The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

Chen Shi drove Jiang Yiqiu's car to the mall. The summer night was cool; it was too hot during the day, so everyone stayed home and only came out to stroll through the night market at night.

There were many people. Jiang Yiqiu, holding Chen Shi's hand, walked through the crowd. The handsome man and beautiful woman were a feast for the eyes, attracting many glances.

Jiang Yiqiu asked Chen Shi to drive two kilometers more to a newly opened shopping mall. He didn't want to go to the same mall as last time, for fear of running into Shen Xiaorong again.

She was hostile towards Shen Xiaorong, who gave her the impression that Shen Xiaorong had romantic feelings for Chen Shi.

Jiang Yiqiu pulled Chen Shi along, looking at this shop and that shop, but they couldn't find anything they liked.

After walking around for half an hour, Chen Shi was exhausted. No wonder even dogs don't want to go shopping with women.

Men go straight to the point when they buy things, buy them and leave, while women enjoy the experience of shopping; they are more enthusiastic about trying on clothes.

Upon arriving at a clothing brand store, Jiang Yiqiu tried on three dresses and asked Chen Shi, "Which of these three dresses looks best?"

Chen Shi glanced at it and said dismissively, "The off-white one looks good."

Jiang Yiqiu said to the waiter, "This one, wrap it up."

The waiter asked, "Would you like to take a look at the men's clothing? New arrivals, 5% off."

Jiang Yiqiu said, "Let's take a look."

Jiang Yiqiu pulled Chen Shi to the men's clothing section, selected several casual outfits, and had Chen Shi try them on. Chen Shi looked at them and chose two to try on.

After trying on the clothes, Chen Shi found one he liked and told the sales assistant, "Wrap it up."

Jiang Yiqiu looked puzzled: "Won't you take another look?"

Chen Shi said, "Men's clothes don't have many styles, unlike women's clothes, which have so many styles."

The waiter remarked, "Sir, you have excellent taste. This casual outfit looks like it was tailor-made for you."

Chen Shi took out his credit card and handed it to the waiter: "Swipe the card."

The waitress respectfully accepted the credit card; her two favorite words to hear were "swipe card."

After leaving the clothing store, Jiang Yiqiu noticed that Chen Shi looked tired and asked, "Honey, do you want to rest for a bit?"

Chen Shi glanced at Jiang Yiqiu, who was wearing seven-centimeter high heels, and asked with a puzzled look, "Aren't you tired wearing such high heels and walking around for so long?"

"Not tired at all," Jiang Yiqiu said with a smile. "I can shop all day with my darling and not feel tired at all."

"You have a meeting tomorrow and are preparing for the college entrance exam the day after tomorrow, so go home and rest early."

"You don't want to shop anymore?"

Chen Shi, carrying the clothes, said, "Didn't we come out to buy clothes? We've already bought the clothes, what's the point of shopping anymore?"

Jiang Yiqiu took Chen Shi's hand and said, "You're such a clueless straight man. You don't understand girls' feelings at all. Going out to buy clothes is just an excuse. I mainly want you to go shopping with me."

Staying at home is so boring. Let's wander around a bit more, then go back to the coffee shop for a coffee and a break.

The two arrived at the coffee shop and had just sat down when a familiar figure walked over. Jiang Yiqiu thought to himself, "Why is she always here? She's like a ghost that won't leave me. I can't help but run into her here."

Chen Shi, with a broad smile, waved to Shen Xiaorong as she approached and asked, "What are you doing here?"

I'm here to do part-time work.

Jiang Yiqiu said with a serious expression, "Aren't you selling clothes at that mall over there? Why are you doing a part-time job here?"

Shen Xiaorong smiled sweetly: "I sold clothes for a while, but I found it boring, so I came here."

Learning to grind coffee is quite interesting.

Jiang Yiqiu looked at Shen Xiaorong: "The high school entrance exam is in half a month, and you're still working part-time. Are you that confident?"

"Junior high school knowledge is too easy for me and not challenging enough. I'm self-studying first-year high school knowledge. High school knowledge is more challenging. When I get to high school, I will spend a year focusing on my studies."

Jiang Yiqiu thought to himself, "Too arrogant," and his voice turned cold: "Can you even get a perfect score on the high school entrance exam?"

Shen Xiaorong said with a relaxed expression, "Getting a perfect score is too high-profile and will attract a lot of attention. With a total score of 810, getting 789 points will not attract too much attention."

What is a top student? This is a top student: being able to control their test scores.

Jiang Yiqiu said in a deep voice, "What if I don't get 789 points?"

"Director Jiang, if I don't score 789 points, I won't accept your sponsorship from No. 1 High School. But if I do score 789 points, what will you say, Director Jiang?"

Jiang Yiqiu didn't expect that he would issue a challenge to him. He said with a serious face, "If you can get 789 points, I will apply for an extra 500 yuan for your living expenses every month."

Shen Xiaorong said with a relaxed expression, "Director Jiang, your school already provides enough living expenses. I can't possibly spend it all in a month. If I score 789 points, I'll need absolute freedom."

Jiang Yiqiu looked completely bewildered: "Absolute freedom?"

Shen Xiaorong smiled and said, "It means I can do whatever I want without being bound by anyone."

Jiang Yiqiu pondered that absolute freedom, meaning going to class whenever one wanted and not going whenever one wanted, would definitely affect other students. Even if you are a top student, it's not acceptable.

"School is not a place for you to do part-time jobs and do whatever you want. With so many students, there can be no order without rules. When you come to No. 1 High School, you must abide by the school's rules and regulations."

Chen Shi continued, "Shen Xiaorong, in the first semester of your first year of high school, you scored 1050 points. If you can score above 900 points, then Director Jiang will be able to grant you your request."

Jiang Yiqiu glanced at Chen Shi, who gave her a look in return. This kind of academic star shouldn't be confined to the classroom. She has a very active mind and is assertive in everything she does. She can't be treated like an ordinary student and managed too strictly.

Jiang Yiqiu asked, "Arts or Science, which do you choose?"

Shen Xiaorong said, "If you want to get high scores, you should definitely choose science. There are more opportunities. Science majors can study humanities majors, but humanities majors cannot study science majors."

Chen Shi nodded. This girl's understanding was miles ahead of his when he was in high school; they were on completely different wavelengths.

Chen Shi recalled that he was completely confused when he was in high school. All his classmates chose science, so he followed suit and had no idea what the difference was between humanities and science.

This may be the difference between top students and ordinary people.

Jiang Yiqiu solemnly said, "In the second semester of the first year of high school, students will be divided into arts and sciences tracks. If you choose science, you will have absolute freedom if you score above 680 on every exam. If you score below 680 even once, your absolute freedom will be revoked."

Absolute freedom is contingent on not affecting other students.

Shen Xiaorong smiled and said, "Okay, Director Jiang, you can't go back on your word later. My brother is my witness."

Chen Shi replied, "Alright, I'll be your witness. If anyone goes back on their word, I'll spank them."

Shen Xiaorong smiled, pursing her lips.

Chen Shi and Jiang Yiqiu ordered coffee and sat for more than ten minutes. When they came out of the coffee shop, Chen Shi asked, "Do you want to continue shopping?"

Jiang Yiqiu had lost interest in shopping: "Let's go back, we can shop again another day."

Jiang Yiqiu had a gut feeling that Shen Xiaorong was provoking him.

If it weren't for needing a top student like Shen Xiaorong to uphold the reputation of No. 1 High School, Jiang Yiqiu really wouldn't want Shen Xiaorong to come to No. 1 High School.

On second thought, a top student like Shen Xiaorong would be highly sought after by Mingzhou No. 1 High School even if I didn't make a move beforehand, after the high school entrance exam.

It's not that Shen Xiaorong needs No. 1 Middle School, it's that No. 1 Middle School needs Shen Xiaorong, and Jiang Yiqiu needs Shen Xiaorong even more.

If Shen Xiaorong gets into Tsinghua or Peking University, she will have political achievements to show, which will allow her to advance further in her career.