“That’s certainly quite obscure.” Chun Niu followed along, pausing before suddenly turning to Cang Yun Lang, “Brother Lang, someone submitted their assignment. Go review it.”

Cang Yun Lang let out a dissatisfied “huff.” He wanted to hear what Meng Ya Ya had to say, but Chun Niu was clearly ushering him out. Even with his thick skin, he didn't dare throw a tantrum in front of a girl, as it would surely lower his standing in her eyes. He had no choice but to withdraw.

He stared at Chun Niu’s shining ID, internally cursing Chun Niu eighteen hundred times for kicking him out. Wait until he successfully wooed the girl, hmph!

Only Chun Niu and Zi Ye remained in the Elementary Group.

Zi Ye immediately felt a great sense of relief. She wasn’t familiar with Cang Yun Lang and couldn't speak frankly about real-life matters in front of him. Once he left, she finally opened up, “I like Mech Engineering, and I want to test into Lings. I’ve been studying these past few days, but Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics is so frightening, it gives me a headache.”

Chun Niu recalled the contents of Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics and couldn't help but chuckle, “That’s surprising. All the girls I know say that Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics is the easiest course in the Mecha major. It seems your brain is wired differently from everyone else’s.”

Zi Ye sighed dejectedly, saying nothing.

However, he genuinely didn’t look favorably upon her choice of the Mech Engineering track and wanted to steer her back onto the right path. He said earnestly, “There are two reasons why Mech Engineering is unpopular. One is that it’s harder to secure high-paying, comfortable careers. The other is that the subjects for Mech Engineering are almost the sum of Design, Mech Fabrication, and Pilot studies—the curriculum is incredibly dense, and the workload is immense. For a girl, it’s truly not a good choice. Have you considered alternatives?”

Zi Ye’s tone was firm: “I’ve made up my mind. I won't change.”

Chun Niu shook his head helplessly. Zi Ye was indeed not an ordinary girl; so stubborn! In reality, regardless of the university, many students choose their majors simply by name—they apply if they like the sound of it, only to realize after starting that it’s nothing like they imagined, leading to complicated change requests later.

By any measure, Zi Ye was an outstanding student, and he didn’t want that kind of trouble to happen to her. He tried to persuade her gently, “I really hoped you’d apply for Mecha Design. Then you could be my junior apprentice. The problems you solve are excellent, and your foundational knowledge is solid. If you studied design, your future would be brilliantly bright.”

Zi Ye didn’t consider Mecha Design at all and shook her head, “I’m an idiot when it comes to design.”

Why wouldn't she listen? Chun Niu felt a little frustrated but was unwilling to give up. He tried again, “Design isn’t as hard as you imagine, and the requirements for drafting aren’t that high. As long as you study diligently, you’ll have no trouble mastering it.”

Zi Ye stated, “I don’t want to change.”

Chun Niu knew it was hopeless and finally gave up. “Alright, I won't press you anymore. Since you’ve decided, work hard to achieve it. The path you choose is yours to walk, and you’ll be the one responsible for it. Let me see if I can contact a few students in the Mech Engineering major to give you some insight, and I’ll find some past exam papers for you. If you have any questions while solving them, feel free to ask me anytime. I tested just last year, and six or seven of the twelve books are the same ones you’re studying; I probably haven't forgotten.”

Zi Ye understood his kindness and replied gratefully, “Thank you.”

Just as they were speaking, someone suddenly entered the Elementary Group. Zi Ye hadn't noticed, about to speak, when she suddenly heard Chun Niu’s surprised voice, “Teacher Su Tang?”

Zi Ye froze for a moment, then called out, “Teacher Su Tang.”

Su Tang chuckled softly, his voice as benevolent as ever, “Did I interrupt your discussion about life goals?”

Chun Niu couldn't help but smile, “Meng Ya Ya is preparing to test into the Mech Engineering department at Lings, and I was trying to persuade her.” He thought to himself that Su Tang’s arrival was timely. He couldn’t convince Zi Ye; perhaps Su Tang could.

Anyone who had ever heard Su Tang speak would absolutely believe he possessed the ability to persuade anyone.

Unexpectedly, Su Tang merely smiled faintly, “Mech Engineering? An excellent major.”

Chun Niu was greatly surprised. “Why do you say that?”

Su Tang replied, “Mech Engineering emphasizes the accumulation of holistic mecha knowledge. If the foundation is solid, doing anything later becomes easy. It’s a pity that the professors with real capability have all gone to the popular majors, so there aren't many capable teachers available.”

Chun Niu casually opened the professor list for Lings University. The renowned professors in the Mech Engineering department were indeed fewer than in other departments, but they weren't non-existent. Did that mean that the renowned professors Su Tang mentioned were merely individuals in his eyes, not true talents?

What a high standard! What an arrogant tone!

Chun Niu couldn't help but feel immense curiosity—who exactly was Su Tang?

As he was pondering, he heard Zi Ye say, “The foundational mentor provides guidance, but cultivation relies on the individual. Does it really matter if the mentor is slightly better or worse?”

Chun Niu immediately countered without thinking, “That’s not true. Mentors are crucial; a good mentor can potentially influence your entire life!”

“Uh…” Zi Ye certainly knew mentors were important. She was just using that phrase to comfort herself and stand firm in her choice.

Su Tang just smiled slightly, “Meng Ya Ya, are you confident you can get in?”

Zi Ye recalled the results of her recent textbook study and replied seriously, “Other than Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics, the rest shouldn't be a major problem.”

Su Tang said in a reassuring tone, “Don’t worry. Once you’re in, you’ll have good mentors guiding you. You can absolutely go for Mech Engineering without hesitation.”

Zi Ye felt a persuasive energy in his words and answered clearly, “Okay, I will definitely get in.”

Chun Niu listened silently to their conversation, his heart aching. He had originally thought Su Tang was on his side, believing he could finally persuade Zi Ye, but he never expected Su Tang to encourage her to test into Mech Engineering!

If it weren't for his years of admiration for Su Tang, he would genuinely want to draw circles and curse him.

With Su Tang’s affirmation, Zi Ye felt much more cheerful. She thanked them both sincerely and logged off to continue studying. Now, even her reading felt much lighter; with Chun Niu’s help, preparing for the exam was much smoother.

For any mecha-related questions Zi Ye didn't understand, Little Sprout could help her answer. For Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics, Little Sprout could only help her look up the answers. As for the subtle, roundabout language in those answers, Little Sprout, not being human, didn't understand, and Zi Ye, lacking social survival skills, also didn't grasp it.

This was precisely where Chun Niu played a huge role.

For every concept she didn't grasp in Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics, Zi Ye would go online to prod Chun Niu for guidance.

Chun Niu was curious about her severe imbalance in subjects. Besides teaching her wholeheartedly, he constantly looked for opportunities to lobby her to switch to the Mecha Design department so she could become his junior apprentice!

Zi Ye’s vision for her future was very clear and unwavering.

In addition to providing extensive guidance on Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics, Chun Niu also taught her many things about study methods and exam preparation strategies, especially regarding cramming.

Zi Ye was surprised to learn that Chun Niu, this academic high-achiever, also resorted to cramming for his exams! Listening to him recount his past cramming history greatly comforted her. According to him, her current cramming approach would surely allow her to pass.

The only regret was that Chun Niu’s own exams were approaching, making it impossible for him to stay on the forum constantly.

Chun Niu comforted her, “I can just give you my Ultra-Signal, right? If you can’t find me on the forum later, you can call me on my Ultra-Signal.”

Zi Ye was overjoyed.

Chun Niu was truly a great person inside and out!

After exchanging Ultra-Signals, Zi Ye finally relaxed. However, she wouldn't casually contact Chun Niu. If she absolutely had to, she would just photograph the questions and send them to him instead of chatting or video calling.

She always felt that making an Ultra-Signal call was something familiar acquaintances did. As Chun Niu’s online friend, she couldn't cross that line.

Since she started focusing on her exams, the most idle person became Little Sprout.

Little Sprout spent most of its time wandering everywhere in the Light Net. The rest of the time, it stayed on the forum accepting questions. If a question was related to exam prep, it tossed it to Zi Ye to solve; if not, it handled it itself. It never imagined that its small actions were causing such a massive stir on the forum!

Cang Yun Lang reviewed the answers while speculating, wondering if Meng Ya Ya had a clone? Otherwise, how could she complete so many problems day and night while also preparing for exams?

He shared his thoughts with Chun Niu, and Chun Niu was equally shocked.

If Zi Ye was the one doing the forum assignments, then the volume of problems she tackled in a day was three times what he could manage during his peak intensity! Before, he had never encountered anyone more capable than himself; now, he only felt stunned—Meng Ya Ya was truly too powerful.

Zi Ye was immersed in her studies and completely unaware of this matter. Little Sprout, believing that solving problems earned money and wanting to keep Zi Ye free from worries since it was idle, didn't consider that its small deeds might attract undue attention from the outside world.

One day, after Chun Niu finished explaining a sociology problem to Zi Ye, he said earnestly, “Ya Ya, we are pleased that you are still accepting assignments during your prep period, but the exams are almost here. You should focus entirely on your preparation for now; you can handle the assignments later.”

Just as Zi Ye was about to reply, “I haven’t been doing the problems!” she saw Little Sprout furiously nudging her. She immediately reacted and changed her words, “Okay, I’ll do them after the exams.”

Chun Niu nodded, then subtly probed a moment later, “Since you accept assignments and solve test papers, how do you manage your time? I’m not as good as you in this regard; I need to learn from you.”

Zi Ye guiltily wiped a bead of sweat, forcing a dry laugh, “Uh, these assignments are... they were all done before. I just dragged submitting them out until now, trying to turn them in bit by bit.” She wasn't good at lying; when she lied, her face turned red, and she stammered continuously. Fortunately, Chun Niu couldn't see her like this, or he would surely become suspicious.

Little Sprout listened nearby and felt very resentful.

No one was around to play with—so boring! Even the privilege of doing homework was revoked. Was it even allowed to live? It rolled around on the desk for a while. Suddenly, it remembered how incredibly fast the Light Net was now, hmph hmph.

Ten minutes later, Little Sprout began its large-scale “play,” with every action carrying the risk of being terminated: throwing a virus into the Fia family system, hacking into the Pilot Training Base to view the background data of the Four Great Families, briefly playing cop in the Interstellar Federation’s prisoner database, and popping over to the Kaga Education Center to peek at the old expert... RS