Volume One, Chapter 11: The Daughter Is the Female Lead in a CEO Romance Novel

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“Ruoxue, it’s been such a long time since we’ve climbed a mountain together. Let’s go hiking later—I’ve already made all the arrangements,” Shiyan said, unusually not asking for Ruoxue’s opinion.

“Okay.”

After breakfast, the father and daughter changed into their hiking gear and headed out by car.

This time, Shiyan didn’t call the driver; he was driving himself. Today was their special time just for the two of them.

Watching the car next to them pull away, Shentingyu wanted to chase after them but was held back by his mother. She shook her head and gave him a meaningful look.

“Uncle Jiang can take good care of Ruoxue; you don’t need to worry. Besides, you’re not going to training camp anymore, so it’s perfect—you can stay home and look after your younger brother.”

Shentingyu had anticipated that Shiyan would inform the teacher and that Ruoxue wouldn’t continue attending the math Olympiad training over the next few days. So he also called the teacher in charge to withdraw from the training.

“Brother!” Shentingzhuo’s winter vacation had started a few days ago. Like Shentingyu, he attended Morian International School, but he was in the elementary division.

“Brother, let’s play chess together?” Shentingzhuo approached holding a chessboard, tugging at Shentingyu’s sleeve.

He had recently become fascinated with international chess and even signed up for the school’s chess trial class.

At Morian International School, every student could sign up for any interest class they wanted to try each month.

Currently, courses included oil painting, military experience, car maintenance, and more.

To ensure the best experience, these interest classes were usually small, no more than eight students.

“Okay.” Shentingyu took the chessboard from Shentingzhuo’s hands, and the two brothers walked toward the table together.

*

After driving for over an hour, Shiyan and Jiang Ruoxue arrived at the parking lot at the foot of the mountain.

They had come to a well-developed mountain with relatively complete infrastructure.

When Shiyan and Ruoxue arrived, many cars were already parked.

“Looks like quite a few people are hiking today!” Shiyan put on his sunglasses and hat, then set up his collapsible hiking pole.

“Yunqing Mountain is scenic, and the weather is so good today. It’s normal for many people to come hiking, especially since there’s a rather renowned Taoist temple up there,” Ruoxue said, tying her hair with a hairband.

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She stretched her joints, preparing for the upcoming climb.

“Dad, how many hours do you think it will take us to reach the summit this time?”

“I think it’ll take about three hours round trip. After all, this time there’s no little kid for me to carry,” Shiyan teased.

Yunqing Mountain wasn’t very high nor particularly steep. However, to reach the temple atop, one had to climb a long flight of stairs. Overall, it was very suitable for daily exercise, and many families came here for outings.

“Dad! Wasn’t I just a kid back then?” Ruoxue pouted, somewhat displeased.

Bringing up old grievances!

“Ruoxue, let’s see who gets to the top first. The one who arrives second has to treat the other to lunch,” Shiyan said as he started walking uphill, showing no intention of waiting for Ruoxue.

“No way!” Ruoxue quickly hurried to catch up.

*

City No. 1 High School.

After returning home last night, Chen Rui still couldn’t get Shentingyu out of her mind. She wanted to find out more about him but realized she didn’t even know his name.

“If it weren’t for that girl yesterday, he would’ve definitely told me his name, maybe even given me his contact info.”

“It’s all that girl’s fault. Was it necessary? Just because I don’t have as much money as her, she said nothing and just walked away rudely, no manners at all,” Chen Rui said, resting her chin on her hands and staring at the pencil case on her desk.

“What’s his name?” Chen Rui lightly fiddled with the doll keychain hanging from her pencil case.

“The teacher’s here.” Chen Rui’s deskmate whispered in her ear. Chen Rui immediately opened her Chinese textbook and pretended to recite.

Chen Rui glanced toward the door and the blackboard but didn’t see the teacher. She breathed a sigh of relief and patted her chest twice.

“What are you doing? You scared me! I thought Thanos really came,” her deskmate joked.

Their Chinese teacher was also their homeroom teacher, jokingly nicknamed “Thanos” by the students.

“What were you thinking about just now? You were so lost in thought and kept flashing a shy smile. Who were you thinking about?” her deskmate pinched her cheek.

“None of your business.” Chen Rui buried her face in the book, clearly hiding something. Anyone could tell she was guilty.

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“Come on, who is it? Why is our beautiful Chen girl hiding it from us?” her deskmate placed both hands on Chen Rui’s arms and shook her gently.

“He’s not from our school,” Chen Rui whispered, barely audible.

If her deskmate hadn’t been so close, she wouldn’t have heard her at all.

“Could it be one of those who came for the math Olympiad training?” The training camp was held at their school this year—it was common knowledge. If he wasn’t from their school, he must be from another school participating in the training.

“Probably. I saw Fang Hao talking to him,” Chen Rui nodded.

“Those who attend the Olympiad training are top students: Xu Jiali from No. 2 High, Ren Feng from No. 5, Fang Jie from Qingyuan, and Shentingyu from Morian. Not only are they good-looking, but also brilliant. How are ordinary people like us supposed to live?”

“Especially Ren Feng and Shentingyu—they’re handsome, talented, and come from well-off families. It’s truly infuriating! But didn’t private schools usually not participate in the training? Why are Qingyuan and Morian joining this year?”

Chen Rui’s deskmate rested her hand on her chin, pondering.

After a few seconds, she gave up and pushed the matter aside.

Those who could join the Olympiad training weren’t just the city’s best students—they were definitely among the top mathematicians in the city.

Since their first training sessions at City No. 1 High, many had been watching them, especially the few who were strikingly handsome. Their names spread throughout the school within a day.

So it was no surprise Chen Rui’s deskmate knew their names.

“So, who’s the person my beautiful deskmate keeps talking about?” her deskmate bumped her shoulder and winked.

“Shentingyu? So that’s his name. It sounds really nice,” Chen Rui recalled the face she saw last night, looking especially radiant under the light.

“Ah, Chen Rui…”

Before they could continue, the homeroom teacher entered with the Chinese textbook. Chen Rui and her deskmate quickly opened their books, pretending to recite ancient poetry.