"She got a full score in science," the students said to one another.
"No, I didn't notice it just now. She actually got a full score." Mu Zilin was in disbelief. Full score? He couldn't believe it. This ranking didn't list the students' grades in the individual subjects. The students had figured out the scores themselves.
Mu Zilin looked at the back of Shuishui's head. Back then, they were still at the same level. Why was there such a big gap between them? He bit his fingernails. He couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
One of Yu Xiumin's friends pushed him and said, "Look over there. It's Qian Shuishui. It's her, right? Didn't you say that you wanted to pursue her?"
Yu Xiumin was a little concerned. "En, she's been surrounded by people recently. But she's really quite amazing. She ranked first in science and in the overall ranking. She directly surpassed the scores of those from the key class."
They were students from Class 12. There were some outstanding students in their class, but they didn't do better than those from the key class. Basically, those in the Top 10 were mostly key class students. The only one from a different class was Qian Shuishui, who was ranked first and directly took the top spot. It had become clear to everyone that she was a top-performing student.
Yu Xiumin took the initiative to step forward. "Qian Shuishui, congratulations on getting the top spot. With your results, you really should go to the key class."
"Key class? They hold classes on weekends. I personally like to spend more time for my other activities," Shuishui said. The others didn't really understand what she meant. Only Mu Zilin knew that Shuishui spent the weekends developing her other skills. They didn't even attend their make-up classes.
Mu Zilin looked at the boy and tsk-tsked. "My Shuishui naturally wants to be in the same class as me."
Yu Xiumin smiled and said, "You two are really close." Yu Xiumin had a crush on Shuishui, and he had already asked around about the relationship between Shuishui and the people around her. He had heard that Mu Zilin and Qian Shuishui were very good friends and that they studied together in junior high school. He confirmed that they had never dated. He had also heard about Mu Zilin and a girl named Lin Wanbai. He had heard about how they broke up.
He also knew about Mu Qing, who was just an ordinary girl. She simply got along well with Qian Shuishui and Mu Zilin.
"Yeah, of course we have a good relationship. Why? Are you jealous?" Mu Zilin felt that his grades were not as good as he expected them to be. He was not in a great mood. He came forward when he saw that a boy wanted to talk to Shuishui. He had not even waited for Shuishui to respond to Yu Xiumin's question and directly interrupted their conversation.
Shuishui patted Mu Zilin. "What are you doing?" She then said to Yu Xiumin, "Yu Xiumin, we're going back to the classroom. It's time for class."
Yu Xiumin could only nod as he said, "All right. Let's chat later."
Shuishui pulled Mu Zilin back. "What happened to you?"
"Shuishui, we studied together. Why is there such a huge gap between us? If my father finds out, he would definitely scold me again." Mu Zilin sighed. He felt bad as he compared himself to Shuishui.
"That's not right. You were much worse than you are now. Now that you are in the third high school and are performing better than you were, your father would not criticize you," Shuishui said. It didn't make sense to her. She knew that in the past, Mu Zilin never liked studying. He did better in his studies, even though he had not really studied recently.
"I don't know why, but I'm worried he will ask about you and compare us. It's the first monthly exam, and we've started school almost two months ago." Mu Zilin felt helpless. His father thought that he was good at studying. He didn't know why his father even believed it. Mu Zilin didn't really like liberal arts. He barely even understood science. It was Shuishui who forced him to study. Shuishui had explained it to him in a way that made him understand the lessons easily.
If he transferred to another school, what would he do without Shuishui? He felt that he would definitely be lazy. He wouldn't have someone to look to for help. He hooked his arm around Shuishui's shoulders and leaned against her. "Shuishui, why don't you go to Beijing High School with me?"
"What?" Shuishui had not paid attention and walked mindlessly.
"Forget it. I don't know what will happen." Mu Zilin felt that it wasn't good to say and ask for too much. He knew that this place was Shuishui's home. It wasn't right for him to ask it of her.
When they returned to the classroom, Mu Qing leaned forward and said, "Shuishui, you're too amazing. How did you do it? Three subjects in science all in full marks. I heard about it just now. Wow. That student from the key class isn't your match at all."
"Yeah, you're so amazing. Did you come to the ordinary class to show off?" Xu Die's voice sounded from the back. Her attitude still indicated that she didn't like Qian Shuishui. She did poorly in the exam and was called to the teacher's office. She was angry and envious that Qian Shuishui directly took the top spot. She could not understand why Shuishui was in the ordinary class when her results were so good. She felt that Shuishui should be in the key class. That way, she wouldn't see Qian Shuishui every day, and she would not be in a bad mood.
Mu Qing crossed her arms. "Aiyo, Streamer Xu Die, it's fine if you're unhappy, but there's a problem. If my Shuishui is the highest, it's none of your business. Don't tell me you're jealous?"
Mu Zilin added to the conversation. "She's definitely jealous. Shuishui studies quietly every time and minds her own business. She's not like some people who want to be high-profile but don't have the capital to be high-profile. Such people only envy those who are better than them." Mu Zilin was furious. He hated girls like Xu Die very much. She would always try to compete with others. Although she had been much quieter recently, there were still times when she would mock Shuishui.
Shuishui ignored Xu Die and shrugged off the things Xu Die said about her. Shuishui's friends defended her. Xu Die's friends, on the other hand, tried to pull Xu Die back.
Lili pulled Xu Die. "Xu Die, stop talking."
She did so for Xu Die's sake. As her friend, she did not want Xu Die to be hated by everyone in the class. In the beginning, people had liked Xu Die, until recently when she showed her true colors.
Xu Die brushed Lili aside. "What are you doing? Don't pull me."
"Xu Die!"
"Xu Die, what does it have to do with you whether I go to the key class or not? I really want to know. Are you authorized to you say that? Are you a teacher, or do you run the school?" Shuishui laughed as she responded to Xu Die. She felt that Xu Die had a really bad personality. She had been like that ever since classes have started. She couldn't help but think of how Xu Die and her father were chased out of the apartment complex. As expected, a pitiful person would definitely have some hateful aspects. Her mouth was always unforgiving, and she always liked to cause trouble for no reason. Other people would be annoyed and disgusted by such a girl.
Xu Die was furious and said, "You want others to surround you and say that you're amazing, don't you? That is how your vanity will be satisfied!" Xu Die really couldn't stand it anymore. She was envious that people were always around Qian Shuishui. She felt that Shuishui slowly became more good-looking and studied more to get people's attention. There were plenty of such people. She felt that Qian Shuishui was a scheming b*tch. Xu Die thought that she was right. She felt that there were people who would agree with her.
However, most of the people in the class looked at Xu Die with ridicule. They knew that Qian Shuishui never said that she was powerful and awesome. Complements always came from other people. Qian Shuishui's own strengths were results of her hard work. Others were envious in the beginning, but they soon realized how proud they were of her. They thought that Qian Shuishui was too awesome because she was hard to match.
Qian Shuishui appeared to have a cold personality, but in reality, she was a good person. She never manipulated others, nor did she speak ill of others. Her character was really rare. There were many girls who liked to talk and chat with Qian Shuishui because they felt that she was a sincere person who gave good advice.
Qian Shuishui wasn't very friendly in the beginning, but as time passed, people found her to be very warm and affectionate.
Xu Die, who liked to be high-profile and liked to show off, was soon ostracized by the girls in the class. Some boys liked Xu Die. After all, she was still quite famous. After they had spent a bit of time with her, however, Xu Die showed her true colors. She was a little capricious, although the boys could still tolerate it. Xu Die was a little snobbish and always looked down on others, and soon the other students gradually distanced themselves from Xu Die.
Only Lili hung out with Xu Die. She would eat with Xu Die and would occasionally accompany her to the bathroom.
"Xu Die, what does it have to do with you whether it satisfies my vanity or not?" Shuishui continued to ask Xu Die.
"It has nothing to do with me. I just can't stand your scheming face," Xu Die directly said what she thought and immediately regretted that she had said it.
Mu Qing felt that Xu Die was really crazy. "In the entire class, you're the most scheming. You scheming b*tch, we can see through you. Shuishui, don't mind her. Don't pay attention to this lunatic."
The other students shook their heads, their eyes filled with disdain. "Yeah. I really didn't expect Xu Die to be like this," one of the students said.
Shuishui shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't care if she talks about me or snaps at me. I have known her personality from the start. Everyone should be careful. Usually, people like her don't even know that they have a mental illness. As for you, you always try to cause trouble when you don't like something. This is the first time I've met someone like you. But your efforts to discourage me are futile. Everything I own and have was given by my family. My grades are my strength. None of those concern you. To sum it up, you're simply a busybody who meddles in other people's affairs."
Shuishui pointed at her head and revealed a mocking smile. She sat down and ignored Xu Die.
Xu Die was furious. "What do you mean by that? What right do you have to say that about me? You think I'm a busybody?"
Everyone burst into laughter. Suddenly, Mu Qing said, "Shuishui is just too good-tempered. That's why she can still be patient towards you. If she was a bad person, she would have hit you long ago. With your face and personality, you really deserve a beating."
"There's nothing that you can be proud of. Just because you have an online alter ego, do you think you're a princess? Shuishui is really well-educated and comes from a good family. We don't know where you came from. If you're not a princess, then don't pretend to be one. Cinderella can become a princess because she has a good character. As for you, you're at most Cinderella's stepmother," said Xu Hui, one of the girls in class. Xu Hui was a carefree student who fostered good relationships with the other people in her class. She also came from a good family. Others had seen that Xu Hui carried signature bags, and she spent money like water. She was not very familiar with Shuishui and had only spoken to her a few times. However, she could tell by the shoes and watches that Qian Shuishui wore that she came from a wealthy family.
Xu Hui had always found Xu Die's personality quite disgusting. She did her best to stay away from Xu Die. She felt that Xu Die had behaved like a mad dog who held on to Qian Shuishui and did not let go. Xu Hui and the others could not see what Qian Shuishui had done wrong. Shuishui was simply a quiet girl who read books every day. When the results were released, everyone finally realized that Qian Shuishui was a genius. No one in their class was too surprised because they had always seen Qian Shuishui as a fast learner and strong performer. They knew that many science teachers were biased towards Qian Shuishui.
Some people talked about Qian Shuishui's academic standing. Xu Die was the only one who had reacted in that manner. She was unhappy that Qian Shuishui did well in the exam. What right did she have to be unhappy? If Shuishui had the ability to be the top ranking student, she would naturally be ranked first. There was no need to doubt it and be envious of it. Xu Hui really did not know how Xu Die's brain worked.
Xu Hui couldn't help herself, so she spoke up. She really couldn't stand people like Xu Die.
Another boy nodded in agreement. "Indeed."
"Xu Die, why are you making a fuss? Shuishui's rank has nothing to do with you," said Xiao Su, another student. She also felt that Xu Die's inexplicable outburst was absurd.
Ding ling ling!
It was time for class, and everyone returned to their seats.
Mu Zilin sighed and said, "That woman is sick. She's sick to the bone. Every day, she feel envious of you, she gets pissed with you, and she simply shows her dislike towards you. All this for no reason at all. I also feel that you're tolerating her bad behavior towards you."
"Is that so? People like her should be ignored. Her behavior doesn't affect me at all. She's not a stumbling block," Shuishui said and smiled faintly. She knew that in the future, she would meet many more people like Xu Die, and she knew she did not need to please all of them.
When she saw Xu Die's boyfriend and father and saw what kind of person she was, she knew that they were on different levels. They had different interests and obviously different priorities, and they were different from each other.
She did not look down on Xu Die. She just felt that it was useless to argue with someone like her. Shuishui believed that one had to respect to be respected in return. Xu Die thought differently. She was very pretentious and arrogant. She liked to pretend she was wealthy when in fact she wasn't. She was like a fox that pretended to be a tiger.
"That's all you can say? Xu Die would have been very angry if she heard you. She wants to provoke you until you explode like she did. But you're not even close to snapping. You answered calmly. I admire your patience." Mu Zilin was really convinced of Shuishui's incredible patience with Xu Die.
When the teacher arrived, everyone settled down. However, Xu Die was seething with anger. She realized that everyone just watched as she mocked Shuishui, and they all spoke up for her. She wondered how things turned out that way.
She didn't understand, nor did she try to understand. Could it be that no one hated Qian Shuishui? There were a few, however, who still interpreted Shuishui's coldness as arrogance.
It was in Shuishui's nature to be considerate of others. She would consider how others would feel before she did something. When she did something very well, it was natural for some people to feel envious of her.
It would later be proved that it was never Shuishui's intention to offend anyone.
Everyone already had a prior judgment of Xu Die's character. That time around, after the confrontation in the classroom, no one wanted to interact with Xu Die anymore.
They thought that her obnoxiousness was very difficult to repair and that it would be difficult for Xu Die to redeem herself.
Xu Die did not know that the people around her had already viewed her in this light.
That afternoon, their math teacher would handed out the test paper and announced who among the students received the highest score.
Naturally, it was Qian Shuishui. The mathematics teacher was all smiles as she said, "Qian Shuishui, not bad. The other teachers were skeptical about your winning first place in the mathematics competition. Now, it has been proven that you are indeed very good in this subject. The equations here are a little difficult, yet you got a full score. Did you learn the concepts behind the equations? The last one is rather difficult. There haven't been many students who were able to answer it."
Among all the first-year students, only Qian Shuishui had perfected the exam. The second highest was a boy from the key class, although he only got 141 points. It was nine points lower than Shuishui's score.
Shuishui rubbed her nose. "There's a preview for the rest of the class, and it is almost done."
"I see. Work hard and keep up the good work." The mathematics teacher laughed happily because Qian Shuishui had made him proud. Shuishui's score really left the key class mathematics teacher speechless.
The key class teachers did not praise their own students in front of Shuishui's own math teacher. They knew that Shuishui was smarter than all of their outstanding key class students.
When everyone heard that Shuishui received a perfect score, they were convinced that she was indeed a strong straight-A student.
Shuishui took the test paper and casually put it aside. Mu Zilin picked it up and studied it. "This is strength. You perfected the exam. That sh*tty streamer—I don't think she passed," he said.
Xu Die's face reddened in embarrassment because she had indeed failed. The score she had received was far from the passing mark. She received only 38 points. She felt embarrassed.
Xu Die's score was also considered an unlucky number. She was furious.
She wanted to tear and shred her test paper and throw it away, but she knew that she couldn't do that. She tried to be rational about her situation.
After their scores were announced, some of the students were elated, while the others felt gloomy.
The next two classes were their chemistry and physics classes. The teacher praised Shuishui once again. The students had already memorized the lines their teachers would say to compliment Shuishui. However, students from key classes wore long faces. They were unconvinced that Shuishui was as good as the teachers portrayed her.
Nothing needed to be proven. Shuishui had perfected the exam, and that would have been enough proof for the key class students.
In the future, students from key classes would no longer be very proud over being in the key class, because the top student was not one of them.