Can't Possibly Fall for My Wife Again After Rebirth, Right? - Chapter 22

It had been a month since the start of the senior year of high school. The school organized a unified monthly examination for the entire grade, and the results were released the very next day.

Xu Yingran looked at her scores in disbelief.

She was tenth from the bottom of the class.

Xu Yingran: “…”

It’s a small matter, no big deal.

She felt that ranking tenth from the bottom was actually quite an achievement, considering how difficult it was to pick up knowledge she had forgotten for so many years. On the other hand, the young Fu Qiao had performed exceptionally well; she ranked first in the class and second in the entire grade, missing the top spot by only ten points.

Li Yuwen praised Fu Qiao in class and asked her to prepare a speech of no more than one minute. She was to share her study tips with everyone over the school radio.

After the homeroom teacher left, Xu Yingran put away her test papers.

If she didn’t do well this time, she would just work harder next time. Besides, she was an adult now; she knew that the path to success wasn’t limited solely to academics.

Yao Jin sat in her seat, frowning at her test paper with an expression of deep bitterness.

“Jin, what rank did you get this time?” Xu Yingran walked over, leaning lazily against the desk.

Yao Jin closed her test paper with a solemn expression and remained silent, her face dark.

Seeing her like this, Xu Yingran suspected she hadn’t done well. She offered a string of comforts: “It’s fine. Look at me, I did poorly too. We’ll just work hard together next time.”

Yao Jin shook her head and said with a frown, “I did too poorly this time. My dad is definitely going to hire a tutor for me when I get home.”

Xu Yingran blinked. “What was your rank, exactly?”

Yao Jin looked up at her and said, “Seventh.”

“Seventh in the class?”

“No. Second in the class, seventh in the whole school.”

Xu Yingran was speechless. She really shouldn’t be friends with such a “Versailles” woman.

“Wait,” Xu Yingran asked, puzzled. “Weren’t we at about the same level? How did you perform so well? Shouldn’t you be just a little bit better than me?”

“Is that so?” Yao Jin said calmly. “My grades at my previous school were middle-of-the-pack. Coming to your school only bumped my rank up slightly, but my overall performance is still slipping.”

A nearby student couldn’t take it anymore and said helplessly, “Yao Jin, from now on, we should rename you ‘Yao Versailles Jin.’ If ranking seventh in the school counts as a slip, then 90% of the students in this school have no reason to live!”

Xu Yingran nodded repeatedly. “Exactly, exactly.”

While Yao Jin was busy arguing that she wasn’t being pretentious, they saw Fu Qiao walking out of the classroom clutching her test papers.

Xu Yingran glanced at her and noticed she was headed straight for the faculty office. She whispered to Yao Jin, “I’m going to see what Fu Qiao is up to.”

Yao Jin replied, “Do you really have to follow her even when she goes to the office?”

“Of course.”

Yao Jin looked up at her and asked, “Xu Yingran, you don’t actually like Fu Qiao, do you?”

At those words, Xu Yingran froze. Her face flushed a deep red as she snapped at Yao Jin, “Don’t talk nonsense! I don’t like her!”

Yao Jin raised an eyebrow playfully, signaling her disbelief.

Meanwhile, Fu Qiao stood before Li Yuwen, holding her test paper. “Teacher Li, you made a mistake in the grading. I got this question wrong, but it wasn’t marked.”

Li Yuwen took the paper and looked it over, realizing she indeed had misgraded it.

Although it was only a small question, correcting it would mean a three-point deduction. That would likely drop Fu Qiao from second place in the school to third or fourth.

Li Yuwen looked at Fu Qiao and said, “Since I graded it wrong, why didn’t you just pretend you didn’t know? That way, I wouldn’t have to deduct those three points.”

Fu Qiao replied earnestly, “But a mistake is a mistake. Even if I lose three points, it’s what I deserve. Students shouldn’t lie, should they?”

Li Yuwen was taken aback by Fu Qiao’s words. Realizing what she had just suggested, she said with a hint of embarrassment, “Yes, you did the right thing. I should praise you for your honesty.”

“That’s not necessary, Teacher Li,” Fu Qiao smiled at her. “Thank you for correcting the score. I’ll head back to class now.”

“Wait a moment.”

Seeing Fu Qiao about to leave, Li Yuwen stopped her. “Fu Qiao, have you finished filling out that school transfer application you took from me a few days ago?”

In truth, Li Yuwen liked this girl very much. She was brilliant, had a great personality, and was beautiful. If it weren’t for the family move, Li Yuwen really wanted her to stay.

“Transferring in your senior year means you’ll have to adapt to a new school. As your teacher, I really don’t recommend it,” Li Yuwen told her. “If possible, I still hope you can stay at our school.”

Fu Qiao remained silent for a long time. She knew that transferring would be a major disruption to her studies and life, and she was indeed loath to leave her current friends, teachers, and classmates.

“I will think it over carefully. Thank you, Teacher Li,” Fu Qiao said softly.

Li Yuwen sighed inwardly at her response and waved her hand, signaling she could return to class.

When Fu Qiao emerged from the office, she was startled to see Xu Yingran and Yao Jin waiting for her at the door.

“Why are you guys here?” Fu Qiao asked curiously.

Yao Jin pointed at Xu Yingran. “She was worried about you going to the teacher’s office alone, so she dragged me along.”

Xu Yingran’s cheeks were red. She feigned a glare at Yao Jin. “Why are you selling out your teammate?”

Yao Jin smiled but said nothing.

Fu Qiao understood and smiled at Xu Yingran. “I’m a good student; I’m not going to get scolded in the office. Why are you worried about me? You should worry about yourself.”

With Xu Yingran’s grades slipping so drastically, Xu Chunjiang and Zhao Yu were bound to explode. Fu Qiao was already thinking about whether she should go to Xu Yingran’s house that evening to help distract her parents and draw some of the fire.

“But what were you actually doing in the office?” Xu Yingran asked curiously as they walked back.

“I got a question wrong that the teacher didn’t catch. I went to the office to have her correct the score,” Fu Qiao explained.

“Huh? Doesn’t that mean your total score drops by several points?”

“Three points. I’m still first in the class, but I’ll drop to third in the grade.”

Yao Jin frowned. “Aren’t you getting the short end of the stick then?”

Fu Qiao replied, “It’s fine. A mistake is a mistake. Even if the teacher didn’t notice it for now, they would have found out eventually. It’s better to bring it up myself.”

Xu Yingran fell silent at Fu Qiao’s words.

Wasn’t her relationship with Fu Qiao just like that?

They had started out together without considering if they were a good fit. After five years of dating and five years of marriage, Xu Yingran finally felt that they weren’t right for each other.

Yao Jin and Fu Qiao continued to chat, discussing complex problems and mistakes that made Xu Yingran’s head spin, causing her mind to wander.

After school in the evening, Fu Qiao was still writing busily.

Xu Yingran walked over, rested a hand on the desk, and leaned down to look. She saw long paragraphs written on the draft paper. Is that a speech?

“What’s this?” Xu Yingran lowered her head to look, curious.

Fu Qiao had noticed her approach. As Xu Yingran leaned in close, Fu Qiao felt an inexplicable wave of heat wash over her.

She gripped her pen tightly and said, “The speech for the school radio.”

Xu Yingran remembered now; the top five students usually had to do this. Yao Jin was seventh, so she was exempt.

“How many words do you have to write?” Xu Yingran tilted her head toward her. “Under one minute?”

“Yeah,” Fu Qiao said, feeling self-conscious. “A speech under a minute, then answering a few questions from the host. It takes about ten minutes in total.”

“I see…”

Xu Yingran straightened up and said to Fu Qiao, “It’s not until next week anyway, so there’s no rush. Let’s head home first.”

Fu Qiao breathed a sigh of relief when Xu Yingran moved away, yet she simultaneously felt a sense of emptiness. When Xu Yingran was near her, she felt strangely flushed, but when she left, she felt a bit disappointed.

Fu Qiao had only started experiencing these symptoms recently. She stole a glance at Xu Yingran standing beside her and felt that she really was different from before.

As a child, Xu Yingran was Fu Qiao’s little shadow. She was afraid of the dark, dogs, and heights; growing up, Fu Qiao had always been the one to protect her.

Then puberty hit and they began to grow. Perhaps Fu Qiao’s nutrition hadn’t kept up or Xu Yingran had hit a sudden growth spurt, but Fu Qiao had been left significantly shorter.

This had upset Fu Qiao. Hearing that drinking milk would help one grow taller, she drank a carton of pure milk every day, but in the end, she didn’t grow an inch.

The school radio station was still playing light music, occasionally switching to popular songs. This was often the most relaxing time of the day for the students. Walking to the beat of the music, they watched Yao Jin get into her private car. Her driver, wearing white gloves, waved at the two of them before driving the “young mistress” home.

Standing by the roadside with her arms crossed, Xu Yingran said helplessly, “Some people are just born in Rome.”

Fu Qiao glanced at her, amused yet resigned. “It’s rare to see you envious. Are you jealous of Yao Jin now?”

“It’s not exactly envy.” Xu Yingran knew about Yao Jin’s family. Wealthy households had plenty of their own troubles. The legal battle over her parents’ divorce and the division of assets was public knowledge. As an only child, Yao Jin had no say in the matter and was powerless to change anything.

By contrast, ordinary families like Xu Yingran’s and Fu Qiao’s were quite nice. Their parents were loving, their homes were harmonious, and there were no major illnesses or disasters. Their lives were peaceful and stable.

Fu Qiao looked back at her. The mottled shadows of the trees on the roadside had turned golden, and the area was bustling with students who had just finished class. She saw people practicing running on the rubber track behind the fence, and others playing basketball in the distance.

This was perhaps just an ordinary, happy day. Fu Qiao stole another look at Xu Yingran. The flickering patches of light fell across her head and face, making her look somewhat ethereal.

Fu Qiao couldn’t help but daze off for a moment. Only after a long while did she turn her head, and together they walked toward home, stepping through the golden sunlight.