Chapter 52

Yesterday, during dinner, Tan Wenbin mentioned there would be a lottery drawing at Shigang Town Square this weekend.

At that time, the lottery industry had only been officially established on the mainland for a few years, but the practice of prize draws was already very popular, and the format was quite accessible to the public.

In a large venue, vendors in uniform stood along two sides of the path. Crowds of people bustled through, able to buy tickets one by one or by the box. After purchasing, they could scratch them off on the spot and redeem prizes immediately.

The first prize was usually a small car, displayed prominently in a high, visible location.

Li Zhuiyuan felt as if he was holding a lottery ticket every night before going to sleep, and waking up was the moment of redemption.

And each time, there was a decent guaranteed prize, often with pleasant surprises.

For instance, this morning, when he woke up, he saw A-Li wearing a dark gold embroidered riding skirt with a white top, making her look both dashing and elegant.

Perhaps sensing his preference, she had noticeably increased the frequency of wearing riding skirts lately.

This was despite Liu Yumei's earnest dissuasion: "Oh, my granddaughter, no matter how much he likes it, you can't wear the same style every day; he'll get tired of it."

In the room, a large table was set up, covered with paper, brushes, and various pigments.

All these items had been brought directly by A-Li from Liu Yumei.

From the paper to the brushes, nothing was ordinary; even the pigments were made using ancient methods. While Liu Yumei wasn't particular about food, the common items she used in her daily life were all rare, even considered antiques.

Of course, she herself might not have considered this luxurious, as this was the life she had led since childhood.

Just as before, her greeting gifts were either jade thumb rings or earrings, and the money she took to buy gifts was always counted in stacks. She truly wasn't showing off her wealth.

The difference between showing off and being generous was that she genuinely intended to give.

At this moment, A-Li was drawing.

She no longer had to wake up early and sit in the room waiting for the boy to wake up.

Li Zhuiyuan sat up and stretched lightly.

The girl, holding her brush, looked over, tilting her head slightly.

Li Zhuiyuan smiled, got out of bed to wash up, and as he walked back with his washbasin, Liu Yumei waved from downstairs.

"Grandma Liu."

"Come, bring your drawings down; let Grandma admire them."

"Okay, Grandma."

Liu Yumei smiled and sat down. She would only be able to teach the *Liu Family Qi-Gazing Art* once A-Li had fully recovered from her illness and she had taken the boy as a nominal disciple of the Liu family.

However, skills like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting were fine to teach.

Wait, she didn't need to teach this boy chess; he played better than she did.

Li Zhuiyuan brought down two paintings and spread them out on the tea table.

One was his own recent work, and the other was A-Li's.

Both paintings depicted the morning view from the second-floor balcony, looking out over the countryside. It was this very scene that inspired Li Zhuiyuan to learn painting.

Liu Yumei's gaze swept over them, then she frowned slightly and said:

"If it were an ordinary teacher, they would praise you as a genius, because the drawing is very good."

"Grandma, please enlighten me."

"But the problem lies right here. Your technique, learned by imitating A-Li, shows almost no difference, yet your use of control is too effortless, too deliberately effortless.

At first glance, it seems good, but upon closer inspection, it's full of mechanical skill."

"Grandma is right, this is indeed my problem."

Although both paintings depicted the same scene, and A-Li's style was more melancholic while his own was more cheerful, A-Li's painting looked as if it could move, whereas his own, despite attempting to convey dynamism, remained static.

"In calligraphy and painting, many people spend their lives perfecting technique, but true masters create new and interesting styles. To put it simply, they infuse emotion into their work."

Li Zhuiyuan's gaze darkened.

"You're still young, and drawing like this is already remarkable. There's no need to force sadness for the sake of creating new verses."

"Thank you for your guidance."

"It's not really guidance; I only spoke so strongly because it's you. In fact, I'm just nitpicking."

Li Zhuiyuan smiled, nodded, and put the paintings away.

Aunt Liu came out at the right moment and called, "Breakfast is ready!"

He sat down and reached for a salted duck egg to peel for A-Li, but the girl got to it first.

When he tried to take a second one, she took that too.

Soon after, the girl peeled a duck egg and offered it to him.

His eyes were healed, but some habits the girl was unwilling to change back.

As Li Zhuiyuan ate, he pondered Liu Yumei's words. After a month of learning, his painting skills were actually good enough to win awards in competitions, especially since he was still in the junior group.

However, in front of true masters, his paintings had more mechanical skill than those of older artists who specialized in copying works for a living.

If he continued to paint diligently, his future might well be as a famous master forger of paintings in China.

But how could he infuse emotion into his work?

Perhaps it was the subject matter of the scenery; then maybe he should simply change the subject of his painting?

Li Zhuiyuan looked at A-Li carefully picking out duck egg with her chopsticks, and an idea sparked in his mind.

"Ahhh..."

Tan Wenbin's yawn was loud and long.

His father had agreed to let him continue living there and to accompany Xiao Yuan to and from school without attending morning or evening self-study sessions, but he wasn't actually that relaxed.

No matter how many problems he solved, he couldn't keep up with Xiao Yuan's speed in creating them. He could also sense that Xiao Yuan was constantly improving at designing problems for him.

Initially, all the problems were tough ones to crack, but now Xiao Yuan was focusing on a mix of difficulty levels. He could tell that some problems were intentionally designed by Xiao Yuan to let him rack his brains and gradually solve them, bringing him satisfaction.

Even though he realized this, he was genuinely happy. He felt like a little loach, being kneaded freely in Xiao Yuan's hands, and he quite enjoyed it.

The only regret was that it had been very quiet this past month, with no "dead bodies" appearing.

He had asked Runsheng if it was always like this before.

Runsheng replied, "Before you came, I wondered why there were suddenly so many 'dead bodies' in the village. After you arrived, it went back to normal."

This made Tan Wenbin feel quite guilty for a while, believing his presence had disrupted the feng shui.

However, Li Zhuiyuan didn't find it tedious or boring. His main energy was currently split: first, on learning to paint; second, on studying *The Record of Righteous Demon Suppression*; and, incidentally, researching the suspended items left by the dwarf father and son.

The boy felt his life was quite fulfilling now. It was better if the frequency of "dead bodies" appearing was moderate; otherwise, if it was "Madam Bai today, flaying in the fish pond tomorrow," he wouldn't be able to handle it.

Li Sanjiang was very quiet today, silently drinking his porridge.

After breakfast, Runsheng pushed out the tricycle.

Two small stools, wrapped in cloth, were placed on the vehicle.

Tan Wenbin, meanwhile, pushed out his bicycle.

That time riding home from school had been sheer torment for him; he felt he should have been under the car, not in it.

"Great-grandpa." Li Zhuiyuan didn't rush to get into the car; instead, he walked towards Li Sanjiang, showing a mix of shyness and anticipation.

Most children at this age have displayed such an expression, especially when facing grandparents or great-grandparents.

"Haha, I understand."

Li Sanjiang took money from his pocket. It wasn't a large amount, at least far less than when he used to give his great-grandson whole banknotes. However, as daily pocket money, it was enough to make most rural children, and even city children, envious.

Li Sanjiang was always generous with money, and even more so with Xiao Yuan.

"Hehe."

Li Zhuiyuan accepted his pocket money for the day.

He had rejected Li Sanjiang's offer of a month's pocket money at once, preferring to receive a little each day so that his great-grandpa could experience a bit more joy daily.

And he, too, would have more opportunities to try and experience happiness.

Together with A-Li, he got into the tricycle, and it drove down the embankment.

The girl insisted on picking up and dropping off the boy for school every morning and evening.

Li Zhuiyuan specifically noted that Liu Yumei hadn't had Aunt Liu follow them, nor was there any sign of Uncle Qin, who had long since left the shadows.

She truly allowed her granddaughter to go out like this, knowing what was best for her granddaughter's future.

However, with Runsheng protecting her, A-Li wouldn't be in any real danger.

Wait, even without Runsheng's protection, it seemed A-Li wouldn't be in any real danger. Runsheng's role was more likely to protect those who attempted to approach A-Li from serious harm.

The entrance of the large middle and high school was always bustling in the mornings, noons, and evenings, and the street vendors along the school gate opened early.

Sometimes Li Zhuiyuan would buy siu mai, fried dumplings, or similar snacks, and share them with A-Li.

Mainly for a taste, as they had already eaten breakfast at home.

Or he would buy small ornaments to give to A-Li, helping her fill her collection box.

Liu Yumei told Li Zhuiyuan that every night before going to bed, A-Li would squat in front of her collection box and carefully tidy each item one by one.

Unfortunately, A-Li couldn't attend school.

She no longer showed aversion towards family members like Great-grandpa, Tan Wenbin, and Runsheng; she didn't react when they approached. She could even maintain self-control with regular visitors like Li Weihan, Cui Guiying, Cui Cui, Panzi, and Leizi.

But putting her in a classroom with a large group of students for school was something she couldn't accept.

Most importantly, A-Li had no interest in school life or longing for friends. The traditional "savior" perspective was utterly superfluous for her.

In fact, she might not even have any particular thoughts about this world; what she liked was simply the "new world" that the boy allowed her to experience.

After waving goodbye to Runsheng and A-Li, Li Zhuiyuan and Tan Wenbin followed the crowd of junior high students through the school gate.

High school students had earlier morning self-study sessions, so apart from those living very close by, most high schoolers, especially third-years, chose to live on campus.

Tan Wenbin used to live in the dorms, but after getting into a fight in his room, he started living at home.

Entering the high school academic building, it was quiet except for the sound of teachers lecturing, as everyone was in their second morning self-study period.

Tan Wenbin, with his backpack slung over his shoulder, walked along, shaking his fringe. He enjoyed feeling distinctive, believing he had a certain style.

He wasn't intimidated even when he encountered other teachers, deans, or the principal on the way, as they were all very gentle and polite to his "boss."

Consequently, they would also nod to him.

In truth, only Tan Yunlong and his wife still held onto the hope that their son might somehow benefit from the aura of the God of Literature.

For the school leaders and teachers, it was a worthwhile deal: sacrificing one Tan Wenbin to secure a provincial top scholar.

Li Zhuiyuan walked to the classroom door, where Ms. Su, the English teacher, was explaining a cloze test.

Ms. Su smiled and waved to Li Zhuiyuan.

Li Zhuiyuan returned a subtly shy smile.

There was no need to call out "report" and disturb his classmates. He walked directly into the classroom; Tan Wenbin sat down inside first, followed by Li Zhuiyuan.

Pulling out *The Record of Righteous Demon Suppression* from his drawer, Li Zhuiyuan began to read.

In an English-speaking environment, this "classical work" seemed even more fragrant.

However, after sitting there for a month, he genuinely disliked this first-row seat by the door.

This was because every time his classmates passed by, they would deliberately slow down to look at him, even though he had been careful not to make friends with them.

Students from other classes seemed to treat passing by here as a landmark for their recess strolls, even though Class 13 of Senior Three was in the middle, not a necessary route to the restroom.

Teachers were even more exaggerated; before and after class, they would rather take a detour to walk past here, then stop by the window or door, casting loving and caring smiles, as if they needed to water their "orchids" a few times every day.

Because of him, the frequency of visits by the dean of students and principals had increased sharply. They didn't need to distinguish between breaks, so students in the class no longer dared to read wuxia novels or whisper during lessons.

The occasional horror appearing outside the window when looking up had now become a direct confrontation with a bleak reality.

Li Zhuiyuan truly liked the last row in this column, against the door, which offered ample space and wasn't where the trash can was located (it was behind the inner row).

From a feng shui perspective, sitting here to observe the world was the standard position of a "hidden dragon in the abyss."

Next best were the positions on either side of the teacher's desk, like left and right guardians.

Previously, Tan Wenbin was the right guardian.

However, the right guardian position, with its back to the classroom door, wasn't good; it made one easily startled and prone to sudden fits.

The best was the left guardian position, concealed by the podium, receiving the emperor's will from above and connecting with the hearts of the common people below, a "great recluse in the bustling city."

It was also due to the large class size, over seventy students. When he went to school previously, there weren't so many people, and adjustments were made every semester, with some students unable to keep up and others falling ill.

The morning self-study bell rang, signaling the end of English class.

Here, high school had four classes in the morning and four in the afternoon.

However, morning self-study could be divided into two half-hour sessions, noon self-study was one hour, and evening self-study consisted of four one-hour sessions.

On the timetable, self-study periods were marked with subjects, and the school required teachers to be present and treat them as regular classes.

Such a dense schedule startled Li Zhuiyuan. If they had followed such a timetable in his previous life, not to mention whether he and his classmates could endure it, the professors would certainly have collapsed from exhaustion first.

During the break, students quickly began to pack up their stationery.

Li Zhuiyuan asked curiously, "Binbin, what's wrong?"

"It's the monthly exam today, didn't you know?" Tan Wenbin was also packing up his stationery, but after glancing at the covered book in Li Zhuiyuan's hand, he paused and added, "It's normal for you not to know."

A month into the new semester, it was time for the diagnostic monthly exam.

To prevent cheating, Senior Three and Senior Two students took the exam in mixed classes, seating themselves in other classrooms according to their exam numbers.

In fact, cheating in Senior Three was meaningless, pure self-deception, but reality often defied human nature, as many Senior Three students were willing to cheat all the way through the third mock exam.

At that moment, the homeroom teacher, Sun Qing, walked in and asked, "Xiao Yuan, are you taking the monthly exam, or would you like to sit in my office?"

"I'll take it. But, could you give me all the subject papers during the first exam session?"

"Alright, no problem, I'll go get them for you."

Li Zhuiyuan understood what the school wanted from him. It was a matter of mutual convenience, and he still needed to participate in such major exams.

Firstly, to ensure that teachers remained gentle as ever even if he continued not to attend classes or do homework, and secondly, to help Binbin understand the patterns so that he could prepare problems for him.

He genuinely wasn't very good at teaching others, so he was learning.

Li Zhuiyuan stood up and went to the front wall to check his exam number.

"Brother, come back, your exam number is still in its original spot."

"Oh."

Li Zhuiyuan sat back down.

Tan Wenbin, meanwhile, went to the first seat in the left column.

Previously, Tan Wenbin had only read one sentence in a magazine: "Unless you are handsome enough, you will never experience how proactive girls can be."

Now, he really wanted to add a line: "It turns out that as long as your grades are good enough, the school can also drop all pretense."

The first exam was mathematics, proctored by Mr. Yan, the math teacher from their class.

After distributing the math papers, Mr. Yan placed the papers for the other subjects on Li Zhuiyuan's desk, gently patted his shoulder, and smiled:

"You can do the math, and for the other subjects, just choose what you want to do."

"Okay."

Then, Mr. Yan placed his teacup on the boy's desk, saying, "New cup, freshly brewed tea."

"Thank you, teacher."

A second-year high school student, who had been assigned to this exam room, watched this scene with horror in his eyes.

During the exam, watching the little boy next to him begin to furiously scribble answers, his mental state began to unravel even further.

"No, even if the answers were right in front of me, I couldn't copy them as fast as you, could I?"

Li Zhuiyuan quickly finished the math paper, then picked up the physics paper and started writing.

Mr. Yan walked down, picked up the math paper, took out a red pen, and immediately began grading it.

He was very satisfied, feeling that the boy hadn't become arrogant due to his good grades, but remained humble and pursued progress.

Look, this time he didn't use an out-of-syllabus solution for the major problems, and each solution problem began with a large "Solution."

When he reached the end of the Chinese paper, Li Zhuiyuan paused.

Because the essay topic was "Mother's Love."

But it was only a brief pause. Li Zhuiyuan once again wrote an essay on mother's love in standard format, portraying Li Lan as incredibly kind and great, an excellent role model for himself.

The only thing he couldn't do was the English listening comprehension section, so he just skipped it.

Li Zhuiyuan checked the names on the test papers, stood up, and handed all the papers to Mr. Yan.

"Are your hands sore?"

"A little."

"I told you not to write so much," Mr. Yan chided. "Go to my office and rest, maybe take a nap?"

"I'll go to the principal's office instead."

"You're right, it's quiet there. Remember to come to the small classroom during noon self-study to explain some problems."

"Okay, Mr. Yan."

Li Zhuiyuan stood at the podium, looking down at Tan Wenbin who was sitting below. He had already started the solution problems and was writing continuously with few pauses, not biting his nails.

Returning to his desk to pick up a book, Li Zhuiyuan left the exam room and headed directly to the principal's office.

As he neared the door, he heard considerable noise from inside. His first thought was to leave and find another office.

But in the voices, he recognized Li Sanjiang, Li Weihan, and Cui Guiying.

He knew why his great-grandpa, grandpa, and grandma were there: because he had told them he was in Senior Three, Tan Wenbin had corroborated it, and even Leizi, Panzi, and Yingzi had confirmed it.

However, for the elders, it was still too hard to comprehend, so they had formed a group and specially come to school today to see it with their own eyes.

They must have been invited into the office by Principal Wu upon their arrival.

No wonder Great-grandpa had been so quiet during breakfast today.

An instinct made Li Zhuiyuan want to turn and leave, as he knew what would happen if he pushed open the door: the elders' joy and relief, Principal Wu's praise and encouragement.

He yearned to avoid this predetermined routine.

Yet, at that moment, the sound of Li Lan's footsteps on the other end of the phone replayed in his mind. He and she were, after all, different.

This instinctive pathological response was not difficult to overcome.

Li Zhuiyuan pushed open the door to the principal's office. His great-grandpa, grandpa, and grandma, who had been seated inside, all stood up and looked at the boy. Li Zhuiyuan walked over, smiling, and was embraced by them.

Principal Wu said many encouraging words, and Li Zhuiyuan, with his head slightly bowed, displayed just the right amount of shyness and bashfulness.

After confirming the matter, his great-grandpa and the others soon left. Li Zhuiyuan went to the edge of the corridor and watched the three elders walking towards the school gate below.

His great-grandpa, hands on his hips, walked with the gait of an imperial envoy on a stage.

Li Weihan held his water pipe behind his back. Usually steady and honest, his shoulders were now shaking.

Cui Guiying, meanwhile, held a handkerchief, constantly wiping away tears while smiling.

Li Zhuiyuan was very glad he hadn't chosen to turn and leave just now.

Recalling the essay he had just written, he realized that his previous imitation of Li Lan might have been a mistake; he should have used her as a negative example to avoid errors earlier.

If he had realized this sooner, his condition wouldn't have developed so severely at such a young age.

"Xiao Yuan, your grandpa and grandma still can't believe you're in Senior Three, hehe."

Wu Xinhan pulled the boy back into the office. He offered his own desk for the boy to read at and took out drinks and chocolates from a drawer.

He knew the boy had taken the monthly exam, which was good; it regularly reassured everyone.

At the same time, he knew the boy was working as a teaching assistant in the Olympiad Math class.

Li Zhuiyuan picked up *Wei Zhengdao* and began to read.

The principal sat opposite, looking at documents. When he wanted to smoke, he would go out to light a cigarette and return after finishing it.

The bell for the end of the second morning exam rang. Li Zhuiyuan declined the principal's invitation to eat a special meal at the cafeteria.

He walked to the school gate and waited for Tan Wenbin, who was still accompanied by Zheng Haiyang.

Although the three of them often ate out on weekdays, they didn't always have elaborate dishes. They mainly ate noodles and egg-fried rice, which, at that time, only children from dual-income households could afford.

Most students at the school were from rural families, and many didn't even go to the cafeteria, instead returning to their dorms to eat dried food brought from home.

Pickles and savory sauces were also brought from home, and often they would share and taste each other's mothers' cooking.

Tan Wenbin was quite wealthy; since he started following Li Zhuiyuan, his parents had significantly increased his pocket money. Zheng Haiyang was even wealthier; otherwise, those ruffians wouldn't have blackmailed him.

In those days, sailors' salaries were already high, and they had many other unofficial sources of income. Purely in terms of pocket money, Tan Wenbin was practically poor compared to Zheng Haiyang.

Tan Wenbin ordered five bowls of noodles; he would eat one, and Li Zhuiyuan would have two.

Zheng Haiyang first went to buy three sodas, then ordered three poached eggs, three "lion's head" meatballs, and three chicken drumsticks.

He was happy to hang out with them. Last time Runsheng had beaten those guys so badly that no one dared bother him now, especially given Li Zhuiyuan's current status in school; no one within the school dared to provoke him blindly.

"Brother Yuan, Brother Bin, I had a dream yesterday."

Zheng Haiyang also started calling Xiao Yuan "Brother," imitating Tan Wenbin.

"What kind of dream?" Tan Wenbin asked, taking a big bite of his chicken drumstick.

"I dreamed my dad took me treasure hunting; the dream felt very real."

"Isn't your dad at sea?"

"Yeah, diving for treasure. There were several shipwrecks at the bottom of the sea, full of gold, silver, and jewels."

"Heh, so how much did you get?"

"Not much, just as I was about to grab it, I woke up."

"What kind of dream is that? At least you should have gotten the gold, silver, and jewels, and then, after getting to shore, found the me from your dream to have some fun!"

"Hehehe," Zheng Haiyang scratched his head.

Tan Wenbin then looked at Li Zhuiyuan: "Brother Xiao Yuan, can this dream be interpreted?"

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head and took a sip of noodle soup: "I don't interpret dreams."

"Oh, right, this dream is too flashy. You boy, you must be crazy about getting rich. Your family is already so well off, why do you still want money so badly?"

"Maybe it's because I was afraid of being extorted by them before; if I couldn't produce money, I'd get beaten."

Li Zhuiyuan continued to eat his noodles with his head down. In fact, he could interpret dreams. Compared to fortune-telling and physiognomy, dream interpretation was merely a basic, low-level skill.

This was because most dreams were "what you think about during the day, you dream about at night," and could be interpreted accordingly.

Except for a very few, which were genuine premonitions.

The most typical example was a pregnancy dream, which might be dreamed not by the pregnant woman herself, but by a relative.

Another was when a relative passed away; someone would indeed dream of them that very night without prior knowledge.

Sunken ships, the seabed, gold and silver, a father taking you treasure hunting yet coming to nothing...

Profession, risk, farewell... all these elements were present.

In ancient times, with underdeveloped communication and transportation, if children far apart suddenly had such a dream and sought interpretation, they would either immediately return home or prepare for mourning from afar.

Many stories recorded by scholars contained similar plotlines, and they highly valued these signs because they could involve taking a period of mourning leave from official duties.

However, such things were inherently unreliable. Li Zhuiyuan had always restrained himself from randomly telling fortunes or physiognomy, so he naturally wouldn't elaborate on such a topic.

Zheng Haiyang suddenly said faintly, "Brother Xiao Yuan, is everything really alright?"

He was introverted, but introverted people often had delicate sensibilities. His previous words were actually a setup.

Li Zhuiyuan asked, puzzled, "What?"

"I asked my neighbors' grandparents, and they said this dream isn't very auspicious, and that I should dream of something good instead."

Li Zhuiyuan shook his head and stated with certainty, "Feudal superstition is all nonsense and lies."

"Pfft..."

Tan Wenbin directly spat out the noodles from his mouth, and two strands even shot out of his nostrils.

He immediately lowered his head and began wiping with paper. "If I hadn't personally seen you use feng shui to kill that dwarf father and son, I might actually believe you."

"Hehe." A smile reappeared on Zheng Haiyang's face, and he asked, "Brother Xiao Yuan, how was your exam this morning?"

Tan Wenbin interjected, "Besides English, everything else should have gone well."

"Ah, was English tested this morning?"

"He finished all his exams when we were still taking math. By the way, why don't you ask me how I did?"

"So, how did you do, Brother Bin?"

"I don't know. Before, during exams, many questions recognized me, but I didn't recognize them. Now, I feel quite familiar with them, like old friends visiting."

"So, is that good or bad?"

"I'm not sure. I'm afraid it might 'kill the acquaintance' for me."

"Huh?"

"Let's wait for the actual scores. I don't know if I got everything right, but I did all of it, including the last major problems in math and physics."

"Brother Bin, this isn't Chinese class; you don't get points just for filling it up."

"Go on, go on, do I need you to tell me that?"

After lunch, the three of them returned to school. There were still three exams in the afternoon, and noon self-study proceeded as usual.

Li Zhuiyuan didn't return to the classroom but went to the small classroom that was usually not used for regular lessons.

Inside, more than a dozen students were already seated, from both Senior Two and Senior Three, selected by the math department teachers to prepare for the city's Olympiad competition.

At that time, Olympiad Math was very popular on the mainland. Achieving good rankings in such competitions, progressing through each level, offered a huge advantage for university admissions.

Li Zhuiyuan had initially been invited by Mr. Yan to join the group to study and compete, but a few days later, he was invited by several math teachers to create problems.

Because competition problems were difficult and more flexible, when Li Zhuiyuan first joined the group, he often saw teachers and students engrossed in deep thought together.

He quickly realized that he was like a well-fed man unaware of a hungry one's plight. His own learning conditions were actually excellent, but that was limited to big cities. Looking at the whole country, the commercialization of teaching aids and competition materials had only just begun. Many schools were still struggling to get practice exams from larger middle and high schools outside to copy for their own students.

On the blackboard were the problems Li Zhuiyuan had written the day before; half of them were already checked. Li Zhuiyuan picked up a piece of chalk and began writing the solutions below the unchecked problems.

Then, the students and teachers below all showed expressions of sudden realization, continuously exclaiming:

"Oh~ so that's how it is."

Li Zhuiyuan also felt very relaxed. Teaching them was much simpler than teaching Binbin; he didn't need to make the steps overly detailed or consider combining different difficulty levels to maintain their learning enthusiasm.

Even if someone saw the process and still didn't understand, they would ask those around them. If they still didn't get it, it was fine; they would be removed and sent back to their regular classroom.

After erasing the problems, Li Zhuiyuan continued to create new ones.

Below, teachers and students began copying. Except right before competitions, at other times, everyone either had teaching assignments or learning assignments, so it was impossible to spend all day there.

Outside, Principal Wu, specifically accompanied by several vice principals and deans, quietly came to the small classroom door to observe.

Watching the small figure standing on a stool to write problems on the blackboard, everyone's faces showed the joy of having discovered oil in their own backyard.

"I think our school should have a few students pass the city competition this time."

"I think at least one is guaranteed to pass..."

"Are you also thinking that this guaranteed pass will likely take first place in the city?"

Nantong was originally a major educational city, with reputable key middle schools in all its six counties and one city.

And their own middle school, even within the county, was not considered a top-tier institution; it was like starting with "hell difficulty."

Wu Xinhan stroked his chin, deeply satisfied. His efforts to personally act as a driver and invite the student to enroll had not been in vain.

In previous meetings, he had always watched them pretend to be humble while subtly mocking others. Wu Xinhan himself had prepared countless sarcastic retorts in his mind. It seemed it was finally his turn to perform.

At this moment, a dean next to him, seemingly overcome with joy, lightheadedly blurted out, "Does this count as a college entrance exam migrant?"

His colleagues immediately looked at him with incredulous expressions.

Wu Xinhan was amused and immediately pre-emptively quipped sarcastically, "Which family specifically migrates from Beijing to Jiangsu just to take the college entrance exam?"

He paused, then continued, "You big genius, why don't you transport coal from the Northeast to sell in Shanxi?"

The dean quickly raised his hand and explained, "I was referring to this kind of happiness."

After the Olympiad Math class, Li Zhuiyuan returned to the principal's office.

He saw the principal with two physical education teachers hanging curtains, and behind the curtains was a spring bed.

"Xiao Yuan, you can rest here from now on. The desks in the classroom are too hard."

After the afternoon exams finished, with some time left before school dismissal, Li Zhuiyuan returned to the classroom.

In the classroom, everyone seemed lifeless after a full day of exams.

Even Tan Wenbin was now hanging his head.

However, there were still exams in the evening, and to save time, all exams would be completed today.

This meant Tan Wenbin couldn't leave school with him tonight.

"Binbin, are you going back to your own home tonight?"

"No, after the evening exams finish, I'll go to Zhuangzhuang's house."

"Oh."

"I'll go back after the monthly exam results are out." Tan Wenbin craned his neck, opened his book, and began memorizing concepts.

After a short while, he slumped back down, rubbing his stomach, probably hungry and with his brain shutting down.

Li Zhuiyuan took out a chocolate from his pocket and handed it to him.

"Huh?" Tan Wenbin immediately took it, unwrapped it, and put it in his mouth. "Where did you get this?"

"From the principal's office, hehe."

"Don't mention it, it's really delicious. It's worthy of being 'blessed' by the principal."

As he spoke, Tan Wenbin raised his arm and made a throwing motion, tossing the chocolate towards Zheng Haiyang. It hit Zheng Haiyang's head, startling him, but he laughed once he saw it was chocolate.

The female class monitor heard the commotion, looked up, and glared at him.

Tan Wenbin was not intimidated in the slightest and glared back.

What a joke! If he was even afraid of the class monitor, how could he have the face to be a "right guardian"?

However, after glaring back, Tan Wenbin made another parabolic toss.

With a "ding-dong," the chocolate landed precisely on the class monitor's desk this time.

The class monitor's face immediately turned red.

Students around the class monitor all collectively exclaimed, "Ooh-la-la~"

But Tan Wenbin, the person involved, seemed oblivious. After throwing it, he lowered his head and asked Li Zhuiyuan, "Brother Xiao Yuan, aren't you anxious about not having 'fished out any dead bodies' lately?"

"No, not at all."

"Don't you love 'fishing out dead bodies' the most?"

"Well, what can I do if I don't encounter any?"

"Aren't you going to go look for some? You go to and from school every day. 'Dead bodies' aren't going to come to school to inspect work and meet you; they're 'dead bodies,' not leaders."

"My eyes had a problem last time."

"Uh, but aren't they fine now?"

"It made Great-grandpa worry."

"Oh, I see." Tan Wenbin nodded. "Indeed, let's just say it's about fate then."

"Ding-a-ling!!!"

The dismissal bell rang.

Students reluctantly propped themselves up and slowly shuffled out of the classroom to find food. Knowing that several more exams awaited them in the evening, everyone looked lifeless, like a group of "dead bodies."

"Brother Binbin, can I borrow a few of your books and papers? I'll take them back with me."

"Are you setting up an altar to pray for my monthly exam results?"

"A-Li needs them."

"Okay, I'll give them to you. I'll help you carry them; Haiyang and I have to go eat by the school gate anyway, so I can hand them off to Runsheng there. Haiyang, Haiyang, why are you still sitting there? Let's go eat!"

Everyone in the classroom had left, only Zheng Haiyang remained slumped over his desk.

Tan Wenbin walked over, patted his back, and asked, "What's wrong? Are you not feeling well? You were fine just a moment ago."

To his surprise, the pat produced a "squelching" sound of water.

Zheng Haiyang reacted as if startled; he suddenly shot upright from where he was slumped over his desk, and water continuously seeped from his mouth, nose, ears, and eyes.

At his feet, a wet puddle had already formed and was still rapidly expanding.

His face was pale, his expression vacant. The next moment, like a drowning person, he tilted his head back,

And began to shout:

"There's a turtle, buried beneath the sea; whoever dares to dig it up, their whole family dies!"