From Slacking Off To Becoming A Top Student - Chapter 4 - Chapter 4 – My Deskmate’s Actually Pretty Nice

Writing an essay in Classical Chinese was no easy feat—especially when it was clumsily stitched together, or the writer didn’t fully grasp its nuances. One mistake in real or functional word usage could easily drop your essay into the lowest grade bracket.

Yet Chen Xiaoxin had managed to finish an entire Classical Chinese essay in such a short time. That could only mean one of two things:

Either he scribbled random nonsense, or… he had a deep understanding of classical literature.

Yan Xiaoxi’s instincts told her: This desk mate of hers, the so-called “sleeping dragon,” probably just made stuff up.

After all, someone who didn’t even pay attention in class—how good could his writing really be?

She took a deep breath and looked at the essay topic. Just as she was about to put pen to paper, something made her pause—her gaze unconsciously shifted to the desk mate beside her.

And then…

She started writing in Classical Chinese too.

Meanwhile—having finished the exam, Chen Xiaoxin was now sitting quietly, studying his new skill.

It was his first time getting a “top-student” skill, and the feeling was addictive. When facing ancient poetry or literary passages, correct answers just popped into his mind, unbidden. The joy of it was indescribable.

But that joy also raised more questions.

The Classical Chinese skill was still only at Level 1, and even at that beginner level, he had effortlessly handled the classical section of the test—and even written a whole essay in the same style.

If he leveled it up to the max…would he become Li Bai reborn?

Also—he needed to revise his overall strategy.

Relying on luck to draw “top-student” skills from the lottery was too unreliable. It would be much smarter to save up “slacking points” and use them to buy skills directly.

Basic academic skills weren’t that expensive—10,000 points minimum, 30,000 max.

If he pushed himself a bit, collecting all the necessary skills before the college entrance exam…might not be just a dream.

With this in mind, Chen Xiaoxin was filled with determination. He looked up at the clock and realized it had only been half a lesson. As for the next class, P.E., he could already guess it would definitely be “borrowed” by the Chinese teacher. It was kind of sad, though. Why was the P.E. teacher always so sickly?

Might as well take a nap and rack up some slacking points.

Normally, when students sleep during class, they just lay their heads on their desks. But for Chen Xiaoxin, that was not an option.

Not only would he not earn slacking points that way, but as the class rep, it would be bad optics.

So he slept sitting upright—and of course, never let go of his pen. It might save his life in a pinch.

Chen Xiaoxin: zzzZ
+1 Slacking Point
+1 Slacking Point

Who knows how much time passed, but by the time Yan Xiaoxi finished her essay, she finally let out a long breath. The intense mental focus had left her feeling a bit drained.

Though she was a top student—a super top student, really—her strengths were firmly in science and math. Language arts weren’t her forte.

Still, even in humanities, she could consistently rank top three in the entire school.

Whew…

Writing in Classical Chinese is exhausting. Every word had to be chosen so carefully. If I’d known, I would’ve just written normally.

She took a deep breath, adjusted her state of mind—then, out of habit, glanced at her desk mate.

And what she saw made her jaw drop.

What the heck!

He… he’s asleep?!

Chen Xiaoxin sat there bolt upright, still holding a pen in his hand, but his eyes were completely shut.

Yan Xiaoxi was stunned.

She couldn’t even imagine someone could fall asleep while sitting up, even on a bed, let alone at a desk.

As she secretly watched him, her inner monologue full of sarcasm and disbelief—suddenly, Chen Xiaoxin woke up.

His legs started twitching slightly. Then, the hand holding his black pen began furiously scribbling across the exam paper…

Even though the pen clearly wasn’t even writing anything,

It was all just for show.

Yan Xiaoxi was shocked speechless.

Just one second ago, her desk mate had been fast asleep. Now, he was suddenly “focused on the exam.”

And sure enough—she looked toward the front of the room, and just as she suspected: the teacher who had been sitting at the podium was now walking around the classroom doing an inspection.

Oh my god.

This was just too unbelievable!

His eyes were clearly closed—so how the hell did he still know what was going on around him?

Wait a minute…Yan Xiaoxi noticed a few strands of his hair were sticking up.

Could those be antennae picking up external signals? Had anime-style ahoge somehow made it into the real world?

From finishing her essay to the end of the test, Yan Xiaoxi had been secretly observing her deskmate. She realized that this so-called “sleeping dragon” deskmate was truly an acting master. As long as the teacher was sitting at the desk supervising the test, he’d fall asleep. But the moment the teacher moved around, he’d instantly wake up, transforming into a diligent student, pretending to focus on his test.

When the exam finally ended, students scattered like a dam burst open, rushing out toward the cafeteria.

In high school, speed was everything when it came to lunch. Even a tiny delay meant facing the abyss of endless lines.

Of course, not everyone rushed out. These people usually fell into a few categories:

Their lunch card had no money left—maybe they spent the top-up cash early.

Or they were dieting girls, who saw cafeteria food as poison.

Or, a more special category—people like Chen Xiaoxin, who had pre-ordered delivery.

Even though the school strictly banned food delivery, there were always workarounds. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. There were plenty of methods to sneak food in.

So, Chen Xiaoxin leisurely strolled out of the classroom, turning through winding hallways until he reached a corner of the school. At that moment, a group of students had gathered, already waiting to pick up their takeout.

After getting his takeout, Chen Xiaoxin wrapped it in his clothes and returned to the classroom, where he saw Yan Xiaoxi sitting alone in the corner, flipping through a book and drinking some milk. She looked kind of pitiful.

“That looks like takeout, doesn’t it?”

Yan Xiaoxi looked at her sleeping dragon desk mate, frowning with curiosity.

“We’re allowed to eat takeout at school?”

“Nope,” Chen Xiaoxin replied casually, shaking his head. “But you can sneak it in.”

Yan Xiaoxi was instantly speechless.

This guy really never misses a chance to break school rules?

Should I talk to the homeroom teacher and ask to change seats?

“You didn’t eat lunch?” Chen Xiaoxin glanced at her. He gently nudged the box of fried chicken toward her and said quietly, “Here, have some.”

“Thanks… but I’m good,” Yan Xiaoxi said, pursing her lips.

But just like that, her opinion of her desk mate—once at rock bottom—went up a point.

Thinking about it more carefully…he was actually kind of nice.

Friendly, too.

Having a desk mate like him—maybe it was a kind of unexpected good luck.

Suddenly!

Chen Xiaoxin shoved the fried chicken box in front of Yan Xiaoxi, then, in one lightning-fast motion, snatched a napkin, wiped his mouth, and tossed it into the trash bin behind him.

In the next instant, he flipped open an English textbook and began reciting aloud: “Li Lei, Han Meimei.”

“How are you, Fine tank you.”

…Wh—
What just happened??

Yan Xiaoxi stared blankly, utterly confused. She had no idea what was going on.

“Yan Xiaoxi.”

“Why are you eating takeout?”

She turned toward the voice—and saw the homeroom teacher standing at the classroom door, looking at her with deep concern.