The rival was...

The moment he saw the mission on the panel, Jiang Nian was a little stunned.

Five thousand yuan?

Yep, this guy always checked the reward first. What the mission actually involved was beside the point.

Since they were still on their way home and Xu Qianqian was talking to him, Jiang Nian only had time to glance at the reward before hastily closing the panel.

Ever since he had acquired the system, Jiang Nian's outlook had changed.

Twenty years from now, I'll get divorced.

If he continued along his original path, he would have twenty miserable, painful years ahead of him. Cowardice, insecurity, a downward spiral, no accomplishments, and a failed marriage.

If the future is destined to be a tragedy, then fuck that.

Before they knew it, they had reached their building. Jiang Nian was about to head into the pitch-black stairwell when Xu Qianqian suddenly called him back. He turned to look at her.

"What is it?"

"In 'Returning Home,' what comes after 'I realize the past cannot be undone'?" she asked. Only the girl's vague outline was visible in the darkness, but her voice was clear.

Jiang Nian paused. He had memorized all the classical poems for the college entrance exam during his memory session, and the words came out instinctively.

"...And know the future can still be shaped. I have not strayed too far from the path; I realize today is right and yesterday was wrong."

Xu Qianqian took a step closer, making the outline of her delicate face clearer in the darkness. Light and shadow mingled in her limpid eyes as she said earnestly,

"It's not too late. There's still time for everything."

He knew Xu Qianqian was talking about the college entrance exam, but for a moment, Jiang Nian still felt dazed.

Every mission in the system involved Xu Qianqian. If it wasn't too late at thirty-eight, what about now, at eighteen? Had he been taking the wrong path right from the start?

Perhaps the person best suited to him had been beside him all along.

Just as that thought arose, Xu Qianqian spoke.

"I have a set of English practice papers."

"Ahem, got it." Jiang Nian reacted quickly, stopping Xu Qianqian before she could whip the papers out of her backpack without warning. "It's getting late. Can we look at them tomorrow?"

Xu Qianqian rolled her eyes at him and headed upstairs with a swish of her neat ponytail.

"Suit yourself."

Back home.

Jiang Nian tossed down his backpack and was about to take a shower, then lie in bed and examine the mission panel properly. But his mother stopped him to ask about the delivery.

"Oh, I bought shoes for you and Dad. They were on sale, so it was a pretty good deal."

"Why waste your money on that? You should've just bought something for yourself," his mother nagged. "It's not like I don't have shoes. Stop throwing money around."

Hearing this, his father came over and added a few words. It was the usual stuff: earning money was a good thing, but he should save it for himself, since there would be plenty of things to spend money on later.

Jiang Nian covered his ears and made a beeline for the bathroom, refusing to listen. Not listening, not listening.

As it turned out, parents were creatures whose actions always betrayed their complaints.

By the time Jiang Nian finished showering, his father's new leather shoes had already been polished and placed on the top shelf of the shoe rack. His mother's shoes had received the same treatment, their laces neatly threaded.

He smiled as he dried his hair and returned to his room.

Jiang Nian switched on the air conditioner and electric fan in practiced succession, letting the air dry his hair. With one hand, he picked up the glass of water on his desk; with the other, he opened the system's mission panel.

"Huh? A romantic rival?"

He skimmed the mission description, pausing at the line saying they had never spoken from high school through college. What kind of hardcore dedication is that? A secret crush storyline?

Jiang Nian wasn't surprised at all that someone had a crush on Xu Qianqian. He had considered her his nemesis since childhood. They knew each other inside out, so familiarity had long since stripped away any rosy filter.

To everyone else, Xu Qianqian was a well-behaved girl with fair skin, a lovely figure, and excellent grades.

In the Jiang Family's master bedroom.

Li Hongmei tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Thinking about the shoes their son had bought for the two of them, she couldn't resist nudging her husband in the darkness.

He shuddered at once, stiffening as he pretended to be asleep.

"Stop pretending. You're awake," Li Hongmei said coldly.

"...Hm? Hongmei?" He turned over, acting as though he had just woken up and could barely open his eyes. "It's so late. All the neighbors are asleep. What's the matter?"

With that one sentence, he had stacked every defensive buff he could.

Li Hongmei was speechless. "I'm trying to discuss something serious. Don't you think we should do something about Nian playing games? Making money is good, but what if it interferes with his studies?"

"How about we talk to him tomorrow and tell him to stop playing?"

Her husband thought for a moment. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"What's wrong with it? Do you know how important senior year is?" Growing anxious, Li Hongmei sat up. "If he doesn't get into a good university, he'll hit a wall everywhere he goes once he enters society."

"I know all that. Don't get worked up. Let me explain." Her husband was easygoing and had always been patient. "Our son just earned some money. Who did he think of first?"

"I did a rough estimate. Nian spent at least fifteen or sixteen hundred yuan. Maybe he spent every bit he earned on us-food in our bellies and shoes on our feet."

At that, Li Hongmei's furrowed brow relaxed.

"Nian's a good boy, but being good won't get him a job. What will he do if he doesn't go to university?"

"Don't worry. Let me finish." He rested a hand on his wife's shoulder. "The school has its monthly exams next week. Once the results come out, we can talk to Nian."

"And you should praise him a little more over the next few days. Don't always look so stern."

"I know, I know. You talk too much." Li Hongmei wrapped herself in the blanket. "Go to sleep. We have work tomorrow. Going on and on like that-aren't you clever?"

Her husband: "..."

The next day.

Jiang Nian went out to buy breakfast and made a point of getting a portion for Xu Qianqian too. And so, they once again "happened" to take the same route to school.

Xu Qianqian pursed her lips. "When someone's nice for no reason, they're always after something."

"How is this for no reason? Didn't you promise to teach me math?" Jiang Nian quickened his pace to catch up with her. They wound through the narrow alley and emerged onto the street.

"Oh." Xu Qianqian took a guilt-free bite of her vegetable bun, then narrowed her eyes as she sipped her soy milk. "Why do you always buy soy milk? I want strawberry yogurt drink."

"Quit fussing. Soy milk's good for your brain," he said.

Clear sunlight bathed the street, and the trees were lush and green. Dappled light fell across the uneven pavement outside the roadside shops. Students crowded around the breakfast stalls, surrounded by billowing steam.

"Huh? I've never heard of soy milk being good for your brain." Walking ahead in her little white sneakers, Xu Qianqian turned back to ask curiously, "Isn't walnut milk what does that?"

Soy milk was rich in phytoestrogens. It nourished a baby's milk supply, so naturally, it nourished the baby's brain too.

It's not your brain I'm nourishing. "Who told you walnuts are good for your brain? That's purely psychological."

"Really?"

Sunlight fell between the strands of the girl's hair as their conversation faded into the distance.

Just as they were about to enter the school gates, Jiang Nian asked a question with carefully feigned casualness.

"Hey, is there a boy in your class named Zhou Haifei?"

Xu Qianqian stopped in her tracks.

"A boy?"

"Yeah. What's wrong?"

"There is someone in our class named Zhou Haifei, but..." Xu Qianqian looked at Jiang Nian, her pink lips parting slightly. "She's a girl. And the last character in her name is the one for 'fragrant,' not 'fly.'"

Jiang Nian was dumbfounded. "A girl?"

What the fuck! A lesbian?

(End of chapter)