Chapter 16
Jiang Jian looked completely innocent.
“Isn’t it possible that he didn’t catch it from me? Maybe he was never that good to begin with.”
After seeing Luo Shuxin vault the school wall in one smooth move, Jiang Jian found it hard to believe he was really that “obedient model student” he always pretended to be.
The Crown Princess didn’t get angry.
“I don’t know whether he’s a good one, but I do know you’re not.”
Jiang Jian made a zipping motion across his mouth.
With his reputation for bad behavior, anything he said now would just dig the hole deeper.
After scolding the two boys for a while, the Crown Princess felt her mood improve. She stopped quoting classics and lightened up a little.
“Let’s be honest—you two did mess up. You broke the school rules and affected the class’s reputation. But if we step outside the school context, it’s not really that serious. I haven’t been your homeroom teacher for long, but I like to think I can read people pretty well. You’re both good kids…”
When she’d been scolding non-stop earlier, Jiang Jian had been relaxed, letting it all go in one ear and out the other.
But when she started complimenting them, he suddenly felt uneasy.
He’d been taught by her before—she’d also been his Chinese teacher in first year—so from experience, he knew:
When she started praising you, it meant a trap was coming.
Sure enough, as she continued, every sentence dripping with “understanding” and “respect,” Jiang Jian couldn’t take it anymore and blurted out,
“Could you just skip to the second half? The part where the knife comes down?”
The Crown Princess raised an eyebrow, amused. She hadn’t expected all that scolding to have less effect than a few kind words.
“Fine, I’ll be direct. The consequences of this could be light or serious—it all depends on how we handle it. Mr. Fei strongly suggested that I call your parents in for a talk. But since it’s only the start of the school year, I’d rather not begin things on that note. So, I’ll give you two one last chance.”
Jiang Jian immediately relaxed.
His father, Jiang Zhiyuan, was hardly ever home anyway. Even if the Crown Princess did manage to contact him, the man couldn’t do anything about his son.
As the saying goes: A dead pig doesn’t fear boiling water.
But just as he was breathing easier, another thought hit him—
He might not care about parents being called in,
but what about Luo Shuxin?
Even if Luo Shuxin didn’t have any family tension, Jiang Jian had still gotten him into trouble. If his behavior caused Luo Shuxin’s sister, Luo Yue, to be dragged to school for a lecture…
Compared to all the fathers in the world, Jiang Jian had always felt more sympathy for the mothers.
Especially mothers like Luo Yue—she really was a good person.
While Jiang Jian’s thoughts were drifting all over the place, the Crown Princess (their homeroom teacher) had already laid out what she called “an opportunity.”
That opportunity was the upcoming monthly exam.
If Luo Shuxin could rank top 5 in the entire grade, and Jiang Jian could get into the top 30, then this whole incident would be wiped clean.
Jiang Jian: “…How many?”
Teacher Dai Zifei: “Oh dear, that voice cracked—don’t sound so shocked. Top 30 in the grade. You can do it~”
Jiang Jian: “…Do you still remember what I got last time?”
Dai Zifei smiled sweetly.
“Of course I do! But one failure doesn’t matter. Don’t dwell on it. Failure is the mother of success—believe in yourself.”
In every field, the higher you climb, the harder it gets.
Academics were no exception.
Maybe a student at the bottom could jump up several ranks with some effort. But in their elite school, the top students’ scores were razor-close. Every one of them was smart and hardworking—a truly competitive bunch.
Jiang Jian had already considered himself superhuman for squeezing into the top class last time. But now they wanted him to make it into the top 30 of the whole grade?
He looked like a man walking to his execution.
“Ms. Dai, how about… you handle me and Luo Shuxin separately? He can rely on grades, and I’ll just take the parent-call punishment. Go ahead and call my dad—he’ll definitely come this time! If he doesn’t, I’ll track him down in another city myself!”
Crown Princess: “You know, I might have considered treating you separately, but since you brought it up yourself, I can see how deep your brotherly bond is. Oh right—Luo’s mom mentioned you stayed over at their house last night, didn’t she? Well then, you’re a package deal now—if one of you fails, both your parents get called in.”
Luo Shuxin glanced over at Jiang Jian.
Jiang Jian looked away in grief.
He hadn’t meant to drag him down. He really hadn’t.
It just… the “top 30” target had shocked him so badly that he forgot how cunning teachers could be.
After enjoying Jiang Jian’s expression long enough, the Crown Princess felt refreshed. She checked her watch, waved them off, and said,
“Alright, class is about to start. Go back and study hard. You can do it!”
Jiang Jian tried one last desperate struggle.
“I can’t do it, Teacher… what if we negotiate a little? How about I aim for top 50 instead?”
She patted his shoulder encouragingly.
“Believe in yourself. You can do it! You’re the Exam Prophet, aren’t you? Worst case, calculate a few lucky omens before the test.”
Jiang Jian: “???”
Wait—was that nickname really spreading that far already?
Luo Shuxin, as a transfer student, had clearly never heard it before.
“‘Exam Prophet’?”
The Crown Princess chuckled.
“If you want to cheat a little, just treat your new deskmate to some meals before the exam. His luck’s uncanny—he can guess exam questions like a fortune teller.”
That was how Jiang Jian had earned his nickname—the “Exam Prophet,” a mix of sheer luck and supposed divine intuition.
When the two walked out of the office, Luo Shuxin looked completely calm, while Jiang Jian looked like a wilted eggplant.
Ever since the placement exam, he’d basically been in full “salted fish” mode. And after his foot injury, he’d happily lazed around for over a month. Sure, he’d hired a tutor, but only to make sure the upcoming make-up lessons wouldn’t be too painful.
Even during his occasional bursts of motivation, he’d never aimed as high as top 30 in the grade.
He was perfectly content being the “goalkeeper” who barely passed.
A high schooler with a college student’s attitude:
If 60 points was enough to pass, why bother with 61?
Now, his head was full of conflicting voices—
One told him to just give up and lie flat, since he didn’t care if his parent got called.
Another urged him to fight hard, maybe even hire his tutor again.
And a third suggested he just beat up Luo Shuxin instead.
He couldn’t even find a logical reason for hitting Luo Shuxin—he just felt resentful.
They’d both been assigned “missions,” but while he was staring into apocalypse, Luo Shuxin was calm as ever, like nothing had happened.
Still lost in his thoughts, Jiang Jian suddenly saw Luo Shuxin extend a hand toward him.
Jiang Jian: “?”
Luo Shuxin: “Let me help you walk.”
Jiang Jian, spineless as ever, took the offered hand.
The two of them walked back to class together.
As soon as they entered, they ran into Shao Xing, bouncing over with a workbook in hand.
He was looking for Luo Shuxin to ask about a question.
Luo Shuxin gently helped Jiang Jian back into his seat like an old man escorting an empress, then turned to look at Shao Xing’s workbook. After scanning the problem, he immediately started explaining the solution path.
Jiang Jian heard him first give Shao Xing a hint, but when Shao didn’t get it, Luo Shuxin picked up a pen and began explaining in detail.
Jiang Jian rested his chin on the desk, sideways, watching him.
His eyes seemed to be on Luo Shuxin—but also somehow not.
Today, he looked like a curly-haired puppy on the verge of depression.
Shao Xing shivered under that gaze.
“Uh… what’s wrong, Brother Jian?”
Jiang Jian: “I just can’t stand people who look so relaxed.”
It felt like he was the only one suffering here.
Shao Xing: “?”
Luo Shuxin pretended not to know Jiang Jian was talking about him and continued explaining at his own pace.
Jiang Jian: “How can you not be nervous at all?”
Luo Shuxin: “Do your best, and leave the rest to fate.”
Jiang Jian: “Bull! That’s confidence, not fatalism. I’m the one who got dragged into this because of you—shouldn’t you take responsibility?”
Shao Xing stood there, completely lost.
“What are you guys even talking about—nervous about what? Fate? Responsibility for what?”
That reminded Jiang Jian suddenly—
“Hey, you and Yiming were at the KTV too, right? Didn’t the Crown Princess call you out?”
Shao Xing: “Of course she did! She caught us before morning reading. Chewed us out and set goals for the monthly exam.”
Fellow sufferers!
Jiang Jian’s eyes filled with emotion, and he reached out to shake hands in solidarity.
Shao Xing continued, “She said if we don’t score at least as high as the placement exam, we might as well be buried alive.”
Jiang Jian’s face went cold again as he silently withdrew his hand.
After Shao Xing left, Jiang Jian still couldn’t shake the gloom. He lay on his desk, lifeless, not wanting to move at all.
Luo Shuxin had already pulled out a new exercise book and was ready to start doing practice problems.
Under the desk, Jiang Jian kicked Luo Shuxin.
It wasn’t that he wanted to say anything — he just felt a mischievous itch. But he had completely forgotten that his foot was no longer what it used to be. He’d just twisted it that morning, and kicking now was like “hurting the enemy by a thousand, wounding himself by eighty thousand.”
Jiang Jian winced and sucked in a sharp breath.
Suddenly, Luo Shuxin said, “I can take responsibility.”
Jiang Jian had long forgotten what he’d said earlier. Enduring the pain, he asked, “Take responsibility for what?”
Luo Shuxin replied, “For your current situation. You can ask me anytime if you have problems.”
Jiang Jian: “……”
He had only said that offhandedly. If you really thought about it, there was no reason for Luo Shuxin to take responsibility for anything. Jiang Jian was the one who got drunk at the birthday party and passed out, and it was only because Luo Shuxin kindly picked him up that he ended up being late.
Jiang Jian nearly blushed bright red. He wanted to argue back, but no words came to mind, so he could only give an awkward laugh and drop it.
While Jiang Jian was still lost in his own thoughts, the students in the row ahead suddenly turned around.
Jiang Jian: “?”
“The front and back rows make a group of four — check each other’s homework.”
As they took out their notebooks, one of the students in front started chatting. “Jian-ge, did you guys go out together over the weekend? I feel like you two got a lot closer all of a sudden.”
Jiang Jian: “…Did we?”
“Yeah, you’ve been whispering to each other nonstop just now. What were you talking about?”
Jiang Jian thought about it but couldn’t remember exactly what they’d said. Still, he vaguely felt that he and Luo Shuxin had indeed grown a bit closer.
