They're already in university, and the primary school system is only just starting out?

July 13th, Sunday, 9:7 AM.

Chen Lin slept until he naturally woke up, feeling completely refreshed.

He drew back the curtains, rubbed his eyes, and walked out of the bedroom in a daze.

The living room was empty, and the breakfast that was usually covered with a dust cover was nowhere to be seen on the dining table.

He took out his phone and saw that, sure enough, his mother, Lin Xiaoqi, had sent him a WeChat message.

Mom: Your dad and I left early this morning and won't be back to cook lunch. Son, you'll have to fend for yourself.

The message was sent at 7:03 AM.

Chen Lin looked at the WeChat message and was both amused and exasperated.

The widely circulated joke on the internet instantly popped into his mind—the three-tiered theory of the status of college students returning home for summer vacation.

Week 1: National Treasure Treatment. Your parents call you their "precious darling," showering you with care and attention, serving you the finest delicacies, and making sure you don't have to do anything, as they're afraid you'll be mistreated at school.

Week 2: My status has clearly declined. I get nagged for sleeping in late, lectured for playing on my phone, and occasionally ordered around to do chores. My title has been downgraded from "baby" to just my name.

Week 3 and beyond: You'll be universally disliked. No matter what you do, you'll be criticized; even breathing will be wrong. Your parents' eyes will be filled with "Why isn't school starting yet?"

Last summer, Chen Lin had already experienced the entire process.

I thought that this year I would get high grades and make money, and my status in the family would improve, but I didn't expect that I still couldn't escape this fateful cycle.

Fortunately, he secretly rejoiced that this year he wouldn't have to wait until he was hated by everyone before slinking back to school.

Two days ago, Sun Yu sent me a message saying that he had found a nice neighborhood near Yannan University. The environment was good and the rent was reasonable. He was just waiting to go over and confirm that everything was okay before he could pay the rent.

Sun Yu said he had already found a cleaning lady, and once the house was booked, he would arrange for someone to come in and clean. He could basically pay the rent in the morning and Chen Lin could move in with his bags in the afternoon.

Chen Lin had already planned that once things were settled in the capital, he would head straight to Tianjin to enjoy the rest of his summer vacation alone.

He figured that, knowing his mother's personality, after he was away from home for a month or two, she would definitely start nagging him on WeChat again: "Are you coming home for National Day?", "The New Year's Day holiday is short, are you coming back?", "When are you going to buy your winter break tickets? Mom will cook you something delicious!"

Thinking of this, Chen Lin couldn't help but chuckle.

As for not having breakfast right now, he wasn't too bothered. Back at school, he ate breakfast whenever he felt like it, and if he woke up late, he'd just have brunch in one meal.

He returned to his room and began packing his luggage at a leisurely pace. A 24-inch suitcase, a few changes of summer clothes, a laptop, a charger, and then carefully tucked the gold bar into a compartment of his backpack.

As I was tidying up, my phone screen lit up again.

It was a WeChat message from Shen Yan.

Shen Yan: [Chen Lin, approximately what time will you arrive at the hotel today?]

Chen Lin glanced at the ticket information and replied.

Chen Lin: [My ticket is for 18:35 arrival in Beijing, so I estimate I won't get to the hotel until at least 7:30.]

Shen Yan: [Okay] [Hanhan and I arrived around 2 or 3 pm. We plan to wander around the area near Tsinghua University first. Do you want to wait for us to have dinner together tonight?]

After thinking about it, Chen Lin decided not to keep others waiting.

Chen Lin: [No need, you guys eat first. I still need to settle in after I arrive, I don't know how late that will take.]

Not long after the message was sent, Shen Yan shared her location.

Shen Yan: [[Location: Wudaokou International Food Court]]

Shen Yan: [Hanhan did some research beforehand. It's not far from our hotel and Tsinghua University. Many Tsinghua students eat here regularly, so there are many options. If you want to eat there, you can check it out.]

Chen Lin felt a warmth in his heart as he read the message.

Chen Lin: [OK]

He put his phone back in his pocket, zipped up his suitcase, glanced around his room one last time, and then decisively left.

……

7:30 PM, Beijing.

Chen Lin, carrying a backpack and dragging a suitcase, walked into the hotel arranged by the school.

The lobby was brightly lit and the air conditioning was on full blast. He checked in smoothly and went to his single room with his room key.

The room wasn't big, but it was clean and tidy. He quickly settled his luggage, sent a message saying "I've arrived" in the WeChat group, and then went out again.

Following the directions given by Shen Yan, he walked for about ten minutes and found the "Wudaokou International Food Court".

This place was less like a restaurant and more like a large food court, bustling with activity and noise. Chen Lin looked around and finally chose a self-service hot pot restaurant that looked pretty good.

After a satisfying meal, he strolled back to the hotel, arriving at 9:30 PM. Having been on the go all day, he was quite tired, so he set his alarm for 6:15 AM the next morning and went to bed early.

……

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

Chen Lin was woken up on time by his alarm clock. After washing up, he went downstairs to the hotel's buffet restaurant and had a leisurely breakfast.

When he strolled into the hotel lobby with his coffee cup, Shen Yan, Li Zihan, and two other girls were already gathered around a male teacher who looked to be in his early forties, chatting enthusiastically about something.

Chen Lin glanced at his phone; it was 6:53.

Thankfully, I wasn't late.

As he approached, Shen Yan, who had been keeping an eye on the doorway, spotted him. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately waved to him.

As she moved, the eyes of the others all turned to her.

Chen Lin stepped forward and politely greeted the male teacher, saying, "Hello, teacher."

The male teacher seemed very approachable. He smiled and nodded, extending his hand: "Hello, I'm Qu Chengfeng, the instructor leading this team."

Chen Lin also extended his hand and shook hands with him.

Then, he nodded to Shen Yan and the other three as a greeting.

Once all six people arrived, they set off on time.

The walk from the hotel to the venue at Tsinghua University wasn't far, about twenty minutes. In the early morning in Beijing, the air wasn't yet hot, and sunlight filtered through the leaves of the trees lining the road, casting dappled shadows on the sidewalk.

Four girls walked in front, with Qu Chengfeng holding a sports water bottle, while Chen Lin followed behind at a leisurely pace, keeping a short distance between them.

"Chen Lin," Qu Chengfeng suddenly said with a smile, his voice tinged with curiosity, "Speaking of which, I was quite surprised when Shen Yan showed me their completed papers back in May."

He turned his head to look at Chen Lin, a hint of reminiscence in his eyes: "When I saw that model optimization algorithm, I thought she had secretly asked one of the professors in our department for help. I even reminded her to make sure to cite it in the paper, otherwise it would be against the rules."

Upon hearing this, Chen Lin raised an eyebrow slightly.

Qu Chengfeng continued, "In the end, Shen Yan insisted that she had asked a classmate for help. Considering her usual focus and dedication to mathematics, I decided to believe her."

At this point, Qu Chengfeng's tone became more wistful and incredulous: "Until last week, she told me your name, saying that you were the one who helped her optimize the core algorithm. Later, I made a special inquiry and found out that you were actually from the Chinese Language and Literature Department."

He stopped and looked at Chen Lin, asking, "I really don't understand, you're so good at math, why didn't you just apply to a math major?"

"I was a liberal arts student when I took the college entrance exam, so I couldn't apply," Chen Lin explained succinctly. "However, I've already planned to apply to the school to change my major this summer."