Chapter 27

Lu Zhen raised a hand to cover his mouth, unable to hold back his laughter.
Mirth shimmered in his eyes as he looked at the girl on the podium, thinking, So even this little bookworm knows how to crack a joke.
Whether it was to defuse the situation or to ease the awkwardness, her earnest applause and praise were utterly adorable.
Beside him, Tan Ke couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter.
"Damn, this top student is really something."
To be honest, he had vaguely sensed that Chu Qiuqiu was being a bit aggressive earlier, but he hadn't expected her to ramble on and then suddenly run out of words. It was pretty hilarious.
It wasn't just him who found it funny; many in the class were stifling their laughter, shoulders shaking.
But out of respect for Chu Qiuqiu as their classmate, they at least tried to save her some face.
After Chu Yin had effectively silenced the troublemaker Chu Qiuqiu, she smoothly completed her part and then retreated to a corner, waiting quietly. Once the second and third-place students had finished their speeches, they lined up and filed out.
All three were well-behaved students, and the way they lined up and walked out reminded one of elementary school kids, making it hard not to laugh.
Lu Zhen's gaze lingered on Chu Yin at the back. Watching her follow behind the others, head slightly bowed, arms swinging gently back and forth, she looked incredibly obedient.
Lu Zhen watched her until she left, feeling a bit unsettled.
They knew each other, right? But from start to finish, she hadn't even glanced his way.
Once the top students were gone, the international class grew noisy again. They had expected this kind of academic sharing session to be boring and dull, but today's atmosphere was unexpectedly lively, especially since the top student was so good-looking. They didn't find it drawn out at all.
Only after Chu Yin left did Chu Qiuqiu's strange restriction lift.
She gasped for air, and once she regained her ability to speak, she hurriedly tried to explain to the classmates around her, "I suddenly couldn't speak just now!"
Her classmates nodded half-heartedly. "Is that so?"
Suddenly unable to speak, wasn't that just suddenly not knowing what to say? Then why bother arguing in the first place?
Chu Qiuqiu knew they didn't believe her, and her face flushed with frustration. "Really, I wanted to say that Ebbinghaus's curve is based on his personal data and doesn't necessarily apply to everyone!"
Her classmates looked even more confused: Then why didn't you say that earlier??
Chu Qiuqiu felt a wave of helplessness.
Twice now! Once at the school dance, when she suddenly lost control and started dancing strangely! And now, she suddenly couldn't control herself and couldn't speak!
If Chu Qiuqiu had been a bit smarter, she might have recalled more oddities. For instance, her perfectly fine red wine suddenly tasting off, or the name tag she had prepared inexplicably switching to her own name, and other similar incidents from the past. Unfortunately, Chu Qiuqiu wasn’t that sharp.
Based on the two eerie incidents she could remember, the only common thread Chu Qiuqiu could identify was that Chu Yin had been present in both.
Could it be… related to her?!
Unable to contain herself, Chu Qiuqiu rushed out of the classroom, caught up with Chu Yin, who hadn’t gone far, and grabbed her arm. "Witch!"
Chu Yin: "??"
That was certainly a new one.
"What’s the matter," Chu Yin’s tone was icy, "little sister?"
Chu Qiuqiu, noticing the curious glances from those around, took a moment to calm herself and lowered her head. "Was it you?"
Chu Yin looked at her, realizing that after a few mishaps, this fake sister of hers was finally starting to catch on. Chu Yin wasn’t particularly worried about her, but the thought made her wonder, would Lu Zhen also start noticing something unusual?
Although the beauty of her golden finger was that it worked undetectably, known only to herself, it was still wise to be cautious.
Chu Yin took a couple of steps back, putting some distance between them. "Was it me what?"
For once, Chu Qiuqiu didn’t put on her innocent act and gritted her teeth. "Did you do something to me?"
The hallway was bustling with people, many of whom recognized them. The sight of the two sisters seemingly arguing made them stop in their tracks.
"Whoa, isn’t that Chu Yin?"
"And her sister, "
"What’s going on? Looks like they’re fighting."
Chu Yin hated being forced into the spotlight like this, and a cold glint flashed in her eyes.
"Did something to you?" she said, looking at Chu Qiuqiu. "How about letting you have your way for ten years? Does that count?"
Chu Qiuqiu’s face instantly turned pale.
Even though there weren’t many people around, she suddenly felt as if she’d been stripped bare.
So, Chu Yin, despite her quiet demeanor, still took pride in being the true heiress, didn’t she? "Letting her have her way for ten years", would others guess the truth from that? No, she absolutely couldn’t let anyone find out!
Chu Qiuqiu immediately forgot what she had wanted to confront Chu Yin about and quickly tried to smooth things over. "Sis, stop joking around! I was just teasing you! Let’s go home together after school, okay?"
Chu Yin let out a light laugh and turned to leave. "Who wants to go home with you?"
The scene was witnessed by many, and it wasn’t long before a forum thread popped up discussing the incident.
[Sisterly Dispute? Proof that the Chu Sisters Don’t Get Along?]
The original post described the situation in the hallway.
1L: Well, it’s pretty normal for them not to be close after not living together for over a decade.
2L: I’ve been meaning to say this, but no one brought it up. Don’t you think Chu Yin and Chu Qiuqiu look a bit alike? Are they twins? Has the Chu family ever clarified this?
3L: Even so, saying they look alike is an insult to Yin.
4L: @3L, seconded.
7L: ??? Since when did that country bumpkin get so many simps?
8L: @7L, if you were a country bumpkin who looked like that, could top the exams, and win a pool championship, I’d simp for you too.
The next dozen or so replies went completely off-topic, with two factions tearing into each other in the thread.
Back in Class Five, Song Zhaolin held his phone, thoroughly engrossed in the drama.
While the two sides were fiercely arguing, he jumped in and commented, "Exactly! If it were me, I’d simp too!"
Then someone started cursing at him relentlessly.
Song Zhaolin cheerfully handed his phone to Chu Yin. "Sister Yin, you’re seriously popular! Look at how many people are going crazy arguing over you."
Chu Yin was in the middle of memorizing her textbook and glanced up briefly upon hearing this.
These people really had too much time on their hands.
She took Song Zhaolin’s phone, searched up a string of vulgar, expletive-filled insults online, copied them, and directly pasted them into the forum as a reply.
As soon as that fierce, aggressive rant appeared, the thread fell silent.
Then Chu Yin immediately reported the post, citing the reason: "Foul language, malicious incitement."
A few minutes later, the post was deleted.
Song Zhaolin, having witnessed her entire operation, applauded in amazement.
But less than a minute later, he wailed, "Sis, you used my account to curse, I got banned! I can’t log in for a week!"
Chu Yin looked at him like a stern father. "Spend less time on forums and more time studying, you silly kid."
However, after Song Zhaolin could only browse posts without replying, he did indeed spend less time on forums and even paid attention in class for a while.
After completing her study tasks for the day, Chu Yin heard the system "beep" and received a single-character permission.
She was already very familiar with the current system: the size of the reward was directly related to the difficulty of the study task. Recently, due to Chu Yin’s improved memory and accumulated knowledge, the difficulty level of her previous tasks had decreased. For example, memorizing texts that once earned her a word-level permission now only granted her a single character.
So far, the highest permission Chu Yin had obtained was at the sentence level. What could be higher than that?
"Host, feel free to imagine!" the Study System said cheekily.
To obtain higher-level permissions, Chu Yin felt she needed to seek out more challenging tasks. For instance, the last English speech competition she participated in was at the city level. If she joined a provincial or national competition, would she be able to earn a higher permission?
Chu Yin pondered silently for a while.
What was the most difficult academic task for a high school student...?
The college entrance exam?
If, just if, she could become the top scorer in the gaokao, how high would the highest-level permission be?
Chu Yin’s heart warmed with excitement.
This feeling, as if she could dominate the world, was a bit chuunibyou, but it was also... incredibly exhilarating. In her past life, she had been at the mercy of others; in this life, she held the power of life and death. What could be more thrilling than that?
At that time, no dog man, no trashy early-death white moonlight trope could hinder her soaring ascent,
Just thinking about it filled Chu Yin with boundless passion for studying.
Study System silently observed, thinking: Your Yin King, infinitely arrogant [fist salute]
"Hurry, are there any other tasks?" Chu Yin urgently tapped the system.
Study System: [...Yes.]
Having a host with such a strong work ethic was really quite reassuring.
…
The cold winds of December howled outside.
Yet, the Christmas atmosphere on campus grew richer bit by bit.
Over the past few days, materials for the Christmas tree had been gradually moved into the teaching building, and construction had already begun.
Aside from studying for final exams, everyone’s conversations inevitably circled around the upcoming Christmas.
"Hey, have you prepared your gift? What are you giving this year?"
"I can’t think of anything, maybe buy a figurine like last year?"
"Although I can’t think of what to give, I know what I want!, I really hope to draw Brother Zhen’s gift!"
"Wuwu, Senior Qiuzhe’s would be fine too, or Senior Chu Shi would also work, ahhh, praying with both hands!"
During break, Jiang Yan also ran over and sat in the seat in front of Chu Yin, asking, "Yin Yin, have you thought about your gift? What are you planning to give?"
As soon as she asked, many pairs of eyes around them secretly glanced over.
To be honest, just as the girls hoped to draw Lu Zhen’s gift, many boys in the class also wanted to draw Chu Yin’s.
But Chu Yin hadn’t considered this question and only remembered when Jiang Yan asked.
"Maybe... probably... make some cookies?" Chu Yin said uncertainly.
She really had no creativity or ideas, so she chose the same thing as in her previous life. But it didn’t matter anyway, this time, it definitely wouldn’t end up in Lu Zhen’s hands.
Jiang Yan, however, widened her eyes in surprise: "You’re so amazing! You even know how to do this!"
She was the little princess at home, usually only responsible for studying, and knew nothing about cooking or baking.
Chu Yin waved her hand: "It’s actually not hard, I’ll teach you next time."
Song Zhaolin, who had been eavesdropping for a while, couldn’t hold back either: "Are they really little cookies?!"
Aowu aowu, he also wanted to draw Sister Yin’s gift!
Chu Yin nodded, then patted both Jiang Yan and Song Zhaolin’s heads before getting up to go to the restroom.
As soon as she left, boys immediately crowded around: "Zhaolin, what’s Chu Yin’s gift?"
But Song Zhaolin started putting on airs: "It’s a secret, only Little Yanyan and I know."
Jiang Yan was helpless at his smugness.
"Just tell us!"
"Everyone will compete fairly when the time comes, anyone could draw it!"
Song Zhaolin proudly refused.
He didn’t care, he had to make use of his desk mate's unique geographical advantage, remember what Chu Yin’s gift box looked like, and then draw it!
Hehehehe!!
...
On Christmas Eve, when Chu Yin went home, she had the driver stop at the supermarket. She went in to buy low-gluten flour and butter, and also picked up a jar for the cookies.
After finishing dinner at home and studying upstairs, when there were few people downstairs, Chu Yin went to the kitchen.
The Chu family had all the baking equipment. In her previous life, out of boredom, she had fiddled with these things a lot, so she got the hang of it quickly.
First, take out the butter to soften it, then add powdered sugar and mix well with a spatula. Beat the eggs and gradually add the egg mixture in several batches, then blend it all together with a whisk. Sift in the low-gluten flour, mix it in, and form it into a dough. At this point, it’s basically done.
Next, she rolled the dough into a log, wrapped it in plastic wrap, and chilled it for a while. Taking advantage of the break, Chu Yin went upstairs to finish some homework.
Then she came back downstairs, took out the dough log, sliced it into small round cookies, placed them on parchment paper on a baking sheet, and popped them into the preheated oven. Mission accomplished.
Before long, a sweet aroma wafted out from the kitchen.
When Chu Shi came downstairs and caught the scent, he unconsciously followed it.
“Are you baking cookies?”
Chu Yin turned around and saw her brother. “Yes, for tomorrow’s gift.”
Chu Shi fell silent for a moment, then asked as if casually, “Yin Yin, what gift box are you planning to use? I have some extras, want to use mine?”
“…” Chu Yin said, “Brother, if you want to eat, just say so.”
“Oh,” Chu Shi nodded, “I want to eat.”
Chu Yin laughed.
The cookies baked quickly and were ready in just half an hour.
Chu Shi couldn’t wait to try one, then asked her, “Are you really going to give these away?”
Chu Yin smiled and said, “I’ll let you eat your fill first.”
Chu Shi, satisfied, ate several pieces in a row before asking, “Should we give some to them?”
Chu Yin paused, knowing he meant their parents and Chu Qiuqiu. She replied casually, “I’ll pass. If you want to, go ahead.”
Chu Shi immediately said, “It’s your call since you made them. Then we won’t give any away, more for me to enjoy.”
Chu Yin had no attachment to the Chu family, and Chu Shi felt that keenly. But he didn’t see anything wrong with it, given their parents’ actions, he didn’t expect Chu Yin to have any fondness for this household.
He was already more than content that his sister was willing to get along well with him.
The siblings shared many cookies, and then Chu Yin set aside the portion meant as a gift.
Then she glanced down at the mess she’d made and decided to take out the trash. Having eaten so many cookies, Chu Shi felt obliged to handle the garbage duty, cheerfully shooing Chu Yin back to her room before taking the trash out himself.
It was Christmas Eve.
Lu Zhen had been wandering around the villa district for a long time.
The bitter north wind pierced through his coat, leaving even his hair chilled, but he didn’t go back.
He wanted to try his luck. To wish her a Merry Christmas.
Lu Zhen walked back and forth many times, so long that even a cat grew annoyed and meowed at him. Finally, the Chu family’s front door opened.
His heart tightened imperceptibly. He lowered his gaze and walked over calmly, then looked up to meet Chu Shi’s happy, rosy face.
"..."
Their eyes met briefly in the air, sparks of unfriendliness seeming to fly, before they both looked away.
Chu Shi, holding a bag of trash, was about to brush past Lu Zhen when he suddenly said, "Isn’t it cold staying outside so late at night?"
Lu Zhen replied coldly, "Just passing by."
Chu Shi let out an "Oh," then said, "Home is much warmer, like me, I just had cookies my sister made with her own hands."
Lu Zhen: "...Which sister?"
Chu Shi grinned brightly. "Yin Yin, of course."
Lu Zhen: "......"
Chu Shi tossed the trash and left. The door slammed shut, and the lights on the first floor of the Chu house went out.
Lu Zhen stood in the wind for a long time before letting out a soft sigh.
He was so jealous.
…
The next day was Christmas. Song Zhaolin, unusually early, sat down and immediately noticed the pile of chocolates on Chu Yin’s desk, various brands, flavors, and shapes.
He glanced at his own desk: only one piece of chocolate, the triangular kind.
And looking around, every desk in the class had one.
The class monitor had bought them with class funds.
"Damn," Song Zhaolin felt a pang of heartache.
A short while later, Chu Yin arrived. Song Zhaolin immediately got ready.
Chu Yin looked at the pile on her desk, slightly surprised. She could sense her classmates’ attitudes toward her had changed from before, but this kind of treatment was something she’d never experienced in either of her lifetimes.
It didn’t feel bad.
As she set down her backpack, under Song Zhaolin’s sneaky gaze, she casually pulled out her gift box.
Song Zhaolin was shocked and dropped the act, exclaiming, "Sister Yin, isn’t this way too sloppy?!"
She had actually used some plain white box, who knows what it originally held, with no ribbons, no designs, nothing at all!
"Aren’t you afraid no one will pick it?!"
Chu Yin: "I don’t care."
Song Zhaolin, deeply pained, took the box under the desk and forcibly colored it with fluorescent markers into a blue, green, and fluorescent yellow mess. Then, with a pink marker, he drew a cross, adding a ribbon for good measure.
"......" Chu Yin nearly punched him when she saw it. "This is even uglier, okay?!"
Song Zhaolin, grinning cheekily, stuffed the gift into her desk compartment and happily ran off.
"Remember to put your gift in secretly, don’t let anyone see!"
Chu Yin sighed helplessly, pushing the gift deeper into the compartment, feeling thoroughly embarrassed.
Just as she was about to pull her hand out, the back of it brushed against something cool in the depths of the compartment. She pulled it out to find a bright red "peace apple."
A ribbon was tied to the stem. Chu Yin untied it and saw the writing was a bit blurry, but it vaguely read:
"Happy Christmas Eve."
Chu Yin found it strange.
Christmas Eve had already passed, why would someone give an apple now?
Some people in the building had already started placing gifts under the Christmas tree. Most didn’t go together, hurriedly hiding their own before running off, playing into the mystery of unexpected connections.
Song Zhaolin, clutching his own gift, happily made his way to the international class first.
In the back of the classroom, Lu Zhen was lying on the desk, asleep.
Song Zhaolin sat down. "Bro Zhen didn’t sleep well?"
Tan Ke shook his head, indicating he didn’t know. Brother Zhen had arrived unusually early today; he was already asleep by the time Tan Ke got there.
Lu Zhen was woken by the noise, frowning as he sat up straight.
He had woken up early and gone to Class Five when no one was there yet. He placed the apple of peace deep inside her desk, a substitute for the words he hadn't been able to say.
Song Zhaolin couldn't help but share his excitement with his friends: "This year, I'm definitely going to pick my deskmate's gift!"
Lu Zhen, who had been drowsy, suddenly lifted his eyelids and looked at him.
Tan Ke laughed at him: "Why? I bet a lot of people want to pick hers!"
Lu Zhen lowered his gaze slightly and said nothing.
Song Zhaolin grinned triumphantly: "I already know exactly what my deskmate's gift looks like!"
As an ultimate chatterbox who could never keep things to himself, Song Zhaolin answered without being asked, blurting out: "It was originally a white box, but I colored it all over and even drew a pink cross on it, hahaha!"
Tan Ke clicked his tongue in disbelief: "That sounds pretty creepy."
Beside them, Lu Zhen finally smiled.
"...Oh."
So that's how it was.
The gifts weren't all collected until just before school ended in the afternoon, and the most exciting part, picking the gifts, finally arrived.
As soon as the time came, the first-floor hall was instantly packed with people.
Under the Christmas tree, gifts were piled high, and school security formed a circle to maintain order.
"Only one gift per person! No take-backs once you've picked!"
"Enter in groups, don't rush, to avoid stampedes!"
Quiwen's old tradition had been going on for years, and although everyone was excited, order was still maintained.
Chu Yin was pulled along by the enthusiastic Jiang Yan to queue up, and ten minutes later, they reached the base of the tree.
"Wow, there really are so many. How do we even choose?"
Gift boxes of all shapes and sizes were piled up, waiting to be chosen, it was an indescribably satisfying feeling.
The girls who entered to pick at the same time as them were absolutely thrilled.
"I heard from the international class that Lu Zhen's gift box is black!"
"Really? Ahhh, I see a black one!"
"I saw it first!"
"Me first!"
After hearing this, Chu Yin casually picked up the nearest white box.
Jiang Yan hadn't made her choice yet, so she turned and said, "Yin Yin, don't wait for me. It's too chaotic here, you can head back to class first."
Chu Yin nodded, stepped out from under the tree, and casually unwrapped the gift that looked just like the one she had prepared.
Study System leisurely came online: "Host, guess who you drew?"
Chu Yin: "There are so many people, how could I possibly guess?"
After saying this, she suddenly felt something was off.
If it wasn't someone she knew, Study System wouldn't have bothered asking.
She silently looked at the box in her hand.
No way.
It can't be.
She stopped walking, quickly tore off the box's outer packaging, and pulled out a velvet-lined inner case.
Inside lay a pure gold,
Buddha statue.
In the bottom right corner was a name,
Senior Year International Class, Lu Zhen.
Chu Yin: "…………"
A few seconds later, Chu Yin directly turned around and walked back.
Many girls were still searching: "That black one earlier wasn't Lu Zhen's!"
"Which one is his exactly??"
Chu Yin stealthily approached the gift pile, wanting to return this hot potato.
Who knew that before she could even bend over, a security guard sternly stared at her: "Classmate, you can only take one! No swapping allowed!"
"Whichever you draw is yours! It's all fate!"
Chu Yin: I'm this close [ ] to dying on the spot.
Cursing Lu Zhen internally, she returned to the third floor. Just as she turned the corner, someone called out to her.
"Good student."
Chu Yin looked up to see Lu Zhen leaning against the wall, smiling as he pointed at the box in her hand.
"You drew mine." A definitive statement.
Chu Yin desperately wanted to smack the box right into his face.
"Pure gold Buddha statue," Lu Zhen looked down at her, "Do you like it?"
Like it? Oh I like it so much, I like it enough to want to kill you.
Keeping a straight face, Chu Yin paused before saying: "Classmate, since you're so devoted to doing good, how about this, "
Lu Zhen didn't expect her to initiate conversation with him, instinctively straightening up slightly while staring intently at her.
Chu Yin said: ", I'll donate it, so Buddha can save more people."
Lu Zhen was taken aback.
After a long moment, he laughed, clear amusement sparkling in his eyes.
"Go ahead and donate it, it's yours now anyway."
Chu Yin returned to the classroom with a speechless expression, where Song Zhaolin was wailing dramatically.
"How could this happen! Who was it! Who took my gift?!"
Chu Yin was somewhat surprised: "You didn't get it?"
Song Zhaolin wailed while slapping the desk: "I drew so ugly, how could someone still take it! There's no justice in this world!"
As Chu Yin sat down at her desk, she had a bad feeling.
Study System leisurely came online again: "Host, guess who drew yours."
"Stop blabbering," Chu Yin said, "Unlock the script!"
A few seconds later, the book opened, the first line in bold letters:
[Lu Zhen received Chu Yin's gift.]
Chu Yin's vision went dark.
Trash script!! Garbage!!
After all that, it turned out she and that dog Lu Zhen had exchanged gifts again? Was there no justice in this world?!
Ahhh I'll kill Lu Zhen!!
Without hesitation, Chu Yin grabbed the light pen,
[Lu Zhen returned to the classroom and quietly opened the box in his hand, then pulled out a box of cookies from inside. The fragrance had faded, but it was still clear they were handmade.]
Cookies? As if! He's thinking pretty!
Chu Yin's brain started racing wildly.
Give him a box of...
Flies? Caterpillars?
A lump of shit?
Biochemical weapons??
Chu Yin fully indulged her imagination in extreme directions before suddenly pulling back.
Wait, that would be too obvious.
Who would put things like these in a gift box?
Why should she turn herself into a pervert for that dog man?
"Are you worthy? Are you worthy? Are you worthy??"
Chu Yin then asked the system, "How many permissions do I have left?"
Study System: "Two [word change] permissions!"
Chu Yin glanced at the script again.
Alright.
...
Lu Zhen returned to the classroom and took the box out of his pocket.
The colors of the highlighters had mixed together, drying into an unsightly mess, but Lu Zhen didn't mind.
He was shameless. He admitted it.
But probably, in the entire grade, only he and she had exchanged gifts.
It was unique.
...Would Chu Yin give him the cookies from last night? The kind Chu Shi had mentioned.
The cookies he had thought about all night.
Lu Zhen unconsciously rubbed his knuckles, then carefully opened the box as if handling a treasure.
Then, he slowly pulled out from inside...
Three keys.
Lu Zhen: "?"
In another classroom, Chu Yin put away the script and relaxed with a smile.
This gift was reasonably priced and deeply meaningful.
Keys are ten yuan for three, are you worthy?
How many are you worthy of!!!