The Little Demon clenched his fists, caught in the most difficult struggle of his life. He desperately wanted to defeat Qin Ye, yet he absolutely couldn’t betray His Highness.
Zong Jincheng gritted his teeth and said with difficulty, "No… there’s no way. I must have remembered wrong."
Though the young boy wore an apologetic expression, the determination in his eyes never wavered. It was the first time Qin Ye had seen such a look on someone—conflicted yet brimming with strength.
He knew. Zong Jincheng had a solution. He just couldn’t say it.
And Qin Ye understood.
The elite class boys wailed in despair: "Big Bro, what’s going on? You have a photographic memory—how could you misremember?"
"Jincheng, you’re definitely lying. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have been so confident earlier when you said you had a solution."
"Yeah, yeah! Jincheng, just say it! We’re about to win against Qin Ye—don’t let it slip away now!"
The Little Demon’s head throbbed from the noise. He roared, "I said I misremembered, okay? Can’t I have a slip of the tongue?"
The boys fell silent.
Well, that settled it. It really must have been a slip of the tongue. The debate was at a standstill again.
Though Zong Jincheng couldn’t provide a solution, that didn’t mean he would give up. Confident and brave, he refused to admit defeat until the very last moment.
So, under the disheartened gazes of his peers, the Little Demon spoke again: "Just because I can’t think of a solution now doesn’t mean I never will. Besides, you and I are still just young scholars—our knowledge, thoughts, and abilities are far from their peak. So I still insist we shouldn’t act rashly. We must wait for the right moment… Hey, what are you doing?"
Before Zong Jincheng could finish, Qin Ye had already stood up.
Everyone turned to stare, eyes wide.
Shen Yibai speculated, "Is Qin Ye going to shake Jincheng until he spills the solution?"
He Zheng stammered, "N-no way…" ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel-fire.net
Zong Wenxiu gulped, ready to step in if a fight broke out.
Hearing Shen Yibai’s words, the Little Demon flushed with anger. "Attacking a debater during a match is against the rules—"
Qin Ye cut in, "There’s no need to continue the debate."
"What?" Zong Jincheng was baffled.
Qin Shi smiled faintly, as if he knew what his younger brother was about to do.
Xiao Ye, it seems you’re growing up.
Qin Ye stood tall, his dark eyes deep and unreadable. "You’ve won this debate. I accept your argument."
Their purposes in this debate had been different. Zong Jincheng had been fixated on defeating him, scrambling to refute every point. But Qin Ye had come seeking answers—or rather, salvation. And it was Zong Jincheng who had unraveled his confusion, pointing him toward a new direction.
So, regardless of their overall scores or their performance in other debates, in this round, on this topic, Zong Jincheng had won.
Whether or not he had spoken his solution aloud, he had won.
Qin Ye had competed against many before. Every time, he had watched his opponents admit defeat like dejected roosters, heads hanging low. But this time, it was his turn to concede.
And strangely, it didn’t feel bad at all.
Qin Ye bowed slightly to the Little Demon. Though his voice was naturally cold, there was unmistakable sincerity in it. "I’ve learned much from you."
The Little Demon was stunned.
One moment ago, he had been struggling, refusing to give up even as his mind scrambled for new arguments. And now, Qin Ye had suddenly surrendered. Qin Ye had admitted defeat. To him.
Zong Jincheng felt like he was dreaming. He turned to his brothers, who were equally dumbfounded—except for He Zheng, whose eyes welled with tears as he cried, "Big Bro, you won! You actually beat Qin Ye!"
The others snapped out of their daze and swarmed around the Little Demon, cheering and howling with joy, their excitement threatening to blow the roof off.
"Our elite class is unstoppable!"
"Hahaha, Big Bro, you’re amazing!!"
Qin Ye walked over to Xu Wan and said earnestly, "Thank you, Auntie, for organizing this debate. I’ve gained a lot from it."
Xu Wan smiled warmly. "Though I don’t know what troubles you were facing, I’m glad you’ve found your way out. Qin Ye, you’re strong—but Jincheng isn’t weak either. We’ll keep striving to catch up to you."
Qin Ye glanced back at the Little Demon, now surrounded by his cheering friends, and added, "He needs to work on his poetry."
Xu Wan chuckled and nodded. "Thank you for the reminder."
She already knew the boys’ weaknesses, but Qin Ye’s advice was well-intentioned, so she accepted it on Jincheng’s behalf.
Outside the garden, more and more students had gathered, a sea of dark figures even larger than the crowd during exam results day.
Someone suddenly shouted, "They’re coming out! Qin Ye and his brother are coming out!"
"Zong Jincheng must’ve lost—he’s probably still crying inside, too ashamed to show his face."
"Obviously! Our unbeatable prodigy Qin Ye has never lost before!"
"Quick, who bet on Zong Jincheng? Time to pay up!"
Qin Shi took in the lively scene and sniffled. "Xiao Ye, they have so much faith in you. So many people bet on your victory."
Qin Ye replied coldly, "Pointless."
Qin Shi hurried after him. "How is it pointless? I think it’s fun! If I’d known about the betting pool earlier, I’d have joined too."
Qin Ye stopped and looked at his brother. "Who would you have bet on?"
Qin Shi answered seriously, "Obviously Jincheng. With so many people betting on you, the payout if he won would’ve been huge."
The headmaster rushed over, excitement written all over his face. "Qin Ye, how did the debate go? You won, right?"
Though he considered Zong Jincheng the most rapidly improving student he’d ever seen, the headmaster still couldn’t imagine him defeating Qin Ye. Their overall abilities were simply on different levels.
The outcome should have been obvious…
"I lost," Qin Ye said plainly.
"Holy—!!" The students perched on the wall all cursed in unison.
The teachers began shooing them away, swatting at them with brooms.
The headmaster’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. "L-lost? You lost to Zong Jincheng?!"
His heart felt like it had taken a direct hit.
Qin Ye had just secured first place in the Four-Academy Joint Exam, becoming the envy of Hanlin North Academy. And now he was saying he’d lost?
The notorious leader of the Capital’s Four Little Rascals, who had only studied for two years?