Chapter 291 - 288: A Wager About the Little Umbrella

Chapter 291: Chapter 288: A Wager About the Little Umbrella

The two of them slowly walked back to the university. As they passed the library, they saw many people with backpacks rushing inside.

"Finals are coming up. Do you still have a lot of classes?" Jiang Xia asked.

Lin Yanwan shook her head slightly. "Not really. We’re mostly in the review stage now. It’s all about self-discipline."

Normally, aside from her and Qiuting who had to run off to the company, Cui Jiaying and Si Si were pretty much always holed up in the library. Speaking of which, those two had gotten closer and closer, becoming practically inseparable.

"You’ll be able to pass your exams, right?" Jiang Xia said with a smile.

"Of course." Lin Yanwan tilted her chin up, full of confidence. ’Not only will I pass, I might even get high scores.’

Even though she was juggling classes and work, she wasn’t as busy as Jiang Xia. She almost never skipped class, always paid close attention during lectures, and meticulously completed her assignments.

In short, failing a class was impossible. Absolutely impossible.

Looking at his girlfriend’s fair, slender neck, Jiang Xia carefully adjusted her scarf. Even though it was a rare sunny day, the wind was still biting cold.

"What about you? You’ve skipped a lot of classes, haven’t you? You’d better not fail your finals, I’m telling you." Lin Yanwan wrinkled her nose cutely, her tone betraying a hint of worry.

"I should be fine," Jiang Xia said with a smile.

The first semester at the art academy was almost all theory. With his excellent memory, he wouldn’t fail even if he only answered the multiple-choice and true-or-false questions. He might not get a high score, but passing was more than guaranteed.

"If you dare fail, I’m telling on you!" she huffed.

"How about we make a bet? If my final grade is higher than yours, then we’ll..." Jiang Xia trailed off deliberately.

"Then we’ll what?"

"Honey, we still haven’t officially used those ’little umbrellas’ our parents gave us," he said, winking.

At his words, Lin Yanwan’s face flushed red. Using the "little umbrellas" meant consummating their relationship, crossing the point of no return. It would mean their relationship would go back to being as intimate as it once was.

They had been living together for over a month now, and she’d managed to keep her chastity only thanks to her firm willpower, refusing to be seduced by Jiang Xia’s silver tongue.

"Comrade Lin Yanwan, you’re not scared to take that bet, are you? I’ve skipped way more classes than you. If you lose, I’m definitely going to rub it in your face," Jiang Xia goaded.

"I know you’re just trying to provoke me, but... Hmph! You’re on!"

Lin Yanwan turned her head away with a flick. ’I spend way more time studying than Jiang Xia does. How could I possibly lose? I always got better grades than him back in school, and it’ll be the same now!’

"Then it’s a deal. Don’t you dare back out when you lose!" Jiang Xia chuckled to himself. ’It really is hard to get her to take the bait.’

"And if *you* lose, you can’t touch me until we’re married!" Lin Yanwan retorted, biting down on her lip.

"Deal."

Jiang Xia agreed instantly with a grin.

After having lunch together in the cafeteria, they went their separate ways back to their dorms. Jiang Xia had a class that afternoon.

Back in the dorm, only Qiuting was there, reading a book. Cui Jiaying and Si Si were gone, most likely off studying at the library again.

"Sister Yanwan, you’re back!" Qiuting looked happy to see Lin Yanwan open the door.

"Where are the other two?"

"They went to the library."

"How come you didn’t go with them?"

"It’s too crowded. I don’t like it," Qiuting said, sticking out her tongue.

Lin Yanwan nodded. Since getting her avatar, Qiuting’s social skills had improved significantly, but she still preferred peace and quiet by herself.

She took out her textbook, flipping to the page marked by her bookmark. After a moment’s thought, she asked, "Qiuting, is your work affecting your studies at all?"

"Not at all, Sister Yanwan. I’ve balanced my time for school and work properly," Qiuting said earnestly.

"That’s good. I was just worried you were losing the forest for the trees."

After all, if you fail a course, you can’t graduate on time and have to do make-up exams. Compared to a monthly paycheck, a diploma from Tsinghua University is far more important.

"Study hard for your exams, and whatever you do, don’t fail. Got it? Otherwise, I’ll have to take your job away," Lin Yanwan warned her in advance.

Qiuting stiffened and then nodded emphatically.

Last month, she’d been paid about 3,000 yuan. She sent 2,500 of it home, leaving herself just 500 for living expenses.

That amount wasn’t much in the Imperial Capital, but back in her hometown, it was a fortune.

At the time, her grandmother had even thought she’d done something illegal. It was only after Qiuting explained that it was her salary from working at a company that her grandmother breathed a sigh of relief.

She’d heard her grandmother laughing happily, saying, "See? Studying is the best. You have to study to earn the big bucks."

Her grandmother also told her to keep studying hard, just like before.

She took her grandmother’s words to heart. No matter what, she had to focus on her studies.

"Sister Yanwan, I’ll do well on my exams. Don’t you worry!"

「 」

When Jiang Xia got back to his dorm, he found everyone in Room 620B was there. Su Qing was grinding away on some original art, while Zhao Ning and Zhou Zijian were on his computer, debugging the website.

"Brother Jiang, take a look. What do you think of the official website?" Zhao Ning turned the monitor toward him, feeling a bit nervous.

He and Zhou Zijian had spent nearly two months pulling out all the stops. They had followed the product requirements Jiang Xia had given them and revised it countless times before finally producing the current version of the site.

"Let me see." Jiang Xia took the mouse, his interest piqued.

The landing page showed a celestial mountain floating amidst swirling clouds and mist, filling the entire browser window. A golden-hooped rod was planted in a pool in the center of the mountain. With a soft click of the mouse, the rod began to extend and thicken infinitely, sending the view soaring upward at incredible speed. After passing through countless layers of clouds, it finally came to rest in a vast, boundless sea of clouds.

The clouds were layered, and within each layer, a celestial palace could be seen faintly drifting. These were the Thirty-Three Heavens. The "Qitian" in their company’s name was a reference to being on par with these legendary Thirty-Three Heavens.

This was the homepage. Hovering the mouse over the drifting celestial palaces caused menu items to appear in sequence: Animation Products, Operations, Portfolio, Business Inquiries, About Qitian, Careers, and Company News.

Clicking on any of these sub-pages would transition to another sea of clouds brimming with a celestial aura, followed by a highly detailed section.

Of course, Jiang Xia had provided all the assets; Zhao Ning and Zhou Zijian had simply brought the animation effects he wanted to life.

"Nice. Very good."

Jiang Xia browsed through all the pages and was thoroughly satisfied with the final result. The site’s aesthetic wouldn’t look dated even a decade from now. In fact, in an era where a heavy, painterly 3D style was popular, it created a clear distinction between them and other similar companies.

"You two, bring your résumés and report to Qitian Animation tomorrow. From now on, the operation and maintenance of the company website is all yours."