dkrc Chapter 4: The Making of a Handsome Guy
Chapter 4: The Making of a Handsome Guy
Lin Yu met Xia Zijing's gaze.
Their eyes met in the air. There was no emotional fluctuation, only a clash of absolute reason.
"The Lagrange multiplier method is also redundant."
Lin Yu withdrew his gaze and said calmly, "I can get the answer to this problem by just glancing at it and mentally calculating using the Hessian matrix. I wrote these five lines because I didn't want the blackboard to be too monotonous."
After saying that, Lin Yu walked back to his seat, pulled out a chair, sat down, and immediately lay face down on the table, closing his eyes.
He left the whole class with an extremely arrogant back of his head.
The school bell rang abruptly at that moment.
Baldy Wang grabbed his lesson plan, rushed out of the classroom without a word, and didn't even call for the end of get out of class.
Li Hao suddenly stood up and strode to Lin Yu's desk. With a thud, he placed his hands on the desk and stared at Lin Yu, who was slumped over.
"Lin Yu, stop playing tricks. You think you're invincible just because you memorized a university-level formula?"
Li Hao suppressed his anger, his voice somber, "Next week is the city's first monthly exam. It's a joint exam for all subjects, with rankings based on province-wide results. Do you dare to bet with me?"
Lin Yu didn't even raise his head; his voice came out muffledly from the crook of his arm.
"What's the stake?"
The classroom fan was constantly humming.
Li Hao braced his hands on the edge of Lin Yu's desk, the veins on the back of his hands bulging. He stared at the back of Lin Yu's head buried in his arms, his breathing rapid.
"The stakes are simple."
Li Hao raised his voice to make sure the whole class could hear, "Next week is the midterm exam for ten schools across the province. Whoever has the lowest total score will stand on the podium and shout into the microphone three times during the school's flag-raising ceremony next Monday. Then, they will voluntarily apply to the school to be transferred to the worst science class. And they will never be allowed to enter this classroom again."
Gasps of shock filled the air.
Spots in the top-tier classes are extremely valuable; being relegated to a regular class is tantamount to giving up the chance to get into a top university. This gamble cuts off all avenues of retreat.
Lin Yu lifted his head from the crook of his arm.
He sat up straight and casually picked up a black ballpoint pen from the corner of the table. The pen twirled between his slender fingers once and came to a steady stop.
"I'm not betting on the total score with you."
Lin Yu's tone was indifferent.
Li Hao chuckled briefly, a mocking smile playing on his lips. "What? Scared now? Where did your confidence go when you were posing in front of the blackboard?"
Su Qingwan, sitting in the front row, turned her head. Her gaze swept over Lin Yu, a hint of certainty flashing in her eyes. Lin Yu would definitely back down. This kind of high-stakes gamble wasn't for someone of his social standing.
Lin Yu removed the cap from his pen. He wrote a symbol: ∞ on a blank sheet of draft paper.
Your total score is determined by your ability.
Lin Yu pushed the draft paper to the edge of the table. "My total score is determined by the maximum possible score on the exam. Comparing us within the same evaluation system doesn't conform to the principle of variable control."
Li Hao's face darkened completely. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
"I'll only bet with you on the combined science subjects."
Lin Yu slammed his pen on the table with a crisp sound. "The combined science exam is out of 300. You do your best. And I will score exactly one point higher than you. No more, no less. If I can't precisely control that one-point difference, I'll admit defeat."
The entire Class 7 fell into a deathly silence.
arrogant.
Extreme arrogance.
This isn't an exam; this is manipulating scores. Precisely controlling the combined science score to be one point higher than the top scorer in the grade requires an incredibly sophisticated ability to calculate the points awarded and deducted for each question, and even the psychological threshold of the examiners.
Li Hao laughed in anger. He straightened up and pointed at Lin Yu's nose.
"Fine! Lin Yu, you're asking for it, I'll grant your wish. Let's see how you die on the podium next week."
Li Hao turned around and strode back to his seat.
The chubby guy at the table tugged at Lin Yu's sleeve, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"Yu-ge, did you take the wrong medicine today? Li Hao's combined science score is always above 280. How are you going to control the score?"
Lin Yu didn't answer. He slumped back onto the table.
The school bell rang.
A row of private cars picking up students was parked outside the school gate. Li Hao stood in front of the Porsche, tossing the car keys in his hand. Su Qingwan walked over and opened the car door.
Lin Yu walked out of the school gate with his schoolbag slung over one shoulder.
Su Qingwan paused. She looked at Lin Yu's back. His oversized school uniform was still open, but he seemed less timid than usual, and more relaxed.
"Pretentious."
Li Hao started the engine and said coldly, "Even if he hands in a blank paper in the exam, I can still score several hundred points higher than him. Next week, I'm going to tear his pride apart with my own hands."
Su Qingwan looked away and got into the passenger seat.
"He's just having a stress reaction after his pride was hurt. Ignore him."
Lin Yu didn't go home. He turned into a barbershop on the street corner.
The shop wasn't big. Lin Yu walked to the mirror and sat down.
The barber came over with scissors and asked how he wanted his hair cut.
"Shave the sides flat. Cut your bangs into layers. Don't cover your eyebrows."
Lin Yu looked at himself in the mirror.
This messy, medium-length hair was something Su Qingwan once casually remarked about—that long hair makes a guy look gentler.
So he stayed for a year. Now, it's not necessary.
The sound of scissors closing rang in my ears. Strands of black hair fell onto the white apron.
Twenty minutes later. The hairdresser removed the cape and used a hairdryer to blow away the stray hairs on Lin Yu's neck.
Lin Yu stood up.
The boy's features in the mirror were fully exposed under the cool-toned light. His brow bones were high and his eyes were deep-set. His pale skin, which had not been exposed to sunlight for a long time, had a textured quality under the light.
Her jawline was extremely sharp, without any superfluous lines. With her long hair no longer obscuring it, her expressionless eyes became the sole focal point.
Coldness. Extreme coldness.
He pushed open the glass door of the barbershop and walked into the shopping mall next door. Fifteen minutes later, he came out of a fast-fashion brand store. His backpack now contained five identical high-count cotton T-shirts, one pure black and one pure white.
He changed into a plain black T-shirt and put his school uniform jacket back on. The school uniform was still left unzipped.
Everything is ready. The digital game begins with an external reshaping.
The next morning. Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School.
The classroom of Class 7, Grade 12, was buzzing with noise. Everyone was discussing the outrageous bet that Lin Yu and Li Hao had made yesterday. Most people thought Lin Yu would find an excuse to transfer schools before the monthly exam.
Su Qingwan sat in her seat organizing her notebook of incorrect answers. Today she was wearing a pair of newly bought limited edition canvas shoes, deliberately sticking her toes out over the edge of the desk.
7:20. The bell rang to signal the start of morning reading.
The back door of the classroom was pushed open.
The originally noisy classroom quickly quieted down within two seconds, eventually falling into complete silence.
Su Qingwan's hand, holding the red pen, froze in mid-air. She turned her head, following everyone's gaze.
Lin Yu carried his schoolbag in one hand and stepped into the classroom.
.