On the first day back at school after National Day, the results of the entrance exam were announced.
Mingde High’s exam arrangements differed from those of regular high schools. There were no posted exam room numbers or classroom changes—everyone took the test at their own desks using school-issued tablets. The exam papers were digital: multiple-choice questions were answered directly on the tablet, while essay questions were written on scratch paper and uploaded via photo. It was Jiang Lai’s first time using this system, but she adapted within ten minutes.
The exams had taken place over three days before the holiday. When the final English exam ended, Zhang Yue was already waiting for her in the cafeteria. The international division didn’t have entrance exams, and over the past few days, Zhang Yue had watched Jiang Lai head to the exam halls each day, pityingly remarking, “You look like a genuine sufferer.”
The results were announced on the third day after the exams.
Mingde’s regular division’s grading system was encrypted. Each student’s account only displayed their own scores and rankings, not others’. No rankings were posted publicly, homeroom teachers didn’t read scores aloud in class, and only students with significant improvements or outstanding results were publicly praised.
Jiang Lai opened the results page at eight in the evening, sitting in her dormitory chair, the light from her computer screen reflecting on her face.
Total score: 659. Grade ranking: 19.
She scrolled down a bit. Next to the physics column was a small mark: Top Score in the Grade for the Subject.
Zhang Yue sent a message: “Are the results out yet? Are they out?”
Jiang Lai sent a screenshot, circling the physics row in red.
Zhang Yue replied instantly: “?”
“Top score in the grade for the subject.”
The reply was a three-second voice message. Jiang Lai clicked on it, and Zhang Yue’s voice vibrated through the phone speaker: “You’re not human.”
Jiang Lai laughed and typed four words in response: “Naturally gifted.”
She didn’t mind bragging a little to her best friend.
The next day in physics class, homeroom teacher and physics instructor Chen Du walked in holding a tablet. After standing at the podium, he scanned the room. The class quieted down, and a few boys who had been chatting fell silent. Chen Du opened the class roster and adjusted his glasses.
“Before we start the new lesson, I have an announcement. The overall results for this entrance exam are out. Our class’s average physics score is second in the grade.”
A few scattered “ohs” came from below, and a boy in the back row led a brief round of applause.
“Additionally,” Chen Du scrolled down a page, “the top physics score in the grade is in our class. Jiang Lai, highest score in the grade.”
The class fell silent for a moment, and all eyes turned toward Jiang Lai.
Mingde’s physics exams were notoriously difficult, almost at the level of college physics.
A few girls in the front row turned around, and someone in the back muttered, “Wow.” A boy sitting by the window in the third row leaned back slightly and glanced in her direction.
Jiang Lai opened her eyes wide, looking around, and smiled a little sheepishly.
Chen Du set the tablet down and glanced toward Jiang Lai. “Jiang Lai transferred to Mingde from Sanzhong High this semester. This was her first time taking Mingde’s entrance exam, and she adapted remarkably well. That’s commendable.”
As soon as the bell rang, Liu Wenjing, who sat in front of her, turned around and leaned over her desk.
“Girl, how did you study physics? My brain overheated halfway through the essay questions. Did you take any extra classes?”
“No. I just read the textbook carefully.”
“The textbook?” Liu Wenjing adjusted her glasses. “You mean that blue book? That can get you the highest score?”
Several classmates who were struggling with physics gradually gathered around. A girl with a ponytail asked if she had studied it before transferring schools or had previewed it during summer vacation, while a boy mentioned that she was the only one in the class to get full marks on the last electromagnetic problem and asked which formula she had used. These classmates all came from well-off families and usually hired private tutors for one-on-one lessons during holidays. They wanted to see if Jiang Lai had any special tricks up her sleeve.
After Liu Wenjing finished asking, she added, “Is it because your parents are especially supportive of your studies?”
[Keyword detected, triggering Compensation. WeChat transfer received: 5,000 yuan.]
Jiang Lai flipped her draft paper over. “Besides me, there’s only my mom at home. She’s indeed quite supportive.”
“Single parent?” the ponytail girl chimed in, not finding it unusual at all. “My mom raised me alone too, but she’s a humanities student, so I’ve never passed physics.”
[Keyword detected, triggering Compensation. WeChat transfer received: 4,000 yuan.]
The boy beside her interjected, “Being able to transfer into Mingde is impressive. You either come from a wealthy family or genuinely have talent. You must have had good grades before transferring, right?”
Liu Wenjing answered for him, “Definitely. Even Teacher Chen said it’s not easy for a transfer student to score this well.”
[Keyword detected, triggering Compensation. WeChat transfer received: 6,000 yuan.]
Jiang Lai glanced down at her phone screen inside her desk drawer. Three transfer notifications lined up, totaling fifteen thousand yuan.
In just the ten-minute break, she had triggered more Compensation than in an entire day during her summer vacation.
After the last class of the afternoon ended, Jiang Lai took out her phone to check carefully as she walked toward the cafeteria. The balance in her WeChat wallet had gained an extra digit, now slightly over one hundred thousand yuan.
Just as she stared at this number in a daze, the System’s voice rang out.
[System Notification: Cumulative reward amount has reached one hundred thousand yuan.]
[Achievement Unlocked: The Early Bird’s First Bucket of Gold.]
[System upgrading—upgrade complete.]
[Upgrade Details: The lower limit for random amounts per trigger has been increased to 3,000 yuan, and the upper limit has been raised to 15,000 yuan.]
[New Addition: Small probability of triggering physical item rewards. Trigger conditions remain consistent with the original Compensation Mode.]
Jiang Lai stood under a parasol tree, her phone in hand, the screen already dark from inactivity.
She looked up at the sky fragmented by the parasol tree branches, took a deep breath, and put her phone back into her pocket.
On the basketball court, someone shouted to pass the ball. The scent of sweet and sour pork wafted from the direction of the cafeteria, and a few students riding shared bicycles whizzed past her from behind.
Jiang Lai resumed walking toward the cafeteria, her steps lighter than before. If it weren’t for the bustling campus, she would have jumped for joy.
She had money now!
One hundred thousand yuan—just enough to cover her tuition for the remaining two years of high school. Although she wanted far more than this, at least she now had a basic safety net. She wouldn’t have to worry about money before the college entrance exam.
Back in her dorm that evening, after showering, Jiang Lai curled up in a beanbag chair and watched an episode of the manga Zhang Yue had recommended. Her phone screen lit up with a message from Jiang Shan: “Lailai, how did your start-of-term exams go?”
Jiang Lai had originally planned to tell her over the weekend when she went home, but her mother couldn’t wait to check in on her daughter.
“The results just came out. I’m near the top of the class. First in the grade for physics.”
Jiang Shan sent a string of surprised emojis, followed by a voice message. Jiang Lai tapped to play it, and her mother’s bright, clear voice rang out: “My daughter is first in her grade! Come home on Friday, and I’ll make your favorite braised ribs!”
Jiang Lai held her phone to her chest. These everyday moments of warmth always lifted her spirits.
She rolled over and buried her face in her pillow. The System had been upgraded, her grades were stable, she had moved to a new place, and her mother’s braised ribs were just a weekend away.
Today really was a good day.