Volume One, Chapter 10: No One Believed She Could Succeed in the Exam

Lu Ning stopped, her voice polite yet distant. “Second Brother, Fourth Brother, Sixth Brother.”

If she did not greet them, they would probably accuse her of throwing a tantrum and being rude again.

She had no energy to argue over such things now. It would only waste her time.

Lu Liu raised an eyebrow. “How did today’s exam go? You refused to join the team for the sake of your so-called hard work and studying. I’d really like to see just how well you can do!”

Lu Ning paid no mind to her Sixth Brother’s sarcasm. No matter what she did, her brothers looked down on her anyway.

She pursed her lips. “I’ll work hard.”

Work hard to improve her grades. Work hard to get into Yunda University and escape from all of them.

Lu Bei let out a mocking laugh. “Lu Ning was never cut out for studying. Her grades weren’t anything special in her first or second year of high school either. Now that graduation is around the corner, she’s desperately trying to cram. It only looks like she’s working hard. In the end, she’ll still rank below Xiangxiang!”

Qin Xiang smiled and said, “Fourth Brother, don’t put it that way. Sister Ningning has been working very hard lately, and even her teachers have praised her. Rankings can’t represent everything.”

Lu Ning gripped her schoolbag tightly, fury surging through her chest.

There had been a reason her grades were poor in her previous life.

Whenever she scored better than Qin Xiang, Qin Xiang would cause trouble for her, which in turn made her brothers dislike her.

To keep her brothers from hating her, Lu Ning had deliberately answered her exams carelessly.

That was why her grades had always been worse than Qin Xiang’s. She simply did not want Qin Xiang to stir up trouble.

It did not mean she was truly incapable of studying!

When she had taken the college entrance examination in her previous life, she had wanted to surpass Qin Xiang and prove that she was better than her.

But what had happened in the end?

Her eldest brother had forced her to apply to the same, inferior university as Qin Xiang.

Even though her grades were good enough for a much better school!

Thinking of all this, Lu Ning struggled to control her emotions. “I’m going back to my room.”

Her eyes were icy cold, but this time, she would not make the same foolish mistakes again.

——

The next day was the weekend, and Lu Ning slept until she woke naturally.

When she went downstairs to eat, no one was in the living room.

They had probably gone to the training camp.

Lu Ning paid it no mind. After eating, she returned to her bedroom.

She checked her phone for news about the gaming tournament.

As expected, the organizers had announced the revival match.

It was exactly the same as in her previous life.

When Lu Liu saw the announcement about the revival match, he became fired up and was determined to win.

Only by advancing could they avenge themselves against the Ji family’s young master in the finals!

But in her previous life, the Lu Tian team’s championship victory had actually been something of a fluke.

At the final, crucial moment, the Ji family’s young master had withdrawn from the competition, giving them a chance to win.

As for why he had withdrawn, Lu Ning had never learned the reason—not even before her death.

Some said he had suffered a sudden illness. Others claimed his family had dragged him home to inherit the family business. Yet he himself had never come forward to clarify anything.

Lu Ning stared at the game’s introduction and suddenly felt a little restless.

Then Ji Chiqian’s voice suddenly surfaced in her mind.

She had agreed with him that whether she would play games again would depend on her monthly exam results.

Fine. She would endure a little longer. At the very least, she would wait until her results were released before deciding.

She took out her phone. After much hesitation, she finally sent Ji Chiqian a WeChat message:

Master, I didn’t go to the infirmary after school last week because my Second Brother discovered that I hadn’t come home on time. I was worried he would discover my secret base, so I didn’t go.

After sending it, Lu Ning stared at the chat window for a long time, but no reply came.

Unable to resist, she opened Ji Chiqian’s Moments, only to find nothing there.

Did this man never post anything?

How strange.

Meanwhile, Ji Chiqian looked at the message he had received, his narrow eyes narrowing slightly.

“Brother Qian, who messaged you?”

Ji Chiqian immediately locked his phone.

Gu Zifeng raised an eyebrow. “Judging by the profile picture, it’s a girl. Could it be that girl you helped the other day? What was her name… Ning, right?”

“You talk too much.”

“I think you’re feeling guilty. You spent all of last week working overtime in the infirmary, then suddenly stopped going. And you’ve been wearing a long face these past few days. Did you have a falling-out with her?”

Ji Chiqian turned his head, his gaze carrying a dangerous edge. “Don’t pry into my affairs.”

“We grew up together. What could you possibly be hiding from me? Don’t pretend.”

Ji Chiqian took his phone to the balcony and glanced down at the chat window.

Was the infirmary a secret base in her eyes?

He smiled unconsciously and opened her Moments.

Most of her posts were ordinary snippets of daily life, with a distinctly girlish style.

After looking for a while, he suddenly realized that he had spent far too much time focused on her. The feeling was beginning to slip beyond his control.

Ji Chiqian exited the messaging app and returned to the living room.

Lu Ning waited all day, but still received no reply.

Was he angry?

She did not dare send another message and disturb him. She would wait until her results came out on Monday.

Throughout the entire weekend, Lu Ning stayed home and reviewed her lessons.

Qin Xiang and her brothers did not return either. They stayed at the training camp.

——

Monday morning.

When Lu Ning went downstairs, she finally saw Qin Xiang and her brothers.

They were laughing and chatting together, evidently closer than before.

Lu Ning said nothing and went straight to the dining room to eat.

Lu Liu’s voice was mocking. “Your results come out today, don’t they?”

Lu Ning nodded. “Yes.”

“I advised you long ago to join the team. With grades like yours, you won’t get into any decent university anyway. Instead of wasting your time studying, you might as well start training to become a professional player. With the resources provided by the Lu family, it would only be a matter of time before you became famous. What a pity you didn’t cherish the opportunity. Now it can only go to Xiangxiang.”

Lu Ning remembered the humiliation she had suffered in her previous life when her place had been taken from her.

She answered calmly, “I don’t really care.”

After taking her breakfast from the dining room, Lu Ning turned and left the living room.

Seeing how little Lu Ning seemed to care, Lu Liu was furious. “I’ll be waiting to see what kind of ‘excellent results’ she gets. Hmph!”

Qin Xiang only relaxed after seeing that Lu Ning had not agreed to join the team.

She knew Lu Ning had a talent for gaming. If Lu Ning joined, wouldn’t that leave her without a place?

On the surface, however, she smiled and said, “Sixth Brother, don’t be angry. Sister Ning is only throwing a tantrum. Once she agrees to join the team, I’ll immediately give my spot to her.”

Lu Liu nodded in satisfaction. “You’re still the most sensible one!”

The smile on Qin Xiang’s face stiffened for a moment. Deep down, she was filled with resentment. She had been practicing games desperately during this period precisely to earn Sixth Brother’s approval.

Unfortunately, Sixth Brother still seemed to think Lu Ning was more capable.

Qin Xiang made up her mind. She would achieve results in the tournament and make Lu Liu give up completely on bringing Lu Ning into the team.

Lu Liu looked somewhat worried. The revival match was crucial. If they lost, they would have no chance left at all.

Although Qin Xiang was working hard, she simply lacked the talent for gaming. With only one month remaining before the revival match, her skill level was nowhere near sufficient.

To defeat that boy from the Ji family, they needed someone with real ability!

And now, Lu Ning was the only candidate.

Yet he could not bring himself to lower his pride and ask her.

All these years, Lu Ning had been the one constantly orbiting around him, cautiously and timidly trying to please him.

He had grown accustomed to that pattern between them, and for the moment, he could not adjust to anything else.

How long was Lu Ning going to keep throwing this tantrum?

Did she really have to force him to lower his head before she would be satisfied?