Time had moved forward to the fourth day after the Library Incident.
Three people sat at a single table, staring at one another.
In a corner booth of a popular influencer restaurant, Lin Mo sat in the middle, with Su Qing on his left and Shen Qingyue on his right.
Three drinks were placed on the table.
An Iced Americano, a Cappuccino, and a Caramel Macchiato.
No one spoke.
It was so quiet that one could hear the sound of a spoon hitting the side of a cup at the neighboring table.
Lin Mo looked to his left.
Su Qing was holding her Cappuccino, taking tiny sips while her eyes were fixed on Shen Qingyue across from her. He was all too familiar with that look.
It was the look she got every time she started imagining that ‘Shen Qingyue is going to steal Lin Mo away.’
He then looked to his right.
Shen Qingyue had her head lowered, her fingers gently rubbing the rim of her coffee cup.
The newly purchased Notebook was placed by her hand. Its cover was light blue, the same color as the dress she was wearing today.
Occasionally, she would look up, her gaze sweeping over Lin Mo’s face before quickly darting away.
Lin Mo: “…”
Right now, there was only one thing he wanted to say:
‘What exactly is going on here?’
Time wound back to 3 hours ago.
At 9:00 AM, Lin Mo was still sleeping in.
His phone suddenly began to vibrate frantically.
He reached for it in a daze and took a look.
The class group chat had exploded.
Wang Hao: The scores are out, the scores are out, the scores are out!!! I got 548!! I passed the line, I passed!!!
Li Wei: I got 562!!! Ahhhh!!!
Zhou Xiaoyu: I got 571!!! It’s 20 points higher than my estimate!!!
Chen Hao: Holy crap, you guys all got such high scores?? I got 519…
The screen was a flurry of celebration as messages flew by rapidly.
Lin Mo’s sleepiness vanished instantly.
He sat up, his fingers trembling slightly as he opened the score-checking website.
He entered his admission ticket number.
ID number.
Verification code.
During the few seconds the page took to load, he felt his heart rate was at least 150 beats per minute.
And then—
630.
The three digits appeared on the screen.
Lin Mo froze.
630?
He rubbed his eyes and looked again.
Total Score: 630
Chinese: 118
Mathematics: 132
English: 125
Comprehensive Science: 255
(°△°|||)
It was 20 points higher than his highest estimate.
It was a 50-point improvement over his First Mock Exam score.
It was a 30-point improvement over his Second Mock Exam.
An hour later, the teacher sent out everyone’s grade rankings.
Grade ranking… He scrolled down.
Grade Ranking: 28.
Lin Mo stared at that number.
Then, he smiled.
As he laughed, his eyes grew a bit stinging.
He thought of many things.
He thought of those nights spent grinding through practice problems until 3:00 AM.
He thought of that Notebook Shen Qingyue had lent him, where every page had common mistakes marked in red ink.
He thought of those voice messages she had sent, her voice soft as she patiently explained every single problem.
His phone vibrated again.
Su Qing: What’s your score?
Lin Mo replied:
630.
Almost immediately, a reply came back:
Su Qing: I got 656. Let’s celebrate at noon; my treat.
Then came a smug emoji: [Pikachu Electrocution.gif]
Lin Mo looked at that emoji and thought back to the events of the last few days.
(,,ʘ̅ーʘ̅,,)…
His face felt a little hot.
He typed:
Lin Mo: Okay.
At the same time, at Shen Qingyue’s house.
Shen Qingyue sat at her desk, holding her phone to her ear as she listened to the voice on the other end.
“Student, your results are temporarily unavailable for inquiry,” the staff member from the Gaokao Office said. “The system shows… your score is within the Top 20 in the Province. According to the regulations, the scores for these candidates must be shielded.”
Shen Qingyue froze.
“Top… twenty?”
“Yes. Your specific ranking will be notified to you after the shielding period ends. Congratulations.”
The call ended.
Shen Qingyue held her phone, not moving for a long time.
Top twenty.
In the entire province.
She had ranked in the Top 20 in the Province.
Qiuqiu jumped onto the table from the side, rubbing its head against her hand.
She looked down at Qiuqiu and suddenly smiled.
Then she picked up her phone and opened WeChat.
Lin Mo’s chat window sat there quietly.
She typed a few words:
‘I checked my results.’
She thought about it and deleted it.
She typed again:
‘Are you free at noon? I want to tell you something.’
Deleted it again.
(>﹏<) This wouldn’t do.
She put down her phone and took a deep breath.
Forget it, she would just tell him when they met.
***
Time returned to the present.
The three of them were sitting in the coffee shop.
Lin Mo had just finished explaining both of their scores.
Su Qing had 656, and he had 630.
Then Shen Qingyue spoke.
“My score can’t be found.”
Su Qing froze.
Lin Mo froze as well.
“Can’t be found?” Su Qing frowned. “What do you mean?”
“The Gaokao Office said…” Shen Qingyue paused. “I’m in the Top 20 in the Province, so my score is shielded.”
(°ロ°٥)
Lin Mo’s mouth dropped open.
Su Qing’s expression also stiffened.
Top 20 in the Province.
This girl sitting across from them, quietly sipping her Caramel Macchiato, was in the Top 20 in the Province.
“That…” Lin Mo spoke with difficulty. “So you are… in the Top 20 in the Province?”
Shen Qingyue nodded.
“I suppose so.”
Her tone was as calm as if she were saying “The weather is nice today.”
Su Qing stared at her, her gaze so complex it could have filled a novel.
‘Top 20 in the Province,’ Demon Su Qing said faintly. ‘She isn’t just a Top Student; she’s a Xue Shen.’
Su Qing ignored it.
But her hand gripping the coffee cup tightened.
Silence.
A long silence.
Lin Mo looked to the left; Su Qing was staring at Shen Qingyue.
Lin Mo looked to the right; Shen Qingyue had her head lowered.
Caught in the middle, he didn’t know what to say.
“Um…” he started. “Should we order food first?”
Su Qing glanced at him.
Shen Qingyue looked up.
Both of them looked at him at the same time.
Lin Mo: “…”
He wanted to run away again.
When the waiter came over to take their order, the atmosphere finally loosened up a bit.
Su Qing ordered her favorite Sweet and Sour Pork.
Shen Qingyue ordered a dish of stir-fried seasonal vegetables.
Lin Mo ordered a bunch of things; he was hungry anyway.
While waiting for the food, Su Qing spoke.
“Representative Shen, which school did you apply to?”
Shen Qingyue looked up.
“Provincial Normal University.”
Su Qing nodded.
“Normal university, that’s quite good. It’s close to home.”
She paused, then asked again:
“With your current score, you should be able to aim for a better school, shouldn’t you?”
Shen Qingyue was silent for 2 seconds.
“I want to be a bit closer to home,” she said. “My mother isn’t in good health.”
Su Qing didn’t ask further.
As Lin Mo listened from the side, he suddenly remembered what Shen Qingyue had said before.
Her mother was in poor health, so she had to stay in the Provincial Capital.
The Haicheng University of Technology he had applied for was 2,300 kilometers away.
The distance between them was destined from the very beginning.
His heart suddenly felt a bit heavy.
The food arrived.
The three of them began to eat.
Lin Mo buried his head in his food, not daring to look up.
This was because he could feel gazes landing on him from both sides.
The one from the left carried a hint of scrutiny and possessiveness.
The one from the right carried a hint of cautious expectation.
Caught in the middle, he felt like a piece of meat in a sandwich.
(；一_一) Help.
“Lin Mo,” Su Qing said. “Which school did you apply to?”
Lin Mo’s chopsticks paused for a moment.
“I applied to Qingbei.”
Su Qing rolled her eyes.
“Even though your score isn’t low, you really have some nerve applying to Qingbei with it.”
“Whatever, there’s always the chance to re-apply to other schools during the second round of admissions if you don’t make the cut anyway.”
Lin Mo remained silent for 2 seconds. That was close; he hadn’t let Su Qing see the problem.