Guaranteed Minimum of One Hundred Forty

Gently placing Xia Yanchun on the bed, Shen Nian went to turn off the living room lights. He closed the bedroom door when he returned, looking like he didn't plan on going back to his own place.

Xia Yanchun ignored him. She obediently lay down, leaned against the headboard, and started reading her study materials.

"Wait, are you seriously studying right now?" Shen Nian asked, lacking enthusiasm. He let out a heavy sigh and had no choice but to lie down next to her.

If Chunbao wanted to study, he felt bad about disturbing Chunbao.

It seemed he had no choice but to play some games to pass the time.

"Just reading a bit before bed. Studies show that memory is better in the morning and at night."

"Sigh."

"I'll read my stuff. If you don't want to read, just play on your phone."

"Sigh, sigh."

"If your kidneys are weak, drink some Shenbao. Stop sighing all the time."

"Sigh, sigh, sigh." Shen Nian looked resentful, feeling like he was being subjected to the silent treatment.

"I yield," Xia Yanchun sighed, mimicking him. She grabbed Shen Nian's hand and placed it on her stomach.

Giving him something to do.

Sure enough, as soon as his hand was brought over, Shen Nian started rubbing it around. He massaged and gently scratched her stomach, making it feel ticklish yet comfortable.

Shen Nian leaned closer, smiling foolishly.

Xia Yanchun stopped worrying about him and focused peacefully on her studies. When his stomach rubs felt exceptionally good, she would happily give him a quick peck on the cheek.

......

The two days of the holiday were relaxed and content. Shen Nian enjoyed the leisure, nestling together with Xia Yanchun every day, sharing an air-conditioning blanket while reading, reviewing, and resting.

Xia Yanchun did a lot of studying. Over the two days, excluding sleep, she spent almost half her time reading. However, the intensity wasn't high; she was mostly just reviewing materials. Sometimes Shen Nian would read with her, and after finishing a subject, he would hold her close and cuddle for a bit.

The day before the exam, Shen Nian and Xia Yanchun went back to school together.

Today, they had to take the school bus to familiarize themselves with the examination venues.

There were police clearing the way on the road, and the traffic routes had been planned out in advance.

In China, the topics of June 7th and 8th always generate the highest buzz. Ten minutes after the Chinese exam finishes, the essay prompts appear on Weibo's trending list.

He hoped that tomorrow, pretty older sisters of the candidates would randomly spawn at various test centers wearing beautiful qipaos.

......

June 7th.

Today was the day to slay the demon king.

Shen Nian was in high spirits early in the morning and double-checked all his belongings.

He didn't want to become one of those NPCs who routinely spawned every year.

He cooked beef porridge and added a refreshing buff to it, hoping his little Chunbao would stay in peak condition.

"Let's go, I'll drive you over first." Shen Nian pushed his scooter out.

"Mhm..." Xia Yanchun carefully got on the scooter and checked her own things again, reminding him, "Have you checked yours?"

"I've checked."

"Okay, let's go then."

Because the nearby traffic had been specially regulated, Shen Nian had a smooth and unobstructed ride.

Today was the most important day of their twelve years of schooling. Even for Shen Nian, it was impossible not to be nervous at all; there was inevitably a little bit of anxiety.

Shen Nian glanced in the rearview mirror and could only see Xia Yanchun's helmet. He asked curiously, "Are you nervous?"

"I'm alright," Xia Yanchun poked her head out. "Are you?"

"I am."

"You don't look it."

"Isn't this the time when you should give me a kiss to comfort and encourage me?"

"Since you don't look nervous, there is no comfort or encouragement."

"Do I really have to be nervous to get comfort and encouragement?"

Xia Yanchun sweatdropped. Did she have to give Shen Nian whatever he wanted?

Spoiling Shen Nian would only ruin him!

"Alright, mua."

Without offering any verbal comfort or encouragement, Xia Yanchun just leaned close to his ear, puckered her lips, and made a kissing sound.

That was more than enough. If Shen Nian pushed his luck, she would mentally curse him to score one point lower than her.

Fortunately, Shen Nian didn't continue to shamelessly beg for comfort.

Mainly because they were arriving at the destination, and the crowd was growing thicker.

Shen Nian parked the scooter, waited for Xia Yanchun to get off, and smiled faintly. "Good luck on the exam, Chunbao."

"Good luck to you too, drive safely."

"Got it." Shen Nian turned the scooter around and headed toward First High School.

It was a pity they weren't at the same test center, which meant he had to travel a bit further.

In front of First High School, there was a surging crowd, mostly parents bringing their children for the exam, along with TV station crews holding cameras and microphones.

Scenes he had only seen on TV before were now his reality; in the blink of an eye, it was his turn to enter the examination room.

Chen Minyue and Shen Shi had originally wanted to come, but Shen Nian refused. Their home was close anyway, and if they came, they could only help cook lunch.

Unlike other students who needed a lunch break to rest, cooking lunch was no trouble for Shen Nian at all. Not to mention, he had Culinary Mastery, which allowed him to add buffs to the lunch.

Wait, why weren't there any pretty older sisters of the candidates wearing high-slit qipaos? Bad review, bad review, bad review.

The morning exam was Chinese.

Shen Nian glanced over the questions and felt the difficulty was acceptable. When he actually started writing, he found it quite easy; many points could be easily scored just by carefully reading the provided texts.

The essay, however, was a bit challenging. The prompt was convoluted, and even in his Focus state, Shen Nian had to think for five minutes before figuring out what the essay was supposed to convey.

Focus was still too overpowered.

Before it was even time to hand in the paper early, Shen Nian had already put down his pen and even double-checked his work.

Thirty minutes early, Shen Nian swiftly handed in his paper.

The college entrance examination was different from other exams. Students who used to hand in their papers early would utilize those thirty minutes properly today, checking their work a couple more times. Finding even a single mistake was a massive gain for any candidate.

Scoring just one extra point meant stepping over a thousand other students.

However, there were still quite a few people who handed in their papers early.

At the school gate, people were already shouting, "Buff Sima Yi," "Buff Keqing," and "Buff Wandering Obito."

Shen Nian had planned to go straight to Second High School to wait for Xia Yanchun, but before he took many steps, someone stopped him from the side.

"Hello, student. We are reporters from Tencent Cinan Network. May we interview you?" A pretty auntie, looking to be in her early thirties, stood in front of Shen Nian.

Shen Nian was a little taken aback. He wasn't the first one out and was actually walking behind quite a few people. He didn't expect a reporter to come and interview him.

It must be because my charm stat is too high.

Shen Nian was convinced.

He nodded. "Go ahead."

"How do you feel about the difficulty of this year's college entrance examination?" As soon as the reporter finished speaking, the cameraman uncle next to her immediately shifted the lens.

Shen Nian rubbed his chin. "It felt alright."

"Did you encounter any difficult questions while writing the exam?"

"I feel like this exam was pretty standard. There weren't any questions that needed special attention..." Shen Nian said seriously.

After all, during the exam, he spent half the time in the Focus state, where his brain activity was higher than usual. Throughout the entire paper, there really wasn't a question that could stump him.

He was already being modest. If he wasn't, he would have said that anyone with hands could do it.

The reporter nodded repeatedly and asked again, "Then how did you manage your time for this exam?"

"I just wrote it normally, and when I finished, I waited to hand it in," Shen Nian told the truth.

"Do you write very fast? Did you finish before it was even time to hand in the paper early?"

"Yeah."

"Oh!" The reporter's eyes widened. "Have you estimated your score after the exam? Roughly how much do you think you'll get?"

"At least 140, I'd say."

"...?"