Chapter 351: Let’s Go to College Together!
“Have the college entrance exam scores come out?!”
Upon hearing this, Lin Tian immediately checked the date.
July 4th.
So it really is the day the scores are released!
Lin Tian instantly jumped up from the sofa, sitting up straight.
He had been so busy with the Dragon Zither Cup that he almost forgot about his actual job!
For a college entrance exam student to forget about score release day—who does that?
But thankfully, Lin Tian wasn’t alone.
There was another equally clueless girl with him.
Lin Tian put down his phone and set off to find Gan Yan Yu.
However, on the other end of the line, Xu Yong quickly expressed his frustration:
“Hey, hey, hey! You’re just going to ignore me like that, huh?!”
“What’s wrong? Did you have more to say?”
“What do you mean ‘more to say’?!”
Xu Yong was fuming.
“Aren’t you even curious about my score?? I specifically called to ask you!”
Thinking about it made Xu Yong’s heart ache.
He had made the effort to call his bro to find out his score, only to find Lin Tian’s head full of romantic daydreams!
“Sorry, sorry! I have faith in you,” Lin Tian said, trying to sound sincere as he scratched his head and asked, “So what score did you get?”
“Guess?”
The range of scores was too vast, and Lin Tian couldn’t pinpoint it.
So, he took a shot in the dark:
“Is it starting with a 3?”
“Am I even capable of starting with a 3??”
“Could it be a 2?!” Lin Tian exclaimed in horror.
“d*mn it! Are you hoping I end up with no school at all?!”
Xu Yong cursed, “Even if I just stepped on the answer sheet, I’d have more than 200 points!”
“Sorry! Sorry! I’m just not familiar with scores below 500.”
“Are you trying to make me choke on my own envy?!”
“Oh, I remember you wanted to apply to Chuandu University,” Lin Tian finally remembered.
Xu Yong had previously nerded out about this.
He loved the city of Chuandu and had always aspired to work in animation.
So, ages ago, Xu Yong had mentioned wanting to apply there.
“Listen up—”
Xu Yong paused for effect, then proudly proclaimed, “534.”
“Nice!”
Lin Tian exclaimed, “Did you make it to the first tier?”
“Just barely scraped by!”
Xu Yong said, swelling with pride.
“No wonder you were itching to tell me!” Lin Tian genuinely felt happy for him.
“I remember you used to be in the 3 or 2 range.”
“I’ve never had a score starting with a 2—do you think your mom knows what it’s like to have a score starting with a 2?!”
Xu Yong shot Lin Tian the finger through the screen.
“I’ve never been that bad—couldn’t I have scored at least over 200 across six subjects?”
In just ten minutes of the call, Xu Yong himself didn’t expect to cuss so much.
He originally called to share good news with his bro but Lin Tian just kept being his usual self—utterly insensitive.
He was already a nationally renowned musician! If his fans knew he talked like this in private, who knows how they’d react!
“Just kidding, just kidding.”
Lin Tian chuckled, “But seriously, I wouldn’t have guessed you’d made such progress.”
In Lin Tian’s mind, Xu Yong’s high school life had always been a bit of a mess—probably because his family was famous for their seafood business.
Xu Yong was the kind of guy who complained about not wanting to work for his dad selling seafood. He’d often drag Lin Tian into late-night talks about dreams and freedom.
But in reality, he hadn’t made any changes.
Over those three years of high school, at least two and a half were spent wandering aimlessly, with scores lingering between a vocational college and a second-tier private undergraduate program.
Now that he’d been away from high school for a while, Lin Tian didn’t realize Xu Yong had made such progress.
Even with Lin Tian’s solid scores, he could empathize—533 points were a huge achievement for Xu Yong.
“Of course!”
When the subject came up, Xu Yong quickly turned sentimental.
“You know, this last half-year has been hell for me studying alone at school.”
Every time he mentioned this, Xu Yong went gloomy.
When he was in class frantically scribbling notes, drowning in the sea of high school problems,
he’d pull out his phone to find Lin Tian in some grand concert hall, even jet-setting to Japan, the place he dreamed of visiting after graduating.
For anyone else,
having such a classmate would be crushing!
Being alone in class felt like being an orphan, while his buddy was living the dream, with even their classmates discussing Lin Tian’s legendary tales,
who wouldn’t explode from that kind of vibe?
Fortunately, Lin Tian didn’t have many material desires.
If he rolled up in a Rolls Royce Phantom and bought a thousand-square-meter villa in downtown Qingzhou—
Then Xu Yong would really feel like he was living in hell.
But still, during that time
“I figured a lot out.”
Xu Yong sighed then smiled.
“Life is still your own, even if it doesn’t measure up to others, you still have to work hard for your own goals.”
In a way,
Xu Yong really had to thank Lin Tian.
If not for those last six months of seeing Lin Tian rise in his career,
Xu Yong wouldn’t have figured this out so quickly, nor faced his dreams and path.
Many times, students only realize what they truly want when they step into society.
Thanks to Lin Tian,
Xu Yong figured it out years earlier.
“.”
Lin Tian rarely heard so much positivity from Xu Yong; it was a bit jarring.
However, it also confirmed that saying.
When someone truly feels their progress, confidence naturally follows.
After all, Lin Tian had been through two years of high school; with his experience, he understood that this “comeback” experience during the college entrance exam would be the most precious moment for Xu Yong.
From that point on, no matter the setbacks he encountered in life, having this valuable memory would help him face them with a good attitude.
It sounds like motivational talk, but that’s just reality.
Perhaps from now on,
the shy, sensitive, timid young man Xu Yong would finally d*e off completely.
“Nevertheless, I do have to thank Su Ran. She helped me a lot with my English during this time, and she did pretty well too; she scored six hundred.”
“Stop right there!”
Lin Tian quickly interrupted Xu Yong.
Finally, the moment had arrived!
Weaving through Xu Yong’s ramblings, the topic took a sensitive turn.
Su Ran—
This girl had always been a bit ahead of Lin Tian during their three years of high school. And by the time they hit senior year, with Lin Tian occupied with competitions, she’d stolen home ground, and in several mock exams, she had scored right about his level.
Her English was top-notch, frequently grabbing first in the school’s single-subject scores. But due to her weaknesses in math, she’d been kept under Lin Tian’s thumb.
If Su Ran outscored him in the college entrance exam—Lin Tian would truly be upset!
It would feel like losing to a little sibling after having reigned over them for three years.
What a blow to the pride!
After all, he used to be the top dog of Class A at Qingzhou No. 7 High School; Lin Tian had his own pride to maintain!
During the last semester, Lin Tian had barely returned to school.
Meanwhile, Su Ran had been steadily improving during every one of Lin Tian’s practice sessions, diligently studying math in her free time.
In fact, during that last mock exam,
Su Ran’s score had already surpassed Lin Tian’s—by more than ten points, landing her four places higher in the class.
But Lin Tian was in a panic!
He just couldn’t afford to lose to someone who “won’t eat cilantro”!
Losing to some TikTok dancer would be just too much!
“What did she score?!”
Lin Tian took a deep breath and asked.
“661.”
“No way!!”
Although he’d mentally prepared himself, hearing that score made Lin Tian curse.
In Liberal Arts, 661 points.
In Qingjiang Province, that level was among the top tiers for the 985 universities.
With a bit of luck, it wasn’t impossible to aim for a lesser-known major at Qinghua or Beida!
“Just wait! I need to check my scores!”
Lin Tian’s competitive spirit was ignited.
After listening to so much from Xu Yong, he hadn’t even thought about his own score.
“Sure! Don’t hang up; I’ll be waiting!” Xu Yong said.
Lin Tian put his phone away and walked out of his apartment, heading over to the next room.
He raised his hand to knock but accidentally pushed the door open.
Lin Tian walked in, slightly bewildered.
Upon entering, he saw Gan Yan Yu at her computer, who jumped in surprise and turned around to look at Lin Tian.
“Lin Tian? What are you doing here?”
“What are you up to?”
Lin Tian strolled over and saw that Gan Yan Yu’s computer screen displayed the score checking website.
“You know today’s the day scores are released?” Lin Tian was taken aback.
“Su Ran just asked me earlier,”
hearing this made Lin Tian speechless.
Those two were quite in sync when it came to this!
Lin Tian looked back at Gan Yan Yu’s computer screen; she had already input her candidate number and other information but hadn’t clicked on “Check Score” yet.
“You haven’t checked yet?”
“No, no.”
After speaking, Gan Yan Yu stared intently at the computer screen.
But the mouse hovered over “Check Score” for ages without being clicked.
“Check it!” Lin Tian urged.
“I…”
Gan Yan Yu said softly,
“Why don’t I wait until after the Dragon Zither Cup to look?”
“Afraid it’ll affect your performance in the competition, huh?”
“Uh-huh.”
“You really are a clever little thing.”
Lin Tian suppressed his urge to tease her. “So you’re not filling out your application, then?”
“Since our only choice is Tianyin anyway. If I don’t make it, I’ll just retake the year.”
“.”
Lin Tian was speechless.
Seems like that’s true!
With just one school to apply to and no need to consider other options,
it really could be a case of skipping the score-check altogether!
No need to stress about how a bad score would impact performance in the competition.
Moved by Gan Yan Yu’s mindset, Lin Tian felt emotional and said,
“Forget that, just check!”
He ruffled the young woman’s hair with an undeniable tone.
“You’re definitely going to do great. Don’t you trust me?!”
Due to Gan Yan Yu’s school exam scores ranking first in Qingjiang Province,
Lin Tian had calculated beforehand.
Gan Yan Yu only needed to score over 400 to have a high chance of getting into Tianchao Music University.
And if she scored 450, it would pretty much be guaranteed!
For someone who had taken a year and a half off from school and spent most of that time absent,
400 points felt like a pipe dream, especially after returning to school for the last semester!
Even so,
during that last month of review,
thanks to Lin Tian’s rigorous training day and night, Gan Yan Yu’s scores had stabilized above 400, despite dropping under 300 from time to time.
However, the difficulty of the college entrance exam would surely be easier than the mock tests.
So Lin Tian had confidence in her!
Over 400 points? That’s a piece of cake!
“Come on, check! It’ll be fine!”
Lin Tian encouraged her.
But suddenly, Gan Yan Yu seemed to have an idea, her eyes lighting up, and she raised her index finger.
“I’ll check your score first!”
“Wait—”
Lin Tian was taken aback.
Truth is, he felt just as anxious as Gan Yan Yu!
Once he received the school test eligibility certificate, he was guaranteed admission to Tianyin, and when it came to filling out applications, he could get someone else to do that!
He could even go a lifetime without looking at his college entrance score!
But now, if he found out he didn’t measure up to Su Ran—well, that would be a blow he’d feel for ages!
“Let’s look at yours first.”
“No, we’ll check Lin Tian’s first!”
“What if I won’t let you check?”
“I’ll check myself.”
Gan Yan Yu said as she swiftly input Lin Tian’s ID number and candidate number.
Wait, how does she remember this so clearly?!
Lin Tian didn’t even know his own candidate number; she seemed to be typing it without a hitch!
Soon after entering the information,
Gan Yan Yu clicked the mouse.
As the webpage flickered—
The score appeared.
[662]
“Nice!!”
Lin Tian cheered.
Just one point ahead!
He beat the “cilantro hater”!!
“How’d it go?? What’s the score??”
Hearing Lin Tian’s voice, Xu Yong couldn’t contain himself and quickly asked.
“662 points.”
“Shut up?! Seriously? One point higher?! What are the odds of that?!”
Xu Yong gasped in amazement.
Lin Tian quickly snapped a screenshot of the score and sent it to Xu Yong.
On the other end of the line, Xu Yong’s excitement surged at seeing the image.
“Wooo!!! Brother Tian is awesome!!!”
Xu Yong appeared even more thrilled than Lin Tian.
“Dude, 662 points! A whole half-year off school and you scored that! How can the others live?!”
“Not really… Ah, this score probably doesn’t even rank in the top five in our school.”
“Brother Tian is being humble! If you offer me some points, maybe we can both hit the dance floor together at the bar!”
“.”
Lin Tian and Xu Yong quickly fell into their familiar banter, their joyful emotions nearly overflowing.
However, Gan Yan Yu wasn’t laughing.
She stared blankly at the computer screen.
“.”
Noticing Gan Yan Yu’s strange expression, Lin Tian promptly wiped the smile off his face.
Right! Gan Yan Yu still hadn’t checked her score!
Here he was celebrating while it might affect her mood!
No wonder she wasn’t smiling!
“Teacher Gan—”
As soon as Lin Tian spoke, Gan Yan Yu turned to face him, her eyes downcast, looking like she might cry any second.
“Lin Tian… I’m sorry… If it weren’t for tutoring me, you wouldn’t have scored so low…”
“.”
Lin Tian was taken aback, and he quickly replied,
“I’m fine. 662 points isn’t low at all! Don’t look down on it!”
“But you used to score over 700.”
“That’s not your fault! I hadn’t returned to school for half a year; of course, I’d fall behind.”
“If it weren’t for tutoring me, with your abilities, you’d certainly have scored over 680 after serious review.”
Gan Yan Yu murmured.
Seeing Lin Tian so excited about scoring 662 made Gan Yan Yu feel even worse.
From the beginning, that score had never been Lin Tian’s target; he could have done way better.
It was because of her that his score seemed lower.
“.”
Looking at Gan Yan Yu’s expression, Lin Tian was momentarily speechless.
Ultimately, he smiled softly.
He gently stroked Gan Yan Yu’s head.
The young woman turned to him.
“If you really feel bad about it, then repay me with your results.”
Lin Tian said.
Both of their gazes fixated on the computer screen.
The screen had already reverted to the input interface for candidate information.
After a long silence,
Gan Yan Yu bit her lip as if she had made a firm decision.
With swift determination, she quickly entered her details.
Finally, she clicked “Check Score—”
In the instant the page refreshed,
Gan Yan Yu shut her eyes.
“.”
“Whoa!”
“Holy smokes!”
With a chorus of sounds echoing around her,
Gan Yan Yu cautiously opened her eyes.
Lin Tian pointed at the screen, disbelief written all over his face, “You’re unbeatable, Teacher Gan!!”
The young woman glanced at the screen.
A large, bold figure appeared before her eyes—
[521]
“Five hundred flat?”
“Yep!!”
“No, Gan Yan Yu, 521 points??!!”
On the other end of the line, Xu Yong was stunned first,
“She got 521 points??”
“She hasn’t been to school for nearly two years and still pulls off 521 points??”
Xu Yong couldn’t comprehend it, repeating it multiple times as if trying to make sense of it.
His entire day’s high spirits vanished in an instant upon hearing that score.
“Awesome, Gan Yan Yu!!”
Lin Tian excitedly hugged Gan Yan Yu,
“You did it! I thought you’d barely make it to 450!”
This is beyond ridiculous!
There have been cases where expected scores were significantly lower than the actual scores.
But having someone like Gan Yan Yu excel like this was simply unheard of!
Lin Tian recalled that terrifying data—
[Learning Ability: S]
“You’re a genius, without a doubt!”
Lin Tian declared.
“Me? 521?”
Gan Yan Yu muttered, still in a daze, as if she hadn’t quite registered the moment.
“Now it’s definitely secure.”
Lin Tian said excitedly.
He released her and grabbed Gan Yan Yu’s shoulders, gazing into her eyes,
“Let’s go to college together, Little Gan Classmate.”
(The End of This Chapter)
