Qiu Xuan stopped the spread of the rumor at a very low cost. For the entire week, everyone who passed by turned to look at her— her turnaround rate was a full 100%.
At the end of morning exercises, people walking through the corridor would pretend not to glance inside, trying to get a clear look at who exactly “Peipei” was.
With her highly recognizable hair color, Qiu Xuan’s figure was always precisely caught by gazes.
Most of these looks were kind, and those that weren’t, once she met their eyes, turned kind as well.
The semester had just started, and there was still too little homework. Pink notes would occasionally appear on the campus walls.
Jiang Chuhuai from Class 1 of Grade 10 appeared so frequently that he had already become a “new trending topic.”
But No.1 High School was, at its core, a key high school with a strong learning atmosphere.
As study demands increased, the walls gradually got covered over by study-related posts, help requests, and complaints.
After the National Day holiday, the whole school faced its first monthly exam.
Qiu Xuan wore her headphones and stared blankly at her report card, propping her chin on her hand.
Lin Xiqiao looked at her worriedly. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I’m meditating.” Qiu Xuan’s body and gaze didn’t move; only her mouth opened and closed between her palms.
Lin Xiqiao: ?
Qiu Xuan said, “My physical body and my grades need to be separated.”
Lin Xiqiao whispered, “Qiu Xuan, is that how you use ‘Physical Body and Grades Separation’?”
“I don’t know. I think so.”
“Does it work?”
Qiu Xuan sighed to the sky and gave up, lying down. “I don’t know. I’ll try it first. If it works, I’ll use it on my mom.”
Lin Xiqiao: ……
Just as they were sinking into gloom, a bulky figure from the neighboring group moved over and stopped by Qiu Xuan’s desk, suddenly asking in a familiar tone, “Wu Qiu Xuan, is it your dad or your mom coming to the monthly exam parents’ meeting?”
The soft light of her meditation and the fresh air were instantly disrupted. Irritated, Qiu Xuan looked up, racking her brain but couldn’t remember ever talking to this person.
So familiar already?
Before she could say “Who are you…?” Lin Xiqiao glanced at the face and whispered, “That’s Fu Ge.”
Oh, the “Fu Ge” they had chatted about in the dorm— Wang Kailin. A bit wealthy, top Versailles style.
Qiu Xuan: “Are you asking that because you want to count heads and treat the whole class and their parents to a meal?”
The classmates nearby couldn’t help but chuckle quietly.
Wang Kailin didn’t sense anything odd, his mood good as ever, smiling widely. “I could, but I just bought a pair of collaboration sneakers and my dad froze my card because of it. It was just over twenty thousand yuan— not expensive, and he still froze it. Really stingy. Oh, by the way, my dad is a colleague of your dad’s. If your dad comes, then our two families can eat together, yeah?”
Qiu Xuan pressed her lips down and slowly raised her eyelids— never in her life had she been so speechless.
Besides, which dad?
“How do you know who my dad is?”
Wang Kailin: “Isn’t your dad Wu Zong from Zexiang Group? I saw it on your admission form.”
Oh, a fake dad. That’s nothing then.
Qiu Xuan hadn’t reacted yet when Su Liujun, overhearing, quickly came up with an exaggeratedly flattering expression. “Zexiang? See, Sister Xuan, my one and only sister, really not ordinary.”
Qiu Xuan sighed.
There were many “Zongs” in this world.
She remembered her fake dad belonged to the executive-level “Zong” category— not the owner of the company, but Zexiang Group was a massive empire, and its executives were undoubtedly outstanding people.
She wasn’t sure, anyway, she had no inheritance rights.
“He’s not coming. No time.” Qiu Xuan said succinctly.
Fu Ge put on the usual drama boss social tone, “That’s such a pity. My dad even said there’s a project he wants to discuss.”
Who has colleagues chatting about projects at a parents’ meeting?
Qiu Xuan’s lips moved out of sync, “In a few years, he’ll be called ‘Old Man,’ right?”
The failed stifled laughter echoed all around.
Such a racket.
Wang Kailin finally realized he’d been mocked, muttered “Speechless,” and strode off wearing his limited edition collab shoes.
Completely harmless.
On Saturday, of course, it was Wang Lianhua who attended the parents’ meeting.
She had come all the way from Nanjing University of Science and Technology, a three-hour trip, yet she arrived the earliest.
Before the meeting began, Wang Lianhua looked gravely at the report card, without exchanging a word with the other parents or teachers on the podium.
Probably feeling ashamed.
Outside in the corridor, the students hadn’t left yet, peeking curiously inside.
“Your mom looks like you,” Su Liujun suddenly said to Qiu Xuan.
Qiu Xuan: “What else?”
Su Liujun: “Not just looks. I mean her movements and expressions— they were exactly the same as when you got your report card the other day.”
Qiu Xuan: “Really?”
Lin Xiqiao nodded firmly. “Really. But you seem detached. Auntie still has worries.”
Wang Lianhua, with a worried heart, seemed to sense it and turned to send Qiu Xuan a complex look: anger, shame, doubt, and a kind of ‘tough love.’
Qiu Xuan quickly pulled her roommates down to crouch, avoiding this kind of physical attack.
Just as they were about to move away, two human shields blocked the path.
Looking up, enemies in close quarters— there was Wang Kailin, and standing beside him was a big guy who was probably his father.
Not knowing what Wang Kailin said, the man suddenly became warm and reached out to help Qiu Xuan up. “You must be the Qiu Xuan from Wu Zong’s family, right?”
Qiu Xuan sidestepped and stood up on her own, nodding politely but distantly. Before they could speak again, she had already pulled her roommates toward the flower beds.
The elder’s dignity bruised, Wang’s father sheepishly withdrew his hand, but didn’t lose his temper.
Instead, he stared at the woman sitting in Qiu Xuan’s seat and frowned thoughtfully.
“But Wu Zong’s wife doesn’t seem to be this lady?”
Wang Kailin: “Ex-wife?”
Wang’s father shook his head. “Wu Zong never divorced. They’re deeply devoted.”
Her mother was a bit scary, but after so many years of confronting this mother-daughter pair, Qiu Xuan had her own ways of dealing with it. Besides, she even had a small plan involving Mrs. Wang.
So after the parents’ meeting ended, she unusually took the initiative to accept criticism.
Now in high school, Wang Lianhua’s vocabulary had also evolved. “I thought when you worked so hard in ninth grade, you were changing for good. Look at you now— bottom of the class again. Do you think high school is the same as middle school? If you slack off now, no matter how much you hang yourself or drive yourself, you won’t catch up in senior year! Forget key universities, with your grades, even specialty universities are doubtful!”
“Look at your hair, too. In middle school, the blonde hair and blue eyes made you at least look American. Now, are you trying to be an Avatar?”
“You’re sixteen. Legally, you’re already responsible for criminal responsibility. You have to be responsible for your studies and your future, do you understand?”
“Today, you’re dyeing that hair back!”
Qiu Xuan glanced at the classroom window. Her roots were starting to grow out black, which did affect the look. She nodded and asked, “Is green okay? I kind of like it.”
“You!” Wang Lianhua was so mad she couldn’t say a word.
Qiu Xuan puffed her cheeks and glanced around, deciding to stop while she was ahead.
Wang Lianhua rolled up the annoying report card and pointed around angrily. “Look at your classmates. Who dresses like you?”
Qiu Xuan: “So you noticed me right away, didn’t you?”
Wang Lianhua was stumped.
After a long stand-off, Wang Lianhua took the lead and started walking.
After a while, noticing no one followed, she turned and called out, “Come on, aren’t you going to eat? Or just stay here drinking the West-north Wind?”
Qiu Xuan raised an eyebrow, bounced over to hook her arm around her mother’s, and corrected her, “Dongzhou has a subtropical monsoon climate. In autumn, it’s the Southwest Wind.”
Wang Lianhua snorted, “You’re just taking all your learning out on me.”
“Hehe, my geography is pretty good. Didn’t you see?”
“Okay, maybe pick geography for your elective.”
“Let’s see. I want to see what Jiang Chuhuai picks,” Qiu Xuan said casually. “By the way, Mom, Jiang Chuhuai is also at No.1 High School. He’s in the Tip-top Class. Auntie Chu should be at the parents’ meeting today, right?”
“No contact yet.”
“Should we try to contact her? Auntie Chu said before she wanted Jiang Chuhuai to tutor me.”
Wang Lianhua stopped walking, expression serious. “If you want tutoring, find an agency. Why trouble others?”
Qiu Xuan: “Can you even understand Lao Deng’s explanations at the agency? When classmates tutor each other, it helps both sides reinforce knowledge.”
“Mutually? You think so highly of yourself.”
“That’s familiarity. No need to adjust. How did Auntie Chu agree then?”
“We were little then. Anything was fine. Now,” Wang Lianhua appraised her daughter from head to toe. Though a bit outlandish, she was already graceful. “It’s not appropriate anymore. You’re a girl. You need to know how to keep your distance.”
Qiu Xuan immediately caught on. “Mrs. Wang, do you think your daughter is a goddess loved by all?”
Keep a distance? After all these years, wherever she went, he even glanced at her with his real eyes?
Wang Lianhua: “Whoa, you know that? Then how do you expect to get what you want?”
Qiu Xuan’s heart broke. She pulled her arm free and stomped ahead.
Wang Lianhua shook her head and sighed, but couldn’t help a slight smile. There really was no way.
Her phone vibrated in her bag. She stopped to find it, and saw the caller ID: “Chu Hui.” Her brow twitched, and she answered.
“Chu Hui, long time no see.”
The other side was warm and cheerful, “Long time no see, Director Wang. I just heard from Zhan Zhan that Xiao Xuan also got into No.1 High School? Congratulations! I always said, Xiao Xuan’s smart. With a little effort, she’s amazing.”
Wang Lianhua’s mouth twitched, “Such a headache. Even at No.1 High, she’s still at the bottom. Too ashamed to attend this parents’ meeting.”
Chu Hui’s voice remained as gentle as ever, unchanged in ten years. “The kid just got here and hasn’t adjusted. Give her some time. Are you in a hurry to go back to Nanjing University of Science and Technology? It’s rare to meet. Do you have time to sit down for a meal?”
Naturally, this was hard to refuse. Wang Lianhua hadn’t seen Chu Hui for a long time, so she agreed. But when she looked up, her daughter was already gone.
“Let’s meet at the East-southeast Gate?” Chu Hui suggested.
“We’re heading that way too. Just now, Qiu Xuan didn’t know where she went,” Wang Lianhua said helplessly.
Chu Hui: “She’s probably just ahead of you. We’re at the East-southeast Gate. Just keep an eye out.”
“Okay, okay. Thanks, this kid…”
After hanging up, Wang Lianhua hurried after her daughter.
Qiu Xuan crouched by the wall, watching the Tabby Cat and the Orange Tabby fight with great interest.
The Orange Tabby was bigger and louder but soon lost to the seemingly slender Tabby Cat. Before fleeing in defeat, its tail got bitten through.
Completely caught off guard, Qiu Xuan didn’t even have time to intervene before she saw the Orange Tabby tuck its tail and dive into a low shrub, leaving bloodstains clearly visible on the grass.
She parted the weeds and followed it inside.
–
After Chu Hui hung up, she instructed, “Qiu Xuan’s coming to the gate. Keep an eye out and call her.”
Before her voice finished, Jiang Chuhuai’s gaze fixed on a spot. “I see her.”
Chu Hui looked around. “Where? I don’t see her.”
Jiang Chuhuai said nothing, walked to the wall, lowered his head slightly, and peered inside.
At this moment, Wang Lianhua arrived too. After exchanging a few greetings with Chu Hui, she followed Jiang Chuhuai’s line of sight—
“This life on the streets won’t work out for you anymore. From now on, stick with me. You might not have a life of luxury, but I have some money to support you.”
A blue-haired figure crawled out from the low bushes, holding the droopy Orange Tabby. Mud smeared its face and legs, with dead twigs stuck in its hair.
Wang Lianhua, Chu Hui, and Jiang Chuhuai: ……
Qiu Xuan, now back on her feet and walking: ……