A Rugged Road, Truly Like Iron

After Shen Qi spent 10 minutes finishing the second problem, he looked back at the first one. It was incredibly difficult, the challenge lying in the thought process and logic.

If one got stuck on the first problem, it was a death sentence. Fortunately, Shen Qi had switched to a different logical approach in time, and the problem was easily solved.

If the first problem's Seven Bridges of Königsberg puzzle was difficult, Shen Qi considered the second problem to be a gift.

The second problem was an Algebra question. The paper listed a bunch of Arabic numerals, English, and Greek symbols, asking the solver to find the pattern and prove it.

Shen Qi didn't even think about it. Without sketching anything, he picked up his pen and answered directly on the exam paper. Cantor's set theory, it was ridiculously simple. Getting 7 points for free felt great.

"14 points secured, last problem."

Shen Qi began to solve the final problem. He still had 1 hour and 40 minutes, which was plenty of time.

The final problem, a Geometry question, was theoretically the finale. This problem took Shen Qi half an hour to conquer.

Ranking them by difficulty, the first problem was the hardest, followed by the third, and the second was the easiest.

"No problem, handing it in."

After checking three times, Shen Qi submitted his paper 40 minutes early and left classroom 101.

Upon exiting the exam hall, Shen Qi realized he wasn't the first to finish.

Outside the exam hall, several groups of people were gathered. They looked relaxed, chatting and laughing, as if they were here for a tour rather than the National Math Olympiad.

This scene made Shen Qi's heart skip a beat and his sphincter clench. So many experts!

The group of students wearing identical white shirts were from the Xiangnan Province Math Olympiad team. Counting them, one, two, three, four, five, six. All six members of their team had submitted early, even earlier than Shen Qi.

The group of students wearing white short-sleeved shirts were from the Zhedong Province Math Olympiad team. Counting them, also one, two, three, four, five, six. All six members of their team had submitted early.

The most impressive were the Ebei Province Math Olympiad team. Not only had all six of their members submitted early, but they were also playing a game in pairs.

"Chariot 8 advances to 3."

"Cannon 2 shifts to 1."

The game the Ebei Province Math Olympiad team members were playing was Chinese Chess, but without a board or pieces. They were calling out moves with their eyes closed, playing blindfolded chess.

"Amazing, truly amazing. The 'Five Whites of the Central Plains' aren't just for show; their overall math ability is indeed incredibly strong. I have to admit it." Shen Qi was very nervous. He looked around, craning his neck, hoping his five "pig teammates" could pull off a miracle.

However, the result disappointed Shen Qi. None of his five "pig teammates" showed up. They were probably struggling for their lives inside the exam room.

"Sigh, it's useless. No matter how good I am, this is reality, not a game. I thought I could really take on five people by myself?" Shen Qi leaned dejectedly against a tree, feeling lonely and isolated. Those guys from the Ebei team had companions to play with, while I only have a few "pig teammates." Comparing oneself to others can be maddening.

Shen Qi looked towards the second teaching building. Were his "pig teammates" still holding on?

"Look, that guy is peeking at us." Not far away, a member of the Ebei team spotted Shen Qi.

"Judging by the writing on his short sleeve... Nanyue Province Math Olympiad team. This guy isn't bad; he only submitted about ten minutes after us," another Ebei team member said.

"The Nanyue team isn't a strong team."

"He might have submitted a blank paper."

"Whatever, they're an irrelevant team. Come on, let's continue, Horse 4 advances to 3."

"General 5 shifts to 6..."

Shen Qi overheard the conversation among the Ebei Province members. He decided to endure it. "We're outnumbered; let's play it safe and develop slowly."

At this moment, students began to emerge from the second teaching building. The 3-hour exam time was up, and everyone had submitted their papers.

"The first problem was super difficult. I guessed. I said there was no single path that could connect the eight bridges, and my proof was all over the place, just pure speculation. The second problem was a bit easier, and the third was difficult again. I might not even get 10 points on this preliminary national exam paper. Shen Qi, if he hits me, you guys can't just stand by and watch!" Qi Jianhong of the Nanyue Province Math Olympiad team said as he walked, looking very nervous.

"He dares?" Another teammate, Luo Ming, sounded a bit more confident.

"Luo Ming, how many problems did you get right?" Qi Jianhong asked cautiously.

"At least two." Luo Ming showed some regret. "If I had 10 more minutes, just 10 minutes, I could have gotten a perfect score. It's a shame, a real shame, but there wasn't enough time."

"Hehehehehe." A strange laugh echoed. Shen Qi appeared behind his five teammates like a ghost.

"What the hell?"

"What ghost?"

"Shen Qi!"

"You submitted early again?"

The five teammates were startled. They looked up at the sky. The sun had been blazing fiercely, but now dark clouds had gathered.

"Hehehehehe." Shen Qi's smile was inscrutable. "Stop talking. We'll discuss it back at the dorm."

"Heh your sister," his teammates cursed as they followed Shen Qi towards the dorm.

Teacher Tian was already waiting in the dorm. He held 6 preliminary national exam papers and 6 answer keys.

A paper cup, temporarily serving as an ashtray, was stuffed with cigarette butts. Teacher Tian stubbed out a cigarette he was smoking, turned off the air conditioning, and opened the doors and windows wide.

"Mmm, it smells strongly of smoke." Qi Jianhong pinched his nose, frowning.

"Teacher Tian, you smoked so many cigarettes, and this is our dorm..." Luo Ming complained.

"I apologize, I couldn't help it. I'll be more mindful in the future." Teacher Tian apologized, feeling immense pressure.

Shen Qi pulled up a chair and sat by the window, gazing into the distance, saying nothing.

"I just got the preliminary national exam papers and the standard answers from the organizing committee. Go over your answers and estimate your scores so I can get a rough idea." Teacher Tian began distributing the papers and answers.

Qi Jianhong and the other four immediately started checking their answers after receiving the papers and answer keys.

Since they had just finished the preliminary national exam, they could clearly recall their answers.

The feeling of checking answers was a mix of nervousness, anxiety, and anticipation, much like waiting for lottery results.

"The first question, the Seven Bridges of Königsberg problem, indeed has no Eulerian path. I guessed right! If they don't give me 7 points, they should at least give me two, right?"

"Second question is correct again!"

"Third question, sigh, I calculated it wrong, but my reasoning was correct for 90% of it, only the last step was wrong."

"I estimate I can get 10 points, 11 points, maybe 13 points?" Qi Jianhong could accept this result; it was a few points higher than he had anticipated.

"I should be able to get over 14 points. The grader might give me a point or two for the Seven Bridges problem." Luo Ming still sounded regretful. "Ten minutes, all I needed was 10 minutes."

"Well, well, you two are doing pretty well." Teacher Tian was slightly surprised, the situation being a tiny bit more optimistic than he had predicted. "Shu Minbo, Yang Huan, Cheng Le, what about you guys?"

"Holy crap, I got a critical hit! At least 17 points!"

"I think I can get around 14 or 15 points."

"I left the first question blank, but got the other two completely right. 14 points."

The other three teammates quickly calculated their estimated scores.

"Good, good. Except for Qi Jianhong, all of you have an accuracy rate of over 66% in your answers. Although it's an estimate, I believe your estimations should be accurate since you just finished the exam. There's hope, we still have hope!" Teacher Tian saw a glimmer of hope for advancing and finally smiled.

Only Shen Qi remained silent after returning to the dormitory. He kept gazing out the window, lost in thought.

"Shen Qi, what are you looking at? What's your estimated score?" Teacher Tian walked up to Shen Qi and asked with great concern. Shen Qi was Teacher Tian's last and only trump card; he absolutely couldn't afford any mistakes.

Shen Qi stared intently into the distance and slowly said, "I'm looking at poetry and the distant future."

Teacher Tian: "..."

Everyone else: "..."

"It's over, it's over. Shen Qi's gone crazy. I felt something was off with him earlier outside." Qi Jianhong nervously walked up to Shen Qi and said shamefully, "Shen Qi, it's all my fault. I know how badly you want to get into the National Final. My skills are limited, and I couldn't score high enough. I didn't expect this to hit you so hard. Yes, you're right, I'm trash."

"You were, but you aren't anymore." Shen Qi stood up, his gaze shifting indoors. "10 + 14 + 14 + 14 + 17 + 21. We can at least get 90 points, so you're not trash, you all did your best. Oh, and I should get a perfect score of 21 points. We still have hope."