“I was getting sleepy during the exam today too. For the last hour or so, I spent most of the time nodding off,” Zhou Yu said with a laugh as she looked at the sleeping Lu Cheng and recalled how, after finishing her paper and checking it several times without finding a single mistake, she had become so bored that she started dozing off.
Hearing this, Ji Jing frowned slightly in concern.
He thought Zhou Yu meant that she had been so sleepy in the afternoon that she had been unable to focus on answering the questions.
Ji Jing couldn’t help worrying about whether Zhou Yu would be able to get into university this year. After all, in this era, many people spent years taking the college entrance examination before finally being admitted. If Zhou Yu failed this year, no one could blame her.
Still, he needed to write a letter to his father as soon as possible and have him contact some universities. Then, regardless of Zhou Yu’s score, they would have to find a way to secure a university admission letter for her.
Although many thoughts flashed through Ji Jing’s mind, none of them showed on his face. Instead, he simply followed up on Zhou Yu’s words.
“That’s right. Cheng’er really does take after you in a lot of ways.”
“What?”
The moment Lu Cheng woke up, that was the first thing he heard. The seemingly random comment left him utterly confused.
Zhou Yu and Ji Jing merely smiled and said nothing.
They left Lu Cheng to puzzle over it by himself.
“Dad, Mom, what are you talking about?” Lu Cheng asked curiously.
He had only been asleep for a little while, yet somehow his parents had already started sharing secrets behind his back.
“Since you’re awake, get down and walk on your own. Your dad’s soaked in sweat from carrying you. Aren’t you two hot?” Zhou Yu said with a smile, still offering no explanation. However, when she noticed the sweat running down Ji Jing’s neck, she couldn’t help bringing it up.
As soon as Lu Cheng heard that, he immediately became aware of how scorching hot his back felt under the sun. The spot where his father’s back pressed against him was equally warm.
Only then did Lu Cheng realize that he was drenched in sweat.
“Dad, put me down quickly! I can walk by myself,” he shouted at once.
Ji Jing smiled but said nothing. Nevertheless, he obediently crouched down and carefully set Lu Cheng back on the ground.
When the three of them returned to the courtyard, they discovered that Madam Chu had already finished preparing dinner and was waiting for them at the entrance.
During the six months that Madam Chu and Ji Jing had been living next door to Zhou Yu, Lu Cheng had gone to visit Madam Chu every day, calling her “Grandma, Grandma” at every opportunity. Thanks to his constant company, Madam Chu had remained in excellent spirits throughout this period.
In addition, Zhou Yu had been continuously using traditional Chinese medicine to help regulate Madam Chu’s health over the past six months. As a result, her condition had improved considerably. Sometimes she would come over to help with cooking or wash little Lu Cheng’s clothes, easing some of Zhou Yu’s household workload.
“Mom, why didn’t you wait inside?” Ji Jing asked when he saw his mother sitting on a chair beneath the shade of a tree by the courtyard entrance, waiting for them to return. He immediately became worried that her body might not be able to handle it.
“It’s fine. Don’t worry. I’m not that hot,” Madam Chu replied casually. Then she turned toward Lu Cheng and Zhou Yu and said, “Yu’er, Cheng’er, dinner’s ready. Put your things down, wash your hands, and let’s eat together.”
Seeing that his mother had brushed him off with a single sentence and was now completely ignoring him, Ji Jing felt somewhat helpless. Still, he walked over to her, intending to check whether she was really all right and help her back inside.
Although Zhou Yu’s treatment had greatly improved Madam Chu’s health in this lifetime, making her far less frail than she had been in the previous life, Ji Jing still couldn’t forget how weak she had looked before her death in his past life. Deep down, he remained worried that history might repeat itself.
“You brat, what are you doing?” Madam Chu pulled her arm away before Ji Jing could support her.
She was only in her forties, all right?
It wasn’t as if she were some seventy- or eighty-year-old grandmother. Why did he insist on helping her walk?
Seeing how spirited and full of energy his mother looked, Ji Jing couldn’t help smiling.
Perhaps, because Zhou Yu existed in this lifetime, everything had become different.
In his previous life, his father had died from an acute myocardial infarction because he had not received timely treatment. But in this life, thanks to Zhou Yu’s presence, that fate had already been avoided.
Perhaps the ending of the previous life truly could be changed.
“You brat, have you gone stupid?” Madam Chu asked.
After scolding him, she found that her son was still smiling to himself. Unable to resist, she placed a hand against his forehead. After confirming that it wasn’t hot, she muttered to herself, “He’s not running a fever, either…”
“Mom, what are you doing?” Feeling his mother’s hand on his forehead, Ji Jing finally snapped out of his thoughts. He immediately took a step back and spoke.
“You brat. If you’re fine, then get inside and help serve the rice and carry out the dishes,” Madam Chu ordered after seeing that her son had returned to normal.
Ji Jing curled his lips and turned toward the kitchen. As he walked away, he couldn’t help muttering under his breath,
“All I ever hear is Yu’er and Cheng’er. Nobody ever calls me Jing’er…”
Madam Chu was not far behind Ji Jing and happened to hear his muttering. She immediately stepped forward, grabbed him by the ear, and shouted loudly beside it, “Jing’er~, why aren’t you hurrying up and carrying the dishes for your mother?!”
Ji Jing had never seen his mother behave like this before.
Back in the capital, Madam Chu had been a famous young lady from a prestigious family. Every word and action of hers had been dignified and elegant. Yet now she was actually tugging his ear and yelling at him.
It truly was a rare sight.
Still, Ji Jing felt that this version of his mother was quite nice as well.
At the very least, she looked much more lively.
However, to avoid having his ear pulled again, he quickened his pace and headed straight for the kitchen.
Just then, Zhou Yu happened to be carrying a dish out of the kitchen.
Seizing the opportunity, Ji Jing swiftly snatched the plate from her hands and strode off toward the dining room.
The speed of his actions left Zhou Yu momentarily stunned. She turned and looked at Madam Chu in confusion.
“It’s nothing. He’s probably hungry,” Madam Chu replied, immediately returning to her usual dignified demeanor. Her face remained perfectly composed as she spoke.
Meanwhile, she was thinking to herself, ‘I absolutely can’t leave a bad impression on my daughter-in-law.’
Hearing the explanation, Zhou Yu accepted it without suspicion and simply returned to the kitchen to continue carrying out dishes.
On the afternoon of July 9, the final subject of the college entrance examination finally came to an end.
Zhou Yu’s period of intensive exam preparation had at last come to a close.
Throughout the three days of examinations, no matter how much Zhou Yu tried to persuade them otherwise, Lu Cheng and Ji Jing insisted on accompanying her every day.
There was nothing she could do about it.
Although she knew they meant well, the weather outside was unbearably hot.
Ji Jing was an adult, so it was one thing for him to endure it, but Lu Cheng was still so young that he could easily suffer from heatstroke.
As a result, Zhou Yu requested a few heatstroke-prevention pills from System 088 that were safe for children to take.
The system readily agreed.
After all, this was the first time its host had ever asked it for help. Besides, heatstroke medicine was hardly anything valuable.
That evening, while eating dinner after returning home from the exam, Zhou Yu found herself distracted.
She was thinking about how she would search for her parents after arriving in the capital.
Based on the timeline, they should only be around eighteen years old now.
Zhou Yu had no idea whether she would even recognize them.
More importantly, she didn’t know whether her parents even existed in this world.
The more she thought about it, the deeper the furrow between her brows became.
Ji Jing saw Zhou Yu frowning and assumed she was worried that she had not performed well on the examination and would be unable to go to the capital that year.
After all, Zhou Yu had mentioned in front of him that she had occasionally nodded off during the exams.
“Yu’er, don’t worry. I’ll write to my father later. He can get you a recommendation letter or something. You’ll definitely have a school to attend this year,” Ji Jing said after dinner, pulling Zhou Yu aside when no one else was around.
For a moment, Zhou Yu failed to understand what he meant.
Several seconds passed before she finally came back to her senses. Looking at Ji Jing in astonishment, she asked, “What are you talking about? Don’t tell me you think I’m upset because I didn’t do well on the college entrance examination?”
Seeing her reaction, Ji Jing immediately realized something was wrong.
‘Damn it. I misunderstood.’
“Uh… wasn’t that the case?” he asked cautiously.
“No.” Zhou Yu shook her head. “I did very well. Don’t do anything extra. My score will be more than enough to get me into the university I want.”
There was a trace of displeasure in her voice.
She disliked this sort of behind-the-scenes maneuvering. Although Ji Jing meant well, it was extremely unfair to everyone else.
“I’m sorry, I…” Ji Jing had not expected such a strong reaction from Zhou Yu. For a moment, he did not know how to apologize.
At this point, Zhou Yu also felt that her tone had been a little too harsh.
After a moment of silence, she sighed and continued, “Do you remember the three conditions I mentioned before? One of them was that after we go to the capital, you are not to interfere in my affairs. From now on, you don’t need to worry about my matters. I’ll make my own arrangements.”
Although her tone had softened somewhat, her words were no easier to hear.
The moment Ji Jing heard them, he felt even more guilty.
He was convinced that he had genuinely angered Zhou Yu this time.
Just as he was about to explain himself further, Lu Cheng came back from next door.
“Dad, Mom, what are you doing standing out here in the courtyard?”
Lu Cheng was in a particularly good mood and failed to notice that both of his parents looked slightly off. He was simply curious about why they were standing there.
With Lu Cheng back, Zhou Yu had no desire to continue the previous conversation.
Instead, she smiled and replied, “Nothing. We just finished dinner, so we came outside for a little walk.”
“Oh, I see.”
Lu Cheng did not doubt Zhou Yu’s explanation. Then, noticing that his father was still standing there without moving, he suddenly seemed to think of something.
His eyes lit up, and he excitedly asked, “Dad, why aren’t you going back to rest? Are you going to sleep with Mom tonight?”
Up until now, Ji Jing had always been living with Madam Chu in the courtyard next door, while Zhou Yu and Lu Cheng continued sleeping in the courtyard Zhou Yu had rented, just as before.
Lu Cheng had asked many times why his parents were not living together.
In response, both Zhou Yu and Ji Jing had explained that Zhou Yu was preparing for the college entrance examination, and that sleeping separately would be better so as not to interfere with her studies.
Although Lu Cheng had thought the explanation was a little strange, he had accepted it.
But now the college entrance examination was over.
Didn’t that mean…
His parents could finally sleep in the same room?
The more Lu Cheng thought about it, the happier he became.