'Touchstone'

Wang Peixian, a gaokao candidate at the Experimental School Affiliated to Haidian Teacher Training College in Beijing, described the virus as a "touchstone".

"It doesn't give people a free ride. All the darkness and egoists have been exposed by the media coverage, while the kindness of medical workers and volunteers is magnified," he wrote in an email to China Daily.

"We may be confused or disappointed, but we are never desperate. Spring always arrives after winter."

While Liu finished his rap song at home and started a second round of revision for the all-important exam, his peers in Wuhan have also been racing against time to prepare for the gaokao against the backdrop of the city's lockdown.

Since early January, Tong Linshu has taken six online classes a day, each lasting an hour. Her active study period stretches from 8 am until 6 pm. At 7 pm, she begins question-and-answer sessions with her teachers.

Tong, who is studying arts-based subjects at Wuhan No 6 High School, didn't feel the online classes had disrupted her gaokao preparations too badly.

"Actually, it's easier to ask questions online because we always get a reply from the teacher the next day, which is more efficient than waiting in line for an answer during breaks at school," she said.

Her main challenge is maintaining self-discipline in light of the flexible timetable and comfortable home environment.

"That has added a lot of pressure," said Tong, who has been staying with her grandparents since Jan 23, when Wuhan's lockdown began. The regulations mean she has not been able to return to her home in the downtown since then.

The 18-year-old had no idea how long the lockdown would last and felt anxious about the epidemic.

"When I didn't know how infectious the virus was, I thought the lockdown was exaggerated. It was hard to believe this unusual event happened to us in Wuhan," she said.

Citing the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome in Beijing, she said such things happen and "there is always a way to solve the problem".

She was impressed when she learned that a doctor had acted as a barber to cut the hair of female medical workers who were scheduled to travel to Wuhan. The women had decided to have their hair cut to reduce the risk of infection at work and to make it easier to shower frequently.

"But they didn't need to have their heads shaved completely, so the doctor only shortened their long hair to meet their professional needs," Tong said.