Luo Hua heaved a heavy sigh of relief and, with a face full of joy, he announced, “719 points! Congratulations, you did very well!”

Everyone erupted in excited cries as they turned to Yao Ranwith mixed expressions of disbelief and awe.

With this, she practically had one foot in either Qing UniversityorJing Universityalready, both of which were top-notch universities in the country.

Luo Hua was beaming atYao Ranlike she was some rare treasure he had unearthed. It was all he could do not to worship at her feet.

At the back of the room, Xi Yanstared at the girl with a complicated look on her face.

Soon, Yao Ran’s score spread throughout their grade. Every time the story was relayed, it was followed by cries of shock and envy.

They had all struggled with the math test, yet she had somehow scored more than 140 marks. She truly was an outstanding student.

People used to say that one could not have everything, but Yao Ranseemed to be the exception. Not only was she pretty and graceful, but she also had the brains to go with her looks.

The news passed down the grapevine until it reached Class 20.

When Qin Jingheard about it, her first reaction was to snort in resentment. Sure, she gaveYao Ransome credit — her score was indeed impressive. But this only madeQin Jinghate that girl even more.

Regardless, she had faith in Yao Tang.

Her savior’s scores couldn’t possibly be any worse than Yao Ran’s.

As it was the lull between periods when the teachers walked up to their respective classes, the students of Class 20 took the opportunity to check their scores online. Now and then, a cry of dismay would ring out into the room.

Qin Jing followed suit and checked her scores as well.

Meng Yang happened to come over to her desk just as she was about to key in her name. When he saw what was displayed on her screen, he crossed his arms over his chest and refused to budge.

“Hey, Sister Jing. Let me see your scores, too.” He pursed his lips and craned forward for a better look.

“Okay, okay, but only afterward. I want to see them for myself first.”

Qin Jing made quick work of logging into the system, then went to her dashboard and clicked on the Results button.

The digits popped up in the next second, making her scream.

Her classmates jumped in surprise, and Meng Yangleaned over her shoulder to see what the fuss was about.

“What the —” he muttered, his eyes wide. “Are you even human? How the hell did you get those marks? That’s awesome!”

“Let me see!”

“What did you get, Qin Jing?”

“What is her score?”

Other students began to crowd around Qin Jingafter hearingMeng Yang’s words. They were just as stunned as he was, if not more.

Qin Jing had scored 712 points!

It was lower than Yao Ran’s, of course, but this was the first time that someone from Class 20 had scored this much.

Meng Yang sighed. His father,Meng De, had long spoken of the eldest Miss Qin’s academic aptitude, but the boy hadn’t expected her to be this good.

As a fellow second-generation heir, he was quite embarrassed with his own performance.

Given the ruthless nature of the high-society circles, it was inevitable for him to be compared with other heirs and heiresses his age.

It was all Qin Jing’s fault!

Meng Yang fixed her with a glower, only for it to fade into a submissive smile when she suddenly turned in his direction. “Well, Sister Jing, congratulations! I’ll retire to my seat now.”

He moved through the cluster of students who were still rooted to the spot in shock.

“It’s incredible! I never imagined someone from our class could even reach 700 marks!”

“I can’t believe this actually happened!”

“I suppose the kids from Experimental High Schoolare something else entirely. They’re not to be underestimated. I’m just glad that snarkyLuo Huawon’t be able to insult ourMiss Xithis time!”

“It’s a pity that the top student still came from Class 1, though. If only it was one of us, we could finally show them!”

They were so engrossed with their discussion that they hadn’t noticed Xi Yanenter the room.

When the woman overheard what they were saying, she couldn’t help but say, “The grades are just a temporary evaluation of your capabilities. Everyone, don’t be so disheartened. The important thing is to identify where you went wrong and strive to fill those gaps.”

The students murmured their assent and trudged back to their seats. Class began shortly after.

…

Lunchtime.

Qin Jing sat close toYao Tangand asked, “Sister Tang, aren’t you going to check your scores? The school is yet to make an official release, but the results were already posted online. The teachers are probably going to put it on the bulletin tomorrow.”

Meng Yang’s eyes lit up at the suggestion. “That’s right, Sister Tang! Here, do you want me to help you check your scores?”

Yao Tang nonchalantly plucked a piece of broccoli from her bowl and brought it to her mouth. She chewed slowly as she fiddled with her cup of milk tea. “I forgot my password. I suppose I will just wait for the official announcement.”

Her friends sat back, deflated.

Yao Tang was widely considered a dark horse in the academic battlegrounds. Everybody knew that she had excellent scores, but they weren’t exactly consistent. More to the point,Yao Tangdidn’t like to do homework, and rarely participated in class lectures.

Suffice to say, her grades had always been something of a mystery, as was her true proficiency.

Lin Xin put her chopsticks down. “How about we go and askTeacher Xifor help in retrieving your password?” she proposed, looking very serious.

Yao Tang sipped at her milk tea and carried on with her meal. “I don’t think we should trouble her for something trivial, but thanks.”

Qin Jing sighed. All they could do for now was to hope and pray thatYao Tang’s scores would surpass Yao Ran’s.