After Lin Nian returned to her rented apartment, the more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became. Qin Jiao’s grades were improving so quickly. Either she was cheating, or... she was secretly studying hard at home!

Lin Nian was actually feeling restless. She knew that if Qin Jiao were really cheating, she couldn’t possibly do it every single time. Besides, her grades just kept soaring. This time was even more outrageous—she had even surpassed Chen Feng.

But she understood that this was the female lead’s plot armor at work.

In that period novel, Qin Jiao had been neck and neck with Chen Feng. Both of them were exceptionally brilliant. In the end, during the college entrance exams, they even got the exact same score, tying for first place in their year!

That was why Lin Nian understood. Qin Jiao must be going home and secretly studying her butt off, which was how her grades were improving so fast.

But Lin Nian still refused to accept it.

’I’m a student from a top university, for crying out loud. How can I not measure up to a high schooler?’

’Even if she’s the female lead with a plot-armor halo, she’s still just a high school student!’

After mulling it over, Lin Nian decided to study hard and make progress every day, and then crush Qin Jiao under her heel.

But she had only gotten halfway through a single problem when there was a knock on the door. When she opened it, she found Chen Feng.

Lin Nian was surprised. "Ah Feng, what are you doing here?"

Chen Feng’s eyes were vacant, and his silence was terrifying. He walked in, pulled Lin Nian into his arms, and started kissing her without a word. This sent Lin Nian into a panic.

Besides, she didn’t really enjoy doing *that* with Chen Feng. After all, he was just a clumsy, reckless kid. Most importantly, Lin Nian did not want to have a child right now.

She tried to push Chen Feng away with all her might, but he was acting like a madman, completely ignoring her...

* * *

The days grew colder, bit by bit. Qin Jiao was already wearing a thick, padded cotton jacket, a hat, a scarf, and gloves, bundling herself up snugly.

In contrast, Shen Yi, who still walked to and from school with her every day, just wore his school uniform and a thin jacket. He was the very definition of someone who valued style over warmth.

Qin Jiao felt the urge to say something, but in the end, she held her tongue.

’No, I can’t show concern for Shen Yi. What if our relationship gets closer and closer because of it?’

Fortunately, Shen Yi seemed quite resistant to the cold. Aside from that one cold a long time ago, he hadn’t gotten sick since.

But someone else couldn’t bear to watch any longer. Su Yun knew how to knit, and she had specially knitted a thick, dark blue sweater, along with a matching scarf and gloves from the same yarn.

She said, "Mr. Du is fine; he just doesn’t go out much when it gets cold. But that poor boy, Shen Yi... his parents aren’t around, and I hear they’re in the middle of a divorce. There’s no one to look after him, and he wears so little in the dead of winter. Xiao Jiao, take these over to him."

"Mom, he’s probably not cold. If he were really cold, his family has money, so he’d definitely have bought something."

Su Yun immediately tapped her on the forehead. "You silly girl. You’re usually so smart, why are you being so dense right now? Think of how much Grandpa Du has helped our family. We cook and clean for them, but really, we’re the ones who’ve gotten the better end of the deal. Oh, Xiao Jiao, you can’t forget your roots. When someone shows you an inch of kindness, you must repay them with a mile."

Qin Jiao’s forehead was still aching a little from her mom’s poke. She clutched it and took several steps back, quickly surrendering. "Yes, yes, you’re right! I was wrong. I’ll take it over to them right now."

"Oh, right. I also made some frozen tofu and salted some duck eggs. Take those over, too."

"Got it."

Qin Jiao headed next door, carrying a cloth bag with the sweater, scarf, and gloves in her left hand, and a woven basket stuffed with all kinds of food from her mom in her right.