Even as a "normie," I'm completely oblivious to it.

If nothing had changed, she wouldn't have been able to come to Northern Europe with everyone. If it were the old her, she would have definitely found a reason to refuse and stayed home, though she herself wouldn't even know why she would refuse...

But now that she's here, and she agreed without any hesitation, it's enough to show how Qin Ruoke has changed.

Even if there were changes, Qin Ruoke felt... it certainly wasn't as exaggerated as Zixiao said; how could she possibly have improved more than Zixiao?

When Zixiao was speaking, she was staring into Qin Ruoke's eyes, so when Zixiao's gaze shifted, Qin Ruoke's gaze naturally followed hers in the same direction.

—The direction where Yu Zhe is located.

Qin Ruoke then noticed that Yu Zhe was frantically applying sunscreen to Qi Xinye, and Yu Che was also there. The three of them were making a lot of noise, as if it were a lively scene.

“I didn’t say those words just now.” Zixiao looked over there and smiled knowingly. “It was my brother who said that you have grown a lot, senior. He has said that to me more than once.”

"Yuzhe?"

"Yes, senior, you know I wouldn't joke about my brother."

"..."

Qin Ruoke slowly opened her eyes, quite surprised.

Because she knew that if Zixiao's words involved Yuzhe's retelling, then there could be no falsehood in them.

Seeing that she didn't disbelieve her, Zixiao nodded and continued.

“Sometimes my brother would have heart-to-heart talks with me during dinner, and several times he talked about my senior. We talked about your experiences and your troubles, and every time my brother would talk about it with great enthusiasm. He said that you are really the strongest-willed person he has ever met. You walked out of extreme inferiority and extreme self-esteem, and now you want to slowly try to return to a normal mindset from this extreme self-esteem. And you have already taken a big step. Haha... He also told me to learn more from my senior.”

Ugh... Zixiao will never admit that she gets extremely jealous every time Yuzhe talks about Senior Qin.

Qin Ruoke listened intently to Zixiao's words, even forgetting to blink, and stared at Yuzhe with her mouth slightly open for a long time.

Then...

Her face gradually flushed and warmed up. She lowered her head, her bangs covering her eyebrows and eyes. Slightly embarrassed, she turned back to face the sea and buried her face between her knees.

As a result, her voice, which had become noticeably unsteady, sounded muffled.

"So...that's how Yu Zhe sees me. Thank you..."

"Ok?"

Senior, are you thanking your brother for praising you, or are you thanking me for relaying these words to you?

It doesn't matter which one it is, in any case, Zixiao is happy for Qin Ruoke.

The purpose of this trip is to help everyone get to know each other better. At this moment, Zixiao probably understands Senior Qin better than before, right?

Yes, my senior is even cuter than I imagined. She blushes easily from just a few words of praise. No wonder my brother often says, "Don't be fooled by Xiao Ruoke's seemingly unapproachable appearance. After a few words, you'll find that she's a very thoughtful and sensitive girl."

Sure enough.

Zixiao patted her slender thigh with one hand, stood up, put her hands behind her back, and walked towards the coast.

The surging seawater wet her feet, and Zixiao immediately felt a cool sensation mixed with warmth.

As the tide receded, Zixiao turned around while still in her pose and asked Qin Ruoke a question.

"Hey senior, what are your plans after you get back from your trip?"

"Huh? You're planning to fight?"

Qin Ruoke hadn't yet recovered from her earlier joy when she heard Zixiao's question, and she was a little confused.

After exchanging a few words like this, Qin Ruoke felt that Zixiao was a very easy person to talk to, so she was less nervous in her response this time.

"Plan...Zixiao, what do you mean?"

"Ah, sorry, I didn't explain clearly earlier. I meant after the college entrance exam scores come out, what are your plans, senior? So you're really going to apply to a good university and study abroad?"

"this..."

Zixiao thought this was only natural.

My brother said that this is Qin Ruoke's dream.

Her three years of hard work in high school were all for the purpose of getting into the top university and changing her unfair fate with her own hands.

And in about ten days, the college entrance examination results will be released.

Then we'll gradually start filling out college applications, which means we'll be studying...

When my sister's dream came true.

Qin Ruoke smiled and shook her head.

"It's still... hard to say. We don't know how the results went yet. If they're just average, then we'll really let Yu Zhe and the school teachers down. If they're even worse, we might have to repeat a year...? It's all uncertain."

"What if you perform at your normal level and get a high score?"

"..."

Zixiao knew that since her brother hadn't taken the college entrance exam, her senior was likely to be first in the grade, and the probability of her not doing well was extremely low.

What Zixiao really wanted to ask was which city she probably wanted to go to.

Qin Ruoke pondered for a long time, glancing at Zixiao and then at the sea, but in the end he could only sigh and shake his head.

"Well... I think it's better to wait until we get the results before considering this. Since we're on the topic... Zixiao, may I ask you a question?"

"There's nothing I can't ask."

"Alright..." Qin Ruoke pressed down her pink hair that was being blown by the sea breeze, and asked the question clearly, word by word, "What are Yuzhe's plans? He didn't take the college entrance examination, so will he be directly admitted to a university, or... will he stay in Fenghai City?"

"Yes, it's in Fenghai City. My brother and Yuche probably won't be going out."

Another wave of seawater swept over Zixiao's feet, and she told Qin Ruoke the truth.

"Actually... when my brother came to Fenghai No.1 High School, it was largely because he wanted to experience life. I also hope that he can experience more of these things. After all, we are at the age of being students now. I don't want my brother to miss these things, otherwise he will have regrets. Sigh... at least my brother and Yuche went to school occasionally during their senior year of high school. Even if it was intermittent, at least they experienced campus life."

The older brother is somewhat better, but Yu Che is hopeless. If we send her to school, she probably won't be able to go even one day a week; she'll basically be staying at the company the whole time.

After saying that, Zixiao continued, "High school is like that, but it's really impossible to go to university for the reason of 'experiencing life' anymore. Going to university means leaving Fenghai City, and it will be for at least several years."

That's right... Qin Ruoke understands that the Su Group really needs Yu Zhe and Yu Che.

But... she didn't think that could be a reason to bind the two of them.

So Qin Ruoke mustered up her courage and asked, "Then... what do they think? And now that Auntie is back, even if Yu Zhe and Yu Che leave Fenghai City for a few years, there shouldn't be any problems, right?"

"Yes."

Zixiao nodded in agreement and said, "I also really dislike it when the company's development interferes with my brother and Yuche's lives. I hate that kind of thing. So a few days ago, I asked my brother if he and Yuche had changed their minds now that Mom is back. But my brother and Yuche both made it clear that even so, they don't want to go to university."

"why?"

"They said it was because it was troublesome."

"Uh..."

Alright, you guys are something else.

That's just like Yu Zhe and Yu Che's style.

This answer made Qin Ruoke smile subtly.

It's not that I don't want to go to university because of business development, but because going to university requires traveling far away.

To put it bluntly, it's because I'm lazy!

Zixiao shrugged helplessly and gave a wry laugh along with Qin Ruoke.

She used to think that the company was a factor that restricted her brother and Yuche's lives.

Unexpectedly, the company was actually providing them with a reason to stay at home!

Indeed, the thought processes of geniuses are so novel and unfathomable.

78. Feeling happier now? (Bonus chapter)

After understanding Yu Zhe's plans, Qin Ruoke couldn't help but ponder the question Zi Xiao had asked her.

—That is, her plans afterward.

Qin Ruoke did not give a direct answer just now.

Because she hasn't decided yet either...

To be honest... the fact that Yu Zhe was going to stay in Fenghai City and didn't plan to go to university made her mind even more confused.

She originally had a very hopeful idea: she hoped to wait and see which university Yu Zhe applied to, and then apply to the same one. If Yu Zhe applied to a university that her score couldn't reach, then Qin Ruoke was determined to repeat a year of high school to reach that level and win Yu Zhe's heart again.

But once it was confirmed that Yu Zhe wouldn't be going to university, Qin Ruoke's wishful thinking was completely shattered.

There are many things in this world that are inherently full of helplessness and contradictions.

Qin Ruoke studied so hard for three years of high school. To be honest, even if a student of her level couldn't accurately predict their final score, they could still roughly estimate the score range.

Qin Ruoke was very certain that she had performed exceptionally well in this year's college entrance examination.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I should be able to get into my dream university for further studies.

This was something Qin Ruoke had always dreamed of...

But when Zixiao asked her just now, she really couldn't say whether she was happy or conflicted.

I can still picture Yu Zhe's every smile and gesture; the gentle warmth I felt almost every day this past year.

We sat next to each other on the way to school and were neighbors on the way home.

Qin Ruoke could only say that it was like a dream.

Before this, she had never imagined that there would be anyone in the world willing to save her, nor had she ever imagined that she would be so devoted to someone in her life.

The extent of her infatuation... she asked herself honestly, and although she was somewhat unwilling, it had almost reached the point where she wouldn't care about giving up her dream.

I don't want to be separated from him forever...

After realizing her own thoughts, Qin Ruoke felt scared.

Can not

I see... Yu Zhe helped me back then because he respected my dream and wanted to lend me a hand. What kind of thinking is this? Just because I received kindness, I became immersed in it and forgot my original intentions?

If that's really the case... there's no need for Yu Zhe to look down on her; Qin Ruoke will be the first to look down on herself.

Yes, perhaps the truth is that even without going to university, Yu Zhe could have enabled Qin Ruoke to achieve more wealth and success than she would have after graduating from a prestigious university.

But... that's not the path Yu Zhe wanted her to take.