Su Jianjun laughed and said, "Qin Shiqing did so well in the exams, and Zelin didn't disappoint our expectations either. I have a suggestion, why don't our two families buy more groceries and have dinner together tonight to celebrate properly?"

"Old Su, we must do that. We've worked hard all our lives for what? It's so our kids can grow up healthy and safe, get into a good university, and then we can be at ease!"

Qin Daqing immediately expressed his support, and Liu Sufen and Zhao Lixia naturally didn't oppose either.

The two families often dined together, and celebrating such a good occasion brought even more joy.

After staying at the Qin family for a while, Su Zelin went back home.

As he entered, he heard the landline ringing. He ran over to pick it up, and it was Lu Haoran calling.

Haoran's family hasn't installed a landline yet, so he can only use an IC card at a public phone booth to check his scores.

"Zelin, I got my scores!"

The honest guy's voice was full of joy as he reported, "Total score, 613!"

His score was a bit higher than in a previous life, mainly due to improvements in the Chinese composition. Su Zelin had "guessed" the topic correctly, and Lu Haoran had prepared in advance by reading several sample essays. With a clear idea in mind, he performed well on the spot.

"Hehe, congratulations, future university student of Gongda!"

Su Zelin gave him a thumbs up.

With that score, Haoran is sure to get into Gongda.

"Zelin, what about you?"

Lu Haoran was also very concerned about his best friend's score because this would determine whether the two of them would be in the same city for the next four years.

Though they would make new friends in college, Lu Haoran didn't think anyone could have a stronger bond with him than Su Zelin.

"526, haha!"

Su Zelin laughed.

"That's great, Caiyuan is a sure thing for you!"

Lu Haoran was overjoyed, then suddenly remembered, "Right, how did you do in English?"

During the third mock exam, Su Zelin got a perfect score, shocking the entire school. The honest guy was also quite curious about his English score in the college entrance exam.

Su Zelin: "Just average."

Lu Haoran: "What does average mean?"

Su Zelin: "150."

Lu Haoran: "..."

Calling a perfect score average, is this how you brag?

How do you expect others to live!

"Wow, Zelin, does that make you the top English scorer?"

Lu Haoran was very excited.

"Yes, please call me Su Champion from now on!"

Su Zelin chuckled, "How did Xiaoyanzi do, did you ask?"

"Uh, I asked just now, her total score is over 600 as well, no problem for Shida."

Lu Haoran felt a little embarrassed.

He called Xiaoyanzi's house, and it took him quite a bit of courage, afraid that her parents would answer. If that were the case, he would consider claiming he dialed the wrong number. Fortunately, Xiaoyanzi picked up.

"Oh, you didn't call me first, you disloyal friend!"

Su Zelin instantly felt like he had been cheated on.

"No, no, Zelin, I tried calling you first, but no one answered, so I called Xiaoyanzi afterward!"

The honest guy hurriedly explained, having been wronged.

At the time of the call, the entire Su family just happened to be next door.

"Alright, I'll let it slide then!"

Cute people probably wouldn't lie, it seems it was just a misunderstanding.

"What about Shiqing, what's her total score?"

Lu Haoran asked again.

"703!"

"Oh my, over 700, she can choose any from Qinghua or Beida, her estimated score was way off!"

"Exactly, luckily I, Su Banxian, declared she had the potential for Qinghua or Beida, otherwise this silly girl wouldn't have dared to apply!"

As soon as he mentioned this, Su Zelin got annoyed.

Qin Shiqing, oh Qin Shiqing, I worked so hard to ensure you wouldn't perform below your potential, bringing umbrellas, making ginger soup, sharing program tips. If you missed Qinghua or Beida because of a far-off estimate, wouldn't all my efforts have been for nothing?

Stay away from me, I don't want to be a scumbag again!

There was silence on the other end of the line for a while before Lu Haoran spoke: "Zelin, that means for the next few years, Shiqing will be in Yanjing, and you'll be in Lin'an!"

"So?"

"Shiqing is such a great girl, don't you think it's a pity? If you had persuaded her a little, maybe she would have stayed in the province."

Lu Haoran had never understood.

Qin Shiqing was the school belle, excellent in character and academics, with a great personality, definitely the ideal wife and mother type, nearly perfect, admired by countless in the school. Yet, as her childhood friend, he seemed completely uninterested, watching her leave, and that made Lu Haoran anxious.

"We're not meant for each other, besides we're too familiar, it would be awkward, better to stay friends!"

Su Zelin said calmly.

"Is that so? Actually, I've always thought you two are quite a match. You're both so good-looking, smart, and childhood sweethearts who know each other inside out. Zelin, although your studies are not as good as Shiqing's, you'll definitely carve out a successful path for yourself in the future, not necessarily any less than Shiqing!"

Lu Haoran assumed Su Zelin felt inferior in front of the excellent Qin Shiqing, which was why he hadn't pursued her, so he earnestly tried to persuade him.

Su Zelin replied with a hint of annoyance, "Mouse, did you apply for a matchmaker program or something? Why do you love playing Cupid so much? You should focus on yourself and Xiaoyanzi first before worrying about others!"

"Oh, Zelin, you've got it wrong. Xiaoyanzi and I are just ordinary friends."

Caught out by Su Zelin, the honest man with a thin skin couldn't keep a straight face.

"Alright then, I'll call Xiaoyanzi later and tell her you don't like her, and that you just think of her as an ordinary friend!"

"No, no, no, Zelin, okay, I admit it, Xiaoyanzi is indeed quite adorable, and I have a bit of a thing for her; it's just that my family background isn't great, so I'm afraid she won't think much of me."

"No problem, go for it boldly, you can definitely do it, Su Banxian's words!"

"Oh, Zelin, how do I pursue a girl? Give me some tips!"

"..."

After chatting with Lu Haoran for a while, he hung up the phone.

During the day, there wasn't much to do, so he went to an internet cafe to surf the web, checked the stock trends, and read novels when he got home.

He had finished reading all of Master Huang's works and was now following Mo Wen's series like "Legend of Wulin", "Legend of the Black Eagle", "Legend of the Black Panther", etc.

After reading for half a day, feeling parched and dry, Su Zelin walked out to the living room to get a drink.

His mom was busy on the phone.

Since the afternoon, Zhao Lixia hadn't left the landline, constantly calling relatives and friends, not as frugal with the phone bill as usual.

"Chen Hong, has your Xiao Hang checked his scores yet? How did he do?"

"Not bad at all, congratulations!"

"As for that brat of mine, his total score is so-so, only his English is alright!"

"Not much, just 150!"

Su Zelin: "..."

Truly a doting mom, Versailles genes run deep.

...

At dusk, the setting sun slowly faded its blinding light, colorful clouds pervaded the sky, and the majestic mountains were gilded with a golden hue by the afterglow, extraordinarily magnificent.

In the small town, smoke from kitchen chimneys wafted gently. For those who finished a day of hard work, nothing was more blissful than enjoying a hearty dinner at home.

In the sweltering midsummer, having an ice-cold beer would make it even more wonderful.

In the Su family kitchen, Zhao Lixia, Liu Sufen were busy, with Qin Shiqing also helping out on the side.

Su Jianjun and son and Qin's dad were in the living room, watching TV and drinking tea.

"Shiqing is so diligent, unlike our lousy kid who only knows how to slack off and wait to die. Just like his lazy old man, if he were even half as good as Shiqing, I'd be satisfied!"

The saying goes, when two women get together, there's endless chatter, especially when they're two housewives.

As she washed vegetables, Zhao Lixia grumbled.

"Lixia, you shouldn't say that, men, you know, the most important thing is that they know how to make money, that's what shows they're promising. Whether they're good at housework is secondary!"

Liu Sufen replied with a laugh, then added casually, "Zelin's got such a good head on his shoulders, are you and Old Su planning for him to take over the Su family's business after he graduates?"

"Oh, Sufen, don't even talk about graduation. That rascal's telling us he wants to start his own business as soon as he gets into university!"

"Start a business?"

Liu Sufen was taken aback.

"Yes, before the college entrance exam, he won second prize in the lottery, kept all the tens of thousands for himself, and called it a startup fund!"

Mentioning this, Zhao Lixia was very displeased, always feeling it was too rash to let her son handle the lottery winnings himself.

Liu Sufen was deeply moved.

She had originally thought that after going to university, Su Zelin would still just want to play around, but he already had plans, and it was to start his own business!

Never mind whether he could make it happen, how many college students have the courage and boldness to do so?

Daqing was right, I really underestimated Zelin too much.

If we're not careful, when our Shiqing graduates and is working for others, Zelin might already be a boss, employing others and handing out salaries.

"Lixia, it's good for young people to have ambition, I think you should support him. Besides, I believe in Zelin too, that kid has been smart since he was little, he'll make it!"

Liu Sufen said a few good words on his behalf.

Then she turned to her daughter and said, "Shiqing, you should learn from Zelin in this regard. Studying is important, but you can't just study without thinking for yourself or planning your life!"

"Yes, Mom!"

Qin Shiqing nodded slightly.

She was a bit surprised too.

If it weren't for hearing it from Granny Su, she wouldn't have known that her childhood companion planned to start a business after going to university; Su Zelin had never mentioned it.

Zhao Lixia sighed again, "It's fine to have ambition if it's genuine, I'm just afraid he doesn't know the limits and that kid even declared he'd turn that money into over ten thousand before reporting to college, he's dreaming!"

"Sufen, you must help persuade him later, I'm just scared he'll mess up, not earn any money, and squander all those tens of thousands!"

Earning ten thousand in a month?

This time, Liu Sufen shook her head too.

Zelin must think money grows on trees, to be picked as he pleases!

In the end, he's just too young and hasn't faced the harsh lessons of society; he's too ambitious and impractical.

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