The principal spoke with a genial smile, “Weida is still immature. I hope you won’t take it to heart.”
Cheng Ye replied indifferently, “It’s fine.” After all, he had already beaten him enough.
“Teacher, you sent me a message this morning about the Global Mathematics Competition.”
“Yes.” The principal sat across from Cheng Ye, pulled out a registration form from the drawer beneath the coffee table, opened it, and handed it over. “The Global Mathematics Competition is divided into preliminaries and finals. The preliminaries are open-book, while the finals are closed-book.”
“The preliminaries will test university-level advanced mathematics. The finals are as difficult as a doctoral entrance examination in mathematics.”
Adjusting his black-framed glasses, the principal spoke earnestly, “This competition has no restrictions on age, education, or background. If you achieve a good ranking in the finals, you may have the opportunity to be directly admitted to a prestigious university.”
Cheng Ye lowered his gaze and quickly skimmed through the basic information, “Teacher, I’m only in my senior year. Are you sure you want me to participate?”
The principal straightened his posture, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes, “Xiao Ye, I believe you have the ability. The preliminaries are in one month… there’s still time.”
Cheng Ye wasn’t particularly interested. Whether he got recommended or not didn’t really matter to him.
Just as he was about to decline, the principal took the document back, flipped to the back page, and pointed at it, “Cheng Ye, the first prize is 700,000 yuan.”
Cheng Ye’s thoughts stirred. Prize money?
Now that was interesting.
“Alright, I’ll participate,” Cheng Ye agreed.
As Cheng Ye opened the door, Jiang Mian was just about to enter. Suddenly, a well-defined hand appeared in her line of sight.
She stared for a moment, dazed, and accidentally bumped straight into Cheng Ye’s chest.
The girl in his arms was soft and fragrant. Cheng Ye lowered his gaze slightly, his eyes darkening for a fleeting moment.
But it was only for an instant. With the competition materials in his left hand, he placed his right hand on Jiang Mian’s shoulder and gently pulled her back a little.
A faint blush spread across Jiang Mian’s cheeks. She hurriedly stepped back a couple of steps.
Tilting her head, she rubbed her slightly sore forehead and looked at him with clear, innocent eyes, soft and obedient.
A sudden thought rose in Cheng Ye’s mind… she seemed very easy to bully.
Cheng Ye asked, “Why are you always following me?”
Jiang Mian tilted her head and asked back, “Can’t I follow you?”
Cheng Ye: “……” It wasn’t that she couldn’t.
The principal noticed Cheng Ye still standing at the door and heard the girl’s voice. His eyelids twitched as he hurried over, “Xiao Ye, you…”
The principal was momentarily speechless, then nodded repeatedly, “That’s good, that’s good.”
Jiang Mian said nothing, turning her head away slightly, a bit sullen.
The afternoon classes had ended, but evening self-study was still to come.
Cheng Ye went to the library to borrow some advanced mathematics materials. During evening self-study, besides reviewing physics competition topics, he also studied advanced mathematics.
There was no teacher supervising that evening, so everyone was free to arrange their own time.
“This is so annoying! I can’t understand these physics problems at all!” a male student wailed. “More than 600 pages, and the physics competition is in less than five days! How is it possible to finish this?!”
His complaint resonated with many students.
“Seriously, I’m only on page 79,” said a student who usually ranked within the top 40 in the entire school.
“Young Master Fenghao, what page are you on?” a female student leaned over and asked.
“Just 30 pages left to finish,” Cheng Fenghao replied modestly.
“So fast! As expected of a top student!” The girl then glanced at Chu Xiyan, who still had around 50 pages left, and couldn’t help but sigh, “This physics competition feels like it was made just for Young Master Fenghao and Class Leader Chu. The rest of us are just here to accompany…”
Chen Yang stared at page 1, his eyelids drooping.
Was he really the slowest one here?
He quietly left his seat. When he was a few steps away from Cheng Ye, his sharp eyes noticed that Cheng Ye was also still on the first page.
As for Jiang Mian, there was no need to even mention it. The printed physics materials hadn’t even been opened. They were still brand new, without a single crease, while she lay there sleeping openly.
Chen Yang suddenly felt comforted. He had found two comrades.
Senior year life passed quietly amid endless classes and exams.
In the blink of an eye, it was Sunday, the day of the physics competition.
The exam time was from 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM.
Cheng Ye’s examination room was not his own classroom. He bought breakfast from the cafeteria and brought it back to eat.
Father Cheng, Mother Cheng, and his three older sisters all knew that Cheng Fenghao had a physics competition today.
They had deliberately set aside their work, had a nutritionist prepare a rich and delicious breakfast, and personally brought it over.
Cheng Fenghao’s desk was filled with all kinds of food, balanced with meat and vegetables, carefully prepared for nutrition.
As he ate, he smiled and said, “Dad, Mom, Big Sis, Second Sis, Third Sis, you’re all so good to me.”
“Eat slowly, don’t rush. We’ll personally take you to the exam hall later,” Mother Cheng reminded him gently.
“Xiyan, let’s eat together,” Cheng Fenghao said to Chu Xiyan, who sat beside him.
“Fenghao is right. There’s plenty of food. It’s perfect for two people,” Mother Cheng said. The nutritionist had prepared portions for two so Fenghao and Xiyan could eat together. Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping(.)com.
“Thank you, Aunt,” Chu Xiyan said with a smile.
After a while, Mother Cheng suddenly noticed Cheng Ye sitting in the classroom, eating buns while flipping through a book.
A trace of surprise crossed her eyes, followed by a faint sense of guilt. She had forgotten to prepare breakfast for Xiao Ye.
But fortunately, he was already eating, so it wasn’t a big problem.
Mother Cheng silently comforted herself.
She wanted to go over and speak to Cheng Ye, but Second Sister Cheng Zhirou pulled her back.
“Mom, Fenghao is about to take the exam. You’d better not go over. What if Cheng Ye causes trouble again and affects Fenghao’s performance?”
Mother Cheng was torn. B-but Xiao Ye hadn’t contacted the family for several days…
Big Sister Cheng Wei sighed, “Mom, we haven’t wronged him. He’s the one who turned ungrateful and cut ties with us. Give it a few days… he’ll definitely come back on his own.”
Third Sister Cheng Shiyan encouraged Cheng Fenghao and Chu Xiyan, “Don’t be nervous. Just perform normally.”
“Okay, Third Sis,” Cheng Fenghao replied with a smile.
Chu Xiyan couldn’t help but feel deeply moved by the Cheng family’s care for Cheng Fenghao, “Fenghao, your family treats you so well.”
Not a single one of them was absent. They had all set aside their work just to send him to the physics competition.
The surrounding students looked on with envy.
But they completely forgot… Cheng Ye was the Cheng family’s biological son.
Sitting beside Cheng Ye, Jiang Mian heard every word clearly.
Cheng Ye must have heard it too.
She secretly observed him. From beginning to end, he remained focused on studying, his expression calm. A faint sadness rose in her heart.
Why…
Why were the Cheng family so biased…
On the surface, Cheng Ye acted as if he didn’t care. But blood ties were undeniable… deep down, he must be hurting terribly.
Jiang Mian sighed softly and turned her gaze out the window.
The sky was hazy and overcast… it looked like a thunderstorm was coming.
She quietly slipped out of the classroom and ran toward the shop outside the school to buy an umbrella.