The more he ate, the better it tasted, and before long, the fried rice was all gone.
Little Taotie licked off a grain of rice that was stuck on the corner of his mouth, staring eagerly at Gu Yixing.
The meaning in his beautiful starry eyes couldn’t have been clearer — he wasn’t full yet, he wanted more!
Gu Yixing shook his head, "It’s late, eating too much won’t digest well."
That phrase might forever be unfamiliar to Little Taotie.
Although Little Taotie wanted to insist, he heard Gu Yixing say, "I’m tired too, I haven’t cooked in so long, making a bowl of fried rice has already drained all my energy, maintaining the quality for another bowl would be difficult."
Little Taotie widened his eyes, somewhat incredulously, "Third Brother made this himself?"
Little Taotie was still getting used to the nickname "Third Brother," often mixing it up, sometimes calling him "Brother Xingxing" and sometimes "Third Brother."
"What else?" Gu Yixing touched his soft hair, smiling, "I’ll make more for you tomorrow."
Little Taotie nodded vigorously, "Then you must rest well to maintain the quality!"
"Little foodie!" Gu Yixing tapped his little nose, "Go brush your teeth and sleep now."
The final exam results were announced.
Hua Jinyan comfortably occupied the top spot in the school.
Little Taotie leaned over the name list, starting from the top. The second name was unfamiliar, not a classmate of theirs.
The third name surprisingly displayed — Tao Ti.
Little Taotie blinked, slightly pleased, yet also feeling an indescribable mild disappointment.
Qiaoqiao laughed happily, "Tao Tao, you got third! That’s amazing!"
Little Taotie looked at the first name and sighed, "Still, Hua Jinyan is more impressive."
Qiaoqiao continued down the list, surprised, "I actually got ninth place in the school! Last midterms, I was only forty-third."
"Qiaoqiao, you’ve improved so much!" Little Taotie tilted her head and asked, "Is it because you didn’t have a stomachache during the exam, so you performed steadily?"
Actually, Qiaoqiao always did well in her homework, so logically, she should’ve had good grades, but her performance in the last midterm was not ideal.
Now that she thought about it, it must have been because Qiaoqiao always got nervous during exams, which led to stomachaches, causing her to mess up.
Qiaoqiao nodded, "I’ll drink a cup of room temperature yogurt before the exam from now on, it really works well."
"As long as it works, you don’t have to worry anymore."
"By the way, you seemed a bit unhappy just now, you should be happy since you got third in the school! Is your family pressuring you to be number one?"
Little Taotie shook her head, "No, my brothers never force me, they always tell me that academic achievement doesn’t define everything, and that we shouldn’t judge a person solely based on it. They tell me not to care too much and to have a normal mindset and not worry about rankings."
Qiaoqiao puzzled, "Then why are you looking so down?"
Little Taotie looked at the first name, softly saying, "Hua Jinyan is my comrade. I wish to keep pace with my comrade, not to always be trailing behind like a burden."
Qiaoqiao comforted, "You’re only a little behind him, the scores are very close."
Little Taotie lowered her eyes, clenching her tiny fists, "But I’m still behind. Being second, right behind him, would be one thing, but to be overtaken by someone else and fall to third..."
"You are being too hard on yourself."
"I need to be someone that many admire and like, I must be demanding of myself."
Little Beast Bai Bai’s Primordial Spirit had still not healed, with Merit hanging in there, only Faith Power could help repair it again.