Chapter 15: First Encounter with the Great Brother [Thanks to Brother Yezhijie Sports, the Alliance Leader]
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The draft came together in one go. Fang Xinghe reviewed it twice more, then suddenly wondered if the fatherly tone was a bit too strong. He pondered carefully for a moment, feeling that this kind of thing couldn't please everyone. The highest meaning that “an apple with a bite taken out of it” could express was pretty much what he had already conveyed. This wasn’t a long piece; due to its brevity, it could only follow a single thread, and to achieve a good effect, it had to evoke enough emotion. Once the emotion was too intense, some would love it deeply, while others would dislike it. No piece of writing is so great that everyone must like it. As long as it didn’t stray from the target audience, there was no need to be too demanding. Considering the target audience was teenagers from the era of print media, the current level of writing seemed just right. So Fang Xinghe made a simple polish to the text and finalized it. He copied the entire essay one last time, then raised his hand to submit it.
“All done?” The proctor smiled warmly, clearly viewing Fang Xinghe with a special regard. “There’s still time left. Aren’t you going to revise it again?”
The boy sensed this and smiled lightly, nodding. “No need for changes. It’s fine as it is.”
“Good, then you can leave. Be careful on your way.”
Fang Xinghe strode out casually.
By the end of March, the campus in the Magic City was already half embraced by spring; the rare bright weather brought warm sunshine. Walking along the path beside the old building toward the school gate, he found no one else around. Glancing back at the small building where the turbulent currents were brewing, the boy smiled gently and stretched with a carefree ease.
Who awakens first from the great dream?
Only I, the madman, know...
Arriving at the hotel, he politely asked the front desk where he could have his clothes ironed. The young lady there looked pleasantly surprised and quickly said, “Just hand me the clothes you want ironed, and I’ll get one of the logistics ladies for you.”
“Thanks, that’ll be all.” Fang Xinghe nodded sparingly, without smiling.
Yet the young lady still looked greatly encouraged and boldly asked, “Your eyes are so beautiful—are they natural?”
See, this is why Fang always acted aloof outside. It wasn’t because he was schizophrenic, but because these girls—big sisters and aunts alike—were too unrestrained.
You’re always like this; imagine how heartbreaking it is for those ugly guys to witness.
Fang Xinghe shook his head and patiently replied, “No, they only started changing slowly in the first year of middle school. I’ll go get the clothes now; please wait a moment.”
“No trouble at all! Hehehe...” The young lady squinted her eyes and let out a strange laugh. Without even seeing, it was clear she had fallen into the throes of a lovestruck fangirl syndrome.
Though it was only a brief exchange, in her mind, the story had probably already reached its climax, with baby names decided and all.
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Turning to go upstairs, Fang Xinghe finally couldn’t help but curl the corners of his lips.
Is it truly delightful to be adored so fervently?
To be honest, it’s incredibly delightful!
It satisfies the human vanity to the utmost.
Whether man or woman, hero or loser, putting on airs is a necessity; there’s no shame in admitting that.
If that kind of admiration isn’t just empty enthusiasm but also comes from genuine respect for one’s exceptional abilities, that’s even more exhilarating—like floating on air.
And this, in part, was what drove Fang Xinghe.
He took the full set of clothes to the front desk, then returned to continue working on practice problems.
At noon, when he went downstairs to eat, he overheard many contestants complaining about the difficulty of the questions, feeling strange, or saying they hadn’t performed well, and so on.
Perhaps with the contest over, everyone’s mood was more relaxed, so a few girls finally dared to… stare at Fang Xinghe.
But they just looked; they didn’t approach or speak, their initiative compared to future generations was indeed weak.
It wasn’t innocence but a personal awareness that struggled to overcome environmental limits—in short, their mindset wasn’t strong enough.
A big brother like him was different; he truly dared to speak out. A role model for us all.
Again, thinking of him all day long~~~
As the saying goes, where there is persistent thought, there will be an echo. That afternoon, when Fang Xinghe went to collect his clothes, he unexpectedly ran into Han Han in the hotel.
Teacher Li Qigang and Teacher Ye Zhaoyan accompanied Han Han, whose long hair fluttered as usual, along with a middle-aged man, passing through the corridor straight to an empty room.
Seeing Fang Xinghe, Teacher Li was especially pleased: “Xiao Fang, how’s the exam going?”
“Steady enough.”
Fang Xinghe wasn’t intentionally modest, then turned to look at Han Han.
At the same moment, Han Han looked up. When their eyes met, Han Haonan froze, his eyes wide and mouth slightly open—literally dumbfounded.
It seemed that a 99-point face had scared big brother off~~~
Actually, Han Shao was also a handsome young man, with no serious flaws in his features and a rather outstanding aura—80 points wasn’t unfair.
But looks suffer terribly from comparison; the gap between 99 and 95 is huge, let alone 99 against 80.
Hmm, this comparison was a bit cruel...
Fang Xinghe smiled at the stunned big brother, then turned to ask Li Qigang, “What’s going on here?”
“There was a contestant who wasn’t notified due to our oversight. His preliminary work was very good, and since he lives locally in Magic City, we arranged a separate opportunity for him to compete. We’re taking him for the exam.”
Teacher Li was sincere, as if he saw no problem explaining this to a child.
Fang Xinghe, guided by a “respect me and I’ll respect you” attitude, kindly reminded them:
“The reason doesn’t matter. Since you trust his level, his ability surely isn’t an issue. But procedural justice should still be observed. Would it be better to bring a notary?”
Teacher Ye suddenly clapped: “We were so busy, look at what a mess we made!”
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Teacher Li realized the issue and hurried toward the room: “I’ll call the notary office and ask Xiao Liu to come over. Let’s wait a bit.”
The middle-aged man wore a face full of fear and gratitude, quickly expressing thanks.
“Thank you, thank you! I really appreciate the reminder. Otherwise, if this kid scores well, he’d be doubted later. Young man, may I ask your name?”
“Fang Xinghe.”
The handsome young man nodded calmly, waving goodbye to the others with an air of ease.
“You all go take your exam. I’ll go back and keep practicing.”
The group entered the private room. Teacher Ye continued to praise Fang Xinghe without reservation.
“Xiao Fang is amazing—an orphan who came alone to compete. Not only is his writing level extremely high, but he’s also very independent and mature...”
Han Renjun nodded in agreement: “Indeed, you can tell at a glance—a phoenix on the outside, a dragon within.”
Han Han pressed his lips tightly, saying nothing, but his ambition was fully ignited.
He was never a bad person, but he was truly proud, never yielding to any peer.
Hearing everyone praise Fang Xinghe so highly, he silently vowed to write an outstanding article himself later, to show them all who the real dragon and phoenix were!
...
Around three in the afternoon, Fang Xinghe was working on a physics test for ninth grade when Teacher Ye knocked on his door with two ladies.
“Xiao Fang, you’re done? Finally, I can come see you.”
“Please sit, Teacher Ye.”
Fang Xinghe was very polite; arrogance and pride need not always be displayed—reserved strength was more potent.
“Let me introduce you...” Teacher Ye mentioned the names and professions of the two ladies, and Fang Xinghe immediately formed a rough judgment.
Wang Yali was the director of the third editing division at the Writers’ Publishing House, while Chen Danya was the sister of Chen Danqing and editor-in-chief of the Xinmin Evening News.
He was unfamiliar with the Writers’ Publishing House.
But he knew a bit about the Xinmin Evening News, which ranked roughly third in national circulation, just behind the People’s Daily and Southern Weekend.
Moreover, Xinmin was quite trendy; it already published electronic editions online, which Fang Xinghe always checked when searching for information.
After all, this was the inaugural New Concept Contest—anyone involved had connections ordinary people could only dream of...
Yet he remained very calm, showing no trace of flattery or being overwhelmed.
“Teacher Wang, Teacher Chen, hello. How can I help you?”