Cen Huaian had already turned on the kettle and took a sip of water, saying, “It’s not that difficult; I’m just quick at solving problems.”

Mr. Jiang naturally knew Cen Huaian’s level, so he let him rest on the side while waiting for the other students to finish their exams.

Cen Huai An took out a book from his backpack, one that Jiang Zhida had brought back for him from Yangcheng, which covered the latest international research directions in semiconductors and wireless signals.

Of course, the book only discussed theories, and those theories were relatively vague; how to implement them required research from the people of Huaguo themselves.

As soon as he opened the book, Cen Huaian lost track of time, not noticing when Zhang Lu ran over to him with a beaming smile.

It wasn’t until Zhang Lu stood in front of him, excitedly hugging him, that he realized she was there. “An An, you’re amazing! Several of the concepts you taught me were on the test, and I even solved the last problem!”

She was so happy that she didn’t know how to express her joy and just kept jumping around while holding onto Cen Huai An.

Cen Huai An closed the book, a smile spreading across his face.

“By the way, An An, what did you write for the last problem?”

Cen Huaian shared the function he had derived, and Zhang Lu’s joy was even more evident in her eyes: “Ah! The result is the same as yours. We’re all set!”

Tang Song, standing nearby, also heard Cen Huai An’s answer, and his result matched as well.

He sighed in relief; this was the problem he felt least confident about.

When the results of the city competition were announced, Zhang Lu indeed made it onto the first prize list.

Just with the first prize, she could gain extra points.

However, participating in the National High School Mathematics Olympiad was her goal for the year, and she was determined to compete.

This year’s national math competition was held in Wushi, Hubei Province, a city with quite a few universities.

In November, Wushi was already quite chilly, but it was a few degrees warmer compared to Beijing.

After getting off the plane, Zhang Lu, with her coat unbuttoned, exclaimed in surprise to Cen Huai An, “It’s warmer here than in Beijing!”

Cen Huaian nodded, feeling that he had worn too many layers.

Both of them had trained in martial arts, giving them a higher tolerance for the cold.

The national mathematics competition was hosted by a well-known normal university, famous for its osmanthus flowers in autumn.

However, by November, most of the osmanthus flowers had fallen, but a few clusters still clung to the branches, enduring the cold.

Students who had arrived early for the competition wandered around the campus, and whenever someone discovered a flower that hadn’t fallen, they would excitedly call their classmates over, as if they had found treasure.

Zhang Lu was just like that; she adored the university’s architecture, the variety of trees, flowers, and the culturally rich library, all of which made her reluctant to leave.

Most of the buildings at the normal university had white walls and green-blue glazed tiles, showcasing their unique style.

Cen Huaian loved the library the most; it had an extensive collection of books, and entering it felt like a scholar stepping into a hall of knowledge, eager to devour every interesting book he could find.

Unfortunately, such days only lasted for two days; soon, they would have the opening ceremony for the competition and then the first exam.

Compared to the competition results, Cen Huaian found the library much more appealing.

However, he didn’t plan to give up on entering the winter camp and the national training team this year.

It was his final year of high school, and he wanted to finish his high school career with an IMO gold medal.

The problems in the national competition were tougher than in the city competition, and after the second exam, Zhang Lu’s expression was not as relaxed as before.

The National Mathematics Olympiad consisted of two exams, a first and a second test, and the final score was the sum of both.

“An An, I did so poorly this time; I’ll probably only get a bronze medal. National competitions are really tough; I didn’t even finish all the problems.”

However, Zhang Lu had already obtained the extra points she wanted, and she wasn’t too concerned about her ranking in the national math competition.

On the other hand, Tang Song cared more about his results; he wanted to win a gold medal, join the national training team, and compete for a spot to participate in the IMO.

But those were just his thoughts; he had never voiced them.

Cen Huai’an asked Zhang Lu how many questions she hadn’t completed.

He learned that she had only finished half of the last big question and had guessed at it; she had no idea how to solve it.

“It’s okay,” Cen Huai’an said. “The last question was difficult, and you’re not the only one who couldn’t solve it.”

Zhang Lu nodded, saying, “You’re right. At the very least, I can get extra points for the college entrance exam now, and making it to the national competition is already impressive!”

She turned to ask Cen Huai’an and Tang Song what they wanted to eat.

They wouldn’t get many more meals at the university; after the results came out, they would return to Beijing.

Cen Huai’an quickened his pace to keep up with Zhang Lu and mentioned the food he wanted, while Tang Song, no longer thinking about the exam, hurried to catch up.

The day the competition results were announced was also their last day at the university.

Although Zhang Lu claimed to be relaxed, she still felt anxious. “An’an, how do you think I’ll rank?”

Cen Huai’an was silent for a moment and answered honestly, “I don’t know.”

Zhang Lu let out a laugh. “I’m being silly! What’s the point of asking before the results come out? But you must be in first place, An’an!”

Cen Huai’an replied, “Not necessarily.”

Just as he finished speaking, the host began to announce the names of the bronze medal winners.

Zhang Lu wanted to refute Cen Huai’an’s words but swallowed her response, nervously watching the front of the auditorium for her name to be called.

One by one, names were read, but Zhang Lu’s was not among them.

She showed a surprised expression, “Did I do that well?”

She knew the names of the medalists were announced from the bottom up.

Cen Huai’an said, “You should have more confidence in yourself.”

Zhang Lu replied, “That’s something I can’t be confident about. Math Olympiad isn’t my strong suit. If it were martial arts, I’d be more confident than anyone!”

She raised her eyebrows, not hiding her confidence in martial arts.

Soon, the list of bronze medalists was finished, and Zhang Lu was so excited she grabbed Cen Huai’an. “I might get the silver medal! I’m so happy; this is really a pleasant surprise!”

Cen Huai’an said, “Maybe you could even aim for the gold medal.”

Zhang Lu shook her head, fully aware of her abilities. “Getting the silver medal is already an extraordinary performance for me. The gold medal is impossible.”

Sure enough, in the rankings that were closer to the front, Zhang Lu heard her name.

She beamed and went up to the stage to receive her medal.

When Zhang Lu returned with her silver medal, her smile never faded, as she kept looking at the medal in her palm.

“This is the silver medal from the National High School Mathematics Olympiad! I really got it; I’m so amazing!”

Zhang Lu said happily, proud that she had won the silver medal among so many participants nationwide, which represented her strength.

Cen Huai’an and Tang Song congratulated her, and she smiled back, congratulating them as well. “You two must have gotten gold medals!”

Since the silver medalists had received their awards, only the gold medal winners were left to be announced.

However, only the top sixty gold medalists could join the national training team.

Just as Zhang Lu had guessed, Cen Huai’an achieved full marks and came in first place, sharing the top score with three others.

Tang Song scored two points lower and was ranked in the teens, but both of them could enter the national training team.

Tang Song’s previously tense demeanor gradually relaxed.

Zhang Lu was the happiest, continuously praising the two of them for being excellent.

“An’an, there are two girls who also got full marks; they’re amazing!” Zhang Lu gazed at Cen Huai’an’s gold medal while also eyeing the two girls who scored perfectly.

Cen Huai’an replied with a soft “Mm-hmm,” as he recognized one of the girls; she was part of his team in last year’s IMO competition, where she also scored full marks.

“They’re really impressive!” Zhang Lu couldn’t take her eyes off that girl, feeling as if she radiated a genius aura.

Cen Huai’an, Tang Song, and Zhang Lu received awards, and Teacher Jiang was the happiest.

These were all students he had taught, and they brought glory to the school, which made him proud.

Thus, after returning from Wushi, Teacher Jiang kept smiling, feeling great, and he was very lenient with students who made mistakes in class.

However, as the first semester of the third year was nearing its end, there were still students who didn’t want to study and misbehaved, but Teacher Jiang couldn’t do much about that.

The winter break for third-year students was delayed compared to the first and second years, but it was still within a normal range.

After the final exams, Cen Huai’an and Zhang Lu welcomed the winter holiday.

This year, the first phase of the national training team’s training would start in March, so Cen Huai’an could enjoy a complete winter break and celebrate the New Year with his family.

Last year, during the New Year, Grandfather Jiang fell ill, scaring everyone.

Winter is the season the elderly dread most; it’s also the hardest season to endure.

This year, Chuxia would visit Grandfather Jiang every week to check his pulse and help him recover with Cen Father and Jiang Shengnan.

They had taken good care of him this winter.

However, as the New Year approached, everyone remained cautious.

Chuxia advised Grandfather Jiang not to have extreme mood swings; sudden happiness or anger was not good for his health.

She also spoke with all the Jiang family members, emphasizing that they must not upset Grandfather Jiang, as it was a taboo for him to get angry in his current condition.

Even Second Uncle Jiang’s family took Chuxia’s words to heart and refrained from discussing their family matters in front of Grandfather Jiang.

As the New Year drew closer, Chuxia went to the retirement home to deliver New Year’s goods to Cen Father and Jiang Shengnan.

Jiang Shengnan told her, “This year, the eldest son’s family is coming back for the New Year.”

Chuxia paused for a moment while arranging things and turned to look at Jiang Shengnan. “Mom, when are they coming back?”

She found it hard to like Cen Zhengshi’s family and didn’t want to have too much contact with them.

“They’re coming back the day after tomorrow,” Jiang Shengnan frowned, puzzled. “Now is a critical time for Xiaozhe’s retaking of the exam. I don’t understand why your elder brother and sister-in-law decided to come back this year.”

Last year, Jiang Shengnan was busy taking care of Grandfather Jiang’s health and had called the eldest brother’s family to suggest they come back to see him.

After all, Grandfather Jiang had narrowly escaped death, and Cen Zhengshi had also received affection from Grandfather Jiang, so it was only right for him to visit the elder.

However, they had been refused by Cen Huai’an, who said it was due to Xiaozhe needing to take the college entrance exam and that the school also had additional tutoring during the winter break.