Jiang Mianmian and the other students: "Good morning, Teacher!"
Teacher Qiu nodded, then silently counted the number of students and, seeing that no one was missing, picked up the roll call book and said, "I am now going to call names. When I call yours, please stand up as an indication."
"Yes, Teacher," the students replied in a chorus.
Following that, Teacher Qiu started calling roll. As she called the names, she also glanced at the heights of the students.
After roll call, she let the students arrange themselves by height before standing them up to make adjustments if necessary.
At only nine years old this year, Jiang Mianmian considered herself tall compared to her peers, but compared to the first-year students, she was just a little one.
Thus, when she first came in, she had consciously chosen a seat in the first row.
As a result, she didn’t move at all, and Teacher Qiu didn’t adjust her seat either,
Teacher Qiu, looking at Zhong Yuan who stood in the second row, gestured to him.
"Zhong Yuan, come here; you can’t see the blackboard from there. You go sit next to Jiang Mianmian."
Zhong Yuan had been admitted to this school with the highest score from his elementary school. He was the boy who had tied with Jiang Mianmian for first place in the entrance exam.
Zhong Yuan obediently took his backpack and sat down beside Jiang Mianmian.
Thinking that she would have to sit next to Zhong Yuan for the next three years, Jiang Mianmian glanced at him curiously.
Zhong Yuan wore a white shirt and had a buzz cut, looking clean and exceedingly gentle.
He noticed Jiang Mianmian’s gaze, tilted his head slightly, and said in a low voice, "My name is Zhong Yuan. I know you; you were behind me during the awards ceremony."
Jiang Mianmian also whispered, "My name is Jiang Mianmian. I remember you too."
"Jiang Mianmian, I know you’re formidable, but I am not bad either. Last time, in the entrance exam, we tied for first place. Let’s see who can get the top spot in this semester’s final exam, how about that?" Zhong Yuan said confidently, issuing a challenge to Jiang Mianmian.
He had always loved studying. Since the beginning of school, he had always scored first place in every test. Initially, he felt very happy, but with time, he started to find it less interesting and not very challenging.
It wasn’t until the recent entrance exam that he saw Jiang Mianmian, who had tied for first place with him. Especially her essay, which had been praised by countless people, sparked the competitive spirit that had lain dormant in him for a while.
As soon as he saw Jiang Mianmian was in the same class, his first thought was that he must defeat her, hence the conversation above.
Jiang Mianmian hadn’t expected such a gentle-looking boy as Zhong Yuan to issue her a challenge upon their first meeting, and she surreptitiously called out to the system in her mind.
Jiang Mianmian: "System, system, quickly check Zhong Yuan’s intelligence for me."
System: "Okay, Host, please wait a moment. Scanning now."
As soon as Jiang Mianmian heard the system utter such a surprised sound, she hurriedly asked, "What’s wrong, System? Is he very formidable?"
System: "Yes, Host, very formidable. The boy sitting opposite you has an average intelligence value of 142.6, which is close to genius. I really didn’t expect your small town to be hiding such dragons and tigers."
Jiang Mianmian clicked her tongue in amazement, "142.6, that’s indeed quite formidable."
Her current intelligence had been acquired; his was purely natural.