Chapter 502

The days of the Gaokao passed slowly yet swiftly.

For most examinees, each exam was a torment, but the more agonizing it became, the closer they drew to the final exam, the more eagerly they looked forward to its end.

Whether they performed well or poorly, their decade-long academic journey was about to reach its conclusion.

Hmm... because of the Gaokao's unique nature as "a thousand troops crossing a single-log bridge," for many students in China, studying ends before the Gaokao, and after crossing it, they seem to no longer need to study.

Yet theoretically, entering university is when true specialized study begins, requiring greater passion and effort.

But most people feel only a sense of liberation.

This is why many students slack off the moment they enter university, indulging in revenge spending on entertainment and excessive purchases, leading to academic disaster.

Put simply, being under prolonged high pressure and then suddenly released into a place with no obvious stress creates too great a contrast—the person just collapses.

However, for students like Xu Youyu, there's no need to worry much about this issue.

At five p. m. on the 8th, Li Luo arrived punctually at the gate of the affiliated high school, waiting for Xu Youyu there.

Although he wasn't taking the exam himself, Li Luo felt slightly nervous, silently wishing Xu Youyu a good score.

In comparison, Xu Youyu herself might not have been as nervous as Li Luo.

As the bell signaling the end of the final Gaokao subject rang, Li Luo exhaled in relief and stood quietly beneath a tree, waiting for Xu Youyu to emerge.

"Huh?"

Xu Youyu walked through the crowd from the classroom building toward the school gate, spotting Li Luo at once, sprinted over to him, her face beaming with joy, then asked in confusion, "It's just you?"

"Uncle Xu said he's going to show off his cooking tonight, and Aunt Cui is helping him in the kitchen," Li Luo chuckled. "Chanxi and Zhusheng went to buy snacks and also to pick up your birthday cake for tonight's celebration."

"Oh, I see," Xu Youyu smiled, quite pleased with the arrangement, and walked with Li Luo toward Bihai Lanting, leaning close to him, her arm brushing against his. "So, is what you wrote in your letter still valid?"

"What letter?" Li Luo raised an eyebrow, thinking he'd written so many things in it—he had no idea which one she meant.

"We're celebrating my birthday on the 8th, and on the 9th you're taking me on a private date," Xu Youyu looked at Li Luo, blinking. "You haven't forgotten, have you?"

"Oh, that," Li Luo smiled. "Where would you like to go, Youyu-jie?"

"Hmm~ I still need to think about it," Xu Youyu said, noticing they had passed the intersection and reached the street opposite, where no one from the school remained; she stealthily reached out and took Li Luo's hand.

Then she acted as if nothing had happened, walking forward seriously, her face still in thoughtful expression. "There's nothing I really want to watch in theaters, and just shopping feels boring... hey, by the way..."

"What? You thought of something?" Li Luo felt the softness in his palm, glanced around instinctively, confirmed no acquaintances nearby, then continued walking with her hand in his.

Xu Youyu grinned mischievously and leaned close to Li Luo's ear, whispering, "When Chanxi had her birthday, I remember you two went to make a handmade cup?"

"Uh..." Li Luo's expression froze. He turned to look at Xu Youyu, unable to help pulling at his lips. "You... interested in that?"

"What?" Xu Youyu blinked innocently. "Chanxi went, so I can't go?"

"But Chanxi already went once. If you go again, it won't feel special," Li Luo said. "I'd rather go somewhere we've never been together."

"Sounds nice," Xu Youyu huffed. "Then why did you go with Chanxi first, not me?"

"In this life, I went with Chanxi. But in my last life, I went with Youyu-jie," Li Luo said half-jokingly.

Xu Youyu "Ha!"ed and pinched his lower back. "What about Zhusheng? Did you go with her in your next life?"

"Cough..." Li Luo cleared his throat. "So, Youyu-jie, you really want to go?"

"Of course. Making crafts is fun," Xu Youyu smiled. "Besides, I see Chanxi still carries that cup everywhere—home, school—it's such a hassle."

"Let's go together this time. Then you can keep one cup at home and one at school. Much more convenient."

"Isn't my idea great?"

Li Luo: "... That's certainly convenient, but it doesn't have to be a cup, does it?"

"What else can you make there?" Xu Youyu asked curiously as she walked with Li Luo into the residential complex gate, then wrapped her arms around his, leaning fully against him.

Li Luo felt her soft body pressed against him, enjoying it while recalling: "Just basic, simple things—cups, bowls, plates, that sort of thing."

"We can decide later—it's not urgent," Xu Youyu hugged his arm tightly, then asked, "When you went with Chanxi last time, besides crafts, what else did you do?"

"We didn't do anything else..."

"But I remember Zhusheng mentioned something," Xu Youyu thought back. "You had lunch, then went to..."

"Uh... a bathhouse?"

"Yes, yes!" Xu Youyu raised her index finger, nodding happily. "I've never been to one of those. Let's go tomorrow too?"

"... Isn't that just a repeat of Chanxi's birthday?"

"So what?" Xu Youyu huffed. "As long as the people are different, it's a unique experience. I don't care about that."

"If Youyu-jie doesn't mind, then we'll arrange it for tomorrow."

"It's settled then~" Xu Youyu smiled eagerly, seriously extending her pinky toward Li Luo. "Pinky swear."

Li Luo hooked his pinky with hers, laughing helplessly. "Youyu-jie, you're so childish."

"You talk too much. Today I'm the Birthday Person—don't be so loud."

After their pinky swear—binding for a hundred years without change—they finally reached the stairwell entrance.

Xu Youyu glanced at the Mercedes SUV parked below, checked the license plate, then exclaimed in surprise, "Did Uncle and Aunt come too?"

"Oh right," Li Luo nodded. "Aunt Cui called them over—said it's more festive with more people to celebrate your birthday."

"I see," Xu Youyu's gaze returned from the SUV, and as she stepped into the elevator with Li Luo, she suddenly said, "After the birthday, I'll find time to learn how to drive."

"Good idea," Li Luo paused, then nodded. "Learning to drive before university is smart."

"Then I want to buy a car," Xu Youyu said enthusiastically. "I've saved over 800,000 yuan from my Online Novel royalties—I'll use half to buy a car. Is that too much?"

"It's up to you," Li Luo didn't mind her spending like that.

After all, it was money Xu Youyu earned with her own talent; how she spent it was her own freedom.

Moreover, Li Luo knew Xu Youyu's ability well—her Online Novel writing skills were undeniable; she wasn't a flash-in-the-pan talent, her output remained consistently stable, and she would never lack money in the future.

Still, Li Luo added: "You should discuss it with your parents first. Also, my uncle has connections—he might get you a discount on the car. I'll go with you when you buy it."

"Great~" Xu Youyu beamed, ignoring Li Luo's slightly dampening first remark and only hearing "I'll go with you," then patted his shoulder. "I'll take you for a drive then!"

"I'll look forward to it," Li Luo smiled, and together they stepped out of the elevator, returned to door 1502, and unlocked it with his key.

A Thoughtfully Prepared Birthday Gift

At this moment, Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng had already returned with snacks.

Because Xu Rongsheng was cooking in the kitchen today, Lin Xiuhong didn't go in.

But unexpectedly, Cui Suling was also sitting on the living room sofa, while Li Guohong was nowhere to be seen.

Li Luo scanned the room, then asked curiously, "Where's my dad?"

"He's in the kitchen," Lin Xiuhong chuckled. "Today the two of them are cooking—we're glad to have an easy night."

"Back already?" Cui Suling looked at Xu Youyu, saw her radiant expression, and knew her earlier decision to send Li Luo alone to pick her up had been right. "How did the exam go?"

"About the same as usual," Xu Youyu said, sinking onto the sofa with a relaxed sigh and leaning against her mother. "I don't know the Tsinghua or Peking University cutoffs, but Qianjiang University is definitely a sure thing."

"As long as it's fine. Don't lean on me, you're burning up," Cui Suling pushed her head away. "Even after the exam, you can't slack off this summer—don't mess up your biological clock, got it?"

"Awwww…" Xu Youyu pouted at her mother's rejection, then her eyes flickered, and she gently leaned against Lin Xiuhong's shoulder. "Lin Yi~ I'm so tired after the exam."

Lin Xiuhong couldn't help laughing at the mother-daughter interaction, but she hadn't expected Xu Youyu to just lean right over.

Feeling the weight of Xu Youyu's long hair spilling onto her shoulder, Lin Xiuhong found it strangely tender.

It felt as if her future daughter-in-law were cuddling up to her.

Cui Suling saw this and rolled her eyes: "Look at yourself—you're so embarrassing. Why don't you just go be Lin Yi's daughter instead? Swap Li Luo to me as my son—he's way more obedient than you."

Xu Youyu snorted at that. "Well, that's not impossible."

She turned to Li Luo, pointed at Cui Suling, and grinned. "From now on, she's your mom."

Then she swung her head toward Lin Xiuhong and cooed, "Mom~"

That sent Cui Suling into a rage.

But Lin Xiuhong burst into uncontrollable laughter—the word "Mom" made her head tingle, utterly delightful.

Li Luo looked helplessly at Xu Youyu on the sofa, silently grateful that Ying Chanxi was in the bathroom and Yan Zhusheng was practicing in the piano room.

When Xu Rongsheng and Li Guohong finished dinner, the eight of them gathered around the dining table.

To be fair.

Although Xu Rongsheng rarely cooked, his dishes tasted quite good.

Not up to Li Luo's culinary standard, but impressive enough for everyday home cooking.

Xu Youyu praised the food sweetly as she ate, while Cui Suling huffed beside her: "I cook for you every day, and you never praise me like this."

"Mom, are you jealous?"

"Hmph. Jealous of what? Just eat your food."

The others were used to this bickering routine—they knew the two were close, just expressed it this way.

After dinner, once the table was cleared, Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng placed the birthday cake they'd picked up in the afternoon on the table.

Taking out a "1" and an "8" candle, Xu Youyu personally stuck them into the cake, staring at the numbers with quiet emotion.

Xu Rongsheng and Cui Suling felt the same.

Before they knew it, their daughter had already turned eighteen.

And she'd crossed that threshold precisely on the day her college entrance exam ended—truly memorable.

Xu Rongsheng pulled out a lighter, glanced at Xu Youyu, and waited for her nod. Then he lit the two candles.

Yan Zhusheng took out a guitar.

Ying Chanxi turned off the living room lights.

Then the melody of "Happy Birthday" flowed from Yan Zhusheng's fingers.

Li Luo and the others clapped along, forming a circle around Xu Youyu, singing softly:

"Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~"

When the song ended, everyone applauded.

Under this warm atmosphere, Xu Youyu's cheeks flushed, her face full of contentment.

"Make a wish," Li Luo whispered beside her.

"Mm." Xu Youyu closed her eyes, and countless sweet wishes flooded her heart.

As Xu Youyu made her wish, Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng grew furtive, quietly dragging a pile of things from somewhere unknown onto the table.

Li Luo glanced curiously but couldn't tell what they were—covered by a red cloth, the kind used to drape over gift boxes.

Only by lifting it could they see what lay inside.

Since Xu Youyu was making her wish, Li Luo didn't dare ask outright.

He waited until she finished, opened her eyes, blew out the candles, and the lights came back on—only then did she notice the new items on the table.

"What's this?" Xu Youyu's face showed confusion.

The four parents—Xu Rongsheng, Cui Suling, Lin Xiuhong, and Li Guohong—were equally puzzled by Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng's mystery.

"We got you a birthday present," Ying Chanxi struggled to hold back her laughter.

Yan Zhusheng remained expressionless—her facial control was far superior to Ying Chanxi's.

Hearing it was a birthday gift, and such a large one, Xu Youyu's face lit up with delight.

"You two are too kind," Xu Youyu said, but her hand was already reaching for the red cloth. "Can I open it now?"

"Mm-hmm," Ying Chanxi nodded, barely holding back her laugh, then darted behind Li Luo to muffle her giggles.

Xu Youyu didn't notice Ying Chanxi's odd behavior—her eyes fixed on the gift, she eagerly pulled back the red cloth.

The next second, about a dozen stacked paper books appeared before Xu Youyu.

"So many books?" Xu Youyu was surprised, thinking Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng had good taste—they knew she loved reading.

But the next instant, her expression froze—something was wrong.

Because the cover of the top book bore four bold characters:

《Literary Era》

In an instant, Xu Youyu's mind went numb, and he felt the world spinning around him, nearly fainting away.

(End of Chapter)