When the early April sun flooded Lin Feng's bedroom with light, the alarm clock began to ticking.
"Ah... my head is so swollen..."
Lin Feng, who had strenuously studied all night, shook his head and finally managed to crawl out of bed. As he dressed, he reflected, "It's indeed unrealistic to try to learn three years of high school knowledge in one night. Even though I memorized all the key points and content with Water Droplet, I only managed to understand a third of it over the course of the night..."
With Water Droplet Copy, Lin Feng had basically achieved photographic memory, but ultimately, learning wasn't just about memorization; comprehension was essential.
"There's the final quality check exam on Thursday and Friday, and I still have three days left. I can definitely master all the high school subjects by then... Even if I don't score perfect marks, ranking within the top few dozen in the grade shouldn't be a problem."
Full of confidence, Lin Feng hurriedly finished his breakfast, grabbed his backpack, and headed to Zhi'an High School. He seized every moment along the way to digest the knowledge etched in his brain. Since he had memorized it so solidly, he had no trouble understanding it. As long as he concentrated, he could process it swiftly.
"Haha... I never realized studying could be so easy..."
Since Lin Feng was processing the knowledge in his mind as he walked, his pace was slower than usual. He had left home at 7:20, and what normally would be a twenty-minute walk to school now took him over thirty minutes.
"Ah? Is it already 7:50? There's only ten minutes left before class starts... No way! I've got to take a shortcut..."
Glancing at his watch, Lin Feng, realizing he was about to be late, hurriedly picked up his pace, taking a shortcut through the alley towards the school. However, he had only just begun to sprint down the alley when a familiar, plump figure came huffing and puffing from a side path.
"Oof... Fatty, why are you so late today as well? Ha ha..."
The fat boy coming toward him was none other than Lin Feng's desk-mate and best friend, the plump Zhang Zhen, with whom he had grown up. Seeing him hustling with his chubby body, Lin Feng couldn't help but laugh.
"Damn Lin Feng! You still have time to laugh at me? Get moving... Otherwise, we'll really be late! Today's Tuesday... I remember it's our homeroom teacher, Teacher Xu, who's on duty for tardiness..."
Zhang Zhen looked at Lin Feng helplessly, a sense of camaraderie between them in their plight. Upon hearing that today's duty teacher was their homeroom teacher, Xu Minjing, Lin Feng also started panicking.
"It's over! Fatty, the last time I was late, Teacher Xu said... if I'm late again, she's going to call my mom for a talk at the school... Quick, quick, quick... Let's run..."
If it were any other teacher on duty, Lin Feng wouldn't be so worried! At worst, he'd just get a ten-minute penalty standing. But now it was his own homeroom teacher, Xu Minjing, and that was serious business.
"Ha ha... Lin Feng, now you know fear, eh? You're one of Teacher Xu's main concerns now..."
Zhang Zhen said with a hint of schadenfreude. However, both of them were in a similar boat, with bottom-of-the-class grades and frequent tardiness, they were closely watched by both the head of student affairs and their homeroom teacher.
"Damn fatty, I don't want to be Teacher Xu's 'main concern'..."
Just thinking about his homeroom teacher, Xu Minjing, left Lin Feng with a bittersweet smile, and then he said with a laugh, "I'd be willing if those words 'main concern' were dropped. Heh heh..."
"Drop the words 'main concern'?" Zhang Zhen pondered deeply with his slow-working brain for a moment before catching on, "Lin Feng, are you saying you want to be Teacher Xu's boyfriend? Dream on! Do you know how many guys are after Teacher Xu right now? I heard... in the last few days, the vice mayor's son Tang Wenju has been sending flowers to Teacher Xu every day..."
"That's right! Teacher Xu is probably the most beautiful teacher in the whole of Zhi'an. It's strange though... with so many guys after her, you never see her actually dating anyone..."
Lin Feng had mixed feelings about his beautiful homeroom teacher Xu Minjing: on one hand, her beauty was the sole aspect that attracted him during English lessons. However, as the homeroom teacher of Senior Year Class 2, she was incredibly strict, particularly with poor students like Lin Feng and Zhang Zhen. She was always ready to catch them out and it seemed like every couple of days, she would call Lin Feng to her office for a lecture.
"Exactly! With a beauty like Teacher Xu, if I were her boyfriend... even if it meant losing ten years of my life... no... twenty, thirty years, I'd be willing... Heh heh! Lin Feng, did you know? That's my motivation in English class every time!"
Zhang Zhen, thinking about the gorgeous teacher Xu Minjing, gulped as he ran.
"Get outta here... damn fatty, if Teacher Xu's boyfriend were as fat as you, she'd be blind for sure! Stop daydreaming and let's pick up the pace, otherwise we're really going to be late..."
They were about to reach Zhi'an High School as they passed through this shortcut alley. Lin Feng felt unusually fit today. Zhang Zhen was already panting heavily, but Lin Feng was able to speed up effortlessly.
"Ay! Lin Feng, wait up... How come you suddenly took off so fast..."
Poor Zhang Zhen was left trailing behind, clutching his waist, pushing himself to keep up with Lin Feng.
"It's 57 past. We've got three minutes before class starts... Hurry up! Fatty! We're almost there..."
They were about to leave the alley when Lin Feng saw a few bleached-haired punks blocking the exit, extorting money from two other students from Zhi'an High School.
"No good... Lin Feng, it's the Tiangou Gang's 'Monkey' and his crew... Damn it! Really bad luck running into them collecting tolls..."
Zhang Zhen caught up and immediately frowned at the sight of the young punks, instinctively reaching into his pocket, ready to hand over some cash.
"Monkey? These punks... always bullying students from Zhi'an High School..."
Lin Feng looked closely and recognized the gang. The leader, a yellow-haired fellow with a cigarette in his mouth and ripped jeans, looked like some kind of non-mainstream weirdo. This was the head of the local Tiangou Gang, by the name of Hou Jun, nicknamed "Monkey".