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Chapter 542: Chapter 354 How Do You Know I’m Not a Genius?
May 15, Thursday, light rain.
The mid-term exam results were announced.
Chen Siyu jogged into the classroom and saw Xue Yuantong playing with her phone on the desk, she reminded,
"Are you not checking the rankings?"
Xue Yuantong looked up and glanced at her, "No need."
As long as the teacher marking the papers made no mistakes, she was undoubtedly the first place.
Seeing her like this, Chen Siyu couldn’t help feeling defeated.
The results board was placed in the corner of the eastern corridor, surrounded by students checking their scores. Guo Kunnan emerged from the crowd in high spirits. His rank had jumped from 36th in the class to 32nd, a solid improvement of four places!
Considering the entire grade, he had advanced several dozen places, let alone in the highly competitive university entrance exam, where he had overtaken countless other students.
Indeed, his efforts were paying off.
After checking his own results, Guo Kunnan also took the time to look up his good friend Kaiquan’s scores.
Dan Kaiquan had slid from the top 10 in the class to around 30th place.
Guo Kunnan couldn’t understand it, "Brother Quan, what happened? Why such a serious regression?"
Dan Kaiquan leaned against the back desk, his hair wet from the rain outside, making him look even more dejected.
"Just let it be," Dan Kaiquan said weakly.
While talking, he surreptitiously glanced at Bai Yuxia.
’Bai Yuxia, do you see me willing to fall so low? Doesn’t it pain your heart?’
The truth was, Dan Kaiquan’s real performance still ranked him within the top ten in his class, but to torment Bai Yuxia, he had purposely performed poorly. He left many questions unanswered just to upset her—to make her feel guilty!
Yet Bai Yuxia had no idea.
While Guo Kunnan continued discussing the scores, Dan Kaiquan’s decline drew attention from Jiang Yanan and others; after all, Dan Kaiquan had been seen as a reviving case before, quite inspirational.
However, now that Dan Kaiquan had fallen and regressed so severely, it made Yu Wen question,
"Wasn’t it just luck last time?"
Dan Kaiquan’s mouth twitched slightly. To maintain his image, he didn’t retort, and only managed a bitter smile.
...
Bai Yuxia’s ranking in the class remained unchanged, still fourth, but she moved up two places in the grade rank, sadly still above the 30th position, unable to enter the No. 1 examination room.
"Chen Qian also made little progress, did not make it into the top ten of the grade," Chen Siyu said.
Bai Yuxia, "Progress is very difficult at this level."
"Yes," anyone who thought about it would understand. The top ten of the Fourth Middle School were sure to enter a 985 university, the top among them.
This level, no exaggeration, was the limit of ordinary people’s efforts.
The top ten was not only about hard work but also about talent, where talent defines the ceiling.
While everyone was discussing their scores, the homeroom teacher, Shan Qingrong, appeared at the door, waving to Dan Kaiquan and calling him out.
Guo Kunnan guessed, ’It must be because Dan Kaiquan didn’t perform well, and the homeroom teacher wanted to ask him why.’
Thinking about how his good friend received such attention, Guo Kunnan felt a little envious. His average performance meant he had never been particularly valued by the teacher; in class, he was just another nameless individual.
’It doesn’t matter, as long as I keep trying, I’ll eventually be among the top ten of the class, even the grade.’
Guo Kunnan had grown accustomed to hard work, and he went back to his seat to study the exam paper.
Not long after, Dan Kaiquan returned, his expression much relaxed, no longer showing his previous defeatism.
The homeroom teacher, after all, was skilled in educating students. After getting some ideological education, Dan Kaiquan admitted that certain issues had caused his performance to drop.
He returned to his seat, appearing lost in thought.
His previous path seemed to be mistaken; if he wanted to make Bai Yuxia feel heartache, he shouldn’t have willfully fallen but should become better, the best among everyone!
Once he stood out and made a name for himself, Bai Yuxia would regret her own actions.
Gradually, Dan Kaiquan regained his spirits, flipping through the math test paper and solving problems.
...
During the long morning break.
"I’m going to the cafeteria to buy lunch. Do you guys want anything?" Chen Siyu asked, her sister Chen Siqing was waiting for her outside.
Jiang Ning handed over his meal card, "Two boiled eggs."
"Sure." Chen Siyu set off.
"Jiang Ning, not bad," Xue Yuantong was quite satisfied. She didn’t need to remind him, signifying Jiang Ning was becoming more sensible.
Several students from class 8 were heading to the cafeteria; Wu Xiaoqi got up early every day to play basketball, using up a lot of energy, and had to refuel during the long break.
Wu Xiaoqi and Dan Xiao walked together, discussing basketball legends, tear-jerking matches, and limited-edition basketball shoes.
As their excitement peaked, Wu Xiaoqi decided to treat Dan Xiao to breakfast.
For someone of Wu Xiaoqi’s wealth, a breakfast was merely a drop in the bucket, yet Dan Xiao rejected every time, claiming, "I do not live on charity."
Such character made Wu Xiaoqi respect him.
He was crazy about basketball, but no fool. Wu Xiaoqi’s family was wealthy, and many students used to hang around him largely for his money.
Like the slacker from first year, Deng Xiang, when Wu Xiaoqi dined with Deng Xiang, he always paid.
Though Wu Xiaoqi was not short of money, he wasn’t foolish either, and over time, he stopped going.
Wu Xiaoqi craved genuine friendships, ones that respected his dreams, didn’t covet his wealth, didn’t bad-mouth him, and shared common interests.
Dan Xiao perfectly met his criteria for a friend.
"Yo, Wu Xiaoqi?" Cui Yu greeted from behind.
Upon hearing this, Wu Xiaoqi nodded his head, acknowledging few from class 8.
Cui Yu and Meng Gui went to eat together, and seeing a small puddle ahead, Cui Yu gave a kick and stylishly jumped over it.
"The rain is too light, jumping over isn’t even thrilling," Cui Yu stretched out his hand, feeling the drizzle.
Many girls on their way to the cafeteria opened their umbrellas; Cui Yu was disdainful. Too delicate, isn’t it? Just for a bit of rain, they even carry umbrellas?
