Chapter 8: The Rival Is…

The moment Jiang Nian saw the mission panel, he was still a little dazed.

Five thousand yuan?

That’s right, he always looked at the rewards first; what the mission was wasn’t important.

As he was on his way home and Xu Qianqian was talking to him, Jiang Nian only had time to glance at the reward before hastily closing the panel.

After getting the System, Jiang Nian’s mindset changed.

Twenty years later, he would divorce.

If he followed his original life trajectory, he would endure twenty years of a terrible, painful existence: weak, insecure, degenerate, a failure, and a failed marriage.

If the future was destined to be a tragedy, then to hell with it.

Unconsciously, the two arrived downstairs. Just as Jiang Nian was about to go up the dark stairwell, Xu Qianqian suddenly called out to him. He couldn’t help but turn to look at her.

“What’s wrong?”

“‘Gui Qu Lai Xi Ci,’ ‘I understand that what is past cannot be mended,’ what comes after that?” she asked. In the darkness, only the girl’s vague outline could be seen, her voice clear.

Jiang Nian was stunned. He had memorized all the ancient poems for the college entrance exam during his memory period, so he instinctively recited it.

“…‘I know that what is to come can still be pursued. I have not strayed too far from the path, and I realize that today is right and yesterday was wrong.’”

Xu Qianqian took a step forward. In the darkness, the outline of the girl’s delicate face became clearer. Her eyes, a mix of light and shadow, were like water, and she said seriously,

“It’s not too late now; everything is still possible.”

He knew Xu Qianqian was talking about the college entrance exam, but in that instant, Jiang Nian couldn’t help but feel a little lost.

The missions in the System were all related to Xu Qianqian. If it wasn’t too late at thirty-eight, then what about now, at eighteen? Had he been on the wrong path from the start?

The person most suitable for him might be right beside him.

Just as this thought arose, he heard Xu Qianqian say,

“I have an English test paper here.”

“Ahem, I know.” Jiang Nian was quick-witted and immediately stopped Xu Qianqian from taking out the test paper from her backpack without a word. “It’s getting late. Can we look at it tomorrow?”

Xu Qianqian rolled her eyes at him, flicked her neat ponytail, and went upstairs.

“Whatever you want.”

Back home.

Jiang Nian threw his backpack aside, intending to take a shower and then lie on his bed to carefully examine the mission panel. However, his mother called him, asking about the express delivery.

“Oh, the shoes I bought for you and Old Jiang. They were on sale, so it was quite a good deal.”

“Why are you spending that wasteful money? Just buy for yourself.” His mother nagged, “I’m not without shoes. Don’t always spend money so lavishly.”

Old Jiang heard this and also came over to say a few words. It was nothing more than that earning money was good, but he should save it for himself, as there would be many places to use money in the future, and so on.

Jiang Nian covered his ears and rushed to the bathroom, completely impervious, not listening, not listening.

Facts prove that parents are always creatures who say one thing but do another.

When Jiang Nian came out after his shower, Old Jiang’s new leather shoes were already polished and placed on the top shelf of the shoe rack. His mother’s pair of shoes was no exception, with the laces tied.

Wiping his head, he couldn’t help but smile as he returned to his room.

Jiang Nian skillfully turned on the air conditioner and electric fan, letting his hair dry naturally. He picked up the water glass from the table with one hand and opened the System mission panel with the other.

“Hmm? A love rival?”

He scanned the mission description and paused at the sentence, “never spoke from high school to university.” What kind of ruthless person was this, a secret crush plot?

Jiang Nian wasn’t surprised that someone had a secret crush on Xu Qianqian. He had grown up seeing Xu Qianqian as a rival, and they knew each other inside and out, having long lost the filter of distance.

In the eyes of outsiders, Xu Qianqian was a well-behaved girl with fair skin, a good figure, and excellent grades.

In the master bedroom of the Jiang family.

Li Hongmei tossed and turned, unable to sleep, thinking about the shoes her son bought for them. In the darkness, she couldn’t help but nudge her husband.

Old Jiang immediately shivered, tensing his body and pretending to be asleep.

“Stop pretending, you’re awake,” Li Hongmei said coldly.

“…Hmm? Hongmei?” Old Jiang turned over, looking like he had just woken up and couldn’t open his eyes. “It’s so late. The neighbors are all asleep. What’s wrong with you?”

With one sentence, all the buffs were maxed out.

Li Hongmei was speechless. “I’m talking to you about something serious. Don’t you think we should intervene with Xiaonian playing games? Earning money is good, but what if it delays his studies?”

“How about we talk to him tomorrow and tell him not to play anymore?”

Old Jiang thought for a moment and said, “I don’t think that’s appropriate.”

“What’s inappropriate about it? Do you know how important the third year of high school is?” Li Hongmei became anxious, sat up, and said, “If he doesn’t get into a good university, he’ll hit a wall everywhere in society.”

“I know all that. Don’t worry, let me analyze it slowly.” Old Jiang was a slow-tempered person and always patient. “Whom did the child think of first when he just earned money?”

“I estimate Xiaonian spent at least fifteen or sixteen hundred. Perhaps all the money he earned was spent on us, going into our stomachs and on our feet.”

Hearing this, Li Hongmei’s brows also relaxed.

“Xiaonian is a good child, but good children can’t find jobs, and what if he doesn’t go to university?”

“Don’t worry, let me finish.” Old Jiang put his hand on his wife’s shoulder. “We can talk to Xiaonian after the monthly exam results come out next week.”

“I also think you should praise the child more these days, instead of always having a stern face.”

“I know, I know, you talk too much.” Li Hongmei rolled up her blanket. “Sleep, sleep. I still have to work tomorrow. Blah, blah, blah, as if you’re so great.”

Old Jiang: “…”

The next day.

Jiang Nian went out to buy breakfast and specifically brought a portion for Xu Qianqian, so the two “coincidentally” walked to school together again.

Xu Qianqian pouted, “Offering courtesies for no reason means either mischief or theft.”

“How am I offering courtesies for no reason? Didn’t you agree to teach me math?” Jiang Nian quickened his steps to catch up, and the two rounded a narrow alley to reach the street outside.

“Oh.” Xu Qianqian bit into a vegetable bun with peace of mind, squinting as she sipped her soy milk. “Why do you always buy soy milk? I want strawberry-flavored yogurt.”

“Stop messing around, soy milk is good for the brain,” he said.

The street was bathed in clear sunlight, lush green trees, and dappled sunlight fell on the uneven pavement of the shops along the street. Breakfast shops were crowded with students, surrounded by white steam.

“Hmm? I’ve never heard that soy milk can boost brain power?” Xu Qianqian walked ahead in her white sneakers, turning her head to ask curiously, “Isn’t walnut milk the one that boosts brain power?”

Soy milk is rich in plant estrogen, which nourishes the baby’s cafeteria, and naturally also the baby’s brain.

Jiang Nian thought to himself, it’s not for your brain. “Who told you walnuts boost brain power? It’s completely a psychological effect.”

“Is that so?”

Sunlight fell through the girl’s hair, and their discussion faded into the distance.

As they were about to enter the school gate, Jiang Nian, seemingly casually, asked without a trace of emotion,

“Hey, is there a boy named Zhou Haifei in your class?”

Hearing this, Xu Qianqian stopped in her tracks.

“A boy?”

“Yeah, what’s wrong?”

“There is indeed a Zhou Haifei in our class, but—” Xu Qianqian looked at Jiang Nian, her pink lips slightly parted, “—she’s a girl. It should be Zhou Haifei.”

Jiang Nian was stunned. “A girl?”

Damn it! What kind of lesbian is this?