Chapter 42: Chapter 44 ends
Chapter 42: Chapter 44 ends
The mathematics exam lasted two hours, ending promptly at five o'clock.
When taking the math test, one must be even more serious and careful, because if you don't read carefully, you will misunderstand the questions, which leads to incorrect answers.
Qin Hao was extremely cautious, and it took him about an hour and ten minutes to finish the test paper.
After finishing, he began to check his answers, carefully reviewing each question one by one.
The invigilator in the examination room had noticed him in the morning and nodded slightly when he saw him checking his paper after finishing it.
This must be a good student—his demeanor while taking the test and his patience while checking his answers were giveaways.
The invigilator wondered to himself which school the student was from.
With that thought, he walked over slowly, glanced at Qin Hao, and then continued forward.
Students generally write their name and school on the left side of the answer sheet and test paper.
A student from the Second High School?
The invigilator was somewhat surprised; he was a teacher from Changle District's Fifth High School and had assumed that Qin Hao was a student from either the First or Eighth High Schools.
After all, he had only seen such demeanor in the top students of the First and Eighth High Schools.
Five o'clock in the afternoon
After the invigilator collected the answer sheets and test papers, the students gradually left the examination room.
As soon as Qin Hao left the school, he went home with his parents.
In the kitchen, Li Shujie was cooking and asked, "Son, how about fish for dinner tonight?"
"Mom, I'm fine with anything," Qin Hao replied from the couch.
Mr. Qin turned on the television, which was broadcasting the local Jiangshan TV station.
It was a news program, with a reporter standing in front of a bustling school entrance thronged with cars and people.
"Isn't that the entrance to the First High School?" Qin Youguo asked, recognizing the background behind the reporter.
Qin Hao nodded; he had taken his exams there.
Qin Youguo had been the one to take him there back then.
Originally, with his grades, he had hoped to be admitted to Changle District's prestigious First or Eighth High Schools.
But due to an underperformance, he missed out on the key high schools and ended up at the Second High School.
When he learned of his entrance examination results, he could clearly sense his father and mother's disappointment.
The TV reporter began saying, "Today, over a hundred thousand students in Jiangshan City are facing the most important moment of their lives.
I am now outside Jiangshan City's First High School. As we speak, many test-takers have already entered the school, ready for the unified examination…"
Mr. Qin glanced at the TV and asked, "How do you feel about the two subjects you took today?"
"Pretty good, I think the results should be fine," Qin Hao replied, without being overly confident.
Mr. Qin nodded slightly and said, "Do well on the exam. No matter which university you end up in, we'll support your education."
...
The next day
Mr. Qin had gone to work, as the factory had granted him only a day off.
Mrs. Qin's position was different, so her supervisor gave her two days off, and on the second day, she took Qin Hao to school on an electric scooter.
It was now summer, and the temperature was already quite high. Standing outside for over two hours was no easy task.
"Mom, you should go back. It's too hot, and standing out here is too exhausting," Qin Hao told his mother.
"It's alright, I'm not tired. Hurry inside, or you'll be late," Li Shujie said with a smile.
"Then find a cooler place to rest for a while."
Li Shujie nodded and said, "Mhm, I'm not foolish. Now go ahead."
It was already past half past eight, and Qin Hao quickly entered the school, arriving at his examination room shortly after 8:40.
In the morning, the exam was a two-and-a-half-hour comprehensive science test.
In the afternoon, it was the Federation language exam. After this day, the unified examination would have ended.
For many people, this day went by very quickly, while others found it painfully slow. When the 5 p.m. bell rang, the invigilators began to collect the exam papers.
This session of the unified exams had officially ended, and the next step was to await the results.
Qin Hao stepped out of the exam hall, took a long breath, and thought, "Well, the results will be out in half a month. Let's wait and see."
Once outside the school, Qin Hao immediately spotted his mom waiting eagerly not far away.
Seeing the sweat on his mother's face, he quickly took a deep breath and walked towards her.
"How was the exam?" Li Shujie hurriedly asked before Qin Hao could speak.
Qin Hao nodded, "Don't worry, I definitely won't disappoint you."
"That's great. Come on, I'll make you something delicious tonight."
...
Back home, Mr. Qin didn't return until six o'clock. His first question was about how Qin Hao had done on the exam.
"Stop asking already, your son said he did well," Mrs. Qin said from the kitchen, slightly annoyed.
Mr. Qin chuckled awkwardly and didn't ask any further, simply sitting down on the sofa and turning on the TV.
Qin Hao felt he had nothing better to do, so he sat down next to his dad to watch TV.
Mr. Qin whispered, "When will the results come out?"
"Not for half a month, but we can go check the scores at school in three days, and there's also the graduation ceremony to attend."
Mr. Qin, "But the scores checked in school aren't very accurate, right?"
Qin Hao nodded, "It's just an approximate score, but most people can get a general idea."
After dinner, Qin Hao returned to his room and lay on his bed, his mind blissfully empty.
This time, he had to make his parents proud and give them a reason to be joyful.
He had let them down too many times these past few years.
Now he was just waiting for the results.
Checking the scores? It didn't mean much to him, because right after the exam, he already had a rough estimate of his performance.
At the very least, he should score over seven hundred, that was his estimate.
That would be more than enough. Getting into Jianghai University would not be a problem.
The next day, after his parents went off to work, Qin Hao took the medicinal herbs from his room to the roast duck restaurant.
Kang Youcai had called him that day and mentioned the restaurant was running low on auxiliary supplies and asked him to make some time to go to the roast duck restaurant and prepare the auxiliary ingredients.
Around nine, he arrived at the restaurant. Yu Jie was tending the front while the others were in the back cleaning ducks.
When Yu Jie saw him come in, she smiled and said, "Good morning, boss."
"Uh-huh, I'm going upstairs to prepare the auxiliary supplies," Qin Hao responded, taking the medicinal herbs up to the second floor.
There were still plenty of herbal ingredients in the storeroom. He spent the morning preparing ten herbal prescriptions, then carried the medicine downstairs.
By then, everyone had already left on tricycles, and only two people were in the store – Yu Jie and the fat man.
Qin Hao handed the auxiliary medicines over to the fat man, "Once you've used up the auxiliary supplies, open these up and use them. Make sure they're stored correctly; don't lose them."
The fat man nodded hurriedly, "Don't worry, Hao, I'll put them in my office right away."
"Office?" Qin Hao was taken aback.
The fat man chuckled, "Well, there are a few rooms upstairs that are empty, so I took one to use as my office. After all, I am the general manager."
...
Yu Jie couldn't help but laugh when she overheard, but her smile faded as she remembered the restaurant's revenue over the last few days.