"Do you have everything? Three IDs, earphones, a 2B pencil, an eraser..."
The CET-4 exam was scheduled for the morning. After getting ready early and preparing to leave, Qiu Xi started checking if everyone had their essentials. After all, the teacher had mentioned that candidates often forgot to bring things.
"Got it, got it. Let's go."
"Alright, everyone, good luck!"
In the examination hall, Qiu Xi looked at the test paper. Although she wasn't supposed to flip ahead, she could still see the composition question. For Qiu Xi, who had reviewed a lot of material and practiced many drafts for a speech competition over the past two months, this wasn't a big problem. She wrote the composition quite fluently, without any points that required much thought or time. Then, when the teacher collected the answer sheets, she prepared for the listening comprehension, reading, and translation sections.
After the morning exam, Qiu Xi felt good about her performance, except for the translation part, which she admitted had some discrepancies. Translation, she felt, always required extensive accumulation of knowledge.
Outside the examination hall, Song Daiyao and the other two were already waiting.
"Xiao Xi, how was it?"
"Pretty good, not too difficult. How about you guys?"
Liang Yunfei frowned slightly. "It was okay, just a bit unsure about the translation."
Shen Yan nodded in agreement. "Mm."
"Thanks to all you big shots, I did alright too, though listening and translation felt a bit shaky," Song Daiyao said, putting her hands together in a playful gesture. She personally felt okay, but the listening and translation sections felt a little less than ideal. Still, she had studied diligently, so passing the exam should be no problem.
"Then let's look forward to our great victory! Let's go!"
Seeing Song Daiyao's beaming smile, Qiu Xi knew things were probably fine.
"Let's go, let's go eat something good at the cafeteria to reward ourselves."
With one arm linked through each of theirs and urging the third along, Song Daiyao was ready to rush forward. The exam was finally over, so why not have a good meal?
"Food isn't going to run away," Qiu Xi said helplessly. Although they had known each other for a few months, she still couldn't quite understand Song Daiyao's ravenous appetite. In the end, she could only follow along.
Seeing Qiu Xi being pulled along, looking helpless, Song Daiyao wanted to laugh. "You don't get it!"
"Yes, yes, yes, eating is important. Hurry up!"
Experience had taught her that just agreeing at this point would resolve everything.
"You two, stop messing around and hurry up." Liang Yunfei, walking ahead, started to urge them on. She didn't want to be the only one walking alone.
"Coming!" Qiu Xi went up and took Liang Yunfei's other hand. Sisters should stick together.
"Xiao Xi, isn't the final of the speech competition next week?" Shen Yan suddenly remembered this during the meal. It seemed the final of the speech competition wasn't far off.
Qiu Xi looked up and replied to Shen Yan, "Yes, next Sunday." She then looked at Shen Yan with a hint of confusion, wondering why she suddenly brought it up.
Shen Yan understood Qiu Xi's look and waved her hand, indicating it was nothing. "Oh, it's nothing. It's just that with all the exams lately, things have been busy, and with the final exams for each subject coming up soon, I just suddenly remembered and asked."
"Indeed..."
"Stop talking, or I won't be able to eat anymore." Seeing the two about to get into an animated discussion, Song Daiyao immediately put her hands in front of them to halt the topic. Wasn't it better to enjoy a delicious meal? And they were discussing studying!
Seeing Song Daiyao's glum face, Qiu Xi and Shen Yan exchanged a smile. Fine, they wouldn't talk about it anymore. Let's just eat! However, Shen Yan's words did serve as a reminder to Qiu Xi that final exams were also approaching. This was just too much! It wasn't that having many things to do was bad, but rather that they all piled up, making one's head spin!
Just after finishing dinner and returning to the dormitory, the four of them sat together ready to chat when Qiu Xi received a message from Nan Hua.
"The exam is over. Isn't it time to prepare for the sprint?"
Having a top-student teammate like him, Qiu Xi wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse. Since they had previously worked together on editing drafts and pronunciation correction, coupled with the systematic courses, Qiu Xi had indeed made significant progress. However, the process was undeniably torturous, whether it was attending classes in the system or being drilled by Nan Hua during practical sessions.
After some thought, Qiu Xi replied, "Okay. Let's look at the schedule and find some time to practice again." After all, with only a few days left until the competition, practicing a few more times wouldn't hurt. Her long-desired first prize absolutely couldn't slip away.
"Alright." As he spoke, he also sent a class schedule. Qiu Xi compared it with her own and suggested a few times.
"Okay, it's settled then."
"Mm."
"Xiao Xi, you're smiling like that. Are you done chatting?"
"Huh? Am I?"
Just as she turned off her phone screen, she looked up to see the three of them staring at her.
"Yes!" the three nodded emphatically. Song Daiyao went further and even produced a photo.
"..." Qiu Xi was speechless.
"Could this be a sign of blossoming romance?"
"Perhaps."
"Stop talking!" The more Qiu Xi listened, the more absurd it became. Although she... well, she did have feelings for him. Especially during their practice sessions together, but it was definitely not what they were thinking. At most, they were just good friends.
"Oh, blushing in embarrassment!" Liang Yunfei and Song Daiyao said, each holding onto Qiu Xi's flailing hands. One of them had a boyfriend, and the other loved gossip, so they enjoyed seeing Qiu Xi like this. Shen Yan watched from the side, wanting to help but unable to contend with the other two. If she helped one, she suspected she'd face Qiu Xi's retaliation later. So, she decided it was more comfortable to just watch the show from the sidelines.
Upon hearing the words "blushing in embarrassment," Qiu Xi lowered her hands. Forget it, she couldn't wash herself clean even if she jumped into the Yellow River. Seeing Qiu Xi lower her hands, the two stopped teasing. In truth, they didn't mean any harm; they just cared about their roommate and enjoyed a bit of gossip. That's what made life interesting.
"Alright, truthfully, there's nothing going on. If there were, wouldn't I tell you guys?" Qiu Xi knew, so she offered a simple explanation.
"Oh, we understand, we understand!" Seeing the two of them smiling, Qiu Xi knew there was nothing else to say.
"Instead of talking about this, why don't you all study properly! Remember Ideological and Political Education? It's a closed-book exam for us! Have you all mastered the grammar..." Qiu Xi's "tight-fitting spell" began its chant.
"..."
"So boring!"
"Let's go, let's go!"
The three, utterly discouraged by the prospect of final exams, obediently left. Seeing the three turn back to their seats, Qiu Xi started to secretly laugh. "Little rascals! I might not be able to outsmart you, but I can certainly nag you to death!"
"Hmph!" With that, she began preparing for the final few speech practices and organizing her recent course notes. In another week or two, almost all the courses would be concluded. The one or two that were delayed were because the teachers said the military training had taken up time and needed to be made up. What could she do? This was the fate of a student!