At noon, the classroom was empty.
Most of the students had gone home for lunch and a nap.
But Chen Zhuo and Zhang Qiang stayed behind.
Two desks were pushed together, covered with all sorts of parts, tools, and the two cartons of milk that served as payment.
"Listen, I don’t have any strength right now. You’ll be the one doing the hands-on work."
Chen Zhuo sat in a chair, holding a piece of scratch paper densely covered with diagrams.
They weren’t the numbers Zhang Qiang couldn’t understand anymore, but the simplest geometric shapes and numerical ratios.
"First, take apart that Atomic Fission motor," Chen Zhuo ordered.
"Huh? But that thing cost thirty yuan..."
"Take it apart." Chen Zhuo’s tone left no room for argument.
"That motor’s specs are way over-exaggerated. The current is too high, which not only wastes power but also generates so much heat it’ll demagnetize the magnets. Switch back to your original Panther motor."
Although Zhang Qiang’s heart ached for the money, under Chen Zhuo’s strange, authoritative pressure, he obediently did as he was told.
"Next, take off that expensive aluminum alloy front stay on the nose of your car."
"Why this time? That’s for crash protection!"
"It’s too heavy."
Chen Zhuo pointed to a lever diagram on his scratch paper.
"The nose is too heavy. The moment of inertia will be too great when cornering, and the car is guaranteed to fly off the track. Replace it with a plastic one, but add two layers of washers underneath to increase its strength."
"Also, the gears."
Chen Zhuo rummaged through the pile of parts and pulled out a pack of black gears and a pack of green gears.
"Get rid of the current pink and yellow gears. Replace them with the black and green ones."
"Those are 4:1 low-speed gears! It won’t be fast!" Zhang Qiang grew anxious.
"We’re not going for fast. We’re going for stable."
Chen Zhuo picked up a pencil and wrote out a simple math problem on the paper.
30,000 rpm ÷ 3.5 = 8571
25,000 rpm ÷ 4 = 6250
"See? Even though the wheel speed is lower, the torque has increased. Torque is power."
Chen Zhuo explained, trying his best to use language a grade schooler could understand.
"You need power for the corners, not just dumb speed. As long as you don’t fly off the track in the turns, you can still win even if you’re a bit slower on the straights."
The next hour was both the most painful and the most fulfilling hour of Zhang Qiang’s life.
He became an emotionless assembly worker.
Chen Zhuo commanded him like a tyrant:
"The roller angle is wrong! Grab the file and grind it down! Grind it to a 5-degree angle! Don’t know what 5 degrees is? See this protractor?"
"The tires are too wide! Too much friction! Use sandpaper to shave them down. Reduce the contact patch by half!"
"The center of gravity is still too high! Go, take the lead weights out of your pencil case and stick them to the left side of the chassis! Why the left side? Because that track is all left turns!"
Zhang Qiang sweated as he worked, blisters forming on his hands from the file, but he didn’t make a single complaint.
Because he was discovering that under Chen Zhuo’s direction, his Giant, which had originally looked bloated and clumsy, was undergoing a change in its very character.
The gaudy stickers were gone. The expensive metal parts were gone.
The car’s body became lower, more compact, like a predator lying in wait.
Especially the roller angle, which Chen Zhuo had him repeatedly adjust. Though it seemed like a minor detail, a flick of the finger sent the wheels spinning with incredible smoothness.
"Alright."
Chen Zhuo drained the last of his milk and crushed the empty carton.
"Go test it out."
「Later that afternoon.」
After school let out.
It was the same ping-pong table.
Zhao Lei was just packing up to go home when he saw Zhang Qiang running over again, panting.
"Yo, still haven’t given up?" Zhao Lei laughed. "What new motor did you buy this time?"
"Didn’t buy one."
Zhang Qiang placed the modified Giant on the table.
Zhao Lei glanced at it, paused for a second, and then burst out laughing even harder.
"What? Given up and gone for broke? Why’d you modify it to look like a plucked chicken? It doesn’t even have a front stay!"
Indeed, the car now looked extremely plain, even a little ugly.
"Less talk, more racing! One more time!" Zhang Qiang shouted.
"If I lose this time, I’ll give you my Gameboy!"
The crowd erupted in an uproar.
A Gameboy—that was an astronomical wager.
"Fine by me. Who am I to turn down free money?"
Zhao Lei immediately pulled out his "Speedy Axe".
Chen Zhuo stood at the edge of the crowd, hands in his pockets, his expression calm.
He didn’t need to watch to know the result.
This was a victory of mathematics.
"Start!"
The two cars shot out at the same time.
In the initial sprint, just as Zhang Qiang had feared, the Giant—with its low-speed gears and regular motor—was a beat slower, falling a full car’s length behind Zhao Lei.
"Haha, I told you it wouldn’t work!" Zhao Lei laughed.
However, when they reached the fatal right-angle turn...
Zhao Lei’s car was going too fast and visibly skidded as it entered the corner. Although it didn’t fly off, it hit the guardrail, and its speed dropped sharply.
Right after, the Giant arrived.
In that moment, a miracle occurred.
As it entered the turn, the ugly car seemed to be pressed firmly onto the track by an invisible hand.
The 5-degree roller angle generated perfect downforce.
The lead weights on the left side counteracted the centrifugal force.
The 4:1 gear ratio provided powerful, ground-gripping torque.
"SWOOSH—"
An extremely satisfying whooshing sound.
The Giant hugged the inside of the curve, tracing a perfect arc without any slipping or hopping. It even seemed to be accelerating.
It overtook him on the corner!
The moment it exited the turn, propelled by its powerful torque, the Giant shot forward like a bullet from a gun, instantly overtaking the "Speedy Axe," which was still trying to correct its course.
"Holy shit!"
"It flew past him! But it didn’t fly off the track!"
"It’s so stable! That car is like a magnet!"
The crowd went wild.
In the following series of corners, the Giant displayed a dominant level of stability.
It wasn’t fast, but it made no mistakes. Every turn was taken with the precision of a tightrope walker.
In the end, the Giant crossed the finish line a full two meters ahead.
Zhang Qiang stood frozen, staring at the ugly car stopped at the finish line, as if he couldn’t believe it was his.
He only snapped out of it when the surrounding students rushed over, slapping him on the shoulder and shouting, "Brother Qiang, you’re fucking awesome!"
He’d won.
He’d really won.
And it was an easy win. Almost... elegant?
Zhao Lei’s face was ashen. He snatched his car and pushed through the crowd without a word, then left.
Surrounded by the crowd, Zhang Qiang raised the car over his head like a hero.
But he quickly lowered it.
He pushed through the crowd, ran to the outskirts, and found Chen Zhuo, who was getting ready to put on his backpack and go home.
"That was insane! Chen Zhuo! Absolutely insane!"
Zhang Qiang was so excited he was incoherent, his chubby face as red as an apple.
"How did you know switching to slower gears would make it win? How did you know adding the lead weights would stop it from flipping?"
Chen Zhuo looked at him, showing none of the smug satisfaction of someone who had successfully shown off.
He just felt very tired.
He had already exceeded his physical activity quota for the day. All he wanted now was to go home and sleep.
"Because it’s a machine."
Chen Zhuo pointed at the car.
"A machine doesn’t lie. If you respect its principles, it will reward you. It’s that simple."
With that, Chen Zhuo turned and walked toward the school gate.
The setting sun stretched his shadow long behind him.
Zhang Qiang clutched the car, staring blankly at that small, thin back.
For some reason, he felt that the Chen Zhuo of today was different from before.
The old Chen Zhuo was just a quiet kid, but today’s Chen Zhuo had an aura about him—something he couldn’t understand, but was instinctively drawn to.
"Hey! Chen Zhuo! Wait for me!"
Zhang Qiang ran after him, pulling out a handful of colorful snack vouchers and a few crisp bills from his backpack.
"From now on, your milk, your breakfast, your snacks—I’ll cover it all!"
Zhang Qiang thumped his chest.
"As long as you teach me how to modify cars! No, as long as you help me tune my car!"
Chen Zhuo stopped and glanced at the cash.
’Zhang Qiang isn’t smart, but he’s loyal, and he’s got money.’
"Deal."
Chen Zhuo took a milk voucher and tucked it into his pocket.
"Bring a new file tomorrow morning. Today’s was too dull."
"You got it!"

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