Time flew by, and it had been half a month.
That day, Shen Mianmian was sitting at the dining table having breakfast when suddenly, there was a knocking sound from outside. It didn’t sound like it was on her door but on the one opposite.
Since the opposite apartment had been vacated, the landlord had not rented it out again. Shen Mianmian guessed that the visitor must be looking for her.
She peeked through the peephole to see the principal, her form teacher, and Yang Xiaoxi standing at the door, knocking on the one opposite. A thought struck Shen Mianmian, and she had a rough idea of what it might be. Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚑𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⚑𝕟𝕖𝕥
She opened the door. "Principal Yang, teachers, Xiaoxi."
Upon hearing her voice, the three of them turned around, startled to see Shen Mianmian behind them. They thought perhaps they had remembered the wrong apartment number, but didn’t dwell on it too much.
All three looked excited, and from their expressions, it seemed they had some good news to share with her.
"Shen Mianmian, your exam scores have come out," said Principal Yang excitedly.
As she had thought, it was about this. Although she had guessed it, Shen Mianmian couldn’t help but ask, "Principal Yang, how much did I score?"
Before Principal Yang could speak, Yang Xiaoxi cut in, "Mianmian, you ranked first in the province."
Even though she had known her performance would not be poor, hearing that she was first in the province still gave Shen Mianmian a thrill. "Really?" she asked.
"We all came here; could it possibly be false?" the form teacher said with a smile.
Shen Mianmian glanced at the notice in her hand, her eyes squinting with delight, feeling an urge to immediately call He Nan. However, it was Yang Xiaoxi’s words that brought her back to reality.
"Mianmian, this is your home? Your living place is too nice, isn’t it? We were quite apprehensive on our way here, worried we might have gone to the wrong address," Xiaoxi commented.
As far as they knew, Shen Mianmian was an orphan; how could she afford such a nice place?
Coming back to her senses, Shen Mianmian hurriedly invited the three inside and explained, "This isn’t my home. It belongs to a relative of mine; I’m just staying here temporarily."
If she let slip now that it was her boyfriend’s place, both the form teacher and the principal’s thoughts might stray, given that people from their generation tended to be quite conservative.
To avoid unnecessary complications, Shen Mianmian decided not to disclose this fact to them.
Principal Yang: "..."
No wonder Shen Mianmian had been consistently rejecting the school’s assistance. If she could live in such a house, she indeed would not need any help from the school.
Compared to them, Yang Xiaoxi wasn’t as surprised. She had long known that Shen Mianmian was not poor; they had been together for more than a day or two, and Shen Mianmian’s clothes and food were always decent.
She just didn’t expect Shen Mianmian to be living this well.
Walking around the house, she kept clicking her tongue in admiration.
The form teacher and Principal Yang sat on the sofa, sipping tea poured by Shen Mianmian, their faces beaming with smiles, talking non-stop about Shen Mianmian’s exam scores.
Having produced the provincial topper, their school, No. 3 Middle School, had gained prestige this time. Now, who would dare to say that No. 3 was inferior to No. 2?
After chatting for a while, and after Xiaoxi had finished touring the house, she approached, "Mianmian, how come you don’t ask about my score?"
"Do I need to ask?" Shen Mianmian blinked, "If you hadn’t gotten into Beijing University, you’d probably be at home crying right now, without any mood to come here, right?"
"You really do know me best," Xiaoxi laughed, her face breaking into a bright smile.
Principal Yang was also very happy. With two students excelling so well in their exams, one of whom was his daughter, he felt like the biggest winner of this year’s college entrance examination.