She hadn’t had a chance to say anything else when Qin Si spoke again, “I’ve received the gift.”

“What do you want me to do to repay you?” The boy looked at her, standing against the light.

Not angry!!!

That was Lu Nian’s first reaction.

Her eyes lit up.

She wanted to ask if he liked it, but she thought better of it.

Instead, she thought it might be better to say she didn’t need to repay him.

But then she thought that Qin Si probably wouldn’t accept that and might even get angry again.

So she said, “I haven’t thought about it yet. Can I decide later?”

Qin Si remained silent for a long time before nodding slightly.

At that time, Lu Nian’s thoughts were very simple, and she didn’t really take this matter to heart.

Affected by the serious illness, Lu Nian missed almost half of the fourth grade school year and recuperated at home.

Needing fresh air, she went to the mountain villa outside the city during the summer vacation.

Lu Nian’s life that year finally got on track. A nutritionist at home designed a diet to help her recover.

She would come outside every day to breathe fresh air and exercise for an hour every day.

In addition to her daily studies at school, she also started learning to draw.

Seeing her interest, Lu Zhihong found her an art teacher who came to teach her every weekend.

For the first time,

Lu Nian truly felt the joy of being wealthy.

Whatever she wanted to learn, she had the best teachers.

She didn’t need to consider any costs or whether what she learned would be useful.

Her grades also slowly improved, reaching the upper-middle level in the class.

After all, she was only in elementary school.

If she wanted, she could have achieved even higher grades, but Lu Nian didn’t want to attract too much attention.

After all, she had already roughly figured out her learning aptitude in this lifetime.

It was probably impossible to aim for top schools, so she decided to stay grounded.

Especially with a living contrast by her side.

Qin Si grew up in an orphanage and learned to read and write from the director at that time, because the orphanage was too poor.

He attended school sporadically before being adopted by the Lu family.

It wasn’t until he transferred to An City Elementary School that his schooling became more regular.

But he was very good academically.

He was quick-witted, almost with a photographic memory, and learned things quickly.

He could score high marks in his current courses without needing to pay much attention in class.

This terrible learning ability seemed to be innate.

Lu Nian thought, without some intelligence, she couldn’t even become a villain.

However, Qin Si’s time at home was becoming less and less.

Even if Lu Nian went to the attic to find him, he was probably not there seven or eight times out of ten.

Time passed quickly.

As winter turned to spring, when the second spring was about to end, Lu Nian suddenly remembered that Qin Si’s sixth grade was almost over.

He would soon face the entrance exam to junior high school, a year ahead of her.

Lu Nian asked Lin Guoguo, “After graduation, will we all continue to attend the affiliated middle school?” She remembered that Lu Yang, Xu Hui, and the others were all in the affiliated middle school, and they all went straight from the attached elementary school.

Lin Guoguo said, “Of course, everyone wants to. But it depends on the grades. Our class only has ten spots, and the tuition at the attached middle school is expensive… But don’t worry, Nian Nian, you don’t need to worry about it.” She said enviously.

Lu Nian contemplated.

So, as long as it’s about grades and tuition, Qin Si should have no problem.

However, just in case, she still wanted to inquire.

She would go to Qin Si’s class.

She peeked in, her eyes wide, looking for Qin Si.

The little girl was petite and delicate, her features as exquisite and lovely as a doll’s.

Peeking around the door, she was very eye-catching.

Soon, a boy asked her, “Are you looking for someone?”

Nian nodded eagerly. “Can you help me call Qin Si? Thank you.”

The boy ran into the classroom and shouted, “Qin Si, someone’s looking for you.”

This shout made two-thirds of the people turn their heads to the back of the room.

When Qin Si came out, he saw her face hiding behind the door, her eyelashes fluttering as she looked around for him.

He frowned, dragged her out of the classroom, closed the door behind him, blocking out those eyes.

“Don’t come to my class to find me casually.” After looking at her for a while, the boy turned away, silent for a moment before he finally uttered a few words.

“I have something to do,” Qin Si said.

Lu Nian found it frustrating that when he was at school, his attitude toward her seemed even colder in front of others.

However, it couldn’t be ruled out that it was because they hadn’t seen each other for so long.

“I have something to talk to you about,” she said.

“What is it?” Qin Si asked shortly.

Lu Nian quickly asked, “Can we go back together today?” This couldn’t be explained in just one or two sentences; they could talk on the way home.

“I have something to do,” Qin Si repeated.

“What is it?” Nian asked hurriedly.

Qin Si, “…,” he stepped back a bit, deliberately avoiding looking at the girl’s bright eyes.

Lu Nian approached again, “What’s wrong? Why can’t you tell me? Don’t be so mysterious. Is it something that can’t be seen in the light?”

She tiptoed, getting very close, as if trying to see something from his expression.

He was defeated and could only surrender, leaving behind, “…I’ll find you after school.”

With this sentence from Qin Si, Lu Nian was satisfied and stopped asking further.

After school, he did come as promised, arriving early at the gate to wait for her.

It had been a long time since they walked home together.

The spring chill had faded, the summer heat had not yet arrived, and the weather was very pleasant.

Lu Nian walked on the road, unable to suppress her joyous mood.

Qin Si remained silent, not asking her what she wanted from him, just quietly accompanying her.

Lu Nian was enjoying the scenery and brought up the main topic, “You know, you’re about to graduate and take the entrance exam for high school. Have you decided which high school you want to attend?”

If he continued at this school, he would probably go directly to Ancheng High School.

With Qin Si’s grades, it was natural that there would be no problem.

Qin Si’s tuition and living expenses were taken care of by the Lu family, to be precise, by Xu Ruhai.

She didn’t know before, but after a few “casual chats” with Qin Si, she believed there should be no problem with the tuition being received.

She had racked her brains and used all her wits to indirectly suggest to Qin Si that there would be no problem with the tuition.

With Qin Si’s intelligence, she felt he couldn’t possibly not understand.

So, Lu Nian felt that his next choice of Ancheng High School was one hundred percent certain.

After all, Qin Si had always been serious about his studies, and she was just here to confirm.

At this moment, the weather was beautiful, the breeze was gentle, and the road was bustling with pedestrians.

The scenery was good, and everything was full of vitality.

He rarely feels lost.

Where to go?

He wants to leave the Lu family, that’s for sure.

Over the past few years, he has cleared all the debts he owed to the Lu family, and he will continue to repay them in the future.

He can now find a place to stay outside, and even if it’s not great, it won’t be worse than the attic he used to live in.

But when Ming Ge asked him a few days ago if he wanted to move in with him, he hesitated.

He still hasn’t answered until now.

He wonders, hasn’t he had enough of being a dog in the Lu family? Was he born to be so lowly?

The little girl’s eyes were wide open, her pupils clear and transparent, waiting earnestly for his answer.

He is confused, but he doesn’t know what he is hesitating about.

There’s a kind of indescribable irritability that is tightly entwined with him.

That kind of emotion came suddenly, came deep and subtle.

Even though he is so sensitive, he is also too proud.

In this age when everyone is still groping and growing rapidly at the age of thirteen, he still can’t figure it out.

In the end, he said, “I haven’t decided yet.”

Over the past year, his memories have become somewhat blurred.

It was triggered by this sentence that Lu Nian suddenly remembered that according to the original plot of the book, Qin Si did not choose to attend Ancheng High School in junior high school, but instead went to Thirteen Middle School, a notorious school for troublemakers.

From the age of thirteen to fifteen, Qin Si transformed from a little boy into a teenager there.

During these three years, he hardly ever returned to the Lu family.

These three years can be said to be the turning point of his destiny.