Chapter 91: Ambition
Class 3’s lunchtime was still as noisy as ever—some people were still cleaning up the spray paint, some were investigating Class 12, and at the same time—and the key point here is at the same time—Gu Qinghuan and the others were going over problems.
Different voices overlapped:
“Get another rag! Scrub this clean!”
“For this problem, first you have to separate m and x, then rearrange the inequality into…”
“Have we finished counting the students from Class 12? 5, 10, 15… still missing 3!”
“Lunch is here! Come get your lunch—today’s sweet-and-sour ribs!”
To an outsider passing by, Class 3 must have looked more like a bustling marketplace than a classroom.
The Class 3 students were well adapted to it. Someone even turned around while wiping the blackboard to ask, “Wait a second—how do you solve that equation from earlier?”
A student, head down and busy eating, answered before Qin Yue (the one explaining problems) could speak, “Minimum value is minus three times… plug it in and you’re done!”
Jiang Chuchu looked at the “marketplace” scene with a complicated expression, “Don’t you think our class is getting weirder and weirder?”
“Is it?” Gu Qinghuan reluctantly finished the last rib in her lunchbox before looking up, “I think it’s perfectly normal.”
“I don’t mean that kind of weird… I mean…” Jiang Chuchu searched for the right words, “In terms of not being affected by the environment and being able to multitask, we’re becoming more and more… exceptional.”
No matter how noisy it was, everyone could still do their own thing—those listening to the lesson weren’t bothered by the noise, and those who seemed not to be listening were working or eating while actually following along. Some even managed to solve problems in their heads just by overhearing.
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?” Gu Qinghuan replied.
Jiang Chuchu thought about it and agreed—it was a good thing—so she didn’t dwell on it.
They didn’t finish all the problems by the end of lunch, but everyone was already prepared to make up for it with a review session after school.
Meanwhile, all the students from Class 12 had been checked, and after repeated analysis, everyone felt the situation was tricky.
“This situation in Class 12 really leaves a bad taste,” Xie Xiangxue said. Because of Yan Zhengqing, she already had a poor impression of them, and now that she’d seen the gathered intel, she disliked them even more.
“On the surface, the class seems to center around Yan Zhengqing, but in reality, it’s loose, with no cohesion—just a bunch of small cliques,” Jiang Chuchu commented.
Most of the intel came from neighboring classes around Class 12, with a small portion from inside Class 12 itself—students who already knew some of Class 3’s members from before.
But those students spoke about Class 12 cautiously, reluctant to reveal too much for fear that Class 3 might do something that would get them implicated.
“With a situation like this, if we keep digging, we might actually prompt Yan Zhengqing’s group to hunt down ‘traitors’ in their own class and retaliate. If possible, I’d rather not see that happen.” Gu Qinghuan frowned.
“What a mess!” Qin Yue, who had been explaining problems all morning and now had a parched throat, was even more annoyed at hearing this.
Yu Xin handed him a bottle of cola before saying, “Let me handle it—I’ll ask my sister tonight.”
The word “sister” rolled off her tongue more smoothly than before.
“You have a sister, Class Rep?” Bao Qingsong asked curiously.
“Mm. She’s in Class 12,” Yu Xin nodded.
Bao Qingsong glanced at Class 12’s student list. “Is it this Yu Yuan?”
Yu Xin nodded again.
“Wouldn’t that cause her trouble?” Xie Xiangxue asked, thinking about Gu Qinghuan’s warning about retaliation and feeling worried.
“I’ll ask her first, then talk it over with Qinghuan and Chuchu before deciding what can be shared,” Yu Xin said.
“Alright, then it’s up to you, Class Rep,” Xie Xiangxue said, instantly reassured—if Jiang Chuchu and Gu Qinghuan were involved, things would be handled safely.
“So… are we still going to make contact?” Bao Qingsong looked regretfully at the neatly organized profile summary of Class 12’s students.
The corner of Jiang Chuchu’s mouth twitched—Class 3’s information-gathering skills were really outrageous.
“Of course we are!” Gu Qinghuan said firmly. “If nothing else, with the way Class 12 is right now, it’s only a matter of time before they cause trouble!”
“Even setting aside their internal problems, after they spray-painted us this time, if we don’t fight back, they’ll think we’re easy targets and come after us again.”
She tapped her knuckles on the desk. “Isn’t modern history lesson enough of a warning?”
At the mention of “modern history,” everyone’s expressions shifted—they all silently agreed.
Jiang Chuchu put a hand to her forehead—Gu Qinghuan was really good at rousing people.
In the end, they decided Yu Xin would ask Yu Yuan about the spray-painting incident, while everyone else would quietly gather more intel on Class 12 without drawing attention.
Then they all shifted focus back to their review session.
On the other side of campus, Chen Zelin was sitting in the office, absentmindedly working on a lesson plan.
Across from him, Class 1’s homeroom teacher, Li Guying, was scrolling through her social media feed when she saw several colleagues posting pictures of Class 3’s banner. She couldn’t help but laugh.
She waved enthusiastically over the desk partition, “Teacher Chen, your class really knows how to make a splash.”
Chen Zelin paused his pen, looking a bit helpless. “I have a feeling the whole school will know about this by the end of the day.”
“Pretty much. I’ve already seen teachers from Year 3 liking the post. Huh? Even Director Zhang liked it?” Li Guying scrolled again. “Not just liked it—he commented too.”
“What did he say?” Chen Zelin asked, curious.
“‘Learning never ends, keep up the good work!’—with an exclamation mark at the end.” Li Guying read it aloud, chuckling. “Looks like Director Zhang is very pleased.”
Then another voice in the office spoke up, sounding rather solemn, “Pride brings loss, humility brings gain. Xiao Chen, don’t let your class get too arrogant.”
Chen Zelin looked up to see Class 12’s homeroom teacher, Shen Xunzhe, watching him with concern.
Chen Zelin’s brows furrowed slightly, then relaxed. He smiled at Shen Xunzhe, “It’s fine—the kids know their limits. The banner says ‘the goal is still ahead,’ so clearly they’re ready to keep pushing forward.”
Shen Xunzhe choked on his words, muttered “That’s good, then,” and ended the conversation.
Li Guying stayed quiet. Shen Xunzhe had told her before that Chen Zelin was not doing a good job as a homeroom teacher. Since he was senior to her, and not talking about her, she didn’t refute him to his face—just brushed it off.
She also hadn’t told Chen Zelin what Shen Xunzhe said—she didn’t want to affect him.
Besides, she didn’t think Shen Xunzhe was right at all.
What’s wrong with having a high average score? The test this time was so hard, yet Class 3’s students still managed to get that average—it meant their fundamentals were solid.
With that kind of foundation, it would be much easier for them to score even higher later. If they got an easier test paper next time, wouldn’t their scores jump up dramatically?
And it wasn’t just one or two students—it was the whole class. If that’s not impressive, what is?
She didn’t know if Shen Xunzhe had said the same thing to anyone else, but if it somehow reached Chen Zelin’s ears…
She wondered if she should quietly tell him that those words had come from Shen Xunzhe.
If nothing else, he should at least be on guard.
Just as she was hesitating, her phone buzzed with a notification from her feed—it was a post from Chen Zelin.
Chen Zelin: “The next goal is still ahead!”
The post was accompanied by a picture of him working on his lesson plan.
Looked like there was no need—Li Guying smiled. Both the teacher and the students of Class 3 had plenty of ambition.
