After class, Ye Qiu didn’t head straight home. Instead, he used the training school’s computer to check his college entrance exam score. Seeing his total score of 725, he nodded in satisfaction, and this score stirred up quite a commotion at the training school.

"I recall last year’s top scorer in science got 712 points, and that was with an added ten points from competitions. Ye Qiu, you didn’t participate in any competitions, did you? Let me check what this year’s top scorer in science scored."

At the same time, another teacher exclaimed, "Full marks in math and science? I heard this time the questions were a bit simpler than previous years, but those were only the basic ones at the start; the last few big questions weren’t any easier. Did you get them all right?"

"It’s a pity the Chinese language pulled down the score. If it were a bit higher, this score could have been even better."

"I’ve found it, this year’s top scorer in science is indeed 725 points. Ye Qiu, you’re this year’s top scorer in science!"

The cheers attracted tutoring students and parents who hadn’t gone home yet. Each of them listened in disbelief that the person teaching their children was this year’s top scorer in science. What an honor!

"That’s right, I saw it too. The report here has Ye Qiu’s name. Ye Qiu, didn’t your school put up banners? Didn’t anyone inform you?"

Ye Qiu smiled helplessly, "I don’t have a phone, so they probably couldn’t reach me. I need to head home now. Thanks for everyone’s concern."

At this moment, a parent from outside asked, "Top scorer, will you still be teaching tomorrow?"

Ye Qiu nodded with a smile, "I will. I’ll be here all summer; since everyone trusts me with learning, I wouldn’t quit halfway."

"Can you copy your high school notes for us? Even if not, at least teach our kids your study methods."

"If everyone finds it useful, I’ve got no problem with that." He said straightforwardly, with no intention of keeping anything to himself.

The parents and students immediately rejoiced; these are the top scorer’s notes, something you couldn’t buy even outside. The top scorer just shared them like that, truly worthy of first place; his awareness is exceptional.

"I’ll give you a raise." The training school’s owner patted Ye Qiu’s shoulder, smiled, and said, this child was recommended by a friend of his. Because the friend vouched for him, he took the risk to let him teach. Unexpectedly, Ye Qiu brought him such a big surprise; this is like having a living advertisement!

Ye Qiu didn’t refuse it; after all, when he first started, his salary was lower than usual. Now that he’s the province’s top scorer in science, it’s only fair to get a raise.

"I’ve noticed you don’t have a phone; it’s inconvenient to reach you. Here, I’ll settle your previous wages, so you can get yourself a phone!"

Ye Qiu’s smile deepened, "Thank you, boss."

He indeed urgently needed money now; not having a phone is incredibly inconvenient. But besides the phone, he also needed a high-performance computer. After finishing this summer’s tutoring, he should be able to buy one.

Ye Qiu returned home, and upon opening the door, found the other three at home looking at him with complex expressions and about to speak. Seeing this, he knew that they must have heard about his college entrance exam results.

"Why are you back so late today?" Mom, Han Hui, rarely spoke to him in such a gentle and kind tone, "Come eat, the dishes are cold."

"I’ve already eaten." Ye Qiu replied, eyes downcast.

Ye Peilin frowned, a habitual tone of blame, "Don’t you know your family is waiting for you? Even if you’ve eaten, have a little more."

"These days I’ve been eating out; haven’t you all gotten used to it? Why would you wait for me?" Ye Qiu asked, looking at the three of them with clear eyes but no emotion.

Ye Qing felt a bit guilty being watched by him, so she educated him, "Mom made some good dishes today, hoping you’d come home and eat. Is there something wrong with that? So much anger, just put your stuff down and come eat; this is the chicken soup Mom specially made for you."

Ye Qiu stopped speaking. Everyone knew why they were waiting for him to eat; wasn’t it just because he was the top scorer in provincial science exams?

"This is the chicken soup you love the most. I cooked it for over two hours; the chicken meat is tender, have a taste." Han Hui scooped a full bowl for him, and rarely, this time he and Ye Qing actually split a chicken leg each.

He looked at the soup bowl helplessly, sighed, and said, "Mom, you’re mistaken; the one who loves chicken soup is my sister, not me."

Han Hui paused, "Is that so? Didn’t you always ask for chicken legs before?"

Ye Qiu answered truthfully, "Back then, it was because you gave both chicken legs to my sister; I was jealous, so I wanted to fight for them. Now that I’m grown, I don’t want them, so I don’t fight."

"Really?" Han Hui paused her action, and then asked, "Well, what do you like to eat? Mom will make it for you next time."

After saying this, she realized something wasn’t right. It’s been so many years, and he’s already eighteen, and she doesn’t know what her son likes to eat?

"Anything is fine; I’m not picky. You don’t need to cook specifically for me; the tutoring school provides three meals a day." After saying this, he slowly drank the soup, showing no expression, seemingly not all that fond of it.

"That’s not good, tutoring school meals are large pot food, neither healthy nor nutritious." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Ye Qiu again declined her goodwill, "I’ve always managed this way."

Han Hui stopped speaking. She didn’t know if her son harbored resentment, because he always spoke in such a manner, but it was indeed her oversight.

"Let’s eat first, talk less while eating." Ye Peilin saw his wife not knowing what to do, and said this, at the same time internally blaming his son for being insensible. Despite having good grades, he’s really unlikable; how did he end up raising such an annoyance?

Ye Qing watched her parents’ joy turning into silence, uncertain if she felt happy or unhappy. To be honest, when she learned that her brother was the top scorer in the college entrance exam, she panicked a bit, fearing her parents would start valuing her brother and overlook her.

But thankfully, her brother’s character remained unlikable. She hoped her parents knew, no matter how promising her brother may be in the future, she, their daughter, would always be their closest confidant, the one they can rely on in their old age.

After dinner, Ye Qiu took on the usual task of cleaning up the dishes but was stopped by Han Hui, "I’ll do it."

Ye Qiu asked, "What’s wrong with you today? Giving me chicken legs, now stopping me from washing dishes?"

His straightforward words left Han Hui even more unsure of what to say. Should she admit that she used to think her son’s grades were poor, so she let him do more chores to teach him responsibility?

Now knowing he was the top scorer, feeling guilty for wasting his study time?

Thinking this way, Han Hui really realized her son didn’t have much time to study at home. If he wasn’t doing chores, his sister would call him to run errands. Despite this, he became the top scorer; was he that diligent at school?