Chapter 170: A Match Made in Heaven
The students didn’t really react to the seating change.
After all, it had been a while since they had last switched seats.
Su Yuqing, however, was quick to notice the new seating chart.
She hadn’t expected the teacher to make her and Chen Mo deskmates.
This left her a bit surprised.
Normally, teachers tried to keep boys and girls who had crushes on each other from sitting too close, lest they get distracted by romance and let their studies suffer.
And since she and Chen Mo were living together, they should have been prime candidates for being kept apart.
She never thought the teacher would completely ignore that and even put them together.
Su Yuqing was naturally surprised.
But beneath the surprise, she felt a flicker of joy.
Being Zhao Yuanyuan’s deskmate had been nice, but the thought of being Chen Mo’s made her heart instantly pound.
Soon, everyone had settled into their new spots.
Su Yuqing was about the same height as Huang Mao, so she was moved to be Chen Mo’s deskmate.
Huang Mao, in turn, was moved next to Zhao Yuanyuan.
They had swapped sides, though.
Before, Chen Mo had the window seat, but now he was on the aisle side, and Su Yuqing had the window.
It was the same for Zhao Yuanyuan and Huang Mao.
Su Yuqing’s original seat had been by the window, so when Huang Mao took the spot, he ended up on the aisle, with Zhao Yuanyuan by the window.
The four of them, who had been two pairs of deskmates, were now sitting in front of and behind one another.
This was mainly because Huang Mao had studied hard enough to nearly catch up to Zhao Yuanyuan’s grades. Since their scores were now similar, they had the chance to be seated together.
Lin Yu’an’s grades had also risen a bit from studying with Chen Mo, so he was moved from the back to the middle. Now, he was sitting right behind Chen Mo.
He was pretty thrilled about it.
Once everyone had moved, the homeroom teacher called Chen Mo out of the classroom with a smile.
"I’ve fulfilled our bet, but I’ll be keeping an eye on you. If your grades suddenly slip, don’t blame me for changing the seats again," He Xiaoyun said, feigning a threat.
Chen Mo smiled and replied, "Don’t worry. I’ll be sure to keep my grades up."
"That’s good. When your test scores came out, none of the other teachers could believe it. But you placed first in the entire grade, and there was no one you could have cheated off of. So, as incredible as it was, they had to accept it. I have high hopes for you. You didn’t use any dirty tricks, did you?" He Xiaoyun looked at Chen Mo and asked point-blank.
"Of course not. If I really had some dirty trick, I’d have to know the test content in advance, right?" Chen Mo said with a casual smile.
"That makes sense. I believe you earned it purely through your own hard work and ability."
As she spoke, He Xiaoyun seemed to recall something. "Your gym teacher is probably going to call this a huge waste. It’s not that she wanted you to do poorly, but she feels your physique is perfect for becoming a star athlete. Anyway, you need to think carefully about how you want to plan your future. We teachers can’t do that for you."
"Your grades are excellent now, and you have great physical conditioning and athletic talent. At a time when others struggle just to pick one path, you already have your choice of several promising ones."
"You must think clearly about your future plans. This will affect the course of your entire life!"
"I understand. Thank you," Chen Mo said, nodding respectfully.
He genuinely respected He Xiaoyun.
"Keep studying hard, and don’t let dating get in the way of your schoolwork."
"I’m not even dating anyone," Chen Mo replied with a helpless smile.
He Xiaoyun rolled her eyes at him, her expression screaming, ’Do you really expect me to believe that?’
’Living together but not dating? You’re practically family at this point.’
"Oh, right. Yuqing, Huang Mao, Yuanyuan, and Yu’an’s midterm scores also went up. It was mostly just their math scores, though, so their overall rankings haven’t improved that much. I heard you were helping them review math during evening self-study last week. I imagine you had a hand in their improvement, didn’t you?" He Xiaoyun said, smiling at Chen Mo.
"They’re the ones working hard and willing to learn," Chen Mo said with a modest smile and a nod.
"Very good. When you all hang out, your friendships improve, and your grades improve. Mutual progress is good for everyone. You need to keep it up. If you could tutor them until their grades are as high as yours, I’d be laughing in my sleep."
"If I were that good, I could apply to be a teacher," Chen Mo said with a laugh.
"That’s not necessarily true. The role of a teacher can naturally create a bit of a wall between us and the students. Many of them start to doze off the moment a teacher begins a lesson, but they’ll listen much more carefully to guidance from a good friend."
"So your role right now is actually more effective."
"Alright, head back now. Just remember, make sure your own grades don’t slip before you think about helping other students improve theirs."
He Xiaoyun patted Chen Mo’s shoulder with a pleased smile.
"Yeah."
Chen Mo nodded and returned to the classroom.
He Xiaoyun glanced back at the students in the classroom, a smile lingering on her face as she turned and walked away.
It was clear she was in a very good mood.
As soon as Chen Mo got back, he was ambushed by Huang Mao and Zhao Yuanyuan.
"Whoa, Brother Mo, how did your grades get so insane?!"
"Yeah, Old Mo! How’d you get so damn good?!"
"Relax, relax. This isn’t even my final form. Just wait until I bring up my Literature grade. I’ll be even more powerful," Chen Mo said, striking a comically smug pose.
"Aww, Brother Mo, you’re my idol from now on! You have to help me get my grades that high too," Zhao Yuanyuan said admiringly.
"With your mediocre grades? You might reach that level if you repeat your senior year," Huang Mao shot back, his bickering with Zhao Yuanyuan a force of habit.
However, he had clearly forgotten that they were no longer sitting one in front of the other.
Zhao Yuanyuan was now close enough to reach his side.
"AIIEE!"
Feeling a sharp pinch on his side, Huang Mao immediately begged for mercy. "I’m sorry, I’m sorry! You can totally get into the top ten, no problem!"
"That’s more like it," Zhao Yuanyuan said with a satisfied expression, letting go.
"Starting with the domestic abuse already? Huang Mao, looks like you’re destined to be henpecked," Chen Mo laughed.
"What domestic abuse!"
"Don’t be ridiculous!"
"Why are you copying me!"
"No, *you’re* copying *me*!"
"Hmph!"
The five retorts, fired off in rapid succession, made the nearby students burst out laughing.
Realizing how they must have looked, the two of them instantly turned away from each other.
They both put on stern expressions, but who knew what they were really thinking.
"A true match made in heaven," Chen Mo teased again.
But afraid of speaking in unison again, this time the two of them only glanced at Chen Mo without retorting.