Chapter 14: High School Girls Are the Best

Jie-bao was just as she had always been. After taking small, dainty bites, she would look at Jiang Mo with a shy, gentle smile.

The only difference was that this time, the young girl was crying while she ate and sobbing as she spoke. Every two bites, she would stop to force a pitiful, bittersweet smile at Jiang Mo.

"Bao, you're acting a bit like Keqing. If Old Chen saw this, he’d kill me."

She was a child who knew how to be grateful; her only flaw was that she was too grateful, always turning the kindness of others into pressure upon herself. That was exactly how she had squeezed herself dry in response to her parents' care, brewing the tragedy that awaited her in the future.

Therefore, Jiang Mo could not let his father's kindness touch Chen Yajie's most fragile heart, essentially swapping the "chicken soup" for a "civet cat." At least, not yet.

"Jiang Mo... I want more." The girl said something easily misinterpreted.

"Finish this bowl, and I’ll go to your place and freeload ten steamed buns." Jiang Mo served her another bowl of his special Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.

"Okay~"

The girl had been a bit embarrassed, but upon hearing Jiang Mo frame it as a "paid transaction," the smile on her face deepened, washing away her unease.

In truth, ten buns were nowhere near enough to compensate. That sword-tomb of a cafeteria owner had charged him a thousand, but the system rebate gave him ten thousand, leaving his pockets stuffed with cash.

Whatever, no loss there. Hu Yu'en was the one paying for it anyway.

You have to fiercely milk the gold from a bratty girl!

"What kind of filling do you like for the buns? I'll ask Dad to prepare, and when I get back, I'll make them for you myself~"

After slurping down half the bowl, the girl asked in a honey-sweet voice.

*Heh*, you old man selling buns, see that? The "ghost fire" motorcycle hasn't even been started, and I've already kidnapped your daughter. And without a dowry, too.

Jiang Mo curled his lips into a smirk and said, "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall filling."

"Huh? What... what kind of filling is that..."

Jiang Mo originally wanted to say it was exactly what she was drinking right now... but then he reconsidered her nature. If she knew how expensive this was... it would be a hassle.

"Slipped of the tongue. Just bring me two meat ones."

"Mhm." Jie-bao nodded, secretly noting down the words "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall" in her heart.

"Jiang Mo, this is the best soup I've ever had~"

Wiping her tears with her sleeve, Chen Yajie revealed a smile that came from the heart.

Behind the girl, there was no sunset, no evening glow, no blooming flowers or swaying willows, and no glimmering lights—only a blank classroom wall, scattered desks and chairs, and neatly stacked books. Yet, it still highlighted her gentleness and charm.

A white school uniform, sky-blue trousers, a low-hanging ponytail, and a pure smile.

Damn it, high school girls really are the most beautiful creatures in this world.

It was also the gentlest smile Jiang Mo had ever seen.

As he admired Jie-bao’s appetite, Jiang Mo suddenly shivered, realizing the air conditioner was a bit cold. He found the remote and turned it off.

"So the remote was there. I’d been looking for it for a long time, and I didn't know who had set it so low..." Chen Yajie said foolishly.

Jiang Mo’s movements stiffened.

"Uh, I did."

"Oh?"

"Well, you were 'red-lining' during the exam... which means you were hot. I was just thinking of cooling you down, then forgot to turn it off."

Chen Yajie had just put down her bowl and picked up her math paper. Hearing Jiang Mo’s words, she froze.

The girl might be slow in some aspects, but she would never abandon those subtle, budding feelings when she was at her most naive.

*He... has been paying attention to me all along.*

If everything wasn't a coincidence, then his appearance and his help were also... intentional.

Thinking of a certain possibility, the girl’s breath hitched.

She stared blankly at the slightly messy math paper. The sharp, angular numbers suddenly softened in her vision, blurring, fading...

They ran off the page, yet were imprinted deep in her heart.

"Hey, I was just about to tell you about this problem."

Jiang Mo suddenly broke into her line of sight.

"But... it would waste your time..."

Chen Yajie had just stiffly started to refuse, but the moment she looked up and saw Jiang Mo’s incredibly earnest eyes and his sharp, chiseled face, her heartbeat accelerated. The self-deprecating words got stuck in her chaotic mind.

"Want to try?"

"How do you know it’s a waste of time if you don't try?"

The boy's affirmative tone and determined gaze left her unable to refuse.

"Okay... alright then."

Chen Yajie’s response was almost evasive; she subconsciously shrank her head.

"Look here, Sn is the sum of the first n terms of the sequence {an}, and then this arithmetic... this geometric sequence, there's a formula that is..."

Jiang Mo activated his "Serious Man" mode, and the system’s passive skill "Teaching Benefits Both Teacher and Student" was also active.

When can a high school boy not be a coward?

One: When explaining math problems to a beautiful girl.
Two: When participating in sports in front of a beautiful girl.
Three: When performing on stage in front of a beautiful girl.

In short, when it comes to a beautiful girl, you can never be a coward.

Thus, his explanation was unexpectedly detailed, and the system's cheat allowed him to speak with extreme fluency. Knowledge flowed back into his brain in a strange way, smoother than ultra-thin latex.

"Mhm, did you understand?"

Jiang Mo looked up and happened to collide with the girl’s overly scorching gaze, which was silky and sticky, stretching within her pupils.

"I, ah..." Chen Yajie was stunned, her face blushing instantly.

*Really now, he was being so serious, and I, I was actually daydreaming...*

*Chen Yajie, you, you really are the worst...*

But as the girl refocused her gaze on the paper, Jiang Mo’s words from just a moment ago emerged in her mind as if clouds were parting to reveal the sun.

*How strange... I actually understood it. It’s like I... already grasp this problem...*

*Why? Is it because it’s him?*

For a moment, a thousand emotions welled up inside her.

She suddenly found the courage to meet Jiang Mo’s eyes.

"I, I understood it!"

Jiang Mo nodded, "Then let's do the next one."

"Okay~"

After explaining for a while more, "How about this problem?"

"Very handsome... Ah, no, I mean I got it!"

"This conic section is a bit difficult. Let me study it first, and we can discuss it together in a moment."

"Mhm..."

Watching Jiang Mo hunched over the desk writing and drawing, the girl’s gaze gradually shifted from dazed to enchanted.

She thought, *His nose bridge is so high, his face is clean, and when he isn't being a goof, he’s still quite handsome...*

Chen Yajie rested her chin on her hands, her peach-blossom eyes filled with a hazy mist.

Heartbeat and rain blossomed together. Her world was tattered, but there was always someone there to stitch it back together.

The boy was like a silly, dim-witted pig, happy and carefree, yet he had shattered all her restraints.

*Pig... Pigsy carrying his wife, is there such a good-looking Pigsy?*

Chen Yajie was amused by her own thoughts.

"What are you laughing at?" Jiang Mo stopped writing.

"Jiang Mo, you’re like a pig."

*No, why are you insulting me?*

*Just you wait, I won't even give you a helmet when I take you on the ghost-fire bike!*

*The dowry starts at 300,000, no pay, no helmet.*

*You want to cry? Crying counts as part of the dowry!*

*This is a complete reversal of the natural order.*

"Ah, I wasn't insulting you." Chen Yajie immediately tried to make up for it, her tender, chubby face flushing with shyness. "I, I just suddenly thought of..."

"Thought I was a pig? You’re crossing the line." Jiang Mo shook his head and sighed.

"No, no, I just thought that... Pigsy... also has a wife..."

"But you’re better looking than Pigsy..."

It felt like she was being complimented, but also like she wasn't.

One could only say that beautiful girls have their own unique way of thinking.

In summary, she wanted it.

"Hm? You’re acting a bit lewd." Jiang Mo narrowed his eyes to inspect her. "But I can’t quite put my finger on where."

"Eh? Where... where am I... I’m dressed perfectly fine." Chen Yajie’s face paled, her tone filled with nervousness.

*Baby, lewd doesn't mean you aren't wearing clothes, okay?*

"It’s just that your face is so red, you look very lewd." Jiang Mo said bluntly.

"Is... is that so? Then I’ll just blush in secret from now on." Chen Yajie glanced at him, saying weakly.

*Let’s speak Chinese.*

*What do you mean blush in secret? Are you also going to become the second generation of Jiang Wanfeng?!*

*No, no, rewards are forbidden! You aren't allowed to reward yourself!*

"Blushing in secret is still too much of an over-the-top standard. I suggest you just blush at me every time."

*Hmm... that also sounds weird.*

"Then... do I look good?"

Chen Yajie lowered her voice. Perhaps because she had just been crying, it was slightly hoarse, like a kitten scratching at one’s neck.

"What looks good?"

"...When I’m being lewd..."

After saying that, Chen Yajie collapsed onto the desk, covering her small head and letting out soft whimpering sounds.

Her cherry-like earlobes couldn't hide her shame.

"I, I was just talking nonsense! Jiang Mo, let’s keep doing the problems, okay?"

As expected, high school girls are freaking angels.

*Lewd angels.*

*Sumimasen, Jie-jie, I committed a wrong against you in my head, although I didn't actually do anything wrong, and I don't even have a brain.*

They went through a few more problems. Even though Chen Yajie was distracted, she understood everything. Over the course of an hour, they had cleared up the entire weekly test paper.

Praise the great God of Systems!

When it was time to say goodbye, Jiang Mo walked Chen Yajie to the dormitory entrance. The dorm matron kept eyeing him with suspicion.

*Damn it!!*

*Heh, actually, I didn't really want to go up and... sit for a while anyway.*

The girl had learned her lessons and was well-fed; she waved at him energetically at the door.

"Bye-bye, Jiang Mo~"

*Yes, that’s how it should be. Chen Yajie should be like this.*

【Chen Yajie main quest progress: 5%】
【Reward obtained: Ultimate Dexterity】

*What kind of reward is this? Ultimate Dexterity? What’s this for... does it make it more comfortable when I reward myself?*

*Then the question is, if I use a Pinduoduo cup, how are you going to deal with that, Your Excellency?*

*You’re going a bit too far.*

Thinking this, Jiang Mo took out the empty "Shuangwaiwai" bottle he had been drinking and threw it at the trash can a few meters away.

*Clang.*

The bottle circled the rim of the trash can and dropped precisely inside.

"Holy cow!" Jiang Mo’s eyes lit up. He threw it a few more times, hitting the mark almost every time he aimed.

*Looks like I won't get tendonitis in the future.*

*Doesn't this mean I can go back and play games with "Ultimate Dexterity"?*

Just as he reached the school gate, he saw a kite stuck in a tree. Jiang Mo was about to use his "Ultimate Dexterity" to smash it down when some noisy voices drifted into his ears.

"Hu Yu'en! You go in there right now and find that meal card!"

"Mom... I, there’s no one inside anymore, and I’m afraid of the dark..."

"Then I’ll go in with you."

"I don't want to..."

"How many times do I have to tell you? He is not your father anymore! You only have me as a mother! That meal card isn't your property, do you hear me? It belongs to an outsider!"

"You’ve been getting more and more disobedient lately, even talking back to me. Don't think I don't know what you’re doing on your phone at night. You’re a senior in high school! Still thinking about those random things."

"I... didn't."

"Didn't?"

"You..."

The beautiful woman stared at the young girl with an icy gaze, which finally turned into a silent sigh.

"I only have you, Yu'en. Can you be a little more sensible? Listen to your mother."

"Tell me the truth, did you lose it? If you lost it, we’ll pay him back."

"Mom... Dad left it for me..."

"He is not your father." The woman said in an indisputable tone. "And that is not your property."

Jiang Mo stood there with the kite in his hand, stunned. *Isn't this the bratty girl?*

*How did she get this pathetic after just a few days?*

*The meal card... wasn't it with him?*

【Life trajectory changed, Hu Yu'en IF route triggered.】
【Four years later, you, a fresh college graduate, arrive at a company for an internship. You are unexpectedly hired without an interview, but the position is completely different from what you chose...】
【You were supposed to be doing technical work, but upon officially starting, you find you are the boss's secretary.】
【You are panicked. You’ve never done clerical work like this and are afraid the boss is some greasy middle-aged man with strange hobbies...】
【The outcome is unexpected. The other party is a charming, enchanting woman. She requires you to be on call, keep your phone messages open 24 hours a day, and satisfy any of her needs when necessary...】
【At first, you just feel the work is tiring, but soon... you realize the boss is gradually making very outrageous demands. She guides you step by step, step by step making you addicted...】
【You fall into a woman's abyss, becoming her puppet amidst beauty and money.】
【Your life is hopeless.】
【When you feel life has lost its meaning and are preparing to end it all, you only then remember that she looks a lot like a certain "moonlight" from high school...】

"What the hell!" Jiang Mo shouted. His voice was so loud it attracted the attention of the mother and daughter confronting each other in the distance.

The moment Hu Yu'en saw him, her expression turned instantly nervous.

"Do you know him?" Hu Yuting noticed her change.

"No... I don't."

But just as the girl finished speaking, she saw Jiang Mo striding over in a few steps.

She shook her head at him repeatedly, with even a hint of pleading hidden in her fox-like eyes.

"Hello, Auntie."

"Who are you?"

"I forgot the beginning, I forgot the middle, in short, I’m here to deliver money."

"What..."

Without a word, Jiang Mo took out a stack of cash and handed it to Hu Yu'en.

"She went to get the meal card cashed out earlier, saying she wanted to pay it back to someone."

"This is over ten thousand yuan. It took a few days to scrape it together from the cafeteria."

"So you are..."

"I’m a student."

"Oh..." The woman’s expression was a bit awkward and she wanted to say something more, but Jiang Mo turned and ran away.

Only Hu Yu'en was left clutching the stack of cash, dazed and at a loss...

*Why... did he help me out of the situation?*

"Yu'en, that’s the way it should be. Give the money back to that person, and we won't have anything to do with him anymore."

"Yes... Mom."

The night was blurry, and Jiang Mo’s figure gradually faded as well.

The girl crumpled the money in her hand.

...

When he got home, it was already nearly ten o'clock at night. He wondered if Jiang Wanfeng had cooked up some major trouble.

Minor trouble was fine, but major trouble was not.

*Lewdness is a no-no!*

However... as soon as he entered the door, Jiang Mo noticed something wrong.

The living room was dark, the bathroom was dark, and even Jiang Wanfeng's bedroom was dark.

*Hmm...*

*Jiang Wanfeng, she couldn't possibly be in my room, right?*

*That... that would be very comfortable...*