Chapter 276: I

In the afternoon, Tao Ran carried in a set of comprehensive science exam papers from the office.

"Cough, cough, clear your desks."

Halfway through the exam, the students in Class Three realized no proctor was present, and immediately grew restless.

"What the hell, this crap exam is getting more and more lax?"

"I'm not writing anymore. Just copy a bit."

"I'm not writing either."

Yu Tongjie glanced at the group shouting, and deeply agreed with them.

If no one is proctoring, what's the point of the exam?

In the end, it's just a practice session—no need to be so tense.

Thinking this, he relaxed completely.

In a blink, two classes passed.

Even though two-thirds of the exam time had passed, he'd barely started the first big chemistry question. Was there enough time? Definitely not.

But did it matter? No matter.

It was just a practice session; everyone was copying and faking it.

Suddenly, he heard someone ask a question.

"Li Hua, finished yet?"

"Just two questions left."

"I'm almost done too. Pass me your answers later."

In an instant, a thunderclap flashed through Yu Tongjie's mind. He looked down at his blank answer sheet, his lips trembling involuntarily.

Liar!

Fuck, is there any truth left in this class?

The bell rang.

Jiang Nian was already writing the physics big question, estimating: one class left—he could still squeeze in the skipped problems.

Racing against time, he was delighted.

These days, you've got to move fast to do anything.

He sneakily glanced at Li Qingrong and saw she was also writing the physics big question. He thought to himself: I'm improving—I'm keeping pace with the monitor.

The comprehensive science exam flew by; in a blink, it was over.

Jiang Nian stared at his answer sheet again and again, desperate to scrape out even one more point. He struggled until the final second before handing it in.

Will it be graded?

Hard to say.

Maybe if you don't hand it in, it'll be graded; if you do, the whole class might swap and grade each other.

Li Qingrong packed her stationery, stealing a glance at Jiang Nian. He had already moved to the back rows; her seat was in the first row of the second group.

They were no longer front-and-back desk partners—now separated by the width of the classroom.

She kept her head down, packing quietly, her gaze dim and distant.

The comprehensive science exam took only three classes, but a short self-study period remained. Students from every Gao San floor flooded the halls to use the restroom, the corridors bustling.

Jiang Nian returned from the restroom and went straight back to the classroom.

The hallway was too crowded and cold; after the temperature dropped, the wind blew and turned you into an idiot. Only Liu Yang and his group were still chatting there, coats wide open, choosing style over warmth.

Boys are like this—the colder it is, the more they show off.

Their fighting spirit depends on the volume of surrounding cheers and the number of pretty girls within a few meters. If no pretty girls, don't bother—it hurts your health.

The back door closed. Jiang Nian glanced at Zhang Nenzhi and immediately added mischief.

"Aren't you going to the restroom?"

Zhang Nenzhi still wore Jiang Nian's school uniform—the clothes she'd brought at noon. But seeing Jiang Nian wasn't wearing his, she'd decided to repurpose it.

At that moment, she was bent over her desk doing homework. Hearing him, she turned her head toward Jiang Nian.

"Who the hell are you to care?"

Seeing this, Jiang Nian felt a pang of guilt.

Shit, I've pushed the good kid too far—she's snapped.

Zhi Bao has clearly evolved from "Don't bully me" mode into "I really want to punch you" red mode—from "you're bad" to "you're dead!"

This isn't a good sign. After all, she's the classmate you can see when you lift your head and kiss when you lower it. If you push her too far, you'll have no good outcome yourself.

Precisely speaking—you'll be eating northwest wind.

"Actually, I'm a grateful person," Jiang Nian said.

"Are you?" Zhang Nenzhi expressed doubt, though she hadn't shut down communication, "Tell me—who brought your lunch to the cafeteria door at noon?"

"You did."

"Then why," she began, but her small brain couldn't find the right word—she couldn't say xp—"you defy your superior and forget your debt of gratitude!"

"Your servant deserves death, but if you execute my son Li Hua, I'll suffer more," Jiang Nian's principles were flexible; he turned to search for Li Hua.

Coincidentally, Li Hua walked over carrying drinks, preparing to distribute them. Seeing Jiang Nian and Zhang Nenzhi both staring at him, he immediately felt something was wrong.

These two bickered daily and had been scheming together for days. Was this the moment they'd united against him?

As he handed out drinks, Li Hua asked.

"Why are you staring at me?"

Zhang Nenzhi thought for a moment, then replied.

"Jiang Nian says he's sentencing you to death."

"Chi Shi, don't drag me into your little show." Li Hua was fed up, twisted open his drink and took a sip.

He thought again about losing a week's worth of drinks, and immediately felt heartbroken, vowing never to gamble with Jiang Nian again.

At that moment, Ceng You returned.

He sat down, twisted open the 【Li Hua Daily Drink】, let out a puff, took a sip, then thanked both Jiang Nian and Li Hua.

Finally, Ceng You glanced at Li Hua and asked curiously.

"Group leader, was that guy who stood in the bathroom for ages without peeing you?"

Pfft!

Li Hua spat out his drink in a spray, coughing uncontrollably.

"Cough cough!! Fuck! Don't smear me like that!"

"Group leader, is your kidney bad?" Ceng You pressed on.

"I'm speechless. I didn't go to the bathroom." Li Hua stood up, trying to escape the embarrassment, "It's too hot. I'm going outside to catch some wind."

Ceng You said, "I took a photo."

Li Hua froze in his steps, nearly fainting.

"Bro, that's the men's restroom—what the hell were you doing?"

Jiang Nian watched the whole thing, his face nearly split from laughing.

The group's moral floor hit a new low. Ceng You was utterly without decency—but he delivered entertainment. Whatever you wished for appeared; wasn't this another lucky omen?

"My proud Huazi is probably ruined."

Li Hua saw Jiang Nian still stoking the fire, his anger boiling over.

"Chi Shi! Chi Shi! A bunch of perverts!"

As more students returned to the classroom, Cai Xiaoqing began enforcing discipline.

"Quiet. Return to your seats and study."

The comprehensive science exam was over, meaning the weekly test was finished.

Because everyone dawdled after the exam, the already short self-study session ended after only a few minutes.

Hu Nianzhong stood up, glancing at Yu Tongjie, who was slumped over his desk.

Though he didn't fully understand why the guy had collapsed, at least he was spared the trouble of being questioned—the money didn't need to stay in his hands long.

After all, this wasn't some savings account for retirement; quick money in and out either meant huge profit or total loss.

It was still Lin Dong's platform, but Lin Dong had pulled out first, fearing exposure. He'd withdrawn at the time, but later secretly reinvested.

All the money—earnings and Yu Tongjie's contribution combined—totaled three thousand, all dumped in.

To be honest, if it blew up, he had no idea what he'd do.

Go downstairs.

The sky was dark. Hu Nianzhong tightened his school uniform.

He walked through the cold wind, blending into the crowd heading back to the dorms. These past two days, his mind had been unsettled, so he hadn't taken the weekly test seriously.

Yesterday he called home; his mother had fallen. Hospital expenses were partially reimbursed, but the rest was still unaffordable.

Luckily, his uncle had covered it—but that money had to be repaid.

Hu Nianzhong knew clearly: he was the family's only hope. As a future strong, young college student, he'd get a job someday—but the family couldn't hold on much longer.

College offered interest-free student loans, but the family still had no income. That meant enduring four more years of hardship—he didn't want to wait.

Back in the dorm, he lay on his bed, pulled out his phone, and checked his "assets" again.

The current situation: if he quit tonight, he'd leave with less than four thousand. Wait two more days, and he might leave with eight thousand.

Staring at the numbers on his screen, he fell into deep thought.

Creak—the dorm door opened.

Lin Dong looked up at the top bunk and saw Hu Nianzhong lying there.

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing. A bit sleepy." Hu Nianzhong dared not tell Lin Dong he was still gambling, so he feigned sleep, face down, "Big Brother Dong, have you eaten?"

"Later. Waiting for Ceng You and the others." Lin Dong was just bored, wandering dorms aimlessly. "Don't mind me. Sleep."

Lin Dong left. Hu Nianzhong collapsed back helplessly into his blanket.

He'd only meant to rest a moment, but ended up actually falling asleep. When he lifted his head, the dorm was empty, lights on—it was six o'clock.

"Shit, overslept."

Hu Nianzhong grabbed his clothes and rushed downstairs, planning to buy two steamed buns and head straight to class.

But when he stepped outside the north gate, it was pitch black. A few faint orange lights hung high above—the usual path home for those waiting for buses.

He walked out on impulse, suddenly wanting to go home. But it was only a thought—he ended up circling from the north gate all the way to the west gate, just to clear his head.

Unconsciously, a light rain began falling under the dim sky.

Hu Nianzhong wandered like a ghost, listlessly walking from the north gate. He looked up—he was already at the west gate. Evening self-study was about to begin; few students remained.

He checked the time and broke into a few quick steps.

Near the exit of a narrow alley, a blinding beam of light suddenly shot toward him. In that instant, his vision went completely white.

Screech!! —

A piercing brake screech, a scream—Hu Nianzhong felt his body struck by something. The world spun violently, then he crashed heavily to the ground.

Wait… did I get hurt?

He froze for a moment, turned his head—and saw Jiang Nian's face.

Evening self-study.

Jiang Nian glanced at the physics teacher at the podium, wrote out a classroom problem, then said to Li Hua.

"Hua, I've got something awesome to tell you."

This had become their standard opening line—whenever it appeared, it meant ten minutes of time would be swallowed.

Li Hua wore a look of indifference; he got caught chatting in the front row by the teacher. If he got caught chatting in the back row too, what was the point of sitting there?

Of course, his greatest confidence came from his near-perfect score in physics.

Even if the physics teacher on stage caught him chatting, he couldn't just say, "Chatting again?! You got a perfect score in physics?"

If he really said that, Li Hua would slide right up onto the stage.

"Bingguo! Bingguo!"

"Old man, you fucking got it right!"

"Go ahead, Father is all ears," Li Hua said calmly, having completely put aside the embarrassment of the afternoon.

What was wrong with his kidneys? It was just nerves.

Who the hell can pee when someone's watching? How can you blame yourself when there are so many people around?

Clearly not.