Ye Zhenzhen was hiding just outside the entrance. She could see a few teachers hanging the banner on the gate.
She wanted to bury herself! She had always insulted and teased Ye Qiao in front of her friends, yet the person who she thought was an idiot turned out to be the top scorer!
"There is no shortcut. There's only one way - work hard! In the past year, I've been working really, really hard! Even when all of you were not watching!"
The voice she hated that belonged to Ye Qiao was transmitted through the loudspeaker.
Ye Zhenzhen clenched her fists. Did Ye Qiao really work hard? Why did she find it so hard to believe? It must be a mistake!
Despite the concrete evidence, Ye Zhenzhen still could not admit that Ye Qiao was better than her. What had she even been doing in the past year!?
Because of her ego and competitiveness, she kept coming up with ways to bully Ye Qiao! In fact, she did not spend a second thinking about her studies!
"Ever since the establishment of our school, Ye Qiao is the first-ever liberal arts top-scorer and the second total top scorer! It has been three years since we had our last top-scorer!" The Head Of Year proudly remarked.
Following that, the audience clapped enthusiastically.
Ye Zhenzhen felt even more envious and jealous. The first top-scorer was Beixiao, and he was a science stream top-scorer. No one could surpass his achievement. Yet, now, Ye Qiao got to be on the same level as him! How could that be?!
She was just a poor villager! A fake princess! A fake!
***
Madam Qin was surrounded by some parents who knew her. Some did not know that she did not get along with Ye Qiao, so they congratulated her. However, their congratulations felt like knives in her heart! How painful!
Worst of all, she had to maintain an elegant smile all the while. She held Ye Qiao's hand, keeping her reputation as a good step-mother.
"Qin Lan, Zhenzhen scored 552 marks. Based on past scores, this is enough for a second-tier university. However, I think you wrote J University for all three of her choices. Oh my, where will our princess go for school?" Ye Qiao whispered to Qin Lan.
Qin Lan's heart was stabbed again! How could Ye Qiao mock her so straightforwardly!?
This year, Ye Qiao changed way too much. Not only did she get prettier, but she also became smarter and more confident!
"Qin Lan, isn't it embarrassing? Where is your precious daughter? Had she gone into hiding? Wasn't she so confident before?" Ye Qiao continued to tease Qin Lan.
She studied relentlessly for the past year so she could prove them wrong! This b*tch!
"Qin Lan, why do you hate me so much? What have I done to you? What have I done to your daughter? Anyway, today is a warning. If you two try to bully me again, don't blame me for making a move!" Ye Qiao pulled a fake smile and warned next to Qin Lan's ear.
"Ye Qiao! Just you wait!" Qin Lan gritted her teeth.
"Ah!" Suddenly, Ye Qiao shouted in pain, "Auntie Qin! You pinched me!"
She did it intentionally.
All the students and parents looked over. Anyone with a decent level of intelligence could tell that Qin Lan was not genuinely happy. She even pinched Ye Qiao!
Perhaps, a step-mother was indeed a step-mother!
Qin Lan wanted to argue, but Ye Qiao interrupted her, "Auntie Qin, I know that you're unhappy because Ye Zhenzhen did poorly, and I scored the top, but you didn't have to be so mean…"