"Ahem... children shouldn't ask about such things."

In the early morning, just like during their regular school routine, the students scrambled out of bed at the shrill sound of the whistle and the homeroom teacher's urging knocks on each door.

According to the school's schedule, after breakfast this morning, they were to head out at eight o'clock to inspect the examination venues.

This was to prevent any delays or failure to locate the test centers on the day of the exam.

Urged on by their respective homeroom teachers, the students finished washing up and headed toward the hotel restaurant.

Having chatted with her temporary roommates deep into the night, Li Ya yawned, looking like a little piglet, as she was herded toward the restaurant under the watchful eyes of the teachers.

There was absolutely no chance given for them to wander off anywhere else.

Passing by the stairs, Li Ya glanced upstairs.

According to the other students, the upper floors not only housed a chess and card room, but also offered foot massage services.

Clearly, the teachers would never give them the opportunity to go up there.

Inside the massive dining hall, set up just like a wedding banquet or a grand feast, round tables filled the entire expansive space.

Suddenly, Li Ya stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening in disbelief.

What on earth was she seeing?!

Near the entrance leading to the hotel lobby, her older brother was actually chatting with the principal!

Her brother hadn't lied to her after all; he had said he would come back, and he really did.

Thanks to Li Ya's early promotional efforts, virtually all the teachers and students at the school knew that she had a super cool older brother.

The "Pet精灵" software was developed by none other than Li Ya's brother.

What made the other students the most envious was that Li Ya owned a limited-edition pet skin!

She was the only one who had it!

It drove all her classmates green with envy.

Catching sight of her brother's figure, Li Ya, with both hands shoved into the pockets of her school uniform, broke into a trot.

Right in front of the principal, Li Ya was too shy to shout "Brother" directly, but she let out a rare, sweet call.

"Bro~~~"

The principal was indeed a principal. Seeing Li Ya approach, he exchanged a nod and a greeting with Li Ping'an, telling him to visit the school more often, before tactfully stepping aside.

He left some private time for the siblings.

Seeing the principal move away to chat with other teachers, Li Ya hurried up to Li Ping'an's side and asked in a low voice,

"Bro, when did you get back?"

"I arrived last night."

Seeing that his sister was in fairly good spirits, Li Ping'an shrugged.

"You have no idea, your big brother almost had to sleep on the streets last night. Almost every hotel in the entire county was fully booked."

"Huh? Then where did you sleep last night?"

"Ahem... Kids shouldn't ask about such things. Let's just say I found a place."

Hurriedly changing the subject, Li Ping'an said, "Tomorrow is the first day of the exams, and I'll accompany you. But I won't be able to the day after."

Hearing this, Li Ya frowned slightly.

"It's not that I don't want to stay with you, but your brother is still a college student, and getting three days off was no easy feat."

"Once your exams are over, you can come straight to find me in the city."

Hearing this, Li Ya suddenly remembered that her brother was also a college student.

With this realization, the disappointment on her face instantly vanished without a trace.

"Alright, after you finish eating and inspect the test venues with your classmates later, I'll have a word with your homeroom teacher and take you out to buy a few new outfits."

Hearing that her brother was still going to take her shopping for clothes, Li Ya beamed from ear to ear, completely shedding her previous sullen look.

"Deal! I'll come find you as soon as my exams are over."

Li Ping'an nodded. "Hurry up and eat. Throughout the entire examination period, you must follow the collective pace."

"Got it."

The students had already begun eating one after another. Without dragging her feet, Li Ya shoved her hands back into her pockets and coolly walked over to her table.

In the morning, after inspecting the examination hall, Li Ya had just stepped outside when her admission ticket was promptly collected by her homeroom teacher.

"Your brother has already cleared your absence with me. Remember to be back before noon."

Hearing this, Li Ya nodded happily, her little hair bun swaying along with the movement.

"Teacher, I'm heading off with my brother then."

Keeping her eyes glued to the exit of the exam venue, terrified of missing any students from her class or misplacing an admission ticket, the homeroom teacher waved her hand without even turning her head.

"Go on, go on. Be careful and stay safe."

………………

At noon the following day, as the bell rang, the previously quiet parents outside the exam venue suddenly buzzed with activity, crowding both sides of the exit in anxious anticipation of their children.

Though the senior high school entrance exams could hardly compare to the life-changing college entrance examinations,

the high school entrance exams determined which school you would attend and what kind of class you would be assigned to!

As the saying goes, falling behind by a single step means falling behind in every step. If you couldn't even beat others in the high school entrance exams, how could you ever dream of surpassing them during the college entrance exams?

Dark horses were, after all, extremely rare.

Just like the parents of other students, Li Ping'an, squeezed near the front of the crowd, also appeared somewhat anxious.

Fretting that his sister might not have done well on her first exam and that her bad mood would affect her performance in the subsequent ones.

Thinking back, when Li Ping'an took his own high school entrance exams, he hadn't been half as nervous as he was now.

Back then, nobody accompanied you to the exams.

Just like any other student, it wasn't until the exams were over and he had returned to school that his old man made a rare trip to pick him up on a motorcycle.

As for how well he did on the tests, nobody even bothered to ask.

After all, he always managed to comfortably secure the top spot in every exam.

At the entrance of the examination hall, the students emerging from the test center gradually gathered together.

However, the security guard, having received no notification, had not yet opened the school gates.

Until the proctors finished counting and verifying the correctness of the test papers, the school would not release the examinees.

After about half an hour, the guard apparently received instructions and finally pushed open the school gates.

In an instant, the students poured out in a flood.

Having already agreed on a meeting spot with his sister, Li Ping'an did not wander around. Standing on his tiptoes with his neck craned, he scanned the torrent of examinees pouring out of the school, searching for his sister's figure.

Spotting his sister waving an examination file bag at him, Li Ping'an waved back.

Seeing the silly grin on his sister's face, Li Ping'an instantly felt reassured.

With that kind of mindset, regardless of how she performed on the first exam, it definitely wouldn't affect her performance in the rest.

Handing over her admission ticket, Li Ya darted over to her brother's side in a flash.

"Drop an exam the moment it's over, and don't go trying to compare answers on the way back."

"I'm catching the high-speed rail back to school this afternoon, so I won't be walking you back to the hotel."

"During the exams, you must listen to your homeroom teacher. Every piece of advice they give is a lesson summarized in blood and sweat—listening to your teacher is always the right choice."

"Got it, got it~~~"

Noticing her brother repeatedly glancing at his time with subtle gestures, Li Ya urged him directly, "Bro, go grab some bite to eat and head off first. Don't worry, I'll listen to my teacher."

"All right."

Li Ping'an nodded, then exchanged a brief greeting with the busy homeroom teacher before disappearing into the crowd.

Li Ya didn't run off either. Under the watchful, tiger-like gazes of the school teachers, she boarded the dedicated transport vehicle directly.

On the other side, Li Ping'an casually found a roadside diner, ordered a plate of fried rice to fill his stomach, and hailed a cab toward the high-speed railway station.