Chapter Fourteen: Announcement of Results

  Shui Mengyao never thought she would encounter such an unbelievable thing, her faith was shattered in the face of reality. She believed that if someone told her this world had no ghosts in the future, she would definitely drag them here to see for themselves. Of course, this was just her self-mocking thoughts at the moment, everything depended on whether she could escape first.

  Shuǐ Mèng Yáo suddenly felt the Buddha statue on her neck heat up, then she heard a very unpleasant screeching sound, and then she saw an unforgettable scene, that colorful ghost reluctantly turned into ashes, his fingers were less than a foot away from his own body.

  Shui Mengyao seemed to have remembered something, and from her neck she took out a Buddha statue. She recalled that it was given to her by an old monk on Mount Wutai five or six years ago. Upon closer inspection, there was a faint glow emanating from within. What was it? Shui Mengyao didn't know. Feeling the warmth of the jade Buddha, she was overjoyed and hastily grasped it tightly in her hand, rushing towards the outer circle.

  Perhaps it was the blessing of heaven that Water Dream Jade did not get lost and found her way home. It wasn't until she sat in a taxi that she felt waves of fear, if it weren't for the jade Buddha around her neck, today would have been a disaster. Water Dream Jade had already decided that after the middle school entrance exam, she must thank the high-ranking monk who gave her the jade Buddha and also thought about learning some spells.

  I used to not believe in those things, but now I've seen them for myself and almost got played. Shui Mengyao also wants to control some unconventional things.

  It was only when Shui Mengyao went to sleep at night that she could still think of that pervert's appearance, so much so that for the past two nights, she had been having non-stop nightmares and her spirit was somewhat exhausted. She turned around to look, but the empty space indicated that Guo Ming hadn't arrived yet.

  Thinking of Guo Ming, Shui Meng Yao was a little curious. Combining some of the situations that day, Shui Meng Yao had some doubts. Maybe Guo Ming knew something; otherwise, how could he see the color ghosts that she couldn't originally see? Hmm, there must be something strange. Unfortunately, she hadn't run into him for the past two days. Shui Meng Yao had already made up her mind to go to Guo Ming's house tonight and ask him clearly.

  Mr. Li coughed and said, "Today I'm here to announce the results." Everyone's ears perked up immediately, no one was not concerned about their own results, even Shui Mengyao was the same.

  "First place, Shui Mengyao with 705 points," said Teacher Li excitedly. Shui Mengyao had always been his pride, and when he read out her score, his tone was filled with pride. The whole class gasped in shock - after all, the total score was only 750 points, and getting 700 points meant something, it meant that Shui Mengyao's grades had already reached the top standard. Wow, 705! Some classmates thought about it and felt envious. Is this something a human can achieve? The classmates in the class looked at Shui Mengyao with either admiration or jealousy.

  Shuǐ Mèng Yáo was also shocked by this result, as she had always been hovering around 690 points before. She never expected to break through and reach 705 today, which is a huge progress for herself. It's worth noting that once you reach a certain height, it's very difficult to improve your score further. Shuǐ Mèng Yáo's breakthrough of 700 can be said to have entered a whole new realm.

  Looking at the classmates who were gazing at Shui Mengyao with admiration, Teacher Li said in a deep voice: "Mengyao, I'm very happy that you achieved such good results, but you mustn't be proud of yourself. You should strive to make further progress, just like the saying 'to climb higher after reaching the top of a hundred-foot pole'. This time, your score is second in the whole school. I know you've always been comparing yourself with Zhang Zihan and Chen Ziying. Congratulations, you surpassed Chen Ziying, who scored 701 points, but Zhang Zihan scored 709 points this time, so don't be complacent."

  "I know," Yu Yao nodded.

  "Uh-huh, Teacher Li nodded and continued: 'Zhang Kai 680.'"

  Classmates thought about it and indeed, Shuǐ Mèng Yáo's three people were in a transcendent existence, ordinary people couldn't compare with them. The second place was already several points behind the first place. Class monitor Zhāng Kǎi couldn't help but smile wryly and shake his head, although his own grades were good, but compared to Shuǐ Mèng Yáo, he was like a clown who couldn't even get on stage.

  The results below did not shock the students, as the scores had hardly changed much. Even now, even if there was progress, it would only be a difference of two or three places, and the ranking was still within the acceptable range for classmates.

  Mr. Zhang looked at the next name, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips, he believed it would cause the whole class to boil over. "Fifteenth place, Guo Ming, 610 points." Mr. Li read softly. Then he stopped.

  Classmates were stunned, Guo Ming, this name was somewhat familiar, huh, 15th place, what? The whole class suddenly fell silent in fear, suspicion, and unbelief. Shui Mengyao was also stunned, he, his grades had improved so quickly, it's impossible!

  Mr. Li knew that everyone was waiting for an answer, so he cleared his throat and said: "I can assure you that Guo Ming did not cheat; this is entirely his own doing. And the fact that he was able to rise from 50th place to 15th place in just over twenty days should be a great encouragement to all of you! I'm sure you're all aware of how Guo Ming's grades used to be. In just twenty days, he was able to improve so rapidly - if Guo Ming can do it, why can't the rest of you?"

  The students below didn't say a word, but Teacher Li saw confidence in their eyes. No one would admit to being stupid, what he needed to do was to inspire his classmates' ambition. He believed that with two months of time, if everyone studied hard, although they couldn't improve too much, they could still make some progress, which would be beneficial for both themselves and the students. He had already decided to conduct a home visit tomorrow, of course, he wouldn't believe that Guo Ming could rely on his own strength to make such rapid progress in just over 20 days, he must have some special learning method, hmm, he definitely wanted to get it.

  Teacher Li continued to read out the scores of all the students, and then sighed: "There are still two months left, which is when you will thoroughly show off your skills. The estimated score for admission to No. 1 Middle School this time is 640, which means that the top eight students in our class have a chance to get into No. 1 Middle School."

  Classmates looked at the top eight with envy, believing that as long as nothing unexpected happened, they would definitely become students of Yizhong. Yizhong is the dream of every child in Linze County, and once you get into Yizhong, one foot has already stepped into the university gate.

  "Teacher, what's the score for Class 2?" a student asked boldly.

  The score of the second middle school is 580, which means that all the top 25 students in our class have the opportunity to take the exam for the second middle school. Teacher Li frankly revealed this accurate number. He wants to motivate those students who are ranked after the top 25, looking at them and saying: as long as you work hard, you also have the possibility of stepping into the threshold of the second middle school.

  The classmates in the class again uttered some cries of surprise, of course, only a few medium or slightly lower students. They did not expect that the threshold of Second Middle School was also so high, it seems they had no hope. This is the cruelty of education, the whole class of 70-80 people, and only a few were admitted to First Middle School and Second Middle School.

  Seeing the disappointment on their faces, Mr. Li chuckled and said, "What's wrong, are you discouraged? Have you ever thought about Guo Ming, what ranking is he now?"

  Some students who had been looking down immediately looked up, no wonder there were originally fifty people, how long has it been? More than twenty days, he has reached the point where others are envious of him. Is he really stronger than himself? Impossible, that little rascal is absolutely not as good as himself. Some negative students' eyes were filled with vigorous fighting spirit.

  Mr. Li nodded in satisfaction and immediately announced self-study time.

  Shui Mengyao had been thinking about Guo Ming's affairs, and it seemed that since the day he got into trouble, he had changed his appearance. Alas, she went to find him herself, wondering if he would even bother with her. With such thoughts in mind, Shui Mengyao hesitated for a long time before finally knocking on Guo Ming's door.

  Yu Xia opened the door, and upon seeing Shui Meng Yao, she asked in confusion: "Is that Meng Yao? What brings you here?" It's no wonder Yu Xia was confused - although Shui Meng Yao is her neighbor, she usually doesn't leave her house, being a rich young lady who rarely ventures out. And now, here she was at Yu Xia's home, past 9 pm.

  Shuǐ Mèng Yáo suddenly realized that she didn't have any excuse, and thought to herself: "Oh, the results were announced today, why didn't Guō Míng go?"

  "What's the situation tomorrow? Has there been any progress?" Yu Xia hastily asked. As soon as she heard this, Yu Xia immediately became excited. Her son's efforts over the past few days were indeed in her heart, and if her son hadn't made any progress, it would be a blow to him, and what about herself? Which mother doesn't hope that her son will make a great career, and she had boasted that her son would definitely get into the second middle school. If Guo Ming didn't show any improvement, how could she hold her head up in front of her relatives in the future?

  "Hehe, it's more than just a little progress. Guo Ming scored 610 points and ranked 15th in the class," said Shui Mengyao with a smile.

  "What? Yu Xia exclaimed. She had expected Guo Ming to make progress, but she hadn't expected him to improve to such an extent. She turned around and rushed towards Guo Ming's room, momentarily forgetting to greet Shui Mengyao. Shui Mengyao shook her head and quickly followed after her."

  Yu Xia excitedly opened the door and said happily: "Tomorrow, Mom will tell you some good news."

  Guo Ming's face didn't look good, he was just cultivating earlier and sensed his mom rushing towards his room, realizing something might have happened, and to his surprise, he had forgotten to lock the door. He hastily stopped his cultivation and stood up, just as Yu Xia burst into the room at that moment.

  Noticing her son's displeasure, Yu Xia smiled and said: "Sorry! Mom was a bit too excited today."

  "Mom, I'm reviewing my lessons, can you please not enter my room casually from now on? - Guo Mingdao."

  "Understood, understood, Yu Xia now understands the results of her son's hard studies, how could she possibly disagree?"

  Shui Mengyao happened to come in at this time, looking at Guo Ming's face with some weirdness. Guo Ming was also somewhat puzzled and asked: "How did you get here?" The tone was not heavy, but it was absolutely not happy either.

  Shui Mengyao saw Guo Ming speaking to her like that, and couldn't help but think of the encounter on the mountain. Overcome with grief and anger, she shouted: "Are you still angry with me now? I admit it was my fault back then, but did you have to abandon me in the primitive forest? Do you know what happened to me after you left?" Just thinking about the appearance of that ghostly creature made Shui Mengyao burst into tears.

  Yu Xia was stunned, and from Shui Mengyao's words, she quickly pieced together what had happened. Firstly, her son had lied to her, and wasn't with some male classmates as he claimed, but rather with Shui Mengyao. Then, in the primeval forest, Shui Mengyao might have misunderstood Guo Ming, causing him to storm off in anger, leaving Shui Mengyao behind. Had the two started dating? Yu Xia looked at her son's strange expression.

  She's not like some parents who are old-fashioned and stubborn, it's okay to fall in love as long as it's a girl you acknowledge, of course, as long as it doesn't affect both parties' studies. If Shui Mengyao really did get together with Guo Ming, Yu Xia would absolutely raise both hands in approval. Firstly, the two families are roughly equal in social status, her own husband is a manager at a company, and Shui Mengyao's father is the deputy county head. They're well-matched. Secondly, Shui Mengyao has grown up under her care, she's absolutely a top-notch daughter-in-law who stands out from a thousand miles away. Looking at her son, it's as if she's saying, "You little scamp, you've actually managed to snag someone like this!"

  Guo Ming naturally understood the meaning in his mother's eyes, but at this moment, a strong sense of regret surged through his heart. Indeed, Shui Mengyao had humiliated him back then, but was it right for him to just leave like that? What kind of place was that, where countless vengeful spirits resided! To let a young girl face those things alone, he was truly despicable.

  Kuo Ming's eyes welled up with thick apologies, but he didn't know how to say it. Yu Xia glanced at her son, blinked, and walked over to Shui Mengyao, embracing her in her arms, cooing: "Mengyao, don't cry, Auntie will take charge of this, this little scamp shouldn't have abandoned you like that, a young girl all alone there? Just watch, Auntie will get revenge for you."

  As she spoke, she let go of Shui Mengyao and directly used the broom to hit Guo Ming. Guo Ming didn't see the hint flashing in his mother's eyes and stood still, not moving. With a loud "thud", he was heavily hit on the body.

  Shui Mengyao clearly felt the power of that stick and hastily went forward to pull Yu Xia, saying urgently: "Auntie, don't."

  Yu Xia felt a little heartache after hitting him, but seeing Guo Ming acting as if nothing had happened, she put her mind at ease and immediately said: "No way, today Auntie must take revenge for you, let me go, I must give this little rabbit a good beating."