As usual, Qing Mian alighted at the school gate and went to walked towards the car parked under the shade.
Recently, the length of time they met was getting. It had already been two weeks since they met.
Just as she was entered the car, Li Min leaned against the door and supported his head with his other free arm. "When last did we meet?"
His low voice was exceptionally sexy and alluring.
Qing Mian paused for a moment, then said, "Huh?"
Li Min's lips turned up slightly. In that instant, it felt as though all the light in the car was aggregating on his face. His sharp and defined features even seemed to be sparkling and filled with enticement. "Not even a hug?"
Qing Mian blushed. She hurriedly avoided his gaze and coolly answered, "...No."
Her reserved and cold attitude did not anger him. Instead, the man chuckled. His laughter seemed to turn tangible as it encompassed her heart and made her throat run dry.
He asked, "Why?"
Half a beat later, Qing Mian answered, "I don't know."
He raised an eyebrow. "So you didn't miss me?"
Qing Mian frowned and considered it, and, as though she had made a decision, she said, "...Fine."
Qing Mian was stunned.
She is really agreeing to hug me?
Right after thinking this, he saw her reach out with her two hands. "Come.
"..."
After a full five seconds, Li Min burst out laughing.
Why is she soo cute?
Qing Mian did not wait for his reply and stood up. "Thanks for the other day. The result will be out today, bye."
She picked up her bag and exited out the door in her loosely-fit uniform.
After she had left, Li Min's smile slowly dissipated and he became cold and taciturn.
"To the office", he said to Zhou Yanfeng
...
During the break, at exactly 10 AM, the result of the Math Star Competition came out!
Qing Mian finished her exercises on the school field, and by the time she strolled back to the classroom, it was exactly 10 AM.
Mr. Ling was already there, and a group of people was crowding around Lu Rui. They were all staring at the application on his phone, where he was checking his results. "Hurry, see how you scored! Did you key in the correct examination ID number?"
Lu Rui nodded, then clicked on the search button. His score immediately popped out: 250.
"Wow!"
"That's high! This gets First Prize for sure!"
"Yes. The First Prize for last year is a minimum of 180 marks and the first in the province is only 224. This year's questions are apparently harder, so Lu Rui is confirmed to be in the top ten! That's amazing!"
"..."
" Hmph, Xue Xi scored 280 marks!"
Qing Qin stood beside Lu Rui proudly with a wide smile. Her gaze swept over Qing Mian, and she pretended to ask in concern, "Sister, how many marks did you get?"
The latter could not be bothered with her. She walked back to her seat with her head lowered. She was just about to pick up her phone, wanting to check her results, when a foreign number called in.
She paused for a moment, then answered it. "Hello."
The other party hurriedly asked, "Is this Qing Mian? I am from the student admission office of City H University. I saw your results in the Math Star Competition. By the usual protocol, this is a non-official competition and will not be added to your results for college application. However, our Mathematics Department is willing to make an exception for you. Are you interested?"
Qing Mian paused for two seconds and said, "...Not interested."
City H University was also one of the top schools, belonging to the 965 and 301 calibers. However, her aim was the Art's college, and this aim had never changed.
The other party persistently persuaded her again, but she was resolute.
It was only after she hung up the call that she opened the webpage to check her results on her phone.
Xue Xi was already waiting impatiently. She stretched her body and headed out to look at Qing Mian's phone. When the latter keyed in her examination ID number and clicked on the search button...
Xue Xi's irises converged. "The heck!"
295 marks!
!!
Is this a result that humans can get?!
Xue Xi's voice attracted the crowd's attention.
Does that mean the results are good or not?
Just as they were deep in their pondering, they saw Qing Mian frown.
She was a little surprised. She felt that she had gotten all of it correct while she was doing them, so why were 5 marks deducted?
Alas, her expression was easily misunderstood.
Qing Qin instantly heaved a sigh of relief.
She thought that Xue Xi must have been that surprised because the girl had scored below 100 marks. After all, her Mathematics were full marks during the pre-test.
Gloatingly, she peered at Lu Rui and said in a hypocritical voice, "Don't be sad if you didn't get good results. After all, this is an Olympiad-level examination and the questions are exceptionally hard. There are many people who score less than 100."
Mr. Ling had high expectations of Qing Mian, but he was still stunned when he heard this. He repressed the disappointment he felt inside and reassured her, "Qing Mian, don't feel dejected!"
Lu Rui raised his chin and turned to look at the girl, feeling smug inside.
"Wasn't he the one who taught her some basic knowledge?
Indeed, it is impossible without going through proper Olympiad training! I must have made a mistake in the pre-test last time and so she scored higher. Now, it is time that I displayed my prowess.
Mhm. With this now, she should acknowledge me already, right?
The rest of the people who disliked Qing Mian lowered their heads and anonymously posted on the school's forum.
Live stream! The results are out! A certain someone flopped!
?? Waiting for the actual scores!
Scores! Report the scores!
The forum was in an uproar. Meanwhile, Xue Xi was still in a state of shock, and the little girl who was usually gossipy and talkative gulped.
" Mianmian, you are such a genius!", she whispered
Qing Qin smiled and said, "The average person usually just gets below 100. So, sister, how many marks did you get?"
Qing Mian did not reply, but Xue Xi had already shouted, "295!"
"What? Did I hear wrongly or did you say wrongly?"
"You reported an extra 100 marks, right? 195 sounds more reasonable."
"295 marks? You must be joking! Xue Xi, you're just talking big!"
"Shouldn't it be 95 marks?"
Lu Rui and Qing Qin widened their eyes in disbelief, thinking that Xue Xi must have misspoke...
Mr. Ling had already rushed over to Qing Mian's side with a look of surprise. "Qing Mian, how many marks did you get?"
The girl passed her phone over to him. After snatching the phone over, Mr. Ling felt that his eyes must have cheated him. Hence, he rubbed his eyes roughly and stared at the phone again. Although the phone display was not as huge as a computer's, the numbers were still very clearly displayed: 295 marks
Qing Mian, who automatically ignored the crowd's discussion, slowly asked, "Mr. Ling, did I get poor results?"
Mr. Ling: "??"
He tugged at his lips and explained to her, "This is not an average examination. Since the inception of the Math Star Competition, the highest score ever achieved was 286, and that person was a genius. That person subsequently represented the country to take part in the IMO competition and almost obtained a gold, becoming the pride of the country."
He was reluctant to return the phone to Qing Mian and repeatedly stared at the score. His hands were trembling with excitement.
At this moment, a phone ringtone sounded.
Mr. Ling whipped out his phone to answer the call. The other party was the Mathematics head, Mr. Song. His voice roared through the receiver, as though it was on speaker, "Mr. Ling, how many marks did your class's Lu Rui get?"
Mr. Ling replied, dazedly, "250 marks."
Mr. Song grinned. "Not bad, not bad, not bad. That is a confirmed First Prize! Hehehe, but it looks like the first place in our school is Kai Jie this time. Hahaha, he scored 260 marks!"
Mr. Ling subconsciously replied, "Congratulations."
"What is there to congratulate about? Isn't it a given that our school is the first? It's already an amazing feat for your international school to get a First Prize. Still, Mr. Ling, I have to say this: with your mathematics standard, you can actually come to First High to teach the Olympiad class, but instead, you chose the International School's high salary. It is a pity when you think about it. As teachers, what makes us proudest should not be our salary but the outstanding students we nurtured, right?"
If it were the usual, Mr. Ling would have hung up the call a long time ago.
Mr. Song called clearly to gloat. Alas, Mr. Ling was justified this time and had the right to be. He stood up and chuckled. "Old Song, it has been so many years and I truly think that you are right! But if it's regarding first place, I'm afraid your expectations have fallen short."
Mr. Song was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Mr. Ling raised his chin cockily. "Oh, I forgot to say it just now. Our school's Xue Xi scored 270 marks and Qing Mian scored 295 marks
"What?!"