The Admission Notice Arrives

Huang Xiu didn’t bother counting the number of friend requests.

Just accepting all of them took her nearly five minutes.

Her fingertips started to ache.

And the moment she agreed, messages started pouring in from those new friends.

Huang Xiu couldn’t reply to them all. She didn’t even know how to respond, so she simply ignored them.

‘Damn it, Liu Lu. Just you wait.’

Huang Xiu ground her teeth. That girl had really done a number on her.

She searched her contact list and found the name she was looking for.

[My Zhen Is Really Strong]

The other party had sent a message earlier, but it got buried in the flood of notifications.

[My Zhen Is Really Strong: Cat crying.JPG, sorry, Xiuxiu jie, I was wrong! (kowtow) I just wanted to clear your name.]

Liu Lu was panicking badly. She hadn’t meant to mess with Huang Xiu. She just hated [Shi Yun] and blurted out Huang Xiu’s situation. Who would have thought it’d cause chaos in the entire group chat, even getting the freshman group banned?

[Wo Hen Xiu: Just you wait.]

After a long anxious wait, Liu Lu finally got a message. It was a threat from Huang Xiu.

Liu Lu couldn’t help recalling the last time she was tied up and whipped in the jungle. She shuddered and started frantically sending apologies.

Huang Xiu was someone who softened when you bowed your head. Since Liu Lu was lowering herself that much, she couldn’t stay angry.

[Wo Hen Xiu: Fine, this time I’ll let it slide. But I have a question. That night, you deliberately matched with me, right? Are you a hacker?]

Both this time and last time showed that Liu Lu had extraordinary online resources.

[My Zhen Is Really Strong: Hahaha, how could that be? Xiuxiu jie, you’re overthinking, hahaha.]

‘She definitely is.’ Huang Xiu could tell the other party was just being stubborn.

It was hard to force someone online to do what they didn’t want. If Liu Lu wouldn’t say, she couldn’t do anything.

‘Hmph, after school starts, I’ll make you talk.’ Huang Xiu muttered unhappily.

What she really wanted to know was Liu Lu’s information source. She was afraid of her past identity as a male being exposed. Although it was no secret to Tiantu University and the authorities, few others knew, especially among the freshmen. The only possible one was Liu Lu.

‘I’ll ask Teacher Yue. He should have a way to check.’

Concerned about her secret, Huang Xiu couldn’t wait. She had Teacher Yue’s number and it wasn’t too late, so she sent a text immediately.

She waited a long time but got no reply. Huang Xiu even wondered if she’d sent it to the wrong person.

Then she noticed that the mysterious [Bright as Sunshine] in her QQ list had sent a message.

[Bright as Sunshine: Okay, I’ll look into it for you.]

‘Wait, Bright as Sunshine is Teacher Yue?’ Huang Xiu’s eyes widened.

That person had never replied to her before, and she thought they were a stranger.

[Wo Hen Xiu: Are you Teacher Yue?]

Before even a second passed, a chat bubble popped up.

[Bright as Sunshine: Haha, yes, it’s me.]

‘Then why didn’t you reply before?’ Huang Xiu pouted, ready to send that message, but Teacher Yue had already sent the results of his check.

[Bright as Sunshine: I just checked with my brain chip. Rest assured, your information hasn’t leaked. Liu Lu doesn’t know about your past. Her matching with you was through someone else’s help. I’ve warned that person already. You can be at ease.]

‘Who?’

Huang Xiu quickly asked, but Teacher Yue wouldn’t say.

That confirmed it was really not something she could ask about. But she was even more curious. She had to drop it, though, feeling a bit sulky.

****

[Lightning Flash] had said the admission letter would arrive soon. And it did, no lies.

The next day at 9 AM, it was delivered to Huang Xiu’s doorstep.

At that time, lazy Miss Xiuxiu had just crawled out of bed after her mother’s lion roar and blanket attack.

Her mother’s philosophy was: even on vacation, sleeping past 9 AM counted as oversleeping.

Huang Xiu shuffled to the bathroom in her slippers, her mother nagging all the way.

First, asking when she went to bed last night and why she was still so sleepy at 9 AM.

Then, lecturing about how girls shouldn’t stay up late or sleep in.

Huang Xiu, still groggy, just mumbled vague responses to brush her mother off.

She had slept wildly, so her clothes were messy. One shoulder slipped out of her short-sleeved pajamas, and a stubborn tuft of hair defied gravity, sticking straight up.

She tried to press down the cowlick, but after a few attempts, it refused to stay flat.

Her soft, fair toes peeked out from the slippers, curling with irritation.

Knock, knock!

A knock at the door. Huang Xiu kept washing her face while her mother went to answer.

“Xiuxiu, your admission letter is here!”

Glug, glug… Huang Xiu was rinsing her mouth. Hearing that, her sleepiness vanished instantly.

She didn’t even bother washing her face and rushed out to tear open the express bag.

But her mother pushed her back.

“You haven’t washed your face, have you? Go wash it properly, then do your skincare routine like I taught you.” Zhuang Wenli hid the letter behind her back.

“I did wash it!” Huang Xiu lied.

“You washed nothing!” her mother retorted with a smirk. “Your face is dry. I’ll go check the bathroom now, and your face towel will be bone dry.”

Huang Xiu: “…”

Can’t win, really can’t win. She was no match for her mother in this game.

Her mother saw right through her.

“If I go to the bathroom now and that towel is dry, you’ll obediently wear a skirt for me.”

Zhuang Wenli’s eyes sparkled.

She had never given up on dressing her daughter beautifully. She always found ways to recommend pretty clothes: dresses, JK skirts, crop tops. Anything that made Huang Xiu blush just looking at it.

“No way!” Huang Xiu panicked and dashed back to the bathroom. She obediently washed her face and did her skincare as instructed.

Her skin was good and her metabolism fast, so the routine was simple. Including the face wash, it took only two minutes.

“Hmph, give it here!” After washing and moisturizing, Huang Xiu’s face was so delicate it seemed to drip with tenderness.

Her mother couldn’t resist pinching her cheeks, rubbing them until Huang Xiu puffed them out and pursed her lips in complaint, finally escaping the clutches.

She took the express bag from her mother.

Rip!

She tore it open impatiently, having even forgotten about the unboxing video she planned to record!