At 3:00 AM, my homeroom teacher was raging in the group chat because I scored 685 on the Gaokao (college entrance exam) but refused to apply to Tsinghua or Peking University. @Vivian: You stubborn student! You're self-centered, ignoring my advice, and determined not to apply to the top schools. You've wasted the efforts of all your teachers! You don't trust our experience and just blindly follow your own ideas. Wasting such a high score is the biggest failure of education! Everyone was waiting for my defense. Instead, I quietly left the group chat. By the next evening, screenshots of his rant had gone viral. He was labeled the "Meltdown Teacher" online. Terrified for his reputation, he begged me to clear his name. I just laughed. Too late! 1 I scored 685. First in the school. The moment Mr. Chen, my homeroom teacher, found out, he summoned me back to school to discuss my college applications. He pushed me relentlessly to apply for obscure majors at Tsinghua or Peking University. "You're the only one this year with a shot at the Ivies of China! Grab this opportunity. Who cares about the major? Just get in first!" he said, eyes gleaming. "When the school puts up the Honor Roll, your name will be at the top to inspire the juniors!" He looked so sure I'd listen. I silently closed the browser and told him I'd fill out the application at home. Panic flashed in his eyes. He practically tried to wrestle the mouse from me to input his choice as my first preference. "What is there to think about? With this score, it has to be Tsinghua or Peking!" I guarded my login credentials like they were nuclear codes and fled the classroom. Back home, he called me nine times. "Vivian, you can't waste 685 points! You have your pick of the best schools. Listen to your teachers; we've seen it all. We won't lead you astray." I had thought about this for days. I firmly chose Beijing Jiaotong University for Communication Engineering as my first choice. On the last day of applications, my phone blew up. "Vivian! How could you put BJTU first? Are you crazy? Do you have any respect for your score? For the teachers who worked so hard for you?" "Change it to Tsinghua or Peking immediately before the system closes!" 2 I found out later my mom had let it slip to a neighbor. Mr. Chen had been snooping around my neighborhood and heard the news. That's why he was losing his mind. I told him over the phone, "My first choice is final. I've thought it through." That sentence lit the fuse. He screamed, his voice cracking, "We worked so hard to create this environment for you, and you drop the ball now? How can you decide something this important based on your own whims? You're being selfish! You'll regret this! Change it!" I didn't say a word. I hung up. Then I blocked his number. I heard from a senior that Mr. Chen had been teaching for fifteen years. I was the first student he'd ever had with a score like mine. He pathologically believed my success was entirely due to "the teachers' guidance." He tried to gaslight me into fulfilling his dream, even if it meant sacrificing my next four years. I knew from a young age that for a kid from a small town like me, the Gaokao was my only way out. I ground through every difficult problem until I mastered it. If I applied to the top two schools with my score, I'd end up in a major like Paleontology or Ancient Manuscript Restoration—dead ends for me. Communication Engineering was my dream. This was my life. I called the shots. Three minutes before the deadline, my choice remained unchanged. Mr. Chen completely lost it. 3 When he confirmed I hadn't applied to the top schools, his rage kept him up until 3 AM. He spammed the class WeChat group: @Vivian: You stubborn student! You're self-centered, ignoring my advice, and determined not to apply to the top schools. You've wasted the efforts of all your teachers! Many of us stayed up late working for you. Getting 685 should be a celebration, but you've turned our hard work into zero. You don't trust our experience and just blindly follow your own ideas. Wasting such a high score is the biggest failure of education! I warn the class: never forget what the school gave you. Be grateful, or your path will narrow! I am so disappointed, especially in Vivian. Tomorrow, I will dissolve this group out of sheer disappointment! Reflect on your actions! His profile picture was still lit up. He was waiting for my apology. I stared at the screen, wide awake. "Self-centered"? "Reflect on your actions"? The only one who needed to reflect was the unreasonable, dictatorial teacher. I am an independent person, not a trophy for his resume. I realized quickly: he lost his bonus. At the 100-day pep rally, the principal announced a 200,000 RMB bonus for any homeroom teacher who got a student into Tsinghua or Peking. No wonder he was furious. Classmates started spamming emojis, waiting for the drama. I clicked settings. "Leave Group Chat." The next morning, my best friend, Sophie, told me the group had imploded. 4 Sophie showed me the screenshots. [Did Mr. Chen get hacked?] [Is he trying to ruin the Valedictorian's life for a bonus?] [Wait, does he get paid if someone gets into the top schools?] [He's definitely venting because he lost his bonus!] The group was quickly muted by the admin. "Everyone knows what he's up to," Sophie sighed. I thought that was the end of it. But that evening, Sophie looked grim. "Vivian, bad news. Someone posted the screenshots online. Thousands of people are dragging Mr. Chen. The school's reputation is tanking." Then, Mr. Chen did something even crazier. My phone started ringing off the hook. Calls from a "Repeat School" (a cram school for retaking the Gaokao). Every thirty minutes. A new number. I finally picked up to tell them to stop. "Hello, Vivian? We are the Sunrise Repeat School. If you enroll with us to retake the exam, we'll give you a 500,000 RMB signing bonus!" "How did you get my number?" I asked coldly. "Your homeroom teacher told us about your situation. Tuition is free. 500k cash. Just think about it. Talk to your parents." I hung up immediately. Mr. Chen again! 5 Instead of reflecting on the backlash, he was doubling down. First the harassment, now selling my info to cram schools? He just wanted me to retake the test so he could try for his bonus again next year. I wasn't falling for it. 500k was a lot of money. But giving up a sure thing for a gamble? Risky. And my first choice was solid. I didn't tell my mom about the offer. I didn't want her to worry. But at dinner, she looked troubled. She burned the sweet and sour ribs. "Did the cram school call you too?" I asked. Mom hesitated, then nodded. "Vivian, I was thinking..." I couldn't blame her. 500k would change our lives. 6 This was the third year since Dad died. He was a weather recorder in the mountains. A mudslide took out the station during a storm. They found him three days later. Mom cried until she got sick. Most of our savings went to hospital bills. In 10th grade, I wanted to drop out and work. Mom stormed into my room. "Even if I have to sell everything, you are finishing high school! You're 15! Who would hire you? Sharpening the axe doesn't delay the woodcutting. Finish school!" I promised her I would. From that moment, I studied like my life depended on it. I went from average to top 10. And finally, first. The cram school's offer was tempting. But the choice was: My dream now, or a gamble for money later. 7 Honestly, I didn't want to do senior year again. It was hell. Endless tests, pressure, anxiety. I was an NPC in a game called "Gaokao." I wouldn't bet a year of my life on a "maybe." Plus, high school wasn't all sunshine. The boy behind me used to snap my bra strap. He'd laugh, "You're flat anyway, who cares?" I told Mr. Chen. He shrugged. "Ignore them. Focus on studying. Don't be distracted by small things." I later found out those boys were his relatives' kids. That's when I stopped expecting anything from him. The summer uniforms were thin and white. When girls complained they were see-through, the principal yelled, "Wear light-colored underwear! Stop trying to be special!" Thinking back made me shiver. I was done. That night, I accepted the WeChat request from the cram school teacher. [I will not be attending. Please do not contact me again.] I thought it was over. But Sophie texted me. She got an offer too. 300k bonus, guaranteed score increase. "Vivian, wanna do it together?" she asked, excitement in her voice.
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