The Slacker Academic Always Gets Caught (SLACKER)
Qin Heng couldn’t decipher the meaning behind those words.
Chi Ning was too good-looking, exquisitely crafted like Nuwa’s proudest masterpiece. He lacked nothing, excelled academically, had a gentle temperament, and remained emotionally steady. Any praise suited him perfectly.
He was flawless—but utterly out of place among them.
Qin Heng turned his head away and said offhandedly, “The facilities at Gangnan Entertainment are great. You can practice there.”
Chi Ning thought about the steep prices at Gangnan Entertainment and its notoriously awful bayberry juice, muttering, “It’s 500 per person there… and besides…”
He paused, growing more self-assured as he spoke, “I’m not going there to train seriously, just to mess around. No need to spend so much.”
Zhang Qiuwen was amazed. “What a frugal rich kid.”
In his mind, rich heirs were supposed to be extravagant, indulgent, surrounded by admirers and kept throwing money around recklessly—but Chi Ning was nothing like that.
Too bad. Qin Heng preferred tough, no-nonsense friends, not delicate young masters like him. There was no way he’d tell Chi Ning where the gym was.
“Brother Xu’s gym is at No. 26 Yongning Road in Gangnan District. The storefront is huge,” Qin Heng said.
Zhang Qiuwen: “…”
—
“Gangnan?” Chi Ning let out a small gasp, then smiled. “Isn’t that close to Gangnan International High?”
Qin Heng caught the hopeful glint in Chi Ning’s eyes and irritably unzipped his black windbreaker. “What, do you have friends there? Need someone to pass a message?”
Chi Ning’s gaze flickered between Zhang Qiuwen and Qin Heng before he belatedly asked, “You’re not a student at Gangnan International?”
Zhang Qiuwen’s brain finally kicked back into gear. “Haha, of course not! Qin Heng and I are both from No. 1 High—we’re in the same class.”
The smile on Chi Ning’s face instantly vanished.
In his past life, Qin Heng had personally told him he was a scholarship student at Gangnan International.
But now, things are different.
Either Qin Heng had lied back then, or everything in this life had deviated slightly from its original course.
If it was the latter, then perhaps fate’s reins were no longer in his hands.
Whether Qin Heng had lied in his past life was impossible to verify now, but whether he still held the reins—that, at least, could be tested.
The silence was suffocating.
Both Chi Ning and Qin Heng looked grim, leaving Zhang Qiuwen caught in the middle, sweating nervously. “Did I… uh… say something wrong?”
But it was just a question about which school they attended—how could that be a problem?
Chi Ning snapped out of it and replied lightly, distantly, “No, I was just making conversation. I’ll get going now. See you two later.”
Whether Qin Heng had lied in his past life didn’t matter. Which school he attended didn’t matter either—after all, they hadn’t ended up together in the end.
Saving his elder brother was far more important. This time, he refused to let his family fall apart again.
Chi Ning walked to the entrance of the night market and pulled out his phone to call his driver.
In less than ten minutes, a sleek silver business car pulled up. Uncle Chen rolled down the driver’s side window. “Young Master, it’s hot outside. Get in quickly.”
Chi Ning slid inside, the cool air instantly dispelling the lingering heat. The aftertaste of bayberry juice in his throat grew more pronounced, dragging his thoughts back to Qin Heng’s leg injury.
Standing around in this heat couldn’t be good for his recovery.
Tch.
Well… considering how this guy had brought him meals for ten years in his past life…
Chi Ning pulled out 200 yuan from his pocket and handed it to the driver. "Uncle, there's someone selling chilled bayberry juice near the west side of the night market. It's too hot today, and Grandma and the servants have been working hard. Buy it all and share it with everyone."
"Got it. What does the stall look like?"
Chi Ning replied, "A bicycle. The seller has a scar above their eyebrow."
"Alright." Uncle Chen responded promptly before getting out of the car with practiced ease.
Chi Ning adjusted the air vent blowing directly at his face upward, lowering his gaze in thought.
The way to verify whether the initiative was still in his hands was simple—just check who won the National Olympiad in Biology.
If he didn't participate this time, the heir of Nine Refinements Pharmaceutical, who had placed second in his previous life, would take first place instead.
After the news broke, Nine Refinements Pharmaceutical's stock would likely rise, while the Chi family's already shaky public image would cause their stock to plummet, possibly even triggering a sell-off.
He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but his father didn’t seem to care about the stock prices at all. He’d even openly scold his eldest brother with the door wide open, as if deliberately inviting media coverage.
Chi Ning’s breath hitched as a sudden realization flashed through his mind.
If his father was intentionally letting the media slander his brother, and if his brother’s rebelliousness was just an act...
Then the seemingly contradictory "loving father playing favorites" and the "rebellious brother bringing home old oil shrimp cakes" suddenly made sense.
He had always known he lacked a talent for finance, but he never expected real business warfare to involve manipulating stock prices through public opinion.
The absurdity of it all was only slightly better than boiling a rival’s money tree to death.
But why would his father and brother keep something so important from him?
Chi Ning clenched his fist, pressing it against his lips with his mind nearly blank.
If his suspicions were true, did that mean he had unwittingly ruined his father and brother’s plans in his past life?
Click.
A soft latch sound broke the silence.
Uncle Chen opened the passenger door and placed a crate of bayberry juice inside, fastening it securely with the seatbelt. He grinned cheerfully. "Young Master, bought everything. Still got a little over ten yuan left."
"Keep the change. Thanks for making the trip," Chi Ning said.
"Sure thing. I’ll have my mom make your favorite pineapple cakes later." Uncle Chen circled back to the driver’s seat, buckled up, and sped off with Chi Ning and the crate of juice toward the Chi residence.
It was Sunday, and Chi Baichuan had already returned home after handling company matters. He was now sitting on the sofa reading a newspaper.
Chi Ning’s gaze was unfocused as he shuffled step by step toward his father. After a long internal struggle, he finally decided to ask outright, "Dad... are you and brother hiding something from me?"
Chi Baichuan paused mid-page turn, his expression shifting to contemplation.
"You’re not trying to figure out where you slipped up, are you?" Chi Ning glanced at Grandma, who was heading to the kitchen to make pineapple cakes, his tone carrying a world-weary resignation.
"Your feud with brother is just an act, isn’t it? You’re deliberately arguing in front of the media?"
Instead of getting angry, Chi Baichuan looked almost approving. "You’ve grown up."
Chi Ning suddenly remembered what his father had told him days ago: You’ll understand when you’re older.
He sighed and closed his eyes. "Something this important... why didn’t you tell me?"
Chi Baichuan reached out and ruffled Chi Ning's hair. "We've been acting for over three years now, and things are coming to an end. If nothing unexpected happens, it'll all be over soon. The company affairs are too complicated for you—we didn't want to burden you with worries."
Chi Ning suddenly understood.
In his past life, his father had never imagined that news of him winning first place in the Olympiad would be sensationalized to such an extent, even leading to the "plan's" failure.
After all, previous years' Olympiad champions had never attracted media attention, with reports only occupying a small corner of newspapers before fading into obscurity within a day.
Yet coverage about him had dominated the entertainment section for an entire week, cycling through truths and fabrications.
By the time the plan completely failed, telling him the truth would have been inappropriate.
Because his parents and elder brother were afraid he'd blame himself...
Chi Ning abruptly raised his head, holding back tears. "Dad, don't keep big things from me in the future."
"Alright." Chi Baichuan patted his shoulder. "Have you thought about the Olympiad? Still going?"
"No." Chi Ning refused immediately. "If Teacher Wang calls again to ask, just decline for me."
He paused, then added, "And I won't be attending voluntary evening self-study sessions anymore. Please let them know—after school at 5:30, I'll go somewhere else to play for a while before coming home."
Chi Baichuan: ...
"Trying to play the rebellious young master?"
Chi Ning blinked. "Well... not exactly playing?"
He intended to do it for real.
Chi Baichuan gave an "I understand" smile. "Youth is for enjoying life. When I was your age, I could already fly planes."
Mentioning planes made him think of motorcycles.
Remembering his elder brother's fatal crash down a mountain road in his past life, Chi Ning couldn't help suggesting, "Street racing and off-road biking are too dangerous. What if someone tampers with the vehicle? If big brother likes racing, you should have him compete at proper tracks."
"You've really grown up." Chi Baichuan said approvingly. "But the act has reached this point—we can't stop now."
Fair enough.
Chi Ning frowned in thought.
In his past life, Yangcheng's motorcycle ban had been implemented around this time, fully enforced after his brother's accident. This time, they could push for it earlier.
Finance wasn't his forte, but policy analysis and academic writing were.
After all, research papers were tricky—if published at the wrong time, they'd be wasted effort.
Choosing his words carefully, Chi Ning proposed, "Isn't Yangcheng pushing for a motorcycle ban recently?"
"Taiguan District keeps having late-night street racers, plus motorcycle robberies and accidents. We could encourage media coverage to sway public opinion—once there's enough support, policies will follow quickly."
Then no one could race motorcycles in Yangcheng—they'd have to use proper tracks, eliminating any risk of his brother's cover being blown.
Chi Baichuan slapped the armrest. "Good idea. I'll make some calls later."
His youngest son was sharp—just a bit naive and easily fooled, but otherwise excellent.
"Dad, one more thing—I think I'm too skinny. It's unhealthy." Chi Ning flexed his arm, attempting to show muscle, but found none.
Chi Baichuan slowed his snack-eating, hesitating. "Should I ask Grandma to make goji berry longan pork knuckle soup tonight?"
Chi Ning's mouth twitched. "No."
That thing was practically Death Cuisine.
“What I mean is, could you help me find a free combat coach?”
Chi Ning thought of Qin Heng, who had deceived him in his past life, and gritted his teeth. “At the very least… I can’t look so easy to fool.”
Chi Baichuan found this reasoning sound. “You’ve got a point. Dad will definitely find you the best coach.”
The tightness in Chi Ning’s chest eased slightly.
With a stern expression, he went upstairs to shower, sprawled on the bed for a while, then changed into casual clothes and headed back downstairs. He planned to use the savings he hadn’t touched in over a decade to prepare for his upcoming patent application.
And while he was at it…
He’d drop by Brother Xu’s pool hall.
To see what else Qin Heng had lied to him about in his past life, aside from the “school” he claimed to attend.
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