Huang Zhigang lowered his voice as much as possible, considering many students were in self-study.
Seeing Li Yang had no intention of giving up his seat, he said helplessly, "Don't you want Wang Manqi's grades to improve?"
Li Yang replied bluntly, "No, I don't see why I should. I'm not her dad!"
The retort was crisp and direct, and this wasn't something a student should say to a teacher.
Huang Zhigang was at a loss.
He had no choice because he wasn't Li Yang's class teacher.
Soon, he left the office and came to the doorway.
He shook his head and said to Liu Dayou, "Liu, I understand your frustration now. Dealing with a student like Li Yang, it's a wonder you haven't been driven out of your mind."
"What's going on? The kid won't give up his seat?"
Huang Zhigang said, "Yes, and since I'm not his class teacher, it's hard to say anything. It looks like we'll have to trouble you again."
Liu Dayou realized that the pack of cigarettes was a bad trade.
"Then I'll call Li Yang out in a bit, and you can have your classmate go in and sit."
"Alright, thanks, Liu."
After saying this, Huang Zhigang stood at the door with Wang Manqi, occasionally glancing her way.
...
Liu Dayou entered the office and moved in closer, overhearing Jiang Banxia explaining the principles of the inequality of averages to Li Yang, who was listening intently.
He sighed inwardly.
Li Yang should have a better future, and even if he couldn't get into a top-tier university, he could still get into a first-tier or lower-end 211 university without much trouble.
But he had wasted it himself.
Trying to study in the last month? It's clearly too late.
Even improving by thirty to fifty points would just land him in a second-tier university, and class 17 didn't lack one more of these.
Li Yang wanted to study, and those basic topics could be asked of any other student without needing to trouble Jiang Banxia.
After waiting a few minutes for Jiang Banxia to finish explaining the inequality theorem, he patted Li Yang on the shoulder and said, "Come with me for a moment."
Then he left.
Li Yang frowned briefly, but soon relaxed.
Jiang Banxia, sensing this, asked, "Did I not explain it clearly just now?"
She feared that she hadn't made it clear enough for Li Yang to understand, as it was her first time.
"How could that be? Even if I didn't understand, that's my problem, not yours. You've been very considerate of my ability to comprehend."
"Then just now you..."
"It's nothing, I'll head out first. Call me if you need anything."
Li Yang picked up his revision materials and walked out of the office.
Jiang Banxia was still a bit puzzled. Why did Li Yang take his revision materials? She thought she could take a look at his work and perhaps explain it in a more digestible way later.
After all, she could tell that Li Yang hadn't really studied the courses from the second and third years of high school.
She took out her revision notes and was just beginning to read when she sensed someone approaching.
Ready to tell Li Yang to continue, she realized it wasn't him.
With a smile, Wang Manqi said, "Hi, the teacher asked me to study with you for a while. Sorry for any inconvenience."
This was Wang Manqi's first time being up close with Jiang Banxia, though she'd seen her from a distance before.
Back then, she didn't think Jiang Banxia was better than her. At least her own figure was far superior, an advantage among girls her age.
Jiang Banxia was just average.
In terms of looks, she admitted she couldn't compete. Jiang Banxia's fair skin, delicate oval face, and bright eyes were undeniably beautiful from every angle.
But looking at her today, she noticed she was much more well-endowed than she seemed, not much worse than herself.
Before, she hadn't realized because Jiang Banxia liked wearing those soft silk-cotton shirts in the summer, which created wrinkles easily.
Unlike her preference for cotton shirts that would show her front was slightly shorter than the back.
Jiang Banxia smiled back, her teeth showing, "But there's already another student here, maybe you can find another spot, and if you have questions, just come ask me."
She knew Wang Manqi.
Though she wasn't sure how they met since they hadn't interacted before.
Wang Manqi was undeterred, "You mean Li Yang? He won't be coming here anymore."
Jiang Banxia felt a pang, her brows furrowing.
Wang Manqi was stunned to see it.
Jiang Banxia had that calm, serene demeanor, but hearing Li Yang wasn't coming, she reacted so strongly?
Wang Manqi, who grew up in a mixed environment, had learned to read people early.
Jiang Banxia looked outside, unable to see clearly due to the indoor lighting.
It seemed... Li Yang really wasn't coming back.
...
"Teacher, aren't you being biased? Wang Manqi is from another class; how much she improves has nothing to do with you. If I don't pull the class down, it directly affects your performance metrics."
Li Yang, fresh out, hadn't yet spoken to Liu Dayou when he saw Wang Manqi running in, heading straight to his seat.
This damn... even a fool could see Liu Dayou wanted him to give up his seat for her.
Liu Dayou didn't bother pretending in front of the students. He said directly, "Li Yang, I'm glad you want to study. If there's anything you don't understand in the last month, you can always ask the teachers. Anyway, there won't be many classes, mostly self-study. From now on, stop taking up Jiang Banxia's time. If you don't do well, it affects the performance metrics. If Jiang Banxia doesn't do well, it affects her future. So who do you think I'm going to prioritize?"
Li Yang sighed, "Alright, alright, since you're being so honest, I won't make it difficult for you. I'll leave right away."
He didn't bother mentioning that Wang Manqi wasn't as good at math as he was; that wasn't what Liu Dayou was concerned about.
In this situation, even if a fly buzzed near Jiang Banxia, Liu Dayou would catch it to see its gender.
Walking down the campus path, he pondered whether to return to his dormitory.
For various reasons, he wasn't in the elite class dorm but in the regular one, mixed with boys from other classes.
Out of eight beds, only five were occupied, and the other four were always playing cards in the dorm.
Even when the lights were out, they'd make a hole in the top bunk's board, stick a flashlight in, and play cards through the night.
Wu Tianqi's side wasn't much better; his dad was probably still patrolling.
Walking a few dozen meters, he found a good spot under the solar street lamp.
The light was bright, and there weren't many people around campus at this time.
He found a curb, sat down, and began looking through his revision materials.
His review book was by 53; by finding similar problems, he could have Jiang Banxia explain them, a discreet and effective approach.
Of the six major math problems, he knew how to solve three; the other three gave him trouble.
The first two were understandable, as he could comprehend most of the steps. But for the last major problem, he couldn't make sense of anything beyond the word 'solution.'
And so far, he hadn't found any similar problems.
With unfamiliar tasks like these, he feared that even if he copied the answers, he'd get them wrong.