The time for notification in the class group had passed, and besides a few classmates who genuinely couldn't make it due to prior commitments, most had arrived.
Xu Ying was naturally among them.
None of the current classmates in this class had any particular connection with her anymore.
Everyone had also invited their homeroom teacher, Li Yanwang. Many students had tagged him, and the class monitor had also called him.
Li Yanwang had initially politely refused. During his tenure as a teacher, he had always maintained the image of a "strict teacher" and was not accustomed to attending such gatherings or engaging in playful banter with students.
However, the students were too enthusiastic, and Old Li, unable to resist their persistence, eventually agreed.
The agreed-upon time had passed, and everyone who was supposed to be there had arrived, yet Li Yanwang had not.
"Class monitor, won't Old Li just trick us and not come?"
"He… shouldn't, right!"
"Class monitor, class monitor, make a call!"
"Alright!"
Mu Nan nodded in agreement, took out his phone, and made a gesture as if to call.
"No need to call, he's here."
Qin Tian suddenly spoke, gesturing towards the entrance.
Everyone turned their gaze and saw Li Yanwang striding into the banquet hall.
Old Li's face still wore that familiar stern expression. In their third year of high school, seeing it would often make them feel nervous and uneasy, wondering if they had done something wrong and were about to be reprimanded.
However, most of the classmates now felt a sense of warmth and nostalgia.
"Li Yan… pfft, Teacher Li, hello!"
Qian Sheng greeted him loudly with a chuckle, almost calling out his nickname, but thankfully corrected himself in time.
This, however, still elicited a burst of laughter.
Li Xueping narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Qian Sheng, asking rather abruptly, "How were your final exam results? What was your total score?"
"Huh?"
Qian Sheng was instantly taken aback.
"After retaking for half a year, let's see if you've improved."
Old Li said with a calm expression.
"Of course, there's been improvement. My total score on this exam was 420!"
Qian Sheng replied with a radiant smile.
"402?"
Old Li frowned and said, "The difficulty of this exam paper was low. The college entrance exam next year won't be this easy. That score won't get you into a bachelor's program!"
"Uh… I understand, Teacher Li, I, I'm still working hard."
Qian Sheng said with an awkward smile.
"Then your efforts are not enough. What? Do you want to retake again next year? I'll be free for the next half a month around the Spring Festival. Make time to come and find me, I'll tutor you in Chinese."
Old Li's tone was irrefutable.
"Ah? No way!!"
Qian Sheng let out a bitter wail of despair.
"Haha… serves you right. You're the only one still in high school and you dare to talk back like that!"
Zhang Peng laughed maliciously.
"Hahaha…"
The surrounding classmates also burst into uproarious laughter.
"Teacher Li!"
"Teacher Li, it's been half a year, you look even more handsome!"
"That's right, I feel the same way."
Everyone chimed in to greet Old Li, with a few boys habitually flattering him.
"I'm not your homeroom teacher anymore, so flattering me won't do you any good."
Old Li's gaze swept over the flattering boys, and he took a seat in the empty chair next to class monitor Mu Nan.
Someone called over a nearby server and they began discussing ordering food.
"Drinking?"
"Of course, we have to have some!"
"Baijiu or beer? Or both?"
A few boys discussed, their gazes directed at Old Li.
"Drinking is fine, but don't drink too much."
Old Li picked up his cup and took a sip of tea, saying slowly.
The boys cheered and quickly nodded in agreement, then began selecting drinks from the menu.
Old Li tilted his head to look at Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan beside him, then at the others, and asked casually, "How's your university life going?"
"Teacher Li, you used to say often that we just needed to push hard for a bit longer, and after a few months of hardship, university would be easy, but it turns out that was all just nonsense!"
A boy complained.
Upon hearing this, others immediately voiced their agreement with shared understanding.
"Exactly, university isn't easy at all!"
"Don't even mention it. The exam week before the break felt just like preparing for the college entrance exam all over again."
"Being tired is one thing, but the key is I failed. I have to retake it next year, and the thought of it is making my head hurt."
"Calculus?"
"How did you know?"
"It's the same for everyone. I failed too, by just two points. It's speechless. I should have attended classes. If I had gotten two more points for class participation, I would have passed."
"…"
"What? Do you all feel it's even more tiring than the third year of high school?"
Li Yanwang's face showed a hint of a smile.
"Not quite that bad."
Everyone shook their heads.
"Then, who said it was nonsense? You guys who are complaining about exam week and failing, it's obvious you were too relaxed normally and played too much, right?"
Li Yanwang's gaze swept over everyone again.
The few who had complained and agreed earlier smiled sheepishly.
"Qin Tian, Xia Nuannuan, what about you two? How are things at Jiang University?"
Li Yanwang asked them.
"It's going well."
Qin Tian nodded with a smile.
"Teacher Li, you were right. I've been studying diligently all along, and I feel that university studies are much simpler than high school!"
Xia Nuannuan replied with a beaming smile.
The surrounding classmates were astonished upon hearing this.
"Nuannuan, you find Calculus easy too?"
Liao Juan asked in surprise.
"Yes, it feels simpler than high school math!"
Xia Nuannuan nodded.
"No way, if it's simpler than high school math, is it still called Calculus? What did you score on your final exam?"
Liao Juan quickly asked again.
"Calculus? Ninety!"
"Nani? Ninety?"
"Yes, the others weren't difficult either. I passed them all, didn't fail."
Xia Nuannuan smiled proudly. She added, "Brother Tian is even more amazing. He got full marks in Calculus."
"I'm not surprised at Qin Tian getting full marks at all, but you getting ninety in Calculus truly shocked me."
Liao Juan said with a complex expression.
The surrounding classmates also began discussing in disbelief.
"Could it be that the final exams at Jiang University are less difficult?"
"It's possible. None of us in several classes managed to score above ninety in Calculus."
"Same here. I couldn't even understand at least seven out of ten questions."
"Xia Nuannuan, could it be that after going to university, you're still as dedicated as you were in the months before the college entrance exam?"
A girl asked in surprise.
"No!"
Xia Nuannuan shook her head and replied with a serious expression, "I just listen attentively in class, and I play around after class."
"And you still scored ninety? I also listened attentively and didn't skip any Calculus classes, and I barely passed. Is Calculus final exam at your Jiang University really that easy?"
"I don't know!"
"That's impossible. The better the school, the stricter the academic requirements usually are,"
Li Yanwang said.
Upon hearing this, the classmates also found it reasonable, and their gazes then turned to Qin Tian, who was sitting next to Xia Nuannuan.
In their opinion, the biggest reason Xia Nuannuan could find Calculus so easy was likely Qin Tian.
"Why are you all looking at me? Nuannuan is a genuine scholar now, she hardly needs my help. After she started dating me, she's become smarter and smarter."
Qin Tian said matter-of-factly.
"Tch…"
A chorus of disgusted jeers erupted.