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Chapter 17: Chapter 17: The ”Line” of How Everything Runs

The principal’s office was thick with smoke.

Principal Wang looked completely baffled. He quickly raised a hand to cut Zheng Hua off.

”Stop, stop, stop! Old Zheng, take a sip of water. What’s all this about 360 points and a ’true dragon’?”

Zheng Hua had calmed down slightly by now and spoke slowly.

”Principal Wang, do you remember when Teacher Jiang mentioned a student was working on an Ossai test paper?”

The reminder jogged Principal Wang’s memory, and he nodded.

Only then did Zheng Hua continue.

”It was that student, Li Dong. He used the Microelement Method...”

”Never mind, you wouldn’t understand it even if I explained it.”

Zheng Hua paid no mind to the fact that Principal Wang’s face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot, and he continued on his own.

”All you need to know is that if this student maintains his current form, he’ll most likely get a perfect score in physics on next year’s college entrance exam!”

Principal Wang had been about to scold Zheng Hua for his poor communication, but when he heard the words ”perfect score,” he swallowed the rebuke that was on the tip of his tongue.

”A perfect score in physics? Old Zheng, you’re not exaggerating, are you?”

What kind of place was Jiangcheng Seventh Middle School? It was a second-rate... no, to be precise, a third-rate public high school.

Here, just having one student get into a Tier 1 university was enough for the school to post their name in large font on the announcement board by the gate, let alone someone getting a perfect score in physics on the college entrance exam.

”I’m not talking nonsense,” Zheng Hua said with a very serious expression.

”Principal Wang, the test he took was a preliminary paper for the Ossai. It was out of 400 points, and he scored 360.”

”360 points... that’s still not a perfect score, is it?” Principal Wang asked, a little confused.

Zheng Hua cursed inwardly, ’You don’t know shit,’ but on the surface, he remained patient and explained to Principal Wang.

”This year in the Ossai, Qin Yan from Sixth Middle School scored 340.”

As soon as Qin Yan was mentioned, Principal Wang understood immediately, because that student had already received a guaranteed admission to Wudaokou Vocational Technical College.

Zheng Hua ignored the principal’s surprise and continued.

”And Li Dong got that score of 360 in just an hour and a half.”

”For the remaining 40 points, which included major questions on optics and experimental design in thermodynamics, he didn’t write a single word.”

”Why didn’t he?” Principal Wang pressed.

The question reminded Zheng Hua of Li Dong’s exact words at the time.

”Teacher, I haven’t finished the book for this section yet. I haven’t learned this material, so I’m completely in the dark. I didn’t want to waste time scribbling nonsense.”

’Haven’t learned this material yet...’

Principal Wang mulled over those words.

”Old Zheng, you mean...”

Zheng Hua nodded with a wry smile.

”Every question he attempted, every concept he’s studied—all correct! A 100% accuracy rate!”

”And I also asked Teacher Jiang afterward. This kid only scored in the 80s on his previous monthly physics exam. It’s obvious he only recently started studying on his own.”

Principal Wang fell silent.

He might not be an academic, but anyone who could become the principal of a school was naturally a smart man.

He stubbed out his cigarette and asked.

”Old Zheng, we can’t just look at his physics. How are his grades in other subjects? And what’s his family situation like? This affects how we... how we keep him.”

Having worked in education for so many years, he had naturally seen cases of suddenly-emerged geniuses being poached by better schools.

”Well...” Zheng Hua faltered for a moment.

”I’m not sure about that. We’d have to ask his homeroom teacher. After all, I don’t teach his class.”

Principal Wang nodded and picked up the phone.

...

Less than five minutes later, Old Yang arrived at the principal’s office.

Old Yang had been following the matter for the past two days, so he was somewhat prepared.

But when he actually heard the number ”360” from Zheng Hua’s mouth, Old Yang couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.

’360... and that’s without even finishing the material...’

A single word surfaced in Old Yang’s mind: prodigy.

’This isn’t just a sudden awakening, it’s like he’s a completely different person!’

”Teacher Yang, have a seat.” Principal Wang’s attitude was unusually warm, and he even poured a glass of water for Old Yang himself.

”Let’s make this quick. This boy, Li Dong, what are his family’s circumstances?”

”And his grades in other subjects?”

Old Yang was a responsible homeroom teacher and was naturally clear on his students’ situations.

”Principal Wang, Li Dong comes from a single-parent family. His father passed away early, and his mother raised him all by herself.”

”His family’s financial situation... to be honest, it’s quite difficult. He’s a regular on our school’s list for financial aid for needy students.”

Principal Wang nodded, indicating he understood.

”As for his grades...” Old Yang paused, choosing his words carefully.

”His other subjects are slightly above the school average. He gets just above a passing grade in Chinese and English. Previously, his math was dragging his overall score down, only getting around eighty or ninety points.”

Hearing ”eighty or ninety points,” Principal Wang’s brow furrowed slightly.

’Severe specialization?’ he thought. ’In that case, his college entrance exam results won’t be ideal.’

”But!” Old Yang’s tone shifted.

”That was before! I tested him privately over the past two days, and I discovered he’s also made a sudden, massive improvement in math.

It feels... like he’s had a sudden awakening.”

”Right now, I feel that as long as he stays on track, aiming for 130 in math on the college entrance exam is definitely possible.”

Old Yang was being conservative with his estimate.

In his heart, he believed that based on the logical thinking Li Dong had shown when solving that isomorphism problem the other day, a score of 140 or even a perfect score on the college entrance exam wasn’t out of the question.

But as a teacher, he couldn’t speak in absolutes.

Even so, the mention of ”130 points” was enough to stun both Principal Wang and Zheng Hua.

”130?” Zheng Hua said in a low voice.

”Old Yang, you’re not joking, are you? The highest math score from Seventh Middle School on last year’s entrance exam was only 126!”

Principal Wang, on the other hand, was rapidly calculating in his head.

’A perfect score in physics, 130 in math... the foundation is there. As long as his Chinese and English don’t drag him down, with a little tutoring, his total score could very well break the 600-point mark!’

points!

That was a score Seventh Middle School hadn’t seen in the last three... no, the last five years!

He made a snap decision.

”For the upcoming Huaxuan Cup, if he can get a good result—”

”Our school will give him a cash prize! Two thousand... no, five thousand yuan!”

”If he can win a first-prize award, we’ll waive his entire senior year’s tuition and fees, and the school will add an extra ten-thousand-yuan scholarship!”

Listening to the principal’s promises, Old Yang understood that Principal Wang was trying to keep the student.

He knew the ecosystem of the education world all too well.

If Li Dong’s physics talent was truly that monstrous, and you added the inspired genius he’d recently shown in math—that ”sudden awakening”—

...Jiangcheng Seventh Middle School probably wouldn’t be able to hold on to him.

The admissions offices of top schools like First High School and Sixth Middle School would probably come trying to poach him.

But that was the school’s problem, not his.

He just needed to do what a teacher was supposed to do: impart knowledge, teach skills, and resolve doubts.

’I need to find some time to have that kid try some Math Olympiad problems, too.’

...

Meanwhile, in the classroom of Senior Class 2.

Li Dong had no idea he had become a hot commodity in the principal’s eyes.

His entire attention was currently focused on the ”Cyan Dragon Study Group.”

[Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier]: Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!

Your explanation of the ”Perturbation Stripping Model” was a true revelation! I just used your formula to randomly verify several High Tier residuals in Uranus’s orbital perturbation, and it perfectly explained the anomalies in my previous observation data!

[Levay] If I’d had this kind of algorithm twenty years ago, I wouldn’t have needed to hypothesize so many complex variables all these years to directly pinpoint the location of that unknown planet!

Seeing Levay’s reply, the knot of anxiety in Li Dong’s chest finally loosened.

’Good, I bluffed my way through it.’

’These scientists may have high IQs, but they have a natural reverence for ’theoretical beauty’.’

’As long as the Logic is self-consistent and you throw in a few ’impressive but incomprehensible’ technical terms, they’ll fill in the blanks and convince themselves it’s plausible.’

Just as Li Dong was marveling at this.

[Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier has sent a private red packet]

”Heh!”

Li Dong couldn’t help but let out a laugh during the quiet study hall.

Misha, sitting in the row ahead, shot him a strange look over her shoulder, wondering, ’Has this guy gone crazy from doing too many problems?’

Li Dong quickly covered his mouth.

’Another red packet! These big shots are seriously classy!’

He eagerly extended a finger and tapped lightly.

[You have received the gratitude of Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier]

[Item Obtained: Orbital Calculation (Basic Edition)]

[Type: Permanent Passive Skills]

[Description: This is a gift from the ”Discoverer at the Tip of a Pen.” Levay has shared with you his thought Logic for analyzing celestial orbits. He once used the tip of his pen to find Neptune in the vast cosmos, and now, you too shall possess this insight.]

[Effect: From now on, when you face problems involving motion trajectories, dynamic errors, curve prediction, etc., you will be able to see the ”lines” of how all things move.]

Li Dong stared at the description on the screen.

’Orbital Calculation... see the lines of how all things move?’

Li Dong subconsciously turned his head to look out the window.

On the athletic field outside, a few freshmen were playing basketball.

A boy stood beyond the three-point line, leaped high, and threw the basketball into the air.

The moment the basketball left his fingertips...

[Initial velocity v0...]

[Launch angle θ...]

[Air resistance coefficient k...]

[Magnus effect correction from spin...]

’It’s going in!’

And sure enough...

A second later, the basketball swished through the net. Nothing but net!