Driving all the way back home.
Xia Yanchun hurried home because of her period.
There were always a few days like this every month. Although the timing was roughly the same, having to stay in the classroom for long hours every day made her feel quite uncomfortable.
Some people in the class liked to find excuses to ask for leave to go out and have fun. Shen Nian in the past had done it several times, deliberately working up a sweat and then taking a cold shower to induce a slight fever, thus getting a day off to enjoy himself.
Xia Yanchun hardly ever asked for leave. The last time she did was because she sprained her ankle.
As soon as she sent out her leave request, Su Kexi immediately approved it.
Top students definitely got special treatment. Forget about one evening self-study session, even getting three days off was easy. The school always turned a blind eye when top students asked for leave, after all, they relied on these students to boost the school's academic results.
She hadn't eaten yet, so she first took a comfortable hot bath. She soaked for a bit too long, and the takeout she had packed got cold. Not minding the trouble, she reheated it in the microwave.
Evening, right when evening self-study was starting.
Good thing Shen Nian had asked for leave.
He decided to watch online lectures all evening, to outwork everyone else, to outwork himself. He figured he could think about developing skills beyond studying once he was stable enough to aim for the top score in the college entrance exams. Maybe become a boss in the future.
Shen Nian didn't have any grand dreams. He just wanted to have money available when he needed it in the future.
Buying a car worth a hundred thousand? Just need to have the money.
Buying an apartment worth a million? Just need to have the money.
Acquiring a company worth tens of millions? Just need to have the money.
Haha, that's getting a bit carried away. Shen Nian felt his immediate priority was to get himself a "Divine Huang Zhong" in the game.
Shen Yue came back a bit late today. Seeing her look utterly miserable, Shen Nian knew she had been assigned tedious work again.
"Sis, can you send me fifty bucks?"
"......"
Shen Yue, who had returned full of resentment, felt like she died on the spot after hearing Shen Nian's question.
"Could you have a little conscience?"
"Hehe, just kidding."
"Is there any food?"
"Of course, I got you takeout." Shen Nian smiled and brought out the reheated meal for her.
"At least you have some conscience." Shen Yue, utterly exhausted, slumped into a chair like a limp pig.
Before she started working, Shen Yue would get scolded by their mom for being in this state at home. Now that she was working, this state seemed normal.
Work was work, and even entry-level positions in state-owned enterprises weren't easy.
Shen Yue chowed down on her food, then suddenly paused. She glanced at Shen Nian and said somewhat sheepishly, "Shen Nian, can you do me a favor? It's nothing major."
"If it's not major, why ask me? Handle it yourself."
"You misheard, I said it is major."
"If it's major, how can an eighteen-year-old high school student like me help? Handle it yourself."
"I'm asking you out of respect. Do you think refusing means you don't have to help?" Shen Yue dropped the act. "My e-bike ran out of battery. Can you go down later and plug it in to charge?"
Shen Nian broke into a sweat. "Why didn't you charge it when you got back?"
"I just forgot, okay? Help me this time and I'll top up your monthly game card next time, deal?"
"......"
In the past, Shen Nian would have scampered downstairs eagerly, because his allowance really wasn't enough for the monthly card.
But now... his savings were even more than Shen Yue's, and he didn't play games much anymore, so topping up the monthly card wasn't that useful.
"Forget it. How about this: you buy me a computer after I graduate. Monthly cards are too expensive anyway."
"?"
A computer costing several thousand is more expensive than a thirty or fifty yuan monthly card? That's some impressive logic.
Too bad he's her biological brother, otherwise she'd have already smacked him.
Shen Nian took the keys and went downstairs, found Shen Yue's little e-bike, and plugged it in to charge.
No helping it. His own older sister had worked all day; if he didn't help her, who would?
Considering Shen Yue had bought him the Naruto mobile game monthly card for two whole years when he was in 10th and 11th grade...
By the bushes next to the bike shed, Shen Nian came across a sleeping cat, curled up into a fluffy ball.
Unlike the north, it wasn't particularly cold in winter here in Cinan, so cats could still handle General Winter fairly easily.
The cat was quite tame. Shen Nian didn't want to see this warm, fluffy ball turn into a cold corpse.
Shen Nian squatted and watched for a while, poking its back with his finger. He wondered how old this cat was, and if it was still suitable for adoption.
"Meow..."
The cat's ears twitched. The little cat rolled over, saw someone nearby, immediately went into "spine dragon" mode, and hissed at Shen Nian.
Upon seeing it was Shen Nian, the cat awkwardly licked its paw and then rolled over, exposing its belly to him.
"Damn, you're quite the charmer." Shen Nian rubbed the cat's belly.
He didn't intend to adopt it; he just couldn't resist coming over to play with it when he saw it.
Mainly because the cat's fur pattern was hilarious. The markings on its face had a certain... style, and Shen Nian couldn't help but laugh every time he saw it.
A little girl with two pigtails ran over, looking curiously at Shen Nian and the cat. "Mister, what are you doing...?"
"Playing with the cat," Shen Nian said with a smile.
What else would he be doing, dating the cat? Some "Nekopara" scenario.
Shen Nian also recognized her; she was the little girl from around the start of the school term. Come to think of it, both she and this cat were part of where the dream began.
"Mister, aren't you going to feed the cat?" The little girl also squatted down, pulling a cat treat stick from her pocket.
"I'm just looking. Are there other cats in the complex?"
"There used to be, now there's only this one." The girl fed the cat the treat while stroking its fur. "My dad said I can keep it when I turn five. Hmph, then I'll let it eat cat treats every day. I've even thought of a name for it—I'll call it Cotton."
"Why?"
"Because it looks like cotton candy."
"......"
Chatting with a well-behaved, cute little girl like this occasionally really did improve one's mood.
Although Shen Nian's mood was already pretty good.
No one could predict the fate of the stray cats in the residential complex. Maybe one day, the property management would come with nets and round them all up. He hoped this cat could live safely and steadily until the day it got adopted.
A little cat touched by a 【Lucky Star】 should become luckier, right?
Yanxi reminds you: Due to Tomato's request for 3 million+ daily visits causing excessive server pressure, it is now recommended that you use sources from other experts/seniors:
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u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
u serious?" Chen Feng watched helplessly as his painstakingly trained disciple, fresh off a championship victory, publicly abandoned him. "You had your chance, but you didn’t appreciate it. Now, face the consequences of your choice!" Chen Feng possessed the "Master System," a treasure trove of supreme martial arts techniques, capable of molding ordinary individuals into peerless prodigies. "Legs like yours? A shame not to train in the Crippling Kick." "Ever heard of a palm strike that descends from the heavens?" "Auntie! I see extraordinary bone structure in you—a martial arts prodigy, one in ten thousand." The once-defiant senior disciple, now watching her juniors rise to fame one after another, dominating the internet, was consumed by endless regret.
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