Chapter 5: The Memory Bread Bought with a Breakfast Meal
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Li Hongmei didn’t even realize it herself, but she rode to work with a smile all the way. Everything seemed pleasant to her eyes, and even the sunlight appeared much brighter than usual.
Upon arriving at the office, a colleague in her forties glanced at her and exclaimed, “Hongmei, is there a happy occasion at home?”
“What happy occasion? At my age, what could there be to celebrate?” Li Hongmei said with a smile but stopped walking and paused mid-sentence.
This was an unspoken rule in adult conversations, waiting for the other to play along.
The loud-voiced woman humored her, “Then what is it? You look like spring is blooming on your face, you look ten years younger.”
By 8:52 a.m., most of the office staff had arrived. Chairs were dragged, tea was brewed, notebooks flipped open, and even those practicing calligraphy perked up their ears.
“Ah, nothing much. It’s just that my boy earned some money over the summer vacation,” Li Hongmei waved her hand. “Afraid I’d get tired, he insisted I not make breakfast this morning.”
“Spending that silly money on breakfast, and then he says he’ll take care of breakfasts from now on.”
In middle age, these women working within the system had little joy beyond gossiping and complaining about their husbands, while proudly showing off their children, all with radiant smiles.
“Your son is getting sensible, that’s rare. Mine just plays games all day,” the loud woman chimed in, stirring a wave of responses.
Older colleagues nearby nodded in agreement. The younger ones didn’t get a word in, but the newest recruit smiled brightly and asked,
“Auntie Li, how’s your son’s academic performance?”
Some people really had a knack for killing the mood with one sentence. Everyone in the office knew Li Hongmei’s son was average at best, barely making it into college was a stretch.
...
Knock, knock, knock!
The door rattled. Xu Qianqian opened the door with a sour expression. Sure enough, it was Jiang Nian.
“Early morning, what are you up to?”
With a rustle, a breakfast was handed to her. Xu Qianqian froze for a moment, a bit at a loss.
“You... don’t try to bribe me with food!”
“Just eat it, enough with the babbling,” Jiang Nian clicked his tongue.
Summer was especially harsh, and a meal broke the barrier between them. Though she wouldn’t say it aloud, Xu Qianqian was secretly touched—after all, she was hungry.
“Thanks.”
“No need. After you finish, lend me your homework to copy.”
Xu Qianqian: “...”
They sat at opposite ends of the table. Xu Qianqian ate slowly and thoughtfully while Jiang Nian scribbled away copying homework. They were in different classes, but the science tests were the same.
He only dared to copy answers within his grasp.
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With nothing better to do, Xu Qianqian squinted, watching the molten gold sunlight streaming through the window, then glanced at Jiang Nian, who was focused and hard at work.
“I ask you, have you ever thought about improving your grades?”
At these words, Jiang Nian’s pen halted, and he frowned.
“I have. But I have two ideas in my head: one is empty, and the other is also empty.”
Xu Qianqian was speechless. “Then what will you do for the college entrance exam?”
Jiang Nian sighed. “I want to study, but the third year of high school has so much homework. My foundation is weak, and all my time is spent just doing assignments.”
“That’s because you work slow.”
“Because I don’t know how to do it, so I’m slow,” he shrugged. “Finish this, then I don’t have time for that subject. If I don’t copy, what else can I do?”
Xu Qianqian crossed her arms. “Pfft, that’s obviously an excuse.”
Ding!
[Learning Task Activated: Lifelong Learning
At thirty-eight, you just got divorced, standing at a crossroads in life. At this age, a life turnaround requires not only a strong body but also an appreciation of beauty.
Task: Have a pleasant conversation with Xu Qianqian.
Reward: Memory Bread (five hours), allowing rapid knowledge absorption during this period.]
Jiang Nian stared at the panel, feeling a bit dazed. Was this system announcing some bizarre task progress? So... his future self was supposed to pursue Xu Qianqian?
He didn’t reject the idea but found it somewhat strange.
No matter, the reward was what mattered.
“Xu Qianqian, you’re right!” Jiang Nian suddenly became serious, fixing his gaze on the girl across the table. “Giving up is easy, but perseverance is hard.”
“My English isn’t good. Since I treated you to breakfast, teach me how to memorize vocabulary, okay?”
He wasn’t genuinely motivated but knew Xu Qianqian excelled in English. She was the English class representative and almost always scored full marks.
Even more impressively, she had memorized all 3,500 college entrance exam words and the vocabulary for the CET-4 and CET-6 exams as well. Whenever anyone mentioned English, she would light up.
Sure enough, Jiang Nian’s words hit the right spot, and her eyes curved into crescents.
“All right, since you bought breakfast... this princess will graciously teach you.”
After five minutes of listening, Jiang Nian’s thoughts were:
*(੭*ˊᵕˋ)੭* Wow, a perfect scorer really knows her stuff. Got it!
Ten minutes later:
(ง•_•)ง She seems to be enjoying this a lot. Should I interrupt?
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Twenty minutes later:
ԅ(¯﹃¯ԅ) Master, please stop nagging, I get it!
Half an hour later:
(╯▔皿▔)╯ She nags more than my mom!
“So, did you remember everything I just said?” Xu Qianqian asked, dry-mouthed, sipping the now-cold soybean milk, having imparted her lifetime of knowledge.
“I remembered, but not completely.” Jiang Nian stood abruptly and headed out. “Wait for me to think it over. I’ll tell you this afternoon.”
“Hey! You...” Xu Qianqian watched his retreating figure, her teeth clenched.
This guy was really... all that half an hour of talking wasted!
Back home, Jiang Nian opened the panel.
[Task: Have a pleasant conversation with Xu Qianqian. (Completed)
Reward: Memory Bread (five hours), allowing rapid knowledge absorption during this period.]
After half an hour of learning chat, he finally received the reward. Instantly, a loaf of bread about the size of a Dalí Garden snack appeared in his hand.
Goodness, real-time settlement.
Jiang Nian rubbed his chin; he was a practical person. Xu Qianqian was right. He couldn’t just keep slacking off. The most urgent matter now was the college entrance exam.
Personally, as a resident of a small county town, Jiang Nian’s starting point was higher than rural kids. At least he had a safety net: if school didn’t work out, he could find a job through connections.
But that wasn’t what he wanted.
Studying remained the best way for ordinary people to change their fate!
Moreover, getting into a good university meant lower tuition and could give his parents a bit of pride.
Memorization alone wouldn’t guarantee high scores but definitely wouldn’t yield low ones. Five hours of memory time was plenty to review the 3,500 college exam words.
However, spending all the time on vocabulary would be wasteful; actually, mastering 70-80% of the words was enough for a decent score.
So time had to be allocated wisely; after all, other subjects also required memorization.
Jiang Nian flipped to the first page and couldn’t help but frown.
“abandon...”