Under the street lights, the night breeze was cool, and the silver number keys were worn out.
Lin Chaoxi, wearing loose sportswear, stood in front of a public phone, inserted the phone card into the socket, hesitated on the keyboard for a while, and then dialed the number.
"Hello?"
Unlike last time, after a long wait, the call was picked up almost instantly after I dialed the number, and a deep but clear male voice came out.
"Master..." she sniffed and called softly.
"What's going on?" Lao Lin asked in surprise.
"Are you concerned about me?"
"no."
"You say one thing and mean another." Lin Zhaoxi smiled, "Are you worried because I didn't call you yesterday?"
"Why are you standing outside making a phone call?" asked Lao Lin.
She looked around subconsciously. The grass and bushes were trembling in the wind, and there was no one around.
She then realized that Lao Lin must have sensed the sound of the empty wind around him on the phone, just as she sensed the sound of Lao Lin putting down the pen in his hand immediately after answering the phone.
"You asked me last time why I needed math..." Lin Chaoxi used this sentence as a formal opening.
In fact, she had thought about it for a long time and had a clear conclusion in her mind.
Because in my last life, you gave up mathematics for me, and you always tried to guide me to learn mathematics. I didn't seize the opportunity, and now I come back, I want to make up for this regret.
She thought silently.
"Why?" asked Lao Lin.
"No reason. I thought it was interesting before, but now it's boring." She said this deliberately.
"Congratulations." Lao Lin paused, "You have found your way back."
When it comes to choking people, Old Lin is an expert. But Lin Chaoxi didn't care much and just spoke to himself.
"You know what, Master? We have to spend ten days to learn all the knowledge of elementary school Olympiad mathematics, and we also have to learn some of the knowledge of junior high school. There are tests every day, and we have to calculate the average score of the groups. After ten days, 50% of the groups below the average score will be eliminated. It's very tiring."
"So Spartan?" Lao Lin was also a little surprised.
"Yes. My classmates, Lu Zhihao and Huajuan, whom you met that day, are no longer able to hold on. What should I do?"
On the other end of the phone, Old Lin fell silent, and Lin Chaoxi didn't know what he was thinking.
"Then give up." said Lao Lin.
Lin Zhaoxi's hand holding the phone trembled slightly: "Give up...give up?"
"Yes, since you don't like it and feel tired, why don't you give up?"
"But..." She wanted to say something. If it was the old Lin in that world, he would make chicken soup for her and guide her step by step. But this one said give up. She didn't know which one was the real old Lin.
"But what?"
"But shouldn't you say, just hold on a little longer, there will be light ahead; or that math is actually very interesting and wonderful, and it's worth the effort to keep learning it?" Just like any normal parent would say to encourage their child.
She was a little excited.
"Does what others say work?" Old Lin sneered. "If other people's nonsense is useful, then why don't you give up if I ask you to? Similarly, if I ask you to persist, will you persist?"
The logic is perfect.
"And many times, meaningless persistence has no value at all." Lao Lin said on the other end of the phone.
Lin Chaoxi's heart trembled greatly. She seemed to have returned to a moment of extreme confusion and clarity, a moment when she saw the unfathomable gap between genius and mortal.
She held the phone in her hand, feeling a heaviness she had never felt before: "Master, do you also think that mathematics is a field open only to geniuses?"
She heard herself saying these words in the clear but slightly low voice of a little girl. As the night breeze blew past, she felt very strangely detached.
At that time, she thought that Lao Lin would make another mockery, but she heard him say on the other end:
"Of course not."
His father's voice was still as low as before, but it no longer had the careless feeling it once had. Lao Lin answered his question very seriously.
Lin Zhaoxi came to his senses, his heart warmed slightly, and he finally felt happy: "Then why did you say that, Master? Meaningless persistence is worthless!"
"I'll say it again. Does it matter what I say? You're so easily influenced. Is that the arithmetic mean?"
Lin Chaoxi was stunned for a moment before he realized that this was a cold joke. Among many concentrated quantities, the arithmetic mean is the most sensitive and most easily affected by extreme values.
"And when I say persistence, I obviously mean learning math in a way that you cannot accept."
"Master, you also think this method is wrong, right?"
"Define 'right' and 'wrong'."
"If it doesn't fit, it's wrong."
"What if his original intention was not to suit most of you?"
"After all, do you also think, Master, that Mathematical Olympiad is only suitable for some smart kids to learn?" Lin Chaoxi asked Old Lin, "You only taught Pei Zhi that day, but not me. You must think he is smarter?"
"Why are you so petty, kid?" Lao Lin asked back.
"Answer me directly, don't avoid it. I finally asked you this."
"Yes, he is smarter than you, but he is not as lucky as you."
Lin Chaoxi was speechless. If you knew that I was an orphan now, would you still think I was lucky?
"Why do you feel that way?"
"Having passion is the luckiest thing."
She thought that what Lao Lin was talking about was probably his love for mathematics.
But obviously, that’s not the case.
After a moment of silence, she asked, "Well, can you help us while we still have the passion?"
"Define 'help'."
"Just come to the Oasis Base and teach us secretly."
Lao Lin was also silent for a while on the other end.
"Student Lin Chaoxi... I, your teacher, am a diligent park employee."
"I know."
“So I don’t have to go to work?”
——
In the end, she didn't get a positive response from Lao Lin. After yelling, Lao Lin hung up the phone, so she didn't have time to say that she saw that the Oasis Base Canteen was recruiting part-time workers with high salaries.
What a pity.
The night breeze was gentle, bringing with it the moist scent of lake water and earth.
Lin Chaoxi pulled out his phone card, smiled, and walked back to the brightly lit dormitory building.
——
Day 3. The competition class for the senior elementary school students.
Lin Chaoxi and Pei Zhi got up early, finished their work in the cafeteria, and rushed to the classroom. The first class was about to begin.
In the small classroom, the children were not buried in their books like they did yesterday. Instead, they were whispering to each other, like small pieces of gently boiling springs.
After sitting down, she found that the seat next to her was empty: "Where is Lu Zhihao...?"
When Hua Juan saw them coming, he grabbed Pei Zhi's arm. Although he seemed relieved, his expression became even more distressed: "I... I don't know much either. When Lao Lu and I came here this morning, he said that he was caught by his auntie for reading with a flashlight last night."
"Then?" Lin Chaoxi's heart skipped a beat and he raised his voice slightly.
"Then Vice Principal Zhang came and called him away."
Hua Juan licked his lips anxiously, then he pushed Pei Zhi, "Brother Pei, have you been to the Great Devil's Office? Where is it? Should we... go and take a look?"
Pei Zhi took off his duckbill cap and frowned in deep thought.
Lin Zhaoxi pursed her lips, fearing many things might happen. Pei Zhi nodded quickly, but froze the moment he looked out the window.
In the corridor outside the window, two figures, one big and one small, were walking slowly forward.
The slightly plump man was walking in front, and behind him, the little boy lowered his head, his forehead blocking his face, as if he was born in a shadow.
——
Zhang Shuping brought Lu Zhihao into the classroom and looked at her. Lin Zhaoxi retracted her hand and slowly sat up straight.
"Go back and sit down." William Chang lowered his head and said to Luk Chi-hao.
Lu Zhi walked towards them slowly.
Lin Chaoxi wanted to say something, but Lu Zhihao just put down the paper in his hand, then lay down on the table with his head buried in his arms. The little boy who was always full of energy now looked like a completely dry balloon.
Lin Chaoxi became even more worried.
"Classmates, you should all know what happened last night."
While William Chang was speaking at the podium, she took the opportunity to turn her head and carefully poked Luk Chi-ho. The little boy did not respond, his shoulders did not shake, and he was not crying.
"I have repeatedly reiterated in the opening speech that I hope you will read the manual, pay special attention to what you can and cannot do, and ask you to strictly abide by it. But why are there so many rules? Have you ever thought about it?"
His eyes moved to a corner of the table. The paper that Lu Zhihao had just taken down should be yesterday's test paper. Traces of red pen markings could be faintly seen.
Chang Shu Ping continued, "Studying consumes energy and physical strength. The reason why we set out things that are not allowed is to hope that you can stay energetic to cope with the daytime study. Can you really learn well if you work late at night and feel exhausted during the day?"
The students were all in deep thought, some were secretly yawning, and some were looking at Lu Zhihao. Looking at the test paper on the table, Lin Chaoxi vaguely knew why Lu Zhihao was so depressed.
Just like what Lao Lin said, some persistence is meaningless. I'm afraid that William Chang also said something similar to Luk Chi-ho.
To confirm her guess, William Chang said at the podium: "I hope you put your efforts in the right place. If you put your efforts in the wrong place, it will be in vain!"
"Today is the first time, so I only gave him a warning. If a similar situation happens again, I will punish him severely according to the regulations in the camp handbook."
The serious vice-principal finally said.
At the same time, Lin Chaoxi reached out and took Lu Zhihao's test paper.
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