With only five days left until the college entrance examination, they were still shooting magazine covers.
Originally, the small study room on the 17th floor of SPF’s G Building was specifically set aside to display posters, albums, and other items. In addition to the five major fashion magazines, they also had to cooperate with official media and several major portals for special interviews. The scripts piled up on the shelves like small mountains.
During the breaks in makeup, Huo Ren silently recited with his eyes closed.
He had a photographic memory, and he remembered the placement of illustrations in every book very clearly in his mind.
It was more like flipping through every page of the textbook from beginning to end, checking if there were any blurry or incomplete parts.
Bo Jue walked over on tiptoes and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his hair dyed in dark chocolate gray.
The silver color was too eye-catching and could easily attract the attention of invigilators.
“Jue-ge?”
“We discussed it and still want to accompany you to the examination,” Bo Jue said in a gentle voice. “This is a very important milestone in your life, so don’t decline.”
“But what about the paparazzi and reporters…”
“On our schedule, we publicly stated that we are going out for interviews,” Bo Jue smiled. “A few smoke bombs have already been released, so there’s no problem.”
And indeed, there was no problem.
This year, there were traffic restrictions near the examination venues, and vehicles accompanying candidates had to obtain permits in advance and display them by the windshield. No one was denied entry.
They changed to a relatively low-key van and drove in, only to discover that it was a scene of wealth and luxury. There were all kinds of luxury cars, and some candidates were hurriedly eating sea cucumbers before going in for the exam.
The five little idols hid in the car and waved to Huo Ren, whose face was covered by a mask. “Good luck! Captain is the best!”
Huo Ren nodded, holding a transparent document bag, and headed straight for the security checkpoint.
Most of the senior high school students were busy with their exams, and even if they had seen the explosive variety show back in February, it had long been forgotten, and they wouldn’t recognize a special presence in the vast crowd.
His examination room was in Room 205 of the North Building of the First High School. Due to the long queue at the security checkpoint, when he arrived, there was already a long line of students standing at the classroom door.
The invigilator standing at the door was using a metal detector to scan each student’s chest and back. When she saw him, she pointed to his face and said, “Student, please take off your mask. We need to verify your identification to prevent cheating.”
She inexplicably felt that this thin and tall boy looked very familiar, and his eyes were determined and spirited.
Huo Ren casually took off his mask and put it in his pocket, revealing his entire face.
He had just changed his hair color, and he didn’t wear any makeup today. At first glance, he didn’t resemble the captain on the cover of Corona’s official account.
However, the invigilator, Xiao Hu, had been obsessively gushing over the captain’s appearance under Sister’s Weibo early this morning.
“The captain’s ethereal beauty! Cain has all the sharpness and style of a 21st-century pretty boy, ahhhh!!”
“Why do I have to work overtime tomorrow? I really don’t want to go pick up the brats and follow their schedule. I can’t accept it! TAT”
When Xiao Hu saw the student’s face clearly, she was completely dumbfounded.
What? Why does this kid look so much like my newly discovered bias??
She was conscious of the other students waiting behind and quickly glanced at his ID card’s name and photo.
Huo. Ren.
Eighteen years old.
The invigilator felt like her brain was blanked out by the divine thunder of Sister’s enlightenment.
“No issues with the identification,” she instinctively said. “You… you can go in.”
Fuck! I’m invigilating for my idol??
“Xiao Hu, don’t be nervous. Remember to perform the security check on this child,” another teacher nearby was signing a document and pointed at the time. “It’s still early, why the rush?”
Huo Ren calmly opened his arms, signaling her to use the scanner to touch him front and back.
Xiao Hu thought, this is too exciting.
On the first day of overtime, not only do I get to be in close contact with my idol, but I can also use the metal detector on him.
Forget about loving overtime, I’m willing to dedicate myself to the school for another five hundred years!
Huo Ren thought, this teacher is indeed a bit nervous. Why are her hands shaking when scanning my back?
As he walked into the classroom, more than thirty examinees simultaneously looked up, and the expressions of two or three girls instantly changed.
One daring girl directly asked, “Are you Huo Ren?”
A few boys next to her sneered, thinking it was just another popular internet celebrity from a high school.
Huo Ren smiled and nodded, “Good luck on the college entrance examination.”
“Weren’t you just debuted?!” Another girl’s voice trembled, “You’re taking the college entrance examination today too!”
“Why didn’t we hear any rumors? Oh my god, I’m in an entertainment headline scene!!”
“I even told my dad that if I get into a top university, he should buy me the most expensive tickets for your first concert as Corona…”
Two invigilators returned with the exam papers in their bags.
“Quiet!”
The entire room fell silent immediately, but several pairs of eyes were still staring at Huo Ren sitting in the middle of the first row.
The older teacher didn’t pay attention to entertainment news at all and strictly recited the examination discipline to the students.
Xiao Hu, on the other hand, wrote down the exam time and subjects at the fastest speed of her life, then swiftly turned around and stood next to the lectern, pretending to listen to the senior’s lecture while actually stealing glances at her bias’s profile.
So handsome. I’m dead. Why are kids nowadays so good-looking?
The first subject was Chinese language.
Huo Ren was skilled at writing, occasionally pausing for a few seconds while looking at the exam paper. His handwriting was fluent and beautiful.
The invigilators didn’t allow the use of phones or any noise during the examination.
Teacher Xiao Hu didn’t dare to disturb her idol while he was answering the questions. She volunteered to sit at the back and ensure exam discipline while her mind was in complete chaos.
Wait a minute, I’m not the most excited fangirl here!
Her colleague, Ah Fen, is the true gem girl. After the variety show aired on February 10th, she posted ten incoherent and tearful moments on her social media. Now her phone case is adorned with the six-member Crown’s photos.
—So when she comes to invigilate the mathematics exam this afternoon, she’s likely to explode on the spot!!
Xiao Hu imagined the whole scenario with reverence, and the blank and tedious invigilation time became more precious than every minute and second.
When it was time to collect the exam papers, she finally made her way to Huo Ren and also took the opportunity to confirm if his exam admission ticket and ID number were filled in correctly.
Damn, my bias’s handwriting is too good.
Was he a printer in his past life? Is this thin gold style or some other style of calligraphy??
“Thank you, teacher,” Huo Ren said with a smile.
Xiao Hu’s face turned red instantly, and she silently collected the papers without daring to speak to him.
“Students in the front, don’t move! Once you’re done with the exam, don’t touch your pens anymore!”
She sealed the exam paper bag quickly and rushed to the neighboring office to find Ah Fen, who would be invigilating the same session for the afternoon mathematics exam. Xiao Hu covered her chest, gasping for breath as she spoke, “Fen Fen Fen, you absolutely can’t guess who I saw—”
Ah Fen was still busy signing her name. “Who did you see?”
Xiao Hu took a deep breath and whispered two syllables in her ear.
“Don’t joke around,” Ah Fen gave her a stern look. “Consider this a warning. If you joke about him again, as a devoted fan, I’ll be the first one to take you down.”
“He’s eighteen this year, I saw his ID card. In person, he’s tall and thin, at least 1.85 meters, and super polite!” Xiao Hu wiped her own neck. “If I’m lying, I won’t be able to snatch a ticket for the rest of my life!”
Ah Fen froze in place, like a statue. “Say it again.”
“He’s taking the college entrance examination this year, are you dumb? You’ll be invigilating his mathematics exam in the afternoon!”
“What the fuck?!” Ah Fen nearly crashed into the desk. “You didn’t fall asleep during invigilation, did you?”
“Don’t put on makeup, don’t wear perfume, and don’t stare at him during the exam. Let’s just focus on invigilating properly and completing our work successfully,” Xiao Hu warned, afraid she might do something foolish. “It would be great if you can get a close look from the front row, just hold it together!”
“I won’t embarrass myself. The problem is…” Ah Fen took a sharp breath. “Is it really that Huo Ren? The one from Crown??”
A male teacher passed by the door and saw the two invigilators embracing each other with tears of joy. He thought, even if this year’s exam papers are easy, it shouldn’t cause such an excited reaction.
When Huo Ren returned to the nanny car, his companions had just finished watching a movie in the private box at the hotel and handed him a glass of freshly squeezed mango juice.
“I originally wanted to bring you ice cream,” Mei Shengyao muttered gloomily, “but Uncle Jiang wouldn’t allow it.”
“What if it upsets his stomach?” Uncle Jiang replied seriously, “We can’t take that risk.”
They were like clumsy older brothers and elders, refraining from asking if the exam was difficult or how well he performed. During lunch, they sat beside him, urging him to eat more.
“Eat more. Even if you gain two kilograms this month, I won’t punish you with skipping rope.”
“Brother! Bring a cup of peanut walnut paste to nourish your brain!”
After completing the first day of exams, Huo Ren and Uncle Jiang comforted them for a few moments before they continued with their endorsement advertising, mindful of their schedule.
Makeup artists styled the children and applied glitter while the television reported on this year’s high school entrance exam craze.
“The number of examinees increases every year, and the competition is quite fierce,” the makeup artist glanced at the TV and jokingly said to them, “Although you work hard most of the time, you don’t have to go through the burden of studying, so it’s a bit less stressful for you.”
Long Jia casually remarked, “He just finished his exam today.”
The makeup artists paused in their movements. “…Really?”
Huo Ren knew that everyone in this small room was part of the SPF team and knew what conversations should not be leaked.
He nodded at his reflection in the mirror.
“Aren’t you going to review for your exam tomorrow?!”
“No problem,” the captain replied leisurely, “I’ve memorized everything.”
Uncle Jiang finished a phone call and entered the makeup room, sitting next to Huo Ren with a cautious expression. “Did anyone recognize you when you went out to take the exam today?”
“A few students in the same exam room recognized me,” Huo Ren pondered, “I signed autographs and took photos with them, but I asked them not to spread it for now, as it might have a negative impact.”
“What about the invigilators?”
“I’m not entirely sure, but the invigilators for both exams today seemed a bit nervous?” Huo Ren wasn’t certain. “Even if they know it’s me, they wouldn’t say anything inappropriate, right?”
SPF was afraid of being labeled as disturbing the order of the college entrance exams, so they closely monitored the online discussions and public opinion, ready to suppress any emerging signs.
Fortunately, mobile phones were not allowed in the exam rooms, and with the large number of people and parents present, Huo Ren didn’t stand out much in the crowd.
—People only began to notice during the last exam on the second day.
And then everything exploded.
Author’s Note:
I updated late last night and made a mistake while writing the mock exam, mistakenly using Exam 704 instead of 714, following the top scorer in the science stream (?) scenario. I quietly changed it back to Exam 714.
Happy National Day, everyone~! Love you all!