Lin Zihan couldn’t help but sigh at how times had changed.
Back in those days, Little Bai’er couldn’t even string together a single sentence. And now? She was sitting steady as a rock in a Gaokao exam room!
Maybe some people knocked out their compulsory education in their dreams while lying there like a vegetable.
It was enough to make anyone sigh.
Even if it stretched belief, Lin Zihan trusted her own eyes.
She leaned over a bit, peering into Ye Zhibai’s pale purple eyes—eyes that lingered in her memory from childhood, but now shining with even more radiance.
The exam room hadn’t fully quieted down yet. Seizing the moment, Lin Zihan scooted closer with a grin.
“Ahaha… talk about striking gold today… er, bumping into an old friend. I heard Little Bai’er lost your memory. I’ve been so worried these past few days—we were thick as thieves back in the day…”
Thick as thieves.
Meaning she’d given Little Bai’er a beating every time they crossed paths.
Lin Zihan’s expressions were a sight to behold. As she spoke of her worries, she actually looked fretful, her crimson eyes shimmering like they might spill over.
But suddenly!
Her face went stiff, her cheeks paling as she nervously whipped her head left and right.
What was this about?
Had she forgotten her pen?
Ye Zhibai could lend her one—she had a whole arsenal in her bag!
Not that she was trying to show off her deluxe stationery pouch or anything.
But no, that wasn’t it.
Lin Zihan was scanning the room for any sign of “someone.”
She didn’t spot anything… but just to be safe, she cupped her snowy-white palm to shield the side and whispered toward Ye Zhibai.
“Little Bai’er… that devil isn’t in this exam room, is she?”
“Devil…?”
“Your sister! Ye Zhiyun! She swore she’d beat me every time she saw me—total demon!”
Last time, you’d been fearless, like a punching bag that just took it.
Scared now, were you?
Ye Zhibai shook her head, making it clear—Yun’er wasn’t here.
Hearing that, Lin Zihan relaxed in an instant!
Her pale little face flushed with color!
“Hehe, good she’s not here. Whew… I was afraid I’d get another thrashing. Anyway, Little Bai’er, do you even know how to read? First subject’s Chinese Language.”
“…”
Truth be told, it took Ye Zhibai a beat to process the question.
She never imagined she’d live to hear someone ask if she could read.
In this day and age, with illiteracy rates next to nothing, the question felt downright out of place!
But remembering how her body had been a mindless vegetable before her soul returned, Ye Zhibai got it.
Her response was perfectly logical.
“Yeah, I know some characters, but not a ton. I flipped through a dictionary in my dream and memorized a few.”
“Hah…? Oh… I see?”
Perfectly reasonable.
Ye Zhibai was a pro at fielding questions like this.
She didn’t care if the other person bought it—just claim it came from a dream, and what could they do?
Right then, the bespectacled female proctor at the front knocked on her desk with a sharp rap, issuing the pre-exam reminder.
“Five minutes until we break the seals on the test papers! Candidates, double-check your stationery, especially your marking pens! Wait for the bell!”
That was the cue she’d been waiting for!
Hearing those familiar words, Ye Zhibai felt the real Gaokao atmosphere finally descend.
That nostalgic rush hit her!
The instant the proctor finished speaking, Guang Yu scooted her butt aside, hopped down from the desk, and planted herself in the aisle between Ye Zhibai and Lin Zihan.
She sent a Mind Transmission reminder.
“Ye Zhibai! Hurry up—we’ve only got five minutes! Ask that Lin family girl next to you how her grades are!”
“Huh…? Why?”
“So we can copy her answers! Who knows if the other kids in here are total noobs? Look at them—zero reliability!”
Guang Yu… anyone but you could call others unreliable.
Coming from her, it was enough to make gods and men alike furious.
But when Ye Zhibai glanced around the room, she had to admit Guang Yu had a point!
The leftmost row had someone with hands clasped, mumbling prayers like “Heavenly spirits, earthly spirits.”
The back row featured a guy who—five minutes from unsealing—had his head down on the desk, eyes closed in meditation.
Sure, most seemed normal enough.
But how could Ye Zhibai tell if they weren’t just silent types pretending to be pros?
What if they coolly picked C on every question… and it was all blind guesses? She’d rather guess herself!
To play it safe, Ye Zhibai tentatively bought into Guang Yu’s pitch.
She turned to Lin Zihan, who was pulling a ballpoint pen from her pocket and setting her admission ticket in the top right corner.
But…
She hesitated.
How did you even broach that?
Bluntly asking, “Are your grades any good?”
Rude aside, wasn’t that awkward during Gaokao?
She couldn’t let her own issues mess with Lin Zihan’s exam mindset… the girl had enough on her plate.
Kind-hearted Little Zhibai decided against it.
As Ye Zhibai stayed silent and Guang Yu spun in anxious circles, Lin Zihan leaned over on her own and whispered.
“Little Bai’er… my grades are pretty solid, actually. Especially main subjects like Chinese Language and Mathematics—I’ve got this in the bag~”
“Oh…”
Was she bragging or something?
Hear that, Guang Yu? Target locked!
Ye Zhibai puzzled over why Lin Zihan had brought it up out of nowhere.
Lin Zihan paid no mind to the proctor prepping to unseal the papers up front.
Seizing the last scraps of time, she half-draped over her desk, tilting her head in a mischievous grin at Ye Zhibai.
Golden strands half-veiled her crimson eyes, emotions flickering in a way that stole the breath.
No denying it—Lin Zihan had a captivating charm as a girl.
She lowered her voice, inching closer to Ye Zhibai before finally spilling.
“Little Bai’er~ I’ve got a little suggestion. I know you just got out of the hospital and jumped into Gaokao on a whim—no confidence at all… Poor Little Bai’er, I can’t bear to watch you bomb this and get lapped by your grade-topping little sister. So… during the test, I can help you out?”
“No need.”
“Eh?”
Ye Zhibai’s refusal landed like a thunderclap—swift and absolute.
It caught Lin Zihan flat-footed.
Ye Zhibai unzipped her stationery pouch and capped it with one last line.
“Good luck on your own. I’ll score what I score—no need to trouble yourself.”
No need to trouble yourself.
If she wanted to copy, she’d just sic Guang Yu on it—fully automated.
“Ahaha… Fair enough. Little Bai’er, you’re such a straight shooter.”
Lin Zihan gave a wry chuckle, straightened up sensibly, and dropped the subject.
Then, right on cue, the bell signaling unsealed papers rang out.
The entire room plunged into silence.
Only the rustle of distributing papers and flipping sheets.
Ye Zhibai eyed the ballpoint in her hand, Yun’er’s warning still echoing in her ears.
—”Sis, watch out for Lin Zihan. No reason for her to be nice without some scheme brewing.”
Yeah, Yun’er might be spot on.
Lin Zihan had to know better.
If caught cheating during Gaokao, it was no skin off Ye Zhibai’s nose.
But for Lin Zihan? It’d torpedo her future.
—As the Lin family eldest miss who’d toiled for years toward this day.
Would anyone really risk that for a few childhood run-ins?
Throw away all their hard work?
Ye Zhibai didn’t buy it.
Whatever Lin Zihan was scheming, the Chinese Language paper was already in Ye Zhibai’s hands.
If she could, Ye Zhibai wanted to go it alone—just like she’d said.
Score what she could score.
She filled in her name and admission number, slapped the barcode in place, and squared the paper with heroic resolve to start reading.
She read the first two questions.
Ye Zhibai let out a helpless inner chuckle.
Via the Mind Transmission Guang Yu had just taught her, the oh-so-heroic Ye Zhibai informed her thus.
“Take a peek for me—what’s the answer to the first one? I’m stuck.”
“You got it! One question equals one soda!”
That’s some lion-sized appetite! Er, fox-sized!
Stuck on the first question? Total fluke!!
Damn it, seriously—had Gaokao gotten harder these past couple years?!
