on, the girl in the video was more like the type of girl who would steal your heart, then break it.


    Some curious people even went to find information on this dark horse champion. According to the competition program, she was the women¡¯s 200m freestyle champion of Jingnan Province. This was already mind-blowing by itself. At first glance, people wondered if Enhua also recruited varsity athletes. They needed varsity athletes just to get into Enhua University? Then how bad must their academic scores be...


    In contrast, Qingmeng University did actually recruit varsity athletes.


    Students could use their athletic talents to make up for lacking cultural course scores.


    But this girl was also the women¡¯s category record breaker in the marathon this year. She excelled in calligraphy and singing, comparable to students at Qingmeng University in every aspect.


    On the bus ride back after the competition, Xiao Qi felt rather tired and rested with her eyes half-open, half-asleep.


    She heard a sudden, abrupt mechanical voice next to her ear: ¡°The host has opened her heart and shared her growth story, moving countless people, spreading positive energy, and harvesting 899 sincere tears. She is rewarded with a chance to revisit a dream from her life. Would you like to use it now?¡±


    She seemed to have fallen asleep yet also awake, hazily nodding her head.


    Yet that extremely vivid and detailed dream which struck such a deep emotional chord made her feel frightened. Even now, she felt a tingling numbness in her hands and feet, as if still immersed in that despairing mood.


    After rounding this bend and continuing a bit further, the bright lights and lake views of the city would come into sight. They were close to Enhua University.


    The dazzling lights slowly emerged, growing ever brighter. The bus dropped Xiao Qi and her companions off at their dorm entrance.


    Their supervisor reminded them to rest well as he boarded the bus again to return to the faculty housing.


    The four girls disembarked and returned to their dorm room, collapsing onto their beds feeling rather tired.


    None felt like even checking their cell phones.


    Still, Xiao Qi got up to change and go for a run.


    Lying on her bed, Honey stuck out her head and asked: ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired? Why not take today to rest? You¡¯ve brought honor to our school, you should celebrate properly!¡±


    As Xiao Qi walked to the door, she casually ruffled Honey¡¯s hair. In the dream, Honey¡¯s father had died unexpectedly in their sophomore year due to binge drinking. With the factory bankrupt and swarms of creditors coming to collect, she also ended up eating white rice broth with Xiao Qi and Wei Cheng, gathered in their dorm room no longer worrying about dieting.


    No longer so lazy and carefree, laughing merrily without a care in the world.


    ¡°I still need to go. If I miss a day I feel off. You guys shower first. By the time I get back from my run, it¡¯ll be my turn!¡± Xiao Qi said with a smile.


    Jogging into the night breeze, the cool air also cleared her head, dispelling the dreamscape. Unlike usual, she did not immediately forget it¡ªinstead, it seemed to lodge itself in a corner of her heart.


    One grayed-out tab disappeared from the interface.


    She continued running, sprinting forward.


    She did not look back. She did not glance behind her.

 Chapter 293: Handsome or Not Handsome

    Chapter 293


    The autumnal grace was orangey yellow and bright red.


    The orangey yellow came from the leaves, and the bright red from the banners.


    Xiao Qi had once again hung up a banner, "Warmly celebrate Xiao Qi, first-year Computer Science student from our school, for winning the championship in the Jingnan Province English Speech Competition finals".


    This time, Xiao Qi did not ask the president to help remove her name, after all it would be too troublesome to keep asking people for favors, and since there was no money involved this time, Xiao Qi felt it was relatively normal. She felt great pressure carrying the grand prize of a million yuan, but other than that it was fine.


    Back in Qingmeng University, she had received an award where first place came with a 3,000 yuan prize, a exquisite notebook, and a luxury Hero pen.


    The pen was also said to be very expensive, well over a thousand yuan.


    It was rice white, extremely beautiful and high-end, with some glittery little diamonds on the pen cap.


    Upon returning to Grace University, Xiao Qi unexpectedly received another prize from Grace University¡¯s side, even more generous, directly awarding 10,000 yuan in prize money. The efficiency was shockingly fast, the next day on Saturday, the money had already been deposited into her card account.


    Grace University''s side was also very surprised. In terms of cultural achievements, Grace University had very little to show.


    Moreover, this was from a competition at Qingmeng University, and she actually won first place, it was simply unbelievable and pleasantly surprising.


    The English majors had complex expressions on their faces. The first place winner of the English speech competition was from the Computer Science department... They were specialized in English, yet did not have this capability. How embarrassing!!


    The next day was Saturday, a day to sleep in lazily.


    As usual, Xiao Qi got up early in the morning to go jogging. With 30,000 steps putting pressure on her legs everyday, she tried her best to avoid finishing them all at once. Xiao Qi split up the steps between morning and evening runs, and would check the number of steps she needed to walk during the day to plan accordingly.


    In the morning at six, when the sky was just getting bright.


    Xiao Qi got up, and Wei Cheng also woke up with her.


    She didn''t go running with Xiao Qi, but sat there reciting English textbook passages while holding an English book.


    Xiao Qi felt Wei Cheng was better than herself. She didn''t have any buffs or systems, yet studied very hard and was also very optimistic. In that bizarre dream, after graduation Wei Cheng was actually better off compared to them. Wei Cheng became a civil servant working at a court. She later passed the judicial examination, rising from clerk to judge step by step. Her partner was also a civil servant, and the two lived quite comfortably.


    Wei Cheng liked to go to rooftops to study. Standing high she could see farther, and she already had a usual corner on the rooftop.


    Xiao Qi went jogging, reciting and reviewing while running. English was fairly simple for her now after finishing the New Concept English textbook series, she really felt like she had a breakthrough, and it came to her very naturally that it felt quite easy.


    She was currently learning Japanese and Korean.


    After Japanese teacher Yamamoto-sensei left, Xiao Qi wanted even more to learn Japanese well, hoping that one day she could go to Japan, and perhaps even see Yamamoto-sensei again.


    Since this was a university student council event, there were also students from the new district. Before long, Honey had already added many new classmates on WeChat.


    Among them one boy in particular was very handsome, tall and big. He seemed slightly introverted, wearing glasses, and had a great personality, smiling brightly and refreshingly. He didn''t try to show off, and sat there steadily helping barbecue skewers, quite down to earth.


    His outfit also looked nice, a white shirt with black pants, a silver watch on his wrist, also carrying a backpack. White sports shoes on his feet.


    Honey also added him on WeChat. Usually after mutually adding each other, there wasn''t much more conversation.


    Unexpectedly, when Honey was taking pictures of the "waterfall", her phone rang. It turned out to be a message from that boy.


    He sent her an emoji, and very sincerely introduced himself, Li Ruisheng from the Finance department class 8. Then he said she took very good pictures.


    Honey lifted her head, and saw him smiling at her from not too far away. She didn''t know why, but her heart was beating fast, much quicker than usual.


    Everyone in class said Li Wei Jin was handsome. Honey would chime in the joking around, but classmates were just classmates. Seeing that boy smile at her now somehow felt different though. His smile was gorgeous, especially in the sunlight, his face seemed to glow.


    Today''s student council activity was particularly fun for some reason. Honey couldn''t sit still, she didn''t cook her barbecue well-done enough. At some point, Li Ruisheng was at Honey''s side helping her barbecue chicken wings, sweet and spicy and especially delicious, plated very attractively too.


    Moreover, after cooking them he only gave them to Honey.


    Honey felt differently for some reason.


    By the time the activity ended and everyone boarded vehicles to return, Honey was already sitting next to him without realizing when it happened.


    Honey truly felt sweet as honey, as if she ate honey. Li Ruisheng was from the new district, yet he accompanied her all the way back to the old district before returning to the new district himself.


    Honey was skipping happily back to her dorm, humming songs all the way. She was still humming when she got back to her dorm. This was pretty normal for her, she always seemed to be in high spirits. The other girls in her dorm were used to it.


    When it was time for evening self-study, Xiao Qi went to the classroom session. Honey went too and sat next to Xiao Qi, looking at her phone and messaging someone, giggling from time to time.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    I don''t remember seeing Honey dating anyone in my dream.


    But then I thought, if I get suspicious about everything because of a dream and try to live my life according to the dream, that would be too scary.


    I''ll just treat it like a fantasy, and keep living my life the way I have been.


    Honey couldn''t keep it to herself. During the break in middle of the evening self-study, she mysteriously pulled Xiao Qi over to look at her phone.


    "Xiao Qi, look at this guy, isn''t he handsome?"


    Xiao Qi leaned over to look. She was so stunned that her whole body froze up.

 Chapter 294: The Sublimation of Temperament

    Chapter 294


    There was a 20-minute break in the middle of evening self-study. Even on weekends, there was a fixed bell. 20 minutes to take a walk around, go to the bathroom, it would go by quickly.


    Last week Xiao Qi had to prepare for an English speech contest, and she spent most of her time during Saturday''s evening self-study reviewing what she learned in class.


    However, in the second period, as she looked at her accounting textbook, her mind kept wandering.


    The photos her friend Mi''er showed her, she had actually seen that person before. She could even clearly recall his name, Li Ruisheng.


    She was also having trouble distinguishing between dreams and reality.


    At that time, she had also participated in the student union, and added him on WeChat. Then they got together very quickly, as if they were made for each other. It was like passion, liking, love at first sight. She spent most of her time with him, studying together in the evenings, sometimes he would come to the old district, sometimes she would go to the new district. On weekends they were always stuck together, she interacted less with roommates and classmates, her thoughts were mostly on him.


    During that time Xiao Qi actually felt happy, it felt especially beautiful.


    She also became more vain, and took more care with her appearance. A woman adorns herself for her own pleasure, so Xiao Qi at that time must have been very pretty.


    In the summer break of their freshman year, the two broke up. Li Ruisheng said he accidentally drank too much at a classmate gathering, and slept with a female classmate, and could not betray Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi felt disgusted, like she had swallowed a fly.


    The whole summer, she was sickly at home, coughing and running a fever the entire time.


    She didn''t die, she just felt sorry for herself again. Some people still don''t understand life, how could they die?


    Her parents didn''t know she was heartbroken, they simply thought she was physically ill, and tried all kinds of remedies to make her take medicine.


    These scenes were vivid in her mind, as if she had truly experienced them.


    She had been staring at the accounting textbook for a long time without turning the page. Causing her friend Mi''er to curiously look over, asking: "Is that page very difficult? Xiao Qi you''ve been looking for so long, if even you don''t understand then I definitely don''t get it at all."


    Xiao Qi lowered her head to look, only to find that it was the exercise page. She had already completed the exercises, she was just reviewing.


    She quickly shook her head: "It''s fine, I was just thinking about something else."


    Mi''er didn''t really understand what her top student deskmate was thinking. But she had no intention of studying during evening self-study, she wanted to chat with someone.


    Clearly to her just now it felt like their chat was passionate, since she didn''t reply for so long, she worried he would have sent many, many more messages over. But surprisingly there was only the one emoticon...


    She felt somehow things were not right, something seemed off, anxious and unsure.


    After evening self-study ended, Xiao Qi pulled Mi''er to go buy fruit, Yun Shu and Wei Cheng joined them too. At their age, fast metabolism, eating a lot, they still needed a late night snack to sleep.


    Xiao Qi had small breasts, she kept getting recommended to eat papaya. Actually Xiao Qi really liked eating papaya too, cheap and sweet, the local papayas were especially tasty when perfectly ripened.


    Mi''er liked eating mango. And every time she ate mango, if the mango skin touched her lips, they would become irritated, severely even swelling up. But still, this did not diminish her love of eating mangoes.


    Yun Shu was picky, buying a little of everything each time.


    Wei Cheng was like Xiao Qi eating papaya, although she was very busty, papaya was the cheapest...


    In fact, life''s little details can separate groups.


    While buying fruit together, they happened to run into Li Weijin who was back from playing basketball, breathing a little hard from running. He nodded in greeting upon seeing Xiao Qi and the others.


    He had come to buy water. Seeing Su Xiaoshi, he seemed a bit embarrassed. He always had an icy cold face, even after playing ball and exercising, still giving off no hot blooded feeling.


    But at this moment he actually walked over and opened his mouth saying: "Su Xiaoshi, congratulations on winning the English speech contest finals, giving our class more glory. What fruit are you buying? Let me treat you guys."


    Xiao Qi and the others were just about to pay. Xiao Qi didn''t buy much, just one chunk of papaya, 20 cents.


    Wei Cheng''s was 30 cents. Mi''er''s mango was $5.6. Yun Shu bought the most, $39 total.


    The total didn''t even reach $50.


    "No need, we''ve already bought our own." Xiao Qi directly refused. Swiping WeChat together, she instead paid for Li Weijin''s water.


    Holding a bottle of water, Li Weijin had intended to buy cold water, but Su Xiaoshi gave him bottled room temperature water instead. Just having played basketball, hot and sweaty, drinking room temperature water also felt nice and cool.


    This was the first time, it wasn''t him treating others, but someone else buying something for him instead, even if it was just an ordinary bottle of mineral water.


    Drinking the water Su Xiaoshi handed him, the water flowing down his throat entering his body, his clavicle felt hot again.


    Xiao Qi and the girls returned to their dorm. Along the way, the mechanical voice rang out by her ear again: "Host graciously treated classmates to drinks, giving the self-absorbed classmate who loves only himself some warmth and positive energy, allowing him to experience the feeling of initial sprouts of affection +2. Rewarding host with refined temperament +1."

 Chapter 295: Different

    Chapter 295


    On the way back to the dormitory, Honey clung admiringly to her roommate''s arm and said, "Xiao Qi, you were so cool just now. Every time I see Li Weijin, I''m actually quite nervous. I feel like he only needs to open his mouth and no one can refuse him. I didn''t expect you to not only refuse him but also buy him water. Seeing him holding the water with a bewildered look on his face was truly shocking."


    Wei Cheng also laughed and said, "I thought His Highness didn''t drink water given by others and only drank water from special brands."


    Yunshu, who had bought the most fruit, wanted to transfer money to Xiao Qi for things like dates, but Xiao Qi shook her head and refused.


    "I have new bonus money recently. Let''s go eat beef rice in town another day."


    When it came to the beef rice in town, everyone''s attention was immediately shifted as they started salivating at the thought of it.


    That meal was so delicious with the soft and sticky rice.


    The beef had absorbed the braising liquid and went perfectly with the rice.


    Yunshu didn''t insist. She usually bought fruit back to the dormitory for her roommates to share as well. The flowers were placed next to the fruit. Sometimes she just liked to buy things without necessarily liking everything herself. In any case, she let everyone eat together. Everyone was relatively casual about eating.


    Honey had new clothes sent from home. Xiao Qi also often bought a lot of things back to the dormitory and treated others frequently. Wei Cheng was the one who took the initiative to do the most chores in the dormitory, like cleaning the desks. Everyone tacitly let her do it.


    Back at the dormitory, Xiao Qi tidied up her desk and started practicing calligraphy as usual. She had a very regular schedule that she followed resolutely.


    There were two stacks of calligraphy and painting drafts on her desk, with uneven thicknesses.


    There were more calligraphy drafts because she could easily get into the zone anytime to practice. There were fewer painting drafts because coloring and other steps were more troublesome. Xiao Qi was still at the sketching stage for paintings.


    Xiao Qi saw that her current calligraphy level was professional+, while her painting level had also improved from beginner to beginner+. She really liked this mechanism where effort led to corresponding improvement. It was the greatest fairness in the world.


    So now whenever she did anything, she worked very hard and did not waste time.


    After practicing calligraphy for half an hour and basically calming down, she changed her clothes and went downstairs to go jogging.


    The weather was a bit cool. Xiao Qi wore black athletic pants and long sleeves, all very fitting. Together with her running shoes, she looked like a female warrior when she went out.


    When she came back, she lay on the bed while Honey started chatting on her phone again after self-study. She first explained that her roommate had confiscated her phone earlier to make her do accounting homework, so she did not chat anymore.


    Honey did not know why she had to explain. She just saw the other party only send an emoji, leaving her feeling empty. Unexpectedly, the other party immediately replied.


    Su Li was fully equipped for jogging with her phone strapped to her arm, latest running shoes on her feet, and bright yellow workout clothes, very eye-catching.


    But when she managed to catch up to jog alongside Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi realized that Su Li was quite short. She seriously suspected that Su Li normally wore shoes with internal lifts. Really. Jogging side by side, Xiao Qi found that Su Li was actually shorter than her by a bit. She had to lower her head to look at Su Li.


    In normal times, Su Li''s aura was like she was 1.88 meters tall so Xiao Qi had not noticed her height issue at all.


    Su Li also discovered... There was no lift in running shoes. She was surprised to find that Xiao Qi was quite tall.


    She was fully armed, spending several thousand to buy this entire jogging outfit from head to toe.


    Yet she saw Xiao Qi just wearing the most ordinary Nike pants and top, basic style, but it looked no worse than her outfit at all, very stylish and full of temperament.


    Su Li greeted her and wanted to speak but saw that Xiao Qi continued running with earphones, fortunately not fast. Su Li still managed to ask, "Are you listening to music? What are you listening to? Can I listen together?"


    Xiao Qi shook her head and took out an earphone to hand to Su Li. Su Li heard all kinds of Korean inside...


    She had gone to Korea before...to shop.


    In Xiao Qi¡¯s dream, she rarely had impressions of this classmate. They were two non-intersecting parallel lines.


    If she thought hard about it, it seemed like Su Li had studied abroad?


    Curiously Xiao Qi asked, "Are you planning to study abroad?"


    Su Li thought to herself that there was no way others would think she was going abroad. It must be that little bitch Chuyu with her fake-white-lotus-face spreading rumors all the time.


    She quickly shook her head and said, "No! Going abroad is boring. Who told you that? Language barriers abroad, unfamiliar environment. It¡¯s fine to go for travel but going abroad to study is not as good as domestic universities. Besides, our classmates are also very interesting."


    Xiao Qi: ......


    Are you sure our classmates are interesting? She remembered the system gave an evaluation that they were idlers just eating, waiting to die.


    Xiao Qi continued running without talking much more to Su Li. However, she felt that she was overreacting to that dream and being overly concerned about it. In fact, many things had already changed¡ªshe had changed, people around her were also changing. The world was not unchanging. If everything was predetermined, then no one needed to strive and there would be no meaning to existence.


    After finishing 30,000 steps of running, she saw Su Li still jogging and couldn''t help sighing with admiration. So even Student Su Li was alive and vigorous, how hardworking!


    Su Li was mentally complaining as she ran until she was as tired as a dog... She would never go for a run again in hopes of a chance encounter. Xiao Qi was truly a weirdo to not be tired from running... Thinking back to her record-breaking marathon, sigh, it was herself who was the idiot...

 Chapter 296: : Registering for Equestrian Competitions

    Chapter 296


    During the weekend, the weather in Meng City was a bit gloomy.


    Xiao Qi still went to the equestrian field early in the morning to practice horse riding.


    These days, she had quite a lot going on and her mind was a bit messy. After riding around the field a few laps and breaking out in a sweat, she suddenly felt refreshed and clear-headed.


    Interacting with animals was still the simplest. When galloping on horseback, that feeling was too awesome, like flying.


    Before coming to the equestrian field, Xiao Qi also went to practice driving. She drove very well, not at all like a new driver. As usual, she also gave the coach cigarettes. The coach said he had already scheduled her road test and she had enough logged driving hours, so she could take the test next week.


    The smoking coach was especially congenial.


    Xiao Qi skillfully blocked her sense of smell.


    When she arrived at the equestrian field, although the smell of animals was unpleasant, Xiao Qi still opened up her sense of smell, because different smells also showed the different physical conditions of the horses. Xiao Qi felt a bit like those new moms who would habitually smell the scents, including feces, from their babies¡¯ bodies to judge if they were healthy or if something was wrong.


    And to coach Steven, this made him even more satisfied. He felt his student not only had perfect talent and was hardworking in practice, but she was also not afraid to work hard and get dirty and tired. He had originally thought she was just a rich daddy''s girl here to curry favor. But it turned out she wasn''t at all. She came to the equestrian field just to groom the horses, practice horse riding, and eat.


    Mr. Xiao, who had originally brought her here, didn''t show up at the field often either.


    On the contrary, as he got to know his student more, Steven felt she was very outstanding with distinguished temperament.


    He was already discussing with Mr. Xiao to let Xiao Qi first participate in a small competition to get some experience.


    Although equestrian sports were not on a very large scale domestically, he knew there was an autumn horse racing event in the capital sponsored by a luxury brand, which was decently big in scale. It would be just right for Xiao Qi to get some practice.


    Mr. Xiao knew the young girl had a lot of ideas of her own so he didn''t make decisions for her. He let Steven ask her himself.


    Xiao Qi got off the horse back, still a bit out of breath. Steven eagerly asked, "Sue, I want you to participate in an equestrian competition in the capital. What do you think?"


    "The capital?"


    Compared to previously, her current temperament was completely different, with more nonchalance. Her original sense of inferiority was also diminishing more and more.


    After finishing horse riding practice and getting her hand painted in henna, Xiao Qi took a shower and ate dinner by which time the sky was already dark. She had spent almost the entire day at the equestrian club today because the coach said he would be changing up the training approach.


    As she was getting ready to head back, she received a call from Honey: "Xiao Qi, you''re on TV again. Where are you? Hurry turn on the TV. The local Meng City news is showing you."


    Xiao Qi checked the time. It was past 8 pm. Based on the background noise, it sounded like Honey was with quite a few people. Curious, she asked, "I''m still at the equestrian field. Where are you? It''s so noisy over there?"


    "Some student council friends. We''re at a new cafe that just opened in New District. Nice environment and they''ve got a TV. Want to join us after you''re done?" Honey offered.


    "I can watch TV here so I''ll come find you guys after I see the footage," Xiao Qi replied.


    The equestrian club dining area had a television that Xiao Qi switched on. It opened on the default local Meng City Channel One station.


    Just as Xiao Qi turned on the TV, the anchors were introducing Qingmeng University''s English speech contest finals. Qingmeng University held very high status in Meng City so almost anything from the school warranted coverage as though everything they did smelled like roses deserving air time.


    The footage showed contestant Tang Baolin, a beautiful girl from Qingmeng University who was probably their campus belle. Then it introduced Xiao Qi, a new student from Enhua University, who won the grand prize in this speech contest...


    Reading this news, the anchors seemed to freeze up awkwardly for a moment.


    Watching herself on the screen, Xiao Qi felt increasingly disconnected from that person.


    Currently with Honey were Li Ruisheng, Li Ruisheng''s roommate, and two other student council members. Five people - three guys and two girls hanging out together playing board games. Honey said she wanted to record a video so she asked them to wait a moment.


    Li Ruisheng very gracefully waited as he watched the girl giving a speech on TV. She was gorgeous, fitting to be Qingmeng University''s campus flower.


    But Honey excitedly yelled, "Look, my deskmate is coming up next!"


    Then Li Ruisheng saw that girl on screen with teardrops clinging onto her eyelashes. Her expression held no grief and even had a trace of a smile, yet when she spoke, it made viewers feel distressed for some inexplicable reason.


    Li Ruisheng had fairly decent English. He understood most of what she said. He stared dumbly, dazed.

 Chapter 297: Su Xiaoqi is on TV Again

    Chapter 297


    It was broadcast on the local news channel in Mengshe City, and it was a fairly long segment rather than just a few seconds.


    It was the third time Xiaoqi had seen herself on TV, although in reality it was the fourth time.


    When she was in 9th grade, she had been on TV once before, as an impoverished student receiving a sponsorship. At that time, there was a pharmacy in Lu?shan City that was just opening for business. As part of their grand opening, they were sponsoring underprivileged students as a charitable act.


    Xiaoqi''s homeroom teacher had applied for one of those sponsorships on her behalf. All she had to do was show up and she would receive 500 yuan.


    That day the pharmacy was extremely crowded with people pushing and shoving to get in. There were also cameras present.


    A whole group of old men and women seemed to be scrambling to rush into the pharmacy.


    Xiaoqi still found it quite curious why everyone was so fanatically buying medicine. Even though there were promotions going on, it wasn''t free. What''s more, why were they buying so much medicine to stockpile? Could they somehow foresee what illnesses they were going to get?


    In front of the unruly crowd, she and several other children her age stood holding up signs saying "Charitable Donation for Education," utterly at a loss as they faced the looming black cameras.


    That evening''s Lu?shan City News showed footage of her, although she only flashed across the screen for one second. But Xiaoqi still saw herself on TV, and felt that image was destitute and pitiful. Her expression was rigid and resembled those famous photographic portraits of children from remote mountains who desired education, with eyes full of longing and accusation towards the whole world, or perhaps confused bewilderment.


    The second time was after a swimming competition. She was much more composed then, speaking only when asked and sitting up very straight.


    The third time was after a marathon competition. That time, she was far more relaxed, sitting less rigidly and speaking much more softly.


    The fourth time was today''s Mengshe City News. Xiaoqi looked at herself on screen and saw a huge change.


    When she first talked about her childhood, she would cry. But deep down she felt more resentment and dissatisfaction. Now when she cried, it seemed to be more of a feeling of acceptance and reminiscence.


    That impoverished and painful past had shaped who she was today.


    Because she once had nothing, she now treasured everything she had.


    Xiaoqi looked at herself on screen with neither arrogance nor complacency. She would keep working hard and maintain who she was.


    Meanwhile, the two chef uncles watching along kept lavishing praise on Xiaoqi.


    One did Chinese cuisine and the other Western. They often bickered with each other, boasting about which of their dishes Xiaoqi preferred.


    Unfortunately, Coach Steven had rushed off excitedly to handle Xiaoqi''s registration matters without even finishing his meal. Otherwise if he had seen this news footage, he undoubtedly would have boasted about his student to his old friends again, unable to resist showing off.


    Xiaoqi''s English was excellent. His old friends all spoke English, so there would be no problem communicating later.


    When he first came to Huaguo, he had worried his students'' language abilities would be lacking. After all, having lived abroad so long, he tended to speak English most of the time.


    Xiaoshengzhou, meanwhile, had not come to the racetrack today and gone home instead.


    Xioyu was also unusually at home today, because it was Old Master Xia''s longevity celebration. It wasn''t one of those major longevity birthdays, since those were deliberately avoided¡ªno celebrations for nine or ten, as the saying went. Normally the big longevity celebrations were for 49, 59 and so on...any other times were not appropriate for marking a major longevity birthday. But for family there still had to be a peaceful, harmonious feast.


    The Old Master followed a very regular schedule every day. At 7:30am he would watch the Xinwen Lianbo news. At 8:30am he would watch the local Mengshe City News.


    She recalled that she had just gotten to know him initially and felt very positively towards him. The next day, instead of asking her out alone, he had called several student council members to get together and play board games and the like. Then in the evening he escorted her back to her dorm, and they naturally got together after that, it seemed.


    Li Ruisheng turned around and saw the girl who had entered.


    She wore light colored jeans, a pink tee, and a simple medium-long trench coat over it. She had a backpack on, little white shoes, looking very neat and trim. Her short hair had the front bangs pinned up in a little tuft, fully revealing her forehead. Her skin was extremely fair, but her gaze was rather cold and even sharp, as if she had somehow seen through him in one glance.


    Yet when she smiled, she became very beautiful and charming. The corners of her eyes seemed to naturally curl up, making one''s heart tickle.


    Xiaoqi smiled at Honey and walked over to sit down beside her.


    Honey shifted her body a bit to make room for Xiaoqi.


    Originally there were five people, three men and two women. With Xiaoqi''s arrival, it became three men and three women.


    But perhaps because they had just seen Su Xiaoqi on TV, there was an inexplicable sense of restraint upon seeing her in person.


    Li Ruisheng revealed his signature sunny smile and brought over a menu, asking Xiaoqi what she wanted to drink. Xiaoqi asked for a milk tea. Li Ruisheng then added peanuts, fruit, and ice cream waffles¡ªhe was very attentive.


    Honey noticed that Li Ruisheng had ordered even more items than when she first arrived, and was behaving even more enthusiastically.


    She had assumed Li Ruisheng was being so thoughtful out of consideration for her. She still felt it was very sweet of him.


    Xiaoqi tried her best to suppress the strange feeling in her heart. Yes, Li Ruisheng was a very charming man. The former Xiaoqi couldn''t see through that, but the current Xiaoqi saw right through him in one glance, probably because she understood too well.


    "How did you guys choose this place? The environment is quite nice," Xiaoqi casually asked.


    Honey smiled and said, "It was Li Ruisheng''s suggestion. The owner is a senior from his hometown, also a sophomore."


    At this time, a girl wearing a floral print skirt came over carrying peanuts.


    Enhua School prohibited permed hair, but this girl''s hair was slightly wavy, likely curled with a curling iron herself and tied in a low ponytail. The floral print skirt had a black and white apron over the front that was even longer than the skirt itself, revealing slender thighs. Even though it was already autumn, wearing this made her especially eye-catching. Seen from behind in particular, her waist was slender and her butt round as her legs looked very proportional. This senior sister had also put on makeup and smiled very sweetly, with a little mole at the corner of her mouth that didn''t detract from her looks but rather added a hint of cuteness.


    She handed the melon seeds to Xiao Qi, but passed them from the opposite side, next to Li Ruisheng. Even when she bent over, her body inadvertently touched Li Ruisheng''s arm, yet he deliberately avoided it.


    The coffee shop had the smell of brewing coffee, which smelled quite nice.


    Student startups seemed to pursue quality at the beginning.


    The melon seeds in front also smelled fragrant, creamy, and plump.


    However, Xiao Qi frowned slightly, because the female senior who passed the melon seeds had a faint sweet smell, a rather cloying shampoo smell, and also a lingering scent that should be shower gel.


    But Li Ruisheng also had this smell.


    Subtle.


    Xiao Qi looked at Miao Er smiling much sillier than usual, giggling happily, with the feeling of a silly older sister.


    Looking at her own interface with the silent truth card, she recited to herself: "Use the truth card on Li Ruisheng."

 Chapter 298: The Truth Card 02

    Chapter 298


    Xiao Qi noticed that she had been feeling distracted and muddled these past couple days.


    Looking back, when she was in the car, the system had sent her a card for reminiscing about life dreams, and she had used it in a confused daze.


    Things had felt off ever since then.


    In the past, she had always felt that if she knew what would happen in the future, or knew what had happened in the past and could start over and be reborn, things would definitely be different. She could avoid many unnecessary risks and embark on a brand new life.


    But the reality was not like that at all. Recently Xiao Qi was often puzzled, and it even seemed like her personality had changed. She had started living according to a dream, with everything revolving around that dream. It wasn''t foreknowledge, but rather became shackles that tied her down, an insurmountable hurdle that prevented her from living a normal life.


    What was the point in knowing or not knowing certain things?


    If she kept dwelling on certain matters just because she knew about them, she would never improve and progress. Going back and repeating things over and over again would only lead to the same outcome.


    What truly made her stronger was learning, resolutely learning and looking ahead resolutely, taking steps forward.


    Not clinging to the past or the "future" she knew.


    After gaining this realization, Xiao Qi felt much more at ease around Li Ruisheng.


    To be honest, Li Ruisheng was more mature and experienced than anyone else in their group. His smile was sunny and he looked quite handsome. From his clothing and style, it was obvious he came from a good family background. He also had a vaguely arrogant demeanor.


    Especially compared to the other men present, he stood out as the most exceptional. Not only did Honey have feelings for him, but the other girl also seemed interested in him. However, he acted very appropriately, being a little nicer to Honey, taking the initiative to hand her fruit and snacks. He would also occasionally grab some treats for the other girl.


    Even when Xiao Qi arrived, Li Ruisheng was polite to her, passing the menu to Honey for her to give to Xiao Qi.


    All these details were handled very smoothly.


    When Xiao Qi joined them, instead of playing boardgames, she suggested playing Truth or Dare.


    The owner also came over with waffles and milk tea.


    This time Xiao Qi didn''t sit next to Li Ruisheng, but rather next to another male student who was Li Ruisheng''s roommate and seemed quite close to him. Still, Xiao Qi was seated right beside Li Ruisheng as well.


    That male student instantly turned red in the face.


    The owner said she would serve as the judge and started dealing out cards.


    The rules were simple. Everyone drew two cards. If the suits matched, you had to accept a penalty. Players whose cards had different suits could make the player with matching cards choose between truth or dare.


    It was a pretty straightforward game, also suitable for people who didn''t know each other well to get acquainted. Perhaps they could even take the chance to confess their feelings. As for the truths, who knew if they were really truthful or not.


    Everyone readily agreed.


    Xiao Qi also had a smile on her face, seriously drawing her cards.


    The result of the first round was that the only one who drew two cards of the same suit was Honey.


    Everyone took turns asking questions, also daring Honey to do bold challenges.


    He didn''t understand why he was unable to control his own mouth and had actually answered truthfully.


    When he first came to Enhua, it was with a senior girl student. He had been very lost at the time. His father was greatly disappointed that he had only tested into Enhua and subjected him to harsh, stern criticism and education. His father had already planned out his entire future, wanting him to apply for the Outstanding Student program straight out of college to become a civil servant right away with cadre status.


    The Outstanding Student program was when provincial Party committees selected outstanding graduating college students across all disciplines to work at the grassroots level as potential reserve cadres for future Party and government leaders, as well as high-quality staff for Party and government agencies at county level and above. Many people didn''t actually know about it, and being selected was extremely impressive. Their career paths would be several times faster than an ordinary civil servant''s.


    His father could have pulled strings to get him into any university in Jingnan Province.


    But he had ended up at the privately-run Enhua University, which didn''t even have the Outstanding Student program option.


    Before coming, his father had harshly and sternly criticized him, expressing great disappointment.


    He had been very lost himself, but senior student Chen Lizhen not only accompanied him but comforted him the entire way.


    The two quickly became intimate. He had come to Meng City early instead of going straight to school. They had instead wildly stayed in a hotel together for two days.


    Those two days had been extremely indulgent, Li Ruisheng''s first taste of forbidden fruit.


    But he had been very rational. After registering at the school, he realized he couldn''t control a woman like senior student Chen. What''s more, Chen Lizhen was too aggressive, causing him to become addicted and depraved. It also seemed Chen Lizhen already had a boyfriend.


    Knowing he was the son of a Fucheng official, Chen Lizhen didn''t actually do much with him. But when she was opening her new shop and asked him to help out, the two still couldn''t restrain themselves from fooling around wildly together a few times in this cafe.


    This was also why when Chen Lizhen passed peanuts to Xiao Qi, she subconsciously brushed Li Ruisheng''s arm with her backside. Physical intimacy lingers, with the body being more honest than words.


    Everyone was far too shocked. The girl who also had some feelings for Li Ruisheng suddenly continued asking, "Which girl have you been involved with?"


    "Senior student Chen Lizhen," Li Ruisheng blurted out unthinkingly.


    But after saying it, his face was pale with embarrassment. He didn''t understand why he was unable to control his own mouth and had actually answered truthfully.


    That girl nodded slightly, then said plainly, "It''s getting late, let''s head back."


    Honey''s face was awkward. Just now she and Li Ruisheng had seemed to feel a connection, blushing and looking into each other''s eyes.


    But reality...


    Xiao Qi pulled Honey along, saying, "Then we''ll go first, so as not to disturb you."


    The male student who had been teased by the owner also beat a hasty retreat. He felt especially wretched, especially after realizing the owner had actually slept with his roommate. He had thought the owner was interested in him and felt extremely unsettled.


    But he figured there was someone even more miserable, computer science student Honey, who had assumed Li Ruisheng was trying to flirt with her and had them all come along...


    Chen Lizhen, however, hadn''t expected Li Ruisheng to actually have true feelings for her. Saying that in front of the other girls, her heart raced as she asked, "Didn''t you say we couldn''t be together? I didn''t realize you liked me so much that you would say this in front of them. What will your little girlfriend think? I thought you were trying to flirt with her!"


    Li Ruisheng and Chen Lizhen were left alone in the room, but then Li Ruisheng said: "I''m going to hit on her, I don''t really like you at all, you''re fickle, who knows how many men you''ve been with."


    Chen Lizhen:......


    She picked up the milk tea in front of her and splashed it at him.

 Chapter 299: Sue Cripple’s Daughter Who Wants to Go Abroad

    Chapter 299


    Mi''er went back all the way without saying a word, which was totally out of character as she usually chatted incessantly.


    Xiao Qi was also silent.


    Although people deal with things differently, Mi''er may not necessarily be as desperate as herself.


    However, Xiao Qi felt it was appropriate to know the truth.


    It was not until they arrived at the dormitory building that Mi''er finally shouted loudly: "Scumbag!"


    Xiao Qi: ...


    The response time was a bit long.


    Mi''er had already reached the dormitory building and didn''t want to go upstairs. She dragged Xiao Qi back to the student street and bought a lot of snacks and fruits.


    She even bought three bags of salad.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    On the way, she finished a whole bag by herself.


    Mi''er usually loved eating salad bags very much, but was afraid of getting fat, so she didn''t dare to eat too much. Every time she bought one bag, it was for her roommates to share, with eight salad bags in a bag.


    Xiao Qi also helped eat a bag. She had a good appetite and high activity level, so she digested it quickly.


    But Mi''er was probably always shouting about losing weight, so her stomach was not very good. After eating too much, she kept burping at night.


    Seeing that she wanted to eat more, Xiao Qi handed over the bags and said, "Leave some for Yun Shu and Wei Cheng."


    Only then did Mi''er not grab them.


    She just felt a little aggrieved.


    The two came to the steps in front of a teaching building and sat down.


    "You said how could there be such a scumbag boy who looks decent on the surface, it''s so annoying."


    The more Mi''er thought about it, the angrier she became. Obviously these two days he behaved ambiguously, wanting to fall in love, and Li Ruisheng was particularly polite and decent, almost the perfect boyfriend in Mi''er''s mind, so she almost instantly felt it was love at first sight.


    But when she thought of tonight''s truth or dare, she really felt like she had eaten bugs, and it was the kind of feeling when you saw the other half after eating half of it. Now she felt disgusted to death and felt like a pig herself.


    Although the buff disappeared, the learning experience remained.


    Now although she could not glance over and imprint everything in memory, concentrating and learning still greatly enhanced her memory. Consolidating a few more times would enable her to remember.


    It was completely different from spending days laboriously memorizing a passage in the past, or forgetting it after a couple of days even after memorizing it.


    The efficiency had changed tremendously.


    Next was the Spanish class, which was another language system. But Xiao Qi felt she could learn it very well, not only for one more language, but also to get in touch with another part of the world, broadening her horizon. Then she would not limit her vision to the little land in front of her eyes, or certain people or inadequacies before her eyes.


    She planned to start the other few languages in the next semester or sophomore year. Trying to chew more than she could swallow would be futile.


    She ran in the night, increasingly carefree. As for Li Ruisheng, Xiao Qi had already thrown him to the back of her mind.


    Only when one dwelt on something would one remain attached. If one didn''t care, it would become nothing.


    At this moment, the pitch dark Gumula Village was very lively.


    There were street lights in Gumula Village which were normally turned off at ten o''clock. The villagers walked with flashlights quite contentedly.


    Recently something incredible had happened in Gumula Village. It had been confirmed that Lame Su''s daughter had really earned 100,000 yuan. She hadn''t even returned home, surely living extravagantly in the city. It had even been reported on television.


    Lame Su''s mother-in-law Li Fengjiao squatted at the village committee hall every day to wait for cars coming, to see if Lame Su had come back.


    Squatting for several days without any sight of him, she cursed and swore every day.


    The villagers were nasty, always teasing the old lady, saying it must be because she had been too harsh on her eldest son in the past, and now that he had money, he didn''t even come home.


    Li Fengjiao cursed even more severely.


    Then tonight, someone watching the Meng City news happened to see Lame Su''s daughter again.


    Others couldn''t get on TV once in their lifetime, yet Lame Su''s daughter appeared on TV casually like eating or drinking, every few days.


    This time it was even more outrageous that she had won first place in a provincial foreign language competition.


    Although the prize money was only 3,000 yuan, foreign language was too remote in the eyes of Gumula villagers, making it feel very impressive.


    As they chatted, the story morphed into Lame Su''s daughter going abroad.


    The villagers were quite excited. As they passed Lame Su''s house, there were no lights inside and the front door was closed too, which was a bit disappointing. If Lame Su had been home, they could have gone in to chat.


    Although the door was closed, as the villagers walked by, they suddenly felt something different about the newly renovated earthen wall. It seemed to have become taller and more imposing, and they no longer felt as casual about calling out Lame Su''s name when passing by...

 Chapter 300: : Selection Activities

    Chapter 300


    The next morning, Xiao Qi did something unprecedented - she didn''t oversleep and instead got up early.


    She went downstairs to join Wei Cheng for a run. After completing a lap, she became too tired and started walking in circles while reading a book. She even kicked her legs while walking and was reading an English book.


    Among their dormmates, she was the one who seemed to have the most relaxed approach to studying.


    She was busy with various activities in the student union and clubs every day, and her textbooks were always brand new.


    Xiao Qi didn''t pay much attention to her desk mate, who had a lively personality and kept changing her behavior.


    After finishing her run, Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory to freshen up.


    To her surprise, Yun Shu was also up early. Instead of reading novels on her phone, she went to the rooftop with Wei Cheng and read a book there.


    The study atmosphere in Hua Shan 606 was incredibly intense. While other dormitory residents were rushing to wake up, they had already prepared themselves.


    They had breakfast together in the cafeteria and then headed to class. The teacher had arrived early, and they exchanged greetings.


    Wei Gaowen, the English teacher and part-time lecturer from Qingmeng University, jokingly said to Xiao Qi, "I heard you''re taking over Qingmeng University. Some colleagues of mine even asked about you."


    Xiao Qi felt a bit embarrassed by the teasing.


    "The students at Qingmeng University are all excellent. I still need to continue working hard," she replied.


    Wei Gaowen had also watched the video of that competition. Tang Baolin from the Chinese Department at Qingmeng University delivered an excellent speech, and she was outstanding. As for the students in front of him, their sense of language was excellent, and they had a strong presence. Their experiences were also touching, and it could be said that each had their own strengths.


    Wei Gaowen felt it was a pity that the students in front of him were in Enhua. The study atmosphere there was not as strong, and the school culture was more relaxed.


    Fortunately, this particular student was very diligent. As a teacher, Wei Gaowen could see clearly who among the students were studying and who were just idling their time. It was clear at a glance.


    After a brief chat, Xiao Qi began reviewing her lessons.


    Her roommates also opened their books.


    At the moment, the impact on Mi Er, Yun Shu, and Wei Cheng was perhaps just a small one - getting up a little earlier than others and reading an extra page. But little by little, these habits would change their lives.


    Personal transformations usually don''t happen overnight but rather subtly and gradually, accumulating over time.


    During these few days, Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua were not idle either.


    The two of them thoroughly explored Lvshan City.


    Liang Lady had previously called Sheng Juanhua, informing her that there were developments in the selection of intangible cultural heritage inheritors. The first two rounds of screening had been completed, and the third round required Su Youfu to perform on-site bamboo weaving and filming to finalize his selection.


    Liang Huaying found it curious. Xiao Qi''s father seemed unremarkable and ordinary, yet he had unusually good luck. On the day when registration was already closed, he coincidentally met Xiao Qi''s Japanese language tutor, who helped him register and even gave him preferential treatment by putting his name at the top of the list.


    Having been involved in some bidding processes for projects, Liang Huaying understood the tricks involved. Sometimes, being placed at the beginning or highlighted in some way meant being given special attention, which usually increased the chances of success. If that were the case, she would have to come up with another plan.


    Coincidentally, Su Youfu''s name had been specially marked. What had initially been a whimsical idea for Liang Huaying now seemed like a real possibility. Indeed, he had passed two rounds of screening, and Su Youfu was truly a background-less farmer.


    Liang Huaying conducted an investigation and confirmed that Gumula Village was truly impoverished, consistently ranked as the poorest village year after year. The village had never produced any famous individuals, and Su''s family had a simple background, all of them being farmers.


    Neither Sheng Juanhua nor Su Youfu were aware of the twists and turns behind the scenes. They had limited exposure and preferred to listen to those more knowledgeable.


    Liang Huaying gave them their tasks, and they diligently fulfilled them.


    Once they were dressed appropriately, they set off for the designated location, which was the square in front of the Culture Palace.


    Upon arrival, they found a considerable crowd. Su Youfu felt a bit uneasy, while Sheng Juanhua, carrying a small bag, appeared more composed. She had entrusted Xiao Qi''s father with bamboo weaving, and Sheng Juanhua was not in the least bit afraid since he was skillful with his hands despite being inarticulate.


    They were skilled at crafting things.


    Liang Huaying was nowhere to be found, so they went to the registration area first.


    The registration required signing their names.


    Both Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu signed their names.


    Sheng Juanhua felt a bit embarrassed upon seeing her own handwriting, thinking it wasn''t very pleasing.


    Su Youfu felt the same.


    Both of them had limited education.


    While signing, Sheng Juanhua couldn''t help but think that in the future, she should perhaps learn more about culture, at the very least, improve her handwriting and recognition of characters.


    After signing their names, the staff members guided them to their seats.


    To their surprise, they were seated in the front row. Su Youfu noticed a camera not far away, causing his hands and feet to tremble nervously, his face stiffening.


    Sheng Juanhua was also nervous, but as she thought about Liang Huaying, that big sister was definitely not nervous. She reached out and held her husband''s hand, saying, "Don''t shake, don''t be afraid. Think about it, our Xiao Qi has been on TV several times and isn''t afraid at all. You''re her father, so you can''t be afraid."


    Su Youfu nodded vigorously, his hand trembling even more while being held by Xiao Qi''s mother.


    Sheng Juanhua was actually nervous too, her palms sweaty.

 Chapter 301: He Has a Good Daughter

    Chapter 301


    Liang Huaying came a little later than the couple.


    It wasn''t that she arrived late, but Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua came too early.


    The two were quite nervous. When they arrived, the staff had just set up the stage.


    So they were among the earliest to arrive.


    When Liang Huaying arrived, she was considered a well-known entrepreneur and had been invited, so she also sat in the front row. She simply adjusted her seat a little and sat next to Sheng Juanhua.


    Seeing Liang Huaying arrive, the couple immediately felt a little more confident, as they now had someone familiar around.


    Otherwise, they would have felt a little lost.


    They were worried about not hearing clearly or missing something.


    The two were quite nervous.


    Seeing the couple''s restraint, Liang Huaying found it amusing.


    They were so sincere, typical of people from the countryside, unfamiliar with the wider world. She wondered how this couple had raised a girl like Xiao Qi.


    "You two must be tired from all the traveling these days. Has Xiao Qi called you? I saw she was on TV again. She won the Jingnan Province English speech contest."


    Liang Huaying had a daughter who was Xiao Qi''s fan. She kept close track of everything about Xiao Qi, so she was often the first to know.


    It was much better for a young girl to idolize a hardworking, aspiring student than chase stars. Liang Huaying was very supportive.


    Her brother''s daughter was older than her own daughter and already in high school, but she only chased boy bands all day, claiming they were her husbands. Whenever there was an event, she had to rush over. Her obsession caused endless fights at home.


    In contrast, Liang Huaying felt her own daughter was so well behaved.


    After meeting her idol once, she became even more diligent and matured a lot.


    But after her brother''s daughter met hers once, she became even more indifferent to studying. All she did was buy merchandise related to her idols, no matter how useless or expensive.


    "I asked, Xiao Qi said it was a small competition at another school. There was a 3,000 yuan prize, and their own school awarded another 10,000 yuan. Xiao Qi deposited it all into our bank account." Sheng Juanhua had set up SMS notifications for expenditures and deposits, so she felt reassured.


    When it came to his daughter, Su Youfu was no longer nervous. His face was filled with pride, and his back straightened.


    No matter how much gossip and rumors circulated in the village, no matter how vulgar his mother scolded, he persisted in sending his daughter to school. He had no education himself, and could not let his daughter follow in his footsteps.


    Liang Huaying chatted with them for a bit. More people gradually arrived, and leaders finally appeared as well.


    Liang Huaying noticed that Xiao Qi''s Japanese teacher from that day was also there.


    She learned that Zhou, who had the surname Zhou, was actually a deputy director at the Culture Palace. She came from a good family background, married into a civil servant family after studying abroad in Japan and Korea, and became a civil servant herself.


    The carpenter was the youngest. He emphasized his Lu Ban inheritance, clearly smart, but didn''t seem very skilled on stage, hammering away but not producing anything for a while.


    Meanwhile, Su Youfu focused on weaving bamboo as Sheng Juanhua handed him materials and helped sew cloth linings, just like at home.


    The judges, including Deputy Director Zhou, sat under the increasingly scorching sun. Zhou Meiling had prepared well, applying thick sunscreen.


    As the contestants worked, the judges chatted, seemingly critiquing but actually just talking.


    Zhou clearly had high status among them, as they fawned over her.


    "Director Zhou, who do you favor most?"


    Zhou Meiling directly said, "The bamboo weaver. He looks ordinary, but the pieces he''s making now could sell for 1,000-2,000 yuan on the market. I even bought one."


    The others nodded knowingly.


    The candy man old guy did a good job, but he was really too old, and putting candy figurines in a museum didn''t seem high-end enough. Also, they weren''t local products. This candy seller said his hometown was Heilong Province and that he had moved here with his son, so he couldn''t really be considered as representing local intangible cultural heritage.


    The young carpenter looked a bit unreliable and sounded like he had some minor background issues.


    In every way, the middle-aged bamboo craftsman seemed most suitable.


    The on-site competition was approaching. Su Youfu started making things, his hands moving very quickly without any shaking as he concentrated wholeheartedly on his craft, especially with the woman and child accompanying him nearby. In less than an hour, he produced a beautiful, exquisite, and sturdy-looking bamboo bag.


    There were two women and three men among the judges. The two ladies liked it, and although the three men didn''t understand what was so great about the bag, they thought about their wives'' crazy passion for buying bags at home and could understand it.


    After a fair and impartial process, the judges scored and voted.


    In the end, Su Youfu was selected as the intangible cultural heritage inheritor of Lvshan City.


    The host handed him the microphone and asked him to say a few words.


    Despite being mocked every day, Su Youfu was a man of great passion and conviction.


    As he took the mic, his hand started shaking again. He coughed heavily and said, "I was disabled since childhood with a limp leg and was ridiculed by others. But I have a great daughter who has always encouraged me and bought me many books on bamboo weaving, asking me to study and learn. Her thinking was, either don''t do it, or do it well if you do. I wouldn''t be where I am today without the leaders'' recognition and my wife and daughter''s unfailing support."


    Applause broke out from below. No one expected this old farmer to be quite good at speaking, and what he said was meaningful and touching.


    Zhou Meiling also clapped vigorously. The host next to her chatted and said Su looked familiar.


    Zhou Meiling smiled. "Of course he looks familiar. Yiru, you even interviewed his daughter, this year''s 200m women''s freestyle swimming champion of Jingnan Province."


    Jiang Yiru remembered and had quite a deep impression. "I remember the girl went to college, I wonder how she''s doing now."


    "She''s simply a monster. Although she went to the private Enhua University, she broke records at this year''s Meng City Marathon, won the Jingnan Province English Speech Contest championship, and has made appearances on Meng City Sports Channel and Meng City News." Zhou Meiling said with a laugh.


    On hearing this, several leading judges became quite curious and paid more attention. They said that if she didn''t have any connections, how could her father become an intangible cultural heritage inheritor? And they were quite interested in that storefront next to the museum.


    Raising a good daughter is also a skill.

 Chapter 302: : Member of Calligraphy Association

    Chapter 302


    Monday''s classes were quite full.


    There were three classes.


    After finishing classes in the afternoon, Xiaoqi didn''t go to the equestrian center as usual. Instead, she went to the calligraphy and painting club.


    The club president was looking for her.


    She hurried over as soon as class was over.


    In the office of the calligraphy and painting association, Xiaoqi looked up and saw the piece of calligraphy she had written last time, which had been framed and hung on the wall.


    After being framed, it instantly looked high-end and didn''t even feel like something she had written herself.


    There were quite a few people in the calligraphy and painting club, including the president, vice president, and some familiar faces.


    The inside smelled good, with the windows open and a few green potted plants in front of the windows. There was a strong scent of ink and the fragrance of ink and paper.


    When they saw Xiaoqi coming, Vice President Han Wei exaggeratedly exclaimed, "What a rare guest we have here, our classmate Xiaoqi. It''s so rare to see you."


    Xiaoqi smiled a little embarrassedly. There had been several activity notices before, but she was really busy and had a tight schedule, so she hadn''t been able to come.


    After finally finishing the marathon race and the English speech competition, she felt a little more free recently, so she made time for it.


    Club President Li Luanliang actually knew what Su Xiaoqi had been up to recently. After all, she was so famous that the school banners were hung up, and even Enhua''s official TikTok had reported on her. It was almost turning into Su Xiaoqi''s personal TikTok. When scrolling through, several posts were about her.


    "It''s okay, the club is for hobbies, and everyone can participate as they are able. But I called you here today because there''s something real." Li Luanliang explained.


    Then he handed Xiaoqi a small notebook.


    Xiaoqi didn''t know what it was, so she received it with both hands and opened it. It turned out to be a membership card for the Alliance City Calligraphy Association.


    She unexpectedly gained a semi-official identity like this, a member of the calligraphy association. There was a one-inch photo of her with a red background on it, looking a bit naive.


    "Thank you, President." Last time, Xiaoqi participated in an activity of the calligraphy association and saw so many middle-aged and elderly people with various identities. She felt that it was quite difficult to join the calligraphy association, and those people took it very seriously. It must have been the president''s help that she, a student, could easily obtain this membership card.


    "Mainly because your handwriting is good. Many people asked about the calligraphy you wrote at the calligraphy association last time. But in the future, you''ll still need your own seal for public use." Li Luanliang said.


    And he threw a seal to Xiaoqi and said, "I had someone make one for you. The material is not expensive. If you feel embarrassed, write a copy of the Heart Sutra for me and I''ll give it to my elders."


    Xiaoqi took the seal, which was a white cylindrical object with a little monster lying on top of it. Underneath the seal, Su Xiaoqi''s name was engraved, very delicate. When holding it in her hand, it felt smooth and white.


    "Next time, you can find someone to make your own seal if you need other titles or something." Li Luanliang saw that she liked it and said with a smile.


    Seeing President Li giving Xiaoqi a membership card and a seal, Vice President Han Wei felt extremely sour.


    She was the one who came first, but the president didn''t treat her differently.


    Li Luanliang liked the youthful energy conveyed in Su Xiaoqi''s writing. He planned to give it to his grandmother, who would probably like it too.


    No one disturbed her in the middle, and Su Xiaoqi finished writing in one go.


    She ceremoniously used her new seal, dipped it in red ink, and the seal became even more beautiful.


    Su Xiaoqi really liked this new seal.


    After finishing, she covered the sutra with the seal, giving it a sense of ceremony.


    Han Wei, who was beside her, couldn''t help but look at it and couldn''t help but admit that her own handwriting was good, but compared to this junior schoolmate, they were not on the same level. It was like comparing the neatness of an elementary school student''s writing to that of a university student''s writing.


    Silence fell. Su Xiaoqi wondered if she should ask herself to write a pair of couplets. But after their previous altercation, she felt a bit embarrassed to bring it up now.


    Honestly, she thought the rough draft Su Xiaoqi had written earlier was already very good, not much different from this one.


    However, there was a difference between having a seal and not having one. And when she saw Su Xiaoqi rolling up the previous sheet, ready to take it away...


    She couldn''t bring herself to say it.


    Xiaoqi completed her task and didn''t stay long at the calligraphy and painting society. She returned to her dorm and went for a run.


    Before her run, Xiaoqi posted on her social media, taking a picture of her membership card from the Calligraphy and Painting Association, and thanking the president of the society for the recommendation.


    She still insisted on walking at least thirty thousand steps every day, after all, she needed to earn money from the system.


    But in the eyes of others, Xiaoqi seemed like an incredibly diligent freak. Even after the marathon race was over, she continued to run every day.


    She didn''t look at her phone while running, so she didn''t notice the flood of likes and comments pouring in. Some people were congratulating her, some were shocked, and others didn''t know what to say.


    Some of her high school classmates she hadn''t added on WeChat, while others she had.


    At this time, her membership card was shared in the high school class group. The group fell silent for a moment before exploding.


    "Is Su Xiaoqi really that good at calligraphy? She''s actually become a member of the Municipal Calligraphy Association. Why didn''t anyone notice back then?"


    Among them, Liu Shaowei felt quite awkward. He felt like after he broke up with Su Xiaoqi, she became more and more dazzling...


    There was always news about Su Xiaoqi in the class group: marathon champion, English speech contest winner, and so on.


    But he consoled himself. Jingnan Province was just an ordinary and underdeveloped province. It seemed outstanding in Jingnan Province, but it might not be the case outside. He studied in the capital city and had a broader perspective, realizing how short-sighted he had been in the past.


    He and his former girlfriend Xie Ruan also broke up. They silently agreed to separate because they both felt they were not up to par with each other. Lushan City was too small, and their horizons were too limited. They went to the capital city to find new partners and a broader space.


    He was handsome, tall, and fair-skinned, making him popular among girls.


    Recently, he had a heated exchange with a girl from the neighboring class. She was a local in the capital city and had a very wealthy family. She usually wore luxury brand watches and handbags, attracting attention. In terms of looks, she was actually not as attractive as Su Xiaoqi, but she had a good temperament and came from a well-off family. It was a different feeling. Liu Shaowei pursued her diligently, feeling that she was the girl he truly liked and could spend his life with.

 Chapter 303: Progress as a Class

    Chapter 303


    Xiao Qi ran very happily. She didn''t need to think about participating in a marathon competition anymore. Running felt more peaceful and comfortable.


    Otherwise, she would always think about pursuing an optimal state and speed, which actually put quite some pressure on her.


    Without the pressure of competition, she was running even better.


    After experiencing an intense competition once, her body was completely overdrawn. It seemed to have exercised every joint and even every pore, as if they were all opened up. Now it was very relaxing for Xiao Qi to run 30,000 steps every day. She felt like she hadn''t run at all, just like eating and drinking water daily, it was so simple.


    She was also in very good physical condition. She hadn''t caught a cold ever since she came to the school, despite the changing weather getting colder and warmer.


    She ate a lot during the day, but didn''t get fat either, maintaining a very good figure.


    She didn''t know she had so many trivial things in her mind when she was running, and she no longer thought about her high school crush Liu Shaowei.


    That could be considered her first love during her ignorant youth.


    When she was not ignorant, it was easy to forget as it was not deeply imprinted.


    As for Li Ruisheng, Xiao Qi had put him behind her mind even more. She now felt very calm about it, thinking it was just dream content, irrelevant to reality. Many things had changed, she shouldn''t dwell on the past.


    After running, Xiao Qi went back to the dormitory to wash up and then went to the evening self-study session in the classroom.


    Under Xiao Qi¡¯s influence, her roommates would also go to self-study unless they had important Student Union or club activities, which was rare.


    There were many classes during the day, and they couldn''t finish their homework and review without evening self-study sessions. Otherwise, the courses would just whoosh by, and they wouldn''t know what was being taught even if they were in class. College professors didn''t spoon-feed knowledge like high school teachers did. More often, they would deliver the lecture in a whoosh and expect the students to comprehend it themselves.


    Some students could even finish college without knowing what they had learned. The academic atmosphere was not strong at Enhua University, so this phenomenon was particularly serious.


    However, freshmen would be slightly better. Mainly because freshmen hadn''t figured out the way things worked yet, or they still behaved like high schoolers - most of them would obediently go to self-study, but some who did go to self-study still didn''t know what to do there. They didn''t pay attention in class during the day, and thus fell behind in many courses.


    Xiao Qi and her three roommates went to the class'' evening self-study session in unison. Mier had become much more well-behaved recently, no longer leaving the dorm empty-handed to participate in all kinds of activities every day after the unsuccessful attempt at love. Yunshu also stopped looking at her phone novel during self-study and paid some attention to studying.


    This made Li Weijin, who had previously felt studying was useless and boring, suddenly feel it was quite interesting after all. So that''s how it worked...


    When Su Li saw Li Weijin shamelessly asking about homework, she went to ask as well.


    And she obtained the same feeling - damn, this question is so simple, yet I don''t know how to solve it. My IQ has been crushed. No way, I have to find more difficult questions tomorrow.


    But to find difficult questions, she had to know which questions were difficult or not first.


    So she must pay close attention in class.


    As for her deskmate Mier, she already had a smart brain, but was a little distracted, with an outgoing and lively personality. It was easy for her to get distracted. She was disheartened by the failure of her innocent attempt at love before it even started during the recent Student Union activities. She felt she was too naive and seemed to accomplish nothing, so she decided to restrain herself and learn from her deskmate to study hard and gain knowledge.


    Otherwise, with such an excellent roommate, she would fall further and further behind.


    Xiao Qi''s other roommates felt the same way.


    Gu Yunshu was originally a rich second generation. Although she treated people in a down-to-earth way, deep down she still had some arrogance. But now she also felt she was too useless, completely surpassed by Xiao Qi in every aspect. Even with the same studying, Xiao Qi was so much more excellent than them. Xiao Qi''s conditions were not even better than theirs, on the contrary, they were poorer.


    Especially after hearing Xiao Qi''s English speech, it was really not easy for her.


    Gu Yunshu felt that she should spend more time studying, regardless of what she wanted to do in the future, she should not waste the present.


    Just like that, a strong studying atmosphere was formed.


    Chu Yu in the class also stared at Su Xiaoqi every day, feeling that Su Xiaoqi was a scheming bitch, but had to admit that Su Xiaoqi was truly outstanding, winning so many prizes. She could only force herself to study hard, and not just pretend to study hard.


    As such an excellent study committee member, it also put a lot of pressure on the class monitor and vice class monitor. Although the two of them sat together and announced their relationship, they still studied hard together and progressed together.


    Xiao Qi''s self-study session was the same as usual, doing homework and occasionally explaining a problem to classmates. Time flew by quickly. Before she knew it, the end of self-study bell rang. She actually felt like she had just sat down not long ago. When efficiency was high, time was never enough.


    At the same time, the familiar mechanical voice rang out in her ear again: "Host''s active learning attitude and efforts have influenced classmates to study diligently and positively. Reward: 1 Expert Driving Skill Card."

 Chapter 304: Riding Suit

    Chapter 304


    Unexpectedly, there is still such a card that allows one to save time without having to go to driving practice.


    But the system products feel very reliable, using it on cars seems a bit wasteful.


    The last time Xiao Qi went to practice for subject two of the driving test, her driving was quite good. She feels that while she doesn''t have other strengths, her learning ability is still very strong.


    After evening self-study, she looks up at the sky to stretch her neck, and sees a twinkling star approaching...No, it''s a plane.


    She suddenly has a flash of inspiration - if she uses the driving skills card for flying planes, wouldn''t she gain the skill of flying planes?


    But thinking of airplanes, *cough cough*, Xiao Qi has never been on a plane in her life, ?¡õ ?||.


    Even the train was the first time she took when going to university after finishing the college entrance exam.


    It''s still too ambitious, who knows which lifetime it would be when she can fly planes and own planes.


    Xiao Qi decides to use the driving skills card for cars, because she only has one car, and driving safety still needs to be ensured.


    It is said that the girl who borrowed Su Li''s car last time is still lying in the hospital. Dangerous driving is dangerous.


    Besides, the subject two test is coming up soon. It is said that some girls can take the subject two test four or five times...Xiao Qi feels that saving some time is good too.


    She decisively used the skill card.


    In the days that followed, life was still busy, with classes and after-school activities, and the remaining time was spent immersed in the equestrian field for special training.


    Club president Xiao Shengzhou did not give Xiao Qi her salary every day, instead switching to monthly payments.


    Recently, many people have been coming to the equestrian club, with many new members. Li Wei Jin Su Li sometimes come too.


    A professional equestrian coach was added to the equestrian club, and he looked especially handsome when training Xiao Qi.


    Watching a little girl perform various dangerous moves on horseback, it was so charming it made one''s throat itch. Equestrian events are truly beautiful.


    Xiao Qi also got her own equestrian gear, boots, pants, and top, in black and white.


    But Xiao Qi had broken records in the marathon after winning it, yet still kept her head down and kept on steadily. Even Steven had to admit he couldn''t do the same as her. If he had won a big prize when he was young, he would have indulged and enjoyed life for a period at least. But Xiao Qi was so young, yet after the competition she still studied diligently, still kept running, and even worked harder and was more grounded. Then she went and won the English speech contest champion in Jingnan Province.


    She didn''t show any arrogance or rashness. Instead, the more awards she won, the more grounded her temperament became.


    Compared to when Steven first met her, she was even more charming now.


    Steven thought that if he were a few decades younger, he would definitely be infatuated with such a girl, too charming.


    Now he just felt extremely proud, bragging to his old friends every day, but he didn''t send them videos of Xiao Qi''s training. Filming was also strictly prohibited at the equestrian club. He was thrilled to see Xiao Qi''s progress bit by bit.


    As the competition date approached, he was more nervous than his student Xiao Qi.


    On top of the daily training, he also took the initiative to contact his ex-wife.


    His ex-wife Olivia was a budding designer, specializing in riding gear. She had even designed for some celebrities, one of her clients was a princess of a country. Steven wanted to ask his ex-wife to design a riding outfit for Xiao Qi.


    When Olivia saw her ex-husband calling, she had mixed feelings. To be honest, she must have loved him once, and probably still had feelings now. Young Steven was very handsome and charming, but he was a good boyfriend not a good husband. Their time together was turbulent with constant arguing and fighting. They had loved and hated each other. Now she had remarried, to a fat man with a big belly. Although not the most attractive, life with him was stable and he treated her very well. Olivia didn''t regret her choice, but she still picked up the call from Steven in less than 3 seconds.


    "What, you want me to design riding gear for your student? Two or three sets is fine too???"


    Olivia: ......


    She was totally unprepared for this. After remarrying, Steven had never contacted her again. She had been conflicted and anxious, wondering what to say if he did contact her, but she never imagined the bastard would ask her this right off the bat.


    She didn''t just design riding gear for anyone, and her designs weren''t cheap either.


    She had also heard from old friends that Steven was going to take his student to a small competition in the Capital City.


    And her friends didn''t have high hopes, saying they heard his student had only ridden donkeys before, no horses. They felt Steven was too eager for success after being hit hard, desperately seeking a quick fix.


    Olivia didn''t think Steven was that kind of person, but hearing him ask for her help with the riding gear now, she thought her friends were probably right. The old Steven never paid attention to these things or worried about them, even mocking her designs as frivolous decorations. Real equestrians didn''t rely on clothes to win, but now he was personally asking her for help. Even when they were married then divorced, he never asked her for favors like this.


    Olivia suppressed her impulse to tell him to get lost. Instead, she agreed to her ex-husband''s request, saying she would also be traveling to Magic City for her honeymoon.


    She asked Steven to send her the girl''s photos and measurements, speaking in a businesslike tone before hanging up.

 Chapter 305: : Mid-term Exam

    Chapter 305


    Steven was a straight man, very straight, and was completely oblivious to his ex-wife''s complicated psychology.


    His ex-wife agreed to design riding gear for him, and he was very happy and efficiently sent Olivia photos, height measurements, and a short horse riding video of Xiao Qi.


    Since he had already asked for measurements when ordering custom riding gear for Xiao Qi before.


    When Olivia received the photos and short video, she was also a bit stunned.


    Is this the student that Steven''s friends said he recently took on - the one who had only seen donkeys and never ridden a horse before?


    Olivia even doubted that everyone was talking about the same person.


    Moreover, if her ex-husband wasn''t so straight and stubborn, she would have suspected that Steven liked this young lady - her looks and temperament were so unique, cold as ice, especially when riding a horse. That feeling was just too good.


    As a designer, Olivia needed inspiration triggers.


    Excellent works must be full of hormones.


    Some people could give her this kind of hormone, others could not.


    Just the photos and short horse riding video in front of her had already filled Olivia with passion, countless ideas and inspiration sprang up in her mind, just like when she first started in the industry.


    She devoted herself wholeheartedly to her work.


    Xiao Qi smoothly passed the second subject test in one go, and then prepared for the third subject test. She also went to the coach with cigarettes to practice the content of the third subject, and then asked the coach to schedule the exam time for her.


    The coach was very surprised that the student in front of him drove more steadily than himself, with a real veteran feel.


    But the cigarettes were nice to smoke, just what he liked, so the coach didn''t say much.


    Xiao Qi''s life was still going on as scheduled for the most part, with the addition of a Spanish class that she was just beginning to learn slowly. The Spanish teacher turned out to be Old Man Garen. Garen was very romantic, always sprouting long poetic verses, self-indulgent. Xiao Qi still couldn''t understand, she just felt it was quite impressive.


    Garen could speak English, Spanish, and French.


    Xiao Qi herself was unaware of the huge influence she had on so many students, causing major changes. Her daily study routine was basically going as scheduled - running, practicing calligraphy, learning textbook knowledge, while additionally learning three languages on the side - Japanese, Korean, and Spanish, practicing horse riding and painting. If she could squeeze out time, she would also go to the library and stay half a day. That was basically the content of Xiao Qi''s life, extremely busy and fulfilling.


    When a person gets busy, time seems to pass especially quickly.


    In a flash, it was time for the midterm exams. For the English speaking test, Betty let everyone go on stage to tell a little story, make it up on the spot, and she would score them. The computer practice course required doing experiments. The Basic Principles of Marxism course required writing a short thesis. The marketing teacher asked everyone to prepare a PPT individually to promote a product, taking turns going on stage to speak while others listened. The rest were written exams.


    In comparison, the written exams seemed to be the hardest actually, because it brought everyone back to the nightmare of college entrance exams. Teachers highlighted key points but actually tested less than 10 percent of them.


    Plus there was Calculus and Applied Statistics. For some students who didn''t listen carefully in class, it was simply too unfriendly. They didn''t even recognize the characters above, coming out of the exams sighing that it was too damn difficult, probably because their business management major was in the same building as the math department, resulting in having to take math exams as well.


    Whereas exams that required writing papers and making PPTs had a much more relaxed atmosphere overall, a cheerful feeling. As long as it was done, it would be hard to fail easily. And several students could even work together in groups to make one PPT. Of course, it would also be difficult to distinguish grades.


    Xiao Qi''s dorm mates worked together on a PPT promoting various mushrooms from Wei Cheng''s hometown. They divided up the tasks - Yunshu was responsible for making the PPT, Wei Cheng provided raw data and statistics, Xiao Qi came up with the marketing plan, eventually deciding on livestreaming sales. Mei''er would be responsible for going on stage to explain everything.


    This was the first time the four roommates worked together on a project, even if it was virtual. But they still felt like they gained a lot from cooperating with each other - mutual coordination, and the discussions and disagreements that came up in the middle. Xiao Qi felt this kind of cooperation was very important. In the future society, many things would certainly require cooperation and it wouldn''t be possible to accomplish everything alone.


    Their dorm''s collaborative PPT was well liked by Professor Shi, earning full marks. Upon finding out that Wei Cheng''s family really grew mushrooms, they had an lively discussion on whether it was feasible to market them.


    As for Betty''s impromptu English speaking exam, it was very simple for Xiao Qi, who also directly got full marks. However, she didn''t expect that many people in the class had pretty good English, especially those few rich ones. They were probably all well-traveled abroad and spoke English without nervousness, very calm and composed, scoring very highly as well. Li Weijin, in particular, was especially liked by Betty, with a score just a tiny bit under Xiao Qi''s.


    The computer practice course was a bit difficult for Xiao Qi. She felt computer classes were boring. But she never let her guard down about it. At the beginning, it was her weak spot, after all she had never touched a computer before entering college. It was the same for Wei Cheng. But Xiao Qi had always studied it very attentively, starting from nothing. She actively previewed and reviewed diligently for every class, and completed assigned tasks very outstandingly, slowly making up for her shortcomings, no longer getting nervous and flustered when dealing with computers.


    After finishing the midterm exams, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.


    At school, Xiao Qi basically didn''t spend any money. Seeing the account balance of 30,000 everyday, although she had spent money furnishing an apartment, her accumulated savings now totaled over 700,000 again.


    Xiao Qi felt like a little rich girl, a miserly one at that. Looking back, although she had the system, the money she spent from the system was mostly accumulated in large sums to buy a house. In her daily life, she actually spent more of the money she earned herself.


    However, without the system, she might not have had the courage to take that first step, to have the courage to participate in the competition to win the prize money.


    It suddenly dawned upon her why the rich get richer. Firstly, it''s confidence. Having money supports one in doing many things that they don''t dare do otherwise.


    However, she was going to Beijing soon. After finishing her exam on Friday morning, she''d be taking the afternoon flight.


    Apart from her coach, the chairman would also be accompanying her.

 Chapter 306: First Time On a Plane

    Chapter 306


    Xiao Qi was quite nervous on her first plane ride.


    She didn''t know where to pick up her ticket or if she needed to check it or something.


    But luckily, there were people around her.


    She didn''t have much luggage, just a backpack with two sets of clothes, a Spanish textbook because she was still a beginner and not very proficient, and some paper and pens for practicing calligraphy and drawing.


    She didn''t bring a suitcase because the one her aunt bought in Lushan City had some quality issues after using it once. One of the wheels was crooked and wobbly, probably because she had packed too much stuff and it was too heavy. Xiao Qi had to half-carry it for the last part of the journey. Besides, she wasn''t sure if she could bring the suitcase on the plane.


    Maybe she needed to store it or something, she wasn''t quite sure. So it was better to just carry a backpack. She was sure the backpack would be allowed on board.


    At the airport, Xiao Qi saw her coach carrying a huge 28-inch suitcase, while the club president had a small 20-inch carry-on suitcase.


    The coach''s suitcase needed to be checked, but the club president''s suitcase could be brought on board.


    It was similar to taking a high-speed train, first you had to pick up the ticket, but not just any window would do. There were specific windows for that. Inside the airport, there were signs indicating which window to go to. They had bought tickets from Donghang Airlines. Before Xiao Qi came, Yunshu had asked her to download an app called "Air Travel" on her phone. She entered her information, and it provided her with the specific details of her flight, which window to pick up the ticket from, the departure time, and whether there were any delays.


    At the Donghang Airlines window, Xiao Qi was lucky not to rush to join the queue because the club president had actually bought business class tickets. They could line up at the first class and business class window. There were hardly any people there, and they quickly checked their luggage and got their tickets.


    Then they went through security check, which also had a fast lane for first class and business class passengers. There were fewer people, unlike the economy class queue that looked like a game of Snake.


    Even though it was her first time flying, Xiao Qi also felt that having money was really good. It''s no wonder so many people work hard to earn money. It''s a feeling that extends to every aspect, different channels and windows. Although it was just a little faster, the sense of superiority was completely different in comparison.


    But when she found out the price difference between business class and economy class, she felt a bit of a toothache. A business class ticket was over 1,800 yuan, while an economy class ticket could be bought for just over 500 yuan, and if you bought it a few days earlier, it was even around 300 yuan.


    After passing security check and entering the airport, they didn''t go directly to wait for the plane, but went to the Donghang Airlines VIP lounge.


    The VIP lounge was spacious, with computers, tables and chairs for resting, and plenty of food, like a simplified version of a hotel''s buffet breakfast. There was even a chef cooking noodles there.


    Steven ordered a bowl of spicy sand tea noodles and asked Xiao Qi if she wanted some. Xiao Qi nodded dumbly.


    Then they went to get some self-service food. Although it was a simple meal, it looked pretty good. The main thing was that everything smelled fresh to Xiao Qi. She got a sandwich, green pepper beef, yogurt, kung pao chicken, and some fruit.


    Xiao Shengzhou only poured himself a cup of coffee. He rarely ate anything in the lounge.


    Seeing that Steven got a steaming bowl of sand tea noodles, Xiao Qi got a whole bunch of food...


    A bit unexpectedly amusing, this is like having a main course when it''s nearly evening, and there are also meals on the plane.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi glanced at the president next to her, who had already put on an eye mask and closed his eyes to relax.


    He had the demeanor of someone who had traveled business class countless times.


    Coach Steven, on the other hand, didn''t have that kind of feeling. He was busy sending messages on his phone and only needed to turn it off or switch to airplane mode during takeoff.


    Xiao Qi was quite curious, but she tried her best not to show any signs of being a first-time flyer.


    Besides, her demeanor was quite impressive now. Holding her book and reading, she could easily give the impression of being seasoned.


    However, as the plane started to taxi, with a rumbling sound, her complexion turned paler and paler, to a ghastly white. Unconsciously, she gripped the seatbelt tightly, her strength surprising, pulling at the belt as if it was about to snap.


    The coach, who had just turned off his phone, turned to see his excellent student, her forehead covered in cold sweat...


    "Sue, are you afraid?"


    Xiao Qi shook her head, then nodded. She was genuinely afraid.


    At that moment, the plane took off, and suddenly there was a sense of weightlessness. The ears were also buzzing, and she felt dizzy.


    It was probably related to eating too much just now, and she also felt a bit nauseous...


    Finally, she managed to endure that moment. When the plane leveled off a bit, she slumped into her seat.


    Steven couldn''t help but laugh and cry. His student was actually prone to motion sickness. She could perform difficult maneuvers while riding a horse without any problem, but she was afraid of flying.


    Xiao Qi''s heart was pounding and trembling, and she couldn''t control it. She was just very scared.


    She felt a bit embarrassed and didn''t dare to look at her instructor. She turned her head and looked out the window, but she was immediately captivated by the view outside. There were fluffy white clouds floating outside, and she could even see the scenery below. The entire city, so small, was situated amidst a vast ocean. The sea and the land met, and the buildings below looked like tiny matchboxes.


    Looking at it this way, not only were individuals insignificant, the whole city seemed insignificant.


    Xiao Qi almost leaned against the window, staring intently outside, feeling the smallness of the city and the smallness of humanity. It felt as if humans were sometimes like ants, busy and bustling, not knowing what they were busy with.


    As her vision expanded, Xiao Qi''s thoughts changed a bit. She was a person who liked to progress, especially during the recent exams, she had been busy without stopping for rest.


    At this moment, she felt that sometimes people should also stop and look at the scenery along the way, experience different feelings, and strike a balance between work and leisure.


    To appreciate the uniqueness of life, one shouldn''t truly become a busy ant.


    Thinking like this, the little seed in her heart seemed to grow a little higher, and her mindset became even more open.

 Chapter 307: The Chance Encounter

    Chapter 307


    The plane flew for just over an hour, and Steven fell into a deep sleep shortly after takeoff.


    The flight attendant squatted halfway as if kneeling in front of Xiao Qi, asking her what meal she would like.


    Xiao Qi had already eaten something in the VIP lounge, but she wanted to experience the airplane meal, so she randomly chose one.


    In no time, the flight attendant brought a napkin and opened the small tray table in front of her. She laid the napkin, placed a set of utensils¡ªknife, fork, spoon, and chopsticks¡ªand then brought a large tray with a variety of rice, dishes, fruits, drinks, and snacks. The presentation was exquisite, and there was even a white bottle with a real flower inserted...


    Sitting by the window, she could occasionally see the drifting clouds outside. Looking at the delicately arranged meal in front of her, she inexplicably felt a sense of ceremony.


    The thought of having a meal in the sky, thousands of miles above the ground, felt quite magical. If there were really heavenly realms, it would probably be something like this.


    Xiao Qi ordered an iced Americano coffee.


    Feeling a bit dizzy after takeoff, she wanted to have a little to refresh herself. Plus, it seemed that the coffee she always chose was this type¡ªno milk, no sugar, just a few ice cubes added, giving it a cool appearance.


    She took a sip¡ªicy and slightly bitter, but with a pleasant aroma. After tasting it, her lips and teeth were left with a hint of bitterness, which gradually transformed into a subtle sweetness.


    She drank half of it, and immediately the flight attendant came over to refill her cup.


    During the whole time, Steven was sound asleep, and the flight attendant didn''t disturb him at all. The service provided to Xiao Qi was also very attentive.


    The crucial point was that the flight attendant was exceptionally beautiful, with a great temperament. Her facial features and figure could easily score 85 points, and with makeup, it would be 90 points. Xiao Qi felt that she looked even better than Wu Xinyue, the goddess of English majors, and she was taller with better body proportions.


    With such looks and figure, as an outstanding flight attendant, she had already surpassed most girls in first class and business class. Among flight attendants, she should be considered exceptional.


    But Xiao Qi felt that this wasn''t her goal.


    In the past, she would have thought that flight attendants were already outstanding and beyond reach. But now, she wanted to be the one served by excellent flight attendants, the one served by outstanding flight attendants.


    The business class and the economy class behind them were separated by a thin curtain. The noise from the back could still be heard¡ªa bit noisy and stuffy. The flight attendants pushed the food trolley and handed out boxed meals. The service was decent, but the volume was slightly loud, and the taste of the boxed meal seemed to be overcooked, emitting a strange sensation.


    After finishing the meal and keeping the coffee, Xiao Qi ordered a glass of lemon water. She asked the flight attendant to take away the items and took out her Spanish textbook to continue reading. She also opened her phone and listened to the recorded content of Mr. Gailen''s lectures, reviewing it from beginning to end.


    Steven had a drink before boarding the plane and slept throughout the entire flight, snoring.


    On the other hand, the president ate a little something and now held a cup of coffee, taking a sip while reading the newspaper. When he noticed Xiao Qi looking up at him, he smiled warmly, radiating a sense of kindness and justice.


    The president, with his thick eyebrows and large eyes, looked very dignified and approachable when he smiled.


    Xiao Qi smiled back and continued studying.


    Truly wealthy...


    Lost in her thoughts about the bag, Xiao Qi didn''t look up at the young man who came in later.


    The young man, however, was shocked.


    Liu Shaowei hadn''t expected to encounter his former girlfriend here in a hotel in the capital city...


    Well, she couldn''t exactly be called a former girlfriend since he and Xiao Qi had never made their relationship public. He knew Xiao Qi liked him, but he only flirted with her a bit and never made any real commitment.


    Perhaps because there were no real commitments or even hand-holding, just accidental touchings when they were sitting together, she would blush.


    Looking back now, she seemed especially pure, and with Xiao Qi being mentioned constantly in their group chat, he even had a feeling of regret, wondering why he had been so gentlemanly, or rather, so timid back then.


    Liu Shaowei never expected to encounter Xiao Qi here.


    In the hotel.


    He came from a family of civil servants, and both his parents had some influence. They were doing well in their respective units, and his father''s rank in Lushan City was not low. He received a generous allowance, but staying in a hotel like the Grand Hyatt for a few days would still cost him more than half of his monthly allowance.


    But he had never shown any signs of being short on money. The girl he was currently pursuing, Li Maomao, said she wanted to take him to see a horse race. Ordinary people couldn''t even get in; a single ticket cost several thousand. Liu Shaowei had never come across such an experience, but since he had finally caught up with Li Maomao, he naturally agreed. He even generously suggested they go on a date and stay at a hotel near the racecourse.


    He had done his research carefully, and this hotel had a great Western restaurant. He was a very attentive guy and had prepared everything meticulously.


    Li Maomao was spoiled and temperamental, but Liu Shaowei managed to please her.


    Although it was just a moment, Li Maomao noticed his strange expression, but Liu Shaowei quickly recovered, acting as if he didn''t recognize Xiao Qi at all, or perhaps he thought he had mistaken her for someone else.


    Xiao Qi in front of him was exceptionally beautiful, becoming even more attractive. But that casual little bun she tied up was probably something no one else would have. Even if he pretended not to recognize her, Liu Shaowei was certain that it was Xiao Qi because he had actually paid close attention to her.


    Li Maomao held Liu Shaowei''s hand and also noticed the girl behind them. The elevator was almost surrounded by mirrors, and that girl had such beautiful features. She had a cold and aloof look, not the typical internet celebrity face. Li Maomao was quite captivated by her appearance and couldn''t help but steal a few more glances. However, she knew that Liu Shaowei had a good relationship with a female classmate from their school, so she wondered if it could be this girl.


    Upon reaching the fourth floor, the two of them exited the elevator, followed by Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi was also surprised to see Liu Shaowei. She had not expected that not long ago, during the summer vacation, she had seen Liu Shaowei with Xie Ruan, showing affection and claiming that he was pursuing her. And now, in such a short time, there was someone else by his side...


    And in the hotel... she instantly thought of many inappropriate scenes, causing her face to blush.


    After exiting the elevator, Steven was waiting at the entrance. He trusted Xiao Qi, but the boss had repeatedly instructed him to take good care of her, so he had no choice but to wait there.


    Liu Shaowei walked out with Li Maomao and saw a middle-aged man with white hair walking towards Su Xiaoqi, engaging in a lively conversation. The two of them then entered the restaurant together, and Liu Shaowei''s expression instantly turned sour.


    He felt as if he had been insulted in some way.

 Chapter 308: The Indefatigable Fish

    Chapter 308


    That middle-aged man, no, that old man, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes could pinch flies to death.


    There was still a lot of white hair.


    He wore a slightly greasy jacket, tall and strong.


    Yes, in the eyes of the 18-year-old Liu Shaowei, Steven was a greasy yet strong old man.


    Thinking of his own lust and confusion in the hotel room just now, and then thinking of that old man and Su Xiaoqi, he felt disgusted and ashamed.


    It was a strange sense of possession and strange disgust.


    Xiaoqi did not know that Liu Shaowei would have such thoughts. In fact, it was still very embarrassing to meet at the hotel.


    But she was not obsessed with the past now, she just took a look and did not think about it anymore.


    In the eyes of the former little Su Xiaoqi, Xie Ruan was already an extremely outstanding girl, Lvshan No. 1 Middle School, Xie Ruan was also a celebrity, a beautiful top student from a good family.


    At that time, just thinking that Xie Ruan and Liu Shaowei were both admitted to Beijing Normal University, while she was nowhere, there was a deep sense of frustration, and she didn''t even dare to think too much.


    Some things can be compared, but some things cannot be compared.


    But she did not expect that in such a short time, everything had changed.


    Liu Shaowei''s girl, Su Xiaoqi glanced over, she at least knew one thing, very rich.


    After all, she went to Enhua University. Enhua was a very materialistic school. Xiaoqi was forced to learn a lot of new knowledge, all kinds of brands and so on. Her classmates Su Li, Li Weijin, and roommates Yunshu, basically everything they wore were big brands.


    She was popularized and slowly got used to it, and gained a lot of strange knowledge points.


    But the two were sitting not far away, and they could vaguely hear them talking, basically communicating in English the whole time.


    "Your classmate''s English is very good." Li Maomao smiled. In fact, this phenomenon also existed in Beijing. Chinese girls with good English, playing with foreigners, speaking nicely were tour guides, and speaking badly...


    Liu Shaowei nodded, generously said, "Her family conditions are not very good. Let''s not talk about this. Let''s pretend we don''t know each other to avoid embarrassment."


    The two had just been intimate, and they were inseparable. After speaking openly, there was nothing more to it.


    After eating, Xiaoqi went back to her hotel room. Steven sent Xiaoqi back to her room before leaving as the boss had requested.


    As a result, they met again after the meal. Liu Shaowei saw the floor Xiaoqi pressed, and the old man didn''t press it, obviously they were together. He snorted contemptuously in his heart.


    Li Maomao didn''t look much either, she just felt that such girls really lacked self-respect...


    Xiaoqi didn''t have any strange thoughts. She just felt that Liu Shaowei was really unreliable. It hadn''t been long since he broke up with Xie Ruan.


    Back in the room, looking out the window, everything was neat and tidy. The buildings in Beijing seemed to be all square.


    Xiaoqi practiced writing for half an hour, then called the front desk to ask where the gym was.


    She hadn''t finished her steps for the day yet, and needed to go for a run. If there was a swimming pool, swimming would work too, swimming also counted as steps, she had asked in advance. Hotels like this would have gyms and pools, so she brought a swimsuit.


    The gym was on the 8th floor. Xiaoqi changed into workout clothes and brought her swimsuit and went to the gym.


    As a result, Xiao Shengzhou came back and was worried about Xiaoqi. He called her cell phone but she didn''t answer. He also called the room phone and no one answered. Thinking that the girl wouldn''t just wander around, he looked around the hotel.


    He knew Xiaoqi had the habit of running every day, so he went to the gym to take a look.


    As he arrived, he happened to see Xiaoqi swimming in the pool. He was quite tired from being out for a while, so he didn''t disturb her and just watched Xiaoqi in the pool, the only one there, swimming back and forth tirelessly, splashing water.


    He felt strangely relaxed for some reason.

 Chapter 309: Breakfast in the Capital

    Chapter 309


    After Xiao Shengzhou and Xiao Qi finished swimming, he watched her emerge from the water and handed her a towel, smiling as he said, "Seeing you swim, it reminds me that you are the swimming champion of Jingnan Province."


    Xiao Qi was very focused while swimming and didn''t notice the people on the shore. It was only when she came out of the water that she realized Xiao Shengzhou was waiting for her. She smiled with a hint of embarrassment and asked, "President, do you need something?"


    "No, I called you just now, but no one answered. Since it''s your first time traveling far from home, I was worried, so I came to check on you." In fact, Xiao Shengzhou had checked several places¡ªrestaurants, Chinese and Western ones, the lobby, and even the beauty salon¡ªbefore he remembered that she might be in the gym.


    Steven felt quite wronged. He had escorted Xiao Qi back to her room. Xiao Qi was already a grown woman, and he thought the boss was being overly concerned. In a foreign country, a young lady like Xiao Qi might have already had several boyfriends.


    Moreover, based on Steven''s observations, Xiao Qi possessed astonishing strength, and ordinary people couldn''t bully her at all. Sometimes, he couldn''t lift something, but Xiao Qi could easily pick it up. She was also very agile, so he had no worries.


    After all, Xiao Shengzhou was the president of the student union, and he had brought Xiao Qi out. Although Xiao Qi was skilled in horseback riding, in his eyes, she was still an underage girl, a freshman, so he was naturally more nervous.


    When Xiao Qi went to retrieve her belongings, she discovered that she had missed several phone calls and felt quite embarrassed.


    Xiao Shengzhou looked at the dripping wet girl and felt his heart inexplicably beat faster. He shook his head, thinking that he was just being overly worried.


    Both of them were on the same floor, the 27th. Steven was on the 19th floor because he said he wanted an executive-level floor. He wanted to have something to drink, and executive-level floors had free lounges, which were very popular among foreigners.


    Back in her room, Xiao Qi showered and blow-dried her hair. It wasn''t late yet, only a little after ten o''clock, but she was already exhausted. After drying her hair, she climbed into bed and went to sleep.


    Before she slept, she received a text message from the president, reminding her to lock her door...


    The bed was especially soft, and Xiao Qi felt herself sinking into it. She fell asleep in no time.


    The next day, Xiao Qi woke up feeling a bit confused, not knowing where she was. As she looked at the decorations in the hotel, the colorful paintings on the opposite wall, and the buildings outside the window, she gradually realized that she had actually arrived in the capital city.


    Without immediately getting out of bed, she lingered for a while.


    She looked around the room, at the decorative bookshelf with a few empty book covers. She had flipped through them yesterday; they were just for show. There was a painting as well, with bright colors but average craftsmanship.


    The carpet was brown, and the bed was white and large, occupying only a small corner of the room.


    This was the second time she had stayed in a hotel. The first time was when she went to the Leagues City at the beginning of the semester, and now this time.


    The hotels all had a beautiful atmosphere, and the decorations were well done. Xiao Qi thought to herself that in the future, she would also like to decorate her home like this. Waking up in such an environment was particularly impressive.


    After lying in bed for a while, Xiao Qi finally got up.


    The hotel''s salmon was also excellent, very rich and fatty, probably made from the belly part of the fish.


    When she went for seconds, Xiaoqi took some more salmon.


    By this time, it was already past 8:30, and Xiaoqi thoroughly enjoyed a not-so-short but lavish breakfast.


    She had arranged to meet her coach at 9 o''clock to leave the hotel.


    Xiao Shengzhou didn''t eat much, although under the influence of Su Xiaoqi, he had started eating more than usual. However, he still sat and waited for Su Xiaoqi, always a true gentleman.


    The two of them finished eating together and headed outside.


    Coincidentally, they ran into Liu Shaowei and Li Maomao, who were holding hands and sticking together.


    Liu Shaowei had a momentary daze when he saw Su Xiaoqi.


    Su Xiaoqi was truly becoming more and more beautiful the more he looked at her. Her face seemed to radiate light, and it appeared that she wasn''t wearing any makeup. He had noticed Li Maomao fussing with her face earlier, but when he compared the two, he realized that Su Xiaoqi''s face was clean and radiant. Moreover, at this moment, she was laughing and chatting with the person next to her, and her smile was especially charming and alluring.


    Back when Liu Shaowei used to sit next to Su Xiaoqi during evening self-study, he had discovered that although this girl was a bit insecure, she had a particularly captivating appearance, especially when she smiled. She probably didn''t even realize it herself, but it was incredibly enticing and made his heart itch.


    Now, Su Xiaoqi seemed to have magnified that captivating charm, completely opening up and casting off any shadows of insecurity, exuding a special radiance.


    At this moment, seeing her with another man, a younger one who looked quite business-like, much better than that old man from yesterday, Liu Shaowei couldn''t help but feel a tinge of disgust.


    Li Maomao also noticed Su Xiaoqi and, like most girls, had a particularly good memory for beautiful girls. She also noticed that Su Xiaoqi had a different man by her side... her expression also became somewhat strange.


    Su Xiaoqi and Xiao Shengzhou entered the elevator together, and Xiao Shengzhou asked, "Do you know those two from earlier?"


    "The guy is a high school classmate, not very familiar. His expression was weird when he saw me with the coach yesterday," Su Xiaoqi shrugged and replied.


    Xiao Shengzhou nodded.


    At nine o''clock, Su Xiaoqi waited outside the hotel for Coach Steven to come down. When she saw him, she didn''t even recognize him. Usually, he wore a jacket every day with stubble on his face, but today he had shaved his beard and changed into a suit and leather shoes, looking very serious...


    Hmm, there was also a strong scent, a preliminary feeling of lavender mixed with orange. The hairstyle was a big slicked-back style, a bit greasy.


    Su Xiaoqi had the feeling that the coach wasn''t taking her to try on riding gear but rather going on a blind date...

 Chapter 310: Riding Girl

    Chapter 310


    Steven coach took Xiao Qi from one hotel to another hotel.


    Hilton is a more modern business hotel, while the other hotel is an antique quadrangle courtyard.


    It was like traveling through history.


    But it didn''t feel cheap at all, because it looked even more luxurious than Hilton.


    The cozy scent was very consistent, that kind of chamomile smell.


    Before getting off the car, Steven asked Xiao Qi repeatedly: "How do I look today? Is the tie too formal?"


    Xiao Qi didn''t know either. Anyway, she saw Steven coach like this, feeling all kinds of uncomfortable. She felt it was quite casual for coach to wear a jacket on ordinary days, which was also casual.


    Wearing a suit was also good. The coach had a good figure and could carry off the suit well. But it just felt a little strange, not used to it.


    Without waiting for Xiao Qi to answer, he took off his tie again, then put it back on, then took it off again, put it back on, and finally took it off.


    It was a little more relaxed without being so serious and business-like. Xiao Qi also felt more comfortable with it.


    They waited in the hotel lobby, and after a while, a middle-aged woman with slightly dark skin but very charming, arm in arm with a middle-aged fat man in a suit, came out.


    Xiao Qi saw coach stand up immediately, nervously tugging at his clothes.


    She couldn''t bear to watch.


    "Olivia."


    "Steven, let me introduce you, this is my husband Ben. Ben this is my ex-husband Steven."


    Only then did Steven see the middle-aged fat man that the woman was arm in arm with. Embarrassingly, they both wore suits of the same color, a light gray. Steven remembered Olivia said she liked this color and liked men wearing suits. She had now found a fat man in a light gray suit...


    Okay, he wasn''t that fat, although a little fat, but he looked much more comfortable wearing a suit than him. Steven felt uncomfortable wearing a suit, as if he was stuffed in a pod.


    The middle-aged fat man warmly hugged Steven and said, "I''ve seen videos of you competing in equestrian events, simply amazing. Thank you for taking care of Olivia in the past."


    Xiao Qi did not expect that the famous fashion designer coach had brought her to meet turned out to be his ex-wife. Seeing her ex-wife chatting with her current husband, while the coach looked embarrassed, Xiao Qi also felt embarrassed... The coach had lost at the first move.


    However, she didn''t pay much attention to the coach for long. She was soon hugged by this dark yellow-skinned, charming woman, who even kissed her on the cheek.


    Not the facial features, but the feeling.


    Watching Xiao Qi turn around, Olivia stripped her clothes off again, murmuring, "The shoulders need to be tweaked here, can be softer."


    Then she had Xiao Qi try on the other red and white set.


    The red and white riding outfit was a little tight, more formal. Wearing it, she didn''t feel like she was going riding, more like attending a very solemn banquet or something.


    Xiao Qi didn''t expect that wearing this outfit, she would also give off this kind of feeling. Hmm, very good looking, but also a bit irritating, very cocky.


    But the white neutralized this irritability, probably another feeling, of aloof nobility. Yes, Xiao Qi felt wearing the red and white riding outfit gave her a superior, aloof, noble feeling. If she had to describe it, she probably felt a bit pretentious like Li and Wei Jin characters.


    No wonder she always felt these characters were so good looking, yet at the same time felt unapproachable and didn''t dare get close, probably this feeling of aloofness and not fitting in was pretentious.


    Xiao Qi didn''t expect that wearing these clothes, she would also give off this feeling. Hmm, very good looking, but also a bit smug and cocky.


    Olivia looked ecstatic and exclaimed, "Perfect, this is the feeling I wanted. Su, you''ve made my dream come true."


    Then she hugged Xiao Qi and kissed her wildly, looking up and down at the clothes, going to modify again, saying there was a crease in the pants that needed to be fixed.


    Xiao Qi changed back into her own clothes and sat to one side, just watching the woman with her head lowered, hair cascading, earnestly modifying the fabric in her hand under the tall glass window.


    At first glance this slightly dark skinned woman didn''t strike Xiao Qi as very beautiful, possibly because of different aesthetic standards. But looking now, she unexpectedly felt the woman was very attractive, with an indescribable charm.


    A certain allure was emanating.


    At this moment Xiao Qi suddenly understood what kind of woman could make Coach Steven fall head over heels.


    Focused yet passionate, casual yet charming, she was composed and alluring.


    Her look when seriously working was especially beautiful.


    As Xiao Qi watched her in a daze, the mechanical voice in her mind suddenly sounded: "Host carefully observes this woman, learning to find the beautiful highlights in her, improving host''s own aesthetic ability, rewarding host''s temperament growth +1."


    Xiao Qi: ...Seems to remember one of the recent rewards was this one. Looking at herself in the big mirror, it was hard to feel any change, she saw herself every day.


    But she felt Olivia wouldn''t pay her any attention for a while, so Xiao Qi took out the Spanish vocabulary book from her bag, sitting in the corner, starting to utilize the fragmented time to study.


    When Olivia finished up and looked up, this was the scene she saw: the short-haired girl sitting on that Chinese style chest, earnestly looking at a book, hair a bit messy. She was engrossed and beautiful, sunshine spilled at her feet, she was hidden in the shadows but one could see time flowing peacefully. The messy fabrics and clothes all around became background colors.


    Olivia was an outstanding fashion designer, with a very good foundation in painting, especially oils. She immediately sketched out this scene on the drawing board next to her, planning to paint it slowly later.

 Chapter 311: Preparation 02

    Chapter 311


    Olivia enthusiastically invited Xiao Qi for lunch.


    The meal was provided by this ancient Siheyuan courtyard, with traditional Capital City dim sum food.


    At the meal, it seemed like Coach and Olivia''s current husband were fighting like gamecocks, trying to outdo each other.


    Even drinking soy milk became a competition... Watching them unaccustomedly drink down large bowls of soy milk, Xiao Qi silently wiped away sweat beside them.


    Olivia enjoyed the excitement, paying them no mind at all. It was clear she was a very casual woman, with a lively personality, and she was not without feelings for Steven.


    After the meal when saying goodbye, Xiao Qi was hugged and kissed several more times by Olivia, while in Coach Steven''s hands there was a large box, the two sets of clothes.


    In the afternoon Xiao Qi went with the Chairman to the Capital City racetrack where Ji Gu was staying.


    Counting it, it felt like it had been many days since she''d seen Ji Gu. At school she would basically see Ji Gu every day, or at most miss one day, but because of the competition this time Ji Gu had left early to arrive at the Capital City, to adjust its condition and get ready, so it had already been several days since she''d seen it.


    Normally other competitors would also arrive early, to become accustomed to the environment together with their horses, coordinate together, but Xiao Qi was still a freshman in her first year of university. In her view, horse racing and such could only be a hobby, her main task was still studying, she couldn''t invert the priorities. She had only decided to come to this horse race because the coach said it was on the weekend, so she didn''t have to ask off school for too many days.


    Therefore she basically only had an afternoon to coordinate and train with Ji Gu.


    When Xiao Qi arrived at the Capital City racetrack, she discovered that a formal racetrack was really very big and large, no wonder the coach had complained about theirs to death, he would inevitably mention it when speaking, that he had gone to some rural place, compared to the racetrack before them now, not only was the Enhua School racetrack rural, it was like comparing a bowl of congee to a grain of rice.


    The housing where Ji Gu stayed was also much nicer than Enhua''s, like comparing luxury decorated mansions to simple rental housing. The first time Xiao Qi saw Enhua''s racetrack she had felt it was amazingly big and luxurious, but coming to the scene before her now, it was another new world entirely. Here even the stable walls were soft, high class like a KTV''s private room.


    It took Xiao Qi''s group quite a while just to get into the racetrack, it really was massive.


    Before Ji Gu grew restless, she already had the horseshoes taken care of.


    Xiao Qi felt Ji Gu''s condition was also a little off, but there was no major problem. She felt Ji Gu seemed to have overeaten, eaten too much. Probably because the Capital City racetrack food was too good, these past few days it had overeaten.


    The manager was still chatting with the Chairman. On this side Xiao Qi had already taken care of replacing all four of Ji Gu''s horseshoes, ready to take it out for some fresh air and help it get accustomed to the Capital City racetrack.


    When the manager here saw it was actually the young girl who was the equestrian, he was still shocked.


    After all the young girl looked very slender, and was very young in age. She seemed too thin and weak for an equestrian, didn''t look like she could control such a large, strong horse. This horse was very tall and powerful, and equestrian competitions were a rare event with no separation by gender. Even female jockeys were usually sturdy, with very muscular physiques. But this young girl was wearing a light blue long sleeve T, loose jeans, 1.6 meters tall or so, no matter how you looked she didn''t resemble a muscular female jockey.


    Xiao Qi paid no mind to other people''s looks. Steven was even less concerned, he had been struck repeatedly already by Xiao Qi and was used to all her stunning performances.


    When he got to the racetrack he gradually returned to normal, speaking animatedly with Xiao Qi about all kinds of details around the racetrack, in English, occasionally mixing in one or two Chinese words. Xiao Qi''s English was now extremely good, they communicated very smoothly. Language was the kind of thing that got simpler the more you used it.


    Ji Gu was extremely excited to see Xiao Qi. These past few days the food really had been great, and it had accidentally overeaten. But there was no one to exercise it, so at the next meal, the food was still delicious and it couldn''t help overeating again, always repeating this cycle. It felt like it had gained a waist size, and after getting the new horseshoes on it couldn''t wait to go run laps.


    Xiao Qi rode Ji Gu around the racetrack several laps. This racetrack was extremely large, the track was also more professional. Ji Gu ran very excitedly, after several laps it had worked through its overeating and was even livelier.


    After a day, Xiao Qi was very tired but also very fulfilled. They ate dinner at the hotel restaurant, then rested to prepare for the competition the next day.


    Approaching the competition, Xiao Qi felt a little nervous, because the coach had become very agitated and tense, and this mood affected Xiao Qi.


    She returned to her room and wrote ten pages of brush calligraphy to calm her mood down.


    She also slept quite early that night, before 10 pm, and slept soundly through the night.

 Chapter 312: The Girl Who Reads

    Chapter 312


    The sky was clear without any clouds, a pure blue.


    The autumn breeze was pleasant. The ginkgo trees along the road were glowing golden yellow.


    Walking past this ginkgo forest, we would arrive at the site for this competition.


    Xiao Qi and her coach had come early in the morning. There were many crows circling in the sky of the capital city. Occasionally they would sweep by, calling out loudly.


    Hearing crows caw would make people feel nervous and uneasy in other places, as if it''s a bad omen. But in the capital, it had become a common occurrence that people were used to.


    The racecourse was very lively. Huge brand advertisements at the entrance made people feel it¡¯s expensive at first glance.


    The golden brand logo buttons and the dark red leather base color, plus the bronze carriage motifs, dragging a whole carriage of luxury goods. These were real exhibition items of this brand, giving a strong sense of history. There were also large screens next to it describing the brand history.


    Interspersed were videos of horse racing. Almost every horse that galloped past the camera was just a fleeting glimpse, very beautiful.


    Xiao Qi was a participating rider. She and Coach Steven had gone inside early. Her horse Drum was also ready and waiting.


    After fasting yesterday, Drum¡¯s mood today was good after being fed. When Xiao Qi walked past, Drum kicked his hooves excitedly as if to greet her.


    By now other riders had arrived too. Most had foreign faces. A few had yellow skin and from their chatter sounded Korean. There were also riders from Japan. For such a competition held in the capital city, the riders representing domestic side turned out to be only three.


    One was Xiao Qi, one a local rider from the capital city, and third is an ethnically Chinese born and raised abroad since young.


    Other than Xiao Qi, the other two riders were male. Re?a?d new chapters at novelhall.comale riders were rare. There were only four today: one from Sweden, one from Cyprus, one from Australia, and plus Xiao Qi herself.


    The other three female riders looked quite sturdy. They were not very tall, because being too tall is not good for horse riding as it makes controlling the horse harder. So the male participating riders were generally not super tall either.


    There were giant electronic display screens on all four sides of the racecourse for every seating angle to enjoy an unblocked view of every scene happening below.


    At the moment, the huge screens were playing a looped footage describing the history and cultural legacy sponsored this equestrian event.


    Liu Shaowei carried two tickets to enter the spectator stand with his girlfriend Li Maomao, still feeling rather excited. This was his first time watching a horse race. He felt proud to take part in such a classy event, non-existent in Lvshan City he came from; rarely even heard of.


    Everyone around was dressed so impressively, making him even more pumped up.


    Especially when he first entered and saw those luxury good displays, after getting to know Maomao, he now had a rough idea how expensive those things were. Even if his parents were minor government officials, he could not afford those things.


    Their seats were right at the back. Apparently tickets differed by seating position and prices increased exponentially for the first few front rows.


    Of course Liu Shaowei did not feel slighted. Just getting in was already thrilling enough. He tried his utmost to conceal his excitement and avoid looking like a country bumpkin.


    Li Maomao was quite excited too. Although a capital city native, these tickets were also gotten through connections. She felt it gave her face to have obtained them, a sense of achievement. The two found their seats as more people streamed in to sit around them.


    Liu Shaowei thoughtfully took a bottle of water out of his bag for his girlfriend. He didn''t know if water could be bought here, or if it was expensive like at the movie theater, so he carefully brought a bottle just in case his choice was wrong.


    Although they were sitting far away, it took some effort to see the field. They could use binoculars, and right in front of them was a big screen where they could also see details of the field.


    Liu Shaowei thought this spot was pretty good.


    Just then, the brand introductions on the big screen suddenly ended, and scenes of the riders preparing backstage for this horse race began playing, along with introductions of the riders'' backgrounds.


    Liu Shaowei twisted off the bottle cap and courteously handed the water over, wanting to satisfy his girlfriend''s vanity. The imported mineral water he had prepared cost over 10 yuan a bottle. He actually felt a little distressed about the expense.


    Just then, he happened to glance up and see an exceptionally tall and sturdy brown horse on the big screen. Sitting in front of the horse was a girl with short hair¡ªnot wispy short hair, but pulled back in a little ponytail with a rubber band, revealing a smooth forehead. She was actually reading a book while sitting in front of a horse! The screen was so big he could see the details of the book, the words inside. Liu Shaowei didn''t recognize them; they weren''t English or Japanese or Korean. He didn''t know what language it was...


    Li Maomao was elegantly drinking water when she looked up and saw this scene. Pfft...

 Chapter 313: The Gamble

    Chapter 313


    It looks good!


    The first feeling conveyed from the screen.


    It is said that girls like little animals, BMWs, Land Rovers, Jaguars and so on...


    It is really aesthetically pleasing when a BMW is placed next to a little girl.


    Especially one like Ji Gu, with a magnificent, tall, mighty and smooth figure, the whole feeling is very powerful and explosive.


    The screen displays introductions of the players and horses.


    It mainly introduces the pedigree and racing history of the horses, as well as their original price.


    The players are also introduced with their racing history.


    Su Xiaoqi, freshman, seventeen years old, with zero racing history.


    Although the picture is beautiful, the content of the introduction is ordinary. She is a complete newcomer. Other players can also see the big screen. There are also screens in the backstage area. Seeing the content of the introduction, they smiled.


    They all felt that she was probably some rich family''s little girl who wanted to come and play.


    After all, a horse that can participate in the race is expensive. Ji Gu''s price is shown as 1.2 million.


    That''s the price in RMB, which is still expensive.


    It''s not enough to just spend over a million to buy it. Keeping such a racehorse is even more expensive than the horse itself.


    Ji Gu in the screen looks very beautiful, obviously very well fed.


    In contrast, the player is really too small, although pleasing to the eye, but really like a child. She still has to go to school and do homework. It is said that children in Hua Country have a lot of homework.


    These thoughts do not affect the beauty of the picture, nor the good looks of the little girl.


    Other players did not care at all, and excluded Xiaoqi from competitors directly.


    When Liu Shaowei saw the big screen, he felt complicated feelings that were hard to describe. He was definitely surprised. He thought he had left his peers far behind when he came to Capital City, especially his former classmates.


    He was very surprised when he saw Su Xiaoqi in the hotel. He thought Su Xiaoqi was shameless, playing with old men. Surely, she was actually a bit slutty. But he was with Li Maomao in a proper relationship. He was still justified and even looked down on Su Xiaoqi.


    He didn''t even greet her. But he never imagined that Su Xiaoqi was here to participate in a horse race. Since when did she know how to ride a horse? Wasn''t her hometown rural?


    He remembered that he had heard that Su Xiaoqi''s hometown was very remote, on the plateau, with ethnic minorities and such, with inconvenient transportation and reliance on donkeys to transport things.


    But what does this have to do with horse riding?


    Moreover, this kind of horse racing is something only rich people play, right? He felt superior when he came to watch the game. But Su Xiaoqi turned out to be a player, an equestrian?


    He paced back and forth, a bit agitated, because just now, he had bet all his not abundant savings, $200,000.


    After betting, he even broke out in a sweat on his forehead and his legs went soft.


    There was still a little unease in his heart, that kind of excitement when dopamine surges uncontrollably, doing something without restraint, and then slowly regaining sanity as the dopamine gradually subsides.


    Looking at Xiaoqi again now, still earnestly reading her Spanish book under the light, he could even see the fine fluff on her forehead. Steven wondered if he had been too impulsive, too greedy. Perhaps he should have bet on Xiaoqi to place in the top three rather than first.


    After all, this was her first competition, if something went wrong or other things happened, but the bet was placed.


    He gritted his teeth. Forget it, he believed in his own judgment.


    But in this short time, his entire back was drenched in sweat.


    In fact, he never had the habit of saving money. This sum, these savings, were a bit of compensation he received when he terminated his contract with his former company. It could be said that he was swept out. His worth was far more than this.


    Xiaoqi read her book attentively, but suddenly felt a strange smell at this time, a strong smell of sweat. The competition hadn''t even started yet, and the warm up didn''t require getting drenched in sweat. She looked up in surprise towards the source of the smell... Steven.


    "Coach, are you nervous?"


    Steven nodded, then shook his head. He was straightforward and did not conceal that he had been privately betting on horse races.


    Xiao Qi was surprised that there really was such a thing as betting on horse races, and that the coach had actually bet on Ji Gu to win the championship.


    She had done her homework beforehand, and remembered the data on each contestant and horse very well.


    After calm, rational analysis, she felt her own chances of winning were still quite high.


    Xiao Qi had participated in many competitions, and was no longer the little girl who had to keep running to the bathroom before a competition due to nervousness. Now her condition was much better.


    Seeing the coach like this, she thought for a moment, checked the amount of money she had left on the interface, which was over 800,000 yuan. She bet 800,000 on herself to win, uh, top three would be fine, first place still felt a bit uncertain after all. The final outcome of a matter sometimes does not bend to one person''s will.


    But even top three had high odds. If she could get top three, she could get five times the money.


    And first place directly gave ten times.


    Thinking about it, five times 800,000 yuan would be 4 million yuan directly, while ten times 200,000 USD would be 2 million USD.


    Of course, if Ji Gu did not get top three, the 800,000 yuan would be gone, and even if it got top three but not first place, the 200,000 USD would be gone too.


    Money was terrible in its abundance, yet also easy to lose terribly. Of course it was easy to have nothing as well.


    This was probably the biggest problem with gambling - easy come, easy go, sudden wealth or bankruptcy without reason.


    Steven knew his student had money, though he did not know Xiao Qi''s exact financial situation. But seeing Xiao Qi was very thrifty in daily life, eating meals as cheaply as possible at the racetrack to save money... He had not expected her to take out 800,000 yuan to bet on herself getting top three...fine, not first place.


    At this point, Steven threw caution to the wind. If the money was gone then so be it. He didn''t need to pay alimony to his ex-wife anymore anyway. Putting down his phone, he and Xiao Qi started preparing to go on stage.

 Chapter 314: Beautiful

    Chapter 314


    Ji Gu changed into brand new horse bits today, neck ribbons, sponsored by the organizers of this competition, with their brand logo on them. Xiao Qi looked at the high quality and size which suited very well. The horse bits felt very comfortable on Ji Gu.


    It was about time for the competition to start.


    Xiao Qi put away her book and double checked all the equipment again.


    Ji Gu was No.4, 4 was not a very auspicious number in Xiao Qi''s hometown, but it did not matter, Xiao Qi did not care about this, Steven did not care much either, he did not like No.13, he felt No.4 was pretty good.


    The equestrian event demanded high techniques from the rider, the rider had to clamp the horse with both legs, the hips almost touching but not quite, not sitting fully on the horse back, this position itself was already difficult enough to maintain, let alone having to ride on the horse to compete.


    The competition ground was very big, the route was planned beforehand, riders had to overcome different obstacles, the first one to reach the finishing line would be the champion.


    When all riders lined up at the starting line, they looked very heroic, afterall each competing horse was priceless, well taken care of, their physique and figures were beautiful.


    Compared to them, Ji Gu did not stand out much.


    Some horses used to win prizes before, worth several million dollars, much more expensive than Ji Gu.


    Seeing the riders getting ready, audience at the stands were also very excited, many people came to see the equestrian game itself, quite a lot were checking on their betting horses and how they would perform, afterall they did bet a lot of money on them. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com the big screen, Liu Shaowei saw Su Xiaoqi on horseback, wearing a white hat, ready to set off any time. Liu Shaowei was not surprised to see Su Xiaoqi competing here as he heard from his classmates that Su Xiaoqi was very strong in sports. Coming from the countryside, it was normal for her to have good physique.


    When he came to watch this game, Liu Shaowei already did his homework. The equestrian game was not easy, still quite dangerous. When overcoming obstacles, it was easy for the horse to fall, sometimes even if the horse did not fall, the rider could still be thrown out of the horse, got stamped by other running horses. If not dead, high paraplegia happened frequently too.


    It was very thrilling, which was also part of the charm of equestrian games.


    There were 12 riders competing.


    Lined up at the starting line, Xiao Qi could hear other horses snorting, a Korean rider happened to be next to her. He smiled at Xiao Qi disdainfully. Just now he was the one mocking Xiao Qi with his staff. Xiao Qi understood Korean, felt a bit puzzled. She did not offend him at all. Judging by past records, Gaster from Geneva should be the hot favourite to win the championship this time.


    The international equestrian festival at Geneva was very famous. There were different new events every year.


    Gaster was only 20 years old, a young rider. He came to compete in this game wanting to grab a championship in such a small scale game, making his competition portfolio look better.


    The Korean rider should feel disgruntled towards Gaster instead. What was the point mocking a rookie like herself?


    Xiao Qi did not quite understand his brain circuit. Although she understood Korean, she could not be bothered to argue with this kind of person.


    Just when everyone was astonished, unexpectedly right after crossing the second obstacle, the Korean rider¡¯s horse stumbled to the ground after crossing the river, throwing him off its back! The horse ran away by itself. Luckily this was right after the river, horses were not squeezed together. He was just thrown off by his own horse, not stamped by others¡¯.


    There were loud gasps from the spectator stand. The staff rushed up field instantly. Medical team dashed up ready to give emergency treatment.


    The competition went on. On the big screen were still the galloping horses. Xiao Qi still leading.


    The cameras turned to the fallen Korean rider at times, who was kneeling on the ground in a daze, looking very pitiful. That contrast made the whole competition even more intense!


    Then there were more obstacles to overcome, followed by a sandy area.


    Riders behind chased very closely. There were hurdles on the sand too. Xiao Qi leaped over obstacles with Ji Gu, pulling further away from those behind her.


    At this moment, miraculously on field, aside from Xiao Qi in the lead, there was another horse running side by side - the one who threw its rider earlier, now frolicking about happily on its own!


    However, another thrilling scene happened going down a slope. With riders clustered too closely together, one horse slipped and fell, seemingly breaking a leg from the fall. Its rider was thrown off. More scarily, horses behind failed to slow down in time, stomping right over! Several horses behind were obstructed consecutively.


    The condition of that fallen rider was unknown. There were huge gasps from the spectator stand. Everyone was shocked.


    The competition continued nevertheless. Now on the big screen, only 5 horses remained running on track.


    Xiao Qi still leading.


    Other riders were unlucky enough to be blocked by that fallen horse. That delay basically made it impossible for them to catch up now. Medical team rushed over again to check on the fallen rider still lying on the ground.


    Xiao Qi wholeheartedly continued forward. She knew about these problems when participating in the competition. Wanting to win the prize money was not so easy, every penny came with blood and sweat.


    The remaining five contestants raced on, no more falling over accidents occurred. They kept overcoming one obstacle after another - sandy land, slopes, river channels. Xiao Qi was always in the lead, but the gap wasn''t very big.


    As they approached the finish line, the other riders whipped their horses with all their might, and the order of the five riders changed again. Xiao Qi almost got overtaken by a rider beside her.


    Xiao Qi didn''t whip Ji Gu, she couldn''t bear to. Whipping so hard felt very painful.


    Luckily, Ji Gu and Xiao Qi had great rapport, Ji Gu felt offended being overtaken, and immediately sped up on his own.


    He opened up the distance with the rider beside them again.


    In the end when they crossed the finish line, Xiao Qi and Ji Gu were far ahead of everyone else with no doubt, winning the championship.


    Her somewhat stern face revealed a smile. On the big screen, she gave people the feeling that only two words could describe her - beautiful!

 Chapter 315: 7. The Landlord

    Chapter 315


    Steven smiled so widely that his face hurt, but he still could not control himself and kept grinning from ear to ear.


    To be honest, even at the peak of his wealth, he did not have $200,000.


    He was a grown man who could not save money and did not have the habit of saving money.


    He was actually prepared to lose that $20,000.


    He felt that he was too greedy betting on Xiao Qi to place in the top three, since it was Xiao Qi''s first competition.


    He always had such a rash personality, which was the reason why he finally divorced his ex-wife.


    They were both too impulsive. Although they loved each other, they could not spend their days together.


    But now, Xiao Qi was first place! Hahahaha......


    Steven could not stop smiling.


    Xiao Shengzhou was also very surprised. He did not bet on horses. His family education was quite strict and did not allow him to gamble on such things. He was willing to let Ji Gu come to participate in the competition to give Ji Gu a chance and also give Xiao Qi a chance.


    Ji Gu was a racehorse and should go on the racetrack once.


    And Xiao Qi had been training very hard. He had seen it with his own eyes.


    There was also Steven''s daily urging.


    Xiao Shengzhou agreed to let Xiao Qi bring Ji Gu to participate in the competition, but did not expect that they would actually win the championship. Was the championship so easy to obtain?


    Some inexplicable spectators in the stands who had bought No. 4 were excited and crazy. The odds were 10 times, there were 5 times odds for betting No. 4 to place in the top three. It was crazy profit.


    Of course, most people lost money.


    She was a bit lightheaded inside, 4 million plus, if in her hometown Gumula Village, it would probably be money she couldn¡¯t spend her whole life.


    Feeling somewhat smug inside, she could only appear more and more serious on the surface, pursing her little mouth looking very unfriendly. This girl in the red riding outfit appeared on a page of the Capital City Evening News.


    Riding a horse, very majestic.


    After leaving the racetrack and returning to the hotel, Xiao Qi seemed to only show her excitement then.


    Steven had been grinning since the end of the competition, never closing his mouth once. His emotions were written all over his face as he madly video called all his old friends, sometimes asking Xiao Qi to make an appearance in the video.


    Xiao Shengzhou was also in a pretty good mood.


    Steven became more arrogant, acting as if he had more money than he could spend. He said he wanted to treat everyone to a meal to properly celebrate after the competition, at the most expensive and delicious restaurant.


    Xiao Qi was also smiling, more relaxed now in front of the chairman and coach. After showering when they got back to the hotel and changing into her own T-shirt and jeans, her half-dry hair was tied up in little tufts that looked especially perky.


    That night was very relaxed, and they did not have to worry about eating bad food either.


    The group intended to go to Gui Street to eat crayfish.


    Sitting in the car there, the Capital City gave a magnificent feeling along the way, and also felt prosperous, especially when passing the city gates. There was also a strange sense of pride.


    Xiao Qi, now worth over 4 million RMB, had an idea. She wanted to buy an apartment in the Capital City.


    One towering high-rise building after another flashed by outside the window... Xiao Qi watched longingly, if she could really buy property in the Capital City, that would be awesome!


    The driver spoke with a Capital City accent and proudly recounted being a native of old Capital City, ¡°In my day, we got up in the morning to the sound of the national flag raising. My home was around this area. Later it got demolished, at first I thought the relocation place was far, but now it¡¯s not that far, outside the Third Ring Road. Don¡¯t look down on the Third Ring Road, even one square meter of my place there costs 100,000 RMB now, hehe.¡±


    Gazing out the window with the heart of a rich lady, listening to the driver speak, Xiao Qi humbly calculated the math in her mind. 100,000 RMB per square meter, 40 square meters would be 4 million RMB. She thought to herself... The driver said his relocated home had over 70 square meters, so he was now a wealthy man worth over 7 million RMB driving them in this beat-up taxi.


    Xiao Qi¡¯s ambitious ideas deflated a bit...

 Chapter 316: Brazen

    Chapter 316


    The plane took off from the ground. Little Seven, who was on a plane for the second time, was not as nervous as before. Her hands under the blanket were not about to break the armrests.


    However, her complexion was still somewhat pale with a feeling of weightlessness.


    On the return trip, they were still in business class, with two people per row.


    This time, the chairman sat with her in one row, while Steven sat in the row next to them.


    Little Seven ate some snacks. It was said that eating snacks would eliminate the discomfort of taking off in a plane.


    She accidentally ate all the snacks of both the chairman and Steven.


    Although Xiao Shengzhou was holding a newspaper, he could actually see Little Seven in the corner of his eye eating snacks with bulging cheeks. At this moment, he felt that she was really just a freshman, just a little girl. Usually she seemed too serious and disciplined.


    When the plane reached the stratosphere, the stewardess came out again to walk around, and the atmosphere on the plane became more relaxed.


    Little Seven breathed a sigh of relief and took out a Japanese novel to read. It had Chinese-Japanese bilingual text so she could check the Chinese when she didn''t understand something.


    This allowed her to both learn Japanese and enjoy reading novels at the same time.


    Xiao Shengzhou was no longer surprised to see Little Seven''s Japanese novel. He had already experienced how hard this little girl tried to learn. He suspected that the only time Little Seven rested was when she was working and training on the ranch. Otherwise, she would be studying all the time.


    Little Seven was seriously reading the book. She was reading Yamashita Toyko''s "The White Tower", which was made into a very popular TV series in 2003.


    The book was very thick, even thicker with the Chinese-Japanese bilingual text. Just the first volume was already half a finger thick.


    She shouldn''t have brought such a thick book when traveling light, but the novel was so good that she couldn''t resist bringing it along. It was about Deputy Professor Caizen Goro''s efforts to become the first professor of surgery, and his eventual success. The protagonist was not a traditionally good, kind and beautiful main character. In order to achieve his goals, he would stop at nothing. His personality had cold, selfish, and vulgar sides, yet he still moved people, making them unconsciously identify with this character, wondering what they would do if they were Caizen Goro.


    Watching the already successful elite Caizen Goro still struggling upwards, thinking the darkest day was over only for it to end up all for naught.


    Although the story was about the medical community, medical systems, doctor groups, medical ethics, etc., it was also a microcosm of society, a corner of society. For a student like Little Seven who was still in school, it made society seem overly complicated, giving her a slight social anxiety.


    Just the competition for a position already felt like a life or death struggle.


    Little Seven was engrossed in reading when the stewardess came by to serve the meal, interrupting her.


    She looked forward to the business class airplane food.


    From the beginning, Little Seven flew business class. She had sneaked a peek at the economy class meals, which looked like boxed lunches, while the business class meals were individually plated with cutlery and a small vase with a flower for ambiance, although completely useless but contributing to the sense of occasion. Somehow it made the food seem tastier.


    She ordered the beef rice, which not only had piping hot braised beef but also separate fluffy rice sprinkled with sesame seeds, thick sliced beef tendon, fruits like fresh dates and bananas, and a separate packet of chili sauce. The soup was egg drop soup with seaweed, served in a pretty white porcelain bowl.


    The bowls and plates were small but complete.


    Surprisingly, the chili sauce was especially delicious. Originally meant for the beef tendon, Little Seven directly ate half the leftover packet as a snack, even taking a picture with her phone to note down the brand, Miaolajiao. She made a mental note that after getting off the plane, she could buy some online. Her dormmates would probably like it too, it was so tasty.


    Happily eating, Little Seven suddenly heard a mechanical voice in her mind: "Host''s attentive reading and empathy with the characters'' emotions has been detected. Rewarding host with 1 random study card for book characters. A random character will be selected and a random ability of that character. Use this card?"


    Little Seven didn''t understand how the system randomly gave out rewards. She read plenty of books daily, but this reward was so random. Was it because she was particularly attentive this time, or did she scratch her feet while reading?


    "Use," she responded.


    Then the mechanical voice flatly said: "Host has successfully selected Caizen Goro''s father-in-law Caizhen Youyi''s shameless thick skin. Learn this ability?"


    Little Seven: Pfft...the last piece of beef tendon in her mouth flew out.

 Chapter 317: Contracted official Shake

    Chapter 317


    Brazenness turns out to be a skill...


    Xiao Qi was utterly shocked. What use could this skill possibly have?


    Well, maybe it had some use after all. Watching the stewardess kneeling down to pick up the beef tendon she had just sprayed on the floor, Xiao Qi remained composed. Unlike before, she didn''t appear flustered or awkward. She used to feel troubled about inconveniencing others and felt very embarrassed, but the airplane seats were still cramped. Bending down to pick up the beef tendon was quite strenuous, and she was likely to bump into the stewardess.


    It wasn''t until she got off the plane that Xiao Qi snapped out of it, reverting to her usual self. She figured she had just gained a buff.


    The club president''s car was parked at the airport, and they drove back to the school. Xiao Qi got off at the old area.


    Today was Monday, and she was going to Beijing to participate in a competition, so she took a day off.


    Though it had only been two or three days, it felt like a long time. Returning to the school, seeing the familiar school gate, the familiar snacks on the student street, and the familiar sight of students passing by in groups of threes and twos, her heart suddenly settled, feeling reassured.


    Back in the dormitory, her roommates were all there. As soon as she entered, her desk mate, Mi''er, gave her a slightly distant hug, because her chest was pressing against Xiao Qi''s... Wei Cheng smiled and said, "Xiao Qi, it''s good to have you back."


    There was a pile of fruit prepared on Yun''s desk, and a freshly cut watermelon, perfectly thirst-quenching.


    There was also a bouquet of sunflowers by the window, radiating warmth.


    Autumn had brought a slight chill to the capital city, but it was still scorching hot back at school.


    Mi''er was dressed super casually, in shorts and a tank top... When Xiao Qi was eating watermelon, she glanced at Mi''er. There was nothing inside her tank top, she was practically wearing nothing, and she had just hugged her so intimately... Ahem.


    Xiao Qi thought it was incredible that she didn''t blush just now, she only struggled a bit and gently pushed Mi''er away, with very little force because she was strong. Even in this situation, she didn''t blush. Had she truly mastered the skill of shamelessness? Had her skin thickened?


    Returning to the dormitory, she felt incredibly relaxed. She quickly took a shower, changed into her old T-shirt pajamas, and lay down on her bed, feeling completely at ease.


    Although she had been walking a lot these past few days, she hadn''t gone for a proper run, nor had she attended evening self-study sessions. She had also spent less time practicing calligraphy. Even though she managed to study in bits of spare time, it wasn''t the same. She felt particularly unsettled.


    Lying on her small bunk bed, even though it wasn''t as comfortable as a hotel bed, looking at the timetable on the wall and the small stack of books by her bedside, she felt clear-headed and content.


    Xiao Qi planned to take a nap. She had a business-class seat, but she was still quite tired. Traveling must have worn her out, even though she hadn''t done much, just returned from Beijing to school, yet she was still exhausted.


    Her body felt weary, probably because her muscles were too tense during yesterday''s horse race. She didn''t feel it during the race, but now that she had relaxed, she was quite tired. She didn''t have the conditions to run outside either. A little run to warm up should do the trick.


    "Hey, genius upstairs, I saw the book, but couldn''t make heads or tails of it."


    "At first, I thought the Miss was just showing off, reading a book before a competition. But when I finally saw what book she had, I was speechless... didn''t understand a thing."


    "I wonder, do you have to learn English before learning horseback riding? My English is okay, but can I still ride?"


    "You''re naive, upstairs. Learning horseback riding doesn''t require learning English first. But you do need to have a horse. I just checked, the horse the Miss is sitting on is worth five million. Yes, five million, not five hundred..."


    "I really don''t understand the world of the wealthy. Why do they need to learn horseback riding if they''re going to school?"


    "First in singing competitions, record-breaking marathon runner, first in English speech competitions, member of the Calligraphy Association. I thought she was already a jack of all trades, and now the Miss is also a horseback riding champion... Is there anything she can''t do?"


    "She''s coming, she''s coming, she''s riding over on a horse..."


    "Am I the only one interested in the Miss''s prize money? Add up all those competition winnings... hoho, does the Miss need a boyfriend? I can do everything."


    "Does the Miss need a boyfriend? I can''t do anything, just have a sweet mouth."


    "Hey upstairs, no need to drive..."


    "..."


    "My mom asked me why I''ve been watching TikTok on my knees lately??"


    "My wife looks so good riding a horse!"


    "Upstairs is dreaming again."


    "The Miss has turned me gay. If it''s the Miss, I can do it."


    "Uh, am I the only one who noticed the Miss''s clothes? They''re really nice, don''t know where she got them, what brand, can someone share the link??"


    "The Miss''s English is so fluent, the accent is super pleasant to listen to, authentic. I heard there are lots of foreign English teachers at Enhua, if English is taught that well, I''m willing to pay a bit more for tuition..."


    "I timidly ask, I want to go to Enhua, is the tuition expensive? Do they really have horseback riding classes? Do you need to buy your own horse? Or does the school provide them?"


    Xiao Qi, who falls asleep as soon as she gets into bed, has already fallen into a deep sleep, turning over unconsciously, cuddling the blanket, sleeping soundly, one side of her face pressed flat by the pillow, blushing.

 Chapter 318: A Confession of Love

    Chapter 318


    The autumn air was crisp, and the leaves by the roadside turned golden.


    Xiao Qi got up, washed her face, and then practiced calligraphy.


    When her roommates saw Xiao Qi sitting there practicing calligraphy, they immediately felt at ease. It had only been a few days since they last saw her engaged in that activity, and it felt strange without her presence. It seemed like something was missing, and they couldn''t muster up the same enthusiasm.


    After Xiao Qi finished her calligraphy practice, she planned to go for a run. Her three roommates also put on their sportswear and accompanied her for the run.


    Mier even brought a basketball along, knowing that she wouldn''t be able to keep up with the running and could play with the ball instead.


    Wei Cheng, on the other hand, admired everything Xiao Qi did and wanted to learn, but it was too difficult for her. She could only manage to learn a little.


    Chu Yu used to be a homebody, avoiding any unnecessary movement. However, she had been influenced by her roommates'' active lifestyle and was now willing to be more active herself. At least when it came to activities with her roommates, she was quite enthusiastic.


    The roommates set off together, all dressed in matching outfits provided by Mier''s family factory. It was quite stylish, and when they stepped out of the dormitory, other people in the dormitory greeted them.


    Xiao Qi caught the interest of some people, as many had just watched "Official Dancer."


    Surprisingly, Su Li from the opposite dormitory was also there. In fact, she knew that Xiao Qi had returned and purposely rushed back from the cafe?. She sat arrogantly at the doorstep, as if enjoying the cool breeze.


    Her roommate, Chu Yu, looked aggrieved, feeling like she had been bullied.


    Su Li didn''t like seeing her gloomy face all the time. She greeted them and Xiao Qi responded. In her mind, Xiao Qi thought that people often said Su Li had a bad temper and was difficult to get along with, but in reality, she was very polite and had excellent manners. It turned out that rumors shouldn''t be blindly believed.


    The group arrived at the playground, where Xiao Qi warmed up. Her roommates joined her in the warm-up. Xiao Qi went for a run, and her roommates either played basketball or took a leisurely stroll or took photos.


    When Xiao Qi finished her run, they all returned together.


    Mier took a bunch of photos and videos, which she shared in the dormitory group. Then she carefully selected a few good-looking photos, added them to the horse racing photos that Xiao Qi had previously shared, and posted them on her social media.


    Caption: "Back from the desk mate, woohoo!"


    Wei Cheng also posted on her social media, but she was more reserved, simply writing, "Running with roommates."


    Chu Yu also posted on her social media, without saying a word, just sharing a photo.


    After the group finished freshening up in the dormitory, they went out to have a meal together.


    After dinner, they went to the evening self-study session in their class.


    Since Xiao Qi didn''t come to class yesterday, Mier paid extra attention and took notes of the lecture content to show Xiao Qi later. She unexpectedly discovered that paying attention in class and taking notes was actually useful.


    Mier is usually more carefree and can''t sit still. She doesn''t pay much attention during lectures. Today, she surprisingly remembered everything in great detail.


    Xiao Qi was quite surprised when she saw the notes and praised Mi Er, saying, "You did an amazing job with these notes. The handwriting is clear, and you recorded everything very thoroughly. I can see that you have a talent for shorthand."


    Mi Er immediately raised her head proudly and said, "Of course, it doesn''t matter who I am."


    She felt even more proud, like a rare peacock, and for once, she didn''t feel like chatting with others but instead focused on doing her homework diligently.


    At the beginning, their class was not much different from the others during self-study sessions. There weren''t many people attending, and those who did come were either bored, chatting, or just playing with their phones in a different location.


    However, there was a magical class monitor in their class who made sure everyone submitted their assignments on time. Even students like Li Weijin and Su Li, who were usually late to self-study, started coming on time, and other students were silently influenced to avoid embarrassment.


    Generally, the students in the Information Management Class 1 would come to self-study unless they had something important to do or a club activity. They would quietly do their homework with better discipline compared to other classes.


    Mier was still diligently scrolling through her phone, eating absentmindedly. She was nibbling around the outer edge of the sausage, like she was eating corn, and it looked quite messy.


    Xiao Qi was a messy eater, and she still had a small portion of the sausage left. If she hadn''t spotted Li Weijin, she would have finished it by now.


    Yunshu was slightly better. She ate the sausage, using an extra stick to carefully break it apart and eat it piece by piece, as if she was eating skewers. Alternatively, she used two sticks as makeshift chopsticks to pick and eat. It was quite troublesome, and it was the first time Xiao Qi saw Yunshu eating like this. She truly admired her, thinking that Yunshu had a delicate appetite.


    But at this moment, the other three girls also found themselves admiring Yunshu. Eating like this made encounters with classmates less awkward.


    Not pretentious at all. So smart. Having good habits in life is truly important.


    Of course, Xiao Qi had to learn to eat like this. If she did it at home, her mother would probably lose her patience and give her a slap on the back...


    Since she was already here, Xiao Qi quickly took the last bite of her sausage in front of Li Weijin, swallowing it with big gulps.


    Her little face was puffed up.


    Wasting food is shameful, but now that she finished eating, it''s alright.


    Li Weijin approached nervously, not paying attention to what Xiao Qi was eating. Seeing her chubby cheeks, he couldn''t help but feel a wave of affection. It made his heart flutter, and his collarbone seemed to be covered in tiny ants, nibbling softly.


    He had intended to come over and say hello, but when he saw Xiao Qi''s dormitory group, he realized that she had left on Friday and only returned on Monday after spending the weekend away.


    So, it had been three days in total.


    Li Weijin suddenly felt the truth of the saying "a day apart feels like three autumns," and it felt like he hadn''t seen Xiao Qi in nine or ten years.


    They hadn''t even spoken privately; he could only rely on checking her social media posts and seeing her in the news.


    She had actually participated in a horse racing competition.


    Li Weijin increasingly felt that Xiao Qi was outstanding and felt a growing sense of urgency.


    He came over with a serious expression on his face, intending to say hello and then leave.


    He spoke up, "Xiao Qi, I like you. Will you be my girlfriend?"


    As Li Weijin spoke, he found himself stunned.


    Damn it... he said that too smoothly. He had said it a thousand or eight hundred times before. He had only meant to say hello, so why did it come out like that?


    Xiao Qi and her roommates were all stunned.


    This was Li Weijin, confessing his feelings? Was he suddenly confessing?


    Xiao Qi nearly choked on the sausage. Even if she had the thickest skin, upon hearing those words, she still felt choked.


    Li Weijin quickly handed her a bottle of water to help her recover from the shock and not choke on the sausage.


    But she still coughed and made a clattering sound.


    "What did you say?" Xiao Qi, with a red face from coughing, thought she had misheard and asked.


    Li Weijin had originally wanted to say it was nothing.


    But he opened his mouth and said, "I know that dating is not allowed according to school rules, but it''s okay. If we get caught, I''ll write a self-criticism. I''m really good at writing self-criticisms."


    Xiao Qi: ...

 Chapter 319: Buy the Newspaper

    Chapter 319


    As the city lights began to flicker on, Su Youfu prepared a basin of hot water to soak his wife''s feet.


    Sheng Juanhua sat on the couch and naturally dipped her feet into the basin as Su Youfu sat on a small bamboo chair opposite her.


    Next to them were some bars of soap and a bottle of cheap moisturizer.


    Su Youfu seemed accustomed to this task, having washed his wife''s feet with soap, dried them, and then applied a generous amount of moisturizer, proceeding to massage and knead her feet.


    Back in Gumula Village, Su Youfu used to do the same, but often in the dead of night or by carrying water upstairs, as the countryside homes were never fully secured, with people dropping by at any hour.


    Su Youfu, being small in stature and limping, left most of the strenuous farm work like rice planting, woodcutting, bamboo digging, and bamboo cutting to Sheng Juanhua.


    In her youth, Sheng Juanhua had been slender and delicate, but now her frame had expanded, maintaining a good figure yet with a robustness from years of farming, accompanied by several lingering ailments.


    There was a lump on Sheng Juanhua''s foot, which had been there for many years, yet she never sought medical attention.


    The couple never mentioned this to their daughter, sometimes joking privately that they feared it might be a tumor and it''s better not to look, believing that as long as one doesn''t step into a hospital, they''ll remain healthy, as hospitals bring about all sorts of illnesses.


    Su Youfu persisted in massaging his wife''s feet, hoping that the lump would eventually disappear with enough pressure.


    During the day, they would tidy up a house near the city museum.


    With the assistance of Ms. Liang, they hired some workers for renovations, but Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua preferred to oversee the work themselves. In order to open the house quickly, both of them pitched in, realizing that hiring a worker cost over three hundred a day, so with both of them working, they earned over six hundred a day, a significant sum compared to the earnings from rural activities back home.


    After finishing their work there, Su Youfu would then engage in bamboo weaving while Sheng Juanhua went back to her hometown to fetch bamboo strands.


    Some said that Su Youfu and his wife were living the good life with their newfound wealth in the city, but seeing Sheng Juanhua still returning home to cut bamboo, they doubted it.


    Since Su Youfu''s limp kept him from returning, Sheng Juanhua was left to handle things alone, which made everyone a bit more restrained, refraining from making casual jokes. Sheng Juanhua was, after all, a daughter-in-law from elsewhere and didn''t have Su Youfu''s easygoing nature. Even Xiaoqi''s Grandma toned down her nagging; she knew that no matter how much she scolded, Sheng Juanhua wouldn''t be affected.


    Of course, the nagging persisted.


    As Sheng Juanhua chopped bamboo and split it into strips, she neither argued nor responded to the old lady''s constant chatter.


    Xiaoqi''s Grandma felt a pang of anger and suspicion. Her son had money now but didn''t think about repaying her or her brother. He was heartless, not even coming home. Though after ranting for a while, she started to doubt again: did he really have money? She always felt her eldest son was the least capable, always quick to anger and scold. But seeing his wife still wearing old clothes while working, she was certain they were broke. Her eldest son was smitten with his wife; if he had money, he''d surely buy her new clothes first.


    Recently, Su Youfu and his wife, Sheng Juanhua, have been busy as can be. During the day, they work together to renovate their shop, and at night, they work on bamboo weaving. Sheng Juanhua even has to go back to her hometown to fetch bamboo from the mountains.


    Luckily, Xiao Qi, the cultural center teacher, surprisingly introduced them to a two-bedroom apartment. Though it''s on the ground floor, it comes with an irregular little courtyard and a reasonable rent. Upon inquiring, they found out that the surrounding apartments were much pricier. Xiao Qi''s teacher, referred to as Director Zhou, mentioned that they were looking for someone to help with inspecting the property, so they didn''t charge a high price.


    "I''ve eaten already. Look, I''ve brought you some good news," Liang Huaying said as she took out a newspaper from her leather handbag and handed it to Sheng Juanhua.


    Sheng Juanhua wiped her hands and took it, then passed it to Su Youfu.


    Although her husband was more educated than her, Sheng Juanhua lacked confidence despite studying hard these past few days.


    Su Youfu took the newspaper and glanced at it. It was the Capital Evening News. He wondered what relevance news from the capital city had to a farmer like him. As he skimmed through, he noticed a prominently displayed photo of someone riding a horse.


    Upon closer inspection, he realized he recognized the person.


    "This... this... could it be our daughter?" Su Youfu exclaimed.


    Sheng Juanhua leaned over to take a look. "Mother is more attentive than father."


    "Yes, that''s our Xiao Qi!" Sheng Juanhua confirmed at a glance, despite the helmet covering her head.


    Liang Huaying had heard from her daughter Jiajia that Xiao Qi had participated in a horse racing competition. Jiajia was Xiao Qi''s biggest fan and always kept track of her activities, almost instantly knowing everything. Curious, Liang Huaying had asked about Xiao Qi''s recent activities, never expecting that her daughter would even win first place in a horse race. It was simply astonishing...


    Even though he often thought he had become numb to surprises, hearing this news still shocked Su Youfu. Was horse racing really that easy? Could one simply win a championship so casually?


    Liang Huaying genuinely admired Xiao Qi and wanted to impress Su Youfu as well. Upon learning that Xiao Qi had made it into the Capital Evening News, she purposely bought a copy of the newspaper to give to the couple.


    "Indeed, it''s your Xiao Qi. I always thought she was good at studying, but I never imagined she could also ride horses. To have horse riding featured in the newspaper, your future is bright," Liang Huaying remarked.


    "Horse riding? Xiao Qi has never ridden before," Su Youfu said, still puzzled. There were no horses in their village, only a single mule, a donkey, and two water buffalo. He had never seen his daughter ride any of them.


    Sheng Juanhua immediately patted her husband''s arm and said, "Don''t you remember when our daughter was three years old? You put her on a big dog, and she rode it so well, going quite far without falling."


    Su Youfu vaguely remembered this incident and hurriedly nodded in agreement.


    The couple thanked Liang Huaying repeatedly and even offered her a meal, but she politely declined, claiming to have other matters to attend to. She left after leaving the newspaper with them.


    The couple sat on the sofa, laughing foolishly as they read the newspaper. After a while, Su Youfu slapped his forehead and said, "Wife, the water''s cold. Let me fetch a fresh basin for you."


    "Why bother washing? Let''s go buy more newspapers instead. We should stock up; this is our daughter''s newspaper. It''s good to have some spare copies to read whenever," Sheng Juanhua suggested.


    With that, Su Youfu became anxious too.


    The couple forgot about eating and rushed out separately to buy more newspapers, planning to search every newsstand and place that sold newspapers in town.

 Chapter 320: You Like Me

    Chapter 320


    During self-study period, the streetlights on the school campus were very bright.


    Facing confessions, roommates can be enthusiastic but still can''t help.


    Not to mention the one being confessed to was Li Weijin, whom they secretly nicknamed "Chick". Even the lively Honey didn''t make mischief and pulled the roommates away, leaving Xiao Qi alone.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    What is this feeling that''s even more nervous than taking an exam?


    It''s been a long time since I felt nervous. Now I even want to run to the bathroom again...


    Xiao Qi felt like her condition was hard to cure. Now facing Li Weijin alone, she wanted to run to the bathroom. In the future, even when starting a relationship and about to kiss, she would suddenly yell, wait a minute... let me go to the bathroom first!


    The relationship would probably be ready to break up then.


    Can''t lose momentum, Xiao Qi endured the embarrassing urge to go to the bathroom, telling herself repeatedly in her heart that it''s a psychological problem and she didn''t really need to go to the bathroom, just feeling nervous.


    Thinking this way did make her feel much better, not as urgent anymore.


    By now the two had walked under a streetlight.


    The canteen was still crowded, even more awkward.


    No wonder people in relationships like to sneak into woods, less people there.


    Li Weijin was truly good-looking with black half-inch long hair, cleanly parted. The front tuft of hair lined up just above his eyebrows, which were very attractive themselves, neat and clean. His eyes shone like stars, skin fair. Nose straight, lips slightly red. Features very regular. Ears tilted out a bit, showing the rim from the front, not like protruding ears, just some cute naughtiness on his face.


    His whole demeanor was a bit serious, but didn''t affect his handsomeness at all. Belonging to the type that''s good-looking at first glance, even better at second glance, and by the third glance, wow, so handsome...


    Not only was his face well-shaped, his figure was also extremely fit. His legs seemed an extra section longer than others, close to six foot eight... Despite wearing baggy pants, his tall and long legs showed no shortcoming like ordinary people wearing baggy pants looking like a scout boy.


    On top a long-sleeved T, with a little bee pattern on the chest, also not appearing feminine on him, just making the little bee look cute and lovable.


    In fact these were just Xiao Qi''s cursory observations. Li Weijin rarely wore the same outfit when she saw him, but always looked good, seemingly very tasteful.


    Compared to him, Xiao Qi''s clothes seemed repetitive. Even new clothes didn''t differ much from old ones, as she tended to pick similar styles.


    The desire for beauty lies in all, and here liking beauty probably doesn''t just mean enjoying dressing up, more likely the literal meaning of enjoying good-looking people. Diiscover new stories at novelhall.com


    With all these chaotic thoughts running through her mind as they walked.


    Deep down Xiao Qi still felt she was that little girl from Gumula Village. She had a childhood photo wearing a red sweater on top and green pants below, with a pair of red plastic rain boots, holding a small flower umbrella, face flushed, smiling very bashfully. She stood on a mud doorstep, behind her an old, broken door. She smiled in the picture, eyes big and round, pitch black, but the background was worn down and the little flower umbrella broken too, just like those poster children for charity projects demanding no photoshopping at all.


    An odd sense of contrast.


    The same little girl enjoying being pretty, same smile, same attractive eyes, different background, different dress, different environment, highlighting an inexplicable heart-wrenching feeling.


    On the night his voice seemed cool as ice cream, icy yet sweet.


    At this time Xiao Qi could still think of ice cream, wandering far in her mind.


    Yet she still swiftly answered, "That''s just because you''re good-looking."


    Li Weijin shook his head. "No, you do like me. You look at me the same way you look at the braised pork ribs with fermented bean sauce in the cafeteria."


    He had carefully observed Su Xiaoqi, at meals or classes, always subtly running into her, though there were unlikely so many coincidences, but deliberate, prepared encounters.


    Su Xiaoqi''s favorite item at the school cafeteria was absolutely those braised pork ribs with fermented bean sauce, the number one on her food list, followed distantly by rice, noodles, braised pork, braised steak, shredded beef with green peppers...


    Hearing braised pork ribs with fermented bean sauce, Xiao Qi immediately pictured a chunk of meat, square about four inches wide, marble white fat streaking through, already reddened by the sauce, crimson fermented bean sauce dripping down, the meat wobbling as it sat. The cafeteria didn''t serve this dish every day, maybe twice a week. Sometimes if she came late, it''d be sold out.


    If arriving early, she could pick bigger chunks with more fat.


    Biting in, bones crunched against teeth, truly ecstasy for the soul.


    Xiao Qi''s taste perception sharp, sense of smell excellent, highly demanding of ingredients and cooking method. This ordinary-seeming braised pork ribs with fermented bean sauce from the cafeteria surprisingly satisfied her preferences on all fronts, fresh yet unique, making her eyes light up whenever she saw the menu had it, as someone with sharp senses able to appreciate more flavors and more enjoyment when tasting something delicious.


    Her throat involuntarily swallowed some saliva. As they turned another corner, even with Xiao Qi''s head still facing straight ahead, she would inadvertently steal a glance at Li Weijin beside her.


    Timeless beauty.


    Especially under the shaded ambiguous lighting, that white skin, moist eyes, tall height, slender neck, her throat again treasonously swallowed saliva...


    Then she noticed Li Weijin smiling bemusedly.


    Like suddenly spotting the first flowering mountain tea on a morning mountain hike, pure yet tantalizing, alluring yet untouchable.


    She caught a faint whiff of Li Weijin''s nice scent, some aroma...


    "You put on cologne?"


    Li Weijin nodded, "Herme?s White Cedar."


    "Smells like ginseng chicken soup." Su Xiaoqi commented.


    Li Weijin''s face turned unusually red for a moment: "The snow white ginseng has the taste of ginseng, you like me, you want to eat me."


    Su Xiaoqi wished she could slap herself on the ear to divert the topic.


    "No," she denied.


    Li Weijin did not leave but stood there, and Su Xiaoqi also stopped, forced to look at him.


    "Then try to like me for a moment, I''m very likable."

 Chapter 321: Love Again

    Chapter 321


    Xiao Qi ran away......ran away.


    She ran at a speed that would break the marathon record.


    Li Weijin''s classmate simply couldn''t keep up......


    Xiao Qi shamelessly ran a circle around the sports field, then ran back to the classroom for evening self-study.


    Li Weijin also went back for evening self-study.


    Seeing Xiao Qi with a serious face, earnestly doing homework and going through English test papers, he felt both angry and amused.


    He had thought he was dense, but it turned out a certain someone was even denser.


    And seeing the two return in batches, Mi''er suppressed the huge gossip in her heart - after all, Zai Zai classmate belonged to all the girls, if she yelled, Xiao Qi would probably get into more trouble, better to keep quiet and make a fortune.


    Mi''er looked at the careless, easy-going but actually delicate, considerate Xiao Qi who always made people around her feel at ease.


    In contrast, her dorm mate Chu Yu had the opposite temperament - if her roommates had even a small issue, Chu Yu would exclaim in surprise.


    For example, through her accidental, careless leaks, Mi''er found out that her roommate Su Li had spent several nights out, seeming to interact closely with many male friends. Also, another roommate Lin Dongqing seemed to be a leader''s daughter, but her father seemed to be in trouble, put under shuanggui, probably involving corruption charges.


    Anyway, these were things the kind-hearted, simple Chu Yu accidentally revealed, not intentionally......


    In Xiao Qi''s opinion, being Chu Yu''s roommate was disastrous in eight lifetimes.


    Su Li was just a little arrogant, not to the extent of rumors of promiscuity.


    And what did Lin Dongqing have to do with her father''s issues? He was her father, she was herself, she couldn''t be denied education just because her father was in trouble, moreover the allegations were uncertain.


    Finally enduring until the end of self-study, they didn''t even stop for late night snacks, Mi''er dragged Xiao Qi back to the dorm, Wei Cheng and Gu Yunshu also packed up and went back together.


    Li Weijin didn''t follow, he felt he couldn''t catch up, like the saying goes, no need to rush things, he suddenly became enlightened, feeling he had unblocked his meridians and his mind cleared up.


    Back at the dorm, there was no interrogation, roommates still feared Xiao Qi a bit - although she usually seemed very easy to talk to, obedient and cute, she had inexplicably become the boss.


    Roommates were very curious, extremely curious.


    Xiao Qi also didn''t know what to say - was there anything? Actually nothing happened, but it seemed something did, anyway she was still confused, tangled up.


    She didn''t know what was going on.


    Back at the dorm, she practiced writing many more pages than usual, feeling restless, her writing more erratic than usual.


    Among the loud laughter, roughly some understood, some pretended to understand without really getting it, some just laughed along.


    What Professor Mao said still referred to matching conditions, though she online dated her partner was still high quality to start, filtered, not random like nowadays, all possibilities existed behind the internet.


    At least this was little Xiao Qi''s understanding for now, maybe as she grew up in future she would gain other insights.


    Basically once class ended everyone fled like their butts were on fire.


    Mainly because she didn''t know how to face Li Weijin.


    Yet seeing Li Weijin not catching up, Xiao Qi again didn''t know how she felt.


    No afternoon classes, Xiao Qi decided to go horseback riding, Wei Cheng going to the theater, so Xiao Qi went alone.


    She felt riding horses would also be good, estimated she could think through things then - galloping on horseback body and mind seemed to take flight, more relaxed feeling.


    That afternoon she wore a goose yellow tracksuit given to her by Mi''er''s family, superb quality, unlabeled though price at factory states was cheap as dirt. A whole set of quality goose yellow tracksuits, comfortable, colorfast when washing, Mi''er had only charged eighty bucks for it. Secretively said the same thing once stocked in shops with a brand tagged would cost over five hundred.


    Anyway she brought them for roommates, they looked great after wearing these causing business sales to skyrocket, so also not taking advantage of roommates but rather roommates helping her advertise, very smart business sense.


    Xiao Qi looked gorgeous in the goose yellow too - fair skin complemented the bright color for a lively young girl vibe.


    Balanced out Xiao Qi''s normally slightly stern image, rare soft and cute.


    Hair was casually plaited in a small pigtail at her forehead, bit of a cool air.


    As Xiao Qi become famous, this hairstyle seemed to quietly rise in popularity at Enhua University among both guys and girls, still often spottable around campus.


    However, Xiao Qi had just tied her hair up in a little bun to keep her bangs out of her eyes, she didn''t expect it to become a trend.


    When she arrived at the stables, the drum beater had not yet returned from the capital where he had gone to undergo some checkups, so he would be back later. The coach was also not there today... Apparently he had taken some money and gone out partying, feeling too rich to resist. In short, the coach was nowhere to be seen in the stables, having asked for a week off...


    Xiao Qi looked over the horses in the stables, rather like an emperor selecting a concubine to spend the night. Finally she chose Taylor.


    The jet black Taylor trotted out quite cheerfully, rubbing his head against Xiao Qi.


    Unexpectedly, Chairman Xiao also wanted to go horseback riding, and had come to select Seal.


    Xiao Qi had originally intended to gallop around wildly on Taylor''s back, but with the Chairman there, she reined in her speed to accommodate his pace, contentedly riding alongside him at a sedate circle around the grounds, savoring the feeling of wind in their faces looking out to sea. It engendered a particularly pleasant sensation.


    The two rode side by side on their horses.


    Xiao Shengzhou suddenly asked, "Xiao Qi, what do you think of me?"

 Chapter 322: The Future Awaits

    Chapter 322


    Xiao Shengzhou came back from the capital and went home for a while.


    He rarely ran into his uncle Xiao Yu.


    Uncle Xiao was in a hurry at home and was going to go out after sitting for a while. Xiao Shengzhou went out with him.


    They got into uncle Xiao''s flashy red sports car.


    Xiao Yu looked at his nephew sitting in the passenger seat dissatisfied.


    "I only keep this seat for the girl I love."


    Xiao Shengzhou: "..."


    "Uncle, is the girl you love different every time??"


    "No, generally the passenger seat of one car is occupied by the same girl for a period of time. If there are two girls at the same time, I would change to another car. I''m still relatively faithful."


    Xiao Shengzhou: "..."


    "Do you still remember your equestrian coach Steven?"


    "Who?" Xiao Yu knocked his head, "Oh, that equestrian coach? He''s still at your equestrian club? You''re quite capable."


    "Uncle, haven''t you checked WeChat moments recently?" Xiao Shengzhou felt helpless.


    Xiao Yu really hadn''t checked recently. Lately he met a high-level green tea girl who liked playing games, was a bit lazy, and liked raising cats and dogs.


    Usually straight men would think:


    Likes playing games = frank and straightforward personality


    A bit lazy = cute and harmless


    Likes raising cats and dogs = kind-hearted


    But in the eyes of veterans in identifying green tea girls:


    Likes playing games = has many male friends


    A bit lazy = no independent job or normal income


    Likes raising cats and dogs = likes to live a superior life Diiscover new stories at novelhall.comrade Xiao Yu can be said to be a veteran in dating. Naturally he could tell with one glance, but this girl looked pretty and was his type. He just liked this kind of girl, so he was still very attentive to her.


    You like my money, I like your looks: a perfect match!


    ¡°My boy, if you like someone, you should boldly pursue her.¡± Xiao Yu patted his nephew on the shoulder after making the gesture.


    ¡°Uncle, please focus on driving. Thanks.¡±


    "Xiao Qi, what do you think of me?"


    When Xiao Shengzhou returned to the equestrian club, he didn''t hesitate for too long. Seeing Xiao Qi come over, he went up and asked directly.


    He was in his senior year of university.


    He had been the student union chairman for three and a half years. He almost got this position shortly after he entered university and kept it for many years.


    It was rare for a freshman to become the student union chairman since the school was founded.


    Xiao Shengzhou was very capable. He handled things carefully and never made mistakes when dealing with the student union, school and clubs¡¯ affairs as well as his own stuff.


    He always did things in an orderly manner, going with the tide cleverly. He also didn¡¯t have emotional problems because he felt he hadn¡¯t found the right person.


    Hearing what his uncle said, he suddenly realized it.


    He rode horses round after round with Xiao Qi before finally asking the question.


    Upon hearing this question, Xiao Qi almost froze.


    Fortunately, her horse riding skills were superb, otherwise she would have fallen off the horseback.


    What was happening recently?


    It was understandable that Li Wei Jin would say something like this. Li Wei Jin always caught people off guard. But the steady student union chairman would actually say something like this too.


    "I admire you very much and I like you. You are very self-disciplined, excellent, hardworking and upward moving. You also have a good impression of me. I think we would go well together. It wouldn¡¯t be dramatic or troublesome, but very relaxing." Xiao Shengzhou said.


    He was considering it from a long-term perspective. He liked this girl Su Xiao Qi and felt she was someone he could spend his whole life with. Even if it wasn¡¯t for a lifetime, they were suitable to be together for the long run.


    Xiao Qi blushed a little hearing the praise from the chairman. She felt she was very ordinary and mediocre. Though many of her grades looked good to others, she had to spend much more time and energy than others to barely reach a level close to theirs. She was neither smart nor excellent, just more persevering.


    Still it felt nice to be praised like this.


    But being together?


    Xiao Qi had never thought about it before.


    She admired the chairman. Hearing what he said, it seemed like it would be good for them to be together, promising for the future. Chairman handled everything steadily so she guessed she wouldn¡¯t need to worry. She wouldn¡¯t cause much trouble either. Being together with mutual fondness and admiration sounded rational. But it seemed to lack something... no skipping heartbeats or ardent love.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi understood the difference between her feelings towards Li Wei Jin and the chairman.


    She could easily rattle off a list of the Chairman''s good qualities, but when it came to Li Wei Jin, she could only stammer that he was good-looking.


    She suddenly realized that the reason she couldn''t articulate his good points was because her heart had been stirred, while the smooth recital of the Chairman''s virtues was due to the fact that she had never considered him in any other way...

 Chapter 323: In a Heartbeat

    Chapter 323


    The setting sun went down.


    The golden rays shone brightly.


    The wind blew Xiao Shengzhou''s bangs into a mess.


    Xiao Shengzhou led his horse back home.


    Behind him were the waves rushing into the sea inlet.


    He was rejected. He was actually rejected. His first sincere and solemn confession in his life, a very serious confession, was rejected.


    There were no tears of anguish or anything like that, he was not that sad, he just felt a little unbelievable.


    He was a very thoughtful person, and handled everything and everyone in a thoughtful manner.


    From his observation over this period of time, Su Xiaoqi did not have a boyfriend or ambiguous partner. She was very disciplined and worked very hard, making use of every fragment of time to study. Excellent people were not born that way, there must be effort put in, this was the philosophy Xiao Shengzhou had always adhered to.


    So he admired this young girl, from the very beginning when she was not afraid of dirt or tiredness and worked hard, to later when he discovered her bits and pieces of excellence, his admiration grew into liking, it was a natural feeling.


    The future life he envisioned would be very relaxing, even if he graduated in his fourth year it would not matter, he had great trust in Su Xiaoqi.


    He felt that this young girl also had affection for him.


    Her expression was very worshipful when looking at him, yes, he could feel that kind of emotion.


    They were both sober people, they did not need extra courting and chasing, or extra moods every few days, he felt being together like this was great, they could improve together, and life would definitely get better and better.


    He imagined many, many things, the only thing he did not consider was that Xiaoqi actually rejected him.


    Not like other girls who were sticky and ambiguous, or played nice, she rejected very straightforwardly.


    She asked: "President Xiao, when you see me do you feel your heart race? Does your heartbeat quicken? Do you feel shy?"


    Xiao Shengzhou: ......


    He was already a senior in his fourth year, not a freshman, he admired Su Xiaoqi and was sure he liked her, it was not fake, although there was no accelerated heartbeat, shyness, or heart-throbbing feeling, but what did it matter?


    He shook his head, unwilling to deceive Su Xiaoqi.


    Xiaoqi also shook her head with a smile: "I don''t have a heart-throbbing feeling towards President Xiao either, my heartbeat doesn''t quicken, I''m not shy, so I''m sure, I don''t have that kind of affection towards President Xiao, so I can''t agree to your request."


    After the young girl finished speaking, she rode away on her horse.


    Su Youfu didn''t really understand there was such a thing, but he listened to his wife very much.


    The couple fumbled with their cellphones, Sheng Juanhua had no education but her mind worked well, she managed to download Meituan, found the errand running service, and actually successfully placed an order.


    "Sir, that newspaper is hard to buy, it''s not today''s paper, now newspapers are ordered specially by units, the newsstands definitely won''t have them, I''ll try to find a unit that might have this newspaper for you, but it''ll take me a long time to run this errand for you, not cost effective."


    The young man on the phone spoke very fluently.


    Sheng Juanhua had it on speakerphone, looking at her man.


    Su Youfu nodded.


    "Alright, if you can buy it I''ll give you an extra red envelope."


    This errand runner later really brought eleven copies of the newspaper, Sheng Juanhua reluctantly gave an extra twenty yuan for the errand fee.


    But the couple had also opened the door to a new world, you really could pay to have someone do work.


    They placed another errand order.


    This time the errand runner was very capable, directly said: "Sir I found a government agency that has this newspaper, they have fifty copies, but they want five yuan per copy, do you want it?"


    When Sheng Juanhua heard five yuan, simply outrageous, the newspaper only cost one or two yuan usually, and they wanted more for the expired papers.


    Su Youfu gritted his teeth and said: "Get it, as many as possible."


    The couple went through repeated troubles, and even bought at five yuan per copy, plus various errand fees, in the end they collected a total of eighty-two copies of the Beijing Evening News.


    Now they carefully flattened each copy and laid them out.


    Su Youfu inspected each one, every copy had his daughter''s photo.


    Just looking at it satisfied him completely.


    "When the shop opens, take a copy of the newspaper and frame it, hang it in the store, keep the rest carefully put away." Su Youfu said solemnly.


    After speaking, he laughed heartily, laughing at himself: "Can also hang one at home, in the living room, anyone who comes can see it, our Xiaoqi made the newspapers."


    "No, the living room is for ancestral portraits, let''s hang it in the kitchen." Sheng Juanhua gave her opinion.


    "Can''t do that, too much smoke and oil fumes in the kitchen, it''ll be ruined. Forget it, hang it upstairs, in the bedroom upstairs, for us to see, don''t let others see." Su Youfu laughed.


    After putting the newspapers away carefully in a box.


    Su Youfu merrily went to pour foot bath water, still singing loudly and sonorously: "Who brought the ancient call... who left the millennium yearning... Alashan, that''s the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau..."Re?Ad lateSt chapters at novelhall.com Only

 Chapter 324: The Scent of the Earth

    Chapter 324


    Returning to the old district, Xiao Qi first went to the canteen.


    Although many students were unwilling to go to the canteen and would go to the student street to eat after eating there for a while, since the flavors were more diverse on the student street, Xiao Qi still preferred to go to the canteen.


    After all, the quality of the bosses on the student street was uneven, and the climate in the Alliance City was very hot. Some bosses were unwilling to throw away spoiled ingredients and added stuff to make dishes that ordinary people could not taste anything wrong with, which was simply a disaster for Xiao Qi with such an extremely sensitive sense of smell and taste. Eating there once would give her a psychological shadow for a long time.


    Although the canteen only had one flavor all the time and the prices were not cheaper than the student street, there basically would not be things like spoiled ingredients happening.


    When Xiao Qi arrived at the canteen, there was no braised pork ribs in fermented bean sauce that she liked. Of course - such delicious food would have been bought up by others. Since she came late, there definitely would not be any left.


    However, since even the plates for the fermented bean sauce were not there, it should not have been made today. Xiao Qi heard from the uncle at the canteen that the ribs were specially purchased from a meat shop in town, and were not available every day.


    Otherwise she could have gotten some sauce to mix with rice, which was also delicious.


    She bought two meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, two soups, a bowl of rice, a big steamed bun - enough for three young girls to eat. For Xiao Qi this was just right.


    She had to run every day for exercise and consumed a lot of energy. Also, since she was young, her appetite was naturally big.


    Coming late, there were not many people left in the canteen. Xiao Qi chose a window seat that had an excellent view of Enhua Lake and a very stylish large bridge spanning across it.


    On the other side of the bridge was a stretch of green sports field. On both sides of the sports field there were rows of small red buildings - the male student dormitories.


    Enhua University occupied a vast area of land and thus was very open and broad-minded in allocating space. The male and female student dormitories were separated quite far, with a whole lake in between, to prevent any undesirable incidents from happening.


    Looking at the male student dormitory, Xiao Qi inevitably thought of her classmate Li Weijin.


    Fortunately he did not run into her here today, but she actually felt a little empty when relaxing.


    Perhaps women were all hesitant creatures like this.


    Oh well, Xiao Qi ate her dishes in big bites without thinking too much.


    Today Xiao Qi wore a plaid shirt and khaki pants, with black slippers.


    As expected, her legs looked a mile long again. The plaid shirt also made her feel more composed and steady than usual, fair skin setting off the cute schoolgirl. Earnest little schoolgirl, even.


    When she entered the elective class, she saw a boy who seemed to glow from head to toe ...wide plaid shirt like hers, probably wearing black pants too.


    No need to look up, Su Xiaoqi knew it was him.


    His hair was very dark, looked very soft.


    He had changed his cologne scent today. Grapefruit-like, with a slightly tart bitter orange note, and a pine tree scent, also faint pepper, barely-there cologne. An ordinary person might not even smell it out, but Xiao Qi not only smelled it but discerned its nuances. Overall it was very refreshing and invigorating, with an open outdoorsy feel, evoking the experience of lying on the grass, inhaling the herbal scents and gazing up at the clouds drifting by in a bright blue sky.


    Seeing Xiao Qi come in, he raised his head and revealed a smile.


    Xiao Qi: ......


    Her footsteps even faltered slightly, her right foot nearly treading upon her left.


    Finally realizing why some people seldom smiled: because that smile brought calamity and disaster, making people unable stop themselves from walking right up to pinch his cheeks admiringly. So attractive.


    Such white teeth, darling dimple, eyes curving into crescents, stars glittering inside.


    Just a slight smile from him, followed by a raised hand in greeting.


    Xiao Qi rather awkwardly took a desk not far from his.


    She was used to sitting up front, near the center, which allowed better communication with the teacher. Especially for small language classes like this: not listening attentively meant easily falling behind if you missed something.


    And Li Weijin sat not far in front.


    Xiao Qi took out notebook and textbook, thinking it was fine after all, same class but not sitting together, same as usual classes, or her mind would have kept wandering.


    Yet when the Spanish teacher came in, Li Weijin unexpectedly stood up with his bag and casually went over to take the seat beside her.

 Chapter 325: Three Nos

    Chapter 325


    Aizhen''s face revealed a faint smile, an uncommon sight, as she watched the young couple sitting in the front row.


    Aizhen was very thin, not in an ordinary girl''s slender way, but rather giving off an emaciated feeling. Her legs were probably as thick as a slightly fat person''s arms, thin in an unhealthy way. Actually, a few years ago, she had suffered from anorexia due to health issues, which was why she always gave people the impression of having lost too much weight.


    However, she dressed very sophisticately with an elegant temperament and well-behaved actions and manners.


    Young people are so nice. Watching the male and female students at the front table, all wearing plaid shirts, put Aizhen in an even better mood.


    "Today I will introduce you to Federico Garci?a Lorca, a famous Spanish poet," Aizhen said in English.


    Li Weijin''s English was pretty good. He had originally planned to study abroad but after taking the IELTS exam several times and still not getting a satisfactory score, those plans fell through. However, his spoken English was quite good since his annoying older brother often mocked him in English. His mother was also quite exaggerated. Because she loved luxury goods, she insisted on learning English herself and would chat with the family in English from time to time so she could understand what they were saying.


    But Li Weijin really didn''t have any experience with Spanish. He knew Xiao Qi had taken it as an elective, which was why he had deliberately come to this class.


    He knew Xiao Qi was very serious and didn''t like frivolous people. Although he had come today, he also planned to listen carefully in class and not disrupt Xiao Qi since they were sitting at the same table. That shouldn''t affect her, right? Xiao Qi was so diligent.


    Xiao Qi: ...It actually was distracting.


    She wasn''t used to sitting next to a sweet-smelling boy.


    But learning came first during class. The teacher was already here, so she didn''t want to argue with Li Weijin either. She just listened attentively.


    "There is a city in Spain called Granada. Granada''s city emblem contains a pomegranate. In Spanish, ''pomegranate'' is said ''granada''," Aizhen said gently. Her way of speaking English also had a melodious narration-like quality. She taught without pretense, imperceptibly imparting knowledge in a deeply memorable way.


    "The city of Granada is extremely romantic. You could say Lorca''s poetry collections walk the streets of Granada, with his verses found everywhere. Today we''re learning one of Lorca''s most famous poems, ''Three Water Songs'', which is carved on a simple little bridge over the Genil River on the riverbank. I''ll recite it in English first, then in Spanish. It''s a very beautiful poem, perfect for people in love," Aizhen said. Then she surprisingly grinned mischievously. She was in a very good mood today.


    Xiao Qi felt a little embarrassed hearing her teacher say that, but she really liked this kind of class.


    Without needing to do anything special, just gaining knowledge felt very beautiful to her.


    Without much reading or traveling experience, how would she know about Spain, or about a Spanish city called Granada, or that the city''s emblem contained a pomegranate, and that the Spanish word for pomegranate was ''granada''? Talking about it like this made it sound romantic and wonderful, and she had learned a new word - the Spanish pronunciation for pomegranate.


    Aizhen recited it passionately. It was like a love poem, yet not like one - the casual nature of foreign poetry, describing the scenery of a foreign land, along with the people and stories in that scenery.


    Xiao Qi listened attentively.


    Aizhen taught conscientiously as well, preparing lesson plans and PPT slides. Images of the city of Granada appeared on the blackboard as a backdrop, with a close-up of the poem on the bridge. English captions flashed on the slides and Xiao Qi swiftly copied them down.


    Next, Aizhen recited the Spanish version, even more authentic, not just like a poem but like an easily intoxicating aged wine, a candy with a slightly sour aftertaste, a juicy sugarcane.


    Xiao Qi enjoyed this kind of class, so beautiful.


    She felt like she was not only learning a language, but also undergoing another kind of learning and growth, a type of edification from knowledge, something that would give her more confidence on her life''s path in the future, although she didn''t know what to call it right now.


    After cunningly sitting down next to Xiao Qi, Li Weijin didn''t dare disturb her again, knowing Xiao Qi wouldn''t chase him away out of respect for the teacher. He also listened carefully and took notes diligently, looking every bit the model student. In truth, he didn''t understand some parts very well since his English wasn''t as good as Xiao Qi''s - many words were obscure to him. But he would copy the teacher''s PPT slides and lesson plans, writing everything down carefully.


    His beautiful orange Herme?s notebook, Tiffany blue Montblanc pen, handsome hand - everything about him from head to toe was exquisite. Even his diligent note-taking was a visual treat. Xiao Qi would occasionally glimpse from the corner of her eye but didn''t say anything.


    She just felt this guy was more fragrant than Honey, and he smelled really nice too. Honey''s shampoo and shower gel scents were quite strong. She liked to run around and sweat a lot, so there was a slight body odor sometimes. But Li Weijin next to her was very fresh, without any sweaty smell, just a faint pleasant scent, subtle, like this poem.


    Xiao Qi''s mind wandered a little, but for some reason, she felt like her learning efficiency was even higher than usual this class. She practically memorized the teacher''s recited poem after hearing it once, though the Spanish version was still difficult.


    Then the bell rang signaling class was over. Aizhen also closed her lesson plan, saying they would thoroughly analyze the poem next class.


    When class ended, Li Weijin was actually a little nervous, worried Xiao Qi would switch seats, so he spoke first: "I promise I won''t disturb you, affect you, or hold you back from learning."


    Seeing his model student, goody-two-shoes act, Xiao Qi didn''t know whether to laugh or cry.


    "We''re not the same. I heard you''re planning to go abroad after passing the IELTS. But I''m not planning to go abroad. I want to apply for graduate school at a top university in Beijing or Shanghai. I don''t plan to have a long distance relationship, so we''re not suitable," Xiao Qi said.


    From the lessons taught by the retired professors from top Beijing and Shanghai universities that Enhua had hired, Xiao Qi realized they were extremely brilliant. Their teaching was thought-provoking and enlightening. If she could attend a top university in Beijing or Shanghai, it would definitely be something amazing and impressive. So Xiao Qi wanted to go to those schools.


    Before, it had just been a vague idea, but saying it out loud to her classmate Li Weijin today made Xiao Qi suddenly feel more motivated, like she had established a clear short-term goal, giving her life more drive.

 Chapter 326: Sugar, Sugar, Haw

    Chapter 326


    Cuihua Gao woke up in the early morning on the bed with Hermes silk sheets feeling comfortable stretching her plump waist that had lots of fat.


    The silk beddings were so comfortable, but they slid around easily.


    And they got wrinkled after sleeping on them.


    Luckily she didn''t need to make the bed herself since there was an auntie at home responsible for cleaning.


    Although there was a big roll of fat around her belly, her pair of legs were very proportional and looked nice. Wearing tight pants made her legs look long, straight and very firm. No one could tell that she was already over 50, close to 60 years old.


    Cuihua Gao weighed 140 kg. But as long as she hid the fat around her waist, people would believe her when she said she wore size S. Because her face was so deceivingly pretty - she had an oval face, a pointed chin, phoenix eyes, small nose and mouth. She was born with a face that looked naturally slender and beautiful, completely different from her rustic name. She was truly good looking with a casual and elegant temperament. She looked dignified as a bodhisattva when not smiling, and as warm as a girl next door when smiling.


    Her husband, Qianmen Li was already sitting at the dining table reading a newspaper pretentiously when Cuihua Gao came downstairs after washing up. This scene always made her want to laugh. The newspaper couldn''t cover her husband''s round face. Her husband wasn''t a very cultured person either. When he was young, he was extremely handsome. With a face like his, he would accidentally make girls passing by on the street trip and fall in front of him. Re?Ad lateSt chapters at novelhall.com Only


    Some stubborn girls would deliberately fall down in front of him multiple times, but of course Qianmen Li wouldn''t help them up since they weren''t old ladies.


    Now his once handsome face had become wider, rounder and fatter, but one could still vaguely see that he used to be good looking. Otherwise, a 260 kg fat guy wouldn''t give people a feeling of friendliness.


    With Cuihua Gao and Qianmen Li''s weights combined, it would be 400 kg. Their two sons together weighed less than 300 kg.


    Qianmen Li liked to eat you tiao (fried dough sticks) for breakfast, especially those fried in gutter oil from street vendors. At first, he would ask the servant to go out and buy them every morning. Later he was annoyed that the you tiao wouldn''t be hot anymore when the servant came back, so he invited the you tiao hawker to come to his home and personally make them fresh every day.


    Cuihua Gao also liked them. The couple didn''t have good eating habits and would eat whatever unhealthy food they fancied.


    Right now, a tall stack of piping hot you tiao was piled on the Hermes branded plate.


    Qianmen Li could eat 4-5 sticks by himself. Now for health reasons, he limited it to 2.


    Cuihua Gao was also only allowed 2.


    Whenever this happened, the couple felt regretful that they didn''t eat more when they were younger. Now that they were old, they had money but couldn''t indulge as much as they wished.


    As their eldest son Li Tangsong, dressed neatly in a shirt and trousers, came downstairs, he saw his parents happily eating you tiao and soup by the wok...


    Qianmen Li used a clean corner of the newspaper to wipe his mouth, then saw his eldest son''s odd expression. He calmly put down the newspaper again and picked up the napkin on the table to wipe his mouth once more.


    Li Tangsong''s eyebrow twitched. He was used to his dad wiping his mouth with newspaper. His eyebrow twitched because compared to his nickname Tangtang, his younger brother''s nickname was pathetic. Jijiji? It could easily become JJ... Simply horrendous. He just sympathized with his brother.


    The butler''s eyes didn''t move at all, completely calm. He promptly said, "Young master said he wants to prepare to apply for Tsinghua and Peking University''s graduate programs. He asked me to gather materials for him."


    "Pfft!"


    "Pfft!"


    "Um..."


    The first sound was big brother Li Tangsong, the second was dad Qianmen Li, and the last elegant "um" was mom Cuihua Gao accidentally farting from too much shock.


    The butler''s expression remained unchanged, used to such things.


    "What''s wrong with Zaizai? Is he sick? Or did something upset him? Was he bullied by his classmates?" Cuihua Gao asked puzzledly. She was too agitated and directly used her son''s baby name instead of that evil nickname.


    Butler: ...Your son can only bully others, not be bullied by others...


    "Young master likes a girl who is applying for Tsinghua and Peking University''s graduate programs. Young master said he can''t handle a long distance relationship so he wants to apply for Tsinghua and Peking University too." The butler evenly stated.


    "Pfft..."


    "Pfft..."


    "Pfft..."


    The family of three made the same sound in unison this time.


    Li Tangsong: "In love, Zaizai is actually in a relationship, how could he be so young and already dating? He should be focusing on his studies!"


    Gao Cuihua: "Oh my, Zaizai finally has someone he likes, and it''s a girl too, that''s wonderful. I was always worried it would be a boy."


    Li Qianmen: "Girls are so scary, she must be poisoning him, our Zaizai who never cared for studying now wants to go to a top university for graduate school, he must be under some kind of spell..."

 Chapter 327: : Midterm Exam Results

    Chapter 327


    Li Qianmen was born into a humble background.


    His biggest wish in the past was to plant peach trees and become a well-known millionaire.


    His name was extremely simple as well, because his mother gave birth to him on the way to the hospital, so he was named Li Qianmen.


    He always felt that his name was too casual, so when naming his own son, he made sure to make it sound more cultured.


    When he had his first son, he named him Li Tangsong, representing two dynasties, and giving a sense of history, which was quite high-class.


    When he had his second son, he followed the same naming strategy as the first son, naming him Li Weijin.


    Perhaps the Wei and Jin dynasties were too arduous, and the second child was especially mischievous.


    This caused Li Qianmen and Gao Cuihua a lot of worry.


    Now hearing the butler say that the child wants to take the postgraduate entrance exam, the couple expressed their strong approval.


    Li Tangsong also expressed his approval, although he had some doubts about the motivation for taking the exam.


    Everyone expressed their willingness to help the child successfully pass the exam.


    Li Tangsong called his secretary and asked her to collect all the past entrance exam papers.


    Li Qianmen planned to look around the street near Qingbei University and buy a street.


    Gao Cuihua planned to order a batch of red Hermes haute couture, hoping that it would bring good luck to the child during the exam.


    The butler wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead and took his leave.


    Today was another cloudless sunny day.


    The autumn day was not cool at all, and breakfast was eaten in a sweat.


    Wednesday was the day with the most classes in a week, with classes in the morning and afternoon.


    Although the weather was hot, there were no absentees, because the homeroom teacher said there would be a class meeting today.


    The midterm exam results were out.


    The homeroom teacher was basically absent during normal times, but when she did appear, she always liked to take up a bit of everyone''s free time.


    She seemed easy to talk to, but if anyone was absent, she would take up a lot of the absent person''s free time, having experienced the homeroom teacher''s stubbornness, everyone came obediently.


    After the first two macroeconomics classes in the morning, the homeroom teacher appeared and briefly talked about the midterm exam.


    On Monday, the teachers of each subject basically handed out the papers, and everyone had a rough idea of their scores.


    But no one expected En Hua to be so extreme, not only did she assign fixed seats like in high school, but she also ranked the students, and the scores were openly ranked in each subject, which was simply too malicious for some people.


    Looking at the ranking table projected on the wall by the homeroom teacher, most students felt immense pressure, some had not passed, and had to retake the exam...


    The ranking table was like a roll call, with two numbers marked after each person''s name, the first number was the class ranking, and the second number was the major ranking.


    The class monitor sent the electronic version to the class group for everyone to download to their phones.


    Everyone saw that the study committee member Su Xiaoqi was first in the class and first in the major.


    And the second, third, and fourth in the major were not from their class, the second in the class and fifth in the major was Su Xiaoqi''s roommate Gu Yunshu.


    Finally enduring until the end of the school day, Su Xiaoqi collapsed on her desk and burst into tears¡ªstartling Su Xiaoqi, as she was at the neighboring desk.


    Despite generally disliking Chu Yu''s style, seeing a young girl cry prompted Su Xiaoqi and others, including the vice study committee member, the student in front of Su Xiaoqi, and a few boys from behind, to rush over.


    Su Xiaoqi realized that her dormmates found Chu Yu too affected and distant, though she seemingly had good relationships with male students.


    Chu Yu was genuinely upset. She had always presented herself as an academic achiever, which she couldn''t accomplish in her previous school. However, now at Enhua, she scored high on the college entrance exam¡ªtwo points higher than Su Xiaoqi, according to her careful inquiry. Yet, she ranked only in the thirties overall and even lower in her major. Su Li, her dormmate, scored better.


    Chu Yu even suspected that Su Li might have connections, knowing the exam questions in advance. After all, Su Li played every day and didn''t seem to have time to study.


    Moreover, Su Xiaoqi, who participated in various extracurricular activities and seemed to be everywhere, like a social butterfly, unexpectedly ranked first in the class and major. She had a thirty-point lead over the second place in the major, which felt unfair to Chu Yu.


    And, scoring a perfect hundred in calculus was just absurd. Why would someone who scored a hundred in calculus choose Enhua?


    The more Chu Yu thought about it, the more wronged she felt.


    Feeling wronged, tears finally spilled.


    Now a group of people showed concern for her. Her eyes were red, tears streaming down warmly. She lifted her head, her nose also rosy, and she cried in a way that looked quite charming.


    Upon hearing that she was crying because of poor exam results, Su Xiaoqi''s classmates, including Chen Hanhe, responded in surprise.


    Su Xiaoqi''s friend group, known as Xiaoqi and her gang: ...This is quite something; it feels like we''re back in kindergarten.


    Chen Hanhe, who sat in front of Xiaoqi, immediately comforted her, "You said you weren''t feeling well those days. With your health issues, it must be that you fell ill again, so you didn''t do well on the exam. Don''t be sad."


    A bunch of boys joined in to console her, saying that it''s okay if your health is not good, and it''s not her fault.


    Seeing so many people comforting her, Xiaoqi and her friends didn''t want to join in the commotion. They quickly rushed to the cafeteria, fearing that if they were late, all the delicious food would be gone.


    When Xiaoqi and her roommates had secured a good spot by the window, bought their meals, and were ready to eat, Chu Yu and her group finally arrived.


    Chu Yu walked up to Su Xiaoqi, tears still in her eyes, and said, "I will definitely do better next time."


    Xiaoqi was busy devouring her food, and Chu Yu suddenly said this, leaving her utterly confused.


    If you want to do well, just do well. Xiaoqi wasn''t her mother; why was Chu Yu saying this to her?


    Finally managing to swallow her food, Xiaoqi said, "If your health is not good, you can jog more. I used to have poor health too, really. Next time, you won''t have to perform poorly just because of your health."


    Xiaoqi''s words were sincere; her physical condition used to be not that great, and having subpar performance during exams was a common occurrence. Health is the foundation of everything.


    However, Chu Yu interpreted it differently. She felt that Su Xiaoqi was insinuating that she faked being unwell, using it as an excuse.


    Tears rolled down Chu Yu''s face, repeating, "I will definitely do better next time."


    Although she wanted to say she would outperform Xiaoqi next time, she ultimately didn''t dare to utter those words.


    Turning around, she walked away, followed by a group of people.


    Among them, Chen Hanhe, the loyal follower, was detained by Mier.


    "What''s wrong with her? She deliberately came to Xiaoqi, cried, looked strong and wronged, making it seem like Xiaoqi bullied her."


    Chen Hanhe didn''t understand either, just instinctively defending, "No way, you''re thinking too much. Probably, she wants to learn from the class monitor because she topped the exam."


    "Ah, with so many ulterior motives, even if she puts one-thousandth of that into studying, I doubt she could surpass our Xiaoqi, who''s probably number one in the major." Mier''s voice was anything but quiet.


    "Pfft!" Honest guy Wei Cheng accidentally sprayed rice everywhere.

 Chapter 328: Sour

    Chapter 328


    After school, student Li Weijin was not going directly to the cafeteria, but was called away by the steward. Yo?ur favorite stories at novelhall.com


    Looking at the cart full of textbooks and exercise books brought by the steward, he felt that he would probably need to apply for another dormitory, there was simply no room to put them down.


    What he was facing now was not the problem of the postgraduate entrance exam, but make-up exams...midterm make-up exams...how embarrassing.


    For the first time in his life, Li Weijin experienced a kind of shame that only failing students would have, it felt very humiliating.


    Just yesterday he told Xiao Qi that he also wanted to take the postgraduate entrance exam, he said he had never done anything seriously in his life, he wanted to do this well.


    But the next day the midterm results came out, he failed three subjects, and he was at the bottom of the entire major...he needed to take make-up exams.


    While the girl he liked was the top student of the major, he felt very proud yet also very ashamed.


    Should he ask the steward to find make-up exam materials for him first now?


    When the young master made this request, the steward wiped the nonexistent cold sweat on his forehead quite pared to the young master¡¯s family, the young master was actually quite normal.


    Although his ambitions were a bit high.


    Xiao Shengzhou, as the student union chairman, was also the first in their major for this midterm exam.


    He looked very busy but his studies had never fallen behind, he handled everything smoothly.


    Today the student union cadres were having a meeting. As the retiring chairman, Xiao Shengzhou would come to some of the more important meetings, although he did not appear frequently.


    The midterm exam was a big event for the school. Students with good grades would receive scholarships after the exam. Although the tuition at Enhua University was very expensive, two to three times that of ordinary schools, the rewards were also very generous if you had excellent grades.


    Just for the midterm exam alone, there were various scholarships.


    One of the topics of today¡¯s student union meeting was to discuss how much money to award the top three students of each major as scholarships.


    Xiao Shengzhou got the list of the top three students of each major. Although it was a long list, his eyes fell directly on the name of the first place in the Information Management major, Su Xiaoqi.


    The usually composed Xiao Shengzhou actually stared blankly at this name for a while, lost in thought.


    In fact, he was still a little confused.


    He felt his proposal was good. He was confident that he could give Xiaoqi a safe and happy life. He always made good plans. He also felt they were very compatible through their interactions, they would not feel bored or awkward together. The problem was that they had good feelings for each other, probably...but why couldn¡¯t they be together?


    As for what the girl said about feeling suddenly infatuated, with increased heart rate, did he have that feeling? He didn¡¯t know.


    At the moment when the girl rode away on horseback, he suddenly felt his heart beating exceptionally fast, as if he was sick. Thump thump thump, even when her figure disappeared, his heart was still racing.


    So this girl was not her, there must be someone else.


    At this instant, Li Yu even hated her rational analysis a little.


    But she maintained a calm appearance on the surface, and seriously replied, ¡°Does the chairman have a girl he likes?¡±


    Xiao Shengzhou nodded without hesitation.


    Li Yu continued, ¡°Then it depends on the personality of that girl, it can''t be generalized.¡±


    What was Xiaoqi''s personality like?


    Xiao Shengzhou thought about it. She liked to eat, always eating a lot with great appetite, she could eat even more than him.


    Very hardworking, she seemed to always be studying whenever he saw her, running and horse riding appeared to be her breaks.


    With strong perseverance, she could even complete the marathon on horseback. Very persistent. He always heard Steven praising her at the riding club for learning attentively and persistently without arrogance or impetuosity.


    Were these personality traits?


    They all seemed to be merits. Did she have any shortcomings?


    Xiao Shengzhou thought about it. She had shortcomings for sure. The girl loved money very much in particular and had no sense of security.


    She would always say she participated in competitions for money.


    Then she wanted to buy property as soon as she got the money, liking to buy houses, like an old-school petty landlord. He even brought Xiaoqi to see houses.


    Listening to her hopes for the future, it turned out to be buying many houses to collect rent...


    That could not really be considered a shortcoming in Xiao Shengzhou¡¯s opinion, he found it quite cute.


    Seeing the chairman with a profound expression, seemingly lost in contemplation, Li Yu waited a long time for him. His mouth even showed a faint smile. Seeing the usually serious-looking face reveal such a gentle smile, he seemed especially warm, yet he said, "Nothing much, just a cute girl."


    Xiao Shengzhou did not intend to discuss Xiaoqi with others, and it felt a bit strange to talk about it with a girl.


    Asking so suddenly just now was also a bit vexing for him, so he dropped this topic after opening his mouth.


    Then he brought up the student union¡¯s upcoming matters.


    Li Yu cooperatively followed up with the conversation, but she could not shake the chairman''s earlier expression from her mind. After knowing him for so long, she did not know he could also have such a gentle smile. Seeing it made her heart feel sour.


    At the same time she became even more curious about the girl the chairman liked. Was she from their school?

 Chapter 329: An Introduction to Spanish

    Chapter 329


    Thursday, it was a fine day with fair winds.


    Early in the morning, a light breeze was blowing, the sky was clear for thousands of miles, and it felt very comfortable.


    There were no classes for Xiao Qi in the first two periods today. She had already planned yesterday to go to the library to read books in the morning.


    After the midterm exam ended, most students were like the springs on their foreheads were pulled out, and they became lazy again.


    Chu Yu, who swore to do better next time, sat seriously in her seat to study for a whole night during yesterday''s evening self-study session instead of caring about others left and right as usual. But when she returned to the dormitory, she couldn''t help but open her phone to play games again, comforting herself that work and rest must be combined. If she kept reading books after self-study, she would become a bookworm.


    However, although Xiao Qi¡¯s dormitory accounted for the top five in the class, they were not arrogant.


    Even Xiao Qi, who was the first in her major, felt that there was too much gap between her and those students from famous schools. Let alone those famous schools, even the second and third in her major were not far behind her and could easily catch up.


    As for Yun Shu, who was ranked second in the class and fifth in the major, the gap with Xiao Qi was really big with a score difference of over forty points. However, she was not particularly obsessed with scores and rankings. Since they were dormitory mates, the gap could not be too big. She still felt that she should study harder.


    Wei Cheng was third in the class and directly tenth in the major. She only found out after the exam that the top three in the major would receive scholarships. She cared most about this and felt really upset. It was just that she did not show it like Chu Yu. She wanted to work harder to get the scholarship. It was fine if she could not surpass Xiao Qi, who worked much harder than her. But she could not even surpass her deskmate Yun Shu, who seemed to be reading novels and occasionally making flower arrangements and bubble tea every day very leisurely, yet did better than her on the exam. Wei Cheng felt an urgent need to catch up. Sometimes talent could not be easily judged. She could only make up for inadequacies with diligence. Therefore, the study became even more tense after the midterm exam.


    As for Mi Er, she already felt pretty good about herself for ranking fifth. She thought there was no need to cram for college. Looking at her roommates, none of them were die-hard studiers, yet they were good in all aspects and with decent grades. Although she was at the bottom, she felt a bit embarrassed and still needed to study hard and move upward.


    Therefore, not only did Xiao Qi¡¯s dormitory not slack off after the midterm exam, but they worked even harder.


    Even Mi Er, who liked to go to student unions and societies every day, became a little more low-profile.


    Usually Mi Er would have slept in on a morning with no classes in the first two periods like today. But today, she surprisingly got up early with her English book to go to the rooftop to read with Wei Cheng. Yun Shu really wanted to continue reading the novel she was at an exciting point last night. But seeing her roommates so diligent, she resisted the urge to take out her phone and started studying after making some tea.


    Xiao Qi packed her school bag and jogged to the library, preparing to read books for two class periods at the library.


    She was also under a lot of pressure. She had tried very hard to be the first place. The gap between her and Yun Shu was just over forty points. Yun Shu usually seemed very relaxed, spending most of her time reading novels and rarely spending extra time studying. Yet her exam results were still quite impressive.


    Intelligent people were everywhere. She did not consider herself to be smart so she still needed to work hard.


    Xiao Qi''s psychology was closer to Wei Cheng¡¯s. Perhaps because their family backgrounds were similar.


    The difference was that Wei Cheng was the middle child of three siblings, so she was more neglected and had a slightly better personality.


    At this point, Xiao Qi felt the same way, without the teacher¡¯s interpretation of that environment and historical period. Each line seemed like scattered poems, like prose, unable to grasp a sense of beauty or profound feeling. But she still persevered in reading patiently.


    The poems were fragmented, so she just randomly flipped to a page and read carefully. After finishing, she felt no lasting impression. So she copied it down again. This way, if she encountered the Spanish version in the future, she might have some impression of it. This was how reading and learning worked, making connections and accumulating knowledge bit by bit for the best results.


    Xiao Qi basically read, recited, memorized, and copied down the poems. Copying poems by hand felt most cost-effective as the poems she recited as a child were still deeply engraved in her memory today and could still be frequently used for allusions and metaphors.


    Xiao Qi did not copy too many either, just randomly selected five and earnestly remembered them down before putting down the poetry collection and opening another book.


    She felt this was the most efficient way to learn. Constantly reading the same book sometimes became dull and turned into fulfilling tasks towards the latter part. She was reading for herself and did not need to cater to herself. When it reached a appropriate amount, she switched.


    The Spanish beginner to advanced book was a textbook and a different version from what Xiao Qi was currently learning.


    She flipped through it. The first volume was very simple, mostly overlapping with what she had learned, but the angle was slightly different, making it quite interesting to read.


    Therefore, Xiao Qi did not skim through it just because it was simple, but read it carefully and attentively.


    Time flew by in the blink of an eye, and the two classes were over.


    Xiao Qi''s set alarm rang gently.


    She turned off her phone alarm, put down her book, stood up and stretched lazily. Reading time was the most scarce, especially when reading attentively, it went by in a flash.


    But she felt very content.


    Putting the book back to its original place, Xiao Qi went back to the teaching building with her school bag. She had classes next, Applied Statistics, which was also quite difficult. Having learned Calculus, she felt it helped her understand better in general.


    Of course she didn''t get full marks on the exam. Xiao Qi scored 92 points with some mistakes and omissions.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know if she would ever need these subjects in the future, but she was a student now, studying this major. She felt being good at the major courses was also a capability and studying ability itself was proof of herself.


    Otherwise, why would those companies prefer recruiting students from prestigious schools? Because these students had already proven their abilities.


    Unfortunately Xiao Qi only understood this rationale when she reached university. There was no chance to choose again in the past few years.


    But the future was still long, college was just a starting point. It didn¡¯t matter if she missed it once. She should just study hard for now! After tidying her schoolbag, the moment Xiao Qi walked out of the library, the mechanical voice in her mind sounded again: "The host studied diligently and understood the meaning of learning, rewarding the host with Spanish for Beginners."

 Chapter 330: Mind Wandering a Thousand Miles

    Chapter 330


    The large classroom with over 70 people was a bit stuffy, even with the windows open.


    The applied statistics class in the morning, during the third and fourth periods, was quite difficult. In the spring drowsiness and autumn weariness, listening to the teacher lecturing incomprehensible content was still making many students nod off.


    Because there was no need to get up early this morning, many students had gone to bed late last night, and as a result they lacked energy now.


    Li Weijin was also not very spirited. It wasn¡¯t because he had stayed up late playing games. Last night, he had actually studied diligently until after 2am. He even found it unbelievable himself.


    Unlike Su Li the arrogant rich second generation''s mediocre popularity among the girls, Li Weijin was very popular among the boys.


    Aside from him being especially generous and extravagant, he also never had a condescending attitude. He treated everyone almost impartially with his expressionless face. Therefore, he was still very popular among the boys. It was probably also because he didn¡¯t have a roommate who suffered grievances every day.


    Knowing that the young master wanted to study, his other three roommates very proactively went to other dorms to play games using the game console provided by the young master. They cleared up space for him to study quietly.


    Li Weijin had studied diligently during the evening self-study in class. Back at the dorm, he continued to study.


    His foundation wasn¡¯t very good because he basically didn¡¯t study in the past.


    Back then, his brain was probably only used for others to look at - empty, containing nothing.


    During the evening self-study, he encountered many difficulties. But he didn¡¯t take the opportunity to ask questions to look for Xiao Qi, because he had too many questions. He felt that if he asked, Xiao Qi wouldn¡¯t even need to attend the evening self-study. Although Xiao Qi had an easygoing personality and would answer other students'' questions, there was a limit to one person''s attention.


    He wrote down the problems he encountered, preparing to solve them himself first. If he couldn¡¯t solve them, then he would look for... her.


    Back at the dorm, it was the same as he continued to study from the beginning.


    In the past, he felt studying was a very dull thing. He didn''t expect that when he really started learning, he actually found it interesting. It wasn''t so boring, and it even seemed quite fulfilling. Yo?ur favorite stories at novelhall.com


    Unknowingly, it was already past 2am. If he wasn''t worried about having dark eye circles that wouldn''t look good the next day, he probably could have continued to work hard.


    Just thinking about the quantity - owning 7 or 8 apartments herself - made her feel especially happy and satisfied, reassured.


    Xiao Qi decided to go house hunting this weekend. With the experience from last time, she didn''t need the Chairman to accompany her this time.


    These couple of days, bank staff had actually called her. They said they were her exclusive wealth management advisor. They added her on WeChat and recommended her various wealth management products. There was one fund that could earn around 300 RMB in profit per day with an investment of just 30,000 RMB. It was practically sky-high returns. Xiao Qi''s bank savings account didn''t even earn 300 RMB per month.


    If it wasn''t for the system giving her money every day, Xiao Qi felt she could probably live her whole life just relying on interest income.


    This was when the importance of education became evident. With just a bit of learning, one would know this kind of sky-high returns was unsustainable. Those 300 RMB per day could become a loss of the entire principal amount after a few days. If there really were such high returns, everyone would stop working and just buy funds to live their whole lives. The whole society would probably stagnate then.


    Xiao Qi decisively blocked this wealth advisor, marking them with suspected fraud.


    Of course it was also possible they weren''t scammers, just that the examples they sent her seemed too exaggerated to Xiao Qi. It was still better not to get involved, otherwise it would be easy to get muddled.


    Her father always told her, don''t be greedy and you won''t be easily fooled.


    There was also Yunshu''s birthday recently. Her mother had sent many things over again. One of the jade pendants was extremely beautiful, in the shape of a butterfly. One side was white while the other was light yellow, just like a real butterfly. It was vivid and very smooth and pleasant to touch.


    Yunshu said it was Hetian seed jade. The yellow side was the skin. Her mother had a Suzhou master carve it exquisitely, at a very high price. Just the carving fee was over 10,000 RMB. The material itself was also extremely expensive, being a complete pebble of seed jade. Single pebbles like it would cost tens of thousands RMB.


    17-year-old Xiao Qi very rarely had special interest in something, but upon seeing that butterfly jade pendant, she felt it was especially beautiful. Beautiful things probably had a universal appeal to humans.


    She also really wanted to have a jade pendant or something that could be worn around the neck or hand. It seemed different from other accessories, having a special significance.


    The end of class bell rang, the final 5 minutes where Xiao Qi''s mind wandered far away.


    The classroom livened up as soon as the bell rang.


    The teacher shook his head, took a cigarette, and sauntered out.

 Chapter 331: Cinderella in Legend

    Chapter 331


    In the second class, Xiao Qi gathered her mind and stopped her random thoughts.


    She obediently listened to the class.


    In the last five minutes of the previous class, Xiao Qi''s mind was distracted, but it was almost time to get out of class anyway, so the teacher didn''t say anything important.


    After taking a break when class was over, she was a little more spirited when the next class started.


    Near the end of school, Xiao Qi''s phone rang. She didn''t answer during class, so she called back after school let out.


    It was the 4S dealership where Xiao Qi had bought her car calling to tell her that the model she wanted had arrived and she could pick it up.


    Although it had only been a little over two months, it felt like forever. If they hadn''t called, Xiao Qi would have forgotten all about it. Xiao Qi felt that sometimes she was still quite impulsive and vain. How could she dare to make buying a car the first thing she did after coming to school? It was unbelievable.


    Luckily she had her driving test scheduled for this Friday, so she should be able to pass it.


    After getting her license, she could go pick up the car.


    Now that she was at school, she realized the car wasn''t really that useful. The new and old districts had buses, and it was convenient to walk around. When she bought it, she was probably just caught up in the heat of the moment. She thought of Zhang Juan, her old classmate, who actually had a car already, so she wanted one too.


    It was human nature to compare yourself to others.


    Xiao Qi felt she hadn''t matured at all. Now when she saw Yunshu''s jade pendant, she really wanted to buy a jade pendant too.


    It seemed she was constantly influenced by the people around her and unconsciously followed them.


    No wonder in ancient times there was the story of Mengmu''s Mother Moving Three Times, and nowadays there were super expensive houses in elite school districts. People around you really had a huge influence.


    It wasn''t scary to have desires and ideas, as long as you could fulfill them through your own ability without forcing it. Ree?ad latest novels at novelhall.com


    This was the best kind of growth in Xiao Qi''s opinion. She wanted a car and could afford one. She wanted a jade pendant and could afford one too.


    This was the meaning of striving, she felt.


    When she heard Xiao Qi had actually bought a car, Mi''er was excited to death.


    "We have to go for a drive this weekend. Wow, next time we go shopping in the city, we won''t have to line up and wait for the bus. We can take Xiao Qi''s car to get back. Now I want to get my license too."


    Wei Cheng smiled and said, "How nice."


    Yunshu''s family had cars and drivers, so she had never thought about driving herself. But seeing how excited and thrilled her roommates were, she felt she could get a license too.


    She decided to take Wei Cheng to get their licenses. She didn''t bother with Mi''er. Although they shared a dorm room, there was still a slight difference. Xiao Qi and Mi''er were deskmates with a closer relationship. Similarly, Yunshu and Wei Cheng were closer to each other.


    One friend complained.


    Another friend chimed in, "I know, she looks so bland, not one-tenth as pretty as you, Ah Yu. The president is so wise, his taste can''t be that bad, can it? It can''t be like in novels where he likes an ordinary common girl, attracted to a Cinderella."


    Li Yu bowed her head drinking mung bean soup without making a sound, letting her two friends chatter on.


    Her friends all knew she had liked the student council president for many years. The president had never been close to other girls and was always proper with them, but made an exception for her. The two of them worked together organizing student council events and had quite an intimate relationship.


    Her friends would tease her about being a couple with the president, and she didn''t deny it, giving the impression they were together.


    But now the president had said there was a girl he liked.


    Li Yu had always been outstanding and almost never suffered setbacks at school, used to being admired. But when it came to romance, she lost her rationality for a bit. She was very curious what kind of girl the president liked.


    She saw her, dressed very ordinarily without any luxury goods, looking very beautiful when she smiled, an innocent, clean smile that gave people a good feeling. Even though she was here in an adversarial role, Li Yu still felt the girl''s smile was warm.


    Her temperament was also very good. She sat up straight when eating, not glancing around, not noisy or obtrusive, completely unlike the country bumpkin from an impoverished mountain village background she had imagined. She didn''t give off the greedy ambitious social climber vibe she had pictured either. There was none of that greasy power-grasping flavor about her.


    But at first glance she did look quite plain, delicate and weak, a simple, innocent girl.


    Listening to the two friends talking more and more outrageously, she interjected: ¡°You¡¯re wrong, she¡¯s no Cinderella. She can speak four foreign languages - English, Japanese, Korean and Spanish. Her calligraphy has reached grandmaster level; she¡¯s the youngest member of the Meng City Calligraphy and Painting Association. She¡¯s an amazing singer, voted one of the top 10 campus singers. She¡¯s great at running, breaking this year¡¯s national marathon record. She¡¯s also an incredible swimmer, winning this year''s Jing City Women¡¯s 200m freestyle championship. Her English is superb - she won the Meng City freshman English speech contest, beating students from Qingmeng University. She can also ride horses, becoming the youngest female national equestrian style riding champion. The total prize money from all these competitions is one or two million yuan. If these are things a Cinderella can do, then Cinderella would be too difficult."


    Li Yu¡¯s two good friends were dumbstruck upon hearing all this. They had only come to stand up for Li Yu, feeling that the Student Council President must have problems with his eyes to be seduced by a freshman. He should be with Li Yu instead, which was why they were filled with righteous indignation and had to come see for themselves.


    At first glance, although the underclassman was quite pretty, compared to the gorgeous Li Yu she was clearly lacking. With different perspectives came different views: they found her very unpleasant. Why should a nobody who¡¯s good at nothing be able to attract the Student Council President?


    The President wasn¡¯t especially handsome: he didn¡¯t have the delicate pretty-boy looks that were currently in fashion. But he always had the bonuses of status, family background and connections. If it weren¡¯t for Li Yu blocking their way, those girls would also like the President.


    But now, upon hearing what Li Yu said...


    The slight unwillingness in their hearts silently dissipated.


    All that was left were exclamations of ¡°WTF, where did this freaky underclassman come from, she¡¯s so arrogant...¡±


    It turns out TV shows and novels were lying about school royalty destined to be attracted to a shabby, common-born Cinderella who was good at nothing... it was all fake.


    Reality is, outstanding people are attracted to other outstanding people.


    The legendary Cinderella was actually an elite student.


    Come to think of it, when Li Yu first entered the school, she wasn¡¯t as overwhelmingly impressive as now either.


    The two girls lowered their heads, noisily sipping on their green bean soup.

 Chapter 332: High Salary Tutor

    Chapter 332


    A few people went back to the dormitory with Xiao Qi. On the way back, Yun Shu started talking about getting a driver''s license.


    Mi''er said she wanted to go together.


    Seeing that Wei Cheng was not saying anything, Yun Shu took the initiative to ask Wei Cheng if she would like to go get a license together.


    It would cost over 4,000 yuan to get a driver''s license.


    Wei Cheng hesitated for a moment and said, "I also want to get one. There are many part-time job opportunities posted on the school forum to earn tuition through work-study. I''ve signed up for a few. If I get selected, I should be able to earn the tuition soon."


    "Okay, I''ll pay first for you. When you earn enough money, you can pay me back or pay me in installments, whatever works for you," Yun Shu said.


    Xiao Qi did not jump in to offer help. She curiously asked after hearing Wei Cheng''s words, "There are things like this on school forums too? I thought there was only gossip."


    "There are. There''s a work-study column. You can take a look. You fill in your information and if the employer finds you suitable, they will call you to come over. I did a part-time job last weekend, it was quite interesting. Someone was hosting a dinner party and needed temporary servers. The pay was pretty good, 300 for one night. I wonder why they like hiring college students to be servers. Anyway, I went there, changed into their uniform, followed instructions to work. Nothing too special, the jobs posted there are quite formal. The student union screens them, so shady ones won''t be there."


    Wei Cheng''s exam results were third-place. That''s also because she could not devote all her energy to studying. She had to spend a large part of her time on work-study to earn tuition since she has two siblings and her parents were just mushroom farmers. Relying purely on family would make going to college very difficult. There were actually more opportunities in school and it was much easier to earn money than what her parents made. She didn''t even want her parents to send her living allowance now. She wanted to earn enough to pay for next semester''s tuition too.


    Of course there were many money making opportunities in school, but there were also many expenses. No matter how hard Wei Cheng worked, she was still just an 18-year-old girl. Buying new clothes, accessories and going out with classmates were all necessities, not vanity. It was a matter of basic self-esteem.


    Xiao Qi understood Wei Cheng very much. Although she had won quite a lot of prize money from various competitions, she had the same attitude as Wei Cheng when it came to work-study.


    Her parents had such a hard time making money. They could dig 100 catties of spring bamboo shoots from the deep mountains, carry them dozens of kilometers over mountain paths, and only earn 20 yuan in the end. That was 2 mao per catty of bamboo shoots.


    That 20 yuan was hard-earned money. In comparison, there were many work-study opportunities in school and it was much easier to earn money. No need to take shady paths, as long as one was willing to work, one could support oneself. Xiao Qi felt this was great.


    Although she had the system, the money in the system was accumulated until a certain amount before she used it to buy property, changing it into fixed assets. So the amount she actually spent herself was not a lot.


    Therefore, even though she had a lot of money now, Xiao Qi was still willing to do work-study, to keep herself grounded, study well and make progress every day.


    After hearing about the forum from Wei Cheng and returning to her dorm, Xiao Qi also logged in to take a look. There really were a lot of opportunities. Xiao Qi browsed and selectively registered her information according to the different job requirements.


    Xiao Qi''s qualifications were slightly better, so she didn''t need to take those server jobs which wouldn''t benefit her much. She chose some tutoring jobs. She had worked as a tutor during the summer holidays and found it very rewarding. Not only did she teach others and help them, it was also greatly beneficial for her own improvement. If not for tutoring Jiajia and the others over the summer, her English would not have improved so quickly and so well. Because she was a tutor, there was pressure but also motivation. Teaching leads to learning.


    There was a tutoring job requiring the teaching of Calculus and English. The pay was quite high, 500 per lesson, but the requirements were also high. These two subjects happened to be what Xiao Qi was good at. Moreover, she was planning to apply for postgraduate studies, so more learning could not go wrong. She filled in her profile, English and Calculus midterm exam scores and submitted the application. She felt there was a good chance.


    The waiting and not knowing was rather antsy, like an itch that needed to be scratched, making her a little anxious.


    After dinner, Xiao Qi tidied up then went out to the sports field to jog a few laps. With sweat pouring out, she felt refreshed and stopped worrying about it.


    She could also have gone horse riding to relax as jogging and riding both alleviated stress well. But these two days, because of what the student union president previously said, Xiao Qi felt a little awkward. Also, the coach was on vacation this week, so Xiao Qi decided not to go over this week and see next week.


    In the evening for Spanish elective class, Xiao Qi saw classmate Li Wei Jin already there when she arrived.


    This time, Xiao Qi went straight to sit at the desk behind Li Wei Jin. After sitting down she tapped his back with her pen and asked, "Didn''t you need to sit a resit exam?"


    Li Wei Jin put on an extremely serious expression and said, "I discovered I have fallen in love with Spanish and decided to enroll in the elective course. I already registered."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    You do you.


    When the class bell rang, thin Teacher Aijin came to class in a plaid cheongsam, making her look even thinner, like a stick of firewood, although she herself probably loved this look. Her expression was very jubilant as soon as she came in today. Seeing the boys and girls in the front seats and the surrounding desks, her smile grew even more amiable.


    Teacher Aijin did not teach Spanish poems today. Instead, she introduced one of Spain''s most famous architectural achievements, the Royal Palace of Madrid.


    Xiao Qi was very surprised. She had just read about this in the morning and had not expected Teacher to give a detailed lecture about it in the evening.


    Teacher Aizhen was still using English to introduce the content, switching to Spanish when it involved Spain, so unknowingly they had learned many new words and sentences this way.


    Xiao Qi''s beginner level Spanish was not enough for her to directly understand everything, but it meant that with this foundation, learning would now be much easier. She still needed to study.


    Xiao Qi listened very carefully, following along with the slides Teacher was presenting, gaining an even deeper understanding of the Royal Palace of Madrid located in Spain''s capital city. Its former name was Palacio Real de Buen Retiro. In 1734 it was burned down and in 1736, King Philip V and his queen Isabella rebuilt it into what is now known as the Royal Palace of Madrid.


    Teacher Aizhen then told the story of King Philip V and his queen. Teacher Aizhen was a very romantic person, and ordinary stories became very romantic when she told them.


    As for Li Weijin''s listening comprehension, his English was passable enough for him to somewhat keep up, but learning Spanish was more tiring for him. Fortunately his family fully supported his studies and had arranged for a private tutor. He decided he would make up for lost time by studying hard over the weekend, determined to catch up to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi did not pay attention to Li Weijin in front of her. She listened to the lesson attentively, following along with the slides Teacher was showing, gaining an even deeper understanding of the Royal Palace of Madrid. The Li Weijin sitting in front of her today did not smell like Chinese medicinal herbs. As soon as he sat down, Xiao Qi caught a whiff of a very nice lemony scent, like fresh green lemons. Then she sensed something like freshly brewed green tea, as well as the coolness of mint. But underneath this cool sensation there seemed to be an undertone of Chinese medicine, though Xiao Qi did not know their names. Strangely, the lingering scents also included the sweetness of sugarcane, the woody aroma of cypress wood, and even a hint of rum.


    Li Weijin''s perfume smelled too good. With top, middle and base notes each showing different facets, Xiao Qi''s extremely sensitive nose picked up this complex and lingering scent. Attending class, she felt unusually alert and energized, and felt that the content Teacher was lecturing seemed richer and more colorful. She was very curious to ask Li Weijin what perfume he had worn today...

 Chapter 333: I Am Your Tutor

    Chapter 333


    On Friday, Xiao Qi successfully passed the third exam, and in another week she would take the theory test for the fourth subject to get her driver''s license.


    On Saturday morning, Xiao Qi went to the school gate early instead of taking the bus. She called a Shenzhou taxi and entered the address that the other party had given her yesterday, preparing to go teach as a tutor.


    Because it was hot, the bus was crowded, and she would have to go to the bus station first and then take a taxi. Xiao Qi was worried that going around in circles would make her late. For her first time going to tutor, she definitely could not be late and leave a bad impression.


    Additionally, she was also unclear about the student''s level. Last night she had carefully prepared the lessons, having simple material ready as well as medium and difficult material.


    With her experience as a tutor, she was quite prepared with various exercises and such.


    She was a little worried that she might encounter a troublemaking child, but Jiajia, whom she had tutored before, was quite unruly at first but she heard was very well-behaved now and ranked at the top of her exams, which was great.


    On the car ride over, Xiao Qi flipped through her prepared materials again - everything was there. Then she closed her eyes to rest, actually reviewing in her mind the Spanish content she had learned yesterday. Very quickly, she arrived in the area near the address she had written down.


    There was a roundabout with a huge sculpture in the middle and a fountain.


    She had arrived at the entrance to that residential area.


    The driver said awkwardly, "Miss, I can''t drive in. I can only get here. Which family are you going to? Call them to come get you?"


    Xiao Qi was unfamiliar with Aobing City and had not expected this small district to look exceptionally high-end.


    The marble pillars at the entrance were tall as if money was no object, extending halfway to the sky.


    "Okay, thank you." Seeing from her phone''s location that she had arrived, Xiao Qi got out of the car.


    Then she called the person who had phoned her yesterday.


    The other party seemed very excited and quite enthusiastic, saying they would immediately send someone to pick her up.


    Carrying her backpack, still her old backpack since she hadn''t been willing to use the one given to her as a prize at the horse racing competition, Yun Shu said that backpack cost over 30,000 yuan, which baffled her, so she had put it aside for now. Anyway, she was coming to tutor - bringing that backpack would be too flashy.


    Xiao Qi entered through the yard, then the hall on the first floor, then went upstairs to the second floor. The interior and exterior were consistently nouveau riche, glittering and flashy.


    Even the shoe cabinet seemed to gleam, giving Xiao Qi the feeling that rather than people, this home housed a nest of dragons, with shining and sparkling objects everywhere.


    Xiao Qi was led to what seemed to be a study, as there were quite a lot of books inside.


    But the first thing to catch her eye was not the books, but the massive oil painting on the wall.


    On the left and right walls hung an oil painting each.


    Xiao Qi was also very interested in drawing and would practice whenever she had time. Currently she drew horses best in various styles. But the oil paintings on the wall were extremely good, seemingly done by someone with great skill and foundation.


    They were lifelike, giving people a sense of intimacy and lovability just by looking.


    Very childlike.


    The painting on the left wall was of a little boy in split pants running on the grass, swaying unsteadily as if about to fall over at any time. The features of the little boy were too cute - lethal cuteness. This oil painting could probably make even people who had decided to remain childless want to have a child. He was too adorable.


    The painting on the right wall was also of that little boy, wearing a red bellyband, with chubby arms, lying on the ground face up with a diapered bottom raised. He looked back at you with eyes that seemed to contain the entire galaxy, adorable enough to make you want to pick up this bare-bottomed little boy or give him a push.


    These two paintings were extremely well-done. With Xiao Qi''s basic level of artistic appreciation, she could tell the paintings were master-class, the little boy in them so vivid and lively, exuding great cheerfulness that would make viewers smile and be infected with his mood.


    But this boy in the paintings couldn''t be her student, right? If so, Xiao Qi was determined to teach him well - he was too cute and good-looking.


    She circled the study and found the trash can inside was exceptionally vibrant, the same color as the pajamas of the person who had just entered.


    Li Weijin had not fully woken up when the housekeeper rushed him, saying the tutor had arrived. He knew his family had hired a tutor for him, but did not expect them to come so early. In the past, he definitely would not have gotten up, but this time he had actively requested the tutor himself, so even if he had to crawl there, he had to finish learning from them. Thus he splashed water on his face and groggily went over.


    When he opened the door, ready to greet the teacher, he glanced up and saw the young girl sitting at the desk by the window. She wore simple white tee, bright and refreshed. Her hair was in little buns, her expression slightly stern - cute sternness. It was unexpectedly Xiao Qi... He froze for a moment, then turned and ran off.


    He had to go back and change clothes.


    Xiao Qi was also stunned. When she opened the door, she smelled a very fragrant perfume scent, and then she saw the boy with his collarbone exposed and wearing a red red nightgown, it was actually Li Weijin... The pajamas he wore at home were so red and so flirtatious, and a person who could wear such a flowery pajama could still look so cute and lovely...

 Chapter 334: The Warmth of Spontaneity

    Chapter 334


    Xiao Qi was a Capricorn who considered herself quite grounded. She also really liked reading horoscope content and after comparing several websites, felt that Xinlang was the most accurate, perhaps influenced by her high school roommate Xia Zhen. Back then, Xiao Qi didn''t even have a cellphone while Xia Zhen did. Xia Zhen would often show Xiao Qi the Xinlang horoscopes. Xia Zhen was a Gemini.


    Now, Xiao Qi hadn''t contacted Xia Zhen in a long time. Their relationship seemed to have stopped abruptly after graduation. However, the influenced habit remained and Xiao Qi still liked reading the Xinlang horoscope content.


    The Capricorn yearly horoscope always said she would become increasingly grounded and hardworking. Xiao Qi felt that if she kept going at this rate, she would become as grounded as a rock, always working harder and being more down to earth... The yearly horoscopes were too unfriendly to Capricorns o(¨i_¨i)o. At this moment, the grounded Capricorn Xiao Qi was petrified in her chair.


    Just then, the little boy in split pants with a bare butt and red bellyband diaper on the wall and the classmate Li Weijin in a vermilion silk nightgown gradually overlapped...awkward ?¡õ ?||.


    And Li Weijin ran away swiftly like the wind.


    He went back to his room to change clothes.


    Shy, he was actually seen improperly dressed by the girl he liked. Disaster.


    He dashed back to his room like his butt was on fire. Bumping into his brother on the way, he didn''t even greet him before zipping away. Slamming his room door shut, he panted heavily.


    The innocent Li Weijin actually hadn''t made any progress in relationships since kindergarten. He didn''t know how good he looked in the gaudy red silk nightgown. Beauty is beauty, masculine beauty is even more beautiful.


    His stern face was very restrained, but his body was dying of desire, making people want to take a bite.


    He now felt that he had embarrassed himself in front of the girl he liked and hurried to change into proper clothes.


    After trying several outfits, he finally wore a pair of pants and long sleeves, an olive casual outfit. This color made slightly darker complexioned people look even darker by several shades, but on him it just looked light and refreshing, even fairer, well-behaved and gentle.


    After standing in front of the mirror and adjusting his stern face for a while, he headed to the study with his heart thumping quickly, still unable to do anything about his warm neck for now.


    Coming out of his room, he bumped into his brother again, but was too nervous to greet him and went straight to the study.


    Li Tangsong: ...Am I so insignificant that I''m so easily ignored?


    When Li Tangsong arrived at the dining room and saw his parents, his dad was actually not using the newspaper to hold the youtiao today. The youtiao seemed to have gotten cold. Hiding behind the newspaper, they looked like they were up to no good...


    He was nervous because he absolutely did not expect his tutor to be Xiao Qi.


    Extremely delighted.


    Yet worried Xiao Qi wouldn''t teach him.


    "I didn''t know you were going to be my tutor. It wasn''t on purpose." Li Weijin explained.


    "I also didn''t know you were going to be my student." Xiao Qi replied.


    "Then will you still tutor me? If not, I can take you back to school." Li Weijin said nervously with his signature sulky, stern expression.


    Xiao Qi thought, am I the kind of person so easily swayed by money? Yes! Making money is fun. Even if the system gives me money just for walking, that doesn''t stop me from earning my own.


    "Of course I''ll tutor. I have skills to earn this money fair and square. Why wouldn''t I tutor? If you don''t behave, I''m quite strong, you know." Xiao Qi wanted to demonstrate brick breaking with her bare hands, but looking at the glistening, seemingly expensive desk, she decided against it.


    Li Weijin''s face was still stern, but the corners of his mouth curved up slightly, revealing his cute dimples.


    He was quite strong too. At this moment, he felt no matter how capable Xiao Qi was, she was still just a little girl bluffing.


    Today''s lesson was calculus, another subject Li Weijin needed to retake. But the content Xiao Qi prepared was far too simple for her. She was already excellent at calculus, tutoring an exam retake was a breeze.


    Since she was here to work, Xiao Qi immediately got into teaching mode, ignoring the paintings on the wall. She carefully took out the course content she had prepared, glanced at Li Weijin''s handsome face, and brought out the simplest version...


    The simplest version happened to be perfect for Li Weijin. Much of it directly addressed issues he wanted to ask Xiao Qi but didn''t dare to. He was pleasantly surprised that Xiao Qi had summarized it separately. She understood him so well. Li Weijin felt a little smug.


    And Xiao Qi taught it so easily that she became a little absent-minded.


    This morning, Li Weijin had sprayed perfume again. Sitting next to him, she could smell light citrus, kiwi, olive, subtle musk, rose, bean and other complex scents, some faint, some lingering.


    "You got this question wrong. The mistake is here, you missed a number." Xiao Qi said seriously.


    "Oh, no wonder I tried calculating it so many times but kept getting it wrong." Li Weijin chuckled, scratching his head. His casual warmth was palpable.

 Chapter 335: The Auction House

    Chapter 335


    Xiao Qi finished teaching after two hours, then left. Li Weijin insisted that his family driver take her home. In fact, if Xiao Qi didn''t have another tutoring session tomorrow, Li Weijin would have wanted to go back to campus with her. The drive was quite long - two hours of work, three hours on the road.


    However, Xiao Qi didn''t waste her time in the car. She felt that her Japanese translation work was rejected because she didn''t have a certificate, so she should take an exam to get certified. After all, at the beginning stage, with a certificate, whether you can actually do it or not is hard to say, but having an exam certificate makes it clear.


    So on the ride back, Xiao Qi used the time to study Japanese and Korean. Her Korean was still only at a basic level, with lots of room for improvement, so she alternated between studying the two languages.


    The one driving Xiao Qi back was the same elder who had gone to the temple to pick up Li Weijin last time, a steady old gentleman. Even in the hot weather he was dressed neatly in light green Chinese-style clothes. Xiao Qi had bought her dad a set of Chinese-style clothes before, quite expensive ones, and the elder''s crisp clothes seemed like they would be even more expensive.


    In front of unfamiliar people, Xiao Qi was still very introverted, basically not saying anything. If she forced herself to make small talk it would feel very awkward, so she focused on her own things without feeling awkward.


    Seeing this young girl who started studying as soon as she got in the car, the steward somehow felt she was very well-behaved.


    When Xiao Qi arrived at school, she could still make it for lunch at the cafeteria.


    Li Weijin actually wanted Xiao Qi to stay and eat at his home, but thinking of his own eccentric parents, he decided against it.


    He was worried that Xiao Qi would misunderstand him if she met his parents, thinking he was just as eccentric as them...


    The 18-year-old Li Weijin felt his parents were very embarrassing at this moment, and was ashamed to let Xiao Qi meet them.


    And when Gao Cuihua and Li Qianmen saw that their son not only studied in the morning today but also continued to study in the afternoon instead of going out to play, they were shocked. If their son wasn''t still so handsome, they would have wondered if he had been replaced.


    The power of love was indeed great.


    "That young girl looks quite pretty, I secretly took a peek this morning," Gao Cuihua said with a laugh.


    Li Qianmen nodded with a serious expression but gloating heart: "Our son has taste like me."


    Gao Cuihua laughed even more gleefully, her plump cheeks flushed red.


    Li Tangsong, who came back home on time for lunch: ...


    Being bullied daily, used to it.


    After eating, Xiao Qi went back to her dorm room, really wanting to complain to her roommates about her tutoring student.


    But Honey was at the student council, Wei Cheng went to the equestrian field, shut-in Yunshu was also not there, gone to the tea ceremony club. With a belly full of complaints and no one to vent to, she felt pent up.


    "Appraisal of Hetian Jade" had mostly pictures. Just looking at the images, the jade all seemed quite nice. There were so many varieties of Hetian jade - Qinghai material, Korean material, mountain stream water material, Russian material, and under each variety there were further classifications, yet all could be called Hetian jade. Xiao Qi felt she definitely wouldn''t be able to distinguish them now. She would probably be fooled many times before gaining some basic understanding.


    As for "How to Identify Top Grade Jade", there were even more types covered - alarmingly, some used beer bottles to fake jade convincingly. There were also Xiu jade, water grass agate etc. But jade was only produced in Myanmar, a hard gemstone, seemingly easier to authenticate compared to the many materials of Hetian jade.


    These two books had a majority of pictures, finishing them quickly.


    "Stories of Historical Figures and Jade" was more interesting, mostly fabricated legends. Qianlong, Cixi, and Soong May-ling all loved jade very much. Being minor stories of dubious veracity, it was still an enjoyable read, not taxing on the brain.


    As for the last book, "The Complete Guide to Genuine and Fake Ancient Jade", Xiao Qi felt like she was reading a foreign language. Too difficult.


    From the previous two books she had some basis to attempt identifying Hetian jade materials and top grade jade. But ancient jade - they all looked real and all looked fake to her.


    Knowing genuine from fake ancient jade required not only specialized knowledge, but also extensive historical knowledge, being intimately familiar with the smallest historical details. Like spotting the fake seal of so-and-so official, those familiar with the historical details would know what kind of seal was used in that official''s position and dynasty, the customs and restrictions, the appellations used in that dynasty, and so on. After reading a few pages Xiao Qi felt she had regressed back to illiteracy, lacking so much knowledge, full of blind spots. She felt rather uncultured.


    After basically flipping through the four books, she had built up some foundational knowledge. At least she wouldn''t mix up Hetian jade and jadeite now. But specific authentication still seemed rather difficult to Xiao Qi. It still felt like textbook knowledge far from actual application. She would need to see more real objects.


    Outside the window had turned golden, the sun setting with dusk lingering in the sky. Tomorrow would be another sunny day.


    Xiao Qi checked her phone''s roommate WeChat group, her roommates were all back but they would still eat dinner separately tonight. Feeling hungry herself now, food was on Xiao Qi''s mind before every meal these days. She felt a huge appetite, needing lots more to eat.


    Putting the books back, Xiao Qi packed up and headed back.


    Still going to the cafeteria to eat. Today was a pleasant surprise since it''s the weekend. There was actually braised pork ribs with fermented bean curd, and the greedy Xiao Qi took two big pieces for herself eating alone. She took out her phone to watch videos while eating.


    She scrolled Douyin (TikTok) for a bit, and unexpectedly came across herself - it was the Douyin video of her horse racing competition. It had over 200,000 likes; so surprising! She opened the comments section to take a look. There were all kinds, and Xiao Qi found them quite amusing.


    It reminded her that Jiajia also had a Douyin account, so she followed it. Flipping to the ¡°Following¡± page, she also saw a post related to horse racing, edited differently from the official Enhua website. Jiajia preferred to flaunt her looks - it was a set of photos with her own voiceover and text. It also had over 40,000 likes, quite impressive.


    Then she continued scrolling through some condensed movie videos, introducing movies in three clips per episode. But by the second episode it suddenly got locked.


    She only had a one hour Douyin limit every day. Since she already watched some after waking up this morning on the weekend, her time was up for now.


    Having the movie cut halfway through left her hanging and craving for more, but she stuck by her own rule without unlocking it.


    Instead she opened up the school forum to take a look. She previously applied for three part-time jobs - one got approved, one rejected, and there was still no news about the last. As soon as she logged in, there was a private message.


    It was from the auction house, sent last night. She didn¡¯t have notifications on, but the message showed her application was approved. It said to gather at the Meng City Jinghai Grand Canal Hotel, 26th floor, this Sunday at 2pm. There was also an attached document with specific task requirements, asking her to reply to confirm receipt.

 Chapter 336: The Portrait of Memory

    Chapter 336


    Xiao Qi''s urge to complain was down to only 20 percent when her dorm mates finally gathered together. There would be no evening self-study tonight and the dorm lights would not be turned off.


    Since the lights were not being turned off, quite a few people were coming and going, further reducing Xiao Qi''s desire to complain. Although she really wanted to say something, there were too many people coming and going, and she would be talking about Li Weijin and his classmates, which was too risky.


    Li Weijin had many nicknames¡ªYoung Master, Baby, Handsome Guy, My Husband...


    Having complaints that could not be uttered left her feeling pent up. She might as well go for a run.


    Xiao Qi ran hard for a few laps, working up a sweat and feeling twice as refreshed. Going for a run made her body feel good, and at the same time her mind became exceptionally clear, allowing her to mentally review everything she had studied that day, which was like reviewing again. Repeated memory, very efficient.


    After running, Xiao Qi still followed the moves her coach had taught, continuing the stretches. She herself had not noticed that the hunchbacked posture she used to have was now gone without a trace. Her sitting posture was straighter, more upright. She now walked with her head high and chest out, very spirited.


    Her butt, which used to look flat from too much sitting, had also basically recovered, curvier and rounder than before. But Xiao Qi seldom paid attention to these things when looking in the mirror. She just felt that her physical condition had improved a lot, which was why she persisted.


    She had agreed to the part-time job at the auction house. Anyway she had to go to Alliance Market tomorrow morning, so the afternoon worked out perfectly without having to run back and forth.


    After warming up, a mechanical sound suddenly rang out in Xiao Qi''s mind: "Host has learned to use skimming and scanning reading techniques to gain knowledge, enrich herself, and improve. Host is rewarded with a random skill learning card, which can be applied to the four books read today. Use it now?"


    Xiao Qi: ...The system actually has lag?


    "Use."


    "Host randomly drew appraisal and dating skills for items. Learn?"


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Those four books were the most misleading. Reading them made her feel illiterate. There''s actually such a direct skill?


    "Learn."


    "Host gains expertise in appraising and dating items."


    A skill obtained out of the blue for no reason. Don''t know what use it has.


    Xiao Qi looked at the basketball stand in front of her. An idea suddenly popped into her mind¡ªnine years old...


    This basketball stand was manufactured nine years ago?


    Back at the dorm, Xiao Qi finally endured until lights out. With everyone in bed lying down, Xiao Qi still had 5 percent urge to gossip left. She still kind of wanted to gossip a little, but Wei Cheng had been too tired after working at the riding club today. As soon as she laid down, snoring sounds could be heard.


    Xiao Qi: ...Feeling a little heartache for her, let''s just sleep.


    Early next morning Xiao Qi set off. She had told Li Weijin her license plate number in advance this time, so she could drive right in.


    Inside the study, she discovered the two oil paintings on the wall were changed. No longer the red baby diapers...replaced by two chaotic sketches, she couldn''t tell what was drawn, like a child''s doodles. Xiao Qi curiously glanced once, then couldn''t help but glance again, then yet again couldn''t help but glance several more times. She directly walked up and studied them carefully for a good while.


    A flock of grass mud horses ran through her mind... F*ck, what she initially thought were chaotic doodles turned out to be Picasso sketches... Judging by the size, conservatively each one was worth several hundred thousand US dollars at least... Rich people really were frightening... Considering her four million plus, it couldn''t buy a single sketch like this. She felt even more humble now.


    Thanks to Xiao Qi''s habit of often going to the library to read random books, Picasso''s paintings, art investments etc, she had read all kinds of messy books. Otherwise she really wouldn''t know such chaotic sketches were so valuable... Really convincing.


    Oh well, stay cool.


    Might as well start today''s work. Xiao Qi''s small face was even more stern now, determined to properly tutor student Li Weijin, absolutely no going easy... She was definitely not hating the rich, just somewhat sour that''s all.


    Whereas the stern faced Li Weijin''s collarbone started burning again. Xiao Qi kept staring at the paintings on the wall with quite disappointed and sad expressions. Could it be she actually preferred seeing my childhood drawings? But those were really too embarrassing, he had moved them back to his bedroom. If Xiao Qi really wanted to see them that much, he could at worst invite her to his bedroom to see them next time... Just thinking about it made him shy again though.


    "Let''s start. I''ll tutor you in English first today. Your English level doesn''t seem bad. First take a test." Xiao Qi''s crisp voice said.


    As a professional tutor, Xiao Qi had taught seven or eight young girls over the holidays, so dealing with Li Weijin would be quite easy.


    When Li Weijin heard that there would actually be a test...so early in the morning, he really...since he was the one who had asked for a tutor, even if he had to kneel he would learn it all, let alone it being Xiao Qi.


    He obediently took the test, but looked up at Xiao Qi after finishing each question.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    "Why are you looking at me? Focus on the test. I''m preparing tests for you in the other two subjects you need to retake. I''m quite accurate at predicting test content, so I guarantee you''ll pass. I won''t waste your money." Xiao Qi waved her hand for Student Li Weijin to continue with the test paper.


    Li Weijin obediently kept doing the questions.


    Xiao Qi was also preparing the other tests for him, and would occasionally glance at Li Weijin. After all, teachers do keep an eye on their students to prevent slacking off. Seeing Li Weijin diligently doing the questions, Xiao Qi thought to herself, even if he really was unloved by his parents, could she afford to raise him?


    From head to toe, Student Li Weijin was exquisitely groomed, even the socks on his feet were brightly colored.


    After returning home last night, she had even looked some things up, because the touch of crimson Li Weijin had worn yesterday morning had left too deep an impression. How could someone wear something so flashy yet look so good? Xiao Qi had even Googled it, and the price that came up, Herme?s...that one pajama top was actually over 30,000 RMB...


    Xiao Qi tapped her own forehead with her pen, what was she randomly daydreaming about? Her mind had wandered off again!!


    She should continue preparing the test questions.


    The English test paper was actually quite simple for Li Weijin. Though he hadn''t passed the IELTS exam the last few times partly out of rebellion towards his parents, his English was truly quite good. But now he was worried that if he did too well, Xiao Qi would stop tutoring him. Should he intentionally get some questions wrong?


    Both of them had things on their minds, yet were both guessing at what the other was thinking. But the atmosphere in the study was strangely good, with an inexplicably sweet scent.


    In the air, the fragrance of chamomile lingered, blending with the elegant traces of jasmine, hints of vanilla and pine, a subtle touch of sandalwood, very faint, like a landscape captured in perfume, eventually turning into memories, frame by frame.


    Time slowly progressed, then flowed backwards, repeating.

 Chapter 337: Little Girls Have Eyes

    Chapter 337


    At the age of seventeen or eighteen, it was truly a beautiful sight seeing boys and girls studying together.


    Gao Cuihua was very eager to see what the dating situation was like for her cub. She paced around downstairs for eight hundred circles.


    Finally, she had the dessert chef make her a cheesecake that she liked, and the pancake chef make some scallion pancakes. She also had the aunt cut up a watermelon.


    She arranged them prettily on attractive plates, put them in a lunchbox, and went to sneak a peek... No, she meant she went to deliver snacks.


    Originally, she had said yesterday that she would keep that girl for dinner, but her little bunny cub actually disdained her and her husband for not being able to put out anything impressive, although he didn''t say it outright. But Gao Cuihua had already figured out what her little cub was thinking just from his expression.


    Her husband''s two sons were both expressionless faces, but there were subtle differences between expressionless face, expressionless face, and expressionless face.


    Today, Gao Cuihua deliberately dressed up a bit.


    She didn''t wear anything too flashy, just a black and white striped dress. The style was very simple. It looked like a very ordinary dress, but it was actually made of lace flower fabric that really tested the workmanship and cut. If it was done even a little poorly, it would look cheap. Plus, her waist was also quite thick. The waist of this skirt was very deliberately cinched in a little. The lace flowers were actually quite complex. From afar it just looked simply black and white, but the complex fabric hid the fat on her waist so it wasn''t as obvious. At first glance, her waist actually looked quite slender and gave the impression that she had a figure.


    This dress made her look a bit younger, but wearing it also required some effort to stand tall and suck in her stomach.


    After changing into the dress, she picked up the lunchbox and headed upstairs.


    She knocked and opened the door. Yo?ur favorite stories at novelhall.com


    When Li Weijin saw his old mom actually coming to deliver snacks...something was off. There was a scheme, there was a plot. His mom was as lazy as could be. The only person in the whole family who could get his mom to do any work was his dad. His expressionless face sank into high alert mode, looking even more solemn.


    Gao Cuihua didn''t care about her youngest son''s expression at all. As soon as she entered, she enthusiastically opened the lunchbox and arranged the fruits, cake, and pancakes while saying, "Teacher, you''ve worked hard. Have some snacks and fruit."


    When Xiao Qi saw the visitor, Li Weijin had a sour look on his face. She thought it was auntie bringing food. When she previously had makeup classes at Jiajia''s house, her auntie would also often come in to bring snacks and fruit.


    She politely thanked: "Thank you, sister."


    Now that she was in university, Xiao Qi''s EQ had risen a tiny bit. After all, she was a university student now. She wouldn''t call every older woman she saw auntie like she did in the past. Now she should call them sister.


    Li Weijin: ......what?


    When Li Weijin heard his phone chime, he glanced over and saw the WeChat name: The Peach Blossom Under That Peach Tree.


    He didn''t want to respond at first, but worried that his mom would cause trouble if left unchecked. So he still opened his phone to take a look. Seeing the content of the message, his facial expression was cloudy with a chance of storms. Oh well, if this was normal circumstances, he definitely wouldn''t forgive his mom. Stuffing him full of money also wouldn''t work.


    But a gift bought for Xiao Qi... His mom probably knew better what girls liked. He''d forgive her then.


    He responded with a cool emoji.


    Xiao Qi knocked on his desk, "Focus on the questions. No playing on your phone during class."


    When Li Weijin looked up and saw Xiao Qi''s fierce, stern face, his collarbones started burning again. Xiao Qi looked so good like this. The way she scolded him was so special. She treated him differently from how she treated others. She never scolded anyone else.


    Li Weijin obediently put away his phone and earnestly worked on the questions, not daring to look at Xiao Qi again. He was afraid of revealing his abnormality. Not just his collarbones burning, his whole body felt hot.


    Xiao Qi didn''t expect that with just one sentence from her, he would obediently listen. He really was very well behaved. She even felt she might have been too fierce. Li Weijin was actually quite good.


    The tutoring session lasted three hours, with Xiao Qi gifting an extra hour.


    After finishing teaching, Xiao Qi was about to leave.


    Li Weijin still had his butler drive her back. Li Tangsong had finally waited until his younger brother finished studying and purposefully walked by the door... Actually he had already walked by several circles, but he didn''t have skin as thick as his mom to directly barge in.


    When Xiao Qi came out, she looked up and saw a man who looked very similar to Li Weijin, clearly biological with the same features. The solemn expression was also exactly the same, aloof style identical.


    Xiao Qi guessed this should be Li Weijin''s dad, and hurriedly greeted, "Hello, uncle."


    Li Tangsong: What?


    He had just heard his mom bragging twenty-seven times in the living room about how the little girl had good eyes and actually called her sister. Roar, roar!


    But for him it was uncle... Uncle... Uncle...


    Sitting downstairs drinking tea in the dining room, Gao Cuihua snorted... The little girl had good eyes.

 Chapter 338: I Go

    Chapter 338


    Xiao Qi asked the butler to drive her directly to the Jinghai Canal Grand Hotel.


    Li Weijin''s family had a driver, but the butler was the most reliable, so she asked the butler to take her.


    When the butler heard that the little girl was going to a hotel, he felt a little worried about letting a young girl go to a hotel.


    He subtly tried to find out from Xiao Qi why she was going to the hotel.


    Actually, he could have just asked directly. Xiao Qi answered directly.


    Xiao Qi felt that the butler was especially talkative and intimate today, like her own grandfather. She didn''t have any memories of her grandfather since he passed away when she was very young, but she imagined her grandfather would be like this.


    With Xiao Qi''s frankness, the butler only had to ask her a few questions before she readily told him all about her family background.


    "My dad makes bamboo crafts. Recently his bamboo weaving skills were selected as a representative work of China''s intangible cultural heritage. Now there is a bamboo craft exhibition hall next to the city museum displaying my dad''s works, and my dad also sells some crafts there. My mom helps with the work."


    "My dad has three brothers and three sisters. My dad is the oldest."


    "My mom has two sisters and lots of brothers."


    "It was very difficult for my dad. He is lame so he can''t do farm work."


    "My mom has an outspoken personality and is very good at arguing. No one can out-argue her, she''s amazing."


    "I''m going to do this auction house internship out of curiosity since I''ve never done it before. I want to see what it''s like and I can earn money too."


    "I want to use my prize money to buy houses, I want to buy lots and lots of houses."


    Xiao Qi didn''t even realize why she was babbling on and telling the butler all this information about herself for no reason.


    Other than the incomprehensible system, she basically told him everything.


    The butler still had a benevolent expression, listening attentively and occasionally nodding, very serious, which made Xiao Qi want to keep talking...


    The butler even asked her what she thought about young master Li Weijin.


    Xiao Qi was about to reply when she realized they had already arrived at the Jinghai Canal Grand Hotel...


    After getting out of the car, Xiao Qi felt confused.


    What was the butler''s surname?


    She didn''t know anything about him, yet she had babbled on as if she was hypnotized and told him everything.


    This butler was too amazing.


    The next time Xiao Qi sees the butler, she should act like yesterday and not say a word, keep her mouth shut, get in the car and start studying... Society is so scary. She felt like she still had a long way to go to improve herself.


    "Madam, I don''t have a cold. Young master, I sent Miss Xiao Qi to the Jinghai Canal Grand Hotel. She has an auction house internship this afternoon."


    Gao Cuihua immediately laughed loudly, "If you don''t want to go just don''t go. Stay home and study in the afternoon. Mom will go by herself. Auction activities are very boring, and I don''t want to disturb your study."


    Li Weijin: ...


    "I''ll go."


    After lunch,


    Gao Cuihua had a nice nap, then woke up to put on a facial mask and make herself up carefully. She was meeting friends at the auction and had to dress up since women cared a lot about face. Although she was rich, she was often looked down upon as tacky.


    Gao Cuihua didn''t mind though. The more others looked down on her, the more dazzling she would make herself up. I''m tacky, I''m rich, so what.


    After making herself up, Gao Cuihua went downstairs and saw her son dressed neatly in a black suit and blue shirt, looking extremely handsome.


    Tsk tsk, it was only because of his good looks that Gao Cuihua didn''t regret not having a daughter.


    Ah, too handsome! He would definitely give them great face when bringing him out. Usually her son was reluctant to go out.


    Xiao Qi arrived at the 26th floor at the scheduled meeting time. Quite a lot of people had arrived, all pretty young girls dressed nicely. The pay for this internship was not low, 600 yuan for an afternoon, but it wasn''t frequent either. The requirements were high too, asking for good temperament and minimum height of 165 cm.


    Xiao Qi just met the minimum height requirement at 166 cm.


    A woman wearing a cheongsam came and called the 12 girls to line up.


    The girl next to Xiao Qi was taller, probably around 170 cm. She had makeup on and said she was from the management school. She asked which school Xiao Qi was from. Xiao Qi said Enhua.


    Upon hearing Enhua, the girl exclaimed loudly, "Your aristocratic Enhua school also comes for internships ah!"


    Many people looked over curiously. Then she covered her mouth, pretending to be embarrassed... Xiao Qi found her more seasoned than her classmate Chu Yu, whose tricks were rather amateur. Chu Yu would also speak loudly and then act embarrassed and delicate.


    The girl asked Xiao Qi a bunch of questions. Having just experienced the butler''s smooth attempt at probing into her background, Xiao Qi had finally learned her lesson this time. Facing such direct questions, she just smiled without revealing anything.


    The woman in the cheongsam sized them up, rejected three of them, and directly told them to leave.


    Showing her authority right off the bat, it gave off quite an authoritative feeling, and the giggling young girls instantly quieted down.


    "I already said there are height requirements. Wearing such high high heels to barely reach five foot four or five foot five, makeup can rescue your face, but I can''t save this height. My surname is Wang, just call me Sister Wang."


    After she finished speaking, she looked them up and down again, stopping in front of Xiao Qi.


    "Such exquisite facial features, but you look too young. How old are you? Over 16 years old?"


    Xiao Qi stood up straight, feeling very awkward being asked this, would she also be told to leave? Still, she looked straight at the other party and answered, "I''m seventeen and a half, I''ll turn eighteen at the end of the year."


    "Tsk tsk, so young. Later give her some makeup to look more mature." Sister Wang said to a female staff member next to her.

 Chapter 339: What It’s Like to Grow Up

    Chapter 339


    After removing three girls, there were nine girls left.


    They each took the cheongsam Sister Wang handed out and then went to get their makeup done.


    With nine girls getting their makeup done all at once, the makeup room became extremely noisy in the span of an hour.


    Xiao Qi put on her cheongsam...This was her first time wearing clothes like a cheongsam. She felt it was quite loose. Her body type was on the thinner side overall with a small frame and small chest, so it wasn''t very tight on her and indeed made her look very young.


    The second year management student named Jin Yingying who had spoken to Xiao Qi earlier looked very tight and curvy once she put on the cheongsam, with prominent front and back. Along with her makeup, she looked very mature, like a girl in her mid twenties.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi still looked like a young girl in her light green cheongsam.


    Moreover, the color of her cheongsam seemed to be different from everyone else''s. The others were wearing red or purple, while she was the only one in green.


    Fortunately her skin was fair, so the bright green didn''t look bad on her. Such a vibrant color would have made her look very dark if she was even just a little tan.


    It was Jin Yingying who made the others notice that the little girl seemed to be the only one wearing a green cheongsam, subconsciously regarding her with some hostility.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She really wanted to violently smash that girl. Her mouth was too foul, sowing obvious discord, and it was quite effective among these young girls.


    Seeing the others squeezing to line up for makeup while more or less ostracizing her to the back of the line, Xiao Qi simply found her own makeup station and did her own makeup.


    Her makeup skills were professional level. In her judgment, this makeup artist''s skills were at most basic level, not even reaching entry level. Xiao Qi hadn''t intended to stand out too much, just wanting to do some simple makeup to get by. But seeing things turn out this way with Sister Wang about to arrive, she probably wouldn''t even get a turn with the makeup artist.


    The makeup artist also noticed the little girl doing her own makeup, but didn''t say anything. They were all part-time student workers. Less trouble was better, as long as the girl didn''t interfere with her work.


    As Xiao Qi started on her makeup, she immediately entered a focused state.


    Looking at herself wearing the cheongsam in the mirror, she was actually quite curious what she would look like when grown up.


    The main thing was she still looked like a kid in the cheongsam, going too far.


    She had never worn a cheongsam before and always envied girls who could look nice in them. It was quite magical that she could make the cheongsam look casually stylish.


    But hearing her speak, it was apparent she was still a young brat who didn''t know any better. The things auctioned at the auction house could of course only be real. Though whether they truly were real or not was hard to say sometimes.


    After seeing Xiao Qi with full makeup, Jin Yingying no longer spouted nonsense. The difference was simply too vast now, nothing left to say. Although she still felt the little girl''s question was naive, she held her tongue this time instead of making mocking jabs disguised as casual slips of the tongue.


    Seeing Sister Wang''s expression, Xiao Qi got the general idea herself.


    She had actually wanted to test out her new skills.


    Most of the items auctioned at the auction house were antiques with provenance, famous artists'' paintings, collected bronzes and the like, each lot coming with an introduction, very high class.


    While Xiao Qi''s knowledge might not run deep, she still had a basic grasp of history.


    One auction item was a painting by a famous painter from the Republican era. The introduction provided about the painter said he lived 1844-1927, born in ''44 and died in ''27. But Xiao Qi judged that painting to be at most 60, 70 years old. It was completely impossible for it to have appeared during the painter''s lifetime, only emerging some 20 years after his death. So there was no way it could have been painted by that artist.


    And the starting bid was still over 500,000 yuan!


    Taking a look, Xiao Qi suddenly felt rich people were a bit foolish sometimes.


    And that wasn''t the only case. Just skimming through, Xiao Qi found one other piece where the timing was off. Though one of them had quite an extensive history as well, just earlier instead of the stated time by over a hundred years.


    It was an ancient jade piece, pretty unique in shape. A round stamp with the head of a beast, but the carved beast head looked a bit silly. She couldn''t tell what kind of animal it was meant to resemble.


    The inside had specially verdant green jade. Such a lush deep green, Xiao Qi remembered reading that this kind of imperial green jade was extremely valuable. A pair of bangles made of it could sell for over ten million yuan.


    That would be modern era.


    There was also no shortage of Hetian jade, with many delicate carvings in small ornaments and pieces.


    Xiao Qi had assumed everything auctioned here would be worth hundreds of thousands or millions. Only upon arriving here did she realize there were also some affordable trinkets starting from just ten or twenty thousand yuan.


    Auctions would usually set a reserve price. If the bidding didn''t meet that price, it would be withdrawn.


    She felt that buying the ten or twenty thousand yuan items here would be a better deal than going elsewhere.


    Gao Cuihua arrived at the auction venue with her son, an extremely smug look on her face. It had been many years since she experienced taking her darling son out and having everyone gaze upon them enviously. Such a nostalgic and gratifying sensation.


    Li Weijin disliked participating in these kinds of events, finding them boring. But today he exceptionally acted the part of a good boy following his mother along silently, smiling like the perfect child. His eyes roamed the surroundings though as the butler said Xiao Qi had a part-time job here. How come there was no sight of her?

 Chapter 340: There are Many Good People

    Chapter 340


    The scene at the auction was filled with an antique charm, as if stepping into the past.


    It''s no wonder the staff all had to wear cheongsams.


    Xiao Qi didn''t feel too constrained in her cheongsam, but she did encounter a slight issue: she couldn''t take big strides when walking.


    If she took slightly larger steps, it felt like she would stumble.


    Their cheongsams were of the longer variety, with a slit that reached just above their calves, giving a more dignified appearance.


    Fortunately, high heels were not required. Xiao Qi wore a pair of white shoes, which didn''t look too out of place. In fact, her cheongsam had a slightly casual style, contrasting with her vibrant face and creating a cute contrast.


    After applying her makeup, Xiao Qi was momentarily stunned by her reflection in the mirror.


    It felt strange.


    It was the first time she had applied such heavy makeup to herself, and when paired with the cheongsam, she no longer looked like her usual self.


    She looked really good. Xiao Qi felt this was the most beautiful she had ever looked. When she grew into her twenties, she probably wouldn''t look as good as she did now.


    She was radiant yet pure and beautiful.


    She liked the image in the mirror.


    However, when she wasn''t looking at the mirror, she became accustomed to her original self.


    She stood tall with a graceful posture, exuding a great temperament and clear gaze.


    Despite her alluring makeup, it didn''t arouse any wicked thoughts in people; it was merely a passing admiration.


    Just like the pair of glassy imperial green jade bracelets being auctioned tonight, with a starting price of ten million yuan.


    They were placed there, not under strong light, but naturally emanating a beautiful gleam, captivating anyone who glanced at them.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi, dressed in a green cheongsam, was just like that.


    Not being illuminated by strong light, she stood there, captivating everyone''s hearts.


    Among the group of part-time girls, there were those like Xiao Qi who came out of curiosity, their first time attending such an event.


    There were also those who had clear goals in mind. In a place like an auction, there were bound to be many wealthy individuals. If they could encounter someone exceptionally rich, it might be a shortcut in life.


    Due to their different upbringing and thoughts, everyone had their own ideas.


    Some people simply wanted to take shortcuts.


    The cheongsams worn by others seemed somewhat frivolous, but Xiao Qi''s cheongsam was of great workmanship, stable and dignified. She looked like a noble lady and definitely wouldn''t be mistaken for a greeter at the door.


    Sister Wang thought this girl looked much better in this cheongsam than the young celebrity she had invited last time. That celebrity was young and had a huge temper and attitude.


    Compared to that celebrity, this girl was at least twenty times better looking. Sister Wang was quite old, and her son was already in middle school. She admired the girl''s beauty without any jealousy. It was pleasing to the eye, and she couldn''t help but consider having a second child.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help but ask again, "Sister Wang, can we bid for the items we like?"


    Wang Xiuyu??


    Looking at this beautiful girl, why would you need to work part-time if you could afford to buy these things?


    But considering that she was a student of Enhua, could she be here to experience life?


    No wonder I was immediately drawn to her. I thought she was exceptionally good-looking and had a special temperament. Was it because of her extraordinary background or was I just lucky to have found such a girl?


    Sister Wang didn''t just smile and brush it off this time, but nodded and said, "Sure, but you''ll have to pay a deposit. Once you''ve paid, we''ll give you a sign. You can hold up any sign you want, and make sure it doesn''t interfere with your work."


    Xiao Qi glanced at it and realized that Sister Wang had actually assigned her only one task¡ªto follow along and stand on the stage with that large bronze artifact.


    The starting price for that bronze piece was sky-high, 50 million.


    Xiao Qi felt like she was making money a little too easily.


    Wang Xiu Yu thought her arrangement was quite reasonable. The best card should be played last for the greatest effect.


    Xiao Qi actually had nothing to do right now. It would be a long wait until the end.


    Xiao Qi told Sister Wang that she was going to pay the deposit.


    Others felt that Manager Wang was playing favorites. Just a while ago, two people wanted to go out and take a look at the auction scene, but they were not allowed. Yet, when Su Xiao Qi wanted to go, Sister Wang unexpectedly agreed.


    The deposit turned out to be 500,000, which could be directly deducted if she bid on something. If she didn''t bid, it would be refunded after the auction ended.


    Xiao Qi went to pay the money, exchanged it for a small round sign, and then came back.


    Wang Xiu Yu saw the girl actually come back with a silver sign in her hand and was truly speechless.


    It must have been intentional on the part of the staff. In fact, there were several types of deposits: the basic one required only 100,000 yuan, the silver round sign required 500,000, and of course, there was also a gold sign that cost 1 million.


    Wang Xiu Yu sighed, wondering whose girl had come to their auction, and her attitude improved somewhat.


    Then Xiao Qi asked more questions, and she answered them all in detail.


    Xiao Qi thought to herself that there are still many good people in society. Sister Wang seemed fierce at first, with a bit of a frown on her face, but she was actually very easy to talk to. Truly, one should not judge a book by its cover.

 Chapter 341: Pick Up a Leak

    Chapter 341


    The first pair of small bronze lions, as the first auction item, was a rare little gem.


    The little thing with a starting price of 50,000 yuan was soon auctioned up to 300,000 yuan.


    Xiao Qi did not rashly bid, just watching how others were buying first.


    Generally it was just raising the paddle to call out the price, with a minimum increase amount to prevent anyone from disrupting with increases of one or ten yuan.


    Each price call had to add at least 5,000, or multiples of 5,000.


    This pair of small bronze lions was finally sold at a price of 480,000 yuan.


    Xiao Qi turned to ask Sister Wang, who looked very serious but was actually very nice to talk to: "Is this price normal or high or low?"


    Although Sister Wang was not a professional, she had worked in this auction house for more than eight years. She patiently explained: ¡°This price is ok, it¡¯s not outrageously high. Because generally the first item in an auction house is given as a nice little gem to have a good start. If you like it, buying it is still very worthwhile."


    Next was the painting Xiao Qi thought was from the wrong time period.


    The starting price of the painting was over 500,000 yuan. There were many bidders, and it was even more lively than the first pair of bronze lions. This painter was very famous, and his works were rare. But Xiao Qi found the time period did not match up, it was clearly a fake. But it was a fake from that dynasty, probably for that reason the auction house had not detected it either.


    It was finally sold for 1.2 million.


    There are so many rich people... For such a painting, I don''t know what it can be used for, moreover it''s not even real, yet over a million was spent on it.


    And so, Xiao Qi watched many auction items but did not bid on any.


    Sister Wang was still very patient in introducing a sentence or two. Then a young girl could not help muttering: "She''s just pretending with the paddle, with these things so expensive, if she could really afford them, why come here to work part-time."


    Although the voice was small, almost everyone could hear it. Xiao Qi heard it too, and just smiled indifferently.


    The money was hers, she could spend it whenever she wanted.


    At this time, a pair of Guanyin and Buddha carved from chicken-bone white jade came up for auction. They had skin left on, carved from the same piece of material by the Suzhou jade carving master Jiang Yunhe. Jiang Yunhe was already over 80 years old, and rarely produced work anymore, it was usually his apprentices and disciples doing the carving now.


    This pair of Guanyin and Buddha were carved by Jiang Yunhe himself, with his certificate. The chicken bone white jade material was very interesting. The color where the skin was left on was like a cloak, the original stone had cracks in the middle that were cleverly carved into two pieces for the Guanyin and Buddha figures, with the fine grain integrated into the carvings on their bodies, looking like beautiful robes.


    The Guanyin had an extremely beautiful appearance, just looking at her made one''s heart stir.


    With this starting bid, the owner probably wasn''t certain of the time period either. Ancient jade forgeries were too common, and the process of making them was also nasty, soaking in chamber pot fluid and such.


    Moreover, ancient jade from the Qing Dynasty usually wouldn''t be this bright in color... it didn''t look Qing Dynasty, instead it looked like a modern artifact.


    Bidding at charity auctions was more casual, without fixed bid increments, because the money from charity auctions was all donated to charity organizations.


    Jin Yingying held the tray with the little sheep, standing there.


    For a moment the audience below was quiet, surprisingly no one even bid the reserve price. The customer who owned it was going to buy it back himself, just counting it as donating 10,000 yuan.


    Xiao Qi was a little nervous. First she looked at Jin Yingying. Among the group of girls, Jin Yingying was the most familiar to Xiao Qi. Her temperament was like an unfinished Chu Yu.


    Put this way, Chu Yu was still much more outstanding, going through torment every day. When Xiao Qi thought of her, it was more admiration.


    Then she looked at the little sheep on the tray she was holding. Xiao Qi was born in the year of the sheep. This was also why her grandmother detested her, her grandmother always said, women born in the year of the sheep have bitter fates and bad luck, and bring misfortune to their families, making Xiao Qi feel inferior since she was little.


    The host introduced this was ancient jade from the Qing Dynasty, bright red, the little crimson lamb. As Xiao Qi looked closely at it twice, how could this be from the Qing Dynasty? This little sheep was at least over 1,600 years old, around the Wei and Jin periods, from the Eastern Jin dynasty. It wasn''t modern, just not sure why the surface looked so bright red.


    Seeing no one bidding, Xiao Qi decisively raised her paddle.


    10,000 yuan.


    The host said a few more times, no one else bid, so this item belonged to Xiao Qi.


    Sister Wang next to her kept silent.


    She thought to herself, the young miss is indeed from a wealthy family, not bidding on so many items earlier, yet bidding on this obvious artifact to do charity!


    She became even more gracious to Xiao Qi after this.


    All the way until the last auction item was brought out.


    Xiao Qi also went up on stage with it.


    Xiao Qi had thought she could lift the bronze vessel herself with no problem at all, but was worried that if she lifted it too easily, customers might think it was a fake, giving a light feathery feel. So she kept quiet and didn''t say anything more.


    Seeing her arrange for Xiao Qi to go on stage last, and the young miss also obediently following along without saying anything more, Sister Wang breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worried the miss from a wealthy family might throw a tantrum and refuse to keep working in the end.

 Chapter 342: Five Hundred Million

    Chapter 342


    The last item to be auctioned at the auction, as the finale, would have its information released early.


    Since the country had many terms and conditions limiting trade of high ancient cultural relics, bronze wares at domestic auctions were rarely seen. Therefore, bronze wares with complete and legal certificates were extremely rare.


    The bronze ware being auctioned today was from the Shang Dynasty. Its top resembled a house roof, its body had two dragon handles, two dragon heads, and Taotie patterns.


    Xiao Qi glanced at the time, it was about right.


    She just didn''t understand the history of that dynasty, and couldn''t explain it, but the item itself should be authentic.


    She followed the auction item out.


    Standing next to this somewhat greenish bronze Ding, her expression was serious as she looked ahead.


    The Ding was shining with an expensive radiance. Because everyone knew that at an overseas auction not long ago, a similar bronze Ding had been auctioned off for over 80 million.


    At this moment, the lights on the exhibition stage of the auction house were especially bright, all shining on this bronze Ding, revealing every detail of it, exposing all the green patina on the bronze.


    There were also large screens showing live video for everyone to clearly see it.


    That wasn''t verdigris, that was the shine of money.


    And the girl standing next to the bronze Ding, wearing a green cheongsam, just standing there, a beauty to match the treasure Ding, not losing out at all.


    She was an extremely beautiful girl, not a famous celebrity seen on TV, but just standing there, glittering and shining, without any lights on her yet still dazzlingly brilliant.


    Some of the audience below had come just for this final big auction item, but now they couldn''t help letting their eyes drift to the girl next to the bronze Ding.


    She was just too beautiful.


    That green cheongsam didn''t look out of place at all. It was as if time had flowed backwards to when King Zhou first saw Su Daji.


    She stood there, making it so no one could ignore her.


    She didn''t speak, her face solemn. It could be seen she was actually very young despite the heavy makeup.


    She was just too beautiful.


    For a long stretch after the bronze Ding appeared, there was silence, not just because it was a heavy artifact, but also because of the girl who had emerged alongside the treasure.


    Then the bidding started.


    Wearing that cheongsam, she was like she had time traveled here together with the bronze ware, like a dream of the most beautiful goddess.


    She stood there, not lifting her eyes, without a trace of mortal dust yet still splendid and resplendent, like the most precious treasure in the world.


    The bronze ware beside her had a price, she was priceless.


    In that moment, Li Weijin felt his heartbeat, clavicle, blood vessels, all seem to boil over at the same time.


    There was also chaotic ringing in his brain.


    All the surrounding noises were messily blocked out by him. His world held only Xiao Qi now.


    Xiao Qi stood there as the mechanical voice in her mind suddenly sounded: "Host painstakingly dressing herself up and becoming an extremely beautiful girl brings others appreciation for beauty and earns a badge of sincere affection."


    Xiao Qi was startled, and only now did she stop seeing the audience below as watermelons and seriously look down.


    Just now the glare of the lights had been too much that she had been ignoring the audience below out of habit, since that would also make her less nervous.


    Now her gaze landed squarely on Li Weijin in the prime C seat below, staring blankly at her.


    "What does sincere affection mean, System?"


    "Human affection is quite complex. It can be expressed through fondness points. His fondness for you has reached 80% and is also quite firm."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Gao Cuihua saw her son suddenly stop reading his book and stare blankly at the stage.


    "Son, do you like this bronze ware?"


    Li Weijin nodded blankly.


    Gao Cuihua raised the gold bidding paddle in her hand: "500 million!"


    The venue suddenly went quiet.


    The auctioneer was so excited his hand holding the gavel was shaking. Why had it suddenly skyrocketed to 500 million?!


    "500 million going once, 500 million going twice, 500 million going thrice, sold!"


    *Bang!*

 Chapter 343: I Believe in a Ghost

    Chapter 343


    Xiao Qi finished her part-time job, changed her clothes, took her money, returned her deposit, and took back the little lamb that she had bought herself.


    The middle-aged uncle who bid on the little lamb was a bit sleazy. He insisted on adding Xiao Qi on WeChat, saying he didn''t expect it was her who bought it. He just bid randomly because it wasn''t worth much money. He was planning to take it himself originally. He thanked Xiao Qi for her kindness and insisted that she leave the item for him. He would transfer money to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi: ...Are you kidding? I finally bought this item directly using my skills. How could I possibly give it back to you? Also, there''s no way I would add you on WeChat.


    She had rejected requests from several people asking to add her on WeChat. She felt it was strange.


    Xiao Qi bid Sister Wang farewell, took her belongings, and slipped away. She did add Sister Wang on WeChat though.


    Li Weijin was planning to look for Xiao Qi once the auction ended. However, since he was the highest bidder of the auction, Li Weijin and his mother Gao Cuihua were instantly whisked away by groups of people as soon as the auction ended.


    The auction house''s boss was practically bowing at their feet. The commission they would receive from this single piece would be enough to run operations at their auction house for three whole years.


    Gao Cuihua was thrilled. She finally bought something her son loved. Usually her son rarely liked anything or actively asked for anything. It was as if he was unresponsive to the world around him. When he was little, she had suspected several times that he was autistic, and taken him to the hospital for tests repeatedly. The doctors said he had no problems.


    Gao Cuihua did not notice the little girl Xiao Qi on stage. By the final lots of the auction she was already very bored, and only bid on a pair of Hetian jade, feeling very guilty that she had delayed her son''s studying by bringing him out for so long. She was always focused on her son.


    Noticing her son''s abnormal state, she finally felt some excitement and bid without a second thought. There was no way she would let this pass after seeing her son finally take interest in something.


    After she bought it, the crowds led her and her son away. Gao Cuihua felt a little overwhelmed. She secretly called her husband.


    Li Qianmen said:


    "What? You spent 5 billion on a bronze ding?"


    "Our son liked it?"


    "Alright, buy it."


    After all, he had done things in the past like spending billions just to eat an oil stick bread. His wife''s purchase now didn''t even seem that outrageous compared to the past. The family''s financial situation was much better now than before too.


    On their way home, Gao Cuihua felt slightly guilty and called her husband again. This time he reassured her and she was no longer anxious, instead beginning to feel proud.


    Li Weijin was also confused. His mother spent 5 billion on a ding after he spaced out for just a short while... He felt his brother would go insane over this. Whenever his parents did things out of the ordinary, his older brother was always the one who lost his mind over it in the end.


    Not finding Xiao Qi Qi, he returned home with his mother. Because of the matter with the bronze ding, Li Weijin called over the housekeeper to handle it.


    Originally the housekeeper''s intention was to give the young master Li more opportunities. But seeing that 5 billion bronze ding covered in verdigris made the housekeeper wipe the cold sweat from his forehead... This should have nothing to do with him ba, Young Master Li is surely going to erupt with anger once again.


    Li Tangsong was at the company when a pot suddenly dropped from the sky, as the saying goes.


    Suddenly 5 billion disappeared from the family''s account. He was in the middle of negotiating a large project, preparing to enter the film industry, not to shoot films, but to buy cinemas. He felt the prospects were very promising and he looked favorably on it. Next would definitely be the era of the big screen *fog*.


    But all of a sudden the money was gone. He immediately rushed back home.


    He just happened to bump into the housekeeper overseeing people carrying that bronze ding. His father and mother were always buying all kinds of bizarre things, so he was used to it by now.


    He casually asked what it was.


    Gao Cuihua excitedly replied: "Tang Tang, this is the Shang dynasty bronze ding that Mom bought for 5 billion at auction. Dad said I got a steal, because one sold overseas previously went for 8 billion."


    On their way back, Gao Cuihua still felt slightly guilty and called her husband once again, this time reassured by her husband and no longer feeling anxious, instead starting to feel proud.


    Li Tangsong:


    Even a conservative estimate would need over ten thousand square meters. With today''s astronomical land prices, Tang Tang would surely erupt in anger again if he knew. Li Qianmen felt slightly guilty, worried his oldest son''s heart couldn''t take it, and opted to purchase in a more remote location. Right, it can''t exceed 5 billion.


    But thinking further, it was his oldest son who refused to allow these things placed in their home. So he is building this place to house those elsewhere. The money would be spent for his oldest son''s sake, perfectly reasonable.


    With this in mind, Li Qianmen relaxedly went to purchase land.


    Monday.


    Xiao Qi had a busy weekend, but gained something from it too, with a cute little lamb now adorning her handbag.


    Returning home, she immediately soaked the small woolen lamb in soapy water, scrubbing it over and over. Considering its age, who knew what it went through before, best to scrub it squeaky clean.


    After soaking overnight, the little sheep looked much cleaner and whiter the next morning. It seemed like the red glaze on the surface had been washed off, revealing a sheep full of cracks underneath, but the cracks were evenly distributed and still looked good. Xiao Qi tied a slightly thicker rope through the sheep''s ears and hung it on the zipper of her backpack.


    It was still the old backpack, made of durable homespun cloth stitched by her mom. It had lasted for many years without breaking down. Back in high school she used to feel inferior about it, but now in college it had become fashionable somehow. Many classmates asked her where she bought such a good-looking bag.


    Early in the morning when Xiao Qi got to the classroom, she spotted Li Weijin, who had arrived even earlier.


    Today he wore a deep pink shirt...A guy wearing pink looked so handsome, not girly at all. And it made him look even fairer.


    Xiao Qi drooled a little, and then remembered the woman who bid for the bronze kettle with Li Weijin at yesterday''s auction, spending 50 million bucks...


    She felt kind of drunk. Although Xiao Qi knew the bronze kettle was genuine, she didn''t think it was worth that much money. How terrifying.


    Thinking of this, Xiao Qi quietly went back to her seat, opened her textbook obediently and decided to focus on studying.


    Li Weijin also spotted Xiao Qi at first glance. Seeing her in a white hoodie, she looked so beautiful and it delighted him.


    There were many classes on Monday and it was not easy to get through till noon. Li Weijin wanted to stop Xiao Qi but in a flash she had rushed to the cafeteria with her roommates. Really...she ran so fast, like a marathon record breaker, no wonder.


    He barely caught her when school was over in the afternoon. The afternoon classes were in the lab building.


    After class, Xiao Qi headed for the new district. She was going to the riding club.


    Li Weijin followed her.


    It was on the same route.


    On the way, Li Weijin looked like he wanted to say something but held back, making Xiao Qi feel awkward.


    "What is it? Just say it."


    Li Weijin took out a tiny Buddha pendant made of seed beads. Men wear Guanyin while women wear Buddha. He had quietly put on the Guanyin and wore it close to his body. He decided not to match his necklaces to outfits anymore but just wear this one.


    Seeing the little Buddha in Li Weijin''s palm, Xiao Qi laughed very familiarly, as if to an old friend, smiling amiably and affectionately.


    It was the Buddha pendant she had eyed for a long time yesterday, thinking to bid for her parents if it went below 50,000 yuan. It was a pair of seed bead Guanyin and Buddha pendants. In the end someone spent 188,000 yuan to buy them.


    "My mom said you taught very well. This is a small gift to thank you. It''s not expensive, only 94 yuan," Li Weijin said with a serious face, casually throwing the little Buddha to Xiao Qi.


    Su Xiaoqi:......


    Only 94 yuan???


    Yeah right!

 Chapter 344: Girls Are Bad These Days

    Chapter 344


    ¡°No, too expensive,¡± Xiao Qi resolutely said.


    Li Weijin was even more resolute and domineering, directly putting the little Buddha necklace on Xiao Qi, messing up her hair...


    Su Xiaoqi: ...Don''t stand so close to me, I can''t stand it.


    She held onto the little Buddha necklace. She was strong and could easily break the rope if she pulled hard. But she didn''t dare pull because it was a 90,000 yuan item. If her hand slipped and it fell to the ground and broke, she really didn''t want to pay for it.


    "I can''t afford it, take it back." Although for Li Weijin, this item was probably just like 94 yuan to him. After all, his family casually spent 500 million on things, so 90,000 yuan was a drop in the bucket.


    But for Xiao Qi, it was extremely expensive, too expensive. She shouldn''t accept such a valuable gift even if she knew Li Weijin liked her.


    Li Weijin''s face was cold and expressionless.


    There were still students coming and going on the road. Xiao Qi and Li Weijin''s looks together made them very eye-catching, like spotlights shining on both their faces.


    He was very hurt by Xiao Qi''s rejection and also felt a little embarrassed.


    But in order to maintain his aloof image, he stared coldly at Xiao Qi. Then he saw a little lamb on the zipper of her bag. He stared at that little lamb and said, "I never take back what I give out. You can either throw it away or, if you feel bad, then give me that lamb."


    Xiao Qi: ...Go to hell!


    She had finally cleaned up the little lamb. She even looked it up yesterday and learned it was an ancient jade from the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The playful little lamb sculpture wasn''t cheap either, definitely over a million yuan. She really liked it but was worried about accidentally losing it if she kept it in her dorm. So she carried it with her.


    The lamb pendant was a bit heavy to wear around the neck, but it worked well as a bag accessory.


    Plus no one would think the lamb was so valuable. Xiao Qi believed that the most dangerous place was also the safest place. She didn''t expect Li Weijin to spot it at first glance...


    "It''s settled then." Li Weijin wanted to coolly snatch the little lamb away, but he pulled and tugged to no avail. Instead, he nearly pulled Xiao Qi into his arms.


    Li Weijin was a little embarrassed, but he didn''t stop. He fished out a pair of scissors from his pocket and snipped the rope.


    Su Xiaoqi: ...Where did the scissors come from? Why would anyone carry scissors with them? He''s clearly not human if he specifically brought them to snip her little lamb.


    "Well, we''re even now. I''m leaving. Don''t follow me." Li Weijin nimbly turned around and ran off.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    You actually ran away... Ran away... You bandit, that was her genuine antique jade! Should she chase him and snatch the lamb back?


    After running two steps, the little Buddha necklace bounced on her chin.


    Xiao Qi put the Buddha pendant inside her collar. Oh forget it...


    Li Weijin looked at the little lamb sheep lying in his palm. He was extremely happy thinking this was Xiao Qi''s tacit gift since she gave him a return gift.


    But he didn''t have the habit of carrying a school bag. He couldn''t hang it on a bag.


    He already wore a seed-shaped Guanyin pendant around his neck, carved from the same piece of jade as Xiao Qi''s little Buddha. Their meanings were different though.


    After thinking for a long time, he took out his cell phone. There was a hole in his Hermes phone case where he threaded the little lamb through before putting his phone back in. Perfect. Now he could carry the little lamb Xiao Qi gave him anytime.


    Xiao Qi actually gave him something. He couldn''t wait to share this joyful news with someone.


    It didn''t seem right to say it when he got back to the dorm.


    Xiao Qi would be shy. Okay, he would be shy too.


    He decided to go home and show off to his parents instead.


    Li Weijin had the butler come pick him up and asked what his parents were up to.


    "The master is buying land. The mistress is tidying her chives in the yard. The young master seems to be giving the cold shoulder to the family again and not speaking."


    Li Weijin: ...


    Li Weijin felt especially smug - going home to show off was indeed the right decision, happy.


    "Um, this is also jade. Xiao Qi gave it to me, a gentleman''s gift of jade." She must like me too, Li Weijin thought to himself, smiling like a sunflower in his heart.


    Whereas when Li Tangsong saw this scene, he felt extremely annoyed. He felt he had to make his family see reality clearly. That girl only admires vanity. His brother said that the girl was at the auction house that day. Her buying that vase was also because of her blunder. That day he did not look closely. His brother''s love interest, he did not stare at her, just a cursory glance - she looked quite pretty.


    However, casually accepting such an expensive gift from someone, a girl like this must have issues. And to casually give his brother a stone to fool him, his whole family really, it gave him a headache.


    Right after the family finished eating the fresh leek dumplings.


    The expert called by Li Tangsong arrived.


    His precious brother''s sheep, he directly invited an authoritative appraisal expert to evaluate it.


    Li Qianmen and Gao Cuihua looked at each other speechlessly. Their elder brother takes things too seriously. At this rate he''ll never have a girlfriend in his life.


    However, these past two days elder brother has seemed downcast. Li Qianmen and Gao Cuihua both felt a little guilty. Today Li Qianmen saw good exhibition space and plans to transfer the money over tomorrow. He wonders if elder brother will be angry again...


    He felt that elder brother will be angry. Just for an auctioned vase, spending another 500 million... Elder brother will probably be unhappy.


    Whereas when Li Weijin heard that it was his brother arranging a specialist to appraise the sheep for him, he was not angry but very happy instead.


    "I also want to see what era this jade is from. Xiao Qi said it was ancient jade."


    Carefully he took down the little sheep and placed it on the table.


    Li Tangsong: Hmph! Soon you''ll see!


    The specialist put on white gloves, and earnestly took out a box. Inside, he actually took out several small machines.


    For measuring refractive index, age, components.


    There was also a magnifying glass.


    The specialist carefully placed the sheep on different machines to scan.


    Finally he used the magnifying glass to inspect closely.


    While inspecting, "tsk, tsk".


    "Tsk, tsk, tsk."


    He also kept swallowing saliva incessantly.


    Li Tangsong asked, "What do you think?"


    "Mr. Li, this is a jade sheep from the Wei and Jin dynasties. I did not expect it to be preserved until now. The quality is so good, used for blessing and sacrificial rites, a very rare item."


    Li Tangsong: What?!


    "How much is this worth?"


    "It''s not about the money. This sheep is extremely valuable, perfect condition, evenly distributed cracks, high collectible value. Conservatively appraised, at least 2 million. Mr. Li, are you selling?"


    Li Tangsong: ...Who do you think would sell this?!


    If he sold this, his brother might bite him to death.


    Li Weijin felt wonderful. Such a valuable item, and Xiao Qi actually gave it to him. According to his brother''s theory, she must really like him.


    Gao Cuihua and Li Qianmen were also dumbfounded. They actually knew what elder brother meant. They did not care about 1.8 million either. Giving it to the girl, the girl accepted, maybe slightly inappropriate. But it didn''t matter, his brother liked her.


    They just didn''t expect the girl to give an even more expensive gift in return.


    On the contrary, it was their own brother who took advantage of her.

 Chapter 345: The People Who Care About You

    Chapter 345


    The ancient jade lamb was taken away by Li Weijin, and Xiao Qi felt heartbroken for a good while.


    She didn''t know how to assess its value, but antique jade was antique, and the washed lamb was also very moist and oily, so it should also be a good piece of jade, surely more valuable than modern jade.


    But thinking about it, he had spent over a million to buy it, while she had only spent 10,000 yuan, so in terms of cost, she was actually taking advantage.


    No, she couldn''t think that way, why did she have to trade with Li Weijin?


    Xiao Qi rode on the horse''s back, the more she thought about it, the more confused she felt, always feeling something was not right...


    The coach came back today, and the chairman was also there.


    The chairman had regained his usual manner, stern yet generous, his attitude was mild, as if there had never been a previous confession between them.


    Xiao Qi also breathed a sigh of relief.


    What she feared most was when a potential romance failed, they would become enemies, not even remaining as friends.


    She truly did not harbor other feelings for the chairman. She had clearly rejected him. Admiration and love were two different matters.


    Seeing Xiao Qi again, Xiao Sheng Zhou felt she looked even more beautiful, her gaze was frank and straightforward. She smiled at him very cheerfully, without any ambiguity. Indeed, the little girl did not harbor other intentions towards him, it was him overthinking things.


    Although he had discovered that he liked Xiao Qi, he was a very rational man. He would not pester her stubbornly or interfere in other people''s lives. He would only rationally restrain these stirrings of his heart.


    He felt that he was probably too free recently, leading to excessive flights of fancy. He still had to busy himself.


    Steven had been away for a week. He had come back bursting with energy. He had earned quite a bit this time. In the past when overseas, he would spend as soon as he earned. But this time it was different. Maybe it was the influence of his student, Xiao Qi. Although he said he would be out playing for a week this time, he had actually gone to buy a house.


    He chose a city he liked, Yun Province, and bought a rather big villa there with a lake right in front and beautiful scenery. He hoped that when he got old, he could live there and call his old friends to come play. The villa was very big, enough to house all his friends.


    After buying the villa, he suddenly regained spirit. He would work hard. He felt very settled, as if there was now a place he could return to in the future. Turns out deep down he was still a Huaxia person, who also liked a stable life. It¡¯s just a pity he didn''t understand that when he was with Ollie.


    Jigu had also returned, looking quite spirited too. Xiao Qi did not shower right after coming home, afraid that showering after a return journey would make her sick. But she rode a few laps and felt happy to be back in familiar surroundings.


    Apparently, Jigu was even more proud and confident after an outing. Unlike the past when he seemed rather listless under captivity, Jigu was meant for the racing grounds.


    Finally, she ate a sumptuous dinner at the racetrack with the coach again like old times, after so many days of not doing so. She had missed it quite a bit.


    The Chinese and Western chefs were both especially warm towards Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi simply decided on a fusion of cuisines. She ordered a Chinese and a Western dish. Afterall she had a big appetite and needed a lot of food intake due to her high activity levels.


    During the meal, Xiao Qi received a call. It was Lin Min calling to inform that he would be coming to Enhua tomorrow to run some errands and asked if she would like to meet for a meal.


    As evening self-study ended and they returned to their dorm room, the girls freshened up, tidied up and got ready for bed. Xiao Qi had met her daily step count goal today so she did not go running. Instead she practiced her calligraphy in the dorm room. She was completely focused while writing that she did not even realize almost lights out time until half an hour had passed. She then also went to wash up and prepare for bed.


    However, her dorm mates were still very excited today despite lights out and lying in bed. Mainly because they were curious about Xiao Qi¡¯s jade Buddha pendant which she did not have this morning, so it seemed like something must have happened.


    Xiao Qi had wanted to tell her dorm mates on Saturday when she returned that the student she gave private tuition to was from Li Weijin¡¯s household. But she never found an opportunity that whole weekend. Having worked an entire tiring day, her urge to gossip diminished and she did not take the initiative to bring it up.


    Now that her dorm mates asked, she was excited to finally have an eager audience after holding in gossip for two days. She enthusiastically recounted all that she had seen and heard over the weekend tuition sessions.


    ¡°I just went to his house today, the main gate was preposterous. The columns were as thick as several people¡¯s hugs round. The roof was also glittery golden, as if gold roof tiles were used... ¡°


    Yunshu couldn¡¯t help laughing.


    She knew Li Weijin¡¯s family was very wealthy. Hers was quite well-to-do too, although nowhere near his. But following her parents she had been to quite a few relatives'' and friends'' expensive homes, yet none were as exaggerated as what Xiao Qi described!


    What kind of aesthetics was that! It sounded like some upstart¡¯s residence. But Li Weijin did not resemble an upstart one bit with his tasteful refinement and aloof demeanor.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t that kid say he liked you the other day? And then so coincidentally, you became his home tutor, was it arranged by his parents? Wow, Xiao Qi, you¡¯ve even met his parents then?¡± Mei said in an astonished tone, though speaking softly, still very excited.


    Xiao Qi: ......


    I met his mother and older brother, and even caused a misunderstanding.


    I called his mother "sister" and his brother "uncle." Xiao Qi rarely felt her own emotional intelligence burst out for once, not catching a woman and calling her auntie, but instead causing such a misunderstanding, awkward. Fortunately, Li Weijin told me on WeChat, if it was face-to-face it would probably be even more awkward.


    Xiao Qi talked about the misunderstanding she caused, and several dorm mates laughed loudly.


    Even Wei Cheng laughed uncontrollably.


    ¡°Was this jade Buddha also a gift from him? It doesn¡¯t look cheap.¡± Yunshu was the first to stop laughing to ask.


    She had a jade pendant around her neck that her mother bought, spending a lot of money. Although she felt Xiao Qi wouldn¡¯t be so short-sighted as to care about another¡¯s money, she still subtly said one sentence.


    ¡°I know it¡¯s expensive. He forcibly stuffed it to me after school and even snatched away my little sheep.¡± Xiao Qi said annoyed.


    ¡°Ah!¡± Wei Cheng uttered an exclamation.


    Because last night she saw Xiao Qi unusually did not write and study in the dormitory, but made a pot there, specifically to soak her little sheep, talking excitedly that she bought it at auction, worth a lot of money, particularly arrogant. It was rare to see Xiao Qi so emotionally expressive, if it was someone else saying this, they might not believe it, but Xiao Qi¡¯s personality never exaggerates, it should be true.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean you lost out even more?¡± Wei Cheng said stubbornly.


    ¡°This should count as mutual gifting between you two!¡± Mei said with a laugh. She felt that with Xiao Qi¡¯s strength, if she didn¡¯t want to give it, Li Weijin wouldn¡¯t have been able to take it away.


    ¡°Although I''ve never been in love, but Xiao Qi classmate, I feel the sour smell of love from you.¡± Yunshu said while looking at the novel on her phone.


    Xiao Qi: ......That seems to make some sense.

 Chapter 346: Changing the Future

    Chapter 346


    Tuesday.


    Sunny.


    Xiaoqi knew Lin Min ge would come over today, and was quite looking forward to it. She dressed up neatly early in the morning.


    She felt that when meeting hometown folks, she must look smart and tidy.


    However, after trying on two skirts, she still felt awkward. She exercises every day, so her figure proportions are very good, and her legs are also beautifully slim and shapely. She looks good in skirts, but she still feels a little uncomfortable herself, probably because she didn''t wear skirts since she was little, although she dreams of beautiful princess dresses in her heart, she still feels awkward.


    She changed into a green sweatshirt with jeans, which felt much more comfortable.


    The bright green highlighted her fairer skin tone. After coming to university for so long, Xiaoqi seemed to have fully blossomed into a young lady. Her features were brighter than before, and she walked with a more upright posture. She was still recognizable, but had changed tremendously.


    It was as if she had turned on the beauty filter in daily life.


    Xiaoqi had half a day of classes on Tuesday mornings, and no classes in the afternoon. She had an elective class at night, so the afternoon was perfect for properly hosting Lin Min ge.


    Li Weijin arrived at school in the morning and saw Xiaoqi, feeling a burning sensation in his clavicle immediately.


    Xiaoqi also saw Li Weijin, and thought of what her roommates said, feeling a little awkward too. Then she saw the little sheep on his phone...


    Li Weijin had just wanted to randomly grab something to let Xiaoqi accept his jade Buddha. He hadn''t expected at all that the decorative charm on Xiaoqi''s backpack zipper would be more valuable than his Buddha... It was the first time in his life that the girl he liked had casually shown off her wealth to him.


    He was very indifferent towards money. He had been nagged by his brother for a long time, saying that he shouldn''t have taken such a valuable item from the girl without giving something of equivalent value in return, blah blah...


    Li Weijin didn''t understand why his brother was being so crazy. It was his brother who told him not to give gifts in the first place, and now he was the one telling him to give gifts again. Findd new stories at novelhall.com


    He wanted to give Xiaoqi many, many things. Most of all he wanted to give himself to her, she just had to accept him.


    The two almost silently glanced at each other in class, before quickly turning their heads again. It was a bit strange, but also a bit thrilling.


    Fortunately, Xiaoqi was still quite focused during class and didn''t daydream. In terms of learning and life, Xiaoqi actually lived a rather dull life, like an ascetic monk.


    After a busy morning of classes, when school was over, Xiaoqi told her roommates that she wouldn''t eat with them. Her neighbor''s brother had come to Qingmeng University and she would eat with him.


    As soon as Xiaoqi came out of the teaching building, she saw Lin Min ge standing at the edge of the track field.


    Long time no see.


    Lin Min was wearing a plaid shirt, one of those plaid shirts that programmers wear all over the streets. But it didn''t look tacky at all on him, on the contrary it looked very fresh and upright.


    He and the flamboyant Li Weijin had two different styles. Li Weijin was handsome like a little peacock, while Lin Min was like a tree, a apricot tree. The shape of his leaves was beautiful, the trunk upright, giving off a clean and gentle feeling.


    Many girls frequently looked his way.


    Xiaoqi thought about the Lin Min ge from before, and felt like he had been slightly gloomy, even with a smile on his face. Probably because the system kept reminding her that Lin Min was a blackened teenager, and there was the dimly lit basement.


    But seeing him again now, they both realized they had changed a lot.


    Lin Min seemed much sunnier, free and easy.


    Amongst the crowd, Lin Min spotted Xiaoqi at a glance.


    Xiaoqi''s roommates weren''t in the class group, but Suli retorted: ¡°Any guy you don''t know is immediately the boyfriend, are you a jealous wife? Why are you so nosy?¡±


    Li Weijin also believed that the man was definitely not Xiaoqi''s boyfriend, but still felt uneasy.


    He went straight to the table with Xiaoqi''s roommates and asked Wei Cheng where Xiaoqi had gone.


    "Her neighbor''s brother who goes to Qingmeng University is here for something. She''s eating with him." Wei Cheng answered very properly.


    Hearing it was a neighbor brother, Li Weijin felt relieved.


    Xiaoqi''s roommates, that tallest and most sincere one, he didn''t ask Mimi, feeling that she would mock him, nor did he ask Gu Yunshu, feeling that she was not very friendly.


    When did Li Weijin get so close with the girls from room 606 that he was eating together with them? Others were quite curious seeing this.


    Xiaoqi was also a little embarrassed at first, but listening to Lin Min ge talk about his experiences over this period, she became engrossed in it, forgetting her embarrassment.


    She didn''t expect that while she had been ordinarily attending school, Lin Min ge had done so many things.


    Lin Min first set up a stall selling used books, then opened a small shop to help receive and send express deliveries, while also selling second-hand items and books. Soon he encountered competition from similar shops, so he designed his own express locker. The original lockers charged fees, requiring payment every time something was deposited, usually 1 yuan.


    But the locker he designed was free - items could be deposited for free, with only a 0.5 yuan fee if left over 24 hours, capped at 3 yuan.


    The locations were also set scientifically - at dorm building entrances, classroom building entrances, and then gradually expanded to surrounding residential districts.


    Everyone thought he was silly, doing things for free.


    But through this he pulled in a round of venture capital investment. This unremarkable sheet metal locker, just scan a WeChat code, could even have ad slots on top, pulling in another chunk of money.


    It seemed simple and easy.


    He suddenly had the idea to make a locker with more advantages. At first his issues with the existing lockers, with fees and poor placement, limited functionality, made him think - why not improve upon this?


    He was extremely busy during that time, sometimes only getting 3-4 hours of sleep a day.


    But he succeeded.


    A freshman, he pulled in tens of millions in venture capital.


    It was practically a miracle.


    Today he came to Huanhua also to discuss business for his lockers. He didn''t need to come himself originally, he already had many people working for him, even getting his roommates to help out. Each responsible for different regions.


    But he wanted to come and see Xiao Qi.


    He thought of many flashy, extravagant ways they could meet again.


    In the end he came wearing plain, ordinary clothes.


    Seeing Xiao Qi was doing well, and so was he.


    At this moment, Lin Min felt very calm inside.


    Xiao Qi listened attentively, when suddenly the mechanical voice in her mind sounded: "The host''s improved life attitude has brought positive influence to the moderately dark youth, reducing his level of darkness, changing his future. Awarding the host half of his financial gains."


    Xiao Qi blanked in surprise, and saw an additional 5 million suddenly appear in her interface. Right, a 5, six 0''s, five million.

 Chapter 347: The Healing Smile

    Chapter 347


    Sharing Equally


    Xiao Qi looked at the sliced beef with black pepper sauce and sesame seeds in front of her and hesitated.


    In such a short time, Brother Lin Min had actually made 10 million yuan. He''s so capable, even more so than her who had a system.


    She wondered, what was Brother Lin Min''s future like originally?


    As she pondered over this question, a scene suddenly appeared in her mind.


    After graduating from Qingmeng University, Lin Min did not continue with postgraduate studies, because his family''s financial situation was just average. His younger sister did not get good grades on her college entrance exam and went to a vocational college.


    Qingmeng University''s medical students could do internships at the best hospital in Meng City, but Lin Min was not able to stay.


    At the very least, that kind of major hospital only recruited graduate students, or those with powerful family backgrounds, or those with exceptionally outstanding capabilities.


    Lin Min did not meet any of those criteria. He didn''t have the money or time to pursue postgraduate studies. His family background was lacking. Although he was considered outstanding among his peers, he was not extraordinarily remarkable.


    After graduating, Lin Min found a job at a second-tier hospital in a third-tier small city. His family''s burden was heavy. His father was an alcoholic. His mother''s street food stand was shut down and not allowed to operate anymore, so she worked as a janitor at the hospital. His younger sister just got by after graduating from vocational college. He was the most successful one, after all he was a doctor. Then after working for two years, his colleague introduced him to a match and he got married in that city. Soon he had a child, took out a loan to buy a house, and his salary increased bit by bit, yet his finances became more and more tight. His in-laws and parents both needed money when they got sick, and his child needed money too. Left with no choice, he slowly got used to accepting red envelopes, working overtime, and performing more surgeries.


    When he returned home, he had to take care of his child and had no time to rest. He was exhausted. During one surgery, he made a small mistake accidentally. The patient''s family made a big fuss about it. In the end, he was fired. As he walked along the street, he felt weary. He didn''t go home, but went to a roadside food stand, ordered some wine and a few small dishes and drank alone quietly. The more he drank, the more he resembled his alcoholic father.


    The youthful handsomeness on his face was gone, replaced with stubble, fatigue, and despair. After drinking several bottles of wine, a gust of wind blew by. He coughed violently, then blew his nose and casually wiped it with some tissue, throwing it on the ground. He also wiped his body with it...


    Very late, he got up and staggered back. At a dark street corner, he saw someone robbing a woman''s handbag. The woman held on tightly to her bag and ended up being stabbed by the robber. Blood splattered everywhere. The robber got scared and ran away with the knife. The woman writhed on the ground. Seeing him, she wanted to ask for help but couldn''t make a sound. She just looked at him longingly. He glanced at her, hesitated for a moment, then walked away indifferently. The next day, the headlines reported an unexplained death of a 28-year-old woman at a street corner.


    The next night, he went to the roadside food stand again and drank. Life was just hopeless like this, living was merely extending the hopelessness.


    "Xiao Qi, what are you thinking about?" Lin Min saw that Xiao Qi had been staring blankly at him for a long time and couldn''t help asking.


    "Oh," nothing much. Xiao Qi''s body shuddered and she came back to the present.


    She looked up and saw Lin Min with a faint smile at the corners of his mouth. He was clean and neat, without any haggardness. His eyes were very bright, shining with a determined radiance.


    He was completely different from the cold and decadent person in her mind just now.


    The person in that scene had already been worn down by life.


    The person before her eyes became more and more brilliant after being polished by life.


    "Brother Lin Min, you are so amazing to have earned so much money already. Will you still become a doctor in the future? If someone gets injured, will you save them?" Xiao Qi asked.


    Yet those people somehow could turn their hobby of raising horses into making money. Money just naturally gravitated toward rich people, as if it had its own power of aggregation.


    Whereas poor people would have a much harder time making money.


    He was fortunate. His fortune was built on him scheming, observing, and exerting himself every day, even befriending trash collectors sincerely. When others got off from school and rested, not him, he worked. When others went out to play with girls on weekends, not him, he worked. On scorching hot days when others lay in the dorm fanning themselves and playing games, he worked.


    Money was hard earned, so he cherished it greatly, didn''t dare try recklessly, didn''t dare make mistakes. Opportunities were scarce, so when he got one, he had to work even harder.


    Xiao Qi took Lin Min to the stables and picked out Taylor for him. Although Taylor was tall and had been a bit temperamental before due to an old injury, he was actually the most docile now after recovering from that injury. She taught Lin Min how to get on the horse while leading Taylor.


    Lin Min was a bit apprehensive too, since he had never been around horses before. But once he got on and Taylor walked a few steps, then broke into a gentle trot, he felt completely different. This was another world altogether.


    It''s easy for guys to fall in love with the feeling of riding a horse or driving a car.


    Galloping and soaring.


    Xiao Qi rode Ink nearby.


    After circling around once or twice, Xiao Qi went to groom the horses and Lin Min followed to watch her work.


    Not only did she have to wash and brush the horses, she also had to clean up the manure, and muck out the stalls. Xiao Qi carried buckets of water and worked very skillfully.


    Lin Min lent a hand occasionally.


    The afternoon passed quickly like this.


    It could be said that this was the most relaxing day Lin Min had experienced since coming to Meng City, even more so than the day he got venture capital funding. Back then, holding all that money, the pressure was immense. His hands even shook when signing the agreements.


    He was also afraid of failure, afraid of so many things, even suffering from insomnia and hair loss, lying awake all night unable to sleep.


    Now he''s not afraid anymore.


    Since Huan Hua left, after getting on the bus to the city center because there were still seats available when he was leaving, he waved goodbye to Xiao Qi from the window.


    As the bus drove away, he could still see her standing there.


    The bus was a little chaotic, with more local residents who spoke the local dialect, chattering away. He didn''t understand but felt strangely at ease.


    He felt he was different now, different in some way he couldn''t put his finger on. Anyway he felt very relaxed, liberated. He would keep working hard, there were so many things he could do, the future looked bright.


    As Xiao Qi stood by the road waving, the mechanical voice in his head sounded again: "The host''s positive attitude to life has brought the moderately corrupted teenager an uplifting influence, slowing down the speed of his corruption, rewarding the host with a healing smile."

 Chapter 348: You are Forgiven

    Chapter 348


    After seeing Brother Lin Min off, Xiao Qi walked back to her dormitory.


    After spending the whole afternoon with Brother Lin Min, Xiao Qi still had elective classes tonight. She felt that she should go back and rest for a bit, otherwise she wouldn''t have good energy and her efficiency in class would be low.


    She had always heard the system mention moderate blackening, moderate blackening, but had never thought about what state that actually was.


    But when she thought of the hurried flashes appearing in her mind - surgical accidents, watching someone die without helping, cold-heartedness, alcohol abuse... Just thinking that the currently clean and gentle Lin Min would become like that, it seemed to make her heart ache.


    It was like seeing an obese, annoying, nagging, cold and greasy future version of herself.


    Xiao Qi thought, the one changing wasn''t Lin Min, but actually herself.


    Returning to the dormitory, Xiao Qi didn''t practice calligraphy, but went straight to bed to sleep.


    Once her head hit the pillow, she was very tired.


    Not the tiredness from accompanying someone shopping, but the scene she saw seemed to take a lot of mental effort.


    She slept very soundly.


    By the time she woke up, the sky was already dark.


    Luckily she wasn''t late. Xiao Qi rushed to take a shower and get changed before hurrying off to class with her school bag on her back.


    On a whim that night, she had worn the white dress that she found troublesome when trying on during the day, with an overcoat on top.


    Li Weijin had arrived early at the Spanish elective classroom.


    Recently, he had really been studying diligently. Yesterday when he went home, after showing off and eating dinner, he still went to the study room to study properly until two in the morning.


    He and his whole family were scared by this.


    He hadn''t tried this hard even during the college entrance examinations. Now that he had gotten into a private university with low standards, why was he suddenly so dedicated?


    Li Qianmen thought there must be something wrong with his son''s brain to not be working properly.


    Gao Cuihua felt that her precious son must be so tired from studying and should eat some pig brains to nourish himself.


    Li Tangsong: ...Is the power of love really that great?


    How could it be that the most debauched male and female representatives suddenly started studying? Should they start studying too?


    Had the cafe turned into a library?


    After studying at the cafe for an afternoon, time passed swiftly for Li Weijin.


    As evening approached, thinking he would see Xiao Qi at the elective class, Li Weijin carefully washed up and dressed up a bit.


    He wore an asymmetrically cut white shirt. On others it might look like an insurance salesman''s shirt but on him it gave off a top celebrity vibe. He washed his hair and casually let it fall around his face.


    Instead of dress pants, the white shirt was paired with gray sweatpants and white sneakers. This haphazard match-up, yet on his 1.88m tall figure, still looked attractive and casual.


    His physique and face were just naturally like cheating.


    The heavens had blessed him with good looks. Just relying on this appearance, even without good grades or money, it seemed he wouldn''t starve to death.


    He had also generously sprayed on some cologne.


    Today''s cologne was Lanvin Eclat d¡¯Arpege Pour Homme, with a simple fragrance - top notes of lily of the valley, middle notes of herbs, and base notes of lavender.


    He arrived at the classroom early and sat in his usual spot.


    After waiting for a while, he saw Xiao Qi enter.


    Xiao Qi had worn athletic clothes during the day, but was unexpectedly wearing a skirt at night.


    A pure white skirt, paired with a beige overcoat.


    Li Weijin''s serious face instantly broke into a smile. He felt Xiao Qi wore the skirt to see him and was so happy about it.


    All the various knots in his heart from that entire afternoon instantly vanished when he saw Xiao Qi appear, and Li Weijin only had one thought - I forgive you, I forgive you!


    Seeing the arrogant young master actually smiling for once, Xiao Qi was very surprised. Li Weijin looked even better when smiling.


    When not smiling his looks were 100/100, but smiling his looks went up to 108/100. The extra 8 points were bonus points. So soft and cute, like acting spoiled.


    She also smiled back at him.


    Xiao Qi''s smile had a healing effect, penetrating all gloom. It removed that last bit of ill feeling in Li Weijin''s heart. Never mind that you don''t like me as much, as long as I like you it''s fine.

 Chapter 349: What to Prepare for a Trip Abroad

    Chapter 349


    Aizhen came at the time, and saw students coming one after another, one wearing a white shirt, one wearing a white skirt.


    Although Oriental faces are easy to confuse, she always feels they look the same.


    But the two people in front of her, Aizhen had a deep impression.


    They were extremely good-looking Orientals, probably just like the foreign movie stars ordinary people see in foreign movies, feeling that foreigners all look so beautiful, but in real life there are all kinds, there are also short and frustrated ones, and There are also fat and greasy ones.


    The two people in front of them are probably like the stars in their Chinese movies.


    It''s very pleasing.


    Aizhen likes this class, teaches casually, not many students.


    She got thinner, not because she couldn''t get used to Chinese food, but because she had anorexia herself, she didn''t want to eat anything.


    Sometimes just drink a glass of milk a day.


    What she wanted to teach today was not poetry, nor Spanish architectural landscapes, but Spanish cuisine.


    Aizhen is very indifferent to food now. She made a PPT when she prepared her lessons, introducing the pictures of the origin and taste of Spanish cuisine, but she didn''t arouse her appetite after she finished.


    Anorexia is a very painful thing. Aizhen''s condition is actually a bit serious. She is too thin.


    Her skirt was pinned with two more sizes so as not to fall off, and her clothes were empty.


    Of course, although this is the case, her makeup is still very decent, she is just very, very thin, with the feeling of falling down in the wind.


    Aizhen introduced the cuisine as if she were reading poetry, full of emotion, very romantic and beautiful, the pictures were also very beautiful, and it would make people very appetizing.


    Xiaoqi has never been to Spain. In fact, she has seen little. Not to mention Spain, she has never been abroad.


    Li Weijin has been to many places, but he has not been to Spain either. He has a good brain and the content of the class is not difficult to follow along, and he can barely keep up now without being confused.


    Aizhen also joked in class, "You two can go to Spain together in the future, it''s a romantic ancient country."


    Xiao Qi''s Spanish is already capable of basic conversation, plus remembering what the teacher teaches every time, learning very quickly, she smiled and said, "I will definitely go there if I have a chance, and it will be even more wonderful if I can go with the teacher."


    Aizhen said seriously, "I plan to go to Spain next summer vacation, would you like to go together?"


    During the day, a group of people were playing upstairs in the coffee shop, and they could directly see the outside, but the outside could not see the inside.


    As a result, they discovered that the young master was actually going to help buy things fluttering, and then sat in the dendrobium shop downstairs facing them.


    With a foreign old woman who looked like a chicken claw... Young Master''s hobbies are too weird.


    Not until Xiao Qi brought over the hot mixed grain pancakes did the group of people upstairs realize it.


    "This...this is not the super awesome new student that Guandi has!"


    They were basically pre-college students who knew the ropes, and called freshman students new students.


    Su Li was sitting inside at first, not interested in looking out. Hearing this, he also came over.


    Damn, I just saw Li Weijin, the scheming bitch, actually eating with Xiao Qi, although there was also a foreign teacher, but seeing Li Weijin''s natural look, and their position, just to see Xiao Qi''s smile, talking and laughing, very close Look like.


    She lives in the dormitory opposite Su Xiaoqi and is not so close. I didn''t expect Li Weijin to be so difficult.


    After Aizhen sat down, she regretted it a little. She was a little panicked, worried that she would vomit before she ate anything, which would be very impolite.


    But the two students went to buy things, and she originally planned to wait for the students to come back, and then she would say goodbye.


    As a result, seeing Li Weijin coming back, this handsome boy, as handsome as he could, she couldn''t say goodbye, waiting for Su to come back, seeing Xiao Qi''s smile, she suddenly calmed down inexplicably, without the anxiety of seeing food.


    Xiao Qi practiced her oral English seriously and carefully introduced the three foods, all of which she liked and were not heavy in flavor.


    Those who can speak Spanish speak Spanish, those who can''t speak English, and the surrounding students are stunned.


    Not only can he speak English fluently, but students can also see a few students going out to eat with foreign teachers occasionally, and they usually communicate in halting English. There are many foreign teachers in Hua, and active students are willing to go with foreign teachers to practice their spoken English.


    But very few can speak as fluently and with such good intonation as Xiao Qi. It''s rare enough to speak English well, but mixing in other languages is truly exceptional. Usually it''s English mixed with Chinese, so this is just incredible.


    A group of people upstairs in the cafe are very curious, so Li Taiping has been sent to investigate under the pretense of buying mint tea.


    As a result, when he hears Xiao Qi''s strings of foreign languages, he can barely understand the English, and the rest is gibberish...what on earth is that? Magical gibberish?


    He''s a fanboy of Wu Xinyue, the goddess of the English department, and also goes to eat with foreign teachers along with Wu Xinyue, with him footing the bill and Wu Xinyue speaking English sentence by sentence, slowly and deliberately, adding gestures. At times like these, Li Taiping feels that Xinyue has a great figure and is so gentle.


    Compared to hearing this girl''s strings of foreign languages, which crushes Wu Xinyue, let alone her appearance, which is much prettier than Wu Xinyue''s up close, Li Taiping feels a bit weak-willed. But seeing the resolute Wei Jin sitting across from her, he hurriedly buys the mint tea, doesn''t dare greet them, and hurriedly leaves...

 Chapter 350: From My Heart

    Chapter 350


    Aizhen regarded the Shaoxiancao with a hint of resemblance to the magical potions in Harry Potter, all dark and mysterious...


    Beside it were milk, honey, raisins, and nuts, which one could add according to their preference.


    Aizhen, who usually only drank a glass of milk a day, didn''t add any milk this time. The drink looked dark and smelled like medicine. She thought it might be some kind of Oriental herbal concoction, which would surely be bitter. So, Aizhen added a generous amount of honey.


    After adding the honey, she didn''t really have the desire to eat it, after all, it looked so dark.


    Xiao Qi poured everything into her own cup and demonstrated by scooping a large spoonful and eating it directly. After finishing, she said to Aizhen, "This is a bit like the Andalusian cold soup, which is a must-have for people in Meng City during the summer. It''s a sweet dessert that helps cool down the body. Our traditional Chinese medicine believes that there is ''fire'' in the human body that needs to be lowered with medicine, somewhat like lowering the temperature."


    Aizhen didn''t understand traditional Chinese medicine either, but she had heard her elders say such things when she was young. Xiao Qi''s explanation sounded strange, and she even laughed at herself towards the end.


    However, Aizhen always ate her food with satisfaction and seriousness since she grew up in a family with limited resources. Even though her parents doted on her, they wouldn''t allow any wastage.


    She ate with a full belly, taking big mouthfuls.


    Coupled with her increased daily exercise, her eating habits had become solid. When she said she would eat, she truly ate, and she ate with great relish.


    Seeing Su''s smile and how she enjoyed the food, Aizhen inexplicably felt an appetite herself.


    Aizhen closed her eyes, gathered her courage, and decided to give it a taste. She finally had a slight desire to eat. As the food approached her mouth, her stomach didn''t revolt or give her the urge to vomit. She scooped a spoonful into her mouth. It was a bit bitter, indeed resembling the mystical Oriental herbs as described. It had a slight bitterness, and even a hint of astringency on her tongue. But this bitter and astringent taste was quickly enveloped by the sweetness of the honey. Surprisingly, bitterness and sweetness could go well together in a meal. Then she felt the food rolling into her stomach, slowly. A minute passed, and she didn''t vomit...


    She was utterly amazed. She had actually eaten something, and at such a late hour. Previously, she had been paranoid about not eating after noon and refrained from eating anything in the afternoon, even if she felt dizzy from hunger. But now, it was past ten o''clock, and she had taken a bite of food.


    Her stomach didn''t ache; Aizhen was delighted.


    However, she didn''t dare to eat much. With Xiao Qi''s guidance, she tasted a small bite of multigrain pancake. It had to be eaten while hot, with spicy sauce, vegetable fritters, and crispy dried bean curd skin wrapped in the pancake. It gave a sense of being a staple food, with both a filling and a fragrant sensation.


    Aizhen was worried that her stomach couldn''t handle it, so she took a small bite and indeed found it somewhat hard and ended up spitting it out.


    But the salad bun, a round bun with a sweet and greasy salad dressing in the middle, made of very delicate bread that resembled cake, was very fluffy. Aizhen actually finished a whole one, tearing it apart bit by bit.


    Aizhen had consumed one-third of the Shaoxiancao.


    It was already a remarkable beginning, and Aizhen herself was pleasantly surprised.


    Can my anorexia be cured?


    It''s simply miraculous.


    She happily packed the remaining Shaoxiancao and salad buns, bidding farewell to Xiao Qi and Li Weijin.


    The mechanical sound in Xiao Qi''s mind started playing as Teacher Aizhen left, saying, "The host''s serious attitude towards food has had a positive impact on anorexia patients, effectively alleviating their suffering. Reward: +1 vision for the host."


    The world before her eyes seemed to suddenly remove a layer of filter, becoming clearer and more refined.


    Xiao Qi: ... It feels like the system has become a bit casual.


    Even advising Teacher Aizhen to eat comes with a reward.


    And the way she teaches the students at night, talking about exquisite cuisine, portraying Teacher Aizhen as someone so moving and beautiful, yet she''s an anorexia patient.


    Venture capital? Should he ask his father to invest in him? No, that wouldn''t be classy! He couldn''t rely on his father.


    Rely on himself? Li Weijin had a bit of self-awareness. He didn''t know anything and money didn''t come easily to him.


    "I''m almost at the dormitory. What are you coming over for?" Xiao Qi couldn''t help but ask as she noticed that Young Master suddenly became silent and had been silent for quite a while.


    "You''ll find out soon enough." Li Weijin puffed up his cheeks, looking like a goldfish.


    With Xiao Qi''s enhanced vision, she saw him like that, with no visible pores on his fair and flawless face. It was so attractive that she blushed uncontrollably.


    Damn...he was like a moving hormone. So good-looking.


    Xiao Qi turned her head away, walked all the way to the dormitory entrance, and saw Li Weijin''s butler standing there with a large box by his feet.


    "I bought a box of fruits for your roommate to express my gratitude for helping me with my questions this afternoon." Li Weijin said in a solemn tone.


    The butler stood there, chatting with the dormitory supervisor auntie as though they were long-lost companions. The dormitory supervisor auntie made an exception and allowed him to go in and deliver the package.


    If it was for herself, Xiao Qi would have declined, but she couldn''t refuse on behalf of her roommate when it was about expressing gratitude for their help.


    However, seeing the butler...she felt a pang of jealousy. Worried that she might say something unintentionally during the walk, she blurted out everything about herself.


    "No need, I can carry it." Xiao Qi said and effortlessly lifted the large box with one hand.


    It was very light!


    Li Weijin: ...


    Butler: ...


    Dormitory supervisor auntie: ...


    Xiao Qi carried the box of sturdy fruits to the dormitory and explained its origin. She curiously asked, "What did you ask them that made you grateful? Who did they say you''re with?"


    She originally thought that Li Weijin had asked them about their studies because he would also come to ask her. Unexpectedly, Wei Cheng honestly replied, "He asked me who you''re with."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Seeing a box of beautiful fruits, Honey couldn''t resist and decided to eat first before saying anything.


    She bit into a fist-sized peach and exclaimed, "Damn, why is it so sour? My teeth are about to fall out!"


    Lady Yunsu elegantly peeled and sliced the peach, placed a slice in her mouth, and then her eyebrows furrowed in sourness, making her look like an old lady... "Ah!"


    Wei Cheng held a starfruit in her mouth, her body trembling, unsure whether to spit it out or not. It would be a waste to spit it out, but if she didn''t, it felt like her cheeks would fall off.


    Xiao Qi found them all looking strange as they each ate a piece of fruit. Was it really necessary to make such exaggerated expressions over eating fruit?


    She took a big, red apple in her hand and took a bite. In an instant, an extremely sour sensation exploded in her mouth. Her sense of taste was more sensitive than the average person''s, and this level of sourness was even more overwhelming, causing tears to well up in her eyes...


    What on earth? Where did Li Weijin find such good-looking and sour fruits?

 Chapter 351: Striving for a Better Life

    Chapter 351


    Very sour fruits.


    Representing the feelings of youth.


    Xiao Qi was mocked by her roommates all night.


    Lying in bed, Xiao Qi still felt a slight soreness in her cheeks.


    And a bit amused.


    She turned on the bedside lamp, opened the map of Meng City.


    Yes, it''s the map of Meng City that she deliberately bought, in order to buy a house.


    Xiao Qi is the kind of person who can''t save money. When she sees a lot of money, she gets anxious and feels like she has no luck. She finally used her skills to identify a piece of ancient jade, but it was actually chosen by a brat... It''s truly terrifying how people with money have such discerning eyes...


    Well, she also really likes the seed pendant of the little Buddha hanging around her neck. The color is warm, not particularly white, but exceptionally moist. Hanging it in front of her chest makes her feel warm, as if it will bless her.


    Xiao Qi is somewhat superstitious. When she went to work part-time, she liked this jade at first sight and was ready to spend a lot of money to buy it. But unexpectedly, it ended up with her. She can''t just take someone else''s things for free. In Xiao Qi''s upbringing, it''s better to suffer a loss than to take advantage of others, otherwise she won''t feel at ease.


    Her parents are honest farmers. This kind of simple education is what allows children to grow up safely. Otherwise, children raised with arrogance in their hearts by rural families will suffer in society.


    The map under the light looks like a fist.


    There are a total of five districts.


    The central one is in the palm of the hand, basically surrounded by the sea on all sides. The outer side is the outer sea, while the inner side is the inner sea connected to the river. It encircles this district.


    The other four districts all face the inner sea and have several sides connected to the inland.


    So the most expensive one is the central district, and the housing prices are soaring because the scenery is beautiful. Everywhere can be a sea-view house.


    Xiao Qi never thought about buying a house in the central district before, but now with the money on the interface, the money won from horse racing and the generous gifts from the strongest NPC, Brother Lin Min, every time they meet, she now has nearly tens of millions of yuan.


    With so much money, she can buy a house in the city center of Meng City. Six thousand yuan per square meter, six million yuan for one hundred square meters, and twelve million yuan for two hundred square meters.


    Xiao Qi hesitated. Should she buy a large house of more than one hundred square meters in the city center, or should she stick to her previous plan and buy many small houses in the eastern suburbs?


    The development zone in the eastern suburbs is cheaper, only about ten thousand yuan. Xiao Qi thought about the word "cheap" and felt that she was floating. Even a house of ten thousand yuan per square meter seemed cheap to her. The house in her hometown, she remembers when her father built it, didn''t cost even ten thousand yuan in total.


    Xiao Qi looked at it repeatedly and couldn''t get rid of her small-scale thinking. She didn''t plan to buy in the city center of Meng City.


    At most, she would buy two in the city center. The price of a single unit is extremely high, and it will be difficult to sell later. It''s already six thousand yuan, how much more can it go up? If it goes up further, it will be on par with the capital city and the coastal city. Clearly unreasonable, Meng City still can''t compete with the capital city and the coastal city.


    When Sheng Juanhua started making bamboo crafts and sold them to others, she thought they were making a big profit because the selling price was several times higher than the acquisition price. However, when she opened her own shop, she realized that she couldn''t make enough money to cover the costs of running the shop. The shop rent, utilities, labor, and other expenses were too high.


    Sheng Juanhua was clever and often interacted with Mrs. Liang, Jia Jia''s mother. She noticed that some shops were busy even when there were no customers inside. She learned about online ordering, just like when she discovered the convenience of using a delivery service to buy newspapers.


    She thought about putting their shop online, specifically on Taobao, so that people could place orders online.


    Of course, Sheng Juanhua was just exploring this idea. She didn''t have much education, but she was willing to learn. Now she could operate a computer decently, which would surprise the women in her hometown who played mahjong every day.


    People said that Sheng Juanhua had a good life since she moved to the city, but moving to the city didn''t necessarily guarantee a good life. Compared to toiling in the countryside, she and Su Youfu had physically easier lives, but they faced greater mental stress. They were always full of energy, constantly learning.


    Sheng Juanhua pondered on expanding their customer base.


    Su Youfu wasn''t very bright, so he focused on improving their bamboo crafts. He wanted to create more intricate and refined designs.


    During the day, when the shop wasn''t suitable for making bamboo crafts due to limited space and potential mess, Su Youfu would read and study, while Sheng Juanhua continued to research how to open an online store.


    Both of them were very ambitious, and sitting in the shop, it seemed like they had shed their rural identities.


    If Xiao Qi were to come back now, she probably wouldn''t even recognize her parents.


    She had changed a lot, but her parents had changed even more.


    Su Youfu wore reading glasses and traditional Chinese attire. He held a book and sipped a cup of strong tea, looking like a scholar.


    In reality, he had loved reading in the village, but due to his limp leg and poverty, he couldn''t continue his education. Later, he got married and had children, and he had to work hard to make ends meet. He never had the time to stop and study.


    On the other hand, Sheng Juanhua looked neat and tidy as she sat in front of the computer, typing and glancing at the screen like a typist. She didn''t resemble a rural woman at all and even seemed younger than before.


    The couple was very proactive. Their shop closed at six o''clock, just like a museum. They walked back home and passed by the market to buy groceries. After having dinner, they would work on bamboo crafts together. Su Youfu made bamboo crafts while Sheng Juanhua sewed cloth.


    There were no onlookers here like in the village, so they worked quietly. However, outside was bustling, and when they looked up at the sky, it was still bright late into the night.


    Around nine o''clock, Sheng Juanhua got up and made two bowls of egg drop soup, one for each of them.


    In the village, it wasn''t easy to prepare food late at night. If they made something now, the whole village would probably find out by tomorrow. There would be gossip about having a gluttonous daughter-in-law or a wasteful daughter-in-law.


    But here, it didn''t matter. They could make whatever they wanted.


    After eating, they continued working.


    Gradually, the noise outside subsided, and they were ready to go to bed.


    Life was passing by steadily, step by step. When lying in bed, Su Youfu embraced his wife and gently nuzzled her face with his chin, feeling at ease. Soon, he fell into a deep sleep, emitting a snoring sound.

 Chapter 352: Digging Your Own Corner

    Chapter 352


    On Wednesday, Xiao Qi had a full day of classes. She thought about how she was going to look at apartments this weekend, and found some time to tell Li Weijin that she wouldn''t be able to tutor him this weekend because she wouldn''t have enough time.


    Li Weijin said that the tutoring sessions couldn''t be stopped at this critical point in his studies, so they would just have to reschedule the sessions to during the week.


    Xiao Qi: ......Okay, the one paying is the boss.


    Because she had to reschedule Li Weijin''s tutoring sessions, Xiao Qi felt it was very necessary to study ahead of schedule. Although she felt that even compared to people in her own grade, her current level was enough to tutor Li Weijin and earn that money, in order to do an even better job she had to work harder.


    Moreover, after meeting Brother Lin Min, Xiao Qi felt that she had been feeling somewhat complacent recently and hadn''t been studying diligently enough.


    After hearing from Brother Lin Min that not only had he received venture capital funding, but he had also placed 2nd in his class and 8th in his major on his midterm exams. Brother Lin Min had placed around 20th in his class and over 100th in his major when he tested into Qingmeng University. Clinical medicine was famously difficult, yet he was able to work part-time jobs to support himself while still greatly improving his grades.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi had only placed first in her own major, and that was with the professors basically underlining the important parts of the material. Her scores in various subjects had quite a few deductions. Also, she was at Enhua University - if she had been at Qingmeng University instead, Xiao Qi suspected that her results wouldn''t have been as good as Brother Lin Min''s.


    She had previously asked Brother Lin Min to get her a copy of the midterm exam papers for the information management major at Qingmeng University. When she attempted those papers, she found them to be much more difficult. If those had been the exam papers, forget about placing first in her major - she might not have even placed in the top ten.


    This gave Xiao Qi a sense of urgency, feeling that as a student she was spending far too little time properly focused on studying, and that she needed to work even harder.


    Tutoring Li Weijin could not only earn money but also facilitate her own studies, so Xiao Qi was still very willing.


    Another reason was that deep down, she still had feelings for Li Weijin - purely enjoying his company.


    The old Xiao Qi would have cared a lot about what other people said. In high school, she had feelings for Liu Shaowei and had believed that he liked her too. But because she cared about what people would say, she had maintained her distance. Whenever people would tease them, she would hastily refute it. In the end, right after he graduated he showed up with a girlfriend.


    When Xiao Qi thought back on it now, she still felt regret. Liu Shaowei was a jerk, but she had never admitted that they were together, so she had no place to vent about being mistreated and got hurt internally.


    Getting a second chance, she would openly acknowledge it. If Liu Shaowei didn''t like her, she would get clarification as soon as possible. That ambiguous hanging-on had wasted her time and interfered with her studies.


    Now she didn''t care what other people - mainly Chu Yu - would say.


    Xiao Qi discovered that as long as you were strong and outstanding enough, you could completely ignore her and not care what she said.


    Xiao Qi scheduled Li Weijin''s tutoring sessions for Wednesday and Friday nights during the week. She had elective courses on Tuesday and Thursday nights.


    Since these were make-up sessions, she chose public classrooms. There were quite a lot of students doing evening self-study in their own classroom, so it could get noisy during lectures.


    Li Weijin was quite happy about it. He was very smart - teachers had been praising him since kindergarten. By middle and high school, the teachers'' tone had changed to: This kid is really smart, he just doesn''t apply himself.


    His family circumstances made him feel like he didn''t need to work hard in order just to not starve to death. He also didn''t have any ideas of what he wanted to do in the future. In any case, he didn''t want to be like his brother - studying hard, graduating from a top university, then getting tricked by his parents into going to work at their company early on, cleaning up messes every day, and getting so frustrated several days each month that he became mentally unstable.


    Therefore, he had never applied himself fully to studying or anything else.


    The butler also felt extremely curious hearing this question and looked over from the rearview mirror, ears pricked.


    "Around 10 million. There was prize money from previously competing in a horse racing competition, plus my coach had me bet on horses he picked that were sure wins. So it got multiplied by quite a lot."


    Xiao Qi explained briefly.


    Butler: ......


    So it was impossible for the young master of a wealthy family to like an ordinary working-class girl. He had to go home and tell his granddaughter to study hard instead of watching TV dramas and romance novels.


    This girl was too amazing. Last time they chatted, it was just the butler''s professionalism to probe for information about people around the young master. But the little girl was very innocent and basically told him everything. But the more she said, the more the butler was filled with solemn respect. This was no ordinary working-class girl. An ordinary girl wouldn''t be able to casually win swimming championships, break marathon records, get first place in singing competitions, give the top English speech, know four or five languages, get the top academic scores, be a member of the calligraphy association, win horse racing championships...


    As she went on, the young master had nothing comparable besides coming from a good family and being as good-looking as the girl.


    The girl was also very rich. She had 10 million yuan before she was even 18. And you couldn''t even tell at all.


    A girl with 10 million yuan was working as a tutor for 500 yuan per hour. She was very down to earth and not impatient at all. The young master who previously never touched his textbooks was now studying until 2am every day.


    The appraisal expert the young master brought earlier determined that a casual accessory the girl gave the young master was worth over 2 million yuan... Just thinking about the young master''s colorful expression made the butler feel so good...


    "10 million yuan?" Li Weijin thought for a moment before replying, "I feel like the east suburbs are a bit far. Too many buildings have been constructed, so liquidating in the short term won''t be easy. And housing prices in the Menghai District fishing village have also risen, definitely more than 20,000 yuan per square meter. There''s not much room left for prices to rise."


    The butler didn''t expect his young master to actually analyze it so knowledgably. He had never noticed this side of the young master before. He felt very gratified that the young master had grown up.


    Then he heard the young master continue, "I suggest buying in the Xiao''an District. The terrain there is flat, and housing prices are extremely low right now, around 5-6,000 yuan per square meter. But there is huge potential for prices to rise."


    "Pfft!" The butler accidentally turned the steering wheel too much and the car body tilted slightly, scraping against something and making a somewhat grating sound.


    Xiao Qi looked up in surprise to check if anything had happened up front. It seemed fine.


    She was a bit confused by the young master''s words.


    But Li Weijin came from a good family, so he was probably knowledgeable from exposure. His insight was probably better than her own. After all, given her own upbringing, she didn''t have much experience and didn''t understand a lot.


    She looked down at the map to find the Xiao''an District. On the map, Xiao''an District was a district in the northern part of the city center that seemed to be developing ordinarily. She didn''t recall hearing anything notable about it having development potential.


    "I haven''t been to the Xiao''an District before. Should we go take a look?" Xiao Qi asked uncertainly.


    "Trust me, it definitely will rise in price," Li Weijin asserted categorically. His dad was buying land there, spending 5 billion to build an exhibition hall. There would definitely be demolitions, and demolitions could net profits of at least 1:1.5. There was absolutely no problem.


    Xiao Qi considered for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, let''s go take a look over there. I don''t have much experience either."

 Chapter 353: Teaching and Educating

    Chapter 353


    There is always something to be learned from others.


    Xiao Qi felt that she learned a lot from the students she tutored over the summer break.


    Being with Li Weijin and Bao Butler, Xiao Qi thought that at least Bao Butler must have broad experience.


    Xiao Qi''s growth environment was definitely better than her own, so she should learn from her when it comes to spending money.


    Therefore, when she arrived at Xiao''an District and saw the bleak and dilapidated scene, Xiao Qi did not immediately turn around and run away.


    Since she was already here, she might as well take a look.


    There was something odd about Xiao''an District. It was truly flat as far as the eye could see, giving it the feel of a boundless plain. The sky was very low, almost directly overhead.


    However, it was the most underdeveloped district in Meng City. She wondered why that was.


    Agriculture was no good. Industry was no good. Tourism was even worse.


    Yet Xiao''an District was the district closest to the city center.


    "What do you guys think about this place?" The car stopped in front of a housing estate.


    Unlike the lively real estate developments Xiao Qi saw in the eastern suburbs, there were hardly any people here¡ªjust a security guard sitting at the entrance, gnawing on sugarcane and spitting out the pulp, very leisurely.


    Although Li Weijin was surprised to see the scene before him and wondered why his father wanted to buy property here¡ªwas it just because it was cheap? Or because it was close to the city center?¡ªhe still nodded firmly.


    Bao Butler also nodded firmly.


    Seeing them both nod, Xiao Qi no longer hesitated.


    Although she felt it was unreliable herself, she was a complete novice when it came to buying property.


    So she decided to follow their judgment.


    When she had so much money, she was always nervous and full of random thoughts, wanting to buy this today, that tomorrow. She even coveted a pair of green jade bangles at the auction, with the opening bid already 10 million. But that was just fanciful thinking.


    Now everything was settled. No more random thoughts. Light as a feather after the money was spent¡ªXiao Qi truly felt she was destined to be poor.


    The fingerprint on her hand only had one spiral ridge, the rest were all loops. There was a children''s rhyme in her hometown: one spiral means poor, two spirals means rich, three spirals makes iron to sell tofu...


    Li Weijin was not too concerned about Xiao Qi spending 10 million yuan in one go. He had seen his mother crazily spending money often enough to remain calm.


    Bao Butler was already numb to it. Seeing the young miss sign the contract reminded him of his wife''s silhouette¡ªthey do say similar people come together.


    On the ride back, Xiao Qi calmly took out her calculus textbook and started studying.


    Bao Butler: ...


    Then he saw the young master also open up a textbook and start studying... He had thought the young master brought textbooks just to show off while flirting. He looked even more handsome studying seriously, even an old man like him thought so¡ªit must be easy to charm young girls. But the young master was actually seriously reading.


    Thus, these two earnestly started academic discussion in the car?!


    "Xiao Qi, I''m a little confused about origami geometry. Can you explain it to me?" the male student''s slightly hoarse, puzzled voice asked.


    "It''s very simple. Let ¦¤x be the increment of the point M on the curve y=f(x) along the x-axis, ¦¤y be the increment along the y-axis corresponding to ¦¤x on the curve at point M, dy be the increment along the y-axis of the tangent line at point M corresponding to ¦¤x, then when ¦¤x is very small..." And so on and so forth...


    The butler suspected the young miss was teasing him, because it was completely incomprehensible, even though it was in Chinese. Not simple at all...


    But his young master was actually listening intently and taking notes, very serious.


    And so, these two were actually studying in the car?!


    Butler: Is the young master using studying to pick up girls? Young miss, you just spent 10 million to buy a building. Don''t you feel excited? Aren''t you curious why the young master asked you to buy property there? Don''t you have any questions? Your calculus...is so difficult... The world of young people, how incomprehensible.


    The butler gave up and earnestly focused on driving, obediently sending the two back to school.


    The young master wanted to study and would not be going home.


    When saying goodbye to Bao Butler after getting out of the car, Xiao Qi suddenly heard the mechanical voice in her mind: "Host diligently and earnestly studying has influenced the scheming old man, making the old man determined to properly educate his descendants and change the future of his family. Host is rewarded with Memory +1."

 Chapter 354: How to Spend Money 02

    Chapter 354


    On the way back, Xiao Qi was very excited.


    She was almost skipping as she walked.


    If Li Weijin hadn''t been by her side, she would have run back.


    It was actually a +1 to memory. Previously, the memory buffs always had a time limit.


    But this time, it was permanent.


    Memory was so important for studying. Consolidating through repetition and repetition, Xiao Qi would often still forget things.


    There were quite a lot of subjects to study, so it was still a bit tiring for her. She had to spend more time.


    Xiao Qi felt that she wasn''t extremely smart, nor was her brain very functional. Her roommate Yun Shu read novels every day, yet she easily got second place in their class without spending much time studying.


    She couldn''t do that. She was the kind to work hard to make progress. Relying on spending more time and reading more books.


    Having better memory would make studying a little easier. Xiao Qi felt this was great.


    And Li Weijin, seeing that Xiao Qi was in such good spirits, wondered if it was because of buying a house. Xiao Qi seemed to really like the house. Li Weijin made a mental note, at least now he knew one of Xiao Qi''s preferences, so it was worthwhile.


    Today, Li Weijin didn''t walk Xiao Qi to her dorm building. They parted ways at the cafeteria. He also felt going too far was unnecessary, this was just right.


    When Xiao Qi returned to her dorm, it was already afternoon.


    Miao Er and Wei Cheng were not there. Yun Shu was in the dorm reading novels while brewing tea, very carefree.


    After Xiao Qi showered and changed into pajamas, she mooched two servings of tea and felt especially cozy.


    She was feeling fantastic, she didn''t even start practicing calligraphy and studying like usual.


    Instead, she sat next to Yun Shu and also picked up a book to read. One borrowed from the library, about 16th century Spain during the Renaissance.


    Yun Shu really knew how to enjoy life. Her tea set was expensive...Xiao Qi had bought one so she knew the price. Her tea was even more expensive.


    Supposedly her dad had bought it to give to his superiors. It was very expensive, the kind that could decide whether you got sentenced to years in jail.


    Over 10,000 RMB for a serving of tea.


    After drinking the tea, the aroma lingered endlessly with honey, herbal medicine, and tea scents.


    Glancing out the window, the sky was bright blue with wispy white clouds. Occasionally, an enormous bird flew by, flapping its great wings. Its tail was very long. Xiao Qi wondered what kind of bird it was, it looked very nice. The environment at Nantian University was beautiful, strange birds would often appear.


    Looking down to continue reading her book.


    University life was truly wonderful.


    You could focus on studying. Studying was the main thing.


    What students should focus on most now is absorbing knowledge. Socializing is secondary.


    Studying takes priority above all else.


    If she could finish her undergraduate knowledge and credits early, then take the postgraduate exam and go to an elite university like Tsinghua or Peking University, as Xiao Qi thought this through, she suddenly felt everything became perfectly clear. Her goal was well-defined.


    Of course this was just the initial idea. She still needed to make detailed plans.


    For uncertain things, Xiao Qi would not simply speak casually. Always feeling that speaking carelessly would in fact increase the pressure. What if she ended up unable to achieve it? Or she might unconsciously deviate from her original intentions because of constantly thinking about a set goal.


    After eating, they did not immediately return to the dorm but went for a stroll at the student street. Dorm lights were not turned off on weekends and they wanted to buy snacks and browse the bookstores, gift shops, clothing stores, cosmetic shops and more at the student street.


    Even Xiao Qi who studied diligently was willing to go out and shop.


    So was Yun Shu. Although her mother basically bought her all sorts of brand name clothes and jewelry, the joy of girls shopping together was different. They could still haggle over prices.


    That small handbag looked nice. That bracelet looked nice too. That dress is beautiful. Those shoes were also great.


    Things at the student street were cheap. Two to three hundred RMB could buy whole body of clothes and items. Not all students could spend so casually though. Wei Cheng watched prices more sensitively when looking at these goods. Carefully picking each item.


    Miao Er loved buying random things. Her parents gave her a lot of allowance money.


    Yun Shu got the most allowance but had peculiar hobbies so wouldn''t easily buy things.


    Xiao Qi also quite enjoyed shopping with her roommates. But she bought less things herself now. She discovered that as one''s money grew less, their spending became more fragmented in various areas, unconsciously reducing money bit by bit.


    If you had more money, it seemed to be the opposite. You would spend a lump sum all at once buying a pricier item that could show off.


    Having enough for daily needs was good.


    The amount of money profoundly impacted spending habits. And spending habits in turn impacted how much money one had.


    It was a vicious cycle for poor people. Money dwindled more and more. Well off people enjoyed the opposite effect of money multiplying from investing it well.


    No matter what ideas they had, it did not affect the little joy of shopping they were having now.


    Finally, Xiao Qi bought a hair band. Her hair had grown a little longer, enough to tie into a little ponytail. The hair band cost 7 yuan and 50 cents, and had a red heart pattern on it.


    Mi''er bought a brooch, although she usually would not wear brooches. But the violin-shaped brooch was so beautiful she had to buy it. The brooch cost 160 yuan. The boss said it was a vintage item, an antique from abroad, with some history and stuff, bla bla bla... She also bought a pair of shoes. She liked roaming around everywhere, so she went through shoes quickly. The shoes cost 498 yuan, rather expensive.


    Wei Cheng bought a blue fountain pen for 49 yuan. It had a small diamond on the top, very beautiful. There were fewer and fewer people using fountain pens nowadays. Wei Cheng had an artistic soul, and often wrote things by hand. Buying the fountain pen made her very happy, and she skipped merrily as she walked.


    Yun Shu bought a braided rope bracelet. She was told it would look very good paired with her Cartier watch worth tens of thousands of yuan. The rope bracelet still cost 89 yuan, which was of course too cheap for Yun Shu.


    Anyway, they were all quite happy on the way back.


    The joy from spending money does not depend on how much you spend, the feeling of happiness is the same.


    On the way back to the dorm, the mechanical voice in Xiao Qi¡¯s head suddenly sounded: "Host has learned to use money to gain happiness, can correctly treat the value of money, and bring positive influence to people around her. Host is rewarded with Language Sensitivity +1."

 Chapter 355: Making a Plan

    Chapter 355


    Xiao Qi went back to her dorm room and sat down at her desk.


    She had a little ponytail at the back of her head, tied with a new hairband with a cute red heart.


    Yunshu was the first to take a shower since she loved being clean the most.


    Today Xiao Qi was not practicing her calligraphy like usual. Instead, she was writing a plan.


    With a sharp little brush, she wrote the smallest regular script on a blank sheet of paper.


    Key points for the early graduation plan:


    First, complete enough credits. She would finish her freshman courses this year. As a sophomore there would be 3 more major courses, and as a junior 1 more major course. She had to pass those classes and grades. There were also 2 electives she had to take and pass the exams. Nne?w n0vel chapters are published at novelhall.com


    Second, for their major graduation they had to complete a graduation project, not a thesis, but a small program they can independently code and run to show the professors.


    Third, graduating students must pass the College English Test Band 4, and master an instrument.


    For the first point, Xiao Qi felt like her current freshman courses were quite simple and she would have no problem finishing them.


    For the new sophomore and junior courses, she could try sitting in on the classes first. One of the best things about university was you could audit courses, no one would stop you. If she had time she could casually carry her school bag and sit in on various classes every day.


    For the electives, she had already chosen to take Spanish in advance. Now with her language sense improved, Xiao Qi thought taking another language course would be no problem. She just didn''t know if there were other language courses and would check the school forums.


    For the second point, she currently had no ideas for the graduation project. Programming and such was quite professional, she''d have to take the major courses in sophomore and junior year to understand. So she had to complete the first point first.


    For the third point, passing the College English Test Band 4 was no problem, she could do it this semester. For the instrument, Xiao Qi didn''t know if she could choose the erhu. She had some foundation on the erhu, because she had an uncle who liked playing it. When she was little she would often be around her uncle playing the erhu at her grandma''s house. Her uncle had even taught her some, so she still had some impression and could play simple tunes with no problem.


    This was the plan for graduating early. Looking at the contents, it sounded difficult, but writing it out didn''t seem particularly hard. She could accomplish it step-by-step.


    She also took out a previous plan she made for traveling abroad. Looking at what she had written:


    First was physical fitness. She planned to learn tae kwon do or something similar. She had looked into this, the school had a tae kwon do club. She didn''t know the specifics but could go take a look first.


    Second, since guns weren''t banned abroad, Xiao Qi wanted to learn shooting. At least if anything happened, she would know how to use a gun.


    Xiao Qi didn''t shake her head and demur. When communicating with foreign teachers, if they praise you, accept it sincerely. No need for false modesty.


    "Thank you, Aizhen. I asked you out today because I wanted to ask if you know Portuguese? I also want to learn Portuguese, but the school doesn''t offer courses in it. And French as well."


    Aizhen was very surprised that Su wanted to learn so many languages.


    Hearing it was to prepare for traveling abroad plans, she was very happy.


    "Su, my Spanish is decent, but my Portuguese is just basic. I can introduce a teacher to you, Maken. His Portuguese is good. You can have him teach you, but Maken is quite expensive. His fees won''t be low." Aizhen paused, and suddenly thought of an excellent candidate for French.


    "For French... Su, I don''t think there are any great foreign teachers. But there is one lady whose French is excellent, Madam Su the school trustee. She has the same surname as you. I''ve seen her French speech before, it was amazing. She''s also why I came to Enhua University. I know her and can give you an introduction."


    Xiao Qi didn''t expect that learning languages would lead to the school trustee.


    The prize she received for winning first place in the English speech contest last time was a fountain pen given by Madam Su.


    Madam Su was also over 60 but looked very elegant and capable. A big reason Xiao Qi wanted to learn languages was influenced by Madam Su, who knew 8 languages.


    Xiao Qi felt she could do it too. She didn''t expect to have the chance to directly learn from her.


    "Really?" Xiao Qi was so surprised she swallowed her steak without even tasting it properly.


    "Yes, she''s a great woman with a delightful personality and sense of humor. I can introduce you." Aizhen gently licked the steak juices. The taste was smooth and savory, with black pepper, chili, saltiness, and a touch of sweetness. Hua cuisine always had hard-to-guess spices but was surprisingly delicious.


    Ever since eating some caramelized honey dates and a salad wrap that day, Aizhen seemed to have regained her appetite.


    These past few days she could eat some salad and vegetables, fish and such, no longer just drinking milk.


    She felt her complexion had improved a lot.


    This all had to do with the girl in front of her. Aizhen realized that when she was with her, she didn''t have that sense of disgust when eating food. On the contrary, there was a faint sense of satisfaction.


    She tried to eat the steak in small bites, with a little rice. Every bite gave her a sense of fullness and satisfaction. She was very happy.


    When Xiao Qi ate, she was also very focused. The two chatted while eating, and before they knew it, Xiao Qi had finished her large portion, while Aizhen had eaten one third of her meal, which was already very good, perfect even.


    While eating, the mechanical sound in Xiao Qi''s mind rang out again: "The host''s serious attitude toward food has had a positive influence on the anorexic patient, greatly relieving her suffering. Reward the host with +1 strength."

 Chapter 356: Self-defense for Women

    Chapter 356


    After finishing lunch with Aizhen, Xiao Qi went back.


    The two walked together to the old district, then Aizhen took the bus back to the new district.


    Most foreign teachers live in apartments in the new district, where the scenery is good.


    When Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory, she didn''t immediately start practicing calligraphy, but took out her drawing board to draw. She really wanted to draw Teacher Aizhen.


    Teacher Aizhen was an extremely thin but extremely elegant woman. Especially after getting along, she felt like flowing water, making people very comfortable.


    She spoke like a true gentlewoman, not pretentious like Chu Yu.


    It was rare to find someone like this after getting along, like a mountain spring, cool and sweet.


    Xiao Qi really liked people with such charming personalities. Recalling the time spent with Teacher Aizhen, the character in her painting became more and more vivid.


    In middle and high school, Xiao Qi didn''t have any particularly good friends. It wasn''t until university that she made good friends. Her roommates were all great. Xiao Qi felt this wasn''t other people''s problem, it was her own problem. She used to be too introverted, too inferior, and too sensitive. She tended to overthink things and was overly cautious. Interacting with others like this not only tired herself out, but also tired out others. Everyone was equal, so why should she be so concerned about what she said?


    They were all kids of the same age. No one needed to accommodate her or consider her feelings.


    Xiao Qi felt her personality at that time was not very good for interacting with people. It was tiring no matter who she dealt with.


    She couldn''t make friends at school. When she went back home, even her family felt she was arrogant and hard to get along with. She couldn''t please anyone and seemed to be out of tune with the whole world.


    After getting the system, she slowly became more cheerful. Exercising and running every day also helped with this. She felt more open-minded after working out. Looking at things, she was less irritated and her mindset became much more positive.


    Now her personality was much more open and cheerful than before. It was also because she had come into contact with more people and interacted with different types. The subtle influence also affected her personality.


    The teens were the time to shape one''s personality and outlook on life.


    Xiao Qi felt she was lucky to have met excellent people.


    She thought this over as she painted. Soon, a smiling Aizhen appeared on the paper, her smile as beautiful as a tea flower.


    Painting was the most intuitive way to express what moves people. You could see psychological activities through vision.


    The painting of a cheerful, positive person would also be bright and sunny. On the contrary, if the psychology was gloomy and the mood bleak, even painting a smiling face would show distortion and sadness.


    This was the expression of artistic style.


    Xiao Qi''s painting of Aizhen was very beautiful. Just looking at the painting, one could feel this was an extremely elegant and gentle lady that made people feel close.


    This was also one of the best paintings Xiao Qi had done recently, showing an artistic sublimation.


    Just like she didn''t understand before why the Mona Lisa was so famous and so good looking. It was because you could see a gentle, intimate feeling from the painting. Even a single painting could inspire a story, a life.


    Xiao Qi''s painting of Aizhen was the same.


    Extremely gentle, the emotions were all very good, leaving people feeling peaceful and a little sweet after seeing it.


    After finishing the painting, Xiao Qi went to take a nap.


    It was mentally draining.


    She didn''t feel it while painting, but felt tired all of a sudden after finishing.


    When Xiao Qi woke up, she heard the mechanical voice next to her ear: "The host''s painting has developed its own style and soul, reaching the proficiency level. The host should keep working hard."


    She felt her progress was so fast. When practicing calligraphy, Xiao Qi practiced every day, spending a lot of time before reaching proficiency. It would take more time and practice to reach master level.


    But for painting, although she also spent time practicing, she mostly painted when inspired. She didn''t expect to suddenly reach proficiency.


    Realizing they were freshman, his expression became even more eager.


    "You''ve come at just the right time. We have special training for self-defense tailored for beauties like you. We''ve invited professional coaches. Our club doesn''t charge money, you just pay the coach''s fee, 80 per class. We can order the outfits for you, just over 100 each."


    Xiao Qi saw there were about 50-60 students here. 80 each per class, that added up to over 5000, a good amount.


    Seeing the two girls didn''t respond, he went on, "Beauties like you really need to learn this. You know that story about the migrant worker on the way to take the graduate school exam right? If she had known self-defense, the tragedy wouldn''t have happened."


    "That''s an unverified story spread on other campuses. Don''t bring it here unless you want the school leaders to have a talk with you." Su Li raised her eyebrows and retorted.


    "No no, I just want to emphasize that you all look so good, you need to learn some self-defense techniques. Don''t worry, today''s lesson is free, you can come listen and learn for free, and decide if you want to continue after learning. I''m a junior Chinese major and your senior, I wouldn''t harm you all." He laughed in a very ingratiating manner.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    She felt like the skills the students at their school chose to learn were a bit skewed.


    She just wanted to learn some self-defense originally. This promotion was much better than plain taekwondo. She wasn''t trying to compete in the Olympics or anything.


    Seeing new people come in, the blue belt coach teaching on stage became even more enthusiastic.


    He had the students below come on stage to demonstrate.


    "Women''s self-defense is very simple. We use the most basic and practical techniques to counter the opponent as soon as possible, to buy time to escape for ourselves."


    The coach was a tall, skinny man. He looked a bit handsome and his temperament seemed quite good.


    A female student below said: "Wouldn''t it be better to just carry some pepper spray or something, just as effective."


    "This student''s opinion is very good, she has good self-protection awareness," he wasn''t angry at being refuted, but affirmed her instead, and continued: "But sometimes you forget to bring it, or you just happened to switch bags and didn''t pack it, or your hands are grabbed so you can''t get the pepper spray out of your bag in time. So learning some basic self-defense techniques is very necessary."


    Then he had a male student come on stage to demonstrate, acting as a hooligan.


    A group of people started giggling.


    The male student was also a bit embarrassed. He had to act as a hooligan and grab the coach.


    They saw the male student suddenly rush up from behind and hug the coach, his hands grabbing the coach''s flat chest and squeezing. The people below laughed loudly. Su Li and Xiao Qi couldn''t help laughing too.


    The male student''s expression was very awkward, but the coach had a lecherous expression, as if saying "Should I give in? Or should I give in?"


    Then the coach elbowed the male student and threw him over his shoulder...


    "Ah!"


    Luckily there were mats on the floor. They heard the male student yell loudly, then grab his own waist...


    Then another male student went up to demonstrate, hugging the coach from the front. The result was the very useful technique of a knee to the crotch. Everyone watching felt pained just looking.


    It seemed quite simple, like the perverts were all completely helpless.


    After having the male students demonstrate, the coach asked if there were any female students willing to come up and try.


    "Don''t worry, this is just a demonstration. Are there any daring female students willing to demonstrate a female pervert? I see you all shouting my husband, my husband at little fresh meat every day. Those little fresh meat need to learn self-defense too."


    Xiao Qi really intended to learn, so she raised her hand. She was willing to go on stage and try.


    The coach saw the little girl stand up, one of the girls who just came in. She looked really bright and clean, her skin especially fair. She looked very slender, not weak but very sweet and pure.


    "Or how about I act as the pervert? I wouldn''t be able to fight back like this!" the coach joked.


    "It''s fine, coach. I''m very fit," Xiao Qi said. She felt that acting as the pervert, she could also experience how the other side exerted force from a different angle. It would be a more comprehensive lesson.

 Chapter 357: Classmate, you are here to play the field, right

    Chapter 357


    In the large classroom, there were two people on the stage and a group sitting below. The conspicuously red belt in the middle looked especially sturdy and strong. In each of the four corners was a potted plant with lush green creepers.


    Xiao Qi was not very nervous. She took a deep breath, adjusted her state, then went up just like the male student who had demonstrated earlier to "hug" the coach. She was not as exaggerated as him, not using her hands to press the coach''s chest, but actually just grabbed the coach''s arms from behind.


    The coach kindly reminded: "Students pay attention, I''m going to use force now. I''ll control it and go lighter."


    Su Li was quite nervous watching from below. If only he had gone up to demonstrate earlier.


    He didn''t expect the class monitor to be so enthusiastic about practicing.


    If she got thrown out, it would probably hurt a lot. Should he treat her to something to eat later to comfort her?


    The male students below also looked like they couldn''t bear to watch, after all the girl who had gone up was really quite pretty.


    Some students also felt like they had seen the girl somewhere before.


    Some girls wearing taekwondo uniforms were a bit disdainful, thinking that girl just wanted to show off. If only they had been bolder and gone up themselves earlier.


    "Okay, I''m ready," Xiao Qi said seriously in response.


    The coach exerted force with his elbow for the back bump. Because it was a pretty girl, he still held back some strength. As a result, he actually couldn''t move her. He thought it was because he had reserved his strength and was too gentle with the beauty. Feeling that this wouldn''t work and was unprofessional, he decided to be more professional and exerted real force. But his elbow still wouldn''t budge.


    Was this posture wrong? Was it possible to directly throw her over the shoulder?


    That seemed a bit cruel, but with the mats it should still be fine.


    So the coach started exerting force with his body, but still couldn''t move! What was going on?


    The students watching below were also completely confused. They just saw the girl grab the coach''s arm from behind. Because she was a girl, she didn''t dare hug too tightly, just lightly held the coach''s arm. But the coach hadn''t moved for a long time now, looking like he was still struggling?


    "Coach, don''t tell me you can''t bear to make a move?" A girl below called out teasingly.


    Coach: ......


    "Students pay attention, I''m really using force now. You be careful to protect yourself." The coach''s face turned red and ferocious... but he still didn''t move...


    Xiao Qi: ......


    She was ready and holding on tightly and seriously, just waiting for the coach to make a move. But she felt the coach hadn''t moved at all...


    What was going on???


    After struggling for a while, the coach suddenly called out to the students below, "Coa... coach, save me! She''s about to break my arm off..."


    Xiao Qi: ......


    He saw Xiao Qi''s body flung out, but she nimbly flipped over and landed steadily on her feet. Then she turned back and hugged the coach''s arm again.


    Red belt: ???


    Didn''t you just fly out? Am I seeing things???


    Students below: ??? What kind of performance is this??? Chinese martial arts???


    Su Li: Eyes full of stars, awestruck. This was the class monitor of their class, a special kind of class monitor.


    "Sorry, coach, I didn''t grab properly just now. I''m ready now." Xiao Qi was a little embarrassed.


    The red belt coach felt her clutch his arm even tighter this time.


    He still wanted to try throwing her out again, but this time, he couldn''t move...


    It looked just like when he had finished speaking before without moving, the same as the previous coach...


    Xiao Qi felt the other party struggling but didn''t loosen her grip.


    The red belt coach struggled again, struggled harder... then his face turned red... twisted ferociously... gave up...


    "Student, let go. Quick, let go."


    Xiao Qi: ......


    Students below: ......


    Blue belt: ......


    Su Li lowered his head to hold back his laughter, really wanting to thump the floor.


    "Student, you don''t need to learn self-defense anymore. With strength like yours, no one can beat you," the red belt coach said awkwardly. He finally understood what "superior power subdues inferior technique." He had always heard the saying before but thought it was just casual talk. Today he had really experienced it himself. His arm was still numb now, feeling like the blood flow had been cut off from being grabbed.


    Xiao Qi and her classmate Su Li were politely invited out by that enthusiastic senior student.


    If Xiao Qi hadn''t sincerely said she really wanted to learn women''s self-defense, he would''ve thought the girl had come to challenge them.


    But some people at the scene recognized Xiao Qi.


    She was that, that... the marathon record breaker. No no, she was the equestrian event champion. No no, she was the swimming champion... Wait no, she was the English speech champion...


    Different people paid attention to different TikTok videos and pieced them together to realize it was the same person...


    Someone at the scene also recorded a video and quickly posted it on TikTok.

 Chapter 358: Ms. Su, the School Board Member

    Chapter 358


    When Xiao Qi went with Su Li to the herbal tea shop, Su Li was still smiling there.


    She smiled until her flower branches shook.


    Xiao Qi thought to herself, classmate, where is your modesty? At the beginning of the semester when you were aggressive and domineering, ready to take out anyone who provoked you, where did it go?


    It turns out everyone has multiple sides to them. Classmate Su Li looks cool on the outside but actually seems a bit silly.


    And her own plan to practice taekwondo seems to have hit some obstacles.


    If a red belt is this level, it feels useless. When she was researching, it said a red belt is already very powerful with lethal force. It requires red belts to pay attention to self-cultivation and control during normal times. But she was actually unable to move when grabbed by Xiao Qi??


    The other side was also a bit sinister, like a master fighting, not waiting for the official start, they made a move already. Fortunately her body is very agile.


    Xiao Qi''s original goal was to at least get to blue belt as a beginner before reaching red belt.


    Could it be the school''s club was not formal and cheated students out of money??


    Or should she find a black belt to learn from?


    While Xiao Qi was lost in thought, Su Li saw Xiao Qi dazing off, and still couldn''t help but put her hands on her hips laughing.


    Seeing Li Wei Jin with Xiao Qi eating herbal tea that day already made her very unhappy. Today she actually made a date with Xiao Qi to drink herbal tea together, and without the annoying foreign teacher.


    It was just the two of them, hands on hips, laughing, happily.


    "Do you want milk, hahaha...honey...haha..."


    Xiao Qi: ...Let me do it myself, you keep laughing.


    After classmate Su Li finally stopped laughing.


    "Su Li do you often go to your aunt''s place? Is she very strict and fierce? Does she have anything she particularly likes?"


    In the morning, teacher Aizhen told her she could recommend her to the school board member Mrs. Su for Xiao Qi to learn French from Mrs. Su.


    Xiao Qi was quite excited.


    She really admired Mrs. Su, feeling that she was extremely capable, the first time seeing a living person who knew 8 languages, still so vigorous and energetic in her 60s, giving people a constant sense of upward mobility, very motivated.


    That time participating in the speech competition, after it ended, she gave Xiao Qi a prize, and also told Xiao Qi a sentence, encouraging her to keep working hard. Xiao Qi felt like she suddenly had unlimited courage and motivation to learn.


    "My aunt?" As soon as she mentioned her aunt, the image of a big witch appeared in Su Li''s mind, very frightening.


    It was hot outside. Coming in here, without air conditioning on, but very quickly felt quiet and calm.


    It was also teacher Aizhen''s first time coming here. She had called Mrs. Su on the phone, and didn''t expect Mrs. Su to directly tell her to bring people to her home.


    Then Aizhen saw Xiao Qi''s classmate Su Li, and knew Su Li was Mrs. Su''s niece. She was also very surprised, saying what a coincidence openly.


    Su Li''s English was pretty good, etiquette very good. Chatting happily, Aizhen kept praising Su Li.


    Xiao Qi could feel it. Aizhen praising Su Li, partly because Su Li was the school board member''s niece, and partly also because Su Li''s English really was quite good. Very well-behaved when facing elders and teachers, not at all like her aloof manner in the dorms and classroom.


    Thinking about it, Chu Yu was always inadvertently saying Su Li had a bad temper, bad personality. At school she acted arrogantly relying on having a leader as a relative. Going out into society she would definitely suffer losses - blah blah blah. Seeming to have Su Li''s best interest in mind, going to say these things. Although she felt it was out of some jealousy, after hearing it so much, the impression classmates had of Su Li was that she had a not so good personality.


    Xiao Qi unconsciously thought this way too. But seeing Su Li''s interaction with the foreign teacher today, extremely polite, sweet-talking, very good conversationalist, worldly, also very funny and witty. Where was there the slightest trace of overbearing arrogance?


    Would someone like Su Li have trouble fitting into society?


    Xiao Qi felt she really would be too naive to think that way. Good family background, worldly experience, understanding society more than you. Not wanting to bother with you, just looking down on you. As for out in society, she would most likely do even better than you. Not because her family had money, but because as a person she was far superior to you.


    Don''t complain society is unfair because of this. Society is actually very fair. You can make it if you have ability. Don''t whine if you don''t.


    After seeing this side of Su Li, Xiao Qi felt she still had to learn. She lacked so much, her own experience was too little. Just reading books, researching materials, able to remember it, but still different from personal experience, no guts.


    Like going to taekwondo. Su Li learned it since kindergarten. She went to look up info and learn about it only after starting college. Also just understood superficially.


    When chatting with Aizhen, she mostly talked about textbook knowledge, or introduced local delicacies and such. Able to talk about things around her, but when it came to things further away there weren''t many common topics. After all she didn''t understand.


    Coming into this tea room, Mrs. Su hadn''t appeared yet. Su Li sat at the tea table first, went straight to making tea skillfully.


    Boiled water, washed the tea set, added tea leaves, the motions were smooth and practiced.


    Xiao Qi had never seen Su Li make tea in the dorms before, even thinking only Yun Shu knew how.


    "You''re so good at this." Xiao Qi had watched Yun Shu make tea before, but wasn''t particularly interested, still found it troublesome. Only now realizing, although it was troublesome, Su Li did it casually with ease, looking like she did it daily.


    People in Meng City love to drink tea, before and after meals and before going to bed. They will brew tea anytime, when discussing business, chatting, or at any moment. "It''s a way to kill time and skill," Xiao Qi praised, making Su Li''s eyes smile like little crescent moons.


    Su Li''s daily English is good, but there are some specialized words she doesn''t know yet.


    Su Li brewed tea while Xiao Qi explained and introduced it to Aizhen in English, sometimes using Spanish.


    The atmosphere was very harmonious, and soon the tea room was filled with the fragrance of tea.


    At this moment, Mrs. Su, wearing a light blue long dress and matching blue suit jacket, happened to come in.

 Chapter 359: Questions and Answers

    Chapter 359


    The fragrance of agarwood lingers in the air, sometimes strong and sometimes subtle.


    The aroma of tea is rich and lingering.


    The ambiance is quite comfortable, but Xiao Qi feels a bit nervous when she sees Mrs. Su entering.


    Mrs. Su''s appearance gives off an air of competence; she doesn''t seem easy to get along with.


    Although Su Li repeatedly praises her mother-in-law, saying she has a gentle personality and a super good temper, Xiao Qi still feels pressured. After all, she''s facing the biggest boss of the school.


    Little does she know, Su Li, sitting there brewing tea, is actually more nervous, with her legs trembling even more.


    Even though Mrs. Su is her own mother-in-law, Xiao Qi is genuinely afraid.


    Mrs. Su comes in and sits down at the tea table.


    After exchanging greetings with them, she drinks tea and chats with Aizhen.


    Once Xiao Qi finishes greeting her, she sits obediently, feeling like she''s in a class, not knowing where to put her hands and feet. She wishes she had a pen and notebook at this moment, so she could take notes and be less nervous.


    Meanwhile, Su Li keeps herself busy, boiling water, warming the cups, wiping the table, and cleaning the tea station, so that her mother-in-law won''t keep her eyes on herself.


    Su Li''s tea-making skills have been honed through such busyness.


    She envies the class monitor at this moment. Truly worthy of being the class monitor, facing the big boss mother-in-law, she remains calm and composed.


    Xiao Qi, on the other hand, envies Su Li, thinking that Su Li is really calm, not at all flustered, and continues to make tea gracefully without spilling any water.


    Mrs. Su and Aizhen chat in English; both of them are elegant ladies.


    Mrs. Su gives off a strong woman vibe, but her way of speaking is pleasant and not at all off-putting.


    She asks Aizhen how her life has been lately, whether she''s adapting well, and compliments her on her good complexion, saying she looks great.


    Aizhen is the epitome of a lady, with a soft but not weak demeanor. Her posture while speaking is very graceful, and her gaze is sincere.


    If Xiao Qi hadn''t seen Teacher Aizhen before, she would have thought that Chu Yu is also very ladylike. Although she doesn''t like Chu Yu''s personality, Chu Yu looks gentle and delicate, dressed in a ladylike style. She doesn''t exude any aggressiveness and always speaks with a smile. She is quite popular among the boys in the class, and she''s heard that there are boys from the neighboring class who like Chu Yu as well. Even in the calligraphy club she joined, there are people pursuing her. In short, Chu Yu''s appearance may not be the most beautiful, but she has numerous admirers, and she manages it quite well. She maintains a balance and doesn''t cut off contact with those who have been rejected. She even looks devoted to them.


    These are all dormitory gossip and observations from daily life before going to bed.


    Xiao Qi thinks that Chu Yu is quite impressive. She believes this is probably what it means to be a graceful lady, someone who is hard to come by.


    But when she sees Teacher Aizhen, she feels like she''s comparing a genuine product to a knockoff, a seller''s show to a buyer''s show.


    She realizes that Teacher Aizhen''s smile, way of speaking, and graceful demeanor are what truly define a lady.


    She possesses a gentle and elegant temperament without being evasive or ambiguous.


    Just by looking at her, one can tell that Teacher Aizhen must have had excellent upbringing and a beautiful environment to grow up in. Her smile gives a sense of elegance and visual enjoyment.


    Mrs. Aizhen said that she had a great time in Enhua. The environment here is excellent, and her recent food troubles have been effectively resolved, thanks to Xiao Qi.


    The young girl had great talent and reminded her of herself when she was young.


    But she was even more clear-headed and sensible than she was at that age. Su Li had faced countless setbacks and only then did she understand some of the truths of survival.


    However, this young girl, at just 17 years old, remained humble and composed, not swayed by extravagance and allure.


    Even after participating in the ostentatious horse racing competition, showcasing luxury brands and receiving endless praise, she wasn''t captivated. Instead, she returned to school right after the race, diligently and earnestly focusing on her studies. Su Li greatly admired this quality.


    When she was a young girl, she didn''t possess this kind of composure and made many detours. It wasn''t until middle age that she awakened to the importance of striving to improve oneself. Although it wasn''t too late at that time, she had already missed out on too much and experienced too much hardship.


    Seeing a young girl who may be able to achieve what she couldn''t, she felt genuinely happy.


    Su Li switched between Japanese, Korean, English, and Chinese as she chatted with Xiao Qi.


    It was more like a question and answer session, where Su Li asked a question and Xiao Qi answered. Whatever language Su Li used, Xiao Qi responded in the same language.


    As Su Li brewed tea, Su Li''s eyes rolled around, wanting to record this scene and see how the class monitor would battle the great demon king. However, she didn''t dare to, and being able to witness the spectacle in person was already good enough.


    Aizhen didn''t know Japanese or Korean, so she simply smiled and drank tea while occasionally exchanging a few words with Su Li.


    Xiao Qi actually felt a lot of pressure. It truly felt like an exam, but luckily, this test was within the syllabus.


    Although Mrs. Su asked herself questions in different languages, they were all languages she knew. It was as if Mrs. Su knew how many languages she could speak. But that thought flashed by and disappeared.


    Hearing Mrs. Su ask why she wanted to learn French.


    This time it was in English.


    Perhaps it was to ensure that everyone could understand.


    Xiao Qi replied in English.


    When she was planning, she had also thought about this question: Why learn French?


    Why is it that everyone thinks of France as a very romantic country?


    Perhaps it''s because France is an old developed country with abundant resources, leading to a flourishing culture. As a result, there are numerous works related to this country.


    At present, Xiao Qi is exploring the world through books. She hasn''t been to those places, but she has read about them in books. They are familiar to her¡ª the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Palace of Versailles, Notre Dame Cathedral, the small towns of Provence, and so on. Each place seems to have its own story, its own legend.


    With so many stories and legends, how can one not be moved?


    She was only 17 years old, and she wanted to explore the world, to understand her place in it. She wanted to learn many languages to gain a better understanding of the world and comprehend its complexities.


    Xiao Qi answered earnestly, "I want to learn French to broaden my horizons and gain knowledge."


    "And then?" Su Shuyu continued to ask.


    Broadening horizons and gaining knowledge, that''s a good answer, but what comes next?


    Once you have the knowledge and experience, what is your ultimate goal?


    Xiao Qi paused for a moment, without hesitation, and calmly replied, "To broaden my horizons, gain knowledge, and then become a useful member of society."

 Chapter 360: Early Baldness

    Chapter 360


    That Afternoon.


    Years later, Aizhen still remembered it.


    Su said she wanted to become a person who was useful to society.


    Aizhen smiled indulgently. She was such a lovely 17-year-old girl, with such innocent aspirations. But it was truly beautiful.


    Years later, Aizhen discovered that she had actually achieved it.


    She thought it was just an unreal dream of a young girl, but she didn''t expect that some people truly persevered for their dreams and made them a reality.


    The boiling water was still bubbling.


    Su gracefully prepared tea, but when Xiao Qi tasted it, she found it a bit too bitter.


    Perhaps the water was too hot, or maybe it had been steeping for too long, causing Su to lose focus.


    Xiao Qi had never tasted tea before, but after drinking the tea brewed by Yunshu, she realized that Su''s tea was different.


    Su seemed a bit rushed in brewing the tea, and although her movements were equally elegant, the resulting tea was either too weak or too strong, with the timing not quite right.


    Especially when Mrs. Su came in, Xiao Qi suddenly felt that the taste of the tea had become bitter.


    But it was just right; talking to Mrs. Su and drinking some bitter tea helped calm her nerves and keep her on track.


    She didn''t know if what she said was good or not.


    In the end, Mrs. Su spoke up, saying, "From now on, come at this time every Monday afternoon."


    Xiao Qi nodded gratefully in surprise.


    Su Li saw the class monitor smile, and she smiled foolishly along with her. Then she heard her grandmother say, "Li, you come along too."


    Su Li: ...What grudge or resentment? She just wanted to live a carefree life and didn''t want to study...


    Su Li was left behind to have dinner, while Xiao Qi and Aizhen left first. Yo?ur favorite stories at novelhall.com


    Xiao Qi had made plans to have dinner with her roommates, and Aizhen''s appetite had slowly recovered these past few days, but she still didn''t eat much and went back to the apartment.


    Back in the dorm, Xiao Qi went for a run first, completing her daily steps and working up a sweat. It was very refreshing.


    Running helped alleviate the tension of the day.


    To be honest, when she was talking to Mrs. Su, she was really nervous. Now her bones felt sour and her scalp tingled.


    She felt as if those conversations were not just ordinary conversations, but rather a significant moment in her life.


    After finishing, she felt a bit light-headed on her way back.


    It wasn''t the kind of light-headedness that comes from being emotionally satisfied, but rather a dreamlike feeling, as if she couldn''t touch the ground, and she felt exhausted.


    Once again, Xiao Qi admired Su Li. She actually found her grandmother kind and amiable, and they got along so well. It was no wonder she became her grandmother''s favorite little darling. Under the influence of such a strong and imposing elder every day, it was no surprise that her presence and communication skills were so formidable.


    As she scooped the soup with a spoon, Su Li was splashed: ...


    Currently, Xiao Qi demonstrated great execution and didn''t just set plans aside after making them, thinking that the tasks were completed. Instead, she genuinely started learning in an organized manner and even borrowed textbooks from higher grades.


    Although the workload of her studies had increased, she still persisted in her daily jogging routine. Unlike during her last year of high school, where studying had taken a toll on her physical health, combining exercise with learning now felt quite good.


    Furthermore, after a few days of consistent learning, Xiao Qi discovered that the more she used her brain, the more active it became. When she first entered university and saw the numerous subjects, she thought she wouldn''t be able to handle them all. However, after a period of adjustment, she found it surprisingly manageable. Now, Xiao Qi even added more tasks for herself and found it quite satisfying. She no longer felt overwhelmed and chaotic.


    Indeed, human time is flexible.


    Xiao Qi still continued to tutor Li Weijin. Although the system provided money every day, Xiao Qi still didn''t have an absolute sense of security and believed that earning her own money was more fulfilling. Therefore, she still valued her job and earning money.


    Recently, Li Weijin had become particularly diligent in his studies. He realized that it wasn''t as difficult as he had initially thought, and it was actually quite easy. Xiao Qi said he could do it, and indeed, he learned with satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.


    On this day, while Xiao Qi was tutoring him, Li Weijin wanted to show off a little. He had been working hard recently, and he was confident that he could excel in the questions Xiao Qi gave him.


    He happily solved the questions, and indeed, everything went smoothly. Hard work pays off, and his efforts weren''t in vain. However, in the midst of solving the questions, he couldn''t help but look up at Xiao Qi.


    Seeing her serious expression while reading her book, he felt joy in his heart, especially because she was still wearing the little Buddha pendant he had given her around her neck.


    His phone was placed on the desk with a hanging ornament of a small lamb.


    Lately, he had been racking his brain trying to think of another gift to give Xiao Qi, but he always felt like he didn''t have a good reason, and he doubted whether she would accept it.


    Let''s focus on the questions for now. Xiao Qi liked diligent and intelligent people. He regained his focus and quickly finished solving the questions, then handed them over to Xiao Qi.


    He eagerly watched as Xiao Qi corrected them.


    Seeing her ticking the answers one by one, he felt a sense of pride. He realized that he shouldn''t be too arrogant and conceited. He believed that his efforts during this period of time had not been in vain and that he would soon catch up to Xiao Qi.


    Feeling content in his heart, Li Weijin shifted his attention to the book beside him. It was the book Xiao Qi had just been reading.


    The cover read "Java Source Code Analysis," but he flipped through it and couldn''t understand anything...


    Curiosity got the better of him, and he couldn''t help but ask, "What is this?"


    "This is a course we have to take in our sophomore year," Xiao Qi replied without lifting her head.


    The assignments were also corrected, and almost all of them were correct, except for a small mistake in the second-to-last question.


    "You''ve been doing really well lately. You''ll definitely have no problem with the makeup exam this week," Xiao Qi said, giving Li Weijin an encouraging smile.


    Her experience as a teacher taught her the importance of encouraging students, but the encouragement had to be meaningful. She acknowledged every progress made by her students, and it had a remarkable effect.


    However, as Li Weijin looked at Xiao Qi''s smiling face, a sense of pride as towering as the Himalayas emerged within him, but now it was slowly crumbling. He had a foreboding feeling.


    "Xiao Qi, why are you already studying second-year courses?"


    "I checked the school''s regulations. If I complete the required credits, I can graduate early. I''m considering finishing my credits early and then taking the postgraduate entrance examination," Xiao Qi replied.


    Li Weijin: ...


    He had just managed to catch up with his studies and worked hard to pass the makeup exams... and now the goddess was contemplating early graduation... and the postgraduate entrance examination... Li Weijin rubbed his hair. He felt like he might go bald early. It was too difficult... He was already studying until two in the morning.


    "Do you think I would look good with a bald head?" he asked, looking up.


    Xiao Qi: ...???

 Chapter 361: The Feeling of Heart

    Chapter 361


    After the beginning of autumn, there were several consecutive days of scorching heat, with temperatures reaching 33 degrees Celsius.


    Xiao Qi passed the fourth subject of her exams and obtained her driver''s license.


    She then drove the car she had bought back to school.


    It was a sleek black BMW 5 Series, and it looked very beautiful with its shiny paint. It gave the impression of being expensive.


    However, Xiao Qi didn''t feel as excited as she had imagined. In just a few months, her mindset seemed to have changed quite a bit.


    When she bought the car, she was full of confidence and didn''t think much about it. She just thought, "I want to buy a good car, a BMW."


    But once she actually started driving it, Xiao Qi realized that she had been naive. She was still a student, and buying a car didn''t hold much meaning for her, nor could she drive it much.


    At that time, she had just arrived in the city, away from her parents and the familiar city she grew up in. She had money and felt inflated, so she wanted to buy a car.


    Now that she has seen more, she has realized that even a van driven by a housekeeper from someone''s home is several times more expensive than her BMW. Xiao Qi''s enthusiasm for cars has diminished, and she has become calm and numb.


    She even feels a bit ashamed that she wasted money and driving a BMW gives off a feeling of being nouveau riche, exposing her inner lack of sophistication.


    It''s unnecessary.


    Parking is not convenient on campus. She can''t drive into the school premises, and the student area is quite chaotic. In the end, she ended up parking the car at Mrs. Su''s villa, where there was a designated parking spot.


    Su Li''s sports car was also parked there.


    Su Li had been scolded by her aunt several times for buying a sports car, but now seeing her own sports car parked next to the class monitor''s car, she felt that all the scolding was worth it and she was so happy. Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    However, studying French together was not as enjoyable.


    She mainly studied French with the class monitor, and she felt like she was intellectually challenged. They started learning at the same time, but she had more experience abroad and spent more time with her aunt, yet their progress was vastly different.


    The class monitor was already able to communicate in simple French, while Xiao Qi was still learning the pronunciation...


    The gap between people is really unfriendly.


    Xiao Qi is now self-studying Japanese and Korean.


    Spanish is an elective course on Tuesday and Thursday evenings.


    For Portuguese, she found a foreign teacher recommended by Aizhen. She arranged two classes on Friday afternoons and paid 800 yuan for the two classes.


    The Portuguese foreign teacher, Maken, is a man in his thirties with a head full of dirty braids. He looks greasy and likes to joke around. He is very enthusiastic. When he first taught Xiao Qi, he liked to get close to her. But when she accidentally broke a brick in her bag, he became much more obedient and taught Xiao Qi without any hint of joking. After the lesson, he collected the money and left.


    Xiao Qi realized that the brick was really useful.


    Because she had to go to the new area, this foreign teacher opened a cafe?, so Xiao Qi picked up a brick on the side of the road on her way in.


    Xiao Qi wondered if she could bring a brick when she travels abroad.


    Anyway, she is strong and carrying a brick in her bag doesn''t feel heavy.


    Compared to learning taekwondo, bringing a brick seems to offer much better value for money.


    When Maken returned, he specifically mentioned this incident to Aizhen, explaining that he was only joking. However, to his surprise, the young girl took out a brick from her bag and smashed it right in front of him, scaring him to death.


    Aizhen: ... serves you right.


    In addition to language learning, there are new courses in the second and third years of college. The fourth year usually involves internships and graduation projects.


    And he doesn''t.


    He excels at indulging in food, drink, and entertainment, but he never considers putting effort into studying.


    Now he''s starting to think about working hard and realizes that studying can be really tiring.


    He studies until two in the morning every day, fearing that he might disturb his roommate. Because of this, he moved to a different dormitory.


    Yet, he can barely reach a level that is just enough to pass the makeup exams, and he already feels incredibly proud of himself.


    Li Weijin also noticed that when he was a child, people used to praise him for being smart, but it was only because he didn''t work hard enough to achieve good grades. It was probably just a kind lie... He''s not really smart.


    Recently, he asked his butler to buy him anti-hair loss shampoo... but it doesn''t seem to be effective.


    In reality, Li Weijin is somewhat concerned about his appearance.


    Seeing how he dresses up every day, it''s clear he''s not someone who is superficially concerned with his looks. He pays attention to every detail from head to toe.


    When it comes to dressing up, Li Weijin may have reached the level of a master. It comes naturally to him, and every day he effortlessly puts together stylish outfits, becoming the most handsome guy on the block.


    At the crossroads of his life at eighteen, he encounters the first challenge.


    He feels like he''s facing a problem that all guys encounter: the girl he likes only loves (studying/money). In order to be worthy of the girl he likes, he has to work hard (in studying/making money).


    But is studying/making money really that difficult? Should he follow the path of those losers and say that she only loves the rich and is materialistic? Does he not like her anymore?


    He can''t even come up with this reasoning. He can''t blame Xiao Qi for being too studious and excellent, so he doesn''t like her anymore.


    Li Weijin, who loses a handful of hair every day due to studying too hard, finally makes an important decision. He decides to give up...


    He gives up his own hair.


    He shaves his head.


    With a bald head, he feels a little cool but looks strange when he sees himself in the mirror.


    He wears a hat and goes to class.


    Today is Tuesday, with an elective course on Spanish in the evening.


    Li Weijin arrives early, wearing a hat.


    When Xiao Qi arrives and sees him wearing a hat, she doesn''t find it strange. For a guy like Li Weijin, who loves to dress up, a hat is just an accessory. It looks good, so it''s not surprising.


    And Li Weijin attentively listens to two classes without speaking to Xiao Qi during the break.


    Xiao Qi finds it a bit odd. Why is he so quiet today?


    After school, she takes the initiative and says, "Class is over. Do you want to walk together?"


    Li Weijin suddenly stands up, takes off his hat, revealing his bald head.


    His eyes shimmer as he looks at Xiao Qi.


    "I cut off all my hair, so you don''t have to worry about my hair falling out while studying hard. No hair, no worries. I will work hard to keep up with your progress and graduate early with you for the postgraduate entrance examination... Will I look ugly?"


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Seeing the bald boy in front of her, with innocent and clean eyes, devoid of hair and the previous unruly aura, he appeared even cleaner. He resembled a beautiful little monk who had come out of the deep mountains. Her heart raced faster and faster, while her breathing became slightly delayed and stagnant. Her entire soul was trembling, as if she were intoxicated inside a wine jar.


    Oh no, it''s the feeling of being smitten.

 Chapter 362: He’s After Her Money.

    Chapter 362


    Li Weijin, with his bald head, became popular.


    Some people, even if they are bald, can still be the most handsome bald person if they have good looks.


    And after shaving his head, Li Weijin surprisingly had the appearance of someone who had won the heart of a beauty. He became the top student in the Information Management major and had a perfect match.


    As Li Taiping, the devoted follower of the English department goddess Wu Xinyue, felt that the only thing separating him from the goddess was his excess hair, he decided to shave his head as well.


    The result...


    It was a sight to behold.


    Master Li''s bald head made him look like a handsome young monk who had emerged from the deep mountains, causing a group of enchanting and cheap women to want to conquer him. But after Li Taiping shaved his head, he looked like a guilty person who had just been caught and released from prison, emanating an aura of sleaziness and villainy.


    In the past, because he had money, Wu Xinyue used to spend time with him and let him treat her.


    Now, even if he still had money, Wu Xinyue didn''t want to be seen with him anymore. She found his bald head resembling that of a delinquent, which made her lose face.


    Xiao Qi''s infatuation with Li Weijin began with his looks.


    It''s not surprising for a 17-year-old girl to like good-looking boys.


    Especially someone as good-looking as Li Weijin.


    However, there''s a difference between liking someone and being together with them, especially for Xiao Qi, whose self-esteem is rooted in her upbringing.


    She couldn''t believe that Li Weijin genuinely liked her. She always felt that it was just a passing fancy or curiosity on his part.


    The more insecure a girl is, the more she values her self-respect as the only thing she can hold onto.


    So she firmly rejected him.


    Until she saw him with a bald head, and Xiao Qi''s heart melted like ice cream on a June day, layer by layer.


    She thought she should be more confident, have an equal relationship, simply because of her feelings for him, without any material conditions attached.


    Be confident, even more confident.


    Xiao Qi''s roommate was very supportive of her desire to develop a relationship with Li Weijin, but there were inexplicably many rumors circulating in their class.


    They said that the class monitor was only interested in Master Li''s money.


    Someone discovered that Su Xiaoqi, whom everyone thought highly of, had applied for a part-time tutoring job on the campus forum, and it turned out that she went to Master Li''s house. The scheming was too obvious.


    Although most of their classmates didn''t think the class monitor was that kind of person, deep down, they were a little jealous and accepted this explanation. Master Li belonged to everyone, and it didn''t sit right for him to suddenly belong to just one person.


    She must be with him for his money.


    Even Su Li, who had been getting close to Xiao Qi lately, looked utterly bewildered. When Xiao Qi asked her to study French together, she stood her up.


    Chu Yu made a snide remark from the side, "Class monitor, you know that Su Li likes Li Weijin. It''s surprising that despite your close relationship with Su Li, you''re still together with Li Weijin."


    Xiao Qi:... This logic sounds so bizarre.


    Su Li stood up and directly told Chu Yu to shut up.


    Chu Yu looked aggrieved, with a face that said, "I''m doing this for your own good, and yet you''re treating me like this."


    That expression was priceless. Xiao Qi couldn''t imitate it no matter how many times she tried. Clenching her teeth and biting her lip, teary-eyed, she felt both aggrieved and determined... ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    Su Li was utterly disgusted by the expression on their face, feeling provoked and unable to contain themselves. They shouted, "I like Xiaoqi, not Li Weijin, that peacock. If you like them, go for it yourself. How dare you snatch away the person I like! Just die!"


    The words spoken by Su Li carried a significant message.


    He couldn''t beat the tycoon boss, but a girl who bought a house should be no problem.


    He had made preparations in advance. Buying a house required the homeowner''s information, and the registration showed that she was a freshman at Enhua University, from a rural background, without any significant connections.


    Considering that the other party was a young girl, the boss specifically assigned a handsome male salesperson to handle this matter.


    As Xiao Qi and Jin Hu sat down, a waiter brought them tea.


    Chu Yu and a group of classmates followed them closely.


    Xiao Qi didn''t recognize the other party and only knew that he was a staff member of the real estate developer from whom she bought the house last time.


    She didn''t take a loan; she paid the full amount. The property certificate shouldn''t be ready so soon.


    "Do you have any business with me?" she asked.


    "It''s like this, Miss Su Xiaoqi. The building you purchased, due to our qualifications and insufficient follow-up funds, to be honest, it has been abandoned. The subsequent water and electricity installations have become problematic. The boss feels uneasy about selling such a property to you and has asked me to return the money to you and terminate your property purchase contract," he said sincerely.


    He went on to talk about the difficulties his company faced.


    After listening for a while, Xiao Qi summarized that the other party didn''t want to sell the house to her and wanted to refund her money.


    To be honest, Xiao Qi was quite surprised. She had only heard of homeowners kneeling down to fight for their rights, but she had never heard of a developer voluntarily refunding money. It was quite an unexpected move.


    If she had bought it alone, she might have believed it. The other party''s attitude was sincere, and he didn''t seem like a dishonest person.


    However, when she bought the house, she was accompanied by her son and the cunning housekeeper. The housekeeper didn''t say anything, which meant there was no problem.


    "Wait a moment, let me ask someone," Xiao Qi said, preparing to call her son''s housekeeper and ask.


    Jin Hu stopped her when he saw that she was about to make a call. He politely said, "We can negotiate. The boss really doesn''t want to sell because it would tarnish his reputation for such a small amount of money. He gave me a target: we sold it to you for 4.5 million, and now we can buy it back at a 1.5 times premium. You don''t need to do anything, and in just over a month, 10 million will turn into 15 million. What do you think?"


    Xiao Qi: ...


    In the adjacent private room, Chu Yu ordered a bunch of drinks and called a group of people, including Xiao Qi''s tablemate, the vice study committee member, and others, most of whom were her pursuers, as well as two girls from the neighboring class.


    Chu Yu chatted absentmindedly, mainly to uncover Su Xiaoqi''s true face.


    Su Xiaoqi was diligent in her studies but often absent from the dormitory, always going out. There must be something fishy.


    As a result, they heard some pieces of information that made sense separately but were confusing when put together.


    The few boys and girls whispered quietly, and at first, it was Xiao Qi''s tablemate, Liu Xiao, who said she seemed to have heard the voice of the study committee member.


    Chu Yu said it might be that the study committee member had something to do and they should let them be.


    Then they heard voices arguing from the next room.


    The study committee member spent 10 million to buy a building, and the other party wanted to refund the money to her. The study committee member disagreed, and the other party was willing to refund 15 million to her...


    The group of people looked at each other. Wasn''t it supposed to be 10,000 instead of 10 million? Wasn''t it supposed to be an apartment instead of a whole building?


    So the study committee member had a building in Meng City? Who is it that''s interested in her money?


    "How does your study committee member have so much money? Didn''t we hear that she got close to Li Weijin in your class because of money? She actually has so much money herself. She''s the real rich one!"


    "Yeah, I think Li Weijin in your class might be interested in her money."


    "Could it be that the young master likes the study committee member''s money?"


    Chu Yu: ... You''re all drinking the drinks I bought. Doesn''t your conscience ache when you say that?


    Xiao Qi was still preparing to make a phone call to Butler Bao when a mechanical voice suddenly resounded in his mind: "The host''s excellent configuration of personal assets has aroused strong jealousy in others, prompting a change and progress in their worldview. As a reward, the host''s logical thinking ability is increased by +1."

 Chapter 363: Don’t Aim Too High

    Chapter 363


    Logical thinking ability? Xiao Qi seemed to be obsessed with learning recently.


    She used to find programming and computers rather dull, but once she really delved into it, she found that world vast and boundless, too wondrous and beautiful.


    It was another expansive world, another elegant language, concise and correct, without hesitation or indecision. Right was right, and wrong was wrong, with not even a misplaced comma: everything had its proper place.


    Xiao Qi had grown accustomed to the system occasionally acting up, but she didn''t particularly care who was intensely jealous.


    She still called Bao Butler.


    After she and the Young Master started dating, he had formally introduced her to the butler and given her his number to contact him anytime.


    Xiao Qi was reluctant to bother Bao Butler too easily, feeling that her mind was an open book to him, with nothing to hide, which made her a bit uneasy.


    When Bao Butler saw the incoming call, he answered right away, feeling quite excited.


    Miss Qi had finally called him.


    Initially, he hadn''t approved of the Young Master''s romance; it was normal for young people to date casually, with the steadfast Young Master and a string of transient girlfriends.


    But after a series of recent events in the Li family, the butler felt they had to be a united front.


    It all started when the Young Master mistakenly said he liked that bronze ware, and the Lady ended up spending five billion to buy it, infuriating the Eldest Young Master for several days.


    Then the Patriarch unexpectedly spent over five billion more to buy land and build an exhibition hall for that broken ware. The Eldest Young Master was furious over the bronze ware for a month before calming down, only to explode again.


    Somehow, that area has now become a key high-tech development zone for the country, with massive investment pouring in, instantly multiplying the land''s value.


    The Eldest Young Master was utterly devastated by the over ten billion spent in anger, triggered by Xiao Qi''s innocent mistake, only for the returns to multiply and the investment to become a priceless asset that money can hardly buy.


    The Eldest Young Master was severely shaken and fell into depression again.


    Then, seeing the Younger Young Master shave his head bald to pursue his girlfriend, he immediately cheered up and went to work happily, as if joy must be built on others'' suffering.


    Unexpectedly, the bald Younger Young Master actually won over Xiao Qi and brought her home for a formal introduction.


    So Bao Butler gained a new young mistress, and of course, his salary rose accordingly.


    As an all-capable household manager, his compensation was extremely high.


    High pay meant he had to deliver, and when Miss Qi called, just hearing her lovely voice, which he had longed for, was like heavenly music.


    While answering the call, he immediately headed her way.


    Driving the Bentley, he roared over to the student street.


    At that moment, Chu Yu and the others were just leaving, and with Chu Yu no longer interested in listening, he found an excuse to disband the group.


    As they were leaving, they ran into the butler exiting the Bentley and entering the private room, respectfully addressing the study committee member as "Miss Qi."


    Jin Hu was stunned to see the visitor, realizing, damn, the boss must have bought out that whole development...


    Jin Hu slunk away, while the butler sat down and carefully explained the situation to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi was just as dumbfounded - so the building she bought could skyrocket in value? Double? Maybe even increase tenfold?


    Xiao Qi quickly calculated - one million times ten is ten million; the system gave her thirty thousand a day, so it would take over three thousand days, nearly ten years, to reach ten million...


    No wonder this was the feeling of overnight riches for the wealthy, a world she didn''t understand.


    After dismissing the man and thanking Bao Butler, Xiao Qi even bought him a pearl milk tea, as the campus tea was quite good and especially sweet.


    The butler felt it was particularly thoughtful, even though serving the Young Masters was part of his duties and he was paid for it, but receiving an extra milk tea from her felt different.


    Despite the small hiccup in buying the property and the addition of a bald companion, Xiao Qi''s life hadn''t changed much, mainly focused on studying.


    Li Weijin had also suddenly become a diligent student, and the two spent most of their time studying together, doing homework, reading books, and occasionally discussing questions from their textbooks.


    However, their high looks still drew attention.


    Level 5 was so basic that there was hardly a need to take it.


    Levels 4 and 3 didn''t differ much - one had to complete the Beginner Book 2 grammar and know over 2,000 words.


    Xiao Qi chose Level 2 because she had already finished the ''New Standards for Sino-Japanese Communication'' Intermediate Books 1 and 2, mastering close to 10,000 words.


    The last time she wanted to do a Japanese translation part-time job, the requirement was having a Level 2 certificate. Most Japanese companies required around Level 2 Japanese proficiency, as did Japanese studies graduate programs.


    Level 1 required at least 12,000 words, plus knowledge of grammar and customs unique to Japan. Xiao Qi didn''t feel very confident about it, so Level 2 seemed safer.


    While each exam seemed simple on its own, doing all of them together was quite hectic.


    This was when Xiao Qi realized the importance of logical thinking. She could handle multiple tasks more systematically, prioritizing by importance and sequence. Despite the number of things on her plate, she could tackle them in an orderly and well-planned manner.


    The most noticeable difference was for the Computer Rank Exam Level 2. She felt much more at ease, able to write the programming assignments smoothly. Previously, there were times when she struggled with the logic, but now it felt like a breeze.


    Her boyfriend had also registered for the Computer Rank Exam Level 2 and found it quite challenging. She didn''t know if he would pass.


    As for the English Proficiency Test Level 4, Xiao Qi found it very easy.


    Li Weijin used to find it difficult, but this time he also felt it was quite easy. He might not score exceptionally high, but passing the test wouldn''t be an issue.


    Li Weijin had also started learning Japanese and registered for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 4, still at the beginner level.


    Xiao Qi felt that the Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 2 was a bit difficult but believed she could pass.


    After taking the exam, she specially chatted with Mr. Yamamoto on WeChat.


    To her surprise, Mr. Yamamoto, who had returned to Japan, remarked that their Level 2 test was too difficult - even he might not do well on it. He also invited her to visit his temple sometime.


    Xiao Qi felt that Mr. Yamamoto''s personality had become much more easygoing after returning to Japan.


    Despite the hectic schedule, Xiao Qi kept up with her weekly French lessons with Mrs. Su.


    Su Li could only suffer through it, bitterly studying along.


    While she was just going through the motions, eventually she could speak basic French. Occasionally in class, she would practice French conversations with Xiao Qi.


    Whenever this happened and everyone else looked dazed, Su Li felt immensely satisfied. Knowing a language that others didn''t understand felt powerful - she could bad-mouth someone to the class president, and no one else would understand. Heh heh heh.


    Soon, the results of the various exams came out.


    It was another French lesson that day.


    Xiao Qi had made tremendous progress in French, thanks in part to Mrs. Su''s excellent teaching. Even Su Li, the half-baked student, could now communicate basic French.


    After the lesson, Mrs. Su noticed that Xiao Qi seemed to have something on her mind.


    The young lady was diligent in her studies and quite talented. Considering her age and background, her level of achievement was already impressive. Her character could use some tempering, but she was still very malleable at this stage.


    "Is something on your mind? Do you have something to tell me?" Mrs. Su asked with a kind smile.


    Xiao Qi nodded, her heart thumping.


    In her eyes, Mrs. Su was the epitome of the perfect grandmother figure - highly knowledgeable, gentle yet resolute, not meek but efficient in handling matters. Xiao Qi had witnessed a few instances where Mrs. Su scolded others sternly, inspiring trepidation in her subordinates as she swiftly took charge.


    It wasn''t the typical table-banging rant. Just an aura of severity that exerted immense pressure. The first time Xiao Qi saw Mrs. Su angry, she was in awe of Su Li for not being fazed by her own grandmother''s ferocity.


    The phrase "flexible yet unbending" perfectly described Mrs. Su.


    But this time, Xiao Qi simply wanted to share her achievements, without any lofty aspirations.


    She placed her exam results in front of Mrs. Su - a score of 742 out of 750 for the English Proficiency Test Level 4 (pass mark was 425), an "Excellent" rating for the Computer Rank Examination Level 2, and 169 out of 180 for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 2 (pass mark was 90).


    The official certificates had not been issued yet, so these were printouts of the online results.


    Su Shuyuan: ...So you''re bringing me your scores to rub it in my face? Typical kid, being so competitive. I just said one thing about your lofty ambitions and you can''t let it go, even going out of your way to print the results for me to see!!!


    She looked at the beaming young lady, eyes shining as she stared at Su expectantly.


    "Ahem, not bad, you did well on all of them."

 Chapter 364: The Birthday Present

    Chapter 364


    On the way back, Xiao Qi could not help but smile foolishly.


    Su Li thought the student council member was really thick-skinned. When she saw her display the grades for her aunt to see, Su Li''s heart leapt to her throat, and she wanted to shout, "Student council member, wake up! The person in front of you is the great demon king. Don''t provoke her, don''t..."


    But then she noticed that in addition to the student council member''s grades, there were also those of Li Weijin, the pea-brained peacock. Li Weijin had passed the level 4 exam, and he had also passed the computer level 2 certification, albeit just passing. Amazingly, he had even passed the Japanese level 4 exam.


    Where did he find the time to study all that?


    During the preparatory course, his grades were much worse than hers.


    Had he cheated somehow? Yo?ur favorite stories at novelhall.com


    Following the student council member in studying just one additional language had left her feeling exhausted.


    Could being bald really make one incredibly smart? Should she shave her head too?


    Su Li was perplexed. She couldn''t help but admire Li Weijin a little.


    She was conflicted. Why should grades matter more than liking someone?


    How tragic.


    How arduous.


    Xiao Qi did not notice Su Li''s inner turmoil. Through their time together, she realized that although Su Li appeared tough on the surface, she was actually a gentle girl. She wasn''t good at greeting others with a smile, but once you got to know her, she would open up her heart and be very pleasant to be around.


    Despite being busy with her studies recently, Xiao Qi had not neglected her painting.


    In fact, her inspiration was overflowing, and she would paint a new piece almost every other day.


    This was probably related to Zaizai''s recent state as well.


    She calmly studied together with Li Weijin, sometimes even eating meals together, and had even visited Li Weijin''s home.


    Xiao Qi found it very pleasant.


    Yes, previously she had studied diligently according to a routine, always under pressure, feeling that since she came from an ordinary background with a low starting point and poor conditions, she had to work harder than others, as if she had wound up a spring inside herself.


    Every day, she would periodically tighten that inner spring, urging herself to keep working hard.


    After being with Li Weijin, it seemed like she had long forgotten to tighten that spring, yet she was still working hard, and happily so.


    Xiao Qi felt that she had made progress, advancing to a different state where she did not need prompting, did not need constant reminders, did not need any spiritual sustenance, yet she could naturally study diligently. It was very comfortable and relaxed.


    She felt that her studying had reached a natural state, without any sense of urgency, yet she was learning better and more at ease.


    Perhaps it was because she had gained confidence from being with Zaizai.


    Most people called him "Young Master," but Xiao Qi preferred the nickname "Zaizai."


    How melodramatic!


    As she walked back to the dorm, Xiao Qi felt it would be just fine to celebrate with her roommates. She couldn''t prioritize her relationship over her friends.


    But when she arrived at the dorm, her roommates had also gotten up, which was rare. On weekends, Mier and Yun Shu usually loved to sleep in.


    Today, they had even gotten dressed.


    "Xiao Qi, hurry! It''s your birthday today. Let''s all go to the city and eat something delicious," Mier greeted her with a wide smile.


    Even the shy Wei Cheng was wearing her new windbreaker, smiling as she said, "Happy birthday. You''re 18 now, how wonderful."


    Yun Shu wore a pink corduroy dress, sent by her mother, from the brand Miu Miu, extremely expensive. Unaware of its cost, she looked rather cute wearing it.


    No one asked Xiao Qi for help with makeup this semester. After learning from her, they had picked up quite a bit and could do it themselves.


    Xiao Qi: "..."


    "You''re all so serious about this, even doing makeup."


    "Of course, you need to put on makeup too. We''re going out together, we must look gorgeous," Mier said with a smile as she applied whitening cream on her face.


    Infected by her roommates'' enthusiasm, the last hint of melancholy dissipated from Xiao Qi''s mind. She felt she needed some self-reflection. No wonder people say being in love makes you silly - she was showing signs of silliness herself. Wouldn''t it be nice to join her roommates?


    They happily showered and changed clothes.


    In the past, Xiao Qi''s clothes were mainly black, white, and gray, but now she gradually developed a liking for bright colors that made her feel vibrant and cheerful, reflecting her more confident and outgoing personality.


    Xiao Qi showered and put on a pair of blue flared jeans, a short-sleeved bubble blouse with little blue flowers and a square neckline that revealed her collarbones. The top just barely covered her waist, making her legs look two meters long and full of energy. With her short hair tied in a little ponytail, she looked especially fresh and pretty.


    It was Xiao Qi''s birthday, so instead of squeezing into a bus, Yun Shu called a car. Xiao Qi got in and chatted animatedly with her roommates for a while. Seeing Mier dozing off again, she took out her phone, put on earphones, and started listening to her French audio course.


    Xiao Qi found that studying whenever and wherever possible was the most efficient way, with outstanding results. It felt like she had gained several times more time than others, which was very worthwhile.


    Immersed in her studies, Xiao Qi didn''t notice the scenery outside. The journey today seemed unusually long.


    As she listened to the elegant French, Xiao Qi started to doze off towards the end, so she switched to French songs and leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes to rest.


    It was Mier shaking her awake. "We''re here, we''re here, time to get out."


    Even with her eyes closed, Xiao Qi could feel Mier''s excitement - just for going into the city, how thrilling.


    She opened her eyes, got out of the car, and was stunned.


    In front of her was an enormous egg-shaped exhibition hall, with a large screen in front displaying various paintings, and an enormous poster that read ''Su Xiaoqi Art Exhibition''.


    And under the massive poster stood a bald young man, dressed in a stylish white suit that would normally look drab, but his shaved head made him look lively, creating an eye-catching contrast.


    Seeing this scene, Xiao Qi didn''t just feel her heart flutter - she felt she had fallen, and fallen hard.

 Chapter 365: There Was a Light in His Eyes

    Chapter 365


    The gigantic egg-shaped exhibition hall was even larger than a regular sports arena.


    Its exterior design was extremely sleek, resembling facets of a cut diamond, shimmering everywhere in silver.


    I wonder if you could spot this silver egg from afar, looking down from the sky.


    This exhibition hall was specially designed by Li Qianmen for his wife, Gao Cuihua, to display all the numerous useless things she bought.


    The first thing that caught the eye upon entering the exhibition hall was the most useless bronze tripod.


    With a price tag of five billion, it was still quite enticing.


    The exhibition hall didn''t charge admission fees; anyone with an ID card could enter, and parents or teachers without ID cards could also bring children or students in.


    Due to its immense size, even with all the extravagant purchases made by Gao Cuihua on display¡ªhalf-meter-high Hetian jade carvings, half-filled tanks of southern red agate, a box full of jade bracelets and pendants, various branded furniture, and bizarre collections, there was still plenty of space left.


    Although the land price had doubled, Li Tangsong still felt that his parents'' behavior was extravagant, constantly losing money just to showcase his mother''s extravagant products, requiring such a large exhibition hall, staff, security, expensive security systems, lighting, air purification systems, and more, all resulting in huge daily expenses, yet no admission fees were charged.


    What a mess...


    As a result, this enormous exhibition hall attracted a lot of people as soon as it opened, all wanting to rent it to showcase their own items.


    This exhibition hall could be said to be the most advanced, luxurious, and beautiful exhibition hall in Meng City, and major brands and well-known individuals took pride in being able to display their items here.


    As a result, the remaining large space was eagerly lined up for high-priced auctions to rent it.


    Li Tangsong:...


    And today, one of the exhibition halls was about to be taken by his younger brother.


    He always thought that his brother''s personality would take several more years to mature enough to like girls.


    Yet this kid, in pursuit of a girl, shaved his head and actually caught her.


    He had originally wanted to nag a bit, saying that falling in love too early wasn''t good, but after his brother started dating, his academic performance suddenly skyrocketed. He hadn''t passed the English IELTS in years, but now he breezed through the English CET-4, and even passed the computer level 2 exam and Japanese CET-4... He wanted to ask his brother, are you going to date or study?


    He felt that his brother had encountered some extraordinary luck in finding a good girl.


    But today''s events truly blinded him.


    Looking at his stylishly dressed brother, he finally understood why he didn''t have a girlfriend.


    For his little girlfriend''s birthday, his brother actually organized an art exhibition specifically for her, not only that, he also invited celebrities from all walks of life, as well as teachers and classmates from school, inviting everyone he could.


    Tsk tsk, if he received this birthday gift, Li Tangsong felt that even if he were a girl, he would yield to him.


    Xiao Qi at this moment, really felt this way.


    This gift was too surprising.


    Really.


    Especially seeing Zaizai under the poster, standing there smiling at her.


    A faint smile is truly enchanting, and it can really be used on boys.


    Xiao Qi''s roommate burst into laughter.


    They had known for a while that Zaizai had asked for their help to collect Xiao Qi''s paintings, to give her a surprise. Mia''s straightforward personality had been holding back for days, finally relieved today.


    Zaizai was really impressive. With such a large exhibition hall, big screens playing, and such huge promotional posters.


    Xiao Qi walked slowly over, feeling like she was walking through a tunnel of time.


    In reality, there were many people in the exhibition hall, but at this moment, Xiao Qi only had eyes for one person.


    She walked up to Li Weijin, his face slightly red. One reason was that he had been standing for a long time, and another was that he wanted to hug Xiao Qi.


    At school, although they were almost in a confirmed relationship, dating was forbidden by Enhua. They really only studied together, not even holding hands, let alone anything else.


    If holding hands at Enhua was caught, they had to write a self-criticism...


    But now they were outside of school.


    Today was Xiao Qi''s birthday.


    Preparing an art exhibition for Xiao Qi was not the only birthday gift.


    He had prepared three gifts.


    Well, a hug counted as one.


    Xiao Qi walked up, and then was hugged by the young man... for a while... then let go.


    Xiao Qi''s face instantly turned red.


    She, she had liked someone before, but she had never had such intimate contact with a boy.


    Her hands and feet felt numb, her blood seemed to be rushing around.


    Li Weijin wasn''t much better than her, his face even redder, standing there, his collarbone burning as if he had a fever, his hands and feet numb and stiff.


    "Happy birthday, Qi Qi."


    "Thank you." Xiao Qi spoke, feeling her throat sticky.


    Xiao Qi''s roommates were standing on the side, giggling.


    Even Yunsu was like this, the scene was too beautiful.


    Under Li Weijin''s lead, the group entered the exhibition hall together.


    Swiping their IDs could get them in directly, and upon entering, they could see the treasure of the town inside, the five hundred million bronze cauldron, which was also a legend in Meng City. At this price, it was quite legendary for the entire country.


    That''s why an exhibition hall in the Xiao''an District would attract countless people to come and watch the fun. Chinese people like to join in the fun, although they can''t own it, they can still see the five hundred million jar with their own eyes.


    Anyway, this exhibition hall was suddenly elevated to a very high level, and everything that could be exhibited here was very expensive.


    Xiao Qi''s art exhibition was in the third room behind the bronze cauldron.


    It was also very conspicuous.


    This was actually painted by a female student, and it''s too beautiful, capturing all of Su Shuyu''s shining points. One can feel that the person who painted this must really like Su Shuyu, even admire her, with reverence.


    An amateur might not be able to see it, but as an artist who has been painting for decades, Cui Guohua understands this feeling too well, intense and fervent, requiring strong and full emotions to paint such a picture.


    He can''t paint like that anymore.


    Although his brushstrokes have become more skillful than before, the act of painting has truly diminished, not only to maintain the price of his paintings but also because he really lacks the inspiration and emotions for creation.


    Those intense emotions, saturated emotions, are the soul of painting.


    Only with such emotions can one paint a picture with a soul.


    Su Shuyu lingered in front of her own artwork, the person in the painting and the person outside the painting, this feeling is very magical.


    In fact, there are many such scenes at art exhibitions.


    Mimi and the others have Xiao Qi paint for them. When they usually look at it in the dormitory, they think it''s amazing.


    But when it''s framed, hung on the wall, illuminated, and then admired from the opposite side, it feels completely different.


    Mimi feels like she sees another Mimi, lively wanting to step out, looking at it just makes her want to smile, feeling like her eyebrows, eyes, mouth, and even fingers and toes are all smiling.


    So joyful.


    Wei Cheng sees her own portrait, feeling very shy, she stands in front of the portrait, exactly like the temperament in the painting, truly like looking in a mirror.


    Shy yet with a strong feeling, very positive, she herself is like this too, what''s even more coincidental is that she''s wearing the same trench coat as in the painting, she treasures the new one she bought very much, she doesn''t have many clothes, so it''s normal to repeat, really at first glance, it''s like the person in the painting has come out.


    As Yunshu looked at herself in the painting, she found it somewhat unbelievable. Am I really that lazy? The lazy vibe, the reluctance to move, it all seemed to emanate from the painting. Her fingers appeared slightly chubby, and yet, lazy. She had always thought her wide eyebrow gap was unattractive, but in the painting, she looked adorable. She decided she must take this painting home after the exhibition. It was painted by Xiao Qi, and her parents would surely love it.


    Her mother was a bit snobbish; having attended such exhibitions before, she would undoubtedly boast to her socialite friends when she returned home.


    Aizhen was also present. Xiao Qi''s depiction of Aizhen was so gentle and beautiful.


    Aizhen suffered from anorexia and had been depressed for a while. She felt like a skeleton herself, but she never imagined she could look so pretty in Xiao Qi''s eyes¡ªso serene and beautiful.


    She hugged the book and read aloud on the platform, radiating warmth mixed with the scent of books.


    This painting was truly special, drawing a crowd around it. Aizhen, usually emotionally subdued, was now somewhat excited.


    There were also paintings by Xiao Qi''s parents and his plump aunt.


    Though their attire seemed ordinary, they exuded genuine warmth, evoking memories of one''s own parents, the feeling of being cherished, nostalgic.


    The plump aunt was particularly lively, exuding the vitality of the working class, simple joy, and a cheerful disposition, easy to get along with, yet with a hint of inner shyness.


    There were various graceful horses galloping, incredibly handsome.


    Of course, the most beautiful piece on display was by Li Weijin.


    Xiao Shengzhou was also invited because he provided some horse paintings, which Xiao Qi had collected from him at the equestrian center.


    He hadn''t expected the exhibition to be so grand. Frankly speaking, he could organize such an exhibition himself, but he probably wouldn''t, or he might discuss it with Xiao Qi, not use it as a surprise birthday gift.


    He thought this was the difference between him and Li Weijin.


    He was more mature, while Li Weijin was still a youth.


    But when he saw the painting of the bald youth, he instantly understood Xiao Qi''s emotions.


    The youths in her paintings had eyes full of light, radiant and unable to be concealed.


    Like that love and affection overflowing from the paintings, sweet and beautiful.


    There were also paintings by Xiao Shengzhou at the exhibition, well done with a lot of depth in the eyes, mature and steady, a sense of responsibility, handsome indeed, everything, except for that light.


    Xiao Qi was somewhat bewildered seeing these paintings. Her usual sketches, now displayed so grandly, there was indeed a huge gap; she could hardly believe she had painted them herself.


    And someone even inquired about the price.


    Cui Guohua really wanted to buy Su Shuyu''s portrait, so he sent his assistant to inquire about the price.


    Learning that the paintings were not for sale, the assistant understood. He thought it was just a gimmick because Cui Guohua was originally a painter, selling paintings needed to enhance one''s value; selling casually would only cheapen them.


    So, he understandingly asked for a starting price, suggesting negotiations.


    The staff were really helpless. This was the boss organizing an exhibition for his future daughter-in-law, a birthday gift from the boss''s son to his girlfriend, they really weren''t for sale.


    The wealthy really knew how to play.


    Initially, they thought they were just ordinary paintings. It was said they were painted by a freshman girl, but they never expected there would actually be inquiries, and quite a few people at that.


    Mrs. Su''s painting had someone asking for the price.


    The one called "Mier" had two people asking for the price.


    The one named "Coral" and the drumming horse both had two people asking for the price separately.


    The painting with the most inquiries was their young master''s.


    Especially the one called "Guang," surprisingly had around ten inquiries.


    The staff was getting impatient with all the questions and couldn''t quote prices anymore.


    They tried to find the boss, but he wouldn''t answer the phone. They tried his son, but he was busy with his girlfriend looking at paintings.


    They had to settle for Li Tangsong, the boss''s eldest son, who was in charge of negotiations.


    Li Tangsong: ??? Someone asking for prices??? Why come to me? Go find my brother. Can I really sell his girlfriend''s painting?


    But after seeing the surveillance footage the staff showed him, where his brother was walking hand in hand with his girlfriend, stumbling along, he decided not to bother them.


    He randomly quoted a high price, thinking no sane person would buy it.


    "Guang," the most inquired about, was priced at 2 million, while the others were all priced at 500,000.


    They thought they had brushed off the inquiries, but to their surprise, the staff came back looking troubled.


    "That painting ''Guang'' for 2 million? Someone wants to buy it. Also, the one called ''Coral'' and Mrs. Su''s painting have interested buyers."


    Li Tangsong: ... What the heck?

 Chapter 366: Living to Be Someone Else’s Idol

    Chapter 366


    Selling paintings was out of the question.


    Li Tangsong had no intention of heartlessly selling the painting that his younger brother had prepared as a birthday surprise for his girlfriend. If he did that, not only would his younger brother turn against him, but his parents would also beat him up.


    However, since he had quoted a price, someone actually agreed to buy it.


    Li Tangsong had no choice but to stubbornly instruct the staff to inform the other party that this was the bottom price and that a bidding process was required.


    Regardless of the final price, he would bid to get the painting back.


    He felt he was being terribly wronged...


    So after the art exhibition, there was an auction process for the paintings that someone wanted to buy.


    Little Seven looked at Li Weijin: ???


    Li Weijin was equally baffled. Why would he sell the paintings, especially the one Little Seven had painted of him? He wasn''t crazy. He had already planned that after the exhibition, he would take the painting titled "Light" home and hang it in his bedroom to admire every day. He never expected that in Little Seven''s eyes, he would look so handsome, and his heart was filled with joy.


    Li Qianmen and Gao Cuihua also came. When they saw the paintings of their beloved daughter, they thought they were beautiful. Gao Cuihua felt heartbroken and even decided to bring her "wife squad" to see their son and judge how handsome he was.


    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Gao Cuihua didn''t realize her son looked that handsome.


    Li Qianmen was also pleased with himself, thinking that his genes were too good. His younger son resembled him when he was young and just as handsome. His taste was also like his, with an eye for beauty, as his girlfriend was not only academically outstanding but also a talented artist.


    He wanted the young lady to paint a portrait of him as well. The young lady''s paintings were so uplifting. He felt a bit shy to ask, but he thought he should hint that his birthday was coming up soon.


    Learning that it was the unfortunate eldest son''s fault, they let the unfortunate eldest son handle it.


    Li Tangsong repeatedly assured them that he would bid to get the paintings back.


    The painting titled "Light" was eventually auctioned off for 7.5 million to a wealthy woman who said it resembled her first love from her youth???


    Looking at the woman''s over 180-pound frame, Li Tangsong shuddered, thinking that if he didn''t buy it back, his younger brother would make his life miserable.


    Mrs. Su''s painting was auctioned off for 2 million because the artist Cui Guohua wanted it, and there were others who knew Mrs. Su.


    Su Shuyu herself joined the bidding as she didn''t want her painting to be sold, but ultimately didn''t raise the price further as she believed someone would outbid her.


    However, "Coral" was truly "sold."


    The one who wanted this painting was a disabled young girl who had been in a car accident a year ago, resulting in the amputation of both her legs. She was in a wheelchair, pushed by her mother.


    She really liked this sister''s paintings. In her eyes, every single painting was full of emotion, bright and radiant, with an indescribable sense of vigor and upward momentum.


    She especially loved the painting of the pink little pony, which looked like a fairy.


    Little Seven had painted it based on her first impression when she saw Coral, thinking she had entered a fairy tale world and didn''t expect to see a pink little pony. It was so beautiful.


    The mother''s reluctance and guilt.


    Little Seven deeply understood this feeling.


    It was like when she was a child and saw her neighbor''s daughter eating something delicious and fragrant. That''s when she learned it was called chocolate. She really, really wanted to try it. The neighbor''s daughter said it was a gift from her aunt, something precious.


    She desperately wanted to eat it but could only watch the other girl savor it.


    The little girl didn''t expect the artist to be so beautiful in person, and her paintings to be so exquisite.


    She had read the artist''s introduction at the entrance, which included a photo and biography, listing various awards and accomplishments. Despite being a freshman in college, she was already a member of the Meng City Calligraphy and Painting Association and fluent in English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. She was the top student in her major, won first place in the Jingnan Province Freshman English Speech Contest, broke the marathon record, excelled at running, ranked first in the Jingnan Province Women''s 200m Freestyle Swimming event, and was skilled in equestrian show jumping.


    The girl spent a long time reading the artist''s introduction. While she didn''t pay much attention to the beautiful photo, as photo editing techniques are advanced nowadays, she was in awe of the listed awards and accomplishments. Looking at these vibrant paintings, she felt that only such an outstanding and brilliant person could create works brimming with spectacular lives, rich emotions, and vitality.


    "Thank you, sister. I really like this painting, but I can''t accept it. It''s too precious," the girl said in a sweet voice. In her heart, she vowed to learn from this sister and grow up to be as outstanding.


    Little Seven walked up, squatted in front of the wheelchair, and smiled at her, saying, "I''m so happy that someone appreciates my paintings. Today is my birthday, and I''ve received many gifts. I''d also like to give one away. Would you fulfill this wish of mine?"


    In the end, the mother and daughter were defeated by Little Seven''s smile.


    They left in a daze, clutching the painting.


    Others were green with envy.


    While some spent hundreds of thousands and still couldn''t obtain the painting, this girl received one for free.


    Someone immediately posted a video of this on Douyin, and someone clever shared it on Toutiao.


    The news of a little girl receiving a million-dollar painting at an art exhibition for free was perfect clickbait and quickly became a trending hot news story.


    Unexpectedly, this birthday surprise exhibition that Li Weijin had organized for Little Seven became a sensation.


    Some people questioned whether it was a setup, that the organizers of the art exhibition deliberately did it, and many people came out to refute this, saying they witnessed it themselves at the venue.


    Others came out saying they were classmates of the girl, and she said she was going to the art exhibition today, so it must be true.


    Nowadays, for a painting to sell at a high price, it must first have a reputation.


    And this art exhibition became popular out of nowhere, drawing curious onlookers from all walks of life.


    Art enthusiasts saw the video and thought the paintings seemed quite good, so they wanted to see them in person as well.


    After all, these were paintings exhibited in this prestigious gallery.


    This was a gallery with a five billion dollar ancient bronze cauldron serving as its centerpiece.


    Little Seven didn''t have any special feelings himself, but suddenly a mechanical voice rang in his mind: "Host has actively studied and made progress, becoming an idol and goal for a disabled girl, giving her the courage and motivation to live. As a reward, the host receives a mid-level lucky card valid for one day, which can help avoid the worst from happening."

 Chapter 367: Final Exam

    Chapter 367


    Today was a cloudy day, with no sun and the wind cooler than usual.


    Just like the students'' moods. Nne?w n0vel chapters are published at novelhall.com


    After happily playing for a semester, they were about to face the final exams and realized, oh no, it''s too late, their textbooks were still brand new, they didn''t know anything, yet exams were coming.


    If it were before, Li Weijin would have been one of those last-minute cramming party members, only starting to study right before the exams. He would quickly flip through the books, hoping the teacher would circle the key points. Some nice teachers did circle some key points, but others would tell you that the whole book was important and you should figure it out yourself.


    Of course, even after studying the teacher''s circled key points, the exam content was not necessarily covered there...


    But in the second half of the semester, to prevent excessive hair loss from studying too hard, Li Weijin shaved his head. Now he had no such worries, studying with Xiaoqi every day. It was a bit strenuous at first, but now he could barely keep up with her pace. Though not in the top ten, he definitely wouldn''t fail.


    Looking at classmates who used to happily play games now urgently reviewing with worried expressions, he felt quite satisfied.


    As for Xiaoqi, the final exams posed no difficulty at all. She had been diligently studying and reviewing all along, even studying ahead of the class.


    After the art exhibition, Xiaoqi directly gifted the painting meant for Ms. Su to her.


    She explained the price mix-up.


    Su Shuyu accepted the painting. She really liked it herself. Firstly, she genuinely enjoyed it. Secondly, this painting that she didn''t particularly like someone else almost bought for over a million yuan had just been auctioned for two million. Though she could afford it, she never expected this young girl to be so generous as to gift it to her.


    In the painting, not only was her appearance beautiful, but her actual looks didn''t compare to her youthful depiction. Yet there was a spirit, the confidence she had aspired to in her youth, an invincible aura that would remain even through the years.


    Having weathered frost and rain, her eyes still held warmth.


    She hung this painting directly in the tea room where she received guests.


    Xiaoqi also studied French here.


    Upon seeing this painting, Su Li gifted Xiaoqi a week''s worth of breakfast and fruit.


    Until Li Weijin confronted her, asking what was going on - she clearly knew Xiaoqi was his girlfriend, was she trying to become the third party?!


    Su Li...did have thoughts of wedging herself in, but she only bought the breakfast and fruit in hopes that Xiaoqi would paint a portrait for her...


    Xiaoqi was amused and promised to paint for Su Li, asking her not to buy any more breakfast or fruit, as it made her anxious.


    After Xiaoqi gifted the painting to Ms. Su, their relationship seemed to improve. Not only could she park in Ms. Su''s garage, but they sometimes swam together. Ms. Su even gave Xiaoqi a back door - in addition to her own final exams, she could simultaneously take the second-year courses.


    Xiaoqi even mentioned wanting to learn shooting, and Ms. Su said she knew a place and could introduce her, though the final exams would be too busy this semester, perhaps next semester.


    It seemed that for people to get along, there was no absolute good or bad, only give and take. Effort leads to gain, not just in personal endeavors but in interpersonal relationships too.


    Xiaoqi''s dorm mates got along better than others because they were all honest and willing to contribute to each other.


    With final exams approaching, school club activities dwindled, giving Ren Hua University a rare studious atmosphere.


    Xiaoqi''s routine didn''t change much - she didn''t study harder like her peers, nor did she rest and stagnate. She attended classes, audited others, did evening self-study, took electives, learned Portuguese and French, and self-studied Japanese and Korean.


    Xiaoqi was quite proficient in Japanese and English, a bit weaker in Korean. She had just begun learning Portuguese and French, one class per week, still at the beginner stage. She found French a bit easier, as Ms. Su was an excellent teacher who excelled at everything she did.


    In her free time, Xiaoqi ran, practiced calligraphy and painting, and continued other hobbies.


    Ever since the art exhibition, Xiaoqi had grown quite popular in Meng City.


    She occupied the hot searches on headline news for several days.


    Although some doubted it was fabricated, others found that the bidder was the renowned Olde Cui, a celebrated figure in China''s painting and calligraphy circle who actually went to buy someone else''s work.


    Some remained skeptical and tried to purchase the paintings, but the prices just kept rising without any being sold.


    Su Xiaoqi often couldn''t resist reaching out to... feel it.


    Whenever she did this, the normally aloof Li Weijin''s collarbones would flush red.


    This was a secret that Su Xiaoqi had only recently discovered. In the past, they had rarely sat so close together, and she had never paid much attention to what lay beneath his collar.


    But one time, he wore a rather alluring robe made of grey silk. After shaving his head, his clothing style had changed, becoming more ethereal.


    The kind of robe that could easily garner over a million likes for a simple walking video.


    This robe had a lower neckline, and when Su Xiaoqi scratched his head that day, she noticed that despite his calm, serious expression, his collarbones underneath the V-neckline had flushed a bright red, standing out vividly.


    His skin was so fair that the reddened collarbones were impossible to miss.


    At first, Su Xiaoqi thought he might be having an allergic reaction somewhere.


    But after a few more occurrences, she realized that whenever she got close to him, or sometimes accidentally spoke near his ear, or brushed against him, his collarbones would redden, burning bright red... while his face remained completely serious and composed.


    It was truly very (adorably) (flustering).


    Time flew by as quickly as Li Weijin''s hair had grown out of its shaved state.


    Finals arrived as scheduled.


    Su Xiaoqi took exams for her own major as well as the three major courses for sophomores.


    As for her elective, Spanish, she naturally performed excellently.


    Since finals ended right before the break, the results were released extremely quickly: almost immediately after a day of rest following the exams.


    Unsurprisingly, Su Xiaoqi ranked first in her class and year again.


    Li Weijin''s performance was decent this time, with no failing grades to make up. He ranked 15th in the class and 39th in the year, showing rapid improvement.


    Wei Cheng finally secured 2nd in the class and 3rd in the year.


    Yun Shu was 3rd in the class and 4th in the year this time.


    Mi Er ranked 4th in the class and 7th in the year.


    Su Xiaoqi''s dorm had really dominated, sweeping the top four ranks in the class.


    For the year level, 2nd place went to the same student from Information Management Class 3 as last time. Previously, her score was 32 points behind Su Xiaoqi''s, but this time, although still lagging behind, the gap had narrowed to only 17 points.


    Initially, she felt a little smug... not knowing why she was so pleased about being 2nd place. But she thought that since the gap had narrowed, she would definitely be 1st next time with a bit more effort.


    Then she heard that Su Xiaoqi had actually taken the major course exams for sophomores, participating in three of their major courses and ranking 1st in all of them, basically slapping the sophomores in the face.


    Li Weijin had also taken them and managed to pass, which was unbelievable even to himself.


    The sophomore major course results didn''t count for rankings, but 1st place was still very prominently displayed.


    Su Li had also made great progress this time, ranking 16th in the class and 41st in the year.


    She had been planning to boast to her aunt, but then realized that Li Weijin ranked 15th... 15th, just one spot above her!! Ugh!!


    As for Chu Yu, during the midterms she had ranked in the 30s in the class, claiming it was due to poor health. But this time for finals, she couldn''t use that excuse again, and ended up ranking 47th in the class... dropping over 10 more places??


    However, she didn''t feel hurt enough to cry this time, because she knew everyone in the dorm was busy packing, and no one, being all girls, paid her any attention.


    Su Xiaoqi was excitedly packing her bags. She hadn''t been home all semester, and would finally be returning. She wondered if her parents would even recognize her after such a drastic change, or if they would be startled by her transformation.

 Chapter 368: Coming Home 02

    Chapter 368


    On the day of Xiao Qi''s holiday, the weather was very clear.


    The sky was cloudless, a blue canvas as vivid as a painting.


    After ranking first in her grade on the final exams, Xiao Qi received a scholarship of ten thousand yuan.


    Wei Cheng ranked third and received six thousand, beaming with delight, her mouth unable to close. The shy girl''s smile radiated happiness.


    Though Enhua was known as a prestigious private school, it was fair in this regard. As long as students were willing to work hard, there were ample opportunities and generous scholarships.


    Xiao Qi initially considered driving home, but having just obtained her license less than a year ago, she couldn''t take the highway. Lacking experience with long-distance driving, she decided against it. Her car remained parked in Mrs. Su''s garage, a reminder not to indulge in impulsive purchases. Such purchases didn''t merely waste money but left behind lingering problems. Having possessions one neither cherished nor enjoyed only diminished one''s quality of life, preventing one from traveling light and progressing unencumbered.


    Many people were like this, advancing boldly when they had nothing, but becoming immobilized by their burdens when they acquired too much.


    During the holidays, Xiao Qi''s coach Steven also took time off, traveling abroad to meet old friends.


    Steven embodied a carefree spirit, going wherever he pleased with just a bag in hand.


    Xiao Shengzhou had generously granted his staff a holiday as well.


    On the first day of the break, Yun Shu left first, picked up by her family''s driver who also gave Wei Cheng a ride. Alll latest novels at novelhall.com


    Mi''er took the noon train, while Xiao Qi''s was at three in the afternoon, leaving her the last to depart.


    In the dorm at that moment, the chubby and round Xiao Bao''er sat on a small chair, chattering incessantly.


    On the other side, the exceptionally handsome Li Weijin, who had been allowed in against the rules by the dorm auntie, struggled to interject.


    He had come with a large backpack, intending to accompany Xiao Qi home.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    "My parents would be startled if they saw you. It won''t work."


    Xiao Bao''er chimed in mischievously, "If Weijin-gege goes, I want to go too. Hmph, I even brought my favorite dolls, so I''m ready to leave."


    Li Weijin: ...


    The student council president''s sister was so annoying, not cute at all. It was the last day, yet she was vying for Xiao Qi''s attention.


    With the chubby child around, he felt too self-conscious even to hold Xiao Qi''s hand.


    The president must have done this on purpose.


    Xiao Bao''er had also received a painting from Xiao Qi, which she proudly framed in an oversized frame and displayed in the living room, ensuring everyone saw it the moment they entered.


    Upon hearing that Xiao Qi would be going home for the holidays, Xiao Bao''er insisted her brother bring her to bid farewell. She bought a large bag of assorted candy canes, claiming she had used her own savings.


    She also gifted Xiao Qi numerous hair clips, including a box from her grandmother containing an agate bead. As soon as Xiao Qi touched it, the year flashed in her mind - over 900 years old, from the Tang Dynasty.


    It was time to go home, and Xiao Qi was feeling a little anxious. She was worried that her girlfriend would end up like those scenarios she had witnessed before, where her girlfriend got a boyfriend during the break and then suddenly broke up with him for no apparent reason.


    Xiao Qi didn''t want to be sad about something that hadn''t happened yet.


    As she was about to enter the station, she turned around and embraced Li Weijin.


    Li Weijin also embraced her.


    A handsome man and a beautiful woman, both young in appearance.


    In front of the bustling station with people coming and going.


    Their embrace was open and unrestrained.


    Very gentle, very beautiful.


    "See you next semester," Xiao Qi said, then released Li Weijin and strode into the station.


    She exerted her strength, actually pushing him away.


    Li Weijin stood at the entrance of the station, feeling empty and lost, watching Xiao Qi enter the station and disappear into the crowd.


    He didn''t know why, but he felt very anxious.


    Xiao Qi said that the signal at her hometown was poor, so it would be hard to stay in touch. She gave him the phone number of a neighbor''s house.


    He was used to studying with Xiao Qi every day. The first thing he did after waking up was to video call or chat with her on WeChat for a few minutes before getting out of bed. At night, he wouldn''t fall asleep until he saw her "good night" message.


    He felt that he had changed a lot over the past six months. He had clear goals and motivation in life. Every day felt fresh and new. But suddenly, with Xiao Qi''s departure, he felt deflated and lost, not knowing what to do.


    The butler stood by silently and invisibly.


    The depressed young master was a little unaccustomed to this.


    Previously, the young master was like a hollow, embroidered pillow without a brain, drifting through life in a carefree manner.


    Ever since he started dating, the young master suddenly had a heart and a mind filled with purpose. He began to study hard, much to the butler''s relief. After all, the butler had been working for the Li family for more than ten years, even before the young master was born.


    With the Li family prospering and an heir to carry on, the butler felt at ease with his work.


    However, having a heart also meant feeling sadness and loss. The butler took out a handkerchief and dabbed his eyes.


    Once on the train, Xiao Qi also felt a little down.


    Looking at the passing scenery outside the window, her spirits lifted again.


    After all, she was going home, and it had been a long time since she had seen her parents.


    After gazing out the window for a while, she took out her Portuguese textbook and started studying.


    With tuition fees of 800 yuan per lesson, not studying would be a waste of money.

 Chapter 369: Parents Who Have Changed a Lot

    Chapter 369


    Xiao Qi didn''t tell her Parents when she would arrive home, thinking it would be too much trouble for them to pick her up at the station.


    She also wanted to surprise them.


    She heard from Zhou Teacher that her Parents had opened a store near the city museum.


    Xiao Qi''s Parents also mentioned that she had been very busy with her studies recently, and it seemed like they were very busy too.


    When she called, they often only exchanged a sentence or two before hanging up.


    Xiao Qi had sent her Parents a million dollars, so they should not be too short on money. Even if they were being frugal, at least their mental state would be good.


    As for herself, she felt she had changed a great deal. Looking at her old photos, her face was still the same but her overall demeanor had completely transformed.


    Xiao Qi used to see herself as very timid and shy, always keeping her head down. But now she wouldn''t keep her head down all the time. When looking at people, she was open and direct, her gaze unwavering, not dodging. When walking, she held her head high with confidence.


    She had corrected this bit by bit. At first, she forced herself to walk with her head held high and chest out, not hunched over and looking timid.


    Initially when walking with her head held high, she still didn''t have the spirit for it. Her gaze was a bit flustered as she forced herself to look straight ahead and be open.


    Through repeated self-correction, she slowly got rid of her bad habits.


    At 18 years old, the prime age for looking beautiful like a flower, Xiao Qi didn''t know why she had been so self-abasing and ashamed before. Looking back, she felt so sorry for her former self.


    Fortunately, she corrected herself in time without wasting more time.


    She liked her current self.


    Coming out of the high-speed rail station, she saw her reflection in the station window looking very pretty.


    Wearing a blue athletic top, white athletic pants, carrying a backpack and dragging a small suitcase, she looked vigorous and fresh.


    Her hair was a bit messy, giving her a cute look. And the wind in Lvshan City was a bit cool without the usual fishy ocean smell - the mountain breeze felt fresh and familiar.


    Lvshan City didn''t have Shenzhou Express cabs, only Didi, since the city was so small.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi took a Didi straight to the museum.


    The whole city was very small, so the cab fare was only around ten dollars, unlike in Meng City where any cab ride would cost dozens of dollars.


    In the car, Xiao Qi excitedly looked out the window. It didn''t seem like much had changed.


    But there were some changes. In her memory, Lvshan City was so big, beautiful and developed. But looking at it now, the old streets and buildings seemed rundown. The buildings weren''t tall, the streets weren''t clean, and the pedestrians didn''t dress nicely. She never expected the huge city in her mind to actually be such an old, dilapidated place. One really has to go out and see the world.


    Although dilapidated, it still felt familiar.


    Then she heard the woman say, "Thank you, brothers and sisters, for your attention. We''re about to watch my husband make a bamboo weaving zodiac horse piece, as requested by Elder Brother ''Never Buy Life Insurance''. Thank you to Radiant Sunshine for sharing the livestream room. Come on in, brothers and sisters, give me some follows and likes..."


    Xiao Qi found the woman''s voice strangely familiar and unsettling.


    She unconsciously walked over and exclaimed in surprise, "Mom? What are you guys doing?"


    Then she saw her father dressed properly in traditional Chinese clothing, weaving away without pause, while her mother kept introducing the pieces as several bamboo baskets and trays were placed on the table...


    "Xiao Qi, you''re back? Why didn''t you tell your mother?" Sheng Juanhua said, startled but delighted.


    Meanwhile, the livestream room exploded.


    The host''s daughter was here?


    The host rarely showed her face, with people saying she sounded like the character Xie Dajiao from the rural TV series, or exaggerating that she looked like Gong Li. Yet the livestream actually had over 3,000 viewers tuning in to watch the couple - the wife talking while the husband silently worked, neither showing their faces.


    They livestreamed twice a week, supposedly for an intangible cultural heritage project. It was pretty interesting, with viewers even placing orders live.


    No one expected the host''s daughter to suddenly appear.


    "I''m on vacation, didn''t I tell you guys before?" Xiao Qi looked just as dumbfounded.


    Were these really her Parents? The change was too, too, too huge.


    Her Parents were actually livestreaming?


    And people were actually watching?


    At this moment, the livestream room went into an uproar.


    A bunch of lurkers emerged:


    "Wow, the host''s daughter is so pretty!"


    "The host''s daughter is gorgeous, I believe the host really does look like Gong Li now, so beautiful."


    "Oh my god, host I want to come to your store and buy in person."


    "Sister Sheng, is it too late to start calling her ''Mom''? Mom, your daughter-in-law is so beautiful."


    "She looks so good without using any beauty filters, poor girl."


    "Didn''t you notice the girl''s magical expression? She must not recognize her own mother after finishing college."


    "I also want to buy a bamboo woven bag, Miss Sheng, Miss Sheng."

 Chapter 370: : Physical Examination

    Chapter 370


    Although there was a minor hiccup during the livestream, Sheng Juanhua continued broadcasting.


    She livestreamed every Wednesday and Friday afternoon.


    Sheng Juanhua and her husband ran this shop together. Although the rent was incredibly cheap compared to other shops of the same kind, the couple was still anxious. Living in the city required money at every turn - eating, drinking, and even going to the bathroom all cost money. They had to pay rent for the house and the shop, and cover living expenses for the two of them, not to mention their child who was still in school. They couldn''t just spend money without earning any.


    However, the sales at this shop were not very good. Compared to the past when Su Youfu carried a shoulder pole to sell his wares, the business was doing much better and charging higher prices. But after deducting utility bills, labor costs, and rent, there was hardly any net profit left. This kind of life where money gets spent before you even open your eyes was truly stressful for farmers.


    The couple had ventured out, and they were unwilling to return without any achievements.


    Su Youfu was a simple and hardworking man who was skilled at bamboo weaving. He toiled relentlessly, wishing he didn''t have to sleep at night. But it was no use making products that wouldn''t sell. So Sheng Juanhua took it upon herself to boost sales.


    There weren''t many people in Lvshan City, so offline sales were limited. She first tried setting up a Taobao shop, but Taobao was already a very mature platform by then. New small shops had no exposure and were useless. As for those recommended spots, they were exorbitantly expensive, costing even more than the shop rent.


    Sheng Juanhua pondered and explored the Taobao site every day, clicking on every button to familiarize herself. That''s when she discovered livestreaming - people could livestream just about anything, from cooking to fishing, drinking tea to stone cracking, selling jade to selling clothes. As long as it wasn''t illegal, pretty much any niche livestream could find an audience.


    She watched and watched, often spending an entire afternoon engrossed in the livestreams without realizing it.


    Then she had an idea - since handmade items were always the most expensive, and her husband''s craft had even been selected as an intangible cultural heritage item, why not livestream his skills? She could do the talking while Su Youfu did the actual weaving.


    Since no one would see them, she had nothing to be embarrassed about.


    Sheng Juanhua was a woman of strong execution. Once she decided to do something, she did it.


    After some trial and error, she learned that she needed a ring light to brighten up the camera for a better look.


    From the initial struggle with only over a hundred viewers, she now had over three thousand. Many viewers didn''t buy anything but still tuned in regularly, saying it was stress-relieving to watch bamboo strips gradually transform into objects.


    In any case, livestreaming was going quite well. Each session garnered at least ten orders, enough to keep them busy for the week.


    This was the scene that Xiao Qi happened to witness.


    Sheng Juanhua greeted the livestream viewers warmly, calling for likes, follows, and promising a giveaway if the like count reached twenty thousand.


    Apparently, more likes meant higher exposure.


    Many viewers were regulars who camped in this livestream channel. Based on their viewing times and purchases of "flower" virtual gifts, some were labeled as iron fans, diamond fans, devoted fans, and so on, while newcomers were considered new fans.


    Xiao Qi had expected her changed parents to be utterly astonished, but it turned out she was the one who was astonished.


    It was hard to imagine her parents walking arm in arm so naturally.


    Her mother wore a red dress with khaki leather shoes, while her father donned traditional Chinese attire. Although his foot was still lame, causing him to limp noticeably, he carried himself with confidence.


    Moreover, Sheng Juanhua had attractive features. In the past, it was just her rustic dressing that made her seem unsophisticated. But now that she had found a suitable style, she instantly transformed into an elegant beauty. At first glance, one would assume that this lame man must be wealthy.


    Xiao Qi was overjoyed, grinning from ear to ear.


    She felt that her parents were amazing, far exceeding her expectations. They had simply lacked opportunities in the past. Given even a slight chance, their transformation was astounding.


    The family of three ordered two vegetable dishes, one meat dish, a soup, and a swan-shaped lychee pastry for dessert.


    Watching her mother order with such poise, while her father smiled sheepishly - he hadn''t changed much, but his clothes were clean and crisp, and his face had a healthy glow. Previously, he had rarely dressed so well except for New Year''s, since working in the fields would quickly soil his clothes.


    Unlike before, when people mocked his limp and he could only respond with an embarrassed grin, his smiles now seemed more natural.


    Xiao Qi realized that her father''s sheepish grin was a self-defense mechanism, a way to deflect mockery when he felt powerless to retaliate.


    The three of them cleaned their plates, still hearty eaters.


    This scene of the family dining at a restaurant was something Xiao Qi had only dreamed of. Yet, she felt that her mother''s cooking tasted even better, as the restaurant food was too greasy.


    "Mom and Dad, you both have a day off each week, right? Why don''t you go for a health checkup together on that day?" Xiao Qi suggested.


    The museum was closed every Monday, so they didn''t need to open the shop. But they had never considered going for a checkup, thinking it would be a waste of money.


    "No need. I''m in good health. Maybe you and your dad should go instead," Sheng Juanhua initially wanted to suggest just Xiao Qi going, but Su Youfu''s leg did tend to ache with weather changes, so it might be good for him to get checked as well now that they could afford it.


    "I don''t need to. You and the kid should go," Su Youfu quickly added.


    Xiao Qi: ...


    "Next Monday, we''ll all go. No arguing." Xiao Qi decisively put an end to the discussion.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua, the married couple, nodded obediently, not knowing why. For some reason, the way their daughter spoke just now reminded them of the leaders at the Cultural Palace, and she seemed rather intimidating. The couple felt a little startled.

 Chapter 371: Intermediate Lucky Card

    Chapter 371


    Schedule the physical exam for Monday.


    Xiao Qi was still a bit nervous, so she used her Intermediate Luck Card early in the morning.


    The best hospital in Lvshan City is the Municipal Hospital.


    Whenever you go, it''s always crowded with people, and since Lvshan is a small city, the hospital doesn''t have a dedicated physical exam department¡ªeveryone gets examined together with the patients.


    Perhaps it was really the effect of the Luck Card.


    They went as a family for the checkup, got an appointment with a doctor, and didn''t have to wait too long in the queue¡ªthey were third in line.


    Xiao Qi mentioned the examination items she wanted, which made the doctor a bit puzzled.


    It''s rare for an entire family to come for a physical exam together, and routine checkups are usually just an EKG and such. Few people spend this much money for such a thorough examination.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua didn''t understand these matters, assuming their daughter had undergone similar extensive exams before, so they just followed Xiao Qi''s arrangements.


    The couple was quite relaxed, feeling that with their daughter back, all matters were taken care of. They went through each examination without impatience.


    They did mutter a few words behind Xiao Qi''s back about wasting money.


    But looking at their daughter, they didn''t know why, but after going to university, she not only became more beautiful but also seemed to have gained an inexplicable aura of authority, speaking in a way that didn''t allow disagreement.


    Xiao Qi herself hadn''t noticed this change. She greatly admired Mrs. Su, and while learning French from her every week, she had also unconsciously picked up Mrs. Su''s way of conducting herself.


    Mrs. Su was a person who balanced firmness and gentleness in a way that made it difficult for others to refuse her.


    Originally, Xiao Qi was someone who couldn''t refuse others, being indecisive and timid. Now, without realizing it herself, she had become much more resolute in her actions, refusing firmly when needed, very decisive.


    Moreover, today she was very serious, her small face taut, giving the impression to the doctor examining her that she was nervous, so he reassured her, "Don''t worry, it''s just a checkup."


    Xiao Qi wasn''t nervous herself, but she was afraid the results would show something wrong with her mother''s health.


    Sure enough, by the time Xiao Qi and her father had finished their examinations, her mother was still undergoing tests.


    When Sheng Juanhua came out, her expression wasn''t very good. Nne?w n0vel chapters are published at novelhall.com


    Sheng Juanhua tried to smile but couldn''t manage it. Looking at her daughter and husband, she forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, saying, "The doctor said there''s a large lump in my breast that could be a tumor."


    Actually, she had noticed this lump before¡ªit felt hard to the touch, but she hadn''t thought much of it at the time.


    Women feel awkward about letting others examine their breasts, and since it didn''t hurt or itch, she just ignored the hard lump.


    But during this checkup, the doctor said it might be a tumor.


    Sheng Juanhua herself hadn''t processed this yet. Her first thought was that the hospital was just exaggerating the danger to make money¡ªit must be a scam.


    They had come for a physical as a happy family, so how could she end up diagnosed with an illness?


    Xiao Qi looked at the breast ultrasound results, which indeed recorded a lump approximately 5-3 cm in length and width, with a recommendation for further examination.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi actually felt relieved, as if the other shoe she had been waiting to drop had finally fallen.


    When faced with a situation, knowing what it is allows you to deal with it.


    Moreover, the survival rate for breast cancer is quite high, not the worst kind of cancer.


    At this moment, Xiao Qi felt that money was truly important. Over the past six months, she hadn''t felt much urgency about money, but now she realized that money provided a sense of security. The reason to strive, to struggle, to earn money, was so that when you or your family members fell ill, you could afford treatment with dignity.


    Seeing their daughter studying, her parents glanced at her, not understanding the content but silently refraining from disturbing her. At this point, the family of three felt a sense of waiting for a judgment that had now somehow become calm.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua sat on the edge of a stone flowerbed, holding hands without speaking.


    Time seemed both long and short.


    After an hour and a half, Xiao Qi closed her book and stood up.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua also stood up, following her.


    Together, they went to see the results.


    Seeing the family of three, the doctor noticed their modest but decent attire, the parents'' solemn expressions, and the daughter''s composure.


    Having witnessed life and death in the hospital, he had grown numb to many things.


    But seeing this well-presented family, he still hoped for a good outcome.


    He carefully examined the test report for a moment.


    Although less than a minute, during this time, Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua unconsciously held hands, the sweat from their palms mingling until it was unclear whose was whose, just a clammy mess.


    Xiao Qi was silent but stood with her chest out, head held high, her gaze clear. At eighteen years old, she felt she had grown up and could start taking care of her parents.


    Ignoring the moisture in her eyes, she might have appeared quite strong.


    "It''s fine, it''s benign," the doctor began. "But you should still monitor it. If it doesn''t grow any further, you can choose whether to have surgery or not. But if it continues to grow larger, then surgery would be recommended."


    As the doctor began speaking, it felt like the rubber tube tied around Xiao Qi''s arm had been released, and her blood could finally flow normally again.


    Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua let out a huge sigh of relief, feeling their backs drenched in sweat.


    No problem, nothing happened, it was just a false alarm.


    When Xiao Qi saw her parents coming out from the doctor, she broke down in tears.


    Seeing someone cry in a hospital wasn''t surprising. People passing by glanced at her briefly before hurrying on their way.


    Xiao Qi stood by the side, feeling strangely superfluous, wanting to laugh yet cry at the same time.


    This must have been a lucky day, very fortunate indeed.


    Back home, the couple had tacitly forgotten the episode of crying and hugging at the hospital.


    After going through such a close brush with life and death, Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua''s emotions had been greatly perturbed.


    During this period, they had been focused on making money, earning as much as possible. Having finally settled in the city, they were determined to make a name for themselves and return home in glory. However, their diet and rest in the city were actually worse than back home. They neglected their health, but paid no heed, feeling they were still young.


    This health check had rung an alarm bell for them. Earning money was good, but what use would it be if their health failed? Thinking back, life in their hometown hadn''t been too bad after all.


    Anyway, the New Year was approaching, so the two decided to close the store for a few days and rest during the holiday before resuming work.


    That night, as Xiao Qi lay in bed, she realized it had been an ordinary yet most fortunate day in her life.

 Chapter 372: The Return of Wealth

    Chapter 372


    Just leave on the spur of the moment.


    The family bought lots of things and was returning home, carrying large and small packages. They didn''t hire a car but instead took the village vehicle.


    When the driver, Da Yong, saw Lame Su''s family of three, he seemed quite excited.


    Over the past six months, Lame Su''s family had become the center of discussion in Gumula Village.


    Some said Lame Su''s daughter had gone abroad and could speak foreign languages very fluently, without the slightest stammer.


    Others found it unbelievable that she could earn such a high cash prize just for running fast for a short distance, and couldn''t understand how, suggesting that only university students could get such rewards for running fast.


    There were also rumors that Lame Su had opened a shop in the city. At first, no one believed it, thinking that a good-for-nothing like Lame Su could never run a business.


    But then they saw Lame Su in the Lvshan City news, and were shocked to learn that even weaving bamboo trays could be turned into an award-winning craft, earning him some kind of intangible cultural heritage award.


    People didn''t really get what it was all about, but the bottom line was that Lame Su had won some prize.


    When people went to ask Lame Su''s mother about it, she had no clue and just cursed her unfilial son, only to be scolded by her daughter-in-law.


    Others who heard the commotion would just nod along, thinking to themselves that Lame Su and Sheng Juanhua were husband and wife - Su Youfu might be useless, but at least he treated his wife well.


    When some villagers finally went to see Lame Su''s shop, they came back singing its praises, saying it was huge and filled with bamboo wares. But no one seemed to be buying anything, so they wondered if he would lose money... they were sure he would end up going broke.


    The villagers had all sorts of opinions. Though they said Lame Su would definitely go bankrupt opening a shop, having used up his daughter''s prize money, deep down they were still envious, even if they didn''t show it.


    In the village, most people were skeptical and didn''t think Lame Su would succeed. But then again, having a talented daughter was an accomplishment in itself.


    Those who used to mock him for having only a daughter to continue the family line were now secretly jealous.


    Regardless of what they said behind his back, the entire vehicle greeted Lame Su''s family of three with exceptional warmth when they saw them. ?iscover new chapters at novelhall.com


    No one called him Lame Su - some called him "uncle", some "brother", and others even "grandpa", since the whole village was essentially one big family, with various generational titles used.


    The same went for Sheng Juanhua - she was called "sister-in-law", "auntie", and even "old lady" by some.


    As for Xiao Qi, everyone addressed her uniformly as "The University Student", "The University Student is back", "The University Student is getting more beautiful", "University students really are different"...


    The long-forgotten feeling of shyness and awkwardness crept up on Xiao Qi.


    "Juanhua, this outfit looks great on you, these pants look great, this bag is beautiful, this necklace is lovely..."


    From head to toe, Sheng Juanhua received compliments on every item, except for the old crystal bracelet on her wrist that looked like a cheap five or ten yuan street trinket, so no one paid it any mind.


    Xiao Qi had given it to her mother, telling her it was quite valuable, so she shouldn''t take it off casually.


    Thinking her daughter meant it cost hundreds or even thousands of yuan, Sheng Juanhua naturally wouldn''t take it off rashly since it was a gift from her daughter.


    Sheng Juanhua didn''t mind repeating to people where she bought each item of clothing, how much it cost, that the bag was a gift from her daughter, as was the necklace.


    Behind them, Su Youfu was also nonchalantly telling people that his clothes were purchased by his daughter.


    Throughout the journey, Xiao Qi listened to her parents, unable to contain their joy, chatting animatedly with the villagers. Although not outright boastful, their happiness was palpable - her father pursed his lips, trying not to burst into laughter.


    At first, Sheng Juanhua maintained a serious demeanor as people complimented her on how urbane she had become, but eventually she was all smiles.


    Xiao Qi: ... she too had to maintain a smiling, good girl appearance, because the passengers were just too enthusiastic.


    This reminded her of the time her elementary school classmate Zhang Juan was similarly showered with compliments while on the village vehicle.


    She should rein herself in a bit. But let her parents enjoy their happiness - Xiao Qi felt she should continue working hard. She would study diligently and earn money, so her parents could take some pride in her efforts.


    Before she knew it, the vehicle had entered the mountains as they chatted animatedly, oblivious to the increasingly chilly winds. Xiao Qi greedily gazed out the window at the increasingly dense vegetation on both sides, occasionally brushing against the vehicle windows, filling her with a familiar, intimate feeling.


    In Xiao Qi''s mind, her true home was still Gumula Village. Even though her family had bought a house in Lvshan City, it didn''t give her that sense of belonging, since she had grown up in Gumula Village - this was the place she knew, every blade of grass and tree.


    The vehicle rocked and swayed along the bumpy road, with passengers deftly gripping the door, seat, or each other''s clothes to avoid falling out, all while enthusiastically chatting away, mostly about Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua''s city shop life. That felt a bit more relatable compared to a university student''s life, which was too far removed from their reality.


    Previously, Xiao Qi found the villagers'' conversations coarse and dull, but after half a year without hearing them, he now found them interesting and amusing.


    Nostalgia for one''s hometown is not just missing the plants, houses, and scenery, but also missing the people here, their voices, laughter, and even curses, which together bring the hometown to life.


    When the transport truck arrived at the village, people seemed to jump out of it like magic tricks.


    At this time, the village hall was lively, as everyone wanted to see what others had been doing in the city or if there were any newcomers.


    There was no helping it, the village was too dull.


    When they saw Lame Su''s family had returned, though he was now no longer called Lame Su, someone immediately approached and greeted, "Su Youfu is back..."

 Chapter 373: Making Tea

    Chapter 373


    Arriving home, Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua noticed that grass had grown on the soil wall by the entrance, swaying in the breeze.


    As they pushed open the door, they found the yard overgrown with weeds.


    Inside the living room, it had been a while since anyone had been there, and a layer of dust covered everything.


    Despite feeling tired from the journey, Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua asked Xiao Qi to rest while they started cleaning up. They placed their belongings down and began tidying up the house.


    Xiao Qi didn''t obediently sit and rest as before. Instead, she naturally picked up a broom and started sweeping the floor while watching her parents work. She had even started sweeping from the upstairs.


    Sometimes, the poorer one is, the more they dote on their children. It was only when Xiao Qi went to university that she realized her roommates would also do housework by themselves. They would clean the basin and cups thoroughly. In contrast, Xiao Qi didn''t have that awareness because her mother did many things for her. She had grown accustomed to not lifting a finger.


    Seeing her daughter pick up the broom, Sheng Juanhua didn''t stop her. After moving to the city, they realized that city life wasn''t easy. They used to think that once their daughter did well in her studies and got into university, she would stay in the city. But it wasn''t that simple, and they had to work hard.


    Xiao Qi began working with the broom, all the while listening to a French tutorial she had saved on her phone. She knew that there would be no signal or internet access in her hometown, so she had saved many tutorials¡ªenough for her to study during the winter break. She had also saved a lot on her computer, including materials for her major. In the next semester, she planned to take the computer level three exam.


    She had also saved some movies that she found interesting, intending to watch them together with her parents.


    Xiao Qi''s home had three narrow floors. The first floor consisted of the living room and kitchen, the second floor had two bedrooms¡ªone for her parents and one for herself. The layout of the third floor was the same, but one side was used to store miscellaneous items and rice, while the other side was divided into two rooms. The outer side had a bed for guests, and the inner side was used for storage¡ªkeeping valuable items like old suitcases, Xiao Qi''s school books, and beddings.


    Above that was the rooftop, used for drying rice during the harvest season. Sometimes, Xiao Qi would go up there to shake her phone, hoping to catch a signal.


    Cleaning from the top floor to the bottom was actually a tiring job.


    To be honest, Xiao Qi used to be unable to clean the floor properly. She wasn''t attentive, and she didn''t do a good job with housekeeping. She was impatient. But now, she had improved. She patiently swept the floor, piece by piece, until it was spotless, and she didn''t take much longer either.


    Sheng Juanhua praised her when she saw the result. In the past, she didn''t want her daughter to do housework because she would have to redo it herself if it wasn''t done properly, which would tire her daughter. It was better for her to do it herself.


    "Our daughter has grown up and does meticulous work."


    Xiao Qi felt a little embarrassed by the praise. Sweeping the floor was nothing special. Her parents'' expectations of her were really low.


    But now she realized that regardless of the task''s size, if you do it, you should do it well.


    After she finished sweeping, her parents had also become more efficient. Her mother had already boiled a pot of hot water and wiped the tables and chairs, while her father had finished weeding the front yard and was now working on the backyard.


    "Go take a shower first. The water is ready."


    Sheng Juanhua had already flushed the bathroom. The water in the countryside is natural spring water, free of charge. She used it extravagantly, splashing and rinsing.


    Xiao Qi didn''t see anything she could help with. She felt sticky, so she brought hot water to the bathroom.


    She was used to taking showers in the city, and now having to carry hot water herself felt strangely nostalgic.


    Zhang Juan had also returned, driving the Hanlan Da parked at the village entrance. It was said to be a car worth 300,000 yuan, and her father cleaned it every day.


    Zhang Juan returned to the village in a flashy manner and was warmly welcomed by everyone.


    However, she had only been in the spotlight for a day when Su Xiaoqi returned today.


    Everyone began talking about Su Xiaoqi, even her parents spoke of her with admiration.


    Zhang Juan felt disdainful inside. She knew about Enhua and specifically inquired about the private elite school. Only those who didn''t do well in the college entrance examination would attend that school, and the tuition was exorbitant. She wondered how Su Xiaoqi''s parents could afford to send her there.


    But even if someone graduated from a prestigious university, so what? They would still end up working for a living, and they wouldn''t be better off than her. Her boyfriend owned an auto parts factory where some employees were university graduates.


    Zhang Juan had an older boyfriend, over forty years old, and it was said that he bought the car for her.


    Originally, when Zhang Juan''s classmates planned to visit Su Xiaoqi''s house, Zhang Juan decided to go as well. She was curious about how Su Xiaoqi was doing.


    Actually, the few times she had seen her, Zhang Juan had looked down on her. What good was it to be studious? Wearing glasses, keeping her head down, slightly hunching her back, and not saying a word¡ªpeople like that wouldn''t fare well in society.


    Several classmates agreed to visit Xiao Qi''s house together and set off with great fanfare.


    The Lunar New Year was approaching, and the village was lively. The sounds of revelry could be heard all the way.


    The Su family had already become quite large, and there was no space in the living room to accommodate everyone. So, Su Youfu set up a bonfire in the yard. On top of the bonfire, there was a crude rack with an old iron pot placed on it, simmering tea inside. The tea was brewed with wolfberries, Sichuan peppercorns, and a type of gardenia fruit unique to Gumula Village. This was a special tea preparation method in the village, and its taste was peculiar. At least, Xiao Qi didn''t used to like it before.


    But today, she helped the villagers pour tea and even had a cup herself. Surprisingly, she found it delicious. It had a complex flavor that was difficult to describe. It carried the aroma of tea, not the finest quality tea but wild tea leaves picked and roasted by the villagers themselves. However, when combined with these spices, it created a new taste, layered and indescribable. It wasn''t the bitter taste she used to find unpleasant during her childhood. Instead, it had a long-lasting quality¡ªbitter and numbing, yet with a sweet and gentle undertone.


    Perhaps as she grew older, she had started to appreciate the art of tea tasting, unlike when she was a child and only enjoyed sweet things.


    Everyone could gather around the bonfire, sitting on stools and bamboo chairs, warming themselves while chatting and sipping tea. They could even roast some sweet potatoes by burying them under the fire, and later enjoy the roasted treats.


    Outside the old walls, a small river flowed with a gurgling sound. The bonfire crackled and popped, while the tea simmered. The villagers chatted animatedly, creating a lively atmosphere. Xiao Qi sat in front of the bonfire, looking up to the starry sky. The dense cluster of stars appeared as if they were painted on¡ªtruly beautiful.


    "Suo Xiao Qi!" a crisp voice interrupted Xiao Qi''s daydreaming. She turned around and saw a few of her elementary school classmates standing outside.


    She stood up and smiled, saying, "You all came back too. Come in quickly. I''ve roasted some sweet potatoes, and you''re in for a treat."


    Her classmates hadn''t expected such a drastic change in Su Xiaoqi within just six months. She looked so attractive, despite wearing a thick coat and not wearing glasses. Her smile was bright and her voice sweet. They couldn''t help but feel a bit inferior and inexplicably stood behind Zhang Juan.


    Zhang Juan had always been confident. She had always held her head high in the village, never feeling inferior.


    But now, as she looked at the confident Su Xiaoqi, she suddenly felt self-conscious and awkward.


    What she had originally wanted to show off now seemed unspeakable in front of Su Xiaoqi''s clear eyes.

 Chapter 374: We All Have a Bright Future

    Chapter 374


    "Zhang Hua got into Peking University; Li Ping entered a Secondary Technical School; I was a shop assistant in a department store: we all had bright futures." - Sample sentence from the Xinhua Dictionary.


    This sentence, when read now, seems sarcastic, but it was not intended as such initially.


    Peking University is highly prestigious, a Secondary Technical School was also quite respectable - those with technical skills were highly sought after by companies. Shop assistants were even more coveted, being iron rice bowls in state-owned enterprises, a position that only those with connections could obtain. Indeed, everyone did seem to have a bright future back then.


    But now, there seems to be a vast difference.


    Xiao Qi went to university, Zhang Juan became an online influencer selling products, having a wealthy boyfriend who she claims earns over ten thousand yuan a month. Liu Xialong is a water delivery man who didn''t finish high school, earning just over four thousand yuan a month through backbreaking labor. Su Weiwei became a tea ceremony instructor, with a base salary of one thousand eight hundred yuan, relying on sales commissions to sometimes earn over five thousand yuan. Zhang Zhiqiang went to work in a factory, with free room and board, able to earn over eight thousand yuan through constant overtime...


    They have all embarked on different life paths, not necessarily with bright futures.


    In the village, Zhang Zhiqiang, who graduated from a technical school and works in a factory, is considered quite accomplished. Because of him, some parents are even willing to send their children to technical schools.


    But he would never complain that his daily grind of endless overtime made life feel meaningless, year after year. He only says that he earns well and has decent savings, though no girlfriend yet, and plans to buy a house in the city.


    Liu Xialong, the water delivery man, has little to boast about beyond the physical labor that earns his wages as he lugs water up and down stairs and slopes.


    Su Weiwei dresses quite prettily, wearing a cheongsam even in the cold weather under her coat, looking rather chilly.


    Zhang Juan wore a smart coat over a blue dress, dressing somewhat maturely.


    The young women were all quite beautiful in their own ways.


    Zhang Juan had striking features, a high bridged nose, and almost a mixed-race look.


    Su Weiwei had a delicate, petite face with small eyes and nose.


    Gumula Village has long been known for its beauties in Lvshan City, with the local girls generally being quite attractive.


    The boys, however, were more ordinary - Liu Xialong was slim and swarthy, while Zhang Zhiqiang had a squarish, chubby face.


    But standing before Xiao Qi at that moment, neither Zhang Juan''s glamor nor Su Weiwei''s demureness could outshine her natural grace.


    Xiao Qi''s features were not necessarily superior, as feminine beauty takes many forms.


    But Xiao Qi had a far better presence - like a tulip amongst the plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum, each lovely in its own season.


    Her demeanor was calm and amiable, her beauty understated yet not lacking.


    At that moment, Su Weiwei and Zhang Juan felt a tinge of envy and regret - did going to university really change someone so much? Should they have studied harder back then?


    Meanwhile, the boys Liu Xialong and Zhang Zhiqiang felt more at ease with Xiao Qi. They used to find the bespectacled Xiao Qi out of place, as she rarely spoke to them, and they thought she looked down on them. Now, seeing her warmly greet them, their misgivings dissipated.


    With the four young people joining, the gathering became even livelier.


    The youth were the center of attention.


    Initially, Zhang Juan drew the most interest, followed by Zhang Zhiqiang. But seeing Su Youfu''s daughter stand alongside them, there was a sense that - as expected of a university student - Xiao Qi seemed the most remarkable.


    This was the season to dig for winter bamboo shoots, prized for their freshness.


    Yet winter shoots were tricky to harvest, as they had not yet poked through the surface, requiring discernment of the terrain to detect underground shoots.


    Su Youfu had initially been reluctant to let his daughter venture out, but could not dissuade her firm insistence - sensing she had become more sensible since attending university.


    Once in the mountains, Xiao Qi felt remarkably at ease, her senses of smell and taste heightened compared to the city, reveling in the refreshing outdoors away from having to consciously suppress her keen senses.


    Also because of Xiao Qi''s keen sense of smell, with her help, Su Youfu actually dug up quite a lot of winter bamboo shoots. Originally, he thought it would be good to dig up two or three to take home and hold a bamboo shoot feast, as his daughter liked to eat them. But he never expected that he would dig up over thirty pounds.


    Winter bamboo shoots were a rare commodity. You could sell them directly at the brigade''s hall and someone would buy them for over five dollars a pound.


    Over thirty pounds was really too much for them to eat.


    Su Youfu felt extremely lucky, finally able to appear useful and capable in front of his daughter, completely unaware that it was actually because of his daughter''s prompting that he was able to find the bamboo shoots.


    When it was almost noon and time for lunch, Su Youfu started walking back.


    He first went to the village hall. Over thirty pounds was really a lot, leaving five pounds at home would be enough for them to eat.


    He could take the rest to the hall to sell. Generally, they would pick through them - they wouldn''t take any damaged shoots, so the damaged ones left over would be enough for them to eat.


    With over thirty pounds, Xiao Qi could have carried them all, but in order to preserve her father''s dignity, she didn''t take them. Instead, she let her father carry the bamboo shoots while she shouldered the hoe.


    She was wearing her military training clothes, and even though she was carrying a hoe, she walked very upright. From a distance, it looked like she was shouldering a long rifle.


    When Xiao Qi and her father arrived at the village hall, they noticed that there were still a few cars parked at the entrance. It was quite strange, but when they heard the bamboo shoot buyers say that people had come to install a signal tower, they didn''t pay any more attention to it.


    After selling the bamboo shoots and earning over a hundred dollars, there were still six or seven pounds of damaged ones left over, which was just right for them to eat at home.


    It had really been a long time since he''d had the feeling of earning money through labor.


    Both Xiao Qi and her father were quite happy.


    She skipped and jumped all the way home, only to find a crowd of people gathered at their gate.


    When they went inside, they saw Li Weijin standing at the door...


    He was wearing a white tracksuit with a black down jacket over it, looking as flamboyant as ever with his hair grown shaggy.


    "What are you doing here?" Xiao Qi was so surprised that she almost forgot about the hoe in her hand and nearly hit her own foot with it.


    When Li Weijin saw Xiao Qi, his clavicles suddenly felt scorching hot.


    Xiao Qi was wearing her military training uniform, just like the first time he saw her.


    "You said your home didn''t have a signal, so I had people come install a signal tower here for you, so you''ll have signal now. I came to supervise the work," Li Weijin said matter-of-factly.


    Xiao Qi: ...

 Chapter 375: Love By the Toilet

    Chapter 375


    "This young man is really handsome."


    "Like a movie star."


    "Yes, yes, he looks like that Little Li Feidao." An elderly lady at the stone steps near the entrance smiled, revealing her gaping teeth, as she looked at Li Weijin.


    Xiao Qi: ...Little Li Feidao was a TV drama from which year? She probably wasn''t even born when it aired.


    Li Weijin was used to attracting attention and not feeling awkward at all.


    He had been good-looking since he was a child, being observed by his classmates, teachers, classmates'' parents, and passersby in kindergarten...


    But Xiao Qi felt very uncomfortable.


    Embarrassed...


    She had just gotten used to the atmosphere of the village and felt the village aunts and uncles weren''t that intimidating, but now Li Weijin had arrived.


    Xiao Qi felt it was difficult to remain composed in the face of everyone''s teasing.


    "Who is this?"


    Su Youfu saw the young man, who looked more handsome than his own daughter, and then looked at his daughter who had just returned from university and seemed to have gained some inexplicable authority, but was now blushing. He felt like his foot had been hit by his own hoe, the pain piercing his heart.


    "Dad, he''s my college classmate, Li Weijin."


    Sheng Juanhua had also come out, mainly because she was quite puzzled. The party secretary, village chief, and a county government official had come to her house, saying they were sending a young man to stay with them for two days as the dormitory lodging was inconvenient.


    Sheng Juanhua wanted to say that her home was also inconvenient, but when she looked up and saw the young man at the entrance, she exclaimed, "Oh my! Tsk, tsk, I''ve never seen such a handsome young man before, he''s so good-looking."


    It wasn''t that Sheng Juanhua was boasting, she could be considered the village belle in their village, and her daughter Xiao Qi had also been a beauty since she was young. But compared to this young man, she had to admit honestly, there was no comparison...


    The words "not convenient" just wouldn''t come out.


    She was relieved when her daughter and the child''s father returned.


    But then she became worried again.


    This young man was actually acquainted with her daughter and had come specifically to see her.


    A college classmate, what college classmate would come to set up a signal tower because there was no signal at your home? Those things are so expensive, even the county government leader had come along... Judging from the leader''s bow, Sheng Juanhua could sense it must be very costly.


    The night before, the villagers had gossiped and boldly imagined with exaggeration that installing a signal tower would cost at least two hundred million yuan. What kind of foolish company would have that much money to spend on such a thing when they could just put it in the bank and live off the interest for life?


    And then someone really did come today.


    Moreover, it was the college classmate of the lame Su''s daughter. With this implication, building this base station was just to ensure the lame Su''s daughter had a signal on her phone to stay connected... This was simply too wealthy.


    At first glance, it seemed the man was interested in her, having pursued her all the way here. But this young man was so handsome, and so wealthy too, that a sense of regret arose in the crowd.


    Some wished they had given birth to daughters, while others who had daughters wished they had taught them well and sent them to university. Look, this university student was indeed different, finding a partner with such excellent conditions.


    For Zhang Jian, who had a car gifted to her partner, people openly expressed envy but privately said many unpleasant things about finding a man older than her own father.


    But for this young man before them, they not only envied him outwardly but also inwardly envied him immensely.


    While Xiao Qi was shocked at how to introduce Xiao Qi to her parents, the mechanical voice in her mind suddenly sounded: "Host has found an outstanding partner, exerting a positive influence on those around her and inspiring them to pursue education, bringing progressive positive energy to society. System level unlocked, upgrading to Level 11 Progressive System. Host will earn 1.1 yuan for every step, capped at 30,000 steps per day."


    Xiao Qi: ...


    Finding a partner can bring positive energy and social progress?


    So the night before, when so many people praised her for being outstanding, they were just paying lip service.


    But now, seeing Li Weijin, they were truly praising her, finding a good partner could actually motivate everyone to educate their children?


    Xiao Qi could only feel amused and saddened.


    She thought she had been diligent and outstanding enough, but in the eyes of the villagers, it seemed marrying well was better than doing well...


    Finally, the onlookers observing the commotion were led away by the party secretary, village chief, and county government officials.


    Xiao Qi closed the courtyard gate.


    The world became a little quieter.


    Xiao Qi looked at the lone Xiao Qi and wondered, "Didn''t the butler come with you?"


    He was supposed to come together, but he strongly refused, feeling that bringing a butler to Xiao Qi''s home would make Xiao Qi''s parents think he was immature, unreliable, and untrustworthy, among other things...


    So he came alone.


    Xiao Qi felt it was impossible, not knowing where the butler was hiding in some corner, as this place didn''t even have a signal.


    It must not be easy.


    Li Weijin also reached into the water and scooped up a handful of mud. Sure enough, when he spread it open, there were tiny shells that had been exposing their flesh but quickly retracted when touched by his hand.


    It was amazing.


    "The water is so cold, are you cold?" Li Weijin rinsed his hand and grabbed Xiao Qi''s hand, then continued walking while holding her hand...


    Their icy hands soon warmed up from each other''s touch.


    The further they went, the narrower the path became, as they were entering the vegetable fields without stone paths, just a muddy trail with grasses growing into the middle from both sides.


    Suddenly there was a "poof" sound that made Li Weijin jump, gripping Xiao Qi''s hand tighter.


    Not far away on the side of the path, a colorful wild chicken burst out, flapping its wings frantically as it flew away.


    Li Weijin: ...


    He felt this was too incredible.


    He saw Xiao Qi take out a knife and swing it a few times into the bushes.


    "What''s wrong?"


    "Just checking if it was laying eggs. Sometimes we get lucky and find wild chicken eggs, but there could also be snakes, so I can''t reach my hand in."


    Hearing the word "snake", Li Weijin''s face paled slightly.


    Fortunately, there were no snakes or eggs in the bushes, probably just a wild chicken resting there.


    After walking a little further, they finally arrived at their destination - Xiao Qi''s uncle''s vegetable plot, part of which belonged to her family but had been left for her uncle to grow crops on for half a year.


    Xiao Qi picked the vegetables while Li Weijin helped by holding the basket.


    They cooperated quite well.


    Li Weijin felt that this place was so intriguing, it was no wonder there was no phone signal - it was like a paradise hidden from the outside world.


    Xiao Qi used to think Gumula Village was just backward and poor, with all sorts of inconveniences. But this time, coming back from university, she also discovered the beauty of her hometown. Returning felt different, very grounded, like a kite finally being pulled back into its box, no longer worrying about the string breaking.


    After they finished picking the vegetables, Xiao Qi carried the basket while Li Weijin, not wanting to be completely useless, held two large cabbages in his arms with a delighted expression.


    The cabbages were so big, it felt like one could feed him for several days.


    When Su Youfu saw his daughter casually carrying a basket full of vegetables, followed by a young man hugging two large cabbages...


    He couldn''t help but feel the young man seemed a bit weak, hugging those two cabbages with such a nice, almost silly smile...


    After dinner, it quickly became dark.


    Night in the countryside was truly dark. Even with dim street lamps, they were just tiny specks in the black night.


    Then an awkward situation arose - no matter how good-looking, even a young man has to use the toilet eventually.


    Li Weijin had been holding it all day. He was staying on the third floor of Xiao Qi''s house, but no matter how much he looked around upstairs and downstairs, he couldn''t find the bathroom and was too embarrassed to ask.


    Finally, as night fell, he could no longer hold it in.


    When Li Weijin awkwardly asked Xiao Qi where the bathroom was, she also looked embarrassed.


    She grabbed a stick and led him to the outhouse in the backyard... an open-air dry toilet.


    There were partitions around it but basically no roof.


    "What''s the stick for?" he asked, trying to change the subject out of embarrassment.


    "In case there are snakes in the grass, you tap it first. But there probably aren''t any in winter, it''s just a precaution."


    Li Weijin: ...


    When he saw that the little shed was actually the toilet, he was stunned again.


    He had thought it was a storage room. With partitions around but just a thatched roof overhead, it was essentially an open-air toilet. Going inside was even more distressing - it was just two large wooden planks placed over a big barrel?


    He was worried he might fall in.


    And it was so cold at night, with the chilly wind blowing in.


    Li Weijin felt utterly mortified at having to call Xiao Qi to accompany him to the toilet.


    Fortunately, while she waited for him, she kept a good distance away.


    Li Weijin felt he just couldn''t go in that environment.


    Xiao Qi was also helpless, tilting her head up to gaze at the starry sky.


    Li Weijin, in the toilet, also looked up at the stars filling the night sky while inhaling the foul odors. For the first time, he realized one could defecate while moongazing, accompanied by the chirping of insects that sounded like they were calling "Si Guo Ya... Si Guo Ya..."


    He felt this would be the most unforgettable toilet experience of his life.

 Chapter 376: The Gift

    Chapter 376


    It was a bit chilly in the mountains.


    The wind was cool.


    But those in love were not afraid of the cold.


    Xiao Qi, wrapped in her mother Sheng Juanhua''s large cotton jacket, sat on the roof terrace with Li Weijin.


    Why not wrap in her father Su Youfu''s jacket? Because Su Youfu was short, and his clothes were small, while Sheng Juanhua was taller and sturdier, with a larger cotton jacket.


    This large cotton jacket was purchased during their wedding and considered a big item, costing over 200 yuan. Even now in Gumula Village, it was considered valuable.


    Despite wearing an old floral cotton jacket, Li Weijin looked handsome and stylish, as if setting the latest fashion trend. If he walked around Fashion Week, he might even influence some fashion trends.


    His crew cut hair also looked dashing. Although he wore a thick Lei Feng-style cap at the moment, exposing only his face made him appear even more attractive!!


    In the evenings, the temperature in the village dropped drastically, often resulting in frost in the mornings.


    Sitting around a stove, eating watermelon summed up the climate of Gumula Village.


    The two sat on the rooftop, enjoying the cool breeze, gazing at the starry sky and the small crescent moon, feeling shy and embarrassed.


    They didn''t know what they talked about, but their palms felt warm, not cold at all.


    Meanwhile, Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu were filled with mixed emotions.


    Their daughter was dating while still in school. But then again, she was already 18 years old, and in the village, most 18-year-old girls already had two or three children before getting officially married.


    As for the young man, the couple found him too good-looking and felt pity for him. He seemed to come from a very affluent family, with a sense of being well-bred and not having to do any manual labor. However, he was polite and well-behaved, eager to help out at their home despite not knowing how to do anything... always curious... with a wonderful personality. The couple didn''t feel any sense of superiority from him.


    Many city folks who came to the village carried an air of superiority, or became arrogant if they had a bit of money. The most obvious example was Xiao Qi''s uncle, who behaved that way.


    But this young man showed no such attitude, not only towards their family but also towards others, even treating ragged old men with mud on their pants with courtesy and respect.


    How to put it? He had exceptional manners and breeding.


    Something the couple couldn''t achieve themselves. Their daughter used to be rough around the edges, but after attending university, she improved a lot. It was a different feeling, Xiao Qi became more composed, and the couple felt intimidated when she adopted a serious demeanor. Yet Xiao Qi no longer felt as distant from the villagers as before, interacting with them in a friendly manner.


    They didn''t know if she learned this from the young man.


    In any case, this young man had excellent family upbringing. The couple had never encountered such an admirable and flawless young person. The only issue was that he was pursuing their daughter, leaving them with a sense of unease.


    The young man was too outstanding. When Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu discreetly inquired about his family background, they felt even more lost after hearing the details. What kind of family did he come from? Did they own a mine?


    With their humble circumstances, could they match up to his family?


    After lunch, Li Weijin wanted to stay another day, but he didn''t want to overstay his welcome since he had come under the pretext of installing a signal tower. With the tower set up, the mountain would now have signal coverage, so he wouldn''t be completely out of touch. He bid his farewells.


    Xiao Qi mentioned attending her classmates'' gathering that evening and returning the next day.


    Her parents felt a pang in their hearts.


    "After the gathering, go visit your aunt. She keeps asking about you. You can stay at her place," Sheng Juanhua suggested.


    As experienced parents, they feared their daughter might act impulsively.


    Last night, the couple had kept watch at the staircase, listening to their daughter chattering with the young man, but they couldn''t understand a single word, unsure what language they were speaking.


    Su Youfu quickly added, "Yes, go to your aunt''s place. I''ll let her know."


    However, as Li Weijin was leaving, Sheng Juanhua prepared a box of dried bamboo shoots and a box of dried mushrooms for him.


    These were specialties of Gumula Village. The dried bamboo shoots were made by boiling freshly dug spring bamboo shoots for a whole day and night, then smoking them on wood shavings for five to six days. The dried mushrooms were various wild mushrooms from deep in the mountains, which the villagers could identify as edible or poisonous. They could fetch a good price of several hundred yuan per jin (500g) outside the village. Most villagers didn''t consume them but sold them instead.


    "Take these two boxes back and let your parents try them, a taste of something fresh. And the gift you brought for your uncle and aunt, we appreciate the gesture, but it''s too valuable for us to accept. Please take it back with you."


    Xiao Qi: ...Every time she heard her parents refer to Li Weijin as "Little Li," she felt a bit uneasy, as if they were addressing a driver or some other person of lower status.


    For the first time, Li Weijin heard Xiao Qi''s way of addressing him, and he was stunned for a few moments before he realized that Xiao Qi was calling him.


    "No need, this is what my parents asked me to give to you uncle and auntie. If you don''t accept it, I won''t feel comfortable taking your gift either." Originally still reluctant to bid farewell, he quite enjoyed the village and felt it was a particularly fun place. But because of this insistence on giving a gift, he became embarrassed. Li Weijin carried the bamboo shoots and mushrooms away, feeling awkward.


    Xiao Qi had no choice but to follow along.


    They left behind Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu staring at the box full of what looked like little bugs, helpless expressions on their faces.


    When the young man brought it over yesterday, Sheng Juanhua didn''t pay much attention, thinking it looked like some health product, and the box wasn''t very big. Then they chatted a bit during the meal, and she got the impression that this young man''s family seemed exceptionally wealthy.


    It was only last night when the couple opened the package that they saw it was labeled "cordyceps," which they had heard of. The cordyceps were quite large, like worms, each one as long as a finger.


    Sheng Juanhua was perplexed, so this morning when her daughter and the young man went up the mountain, she called Mrs. Liang, who she knew was the most knowledgeable among her acquaintances.


    "Cordyceps as long as a finger? Oh my, sister-in-law, that''s incredible, not easy to come by. They''re sold by the gram, and let me tell you, that grade would cost at least 200 to 300 yuan per gram, possibly 400 to 500 yuan if the quality is good."


    After hanging up, Sheng Juanhua felt dizzy.


    She looked back at the cordyceps package¡ªit must have been two pounds!


    Even at 200 yuan per gram, two pounds is a thousand grams, so that''s 200,000 yuan?!


    Who gives gifts like that?!

 Chapter 377: Class Reunion Again

    Chapter 377


    At the village entrance, I saw Bao Butler with a kind expression.


    A plain Mercedes was parked at the hall.


    Many villagers were gathered around.


    Since it was the end of the year, quite a few young people who worked outside had returned, and the young people were more knowledgeable.


    "Did you see that three-pointed star logo? It''s a Mercedes, very valuable, at least 300,000 yuan."


    "Mercedes is so expensive? My niece Zhang Juan''s car, that Toyota Highlander, I heard it also costs at least 300,000 yuan. Which one is better?"


    Zhang Juan happened to be at the hall too. She wasn''t there to look at the car, but to call her father home for dinner, and he shouldn''t gawk at the car anymore. She saw Xiao Qi and awkwardly greeted her.


    Then she noticed the Mercedes next to her car. She recognized that logo; a Mercedes should be more expensive than her Toyota Highlander, but just a little. She casually took a photo.


    Xiao Qi didn''t refute anything and left with her boyfriend.


    She didn''t used to know much about cars, only that BMWs were good. Later, as she gained more experience, she learned about various car models. Although they were all Mercedes, not all Mercedes were the same. This one was a Maybach, with such a comfortable interior, it must be a high-end configuration, around 3 million yuan o(¨s¡õ¨t)o.


    Bao Butler saw the young master alive and well, with tears of excitement in his eyes.


    He drove up the mountain, getting more and more remote, feeling like he was entering an ancient forest, with trees hundreds of years old lining the road, and a misty atmosphere.


    He should have realized earlier that a place with no phone signal must be extremely secluded.


    But seeing the outstanding Xiao Qi, he found it hard to associate her with such a remote location, so he still harbored fantasies in his heart.


    "Young master, did you have a good time yesterday?"


    "Very good," Li Weijin smiled.


    He liked it here, with beautiful scenery and interesting experiences.


    The butler saw the smiling young master... He shouldn''t have asked, for the young master had even shaved his head to study hard for Xiao Qi. He would probably be willing to eat humble fare with her. A devoted puppy, getting whatever he wants in the end.


    When they reached the city, the butler didn''t arrange for a hotel.


    Lvshan City really didn''t have any good hotels. Don''t even think about a five-star hotel; there was one rated four-star, but it was quite old.


    Before leaving, the butler bought the highest building in Lvshan, a suite on the top floor of the commercial city.


    The area wasn''t large, just over 260 square meters, but it was located in the center of Lvshan City, with a view of the entire city. The Lv River flowed right below, and across from it were the layered peaks of Lv Shan Mountain, with a unique scenery of one large round mountain stacked on top of another, likely how Lv Shan got its name.


    Floor-to-ceiling windows surrounded the apartment.


    Because her boyfriend had spent nearly an hour changing clothes, and Xiao Qi had read for an hour, she felt that if he used the time spent changing to study instead, he could definitely perform better than her and graduate with a good job. Never mind, he could keep changing clothes.


    After an hour of changing, her boyfriend chose a low-key khaki wool coat with no logos, lightweight yet warm, with a slightly formal shirt and casual pants underneath.


    The pants were black, and the shirt was purple, clashing a bit with the khaki coat. But on him, it looked stylish, with a refined and bright aura that would immediately catch one''s eye in a crowd. He looked too good.


    Xiao Qi held a book, but her gaze lingered on her boyfriend for nearly 30 seconds before snapping out of it. Stay focused!


    Her boyfriend looked stern, with sharp collarbones. He liked coming out in his changed outfits to show Xiao Qi, knowing she appreciated his good looks and was currently attracted mainly to his appearance. But he believed that one day, Xiao Qi would like him for more than just his looks.


    Xiao Qi wore a purple cotton jacket, jeans, and a white sweater. Standing together, they looked like they had coordinated their outfits, with Xiao Qi in a purple outer layer and her boyfriend in a purple inner layer.


    The two made a striking pair as they walked.


    They arrived at the address given by the class president right at 6 pm, punctual as usual.


    As they entered, there were already quite a few people inside.


    Returning from university, things had clearly changed. The guys didn''t change much, but the girls looked like different people. Like Xia Zhen, who used to seem plain and chubby in high school - no one expected that this time, she had slimmed down a lot, even wearing a black dress in winter with fairer skin and newly permed wavy hair, looking much more stylish.


    Some girls had even learned to do makeup, almost unrecognizable.


    They chatted about their university lives, quite lively.


    When Xiao Qi and her boyfriend came in, everyone fell silent upon seeing her. After all, she had been the most discussed person in the class group chat during this semester. Seeing her in person deepened their impression of her. She was not wearing any makeup, and her hairstyle was casual with a few strands sticking out. Her outfit was also quite casual - jeans, a sweater, and a cotton jacket. Unlike other girls, she did not look dressed up, and she was carrying a plain cloth bag on her shoulder, quite familiar-looking. It seemed like she used to carry a similar cloth bag made by her mother when she was in high school.


    But her appearance instantly stole the spotlight.


    Because Xiao Qi and her boyfriend looked incredibly attractive together.


    When you''re accompanied by such a handsome boyfriend, does it really matter what kind of bag you carry? It doesn''t matter anymore.


    The class monitor joked that partners were allowed, but he didn''t expect Xiao Qi to actually bring her partner.


    But they looked so good together!


    Even better than celebrities.


    Does this prestigious private school also bestow nobility?


    Is it too late to retake the entrance exam and score lower to be able to attend this school?


    For a moment, no one spoke.


    The TV on the wall automatically played an old KTV song: "I don''t have that kind of luck, it''s not even my turn..."Alll latest novels at novelhall.com

 Chapter 378: All Like

    Chapter 378


    The classmates were surprised and amazed, but after all, they were classmates, and finally the class leader spoke first.


    He stood up and greeted Xiao Qi and her companion.


    The class leader lived up to his title of being the class leader since high school. He was excellent in dealing with people, neither subservient nor arrogant, making everyone feel at ease.


    This restaurant was newly opened in Lvshan City and had already become the best music bar in town. But not to mention Zaizai, even these college-educated and worldly classmates felt it was too gaudy - the floral wallpaper, the spinning colored lights on the ceiling, the bright yellow sofas... The only redeeming quality was the spacious room.


    At first, they barely found it acceptable, considering the low prices. Such a large private room only cost 300 yuan as the basic charge.


    However, when they saw Xiao Qi''s boyfriend, the classmates couldn''t help but feel that this place was too shabby and unworthy of him.


    The main reason was that Xiao Qi''s boyfriend looked too handsome and aloof, with a serious demeanor.


    As soon as Zaizai entered, he frowned, not because of the decor - he didn''t have high expectations for that. He could even sleep in the room next to the granary in Xiao Qi''s hometown, where sweet potatoes sprouted from the floor. But the lack of windows and the overwhelming, pungent scent of perfume bothered him.


    Zaizai loved wearing perfume, especially knowing that Xiao Qi seemed to like it. After being able to distinguish various fragrances, he made an effort to change perfumes regularly.


    Today, he wore a relatively common Herme?s Eau d''Orange Verte, a standard orange scent, very fresh and comfortable.


    It gave off a reassuring aura, making Xiao Qi want to walk closer to him.


    However, the strong perfume in the room was overpowering, coupled with the crowded space, the warm air conditioning, and the spicy aroma of snacks like duck necks and duck feet. The combined smells were not pleasant.


    Xiao Qi had long since controlled her sense of smell because in an enclosed space, uncontrolled scents could be explosively pungent.


    After they sat down, the class leader brought them two bottles of water.


    The bottles looked clean.


    At this point, Xia Zhen couldn''t help but lean over with a big smile, acting very intimately with Xiao Qi, despite not keeping in touch much after the last class reunion.


    When Xiao Qi saw Xia Zhen, she almost didn''t recognize her.


    Xia Zhen had changed a lot, really a significant change. Upon closer inspection, it seemed she had gotten double eyelid surgery. Before, her single eyelids made her face look puffy, but now with double eyelids, her face appeared smaller. She had also lost a lot of weight, wearing a tight black dress that accentuated her slim waist.


    As Xia Zhen leaned closer, Zaizai''s expression became even more serious.


    He caught the scent of Chanel No. 5, which would normally be a pleasant fragrance, but this girl must have applied too much, making it overpowering.


    Xiao Qi didn''t want to be too friendly with Xia Zhen or act overly intimate. Her personality had become much more decisive than before. Their relationship had long been broken, and they weren''t close, so there was no need to put on airs for the sake of appearances when it would just be a waste of time. Wouldn''t it be better to spend that time memorizing fifty new words?


    She stood up and went to choose songs.


    Their classmate Li Changhai, the chubby one, had gotten even fatter, evidently enjoying a nourishing college life.


    He sidled up to Xiao Qi, winking and giving her a thumbs-up.


    "This guy has a great physique."


    Xiao Qi: ...She didn''t know whether to laugh or cry.


    So men also judge other men by their physique?


    On the other side, Xia Zhen didn''t expect Xiao Qi to be so unconcerned about giving her face. Xiao Qi was unwilling to even make a polite response and had directly stood up and walked away. Xia Zhen smiled and said nonchalantly, "I wonder when Liu Shaowei will show up. If he does and sees how beautiful Xiao Qi has become, he''ll definitely regret it."


    Xia Zhen spoke loudly, mentioning Xiao Qi''s ex-boyfriend in front of her current boyfriend, even though they had never officially dated. Back then, everyone teased them about being together, and they never denied it.


    However, the last time Liu Shaowei attended the class reunion, he brought his girlfriend, so his involvement with Xiao Qi was over. Everyone tactfully avoided mentioning it, but Xia Zhen brought it up unexpectedly.


    The classmates felt awkward. Even after attending college, they were still relatively innocent, and Xia Zhen''s behavior was truly inappropriate...


    As expected, Li Weijin frowned upon hearing her words.


    He opened a bottle for Xiao Qi and placed it in front of her, then opened one for himself. Although he knew Xiao Qi was strong, he was willing to do what he could for her.


    After taking a sip of water, he spoke, "Many people like Xiao Qi. It''s only natural for someone as outstanding as her to have admirers."


    When Xiao Qi heard what Xia Zhen said, she felt a bit awkward.


    It was like when a girl becomes infatuated with something, willing to go to great lengths to obtain it, thinking it''s so beautiful and valuable. But after some time, she looks at the same thing and finds it tacky, wishing she could poke out the eyes of her former self.


    Xiao Qi had a similar feeling because she unexpectedly ran into Liu Shaowei in the Capital City, only for him to pretend not to know her and already have a new girlfriend. Looking at Liu Shaowei now, Xiao Qi found him fickle and lacking in stability, unlike her previous impression of him.


    It was like comparing the same vanity - Zaizai was still a hardworking person. Zaizai''s family was well-off, but he never looked down on others. His good upbringing and manners were always present, even if he wasn''t overly friendly.


    This was a significant realization for Xiao Qi. She felt that the difference in starting points due to family circumstances wasn''t just about having fewer educational and cultural opportunities. Personal upbringing and cultivation were crucial. With a good family background, broader experiences, and wider perspectives, one wouldn''t become arrogant or look down on others just because of a slight advantage. This was very important.


    Xiao Qi felt that her parents had done a decent job in her upbringing, teaching by example as honest farmers with good moral character. It would have been enough for her to live an ordinary life in a small town. However, if she wanted to climb higher and excel in a more competitive environment, it wouldn''t be sufficient. Her former indecisive, weak, and timid personality wouldn''t support her in going further.


    Back then, she envied Liu Shaowei because his speech and demeanor seemed so expansive and well-informed. Now she realized that it was because her own experience was too limited.


    During this period, Li Maomao had been infatuated, thinking she had found true love. Liu Shaowei had treated her so well, willing to let her spit in his face and still smile sweetly, accommodating her in every way.


    But at this moment, seeing this guy and how he opened a bottle for Xiao Qi and handed her water, while Liu Shaowei was only focused on showing off and bragging, she suddenly became aware of the difference.


    Li Weijin glanced at the guy and felt no need to worry, as Xiao Qi would not be interested in him.


    He wasn''t as good-looking as himself!


    Having spent a lot of time with Xiao Qi, he had noticed some of her preferences. Xiao Qi seemed to be quite fond of his appearance, often mesmerized by him, but she had strong self-control and would only look at him for a moment before returning to her books.


    But it didn''t matter; one day, he would make her look away from her books and be unable to resist looking at him instead.


    Upon seeing Liu Shaowei again, Xiao Qi felt a sense of calmness, with a mix of surprise and resignation.


    The hurdles that had once seemed impossible to overcome now seemed trivial and hardly worth mentioning.


    The awkwardness that young teenagers had felt was quickly replaced by a lively atmosphere.


    Everyone ate, drank, and sang, creating a lively mood.


    Since they were all over 18 years old, beer was served, with pineapple beer for the girls.


    Xiao Qi rarely had the opportunity to drink alcohol, as her parents didn''t drink and wouldn''t allow her to either.


    But being with classmates, she had a few drinks.


    It tasted quite good, with a rich flavor. The beer was more enjoyable than the pineapple beer, with a hint of malty bitterness. Drinking for the first time, she could feel the alcohol slowly creeping into her veins, even causing a slight numbness in her legs. Her emotions became a little euphoric and unfocused.


    If she were a disciple from a Wuxia novel, drinking alcohol for the first time, would she think she had succeeded in cultivating her inner energy, truly feeling a surge of energy coursing through her body?


    Overall, Xiao Qi remained quite sober, but her limbs had already become soft.


    She must have inherited her father''s alcohol tolerance, as a single bottle of beer was enough to affect her.


    Li Weijin maintained a stern expression, only sharing a small drink with Xiao Qi. No one else forced him to drink, as he appeared too aloof.


    However, after some alcohol, everyone seemed more relaxed and casual. Initially, they had been somewhat reserved, but now they had let loose, chatting, eating, and singing.


    Throughout, Zaizai kept getting food for Xiao Qi and preparing napkins for her. With his tall stature and long limbs, he was very attentive.


    Xiao Qi had grown accustomed to this, as they studied together. She tended to overlook details, being someone who was more diligent and hardworking than inclined towards indulgence. But Zaizai was more meticulous in his lifestyle, so during their study sessions, he would bring various snacks, provide Xiao Qi with a shawl when it was cold, and even burn incense like agarwood. The headphones they used for studying were also of a much higher quality. In short, every detail was tailored for maximum comfort. Xiao Qi herself didn''t notice it, but she found studying with Zaizai to be very enjoyable.


    This enjoyment wasn''t solely reliant on Zaizai''s appearance but also his thoughtfulness and attentiveness, which provided a sense of security.


    The surrounding classmates watched with envy, thinking that while having such a handsome boyfriend was one thing, they assumed Xiao Qi must have pursued him. But seeing how attentive he was and how accustomed Xiao Qi seemed to being pampered, it was clear that he had been the one pursuing her.


    On the other side, Liu Shaowei was also quite solicitous, but in comparison, his efforts seemed a bit forced, and the two did not appear as perfectly in sync.


    Perhaps because Li Maomao had accompanied him back home, Liu Shaowei had subconsciously become a bit complacent, feeling that she had more or less been won over since she had come to his place. At this moment, seeing Xiao Qi again, his male ego flared up, causing him to be somewhat less attentive than when they were in school together.


    Xia Zhen found it very unpleasant. She thought that when Xiao Qi went to a private university, she would be miserable because there were so many rich people and the poor would definitely suffer. Yet she could still see Xiao Qi''s messages in the classmate group from time to time, all about participating in activities and winning awards. After going to a private university, Xiao Qi seemed to have become a different person.


    At one point, when they were talking about eating at banquets, Xia Zhen suddenly interjected, "Xiao Qi''s family is from the countryside, so it must be different from us."


    Li Weijin calmly replied, "She''s definitely different from you."


    For some reason, even though it was the same statement, when it came from his mouth, Xia Zhen found it very unsatisfactory.


    Xiao Qi was chatting quite seriously with her classmates, asking about their university life, what courses they were taking, what clubs they had joined, and so on.


    This topic was quite good, and everyone was eager to speak.


    However, as they talked, someone went off-topic and brought up the subject of dating in university.


    This topic was even more heated, and the whole group chimed in.


    The class monitor had even brought his partner, not a university classmate, but surprisingly a high school classmate from their second-year of high school, a girl with a tidy short haircut.


    They were now in a long-distance relationship.


    Everyone asked the class monitor what he liked about his girlfriend, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "Qiqi has a very steady personality. I''m more impulsive and often get fired up, but when I''m with her, I feel at peace."


    The group applauded and raised their glasses, wishing them a lifetime of happiness together, and even calling for them to have children soon.


    When they asked Liu Shaowei, he said, "Xiaomao is very beautiful and elegant, and she''s also kind-hearted. I liked her the first time I saw her."


    Li Maomao smiled, but the first time they met, Liu Shaowei had been accompanied by another girl.


    Because Li Maomao didn''t give him any face, the others didn''t tease him, but instead turned to ask Li Weijin.


    Xiao Qi had been worried that Zaizai wouldn''t adapt well to the noisy classmate gathering, but it seemed that he was adapting better than her. Although he was still a bit aloof, he was very polite and didn''t seem impatient when chatting with her classmates. Everyone unconsciously surrounded him and talked to him, as if he were the classmate and she was just a partner.


    Without any hesitation, Li Weijin said, "I like everything about her."

 Chapter 379: Idol

    Chapter 379


    "Friends walk together for life, those days are gone, just a few words for a lifetime, a life''s romance over a cup of wine."


    The old song ''Friends'' ended the reunion of classmates.


    Little Xiao Qi, after having some drinks, became extra lively. Although she didn''t lose composure, she boldly sang several love songs into the mic, all the while gazing at Zaizai.


    Zaizai''s face turned completely red, like a boiled shrimp.


    He didn''t usually get drunk easily from alcohol, but at this moment, he was intoxicated by the singing.


    After leaving the KTV, the butler had been waiting outside with the car.


    The students hadn''t gotten excessively drunk, so they could all go home without issues. But seeing that Xiao Qi''s boyfriend actually had someone to pick him up, they felt a tinge of jealousy.


    Aside from that, these two had been unintentionally flaunting their lovey-dovey relationship throughout the gathering and made everyone feel full from their display.


    Li Meimei also saw that car and immediately recognized it as a Maybach, not just an ordinary Mercedes costing a few hundred thousand. Some people really have it easier than others in life.


    She had thought she had found true love when Liu Shaowei treated her so well. Her friends advised her against it, but she thought they were just jealous. Now she realized they were incompatible after all. Liu Shaowei cared too much about appearances, was aloof, yet able to endure. She saw the look in his eyes when he gazed at that other girl, suppressing jealousy, resentment, and other emotions, yet still openly congratulating them. It gave her quite a fright.


    She decided to return to the Capital City tomorrow...


    The butler first sent Xiao Qi to the hospital due to her period, as she had requested earlier. If she didn''t go, her parents would probably worry and not be able to sleep at night. Afterwards, he sent the young master home.


    He left the keys and access card for the apartment he had bought under Xiao Qi''s name.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know about this. The apartment was purchased in her name.


    Li Weijin''s parents and elder brother all agreed to it. Previously when Li Weijin mentioned the little lamb gift Xiao Qi gave him, his elder brother Li Tangsong thought she was just another girl after his money and even had someone appraise it. But he was proven wrong and held a grudge, not wanting to be indebted to others.


    He saw all women as only interested in his wealth, but he hated owing others favors. So when his parents suggested buying property in Lvshan City, he figured he might as well just buy it for that girl. The 4 million yuan was much more expensive than the ancient jade, but what was truly unbelievable was that his parents'' money-burning exhibition hall actually started getting a steady stream of visitors every day because of the girl''s art exhibition.


    The exhibition hall was incredibly popular, with people constantly booking personal exhibits. Calculated this way, it was profitable rather than a loss.


    In the end, the entire Li family approved of this decision. Zaizai knew Xiao Qi liked houses and thought this gift was fitting.


    Everyone knew about it except Xiao Qi herself. She had simply tossed the keys and access card into her bag when she received them.


    After stopping to buy some food, she headed to the hospital.


    Zaizai was reluctantly pulled away by the butler, but he respected Xiao Qi''s wishes. They spent so much time together at school already. Xiao Qi had only been home for a few days during this short winter break, so she probably wanted to spend time with family.


    As Xiao Qi entered the hospital, the pungent smell of disinfectant, which she hadn''t smelled in a long time, felt unexpectedly familiar and nostalgic.


    Just as she came in, she saw her aunt carrying a basket of freshly washed clothes to be hung out to dry.


    "Auntie!" Xiao Qi called out happily.


    "You''re here. Let me hang these clothes first, wait a bit," her aunt replied.


    If they weren''t in a hospital, Xiao Qi might not have recognized her. Her aunt had lost nearly a third of her weight, and her caretaker uniform hung loosely. But she still seemed quite strong as she effortlessly carried the large basket of clothes.


    The hospital wasn''t quiet at night, but rather quite noisy, as it was a traditional Chinese medicine hospital with many long-term patients who treated it like their home. Xiao Qi used to find it noisy, smelly and chaotic, but now it felt comfortingly familiar.


    Xiao Qi set her things down and helped her aunt hang the clothes to dry.


    Xiao Qi slept extraordinarily peacefully, the nearby morgue remaining quite still and peaceful too.


    The next day at noon, after bidding farewell to Zaizai, with the New Year approaching, they couldn''t spend it here and had to return home. Zaizai was reluctant to leave and remained in a low mood, staring blankly out the car window for a long time.


    The butler thought for a moment and said, "Ahem, Young Master, your time is limited now. Xiao Qi has prepared a lot of assignments for you."


    Zaizai: ...


    Alright, he took out his books and began studying.


    In the afternoon, Xiao Qi was running on the campus of No.1 Middle School. The young girl Liang Jiajia also came and excitedly ran alongside her, boasting that she had ranked fifth in her grade for the final exams, and her mother had rewarded her with a new phone while her father had gifted her a new lens.


    Talking about the lens her father bought her, she felt particularly proud, "That auntie with the dark face, my dad said if I rank in the top three next time, he''ll buy me another one."


    Originally intending to take Xiao Qi out for dinner, but Xiao Qi said she had something to do with her aunt in the evening, so they had to return. However, Jiajia had secretly recorded videos of Xiao Qi running, studying, and learning throughout the afternoon, with a mischievous grin on her face.


    Xiao Qi felt very happy. The young girl had changed a lot since their first encounter. Initially, as a child from a single-parent family, she was a bit cynical, although very smart but unwilling to study. Now, however, she had become diligent and cheerful, no longer harboring resentment towards her father and showing understanding for her mother''s hard work. Unnoticed, the young girl seemed to have grown up.


    In the evening, her aunt wore a dress with a long coat over it. She wasn''t slim, but her tall stature made her look quite good. Xiao Qi even helped her aunt with makeup, lightly touching up her eyebrows. Not heavily made up, but just a few strokes, making her look refreshed and nice.


    It was evident that her aunt was quite fond of that man, as she had put a lot of thought into her attire.


    However, Xiao Qi was a little worried. Since the man had a daughter, recalling how hostile Jiajia had been towards her father''s "auntie," she wasn''t sure how the situation would unfold, even though her aunt''s circumstances were different as a potential stepmother.


    According to her aunt, over the past six months, she hadn''t been giving money to her cousin but instead asked her cousin what she needed to buy. She had also communicated with her ex-husband, only to discover that they had both been giving money to their daughter without knowing what she was doing with it.


    As a result, after she stopped giving her daughter money, her daughter didn''t contact her for half a year. Compared to her daughter''s indifference, Xiao Qi would occasionally call her, which made her feel a bit sad. But giving without receiving anything in return had fostered a selfish personality, which would only worsen in the future. So she endured it. Previously, all the money she earned was basically taken away by her daughter under various pretexts. Now, she had started saving, and if her daughter were to get married in the future, she could use the savings to buy her some nice, big items, which would be better than squandering it all now.


    Xiao Qi didn''t say much. Her cousin was a few years younger than her, around the same age as Lin Min''s sister, and still quite rebellious. Originally, it would have been more appropriate for her cousin to join them for dinner, but her aunt called and said her cousin wouldn''t be coming.


    They had made a reservation at Lvshan Restaurant, a formal establishment suggested by the man, indicating that he also attached great importance to the occasion.


    Neither Xiao Qi nor her aunt arrived too early or too late, leaving just in time to arrive at the scheduled time.


    At Lvshan Restaurant, by the window, sat a father and daughter at a table. The father wore a black jacket with a brand new sweater underneath, and old trousers with frayed hems. His shoes were canvas.


    Across from him sat his daughter, intently scrolling through Douyin on her phone.


    "Wenwen, your Aunt Su will be bringing her niece with her shortly. It seems her niece also studies here in Meng City at a private school. You two can chat since you''re both students."


    Upon hearing "private school," Gao Wenwen raised an eyebrow. "Dad, I don''t think we''ll have much in common. Private school students are usually underachievers. And why do I have to be there while you''re meeting your girlfriend? It''s the same old story, isn''t it?"


    "No, no, this time is different. Your Aunt Su is a really nice person, hardworking with a great personality." He tugged at the sweater he was wearing, which Little Su had knitted for him. It was particularly warm and fit him perfectly. Little Su was beautiful, elegant, kind, and industrious. He was very satisfied, his only concern being whether his daughter would like her.


    Gao Wenwen remained silent, continuing to scroll through Douyin. One of the local accounts she followed had just updated with her idol''s running routine, even at No.1 Middle School. She was a student at No.2 Middle School and had ranked third in the entire school during last year''s college entrance exams, gaining admission to Qingmeng University.


    She was now a sophomore English major student at Qingmeng University and a member of the student council. When organizing a speech competition for new first-year students, she became a fan of a particular girl. This girl was truly amazing. Originally, Wenwen had thought Qingmeng University would be unbeatable, but a student from Enhua University had come in first place. She had paid attention to this girl ever since and discovered that she was incredibly talented, to the point of making her want to cry.


    Not only was she athletically gifted, but her academic performance was also exceptional, always ranking first in exams. With such great grades, why didn''t she go to Qingmeng University instead of wasting her time at Enhua?


    Wenwen often came across her on Douyin. Seeing her was always inspiring. Although from a single-parent family and deeply impacted by her mother''s passing, often waking up from nightmares in tears, seeing this young girl filled her with motivation and a positive, upbeat spirit.


    So, even though she was a sophomore, she still looked up to that young girl.


    As for the aunt her father wanted to date, when it rains, the father wants to remarry: she couldn''t stop it, let him love whoever he wants. In the future, she would only have her idol, and she would strive forward on her own.

 Chapter 380: Ye Gonghaolong

    Chapter 380


    The food at LvShan Restaurant was still quite good, but the restaurant seemed a bit old - the wide door frame was dilapidated, only faintly reminiscent of its former grandeur.


    Xiao Qi was still wearing her jeans, sweater, and cotton coat.


    Auntie wore a dress and coat, with a pair of red leather shoes.


    Those in love are different - as she walked, Auntie seemed to radiate a joyful aura.


    Xiao Qi thought to herself, is this how I would be with Zaizai? It seemed she was the more mature one instead.


    As they entered, a server led them to where a man stood up in the distance while a girl, likely his daughter, remained seated and played on her phone impatiently. Xiao Qi felt uneasy, sensing this might not go smoothly.


    After all, she was meeting her aunt''s potential stepchild. Naturally, she saw her Auntie in a positive light, but the girl might not feel the same way. Xiao Qi tried to understand - if some aunt was her father''s date, she''d feel gloomy too, let alone have positive feelings.


    But they were here now, so they had to face it. That''s life.


    As they approached, the girl reluctantly stood up, her demeanor reeking of displeasure.


    Xiao Qi''s Auntie introduced them, and Xiao Qi politely greeted, "Hello Uncle Gao, hello Sister Wen Wen."


    At this moment, Gao Wenwen was stunned.


    Just then, she had been watching videos of her idol on TikTok, which she often downloaded to watch later.


    But this living, breathing idol standing right in front of her - was it real?


    It had to be, she looked even better than in the TikTok videos.


    Gao Wenwen suddenly understood the idiom "Ye Gong admiring the dragon" - she had always adored Su Xiaoqi, sleeping with her phone to watch her videos every night. Truly, Su Xiaoqi was so inspiring that when Gao Wenwen felt tired from studying, watching her videos would reenergize her to stay awake. But now this real person stood before her, and she was speechless.


    Just like those fangirls who called their idol "my husband" or "my boyfriend" - when they actually met them, they couldn''t utter a word and might even hide. That was exactly how Gao Wenwen felt.


    But to her father, it seemed like his daughter was just displeased and zoning out with a stony face.


    As his only child, he doted on her, though her attitude wasn''t ideal. But he didn''t want to say anything then, so he invited Xiao Qi and her aunt to be seated.


    Then Xiao Qi''s Auntie sat beside Uncle Gao, while Xiao Qi sat beside Gao Wenwen.


    The man fumbled as he poured water, spilling some on the table. He and Auntie wiped it together, their hands touching before separating. Then he called a server to order dishes.


    He took the menu and first handed it to Auntie, who blushed and refused, "Anything is fine with me."


    So the man handed the menu to Xiao Qi instead.


    Xiao Qi took it graciously and said, "Last time I came here with my parents, the braised pork was delicious, so I''ll order that. Sister Wen Wen, what would you like?"


    She''s talking to me...and she called me Sister... Aaahhhh!!! It took Gao Wenwen a while before she said, "I like sweets."


    "Then the sweet and sour fish here is great - they use wild fish from the Lv River," Xiao Qi handed her the menu.


    Gao Muen: ...


    You call me Dad, you call my girlfriend Auntie!!


    Then she told Xiao Qi to call her Sister, saying she''d find her at Qingmeng University later for sure.


    Xiao Qi mentioned that Lin Min was her Auntie Su Simei''s neighbor, also at Qingmeng, and asked if Gao Wenwen knew her.


    Gao Wenwen was even more surprised. Of course she knew him - the business prodigy Lin Min from freshman year. Handsome and money-making, he was actually Xiao Qi''s neighbor. The girls in their dorm were always going on about wanting to date the young stud. Apparently, even after the new freshman campus belle confessed to him, that underclassman firmly rejected her.


    Originally, Gao Wenwen was utterly disgusted by the "Auntie Su" her dad mentioned. But it turned out Auntie Su was such a legendary figure.


    Her idol had been living with this aunty for three years of high school, and this aunty''s neighbor was the famous freshman at their university.


    Wow!


    If Gao Wenwen lived with this aunty, could she become amazing too?


    Not to mention other things, at least Xiao Qi was taught so well - her relationship with her aunt was super close, like mother and daughter. Gao Wenwen felt her eyes getting moist just watching them; it had been so long since she had an older female figure in her life.


    The meal was a delight for both hosts and guests.


    Xiao Qi and Auntie had huge appetites, cleaning their plates thoroughly, which surprised the Gao family father and daughter.


    After the meal, they were warmly invited to visit the hosts'' home.


    This wasn''t originally part of the plan.


    But Gao Wenwen simply couldn''t bear to let her idol leave like that, insisting they go back with them.


    Her father could only laugh helplessly - his daughter was even more eager than him.


    He had wanted to bring Su home early on but was worried his daughter would object, so he hadn''t dared.


    Their home wasn''t far from No.1 Middle School, just four stops away.


    In a small building next to the municipal committee, with a fruit shop downstairs, that was their place.


    Xiao Qi had thought they just ran a fruit stall, but upon arrival learned the family was quite well-off. The shop front was theirs, and they lived in an old municipal committee building - Gao Wenwen''s grandfather was a minor official and this was his allotted housing, making her a proper minor official''s granddaughter.


    The three-bedroom apartment, though not luxuriously renovated, was very tidy. With two bedrooms, one study/guest room, the unit was distributed by the work unit but had been downsized with no calculated communal area - probably over 130 square meters in reality despite being listed at 100, quite spacious and bright.


    Su Simei was taken aback too; she had prepared herself for a struggling life helping at a fruit stall. Instead, the shop had employees - it wasn''t labor-intensive, just handling online orders and supplying the municipal committee, apparently doing good business.


    After the house tour it had grown late.


    Xiao Qi added Gao Wenwen on WeChat, then said goodbye with Auntie and left.


    No sooner were they out the door than the mechanical voice rang in Xiao Qi''s ear: "Host''s proactive life attitude has positively influenced those around her, changing their destinies. Rewarding host with +1 Mental Agility."Fiind updated novels at novelhall.com

 Chapter 381: Blackening

    Chapter 381


    It was just before dawn.


    Xiao Qi woke up, still a little dazed, in her aunt''s basement bedroom.


    Last night, after returning, she had a video call with Zaizai, painted for a while, studied some C language, and then went to bed.


    She had been halfway through painting a portrait of the lovely Miss Gao Wenwen from yesterday.


    She was an interesting young lady whose English was quite good, though her accent wasn''t as natural as Xiao Qi''s, since Qingmeng University didn''t have as many foreign teachers for daily conversational practice as Enhua University did.


    After speaking English with Xiao Qi, Miss Gao had become even more admiring of her. Last night, she had almost insisted on coming over to stay with Xiao Qi and her aunt.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t help but laugh. Her dad had to hold Miss Gao back before she gave up.


    She never expected such an enthusiastic young lady. And judging from her good impression of Xiao Qi''s aunt, life probably wouldn''t be too bad if her aunt did end up marrying Uncle Gao in the future.


    So Xiao Qi thought she would paint a picture as a gift for that young lady.


    It was just dawning, and her aunt was already gone from her side, probably upstairs working. The hospital had a lot of tasks early in the morning, like tidying up before doctors made their rounds.


    Xiao Qi finished the remaining half of the painting, then went for a run at the nearby high school.


    The security guard surprisingly still remembered her and warmly asked, "Hey, little lady, on vacation?"


    Xiao Qi nodded.


    She had attended high school there for three years, but the security guard didn''t remember her. Yet after running there for part of last summer vacation, he recognized her. She really had lacked presence back then.


    Sometimes, time just passes by. If you don''t do anything, you''ll just quietly grow old.


    You have to actively engage with the world, change yourself, and do more things to be remembered and have meaning.


    On the winter morning campus, there were still many people around¡ªthose exercising, playing sports, full of life''s vitality.


    Xiao Qi still studied while running.


    She felt her mind was clearer and sharper now, with higher learning efficiency.


    Previously, her plan to complete credits early had been quite strenuous. Zaizai had studied so hard that she lost a lot of hair and shaved her head. Although Xiao Qi didn''t go that far, she had taken on coursework for several additional languages, which she didn''t want to give up. At seventeen or eighteen years old, one''s potential was truly limitless¡ªas long as one was willing to learn, everything could be learned. But as people got older, into their late twenties, life became busier, and the mind wandered more, so memory and focus weren''t as sharp or pure as during student years.


    So the student years were the most suitable time for learning, the most single-minded period.


    Xiao Qi tried her best to manage her studies, but sometimes it did feel quite tiring, leaving little time for relaxation, video games, reading non-curricular books, or going out with roommates.


    But that wasn''t ideal either, as studying required a balance of work and rest.


    Lin Min''s mother wanted to protest that her son, still a student, didn''t count as a "doctor"¡ªit was the hospital doctors who had advised no alcohol to avoid worsening his leg condition. But seeing her son''s deep, somber gaze, she couldn''t bring herself to continue. She muttered nothing more and went to prepare food.


    Xiao Qi was unaware of all this. After hanging up, her system''s mechanical voice sounded: "Host has shown timely care for a friend, earning a friend''s heartfelt gratitude. Rewarding host with +1 Voice Sweetness."


    Xiao Qi was puzzled. Every time she interacted with Lin Min, the system seemed to give her rewards, but this time was different. Previously, it had always mentioned slowing his "juvenilization" rate, but now it didn''t bring that up. Could it be that Lin Min was no longer juvenilizing?


    Since things seemed fine on Lin Min''s side, Xiao Qi didn''t linger in the city. She bought plenty of ingredients, preparing to return home.


    After staying in Meng City for half a year, she really missed the food from Lv Shan.


    There was a particularly delicious chestnut pancake vendor, with real chestnut filling and a crispy yet soft skin, not too sweet. And there were smoked duck feet, spicy enough to make one clutch their heart, but still craving more after finishing. Then there were fish balls¡ªone bite and the oil would flow out, with a delightfully chewy skin and remarkably fresh taste. And a special beef noodle soup with large chunks of beef, reminiscent of but more distinctive than the famous Tingmeng beef noodles from Meng City. Plus there were beef balls cooked with squid ink, endlessly moreish. And...


    Xiao Qi no longer had to worry too much about money, at least having achieved food freedom. She bought everything she craved.


    While purchasing the items, her phone video was on as she videocalled Zaizai, buying things while introducing them.


    The vendors thought the pretty young lady was livestreaming and were extremely enthusiastic, eagerly presenting her with the best ingredients and posing for the camera.


    Xiao Qi bought a whole boxful of goods. Although she was quite strong, carrying it all seemed awkward, so she was thankful when a vendor gave her a cart to use, which she purchased.


    With so many provisions, this year''s New Year celebration would surely be abundant.


    When the village''s driver Da Yong saw all the goods, he was surprised at how the college student would transport it all back.


    He helped load the car.


    Upon hearing Xiao Qi say, "Thank you, Brother Da Yong,"


    his tanned face actually reddened.


    He thought to himself, educated people really are different¡ªeven her voice sounds so pleasant.


    When Xiao Qi returned home, her father came out to greet her and help carry the items.


    When Xiao Qi got home, she was surprised to find that her mother had set up a live streaming setup in the living room.


    "Mom, can we live stream from here? Didn''t you say there was no signal?"


    "There is now. The people from that company were really reliable, they got it set up in just a few days. We have a full signal now, take a look at the strong network connection. I figured since the City Museum is also closed for the holidays, and there''s nothing to do back home, I might as well keep up with the scheduled live streams. Your father can work on his bamboo weaving during the holidays anyway."


    The living room was already crowded with villagers from their small town. Xiao Qi couldn''t imagine what it must be like for them to watch a live stream. For the time being, everyone was very curious, gathering around the ring light and circling it.


    "Is that a camera?"


    "No, the neighbor''s wife said it''s a light." An old man said, promptly getting kicked by an elderly woman standing next to him. He quickly corrected himself, "I mean, my sister-in-law said it''s a light."

 Chapter 382: The Small Open World

    Chapter 382


    Sheng Juanhua looked at the surrounding villagers and had no choice.


    She had brought the live-streaming equipment home earlier, but she didn''t expect that there would be signal coverage in her hometown to live-stream. She had just bought the expensive equipment and was worried it might get damaged outside, so she wanted to get familiar with it at home. Little did she know that it could actually be used.


    Sheng Juanhua was originally a bold and straightforward person by nature.


    Otherwise, with her disabled husband and being just a daughter, if she wasn''t feisty enough, she would get bullied in this place.


    The fellow villagers wouldn''t be that bad, but if you had the delicate heart of Lin Daiyu, you wouldn''t survive here. Everyone spoke bluntly and wouldn''t care if you could take it or not.


    Xiao Qi had merely studied halfway through her education, learning a bit of melancholy and sensitivity, worrying about face and dignity, so she found it hard to adapt when she came back.


    Reading books doesn''t necessarily make one a bookworm. Only half-understanding makes one a fool. To truly be a learned person, one must read thoroughly and comprehend clearly.


    Now Xiao Qi could handle the villagers frankly, but there were just too many people.


    Everyone treated it like watching a Western show.


    Sheng Juanhua was now considered a capable woman in the village who had seen the world. When the time came, she casually opened the live-streaming platform and started adjusting it.


    For the live-stream, she had even changed all the light bulbs at home to 60-watt ones for brighter lighting.


    The villagers were extremely curious, as this was just like being on TV, wasn''t it?


    Someone explained that it was different from being on TV.


    Since the New Year was approaching, many young people had returned home as well.


    No one expected that someone in the village would live-stream, especially an elderly lady, so everyone curiously came to watch.


    Most of the elderly villagers didn''t have phones, and those who did had low-memory basic phones, as there was originally no internet coverage in the village.


    However, at least the young people who had gone to work outside all had smartphones.


    They could all use Douyin and watch live-streams.


    Right now, the young people were watching on their phones, while the elderly huddled around the young people''s phones.


    They were extremely excited.


    "Hey, hey, hey, that''s the lame guy''s wife, no, she''s my niece-in-law."


    Some mischievous old men even leaned in to take a look.


    Then they quickly checked the phone screen, and indeed, their own heads appeared on it. Oh my, this meant they were on TV too.


    Although it was explained that this wasn''t TV, many still felt like they were on TV.


    Today, during Sheng Juanhua''s live-stream, the background was changed, and some old customers curiously asked where she was.


    "I''m in my hometown, our Gumula Village. It''s the first time we''ve had internet access, thanks to the signal tower sponsored by the Meng City Tang Song Group for our village," Sheng Juanhua said to the camera.


    Then she turned the camera around in a circle.


    The viewers on the other end of the phone screens saw crowds of people''s heads and their rustic clothing, which was truly shocking.


    Apart from those who had worked outside and dressed similarly to city folks, the villagers still wore very rural outfits.


    They didn''t have a concept of being rural, and they hadn''t bought new clothes. Even if they had new clothes, they would only wear them on New Year''s Day. Otherwise, they would just wear anything, so there was a mix of old cotton, batik dye, all sorts of garments, and even donated clothes that didn''t match properly.


    In short, it was an extremely antiquated and mismatched group of people.


    Xiao Qi helped with the live-stream today, acting as her mother''s assistant. While her mother live-streamed, she worked as customer service, responding to comments.


    The camera was still focused on her father making bamboo crafts, while her mother introduced and explained the process.


    The villagers crowded around Su Youfu, hoping to get their faces shown, just like they thought they could appear on TV.


    Even Xiao Qi''s grandmother, urged by others, carefully combed her oiled hair to join the excitement and watch her eldest son making bamboo crafts. The tenderness in her gaze was enough to scare anyone.


    However, on the live-stream, it just showed a fierce old lady glaring menacingly at the middle-aged man making bamboo crafts.


    Initially, everyone in the live-stream thought it was staged because there are too many scams these days, and they didn''t have enough fools to believe in handmade crafts or intangible cultural heritage. Little did they expect that today it was actually taking place in an ancient village.


    Sheng Juanhua pointed the camera at the background of the courtyard''s earthen walls, which looked extremely old.


    There was also a group of villagers, unconsciously unable to resist the urge to show their faces, with gaps in their smiles because dental work was too expensive.


    Finding an older boyfriend didn''t matter either, you could still be happy.


    But at this moment she wavered.


    Then she saw the last WeChat Moments post she had made, something about loving yourself more than loving anyone else, that a woman must become stronger, more beautiful, more capable.


    An advertising slogan for selling essence face masks.


    Yet at this moment, it touched her.


    She followed the recommendations of people from her village to work in multi-level marketing, develop a downline.


    Taught everyone one-by-one how to use WeChat.


    After two or three days, there were many multi-level marketers popping up in the village.


    Opening WeChat, it was all people selling things, everyone new at it and posting quite earnestly and interestingly at first.


    But they quickly realized, no one really needed this stuff, you sell to me and I sell to you, it''s all the same things, what''s the point?


    So some people started livestreaming instead.


    Xiao Qi''s two uncles went into livestreaming.


    The very first day they went up into the mountains to dig up rabbits. Yes, dig up rabbits - the rabbits in the mountains live in holes that you can dig out.


    Xiao Qi didn''t want to run laps around the village, so she went along too, sometimes unintentionally getting caught on camera.


    Xiao Qi was chopping firewood on one side, wearing her military training outfit, the full set she wears at home in the mountains to work - thick, loose, and easy to move in, the belt cinched without any bother.


    As a result, viewers in that livestream of just five or ten people suddenly noticed this background scene.


    A livestream that originally had just a few people slowly grew to one or two hundred viewers.


    It was their first time, so the first uncle got really into it, digging the hole until the dirt piled up taller than half of him.


    While the second uncle introduced things from the side, more slick with his honeyed words and ability to chat. But being a first-time livestreamer, the camera still swung around a bit unsteadily.


    Xiao Qi chopped a huge pile of firewood very quickly, then split a bamboo shoot herself to make bamboo strips and tie the firewood into bundles.


    The livestream chat was full of people calling out "Firewood Fairy!"


    Xiao Qi was oblivious to it all.


    The second uncle noticed they had an audience, so he quietly shifted the camera over to point at his niece from time to time, of course not too blatantly, just using her a little bit.


    After half a day of livestreaming like this, there were no buyers for the rabbits so they planned to just take them home to eat themselves. But after deducting the platform fees, they had surprisingly received over 600 yuan in tips.


    Xiao Qi''s two uncles were overjoyed. According to their prior agreement, they split the earnings half and half.


    And since Xiao Qi had come along too, they generously gave her 50 yuan each out of their shares.


    They each got 250 yuan for themselves.


    There were similar situations happening elsewhere in the village.


    Li Si really did livestream his family''s preserved cured meat, giving a demonstration for everyone on how tough it was - you needed a saw to cut it.


    Old Number Five was really selling sweet potatoes, roasting and selling them live.


    But the busiest was still Xiao Qi''s mom, since everyone doing a livestream came to her first to learn how.


    In any case, this year''s holiday was incredibly lively.


    At night, Xiao Qi lay on the reclining chair on the roof terrace, bundled up in a huge cotton-padded coat, video-chatting with Zaizai.


    Zaizai heard the rushing creek sounds in the video and felt an incredible sense of nostalgia.


    "You wouldn''t know, but now they''re all calling me ''Mother Sheng'' and my dad ''Teacher Su''. Tsk tsk, those two perk right up when they hear those addresses, tails shooting up into the sky, every day going around teaching. In the village it''s constantly ''old buddy 666'', ''big bro big sis check this out''..."


    Zaizai lay in bed listening to Xiao Qi chattering about mundane happenings, grinning the whole time like a fool.


    When Xiao Qi grew tired of speaking, she lay there gazing at the stars, silent.


    Looking out over the whole village, it felt familiar yet also somehow unfamiliar.


    But it was brimming with vitality. So wonderful.

 Chapter 383: Skip a Grade

    Chapter 383


    Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu did not stay in the village until the 15th day of the Lunar New Year. They went into the city on the 7th day.


    In previous years during the Lunar New Year in the village, the biggest entertainment activity was actually playing cards, from the 1st day to the 15th, the kind where money is wagered. Originally, they didn''t make much money throughout the year, and after the New Year, they were even more broke and had to start from scratch.


    But this year was different. This year, the people in the village didn''t play cards. Even the laziest slackers didn''t play cards - they had started live streaming instead.


    All kinds of things could be live streamed - carpenters live streamed woodworking, farmers live streamed cultivating the fields, vegetable growers live streamed growing vegetables... Surprisingly, there were people who actually paid for it, with some donating a few dozen yuan a day, and some over a hundred yuan, even if they didn''t sell anything. After all, these were activities they had to do anyway, they just had a phone recording everything on the side.


    However, the best live streamers in the village were not Sheng Juanhua and her husband. Their live stream was average - not particularly good or bad, just steadily improving with more viewers every day.


    The ones who suddenly exploded in popularity were Xiao Qi''s two uncles. The younger uncle caught various edible things while working, and the older uncle provided commentary. They were often in the mountains and streams, roasting crabs they found, cooking rabbits they dug up, or making mushroom soup from mushrooms they picked. Their live stream unexpectedly became very popular. The younger uncle''s dopey look - his single eyelids, skinny tall figure, and resemblance to a poor man''s version of Chen Xiaochun - was unexpectedly endearing. The older uncle was more handsome, even wearing a black-framed pair of glasses and looking the part. But the older uncle was quite stingy - out of habit, every time they ate rabbit, he would set aside a rabbit leg, saying it was for his sister-in-law. When they ate mushrooms, he would save a few for her too... Although he tried his best to hide it while live streaming, his stingy yet devoted-to-his-wife persona unintentionally became part of his appeal.


    The two brothers - one dopey, the other stingy - complemented each other perfectly. The scenery of Gumula Village was also exceptionally beautiful. Now that there was signal even deep in the mountains, when the two went into the mountains, they could sometimes capture footage of running foxes. Even if you ignored everything else and just treated it like a nature documentary, it was still very enjoyable to watch, with their down-to-earth commentary.


    This also made the villagers wonder if Sheng Juanhua and her husband had some secret technique for live streaming that they hadn''t shared, since their own live streams weren''t as popular.


    Xiao Qi''s parents went to the city, and she followed them as well since school was about to start again soon.


    She wanted to come clean about the house matter and surprise her parents, so as soon as the real estate transaction center opened, she went to change the owner''s name on the property deed to her parents'' names.


    Originally, she had planned for her parents to use the money they had to buy another house in the city. But Su Youfu and Sheng Juanhua didn''t want to - they felt that it was their daughter''s money, so it should be saved. Whenever their daughter found a job in the future, they could buy a house in that city for her. As for themselves, they would just rent, since they already had a house in their hometown and didn''t need to spend that money. Although they said that, it still seemed like they felt a bit reluctant when talking about rent and not quite at ease.


    When she went to the transaction hall, the staff politely asked her which property she wanted to change the name for.


    She had only bought one property in Lvshan City, right? But when they looked it up, the over 200 square meter property in the Commercial City downtown was actually under her name...


    Xiao Qi hadn''t even noticed. The key, access card - she must have brought them from home and just tossed them in her bag.


    She changed the name for the property she had bought.


    As for the other property, Xiao Qi called Zaizai.


    Xiao Qi saw that Sister Wenwen got along well with her aunt, and her Uncle Gao seemed like a good person too, even coming over to their home. The two families had meals together, which made Sheng Juanhua and Su Youfu very happy - it meant they had gained another proper relative in the city who were true locals of Lvshan City and worked for the municipal government. They felt it was very satisfactory.


    Gao Muen also didn''t expect his little brother-in-law Su to have a storefront next to the city museum and be such a skilled artisan. The couple were very nice people. Considering how outstanding their daughter was, it made sense - you can''t raise an exceptional child without being good people yourselves.


    There wasn''t anything major happening at home anymore, as everything had been taken care of. Xiao Qi was going back to school as well.


    Gao Wenwen was excited to go to school together with Xiao Qi, though unfortunately not with Lin Min, who had already gone to school early due to work at his company according to Xiao Qi.


    Xiao Qi didn''t run into Lin Min at all during the winter break - he seemed very busy. So she didn''t disturb him either.


    This time, there were four elders seeing them off at the station:


    Xiao Qi''s parents, her aunt, and Uncle Gao.


    They were loaded up with a lot of food items.


    Xiao Qi looked at her parents standing next to Uncle Gao and her aunt, completely at ease, unlike the previous time when they had come to see her off. Back then, compared to the other parents, they had seemed very rustic and anxious, always feeling out of place in the city.


    This past half year, Xiao Qi felt that he had made progress and changed himself, but he felt that his parents had made even greater progress and changes.


    Xiao Qi thought to himself, they just didn''t have good conditions before, but if given the opportunity, they could do even better.


    It''s just that not everyone has the same opportunities, and not everyone would suddenly have a system like he did.


    As he thought about this, a vague idea seemed to be emerging in his mind, but there was still something missing.


    As the train started moving, the familiar city scenes outside began to turn into a moving picture, gradually speeding away and disappearing from sight.


    At that moment, Xiao Qi heard the familiar mechanical sound in his ear again: "Host, through your influence, you have transformed the entire backward and ignorant village, allowing the villagers to go out and see the world, broadening their horizons and changing their living conditions. You have brought positive and progressive influence to society, increasing positive energy for progress. Your system has been upgraded to Level 15 Progress System. Host will now earn 1.5 yuan for every step taken, up to a daily limit of 30,000 steps."


    Xiao Qi was stunned. Previously, it was only Level 11, and now it had jumped up several levels at once?

 Chapter 384: School Starts

    Chapter 384


    On the high-speed train, Xiao Qi didn''t chat much with Wen Wen. She sat down and took out a book to read.


    The train was bustling with people, as many new students were heading back to school. Xiao Qi felt like it was just yesterday when she started school. Time flies by so quickly.


    But now she was already eighteen years old, no longer a 17-year-old girl, but a legal adult at 18.


    After such a long break, she really missed school and her roommates.


    Because the village now had internet, Xiao Qi shared her home life with her roommates every day. They would exchange photos and chat.


    Wei Cheng shared about their family''s mushroom greenhouse. Her parents decided to expand the cultivation and introduce a new, expensive mushroom variety this year. Her parents spent most of their time in the greenhouse, and her siblings had also returned home, making the house lively.


    Mi Er shared about her family''s clothing factory. She had made quite a bit of money this year and had become a small business owner, selling clothes from her own factory. However, she rarely mentioned her parents, as they seemed busy and rarely appeared.


    As for Yun Shu, she was always busy with various activities her mother dragged her to. She was on the verge of a breakdown and couldn''t wait for school to start.


    Xiao Qi also shared the lively scenes from her hometown''s live stream, astonishing her roommates. They even went to watch Xiao Qi''s parents'' live stream, which was truly magical.


    Although Xiao Qi was reading on the way, she was also very excited.


    Wen Wen really wanted to talk to Xiao Qi, but seeing her studying, she didn''t want to disturb her. So, she picked up a book to read as well and found herself surprisingly efficient. She was able to memorize in two hours on the high-speed train what usually took her two days. The memory was very deep.


    It''s no wonder having an idol by her side seemed to give her study superpowers. If she were by her side every day, her own study efficiency would surely be doubled. Wen Wen''s thoughts were beautiful, but she also knew it was impossible. However, the thought of her idol becoming her cousin made her very happy. She planned to treat Xiao Qi to a meal, and her roommates would surely be surprised to see them together.


    And Xiao Qi was really working hard. She was actually trying to complete her credits ahead of time. She was so outstanding and so diligent, studying all the way. Wen Wen had originally thought the other party had some kind of natural talent, but thinking about it, it wasn''t the case. She had really worked hard to get where she was.


    They arrived at the station.


    Wen Wen saw the car coming to pick up Xiao Qi and fainted directly.


    Was that a Bentley?


    She had only seen it online before.


    Then she saw the young man in front of the Bentley, who was incredibly, incredibly good-looking.


    Lin Min from their school was already considered the new school grass, looking refined and elegant. But the young man in front of her was like a blossoming flower. Not only was he very elegant, but he was also indescribable. Handsome, so handsome, really handsome...


    Seeing Xiao Qi walk over, the young man ran over and hugged her, spinning her around. They looked very close, and Wen Wen couldn''t help feeling a little worried. Was this Xiao Qi''s boyfriend? He was very handsome and seemed very considerate, but his family background seemed too good.


    She felt that social status was still very important, like her father who was just a fruit seller, finding Xiao Qi, a caregiver, was actually not much different. Even though Xiao Qi was impressive, she came from an ordinary family. On the other hand, this boy was obviously extraordinary. Not just any family could casually drive a Bentley, accompanied by a middle-aged servant in formal attire.


    But she didn''t mention this to Xiao Qi, instead thinking of bringing it up next time. After all, she was being sent to school in a Bentley, it was unbelievable... she had never been so vain in her life. When she got off the car, she felt like her body was light.


    Xiao Qi and Zaizai first sent her, the newly appointed cousin, to school, and the system sincerely admired her, rewarding Xiao Qi with +1 aura.


    Xiao Qi realized that this cousin was also an NPC-style character, unlocking system skills as long as she interacted with her.


    After sending off her cousin, Xiao Qi and Zaizai were alone in the car, with the butler driving in front.


    She heard her young master finally speak after a while, "Did you have a good holiday?"


    The butler: ... Clearly, they were video chatting last night, asking about the holiday was just nonsense.


    "It was good, and you?" Xiao Qi asked.


    The butler: ... Forget it, you guys continue talking.


    It was probably the feeling of love, everything seemed good, everything seemed cheerful, and joyful.


    Xiao Qi returned to the dormitory, and her roommates had all arrived. Mier had arrived a day early, saying that home was too boring and she couldn''t stand it.


    Wei Cheng and Yunshu came in the morning, and Wei Cheng had taken a car to Fucheng and then followed Yunshu''s family''s car.


    Several people brought delicious food, but Mi''er surprisingly didn''t bring any. She explained that she was in a hurry.


    Xiao Qi felt something was off. It seemed like Mi''er wasn''t as cheerful as she was in the previous semester. She didn''t laugh foolishly and would furrow her brow slightly. Xiao Qi didn''t know what had happened.


    When Yunshu arrived for the new semester, she seemed completely different. It was as if her eyebrows had changed. She helplessly said, "My mom took me to get my eyebrows tattooed. It was recommended by my mom''s friend, who said it was done by a master who tattoos eyebrows for celebrities. She said that eyebrows represent fortune or something."


    Both Xiao Qi and Mi''er couldn''t help but laugh. Yunshu''s eyebrow spacing was a bit wide, making her look a bit dull.


    But now they were not only wide but also thick, giving a sense of dullness and foolishness, as if she had been tricked by her mom''s friend.


    Yunshu waved her hand nonchalantly, "It''s actually not bad. This way, those friends'' children won''t come over, and I can read novels in peace."


    The group chatted and laughed, sharing the food they brought from home, all very excited.


    Xiao Qi''s mom made a big bag of fried sweet beans for her to share with her classmates. Xiao Qi didn''t want to bring them, but her mom insisted, always worried that she wouldn''t get along well with her classmates. Giving some food was always a good thing.


    Although she felt that giving food wouldn''t make people treat her differently, some people would never remember your kindness no matter how much of your stuff they ate, like her high school roommate Xia Zhen. But it was still her mom''s intention, a simple concept of pleasing others, not useful, but also not offensive. Xiao Qi still went to deliver them.


    There weren''t many girls in their class, just a few dormitories, and Xiao Qi had a small bag for each dormitory.


    When she arrived at the dormitory across the hall, she didn''t expect that Su Li would also be there early this year.


    Just after the New Year, it was also the coldest time of the year in Meng City, and it was rare to need to wear a coat or cotton clothes. Su Li, a petite figure, was wearing a wide purple cotton coat, tight jeans, and boots, looking quite handsome.


    Seeing Xiao Qi bring food, she said it was made by her mom and then proudly took out a piece of ham from her drawer... authentic Spanish ham. She felt a bit embarrassed as she said, "My mom went to Spain for the New Year and brought back some local specialties for you."


    Although surprised by this awkward return gift, Xiao Qi still thanked her and accepted it. Courtesy is reciprocal, and after getting to know Su Li, she knew that she was just outwardly proud but actually quite nice.


    Su Li''s return gift was one thing, but Xiao Qi didn''t expect that later in the day, Chu Yu, the sickly girl, would also bring a return gift - a bag of chocolates. It was quite rare, as she was usually very generous with boys, but quite stingy with girls, never treating anyone. It was a reverse psychology feeling, with a high level of play. The boys all thought she was generous and easy to get along with, but because she was a bit weak, they also felt sorry for her. The girls all found her quite annoying, but because she was physically weak, they didn''t want to provoke her.


    Xiao Qi always felt that it was not easy to accept this bag of chocolates. Sure enough, in the evening, when Xiao Qi went to the rooftop to hang her clothes, Chu Yu followed her.


    She followed Xiao Qi, chatting as if they were close friends.


    Xiao Qi: ... Just say what you want to say, don''t beat around the bush, time is precious.


    "Xiao Qi, I know you have prejudices against me, but I have never meant any harm. I just want to tell you that you and Li Weijin can never be together. You may still be naive in school, but once you enter society, you''ll realize the importance of matching social status. You come from an ordinary peasant family, while Li Weijin''s family in Meng City is said to be one of the wealthiest. How do you think you''ll get along with his parents? Your parents will definitely be looked down upon by his. You''re smart, you must know that it''s better to end things sooner rather than later. I think you should really consider this." Chu Yu spoke earnestly, with a slightly furrowed brow, as if speaking from the heart.


    Xiao Qi couldn''t believe the sincerity in her expression. If someone didn''t know better, they''d think she was her best friend for life.


    "Thank you for your concern, but my affairs are none of your business." Xiao Qi felt disgusted by Chu Yu''s demeanor, as if she had just eaten a fly.


    Matching social status? It was indeed an unavoidable topic, but she was only eighteen, and she hadn''t even thought about it. Her parents hadn''t even warned her about it, so why was Chu Yu, a regular classmate, butting in?


    Despite being much more open-minded, Xiao Qi still felt nauseated and downcast that evening.


    It wasn''t until the next day when Xiao Qi received news from the student council president, Xiao Shengzhou, about the completion of the school she had donated to, along with some pictures, that she was able to brush off the unpleasant feelings.


    The new school wasn''t large, but it was clean and bright, with students inside wearing genuine smiles.


    Each smile was so genuine that it couldn''t be contained, and Xiao Qi could feel the joy radiating from the photos. Real joy. Suddenly, Xiao Qi had a moment of clarity, and she knew what she wanted to do.


    She wanted to create a system that everyone could use, a system where simply walking would earn you money.

 Chapter 385: Walking Money APP

    Chapter 385


    The semester had just started, and the coursework wasn''t too intense yet.


    University was actually a very relaxed environment, especially a private one like Enhua University - it was ridiculously laid-back.


    With all the various club and student council activities in full swing, there was hardly any time left for studying.


    However, the students of Xiao Qi''s dorm had become more diligent this semester.


    Mieer wasn''t constantly running off for student council work anymore and had actually settled down to study. Something had happened in her family, but unusually, she managed to keep it to herself for several days before finally opening up.


    Her family owned a factory in their hometown, making them quite influential locally, but her father had secretly fathered a child with another woman. A young widow had shown up with her son, causing a huge scene that the entire town gossiped about.


    In the end, Mieer''s mother had chosen to forgive him.


    Mieer had always had a fiery temper, so she couldn''t understand her mother''s decision at all. She felt her mother should have divorced him instead, no matter how difficult that would have been financially. How could they go on living like that?


    She didn''t understand, but then again, she did. Just her tuition fees alone were no small sum - her mother couldn''t afford to make such a stubborn stand. Before this, she had thought her parents'' favoritism toward sons was her biggest problem, but now she realized she too had to worry about making ends meet. She only told Xiao Qi about it, and even Xiao Qi didn''t know how to console her - it wasn''t something one could fully understand without being in that situation themselves. The best thing was just to focus on her studies while at university and take care of her own responsibilities before trying to help others.


    Wei Cheng, on the other hand, had become much more determined this year, no longer drifting aimlessly and balancing her studies with part-time jobs.


    Yun Shu still read novels, but not to the point of staying up all night anymore. She would only read during mealtimes and had allocated most of her time to studying.


    They had no choice - with a studious monster like Xiao Qi in their dorm, the others unconsciously felt compelled to work harder too.


    Xiao Qi had somehow finished all the courses for years one and two already and was now studying year three content. It was just freakish.


    If it had just been Xiao Qi, they could have dismissed it as a genetic anomaly, but even Zaizai, who used to rank in the 60s and had to retake multiple courses, was now studying hard. The others began to reflect on their own lack of effort.


    They also felt bad for poor Zaizai - he must have been the student at Enhua University who had the hardest time dating.


    Xiao Qi was an impulsive sort - whatever idea popped into her head, she would act on it immediately.


    It had all started with a shadow, her own transformation stemming from that system. Although she didn''t rely entirely on the system, she couldn''t deny that her success was largely due to it. While her effort now exceeded her past self by hundreds of times, the system had played a key role. Vissit  for updates


    Xiao Qi wondered what would happen if everyone had such a system. The thought had been on the tip of her tongue before, but she hadn''t fully grasped it until it crystallized, at which point it seemed only natural - this was something she should have done long ago.


    She would create a system, an app that earned money simply by walking, simulating her own progress system. Of course, it couldn''t be that generous - the base reward could be smaller.


    For instance, earning one dollar for every 10,000 steps, with constant upgrades.


    Xiao Qi''s mind raced as she meticulously planned and analyzed the feasibility.


    She found the concept of this walking-for-money system fascinating. If ordinary people had access to such an app, changing their habits would simply be a matter of perseverance. The changes might start small with walking, but they could gradually encompass all aspects of life.


    It had been the same for Xiao Qi herself at the beginning when she started running - initially just for the money, but through running, her perspectives broadened. She no longer viewed the world so narrowly, obsessed over gains and losses, or cared too much about others'' opinions. A small habit like running, persisted in daily, had brought about such immense changes.


    She believed others could achieve the same.


    From then on, everyone could sense Xiao Qi''s busyness.


    She was determined to develop this system, designing the program herself as a practical application of her studies.


    Xiao Qi planned to involve her roommates and Zaizai, leveraging their resources through mutual assistance and shared growth, even though she could have done it alone.


    She had Mieer conduct customer surveys and gather feedback on desired features if such an app existed.


    She asked Yun Shu to research any similar existing apps and their functionalities.


    Zaizai assisted with coding.


    Wei Cheng was tasked with user experience testing, identifying issues and suggesting improvements.


    Li Tangsong''s reaction was still relatively good.


    Many of Xiao Qi''s classmates thought she had lost her mind.


    Throwing so much money into creating such a ridiculous ''Walk and Earn Money'' app, did she really think apps were that easy to make and that the internet was that lucrative? If it were that easy, there would be tycoons everywhere. Why would it be your turn?


    Chu Yu, in particular, thought Su Xiao Qi was foolish.


    She assumed Xiao Qi must have been provoked by her previous comments about marrying into a wealthy family, which led Xiao Qi to stake everything on this venture.


    Chu Yu quietly watched the spectacle unfold.


    She initially expected Xiao Qi to be in a rush.


    However, to her surprise, Xiao Qi remained unfazed, seamlessly returning to her routine of diligent study.


    She attended evening self-study sessions on time, maintained her daily jogs, visited the library, the equestrian center, and audited sophomore and junior classes. Her studiousness remained unwavering.


    It was as if nothing had happened.


    Xiao Qi did feel pressure, but she did her part and left the rest to fate.


    She had done what she wanted to do and given what she could afford. The only thing left for her was to study hard, regardless of success or failure. The knowledge she gained from studying belonged to her.


    So she maintained her daily study routine, appearing calm and composed in the face of fortune or adversity.


    Mrs. Su, being kept informed by the little gossip Su Li about Xiao Qi''s situation, was deeply impressed to see the young lady maintain her diligent studies despite the circumstances. Even at her age, approaching forty, Mrs. Su could only now achieve such equanimity.


    Even if Xiao Qi failed this time, her future would not be compromised.


    On weekends, Xiao Qi still went to Zaizai''s home for tutoring. Seeing the young lady''s demeanor, Zaizai''s parents shared the same thoughts as Mrs. Su. They found Xiao Qi admirable, with an excellent attitude. Even if she failed, it would still be a valuable experience, better than their eldest son.


    As for the app''s operations, they were not charging any fees and advertising everywhere.


    On platforms like Douyin, QQ, WeChat, and various social media, there were ads everywhere.


    Even at Enhua University itself, people could see this ridiculously named ''Walk and Earn Money'' app everywhere.


    Initially, everyone thought it was a scam.


    Of course, being poor students, some decided to try it out.


    To their surprise, there was actual money involved, directly transferred to their WeChat wallet. Although not a large amount, it was still astonishing to receive free money.


    Many people then started walking frantically just for those one or two yuan, and recommended the app to those around them.


    Some people downloaded the app but found it quite challenging to earn money. At least 10,000 steps were required each day. However, the step-tracking feature was convenient, displaying the corresponding time periods when the user was walking or relatively stationary throughout the day. This was quite interesting, so some people kept the app as a regular step counter.


    Gradually, this ridiculous app became popular. If not elsewhere, at least in a prestigious private school like Enhua University where money wasn''t an issue, almost everyone had downloaded it.


    More and more people were using this app.


    Li Tangsong even spotted employees at his company using it in the elevator.


    It wasn''t just ordinary staff, but one of the company''s high-level managers earning over 700,000 yuan annually was also playing with this silly app. Li Tangsong couldn''t help but ask, "You''ve downloaded this ''Walk and Earn Money'' app too?"


    "Li, you know about this app too? Yes, I find this app very interesting. Ever since I downloaded it, I''ve consciously changed my routine to walk more every day. I feel my physical condition has improved, and my work has become smoother."


    Seeing the boss discussing this app, a nearby junior employee who had also downloaded it couldn''t resist chiming in, "President Li, I''ve downloaded this app too. You really can earn money by walking. The more you walk, the more you earn. Sometimes, when walking gets boring, it even recommends books, music, audio clips, and news, which is quite interesting."


    Li Tangsong''s feelings were mixed. Back in his office, he saw the cleaning lady mopping the floor, going back and forth repeatedly over the same area hundreds of times, with an exceptional level of diligence. Adhering to the principle of a good boss recognizing employees'' strengths, he complimented her.


    To his surprise, the cleaning lady was startled, and her phone fell out of her pocket, revealing the ''Walk and Earn Money'' app interface. She had been walking back and forth to increase her step count...

 Chapter 386: The Great Fire

    Chapter 386


    At 8:30 p.m., Li Gengyang, the host of the financial channel, was sitting behind the familiar news desk wearing a khaki-colored suit, seriously reporting the latest hot financial news.


    "...Recently, an app called ''Walk and Earn Money'' has become popular nationwide. Everyone has it, and according to current market estimates, it has reached a valuation of 200 million. Blah blah blah..."


    Toutiao, a popular news app, had occasionally shown advertisements for the ''Walk and Earn Money'' app in the past. A little figure would walk a step and earn a gold coin, which was quite interesting.


    However, today it was not an advertisement but a hot news headline on Toutiao. The ''Walk and Earn Money'' app had become a top trending news item.


    It analyzed the magical appeal of this software, its mysterious appearance out of nowhere, and the fact that it was not created by an internet tycoon but reportedly by a student as a graduation project. Yet by some fluke, it had become a nationwide sensation, with major smartphone brands partnering with it to have it pre-installed on their new phones.


    Why could an app with such a straightforward name become so popular, and why were people of all ages and genders using it?


    It''s understandable for young people, the main users of the internet, to like it because they''re often strapped for cash and are more receptive to new things. Not only does this app allow them to exercise and socialize, but their daily step counts and earnings have become a regular part of their daily conversations. Even the elderly have become users, constantly comparing their daily steps and earnings and sharing the app''s "advertisements" on their social media feeds.


    The national media platform "ZhongQingPingLun" also published an article discussing the pros and cons of students starting businesses, using the ''Walk and Earn Money'' app as an example. It praised how this student''s graduation project had become a nationwide craze, as the app had considered people''s actual situations and aligned with modern society''s fast-paced lifestyle habits, blah blah blah...


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi was diligently studying her Portuguese textbook. While she had made good progress in other foreign languages, Portuguese was still her weakest subject, and she found it quite challenging. She felt that this was related to her time management and the teacher, Teacher Aizhen, who lacked patience. Xiao Qi had struggled to learn Portuguese, and after the initial introduction, she had mostly studied it by herself. Being a less common language, there was also a lack of an immersive environment to practice.


    Zaizai was also studying by her side, reading a book while pouring Xiao Qi a cup of warm chenpi water without looking up.


    Xiao Qi sipped the water while memorizing her textbook, then put the cup down. This was their typical daily routine - studying together, with Zaizai handling the practical tasks while Xiao Qi focused on academics.


    At first, Xiao Qi was excited about the ''Walk and Earn Money'' app''s success, or rather, she remained in a daze for a week, feeling elated and unfocused.


    When she sold her house, she had gone all-in, feeling that since the assets had come from the system, if she didn''t have the system, she wouldn''t have had any of it. So whether she succeeded or failed, at least she had tried her best.


    However, when she actually invested all her money into the app, although she no longer paid attention and focused on studying, she still felt anxious deep down.


    She could only console herself that even if she lost everything and failed, at least the knowledge she had gained from studying was still hers.


    Indeed, the more books she read, the more confident Xiao Qi became.


    Even if the system suddenly disappeared one day, Xiao Qi felt that she would not be afraid anymore.


    But she never expected the app to become such a hit.


    According to Zaizai, the app''s daily revenue had exceeded ten million yuan.


    Meanwhile, Xiao Qi''s ''Walk and Earn Money'' progress system had only reached level 15, earning her just 45,000 yuan per day.


    Li Tangsong was also baffled. Previously, he had expected to keep giving money, and that this kind of app would last at most a month before the money ran out and it was over.


    He had at least given his younger brother an explanation.


    But now, despite giving out a lot of money every day, even more money kept pouring in from advertisements, audio content, novels, and various partnerships. However, due to Xiao Qi''s initial rule of only displaying three advertisements per day, a huge amount of money was being turned away...


    The accounting professor was a bit more reserved, but Xiao Qi was such an exceptional student that he appreciated her talent. He gave Xiao Qi a detailed introduction to becoming a professor at Tsinghua and Peking University, allowing her to choose which field she wanted to pursue.


    Calculus Professor Lu was much more enthusiastic. She helped Xiao Qi research her options and even invited Xiao Qi to her home for dinner, along with her retired husband who enjoyed fishing and gardening in their leisure time.


    On the first visit, Xiao Qi brought along Zaizai.


    Nowadays, the two were openly together, which was known to everyone. Yet both of them were excellent role models, never engaging in any inappropriate intimacy in public settings. So the student disciplinary committee had no reason to apprehend them or make them write self-criticisms.


    After all, their relationship had been reported to the school director, Ms. Su.


    Originally, Xiao Shengzhou wanted Xiao Qi to take over as the student union president. It wasn''t because he favored Xiao Qi, but because he found her to be level-headed, unperturbed by honor or humiliation, a generous and kind person. When she didn''t have much money earlier, she donated what she had to build schools in impoverished mountainous areas. And it wasn''t just a one-time gesture: Xiao Shengzhou learned that whenever Xiao Qi received an award or a substantial income, she had a habit of making donations, without any publicity.


    He knew this because Xiao Qi didn''t fully understand the process and consulted him on how to donate properly, ensuring the money wouldn''t be misused and would genuinely help those in need. Xiao Shengzhou realized she wasn''t just putting on a show for him: she had no need to do so, and he wasn''t that important to her.


    When Xiao Shengzhou first learned about Xiao Qi and Li Weijin''s relationship, he felt hurt, wondering why he couldn''t measure up to that young boy, who was just a bit better looking.


    But observing how they interacted, Xiao Shengzhou started to understand why it was him and not Xiao Shengzhou himself.


    When Xiao Qi bathed her horse, Xiao Shengzhou would watch and smile, but rarely lend a hand. He wasn''t skilled at such tasks. But Li Weijin would join in, getting soaked and laughing wholeheartedly.


    At mealtimes, Xiao Shengzhou would thoughtfully ask Xiao Qi what she''d like to order, but he wouldn''t get up to fetch condiments or serve her food, as he wasn''t used to helping with such minor tasks.


    One would expect a young master like Li Weijin to be even more pampered, but in reality, he was far more attentive than Xiao Shengzhou himself. He even paid attention to water temperature, carrying a 52¡ãC thermos to pour Xiao Qi water she could drink right away.


    In contrast, Xiao Qi wasn''t too particular about such details in her daily life. Initially, Xiao Shengzhou appreciated her lack of fussiness, assuming she wasn''t finicky. But seeing how well Li Weijin took care of her, he realized she was just a young girl whose youthful needs he had overlooked due to her outstanding performance. After a few such realizations, he no longer felt bitter, and was even glad they hadn''t ended up together.


    Otherwise, he wouldn''t be able to provide that level of attentiveness, even regarding something as simple as water temperature: it was beyond his capability. Since he couldn''t do it himself, he stopped resenting Li Weijin''s ability.


    When he learned that Li Weijin had lost a lot of hair and shaved his head to keep up with Xiao Qi''s studies, Xiao Shengzhou even felt sympathy for the young man: it couldn''t have been easy.


    Now, Zaizai''s shaved head had grown a dark stubble, making him look exceptionally energetic. Previously, his handsome appearance and slightly long hair had given him an androgynous look, but the shaved head made him look refreshingly masculine, leaving no doubt about his gender.


    Teacher Lu was an elderly lady in her sixties or seventies, living with her husband. They had a grandson around Xiao Qi''s age and a granddaughter who was already working. They were delighted when Xiao Qi and Zaizai visited.


    The two young people were good-looking and hardworking, pleasing the elderly couple.


    Li Weijin used to be a troublemaker with poor grades, accomplishing nothing: his good looks weren''t enough to make people like him. But now he was diligent in his studies, earning the teachers'' approval and admiration for his industrious pursuit of knowledge.


    Xiao Qi and Zaizai comfortably shared a lunch with Teacher Lu''s family, like visiting relatives, writing calligraphy with her husband and admiring their garden: a warm and intimate gathering.


    Teacher Lu suggested Xiao Qi pursue graduate studies in mathematics, as she had a natural gift for it, with strong logical reasoning and a quick mind.


    Xiao Qi herself lacked confidence. In middle school, she found math too easy, effortlessly scoring perfect marks. In high school, her math performance was outstanding, but amongst the talented peers, her excellence wasn''t particularly remarkable. She wasn''t very self-assured.


    If she chose a field, it would determine her main area of study for the next few years, so she was quite cautious in her decision.

 Chapter 387: Entrance Examination for Graduate School

    Chapter 387


    After visiting Teacher Lu''s home with Zaizai, the two envied the serenity of Teacher Lu''s married life on their way back. Though their combined age was over 130, their affection for each other still seemed strong.


    Zaizai''s parents had a good relationship, and despite being poor, Xiao Qi''s parents also shared a rare bond.


    The elders guided the two to believe that staying together for a lifetime would be ideal.


    Initially, their attraction was based on looks.


    Zaizai was drawn to Xiao Qi''s dashing charm, while Xiao Qi craved Zaizai''s handsome appearance.


    As they spent more time together, Zaizai admired Xiao Qi''s diligence, and Xiao Qi was touched by Zaizai''s sincerity.


    Now, Zaizai revered Xiao Qi''s excellence and decisiveness, while Xiao Qi had grown accustomed to Zaizai''s attentiveness.


    The two studied together daily, and their feelings only grew more intimate, never waning.


    Zaizai became more diligent, determined to keep up with Xiao Qi''s pace, study hard, complete the required credits, and attend graduate school at the same university as Xiao Qi.


    Before, he didn''t have to worry about anything, yet he was never happy.


    Now, despite the busyness of his studies, he felt fulfilled and joyful each day.


    Previously, Xiao Qi had to worry about everything, but she never accomplished anything well.


    Now, she rarely worried, seeing current issues as trivial matters that would seem insignificant ten years later.


    Hence, studying was her top priority, and everything else was just an obstacle on her path.


    Even for the wildly popular Walk and Earn Money APP, after setting the rules and regulations, Xiao Qi no longer interfered with its operations.


    Despite the operational team''s desires to add savings, investment, and audiobook features, they were all rejected, as Xiao Qi firmly remembered the APP''s original purpose: a simple progress tracking system.


    It aimed to change people''s lifestyles by encouraging them to walk every day.


    She had considered adding rewards or buffs for reaching certain milestones, but she planned to implement that after being admitted to graduate school.


    For now, her focus remained on graduate school preparation.


    Stage 2: Improvement (July - September)


    Stage 3: Sprint (October - December)


    In total, she had nearly a year''s time.


    Xiao Qi began her preparation in the second semester of her freshman year, focusing on English and mathematics during the foundation-building stage. While she felt confident in her English abilities, she considered Zaizai might struggle, so she planned to review the basics with him.


    For mathematics, Teacher Lu provided her with a comprehensive set of graduate school materials, which she intended to study thoroughly to solidify her foundation.


    During the summer break, Xiao Qi planned to focus on improving and reviewing what she had previously learned through practice questions and mock exams.


    In the next semester, she would prepare for the sprint stage, covering political studies and specialized subjects while continuing to practice English and mathematics through practice tests and exams.


    This process would span around ten months.


    When broken down into monthly, weekly, and daily tasks, the workload seemed manageable if she followed the plan diligently.


    Xiao Qi considered Zaizai when creating this detailed plan, intending for them to support and encourage each other in completing it.


    Xiao Qi devoted herself to studying and maintained a low profile, no longer concerning herself with external matters.


    News about the founder of the Walk and Earn Money APP had briefly sparked interest but was quickly replaced by newer stories.


    Time flew by during their studies.


    By the first semester of their sophomore year, Xiao Qi had applied for the mathematics graduate program at Tsinghua and Peking University, while Zaizai had applied for the information management graduate program at the same universities.


    The two took the entrance exams together.


    Xiao Qi achieved the top score on the written exam, while Zaizai narrowly passed the cutoff score.


    However, the admission process also included an interview.


    With Xiao Qi''s impressive resume and outstanding interview performance, the faculty immediately approved her admission.


    As for Zaizai, his father''s donation of a building to the university helped him narrowly gain admission.


    Children who can''t study well tend to be expensive.

 Chapter 388: Outstanding Graduate Speech

    Chapter 388


    The final exams of the second semester were over.


    Xiao Qi and her roommates bought canned beer, potato chips, edamame, and peanuts to eat in their dorm room.


    They generally didn''t drink alcohol.


    But since they were in the dorm, even if they drank too much, they could just lie down on their beds.


    This year, Honey''s parents didn''t get divorced, but her father was diagnosed with stomach cancer and stayed at home to recuperate.


    Ironically, Poetry''s parents divorced - Poetry followed her mother, while her older sister followed her father.


    Poetry''s mother no longer impulsively sent over piles of luxury goods. Instead, she fell in love with selling second-hand luxury items and even opened her own second-hand store.


    Wei Cheng''s parents were still growing mushrooms, but they had expanded their cultivation base, hired many employees, and were no longer ordinary mushroom farmers - they were showing signs of becoming landlords.


    Xiao Qi''s parents went to the Capital City and opened a bamboo weaving store there. The Capital had many old customers, and business was much better than in Lvshan City. Xiao Qi''s mother continued her live broadcasts twice a week and had become a moderately famous host.


    Zaizai''s parents never expected to see their younger son succeed in their lifetime - he was admitted to the graduate program at Tsinghua and Peking University! That was all due to their son''s excellence, which gave them the opportunity to show off.


    Their daughter-in-law was even more outstanding, a true academic star who outshone their eldest son. Initially, their eldest had also studied well but didn''t get into Tsinghua and Peking University, so he went abroad for further studies. The couple felt that foreign universities were good, but still not as good as Tsinghua and Peking University.


    Li Tangsong thought: I worked as hard as an ox and a horse, yet my only remaining identity as an academic star is also being surpassed?


    Zaizai''s parents went to the Capital City first to buy a house with a courtyard near Tsinghua and Peking University. Just in case their younger son and daughter-in-law had a child in the future, their grandchild would have a place to live and play after being born.


    The couple had particularly good intentions - since they were both sons themselves, they had always wanted a daughter. But they were too old to have a third child themselves, so their hope rested on their eldest son having a daughter. Unfortunately, that prospect seemed slim as their eldest still didn''t have a girlfriend. Gao Cuihua secretly glimpsed her eldest son''s checklist for a future wife: planning to get married in May next year, girlfriend requirement - frugal, doctorate degree, above average looks... Gao Cuihua felt she might never live to see her eldest find a girlfriend in this lifetime.


    Fortunately, their younger son was outstanding and already had a girlfriend. They had even picked out a nickname for their future granddaughter: Little Penguin.


    Just imagining her waddling gait made them feel she would be so adorable and lovable.


    Xiao Qi didn''t know about Zaizai''s parents'' far-reaching plans. For now, she was drinking with her roommates in the dorm.


    Since she had completed all her credits ahead of time, she was graduating after her second year and would be enrolling directly at Tsinghua and Peking University next semester.


    She would have to part ways with her roommates.


    Over the past two years, the four roommates got along extremely well. Although they came from different backgrounds, becoming roommates when they were 17 or 18 years old - an age of being mature yet inexperienced - their friendship was very genuine. When you''re young, you don''t understand the meaning of friendship; when you''re older, you''re unwilling to truly open up and make new friends.


    So the relationship at this age could be considered lifelong friends.


    Bonds forged from being fellow students, a blessing for three lifetimes.


    Despite their differing family backgrounds, they all had good personalities. Each had some minor flaws, but overall, they were kindhearted people at their core who got along splendidly.


    Xiao Qi''s presence had subtly changed them.


    Wei Cheng became much more confident and no longer felt inferior or overly melancholic, though her tendency to be scatterbrained remained. Still, her gentle nature persisted.


    Poetry stopped being engrossed in novels and neglecting herself. Instead, she studied hard and embraced life more actively, becoming a cultured young lady. Now that her parents were divorced, her mother took greater pride in her.


    Honey also changed greatly. Originally an uninhibited small-town girl who lacked worldliness and composure, she developed a poised and stylish demeanor with excellent temperament. She read more books and spoke with more care, while retaining her frank personality that made her approachable, amiable, and inspiring to others.


    Xiao Qi and her roommates drank and reminisced about when they had just arrived at the university.


    Looking back, they all seemed so unsophisticated at first.


    Poetry wore a dress that made her look like an elementary schooler.


    Wei Cheng dressed like a boy - if not for being in the girls'' dorm, one would have mistaken her for a young man.


    Honey was so plump and full-figured... Xiao Qi looked unapproachable and fierce at first.


    The group joked and made a ruckus, which brought Su Li from the neighboring dorm over to join them.


    In their second year, Su Li had a good relationship with their dorm. According to Chu Yu''s uncharitable view, Su Li was a social climber who cozied up to Room 606 because she knew they all came from wealthy families.


    Chu Yu''s unpleasant personality remained unchanged. Despite being sickly for two years, she was still lively and rambunctious. The others had grown accustomed to her ways by now.


    The number of boys pursuing her had also decreased - the once-naive freshmen boys had matured into sophomores over the past two years, growing more sensible.


    Unexpectedly, the person Su Li admired most wasn''t Poetry or Honey, but Wei Cheng.


    Perhaps it was because Wei Cheng''s kind nature made one feel at ease, as she never seemed to get angry.


    Xiao Qi was also a little nervous.


    Although she had given many speeches, it seemed like she would always feel nervous to some degree.


    The level of nervousness just varied.


    This time, she was proud to be able to give a graduation speech as an outstanding graduate representative of Enhua.


    Standing in front of the main stage, Xiao Qi remembered the military training when she wore a camouflage uniform, held up the class banner, and walked past the main stage.


    Now she stood here, looking at the dense crowd of students below.


    She took a deep breath.


    She began, "Fellow students, teachers, hello everyone. I am Xiao Qi from the 19th class of Information Management, and I''m very pleased to be here as an outstanding graduate student representative to give a speech..."


    As soon as she finished her self-introduction, the students who weren''t paying attention at first started whispering curiously.


    "She''s graduating after just her sophomore year?"


    "Can sophomores really graduate?"


    "Yes, if you complete enough credits. She finished all the credits required for a four-year degree, and they say she was number one in every class, even better than the senior students," one of Xiao Qi''s fans explained.


    "That''s right, that''s right. Not only did Xiao Qi graduate early, but her boyfriend also graduated early," another fan added.


    Many of the freshmen enrolled at Enhua specifically because of Xiao Qi. Their high school scores weren''t ideal, barely above the second-tier university level, and they might have been relegated to a lower-ranked school. So many chose Enhua on purpose.


    Because of Xiao Qi, they thought Enhua was a pretty good choice.


    "The senior is going to Tsinghua and Peking University for graduate studies..."


    The sophomore and junior students, as well as those graduating this year, had mixed feelings.


    The sophomores felt both proud and ashamed, as a classmate from the same year had already graduated...


    The juniors just felt ashamed.


    The seniors felt even more ashamed. Not only had a sophomore underclassman graduated, but she had also been admitted to Tsinghua and Peking University for graduate studies.


    "Time flies. It feels like just yesterday that we entered Enhua. On the first day, I saw the welcome banner that said, ''Today, you take pride in Enhua. Tomorrow, Enhua will take pride in you.'' At that time, I was naive and thought the phrase sounded cool with its parallel structure. Today, I think I''ve achieved that. And I believe you can too. After today, some seniors will be leaving the school, while some juniors and underclassmen will continue studying here. Let me share with you my learning experience. Whether you''re entering the workforce or continuing your studies, I think it will be useful..."


    Xiao Qi didn''t talk about the future or boast. Instead, she earnestly introduced her learning methods - making plans, big plans, and then small plans, and then working diligently to achieve them.


    This approach was very useful, at least it had proven effective for her and Zaizai.


    "...That''s about it for my learning methods. Of course, everyone is different, so you''ll need to adapt based on your own experiences. Finally, I''m very grateful for the opportunity to attend university and have this chance to study.


    University is a great melting pot. Not only do you learn academic knowledge, but you also learn about dealing with people and personal growth.


    It''s a buffer before entering society. The few years spent here allow a person''s character to mature and settle. It''s a very necessary experience.


    If given the opportunity, no matter who you are, you should attend university. It''s a precious treasure."


    Xiao Qi spoke from the heart. This was her true belief.


    If given the opportunity and means, one should study more.


    Reading leads to success and growth.


    Reading is a shortcut to happiness.


    When Xiao Qi finished, thunderous applause erupted from below.


    She bowed to her classmates and teachers before leaving the stage.


    Her speech video was quickly posted on the official Douyin (Chinese TikTok) platform.


    Everyone thought she gave an excellent speech, full of useful advice.


    A girl who had failed the college entrance exam and planned to work in Haicheng put her packed luggage away. She wouldn''t go to Haicheng anymore; she would retake the exam to get into university.


    A student who had been admitted to a third-tier university decided not to attend, thinking it wouldn''t be worthwhile.


    But after watching this video, he went to tell his parents that he would still go to university.


    A young girl who had already dropped out to work at a milk tea shop secretly watched the video while working. Tears streamed down her face as she brewed tea for customers. After her shift ended, she quit her job, deciding to go back to school...

 Chapter 389: School Starts (End)

    Chapter 389


    September in the golden autumn.


    The sky is a clear blue.


    The logo of Tsinghua and Peking University, with its golden patterns and sapphire background, shines brightly under the sun.


    Unlike Enhua University, whose main gate is usually closed, the main gate of Tsinghua and Peking University is wide open, revealing a broad path lined with lush trees.


    Standing at the entrance, there is an overwhelming sense of grandeur.


    Very excited.


    Xiao Qi looks up at the four characters "Tsinghua and Peking University," and her hands and feet are trembling slightly.


    This is probably the dream place for all students.


    Very distant.


    But now it''s right in front of her.


    Zaizai stands beside Xiao Qi, not as excited. Coming from a wealthy family, his aspiration for this top university is more of an added bonus, not a necessity. But for Xiao Qi, who comes from a humble background, Tsinghua and Peking University represent the highest path for children from poor families.


    Regardless of your background, you have the opportunity to come here, it''s very fair. Ne?ww chapters will be fully updated at novelhall.com


    But it''s actually unfair. Coming from a humble background means having fewer channels for acquiring knowledge and requiring more effort to succeed here.


    Xiao Qi used to feel that this place was unreachable, but now she stands at the gate of Tsinghua and Peking University.


    Although she has the boost from the system, Xiao Qi indeed feels that she has put in effort to study.


    There is a difference between studying diligently and not. Xiao Qi can feel it herself.


    Before, she was just half-hearted, studying hard on the surface, especially in the period before the college entrance examination. Sometimes, she would wake up at three or four in the morning just to do exercises.


    But the efficiency was very low; she wasn''t absorbing the knowledge, just going through the motions, pretending for herself.


    To truly study well, one must be down-to-earth and conscientious, learn little by little, and also understand the importance of balancing work and rest, exercising and studying are both important.


    Studying to death or reading dead books is useless.


    Now she studies even harder than in her senior year of high school, but she doesn''t feel as tired as she did back then. She exercises every day, schedules her study time well, learns multiple subjects, and still feels at ease.


    Standing at the gate of Tsinghua and Peking University, there is a sense of pride in fulfilling one''s wish.


    Unable to suppress her smile, she smiles foolishly.


    Today is the first day of school, and many freshmen are registering, with people coming and going constantly.


    Xiao Qi and Zaizai didn''t stay at the gate for too long; the two of them went in with their suitcases.


    Not far from the school gate, there is a beautiful Mercedes-Benz parked, with several young people inside, their eyes showing signs of staying up late last night.


    Today, Chen Zhouzhou has once again dragged everyone to see this year''s new female students at Tsinghua and Peking University.


    They didn''t want to come, but they couldn''t resist Chen Zhouzhou''s insistence. It''s not interesting to play with ordinary girls; they want to play with the smart ones.


    Most of these people are second-generation rich, with power and influence, and they were persuaded to come over laughing and jokingly to see the new dinosaurs entering the park.


    Those who can get into Tsinghua and Peking University are either nerdy or plain-looking, hardly any good-looking ones, except for Chen Zhouzhou, whose taste is peculiar, and he''s not picky at all.


    Parking is not allowed at the school gate, so they parked on the side and looked around boredly.


    Sure enough, most of them are dinosaurs.


    A few who look decent are still very rural.


    They were about to leave, but unexpectedly, there are actually some good-looking ones.


    There was a young girl, dressed in a blue-trimmed white sports suit with sport pants, her hair tied up in a small bun, dragging a suitcase beside her. There was a young boy by her side, handing her water, and they looked very close.


    "Bet eight LV bags, they must be a couple," someone remarked.


    But despite her ordinary appearance, the young girl was actually quite charming.


    Especially after seeing so many girls with glasses or somewhat unattractive, the young girl seemed refreshingly elegant and dazzling.


    She stood silly at the school gate, smiling foolishly at the sign of Tsinghua and Peking University.


    That smile was like a cool spring in the hot summer, trickling into their hearts.


    Even Li Rui, who usually looked down on others, was now earnestly watching the girl.


    Li Rui was the most reliable among the group, sort of their leader, and he was unexpectedly dragged here today.


    Every night, she would go to the large playground by Qingbei Lake for a run.


    Comparatively frugal, with average looks, Xiao Qi''s parents spoke with a rural accent over the phone, indicating their modest background. She had a somewhat handsome boyfriend, also a graduate student, whom she got admitted to the same program with.


    Chen Zhouzhou was meticulous; he only made his move after gathering information.


    He even staked out for a few days, finding that this young girl''s appearance matched his preferences, which made him somewhat serious.


    One day, when Xiao Qi was heading to her lab class, her roommate asked her to wait for her at the Tang Song Experiment Building. Xiao Qi found it a bit strange since her roommate had always been distant. Nevertheless, she didn''t dwell on it and waited at the entrance.


    Unexpectedly, her roommate didn''t show up, and a guy came looking for her instead.


    "Hello, Xiao Qi. Let me introduce myself. I''m Chen Zhouzhou from Capital City University of Science."


    As he spoke, he handed her a business card with not only his student identity but also several titles, including ownership of three companies, one of which was an entertainment company.


    Capital City University of Science was considered a decent university from an outsider''s perspective, but it wasn''t prestigious within the capital; it was the kind of school where one could get by.


    Xiao Qi took the card, unsure of his intentions.


    Recently, there had been many confessions, so Xiao Qi felt it might be another tactic.


    "Are you willing to be in a relationship with me?" Chen Zhouzhou asked straightforwardly.


    He was quite handsome, well-off, and had just alighted from his Mercedes-Benz, conveniently parking at the entrance of the Tang Song Experiment Building.


    That car alone cost over two million.


    At their university, driving such a car, extending a hand, and offering to drop off any girl on the way was hard to refuse.


    "Sorry, I already have a boyfriend," Xiao Qi said promptly.


    "I know. Is it the classmate you entered grad school with? What''s the use of a classmate? Even if they graduate from a top university, they still need to find a job. A million-yuan annual salary is nothing compared to my monthly pocket money. You''re excellent, beautiful, and you deserve better," Chen Zhouzhou said earnestly.


    He could be considered promising; although he relied on his parents, he had achieved quite a lot by leveraging his advantages. The combined market value of his companies was close to a hundred million.


    He genuinely liked the girl in front of him; she had good looks, seemed clean, and was intelligent. It''s just that her family background was too ordinary. However, that didn''t matter; who said dating had to lead to marriage? You could splurge during your prime youth.


    Xiao Qi had been reading, feeling uncomfortable with her head down. Now, as she relaxed her neck and looked up, she saw the golden characters of the Tang Song Experiment Building''s signboard, and couldn''t help but smile.


    Zaizai had no classes in the afternoon, so he came to accompany Xiao Qi to her lab.


    When he saw Xiao Qi at the entrance with a stranger, he frowned a bit.


    But after glancing at the stranger, he concluded that the guy wasn''t as good-looking as himself, so he let it go.


    Seeing Zaizai approaching, Xiao Qi''s face lit up with a smile, feeling extremely joyful.


    Seeing her smile, Chen Zhouzhou was momentarily captivated, thinking she was smiling at him. She looked really beautiful when she smiled, and his heart fluttered.


    However, when he saw the approaching guy, Chen Zhouzhou''s face darkened.


    "It''s almost time for class, why don''t you go in?" Zaizai stepped forward, habitually ruffling Xiao Qi''s hair, making it even messier and cuter, completely ignoring Chen Zhouzhou. He grabbed Xiao Qi''s hand and pulled her towards the laboratory building.


    Chen Zhouzhou reluctantly followed but was stopped by Li Weijin.


    "Classmate, it''s time for class, you should leave."


    "Is this building yours? I''ll go in if I want." Chen Zhouzhou scoffed. She hadn''t expected this young boy to be so handsome, but looks weren''t everything. She knew that being good-looking wouldn''t get you far in the real world; that''s why she was so confident.


    Xiao Qi''s expression turned strange: ...this building really was his family''s.


    The two entered the classroom together.


    A familiar mechanical voice sounded in Xiao Qi''s ear: "Host performance excellent, inspiring others'' initiative, reward: +1 agility for the host."


    As soon as they entered the classroom, a classmate accidentally knocked a chip off the table. Seeing the chip, which the teacher said cost tens of thousands, about to make intimate contact with the ground, Xiao Qi gently rotated her body and reached out, catching the chip in one smooth motion, seamlessly placing it back on the table.


    Standing up straight, she reached out and held Zaizai''s hand.


    Zaizai gently rubbed her hand. "Will it hurt? Be careful not to scrape your hand."


    Xiao Qi shook her head. "It doesn''t hurt."


    The teacher and students: ...


    Xiao Qi and Zaizai found a seat and earnestly began to listen to the lesson and take notes.


    Both of them were studying diligently.


    What happened at the entrance of the laboratory building just now had no effect on Xiao Qi. She was now actively learning, improving herself, and at the same time, helping more people in need, becoming a truly useful member of society.


    The brush in her hand swiftly brushed across the notebook, occasionally lifting her head to look at the slides on the platform. Time flew by.