You Like The Smart Ones? You Should Have Said So Sooner! - Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Taking Medicine

The happy National Day holiday passed quickly, and everyone returned to school carrying the heavy, lingering resentment of someone whose desires remained unfulfilled.

Ding Zi added fuel to the fire: “Everyone, snap out of it as soon as possible. The midterm exams are only a few days away. Take them seriously, because right after the exams is the parent-teacher meeting.”

The classroom became as quiet as a grave. It looked like people were present, but in reality, their souls had been gone for quite a while.

“There’s also some good news. The school wants students to have sufficient rest time, so on Wednesday when we finish the exams, there will be no evening self-study. Everyone can go home early. The parent-teacher meeting is on Friday.”

“Haha, use these next few days to find your rhythm. Strive to show your parents your most impressive level!” Ding Zi ignored the deathly stillness of the class, encouraging them with full vigor.

After Ding Zi left, sighs rose and fell throughout the classroom.

Yu Canxing slumped onto her desk, devoid of hope: “It’s over. I spent all three days playing; I didn’t study a lick.”

Qin Mian had already adjusted his mindset. Hearing this, he couldn’t help but chime in: “It’s fine. Heaven never blocks all paths.”

“Really?” Yu Canxing slowly turned her head, looking toward this 690-point big shot with a glimmer of hope.

“Mhm.”

Yu Canxing beat her chest: “I’ve always trusted Brother Qin’s words most. If Brother Qin says Heaven never blocks all paths, then surely…”

“After all, you still have the path to a dead end,” Qin Mian added flatly.

Yu Canxing was completely petrified. After a long pause, she complained with lifeless eyes: “What a cold joke.”

Ye Jun mocked her ruthlessly: “You brought this on yourself. We told you to study and you wouldn’t; you just had to pull those ‘revenge’ all-nighters to play. Look at you now.”

“……I was wrong, I regret it so much. Can I have my holiday back and start over? This time, I will definitely study everything that belongs to me!” Yu Canxing wailed toward the ceiling, raising her hand to swear an oath.

No one paid her any attention. Everyone was doing what they needed to do; after all, the exam was hanging right over their heads.

Soon, the long break on Monday arrived. The loud strains of the national anthem echoed throughout the school. Ding Zi appeared enthusiastically at the classroom door, clapping his hands to wake everyone up:

“Come on! Wake up, everyone! Flag-raising time!”

A group of “corpses” rose twistedly from their seats, half-dead and scattered, shuffling out the door to line up. At first glance, it looked like a Xiangxi corpse-driving ritual.

“You are all the rising sun; how can you look so pathetic? Everyone, perk up!!” Ding Zi tried his best to rally everyone’s spirits, then turned to the person beside him.

“Song Ying, the speech and everything—no problems, right?”

Song Ying retracted his gaze from the person at the end of the line and nodded faintly.

“Next, we invite Student Song Ying from Class 12-18 to come to the stage and speak as the student representative,” a cheerful female voice announced.

Upon hearing this, Yu Canxing’s eyes widened. She wove through several people like a monkey to reach the back of the line and stood next to Qin Mian.

“Holy crap, Brother Mian, Brother Song is way too cool! He became the student representative speaker and didn’t even say a word.”

To her, those super-geniuses who could speak as student representatives usually felt very distant, lacking any sense of reality. Now that a classmate sitting right next to her had become the representative, it was quite a shock to her “academic dreg” heart.

Qin Mian didn’t respond to her. His gaze cut through the crowd of the entire school, landing on that tall, upright figure in blue and white on the rostrum.

As the morning sun rose, Song Ying’s warm, clean voice traveled through the speakers, spreading across the campus and into everyone’s ears. It caused quite a few girls to scream in excitement. What a perfect image of a favored son of heaven, a refined young gentleman.

Even though Qin Mian had been a student representative many times before, he had never felt for a moment that he was that “favored son.”

Suddenly, he froze. Even from a distance, he could feel that Song Ying was looking at him. He averted his gaze, but after a long while, he looked back as if by accident—that gaze was still fixed on him.

.What are you looking at,” Qin Mian muttered under his breath, feeling a bit annoyed.

Yu Canxing didn’t hear clearly: “Huh? What did you say?”

Qin Mian brushed her off: “You’re very handsome.”

“Ah? This… hehe, Brother Mian, you’re suddenly being like this, I’m a bit unaccustomed to it.” Yu Canxing scratched her head sheepishly.

Qin Mian: “……”

The midterms arrived as scheduled. Although everyone complained about being afraid and unwilling, their actions were practiced and cooperative. When the seating chart came out, there was no doubt: Song Ying and Qin Mian were both in the First Exam Room.

Song Ying was Seat 1; Qin Mian was Seat 2.

During the three days of preparation, neither had taken the initiative to speak to the other. Yu Canxing’s “human radar” had been beeping for a long time. She trotted over to ask Qin Mian: “Brother Mian, did you and Brother Song have a fight?”

Qin Mian gave her a cold look, his tone icy: “You know it, yet you still ask.”

Yu Canxing swallowed nervously. Yikes, men in a cold war are so fierce.

Their conversation wasn’t quiet. It was obvious that Song Ying, sitting in front, could hear them, but he didn’t react. Seeing this, Yu Canxing felt that this fight was a big one, so she didn’t dare to poke the hornet’s nest further.

Even now, before the exam, the two hadn’t spoken.

Qin Mian lay on his desk, flipping through the test paper listlessly. He didn’t know if it was because of the test or something else, but his head felt heavy and groggy.

It was almost time. Everyone had to pack up and head to their respective exam rooms. The seats in the classroom had been rearranged for the exam. The back door was blocked and couldn’t be opened. Qin Mian could only walk forward through the front door.

But as luck would have it, Song Ying was blocking the aisle. Someone was sitting in the seat next to him, so Qin Mian couldn’t easily push past. After three seconds of mental preparation, he spoke with a cold face: “Move.”

Song Ying’s frame stiffened. Without a word, he stepped aside to make room. He stared at Qin Mian’s departing back, frowning slightly. Hearing Qin Mian’s voice just now—did it sound a bit raspy?

“Yu Canxing, where is the school infirmary?” Song Ying called out to Yu Canxing, who was about to head to her exam room.

After the last monthly exam, Yu Canxing had made some progress; she had moved up at least one exam room. She blinked, startled, and answered: “First floor of Mangzhong Building. Why, Brother Song? Are you sick?”

“No, just asking. Thanks.” With that, Song Ying headed toward Mangzhong Building.

Yu Canxing: ??? Huh? “Just asking”?? Who asks that for no reason?

Clearly, Yu Canxing’s question would go unanswered.

When Song Ying arrived at the exam room, Qin Mian was slumped listlessly over his desk. He stepped forward and placed a thermos on Qin Mian’s desk.

In his peripheral vision, Qin Mian stiffened. After a long moment, he looked up gloomily, his tone cold: “What?”

Song Ying: “Drink this.”

Qin Mian looked at Song Ying as if he were looking at a crazy person. He glanced at the black thermos and questioned ruthlessly: “What is this? Did you drug it?”

Song Ying truly admired the other’s brain logic. Resigned, he said: “Yes. Cold medicine. It won’t kill you.”

Qin Mian scrutinized the thermos before turning his head away: “Not drinking it.”

“Your voice is already this hoarse, and you still won’t drink it?”

Qin Mian already had a headache and didn’t really want to deal with anyone. Seeing Song Ying’s cold tone made him even more irritated: “Whether it’s hoarse or not is none of your damn business. You sure like to overstep.”

Song Ying was silent for a moment, then his voice softened: “Consider it me begging you. Drink the medicine.”

Qin Mian hadn’t expected Song Ying to be so flexible. For a moment, he was speechless. Besides, he really didn’t want to drink it: “It makes me drowsy. I still have to take the exam.”

Seeing that the other still refused, Song Ying’s anger finally flared up. He was truly not taking his own body seriously.

“You can even give up going to University A—do you really care about these few points?”

As soon as those words came out, Qin Mian exploded.

“Surname Song, I’ve noticed you’re really high-maintenance. What the hell does which school I choose have to do with you? Fuck, constantly being sarcastic with me here.”

Song Ying stared at Qin Mian’s furrowed brows. His first thought was actually: This guy is finally looking at me directly. He also realized that what he just said was inappropriate and sighed: “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way.”

“Then what did you mean?” Qin Mian’s tone was still harsh.

Song Ying pursed his lips: “I’m really sorry. Just drink the medicine first.”

Just then, the preparatory bell rang.