174: Metamorphosis

The cold glow of the phone screen illuminated the narrow shadows beneath the desk.

Lin Que looked at the "dying rabbit" emoji Ye Xi had sent, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.

His fingers tapped lightly on the screen, typing at a leisurely pace yet with an air of casual certainty.

[Mu Xia]: premium selection.

[Mu Xia]: Late June, Finals in the capital.

Click send.

Almost simultaneously, the other side displayed "typing..."

The text flickered for a full half minute, only to send three extremely perfunctory punctuation marks.

[Fugitive Beethoven]: !!?

[Fugitive Beethoven]: premium selection again?? Does your family run a premium selection wholesale market?! [terrified] [kneeling]

In a piano room in Jinling, Ye Xi looked at her phone screen, her fingers naturally resting on the piano keys.

She knew Lin Que was good, but she hadn't expected it to be this outrageous.

Is this the disparity of the world?

Lin Que didn't reply further. He locked the screen and tossed the phone back into the desk drawer.

His thoughts drifted back to this morning's reading class... 7:30 a.m.

In the classroom of grade 11, class 3, Shen Qingqiu walked in just as the bell rang.

The homeroom teacher, who usually carried lesson plans and walked with purpose, today seemed unusually heavy-footed.

She held a thin sheet of A4 paper in her hand.

"Beep—"

After standing still, Shen Qingqiu didn't say much. She simply turned on the multimedia screen.

The projector's beam cut through the swirling dust, landing on the blackboard.

The entire class instinctively looked up, holding their breath.

On the screen, there was no score sheet—only two starkly contrasting images.

On the left was a cold, precise "Clockwork Gear Assembly,"

its dark blue metallic texture exuding the machinery and oppression of the industrial age.

On the right was a "Dark Red Ant" struggling amidst withered leaves,

its slender legs and rough carapace carrying a sense of primal life.

"This is the topic for the Semifinals."

Shen Qingqiu stood at the podium, tapping the screen lightly with a teaching aid, producing a dull sound.

"Many students found the preliminary topic 'A Joyful Event' difficult to write. What are your thoughts on the semifinal topic?"

Shen Qingqiu's voice echoed in the quiet classroom.

"This isn't just testing your writing—it's testing your worldview, your understanding of 'humanity' and social relationships."

A collective gasp rippled through the room.

"Gears versus ants? That's way too abstract!"

"Thank goodness I didn't make it to the Semifinals. If I had to write this, I'd sleep for eight hours during the exam."

"How do you even approach this? Technology versus life? Or environmental protection?"

Shen Qingqiu tapped the blackboard, and the classroom fell silent again.

She glanced down at the list in her hand, her expression complex.

"For this semifinal, over seven thousand top contestants from across the province participated. They're essentially the elites from each city."

She paused, her gaze settling on the second row:

"Zhang Ya."

Zhang Ya abruptly straightened up, her hands tightly clutching the hem of her clothes.

"Your approach was 'environmental protection,' with the theme that technological development shouldn't come at the cost of microscopic life. Your writing was neat, and your structure was rigorous."

Shen Qingqiu announced the result.

"Rating: B+."

Zhang Ya let out a long sigh of relief, her tense shoulders instantly slumping.

B+ was a fairly good score at the provincial level.

"Li Bowen."

Shen Qingqiu's gaze shifted to the bespectacled boy.

Li Bowen adjusted his glasses. Though trying to remain calm, the anticipation in his eyes was unmistakable.

"You wrote about the conflict between 'technology and nature,' using the laws of physics to explain the chaos and reorganization of social order."

"The angle was novel, and the judges gave it high marks."

Shen Qingqiu's voice softened slightly.

"Rating: A-."

"Wow—"

A low murmur of surprise erupted in the class.

"Amazing, Bowen! A-! You're set!"

"Both of them advanced? This is the Provincial Competition!"

"You're treating us! You have to treat us!"

Li Bowen finally smiled, turning to exchange a glance with Zhang Ya.

Both their eyes sparkled with the joy of having narrowly escaped disaster.

In their minds, with these ratings, the ticket to the Finals in the capital was already in their grasp.

However, Shen Qingqiu on the podium wasn't smiling.

She looked at the two People immersed in joy,

her lips twitched, but in the end, she poured cold water on their excitement.

"Don't celebrate just yet."

Shen Qingqiu's voice instantly froze the class's enthusiasm.

"While the scoring system remains the same, the advancement system has changed slightly."

She flipped the list over.

"To ensure the quality of the Finals, the Organizing Committee has decided..."

Shen Qingqiu's eyes swept across the class.

"Only works rated A+ or higher are eligible to advance to the Finals in the capital."

Boom—

It was like a bomb had exploded in the classroom.

The smile on Zhang Ya's face instantly froze, the color draining from her cheeks visibly.

Li Bowen looked as if struck by lightning. His glasses, which he had just pushed up his nose, slid down, and he stood there dumbfounded.

Even A- was eliminated?

That was an A-! In any context, that's a top ranking, right?

"This... this is way too competitive!"

"So we're completely wiped out? Our entire school is out?"

A sense of despair spread through the classroom like a virus.

The classmates who had just seen Zhang Ya and Li Bowen as heroes now looked at them with sympathy.

This feeling—having hope given and then snuffed out—was even crueler than outright elimination.

"Teacher..."

Amidst the dead silence, Wu Di timidly raised his hand from the corner.

"What about... Que... Lin Que?"

At the mention of that name, everyone's eyes, as if equipped with tracking systems, instantly focused on the seat by the window in the back row.

Right, there was still Lin Que.

The prodigy who had pulled off "premium selection" in the Preliminary Round.

Shen Qingqiu fell silent.

She didn't answer immediately, instead quietly watching Lin Que, who was spinning a pen.

There was no worry or anxiety in her gaze—

instead, it was replaced by a deep, almost bewildered sense of awe.

A full ten seconds passed.

Shen Qingqiu finally spoke slowly, her voice somewhat dry.

"Lin Que's result..."

The entire class's hearts skipped a beat.

Wu Di swallowed hard, muttering softly:

"No way... not that again, right?"

"The Organizing Committee's comments on this essay are lengthy."

Shen Qingqiu picked up another separate printed sheet from the podium, her hand trembling slightly.

She cleared her throat and began to read.

"[In this era that emphasizes absolute rationality, where people operate with machine-like precision, this candidate uses an absurd narrative to tear open the cold surface of technology.]"

"[Gears aren't order—they're shackles; the red ant isn't weakness—it's us after alienation.]"

"[With extreme visual impact and psychological horror, all the judges were left speechless in that moment.

This isn't just an exam essay—it's the embryonic form of a modernist milestone short story.

It's cold, cruel, yet filled with profound compassion for individual fate.]"

Shen Qingqiu finished reading and set the paper down.

The classroom was eerily quiet.

Visual and psychological?

And it's called a milestone?

Wasn't this praise a bit too high?

"Lin Que."

Shen Qingqiu looked at the The boy who remained calm and composed, her expression complex.

"Rating: premium selection."

Whoosh—

Though expected, when those two words were finally spoken, the class erupted.

"As expected, premium selection again!"

"Is this guy a wholesale supplier of guaranteed admissions?"

"I knew it! I knew Brother Que would handle this little competition with ease!"

Shen Qingqiu raised a hand to quiet everyone.

"Like the Preliminary Round, this essay will be included in a forthcoming national publication, so the original text remains confidential."

Shen Qingqiu paused, then added:

"However, the judging committee specifically noted that the complete version of this essay

will be officially released nationwide after the Finals in the capital, in late June."

Confidentiality again.

Publication again.

Privilege again.

The classmates were already numb.

Anything outrageous happening to Lin Que now seemed perfectly reasonable.

"Lin Que, come to my office after class to pick up your Finals notification."

After saying this, Shen Qingqiu picked up her lesson plans and turned to leave.

At the doorway, she paused, looking back deeply at Lin Que... Lin Que leaned back in his chair,

sunlight from outside filtering through the leaves and casting dappled shadows on the desk.

The surrounding classmates were still chattering about how good the milestone-worthy plot must be.

Some guessed it was a horror story; others speculated it involved even higher technology.

Lin Que spun the black pen in his hand, its tip unconsciously drawing circles on the scratch paper.

That day in the Jinling auditorium, facing those two Split image, countless thoughts flashed through his mind.

But in that moment, in this world governed only by physical laws, without Kafka,

he only wanted to bring that tremor called "alienation" to this overly rational world.

Since you all live like gears,

then I'll write about a bug that wants to fly but can't.

Lin Que silently repeated the title that later sent chills down the spines of nearly a hundred judges:

"the metamorphosis"...