Can't Possibly Fall for My Wife Again After Rebirth, Right? - Chapter 83

Xu Yingran was caught off guard by her wife’s ridicule, and her competitive spirit instantly exploded. She said to Fu Qiao with grand ambition, “Just you wait. I’ll definitely place first in this final exam for you.”

Hearing this, Fu Qiao knew she was bragging and couldn’t help but smile, her eyes curving into crescents. “You? If you can break into the top ten of the class, then the incense Ajin and I burned for you on New Year’s Day wasn’t in vain.”

Xu Yingran smiled back at her. Both were in high spirits as they continued their playful bickering.

After dinner, Xu Yingran did something out of character—she didn’t linger to dote on Fu Qiao. Instead, she briskly boarded the bus home, which left Fu Qiao feeling quite surprised.

In truth, Xu Yingran was loath to leave her wife, but her wife had set a challenge: she had to get into the top ten.

The top ten seemed like a long shot, but she had to at least put in the effort!

Perhaps, if her wife was in a good mood then, she might even take the initiative to kiss her.

With this somewhat undignified motivation, Xu Yingran’s enthusiasm for studying reached new heights during that period. Even the usually calm Yao Jin felt intimidated and started studying alongside her.

By the end of January, schools everywhere welcomed the final exams.

Two days after the exams concluded, the results were released.

Xu Yingran’s hard work had not been for nothing. Although she didn’t make it into the top ten of the class, her progress was significantly greater than usual. Even Li Yuwen (Teacher Li) didn’t hold back and spent thirty seconds praising her in front of the whole class.

Yao Jin’s grades remained much the same—near the back of the front row, the “tail” of the honor students.

Xu Yingran felt these results didn’t quite match what Yao Jin was capable of, especially considering the small fortune Yao Heng (Yao Jin’s father) had spent on her private tutors. Seeing her performance stay stagnant, Xu Yingran suspected it was 80% due to her “puppy love.”

When Yao Jin heard this, she simply snorted in disdain and gave her the cold shoulder.

Around 11:00 PM that night, Xu Yingran sat at her desk, complaining to Fu Qiao over a video call.

“I said Ajin is in a relationship and she won’t admit it, but lately, I’ve really seen her grinning like a fool for no reason and spacing out,” Xu Yingran said with certainty. “Something must have happened between her and that beautiful older sister that the two of us don’t know about.”

Fu Qiao didn’t look up. She poked her head with the end of her pen and wondered aloud, “Is ‘love brain’ contagious?”

Xu Yingran: “What?”

Fu Qiao glanced at the person on her phone screen and said, “I’m saying, Ajin isn’t usually that kind of person. She’s only acting silly because she caught it from you.”

“I’ve been framed!” Xu Yingran cried out. “We hang out often, but I’ve never heard of being ‘bad at thinking’ being contagious! Wife, you can’t slander me like this!”

Fu Qiao shook her head, feeling that Xu Yingran was likely beyond saving.

Speaking of which, Xu Yingran had recently started calling Fu Qiao “Wife” in private. At first, Fu Qiao was somewhat uncomfortable with it, but now—perhaps because she had grown accustomed to hearing it—when Xu Yingran had a “crazy moment” and called her “Wife,” Fu Qiao would occasionally respond with an “Mhm,” showing a remarkable level of tacit understanding.

Xu Yingran finished her last bit of homework and asked Fu Qiao while packing her things, “Your school’s final exam results should be out too, right?”

“They’re out,” Fu Qiao said. “They came out today.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I’ve been babbling here for ages thinking your school hadn’t released them yet.”

“You didn’t ask.”

Xu Yingran felt her wife was being a bit argumentative, but she didn’t dare pick a fight. She could only coax her gently, asking, “So how did you do? Did you regress again this time?”

Fu Qiao looked up and glared at her. Nowadays, the thing she hated hearing most was that her grades had slipped.

Previously, she had neglected much of her schoolwork for the sake of her Art Exam, causing her grades to plummet. She had been called in by her teachers several times. Now that the Art Exam was finally over, she had thrown herself entirely into her studies, fearing she might fall behind again.

Now, Xu Yingran was essentially dancing in a minefield. Fu Qiao let out a cold laugh, fished her test papers out of her bag, and displayed them triumphantly. “Stop looking down on people! I did much better than you—I’ve made it into the top 100!”

Xu Yingran clapped her hands with a bright smile. “That’s amazing! Breaking into the top 100, that’s our Fu Qiao for you!”

Fu Qiao felt extremely proud, her metaphorical tail practically wagging in the air.

“I could hear you babbling in here before I even entered the room. Are you studying or just chatting?” Zhao Yu walked in with a plate of pastries. She glanced at Xu Yingran and said, “I saw you weren’t sleeping, so I made you something to line your stomach. Remember to brush your teeth before you go to bed.”

“I know,” Xu Yingran replied, taking the plate. She noticed it was pineapple cakes, Fu Qiao’s favorite.

“Hello, Auntie,” Fu Qiao greeted Zhao Yu through the phone.

“Xiao Qiao isn’t asleep either? I was wondering who Ranran was talking to.” Zhao Yu was delighted to see Fu Qiao. Learning that her final exam results were good made her even happier—happier than if her own daughter had done well.

“It’s normal for grades to fluctuate,” Zhao Yu said to Fu Qiao. “Unlike our Ranran, whose exams are like bungee jumping—one moment she’s high up, the next she’s in last place.”

Xu Yingran argued back, “Mom, I only came in last once. Why do you always have to tell people about it?”

Zhao Yu’s eyes crinkled with laughter. “Is Xiao Qiao an outsider? Does she not already know exactly what you’re like?”

That was true. In the future, Fu Qiao would be “family,” so Xu Yingran felt no embarrassment in front of her wife.

After Zhao Yu left, Xu Yingran said to Fu Qiao, “When we’re on break for the Spring Festival, let’s go out and have some fun.”

Fu Qiao looked up at her, confused.

“It’s a rare holiday, and we only get a few days off. We can’t just study the whole time,” Xu Yingran negotiated. “I’ve already planned it. Your parents will be minding the shop, and my parents will be on duty. No one will be around to watch us anyway. Let’s go to a hot spring.”

“A hot spring?” Fu Qiao had never been to one. She asked curiously, “Are there hot springs around here?”

“There aren’t any natural ones, but there are plenty of leisure and entertainment centers.”

In her past life, Xu Yingran often arranged for clients to go to such places. They were great for relaxation and stress relief, and soaking in the springs was good for the health. Most clients were quite satisfied.

“Hmm, I’ve never been to a place like that. Do I need to bring a swimsuit?” Fu Qiao asked.

“Some require them, some don’t,” Xu Yingran said. “It’s best to bring one; your own is always cleaner.”

While Fu Qiao was still hesitating, Xu Yingran pressed on. “Once you buy a ticket, you can stay all day. There are buffets, computers, saunas, and arcades. The environment is really nice. Just come with me.”

“Is Ajin going?” Fu Qiao asked.

“Ajin has to accompany her ‘good sister.’ Those two have been so clingy lately, I don’t even know if they’ve made it official yet.”

“Then… I’ll mention it to my parents.”

Fu Qiao was also a bit curious hearing Xu Yingran describe it. She had never been to a bathhouse before and felt that soaking in a public spring would be much more interesting than taking a bath at home.

Seeing Fu Qiao relent, Xu Yingran smiled happily. “Great, I’ll wait for your answer.”

After the video call ended, Fu Qiao told Hu Mei and her husband about the plan. Neither of them had any objections. It wasn’t like she was going out with a stranger; what was there to fear from a neighbor girl like Xu Yingran whom they knew so well?

Besides, their shop had been very busy lately. They might not even have time to be with their child on New Year’s Eve. Fu Qiao was so sensible that as parents, they didn’t want to keep her cooped up at home all the time. Going out for fun during the break was perfectly reasonable.

When Xu Yingran received Fu Qiao’s message, she was still brushing her teeth. Seeing the news, she broke into a wide grin, humming a little tune as she finished up and tucked herself into bed.

He Qiao’s results for this final exam were not good.

To be precise, they weren’t just “not good”—they were “disastrous.”

Originally, He Qiao’s grades were stable within the top five of the class, sometimes even reaching the top three. She had never fallen out of the top fifty in the entire grade. But this time was different. No one knew what had happened to her; she had completely botched questions she normally knew how to solve, and her rank plummeted to outside the top 200.

In a provincial key high school, there were only about four to five hundred students in the entire third-year grade. With He Qiao’s rank dropping so drastically, the headteacher called her parents immediately.

On the day the results came out, He Qiao didn’t tell her parents her score. She was also in a daze. She simply told her parents that one of them needed to find time to go to school the next day because the headteacher wanted to talk.

The task inevitably fell to He Qiao’s mother, who went to the school with her early the next morning.

When the woman saw He Qiao’s report card, she felt her vision go dark.

“How did you take this exam? How did you do this?!”

Standing in the hallway, Mother He brandished the test papers. Ignoring the students around them, she screamed at He Qiao at the top of her lungs, “I worked so hard to raise you for over ten years, and this is the kind of result you give me?!”

He Qiao looked at her mother and said softly, “I’m sorry…”

“What’s the use of saying sorry? Is it me you’re letting down? You’re letting down yourself!”

Mother He was driven mad with rage. To ensure her daughter got good grades, she had resigned from a high-paying, respectable job specifically to stay home and accompany He Qiao through the college entrance exams. She cooked various delicious meals every day, hoping for a good result.

But now, it wasn’t just a slow decline; she had handed her a rank in the 200s. How could Mother He not go insane?

“Speak.” Mother He pointed at He Qiao’s nose. “Are you in a ‘puppy love’ relationship?”

He Qiao shook her head. “I’m not. Mom, I…”

Slap! Slap! Slap!

In a fit of rage, Mother He grabbed the test papers and struck her three times across the face. He Qiao’s cheek swelled instantly, the color drained from her face, and her head began to ring.

She saw her mother’s lips opening and closing, seemingly cursing her.

But she couldn’t hear clearly what the other woman was saying.

The curious gazes of the students nearby and her mother’s maddened face seemed to become distorted in He Qiao’s eyes.

“Who do I do all this for every day? It’s all for you!”

“And this is how you repay me?”

“By testing like this, you just want me to die!”

The ringing in her ears gradually faded, and she heard her mother’s shrill, angry roars. The headteacher came over to calm Mother He down, said something to her, and dragged her into the office.

The students in the hallway looked at He Qiao with eyes full of curiosity. They huddled together whispering, seemingly mocking her.

Why is living so exhausting?

If I died, would no one bother me anymore?

My mother wouldn’t be a screaming madwoman, and my teachers and classmates wouldn’t gossip about me.

He Qiao thought that if she died, everyone would probably be better off.

When He Qiao jumped from the third floor, none of the surrounding students reacted in time. With a loud “thud,” Fu Qiao, who had just reached the first floor, saw a familiar figure fall right before her eyes.