Chapter 120: Fame

"This is just insane..."

In Class One's classroom.

Lin Xiuhong sat in Ying Chanxi's seat, holding the report card, staring at the increasingly unbelievable scores, unable to suppress a sigh inside.

With such a report card in hand, she didn't know how to respond.

Nine subjects, seven of them ranked first in the entire school, including perfect scores in math, physics, and chemistry.

Total score: 1050. Ying Chanxi scored 1014, losing only 36 points across all nine subjects combined.

That tiny amount of lost points, back in Li Luo's day, wouldn't have been enough for him to lose in just one subject.

Pulling out Ying Chanxi's exam paper, every single question was marked with a red check, hardly any crosses—just pleasing to the eye.

Even though Teacher Sun, who was hosting the parent meeting, had a gloomy expression and warned several parents whose children's scores had dropped sharply, Lin Xiuhong had no fear of being called out.

She even hoped to be called out.

After all, anything mentioned about Ying Chanxi was bound to be praise.

The worst it might get was a follow-up: "Her Chinese composition had a minor issue with topic interpretation this time—pay attention next time."

Then nothing else—only praise, all praise.

Curious, Lin Xiuhong flipped through Ying Chanxi's composition.

The composition topic this time was about friendship during student years—a fairly ordinary prompt.

But Ying Chanxi, who scored only 42 out of 60 on her composition, had clearly underperformed—on any other student, this might've been average, but for Ying Chanxi, it was a failure.

Half of the 36 total points lost were deducted from the composition.

"Besides Ying Chanxi, whom I've already praised countless times, there's another student I must highlight."

Teacher Sun adjusted his glasses, looking at the parents below, their expressions slightly stirred with anticipation, and said flatly, "But unfortunately, the student I wish to praise is not from our class, so he has nothing to do with any of you parents."

"But there is one point I think everyone should realize."

"That is, entering the elite class doesn't guarantee victory."

"It doesn't mean that once you're in Class One, Qianjiang University is assured—over the years, many students from Class One have fallen behind during high school. We must remain vigilant."

Here, Teacher Sun paused, then picked up a list of the school's overall rankings and addressed the parents: "Of the top 40 students in the entire school this time, our Class One holds only 26 spots."

"Fourteen students have been pushed out of the top 40, overtaken by students from Classes Two through Four."

"But that's not the main point."

"The main point is this student I'm about to mention: Li Luo, total score 954, ranked 27th in the entire school."

Here, Teacher Sun paused again, glancing at the parents' reactions.

Many parents showed little reaction—after all, their own children had scored higher than this Li Luo, so it wasn't particularly surprising.

But the next second, Teacher Sun added: "This student named Li Luo is not from the elite class—he's from the regular class, Class Eight."

"He is also the only regular-class student to make it into the school's top 40 this midterm."

"Ladies and gentlemen, think carefully: your children were admitted through selective enrollment, yet within just a few months, they've been overtaken by a student from the regular class. We all need to reflect on why."

To be honest, many parents in Class One had grown accustomed to their children's excellence.

So parents whose children ranked in the top 30 felt little impact.

But the parents of children pushed out of the top 40 now wore serious expressions, listening intently to the homeroom teacher's words.

Yet at this very moment, the most stunned person in the room at Teacher Sun's announcement was Lin Xiuhong, here for Ying Chanxi's parent meeting.

Lin Xiuhong was completely frozen.

She thought she'd misheard.

Or perhaps this Li Luo Teacher Sun mentioned was just someone with the same name as her son?

Lin Xiuhong was filled with doubt, but as Ying Chanxi's parent, she couldn't just ask outright.

Fortunately, Ying Chanxi, who was assisting Teacher Sun in hosting the meeting, had already stepped up beside him, curiously glancing at the list.

After confirming Li Luo's name, she smiled knowingly, slipped quietly over to Lin Xiuhong, and excitedly told her the good news:

"Lin Yi, it's true—Li Luo did really well this time."

Honestly, Ying Chanxi herself hadn't been this excited even after scoring first place.

Now, because Teacher Sun had publicly praised Li Luo, her face was lit up with unrestrained joy.

"Really?" Lin Xiuhong still doubted, unable to believe Li Luo had scored so high—ranked 27th in the entire school!

Remember, when Li Luo ranked 86th in the high school entrance exam, Lin Xiuhong had already thought their ancestral tomb was smoking with good fortune.

Now, even with 160 elite-class students who hadn't taken the entrance exam, Li Luo had climbed to 27th place.

This wasn't just ancestral smoke—it was ancestral radiant light.

"It's true," Ying Chanxi insisted. "There's only one Li Luo in Class Eight—who else could it be?"

"Oh my... my heart's pounding!" Lin Xiuhong's hands trembled with excitement. "When did this kid get so good...?"

Earlier, Lin Xiuhong had worried—after all, when Li Luo's uncle came over for dinner, he'd specifically warned them to advise Li Luo not to write Online Novels and waste his studies.

Lin Xiuhong had indeed shared that concern.

But faced with Li Luo's monthly royalty income of over ten thousand yuan, and his promise to her and her husband, she'd chosen to believe him once more.

Originally, Lin Xiuhong had thought: if Li Luo could just make it into the top 300 this time, that would be enough.

With three more years of hard work, and Ying Chanxi keeping an eye on him, maybe he'd have a shot at Qianjiang University.

But Lin Xiuhong never imagined her son wasn't just making the top 300.

He'd blasted straight into the top 30!

Even the homeroom teacher of the elite Class One had to specifically mention him—and praise her son.

In the past, when Li Luo was in school, Lin Xiuhong had never received such treatment at a parent meeting.

Now, attending Ying Chanxi's parent meeting, she'd truly won big.

He could also enjoy the superiority of being the parent of the top student in the entire school, and be praised by other homeroom teachers for his son across classes.

Truly a two-for-one deal.

"But it's still thanks to XiXi's usual tutoring—if not for you, he wouldn't have scored so high," Lin Xiuhong happily gripped Ying Chanxi's hand and whispered, "With you always keeping an eye on him, I feel so much more at ease."

"Lin Yi, you're too modest—it's all I should do," Ying Chanxi smiled shyly. "And mostly it's Li Luo's own effort; I just helped him review a little."

……

On the other side, in Class Eight's classroom.

Although he hadn't experienced the thrill of being the parent of the grade's top student, Li Guohong's mood was no worse than Lin Xiuhong's.

Especially when Teacher Kong spoke from the stage, he would occasionally mention Li Luo.

After all, Li Luo wasn't just an excellent student—he ranked first in the class, and was also the class monitor, responsible for many tasks.

Almost every topic of conversation circled back to mentioning Li Luo, leaving Li Guohong floating on cloud nine, his smile barely contained.

Especially since Yan Zhusheng's mother kept chatting with him, asking for parenting advice and inquiring about many things regarding Li Luo.

Seeing that face so strikingly similar to the idol Yuan Wanqing, and in his current euphoric state, Li Guohong let his guard down and shared everything about Li Luo from childhood to now.

Thus, Yuan Wanqing effortlessly gained a thorough understanding of Li Luo's exact circumstances.

As the time neared ten in the morning, after the final free Q&A and exchange session of the parent meeting ended, Kong Junxiang said from the stage:

"Next, our class's vice monitor and student council members will lead everyone on a tour around the school."

"You'll get to see our learning environment, club activities, and some of the school's basic facilities."

Upon hearing Kong Junxiang's words, Li Luo, who had been standing at the back of the classroom, quickly stepped onto the stage and whispered to him: "Teacher Kong, I'll head to the rock band club first."

"Mm, go ahead," Kong Junxiang smiled. "I'll join the other teachers at the gymnasium later—looking forward to your performance."

Li Luo nodded with a smile and walked out of the classroom.

He happened to bump into Ying Chanxi, who was leading the Class One parents downstairs for the tour, along with Lin Xiuhong among the parents.

Ying Chanxi, around the corner, spotted Li Luo at once, quickly told the fellow student helping guide the group, then ran over.

"You're quick," Li Luo glanced at Lin Xiuhong in the crowd—his mother's face glowed with pride; clearly, she'd been praised plenty.

Ying Chanxi smiled sweetly and gave Li Luo a firm slap on the shoulder: "You did well—didn't disappoint my expectations."

"You knew already?" Li Luo raised an eyebrow. "I hadn't even had a chance to brag yet."

"Please," Ying Chanxi rolled her eyes. "Our Teacher Sun already did all the bragging for you. You have no idea how much Teacher Sun praised you during the parent meeting—Lin Yi was overjoyed."

"Huh?" Li Luo froze, then sighed heavily. "I was waiting until lunch to brag to Mom myself—now Teacher Sun ruined it all."

"How childish," Ying Chanxi grumbled, then grinned. "Show some of the grace befitting the 27th-ranked student in the whole school. Try harder next time—see if you can beat me."

"Don't joke around," Li Luo pulled at his lips.

He had already seen the school-wide ranking from Kong Junxiang—Ying Chanxi's total score was 1014; he had no idea how she had managed to achieve that.

Li Luo had given his absolute best on the exam, even bringing his Memory Palace as a tool.

Yet he still only ranked 27th in the entire school, proving just how insane the students ahead of him were.

And Ying Chanxi, who led second place by a full 16 points—how otherworldly was she?

It felt like this gap couldn't be bridged even by the Memory Palace.

Talent, sometimes, really was just unreasonable.

"Alright, I still have to lead the tour," Ying Chanxi patted Li Luo's shoulder. "You're heading to the rock band club, right? You'll be performing soon."

"Mm," Li Luo nodded. "I'm on my way."

"Then go quick," Ying Chanxi turned and sprinted toward the Class One parents, then turned back halfway, waving at him. "Do your best!"