Chapter 15 The First Signs Of Genius

The first week of school at Huaxia Elite Academy passed without much excitement. To most of their classmates, Leng Qingxue and Leng Qiuhan were nothing but two silent, unremarkable children. They rarely spoke, never volunteered for questions, and showed no interest in proving themselves. It was exactly what they wanted. Let everyone believe they were ordinary. Let them lower their guards. Because when the time came—the entire school would have no choice but to recognize them.

On Friday morning, Madam Zheng walked into the classroom and made an announcement. "Children, today we'll be having our first surprise assessment!"

A murmur spread across the room. Some students groaned, while others looked nervous. Leng Ruolan, however, smiled confidently. This was her chance. She would prove—once again—that she was the smartest in the class. And the twins? They would fail.

The test had three sections: Basic Math, Language Comprehension, and Logical Thinking. Each student had thirty minutes to complete it, and the scores would be announced on Monday morning. Leng Ruolan sneaked a glance at Qingxue and Qiuhan, expecting to see some sign of worry, but they looked completely unfazed. Were they really that calm? No. They were just pretending.

As soon as the papers were handed out, Qingxue glanced at the first question. A simple math equation. Then the next. And the next. Her silver-blue eyes darkened. This is too easy. She picked up her pen and, within five minutes, finished the entire test. Every single problem. Flawlessly. She placed her pen down and rested her chin on her tiny hand, staring out the window.

Meanwhile, Leng Qiuhan was even lazier. Instead of writing immediately, he leaned back in his chair, gazing at the ceiling as if completely uninterested. It wasn't until ten minutes had passed that he casually picked up his pen. Then, as if bored, he answered everything in less than two minutes.

Leng Ruolan, still struggling with a particularly difficult logic question, happened to glance up at that moment and saw Qiuhan flipping his paper over. Finished?! Her eyes widened in disbelief. But then, she quickly shook her head. No. There's no way he answered correctly. He must have guessed. She reassured herself and focused back on her paper.

When the bell rang, the students turned in their tests, and class was dismissed. As they left the classroom, a few children whispered among themselves.

"They finished too fast. They must have guessed all the answers."

"Yeah! No way they did well."

"They'll probably fail."

Leng Ruolan smirked to herself. Yes. They would definitely embarrass themselves on Monday. And when that happened—she would be there to witness it.

The weekend passed in a blur, and soon, Monday arrived. Inside the classroom, Madam Zheng stood at the front, holding a clipboard. "Children, I have your test results." Excited whispers filled the room. Leng Ruolan sat straight, her heart racing. She had double-checked her answers. She was sure she had scored the highest.

She glanced at the twins—Qingxue was sipping her water, while Qiuhan looked half-asleep. They'll be at the bottom, she thought smugly.

Then, Madam Zheng spoke.

"The top scorers of this class… are Leng Qingxue and Leng Qiuhan."

The room fell into dead silence.

Ruolan froze. She blinked—certain she had misheard.

"Full marks," Madam Zheng continued, smiling. "Not a single mistake."

The whispers returned—this time louder, filled with shock.

"Wait, what?"

"The twins?! How?"

Madam Zheng continued, glancing at the stunned expressions of the students. "Leng Qingxue and Leng Qiuhan not only achieved perfect scores but also finished their tests in record time."

The murmurs in the room grew louder.

"No way…"

"Did they cheat?"

"How could they finish so fast and still get everything right?"

Leng Ruolan sat frozen in her seat, her face turning pale. Her fingers clenched into fists beneath her desk. How? How could they have beaten me?!

Madam Zheng's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Since the two of you finished so quickly, I assumed you may have rushed through carelessly. But after double-checking… it was clear every answer was correct." She turned to the twins. "Leng Qingxue, Leng Qiuhan, well done."

Qingxue merely nodded, her silver-blue eyes calm. She wasn't particularly pleased nor excited—it was expected. Beside her, Qiuhan lazily yawned as if this was the most boring thing in the world.

Madam Zheng then moved on. "Second place goes to… Leng Ruolan."

At that moment, Ruolan felt as if the ground beneath her had disappeared. She had always been first. Always. And now, she was second… to the twins?!

She forced a smile, but her hands trembled. "Thank you, Madam Zheng."

The teacher nodded and continued announcing the rest of the rankings. But Ruolan wasn't listening anymore. She couldn't. Her perfect image had cracked, and worse… it was in front of everyone.

After class, several students approached the twins, hesitant yet curious.

"Did you really get full marks?"

"How did you finish so fast?"

"Can you teach me?"

Qingxue simply sipped her water and ignored them, while Qiuhan didn't even acknowledge their presence. The two walked out of the classroom, completely uninterested in the attention they had attracted.

Meanwhile, Ruolan gritted her teeth, watching their backs. This wasn't over. She refused to lose.

As soon as she returned home, she ran straight to her mother. "Mother," she whined, her voice filled with grievance. "The twins embarrassed me in class today!"

Chen Meiyu, her mother, frowned. "What do you mean?"

Ruolan's lips trembled. "They… they scored higher than me on the test! Everyone was talking about them!"

A dark look flashed across Leng Rumei's face, but she quickly hid it with a gentle smile. "My sweet Ruolan, don't worry. You are still the most outstanding child in this family. It was just one test." She stroked her daughter's hair. "Besides… I'm sure they won't always be this lucky."

Ruolan sniffled, feeling slightly comforted. But deep inside, jealousy burned like a raging fire. She wouldn't allow the twins to outshine her again.

That evening, at the Leng family estate, the brothers had already heard about the test results.

Leng Yuxian, the eldest, smirked. "As expected."

Leng Zhaoyan leaned against the couch, his arms crossed. "I doubt those kids at school will leave you alone now."

Leng Haoyu adjusted his glasses, a rare look of amusement in his sharp eyes. "They probably think you two are monsters."

Leng Yichen chuckled. "Maybe we should all transfer to your school and scare them even more."

Leng Jiuhan, the youngest of the five brothers, grinned mischievously. "No need. If anyone bothers Xue'er, I'll handle them."

Their father, Leng Zhen, sipped his tea and glanced at his wife. "What do you think, Yuixen? Should we prepare for them to be in the spotlight?"

Jiang Yuixen smiled warmly at her children. "They'll attract attention no matter what. They're Lengs, after all."

Qingxue sat quietly, her expression unreadable. Qiuhan, beside her, was equally indifferent. But inside, she knew one thing—this was only the beginning.