Obsessive Tycoon and His Swan Girl
Chapter 317 She Also Came to the Exam

Chapter 317: Chapter 317 She Also Came to the Exam

"Xiruo, I see you’re growing some vegetables and stuff on your own?" Mrs. Xia asked.

"Just some trifles I play around with."

"How about this, I’ll clear out a room specifically for you to use. It’s the room Xingzhi used to tinker with his little projects, but he’s long since abandoned it. It’s not that I’m worried you’ll cause any problems in your room; having a dedicated space is simply more convenient."

Xiruo understood her meaning and thanked her, "Then thank you, elder sister-in-law."

"It’s nothing, we’re all family." Mrs. Xia then turned to Jiang Zhe, "Xiaozhe?"

"Aunt," Jiang Zhe responded politely.

"Actually, our family and the second branch have never really lived or dined together, and we seldom see each other. But since the elder lady fell ill, there has been more frequent interactions, and inevitably we’ll end up spending more extended time together. Be accommodating, if you would."

Jiang Zhe’s eyebrows rose slightly, "I am the one imposing."

Mrs. Xia was very fond of this child, and she said with a smile, "Even when the elder lady’s health improves, you should still come over and hang out often."

"I will."

The next morning, Mrs. Xia had someone clear out that room for Jiang Xiruo’s use.

Upon seeing the room being cleared, Xingzhi asked about it.

"It’s the mistress who said to make it available for the third lady’s use."

"Good, take good care of it. Also check with the third aunt and the two younger sisters to see if they need anything else; help them get everything they need without neglecting anything," Xingzhi had no objections.

In the morning, the entire extended family also dined together.

There were just two more young children present, a boy and a girl, who both appeared to be around Jiang Zhe and Xia Enci’s age.

"These are my maternal niece and nephew, Li Ran and Li Qian," the second Mrs. Xia introduced, "They are also here to take the independent recruitment exam at Beijing University. They’re just temporarily living on the outside here."

Before she had made excuses to prevent Jiang Xiruo from staying with the second branch, claiming that Xia Mingzhu had friends coming over for exams and there was no room.

Now they had to actually have someone stay to keep up appearances.

Serendipitously, her niece and nephew were taking exams, so she just had them come over to stay.

Even though they actually lived in Beijing, after all, it wasn’t as convenient as the Xia family’s proximity to Beijing University.

Li Ran and Li Qian greeted everyone.

Mrs. Xia said with a smile, "Then you two do well on your exams."

Second Mrs. Xia said, "I will have the driver take you two later. By the way, Jiang Zhe, shall we have you sent as well?"

Jiang Zhe said evenly, "No need."

Second Mrs. Xia hadn’t really intended to send her, and seeing that Jiang Zhe was not interested, she didn’t care either and told the driver to take good care of Li Ran and Li Qian.

Xia Mingli and Xia Mingzhu were the first to finish their meal, putting down their bowls and leaving.

Jiang Zhe also stood up and left after finishing her meal.

She happened to run into Xingzhi holding car keys as he came over.

"Jiang Zhe," he approached, "I heard from my mother that you’re going to the exam?"

"Yes," Jiang Zhe glanced at her wristwatch.

She’d said she didn’t want Qin Jingchen to give her a ride, so she’d gotten up early on purpose; there was plenty of time.

"I happen to be going the same way, let me give you a lift," Xingzhi said, with his harmless and restrained demeanor, giving off a very approachable vibe.

Jiang Zhe didn’t refuse, "Thanks."

While driving, Xingzhi said, "We have plenty of guest rooms on our side. You can stay if you want to, without worrying about what others think."

It was clear that this mother and son duo did indeed feel apologetic about the recent events.

Although they didn’t really owe Jiang Zhe and Jiang Xiruo anything.

"I will, thank you."

"By the way, since you are in Beijing for the independent recruitment exam, do you have any majors in mind?" Xingzhi asked.

From just the brief interaction the night before, he was already taking a keen interest in Xia Enci and Jiang Zhe.

He had already had a brief conversation with Xia Enci and knew that her grades were very stable, but he was a bit worried upon hearing about Jiang Zhe’s performance.

"There isn’t any for now, we’ll see about it later."

Seeing Jiang Zhe was unwilling to elaborate, Xia Xingzhi did not press further and dropped her off at the school entrance.

Ding Xuexue got out of the car as well and noticed that Jiang Zhe arrived in an ordinary sedan, thinking to herself that indeed Qin Jingchen hadn’t brought her and that their relationship seemed to be indeed a fleeting one.

Her thoughts were actually quite contradictory, the bad things concerning Jiang Zhe were because Qin Jingchen didn’t care about her, yet all the good things about Jiang Zhe were helped along by Qin Jingchen.

However, Ding Xuexue herself wasn’t aware of this at all.

Ding Yuehua, who personally drove Ding Xuexue, also saw Jiang Zhe.

"Jiang Zhe is here for the exam?" Ding Yuehua inquired.

Jiang Zhe, hearing this, just gave her a glance.

Ding Yuehua laughed slightly, "Xuexue is familiar with this place, if you need any help, just ask Xuexue."

She was still very wary of Qin Jingchen behind Jiang Zhe.

"Yes, ask me anytime," Ding Xuexue timely showed her magnanimity.

"No need," Jiang Zhe dropped these two words and turned to leave.

"What kind of person is this," Ding Xuexue couldn’t help but complain.

"With her kind of person," she said, "relying on Young Master Qin’s power, she can only manage to rise momentarily. In the future, she couldn’t possibly have much more. You just focus on your exam, don’t end up like her."

...

After Jiang Zhe went on, she received a message from Gao Qiao.

"I won’t come to accompany you into the exam room personally, give it a try and see where the limit of these questions is, and if there’s anything that needs to be improved."

Gao Qiao didn’t come looking for her in person to avoid any conflict of interest.

"Alright," Jiang Zhe replied with a word.

The procedure for the independent enrollment exam was very strict, consistent with the college entrance examination.

Bags and cell phones were left outside; only the admission ticket and pen could be taken in.

After Jiang Zhe entered, she flipped through the exam paper.

What made her comfortable was that all the questions on the exam paper were even-numbered; there wasn’t a single odd-numbered one.

Even for Chinese language, there was one essay question paired with one small composition for free writing.

Pleased with the exam paper, Jiang Zhe’s writing was especially fast.

Soon, she had completed the exam paper.

When it was finally time to hand in the paper, she did so.

Only forty minutes had passed.

After turning in the paper, she walked towards the school gate.

She happened to encounter Xia Mingzhu returning to the school for business and saw her.

Xia Mingzhu looked at the time in surprise and then at Jiang Zhe to confirm it was her.

A teacher nearby, noticing her reaction, asked, "Mingzhu, do you know that examinee?"

Xia Mingzhu was the teacher’s beloved student, now a graduate student and also assisting at the Aerospace Research Institute; a word from her could bring many benefits to Jiang Zhe.

Moreover, she had the privilege to recommend students to her teacher.

However, she wasn’t about to speak on behalf of Jiang Zhe.

Hearing the teacher’s question, she shook her head, "I don’t know her."

"Oh, the questions in this independent exam are quite difficult; several teachers are keen to pick the best among the best students. Some students definitely haven’t been through a situation like this, afraid they got intimidated and stumped by the questions as soon they went in."

That’s why they came out early.