Chapter 45: Pretty Solid Head
The system’s message distracted her enough that Gu Qinghuan managed to fall asleep.
But her sleep was far from peaceful—she dreamed all night.
In the dream, an adult version of Yan Zhengqing was holding a wad of pink bills, hurling them viciously at Xie Xiangxue while shouting “Xiaoxue! Xiaoxue!”
Gu Qinghuan was furious. She dashed over, leaped up, and landed a powerful whip kick, sending Yan Zhengqing flying. His body traced a perfect arc in midair before plunging headfirst into a roadside trash bin.
Gu Qinghuan, who had jumped, also fell—straight onto the ground… and woke up from the impact.
Rubbing the back of her head, she realized her upper body was on the floor while both legs were still on the bed. Her blanket had slipped halfway off.
“Why have I never noticed my bed was this high before?” She rolled halfway across the floor before climbing to her feet.
The system thought she looked a bit like a giant panda in that position but spoke in a calm tone:
[Do you need a health scan? A fall like that could cause a mild concussion.]
Gu Qinghuan: [You have that function?] She was surprised, then quickly agreed. [Sure, let’s try it.]
A few seconds later, the system replied: [Scan complete. No abnormalities detected.] Then it added, [Your head’s pretty solid—didn’t even get a bump.]
Gu Qinghuan: […If you can’t say something nice, you don’t have to say anything.]
System: [Oh.]
While eating breakfast, Gu Haiyan asked, “What were you doing this morning? There was a loud thump.”
Gu Qinghuan mumbled, “I… fell off the bed while sleeping…”
Her mother’s eyes widened. “You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
“Nope!” Gu Qinghuan quickly shook her head. Falling out of bed at her age—how embarrassing!
She shoveled down breakfast, puffed out her cheeks in a quick “I’m off,” and bolted out the door toward school.
Qin Yue had basketball club practice that morning, so when he saw her, he was a little surprised. “You’re here pretty early today.”
Gu Qinghuan vaguely replied, “I just ate breakfast faster than usual,” then changed the subject. “You’re here early too.”
“Not the same. I have training.” Qin Yue ran a hand through his still slightly damp hair—he had just rinsed it, and since the weather wasn’t cold, he was letting it air dry.
“The basketball club even has morning practice?!” Gu Qinghuan gasped. “You’re amazing for actually getting up that early.”
“It’s just getting to school an hour earlier. Go to bed earlier and it’s fine,” Qin Yue said casually.
Easy for him to say—an hour earlier at school meant an hour earlier waking up. She looked at him with newfound respect.
Pulling out a book for morning reading, she planned to visit her grandmother after school. But just then, her phone buzzed.
It was a message from Bai Hanshan: [After school today, the student council will have a leadership meeting. Will you attend?]
A question mark popped over her head. Why was that a question?
She cautiously asked: [Can I… not go?]
Bai Hanshan, riding in a car to school, raised his brows in surprise. From what he knew, Gu Qinghuan wouldn’t skip a meeting because of psychological pressure. If anything, she had a strong sense of responsibility.
Even if she had joined the student council mainly to gain an identity and some backing, she would still seriously complete the work given to her.
After a moment’s thought, he replied: [Do you have other plans after school?]
Given what was important enough to skip council work, for a typical student, it was probably something at home.
Gu Qinghuan: [Something came up at home. I’d like to head back early to take care of it.]
Bai Hanshan: [Alright. You can skip today’s meeting, but make sure to check in with another officer later to get the meeting details.]
Gu Qinghuan: [Got it!]
When she didn’t send another message, Bai Hanshan opened a chat with Xia He: [Something’s going on at Gu Qinghuan’s house?]
He didn’t expect Xia He to reply quickly—Xia He had never responded to him within ten minutes before.
Yet before he could even lock his screen, a reply popped up:
Xia He: [Something happened? What happened?]
Bai Hanshan silently cursed—so he can check his phone promptly when he wants to. He answered coolly: [No idea. She didn’t say.]
Xia He: [Then why haven’t you gone to find out?]
Bai Hanshan: …His blood pressure was rising.
Pinching the bridge of his nose, he tossed the phone aside. He didn’t have the resources to go digging. He was just a high schooler, with limited people to call on.
The people Xia He had assigned him were mainly for handling his sister Bai Qingyin’s work and looking after their daily lives.
If he really wanted to investigate, he could ask his assistant—but that assistant was more of a secretary, and for actual investigation, he’d need to hire a third party. That would take time and be inefficient.
Not that he needed to—Xia He might say otherwise, but he’d definitely already set someone to look into it.
Sure enough, just as Bai Hanshan stepped out of the car at the school gate, a new message from Xia He arrived:
[It’s Gu Qinghuan’s grandmother. She broke a bone in a fall. Your uncle seems to be hiring a caretaker today. I’ve taken care of it.]
Bai Hanshan stared at the word “uncle” for a few seconds, surprised such a polite address had come from Xia He.
Still, with Xia He arranging things, the family would surely find a suitable caretaker.
After a full day of classes, Gu Qinghuan quickly said goodbye to her friends and got ready to visit her grandmother.
She knew the route from her own home to Grandma’s place, but not the one from school.
Standing at the bus stop, phone in hand, she was checking the map when a familiar black car pulled up.
From the back seat, Xia He leaned out. “Sis, why aren’t you getting in?”
He glanced at the bus that had just left.
“Uh… I’m going somewhere else today.” She hesitated before answering.
“Want me to drive you?” Xia He enthusiastically offered.
She was about to refuse, but he quickly extended his arm. “Another scab came off today—consider this your reward!”
It felt like all her escape routes had been blocked. Her mouth twitched, but in the end she opened the car door and got in.
Xia He shifted over happily, even humming under his breath.
She gave the name of her grandmother’s neighborhood. The driver immediately confirmed he knew the way—no GPS needed.
With transport settled, she messaged her father, Wang Jia’an, telling him she was on her way from school to visit Grandma.
His reply came fast: [Come on over. The auntie we hired made lots of dishes.]
So they’d already found a caretaker—that made her happy. The sooner Grandma had proper help, the better.
Xia He rested his chin on his hand, seemingly looking out the window but actually watching her reflection. She clearly already knew about the caretaker.
Something so minor wasn’t worth bragging about, but seeing how happy she was put him in a good mood too.
As for Bai Hanshan—who, in the president’s absence, had to host the meeting himself—Xia He had absolutely zero interest in how he felt.
