Chen Qing was a repeat student.

The distance from Anqing County to Qijing Village wasn’t short, so Xia Xiaolan had assumed he wouldn’t be back until the following weekend.

Unexpectedly, he showed up again that very evening.

“You didn’t go to school today?”

It was already dark, so it was hard to tell whether Chen Qing was blushing or not. Carrying a large bundle, he handed it to Xia Xiaolan.

“Didn’t I say I’d borrow some books for you? These are from a classmate of mine. He got into university this year, so he doesn’t need his high school textbooks anymore. I brought them for you.”

He made it sound easy. In reality, he had spent the entire day securing those books.

Borrowing a set of old textbooks wasn’t difficult, but when the owner had been admitted to university?

That was a different story.

Those books were in high demand, because they contained notes from a successful student. Sometimes, just reading those annotations could help someone finally understand a difficult concept.

A few extra points on an exam could change a person’s fate.

Originally, Chen Qing had borrowed this set for himself.

His classmate had already left for university in another city, and Chen Qing had only retrieved the books from the family that day. But after some thought, he chose to give them to Xia Xiaolan instead.

She wanted to take the college entrance exam. He didn’t know how strong her academic foundation was... she hadn’t even attended high school.

But that only meant she needed these annotated books more than he did.

Chen Qing didn’t think she was being unrealistic. After his initial surprise, he found himself admiring her determination.

Xia Xiaolan had no idea about the hidden value behind those textbooks.But the fact that Chen Qing had brought them so quickly showed he truly cared.

They weren’t even that close...

Before this, they had rarely crossed paths in Qijing Village. It was only in the past half month that they had really gotten to know each other.

The thought moved her.

“Brother Chen Qing… I don’t even know how to thank you…”

Standing against the light, Chen Qing watched as the glow from the Li family’s lamp spilled over the courtyard wall, illuminating Xia Xiaolan’s fair, luminous face.

He felt as though his entire face had caught fire.

Quickly steadying himself, he forced the conversation back to business.

“I asked around for you today. County No. 1 High School does accept transfer students... but since you only have a middle school education, you’ll have to pass an entrance exam.”

“Whether you choose arts or science, your score has to exceed last year’s technical college cutoff before they’ll let you transfer in.”

Chen Qing lowered his head, his tone uneasy and frustrated.

He felt like he hadn’t done enough.

For high school students taking the college entrance exam, there were four tiers of results:

Key Universities,

Ordinary Universities,

Junior Colleges,

and Technical Secondary Colleges.

To maintain its admission rate, County No. 1 High School set strict score requirements, even for repeat students. But surpassing last year’s technical college cutoff was no easy feat.

Chen Qing himself ranked in the top fifteen of his class, yet even with a steady performance last year, a miscalculation in estimating his score had cost him admission to his desired school.

With his ranking, his total score still hadn’t reached the undergraduate cutoff.

And Xia Xiaolan? She had only graduated from middle school. Could she really reach that threshold?

Chen Qing was still just a student. He had no connections to pull strings.

He could only follow the school’s rules.

Xia Xiaolan remained silent for a long time.

Growing anxious, Chen Qing hurriedly added,

“Don’t worry. I’ll talk to my grandfather! He might know someone in the county. Even if you can’t get into No. 1 High School, No. 2 High School should definitely be possible.”

The teaching quality at County No. 2 High School wasn’t as good.

But if there were no better options, it was still a place to study.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Xia Xiaolan quickly explained.

“You misunderstood, Brother Chen Qing. I don’t want to trouble Grandpa Chen. It’s not that I’m being distant. I just think that if I can’t even reach the technical college cutoff, there’s no point in transferring and taking next year’s exam anyway.”

“Oh, by the way... what’s this year’s science cutoff for technical colleges in our province?”

Was it just his imagination?

Or was it sheer fearlessness born of ignorance?

The way she talked about surpassing the cutoff made it sound as easy as selling eggs in the county town.

But this wasn’t business. Being good at trade didn’t mean being good at studying.

“This year’s science cutoff is 350, out of a total of 690.” Chen Qing said.

“Xiaolan, I suggest you choose the arts track. There’s more memorization involved. Science requires physics and chemistry…”

For most girls, subjects like physics and chemistry felt like trying to think through a layer of grease.

To be honest, even Chen Qing himself often felt lost when facing those problems.

He meant well, but Xia Xiaolan didn’t take his advice.

“Is there a set time for the entrance exam?”

“Next Monday.”

“Then I’ll go through these books first and take the exam next Monday.”

Seven days.

A middle school graduate… planning to take the transfer exam for County No. 1 High School?

Chen Qing was speechless.

He almost fled.

Her confidence unsettled him. He was afraid that Monday’s exam would deal her a harsh blow.

---

Xia Xiaolan carried the books back inside.

All three people in the house stared at her expectantly.

It was already dark.

Chen Qing had come to see her, and the two had stood whispering by the wall for quite a while.N Now she returned carrying a large bundle...

How could her family not misunderstand?

Liu Fen hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

She didn’t think Xia Xiaolan was suited to be with Chen Qing.

It wasn’t about status.

But mother and daughter had only just gained a foothold in Qijing Village. If Xia Xiaolan got involved with him, people would say she was aiming above her station.

Liu Fen didn’t want those rumors to haunt her daughter again. They had only just escaped Dahe Village and found a place to stay.

And what kind of family was Village Chief Chen’s?

Chen Qing was destined for university.

If a relationship affected his studies, even Uncle Da wouldn’t approve of Xia Xiaolan... let alone the rest of the Chen family.

Liu Fen grew more and more anxious, unsure how to say it properly.

Liu Yong signaled for her not to worry and spoke first.

“That was Chen Qing from Uncle Da’s family, right? I saw him heading to school today. Why did he come back... and what did he bring you?”

Xia Xiaolan placed the bundle of books on the table.

“Brother Chen Qing is really kind.”

“He brought me review materials. Since you’ve all seen him, I won’t hide it. I want to take next year’s college entrance exam, so I asked him about transferring into County No. 1 High School.”

“What?!”

“The college entrance exam?!”

Cough, cough!

Li Fengmei had been drinking water and nearly choked.

Her face flushed red. Liu Yong shot his wife a sharp glance, then turned back to his niece, forcing a gentler tone.

“What made you decide to take the exam?”

How much did Xia Xiaolan actually know?

Others might not, but he, her own uncle...did.

When it came to studying, she simply wasn’t good at it. The Xia family had produced one academic star, Xia Ziyu.

It was as if she had absorbed all the scholarly luck for miles around.

She was the most studious girl Liu Yong had ever seen.

What had gotten into Xia Xiaolan?

Maybe she felt confident after doing well in business... and now wanted to challenge the college entrance exam too?

Xia Xiaolan answered matter-of-factly.

“It’s better to have an urban household registration. It’ll make things like buying a house easier in the future. Don’t you only get that by getting into university?”

My dear girl… do you think university is that easy?

The way you say it.... it sounds like buying a bag of salt.

If it were so simple, wouldn’t the village chief’s eldest grandson have passed?

Look around.

How many university students are there?

That’s why Xia Ziyu is so highly valued.

Others spend three years in high school and still fail, then repeat the year.

Even repeating is a long battle. And a second attempt doesn’t guarantee success.

And you? You’ve only graduated from middle school…

Liu Yong felt his teeth ache.

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