“Sister Ning Li must’ve done better in the exam, right?” Ye Ci asked.
There were many teachers in the office. All three of them had been called there, yet they had announced Ye Ci’s results first.
Ye Ci thought, ‘Perhaps Ning Li and Pei Song’s results aren’t as good as mine…’
“Yes,” Zhou Fei suddenly spoke.
At the mention of Ning Li, the smile on his face became much more genuine.
He enunciated word by word, “First. In. The. Province. Of course, there’s no better achievement than that!”
Ye Ci’s smile suddenly froze.
‘Ning Li got first in the province?!’
“Pei Song also did very well in the exam with only one point lower than Ning Li, so he’s ranked second in the province.”
When he mentioned his star pupils, Zhou Fei’s face was filled with pride and honor.
These outstanding students had been taught by him, so naturally, he was happy.
Sun Quan and the others were a little jealous.
Zhou Fei was extremely young and had only been a teacher at Second High for a short time, but he had proven to be a great teacher.
In the beginning, when they heard that he had been asked to lead the competitive physics class, many teachers had opposed it, especially a few of the experienced veteran teachers. They were all unimpressed.
However, the principal had insisted, so they had no choice but to comply.
As a result, Zhou Fei’s class had produced the first, second, and fifth rankings in the province!
All from their school!
How many high schools were there in the province? How many students had participated in this competition?
They had actually taken up three out of the five slots.
Such a record would surely make them the envy of other schools.
This achievement alone would be enough for Second High and Zhou Fei to brag about for several years to come.
If not, the school would not be this excited.
Ye Ci’s face flushed red.
Only now did she realize that the teachers had only announced her results first because they were the most surprised by it.
Ning Li and Pei Song’s results in this physics competition were considered a “normal occurrence”.
To the teachers, Ye Ci and the two geniuses were on completely different levels.
Ye Ci then recalled the way Ning Li had said “congratulations” earlier and felt even more irritated.
Ning Li got first place in the province, yet she had congratulated Ye Ci. Was she being sarcastic?
“That’s great! Mom and Dad will be very happy when they find out.”
Ye Ci had paused for a while to think before she finally said something.
Ning Li raised her eyebrows lightly.
It was hard to say whether Su Yuan and Ye Ming would be happy or not. In any case, all she could see was that Ye Ci was not very delighted.
Sun Quan and the others did not notice this subtle shift in mood.
To them, this was a big win for the school.
“Yes, remember to tell everyone in your family about this good news when you get home! Also, you guys will have to prepare for the national finals.” Geng Haifan reminded them.
These words finally pulled back Ye Ci’s thoughts.
She looked up in a daze.
“The national finals?”
“Yes.” Zhou Fei gently tapped the table with one finger. “I mentioned it to you guys before, remember? The students who get into the top five in the province will be the provincial representatives and will participate in the national finals early March of next year. By that time, you won’t just be representing Second High or Yunzhou, but the whole province.”
At the mention of this, several of the teachers’ faces turned serious.
Ye Ci vaguely felt that something was off, but she could not pinpoint it.
Zhou Fei continued, “The certificates for this provincial competition will be delivered to you soon, and the good news will officially be announced tomorrow. After that, you’ll have to focus on the national competition. If you can win a prize in the national finals, it would basically be a guaranteed admission to the top colleges and universities.”
This speech moved Ye Ci.
She wanted to get into Xijing University, but with her last midterm results, she was afraid that it would be a little difficult.
Placing fifth in the provincial competition earned her a few extra credits for the college entrance examination. Although this was good, it still could not guarantee her a spot in one of the best universities in the country.
‘If I can do well at the national finals…’
Ye Ci nodded her head seriously and said, “Thank you, Mr. Zhou. We’ll definitely work hard.”
Zhou Fei gave her a look and nodded in response.
He was actually still skeptical about Ye Ci’s achievements.
However, without evidence, he would not simply say anything.
“Also, during the winter holidays, you’ll need to set aside two weeks to attend the intensive training in the Capital. Everyone okay with that?”
Ning Li and Pei Song both nodded their heads. “No problem.”
They had both prepared for this a long time ago.
Ye Ci froze for a moment.
She had never thought that she could achieve this ranking, so she had never thought about the intensive training during the winter break.
Hearing what Zhou Fei said, she hurriedly replied, “No problem, Mr. Zhou.”
Zhou Fei nodded his head in satisfaction.
“Great! You guys can head back first. Adjust your mental state to prepare for the national finals. I’ll rearrange your study content and progress.”
“Thank you, Mr. Zhou.”
…
The three students left the office one after another.
Ye Ci sent a text to her parents before catching up to Ning Li.
“Sister Ning Li, I just told Mom and Dad the news. They’re both very happy and said that they will be hosting a celebration party this Saturday night. What do you think?”
The corners of Ning Li’s lips seemed to be smiling.
‘Isn’t it a bit too late to ask for my opinion when you’ve already shared the news and the decision to have a party has already been made?’
However, Ning Li did not mind it.
“Sure.”
Ye Ci blinked in surprise. “Then when the time comes…will you attend?”
The last time at Su Yuan’s birthday party, it had been so unpleasant that they were all still traumatized.
Who knows if Ning Li would be willing to cooperate with this celebration party.
Ning Li glanced with a faint smile.
“Don’t worry. It’s a good thing, so of course, I’ll be there.”
Knowing the Ye family’s style, they would host a big celebration to announce to the world that their daughter was ranked fifth in the province.
‘That’s great. The grander, the better.’
Seeing Ning Li’s honest response, Ye Ci felt relieved.
However, upon thinking further, Ye Ci felt a slight feeling of disdain.
How could Ning Li not care about this?
With this achievement, Ning Li would get more attention from her mother as well, right?
Being the first in the province would also be a good debut for her at the party.
“Okay, then I’ll reply to them.” Ye Ci said as she took out her phone and fell behind.
Ning Li continued to walk towards the classroom.
By this time, classes had already begun at the senior building, so there was no one else in the corridor except them.
Suddenly, Pei Song, who had been walking in front of them, slowed down his pace and glanced sideways at Ning Li, who had just happened to catch up.
They had arrived at the back door of their classroom.
The front and back doors were closed, so the people in the classroom could not see what was happening in the corridor.
Pei Song stood still and looked at Ning Li.
The young man’s posture was lean and straight. His expression was as distant as ever, and the light in his eyes behind his thin lenses was cold and indistinct, like a fog that shrouded her.
He said, “Ning Li, congratulations.”
