"Anyway, if we still haven't switched back by tomorrow, I'm counting on you for my English exam." Song Yunshen sighed. "By the way, do you have any exams tomorrow?"
"Yeah." Xia Kening blinked. "English too, but it's the only one we have left. By the way, how are your English grades?"
"Uh..." The subject made Song Yunshen feel a little guilty, and he was too embarrassed to meet Xia Kening's gaze. "Just don't get your hopes up, okay?"
"Hey! You're a high school student!" Xia Kening's eyes widened. "Don't tell me you can't even do well on a middle school English exam?"
"My grades were great in middle school!" Song Yunshen protested loudly. "I just slacked off a bit after I got to high school."
"I haven't studied English in so long that I've forgotten loads of vocabulary. What can I do about that?"
"I'll try my best to get you a passing grade, okay?"
"A passing grade?!" Xia Kening's face was full of disbelief. "My teacher will scold me to death! At least get over a hundred points, and I might be able to explain it away!"
"Only if I can actually manage that." Song Yunshen had decided to smash the already broken pot, his tone utterly resigned. "Didn't you mess up all my math and science exams too? I did really well on your math and science exams this time, you know. That makes us even."
"How many points do you think you can get me in math and science?" Xia Kening's eyes lit up as she asked curiously.
"I can't rule out the possibility of a careless mistake, but otherwise, probably full marks." Song Yunshen stroked his chin. "The questions were all pretty easy."
After all, he had gotten into Ningjiang Middle School with 118 points in math and 156 in science on his high school entrance exams.
The full marks for the high school entrance exams in Linhang City were 120 for math and 160 for science. Considering the math and science questions that year had been on the difficult side, his scores were already among the very best.
Back then, his English hadn't been too bad either. He'd gotten 106 out of 120, and 110 in Chinese. Including his social studies and PE scores, his total had been 618.
Even without Shulan Middle School's allocated admission spot, he could have gotten into Ningjiang Middle School on his exam scores alone.
He was a bona fide top student.
In fact, ranking among the top three hundred in his year at Ningjiang Middle School was already quite impressive.
After all, Ningjiang Middle School was a provincial key high school that ranked in the top five in all of Linhang City.
If he took a middle school math or science exam, the only difficulty would be avoiding the accidental use of material taught only in high school.
"Oh no..." Rather than looking pleased, Xia Kening looked somewhat desperate after hearing him. She held her forehead and sighed. "I should've reminded you not to score too high..."
"Huh? Isn't a higher score a good thing?"
"But I didn't earn those scores myself." Xia Kening lowered her voice. "If my scores shoot up that much all at once, won't the teachers and my classmates get suspicious?"
"Uh... that is a problem." Song Yunshen scratched his head. "I really didn't think of that before."
"Forget it." Xia Kening shook her head. "We can talk about it later."
"Yeah, it's getting late." Song Yunshen nodded. "I've been roasting all day. I need to take a shower."
"Huh? A shower?!"
"What else? How am I supposed to sleep without one?"
"B-but..." Xia Kening's face turned red. "You're using my body right now... how can you..."
"If we don't switch back for a long time, I can't just go without showering, can I?" Song Yunshen looked helpless. "I don't mind you taking a shower."
"Of course you don't! How can boys and girls be the same?!" Xia Kening couldn't help clenching her fists as she raised her voice.
"Then what should I do?"
"The classroom has air conditioning. How could you be hot...?" Xia Kening muttered.
"And you've got the nerve to say that?" Song Yunshen tugged at his collar and grumbled, "This bra squeezes them together, and the cleavage between them keeps sweating, okay? The air conditioning doesn't blow down there."
"Y-you... shut up!"
"So can I shower or not?"
"Could you just wipe yourself down with a towel and make do for one night?" Xia Kening asked, blushing. "If we still haven't switched back by the end of the week, then you can, can..."
"All right, all right." Song Yunshen didn't make things difficult for her and agreed. "But if we still haven't switched back after we meet on Saturday, I'm definitely taking a shower."
"Mm... okay..." After thinking it over, Xia Kening nodded gently, reluctantly accepting the condition. "Then... is there anything else?"
"No." Song Yunshen shook his head and was about to hang up when he suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right, don't go rummaging through my stuff. Don't touch anything on my desk or bookcase. Everything else is fine."
"Oh." Xia Kening agreed with a nod, without giving it much thought. Then she blushed and reminded him, "My clean p-panties and, and those... um... are in the wardrobe. The cabinets all have names on them."
"After you change out of them today, remember to wash them by hand. I only brought three sets, so I won't have enough if you don't wash them."
"Oh, right, make sure you wash them separately! Don't just throw them all in the basin together!"
"Why not?" Song Yunshen was completely baffled.
"Because that makes it easy to get a bacterial infection!"
"Oh, okay, got it."
Finally, after giving each other their instructions, they hung up.
Xia Kening let out a long breath and put the phone aside, her gaze falling unconsciously on the desk and bookcase in the bedroom.
Why did he specifically tell me not to touch anything on the desk or bookcase?
Is there something there he can't let anyone see?
The thought only made Xia Kening more curious.
But she kept her promise and didn't touch Song Yunshen's belongings. She got up and headed for the bathroom across the way.
She had only meant to use the toilet, but when she finished and looked down, a thought suddenly struck her. She'd already seen all of his most private parts anyway, so surely taking a shower wouldn't matter?
Um... am I being a little hypocritical?
Oh, well... I already agreed to let him. If we still haven't switched back by the weekend and he wants to shower, he can shower!
What else can we do now that this has happened?
No matter how unwilling Xia Kening was, she could only accept it.
He's going to see every inch of my body. If we switch back later, will Song Yunshen have to take responsibility for me?
But what if he really does become my brother-in-law someday?
Isn't that way too melodramatic?!
Xia Kening's mind was a mess, but in the end, she still stripped off all her clothes. Blushing, she squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her lips tightly together, struggling through a shower in the bathroom.
After changing into pajamas, she lay back down in bed and pulled the covers over herself. She stared blankly at the ceiling, still finding it all a little unreal.
The bed was soft and the quilt comfortable. The cool air from the central air conditioning wasn't so piercing, and it kept the temperature throughout the room evenly at its most comfortable.
If only Mom and my sisters could all live in a house like this...
Xia Kening made that silent wish in her heart and soon drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
After returning home, Xia Jinshu looked at the diary in her hand, its newest page still blank, and couldn't help feeling a trace of puzzlement.
What's going on with Song Yunshen today?
Did something happen?
He actually didn't write in his diary.
Over the past few days, reading Song Yunshen's diary every night had become routine for Xia Jinshu.
A person's diary was where their true inner thoughts were best reflected.
One reason Xia Jinshu was willing to consider becoming Song Yunshen's tutor was this diary.
It allowed her to see Song Yunshen's truest side and confirm that he didn't have any bad intentions.
But unable to read his diary today, Xia Jinshu felt a sudden sense of loss, as though something were missing from her heart.
This feels so strange.