Chapter 193: Good News
The evening's dinner was held in the large private room of Hanmen Restaurant, featuring three tables, each of which could seat around fifteen people. With forty-five students in a class, it was just right for three tables.
After the exams, quite a few people headed straight to Hanmen Restaurant. Everyone gathered to chat, discussing the college entrance exam, their scores, their aspirations, and their future university life...
Xiao Han and Li Dapang among others also went.
The private room was spacious, with the sofas filled with people, so everyone simply sat on the tables to chat.
"Xiao Han, how do you feel about the exam this time?" someone asked out of curiosity.
"Not bad!" Xiao Han smiled.
Many people were concerned about Xiao Han's performance; during freshman and sophomore year, his grades had always been at the bottom. Even the first mock exam in his senior year only scored him three hundred points, ranking last in the class. But in the second mock exam, which was also a city-wide joint exam, Xiao Han unexpectedly took second place in the entire grade.
This shocked many people, and from then on, Xiao Han's grades remained in the top three, never once falling below.
That's why everyone was highly skeptical about Xiao Han's grades.
The rigor and fairness of the college entrance exam are well known. If Xiao Han really had achieved high scores through cheating, then he would definitely be exposed during the exam. This was another reason why everyone was paying extra attention to him.
"Hehe, at this time, the Cinderella usually reveals her true self!" Jiang Xiaoliang said with a smiling face.
"Is that so?" Xiao Han was slightly startled before replying, "What if she doesn't reveal her true self?"
"Then it means Cinderella isn't actually Cinderella, but a real princess," Jiang Xiaoliang stood up and said, "Fellow students, let's boldly guess how many points Xiao Han will score on the college entrance exam this time. If you guess it right, I'll reward you with a thousand bucks. I guess three hundred points."
Ha ha...
Some people burst into laughter immediately. Discover hidden content at My Virtual Library Empire
Facing everyone's ridicule and demeaning comments, Xiao Han was completely indifferent. He didn't care about what others thought of him, whether it was ridicule or demeaning comments. Even envy or flattery... Xiao Han had nothing to fear. The opinions of these people couldn't affect him in any way.
Does society care about a high school student's view of itself? Who would care about a bunch of kids' ridicule and belittlement?
Xiao Han's mindset had gradually matured and stabilized. So, he simply didn't care about these things. A cunning smile crept across the corners of Xiao Han's mouth. Meanwhile, Li Dapao couldn't listen anymore, "Damn, how many points Xiao Han scores is none of your damn business."
"Li Dapang, mind your own business," Jiang Xiaoliang snorted coldly, "You and Xiao Han are both the same, both mediocre. Did my words hit a nerve?"
"Hehe..." Li Dapang looked at him disdainfully, then said, "I really thought you were something special. You're just mediocre. What's the big deal? Jiang Xiaoliang, if your parents weren't the directors of Meida Group, you would be nothing but a fart!"
"You're worse than a fart!" Jiang Xiaoliang retorted unabashedly.
"Enough." Xiao Han quickly stood up to smooth things over, saying, "Big Fatty, why bother arguing with others?"
"I just can't stand him," Li Dapang snorted.
"What's there to be upset about?" Xiao Han chuckled and said, "If a dog bites you, are you gonna bite the dog back?"
"Ah..." Li Dapang was stunned at first, then he burst into laughter on the spot, "Haha... Good, good, that's classic. Damn, that's brilliant!"
In the private room, a group of students looked on dumbfounded. They were all astonished and curiously watched Jiang Xiaoliang to see how he would respond.
"Damn it!" Jiang Xiaoliang got angry and picked up a chair, intending to smash it at the other party.
"No, no!" A boy nearby hurriedly grabbed Jiang Xiaoliang, fearing he would do something irrational on impulse. Frustrated, Jiang Xiaoliang cursed, "Damn it, don't stop me, I want to fight him!"
"You can't beat him anyway," said a boy who was close to Li Dapang.
"The hell with that, let's try and see!" Jiang Xiaoliang roared.
Just when the private room was in utter chaos, Liu Jinmei walked in.
As soon as Liu Jinmei entered the room, it immediately quieted down. Jiang Xiaoliang also put down the chair he was holding and sat down on one. The silence and stillness in the room were somewhat incredible. Liu Jinmei could obviously sense that something was off and curiously asked, "What's... What's the matter with all of you?"
"Jiang Xiaoliang wants to fight with Xiao Han," the girl on the side hurriedly said.
"Why?" Liu Jinmei asked.
"The two have a conflict!" the girl whispered.
Liu Jinmei sighed and said, "No matter what, ten years by cold windows, three years with classmates, we may have many conflicts. But, years later when you look back, you'll find that many of the so-called conflicts were nothing more than trivial matters."
The private room was quiet.
"Alright, has everyone arrived?" Liu Jinmei asked.
"Chen Zihan isn't here," Jiang Xiaoliang said anxiously.
"Don't wait for her," Liu Jinmei said with a smile. "This time, Chen Zihan didn't participate in our college entrance exam."
"What?!" Everyone was stunned, staring at Liu Jinmei with gaping mouths. Someone quickly asked, "Teacher Liu, what happened to Chen Zihan? Did something happen?"
"Don't worry, it's nothing serious," Liu Jinmei shook her head. "Although she didn't take our college entrance exam, she went to SH to take the SAT for American universities. Moreover, Chen Zihan applied to Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) this time. Let's hope she gets what she wishes for."
"Wow..." The room instantly filled with astonishment.
"So Chen Zihan is going to study abroad?"
"That's right, Chen Zihan is such an outstanding girl, she's definitely going to study abroad."
Many girls whispered among themselves. The fact that Chen Zihan was applying for American universities made many people especially envious. After all, being able to study abroad was already something enviable. Most importantly, going abroad to burnish their credentials meant that they would definitely enjoy high salaries upon their return. Coming back later, their status would be on a different level.
Chinese people have a psychology of worshipping everything foreign; they like and admire anything trendy from abroad. Western pop culture and junk food, once they enter China, become trendy and sought-after.
"Alright, classmates, let's eat," Liu Jinmei called out.
Everyone took their seats, and teachers from several other subjects also entered the private room. The students were very enthusiastic, one by one toasting the teachers to express their three years of gratitude. The teacher-student relationship over three years was not easy.
Clinking glasses, for these students who weren't good at drinking, some quickly became drunk. Taking advantage of their drunkenness, some cried without cessation, some kept talking nonstop...
The atmosphere was very lively, and at the table, teachers also showed their true feelings, wiping away tears.
"Students, we're also reluctant to let you go," the Chinese teacher stood up and said, "But where is there a fledgling that stays in the nest forever? The day will come when the fledglings have full wings. They have to soar into the blue sky, into an even wider sky. Isn't that so?"
"Rustle..."
There was a round of applause. Indeed worthy of a Chinese teacher, his words were so eloquent. Moved by his words, the students clapped.
Li Dapang and Xiao Han sat together. Xiao Han had been silent the whole time, not toasting, just silently eating. After Li Dapang had toasted with several teachers, he reminded Xiao Han, "Xiao Han, why haven't you shown any sign of participation?"
"How should I express it?" Xiao Han asked.
"Toast," Li Dapang reminded him quickly. "No matter what, you owe it to the three years of teacher-student relationship, right?"
Xiao Han nodded slightly. It wasn't that he didn't want to toast; it was more that the atmosphere was pressing on him, making him feel sad. Seeing the girls hugging and crying together stirred pain in his heart. At this moment, he missed Chen Zihan so much and wished she could appear before him. Yet, he knew it was impossible.
So, Xiao Han could only drown his sorrows with alcohol, pouring bottle after bottle into his glass, and he drank a whole bottle by himself.
"Hey, hey, big brother, that's alcohol, not water!" Li Dapang quickly grabbed Xiao Han's arm.
"It's okay, I can handle my liquor," Xiao Han said with a smile.
"Still, you shouldn't drink like that," Li Dapang insisted.
"Then I'll toast," Xiao Han held his glass and stood up. "Teacher Liu, Teacher Zhang... I know I've always been someone inconspicuous. Maybe some of you don't even know my name. My name is Xiao Han. Here's to you all, thank you for your earnest teachings over three years, for your hardship and care..."
"Xiao Han, I know you," the Chinese teacher smiled, then said, "After entering senior year, your grades have always been good. I've been paying attention to you. And, let me tell you some good news. I received a phone call last night from an old classmate in the Provincial Education Department, asking me if Linjiang No.1 Middle School has a student named Xiao Han."
"Uh..." Liu Jinmei was taken aback and asked, "What... What's this all about?"
All eyes in the room turned curiously towards Teacher Zhang.
"At first, I thought there was some problem, so I asked about it. Hehe..." Teacher Zhang teased them a bit before revealing, "I later found out it was good news."
"What good news? Share with everyone so we can be happy!" Liu Jinmei said eagerly.
"Although I don't know what the matter is, I know for sure it's something good," Teacher Zhang chuckled, excitedly saying, "My old classmate said, Xiao Han's essay in the college entrance exam seems to have caught the attention of the Provincial Committee's Education Department. It seems they're conducting a cross-review."