No matter what happens, we must find the person who took the lead. This is probably what it means when the law does not hold everyone responsible.

It was already late, and the remaining 11 children were quickly taken back to their room to rest.

Before going upstairs, Pei Zhi glanced at her on the stairs. Lin Chaoxi raised her head and twitched the corners of her mouth, probably trying to smile.

——

After turning a flight of stairs, the dim wall lights shone on them, casting long, thin black shadows on the wooden floor.

Lu Zhihao fell behind last. The cramped stairs made him impatient. He finally couldn't hold it in any longer and raised his hand to hold the person in front of him: "Is it... it's over like this?"

He asked in a low voice.

"No." Pei Zhi said briefly.

"No, what's the problem?"

Lu Zhihao was suddenly frightened. He was completely confused downstairs just now. Now that he finally left, he became a little more sober.

Lin Chaoxi said that she was the leader, but why did Vice Principal Zhang ask that? Was he going to punish the leader?

Drive her away, but Lin Chaoxi can't leave, she wants to stay the most.

"No, it's not her. Does she want to carry it all by herself?" He raised his voice a little and turned his head away in panic.

In a flash, his arm was tightly grasped by Pei Zhi.

"What are you doing!" The aunt walking in front turned around and cursed, "You think the trouble you caused today isn't big enough!"

"Auntie, I'm sorry." Pei Zhiqiang pressed him down and bowed to apologize.

——

Lin Chaoxi was still standing in the living room and did not hear the whispered argument at the corner on the second floor.

From time to time, voices could be heard coming back and forth on the intercom, some were calling back, some were reporting the situation, and some were just chatting casually.

At night, there was a rustling sound on the radio. Vice President Zhang turned his head and suddenly turned off the walkie-talkie.

The whole living room suddenly became quiet. As quiet as night.

Lin Chaoxi took two breaths of the night air, trying to calm himself down.

Her only hope now is that Pei Zhi can persuade those kids not to go downstairs and cause trouble.

She raised her head and looked directly at the middle-aged man standing in front of her. He had a bald spot on his head and thick neck flesh. He was slightly hunched over from years of working at a desk. He looked very stern, and his whole body exuded sternness from the inside out.

"Where did you find such excellent teachers to teach others?" asked Vice Principal Zhang.

"It's an uncle," she answered.

William Chang: "Where is your uncle now?"

"If I don't tell you, will you go up and ask other people?"

William Chang: "What do you think?"

"What if I said it?"

This obviously angered him. Vice Principal Zhang slapped the bookshelf and said, "What are you trying to hide now? Don't think I don't know what's on your mind. From the first day, you were hostile to the entire summer camp. You felt that the teachers were harming you and that the teachers were bad people. They set up so many rules and regulations just to torture you!"

"I don't think so." Lin Zhaoxi said calmly.

"So what do you think? Finding a teacher from another school can help your classmates improve their grades, and no one has to leave. What are you thinking?"

His voice was low, like the rumble of thunder hidden in thick clouds.

Lin Chaoxi's eyes fell on the Lego table in the corner of the hall. The building blocks were piled aside and no one had played with them for a long time.

There are a few chairs next to the table, as well as erasers and pencils that have not been collected. After leaving the reading room in the evening, there must be children reading there again.

"I think everyone should not hate math," she said.

Vice Principal Zhang was speechless for a moment, his face became even gloomier: "Yes, the teacher made you hate math?"

"Because it's too difficult, in the elimination rounds, the course is always moving forward, and some people can't keep up, and then they lose confidence and don't want to learn anymore." Lin Zhaoxi said slowly.

"And then?" asked William Chang.

“Then, I didn’t want to learn Olympiad mathematics anymore,” she replied.

Xie Ran stood behind Zhang Shuping, looked at her thoughtfully, and then shook his head at her.

Chang Shu Ping: "Since you really want to discuss this question, I would like to ask you, who do you know who wants to learn Mathematical Olympiad because they really like it?"

But after asking the question, William Chang did not give her a chance to answer.

Zhang Shuping: "Yes, it could be Pei Zhi, or you, or a few others."

"It's not because I like him. Maybe it's just Pei Zhi." Lin Zhaoxi answered honestly.

"Don't use you and Pei Zhi as special cases to demand everyone! I've been teaching for so many years, I know why so many children work so hard to learn Olympiad mathematics, it's just because their parents think that this thing can add points to the exam, and that learning it can make them smarter and better at math. What else?"

"How many people can endure the boredom and pain of being eliminated?" Chang Shuping asked, "This is just the Anning City, Jin Cup, Primary School Olympics, and Primary and Senior Group competitions..."

William Chang used several pauses to highlight this sense of insignificance.

"There are so many brothers and sisters above you. There are 378 people in the entire Anning Jin Cup Summer Camp. Just imagine how many people there would be in the entire Jiang Province, and how many people would there be in the entire country? I can tell you that among so many people in the country who attend Olympiad classes, only 60 people can actually attend the national training team, and among these 60 people, only 6 people can actually compete!"

Lin Chaoxi looked at him and knew that Vice Principal Zhang was so angry that he said so much.

But she couldn't answer what he said, because she knew very well that what Vice President Zhang said was the truth of the world in a certain sense.

The night wind blew through the hall again, surging vigorously.

She mustered up her courage and said, "But... we have never thought about representing the country in competitions. We just want to... learn more, learn more happily, and stay longer. Is that not possible?"

"If you want to be happy, don't go down the road of competition!" Chang Shuping became more stern. "Real mathematical research is difficult and arduous in the later stages. It takes many people a lifetime to make a small step forward. It's not a silver lining, it's a muddy quagmire. It's hard to take even one step. There are so many people, so many children, are you sure you want to drag them all into this muddy water?"

"I……"

"You're very smart." William Chang asked her, "Why do you think I would set up the things you hate the most? The group elimination rounds, carrying things upstairs, and so many other things that could happen?"

"Why, I don't understand?"

“They’re all excuses.”

Lin Zhaoxi raised his head suddenly.

"Dad, I came back because I was too tired from climbing the stairs and didn't have the energy to take the exam; Mom, because someone in our group did so badly on the exam, I was eliminated; Grandma, the teacher at the summer camp was so fierce that I couldn't stand it... Believe me, every child will say this when they go back."

Zhang Shuping's voice was very soft, like the sound of a child's timid voice, and Lin Chaoxi's heart was gripped.

"Everyone needs an excuse. Children need it, parents need it, they all need an excuse," said William Chang.

Lin Chaoxi couldn't explain how she felt inside. At that moment, it was as if someone had turned on a strong light, shining it into the darkest corner of her heart, revealing everything.

She even felt that William Chang was just exaggerating a part of her, expressing her true thoughts in a straightforward and cruel way.

In that world, she found some excuses to give up mathematics because she knew very well how difficult the road was and how hard it was to cross the ditch.

She looked deeply at the middle-aged man in front of her, looking at his bald forehead and slightly hunched back.

Now the situation is a bit ridiculous.

It’s not like she hadn’t thought about giving up everything to study mathematics after returning, and she also felt that she could do it.

But will she really stop making excuses? It’s too hard, it’s too tiring, her foundation is too poor… or even something very simple, she feels she can’t do it…

As long as people want to give up, they can always find excuses to support the reasons for giving up.

Yes, excuses. People need excuses so much.

Lin Chaoxi choked up, as if the whole world had turned dark, and only the corner of her heart filled with weakness, cowardice, and escape was still bright.

Once again, she is still her.

It won't change.

"So," she asked, "what you're saying is that those who can't keep up and want to give up should just give up?"

"Because they will give up eventually, sooner or later," said William Chang.

Lin Chaoxi didn't say anything else. It seemed that she still couldn't convince herself.

"So, since you have taken the initiative to say that you are the leader, do you have any objection to me expelling you from the summer camp?"

Lin Chaoxi lowered his head, and under his feet was a marble floor that was so white that it reflected light.

Chang Shu Ping asked: "So, where is the teacher you found now?"

Lin Chaoxi thought she had said something, but she could no longer hear her own voice.

After that, Vice Principal Zhang should have told Jie Ran to ask them to leave. They seemed to pat him on the shoulder and asked her to go upstairs and have a rest.

Lin Chaoxi's eyes were filled with tears and he did not dare to raise his head.

The black leather shoes are moving further and further away and are about to disappear at the end of the door.

His trousers and feet were stained with mud, but they stopped the moment he took a step forward.

There was a sound.

"But I sincerely hope that you don't give up learning mathematics. Because in the eyes of those who really want to persevere, there is no such thing as a teacher that I hate as much as I do."

Vice President Zhang said finally.