NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 535 - 535: 215 National Top Scorer (Second Update)_2
Chapter 535: 215 National Top Scorer (Second Update)_2
She showed some hesitation, “Maybe you shouldn’t go up?”
Jiang Fulai pursed his lips, lowered his gaze, and his pale pupils were always cold; he looked at her without saying a word.
He always had that refined but distant demeanor, yet his ink-dyed brows and eyes now seemed to carry a hint of accusation. Bai Lian paused, “Never mind, if you want to come up, then come up.”
The Xiangcheng Building was very long, with countless steps.
It would take two hours to reach the end.
But for Bai Lian, it was as easy as walking on level ground; she could run it eight hundred times without gasping for breath.
After walking a section of the stairs, Bai Lian checked on Jiang Fulai, noting that aside from slower footsteps, his breathing was almost unchanged before she eased her mind. However, she still slowed her pace, chatting with him while walking towards the middle.
It was past five in the afternoon.
The two finally reached the top of the city wall.
At this time, the sun had not set, but around the bright red sun, the clouds had already been dyed in various colors.
Bai Lian propped her hands on the city wall and looked up at the sunset over the mountains, her black hair somewhat disheveled by the wind.
Her posture was casual and relaxed, her gaze facing the wind, “The sunset glow here is really nice,” she commented.
Jiang Fulai removed his cap, lazily resting one hand on the wall. His simple, clean clothes were worn with a cold elegance. Standing shoulder to shoulder with her, he looked in the direction she was looking at. His back was straight, yet his demeanor was relaxed, always exuding an effortless nobility, “Indeed, it’s not bad.”
Bai Lian glanced at him and then smiled.
Bai Li didn’t leave a corpse behind.
The enemy had taken his body away.
Bai Zhongyu had been the top scholar in both the regional and provincial examinations. Chen Ye had jokingly asked him if he was aiming for the honor of top scholar in the national examination as well, to ride a horse down the street in celebration. Unfortunately, just before the final examination, he received news of Bai Li and rushed to Xiangcheng to take over Bai Li’s position.
Bai Zhongyu said that the yellow sands beneath Xiangcheng were where Bai Li lay buried.
Bai Lian believed him.
Neither of them spoke again.
The sunset gradually reddened the sky, the light pouring over them, causing Bai Lian’s skirt to flutter in the breeze.
In front of them was the sunset, and beneath their feet the city wall.
It was like a richly colored oil painting.
Many people came to Xiangcheng Building to check in, but few ever reached the highest point.
Only a few girls not far away; they were a bit tired and sat cross-legged in a skewed position, facing the direction ahead.
“They both look so good.” The girl sitting in the middle couldn’t take her eyes off the young man and woman standing at the very edge of the city wall, sighing in admiration.
**
On June 26, the scores for the students blocked from the college entrance examination were released.
The fervor over the college entrance examination scores had already passed.
The media had finished reporting everything that needed to be reported, but at this moment, the top universities around the country were tense.
Especially Beicheng High School.
The principal hadn’t even gotten out of bed when he received a call from Director Pan of the Education Bureau, who urged him on the phone, “Why are you still sleeping? I’m already at the school!”
The principal, having been excited all night, had just fallen asleep when the phone awoke him.
He got up to check the time on his phone; it was only five o’clock.
Understanding Director Pan’s feelings, and since the principal couldn’t sleep either, he simply got up, washed his face, took his keys, and went to the school.
Director Pan was already waiting by the conference room door, “Where is Teacher Lu? Why hasn’t she arrived yet? The head of the bureau and the others are waiting for me to report the scores of Bai Lian and Ning Xiao.”
Beicheng High School was being quietly isolated by other schools.
Fortunately, the overall results of this exam were good. If either Bai Lian or Ning Xiao secured the top provincial ranking, all the difficulties would be resolved, and the peak moment for Xiangcheng’s education would arrive.
“Don’t worry,” the principal turned on the lights and boiled a pot of water, “I have already notified Teacher Lu.”
Lu Lingxi was rushed over by several calls from the principal.
She was the homeroom teacher of Bai Lian and Ning Xiao, and their ID cards and admission tickets were in her possession.
When Lu Lingxi arrived, the homeroom teachers of Class 8 and Tang Ming’s class were already there.
On the 26th, there was less traffic on the score checking website, and it was no longer lagging. As soon as Lu Lingxi arrived, she saw the scores displayed on the computer screen of Class 8’s homeroom teacher; they belonged to Chen Zhu.
Name: Chen Zhu
Subject: Score, National Ranking
Chinese: 127
Mathematics: 121
English: 132
Science: 258
Total: 648
Provincial Ranking: 41
National Ranking: 1189
As it was the college entrance examination scores, there was no school ranking, but a provincial rank of 41 and a national rank within a thousand had already broken Xiangcheng’s historical record.
Director Pan adjusted his glasses, and his eyes brightened, “Very good, well done, well done, Teacher Lu, are you here? Please check your class students’ scores quickly!”
Lu Lingxi clearly couldn’t wait for Bai Lian and Ning Xiao either.
These two always worked at a snail’s pace.
Last night, Bai Lian said she was printing her paper when Lu Lingxi sat right in front of the computer, took out the class statistics sheet, and first entered Ning Xiao’s name and examination number.
Today there was no delay; the school system was faster at releasing scores than any other place.
Director Pan watched the page without moving and spoke to the principal, “Ning Xiao’s estimated score is 700, right? Could he be in the national top hundred?”
“Not sure,” the principal, the data personnel, and the homeroom teacher of class eight, among others, all stood behind Lu Lingxi, almost holding their breath, “Even if not in the top hundred, there should be within the top two hundred. Jingjing University should have…”
In just two seconds, the page appeared.
Name: Ning Xiao
Chinese: 139
Mathematics: 141
English: 148
Science Comprehensive: 290
Total Score: 718
Provincial Rank: 2
National Rank: 6
As the scores refreshed, the principal’s unfinished words suddenly stopped, and the classroom fell silent, leaving only the “beep beep” sound of the printer.
And the sound of the air conditioner running.
Director Pan stared at the ranking at the bottom and didn’t dare utter a word.
After a long while, the usually composed class eight homeroom teacher, Teacher Li, couldn’t hold back, exclaiming, “This… national rank six?!”
“No… Teacher Lu, check it again!” One teacher found it unbelievable and asked Lu Lingxi to verify once more.
Lu Lingxi’s fingers stiffly pressed the Enter key again. It was indeed national rank six.
The office was still silent.
Xiangcheng High School had only ever competed with Beicheng High School. The teachers, the principal, and the people from the Xiangcheng Education Bureau had always hoped that Bai Lian and Ning Xiao would perform a bit better, but even in their wildest dreams, they only hoped to surpass Song Min.
As for the national ranking…
They had never participated, so they had never even dared to dream of it.
Director Pan, leaning on the principal’s arm, almost sat down on the ground, murmuring in a daze, “Principal, didn’t you say his estimated score of 700 would be about rank 100 in the national papers? With these scores, even Song Min couldn’t have achieved this, could he?”
Is this rank 100?!
The principal didn’t answer; he was fixated on the second-to-last line.
Provincial Rank: 2
Without taking his eyes off of it, the principal spoke, “Lu, Teacher Lu, check Bai Lian’s score.”
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the conference room came to their senses, and Director Pan, trembling, said, “Ning Xiao is ranked second in the province; she, she must be first, right?”
The director of instruction swallowed and boldly imagined, “Ning Xiao is sixth; she… she’s fifth? Or, fourth, third?”
Her usual scores were much higher than Ning Xiao’s.
Lu Lingxi reopened the page, her fingers trembling somewhat; she moved several times without entering the correct numbers.
The homeroom teacher of class eight, unable to stand by any longer, directly snatched the mouse from Lu Lingxi’s hand, compared Bai Lian’s ID number with her examination number, entered the numbers, and pressed Enter.
As everyone speculated, Bai Lian’s score appeared.
Name: Bai Lian
Chinese: 150
Mathematics: 150
English: 150
Science Comprehensive: 300
Total Score: 750
Provincial Rank: 1
National Rank: 1
The voices in the office that were still guessing suddenly disappeared, leaving only the sound of breathing.
All eyes were on the computer screen, viewing the last line of ranking.
[National Rank: 1]
National exam champion.
In an era when women were not allowed to take part in the imperial examinations, the champion title that Bai Lian was owed from that period, she claimed in this new era.
It was as if she was proclaiming to the whole world—
The Bai Family’s young miss from those years had forcefully reoccupied everyone’s attention.
**
(Won’t you take a ticket to celebrate for Sister Lian?!)