Li Weiyi’s third day of her second transmigration passed calmly and uneventfully. Because both she and Zhang Jingchan had to return to school for classes.
Around 5 PM, Zhang Jingchan called her to meet at a café.
At this hour, there weren’t many people in the café. Zhang Jingchan was wearing his school uniform with sleeves rolled up to his elbows, sitting with an expansive, commanding posture. The moment Li Weiyi saw him, she had the impulse to bow down and call him “Big Sister.”
Zhang Jingchan said: “You sit at the table behind the screen. I’ve arranged to meet your parents—they’ll be here soon.”
“A special meeting to talk?”
“Don’t you want to listen?”
Naturally, she did. Li Weiyi offered up a fawning smile: “Zhang Zong is so thoughtful.”
Zhang Jingchan placed one arm on the table and crooked his index finger in a beckoning gesture.
Li Weiyi obediently leaned forward.
Zhang Jingchan’s expression was very calm. He curled his index finger and flicked her forehead—not too light, not too heavy, not painful.
Li Weiyi covered her forehead: “What are you doing?”
Zhang Jingchan acted as if he had done nothing at all, continuing to drink his tea without explanation.
Li Weiyi felt that this person was actually somewhat different from what she had imagined before.
Before long, Father Li and Mother Li walked into the café. With the screen blocking them, they only saw their daughter alone.
Father Li and Mother Li were very puzzled: “Weiyi, why did you call Mom and Dad to come here? Don’t you have evening self-study?”
Zhang Jingchan: “Tomorrow is the monthly exam, so they let us out early—no evening self-study. I have very important things to say to you, related to my life and future.”
Father Li and Mother Li showed somewhat panicked expressions.
Their reaction made Zhang Jingchan soften his tone somewhat. He said: “These years, you’ve raised me, taken care of me, and given me a good living and learning environment. I’ve also worked very hard, wanting to get into a good university and not disappoint your expectations. But I’ve been thinking about which path is better, more suitable for me.”
Father Li and Mother Li: “…”
Wait, their usually carefree and careless daughter suddenly became so steady and mature—it was as if her brain had been switched out?
Mother Li: “Daughter, what’s wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”
Father Li: “Have you encountered some difficulty? Mom and Dad just want you to get into a good university and have a good job in the future. You… don’t overthink things and stress yourself out too much.”
Zhang Jingchan: “…”
Generally, for this kind of rational, systematic conversation, he wasn’t quite accustomed to being interrupted. He ignored their digression, supporting his slightly rounded small chin with the back of his hand, his eyes pitch-black and calm, continuing at his own pace: “Do you know what the average salary is for a typical undergraduate graduate these days?”
“How much?”
“Four to six thousand.”
Father Li and Mother Li exchanged glances. It was a bit lower than expected, but still acceptable.
“Generally, young people will have several paths ahead. I’m a person without ambition and with a soft personality, so the possibility of entrepreneurship is ruled out.”
Li Weiyi let out a soft snort.
He continued: “The second path: working for someone. Every day, leaving early and returning late, high pressure, overtime, staying up late. I heard that many young people nowadays die from overwork and even get cancer—I don’t want to live such a low-quality life. Moreover, I’m fairly cute-looking, delicate and petite, so I’m very vulnerable to workplace harassment and hidden rules.”
He took a sip of tea and lightly uttered three words: “I’m afraid.”
Li Weiyi: …
Big Boss, look at yourself—do you look like someone who’s afraid?
Moreover, she had worked for three years and had never been subjected to workplace harassment—not even the slightest bit of workplace harassment! Her male supervisors only wanted her to work herself to death. In their eyes, she had no gender—she was just a work donkey!
Still, she really wanted to laugh. Zhang Jingchan actually said he was cute, delicate, and petite. But she immediately realized he was describing her body, so she had no qualms about it.
Li Weiyi pursed her lips. Screw you, you straight man.
Mother Li: “Weiyi, hearing you say this, Mom is so worried. These things… we don’t understand them either.”
Zhang Jingchan, having casually frightened them, didn’t continue the topic. Instead, he took out several paintings from his backpack and placed them in front of them: “These are my recent artwork. Take a look.”
Li Weiyi peeked through the gaps in the screen, not expecting that last night he had found all these from her room.
“Aren’t they pretty good?” he asked.
Father Li and Mother Li didn’t understand art, but they could still tell good from bad, and quickly nodded.
Zhang Jingchan: “Yesterday, the art teacher helped me photograph the paintings and sent them to a well-known professor at the China Academy of Art. The professor said I’m very talented, and upon hearing about my academic performance in cultural subjects, strongly welcomed me to apply. This is the professor’s reply message that the teacher forwarded to me. You can read it yourselves.”
Li Weiyi was momentarily stunned.
Father Li and Mother Li carefully read through the message. Even they had heard of the prestigious name of the China Academy of Art. Moreover, this was a prominent professor—someone they would never encounter in their lifetime.
Mother Li broke into a smile: “Does that mean… you have a high chance of getting into the China Academy of Art?”
“Of course.”
Father Li frowned: “But then you’d have to become an art specialty student, right?” Mother Li immediately became conflicted as well.
Li Weiyi’s heart tightened—in the eyes of her rule-following parents, there was prejudice against studying art. They felt that only people who weren’t good at studying went into specialty tracks.
Zhang Jingchan leaned back, was about to cross his legs but stopped halfway, and said: “Do you know how many university students are graduating this year?”
Both shook their heads.
“Over six million, nearly seven million. This number will increase every year. By the time I graduate from university, it will exceed ten million, making jobs even harder to find. Our family has no power or influence. I’m foolish and don’t understand how to navigate interpersonal relationships. By then, I’m afraid I won’t find a good job. If I can barely support myself, how will I support my brother-in-law?”
Father Li and Mother Li showed embarrassed expressions. Father Li: “Don’t talk nonsense!” Mother Li: “Why are you bringing that up again? Mom and Dad already said to let your sister break up with that person…”
Li Weiyi was overjoyed. Overnight, why had her parents already switched sides? She understood—it must be that Zhang Jingchan had done something. So the illustrious Zhang Zong also had a knack for sabotage.
Li Weiyi suddenly felt a sense of kindred spirits.
“Learning to paint is different.” Zhang Jingchan changed tack. “Having a specialized skill, as long as I’m willing to work hard, I’ll never go hungry in the future. My income might even be higher than ordinary graduates. The professor said that now is the internet age, and in the future, the demand for such talent will grow. I can do illustration, movie posters, or work as a designer at an animation company. If you hope for stability, with my academic performance in cultural subjects, I can pursue a master’s and doctorate in the future and stay at the Academy as a teacher—that wouldn’t be difficult. Even if things go slightly worse, becoming an art teacher at a high school would suit me well.”
These last few sentences hit home with the parents. Both quickly nodded: “That would work!”
Li Weiyi was stunned. She hadn’t expected that regarding the future, he had thought even more than she had, and more concretely.
Zhang Jingchan: “So this matter is settled then?”
Father Li and Mother Li: “Ah?”
Mother Li had been completely won over, her eyes smiling and bright. Father Li was still hesitating: “But even if you don’t become an art specialty student, you can still pursue graduate studies and a doctorate in the future, and stay at a university as a teacher…”
Zhang Jingchan lowered his eyelids: “My current grades only rank 72nd in the grade. Once at university, only the very top students have a possibility of staying on as faculty.”
Li Weiyi: “…”