July 7, 1984 – certain students from Anqing County First High School will never forget this day.

These students were those assigned to the Hedong County examination site. No matter how formidable Xia Xiaolan might become later, everyone remembered her disheveled appearance at the exam site that day.

This memory wasn’t one of mockery but of admiration.

If Xiaolan could take the exam in such a condition, what did they have to fear with their healthy bodies?

“Xiaolan, you… Xiaolan, you can do it! You’ll get into Huaqing University!”

Chen Qing accompanied Xia Xiaolan to her classroom door. Though they took the exam at the same school, they were in different rooms. At this point, he couldn’t discourage her from taking the exam – he could only cheer her on! Such determination for education and prospects required incredible courage, burning bridges with no way back! Learning from Xiaolan’s spirit, Chen Qing suddenly cheered loudly, drawing looks from others who seemed to think him foolish.

Huaqing University?

Was he joking?

How many students from the entire province could get into Huaqing University? This girl with her right hand in a cast? That was ridiculous boasting. Looking at Xia Xiaolan again, the male students noticed her beauty and averted their eyes, unwilling to be cruel.

What could Xia Xiaolan say? Others’ skeptical gazes couldn’t stop her from taking the exam.

She easily found her pre-selected seat. She had quite an entourage outside – Li Dongliang had rushed back from Yang City, plus Ge Jian and her mother Liu Fen waiting outside. Last night, she’d called Zhou Cheng but hadn’t dared mention her fractured bone. When Zhou Cheng told her to just do her best, Xia Xiaolan looked at her casted right hand and agreed, showing no sign of distress.

An hour before, Xia Xiaolan had taken painkillers. Like the mock exam, Chinese was first.

There was so much writing to do – she steeled herself and took two pills.

The proctors watched her closely. Every year had students taking exams while ill – some on crutches, some with fever, some with colds… but how could someone write with a cast?

And Xia Xiaolan had other injuries too.

Her elbow and knee scrapes had just scabbed over. In the heat, worried about infection under bandages, she’d removed them, applying only iodine before coming.

The proctor’s speech was similar to the mock exam but much stricter!

Even those who weren’t nervous before now had trembling hands.

When the Chinese exam papers were distributed, Xia Xiaolan tried writing her name – her wrist didn’t hurt much. She focused on answering questions, already writing slowly, and worried about completing the essay in time. She tackled each question methodically, and despite her injury, her mindset was steadier than other examinees.

Some first-time test-takers trembled for minutes before daring to write.

They recognized individual characters but couldn’t comprehend them combined, the words swimming before their eyes.

Seeing Xia Xiaolan already answering despite her cast made others anxious… but she ignored them, entering her closed world once she picked up her pen. She couldn’t lose points on questions she knew, tried to score on ambiguous ones, and left uncertain fill-in-the-blanks to fate – essentially guessing.

She felt she’d done well on the Chinese exam, which wasn’t too difficult.

But she wrote slower than others, with one-third of the essay remaining when her wrist began aching.

She had to slow down further, finishing with just ten minutes left for a single review.

She changed one multiple-choice answer but left everything else unchanged.

Turning in her Chinese exam finally made it feel real. Regardless of performance, her score was now set, and she shouldn’t dwell on it.

She didn’t skip lunch, rest, or painkillers – all three were essential.

The afternoon brought Chemistry.

This wasn’t her strongest subject, but it required less writing. She left the exam room feeling relaxed.

She refused to discuss answers with anyone who asked.

Some questions she was certain about, but sharing different answers would only upset others.

“Don’t compare answers, focus on the next subject!”

She told everyone this, including Chen Qing. Others grumbled but let it go. She ate dinner with Chen Qing, who was curious about Li Dongliang and Ge Jian but was too well-mannered to ask.

Liu Fen urged Chen Qing to eat more, “Auntie’s treating you to this meal, do well on your exam.”

Being from the same village, and with Chen Wangda having helped them so much, Liu Fen was very kind to Chen Qing.

Walking back after dinner, Xia Xiaolan asked him:

“Did you figure out those problems I gave you yesterday?”

Chen Qing nodded. He didn’t even study his teachers’ key points this seriously but blindly trusted anything from Xia Xiaolan. It wasn’t just her good grades – it was also a youth’s idealization of his crush; everything Xia Xiaolan said must be right.

Xia Xiaolan didn’t say more.

Chen Qing’s scores were borderline – with good performance, he might make a top university; with poor performance, he might repeat last year’s outcome.

The next morning, when the Math exam arrived, Xia Xiaolan quickly scanned the entire paper.

Her heart settled!

Taking the exam with a cast and painkillers was worth it for this Math paper – it matched her memory exactly, even the numbers hadn’t changed.

The 1984 exam, notorious as the hardest Math test in history – this paper made Xia Xiaolan certain of her success.

What was an injury? To those who thought they could stop her success, Xia Xiaolan would make them watch her triumph. Even if they gouged out their eyes to avoid seeing it, the brilliant light would still burn their ugly, narrow souls!

She breezed through the Math paper.

No hesitation, no stumbling, while many other examinees were paralyzed by the questions! Those who wrote did so grimly, unsure about formulas, leaving their fate to chance…

After the Math exam, the room filled with crying.

Not wailing, but tears of despair.

Chen Qing was dazed. Everyone said it was difficult, with strange, tricky questions, and he agreed it was hard.

But of the five major problems at the end, three matched what Xia Xiaolan had shared. Different numbers, but how could he forget the methods? Each question was worth over 10 points – while others despaired, Chen Qing effortlessly gained 30 points in Math.

Worth more than 30 yuan, 300 yuan… even 30,000 yuan!

Higher comparisons exceeded Chen Qing’s imagination.

Xia Xiaolan would never admit it, claiming coincidence, even decades later when they were old – she’d still tell Chen Qing it was just coincidence!