"Hold on, Liming and Zhangqianxing. Don’t rush off just yet—I have a few questions for you two."

Ms. Sun hurriedly called back her class monitor and vice monitor, who’d been about to head back to class. Truth was, Class 9’s entire student cadre revolved around just three people: monitor Liming, vice monitor Zhangqianxing, and study committee member Xulu.

Like it or not, an inner circle had already formed within Class 9. Every other cadre member looked to these three for leadership. As a teacher, trying to assign tasks without going through at least one of them? Nearly impossible.

Today, with both Liming—the hyper-competent monitor—and Zhangqianxing—the reliable backup—right here, Ms. Sun seized the chance to share some fresh news.

"So," she began, "have either of you considered joining the Student Council?"

The pair froze. Recruitment hadn’t even started yet. They’d discussed strategies, sure—but what did their homeroom teacher mean by this?

Exchanging a subtle glance, they gave their replies.

"Joining the Student Council would help me grow and refine my still-inexperienced leadership skills. That’s my goal," Liming said.

"Mm-hmm. Same here," Zhangqianxing echoed. He noticed a flicker of surprise cross Ms. Sun’s face.

"Oh? So you both intend to join?"

Newly hired at Qianning High School, Sun Yumin hadn’t yet grasped the Student Council’s terrifying influence—or its shadow war with the school board. To her, it was just a passionate student-run group. She’d worried few would volunteer, dreading the task of filling recruitment quotas. Now, it seemed this assignment might wrap up smoothly after all.

"Perfect. I happen to have two recommendation slots. I’ll put your names forward. Once the Council’s forms arrive, you’ll just need to sign and write a brief statement. That should settle it."

Though gentle and unseasoned by the real world, Ms. Sun wasn’t naive. Securing perks for star students? A win-win.

Liming and Zhangqianxing’s expressions shifted almost imperceptibly.

*Weren’t Qianning’s Student Council standards notoriously strict? Only top students from each class ever made it. So what were these "recommendation slots"?*

Zhangqianxing was baffled. Liming, however, recalled their teacher was fresh off the training wheels. *Probably a misunderstanding.*

"...Is there a problem? Don’t you want these slots?" Ms. Sun misread their hesitation as wounded pride—refusing handouts.

"It’s not that, homeroom teacher," Liming said carefully. "May I ask... do these slots guarantee entry? Or just an interview chance?" He knew Ms. Sun often skimmed details. Her early blunders with Class 9 were legendary. *She must’ve misread the notice.*

"Interviews? Admissions? Why’s the Council making this so complicated..." Ms. Sun grumbled, pulling the school board’s memo from her drawer. Her frown deepened as she reread it. The document only offered interview invitations—a clear sign the board couldn’t strong-arm the Council.

"My apologies... I truly misread this. The wording was just so—" She forced a wry smile. Her pride wouldn’t let her admit the mistake, but the embarrassment landed squarely on her shoulders. *Interview slots? How absurd.*

"No worries at all. Even without recommendations, we’ll give our all to join. We won’t let Class 9 down," Liming assured her.

"Right!" Zhangqianxing chimed in. "We’ll definitely make it. No slacking."

Class 9—where "nine" symbolized peak excellence—was the undisputed top class of the freshman year. The crème de la crème. While not every student could single-handedly crush ordinary classes, as a whole, they dominated. Without fail, they’d claim at least a third of the year’s top fifty ranks.

Liming and Xulu, in particular, were academic gods. Teachers had predicted since entrance exams that the year’s fiercest rivalry would blaze between them. Some even wondered if Qianning might produce another all-rounder like Senior Bailin.

*(Though a student matching Bailin’s legendary grades AND leadership? No teacher dared hope for that.)*

"Don’t pressure yourselves," Ms. Sun laughed. "Whether you join the Council or not won’t affect my opinion. Focus on grades—that’s what truly matters."

Only a clueless newbie like her could say such things. She didn’t know the Council’s veterans excelled academically too.

"Then, teacher, we’ll head back."

"Bye, teacher~"

As their chat wrapped up, Zhangqianxing turned to leave with Liming—until Ms. Sun’s quiet words froze him mid-step.

"Zhangqianxing, stay. I need to discuss something important with you."

Liming paused, but Ms. Sun shooed him away briskly.

Walking out, he caught faint murmurs from the office—something about handling bullies... and dealing with girls.

*Ah.* Liming instantly knew why his best friend had been detained.