What's wrong with me, a school principal, listening to students' suggestions?

July 7th.

Three days before the official release of the college entrance examination results.

The entire education sector in Tomato City is waiting for a number.

The college entrance examination results of No. 13 Middle School.

Liu Jianguo was also waiting.

He sat in the Education Bureau office, a document spread out in front of him.

Special Report on Eliminating Typical Cases of Irregular School Operations

The report, which spanned eight pages, covered everything from the school's historical college entrance examination pass rate to the so-called "emphasis on welfare over teaching" in its operation, and the risk assessment that "blindly expanding enrollment may lead to the dilution of educational resources."

Each entry contains data, and each paragraph contains citations.

To the untrained eye, this is a well-written and logically sound official document.

But Liu Jianguo knew in his heart that this thing was just a gun from beginning to end.

The bullet is already loaded; all that's left is to set up the target based on the college entrance examination results of No. 13 Middle School.

"Zhao Hongliang."

Without even looking up, he called out towards the door.

"Director?" Zhao Hongliang peeked halfway in from the corridor.

"Have you managed to get things sorted out with the higher-ups?"

"It's working out." Zhao Hongliang said in a low voice, "They said that as long as the materials we submit are of high quality, they can issue a notification."

"It won't be our city that wants to merge No. 13 Middle School; it's the province that requires standardized rectification."

Liu Jianguo picked up the lighter on the table, lit it with a snap, and then slammed it off.

Repeating it several times felt like a pastime.

"Lin Yucai has been quite the troublemaker these past six months." He tossed a lighter onto the report. "Recruitment, cafeteria, school uniforms, live streaming... one crazy thing after another."

"Fancy tricks can't replace good grades."

"Last year, the undergraduate enrollment rate of No. 13 Middle School was only 5%." Liu Jianguo held up one finger. "Even if it doubles this year to 10%, it will still be at the bottom of the city."

"The bottom-ranked school desperately expanded its enrollment, boasted for half a year, but its college entrance examination results were still at the bottom."

"When the provincial department issued a notice, the parents were the first to jump up and down, and the media were the second to chase after them and criticize them."

"I won't even have to lift a finger; Lin Yucai will have to leave on his own."

Zhao Hongliang stood at the door, his palms slightly damp.

He wanted to say something, opened his mouth, but then swallowed it back.

"Do you have something to say?" Liu Jianguo glanced at him.

"No," Zhao Hongliang shook his head. "It's just... what if the students from No. 13 Middle School don't have bad grades?"

Liu Jianguo stared at him for three seconds, then suddenly laughed.

That smile carried a sense of superior confidence.

"No. 13 Middle School? Their grades aren't bad?" He slammed the report on the table. "Go check how many students from No. 13 Middle School got into top-tier universities in the past ten years."

"two."

"Two students admitted to top-tier universities in ten years." Liu Jianguo leaned back in his chair. "With this kind of foundation, even if Lin Yucai were a god descended to earth, he couldn't turn things around in six months."

Zhao Hongliang didn't reply and left the office.

Walking down the corridor, he couldn't help but look back at the closed door.

That thorn in my heart was pricked again.

He had seen the live stream from No. 13 Middle School, and the students' eyes were completely different from what they had looked like six months ago.

But he also knew that Liu Jianguo was right.

The foundation is too weak.

The college entrance exam doesn't care how hard you work; it only cares about the final score.

……

At the same time, things were not peaceful on the campus of No. 13 Middle School.

It's been almost ten days since the college entrance exam ended, and most of the senior high school students haven't left.

They gathered in twos and threes in the dormitories, the canteen, and on the playground.

Some were checking answers, some were playing on their phones browsing score estimation posts, and some were doing nothing but sitting on the steps in a daze.

An inexplicable anxiety, like the dampness of the rainy season, seeped into every corner.

Chen Yu sat by the window in the cafeteria, not touching the braised pork in front of him.

She had an online score estimation website open on her phone, but the page kept freezing and wouldn't load.

"Have you figured it out yet?" The girl next to me leaned over to take a look.

"No, this stupid website crashed again." Chen Yu put her phone face down on the table. "And I can't remember what I chose for the seventeenth multiple-choice question."

"Whether to choose B or D is a difference of 3 points."

"Don't bother guessing, just wait for the results to be released."

"I can't wait." Chen Yu shook her head. "I want to apply to Tomato Teachers' College, but I don't know if I'm good enough. Even one point makes a difference."

She stared at the plate of braised pork on the table for a while, then flipped her phone back over and continued to refresh the incredibly laggy score estimation page.

This kind of atmosphere in the cafeteria is not an isolated case.

Looking around, you could see that most of the tables were occupied by people checking their answers on their phones or exam papers.

The expression on his face shifted from hope to despair, from despair to numbness, and then from numbness back to hope. Back and forth, like riding a roller coaster.

Zhou Dahai stood at the kitchen window, holding a bowl of noodles and looking out for a while.

"Why aren't these kids eating?"

"Estimating your score, Master?" His young apprentice peeked over the screen. "Everyone's like this after the college entrance exam; I'm not sure what to expect."

"Eating well is more important than anything else; college entrance exam scores don't determine your entire life."

Zhou Dahai wrinkled his nose and turned back to the stove.

……

At 8 p.m., the light in Lin Yucai's office was still on.

There was a piece of paper spread out on the table in front of him, with a few lines of writing on it.

"July 10th, Principals' Joint Meeting, College Entrance Examination Results Report... Last on the list."

This is information that Ma Desheng obtained.

It was arranged by Liu Jianguo.

The intention behind placing No. 13 Middle School last in the report is all too obvious.

After the first dozen or so schools reported impressive numbers, the contrast with the final ranking of No. 13 Middle School was enough to make everyone laugh for half a year.

Lin Yucai stared at the paper for a while, then folded it up and stuffed it into the drawer.

He knew what was going on.

Over the past six months, the accolades provided by the system have indeed improved my learning efficiency and exam performance.

"A calm mind" reduces pre-exam anxiety, "clear-headedness in the exam room" suppresses negative emotions, and "the halo of greenery" restores focus.

When you put all these things together, the effect won't be bad.

He wasn't sure exactly how much he could improve the grades.

The foundation of No. 13 Middle School is undeniable.

Last year the average score was 312. Even if it rises to over 400 this year, how many people can pass the undergraduate admission line?

he does not know.

no one knows.

The answer will be revealed in three days.

There wasn't much he could do during those three days.

Lin Yucai sorted through the stack of registration forms and was about to turn off the lights and leave.

The phone rang.

"You haven't left yet?" Su Qingyan's WeChat message.

"Almost there, what's wrong?"

"None of the senior students in the cafeteria are eating properly; they're just focused on estimating their scores."

"I saw Chen Yu drink a bowl of soup from six o'clock to eight o'clock and still hadn't finished it."

Lin Yucai looked at the message, his finger hovering over the screen for a moment.

I'll go see it tomorrow.

"Don't stay up too late, go back and get some rest." Su Qingyan sent another message.

Lin Yucai responded with an OK sign and turned off his phone screen.

The office fell silent.

The cicadas chirped incessantly outside the window; the July night was hot and humid.

Three days later, the fate of No. 13 Middle School will be defined by a set of numbers.

Behind those numbers stand 173 children over three years.