Madam, Please Behave
Chapter 435: The Ice Queen Liu Xiazhi

September 15, 2010.

The classroom of Class 3, Grade 10 was silent as students waited quietly.

After one week of military training and another week of formal classes following the start of school, the homeroom teacher had arranged a diagnostic test.

Today happened to be the day when the test papers would be handed back.

The homeroom teacher of Class 3 stood at the podium, a stack of graded test papers placed before him.

His face showed no obvious emotion as the stern teacher reached for the papers, reading out names after glancing at them.

"Liu Xiazhi!"

At the teacher's call, a girl sitting in the center of the fourth row facing the podium trembled slightly before reluctantly standing up from her seat with visible hesitation.

She walked through the gap made by her classmates, moving neither too fast nor too slow as she approached the podium step by step.

Standing before the teacher, she slowly extended her hand.

For some reason, the homeroom teacher gave Liu Xiazhi a special glance before handing over the test paper.

The moment she received it, a flash of panic crossed Liu Xiazhi's otherwise calm face before she quickly suppressed it.

Secretly folding the paper in half, she returned to her seat.

Her plain-looking deskmate tried peeking at Liu Xiazhi's score when she got back, but saw nothing - Liu Xiazhi had immediately tucked the folded test between textbook pages after sitting down.

Still holding her head high with an inexplicable aura, she calmly watched the teacher at the podium.

After nearly two weeks together, the ordinary-looking girl still hadn't managed to strike up conversation with Liu Xiazhi.

After all...in her eyes, someone from such a privileged family who was also this beautiful...

Must naturally have excellent grades too.

Withdrawing her surreptitious gaze, the plain girl stared dejectedly at her desk.

Though she wanted to talk to her deskmate...

Shaking her head slightly, she wore a self-deprecating smile.

Someone as ordinary as her dreaming of befriending such an outstanding girl...

How ridiculous.

During her distraction, the teacher called her name.

"Chi Xiaoxiao!"

"Here!"

Startled from her thoughts, Chi Xiaoxiao reflexively answered and shot up from her seat.

Only then did she notice the entire class staring at her, realizing she'd made a spectacle of herself.

"Heh!"

Someone's stifled laugh triggered scattered chuckles across the room.

Just as Chi Xiaoxiao froze in embarrassment, the teacher came to her rescue by slapping the podium to restore order.

"Stop dawdling, come get your paper," he said once quiet returned.

Blushing, Chi Xiaoxiao hung her head and hurried to the podium.

She practically fled back to her seat with the paper, laying out the 142/150 score face up on her desk.

Liu Xiazhi beside her accidentally glimpsed the impressive score and couldn't help widening her eyes in shock at her unremarkable-looking deskmate.

Noticing the gaze, the shy Chi Xiaoxiao quietly explained in a hushed voice, "I actually missed two multiple-choice questions this time - so stupid of me. But...you must have gotten full marks, right?"

"......"

After a pause, Liu Xiazhi's hidden hand slowly emerged to place another textbook over the one hiding her test.

Avoiding eye contact, she gave an almost guilty-sounding murmur.

"Mmm..."

Chi Xiaoxiao wasn't surprised by this response.

For someone as outstanding and beautiful as Liu Xiazhi...

A perfect score would be effortless, right?

Rumors said there was a girl who'd nearly aced the high school entrance exam...

That must be her.

At noon, students scattered for lunch - some to the cafeteria, others to nearby fast food shops.

Chi Xiaoxiao had brought a lunchbox, hoping to eat with her deskmate, but Liu Xiazhi left before she could speak.

Watching Liu Xiazhi's retreating figure, Chi Xiaoxiao muttered to herself, "Someone like her...would never eat with me, let alone..."

Become friends.

A flash of sadness crossed her eyes as she took out her homemade lunch, mechanically eating the now-cold rice.

Meanwhile, Liu Xiazhi went to a small restaurant near school, ascending to a private booth upstairs.

The moment she saw Feng Shuyan inside, all the tension from the morning collapsed.

Her eyes reddened instantly as if about to cry, lips quivering with exaggerated grievance.

She didn't even bother closing the door before throwing herself at Feng Shuyan.

"Waaahhh...what do I do? I got single digits! Dad will definitely scold me when I get home!"

Feng Shuyan, clearly experienced with this, calmly caught Liu Xiazhi and patted her back soothingly like comforting a child.

"Don't worry, Uncle won't be mad. Back in middle school when you did poorly, he didn't punish you either."

"But...but...sniff...back then it was at least double digits...now it's single...I, I-I-I..."

"Did you bring the test?"

"Y-yeah..."

Stammering, Liu Xiazhi extracted herself and sat down, pulling out the repeatedly folded test from her pocket.

She unfolded it for Feng Shuyan to see.

Even the perpetually expressionless Feng Shuyan couldn't hide her reaction to the "4" marked on the paper.

"I tutored you in math all summer."

"I...I was so confident before the test!"

"......"

Feng Shuyan clearly wanted to say something but held back.

Wordlessly, she pulled out a blank test and her own perfect-scored one from her bag, placing them before Liu Xiazhi along with a pen.

"Copy mine, but intentionally get some multiple-choice and final problems wrong. I'll adjust the score to 70-90 range."

She examined the teacher's handwriting on Liu Xiazhi's test.

"Your teacher's writing isn't hard to imitate. Don't worry, it'll work."

"You...you're the best."

Sniffling, Liu Xiazhi picked up the pen and began copying.

Unlike her icy school persona, around Feng Shuyan she acted...

Rather silly.

Judging by their practiced movements, this test-score forgery wasn't their first rodeo.