High School Mathematics League

"Junior disciple, easy does it," Shen Qi nodded, then turned to his teammates with a question: "Why does Teacher Cao strongly forbid us from using university knowledge to solve problems? For example, if I have the best greatsword, why would I use the most basic jungle knife to clear camps? It's not efficient."

Meng Tianqiang replied, "Didn't Teacher Cao say it? Using university knowledge to solve high school math problems is equivalent to cheating."

"Then if everyone uses university knowledge, the standard is the same, and it's no longer considered cheating."

"Actually, most of us here have read university math textbooks to some extent, with varying degrees of depth. Shen Qi, you need to know that not every high school student can grasp more advanced and specialized mathematical knowledge as deeply as you do, myself included. If you use methods that go beyond the scope of high school textbooks in the competition, it's like a critical hit to other high school students, dealing at least 10,000 damage."

"Alright, Captain Meng, your logic is flawless."

Shen Qi asked again, "Which grade does Teacher Cao teach? Why have I never seen him?"

Meng Tianqiang said, "Teacher Cao retired several years ago but was rehired specifically to coach our Math Olympiad team. He's a nationally recognized outstanding teacher and very famous in the field."

"What's my homeroom teacher, Zhang Wanbang's, relationship with Teacher Cao?" Shen Qi seemed curious.

"It's said that when Teacher Zhang first came to our school as a student teacher, he was Teacher Cao's apprentice. They were in the same group and worked together for many years."

"No wonder. Teacher Zhang and Old Man Cao have the same temper. Before teaching knowledge, they scold you first, and then they reason with you. Speaking of which, did Old Man Cao go for a smoke again? It's been over ten minutes, and he's still not back. He really has a heavy smoking habit!" Shen Qi glanced outside the door.

Meng Tianqiang, accustomed to it, said, "He won't be back. We'll just study on our own here. We'll be dismissed at nine."

"Is the training method for our Math Olympiad team really just self-study?" The Math League finals are the day after tomorrow, and Shen Qi thought there would be a cram session tonight, but he didn't expect the reinforcement training to be collective self-study.

Meng Tianqiang said, "Most of the time, it's like this. If we have questions, we discuss them within the team first. If we encounter a problem that the entire team can't solve, then we ask Teacher Cao. Isn't it like this for mathematicians? Self-taught geniuses."

"The discipline and management style of the school's Math Olympiad team and the school's Track and Field team are really different." Shen Qi passed by the sports field today and saw the Track and Field team training intensely under their coach. His good buddy Xu Rui even pulled a muscle.

"We are intellectual warriors, taking the high-end route. How can those barbarians on the Track and Field team compare to us?" Meng Tianqiang said proudly, eliciting agreement from his teammates.

"They call us weak chickens, and we see them as barbarians. I have a brother on the school's Track and Field team, and he alone could take down half of our Math Olympiad team," Shen Qi stated an objective fact.

"Scary!"

"Super scary!"

"Barbarians are the scariest!"

The other team members trembled, then each returned to their books and problems.

"Shen Qi, what are you going to participate in? A Math League? There's actually a Math League? A bunch of weak chickens playing in some stupid league! What? You can get into Tsinghua University if you do well in this broken league? Screw that, is there any justice left? A weak chicken who gets into Tsinghua is still a weak chicken, just a high-level weak chicken with a diploma! Shen Qi, you better do well in the Math League, and if you don't win the championship, I'll chop off your..." This was Xu Rui's WeChat message to Shen Qi.

The language style was simple and crude, but Shen Qi felt warmth.

Everyone had witnessed Shen Qi's progress over the past two months.

Xu Rui accepted this fact. Since his good friend Shen Qi was determined to strive for excellence, he wished him a bright future and success in his studies.

"Shen Qi-chan, good luck! Looking forward to your good news O(∩_∩)O~" This was Chen Xiaoting's WeChat message to Shen Qi, her language style gentle and endearing.

"As the math representative, I didn't even get a chance to represent our class in the Math League, but you did. Shen Qi, please help me fulfill this regret. Class 2 is counting on you. Don't let people from classes 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 look down on us in Class 2." Huang Zikun, whose relationship with Shen Qi was neither close nor distant, also sent Shen Qi a WeChat message. The usually arrogant Huang Zikun actually showed a hint of envy in his words.

Zhang Wanbang didn't say a word to Shen Qi before the competition, not even seeing him.

But Shen Qi knew that besides his parents, Zhang Wanbang was probably the person who cared about him the most.

And the person who understood him best, Teacher Zhang, might rank first.

May 17th, Sunday.

Shen Qi, wearing his Nangang Second High School uniform, student ID, and competition pass, packed his backpack with pens and rulers. He sat in the passenger seat, operating his phone to reply to several classmates.

The car was a black Mercedes-Benz C-Class. Although it had been driven for a few years, it still looked about seven or eight years new. His driver, Shen Zhishan, stopped at a red light and asked, "Shen Qi, you've been playing on your phone since we left. Are you too nervous or too relaxed?"

"My classmates all care about me participating in the Math League, so I'm thanking them for their support. I'm not too relaxed, nor too nervous. Just maintaining a normal mindset." Shen Qi sent his last text message and put away his phone.

"It's very good that you can maintain a normal mindset," Shen Zhishan opened the sunroof to let in some air. "Shen Qi, I've seen your recent progress and your diligent attitude towards learning. Let's be frank, what are your goals for the future?"

"To go to university."

"Which university do you want to attend?"

Shen Qi looked up at the morning sky through the sunroof. The weather was nice today. "I like universities with nice-sounding names, like Shuimu, Fudan, Tongji, Yixian, and so on."

"Universities with nice-sounding names are all prestigious schools. Your ambitions are not small. But can you get into these good-sounding universities with just math alone?" Shen Zhishan asked.

Shen Qi replied, "I hope to win a major award in this Math League and strive for the special recruitment quota for leading talents in the major fields of prestigious universities. The prestigious universities with nice-sounding names I mentioned earlier all have very famous mathematics departments. More than half of the fresh graduates admitted to their mathematics departments are through special recruitment; that's what Teacher Zhang said. Of course, I can't give up on the college entrance examination path; that's my backup plan. In short, I need to excel in both the competition and the college entrance exams."

"You're closer to Teacher Zhang than you are to me," Shen Zhishan chuckled. "But your mother wants you to study medicine."

Shen Qi countered with a question, "What about you? What do you want me to study?"

"I used to want you to go to military school, but your personality isn't suited for a military career. You should walk your own path, make your own life choices. All I can do is prepare your tuition fees. Where you go after a year is up to you."

"Understanding is everything. Dad, you don't have to drive me. It only takes me ten minutes to ride my bike to school."

"Today is a new starting point in your life. I must personally drive you to the Math League competition. It's fatherly love, you know."

"Dad, I mean, you drive slower than I ride my bike. We've been stuck at this intersection for 10 minutes, and the red light has cycled seven times without passing... We're going to be late!"

Finally, Shen Zhishan drove through the most congested intersection, and Shen Qi got out of the car at the entrance of Nangang Second High School.

A bus was parked at the school entrance. Meng Tianqiang, the captain of the Math Olympiad team, was anxiously looking around below the bus.

Meng Tianqiang spotted Shen Qi and waved, shouting, "Shen Qi, hurry up and get on!"

Shen Qi sprinted to the front door of the bus and got on with Meng Tianqiang.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Teacher Cao," Shen Qi said apologetically to Cao Xin'an, who was sitting in the front seat, after getting into the car.

Cao Xin'an asked expressionlessly, "Student ID, competition pass, did you bring them?"

"Brought them, brought them," Shen Qi took out his student ID and competition pass to show Cao Xin'an.

Cao Xin'an spread open his right palm. "Turn off your phone, give it to me, and then go find a seat in the back."

Shen Qi took out his phone, turned it off, and handed it to Cao Xin'an for safekeeping. He then went to the back of the bus to find a seat.

The bus started and headed south.

There were over a dozen people on the bus: the driver, Cao Xin'an, and all the members of the Nangang Second High School Math Olympiad team.

Cao Xin'an was the leader of this team, and today he would lead them in their challenge for the annual Provincial High School Mathematics League.

Last year, Cao Xin'an also led the team, but the results were poor: only two first-place awards, and not a single person made the provincial team line.

The year before that was even worse: zero first-place awards and only three second-place awards.

The achievement Cao Xin'an was most proud of dated back eight years, when he had not yet retired and was teaching at Nangang Second High School.

The team members from that year were exceptionally talented. They all won first-place awards, and half of them made the provincial team line. The most outstanding prodigy among them was eventually selected for the national Olympiad team that year. He represented China in the competition in the United States, won a gold medal at the IMO, and was admitted to Shuimu University on a guaranteed admission. He was now pursuing his doctoral degree at Trinity College, Cambridge, in the UK.

For eight years, the overall mathematics level at Nangang Second High School had declined from its peak. This made Cao Xin'an very unwilling to accept it. Having been rehired after retirement, he had only one wish: to send another student to the national team before he died.

However, the overall competitive level of this year's Math Olympiad team could not satisfy Cao Xin'an. He was already 64 years old and couldn't work for many more years.

The only person in this team who brought Cao Xin'an a sliver of comfort was the captain, Meng Tianqiang.

Meng Tianqiang won a first-place award in the Math League last year when he was in his second year of high school, but at best, he was only at the provincial first-place level. Making the provincial team line would be difficult.

"Do I really have to keep going until I'm 70? I don't even know if I'll live to be 70," Cao Xin'an felt helpless. He wasn't afraid of death; he was afraid of his students not living up to their potential.