Chapter 288
The invigilator's mouth twitched.
Could it really just be a coincidence?
He couldn't help but take another look at Zhou Zedong, only to see the child maintaining his usual calm demeanor in the face of Teacher Xu's earlier words and his own attitude.
There was no stage fright or fear.
The invigilator came to his senses and fell silent.
If it wasn't a coincidence, then this child was truly extraordinary.
Although he really wanted to stay and ask for clarification, the exam hall still required his supervision. Reluctantly, he walked back, looking over his shoulder repeatedly.
He left with a final remark, "Eighty-eight points, you've passed. Remember to come back tomorrow for the advancement round."
In the classroom, which wasn't soundproof, everyone had heard everything.
The atmosphere grew even more tense.
This was especially true for Li Youcai, who was also participating in the math competition; he was now sweating profusely.
He clenched the pen in his hand, his expression filled with resentment.
Eighty-eight points wasn't anything great,
He had to persevere.
He would achieve a perfect score, he would defeat Zhou Zedong!
He would prove that he was the top math student in Class Four.
Teacher Xu finally snapped back to reality. Seeing Zhou Zedong standing there with a placid expression, putting on such an act.
A little kid, pretending to be so mature.
It made her earlier behavior seem like that of a clown.
She felt very displeased and sneered, "It's only eighty-eight points, barely the passing mark. Don't get too cocky."
In her eyes, eighty-eight points was no different from a failing student.
Zhou Zedong couldn't be bothered to engage with her and turned to leave.
This infuriated Teacher Xu, her chest heaving as she pointed at his retreating back, unable to utter a word for a long time.
Brother Zhang shook his head, "What's wrong with that teacher? Mistaking a pearl for a fish eye?"
The man beside him, hearing this, asked curiously, "What do you mean, Brother Zhang? Eighty-eight points is indeed just barely passing, not that impressive. I've heard there were kids who scored perfect in previous years too."
Brother Zhang smiled upon hearing this, "How long has it been since the exam started?"
"Let me see, exactly..." The other man glanced at his watch and suddenly realized something, his eyes widening immediately, "Holy crap, thirty minutes!"
Thirty minutes. Not only had the kid finished, but he also precisely hit the passing score!
Was he even human?
Brother Zhang laughed, "Old Xu, do you know what kind of people can calculate numbers precisely down to the decimal point?"
"Who else but that bunch of researchers under you who are always doing scientific work?" Old Xu retorted.
"Even so, this kid probably can't compare, right?"
Brother Zhang didn't answer directly, "You'll know in the future."
His eye for talent had never been wrong.
"No way, Brother Zhang. I heard you like scouting talent everywhere, but I didn't expect you to be this... unscrupulous. He's only ten years old!"
Brother Zhang shot him a disdainful look.
Students in the 1980s were the pride of the era, scarce talents needed in all sectors of society.
Now, he and his team had already taken on the heavy responsibility of scientific research, carrying on the work of the previous generation. Although this child was only ten, he believed this kid would surely shine brightly on a certain path in the future.
This path, let him, Niohuru Brother Zhang, be the one to guide him.
Brother Zhang never expected that just by bringing his daughter to participate in the Chinese language competition, he would encounter such talent.
Right now, he didn't even feel like managing his daughter anymore; he really wanted to catch up with that child and discuss the future.
...
Zhou Zedong had no idea he had been targeted by a... middle-aged man. At the moment, he had just found his younger brother who was in the middle of his own competition.
Their competition had also just started—a five-thousand-meter long-distance run. Because it was held at this school, the campus was exceptionally lively, like a sports day.
For other competitions, spectators couldn't get close, but sports events were different.
The area was surrounded by people.
Everyone was cheering for their own children. Although not many from their school were participating, many from other schools were.
Zhou Zedong squeezed his way to his brother's homeroom teacher's side.
He saw his brother leading the pack.
Several teachers from different schools were also observing the situation.
Seeing the shortest child running at the front, they were quite astonished: "What's with this kid? His legs are spinning so fast, like they're greased."
"Haha, this is a student from my class, named Zhou Zehan. He runs incredibly fast, has strong athletic talent. The P.E. teacher praises him all the time."
The homeroom teacher smiled with shared pride.
Seeing Zhou Zedong, she was surprised, "Little Han's big brother, hasn't your event started yet? Why are you still standing here?"
Zhou Zedong replied, "It has. I've already finished the exam."
Before the homeroom teacher could close her gaping mouth, she heard a teacher from the Second Primary School sneer beside her, "Kids from your Foreign Language Primary School having athletic talent? That's a joke. Your school is famously a nerd factory."
"I've heard your students are young masters and misses who faint after standing for a while as punishment in class."
"Exactly. In past years' sports meets, track and field events, your Foreign Language Primary School has always been at the bottom."
"I remember last year your school only sent one kid, and he got dead last, haha~"
"My five-year-old could run faster than that."
The homeroom teacher's face turned green upon hearing this, "That was in the past. Now our school also emphasizes physical education for the children."
"Our principal even specially hired a retired national athlete to be the P.E. teacher."
"A retired national athlete? You're joking. If there really was such a teacher, then he wouldn't have started so fast. Everyone knows you shouldn't start a long-distance run too quickly, otherwise the body easily becomes oxygen-deprived and you can't keep up later... He's clearly a novice who doesn't know anything," the other teacher mocked.
A retired national athlete, my foot.
More like leading the kid astray.
The homeroom teacher was stumped.
She had only heard from the P.E. teacher that Little Han had good stamina, ran fast, and could develop in this direction.
But she didn't know the specifics herself.
Now, seeing Little Han start so fast, she was also worried.
Sure enough, later on, other contestants began to accelerate.
She grew even more anxious.
Then she heard Zhou Zedong beside her say, "Teacher, don't worry."
He said, "My brother isn't even running seriously yet."
"Huh?" The homeroom teacher was taken aback when she heard the people around suddenly exclaim.
"Oh my god, that kid actually sped up again! Was that not his fastest speed earlier?"
"This kid looks so small, how does he run so—fast? Like he has springs in his legs, it's terrifying."
"Doesn't he ever get tired?"
The homeroom teacher instinctively looked over.
Indeed, on the long-distance track, the youngest contestant, Zhou Zehan, was running at the front with a crushing lead. His legs were almost a blur, his speed astonishing! Even the people around and the referees stood up, staring at the scene in shock.
The teachers who had just been mocking them now had mouths agape wide enough to fit a salted duck egg.
"This... this is impossible. He's been running for so long, and he's so small. How can his stamina be this good?"
"Yeah, starting that fast, he should have gotten tired quickly in theory."
Zhou Zedong looked at the teachers who refused to believe their eyes and said, "Don't compare your students' fastest speeds to my brother's starting speed."