He was a disabled military officer who doted on his research work in the Northwest.

He was just a hair's breadth away from touching her hand on the back seat.

My fingertips trembled slightly.

Just then, the jeep lurched – the front wheels ran over a protruding rock, and the whole vehicle jolted.

Mu Qinghan withdrew her hand.

He clenched his fists and placed them on his knees, his knuckles turning white.

Take a deep breath.

almost.

When he can stand up—truly stand up—he will hold her hand tightly and tell her properly.

Tell her everything.

……

Two days later. Monday afternoon.

Results announcement day.

The bulletin board in the school's teaching building lobby was surrounded by layers of people.

The report cards were posted in descending order of school ranking—one list for each subject, and a final list of overall rankings.

Shen Tang didn't have classes this afternoon and wasn't planning to check the results. Gu Bei came running up to her during lunchtime, urging, "Come on, come on! The results are out! Don't you want to know how you did?"

"Not really."

Gu Bei rolled his eyes. "Pretending! But I want to know! I want to know how you did on the test! Let's go!"

There was nothing she could do but be dragged and pulled by Gu Bei to the bulletin board.

There were too many people, and she wasn't very tall, so she was blocked from seeing anyone. Gu Bei, taking advantage of his height, squeezed through the crowd and craned his neck to find the name.

"Overall score rankings...first place..." He looked down from top to bottom.

Then he froze.

The first place position is empty.

It wasn't blank; there was a small note stuck to that spot that read, "To be announced later."

The names and scores only started appearing from second place onwards. The second-place winner was a boy from Class 1, with a total score of 437.

"Where's Shen Tang?" Gu Bei scanned the list from beginning to end—she wasn't there.

Shen Tang's name is not on any list.

Gu Bei squeezed out, his expression strange: "Your name isn't on it."

Shen Tang raised an eyebrow: "Oh."

Aren't you in a hurry?

"What's the rush?"

Seeing her certainty, Gu Bei felt relieved and said with a grin, "Oh, it's like the emperor isn't worried but the eunuch is. That note about separate notification wouldn't be referring to you, would it?"

Before he could finish speaking, a shrill laugh suddenly rang out from the crowd—

"Ha! Shen Tang's name isn't even mentioned!"

Zhao Liang from Class 1.

As soon as he opened his mouth, all the students around who were looking at the list turned around.

Zhao Liang squeezed his way out of the crowd, a smug look on his face. Behind him followed two or three troublemakers from Class One, each more foul-mouthed than the last.

"I knew it! During the entrance exam, it was just pure luck; did you really think you were a genius?"

"Don't force country bumpkins to study. They're trying to hand in their papers early, but they don't even know their own behavior—"

"She couldn't even pass the exam, she's shameless. If I were her, I wouldn't even dare to stand here—"

Zhao Liang laughed the loudest, his voice drawn out: "Shen Tang! Look at Yao Yao, she worked hard on her problems and got 408 points! You—"

"Shut up."

Gu Bei stepped in front of Shen Tang and faced Zhao Liang, his face no longer all smiles but genuine anger.

"What business is it of yours how much Tangtang scores? Besides, our Class 2 average is 382, ​​and your Class 1's is 375!" He glanced at the other person disdainfully: "A seven-point difference, what right do you have to spout nonsense like that?"

The students from Class Two emerged one after another from the crowd, their expressions increasingly hostile.

The mutual aid groups these past few days haven't been in vain—everyone's grades have improved significantly beyond expectations, and the class average has genuinely surpassed that of the first class. This is the result of their collective effort; anyone who tries to belittle anyone in their class is belittling the entire class.

"Exactly! Your class's average score isn't even as high as ours, what right do you have to be so arrogant here?"

"What were you all doing while Shen Tang was helping the whole class review? Copying homework or gossiping?"

Zhao Liang blushed, but stubbornly retorted, "So what if you have a high average score? The top student in the whole school isn't in your class—"

Before the words were finished, a steady middle-aged male voice came from behind the crowd:

"Who said he's not in Class Two?"

The crowd automatically parted to make way.

Principal Zhou walked over. Behind him was Sun Xiulan, and behind her was Ma Decai, whose expression was indescribable.

Principal Zhou walked to the bulletin board, took out a piece of paper from his shirt pocket, and pasted it on the "further notice" spot on the overall score leaderboard.

All eyes turned to him.

First Place: Shen Tang, Class 2, Total Score: 499

Four hundred and ninety-nine.

Only one point was deducted from the five subjects.

There was a full three seconds of silence in front of the notice board. Then it exploded.

"Four hundred and ninety-nine?!"

"Only one point was deducted?? Which subject was it from??"

"Chinese Language - One point was deducted from the composition -"

Principal Zhou adjusted his glasses and added, "After discussion, the Chinese language teaching and research group believes that Shen Tang's essay is profound in its theme and rigorous in its argumentation, almost flawless. However, considering that too much can lead to excess, the group believes that further improvement is still needed—"

Deducting one point is an expectation, not a denial.

He glanced at where Shen Tang was standing, his eyes filled with undisguised admiration.

"We hope all students will take this as an example."

Zhao Liang's smile froze completely on his face, as if he had been slapped senseless.

Principal Zhou turned around, looked at the students in front of him, and adjusted his glasses:

"Shen Tang's grades were published separately because her exam paper had already been taken by the teaching and research group for printing."

His voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly in the quiet hall.

"499 points—this is the first time this has happened since the establishment of our affiliated high school. After discussion, the teachers in the teaching and research group decided to print her answer sheet as a standard answer template and distribute it to the entire school—you will see it when we review the papers next week."

After a brief moment of shock, the students in Class Two erupted in cheers. Gu Bei jumped the highest, punching the student next to him on the shoulder: "What did I say?! What did I say?!"

Shen Tang stood at the back of the crowd, being pushed forward by her classmates. Facing countless gazes—shocked, admiring, jealous, and curious—she remained calm throughout.

Then she spoke.

"Principal, I have a few words to say."

Principal Zhou nodded.

Facing the vast crowd, Shen Tang spoke in a clear, unhurried voice:

"This exam result wasn't entirely my achievement."

She paused for a moment and looked in the direction of Class Two.

"I have benefited greatly from Ms. Sun's teaching methods—she never just teaches us to memorize formulas, but rather to understand the principles. This is the foundation upon which I was able to get full marks."

Sun Xiulan stood behind, her tightly pursed lips slightly twitching.

"Furthermore," Shen Tang continued, "the atmosphere of mutual help among my classmates has also been a great help to me. Studying alone can easily lead to getting stuck on details, but when discussing with classmates, I often discover the blind spots in my thinking."

She glanced at Gu Bei. Gu Bei straightened up and grinned.

As she said these words, a scene suddenly flashed through Shen Tang's mind.

In my past life, it was the acknowledgments segment after my doctoral dissertation defense.

Standing on the defense stage, facing five judges and a room full of senior students, she read out the acknowledgments she had revised seven times: "First of all, I would like to thank my supervisor, Professor Lu Yanzhi, for his six years of hands-on guidance and unconditional support..."

At that time, Lu Yanzhi was sitting in the first row below the stage. His hair was starting to thin, and his belly had become rounder, but his eyes were still so bright. When she called his name, he smiled with red eyes and frantically waved his hands, telling her not to get sentimental.

Now, that person is twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, with thick hair and a thin build, squatting on the saline-alkali ground digging soil at an agricultural research station dozens of kilometers away.

He doesn't yet know what kind of person he will become in the future.