Zhou Xiu walked into the biology competition class next door, carrying her backpack.
It was break time, and the students in the biology class were busy washing lab equipment. On the lab tables were scattered pieces of dissected crucian carp, remnants from the previous class’s dissection experiment. Fish gills, swim bladders, and gallbladders were spread out messily, and the air was thick with the mixed smells of disinfectant and fish.
During the break, the students slumped against the lab benches, looking utterly exhausted and lifeless.
The laid-back atmosphere was a stark contrast to the intense, competitive environment of the math competition class next door. It was as if she had gone from a tense, smoke-filled battlefield to a leisurely, pastoral life.
Having grown accustomed to Mr. Wang’s fast-paced math class, Zhou Xiu felt a bit out of place.
Xu Qing was calmly washing his hands, taking his time. He had already washed them twice before Zhou Xiu arrived, and now he was on his third round.
When Xu Qing saw Zhou Xiu walk in, he looked surprised.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
Zhou Xiu set down her backpack and replied softly, “I’m here for class. I signed up for next year’s biology competition.”
Xu Qing was slightly taken aback since Zhou Xiu was from the math competition class. But his surprise quickly turned into a smile. “Welcome to the biology competition.”
“You missed an interesting experiment. Want to give it a try? We still have a few fish left.”
Xu Qing glanced toward the podium, where a large water tank still held a few crucian carp swimming lazily.
Before Xu Qing could finish his sentence, a nearby girl who was washing her hands muttered irritably, “Ugh, will this fishy smell ever come off?”
Another girl sniffed her fingers, exclaiming, “Oh my god, why does this have to be so gross? I’ve never killed a fish in my life until today.”
Even after washing, their nails still carried a lingering fishy odour.
The lab table next to them was splattered with fish scales, and the bloodstains that hadn’t been wiped off yet gave the room the distinct smell of a fresh market.
But Xu Qing’s lab station, just a few feet away, was spotless. Even the trash had been emptied, and the few water droplets on the table emitted a faint lemony scent.
It was so clean and tidy that it didn’t seem like a boy’s workspace at all.
The girls at the neighbouring table, hearing Xu Qing’s suggestion of dissecting another fish, quickly backed away in fear.
Zhou Xiu couldn’t help but smile. “No need.”
When she was young, Zhou Xiu had often helped her father with banquets to make a living, and she had lost count of how many fish she’d gutted and cleaned. She could probably draw the anatomy of a crucian carp with her eyes closed.
For Zhou Xiu, whether it was the birds in the sky, the fish in the water, or the earthworms burrowing in the soil, all of nature’s flora and fauna were familiar to her. This was the beauty of biology.
It was rooted in life yet transcended it.
Xu Qing nodded in understanding. It was perfectly normal for girls not to like dealing with such bloody tasks.
Since Zhou Xiu wasn’t planning on dissecting a fish, Xu Qing, after washing his hands, seriously began writing his lab report.
The biology teacher, upon seeing Zhou Xiu, was delighted and took the time to guide her through the experiment.
“If there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask Xu Qing. You’re in the same class, after all.”
After finishing the experiment, Zhou Xiu took a look around at the lab materials provided by the school: various reagents and equipment. In contrast, the math class next door only had test papers.
Although both competition classes cost 200 yuan per session, the biology class offered far more bang for the buck.
What Zhou Xiu didn’t know was that the school invested a lot of money each year into training students for the biology competition, even subsidizing the cost. However, the biology competition class struggled to attract top students. The elite science students from the Rocket Class almost always chose the math competition, with only a few opting for physics or chemistry.
Even with subsidies, the biology competition class had little success, yielding few top-tier students.
Given this, Zhou Xiu’s decision to give up on math and focus on biology made her seem either foolish or like a failure. It was no wonder Xu Haobo and Qi Yaguang looked down on her choice.
After school, Xu Qing asked casually, “Are you giving up on math?”
Zhou Xiu shook her head. “No, I’m still studying it.”
Xu Qing, walking beside her with his backpack, said as they left the classroom, “So, you’re doing both?”
He paused, then added gently, “That’s going to be tough. The math competition class has an elimination system. If your monthly test scores don’t meet the standard, you’ll have to leave.”
Zhou Xiu stopped at the entrance of the teaching building. “I know. Thanks for the reminder.”
Xu Qing walked out of the school gate and got into a black sedan that had been waiting for him by the roadside.
Zhou Xiu, on the other hand, headed toward the bustling subway station.
The next day.
Zhou Xiu arrived at the math department office and knocked politely on the door.
When Mr. Wang saw her, he immediately scowled. “What are you here for?”
Zhou Xiu handed him the test paper she had completed at home. “This is the test I finished within the time limit. Please grade it.”
Remembering what Zhou Xiu had said when she asked for leave, Mr. Wang felt too irritated to even look at her paper, and he was tempted to send her away.
“I’ll be attending biology class during the math test sessions from now on,” she said.
Just listen to that. It was as if math had become a mere side dish for Zhou Xiu, something she could pick up whenever she had time. Mr. Wang had always been the one to select his students, never the other way around.
Seeing that Mr. Wang wasn’t moving, Zhou Xiu handed him a red pen.
With a stern expression, Mr. Wang marked her paper with a few quick strokes, giving her a score of 65.
Zhou Xiu glanced over the mistakes and cautiously asked, “Teacher, I heard you mentioned yesterday that students who score below 70 would receive a copy of your new test collection?”
“I got 65, so I should be eligible to receive it, right?”
She was actually eager to get her hands on his test papers?
Mr. Wang coldly replied, “Aren’t you in the biology class now? You’re no longer part of the math class, so there’s no point in giving it to you.”
He reserved his test collections for those who were passionate about math and competition. Giving them to a student who was so indecisive and scattered would be a waste.
Although, in truth, nobody really liked working on Mr. Wang’s test collections—he often had to force them on students.
Zhou Xiu pursed her lips and touched her nose. “I’ll still be in the math competition class, so you don’t need to worry, teacher.”
“Well, if you won’t give it to me, that’s fine. Goodbye, teacher.”
Mr. Wang reached for his goji berry and red date tea, taking a sip to lower his rising blood pressure.
As he glanced at the test paper Zhou Xiu had left behind, his experienced eyes quickly identified her problem.
All the mistakes were in basic areas, while she had correctly answered the more difficult questions that had been covered recently. Her fundamental knowledge was simply too weak.
In Class 24.
During her free time, Zhou Xiu buried her head in a math book she had borrowed from the library.
Hua Xu patted her on the head and asked mysteriously, “Xiu, why are you working so hard? Do you have an exam coming up?”
“Are you feeling a lot of pressure?”
The news of Zhou Xiu’s argument with Qi Yaguang had quickly spread among the students, and Hua Xu had heard about it from her friends in the Winner Class.
Yu Qingyan leaned in, gritting her teeth, and said, “Xiu Xiu, you better do well on that test!”
“Do you know that the Rocket Class students are just waiting for you to drop out so that Lu Lingshan can take your place?”
There was a reason why Lu Lingshan wanted to join the math competition class—because of Xi Shaoyuan. Xi Shaoyuan liked top students, especially girls who were good at math. Lu Lingshan had hired countless math tutors behind the scenes.
The students in the Winner Class often saw her asking Xi Shaoyuan for help with math problems.
If she joined the competition class, wouldn’t she be constantly pestering Yu Qingyan’s idol?
As a die-hard fan of Xi Shaoyuan, Yu Qingyan couldn’t tolerate that.
She dumped a pile of math competition study materials she had bought but never used onto Zhou Xiu’s desk.
The heavy stack landed with a thud, even causing the desk to shake slightly.
Startled, Zhou Xiu lifted her gaze from her math book and looked at the pile of materials.
Xu Qing, sitting behind her, glanced at Zhou Xiu, who was sandwiched between the two girls, trying to study.
He couldn’t help but pinch the bridge of his nose. “Yu Qingyan, your study materials are useless. You guys should let her study on her own.”
If simply reading these books could guarantee success, there wouldn’t be so many Rocket Class students who failed to make it into the competition class. The content covered in the math competition was broad and deep, making superficial guidebooks a waste of time.
The only thing that might be of some use was Mr. Wang’s math test collection, which he had compiled himself.
Yu Qingyan’s study habits were so poor that even the guidebooks she bought were popular but ineffective.
Zhou Xiu set aside her math book and rubbed her tired eyes.
Hua Xu quietly took out a bottle of milk, inserted a straw, and handed it to Zhou Xiu.
“Don’t stress about it. It’s okay if you don’t make it into the competition class. Don’t let Yu Qingyan pressure you. Whether Lu Lingshan gets in or not has nothing to do with you.”
“Make sure you drink milk while you study so you can grow taller.”
Hua Xu didn’t particularly want Zhou Xiu to stay in that kind of class, fearing she might get bullied.
Du Feiyang, hearing this, widened his eyes.
Given that it was Hua Xu speaking, he swallowed his objections.
While it was one thing to give up a spot to someone else, it was another matter entirely if that someone was Lu Lingshan. The idea was just too irritating.
Considering how she had managed to get her hands on the math test last time, there was still some lingering doubt about her previous math scores.
For someone who had earned a legitimate perfect score to be replaced by someone suspected of cheating with a 120+ score—it just didn’t sit right.
“Xiu Xiu, we’re counting on you!”
Zhou Xiu quickly finished the milk and calmly said, “I won’t be dropping out.”
“Don’t worry.”
Although her test scores hadn’t been ideal, Zhou Xiu had been making progress. If she had started learning math competition content earlier, she wouldn’t be struggling as much as she was now.
After finishing her snack, Zhou Xiu resumed her focused studying.
Meanwhile, Tan Ming, Du Feiyang’s desk mate, remained silent, typing a message into his phone. After a long moment of thought, he finally sent it.
“Do you really want to join the math competition class? Do you like math that much?”
Lu Lingshan’s profile picture was a photo of herself, taken in the early morning light, her thick, curled eyelashes like little fans, her fair skin flawless and pure.
Tan Ming’s WeChat background was a collage of her pictures.
After school.
When Zhou Xiu returned to the Xi household, she heard the sound of music coming from upstairs as soon as she entered the hallway. Xi Shaoyuan was in the piano room, practicing.
Zhou Xiu went to the balcony to collect the jacket Xi Shaoyuan had lent her, then knocked on the door of the piano room.
After a few knocks, she walked in.
The Steinway grand piano took up a lot of space, its glossy surface reflecting the light. The piano was so polished that you could see your reflection in it, and the image of a pair of long, slender hands playing the keys was clear.
Xi Shaoyuan’s expression was cold as his fingers danced across the keys, producing music as clear as flowing water.
When he finished playing, Zhou Xiu placed the jacket on a chair and said, “Thanks for lending me this the other day… I’ve already washed it.”
Xi Shaoyuan mumbled an indifferent acknowledgment, barely bothering to respond.
As Zhou Xiu turned to leave the room, he casually picked up the jacket and tossed it into the trash bin.
Zhou Xiu’s steps faltered, and she turned back just in time to witness this scene, her eyes filled with unmasked surprise.
Although the Xi family was wealthy and it wasn’t uncommon for Xi Shaoyuan to discard clothes with the slightest stain, this was a jacket he had personally lent to her.
And he threw it away without a second thought?
Xi Shaoyuan didn’t see the issue but noticed Zhou Xiu’s shocked expression.
He looked at his hand and, after a moment of hesitation, said, “Sorry, it slipped. Don’t take it to heart.”
Zhou Xiu’s gaze remained on him, her eyes cold. It took her a long time to respond:
“If you didn’t want to lend it, you didn’t have to. No one forced you.”
Zhou Xiu had assumed that Xi Shaoyuan, aware of how things might play out, held a prejudice against her. But this level of arrogance was beyond anything she had ever encountered.
Without another word, Zhou Xiu left the room, gently closing the door behind her.
After a while, Xi Shaoyuan slowly walked to the trash bin, crouching down to look at the discarded jacket. After a moment, he muttered:
“Tch, now you should finally give up.” **Nomad: I can’t with this guy!!! He’s so full of himself. He needs to move out of the way. I want more Xu Qing interactions**
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