Chapter 20: Honor Roll

The morning after the results were released, sunlight like fine gauze spilled into Lin Yumo’s room.

She rose early as usual, freshened up simply, and headed for the library.

Today, Chi Ling’s seat was empty. Lin Yumo only gave it a passing glance without paying much attention.

After all, what occupied her mind most right now was her studies—physics had cost her the most points in this exam, followed closely by chemistry. These two subjects loomed before her like twin mountains waiting to be climbed.

Sitting in her usual spot, she methodically organized her study plan.

She first pulled out her holiday homework and worked through it with focus. The scratch of her pen across the paper was like the rhythm of her fight for her dreams.

When she finished her assignments, she opened an online course app, listening intently to lessons in physics and chemistry—sometimes frowning in thought, sometimes scribbling notes furiously, recording every key point.

By the time dusk spread across the library’s glass facade, Lin Yumo closed her notebook.

The stacked layers of formula derivations on her scrap paper still carried the scent of ink, and the neon highlights on her mind maps resembled the boiling solutions of a chemistry experiment.

On the last day of the holiday, sunlight streamed through the curtains, weaving a golden net across the soft cushions of the bay window.

Curling her legs beneath her, Lin Yumo flipped through ELLE, her fingernails idly tracing the runway photos from Paris Fashion Week 2008.

The cinched-waist skirts and metallic chain embellishments in the designs were like keys suddenly unlocking a box of old memories—she saw herself in a school uniform drowning in piles of practice papers, saw fashion magazines turning yellow beneath stacks of workbooks.

The pages of her sketchbook rustled in the breeze. The pencil danced across the paper, merging the softness of lantern sleeves with the sharpness of deconstructivism. Eraser shavings dotted the margin beside a note reading “Asymmetrical neckline.”

When the dusk deepened the skyline into blue, she realized she had filled more than twenty pages of design sketches. Each was labeled with fabric choices and pattern-making details, as if the future brand she dreamed of, and the runways she would one day stand on, were already hidden in these lively lines.

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The next day, the weather had turned colder. Wearing her school jacket, Lin Yumo walked slowly toward the school.

The autumn morning light filtered through gaps in the branches, scattering mottled patterns across the ground.

Just as she stepped through the school gate, she saw three bulletin boards crowded with people.

The dark gray uniforms of upperclassmen mixed with the light blue of her year. The rising and falling hum of discussion was like the tide, swelling endlessly toward her.

Curiosity stirred, and she made her way toward the bulletin board surrounded by students from her year.

She rose onto her tiptoes, trying to peek over the shoulders of those in front.

But the people ahead were simply too tall. She could only make out the bold words at the top of the board—“First Monthly Exam Rankings, Grade 10, No.1 High School.”

Her eyes flicked toward the bulletin board surrounded by the upperclass girls, but she could only see “Grade 11 Monthly Exam Rankings”; the rest was blocked by the shifting crowd.

Just as she frowned slightly, trying to get a clearer look, a boy in front suddenly caught a faint trace of jasmine fragrance.

It was fresh and light, like morning dew lingering in the air, brushing past his nose.

Instinctively, he turned—and met Lin Yumo’s intent gaze.

In that instant, his breath caught. Up close, the soft glow on her fair cheeks revealed fine downy hairs in the sunlight, her bright eyes like pools of autumn water. Her lashes trembled slightly, but she did not look away.

The boy’s face flushed deep red, like clouds dyed by the evening sun.

Flustered, he turned aside, stammering, “You look first.”

Ma Weiping yanked hard on his buddy’s arm, sending him stumbling into the bulletin board’s metal frame with a dull thunk.

“Ma Weiping, what’d you pull me for? I haven’t finished looking yet!”

The boy rubbed his sore shoulder, anger spiking—only for the words to freeze in his throat when he caught sight of the high-ponytailed girl standing behind Ma Weiping.

Under their direct gazes, Lin Yumo felt a little uncomfortable. She lowered her head, twisting the hem of her school skirt, a sliver of her fair wrist showing.

“You go first. You finish looking, then I’ll look.”

Her voice carried a soft, lilting ending, like honey wrapped around the petal of a jasmine flower still kissed by dew, falling gently into both boys’ hearts.

Ma Weiping’s friend swallowed hard, the tips of his ears swiftly turning crimson.

He hurriedly pushed up his slipping glasses, his voice unconsciously softening.
“It’s fine, I’m taller than you—if you stand in front, I can still see.”

As he spoke, he even straightened his back, as if trying to prove the truth of his words with his height advantage.

The surrounding chatter suddenly faded into a blur. All he could hear was the pounding of his own heartbeat, mingled with a faint hint of jasmine in the air.

Lin Yumo bit her lip and glanced up at the large clock atop the teaching building—the minute hand was already closing in on the start-of-class mark.

She stopped refusing and, in her sneakers, took a light step forward. The ends of her hair brushed against Ma Weizhen’s arm, bringing a tingling itch.

The glass of the announcement board reflected her focused profile. Behind her, the two boys stood side by side, holding their breath in unspoken accord, as if afraid to disturb the girl who was so intently studying the rankings.

Through the thin layer of glass, the gilded characters at the very top stood out clearly—Chi Ling’s name was like a nail, firmly fixed in first place for the entire grade.

Chi Ling:
Chinese: 128
Math: 150
English: 142
Physics: 100
Chemistry: 100
Biology: 100
Politics: 93
History: 93
Geography: 95
Total: 1001 points
Grade Rank: 1st

“Of course…” she murmured, fingertips unconsciously tracing the metal frame of the bulletin board.

In second place was Wen Yannian, with a total score of 985 points. That made her recall what Song Xingran had said about the “No. 1 High School Iron Triangle”—sure enough, Jiang Bozhou’s name sat quietly at sixth place.

At that moment, something below the ranking list caught her eye—the photo wall.

Four small pictures were neatly arranged in a square. For the top scorers in Chinese, English, Biology, and Geography, the photos were all her registration picture from the first day of school.

In the photo, Lin Yumo’s brows curved like two clear springs, her petite nose naturally arched, and her pink lips lifted in a faint smile. Her high ponytail had a few loose strands, the sunlight turning them the color of honeyed tea. The breeze at the moment of the shot had flipped her hair ends into a playful arc. The blue-and-white school uniform made her skin look like snow; every movement was brimming with a young girl’s liveliness and charm.

Meanwhile, in the Math, Physics, and Chemistry columns, Chi Ling’s photo faced hers across the space.

The boy’s features were deep as a cold pool; the sharp lines of his high nose bridge were striking. Loose strands of hair fell across his forehead, slightly shadowing one obsidian eye. Beneath his prominent brow bones, his eyes seemed to hold a galaxy’s worth of stars—clear yet distant.

The collar of his school uniform was slightly open, revealing the delicate line of his collarbone. In every movement, there was an air of innate poise and composure. Flecks of sunlight fell across his profile, perfectly tempering the proud energy of youth.

Lower down, the Politics and History columns held two unfamiliar faces—one confident, one calm—each showing their own style.

Her gaze stopped suddenly on the Chemistry section. Wen Yannian’s name and perfect score were clearly written there, yet the photo was of Chi Ling. She frowned slightly, puzzled.

Only when she spotted the small-font note below did she realize:

“In the event of a tie, overall grade ranking takes priority.”

Looking at her own photo and Chi Ling’s side by side, her lips curved without her noticing, a faint smile blooming on her face.

Just then, a quiet voice came from behind—Ma Weizhen and his friend, speaking in unison:
“You’re amazing.”

Lin Yumo turned back, her smile warm as she looked at them.
“Thank you. I’ve seen enough—so I’ll get going.”

With that, she turned and threaded her way through the small crowd still gathered around.