No matter how much the name Duan Baoni was mocked for being tacky, in the eyes of the person who named her, she was a treasure to be cherished.
And the "Jie" in Ji Jie was originally the character for "end."
End. Her mother had given birth again and again, belly cut open, painfully hoping this futile effort would finally stop.
She wasn't the eldest girl in the family, who could at least barely count as a source of labor. Nor was she the long-awaited little brother, who received all the affection without having to do anything at all.
She was the one sent off to relatives to be raised casually, the one living under someone else's roof and walking on eggshells, the one for whom even breathing was wrong when she did nothing at all.
The one who had been abandoned from beginning to end.
Because her very existence was a mistake—a useless defective product that hadn't been born from the mold her parents had wished for.
So what.
She hadn't been born into expectation—did that mean she had no right to live?
Even with just a little bit of energy, she could hold on longer than anyone. Long enough to get into a prestigious university, to enter a well-known company, long enough to have the ability to reinvent her own name. Long enough that even after a car accident, she would live one more lifetime than anyone else.
Even if an unexplained fever made her internal organs sear, burning for a day and a night.
Heavy eyelids pressed down, making it impossible to wake, yet Ji Jie's mind remained clear.
She was going to live.
No matter the cost.
If she had to do something creepy, she would live on creepily. If she had to do something despicable, she would live on despicably.
**
The doctor's diagnosis was that the girl had overworked her brain, leading to exhaustion-induced collapse, and needed to rest.
Huo Zhenyan was momentarily speechless when he heard this.
Among this generation of kids, plenty had played themselves into health problems, but this was the first time he'd seen someone study themselves into one.
He had originally just come home to change clothes and attend an evening cocktail party. Having been unexpectedly delayed, he simply told his assistant to cancel his attendance, loosened his tie and tossed it aside. He hadn't wanted to go anyway.
It didn't sound like any serious illness, but unexpectedly, that night, he still couldn't take her home.
Her fever wouldn't break all night, and she was on the verge of dehydration. Huo Zhenyan stayed with her for half the night, experiencing a rare pang of guilt.
Her parents weren't around, and he'd let the girl end up like this under his watch—he had no way to explain it.
It wasn't until noon on Saturday that word came from the hospital that she was showing signs of improvement. Huo Zhenyan headed to the hospital ward as soon as his meeting ended.
Ji Jie leaned against the headboard, a fever patch stuck to her forehead, holding a cup of warm water and sipping it in small mouthfuls. Her complexion was a little more alive than yesterday.
Seeing him, she still called out meekly, "Brother."
"Mm. Feeling better?" Huo Zhenyan said. "If anything's uncomfortable, tell the doctor."
"I'm okay." She had only one small worry. "When can I be discharged? It shouldn't interfere with going to the tutoring center, right?"
"……"
Huo Zhenyan said, "Your fever hasn't broken yet."
"It has, I just measured it and it's only thirty-eight degrees now." She reported hastily, then asked hesitantly, "Is that okay?"
This was important. She couldn't keep up with the classes at school to begin with, and urgently needed a professional teacher to guide her progress—she didn't want to delay another week.
She had attended ordinary schools before, and after transferring, she'd discovered the gap between herself and her classmates and wanted to work hard to catch up. This was ambitious—a good thing.
What Huo Zhenyan was considering was how to remind her, without hurting her self-esteem, that this kind of gap could not be closed in a hurry. It was not something that could be made up for through a single day's effort.
The vast chasm between people existed from birth. Living your whole life in your original world was not so bad; the most terrifying thing was when, by some twist of fate, you caught a glimpse of the wider world, then looked back at your own worth and felt that psychological jarring.
But the girl before him reminded him of his younger self. In those days of running on overdrive, upward ambition outweighed everything else, and no matter how others tried to persuade you, you mostly could not hear it.
"If your temperature is normal tomorrow morning, I'll take you," Huo Zhenyan said.
Her eyes instantly lit up, curving slightly. "Okay."
"Get up and eat something."
"Mm-hmm."
Huo Zhenyan stayed in the hospital room and ate lunch with her. Neither was much of a talker, yet sharing a room was quite harmonious.
Ji Jie had been feverish all night and had just woken up with little appetite. She ate from the small bowl of soup, observing him with glances here and there.
His hair today was also neatly styled—smooth but not stiff, gathered just right at the nape of his neck, with his sideburns trimmed clean. It brought out the rugged, heroic spirit of his deep-set, piercing eyes. Sure enough, older men should show their foreheads.
Having not gone home for two nights in a row, Auntie Ping came to bring her a change of clothes. She took the opportunity to push the small dining table away—though her movement was clearly subtle, somehow it was noticed.
Huo Zhenyan stood up and fixed her with those very intimidating eyes. "Finish eating."
"Oh." She immediately changed her movement, as naturally as if she had never intended to send the food away at all, and casually continued scraping at the remaining half bowl with her spoon.
"Your schoolbag is at home," he added. "Don't read today for now. Spend less time on your phone. I'll come over tomorrow morning."
"Okay." This one carried noticeably more genuine feeling. Ji Jie waved at him. "See you tomorrow."
Huo Zhenyan's fingers moved slightly. He said nothing, only nodded at her. "Hope to see you."
He definitely would.
Ji Jie could feel it herself—the so-called punishment was fading. She had tested the cost of refusing to complete a task, so this suffering had not been entirely in vain.
In the upper right corner of her vision, the subtitle still floated quietly.
[Current — 10/100]
Truly back to square one.
The rules were different from the exam system she had been familiar with before. Since there was a situation of point deductions, there was a risk of dropping to zero.
Then it definitely did not represent story progress. Ji Jie regarded it as her current health points, and a string in her heart quietly pulled taut.
If there ever came a day of [0/100], perhaps she really would die.
That was a situation she had to avoid no matter what.
Fortunately, although this novel was melodramatic and overflowing with sentiment, it had no murder-and-arson career criminal plotlines. If she wanted to stay alive, it was not that difficult.
She just had to be shameless.
On Saturday morning, her temperature returned to normal, and she got to go to the tutoring center as she wished.
Huo Zhenyan drove her there.
That the big boss would actually free up such precious weekend time to personally take her to enroll—Ji Jie was somewhat overwhelmed by the unexpected favor.
The tutoring classes also followed the school's curriculum setup. Huading supported multiple domestic and international curriculum systems, and students could freely choose which type of entrance exam to take.
With these conditions, there was no need to go through the gaokao again. She decided to take the IB and apply to universities in the UK and the US. With no experience at all, her studies became all the more urgent.
Ji Jie wasn't afraid of this. It was only the start of her second year of high school; there was still time. They had three classes a week, so she'd take five. She'd catch up eventually.
Anyway, international schools let out early every day, and she had no need for social activities. There was nothing to do at home anyway.
The tutoring center's teachers would design a bespoke schedule based on her current learning ability, though the specifics would take time. Today she just met the two foreign teachers, who encouraged her to come practice speaking more often—even if she had no class, she could drop by to hang out.
She'd gotten a feel for the faculty and environment, and everything was top-notch. Ji Jie was very satisfied. Correspondingly, the final calculated cost made one gasp in shock.
Huo Zhenyan didn't seem to have much of a reaction.
Ji Jie watched him pay, feeling quite pleased.
She could roughly guess why Huo Zhenyan had spent so much time accompanying her on this trip.
On the way home, she was in such a good mood that she took the initiative to tell Huo Zhenyan, "Don't worry, I won't tell Mom and Dad."
She wouldn't mention the nosebleed and fever that lasted a day and a night, nor would she complain that this older brother hadn't taken good care of her.
Huo Zhenyan couldn't help but smirk. He took an tin box from the storage compartment and handed it to her. "Eat."
She opened it and saw fruit candies. "All for me?"
"Mm." He said, "A little bribe."
Ji Jie accepted it with a smile.
The next day at school, He Lingfeng was in the same class as her. As soon as he entered the classroom, he sat down beside her, looking at her with curious eyes. "I heard from Auntie Ping that you studied yourself sick? No way, you're serious about this."
"Dead serious." She took out the computer she'd newly bought with her allowance. Tools to improve study efficiency were essential—save where you can, spend where you must.
The school had a wall-sized electronic screen displaying students' major examination rankings. She'd stopped to check it when she arrived at school today.
In the last exam, first place was Wei Chao, second was Lin Shu, third was Chu Yao.
Not a single girl, which was unscientific.
They must be waiting for her to refresh the rankings.
People who love learning deserve respect wherever they go.
He Lingfeng was much less talkative today too, only glancing at her from time to time, checking that she was really focusing in class.
She'd completely transformed.
And so the day passed without incident.
Then another day.
A small portion of people at school knew about her family background, but for now they wouldn't bring it up openly.
Some students didn't know her at all. Seeing how diligently she studied in class, they guessed she might be a gifted-and-talented student.
This school had a gifted student track, admitting students with excellent grades from ordinary families—usually two spots per year.
But Huading's entrance exams were extremely strict. Even the students at the bottom of the rankings weren't far behind. The average level was quite high.
So here, "gifted-and-talented student" was basically synonymous with "student on financial aid." Just a more euphemistic way of putting it.
Wherever there are people, there are disparities, discrimination, and bullying. Around the theme of "who is the gifted-and-talented student," the original text devoted considerable space, like a game of Werewolf.
The school wouldn't announce it publicly. To date, neither of the two gifted-and-talented students had revealed their identities.
But Ji Jie had known the answer from the start.
She didn't care about the rumors. Let them spread however they wanted. She had plenty of famous things to do in the future—this was nothing worth mentioning.
She had never intended to make friends here in the first place. Even if she really was a gifted-and-talented student, discriminated against and ostracized, she wouldn't feel inferior because of others' gazes.
But this mindset came from her mature life experience. She could also understand that kids in their early teens had fragile egos, and it was perfectly normal for gifted-and-talented students to want to hide their identities and graduate in peace.
So far, everyone had still been polite to her.
Ji Jie hadn't spoken in the class group chat, but she read every new message. When she got to school and people nearby happened to cue her into a conversation, she could keep the conversation flowing without letting it drop.
In an inconspicuous way, she quietly blended into the collective environment.
She hadn't seen Wei Chao these past two days. Wei Chao wasn't in the same class as her or Huo Yuxi, and he was always skipping class—playing the brooding male lead a bit too hard.
But she didn't dare let her guard down, because she knew what plot was coming next. She would stay a while longer after school to avoid missing the mission.
As she expected, the dismissal bell and the mission appeared that day.
【To Be Completed — Sabotage Wei Chao's Confession】
【To Be Completed — Force a Kiss on Wei Chao in Public】
【Countdown — 00:10:00】
【Current — 10/100】
Only ten minutes!
Ji Jie hurriedly packed her backpack and ran toward the fountain by the small garden.
The main storyline had advanced. Today was the day Wei Chao first showed romantic interest in Huo Yuxi.
It happened to coincide with the after-school rush, and the confession scene was witnessed by everyone. From then on, half the school was envious and jealous, while the other half became shippers of the couple and helped push them together.
And then there was her—the wicked home-wrecker who appeared out of nowhere to sabotage someone else's passionate romance!
Ji Jie ran to the destination, panting, just in time for the scene.
To be fair, the scene was quite beautiful and moving. Youthful boys and girls, gazing at each other like in an idol drama, their fluttering eyes sparking against each other.
Wei Chao raised his hand, about to reach for Huo Yuxi's waist.
The countdown waited for no one. She steadied her breathing, drew in a deep breath, charged forward, and rammed the person aside with her shoulder. "Wei Chao!"
A thunderous shout. It not only shattered all the ambiguity but also attracted even more gossip-hungry eyes.
Huo Yuxi froze, frowning, not knowing what she was up to, but instinctively stepped back.
"You clearly told me you didn't like anyone and would never date anyone! Why did you lie to me?"
"…"
"You're mine, you should belong to me!" She forced out some tears. What should have been a pitiful moment instead carried a sharp, fierce look in her eyes as she raised her hand and swung a slap.
No one could have predicted she would suddenly rush out having a psychotic break. Wei Chao instinctively tilted his head to dodge, and when he turned his face back, he was caught completely off guard as a softness pressed across his lips.
Wei Chao froze in place.
The whole world stood still. A moment later, the campus erupted with a burst of teasing laughter. There was even applause.
He immediately looked to see Huo Yuxi's reaction, but she had already lowered her eyes and stopped looking at him, turning to leave.
Only Ji Jie remained standing there, even smacking her lips.
As if savoring it.
She still dared to savor it?!
Wei Chao's composure completely shattered. His chest heaved violently, his breathing grew heavy. The ferocity in his stare suggested he had already strangled her to death countless times in his mind. "You really have a death wish."
"That's not quite it," Ji Jie said.
This is the advantage of being in public. Although it was embarrassing, with so many people watching, Wei Chao at least wouldn't actually lay a hand on her.
She wiped her lips, casually brushing away the tears that weren't even there. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the refreshed subtitles and revealed a very faint smile.
"I still value my life quite a bit."
[Completed]
[Completed]
[Current — 20/100]