The evening self-study session ended.
Fang Jun couldn't wait to pull out his "Three Kingdoms Kill" card game.
His game was quite popular.
During the lunch break, all eight spots for a match were always taken.
Fang Jun walked over to Lin Mo.
"Lin Mo, come play a round. You missed out at noon."
Lin Mo glanced toward the door, where Xie Yuling was, as usual, already waiting outside.
Following Lin Mo's gaze, Fang Jun immediately understood.
"Oh right, forgot you have to escort the VIP."
But Fang Jun quickly found others willing to stay for a few rounds of the game.
Stepping out of the classroom, Lin Mo casually waved his hand.
"Let's go."
"Mm."
At school, Xie Yuling maintained her usual aloof demeanor, but as she walked side by side with Lin Mo, the distance between them was barely a fist's width.
The school wasn’t strict about early relationships, so no one batted an eye at a boy and girl walking together.
Once they left the school grounds, Xie Yuling’s icy exterior began to thaw.
"Your class is pretty impressive—two people scored perfect marks on the math quiz."
Lin Mo waved it off. "Not really. It was just middle school material, more of a surprise attack than anything."
But Xie Yuling disagreed. She turned to look at him, convinced he was just sour grapes.
"It is impressive. My class didn’t have a single perfect score. It means those who aced it either studied hard or already mastered the material."
Lin Mo kept walking. "Alright then, thanks for the compliment."
"Who’s complimenting you? I meant the two who got full marks!"
"While I may not be much, I happen to be one of those two."
Xie Yuling couldn’t help but stare at him.
"You?!"
Lin Mo nodded.
"Me."
Xie Yuling was skeptical.
"Show me the test."
"Comrade Xie Yuling, did you bring your test home?" Lin Mo kicked a small stone on the ground as he walked.
Hearing that, Xie Yuling knew Lin Mo definitely hadn’t brought his—because she hadn’t either.
So she pouted. "Then I don’t believe you. No way you got full marks."
"Ask Fang Jun tomorrow if you see him."
"He’s your classmate—of course he’d side with you."
"We’ve only known each other for a little over two weeks. I’m not even as close to him as I am to you."
At those words, the corners of the girl’s lips lifted almost imperceptibly before she quickly schooled her expression.
"Let’s go. My mom made dessert today—red bean sago soup."
Lin Mo brightened at that. He’d never tried Auntie Zheng’s desserts before.
"Cold or hot?"
"Cold, obviously. Who’d want hot dessert in this weather?"
With that, she strode ahead.
......
After finishing the dessert, Lin Mo said his thanks. "Auntie Zheng, the dessert was great. I’ll head back now."
"Alright, take care."
Auntie Zheng yawned, ready to turn in for the night.
"Wait!"
Xie Yuling hurried into her room and came back with a water bottle.
She kept her head down, avoiding eye contact as she held it out to him.
Though her face was turned away, her voice was clear.
"It was a freebie. I noticed you never carry one, so you can have this."
Lin Mo grinned. "Then I’ll gratefully accept this gift from the young landlady."
"Mm. Get some rest."
With that, she immediately retreated to her room, leaving Lin Mo alone in the living room.
"How carefree."
Lin Mo chuckled and turned to leave.
As he closed the door, his spiritual sense caught the girl peeking through a tiny crack in her doorway, watching him stealthily.
Spiritual sense really is handy.
Only after the door shut did Xie Yuling reopen hers, exhaling softly.
"Wait—why was I nervous? It’s just basic courtesy. Yeah, just courtesy."
Lin Mo heard that too.
Back in his room, he washed up and began his cultivation.
......
A few days later.
Lin Mo had reached the late stage of Qi Refining, and his spiritual sense now extended thirty meters.
His classes had been going well—he felt suited for the sciences.
As for English, memorizing vocabulary wasn’t an issue.
While the college entrance exams allowed other foreign languages, most students stuck with English since it was the foundation.
But Lin Mo knew Japanese was actually the easiest foreign language to learn—its grammar and script were closer to Chinese.
The only downside was being mistaken for a "Japanese soldier."
"Lin Mo, want to practice speaking with me?"
Jiang Yunlu held a freshly printed script for their oral exercise.
Lin Mo, holding his own copy, nodded.
"Just a heads-up, my tutor studied in New York, so I’ve got a New York accent. It’s different from the teacher’s."
Their English teacher mostly used a British accent in class.
Lin Mo shrugged.
"No problem. As long as it’s not an Indian accent, I’ll probably understand."
Jiang Yunlu playfully swatted his arm.
"Of course not! I’d never."
As they practiced, Xue Zigui walked over, listening carefully.
Then he looked at Lin Mo. "You learned that from movies, didn’t you?"
"How’d you know?" Lin Mo raised a brow.
"You’ve got a Canadian twang mixed with some Midwestern American..."
Xue Zigui concluded solemnly, "Just like me."
Well, well. Another self-taught speaker.
Jiang Yunlu clicked her tongue.
"You both learned accents from movies? That’s amazing."
Lin Mo and Xue Zigui exchanged a glance.
Yep. Definitely a sheltered young miss.
"Miss" was the nickname the class had given Jiang Yunlu.
She really did live like one—chauffeured daily, meals delivered, practically insulated from the real world.
Xue Zigui’s family was comfortable, but hiring a native-speaking tutor was still a stretch.
Lin Mo spread his hands.
"Mixed accents or not, I’m still Chinese at the end of the day."
Xue Zigui nodded emphatically and joined their practice.
Just then, Chen Xiaoya appeared out of nowhere.
Seeing Lin Mo, Xue Zigui, and Jiang Yunlu practicing, she waited silently by the door until they finished before stepping in.
But the classroom noise had long died down.
"Xue Zigui, Lin Mo, come with me."
Lin Mo looked up, then at Xue Zigui.
He had a hunch what this was about.
In the office, Chen Xiaoya sat down and slid two application forms toward them.
"Are you two signing up for the Math Olympiad?"