Special effects from donations flooded the two large screens in the live stream:
[User @BridalGift(CaiLi)CPShipper]has gifted Fantasy Castle ×10
[User @EducationBureauObserver]has gifted Leaping Koi Dragon Gate ×99
[User @AerospacePropulsionInstitute]has gifted Cosmic Rocket ×50
...
Li Xiang looked up at Jiang Cai’Er, who was the center of everyone’s adoration. The luster of the jade hairpin in her hair seemed more dazzling than any crown.
When the live stream ended, Li Xiang reviewed the data in the backend and discovered several emails from the special admissions offices of top universities in his private messages. However, while these universities were good—Project 985 institutions, even—Jiang Cai’Er most likely wouldn’t be interested in them.
Li Xiang hadn’t organized this live stream purely for the money; he also wanted to bring fame to his hometown’s County No. 1 High School.
After all, while the high school’s official account had also been streaming, its number of online viewers was a far cry from Li Xiang’s. With over fifty million followers and the military rank of Major, Li Xiang had already become a legendary figure.
Normally, many official media outlets wanted to interview him, but Li Xiang politely declined them all. The details surrounding how he had earned his military honors, in particular, were still classified, so he couldn’t say much about it.
Jiang Cai’Er’s poem went viral online, and the high school’s coming-of-age ceremony and pep rally became trending topics. The student body of County No. 1 High, however, paid no attention, completely immersed in their intense final review sessions.
The college entrance exams were fast approaching. Even the ever-confident Jiang Cai’Er had settled down these past few days to review her lessons. She no longer secretly "jumped the wall" at night to surf the internet.
What surprised Li Xiang about this live stream was that his biggest supporter, Top Aunt, hadn’t come online. Still, gifting was a gesture of goodwill; he couldn’t force her to always support him, especially since it involved real gold and silver.
But he would always remember Top Aunt’s kindness. ’Her support when I was just starting out was more than enough,’ he thought.
After some thought, Li Xiang picked out some things from his stash of European specialties that a middle-aged woman might like, including quite a few luxury items, and had them sent to Top Aunt.
When Luo Feifei received them, she just laughed and regifted them to her mother and their nanny. ’How would things for a middle-aged woman suit a young girl like her?’ she mused.
The peach trees in the backyard were already bearing fuzzy, unripe fruit, the largest of which were the size of eggs. Li Xiang picked one to try and found it surprisingly crisp, sour, and refreshing.
Ripe, juicy peaches were certainly delicious, but these green, fuzzy ones had their own unique flavor.
While he was doing farm work in the vegetable garden, the small animals played around him. The few pepper plants, having been "tended to" by Zhao Xueqing, had grown taller and more robust, with lush leaves and an abundance of fruit.
A single one of these "pepper trees" could probably yield dozens of pounds of peppers.
Li Xiang picked a raw pepper, took a bite, and chewed it slowly. A faint, sweet fragrance cut through the fiery heat, and it was much juicier than a dried chili. It tasted great. Seeing this, the little tabby cat leaped over, pounced, and "caught" a small pepper swaying in the breeze, then took a big bite just like Li Xiang had.
"You can eat this too?" Li Xiang asked in amazement. But before he could finish his thought, the little tabby cat started wailing, "MEOW, MEOW," hopping up and down before running to the Overlapping Waterfall to frantically lap up water.
"Haha, you little glutton," Li Xiang said, leaving it to its own devices.
Although the days were leisurely, Li Xiang never slacked off in his cultivation. The Spiritual Power in his body grew increasingly dense. Several times, he felt like he couldn’t hold it back and was on the verge of a breakthrough, but he kept using the "Suppression" technique to hold it in, continuing to solidify his foundation.
「In the blink of an eye, the college entrance exams, a source of anxiety for students and parents across the country, had arrived.」
A day in advance, Li Xiang went to the best hotel in the county and booked the finest suite. He then placed an order with a familiar neighboring restaurant, arranging for them to deliver three meals a day to the hotel room and stressing that they must not be late.
During the exam period, Jiang Cai’Er would be staying here. Originally, she had planned to stay with her classmates, but she couldn’t resist Li Xiang’s enthusiasm and moved in.
Li Xiang stayed in the adjacent room.
The hotel wasn’t far from the exam site—about a twenty-minute walk, which was an easy stroll for the two of them given their physical fitness. Walking might even be faster than driving, as traffic would likely be congested during the exam period, and the roads near the site would be subject to traffic control, making them inaccessible to cars.
Jiang Jianguo and Aunt Jiang came for a visit. Seeing how thoughtful Li Xiang was in taking care of everything, they felt relieved.
As for whether the two would do anything inappropriate, Mr. and Mrs. Jiang were not worried. The college entrance exam was a major life event, and Li Xiang had always been sensible and knew his limits. He would never mess around at such a critical time.
The meals Li Xiang ordered were sumptuous, with a good balance of meat and vegetables, fresh-squeezed juice, and even a Spirit Fruit platter for after the meal. Of course, the Spirit Fruit wasn’t part of the hotel’s order; it was a little after-meal dessert he had specially prepared for Jiang Cai’Er.
「Three days passed in a flash.」 When the final exam ended and Jiang Cai’Er came out, Li Xiang asked in a low voice, "About what score do you think you’ll get?"
Jiang Cai’Er replied with a grin, "Around 748, I guess."
Li Xiang nodded, relieved. If Jiang Cai’Er said so, then it was a sure thing. As for why it wasn’t a perfect score, Li Xiang figured she had intentionally controlled her score to prevent people from thinking she was too freakishly smart to be human.
In truth, scoring 748 was already not something a normal person could do.
Although they were speaking quietly, the area outside the exam site was packed with parents. A few of them overheard Jiang Cai’Er. One of the women couldn’t help but sneer, "This girl sure likes to talk big, doesn’t she?"
Another man added, "If we’re just bragging, I could say my son is getting a perfect score. Anyone can do that."
While Jiang Cai’Er was a star at her school, the school rarely promoted her publicly, so many parents naturally didn’t know who she was. As for Li Xiang, he was a B-list celebrity of sorts and quite famous locally, but since he was wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask today, not many people noticed him.
The Sun was brutally hot, and many people had their faces completely covered, especially the women, some of whom wore special ice-silk sun masks and sleeve covers.
Jiang Cai’Er wasn’t afraid of the sun, nor did she tan. The two ignored the snide remarks from the parents and left the exam site hand in hand.
They had already checked out of the hotel room. Finding a deserted spot, they used Earth Escape to return home.
That evening, Li Xiang prepared a sumptuous banquet at home. It was a lavish feast of delicacies from land and sea, with a free selection of high-end red and white wines. He invited Jiang Cai’Er’s family over, and they all enjoyed another "reunion dinner" together to celebrate the successful completion of her exams.
A rather important "Chapter" of her life had come to a close.
Many families did the same, celebrating the end of the exams with a huge meal. However, in quite a few other families, the children would get sick right after returning home with colds or fevers. They were likely exhausted in both body and mind, having been sustained only by sheer willpower. Once the exams were over, their bodies gave out, and their parents’ hearts would naturally ache for them.
Some would have a delayed "onset" a few days later, which was the "post-exam syndrome" caused by the sudden release of pressure leading to overindulgence.
Every year, a considerable number of students experienced this, leading to a peak in student hospital visits after the exams.
It was mainly caused by psychological stress, changes in lifestyle habits, environmental shifts, and improper diet. But at its core, it all stemmed from a weakened immune system due to a long period of high-intensity studying.
Jiang Cai’Er was a Tier Three Transcendent with an insanely powerful Superpower, so of course, none of this would happen to her. Li Xiang wasn’t worried about her at all.
After dinner and hanging out for a while, Jiang Cai’Er went home with her parents. But as she was leaving, the two of them exchanged a look. Everything was understood without a word.
Jiang Cai’Er bathed, changed her clothes, and went to bed early without even touching her phone. Her parents just assumed she was exhausted from the exams and needed a good rest, so they didn’t disturb her.
Just after midnight, Jiang Cai’Er felt a pull and secretly slipped out. Sure enough, Brother Xiang was waiting for her in the yard.
They had an agreement to start Dual Cultivation after the exams ended. Although neither of them had brought it up over the past few days, it had been on both of their minds.
About an hour later, the two appeared on a deserted island in the Indian Ocean. The water here was crystal clear, the sand soft and fine, and a few coconut trees dotted the island, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene.