Chapter 523 - 229: The Same Examination Room

Chapter 523: Chapter 229: The Same Examination Room

Just before the first period of evening self-study ended, Ah Jie returned from the office with a dejected look on his face.

Seeing Ah Jie’s deathly expression, Shen Yuan couldn’t help but laugh.

As the bell rang, signaling the end of class, Shen Yuan knocked on Ah Jie’s desk.

"Going?"

"Let’s go!"

Ah Jie immediately stood up, followed by Yang Ze and Chen Mingyu.

Where else would they be going? The bathroom, of course!

As the four of them walked down the hallway, Shen Yuan suddenly looked at Ah Jie. "Hey, Ah Jie, how’s your serial novel, *Silent Reading*, doing?"

Ah Jie glanced at Shen Yuan and pursed his lips.

"It’s so-so. Every time I ask Peipei, she just says it’s average. The feedback isn’t great."

Shen Yuan patted Ah Jie’s shoulder. "Don’t worry, take your time."

"How can I not worry? She’s about to leave! The person reviewing my manuscript will change!"

Shen Yuan clicked his tongue softly, and Yang Ze, who was beside them, chimed in. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

"So what are you going to do? Are you planning to stop writing?"

Ah Jie shook his head. "I don’t know. We’ll see. I need to get through these final exams first."

Ah Jie looked at Shen Yuan. "Lao Yuan is right. Even if my confession succeeds, it’s all for nothing if we don’t get into the same university."

"Hey! Now that’s the spirit!"

Shen Yuan nodded in satisfaction. "Want me to teach you my hardcore method for memorizing vocabulary?"

Ah Jie shook his head repeatedly at the suggestion.

’Are you kidding me? No normal person could survive Shen Yuan’s grinding methods!’

...

Day by day, time flowed forward, silent and unyielding.

The date circled in bright red marker on the calendar page on the desk—January 21st—was like a silent, approaching target.

Each day was meticulously torn away, turned over.

The numbers crept closer: 17, 18, 19...

The lights always came on while the sky outside was still pitch-black.

The windows of the classroom during morning self-study sessions glowed brightly against the lingering deep blue of the night, illuminating the silhouettes of students hunched over their desks, writing furiously.

The frigid wind seemed to grow even more bitter, carrying the unique dry chill of winter. It tried to sneak into their collars but was often blocked by the faint warmth radiating from the students’ intense concentration and sense of urgency.

On Shen Yuan’s desk, the rate at which test papers, past exam collections, and error correction notebooks piled up reached an all-time high.

The stack of completed papers grew thicker by the day, while blank ones were constantly pulled from the pile and spread open.

His scratch paper was covered in overlapping layers of formulas, diagrams, and thought processes, eraser shavings quietly accumulating beneath his pen.

His notebooks were filled and replaced at a visible rate.

Consequently, the number of correction marks and highlights on Li Zhi’s desk also grew denser by the day.

SCRITCH, SCRATCH... SCRITCH, SCRATCH...

The sound of pen tips scratching against paper became the most persistent, most rhythmic background noise in the classroom, continuing from morning to night without a pause.

The fire in Shen Yuan’s eyes never dimmed. He operated like a precise and powerful machine, running with high efficiency.

Only occasionally, under the lights, could one see the faint, dark circles forming under his eyes—proof of his burning energy, yet they were overshadowed by the almost stubborn, determined light in his gaze.

Even the content of Ah Jie’s wailing was subtly changing.

"Holy shit! Brother Yuan! Did you just pull this stack of problems fresh from the printer? Are they still warm? How am I supposed to feel when you finish them so fast!"

"You’re a monster! I can’t keep up with this rat race! Shen Yuan, you do you, but please, spare my eyes! Watching you grind through problems makes me feel like a sinner..."

"I’m doomed, I’m doomed, I’m doomed! Sister Shui actually smiled at me today! It’s over! I can feel the final exams are really coming!"

But complaining was one thing. Spurred on by Shen Yuan’s beast-like drive, Ah Jie, Yang Ze, and even more of their classmates seemed to feel the approaching, grim atmosphere and involuntarily buried their heads deeper in their work.

In the back-row area of Class 15, the tense atmosphere and high efficiency surrounding the so-called "Shen Yuan Brand Perpetual Motion Machine" spread silently.

Li Zhi’s gaze would occasionally lift from her book and land on the focused profile of the boy beside her, who was writing tirelessly.

The limited winter afternoon sunlight would sometimes sneak through the windowpane, pausing between the arch of his brows and his persistent gaze, dancing as tiny golden specks of light.

A smile would unconsciously form on the girl’s lips before she lowered her head again, her fingertip gently tracing a newly marked date on the edge of her error correction notebook—another day of the countdown safely passed.

When the calendar by the blackboard was finally turned to "January 20th," with one day left before the final exams, the entire school building seemed to vibrate with a taut, high-strung tension.

The air grew heavier, conversations became quieter, and the sounds of flipping pages and scribbling pens grew more hurried and dense.

A battle to test the fruits of all their past struggles was being carried in by the torrent of time, roaring as it swept toward them.

The afternoon light was filtered through a thick layer of clouds, casting a gloomy, lead-en gray hue over everything.

Ah Jie put down his practice test and rubbed his throbbing temples, his gaze drawn to the lifeless, gloomy sky outside the window.

"Tsk," he said, nudging Shen Yuan, who was still busy with his calculations, with his elbow. He jutted his chin toward the window. "Brother Yuan, look at the sky..."

Shen Yuan lifted his head from a dense pile of formulas and followed Ah Jie’s gaze.

The hazy gray sky hung low, and the silhouette of a distant school building was blurred in the heavy mist. The air seemed saturated with a damp, cold silence; even the wind felt stagnant.

"Looks like it’s holding back a big one..."

Ah Jie clicked his tongue, his tone tinged with worry. "You don’t think it’s actually going to rain during the exam tomorrow, do you? That would just be making a bad situation worse. It’ll be all damp, cold and wet, and even the roads will be hard to walk on."

Shen Yuan also stared at the heavy, lead-gray expanse for a moment, his brows furrowing slightly.