Yulan Middle School
This is the best high school in Jiangnan City, where each year a significant percent of students manage to gain admission into Imperial Capital University.
That's over 70% of the city's total.
As one might expect, the entrance criteria are quite high. There are generally only two ways in.
One is for those who are the wealthy and powerful second generation, and the other is for those with exceptionally good grades.
Gu Qianqian, coming from a family with neither power nor wealth, naturally got in through her outstanding academic performance.
"Qianqian"
A beautiful girl with long hair in a school uniform greeted Gu Qianqian warmly.
"Ling Yi"
These two were not only classmates but also shared the same dormitory room.
Their relationship was always pretty good, and both of them were considered to be among the most beautiful in the school.
They lived in a four-person dormitory, but the atmosphere wasn’t exactly harmonious.
As everyone knows, ugliness often breeds malice.
Especially when it came to women who were both unattractive and influential.
Though Ling Yi's father was a captain at the Patrol Bureau,
he wasn't considered much of an official in the eyes of some.
By the time Gu Qianqian and Ling Yi got to their room, the other two occupants were already there.
Ren Yu and Guan Linlin, with whom their relationship was somewhat strained.
Gu Qianqian had the bottom bunk, and at that moment, Ren Yu was sitting on a stool, applying nail polish, with her black-stockinged legs resting on Gu Qianqian’s bedsheet.
Seeing Gu Qianqian come in, she finally moved her legs.
Ren Yu’s father was a major developer in Jiangnan City, and for his daughter to be placed in the best class, he had made significant donations to the school.
Gu Qianqian, displeased, neatly rearranged the crumpled bedsheet.
There was hardly any interaction between them on normal days.
Although bright and confident, Gu Qianqian's family background made her a target for minor bullying. But fortunately, she had Ling Yi for support.
She was deeply grateful for that.
"Linlin, do you think the necklace my dad gave me yesterday looks good?"
With everyone present in the dorm room, Ren Yu took out a delicate glass necklace from a box and proudly put it on.
"Isn’t that necklace a limited edition from Master Zhou Xiaofu? It’s relatively new, must have been expensive, right?"
Guan Linlin said with a smile.
"Hehe, it wasn’t much, just a few million," Ren Yu boasted.
In terms of looks, she couldn’t compare to Gu Qianqian, but her affluent background always gave her a sense of presence.
They were all too aware of Gu Qianqian’s family situation.
Orphaned with both parents deceased,
she now lived only with her older brother, who was disabled.
A true unfortunate soul, if not for her pretty face,
which guy would take an interest in her?
Yet because she shared their dorm room, there were always boys asking about Gu Qianqian.
Even her own crush occasionally tried to gather information about her.
Her jealousy only intensified the more it happened.
As for striving in studies to perform well in college entrance exams?
Her family had already planned for her to study abroad, to experience life in a foreign country.
She would just need to earn any degree abroad to return and inherit the vast family business.
This is a standard practice among the wealthy.
Fairness? No one really cared about that.
"Oh, Qianqian, your necklace is so pretty," Ling Yi couldn't help but comment.
Gu Qianqian, who was changing clothes, inadvertently revealed the necklace Lin Feng had given her.
"Hehe, my brother bought it for me," Gu Qianqian said with a sweet smile.
She always treasured anything that Lin Feng gave her.
Ren Yu and Guan Linlin couldn’t help but notice too.
Both had seen their fair share of jewelry and jade, but the necklace that Gu Qianqian wore seemed particularly stunning at a glance.
With a hexagram star shape and a rice grain-sized blue gem in the center.
If it were genuine, it wouldn't come cheap.
"What necklace? Let me have a look," Ren Yu said, reaching to grab it.
"Back off, what do you think you’re doing?" Gu Qianqian refused without a second thought.
She had a strong dislike for Ren Yu's habit of trying to take things without permission.
They weren’t even friends, and yet she felt entitled to be so hands-on. How overbearing!
"It's just a lousy necklace, and you're treating it like treasure, thinking everyone wants to see it," Ren Yu disdainfully remarked.
She didn't believe that Qianqian's brother, Lin Feng, could give anything valuable. It must be some cheap trinket from the internet.
"Even a lousy necklace is a gift from my brother, and I don't need your approval.
Besides, your opinion doesn’t matter to me one bit," Qianqian retorted sharply.
She would not yield an inch when it came to gifts from Lin Feng.
"Are you done yet? Don’t act like your family’s wealth makes you so impressive."
Ling Yi couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke up.
"Heh, it's just a look, but listen to how mighty Ling Yi, the captain’s daughter, speaks," Guan Linlin interjected.
Guan Linlin hailed from no less significant a background, said to have influential say in certain circles.
"You’re the one with the big mouth; how about we see who’s better?" Ling Yi countered, rolling up her sleeves, having practiced some combat and grappling with her father.
"Fine, you're tough; just you wait," Guan Linlin clearly knew she was no match for Ling Yi.
"Let them wait. They think we’re afraid of them?"
"Come on, Qianqian. Let’s go have dinner," said Ling Yi, seeing that Qianqian was ready, and she pulled her by the hand out of the dormitory.
Ling Yi had no patience for such people, using their power to bully others!
They were all classmates, was such behavior necessary?
She remembered her father often saying something about "times change..."
"Dare to scoff at me? Who are you intimidating? How dare you speak to me like that?"
Ren Yu suddenly had an idea in her mind.
Dealing with Gu Qianqian at school was a bit tricky since it attracted too much attention.
...
She picked up her phone.
"Hey, Uncle Wen, I need a favor from you..."
Ren Yu didn’t care who heard her and dialed the number in front of Guan Linlin.
"If I can't get to you at school, can't I just deal with your good-for-nothing elder brother, Lin Feng?" Ren Yu thought to herself.
"Thank you, Ling Yi," Gu Qianqian knew she was helping her out of a tough spot.
"No worries, we’re good friends. Just get through these few months, and then at university, it's a whole new world!"
Ling Yi said, holding Gu Qianqian's hand.
"Mm-hmm."
"By the way, your brother has good taste; this necklace is really pretty."
"You think so too, huh?" Gu Qianqian was very pleased.
Even though it was a bargain from a group-buying site, she didn't mind at all.
Many things at home were Lin Feng’s finds from group-buying deals.
To her, this necklace was probably worth at least 200 yuan.
..........
Evening self-study
After arriving at school on the weekend, there was an evening self-study session scheduled.
Gu Qianqian sat at her desk, picked up a book titled "Ten-Year College Entrance Exam, Six-Year Simulation," and started reading.
But today was a bit strange, her mind felt exceptionally clear while reading.
Before, when Gu Qianqian looked at a problem, she could think of at most two solutions.
But today, inspiration just kept flowing endlessly.
She could even recall the similar problem from a specific page in a textbook.
Though puzzled, Gu Qianqian didn't dwell too much on it.
She picked up her pen and began working on the problem effortlessly.
As smooth as flowing clouds and running water, whenever she saw a problem, a solution appeared immediately.
Her efficiency tonight was more than double the usual.
Which left her somewhat astonished.
The Soul-Calming Pendant emitted a faint blue glow, not very noticeable under the light of the lamp.
Moreover, since the necklace lay close to her skin, she herself hadn't noticed anything unusual.
Two hours later, as the bell marking the end of the study session rang,
She had completed the entire workbook.
Had this been any other day, she would have felt exhausted, but she still felt surprisingly spirited.
On her way back to the dormitory,
She ran into that somewhat obsessive man again.
"Gu Qianqian, look at this large cup of milk tea, I had someone bring it especially for you,"
A slightly plump man had been waiting at the door with several cups of milk tea for quite some time.
She didn't like this at all, despite how many times she had spoken about it, Qiao Shan remained unchanged.
Qiao Shan, the sole son of Qiao Feng, chairman of the Jiangnan City Wellness Chains.
And the only heir to the Jiangnan Wellness Chains
Also, he was one of Gu Qianqian’s staunch admirers.
"No thanks, drinking too much of this can lead to weight gain, you should cut down as well," Gu Qianqian said helplessly.
And she closed the dormitory door behind her.
Such boring guys held no interest for her.
With such a privileged family background, it's a pity he doesn’t focus on his studies.
It's really a waste.