After Su Yang read the translated version of the test paper last night, he had a feeling that he would rank high in the midterms, but he did not expect to be in the top three.
'Are you kidding me? Isn't that a little too much? Hello, my fellow classmates, are you guys sleeping?!'
The hesitance on Chu Xia's face was obvious. After struggling within herself for a moment, she bit her lip and whispered, "Did you…cheat?"
'I knew it. It's normal for people to think that I'm cheating.'
Su Yang shook his head. "I didn't. I really studied for the test and did what I could."
Indeed, he really had done what he could.
Chu Xia nodded. It was unknown whether she believed him or not. She then said, "The bad news is that Ms. Qu wants you in her office. She has something to ask you."
'That's two pieces of bad news…'
Of course, Qu Xiaomeng wanted to see him for the test. She might even question him on the spot, and if he exposed himself, he would be in trouble.
Chu Xia said softly, "But I told her we don't have any more classes today and you might have left, so she changed the meeting to tomorrow morning."
A little pause later, she continued, "You…Hmmm, you'd better prepare for it." She walked away with her head down after bidding him goodbye.
Su Yang saw her off. He could not understand what was going on in the girl's head. Was she sad or what? Was she disappointed because she suspected him of cheating?
Strictly speaking, Su Yang really did cheat with the [0 Score 2B Pencil], but he did not feel any guilt when he did it. He had only felt excited about passing the test.
He could not sleep in peace in the past two days and Chu Xia's expression made him realize that relying on external help to pass the test might have been a mistake.
He sighed.
'What should I do now? It has already been done and Qu Xiaomeng wants to see me tomorrow. Even if she doesn't question me, the other students will suspect me when they know I got third place in class. It's only normal.
'Maybe I really have to study and boost my level of English to match my results so that I can put this matter to rest, but…how can I level up my English in a single night? I might even need to watch all the American drama series…It's Mission Impossible for my mind!'
Su Yang found himself in a great bind and he was the one responsible for it. While he was spacing out, a cold voice entered his ears, "Are you ready?"
Su Yang turned around. It was Li Runze.
He nodded and said, "Sure."
The two of them headed to the canteen and ordered two sets of lunch. Then, they sat down at the corner beside the window.
Lunch was extra quiet. Li Runze never talked during a meal and Su Yang did not have the mood to talk. Therefore, not a single word was spoken until they finished their lunch.
After the last bite, Li Runze wiped his mouth and said, "You've got a problem." He sounded affirmative.
Su Yang nodded. "I did something wrong."
"Everyone makes mistakes," said Li Runze.
Su Yang nodded.
A minute later, Li Runze looked into his eyes and said, "But you must learn to fix it and make up for your mistake."
Su Yang's hand froze with his chopstick picking up the piece of meat. He asked with his head down, "Is there any way to boost my level of English to at least Band 4 in less than 24 hours and understand all kinds of American drama series?"
Li Runze sized up Su Yangdully for a minute. He said coldly, "Dream on."
"Can dreaming help me?" Su Yang asked.
"I mean you are dreaming."
Su Yang was speechless.
"The learning of a certain academic subject is actually the process of accumulating knowledge. You have to learn step by step. As for the drama series part, it's a lot simpler since there are a lot of videos on Bilibili that explain a movie or a series in less than five minutes. You can start from there," said Li Runze.
"But…even if you start from there, you must be dreaming if you think you can finish all the drama series in less than 24 hours," Li Runze added after a little pause.
Su Yang finished his rice in silence. 'Yeah, one can only dream, but I'm not just someone else! I have the system! Everything is possible!'
With that in mind, he said, "I'm done, so I guess I'll see you next time."
He wanted to leave after lunch, but Li Runze stopped him. "Hold on. I suppose you didn't ask me out for lunch just for this, did you?"
Su Yang smacked his forehead and said, "Oh right! I almost forgot about it! I wrote an app and I want your opinion. Maybe you can give me some tips on how to improve it."
"Email me then. Remember not to encrypt it," said Li Runze.
"Okay!" Su Yang nodded. He grabbed his bag and sprinted home. Right after he stepped into the basement, he jumped into the virtual space.
He then called Deeny, Little Hus, Gru, and Sanque for a family meeting.
Their goal of the family meeting was to come up with a way to boost his level of English and remember most of the American drama series within 18 hours.
Deeny sat on the couch with her chin propped on her hand, blinking her big, googly eyes, "Can't I just tell you?"
"How do you plan to do that?" asked Su Yang.
"When your lecturer asks you questions, I'll just tell you the answer since I've got all the American drama series in my brain and I've mastered English, even the slangs and dialects," she said.
Deeny even flaunted her New York and Atlanta dialects.
Su Yang did not understand a word, but he was in awe.
Deeny was less than a month old, but she had learned this much from the internet! Would she be able to learn all the knowledge on Earth in less than a year?
Even though Su Yang was shocked at what Deeny could do, he rejected her suggestion, "You might be able to help me this time, but what about the next? What if the other classmates or lecturers ask me to answer in English and I can't come up with the answer? I don't want to live in fear and I've made the mistake once. I don't want to do it again."
A little pause later, he added, "We will keep your suggestion in view for now, and if we really can't come up with something good, we will go with your idea, Deeny."
Little Hus stuck his tongue out and breathed heavily. "In my opinion, the easiest way is to complete a Bronze Mission. You might be able to draw an English-proficiency ability."
Su Yang glanced over at the mission tab and shook his head. He had two unfinished Bronze Missions: chatting with Lin Jiali and passing the English semester test.
None of them could be completed within a short time, and even if he could, he might not be able to get an English-proficiency ability either.
Su Yang looked at Sanque and Gru who had not voiced their opinions. He skipped Gru because even if Gru had any suggestions, he could not understand him.
He looked at Sanque. "Sanque, what is your opinion?"
Sanque opened his eyes. "Oh, I…don't know."
'I'd better not put my hopes in this carrot.'
It was then that Gru spoke. It extended its twig and 'Gru-ed' ceaselessly.
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