"It's me, it's me!"
Gu Mingzhu grinned until her eyes narrowed into crescent moons. "Your Highness, I told you I'd make it to Class A without a hitch."
The crowd was still in shock, unable to believe their ears.
Did the headmistress just say the winner was... Gu Mingzhu?
"How is this possible? Headmistress, surely you must be mistaken?" Shen Lin'er couldn't help but speak up. "Look at Gu Mingzhu—she’s practically unteachable!"
"Mind your words, Second Miss Shen."
The headmistress's expression turned stern. "The exams were graded by me and the instructors personally. Every paper was anonymized beforehand—there’s no chance of error."
"Second Miss Shen, why can’t you accept that you lost?"
Gu Mingzhu skipped over to Shen Lin'er, her tone teasing. "What a shame—this time, it’s Gu Mingzhu who came out on top. What will you do about it?"
"You—!"
Shen Lin'er’s eyes reddened with fury. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined losing, let alone to Gu Mingzhu.
"Seems like no one believes in my abilities."
Gu Mingzhu tilted her head playfully. "Headmistress, please display my exam paper. I, Gu Mingzhu, stand by my achievements and fear no scrutiny."
"Besides, with a friend like Her Highness, how could I possibly be the 'unteachable Second Miss Gu' you all claim?"
Having thoroughly humiliated the onlookers, Gu Mingzhu turned to Song Shihuan with satisfaction. "Your Highness, did I make you proud?"
"Mingzhu, you were brilliant!"
Those words alone made all the hardships of studying worth it.
"Time to pack up and move to Class A!"
Gu Mingzhu practically floated with pride, delivering one final blow to Shen Lin'er. "Second Miss Shen, since you’re so close with Second Princess, you’ll have each other’s company in Class C. What could be better?"
"Second Princess!"
A sudden cry rang out—Song Xiyan had fainted on the spot.
Shen Lin'er stood there, torn between following suit or staying upright, her face ashen.
She had never set foot in Class C since enrolling!
......
At the Gu Residence.
"You said what?"
"General, the Second Young Miss defeated Second Princess and Second Miss Shen in the cross-class exam today and was promoted to Class A."
The servant delivering the news was practically vibrating with excitement—their young mistress had somehow become a top-tier student overnight.
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
After a stunned pause, Gu Zheng threw his head back in laughter. "Go! Hang red lanterns outside the estate! I’ll personally fetch Mingzhu from the academy. When she returns, set off firecrackers—two rounds!"
"General, the losers were Second Princess and Second Miss Shen..." The servant hesitated.
"All the more reason to celebrate! Make it four rounds."
Gu Zheng’s joy was uncontainable. Success had rejuvenated him by at least five years.
Thus, Gu Mingzhu received the grandest homecoming of her life.
Her father, who usually reached for the rod at the slightest provocation, doted on her the entire way home, not uttering a single harsh word.
Upon arriving, the deafening firecrackers nearly made her trip as she stepped out of the carriage. She shot Gu Zheng a bewildered look:
"Father, the firecrackers..." Wasn’t this a bit excessive?
"A special celebration for you."
Gu Zheng pondered, then decided it still wasn’t enough. "Mingzhu, come with me."
Half an hour later, Gu Zheng and Gu Mingzhu stood outside the Shen Residence.
"General Gu." Shen Pu couldn’t muster even a forced smile. Inside, Shen Lin'er was still wailing, and he desperately wanted to shoo the father-daughter pair away.
"My daughter’s narrow victory today left Second Miss Shen understandably upset. We brought a small gift to share some joy—Mingzhu, hand it to Minister Shen yourself."
Gu Mingzhu perked up immediately, eagerly passing the gift to Shen Pu while chirping:
"Class C isn’t so bad, Minister Shen. Do comfort Second Miss Shen—she’ll have Second Princess with her, after all."
Shen Pu felt blood rise in his throat.
"Well, it’s getting late. We’ll take our leave."
Having thoroughly irked Shen Pu, Gu Zheng and Gu Mingzhu departed in high spirits.
The next morning, thanks to the Gu family’s theatrics, even the stray dogs in the capital’s alleys knew Gu Mingzhu had ascended to Class A.
At the Qin Prince's Mansion:
"Gu Zheng clearly lacks decorum. When Ah Huan won last year, did I carry on like this?" Song Yu scoffed, lounging with his legs crossed.
Sure, rubbing it in the Shen family’s face was satisfying, but this was too much.
"Your Highness, you hosted a three-day banquet open to all commoners," Liuxi remarked dryly. "You also slashed prices at all Qin Prince's Mansion-affiliated shops for three days to 'share the joy.'"
"What?"
Song Yu looked genuinely shocked. "I went that far last year?"
Liuxi nodded. "You specifically ordered that every corner of the empire know of the princess’s victory."
Ahem.
Song Yu cleared his throat awkwardly. "A father’s pride in his daughter’s success is natural. Prepare two congratulatory gifts for the Gu family—one in my name, one in Ah Huan’s."
How embarrassing. He’d forgotten his own extravagance.
Liuxi scurried out, leaving Song Shihuan with her head bowed—though her trembling shoulders betrayed her struggle to contain laughter.
"The Shen and Pingwang factions took quite the blow. Feels good," Song Yu muttered, trying to save face.
Song Shihuan finally stifled her giggles. "The best part’s yet to come."
"Oh?"
"Mingzhu said she’s waited too long for this moment—she plans to savor it fully. You’ll see soon enough."
An hour later, the Qin Prince's Mansion gates echoed with drums and gongs. When Song Yu and Song Shihuan stepped out, Gu Mingzhu was belting:
"Without the guidance of Her Highness Princess Fu’an, how could I have surpassed Second Princess and Second Miss Shen to reach Class A? Princess Fu’an is the most noble, most brilliant lady of the empire—a model for us all!"
Gu Mingzhu had mastered the art of lifting one while trampling two.
The deafening percussion nearly blew Song Yu’s scalp off—yet he couldn’t stop grinning.
Why hadn’t he noticed before how eloquent this Gu girl was?
Reward her! Generously!
