Chapter 31: On the Eve of the Monthly Exam
"The Love Sage's here so early. You're really hardworking."
"Morning, Great Love Sage Pu!"
"Yo, Love Sage Pu, memorizing chemistry?"
Pu Tong could only shake his head.
Monday...
The day everyone felt half-dead.
It seemed the nickname "Love Sage" had completely caught on.
At first, it had only been netizens joking around.
But ever since the official Cultural Daily had analyzed his romantic verses...
Pu Tong had become the officially certified Love Sage in everyone's eyes.
What Love Sage?
He'd never even had a girlfriend.
Pu Tong yawned, squeezing a few tears from the corners of his eyes.
"Here."
Yu Wanwan handed him a tissue.
"Stayed up late studying again?"
"Knowledge is simply too precious."
"I couldn't stop myself."
Pu Tong accepted the tissue and wiped away the tears.
Yu Wanwan rolled her eyes.
If only he'd put that much enthusiasm into something besides studying...
Like paying attention to his deskmate.
"Pop quiz."
"Why do people tear up when they yawn?"
Yu Wanwan didn't answer.
She simply waited for him to continue.
"Tears are stored in the lacrimal sac. Under normal circumstances, they either stay there or drain into the nasal cavity through the tear ducts."
"When you yawn, the muscles in your face tense up, increasing the pressure in your mouth and nasal cavity."
"At that point, the tears can't drain normally through the tear ducts, so they overflow from your eyes."
"You only said all that to pad the word count, didn't you?"
"What nonsense."
"I'm demonstrating the importance of knowledge through a practical example."
Yu Wanwan couldn't be bothered arguing.
With practiced ease, she reached over and picked up Pu Tong's chemistry notebook.
"I'm borrowing this."
To be fair...
His notes were excellent.
Every important point was organized neatly and explained in detail.
His handwriting was beautiful too.
She found them incredibly convenient to use.
"Actually..."
"This notebook is the legendary Death Note."
"If you write someone's name in it..."
"They'll die."
"Ooh!"
Like a shark smelling blood, Yi Zhi Xuenai immediately turned around.
"Tell me more!"
As expected of the Japanese girl.
The moment she sensed anime references...
She appeared.
"Classmate."
"If I remember correctly..."
"It's study time."
Without another word, Pu Tong physically turned her back around.
She actually dared chat during morning self-study?
Was she trying to get herself killed?
If the homeroom teacher caught them...
They'd definitely get another scolding.
"What are you doing?"
Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed Yu Wanwan scribbling something onto the first page of his notebook.
"Didn't you say writing someone's name means they'll die?"
"So I'm testing it."
Only then did he look carefully.
Without the slightest shame...
Yu Wanwan had written her own name right beside his.
"There."
"Now it's our notebook."
"Did you buy it?"
"No."
"Did you write any of the notes?"
"No."
"Then why are you acting like it's naturally yours?"
Pu Tong rolled his eyes.
"Neither the notebook nor the notes belong to you."
"So how exactly did my notebook become your notebook?"
"What, am I yours too?"
"...Sure."
"Ahem!"
"Of course not!"
Yu Wanwan coughed several times.
"Sorry."
"It just slipped out."
"You understand..."
"Right?"
"If this really were the Death Note..."
"Aren't you scared?"
Pu Tong lowered his voice dramatically.
"You wrote your own name."
"You might die."
"That's exactly why I wrote it next to yours."
She grinned brightly.
"If we have to die..."
"Then we'll die together."
She said it as casually as if she were discussing tomorrow's weather.
Pu Tong suddenly found it difficult to meet her eyes.
She was joking.
Right?
She had to be joking.
"Haha..."
"But something like that obviously doesn't exist."
Perhaps realizing her words sounded a little strange...
She naturally changed the subject.
"If you call your chemistry notebook the Death Note..."
"Your chemistry teacher is going to beat you."
"Then I'll call all my subject notebooks Death Notes."
"That way, the teachers will start fighting each other over who gets to beat me first."
"Tch..."
This was the first time Pu Tong had secretly chatted during morning self-study.
Hidden beneath the chorus of students reciting lessons...
It only delayed his studying by a few minutes.
Yet somehow...
It felt incredibly fun.
His eyes stayed fixed on his textbook.
Pretending to read aloud with everyone else...
While quietly mumbling his real conversation.
His voice couldn't be too loud.
Or too soft.
He was terrified their homeroom teacher might catch him.
Compared to him...
Yu Wanwan made absolutely no effort to hide it.
She leaned sideways with her chin resting on one hand.
Her right arm had practically crossed onto his desk.
Silently...
Pu Tong scooted a few centimeters farther to the right.
If you're looking to get scolded, don't drag me into it!
"Seriously?"
"You're actually moving away from me?"
Yu Wanwan pouted.
"Our friendship has faded."
Half a minute later...
Zhang Binyan walked into the classroom in polished leather shoes.
The two of them exchanged a glance simultaneously.
That was close.
Glancing at the wall clock...
Pu Tong suddenly realized they'd wasted nearly ten minutes chatting.
...
Actually...
It wasn't so bad.
Studying was certainly important.
But perhaps these moments—
Whispering quietly beneath the sound of everyone reading...
Would become the memories most worth cherishing.
The things destined to disappear.
The protagonists of youth may change.
But we'll always remain ourselves.
"Everyone, stop for a moment."
Zhang Binyan cleared his throat, interrupting the classroom.
For some reason...
The homeroom teacher reminded Pu Tong of an NPC in a beginner village.
Every so often, he'd hand out another quest.
"This week we'll be holding the first monthly exam of the semester."
"I'm sure everyone already knows."
"But because our class also has several celebrity students..."
"I need to emphasize once again."
"This monthly exam is extremely important."
"Please spend these next few days reviewing seriously."
That was practically a direct hint.
Given the arrangements between the school and the production team...
The third episode of the variety show would almost certainly revolve around this monthly exam.
Everyone knew...
A high school life without exams wasn't complete.
The first episode had focused on classroom stories.
The second had centered around happenings on the sports field.
The third...
Naturally, it was time for mountains of exam papers.
A monthly exam was a stage assessment.
For every student...
It was an important opportunity to identify weaknesses.
Pu Tong was also looking forward to it.
After transmigrating...
This would probably be his first real exam.
Finally...
It was time to test the results of all his hard work.
He'd spent every day talking about studying.
If the exam results came back and revealed he was actually terrible...
How embarrassing would that be?
For ordinary students...
The monthly exam was simply another assessment.
For the celebrity students...
It was something else entirely.
Since the exam would appear on the show...
Everyone's scores would inevitably be revealed.
They might be idols.
But they were also high school students.
If they performed poorly...
They'd undoubtedly face heavy criticism.
Especially those whose fans had built them up as academic geniuses.
Wouldn't that be a spectacular slap in the face?
That was precisely why the homeroom teacher had stressed the exam's importance.
Whether you were a thoroughbred horse or just a mule...
It was time to prove yourself.
As soon as morning self-study ended...
The classroom exploded into discussion.
"I'm starting to regret joining this variety show."
Yi Zhi Xuenai slumped over her desk, looking completely lifeless.
She was basically a salted fish.
Making an effort simply wasn't in her nature.
"Back at my old school..."
"I always gave up on exams."
"Nobody cared anyway."
"But this time..."
"Just thinking about getting bad grades and being criticized by so many people makes me feel awful."
That's what being a public figure was like.
If you enjoyed fame and fortune...
You also had to accept criticism.
"There are still two days left."
"Do your best!"
Lin Yuxi patted her on the back and laughed.
"Mada mada!"
"Ikuyo!"
"Urusai!"
Yi Zhi Xuenai buried her face in her folded arms.
She looked completely defeated.
Looks like one person is already beyond saving...
Lin Yuxi was actually quite capable academically.
Pu Tong had noticed it during class.
She wasn't exactly a top genius.
But among high school students in the entertainment industry...
She was definitely among the best.
That meant there was only one uncertain variable left.
"You keep looking at me for what?"
Yu Wanwan glared at him.
"I've been studying seriously too, okay?"
...Not exactly convincing.
"If you don't believe me..."
"Then let's make a bet."
"On the exam."
"Hm?"
Pu Tong's eyelids twitched.
Was this some cliché school romance setup?
What came next?
"The loser has to grant the winner one wish?"
"How do you want to bet?"
"My foundation is weaker than yours."
"So naturally I probably can't beat you overall."
The girl smiled slyly.
"So let's bet on individual subjects."
"I bet that out of all nine subjects..."
"I'll score higher than you in at least one."
"And what's the prize?"
It was childish.
But Pu Tong didn't think he could lose.
It was basically free money.
These teenage idols spent most of their time traveling.
They barely attended school.
Only after joining this show had they started studying systematically.
Meanwhile...
His original body's academic foundation was solid.
Recently he'd been studying harder than ever.
He shouldn't lose.
Besides...
As her deskmate...
He knew Yu Wanwan's academic level better than anyone.
If he couldn't even beat her in one subject...
Then his subject imbalance would have to be unbelievably severe.
"How about..."
"The loser grants the winner one request?"
Yu Wanwan grinned proudly, clearly thinking she'd come up with something brilliant.
...
Her imagination really only extended that far.
"Too boring."
Pu Tong's voice became strangely persuasive.
"Let's make it a bigger bet."
"Oh?"
Yu Wanwan's eyes widened.
"What kind of bet?"
"How about this..."
"The loser sends the winner 50 yuan."
"What do you think?"
"..."
"Is that seriously all the ambition you have?!"
(End of Chapter)
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