Chapter 28: Preparation

Early Morning

Cao Xi woke up with a feeling of tightness in her chest. Looking down, she saw Qin Zhao’s head resting on her chest, his half-body lying on top of her. Cao Xi sighed and gently moved him to the bed before heading to the kitchen to make breakfast.

She reheated the leftover braised pork from last night and made a spicy stir-fried pork with braised rice.

After getting tired of the food at the spicy hot pot shop, Cao Xi gradually started cooking meals that weren’t just to fill the stomach.

Once everything was ready, Cao Xi went to Qin Zhao’s bedroom, looked at his flushed face, and gently pinched his cheeks.

In his sleep, Qin Zhao felt a slight discomfort on his face and subconsciously swatted at it, rolling over to continue sleeping. Cao Xi suppressed a smile and pinched his other cheek.

Qin Zhao groggily opened his eyes and saw Cao Xi smiling mischievously at him.

“Cao Xi,” he muttered, rubbing his eyes.

Cao Xi smiled and said, “Come and have breakfast.”

“Okay.” After getting up and changing, Qin Zhao turned halfway and asked, puzzled, “I’m changing clothes.”

“Go ahead,” Cao Xi said, sitting on the edge of the bed, watching him.

“It’s fine, I’ll just change.”

Qin Zhao was still half-asleep when Cao Xi pushed the door open. The door closed with a soft thud behind her. Standing outside the door, Cao Xi touched her nose, knowing that it wouldn’t be long before Qin Zhao would get used to mornings like this.

Soon, Qin Zhao came out, fully dressed. Cao Xi had already laid out breakfast, and they sat at the table together to enjoy the meal.

“Here, this is for you.” Cao Xi handed Qin Zhao a purse. The purse was deep blue with some floral patterns. She had bought it while shopping, thinking it was perfect for Qin Zhao.

“What do you want me to do with this?” Qin Zhao asked, a little confused. He didn’t usually use purses.

Cao Xi explained, “I put some silver and copper coins inside. You never know when you’ll need a bit of silver, so I thought you might want to carry it.”

“I’ll take the purse, but I’m not carrying the money,” Qin Zhao said.

He emptied the purse’s contents into his hand and pushed the money back toward Cao Xi.

Cao Xi was confused. “What’s wrong?”

Qin Zhao shrugged and said, “I’ve already filled it up.” He waved the purse in front of her.

Seeing this, Cao Xi knew he had started earning on his own. She said, “You didn’t forget last night, right? Stop writing novels for now. Don’t let it affect your exams.” She placed a piece of meat on his plate, signaling him to eat.

“Mm, I’ll finish the manuscript tonight. After that, I’ll take a break from writing for a while.”

Qin Zhao had sold the designs for the book bags and made some money. He also adapted some stories that Cao Xi had shared with him, turning them into a few new versions for a local publishing house, earning quite a bit.

After breakfast, the two of them went out. At the end of the street, they split up—one going to the academy and the other to the shop.

“Xi Jie has arrived,” Cao Xi heard Shui Niu’s voice as she entered the kitchen, where he was preparing seasonings.

“Is the food here?” Cao Xi asked.

“Yeah, it’s here. Zhuang and Chuan are washing vegetables in the yard,” Shui Niu replied.

“I’ll go help,” Cao Xi said, heading toward the yard.

In the yard, Zhuang Chuan and Zhuang Rui were washing mushrooms, and Li Feng was cutting dried tofu.

“Xi Jie!” Zhuang Rui smiled and greeted Cao Xi, glancing at the others before returning to her work.

Cao Xi squatted by a pile of vegetables and began tearing the stems off some greens. The people in the yard were busy preparing for a new round of cooking.

Cao Xi turned to Li Feng and asked, “Li Ge, how are Zhuang and Yong doing?”

Except for the few times they saw each other, they never met again. They had always been burning charcoal in the mud temple, working to make things convenient, but the two brothers stubbornly refused to leave the mud temple.

Li Feng: “They’re really hardworking, full of energy. I heard they’re planning to buy two connected houses on the edge of town and get married.”

When mentioning them, the tone was mixed with both happiness and a bit of sourness, as they were close partners.

“They’re getting married, Li Ge, you should start thinking about finding us a wife.” Shui Niu walked in, carrying some freshly cleaned vegetables.

Xiao Chuan teased: “Li Ge, you’re not in a hurry to find a wife. With your looks and your build, what’s there that you can’t get?”

Li Feng had always been focused on earning money. His experiences made him distrustful of others.

The only ones who caught his attention were Qin Zhao and Cao Xi—one was too lucky, the other too powerful. He thought he might have a stroke of luck once, but things changed.

“We’re not in a hurry, where could we find a wife for you?” Li Feng glanced at Cao Xi, noticing his indifferent demeanor, and felt a little disappointed.

The work at the shop was always busy. There were breaks during the day, but mornings were usually not very crowded, and all the pressure was in the afternoons and evenings.

After finishing the work in the store, Cao Xi returned to his post, continuing to stand at the counter, managing the cash and accounts. The whole team was aware that Li Feng was not a fan of having people in the kitchen stirring the pots.

…

When Qin Zhao arrived at the academy, Qi Qige was sitting under a tree, looking desolate and lonely. It was unclear what was on his mind. This person didn’t like going home; he came early and left late. If it wasn’t for the need to stay, he probably wouldn’t come back at all.

“What are you doing sitting here?” Qin Zhao stood beside him, but he didn’t react at first.

“Ah, just enjoying the cool breeze,” Qi Qige replied when he finally noticed Qin Zhao’s presence, though his answer was half-hearted. Qin Zhao didn’t pry; everyone had their secrets.

“Don’t sit here. Go back to class, the exams are coming soon.” After saying that, Qin Zhao didn’t wait for him and walked toward the classroom. He liked learning new things during lessons.

“Wait for me!” Qi Qige quickly jumped up and followed Qin Zhao, his expression brightened, a stark contrast to the previous mood.

Just as Qi Qige reached out to put his arm around Qin Zhao’s shoulder, Qin Zhao swiftly knocked his hand away.

Qi Qige: “What do you think you’re doing? You can’t touch this!” His tone was one of playful arrogance, making it clear he didn’t want to be treated like an ordinary person.

Qin Zhao responded coldly: “Don’t act like that when walking together. It’s unbecoming.”

“I saw my fiancée holding someone else’s hand last night,” Qi Qige added, as if accusing Qin Zhao.

The way he said it seemed like a complaint, but Qin Zhao just looked at him with an expression of disbelief.

“What’s with that look?” Qi Qige shot a glare at him.

Qin Zhao didn’t react, returning to his thoughts with a calm face, internally comforting himself. He wasn’t going to argue with someone acting foolish.

---

In the morning, the teacher came with last month’s exam papers, a dark look on his face, as if a storm was brewing.

“The questions from last time were already too much, and you all still answered like this. You didn’t even think it through, the answers are a mess. So are you planning not to participate in the academy exams?”

The teacher’s sharp gaze swept across the room, and the exam papers were handed back one by one. Qi Qige stretched his neck to check Qin Zhao’s paper, which had fewer corrections. He was a bit annoyed.

The teacher said, “Your work is all over the place. At least think about what you’re doing and don’t waste your time with others’ papers.”

Qi Qige, not bothered, smiled at the teacher, his grin making the teacher’s face turn green with anger.

---

Qin Zhao was steadily in first place, but soon, someone was catching up. Qi Qige didn’t care about him at all. As for Qin Zhao, with his stepbrother’s presence and his father no longer showing interest in his work, it was clear that he was now ignored.

His stepmother couldn’t wait for him to die out there and never come back. The struggle in Qin Zhao’s studies was the only thing that made him feel different from others.