After morning self-study ended, the morning classes proceeded as usual.
Until the bell rang for the end of the fourth-period physics class.
Old Wang, the irritable teacher, didn’t leave immediately with his lesson plan as he usually did.
“Don’t rush off to eat just yet. I’ll take a few minutes of your time.”
Mr. Wang tapped the lectern, his expression unusually serious, even tinged with a hint of suppressed excitement. “I have an announcement to make. Regarding this year’s National High School Physics Competition, our school has finally managed to secure a spot in the preliminary selection.”
The classroom erupted into murmurs and whispers.
“In the past two years, our school ranked last in the entire county, not even qualifying for the county-level selection. This year, I practically wore my lips thin pleading with the principal, and only then did the education bureau grant us a few slots.”
“Out of over a dozen high schools in the county, only the top three can go to the city for a two-week closed training camp. If they perform well during the training, they might even have a chance to compete at the provincial or higher levels.”
Mr. Wang paused, his gaze sweeping meaningfully across the classroom.
Finally, it lingered almost imperceptibly on the figure slumped over in the last row.
“Alright, I don’t need to emphasize the value of this competition—it’s a huge help for independent admissions and college entrance exam bonuses. Students with the ability and interest, come to my office after class to pick up the registration forms.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the classroom buzzed with excitement.
Several students with strong physics grades lit up with enthusiasm, eager to give it a try.
Except for Yuan Su.
He seemed completely oblivious to the impassioned speech from the lectern.
As soon as the bell rang, he straightened up, slung his backpack over one shoulder, and walked straight out through the back door.
“City training camp… sounds impressive.”
“Is anyone from our school up for it?”
“Why worry? The county teams usually get eliminated in the first round anyway. They’re not much better than us.”
Xu Suiran turned around and pouted at Pu Yu. “Old Wang practically called out Yuan Su by name. What a shame—unrequited effort.”
Pu Yu didn’t respond, her gaze drifting to the empty seat beside her as she lost herself in thought.
Yuan Su didn’t return until evening self-study.
Class representatives for each subject began collecting homework one by one.
“Xu Suiran, yours.”
“Wait, wait! Just a second!” Xu Suiran frantically flipped through her workbook, only to groan at the sight of the unanswered questions on the last page. She immediately turned her head. “Xiao Yu! Emergency! Quick, let me copy yours!”
Pu Yu smiled helplessly and was about to hand over her notebook when the physics class representative—a boy who followed rules to the letter—ruthlessly snatched Xu Suiran’s workbook from under her hands. “No copying. Old Wang said it’s better to leave it blank than to copy.”
Xu Suiran’s face fell. “I’m done for. Tomorrow, I’ll be getting some ‘special attention’ from Old Wang again.”
Once the homework was collected, the class representative carried the stack of notebooks to the office.
The dismissal bell rang.
Pu Yu packed her things and was about to leave with Xu Suiran when the class representative, having delivered the homework, returned and walked straight up to her. “Pu Yu, the physics teacher wants to see you in the office.”
Pu Yu was taken aback. “Huh? Me?”
“Yes, he wants you to go now.”
Xu Suiran blinked in surprise. “Old Wang wants to see you? Could it be about filling out that competition registration form?”
Before Pu Yu could respond, a snicker came from the front row.
It was a girl in the class with decent physics grades, named Zhou Tingting.
She was leisurely organizing her schoolbag when she heard the remark. Glancing sideways, her tone carried undisguised contempt: “Teacher Wang should have some judgment, right? Some people should weigh themselves before even thinking about joining the training camp. Don’t embarrass our school.”
Xu Suiran flared up at once, springing to her feet. “Who are you talking about, Zhou Tingting!”
Zhou Tingting slung her backpack over her shoulder and deliberately smiled at them. “I certainly wasn’t talking about you, the perennial bottom-dweller. Why so worked up?”
Pu Yu reached out and pulled back Xu Suiran, who was about to retort.
She smiled faintly, her tone gentle yet straightforward. “My physics really isn’t that great, so it probably isn’t about the sign-up. Don’t be angry, Sui Sui.”
“I’ll go to the office to check. Wait for me, okay?”
Xu Suiran glared at Zhou Tingting’s retreating back and plopped down angrily. “A good woman doesn’t stoop to her level! Go ahead, I’ll wait for you.”
The door to the teachers’ office was slightly ajar, light spilling out from within.
Pu Yu knocked.
“Come in.”
“Teacher Wang, were you looking for me?” Pu Yu walked over obediently.
Teacher Wang was grading the recently collected homework. Seeing Pu Yu enter, he pulled her workbook from the stack and flipped to the latest page.
“Hmm, for this problem, the formula and approach you used aren’t the method I taught in class.” Old Wang looked up and asked her, “Did Yuan Su explain it to you?”
Pu Yu’s heart skipped a beat, surprised that the teacher could even tell that.
She nodded somewhat sheepishly. “Yes, I didn’t quite understand it at the time, so I asked Yuan Su.”
“I knew it.” Teacher Wang sighed softly, his expression instantly turning complicated.
Silence filled the office for a few seconds.
Teacher Wang put the homework away and then pulled a competition registration form from a folder.
“Pu Yu, I’d like to ask you for a favor.”
“Huh?”
“Help me persuade Yuan Su to sign up for this physics competition.”
Pu Yu was stunned.
She instinctively wanted to refuse. “Teacher, I… I hardly speak to Yuan Su a few times a week. He might not listen to me.”
This was the truth.
Their interactions were pitifully few. Aside from that time she asked him a question and when he fixed the desk lamp, most of the time they were like strangers separated by an unbridgeable gap.
“I know.” Teacher Wang waved his hand, looking somewhat helpless. “That kid was already asking me about advanced problems with competition books in his first year of high school. He truly has a talent for physics. It’s a shame the school wasn’t qualified back then, and it ended up holding him back.”
Old Wang’s voice was thick with regret. “This year, we finally got a spot. Besides him, I can’t think of anyone more suitable to compete.”
“You’re desk mates and around the same age. Talking to him would definitely be easier than an old man like me who’s always scolding people. Whether it works or not, I won’t force it.”
With the teacher having said this much, Pu Yu felt too embarrassed to refuse again.
She could only take the registration form and say softly:
“…Alright, I’ll try.”