Pretending to be a Bad Student - Chapter 6

I love studying

“I love studying, third place already, right? That X,” said one player.

“‘Study Study My Life Only Has’ is about to catch up to second place,” another replied.

“‘English Class Rep’ looks promising. Wanna bet? I think this X is definitely a rising star, a dark horse among dark horses. And up until today, he hasn’t said a single word, cold as hell. Just looking at him, you can tell he’s the type to accomplish big things. Not simple at all,” said a third.

“For a better tomorrow,” came the question. “Bet what?”

“I’ll wager one privately collected treasure, 1982 junior high Chinese, Volume Five textbook. A rare find, once-in-a-lifetime,” someone said.

“I love studying. He must be someone who puts all his heart into study. Watching him immerse himself in his work every day, unmoved by honor or disgrace, indifferent to all other entertainment, I feel deeply ashamed. And I actually still have time to chat here,” another added.

“……”

Xie Yu had been grinding through practice questions for several nights in a row. Ever since he charged onto the rankings, the account named jsdhwdmaX had remained a hot topic.

To these players who loved studying, the leaderboard was as important as grade rankings, both a symbol of honor and a goal to strive for. Every day, they looked up to the top students, encouraging themselves to follow in their footsteps: read more, memorize more, do more.

The “King of Questions” competition calculated player points based on the average score across all subjects. Excelling in just one subject was useless, so the few names on the leaderboard were all-rounders. Since the server launched, those names had barely changed.

It would have been one thing for a newcomer to shoot up overnight. But this newcomer with the impossible-to-remember name kept changing positions on the leaderboard every single day, like climbing stairs, steadily and effortlessly moving upward.

“‘Study Study My Life Only Has’: Being cold is good. The trauma that ‘No Shame’ left me is seriously too deep. Now, every time I see the system broadcast that so-and-so PK’d so-and-so and someone lost, I’m scared that the next second the words ‘First Blood’ will appear in the chat channel,” one said.

“His highest record was fourteen kills in one night. Honestly, feels like he logged into the wrong game,” another replied, tears streaming down face.

“That flashy with the moves? After PK-ing someone, he manually types ‘One Kill, Two Kills, Three Kills’ in the chat? Is this the ‘No Shame’ I know?” asked a third.

“English Class Rep” said, “It’s him. Who else could it be? To be honest, I’ve always wanted to know what his purpose is in doing that.”

“Study Study My Life Only Has” replied, “Don’t get it. How could mortals like us possibly understand?”

“I Love Studying” added, “Put study first in everything. Gossip is meaningless. Follow the example of Scholar X. Room 4008, waiting for your challenge.”

Although that “King of Questions” rarely logged in anymore after conquering the game, his legend was still passed around by word of mouth.

Xie Yu occasionally glanced at the chat channel. Every time he did, it refreshed his understanding of this person called No Shame. How does this lunatic have this much drama?

He did practice questions until after two in the morning, accepted a few PK matches, and once he had earned enough points, he logged off and went to sleep.

He had only slept a few hours when, at seven in the morning, Gu Xuelan woke him. “The tutor will be here soon. Tidy yourself up, wash your face, brush your teeth, and come downstairs for breakfast. Hurry.”

Her tone was fairly normal at first, but when she saw Xie Yu’s uncooperative expression, her temper flared again. “Did you hear me?”

Xie Yu’s head throbbed from being yelled at. “…Got it,” he muttered.

Mrs. Gu Xuelan was a woman of her word, she had really hired a tutor. Supposedly, this man was quite famous in the private tutoring world, known for reforming many misguided youths and practically praised to the skies. There was nothing he couldn’t teach, no student he couldn’t improve. He was said to possess hands that could turn decay into magic, stone into gold, and uncover the hidden wisdom in every child.

Xie Yu found it funny. Laughable, even.

But Gu Xuelan was full of anticipation for the tutor’s arrival. This woman, who normally strictly controlled her diet to maintain her figure, even ate a few extra bites of breakfast in her excitement. “I heard Madam Chen’s son improved by several dozen points in just one vacation,” she said.

Zhong Guofei smiled and said to Xie Yu, “Hear that? Work hard. Don’t disappoint your mother.”

Xie Yu focused on drinking his porridge without even lifting his head. He casually replied, “Mm,” brushing it off.

Someone else, however, was displeased.

Zhong Jie, sitting opposite Xie Yu, said coolly, “People are different. Just because someone else’s son can improve by dozens of points doesn’t mean your son can. Better not put too much pressure on him. If he can’t do it, he can’t do it.”

As soon as he spoke, the atmosphere at the table—barely harmonious before—instantly dropped to a freezing point.

Gu Xuelan awkwardly set down her soup spoon, unsure what to say.

“Do you even know how to talk?”

Xie Yu finished his porridge unhurriedly, lifted his head, and looked Zhong Jie straight in the eye. 

Do you even know how to talk? He repeated silently, the thought sharp as a knife.

Gu Xuelan hurriedly tugged at Xie Yu’s sleeve.

None of your damn business, the words circled his mind twice, but in the end he didn’t say them aloud.

“Did I say anything wrong?” Zhong Jie’s smile widened, a glint of malice in his eyes. “You cheated on your high school entrance exam. Planning to cheat on the college entrance exam too?”

If Gu Xuelan hadn’t stopped him, Xie Yu could have sent Zhong Jie straight to the hospital, the kind where you’re bedridden for a month and can’t take care of yourself.

Zhong Jie resembled Zhong Guofei somewhat in appearance, but in his treatment of others, they were worlds apart, always carrying an edge of sarcasm and meanness.

He was about to start his freshman year of college. His original score hadn’t been enough for a first-tier university, but Zhong Guofei had plenty of connections. 

Though he fell short by more than ten points, he had been forcibly placed into Nanda. That experience had inflated his confidence and pride as a “prestigious university student.”

“How I take the college entrance exam is none of your concern,” Xie Yu said, wiping his mouth as he stood.

After walking a few steps, he stopped and asked, “Oh right, are you full?”

Zhong Jie didn’t understand what he meant.

“Since you’ve eaten your fill, I hope you’ll find something to do,” Xie Yu said.

Zhong Jie froze. 

Was he calling me a busybody with nothing better to do after stuffing himself?

In the end, the meal broke up on a sour note.

After breakfast, Zhong Jie left for the company with Zhong Guofei. Gu Xuelan stayed home to wait for the private tutor and, in the meantime, pulled Xie Yu aside. “Even though Xiao Jie was wrong, you shouldn’t have spoken to him like that,” she scolded gently.

“‘That child’?” Xie Yu said. 

“He’s a child to you, does that make him one to me too?”

Gu Xuelan didn’t quite know what to say. She simply didn’t want the house to feel like a battlefield every day. “You… you know what his personality is like. Just bear with it. Take a step back, and the sea and sky open wide.”

Xie Yu was beyond irritated. “Why should I? Am I supposed to indulge that crappy temper of his?”

“Your Uncle Zhong has already talked to him. Just be more polite next time. Consider it a favor to your mom, okay? You usually live at school; I barely get to see you. It’s rare that you’re home during the holidays. Be good. Be obedient,” she said.

As she spoke, the doorbell rang.

The tutor stood at the door, holding a black briefcase. He looked fairly young, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, the very picture of a courteous gentleman. “Mrs. Zhong. Young Master Zhong,” he said politely.

Seeing that the guest had arrived, Gu Xuelan ended the conversation and got up to welcome him into the living room. The two of them sat on the sofa and began discussing the child’s poor academic performance and related issues.

Xie Yu sat opposite them, bored out of his mind, casually picking a grape from the coffee table.

The tutor’s surname was Huang. A graduate of a prestigious university, he spoke eloquently about educational matters. Xie Yu had thought there might be something special about this so-called miracle worker who could “turn stone into gold.” He hadn’t expected it to be this dull; after listening for a while, he started getting sleepy.

“Interest is a student’s best teacher,” Teacher Huang said. 

“My educational philosophy is to guide students to develop an interest in learning. Once they take the initiative to study, we tailor instruction to the individual and help the student see which learning method suits them best. Once they find the correct method, the results will naturally be twice the outcome with half the effort.”

Teacher Huang had slathered his hair with a thick layer of gel. When he spoke, he habitually lifted a hand to adjust his glasses.

The grape juice was sweet and tart. Xie Yu casually pulled a tissue to spit out the seeds.

He discreetly opened his phone’s contact list, found Lei Zi’s name, and, while Mrs. Gu Xuelan was deep in animated conversation, sent a one-handed text: Call me. Now.

Years of brotherhood, one hint was enough.

Zhou Dalei’s call came in the very next second.

Xie Yu stood up. “Mom, Teacher Huang, I’ll step out to take this call.”

On Zhou Dalei’s end, there was nothing but the rapid clatter of keyboard keys. Xie Yu was about to say, “You’re at an internet cafe again, aren’t you?” when he heard Dalei suck in two heavy breaths and then roar at the top of his lungs, his voice resounding like thunder.

“Fuck your grandpa! You stole my purple weapon! I’ll wipe out your whole family!”

Xie Yu froze.

Zhou Dalei cursed for a while, slammed his mouse down, and nearly smashed the keyboard. The internet café owner hurried over. “Lei-zi, calm down. Calm down. If you break it, you’ll have to pay for it. Things in a game are just fleeting clouds. Take it easy. The rights and wrongs of the jianghu.”

“No way I’m calming down. This isn’t over,” Zhou Dalei snapped stubbornly. “You can steal a romance partner if you want, but not a limited-edition purple weapon.”

Only after speaking did Zhou Dalei remember he was still on the phone. “Boss Xie? I’m so pissed my balls hurt.”

“Limited-edition purple weapon?” Xie Yu asked.

“Yeah! That monster was clearly killed by our team. The drop rate’s only 0.1%. We farmed that hidden boss for days. Damn it—we were just about to get it when someone cut in halfway and stole it.” Zhou Dalei spat. 

“Filthy. Those guys are seriously filthy.”

He added, “I’ve arranged to settle this with them today. Whoever doesn’t show is a grandson. Are you coming?”

“I don’t even play your wuxia game,” Xie Yu said.

“Not in the game. On Nanjing Road.”

You can actually arrange to meet over something like this? Xie Yu thought.

“They’re in City A, we’re in City B. We drew a line on the map and picked the midpoint. Two hours from now. Nanjing Road Central Plaza,” Zhou Dalei explained.

Xie Yu glanced back at Mrs. Gu, who was still chatting with the tutor. “Alright. Wait there. Big brother’s coming to back you up.”

Gu Xuelan and Teacher Huang chatted for nearly twenty minutes. By the time she sensed something was off, Xie Yu was already gone.

“He said he was taking a call, yet he hadn’t come back for ages,” A-Fang hesitated. “He… he left. Before the Second Young Master left, he said… he said not to waste your effort.”

The porcelain teacup in Gu Xuelan’s hand nearly slipped.

Xie Yu was the last to arrive. By the time he reached Central Plaza, the two groups were already lined up in two rows facing each other, apparently trying to argue things out before resorting to a fight. There were more than a dozen people in total.

Xie Yu had no intention of fighting; he was just there to show his face. He picked a spot not far away, scenic, shaded, and sheltered from the sun, and stayed there.

In the stifling summer heat, two groups of hot-blooded teenage boys, averaging fifteen or sixteen, stood under the 10:30 a.m. sun, hurling insults about each other’s families over a piece of game equipment.

Zhou Dalei charged at the front, voice booming. “You’ve still got the nerve to talk? Was that yours?”

The other group refused to back down. “It was ours! How was it not ours?”

“Have some shame, bro. It’s just a game—don’t let your heart be so dirty,” Zhou Dalei shot back.

“Opportunities are always reserved for the prepared. We camped there for three or four days to grab it. What do you know!”

“Oh? Pretty proud of that, huh? Looking to get your asses kicked?”

“Bring it on! Who’s afraid of who!”

Zhou Dalei was nearly furious to death. He took a deep breath, then finally squeezed out through clenched teeth, “While I’m still talking to you calmly, hand it over. Give it back. I won’t make things hard for you. We’ll pretend this never happened.”

Through the crowd, Xie Yu noticed someone who had originally been standing at the very back of the opposing team, a tall figure wearing a black mask, slowly step forward. The people around him moved with perfect coordination, parting to make a path.

Through the fabric of the mask, the man’s voice came out muffled, low, and unhurried. “We took the equipment with our own skill. Why should we return it?”