Chapter 23: When It Comes to Grades, Some Are Happy and Some Are Sad |
Tuesday morning, on the elevated ground floor of the first-year teaching building at Far Moon Academy.
A large crowd of students had already gathered outside the courtyard, staring nervously at the corridor of the elevated ground floor.
On the wall hung a massive blackboard, its color contrasting sharply with the surrounding tiles.
At the moment, it was completely blank.
"It''s almost time, right?"
"Seriously, I''m so nervous."
"How come the Academic Affairs Office suddenly became so efficient just because they got a new director from the Dragon Country? It used to be a one-week stay of execution, but now we only get a single weekend!"
In the corridor of the elevated ground floor, a pink-haired girl in a school uniform strode forward with her head held high, cutting through the students'' chatter.
She carried a massive roll of paper in her arms, followed closely by two members of the Student Council.
"Lady Yurianna, I''m begging you, please don''t email my parents this time!"
"Nooo, please anything but sending grades to my parents..."
Wails of despair echoed all around, but Yurianna simply walked up to the large blackboard, surrounded by the chorus of misery.
The scene looked quite like an ancient imperial official sent for disaster relief, surrounded by a crowd of starving people crying about their tragic fate.
Hearing their pleas, Yurianna gave a bright smile, flashed a thumbs-up to the crowd, and declared,
"Everyone! It''s okay!! Even if you didn''t do well, under the friendly supervision of your parents, you will definitely improve next time!!"
"Please no!!"
"No!!"
That basically sentenced them all to death.
Far Moon Academy required students to provide their guardians'' email addresses upon enrollment. Typically, the school would send emails inviting them to attend major events.
Of course, they would also conveniently attach the child''s grades, final class evaluations, and the like.
This task was coordinated and carried out by the Student Council and the Academic Affairs Office.
Below, Yurianna showed absolutely no sympathy for the suffering of the masses. She simply turned around, preparing to post the results.
The two Student Council members behind her immediately stepped forward to help, unrolling the list that covered the entire first-year class and hanging it on the blackboard.
Meanwhile, on the second floor in the distance, Yan Huan held a cup of black tea as he and Sakuramiya Hitomi watched the spectacle below.
He let out a yawn, trying to use the tea to chase away his drowsiness, though it was clearly to no avail.
As he watched, Yan Huan suddenly chuckled.
"Sure enough, leaving this to Yurianna was the right choice."
Sakuramiya Hitomi withdrew her gaze, deeply agreeing with him.
"Yes. After all, it''s the kind of task that makes students hate you. Fortunately, Yurianna is very popular, and everyone likes her..."
The grade rankings below were slowly revealed, roughly the same size as the massive blackboard.
As the list was displayed, everyone couldn''t help but hold their breath and fall silent, searching for their names.
Yan Huan: 499, Rank 1
Sakuramiya Hitomi: 491, Rank 2
Yabashi Ki: 474, Rank 19
An Le: 457, Rank 41
Ashley Garcia: 441, Rank 56
Yurianna Schwyre: 398, Rank 107
Bai Yi: 292, Rank 152
Aria Spencer: 66, Rank 178
There were five main subjects: Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Social Studies, and Science.
Counting the transfer students from this semester, there were 178 students in the entire grade level, with a perfect score being 500.
"Ah, Old Gao, what''s wrong?! No, don''t pass out!"
"Hahaha, I passed! I passed!"
"You bastard, what did you pass?!"
Every time the grades were posted, the students always had an endless supply of dramatic performances.
These antics masked their true feelings upon seeing their scores, leaving it unknown who was genuinely happy and who was secretly distressed.
In Linmen, exam grades weren''t exactly the deciding factor in life, but Far Moon Academy still placed quite a bit of importance on them.
Although the schooling systems were identical, there was still a massive disparity between the various institutions in Linmen.
They had completely different educational goals and policies.
For example, the college students in the South Ward lived rather happily day by day, carefree and worried about nothing, at most occasionally visiting the community clinic to get checked for gonorrhea, syphilis, or the like.
But the two schools in the Kyogo Ward, Far Moon and Shuurei Academy, were clearly designed to cultivate the next generation of a specific social stratum, which meant their demands were numerous and strict.
"President, you''re first place again. Congratulations."
Beside him, Sakuramiya Hitomi clapped her hands silently, offering her praises.
Yan Huan simply smiled. In truth, his gaze wasn''t on his own name at all; he was scanning the bottom half of the list.
He was looking for the two known modifier hosts in the same grade as him.
Bai Yi, Aria Spencer...
He searched the top for a good while without success, only to find them holding a little reunion together on the very last page.
Bai Yi''s poor grades were actually quite understandable.
Due to her work as an idol, she only came to school occasionally. She might manage perfect attendance when she was free, but the rest of the time, she was on leave.
This was also the reason why Yan Huan hadn''t recognized her at first glance when he saw her using the modifier last week.
Not to mention, she had run over to draw illegible scribbles on Zhou Bin''s face halfway through the math exam. Looking at her score, it didn''t seem like she had finished her paper early either.
Losing a massive chunk of points by dropping mathematics altogether was perfectly normal.
But what about you, the blonde named Aria Spencer?
A total score of 66.
With an average of around 13 points per subject, Yan Huan could only say...
It was absolutely appalling.
Picking the same answer for every multiple-choice question would have yielded a higher score. She was over a hundred points behind the second-to-last place. God only knew what she was keeping on top of her neck.
Perhaps she was just riding on a lucky streak of sixes.
"Alright, everyone! We''ll take this down by the end of the day, and emails will be sent out shortly after... sob..."
At that moment, Yurianna shouted loudly, standing with her hands on her hips beneath the blackboard.
However, her teary eyes, forced smile, and feigned composure, combined with her trembling body, made for a rather comical sight.
One glance was enough to tell: she had bombed the exams too.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Secretary Yurianna, never thought we''d see the day?!"
"You''re the worst student in the entire Student Council!"
"It''s okay! Because our Secretary is so cute, we''ll still vote for you next year!"
Hearing this, rather than cheering up, Yurianna pouted and burst into loud wails.
"Waaaaah! Being elected just because I''m cute... why doesn''t that make me happy at all?! It feels... it feels like I''m just the Student Council''s mascot..."
The students in the courtyard immediately burst into laughter. Watching from the second floor, Yan Huan and Sakuramiya Hitomi could only shake their heads.
Right then, a female teacher wearing glasses approached them from behind and said with a smile,
"Yan Huan, Sakuramiya, please come this way. The Principal would like to speak with you."
"..."
Yan Huan and Sakuramiya Hitomi exchanged a glance, withdrawing their attention from the farce below. Neither of them had any idea what kind of scheme that old monster was cooking up this time.
"President Yan, Vice President Sakuramiya, I am delighted to see that under your leadership, the Student Council delivered an almost perfect performance last semester."
Principal Hermes sat on the sofa, beaming at Yan Huan and Sakuramiya Hitomi with a smile so wide his wrinkled face looked like a blooming chrysanthemum.
''This guy definitely got bribed with money again.''
Yan Huan and Sakuramiya Hitomi secretly exchanged a glance, the exact same thought popping into their heads simultaneously.
"It''s all thanks to everyone''s support and willingness to cooperate with our work..."
Yan Huan smiled faintly, taking the initiative to skip past Hermes''s empty flattery.
"More importantly, Principal, is there a specific reason you called us here so early?"
"It''s like this..."
Hermes beckoned to his assistant nearby, took a few documents, and handed them over as he spoke,
"Prominent companies like Ye International and the Jinshi Group have recently been paying close attention to our students'' development. They''ve provided the school with a batch of internship quotas for this summer vacation, covering various departments and fields. You can take these back and look at the details."
The documents contained company introductions, grade quotas, and other information.
Yan Huan took them and gave them a quick scan, already understanding the true nature of these papers.
There were many students in the school without strong backgrounds. These internships were resources that would give them an edge when applying for universities in the future.
At the end of the day, gaining access to these resources was exactly why Yan Huan worked part-time to afford his tuition at Far Moon Academy.
With that in mind, Yan Huan asked Hermes,
"So, how will these specific quotas be distributed..."
"Students will first submit their applications to the Student Council. Before the semester ends, the Student Council will submit a finalized list to the Principal''s Office, and we will simply review it."
The review process typically focused on three areas: GPA, participation in student public affairs, and conduct records.
These three records were simultaneously supervised and managed by three separate school administrative departments: the Academic Affairs Office, the Student Affairs Office, and the Disciplinary Department. It wasn''t something the Student Council could manipulate on a whim.
"I understand. We will notify the students about this later."
Hermes nodded with a smile, then turned and retrieved another sheet of paper.
For some reason, watching him pull out that paper gave Yan Huan the distinct feeling of Jing Ke presenting the map—a hidden dagger was definitely waiting inside.
"There is one more thing, Yan Huan. Previous Student Councils have always organized academic assistance programs for the students, but because participation was purely voluntary, the results haven''t been very good..."
Peer tutoring, at its core, was just encouraging high-achieving students to help those with poor GPAs, all under the guidance of the Student Council.
But thinking about it logically, since it was completely voluntary for both parties, it would be a miracle if it actually worked.
Why would the top students go out of their way to do extra work, and why would the poor performers want to humiliate themselves in front of their peers?
Therefore...
"So this year, the Academic Affairs Office hopes the Student Council will take the lead and run a pilot tutoring program to promote the relaunch of this initiative."
Hermes slid the paper over to Yan Huan. It contained a list of student names.
"Basically, we want to mandate that a small number of extremely behind students join a Study Group to set an example. We''ll encourage top students to lend a helping hand by giving them priority consideration when they apply for scholarships or quota reviews."
The map was unrolled, and the dagger was revealed.
''No wonder he handed over the internship quota list first. He was waiting to spring this on us, huh?''
Beside him, Sakuramiya Hitomi frowned slightly. She glanced at the list and noticed several surnames that were quite famous in Linmen.
She roughly understood what the school board was scheming, but she remained silent, waiting for Yan Huan to speak.
Yan Huan had originally planned to just play along to avoid disrespecting the Principal.
He''d do the promotions, announce the initiative, and call it a day. As for how well it was actually executed, that was another story entirely.
But as his eyes swept over the page, he quickly spotted two familiar names. "Bai Yi" — Recommended to join.
"Aria Spencer" — Mandatory to join.
Spencer''s name was even highlighted in red.
Oh?
Earlier, he had been wondering how to exploit the favor he had promised Spencer.
Wasn''t this the perfect opportunity falling right into his lap?
''Excellent, they''ve both fallen right into my hands.''
Yan Huan''s gaze lingered slightly on those two names.
Sakuramiya Hitomi pretty much knew what Yan Huan was going to say, but after waiting a long time, he still hadn''t spoken.
Inevitably, she turned to look at him.
She saw Yan Huan staring at Aria Spencer''s name on the list, slightly dazed, as if he were hesitating.
That name...
Last night, still worried about the blonde girl who had shattered her barrier with a single kick, she had looked into her.
Aria Spencer was exactly the name of that blonde girl.
''Why is the President looking at her name with such a strange expression?''
''Why on earth?!''
''Just what exactly happened between the two of them yesterday afternoon?''
"President?"
Anxious thoughts swirling, Sakuramiya Hitomi hurriedly called out to Yan Huan.
"...Understood. I''ll notify the relevant students shortly. I''ll take personal charge of this matter."
''Taking... taking charge voluntarily?''
Hermes blinked. Looking at the smiling Yan Huan in front of him, the grin on his face grew even more pronounced.
"That is wonderful news, Yan Huan. I will leave this entirely in your hands. If you run into any issues, feel free to contact me at any time."
"..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi''s pink lips parted slightly, and her hands couldn''t help but grip the hem of her skirt.
''First it was that older sister named Ye Shiyu, and now it''s this Spencer.''
''If the President is especially gentle because he sees Ye Shiyu as family...''
''Then what about this blonde woman?''
''Her personality seems so obnoxious, and it doesn''t look like she''d get along well with the President at all. So why did he hesitate when he saw her name?''
''No, Sakuramiya Hitomi, don''t overthink this.''
''Maybe the gentle and kind President just wants to help a student with bad grades.''
''Besides, even if the President tutors her personally, it''s not a big deal, right?''
''This is all perfectly normal...''
''Nor...''
Sakuramiya Hitomi was just about to breathe a sigh of relief when her pupils suddenly contracted, and a surge of fiery anger instantly ignited within her.
''Normal my foot!!''
''Why am I suddenly having these thoughts?!''
''Where did this idea even come from?!''
"Well then, that will be all. Thank you both for your time this morning. You may head back to class now."
"Understood, Principal."
Yan Huan stood up with the documents in hand, but Sakuramiya Hitomi remained seated beside him, prompting him to raise an eyebrow.
"Sakuramiya?"
"Huh?"
Sakuramiya Hitomi snapped out of her daze and belatedly stood up.
"Sorry, President..."
Deep down, an instinct made Sakuramiya Hitomi increasingly certain.
''That girl named Spencer absolutely did something to the President behind my back.''
Following behind Yan Huan, Sakuramiya Hitomi''s face instantly turned ice-cold, looking almost murderous.
''Stay calm...''
''Stay calm, Sakuramiya Hitomi.''
She began to console herself inwardly.
''A matter succeeds through secrecy and fails through loose lips...''
''I need to hide it well. I can''t break formation now...''
''Who cares about Ye Shiyu or Spencer? As long as I stay hidden, plot secretly, and reveal no flaws...''
''One day, the President will become someone only I can see, someone no one else can steal away...''
''Mine exclusively!''
"Achoo!"
Class 1-C, classroom.
Spencer sneezed loudly, simultaneously blowing down the house of cards she had painstakingly built on her desk.
"...Who is cursing me? Could it be that Santa Claus found out I swore at him last year?"
Spencer rubbed her chin, proposing what she believed to be the most likely conclusion.
But very quickly, she gave up on pondering the issue.
She pouted, seeming rather unhappy.
Ever since yesterday, Spencer had been dealing with an annoyance.
For some unknown reason, her classmates... no, it seemed like everyone around her found her repulsive.
She had only transferred a day ago and hadn''t done anything.
When she tried to strike up a conversation, they would just awkwardly exchange a polite word or two.
When she asked for help, they would pretend not to hear and then make up an excuse to leave.
During the free-play period in yesterday''s basketball class, she wanted to form a team, but the students actively avoided her the moment they saw her, forcing her to play all by herself.
At the end of class, everyone was supposed to gather in the gymnasium and return the balls to the equipment room together, but since she had just transferred, she didn''t know anything.
The others had trickled away one after another, and no one bothered to inform her what she needed to do.
She had headed back to the teaching building first, found no one there, and then awkwardly walked all the way back to return her ball, only to find the door already locked.
That was why she was furious enough to kick down the door to the equipment room, which led to her stumbling right into Yan Huan and that girl doing bad things inside...
Even though she had managed to grab hold of his weakness, Spencer was still incredibly displeased.
"Ring ring ring~"
As the class bell rang, their math teacher, Zhou Bin, walked through the door of Class C.
Zhou Bin, known as the "Model Worker of the Math Department," was famous for his strict, impersonal demeanor.
However, mathematics was a rigorous subject to begin with, and he taught it exceptionally well. At least, Yan Huan thought so.
This semester, he was responsible for teaching first-year Classes B, C, and D, as well as an afternoon math elective.
People from the Dragon Country were fiercely competitive no matter where they went, and for some reason, parents in Linmen had a lot of faith in Dragon Country natives teaching math.
At the moment, Zhou Bin was wearing a loose dark-blue T-shirt, which was pushed out slightly by his protruding belly.
On his chest hung a cross, his left hand was wrapped in red talismans, and on his right wrist, he wore a prayer beads bracelet.
With the blessing of all these artifacts, his bald head, which reflected the sunlight, seemed to radiate a holy, Buddha-like glow.
''Amen, Heavenly Lord of Boundless Fortune, Amitabha...''
''Please protect me and help me escape from the ghost from last Friday.''
Zhou Bin rubbed the talisman band on his wrist with his fingers, then completely dropped his usual sternness. Forcing an incredibly ugly smile, he said to the students below,
"My dear students, good morning to you all. Let''s take out our textbooks first and turn to page fifteen, alright..."
"..."
Everyone''s eyes widened, staring blankly at Zhou Bin on the podium.
It was as if they were looking at a monster mimicking Zhou Bin.
Zhou Bin adjusted his glasses, his smile not reaching his eyes, and repeated,
"My dear students?"
"Oh, oh, oh..."
Zhou Bin seemed to believe that last Friday''s supernatural event occurred because he was usually too strict, which caused the students'' accumulated resentment to manifest into a vengeful ghost.
Everyone took out their books, leaving only Spencer sitting there at a loss.
She glanced at the textbooks everyone else was looking at, then rummaged through her own school bag.
A quick peek inside revealed: manga, a laptop, snacks, a power bank...
She slapped her forehead.
She seemed to have forgotten to bring her books!
Crossing her arms, she looked around and noticed that the seat next to hers was still empty.
The owner of that seat had gone off somewhere and hadn''t yet returned for class.
It seemed to belong to someone named... An Le?
A very busty girl.
Spencer spotted the textbook on her desk at a glance. After a second of thought, she naturally reached over and took it.
Following Zhou Bin''s instructions, she turned to page fifteen. Looking at the contents, which appeared like an alien language to her, she tilted her head.
She lowered her head and leaned in closer to read the text carefully.
A few seconds later, Spencer''s deeply furrowed little face looked like it was about to overload.
Then, she let out a massive yawn, suddenly looking completely listless.
She was sleepy.
Plus, it was incredibly boring.
Bored out of her mind, she spread An Le''s book out on the desk.
However, she hadn''t anticipated that such a simple motion would cause a bookmark tucked between the pages to slide out.
"Huh, what''s this?"
Spencer tilted her head, curiosity shining in her eyes.
She reached out and picked up the crumpled cardboard bookmark, only to see crooked, almost childishly immature handwriting that read:
"Yan Huan and An Le will be together forever."
The handwriting for the two halves of the sentence was completely different, making it seem as though it had been written jointly by two people.
Reading the text written on it, Spencer''s utterly bored expression suddenly froze.
Then, it gradually melted away as her eyes slowly widened in shock.
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