Chapter 9: Si Tong Ranks First in the Grade
1074 Words
Luo Qiu stepped out of the Qin family villa and hadn’t gone far when a Maybach blocked her path.
She looked up at the man standing before her, her brows knitting slightly. She recognized him as the man who had kindly helped her on the overpass last time—the driver for Shen Yiqing.
“My name is He Heng. President Shen sent me to escort you. Miss Luo, please get in the car,” He Heng said, making a polite gesture of invitation.
A flicker of caution crossed Luo Qiu’s eyes. No matter Shen Yiqing’s intentions, she wasn’t willing to accept the goodwill of a stranger.
“No need. I’ll just take the subway back,” she said coldly, lifting her foot to pass by He Heng.
He Heng blocked her path again, his expression slightly troubled. “Miss Luo, I’m just following my boss’s orders. If you don’t cooperate, I can’t complete my task, and if I fail, my salary will be docked when I go back.”
Luo Qiu paused, glancing at him. She remembered the kindness he had shown before, and a twinge of hesitation crossed her heart.
Seeing her struggle, He Heng’s eyes brightened—his little act of selling his hardship seemed to work. He continued earnestly, “I have elders and children to support. My wife just gave birth and is at home in confinement. The whole family relies on my salary…”
He sighed heavily, feigning the weight of his troubles.
Hearing about his burdens, Luo Qiu felt a pang of sympathy and remained silent for a moment. Then she said softly, “Well… thank you.”
After saying that, she got into the car, unaware of the sly smile He Heng—the “overworked driver afraid of a salary deduction”—was flashing behind her.
Back in her dorm, Luo Qiu finished washing up and sat on her bed to study. Tonight’s events hadn’t affected her much. Having weathered storms four years ago, Qin Siyuan’s scheming seemed like child’s play—barely worth a thought.
On Monday, the results of the placement test were released.
Luo Qiu surprised everyone, surpassing Ji Shaoyu with an almost perfect score and claiming the top spot in the grade.
During a meeting, Song Xiaoxiao heard the grade director praise her and could hardly believe her ears.
Not only she, but all the other homeroom teachers were in disbelief—especially Zhou Guocai.
“This is impossible!” Zhou Guocai exclaimed, rising abruptly, his emotions running high.
The director gave him a calm glance. “Nothing impossible here. Several teachers double-checked—Luo Qiu is indeed first in the grade.”
Zhou Guocai sank back into his chair in shock. How could this be? Someone who had taken a four-year hiatus from school could instantly top the entire grade? And she was originally supposed to join Class 19
…
Below the academic building was an honor roll. After every exam, the school posted the top fifty students’ names along with their ID photos on it.
By the end of the first period, a crowd had gathered in front of the board.
Ji Shaoyu stood there, staring at Luo Qiu’s photo pasted above her own, her eyes a mix of shock, surprise, and a hint of something else.
Zhou Yaya had done well this time, ranking first in her class. However, she hadn’t made it into the anticipated top fifty for the grade. Luo Qiu, the dark horse, had pushed her out, leaving her name absent from the honor roll.
She had already decided that once the placement test results were out, she would agree to transfer into the Rocket Class if the homeroom teacher came to her. But she hadn’t expected…
Tian Qianqian, standing beside Zhou Yaya, looked astonished. “Yaya, this Luo Qiu is amazing—her total score is almost perfect!”
Seeing Zhou Yaya’s face darken, she swallowed the rest of her words.
“I didn’t expect Luo Qiu to score this well, and she’s even prettier than Zhou Yaya. Looks like our school’s new campus belle has a new face,” someone whispered nearby.
Zhou Yaya bit her lip tightly.
…
“You’ve been keeping this under wraps, huh? Never told me you’re such a good student.” Zhang Mengling was equally shocked when she saw Luo Qiu’s results.
Luo Qiu merely curved her lips into a faint smile, her expression calm.
Zhang Mengling bit the straw of her cup, and thinking about her own disappointing grades and the impending tutoring sessions, she groaned miserably.
A moment later, she remembered something and perked up. “Oh! The first-place student in the grade gets a two-thousand yuan reward!”
At that moment, Song Xiaoxiao walked into the classroom, all smiles and spring in her step. She looked at Luo Qiu with eyes full of warmth and pride.
After class, she called Luo Qiu into the office.
Zhou Guocai was also there, and upon seeing Luo Qiu, he was both furious and regretful.
“What are you staring at? Never seen a first-place student before?” Song Xiaoxiao teased him. “Even if you could see through it, she’s not from your class anyway!”
Zhou Guocai’s face turned ashen with anger.
Song Xiaoxiao beamed and pulled an envelope from the desk drawer.
“This is your exam bonus. Originally, it was going to be distributed at the school assembly after the National Day holiday, but I went ahead and got it for you in advance.”
She knew that Luo Qiu worked part-time on weekends. “From now on, focus all your time on studying. Don’t let part-time work get in the way of your learning, okay?”
Luo Qiu took the envelope and nodded. “Thank you, Teacher Song.”
Song Xiaoxiao smiled. “Keep up the good work.”
As Luo Qiu left, Zhou Guocai snorted coldly.
Song Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him. “Got a problem? Go get it treated. Why the constant grumbling?”
Zhou Guocai sneered, “Don’t get too proud just yet. Wait and see—Chen Xiaoping will be going after Si Tong soon.”
Chen Xiaoping was the head teacher of the Rocket Class. The class only had forty-nine students, and he had long planned to recruit the fiftieth-place student, Zhou Guocai, into it. Now, it seemed he would have a new target.
- Writer
