There was nothing much to do on the night after the exams.
Shen Nian stayed in the room keeping Xia Yanchun company. While she looked at her study materials and reviewed, he also read through some materials and browsed online forums checking out computer configurations.
Xia Yanchun occasionally glanced over to see what Shen Nian was doing. Catching sight of the PC specs on his phone, she curiously leaned against him, "Are you buying a computer right after graduation?"
"Yeah, a lot of college majors will probably need one, so I have to buy it eventually."
"Desktop or laptop?"
"Desktop, I guess. Home is pretty close anyway."
"Then I'll buy one too. I'll get a laptop. Just in case I need to go somewhere far, I can bring it along."
"I could just buy both a desktop and a laptop."
"Got money to waste, huh? No buying both. We'll get one each."
"Alright, alright."
Shen Nian smiled faintly, placing his hand on the girl's stomach and rubbing it gently. He rested with her for a while, and after enough cuddling, he seriously got back to reviewing, memorizing some English grammar.
The next day.
They had the Science Comprehensive exam in the morning and English in the afternoon. Both were Shen Nian's strong subjects... Actually, the current Shen Nian was an all-around player; he didn't have any weak subjects.
If the difficulty of the Chinese and Math exams was just right, then the Science Comprehensive was on a whole other level. Some questions even had hidden traps; one slip in your train of thought and you would get it wrong, which not only wasted time but also made it extremely easy to lose points.
The exam setters were very sneaky.
Fortunately, Shen Nian had his "cheats" activated; he treated those traps like mere speed bumps.
English, on the other hand, was relatively simple. Relying on the high status brought by his "High Spirits" buff and his own hard work, the 3,500 vocabulary words were thoroughly ingrained in his mind. He understood the entire test paper at a glance; just reading a line, his brain automatically translated it.
Easy peasy. He handed in his paper early.
The afternoon sun was much softer than the scorching midday sun.
Shen Nian raised his hand to block the glare, casting a shadow over his face.
The final exam... was finally ending.
In another half an hour, once the paper collection time passed, these past few years of hard work would officially come to an end, right?
Everyone says college is the most relaxing time, though he didn't know if that was true. Even Uncle Xia said there were a lot of fun things to do in college.
Shen Nian had seen plenty of college students complaining online about 8 AM classes and group projects. Looking at their miserable, complaining faces, it didn't seem all that relaxing.
Regardless, high school was over. All that was left was waiting for the school to issue their diplomas.
Shen Nian walked out of the exam venue. The reporters had already found their interview targets, and he was happy to be left in peace.
Interviews were a novelty the first time, normal the second, but annoying after that.
Outside the school was a bit noisy. Some students threw themselves into their parents' arms, some waited under the trees, and others looked gloomy—a display of all walks of life.
Bro, seriously? They even brought ads for repeating-year cram schools right to the exam gates.
Shen Nian's mouth twitched. Weren't they afraid of getting mobbed?
To be fair, this was extremely precise target audience locking. Businessmen were terrifying. Shen Nian decided he would study their business tactics full-time at home.
Not staying long at No. 1 High, Shen Nian rode his little electric scooter toward No. 2 High and parked at the gate to wait for Xia Yanchun.
There would be a three-month vacation coming up, and he had already figured out his plans: learning to drive, buying a car, livestreaming, traveling, helping with the family farm... Thinking about it, there was a lot to do.
The boasts he once made in front of Xia Yanchun could almost be fulfilled now. He genuinely had the capital to buy a car right after graduation.
Buying a car in full, letting Haji Chun sit in the passenger seat, driving with one hand, and the other hand touching her leg... uh, no, shifting gears.
But before that, he had to get his driver's license. No need to rush.
English didn't take much time anyway, and Xia Yanchun was also the type to hand in her paper early. He didn't wait long before Xia Yanchun walked out with her head down. Looking around, she spotted Shen Nian and happily ran over to him, flashing her two little canine teeth.
"Why so happy?" Shen Nian pinched the girl's soft cheek, smiling sweetly along with her.
"I felt like English was so easy this time. I might even get a perfect score."
"Damn, that awesome?"
"What about you? How do you think you did?"
"I'm a modest guy, so maybe a 140."
"I don't think you're being modest; I think that's just all you can get."
"Haji Chun, you brat, looking down on your bro. Let's bet on it, we have to bet!"
"Hmph." Xia Yanchun shoved her pencil case into Shen Nian's hands, pulling him along to wait for Li Shiyan. She hummed, "I'm having Shiyan go shopping with me later. Her mom is coming to pick us up, so you drive back by yourself, okay?"
"It's just carrying two people. I think my little Maverick scooter can handle it. I'll just give you both a ride back."
"You're crazy. With so many traffic cops around, you dare carry two people? Just one person not wearing a helmet will get you in enough trouble."
"You're actually neglecting your official boyfriend for your bestie? Haji Chun, you'd rather cry in Li Shiyan's BMW than smile on my scooter?"
"Is it possible that I'd be smiling in Shiyan's BMW too?"
"Damn, you're right. Then you should just take the ride with Li Shiyan."
Shen Nian also wanted to try what it felt like to smile in a BMW. He figured if he mentioned it, Li Shiyan probably wouldn't refuse.
But he still had to ride his little Maverick home.
They were both animal-themed rides, and the Maverick wasn't much weaker than a BMW. Since there was no difference in strength, there was no difference in status. Shen Nian felt they could take turns driving them.
Li Shiyan came out very quickly too, beaming with joy like a little sparrow. It was obvious her exams went smoothly.
"You can go back now." Xia Yanchun linked arms with Li Shiyan and waved at Shen Nian. "We have to go back to No. 2 High tonight. If you're going to take a shower, remember to watch the time."
"Got it, you friend-over-boyfriend traitor."
"Get out of here!"
Shen Nian curled his lip and had to ride back to the neighborhood alone.
He bought some ribs and char siu at the small grocery store downstairs. He had plenty of time to cook dinner.
Just as he finished cooking the lamb chops, Shen Nian heard the front door open, followed by Xia Yanchun's voice.
"Smells so good! What are you cooking?" Xia Yanchun popped into the kitchen and peeked into his pot. "Honey-glazed ribs?"
"Yep. Craving it?"
"No way, I'm not you." Xia Yanchun muttered with her hands behind her back. "Shiyan and I are going to buy some party poppers for evening study. I'm borrowing your scooter."
"Okay, the keys are on the coffee table."
Xia Yanchun's eyes curved into a smile. She covered her mouth and leaned close to Shen Nian's ear. "Um... I originally thought we were all going out to eat, I didn't expect you to cook. Did you make enough? If not, I'll just go downstairs and eat with Shiyan. Otherwise, it'd be bad to leave her to eat alone..."
"Of course it's enough." Shen Nian's ears felt a little hot, purely from Haji Chun's warm breath.
"Then I'm relieved. I'm heading out now!"
"Yeah, drive safely."
"Roger that!"
Xia Yanchun stepped out of the kitchen, helped Shen Nian close the front door, and headed downstairs with Li Shiyan, who had been standing in the hallway the entire time, too timid to go inside.
Tonight was their class graduation party. There would be cake, snacks, party poppers, small flowers... a bit of everything. Xia Yanchun, the class monitor, wasn't the only one shopping; several other class officers were also out buying the supplies they were in charge of. All their purchases would be reimbursed from the class fund later on.
Mr. Su and all their subject teachers had been incredibly dedicated, so they definitely needed to make sure they showed them their proper appreciation.
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
