Chapter 68 Some Motivation for Studying

Qin Luo ended up receiving a round of “loving education” from her mother without even knowing why.

However, having been “educated” since childhood, the child had developed a tough mindset. After the beating, upon learning that she didn’t have to go back to high school and could stay in Shanshi to attend the legendary elite international high school, she was so happy she ate two bowls of chicken soup noodles.

Qin Luo slurped her chicken soup noisily.

Qin Huai suspected that her enthusiasm for the chicken noodle soup was mainly for the broth—after all, Zheng Da had only left two pots of soup, and each bowl meant one less.

“Brother, is that elite international high school like the one in Meteor Garden? Where both boys and girls are extremely good-looking, wearing lots of bracelets, earrings, necklaces, and rings that all sparkle and shine, and even a random backpack costs several million?” Qin Luo asked with a look of longing.

Qin Huai poured brown sugar into the tangerine peel in the pot, sprinkled in a small pinch of salt, and replied speechlessly, “Which version of Meteor Garden did you watch? A backpack costing several million—what currency are you talking about?”

Qin Luo began to recall.

“Also, who told you Shuanghai High School is an elite international school? Where did the word ‘elite’ even come from? It’s a proper international high school. You still have to study there. Don’t think you can slack off just because you don’t have to go back to your old school. Here, both I, Mom, and Dad will be supervising you. Don’t waste the quota that Sister Hong’s brother secured for you.”

“If you only pass two subjects again in the monthly exam like you did in the entrance exam, guess whether Mom and Dad will let you eat pork buns and stuffed buns in the morning. Don’t look at me like that—crying won’t help. It really won’t help this time. You still haven’t even settled your previous meal debts. The wages I calculated for you over the summer still aren’t enough to cover your snack expenses.” Qin Huai’s face was filled with cold seriousness.

When Qin Luo was being “lovingly educated” by Zhao Rong, she hadn’t really felt like crying. Now, she genuinely felt like crying.

Qin Luo knew that time was running out for her.

She picked up her bowl, gulped down all the soup in one go—gurgling sounds filling the air—then even scooped up the remaining two pieces of greens at the bottom and ate them. Slamming the bowl onto the table, she took a deep breath and shouted:

“Brother, I want another bowl!”

“No.” Qin Huai ruthlessly refused.

He had already cooked the last two portions for her. If she wanted more, he’d have to knead dough again. Qin Huai declared that he was off duty and absolutely not going back to work.

He stirred the tangerine peel tea, nodded in satisfaction, and poured himself a steaming bowl to cool.

“If you’re still not full, drink some tangerine peel tea later. In August, it’s good for your health. A package I ordered has arrived and was already delivered to my doorstep. I’ll head home now. When Mom and Dad come over for dinner tonight, tell them. I won’t be eating at the cafeteria.”

“Stop playing with your watch too much,” Qin Huai reminded her one last time before leaving through the front door, stopping by a convenience store across the street to buy a grilled sausage and heading home while eating.

That left Qin Luo sitting sadly in the cafeteria, silently licking her bowl twice, lamenting how miserable her life was.

Indeed, Qin Huai had a package delivered.

The copy of The Classic of Mountains and Seas he ordered yesterday had arrived.

Same-city delivery was fast.

After returning home, Qin Huai began to seriously read The Classic of Mountains and Seas.

Although he didn’t think reading it would directly help complete his tasks—after all, the system’s illustrated compendium would eventually identify species—since Chen Huihong was a divine tree from this text, he felt it was still worth understanding.

It might help him communicate better if he encountered other divine plants or spirits in the future.

He felt that these plant spirits were a bit muddled—somewhat too carefree and disorganized.

Better to prepare just in case.

Qin Huai opened the book with full concentration and began reading from the first page:

“‘The beginning of the Southern Mountains Classic says…’”

Five minutes later, he felt like checking his phone.

Ten minutes later, he yawned and thought it was about time to sleep.

Even with a plain-language translation, the content was still… quite dull.

Qin Huai could only conclude that perhaps people of the Qin family simply weren’t naturally gifted at reading.

Qin Luo failing Chinese in the entrance exam couldn’t be entirely her fault.

Half an hour later, Qin Huai posted on his social media:

[The Classic of Mountains and Seas truly is a book worth studying] [tears] [tears] [tears]

Less than a minute after posting, Chen Huihong sent him a private message:

“Stop reading.”

“I can’t even stand reading this book.”

Qin Huai paused, then replied with two words:

“Alright.”

Can’t read it. Truly can’t read it.

—

The next morning, Qin Huai arrived at Yunzhong Cafeteria on time.

Today was a bit different from usual—when he arrived, Qin Luo was already in the dining hall wiping down the menu boards.

“Luo Luo, why did you wake up so early today?” Qin Huai asked in surprise. It was only 4 a.m.—normally she wouldn’t arrive until after 7 a.m. for breakfast.

“Brother, I’ve decided!” Qin Luo said seriously. “Starting today, I’m going to wake up early every day to memorize vocabulary and work hard!”

Qin Huai showed a look of approval.

“So I can burn more energy and be very hungry in the morning, meaning I can eat more pork buns and stuffed buns!”

Qin Huai: ?

“Then why didn’t you memorize vocabulary today?” he asked.

Qin Luo replied, “After setting my alarm and waking up, I realized I didn’t have any books.”

“I told Mom I’d use my phone to memorize words, but she didn’t believe me. She thinks I just want to secretly play on my phone. She’s going to take me to a bookstore this afternoon to buy books. Only with books can I study.”

Qin Huai suddenly understood why Qin Luo used to wake up early to memorize English words, consistently performing exceptionally well in English—so much so that they sometimes suspected she had copied her results.

“Buy some Chinese books too,” Qin Huai sincerely advised. “If not, at least get composition books. Memorize more good essays to improve your scores.”

“Also, I made chicken soup yesterday afternoon. I’ll make chicken noodle soup for you again today.”

After saying that, Qin Huai changed clothes and went into the kitchen. He kneaded dough and cooked a steaming bowl of chicken noodles for Qin Luo.

Not long after, the chicken noodles were ready.

[Longevity Noodles C- Rank]

Qin Huai felt that perhaps what he really needed to improve was his soup-making.

Before, without comparison, he didn’t think much of it. But after getting used to Zheng Da’s broth recently, seeing his own now…

Zheng Da’s skills were indeed worth learning from.

Qin Huai took out his phone and sent him a message:

“Master Zheng, do you have any tips for making broth that you could share with me? I really need your help, thank you [shy]”

After sending the message, he continued working.

There were still the usual items: three-delicacy buns, five-delicacy buns, and fermented rice buns.

Seeing that Qin Luo was willing to wake up early and study just to eat more, Qin Huai, as her brother, naturally couldn’t fall behind. He had to keep her motivated.

He felt that even these items weren’t enough to sustain her through three years of high school. He needed something new—something she hadn’t eaten before, but would definitely love.

Preferably something with a story behind it—something Qin Luo could show off on social media or send to her friend He Cheng to brag about.

What should it be?

Qin Huai searched his memory, recalling pastries he had once discussed with Zheng Siyuan.

Got it.

Yuanmeng Shaobing.