CH 53.2

The school-wide competition ended smoothly. Early Wednesday morning, Qin Juran sent Ruan Nan a message saying that she had something to attend at school, so she couldn’t pick her up that morning.

She didn’t specify what, but Ruan Nan didn’t prod. It was probably just another one of Qin Juran’s little games –

Ruan Nan smiled as she walked toward her fridge. She gently took out a bag of heart-shaped Belgium chocolates and placed it into her bag.

Meanwhile, Qin Juran had been called to the C2 conference room early in the morning. She walked in to see not only Secretary Yan and the old counselor sitting inside, but also a handful of teachers and students. As Qin Juran nodded in greeting, she recognized most of them as fellow students who had also taken the exam the other day. However, as per the regulations, there were supposed to be five people in a team, yet there were six students present in the room.

The counselor greeted Qin Juran with a smile, but the expression on Secretary Yan’s face was not pleased.

So the reason that she was called here today could either be that her scores were good enough for her to participate in the competition, or that she was the leftover sixth person.

Qin Juran calmly took a seat at one of the available desks as the head teacher began to go over which other universities were also participating in the competition that year, as well as how to prepare for the next few rounds. She reaffirmed that the competition would take up most of the students’ personal time and mentioned that there would be postgraduate school recommendations as a bonus, although most of them probably would not even need it. Despite this, the teacher still hoped that they would all work their hardest together to fight for the school’s honor.

After this, she proceeded to announce the results of the selection exam, from lowest to highest score. The final spots weren’t solely determined by this most recent exam, and instead were calculated by taking 30% of the average of the previous exam scores, then 70% of this exam score.

The names were announced one by one. The first was a chubby sophomore boy from the Literature Department, the second was a female medical student, the third was a tall male student from the History Department, and the fourth was a male Environmental Engineering student. While the teacher declared the names, she also projected detailed charts depicting their score breakdowns on the large board up front.

Qin Juran noticed that each of the students had their own unique fields of expertise, and all the chosen students not only had stellar scores but also seemed to complement each other’s skills very well. After the fourth member was announced, the teacher presenting suddenly paused.

The atmosphere in the room immediately tensed. Qin Juran resolutely raised her head to meet the eyes of the other female student whose name had not been called.

The other student peered back at her. Suddenly, Qin Juran noticed that the coat the student was wearing was very similar to a coat that Ruan Nan owned; to be precise, it was the same classic LV monogrammed coat.

It seemed that she was trying to make some statement, but the look in her eyes remained alienated and aloof.

Qin Juran broke away from the stare, instead turning towards the screen and calmly awaited the final results.

“The first-place in the context of this year’s exams as well as a comprehensive combination of the previous years’ exams is –“

“Once again, the Finance Department’s Qin Juran.”

An applause erupted around them, and Qin Juran unwittingly let out a breath.  However, once the detailed analysis charts of her scores clicked onto the large screen up front, Qin Juran finally realized why Secretary Yan had such a sour expression.

Basically, all of the scores in the subjects that the original owner excelled at before, asides from Finance, took a discernible plummet, especially for the subjects of Fine Arts and Music Theory. Qin Juran missed a number of questions in this exam.

Although her Humanities score improved a decent amount.

The Business Incubation Center teacher who was presenting the data in front continued: “Finance Department student Qin Juran, although you’ve maintained the top scores in overall performance, there is a deviation in the fields that you excelled at between the last years and this year. We are not sure of why there is such a large difference in the span of one year.”

“You must understand that the most important aspect of a ‘team player’ is compatibility.  Previously, the selection of the members had been modeled around your own expertise, and so the students prepared accordingly this year. However, now that this strange circumstance has arisen, it poses a challenge for the entire team.”

The sentiment behind her words was obvious, and Qin Juran understood it well. If they continued with her as the team leader, then the fields that she excelled at previously would now be a weak spot for the team and could prove to be a fatal weakness in the final round of the competition.

However, her comprehensive scores and overall ranking were still the first place. If she was to be replaced, then the overall strength of the team would decline.

The atmosphere in the conference room turned rather solemn. After a while, the teacher adjusted her glasses and tried to mediate, “This way, Qin Juran, you also wouldn’t be too pressured. Considering the current situation, we’ve come up with a potential solution. This student –”

She gestured towards the other female student from before: “This is Chi Ying from the Arts Department, she’s also the top third-year student in her school, just like you. She’s very outstanding and excels at art.”

As of now, we’ve been thinking that you two could both participate in the following training together, and in the provincial round of the competition, I will try to work with the directors to grant us an additional spot so that you both can participate. At that time, the results of the provincial competition will determine who gets the final position. If Qin Juran is not up to the task, then I’m sorry Secretary Yan, but we will have to pass on your department this year.”

Secretary Yan forced a smile and nodded in agreement, while the teacher glanced towards Qin Juran. Her fingers drummed upon the table, evaluating the feasibility of this solution. It was indeed the best way to proceed.

For both Chi Ying and her, their individual efforts represented the honor of their entire departments, which was a large responsibility.

Qin Juran nodded, agreeing to the terms in the name of the Finance department. Meanwhile, Chi Ying didn’t seem to expect this kind of outcome from today’s meeting, but she also nodded solemnly.

Once the meeting concluded, Qin Juran picked up her own exam papers, running into the counselor just as she walked out. The old man raised his hand in a “high-five,” smiling as he spoke: “Congratulations for making it to the provincial round, still as number one.”

Qin Juran met his open palm with her hand, the tautness of her entire body immediately relaxing. She smiled but was unable to hide some of her helplessness: “Professor, my performance wasn’t as good as last year, you still think that’s a good thing?”

The counselor’s whiskers twitched: “Why, of course! The question bank changes year by year, and people also experience fluctuations as well. Who says that just because someone qualified last year, they could also qualify this year? Before, when Secretary Yan made an agreement with the university so that you could bypass the qualification exams, I didn’t agree; for our Finance Department’s Qin Juran, no matter what place you earn, you will earn it of your own accord. Your determination to participate in this year’s competition already speaks for itself.”

The old counselor’s eyes brimmed with pride, without an ounce of shrewdness. Ever since transmigrating to this world, Qin Juran felt that she could always be uplifted by the people closest to her. Her parents were two such people, as well as the school counselors she was closest to, and Ah-Ruan of course; even Huang Ying was gradually becoming better. No matter if she didn’t have the same opportunities or material belongings, the people at her side provided the warmest comfort.

Qin Juran curled her lips into a smile, nodding fervently to show that she would continue to give it her best shot.

“That’s right, Juran, I heard that you found an MCN company to intern at? I didn’t realize that you were interested in that field before.”

Qin Juran nodded: “Before, I didn’t pay attention to much else, but I recently discovered that the News and Media industry is very fresh and has been on a rising trend.”

“So you want to work in a related company as an intern?”

Qin Juran held out her phone to show the counselor the post that she’d previously made. After the old counselor read the content, he agreed that it indeed had a lot of potential and told her that there were some third-year journalism students who might also be interested in the same area and that he’d be happy to give her their contact information. It might be a good idea for them to form a team if they wanted to start a business together.

Qin Juran became invigorated as she listened. If university students tried to start a business together as a team, not only could they perform a wider range of duties and build trust amongst themselves, but it would also make it easier to garner financial support and investments. Qin Juran quickly noted the contact information, requested them on WeChat, then thanked the counselor and left.

When she passed the doorway, she saw that Chi Ying had just emerged from the first-floor restroom. The two’s eyes met, but Qin Juran merely turned and walked away, not wanting to feign courteousness.

“Qin Juran.” Chi Ying called from behind her.

Perhaps because she was an art student, there was something arrogant about the way Chi Ying carried herself, although she had a nice appearance and figure. Qin Juran casually assessed her and replied, “What is it?”

“You know why they pushed off the result announcement until Wednesday, even though they originally said Monday?” Chi Ying got right to the point.

Qin Juran cocked her head, indicating for her to continue.

“It was already supposed to be decided. By Tuesday, it was already decided that I was chosen; you also saw it – my scores were just as good as yours, and my domain of expertise is not necessarily your strength anymore.”

“So?”

“Do you still think that the reason they’re allowing you to participate in the provincial competition is because of your scores?”

Without waiting for Qin Juran’s reply, she laughed demeaningly: “It’s only because you’re pretty. Because the final round is broadcasted on live television, your appearance will become the focus of attention. That’s always been the reason why the Finance department has always touted you as the captain, Qin Juran, just because you’re pretty.”

Qin Juran nodded simply: “Thank you, but I already have a girlfriend.”

“……”

“Qin Juran!” Chi Ying’s voice was heightened by a few decibels. “If you have any sense of honor and pride, then you should think of forfeiting as soon as possible. I’ve never been second to anyone in my left, and I refuse to be a background prop to anyone else, especially when I’ve worked so hard thus far.”

Just then, a professor walked by, and Qin Juran witnessed Chi Ying’s face morph into a pleasant expression for a second, then right back to her scowl. She didn’t have the energy to argue with her. Qin Juran jutted her chin out in Chi Ying’s direction, her eyes filled with scorn that seemed to suggest that the other girl wasn’t even worth her time: “That’s because you’ve never met me before.”

Qin Juran took two steps forward, then turned back. There was no one else in the corridor, and her face was obscured in the shadows where the sunlight from the windows didn’t reach. Qin Juran stood steadily before Chi Ying:

“Neither of us knows anything about the new question bank for the provincial competition nor the level of our opponents, so there’s no way of determining which of us is more suitable for the final round. I will go all out with my own effort, and you better not play any dirty tricks either. Or else—”

Chi Ying’s eyes flickered with a hint of fear, but she continued dauntlessly: “Or else what, what are you going to do to me?”

Qin Juran didn’t say another word. She merely sneered and gave her a forbidding warning look, then turned to walk away.