The seven-day National Day holiday ushered in the so-called Golden Week.
But for third-year high school students like Qin Yuanqing, it was only a short three-day break. During those three days, he didn't go anywhere. He stayed at home, reading books and eating the stewed duck and chicken his mother had painstakingly prepared.
The rest of the time, he studied.
He even helped his younger cousin—who had just started junior high—by explaining math problems. Among all his peers, this cousin was the most promising. She had scored well enough in the high school entrance exam to get into the county's top high school, then later scored over 600 points in the college entrance exam and was admitted to Fujian Medical University, entering the field of clinical medicine.
What was more, his cousin was very considerate. She had always worried about her parents' financial burden and planned to start working right after earning her bachelor's degree. Qin Yuanqing had persuaded her several times before finally convincing her to take the postgraduate entrance exam. She eventually became the only postgraduate among her peers—and the second postgraduate in the entire village.
Three days passed quickly.
On the evening of October 3rd, Qin Yuanqing returned to County No. 1 High School by private car. By then, the results of the latest grade-wide exam had already been posted on the bulletin board.
Standing under the dim lights, Qin Yuanqing saw his name ranked third overall.
Chinese: 130
Math: 142
English: 131
Physics: 98
Chemistry: 100
Biology: 96
Total score: 697.
The two students ahead of him had scored 705 and 702 respectively. The one with 702 points was the legendary figure who had memorized the Oxford Dictionary—small in stature, yet harboring immense power.
Seeing this, Qin Yuanqing smiled.
This was the first time he had ever scored so high, and also the highest ranking he had achieved. Unlike the previous final exam, there was no luck involved this time.
His performance was stable. Even if he retook the exam, the score would be the same.
Still, Qin Yuanqing knew that this kind of test didn't mean much. It only covered a few units rather than the entire high school curriculum. In terms of breadth and depth, it was far from comparable to the college entrance exam.
Nevertheless, it proved one thing: his efforts over the past month had not been in vain—they had yielded remarkable results.
Around him, students whispered among themselves, asking who Qin Yuanqing was. The top twenty ranks were usually occupied by familiar names, with only slight changes in order. This was the first time a complete newcomer had appeared in the top twenty—and had even charged straight into the top five, ranking third.
In high spirits, Qin Yuanqing returned to the dormitory. Since it was still technically a holiday, the classrooms were dark and unpowered.
Back in the dorm, he gradually calmed himself. Being ranked top three was something to celebrate, but he couldn't afford arrogance. Arrogance led to complacency, complacency to conceit, and conceit to regression—this had been one of his biggest flaws in the past.
He picked up his math textbook and continued reviewing. Having already finished all the coursework for the semester, Qin Yuanqing had long entered the revision stage. To stay ahead, he had to work harder and be more meticulous than others.
Genius, after all, was one percent talent and ninety-nine percent hard work. That one percent mattered—but so did the ninety-nine percent.
He had the system as his cheat, but the system wasn't there to let him reap rewards without effort. Only by studying diligently could he earn learning points, and only with learning points could he exchange for what he wanted.
Learning points were the system's currency—the medium of exchange. Aside from completing tasks, the only way to earn them was by studying. Whether it was practicing problems or learning new knowledge, everything translated into learning points.
…
The next day, in the classroom.
Homeroom teacher Chen entered with a radiant expression. Standing at the podium, he announced,
"This month's exam deserves special praise for one student—Qin Yuanqing. With a total score of 697, he ranked first in the class and third in the entire grade!"
Chen Runfa had been in an excellent mood these past few days. Having such a student in his class brought immense honor to him as a teacher. When the papers were graded and the rankings compiled, exclamations had erupted throughout the teachers' office.
The homeroom teacher of the experimental class had even grown envious and wanted to transfer Qin Yuanqing to her class, claiming that he would receive better instruction there. Chen Runfa firmly rejected the idea.
"Of course," Chen Runfa added, "a score of 697 at this stage is not the same as 697 in the college entrance exam. I hope Qin Yuanqing continues to maintain his form and keeps pushing forward."
He then announced the scores and rankings of the top ten students in the class. For the school, this was a standard practice—highlighting top performers to motivate others to strive harder and reach greater heights.
After the establishment of the experimental class, the entire grade had been reshuffled, with top students transferred out. The pressure on teachers like Chen Runfa was immense. After all, the college entrance exam outweighed everything.
After that, the Chinese exam papers were handed out. Chen went through each question carefully. Qin Yuanqing listened attentively, comparing answers and understanding exactly where he had gone wrong.
This time, his essay had improved, scoring 50 points.
Throughout his entire high school career, he had scored 50 or above on an essay fewer than three times. Whenever his essay exceeded 50, his overall Chinese score was never bad.
During the second-period math class, Qin Yuanqing barely listened. With a score of 142, he knew exactly where he had lost points—the final question. It was somewhat unconventional, linking earlier knowledge together. He had forgotten part of it and answered incorrectly, losing eight points.
As soon as class ended, Qin Yuanqing was called to the office by his math teacher.
Wu Wenshan was round-faced, rosy, and spoke Mandarin heavily tinged with a Minnan accent. What Qin Yuanqing remembered most about him wasn't his teaching style, but his humor and distinct personality.
"Qin Yuanqing, are you interested in participating in the National High School Mathematics Olympiad?" Wu Wenshan asked.
"Teacher Wu, isn't the Olympiad usually held in September?" Qin Yuanqing asked curiously.
Of course, he had heard of the competition. According to the Ministry of Education, winners of the national mathematics competition at the high school level could be recommended for admission to top universities, while others could receive bonus points in the college entrance exam. Qin Yuanqing had attended math training in his first year of high school, but his results were mediocre, and he gave up after the first semester.
That was when he first learned about the Olympiad.
"This year is different," Wu Wenshan explained. "Because of the Beijing Olympics, the competition has been postponed to November 15th."
"Teacher… is it difficult?" Qin Yuanqing asked.
"Winning a prize isn't hard for you," Wu Wenshan said. "But making the provincial team won't be easy."
To qualify for the provincial team, students usually scored near perfect marks and had undergone years of specialized training since early high school. Many problems even involved advanced mathematics. Given Qin Yuanqing's past performance and lack of formal training, an honorable mention might be possible—but making the provincial team would require a miracle.
"There's a provincial team? Then is there a national team too?" Qin Yuanqing asked. It was his first time hearing about this.
"Of course," Wu Wenshan replied. "Each national team has at most six members. They represent China in the International Mathematical Olympiad."
"If you win a gold medal at the IMO," he continued, "you can enter Tsinghua University or Peking University without even taking the college entrance exam."
The International Mathematical Olympiad—IMO.
Qin Yuanqing remembered that before his rebirth, a peculiar-looking yet highly unconventional genius from Peking University had gone viral online—Wei, a top-tier prodigy who had won an IMO gold medal.
"Teacher, what should I prepare?" Qin Yuanqing couldn't help asking. There was still one month left—he wanted to try.
"The provincial preliminaries start on October 25th," Wu Wenshan said. "Buy some books on Olympiad problems and study them. I'll take care of the registration."
"Alright. Thank you, Teacher Wu."
For the rest of the day, Qin Yuanqing was distracted. His mind was filled with thoughts of the math competition. Only by winning first prize at the provincial level and demonstrating overwhelming strength could he possibly enter the provincial team and advance to the national competition.
Making the provincial team would not be easy.
After school, Qin Yuanqing went straight to the Xinhua Bookstore near the school gate and bought several Olympiad problem sets.
From then on, aside from attending classes, he devoted most of his time to studying Olympiad mathematics. Every day, he felt himself improving—and every day, time felt insufficient.
Wu Wenshan later informed him that his registration was complete. On October 24th, Qin Yuanqing would travel with other contestants to Rongcheng, the provincial capital, where the provincial competition would be held.
As he delved deeper into Olympiad problems, Qin Yuanqing quickly realized just how much more advanced they were than standard coursework. Even university students would struggle with most of them.
From points to lines, from lines to planes—his mathematical understanding expanded rapidly. When he encountered concepts he couldn't grasp, he consulted Wu Wenshan. Yet even Wu Wenshan couldn't solve some of the problems.
All the while, Wu Wenshan kept a close eye on Qin Yuanqing. He could clearly feel the improvement—faster problem-solving, greater depth and breadth. Compared to a month ago, Qin Yuanqing had risen to an entirely new level.
On October 20th, during the school's internal Olympiad simulation, Qin Yuanqing took first place outright, surpassing more than a dozen other competitors.
These were students who had regularly scored perfect marks in math and had trained since their first year of high school. And yet Qin Yuanqing had caught up to them in less than a month.
Wu Wenshan found it almost unbelievable. He had a strong feeling—this time, Qin Yuanqing might achieve outstanding results in the provincial competition. Perhaps he might even make the provincial team and advance to the national stage.
As for all this, Qin Yuanqing was unaware.
His entire focus was on studying Olympiad problems. To solve them, he even bought a set of advanced mathematics textbooks, using calculus concepts to aid his understanding.
It was precisely because of this that his mathematical level soared so rapidly in such a short time.