Returning to the Shamate Era to Seduce the Top Student - Chapter 6

As soon as these words were out, the other three immediately smelled the scent of juicy gossip and pricked up their ears: “Stop keeping us in suspense, spill the details!”

Pan Zheshuai even went so far as to diligently bring over a stool for Tao Mingzhao to sit on.

Tao Mingzhao crossed his legs and, like a professional storyteller, slapped the table before slowly beginning his tale:

“You all know our principal, Jia Zongcheng, right? He comes from a business background, doesn’t really have any genuine educational ideals, but he’s got huge ambitions. Word is that when he took office two years ago, the first goal he set for himself was to cultivate a student for Tsinghua or Peking University from Luhe No. 3 High School within five years! He even signed a formal pledge.”

“Tsinghua or Peking University? Holy crap, is he insane?”

Pan Zheshuai and Song Xingyun clicked their tongues in unison.

“How many years has our school been around? Not a single person has ever gotten into Tsinghua or Peking University, right?”

Yin Xu, however, silently chewed on his leftover popsicle and didn’t speak.

If he had heard this in his previous life, he certainly would have been as shocked as the others, but now he was perfectly calm.

Because he knew Jia Zongcheng had made the right bet.

Two years later, Shen Que would, as the principal wished, become the first student from Luhe No. 3 High School to get into Tsinghua.

Tao Mingzhao had no way of knowing any of this, so he continued:

“Yeah, it’s not that easy! You guys know that No. 3 High is a private school. It can’t compare to No. 1 High, which is backed by the government and has stable civil service positions. So the teacher resources are just so-so, mediocre at best. But No. 1 High has a large group of experienced, prestigious teachers. Do you know how many parents and students apply to No. 1 High every year just for those teachers?”

“But our school’s undergraduate and college entrance rates in recent years haven’t been much worse than No. 1 High’s, have they?”

“True, the undergraduate rate is indeed a very important reference point. In that regard, the efforts of No. 3 High in previous years haven’t been in vain. There’s been a lot of progress. But look at No. 1 High again—even though the number of students getting into top-tier universities every year, especially Tsinghua and Peking University, is rare, they at least have some. Being able to produce them proves their strength. That is the gold-lettered trademark for school admissions every year! Whereas our school, up until now, has zero! It’s a big fat zero! How can you expect those top students with ambitions for Tsinghua or Peking University to feel safe coming here?”

The more Tao Mingzhao spoke, the more invested he became, nearly wringing his hands in lamentation.

“To become a god, you must first let them see a god and believe that the path to godhood exists. If there isn’t one, then you just have to create a god first!”

Hearing this, Yin Xu and the other two nodded together: “Makes sense. So? How do you create one?”

“It’s not that complicated, really. You have to start from the source. To get good results, it boils down to three things: one is the system, two is the teachers, and three is the students.”

Yin Xu and the others couldn’t help but marvel that Tao Mingzhao was indeed a top student; even when analyzing gossip, his logic was clear and organized.

Tao Mingzhao held up one finger: “First, reform the school’s outdated rules and systems.”

Yin Xu reacted instantly: “You mean the Rocket Class?”

“Exactly, that’s the most obvious point right now!”

Tao Mingzhao snapped his fingers at Yin Xu in affirmation.

“As everyone knows, our school’s Rocket Class only started being established with our grade. The Rocket Class model is actually an imitation of the ‘Innovation Class’ from No. 1 High next door. Although the names are different, the essence is the same—it’s about creating a class entirely of top students and conducting elite education. This teaching method isn’t suitable for most ordinary students, but it’s very effective for refining high-scoring examinees. The steady stream of Tsinghua and Peking University students produced by No. 1 High’s Innovation Class every year is the best proof! So No. 3 High had to learn this model, which led to the current Rocket Class.”

The other three listened with relish, almost pulling out a handful of melon seeds to snack on: “I see. What about the teachers?”

“The teacher situation was a bit more tricky. No. 3 High wanted to copy No. 1 High’s Innovation Class, but they couldn’t find an experienced leader to run it. So, the most crude and direct method was to poach people from No. 1 High.”

“Holy cow!”

Pan Zheshuai immediately thought of something and slammed the table excitedly.

“No wonder several teachers from No. 1 High jumped ship to our school two years ago! So they were all poached by Jia Zongcheng!”

Yin Xu was somewhat puzzled: “Is it that easy to poach people? Those teachers at No. 1 High should have official civil service positions, right?”

“Yeah, it’s not easy, but there’s no problem in this world that can’t be solved with money. As the saying goes, money makes the mare go.”

Tao Mingzhao looked like a man who understood the ways of the world. He leaned in closer and lowered his voice to continue:

“Take our current Director Ji, for example. I heard Jia Zongcheng spent a fortune to lure him away. You have to realize, Director Ji was previously the grade director of the Innovation Class at No. 1 High! He personally taught thirteen students who got into Tsinghua and Peking University. He has the most experience in setting up this kind of class! In Luhe City, if he claims to be second, no one dares to claim to be first!”

The “Director Ji” Tao Mingzhao spoke of was named Ji Yuxuan. He was the current Dean of Students at Luhe No. 3 High School and also the physics teacher and head teacher of the Rocket Class.

In his twenty years of practice, his teaching record was beyond doubt. He was also humble and polite, always smiling when he spoke and rarely ever losing his temper. Because of this, he was deeply loved by students and parents and was a famous “Gold Medal Teacher” in Luhe City.

A year ago, he had suddenly resigned from Luhe No. 1 High without warning and jumped to No. 3 High to start building the Rocket Class from scratch, which was quite a shock to everyone.

At the time, many people speculated that Jia Zongcheng had hired him with a high salary, which matched what Tao Mingzhao was saying now.

After listening with a mix of belief and doubt, Pan Zheshuai couldn’t help but ask: “Is this for real? How do you know so much?”

Tao Mingzhao didn’t hide it: “Heh heh, my mom told me.”

The three were stunned, then it dawned on them: “Sheesh, no wonder. I knew you couldn’t have analyzed all that yourself.”

Everyone knew that Tao Mingzhao’s mother worked at the Municipal Education Bureau and had extensive connections. Her being able to find out this kind of inside info was quite credible.

Tao Mingzhao simply came clean with everything: “Actually, my mom and Teacher Ji are old acquaintances, and she trusts his ability implicitly. She was dead set on entrusting me to him. When she heard Teacher Ji was leaving No. 1 High, she didn’t hesitate to make me follow him to No. 3 High. That’s how I ended up in the Rocket Class he leads.”

Pan Zheshuai realized: “I was wondering why you didn’t go to No. 1 High. So that’s the story!”

Yin Xu followed up with a question: “So, based on what you’re saying, did Shen Que come to No. 3 High because of Teacher Ji too?”

“I thought so at first, but now it clearly doesn’t make sense! If he came for Teacher Ji, why didn’t he just enter the Rocket Class?”

Tao Mingzhao was also puzzled.

“Supposedly, Shen Que originally promised Jia Zongcheng he would join the Rocket Class, but for some reason, as soon as Grade 10 started, he went back on his word. He refused to stay in the Rocket Class no matter what. Jia Zongcheng had no choice. He didn’t want to lose such a good prospect, so he could only let him choose his own class, saying he could stay in whichever class he liked! And yet, in the end, Shen Que ran off to your Class 7, that rotten—”

“Hey, hey, watch your mouth. What’s wrong with our Class 7?” Yin Xu interrupted him.

Tao Mingzhao corrected himself in time: “Cough, anyway, I can’t figure out why he wanted to go to an ordinary class.”

Song Xingyun asked with a look of innocence: “Didn’t they say it was because Tang Xiaotong saved his life in a previous life?”

Everyone: “……”

“You actually believe that crap? Do you even have a brain?”

Pan Zheshuai was speechless, then turned around and said with a solemn air:

“I heard that a fortune teller said Shen Que’s fate is naturally at odds with ‘fire,’ so he couldn’t go to the ‘Fire’ Class, as it would jinx him!”

Yin Xu: “……”

Your brain isn’t doing much better either.

In the end, it was Tao Mingzhao who was more reliable: “You guys didn’t know? At the time, Jia Zongcheng let Shen Que pick a class himself. Shen Que said that other than the Rocket Class, he didn’t care which class he was in. When the head teachers of the ordinary classes heard this, they all wanted him in their class, nearly tearing each other apart. Jia Zongcheng was helpless, so he had to let them draw lots. In the end, it was your Class 7 head teacher, Ms. Tang Xiaotong, who had the dumb luck to draw him. That’s how she picked up a top-of-the-grade student for nothing!”

“So after all that, it was decided by drawing lots?” This mundane truth was a bit disappointing for Pan Zheshuai, “I’m floored. Old Tang really has a fool’s luck!”

Tao Mingzhao asked: “You guys never asked Shen Que about this?”

Pan Zheshuai: “Why would I ask him that? Besides, even if I did ask, he wouldn’t necessarily bother responding to me.”

Song Xingyun also said: “Yeah, he always gives me the illusion that talking to ‘underachievers’ like us is a waste of his time and life.”

“Is it really as exaggerated as you guys make it out to be?”

Yin Xu, however, was inexplicably skeptical of this.

He thought back to his encounter with Shen Que today. When he spoke to him, Shen Que didn’t seem to have any intention of ignoring him—he even pulled off a prank at the end to annoy him a little.

Recalling that hairpin, Yin Xu said: “Isn’t Shen Que just a guy who loves to act cool, holds a grudge, and is a bit petty? He—”

“Cough!”

Mid-sentence, Pan Zheshuai suddenly let out a loud cough, interrupting Yin Xu’s speech.

Beside him, Song Xingyun was also winking at him like crazy, his face almost twitching.

Yin Xu understood immediately. He turned his head and saw a figure standing at the classroom door.

The boy’s silhouette was tall and upright, with broad shoulders and long legs. The midsummer sunlight passed through the corridor and landed on his shoulders and the side of his face, making the majority of his face shrouded in a layer of dazzling light, making it impossible to see his specific expression.

One could only vaguely judge that his gaze was fixed straight toward where they were sitting.

When Yin Xu and Shen Que’s eyes collided in the air, things suddenly became a bit awkward.

“Cough, well, I’ve returned the book to you. I haven’t finished my homework yet, so I’m heading back.” Tao Mingzhao was the first to stand up and evacuate the scene.

“Then I’ll just borrow it to take a look.” Song Xingyun grabbed a copy of the “A-Shuai” comic and ran to the restroom.

“I’m thirsty.” Pan Zheshuai picked up his water bottle and went to the water dispenser outside the classroom.

Everyone pretended as if nothing had happened.

Only Shen Que remained in place, staring at Yin Xu.

Having been caught red-handed speaking ill of someone behind their back, Yin Xu inevitably felt a bit guilty.

But as the saying goes, as long as you aren’t embarrassed, the one embarrassed will be someone else.

So, Yin Xu maintained a fearless, arrogant expression and raised his chin at Shen Que from across half the classroom: “What are you staring at? Am I that good-looking?”

Shen Que said nothing. He simply withdrew his gaze, walked to his seat in the very last row of the classroom, sat down, took an MP3 out of his schoolbag, put on one side of his wired earphones, and lowered his head to read a book.

The expected conflict did not occur. Yin Xu breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew his gaze, only to see his own reflection in the window glass as he turned his head—

That white butterfly hairpin clipped by his ear was exceptionally eye-catching.

Yin Xu was horrified and immediately ripped it off. He had completely forgotten that he was still wearing this thing on his head!

A wave of inexplicable shame instantly rushed to his brain:

Dammit, dammit, dammit. That guy Shen Que was staring at me for so long just now—could he have been looking at this?

He wouldn’t really think I wore it because I liked the hairpin he gave me, would he? I only used it reluctantly to keep my bangs from getting in the way while I was writing!

I’m such an idiot, I even asked him if I was good-looking…

Caught between the urge to rush in front of Shen Que and explain everything clearly or the impulse to shave off all his damn hair immediately, Yin Xu chose to bang his head against the desk in despair.

God, please show mercy and give me another chance to be reborn. I want to be a new person all over again!