🍓 CHAPTER 156 🍓
A mother who used her son to take revenge was inherently selfish and it would be strange if Cao Shu could think of sending food to her brother.
Shi Ning didn’t care to finish her meal and took her mother’s hand.
“I’ll take you to my brother.”
Shi Ning rushed to the door of Shi Chen’s classroom just as the bell rang for the end of class.
Senior three students don’t even seems to eat so actively and a third stay in the classroom to review the questions.
Shi Chen walked out of the classroom door, followed by two boys.
“Ning Ning?”
As soon as he went out, he saw his sister waiting at the door as well as…. his stepmother.
“Shi Chen, your sister is here to see you and this one behind her is…is the aunt right?”
The classmate behind Shi Chen poked his head out and smiled politely at Lin Xuemo.
“Hello auntie mother!”
Another boy who followed him also said.
“It seems that Shi Chen is blessed today, there is a mother who brings you food. We will go to the canteen first!”
Shi Chen nodded, and the two waved their hands at him and left first.
The three of them stood in the corridor and the atmosphere was slightly awkward.
Lin Xuemo handed the thermos to Shi Ning to take and said to Shi Chen.
“You study hard, auntie made you some food. You can eat if you want. It doesn’t matter if you don’t want to.”
Shi Ning who was listening felt pain for Lin Xuemo for a second.
She thought.
‘What do you mean it doesn’t matter if you don’t want to eat?’
Mom you are too humble!
Shi Ning stepped forward and directly shoved the lunch box into his brother’s hand.
“My mother made it for you by herself, I was able to eat it because of brother. You have to eat it whether you want to eat it or not, you should eat more if you study hard! Got it?”
This domineering tone sounded spoiled.
The little girl was also becoming more and more lawless in front him.
“Okay, got it.”
Shi Chen hugged the thermos and walked into the classroom.
Shi Ning pulled Lin Xuemo and they all walked in together.
When Shi Chen opened the lunchbox and was still slightly shocked when he saw the layer of so many dishes.
“You made all of these?”
Li Xuemo: “Well, they are some home-cooked dishes that I used to be good at, now I only cook them less. The taste may not be as good as before.”
Shi Chen picked up his chopsticks and picked up a piece of chicken and put it in his mouth to taste.
He didn’t make any comments but reading on his expression it should have tasted good. At least he didn’t show any dissatisfied expression.
“Is it good brother?”
Shi Ning asked.
Shi Chen knew his sister was asking for his stepmother, he glanced sideways at Shi Ning. His gaze telling her.
Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking.
“Just tell me if it’s good.”
She wouldn’t relent.
Shi Chen was helpless, he whispered.
“Delicious.”
Lin Xuemo smiled and the atmosphere immediately eased a lot.
“Eat more, you’re so tired in your senior year. You should eat more to replenish your body. This fish soup and this pork tripe soup are good for your health. Eat more quickly.”
Shi Chen’s barrier against Lin Xuemo has not been completely eliminated but as soon as she become enthusiastic he was unable to put down his chopsticks.
“Mom, don’t you have other things to do? Why don’t you get busy first? I’ll eat with my brother. Don’t worry I’ll make sure he finishes them.”
Shi Ning said at this time.
Lin Xuemo nodded along with her words.
“Okay, then mommy will go first. Ning Ning you bring the box home tonight.”
Only after Lin Xuemo left Shi Chen seemed to be relieved. Siting on the stool to eat peacefully and doesn’t need to awkwardly say how delicious food was..
“Not to mention, your mother’s cooking is really delicious.”
Shi Chen said.
Shi Ning propped her chin to watch him eat.
“That’s natural, and you should be able to feel it too mom is concerned about you. She’s just afraid to express it for fear of annoying you more.”
Shi Chen chopsticks paused.
“But I have a mother after all.”
If his parent’s divorce was really because of Lin Xuemo he would have not been able to fully accept this woman in his life.
Just…
Shi Ning was right, putting aside the grudges of previous generation. He really could not pick even a slight problem with Lin Xuemo.
Even for her bad-tempered stepson, she was also tolerant and even thought to do some motherly duties to care for him.
“Forget it, let’s not talk about such things. She is your mother, I promise you that I would not make things difficult for her in the future.”
Shi Chen said.
People were not plants1, Lin Xuemo has not mistreated Shi Chen for so many year, she could be said to be a model stepmother.
She believes that Shi Chen was not without feelings.
Shi Ning knew her brother does not like this topic and did not continue to talk.
“Brother, our class is already deciding to divide between arts and science.”
Shi Ning said.
“Hmm.”
Shi Chen responded as he continue eating his meal.
“What do you think should I choose, arts or science?”
Shi Chen raised his head and looked at her.
“Don’t talk nonsense. You must choose liberal arts, your liberal arts is so good. What else will you chose if not liberal arts?”
“I’m not bad at science, and I want to learn mathematics competition problems but only science students can enter the competition.”
“If you go back and make a set of science college entrance examination papers, you will know how difficult it is for you to get the score of your liberal arts.”
“Your freshman year in senior high school is just the simplest. Choose the right one that suits you.”
He thinks that studying science would not be easy, high school was just the beginning later on college science students were a lot more miserable than liberal arts students.
He just wants his sister to take the easier road, so he doesn’t want her to go bald for math and science later.
“I was going to take liberal arts too but I didn’t want to give up the math competition.”
It was so hard for her.
Shi Chen said in a light voice.
“Then don’t give up. Who said arts students can’t enter competitions? There is no such rule, right?”
??
But in the past, she only heard science students engaging in mathematics competition beside which liberal arts student would take trouble to do this?
Her brother was really a genius.
“There’s no precedent for this in our school, is there?”
Shi Chen didn’t care and said.
“Then you’ll set this precedent. Someone will always be the first, it’s no big deal.”
Shi Ning felt surprised and vaguely excited at the same time.
She seems to have finally found a solution to her problem.
“But can I?”
--------
🍓 CHAPTER 157 🍓
Shi Chen finally finished eating, he cleaned up the things on the table. He took out a piece of tissue, wiped his mouth and looked at Shi Ning seriously.
“You spent a lot of energy on English and Science in your first year of senior high school in can be seen that your liberal arts is very easy to learn.”
“In this way you will have more time to do what you want to do. Moreover if you learn math well, your liberal arts math score must be high. Mathematics in liberal arts is the most troublesome, if you want to study to the extreme only few can catch up with you.”
“Finally—”
He paused and smiled.
“You are my, the sister of Shi Chen, of course you can.”
He picked up the chopsticks on the table and knocked on Shi Ning’s head.
“After all this little head just like her brother is born smart.”
After talking to her brother, Shi Ning became more firm in her choice.
The form was checked under Liberal Arts.
And of course, Nan Xiao stared at her while filling this in.
He also plans to follow her and enroll in liberal arts.
He was about to put on his paper when Shi Ning said suddenly.
“If you choose liberal arts, we’ll never see each other again.”
Nan Xiao: “???”
Wasn’t this forcing him to choose science?
After Shi Ning said these harsh words, she softened her voice and persuaded.
“This is a matter of your own life, you should be responsible for yourself. If you select liberal arts course it must be only related to you examination results but also related to your major in college and what kind of person you want to be in the future. If you change the results because of me, I can’t afford this responsibility.”
“It’s not that I don’t know what you are talking about but I still want to take liberal arts.”
He doesn’t care what kind of person he becomes in the future but he couldn’t stand the thought of not having her in the future and the thought of not being able to see her every day in the same class with her makes him feel bad.
“You’re only childish like that and I don’t like childish boys.”
She didn’t like it, made Nan Xiao’s faith in choosing liberal arts collapse.
“Okay, then I’ll take science.”
He said.
Shi Ning understand his domineering nature and made a decision that ten cows were difficult to pull back. It was a surprise to her that he changed his mouth so soon.
“Will you really be a good boy and choose science?”
Don’t say with your mouth and then put a check mark under the liberal arts with your hand.
In front of her, Nan Xiao made a big thick check under the word science.
“Don’t worry, I did a lot of things you didn’t like before and I won’t do any of them again.”
**
Soon the entrance exams descended.
All freshmen and sophomores were off for the holidays, thanks to the senior candidates.
Shi Ning personally sent her brother to the examination hall, after sending her brother she went to the local temple to pray for her brother to bless him with all the success in the college entrance examination.
On the second day of the college entrance examination, after the last English subject examination bell ended, it was announced that the college entrance examination was over and the high school career of this year’s senior official came to an end.
Shi Chen fame out of the examination room, it was five o’clock in the summer and the sun was still very big. Regardless of the sun, the dazzling oily road and the endless crowd, he felt that the world was a little shaky.
When it was over, he had an inexplicable sense of illusion and emptiness.
“Brother!”
Across the crowd, a petite figure came running towards him.
All of a sudden, the pent up fatigue, the unspoken sense of emptiness all dissipated a lot and the corner of his lips rose as he quietly waited for her.
Shi Ning searched for Shi Chen for a while and finally found him.
She ran up to him.
“It’s good thing you’re tall or I wouldn’t have been able find you with so many people.”
Shi Chen smiled.
“What’s not to find, your brother is always the most handsome one in the crowd.”
Shi Ning smiled.
“That’s certainly true.”
The two walked together in the direction of their home.
“Brother how is your test?”
“Okay.”
“What do you mean by okay?”
“It means it was normal.”
“That should also mean you did well.”
“I don’t to worry about whether I did well in the exam, I want to go home and a have good sleep and then have a good time for three days and three nights. I’ll wait until the day when I get my grades.”
After the college entrance exam, Shi Chen neither answered the questions nor talked about the exam when others asked him and just answered them uniformly.
“It’s okay.”
He just played, let loose and soaked up two consecutive all fighters in an in an internet café.
Seeing his indulgent appearance, Shi Ning was completely unable to judge how well he actually did on the exam.
“Brother when will your results come out?”
Shi Ning asked him.
“I forgot the exact day just the middle and end of June.”
How can you forget this?
She made a point of looking it up and remember the date.
Shi Ning was almost feeling more concerned about this than her brother.
**
On the day of the results of the college entrance exam were released, Shi Ning was still in class.
When she finally got out of school, the first thing she did when she ran home was to find her brother.
Fortunately, her brother did not go out today so when she ran into his room Shi Chen was sitting on the bed reading comic books.
“Brother have you checked the results?”
“Checked it.”
Knowing the little girl came back to ask him about this, he pushed the evening meal with his classmates today and waited for her to come home to personally tell her.
Shi Ning had the illusion that it was her college entrance exams results were coming out and gulped nervously.
“How did you do on the exam?”
“It’s okay.”
Shi Chen still had unhurried look, not even taking his eyes off the comic book.
Shi Ning was in a hurry.
“Don’t sell yourself short just tell me the score!”
The scores were out and still saying it’s okay, if this was not deliberately teasing her, then what.
Shi Chen put down the comic book in his hand and raised his eyes.
“Remember the wish you made at the fireworks this New Year?”
Of course she remembers!
Her first wish was for her grandmother’s good health.
The second was to hope that her brother’s college entrance exams get good results, its best if…. He could top it.
Shi Ning’s eyes widened in surprise and covered her mouth in surprise.
“Brother you can’t be serious, you go the first place in the city, right?”
Her brother was so powerful!
Shi Chen chuckled.
“The exam was okay, I guess it exceeded my sister’s wish with a total score of 721 not only first in the city but also first in the province.”
***
People were not plants1– Chinese idiom, pinyin: rén fēi cǎo mù, which means that people have thoughts and feelings and are easily moved by external things, which are different from the lifeless, unconscious, and unfeeling green grass and trees.
-------
🍓 CHAPTER 158 🍓
“Not only the first in the city but also the first in the province.”
So the top science student in their province was the one standing in front of her in this national college entrance examination?
When Shi Ning heard the news, she was first stunned then ecstatic.
She couldn’t help but pinch her cheeks, feeling the pain she then gently patted her cheeks then shook her head.
This slightly silly actions was captured by Shi Chen’s eyes.
Shi Chen smiled.
“What are you doing?”
Shi Ning: “Checking if I am dreaming of my brother getting first place?”
Her brother indeed was the best and most powerful brother in the world.
Shi Chen took the first place in the province, it didn’t take long for it to spread all over the school. Even outside school there sometimes reporters who wanted to interview Shi Chen, but they were all ignored.
In his defense, he said.
“If these reporters interview me they will get me on TV. I’m smart and handsome what if I become popular? I just want to be a low-key scholar.”
Shi Ning knows that he said these words in front of her was purely jesting.
He does not want to accept interview was in fact for only one reason, purely because he was lazy.
“Don’t lie to me, when did you keep a low profile? After college entrance examination who in Yangcheng does not know your name? Before, everyone who saw me call me Shi Ning, now they started calling me ‘Shi Chen’s sister’.”
Shi Ning these days, whether walking to school or meeting a relative to congratulate the family she would most called was Shi Chen’s sister.
In school, because Shi Chen was not in school after the college entrance examination as his sister Shi Ning endured too much for him.
“Look, Shi Chen’s sister, Shi Chen did really well this time, really give the school a long face. Our school has not had a provincial top student for three years! Now there is a provincial science topper, the principal’s mouth is grinning until the back of his ears every day.”
“Shi Chen’s sister is really good looking ah, indeed they have good family genes. I heard that her performance is also great, in the future she may also be as great as Shi Chen!”
And even at home too, Shi Chen that stinky temper of his was always too lazy to deal with people so every time, she has accompany her parents to entertain the guests at home.
These days, the people who came to their house where the one who heard about Shi Chen’s achievement and came to congratulate the Shi family.
There were some that Shi Ning didn’t know at all, and haven’t met before in the memory of the original owner.
When Shi Ning greeted all the uncles and aunts everyone looked at her with eager expectation.
“You are Shi Chen’s sister, right? Your brother got the top 1 this time as his sister will you be under pressure?”
“Aiya, this girl looks very smart, worthy of Shi Chen’s sister. Like her brother in the future she will also get a top rank!”
All of these, Shi Ning have heard them a hundred times that her ears were going to be calloused.
Shi Chen: “Isn’t that rather annoying?”
Just like when he was a child, no matter where they went everyone’s concern was not his but because he was Shi Pingzhan’s son.
After growing up, many people would say,
‘Ah was this the son of Yangcheng rich businessman Shi Pingzhan.’
Which made him quite annoyed sometimes.
However after Shi Ning was asked, she had a different opinion.
“No, except that there are too many people coming up to me and asking questions making me annoyed but other than that what other things could annoy me?”
“If you want to keep a low profile, then not me I don’t want to keep a low profile. Being the sister of the number ranker in the province is more powerful.”
Shi Ning said.
Shi Chen listened and laugh lightly.
“When you get an achievement in the future, other should call me Shi Ning’s brother. I look forward to such day.”
The last exam of the senior year was the final exam.
This was also the last exam before the division of arts and sciences, Shi Ning prepared more carefully than ever.
Even Nan Xiao crammed for the exam, and stayed up two or three nights to read books crazily for fear of missing anything.
Shi Ning on the other hand, she who loves to clean herself and would always took a bath every day. But after a few days of crazily studying she was too tired that she went directly to bed and forgot to take a bath.
She was so focused that she even forgot to eat, after the exams Shi Ning went to weigh herself and in this half month she lost three or four kilograms.
She prepared so desperately, coupled with her usual routine in studying. After the final exam Shi Ning knew that this was best she had ever take, nine subjects each of which she answered carefully as she could.
After the result came out, the day she received the notice Shi Ning was also more nervous than any of the previous exams.
She opened the report card and her eyes fell on the name at the top.
It was still Lin Suno.
Sure enough, even though she tried to this extent she still failed to pass him.
Lin Suno was really a mountain that couldn’t be crossed.
Shi Ning’s heart has a trace of loss slipped through at the same time, and admiring Lin Suno more.
-------
🍓 CHAPTER 159 🍓
Shi Ning’s heart has a trace of loss slipped through at the same time, and admiring Lin Suno more.
And the very moment the report cards were handed out the class completely exploded.
“Crap, I’m not wrong!!!!”
“I’m shocked.”
“Our class, this time has two first placer in our grade!”
“After Shi Chen picked up the provincial top in science, his sister Shi Ning has once again created a miracle.”
“I never thought that in my lifetime I would be able to see the another first place other than Li Suno.”
“Don’t ask, Shi Chen is a genius, Shi Ning is a genius. The Shi family sibling are all geniuses.”
In the midst of this chatter, Shi Ning also noticed at this time that just below Lin Suno’s ranking serial number next to his own name was 1.
She rubbed her eyes and looked carefully again, still 1.
She and Lin Suno both scored 892 and tied for first in their grade.
The report card were issued by the school committee and it wasn’t long before the class teacher Lao Yang walked into the classroom.
“The result are there for everyone to see, right?”
The audience was unanimous.
“Saw!”
Lao Yang: “This time I will not say anything else, but I’ll focus on praising Lin Suno and Shi Ning in our class.”
“Congratulations, you have set a new record in the final examination of senior 1. Although the test papers are different there are only eight points deducted from nine subjects, I’ve seen if for the first time.”
The class was cheering and countless people were applauding.
Shi Ning looked at her results a little out of breath, she couldn’t believe she had done it just like that.
In the last exam of her senior year 1 she finally got the top of her grade, although she still wasn’t able to surpass the person she wanted to surpass.
Yet she feels that this was the best possible outcome.
**
On the campus road, Shi Ning and Lin Suno were walking side by side.
After receiving the notice today, Shi Ning was called into the office to talk with her homeroom teacher along with him.
It was not really a serious conversation after all, from the next semester onwards Lao Yang would not be their homeroom teacher.
It’s not that Lao Yang doesn’t take sophomores, he takes a sophomore science class and they both have a science class and arts class.
Lao Yang has been praising them since they entered the office, not only Lao Yang but also with the other teachers in the office.
When they were finally sent out, Lao Yang who has never take the drama route put one hand over the shoulder of one of them.
“You are the best students I have ever taught, not just in academics. And this teacher will always be proud of you.”
They bowed deeply to Lao Yang to express their gratitude.
After coming out of the office, Shi Ning originally wanted to go back to the classroom first and tidy up her seat.
Although today was not her duty but Shi Ning thought of that this was her last time sitting in that classroom.
Feeling reluctant she wanted to do something one last time.
But before she could enter, her hand was pulled.
Shi Ning turned her head and looked the person tugging her in surprise.
Lin Suon said.
“Can we go home together today?”
Shi Ning: “Yeah, I’ll go to the classroom and move the chairs up before I go.”
Lin Suno: “You don’t have to, Nan Xiao will help you with it.”
If she went it, how could Nan Xiao let her walk back with him alone again?
He won’t even think about it.
--------
🍓 CHAPTER 160 🍓
Thinking of this, Lin Suno frowned lightly pulling Shi Ning directly away the classroom door to the other direction of the building.
“Why, even if we go back we don’t have to make such a big detour, right?”
Shi Ning was truly confused.
Lin Suno: “I ate a little too much for breakfast and wanted to walk more.”
“Oh, okay.”
Why does this reasoning feel a bit odd…?
The two were walking together on the campus road and as Shi Ning was feeling so embarrassed by the quiet atmosphere, she was about to talk when she heard him say.
“You did very well on the exam this time, congratulations.”
Shi Ning: “Although I always wanted to take the first place in the exam thank you for your blessing. I also know how difficult it is to be the first in the exam.”
“This time it felt a little untrue.”
“That’s what you deserve, and you worked hard to get that score.”
Lin Suno said.
“Shi Ning you are a very good competitor.”
Speaking of which, Shi Ning still feels some regret.
“This is also the last time we take the same test paper right? We won’t have the chance to compete again in the future.”
“I don’t know if there will be anyone else in the class who will be our Suno’s opponent”
She said this half-jokingly.
“I don’t think there is anyone else in our school.”
He said in a light voice.
……
….
Abundant and Peaceful.
This was the description of the god of learning and confidence he was, after the separation of arts and science he couldn’t even find a competitor was it?
They walked together to the entrance of the school.
Lin Suno watched her get into the private car that came to pick her up from home.
Ning Ning, I’m waiting to meet you in the highest place.
He silently said in his mind before turning around.
Shi Ning got into the car and rolled down the window, she then looked in the direction of his back.
That was the end of her senior year one, and she would never have to spend so much time trying to improve her grades in physics and chemistry again.
At the beginning she wanted to trying to get the first place.
But to be able to do that she needs to beat the reigning number one spot.
So her goal became him.
The last exam of her senior year 1 she studied as hard as she could, not actually to be first but to surpass him.
There was always a chance to get the first place in the grade and it would be much easier to get the first place after she goes to the arts class now.
It’s just that the chance to surpass him on the exam was just this once, that’s why she’s leaving no stone unturned.
The final result could only be tied with him.
And her academic career as a senior one has come to full circle.
Shi Ning thought this way and felt much better.
She woke up too early in the morning and just as she was about to catch up on some more sleep in the car, her phone rang.
Shi Ning took it out and saw that it was Jin Sihan who called.
She picked up the phone and asked directly.
“What are you doing today, today is the day to get the notice do you not know? How come I didn’t see you come to school, Lao Yang asked us where you are. Tell me did you sleep too much?”
After the exam, even if it was summer vacation he was so relaxed that he didn’t even want to get his report card?
Jiin Sihan’s lowered voice came over the phone.
“I didn’t sleep in, I woke after seven but on the way to school I met a man who claimed to be a talent scout. He said he saw a lot of potential in me and wanted to train me to be a star.”
“He dragged me to talk in starbucks for more than an hour, and said he would show me around their company. Do you think this is a fraud?”