The next two days were true agony.
The results wouldn’t be released for another two days.
During that time, the team couldn’t go back. They had to wait in the Provincial City.
On the first day, to stop everyone from holing up in the guest house and letting their minds run wild, Old Zhao insisted on dragging them all to the provincial museum.
"Let’s go look at some antiques. It’ll take your minds off things."
That’s what Old Zhao said.
But once they got to the museum, the atmosphere was like a funeral procession.
Everyone trailed after the guide like zombies.
The guide at the front spoke with great animation.
"This bronze ding cauldron is from the Warring States period..."
Wang Yang followed behind, his eyes glazed over, muttering under his breath.
"That power of a point theorem... did I use it wrong?"
Zhao Chen wasn’t looking at the exhibits either. He just stared at every passing student in a school uniform.
"Hey, look at that guy. He’s from No. 3 Middle School, right? With that long face, he probably didn’t do well on the test either."
His only pleasure now was finding others who were more miserable than he was.
The two girls, Nan Xiaoyun and Lin Xiao, stuck close to Chen Zhuo.
Although Chen Zhuo had comforted them a little, the two girls still felt deeply insecure.
They walked up to a counter selling souvenirs.
Lin Xiao stopped, staring blankly at a string of wooden beads inside the display case.
"Want to buy it?" Chen Zhuo asked.
"No..."
Lin Xiao shook her head, her voice quiet.
"I want to bring a gift back for my mom... If I don’t win an award, maybe if I bring a gift back, she’ll scold me a little less?"
Chen Zhuo fell silent.
This was what it was like to be a good student from an ordinary family in this era.
They carried the hopes of their entire family on their shoulders, forced to carefully pave even an escape route for failure.
"Buy them."
Chen Zhuo took out his wallet.
"My treat. Consider it for good luck."
"No, no, you don’t have to..."
"Take them."
Chen Zhuo went ahead and bought two wooden charms, stuffing one into each of their hands.
"These are called luck-turning beads. Hold on to these, and maybe the grading teacher’s hand will slip and give you two extra points."
The two girls clutched the simple wooden beads, their eyes turning red again.
"Team Leader... thank you."
"Nothing to thank me for. Go back and study hard. Don’t stop doing problems just because you have a lucky charm."
「The next evening.」
The final night before the results were released.
No one could sleep that night.
Old Zhao and Old Zhou couldn’t sit still at all.
The two of them paced back and forth in the hallway, smoking one cigarette after another, filling the corridor with a choking haze.
The word was that at nine the next morning, the results list would be posted on the bulletin board at Provincial Experimental Middle School. At the same time, the team chaperones would also receive the detailed score reports.
In Room 306.
All the boys were gathered there.
The lights were off. Everyone was either lying on their beds or sitting on the carpet.
In the darkness, only the sound of heavy breathing could be heard.
"Team Leader."
Zhao Chen turned over, the bed frame letting out a CREAK.
"If I don’t win an award... I’m not going to high school. I’ll go to a vocational school and learn to be a mechanic."
"You need to know physics to be a mechanic."
Chen Zhuo replied nonchalantly, leaning against the headboard.
"Engine principles, circuit repair—which of those doesn’t require a brain? You think vocational school is a cakewalk?"
"...Then I’ll go sell roasted sweet potatoes."
"You still have to do the math to sell sweet potatoes. Is your addition and subtraction even any good?"
Zhao Chen fell silent.
A moment later, a soft chuckle came from the darkness.
It was Wang Yang.
"Zhao Chen, you’re just trying to escape reality. The Team Leader is right. You have to use your brain no matter what you do."
"Alright, stop fantasizing about your futures."
Chen Zhuo cut them off.
"Go to sleep. If you can’t get up tomorrow morning, I’ll leave you at the guest house and go see the results myself."
「The third morning.」
Just as the sky began to lighten, Old Zhao and Old Zhou left.
They were heading to Provincial Experimental Middle School to get the results.
Before leaving, Old Zhao specifically instructed Chen Zhuo.
"Keep an eye on them. Don’t let them wander off. Just wait in the lobby."
Eight-thirty.
Nine o’clock.
Time felt like it had been stretched out like a sticky noodle, stubbornly refusing to pass.
In the guest house lobby.
The eight students from City No.1 Middle School sat in the lounge area.
Nan Xiaoyun and Lin Xiao held hands, their palms sweating, their knuckles white from their tight grip.
Wang Yang was circling a pillar in the lobby.
Three circles to the left, three circles to the right.
He was muttering under his breath:
"Bodhisattva bless me, God bless me, Einstein bless me..."
"Can you please stop spinning?"
Li Hao clutched his forehead.
"I was already feeling dizzy. If you keep spinning, I’m going to throw up."
Nine-twenty.
The glass doors of the guest house were pushed open.
A gust of wind rushed in.
Old Zhao and Old Zhou burst inside.
They literally burst in.
Old Zhao’s usual composed demeanor had completely vanished.
His tie was askew, his face was flushed beet-red, he was drenched in sweat, and his glasses were fogged over.
Old Zhou was panting from running, clutching several sheets of red paper in his hand.
Everyone shot to their feet.
For a moment, their hearts almost stopped.
Seeing the looks on their teachers’ faces, no one dared to speak.
It was a mixture of fear and anticipation.
Old Zhao rushed to the center of the lobby, bent over with his hands on his knees, and gasped for air.
"Old... Old Zhao..."
Wang Yang’s voice trembled as he took a small step forward.
"How... how did it go? Were we... completely wiped out?"
Old Zhao snapped his head up.
His eyes were bloodshot, but it was the bloodshot of excitement.
His mouth stretched into a wide grin, revealing his molars. It was a look of uncontrollable, ecstatic joy.
"Wiped out, my ass!"
Old Zhao roared, his voice cracking.
"Our City No.1 Middle School... we killed it!!"
"What killed it?" Zhao Chen flinched in fright.
"The scores! The rankings!"
Old Zhou chimed in from the side. He was laughing and coughing at the same time as he held up the red papers in his hand.
"First place! We got first place!"
Old Zhao grabbed Chen Zhuo.
"Chen Zhuo!"
He pointed at Chen Zhuo, his finger trembling.
"Math and Physics, perfect scores in both! First in the entire province! A dual champion!"
"Oh my god!
Two perfect scores!
The head of the grading team at Provincial Experimental went crazy! He made three copies of your test paper and passed them around!
He said your problem-solving methods were more standard than the standard answer key!"
The lobby fell silent for a second, then erupted.
Everyone turned to look at Chen Zhuo.
Chen Zhuo, still sitting on the sofa, adjusted his glasses, the corners of his mouth lifting into a slight smile.
’Good.’
’I didn’t embarrass my adult self.’
’Guess dying to that rice cooker in my past life was worth something after all.’
"Then... what about us?"
Nan Xiaoyun asked, her voice choked with tears that were already welling up in her eyes.
She was terrified that Chen Zhuo would get a perfect score while she wouldn’t even get a consolation prize.
Old Zhao took a deep breath, composed himself, and began to read from the red paper:
"Wang Yang! First prize in Math! Eighteenth in the province!"
Wang Yang let out a shriek and jumped straight up. In that moment, he forgot he was in a guest house, forgot this was a public place.
He hugged a nearby pillar and started banging his head against it.
"I got first prize! I got first prize! I can keep going to school!"
"Li Hao! Second prize in Physics!"
"Zhang Wei! Second prize in Physics!"
The two boys from the physics team hugged each other, and Li Hao let out a WAIL and burst into tears.
They didn’t get first prize, but second prize was good enough!
Second prize was good enough!
That damned rice cooker hadn’t screwed them over!
"Nan Xiaoyun! Second prize in Math!"
"Lin Xiao! Second prize in Math!"
The moment the two girls heard their names, tears streamed down their faces.
Nan Xiaoyun covered her mouth, crying so hard she crouched on the floor and couldn’t get up.
’No need to burn my books now.’
’And I won’t have to face my parents’ disappointed looks.’
’Those luck-turning beads really worked.’
"Zhao Chen! Liu Kai! Third prize in Math!"
"HAHAHA! I won an award! I won an award!"
Liu Kai laughed so hard his eyes disappeared into crescents.
"I can get my mom to buy me a new computer when I get back! I don’t have to go sell roasted sweet potatoes!"
Everyone won an award.
It was a miracle.
In a year with astronomically difficult questions, for a middle school from a second-tier city to have every single member win an award, on top of having a dual champion.
Watching these kids who had gone wild with joy, Old Zhao’s eyes reddened as well.
He walked over and threw his arms around Chen Zhuo, who was still sitting on the sofa.
He patted him firmly on the back.
"Good kid... good kid..."
Old Zhao’s voice was choked with emotion.
"Thank you, truly."
He knew that if Chen Zhuo hadn’t been there to hold the team together these past few days, the kids’ morale would have shattered long ago.
It was Chen Zhuo who had carried this team to the finish line.
Chen Zhuo could barely breathe from Old Zhao’s tight hug.
He looked at his teammates around him, some crying, some laughing.
He saw the tears on Nan Xiaoyun’s and Lin Xiao’s faces and the ecstatic expression on Wang Yang’s.
He smiled.
’This feeling... it’s really nice.’
Because this was the purest form of happiness.
A tangible reward, earned through sweat and agony.
Outside the window, the Provincial City sun was shining brightly, pouring through the glass doors and illuminating everyone’s face.
In that moment, all the suppression, fear, and agony turned to dust.
’This is great.’
Wishing everyone an early Happy New Year, may all your wishes come true, and may you be safe and sound.
May you get rich in the New Year!!!

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