Qingteng's Mind - Middle School Era

Chapter 1392 Smile
As soon as the bell rang for the end of the last class on Tuesday afternoon, the classroom of Class 5, Grade 11, erupted in chaos.

"Really? Who told you that?" Su Lei's loud voice boomed from the back of the classroom, and half the class turned to look.

Du Xiaofeng slowly smoothed her not-so-long hair and smiled mysteriously: "If you don't believe me, then forget it."

Su Lei slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "Did you hear from Yi Lingfei that they're really going to publicly praise students after the midterm exams?"

Du Xiaofeng smiled without saying a word and looked out the window.

The classroom erupted into a cacophony of voices, like the chirping of cicadas in the height of summer.

"How did you do on the exam?" Tang Ji patted Zhou Yuchen, who was sitting in front of him, and then nudged Xu Renming next to him.

Zhou Yuchen sniffed, seemingly lost in thought: "It's alright. But as for praise..." He shook his head, "I probably won't get it."

Xu Renming snorted and turned his head away arrogantly, leaving everyone with the back of his head that seemed to say, "Mortals are not worthy to speak with me."

Ling Chuyang paused, his hand holding the pen still. His gaze passed through the noisy crowd and landed in front of him—the person was quietly reading a book, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding commotion.

"Smack!" Wang Xinyi slapped Ling Mengchu's desk.

Ling Mengchu shuddered and glared at her, "What are you taking pictures of?"

"Didn't you hear what Du Xiaofeng said? There will be praise for making progress!"

"You're on the list of those being commended?" Ling Mengchu rolled her eyes and lowered her head again.

Wang Xinyi smiled, her eyes curving into crescents: "I don't need you, I can live without you."

Ling Mengchu rolled her eyes, then heard Wang Xinyi ask, "Little Lingzi should be praised this time, right?"

He Shiling, who was quietly reading a book, looked up and smiled at Wang Xinyi. The smile was faint, like ripples spreading across a lake in early spring.

Geng Xinyu behind her couldn't help but laugh. Of course, Xiao Lingzi would win. She was sure to win this round.

The school bell rang at that moment.

The noise subsided quickly, like the receding tide. Yan Xu walked in, carrying the test papers, a smile he couldn't hide on his face: "Today we'll go over the Chinese test—first of all, I have to say, everyone did really well this time."

He paused, looking with satisfaction at the eyes that lit up instantly below the stage: "The average score is out. Our class is still number one in the whole school, seven points higher than Class 6 and five points higher than Class 16."

"Wow—" The cheers almost lifted the roof off.

Yan Xu waved his hand, and after his voice had subsided, he continued, "Alright, now that you're done being happy, let's start discussing the questions."

This Chinese class was strangely surreal—time seemed to both fly by and drag on. It flew by because everyone was distracted, and dragged on because everyone was waiting—waiting for the bell to ring, waiting for Yan Xu to say something else.

The moment the bell rang, Yan Xu packed up her lesson plan, stepped down from the podium, and suddenly turned back as if remembering something: "Oh, right, there's one more piece of news—"

All movement froze. Some remained in the posture of packing their books, some were half-standing, and all eyes were fixed on Yan Xu like searchlights.

“It’s confirmed,” Yan Xu said with a bright smile, “that students who have made significant progress in their studies will be publicly commended at the school assembly at 2:30 pm on Friday.”

The classroom was silent for three seconds.

Immediately, an even louder roar erupted.

"Teacher Yan! When will the rankings be released?" someone shouted.

"If nothing unexpected happens," Yan Xu held up one finger, "tomorrow afternoon."

Amidst the uproar, he walked away with a smile, his hands in his pockets. His students were truly excellent; indeed, a great teacher produces outstanding students!

“The scores for physics, chemistry, and biology haven’t come out yet,” Wang Xinyi turned around, her eyes sparkling. “Once these three scores are out, we can calculate our total score ourselves!”

The group remained silent, each nodding in agreement.

There was a hidden anticipation flowing in the air, like the tender shoots of grass stirring underground in spring.

"Will Xiaolingzi get first place this time?" Wang Xinyi asked casually, but it made several people around her look up at the same time.

Ling Mengchu curled her lip: "Among these people in the class, if Xiao Lingzi isn't number one, then who else could it be but you?" "Broaden your perspective," Wang Xinyi blinked, "I'm talking about number one in the whole school, not number one in the class."

Ling Mengchu was stunned.

Since He Shiling took first place in the entire school in the first monthly exam of her first year of high school, she has never reached the top again. She ranks fifth overall, and her total score is more than ten points lower than Yi Lingfei's.

Like a long marathon, she was always in the leading group, but always just one step behind.

What about this time?
He Shiling smiled and said softly, "Let's wait until the results come out."

That smile had a calming power that could soothe even the most restless heart.

The days of waiting for the results felt incredibly long.

On Wednesday afternoon, half an hour before class, half the students in the classroom were chatting, half were studying, and a few were laughing and talking together. The air was filled with the lazy, lively atmosphere unique to early summer.

Suddenly someone shouted, "Teacher Yan is here!"

All eyes turned to the front door, the back door, and the windows—like sunflowers searching for the sun.

Yan Xu walked in with a smile, his hands empty, without any test papers in his hands.

"Are you all here?" He stood on the podium, looked around the classroom, and said, "I have some good news to tell you all."

Sixty-five pairs of eyes followed his movements; the classroom was so quiet that you could hear the sound of the sycamore leaves rustling in the wind outside the window.

"Fifth in the whole school," Yan Xu paused, looking at the expectant eyes below the stage with satisfaction, "in our class."

Cheers erupted, only to be quickly interrupted by a voice: "The class monitor has always been fifth in the whole school, so it's not surprising, is it?"

It was Su Lei. Only after he finished speaking did he realize that his voice was too loud. He looked at Yang Min, who had turned her head in front of him, and scratched his head with an embarrassed smile.

Yan Xu was taken aback and subconsciously looked at He Shiling—she was writing something on a draft paper with her head down, her profile calm.

Uh, he knew she had good grades, but he didn't expect her grades to be this good!

The next second, Yan Xu smiled even more brightly: "Then let me tell you another one—the top student in the whole school is also in our class."

Quiet.

Complete silence.

The clock on the back wall ticked away, each tick as clear as a blow to the heart. Someone's mouth was agape, and someone's pen fell to the table with a clatter.

It seemed like a long time had passed, yet it also seemed like only a moment.

"Ah—!!!" Wang Xinyi was the first to jump up, turned around and grabbed He Shiling's arm and shook it, "Was it you? Was it you? Did I tell you right?!"

He Shiling didn't say anything, but just smiled and turned her head to look at Geng Xinyu behind her. Sure enough, Zheng Yifan's notes had worked.

Geng Xinyu was also smiling, her eyes curving into a beautiful arc, and she nodded gently at her.

That's great. They've all improved, hehe. Let's wait and see how Xiaofei cries before evening self-study. Just thinking about it makes me happy.

Gu Yue looked at Tan Linlin with surprise—could Tan Linlin be the fifth?

Xu Renming's eyes widened, he sat up straight, and looked at the people outside the three tables in front of him. If he guessed correctly, the first one must be the class monitor, and the fifth one would naturally be the Youth League secretary.

Tang Ji looked around, swallowed back what she wanted to say, and suddenly noticed that Ling Chuyang was smiling. The corners of his mouth were slightly raised, a very small arc, but he was definitely smiling.

"Teacher Yan! Have the top fifty students been ranked yet? How many are from our class?" someone asked impatiently.

"I haven't compiled the statistics yet," Yan Xu waved his hand. "I only know these two pieces of information so far. Okay, let's get ready for class."

When he walked out of the classroom, his steps were as light as if he were walking on clouds. No wonder the teacher agreed so readily to the trip last Saturday. It turned out to be a reward for these children!

The excitement in Class 5 of Grade 11 lasted for the entire afternoon.