The mist had just begun to clear, and drizzle pattered softly as the bright sound of students reading aloud rang through Star Engraving National Middle School.
However, at least half the students were absent from every third-year classroom. After the third-year graduation assessment results came out, even though the students had already been screened during the entrance and advancement examinations, quite a few still lacked the scores to enter either of Star Engraving Prefecture's two National Academies: the Military Academy and the Literary Academy.
Among the students qualified to take the National Academy examinations, those studying battle tactics for the Military Academy no longer needed to review cultural subjects in the days ahead. Devoting themselves to physical training and battle tactics was more important. Thus, aside from the students focused on academics, those now sitting in the classrooms were repeaters preparing to take the examination again next year.
During the break, just as Li Ying was pulling Qian Yuya toward the washroom, Fang Wenhua suddenly blocked their path. Mustering his courage, he pretended they were merely making casual conversation and said, "Yuya, I'm applying to the Medical Officer Department. What about you?"
"I'm applying to the Medical Officer Department too." Qian Yuya smiled politely.
"What a coincidence!" Fang Wenhua's excitement was impossible to hide. "We'll be classmates again. Oh, right—the Medical Officer Department's Officer Di at the Literary Academy is actually my uncle. He's highly skilled and is one of the department's top three instructors. We can both become his disciples and study under him."
Education in the National Academy was divided into two levels. The first was the teacher-student system: teachers taught in the classroom while students listened, and outside the classroom everyone simply needed to respect their teachers. The second was the master-disciple system, which was more akin