When Xue Jiao said she would help Yi Tianyu with his studies, she meant it seriously. Her attitude was always earnest, and now that she had to guide her deskmate as well, she was putting in even more effort, staying focused every single minute.
Xue Jiao hadn’t forgotten the "fight" incident with Cheng Mingjiao shortly after she joined Class One.
She wasn’t the type to vocalize her gratitude, nor would she simply consider a lollipop as repayment.
Xue Jiao remembered it in her heart, so when Yi Tianyu needed her help, she naturally spared no effort.
Yi Tianyu was also stubborn. The thought of leaving Class One and no longer being Xue Jiao’s deskmate made him feel like he was holding his breath. He followed Xue Jiao’s lead—previewing lessons, solving problems, listening to lectures, taking notes, reviewing notes, practicing mistakes repeatedly, and revising.
His determination was even stronger than during the midterm exams.
——
"Son, take a break. It’s so late already." Yi Dafa and Yi’s Mother watched him with concern.
It was Friday night. Before, they had worried when Yi Tianyu would immediately start gaming as soon as he got home. Now, he was studying frantically the moment he stepped inside, and they were even more worried.
"Just a little longer."
Yi Dafa patted him sympathetically. "Son, if you want to stay in Class One, Dad will find a way for you. There are students in No. 7 High who stayed despite not making the top 100—Dad will figure something out!"
Truthfully, Yi Dafa was a businessman at heart. No matter how wide his connections were, breaking the rules wasn’t something he could arrange immediately.
But for his son, he’d move heaven and earth to make it happen!
Yi Tianyu finally put down his pen, only to shoot him a disdainful look—
"What capabilities do you have that I don’t know about? I’ll get in on my own. Don’t waste your energy."
After a pause, he added, "Don’t disturb me. If you really want to help, find me a tutor—one who can start tomorrow afternoon."
"..."
Yi’s Mother wanted to say more, but Yi Dafa clenched his teeth. "Fine! Dad won’t hold you back. You focus on your studies, and I’ll find you a tutor!"
With that, he pulled Yi’s Mother out, leaving Yi Tianyu to continue scribbling away.
——
At the same time, Gu Xue Jiao was also still writing furiously, well past her usual bedtime.
"Buzz—"
Her phone vibrated slightly. Xue Jiao initially ignored it, but then she remembered—it was around the time she usually exchanged greetings with Lin Zhihua.
She quickly walked over and opened the message—
[Resting yet?]
Her fingers tapped out a reply—
[Not yet. I’m "working overtime" for half an hour today, preparing some materials.]
[Materials?] Lin Zhihua sounded puzzled.
Xue Jiao hurried to explain—
[It’s for my deskmate. I’m helping him review. His grades aren’t great, and he needs to make the top 100 in the finals to stay in Class One.]
After sending the message, the other end fell silent.
Deskmate?
That kid with the surname Yi?
Lin Zhihua’s expression darkened for a moment, but in the end, he said nothing about it and only asked—
[You’re helping him get into the top 100?]
[Yeah. He helped me before, so I should help him too.]
After Xue Jiao sent this, there was no reply for a long time. She blinked in surprise.
Was Lin Zhihua… busy?
After waiting another two minutes, a message finally came through—【Learning a year and a half's worth of material in less than a month is difficult. Chinese is a subject that requires long-term effort and relies heavily on foundational knowledge. I don’t recommend spending too much time reviewing it—just fill out the exam paper completely and break down the classical Chinese comprehension questions by scoring points to maximize your marks. The same goes for English. If his English isn’t too weak, focus all your time on math and science to score as much as possible. Predict the key exam topics and connect the knowledge points. Math and science are subjects where understanding one concept helps with others—focus on the essentials, and breaking into the top 100 this time shouldn’t be hard.】
Xue Jiao froze again, taking a moment before replying—
【You really are a top student!】
Lin Zhihua quickly responded—
【I happen to be free lately. I’ll help you outline the key topics. Get some rest and focus on reviewing. You’re in your second year of high school now—if you want perfect scores, you can’t afford to waste time.】
Xue Jiao instinctively replied—
【No need, no need! I can handle it myself!】
But Lin Zhihua was firm.
【Go to sleep. Don’t stay up late. I’ll finish this quickly.】
Xue Jiao sent a few more messages insisting she didn’t need help.
On one hand, she didn’t want to trouble him. On the other, Lin Zhihua had graduated long ago—how could he possibly outline their exam topics? Only she knew what they’d covered in class.
With that thought, she decided to sleep and wake up early the next day to list the key points herself.
——
At 6:30 a.m., Xue Jiao got up. Almost as soon as she did, her phone buzzed.
It was a Word document from Lin Zhihua. Stunned, she hurriedly opened it—and her mouth fell open in shock.
It was incredibly clear!
The key topics for math and science were meticulously outlined, with a logical flow and example questions attached.
Most importantly, he had practically listed every possible exam topic!
Each topic was followed by the probability of it appearing on the final exam and sample questions. At the end of the document was even a mock test!
These weren’t exact numerical problems but "outline" questions—like what the first multiple-choice question might test, the depth of the content, and the probability of certain topics appearing.
By the time she finished reading, Xue Jiao’s jaw was practically on the floor.
She had thought Chu Sheng was the most talented person she’d ever met—but today, she realized there were always greater talents beyond what she knew.
So this… was what a true top student looked like?
After a long pause, she replied—
【AHHHHHHH!!! YOU’RE AMAZING!! THANK YOU!!!!】
Lin Zhihua, upon receiving the message, simply smiled faintly and said nothing.
——
That morning, during a meeting at Lin Corporation...
“Boss?” Manager Xu called softly.
Lin Zhihua snapped back to attention as if he’d never been drowsy. “No. This proposal is too rough—it lacks highlights. This is a critical period. We’re not working overtime today just to listen to nonsense. Revise it.”
“Understood…” Manager Xu wiped his sweat.
Lin Zhihua gestured to Chen Yan. “Brew me a coffee. Make it strong.”
He wasn’t sure why he’d stayed up all night preparing an outline for Gu Xue Jiao’s "deskmate"...
Perhaps it was just that inexplicable feeling in his heart. He didn’t want Xue Jiao sharing any collaborative activities with another boy—ones he couldn’t be part of. It left him unsettled and irritable.
Taking a sip of coffee, Lin Zhihua steeled himself and returned to work.
——
Xue Jiao treated the outline like treasure, reviewing it herself while explaining it bit by bit to Yi Tianyu.
Time slipped away in their hurried preparations.Liu Yazhen had promised Cheng Mingjiao to make Gu Xue Jiao's life difficult, and she wasn't joking. That day, she picked up the phone and called a woman.
Li Sitong was at home arranging flowers at the time. With her children at school, her husband at work, and household chores taken care of by the auntie, she had to find something to occupy herself.
She was momentarily surprised when she received a call from an older neighbor.
"Mahjong? Sister Li, at your place?"
After getting an affirmative answer from the other end, Li Sitong thought for a moment and agreed.
"Alright then, I'll get ready and come over right away!"
With that, she finished what she was doing, changed her clothes, and headed out.
When the housekeeper led her into Li Shu's home, she smiled and asked, "Sister Li, what made you think of—"
Li Sitong's words trailed off as she spotted two other people sitting on the sofa.
One was Madam Chang, whom she occasionally played mahjong with, and the other was... Liu Yazhen.
Seeing her, Liu Yazhen approached with a smile, linking arms with her and saying cheerfully, "Sister-in-law, don't be angry with me anymore. Let's bury the hatchet today, alright?"
Madam Chang also smiled and said, "Yazhen mentioned you two had a little misunderstanding. With such nice weather today, let's bridge the gap and make up. What could be worth holding a grudge between sisters-in-law for so long? I remember you two used to get along quite well."
That was because she had been swallowing her pride back then!
Li Sitong almost blurted this out reflexively but held back out of pride.
As for the reason behind their conflict, how could Li Sitong possibly say it out loud? That her niece had called her a vixen? There was no way she could voice that.
So, Li Sitong suppressed her feelings and forced a smile.
The four of them soon sat down at the mahjong table. Li Sitong played absentmindedly for a round before feeling the urge to leave.
At that moment, Liu Yazhen suddenly smiled and said, "Sister Li! I just remembered something. Didn't you say before that Hongyi was being disobedient?"
Li Shu tossed the tile she had just drawn onto the table with a sigh. "Exactly! You have no idea—that boy only knows how to go out and have fun. He has no clue what studying hard means. With his attitude, his father wouldn't dare hand the company over to him after graduation. He'd run it into the ground sooner or later!"
Li Shu's husband was the most accomplished among their group. Cheng Shuo had several business collaborations with him, which was why everyone had come at her invitation.
In the past, Li Sitong and Li Shu had a lot in common—both surnamed Li, both with unruly youngsters at home!
Liu Yazhen, afraid that Li Sitong would win Li Shu over, had put in considerable effort to stay on Li Shu's good side.
"The kid's still young! He'll understand when he grows up!" Madam Chang picked up a tile and chuckled.
"Pah! Understand my foot. He's already eighteen, in his senior year of high school! At this rate, forget a good university—I don't even know if he'll make it into any undergraduate program. Ugh!" Li Shu clutched a tile, her face full of worry.
Liu Yazhen suddenly grinned. "Hey! Sister Li, you should ask my sister-in-law about this! Xue Jiao used to be just as clueless, ranking at the bottom of her grade. But look at her now—she's first in her grade in less than a semester! If Hongyi learns from her, even if he doesn't top the class in a semester, he’ll at least make it into a decent university!"
Li Shu and Madam Chang were stunned. "First in her grade?! First at No. 7 High School?!""Exactly! She ranked first in the midterms, then topped the monthly exam last month too. Before entering the second year of high school, she was always at the bottom!" Liu Yazhen said with a smile.
Li Shu immediately turned to Li Sitong: "Sister! You can't keep secrets from me, we're family!"
Li Sitong didn't know how to explain either. Her daughter had indeed soared to first place, but aside from the bet with Cheng Mingjiao, she didn't understand why her daughter improved so rapidly!
"Perhaps she suddenly had an awakening. Jiao Jiao studies extremely diligently now, completely focused on her academics."
After Li Sitong spoke, Li Shu pressed further: "What kind of awakening?!"
"It seems it was after making a bet with Mingjiao. She just got determined and worked hard." Li Sitong said hesitantly.
"Sister-in-law, don't hold back. How could a child's determination last this long? Besides, many diligent students don't reach first place either?" Liu Yazhen still smiled.
"That's right!" Li Shu frowned slightly.
Liu Yazhen grinned: "How about this, Sister Li, have Hongyi spend more time with Xue Jiao. Being around good students helps one study better. Ordinary people don't have Xue Jiao's drive to reach first place in one semester! You know Yi Dafa, right? His son used to be at the bottom too, but he came up with a way to keep his son seated next to Xue Jiao. Now his grades are skyrocketing! If you're willing, have Xue Jiao stay at your place for a while and guide Hongyi in his studies!"
Li Sitong's eyes widened, nearly spitting blood in shock.
Was Hongyi someone Xue Jiao should live with?!
Everyone knew what that boy was like—always hanging out in bars and street racing! At his young age, he couldn't take his eyes off pretty girls!
Even his family couldn't control him!
Putting him with Xue Jiao would be ruining her!
Li Sitong instinctively blurted out: "Absolutely not!"
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