The next morning, I arrived at the classroom to find Zhao Yanyan sitting at her desk, reading a book. What bothered me was that Liu Kesheng was sitting in my seat, gesturing and laughing as if it were his own.
Was he underestimating me? It already annoyed me that he was sitting in my seat, but what made it worse was that Zhao Yanyan was sitting next to him. I walked over, slammed my hand on the desk, and both Zhao Yanyan, who was focused on her book, and Liu Kesheng, who was happily chatting, jumped in surprise.
I remembered a classic line from a movie and said to Liu Kesheng, "Liu Lei is very angry, and the consequences are severe."
Liu Kesheng glared at me with a venomous look, stood up, and said, "Liu Lei, you're something else. I'll remember this. Just wait."
I smiled slightly. "Sure, I'll be waiting."
"Why are you so angry?" Zhao Yanyan, seeing me sit down, quietly complained.
"Of course I'm angry. How can I not be when he's bothering my Yanyan?" I squeezed her hand gently.
"Let go!" Zhao Yanyan pulled her hand away. "There are so many people in the classroom."
"So my Yanyan still knows how to be shy? Funny, wasn't it just yesterday that you actively asked me to hug you?" I teased.
"Hey, Liu Lei, how could you mock me like that? Do you know I almost got scolded by Grandpa yesterday because of you? By the way, what do you mean by 'my Yanyan'? When did I become part of your family?" Zhao Yanyan blushed, looking at me.
"You're definitely going to marry me one day, so of course you're part of my family!" I said confidently.
"I'm not talking to you anymore. You never act serious," Zhao Yanyan muttered, and then turned back to her English book.
Liu Kesheng, not far away, saw us laughing and chatting, and shot a cold, menacing glance our way.
I noticed that Zhao Yanyan was really focusing on her book, so I asked, "What are you reading?"
Without looking up, Zhao Yanyan answered, "Teacher Ye said there will be a test this afternoon, so I have to review."
"Did you miss me yesterday?" I asked suddenly.
"Hmm." Zhao Yanyan nodded without hesitation. Then, she immediately turned to me and said, "What's wrong with you? You're not studying, and now you're distracting me. How am I supposed to focus on my book with you sitting here?"
I couldn't help but laugh inwardly. So, she was just pretending to study earlier. I said, "What's the point of studying?"
As soon as the words left my mouth, Zhao Yanyan fell silent. After a long pause, she spoke seriously. "Liu Lei, I'm asking you, please study well for me. My family will definitely want me to go to Huaxia University, and I don't want to be separated from you."
I fell silent too. I hadn't expected the little girl to think so far ahead. This showed just how deep her feelings for me were. But it also made me question things. My feelings for Zhao Yanyan were complicated, shaped by both my past and present lives. But what about her? To her, I was still just a classmate she had known for a short time. Even though we sat together, and my maturity might have attracted her, she couldn't possibly have developed feelings for me that quickly.
In my previous life, I knew that Zhao Yanyan had many excellent suitors, yet she never paid them any mind. Had I suddenly made her change? I didn't believe in the idea that reincarnation granted someone royal power or anything like that—it was all nonsense.
There had to be something else behind it, something I didn't know. Zhao Yanyan was still the same Zhao Yanyan I had known, and her attitude toward people and things hadn't changed. The only difference was her attitude toward me.
Could there be something hidden beneath all this? Though I felt that things were progressing unexpectedly well, I couldn't deny it was a good thing. Things seemed to be moving in a positive direction, so I buried my doubts deep inside.
I decided to test her, so I asked, "What if I still can't study well by the time we're in the senior year?"
Zhao Yanyan frowned, thinking deeply, as if pondering a major life decision. After a long pause, she bit her lip and said, "Then I'll pretend to fail the college entrance exam on purpose. No matter what, I don't want to be separated from you."
Boom—my mind exploded.
Even with the psychological maturity of someone who had lived for more than thirty years, I was still deeply moved by Zhao Yanyan's determination. The deep love I had for her in my past life had finally been returned to me in this one.
"Don't worry. I won't let you down." I leaned my head on the desk, pretending to sleep. In reality, I didn't want Zhao Yanyan to see the moisture in the corner of my eyes.
"Hey~! What's wrong with you?" Zhao Yanyan had been happy with what I said, but when she saw me go to sleep afterward, she turned away in annoyance and continued reading.
When I woke up, the classroom was in a chaotic buzz.
"Boss, you're finally awake! You're like the 'Sleeping King'!" Guo Qing said with a laugh as soon as he saw me.
"What time is it?" I stretched and asked.
"It's already lunchtime! Boss, you really know how to sleep!" Guo Qing gave me a thumbs up, clearly impressed.
I hadn't realized I'd actually fallen asleep. Last night, I'd stayed up thinking about Zhao Yanyan, and it kept me excited for hours. That's why I hadn't gotten any sleep until late, and now I was exhausted.
"Didn't anyone wake me up this morning?" I asked, a bit confused.
"The math teacher actually allowed you to sleep, but the other teachers gave up on you. They didn't bother waking you up," Guo Qing explained.
"Oh." I nodded. "Did you eat lunch?" I suddenly realized I was starving.
"Of course, I ate, Boss. Who knew you'd be this hard to wake up! You wanted me to wait for you? Are you trying to starve me?" Guo Qing complained. "But your deskmate bought you a lunch box. She's really nice to you, huh?" Guo Qing grinned lewdly.
"Stop talking nonsense!" I noticed there really was a lunch box on Zhao Yanyan's desk.
"Boss, go ahead and eat. I'm not going to hang around. We have an English exam this afternoon, so I need to study," Guo Qing said, turning away.
I took the lunch box, unwrapped it, and found a paper note folded into the shape of a heart.
I struggled to unfold it and thought to myself how complicated this folding technique was. Finally, I opened it and read:
Lazy Pigggg!,
How can you sleep so much? I bought you a lunch box, so hurry up and eat. I'm letting you off for sleeping in class this time. I know why you did it. I'm the same—I also slept in Grandpa's secretary's car at noon.
You must keep your promises. My English notes are in my desk. You can take them and study. I've organized all the key points. If you do well on the exam this afternoon, I'll reward you. Don't ask what the reward is, but trust me—it will be a surprise.
From,
Your Yanyan
I noticed the words "Dear" before "Lazy Pigggg" were crossed out. After carefully examining it, I saw that "Liu Lei" had also been crossed out. Perhaps Zhao Yanyan felt awkward calling me that and decided on "Lazy Pigggg" instead. I couldn't help but laugh at how serious she was about writing a note.
I carefully folded the note and put it away. Of course, I couldn't fold it back into its original shape. Then I started eating the now-cold lunch, but my heart felt warm.
It wasn't until it was almost time for class that Zhao Yanyan, still half-asleep, finally walked in. Seeing me, she asked, "You're awake?"
I grinned and nodded, "How could I not wake up with your loving lunch box right beside me?"
"What loving lunch box? You're such a tease!" Zhao Yanyan shot me a sidelong glance, then continued, "Did you look at my English notes?"
"No." I replied.
"You! You're hopeless!" Zhao Yanyan huffed, turning away and ignoring me.
After a moment, Zhao Yanyan muttered to herself, "Why am I so unlucky?" Then, she pulled out her English book and asked, "Want me to explain it to you?"
I said, "Sure!" Although I didn't really need the explanation, I was curious to see how she would look while teaching me.
But my wish was quickly dashed when the bell rang, and Ye Xiaoxiao entered with the test papers. She glanced around the room and said, "Put away your books, we're starting the test. You have two hours. The questions aren't too difficult, but don't take them lightly!"
With some grumbling, everyone started putting their English books away. Zhao Yanyan shot me a look, then put her book away, as if saying, "Let's see how you do now!"
As Ye Xiaoxiao handed out the papers, the students who had been complaining quickly settled down and began working on the questions. Zhao Yanyan buried her head in her paper, no longer sparing me a glance.
I looked at the test paper. The first question was a Chinese-to-English translation. The words weren't difficult, but the problem was that many words could have multiple translations with similar or near-identical meanings. How was I supposed to translate this? What if my answer didn't match the standard one? I had forgotten most of the knowledge from high school—how could I remember if a word was from the high school curriculum or from the CET-4 vocabulary?!
I raised my hand and asked, "Teacher Ye, how exactly do you want us to translate the first question?"
Ye Xiaoxiao shot me a glare and answered, "Translate it the way you learned in class!"
"I was sleeping in class." As soon as I said this, the whole class burst into laughter.
Angry, Zhao Yanyan stomped her foot under the desk and whispered, "Why do you always embarrass me like this?"
Ye Xiaoxiao didn't expect me to be so straightforward. With a snap, she said, "Answer however you want," and turned her attention away from me.
Fine, I thought. It's just a translation. There aren't that many words, so I'll just write down whatever meanings come to mind.
After finishing the translation, the multiple-choice and reading comprehension sections were a breeze. But seriously, these sentences were so childish! Asking an English major like me about things like "weather forecasts"? I finished the test in under ten minutes, wrote my name, and handed it in.
Ye Xiaoxiao, assuming I had handed in a blank sheet, didn't even look at it and just told me to place it by the podium.
Back at my seat, Zhao Yanyan said, "How come you finished so quickly? You couldn't have done it, so why didn't you at least guess? Remember, you guessed right on that math test last time."
"I guessed," I replied. "And don't forget about the reward!"
Zhao Yanyan blushed and went back to her work, ignoring me.
I took out a blank sheet of paper and started jotting down some features and advantages of Chinese input methods that I had seen in my previous life. I planned to combine them into something new. After all, these things hadn't been developed yet, and there were no patents on them, so there was no risk of infringement.
By the time I had written down most of my thoughts, the exam ended. Ye Xiaoxiao collected the papers and said, "Liu Kesheng, Xie Wei, and Zhao Yanyan, come to the office to help me grade the papers. The rest of you can study."
After Ye Xiaoxiao and the others left, Guo Qing immediately turned to me and said, "Boss, you're my idol! You handed in the paper so quickly. You didn't see it, but Teacher Ye's face went white with anger!"
Really? I didn't notice. I had been thinking about input methods, so I wasn't paying attention to Ye Xiaoxiao's reaction. It seemed like my actions had left a negative impression on her, but that would change once the grades came out.
"By the way, Boss, that Sanda class we joined last Saturday? It's really useful! Yesterday, I ran into a little thug who used to bully me in my yard, and I gave him a good beating. He was on the ground looking for his teeth afterward!" Guo Qing said, grinning.
"Yeah, knowing how to fight is important. You've learned enough to deal with some punks on the street, but if you ever compete or face off with a real contender, strength will be important too," I said.
"Boss, you really know a lot! But why don't you train in Sanda with the coach? Why are you always working out by yourself?" Guo Qing asked, confused.
"Heh, I have my reasons," I replied evasively.
"Ah, okay!" Guo Qing nodded, pretending to understand. Kids are so easy to fool.
In the teacher's office, Ye Xiaoxiao divided the test papers into three piles. She gave one to each of Liu Kesheng, Xie Wei, and Zhao Yanyan, and handed them the answer key before stepping out of the office.
Suddenly, Liu Kesheng made an exaggerated noise, as if he had discovered something. Zhao Yanyan and Xie Wei both looked up at him. It turned out that Liu Kesheng was holding my test paper.
"Let me see!" Zhao Yanyan demanded, walking over to Liu Kesheng.
"What's the point?" Liu Kesheng snapped. "It's just a paper that was finished in ten minutes. It was obviously guessed! Don't waste your time on it!" With that, he wrote a big "0" on the paper.
"How can you be so irresponsible?!" Zhao Yanyan exclaimed angrily.
"What's it to you? Why are you in such a rush?" Liu Kesheng sneered, his tone sharp.
"No matter what, every student's paper deserves to be treated fairly! You're holding a personal grudge!" Zhao Yanyan was fuming and stood up.
"I'm holding a grudge? Hmph! Does he even deserve me to do anything for him? Fairness? What fairness is there when it comes to bad students?" Liu Kesheng was clearly intent on picking a fight with me.
Just then, the door to the office opened, and Ye Xiaoxiao stepped in. She had been standing by the door since Liu Kesheng made his dramatic noise, listening to the commotion inside. By now, she had a general understanding of what was going on.
Ye Xiaoxiao glared at Liu Kesheng. "Give me Liu Lei's paper."
Although Ye Xiaoxiao didn't expect anything special from my paper, as a teacher, she knew she should grade every student's work seriously—even if it was a guess.
Liu Kesheng reluctantly handed my paper to Ye Xiaoxiao, who took a red pen and said, "I'll grade Liu Lei's paper myself. You guys continue grading the others."
Ye Xiaoxiao's eyes widened in shock as she went over the test paper in front of her. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. The Chinese-to-English translation had not only provided various forms of a word, but also listed other synonymous words. The multiple-choice and reading comprehension questions were answered with perfect accuracy, exactly matching the standard answers! Ye Xiaoxiao couldn't believe that a student who had just entered high school had managed to finish this test in ten minutes.
When Ye Xiaoxiao shared this with Liu Kesheng and the others, Zhao Yanyan looked thrilled, Xie Wei remained expressionless, and Liu Kesheng, with a look of disdain, said, "Teacher Ye, I think he probably just copied the answers! A bad student who sleeps all the time—how could he possibly finish this paper? Who would believe that? Haha!"
Ye Xiaoxiao shot Liu Kesheng a glare. Though she, too, found it hard to believe that Liu Lei could have answered the questions correctly, the evidence was right in front of her. Copying? Who could he have copied from in just ten minutes? And from where? The test paper had been set by Ye Xiaoxiao herself, and the answers were nowhere to be found in the textbooks. Without hesitation, she took out a red pen and wrote a big "100" on Liu Lei's paper.
Sighing to herself, Ye Xiaoxiao couldn't help but feel disappointed in Liu Kesheng. She thought to herself, Perhaps I made a mistake when choosing the class leaders. Maybe it's time to reconsider the election.
After grading the papers, Ye Xiaoxiao told Liu Kesheng and Xie Wei to head back to class and asked Zhao Yanyan to stay behind.
"Do you ever see Liu Lei studying English on his own?" Ye Xiaoxiao asked, eager to understand how this student who slept in class could have possibly scored 100 on the test.
Zhao Yanyan shook her head. "I've never seen him study English. His English book is still new, just sitting in his desk drawer without being opened."
Though Zhao Yanyan also found it strange that Liu Lei managed to score 100 in ten minutes, she didn't dwell on it. After all, this boy always seemed to surprise her, like the time in math class or when he typed more than 300 words per minute. As for why that was, Zhao Yanyan didn't bother to figure it out. Right now, her mindset was that of a smitten young girl—no matter what, Liu Lei was her one and only love.
Ye Xiaoxiao, though well aware of Liu Lei's usual behavior, asked Zhao Yanyan just to confirm her suspicions.
Zhao Yanyan, as if she had just won the lottery, eagerly ran over to me. "Liu Lei, you actually scored 100! That's the highest score in our class!"
The way Zhao Yanyan looked at me, it seemed like she was even happier than if she herself had scored 100. What woman wouldn't want her partner to be the best?
I had expected this result. Well, of course—if I couldn't score 100 on a paper like this, I might as well be considered intellectually challenged.
When Zhao Yanyan saw that I didn't show the excited reaction she had anticipated, she frowned and said, "Why do you always look so indifferent about everything?"
Why would I get excited over a high school English test score? Honestly, I wasn't concerned about my own paper. I looked at her with feigned curiosity and asked, "My dear Yanyan, what's the reward for me?"
Zhao Yanyan's face immediately flushed, and she whispered in my ear with a voice barely audible, "We'll talk after school."
I was completely confused. "What do we need to talk about after school?"
Once Ye Xiaoxiao announced the test results, the whole class erupted in astonished murmurs. Everyone was staring at me with wide eyes, as if I were some kind of alien.
Zhao Yanyan sat on the side, smiling as if the person who scored 100 was her. Her score, however, was a close second—98. After that, it was Liu Kesheng, Xie Wei, and the others.
Guo Qing, holding his paper with a score of 59, exclaimed, "Boss, how is this fair? You don't study, and yet you score 100? I actually pay attention in class and do my homework, and I can't even pass!"
I couldn't resist responding with a remark that really annoyed him. "Guessing!"
Before I could even grab my paper, it was snatched away by Zhao Yanyan.
"What are you doing?" I asked, confused.
"I'm keeping it as a memento!" Zhao Yanyan said, carefully folding the paper and slipping it into her backpack.
When Ye Xiaoxiao started explaining the test answers, I had nothing in my hands. Even if I did, I wouldn't have looked at it. Why waste time on that when I could be planning my input method?
I thought about it for a moment. China was still using the DOS system. Based on my experiences from my previous life, I knew that Windows wouldn't become widely used for several more years. Even when it did, it wouldn't be until after Windows 98 was released. At that time, government and business sectors were still using UCDOS + WPS or CCED as their main office software.
Who could have predicted that many years later, WPS, once the dominant word-processing software in the country, would slowly fade from people's minds, replaced by Microsoft's Office suite?
Wait a minute... Office!
I had an epiphany.
What if I could release a DOS version of Office software in this era? From a technical standpoint, this wouldn't be difficult. In my previous life, I had participated in the development and testing of Office products, so I was well-versed in the major functions. But even if I developed it, could I capture the market? I was confident that my product's features would surpass WPS and CCED, but how could I quickly get people to adopt it?
If this system became popular, I was sure that eventually, a Windows version would do well in the market. After all, most people wouldn't want to switch to Office unless the Windows version was released, and WPS had failed in that respect—it was simply too slow to catch up with Office.
This could mean that I would dominate the office software market in China!
But... I sighed. If I could just get in good with the government and secure a large government contract, all my problems would be solved. But coming from a working-class family with no money and no connections, getting close to the government is almost impossible.
Looks like I'd have to take things one step at a time. If my input method could sell for a decent price, that would give me some capital to solve some of these issues.