Don't underestimate the poor and elderly; I was thrilled to refuse the class beauty's adva

On Monday morning, Zhang Yifan sensed something was off as soon as he entered the school gate.

The hallway is usually filled with students copying homework, catching up on sleep, or rushing to study at this time, but today they're all gathered in groups of three or five, chatting excitedly.

As he walked through the corridor toward the classroom, snippets of "sentenced," "several years," and "Peng Kaifei's father was also sentenced" drifted into his ears.

When he got to the classroom door, Zongwen was already waiting there, his expression a mix of excitement and emotion. He grabbed his arm and pulled him inside.

"Something terrible has happened! Principal Meng has been sentenced! Nine years!"

Zhou Degui was also sentenced, as was Peng Kaifei's father. The Discipline Inspection Commission found a lot of things in his house, and he was convicted of multiple crimes and sentenced to seven years in prison!

Yifan, did you know that Peng Kaifei came to the school today to withdraw from the program?

With only 29 days left until the college entrance examination, he dropped out of school.

His father was sentenced to seven years in prison, the family company was seized, and his mother took him back to their hometown.

"I used to come to school in a luxury car, but when I dropped out, nobody even came to see me off."

Zhang Yifan remained silent for a while, without saying anything.

A commotion arose in the corridor as several girls huddled together, whispering amongst themselves.

Zhang Yifan followed Zong Wen's gaze and saw a middle-aged couple.

The man was wearing faded overalls, and the woman had gray hair and red, swollen eyes, as if she hadn't slept well for days.

They stood at the end of the corridor next to Lin Wanqing's seat, hunched over, unsure of what to do with their hands.

"Those are Zhao Rong's parents. Zhao Rong has also transferred schools. Although she was the victim, her reputation has spread far and wide, and she is too ashamed to come back."

Her parents came today to complete some paperwork and stopped by to see Lin Wanqing.

Zhang Yifan leaned against the corridor railing, watching from afar.

Zhao Rong's mother stood before Lin Wanqing, her rough hands clasped together, her lips trembling for a long while before she could speak, her voice thin and hoarse:

"Wanqing, Auntie apologizes to you on Rongrong's behalf."

The things she did... were because we didn't teach her well.

She was also harmed, but she shouldn't have harmed you.

Your aunt isn't asking for your forgiveness, she just felt... she should tell you.

Lin Wanqing stood there, her fingers gripping the hem of her school uniform until her knuckles turned white.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but no sound came out.

Zhao Rong's mother glanced at her again, bowed, and then turned and left with her husband.

The two figures stood hunched and heavy-hearted. No one stopped them in the corridor, and no one saw them off.

Lin Wanqing looked down at her phone.

She clicked on Zhao Rong's WeChat profile picture, the chat box where they used to exchange hundreds of messages every day, the last message of which was from a week ago.

She typed a message: I forgive you.

My thumb hovered over the send button for a long time before I pressed it.

After the message is sent, a small gray text pops up on the screen: The other party has enabled friend verification, and you are not yet their friend.

Zhao Rong deleted her.

Lin Wanqing slammed her phone face down on the table, the force causing the screen to hit the surface with a dull thud.

She lay face down on the table, burying her face in her arms, her shoulders trembling silently.

No one around her noticed her, or rather, no one wanted to notice her.

After the second period in the morning, the results of the provincial joint examination were officially posted on the bulletin board.

The bulletin board was packed with people; the entire senior class was crammed there.

Some people tiptoed over each other's shoulders to squeeze into the gaps, some people looked up at the sky and roared after squeezing out of the crowd after seeing their rankings, and some people silently withdrew and leaned against the wall in a daze after seeing their rankings.

Zong Wen dragged Zhang Yifan all the way to the bulletin board, and then braked suddenly three steps away from the crowd.

"I...I can't look."

Zongwen's voice trembled.

"Yifan, go take a look first, and tell me when you're done."

"Your grades have no room to drop, so what's there to be afraid of?"

"I'm not nervous for myself!"

Zongwen was so anxious that he stamped his feet.

"I did this for you! You made a bet with Shen Zhiyi! If you lose, you have to grant her one request! It's unconditional!"

What if she asks you to date her? Well, this doesn't seem like a bad deal...

What if she asks you to do something even more terrible? Like bringing her breakfast every day, helping her with her homework, or being available whenever she calls?

You've only been retired from the world of simps for a few days, and you're already starting to simp again?!

"What's going on in your head all day?" Zhang Yifan retorted mercilessly. "You're more worried than the emperor is."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a gasp of surprise erupted from the crowd in front of the bulletin board.

"Holy crap! First and second place are only one point apart! 691 to 690! One point difference!"

"Who got 691? Who got 690? Who's number one?"

Zhang Yifan paused for a moment.

Just one point short.

A thin layer of sweat appeared on his palms for a moment.

After he used the time he spent pursuing Lin Wanqing to study, he clearly felt that his grades had reached a new level. He couldn't possibly lose to Shen Zhiyi even with all that, could he?

Does this mean he's really going to have to be inferior to Shen Zhiyi?

He took a deep breath and pushed his way through the crowd.

Zongwen's shout came from behind.

"Who's number one? Tell me who's number one! Zhang Yifan, say something!"

He didn't turn around.

When he squeezed to the front, he almost bumped into someone.

Shen Zhiyi was standing directly in front of the bulletin board, just one step away from the red list. She held an open notebook in her hand, which was already filled with several lines of numbers, probably analyzing the score differences of each subject.

She saw Zhang Yifan squeeze in, panting, and was stunned for a moment before quickly closing her notebook.

When he raised his head again, two fierce flames of fighting spirit had ignited in his eyes.

"You got lucky this time. 691, just one point higher than me."

She pronounced the word "that's all" very clearly.

"I will absolutely not let you have it during the college entrance exam."

Zhang Yifan looked into her eyes, and there was no resentment or sourness in them, only a pure and almost burning competitive spirit.

It's like Faker has finally met an opponent who can make him give it his all.

He recalled the scene the system had described, the one where Shen Zhiyi said in a television interview, "He is the only one who has ever beaten me in terms of grades."

She had been waiting for this moment for almost a year.

"I'm sure I can score 700 on the college entrance exam."

Zhang Yifan turned his gaze away from her face and looked at his own name on the honor roll, his tone as calm as if he were stating an objective fact.

"If you want to surpass me, you'll have to work harder."

Shen Zhiyi's lips curled up slightly, then quickly flattened, reverting to her usual indifferent expression: "We'll see."

She turned and walked away, her steps still quick and steady, her ponytail swaying twice on her shoulder.

Zhang Yifan stood in front of the honor roll, looking at his name listed above hers, separated by only a minute's distance.

"Yifan! You're number one!"

Zong Wen finally squeezed through the crowd, his hair a mess, but he didn't care. He grabbed Zhang Yifan's shoulder and shook him violently.

"691! You beat her! You beat Shen Zhiyi! She got 690, you got 691, just one point difference! Are you two even human? Are you two learning machines?"

Are you two dating and doing practice problems at the same time? Wait, are you two even dating or not?

"No talks."

"Why did she look at you like you were prey when you didn't even talk about it?"

"...Are you sure that look wasn't directed at a competitor?"

Please, everyone, don't let your books sit unfinished! It'll really kill the little author! Waaaaah...