I Got Together With the Fake Heiress - Chapter 11

Under the joint suppression of Zhou Jun and Wen Yimeng, Wen Yunqing had limited room to struggle, only managing to secure one chance to prove herself.

If her grades reached the top fifty in the grade, she would be free to choose her own tutoring content. Until then, Wen Yunqing had to follow the study plan set by Zhou Jun.

Seeing that Wen Yimeng would be studying with her, Wen Yunqing reluctantly accepted the requirement and began the arduous path of studying.

At Wen Yimeng’s strong insistence, the daily tutoring fee was calculated based on two hours per day, and to save time, they directly pulled Zhou Jun over to eat with them.

“We are ordering food anyway; adding one more person just means one more bowl of rice. If you plan to calculate the cost, just charge me for the rice,” Wen Yimeng said.

Without waiting for Zhou Jun to argue back, Wen Yimeng blocked her other escape route: “However, a bowl of rice is only five yuan. If I quibble over those five yuan with you, it would make me seem very stingy.”

Since Wen Yimeng had covered all the bases, Zhou Jun could not press the issue further. She could only perform her duty as a tutor more diligently, strictly monitoring Wen Yunqing’s learning progress.

Regarding this, Wen Yunqing felt like the only victim. Looking at the extra exercise books piled on her desk, she had the urge to flee the school. Studying, truly, was the greatest suffering on earth!

“Yimeng, when did you and Zhou Jun become so close?” Li Ruolan, as Wen Yimeng’s regular lunch companion, felt like she had missed something. How could the situation be incomprehensible after just one weekend?

“My older female cousin hired Zhou Jun as her private tutor, and I also have questions I want to ask her, so I invited her to eat with us,” Wen Yimeng replied. “Ruolan, would you like to join us too?”

Tutoring? Li Ruolan shook her head. “My father hired a home tutor for me. I still prefer a formal teacher to instruct me.”

“Yimeng, although Zhou Jun’s academic performance is good, if you need tutoring, you should have Uncle Wen find a more reliable teacher.” Li Ruolan secretly looked down on Zhou Jun. She was just a poor student who got in based on her grades; her experience was limited and her outlook narrow—how could she be qualified to be her tutor?

“No need, I trust Zhou Jun,” Wen Yimeng said. Seeing Li Ruolan decline her suggestion, she didn’t say much more and focused on doing her problems quickly. Although she was only incidentally being tutored, Zhou Jun assigned rigorous learning tasks. To enjoy her authority over the teacher in the evening, she must finish these at school!

Li Ruolan frowned slightly. This wouldn’t do. She had finally managed to become Wen Yimeng’s best friend, and she couldn’t let Zhou Jun take her place. As for Wen Yunqing… Li Ruolan pursed her lips; she still needed some time to confirm exactly who she was.

Ruihua High was not like ordinary high schools, which had weekly single-subject tests or monthly ranking exams. At Ruihua, there were only two major examinations per semester: the mid-term exam and the final exam. Even for the third year, this was the setup for the first semester.

Before the mid-term exam that Wen Yunqing eagerly awaited, the once-a-year Autumn Sports Meet began.

“I’ve already picked up the registration forms. I hope everyone signs up enthusiastically,” the Sports Committee Member said, sounding excited, and smacked the desk. “Last year our class finished last; this year we must fight for some dignity! We must at least step on the people in Class Two!”

“Those bastards in Class Two! This year we absolutely have to beat them!” They might not care about academic scores because half of them were going abroad, but the Sports Meet results were different—the rankings were right there in black and white; they had to fight for honor, even if it was just to save face!

“The sprints will be handled by Brother Hao and me! The relays too!” A boy quickly spoke up.

“I’ll sign up for the high jump and long jump!” “I’ll do the shot put!” “I’ll run the long-distance race!”

Once the atmosphere was stirred up, by the end of the morning, the registration form was almost filled out, leaving only the two spots for the girls’ 3000-meter race unfilled.

“Hey, Classmate Zhou, New Classmate, are you considering signing up for the Sports Meet?” the Sports Committee Member approached with a smile. “Although only the two 3000-meter spots are left, based on my experience, as long as you persist to the end, you will definitely place.”

“Oh, right, our school’s Sports Meet has sponsors this year. The top three in each event receive cash prizes!” the Sports Committee Member added.

“How much is each prize?” Wen Yunqing asked.

“First place: five thousand; second place: three thousand; third place: one thousand!” the Sports Committee Member announced. This amount of money seemed small to these second- and third-generation wealthy students, but it was definitely attractive to a poor student like Zhou Jun.

Indeed, Zhou Jun looked very moved upon hearing the prize money. The 3000-meter race was a thankless event; generally, only poor students like her participated.

“Not bad. Then we’ll sign up,” Wen Yunqing said, noticing Zhou Jun’s moved expression. “Is there anything we need to fill out?”

“Wait a moment, I’ll write down your names first.” The Sports Committee Member immediately pulled out the form and wrote down the two names. “For easy contact, just write your contact information next to it.”

“Okay.” Wen Yunqing picked up her pen and wrote her number down twice. On the form, she also saw Wen Yimeng’s name; she had signed up for the high jump and the 100-meter dash.

Seeing the identical numbers, the Sports Committee Member raised an eyebrow. “The Sports Meet starts next Wednesday. There are still a few days left; you can practice a bit.”

“Classmate Zhou, since we need to prepare for the Sports Meet, how about we postpone the tutoring plan for a week?” As soon as the committee member mentioned the week, Wen Yunqing started looking for loopholes. These two weeks of study had been too painful! More uncomfortable than cultivating high-level techniques in her past life!

“That’s not possible. Postponing by a week means we’ll fall behind schedule,” Zhou Jun said with a serious face. “The Sports Meet lasts three days. There will be no classes during these three days. If Classmate Wen needs to prepare for the long run, I can concentrate this week’s tutoring plan into those three days.”

Was it better to suffer for seven days or three days?

“Alright, let’s move all the study tasks to the time of the Sports Meet then.” A long pain is worse than a short one; enduring for three days is better than enduring for seven.

“Ah, did you both sign up for the 3000 meters?” Wen Yimeng asked, somewhat surprised, while picking up a piece of pork rib and placing it in her bowl. “The 3000 meters means running seven and a half laps around the track.”

“Yes. I remember last year very few girls managed to finish; many turned to walking halfway through,” Li Ruolan said while sitting next to Wen Yimeng.

“That’s even better. If everyone walks, we can walk too,” Wen Yunqing didn’t think the 3000 meters was a problem. If her cultivation base were restored, a distance of 3000 meters would only take her a few seconds.

“… You’re not wrong to think that way,” Li Ruolan twitched the corner of her mouth, forcing a smile. “It’s just that it will be exhausting, and if you get injured because of it, the loss outweighs the gain.”

“Besides, Classmate Wen, you probably don’t lack the prize money either…” Li Ruolan said. “Sorry, I’m not implying that Classmate Zhou is only going for the prize money; I just feel that the effort and the reward are not equivalent.”

Wen Yunqing’s eyebrows lifted slightly, her gaze falling on Li Ruolan. “Classmate Li, has your hourly rate reached four thousand yet?”

“Ah?” Li Ruolan was stunned. “I don’t have an hourly rate.”

“Oh, so Classmate Li isn’t earning money yet,” Wen Yunqing’s eyes showed a hint of disdain. “I thought Classmate Li earned ten thousand yuan per hour, which is why you look down on the Sports Meet prize money.”

“What do you mean by that?” Li Ruolan realized the implication and became angry. “Classmate Wen, I was just giving you some kind advice; you don’t need to talk to me like that.”

“Hm?” Wen Yunqing tilted her head, looking at Wen Yimeng with feigned innocence. “Yimeng, did I say something wrong?”

Wen Yimeng awkwardly picked up a pork rib. What was going on? They were just signing up for a 3000-meter race, so why did it turn into an argument?

“Um, Ruolan, my older female cousin speaks rather… bluntly. She just meant it literally; please don’t misunderstand,” Wen Yimeng explained. Wen Yimeng was familiar with Wen Yunqing’s thought process—it was completely different from what she expected, and one couldn’t interpret it using conventional methods.

“Yimeng, you also think I’m wrong?” Li Ruolan said with a touch of grievance. “I’m done eating; you two continue.” Saying that, Li Ruolan grabbed her small shoulder bag and left with red eyes.

With Li Ruolan gone, Zhou Jun, who was still at the table, started burying her toes in the floor. “Um, I’m sorry. Perhaps I should just eat alone from now on?”

“What does Classmate Li leaving have to do with you?” Wen Yunqing asked, confused. “Wasn’t she angered away by me?”

“…” Wen Yimeng’s grip on her chopsticks tightened. “So, you deliberately angered Ruolan just now?”

“Not deliberately, I suppose. Her words made me uncomfortable, so I made her uncomfortable too,” Wen Yunqing answered honestly.

Wen Yimeng slowly put down her pork rib. So, she had misunderstood Wen Yunqing again! Was she the clown in this situation?

“Cousin, Ruolan is my good friend; I hope you won’t target her,” Wen Yimeng tried to keep her tone calm.

“Forgive my bluntness, but your good friend doesn’t look like a good person,” Wen Yunqing said, casually picking up a pork rib and placing it in Wen Yimeng’s bowl. “Her so-called kindness sounds like passive-aggression and veiled insinuations to me.”

“Impossible. Ruolan and I have been classmates since the first year of high school; I know what kind of person she is,” Wen Yimeng returned the pork rib to Wen Yunqing. “She is not the kind of person you say she is.”

“Is that so?” Wen Yunqing simply popped the pork rib into her mouth, saying vaguely, “Then may I ask, from the first year of high school until now, what has she ever done to help you?”

“Ruolan has certainly helped me a lot, for example…” As she started to speak, Wen Yimeng suddenly froze. In her memory, Li Ruolan had always been on the same side as her, so she must have helped many times, but why couldn’t she recall a single concrete example?

“If I’m not mistaken, she has definitely helped you a lot with words,” Wen Yunqing said, spitting out a bone. “You have just been charmed by her language.”

Wen Yimeng wanted to refute her, but she didn’t know how, as her memory contained no strong evidence or reliable examples.

“Verbal support counts as a kind of help…” Wen Yimeng could only offer a weak counterattack. “Besides, she has accompanied me to do many things…”

“Like accompanying you shopping, and then making you spend money to buy things for her?” Wen Yunqing asked sincerely. “If you like that kind of thing, Yimeng, why don’t you buy things for me every day?”

“…” Wen Yimeng was speechless again. What was she supposed to do? She felt like she couldn’t win an argument with the person in front of her. Could she choose to punch her once to vent her frustration?