Back at home, during their tutoring session, Ding Yebai continued listening attentively and working through the problems seriously.
He had grown used to getting full marks on every dictation test, but Yang Zhi still praised him each time.
His accuracy on the practice papers was pretty high too, generally around 110 points. Even he felt that he had performed a little better than usual on this monthly exam.
But if he had only performed a little better, what was there to be proud of? If it wasn't his true ability, he might not get the same score next time.
At eight o'clock, they began a five-minute break.
Yang Zhi said her throat was dry and unscrewed her water bottle to take a drink.
Ding Yebai stared blankly at the monthly exam paper among his piles of books.
Come to think of it, should he tell Sister Yang Zhi about the exam?
For her, 116 points was probably practically rock bottom.
After all, his elder sister had said that she was a top student, one who had scored over 700 points.
Her English score had to be around 145 at the very least, right?
As he thought about it, he turned his head toward Yang Zhi again.
Their eyes happened to meet, and Yang Zhi gently curved her eyes into a smile.
It was a smile as beautiful as an angel's.
Even the autumn sunlight paled in comparison to you.
Ding Yebai sucked in a breath. With a sharp swish, he pulled the monthly exam paper out from among his books and handed it to her.
Sure enough, no matter what, he had still made progress.
There should be a reward for making progress, right?
Yang Zhi: "Is this your monthly exam paper?" She lowered her head to look at it.
Ding Yebai's eyes widened slightly. "Yeah. It was just handed back. I brought it straight to you."
Yang Zhi first looked at his score, then checked his answer sheet and compared the paper against the questions he had gotten wrong.
Ding Yebai tilted his head slightly and studied Yang Zhi's expression.
What did it look like?
"Ah, well, I think you really shouldn't have gotten this question wrong..." Yang Zhi raised her eyes and happened to see him staring at her strangely. She blinked in confusion.
Ding Yebai quickly sat up straight and shifted his gaze away.
Yang Zhi did not pay much attention to it. She held the paper up for him, leaned closer, and tapped that question with her pen. "Isn't this very simple? You normally never get it wrong. How did you miss it on the monthly exam? Were you a little nervous?"
A faint, elegant fragrance wafted over, and Ding Yebai's head grew dizzy. Yang Zhi was so close to him—so close. He knew she was explaining the question, but he still couldn't stop his thoughts from wandering.
Ding Yebai: "I was a little nervous."
Yang Zhi smiled helplessly. "Then don't be nervous next time. Read the questions carefully. Small mistakes can be fatal in the Gaokao examination room."
Ding Yebai nodded.
For the rest of the time, Yang Zhi analyzed all of Ding Yebai's mistakes. That rare five-minute heart-to-heart had turned into a lesson.
Ding Yebai never would have thought that Sister Yang Zhi not only wouldn't praise him for improving, but wouldn't even mention his score at all!!!
And just like that, they finished going through the entire paper. When he looked at the time, it was already eight-thirty. Class was over...
How had this happened...
While Yang Zhi packed her bag, Ding Yebai supported his forehead in speechless contemplation.
Things weren't developing quite right.
Even his elder sister would have mentioned his score once or twice.
Sister Yang Zhi, you... You're the one teaching me. How could you not care?
"Oh, right."
Just as Yang Zhi put her bag on her back and was preparing to leave, she suddenly remembered something. She took a Snickers bar from her bag and placed it on Ding Yebai's desk.
The furrow between Ding Yebai's brows relaxed a little. He picked up the Snickers, turned his chair around, and looked at her in confusion. "What's this?"
Yang Zhi smiled faintly. "Congratulations on scoring 116 points. It's a small reward. I hope you'll accept it."
Ding Yebai: "..."
Yang Zhi: "I asked my senior sister, and you really do like eating Snickers. So I specially brought one in my bag this time, thinking I'd give it to you."
Ding Yebai: "You knew my monthly exam results were coming out today?"
Yang Zhi: "Didn't you say earlier that you were going to take the monthly exam? In my experience, the results usually come out the day after the exam."
Ding Yebai's pupils widened slightly as he stared at the Snickers, his mouth half open. "You prepared it in advance... But what if I'd done worse than before? What if I hadn't improved? Wouldn't you have been worried?"
Yang Zhi: "Hmm?"
Ding Yebai: "Exactly. If I'd regressed, what would you be rewarding me for?"
The corners of Yang Zhi's lips lifted, and her beautiful eyes, like late-autumn maple leaves beneath the moon, gazed gently at Ding Yebai.
She walked over to him with her bag, bent slightly at the waist, and half-knelt. Her hand rested naturally on her knee.
Facing him like that, Ding Yebai's heart began pounding wildly.
Yang Zhi: "I never once thought something like that would happen."
Ding Yebai: "Why?"
Yang Zhi's eyes lit up, and her voice became especially gentle. "Because I believe in you."
Ding Yebai: "...Huh... What?"
Yang Zhi continued looking into Ding Yebai's eyes. "I believe you would definitely get a good score this time. And not just now—I believe you'll get an excellent score on the Gaokao too. A score much, much higher than this one."
"And besides, even if you did regress, I'd still give you a reward."
"That wouldn't really mean anything..."
"It does mean something. Nobody says the standard for a reward can only be your score. Anyone who works hard for their dreams deserves to be rewarded. Ding Yebai, you've worked very hard this month. I've seen it all."
Her voice was light and gentle, and her entire air was warm and composed. Everything about her was irresistibly charming.
Ding Yebai used to think that only a fiery beauty with a powerful impact could strike straight into someone's heart.
Now he felt that tenderness as gentle as water was like a trickling stream, silently flowing into his heart before he even realized it.
Not knowing what had gotten into him, Ding Yebai gripped the arms of his chair tightly. Looking at Yang Zhi, he asked firmly, "Sister Yang Zhi, are you happy?"
Yang Zhi naturally tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled radiantly.
"I'm happy. Seeing you improve makes me incredibly happy."
"..."
"Congratulations. You've moved a little closer to your dream."
"..."
Ding Yebai froze.
At that moment, [The wise do not fall in love] stopped working. He thought that if making progress every time allowed him to see a smile like that, then he would definitely study hard and keep improving again and again.
...Huh?
After thinking it over, he suddenly came to his senses.
The [wise] person in his head had come to knock some sense into him again.
He couldn't entertain any other thoughts. He had to keep his heart as still as water. He had to understand that he was a wise person, and that all emotions had to serve as motivation for him to improve.
Hmm... Put that way, these feelings were serving as motivation too.
He abruptly straightened up, unwilling to let his aloof persona shatter.
"Thank you... Oh, it's getting late. Sister Yang Zhi, you should go home early. Be careful on the way."
Yang Zhi looked at him in a daze. After a moment, she gave a small nod. "Okay. I'm leaving."
With that, she turned and walked away.
Ding Yebai sat in his chair and watched her slender back grow farther and farther away.
He didn't know why, but his heart felt light and airy, as if it were being carried away by the wind.
Finally,
When the gentle older sister reached the stairway to the second floor, he still couldn't hold himself back. He ran over and stopped her.
Yang Zhi turned around and looked at him blankly. "What's wrong?"
Ding Yebai took a White Rabbit milk candy from his pocket and stuffed it into her hand. The flush on his face came either from running too fast or from nervous embarrassment.
"Sister Yang Zhi, this is only fair. But I only have one left in my pocket. I'll bring you more next time."
"Ahaha... No need. I'm already quite happy with one."
"I will next time!"
"Hmm? What about next time?"
"Next time, I'll definitely score higher than this time!" Ding Yebai said with utmost seriousness.
Yang Zhi: "..."
Ding Yebai continued looking at her. "I definitely will. Believe me."
Seeing how earnest he looked, Yang Zhi turned to face him fully as well. She nodded at him and tightened her grip on her shoulder bag. "Mm. I believe you. Keep working hard."
Ding Yebai felt a little happy after receiving her response.
Yang Zhi did not say anything else. She turned around and went downstairs.
After she left, Ding Yebai pinched his own cheek. It was the first time he had ever smiled so... so happily.
Even with his hand pinching his cheek, he still couldn't stop smiling.
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