Chapter 149: Choice? Let’s Go to Jinling Together

Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Choice? Let’s Go to Jinling Together

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—

A knock sounded at the door.

Having just finished her chores, Chen Dongmei was sitting down on the living room sofa when she heard the noise. Puzzled, she got up to open the door.

CLICK~

The door opened. When Chen Dongmei saw the mother-daughter pair, Ye Wanqing and Han Ning, standing at the entrance, she said in surprise, "Oh, Wanqing and Xiaoning’er! What brings you two here?"

"Well, I heard from Xiaoning’er that Yifan made you proud by becoming the top scorer in the college entrance exam. I’ve been wanting to come and congratulate you for a while now, but I knew you’d be busy with all the commotion this morning, so I didn’t want to disturb you. That’s why I’ve delayed until now! Hehehe..."

Ye Wanqing said with a smile.

"Oh, honestly~"

"Wanqing, listen to you! There’s no need to be so formal between our two families."

"Quick, come in and have a seat!"

Chen Dongmei waved her hand and said with a smile.

She then welcomed the two of them inside.

"Wanqing, make yourselves at home. I’ll go brew a pot of tea!"

Chen Dongmei offered.

With that, she got up to boil water for tea. While she was doing so, Ye Wanqing casually asked, "Dongmei, where’s that boy Yifan? How come I don’t see him?"

"Oh, that rascal Yifan? He went out this afternoon. Said something about going for milk tea with his classmates!"

Chen Dongmei replied casually as she filled the kettle. "You know how it is. Ever since that rascal finished the exam, he’s never home. He’s either out with his friends or off traveling!"

"Ah, well, he’s a boy. It’s normal for them to be a bit wild!"

"Besides, he just finished his exams. It’s understandable that he wants to relax a bit!"

Ye Wanqing said with a smile.

"Oh, I know. That’s why as long as he’s not causing trouble, I can’t be bothered to nag him about it!" Chen Dongmei said after returning with the water.

...

After some small talk, Ye Wanqing and Chen Dongmei started talking about filling out college applications.

"Dongmei, you’ve got it so good! You don’t have to worry about applications at all. With schools like Qingbei and the ones in Hushang, that boy Yifan could probably get in with his eyes closed! And I heard that universities always contact the top scorers in advance. Has anyone contacted Yifan yet?" Ye Wanqing took a sip of her tea, asking as if it were an idle thought.

"Ugh, Wanqing, don’t even get me started!" Chen Dongmei said, shaking her head.

"Hm?"

Ye Wanqing paused, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Sigh, it’s nothing major. You were right, Qingbei did call and contact us. The offers they made were excellent, too!"

Chen Dongmei sighed, her voice tinged with helplessness. "It’s just that Gu Yifan, that rascal, turned them all down!"

"What?"

Hearing this, Ye Wanqing was dumbfounded.

’What kind of crazy move is that?’

’Are there even better schools in the country than Qingbei???’

She honestly couldn’t understand this move from Gu Yifan at all!

It wasn’t just her. Han Ning, standing to the side, was also baffled.

’Gu Yifan rejected Qingbei?’

The mother and daughter exchanged a look, their eyes filled with utter astonishment.

Ye Wanqing then voiced the question on both their minds, "Wait, Dongmei, are there really better universities in China than Qingbei?"

"Right?!"

"I have no idea what that rascal is thinking!"

Chen Dongmei said helplessly.

"So if he rejected all those schools, where is Yifan planning to go?"

Ye Wanqing thought for a moment before asking, "Is he planning to study abroad?"

"Uh..."

Chen Dongmei shook her head. "He’s not planning to go abroad. His father and I asked him if he wanted to study overseas back at the beginning of his senior year, and he rejected the idea without a second thought."

"Then... which school is Yifan planning to apply to?"

Ye Wanqing asked, still in a daze.

"Jinling."

Chen Dongmei forced out the single word with a look of resignation.

"..."

Just like Wang Zibo at the milk tea shop earlier, the mother and daughter’s first reaction was: ’Are there any good universities in Jinling?’

Ye Wanqing and Han Ning looked at each other, their eyes blank with confusion.

They simply couldn’t make sense of Gu Yifan’s choice!

...

"Brother Fan, Sister-in-law Qinghe, what school and major do you think I should apply for?"

At the milk tea shop, Wang Zibo asked Gu Yifan and Su Qinghe.

"That depends on where you want to go,"

Gu Yifan said.

He didn’t make the decision for Wang Zibo. Even though they were close childhood friends, choosing a university was something he had to decide for himself. The most Gu Yifan could do was offer some advice on choosing a major.

"Uh..."

"I don’t know either! My score is a bit awkward, after all."

Wang Zibo said with a helpless tone.

It was true.

Wang Zibo had scored a 538. The score was stuck in an awkward middle ground. It was difficult to get into a good Tier 1 university, but he was reluctant to settle for a Tier 2. It was definitely an awkward position.

But then again, this score was already a result of him performing far better than usual. Based on his previous grades, he would have been lucky to scrape by into a Tier 2 university. If his luck had been a little worse and he’d flubbed the exam even slightly, he might have ended up in a vocational college.

Gu Yifan shook his head, took a sip of his milk tea, and didn’t say much more, letting Wang Zibo think it over for himself.

"How about... Brother Fan, I’ll just go to Jinling with you guys? That way we can be close to each other!"

Wang Zibo said after a moment of contemplation.

"Hm?"

Gu Yifan paused for a second.

If he remembered correctly, the Wang Zibo of his past life had stayed in Mountain City and attended a Tier 3 university. But now, because of his own choice to go to Jinling...

’It seems the gears of fate began to turn the moment I was reborn!’

"Sure! As long as you’ve thought it through."

Gu Yifan thought for a moment and nodded.

"Ah~"

"Honestly, it’s all the same to me wherever I go. I know exactly what I’m worth. If it weren’t for you and Sister-in-law Qinghe cramming lessons into my head for the past few months, there’s no way I would’ve gotten this score. Besides, this score was just me getting ridiculously lucky and performing way above my level!"

"So there’s nothing more to think about! I’ll go to Jinling with you and Brother Fan!"

Wang Zibo declared.

Seeing this, Gu Yifan didn’t say any more. He nodded. "Alright, since you’ve made up your mind, then apply to a school in Jinling."

"Yeah, yeah..."

"So, Brother Fan, which school can I get into with my score?"

Wang Zibo asked.

"Jinling Institute of Technology," Gu Yifan said flatly.

[Note: This is a fictional story. Do not apply it to reality or argue about the details.]

"Jinling Institute of Technology?"

"That’s right."

Gu Yifan nodded. "It’s in the university town right next to Jinling University. Even though it’s a Tier 2 university, it’s one of the top Tier 2 schools in the country, no worse than an average Tier 1."

"Oh, okay!"

Wang Zibo nodded. "Then, Brother Fan, what major do you think would be good for me?"

"What are you interested in?" Gu Yifan glanced at him.

"Huh?"

Wang Zibo was caught off guard. He thought for a moment and said weakly, "Um... does playing video games count?"

Gu Yifan: "..."