Chapter 23

“You already have the basics, so it shouldn’t be that hard.”

Jiang Xin was admitted to the graduate program of her dream major.

When she sent me a WeChat message to wish me a happy birthday, she also said, “Xiaxia, try again. I believe in you-you can do it.”

I had nothing else to do anyway.

So I tried again.

My parents still didn’t really agree. They just urged me to get married quickly and not to miss out on a good man like Zhou Xiang.

Whenever I went back to my hometown, my aunt would say:

“Marrying a good man is the most important thing. Meeting a man like Xiao Zhou is like your ancestors blessing you.”

“You’d better hurry up while he’s still blind.”

Countless nights fueled by coffee, I watched the streetlights burning outside the window.

This city was becoming more and more prosperous.

It seemed to embrace everything.

But in reality, for someone like me, if I didn’t give it my all,

I would never truly fit in.

That December, I once again walked into the Graduate Entrance Exam.

This time, I turned off my phone.

No one could stop me from moving forward.

The day the written exam results were released was the twelfth day of the Lunar New Year.

My aunt had arranged a blind date for Sanbao, but the girl wasn’t interested at all.

I entered my exam registration number on my phone and checked my results.

Total score: 439.

The major I applied for was recruiting 150 people, and I ranked third.

I sent a WeChat message to Zhou Xiang.

He replied with a voice message.

“Xiaxia, I knew you could do it.” He sounded even happier than I was. “You are my pride.”

I had contacted my mentor more than a year ago.

At that time, I didn’t attend the final exam, and I explained the reason to her.

When I met her again for the interview, she asked a few casual questions, then said, “This student contacted me more than a year ago. She was delayed due to family reasons. I didn’t expect to see her again this year!”

The meaning was clear.

She had chosen me-no one else should try to compete.

Zhou Xiang had also inquired about this mentor many times before. She was strong academically, had many projects, and didn’t exploit her students.

As soon as the admission notice arrived, Zhou Xiang took me to meet his parents.

Some things are better left unexamined.

Why did it have to be after the Graduate Entrance Exam?

Zhou Xiang’s family was even wealthier than I had imagined.

They owned several large supermarkets. Now, his brother managed the family business, but Zhou Xiang still held shares and received dividends at the end of the year.

His parents were polite to me, but it was obvious they didn’t really like me.

My parents urged us to get married, but Zhou Xiang’s parents said:

“Zheng Xiaxia has just been admitted to graduate school. There’s no need to rush into marriage.”

My mentor had many projects, so I was very busy during my graduate studies.

She loved tea.

When she found out I was an Advanced Level Tea Art Master, she was overjoyed.

She often asked me to make tea for her, and my monthly stipend increased significantly.

I became the student council president and published several substantial papers.

My mentor took me to various conferences and meals with prominent figures.

She would always say, with a hint of pride, “My student isn’t just good at academics-she’s also an Advanced Level Tea Art Master.”

Naturally, I was often asked to demonstrate my tea skills.

At that time, a Tea Art Master was truly just a Tea Art Master-it had nothing to do with being a ‘green tea’ girl.

My mentor would say proudly, “If you went to a teahouse for tea, just this skill would be worth thousands. Today, it’s on me.”

Of course, this drew admiration and praise from everyone.

My mentor treated me like half a daughter and always praised me.

“Such a good student, and that brat Xiao Zhou gets to benefit.”

“If you two ever break up, you can be my daughter-in-law.”