School Flower and School Tyrant - Chapter 8

As the monthly exam drew near, the atmosphere in Class 6 became increasingly tense. Even during breaks, the classroom was filled only with the sounds of pens scribbling and pages flipping. 

This quiet was suddenly interrupted by a girl’s voice. 

“Hey, is Ouyang Qianxue here?” A group of girls entered the classroom, led by one wearing a traditional Chinese hanfu. 

“President?” Ouyang Qianxue immediately recognized the girl in front of her, it was the president of the Go Club, who had played a match with her just a few days ago. She also recognized the three girls following her, they were the presidents of prominent arts and literature clubs. 

“Aren’t those the leaders of the school’s most elite cultural clubs?” The classroom erupted in whispers, shocked by the unexpected spectacle. 

“They’ve actually come to see Ouyang!” The students began looking at Ouyang Qianxue with admiration and envy. 

“Ah, there you are!” The hanfu girl finally spotted Qianxue and walked over to her desk, flanked by the other three girls. 

“I heard that you’ve been scouted by the School Beauty Committee and even received a letter from them. If you rank in the top 20% in the upcoming exam, you’ll officially be crowned as the school beauty, is that true?” 

“How… how did you know?” Ouyang stammered, startled by the sudden question. 

“It’s all over the school now,” the hanfu girl replied nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders. 

(I haven’t told anyone about this… Could it be that troublemaker Wang Qian?) A mental image of Wang Qian’s mischievous grin flashed through Ouyang’s mind. 

“So, we’ve come to help you!” The hanfu girl declared confidently, pointing at Ouyang Qianxue. 

“Although you’re only an honorary member of our clubs, we were the ones who pushed you into joining so many of them. If your grades drop because of that, we bear some responsibility. Besides…” The hanfu girl’s lips curled into a sly smile. 

“If you become the school beauty, won’t it bring even more popularity to our clubs? With a school beauty in our midst, wouldn’t all those boys be fighting to join? So, no matter what, we’re going to help you get into the top 20%!” With that, the hanfu girl and the other three club presidents dragged Ouyang off to the library. 

“Don’t underestimate the students at Sakura Academy. Even those ranked last here would be top students at an average high school. We’re not going to go easy on you, so be prepared,” the hanfu girl warned sternly as they reached the library. 

“I… I understand,” Qianxue replied nervously, swallowing hard as she faced the hanfu girl’s determined gaze. 

“Well then, let’s start by having you try these old exam papers.” The girls placed a stack of test papers in front of Qianxue. 

“These are the monthly exams from our first year. Let’s see where you stand.” 

“Got it.” With that, Qianxue buried herself in the papers and began answering questions. 

The hanfu girl sat nearby, watching her closely. 

“Huh?” She noticed something unusual, Qianxue was answering the questions with remarkable ease and speed, showing no signs of difficulty. For someone familiar with the rigor of Sakura’s exams, the sight was shocking. It was well-known that some ordinary high schools even used Sakura’s exams as competition material. 

“Hey, look at her speed,” one of the other club presidents whispered to the hanfu girl, equally astonished. 

“Could Ouyang actually be a top student? I’ve heard that the transfer exam is even harder than the regular admissions test,” another murmured in awe. 

“Well, let’s see how accurate her answers are. I hope she doesn’t let us down,” the hanfu girl said with a hint of anticipation, looking at Ouyang Qianxue. 

An hour later, Qianxue finished her test. The hanfu girl eagerly snatched up the paper and began grading it. 

As she marked the answers, her expression shifted from calm to pleasantly surprised, and finally to outright astonishment. 

“How is it, senior? I didn’t mess up too much, did I?” Qianxue asked cautiously, noticing the complex look on the hanfu girl’s face. 

“I can’t believe it!” The hanfu girl exclaimed, her voice trembling slightly. 

“Ouyang, take a guess, what’s your score on this test?” 

“How much?” Ouyang asked nervously. 

“Ninety-nine points!” The hanfu girl announced. 

Her words left the other club presidents utterly speechless. Even if they retook this test now, they weren’t confident they’d score as high. 

“No way! Ouyang, what kind of brain do you have? Not only are you talented in so many areas, but your academics are outstanding too? Are you even human?” The other presidents couldn’t help but exclaim after recovering from their shock. 

“It’s not that impressive, senior. I just happened to know how to do these questions,” Ouyang replied modestly, scratching his head. Since being adopted by a wealthy lady, his education had relied entirely on private tutors, and he had no real sense of where he stood academically. 

“This is a game-changer. With Ouyang’s genius-level academic ability, forget the top 20%, she might even surpass Bai Yuxuan, the school’s so-called ‘monster.’ Looks like the school beauty title is practically yours. Ouyang, let me congratulate you in advance!” The hanfu girl enthusiastically grabbed Ouyang’s hand. 

“Wait… Bai Yuxuan is that strong academically? Well, he is the type who reads college textbooks in high school classes,” Qianxue muttered. 

“Wait a second, Ouyang, don’t tell me you’ve taken a liking to him?” the hanfu girl teased, smirking mischievously. 

“Impossible!” Ouyang quickly shot back. After all, he was a straight guy, there was no way he’d fall for another man. 

“What a pity. The most handsome guy at Sakura is your desk mate, and you’re not even tempted to make a move!” 

“I’d rather get back to studying other subjects. What if I mess up on those?” Ouyang quickly picked up another test paper, hoping to escape the hanfu girl’s gossip. Having grown up with a younger sister, he knew all too well that once girls started gossiping, it would never end. 

A few days later, the monthly exams began at Sakura Academy. While most students wore anxious expressions, Bai Yuxuan remained as calm and composed as ever. She finished every subject except Chinese within thirty minutes, handing in her papers early without a second thought. For her, these tests required no effort at all. 

After submitting her papers, she spent the rest of her time studying college-level material and handling student council duties. 

In another exam hall, Ouyang Qianxue, though capable of finishing early, chose to spend the remaining time carefully reviewing his answers. 

The teachers at Sakura prided themselves on efficiency. Within three days, the results for the first-year exams were posted in the hallway. 

Bai Yuxuan walked past the bulletin board without so much as a glance. She was absolutely confident that she would take first place, as always, with a significant lead over the runner-up. 

“Whoa! Bai Yuxuan did it again, first place with a score of 885 out of 900!” A boy exclaimed in amazement. 

As expected, Bai Yuxuan had secured the top spot once again. 

However— 

“Wait, look!” the boy shouted again, his voice filled with shock. 

“The second-place Ouyang Qianxue is only two points behind her!” 

“What?” Bai Yuxuan immediately turned to the results board. Right beneath her name was Ouyang Qianxue’s, with a score of 883. 

For the first time, Bai Yuxuan—who had always maintained a lead of fifty or sixty points over the second place, felt a genuine sense of danger.