Page 5
Xu Qing'an, who had not said a word since Xu Qingran entered the house, finally spoke up from beside the sofa. "Brother, whatever else she is, my mother is still your elder. How could you say something so heartless to her?"
His voice was surprisingly mild. Even when he was angry, it had a softness to it that might have made most people feel guilty at once.
This was the first time Xu Qingran had taken a good look at his supposed younger brother, Xu Qing'an. He was fairly tall, about 175 centimeters by eye, with hair a little darker than the light brown of Xu Qingran's current body. He had red lips, white teeth, and delicate, gentle features, giving him a sensible and steady appearance.
Xu Qingran met his gaze for a few seconds, then said abruptly, "When it comes to being heartless, I don't think I can compare to you."
Xu Qing'an's hands tightened slightly at his sides, and his expression darkened. "What do you mean?"
He was uneasy. According to the original plan, Xu Qingran should have suffered for several days before he found him. It was already a great surprise that Xu Qingran had returned safe and sound on his own.
But he wasn't worried that Xu Qingran would discover the truth and expose him. With no proof and everyone's poor impression of Xu Qingran, they probably wouldn't believe his side of the story.
Sure enough, Xu Qingran might have understood that too. He said nothing more and turned to go upstairs.
Whatever the people downstairs felt had nothing to do with him.
The original Xu Qingran's room was furnished very plainly, and it wasn't particularly large.
The curtains were grayish white, and the sheets and quilt had a dull blue-and-white checkered pattern. Only the cartoon poster beside the bookcase added any color. Unfortunately, its colors had faded so badly that the original image was barely visible.
An opened letter lay on the wooden desk.
Xu Qingran locked the door behind him before walking over and picking it up. Inside was a notice bearing an emblem of a nebula, with a silver-white pterosaur on its left and a golden phoenix on its right.
A few small characters beneath it read: Grandis.
"Student Xu Qingran, following an assessment by the school, your results are suspected to involve cheating.
After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that your admission to the medical college will be revoked."
Ironically, the bookcase in the room held more academic trophies and certificates than anything else besides books.
Xu Qingran considered himself a poor student, having had hardly any chance to attend school in his previous life. But how could someone as outstanding as the original owner have cheated?
The system sighed and revealed the truth. "The original owner's childhood friend was Lu Cheng. His father, Lu Wennian, is the most authoritative professor at Glandis Medical College. He doesn't like the original owner, so you know how it goes..."
"It's just as well I'm not going." Xu Qingran breathed a sigh of relief. "If he'd gotten in, I really wouldn't know how to be a competent medical student."
The system thought that made sense. Recalling what had happened downstairs, it asked, "Then why didn't you tell Father Xu and your stepmother the truth just now? You should have let them know that little green tea isn't as simple as he seems."
"They might not believe you, but at least it would pave the way for you to clear your name and make a comeback!"
Xu Qingran didn't answer. Still holding the notice, he kept his gaze fixed on the line about his admission being revoked.
After a long while, he asked the system, "Do you know how to make someone's fall even worse?"
As he spoke, he slipped the notice back into its envelope.
"You wait until he's slowly climbed to the highest point, then kick him down."
"That's when it hurts the most."
With that, he tossed the notice and its envelope into the trash.
The system obediently stopped asking questions.
Xu Qingran pulled open the wardrobe, changed into whatever clothes came to hand, and collapsed onto the bed. The short day had left him exhausted, especially since his spiritual power had dropped to a low point again after he flew the aircraft back.
That's enough for today, he thought. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.
When he woke the next day, he had a high fever. The reading on his wristwatch was almost at a frightening 40 degrees.
"...You see, the original owner's Spiritual Pool was the lowest grade in this world. It was very shallow. Yesterday was the host's first day after transmigrating, so as an initial reward and form of assistance, the system automatically adjusted the host's Spiritual Pool grade after the host fell asleep on the first night. Every upgrade to the Spiritual Pool is accompanied by symptoms such as a low fever. You'll be fine once you get through it."
Xu Qingran lay in bed, his head heavy. "Then what grade did I go from and to?"
The system's voice was very quiet. "Just... from the lowest, F, to B-grade, which is barely enough to get into a military academy."
For the moment, Xu Qingran didn't want to deal with his system.
He lay in bed for half the day, hoping rest would ease his condition, but it only grew worse, and his wristwatch began sounding an alarm. With no other choice, he forced himself out of bed and took the system's advice to visit a hospital.
He had only reached the top of the stairs when he heard the family of three chatting warmly downstairs. Amid their conversation came the sound of the front door opening. It sounded as though Xu Qing'an was getting ready to go out as well.
Father Xu's slightly rough voice followed. "Qing'an, are you going to the hospital to see Professor Lu?"
Chapter 3: E-Type Spiritual Power User
At the door, Xu Qing'an answered as he put on his shoes, "Yes. Uncle is a professor at Glandis Medical College, so I wanted to tell him the good news that I got in and ask what I need to do to prepare before term starts."
"All right, I'll have the driver take you there." Father Xu was all smiles. As he saw him out, he continued, "If only your brother could be as little trouble as you. He actually cheated on such an important exam. What a disgrace to the family..."
Only then did Xu Qingran slowly make his way downstairs.
His stepmother happened to be coming out of the kitchen. She gave a small start when she saw him, but still managed a smile. "You're awake? There's lunch in the dining room. You can eat if you're hungry."
He had been about to go straight out, but suddenly stopped. After a few seconds of silence, he asked, "You saved some for me?"
Father Xu came back in from seeing Xu Qing'an off just then, and his stepmother's smile grew even gentler. "What a silly question. Haven't we always prepared a portion for you? If no one eats it, we'll just have to throw it all away."