When someone has something to look forward to, even the most mundane tasks feel supercharged with motivation.
Eager to see Shen Xiyan, Lin Ci barely took a few bites of breakfast before grabbing a thick stack of homework and heading next door.
Knock knock!
The door was opened by Wenwen, who had half a meat bun stuffed in her mouth. One cheek bulged comically as she greeted her, speech muffled, “Hi, Lin Ci-jie~~”
“Hope you don’t mind me barging in—I’m here to do homework!”
“Of course! Come on in!”
Shen Wen’s eyes instantly lit up. With a dramatic pout, she said, “It’s just me and my brother at home right now. I’m bored out of my mind.”
“What about your aunt? And Qin Sheng?”
“My aunt wasn’t feeling well, so Qin Sheng-jie took her to the hospital…”
“Why her?” Lin Ci blinked, puzzled.
Usually, stuff like this is handled by someone close to the family, right?
Had Qin Sheng and her aunt really gotten that close already? And Shen Xiyan just… let it happen?
Sensing her confusion, Shen Wen explained the situation from beginning to end.
Lin Ci paused, a little stunned. “…She’s really generous, huh~”
“Tell me about it! If it weren’t for Qin Sheng-jie’s card, Auntie probably wouldn’t have gone for the checkup at all.”
Is having money that big of a deal? Turns out… yes. Yes, it is.
Sure, it was just a few thousand yuan—not an insane amount, even for their family. Auntie’s bank account easily had tens of thousands. But still, she’d rather spend money on others than on herself.
It reminded them of a line from the movie Dying to Survive—spoken by a man who sold fake medicine:
“There’s only one illness in this world—poverty.”
Shen Wen felt that. Deeply.
“So now it’s just the three of us at home?”
“Mhm. Come on in.” Shen Xiyan nodded and began tidying up the dining table.
Once she realized that Qin Sheng wasn’t around, Lin Ci relaxed noticeably.
This place was full of his presence. Even if she didn’t say a word and just stared at his face, she felt completely at peace.
Shen Xiyan pulled out a few seat cushions and tidied up the coffee table. The three of them settled in together.
Earlier, the fan had been enough, but now that Lin Ci was here, the air conditioner had to be turned on.
Shen Wen sat directly in front of the AC vent, while Lin Ci and Shen Xiyan sat across from her.
They hadn’t even started writing when Wenwen began ranting:
“These teachers are insane! One says two test papers aren’t much, another says the same, but do they not realize it adds up?!”
“Lin Ci-jie, let’s split the work, and then I’ll just copy from you, okay?”
Shen Xiyan lightly smacked her on the head. “All you ever think about is copying! Don’t you want to pass the gaokao?”
“Don’t compare me to you, Mr. One-Subject Wonder. Even if I copy, I can still stay in the top hundred—can you say the same?”
“You’re sitting next to someone who’s ranked top ten and hasn’t said a word—what makes you think you can brag?”
Shen Xiyan pinched her cheek and got a karate chop in return.
That’s when the perks of having a girlfriend become clear.
If it were Lin Ci, she’d just close her eyes and lean into his palm like a content kitten.
But when it was Wenwen, she puffed her cheeks out in protest like an angry little goldfish.
“Ge~~ you’re really gonna call me out? How many math problems did you actually get right last time?”
“That was the past. I’m different now…”
“What’s changed, exactly?” Shen Wen gave him the side-eye.
Everyone knew his best subject was history. The reason was kind of embarrassing—when they were younger, they didn’t have storybooks, so he got obsessed with his aunt’s textbooks.
Eventually, he built a mental “timeline” in his head.
Ask him about any major historical event—he’d give you the exact date. Heck, even day-to-day stuff from three, five years ago that Wenwen had long forgotten, he could recall like it happened yesterday.
“Let’s make a bet.”
“On what?”
Shen Xiyan pulled out a math test. “If I finish this paper in half an hour and score full marks, you’ll do your homework yourself. I’ll help with anything you don’t get.”
Wenwen snorted. “And if you can’t?”
“Then I’ll give you the rest of my allowance.”
In her last life, Wenwen’s downfall had been math.
She’d started in the top hundred in grade one, climbed to top thirty in grade two, and by grade three, she and Lin Ci were always in the top three.
But while Lin Ci nailed the college entrance exam, Wenwen crashed and burned on the math section.
Her 120 couldn’t hold a candle to the near-perfect scores of her competitors, costing her the chance to attend Jinghua University.
Instead, she ended up stuck at S University with her brother.
“Deal!” Wenwen grinned. No reason to refuse.
The paper wasn’t too hard—getting full marks wasn’t the issue. It was the time limit. She usually needed to check her work thoroughly.
As for her brother… could he even finish reading the whole thing in thirty minutes?
That’s what she thought—until he actually started.
He pulled the paper in front of him, picked up his pen, and got to work.
Twelve multiple-choice questions. Done in three minutes.
He skimmed the question, scanned the options, paused for a few seconds… and picked the right one.
Then onto the fill-in-the-blanks—again, fast and clean.
Wenwen stared, stunned. “Ge! What are you doing?”
Who solves problems like this?!
Did he memorize the answers or what?
Even Lin Ci furrowed her brows, watching him with confusion.
Twenty minutes later, Shen Xiyan finished the final long-answer question, put down his pen, and let out a slow breath. “Done.”
…Already?
Both Lin Ci and Wenwen looked at him like he’d just declared he could fly.
“You’re kidding.”
Shen Xiyan smirked and handed his paper to Lin Ci. “Mind checking it for me?”
She glanced at him, tied her hair into a cute little bun, and started doing the test herself. Took her an hour.
Then she compared her answers with his.
After the multiple choice, she glanced at him.
After the fill-in-the-blanks, another glance.
Finally, after checking the big questions, she looked up, dazed.
“…How did you do this?”
This paper wasn’t as hard as a mock exam, but it sure wasn’t something you could ace in twenty minutes unless you were a professional math teacher.
Shen Xiyan just chuckled to himself.
Sure, he wasn’t a math genius—but he had studied advanced calculus seriously for four years.
Doing first-year problems now was like a middle schooler solving basic arithmetic.
“Lin Ci-jie, what’s wrong?”
“See for yourself.”
She handed the papers to Wenwen, whose worldview promptly shattered.
“Ge… did you memorize the answers?”
“Why would I? Where would I even get them?”
“Then how—”
She stopped mid-sentence, looked from her brother to the paper, and wailed as she grabbed his face. “You’re not my brother! Who are you?!”
“Come on, come on—I just had a sudden breakthrough!”
Lin Ci looked at him, expression complicated. “Because of Qin Sheng?”
“What does this have to do with her? If you don’t believe me, let me tutor you. Wenwen, your biggest weakness is functions, right? Watch—”
The morning was quiet, filled only with the soft hum of the air conditioner and Shen Xiyan’s calm voice as he flipped pages and explained problems.
Doing practice papers was the fastest way to get in the zone. By the time they were done, it was already noon.
Shen Xiyan raised a brow, his face lighting up.
“So? Wasn’t that clearer and more detailed than your teacher?”
Duh. It’s the difference between mass-produced meals and a private chef.
Wenwen stared at him, wide-eyed.
Shen Xiyan started to feel self-conscious.
“What are you looking at me for? Jealous of your brother’s talent and brains?”
She opened her mouth, closed it, then rubbed her eyes and stared some more.
Again. Rub. Stare.
Shen Xiyan was exasperated. “…Is this really that shocking?”
“I just—can’t wrap my head around it.”
“Well, too bad,” he said with a grin. “From now on, I’m supervising your math.”
“Math is all about brute force—it’s the highest-scoring section on the exam. Ever wonder why?”
“…!”
“Now finish the other two papers. I’ll check them.”
His throat was dry from all the explaining. He chugged a glass of iced water.
“Didn’t sleep well last night—gonna take a nap.”
“Not in your room?” Lin Ci asked.
Shen Xiyan shook his head.
“Qin Sheng’s using mine. As for Wenwen’s…”
“Gross! You smell!”
“I do not.”
“You do! You do!”
Shen Xiyan gave Lin Ci a helpless smile. “So yeah… guess I’ll just make do.”
He lay down on the floor. It wasn’t clean, and without a proper pillow, the thin seat cushions weren’t doing much. It was a bit uncomfortable…
Lin Ci watched him, then sneakily poked his back with a pen.
“Hmm?”
She glanced at Wenwen, who was absorbed in her homework, then pointed to her lap.
Shen Xiyan blinked, confused.
She nodded and motioned again with her lips.
Finally getting the hint, Shen Xiyan scooted over and carefully rested his head on her lap.
Her thighs were soft, warm, almost bouncy.
His thoughts instantly blurred with color.
He caught a faint whiff of her scent—subtle, comforting.
You always see this in anime—boy lays on girl’s lap. But experiencing it for real?
Way better. It sent a tingling warmth through his whole body, like every pore was drinking in happiness.
Suddenly, Shen Xiyan wasn’t sleepy anymore. He stared up at the ceiling.
Lin Ci typed rapidly on her phone, then gave him a warning glare.
[Don’t look at me!]
From that angle, her face would look big—and worse, she might have a double chin!
Doesn’t Lin Ci care about her image?
Shen Xiyan obediently shut his eyes and stayed still. He didn’t dare move.
With her scent swirling around him, he was dangerously tempted to explore some forbidden thoughts.
Lin Ci was even worse off.
She suddenly regretted her impulse. Her legs felt like jelly, buzzing with electricity.
She looked down at his face… her eyes growing hazy with emotion.
Unable to resist, she reached out and gently touched his cheek.
Shen Xiyan stiffened and looked up at her.
Their eyes met.
Lin Ci’s brain short-circuited. She squeaked and slammed her face down onto the desk—Duang!
Her chest landed squarely on Shen Xiyan’s face.
He couldn’t breathe. Gasping for air, he inhaled deeply—
And Lin Ci felt a warm, wet breath against her skin.
Her heart itched. Her chest tingled.
And then—No! Bad thoughts, BAD thoughts!
She was definitely not okay.