Genius and Mediocrity

Archery Club

Restroom.

Though not the same time, the same school-style toilet.

【Ding——】

【Confession Failed】

【Target: Ji Qingyi】

【Intelligence: 9】

【Charm: 9】

【Stamina: 8】

【Status: Eldest daughter of the Six Sun Group, the leading conglomerate of Flame Country's three major financial empires】

【System Description: Born into nobility, academically outstanding, a versatile genius excelling in art, music, martial arts, tea ceremony, and more. Emotions are kept in check, an absolute egoist.】

【Danger Level: S】

【No prior interactions, confession available】

【Ding——】

【Second Confession Failed】

【Reward Upgraded】

【Random item reward has been sent to the system space, please check】

"What is it."

Su Cheng retrieved a red package from the system, glancing at it.

【Ding——】

【Enhanced Face Cigarettes】

【Effect: Logic, Thought Control】

【System: No commands needed, simply pulling out the cigarette will make the other party take it and respond according to your thoughts.】

The reward has been upgraded.

Su Cheng looked at the pack of soft Huazi Cigarettes in his hand, thinking to himself.

No wonder they call her Sister Face.

Another twenty faces gained.

This item is definitely more useful than ordinary Huazi Cigarettes.

In the past, I had to spout awkward and cringeworthy lines and commands.

Now, I just need to think it.

However, he also realized that the difficulty of the second confession has skyrocketed; just facing off with that woman almost gave him a heart attack.

This woman is terrifying.

Although S-level allows daily confessions, the subsequent risks are also increasing.

If it weren't for the absurdity of the system, I might have been exposed.

Fortunately,

The system and the secret of transmigration are impossible for anyone to guess.

After all, even if I told someone I have a system and am a transmigrator, they'd just think I'm crazy.

Who would believe that?

Who would even think of that?

So in this regard,

He doesn't worry that anyone will find out.

But even so, he is very cautious.

However, it seems I can't confess to Ji Qingyi anymore.

A sense of helplessness arose in Su Cheng's heart.

"System, if I use this cigarette to control the target to reject me, is it feasible?"

Su Cheng looked at the cigarette in his hand, asking the system in his mind.

【It will consume uses and no rewards will be obtained】

【Equivalent exchange is a principle that the system and the host must follow】

Su Cheng felt half-hearted upon hearing this.

After all, essentially, he is trading danger for rewards.

"Forget it."

Su Cheng calmed his emotions and walked out of the restroom door, heading towards Ji Qingyi's private archery practice range.

After being rejected by Ji Qingyi earlier, he used a bathroom break to escape.

This was unavoidable; otherwise, the subtle expressions after obtaining the reward would have been noticed by her.

Soon, he pushed open a door.

Ji Qingyi was waiting for him.

Her hair was now tied up, revealing her smooth forehead and long neck, looking exceptionally neat and spirited.

"President, I'm here."

"Mm."

Ji Qingyi glanced at Su Cheng and then said, "Pick up the bow and show me the sequence of movements."

"Okay."

Su Cheng immediately stepped towards his bow, arrows, and armguard.

His uniform hadn't been made yet; these three items were rushed.

At this moment, he dared not slack off.

This was the sequence of movements he had practiced all night.

Yesterday, when Ji Qingyi was absent, he also watched others for two hours.

Picking up the bow, he walked to the shooting position, standing with his feet together, making the bow vertical to the ground, placing the arrow horizontally at eye level, then attaching it to the bow, facing the target, and spreading his feet outward in an outward-facing stance.

Then, he adjusted his posture, aligning his shoulders and waist horizontally with the line connecting his feet, checking the bowstring and arrowhead, then placing the thumb of his right hand on the bowstring, directly pressing on the arrow's "suspension," and holding the bow with his left hand, adjusting it correctly to stabilize it in his hand, then raising the bow and arrow overhead.

Finally, using equal force with both hands to pull the bow, he focused on the target, held his breath, and concentrated his strength in his abdomen, waiting for the moment to shoot.

He had practiced this sequence of movements at home for a whole night.

Thousands of times.

Talent insufficient, effort to compensate.

"Release."

Ji Qingyi suddenly spoke.

Su Cheng let go of his hand, and the arrow whizzed out.

Then he focused his gaze on the arrow's target, maintaining his shooting posture.

These were the eight actions of archery.

Unfortunately, his first arrow missed the target.

"The movements are very standard."

Ji Qingyi suddenly walked over, standing up and coming to Su Cheng, placing one hand on his shoulder and the other supporting his shoulder.

"But you haven't opened up your core, haven't gathered your aura. Archery isn't just about standard movements; it requires humility and relaxation."

Ji Qingyi said, pressing her hand on Su Cheng's shoulder, applying force to press his shoulder.

Su Cheng felt his shoulder being clamped by a pair of pliers, followed by a sharp pain, causing the bow in his hand to drop to the ground.

But he didn't cry out in pain because he felt the previous shoulder soreness had miraculously disappeared.

What a female Hua Tuo!

"Alright, I've helped you stretch it out. See a doctor if your shoulder has issues next time."

Ji Qingyi glanced at Su Cheng indifferently, her lips slightly curling, as if smiling but not, she said, "How was your first shot?"

"Compared to intense confrontational sports, this calm and restrained activity suits me better."

Su Cheng blushed upon hearing this, but he quickly adjusted his state.

Ji Qingyi nodded, not saying anything more, but picking up the bow and arrows from the ground and placing them back in Su Cheng's hands.

"The bow is not allowed to drop to the ground under any circumstances."

Ji Qingyi's voice carried seriousness.

"I understand."

Su Cheng immediately replied.

Ji Qingyi nodded and then said, "Continue."

"Okay."

Su Cheng said, picking up the bow and re-nocking an arrow. With his shoulder no longer hurting, this time was better than before.

But it still missed the target.

"Relax, look at the target, imagine it's your heart."

Ji Qingyi frowned and said.

"Okay."

Su Cheng said.

Then he missed again.

"Keep going!"

Ji Qingyi said again, her tone gradually turning cold, "Calm your mind, unite with the bow in a ceremonial posture, and then shoot it out!"

"Okay!!"

Su Cheng picked up the arrow and re-nocked it.

But he missed again.

Ji Qingyi looked into Su Cheng's eyes and said, "Align your mindset to neutrality and harmony, then, with high mental concentration, hit the target!"

"Okay, President, no problem, President!"

Su Cheng took a deep breath, picked up the bow again, adjusted his breathing, and then re-nocked the arrow.

The result was still a miss.

………

"Can you take this seriously?"

Ji Qingyi's voice turned cold, an invisible aura pressing down, making Su Cheng feel stifled.

"President."

Su Cheng turned to look at Ji Qingyi, his eyes filled with determination, he said, "Even if you say it in a hundred ways, missing is missing."

Ji Qingyi didn't answer, only observing the subtle changes in Su Cheng's facial expressions.

"You might not believe it, but I am serious."

Su Cheng continued.

Today, he had to be honest with Ji Qingyi.

Because Ji Qingyi saw him as a genius like herself.

Such people can't understand the feelings of ordinary people who can't do something.

They just don't get it.

Her perception has a huge problem.

Ji Qingyi didn't speak, just staring into Su Cheng's eyes.

For her, this was the first time someone dared to contradict her.

But the genuine expression on Su Cheng's face made her choose silence.

Yet she still couldn't understand and didn't get it.

Why would someone fail to hit the target at such a level?

Su Cheng took a deep breath and then said, "Not everyone can be as special as you, picking up anything effortlessly."

Pointing at himself, he continued, "I'm just an ordinary person, I need to slowly adapt to these things, gradually, to master the techniques, but this takes a long time."

Ji Qingyi frowned and walked beside him, saying, "Try again."

"Alright!"

Su Cheng said.

So he picked up the bow again, focusing all his attention on the bow in his hand, and then nocked another arrow.

"Snap!"

This arrow also missed the target. He turned to look at Ji Qingyi beside him.

During this time, Ji Qingyi had been observing Su Cheng, but Su Cheng still showed no signs of anything unusual.

Instead, he was very serious and followed her instructions exactly as she had just said.

But she still couldn't understand.

"Go call Yang Xin in!"

Ji Qingyi said to Su Cheng.

Yang Xin had joined the archery club last week.

She probably wanted to see the results of this new member's training over the past week.

"Alright."

Hearing Ji Qingyi's command, Su Cheng immediately ran out.

In no time, he returned with a fellow classmate who was a bit nervous and excited.

Ji Qingyi looked at Yang Xin, her eyes scrutinizing, and then said, "Show me the results of your practice these days."

"Okay."

Yang Xin took a deep breath, walked to the shooting position, and then followed the eight-step procedure: drawing the bow, shooting, and releasing the arrow.

These eight movements were not very standard; they were still a bit clumsy, and even a bit comical due to nervousness or something else.

"Snap!"

His arrow fell to the ground.

Missed the target.

Su Cheng wasn't surprised. Anyone could draw a bow.

But hitting the bullseye, without talent, it would be a joke for an ordinary person to hit it in a few days or weeks.

It involved too many things, like parabolas, strength, etc., which required a lot of practice to get the feel.

Without finding the feel, the scattered arrows could even be described as geometrically distributed.

Seeing this, Ji Qingyi said, "Go back and practice more."

"Yes! Captain!"

Yang Xin retreated, his head already covered in beads of sweat, his forehead glistening with fine sweat.

He was very nervous, completely unaware of the situation.

Ji Qingyi looked at Su Cheng and asked, "Why are your movements more standard than his?"

"Because I've practiced tens of thousands of times to reach this level,"

Su Cheng honestly confessed; he didn't dare to deceive.

Ji Qingyi was silent for a long time before saying, "Why didn't you directly explain the situation to me the day before yesterday?"

"At first, I wanted to prove myself, but later I realized that between genius and mediocrity, even with great effort, it's hard to bridge the gap."

Su Cheng looked at Ji Qingyi seriously and said, "Your time shouldn't be wasted on me."

Su Cheng's implication was also very clear.

Roughly, it meant, "You suck at teaching, hurry up and throw me out, let the assistant coach teach me."

He didn't want to be with this woman every day; he just wanted to learn archery and then quit the club.

This was a five-thousand-dollar investment, of course, he had to learn this skill.

These words made Ji Qingyi feel inexplicably dissatisfied.

But she still looked coldly at Su Cheng and said, "This matter, to me, seems quite interesting and quite challenging."

Su Cheng frowned, a trace of disappointment flashing in his expression.

This woman wasn't willing to let him go!

Seeing the changes in Su Cheng's expression, Ji Qingyi said emotionlessly, "That's enough for today, you can go back first."

"Okay, then I'll take my leave."

Ji Qingyi waved her hand, indicating he could leave.

Su Cheng nodded and walked towards the door. As he reached the door, Ji Qingyi leaned lazily against the chair back, her arms crossed over her chest, and said, "The way of archery is not about hitting or missing, it's about the righteousness of the heart, the body must be upright."

Su Cheng paused at the door, didn't speak, and then pushed the door open and walked out.

He naturally understood Ji Qingyi's hidden meaning.

It contained too much.

He had just been sarcastic with her.

She used this sentence to counterattack him.

Because he had indeed come to her today with a purpose.

Another layer of meaning: telling him that missing doesn't matter, but also warning him not to come with a purpose next time.

"Su Cheng, Su Cheng."

As soon as he walked out of the dojo, he was stopped by Yang Xin. He looked at Yang Xin and said, "Yang Xin, what's up?"

"You should call me Senior, I joined a week before you!"

Yang Xin was unhappy to hear that.

Su Cheng felt it was no big deal; it was just a title. So he asked, "Okay, Senior Yang. What's up?"

Yang Xin looked around, saw no one watching, and then whispered, "Why did the captain suddenly call me in just now?"

"Oh, it's because I'm too stupid, I just can't learn it,"

Su Cheng honestly said.

"I see."

Hearing Su Cheng's answer, Yang Xin widened his eyes and then asked, "Did the captain say anything about me?"

Yang Xin naturally wanted to hear something from Ji Qingyi's mouth to fuel his future archery journey with motivation.

Seeing such an expectant look, Su Cheng thought for a moment and then said, "The captain didn't say anything, but I have an evaluation for you."

"Oh?"

Yang Xin was a bit disappointed and then asked, "What's your evaluation of me?"

Su Cheng said, "Gifted, champion potential."

He knew that a simple compliment could make someone happy for a day, so he wouldn't be stingy with his kindness in life.

Hearing Su Cheng's evaluation, Yang Xin was quite pleased.

But he also knew that these were just casual words from the other person.

But such words were enough to make him happy.

After all, who doesn't like compliments?

"You, kid, alright, stop blowing smoke."

Yang Xin said with a laugh.

At this moment, the prejudice he had towards Su Cheng instantly turned into a good buddy vibe.

Seeing this transformation in Yang Xin, Su Cheng was also taken aback.

But he still said, "Senior Yang, the captain told me to go home first, so I won't disturb your practice."

"Okay, go ahead."

Yang Xin waved with a laugh.

However, as soon as he walked out of the archery club, he bumped into a long-haired girl holding a book.