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“Gu Mengyao! I’m asking you again—where has all the family money gone?”
“I… I spent it. So what?”
“I always transfer the project payments to you as soon as I receive them. The family’s regular expenses are just groceries; everything else is handled by my mother. You never ask about it. Where exactly did you use the money?”
“I… I… bought a few handbags and some cosmetics, that’s all.”
“Hand me your phone!”
“What are you doing?”
“I want to see your transaction records. I need to know exactly where the money went.”
“I already told you—I spent it! What more do you want? You only earn that little each month. My best friend’s husband gives her fifty to sixty thousand every month…”
“Shut up! Listen carefully. There are more than a dozen people at the company waiting for their salaries. If I can’t pay them, then we’ll have to sell that house we bought last year!”
“No! Absolutely not!”
“I’m not negotiating with you. All these years, I’ve been the only one earning money. That house has nothing to do with you.”
“But my name is on the deed, too.”
“Give me the property deed!”
“No.”
“Give it to me!”
…
“Where’s the deed?”
“I…”
“Speak up!”
“I… I’ve already given the house to my brother. He’s about to get married, and I’m giving them that house as their wedding home.”
“Gu Mengyao! That good-for-nothing brother of yours has been freeloading since graduating university. I’ve introduced him to so many jobs, but he quits after just a few days every time. I’ve already been more than fair to him. Now go get the property deed back for me immediately!”
“I’ve already transferred it to him. The deed is now in their names.”
“You!”
…
“Xu Ye, what did you say? You want to sell the house we’re living in now? If you sell it, where am I supposed to live?!”
“All these years, you’ve taken all my money and given it to your parents and that good-for-nothing brother of yours. From now on, you can live with them.”
“Xu Ye, I’m telling you, if you dare sell this house, I will divorce you.”
“Divorce, then.”
“You… what did you say? You want to divorce me?”
“That’s right. I’m exhausted. Think about how I’ve treated you all these years, then think about how you’ve treated me. Maybe I should have divorced you long ago.”
“But you were the one who kept chasing after me at first.”
“I was blind! Is that enough?!”
…
“Xu Ye, are you really going to divorce Gu Mengyao?”
“Yes.”
“But…”
“No more buts. My life has already been ruined by her.”
“I never expected she would turn out like this. She’s been married to you for so long, yet she still supports that useless brother of hers. A woman who sacrifices everything for her brother is terrifying.”
“How did I even fall for her in the first place? If only I could do it all over again.”
“It’s too late now. I’m heading back first. I’m afraid my daughter will wake up crying in the middle of the night. Do you want me to call a car for you?”
“No need. I want to walk alone.”
“All right then.”
…
“Ahhhh!”
“Someone’s been hit! Someone’s been hit!”
“Call 120 quickly!”
“How did he end up being hit in the middle of the road?”
“He seems drunk.”
“There’s so much blood… could he be dead?”
“That car was speeding. He probably won’t survive. Don’t go over there—wait for the ambulance.”
…
…
Am I… dead?
In a daze, Xu Ye slowly opened his eyes. A sharp beam of sunlight shone directly at him, causing him to shut them again instantly. His head felt heavy and aching, as if filled with lead.
Faintly, he heard the soft rustling sound of someone writing.
Xu Ye lifted his head and glanced around.
“An ex… examination room?”
In the classroom, about twenty or thirty scattered students were seated, all intently focused on the test papers in front of them.
Two middle-aged teachers sat on the podium, carefully observing everyone in the exam room.
What’s going on?
Why am I here?
Xu Ye supported his head with his hand and looked down at the test paper on the desk.
“2014 National College Entrance Examination, English paper.”
“So… this is the college entrance exam!”
“I’ve returned to the 2014 gaokao exam room?”
Xu Ye widened his eyes and pinched his thigh hard. When the pain registered in his brain, excitement suddenly surged through him.
It’s real!
This is not a dream!
Outside the window, the sky was a clear blue, with lazy white clouds drifting by. The June weather was neither hot nor cold. Occasionally, gentle breezes blew in through the window, making everything feel especially comfortable.
After a sigh about the unpredictability of life, Xu Ye’s gaze shifted to the clock on the wall.
Forty-five minutes remained until the exam ended.
English was the last subject of the college entrance exam. Unfortunately, Xu Ye was a severely unbalanced student. His scores in Chinese, math, and science were decent, but English was a hopeless case—passing was a luxury he could barely afford.
He clearly remembered that his total gaokao score was 485 points. That year, the second-tier university cutoff was 471 points, so he ended up attending a less prestigious university.
But his English score was only 52 points.
Keep in mind, the first-tier university cutoff that year was 526 points. If he hadn’t been so unbalanced, he might have had a chance to aim for a first-tier university!
Of course, that was the Xu Ye from senior year.
It’s said that most people’s intellectual peak hits during their senior year.
Now, even if Xu Ye were to take a senior-year math test, scoring fifty points would be considered a miracle.
By now, the answer sheet on Xu Ye’s desk was already filled out, though mostly with random guesses—that was his exam strategy.
Since he couldn’t solve the problems, he filled the answer sheet first, then planned to review everything from start to finish. If he encountered questions he could solve, he’d change the answers; if not, he’d leave them as they were.
Of course, it wasn’t completely random.
Xu Ye strictly followed the “choose the shortest option when three long and one short appear, choose the longest when three short and one long appear, pick B when two short and two long appear, and pick C when options are irregular” rule to fill in the answers.
From the results, his luck hadn’t been good.
The gaokao results usually came out within a week. Confident in his other subjects, as soon as the English answer key was released, Xu Ye immediately checked it to estimate his English score.
“Wait! What is this?”
Xu Ye stared at the English exam paper, his brow tightly furrowed.
No.
No!
How was this possible? After all these years, I still remember the answers!
“That’s right, that’s right—this question is A, this one B, this one B too. Damn, what is this? A blessing for someone reborn?”
As soon as Xu Ye realized he still remembered the gaokao answers, he immediately grabbed his eraser and began correcting the answer sheet.
Listening.
Multiple choice.
Reading comprehension.
Writing… the writing section couldn’t be changed. He hadn’t seen the model essay back then, so he just left it as it was.
After finishing the corrections, Xu Ye even had time to review everything once more.
When the minute hand hit twelve—
“Ding ling ling~”
The final subject of the gaokao was over.
Some students walked out of the exam room with joyful faces; some with heavy hearts; others with looks of disappointment.
For most people, the gaokao was their only chance to cross social classes.
So naturally, those who did well were happy, and those who did poorly were sad.
Xu Ye stepped out of the classroom, looking around at the seventeen- or eighteen-year-old peers. At that moment, an indescribable wave of excitement and exhilaration welled up from deep inside.
I!
Xu Ye!
You’ve been reborn!