Chapter 89: Embraced Together

In the blink of an eye, the second monthly exam was over. When the results came out, Xie Mingming was most concerned about Shen Qing, truly afraid she'd gotten another zero. This time, the students all said the papers were easier than last time. Lin Ruiyang achieved an excellent score of 735, securing first place yet again.

Shen Qing lay sprawled on her desk as Yao Panpan bounded into the classroom, full of energy. "Qing, you really scored a hundred!"

Shen Qing barely lifted her head before lowering it again.

Nie Huan’s grades were average, just about 480. Yao Panpan, however, had broken through to over 600 this time—a big improvement from before.

"Class Leader Yao, this test was definitely easier than the last one," the chubby boy commented, clearly in a bad mood.

"Shut up and get lost!"

**

When Shen Qing returned home, Er Niu rushed up, tail wagging, begging for attention.

"Hey! You’re back," Xia Mang called out, sitting cross-legged on the sofa in her autumn clothes, watching a drama. On screen, the male and female leads were sharing a passionate kiss.

"Mm." Shen Qing patted Er Niu’s head, changed into her slippers, placed her hat on the table, and went straight to her room to shower.

When she reemerged, she was in her pajamas, her damp hair draped with a towel over her shoulders.

"You really watch this melodramatic stuff?" Shen Qing grabbed a small biscuit from the snack bag, popped it in her mouth, and swallowed after barely chewing.

"It’s not so bad. The leads have only misunderstood each other a hundred times. Want another?" Xia Mang offered her another biscuit, holding it to the corner of Shen Qing’s mouth.

Shen Qing shook her head—it wasn’t tasty, and she didn’t want any more.

Xia Mang clicked her tongue at Shen Qing’s pickiness and ate it herself.

"There's a parent-teacher conference tomorrow. Can you go for me?" Shen Qing pulled out her phone to play.

"Hm? Parent-teacher conference? You want me to go?" Xia Mang sounded surprised.

"Will you go or not?"

"Of course I’ll go," Xia Mang straightened up. "How many marks did you get?"

"Just a hundred."

"A hundred in which subject?"

Shen Qing glanced up at her. "Total score: a hundred."

"What the hell! That low? If I go to the conference, won’t it be embarrassing?"

"Excuse me?" Shen Qing narrowed her eyes, staring at Xia Mang with clear warning.

Xia Mang swallowed nervously, then forced a laugh. "I meant, going as the parent of the top student is a real honor!"

"Woof!"

**

A black Maybach glided slowly into the city’s villa district, finally stopping at the innermost house.

"Young Master Cheng, sir is in the study," the butler at the door said respectfully, opening the back door.

Dongfang Cheng nodded, stepped out in gleaming leather shoes, and entered the villa.

"Darlings! I’m home!" Dongfang Cheng kicked open the study door, flung his arms wide, and ran toward the two men discussing business at the desk.

Gu Ting’s brow twitched; he yanked Mo Wuxie over to shield himself.

"What the hell!" Mo Wuxie had no time to react before Dongfang Cheng enveloped him in a bear hug.

"Brother Gu~" Dongfang Cheng released Mo Wuxie and pouted, about to throw himself onto Gu Ting.

Gu Ting took a deep breath and promptly kicked Dongfang Cheng in the calf.

"Ah!"

"God damn, Gu Ting, you’re brutal," Dongfang Cheng yelped, rubbing his leg. Was it broken?

"It’s not," Gu Ting shot him a cold glance, picked up the files on the desk, and sat on the sofa to read.

Dongfang Cheng limped over and sat beside him, his earlier frivolity gone.

"I heard Jiangshanbei has already… you know?"

"Yes." Gu Ting flipped a page, his tone stern and not at all friendly.

Dongfang Cheng fell silent for more than ten seconds. "Ting, now that Old Jiang has passed away, how much longer do you plan to stay in Fancheng?"

Gu Ting’s page-turning slowed. After a long pause, he finally said, "We’ll see."

Mo Wuxie sighed and sat before the computer, reviewing a staff report. Suddenly, something caught his eye.

"Hey, Ting, take a look at this."

Gu Ting glanced over, then got up to see.

"I want to see too!" Dongfang Cheng, having no idea what was going on, followed along.

On Mo Wuxie’s computer screen was a photo: thanks to the lighting, only the boy’s profile was visible, his features clean and striking. The girl beside him had slightly upturned eyes and a beautifully curved jawline—she looked like a sprite.

"Holy—! That’s Shen Qing and…" Dongfang Cheng was stunned. The most shocking thing? The two in the photo were embracing!

Embracing in a way that was unmistakably intimate.

When did those two go off to take a couple’s portrait together?