A week had passed since Qiu Xi's last chat with her mentor, Teacher Ding, and others.
As everyone was preparing for the start of the semester, the soon-to-be fourth-year students received the public notice regarding the school's recommendation spots for postgraduate studies.
It was Friday, and when Qiu Xi saw the news, her dormitory group chat was buzzing.
"I thought I'd have to wait until I got back to see it, but the school's actually quite fast~"
Shen Yan and Liang Yunfei had already started packing their luggage to return to school.
It was indeed surprising how quickly the school had acted.
"Isn't it! Maybe they're giving everyone an extra two days to prepare, who knows?"
"...It's not impossible."
Although two extra days might not make a huge difference, being able to read a couple more pages was still beneficial.
"Sigh~"
"I saw everyone chatting in the department group. They're all busy finding materials and preparing for interviews. Just looking at it makes me nervous!"
As always, Song Daiyao loved to join in the excitement.
It could be said that Song Daiyao knew a little bit about all the gossip and interesting news in the class, or even the department.
"Daiyao, you should be the one who's nervous, but you're still in the mood to joke around." Shen Yan teased from below.
Song Daiyao didn't mind and continued to send messages.
"Yeah, thankfully to the materials Little Xi gave me. Otherwise, compared to everyone else, I wouldn't be much different, probably even worse!"
"Mm, I agree with that!"
Liang Yunfei and Shen Yan chimed in.
"Me too!"
"Little Xi, we owe you a big favor again~"
"Ah~ The more favors we owe, the more paths we can take~"
It was their fourth year of university, and Qiu Xi had helped them so much that they had become quite thick-skinned now... just waiting for the day they could repay her.
Though, it might not be very likely...
Because, as it seemed, the most reliable option was... working for Little Xi!!!
Thinking about it seemed a bit absurd, but this also felt like the most dependable path...
Sigh...
"With many debts, one doesn't feel burdened. It's quite good~"
"Mm! I think you guys are right!" Qiu Xi laughed as she typed her message.
"Why don't you consider it?"
The girls were talking about some of the things she had discussed with her mentor. After talking with Teacher Ding, she had asked if she could share some materials with them, and Teacher Ding naturally had no objections.
He didn't think it would increase Little Xi's competitive pressure.
Moreover, it was just some publicly available information. It was a good thing to let the children prepare well.
So after returning, Qiu Xi reorganized the materials and shared them with her roommates.
"I already fell into the pit..." Liang Yunfei joked.
Indeed, Little Xi had come to them herself.
"......"
"Alright, let's focus on preparing for the interviews!" Qiu Xi's playful banter didn't last long before she urged the three to prepare properly.
"Don't let the materials I gave you go to waste. Prepare well, and don't be eliminated because of insufficient preparation, or I might die of anger from you guys..."
"Little Xi... you can rest assured about this. We know what we're doing, we'll prepare properly!"
"Mm, don't worry, it's not that difficult for us..."
It truly wasn't difficult; the only challenge was standing out.
They looked at the names on the recommendation list. Apart from a bug-like existence like Little Xi, their grades were comparable to others, and they weren't at a disadvantage...
"That's for the best, then. I don't want to be the only one left..."
This was also Qiu Xi's hope. Having spent four years together, it would be even better if they could continue to be together for the next few years.
"That won't happen~"
"Mm! We'll be there~"
Even if they couldn't get recommended, they would still aim for postgraduate studies. That was the only goal, but there wasn't just one path to it.
"Okay~ Then let's go and do our best!"
"Okay~"
"See you at school in a couple of days."
Although there were indeed many paths, there was a simple and convenient one right in front of them, with a high probability of success. It was best to seize this current opportunity.
...
"Little Xi, take a look at this. If it's okay, I'll submit it."
"Little Xi, and this..."
Since the last reception work concluded, Qiu Xi had been free.
However, she wasn't truly idle. Teacher Xue believed that talent shouldn't be buried and asked Qiu Xi to work as her assistant part-time.
Originally, it was decided that Qiu Xi would be her little assistant, so she handed over some simpler tasks to her.
This resulted in Qiu Xi having no major issues but a constant stream of minor tasks lately.
Especially Qin Anran, who visited Teacher Xue's small office more times a day than everyone else combined. If Teacher Xue hadn't disagreed, she might have moved her desk right next to Qiu Xi.
"Anran, these are all fine. If you have anything else, just send it to my email once you've organized it."
"Some of the paper documents can't be sent, so bring them to me again."
Rather than constantly talking, Qiu Xi preferred to focus on her computer and emails.
Qin Anran looked at the materials in her hands and finally nodded.
"Okay, I understand." She just wanted to learn more from Qiu Xi. Now she realized it was quite tiring.
She herself had taken on more tasks, and it seemed unnecessary...
"Mm, if there's anything you want to understand, just list it out and send it to me. I'll reply when I see it."
After working together for some time, Qiu Xi had come to understand this.
However, Qiu Xi didn't refuse. She was willing to help as much as she could, and she wasn't losing out either.
A lot of miscellaneous tasks and work that could be delegated were eventually handed over to Qin Anran, and Qiu Xi reviewed them all. She completed them quite well.
As a result, she had to work less overtime.
So Qiu Xi felt that their "mutually beneficial" relationship was quite good.
When Qin Anran heard Qiu Xi say this, her heart became happy again.
"Okay, thank you, Little Xi~"
"I'll head out now~"
With that, she left the office with slightly buoyant steps.
Qiu Xi watched the door close and breathed a sigh of relief.
Now she could work on her own tasks and even relax for a bit. It was comfortable.
Feeling a bit more relaxed, Qiu Xi started to glance at the screen while replying to messages at a leisurely pace.
The ease, however, lasted only a short while before Xue Han returned.
"Little Xi, come here for a moment."
"I want to chat with you."
"Coming."
Qiu Xi put down what she was doing and walked over.
"Teacher Xue, is there something?"
Xue Han shook her head slightly, "It's nothing serious, just want to chat with you."
"Sit here, let's talk."
Qiu Xi nodded, "Okay."
She then sat on the sofa opposite Xue Han.
"Teacher Xue, please just say what you need to."
"Mm... I just wanted to understand your future plans."
"It's September now, and your internship period is almost over. Have you considered staying?"
"This..." Qiu Xi thought it was about work, but it turned out to be this.
"Teacher Xue, I have no plans to stay. After all, I'm preparing for graduation and further studies."
She had already mentioned this to Teacher Ding before coming, and they had reached a good understanding back then.
"Mm... I know this, I just wanted to ask, are you really not considering it?"
Qiu Xi was a rare talent. If she could keep her, she would be happy for years!
"Teacher Xue, I really am not considering it." Qiu Xi shook her head seriously.
On this matter, Qiu Xi was very firm.
"......"