Lin Zhixia claimed that she would catch the thief and seek justice for Duan Qiyan, which suddenly gave Duan Qiyan a sense of security that filled his body and mind.
Although Lin Zhixia is the youngest student in the Grade 17 class, her intelligence exceeds the average level of her peers. She is like an immovable mountain, towering and reliable.
Lin Zhixia checked the padlock on the drawer and asked, "Duan Qiyan, was the padlock intact when you came to copy the documents?"
"Yes!" Duan Qiyan said firmly, "At 12:37 noon, I squatted in front of this host to look for the USB port. It took me two minutes to find the USB port."
Jin Baihui interjected: "You remember the time so accurately?"
Jin Baihui did not hide her mockery. Several students from other schools were pointing fingers at Duan Qiyan. Duan Qiyan got so excited that he almost ran out of the classroom again. Fortunately, Shen Fuxuan held his shoulder.
Duan Qiyan endured the rage and quickly defended himself, "I was wearing a digital watch! I thought I could find the USB port in two seconds, but I didn't expect it took me two minutes..."
Lin Zhixia turned around and faced Jin Baihui: "When did you find out that the lock was broken, and who found out?"
"It's me!" said the monitor of Class 18, "I went to the toilet and when I came back I saw the drawer was opened."
Duan Qiyan reiterated, "That was definitely not me. At 1:10 pm, I went to the cafeteria to buy a chicken burger and brought it back to the classroom to eat. I couldn't eat a burger and pick the lock at the same time."
A boy from another school said suspiciously, "We were all sleeping in the back of the classroom, who knows if Duan Qiyan lied or not."
Lin Zhixia looked at the boy and asked him, "Have you been sleeping in the back of the classroom?"
The boy said, “Yes.”
Lin Zhixia raised her head, stared at him with a sharp gaze, and deduced: "Assuming that Duan Qiyan did not lie, then this iron lock was good before 1:10 p.m. today. Because Duan Qiyan's seat was in the group against the wall, the most convenient way for him to go out was to pass by the podium. I suspect that someone took action after he left."
After hearing what Lin Zhixia said, the monitor of Class 18 was stunned for a moment and shouted loudly: "Hello, Teacher Wang!"
Everyone looked towards the door and saw Mr. Wang, the head teacher of Class 18, coming over.
Teacher Wang put his hands behind his back, his expression was extremely serious, his eyebrows sank, and he lowered his voice and asked, "Did you students rebel? Who opened the drawer?"
Jiang Yubai replied: "I don't know yet."
Teacher Wang stepped onto the podium.
Jin Baihui reported to him: "Teacher Wang, at noon I saw Duan Qiyan squatting on the desk for several minutes."
Teacher Wang's eyes swept over Duan Qiyan, and Duan Qiyan realized that Teacher Wang regarded him as a suspect. He was speechless, his head was suddenly confused, his eyes became dull and terrified, and he looked more like a student who had done something bad.
Teacher Wang asked him, "Is that you, Duan Qiyan?"
Duan Qiyan's lips trembled and he let out an "ah".
Teacher Wang simply said, "Duan Qiyan, when Teacher Zhang comes, go and admit your mistake to Teacher Zhang. If you admit your mistake and correct it, you are still a good student in Class 17."
Teacher Wang is a good teacher with a mild temper. If another teacher with a hot temper saw Duan Qiyan's "there is something fishy going on here", he would probably roar on the spot.
A senior student in the second grade said, "Stealing the test paper is such a serious matter. Teacher Wang is not angry yet. I want to transfer to Teacher Wang's class."
Another senior said, "How can a boy from Grade 17 pick a lock? Isn't this just asking for trouble?"
Many students in Class 17 felt ashamed.
Jiang Yubai pushed Duan Qiyan away and stepped forward: "Teacher Wang, Duan Qiyan brought a USB flash drive. He used the USB interface to copy files, and he didn't pick the lock."
Teacher Wang glanced at him and said, "Okay, go back to your seats first. Class is about to start. This is not a small matter. Let's talk about it after Teacher Zhai and Teacher Zhang come."
Every word from Teacher Wang was like a knife, stabbing straight into Duan Qiyan's heart. For the first time in his life, Duan Qiyan was suspected by his teacher. There were many students around him talking about him, saying that he was crazy in the morning and picked the lock at noon, what a shameless boy.
How could he be so shameless
He is obviously a very proud person.
Duan Qiyan's eyes turned red, and bloodshot appeared in his eyeballs.
Jin Baihui spoke a few more words to Teacher Wang.
Duan Qiyan was filled with rage, but he had nowhere to vent, so he couldn't help but curse, "Jin Baihui, you are an idiot. You can't pass Lin Zhixia's test even if you do a hundred questions. What qualifications do you have to lie? If I really picked the lock, I would smash the test paper on your head, so that you can at least get first place in the grade for once!"
In fact, Duan Qiyan was a smart kid. He hit Jin Baihui's sore spot accurately, and Jin Baihui rolled up her sleeves and rushed towards him without saying a word.
Jin Baihui didn't care that she was a girl and Duan Qiyan was a boy. She was resolute and decisive. If she wanted to fight, she would fight! She punched Duan Qiyan's lower back, but Duan Qiyan dodged and yelled, "You are the only crazy woman in Class 18. One bad apple spoils the whole barrel!"
There was chaos on the podium.
Teacher Wang was also angry. Teacher Wang slammed the desk and asked sternly, "Duan Qiyan, how can you curse? You are a student in the competition class of the Provincial No. 1 Middle School! Don't you think you are not ashamed enough?"
"Teacher Wang, I found the real thief." Lin Zhixia's voice suddenly rang out.
The students in the lecture hall have almost all arrived, and teachers Zhai and Zhang are also standing at the door of the classroom.
Lin Zhixia pointed to a boy from another school and analyzed, "There are a total of 20 rows of seats in the tiered classroom. This morning, this classmate sat in the third row of the first row. In the afternoon, he changed his seat to the second row of the seventeenth row. Why? Because the left side of the podium is close to the classroom door, and the first row of seats is on the far left of the classroom. When the thief is picking the lock, he also needs to pay attention to whether there is anyone outside the classroom door. Once there is someone, he will subconsciously avoid and flee to the right. The right side is basically the territory of our first grade class 17 and class 18. At noon today, most of the first grade students went home for lunch, and the right side is much safer than the left side, so he simply moved his seat to the seventeenth row... None of his classmates are nearby, so something must be wrong when something is abnormal."
The boy from the other school stood up at once, his face livid, his eyes fierce: "You farted!"
His expression was so scary, as if he wanted to eat Lin Zhixia.
Jiang Yubai immediately walked in front of Lin Zhixia and stood still. Lin Zhixia hid behind Jiang Yubai and calmly explained: "I have several more arguments."
The boy's left hand crossed his trouser pocket, and his classmate called out to him, "Kuang Geng!"
Lin Zhixia immediately responded: "Your name is Kuang Geng? Okay, classmate Kuang Geng, you just told me that you were sleeping at the back of the classroom at noon, and all the students on the podium heard it, and they can all testify for me!"
Shen Fuxuan took the lead in responding: "I heard it! I will testify!"
Lin Zhixia continued, "Kuang Geng claimed that he slept in the back of the classroom for the whole afternoon. However, his seat was in the front row, and his desk was filled with reference books and notebooks. Even the cap of his fountain pen was not closed. This way, the tip of the fountain pen would easily dry out..."
Kuang Geng raised his thigh and bumped it against the edge of the table. "I forgot to put the cap on my pen? Is that not okay? Is it illegal? You said Jin Baihui wronged Duan Qiyan, how dare you wrong me?"
A student from Class 18 commented: "Lin Zhixia is... Besieging Wei to save Zhao!"
No matter what others said, Lin Zhixia was not disturbed. She said calmly: "The most important thing is that the lock was pried open by a paper clip, and you, Kuang Geng, brought a box of paper clips. I remember very clearly that you put a box of paper clips on the table this morning. My memory cannot be wrong. You are the only one in the class who brought paper clips."
At this point, Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai exchanged glances.
Jiang Yubai tugged at the sleeves of Shen Fuxuan and Duan Qiyan, and the three of them went straight to Kuang Geng.
Kuang Geng wanted to escape, but it was too late. Jiang Yubai and Duan Qiyan held Kuang Geng's wrists firmly on the left and right, while Shen Fuxuan reached into Kuang Geng's left trouser pocket and took out two paper clips folded into a straight line.
It was not until then that one of Kuang Geng’s classmates said, “Teacher Wang, this afternoon… Kuang Geng didn’t take a nap. He stood up all the time, walked outside, and then walked back to the classroom.”
With all the evidence, Kuang Geng was speechless. He squeezed his metacarpal bones and made a "crunching" sound, which calmed the discussion around him - all the students nearby felt the terrifying low pressure from Kuang Geng.
Mr. Zhang, the head teacher of Class 17, was furious. Just as he was about to speak, the head coach, Mr. Zhai, raised his hand and stopped him.
Teacher Zhai said calmly: "Dear students, please return to your seats first."
All the students returned to their seats. Teacher Zhai walked up to Kuang Geng and told him: "Kuang Geng, look up. Did you see the black circle on the ceiling? That's the surveillance camera that our school installed this year. Hey, the teacher already knew what happened in the classroom..."
A few meters away, Lin Zhixia looked up at the ceiling, staring at the black circle. She asked quietly, "Is that a surveillance camera?"
Shen Fuxuan sat on her right, and Jiang Yubai sat on her left. After Lin Zhixia finished speaking, Jiang Yubai and Shen Fuxuan also looked up and observed for a moment.
Shen Fuxuan said firmly: "My mother said that surveillance cameras will be installed in the junior high school's lecture halls this summer."
Shen Fuxuan thought to himself: Why did Teacher Zhai lie
After all, Kuang Geng was not a student of the Provincial No. 1 Middle School, and he did not know the equipment of the lecture hall. He foolishly believed what Teacher Zhai said, and could only try to be lenient by confessing: "I... did not want to take the exam. I only pried the lock once, and it opened easily."
Teacher Zhai asked him to sit down and said kindly, "It's normal that you don't want to take the exam! Don't look at me because I'm old and there's a generation gap between me and you. When I was in school, I didn't want to take exams either. Who likes exams? Is there any student in our class who likes exams?"
Lin Zhixia didn't dare to say a word.
Teacher Zhai walked back to the podium and calmly presided over the situation: "I understand your feelings, very much. I am a teacher, and I was also a student. I want to tell you that exams are just a small challenge in life. It can help you test your academic level and also allow teachers to test their teaching quality. An exam can bring a win-win result."
There was silence in the classroom. Teacher Zhai coughed and continued, "Today's exam is cancelled. This will not happen again. Everyone, don't relax. The tasks of the training camp must be completed. Otherwise, it will be a waste of everyone's time. Do you understand?"
The audience shouted in unison: "I understand!"
Teacher Zhai gave the podium to Teacher Zhang. Teacher Zhang picked up the lesson plan, his face normal, and continued to explain the knowledge points of the junior high school competition.
The afternoon passed quickly, and it was five in the evening in the blink of an eye. The daytime in winter is particularly short, and at this time the sky was closing in on the twilight, and the setting sun had taken away the last ray of light. All the students carried their schoolbags and walked out of the classroom.
Teacher Zhai stood at the door and called out to Lin Zhixia, Jiang Yubai, Shen Fuxuan, Duan Qiyan, and Jin Baihui, asking them to go to the office.
Lin Zhixia asked in surprise: "Teacher Zhai, do I have to go to the office too?"
"Yes, you all have to go," Teacher Zhai replied.
Lin Zhixia grabbed Jiang Yubai's schoolbag strap. Jiang Yubai whispered to her, "It's okay, don't be afraid."
"I'm not afraid," Lin Zhixia said to herself, "I just can't understand why we were called to the office, but Kuang Geng was able to go home directly."
Teacher Zhai opened the door of his office and invited five students to sit down. His office was very tidy, and there was half-warm tea in the enamel cup on the table.
Teacher Zhai picked up the cup and sighed, "I didn't punish Kuang Geng for two reasons. First, he is not a student of our school and I can't control him. Second, when I found out that he picked the lock, I gave up on him. I don't have any expectations for him. Do you understand? Starting next week, we will have small classes. Small classes are divided into fast classes and slow classes. Kuang Geng will be assigned to the most basic slow class. A new teacher who just graduated will teach him. It doesn't matter if he doesn't come to class."
Jin Baihui said calmly: "It's just right, he doesn't want to take the exam, he doesn't deserve to study in the fast class."
Teacher Zhai waved her hand and said, "Jin Baihui, I heard from Teacher Wang that you wronged Duan Qiyan. This is not good, it is really not good. You are the student we pay the most attention to, you understand? Jin Baihui, you need to calm down and be steady..."
Jin Baihui tilted her head and glanced at Lin Zhixia: "Lin Zhixia didn't calm down either. She brought a group of people and identified Kuang Geng."
"Yes," Teacher Zhai tapped the table with his fingertips, "This is the point I want to emphasize. Lin Zhixia, listen to what the teacher is saying..."
Teacher Zhai's tone became extremely gentle and kind: "Lin Zhixia, studying and competing are your most important tasks. Don't pay attention to others. If you encounter anything in school, come directly to me, your class teacher, Teacher Zhang. You are all too young. How brave is Kuang Geng today? He dared to openly pick the lock in school. There were so many students in the classroom, coming and going, he could be discovered at any time, and he dared to pick the lock. What kind of mentality does he have?"
Lin Zhixia was confused: "So what?"
Teacher Zhai held the teacup in both hands and patiently explained: "Lin Zhixia, you have a careful logical thinking and I am very pleased that you can find him out. However, we should not get involved in such troublesome matters if we can. The competition is your main task."
Lin Zhixia thought for a moment and replied, "I understand. Teacher, you are afraid that he will bear a grudge against me and bring me trouble. I can see that he is not mentally healthy. He squeezed his finger bones until they made a creaking sound for a long time. Does that hurt a little? But he can't feel that kind of pain."
Teacher Zhai sighed, "Yes, just like Teacher Zhang and the others said, Lin Zhixia is really smart. But don't worry, I have calmed him down. You will be separated into different classes soon, and you won't be able to see him."
Duan Qiyan frowned and suddenly said, "I will protect Lin Zhixia."
Jiang Yubai was stunned.
Teacher Zhai was also a little stunned: "Huh?"
Jiang Yubai took a half step forward. He turned sideways and looked directly at Duan Qiyan. He understood that Lin Zhixia had done justice for Duan Qiyan and cleared his grievances, and Duan Qiyan's attitude towards Lin Zhixia might change 180 degrees.
Jiang Yubai's thinking was correct. In fact, Duan Qiyan said in front of Teacher Zhai without hesitation: "Teacher Zhai, I am a student of Class 17. I was wronged, so Lin Zhixia helped me. She is the monitor of Class 17. Teacher Zhai, don't scold her, she just fulfilled her responsibilities as a monitor. If you want to scold someone, scold me."
Teacher Zhai asked back: "Did I criticize her? Am I not presenting facts and reasoning to you?"
Lin Zhixia understood the good intentions of Teacher Zhai. Frankly speaking, the attitude of the teachers in the competition class towards Lin Zhixia was as warm as spring. She was well taken care of in school, and the teachers regarded her as a rising star, hoping that she could bring honor and glory to the junior high school department of the Provincial No. 1 Middle School.
Lin Zhixia tried to smooth things over, "Thank you, Mr. Zhai. I will pay attention to that next time."
Seeing how smart and sensible she was, Teacher Zhai couldn't help but nodded and said, "Okay, I want to tell you that the five of you are all good talents in our competition class. If you have any problems, just come to me. You don't have to solve them by yourself. I am your strong backer. Okay, you can go home first. Be careful on the road."
The five students responded in unison.
The sky was dark and the moonlight was dim. Lin Zhixia and her classmates walked out of the campus together and parted ways at the school gate.
Jin Baihui only said "goodbye" to Lin Zhixia. She walked towards the bus stop without looking back. She didn't need friends or company. It seemed that if she talked to others for one more word, it would be a waste of precious time.
Shen Fuxuan looked at Jin Baihui's back and shrugged. He stood by the road, opened the door of an S-Class Mercedes-Benz, sat in the passenger seat, and shouted to the outside: "Lin Zhixia! My father is here to pick me up. How about we take you home?"
Lin Zhixia said hurriedly: "No need, I'll go home by myself, see you tomorrow!"
Shen Fuxuan waved his hand, and the Mercedes-Benz started its engine and gradually drove into the dim night.
There was a light snowfall from the sky. The snowflakes flew around like floating catkins and were barely visible when they hit the ground.
The road was slippery on a snowy day. Duan Qiyan pushed a bicycle and passed slowly in front of Lin Zhixia. He seemed to want to say something to Lin Zhixia, but Jiang Yubai kept staring at him. Jiang Yubai's gaze was like thousands of bright lights, illuminating him and making him unable to express his inner gratitude. No matter how thick-skinned he was, he couldn't say to Jiang Yubai in front of him: Lin Zhixia, thank you, you are a good person.
If Duan Qiyan spoke his mind, Jiang Yubai would sneer and mock him. Duan Qiyan had no choice but to give up his original plan and said vaguely: "Lin Zhixia, you are a good monitor."
Lin Zhixia nodded: "Please call me Squad Leader Lin."
Duan Qiyan stretched out his long legs and stepped onto the bicycle seat: "Okay, Squad Leader Lin!" After that, he exerted force on the soles of his shoes and pedaled wildly. Like an arrow shot from a bow, he slid quickly towards the non-motorized vehicle lane, not afraid of falling on the road at all.
These classmates left one after another. Jiang Yubai also walked towards a car in his family. He thought for a moment before saying, "Lin Zhixia, I'll take you home. It's getting dark, and we can discuss geometry and algebra problems in the car."
The street lamp cast a warm orange light, and the snowy scene in the night was slightly bright. Jiang Yubai was surrounded by only his own shadow. He turned around and found that Lin Zhixia had already crossed the road alone. She was standing at the bus stop opposite and waved to Jiang Yubai.
"See you tomorrow!" she said happily.
She smiled very sweetly. She didn't smile so brightly when she said goodbye to the other three classmates just now. Compared with Duan Qiyan, Jin Baihui, Shen Fuxuan... she was more looking forward to meeting Jiang Yubai tomorrow.
Jiang Yubai smiled back: "See you tomorrow."
For Lin Zhixia, the winter training camp was a very happy time. She could see her classmates from Monday to Friday, and she could go to the university library to enrich herself on Saturdays and Sundays. Sister Zhu Chan was very kind to her, or, more precisely, all the doctoral sisters she knew were very kind to her, although that kind of "kindness" was more like treating her as a young child, rather than the completely equal information exchange she most desired.
As long as Lin Zhixia was present, adults would be careful about their words, and the atmosphere in the office became solemn and quiet. Some doctoral students in some departments mistakenly thought Lin Zhixia was Professor Shen's granddaughter, and everyone became more polite when getting along with each other. Lin Zhixia understood that this was mainly because she was too young.
She confided to Jiang Yubai: "The world is complex and ever-changing. Do adults use a set of fixed standards to evaluate another person? Jiang Yubai, have you ever thought about this question?"
She secretly asked about Jiang Yubai in the small class.
Jiang Yubai looked at the blackboard and replied in a low voice: "I'll talk about it after class."
Lin Zhixia nodded repeatedly and shut up obediently.
After the first week of winter training, Teacher Zhai divided the students into fast and slow classes based on their test scores. Lin Zhixia still maintained her first place ranking, and her total score even exceeded that of her seniors in the second year of junior high school. She, Jiang Yubai, Shen Fuxuan, Jin Baihui, and Duan Qiyan were all key protected students in the first year of junior high school competition class. Teacher Zhai personally opened the class and served as their head coach.
Teacher Zhai has a lot of teaching experience. He is not only good at teaching students in accordance with their aptitude, but also very good at adjusting students' psychological state. After class, he would chat with Jin Baihui for a few minutes, and she would no longer look bitter and resentful while doing the questions. Jin Baihui's expression became more relaxed when she was doing the questions every day.
Mr. Zhai's courses are concise, high-quality and well-organized. Jiang Yubai never loses focus in his class, not even chatting with Lin Zhixia. When the bell rings, Jiang Yubai will leave the world of mathematics and talk to Lin Zhixia about topics that interest her.
Lin Zhixia held her face with both hands and said happily: "Jiang Yubai, you listen to the class so seriously, maybe we can skip a grade soon!"
Jiang Yubai has no plans to skip a grade for now. His daily schedule is packed. At 8:30 every night, he lies on his bed and falls asleep in less than a minute. If he skips another grade, he may have to go to bed after 8:30. Lack of sleep during his growth period may prevent him from reaching 1.88 meters in height when he grows up.
This is absolutely not possible.
Jiang Yubai attaches great importance to his height.
So he said, "Because I don't understand, I listen to the class carefully."
Admitting that he didn't understand was already a huge challenge for Jiang Yubai.
Lin Zhixia patiently comforted him: "It's okay. Everyone has knowledge that they don't understand. We live in this world to obtain information. Your eyes, nose, ears and all your tactile senses are your sources of information input."
Jiang Yubai asked her: "Can you still input information in class?"
"Yes," Lin Zhixia replied, "Based on the standards of junior high school math competitions, Mr. Zhai's questions are difficult. I can further transform those questions. For example, when I see a circle, I will think of a ring, and then a Riemann space."
The words "Riemann space" sound a lot like advanced mathematics. Jiang Yubai knew nothing about this field. His notebook only contained geometry problems from junior high school competitions. He closed his notebook silently. After a moment, he asked, "What do the doctoral students you know do every day?"
"They all have their own thoughts," Lin Zhixia described. "They have to read papers, do experiments, and find innovative ideas... Because the PhD students I know are all from basic mathematics, physics, and computer science departments, I think their daily work is relatively lonely and may not be as lively as you imagine."
Jiang Yubai paused and spun his pen. Indeed, in his imagination, when PhD students were studying in school, they would hold meetings every day to discuss academic issues. Their days were very lively, just like a hundred Lin Zhixias gathered together from morning till night.
However, Lin Zhixia said to Jiang Yubai: "Once a scholar has chosen a certain direction, he must always have his own thoughts. And thinking itself mostly means quietness and solitude. Only when you have the results of your thinking can you communicate with others."
Jiang Yubai turned around and looked at her: "Is that the path you want to take?"
"Yes," Lin Zhixia replied, "Professor Shen and I have made a promise."
Jiang Yubai was also present when Lin Zhixia and Professor Shen made a pinky promise. He was deeply impressed by Professor Shen and had a yearning for scientific research.
Lin Zhixia seemed to have guessed what he was thinking, and she asked him again: "Jiang Yubai, do you also want to do scientific research?"
"Doing scientific research" may require the innate conditions of Lin Zhixia - thinking of this, Jiang Yubai decided to give up as soon as possible. He did not feel afraid of difficulties, he just understood the principle of "giving up and gaining". Dad said that a mature man cannot take care of everything.
After careful consideration, Jiang Yubai briefly told Lin Zhixia: "I don't really miss it."
He thought Lin Zhixia would persuade him to think twice, to love science and to devote himself to scientific research. However, Lin Zhixia's reaction was beyond his expectations. Lin Zhixia whispered: "Everyone has their own choices and directions, and this is the beauty of the world..."
Jiang Yubai interrupted: "I can't study science with you in the future..."
"You and I are different, so you are Jiang Yubai and I am Lin Zhixia," Lin Zhixia looked at him and said more seriously, "You are the one and only Jiang Yubai."
That's right.
He is the one and only Jiang Yubai.
Lin Zhixia was just stating the facts.
Jiang Yubai's ears felt slightly hot and maybe a little red. He didn't want his classmates to notice.
Fortunately, Jiang Yubai's winter coats all have hoods. He took the hood with one hand and covered his head. He sat against the wall, his back straight and upright, his handwriting neat and full of energy. Teacher Zhai passed by him and asked him, "Jiang Yubai, why are you wearing a hood in the classroom? Are you so cold? Should I turn up the air conditioner a little bit?"
"No, thank you," Jiang Yubai replied, "I'm concentrating on taking notes."
The winter vacation lasts for a month. Except for the three-day Spring Festival holiday and the weekends, most of the students in the competition class are participating in intensive training. Jiang Yubai has high standards and strict requirements for himself. After a winter vacation of intensive training, he successfully stood out in the competition of small class teaching. Teacher Zhai has a very high evaluation of Jiang Yubai.
After the training camp ended, Teacher Zhai wrote a comment for each student in the class.
Teacher Zhai's comment to Jiang Yubai was: Jiang Yubai, you are diligent, motivated, and eager to learn. I believe you will definitely get a good place in the competition. There is only one problem. You often wear a hat after class. If you catch a cold, please report it in time. Study is not the first priority, health is the first priority.
Jiang Yubai could feel the teacher's concern and care. He was embarrassed in his heart, but appeared calm as he put away the comments and transcript.
That night, Jiang Yubai returned home as usual. When he was packing his schoolbag in his bedroom, his uncle suddenly broke into his room and asked him, "Xiao Jiang, did you miss me a lot during the two months when I was performing in the southern hemisphere?"
Jiang Yubai looked at him quietly, but said, "No."
Uncle made Xizi's gesture of holding her heart: "Really? Uncle doesn't believe it."
Jiang Yubai explained: "I took extra classes for a month and was very busy."
Last December, my uncle traveled with the band to Australia and New Zealand.
It was the sunny summer in the southern hemisphere, and the uncle's skin seemed to be a little tanned, but he didn't care. He even took off his gloves, revealing a pair of flawless hands, showing masculine strength from bones to tendons. He said: "The performance in Australia exhausted me, so it's better to play the piano, so you don't have to carry the piano yourself. By the way, Xiao Jiang, I heard from your father that you didn't go anywhere during the winter vacation, and you were crazy about making up lessons, right? Your diligence is so much like me. When I was ten years old, I practiced the piano like crazy every day. Your father was shocked by my diligence and especially admired my perseverance..."
Before the uncle finished speaking, Jiang Yubai's father also came.
Jiang Yubai shouted, "Dad."
My uncle immediately turned around and shouted, "Brother."
Dad walked up to Jiang Yubai and sat on a soft chair. He noticed the report card Jiang Yubai had placed on the table. But he never took the initiative to reach out for Jiang Yubai's things. He only glanced at it, and Jiang Yubai hid the report card in his schoolbag.
Dad smiled and asked him in a low voice: "Did you do poorly on the test?"
Jiang Yubai hesitated for a moment and handed the report card to his uncle again.
The uncle opened the report card and, like a megaphone, announced: "Jiang Yubai, Grade 1 (17) class, total score in winter vacation intensive math training, A+, overall ranking, top 5% in grade."
"Very good," said Dad, "the test showed your level."
My uncle echoed, "Yes, our family is at this level."
Dad put his left hand on the armrest of the soft chair. He wore a sapphire mirror mechanical watch on his wrist, which showed the current time as 7:30 in the evening. Dad reminded him: "In another hour, you have to go to bed."
Jiang Yubai nodded: "Yeah."
Dad leaned forward slightly and asked gently, "Don't you have anything else to say to me?"
The uncle sat cross-legged on the ground. The ground was covered with a soft and clean carpet. The uncle straightened his back and suggested: "Xiao Jiang, if you have something to say, just say it."
Jiang Yubai said frankly: "I want to participate in provincial competitions, national leagues, and international Olympic competitions."
Dad nodded and said, "Very good. You have great ambitions."
Jiang Yubai stood up from his seat. He put down his schoolbag and continued, "I am participating in the competition not for a spot, but for the first prize. In the team competition, my teammates are very strong. In the individual competition, I cannot fall behind."
His father looked into his eyes and said, "You've been studying for the entire winter vacation and have hardly had a chance to relax. Your mother and I are a little worried, but it's okay. You have a firm goal and I'm happy to see your progress."
Dad stretched out his hand to Jiang Yubai, and Jiang Yubai shook his hand - this was his father's way of encouraging him. From childhood to adulthood, whenever he encountered difficulties and revealed a clue to his father, his father would shake his hand and encourage him like he did now: "Come on, son."
Uncle also took his hand. But Dad said, "Your hands are insured for tens of millions of dollars. Forget it. Don't shake hands with Jiang Yubai."
The uncle was very shocked: "What do tens of millions of dollars mean to you? It's just a tiny number."
Dad said slowly: "This is not a small number, it is a large number. In front of children, adults should treat money as money. When Jiang Yubai goes to the investment market in the future, he should pay more attention to risk control."
Jiang Yubai replied: "Yes, I agree with what Dad said."
Uncle never argued with Dad. He quickly compromised and said, "Indeed, you are right. This is the way our family thinks, and I agree with it." Then he asked, "Jiang Yubai, when will your competition start?"
Jiang Yubai said truthfully: "The league starts in April. There are two other competitions, the preliminary round in March and the final round in April. The team competition is an international competition. If I do well in the next few exams, I will team up with my classmates and participate in the international competition."
"Which classmate?" Uncle asked sharply, "Is it Lin Zhixia?"
Dad immediately caught the point: "Lin Zhixia?"
Before Jiang Yubai could answer, his uncle introduced him in detail: "Brother, let me tell you, there is a classmate in Jiang Yubai's class named Lin Zhixia. Lin Zhixia was originally in the fourth grade at the Experimental Primary School with Jiang Yubai. Later, they went to Shen Zhaohua's laboratory and decided to skip a grade, so they jumped to the junior high school competition class of the Provincial No. 1 Middle School. Brother, you may ask, Lin Zhixia is just a ten-year-old girl, how can she skip a grade with our little Jiang? Could it be that she also has a group of math and English tutors at home?"
Jiang Yubai interrupted: "There's nothing to say about this."
But my father said, "I don't often get to know your classmates, so it would be nice to hear from your uncle."
Uncle readily added, "Lin Zhixia has no tutor. Her skills are natural. She stunned a group of Shen Zhaohua's doctoral students in the laboratory building of the Physics Department, and I was also stunned. It was the first time I saw such a young girl who liked physics and mathematics so much and could understand those complex concepts. Her foreign language skills are also good. She can at least speak German and English. Brother, you know that my German level is quite good. I personally checked Lin Zhixia's German. Lin Zhixia should have no problem communicating with Germans in German in daily life. Jiang Yubai told me that Lin Zhixia's IQ is about 174... 174, brother, think about it carefully. Although our Xiao Jiang is smart, he is not as good as a little girl with an IQ of 174. Xiao Jiang can learn a lot by making friends with classmates with an IQ of 174."
The uncle's words were very guiding, but the father was not influenced by his uncle. After listening, the father immediately looked at his son and said, "Jiang Yubai, you want to skip a grade because you want to follow in the footsteps of this classmate?"
Jiang Yubai denied: "No."
Dad didn't argue. He just looked at him, waiting for him to explain his reasons.
Jiang Yubai thought carefully before answering, "I was the first to decide to skip a grade. Lin Zhixia also agreed to skip a grade. She and I... get along pretty well. We are friends and we often discuss math problems."
The word "talk" is not accurate.
Most of the time, it was Lin Zhixia who tutored Jiang Yubai unilaterally, and Jiang Yubai gradually got used to Lin Zhixia's tutoring.
Jiang Yubai received guidance from Lin Zhixia at school and instruction from teachers at home, so his progress in math competitions can be described as rapid.
"No matter what," Dad concluded, "from your tone, you are determined to go all the way down this road of competition. If you encounter setbacks along the way, you can always give up, and there is no need to compare yourself with classmates with an IQ of 174."
Jiang Yubai nodded in agreement.
He suddenly began to look forward to the preliminary round in March.
Dad wants to teach him to give up, but he will use the results of the game to prove himself.