Chapter 65

That night, Wang Bo lay on his bed, feeling incredibly comfortable. Although he had only slept on the floor for one night, there was a saying that you only appreciate something after you lose it. He now had that feeling; he had never thought this bed was anything special before, but it turned out that only when he lay on it did he feel truly at ease.

He soon fell into a deep sleep, entering the dream system. He saw that his points had already reached 140. He first exchanged for a beginner-level teaching skill in Chinese. Yesterday, to avoid Ms. Xu really using extra classes to pay off her debt, he had confidently promised to achieve a satisfactory Chinese score in this exam to demonstrate her teaching ability.

So he hurriedly exchanged for this skill. After gaining the ability in a dazzling light, he looked at the remaining 130 points, resisting the urge to exchange for more. He decided to wait until the third task was completed, accumulate more points, and see if the next task list required any specific skills. Then he went to the task area and accepted the third task on the first list: to achieve a top 100 overall score in the mid-term exam.

He went to the maze staircase behind the small door for the second time. Relying on his memory, he smoothly descended to the third platform. Here, besides the way he came, there were two other paths, one down and two up. Last time, he chose to go down and woke up soon after, so this time he continued down to explore this path.

After walking for a while, he found himself on a platform that was identical to the second platform, with three upward staircases. He had a bad feeling, thinking he might be in a loop. He had just walked different paths but ended up in the same place.

Sure enough, when he chose the path to the side and went up, he found himself back at the third platform he remembered.

Wang Bo wandered around the starting point for a while, then had an idea. He tried scratching the ground with his fingernail and found that he could leave shallow marks on the platform's surface. So he went down, marking each platform with a character to indicate their order.

When he reached the third platform, he chose an upward path this time and found himself at the first platform. He tried to return the same way but ended up at the second platform, which thoroughly confused him.

Although he still managed to reach the third platform following the previous route, he didn't have much time left. Sure enough, after walking down the third path for a while, he left the dream, and the maze staircase trial once again yielded nothing.

He sighed in disappointment, closed his eyes, and continued to sleep.

On Tuesday morning, the mid-term exams began. The third-year students had a two-day break, and their classrooms were used as exam venues. The first and second-year students took the mid-term exams simultaneously, with some students being staggered due to insufficient exam rooms. According to the exam schedule, half of the students from Class 2-7 went to the third-year classrooms, leaving half the seats for the first-year students.

Wang Bo's row was staying in the classroom for the exam. When the first-year students arrived, they found that Class 1-3 students were filling in the gaps. The boys in the class were all excited to see Qi Jueying, wondering where she would sit.

Since the seats were not fixed, the first-year students could choose their own seats. Qi Jueying looked around, saw Wang Bo, smiled at him, and walked over to sit next to him, saying, "What a coincidence, senior. I didn't expect to sit next to you."

As she did so, low murmurs rippled through the classroom, and Wang Bo once again became the center of attention. Everyone whispered and gossiped, and a few first-year boys glared at him as if he were their mortal enemy.

Wang Bo, feeling a bit embarrassed, asked in a low voice, "There are so many empty seats. Why did you choose to sit here? Can't you sit next to a senior girl?"

"So what if we sit together? What's the big deal?" she muttered indifferently, starting to organize her pencil case for the exam.

At that moment, a junior student walked over from the front, nodded to Wang Bo, and called him "Brother Bo." They both looked up and saw that it was Xue Zhichao, the midfielder of the soccer team. His eyes showed a hint of respect, as if he was still grateful for what Wang Bo had done the other day.

Wang Bo also nodded in greeting, "Hello, find a seat." Xue Zhichao walked over to Jin Xiaoli, asked if he could sit there, and happily sat down after getting her permission, as if being close to Wang Bo would bring him some glory.

Qi Jueying gave Wang Bo a strange look and asked in a low voice, "He calls you Brother Bo? Are you really involved in something? I thought you were just bluffing the other day."

"I was just bluffing, but if he insists on calling me that, I can't just ignore it," Wang Bo said, feeling a bit helpless. Xue Zhichao's respectful attitude made him seem like a school thug. However, this also reminded the other boys of the recent rumors about a powerful figure in Class 2-7 who had the backing of Baihe Chasi, someone not to be messed with. Could this unassuming boy be that person? And if so, did Qi Jueying and he already know each other...

Qi Jueying's past in junior high was not a secret; she just didn't mention it. If you were willing to ask around, you'd find out she used to be a delinquent. However, instead of keeping their distance, the boys were drawn to her, finding a unique charm in her that other girls lacked, and were eager to serve her.

But there were also those who secretly speculated maliciously, wondering if she had been hanging out with the older boys in junior high and was not as innocent as she seemed. Some approached her with ulterior motives, hoping to one day break her innocent facade and gain bragging rights.

A boy with a rebellious look on his face emerged from the crowd and walked over to Wang Bo. The other first-year students watched closely, and a few began to whisper, thinking this troublemaker, a thorn in the side of the teachers, was about to make a move.

To everyone's surprise, Xue Zhichao immediately introduced him, "Brother Bo, this is my classmate Lei Hu. I mentioned him the other day; he used to be on the school team."

Lei Hu had a fierce appearance, and at first glance, he didn't seem like a good guy. He was about 1.8 meters tall, with a sturdy build like a bull, and his aura was that of a gangster. But when he spoke, it surprised everyone, "Brother Bo, hello. I watched your game at the sports center the other day; you were amazing. By the way, can I join your team this Sunday?"

"Uh, uh..." Wang Bo was a bit flattered, "Sure, come if you have time." "Thanks, Brother Bo!" Lei Hu's smile made his face even more unattractive, and he sat down next to Liu Yan, who looked very unwilling.

The invigilator entered, and the students who hadn't found seats quickly sat down. The exam officially began at eight o'clock. In the morning, they took Chinese and Politics, and in the afternoon, English and Chemistry. On Wednesday morning, they took Math and Physics, and in the afternoon, they had a half-day off, though students with club activities still had to attend.

The one and a half days of exams passed without incident. During the breaks, Qi Jueying didn't interact with him much, which made some people who had been closely watching them feel a bit better. After the exams, Wang Bo was very confident in his performance, but since the papers still needed to be graded and the scores tallied, the final results wouldn't be announced until Friday. He would have to wait a few more days to see if he had completed the task.

On Wednesday afternoon, the school soccer team's public training session began on the playground. No new students had volunteered to join, but since it was a break, many students were playing basketball nearby, and some were watching the soccer team's training.

The team now had 19 members. For the group training match, Zhang Guangda, to strengthen the defense, arranged for the original substitute striker Liu Haichuan to play as a center-back, joining the first team with Lu Guanghe. The other original starting center-back swapped positions with a second-team wing-back, forming a standard four-back formation for the first team.

However, the second team was already weaker than the first team. Although Wang Bo was assigned to the second team, they were still one player short, forming a 3-4-1 formation. The substitute striker Yan Weiming, who usually played as a winger, was the lone striker facing the four-back defense, feeling quite intimidated.

Wang Bo felt that his teammates seemed a bit intimidated before the game, so he asked Zhang Guangda, "Coach, is there a rule that only official team members can participate in training matches?"

"There's no such rule," Zhang Guangda knew what he was thinking, "Otherwise, those who come to try out wouldn't have a chance to play. Go ask the crowd over there if anyone wants to join. Tell them they won't be forced to stay." The lack of players was frustrating, as it made even the training matches difficult to arrange.

So Wang Bo went to the crowd of onlookers. He saw Lei Hu, who stood out with his fierce appearance, looking at him curiously. Wang Bo thought it was perfect; after all, this guy used to be on the school team. Although he was expelled and banned from representing the school in league matches due to a disciplinary action, it didn't mean he couldn't participate in training.

Thinking this, he didn't look for anyone else and directly called Lei Hu over, explained the situation briefly, and brought the excited boy back to the team's gathering point.

When Zhang Guangda saw him bring Lei Hu over, he was moved. Losing Lei Hu, a very promising player, had always been a regret for him. He had even argued with the school administration, but to no avail. The school rules were the school rules and couldn't be broken for special reasons.

After that incident, Lei Hu had become disheartened and left the team voluntarily. However, it seemed that after all this time, his love for soccer hadn't faded. After a period of low spirits, he couldn't resist the urge to play again. Although he couldn't participate in matches, he was willing to join the team for training just to play soccer.

Zhang Guangda thought for a moment. The school rules only stated that students with disciplinary actions couldn't represent the school in external matches, not that they couldn't participate in club activities. So he waved Lei Hu over, "Welcome back?"

Lei Hu nodded awkwardly, "Coach, give me a chance. I accept that I can't play in matches, but if I can participate in training, I can still contribute to the team."

"Alright, you're with the second team, in your old position," Zhang Guangda blew the whistle, "Form up, training starts now!"