"You can't be like this, Evan. Next semester you'll be in your senior year, and your grades have never been very good. Your math did improve a lot recently, but that doesn't mean you can let your guard down now."
"Once the new semester starts, you'll be a senior. The pressure will be huge—it's the most crucial year before the college entrance exam. If you can really settle down and study this year, I'm sure you'll get a decent score in the end."
Lily Zhong carried the groceries she'd bought into the kitchen, washing vegetables as she spoke, glancing now and then at Evan Lin, who sat quietly in the living room.
"Studying and all that is pretty easy. It's not hard at all."
Evan hesitated for a moment, then spoke in a calm voice.
"Not hard? If it's not hard, then how did you manage to get such terrible grades before? Do you know how much you dragged down the class average all by yourself?" Lily teased.
They'd barely spoken for so long, and there was still some distance between them, but as soon as Lily said that, the invisible barrier between them seemed to melt away.
"Mr. Zheng used to talk about you all the time. He always thought you just didn't get it, and you refused to study, so he worried about your future."
As the homeroom teacher of Class 7, Mr. Zheng was always strict about grades. Evan's results used to be terrible, so naturally he wasn't popular, and Mr. Zheng was pretty fed up with him too.
Evan sat there quietly, watching Lily bustling in the kitchen. For a moment, he really felt like a student again.
Outside the apartment complex.
A BMW 4 Series pulled up and parked there.
The door opened and a man stepped out, dressed in a suit, shiny leather shoes, and sporting a mohawk—looking every bit the successful businessman.
From the passenger seat, a woman got out. She had an S-shaped figure and wore a bold red trench coat. Her look was wild and confident, with a pair of sunglasses on her striking face.
"Xiao Chu, I heard your roommate is a teacher?"
The man walked over, grinning at the woman.
"Alright, quit thinking about her. Sure, she's pretty, but she's not your type. I'm warning you—don't even try anything. If you do, you can leave right now."
Jessica Jiang rolled her eyes.
She and Lily Zhong got along well. They'd been roommates for years and were classmates back in school.
After graduation, Lily became a teacher at No. 2 High School, while Jessica, whose grades weren't great and who knew she wasn't cut out for teaching, skipped the whole 'misleading students' thing and went to work in bars instead.
Over the years, Jessica had mixed with all kinds of people, picking up plenty of street smarts—she could talk to anyone, play up or play down as needed. But with Lily Zhong, she was always genuine.
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Relax, you're the only one I care about."
The man chuckled.
They went upstairs and opened the door.
Jessica hadn't even stepped inside before she spotted Evan sitting there.
Evan's gaze was calm as he looked at her and nodded slightly—a silent greeting.
"Hi."
Jessica paused, changed her shoes, and came in, eyeing Evan curiously. "And you are?"
"He's my student. I just ran into him outside and invited him up for a meal."
Lily poked her head out of the kitchen to explain quickly.
"Oh, a student? Nice to meet you, I'm Jessica Jiang."
Jessica offered her hand and shook Evan's.
"Evan Lin."
Evan's tone was flat. When Jessica met his eyes, she felt a strange sensation.
From Jessica's perspective, this teenager's gaze was so steady—almost like those big bosses she'd seen in nightlife circles. No, maybe even calmer than any of them.
"I'm Peter Pang. I run a small company—makes about a million yuan a year." The man came over, grinning widely and speaking loud enough for everyone to hear. He reached out to shake Evan's hand, subtly showing off the seven-diamond Longines mechanical watch on his wrist.
As he spoke, Peter shot a glance at Lily in the kitchen, admiration flickering in his eyes.
In Brightsea City, making a million yuan a year already put you in the upper class.
Peter was clearly showing off.
Jessica seemed used to his antics. She rubbed her temples, but before she could say anything, Evan just nodded, didn't take Peter's hand, and calmly said, "A million a year? That really is a small company."
Evan's voice wasn't loud, but the apartment was small—everyone heard him. Jessica burst out laughing, gave Evan a big thumbs-up, then got up to help Lily in the kitchen.
Peter's smile froze awkwardly. He pulled back his hand, and when Jessica headed to the kitchen, he glared at Evan, grumbling under his breath, "You've got a big mouth for a kid. A company with a million in pure profit and you still call it small?"
"Have you ever even seen what a million looks like?"
Peter glared at Evan. He'd only tried to show off in front of Jessica and Lily, hoping to impress them.
He hadn't expected this kid to diss him so directly.
Wasn't the normal script supposed to be that the kid would stand up, act all nervous, and look at him with worship in his eyes?
Peter glared, furious.
Evan glanced at him and calmly spat out two words.
"Idiot."
Hearing that, Peter nearly exploded. How could this high school kid be so disrespectful?
Peter felt he needed to have a word with Evan, but before he could say anything, Jessica poked her head out of the kitchen. "Hey, Peter, behave yourself or get out!"
Jessica's tone was sharp. Peter sulked, grumbling, still glaring at Evan with obvious dissatisfaction.
Soon, the food was ready. At the table, both Jessica and Lily kept serving Evan, making Peter even more annoyed.
After the meal, Peter suggested going to the amusement park.
Brightsea City's amusement park had only just opened, and it was packed with visitors.
Evan was going to leave at first, but in the end, he decided to go along.
They rode over in Peter's BMW 4 Series. Evan stayed calm the whole way.
Peter, on the other hand, kept checking Evan in the rearview mirror, sneering to himself.