Chapter 107: Tension

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After several months away from school, Zhou Jingchen still felt a bit out of place during the first week back and often found his mind wandering. Fortunately, he had studied these subjects before in his past life and had been reviewing diligently all along. So, when the teacher occasionally called on him, he was able to answer without trouble.

Not all the teachers in Class One liked to call on students randomly, but the head counselor had made it a requirement. They wanted to see if Zhou Jingchen had let his studies slip during his months off and to gauge his current academic level. When leadership gives orders, subordinates can only comply.

The results did not disappoint the head counselor. Zhou Jingchen’s academic performance remained excellent, even showing improvement. At his current pace, he was sure to bring honor to the school in the college entrance examinations.

As a key provincial school, Yizhong had always maintained a high college admission rate, yet it was often criticized for one thing: its academic students were too rigid, while arts and sports students lagged far behind academically.

If Zhou Jingchen continued to develop smoothly, three years from now he would undoubtedly become a shining example for Yizhong.

Who says academic students can’t be lively? Who says arts and sports students can’t excel academically? The two are not mutually exclusive; with self-discipline and ambition, one can excel in both.

Zhou Jingchen was no fool—he had a good sense of the school leadership’s intentions, but it made no difference to him.

Whether in studies or acting, his hard work was all to be worthy of Yu Qian.

After all, Qian improved by the day. If he merely maintained his previous state, he would inevitably be left far behind.

More importantly, the entertainment industry was so dark; if Qian wanted to flourish smoothly, relying only on her fans and Wen Xiu wouldn’t guarantee her safety. Zhou Jingchen intended to be her strongest backing.

…

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Yu Qian had no idea about Zhou Jingchen’s thoughts.

To her, the red envelope group chat was her only reliance.

When Zhou Jingchen sent a message saying he wanted to bring three friends to meet her, she felt nervous, unsure what his friends would be like or if they would have opinions about her.

Though this was her first time dealing with romantic matters in both this life and the last, Yu Qian seemed to handle it with ease, occasionally teasing Zhou Jingchen. But in truth, she was clueless and had been quietly searching online for tips and advice.

Now, in her nervousness, she once again turned to the internet.

But looking at those answers—what nonsense!

“Just don’t be nervous?” Of course she knew that was the ideal, but how could she possibly stop being nervous?

There were all kinds of strange, counterproductive suggestions that seemed more likely to drive people away than to help.

After scanning through it all and seeing nothing useful, Yu Qian sighed and put down her phone.

She couldn’t ask Wen Yu—Zhou Jingchen would get scolded to death by his parents.

She couldn’t ask the group chat—they would only criticize Zhou Jingchen.

She couldn’t ask Wen Xiu, Lin Su, or Chu Yueyue—they were all single and inexperienced in love, so asking them would be pointless.

After thinking long and hard, she found no one to turn to for advice and felt even more discouraged. Resigned, she called Aunt Chen to tell her about the guests and to prepare extra dishes.

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After that, she could only adapt as the situation unfolded.

Middle school finished earlier than high school, so Yu Qian went home first without waiting for Zhou Jingchen.

As for Zhou Jingchen, he was delayed by classmates crowding him for autographs and did not arrive home until dusk.

He first brought his three friends to his own house to drop off their things, then went to Yu Qian’s place.

Entering, he saw the meal already prepared and laid out on the dining table. Wen Xiu was sitting cross-legged on the sofa playing games, but Yu Qian was nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s the little cutie?” Zhou Jingchen asked Wen Xiu as he glanced around.

“In the training room,” Wen Xiu replied without looking up, fully focused on the game.

Yu Yang saw Zhou Jingchen and his friends going inside, then noticed Wen Xiu happily playing games nearby. His curiosity about the game outweighed his interest in Yu Qian, so he didn’t follow them in but instead joined Wen Xiu.

“Which server are you on, sis?”

Wen Xiu paused and glanced at him. That momentary distraction caused her character to die and be soul-captured into the Netherworld.

Seeing his beautiful sister’s face suddenly darken, Yu Yang’s survival instinct kicked in, and he quickly left without saying a word to chase after Zhou Jingchen.

Before he could even start scolding her, Wen Xiu was left breathless and nauseous.