School let out in the afternoon, and no one planned to return to class.
Everyone went their separate ways, heading back to their respective homes.
The next day, they met briefly at the entrance of the exam site before separating again to enter their assigned testing rooms.
The exam wasn't challenging for Shi Li. After it was over, the four of them gathered at the entrance.
The math class representative from the neighboring class pulled Shi Li aside to compare answers and ask questions.
Rongrong usually spoke very little, but she was incredibly patient when explaining math problems.
Compared to the patient Rongrong, Shi Li had a shorter temper when explaining problems, only covering the key steps.
Few students would come to Shi Li for help a second time; Fu Huixing was an exception.
Even Shi Li herself couldn't understand why he persisted in coming to her for help every day. She figured it must be because he was a diligent student.
However, since he was intelligent and quick to understand, each session only took three to five minutes of her time, so she didn't mind.
So, as fellow perfect scorers on the competition papers, the math representative from the neighboring class chose to check answers with Rongrong, fearing Shi Li might find him too slow.
Shi Li and Fu Huixing quietly walked beside the other two. Shi Li could hear that Rongrong's answers matched her own, so she assumed their scores would be similar.
As Fu Huixing was also a member of her group, and as the group leader, she felt obligated to check on him. "How do you think you did?" she asked.
"Not bad."
Hearing his characteristically concise response, Shi Li couldn't help but recall the recent discussion about male virtue.
She couldn't resist teasing him, "Are you not talking to me because you're trying to maintain your male virtue, afraid no good family's daughter would dare to marry you?"
"I... that's not it."
There was a hint of hurt in his voice, but Shi Li didn't notice it, and the two people discussing the exam papers beside them were even less likely to pay attention.
Shi Li was simply being mischievous because she had nothing better to do.
While the others were comparing answers, she felt uncomfortable staying silent.
So she playfully said, "Don't worry, a wife like you who's good-looking and maintains male virtue is highly sought after in our village. They'd be willing to pay a high bride price to marry you."
As luck would have it, the other two had just finished their discussion and caught Shi Li's explosive comment.
They exchanged bewildered glances, seeing shock in each other's eyes.
What had happened while they were checking answers that led to a discussion about bride prices?
Fu Huixing clearly hadn't expected such a train of thought from Shi Li, that she would say something like that.
It was just a joke, after all - its interpretation depended entirely on the listener's mindset.
Unfortunately, the listener wasn't exactly innocent-minded.
Fu Huixing's heart was pounding; he tried his best to maintain composure to avoid embarrassment.
But steadying himself took all his energy, leaving him unable to think of how to respond to Shi Li.
While Fu Huixing was still struggling with how to answer her question,
Shi Li had already moved on to another topic: "Where should we eat?"
This was something she'd been pondering during the exam, and now that the other two had finished comparing answers, it was the perfect time to discuss food.
Shi Li's sudden topic change relieved Fu Huixing from having to face the previous question, though it left him feeling somewhat empty inside.
The math representative from the neighboring class found some nearby restaurants on a social media platform, and they decided on one for dinner.
The dining table is where relationships are easily strengthened. As they ate, they chatted and complained about teachers, growing closer to one another.
The math representative from the neighboring class had always felt a subtle barrier between himself and the other three, but felt this dinner had helped break it down.
So during the meal, he raised his beer to toast Rongrong's orange juice.
Among them, he was the only one who ordered beer; the other three had orange juice.
He seemed to have a low alcohol tolerance - his face was already showing a slight flush after just half a glass.
"Sister Rongrong, thank you, thank you for being so patient in explaining problems to me. Our class has troubled you so much lately."
"It's nothing."
Watching Rongrong take a sip of orange juice, he continued, "I don't mean anything else by this, I just wanted to ask about your study methods, especially in math - how did you suddenly improve so much? Could you share your experience? I really want to improve."
Worried that Rongrong might think he was questioning her grades, he quickly added, "I'm not doubting your results at all. I know how strict the exam supervision is at our school. I just want to learn from your experience."
The school had improved its exam supervision system last semester. While cheating couldn't be prevented with absolute certainty, he knew whether Rongrong was genuine or not.
If there were any issues with Rongrong's grades, how could she easily solve the problems he struggled with?
Oh right, his reminder made Shi Li and Fu Huixing recall what Rongrong's former classmate had said about her grades suddenly improving and making a qualitative leap.
When Shi Li first heard this, she was so angry that her mind was preoccupied with arguing with that narrow-minded guy. Although she had heard about the improvement, she hadn't paid much attention to it.
She had forgotten about it after going home, but now the question was raised again.
Shi Li tilted her head to look at Rongrong, [Oh right, why did her grades suddenly improve?]
