"Say what you will, Chen Zhu really did have nice handwriting. Every step in his equations was laid out so neatly."
Before looking at the actual questions, Mou Jiawen casually flipped through Chen Zhu's chemistry paper and murmured her verdict: "If I were the teacher, I'd give him five extra points just for presentation."
In truth, this was nothing more than a compulsive habit he had picked up after entering the workforce.
Official documents had far too many formatting requirements: boldface for first-level headings, a different typeface for second-level headings, and strict standards even for font size and line spacing.
Even after returning to his high school days, he still arranged his answers neatly without thinking.
Mou Jiawen's deskmate was Song Shiwei, but she did not seem interested. She listened attentively to the lesson while marking another boy's paper.
Just before the fourth period ended, Teacher Feng finally finished going over the entire paper and left five minutes for questions.
Mou Jiawen gave Chen Zhu a score of 143. He had always been good at math, physics, and chemistry, and ordinary practice tests like this were not particularly difficult. A 143 was essentially his usual standard.
Still, Mou Jiawen felt a little unsure. After checking twice herself, she said to Song Shiwei, "Shiwei, this is my first time marking Chen Zhu's paper. You know I'm a bit careless. Could you check it for me, so he doesn't think I marked it any old way?"
Song Shiwei took the paper without saying anything. She skimmed through it and did find a problem.
The answer to one question was iron(II,III) oxide, with the chemical formula FeO, but Chen Zhu had accidentally written "Fe" as "Fe." Mou Jiawen had missed it.
Song Shiwei was about to tell her, but Mou Jiawen was arguing with the boy marking her paper. "Tian Yang, why did you only give me 130? I didn't get this question wrong at all! Are you getting back at me because I called you short last time..."
Song Shiwei waited a little longer. Class was about to end, but Mou Jiawen was still arguing away.
So she took out a pencil and circled the incorrect formula for iron(II,III) oxide.
Lightly, faintly, simply.
Ring, ring~
The dismissal bell suddenly rang. Only then did Mou Jiawen snap out of it. Forgetting all about her own score, she grabbed the paper and ran over to Chen Zhu.
"Chen Zhu, you got 143 this time! I marked your paper!"
Mou Jiawen stood in front of his desk, sounding rather as though she wanted credit for it.
Chen Zhu did not actually have much of an impression of Mou Jiawen. She was fairly pretty, after all. Though her looks were not top-tier, her two little pointed canines gave her smile an innocent charm. She should not have been so overlooked.
The only explanation was that she had drawn the short straw: sitting beside the school beauty, Song Shiwei, made her look like a little maid by comparison. Everyone's attention was on Song Shiwei.
"Thanks."
Chen Zhu did not think much of someone marking his paper. As usual, he gave her a polite but perfunctory thank-you.
"That's it?"
Mou Jiawen could not help reminding him, "I even wrote in the correct answers wherever you got something wrong."
Director Chen was still quick on his feet. Seeing the disappointment on Mou Jiawen's face, he immediately picked up his chemistry paper, made a show of looking it over, and said, "That's strange. I was wondering why the periodic table was missing two elements. Turns out magnesium and aluminum came over here to make a pretty girl..."
Mou Jiawen froze for a moment, then broke into a goose-like cackle when she caught the wordplay. "Chen Zhu, you're way too smooth..."
Inside, though, she was thinking that Chen Zhu really had changed. She remembered how he used to be too shy even to look a girl in the eye. Now he could make one laugh without the slightest effort.
Mou Jiawen had always believed Chen Zhu was changing for Song Shiwei, whether that meant becoming more handsome or improving his grades. What puzzled her, though, was that more than half a month had passed since he had last stood up for Song Shiwei, yet he showed no sign of confessing his feelings.
There were only a little over two months left before the Gaokao!
Could I have gotten it wrong? Were all those romance novels I read for nothing?
With Mou Jiawen coming over to chat and holding them up, most of the students had already left the classroom. Only Chen Zhu, Huang Bohan, and a few others remained.
Only then did Kang Liangsong, the class academic representative, stand up with Song Shiwei's paper and walk over to her. "Song Shiwei, you only got 135 this time. I may have been a little strict with my marking. I hope you don't mind."
"It's fine."
Song Shiwei took the paper and answered evenly.
"For the questions you got wrong, I didn't just mark the correct answers. I wrote out the full explanations beside them too."
Kang Liangsong pushed up his glasses. "I also copied down a few similar questions from past Gaokao papers. You can compare them when you get home..."
Chen Zhu and Huang Bohan were just heading out for lunch. Hearing Kang Liangsong say that, both craned their necks for a look as they passed.
Good lord!
Every blank space on Song Shiwei's chemistry paper was crammed with tiny handwriting. Just as he had claimed, Kang Liangsong really had copied a whole pile of similar questions into the margins.
"Damn!"
Chen Zhu thought that if there were low-level and high-level simps, Li Jianming was undoubtedly a low-level one. He was like those suitors in later years who sent useless messages all day: "You there?" "Up yet?" "Eat on time." "Drink more hot water."
In reality, the more they sent, the more irritating they became.
Someone like Kang Liangsong genuinely sought a romance built on complete intellectual compatibility, striving to improve together and fulfill their ambitions in life.
"That's terrifying."
Huang Bohan spoke under his breath. Clearly, he was stunned too.
Kang Liangsong pushed up his glasses again, looking rather pleased with himself. What was Li Jianming, anyway? Just a clown. I'd never even considered him competition.
Sooner or later, Song Shiwei would realize I was the best boyfriend for her. With our grades, strolling along Weiming Lake at Peking University in September was hardly a pipe dream.
"As for the last major question..."
Seizing the moment, Kang Liangsong continued, "I have two other approaches to it. Song Shiwei, would you like to hear them?"
As he spoke, Kang Liangsong cast a wary glance at Chen Zhu and Huang Bohan. He clearly did not want them listening in.
Chen Zhu immediately got the message. Putting an arm around Huang Bohan, he said, "Come on, let's eat. Let's see what the school's cooked up for us, father and son..."
Only after all the "outsiders" had left did Kang Liangsong fully relax. He was about to impart his secret methods when Song Shiwei calmly declined. "Sorry, Jiawen and I need to go eat too."
Mou Jiawen stuck out her tongue and made a face. "Brother Kang, give our stomachs a break first. You can tell us during evening study."
Kang Liangsong was a little annoyed. These solutions were secrets he did not share lightly, yet someone actually did not want to hear them. Outwardly, however, he still answered cheerfully, "Sure!"
Once they left the classroom, Mou Jiawen finally could not resist complaining to Song Shiwei:
"Kang Liangsong never stops showing off his grades and his IQ. He always seems to think everyone else is beneath him. I really can't stand that childish arrogance."
"And that whole 'Song Shiwei, you only got 135 this time. I may have been a little strict with my marking...' The way he said it makes me want to throw up!"
Mou Jiawen mimed gagging.
Song Shiwei said nothing. Naturally, she could sense everything Mou Jiawen could. She simply did not make a habit of talking about people behind their backs.
"There aren't any nice boys in our Class Eleven."
After saying that, Mou Jiawen suddenly remembered Chen Zhu had complimented her today, so she amended her statement. "Well, there weren't before. Now I suppose Chen Zhu counts. I heard he's taking part in Appointment with Prestigious Universities too. Be careful when the time comes, Shiwei."
"Careful of what?"
Song Shiwei sounded puzzled.
"The Gaokao's almost here. If Chen Zhu is going to confess to you, it'll probably happen around now."
Mou Jiawen spoke with the air of someone who had seen all the vicissitudes of life. "These men and their tricks. They never miss an opportunity."
Chen Zhu had no idea he had been accused of something he had never done. After eating lunch in the cafeteria with Huang Bohan, he returned to the classroom.
They chatted while he looked over the questions he had gotten wrong on his chemistry paper.
Mou Jiawen had marked everything in red pen. Every wrong answer had a red mark, so conspicuous that he could spot it at once.
But as he continued looking, Chen Zhu suddenly noticed an incorrect chemical formula circled in pencil in an inconspicuous spot.
Lightly, faintly, simply.
It was a completely different style from Mou Jiawen's marking.
Like a gentle breeze-unless you paid close attention, you would never know she had lingered over you.
Chen Zhu raised his head and glanced at a certain empty seat in the front rows.
Sure enough, the way she marked papers was just like her.
(Readers looking for something to read can check out Lao Liu's "I Really Didn't Mean to Be Reborn," written five years ago. A lighthearted, sweet romance with no angst and plenty of everyday sugar.)
(End of chapter)
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