Chapter 96

Dina: [Oh my god, he dotes on you so much!]

Mandy: [Am I the only one who thinks Emma looks great in the photo?]

Jason Fox: [Emma, did anyone ask for Mr. Hall’s WhatsApp number at the cinema?]

Emma thought for a moment and replied: [Yes.]

Emma’s reply generated excitement. Dina’s message, accompanied by emojis, asked: [Did more people ask for your number or Mr. Hall’s?]

Jenny Day: [I’m in love with the film ‘Love Letter.’ But can Mr. Hall watch such a romance movie?] She added an awkward emoji.

Emma glanced at her phone and turned to Liam, who was concentrating on driving. “What did you think of the movie?”

“Not bad,” Liam replied. More importantly, it wasn’t bad sharing it with her.

Emma smiled sweetly and replied in the group chat: [He said it’s not bad.]

Mandy was shocked. [Mr. Hall likes romance movies too!]

Jason: [Wow. Is this the power of love?]

Russ Sanders: [Men who dislike watching romance movies with their girlfriends should take a good look at Mr. Hall. He’s rich and handsome, yet willing to watch romance movies with his girlfriend. Learn from him.]

The class group chat buzzed with activity, a rarity.

After arriving home, exhausted, Emma showered and cleaned up, ignoring her phone. While setting her alarm, she noticed over a hundred new messages. The conversation had shifted from Liam and Emma to the upcoming City Games.

James: [Every year, there’s a three-day holiday for the City Games. But who from our class is participating this year?]

Eloise Haven: [We’re so unlucky. Our class is average at sports. Why were we chosen?]

Dina: [I’m worried that if we perform poorly, we’ll be mocked by other classes, especially those jerks from Class Two.]

James: [So, who will run the three-mile race? If no one volunteers, we’ll draw lots.]

Mandy: [Don’t pick me. I don’t want to run three miles… a hundred feet is my limit.]

Dina: [I don’t want to move a hundred feet.]

Emma clicked her tongue and shook her head, viewing the stream of complaints. Everyone's stamina seemed abysmal; three miles would likely kill them. If deployed to a war zone, they’d probably struggle to escape.

Therefore, Emma replied: [I’ll sign up.]

The group chat erupted.

Mandy: [Miss Wilson has arrived!]

Jenny: [Emma for the win!]

Dina: [Long live Miss Wilson!]

Emma smiled at the screen, then went to bed without replying.

Time flew, and soon it was City Games day. This year’s event in Troln City was held at the state-of-the-art Vark College. Delegations from hundreds of schools were in attendance.

“Wow. This is Troln City’s famous elite school. Impressive,” someone commented. Other schools' students envied the new buildings.

But other voices emerged.

“Tsk. Aren’t they just a bunch of rich kids who buy their way overseas if they can’t get into university?” one voice asked.

“That’s untrue,” another countered. “Vark College has excellent students. For example, Vere Hurlbutt recently received a full scholarship to Innove University. And there’s that new girl, Emma Wilson. She scored only one or two points lower than Vere in the Vark Invitational Mathematics Examination.”

That person sneered. “Emma? A girl? Tsk. What’s so great about girls? Can girls be astronauts? Can girls do scientific research? Won’t they end up at home caring for husbands and children?”

“Agreed. Women are better off being pretty than smart. Marrying well is better,” a second voice added. “Bob is our hope for the future. Don’t you agree, Bob?”

Bob Ball stood amidst the group. His crisp white shirt seemed to glow. Hearing the comments, he frowned. “Don’t say that. I’ve seen Emma’s solution analysis online—it’s impressive. And don’t forget that many great scientists, both past and present, are women.”

Bob’s cold, unemotional voice silenced the two. Meanwhile, Emma led the Vark College team in their warm-up.

The three-mile race was the final track and field event. As Emma and her classmates warmed up, a team approached from a nearby area.

“You’re Vark College’s team. We’re from Dimonate College,” they announced.

Dimonate College, another prestigious Troln City school, and Vark College were rivals, frequently competing for top honors. Dimonate had been fortunate enough to have their specialized sports class selected; they planned to dominate.

Seeing Dimonate’s tall, powerful athletes, Vark’s students felt intimidated. Dimonate was fully prepared—uniforms and banner included—and led by a girl nearly six feet tall. She challenged, “Who’s your captain? Let’s have a pre-race warm-up competition.”

A black-haired Emma, in a black tracksuit, stepped forward. “I’m the captain.”

Iris Meyer assessed Emma’s slight build. She laughed loudly. “Are you kidding? Little girl, are you a sports captain or a sickly art club president?”

Her team erupted in laughter. Offended on behalf of the “art club” students, Emma retorted coldly, “What do you want to compete in?”

Iris laughed again. “Forget it. Look at you. We’d better not compete; we'd crush you.”

Dimonate College swaggered away, leaving Vark College furious but intimidated by their superior height. However, Emma suddenly bent down, performing one-handed push-ups.

Dimonate College, having walked away, subconsciously glanced back. Seeing Emma’s effortless one-handed push-ups, they were stunned.

“Wow, Iris, look! One-handed push-ups,” someone exclaimed.

Iris was equally surprised.

Emma casually completed dozens of push-ups, a feat rare for any girl, let alone one-handed. Vark College students erupted in cheers: “Miss Wilson is amazing!”