Chapter 14: Tingting 12

As soon as she mentioned Han Tingting, the crowd below began to applaud. In particular, the two "loyal followers" beside Tan You were stamping their feet and whistling with such excitement that they seemed more thrilled than if they themselves had ranked first.

Sensing the excitement and joy of her two classmates, Tan You couldn't help but curl her lips into a slight smile. This feeling was truly wonderful; for the first time, she was receiving kindness that was entirely devoid of jealousy.

The two parents sitting in front of Han Cunming were beaming with excitement: "So outstanding!"

Tan You was stunned. Ninth in the entire city? Was that for real? She had never achieved such a score before. Wasn't it supposed to be very difficult? Tan You began to recall her final exams; at the time, she indeed felt the papers were quite challenging.

However, she had practiced many difficult problems over the past two months. No matter how hard they were, she just had to solve them one by one. Tan You only remembered that she finished the math paper just as the papers were being collected; it was the first time an exam had taken her so long.

When the papers were being collected, Tan You had only felt that the exam went smoothly. At that time, she hadn't yet unlocked her "score calculation" skill; she only knew that although the paper was difficult, she felt she had performed reasonably well.

After the cheering subsided slightly, Wang Lanfeng spoke again: "Everyone has seen Han Tingting's performance over the past two months. You all know how diligent she is. Hard work pays off, especially when it comes to studying."

"You are students, and a student's primary task is to learn. I hope everyone will learn from Han Tingting. As long as you do not give up on yourselves, your teachers will not give up on you either."

As she said this, Tan You suddenly looked up, and her eyes met Wang Lanfeng's. As if burned by Tan You's gaze, Wang Lanfeng shifted her eyes away with a hint of guilt.

Ever since the words "ninth in the entire city" were uttered, Han Cunming had fallen into a state of stupor. He hadn't heard a single cheer or clap from the crowd. His granddaughter was ninth in the whole city?

It wasn't until the parent-teacher meeting ended and the glittering certificate was placed in his hands that Han Cunming felt a sense of reality. He gently stroked the certificate: "This is your first certificate. I'm going to hang it up when we get home."

Tan You said expressionlessly, "There will be more in the future."

Han Cunming was somewhat stubborn: "That's different. This one is different."

As he spoke, his face lit up with a wide smile. This was the first time Tan You had seen Han Cunming smile like this; usually, he kept a stiff face and looked very stern and fierce.

Now that he was smiling, he appeared much gentler.

Tan You had originally intended to say goodbye to Teacher Shi, as the next time they would meet would be after the New Year. However, only the homeroom teachers were in the office, and the teachers of other subjects had not come, which left Tan You feeling somewhat disappointed.

She particularly liked Teacher Shi; he was her favorite math teacher to date. At this moment, Tan You did not know that after the New Year, her favorite Teacher Shi would no longer be teaching the eighth grade, but would return to teaching high school.

Of course, that was a story for later.

Before she even reached the boarding house, the news of Tan You ranking ninth in the city had already spread far and wide. The moment she stepped through the door of the boarding house, the proprietress smiled at Tan You like a blooming flower.

"Tingting, you are truly amazing! Congratulations, you did so well this time."

Tan You found it difficult to respond to others' kindness. She managed a strained smile: "Thank you, Auntie. I will work harder in the future."

After saying that, Tan You ran upstairs in a few quick strides. The proprietress laughed: "Your Tingting can't take a compliment at all; she's too thin-skinned. This won't do; she'll be easily tricked away by others with just a few words."

Han Cunming took this seriously: "Then what should be done?"

The proprietress offered a suggestion: "Praise her more! Take her to see the world. Once she has seen more of the world, it will be harder for people to trick her."

Han Cunming took these words to heart. Wasn't it just about seeing the world? Yun City was a great place, more than enough for him to take his granddaughter to see the world.

Indeed, Han Cunming intended to take his granddaughter to find her former daughter-in-law. Upon seeing Tan You's report card and certificate, Han Cunming had made this decision.

Since the child had a talent for studying, he would find every possible way to ensure his granddaughter continued her education; he would be the villain if necessary.

"To Yun City? Right now?" Tan You was stunned by Han Cunming's decision just as she was about to prepare dinner after putting the luggage down at home.

"Yes, right now." Han Cunming was very serious: "The New Year is only a couple of days away. If we go early, we can get the money sooner and have peace of mind."

Since Han Cunming was taking the lead, Tan You did not interfere. It seemed that, for now, the old man had become completely invested in her studies.

After successfully catching a bus, by four in the afternoon, Tan You and Han Cunming were already standing at the doorstep of Han Guangzhi's house—Han Tingting's biological father. Han Guangzhi had married in Yun City two years ago and had a young son this year, so he simply stopped returning to his hometown altogether.

Han Cunming showed no sign of embarrassment. Han Guangzhi had married in another city, and his young grandson had taken the wife's surname, which wasn't much different from being a live-in son-in-law.

The current daughter-in-law poured a cup of tea for Han Cunming, then glanced at Han Tingting, appearing momentarily surprised. She knew Han Guangzhi had a daughter with his ex-wife—a girl raised in the countryside—but how different could she be?

But looking at her now, although her clothes were a bit old, they were washed very clean. Indeed, the first impression this girl gave was one of cleanliness; her hair was neatly combed, and she looked quite composed.

After entering the house, her curiosity lasted only a moment before she sat down properly, her eyes not wandering around.

Li Xiaomei nodded slightly. At first glance, this stepdaughter did not seem unlikable.

"Dad, Guangzhi is still at work; he won't be back until five-thirty. Have some tea first. This is Tingting, right? Have some candy to sweeten your mouth."

As she spoke, she pushed a candy dish toward her, which contained candies as well as various seeds and peanuts. Tan You glanced at it and thanked her politely: "Thank you, Auntie. I'll just have the tea."

She truly did not like things like seeds and peanuts; not only did she dislike them, but neither did Han Tingting.

While Li Xiaomei was observing Han Tingting, Tan You was also observing her. From Han Tingting's memories, she knew this woman was Han Guangzhi's current wife. Of course, Han Tingting had not spent much time with her because Li Xiaomei had always been in Yun City.

Furthermore, after Han Tingting dropped out of school and married, she had even less contact with her biological parents. Seeing Li Xiaomei now, Tan You unconsciously compared her to the version of her in Han Tingting's memories.

She seemed a bit younger. Thinking of this, Tan You chuckled to herself; of course she was young, she wasn't even forty yet.

Both Han Tingting and Han Cunming were people of few words, and Li Xiaomei felt somewhat awkward since she wasn't close to them. Just then, her young son started crying, so Li Xiaomei used the excuse of taking care of the child to retreat into a room.