You Like The Smart Ones? You Should Have Said So Sooner! - Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Mutual Business Flattery

Ranked at the very top, in bold letters, was Song Ying’s name.

Total Score: 714.

The classroom fell into a deathly silence.

Absolute, stone-cold silence.

A few seconds later, a collective wave of sharp intakes of breath filled the room. These students, who had an average score of around 580, had never seen such a god-tier score with their own eyes! Listening to Ding Zi talk about it was one thing, but seeing it on the screen was a completely different level of “Academic Boss” energy.

“F*ck! What did I do in my past life to deserve sitting in the same room as a 700+ legend?!”

“This is insane. Is that a human score?”

“Are we sure we took the same exam?”

“I’m stunned, friends. I’ve run out of words to describe this scene.”

“Is this a max-level player restarting the game just to slaughter the newbies??”

Everyone’s gaze shifted toward the figure in the back row.

Song Ying remained as calm as ever, as if he were long accustomed to this kind of score. Meanwhile, Yu Canxing sat in a daze beside him. He turned his head stiffly to look at Song Ying, unable to find his voice.

“You…”

Someone save me! Dammit, wasn’t Song Ying supposed to be a slacker? I treated him like a comrade-in-arms! QAQ Help!! What on earth did I do before?!

Suddenly, the “friendly warnings” Qin Mian had given him earlier flashed through Yu Canxing’s mind. Only now did he realize why Qin Mian said Song Ying was “even more fierce” than he was.

Damn, he’s not just fierce, he’s a beast! How bad was my eyesight before?!

“…Brother Song, you’re incredible,” Yu Canxing said, smoothly switching his form of address.

Song Ying gave a polite smile. “…Thanks.”

Qin Mian looked at that score and licked his lips. Knowing it beforehand was one thing; seeing the cold, hard numbers was another. A score like that truly possessed its own charm. He suppressed his internal awe and looked at his front-desk mate. “Impressive! You beat me by twenty points!”

Qin Mian’s name was ranked second.

Total Score: 691.

Sensing Qin Mian’s gaze, Song Ying’s eyes flickered. “Low profile.”

“I can’t keep it low! It’s too badass,” Yu Canxing chirped, suddenly feeling weirdly excited for some reason. “If I had this score, even a dog on the street would get a kick from me just out of spite. If any living creature in this school doesn’t know about this by tomorrow, I’ve failed in my duty.”

On the podium, Ding Zi raised his hands to settle the class, praising them with a steady voice: “Alright, alright, quiet down. Song Ying is indeed exceptional. To get this score on such a difficult exam—he beat the second-place student in the entire North Star League by five points.”

“Qin Mian did great too, ranking 17th in the League. A solid performance.”

However, the smile at the corners of Ding Zi’s mouth was impossible to hide. As a head teacher, seeing two top-tier seeds in his class made him bloom with joy. The school leadership was also extremely satisfied. The North Star League used to look down on their school, but now their school’s top student was five points higher than the League’s top student. The sense of vindication was immense.

“Now that we’ve discussed Song Ying and Qin Mian, let’s look at the rest of the results,” Ding Zi continued.

The lively atmosphere was instantly doused with cold water. Aside from the top two, everyone stared nervously at the screen. The two-meter-high screen only showed a portion of the results. Those whose names hadn’t appeared yet were sweating, praying for their names to show up.

Third place was Ye Jun with a 640.

Fourth place was Lin Zhixia with a 621.

While the gap between the top few was a literal cliff, the rest of the rankings were separated by only one or two points. The class average was 592.7.

Ding Zi: “Actually, everyone did quite well this time!”

Students: …Are you sure? Do you want to look at the scores in the back row and say that again?

Ding Zi: “Our class average is second in the entire grade!”

Students: …Does that have anything to do with us? Isn’t that just the two bosses carrying the team?

Ding Zi: “Everyone, don’t compare yourselves to Song Ying and Qin Mian. Those two aren’t human.”

Song Ying: …Rude? Qin Mian: …Ex-cuse me? Students: …Thanks. They’re not humans, they’re gods. If you don’t know how to comfort people, you don’t have to.

Ding Zi was helpless. Once Song Ying and Qin Mian’s high scores came out, the confidence of the rest of the class had been crushed into fine powder. Even a 640 looked pale in comparison to a 714. But in reality, the overall performance was excellent; while a few had regressed, the vast majority had made significant progress.

“You still need to compete against yourselves. There is always someone better out there. Even Qin Mian and Song Ying need to keep working hard. Because no matter how strong you are, someone will be stronger; and no matter how weak you are, someone will be weaker,” Ding Zi said earnestly.

As he spoke, low sounds of sniffing could be heard in the class. After the analysis, Ding Zi started calling students out based on his list to have private talks with those who had regressed.

After class.

Qin Mian slid his math paper in front of Song Ying. “Academic God, where did these two points go?”

Song Ying scanned it for two seconds and pointed it out with surgical precision. “You missed a possible case for ‘a’. When ‘a’ is less than…”

Before he could finish, a look of realization dawned in Qin Mian’s eyes. “I see it.”

Pausing for a moment, a playful mood struck him. He narrowed his eyes and teased, “The Great Academic God Song is truly formidable! Pointing out the path to enlightenment in just a few words! This humble one is filled with admiration!”

Qin Mian usually spoke with a low, cool voice and didn’t show much emotion. Hearing him give praise with that hint of playfulness felt somewhat… eerie to Song Ying.

“…” Song Ying was silent for a moment. “Don’t do that. I’m scared.”

Qin Mian’s expression turned solemn. “I’m serious! You are really amazing!”

Song Ying began the “mutual business flattery” game: “…So are you. The last question didn’t slow you down at all.”

“I can’t compare to Academic God Song,” Qin Mian smiled.

Song Ying: “No, ‘Great Handsome Qin’ is more impressive. You understand everything the moment it’s mentioned.”

“That’s thanks to Great Academic God Song’s guidance. Great Academic God Song is the best.”

Song Ying: “No, Great Handsome Qin is the best.”

Qin Mian: “Academic God Song.”

Song Ying: “Handsome Qin.”

“…” Yu Canxing, sitting nearby, looked like he had lost his soul. “What are you two doing? Is this some kind of ‘Academic Boss’ flirting? Why don’t you just say I’m the best?”

At least I’m still alive after taking critical damage from both of you.

Song Ying and Qin Mian turned their heads in perfect unison and said decisively, “That’s impossible.”

Yu Canxing: “………”

Ye Jun looked at him with disgust. “I told you, why do you keep provoking those two?”

Yu Canxing’s face suddenly distorted with faux rage. “Damn you, Ye Jun!! You’re just as bad as they are!!!”