"You seem really happy?"
Lin Mo asked as he followed Xie Yuling, who was practically skipping down the path.
"Sort of. My mom said if I get good grades, I’ll get broadband, a computer, and a phone."
Ah, so she’d been given the carrot-on-a-stick treatment.
Still, having a carrot meant there was hope.
No wonder the girl looked so carefree and cheerful.
"Lin Mo!" Fang Jun’s voice called from behind them.
The lively girl instantly reverted to her cold, expressionless default mode.
Lin Mo turned to look.
Fang Jun jogged over, clutching a box in his hand.
Upon closer inspection, Lin Mo realized it was a set of Sanguosha—the card game that hadn’t yet exploded into the wildly popular, skill-heavy version of later years.
"Do you know how to play Sanguosha?" Fang Jun lifted the box.
"I know a bit."
"Great! We’re playing at lunch—you’re in!"
"I’ll join for a few rounds."
At this point, Sanguosha hadn’t yet spiraled into the overpowered, chaotic mess of abilities it would become. Still, it already had some ridiculously strong character cards.
But most offline playgroups banned the most broken ones to keep things fair.
Back in class, Fang Jun went around recruiting more players for the lunchtime showdown.
After all, deception and mind games were way more fun with a bigger crowd—especially when no one was familiar enough to form secret alliances.
Lin Mo stole a glance at Mai Zirong.
The class treasurer looked utterly deflated, slumped at his desk in a daze.
He couldn’t even bring himself to ask classmates for the class fund again.
Though no one had openly blamed him yet, he was sure people were talking behind his back.
He’d even considered resigning as treasurer.
But backing out now would only make the gossip worse.
So he just sat there, waiting for the class meeting later that day.
......
After the flag-raising ceremony, the first period was math—also the class meeting—with homeroom teacher Chen Xiaoya.
Chen Xiaoya stepped onto the podium, scanning the room.
The class fell silent instantly.
She breezed through the usual weekly reminders about conduct and morning exercises.
Running short on time, she sped up.
"One last thing—about the class fund."
At those words, Mai Zirong braced for the axe to fall.
"The money’s been recovered."
Mai Zirong’s head snapped up.
He watched as Chen Xiaoya pulled a blue document folder from her bag.
"That’s mine! That’s my folder!" He shot to his feet.
"Mai Zirong, can you protect the class fund this time?"
Losing something only to get it back made it all the more precious.
Mai Zirong nodded fervently. "This time, I’ll guard it with my life."
The class burst into laughter, but everyone was relieved they wouldn’t have to chip in another ten yuan.
Someone asked how the money had been found.
Chen Xiaoya didn’t elaborate. "A classmate discovered where it was hidden and turned it in."
She didn’t name Lin Mo or Chu Miaomiao, shielding them from potential retaliation by the thief.
As a teacher, she understood the darker side of human nature.
Lin Mo wasn’t bothered, but he agreed—Chen Xiaoya’s discretion was the right call.
Protecting students to the best of one's ability is a teacher's fundamental duty.
Soon, Lin Mo felt someone's gaze settle on him—it was Zhang Yuzhong.
However, Chen Xiaoya didn’t let them discuss further and began the lecture directly.
Anyone who didn’t pay attention would be lost within three minutes, unable to follow the rest of the lesson.
So, everyone stopped their chatter and focused on studying.
One advantage of a top-tier high school was the lack of unnecessary distractions.
Even the most unruly students buckled down and studied seriously at times like these.
Of course, in his past life, Lin Mo had been the most notorious slacker.
If he remembered correctly.
Chen Xiaoya turned to face the class.
"The key points covered in this lesson will appear in next class’s quiz. I’ve prepared a diagnostic test for all of you to see how much of your middle school knowledge you’ve retained over the summer."
Better late than never.
The diagnostic exam arrived in the second week of the semester.
The first lesson had covered high school material, and now the second was already a test.
But the exam was noticeably shorter, designed to be completed within a single class period.
Truly just a small diagnostic quiz.
"BCD are all wrong, A, C, C, C, C..."
A whole string of C’s in the multiple-choice section—was this the question writer’s idea of a joke?
High school exams usually reused the same set of questions for all classes, written by the school’s own teachers.
This barrage of C’s could only be intentional mischief—there was no other explanation.
Next came the fill-in-the-blank section.
Lin Mo didn’t even need scratch paper for calculations now.
He breezed through, filling in the answers effortlessly.
Only two extended-response questions remained, but both demanded detailed step-by-step reasoning.
And these two alone were worth sixty points—could you believe it?
The problems were also convoluted, nearly as complex as the high school entrance exam.
Lin Mo worked carefully, writing out every step, occasionally verifying his work on scratch paper.
After all, he was practically omniscient.
Of course, cheating would’ve been effortless—just a glance at Xue Zigui’s paper would suffice.
But Lin Mo had no intention of doing so.
After finishing both questions, he reviewed his answers once more.
Chen Xiaoya sat at the front, observing the class before announcing, "Those who’ve finished may submit their papers for grading."
Hearing this, Lin Mo stopped checking and stood up to hand in his test.
Xue Zigui also rose at the same time.
Noticing the movement, Xue Zigui glanced at Lin Mo, sizing him up briefly before turning in his paper.
The scrutinizing gaze of a top student, huh?
Hmph!
Lin Mo submitted his exam as well.
Chen Xiaoya immediately picked up Xue Zigui’s paper to grade.
Soon, more students began turning in their tests.
Lin Mo’s ended up buried at the bottom of the stack.
Then the bell rang, signaling the end of class.
Those who hadn’t finished had no choice—their papers were collected regardless.
A single class period was tight for time, and a few students groaned in frustration as their unfinished tests were taken away.
Chen Xiaoya paid them no mind, simply gathering the papers and leaving.
Some students immediately started comparing answers.
Beside him, Jiang Yunlu pulled out her scratch paper to check with Lin Mo.
Looking at his recorded multiple-choice answers, she sighed in relief.
"I thought I was seeing things, but they really were all C’s."
Their fill-in-the-blank answers also matched, except for one.
The two then sought out Xue Zigui to cross-check their responses.
The outcome was that Lin Mo and Xue Zigui had the same answers, which strongly suggested Jiang Yunlu might have been wrong.
Following that were two major problems—everyone had calculated the answers, and now it all came down to how many points would be deducted based on their solution processes.
In major problems, the process was especially critical.
After comparing answers, Xue Zigui looked at Lin Mo with the gaze of someone who had just met a worthy rival.