“Books.”
Han Shen paused. “What did you say?”
“I learned from books,” Jiang Fuyue replied calmly, “and then adapted it based on real-life scenarios.”
Han Shen: “……”
Han Ke: “……”
Jiang Fuyue asked, “Is there a problem?”
“N-no.”
Just then, a phone rang.
“Third Brother, answer your phone!”
“Huh? Oh!” Han Heng snapped back to his senses, grabbed the phone from the sofa. “Hello… What?! It blew up?! What do you mean—where would I get a daughter?! Why the h*ll would I have a secret marriage and not tell you, my agent?!”
“Handle it quickly, this is all just rumors! Forget it, I’ll clarify it myself…”
After the call ended, Han Heng nervously opened Weibo.
Han Shen: “What’s wrong?”
Han Heng: “Nothing, nothing, I’ll take care of it right now!”
Han Ke silently handed his phone to the eldest brother. Han Shen took one glance and instantly erupted: “Third! What’s wrong with your brain?! How could you post that?! Delete it, now!”
How could a young girl’s bedroom be casually posted online like that?
Completely reckless!
Han Heng knew he was in the wrong. “I’ll delete it right now, right now…”
After deleting the photo post, he sent out a brief clarification:
“I don’t have a daughter—just an adorable little niece. The room was prepared for her, thanks.”
And then—he trended again.
Han Heng: “…”
What can I say? I’m just too popular.
“It’s getting late. Yueyue, head upstairs and get some rest.”
“Okay.”
After Jiang Fuyue went upstairs, Han Shen began cleaning up the Go board.
His gaze swept across each stone, replaying Jiang Fuyue’s every move in his mind.
Han Ke leaned against the bar counter, arms crossed. “Big Brother, did you notice?”
“Notice what?”
“That our Yueyue’s a genius.”
Han Heng was busy messaging his agent, telling them to control the online narrative and stop any deep-dive gossip about “who his niece really is.”
Hearing this, he rolled his eyes. “As if you had to say it? If Yueyue weren’t a genius, how could she sweep gold medals, score perfect marks every time, and qualify for the CMO as the top scorer in the league?”
Han Ke was stunned. “She’s that amazing?”
“You didn’t know?!” Han Heng was exasperated. He tapped around on his phone, then handed it over. “See for yourself!”
Han Ke skimmed the info at lightning speed.
“Tsk, Yueyue even has her own Weibo fan club?”
Han Heng: “Not just that! There’s a fan group, SuperTopic, and her own tieba forum.”
Han Ke rubbed his nose.
Truth be told, until recently, he hadn’t paid much attention to this niece.
He only knew that their sister had been found, was already married, and had two kids.
“I’m suddenly curious about Yueyue’s IQ.”
Han Heng: “Definitely higher than yours.”
Han Shen finished packing away the chess pieces and said meaningfully, “Yueyue’s genius isn’t just her IQ.”
Then he went upstairs.
Han Heng didn’t quite understand. He asked the second brother, “What does that mean?”
Han Ke recalled how she had calmly grabbed the Rottweiler’s head with one hand earlier. “Yeah, definitely more than just IQ.”
Han Heng: “?”
D*mn. That’s just bullying.
…
The sound of running water stopped. Jiang Fuyue stepped out of the bathroom in her pajamas. As the door opened, a cloud of white steam billowed out.
She dried her hair and was about to turn off the lights when a soft rustling, scraping sound came from the direction of the door.
She walked over and opened it—only for a black shadow to dart inside.
“Wuuu…”
The Rottweiler had entered but didn’t run around wildly. Instead, it lay down obediently on the pink carpet, ears drooping, eyes darting around.
Jiang Fuyue glanced outside—nothing in the corridor. No sign of the dog’s owner.
She shrugged, shut the door, and—
Started petting the dog.
“Wuuu… wuuu…”
Little Mang rolled around wildly on the floor: More pets! More pets!
Jiang Fuyue squatted in front of it, first rubbing its head, then its belly, slapping its legs, and finally testing the squishiness of its butt.
So much meat…
“You snuck in here?”
“Wuuu…”
“Aren’t you scared your owner will find out and smack your head in?”
“Wuuu—” As if!
Jiang Fuyue quite liked the dog.
Its ears were thick and upright, fur sleek, its back arched just right—a purebred, clearly.
Most importantly, it knew who could be messed with and who absolutely couldn’t.
The only downside: the owner was kind of annoying.
“Go fetch me that towel.”
Little Mang immediately stood up, tilted its head, then trotted off in the indicated direction, tail wagging.
“Good dog.” Jiang Fuyue patted its head.
The tail wagged even harder.
“Wuuu…”
It flopped over and showed its fluffy belly again—clearly asking for belly rubs.
Jiang Fuyue found this dog hilarious and gave it a couple more pets, light but satisfying.
“Wuuu…”
Suddenly, her phone rang. She walked over and picked it up.
Caller ID: Xie Dingyuan?
“Hello?” she answered.
“Were you asleep?”
“Not yet. Did you need something?” Jiang Fuyue sat down by the bed.
“I just wanted to talk…”
Feeling ignored, Little Mang saw its chance and pounced, placing one paw on her lap.
Startled, Jiang Fuyue jerked slightly.
The dog quickly pulled its paw back, took two steps back, lowered its head—like a child who had done something wrong.
So pitiful.
Xie Dingyuan: “What’s wrong?!”
“Nothing. A little dog came into my room.” As she spoke, she beckoned the dog over.
Little Mang happily trotted forward, eager and wagging.
Jiang Fuyue patted its head, and it leaned in close, prompting a soft laugh from her.
On the other end, Xie Dingyuan’s heart swayed. “That happy, huh?”
“It’s pretty well-behaved.”
“You like dogs?”
“Only obedient ones.”
Xie Dingyuan went silent, seemingly deep in thought.
Just then, someone knocked on the door. “Jiang Fuyue—Little Mang’s in your room, isn’t he?!”
Even through a door and a long hallway, Han Ting’s voice came through loud and clear—straight into the phone, landing squarely in Xie Dingyuan’s ears.
Jiang Fuyue said a quick goodbye and hung up in a rush.
Xie Dingyuan, still holding the phone, frowned—his brows visibly tightening.
Unless he was mistaken, that voice belonged to a man?
He came to Jiang Fuyue’s room just to find the dog?
His mood instantly sank.
…
Back at the door, Jiang Fuyue opened it, and Han Ting barged in. As expected, he spotted his dumb dog.
“Little Mang! Who said you could come upstairs?! Get back to your kennel!”
The dog didn’t move. It sat near the bed wagging its tail… at Jiang Fuyue.
Han Ting’s head nearly exploded.
Since the dog wouldn’t come, he had to go get it.
He grabbed the thick scruff on the back of its neck: “You wanna run off, huh?! Not listen, huh?! Just wait till I deal with you!”
“Woof—!”
“Still got an attitude? No snacks for the next two months! Extra treats? Cancelled!”
Scolding the whole way, the boy left with the dog.
After they left, Jiang Fuyue washed her hands and lay down to sleep.
She didn’t even think about calling Xie Dingyuan back.
Meanwhile, on the other end, the man waited almost half an hour. When she didn’t return the call, he sighed quietly…
Forget it. I’ll call instead.
Then—
“Sorry, the number you have dialed is powered off…”
Xie Dingyuan: “…”
As humble as I am…
…
Jiang Fuyue had a great night’s sleep and woke naturally at 8 a.m.
After breakfast, Han Shen drove her to the hotel.
The CMO results would be announced that morning.
Han Shen: “I’ll pick you up afterward?”
“Uncle, I’d like to stay at the hotel today.”
He assumed she wanted to be with her teachers and classmates and nodded. “Alright, then I’ll come get you tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
From the end of CMO to the start of national team training, there were three days in between. Jiang Fuyue had agreed to stay at the Han household during that time.
Shi Qingzhi wasn’t thrilled.
“Why should she spend time with Han Qishan? Oh, he’s the biological grandfather? Well, I’m her biological grandmother!”
Qin Yuancheng soothed her: “If you want, she can stay with us anytime. No need to fight over these few days. Once she’s in university in the capital, you’ll have plenty of chances.”
The old lady pouted. “But I want her now…”
“Fine, I’ll call Ah Shen and tell him to send Yueyue over.”
“Forget it… let her keep the old man company. Don’t put Little Ru in a tough spot…”
After all, blood ties can’t be denied.
Qin Yuancheng chuckled, “You say that, but you’ve got a soft heart.”
“I call it being magnanimous.”
…
11:00 a.m., Academic Hall at K University.
Same location as the opening ceremony. Today was the closing ceremony.
But before that came the most important moment—
Score announcements!
Two days of exams, six problems, 21 points each, total of 126.
Awards were divided into first, second, and third prizes.
The top 30 students by score would enter national training, and from those, six would be selected for the IMO.
Chen Cheng was wringing his hands.
Tan Jiaxu: “Nervous?”
Chen Cheng glanced at him. “Duh. Aren’t you?”
Tan Jiaxu tightened his lips, didn’t answer—but his heart was pounding like mad.
Of course I’m nervous!
…Well, some people weren’t.
He glanced at Jiang Fuyue seated ahead of him—scrolling Weibo calmly.
People really shouldn’t be compared… it’s depressing.
Jiang Fuyue was reading yesterday’s “I-have-a-daughter” Weibo mess caused by Han Heng.
Though he’d clarified the misunderstanding, gossip accounts insisted he was secretly married with a child. They even had “evidence,” convincing enough that even Jiang Fuyue nearly believed it.
“Sister Yue—” Chen Cheng called her.
She turned. “What?”
“Where’s Teacher Xu?”
“Probably getting the score sheets.”
CMO used partial score announcements: only the top 30 would be shown on the big screen; individual scores would be handed to the team leaders to relay to students.
Suddenly—
“He’s here! The teacher’s back!”
Someone shouted, and all eyes turned to the door.
Sure enough, a group of team leaders returned, each holding an A4 sheet.
No doubt—those were the results.
Chen Cheng swallowed hard. His hands fidgeted even more.
Tan Jiaxu tried to act composed, but was secretly wiping his palms.
By contrast, Ling Xuan was calmer, though his eyes kept drifting toward Xu Jing.
As for Jiang Fuyue…
She only glanced up once before looking back at her phone—because a WeChat message had come in.
Even when Xu Jing walked up to her with the score sheet, she didn’t look up.
Xu Jing: “…Ahem!”
Why do I feel so ignored?
Luckily, Chen Cheng and Tan Jiaxu were both staring at him with bated breath—restoring his dignity.
“Teacher Xu, h-how did we do?”
“Yeah, how many points did we get?”
Xu Jing put on a serious face. “You guys performed…”
He paused.
Both their hearts tensed. That tone… doesn’t sound good…
“…surprisingly well! Hehe.”
Chen Cheng exhaled hard.
Tan Jiaxu released his grip—his pants already creased from how tightly he’d clutched them.
Xu Jing was clearly enjoying the moment.
Jiang Fuyue curled her lips. Troll.
Finally, the score sheet was laid out.
Jiang Fuyue, 126, Full Marks, First Place!
Ling Xuan, 124, Second Place.
Chen Cheng and Tan Jiaxu, 121 each, tied for Fifth.
That meant: 4 of the top 5 were from Linhuai!
Best results in their school’s Olympiad history—and first time ever with a perfect score winner!
Though Xu Jing was composed now, when he first received the scores, his hands had been trembling.
Jiang Fuyue and Ling Xuan doing well was expected.
But Chen Cheng and Tan Jiaxu scoring that high?
Totally surprising!
Xu Jing felt like a hardworking farmer who just harvested way beyond expectations.
How could he not be excited?
How could he not be overjoyed?
From the conference room to the lecture hall, he practically floated the whole way.
Fan Shiguang paced over. “Ahem! Old Xu, how’d it go?”
“What do you mean, how’d it go?”
“The results—what are you playing dumb for?”Fan Shiguang’s eyes fixed on him, practically wanting to snatch the report card from Xu Jing’s hand.
“…Not bad. So-so.”
Fan Shiguang tutted lightly. Knowing Xu Jing’s old ways, if his student had done well he’d already be bragging nonstop—why would he have to come ask? So—most likely they’d bombed.
Fan Shiguang couldn’t help showing sympathy; he patted Xu Jing’s shoulder and comforted him, “It’s not a big deal. If this year’s bad, there’s always next year. As they say, setbacks make you stronger—maybe next year your student will break the top five? Anything’s possible!”
Xu Jing looked at him and said nothing.
Fan Shiguang spoke with mock solemnity, “I know you’re hurting now—if you want to cry, cry. My shoulder’s here for you.”
Xu Jing still stared silently.
“You look ridiculous, all sad and foolish. I totally get it—after all, you’ve got a student who got first in the joint exam, with a perfect score. The saying goes: the higher the hopes, the greater the disappointment. Wait until next year…”
“No need.” Xu Jing cut him off.
“Eh?”
“No need to wait until next year.”
“W-what do you mean?”
“I mean my students made the top five this year.”
Fan Shiguang froze, then recovered and gave an awkward laugh. “See, you’re talking in your sleep.”
Xu Jing smiled faintly. “Do I look like I haven’t woken up?”
Fan Shiguang blinked. “Really in the top five? Who? Jiang Fuyue? What score?”
“Not Jiang Fuyue…” Xu Jing shook his head.
“I knew it…”
“All of them.”
“What?”
Xu Jing: “My four students—all made the top five. As for Jiang Fuyue, she performed normally—nothing special, only 126 points.”
Only 126 points…
Only…
That’s a perfect score—how is that “only”?!
Fan Shiguang’s brain short-circuited; he stood there dumbstruck.
After a long moment he snapped back, “You—you—say that again! How many in the top five? Who got 126?!”
Xu Jing shoved the report card into his hand. “Here—black and white. Look for yourself.”
Fan Shiguang shakily opened it. Half a minute later he looked up, stunned—
“Old Xu, you didn’t just Photosh—make up a report card to fool me, did you?”
Four students, all top five, and one perfect-score first place!
F*ck.
My eyes are blinded.
Just then, the competition committee director Zang Xianyong went onstage and, under everyone’s watchful gaze, announced the selection list for the national training team—
“From highest to lowest scores: Jiang Fuyue, Ling Xuan…”
Each time he read a name, that student’s name, score and ranking appeared on the multimedia wall behind him.
So when he said “Jiang Fuyue,” a huge “126 points” and “No. 1” popped up.
Then—
The audience exploded!
“Holy sh*t! Sister Yue got a perfect score again!”
“Expected, but I’m still shocked!”
“One question: is a perfect score as common as cabbage?”
“For Sister Yue it’s like ordinary cabbage; for us it’s like premium cabbage. Both are cabbage, but…you get it.”
“Oh my nine-tailed fox granny! Why must cabbage bully cabbage?”
“What now? I feel like Sister Yue is going to slay IMO again this year.”
“Ah! My spicy strips, my bet wasn’t wasted!”
“Waa…why do I suddenly want to cry—when it’s not even me who got the perfect first place.”
“I want to cry too. Looking at Sister Yue is like looking at the person I most want to become.”
“…”
Fang Liuliu sat in the audience, eyes wide, staring at the huge screen as if seeing a ghost.
The three characters “Jiang Fuyue” felt like a needle, suddenly stabbing her eyeball.
It hurt so much she wanted to cry!
The surrounding awed and praising chatter fell on her ears like salt on a wound.
What’s wrong with everyone?
Why are they all singing her praises?
How can a little cheap girl kept by rich men get a perfect score? Get first?
For people like them who studied hard and took tests seriously, how could they stand it? Am I, Fang Liuliu, worse than some morally rotten provincial slut?
“No—”
She wouldn’t allow it!
A figure rushed onto the stage. Before the stunned crowd could react, she snatched the microphone from Zang Xianyong.
Facing everyone below, she enunciated each word: “I demand to publicly expose Jiang Fuyue! She doesn’t deserve to be in the CMO, much less the national training team!”
Boom—
The hall erupted.
“Who is that?”
“Is she crazy?”
“What is she on about?”
“I know her! Fang Liuliu—local candidate from the capital. Rumor has it her family is insanely rich; they stay in suites at hotels! She was supposed to speak at the opening ceremony, but Director Zang picked Sister Yue, so she was bumped!”
“I glanced at her scores—only 42 points, second-to-last.”
“No way? She failed? How can someone like that be chosen to speak?”
“How dare she accuse Sister Yue?”
“Get down from there—”
“Yeah! Get down!”
The crowd shouted in unison.
Fang Liuliu stood on stage, furious that everyone blindly sided with Jiang Fuyue without asking questions. Her face twisted with hatred as she snarled—
“Idiot! You lot are fools! You’ve all been completely deceived by Jiang Fuyue! Do you know how disgusting she is? She looks so pure on the surface, but behind the scenes she leeches off rich men, hooks up with suckers, and plays the mistress!”
“Nonsense!” someone in the audience stood up angrily.
“Don’t be so hasty,” Fang Liuliu sneered. “I’ll show you the evidence with your own eyes—”
