How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 92: Progress_1

Li Qiao returned to the classroom once again, Hu Xiufang was already seated at her desk. She first explained the problem to the class monitor, then told Hu Xiufang, "I plan to exchange your materials with those of the educated youth, but I’ll have to go through Li Jinhua. Let’s swap when I get back from Beijing."

"Li Jinhua, why did you take my materials without saying a word?" Hu Xiufang was fuming; she had complained about buying materials more than once in the dormitory.

Later, Li Qiao suggested that the materials from the educated youth in their village could be exchanged.

Li Jinhua had been eavesdropping at the time, yet she held onto her materials at the critical moment.

Why are there such bad people.

Using her materials to study while preventing her from improving.

Wanting to surpass her?

"Li Qiao didn’t say she was going to exchange materials with anyone," said Li Jinhua with an innocent look.

Li Qiao: "..." So it became her fault?

Hu Xiufang clenched her fists, "We discussed it in the dormitory before, you were there too, weren’t you?"

Li Jinhua blinked, "Really? I didn’t pay attention to what you guys were saying. Just take it, I’ll just not look at it." After all, she had already looked through it.

Hu Xiufang was furious, "However you took it, you better bring it back to me the same way!"

Li Jinhua closed the materials and handed them over to Hu Xiufang, "What are you yelling for? If you want to blame someone, blame Li Qiao for not making it clear."

Grinding her teeth, Hu Xiufang thought it was obvious, wasn’t it deliberate? She decided to keep it in the dormitory and never lend it again. "I can’t be bothered to argue with you! Li Qiao, let’s check our exam answers against each other."

Li Qiao replied, "Okay."

After comparing answers, Hu Xiufang estimated her score with joy, "I should be able to score around 580 this time, if I get this much in the college entrance examination, getting into university is a sure win. What about you?"

"It depends on how many points the Chinese teacher gives for the composition, I believe I have no issues with the rest," said Li Qiao calmly.

Hu Xiufang said admiringly, "You are incredible!"

The two of them discussed their scores in whispers, while their classmates pricked up their ears to listen.

"You two are going to get pork again, right? Li Qiao, how exactly do you study, and where did you get that amulet from before?"

Everyone else wanted one too.

Li Qiao declared emphatically, "My scores have nothing to do with that damned talisman, and besides, the talisman belongs to Li Jinhua."

Li Jinhua shrieked, "Don’t you throw dirt on me!"

Hu Xiufang was full of disdain. It was obviously her own fault, yet she was blaming others. Li Qiao really had tough luck to have a sister like that. "In your view, everything bad is connected to me, right? My progress is significant too, and that’s inseparable from the effort I put in all the time. If you want to progress, work hard and study."

One couldn’t deny that Li Qiao did have some study techniques up her sleeve.

But one shouldn’t ignore her own hard work either.

Natural talent plus effort made one invincible; good grades were not surprising.

"Hu Xiufang, share with us."

Hu Xiufang generously shared, "I’ve completed several sets of materials recently, you can buy and work on them too. After writing three or four sets, it should be about right. I can clearly feel my logical thinking has strengthened."

The classmates gathered to look through Hu Xiufang’s materials.

Writing down plans to buy the same ones.

Li Qiao waited until it was quiet around her, then took out the newspaper and continued working.

Around nine o’clock, the duty teacher urged everyone to return to the dormitory to rest, and she left with the rest of the students.

The next day, just before the lunchtime dismissal, the teachers distributed the exam papers subject by subject.

Li Qiao had two points deducted from her composition, the rest were full marks.

Hu Xiufang came in second, scoring 581.

Both were singled out for the teacher’s special praise.

Li Jinhua looked at her test paper, annoyed that she had regressed in English; she had scored 89 last time, but only 80 this time.

Apart from Li Qiao, there were now two others with full marks in the class.

One was the class monitor who had scored 95 last time, the other was Hu Xiufang.

She too needed to find the secret to scoring full marks. However, this time her total score improved, 476.

If she could score 100 on the English test, her total score might approach around 500, which would practically guarantee her admission into a junior college.

"Everyone take a good look at your test papers these last couple of days, recognize your own shortcomings, and if you don’t understand something, ask Li Qiao for advice, ask how he manages to achieve full marks in every subject."

After the teacher left, the classroom erupted.

Everyone surrounded Li Qiao, bombarding him with questions.

Li Qiao replied to each one.

"With your participation in the competition this time, a recommendation for university admittance should also be in the bag, right?"

Li Qiao responded modestly, "You think too highly of me."

"I’ll bet fifty cents that you get recommended," someone said.

"With the whole nation’s talents taking the exam, it’s hard to say. I’ll bet twenty cents he won’t get recommended."

"I’ll bet twenty cents he does."

Li Qiao chuckled, and they even started placing bets. "Then I’ll join in and bet a yuan that I get recommended. If I win, let’s use the money for our class fund to ask the teacher for some vouchers to buy materials and print them into test papers to practice with."

"That’s a great idea!"

The class monitor was taking down bets: "Li Jinhua, what are you betting on?"

"I’m not betting." Li Jinhua believed in her heart that Li Qiao would win because he was no ordinary person.

He would spend all day engrossed in math problems, occasionally dozing off in class and getting punished by the teacher, and he didn’t seem to study the other subjects, yet he could get perfect scores on exams. She worked herself to the bone and still hadn’t reached 500 points.

It was so unfair.

Why couldn’t she be like Li Qiao?

"If you don’t bet, you can’t use the materials we buy," someone retorted.

Li Jinhua: "..." How could that be fair? "I’ll bet on his win then, twenty cents." This time she also hoped that Li Qiao would win, since her family was brought to poverty by that thug Qin Jin, who led people to raid their home. Two dimes wasn’t a small amount for her now.

....

On Sunday, as soon as it was light out, Qin Jin arrived, carrying Li Qiao’s backpack.

Li Qiao put his notebooks back in the dorm and handed over the material from the educated youths to Hu Xiufang.

Hu Xiufang had just woken up, still groggy, but she snapped to attention when she saw the material. "Ah! The materials, for me?"

"For the educated youths, handle them with care."

"Don’t worry, I will treasure them even more than my own belongings," Hu Xiufang took out her materials: "These are for you."

Li Qiao: "Just leave them here for now, I’ll bring them to the educated youths when I come back."

"Sure."

Li Qiao quickly packed a couple of sets of clothes and checked his notebooks, stationery, and draft paper, then bid farewell to Hu Xiufang and left.

Li Jinhua hadn’t gone home that week either and now turned to face Hu Xiufang: "Hu Xiufang, let me have a look at your materials after you’re done."

"I won’t..." Hu Xiufang hesitated as the word of refusal came to her lips.

Li Jinhua was sly; if Hu refused, what would she do if Li resorted to stealing? She couldn’t watch her twenty-four hours a day. How would she explain if something of the other’s went missing? "Fine, but you must take good care of it. If you damage anything, I’ll definitely tell the teacher."

"I know," Li Jinhua quietly scoffed at Hu’s stinginess.

After breakfast, Mr. Song only learned that Li Qiao was bringing her partner when they met.

"Do you have a letter of introduction?" he asked Qin Jin.

"Yes, I do," Qin Jin, upon seeing the teacher, felt inexplicably nervous, replying with a stilted formality.

Li Qiao noticed and couldn’t help but feel amused.

Old Mrs. Qin had mentioned that the Qin family, over a decade ago, also counted as a prominent household, and Qin Jin started school at the age of three, particularly mischievous, often getting his palms smacked by teachers. He was especially afraid of schoolmasters. However, he only studied for two years before a family crisis forced him to drop out.

The specifics of the crisis were something Old Mrs. Qin wouldn’t discuss, so Li Qiao didn’t feel it was right to pry.

Soon after, the minibus pulled over.

The three of them got on one after another, found their seats, and headed directly to the train station, rushing to buy tickets to Beijing.