Chapter 23

The afternoon tutoring session went very smoothly.

Liang Lady was not at home, only Liang Jiajia and nanny Sister Wang were there.

Liang Jiajia studied diligently today without causing any more trouble in between.

I didn't ask if I could record a video.

Su Xiaoqi felt there was no problem, since she was not a celebrity herself and would not do anything inappropriate, just teaching, so she wanted to record it thinking Liang Lady may want to see it.

The lesson covered the content from New Concept English Book 1 which Liang Jiajia was very clever at and learned quite quickly, so Su Xiaoqi felt teaching her was very relaxing.

"Teacher Su, Lesson 15, how do you read the fourth sentence?"

Su Xiaoqi didn't even lift her head and said: "AreyourfriendsDanish,too? Are your friends Danish too?"

"Lesson 29, the fifth sentence?"

"Openthewindowandairtheroom. Open the window and air out the room."

"Lesson 45, the ninth sentence?"

"Canyoutypethisletterforthebossplease,Pamela? Can you type this letter for the boss please, Pamela?"

Su Xiaoqi did not need to check the book at all, she had the Book 1 content memorized and could even recite it backwards.

However she felt her student giggling subtly again, ready to start acting up.

She looked at her watch, it was almost time, she had come half an hour early and it was 4pm now.

"Let's stop here for today. Your attention won't stay focused anymore. You did very well in the last lesson and memorized most of it. Please keep this up."

Liang Jiajia obediently nodded, smiling like a cat with her chubby round face and squinted eyes.

"Teacher, teacher, can I add you on WeChat?"

Su Xiaoqi agreed. She had just registered her WeChat and basically had nothing on there. She had been quite busy these past couple days and found many friend requests when she logged in today.

She added Liang Jiajia's WeChat, seeing her WeChat name was "Flying Cat". Her moments were quite lively with selfies, life photos, and food pics.

After the tutoring session ended, Liang Lady promptly transferred her payment.

And Liang Jiajia happily flopped down on the sofa, legs dangling over the back rest.

She was back to scrolling Douyin.

She was quite addicted to using Douyin. Her mom worked a lot usually and didn't monitor too closely, a bit indulgent.

She used to just watch Douyin videos, occasionally posting stuff she filmed herself which almost no one viewed, just some likes from people she knew. Then the bamboo weaving video she posted of her teacher went viral last time.

Although she had never considered trying to earn money promoting anything, having so many people follow still felt strangely satisfying.

She began learning how to edit videos diligently the past couple days after the viral Douyin post, even figuring out how to splice clips together. First some footage showing the study room, then clips of the teacher teaching, and most importantly that segment of her own pop quiz, with the teacher able to recite every sentence without even checking the book, and Teacher Su spoke such lovely English. The teacher had such neat teeth and looked so pretty when she smiled, but she only showed half her face for privacy.

This part was the highlight. The ending showed the teacher putting on her shoes to leave and the elevator doors closing.

The teacher wore a simple white tee and black athletic pants today with little white sneakers.

Liang Jiajia felt quite pleased after she finished editing the video, speeding up unimportant clips while keeping normal speed for the teacher's English recital, adding some light music as well.

She set the captions: Why is my tutor so damn good at English?? Then gleefully tapped Upload.

Then she kept glued to her phone, though there didn't seem as enthusiastic a response today.

She snacked, used the bathroom, wandered around, chatted with friends on the phone, then checked her phone again. The Douyin post only had a little over 1000 likes so far, much better than her previous posts but nowhere near the last viral clip.

She felt slightly disappointed. Teacher Su was so awesome and pretty. Liang Jiajia found she liked watching the Douyin video portrayal of her teacher showing just half her face even more than seeing Teacher Su in person. She grew fonder the more she watched. Unexpectedly it didn't blow up.

Liang Jiajia felt a little down, but reminded herself the teacher would quiz her next lesson again so she picked up her English textbook to start studying.

After leaving Liang Lady's home, it wasn't even 5pm yet for Su Xiaoqi, with over two and a half hours until 7:30pm. She wanted to go back and shower, wash her hair, wondering if she should go buy an outfit but felt too rushed for time and suddenly less urgency now that she had money.

Perhaps wearing nice clothes and dressing up served to conceal her inherent poverty deep down.

Always trying to make up for inner deficits externally.

Back at Auntie's dorm, she tidied her backpack and took out the promotional flyers collected today to use under her bowl while eating.

But reading the info, Su Xiaoqi felt a spark of interest.

It was an ad for summer swim classes for students.

Su Xiaoqi realized she had severely lacked exercise while cramming for the gaokao exam this past year. Her feet had been quite sore these past days just from walking, and her condition was clearly not ideal.

She had nothing else to do this month and could certainly enrich herself. Plus she had ample money, and noted the location was at a gym near Auntie's, quite convenient. She decided to go take a look tomorrow.

She told Auntie she wouldn't be back for dinner, then went to shower and wash her hair. She changed into the normal tee and pants she wore daily, flipping through the same few outfits.

A gray tee with a pink puppy print, khaki knee-length shorts.

Her mid-length hair was quite fluffy after washing, making her face look a little smaller.

She regarded herself in the mirror, feeling slightly uneasy that Liu Shaowei would likely attend tonight too.

She checked the time again, only 5:30pm. The Number 4 Bar wasn't far. Leaving at 7pm she could easily make the half hour walk to arrive by 7:30pm sharp with time to spare. No need to rush. She settled down to practice her calligraphy.

The workbook she had borrowed from the library was already half-filled by her. She set an alarm.

It was evening rush hour, even hotter and more stifling in summer. The underground floor 1 had poor lighting but offered blissful coolness now.

Su Xiaoqi diligently and properly practiced her calligraphy, losing track of time.

She realized the greatest benefit of obtaining that progress system wasn't the money after all, but rather her experiences, insights, and habits cultivated these past days.

When filled with the courage to earnestly strive forwards, she felt vigorous all over.

Auntie came in twice but left without disturbing Su Xiaoqi's writing.

When her alarm rang, Su Xiaoqi checked her interface.

Host: Su Xiaoqi

Calligraphy: Beginner+ (5/100).

Strength: Average strong human (can lift two times own weight)

Bamboo Handicrafts: Beginner. Proficient specialty card

Singing voice: Specialty+

Appearance: Nice set of teeth.

Memory buff (5/10)

Linguistic sense buff (4/10)

Bearing buff (3/10)

Closing her book, capping her pen, she gathered her items in her purse to check phone, keys, wallet all there. Changing into white sneakers, the 17-year old Su Xiaoqi freshly moisturized, 108 pounds, 5'4", full of hope for life and about to see her suspected ex-boyfriend, headed out the door.