Chapter 7

Yan Ning furrowed her brows. Even when she was on M20, she had always found male beings around her particularly difficult to understand. They liked to take the lead, said things they thought were cool, laughed loudly at jokes they didn’t even understand, thinking they were clever, or made fun of others’ weaknesses, just like the situation now.

To be honest, she didn’t expect to become such a big topic at school.

She fully understood that student life could be a bit boring and required all sorts of content and fragments to fill up those idle and meaningless times. Sometimes, she enjoyed watching the commotion herself, so the things on the forum and during breaks didn’t bother her.

But these two boys, full of malice and showing off in front of the main character, Yan Ning, felt deep regret for their parents and teachers. They were clearly the ones who slipped through the cracks of the nine years of compulsory education. And without a doubt, after these three years, there would be no improvement in their morality or character.

Yan Ning had already imagined the three big words floating above their heads: “Lonely for life!”

“Hey, what you’re doing is very rude. Can you apologize to her?” 

Just as Yan Ning clenched her fists, ready to do something excessive, a warm and pleasant voice suddenly interrupted.

The young man who spoke was tall and thin, wearing a red plaid shirt and jeans, his short hair neat and clean, with delicate and handsome features.

Feeling Yan Ning’s gaze, he gave her a slight smile, like a spring breeze, making people feel at ease.

The two boys who had been mocking Yan Ning immediately looked uncomfortable when they saw someone speaking up for her. After seeing the young man’s face, they froze for a moment, and their expressions changed.

“Tch, how boring,” one of them muttered in a cowardly tone, his face awkward as he dragged the other out of the restaurant.

The noodle shop was so busy that, besides the main hall, there were also some private rooms for seating.

Yan Ning and the two girls ate in a private room, while the checkout counter was in the main hall. After finishing their meal, Qiao Yingxue and Zhao Xiaolu waited for a while but noticed that Yan Ning hadn’t returned, so they went out to look for her.

“Ningning, are you alright?” Qiao Yingxue asked urgently.

They had come out a bit late and heard the laughter, running over to see someone standing up for Yan Ning, but they didn’t know what had happened.

“I’m fine.” Yan Ning turned her gaze to the handsome young man. “Thanks for what you did earlier.”

“No problem, they were the ones out of line,” the young man said with a gentle smile. “My name is Meng Qing. What’s yours?”

Yan Ning answered confidently, “I’m Yan Ning.” She then pulled her two classmates over and told them she had already paid the bill. The three of them left the restaurant together.

“Are you also a student at Minghua?” Yan Ning asked Meng Qing, who was heading in the same direction.

“Mm.”

“What grade?”

“Second year of high school.”

“Hmm—” Yan Ning sized up Meng Qing, a thoughtful expression on her face.

“What’s wrong?” Meng Qing lowered his head, feeling his gaze from Yan Ning.

“If all the students in high school were like you, I’d really want to move up to the higher grades.” 

“Boom—”

Meng Qing felt something explode in his mind with a “boom.” Heat surged from his chest and spread all the way from his neck to his face and ears.

“Thanks for today. Goodbye.” Yan Ning said as she waved farewell to Meng Qing at the school gate.

Entering the main gate, climbing up a long flight of stairs led to the playground, followed by separate buildings for the high school and middle school departments. Once she entered the school, many people would point and whisper about her. So she parted ways with Meng Qing ahead of time, not wanting to cause any trouble.

“Sorry,” Yan Ning said as she climbed the stairs with Qiao Yingxue and Zhao Xiaolu.

These two classmates, who were four years younger than her, were considerate and cute, making it hard for her to say anything harsh to push them away.

“Why apologize? You’re being too formal,” Qiao Yingxue said, hugging Yan Ning’s arm, understanding why she was apologizing.

“Forget that. Yan Ning, I have a new respect for you!” Zhao Xiaolu said seriously, though the playful tone at the end betrayed her feelings.

“Hmm?”

“Ah, I also want to say, Yan Ning, you’re really impressive,” Qiao Yingxue added, winking at Yan Ning.

“Huh? What do you mean?” Yan Ning was confused.

“Ah, since you don’t know, never mind.” 

Qiao Yingxue and Zhao Xiaolu exchanged a look that only they understood. Since Yan Ning hadn’t realized what was going on, they decided not to mention it. Besides, it was quite interesting to watch her not catch on.

“Hey, do you know of any fast-money jobs?” Yan Ning suddenly remembered the three million and felt a bit of a headache.

“Yan Ning, are you short on cash?” Qiao Yingxue asked, surprised.

From what she knew about Yan Ning’s family, it didn’t seem like she would be lacking money.

“Mm, I want to buy something.”

Qiao Yingxue immediately understood: Yan Ning needed money because she wanted to buy something for herself.

“How much do you need?”

“Mm, I’m short quite a bit. Do you know if there are any part-time jobs available?”  

“Speaking of which, the school sports meet is coming up soon,” Zhao Xiaolu said.

“The sports meet?”  

“Ah! I almost forgot about that,” Qiao Yingxue said excitedly. “Ningning, you should try that!”  

Zhao Xiaolu also looked at Yan Ning. “Mm, if it’s you, you could definitely participate in that.”  

“If Ningning participates, wouldn’t she be the only one from the middle school department competing? Wow, I’m suddenly really looking forward to it!” Qiao Yingxue said with enthusiasm.

“Hey, what exactly is this thing you’re talking about?”  

—

Minghua Middle School holds its sports meet twice a year, in April and November.

The April sports meet is divided into two parts: the team events and the individual events.

The individual events are different from the traditional sports competitions, like high jump, 50-meter race, and 800-meter race, which are all considered part of the team competitions. The individual event is a competition that has only been introduced in the last three years and is held only once a year.

Registration starts in March, and students sign up individually to compete for high-value prizes.

There are three requirements for registration: 1. The participant must be at least 16 years old. 2. The participant must be a handsome young man or a beautiful young woman, in other words, they must have good looks. 3. Each person is only allowed to participate once. If they have participated in previous events, they cannot register again.

The format of the individual competition is completely different from the usual sports events at the sports meet. Participants will undergo a very strict elimination system, with the top seven finalists advancing to compete for first place.

There are no second or third prizes, only the first prize is awarded.

In the first year, the first prize was 50,000 yuan. From the second year onward, the prize amount increased to 100,000 yuan. In the third year, the sponsor suggested that, in addition to the high prize money, they would also fulfill one reasonable wish of the first-place winner.

Last year’s winner was a senior student who directly requested a guaranteed spot for his desired university. Many people thought it was a ridiculous request, but the sponsor granted the university recommendation without hesitation.

“Mm—this really sounds interesting,” Yan Ning said, sitting at her desk, listening to Shi Lei explain Minghua’s unique sports meet.

Qiao Yingxue and Zhao Xiaolu were sitting next to her.

“Why suddenly bring this up? Could it be… you want to participate in the individual competition?” Shi Lei asked.

“Ningning, you should sign up! You can definitely do it,” Qiao Yingxue said, holding Yan Ning’s hand with expectant eyes.

“Come on, even if you’re within the age range to sign up, not everyone can participate,” Shi Lei said, dampening the mood.

“Shi Lei, why do you always say such annoying things?” Qiao Yingxue frowned at her deskmate, a little angry.

Shi Lei immediately rebutted, “What’s so annoying about it? I’m just speaking the truth. Even though Yan Ning is 17 and looks… looks okay… she still can’t win.”

“Ahhh, how do I have such an annoying deskmate!” Qiao Yingxue was so angry that she turned and grabbed Yan Ning’s hand again. “Ningning, don’t listen to him, you can definitely do it.”  

“Shi Lei means it’s going to be hard for Yan Ning to win. This year, the number of participants in the individual competition is much higher than last year, and I heard the school beauty has signed up too,” Zhou Ye, who had not spoken before, pushed his glasses up with his right middle finger and said.  

Wow, this was the first time her deskmate spoke.  

Yan Ning felt a bit curious, even though he wasn’t speaking directly to her.  

“So what if the school beauty is participating? I think Ningning is prettier than her,” Qiao Yingxue said.  

“If the school beauty is also joining, Ningning’s chances of winning are indeed slim,” Zhao Xiaolu said. “Not even talking about the finals, but in the earlier rounds, where it’s a voting elimination system, the school beauty has too much of an advantage.”  

“What’s the difference between the voting elimination rounds and the finals?” Yan Ning asked, curious.  

“After the first round of selection, only the top 20 contestants with the best looks remain. Then, before the finals, each round of competition is decided by voting from the audience and three judges sent by the sponsors. The second round selects the top 10 contestants with the highest popularity, the third round has a head-to-head match where the top five winners go to the finals,” Zhou Ye explained clearly.  

Yan Ning realized that Yan Wan, the school beauty, was very popular at Minghua Middle School, and since audience voting is so subjective, this competition format definitely gave her a huge advantage.  

“So, what’s the format of the finals?” Yan Ning asked.  

“The finals of the individual competition are held at a venue provided by the sponsors, and you need to buy a ticket to enter. I’ve never been,” Qiao Yingxue said.  

“I’ve never been either,” Shi Lei said weakly.  

“Me neither,” Zhao Xiaolu said helplessly.  

Yan Ning turned her gaze to Zhou Ye.  

“I’ve never been either,” Zhou Ye said, pushing his glasses up again. “But I’ve heard that the finals are completely different from the earlier rounds. It’s very intense. Every year, the champion earns their title with pure skill, no surprises.”  

“Yan Ning has no chance,” Shi Lei added.  

“You’re really annoying,” Qiao Yingxue retorted at Shi Lei.  

“It’s no use saying I’m annoying, anyway, she has no chance,” Shi Lei countered, unwilling to back down.  

“Where do I sign up? What documents do I need?” Yan Ning asked.  

“Ningning, are you really going to sign up?” Qiao Yingxue’s expression brightened.  

“Mm, even if I lose, it’s no big deal. I just want to give it a try,” Yan Ning said casually.  

One-thirtieth of three million was still enough to make Yan Ning feel excited. She thought this level of competition probably wouldn’t be too difficult. As she said, even if she lost, it wouldn’t be a loss.

“Just take your student ID to the student council office to sign up, but you’ll need to hurry, I remember the deadline is coming up soon,” Zhou Ye said.

—

On the third floor of the laboratory building, at the end of the hallway, was the student council office that handled daily affairs.

Yan Ning knocked on the door, and a somewhat familiar voice came from inside: “The door’s not closed, come in.”

“Hello, I’m here to sign up… Oh, it’s you.”