Chapter 20: Baby, I'm Not Angry—I’m Moving Up a Grade

“Ah?” Xu Qianqian looked at him suspiciously. “Is that true?”

“Of course it’s true, but I refused,” Jiang Nian lied without a hint of shame. “I have no intention of dating in senior year; I just want to focus on studying.”

That was exactly what Zhou Yuting had said, but Jiang Nian shamelessly took credit for it.

“Hmm, you’re right to think that way,” Xu Qianqian said solemnly as she walked ahead. “Once you get to university, you’ll have more options. There’s no need to limit yourself to a small county town.”

“Oh, you sound like you really understand this stuff,” Jiang Nian clicked his tongue.

Xu Qianqian’s face flushed. “My cousin told me.”

“Oh? Has your cousin found a boyfriend?”

“No…” Xu Qianqian’s voice dropped as she hesitated, lacking confidence. “She’s different—her goal is graduate school.”

What followed were some hard-to-understand phrases about “modern independent women” and “upward choices.” The walk home after evening study was suddenly filled with a lighthearted atmosphere.

“I’m from Dunhuang, serious and straightforward, like the cheese snow leopard—that’s what murals are about,” Jiang Nian laughed heartily and then leaned in mysteriously.

“Hey, did you know? There’s this old grandmother at the village entrance, eighty years old and still unmarried. Guess what? Just as she was about to pass away, the earth cracked open and a celestial lord appeared.”

“The celestial lord fed the old lady an immortal pill, and she instantly became eighteen again. In the end, they walked home hand in hand, becoming immortal lovers.”

“That scene—the purple aura came from the east, red banners fluttered, crowds swarmed. People from neighboring villages all envied the couple. So you tell your cousin to hold on—she’ll definitely find her true love.”

“Don’t say that about my cousin,” Xu Qianqian said awkwardly.

Jiang Nian casually replied, “Xu Qianqian, your cousin’s a bit weird. You should keep your distance.”

“Oh.”

...

After returning home, Jiang Nian heard his parents sighing from inside their room.

But since it was late, he didn’t want to knock. Instead, he called them. His mother’s voice came through the door, loud and full of energy.

“Jiang Nian, are you itching for trouble? It’s late at night—why are you calling?”

“Uh, I’m just curious. You’ve been sighing for two nights now,” Jiang Nian said. “By the way, Mom, I forgot to tell you, I scored…”

“Stop making trouble and go to sleep!”

“Oh, okay.” Jiang Nian wiped the sweat from his brow.

It seemed there really was something going on. Usually, after exams, his parents would question him thoroughly. Now they were so busy they forgot, so it must be something tricky.

Still, Jiang Nian didn’t dwell on it. His parents’ problems weren’t his to worry about. He could lend money if needed, but beyond that, there was little he could do.

As Comrade Li Hongmei said, getting good grades was already a form of filial piety.

Jiang Nian thought to himself that he’d wait until class divisions were finalized before telling them. And tomorrow, he’d ask Old Jiang about it—just a simple inquiry.

The next morning.

Click—The old Jiang family door lock turned. With a creak, a sliver of dawn light pierced the dim living room. Jiang Nian had just returned with breakfast.

He happened to see his father, Old Jiang, getting up early to use the bathroom, so he stopped him to ask.

“You’re just a kid—why ask so many questions?” Old Jiang looked puzzled, trying to regain his stern father figure. “Adults’ matters are best left alone.”

“Comrade Old Jiang, I’m an adult now.”

“Still a kid.”

“As a member of this family, I earn money too.” Jiang Nian waved the steamed bun he carried. “I’m responsible for one-third of the meals. Having some say isn’t too much, right?”

You’re soft when fed, indebted when helped—even to your own son. Old Jiang had no comeback. After frowning a moment, he told him the truth.

“It’s nothing much—the ancestral hall of the old clan needs money for renovation.”

“Collecting contributions?”

“Something like that. Nothing decided yet.” Old Jiang waved his hand dismissively. “Alright, now you know. Go to school.”

“Oh.” Jiang Nian felt awkward. Even though he guessed it, he tentatively asked, “Is the budget tight? If so, I can chip in a little.”

Old Jiang ignored him, waved his hand, and went into the bathroom.

Sigh, the League of Worried Fathers.

Jiang Nian left and put morning’s matters behind him. He was insignificant anyway. Whenever money was involved, they never let him meddle—no surprise there.

Groceries and daily expenses? He’d just make up for it somewhere else later.

Maybe he neglected to check the almanac before leaving. After parting with Xu Qianqian and turning a corner by the classroom door, he ran straight into Zhou Yuting.

“Jiang Nian.” Zhou Yuting’s eyes were still red. She surprisingly greeted him first.

“Yeah, actually, I’m severely nearsighted in my left eye,” Jiang Nian shifted slightly to the right. “And I’m eighty percent deaf in my left ear. Classmate, who are you again?”

Zhou Yuting: “...I know you’re still mad at me.”

In the fading evening light, Jiang Nian couldn’t tell if she was serious or just teasing.

Looking at her reddened eyes, he felt a flicker of softness. Maybe what he said last night was too harsh—after all, she was a girl.

Sigh, girls—worse than beasts.

Seeing no one else watching, Jiang Nian quickly moved closer to Zhou Yuting and spoke gently with a bubbly tone.

“Baby, I’m not angry. I’m moving up a class.”

Zhou Yuting froze, her blood rushing to her head, almost fainting.

“You!”

The preliminary list for class promotions came out during the first afternoon class. As expected, Jiang Nian was the only one from his current class, listed sixteenth on the list.

He was assigned to Science Olympiad Class 3, Room A403. Xu Qianqian’s class was on the third floor, Science Olympiad Class 4, Room A304. Unfortunately, they weren’t in the same class.

During evening study, he asked the homeroom teacher for leave again.

“Jiang Nian, didn’t you just ask for leave the day before yesterday? Why again?”

“It’s like this—my illness relapsed.”

“Relapsed?”

“Yes.”

The teacher glanced at the leave note, then at his wayward student about to move up a class, and the soundtrack from “The Actor” started playing in his mind.

Your act is too obvious, like a talentless performer… now you’ve stopped even pretending, huh!

His eyelid twitched, but he still nodded.

“Alright, take care.”

Under the cover of night, Jiang Nian happily left campus, pulled out his phone by the roadside, and made a call.

“Sister Zhao, yes, it’s me.”

“Mm-hmm, I’m by the main road of the county high school. Can you come pick me up? Yes, class is over.”

Throwing out four thousand isn’t a total loss—at least there’s a chauffeured pick-up service. Jiang Nian stood by the road, arms crossed, ready to complete today’s mission.

You don’t feel the lack of money until you have some. Then the holes appear everywhere.

In the small county town, traffic was light. The dim streetlights bathed the entire road in a mellow yellow glow, like a golden carpet.

Fifteen minutes later, a woman on a motorcycle pulled up by the roadside. Zhao Qiuxue took off her helmet, smiled at Jiang Nian, and nodded.

“Jiang, handsome boy, get on.”