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"Ah!" The curtains were drawn open, and the sunlight streaming in hit Bai Yujing's head, making him feel quite dazzled.
Bai Yujing had a severe headache; he had partied with his colleagues until the early hours of the morning, leaving only after things had calmed down. He couldn't remember how much he had drunk and was a bit hazy about how he got back. Amidst the glaring light, he saw a girl with a good figure, wearing tight jeans and a plaid shirt, standing on the balcony.
Bai Yujing sighed in relief, "So it's you!"
Li Xinyan, Bai Yujing's ex-girlfriend, had recently ended their relationship amicably. There were no petty grievances or dramatic breakups; they simply felt that their relationship had run its course. Their differing lifestyles and temperaments led to Bai Yujing suggesting the breakup, and Li Xinyan had nothing to say against it.
Bai Yujing sat up in bed, wearing only his underwear and a white tank top. "What brings you here?"
Li Xinyan opened the bedside drawer and began putting her belongings into her backpack. "I came to collect my things. I was too busy at the lab before to come by."
Li Xinyan was 24 years old, one year older than Bai Yujing. A member of Mensa with an IQ over 168, she won a silver medal at the International Mathematical Olympiad at age 12, entered XG University at 13, shifted her focus to biology, earned her bachelor's degree at 17, her master's degree at 18, and obtained her Ph.D. last year. She was fluent in English, Chinese, German, Japanese, and Cantonese and currently worked in a pharmaceutical company's research lab.
In many ways, Li Xinyan and Bai Yujing were mismatched. They were elementary school classmates; at that time, Li Xinyan lived with her grandmother and was remembered by Bai Yujing as someone proud and dismissive of her peers—almost like a heroic figure who could leave teachers speechless in class.
In elementary school, Li Xinyan's catchphrase was simply "childish." Anyone who tried to talk to her would hear it. As a child, she was somewhat chubby—a plump girl who once got into a fight with a boy in class for reasons Bai Yujing couldn't recall. He remembered that the boy kept kicking her stomach while she cried and used her backpack to shield herself from his attacks.
Bai Yujing couldn't remember the specifics or even the names of the boy or Li Xinyan before they met again later; he just recalled feeling compelled to intervene and ended up fighting with that boy himself. For that, he was punished by having to kneel on gravel on the playground for an afternoon—ah, academic underdogs have no rights!
Bai Yujing ran into Li Xinyan again while attending university in Guang Province. At that time, she had just received her master's degree and often returned home since her family lived there. They met at a supermarket called Jiafuli; she recognized him first while he struggled to remember who this stunningly beautiful woman was.
Their relationship progressed quickly. Li Xinyan's strong-willed and introverted nature meant she didn't have many friends. Bai Yujing pursued her earnestly; after sharing meals and watching movies together, he confessed his feelings. To his surprise, Li Xinyan agreed to be with him.
Their romance included intimacy and cohabitation; there wasn't anything particularly special about it except for one downside: Li Xinyan was very domineering—she made all the decisions. She even put up a list of ten rules on the bedroom wall that dictated Bai Yujing's behavior.
From Bai Yujing's social life to his personal habits, everything had to align with her wishes. With Li Xinyan's intelligence, she could easily understand what Bai Yujing did outside and whether he lied about it. She even planned out his life path meticulously; all he had to do was act like a puppet under her control to achieve success.
"Without me, you are nothing?"
"You must do as I say!"
"Only then can you stand out."
Recently, Li Xinyan had been repeating these phrases all day long, her tone and attitude extremely harsh, making Bai Yujing feel unable to accept it. In a way, it was Bai Yujing's problem; he wanted to change, but hearing his girlfriend speak to him like this made him feel sad.
Bai Yujing could tolerate the disdain from Li Xinyan's parents and relatives; he knew that the gap between him and Li Xinyan was too large. He was aware of this situation when they first got together and decided to face it. However, he could not endure Li Xinyan looking down on him. Bai Yujing was a person with a relatively gentle temperament; he usually only expressed his anger without arguing or resorting to violence. He had only arranged to meet at a café for a talk, and then there was no further development.
To be honest, Bai Yujing really liked Li Xinyan, but there was still a gap between liking someone and living together. The two of them had differences in their social circles, habits, family backgrounds, and intelligence. In the end, Bai Yujing came to understand that being with Li Xinyan might mean having a better life, but more importantly, it meant he would never be able to hold his head high and would live an incredibly suppressed life.
Watching Li Xinyan rummaging through the room in silence, Bai Yujing felt somewhat speechless; the emotions were exceptionally complicated. "By the way, where is our photo album?"
Bai Yujing pointed to the living room outside: "It's under the TV cabinet."
Li Xinyan immediately retrieved it and stuffed it into her backpack. Bai Yujing stood at the bedroom door: "That album also has my pictures in it; you can't just take it away."
"Since we broke up, I want to take everything that has my traces away. By the way, what about the belt and wallet I gave you? Give them back to me!" Li Xinyan quickly spotted the pants Bai Yujing had thrown on the sofa, pulled out the belt, and dumped the contents of the wallet on the coffee table before taking everything with her.
Bai Yujing felt uncomfortable: "What are you going to do with all this? Those memories are part of me too; how much did you spend back then? I can return it if you want."
Li Xinyan looked at Bai Yujing seriously: "I don't want to leave any of my things with you, this disgusting man! Just thinking about it makes me want to vomit!"
"Fine, fine, okay, take everything. You always have to be so domineering; you never consider my feelings—only your own." Bai Yujing had nothing more to say.
Li Xinyan immediately retorted, "Isn't everything I do for you? I don't want to argue with you. You're just a childish little boy, so immature!"
After packing everything up, Li Xinyan zipped the bag and slammed the door shut with a loud bang before walking away.
Bai Yujing felt very irritated and immediately opened the computer to start booking her trip on Fliggy Travel. Bai Yujing believed that if something could be done with one app, there was no need to use multiple apps. Therefore, she relied heavily on Taobao, as it could meet most of her needs. Unfortunately, her recent payment plan had failed; otherwise, it would have been perfect.
She first booked round-trip tickets to Edinburgh, UK, flying from Bao'an Airport to Edinburgh Airport. However, there were no direct flights, and she would need to transfer twice along the way, which would take some extra time.
Bai Yujing thought it was no big deal. Since she had decided to let herself go, there was no need to be too anxious. After all, it was much better than squeezing onto a train during the Spring Festival. Bai Yujing was not someone who hadn't suffered before; it was just that the ticket prices were a bit high. The round-trip tickets and insurance costs nearly totaled twelve thousand yuan. On ordinary days, Bai Yujing would never spend that much money, but she gritted her teeth and confirmed the booking using Alipay and Yu'e Bao for payment.
After all, she still had thirty points on hand, each of which could be exchanged for ten thousand yuan—totaling three hundred thousand yuan. Coupled with her savings, it was more than enough for this trip. If she saved a bit, she could definitely cut down on costs. If she completed her tasks, she could earn even more points.
She went on Taobao to find sellers who could help her with the travel visa issue. Scotland is part of the UK, and Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland. Bai Yujing inquired about how long it would take to get the visa; it would take about four to five days at most and wouldn't exceed a week, costing just over a thousand yuan.
After discussing the process with customer service and determining what materials were needed and what proof had to be provided, Bai Yujing realized that she could handle the visa application herself if she gathered the materials. However, she was unfamiliar with the process and unsure how long it would take. If there were any mistakes along the way, it could cause significant delays. Therefore, Bai Yujing decided to hire professionals for this task since she had already spent a large amount on tickets and didn't want to get bogged down by this issue.
Bai Yujing placed her order and made the payment while urging them to expedite the process since her flight was scheduled for eight days later. If they hadn't finalized everything by then, it would delay her plans.
Once her itinerary was confirmed, Bai Yujing felt much lighter after being weighed down by Li Xinyan's presence. The thought of traveling to the UK—Scotland—Edinburgh—exotic landscapes, medieval architecture, ancient churches and palaces, cobblestone streets, and the sea excited her immensely.
Oh right! What about those Exotic Creatures mentioned by the system? Do Leprechauns really exist?
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