The preliminary round of the English debate competition was held in a multimedia classroom in the library.

Most of the participating students were from the Foreign Language Department, with few students from other departments. Inside the classroom, there were mostly students from the Foreign Language Department who came to watch the competition. Jing Li, Cheng Xue, and Yin Hailing’s two roommates also came to cheer up Jing Ran and Li Ruihua. It was quite difficult to find three consecutive seats.

There were no specific requirements for the participants’ attire in the debate competition, just a simple “uniform.”

As the team leader, Jing Ran decided on the attire for the team members.

During the weekend, Jing Ran was browsing team uniforms on his mobile phone on Taobao^[1]Taobao is a Chinese online shopping platform at his grandmother’s house. When he was about to confirm the payment, Jing Li saw it and stopped him from buying clothes.

This study nerd, buying team uniforms is really crude and simple!

A white t-shirt with two passionate red characters “Must Win” printed on the chest!

At least it’s an English debate competition, and it sounds a bit classy. Don’t dress so LOW, okay…

In the end, Jing Li picked a more fashionable black POLO shirt for them, at least with a collar, which is considered more respectful for the occasion.

The participants from other departments wore their outfits casually, while the teams from the Foreign Language Department put in a lot of effort as they were competing for a spot in the intercollegiate competition. Even their attire couldn’t be underestimated. The members of the debate teams from the Foreign Language Department all styled their hair and wore suits, even their way of walking had a professional and elite demeanor.

The participating students from other departments seemed to be inexperienced.

However, in this kind of intra-school debate competition, the focus is still on the process of debate and not related to attire. However, the participants from the Foreign Language Department clearly dominate in terms of presence.

Before the preliminary round, there was a small audition to eliminate some participants. Now, only six teams have entered the preliminary round, and tonight we can watch three debate matches. Before the competition, representatives from each team came on stage to draw lots and find their respective opponents.

Jing Ran’s team is called the “Molly Team,” which Jing Li didn’t know about before. It was only tonight, when she came to the venue, that she found out. The top student really shamelessly shows off his affection. Everyone in the department knows that the old-fashioned top student has a beautiful girlfriend named Jing Li.
“Molly” is not the English translation of “mòlìhuā” (jasmine flower), but it is pronounced as “mòlì”. This is the English name registered on Jing Li’s passport.

Earlier, Jing Ran introduced her group’s name, “Molly Team,” on stage. People around Jing Li were looking at her, making her feel a bit uncomfortable.

The drawing session ended, and Jing Ran’s group drew Li Xueqing’s group as their opponent. There was a surprised reaction from the audience. Two promising groups were unexpectedly pitted against each other in the preliminary round. One of them would be eliminated?

“It was originally two strong teams. Is it okay for one team to be eliminated in the first round?” A student sitting near Jing Li whispered, sparking a discussion.

Jing Ran’s debate was scheduled as the third performance. The debate had already begun on stage, while the other participants were resting backstage.

Jing Li had confidence in Jing Ran and believed that she could defeat Li Xueqing. However, deep down, she couldn’t help but worry a little because Li Xueqing had participated in several large-scale debates representing the school, giving her more experience than Jing Ran.

Jing Ran often participated in individual competitions, mostly in subjects like mathematics or academic knowledge competitions. He had never participated in a team competition like this before.
The outcome of the debate was still uncertain.

Jing Li picked up her phone and sent a WeChat message to Jing Ran:

Jasmine : [Ranran, keep it up!]

After a few seconds, Jing Ran replied with an emoji: [a small cat holding a fish and nodding, along with the words “Hmm Hmm.”]

Jing Li pressed the power button and put away her phone, feeling inexplicably relieved.

A top student like Jing Ran wouldn’t lose!

Finally, it was time for the third round, Molly Team versus Victory Team.

The debate topic was: “Are the benefits of credit cards greater than the drawbacks?”

Molly Team was on the affirmative side, and as the first speaker, Jing Ran stood up, bowed to the audience in front of him, picked up the microphone, and began his argument: “I think the most advantageous part of…”

As soon as the top student spoke, the audience below was amazed.

There is a clear phenomenon in English education in China’s primary and secondary schools: mute English. Many students excel in English exams such as the college entrance examination and the CET-4/CET-6, but when it comes to speaking English, they stutter. Unless they attended bilingual schools from an early age, majored in foreign languages in college, or took part in private English training courses, it is difficult for them to improve…

Jing Ran, who doesn’t have an impressive appearance, became the provincial top scorer in the college entrance examination, which also brought fame to his average high school in City G. He is studying management, which doesn’t require a deep understanding of English, and he is often seen studying in the library, unlike some students who go to downtown X Oriental English cram schools every night.

How did he develop such impeccable English pronunciation? When speaking English, he doesn’t stutter at all.

“Your family’s top student is really amazing, and his English is so fluent!” Sitting next to Jing Li, Cheng Xue couldn’t help but compliment Jing Ran.

“Of course he is amazing!” Jing Li had that proud look of a mother when her son is praised, almost like she was wagging her imaginary tail, otherwise she would have looked like a dog wagging its tail.

You see, the top student listens to English audio while jogging every morning, and follows along with reading; when self-studying at the library, he reads management books in their original English version. Even when he’s in a relationship, he strictly separates his chatting time with his girlfriend from his study time, without any compromise. Whenever the two of them are at the library’s study room, Jing Li is watching dramas while Jing Ran is studying. They can only chat after Jing Ran finishes studying.

Being so smart and working so hard, he’s practically not giving others a chance to live.

After Jing Ran finished his argument, it was the turn of the opposing debater, Li Xueqing, to make her argument. Although Li Xueqing, the school beauty, doesn’t have grades as outstanding as Jing Ran’s, many people know about her background. She comes from a well-off family and can be considered a true “rich and beautiful” girl. She has always attended prestigious schools and received bilingual education. In addition, she has already won two championships in a row, so delivering a fluent English-like speech is no big deal for her.

The debaters from both teams are not to be underestimated; tonight’s outcome is truly uncertain.

Gradually, Jing Li couldn’t help but feel nervous. It seems like the top student has met his match.

The members of the Molly Team are also quite capable; they were carefully selected by Jing Ran during the preliminary stage and he personally guided them, so they naturally have what it takes to compete with the consistently winning team. The members of both teams are engaged in a heated debate on stage, making it a very exciting event. Everyone is impressed by the students from the management department, as they seem to be on par with the foreign language department in terms of their English proficiency.

After the concluding statements, the judges made their decision, and in the end, the Molly Team emerged victorious and advanced to the next round.

It’s hard to believe that Li Xueqing, who called herself “Victory,” actually lost. The team that won the previous two championships has been eliminated in the preliminary round this time.

Jing Li saw Jing Ran defeat Li Xueqing and felt a sense of satisfaction in her heart.

It feels so satisfying to quell that woman’s arrogance.

Who asked that woman to always look at her and Jing Ran with a strange expression? There’s no need to despise them every time, as if they owe her something.

There were only three matches throughout the evening, which ended relatively early. The members of the Molly Team and a few people from Jing Li’s dormitory gathered together at a street stall outside the school to have a late-night snack. They have the semifinals and finals tomorrow, but Jing Ran’s schedule is fully booked, so he won’t be able to spare any time to guide the team members tomorrow. Therefore, during the late-night snack time, the members of the Molly Team were racing against time to discuss the two debate topics for the next day.

Jing Li, Cheng Xue, and Yin Hailing sat together, silently playing with their phones while waiting for the food, not disturbing the people around them who were engaged in discussions.
The waiter brought a large plate of spicy crayfish. Jing Li raised her chopsticks, ready to pick up a few crayfish and put them in her bowl. However, just as her chopsticks touched the crayfish, Jing Ran quickly grabbed the chopsticks to stop her.

Jing Ran suddenly interrupted his guidance, and everyone looked at him and Jing Li. It seems that Jing Ran didn’t want Jing Li to eat the crayfish.

Jing Li asked, “What’s wrong?”

Jing Ran: “Not allowed to eat!”

Jing Li: “Why?”

Jing Ran: “Because you had a stomachache yesterday, you’re not allowed to eat spicy food.”

During the period of the breakup, Jing Li didn’t have much appetite and ate very little. Sometimes she wouldn’t eat for a day or two, and she became very thin. Recently, she got together with Jing Ran, and her appetite improved. However, her stomach had gotten used to being hungry before, so her digestion has been a bit uncomfortable these past few days.

However, the stomachache happened at night in the dorm, and Jing Li didn’t tell Jing Ran about it. It’s not ruled out that someone leaked the information, and the first suspicious person is Li Ruihua, who is also on the Molly Team.

Jing Li’s gaze immediately swept towards Li Ruihua, who shrugged helplessly.

At this moment, a waiter brought a bowl of porridge with dried scallops, ginkgo nuts, and shredded meat. Jing Ran asked the waiter to place it in front of Jing Li and said, “You need to pay attention to your diet this few days, can’t eat heavy flavors.”

When they were ordering just now, Jing Li thought it was the little prince ordering it for himself to eat, but who knew it was specifically ordered for her.

In the past, Jing Ran was always a solitary person who didn’t understand how to care for others, especially girls. It was only after becoming Jing Li’s boyfriend that he started learning to be considerate towards his girlfriend, although he still made some jokes. Fortunately, Jing Li was very tolerant, and if it were another girl, she would have called him crazy a long time ago.

Jing Li shyly looked at Jing Ran and thanked him, saying, “Thank you, Ranran.”

Jing Ran’s expression became very gentle, and his tone carried a hint of indulgence, “It’s nothing.”

Taking care of his girlfriend was something he should do.

The girls at the table looked at the sweet interaction between the two of them, feeling a bit depressed and could only divert their attention to eating. The debate topic discussion was interrupted, and everyone started eating. A large plate of crayfish was quickly devoured.

Jing Li looked at the empty plate and felt a bit regretful. It was such a rare opportunity to eat crayfish, but she didn’t even get to eat a single one!

However, Jing Ran didn’t like spicy food, so he definitely wouldn’t accompany her to eat them.

Jing Ran could tell that she was reluctant to part with the crayfish, so he touched her hair and comforted her, saying, “Darling, we’ll eat them next time.”

Jing Li felt a bit aggrieved and said, “But if you don’t eat spicy food, who will accompany me?”

“I’ll accompany you.”

“Do you want to eat spicy food?”

“No, I’ll go and peel the shells for you.”

The girls at the table looked at the two of them with complex expressions.

Cheng Xue spoke first, “How about you two go to the next table and have a meal together!”

Jing Li: …