Zhang Qingze nodded his head, "If that's the case, you two don't have to move seats next month, just stay as seatmates. You made a lot of progress this time, but don't become overconfident, continue to work hard."
"Teacher, that..." she said with feigned composure, "It would be better to allow him to help... others. You know, spread the brilliance. Cultivate the class evenly. Equal opportunities and such…"
She had barely finished her diplomatic plea when Zhang Qingze waved his hand dismissively, the way one would swat a mosquito buzzing around a lamp.
"No need," he said with finality. "Also, prepare to join next week's training for the school's upcoming academic competition. Most of the students in Special Class have already joined. They've reviewed most of the material, but don't worry—just give it a try. Whether you can keep up or not isn't important. What matters is that you try."
Then came the final blow.
"I'll have Wang Jingyuan go over the earlier content with you."
Boom.
If Lu Qingyan had any HP bar left, it shattered like glass in a boss battle cutscene.
She staggered out of the office with a soul-crushed expression that screamed nothing left to live for, attracting the worried glances of passing students who thought someone had just been expelled.
She looked like a martyr who had heroically volunteered for a mission only to realize she'd signed up to walk barefoot across Lego bricks.
And then—
Peng Jianda was very surprised when he saw Lu Qingyan, especially when her expression changed from one of nothing left to live for to one of gnashing her teeth in anger when she saw him.
Peng Jianda was originally very disheartened because the teacher had sent the exam report to the parent group chat.
His mother sent him a message on WeChat that consisted of: ?
He still remembered when he was second to last in the previous exam.
His mother thought it was because he was negatively influenced by his friends, so she said to him, "During class, don't hang out with those who have worse scores than you. Do you understand the saying 'Touch cinnabar becomes red, touch ink becomes black'[1]?"
Great, he had actually directly placed last this time.
Then, he watched as his mother changed her Wechat username from "Pure Summer Lotus" to "Pure Summer Lotus (Blackened)."
Pure Summer Lotus (Blackened): [smile.jpg]
Peng Jianda didn't dare to look at the WeChat message again.
Therefore, when he saw Lu Qingyan's look with such an expression, he subconsciously thought that it was because he had held back the study group despite being the leader.
And not long after, Wang Jingyuan was also called to the office.
When Wang Jingyuan came back, he couldn't see much change in his expression. But if you looked carefully, you could still see that there was a little difference.
Then Peng Jianda noticed that the gaze that looked at him had an extra layer of chill.
Peng Jianda naively thought that this person was also not satisfied with his score that was first from the bottom up. He returned to his seat and obediently started to work on his homework. He secretly vowed in his heart that he will not be first from the bottom up next time. This humiliation must be erased!
Wang Jingyuan returned to his seat.
Lu Qingyan saw him resting his hands on his table and looking at her with his head sideways.
He slowly said, "Because I am very eager to help you and you, as my seatmate, are very motivated, so you want to continue?"
Although the words included "very" to build emphasis, the tone was strangely calm. The most terrifying aspect was that Lu Qingyan even felt a strangely murderous aura from it.
Lu Qingyan was silent for a moment before she gloomily said, "I simply wanted to say a few nice things about you in front of the teacher. Who would've expected that she would suddenly come up with this idea? If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have…"
Wang Jingyuan didn't respond.
Just when Lu Qingyan thought that the short conversation between them would end in mutual silence like before, a black notebook appeared on her desk.
The boy's slender hand was holding the notebook, appearing pale and beautiful.
Wang Jingyuan raised his eyebrows, "This is the notebook for the competition review class, take a look yourself. If you can't figure it out after carefully analyzing it, then come and ask me."
Lu Qingyan understood his meaning.
—Look at it yourself, don't ask me.
It might be because of Zhang Qingze's suggestion, but these days, whenever Lu Qingyan couldn't solve a question, she would ask Wang Jingyuan. Although his attitude was cold and indifferent, he would still briefly point out the key points to her. Lu Qingyan wasn't slow either, she understood it right away.
The two never brought up Lu Qingyan's previous conduct and deeds. Lu Qingyan didn't know why Wang Jingyuan never asked.
It might be because he thought it wasn't worth the time or perhaps he never took it to heart. Either way, since he never asked, it wouldn't be good for her to suddenly take the initiative to explain.
She felt that their current way of interacting was quite good, the villain probably won't retaliate against her anymore. After two months, the male lead and her will only be passers-by.
He will walk the road where the divine steed Feihuang gallops[2], and she will cross the difficult single-plank bridge.
And she…
She'd return to her path of quietly crossing the narrow, wobbly, single-plank bridge called barely surviving special class.
One cautious step at a time.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
1. 'Touch cinnabar becomes red, touch ink becomes black'?- the idiom is roughly translated, but the meaning is that those around you will influence you
2. He will walk the road where the divine steed Feihuang gallops- where the divine steed Feihuang gallops is an idiom meaning "to achieve meteoric success in one's career" and "single-log bridge" is an idiom for a difficult life; Lu Qingyan is basically indicating that her path in life is very different from that of the villain.