"Xiao Xi is a girl. Do you expect the girl to take the initiative? As a boy, what are you afraid of? Just go for it!"
"Pfft—"
Luo Shan, who was drinking water, spat it out instantly.
These words... were too bold!
Ye Fan smiled bitterly and said into the phone, "Mom, you don't have to worry about this. Don't worry, Xiao Xi will definitely become your daughter-in-law."
"That attitude is not bad."
Ye Xian nodded in satisfaction, then changed the subject: "By the way, the college entrance exam is coming up soon. Your Uncle Luo Shan and I discussed it and decided to go to the capital next Friday. We'll accompany you during the exam."
"No need."
Ye Fan thought for a moment and refused, "It's too tiring to travel back and forth. You and Uncle should just stay at home. It's just the college entrance exam, no need to be nervous. Your son won't embarrass you."
"That won't do..."
"Mom, if you agree, after the exam, I'll take Xiao Xi to Linhai for a few days."
Before his mother could refuse, Ye Fan played his trump card and said indifferently, "Of course, if you don't agree, then just pretend I never said anything."
"Agreed!"
Ye Xian was overjoyed and agreed without hesitation, saying, "Xiao Xi is a girl. Do you expect the girl to take the initiative? As a boy, what are you afraid of? Just go for it!" She added, "We have an agreement. If you don't bring Xiao Xi back, then don't bother coming home either."
"Mom, am I even your biological son?"
"Of course. If you don't believe me, we can go to the hospital for a DNA test."
"..."
Ye Fan's face twitched slightly, and he sighed helplessly, "Anything else? If not, I'll hang up. I still have to study later."
"Alright, I'll hang up. Study well."
After Ye Xian finished her advice, she hung up the phone. As soon as she put down her phone, she received a question from Luo Shan.
"Xiao Fan is dating?"
"Not yet, but it should happen soon."
Ye Xian's face was full of smiles. "Haven't you been curious all this time?"
"Of course!"
Luo Shan looked aggrieved, "Something this big, and you deliberately kept it from me."
"It's just that they haven't confirmed their relationship yet."
Ye Xian explained, "If Xiao Fan and Xiao Xi don't end up together, then I would have given false information. But if Xiao Fan brings Xiao Xi to Linhai, then they're definitely a couple."
"Xiao Xi?"
Luo Shan was confused and asked, "Is that the girl's name? How does she look? What's her personality like? How are her grades..."
"Stop!"
Ye Xian was overwhelmed by her husband's rapid-fire questioning and raised her hand to stop him. "The girl's name is Ning Xi. Let me put it this way—if Xiao Fan can marry such a good girl, I'd laugh in my sleep."
That one sentence proved her high opinion of Ning Xi.
At this, Luo Shan seemed to understand something and stopped asking.
His wife had high standards, so if she was this satisfied with a girl, that girl must be truly outstanding.
Monday and Tuesday passed, and now it was Wednesday—the day the results of the Third Joint Exam were announced.
Class started at 8 AM, but by 7:30, the classroom was already full of students. They gathered in small groups, discussing the soon-to-be-released exam results.
"The Third Joint Exam was too hard. I think I did worse than the Second Joint Exam."
"Don't worry. A bad score isn't necessarily a bad thing. At least you can find your mistakes and avoid making them again."
"Sigh, what do you think is going on with Ye Fan and Ning Xi's scores?"
"Who knows? Their scores weren't announced for the First or Second Joint Exams, so I guess this time will be the same. Maybe their scores are too high, and the Education Bureau or the school wants to keep them confidential."
It had to be said that there were some sharp students among them. A casual guess had already come close to the truth.
7:50 AM.
Ye Fan walked into the classroom, carrying a backpack with a few extracurricular books inside. He was already used to seeing the room packed with people.
Every time scores were announced, he was always the last one to arrive.
By now, Deng Yu and Zhao Wenhao, who had always been at odds with Ye Fan, no longer dared to cause trouble for him.
As time passed, they realized that they weren't even in the same world as Ye Fan.
Ye Fan's excellence made them feel unqualified to compete with him for Ning Xi.
There was simply no comparison!
This gave Ye Fan some peace. As he passed the first row, Su Ke waved at him and handed him two notebooks.
"Thanks for the hard work."
"You guys are Xiao Xi's friends, so it's nothing."
Ye Fan took the notebooks and nodded slightly at Su Ke before heading to his seat.
Luo Yumeng pouted and imitated Ye Fan's tone, "'You guys are Xiao Xi's friends'—tsk! As if we're not his classmates. Classmates should help each other, why bring up Xiao Xi?"
"Yumeng, we are Ye Fan's classmates, that's true."
Su Ke turned her head to glance at Ye Fan's back and said softly, "But if it weren't for Xiao Xi, do you think Ye Fan would help us with our studies?"
"Uh..."
Luo Yumeng was speechless.
Ye Fan reached his seat and, as usual, placed a box of milk in Ning Xi's hand. The next second, he noticed the red veins in her eyes. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "Did you stay up late again last night?"
"I..."
Meeting Ye Fan's questioning gaze, Ning Xi lowered her head guiltily and explained in a small voice, "I... just stayed up a little bit late."
"What time did you sleep?"
"Around... past one in the morning."
"That's just 'a little bit late'?"
"...Mhm."
"..."
Ye Fan held his forehead and said helplessly, "Xiao Xi, the college entrance exam is coming soon. You need to maintain a good sleep schedule and not disrupt your rhythm. Understand?"
"Mhm, mhm, I won't do it again."
Ning Xi stuck out her little pink tongue playfully. Her mischievous smile left Ye Fan utterly helpless.
He couldn't help it—facing such an adorable Ning Xi, he just couldn't bring himself to scold her.
Ning Xi inserted the straw into the milk carton and sipped while asking in a muffled voice, "The Third Joint Exam results will be announced soon. I guess our scores still won't be there."
"Of course."
Ye Fan flipped open the book he hadn't finished last night and said casually, "Don't focus too much on scores. Just stick to your study schedule and prepare for the college entrance exam. The results of the Third Joint Exam won't change just because you pay attention to them. Whatever they are, they are."
"How boring."
Ning Xi huffed and turned to look out the window. Out of Ye Fan's sight, dimples appeared on her cheeks.
The milk wasn't sweet, but her heart felt sweet.
The care Ye Fan had shown for her just now made her feel like she was floating on air.
Because he liked her, he cared.
Because he cared, he paid attention...
"Ding ling—"
As the class bell rang, Yang Ting walked into the classroom right on time.
Compared to the previous two times when she announced scores with a gloomy expression, this time she was clearly smiling.
Seeing this, many students secretly sighed in relief.
It looked like they wouldn't be scolded this time.
"The results of the Third Joint Exam are out. I'll announce them now."
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