Song Xinya: "I've looked into Jian Yiyi's academic performance. She helps her grandmother make and sell tofu every day, does all sorts of chores, and is so busy she can only study during her free time. Yet, she still consistently ranks in the top five of her class in every exam."
"Meanwhile, your grades consistently rank dead last in the class every single time. As someone at the bottom of the barrel, what do you think about that?"
Jin Ruizhi: "My thought is, I have money anyway. Endless amounts of money. In the future, I'll start a company and hire those top students to work for me."
Song Xinya: "So your advantage is having money, right?"
Jin Ruizhi: "Of course. Having money is an advantage in itself."
Song Xinya: "Even with all your money, Jian Yiyi still doesn't like you."
Jin Ruizhi: "..."
"Jian Yiyi isn't the kind of girl who cares only about money."
Song Xinya continued to guide him, asking, "Then what does Jian Yiyi care about?"
Jin Ruizhi: "Every time I see her, she's basically reading. She reads between classes, during PE, and even after school when everyone else has gone home. She also reads in the gaps while selling tofu. She is a very hardworking girl, and she cares deeply about her grades."
Song Xinya: "So, why would such a motivated and positive girl like an ignorant and incompetent boy like you?"
Jin Ruizhi: "..."
"Ms. Song, you're making me feel a bit insecure. It's not like I don't have good qualities. I'm rich, handsome, and tall."
Song Xinya hit the nail on the head: "None of those qualities are enough to attract Jian Yiyi."
Jin Ruizhi took the initiative to ask, "What should I do to attract Jian Yiyi?"
Song Xinya got straight to the point: "Study. Bring your grades up to first in the class, or even first in the grade, or first in the entire city."
Jin Ruizhi picked up a basketball from the ground. With a casual toss from his elegant, slender hand, the ball landed perfectly on the tip of his right index finger, spinning rapidly with a whooshing sound.
The young man looked very handsome spinning the basketball on a single finger.
Jin Ruizhi spun the ball deftly and said casually, "Studying is an incredibly dull thing to do. I like doing interesting things. I don't like studying."
"Besides, ninety-nine percent of what you learn in textbooks is useless once you enter society. It doesn't matter at all whether I study or not. Even if I don't, I'll still open a company and be the boss in the future."
"Those top students, no matter how high their grades are, even if they get into Tsinghua or Peking University, they'll still end up working for someone else after they graduate."
"My dad's company is full of employees from Tsinghua and Peking University. Even though they are the cream of the crop, they still have to bow their heads when they see me and respectfully call me Young Master."
"Those people with good grades could work their whole lives and still not earn the amount of money I was born with."
Song Xinya: "So you're not planning to study?"
Jin Ruizhi: "Ms. Song, to tell you the truth, I'm just not cut out for studying. If I sit in a chair for half an hour, it feels like there are nails poking my butt. I just can't help but fidget."
It was still a lack of motivation.
Song Xinya didn't try to persuade him with earnest advice. If words alone could convince him to study, the previous tutors would have succeeded long ago.
As an A-level instructor who ranked first in performance at her previous company, Song Xinya had other methods...
Without wasting any more breath on Jin Ruizhi, Song Xinya started walking toward the outside of the villa.
Jin Ruizhi tossed the basketball aside and stood up in a panic. "Ms. Song, why are you leaving? Aren't you my tutor? You haven't even given me a lesson yet."
Song Xinya: "You won't listen even if I teach you, so it's just a waste of my breath. If I work hard to tutor you for half a year and your grades don't improve at all, it will ruin my reputation as an A-level instructor. I'd be better off spending that time lying in bed getting some rest."
After leaving the Jin family home, Song Xinya went to the wet market.
From a distance, she saw a slender, fair-skinned girl sitting quietly in a corner, holding a book in her hands.
When a customer came to buy tofu, she would stand up and serve them. Once the customer left, she would sit back down and continue reading.
Her focused demeanor made her seem isolated from the world, as if the surrounding noise was automatically canceled out. The loose strands of hair by her temples exuded a gentle, deep-water calmness.
In that dim corner, with its damp floor and peeling walls, she was the only touch of brightness in the dilapidated environment.
Song Xinya walked toward that touch of brightness.
As Jian Yiyi's fingers turned a page, a clear female voice rang out above her: "Give me a block of tofu."
Jian Yiyi's fingers paused on the book. She looked up abruptly, her eyes bright. "Ms. Song!"
Song Xinya: "The tofu you gave me yesterday was delicious. My younger brother really loved it. He couldn't get enough of it and insisted I come buy more today."
Jian Yiyi: "Thank your brother for the compliment, Ms. Song. I have half a block of tofu left here, he can have it all."
She put it in a plastic bag, carefully double-bagged it, and handed it to Song Xinya with both hands.
Song Xinya: "How much is it?"
Jian Yiyi: "It's free."
Ms. Song had helped her so much; how could she possibly accept money?
It was just a small token of her appreciation, as long as Ms. Song didn't mind.
Song Xinya didn't say much more and took the bag from her hands.
The two stood face to face, looking at each other, both feeling an indescribable sense of fondness and familiarity welling up inside.
Song Xinya had actually investigated Jian Yiyi's academic records a long time ago, but naturally, she wouldn't say that outright, as it would make her seem like she harbored ill intentions or ulterior motives.
She said, "I see you reading all the time. Your grades must be really good, right? Do you often rank first in your class?"
Jian Yiyi: "My grades aren't that great. I usually rank fifth. My classmates call me the Eternal Fifth."
Song Xinya: "Then do you want to rank first in the class?"
Jian Yiyi: "Of course I do. I dream about it."
With her current grades, she still couldn't get into the best university in Jingbei City.
She wanted to improve further; she wanted to get into Jingbei University.
Song Xinya: "My brother's grades are quite good. He's first in his grade at Jingbei No. 1 Middle School. How about I bring him over tomorrow to tutor you?"
Jian Yiyi: "That would be wonderful! Jingbei No. 1 Middle School is the best public school in Jingbei City. The top student in that school's grade will definitely get into the best university in the country. If he's willing to tutor me, it would be a huge help to any student."
Song Xinya: "I'll bring him over tomorrow morning to tutor you."
Jian Yiyi happily said thank you five times.
While the two were talking, Song Xinya dropped her hand and slipped a crisp, red one-hundred-yuan bill into Jian Yiyi's cash box.
Jian Yiyi had said the tofu was free, but she couldn't just not pay.
That evening, Song Xinya once again returned home carrying half a block of tofu.
Song Tingye: "Sis, why are you so obsessed with eating tofu lately?"
Qin Yuyan: "Maybe because my sister-in-law can't get her hands on my brother, so she's eating actual tofu to satisfy her cravings."
Song Xinya: "You know quite a lot for a little brat."
Song Tingye asked Qin Yuyan: "What kind of tofu of your brother's is my sister eating?"
Qin Yuyan: "Sister-in-law is eating my brother's... um..."
Song Xinya's expression changed. "Qin Yuyan, shut your mouth!"
Qin Yuyan: "Sister-in-law, why are you reacting so strongly? I was just going to say, you eat my brother's face. What's wrong with that? You two are married, it's not like you never kiss."
Song Tingye: "They probably do kiss."
Qin Yuyan: "Of course they do. Husband and wife don't just kiss, they make babies too."
Song Xinya scooped up a chunk of tofu and shoved it right into Qin Yuyan's mouth. "One hundred math practice tests for you tomorrow!"
Qin Yuyan was so frightened that she gulped the tofu down whole without even chewing.
"No! Sister-in-law, please spare me!"
Song Xinya: "No mercy. Prepare to spend the entire day tomorrow suffering with math!"
Terrified, Qin Yuyan barely took another bite of her dinner. Looking as if her soul had left her body, she slouched over and dragged her arms as she shuffled back to her bedroom.
At the dining table, Song Tingye held his bowl in one hand and chopsticks in the other, his eyes lingering on Qin Yuyan's retreating figure. "Sis, look at you. Look how badly you scared the little princess."
Song Xinya: "One hundred language arts tests for you tomorrow."
Song Tingye: "Tyrant!"
Song Xinya: "Cheeky monkey."
Song Tingye slammed his bowl and chopsticks down on the table. "I'm not eating dinner either!"
Song Xinya: "Suit yourself. I'll eat it all."
She thought Song Tingye was just throwing a tantrum and pretending to skip dinner, but to her surprise, he actually didn't eat and went straight back to his bedroom.
The usual starving ghost who normally got starry-eyed at the sight of food was actually skipping dinner today.
A rooster laying an egg—what a rare phenomenon.
After dinner, Song Xinya went up to the second floor. Out of habit, the moment she stepped into her bedroom, she began taking off her clothes.
She pulled off her bra and casually tossed it onto the desk.
Swish—the camera on the desk was completely covered.
On the other end of the feed, Qin Yuhe, who was watching the surveillance monitor, suddenly froze. It felt as if the bra hadn't just covered the camera, but had landed right on his face.
