With only a few days left until the exam, and having made such bold claims to his mother, Johny Lee knew he had to take drastic action.
After dinner, Johny retreated to his small bedroom and locked the door.
He rummaged through his belongings until he found a small camphor wood box under his bed.
Inside was a stack of old optical answer sheets—"scantrons"—and blank paper he had saved from high school.
He placed them on his desk, sharpened a 2B pencil, and grabbed an eraser.
Then, he began his strange training.
ABCD... 1234... ACBD...
His mind raced with random sequences of options.
This was the only way he could think of to cheat the system and pass the civil service exam.
He planned to memorize the answer key in the future, then reverse time to fill it out correctly.
Although the odds of the ability working perfectly on that specific day were risky, he had to try.
The Next Morning.
Johny climbed up from the living room sofa, which was littered with practice cards.
He rubbed his face and immediately threw himself into practice again.
"A-B-D-C... C-A-D-B..." he muttered with his eyes closed, sounding like a monk chanting a mantra.
Sarah walked in, finding the scene bizarre. "Johny, what are you doing?"
Johny coughed, hiding the papers. "Preparing for the exam.
Just... visualization techniques."
Sarah blinked, confused.
"Didn't you buy the review materials for this year's syllabus?
What's the use of staring at those blank answer slips?"
"Oh, don't worry about it, Mom.
I have a strategy."
As long as "BACK" works on exam day, none of this will be in vain.
Practice... practice... practice.
One hour... two hours... three hours.
Ring, ring, ring!
His phone buzzed on the table.
Johny picked it up and saw an unrecognized number.
"Hello?"
"Hello, is this Johny?" An elderly voice came from the other end.
"Sorry, may I ask who this is?"
"My surname is Hu."
Johny realized immediately.
"Oh! Grandpa Hu?
How is your health?"
"Thanks to you, I'm doing well, haha.
Do you have any free time today?
If you're not busy, why don't you come to the hospital and sit with this old man for a while?"
"Uh, I'm really sorry, Grandpa Hu.
The civil service exam is in a few days, and I haven't finished reviewing yet."
The voice on the other end sounded surprised.
"You're taking the civil service exam?
The Beijing intake?" Grandpa Hu paused, humming in thought.
"Hmm. If you're not confident about the written test, come find me in the Comprehensive Oncology Department at the Cancer Hospital.
Don't look at me like just an old man; I can still teach you some techniques.
Especially for the Essay Analysis section. How about it? Interested?"
Johny was stunned. "Ah? Really?"
"Of course, haha.
Would this old man lie to his savior?"
Johny already had a "cheat" for the multiple-choice Administrative Aptitude Test, but he had zero confidence in the Essay Analysis section, which required subjective writing.
"Alright, I'll be right there. Thank you!"
After hanging up, Johny informed Sarah, grabbed his study materials, and rushed out the door.
Beijing Cancer Hospital.
Since he hadn't been working, Johny was short on cash.
On the way, he stopped at a roadside stall and bought a bag of seasonal fruit—the cheaper kind.
He entered the inpatient building, asked for directions, and took the elevator to the Comprehensive Oncology Department on the third floor.
He found room 3016 and knocked gently.
"Come in."
Grandpa Hu was sitting up in bed by the window, wearing reading glasses and gazing fondly at a photograph.
Johny walked over and placed the fruit on the side table with a smile.
"Grandpa Hu, I wish you a speedy recovery."
"You came to visit, you didn't need to bring gifts!" Grandpa Hu laughed cheerfully and motioned for him to sit.
He tapped the framed family portrait in his hand and turned it for Johny to see.
"This is my eldest son, this is my daughter... and look, this is my youngest son and his wife." He pointed to a woman in the photo who was heavily pregnant. "...Sigh. It was close.
I almost didn't get to see my newborn grandson.
Johny, it's all thanks to you pulling me back from death's door that day.
This old man thanks you. Thank you!"
"You're being too kind, really."
Grandpa Hu's eyes grew moist. "Sometimes I think, there's no cure for my lung cancer anyway.
Dying early would bring peace.
But when death was actually staring me in the face... I found I couldn't let go.
To live... one still has to live!"
Thinking about how he had completely changed the fates of Grandpa Hu and Maggi, Johny felt a profound sense of accomplishment.
After a few pleasantries, Grandpa Hu shifted gears.
"You brought your Essay Analysis materials, right? Come, show me what you don't understand. I'll explain it."
Johny quickly opened his book and pointed out some questions that had stumped him.
Grandpa Hu studied the page for a moment. "If you answer the question you just mentioned with such a subjective, emotional approach, you won't score well.
It lacks the 'tempered' tone required for government work.
It shows inexperience, and the grader will deduct points."
Johny asked in confusion, "Then how should I answer?
Use empty talk? High-sounding rhetoric that means nothing?"
Grandpa Hu laughed heartily.
"Johny, don't look down on 'bureaucratic fluff.' Sometimes, using it well is an art form. It can add color and authority to your argument.
When you should be vague, be vague; when you should be grand, be grand.
This applies not only to the exam but to officialdom itself. Listen..."
Johny listened intently for the entire afternoon.
Grandpa Hu was truly knowledgeable; everything he said was logical, structured, and strategic.
As the afternoon wore on, Johny became more comfortable and dropped his guard.
"Sigh, honestly though, these exam creators are something else," Johny vented, flipping through a past paper.
"Why make the questions so convoluted? Isn't it just to make things hard for us intentionally?"
Johny had harbored this resentment for a long time.
"I've done the essay questions from various provinces for the last few years.
Each one is harder than the last, and each one is more far-fetched.
It's easy for the creators to just type out a prompt, but what about us? Who did we offend to deserve this?"
Grandpa Hu frowned deeply.
He didn't say a word.
Johny paused, letting out an awkward "Uh." Did I say something wrong?
After a heavy silence, Grandpa Hu finally spoke, his tone stiff.
"You can't put it that way. If the questions were simple and everyone could answer them, what would be the point of the exam? Even if everyone gets a perfect score, there are still only one or two open positions. Competition is necessary."
He reached over, opened a reference book of past exams, and pointed to a specific page.
"Both my son and I are academics. He's more capable than me—he's had his doctorate for a long time.
Look here. More than half of the Essay Analysis questions for the Shanghai civil service exam last year were created by him."
Johny froze.
He realized with horror that his rant about "convoluted, far-fetched questions" was a direct insult to Grandpa Hu's son.
Smack, smack!
He wanted to slap his own big mouth.
Wait.
I haven't used today's rewind yet!
BACK!
...
Flash!
The moment time flowed backward, Johny felt his lips moving. He was right in the middle of his sentence.
Opposite him, Grandpa Hu was just starting to frown as he listened.
"Um, Grandpa Hu, where was I?" Johny cut himself off.
Grandpa Hu smiled bitterly. "You were saying the exam creators are making things difficult for you on purpose."
"Right." Johny's mind raced.
He had to pivot, and fast. "It's just too difficult!"
Grandpa Hu's brow furrowed tighter, ready to defend his son.
"However..." Johny changed his tune instantly, picking up the compilation of essay questions.
"However, the questions from Beihe Province the year before last, and specifically the Shanghai exam last year... they were fascinating.
You can tell those questions were designed by someone with real skill.
They were difficult, yes, but they tested true logic.
If the Beijing exam this year has questions of that caliber, I wouldn't have any complaints even if I failed."
Grandpa Hu was stunned for a moment.
Then, his face broke into a wide, beaming smile.
He laughed loudly. "Johny! Let me tell you, most of the questions on that Shanghai paper last year were created by my son!"
Johny feigned total shock.
"No way? Really?"
"My son has always been more capable than me." Grandpa Hu stroked his beard with immense satisfaction, glowing with pride.
"Haha! Come, Johny, pull up your chair. I'm going to give you a masterclass on these essays.
I guarantee you'll get a high score this time!"
"Really?"
"Of course.
If you don't pass, you can come back here and settle the score with me!"
Author's Note:-
Well that's end of chapter 5
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