Chapter 17 : The Essay Prompt Given by Gu Wancheng
The evening self-study before the monthly exam was the only session that could truly be called “self-study.”
Guan Ren, like most people, obediently did his final round of revision.
Although he had studied diligently for a week, much of his time had been spent making up for the foundational content from his first year of high school. When it came to the second-year monthly exam, there was still a lot to memorize and review—no room for complacency.
After evening self-study ended, Guan Ren went home as usual. He didn’t cram any further, so as not to overwork his brain.
First things first, he turned on his computer to check the performance of Supreme Confucianism and Taoism.
“Only gained 200 bookmarks…”
He frowned, clearly dissatisfied.
Yet he seemed to forget this was the first day a newcomer released a new book.
Gaining 200 bookmarks amid the vast sea of novels was already something many newbies could only dream of.
Then he opened the comment section.
Several comments had already come in.
【Book Friend 201139402937: Author-sama, your writing is amazing, the story is so good…】
Guan Ren’s eyes lit up with joy as he read on, only to see there was more.
【…But even good wine fears a deep alley. To increase your exposure and gain more bookmarks, please contact qq*****…】
Followed by a few .jpg rose emojis.
“……”
So this kind of marketing had existed this early on…
Thankfully, that was the only spam. The rest of the comments were genuine.
【Xiangzi, the Pile-Dropper: Very original. Keep writing!】
【WantsToCompeteButHerMatchIsFull: I predict this author has the makings of a platinum writer.】
【Milk White no Yukiko: First time seeing a setting where you can kill with poetry. Though it’s not fleshed out yet, looking forward to more.】
【Believe in Brother Chun, Gain Eternal Life: Already voted! Hurry and write more. Once it’s up for sale, I’ll send tips! Is a Gold-level supporter enough?】
【A Green-haired Turtle: Very interesting. Please don’t write a harem. If it’s a harem, I’m out.】
……
Overall, the feedback was positive.
But with just a few comments, it didn’t mean much.
“No writing tonight. I’ve got drafts saved anyway. Better rest up for tomorrow’s exam…”
Guan Ren stretched, permanently blocked 【A Green-haired Turtle】, and drifted off to sleep, satisfied.
---
The next day, the monthly exam began.
First subject: Chinese.
Guan Ren arrived at Class 6’s exam room. Glancing around, he saw very few students from Class 7.
He was the “phoenix feather.”
Luo Xiaobei was the “unicorn horn.”
And the phoenix feather’s seat happened to be right beside the unicorn horn’s.
“Hey.”
Just as Guan Ren sat down, Luo Xiaobei raised her pale little shoe and stomped lightly on the top of his foot.
“How far from the bottom are you aiming this time?”
“Hmm…”
Guan Ren did a mental calculation.
“Not aiming too high—maybe fiftieth place.”
“Tch…”
In their small county town, each class had a lot of students. Class 7 had seventy in total. Being fiftieth from the bottom meant he’d be ranked twentieth from the top. Luo Xiaobei had no idea where his confidence came from.
Still, thinking about how he’d been performing in class lately, she grew a bit suspicious.
“Little Guan, you seem pretty confident this time?”
“Just average.”
As he loaded a lead refill into his 2B pencil, Guan Ren casually glanced at Luo Xiaobei’s chest.
“Bei, it seems like you don’t have even one bamboo in your chest.”
“I… I’m still growing! I’ll get there sooner or later!”
Luo Xiaobei puffed out her small chest, cheeks pink with indignation.
There were plenty of late-blooming girls. That delicate deskmate of hers wasn’t much different either.
It’s just that…
Just that…
Luo Xiaobei suddenly pictured Ms. Gu Wancheng.
Most boys probably wouldn’t notice, but many of the girls knew—what Ms. Gu kept sealed under her buttoned-up shirt were definitely a pair of heavy hitters!
Which meant that Gu Youli might very well inherit those two big advantages from her teacher.
The future looked bright!
“Guan Ren, you should marry a sow someday.”
“A sow?”
“Yeah. A sow has eight boobs. You could be smothered by them. Wouldn’t that be nice?”
“……”
Guan Ren’s mouth twitched.
What savage, beastly words…
Luo Xiaobei was only this unfiltered in front of him because she had the special status of a childhood friend…
“Put away everything that shouldn’t be on the desk. Only pens and paper are allowed.”
From the podium, a PE teacher in charge of proctoring gave a loud reminder. Immediately afterward, the test papers began to be passed back, row by row.
……
In Chinese exams, Guan Ren always started with the recitation section.
Especially since much of this content had been crammed at the last minute—he was terrified of forgetting it at any moment, so he hurriedly filled in the blanks while it was still fresh in his mind.
【A journey from the Purple Terrace through the Northern Desert, ______】
【______—wretched, I set aside my cloudy wine cup】
“These were all just learned recently… come to think of it, wasn’t Gu Wancheng the teacher who made the exam this time?”
It suddenly occurred to Guan Ren that Gu Wancheng had always been the head of the high school Chinese department. It was quite likely she’d set the monthly exam questions.
Of course, since every class followed a similar teaching schedule, two fill-in-the-blank questions weren’t enough to confirm she was the one.
That was—until an hour later, when Guan Ren saw the essay prompt on the Chinese exam.
【Read the following material and write an argumentative essay accordingly.】
【In the year 200X, a pair of male and female students in a certain area drowned together. It was later discovered that the boy had given the girl a love note. Their early romance was discovered by teachers and parents. Lacking maturity, they chose to commit suicide together, resulting in tragedy.】
【Please write an argumentative essay based on the material. Choose a clear stance, determine your thesis, no plagiarism or template writing allowed, do not reveal personal information. Minimum 800 words.】
“……”
When Guan Ren saw the essay prompt, his eyebrows twitched three times in a row.
A love note…
Young romance…
Who was this aimed at?
Who was this aimed at!?
This was absolutely Gu Wancheng’s doing!
Guan Ren was filled with black lines.
“Gu Wancheng, you damn…”
……
“?”
At that very moment in another exam room, Gu Youli suddenly shivered. She reached up to touch her now slightly flushed ears.
Who’s talking about me behind my back?
She let her thoughts wander and did, in fact, think of a certain someone.
Then she lightly patted her cheeks.
Forget it, forget it…
I’m taking a test, why am I thinking about him…
She said that, but honestly, no one could blame Gu Youli for thinking of that strange deskmate at this moment.
Because she was also getting ready to write her essay.
The instant she read the prompt, she too sensed something.
……
Two people in separate exam rooms, at that very moment, had the same unspoken thought.
This essay question wasn’t just a prompt. It felt like someone was making them write a written guarantee!
……
Whatever Gu Youli made of it—
Guan Ren, for one, quietly noted this down in his mental ledger.
He’d already explained everything. It had all been a misunderstanding.
And yet they still made him write a guarantee?
He, Guan Ren, such a pure soul, harmless to man and beast. Was he really that untrustworthy?
“Fine, I’ll write it…”
Muttering to himself, Guan Ren began his essay with a flourish.
【The tender affections of youth are like blossoms on the edge of a cliff—either they bloom stubbornly, or they wither in solitude. —Renowned educator Gu Wancheng】
……
An epigraph to an essay was like dark skin to rap.
As long as you had it, you at least looked like a pro.
But Guan Ren wasn’t actually a pro.
Though he’d written novels in both his lives, he was no good at essays, and he hated writing them.
The main problem was that essay word counts cramped his style.
He’d write for a while and suddenly realize he hadn’t even gotten to the main point, but the space was already running out.
If this were a novel, it’d be fine.
One chapter had to be at least 2000 words. If he wrote extra, he could just save it, then post once he hit 2000 again—so satisfying.
But in an essay? Instant point deductions.
Still, this time, thanks to being provoked by Gu Wancheng, Guan Ren entered a mini rage mode and, for once, seriously wrote out a full 800 words. Finishing even 20 minutes early.
……
Of course, finishing early wasn’t necessarily a sign of skill.
Take Zhang Chi and Liu Xiong, for example—when Guan Ren turned in his paper and walked out, he found them already leaning against the corridor wall, discussing whether they had enough time to sneak off to the internet cafe before lunch.
And Guan Ren had every reason to believe that those two jokers definitely didn’t finish early because they were brimming with confidence.