There were still quite a few parents standing at the entrance of the association. Upon hearing this, they all looked over in surprise.
Although no one said anything, Jiang Si still noticed their pointing and whispering.
Jiang Si patted Zhao Zhao's head and comforted her for a moment before turning her gaze to the staff.
The voice was calm and measured: "Excuse me, is there a rule in this competition that four-year-old children cannot participate in the youth group?"
The staff member paused for a moment, then said, "No, we don't have that."
The Abacus Association only stipulates that children over six years old cannot participate in the preschool group.
In previous years, five-year-old children also applied for the youth group, but their results were not ideal, and they were eliminated in the second round.
“Since she meets the requirements, it’s her freedom to choose which program to sign up for.” Jiang Si said this to the children.
Although they are called children, they are at least twelve or thirteen years old.
It's a pity that he's not even as sensible as a three-year-old.
"Zhao Zhao, remember this saying: 'To forge iron, one must be strong oneself.' Useless ridicule and doubt are worthless."
Zhao Zhao nodded. "Yes, Zhao Zhao has remembered."
Just then, the preparatory bell rang over the loudspeaker.
"Go on, your mother and great-grandfathers are waiting for you outside."
"Okay!" Zhao Zhao waved her little hand after saying that, and followed the group into the abacus association.
Due to the large number of participants in the youth group, the competition venue was arranged directly at the association's activity center.
There weren't enough desks and chairs inside, so some had to be temporarily moved in from the office.
Even so, there still weren't enough seats.
Zhao Zhao took small steps and lagged behind. By the time she went in, there were no empty seats left.
Just as she was looking around for an empty seat, a group of people walked in carrying exam papers.
The person in the lead was President Lan of the Abacus Association, who was also one of the proctors for the youth group exam.
He had just heard from his subordinates that the youngest applicant in the history of the youth group had joined this year.
With a mixture of curiosity and admiration, President Lan pointed to the proctoring station where she was sitting.
"Little friend, there are no seats over there, so you can sit here."
Zhao Zhao wasn't intimidated at all. After bowing and saying thank you to the old man, she obediently sat down.
Then, without any haste, he took out a pair of arm sleeves from his pocket.
The test paper was printed with ink, and it was very difficult to wash off clothes. After putting on the sleeves, she took out her little abacus.
He looked up and found that everyone in the audience was looking at him.
Zhao Zhao blinked, puzzled. Why was she looking at her like that? Her face didn't have the answer written on it!
Fortunately, the bell rang to officially start the match shortly afterward.
The entire activity center was instantly filled with the clattering sound of abacuses.
While everyone else was engrossed in their calculations, Zhao Zhao remained completely still.
No, her eyes were fixed on the exam questions on the test paper.
His right hand was rapidly fiddling with something.
This strange behavior once again aroused Chairman Lan's curiosity.
He set all the exam questions this time, and they were much more difficult than last year's.
The majority of the questions were at the Level 5 level, and several others were beyond the syllabus, testing Level 4 abacus knowledge.
This is undoubtedly asking too much of a four-year-old child.
Just when President Lan thought that she might not be able to solve a single problem.
Zhao Zhao had already quickly started working on the abacus beside her.
Surprisingly, her hand speed was extremely fast, and many times she didn't even look at the abacus.
In the short time it took for President Lan to lose focus, Zhao Zhao had already started filling in the answers.
Her answers were clear and neat, unlike what one would expect from a four-year-old.
The original allotted time for answering the questions was ten minutes, but Zhao Zhao finished in less than six minutes.
After answering the questions, she didn't look around like the other children, but picked up the test paper again and started checking her calculations from the beginning.
Ten minutes passed quickly, and the first elimination round officially ended.
There is a one-hour break in between.
When Zhao Zhao came out, her family didn't ask her how she did on the exam or how she answered the questions.
The fact that she can stand here today is enough to make them proud.
Zhao Zhao originally wanted to tell everyone that she should be able to advance.
But remembering her mother's words, "Never open the champagne halfway through," she ultimately held back.
Anyway, we'll find out soon enough whether he advanced or not.
She didn't say it, but Jiang Si wasn't worried at all.
Zhao Zhao does indeed have a certain talent for abacus calculation.
This can be seen from Zhuo Mingda's expression of full praise.
So she should have no problem advancing.
An hour passed quickly, and soon the staff came over to announce the list of those who advanced.
It was also clearly stated that the list of those who advanced was based on their total scores.
After all, it's a youth group, so the participants all have a certain level of skill.
Therefore, in the first round of elimination, there were quite a few contestants with perfect scores.
After more than ten names were called out, everyone finally heard the name "Jiang Jingyan".
Now the old man and his family could no longer remain calm, and they started a new round of encouragement while holding up the banner.
Finally, after Jiang Si's persuasion, the two managed to suppress their excitement.
With the announcement of the qualifying list, most of the people at the competition venue left immediately.
It's not that they aren't good enough, but the competition this year is just too fierce. In previous years, 80 points was enough to advance, but this year not only has the difficulty increased, but the cutoff score has also risen by 10 points.
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