Chapter 54: The Weekly Assessment

The next day—

A truly special day!

Every classroom in the first year was sealed, their doors tightly shut. Desks had been pulled apart, and each student gripped a gel pen, their gazes fixed nervously on the test papers being passed forward.

“Starting this morning, you will be tested on nine subjects: Chinese, Math, English, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Politics, History, and Geography.” The homeroom teacher’s voice boomed from the podium, as they hammered on the desk.

“Manage your time wisely, as papers will be collected at regular intervals. You must continue until all papers are submitted this evening; only then will you be dismissed for the holiday. Do you understand? Even a weekly assessment must be treated with utmost seriousness! The Dean’s office will be checking surveillance footage, so pay attention!”

Upon hearing they had to complete nine subjects in a single day, everyone’s hearts tightened with anxiety. Fortunately, the content of the weekly assessment papers was far less extensive than a normal exam, allowing most students to finish.

“Now—” The homeroom teacher glanced at their watch, then declared loudly, “Begin the exam!”

Rustle, rustle—

Below the podium, students nervously began passing the papers around. Xiao Xi took his paper and instantly gasped.

‘Why is Math the first subject? Wasn’t it supposed to be Chinese, Math, English earlier?’

Having been on holiday for so long, Xiao Xi stared at the paper. Indeed!

He knew nothing.

Pen twirling, pen twirling, pen twirling, pen twirling…

Ah—

‘What even is this? I can’t understand any of it!’

‘Ugh…’

Xiao Xi looked up, glancing at the other students in the classroom. With time pressing and a heavy task ahead, everyone was scribbling furiously, the scratching of pens against paper filling the air. Because the academic affairs office genuinely checked surveillance, almost no one dared to whisper.

‘Hmm…’

‘It’s just surveillance, isn’t it? Who’s watching whom is still up for debate.’

Xiao Xi quietly lifted a corner of the curtain, poking his head out to peer through the window. His classroom’s location was quite unique, forming a ninety-degree angle directly opposite the Dean’s office.

Through this window, he could clearly see everything happening inside the Dean’s main office—provided the Dean didn’t draw their curtains.

*Cough, cough*. Today, his luck was in. Not only had the Dean not drawn the curtains, but the weather was overcast, making it incredibly easy to see into the office due to the lack of direct sunlight.

Perhaps you’re wondering if Xiao Xi was afraid of being caught on camera. That was precisely the point. While the Dean’s office could indeed access surveillance, even the largest screen couldn’t clearly display dozens of classes simultaneously.

Through the window, Xiao Xi could clearly see the large screen, where tiny windows of dozens of classrooms were crammed together in a jumbled mess.

This situation was quite safe because the targets were too small for the Dean to scrutinize properly. But…

Danger always lurked, ready to strike when least expected.

Just like this!

Through the window, Xiao Xi suddenly sensed a dangerous shift. His vision, sharpened to a piercing 5.0, clearly caught sight of the large screen beginning to scroll through full-screen videos of individual classes. The entire screen was now dedicated to one classroom’s surveillance feed!

This was the most perilous situation! Thankfully, with dozens of classes, even a large screen could only rotate through them.

In that case…

Stare—

‘This isn’t our class!’

‘This isn’t our class either!’

‘This…’

‘Damn it! It’s us!’

Xiao Xi quickly pulled his head back, turning his attention to the test paper. ‘Ugh… write, write the paper, write the paper.’

Name: Xiao Xi.

Exam ID: …

…

‘Enough time has passed, right?’

Xiao Xi cautiously extended his neck again, peeking out the window. ‘Hmm… Is this still my class? It seems, it seems it’s not anymore.’

‘Tsk, tsk~’

‘The first round is over. No big deal!’

‘Who’s monitoring whom, really? Heh heh~’

Xiao Xi turned back triumphantly and poked Chick-chan.

Chick-chan turned, looking utterly bewildered.

…

The two stared at each other for a long moment, but Xiao Xi remained silent. ‘Ah… I originally wanted to ask Chick-chan for answers, but… I suddenly remembered what happened yesterday. I… I just feel like laughing whenever I see Chick-chan now. What should I do?’

Chick-chan asked, “Xiao Xi, what’s wrong? Why are you looking at me with such pity? Did something happen?”

“N-nothing, it’s nothing. I just want to copy your paper later. I don’t understand any of it, *pfft*—” Xiao Xi replied.

“Is not understanding the test paper something to be happy about? Well… never mind. Since you haven’t been to school in so long, and it’s just a weekly assessment, I’ll let you copy it later.” Chick-chan conceded.

“You got it~” Xiao Xi chirped.

Xiao Xi nodded contentedly. Chick-chan’s answers were completely trustworthy; she was an excellent student, otherwise, she wouldn’t be the vice president of the student council. *Cough, cough*. Though, it seemed she might not be for much longer.

‘If Chick-chan found out that her crush was a good man who, even after knowing the other person was a boy, continued to confess his unwavering love, and that she had become the pitiful loser, would she angrily resign from the student council?’

‘Tsk, tsk. So, should I tell her about this or not?’

Xiao Xi was a little troubled. ‘If I don’t say anything, I feel like I’m not being a good friend. After all, we’re close. But if I do… hmm…’

‘There’s a crucial question now: Is the student council president truly a scumbag?’ Chick-chan had told him before that she and the president were almost an item, but seeing her previous *state*, Xiao Xi now felt that Chick-chan might have been hopelessly lost in a romantic fantasy.

‘Did it turn out she was just a pathetic little simp all along?’

‘Wuwu…’

‘Chick-chan, I feel so sad. I want to hug my Chick-chan.’

*Cough, cough*. ‘So, I probably shouldn’t say anything. If someone is suddenly enlightened about something like this, it’s bound to be painful. It’s better to let Chick-chan discover it slowly herself. Given Nan Feng’s continued confession yesterday, I believe the student council president isn’t that kind of scumbag.’

‘So…’

‘How do I even answer this question?!’

****

“Ding-dong—”

As the class bell rang, the homeroom teacher, who had been absent all day, finally returned to the classroom. They clapped their hands, declared the exam over, and announced, “Time to submit your papers!”

*Phew*~

Xiao Xi, passing his paper forward, let out a long sigh of relief. Thankfully, he had finished writing everything.

Students who had submitted their papers began filing out. Xiao Xi started packing his bag, ready to head home. Suddenly, his vision went black. ‘Eh, eh, eh? Who covered my eyes with their hands?’

“Guess who I am?” The person teased Xiao Xi with a playful, strange voice. Xiao Xi felt the smooth, delicate hands covering his eyes.

‘Ugh…’

‘No matter who it is, I’ll touch them first, hehe~’

*Cough, cough*…

Alright, no more fooling around! Time to guess!

“Is it Chick-chan? It must be Chick-chan, right? Oh, wait, Chick-chan seemed to have just left.”

“Hmm… then, is it my little sister? Is that you, Shi Meng?”

Shi Meng’s voice chirped, “Hmm… Brother, I’m over here~”

“Ah? Then who is it? Who’s behind me, Shi Meng?” Xiao Xi asked.

Shi Meng hummed, “Ugh… Ah, I know! I won’t tell him.”

‘Ah, if you say that, I probably know who it is. It can’t be Mia, can it? Shi Meng doesn’t know that person~’

‘So, there’s only one answer!’

“Senior Sister~”

“Hehe~ Xiao Xi, a day apart feels like three autumns! Senior Sister misses my Xiao Xi so much, *nuzzle, nuzzle, nuzzle*~”

“Stop nuzzling me…”

“Then, *hug*~”

The adorable Senior Sister tightly embraced the even more adorable Xiao Xi, refusing to let go.