"I want to take the Gaokao," Xia Chuyi asserted to Director Wang.
Director Wang was taken aback by her reply, which he hadn't anticipated to be so firm and decisive.
Afterward, Director Wang sized her up for a moment, then bowed his head in thought and remained silent for a while.
Meanwhile, Liu Chunya watched her with a schadenfreude expression the entire time, her face displaying a "Xia Chuyi, you are done for" look.
Suddenly, Director Wang said, "The thing is, Xia Chuyi, I've checked your first year high school grades, and they were quite average... of course, I can understand that students from rural schools have weaker foundations."
"Your performance had improved a bit."
Director Wang, a man of some eloquence, began by affirming her before continuing, "But then, you took a year off."
"High school material is difficult, and for you to think about coming back, especially to directly enter the third year, is very challenging."
"So..."