578. Before Summer Vacation [5/20]
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“Have you all submitted your final designs? Did you format the titles correctly?”
“Those who have submitted assignments, come over for a signature.”
“For those who haven’t finished, hurry up and polish your designs here.”
In the computer room, the teacher on stage was rambling on and on. Lin Nan had already submitted her work, signed her name, but her mind was wandering to her pet parrot at home, making her a bit antsy.
Even though the graduation project had been completed ages ago, the exam was essentially just a matter of submitting assignments and signing off, but the teacher wasn’t letting anyone leave early.
After this exam, summer vacation would officially begin.
With nothing to do, Lin Nan rested her chin on her hands, blankly staring at the computer screen, while Tu Junhui was still struggling to revise his assignment. The guy only realized his project was too simplistic after checking out others’ final designs. Now, with Chen Yao and a few enthusiastic classmates helping him, he was in a race against time to avoid failing.
Being the last exam, some students even brought along suitcases.
Xiong Da was as quiet as ever, his face stoic, yet at least he had picked up mobile gaming again, occasionally uttering a word or two.
“Let’s go out for dinner after this?” Tu Junhui suggested.
“Dinner? Perfect timing for Lin Nan’s early birthday celebration!” Chen Yao blurted out, only to immediately turn pale.
Oh no, he had totally forgotten Lin Nan’s birthday was coming up.
Just a couple of weeks ago, he remembered and even contemplated what to get her as a gift, but now, if it weren’t for Tu Junhui’s reminder, he would have completely spaced on it.
No gift prepared, and they wanted to celebrate her birthday early?
His face was ghostly white, unsure how to refuse.
“So today’s dinner is Lin Nan’s treat then?” Tu Junhui’s eyes lit up; it wasn’t easy to take advantage of Lin Nan.
“Forget about it. Who celebrates a birthday early?” Lin Nan shook her head.
“You’ve never had a birthday celebration before.”
In the past, summer vacations usually started in early July, but this year was special—it had been pushed back by over a week.
Thinking back, she had given gifts for Tu Junhui and Xiong Da’s birthdays, so celebrating with them wouldn’t be too bad. When she gets home, both Chen Yao’s parents and her own mom would surely throw another party for her. Double the joy!
Just the thought of treating them for dinner made her feel a bit of a pinch.
After pondering for a moment, she smiled and asked, “So, have you and Xiong Da prepared any gifts? Want me to treat you guys to dinner without gifts?”
“I think, you know, one shouldn’t place too much importance on gifts,” Tu Junhui said, looking away. If Chen Yao hadn’t mentioned it, he wouldn’t have even known Lin Nan’s birthday was coming up, but then he suggested, “How about I gift you a set of Ruins Nuan Nuan skins?”
Ruins Nuan Nuan?
Lin Nan looked puzzled, her eyes blinking in confusion; she had heard of Miraculous Nuan Nuan before.
“It’s from Dota 2,” Chen Yao quickly explained, seeing her confusion. “The skins that Junhui wants to give you probably aren’t worth much, so don’t get your hopes up.”
“And I don’t play that.”
Xiong Da had remained aloof throughout the whole discussion about the gathering, staring blankly at his phone or the computer screen, clearly still grappling with the harsh reality.
Finally, the last exam wrapped up.
The class bell rang, and students rushed out, dragging their suitcases with them. Lin Nan and her friends took their time, waiting for everyone else to leave before finally exiting the classroom.
Though Xiong Da hadn’t expressed any opinion on the dinner, he still followed the group toward the school’s back gate.
Suddenly, Lin Nan tugged on Chen Yao’s arm, gossiping with a gleeful look towards a student in the distance, dragging a suitcase away from another teaching building. “Chen Yao! That’s my student’s stepmom! What was her name again? Xiao Hui.”
“Oh.” Chen Yao wasn’t interested in this gossip at all.
Seeing his disinterest, Lin Nan thought it through; now that she wasn’t even a part of Mr. Pan Maoxin’s situation, her curiosity faded away.
Just as she planned to move on, she noticed the others had stopped in their tracks. Turning around, she found Xiong Da staring blankly at Xiao Hui.
“What’s up?”
After pondering for a moment, Chen Yao commented, “That girl is Xiong Da’s girlfriend. Didn’t you recognize her?”
“???” Lin Nan glanced back at the girl, looking a bit dazed. “I’ve only met his girlfriend once; I can’t remember what she looks like.”
Besides, the last time she saw Xiong Da’s girlfriend, she was wearing a JK uniform and sporting a Luffy straw hat— so naturally, Lin Nan’s attention focused on those two points. As for the looks, that didn’t matter; she wasn’t exactly a showstopper herself.
Does this mean… Mr. Pan Maoxin’s stepmom is actually Xiong Da’s ex-girlfriend? Did Mr. Pan’s dad cuckold Xiong Da?
No wonder when she saw me, she barely talked and seemed a bit nervous.
Originally assuming it was due to dating an older uncle, it turns out she knows me?
Lin Nan cautiously turned her gaze toward Xiong Da, carefully observing his expression, which remained ice-cold and unchanging.
He should be fine, right?
She scratched her head, unsure what to do.
So not only could this girl prevent Mr. Pan Maoxin from becoming a rich kid, but she also cuckolded Xiong Da…
Perhaps their gazes caught Xiao Hui’s attention, as she glanced at them from afar, then quickly lowered her head and hurried toward the school gate.
It was hard to see her expression, but her actions revealed an air of nervousness.
Lin Nan bit her lip, regretting not meddling in Mr. Pan Maoxin’s relationship with Xiao Hui earlier.
That would have been revenge for Xiong Da!
“Let’s go,” Xiong Da said flatly, taking the lead to walk ahead.
But is it too late now?
Lin Nan walked up to Xiong Da, mimicking a villain from a TV drama, fist raised menacingly, saying, “Wanna go mess with her?”
Xiong Da shot her a look that said, “Are you for real?”
Fine, this isn’t a TV show; it does sound quite stupid.
She took a step back to create some distance from him, while Tu Junhui started to rally, “Get her! Get her!”
Xiong Da lifted his foot to kick.
“Why the hell are you learning this from Lin Nan?” Tu Junhui shouted, scurrying to the side.
Seeing everyone sharing this strange idea, Xiong Da paused, turning back to his roommates with a weary sigh. “Don’t cause trouble. I’m done with that girl.”
Since Xiong Da said so, Tu Junhui naturally lost interest in cheering him on.
“Before we go to the gathering, I need to make a pit stop at my rental apartment,” Lin Nan suddenly recalled her parrot at home. “Wanna come? I have a parrot, and it’s super cute!”
“How old are you to be living your grandparent life already?” Tu Junhui teased. “Are you planning to bring a birdcage to class next semester?”
“No need for a birdcage; it’s on a leash!” Lin Nan, seeing his spark of interest in her parrot, quickly pulled out her phone to show him pictures. “Look, look! Cute, right?”
Tu Junhui leaned in for a peek. “Is that the monster from Diga?”
“Diga?” Lin Nan was puzzled as to how the conversation shifted to Ultraman.
Xiong Da couldn’t resist his curiosity either and leaned closer to inspect the photo. After a moment, he recollected, “I think it’s called Xila?”
He usually has an interest in Ultraman, boasting several figurines on his shelf, while Lin Nan couldn’t name more than a few.
“Is it?” Lin Nan, although she had watched Diga, always seemed to miss a few episodes on TV, and being younger, she struggled to remember details.
She threw a hopeful glance at Chen Yao for validation, but he just stared back at her, equally clueless.
