Redemption from the Abyss: The School Beauty Insists on Pulling Me Out of the Mire

This is a war without gunfire.

The first afternoon, math.

This area has always been a disaster zone filled with cries of despair.

Xie Wang sat by the window, twirling a pen in one hand, his gaze indifferent yet focused. He glanced at the final, most challenging derivative problem; it was lengthy and involved a discussion of three parameters. Several suppressed sighs drifted from around him, but a slight smile played on Xie Wang's lips.

He quickly constructed a graphical model of the function. The pen tip glided rapidly across the answer sheet, so smoothly that it didn't pause for a moment.

In the next exam room, Shen Hao was biting his pen, sweating profusely.

He struggled with the multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions and was starting to lose his composure until he turned to question 19—solid geometry.

The diagram was complex, but a dotted line that Xu You had drawn on the draft paper two days ago suddenly flashed through his mind.

"Shen Hao, when you see this kind of dihedral angle, draw a perpendicular line first..."

Xu You's voice seemed to echo in his ears. Shen Hao's hand stopped trembling, and he firmly drew the auxiliary line. The perpendicular relationship was found! At this moment, he felt that this was not just a problem, but his path to the top 100 in his grade.

The next afternoon, English.

The last subject. Xie Wang is writing his essay, "My Hero".

He didn't write about any famous or great people; he wrote about a person who walked alone in the darkness and finally encountered a ray of light.

When I wrote the last period, there were still fifteen minutes left in the exam.

Xie Wang closed the pen cap and let out a long breath.

This long, stressful, sweat-filled, and ink-scented second year of high school is finally coming to an end.

"Ring ring—!!"

At that moment, the ringing was no longer jarring, but rather like heavenly music.

"The exam is over. Please stop answering! Everyone stand up!"

The proctor's voice was instantly drowned out by the cheers that erupted throughout the entire teaching building.

"Aaaaaah! We're free!!"

Countless used draft papers were torn up and thrown into the air, like a grand, white snowfall.

Xie Wang walked against the flow of people to the window at the end of the corridor.

Su Qinghe was standing there, looking down at the frenzied crowd below.

"Teacher Su."

The boy's voice carried a sense of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted: "I've handed in my paper."

Su Qinghe turned her head to look at him, a smile gradually spreading in her eyes: "Yes, I've handed in my paper."

"After the exams, it will be summer for us."

……

However, there was one last hurdle before we could enjoy that summer.

Parents' meeting.

The third day after the exam was also the day to return to school to pick up the report card.

Luxury cars lined the gate of Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School, and parents dressed smartly, their faces showing either expectation or anxiety about their children's grades.

The classroom of Grade 11 (1) was bustling with noise.

Almost every student had a parent sitting next to them.

Lin Lu's mother, dressed fashionably, is taking a selfie with Lin Lu; Shen Hao's father, a loud-voiced man, is patting his son on the back and laughing heartily; Xu You's mother looks very gentle and is whispering some instructions.

Only the corner of the classroom seemed out of place.

Xie Wang's position.

He sat there alone, his eyes indifferent, as if the hustle and bustle around him had nothing to do with him, like an invisible barrier that isolated him like an island.

Xie Zhengyang certainly wouldn't come.

In front of Xie Wang, there was only a thin figure.

Su Qinghe sat quietly, flipping through a book. Her parents were both busy with their business, and she had long been accustomed to this affluent yet quiet life.

"Hey, where are Xie Wang's parents? He won the gold medal."

"Neither of Su Qinghe's parents came? These two kids are really strange."

The whispers of the surrounding parents buzzed like flies.

Xie Wang lowered his eyes and gave a self-deprecating smile.

"Squeak—"

The sound of a chair being dragged broke Xie Wang's thoughts.

He raised his head.

Su Qinghe walked to Xie Wang's desk.

She ignored the strange looks around her, her expression as calm as if she were in her own living room.

"They're busy making money."

Su Qinghe shrugged, his tone relaxed.

Then, in full view of everyone, she pulled out the empty chair next to Xie Wang's parent and sat down directly.

"Since no one is coming."

She uncapped the pen, handed one to Xie Wang, and kept one for herself.

"Then we'll make do with this."

"I'll sign it for you, you sign it for me."

Xie Wang was stunned.

At this moment, the parents, care, and noise filling the classroom all become a blurred background.

Only she is real.

Xie Wang's eyes suddenly felt hot.

After signing.

The two exchanged a glance.

Xie Wang couldn't help but chuckle softly, and the loneliness that had been weighing on his heart instantly vanished.

"Su Qinghe," he called her softly.

"Um?"

"Does this count as...exercising family rights ahead of schedule?"

Su Qinghe adjusted his glasses, his ears turning slightly red, but he did not refute:

Stop being so cheeky.

On the podium, Teacher Li looked at the two top students sitting side by side in the last row, opened her mouth, but in the end, she only showed a helpless yet gratified smile and said nothing.

Outside the window, the cicadas continued to sing.

Two children without umbrellas became each other's shelter in that moment.

……

"Ahem! Now that everyone has signed, I'll just say a few final words."

After the heartwarming moment, the homeroom teacher, Mr. Li, tapped the blackboard, his expression turning serious again, holding the thick folder that would determine his fate.

The classroom fell silent instantly, and parents and students sat up straight.

"The first thing is about summer vacation safety."

Old Li's familiar refrain still carried a heavy heart: "It's vacation time, and I know you're all getting restless. But please remember, swimming in the river without permission is strictly prohibited, be careful with electricity, and don't look at your phones while crossing the street. You only have one life; I can't face the school if a few of you are missing when school starts again."

At this point, Old Li's gaze sharpened, sweeping across the entire room:

"The second thing, and also the most important."

"From the moment you step out of this school gate today, you will no longer be second-year high school students, but soon-to-be third-year students!"

"Don't think summer vacation is long. This time next year, you'll be sitting in the college entrance exam hall! This summer vacation is your last chance to get ahead. Anyone who relaxes will be crying during the mock exam when school starts!"

A chorus of groans erupted from the audience, instantly creating a tense atmosphere.

Old Li pressed his hand down, a mysterious smile suddenly appearing on his lips, and held up the report card in his hand:

"Alright, stop wailing. Finally, let's announce the results of this provincial unified exam."

"This exam was extremely valuable, directly comparable to the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao). Our class... performed remarkably well."

He cleared his throat, his voice booming:

"First place, without a doubt, Su Qinghe, with a total score of 735, the top science student in the province!"

Amidst thunderous applause, Su Qinghe simply nodded calmly.

"Next, I want to give special praise to a dark horse."

Old Li's gaze swept past everyone and landed squarely on the last row:

"Thank you, Wang!"

"A total score of 677, sixth in the grade, fourteenth in the province! Perfect scores in both math and science! Xie Wang, you are a miracle at our school!"

"boom--"

The whole class erupted in shock. All the parents turned their astonished gazes to the boy in the corner. That "isolated island" where no parents came was actually the fifth-ranked genius in the entire province?

Xie Wang raised an eyebrow, twirling the pen Su Qinghe had given him in his hand, his expression calm.

"Lin Lu, seventh in her grade, eighteenth in the entire province"

"Xu You, ranked tenth in the grade, is steadily progressing!"

Finally, Old Li paused and read aloud:

"Shen Hao."

Shen Hao gripped his father's arm tightly, not daring to breathe.

"Shen Hao, ranked 98th in the grade, you're doing great! You barely made it into the top 100! This is your best result ever!"

"yeah!!!"

Shen Hao jumped up from his chair and hugged his grinning father, shouting, "Dad! Did you see that?! Top 100! I'm getting a big meal!"

Old Li smiled, closed the folder, and waved his hand dismissively:

"Alright, here's your report card. Go home for summer vacation!"