“Ding ding ding…” The urgent sound of the bell echoed throughout the campus of Yian District's No. 1 High School. Parents who had been anxiously waiting outside the exam hall, either sitting on the grass or along the pathway, immediately stood up, peering through the fence toward the inside of the school grounds.

The 2056 Jiangnan City college entrance examination had officially ended.

“Haobai,” called a slightly balding, scholarly-looking middle-aged man standing at the school gate, smiling as he waved to his son, who had just walked out of the exam hall.

“How did it go?” the man asked with a smile.

The five major math problems tested students' logical thinking, and points were given based on the steps taken.

“It's okay, Dad. The exam was tough for everyone, not just me,” Zhang Haobai said with a smile. “The math exam was harder this year, so the final undergraduate cutoff score will probably be lower. I should still be able to get into a military academy.”

Zhang Zelong smiled and said, “While we were waiting at the school gate for your exam to finish, we heard something. One of the well-known students at your school, the one called 'Luo Feng,' fainted during the exam. It happened with about an hour left before the test ended.”

“Yeah, Luo Feng was taken away by an ambulance. A lot of people saw it,” Zhang Zelong nodded. “You can hear a lot of parents talking to their children about it now.”

Zhang Haobai looked around, listening carefully, and sure enough, many parents and students were discussing a student fainting during the exam, with several mentioning ‘Luo Feng’ by name.

“Dad, you don’t know, but that guy always gave me trouble at school,” Zhang Haobai said angrily. “He would always beat me at everything, just because he was stronger. Well, now he’s had his day!” Haobai was feeling immensely satisfied, having harbored deep resentment toward Luo Feng for a long time.

“Haha, kids like him just haven’t experienced the world yet. Under too much psychological pressure, he cracked. Forget about him. Come on, your uncle knows your exams are done today and has arranged a celebratory dinner for you. Let’s go,” Zhang Zelong said, laughing.

Their family’s wealth in Yian District was largely thanks to his uncle, because…

※※※※※

Wei Wen had just come out of the exam hall and, upon hearing what his parents said, became instantly agitated. “How could Ah Feng have fainted in the exam? He fainted from nerves? That’s impossible. His mental resilience is so strong, even the instructors at the Extreme Martial Hall have praised him by name.”

“Wen, there’s no mistake. We saw it with our own eyes. Luo Feng’s father and his little brother in the wheelchair were so anxious, they went straight to the hospital with him,” Wei Wen’s father explained.

“The hospital? It must be the closest one. Dad, Mom, I’m going to see Ah Feng. I’ll join you for lunch later.”

…

Luo Feng forced a smile as he accompanied his father and brother out of the hospital lobby. Both Luo Hongguo and Luo Hua were worried that Luo Feng might have taken too big of a hit.

“Ah Feng, Ah Feng!” a voice called from afar.

Seeing Wei Wen rushing over, drenched in sweat, Luo Feng felt touched and immediately asked, “Wen, how difficult were the last three math problems?” He hadn’t had time to finish the last three, so if they were very difficult and most people couldn’t solve them, he might still have a chance.

“They were hard,” Wei Wen nodded. “This year’s math exam was really tough. Of the five major problems, only the third one was slightly easier. The other four were all hard.”

There was still a glimmer of hope...

The evening of June 16th, after the college entrance exams, at 8 PM, students could check their results online or by phone, and the undergraduate cutoff scores would also be released.

In the room shared by Luo Feng and his brother Luo Hua, Luo Feng sat alone in front of his laptop, clicking the refresh button over and over again. Although the results were said to be released at 8 PM, they usually came out a bit earlier.

“I completed the multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank sections of the math exam, and I finished the first two problems of the calculation section. Even though I didn’t fully solve the second one, I wrote down a lot of steps. I should get some points for those,” Luo Feng thought to himself. “If I’m lucky, I should get over 120 points in math.”

“As long as I reach the undergraduate cutoff score, I can still get into the second military academy.”

Based on Luo Feng’s own estimates, he still had a slim chance for the second military academy.

The page to check the results had finally refreshed.

Swipe!

Candidate: Luo Feng

ID Number: 426123203806083211

Liberal Arts: 216

Mathematics: 118

Undergraduate Cutoff Score: 561