The teachers in the office gaped even wider, their faces filled with disbelief.
They all taught the experimental class, so they knew exactly how hard Chu Sheng had been working this month!
Gu Xue Jiao had also been diligent, but she had devoted much of her energy to competitions. Plus, they had all assumed her previous first-place ranking was pure luck. But this time...
How the hell could this still be luck?!
This was genuine ability!
"Teacher Yin! Post the results in the group chat!" the homeroom teacher of Class Two frowned deeply.
He knew Chu Sheng well—Chu Sheng was the most talented student he had encountered in all his years teaching the experimental class. He had talent, and he worked hard. Li Ping had been certain such a student would create a legend. But now, Gu Xue Jiao had emerged out of nowhere...
Had Chu Sheng underperformed this time? Had something gone wrong?
As soon as Yin Fang posted the file in the group chat, Li Ping immediately opened it.
Name: Chu Sheng
Score: 729
Rank: 1
Name: Gu Xue Jiao
Score: 729
Rank: 1
Name: Gu Shiyun
Score: 710
Rank: 3
Name: Shang Zhiyuan
Score: 708
Rank: 4
...
These scores...
This month's exam had covered more material than the last, so many students' scores had dropped. As for Chu Sheng's result, Li Ping had to admit—this was practically the limit.
Hadn't they all noticed the nearly 20-point gap between first and third place?
But Gu Xue Jiao...
Decimal points were rounded off in the final tally, which was why Chu Sheng and Gu Xue Jiao shared the same score. Alphabetically, Chu Sheng's name appeared before Gu Xue Jiao's, but in reality...
Gu Xue Jiao had scored 0.5 points higher than Chu Sheng!
Chu Sheng was second—Gu Xue Jiao was the rightful first-place winner!
"Gu Xue Jiao..." Li Ping opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words.
Yin Fang was similarly silent.
It was the Chinese teacher, Ms. Yuan, who finally spoke. "I've always liked Gu Xue Jiao. She has the ability. Teacher Yin must have reviewed the papers—Gu Xue Jiao's score is undoubtedly well-earned. At this level in high school, their scores are nearing the limit."
Yin Fang remained quiet for a long time. Deep down, she was happy, though she felt a bit ashamed for having misjudged the situation.
She had been so certain Gu Xue Jiao couldn't take first place again, yet the girl had turned around and slapped her in the face—hard.
After a moment, Yin Fang adjusted her emotions and smiled.
"Now our class has a top student too, Teacher Li. When it comes to the college entrance exams, who gets the bonus is still up in the air."
At their level of teaching, it wasn't just about the bonus—it was about reputation.
Teachers were gardeners. Only by nurturing awe-inspiring trees could they earn the world's recognition.
Before this, Yin Fang had nearly given up hope. Though Gu Xue Jiao had once taken first place, they had all dismissed it as pure luck. The top student from the neighboring class, Chu Sheng, had seemed an insurmountable presence.
But now... she saw hope!
A fire ignited in Yin Fang's eyes, brimming with determination.
"Teacher Yin, don't be so sure," Li Ping said stiffly. "Chu Sheng is steady. Gu Xue Jiao's foundation is still weak."
In the past, when Li Ping had praised Gu Xue Jiao, it had been out of modesty—they all knew Chu Sheng and Gu Xue Jiao weren't on the same level.
But now that this dark horse had emerged, praising Gu Xue Jiao would only boost her morale at Chu Sheng's expense.
Yin Fang raised an eyebrow and lifted her chin—"She has a weak foundation, so I'll help her strengthen it and find ways to assist her! As long as she has the ability and is willing to work hard, no one can predict what the future holds!"
The Chinese teacher suddenly turned off the spreadsheet and said, "As long as they both perform well, it doesn't matter to me who comes first—they're both my students, and I'm just their subject teacher. Right now, I only care about... whether Teacher Yin has finished compiling the results so we can take a break today."
"..."
——
On Monday, by the time Xue Jiao arrived at school, the honor roll had already been posted.
As she approached the classroom, almost everyone turned to look at her. The sea of eyes made her uneasy, and she instinctively checked her clothes.
Nothing wrong?
Xue Jiao sat down in this strange atmosphere, took out her materials, and began reading.
"BuChi—BuChi—" Yi Tianyu hummed while performing a fancy basketball trick, then vaulted over the desk behind Xue Jiao to land in his seat.
Noticing the subtle glances from others, Yi Tianyu looked down at himself, then nudged Xue Jiao and ran a hand through his hair—
"Hey, dummy, do I look especially handsome today? Why's everyone staring at me?"
Xue Jiao: "..."
"Jiao Jiao—" Xi Junyang rushed over.
He sat in front of Xue Jiao, clutching his chest dramatically: "Jiao Jiao! You scored 729!! Are you even human?! First place again!"
"Pfft—" Yi Tianyu, who had just taken a sip of water, spat it out. Without bothering to wipe his mouth, he turned and asked, "How much?!"
"Seven hundred twenty-nine!" Xi Junyang enunciated each syllable.
At that moment, Yi Tianyu felt the petite Gu Xue Jiao suddenly grow taller, towering like a mountain beside him.
As if he needed to look up to her.
"Jiao Jiao! Are you human?! You're a god!" Xi Junyang grabbed Xue Jiao's shoulders and shook her vigorously.
Yi Tianyu slapped his hand away: "Talk if you want, but keep your hands to yourself!"
"Fine, fine, no touching." Xi Junyang raised his hands in surrender. "By the way, Brother Yu, you improved again—you made it into the top 300! 278th place! Not bad, Brother Yu!"
Yi Tianyu rolled his eyes and slumped onto the desk without a word.
"Has it been posted?" Xue Jiao set down her pen, tilting her head slightly.
"Yeah, it's up on the bulletin board outside."
"I'll go take a look." Xue Jiao stood up.
Yi Tianyu quickly followed suit: "I'm coming too!"
He trailed behind Xue Jiao as they headed to the bulletin board.
Xue Jiao's gaze fixed on the top few names, and she froze momentarily.
Chu Sheng... 729...
She had poured all her energy into this, even with two extra years of preparation, yet she had only managed to tie with this person...
This guy was truly formidable. Xue Jiao stared at the name, her fighting spirit ignited.
"Gu Xue Jiao." A voice came from beside her.
Xue Jiao turned, momentarily stunned—Chu Sheng.
"Hmm?"
"You should be first. You scored 0.5 higher than me." Chu Sheng adjusted his glasses, standing politely nearby.
He was tall, unnaturally pale, and exuded an air of refinement.
Xue Jiao smiled: "In the college entrance exams, 0.5 is just luck. It's the same."
Chu Sheng also smiled: "True. I'll keep working hard. Next time, I'll surpass you."
"Good. I'll work hard too to keep my seat."
Their eyes met, sparks flying between them.Yi Tianyu stood nearby, feeling a vast gap between himself and the girl before him. In her world, there should be someone like that... the model student everyone compared him to since childhood. That person was praised by teachers, while he was always looked down upon...
Did Xue Jiao think the same way?
He lowered his head slightly, somewhat disheartened.
"I'll head back to the classroom first?" Xue Jiao nodded politely at Chu Sheng.
"Sure, see you later," Chu Sheng replied hastily.
Xue Jiao took a few steps, then paused and turned back. "Aren't you coming?"
Huh?
Yi Tianyu looked up to see her puzzled gaze fixed on him. The girl's profile was exquisitely delicate, beautiful in an understated yet breathtaking way!
"Ah! Coming!" Yi Tianyu's gloom vanished instantly as he hurried after her.
As he passed Chu Sheng, he raised his chin slightly, strutting like a victorious rooster.
See? Top grades don't matter!
It's handsome guys like him who are popular!
Hehehe!
——
"Chu Sheng!" After Xue Jiao and Yi Tianyu left, Gu Shiyun walked up to Chu Sheng with a smile.
"What is it?"
"I wanted to ask you about the last part of the physics problem. I just can't solve it. That question alone cost me ten points compared to you, sigh..." Gu Shiyun lightly tapped her head, looking troubled.
Chu Sheng was in the same class as her, and they often discussed academic problems together. Their classmates would gather around in silent admiration, too awed to speak.
Some even said that top student Chu Sheng only paid attention to Gu Shiyun—that only the charm of a goddess could make someone like him bend.
She didn't like Chu Sheng; her heart had always belonged to Cheng Mingze.
But she enjoyed being the only girl close to Chu Sheng, basking in the envy of others.
Gu Shiyun no longer had to look at others with envy—now, they were the ones envying her!
But she never expected—Chu Sheng shook his head.
He said, "You can look at my paper, but if you need explanations, ask the teacher. Gu Shiyun, I won’t have time to tutor you anymore. I need to focus all my efforts!"
With that, Chu Sheng turned and walked away quickly, as if eager to return to the classroom.
"Chu—" He was already out of sight.
The area around the honor roll was crowded with students checking their results.
Chu Sheng, Gu Xue Jiao, Yi Tianyu, and Gu Shiyun—all were prominent figures in their grade, drawing everyone's attention.
Soon, Gu Shiyun overheard whispers—
"Chu Sheng is determined to catch up to Gu Xue Jiao. He’s going to work even harder now!"
"Gu Xue Jiao is just as diligent. Every time I see her, she’s studying. Some from Class One say she even listens to English tapes while walking."
"Ah? She was listening to tapes? I always thought she was just being aloof!"
"People from Class One say she’s actually very approachable and friendly. Her grades are amazing, and she works incredibly hard."
"Seriously! Does she leave any room for the rest of us? Beautiful and top of the class!"
"Yeah, and she’s really close with Chu Sheng and Yi Tianyu!"
"Xi Junyang from Class One too—they all get along so well with her!"
"She’s the real deal, a true goddess!"
Someone nudged their chin toward Gu Shiyun and whispered—
"Gu Xue Jiao is the real goddess! Stunning looks, now top grades too. Unlike this one, who’s still a step behind..."
"Shh! She’s right here."
"Right, let’s go. Class is starting soon!"...
Gu Shiyun could barely maintain her gentle expression. Clutching her phone tightly, her nails dug into her palm until it nearly bled as she slowly walked back to the classroom.
——
Cheng Mingjiao had stayed up too late last night and woke up late today, arriving in the classroom just before class started.
On a day like today, her excitement had nearly kept her awake all night. The moment she sat down, she immediately asked the person in front of her, "Who's ranked first in the grade?"
"It's Chu Sheng..."
"Hahahaha!!!" Cheng Mingjiao burst into laughter, then turned to look at Gu Xue Jiao with a mocking expression.
"Weren't you so amazing? How did first place end up going to Chu Sheng? Just one time at the top, and your true colors show, huh? Bet you cheated to get that last score! Hahaha!"
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