Take Me Away, My Love - Chapter 51 - Winner and Loser

The crowd around grew excited once again. Everyone wanted to know who the true winner would be this time.

Even the teachers started to speculate.

After all, kindergarten exams are very simple, and it’s very possible for two children to achieve perfect scores. Many were convinced that they would likely tie for first place.

With this thought in mind, they eagerly anticipated the outcome of this match.

After returning home in the evening, Li Minchun hurried over and took her son’s backpack, asking, “How did it go?”

Jian Qingtian was full of confidence: “Mom, just wait and see tomorrow. The winner will definitely be me.”

Seeing her son’s confident demeanor, Li Minchun quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although she didn’t like her son engaging in competitions with others, when the competition began, she still hoped her son would win.

Let’s forgive her for this little bit of selfishness.

“Well done, son.” Jian Yiqing smiled upon hearing his son’s words. “As my son, you should face victory and defeat with composure, and always remain strong and confident. A real man should be able to adapt and persevere, understand?”

Encouraged by his father and with his mother’s expectations, Jian Qingtian nodded firmly.

“Don’t worry. Even if I don’t win, it’s no big deal. If I can win, I can also handle losing; there’s nothing to be upset about.”

Hearing such words from their young son, Li Minchun and Jian Yiqing finally felt relieved.

They weren’t afraid of their son competing with others but were worried he’d be deeply affected if he lost.

At his young age, his experiences are crucial to his development.

But seeing Jian Qingtian’s calm face, they couldn’t help but smile.

The next day, Li Minchun and Jian Yiqing were anxiously waiting at home. From the moment their son left, they had been filled with anticipation. Meanwhile, at the kindergarten, Jian Qingtian appeared very calm and didn’t seem nervous at all.

Not far away, Jian Ru stood with the same cold expression, prompting a small smile to appear on Jian Qingtian’s lips.

The teacher on the podium held their test papers, distributing them one by one while calling out names.

“Chen Feifei, double hundreds.”

The pretty and adorable Feifei quickly walked up to the podium to get her paper, amidst the envious glances of her classmates.

Seeing the bright red perfect scores of one hundred, Feifei beamed with joy again. Her parents had promised that if she scored two hundreds, they would take her to the Maldives for vacation this summer.

She had longed for the beauty of the Maldives for a long time.

Turning her head towards Jian Qingtian, she silently mouthed the words: “Good luck!”

Jian Qingtian smiled and nodded.

At this moment, the teacher on the podium’s eyes lit up. He glanced at the two little ones below before slowly announcing, “Jian Ru…”

All the students pricked up their ears to listen carefully, and even the teachers outside the window and the reporters who had rushed there perked up to hear.

Since the teachers had posted a video of the little ones’ rivalry online, it had drawn considerable attention.

Due to popular demand, reporters had arrived at the scene to see who would ultimately emerge as the winner between these two little kids.

“Jian Ru, double hundreds!”

As soon as the announcement was made, a buzz of whispers spread among the students below.

If Jian Qingtian made even the slightest mistake, he would be the loser this time.

Those who supported Jian Qingtian were quite worried, and even Feifei seemed less confident than before.

With nervous and anxious eyes, they looked towards Jian Qingtian. But seeing him remain composed and unflustered, they felt somewhat reassured.

Jian Ru walked over to Jian Qingtian with his paper in hand, showing off his perfect scores, and said, “It’s very likely we’ll tie, or perhaps you’ll be the loser. But if you think you can beat me, it’s absolutely impossible.”

Despite the disdainful and confident look in Jian Ru’s eyes, Jian Qingtian remained relaxed and natural, showing no signs of tension or anxiety.

With a smile, he said, “Don’t speak too soon. My results aren’t out yet, and no one can determine the outcome.”

“Hmph, stubborn as ever,” Jian Ru retorted angrily as he sat back in his seat. He was eager to see how Jian Qingtian could possibly surpass his perfect score.

Soon, amid everyone’s anticipation, the rest of the class received their papers. Now, the teacher had just one paper left. There was no need to guess-it had to be Jian Qingtian’s.

Some impatient students sitting at the front couldn’t help but stand up and peer towards the podium.

Outside the window, the reporters were equally excited, commenting to the camera, “Viewers, the rivalry between these two heirs of the Shangguan Family has reached a fever pitch. Now that Jian Ru has achieved a perfect score, what will Jian Qingtian’s results be? Let’s wait and see.”

On the podium, the teacher looked at the paper with an expression of disbelief, scrutinizing the two papers over and over.

After confirming there was no mistake, the teacher, with trembling hands, announced, “Jian Qingtian…”

With that single call, almost everyone held their breath, ears perked up like rabbits.

All their attention was focused on the scene unfolding in front of them. Everyone wanted to know what the true outcome would be. Everyone wanted to understand how the legacy and rivalry of the previous generation of the Shangguan Family, led by Jian Yiqing’s decisive victory, would manifest in the next generation.

The teacher looked at Jian Qingtian with admiration and continued, “Jian Qingtian’s paper was answered perfectly without a single mistake. Moreover, for the final application problem, he used three different methods to arrive at the correct answer. Therefore, in addition to a perfect score, he received two additional bonus points for encouragement!”

After a moment of silence, the entire room erupted in excitement.

Everyone had considered other possible outcomes, but no one had expected that Jian Qingtian would solve the last problem using three methods.

Most students only used one method.

Everyone looked at Jian Qingtian with envy.

Facing so many envious gazes, Jian Qingtian just smiled slightly.

Jian Ru, in disbelief, rushed to the podium and grabbed the paper to examine it carefully. After confirming that the teacher had not helped with cheating, he finally admitted, “Jian Qingtian, I lost. I’m willing to accept the penalty.”

Jian Qingtian maintained his calm smile and gestured politely, “Please go ahead.”

Jian Ru looked at him reluctantly, took a step, and then asked in surprise, “How did you do it?”

Jian Qingtian shrugged and said matter-of-factly, “It’s simple. Recently, I’ve been reviewing elementary school material.”

“What?”

Everyone was almost shocked out of their wits.

Jian Qingtian continued naturally, “The knowledge we’re learning is so simple that even a toe could guess you’d score perfectly. To beat you, I’ve been self-studying elementary school courses over the past few days. So, do you concede?”

Listening to his explanation, everyone finally understood.

Now it made sense; no wonder they saw Jian Qingtian so focused on his studies. They thought he was cramming out of doubt. It turned out that from the very beginning, Jian Ru had already lost-not in professional knowledge, but in meticulous problem-solving.

“I lost, and I admit it wholeheartedly!”

Later, on the playground, everyone saw Jian Ru running hard on his own, and they heard him shouting loudly, “I, Jian Ru, lost to Jian Qingtian!”

His voice rang out clearly.

This event once again created a stir in the media.

The media even used the phrase “like father, like son” to describe the relationship between Jian Yiqing and Jian Qingtian.

When Jian Qingtian handed the white silk handkerchief, symbolizing surrender, to Li Minchun, she was so overwhelmed with emotion that she nearly burst into tears.

Jian Yiqing was equally elated.

He mentioned that he wanted to borrow the handkerchief for a while, and once his son agreed, he took it into the secret room.

Aside from being quite secluded, the secret room was decorated similarly to the rest of the villa.

On a large bed lay a clean and tidy elderly man.

Upon closer inspection, it was clear this was Jian Gangchen.

Due to a severe psychological blow he had suffered earlier, Jian Gangchen was now paralyzed, bedridden, and unable to move.

Even though Jian Yiqing had brought him to the villa, the room assigned to him was this secret room.

While he had good food, drinks, and the care of a housekeeper, his only issue was the lack of freedom.

What’s more distressing for him was that Jian Gangchen had hated Jian Yiqing deeply all his life, and now he had ended up in his hands. This fact alone was enough to drive him nearly insane.

If he could move, he would probably have gone berserk by now, perhaps even choking Jian Yiqing until he suffocated.

Unfortunately, such a scene could only exist in his imagination.

“It’s been a while. How have you been lately?” Jian Yiqing walked step by step toward him, and his natural authority seemed to emanate as he approached Jian Gangchen.

It was as if the aura of a ruler had spread instantly.

Those cold, indifferent eyes made anyone who looked at them quickly lower their gaze, unable to look for long. It must be said, the aura emanating from him was indeed powerful, making it hard for anyone to stare directly at him.

But Jian Gangchen felt differently.

With some difficulty, he spoke in a halting voice, “Very well, hoping to see your miserable demise in my lifetime.”

“Haha!”

Listening to Jian Gangchen’s curse, Jian Yiqing threw his head back and laughed heartily. Even reduced to this state, the old man remained venomous.

Thus, whatever he planned to do from here on out, he felt no remorse.

However, despite everything, the reason he had let Jian Gangchen live this long was partly out of gratitude for raising him, but mainly because he wanted to discover a long-hidden secret. This secret had been lodged deep in his mind for years, defying explanation.

Even now, despite his immense power, unraveling the past seemed challenging. To find the truth, he had no choice but to dig it out from this old man.