Cutting-Edge Technology R&D Center

Chapter 18: The College Entrance Exam Ends

The more Zhao Yi watched, the more astonished she became. She was a high school Chinese teacher herself, but as she observed the characters formed by his vigorous and powerful brushstrokes, she paused in surprise. She never imagined that a senior high school student could be in no way inferior to her father, who had been immersed in this art for over a decade—in fact, she felt his handwriting was even better than her father’s. As she gazed at these characters—which could truly be described as works of art—the words she had overheard the boy say earlier suddenly flashed through her mind, and a thought struck her: he hadn’t been bragging after all. As a Chinese teacher herself, she could tell at a glance whether the answers were correct. “Although there are a few spots I can’t be certain about, the rest are actually all correct.” The more Zhao Yi looked, the more astonished she became. She had never seen such speed in answering exam questions before, but after giving it some thought, she realized that aside from the few things even she didn’t know, everything else was correct. Zhao Yi found herself standing there, transfixed. The proctor at the lectern, noticing Zhao Yi standing motionless as she watched a student take the exam, was instantly intrigued and walked over. After taking a glance, the teacher, just like Zhao Yi, found it impossible to tear her eyes away. The way he answered without hesitation, combined with the flowing handwriting on the test paper, made it a pleasure for both proctors to watch. However, the proctor standing behind her managed to hold back, continuing to keep a watchful eye on the other students to prevent cheating. Wang Hao, meanwhile, was answering the questions at a rapid pace, completely absorbed in the task. Oblivious to the two proctors standing beside him, he continued to write with lightning-fast strokes. A moment later, Wang Hao stretched, cast a satisfied glance at his exam paper, and checked the time—only to suddenly freeze in surprise. According to the early submission deadline for the college entrance exam, it wasn’t even time yet. So he began looking around out of boredom… only to be startled by the proctors standing on either side of him like door gods. “Sir, I… I don’t think I cheated, do I?” Wang Hao asked, looking somewhat bewildered. The strange looks on the two proctors’ faces left him completely at a loss. The two proctors looked at Wang Hao, whose face betrayed his confusion. After exchanging a glance, they suddenly broke into wry smiles and silently shook their heads. They were stunned by Wang Hao. Zhao Yi had originally assumed he was just a poor student putting on airs, but after approaching him and watching him for over ten minutes, she was left speechless—this was no poor student at all; he was clearly a top-tier scholar. “Can I turn in my paper now?” Wang Hao hesitated for a moment before asking. “No, it’s not time yet. You should review your work,” Zhao Yi said, glancing at the time on her watch and shaking her head. Wang Hao glanced over the exam paper and then, looking bored, slumped his head onto the desk. The proctor watched him in silence; as proctors, they weren’t in a position to say anything. “Dad, why don’t we go sit at that bubble tea shop over there and wait?” Zhang Xin glanced at the Sun slowly climbing higher in the sky and suggested. “If you’re worried about the heat, just hold an umbrella to block the Sun. Your brother will probably be out in a minute,” Zhang’s father said, shaking his head in refusal. By now, he had come to understand Wang Hao’s temperament. He estimated that Wang Hao would come out as soon as he finished the exam—Wang Hao would certainly not wait until the exam ended. Based on what he’d observed of Wang Hao’s abilities over the past few days, he could finish in about forty minutes. The other parents who had come to accompany their children watched the four of them, who looked completely at ease, and began to whisper among themselves. “That father seems so confident in his son.” “He must be the father of a top student—he has such an intellectual air about him.” The other parents were all extremely nervous, forming a stark contrast to Zhang’s father and his group. Yet the scholarly air about Zhang’s father somehow made them believe he wasn’t lying. Just then, a bell suddenly rang out in the quiet school, and several figures instantly appeared in the hallway—clearly students who had finished their exams. The proctor shook his head as he looked at these students. Their answer sheets were largely blank—clearly, these were students who had given up on themselves, a sight that filled the teachers with a sense of regret. However, Zhao Yi and another proctor were not among those feeling this way. At that moment, the two of them were staring blankly at an exam paper and a pristine sheet of scratch paper. “Ms. Zhao, you teach Chinese—are there any parts where we can deduct points?” The other proctor hesitated for a moment before speaking softly to Zhao Yi. “No, if I were grading the Chinese exam, I’d probably give it a perfect score.” Zhao Yi stared blankly at the test paper. She’d just taken a curious peek at it—it was neat and tidy, with handwriting so beautiful it looked like a work of art. She almost didn’t want to seal it away; instead, she wanted to frame it and display it as a treasured keepsake in her home. “...” The other teacher suddenly found herself at a loss for words... all she could say was that this student was truly astonishing. “Xiao Hao, you’re done.” Mrs. Zhang suddenly called out. Like Mr. Zhang, she wasn’t worried about Wang Hao’s test results either. “How was it? Was it hard?” Mr. Zhang asked with a smile. “It was pretty easy. I finished in no time,” Wang Hao replied with a smile. But those words left the parents standing nearby speechless... “Pretty... easy...” This kid actually said the college entrance exam was “pretty easy”—and he finished so quickly... He’d come out after only thirty minutes and still called it easy. The parents were at a loss—they didn’t know whether he was a top student or the bottom of the class. “All right, let’s head back then.” Gancheng No. 3 High School wasn’t far from Wang Hao’s home—it was only about a twenty-minute walk. The two days of the college entrance exams didn’t cause much of a stir for Wang Hao, but for Zhao Yi, it was a shock—she was deeply impressed by the teenager who had finished the Chinese exam in just thirty minutes. The subsequent math, science, and foreign language exams left Zhao Yi and the other two proctors feeling numb. In nearly every exam session, the two of them would immediately stand behind Wang Hao, and being watched so closely by two teachers made him feel extremely uncomfortable. Little did they know, however, that Wang Hao had left them utterly awestruck—all because of his speed in answering questions, and even more so because of his terrifying accuracy. One of the proctors working alongside Zhao Yi was a math teacher, yet she couldn’t find a single mistake in Wang Hao’s answers. Even on questions that would take him time to solve, Wang Hao would write out the solution steps without even pausing to think. For many students, the college entrance exam is a liberation—and this was true for Wang Hao as well as for Zhao Yi, the proctor. She no longer had to endure the disappointment of a student’s poor performance. The college entrance exam marked the end of a chapter. Mr. Zhang had originally planned to take Wang Hao out to relax after the exam, but Wang Hao refused. With the Longnao project still unfinished, he simply wasn’t in the mood for fun. He wasn’t one for physical activities anyway; he preferred to focus on researching things that interested him. So, after observing Wang Hao’s attitude, Zhang’s parents nodded in agreement. Zhang Xin and Zhang Nan also bid Wang Hao a fond farewell before leaving with his parents to go sightseeing at nearby Jinggang Peak.