“Ah-choo, ” Meng Zhijian sneezed. He rubbed his nose. “Old Yu, do you feel like there’s a draft somewhere? Why do I feel a chill around my neck?”
During winter break, aside from the senior third-years still having extra classes, all other grades were on holiday.
So the teaching building felt somewhat deserted.
Yu Wenzhou: “Really? I don’t feel it. Old Xu, what about you?”
Xu Jing took a sip of hot tea and slowly shook his head.
There was even a small heater under his desk, he didn’t feel cold at all.
Meng Zhijian scratched his head, looking puzzled.
Just as he was about to pick up his hot tea for a sip to warm himself, a voice saying “Teacher Meng” reached his ears.
He looked toward the doorway. The next second, his hand almost shook, nearly dropping the teacup.
Jiang Fuyue stood at the door. Starting from Meng Zhijian, then Xu Jing and Yu Wenzhou, she greeted them one by one.
Not only did Meng Zhijian lose his composure, Xu Jing and Yu Wenzhou weren’t much better.
“Jiang Fuyue?! Y-you… why are you back?!”
“I came back to visit you.”
Xu Jing: “Hurry and come in, it’s chilly outside.”
As he spoke, he even offered his small heater. “Warm yourself up a bit.”
Meng Zhijian also hurriedly took out a disposable paper cup and poured Jiang Fuyue some hot water.
“Here, drink some.”
“Thank you, Teacher Meng.”
“Eh, what made you suddenly think of coming back to school?”
Before Jiang Fuyue could speak, Yu Wenzhou suddenly looked up. “You and Professor Xie just got back from Xishuang Banna, right?”
“……”
As expected of an internet-surfer expert, first in line for gossip!
Jiang Fuyue placed the packed tea snacks on the desk, still piping hot, their aroma wafting out.
Meng Zhijian rubbed his hands. “For us?”
Yu Wenzhou also swallowed.
Jiang Fuyue opened the packaging, taking out plate after plate of pastries and placing them on the table.
The three immediately gathered around.
Eating while chatting,
Meng Zhijian: “How’s your research going lately?”
Jiang Fuyue held the hot water and drank, nodding at his words. “It’s alright.”
Xu Jing suddenly sighed with emotion. “Time really flies. In the blink of an eye, you’ve already graduated for two years.”
Yu Wenzhou scrolled on his phone while eating. “Some time ago, Ming University got promoted to a key university. Everyone in the office was talking about you. Didn’t expect you to show up so soon.”
Jiang Fuyue blinked. “What were you saying about me?”
“Saying you single-handedly carried Ming University. If our school weren’t already a municipal key high school, we might’ve benefited too and gone a step further.”
Meng Zhijian: “Back then Old Xu didn’t even agree with you going to Ming University. When he saw the admission results, his expression looked worse than crying, the sky had practically fallen…”
Xu Jing stuffed a crab roe crystal dumpling into his mouth. “Eat your food! So much nonsense! As if you weren’t excited back then!”
Meng Zhijian touched his nose and gave an awkward cough.
Alright, he had been quite excited too, thinking Jiang Fuyue would most likely ruin herself by going there.
But reality told him that some people, no matter where they are, can shine brilliantly!
Xu Jing: “Later, go to the class and meet your junior schoolmates?”
Yu Wenzhou nodded. “That bunch of little brats are all your fans, before exams, everyone has a photo of you.”
Meng Zhijian quickly fought for priority: “Go to Old Xu’s class first, then come to mine!”
The two of them were both homeroom teachers, each leading a graduating class.
Jiang Fuyue nodded in agreement.
The students’ enthusiasm far exceeded her expectations,
“My god! Am I dreaming? I actually saw Goddess Yue ?!”
“Then our dreams must have overlapped, because I saw her too.”
“OMG! It really is Sister Yue! A living one!”
“My god, what kind of insane luck is this?!”
“……”
The classroom instantly erupted.
One by one, they looked at Jiang Fuyue with sparkling eyes, admiration, worship, yearning, respect, every emotion was there.
“Ahem!” Xu Jing cleared his throat. “Today we invited your senior sister mainly to share some experience about the college entrance exam.”
Everyone in the country knew Jiang Fuyue was an “exam dominator.”
As long as she was in an exam, whether big or small, she had never scored below full marks, never taken second place.
It was said that during one high school final exam, Sister Yue lost one point on her essay, that was also the only time she didn’t achieve full marks in all subjects.
It was said that the grader who deducted that point is still regarded as a legend to this day.
However, in front of these students about to face the college entrance exam, Jiang Fuyue did not stand from the perspective of a “study god” or “exam god,” nor did she deliver any condescending, show-off remarks.
She simply sincerely told everyone some practical techniques.
For example:
“When you get the test paper, first look through all the questions. Roughly judge which ones you can do and which ones are difficult. Do the ones you know first, make sure your scoring rate is guaranteed. Leave the difficult ones for later; getting even one point counts.”
Another example,
“For multiple-choice questions, you need to know how to guess. If you can’t do the last question, then look at the frequency of A, B, C, and D in the previous answers, pick the one that appeared the least.”
Also,
“If you can’t solve a question, give it up in time. Don’t get stuck on it, and don’t let your mindset collapse!”
“……”
Standing on the podium, she didn’t boast about her achievements, nor did she mention her past glories at all.
She only calmly and sincerely shared experiences that might be useful to them.
After finishing, Jiang Fuyue went to Meng Zhijian’s class as well.
What she said was roughly the same.
“Ah! Sister Yue is so low-key.”
“Proud but not arrogant, she treats us as equals, not bossy, not aloof. No wonder so many people love and respect her!”
“I wrote down every single thing Goddess Yue said.”
“It all feels like solid, useful tips.”
“This is what real sharing looks like.”
“I love Sister Yue so much! Being her junior schoolmate is amazing~”
“Sister Yue yyds!”
“……”
“Hey? Su Yunxin, why are you crying?”
In a corner of the classroom, at an inconspicuous seat, a girl in a school uniform with a high ponytail suddenly burst into tears.
Her deskmate was startled and quickly asked.
“I’m fine… I’m fine…” Su Yunxin sniffed, glanced at Jiang Fuyue on the podium, her face reddening in embarrassment.
“If you’re fine, why are you suddenly crying?”
“I-I was just too excited… I couldn’t control it…”
“Hehe! I knew it! Actually, everyone’s excited to see Sister Yue, but crying like you is pretty rare.”
Su Yunxin gave a shy smile and lowered her head.
Because the three words “Jiang Fuyue” held an extraordinary meaning for her.
Maybe in others’ eyes, she was an idol, a top student, a role model.
But in Su Yunxin’s more than ten years of life, she was light! She was hope! She was also salvation!
No one knew that when she had just entered her first year of high school, she had been bullied by another girl in her class.
That was the darkest period of her life, she had even thought about suicide.
However, during one public speech by the principal, she heard about the “Li Xue case,” where the bully ultimately received punishment.
The principal also said that No. 1 High School had zero tolerance for bullying, once reported, it would be severely punished!
Afterward, she finally mustered the courage and knocked on the door of the principal’s office.
Very quickly, the girl who bullied her was expelled from No. 1 High School, and her life finally welcomed light.
Only much later did Su Yunxin learn that the school’s deep hatred for bullying was due to the principal’s strict enforcement.
And behind that strict enforcement was the warning sounded by the “Li Xue case.”
And the reason Li Xue was brought to justice… was because Jiang Fuyue stepped forward.
After everything ended, when Jiang Fuyue walked out of the school, the sun had already begun to set.
A black Mercedes slowly glided to a stop in front of her.
The car window rolled down, revealing Xie Dingyuan’s sharply defined side profile.
“Why are you here?”
“To pick you up and go home.”
Jiang Fuyue got into the car, and the man stepped on the gas and drove off.
“Finished with the company?”
The reason Xie Dingyuan followed her back to Linhuai wasn’t just to accompany Jiang Fuyue, there was also an important matter: handling the backlog of affairs at Hanqing Biotech.
With key operations moving to the capital, many things still needed to be wrapped up.
For matters that affected everything as a whole like this, aside from Xie Dingyuan personally stepping in, no one else could really take over.
“More or less.”
“Mm.”
The Mercedes drove into Yutianhua Residence and finally stopped in front of the Jiang family villa.
Jiang Fuyue unfastened her seatbelt and prepared to get out, only to find the door wouldn’t open.
She gestured for Xie Dingyuan to unlock the central lock.
The man, however, didn’t move at all.
Jiang Fuyue raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong?”
“I didn’t eat lunch. I’m very hungry now.” The man suddenly said this out of nowhere.
“…So?”
Xie Dingyuan: “I’ll eat at your place.”
Jiang Fuyue: “…”
She knew it!
That evening, Professor Xie finally got to freeload a meal at his future in-laws’ house openly and aboveboard.
Coincidentally, Jiang Da and Han Yunru were both home, and naturally welcomed Xie Dingyuan.
And Xie Dingyuan showed no trace of stiffness or poor communication, calling them “Uncle” and “Auntie” one after another, making them beam with smiles.
Han Yunru, already the kind of mother-in-law who looks more and more favorably upon her future son-in-law, grew even more satisfied.
Even Jiang Da was won over by his sweet talk.
As for Little Brother Jiang…
“Chenxing’s cooking is really good!” Xie Dingyuan praised generously.
Jiang Chenxing’s cheeks flushed red. “Brother-in-law, if you like it, eat more. I made a lot.”
That single “brother-in-law” made Xie Dingyuan feel overjoyed.
…
Two days later, Jiang Fuyue took her family along with Xie Dingyuan and flew to the capital.
In the blink of an eye, New Year’s Eve arrived.
The streets and alleys of the capital were filled with festive atmosphere.
The Han family was no exception.
The old master picked up a brush and personally wrote the Spring Festival couplets, while Han Ting and Jiang Chenxing were responsible for hanging them up.
Han Shen also gave himself a break, no longer going to the company, though his phone never stopped ringing; occasionally he would lose his temper and curse into it.
Han Ke was even more relaxed, since the stock market was closed during the Spring Festival, he could finally slack off openly.
This year, Han Heng was invited to perform at the Spring Festival Gala. He had spent a lot of time rehearsing earlier and was often nowhere to be seen. On New Year’s Eve, he still had to go to the venue, so he couldn’t have the reunion dinner with everyone.
Han Ke: “Third brother, don’t worry, I’ll save you a chicken butt.”
Han Shen: “Then I’ll save you a glass of Moutai.”
Han Ting: Uncle is so pitiful.
Jiang Chenxing: Little uncle is so miserable.
As the most important festival of the year and a time for family reunion, the servants had started preparing half a month in advance.
So one could imagine how lavish this reunion dinner was.
The dishes served covered almost everyone’s tastes, each person had something they liked.
The old master took out his long-cherished fine liquor and drank with Han Shen, Han Ke, and Jiang Da.
After two cups, they became more talkative,
“This year is a big reunion, everyone is here. I’m very happy…”
Han Heng: Am I not a person?
Last year Jiang Fuyue wasn’t here; this year the regret was finally made up. Han Qishan’s joy was beyond words.
Jiang Da was also a bit tipsy. Usually so slow and taciturn, he actually took the initiative to toast.
“Dad, I’m not good with words. This cup is for you, I’ll drink it first.”
After speaking, he downed it in one go.
Then he toasted Han Shen and Han Ke as well.
Han Ting looked at the cups on the table, then at the adults toasting each other, and couldn’t help smacking his lips.
He turned to Jiang Chenxing and whispered, “Have you ever drunk alcohol?”
Jiang Chenxing shook his head, then nodded.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve tasted a little, just know what it’s like.”
Han Ting: “I’ve never had any… want to try again?”
“Brother, what are you trying to do?”
Taking advantage of no one paying attention, Han Ting casually grabbed the liquor bottle and poured some into the empty cup in front of him.
Done!
Then he sneakily put the bottle back in place. The whole process happened right under everyone’s noses, yet aside from Jiang Chenxing, not a third person noticed.
Including Jiang Fuyue.
“Chenxing, try some too, it’s quite spicy…”
In the end, the adults who were properly drinking didn’t get drunk, but the two boys who secretly drank got quite drunk!
Han Ting’s cheeks were red as blood, while Jiang Chenxing didn’t flush, but just sat there smiling foolishly without speaking.
“These two little drunkards…”
“Forget it! It’s New Year’s, we won’t deal with you!”
“…”
After dinner, Jiang Fuyue went out for a walk, taking the dog along.
The entire villa district was decorated with lights and festivity, brightly lit.
“Woof woof!”
Seeing it, Little Mang became excited too, wagging its tail vigorously.
After walking around for a while, they returned to the Han residence.
At that time, the Spring Festival Gala had just started.
The whole family sat together waiting for Han Heng’s performance.
Suddenly, Jiang Fuyue’s phone vibrated several times, WeChat messages coming in.
She opened it, almost all were New Year’s greetings.
She casually replied to a few, then probably felt it was too tiring, and since some were obviously mass messages, she didn’t bother replying.
At nine o’clock, Han Heng’s performance came on, and the whole family subconsciously sat up straighter.
It was a group song. Han Heng had the most screen time and the most singing parts.
Han Shen: “Doesn’t it look like a village open-air concert?”
Han Ke laughed. “Not gonna lie, our third brother really has that ‘landlord’s silly son’ vibe.”
Han Qishan: I feel insulted?
Only Han Yunru sincerely praised: “Little brother sings really well!”
Jiang Da nodded at her words, whatever his wife said was right.
Jiang Fuyue listened while smiling. Her phone vibrated once; she casually tapped it open, and the next second suddenly sat upright.
“Yueyue, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, I’ll go out for a bit.”
After speaking, she put on her coat and strode out the door.
Outside the residential area, a black Mercedes was parked quietly by the roadside. Xie Dingyuan, in a long coat, stood tall and elegant, leaning against the car.
Seeing her, he subconsciously straightened up.
Jiang Fuyue walked over. “It’s New Year’s, why are you still running around?”
“Seeing my girlfriend doesn’t count as running around.”
“Won’t your family say anything?”
“No choice. It’s too hard to find a wife these days. If I don’t perform well, what if she runs away?”
Jiang Fuyue twitched the corner of her mouth. “And how do you plan to perform?”
Xie Dingyuan stepped forward, opened his arms, and pulled her into an embrace. His lips were by her ear, his breath warm and damp.
His voice was low and magnetic,
“Yueyue, Happy New Year.”
Our third year has arrived.
The New Year part moved too quickly, so a bit of detail was added.
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