Chapter 14: Applause for Student Xu Ming

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Li Wenhui was completely stunned, sitting frozen in his seat, upon hearing Xu Ming’s prose-like rapid reading. His eyes were vacant, as if he had lost his focus. Question marks floated through his mind, expressing his confusion. “Since when did Xu Ming’s English become so good?” If it were just the speed of reading, he might have accepted it. But the key was that Xu Ming’s translation was roughly the same as his, and in some places, even more accurate with better word choices. Overwhelmed by surprise, a thought suddenly sprang up: “Could it be that I translated it wrong?” Yes. He would rather doubt himself than accept that Xu Ming’s English had improved so much. Earlier, he had been firmly outdone in math; if Xu Ming now also surpassed him in English, what would become of his long-held reputation as one of the top five in the class? Moreover, his impression was that Xu Ming’s English scores never exceeded double digits. Yet just as he was about to convince himself otherwise, the English teacher’s words sealed Xu Ming’s fate. “Let’s give a round of applause for Xu Ming.” After Xu Ming finished translating, Han Xiaolan led the class in applause lasting several seconds. Then, with a face full of satisfaction, she said to Xu Ming, “You translated this reading comprehension very accurately.” “This shows that your efforts these past few morning self-study sessions have paid off. Now, keep up the good work and strive to improve your English grades.” “Please take your seat.” “Thank you, Teacher Han,” Xu Ming replied politely, nodding as he sat down. Meanwhile, Qian Hong beside him was still dazed, deeply immersed in the shock of Xu Ming’s translation. Handing his exercise book to Xu Ming had been a habitual gesture without expecting an answer, but what he heard stunned him: Xu Ming translated both quickly and accurately. All he wanted to say was, “No kidding, you’re really something, man.” At last, when the class bell rang, before Qian Hong could speak, Yang Huijuan, seated in the front row, suddenly walked over, her expression unguardedly mixed with curiosity. She stopped beside Xu Ming and candidly asked, “Xu Ming, your reading comprehension is amazing. Chen Lu even said that many parts of your translation are more accurate than hers. Do you have any special tips for tackling these questions?”

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As her words fell, many classmates cast their gazes toward Xu Ming. Xu Ming lifted his eyes and did not hold back. “Maybe it’s because I’ve been memorizing more words lately.” He recalled the effort he had put into those morning self-study sessions, answering their curiosity honestly. After all, vocabulary is the absolute foundation for English. Although he had a strong sense of language, if he didn’t recognize a word, he couldn’t arrange and combine it mentally. So what he said was indeed true. “Looks like for English, you really have to memorize and practice a lot,” Yang Huijuan nodded in agreement. During the following class and self-study period, Xu Ming continued working through English exercises, lost in the speed that his improved language sense and mastery afforded him. By nearly noon, he had finished the entire workbook and checked the answers one by one, barely finding any mistakes. This undoubtedly boosted his confidence; perhaps he could even aim for a perfect score in the college entrance English exam. However, Xu Ming also realized something: advancing to Level 1 in English required much more experience points. This was the same for math and physics. According to his estimate, only after studying new university-level knowledge could he gain the experience needed to raise the subject’s level further. Take math, for example: in his previous life, he regretted not majoring in it during graduate school, and after choosing entrepreneurship, he had almost completely forgotten it, only recalling a few common formulas. But now, at this critical time before college entrance exams, if he were to look through university math textbooks, the homeroom teacher would probably be the first to object. So the best plan was to first raise the remaining zero-level subjects to Level 1 and unlock new skill entries. After lunch, back in the classroom, Xu Ming gathered his thoughts and planned to review chemistry and biology. He was confident in chemistry—not only because he had a solid foundation but also because it connected with math. After all, chemical equations are essentially mathematical models. He remembered how some students used observation to balance equations, wasting a lot of time and still making mistakes. But switching to the method of undetermined coefficients was both faster and more accurate. For complex organic combustion reactions, setting unknowns as systems of equations was especially efficient to solve. “I hope to finish revision this week,” he planned silently. Just as he prepared to dive in, he caught sight of something unexpected: during the school’s designated lunch break, Qian Hong was not sleeping. Instead, he was seriously doing math problems. For high school seniors still aiming for a university degree, lunch breaks were also study time, unless the homeroom teacher happened to enforce a nap.

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Students like Qian Hong, resigned to attending vocational college, usually prioritized catching up on sleep—and indeed, that was what he had been doing. A few days ago, the school held a hundred-day sprint oath-taking assembly. Though he managed to study during one lunch break, the next day he returned to his old habits. It was hard to imagine he would be so proactive now. Intrigued, Xu Ming turned to ask, “What’s got you motivated this time?” “It’s all your influence,” Qian Hong replied, pausing his work. His eyes showed a trace of grievance. Seeing how Xu Ming had achieved so much in just a few days—rapidly improving in math and English—he couldn’t help but try as well. Though he couldn’t match Xu Ming’s almost superhuman diligence, any improvement would make the effort worthwhile. Xu Ming supported Qian Hong’s approach without hesitation. While making a cheering gesture, he added, “Call me if you get stuck on any problems.” “Okay,” Qian Hong nodded in reply. The first class after lunch was math with their homeroom teacher, Wang Qingtao. When the bell rang to shake off drowsiness, Xu Ming gained new subject experience points. [Through diligent study, your [Chemistry] level has increased. You gained 3 experience points.] — Wang Qingtao wore a black jacket today and entered the classroom holding only a few sheets of A4 paper. Standing at the podium, he habitually scanned the room to make sure no one was still half-asleep. “Class is starting.” “If anyone still feels drowsy, hurry to the water tap and wash your face—I’ll be waiting.” A faint smile played at his lips. Seeing no one move, he was satisfied and began the lesson formally. “The principal just returned from the city today and brought back some challenging math problems from the city’s top high school. We’ll take this chance to go over them.” “Make sure you pay close attention.” After saying this, Wang Qingtao wasted no time. Picking up chalk, he turned to write the problems fully on the blackboard. The students below tilted their heads, eyes fixed intently, faces serious. These math problems, sourced from the city or other channels, were often predictions for the college entrance exam. Whether or not they appeared on the test, mastering them now was surely worthwhile.