CHAPTER 93: THE WEIGHT OF BEING SECOND

In front of these wealthy students who lived privileged lives, Rong Zhihao had never felt inferior, because he had the grades to show for it.

Only when he used his scores to strike them down, to make these students feel small, did Rong Zhihao feel a sense of balance.

Gradually, he had come to take first place in any exam for granted, enjoying the thrill of satisfying his vanity through his achievements.

But suddenly, from one day onwards, a mountain called Rong Xingyu appeared right in front of him.

Whenever Rong Xingyu participated in an exam, the first place always went to Rong Xingyu.

Rong Zhihao watched coldly as Rong Xingyu took the first place that should have been his, received the attention that should have been his, and enjoyed the praise of a whole group of people.

At night, he would toss and turn, unable to understand how he could lose to this second generation rich kid who had previously wasted his time doing nothing.

Rong Zhihao felt like he had entered a dead end, surrounded by high walls on all sides.

When he looked up, he could only see a small square of sky.

In his heart, he developed an obsessive fixation on grades, especially being "first place."

But as long as there is a ranking, there will always be a second place.

Does that mean the second place finisher in every exam is not worth recognition?

After all, when he had won first place before, weren’t there always classmates who came in second because they couldn’t beat him?

Caught in his obsession, Rong Zhihao did not realize that this national competition was much harder than the previous ones.

At Qibao Dwith School, only a few other students had managed to get third prize.

As for the national first prize, besides Rong Xingyu, there was only one other student, a top students from another place.

It was said that this student had started studying difficult math problems from a very young age and had shown extraordinary talent.

There were only two first prizes and second prizes were rare as well.

So in the eyes of others, winning a national second prize was already extremely impressive.

When the other classmates in the class found out, some of them even came over to congratulate Rong Zhihao.

"Class rep, congratulations! With this award, you can even get extra points on the college entrance exam!"

But as soon as the student finished speaking, he was startled by Rong Zhihao’s bloodshot eyes.

Rong Zhihao looked completely different from his usual self.

He glared at the student with fierce intensity.

"Are you here to mock me?" Rong Zhihao’s voice sounded strange.

He stared at the student as if, with just a nod, he would pounce and tear a piece of flesh from his neck.

The boy instinctively stepped back.

He cursed his bad luck in his heart and quietly walked away.

"What does he mean... isn’t second prize impressive?" the boy muttered to himself.

Not just second prize, if he could even participate in this competition, his parents would have bragged about it for at least six months.

Rong Zhihao lowered his head and scribbling randomly on his draft paper.

The sharp tip of his pencil tore through the paper, making a harsh, unpleasant sound.

His deskmate quietly shifted a little, trying to put some distance between them.

Since the competition results came out, Rong Zhihao had poured all his energy into solving competition problems.

He hadn’t even gone to collect his award certificate, as if he were trapped in an obsession, relentlessly attacking every competition problem.

His temper also became increasingly violent.

Whenever he encountered a problem he couldn’t solve, he would slam and smash things, throwing fits of rage.

After losing his temper, Rong Zhihao would bite his nails and wearing them down almost completely on both hands.

A dark and heavy atmosphere surrounded him.

He was a completely different person from the gentle top student he had been before.

But the national competition had already ended and Rong Zhihao’s obsession had caused his grades in recent exams to plummet sharply.

The teacher who is feeling helpless contacted Rong Zhihao’s parents.

Rong Zhenqiao had already noticed that Rong Zhihao seemed a little off lately, but when he was at home, Rong Zhihao appeared completely normal.

After thinking for a moment, Rong Zhenqiao took the report card and knocked on Rong Zhihao’s door.

But as soon as Rong Zhihao saw the report card, he seemed to lose his mind.

He snatched it and tore it into pieces.

The shredded report card was thrown at Rong Zhenqiao with hatred.

Rong Zhenqiao stood there, not angry at all, but frowning. "Zhihao, has something happened to you lately? You can tell me."

After he heard this, Rong Zhihao sneered.

He stared at Rong Zhenqiao with bloodshot eyes.

"So you think I’m not as good as Rong Xingyu, right?"

Rong Zhenqiao heard Rong Zhihao’s question and felt as if he had just heard something absurd.

His frown deepened.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Rong Zhenqiao said seriously.

Suddenly, Rong Zhihao seemed to calm down.

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Rong Zhenqiao’s waist.

He pressed his face against Rong Zhenqiao’s chest and spoke softly, "I’m sorry, Big Brother. I shouldn’t have said that."

It was the first time Rong Zhenqiao had been hugged like this by Rong Zhihao.

His body stiffened slightly, but he still reached out and patted Rong Zhihao’s head.

He tried to slow his voice and said,

"You and Xiaoyu are both my brothers. How could I think you’re worse than him?"

What Rong Zhenqiao said was heartfelt.

To him, both of them were his brothers: one he had raised and cared for over many years, and the other, though only recently brought back into the family, was his own blood.

Although Rong Xingyu and Rong Zhihao were very different in personality and other ways, in Rong Zhenqiao’s heart, both of them were equally important brothers.