Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  South A, Building 304.

  In the Automation Department’s first Higher Mathematics class, the teacher was from the Mathematics Department.

  The first thing he did when he came in was to pick up the name list and scan the classroom. He introduced himself and then started the roll call.

  “The first class is already marking attendance. Oh no, what should I do?” Nan Huiyao lowered her voice and asked Yang Yi. “I can answer in her place when he calls Ran Ran later……”


  Before she finished speaking, the Higher Mathematics teacher called, “Qin Ran.”


  The students were arranged according to the pinyin of the first letter of their name.

  The teacher had skipped past a group of people and directly called Qin Ran’s name.

  Nan Huiyao and Yang Yi were dumbfounded.

  “Qin Ran.” After receiving no reply, the teacher put down the list and pushed his glasses. “Is Classmate Qin Ran not here?”


  Bracing herself, Nan Huiyao raised her hand and said that Qin Ran had a stomachache and returned to her bedroom.

  She originally thought that the teacher wouldn’t let this matter go, but in the end, he just put the list down without asking further and waved for her to sit down.

  He didn’t follow-up with the attendance, as if he had only wanted to call Qin Ran.

  Two short periods of Higher Mathematics were over.

  The next Physics class was still a combined lesson in South A, Building 407.

  After arriving in the classroom, the Physics teacher didn’t say anything else and directly called, “Where’s Qin Ran? Is Qin Ran here?”


  Nan Huiyao and Yang Yi: “.……??”


  “Qin Ran didn’t come to class all morning.” Xing Kai lowered his voice and asked Nan Huiyao, “Chu Heng said that this year’s freshman Physics teachers are all doctors from the laboratory and the research institute. They look highly upon our batch. You should ask Qin Ran to try her best to come to class later.”


  “Doctors from the laboratory?” Nan Huiyao had never heard of the research institute, but according to Leng Peishan, it was extremely impressive.

  Xing Kai smiled. “Mr. Yue is a doctor from the laboratory.”


  Mr. Yue was the Physics teacher.

  **

  After class in the morning, Nan Huiyao and Yang Yi went to the cafeteria to have their meals before returning to the bedroom. Even Leng Peishan, who had gone out to eat with her seniors at noon, had returned. Only Qin Ran wasn’t back yet.

  Putting her bag on the desk and taking out two registration forms, Leng Peishan smiled. “These are extra registration forms for the Student Union from my senior. Do you two want it?”


  “The internal registration form? Thank you so much.” Nan Huiyao took it and gave one to Yang Yi. “Neither I nor Yang Yi managed to grab the Student Union’s registration form.”


  Nan Huiyao had been in class all morning, sitting on the same row as Chu Heng, Xing Kai, and the others. Hence, she had learned a lot of internal news.

  She also knew that entering the Student Union would be of great use to entering the laboratory.

  The annual list came from the Student Union.

  Sitting down, Nan Huiyao took out a pen and started filling out the registration form. While filling it out, she turned and said to Yang Yi, “Why isn’t Ran Ran back yet? She didn’t even come in all morning. I asked her on Weibo about what she was doing, but she said she was in class. Xing Kai said that our course is being taught by the doctors from the laboratory and is very important.”


  While working on her own things, Leng Peishan was stunned to hear this. “Doctors from the laboratory? Are you sure?”


  “Xing Kai said so. Mr. Yue from the Physics Department is a doctor there.” Nan Huiyao put down her pen and turned sideways.

  “Why did a laboratory doctor come out to teach your class?” Leng Peishan was slightly surprised. Unlike Nan Huiyao and the others, she naturally knew what this meant. Sitting down, she almost murmured. “Beijing University is paying so much attention to the Physics Department this year?”


  She couldn’t figure this out.

  “Really?” Nan Huiyao didn’t know much about the school system, but since Leng Peishan and Xing Kai didn’t seem to be of original origin, there must be some truth to what they said.

  After filling out the registration form, she turned on her computer. Even after a whole morning of class, instead of playing games, she clicked on the school forum.

  There were many posts on the forum.

  She immediately saw a post floating on the homepage: [This year’s Freshman King]

  She wasn’t particularly curious about this post, but the post had hundreds of replies.

  More than nine thousand responses, nearly reaching ten thousand.

  She directly clicked on the post, still wondering what the Freshman King meant?

  The content was an introduction.

  [Name: Qin Ran

  [Gender: Female

  [College entrance examination score: 747

  [Everyone, let me tell you what I know first. This year, Beijing University and University A have all participated in the college entrance examination. But do you remember the post we obsessed over before the exam? Everyone, please go to — http: ……

  [She scored 747 points without any extra points. Her Chinese scored 147, and her English, Mathematics, as well as Science, were full marks. Beijing University and University A’s Principals fought over her, and our Beijing University won again in the end.

  [Then—


  [The college entrance examination’s top scorer entered the Physics Department of Beijing University. The school has issued two appointments this year. Everyone, if you check the class schedule of the Physics Department, you can see the teachers. At least four of them are doctors above the laboratory level. (Now, I’m getting jealous. Why did the top scorers choose the Physics Department for two consecutive years? Is our Mathematics Department unworthy?)

  [There’s only one Freshman King every year, and it’s rumored that the Student Union’s President starts snatching them on the first day of school. (When can I get such treatment)……]

  School had just begun, and they had also gone through military training. The freshmen didn’t have time to discuss other things, so the posts had all been written by sophomores.

  Today was the second day of rest after military training, so those who liked to read gossip on the forum all spent their time there.

  Nan Huiyao was one of them.

  After reading it, she stiffly turned her head, looking at the other two people in the bedroom, and said in an erratic tone, “I think I know why……”


  “Why?” Yang Yi was still slowly filling out the registration form when she heard this. She slid her chair back and turned to look at the computer.

  Relatively straightforward, Yang Yi saw the sentences and immediately gasped. “So Qin Ran is the college entrance examination’s top scorer this year?!”


  She was also well-informed about the college entrance examination. But she didn’t frequently go online and only occasionally read the news, so she didn’t know how the top scorer looked like……

  Most importantly, even if they remembered the top scorer’s name, who would have thought that it would be Qin Ran from their dormitory!

  Who expected this top scorer to be so good-looking she could debut straight away?!……

  Were the college entrance examination’s top scorers like this nowadays?!

  Leng Peishan’s hand shook when she heard this. Pursing her lips, she clenched the arm of the chair tightly. “What did you two just say?”


  After taking two minutes to catch her breath, Nan Huiyao finally returned to her senses. She glanced at Leng Peishan and replied, “Oh, Qin Ran is the top scorer. The senior from the Student Union and those professors from our department seem to have come for her.”


  **

  Qin Ran spent the whole morning in the Nuclear Engineering class. Since the school cafeteria was too crowded, she found a quiet place outside to eat before returning to her dormitory.

  She realized the atmosphere was strange.

  Nan Huiyao and Yang Yi stared at her motionlessly.

  Leng Peishan…… was sitting in her seat, looking at her without her usual condescending and indifferent gaze.

  Calmly walking to her seat, Qin Ran pulled her computer chair and sat down. Biting on a milk tea straw, she crossed her legs and raised an eyebrow. “What?”


  Nan Huiyao stared intently at her. “The college entrance examination’s top scorer?”


  “Really?” Qin Ran held the milk tea in one hand and tapped the computer desktop with the other. She raised an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?”


  Nan Huiyao had a heart attack.

  Was there “a problem”? How was it okay?!

  “Did you know that last year’s Freshman King entered the laboratory at the beginning of last semester? Everyone’s betting on how long you’ll take to enter……” Nan Huiyao paused.

  She remembered Qin Ran saying last night that it wasn’t difficult to enter the laboratory……

  Now, it indeed seemed easy for her. It was just a matter of time.

  The bedroom fell into a strange silence for a while.

  A knock on the bedroom door disturbed the silence. Nan Huiyao, who was closest to the door, reacted and immediately stood up to open it.

  Outside was the dormitory’s auntie. Glancing at the room number, she smiled at Nan Huiyao. “Student Qin Ran is in this room, right? This is her express mail.”


  She handed a paper box to Nan Huiyao, smiling kindly and politely, somewhat different from usual.

  Nan Huiyao took it and quickly said, “Thank you, Auntie.”


  The Auntie cordially said it was no problem, the smile on her face blooming like a chrysanthemum. “Come and find me if you have any problems in your dormitory life, okay?”


  Nan Huiyao couldn’t really deal with the Auntie’s enthusiasm. After the Auntie left, she heaved a sigh of relief, closed the door, and then handed the box to Qin Ran. “Is Beijing University’s express mail so considerate? They even deliver it to the bedroom door?” she asked in a confused tone.

  “No way.” Yang Yi took a pair of scissors and handed it to Qin Ran for her to unpack the mail. “I had to collect my express mail from the station yesterday.”


  If the delivery had to be delivered to the door, the courier would probably break his leg.

  Nan Huiyao asked Qin Ran to open it quickly. “It’s so heavy, what’s inside?”


  Qin Ran weighed it and knew what it was. Opening it, the express mail revealed the things inside.

  Nan Huiyao gasped. “It’s too pretty?”


  Yang Yi also nodded. “Yes, it is. Where did you get it?”


  Leng Peishan, who hadn’t spoken at all, finally couldn’t help but turn to take a look.

  At a glance, she saw what Qin Ran was holding. Her expression changed, and she abruptly stood up.