Chapter Eighty-Three: The Outcome Is Predestined

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"Mr. Zhao, why Qin Anyi? Even within our class, Qin Anyi's grades are just average, and in the whole grade, there's no way he stands out. I can't agree with the school's decision," a boy suddenly stood up and declared with righteous indignation. Instantly, a wave of agreement swept through the class.

How could all the good things fall to just one person? Why is it that this Qin Anyi, who has been almost invisible for over two years, suddenly attracts Wang Yiran's favor, and now even the school leadership seems to see him in a different light? More importantly, Qin Anyi has never demonstrated any extraordinary abilities in front of the average students here, so none of them are truly convinced by him. What has accumulated instead is a sense of resentment and complaint.

Zhao Guoping frowned, somewhat surprised that his announcement had sparked such strong opposition in the class. After all, from any perspective, having Qin Anyi as a seed candidate to represent the school in the knowledge competition does not harm the interests of any other student. In fact, it’s an honor for Class 2, Grade 12, to suddenly have two representatives—it should be something the students feel proud of.

Then Zhao Guoping recalled the recent rumors about Qin Anyi and Wang Yiran being romantically involved. Perhaps... it has something to do with that? Although romantic relationships are strictly forbidden, and this is a well-established school rule, since rules are made by people, naturally there are ways to bend them.

So, Qin Anyi must have gotten the spot because Wang Yiran exercised her right to recommend someone! Yan Tao, therefore, never took Qin Anyi seriously. He was simply too upset and decided to challenge him publicly; as long as he could embarrass Qin Anyi, it would feel like justice.

Never did Yan Tao imagine that things would turn out like this... Qin Anyi actually took the initiative to propose a contest? Was he out of his mind? Where did this confidence come from?

"Why so silent all of a sudden? If you're not confident, I won't force you," Qin Anyi blinked, feigning kindness.

"Not confident? Against you? Hmph! Fine, since you're so eager to humiliate yourself, I'll grant your wish. Say it—what shall we compete in?" Yan Tao, furious, left his seat and strode up to the podium, glaring at Qin Anyi without backing down.

As the vice class monitor of Class 2, Yan Tao’s grades have always been among the top five. Before entering Changqing No. 1, he was a star student at his junior high, and even now, in this school full of geniuses, he ranks among the top in the grade. He has always thought highly of himself and saw Qin Anyi as a nobody—a lucky fool who only managed to get Wang Yiran’s favor by accident, with no real ability of his own, relying entirely on a woman to obtain such benefits!

"Anything goes?" Qin Anyi tilted his head with a mischievous grin.

Yan Tao snorted and didn't even look at him, his disdain clear.

"Then, let's arm wrestle," Qin Anyi said seriously, rolling up his sleeves.

"What? Arm wrestling?" Yan Tao was stunned, his eyes fixed on Qin Anyi, thinking he must have misheard.

"Of course. Didn't you say anything goes?" Qin Anyi asked with feigned surprise.

Though his build was ordinary—neither tall nor particularly strong—he had always done part-time work outside, so he was known in Class 2 for his strength. In PE class, he consistently did the most pull-ups in the class. Meanwhile, Yan Tao was slender, the standard image of a top student—so thin that a gust of wind might knock him over, with a gaunt face... If it really came down to arm wrestling, even two Yan Taos might not match one Qin Anyi.

"Nonsense! We're supposed to see who’s more qualified to represent the school in the knowledge competition—what does arm wrestling have to do with it?" Yan Tao shouted, his anger boiling over.

The whole class burst into laughter. Seeing Yan Tao’s flustered state, many found it amusing.

"So you just can’t do it, huh? You could’ve said so earlier. Before, when I asked what you'd like to compete in, you insisted anything was fine. Now look—too stubborn for your own good. All right, you decide what to compete in. I’ll accept anything," Qin Anyi replied, looking aggrieved.

"You’re the one who can’t do it! Qin Anyi, get this straight—we need to compete in things that matter! You blockhead—all brawn and no brains!" The laughter from their classmates left Yan Tao thoroughly embarrassed, and he lost control, shouting in frustration.

"Yan Tao, please mind your language. Do not verbally attack your classmates," Zhao Guoping interjected with a frown, his impression of Yan Tao slipping.

Realizing his outburst, Yan Tao quickly composed himself. "Mr. Zhao, since we’re supposed to decide who is more suitable to represent the school, I suggest we compare our knowledge. The competition requires a broad range of knowledge, which is hard to test here, but there are always some extremely challenging math problems in every competition. So I hope you can invite Mr. Wang, our math teacher, to set a few difficult problems for us. The outcome will be clear enough."

"What do you think, Qin Anyi?" Zhao Guoping turned to ask. In his view, Wang Yiran’s recommendation of Qin Anyi must have been based on his extraordinary memory, hoping he could gain an edge in the general knowledge section. As for mathematics... the human mind has its limits; people with exceptional memories often don’t fare well with complex math problems.

What he didn’t expect was for Qin Anyi to simply shrug. "Anything’s fine by me. As long as Yan Tao is confident, I’m willing. After all, the result is already determined—I just want him to lose convincingly."