Ninth page
On Wednesday afternoon, all the teachers and students of the senior class at No. 1 High School were enveloped in an atmosphere of tension and anticipation.
An important mock exam has just concluded. The results of this exam will almost determine the course of each student's review for the next few months, and even affect their confidence in getting into their ideal university to some extent.
In the classroom, desks and chairs were arranged close together. During breaks, students no longer laughed and played as usual. Some silently lay on their desks with their eyes closed to rest, while others huddled together to discuss the difficult problems they encountered in the exam, trying to gain some comfort and certainty from each other.
Finally, the day for the results arrived. That morning, just as dawn was breaking, the campus gradually came alive with activity.
Students gathered from every corner of the dormitories, canteen, and teaching buildings to the school bulletin board. The bulletin board was packed with people early on, everyone standing on tiptoe and craning their necks, their eyes fixed on the red list full of names and scores, afraid of missing their own name.
A few students in the first row squeezed through a gap, and the students behind them swarmed forward, and so on, wave after wave of people kept coming.
Cheers, sighs, and complaints rose and fell. Some people were so excited by their ideal results that they danced with joy, while others were dejected and hung their heads because of their poor performance. Still others stared at the rankings with anxious eyes.
However, two familiar figures were missing from the bustling crowd.
Mu Mu and Xu Li, two top students who always ranked at the top of their class, sat quietly in the classroom, as if the noise outside had nothing to do with them.
Mu Mu sat by the window against the wall, wearing a simple white sweatshirt, loose sweatpants, and clean white sneakers.
But she was always the girl that both upperclassmen and underclassmen wanted to pursue at school. She always had a high ponytail and a faint smile on her face, giving people a friendly feeling like the girl next door.
At this moment, she was staring intently at the physics workbook on her desk, her fingers lightly tracing the pages, as if recalling the key points in the book.
Occasionally, she would look up at the azure sky outside the window, her eyes revealing a calm and composed demeanor.
Xu Li sat at the desk behind Mu Mu. Unlike Mu Mu, she had thick, wavy hair, always wore light makeup, and dressed in fashionable clothes, making her the focus of attention in the class.
She is tall and has an outstanding temperament. She is also very lively and cheerful, and is always surrounded by a group of friends.
At this moment, she was sitting with her legs crossed, leaning back in her chair, chewing a piece of gum, staring blankly at the ceiling, seemingly deep in thought.
Her long, slender legs swayed gently with her slightly moving body, appearing exceptionally relaxed and at ease.
The classroom was quiet, save for the occasional birdsong from outside the window and the footsteps of athletes running on the distant playground. Mu Mu and Xu Li sat there silently, neither of them speaking.
After a while, Xu Li finally couldn't help but break the silence. She turned around, leaned closer to Mu Mu, and deliberately lowered her voice, saying with a hint of teasing.
"Hey, Mu Bao, everyone's outside looking at the results. Aren't you bored sitting here like this?"
Mu Mu smiled slightly, looked up at Xu Li, her eyes clear and bright: "I think it's quite interesting. As for grades, I know roughly what level I'm at, so it doesn't matter whether I look at the results or not." Xu Li found Mu Mu's words somewhat reasonable.
"Besides, knowing my grades in advance will only distract me. If I do well, I might become arrogant and complacent; if I do poorly, I'll fall into anxiety. I might as well just smash my head against that big tree."
Xu Li chuckled softly, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes: "That sounds nice, but maybe you're just putting on a calm front while you're panicking inside, haha."
As she spoke, she brought her face even closer, her eyes showing a hint of seriousness: "But to be honest, I don't really care that much about this year's results. Before, every time I took an exam, I would go crazy, rushing to check my score as soon as it was over, afraid that I might slip down."
"But this time, I don't know why, I just don't want to watch it. Maybe it's because I've realized that grades are just a process, and as long as I've tried my best, rankings and such don't matter."
Mu Mu nodded, her gaze returning to her book: "Yes, the process is the most important. Just like when we climbed the mountain, appreciating the scenery and overcoming difficulties along the way, these experiences are the most valuable assets. The result is just a summary of the process."
The noise outside the classroom gradually subsided, and most of the students returned to the classroom after checking their grades, starting to discuss their gains and losses.
Mu Mu and Xu Li remained unchanged, seemingly isolated from the world. It wasn't until the homeroom teacher entered the classroom, cleared his throat from the podium, and signaled for everyone to quiet down that the situation changed.
The homeroom teacher was a middle-aged man who wore black-rimmed glasses and always had a serious expression on his face, but his eyes revealed his concern for the students.
"Class, the results are out." He glanced at the class, paused, and continued, "I know you all care a lot about your grades, but I want to say that one exam doesn't determine anything."
"The important thing is what we have learned and what problems we have discovered. There is still a long way to go, so I hope everyone can adjust their mindset and focus their energy on preparing for the college entrance examination."
Sparse applause rang out in the classroom, and the students nodded in agreement. The homeroom teacher continued to assign follow-up learning tasks from the podium, while Mu Mu and Xu Li remained in their respective positions, listening attentively.
After school, the campus gradually emptied out. Mu Mu and Xu Li packed their bags and walked out of the school building together. The sunlight shone on them, warm and comforting.
The two walked slowly along the campus path, their feet rustling as the wind blew down fallen leaves.
"By the way, do you want to come over to my place tonight?" Xu Li suddenly suggested, her eyes filled with anticipation. Mu Mu hesitated for a moment, then smiled and agreed, "Sure, I don't have any special plans for tonight anyway."
So the two of them walked together toward Xu Li's house. Xu Li's house was a high-end villa in the city center, and it was decorated very luxuriously.
Upon entering the house, the modern decor is immediately striking. The spacious living room is furnished with comfortable sofas and a large-screen TV, while the kitchen is filled with the aroma of delicious food.
The servants of Xu Li's family were busy in the kitchen. Mu Mu had been here many times, and the servants were familiar with her. When they saw their young lady and Mu Mu return, they greeted them warmly: "Young lady, wash your hands, dinner will be served soon."
Xu Li's maid was a kind and amiable middle-aged woman with a smile on her face that made people feel very welcome.
"Oh, Aunt Zhou, isn't my dad home?" Xu Li asked after looking around. "Oh, Miss, your husband is at the company and will be back later."
Several people sat around the dining table, enjoying a sumptuous dinner.
As Xu Li's mother picked up some food, she chatted with them: "How did the exam go? I saw so many people crowding together outside the school to check their results, it was quite a scene."
Xu Li shrugged, looking nonchalant: "Hey, neither Mu Mu nor I went to see it. Grades aren't that important to us anymore."
Xu Li's mother looked at them in surprise: "Oh? What's wrong? Didn't you always rush to check your rankings after each exam?"
Mu Mu put down her chopsticks and explained with a smile, "Auntie, we just feel that focusing too much on grades makes us neglect the meaning of learning itself. We would rather focus on accumulating knowledge and improving our abilities than be simply led by scores."
Xu Li's mother listened and nodded thoughtfully: "What you said makes sense. However, grades are still a measure of success, and appropriate attention is still necessary."
Xu Li put down her chopsticks and looked at her mother seriously: "It's not that we don't care about grades at all, we just don't want them to become a burden. We know that we are working hard and making progress, and that's enough."
After dinner, Mu Mu and Xu Li went to the living room and sat on the sofa. Xu Li turned on the TV and tuned to a variety show channel. The two chatted while watching the program.
Suddenly, Xu Li's phone rang. She picked it up and saw that it was a message from the homeroom teacher in the class group chat, containing detailed rankings of the exam results, which had already been shared in the group.
Xu Li handed the phone to Mu Mu: "See? The results came to you on their own. There was no escaping them."
Mu Mu took the phone and quickly glanced at the rankings. As expected, she was firmly in first place, with Xu Li close behind in second.
She handed the phone back to Xu Li and said calmly, "See? The ranking is still the same. If we had known the result wouldn't be anything special, why would we have bothered? Haha."
Xu Li took the phone, glanced at the rankings, and then smiled dismissively: "Pshaw, if this were before, I would have jumped for joy. Now, it's just so-so."
"By the way, how did Tan Yuze do on the exam this time? Wow, Tan Yuze actually got 13th place."
Mu Mu also noticed Tan Yuze's grades. She frowned and said with concern, "Tan Yuze seems to be out of sorts lately. I've talked to him several times before, asking him to adjust his study methods, but I don't know if he listened."
Tan Yuze was a transfer student in the class and had been at the top of the class, so his results this time surprised everyone. Xu Li and Mu Mu both knew that Tan Yuze had always been under a lot of pressure and had very high expectations of himself, and this poor performance in the exam might have made him even more anxious.
"Should we call Tan Yuze and comfort him?" Xu Li suggested.
Mu Mu thought for a moment and decided to let it go: "Someone like him definitely doesn't want to show weakness in front of others. If we bother him now, it might just make him more agitated. It's better to let him calm down on his own. We can find an opportunity to talk to him when he's in a better mood in a couple of days."
Xu Li nodded in agreement: "That's right, then we don't need to bring this up again, so as not to make him feel even worse."
The two continued chatting until night fell, at which point Mu Mu got up to say goodbye and go home. Xu Li escorted her downstairs, and under the dim streetlights, they said their goodbyes.
"I had a lot of fun today, let's meet up again another day," Xu Li said with a smile. Mu Mu smiled back, "Okay, I'll go home now, you should get some rest too." Watching Mu Mu's departing figure, Xu Li felt a mix of emotions.
She and Mu Mu became good friends in the first year of high school. Although they had very different personalities, they supported and accompanied each other in their studies and life.
This decision not to consider grades made her admire Mu Mu's calm attitude even more, and it also strengthened her resolve not to be bound by grades anymore.
In the days that followed, Mu Mu and Xu Li continued to study at their own pace, focusing their energy on reviewing their mistakes, filling in knowledge gaps, and expanding their knowledge base.
They get up early every day to memorize, listen attentively in class, and complete their homework on time. They also make sure to schedule time for review and preview on weekends. The two often give each other tests and discuss difficult problems together, creating a very strong learning atmosphere.
After experiencing a drop in grades, Tan Yuze gradually adjusted his mindset. He reflected on his study methods, identified the problems, and actively improved them.
He began to focus on consolidating basic knowledge, no longer pursuing difficult or obscure questions, and also reduced the time spent studying late into the night, ensuring sufficient sleep.
After a period of hard work, his grades gradually improved. With one year left before the college entrance examination, the school organized another mock exam.
This time, Mu Mu and Xu Li still didn't pay special attention to their grades. They believed their efforts would pay off and they were confident in their abilities. When the exam results were announced, unsurprisingly, Mu Mu once again topped the list, followed closely by Xu Li, while Tan Yuze returned to the top 5.
As the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) draws ever closer, the atmosphere on campus grows increasingly tense. Everyone knows this is a war without gunfire, and everyone is giving their all for their dreams.
Mu Mu and Xu Li, on the other hand, persevered in this war in their own way. They were not disturbed by external factors, but focused only on their own goals, slowly moving towards the other side of their dreams.
In this highly anticipated exam, both Mu Mu and Xu Li performed at their best. They calmly and collectedly tackled each question, successfully completing the exam thanks to their solid knowledge base and positive mindset.
The moment they stepped out of the exam hall, smiles of relief spread across their faces. After the midterms, everyone busied themselves with reviewing.
Mu Mu and Xu Li chose their preferred learning methods and majors based on their interests and grades.
In the days leading up to the college entrance examination, they returned to their familiar school campus and reminisced with their teachers and classmates about their three years of junior high school.
Finally, the results were distributed to the students. Mu Mu was accepted by a top professor in the country, and Xu Li lived up to expectations, achieving excellent results.
Tan Yuze also succeeded through his own efforts. At that moment, Mu Mu and Xu Li looked at the familiar campus, their hearts filled with emotion.
They knew that this period of their youth would become one of the most precious memories of their lives. And their decision that year not to focus on grades became a significant turning point in their growth, making them realize that while grades are important, mindset and the process are the keys to determining the future.
Mu Mu and Xu Li continued to keep in touch.
They continue to strive in their new environment, pursuing higher goals. The composure and determination they cultivated during their student years have accompanied them ever since, taking them further and further on their life's journey.
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