Time was tight.
Given that only one person chose to continue answering the question, there was no need to clear the field.
Thus, sitting in front of the computer, Jiang Fuyue, with her fingers flying over the keyboard, instantly became the focal point. She was not only closely watched, but also heavily criticized.
“Can she make it? Only three minutes left.”
“Useless, this question can’t be solved.”
“But she seems very confident, what if she really has a trump card…”
“Oh, my dear friend, you’re overthinking it. Chinese people like to play heroes to show superiority, but in the end? Just wait and see, it’s just self-humiliation.”
“But she doesn’t look flustered, she seems to have it under control…”
“This brings us to the second trait of Chinese people. Besides playing heroes, they are also very good at pretending.”
“Everyone keep an eye on the time. As soon as the bell rings, make her submit the paper, not a second more!”
“….”
From the moment Jiang Fuyue stood up, she was on the opposite side of everyone: either she failed and everyone got points, or she succeeded and everyone else failed.
The differing positions determined the clear distinction between friends and foes.
Jiang Fuyue accepted all of this.
She could hear the disparaging remarks and feel the contempt, but she didn’t care. Her focus was entirely on the code on the screen, her hands moving faster and her brain calculating precisely.
Even those standing closest behind her couldn’t make out the rapidly scrolling code on the programming page, let alone judge its correctness.
Everyone had only one feeling—dazzling!
Gao Zhaoming squeezed to the front, followed closely by Huang Hui.
Soon, Fan Ye joined them, unwilling to be left behind.
The three consciously moved behind Jiang Fuyue, separating her from the crowd, like a solid shield.
The closer to the end, the more careful they needed to be. If someone saw that Jiang Fuyue had solved it and tried to sabotage her, the three could block them.
It might not be very effective, but it was better than nothing.
A brown-haired, green-eyed foreigner nearby kept fanning the flames, constantly disparaging “Chinese people,” calling them arrogant, hypocritical, deceitful… exhausting all slanders.
Gao Zhaoming turned coldly, “Shut up, you idiot.”
Huang Hui: “This isn’t a dog kennel, please keep quiet. Thank you.”
Foreigner: “Oh! I forgot to mention, Chinese people are also very crude…”
Before he could finish, a heavy punch landed in his abdomen. The man cried out in pain and stepped back, his face pale, but he immediately looked for the culprit.
But the area was crowded, anyone could have done it.
The main suspects were the two Chinese boys who had argued with him earlier, but their positions and angles couldn’t have hit his abdomen.
The girl beside them seemed possible.
But looking at her thin, undernourished appearance, how could she have such strength?
The foreigner ruled her out first.
Little did he know, Fan Ye was flexing her fingers to relieve the discomfort, thinking: This foreigner has tough skin, my hand hurts from punching him.
“One minute left!”
Jiang Fuyue’s speed increased, her expression becoming more intense.
“Ten seconds left, nine, eight, seven… three, two, one!”
In the last second, Jiang Fuyue hit the enter key—time was up!
The girl stood up and stepped back, indicating the exam was over and the paper was submitted.
Gasp—
“Did she really solve it?”
“Who knows if it’s just random scribbling?”
“We’ll see the test run results.”
“Don’t worry, this question can’t be solved. The problem statement has too many uncertainties, there’s no way to start.”
“Yes, it’s that elusive feeling!”
“….”
Gao Zhaoming and Huang Hui exchanged a glance, “Wanna bet?”
“On what?”
“A meal.”
Huang Hui nodded, “Sure, I bet Sister Yue can solve it.”
“But… I also bet she can. How does that work?”
Huang Hui shrugged, “I won’t change my bet. Trusting Sister Yue means a meal.”
“I also think Sister Yue can solve it.” Fan Ye suddenly chimed in, winking at the two.
Gao Zhaoming: “…” Then what’s the point of betting?
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Xie Dingyuan walked to the computer and started the test run.
The screen flickered, complex code appeared, and at one point, the screen even froze and went black.
But a few seconds later, it resumed.
Everyone held their breath, their eyes glued to the screen.
But after a minute, the test run wasn’t over.
Two minutes passed, still running.
Five minutes later, it was still ongoing.
“What’s happening?”
“Is the computer broken?”
“Doesn’t make sense, a test run usually finishes in seconds. How can it take five minutes?”
“But the interface seems fine, the process isn’t stuck.”
“What kind of test run lasts over five minutes? Incredible!”
Andre couldn’t squeeze to the front, missing the chance to watch the goddess code.
Now, mixed in the crowd, he could only infer the situation from the discussions ahead.
Hearing “test run over five minutes,” he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
A companion asked, “What are you thinking?”
Andre: “Kess, what takes a long time to run?”
“The more data, the larger the computation, the longer it takes. Otherwise, why would supercomputers exist?”
“Bingo!” Andre snapped his fingers.
“You mean her program’s computation has exceeded what a normal computer can handle? But that’s not right, an overloaded system would crash, yet the computer is still running…”
“So, she not only completed a high-intensity calculation program within five minutes but also controlled the data output to be within a normal computer’s capacity. That requires another program…”
“Hiss!” The companion gasped, “Five minutes… Impossible! You must be joking.”
Andre shook his head, waving a finger, “For you and me, impossible; but for her, possible!”
…
“Sir, so what’s the result? We can’t wait forever, right?”
Someone grew impatient.
Waiting always caused anxiety, and confidence slowly waned.
In contrast, Jiang Fuyue remained composed from start to finish, her calmness seeming inherent and reflected in her every move.
She stood there, doing nothing, yet exuding an oppressive presence—
The more composed she was, the more panicked they became.
“How much longer?”
“Are they messing with us?”
“Sir, can we get a definite time?”
The crowd chattered, but Xie Dingyuan remained unmoved.
They didn’t dare go too far, just like the blond man who wanted to swear earlier but held back in front of this emotionless, imposing man, instinctively cautious.
Xie Dingyuan kept his eyes on the screen, ignoring the chatter and demands.
And they couldn’t do anything about it!
Jiang Fuyue once again felt the pride emanating from this man.
There was even a hint of disdain—
Disdain for arguing with fools, disdain for engaging in petty talk.
Though this emotion was subtle and well-hidden, Jiang Fuyue noticed it.
Love and hate, joy and dislike, seemed sharply distinct with Xie Dingyuan.
Jiang Fuyue suddenly understood his pride.
Sometimes, pride might make you seem arrogant and unlikable, but it quickly sets you apart from fools.
Jiang Fuyue realized she had once been treated as a “fool” by Xie Dingyuan, tsk tsk…
Fortunately, she had turned the tables.
As the commotion grew, Xie Dingyuan remained unmoved. An exam staff member nervously approached, speaking gently—
“Professor Xie, given the situation… should we say something?”
“Ten minutes.”
“Huh?”
Xie Dingyuan: “Wait ten more minutes for the result.”
The staff member beamed and quickly informed the crowd.
The scene soon calmed down, and suddenly—
Xie Dingyuan: “In the meantime, why don’t you explain your approach? After all, once the result is out, you’ll have to explain if there’s any dispute.”
Jiang Fuyue looked up, unexpectedly meeting Xie Dingyuan’s gaze, pausing for half a second before realizing she had been called upon…
