Nanning, Susheng Province.
Qin Zixin returned after eating, having been jesting with Yang Qichao moments before. Upon entering the classroom, however, her spine instantly chilled at the sight of Zhang Wei seated on the podium, his gaze fixed intently on her.
She instinctively wished to retract her neck, a subconscious reaction ingrained in her from Tang Yuyu’s frequent disciplinary tugs.
Whenever Tang Yuyu grew angry, she would pinch Qin Zixin’s ear, and the act of pulling back her neck had become her silent form of resistance.
Realizing she wasn’t at home, a flicker of courage immediately sparked within her.
Yet, her newfound confidence remained somewhat shaky, prompting her to scurry back to her seat. Her ample bosom playfully jiggled with each step, the delicate lotus-root colored blouse barely containing her curves, drawing numerous lingering glances from her classmates.
Zhang Wanbai, who had been hunched over her desk sniffing, straightened up with a bowed back as Qin Zixin arrived.
Qin Zixin noticed her reddened eyes, though she had no idea why. Given their current unfamiliarity, Qin Zixin wasn’t brazen enough to offer direct comfort.
Zhang Wei remained seated in the chair behind the podium, exuding an air of calm composure.
He only rose once the entire class had gathered, clearing his throat before he began to speak.
“We won’t waste any time this afternoon,” he announced. “Let’s appoint the class cadres first, following the temporary assignments from the summer remedial classes.
Liu Tanxiong will be the class monitor, Lu Zude the study committee member, Deng Lanying the organizational committee member, and Feng Yizhong the sports committee member.
The representatives for each subject will be chosen by their respective teachers.”
The class cadres were directly appointed by Zhang Wei, though in high school, these roles held little actual power, with the class monitor typically handling almost everything.
The study committee member’s main duty was merely to signify ‘the existence of a study committee member in this class.’ As for the sports and organizational committee members, their roles were even less significant; with only a few physical education classes a week and hardly any events throughout the year, they were arguably more dispensable than the study committee member.
Zhang Wei continued.
“There won’t be a math representative. Liu Tanxiong, as class monitor, you’ll assist and take on more responsibilities, such as collecting homework and distributing notices.
Deng Lanying, you’ll manage the class funds. Each student will contribute ten yuan initially, with the rest to be handed in after the exams.
Now, everyone, pull your desks apart. We won’t have self-study this afternoon. Instead, we’ll begin with an entrance assessment so I can gauge your foundational knowledge.”
Zhang Wei’s words were delivered with a casual air, yet their content caused a ripple of murmurs to spread through the classroom.
Qin Zixin poked her head out from behind her stack of books. Hearing about the test, the ‘little imp’ couldn’t help but gasp.
[‘Holy crap, this quickly? Are they in a rush to be reborn?!’]
[‘It’s just an entrance exam. Didn’t you study well? You had a blast playing games all summer, said you’d get it after two glances. Scared now?’]
Qin Zixin pulled her head back, swiftly pulling out photocopied notes from her backpack and flipping through them.
The System was too lazy to scold her; what was the point of suddenly panicking right before an exam?
[‘Where am I scared?! Where am I scared?! You’re the one who’s scared! Aren’t I looking at it right now?!’]
Qin Zixin bristled like a dog whose tail had been stepped on, instantly flustered, while Zhang Wei continued speaking from the podium.
“The key classes will have their own exam, while the regular classes will take a unified test. Key classes will use their own specific papers.
Don’t dwell on what you studied over the summer; it won’t be very relevant. Every question on this paper, from the fill-in-the-blanks to the major problems, has been hand-picked by me.
Let me warn you, every major question could be a final challenge. Even students from the ‘Rocket Class’—excluding the top one or two—won’t be able to solve all of them.
It’s perfectly normal if your skill level is lacking and you can’t answer them. So, don’t rush during the exam; take your time.
If anyone can’t solve a problem and starts whimpering, sniveling like a crybaby, don’t bother raising your hand. And absolutely no crying out loud.
I don’t care about your mental resilience or your psychological well-being.”
Observing the tense expressions on the students below, Zhang Wei felt a thrill of excitement. He began distributing the printed test papers, his eyes carefully scanning their faces as he did so.
He had meticulously selected the questions for this exam; not only did they demand extensive calculations, but their underlying problem-solving approaches were also exceptionally challenging.
The average score of the second class he taught was already the lowest among the four key classes in the mid-term exam. He harbored no illusions that any math prodigy in his class would achieve a perfect score, estimating that even reaching one hundred thirty points would be difficult.
Given the difficulty of this paper, the average score would undoubtedly fall below the passing mark.
Zhang Wei possessed a peculiar, almost malicious, sense of humor. In a way, he bore a striking resemblance to Ge Jun; his entire teaching philosophy was designed to cater exclusively to the brightest students in his class. Those who understood were expected to keep up, while those who didn’t were left to fend for themselves.
This was Nanshi High, not some ordinary public school. Since these students had been admitted through a rigorous selection process, they were expected to possess abilities that surpassed those of average students.
Qin Zixin’s face crumpled into a grimace. Upon hearing that even the ‘Rocket Class’ might struggle to complete the test, she simply gave up, tossing the compiled notes Yang Qichao had given her into her drawer. Her small hand gripped her pen tightly, like a death row inmate awaiting their final verdict.
[‘Math’s done. This afternoon is Chinese and English, no lunch break even.’]
[‘Whatever, better to get it over with quickly. I got in as the very last student! As long as I’m not last again, it’s a success.’]
Qin Zixin relaxed, a silly smile spreading across her face.
[‘”As long as I’m not last again,” you say? You only got into this key class because your middle school exam scores were *too good*. Point out anyone here who’s worse than you.’]
[‘Everyone else was studying over summer, while you were going wild, playing games until your fingers cramped. And you, in that state, think you won’t be last? You must be dreaming.’]
The System seethed at the thought of the ‘dead girl’s’ behavior before school started. Especially recently, this ‘dead girl’ had been playing *Civilization V* every day, practically pulling all-nighters for each game. She’d sleep only five or six hours, wake up, and immediately start gaming. When she got tired, she’d go boast in group chats, staying up until one or two in the morning for several consecutive days, leaving her with dark circles under her eyes.
Had Tang Yuyu not returned in the early hours, Qin Zixin would undoubtedly have pulled all-nighters every single night.
While the image of a beauty “languidly draped in silk, swaying like a tender willow” certainly possessed a unique charm…
…the System, having spent so much time with her, now considered her utterly insufferable.
What infuriated it most was that not only did this ‘dead girl’ play games, but she also bothered it while lying in bed.
In any case, it couldn’t fathom the appeal of that wretched game. It felt its time would be better spent chatting online with a few ‘good sisters’ it had recently befriended.
The test paper was passed forward. Qin Zixin gave it a quick glance, and even for the first few fill-in-the-blank questions, the sheer length of the text—four lines or more—was enough to further diminish the ‘little imp’s’ confidence in her ‘aim for second-to-last, strive for third-to-last’ strategy.
Qin Zixin attempted to answer every question she knew, stumbling through the entire process. For several problems, her calculations yielded different results each time, so she simply picked the answer that looked most appealing.
Her entire paper ended up looking no different from a scratch pad.
Nevertheless, her mindset remained relatively positive; after all, her goal wasn’t to excel.
And Zhang Wei was, inadvertently, boosting her confidence.
The man prowled around the classroom, bending over to observe a student’s answers whenever he approached their desk.
He said nothing, merely sighed and made ‘tsk’ sounds.
Qin Zixin recognized this as a deliberate attempt to mess with the students’ morale. If he had only sighed beside a few students, she would have assumed their work was exceptionally poor.
However, since Zhang Wei did this to every student whose paper he scrutinized, it could only be interpreted as him employing this cruel method for a stress test.
Zhang Wei reached Zhang Wanbai’s desk, bowed his head, and after a few seconds, let out a sigh.
Zhang Wanbai, whose emotional state was already fragile from Deng Lanying’s badgering, completely lost control under Zhang Wei’s scrutiny and began to sob softly.
Qin Zixin stealthily glanced sideways, clicking her tongue in disapproval.
[‘Damn, System, look! This old geezer plays so dirty!’]
[‘System, teach me three problems, please! I reckon no matter how I calculate it now, I’ll barely hit ninety points at most. Help me out!’]
Hearing Zhang Wanbai’s soft sobs, even big-hearted Qin Zixin found herself flustered.
[‘System, help! System, I don’t know this! System, two problems would work too, can we haggle? Say something! Even one problem, really!’]
But the System completely ignored her.
Zhang Wei had already moved from the back to her side, now leaning over her desk, scrutinizing her test paper.
Qin Zixin cautiously looked up, offering a fawning smile, much like a sycophant.
Zhang Wei offered no response, only a prolonged sigh.
This sigh was both exceptionally loud and remarkably long. After it concluded, Zhang Wei continued with four consecutive ‘tsk’ sounds before moving forward once more.
Even Zhang Wanbai stopped crying now. She turned to look at Qin Zixin, her eyes red behind her celluloid glasses.
Qin Zixin’s face was also flushed at this moment.
[‘Damn it! What does he mean by that?’]
[‘It means your answers are terrible. What else could it mean? Are you not embarrassed?’]
[‘Well, he should at least *pretend* to mean something! If he doesn’t mean *anything* at all, how can I be embarrassed?’]
Qin Zixin attempted to summon some emotion, but her skin was undeniably thick; after a long wait, not a single tear materialized. She sighed and looked at Zhang Wanbai beside her.
That girl was still wiping away tears, her utterly pathetic appearance truly irritating Qin Zixin.
[‘Look at her! *That’s* how a girl should be, strong-willed!’]
[‘Her teacher only sighed once, and she knew she’d done poorly—that’s a strong character.’]
[‘Now look at you! Your teacher sighed *and* made ‘tsk, tsk’ sounds. What’s your reaction?’]
[‘”Pretend to mean something,” you say? You’re like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water, leaving half the paper blank, and you still have the nerve to be embarrassed.’]
While the System rambled on in her mind, Qin Zixin remained unperturbed.
At worst, she’d be last, and she carried no psychological burden from that.
She pulled a milk candy from her pants pocket and popped it into her mouth. The candy, slightly melted from the warmth, was nonetheless just as sweet.
[‘Hmph, that girl’s mentality is weak. Crying at just a sigh? That’s the most boring type. Even when I was a man, I wouldn’t dare flirt with someone like that. What if I seduced her and then dumped her? Someone with that emotional capacity would definitely cry and threaten to hang themselves.’]
[‘How can a true man, walking between heaven and earth, let his emotions show on his face?’]
[‘This is what mature and steady looks like! Even if that bald fella slanders me, defames me, mocks me, or ridicules me, I shall remain as unmoving as a mountain!’]
[‘Even if you call me a dead pig unafraid of boiling water, I won’t get mad at you, because my fatherly love is like a mountain. Even if you’re sharp-tongued, I still love you.’]
[‘Get lost! You’re so disrespectful! I was originally going to give you the answers.’]
In her excitement, Qin Zixin swallowed the milk candy she had been holding in her mouth, which sent her into a fit of coughing.
Only then, due to the irritation, did her tears finally emerge.
[‘Tell me quickly! System, you’re the best!’]
[‘Oh, someone just said they wouldn’t let their emotions show on their face. This change of expression is faster than turning a page, isn’t it?’]
[‘I was just kidding earlier! You know me, I’m all talk.’]
Qin Zixin held her pen, her face alight with expectation.
But how could the System fulfill her wish?
[‘I’m also all talk, you silly goose.’]
Qin Zixin rolled her eyes, then simply slumped onto her desk, resigning herself to her fate.