The weather was nice on the day of the exam.
No. 1 High School School’s assigned test site was No. 72 High School.
Early in the morning, Xu Jing arrived at the school gate, waiting for the students to gather one by one.
The national competition consisted of two sessions: the first test and an additional test.
- The first test was scheduled from 8:00 to 9:20, lasting 80 minutes.
- The additional test was from 9:40 to 12:10, lasting 150 minutes.
At 7:15, all examinees from No. 1 High School School had assembled, and Xu Jing gave a brief speech.
His advice boiled down to two points: read the questions carefully and manage your time wisely.
The official entrance began at 7:30. During the waiting period, each student had a small notebook in hand, flipping through it rapidly.
Students from other schools couldn’t help but be curious—
“What are they doing?”
“Cramming at the last minute, obviously!”
“No way, you can cram for Olympiad math? It’s not like it’s a memorization test.”
“Who knows? Either way, it’s bizarre.”
“Which school are they from?”
“Let me see… looks like No. 1 High School.”
“Can’t be! Isn’t No. 1 High School known as the strongest in Linhuai for Olympiad math? They still need last-minute prep?”
“Should we go take a look?”
A group of students cautiously approached. They first peered over Chen Cheng’s shoulder, but he simply closed his notebook.
And walked away.
“What’s with the attitude? As if we care.”
“Yeah! No manners at all.”
Soon, their attention shifted to someone who seemed easier to approach—Zou Hao.
“Hey, classmate, what are you guys reading?”
Zou Hao calmly closed his notebook, lowered his voice, and spoke in a mysterious tone: “I’ll tell you, but you must promise not to tell anyone else.”
“Don’t worry, our lips are sealed!”
“Yeah, we won’t say a word.”
“Absolutely!”
Zou Hao gestured for them to lean in. They did, ears perked up expectantly.
“Listen carefully, this is called—The Sunflower Manual, also known as the Evil-Repelling Swordplay Manual!”
With that, he leisurely walked away.
The group stood there, stunned.
“…That name sounds kinda familiar?”
“D*mn it! Did he just call himself Eastern Invincible?!”
“Or maybe Lin Pingzhi… or Yue Buqun.”
“…” D*mn it, we got played.
Xu Jing was just as curious.
Since when did his students have such a booklet?
“Ahem! Zou Hao.”
“Yes, Teacher Xu?”
“Hand over your Sunflower Manual.”
Zou Hao: “…”
In the end, the booklet was obediently handed over. Xu Jing suppressed his curiosity and flipped it open.
Two pages in, his eyes widened in astonishment.
“Where did this come from?!”
“I copied it! Took me three days, even had to stay up late.”
“No… I mean, where did the content come from?”
“Sister Yue dictated it, and Chen Cheng and Jiaxu helped organize it.”
Xu Jing’s mouth twitched. He pointed at the percentages marked in red ink.
“What do these mean?”
“They represent the probability of that topic appearing on the test. Sister Yue said anything over 90% is guaranteed to be tested!”
“Huh? Why didn’t I know about this?” Xu Jing was dumbfounded.
Zou Hao looked matter-of-fact: “Because you never give us test predictions!”
How could he understand the magic of shortcuts if he had never taken one?
Xu Jing: “…”
“And these stars on the side?”
“The more stars, the harder the question.”
“Why are most of them two or three stars? I barely see any four- or five-star ones.”
“Think about it—would an entire test be filled with super hard problems? No way! Sister Yue said half of the Olympiad test is usually three-star difficulty, a quarter is two- and four-star, and one- and five-star questions almost never appear.”
Xu Jing: “…”
Zou Hao: “Even if such questions appear, it doesn’t matter. If I can’t do them, others probably can’t either. We’re all back to the same starting line. So don’t panic—whoever stays steady until the end wins.”
Xu Jing: “Did Jiang Fuyue say that again?”
Zou Hao lifted his chin. “Of course! Do I look like someone who could come up with that?”
“…” At least he has some self-awareness.
At 7:30, the school gates opened, and students entered in an orderly manner.
In the last five minutes before the exam, Zou Hao spent his time reviewing the “Sunflower Manual” with Xu Jing.
“Teacher Xu, I’m heading in now. Uh… can I have my booklet back?”
Xu Jing swiftly tucked it away. “You’re going straight into the test; you won’t have time to look at it. I’ll hold onto it for you and give it back afterward.”
Truthfully, he hadn’t finished reading it yet.
“Fine, whatever.” Zou Hao nodded and walked in with the crowd, looking confident and composed.
Xu Jing glanced around—everyone was standing tall, heads held high.
Not bad. Not bad at all.
Seeing this, Xu Jing nodded in satisfaction.
“Old Xu, your students have great energy!” The one speaking was Zheng Yuhe, the math Olympiad coach from No. 6 High School.
The two were on good terms.
Xu Jing couldn’t help but smile and humbly replied, “Just average.”
“Hm? What’s that in your hand?”
“Oh, just a student’s notes. I’m holding onto them for safekeeping.”
Meanwhile, Zou Hao, who was already far away, suddenly sneezed—Like h*ll you are! You confiscated it by force!
…
Jiang Fuyue was in the same exam room as Chen Cheng, Tan Jiaxu, and Zou Hao.
Ling Xuan was in the neighboring room.
Zou Hao’s seat was right in front of Jiang Fuyue’s—one in front, one behind.
Chen Cheng and Tan Jiaxu, however, were scattered across the exam room—one in the middle, the other in a corner near the wall. They were quite a distance apart.
Zou Hao, sitting in front of Jiang Fuyue, kept fidgeting like he had ants in his pants.
Jiang Fuyue frowned. “What are you doing?”
Zou Hao turned around abruptly. “I… I’m a little nervous because I’m sitting in front of you.”
“You should be grateful you’re not sitting behind me.”
“Huh?”
What’s the difference?
Zou Hao soon found out…
8:00 AM. The first exam began.
The test included:
- 8 fill-in-the-blank questions, 8 points each.
- 3 problem-solving questions worth 16, 20, and 20 points respectively.
- Total: 120 points.
Jiang Fuyue scanned the fill-in-the-blank questions and immediately got the answers—finishing all 8 in just three minutes.
The first problem-solving question was a standard type, classified as two-star difficulty in the “Sunflower Manual.” Reading and writing took her five and a half minutes.
The second question, also two-star difficulty, was even easier. She finished it in four minutes.
The third and final problem-solving question was expected to be the hardest. It was the last hurdle of the first round of the Olympiad.
While it was a three-star difficulty problem, it was still far too easy for Jiang Fuyue.
The key to solving it lay in logical reasoning, not complex calculations. The steps were simple and clean. She finished it in three minutes.
And just like that, all 8 fill-in-the-blank and 3 problem-solving questions were complete!
Total time: 15 minutes!
Which happened to be the earliest allowed submission time.
Jiang Fuyue raised her hand.
The invigilator assumed she needed extra scratch paper and grabbed two sheets from the podium, walking over.
“Here you go.”
“Teacher, I’d like to submit my exam.”
“You’re welcome—…wait, what?!”
“I want to submit my exam.”
“…?”
The entire exam room fell into a dead silence.
The sound of pages flipping stopped. The scratching of pens on paper vanished.
The world seemed to freeze.
Until…
The invigilator asked again, “Are you sure you want to submit your paper?”
“Yes.”
“Alright… check your answer sheet and scratch paper before leaving. You can’t take anything out.”
Jiang Fuyue double-checked everything, stood up, and left. A second invigilator escorted her to the waiting area.
The exam room returned to its previous state, but for many students, their rhythm was shattered. Some struggled to refocus.
Chen Cheng and Tan Jiaxu, however, were unfazed. They were used to it.
But Zou Hao, sitting right in front of her, felt it the most.
The moment Jiang Fuyue said she was submitting her paper, his heart clenched.
One thought consumed his mind—
Is she even human?!
Suddenly, a loud crash sounded behind him.
He turned around instinctively and saw that the student sitting behind Jiang Fuyue had fallen to the floor—desk and all.
His face was pale, drenched in cold sweat.
The invigilator hurried over and helped him up. “Are you okay?”
The student frantically checked his exam paper, worried it had gotten dirty or crumpled.
“I-I’m fine…”
“There’s a medical station outside. I can take you there.”
“No need, really! I-I just got too nervous… too much pressure.”
As he spoke, his gaze flickered toward Jiang Fuyue’s now-empty seat, where a completely unused scratch paper lay on top of the exam.
He trembled even harder.
The invigilator sighed but let him stay.
Zou Hao, however, finally understood what Jiang Fuyue meant earlier—
“You should be grateful you’re not sitting behind me.”
D*mn it! She’s a monster!
Meanwhile, in the waiting area, Jiang Fuyue was completely unaware of the chaos she had left behind.
She casually took out two A4 sheets of paper and a black pen from her bag.
Under the curious gaze of a nearby teacher, she began writing…
