Seeing the thing that Mu Nanqiu was holding, Su Yao’s small mouth couldn’t quite close.
She was surprised—truly surprised—because it was just too big.
Swallowing hard, Su Yao snapped out of her daze.
She reached out her slightly trembling hands and took the item from Mu Nanqiu’s grasp.
The first sensation was how fluffy and soft it was.
Two hands wrapped around its neck—if it even had a neck—and yet holding it in this way felt a bit awkward.
Su Yao couldn’t see the path beneath her feet clearly.
So she thought of a solution and simply hoisted the plush bear onto her shoulder.
Though the girl was wearing a cotton jacket, her petite figure still stood out.
Coupled with the almost life-sized Xiong Plush Toy, Su Yao became the most eye-catching girl on the entire street.
People glanced at her—some silently observing, others chatting with those around them.
Su Yao felt too shy to meet these gazes and quickly hid behind Mu Nanqiu, using her body as a shield against those looks.
If she couldn’t see them, then it was as if they didn’t exist.
Because of this bear, she had attracted an overwhelming amount of attention, which drained her mental energy significantly.
Slightly hesitant, Su Yao turned to Mu Nanqiu and asked,
“How did you buy this…”
“Don’t like it?”
“No, it’s just that it feels a bit… too childish. Yes, a bit childish.”
“So you don’t like it?”
“No.”
Su Yao saw that Mu Nanqiu was about to say the same thing again, so she quickly interrupted,
“Alright, I like it.”
“That’s good.”
Mu Nanqiu nodded in satisfaction.
The reason she gave this gift wasn’t because she thought Su Yao would definitely like it, but because she thought it suited her.
Mu Nanqiu wasn’t very good at giving presents.
Seeing Su Yao carry the giant bear tightly following right behind her, afraid of losing her, gave her a strange sense of joy.
Great.
That’s exactly the feeling!
“You don’t want me to give you some Philosophy Books too, right?”
Hearing this, Su Yao paused for a moment but quickly caught up.
She felt that Mu Nanqiu was right—anything was fine as long as it wasn’t a Practice Workbook.
Incidentally, Mu Nanqiu used to give her own sister Practice Workbooks as birthday gifts.
Of course, now she gave them to her brother instead.
In the afternoon, they didn’t really shop much.
After wandering around for a bit, Mu Nanqiu sent Su Yao back home.
After getting off the car, Su Yao bid farewell to Mu Nanqiu.
From the look on her face, it was clear she had enjoyed today very much.
After watching the car drive away, she went upstairs.
The corridor was quiet.
Su Yao was a bit afraid that Bai Jilian would come to block her again.
Approaching her floor, she slowed down, stepping lightly to avoid making any noise on the stairs.
Halfway up, she tilted her head back and glanced upward.
No one was there.
Although she didn’t see anyone, she still carefully went up.
Only after confirming no one was squatting by the door did she relax.
She took the Key out of her pocket and entered her home.
As usual, she put down her things, turned on the air conditioner, took off her thick coat, and changed into more comfortable Living Room Clothes.
With a cup of warm water in hand, Su Yao lazily lay on the sofa.
After taking a small sip, she pulled out a Snack from the bag she had just carried up, tore open the packaging, and stuffed it into her mouth.
It was still afternoon, far from dinnertime.
After stretching, she let out a long sigh and then flopped down on the Xiong Plush Toy, closing her eyes.
Su Yao felt a slight stinging in her eyelids, growing heavier until she couldn’t open them at all.
At that moment, her consciousness drifted away.
She was looking at a paper test in front of her, filled with dense numbers.
She had to use formulas in her mind to find solutions and write them down.
Su Yao racked her brain, struggling to scrape together her already scarce knowledge, painstakingly writing down answer after answer.
When she finished, some blanks remained here and there.
Glancing around, she saw everyone else seemed in the same boat.
The pressure was clearly immense, and the test was genuinely difficult.
It gave her a faint sense of security.
Su Yao tried to look again at the questions she hadn’t solved before.
Suddenly, she understood everything—the things she couldn’t do before became clear all at once.
Her mind unblocked, her thinking much sharper.
Seizing this rare inspiration, she hurriedly wrote.
Time slipped by unnoticed.
By the time she heard the words “Exam Over,” she was drenched in sweat.
Su Yao felt utterly exhausted, slumping back against the chair.
“Phew, so tired.”
The people around her were strangers, unfamiliar with one another, but all nodded in agreement at her words.
Wiping sweat from her forehead, Su Yao felt a bit itchy and hot.
She fanned herself with her hands, brushing the hair sticking to her face away.
Summer was just like this—the outside sun blazing fiercely.
Fortunately, she wasn’t sitting by the window.
At this moment, the scorching sunlight outside could even penetrate the window.
The layer of Dark Blue Cloth used to absorb heat was ineffective.
Luckily, the classroom wasn’t too crowded.
Scratching her cheek, she felt something odd.
“Where is this…”
Su Yao frowned and looked around.
Seeing everyone dressed in various Uniforms made her even more confused.
Wasn’t she supposed to be taking the final exam?
Wasn’t it the middle of winter?
As her gaze swept across, the numerous boys’ eyes awkwardly averted, as if deliberately avoiding looking at her.
This made Su Yao feel even stranger.
She lowered her head and saw her rather prominent curves.
That’s when she understood—they were looking at that!
Quickly sitting up straight, she pulled her Uniform down to cover her “scenery” and rested her head on the desk, preparing to perform brilliantly in the next exam.
Just now, she was sure she wouldn’t fail math…
Fail?
“Why did that word come to mind? Ah, I remember, I’m supposed to be taking the final exam! And it’s winter!”
With some time left, Su Yao suddenly stood up and ran outside the classroom.
Many eyes followed her sudden departure.
Because she was a high-quality beauty, it was natural for a few glances.
Ignoring the attention, Su Yao reached the corridor and leaned against the railing, looking out through the Iron Fence at the sky.
A Cloud was covering the blazing Sun, creating a rare shade that cooled the summer breeze somewhat.
Su Yao gazed blankly at the sky until the glaring white Sun emerged from behind the Cloud.
“Ugh…”
Too dazzling.
She hurriedly shielded her eyes with her hand, closed them for a moment, and when she opened her slightly red eyes, she yawned.
She shifted from lying on the bear back to sitting upright and, after a long moment, returned fully from her initial grogginess.
Then she stared at the Ceiling Light and began to zone out again.