Whether in the past or now, exam time always flew by.
Those who knew the material focused on their thoughts.
By the time they finished their papers, it was almost time to collect them.
Those who didn’t know just dozed off, fantasizing about what to play after school, what to eat, and toughing it out until it was over.
Jiang Ling, of course, considered herself the first type.
“Easy, easy, way too easy.”
After school in the club room, Jiang Ling forcefully dragged Ji Qingyan to help her check the answers.
Xia Yu and Ding Rui were also there today.
They hadn’t studied some of the sophomore year knowledge yet, but seeing Jiang Ling’s exaggerated claims, they curiously leaned in to look.
“Jiang Ling, checking answers right after an exam is a bad habit.”
Ji Qingyan said lightly.
If Jiang Ling hadn’t dragged her, she wouldn’t even want to look at the exam papers.
An exam was an exam.
After it was over, she’d just wait for the teacher to go over it in class.
The teachers at Tianhua Middle School were very responsible.
They wouldn’t skip a problem just because some students got the easy ones wrong.
After every exam, they’d always go through the entire paper from start to finish and summarize the testing concepts behind each test.
So checking answers was completely unnecessary.
“Huh? I did so well. It would be a waste not to check!”
Jiang Ling didn’t care.
“Senior is amazing.”
Xia Yu’s eyes practically turned into star shapes as she looked at each paper, seeing mostly check marks, and couldn’t help but sigh.
Senior Jiang was not only beautiful and kind-hearted, but also so good at studying.
“Senior, can you really give yourself this many points for this essay question?”
Ding Rui noticed a problem.
For the big question at the end of the Chinese reading comprehension section, Jiang Ling’s answer only grazed the correct one.
For a five-point question, Jiang Ling dared to give herself four points.
Was that really okay?
“Oh, close enough is fine. The teacher will be generous.”
Jiang Ling said subconsciously.
“Generous? How?”
The two juniors were baffled.
Jiang Ling realized there was no such thing as teachers being “generous” in high school, so she started explaining randomly, “I mean, the teacher sees that your answer is related, so they’ll always give you some points.”
Xia Yu was completely a little fangirl, nodding with sparkling eyes.
Hearing that Jiang Ling made some sense, Ding Rui couldn’t find anything to refute, so she nodded along.
“Alright.”
“Hmph, you two still have a lot to learn.”
Ji Qingyan didn’t speak, but seeing Jiang Ling, who seemed a little too happy, she had a bad feeling.
Jiang Ling, getting carried away like that would lead to a big fall.
After checking the answers for all subjects, the scores came out.
It was pretty similar to how she’d done on the extracurricular papers before.
Jiang Ling estimated her total score was probably around 530.
“Qingyan, do you want to check yours?”
Jiang Ling tilted her head.
“No.”
Ji Qingyan shook her head.
Since Ji Qingyan didn’t want to, Jiang Ling didn’t force her.
She was in a good mood now, with a bright smile on her face.
She recalled how when school let out, Fang Chenxi accidentally heard some classmates comparing answers and found out she’d gotten some questions wrong, showing a sad expression.
Jiang Ling’s smile grew even wider.
Fang Chenxi, oh Fang Chenxi.
How should I torment you?
***
The papers were corrected quickly.
The next day during the last class, news spread through the class that the results were already out.
That last class happened to be taught by Xu Niannian.
Xu Niannian walked briskly, a smile on her face, holding a white piece of paper in her hand, and entered the classroom in high heels.
When Jiang Ling saw her, she raised an eyebrow.
It seemed like her class’s results were pretty good.
So she provocatively glanced over at Fang Chenxi, who was busy working on a problem.
Fang Chenxi, sensing Jiang Ling’s gaze, felt uneasy.
Jiang Ling looked so confident that it made her a little flustered.
But based on her own estimate, she figured it shouldn’t be a problem.
She’d let Jiang Ling be smug a little longer.
“The monthly exam results are out. Overall, our class did very well.”
As Xu Niannian spoke, the students started to cheer and applaud.
After she gestured for them to quiet down, she continued, “Now I’ll read out the class rankings.”
“First place, Ji Qingyan. Total score: 647.”
Xu Niannian added, “Student Ji Qingyan is not only first in the class but also first in the entire grade this time.”
No wonder she’s the club president!
Even though Ji Qingyan had mentioned before that she was the grade leader in her first year, hearing it confirmed by Xu Niannian, Jiang Ling still felt an heartfelt admiration.
In an instant, everyone’s gaze fell on Ji Qingyan, accompanied by exclamations of “Amazing.”
But Ji Qingyan remained indifferent, sitting upright, her gaze occasionally and deliberately drifting toward Jiang Ling.
She didn’t seem to care at all.
Fang Chenxi, on the other hand, showed a frustrated expression.
She didn’t have any bet with Ji Qingyan, but seeing that Ji Qingyan was ranked higher than her, she felt annoyed.
“Second place, Fang Chenxi. Total score: 612.”
“Jiang Ling, sixth place. Total score: 515.”
When Jiang Ling’s name was called, she was completely stunned.
She felt no joy at having made it into the top ten of the class on her very first time back in high school.
It’s over.
Everything’s over.
The roles had reversed.
In a corner unseen by others, Fang Chenxi leaned in closer and whispered softly in her ear.
The girl’s ear was crystal clear and delicate, but at this moment, it was tinted with a hint of peach, exceptionally pink.
The strong lemon scent made Jiang Ling restless.
She couldn’t tell if it was the disappointment of failing or the shame of being humiliated by Fang Chenxi.
“This weekend, wash yourself clean and come see me.”
***
Jiang Ling didn’t know how she got through that week.
It felt like every time she woke up, a few big words were right in front of her: You lost.
Fang Chenxi’s smugness was fully revealed after she won.
She was in a great mood now.
Every day when she saw Jiang Ling, she’d smile brightly.
When she met Ji Qingyan, she could even greet her with a smile.
It was like she’d turned into a completely different person.
Friday after school.
In the club room, Ji Qingyan noticed the contrast between Fang Chenxi’s recent high spirits and Jiang Ling’s dejection.
She watched Jiang Ling, whose body was typing but whose mind was clearly elsewhere, and couldn’t help asking, “What happened? Don’t tell me Fang Chenxi found out about your novel writing?”
Jiang Ling gave a bitter smile.
“Worse than that.”
Ji Qingyan was stunned.
She didn’t know much about Fang Chenxi, so naturally she didn’t know exactly what had happened between the two.
But judging by Jiang Ling’s reaction, she could guess it was something unfavorable to Jiang Ling.
She pursed her lips.
“Is there anything I can help with?”
Help?
Jiang Ling froze, then imagined a scene: she and Ji Qingyan put on maid outfits together, knelt in front of Fang Chenxi, Ji Qingyan’s cold face pleading pitifully, her eyes looking at Fang Chenxi with a vulnerable expression, begging her not to go after Jiang Ling and to come at her instead.
Club President!
Don’t let that happen!
Jiang Ling’s expression suddenly turned tragic, but her eyes became resolute.
She held Ji Qingyan’s hands in both of hers.
“Don’t worry, President. I can handle this myself.”
Ji Qingyan was at a loss by her nonsensical action, but seeing Jiang Ling finally regain some spirit, her worry eased a bit.
She pulled her hands away and still said, “Tell me if anything happens. After all, we’re friends.”
Ji Qingyan emphasized again.
She never liked it when Jiang Ling called her “President.”
“Okay.”
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