Jiang Wei sat with his legs crossed, staring listlessly at the English mock paper in front of him. He turned to Tang Zihe and asked, "Are the monthly exams at your school harder than the placement tests?"
Before Tang Zihe could speak, Xia Shan chimed in. "Of course! The placement test is just to see if you slacked off over the holidays; it’s basically a warm-up. But the monthly exams? Those are like the school’s own private version of the Gaokao. The difficulty is usually on par with the official mock exams, maybe even a bit harder."
"But didn't Yang Xiangtong say the placement test was harder than the mocks?"
"Oh, that’s because we had a disastrous placement test last year. The teachers who wrote it weren't human; they left us all traumatized," Xia Shan said with a shrug. "Word is the lineup for this year's exam committee is pretty normal."
"That’s a relief."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Xia Shan was caught talking by Sister Liu and called on to answer a question. Jiang Wei was left alone again, staring boredly at his paper.
He had wanted to ask Tang Zihe for his take on the upcoming exam, but before he could even voice the question, he could already guess the answer.
*Would you ask someone who scores above 700 no matter what if an exam is hard? The fact that you’re even asking makes me think it’ll be hard for you.*
That was exactly the kind of thing Tang Zihe would say.
"You've looked at me twice now. What do you want to say?" Tang Zihe’s voice suddenly rang in his ear, startling the daydreaming Jiang Wei.
"Nothing." Jiang Wei scratched his head, hesitated for a long moment, and then let out a frustrated huff, deciding to just go for it. "What score do you think I’ll get this time?"
Tang Zihe clearly hadn't expected that kind of question. He let out a short laugh.
Jiang Wei felt a bit embarrassed for asking. He slumped onto the desk, turning his head away as he mumbled, "What are you laughing at?"
Even though he found Tang Zihe incredibly annoying, he had to admit that he had always respected the guy's academic prowess. That was why he’d asked without thinking.
And now, he was being mocked.
It made him a little prickly and embarrassed, but there was also a flicker of some other, indefinable emotion mixed in.
Tang Zihe rubbed his chin, thinking for a few seconds before saying, "If you perform normally, a 680 shouldn't be a problem."
Jiang Wei sighed, sounding less than pleased. "So, the same as my old scores?"
Tang Zihe offered a lukewarm consolation. "But the papers are harder now. Most people's scores will drop. If you're lucky, a 680 might even land you in the grade's top ten."
The top ten.
Jiang Wei licked his lips. "What’s the cutoff for the top five at this school? 700?"
"Don't ask me that. I've never cared what the person in fifth place got." Tang Zihe twirled his pen between his fingers and pointed toward Shen Yannan, who was sitting diagonally in front of them. "Ask him. It shouldn't be that high."
"The cutoff for the top five?" Shen Yannan smiled thoughtfully. "From what I remember, the lowest it’s ever been... was maybe 687?"
"Don't let this guy mislead you. Breaking 700 isn't as easy as eating cabbage; it’s a very high threshold. Even I only hover around the 700 mark." Shen Yannan shot Tang Zihe an indignant look. "I usually maintain a gap of about eighteen to twenty points behind this guy."
So it really was difficult.
Shen Yannan thought for a moment and added, "But if you ever make it into the top five, you’d really be helping Class 1 complete our monopoly. There’s a girl in Class 2 who’s been holding steady at fourth or fifth place. She’s quite impressive."
"I think her name is... Yu Xin."
*That’s a nice name,* Jiang Wei thought, his mind wandering.
He didn't snap out of it until Tang Zihe waved a hand in front of his face.
Shen Yannan had already gone back to playing on his phone.
"What are you thinking about?" Tang Zihe pointed at the clock at the front of the room. "You didn't even hear the bell."
"Nothing." Jiang Wei brushed his hair back, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Tang Zihe and grinned. "In keeping with tradition, let’s make a bet."
Back when they used to go to school together, they loved making bets on any exam they both took—mostly because Jiang Wei enjoyed the game, and Tang Zihe, unable to argue him out of it, simply went along. The stakes were varied, ranging from a single piece of candy or a bottle of cola in the beginning to eventually promising the winner one favor.
"Betting on who gets first place like we used to? No need for that." Tang Zihe shook his head with a smile, his face practically screaming, *'Aren't you just asking for a beating?'*
"No, I have at least that much self-awareness now," Jiang Wei admitted, though his competitive aura didn't diminish one bit. "Let’s try something new. If the gap between our scores is within thirty points, I win. How about it?"
"Thirty points?" Tang Zihe arched an eyebrow. "I suggest you make it forty. That would give us a fifty-fifty chance. Otherwise, it’s not fair to you."
"Maybe you're just underestimating me," Jiang Wei huffed, a bit miffed. "I said thirty points, so thirty points it is. My way or the highway."
Tang Zihe shook his head, smiling. "Fine, your way."
"Since I chose the terms, you choose the reward." Jiang Wei held out his hands, adding a warning, "And don't give me anything unrealistic."
Tang Zihe couldn't help but mutter to himself, "...What kind of image do you have of me, anyway?"
Jiang Wei curled his lip, his face clearly saying, *'Take a guess.'*
"Same as before: the loser has to do one thing for the winner. Deal?"
For Jiang Wei, the chances of winning this bet were slim. As long as Tang Zihe stayed 120% focused on the exam, pulling ahead by more than thirty points would be no trouble at all. The moment he agreed, Tang Zihe already knew what his reward would be.
He wasn't going to wait for whatever "right moment" Jiang Wei kept talking about.
He was going to use this opportunity to make Jiang Wei tell him exactly what had happened over the last two years.
Now, as long as Jiang Wei agreed...
The other boy snapped his fingers without a hint of suspicion. "Deal."
Tang Zihe looked down and smiled.
***
Because of the bet, Jiang Wei spent the next few days "hugging the Buddha's feet" even more frantically than Xia Shan. His phone was on silent all day, and he didn't even go to play basketball with Ding Banfan and the others during PE. From morning till night, he was inseparable from the exercise books he’d bought at the bookstore. Eventually, Xia Shan couldn't take it anymore and was the first to voice his concerns.
"Has Brother Jiang been possessed these past few days?" This was the third time this period Xia Shan had turned around to look at Jiang Wei. He swallowed hard. "Can you really grind problems like that without puking?"
"If you're curious, you can try it yourself. With Jiang Wei's level, he probably won't puke. You... hard to say," Shen Yannan said, putting down the game he was playing and pulling a nearly pristine textbook from his desk. "In this atmosphere, my conscience is starting to hurt from playing on my phone."
Five minutes later.
"Is there anything you need me to tutor you on?" Shen Yannan shoved the textbook back into his desk and leaned on his side, looking at Xia Shan. "I'm so bored."
Xia Shan: "..."
"Actually, there is. Look at this problem." Xia Shan pushed his paper toward him, tapping a question with his pen cap. "I feel like I’m having trouble even reading the questions now."
Shen Yannan scanned the problem and found it a bit funny. He patted Xia Shan’s shoulder. "Don't be so nervous. You're not bad at this. Besides, the exam hasn't even started yet."
"I don't know why... I just have a feeling... this exam might not be as simple as Boss Shi said."
"Maybe. Doesn't matter," Shen Yannan said nonchalantly. "Worst case scenario, they reshuffle the classes. Don't panic."
Xia Shan: *...You really know how to comfort a guy.*
Jiang Wei pulled a pair of Bluetooth earbuds from his pocket, picked a random playlist on his phone, and propped his head up to catch a quick nap.
He had been going to bed well past midnight for the past few days, and for him, the sleep deprivation was severe.
Tang Zihe watched as Jiang Wei went from propping his head up to being completely slumped over the desk, fast asleep within three minutes. He frowned.
*This guy definitely hasn't been sleeping well.*
*Does he really want to win that badly?*
*Is it worth it?*
Tang Zihe clicked his tongue and put down his own paper, intending to drape the jacket hanging on the back of Jiang Wei's chair over him.
The moment the jacket touched his shoulder, the person on the desk bolted awake.
Tang Zihe quickly dropped the jacket back onto the chair.
"Hmm? What happened?"
Their eyes met. Jiang Wei rubbed his eyes, looking confused. "Is there something on my face?"
Tang Zihe hadn't even touched his shoulder—at most, the fabric had brushed against him. Was his startle reflex always this fast?
Tang Zihe said smoothly, "Oh, you have some drool on your face. You might want to wipe it off."
Jiang Wei froze and hurriedly wiped his face all over. "Where? I don't feel anything?"
It wasn't until he saw the suppressed laughter in Tang Zihe’s eyes that he realized he’d been tricked.
Tang Zihe laughed out loud. "Gotcha."
"I think you're just a total brat." Jiang Wei rolled his eyes crossly and gave him a punch.
After that disturbance, Jiang Wei was still tired, but he couldn't fall back asleep.
The monthly exam was tomorrow.
It wasn't until Tang Zihe asked, "Have you checked your seat assignment?" that Jiang Wei remembered.
He hurried to the back of the classroom door after school.
The names were listed by exam room order.
He was in Exam Room 5, at the other end of the floor.
Tang Zihe was luckier; he was in Exam Room 1, which was their own classroom, Class 1.
When Jiang Wei returned to the dorm after his shower that night, his phone screen lit up a few times.
**Brat:** [Don't study tonight. Get some rest.]
**Brat:** [If you're late for the exam tomorrow, I suggest you just forfeit.]
Jiang Wei had been touched by the first message for a few seconds, but now he felt he had wasted his emotions.
*Can this guy say one nice thing without ruining it?*
*Fine, whatever. I’m the bigger person.*
After chanting that to himself three times, he tapped out a reply: [Good luck on your exam tomorrow.]
*That doesn't sound generous enough...*
*Whatever, it’ll do.*
***
In the morning, Jiang Wei saw a crowd gathered around Tang Zihe as he passed Class 1. He stopped in his tracks.
"What’s going on?" he asked, catching Shen Yannan as he walked out of the classroom.
"A bunch of people are having the 'Study God' touch their pens, or they're just bowing to him with their hands pressed together to soak up some good luck," Shen Yannan replied, taking a lollipop out of his mouth with an amused expression. "You can basically think of it as burning incense to a Buddha. It happens every exam. You'll get used to it."
He added sourly, "Poor me, the second-place student, and nobody wants to worship me. Is the gap really that big?"
Jiang Wei couldn't help but laugh. He didn't join the crowd.
Exam Room 5 wasn't nearly as rowdy as Exam Room 1. Jiang Wei looked around and only saw a few semi-familiar faces.
One of them was the girl he’d seen at the bookstore. She was chatting excitedly with a group of girls around her.
His seat was right to her right. When he put his bag down, it naturally drew their attention.
"Hi, morning," Jiang Wei greeted them warmly.
"Morning," the girls replied with smiles.
One of the girls asked, in what she thought was a whisper, "Yu Xin, when did you meet Jiang Wei?"
Jiang Wei paused.
*Yu Xin? Who’s Yu Xin?*
The girl from the bookstore gave an awkward smile. "We ran into each other before. We don't really know each other; he probably doesn't even know who I am."
*This girl is Yu Xin? Talk about 'don't judge a book by its cover.'*
Jiang Wei waved a hand, trying to save her from the awkward situation. "How could I not know you? You're a student who’s always in the top five and you're so pretty. Of course I know you."
"See, he does know you! Yu Xin, why were you hiding it..."
The tips of Yu Xin’s ears turned pink. She immediately cut off her friends' excited chatter and shooed them outside to talk.
Ten minutes before the exam started, she walked back in.
She stopped by Jiang Wei’s desk, leaned over slightly, and whispered, "Thank you."
Jiang Wei smiled. "No problem."
"Good luck on the exam."
"You too."
The first subject was Chinese. It was the longest and the one most likely to make Jiang Wei sleepy.
The proctor was a female teacher he hadn't seen before. She had a stern face from the moment she walked in and looked quite fierce.
She slammed the test papers onto the podium and scanned the room sharply. "The exam is about to begin. Put everything unrelated to the test outside the room. Do I really need to teach you how to do that?"
A few people scattered to drop their bags by the door.
Once everyone was back in their seats, the first bell rang as scheduled.
The teacher tore open the sealed envelope, took out the papers, and handed them to the first person in each row.
When Jiang Wei got his paper, he first flipped to the last page to check the essay prompt before turning back to the beginning.
The multiple-choice questions were within the normal difficulty range—not too hard, but definitely not easy.
By the time Jiang Wei reached the essay, he was already starting to yawn.
He glanced around surreptitiously. Several students in the room had already put down their pens.
There was still over an hour left.
That was plenty of time for the essay, and he could even squeeze in a nap afterward.
Jiang Wei rubbed his temples and began writing furiously.
At the same time, in Exam Room 1, Tang Zihe had already put down his pen and begun checking his paper and answer sheet.
Half an hour left.
*That guy Jiang Wei is probably already asleep on his desk.*
Shen Yannan was sitting right behind Tang Zihe. A few minutes later, he also put down his pen. Unlike the person in front of him, he didn't bother checking. He walked up to the podium, handed in his paper early, and went out to sit in the hallway and play on his phone.
The exam ended.
Jiang Wei turned in his paper, grabbed his bag, and headed back to Class 1 to find the others.
Yang Xiangtong’s voice was already audible. "I think it was pretty mild this time."
"Don't even start. I might have already missed two multiple-choice questions," Xia Shan’s dejected voice followed. "I was torn between two options for both, and I ended up picking the wrong ones."
"How did it go?" Tang Zihe saw Jiang Wei approaching and made room for him.
Jiang Wei sat directly on the neighboring desk and snapped his fingers. "I think my performance was very stable."
"Alright everyone, it’s over, so stop talking about it. Who’s hungry?" Shen Yannan knocked on the classroom door. "The cafeteria is going to be packed soon."
Tang Wanbai happened to walk over and grabbed Yang Xiangtong, dragging him toward the door. "Go, go, go! Eating is the priority, or I’m afraid I’ll just keel over during the math exam this afternoon."
"Not that extreme, surely."
The group walked toward the cafeteria, chatting and laughing, but Jiang Wei seemed a bit distracted.
"Watch out."
Tang Zihe grabbed Jiang Wei, pulling him back from the brink of a fall.
"Aren't you looking where you're going? How could you miss such a big curb?" He frowned, looking displeased.
"Ah," Jiang Wei felt his right eyelid twitch slightly. He mumbled, "It’s nothing. I’m just too tired."
"I told you to get some rest."
"I went to bed at ten-thirty last night," Jiang Wei said piteously. "I just can't seem to get enough sleep no matter what. I can't help it."
Tang Zihe sighed. He knew Jiang Wei had this issue—he wasn't sure when it had started—which was why he’d specifically told him to sleep early. It didn't seem to have made much of a difference.
"What are you two dawdling for? Aren't you getting food?" Shen Yannan waved from up ahead.
Jiang Wei forced himself to perk up and smiled. "Coming!"
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
月考 | Monthly Exam | Standard periodic exams in Chinese high schools.
开学测 | Placement Test / Start-of-term Test | An exam given at the beginning of a semester to assess holiday learning.
学神 | Study God / Academic God | A term for a student who is naturally brilliant and gets top marks with seemingly little effort.
一班 | Class 1 | Usually the top-tier or experimental class in a Chinese grade level.
二班 | Class 2 | The second class in the grade.
语文 | Chinese (Subject) | The subject covering Chinese language and literature.
作文 | Essay | The long-form writing section of the Chinese exam.
抱佛脚 | Hugging the Buddha's feet | A Chinese idiom meaning to cram at the last minute.
转钟 | Past midnight | Specifically refers to the time when the clock "turns" past 12:00 AM.
撅 | Keel over / Collapse | Slang for collapsing or fainting from exhaustion.
