“Brother, if you don’t start talking, I’m going to be mad.”
Huo Chao’s eyes darkened slightly, but he finally tore his gaze away from Shu Jia Er’s constantly chattering little pink lips. “Wait here,” he said, turning and walking over to his car.
Huo Chao had driven today, and he opened the passenger door to retrieve something from the seat.
Shu Jia Er blinked, curious. “Brother, what’s this little surprise?”
He shoved a bag into her arms, looking slightly awkward. “See for yourself.”
Shu Jia Er eagerly leaned her fuzzy little head into the bag.
Huo Chao’s face remained expressionless, but he couldn’t help thinking just how adorable she was—her little head practically burrowed inside the bag.
With a squeal, Shu Jia Er took in the sight of what was inside.
Inside was a beautiful, soft pink, handwoven bag.
Handmade! Woven bag!
So Huo Chao actually made a bag for her!
Her eyes sparkled as she pulled the bag out and examined it carefully.
To be honest, the bag had many uneven stitches, with a bumpy texture and a shape that wasn’t exactly perfect. But it at least resembled a bag. That’s all Shu Jia Er ever expected from Huo Chao, as long as it looked like a bag.
In fact, it far exceeded her expectations. It was obvious that this was crafted by a complete beginner.
“So, did you make this with your own hands, Brother?”
Huo Chao never intended to take all the credit. The bag was partly his work, but it also bore the efforts of his two brothers. The three of them had pulled several all-nighters and continued knitting in their spare time before finally finishing the bag.
The three of them had gradually evolved from complete amateurs. Although they were still pretty unskilled, at least they weren’t as clueless as they’d been at the start.
“Yes, but not entirely.”
Shu Jia Er slung the bag over her shoulder and spun around happily. “Not bad, I can carry it.”
Huo Chao let out a sigh of relief.
Shu Jia Er immediately posted it on her WeChat Moments.
[Cute. Picture.jpg]
Soon after, the comments started pouring in.
Ning Meng: Aahhh, I’m totally obsessed with this heavenly bag! Look at the color, the shape, and the small Chanel brooch on it. It’s so awesome!
Classmate A: Wow, it’s really cute!
Classmate B: Look at this charming little accessory.
Jiang Xici also liked the post.
After basking in the admiration, Shu Jia Er put her phone away, feeling satisfied.
As soon as the National Day holiday ended, it was back to school.
The moment she walked into the classroom, Ning Meng rushed over and said, “Little Ear, the results are out!”
Shu Jia Er perked up.
She had worked so hard for this, even having Jiang Xici mark out the key points for her. Her grades couldn’t possibly be too bad, right? She put in so much effort this time that she was genuinely excited about her results.
Shu Jia Er, feeling a mixture of nerves and anticipation, finally received her test papers.
But as each score came in, she still couldn’t quite relax.
Although she calculated her total score and found it quite high, she heard that the exam was easy this time and that many classmates had performed well, with a few even achieving exceptional results. So, as for the ranking… It was hard to say.
Finally, it was the homeroom teacher’s turn for class. The teacher arrived and began by praising a bunch of students.
“…The students mentioned above have shown significant improvement in this exam. It proves that as long as you work hard, there will always be rewards. If you don’t see results, it simply means you haven’t worked hard enough…”
Shu Jia Er instinctively turned around and glanced at Jiang Xici.
He was sitting quietly, eyes looking down, focused on his textbook, his black hair falling softly around him. He seemed utterly unconcerned about his ranking, fully absorbed in his own world.
Seeing him like this had a calming effect on Shu Jia Er, making her feel at ease.
The exams were over, and the rankings were already determined, so why be nervous? Worrying wouldn’t change anything now.
Once she relaxed, Shu Jia Er picked up her math test and began reviewing her mistakes, noting down valuable problems in her mistake journal. After the teacher’s explanation, she planned to write down the solutions.
At that moment, the homeroom teacher shifted the topic and said, “The students mentioned above have shown remarkable improvement. However, some students in our class have maintained their high performance, demonstrating their true potential. This time, two of our students ranked in the top ten for the entire grade. The first is Jiang Xici, who, with a total score of 705, secured first place in the grade.”
The class erupted in applause.
Honestly, everyone was used to this by now. If there ever came a day when Jiang Xici didn’t place first, that would be the real shock. The academic bully in their class has never faltered.
Shu Jia Er also clapped sincerely for Jiang Xici, glancing back at him. At that moment, he happened to look her way.
She gave him a thumbs-up.
“Next, I’d like to commend our transfer student. Yes, it’s Shu Er—no, it’s now Shu Jia Er. Despite only transferring here a month ago and going through family changes, she still managed to achieve an outstanding score of 686, placing third in the grade. Let’s give her a round of applause.”
Hearing her ranking, Shu Jia Er let out a sigh of relief. It wasn’t the second place she’d hoped for, but third place was still pretty good.
She was nearly twenty points behind Jiang Xici. An academic master, indeed—his future looked bright.
After class, it was lunchtime. Recently, Shu Jia Er and Ning Meng waited a bit before going to the cafeteria; it was always crowded at this time, and they’d end up waiting in long lines anyway. Better to stay in the classroom for a bit and go once the crowd thinned out.
She grabbed her water bottle and went to the water dispenser at the back of the classroom. Jiang Xici sat in the last row, and after the latest seating arrangement, he happened to be sitting right next to the water dispenser this week.
“Congratulations,” he said.
Shu Jia Er took a sip and responded, “Same to you.”
“Any questions you need help with?”
Shu Jia Er thought for a moment—there was indeed a math question she had struggled with. She’d encountered similar problems before but still got this one wrong.
They say “third time’s a charm,” and she was determined not to make the same mistake again.
So, she eagerly went to her desk and grabbed her mistake journal.
Jiang Xici’s desk mate had already gone to the cafeteria, so she sat down next to him, comfortably listening to him explain the problem.
When Huo Chao arrived, this was the scene he walked in on.
The boy was holding a pen, working out calculations on scratch paper, seriously explaining the problem to the girl beside him.
The girl had her hand on her cheek, nodding occasionally in agreement.
There was a sense of calmness around them, as if time itself were paused.
Jiang Xici.
It was him, again.
Shu Jia Er only noticed Huo Chao outside the door after she had figured out the problem. She put away her notebook of mistakes, walked out of the classroom, and greeted him, “Brother, what brings you here?”
“Want to have lunch together?”
“Sure.”
As they walked, Huo Chao suddenly asked, “Do you like him?”
Shu Jia Er was startled for a moment before replying, “Who? Jiang Xici?”
“Yes,” Huo Chao looked straight into her eyes, “Do you like him?”
Shu Jia Er shook her head. “We’re just classmates.” If anything, she could only say she admired him.
Of course, her initial intention in getting close to Jiang Xici wasn’t entirely pure. She wanted to improve his impression of her now, so that in the future, he might look out for her, shielding her from the heroine’s schemes. But looking at things now, it seemed she didn’t really need Jiang Xici’s protection.
However, she still admired Jiang Xici’s talent and hoped he’d have a bright future.
Then Huo Chao suddenly asked another question, “Do you like me?”
Having grown up in the Huo family, Huo Chao was accustomed to seeing superficial relationships and insincere gestures. Although he hadn’t fully absorbed these influences, he’d never been one to express things so directly.
Being blunt was not his style, nor was it appropriate for someone of his background.
But when it came to Shu Jia Er, he felt that there was no need for any pretense.
Like is like, and dislike is dislike.
Being together was just that simple and pure.
Shu Jia Er tilted her head slightly, asking herself internally, do I like Huo Chao?
She probably did.
If she didn’t, the day Huo Chao kissed her forcefully, she would’ve punched him senseless. How else could he still be standing here so comfortably?
However, she wasn’t going to let him win her over so easily.
Shu Jia Er smiled, pressing her thumb to her index finger, making a small gesture. “Look, I like you this much.”
Huo Chao was stunned for a moment before he broke into laughter. Still, the jealousy he’d felt upon seeing Jiang Xici and Shu Jia Er sitting so close began to fade.
“What would it take for it to be a little more?”
Shu Jia Er blinked and counted on her fingers, “Winter’s coming soon, and I still don’t have a hat, scarf, gloves, or socks.”
Shu Jia Er felt like she was always tempting fate, constantly walking the line between playful and overly daring. Previously, she had asked Huo Chao to make her a woven bag, which had him looking at her in disbelief. Now, she had outright asked for a hat, scarf, gloves, and socks—surely he’d be shocked.
To her surprise, Huo Chao readily agreed.
This time, it was Shu Jia Er’s turn to be incredulous. “Brother, no store-bought stuff! It has to be handmade!”
“Got it.”
The last handmade bag had included help from two of his brothers. This time, he could handle it alone.
When Shu Jia Er arrived home, she saw an uninvited guest—Shu Er.
Shu Er was sitting on the couch, happily chatting with Liu Yan, who looked interested and cheerful as well. Shu Qiang stood behind Liu Yan, also looking very interested.
Liu Yan held something in her hand, murmuring words of praise as she examined it. Shu Jia Er took a few steps closer before they noticed her presence.
“Back from school, Xiao Er?”
Shu Jia Er gave a slight nod. As she drew closer, she saw that Liu Yan was holding an exam paper.
An exam paper?
Shu Jia Er was about to ask what was going on, but Shu Qiang explained proudly before she could, “Sister Shu Er scored 659 out of 750 this time, ranking eleventh in the grade!”
Although Shu Er didn’t make it to the top ten, her score was high enough that, if she kept it up in her final year, a spot at a top university would be well within reach.
Shu Qiang had always looked up to Shu Er, taking pride in her achievements. This time, he was thrilled about her score of 659.
Shu Jia Er responded indifferently, “Oh.”
Liu Yan sighed in admiration, “Shu Er has always had excellent grades.”
Shu Jia Er smiled faintly. “Really?”
A glimmer of smugness flickered in Shu Er’s eyes as she glanced at Shu Jia’er. She didn’t believe this country bumpkin who had just arrived could possibly score well.
A gleam flashed in her eyes as she asked casually, “The same exam paper was used in several schools in Beijing for this monthly exam. How did you do?”
Liu Yan’s interest was piqued as well. “That’s right, Xiao Er, your school also had a monthly exam, didn’t they? Have the results come out?”
Shu Jia Er dropped her heavy backpack. “They’re out.”
She remained calm and indifferent, showing no particular interest, leaving Liu Yan and Shu Qiang uncertain about how she had performed.
The smugness in Shu Er’s eyes almost spilled over as she suppressed a small smile and pretended to comfort her. “It’s okay if it didn’t go well. The teachers back where you were are behind the times, so it’s normal to feel a bit out of place in Beijing.”
Liu Yan sighed softly, nodding, “Yes, you’re only in your second year, and there’s almost two years until the college entrance exams. If you’re struggling to keep up, we could hire a tutor…”
GET THE WHOLE NOVEL HERE!
