Chapter 73 The Best Ming Han (Part Two)

That night, Yuhang hosted the dinner.

Daxu invited Ying Huanhuan, Yuhang brought Huang Ying, Tank also brought his girlfriend—a petite, adorable girl. Ming Han thought that coming alone would be awkward, so he called Lin Jingjing.

Tank looked at the group and couldn’t help but sigh, “Young people these days, so restless! All of you are dating girls at such a young age.”

Tank didn’t talk much usually, but with friends, he was quite chatty.

He spoke about his experiences over the past few years: his grades in junior high were average, but he shone in basketball tournaments and was directly selected for the city sports school. There, his skills improved significantly.

“Yuhang, you really should consider it. If you do, we might get a chance to be teammates.”

Yuhang fell silent. He had once promised someone else that he would always be teammates with him.

His grades weren’t enough for direct admission to City No.1 High, but if he applied as an athlete, his entrance score could be lowered by about twenty points. There was still hope.

“Tank, let me think about it…”

They spent two hours eating before heading home.

Lin Jingjing was delighted, “Ming Han, when you go out to play now, do you naturally think of bringing me along?”

Ming Han chuckled without answering, looking like a fool.

...

Afterwards, life began to pick up pace for Ming Han.

After the second monthly exam, he started participating in city competitions.

The school set up a special tutoring class, inviting the top fifty students in physics and mathematics to attend. Ming Han carried his books around all day, rushing to classes, with his basketball time drastically reduced—much to his frustration.

One day, Huang Ying walked into the classroom and saw Ming Han bent over his exercises.

She joked, “Ming Han, did you know you’re ranked number one on the Ninth Grade’s Handsome Boys list?”

“Handsome Boys? What kind of ridiculous title is that, sounds awful,” Ming Han didn’t care for such things. He rarely went online, and had never visited the forums.

A girl nearby laughed at his cluelessness, “Ming Han, it means the most handsome boy in the grade.”

Ming Han was rather oblivious to such matters. He’d always believed himself not ugly, with all his features and limbs, healthy and lively.

As the topic caught on, the girls of Class Thirteen immediately launched into gossip.

“Actually, Zhang Haoxuan from Class Ten is super handsome too. He’s so cool, not as goofy as Ming Han.”

Ming Han felt a sweat drop forming. Goofy?

Another girl chirped, “Ming Han and Zhang Haoxuan are way ahead in votes, but it was Deng Qingqing’s support for Ming Han that tipped the scales.”

Deng Qingqing?

Hearing she supported him surprised Ming Han, but he didn’t dwell on it.

“That’s not all! Chen Li, who transferred out, logged in and voted for Ming Han too.”

Everyone was fascinated by such topics, but Ming Han found them boring. He wandered out of the classroom alone.

Chen Li.

Just when he thought he was close to forgetting her, someone would always remind him: Ming Han, Chen Li still cares about you!

As Ming Han walked down the corridor, many girls glanced at him.

Girls liked handsome guys, didn’t they?

“New Handsome Boy! Apparently both of our grade’s two beauties have a crush on him.”

He overheard such gossip and felt embarrassed. He was almost certain Deng Qingqing only saw him as a friend.

Daxu, just back from the supermarket, spotted Ming Han and was a bit annoyed, “Ming Han, I’m clearly more handsome than you. Why does no one notice my shining qualities?”

Ming Han shrugged, equally baffled.

“Ming Han, I need to keep my distance from you. Whenever I’m near you, girls never pay attention to me…” Daxu decided that, for the sake of his love life, he’d have to sacrifice their fragile friendship.

At that moment, Ming Han suddenly felt impulsive. He grabbed a basketball from the classroom and sneaked off to play alone.

The next period was math.

The math teacher, an old man, lectured for twenty minutes before he noticed Ming Han’s seat was empty. He asked, “Where’s that rascal Ming Han?”

He doted on Ming Han, almost like a grandson. Ming Han was clever, no math problem too difficult for him.

Everyone shook their heads.

“He was here earlier. Probably snuck off to play basketball,” the teacher muttered.

He then said to Yuhang, “Tell him to come back after class. Don’t let him miss the lunch hour.”

The students collectively fainted.

Miss the lunch hour? Teacher, Ming Han is skipping class! According to the rules, this deserves serious criticism. Not only do you not call him back, you remind him to eat!

Everyone was filled with envy!

Huang Ying silently mourned for Yuhang—he wouldn’t get any crispy sweet and sour ribs later.

“Ming Han’s a good kid, a little mischievous, but young people need personality!” The math teacher began to praise him.

Many students covered their ears...

...

Soon, Ming Han returned from the city math and physics competitions. The results were announced quickly.

The math teacher was beside himself with excitement, bursting into the classroom and interrupting the homeroom teacher’s lesson. “Hahaha… Ming Han, first place in city math! The only one to score over 120 points!”

The whole class gave Ming Han a heartfelt round of applause and cheers.

The school radio also announced: Congratulations to Ming Han from Class Thirteen, Ninth Grade, for achieving first place in the city math competition.

It was the best result in the history of Jinhua Middle School.

The homeroom teacher was thrilled, but a bit regretful, “Ming Han, if your English score could reach 140, you could challenge for first place in the county at the high school entrance exam.”

Ming Han stuck out his tongue and glanced at yesterday’s English test: 129.

Not bad! But not excellent either!

By now, Ming Han’s fame was rivaling even the principal’s.

As soon as school ended, Ming Han shouldered his backpack and dragged Yuhang away, “I’m exhausted. Today, I want to play till I drop.”

Recently, aside from shooting and dribbling drills to maintain his touch, Ming Han hadn’t had time for team games.

Yuhang laughed, “After dinner, let’s go to Light Park and play with Tank. He can teach you some footwork.”

There was a major difference between Tank and Yuhang: Yuhang was skilled at using dribbling to shake off defenders and create shooting space, while Tank relied more on fakes and footwork to confuse opponents.

“Yuhang, aren’t you going to teach me? Are you abandoning me?” Ming Han pretended to be heartbroken.

Yuhang replied, “It’ll take years of practice to reach my dribbling level. Tank’s technique will help you improve more quickly. In a few weeks, winter break begins. When we return, we’ll have the school tournament. You need to get stronger…”