"What are you guys up to?"
Miaomiao looked up at her three friends looming over her. For some reason, she felt a chill run down her spine. It seemed like nothing good was about to happen.
"Starting today, there's a 30 - day countdown. It's the last month before the exams. The three of us will take turns tutoring you. We must boost your grades. You have to pass! You absolutely have to pass!"
Cheng Ruan slapped Miaomiao's desk hard, exuding an air of queenly authority.
When it came to studying, Miaomiao always felt insecure. She slowly stood up, trying to be on the same level as these top students. But as she did, she found that each of her friends towered over her by a head.
Due to her long - term martial arts training, Miaomiao's bones had developed towards greater strength rather than length. She was only about 1.5 meters tall. In contrast, her friends all had long legs and were a head taller than her. It was really heart - breaking.
This height difference made the already insecure Miaomiao even more lacking in confidence. She pouted her little mouth and dejectedly sat back down in her seat, covering her chubby little face and saying, "But I really can't learn, wuwuwu."
"No way. You have to learn even if it's hard. Do you want to be separated from us? What if you can't get into a decent school in junior high?" Cheng Ruan shook her head, firmly resisting Miaomiao's cute acts. On this matter, they absolutely couldn't give in.
"Cheng Ruan is right. Miaomiao, it's time for you to study," Yao Mingxuan chimed in.
Only Wei Ziqi remained silent. Miaomiao involuntarily shifted her gaze to him, but the much - hoped - for Wei Ziqi just smiled and shook his head.
"Ah! Fine, I'll study. Is that okay?" Miaomiao let out a wail. The minority had to obey the majority, and she was defeated.
"Your Chinese is not too bad. We'll mark the key points for the exam and write down the answers for you. You just need to memorize them. For politics and history, Wei Ziqi will mark the key points for you. You should also just memorize them. But it's this math and English..."
"Ruan Ruan, I think these are enough. I really can't handle math and English."
Miaomiao admitted that she was scared. This girl who was usually fearless was completely intimidated by these two subjects that gave her a headache.
"No way! These two subjects are crucial and can't be neglected. Next, we'll focus on intensively tutoring you in these two subjects. We've already asked for leave from school, and we've asked for leave for you too. You'll study at home during this period!"
Cheng Ruan mercilessly rejected Miaomiao's plea.
The school was quite lenient towards these senior students. The three of them were good students and always got full marks in every exam. Especially Wei Ziqi, who had already started participating in various competitions that were usually for high - school students. The school didn't even ask a single question when they asked for a one - month leave and just approved it directly.
As for Miaomiao, considering her consistently poor grades and Lin Yao's laissez - faire attitude as a father, the school had completely given up on this student.
Ask for leave? Go ahead. Anyway, her grades wouldn't improve no matter what.
At first, the school teachers weren't that despairing. Although Miaomiao's grades were not very good, she was obedient and would carefully write down everything the teachers said. But unfortunately, her grades never improved. Later, the teachers finally gave up on trying to save Miaomiao.
In this grade, Wei Ziqi had refreshed the upper limit of academic performance, while Lin Miaomiao had refreshed the lower limit. Both records had been thoroughly broken.
"Uncle Lin! We're here!"
After school, Miaomiao took her friends back to her home.
Hearing Cheng Ruan's lively shout, Lin Yao walked out of the kitchen smiling, holding a spatula and wearing a flowery pink apron.
"You're all here. Go wash your hands. Dinner will be ready soon."
"Okay! Thank you, Uncle."
Cheng Ruan and the other two naturally changed into slippers, put down their schoolbags, and sat on the sofa.
Yao Mingxuan looked at Lin Yao and quietly shifted towards Cheng Ruan. He whispered, "Do you think Uncle Lin is becoming more... um... kind?"
"Actually, you wanted to say 'virtuous', right? Right?" Cheng Ruan gave Yao Mingxuan a skeptical look.
Yao Mingxuan waved his hand and said, "Don't talk nonsense. I just suddenly thought it was a bit funny that my legs were shaking when I first met Uncle Lin. Uncle Lin looks much kinder than my dad."
"Yeah, I was really scared when I first met Uncle Lin."
"Yeah, it turns out the rumors are unreliable. Uncle Lin is not as scary as the adults said at all."
Just as Yao Mingxuan and Cheng Ruan were whispering to each other, Miaomiao quietly stood behind them and said in a soft voice, "I heard you. You said Dad was scary."
"My goodness, Miaomiao! You scared me to death," Cheng Ruan was startled. She let out a scream, turned around, and then patted her chest in fear, still in a state of shock.
"Ah, were you just speaking ill of Dad?!" Miaomiao was pulled onto the sofa by Cheng Ruan and stared intently at her.
"Absolutely not. We were just slightly commenting on how kind Uncle Lin is. We were clearly complimenting him. How can it be considered speaking ill of him?" Cheng Ruan raised her hands above her head to show surrender.
Although Uncle Lin seemed very virtuous now, he could be really scary when angry. She didn't dare to casually slander Uncle Lin.
"Okay, then I'll forgive you," Miaomiao nodded and casually picked up a pastry on the table and took a bite.
Seeing the undisguised joy in Miaomiao's eyes, Cheng Ruan suddenly realized that she seemed to have been tricked by this little chubby girl.
"Miaomiao! You're becoming naughty! You've started to know how to play pranks!" Cheng Ruan pointed at Miaomiao and accused her.
"How can you say that? When a silly girl learns to play pranks, it's not being naughty. It's progress, right, Miaomiao?" Yao Mingxuan was happy to see Cheng Ruan being outwitted. He happily stroked Miaomiao's chubby little face and retorted on her behalf.
"Yeah, Yao Mingxuan is right!" Miaomiao turned her head, her big, lively eyes filled with the joy of a successful prank.
Cheng Ruan helplessly shook her head. Oh well, what could she do about the heroic girl she'd befriended?
Just spoil her and indulge her then.
"Miaomiao, stop eating. You won't be able to eat dinner later," Wei Ziqi wasn't concerned about this. He just gently took the half - eaten pastry from Miaomiao and popped it into his own mouth. Then he tenderly wiped the crumbs from the corner of her mouth.
Miaomiao hadn't changed much over the years. Her face still had that chubby baby fat. Apart from growing a bit taller and her facial features becoming a bit more distinct, she still looked like a cute little round dumpling.
She just hadn't made much progress in terms of emotional intelligence. Her dazed look only added to her cute and innocent charm.
"Kids, come and have dinner!"