The atmosphere froze as both parties silently felt uneasy.
Why drink again?
Why recite again?
One was bitter but couldn't speak, the other wouldn't believe the truth if told. They stared at each other silently, neither moving.
Su Lian's hand hovered in the air, feeling a bit sour: "How about we give each other a way out?"
The implication was clear - I'll let you off the hook, so don't be too insistent.
"That won't do. The three of us spent hours organizing this."
Chi Wang waved the stack of papers, taking a slight breath: "We rushed back worried you'd go to bed early. It's just reciting, what's the big deal?"
What's the big deal? Easy for you to say. Why don't you do it then?
Su Lian laughed angrily: "So... the other two won't be bringing more materials, right?"
"They will."
That light single word fell, and the world collapsed with a boom.
Su Lian's face turned ashen, wondering what sins he had committed in his past life.
"Did you forget we still have a bet?"
Chi Wang put the stack of papers on the desk, replying confidently: "I performed exceptionally well in Chinese this time. Don't be naive, I won't lose."
Hah, Su Lian scoffed coldly without a word.
"So, feel free to recite and boldly aim for high scores." Chi Wang looked at him with upturned eyes, leaning against the doorframe, smiling brilliantly.
If it weren't for this guy's genuinely nice personality, Su Lian would suspect he was deliberately tormenting him.
He put the thermos on the table with a crisp sound, a silent hint.
An extreme one-for-one exchange, Chi Wang understood immediately.
He stared at the light blue thermos with a tragic expression: "Fine, I'll drink, you recite. We'll supervise each other."
For the dormitory honor battle that Gu Anjiu had been going on about all night, he temporarily counted himself as a member of room 403.
With that, he took the lead, sharply inhaling before mustering the courage to gulp down a large mouthful.
The familiar taste, the same awful recipe, the same physiological urge to vomit.
The intense sourness and bitterness spread throughout his mouth, mixed with a few strands of weird sweetness, all sticky and churning down his throat. It was even more nauseating than the pure awfulness of last time.
Damn, an epic hellishly perverted health concoction.
Whoever becomes Su Lian's wife in the future is truly doomed.
"Not bad, much better," someone lied shamelessly, his Adam's apple bobbing as he forcibly swallowed.
Seeing his stubbornness, Su Lian didn't expose him: "I told you, the improved version would be much better."
"Mm, your turn." Chi Wang's hand holding the thermos trembled slightly as he feigned calmness.
The cool guy opposite didn't speak, just stared at him intently. His eyelashes were slightly curled, looking quite attractive when silent.
But he had such a sharp tongue, ruining the mood when he spoke: "Finish it."
Chi Wang clicked his tongue: "Where's the trust between people?"
Su Lian couldn't be bothered to respond: "Hurry up."
Unable to escape his fate, Chi Wang sighed, frowning as he frantically chugged the rest in one go.
The cup was empty, but his composure was completely shattered.
He wasn't the only one whose composure had crumbled.
Su Lian sat back at the desk, flipping through the pile of materials, silently mouthing the words as he fell into a state of passive suffering.
He was a medical student with bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from Peking University, effortlessly handling advanced science and English. What was he doing now?
He was... damn it, reciting high school English model essays.
Glancing to the side, the guy next to him seemed to have recovered from that tortured state, once again exuding an air of ease as he sprawled with his legs open, tapping away at his phone playing Fight the Landlord.
With that lordly manner and posture, he really did look like an overseer.
"Can you not sit next to me? It's annoying." Su Lian irritably flipped to the next page, rows of tiny English text filling the sheet.
Chi Wang moved his chair a bit further: "Don't be agitated, calm down. Just pretend I'm not here."
"I'll pretend you're an idiot." Su Lian cursed under his breath, resentfully continuing to recite.
Chi Wang smiled without retorting, tapping to claim the landlord role in his game.
The door opened again as Gu Anjiu cheerfully entered, dropping a book on top of the pile of materials, adding insult to injury.
He excitedly said: "I got it, the last copy! The highly recommended comprehensive science practice tests from the neighboring Tsinghua-Peking Class top student."
"It was really hard to find, we went to several stores," Lin Yan followed in, tugging on the little stutterer's backpack strap. "If there's anything you don't understand, Little Monkey can tutor you."
Faced with the mountain of materials before him, Su Lian propped his head in his hand, looking at the four faces with utter despair: "Are you trying to kill me?"
Just as one wave subsided, another rose. He was about to be drowned by these waves of youth.
"N-no, Little N-nine said this is a d-dorm battle. I've f-finished reviewing, so I c-can help," Song Jiaci swallowed hard. "If you d-don't understand anything, a-ask me."
Su Lian's headache worsened. By the time he finished explaining a problem, it would probably be dawn.
He strategically compromised: "You guys go to sleep. I'll recite the essays, read the books, and pull an all-nighter, okay?"
"That's more like it. In that case, to avoid disturbing you guys, Su Lian can come to my dorm," Chi Wang stood up and stretched, gathering up the pile of materials and making an executive decision. "Come on, I'll help you move your books."
Su Lian leaned back in his chair, saying wearily: "Thanks so much."
At 3 AM, Chi Wang was getting too sleepy keeping watch on the side. He reached into his pocket, taking out a cigarette pack intending to go to the balcony for a smoke.
Just as his fingers gripped a cigarette, before he could pull out his lighter, the back of his hand was suddenly smacked hard with a study guide, stinging sharply.
"Fuck, why'd you hit me?"
"No smoking allowed."
Chi Wang held the unlit cigarette between his teeth, gently biting the filter to curb his craving: "I'll go outside to smoke, it won't bother you."
Su Lian had just finished reciting the 15th essay, feeling so agitated he wanted to punch someone. The air pressure was extremely low: "Will you die if you don't smoke?"
"I'm sleepy," he said lazily, yawning. "Really sleepy. I'm just going out for a quick pick-me-up before coming back to keep you company."
Su Lian reached out and snatched the cigarette, tossing it into the trash along with the pack and lighter with a muffled thud.
He curled his knuckles, his tone very irritated: "If I see it one more time, I'll hit you once."
His mind was in a fog now, too lazy to even come up with a reason, resorting directly to violent threats.
This had touched the reverse scale of the health-conscious cool guy. Best not to provoke this ancestor.
Chi Wang rubbed his nose, sighing: "Fine, I won't smoke. Can I at least go splash some cold water on my face?"
The other didn't respond, his face looking gloomy and stormy. Who knows what he was so angry about.
Chi Wang raised an eyebrow, turning to enter the bathroom. He stripped off his clothes, deciding to just take a quick cold shower.
When he came back out, the dedicated studier had fallen fast asleep sprawled on the desk.
He quickly went over, reaching out to wake him, his fingers touching the soft hair. His palm tingled as the fluffy strands brushed against it.
How could someone with such a tough personality have such soft hair?
Chi Wang stared at him for a while, not making a sound. The desk lamp cast long shadows of his eyelashes, making his whole face look even paler. His fingers still gripped an uncapped pen, the tip unconsciously making some messy scribbles on the paper.
It seemed he had pushed him too hard. There was no need for that. In the end, Chi Wang didn't have the heart to wake him.
He turned to take a school uniform jacket from the wardrobe, gently draping it over the thin shoulders.
Thinking they should share the suffering, he sat back in the chair next to him, using his elbows as a pillow to lie down as well.
Su Lian naturally woke at 6 AM due to his biological clock. The desk was too hard - his whole body felt like it had fallen apart.
He lowered his eyes to look at the jacket draped over him, then glanced at the still-sleeping Chi Wang next to him, feeling a bit dazed.
No matter how much a person's personality changes, the innate kindness in their bones still can't be hidden.
Su Lian sat back in the chair quietly for a moment, then took the jacket off his shoulders and folded it neatly, placing it to the side.
He rubbed his face and reached out to nudge the other, keeping his voice soft: "Chi Wang, wake up. It's time for the exam."
"Hm? Did you finish reciting the essays?" Suddenly woken, Chi Wang half-opened his eyes in a daze, his consciousness still fuzzy but his train of thought crystal clear, firmly remembering his supervisory duty.
"...Recite your ass." That little warmth in Su Lian's heart instantly shattered to pieces.
Su Lian walked into the exam room under everyone's eager gaze. The solemn atmosphere was like he carried the hopes of the whole village - they might as well have hung a banner to show respect.
After finishing the morning and afternoon exams, plus the lack of sleep the night before, he felt like his whole being was a bit floaty.
Despite the stakes, he finally focused all his attention and seriously completed the test paper.
As the English exam ended, his whole body felt like it was falling apart.
Chi Wang strode across the desk to the front, his tone quite smug: "The composition topic was drawn from the fifth essay you memorized yesterday. See? I told you the top student's notes would be useful."
"If your memory is so good, why the hell didn't you memorize it yourself?" Su Lian irritably picked up his schoolbag. "Ask for leave for me during the evening self-study session."
"Why do you need to take leave?" Chi Wang asked, puzzled.
Su Lian stared at his energetic posture, really wondering if this guy had taken some stimulants: "I'm going home to catch up on sleep, okay?"
True to his cool, health-conscious image, Chi Wang nodded and gave an OK hand gesture.
Third High School was famous for its quick grading speed. Just a day later, Li Guoqing came into the classroom carrying a large stack of Chinese test papers.
He placed them on the desk and raised his hand to touch what little hair he had left. His expression was calm, showing no sign of good or bad news, which only intensified the restless atmosphere in the classroom.
"When I call your name, come up and get your test paper."
Students were called up one by one. There was more or less criticism for each, and aside from a few obvious smiling faces, the overall mood was one of widespread distress.
"Su Lian, yours."
Being called out while at the center of the whirlpool these past two days, everyone turned their heads in unison, wanting to discern something from that thin answer sheet.
Seeing the score on the test paper, Li Guoqing was somewhat surprised; this kid's grades weren't as bad as he had imagined.
He flipped to the back of the paper, his expression sinking again: "Why are all your classical poetry questions blank? Didn't you memorize any?"
"Mm." Su Lian took the paper, mumbling a response, "Ran out of time, didn't get to it."
"Come to my office after school." Li Guoqing didn't say more and continued calling names: "Chi Wang, come up."
Su Lian went back to his seat with the test paper, leaning back in his chair wearily. Even after two nights of sleep, he was still drowsy from staying up half the night a couple days ago.
Gu Anjiu craned his neck to peek at the score and whispered an exclamation: "97? You passed, is this for real? Weren't you at the bottom of the class?"
"Just happened to know most of it," Su Lian said modestly, putting it very mildly.
"Chinese is your best subject too, just like Wang. I only got 60, so lame." Gu Anjiu held his test paper covered in red crosses, flipping it back and forth, grumbling unhappily.
That was indeed pretty bad. Su Lian's words of comfort got stuck in his throat; there didn't seem to be much he could say.
Chi Wang came down with his paper, exuding an air of pride from head to toe.
He placed it on the desk next to him as if showing off, the bright red score very eye-catching.
He glanced at Su Lian's score, and the smile at the corner of his mouth faded: "What's going on, you actually scored higher than me?"
Su Lian stared at the big 79 on the neighboring desk, his expression calm: "Is that so difficult?"
Chi Wang was momentarily at a loss for words. How had this guy become even more arrogant than him now?
"It's over, Wang. You're going to be—" Gu Anjiu held back his laughter and drew out his words, "Class Six's—exercise—leader—for—a—month."
His expression was so schadenfreude that he even forgot he was originally on the opposing side to Su Lian, fanning the flames with all his might.
Lin Yan nudged his arm: "Do you have a death wish?"
"Shut up." Chi Wang stared at the result he had worked so hard for, feeling deflated.
Wasn't this guy supposed to have terrible grades? How could he even pass? Was this reasonable?
An ominous feeling quickly rose and took shape.
Imagining himself standing on the wide running track, right in front of the entire Class Six lined up, he—a retired but still fear-inducing school bully of Third High, a street boss who had subdued countless thugs from other schools—would have to lead exercises with standard gestures and dance moves...
His limbs stiffened and his scalp tingled.
Chi Wang pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth and mumbled: "Weren't we comparing the lowest scores in Chinese, Math, and English? The winner isn't decided yet."
Su Lian nodded slightly, his tone light and breezy: "That's true. But thanks for supervising me while I memorized English all night that day. I feel like I did pretty well."
Sarcastic and insinuating.
"......." Chi Wang leaned back in his chair, forcing himself to self-comfort, "It's fine, let's wait for Math. If you can score over 79, I'll admit you're tough."
Relax, it's not that bad, really not that bad.
With Su Lian's abilities on par with his own, who was he trying to scare?
Su Lian's 97 points didn't cause much of a stir. Ai Xuexi, upon hearing the score, turned up his nose, utterly disdainful.
For someone ranked at the bottom of the grade, just barely passing in one subject wasn't even enough to fill a tooth gap.
He couldn't wait for all the scores to come out, imagining the scene of Su Lian standing in the broadcasting room shouting "I'm a loser". He inwardly sneered.
These garbage underachievers needed to be taught a lesson, to dampen that arrogant air they usually put on.
The class bell rang, and the Math teacher entered carrying a stack of test papers in the same manner. This time his expression was particularly serious, his aura extremely low, scaring everyone so much they didn't dare breathe, as if they had seen a plague god.
The classroom atmosphere was tense. He pushed up his glasses: "The Math questions this time were quite difficult. Don't be discouraged when you see your scores; sophomore year has just begun. Ah, next I'll read out names and scores in order of ranking. Everyone come up to collect your answer sheets."
"Teacher Zhao, isn't this public execution?"
"Don't read out the scores, it's so embarrassing!!!"
"I want to go deaf and mute on the spot, die right here."
"So nervous, so nervous. I left the last two big questions blank in Math, definitely doomed."
The complaints rose and fell, unstoppable, until they suddenly ceased at the call of "Su Lian". Everyone raised their heads in unison once again, expressions full of confusion.
"Reading from the bottom up? No way, right? That's too harsh."
"Did Su Lian get the lowest score? That's too cruel."
"It's not surprising, I heard his grades are terrible."
"I'm just curious if he'll break our class's record for the lowest score."
"147, our class's highest score."
The score cut off all kinds of speculations. After reading it out, the Math teacher added with some regret: "You lost three points. One answer wasn't written out, and one result wasn't simplified. Too careless, pay attention next time."
These words fell, stirring up huge waves. Everyone was petrified, dumbfounded.
For a moment, there was a uniform sound of sharp intakes of breath all around.
What the hell? Had the teacher's eyes gone blurry or had their ears gone bad? Or maybe the whole class was having a collective hallucination.
What was just said? The legendary last-place student scored 147 in Math? Who would believe that if you told them?
Chi Wang turned his head to look at his deskmate, hesitating: "You don't happen to have a top student friend too..."
"I don't have friends." Su Lian got up coldly and went to the front to collect his paper.
As he passed by Ai Xuexi in the aisle, he was suddenly grabbed by the corner of his clothes: "How could you possibly score 147?"
The person's eyes were bloodshot, his grip very strong, his voice full of disbelief.
"Let go." Su Lian impatiently pulled his clothes back and went up to the podium without looking back, retrieving his paper.
"Ai Xuexi, 142. This time only two students scored over 140. Everyone else needs to work harder." The Math teacher tapped the podium. "Ai Xuexi, what are you dazed about?"
Upon being called, Ai Xuexi walked up in a daze and returned to his seat, his head heavy and feet light.
He could no longer hear what the teacher said afterwards, his ears buzzing as if he had tinnitus.
After five minutes of recovery, Ai Xuexi finally regulated his breathing and pulled himself out of his confused state.
He quickly added up Su Lian's scores for the two subjects, then calculated his own Chinese and Math scores together. Based on the previous comprehensive science test and estimated English scores, if Su Lian performed normally, he would need to score nearly perfect in the remaining two subjects to surpass him.
Given that this test was generally quite difficult, the possibility was extremely slim.
He gripped his pen, let out a sigh of relief, and then immediately tensed up again.
Yesterday he had inquired about Su Lian's previous grades. Although he didn't know who the accomplice was, this person must have cheated.
However, their bet only specified comparing rankings, not methods.
What if, what if this person's total score really surpassed his?
The scene of himself appearing in the broadcasting room flashed through his mind, and his whole body stiffened.
Even if there was only the slimmest possibility, he couldn't allow such an embarrassing mark on his life. Absolutely not.
For the entire Math class, Ai Xuexi's mind wandered on and off for the first time, feeling like he was sitting on pins and needles, with pricks at his back.
As the class dismissal bell rang, Su Lian was surrounded by layers of people, each rushing over to marvel at the test paper with the highest score in the class.
The handwriting was neat, the process clear. If this was cheating, it would have required the help of the top student in the grade.
Everyone was confused and puzzled, but they didn't dare to question it directly in front of others. They just kept flipping through the test papers, looking for flaws.
Ai Xuexi seized the opportunity to squeeze into the crowd, pretending to be calm as he said, "Even if you got 147 in math, you only scored a measly 97 in Chinese. You're still dragging behind badly."
"I don't need you to repeat my scores," Su Lian said, annoyed at the sight of him. He used his textbook to push away the hand resting on the desk. "Don't block my air."
Ai Xuexi pursed his lips, deliberately emphasizing, "I just calculated for you. You'd need perfect scores in the remaining two subjects to possibly surpass me. You're definitely going to lose."
Su Lian replied, "Oh."
His expression was lazy and indifferent as he reached out to unscrew his thermos, calmly taking a sip of water.
Seeing no reaction, Ai Xuexi grew a bit anxious, slightly raising his voice, "How about this, I'll be generous. We can change the bet to just shouting once in the classroom instead of using the broadcast room. It'll save you some face. What do you say, want to change the bet?"
He was acting magnanimous, but in reality, he was leaving himself an escape route. Just in case he actually lost, at least he could save some face.
Su Lian looked up through the steam rising from his thermos, noticing the light cold sweat on Ai Xuexi's forehead and his pale lips - clear physiological signs of extreme nervousness.
It was just one math score, and he was already this scared.
"No changes," Su Lian said.
"You... I've already given you a way out, and you're still being ungrateful. It's just one lousy 147 in math. Who knows whose answers you copied."
Ai Xuexi tried to maintain his composure as he looked around, exaggerating, "He'd need perfect scores to possibly beat me. A perfect score in science? Isn't that just a pipe dream?"
"That's true. Third High School hasn't produced a perfect science score before, right?"
"And English is pretty tough too. This time the questions were insanely difficult."
"I've got to admit, I'm a bit impressed by Su Lian's unyielding attitude."
Su Lian couldn't be bothered to speak, slowly taking another sip of water.
Ai Xuexi was unsettled by Su Lian's calm demeanor, growing increasingly anxious inside. "I'll give you one last chance. Do you want to change the bet or not?"
"He already said he doesn't want to change it. Why are you still nagging? It's annoying," Chi Wang leaned back, balancing his chair on two legs, his expression unfriendly.
Struck speechless by this rebuke, Ai Xuexi was at a loss for words.
He pursed his lips, pretending not to care as he left with a parting shot: "I gave you a chance. It won't be me who's embarrassed, so don't regret it later."
Su Lian twirled a pen in his hand, his face full of impatience. So noisy.
"The... the total... totals... have been... calculated," Song Jiaci, the class representative, had just rushed back from the office with the class ranking sheet and quickly climbed onto the podium.
The atmosphere that had just calmed down was instantly ignited again. A group of people hurried over, wishing they could snatch the sheet and see for themselves.
"Damn, are these teachers even human? How did they grade so fast?"
"Quick, quick, how much did Su Lian score in science and English?"
"Just tell us the rankings, give us spectators some satisfaction."
The bet that had been circulating throughout the sophomore class for days was finally about to have a result. Originally, everyone thought Su Lian would surely lose, but after the math scores came out, many people secretly began to hope for an upset.
Or rather, they were anticipating something seemingly impossible.
"Su Lian's sci-science and En-English, both... both... both..." Song Jiaci became even more of a stutterer when nervous, his entire face turning bright red as he struggled to continue.
"Oh come on, what about them? Did he fail both?"
"You're killing us here. If you can't say it, I'll read it."
"Hey stutterer, can you straighten out your tongue and speak properly?"
Say it, say it already! Everyone's eyes were wide open, their hearts burning with impatience.
Ai Xuexi swallowed hard, unable to control the tension in his body. The veins on the back of his hand bulged as he clenched his fist tightly, his nails digging deep into his palm.
Sweat broke out on his back in layers, trickling down uncontrollably, soaking his entire body.
No matter how impressive this slacker's cheating methods were, how could he possibly find someone with a perfect score to copy answers from completely?
But even though he knew it was impossible, a growing sense of panic welled up inside him.
That uneasiness expanded more and more, almost consuming him.
Absolutely, impossible, it couldn't be...
"Perfect scores," Song Jiaci finally caught his breath and said the results in one go.
The whole place fell silent, so quiet you could hear the rise and fall of breaths.
Su Lian's face remained expressionless as Chi Wang suddenly hooked an arm around his neck, shaking him back and forth until he nearly suffocated. "Let go, damn it," Su Lian growled.
"You acted pretty well. You've been waiting here for me, haven't you?" Chi Wang said through gritted teeth, regretting his earlier doubts.
The onlookers who had snapped back to reality were already pulling out their phones, quickly spreading the news to every corner of the sophomore class while unable to resist howling wildly.
"Holy shit, that's amazing!!!"
"Is this for real? What does a perfect score in science even mean?"
"This isn't just a school bully, he's a genius! I'm bowing down to him!"
The discussions around him grew more and more distant as Ai Xuexi stood rooted to the spot, feeling as if a large hand was gripping his throat, unable to make a sound or draw breath.
His whole body felt as if millions of ants were crawling over it. A wave of nausea and dizziness hit his chest, his heartbeat stopped, and his vision went black.
Perfect scores. They really were perfect scores.
He gasped for air desperately, clutching at his chest, trying to control his weakening legs to keep standing.
The next second, he tried to reassure himself. Stay calm, it's fine. Maybe he had done very well this time too.
Su Lian had pulled so far ahead in Chinese, even with two perfect scores he might not be able to catch up.
Ai Xuexi, his head covered in cold sweat, stumbled through the aisle, pushed through the crowd, and snatched the class ranking sheet, his hands shaking as he looked it over.
His gaze locked onto his own name in the first second. His science and English scores were quite good, even a few points higher than he had estimated. His overall ranking was eighth in the grade.
He slowly began to smile, his gaze moving upward, but the smile froze on his face, suddenly solidifying.
Above his own name, in bold black characters, were two words.
Su Lian.
No more, no less, exactly one rank higher than him.
That name, carrying a hint of mockery, fell like a mountain onto his line of sight, crashing into his heart, shattering his internal organs to pieces.
Along with his pride and self-esteem, it was crushed thoroughly under foot, completely devastated.