RAD Chapter 33

Spring passed and autumn arrived. In the blink of an eye, Luo Xiao and the others had finished their entrance exams for junior high school. As they exited the examination hall, there were those with smiles on their faces and those with worried expressions. “Xiao Yuzi, how did you do on the exam?”

Luo Xiao was just about to sigh when he felt a sudden force from behind. “I couldn’t even answer a few of the questions.”

Luo Xiao stumbled a few steps forward before managing to steady himself. Before he could say anything, he saw a figure approaching quickly out of the corner of his eye. Then the weight on his back disappeared all of a sudden.

What followed next was the sound of Ye Lan’s scolding voice, “Fan Lie, you’re not small anymore. Can you not be childish? Do you know that with your behavior just now, you could have accidentally knocked Xiaoxiao to the ground, and it will get him hurt!”

“I know, I know, you’re so annoying!” Fan Lie waved his hand and said impatiently. “I know my limits. Besides, I’m just playing around with Xiaoxiao. Why do you care so much?”

“You!” Ye Lan shot him an angry look. Sure enough, even if it’s already been so long, his dislike for a certain person only seems to intensify rather than dissipate.

“Enough, enough, you two should stop arguing with each other.” Luo Xiao found their constant clashes incredibly headache-inducing. He really couldn’t understand why they had to be at odds every time they met.

However, on a second thought, it seemed that the reason for their quarrels was often because of him. Should he feel honored? Well, he doesn’t really feel this. It was more like a misfortune, wasn’t it?

“Hmph, who would argue with such an idiot/nuisance? It’s lowering my status!” Ye Lan and Fan Lie said at the same time.

“Hehe, there is a sense of tacit understanding.” The corner of Luo Xiao’s mouth twitched.

“Hmph!”

Okay, these synchronized reactions again. Luo Xiao shrugged his shoulders, indicating that he’d rather not get involved in their banter. Otherwise, he might end up being the tragic one, just like last time. After all, he had experienced it firsthand.

“Brother Ren, you’re here?” Luo Xiao said a few words of greeting when he saw Hao Ren approaching. “How is it? Do you think the exam is okay?”

“Don’t know, it should be okay.” Hao Ren smiled and scratched the back of his head.

“I knew you’d be grinning like an idiot.” Fan Lie rolled his eyes and then turned to Luo Xiao to ask, “By the way, Xiao Yuzi, have you decided where to go for high school? No. 1 middle school or No. 2 middle school?”

Their town didn’t have a junior high school, but there were several in B City. Among them, the No. Middle School and No. 2 Middle School were considered the best. No. 1 Middle School had the most skilled teaching staff, while No. 2 Middle School, though a bit weaker, had the advantage of being closer to home.

Luo Xiao shook his head and explained his early decision, “I’m planning to go to the junior high school in S City.”

“Eh? Why?” Fan Lie was surprised and asked loudly. Hao Ren who was beside him also wore a puzzled expression. Only Ye Lan had no trace of surprise on his face. After all, it didn’t matter to him where Luo Xiao studied. As long as he could study with Xiaoxiao, it would be fine.

“As you all know, I was learning from a teacher. He mentioned that S City would be better for my development, so he advised me to study in junior high school there.” Luo Xiao had already spoken to his master about this. With his master’s support, his mother and godmother agreed to his decision to go to S City for further studies.

“Why is that? Now we won’t be able to go to and from school together in the future.” Fan Lie suddenly pouted his mouth with distress. “Xiao Yuzi, I hate you!”

After letting out those words and without waiting for Luo Xiao to explain anything, he slung his schoolbag over his shoulder and directly turned and ran away. Hao Ren looked at him with hesitation, then sighed and patted Luo Xiao’s shoulder before going to follow Fan Lie.

Watching the two departing figures that were slowly disappearing, Luo Xiao felt bad in his heart. He gently asked Ye Lan, “Yezi, tell me, do you think I did something wrong?”

Ye Lan hugged Luo Xiao’s shoulder and said, “Xiaoxiao, you did nothing wrong. Each of us will eventually say goodbye at some point. Trust me, they are your best friends, and they will definitely understand you.”

“Is that so?” Luo Xiao nodded uncertainly. It was also because of this reason that he waited until after the exams to tell them about it.

On the day the results were announced, Luo Qian and Xu Yan specifically took time off from work to accompany Luo Xiao to school to check the scores. After all, his grades would determine what kind of school he could attend in S City in the future. Although Mr. Huo had already stated that he had connections in S City and could get Luo Xiao into the best school even if he scored poorly, Luo Xiao declined. He still wanted to rely on his own abilities to get admitted to that school.

As he approached the school gate, he caught sight of Fan Lie rushing towards him with an excited expression on his face. “Xiao Yuzi, Xiao Yuzi, congratulations!”

“Congratulations?” A small expectation emerged in Luo Xiao’s heart. Could it be…?

“That’s right, I’ve already checked the bulletin board. You are one of the top-scoring students in our school this time!” Fan Lie excitedly slapped Luo Xiao’s shoulder.

Looking at Fan Lie, who was so happy for him, Luo Xiao couldn’t help but speak, “A Lie, you…”

Fan Lie scratched his nose. “What about me?”

“Nothing.” Luo Xiao sensed that he was feeling slightly awkward and shifted the topic, “By the way, apart from me, who else did well in the exam?”

Hearing his question, Fan Lie gritted his teeth for a few seconds. The reason? That guy didn’t take class as seriously as him and had only average performance in exams, yet he managed to get a score equal to Xiao Yuzi’s in this exam. This must be a mistake made by the examiners!

“It’s that annoying guy,” he grumbled with unwillingness.

Luo Xiao nodded. So it was true? This person was their classmate and the Xiao Gong—Ye Lan. That’s right, he didn’t pay attention in class because he had already studied the junior high school curriculum by himself and had even started reading high school textbooks. Elementary school questions were a piece of cake for him.

If Luo Xiao’s current academic performance is all because of advantages from his previous life, then Ye Lan is truly a genius and a hardworking young man.

However, as Luo Xiao looked at Fan Lie opposite him and Hao Ren walking over, he still hesitated and wanted to clarify, “A Lie, are you really not mad anymore? Last time when I went to look for you…”

Nearly a month has passed since the exams ended and now they are checking for the results. Initially, he had gone to Fan Lie’s house a few times to look for him, but Fan Lie was not there each time. After three or four tries, Luo Xiao realized that the other party clearly didn’t want to see him. For this reason, he felt sad for a long time, thinking he was about to lose his good friend. Unexpectedly, today…

Fan Lie awkwardly rubbed his nose. “Actually, I forgave you when you came to find me for the second time. But you know, I felt a bit uncomfortable in my heart, so I didn’t come out to see you. Later, when I saw that you didn’t come find me again, I thought you were mad at me and ignored me for not seeing you and avoiding you every time. I felt even more embarrassed to look for you, so…”

“Why would I be mad at you!” Luo Xiao quickly clarified.

“Yeah, I know.” Fan Lie nodded and then embraced Luo Xiao’s shoulder. “Xiao Yuzi, I’ve figured it out. Even if you go elsewhere, we’re still best friends. When it’s time for a break, I’ll go there to hang out with you. You definitely have to make time for us!”

To tell the truth, what Fan Lie really wanted to say was to spend time with him alone. However, seeing that Hao Ren had already walked over to them, he had to add ‘us’ at the last moment.

“Okay, that’s a must!” Luo Xiao promised and patted his chest.

“Aunt Luo, Aunt Xu, do you want to check the bulletin board?” Hao Ren rubbed Luo Xiao’s hair, then looked up and suggested it to Luo Qian and Xu Yan.

Even though Luo Qian and Xu Yan had already heard Xiaoxiao’s results from Fan Lie, they still wanted to see them with their own eyes. Following Hao Ren to the bulletin board, someone suddenly shouted, “Look, the top student’s mother is here!”

Suddenly, the people around them turned their heads to look at them.

“Ah, it’s Luo Qian. Your family’s Xiaoxiao is really promising!”

“Yes, yes. Look, he’s the town’s top scorer!”

“Right, I heard you’re going to a junior high school in S City? Our Lele also did well in the exam this time. How about bringing us along too?”

“Yes, yes, our family’s Xiaoqiang too!”

“And ours too!”

Watching the suddenly excited crowd surround them, Luo Xiao and the others were almost squeezed into a meat bun.

Although S City isn’t very far from their town because it is a separate city-level area established by the country, it is on the same administrative level as Z Province, where they are located. Going to study or work in S City wasn’t a simple matter.

This was because S City was an extremely exclusive city at this time. They jointly referred to people with non-local household registrations as outsiders.

For these outsiders, they held a general disdain from the bottom of their hearts, and it goes without saying that they had no intention of letting them integrate into their community.

So if you wanted to study in S City, there was only one way, which was to obtain a household registration there. Under the arrangement of Mr. Huo, Luo Xiao’s family successfully acquired the household registration certificate for S City in the previous week. Therefore, Luo Xiao’s plan to study in City S was no longer an issue. As for our young master Ye, he naturally had his own ways of solving this problem.

“Stop! Everyone calm down, calm down!” Luo Qian shouted loudly. “Who did you all hear this from?”

“We heard it from someone. It’s been said that the household registrations of several members of your family have been moved out! Did you move them to S City?”

“No, no, don’t make up things.” Luo Qian purposely didn’t tell them the truth. There is no other choice. If these people really confirm that their family’s household registration has been moved to S City, then they will practically be breaking down their door!

“Huh? Really no? Don’t lie to us! If you didn’t move to S City, how come you moved your household registration out?”

“Our family’s situation is well known among the people here in the town. You all should understand it. How could we possibly have the ability to move to S City?”

“That does make sense!” Upon hearing her words, the people around her nodded. Who in the town didn’t know about their family’s situation? Considering this, the credibility of the news of them moving to S City is not high.

“So, is it true that your family’s Xiaoxiao is going to study middle school in S City?”

Luo Qian nodded. “That part isn’t wrong. But it’s also because S City is recruiting students from the surrounding areas. As long as they meet their score requirements, students are allowed to attend school.”

Luckily, there was still this piece of news to cover things up. Otherwise, she really wouldn’t know how to respond. She would also like to express her gratitude to Mr. Huo for bringing over the enrollment brochures of several schools in S City to Luo Xiao!

“Really?” The surrounding people quickly perked up upon hearing this. “Then what’s the score requirement?”

“You can look for the principal (who just transferred here from another place) to ask about it. We also got this information from him,” Luo Xiao stepped forward and said at the right timing. He had just noticed the familiar cover of the book in the principal’s hand as he passed by. Thinking about it carefully, wasn’t that the enrollment brochure for S-City? It really seems that heaven is helping him!

After shooing away the people around them, Luo Xiao and the others finally heaved a sigh of relief. Fan Lie quickly lifted his hand and made a vow, “Xiaoxiao, I really didn’t say anything!”

“Yes, I know.” Luo Xiao narrowed his eyes and nodded. In fact, he already had a rough guess about the identity of the person who had leaked the news. Speaking of which, some people are really…