Chapter 67: The College Entrance Exam

The other end of the phone fell silent. Xu Jiayun rubbed her ears, unable to believe what she had just heard. She was stunned for a while before stammering, “You and… and Senior Chi Xiao… are you together?”

Ming Can’s cheek, pressed against the phone, felt warm. Her voice softened: “No…”

“Then do you like him?” Xu Jiayun’s voice became excited. “Oh my god, when did you start liking him? Why didn’t you tell me earlier! I really have no inappropriate thoughts about Senior Chi Xiao, so please don’t mind.”

“It’s only been recently,” Ming Can said, curling both legs onto the chair and hugging her knees. “Did I sound too harsh just now? Don’t take it to heart.”

“Who are we to each other? If you hadn’t explained clearly, I would’ve been upset,” Xu Jiayun laughed, sounding like she was lying in bed. The phone transmitted the sound of her rolling around happily, along with an involuntary murmur, “In my lifetime, I never thought I’d see the day when Volcano would be captivated by a man…”

In Xu Jiayun’s memory, Ming Can was completely immune to romance. They had been roommates for a year in their freshman year, and during late-night chats about relationships, Ming Can never participated. She showed no interest in handsome guys, even though she was stunningly beautiful and constantly surrounded by male admirers. Ming Can never gave them a second glance, her heart as hard as iron.

Xu Jiayun didn’t know that Chi Xiao had pursued Ming Can in high school. When she thought about the two of them together, her first impression was “fire and water don’t mix.” But upon closer consideration, there was a strange sense of compatibility.

“It makes sense. Only someone like Senior Chi Xiao could match you,” Xu Jiayun mused to herself. “But Senior Chi Xiao’s personality is so cold. He seems really hard to approach. Remember that girl from the Chinese Department at A University I told you about? They’ve known each other since childhood, and she’s barely considered a casual friend. Other than her, there are no other women around him. Almost everyone who dared to chase him turned into an ice sculpture. Just thinking about it gives me chills.”

Ming Can said slowly, “Is that so?”

Xu Jiayun excitedly rubbed her hands together: “But I think you have a real chance. It’s just a feeling.”

“Really? I think so too,” Ming Can didn’t refute, letting Xu Jiayun assume she was the one pursuing Chi Xiao. She didn’t think being the pursuer made her superior. On the contrary, the hunter’s position seemed more interesting. The moment she succeeded in winning over someone no one else could, her competitive spirit and vanity would be greatly satisfied.

Xu Jiayun: “So how do you plan to chase him?”

Ming Can thought for a moment and said seriously, “I’ll just beckon him with my hand.”

“And let him come into my arms.”

Xu Jiayun was stunned, thinking, Is it really that simple and direct?

After a while, she suddenly felt it made perfect sense. She gave Ming Can a thumbs-up through the phone and praised, “As expected of my Boss Ming!”

—

Another day passed, and it was the second day of the Lunar New Year. From today on, relatives and friends would start visiting to offer New Year’s greetings.

Ming Can seemed to have forgotten her previous declaration about giving up the violin. Ever since receiving the violin from Chi Xiao, she had been playing it for several hours every day, completely enamored with it.

This morning, she played for another two hours. By noon, when she went downstairs for lunch, the dining room was empty except for the chef and the servants. Her father was not there.

After finishing her meal, the butler, Uncle Wang, returned. Ming Can casually asked him where her father was.

“Mr. Ming was called by the chairman to accompany some guests,” Uncle Wang said, looking at Ming Can. “I heard from the staff at the main house that the visitors might be from the Chi family.”

Ming Can was stunned, her brows furrowing involuntarily.

The visitors were undoubtedly from the Chi Yao family. Coming to offer New Year’s greetings so formally on the second day of the Lunar New Year—could it mean that the arranged marriage between her and Chi Yao was moving forward?

What was strange was that, on such an occasion, why did her father go alone without asking her to accompany him?

Ming Can couldn’t figure it out and asked Uncle Wang for more details. Unfortunately, Uncle Wang hadn’t seen the guests either and had only heard a few words from the servants at the main house.

“At this time,” Uncle Wang glanced at his watch, “the guests should be leaving soon.”

Ming Can nodded and ran back to her room, stepping onto the balcony and leaning over the railing to look out.

A row of tall, lush fir trees blocked the view of the main house, and she couldn’t see anything.

In the backyard of the neighboring villa.

Miaomiao was driving his toy car on the grass, the bright red vehicle circling around two tall, long-legged adults over and over again, endlessly entertained.

After a week of gloomy weather, the skies had finally cleared today. Chi Xiao had taken Miaomiao outside to drive his toy car, not wanting him to be cooped up indoors all day.

Having hidden in Jingyu Garden for four days and three nights, Chi Xiao and Miaomiao were set to leave this afternoon, with Luo Sheng escorting them out. At the moment, Luo Sheng was also outside playing with Miaomiao. Ever since learning that Chi Xiao had been brought in by Ming Shu for her niece, Luo Sheng’s attitude toward Chi Xiao had done a complete 180-degree turn, shifting from disdain to a sense of camaraderie.

As Miaomiao drove his car recklessly across the grass, Luo Sheng walked leisurely beside Chi Xiao, teaching him how to interact with the noble ladies of the Ming family.

“…If you don’t want to be dumped, you must know your own worth and what you can bring to your girlfriend,” Luo Sheng said. “They lack nothing, so providing emotional value is the most important thing.”

On one hand, Chi Xiao found this person utterly boring, but on the other hand, he felt a slight urge to learn something. So, he patiently asked, “How do you provide emotional value?”

Luo Sheng: “Your face alone already affects people’s emotions. Why don’t you get a smile tattooed on your lips?”

Chi Xiao: “…”

“I’m not joking. You can’t always be expressionless. It’s annoying for others to see,” Luo Sheng said, as if venting some pent-up frustration, feeling refreshed. “Also, you need to be sweet-talking. Always go along with her, and make sure you’re constantly in her presence. Otherwise, you might get replaced by someone else without even realizing it.”

Chi Xiao: “She’s very busy.”

Luo Sheng: “If she’s busy, then keep yourself visible on WeChat. When she has time, she’ll naturally see your messages.”

Chi Xiao: “…”

Luo Sheng: “Don’t tell me you never chat with her online?”

Chi Xiao took out his phone and scrolled through his chat history with Ming Can. All the child-related matters were discussed in the group chat, and their private chat window was cleaner than a freshly painted wall. A quick swipe brought him back to the greetings from when they first added each other on WeChat last year.

Noticing Luo Sheng sneaking a peek, Chi Xiao silently put his phone away and asked in a neutral tone, “What should I talk to her about?”

Luo Sheng sighed: “Talk about whatever she’s interested in. If you really can’t find a topic, you can just say good morning, good afternoon, good night, what are you doing, have you eaten, do you miss me…”

Chi Xiao: “…”

His face remained expressionless, even slightly impatient, but he mentally took notes.

“Hey!” Luo Sheng suddenly exclaimed, “Your brother drove outside!”

Miaomiao had originally been circling around the backyard, but perhaps out of boredom, he turned the steering wheel and drove onto the main road, zooming dozens of meters away into the central garden of the estate.

Chi Xiao and Luo Sheng hurriedly chased after him.

In front of the main villa, Ming Yuzhang and his third son, Ming Zheng, had escorted the guests to the door. The eldest son, Ming Mo, and the second son, Ming Han, remained inside the villa, their expressions dark and unreadable as they watched their father and younger brother through the window.

“Didn’t the third brother previously arrange a match with the second child of the Chi family? Both sides seemed quite enthusiastic. I thought it was a done deal,” Ming Mo said. “Why didn’t Chi Yanyue come today, but his older brother instead? Although they didn’t mention the marriage alliance, they asked about Cancan a few times during the meal. It didn’t seem like he was asking for his brother.”

“Who knows,” Ming Han said. “I remember President Chi always wanted the daughter of the Chu family as his daughter-in-law. Could it be that the two families had a falling out?”

Ming Mo, as if not hearing his brother’s words, kept his gaze fixed outside the door, muttering to himself with a grim expression, “This entire Spring Festival, I haven’t seen Dad this happy. Having distinguished guests visit really makes a difference.”

A black Bentley was parked on the internal road in front of the villa. The driver opened the door for his employer, and after Duan Hanyan got in, she suddenly heard a burst of children’s laughter not far away.

The laughter came from the central garden nearby. She glanced casually, but her gaze abruptly stopped.

“Husband!” Duan Hanyan exclaimed in surprise. “I think I just saw Ah Xiao!”

A moment later, the car door closed abruptly as Chi Yanpeng sat down beside her, his expression unreadable. “You must be mistaken,” he said.

With that, he urged the driver, and the car quickly started, circling halfway around the central garden before swiftly leaving the residential area of the estate.

Inside the car, Duan Hanyan cautiously observed the man beside her.

He was a man who rarely showed his emotions, and Duan Hanyan couldn’t tell whether he had seen the young man following the red toy car—a figure whose build and appearance bore a striking resemblance to Chi Xiao.

She might not be certain, but Chi Yanpeng, as Chi Xiao’s biological father, would surely recognize his son at a glance.

“Ah Xiao is abroad,” Chi Yanpeng turned to his wife and said. “That boy just looks like him.”

“Is that so?” Duan Hanyan said. “I was just thinking, why wouldn’t he come home during the New Year and instead stay at the Ming family’s place.”

Chi Yanpeng’s eyelid twitched almost imperceptibly. He turned his gaze out the window and said nothing more.

–

In the afternoon, before Chi Xiao and Miaomiao left, Ming Can held a small meeting with him and Ming Shu to plan how to take care of Miaomiao in the coming days.

Chi Xiao had told his father that he would return to the country on the third day of the New Year. After that, there would be unavoidable family visits and social obligations, such as visiting elders. Therefore, he and Ming Can would have to take turns looking after Miaomiao. If neither of them had time, they would have to trouble Ming Shu to step in.

With her aunt present, Ming Can interacted with Chi Xiao very appropriately, just like ordinary friends.

After safely seeing them off and watching the car drive away, Ming Can felt that the vast estate had suddenly become dull and uninteresting.

Fortunately, they would also be moving out of here in a couple of days, and their movements would become much freer then.

In the evening, Ming Zheng and Ming Can, father and daughter, had a meal together.

Ming Can kept her head down, sensing that her father was about to bring up the meeting with the Chi family at noon. She wasn’t particularly keen on hearing about it, so she ate quickly, swallowing her food in large, hurried bites.

But as the saying goes, what you fear most tends to happen. Ming Zheng personally ladled a bowl of soup for her, urging her to eat more slowly, and then said, “Cancan, the matter between you and Chi Yao will have to be put on hold for now.”

Ming Can: “Oh… huh?”

She was shocked. Had Chi Yao’s family come today to call off the engagement?

No wonder her father hadn’t asked her to join the meeting.

But coming over on the second day of the New Year to discuss such a thing—wasn’t that a bit tactless?

Ming Can’s mood instantly shifted from gloomy to partly cloudy. She slowed down her eating, chewing carefully and savoring the flavors of the food.

Ming Zheng watched her for a moment and then said, “You seem quite happy about not having to meet Chi Yao?”

Ming Can spoke frankly: “Yes, I don’t like Chi Yao. He’s just a playboy.”

Ming Zheng’s mouth twitched, and he nodded faintly, then tentatively asked, “Chi Yao has an older cousin, a year older than him, named Chi Xiao. Have you heard of him?”

Ming Can: “…”

For some reason, Ming Can, who had just lifted her head, suddenly lowered it again, even more than before. She scooped a spoonful of soup into her mouth, holding it for a long time before swallowing.

“I’ve… heard of him,” Ming Can said slowly. “I think he’s from A University.”

“Yes, he was the top scorer in the college entrance exam in Beicheng the year before you,” Ming Zheng said, choosing his words carefully. “I heard his academic performance at university has also been excellent, consistently ranking first in his major. Last year, he joined the Algorithm Research Institute of Xingchi Group. That’s not a place you can get into just with connections—you need real talent.”

“Is that so?” Ming Can took a bite of meat, chewing as she spoke. “That’s quite impressive.”

“That child never appears in public. I think I only saw him once when he was very young, and I don’t remember what he looks like anymore,” Ming Zheng said. “Your universities are close to each other. He must be quite famous on campus. Have you seen him before?”

Ming Can: “Maybe… I’ve seen him.”

Ming Zheng: “Do you remember what he looks like?”

“…” Ming Can didn’t really want to describe him, so she pulled out her phone from her pocket and said, “There should be photos of him on their university’s forum. Let me look.”

With that, Ming Can slipped into A University’s forum and effortlessly found a post showcasing handsome photos of the campus’s famous “iceberg male god” playing basketball. She clicked into it, opened a random photo, and handed the phone to her father.

Ming Zheng took Ming Can’s phone, feeling inexplicably that his daughter seemed unusually talkative tonight.

He looked down at the photos, flipping through two or three of them, and smiled. “He’s very handsome…”

After a pause, he hesitated and said, “Why does he look familiar?”

Ming Can: “You’ve seen him when he was a child, haven’t you?”

Ming Zheng shook his head: “Not from when he was a child. It’s his grown-up appearance. I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere.”

Ming Zheng stared at the photo of the cold yet handsome young man, pondering for a while, and suddenly said, “I remember now. On the last day of your college entrance exam, I went to your high school to accompany you. I ran into him that day. The young man was exceptionally good-looking, so I remember him clearly.”

Ming Can was stunned: “What was he doing at my high school that day?”

“He seemed to be a volunteer,” Ming Zheng said. “He helped set up sunshade tents for the parents of Class 3 and handed out a lot of heatstroke prevention items. He was quite capable. I heard he had been there since the first day of the exams, standing at the school gate under the scorching sun. I chatted with him for a bit, and he told me he had been admitted to A University. I even thought about introducing you two, thinking you might become schoolmates in the future.”

“But when you came out, he was already gone.”