Chapter 22 First in the Grade [VIP]

Chapter Summary: With a beautiful face and excellent grades, Fu Xianyin has it all.

The shortened holiday was not a headache for Fu Xianyin.

Even due to family reasons, Fu Xianyin has never really liked taking holidays.

She was supposed to go home for the holidays, but she didn't want to.

Back in Linlan, Chen Huimei would often kick her out, and with nowhere to go, Fu Xianyin would just stay in a hotel for the night. Now in Beichuan, with the dormitory as a great place, which is open even on holidays and weekends, Fu Xianyin at least doesn't have to worry about having nowhere to go.

With the monthly exam no longer weighing on her, Fu Xianyin felt that her breathing had become much easier these past few days.

Just as Gu Linzhao had said, her bright new life had begun.

But this new life was short-lived.

It lasted for three days.

The monthly exam results came out on the fourth day.

Fu Xianyin was so anxious the night before that she couldn't sleep. She sat in the classroom, staring blankly at the same page of her Chinese textbook for a long time, her breathing rapid as if she had just run 800 meters.

Almost the instant Gu Linzhao sat down, Fu Xianyin turned around.

Gu Linzhao was startled by her. He put down his schoolbag and looked at Fu Xianyin suspiciously.

Fu Xianyin: "The monthly exam results came out today, right? When will they be released?"

Gu Linzhao: "According to the usual practice, Sister Gao would mention it during math class."

The first math class on Friday is the third period after the long break.

She still has to stay up for most of the morning.

Fu Xianyin sighed, slumped onto the table, looking somewhat listless.

Gu Linzhao glanced at the dejected person beside him and said nothing.

After morning reading, the first period is Chinese.

Before class even started, the class representative for Chinese language brought over a stack of test papers.

The school bell rang, and Chinese teacher Xu Xunling walked into the classroom with a megaphone, asking, "Have you all received the test papers?"

The replies below were scattered: "Received."

How do you feel about your exam results?

The crowd fell silent.

Xu Xunling: "In this exam, the highest score in the grade was 143, and the highest score in our class was 139."

Fu Xianyin looked at the bright red 139 on her test paper, bit her lip and smiled.

Before the smile on her lips could fade, Xu Xunling called out her name: "Fu Xianyin".

Fu Xianyin stood up and saw Xu Xunling smiling at her, saying, "Student with the highest score in Chinese, do you have any learning experience you'd like to share with everyone?"

Fu Xianyin smiled sheepishly: "Chinese isn't actually my strongest subject. My learning experience is to thoroughly review all the classical poems and prose in the textbook that I need to memorize; I can't rely on luck. As for reading comprehension… I still prefer to do lots of practice questions and summarize templates. As for composition…"

Looking at her test paper, she frankly said, "I got 43 points on the essay this time, which isn't a high score, so I won't say anything about it."

Ji Zhumiao glanced back at her and whispered to Song Yaoge, "Is it necessary to say that it's not your best subject? You've already scored so high, why pretend?"

Song Yaoge didn't say anything.

She would subconsciously glance at Gu Linzhao every time she passed the back door; it had become a habit of hers.

When looking at Gu Linzhao, his gaze would often sweep over Fu Xianyin, and almost every time she was in her seat, she was studying.

Song Yaoge had guessed that Fu Xianyin's academic performance was quite good, but she didn't expect it to be at the level of being number one in a single subject.

Moreover, it was a subject she wasn't good at.

She glanced at the bright red 76 on her test paper and lowered her head.

Xu Xunling briefly mentioned the scores, and then began to explain the test paper.

Song Yaoge picked up the red pen and looked at the rows of bright red crosses on her test paper; tears almost welled up in her eyes.

After finally getting through a class, Song Yaoge dragged Ji Zhumiao to the restroom.

In the corridor, Ji Zhumiao said, "That Fu Xianyin is so smug because she did well on the exam."

Song Yaoge looked back and saw that the open back door offered a clear view of the last row of people.

Fu Xianyin was lying on the table with her Chinese test paper in front of her. Next to her, Gu Linzhao pointed at her paper and said something. Fu Xianyin turned her face, raised her chin, and smiled smugly.

Song Yaoge quickly looked away.

"Yaoge, Yaoge?"

Ji Zhumiao tilted her head and looked at her: "What's wrong? You seem to be in a bad mood."

Song Yaoge hesitated for a moment, but still told the truth: "My monthly exam scores are too low compared to theirs."

Ji Zhumiao, however, didn't care at all: "What are you worried about, Yaoge? You're an art student. Besides, you're good-looking and you dance well, which Fu Xianyin can't compare to."

"Besides, she only got the benefit of sitting next to Gu Linzhao." Ji Zhumiao said, "After the monthly exam, we will switch seats immediately. When they are not sitting next to each other, I want to see what Fu Xianyin can do."

Song Yaoge's mood improved briefly.

She nodded, a bright smile on her face: "Yes, you're right."

The second section is physics.

Unexpectedly, it was Gao Ying who came in.

Holding the test paper, she said, "Your physics teacher had something come up and gave me this class. The last self-study period this afternoon will be changed to physics."

"Ah, no!"

Lin Anxu wailed on the podium, only to be hit on the head with a test paper by Gao Ying: "Don't want what? Look at your math score, isn't it telling you 'no'?"

Lin Anxu chuckled and said, "To be honest, Sister Gao, I actually feel that I did pretty well on this exam."

Gao Ying's expression softened a bit: "Yes, you're not bad, but you're not the best."

In the last row, Fu Xianyin quietly asked Gu Linzhao, "Is it your tradition that homeroom teachers mention the scores of other subjects during class, including class rankings and grade rankings?"

Gu Linzhao nodded and said softly, "Yes."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gao Ying called out Fu Xianyin's name:

"Fu Xianyin".

Fu Xianyin, who had momentarily lost focus, stood up reflexively and said, "Here."

Gao Ying said, "Don't talk during class."

Fu Xianyin lowered her head: "Oh, okay, teacher."

Unexpectedly, Gao Ying added, "Even if you get first place, it won't work."

Fu Xianyin looked up abruptly and heard Gao Ying say, "In this exam, the first and second place in the grade both came from our class. Fu Xianyin got 692 points, ranking first in the grade, and Gu Linzhao got 691 points, ranking second in the grade."

"Wow, is Fu Xianyin really that good at studying?"

"692, my god, I couldn't have gotten such a high score even if you killed me."

"Is the last row by the back door some kind of feng shui treasure spot? The people sitting there are either the top or second in the grade. Can I sit there this time when the seats are changed?"

"Sure, if you go sit there, you'll be first in the grade, or at least last."

Amidst the somewhat noisy commotion, Fu Xianyin could still hear Lin Anxu shouting from the front row: "692! First in the grade! My sister Yin is awesome!"

Fu Xianyin: ...

It's no wonder he's sitting on the podium.

The classroom was abuzz with this news.

Gu Linzhao consistently ranked first in his grade during major exams, rarely coming in second, and at worst, he would only get third place.

Fu Xianyin, a transfer student, took first place in the grade in her first exam.

Not to mention, after the last arts performance, almost all the students in the class knew that the two of them had a close relationship.

A pretty face and excellent grades.

Fu Xianyin possesses both of these qualities that are most likely to attract attention during one's student years.

Song Yaoge turned to look at Fu Xianyin, her eyes slightly red.

The whole class was making a ruckus, but she stood there, leaning on the table, her face beaming with an undisguised smile. Beside her, Gu Linzhao rested his chin on his hand, raised an eyebrow, and his lips seemed to form a "Congratulations."

Song Yaoge had never felt so embarrassed before.

She was aware that many girls in her grade liked Gu Linzhao, but she never felt that those girls posed a threat to her.

She was beautiful, and with her status as a dance student, many people in her grade thought she was the school beauty.

Before Fu Xianyin transferred here, the most popular boy in the grade was Gu Linzhao, and among the girls, she was the only one who stood out.

But Fu Xianyin came.

She couldn't compare to Fu Xianyin in terms of looks, and in terms of academic performance, even the two of them combined might not be able to score as high as Fu Xianyin.

692.

The seemingly insurmountable barrier of numbers fell before Song Yaoge.

With her proud, swan-like back slightly bent, Song Yaoge lowered her head.

"Okay, quiet down."

Gao Ying tapped on the podium, bringing everyone under control.

"I won't go into detail about the other subjects' scores; you can wait for your teachers to tell you. I'll talk about math separately. This math exam was quite difficult, but there were still students in the grade who got full marks, like Fu Xianyin from our class."

"Fu Xianyin," Gao Ying called out, "Come up and get your test paper. Math class representative, distribute the rest of the papers. Lin Anxu, go and post the report cards on the bulletin board at the front. Those who want to see them can look at them after class. Now, focus on the lesson."

Fu Xianyin received her 150, and the math class representative distributed the papers to the rest of the class. Gao Ying continued:

"This is the first monthly exam for senior high school students, and also the first major exam since you came back from summer vacation. Some of you have made significant progress, while others have regressed drastically. What I want to say is that the results of this monthly exam do not represent everything, but they can still summarize your learning status in the past month since school started."

"Don't be arrogant if you do well on the exam, and don't be discouraged if you do poorly. There are still 8 months until the college entrance exam, so there's still plenty of time."

"Okay, that's enough about the monthly exam. Now let's take a look at the test paper."

First in the grade.

150.

Fu Xianyin's lips never left her mouth.

Gu Linzhao looked at her; she had been wilting like a frostbitten eggplant in the morning, but as soon as the results came out, she immediately perked up.

He turned his head and chuckled softly.

It's kind of cute that she can change her expression so quickly.

After class, the bulletin board was packed with people.

Lin Anxu took advantage of sitting in front of the podium, and after class he ran to the front with his manuscript paper, wrote down a few grades, and then came to the last row with Cheng Zhaozhao.

He pulled up a chair for Cheng Zhaozhao, then pulled one up for himself, laid out the four people's scores, and gestured with his lip: "Here, look for yourselves. No need to thank your brother Xu, your brother Xu is just a living Lei Feng."

Cheng Zhaozhao scoffed, "Who thanked you?"

Lin Anxu: "Hey, then if you're so capable, don't watch it."

Cheng Zhaozhao stuck out her tongue: "Hehehe, mind your own business, I want to see it."

Fu Xianyin also went over to look at her own score.

Chinese 139, Math 150, English 144, Chemistry 77, Biology 85, Physics 97, Total score 692, first in class, first in grade.

She also looked at Gu Linzhao.

Chinese 130, Math 145, English 135, Chemistry 97, Biology 93, Physics 91, Total score 691, Second in class, Second in grade.

She got 139 in Chinese this time by sheer luck; usually she gets around 130, at most 135.

Gu Linzhao's Chinese and math scores were about the same as hers, his English and physics scores were slightly lower, his biology scores were slightly higher, and his chemistry scores were significantly higher.

This time, Gu Linzhao's total score was only one point lower than hers, even though she had a stroke of luck in Chinese.

In terms of overall strength, she might not necessarily be able to compare to Gu Linzhao.

She is exceptionally good, especially in subjects like math and physics, where she can get full marks or near-full marks.

It was particularly bad. Before, in Linlan, I got full marks in both math and physics, but my biology score was probably still hovering around 80. I finally managed to stabilize my biology score above 85 before the college entrance exam, and now I have to deal with chemistry.

Gu Linzhao.

Fu Xianyin glanced at Gu Linzhao's grades.

My scores in Chinese and English were consistently above 130, and I didn't lose more than 10 points in any science subject.

What is a hexagonal warrior?

His deskmate, Gu Banxian, was a perfect example of a well-rounded individual.

Lin Anxu and Cheng Zhaozhao also did well on the exam this time. Lin Anxu scored 583, while Cheng Zhaozhao achieved an unprecedented score of 600.

Lin Anxu looked at his score, satisfied from every angle: "Wow, not bad, 583. I can explain this to my family when I get home."

He stretched and said happily, "Finally, we can switch places! I don't have to be the teacher's protector anymore!"

"Dream on."

Gu Linzhao said without any mercy, "Our class has an odd number of people, so you'll most likely still be the protector this time."

"What? Oh my god, that's right."

Lin Anxu said with a long face, "I really don't want to be a protector. You don't know, I'm afraid to sleep in class, and no one talks to me during evening self-study. I even have to sneak around to eat a cookie."

Fu Xianyin: "It's okay. If you sit here, you won't be able to sleep in class, and no one will talk to you during evening self-study. The only thing I have over you is that I don't have to sneak around when I eat cookies."

The three of them were amused by her, and Gu Linzhao smiled and glanced at her sideways: "Are you indirectly insulting me?"

"You could tell?"

Fu Xianyin smiled and said, "Your score of over 130 in Chinese was definitely worth it."

"but."

Fu Xianyin asked with some curiosity, "How do you usually change seats? And do you change seats after every major exam?"

"Yes!"

Cheng Zhaozhao rummaged through Fu Xianyin's desk drawer and pulled out the last bag of small bread rolls. With a reluctant expression, she broke off a piece for Lin Anxu and chewed on it, saying:

"Every time the seating arrangement changes, it's the senior female staff who are in the row. The only pattern is that the front row might move to the back row, and the back row might move to the front row."

Fu Xianyin grasped the key point: "There's no pattern, so does that mean your deskmate will change?"

Cheng Zhaozhao: "Yes, yes, it will be changed. It's just that Sister Gao will randomly shuffle it. But actually, it's not certain. Sister Gao won't specifically say that you and Gu Linzhao are sitting at the same table this time, so you two can't sit at the same table next time. You know what I mean."

Fu Xianyin nodded thoughtfully.

Cheng Zhaozhao continued: "Changing seats after the exam, having a parent-teacher conference after the exam, it's a basic routine at No. 1 Middle School. There's about a month between each major exam, so we can't let some people sit in the last row all the time... Lin Anxu, have you no shame! I gave you half a bread, and you still snatched it from me. You haven't even finished what you're eating!"

Lin Anxu hurriedly stuffed the piece of bread from Cheng Zhaozhao's hand into his mouth and ran out of the classroom to avoid Cheng Zhaozhao's slap.

"Who told you to eat so slowly? Hey, I'll buy it for you this afternoon, okay?"

Fu Xianyin had no interest in the two nemesis outside the door.

She was completely stunned by the amount of information Cheng Zhaozhao had just said.

A parent-teacher conference is coming up.

This means that her peaceful life won't last long before she has to go find Chen Huimei again.