Chapter 24, Summer Vacation
At the end of June, the college entrance exam results were released. Ji Linxue had already received calls from the admissions offices of C University and Q University even before the results came out.
Gu Hengzhi was the same. After receiving the calls, they both knew their scores were definitely stable.
The final results were also within their expectations. Gu Hengzhi's and Ji Linxue's scores didn't differ much. Ji Linxue scored 727 points, becoming the top scorer in S City, and Gu Hengzhi was only 3 points behind him.
Lu Yu's score was slightly lower than theirs, at 710 points. Shen Shaoyan, however, was quite miserable, he only scored 417 points, barely passing the本科线 (undergraduate admission line), but it was still fine for him to attend university in C City.
Not long after filling out their preferences, the admission results were out. Except for Shen Shaoyan, all three of them got into C University. Shen Shaoyan went to a decent vocational college, very close to C University.
Ji Linxue's phone hadn't stopped ringing during this period. Besides teachers and classmates, reporters also wanted to interview him, but he refused them all.
In the blink of an eye, it was early July. The sun was scorching, and the daylight was harsh. Ji Linxue had stayed home all this time and hadn't gone out. He was actually quite a homebody, he generally wouldn't go out unless it was for exercise or shopping.
One day at lunch, he saw a lavish spread of dishes on the table, chicken, duck, fish, and meat, along with shrimp, crab, two vegetable dishes, and a soup.
He pulled out a chair and sat down, "Why is it so grand today?"
His mother brought out the last bowl of dish from the kitchen, scolding him with a smile, "You rascal, you don't even remember your own birthday?"
"Of course I do," Ji Linxue gave her a hug. "Mom, you don't need to make so many dishes for me. Actually, today I should be thanking you."
"Thank you for caring for me and looking after me all these years."
Many people take their parents' love for granted, which is why they don't value or cherish it.
Ji Linxue knew how hard-won this love was. In his previous life, he was born into a single-parent family. His mother died during childbirth, and his father, a police officer, was rarely home. Therefore, he learned to live independently early on.
He knew his father had more important things than caring for him, but he couldn't accept it in his heart, and their father-son relationship had always been strained.
But he never expected that the family affection he had yearned for over a decade would be granted after his death.
His mother's eyes teared up, "Stop hugging, you're so old and still so clingy. The dishes will get cold."
His father happened to come home from work. Hearing them, he walked over, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
His mother retorted stubbornly, "Who's crying? Don't spread rumors!"
With that, she hurried into the kitchen.
Ji Linxue and his father exchanged smiles.
During that lunch, Ji Linxue rarely ate so much, they completely emptied the table.
After the meal, he voluntarily cleared the table, letting his mother sit in the living room to watch TV, "You just sit here and rest assured. I'll do the dishes."
He went into the kitchen. When he was almost finished, his mother's voice suddenly came from outside, "Linlin, your phone is ringing."
Ji Linxue dried his hands with a towel and walked out, "Coming."
He took the phone and saw it was Shen Shaoyan calling.
At this time, Shen Shaoyan would usually just be waking up, so why would he suddenly call him?
He pressed the answer button, and a joyful, excited voice came through the receiver, "Xiaoxue! Where's your house?"
A flash of doubt crossed Ji Linxue's mind, "Why are you asking that?"
Shen Shaoyan's hushed questioning came from the other end, "How should I answer?"
Someone next to him said something, the voice too low to hear clearly, as if the microphone was covered.
A moment later, Shen Shaoyan's voice rang out again, "You missed one thing when you packed. It's still at school. The dorm supervisor asked me to mail it to you. Send me your home address, okay?"
Ji Linxue already knew what they were up to and couldn't help but curl his lips, "You don't need to send me a birthday present. Thank you for the thought."
"Eh?" Shen Shaoyan paused. "It's not a birthday present."
This time it was Ji Linxue's turn to be surprised. He asked again in confusion, "You're not sending me a birthday present?"
"Of course not!" Shen Shaoyan swore confidently. "Quickly send me the address. The teacher said it needs to be done today."
Ji Linxue sent the address, half-believing, half-doubting.
Afterward, he thought about it and realized it made sense. His birthday was today, if they were sending a gift, they would have asked for the address in advance, otherwise, his birthday would have long passed by the time the gift arrived.
He quickly put the matter out of his mind, but two hours later, while reading in his study, he received another call from Shen Shaoyan.
"Xiaoxue! Come downstairs quickly!"
Hearing his excited voice, Ji Linxue's heart pounded, and a guess subtly emerged in his mind.
He grabbed his phone and rushed out of the house, taking the stairs two steps at a time.
His mother's voice came from behind, "Linlin, it's almost dinner time, are you still going out?"
Ji Linxue responded, shouting loudly, "Mom, I won't be home for dinner tonight!"
His home was in an old residential area, on a lower floor. With his long legs, he walked quickly, and in no time, he was downstairs.
As soon as he exited the building, he was met by three familiar figures.
Gu Hengzhi, Shen Shaoyan, Lu Yu.
They had all come.
Ji Linxue felt a surge of emotion in his heart, unable to suppress the smile on his lips, "Why did you all come to A City?"
Shen Shaoyan said casually, "Anyway, I'm bored at home, and A City isn't far, so we came."
Lu Yu said, "I've never been to A City before, so I might as well look around."
Gu Hengzhi looked at him, his eyes holding an unbreakable tenderness, "It's your birthday, of course we can't miss it."
"Happy Birthday."
Ji Linxue pursed his lips and smiled, "Thank you."
"Xiaoxue, what's fun in A City? Recommend some places for us," Shen Shaoyan said. "Let's have a great time tonight."
Ji Linxue showed a helpless expression upon hearing this, "I don't know either. I rarely go out to play."
When he transmigrated into this world, he had just entered junior high school. Everyone around him was thirteen or fourteen years old. As an adult with a psychological age of twenty, he found it quite unaccustomed.
So, he never participated when everyone else was having fun.
Gradually, his classmates began to feel he was unapproachable and dared not approach him.
"It's okay," Shen Shaoyan never let the situation get awkward. He snapped his fingers, "Are you worried about not finding fun places? Follow me."
He made a call to someone. After finishing, he patted his chest confidently, "It's settled. Tonight, you're on my schedule."
Soon after, a luxurious black sedan smoothly stopped in front of them. The car drove on the wide road, quickly taking them to their destination.
A City was a small, fourth-tier city with only five or six large supermarkets. There were only a few places to go for fun.
Upon reaching their destination, they saw a boy with pink hair.
As soon as he saw them, he quickly came forward, his face beaming, "Young Master Shen, what wind blew you to A City? I was quite flattered when I received the call..."
"Cut the crap," Shen Shaoyan raised his chin. "It's my brother's birthday today. You arrange things, don't mess around."
"Don't worry!" The pink-haired boy almost saluted. "I guarantee you'll have a satisfying time! Now, please come in with me first."
He led the way, and the others followed. Lu Yu leaned into Shen Shaoyan's ear, "Who is this? Why is he so unfamiliar?"
Shen Shaoyan said, "Don't know him. Someone recommended him to me, said he's very familiar with A City."
With his family background, there were plenty of people trying to curry favor, and he was long accustomed to it.
Pink Hair led them into a retro-styled restaurant, "It's almost dinner time. Shall we eat something first?"
No one had any objections to this arrangement. Shen Shaoyan directly said, "I've been traveling for several hours, I'm starving. Tell him to serve the food quickly."
"No problem!" Pink Hair scurried away.
The dishes were indeed served quickly, looking, smelling, and tasting excellent. Even Ji Linxue, who didn't care much about food, ate several bowls of rice.
After dinner, Pink Hair took them to a nearby arcade for a while, saying it was for digestion.
Ji Linxue and Gu Hengzhi both had a great time. Ji Linxue had never played a claw machine before and had zero experience, but he was lucky. He kept grabbing one doll after another. Gu Hengzhi helped him with positioning and holding the dolls.
Lu Yu chose the coin pusher, expressionlessly inserting coins and pushing them.
Only Shen Shaoyan was somewhat dissatisfied, "Is this all we're playing?"
He had been frequenting these places since childhood and was long tired of them.
Pink Hair instantly broke into a sweat, "Of course not, there's more later."
Suddenly remembering something, Shen Shaoyan nudged Pink Hair's arm, "Forget it, don't go to too messy places. You know it's my brother's birthday today, right?"
Pink Hair nodded, "Of course, I know. Who is he?"
"The fairest-skinned one," Shen Shaoyan indicated with his chin. "Later, find a private room and order a cake to be delivered."
Pink Hair readily agreed, "No problem!"
Around nine o'clock, the group left the arcade. Pink Hair wiped the sweat from his forehead and led them to a KTV.
"This one is newly opened, the environment is quite clean."
Ji Linxue followed them inside. He rarely came to such places, so everything seemed novel to him. The place was indeed as Pink Hair described, very clean, and the smell wasn't unpleasant.
The establishment was two stories. The first floor was a bar, and the second floor had private rooms. The soundproofing was excellent, once inside, you could barely hear outside sounds.
Pink Hair booked a luxurious private room. It was spacious, but with only a few of them inside, it felt a bit empty.
Shen Shaoyan went in and ordered a few songs. As he sang, he quickly started to feel a bit bored. But he didn't dare to act up. Since Ji Linxue was the birthday boy and the only one who could control Gu Hengzhi, after consulting Ji Linxue, he asked Pink Hair to call a few more people over.
"Anyway, once they're here, they'll get to know each other. We're all friends, right?" he said.
He was met with an unsurprising eye-roll from Gu Hengzhi.
Gu Hengzhi sneered, "If you dare to call any shady people over, today will be your doomsday."
Shen Shaoyan had indeed done such things before, and now that he was an adult, he might be even more unrestrained.
Shen Shaoyan quickly nudged Pink Hair's arm.
Pink Hair raised his hand and swore, "Don't worry, they're all friends I usually hang out with."
Ji Linxue wasn't very good at singing, but encouraged by Gu Hengzhi, he still sang a song.
His voice was clear and pure, like the gentle gurgling stream flowing down a mountain in early spring, nourishing people's hearts. There was no technique, only pure emotion.
As the last note faded, enthusiastic applause erupted in the private room. Shen Shaoyan clapped the most vigorously, "Good!"
Ji Linxue's ears gradually turned pink. He pursed his lips, feeling a bit shy.
"You sang beautifully," Gu Hengzhi wasn't saying this just to make him happy, he truly felt Ji Linxue sang well. Although his technique wasn't as strong as others, his vocal timbre was excellent and very pleasant to listen to.
"Won't you sing one?" Ji Linxue asked him.
Gu Hengzhi suddenly froze, his body still somewhat stiff if one looked closely.
Shen Shaoyan interrupted, "Xiaoxue, you don't know, Heng Ge is tone-deaf, hahahahaha! He can even sing 'Two Tigers' out of tune!"
Gu Hengzhi narrowed his eyes, "Shen... Shao... Yan."
Ji Linxue was quite curious, "How out of tune?"
But Gu Hengzhi absolutely refused to sing. Even when Ji Linxue, unusually soft in tone, pleaded with him, it was no use.
The atmosphere in the private room gradually heated up. Just then, the private room door was abruptly pushed open. It was a curvaceous, black-haired girl. She wore a revealing short skirt and had heavy eye makeup.
As soon as she entered, she greeted them with a familiar tone, "Young Master Chen, what brings you out here with such leisure today?"
Upon seeing the people in the private room, her mouth dropped open in surprise, "Where did you find such handsome guys!"
Holy hell! These are top-tier!
The next second, Pink Hair quickly pulled her out.
A few minutes later, the two re-entered the private room. This time, the black-haired girl was much more well-behaved. Although her gaze still occasionally drifted towards Ji Linxue and Gu Hengzhi, her language and actions were much more restrained.
She suppressed her excitement and told Pink Hair, "Why didn't you say they were all handsome guys? If you had said so earlier, Xiao Yun would have canceled her plans and come over."
Pink Hair warned, "Don't get any ideas. This is a normal gathering."
He didn't dare reveal Shen Shaoyan's identity, if he did, it might cause who knows how much trouble.
"What's the big deal? What if they take a liking to me?" The black-haired girl tossed her hair, her posture full of allure.
Pink Hair was speechless, "Where are they? Why aren't they here yet?"
The black-haired girl said they were coming soon and urged her sisters in the group chat to hurry over.
Perhaps the temptation of handsome guys was too great, people who usually took their time to leave arrived in just half an hour this time.
Five or six slender girls walked in simultaneously, and the private room instantly became crowded.
Ji Linxue casually glanced over and met the gaze of one of the girls in the crowd. He nonchalantly turned his head away, completely unaware of her astonished eyes.
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