Why did you make me reincarnate?

Xu Chaoyang thought the house would be empty, but when he opened the door, the living room light was on.

Qin Xuemei, his mother, sat on the sofa. Her appearance was completely different from what he remembered. The wrinkles that had accumulated over the years had disappeared, and there was no gray in her temples. She sat on the sofa and quietly looked at him.

Xu Chaoyang stood frozen in the entryway, then blurted out, "Mom, you look so beautiful today!"

Qin Xuemei glared at him fiercely, "You smooth talker! You think you can get away with this?"

Xu Chaoyang's heart skipped a beat at his mother's attitude. "Old Chen, that's not fair of you! You actually snitched!"

Although he knew that Old Chen had already sold him out, he still pretended to be nonchalant, bent down to change his shoes and asked, "Mom, you're off work so early today?"

"Why didn't I block you earlier?"

Qin Xuemei leaned back on the sofa. "Come here, sit down."

Xu Chaoyang resignedly walked over and sat down, thinking to himself that he was familiar with this kind of situation, having experienced it countless times in his previous life. Now that he was here again, he really missed it.

He decided to play dumb for now, "What's wrong, Mom? I'm really tired today."

Qin Xuemei stared at her eldest son, Xu Chaoyang, as if he could see right through her: "Still being stubborn? Your principal even called my workplace, saying you withdrew from the exam midway. Xu Chaoyang, you've really grown some guts, haven't you?"

Well, Old Chen has sold himself out completely.

Xu Chaoyang tried to argue: "Mom, please let me explain."

"Explain what? Explain that you're willing to throw away your future for a little girl?"

Qin Xuemei interrupted him, her tone becoming stern, "Your Principal Chen said that the girl is from No. 1 Middle School and is very beautiful..."

"Xu Chaoyang, the college entrance exam is only a few months away. At such an important moment in your life, you're actually dating?"

Xu Chaoyang was speechless. What did this have to do with Shen Ju? How come he never noticed before that Old Chen was such a gossip?

"Mom, I'm not in a relationship. I don't even know that girl."

"You don't recognize him and he's smiling at you? Principal Chen said you two were exchanging pleasantries in front of hundreds of students, not even hiding it from them. Shouldn't you be discussing how much dowry to prepare for your dad when he gets home tonight?"

Xu Chaoyang opened his mouth, but realized he really couldn't explain this problem. He couldn't very well say that Shen Ju was doing it on purpose, just to see him make a fool of himself.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Qin Xuemei sighed and softened her tone: "Chaoyang, Mom isn't an unreasonable person. It's normal for someone your age to have feelings for girls..."

"Mom," Xu Chaoyang interrupted her, his expression suddenly turning weak, "I really didn't mean to skip the exam, I... I'm not feeling well today, I have a headache."

"Headache?" Qin Xuemei was stunned for a moment, her expression somewhat flustered.

Xu Chaoyang observed his mother's expression, then immediately rubbed his temples and lowered his voice even further, "Really, it's been hurting since this morning. Otherwise, I wouldn't have handed in my paper early. It's just too uncomfortable to sit still."

Qin Xuemei's expression changed instantly. The sternness she had just maintained vanished. She reached out and touched Xu Chaoyang's forehead: "Do you have a fever? You were fine yesterday when you went out. I told you not to go to their gathering last night, but you insisted on sleeping at Zhao Shijun's house. You caught a cold."

Xu Chaoyang guiltily dodged his mother's hand, "I don't have a fever, I just can't seem to muster any energy. I guess I've been under too much pressure from studying lately, so I want to rest for a couple of days."

Xu Chaoyang maintained a weak expression. He rarely used the trick of feigning illness in his previous life, but he always managed to get away from his mother.

Qin Xuemei stared at him suspiciously for a while, then finally sighed and said, "Okay, then you go back to your room and rest for a bit. I'll call your homeroom teacher and ask for two days off."

Xu Chaoyang felt like he had been granted a pardon and quickly fled back to his bedroom. As he walked to the door, he looked back and saw that his mother had already picked up the landline and was dialing.

Hiding in his room, looking at the few yellowed posters of sports stars on the wall, and the textbooks and workbooks piled on his desk, the familiar scene made him feel nostalgic.

Xu Chaoyang sat down at his desk, opened the window and took a deep breath. He had been back in the world for most of the day, and only now did he finally have some space to be alone.

My mind is a bit of a mess, I need to sort it out.

The most pressing matter is undoubtedly the upcoming college entrance examination. Although the diploma doesn't mean much to him anymore, his parents will still be heartbroken if he does poorly on the exam. Moreover, a good social environment would also help him expand his business empire.

Therefore, it's best to try your best to get into a top university in this lifetime.

He closed his eyes and tried to recall carefully. His eighteen-year-old brain was still quite sharp, and he actually remembered a few challenging questions from his college entrance exam math paper. However, the questions were already blurry, but he could vaguely recall the question types and solutions.

If I do a lot of practice tests these few days and buy some mock exam books to review, getting into a top-tier university shouldn't be a problem.

It wasn't until 8 p.m. that any movement came from the living room entrance.

Xu Zhiyuan, the father, comes home at this time every day. He has worked in the subdistrict office for more than ten years, rising from a clerk to a deputy section chief, doing the most tiring work, but he has never had any chance of promotion.

As Xu Chaoyang helped his mother prepare the meal, he discovered that it was all his favorite dishes, which warmed his heart.

However, the atmosphere at the dinner table was a little subtle. Qin Xuemei and Xu Zhiyuan exchanged glances from time to time, clearly communicating in secret. Xu Chaoyang pretended not to notice and focused on eating the braised pork in his bowl.

Sure enough, right after we finished eating, Dad said, "Chaoyang, wash the dishes, then come to the study for a bit."

Xu Chaoyang agreed, quickly finished up the work, and then went to the study for a heart-to-heart talk with his father.

The house in the old town is not big. The study is only about ten square meters. The shelves are filled with various documents and policy compilations. Xu Zhiyuan sits behind the desk drinking tea.

"Tell me, what happened today?"

Xu Chaoyang had already prepared his explanation, so he wasn't flustered at all: "I just don't want to take the exam anymore."

"Don't want to take the exam anymore?" Xu Zhiyuan raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I think mock exams are unimportant and a waste of time," Xu Chaoyang said confidently, though it was only partly true and partly false.

Xu Zhiyuan is a man of great stature. He has worked his way up from the bottom for more than a decade and has come into contact with all sorts of people. You can't fool him with a few tricks. It's better to tell the truth.

Xu Zhiyuan stared at his son for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed: "You little rascal, you're pretty arrogant, just like I was when I was young."

Mr. Xu put down his teacup. "Fine, even if you think mock exams aren't important, you still need to give an explanation for this puppy love thing, right? Your principal, Mr. Chen, called and said you skipped the exam because of a girl, which made your mother very anxious all afternoon."

Xu Chaoyang said helplessly, "Dad, I really don't know that girl."

"Alright, alright." Xu Zhiyuan waved his hand, his expression softening. "I believe you. You've always known your limits. It's normal to go overboard once in a while. Everyone goes through puberty. But don't do it again, understand?"

Xu Chaoyang quickly nodded: "I understand, I promise I will never do it again."

Seeing that he was sincere in admitting his mistake, Xu Zhiyuan stopped pursuing the matter and said, "Alright, go back and study."

Xu Chaoyang stood up, walked to the door, then stopped and turned back to ask, "Dad, have you been busy with work lately?"

Xu Zhiyuan frowned. "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"Just asking." Xu Chaoyang leaned against the doorframe. "Does the neighborhood committee have any recent plans? I heard the old town is going to be redeveloped?"

Seeing his son's behavior, Xu Zhiyuan couldn't help but laugh: "Children shouldn't worry about adult matters. Your task now is the college entrance examination. We'll talk about it after that."

Xu Chaoyang opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately swallowed it back.

He knew very well that his father wasn't incompetent enough to only reach the deputy section chief level; on the contrary, Xu Zhiyuan was very shrewd, but his family situation had held him back.

In this life, he was reborn and wanted to help his father gain a bigger stage, such as moving to the city. No matter what risks there were, he could always protect his father.

However, it's too early to say these things now. An 18-year-old high school student would only be seen as having a case of adolescent delusions if he were to speak so exaggeratedly.

"Okay, I'll go study now."

Mr. Xu held a document on the table and nodded silently, not taking his son's unusual behavior to heart.