This humble Taoist priest wants to take the college entrance exam.

Chapter 11 Luckily I Teach Chinese
In the principal's office, Lin Ming and Liang Huiyang were sitting and drinking tea.

Teacher Liang remained silent, occasionally sighing, her gaze towards the principal filled with a hint of resentment.

Principal Lin naturally understood his thoughts and knew that this matter was indeed somewhat difficult for him, so he specially brewed a pot of good tea.

"Come on, Lao Liang, try this. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been willing to brew this tea for anyone else."

"...What kind of tea deserves such high praise from Principal Lin?" Teacher Liang, who was feeling down, also became curious.

"Hehe, Shi'an specially brought Xuan Yue Xue Ya from the temple."

"Did Shi'an bring this?"

"Come on, give it a try first."

After saying that, Principal Lin poured him a cup of tea.

Although Teacher Liang doesn't know as much about tea as Principal Lin, she can still appreciate the quality of this tea—the tea liquor is emerald green, the buds and leaves stand upright, the aroma is refreshing, and the tea is neither cloudy nor strong; just smelling it makes one feel invigorated.

He took a small sip, his tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxing, and the frustration in his heart seemed to dissipate somewhat.

Seeing that his expression softened, Principal Lin asked with a smile, "How is it? This tea is quite good, isn't it?"

"It's good."

Teacher Liang nodded, and couldn't help but raise his glass to examine it closely.

"I've bought Xuan Yue Xue Ya tea before, but it's not as good as this one... no, it's far inferior. Could it be that I bought a fake before? After drinking this tea, I feel like my whole body is full of vitality, and the aftertaste lingers for so long..."

"Hehe, this is tea grown by Master Chen and Shi'an themselves; you can't get this kind of tea anywhere else!"

"Is it because of different planting methods?"

"People of different races are different."

"what?"

Teacher Liang clearly didn't know Chen Shi'an and his apprentice as well as Principal Lin did, and he also knew that Principal Lin must have some connection with the pair. Seeing that Principal Lin didn't say much, he didn't ask any more questions.

The topic then returned to Chen Shi'an.

"Principal Lin, it's not that I'm unwilling to take on this task, but Shi'an joined Class 5 with no prior knowledge, and I'm afraid he won't be able to keep up. How about we have him go to the first year of high school to brush up on his basics?"

“I know, Lao Liang! It’s precisely because I know Shi An has fallen behind that I specifically assigned this task to you. I wouldn’t trust anyone else to do it.”

Then came a barrage of flattery, describing Teacher Liang as a miracle doctor who could bring the dead back to life and get even the worst students into prestigious universities. The praise made Teacher Liang feel quite flattered.

After drinking tea and eating cakes, Teacher Liang knew the matter was settled, and had no choice but to reluctantly agree:

"Principal Lin, I can only guarantee that I will do my best to tutor Shi'an as much as possible. As for whether he can catch up with the pace, I can't make any promises to you."

"Don't worry, Lao Liang, just do your best. I have confidence in Shi'an."

Principal Lin poured Teacher Liang another cup of tea and then asked, "Is Mengqiu still sitting alone?"

"Yes, she doesn't like sitting with other people, and since there are empty seats in the class, she always sits by herself."

"Then when Shi'an comes to your class, you can arrange for him to be Mengqiu's deskmate. He can also help her with her studies."

"...Would she agree? Principal Lin, you know her personality."

"I'll talk to her about it later."

"Then you go and say it; I can't make the decision."

……

As the two were drinking tea and chatting, there was a gentle knock on the office door.

The visitor was Chen Shi'an, who was holding a test paper.

"Shi'an? You've finished the diagnostic test?" Principal Lin asked.

"I finished the test, but I didn't do well. There were some questions I just couldn't answer, so I didn't waste any more time."

Chen Shi'an didn't hide anything and frankly admitted that he couldn't understand many of the questions.

His expression didn't reveal any sign of frustration; he remained calm and composed.

Having just gained a new understanding of the state of "a clear mind that knows one's own place," Chen Shi'an began to try to replace his vague confidence with an absolutely powerful will to act—the reason for doing something was no longer "confident that it can be done," but "it must be done." Many people spend half their lives trying to understand obscure truths, but he could understand them with just a little guidance and experience. It must be said that Chen Shi'an was indeed a genius in the path of cultivation.

Of course, simply understanding the principles is useless; ultimately, one must be able to put them into practice.

This process of understanding principles and then verifying them through action is what is known as spiritual practice.

"I've done most of the Chinese test papers, but I'm having a really hard time with math, English, physics, chemistry, and biology. I'll have to trouble you, Ms. Liang, to take a look at them."

"Okay, let me take a look."

Teacher Liang took out his glasses from his shirt pocket, put them on, and took the test paper.

Putting aside the grades, he actually admired the boy very much. Even though he did very poorly on the test, he was watching the test with exceptional seriousness.

As a Chinese language teacher, the first thing Teacher Liang looked at was Chen Shi'an's Chinese language test paper.

The neatness of the paper was pleasing to the eye, and the boy's handwriting was particularly good. The font was neat small regular script, with a touch of the charm of a master. The strokes were steady and powerful, and there was no trace of correction for any mistakes. It was obviously the result of many years of calligraphy practice.

Calligraphy is a scholar's second face. It is said that one's handwriting reflects one's character. Well-written handwriting can always make people feel more favorably toward one another.

"Shi'an's handwriting is very good."

Teacher Liang praised her generously, then frowned slightly, "But... why are you writing in traditional characters?"

"I'm used to writing traditional Chinese characters on a daily basis, and I often read famous ancient books, so I wrote them subconsciously."

"Hmm...can you write simplified Chinese characters?"

"Will do."

"From now on, simplified Chinese characters will be used for answering questions on exam papers to unify the standards."

"it is good."

Chen Shi'an nodded and noted it down.

After a cursory glance at the paper, Teacher Liang began to look at the specific answers. This was the same monthly exam paper used just last week, one he was very familiar with, but when he saw Chen Shi'an's answers, his brow furrowed again:

"You got all the dictation questions right, but the modern text reading comprehension... well, it's not that you got them wrong, it just didn't meet the scoring criteria. And... why did you answer in classical Chinese?"

Teacher Liang paused for a moment, then said, "The same goes for the composition. It is indeed well written, but writing in classical Chinese is too risky, and we generally do not encourage it."

“Shi’an, you haven’t received standardized education, so you might think I’m wrong. But that’s how school exams are—you can have your own personality and understanding, but ultimately you have to fall within the framework we’ve drawn. This standardization may miss out on the gems, but it’s the fairest and most universal way to select the vast majority of people.”

Teacher Liang's comments were very detailed, extending from the answer sheet to many other points. After all, Chen Shi'an was different from the other students; he had never been to school and had no concept of the rules that were already ingrained in many students. He needed to be made aware of this first.

Chen Shi'an accepted it quickly. He understood the principle that nothing can be accomplished without rules; just as there are rules on a mountain, there are rules in a school.

"Teacher Liang is right, I've got it."

"Yes, it's clear that you have a good command of Chinese language and your insights on many issues are profound and unique. With more practice, you'll be able to adapt quickly."

After reviewing the Chinese language paper, Teacher Liang breathed a slight sigh of relief. It was truly remarkable that a young Taoist priest who had never attended school could possess such literary talent.

For jade to be carved, it must first be a piece of jade!

He didn't grade this test paper, nor was it appropriate to grade it, but he was confident that with standardized training, Chen Shi'an's Chinese score could quickly rise to over 120.

Then, Ms. Liang picked up the papers for other subjects.

"Um……"

"..."

The atmosphere remained silent for a very long time.

When we were reviewing the Chinese text, Teacher Liang had a lot of comments, but when it came to the other subjects, she hesitated for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a single sentence:
"For other subjects... my foundation is almost zero."

Teacher Liang wanted to give him some encouragement, but seeing Chen Shi'an's calm demeanor, she felt he didn't need encouragement either. Nevertheless, she said earnestly, "Shi'an, you need to work hard from now on...!"

“It’s time to work harder.” Chen Shi’an nodded seriously.

Seeing the humble and innocent-looking boy, Teacher Liang secretly rejoiced that she was a Chinese language teacher, at least she still had half the sky to hold up.

If other subject teachers saw this paper, they'd probably be devastated...

(End of this chapter)