After Transmigrating into the Cyber Game, I Defeated the Boss and Successfully Rose to the Top

Chapter 29



Chapter 29: Sea Without Light Part 29

When Kui Xin stepped into Teacher Wang’s house, she smelled a strong aroma of food.

“Xiao Xin has arrived, sit down,” said Teacher Wang while sorting vegetables on the balcony. “I’m simmering spare ribs soup. After that, I’ll cook some braised pork and garlic greens.”

“I’ll help with sorting the vegetables, teacher,” Kui Xin said, pulling over a chair. “Is no one home?”

“My husband is on a business trip, and my son is staying at school for summer studies,” replied Teacher Wang. “Once you go to university, I’ll have my son pick you up.”

“No need, I can manage on my own,” Kui Xin quickly refused. “Besides, the university is within the province, close to our city. I can get there in the afternoon by train, and from the train station, there’s a bus straight to the campus.”

“That won’t do, Xiao Xin. A child going far for the first time should always have someone with them. Wait until you know the way yourself,” Teacher Wang insisted. “Don’t worry about causing me trouble. To me, it’s not troublesome at all—I’ve already talked with my son, and he agreed to take you.”

“… Alright.” Kui Xin swallowed her refusal, lowered her head, and focused on sorting the vegetables.

Teacher Wang asked, “What goal do you have for college?”

“As of now, I only have one goal—to study hard,” Kui Xin hesitated before answering. “After that, I’ll work towards getting certification, strive to be recommended for graduate school, and find a good job with the promising prospects in the artificial intelligence industry…”

“How about taking the exam to become a federal agent?” suggested Teacher Wang.

Kui Xin replied, “I think it wouldn’t work… My father’s not around anymore. With his financial missteps and fleeing overseas, a search on the wanted poster website might even turn up his wanted status.”

Teacher Wang was stunned, sighed, and muttered, “What a pity.”

Kui Xin felt the same way about her father. But what could she do? He was indeed an unworthy father. Even though he was long gone from Kui Xin’s life, his actions continued to cast a shadow on her future. She would never get the chance to work for the government.

In her childhood, Kui Xin led a comfortable life. The house was a large villa, and they drove luxury cars when visiting relatives in the countryside, where people often complimented the family’s success, both in their hometown and in the city.

Then Kui Xin’s father went astray, divorced her mother and started over with another woman. In the following years, he gathered a group of friends to invest, but it all ended in failure. With the repayment becoming impossible, her father fled the country with stolen money, leaving behind his parents and several mistresses.

When Kui Xin’s father left with stolen money, she was still in elementary school. Later, the villa and cars were auctioned off, and debts piled up, pushing Kui Xin’s mother to abandon her and flee far away, entrusting her to her grandparents.

Fortunately, her grandparents owned their house, saving them from debt.

Over the past few years, her grandparents passed away, and Kui Xin, lacking financial support, was taken care of by a distant cousin uncle who worked in her hometown. Her mother sent her 800 yuan each month for living expenses.

Kui Xin remembered her childhood with mixed emotions. Whatever joy or sadness she had experienced seemed washed away, replaced by a cold, indifferent numbness toward her parents.

For her, terms like “father” and “mother” were mere symbols, devoid of any real meaning. This was perhaps a protective mechanism of the human mind, as Kui Xin recalled her initial fear and confusion during times of tragedy. However, eventually, she stopped crying; it was as if she no longer felt anything at all.

No matter the hardship, she always found ways to survive. Worst case scenario, she could seek refuge in an orphanage, or rent a basement once she turned eighteen. Modern society ensured that she wouldn’t starve.

This was Kui Xin’s grim reality—a reality better than her most pessimistic expectations. She had inherited her grandparents’ old house, and after excelling in middle school, she was accepted into an excellent high school. She persevered through the difficulties under the school’s support, eventually enrolling in a prestigious university.

Hardship was temporary, and effort paid off. Kui Xin firmly believed in this.

Without relying on her parents, she could depend on herself.

“Teacher, you haven’t asked much about your father’s current situation, huh?” Teacher Wang asked gently.

“Nearly ten years since we last contacted him. Maybe he died abroad from an illness?” Kui Xin speculated seriously. “Fleeing with stolen money, without any proper documents, no social security, and living in a foreign land… I remember him having poor English; he might have been tricked and forced to work in mines abroad. There’s less regulation on firearms overseas, so the chances of accidents are higher. He might be dead somewhere unknown… Either way, I’m convinced he’s no longer alive.”

Teacher Wang: “…”

This daughter genuinely hoped her father died… But who wouldn’t feel the same?

Teacher Wang served a generous chunk of braised pork to Kui Xin and poured her a bowl of aromatic spare ribs soup, saying: “Eat more, Xiao Xin, look how thin you’ve gotten.”

After lunch at Teacher Wang’s place, Kui Xin chatted a bit with her before leaving around two o’clock for the address Teacher Wang provided to give tutoring lessons to a young girl.

In truth, the girl wasn’t exactly young; she was only slightly younger and had taken a year off due to illness back when they were in high school. Since returning to school, she struggled to keep up with the curriculum.

Amidst puberty and rebellion, she didn’t listen to her parents and resented having a tutor, even arguing with her teachers. Eventually, they opted for a student about her age but with better grades to help her adapt.

Tutoring rates in Kui Xin’s city were around fifty to one hundred yuan per hour, and her hourly rate was eighty yuan, which was reasonable.

On time, Kui Xin reached the girl’s house and rang the doorbell, waiting patiently for it to open.

With sharp hearing, Kui Xin detected faint footsteps from behind the door. The peephole was blocked, and someone was looking at her through it.

“Is anyone there? I’m Kui Xin, introduced by Teacher Wang. I’m here for tutoring Su Rong,” she explained.

After waiting a few seconds, the door remained closed. Kui Xin stared curiously at the blocked peephole and knocked again.

“Rong, why don’t you answer the door?” a woman inside asked.

“I wanted to make sure it was really you,” the girl behind the door grumbled.

The door opened with a creak.

A pretty girl stood at the door, inspecting Kui Xin, “Hi, I’m Su Rong. I didn’t open the door earlier because I couldn’t tell it was you.”

“Hello, I’m Kui Xin,” Kui Xin nodded.

Su Rong’s mother warmly welcomed Kui Xin inside with a cut fruit platter, “Are you Kui Xin? Please come in and sit down. I’ve known Teacher Wang for ages.”

“Granny,” said Kui Xin with courtesy, “Teacher Wang told me that Su Rong mainly needs help with math. My math skills are decent, and I will do my best to help her improve her foundation, making her senior year less challenging.”

“Take your time. It’s hot outside, eat some fruit and cool off,” suggested Su Rong’s mother. “Rong doesn’t excel in math and despite multiple tutors, her results haven’t improved. I’m starting to get anxious.”

Su Rong protested, “Mom!”

Despite their similar ages, if standing side by side, anyone would say that Kui Xin appeared older due to her mature demeanor and genuine adult appearance. Su Rong, sheltered by a happy family, displayed naivety and innocence, barely hiding her emotions.

“After we finish discussing her progress, let’s start tutoring today,” thought Kui Xin. “How about we try one day to see if this arrangement works for us?”

Su Rong’s mother agreed enthusiastically.

Kui Xin wasn’t comfortable talking to elders, having little experience. After struggling through small talk for ten minutes, Su Rong couldn’t take it anymore and stood up, “Yingshan Jie and I are going to study. Mom, you said time was precious, right?”

Calling Kui Xin as ‘teacher’ felt odd considering they were almost the same age. Yet, not calling her that seemed disrespectful, leading Su Rong to cleverly strike a balance by calling her “Yingshan Jie”.

Relieved to see her daughter studying independently, Su Rong’s mother quickly approved, “Good, go ahead. Turn on the air conditioning and bring the fruit platter back inside.”

Kui Xin breathed a sigh of relief and followed Su Rong out of the living room.

“Why do adults always have so much to say?” said Su Rong after closing her bedroom door. “Forget it, let’s just focus on studying. Truth be told, I scored thirty in math on the final exam. Twenty of those marks were guesses.”

“Heard from Teacher Wang that you dislike math?” asked Kui Xin indirectly.

Teacher’s words weren’t quite like this. She mentioned, “Su Rong seems uninterested in schooling,” but Kui Xin couldn’t directly confront Su Rong with this. Hence, she worded it differently.

Su Rong blushed, “Yeah, I don’t like it…”

Kui Xin picked up Su Rong’s pristine math textbook, blank of all notes and incorrect answers circled, and said, “With only a year till college entrance, raising your math score above 100 is unrealistic. But hitting 60-70 with effort is feasible.”

Most people aren’t geniuses—average intelligence is the norm. Su Rong lacks basic skills, making such a challenge daunting for Kui Xin.

“Are you an art student?” asked Kui Xin, “How many hours a day do you spend training for art? I need to plan your question-and-answer sessions accordingly.”

“I’m in performance,” replied Su Rong hesitantly. “I want to switch from being an art student to regular college exams.”

“Have you discussed this with your parents?” Kui Xin was puzzled.

“No, not yet,” answered Su Rong. “I used to dream of becoming a celebrity, but now it doesn’t seem as appealing. Anyway, if I had to choose, I’d prefer a stable job.”

“You might struggle to succeed in regular college exams with your current grades,” Kui Xin admitted.

Su Rong admitted, “I know… I’ll do my best, Yingshan Jie. With a year left, I won’t know my limits until I push myself to the extreme.”

Kui Xin, seeing Su Rong’s sincere efforts, didn’t detect any signs of disinterest. Hadn’t Teacher Wang been truthful about Su Rong’s change of heart? Could Su Rong have decided on her own to reform her perspective?

Kui Xin strangely felt as though she recognized Su Rong’s face—a familiarity she couldn’t entirely identify. She recalled glimpsing a striking similarity somewhere…

Su Rong was exceptionally attractive; with proper makeup, she could rival a star.

Star?!

Suddenly, Kui Xin realized where she had seen Su Rong’s face—on the advertisement screen of the Second World.

She once marveled at the ads lining the streets, among them, Su Rong’s face blended seamlessly. Su Rong and some Second World star looked very alike!

No wonder Su Rong acted suspiciously about Kui Xin when she visited. No wonder a previously rebellious student suddenly became dedicated to learning! It was the cold truth of the Second World.

Kui Xin suspected, Su Rong might also be a player!



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