Su Xiaonuan stared at Ye Chen, who was eating with his head lowered, a trace of open admiration flashing in her eyes.
"Ye Chen, you topped the last Mock Exam, but this time I won't lose to you."
"Oh, it's you."
Ye Chen recognized her as well.
Pretty as she was, Ye Chen only gave her a glance before looking away.
Su Xiaonuan was already used to this.
After all, Ye Chen had treated her exactly the same way the last time they met.
Even though she'd steeled herself, Su Xiaonuan still felt rather stung.
A smile lingered on her delicate face. "Ye Chen, I'm here to challenge you. In this Mock Exam, I'm going to beat you and take back first place."
Though her tone was gentle, it brimmed with confidence.
Ye Chen unhurriedly finished the last bite of rice, drank a few mouthfuls of Egg-Drop Soup, and glanced at Su Xiaonuan.
"In the last Mock Exam, you didn't even make the top three, if I remember correctly. Second place was Xia Yingluo, third was Li Sitong. People should keep their feet on the ground and take things step by step."
Su Xiaonuan tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said, "That was just an off day for me. In past exams, I crushed both of them. They're not worthy rivals—only you are."
In previous tests, Xia Yingluo and Li Sitong had usually ranked around tenth, so Su Xiaonuan believed their last result had been a fluke.
In her heart, her only opponent was Ye Chen, who held first place.
Hearing this, Ye Chen frowned slightly. While stacking his tray, he said, "Then let's make a bet."
Su Xiaonuan's eyes lit up—this was exactly what she wanted.
"Great! Whoever scores first, the other treats them to a meal," she said with a sweet smile.
Ye Chen shook his head. "Sorry, you seem to have misunderstood."
"Misunderstood?"
Su Xiaonuan stared at him, bewildered.
Ye Chen gave a faint smile. "I'm betting that in this Mock Exam, you'll still lose to Xia Yingluo and Li Sitong."
With that, he picked up his tray and strolled away.
Su Xiaonuan gazed after him, stunned.
What did he mean?
Was he saying she wouldn't even rank in the top three?
Impossible—how could she lose to those two again? Absolutely not.
My only opponent is you, Ye Chen!
…Ye Chen returned to the Classroom.
The students were all at lunch break.
Xia Yingluo had gone back to the Orphanage for something at noon.
Li Sitong was bent over her practice problems.
Already a beauty, Li Sitong looked even more radiant at eighteen, fully immersed in her studies.
Ye Chen sat at his desk, chin in hand, admiring Li Sitong's pretty face, feeling rather pleased.
At that moment, Li Sitong noticed his gaze.
She lifted her head, cheeks slightly flushed.
"Hey, is it okay to stare at a girl so blatantly? Or do you need something?" she asked, displeased.
Ye Chen shook his head. "Nothing, I just wanted to look at you…"
No—I meant to check if there were any mistakes in your problems.
As he spoke, he earnestly peered toward her exercise sheet.
Li Sitong rolled her eyes. "Tch, do you think the questions are printed on my face? You think I'm that gullible?"
Behind them, Yu Weiwei, who'd been reading a Romance Novel, looked up.
"Hey, you two are already Top Students—why grind so hard? The teacher isn't watching; wouldn't reading a Romance Novel be nicer?"
With that, she snatched Li Sitong's problem set.
"Si Tong, I feel you've changed. You won't even hang out with me after class anymore, studying every day. You'll study yourself silly; you need to relax sometimes."
While she was lecturing on her philosophy of life, Ye Chen suddenly grabbed the problem set from her hands.
He returned it to Li Sitong. "Don't listen to her. Only through effort can you taste the joy of success."
Yu Weiwei stared in shock as the book was taken from her.
A sour scent seemed to fill the air.
"Ye Chen, why bully me? It's all your fault for stealing my Si Tong, making her study so hard she won't even play with me."
Before Ye Chen could retort, Li Sitong jumped in: "I actually enjoy studying; it's not as scary as you make it sound. And I love seeing my progress every day—it feels fulfilling!"
Li Sitong meant every word.
Ever since Ye Chen started tutoring her, she'd seen improvement daily.
That constant sense of moving forward was something she truly loved… Yu Weiwei opened her mouth, looking wronged: "Si Tong, you're siding with Ye Chen—you don't love me anymore, waaah, no love left!"
At her words, Li Sitong's face turned red.
Just as she was about to explain, Ye Chen cut in: "Yu Weiwei, by the way, I ranked first in the last Mock Exam, Si Tong was third—what was your rank again?"
The moment the topic came up, Yu Weiwei's face burned.
She ground her teeth. "Ye Chen, don't go too far—why dig up my sore spot?"
Ye Chen merely smiled. "Not at all, just curious. According to your wellness philosophy, what score did you get? When the teacher read the results, I didn't catch it—tell me."
Beside them, Li Sitong burst out laughing.
They say never hit someone in the face, yet Ye Chen specialized in face-slaps.
Yu Weiwei stamped her foot. "Hmph, Si Tong, you're laughing too—I'm done with you two."
Before leaving, she shot Ye Chen a glare. "Si Tong, your Ye Chen needs some discipline."
With that, she stood up; the dog food here was too strong, so she decided to find a quiet corner to continue her Romance Novel.
Li Sitong replayed Yu Weiwei's words—"keep your Ye Chen in check"—and her cheeks instantly flamed.
Clutching a Plush Toy, she shyly murmured, "Ye Chen, don't listen to Yu Weiwei's nonsense."
"Mm, then I'll listen to you and not overthink."
Li Sitong's face grew even hotter.
What did he mean by "listen to her"? It sounded as though their relationship was set in stone!
…Days passed one by one.
Ye Chen, Xia Yingluo, and Li Sitong worked together on plans for the Hot Pot Restaurant.
When Li Sitong learned Ye Chen was opening a Hot Pot Restaurant, she insisted on investing.
At first Ye Chen didn't want her to.
After all, it was a losing venture, but Li Sitong looked ready to cut ties if he refused.
Ye Chen had no choice; anyway, trading bitcoin had already earned Li Sitong plenty of money.
Even if the Hot Pot Restaurant lost some, it wouldn't matter much.
School life remained intensely stressful.
Every day, teachers pounded the desk, solemnly reminding everyone that the National Higher Education Entrance Examination was almost here.
The countdown on the blackboard kept shrinking.
Finally, Class Five of Grade Twelve welcomed its third Mock Exam.
This third Mock Exam was extremely important for Senior Year students.
Its difficulty and format were identical to the real National Higher Education Entrance Examination.
Even the classes were split up and sent to different exam rooms.
In short, this Mock Exam was a full dress rehearsal before the real thing.
And every year, the results closely matched the final scores.
On top of that, this exam offered the top-thirty places in the Sprint Class.
So the school valued it, and the students valued it even more.
With only thirty spots, everyone wanted to be one of the lucky ones.