Homework Woes and Diamond Dreams

“Damn! How the hell do you solve this problem!” Huang Xiu, back in the dorm from the teaching building, was locked in fierce battle with his homework.

The pen cap in his mouth was already dented with bite marks, but he had only turned one page in the exercise book.

They say people can do anything when pushed to the limit, except math problems. But Huang Xiu wanted to add that physics problems were impossible too.

Mechanics and electromagnetism, those two supreme sovereigns of the physics faction, had him firmly suppressed even if he sacrificed all his hair.

“It’s time to use my ultimate weapon!”

Huang Xiu sat up straight, his eyes revealing determination, resolve, and a hint of ferocity.

He pulled out his phone and opened the Xiao Yuan Sou Ti app.

****

The next day, the weather was average, cloudy.

The first thing Huang Xiu did upon waking was reach for his head.

Only when he felt the familiar prickly sensation in his palm did he breathe a sigh of relief. “Good, good. It didn’t grow any longer.”

If his hair kept growing that much every morning, not only would his allowance not cover it, but Baldy Liu would eventually have to send him home or to the hospital.

As a boarding student, he could only leave campus on holidays.

Huang Xiu had woken up a bit late today, but Fang Yongyi and Guan Shuai were still snoring in bed. They had stayed up late doing homework too.

Although Huang Xiu and his gang often joked that their dorm was a “slacker dorm,” they were still students at a key high school. No matter how lazy, they at least studied seriously.

Huang Xiu put on his shoes and tiptoed into the bathroom.

He turned on the light and looked in the mirror.

The boy in the mirror still had skin as smooth and white as congealed fat, but it hadn’t gotten any whiter.

“Looks like that change was a one-time thing.” Huang Xiu picked up his toothpaste and started brushing.

It was good that the changes had stopped. Otherwise, he was afraid he’d wake up one day looking like a pretty boy.

But it seemed not only Huang Xiu’s body had stopped changing, but also his daily routine.

After breakfast, Huang Xiu headed straight to the teaching building.

A night later.

The yellow and white tape and the people in Rong’an Pest Control uniforms had vanished without a trace, as if they had never been there, except for the faint smell of pesticide still lingering in the building.

He walked around the teaching building but found nothing unusual, so he returned to the classroom.

It was already ten in the morning on the weekend. Students who came back early were already in the classroom, and Class 4, Grade 2 was quite full.

Shi Lei was there too, but he came early not to study, but to copy homework.

He was bent over his desk, writing furiously.

When he looked up to stretch, he saw Huang Xiu entering through the front door and immediately waved him over.

“Brother Xiu, come quick!”

“Spit it out if you have something to say!” Huang Xiu walked over.

“Look at this!” Shi Lei held up his phone, showing a photo. “Diamond IV! I hit Diamond IV!”

“I couldn’t resist going to the internet café yesterday. Played two games as Malphite and won both.”

“I feel like I’m a Malphite god now.”

“Not ‘like.’ You are the Malphite god.” Huang Xiu joined in the praise. “A man whose name has four stones, worthy of occupying four shares of computing power to connect to the Malphite network.”

“Of course!”

Shi Lei was full of pride. He had reached Diamond on his own, without Huang Xiu carrying him. For a three-year Silver player, this was a historic breakthrough.

“By the way, I’ve got something good for you.” Shi Lei lowered his voice, looking mysterious. “Don’t tell anyone.”

He bent over his phone and sent a file.

“What is it?”

“You’ll see when you open it.” Shi Lei grinned.

Curious, Huang Xiu opened his phone and saw a compressed file labeled ‘Confidential Material,’ only 20 MB.

“You little…” Huang Xiu said sternly, “I’m an upright man. Don’t pull that stuff with me! Don’t test a cadre with this kind of thing!”

But as he said no, his body betrayed him. He accepted the file, downloaded the compressed folder, and extracted it.

To his surprise, it wasn’t lewd pictures but three Word documents.

[One Hundred Key Points for the Tiandu University Entrance Exam]

[Confidential: One Hundred Must-Know Exam Questions Leaked by a Tiandu Admissions Officer]

[One Hundred Sets of Past Tiandu University Re-exam Questions]

“What do you think?” Shi Lei winked at him. “I found these online specially for you.”

“They’re absolutely authentic!”

“Bro.” Huang Xiu looked helpless. “Don’t you know the Tiandu University admissions questions change every year, and the re-exam questions have never been leaked?”

“And these ‘must-know questions’? I can tell they’re fake at a glance.”

“No way!” Shi Lei was shocked. “But she called me ‘family’… She said if it’s fake, she’d pay ten times the price.”

“You bought this?” Huang Xiu was shocked too.

Easy money to be made from fools!

When will scamming fools become illegal…

He sighed and patted Shi Lei on the shoulder. “Thanks anyway, bro.”

“I’ll carry you to Diamond II next week. Don’t be sad.”

After barely comforting Shi Lei, Huang Xiu focused on his homework.

Last night, he had only suppressed that ominous subject of physics. Today, he had to conquer English and biology.

After writing for a while, his shoulders ached. He straightened up and stretched, his gaze sweeping across the room and landing precisely on Fang Miaoqing.

She was leaning her head on one hand, staring at the exercise book on her desk. She was obviously preparing for tomorrow’s entrance exam.

He stared at her back for about half a second, then quickly looked away.

But for some reason, his spirits lifted a little.

He shifted slightly, using his back to block the side.

Quietly, Huang Xiu took out his phone and opened the compressed file Shi Lei had sent him.

Maybe it would be useful… Since Shi Lei had already bought it, it would be a waste not to look.

Yeah, it was mainly to not let Shi Lei’s money go to waste, not because he wanted to see.

Huang Xiu first opened the first file: One Hundred Key Points for the Tiandu University Entrance Exam.

He skimmed it quickly, then expressionlessly swiped left to exit and locked the screen.

Well, it was indeed completely useless.

It was his own fault for expecting anything from that scammer Shi Lei.

He put the phone back in his pocket and turned around, only to find Shi Lei grinning at him.

“Since you bought it, I just took a look!” Huang Xiu waved his hand, pretending nothing happened.

“Otherwise it’s a waste, you know?”

“I know, bro, I know.” Shi Lei winked. “Every young man has his crushes, every young girl her spring dreams!”

“After all… spring has come!”

“Damn!”

At that, Huang Xiu couldn’t hold back anymore. Blood rushed to his face, and he turned bright red!

He shot up and pounced on Shi Lei, grabbing his neck with his right hand and grinding his teeth. “Xiao Lei Zi, you’re asking for it.”

“I’m sorry, bro! I’m sorry!” Shi Lei begged for mercy.

It was just horsing around. Huang Xiu knew his limits. He snorted and let go.

Shi Lei was known for being unreliable, so why get upset? As long as he stayed calm, no one could break his composure.

“By the way, Brother Xiu.”

Shi Lei rubbed his slightly red neck. “What body wash do you use? Smells pretty good!”